June Wrap-Up | 2015

So... this month was a bit of a slow reading month for me. The first couple weeks of June were hard because I had final exams, and studying took prioritiy there, so I didn't get a ton of reading done then. After that, it was summer, but I found myself in an awful reading slump, and didn't really start reading again for about a week. That, combined with the fact that I'm a slow reader, meant I didn't get a huge stack of books read this month, but the ones I did read I found very enjoyable!

This month I read 5 books.

The Heir (Selection #4) by Kiera Cass : I actually read this book the last day of May, but I had already posted my May Wrap-Up by the time I had finished it, so I figured I would include it here. Now, this book had been receiving a lot of mixed reviews, mostly leaning towards negative. However, I never doubted that Kiera Cass would do a brilliant job once again. For some reason, I love these books so much. I fly through them. This one was no exception. I read it pretty much in one sitting.

5/5 stars


Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #2)  by Sarah J. Maas : Now, the first book in this series wasn't my favorite ever, but I thought this second installment more than made up for it. I loved the Chaolena ship in this one, and it was so much darker of a book than I had expected it to be.

4.5/5 stars


Defy (Defy #1) by Sara B. Larson : This book was on my summer TBR and I was so happy to get to this one! It started off really well, and I was entirely engaged in this world. Then, a *POSSIBLE SPOILER* love triangle was introduced *END POSSIBLE SPOILER* and it all went downhill from there. I don't know if I'll be reading the second book or not, but this one more on the "okay" side.

3/5 stars

And... here is where my reading slump set in.

Vixen (Flappers #1) by Jillian Larkin: I had been looking forward to this one for a long time as well! It takes place in the 1920's USA, with flappers, and I've been dying to read a book like this one for ages. I was so happy when my library had it. My favorite thing about this book was just how... I don't know the word for it, but it wasn't this book that was trying to be epic, or have a lot of substantial stuff going down. No. It wasn't like that, and I really appreciated that. It got me out of my reading slump, for the time being. If you're interested, here is my Goodreads review.

4.5/5 stars


Eragon (The Inheritance Cycle #1) by Christopher Paolini : Here is a book I've been meaning to re-read since forever. I have read all but the last book and I've been wanting to marathon all of them, despite their hugeness and epicness and fantasy-ness. Plus, maybe I wanted dragons. I love all the characters in these books and the world and the language and everything. It's always very reminiscent of Lord of the Rings, which is, of course, one of my favorite all-time series. I really liked this one.

4.5/5 stars

Eldest (The Inheritance Cycle #2) by Christopher Paolini : Another re-read, obviously. And... I did quite the updates reel with this on Goodreads? I'll link that HERE so you can view my in-depth thoughts. Just click on the "view all status updates". But be forewarned: there be spoilers lurking in the status updates. As for general thoughts, I liked this one better than the first book. It was longer, so it took me quite a bit to read through it all, but was it worth it? I'd say yes.

4.75/5 stars

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That's all I read in June, and July is looking to be a busy month (vacations and surgery and NaNoWriMo... oh my!) but hopefully I'll get at least three books read next month, and if I do, I'll be happy. Until next time, happy reading!

How I Read Books | Book Tag

I totally stole this tag from Youtube, and I first saw it on "Thoughts on Tomes" channel. But I can't for the life of me remember the proper creator of this tag, sorry! All credit goes to them though. Since this looked fun, I decided to fill in my answers
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How do you find out about new books to read?

 

If I don’t find out about new releases from Booktube or the blogosphere, I usually find out from browsing Goodreads or Amazon. I have this weird thing where I go to a book I like, and then click through the sort of “Customers also bought” section until I find one with a pretty cover or cool title.

How did you get into reading?

 

Everyone’s answer, but I’ve been into reading since forever. My mom was a reading teacher when I was born, so that may have had something to do with it, but honestly my entire family reads, so it really rubbed  off as a child.

How has your taste in books changed as you’ve gotten older?

 

Not much. I’ve always been into the Fantasy genre, from “The Wind and the Willows” and “Grimm’s Fairy Tales” as a toddler to “Warriors” in middle school to “Lord of the Rings” and “Howl’s Moving Castle” now.

 

How often do you buy books?

 

For my birthday, or whenever we go to one certain book store up in a different city.

 

How did you get into booktubing (book blogging)?

I think I saw people blogging and figured, “Hey, that’d be a cool thing to do.” So I did. I want to start a Booktube channel when I get older, but for now I like my little nook of the internet just fine.

 

How do you react when you don’t like the end of a book?

Disappointment, abounds, seriously. The ending is what really makes or breaks a book for me, and if it fails me, then I just have to rant to someone who’s already read the book. I’ve got to let out that out to someone!

How often do you take a sneak peek at the end of the book to see if there’s a happy ending?

 

I USED TO DO THIS ALL THE TIME. I would actually view all the spoilers I could, and even look up the ending online to make sure. I get really anxious when it comes to books, and I don’t care if its happy or sad or bittersweet, I just want to know the ending. I don’t do that as much anymore, but sometimes I still peek.

