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Showing posts from 2019

Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

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Thoughts at a glance: ***** (It was amazing!) Summary:  Mia Corvere watched her father die, hung for being a traitor to the Itreyan Republic. Then she watched her mother and brother get hauled off by the same corrupt senate that ordered her father's execution. And then she was taken away to be disposed of herself. But years later, Mia is still alive, and gunning for revenge. She has trained for years to merely qualify to join the legendary Red Church School of Assassins, and now, in order to be able to return and avenge the fall of the House Corvere, she will have to survive the training program, as well as her deadly classmates. But Mia has a special ability that her classmates don't have: she can manipulate shadows. As Mia makes allies and enemies alike, someone is murdering her fellow initiates. If she wants to earn her spot in the Red Church and eventually get her revenge, she will have to reckon with her past, defeat her rivals, and stay alive.

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

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Thoughts at a glance: ***** (It was amazing!) Summary:  Alex Stern was a nobody going nowhere fast. After being the sole survivor of a horrific drug-related mass homicide, Alex awakes to a chance at a new life: a full ride to Yale in exchange for some work with its Ancient Eight secret societies, or Houses. The thing is, those Ancient Eight Houses, with their illustrious, powerful alumni that include past Presidents and other well-known figures, operate using some very old and dangerous magic. And it is the job of the Ninth House, the House of Lethe, to keep those Ancient Eight in check. Alex's work with Lethe, already dangerous and difficult to stomach, takes a turn for the worse when, first, her mentor disappears and, second, a local townie girl is found murdered on campus. Authorities are quick to brush off the murder as mundane (well, non-magical), but Alex thinks there is some House involvement. Surviving on just her street smarts, her memories of her mentor, and her u...

Perfectly Adequate by Jewel E. Ann

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Disclaimers: while my blog post itself does not contain any sexual content, this book does. This is a review for a book that is meant for mature audiences, and therefore is unsuitable for minors. This book was provided to me for free by the author in exchange for an honest review. Thoughts at a glance: **** (I really liked it) Synopsis (provided by publisher) : Dr. Elijah Hawkins needs … something. After his wife jumps headfirst into a midlife crisis, he’s left with his young son, Roman, and a lot of unanswered questions. That something turns out to be a someone—Dorothy Mayhem, nursing student, patient transporter, reckless driver, and emu owner. Dorothy studies humans, the neurotypical kind, through books and television. Then she emulates their behavioral patterns to fit in with her peers. But nothing can prepare her for Dr. Elijah Hawkins. Single dad. Brilliant pediatric oncologist. And the sexiest doctor at the hospital. When his failed attempts at aski...

Some quick review blurbs

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Hi there! I realized it's been a while since I posted--the new school year has started, and things are busy, busy busy! I've been reading, but I haven't had a chance to sit down and write some in-depth reviews, but I thought I'd share with you what I've read since my last post, as well as some quick thoughts: The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi Thoughts at a glance: *** (I liked it) Quick summary: A year after they broke up, Ella and Matt reunite. Matt is not over Ella, and Ella wants to be over Matt. As they relive the magical night that they first got together, Ella tries to figure out whether getting back together would be worth it. Quick review: This was a really cute story! If you're into realistic YA romance (realistic as in, not fantasy or scifi or supernatural), then you'll like this one!   Lifel1k3 and Dev1at3 by Jay Kristoff Thoughts at a glance: ***** (It was amazing!) for both Quick summary:  Eve lives among the ...

Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag!

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It's July, and apparently this is a thing bookish Internet people do :) 1. Best book you’ve read so far in 2019? 2. Best sequel you’ve read? (Well, I read all three of these this year, but yeah!) 3. New release you haven’t gotten to, but want to? 4. Most anticipated release for the second half of 2019? 5. Biggest disappointment? I can't say that I have one! I mean, I've read books this year that I didn't love, but to call them a disappointment would mean that I had high expectations to begin with, lol... 6. Biggest surprise? The plot twist was DEFINITELY one I didn't see coming, and plus, this book challenged me in surprising ways. 7. New favorite author (either debut or new to you)? Stephanie Garber, author of the Caraval  series (new to me) 8. Newest fictional crush? The gang of The Raven Cycle , but I'm a Gansey girl for sure. 9. New favorite character? The entire gang of Aurora Rising . Like, their entire dynamic together...