 

 

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Thanks for reading! Have a great week. (As a heads up, I will be MIA until next Monday, so the 22nd I will be back!)

Friday Reads [#04]

It's Friday again, and a very special Friday as well... it's my first Friday of summer vacation. It's still at the point where it feels like I have just had several days off in a row, instead of feeling like an actual... summer vacation.

In other news, I've been feeling very, veeeeeery, slumpy lately. I just can't get into reading at all. I've tried picking up multiple things over the course of the week, but nothing really stuck. I visited the library a couple days ago, and I was hoping that would help me find something to fall in love with, but blah.

Just not feeling anything right now.

That doesn't mean I'm not reading! I am reading! At least, I'm trying to. Currently, I'm reading two books, but I'm more into one than the other.

The first book I'm reading is Eragon by Christopher Paolini. This one is about dragons and things. I love dragons and things! Sadly, I'm just not feeling it. I'm 165 pages through this one right now, and I think the reason I'm mostly feeling 'meh' about it, is that it got to a boring part (nothing is happening. Why.) and it's also the third or so time I've re-read this book, sooo. Yeah. I know everything that happens, which is ruining the fun. And the only reason I picked it up in the first place was because it's one of the few books that I own that I kinda wanted to re-read, but now I'm not feeling it. I might DNF this one.

The other book I got is a library book and that one is Vixen by Jillian Larkin. This one is really good! I'm 300-something pages through it so far. Really loving it! Or I was, but now that it's slowed down a bit pacing-wise I'm getting slumpy again. I won't DNF it like I might with Eragon, but still. It's kind of like Gossip Girls in 1923, with Flappers. (I've never read/watched Gossip Girls but this is what Vixen is compared to a lot.) I think Gloria is my favorite character.

Hm, other news. Well, it's been a pretty relaxing few days, I guess. Later this week, I'm taking a trip to Seattle, Washington with a friend and we're going to the zoo, the space needle, and all sorts of places like that.

I'll see you guys next Friday (maaaaybe. I'll be in Seattle so I might not be able to get a post up then, but I'll try).

Until next time, happy reading!

First Library Book Haul of Summer

Today was my last day of school, and I just had to go to the library to celebrate. It was hot outside, so I got an ice cream bar to celebrate too, but the books are the important things here, let's be real.

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Currently, I'm reading Eragon by Christopher Paolini for the third time, so I figured I'd pick up the second book in the series, Eldest while I was at the library. I'm sure you know what this one is about already, but in case you don't, this series is a four-book series about dragons. The main character, Eragon, starts out as a farm boy but finds a strange blue stone that turns out to be a dragon egg. I've read the first three (two and a half? I can't remember now) books in this series before (the series is called the Inheritance Cycle, by the way) but I've never picked up the last one. I always tell myself to, so this summer just might be my chance.

Going a completely different route, I picked up Vixen (Flappers #1)  by Jillian Larkin. This is one I've been eyeing for awhile. It takes place in 1920's America, and from the series title, I can determine that it is about Flappers. YES. I love that time era, with speak easies, prohibition, flapper girls, woman's suffrage... I've already started the first couple pages of this, and already it's making me laugh out loud.

Sticking on that historical fiction route, I got The Luxe (Luxe #1) by Anna Godbersen. This is another one that has been on my TBR since forever. It sounds like Gossip Girl set in 1899 Manhattan (another time period I love), and just like a quick fun read that I'm hoping I will enjoy!

Surprisingly enough, that's all the books I got from the library today. I can't wait to start reading all of them!

Until next time, happy reading!

Top Ten Tuesday #10: Most Anticipated Releases

Hey, guys! Is it Tuesday again already? It is, and this means it's time for another Top Ten Tuesday, which is hosted over at the Broke and Bookish book blog! This week's topic is definitely another one of my favorites, that being: "Top Ten Most Anticipated Releases For the Rest of 2015".

 

 

1. LEGACY OF KINGS by Eleanor Herman (August 25th, 2015):  Now, 2015 is a great year
   
   for so many new releases in all sorts of genres. My favorite genre being Fantasy, most of the books on this list will be from that one, and this first book is no exception. This one is the first book of a series, and the cover. That cover is so gorgeous! This book is about the Alexander the Great time-era and I believe it might be a retelling of it? From the synopsis, it sounds like there will be quite the cast of characters too, so I'm excited. This is definitely one I needed yesterday. (Plus Cinda Williams Chima gave it 5 stars on Goodreads.)
2. A THOUSAND NIGHTS by E. K. Johnston (October 6th, 2015): This one is another fantasy retelling, this time of the One Thousand and One Nights. It's about a girl who's sister is almost chosen to be the wife of a man who's wife gets killed every night, meaning he has to choose a new wife. Of course, the main character takes the place of her sister and everything expands from there. (That made no sense when I said it. I promise, it sounds awesome.) This one has another pretty cover. Such pretty covers lately! (Not that I'm complaining at all, of course.)
4. A WHOLE NEW WORLD by Liz Braswell (September 1st, 2015): Don't judge me too harshly, but yes, I have another YA Fantasy retelling on my list. But this one is super awesome as well, so I can't leave it out! A Whole New World is the first book in a series of books called
   
   "Twisted Tales", which supposedly put a dark spin on some famous fairytales. This one is the story of Aladdin... if Jafar had gotten the Genie's lamp. I mean, how cool is that? (I thought it was very cool.)