Jersey Six by Jewel E. Ann

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Disclaimers: while my blog post itself does not contain any sexual content, this book does. This is a review for a book that is meant for mature audiences, and therefore is unsuitable for minors. This book was provided to me for free by the author in exchange for an honest review. Thoughts at a glance: **** (I really liked it) Synopsis   ( provided by publisher) : A hit-and-run accident leaves Jersey Six orphaned and homeless on the streets of Newark, shattering her dreams of school dances, pink nail polish, and a diploma. Eight years later, a burn victim with amnesia wanders into Jersey’s barely-existent life. She resists his efforts to form a friendship until he reveals knowledge of the person responsible for derailing her future. Through their unusual friendship, she discovers a way to avenge the deaths of her foster parents. All she has to do is destroy the world’s biggest rock star. In the ultimate game of sex, lies, and manipulation, can Jersey discover t...

Caraval, Legendary, and Finale by Stephanie Garber

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Thoughts at a glance: ***** (It was amazing!) Summary: This is a review for the entire series (because I read them all in one go), but I will paste here the blurb for the first book, so as to avoid spoiling anyway. My review, however, will talk about the entire series as a whole, and WILL contain spoilers for at least the first two books. Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over. But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first ...

Movie review: The Sun Is Also a Star

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For my review of the novel, by Nicola Yoon, please click here . I really liked the novel when I read it a couple years ago, so I was really excited for this movie to come out. (Not the least of all, because Yara Shahidi and Charles Melton are like, THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE I'VE EVER SEEN.) The quick sum-up is that Natasha and her family are undocumented immigrants, and the day before her entire family is due to be deported, she meets Daniel, an American-born son of Korean immigrants, on the way to a college interview. Tasha is all science and sensibility and facts; Daniel is a poet and a philosopher. Daniel is a writer who doesn't want to become a doctor like his parents want him to; Tasha is a New Yorker who doesn't want to be forced to leave the city that has become her home, even though the American government feels otherwise. Daniel tells Tasha that he could get her to fall in love with him in one day, using scientific methods from a study he read about fallin...

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

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Thoughts at a glance: ***** (It was amazing!) Summary: Tyler Jones is the Golden Boy of his graduating class at Aurora Academy. He works the hardest, has the highest marks, and is slated to be one of the BEST squad leaders. Until he misses the big Draft, answering a mysterious distress signal and rescuing a girl who ends up being the sole survivor on a ship that was given up for dead... two hundred years ago. So now, Tyler, who was to have his pick of the best students at Aurora Academy, is now stuck with a squad full of rejects, outcasts, and sociopaths. And moreover, the girl he rescued? They don't really know who she is or what she's doing there, and neither does she, but there is something weird and scary about her. And suddenly Squad 312 finds themselves on the run from every major governing space body, space crime lords, and even warring alien races as they try to protect her. And also, this mismatched group might be the thing that saves the galaxy from an ancie...

This Is Not a Love Scene by S.C. Megale

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This book was provided to me for free through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thoughts at a glance: **** (I really liked it) Synopsis (provided by publisher): Lights, camera—all Maeve needs is action. But at eighteen, a rare form of muscular dystrophy usually stands in the way of romance. She's got her friends, her humor, and a passion for filmmaking to keep her focus off consistent rejection...and the hot older guy starring in her senior film project. Tall, bearded, and always swaying, Cole Stone is everything Maeve can't be. And she likes it. Between takes, their chemistry is shockingly electric. Suddenly Maeve gets a taste of typical teenage dating life, but girls in wheelchairs don’t get the hot guy—right? Cole’s attention challenges everything she once believed about her self-image and hopes for love. But figuring this out, both emotionally and physically, won't be easy for either of them. Maeve must choose between what she needs and what she wan...

The Raven Kings by Maggie Stiefvater

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Thoughts at a glance: **** (I really liked it) Summary:  This is the fourth book of the Raven Cycle series. This review will contain spoilers for the earlier books. Here are my reviews for The Raven Boys , The Dream Thieves , and Blue Lily, Lily Blue . One favor. Whoever awakens the Raven King will be granted one favor. And while saving the life of the one among them who was predicted to die sounds like the pretty obvious choice, the arrival of more sinister entities in Henrietta brings with it some complications. Meanwhile, something is causing the trees in Cabeswater to die, and Blue, Gansey, and the rest of the boys need to figure out what to do before they run out of time completely.

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

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Thoughts at a glance: **** (I really liked it) Summary: This is the third book of the Raven Cycle  series. This review will contain spoilers for the earlier books. Here are my reviews for The Raven Boys  and The Dream Thieves . Blue Sargent has gained a new family in her Raven Boys, but now she has lost family as well: her mother, Maura, has disappeared into the caves of Cabeswater as the new school year starts, and Blue doesn't know what to do with herself. In addition, a new teacher has shown up at Aglionby Academy with a deadly agenda.

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

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Thoughts at a glance: **** (I really liked it) Summary:   The Dream Thieves  is book 2 of The Raven Cycle , and will contain spoilers for the first book of the series, The Raven Boys . For my review of The Raven Boys , please click here . Ronan Lynch, dark and dangerous, has a secret. His secret is that he can bring things back from dreams and make them real. But he's not the only one with secrets. And he's not the only one with this particular secret. As hit men and bounty hunters converge on Henrietta to find the Greywaren (the object that can bring things back from dreams), Ronan is being both hunted and haunted by his ability.  In the meantime, Gansey continues his quest to find Glendower, the lost Welsh king. But his friendship with the others grows complicated, as Ronan dives deeper into his ability and his family history, Adam learns what it truly means to be the one who has awakened the ley line, and Blue learns that there is no fighting the psychic ...

Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor

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Thoughts at glance: **** (I really liked it) Summary: This book is the sequel to Strange the Dreamer , and this review will contain spoilers for that book. Click here for my review of Strange the Dreamer . When human interference leads to mass destruction in Weep, Lazlo finds himself suddenly blue-skinned, the long-lost son of Skathis, the brutal god who could bend Mesarthium to his will and raped countless generations of human women to sire godspawn. Sarai, the godspawn daughter of the goddess of despair and the legendary god killer, Eril-Fane, finds herself now a ghost, and at the whim of Minya, who has the power to control ghosts and is hell-bent on taking vengeance on Eril-Fane as well as the rest of humankind. If Lazlo does not do what Minya asks, she will let go of Sarai's soul, letting it evanesce into oblivion. But in the midst of their battle with Minya, a larger threat looms, with its own score to settle when it finds the seraph-shaped citadel, as well as the lar...

Naked Love by Jewel E. Ann

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Disclaimers: while my blog post itself does not contain any sexual content, this book does. This is a review for a book that is meant for mature audiences, and therefore is unsuitable for minors. This book was provided to me for free by the author in exchange for an honest review. Thoughts at a glance: **** (I really liked it) Summary: (as provided by the publisher) What happens when a high-heeled diva goes camping with her sister’s dog?  Avery Montgomery, fashionista and preacher’s daughter, needs a ride from Milwaukee to Los Angeles.  “Make my death quick, and please don’t tie me up. I’m claustrophobic.”   Jake Matthews, diva-hater, agrees to let her tag along on his annual but primitive trek to the West Coast.  “Okay, Princess, I’ll take you to L.A., but your crown won’t make it there in one piece.”  She’s desperate and out of options. He’s ruthless and out of patience.   Don’t miss this sexy, hilarious, and heart-warming...

Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

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Thoughts at a glance: **** (I really liked it) Summary: Many of us get the feeling that we were meant for something more. Something special . In real life, that doesn't always end up happening, but in this book, Lazlo Strange, who is born a no-name orphan and ends up the errand boy at the prestigious Library of Zosma, finds himself taken along on a journey that only dreams are made of: to figure out the mysteries of a long-lost city called Weep. Summoned by the famous Eril-Fane, christened Godslayer after he rose up against the gods that kept the humans of Weep in slavery, a caravan of warriors, thinkers, tinkerers, and Lazlo head to Weep in order to solve a problem that has long kept Weep isolated across the vast desert. And in the meantime, the long-forgotten children of the humans and the slain gods plan their revenge.