4. HUNTER by Mercedes Lackey (September 1st, 2015): Quick confession-- I'm an avid fantasy reader who has never read anything by Mercedes Lackey. Yeah, that's a problem I hope to fix by reading "Hunter" when it comes out early September! Also the first in a series, this book is about a world where people have to live in cities or kingdoms with walls around them to keep monsters from getting in. And, it seems like it also has a bit of a dystopian vibe, because apparently there are millions of people watching this thing on TV.

5. ILLUMINAE by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff (October 20th, 2015): Another pretty hyped up book, but that just makes me more excited. It's an interstellar sort of book that takes place in the future, the year 2575 to be exact. And one of the coolest parts is that it's told by way of texts and secret files instead of traditionally told.

6. VENGEANCE ROAD by Erin Bowman (September 1st, 2015): This is like, the third book on my list that releases on September 1st. Wow. Anyway, this one is a YA Western about a girl who's father is murdered when some people find out about a secret hidden in his journal, and the daughter has to embark on this journey, I think? This one is one of my most anticipated reads because you don't see any westerns in YA all that much? And it's a genre I would like to read from?

7. LOCK AND MORI  by Heather W. Petty (September 15th, 2015): Another book that isn't Fantasy? That makes three in a row, what even. A Sherlock Holmes retelling, where Moriarty is a girl and Sherlock "Lock" Holmes is a boy and they both attend the same (modern-day) high school in London. It sounded cool.

8. THE SWORD OF SUMMER_ by Rick Riordan (October 6th, 2015): This is the release I have been anticipating since the sixth grade. That's right, Uncle Rick is finally releasing the first book in his Norse Mythology series (trilogy? probably a trilogy, let's be real.) SUCH EXCITE.

9. QUEEN OF SHADOWS  by Sarah J. Maas (September 1st, 2015): What what what. Another September 1st release date? I wouldn't complain if it wasn't so far away, haha! Anyway, this did make my most anticipated list even though I haven't quite read Heir of Fire yet. Queen of Shadows is #4 in the Throne of Glass series, and this installment has a predicted 672 pages on Goodreads? I am ready for this action.

10. WINTER by Marissa Meyer (November 10th, 2015):. This one has 824 pages! Or so says Goodreads. Knowing how I blew through the rest of this series (Winter is the last installment in the Lunar Chronicles), I just know all 800 pages will go by fast.

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas | Spoiler-Free Review

The last book I finished reading just two days ago was the one... the only... Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas. This one is a sequel to Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas which was "just okay" to me.

Not anymore. I LOVED this book, and I have a lot of thoughts on this one! This review is spoiler-free but I do have a longer in-depth spoilery review on my Goodreads page here.
...

First can I get an appreciation cheer for the covers of this series. I know not everyone loves them, but I sure do. They're perfect!

Second, this book felt so much longer than 418 pages. And that's not in a bad way, at all. So much stuff happened and the entire time I was hooked. I could not stop reading, and I dragged this book with me everywhere. Even to my brother's band concert. (Don't worry, I did watch him play!)

This book was epic in the sense that it encompassed a lot. It had such a large cast of characters, but at the same time... not. This book was so many things at once that it's hard to write a comprehensible review on it!

Looking back at it, it feels like a lot less happened than it seemed at the time. We had the obvious main points, and then a bit of stuff that didn't seem quite as important or maybe filled up more than I thought it should have, personally. The ending also felt... call me crazy, slow in a sense. Maybe it was because I had been reading this book for a week and was thinking to myself "Okay I'm getting a bit tired of reading this one book..." that it dragged, but for those two points alone I am taking off ½ of a star from my rating of this book.

 

Other than that though, I thought this book was great. I loved the character growth as compared to the previous book in the series, and even though I didn't remember anything (literally, I remember nothing from the first book. This is why I marathon series.) from Throne of Glass #1, I thought Crown of Midnight stood just fine as the first book in the series.

 

As afore-mentioned, the characters were great. Seven pages into the book, and Celaena Sardothien was already kicking major butt. Like, seriously. And my hatred for the king just keeps growing and growing and growing, really. One thing I do wish we had gotten more of in this book was Dorian. I felt like he was overlooked a little bit, but I'm hoping that we get to see more of him (especially with recent developments... being vague on purpose) in the next book (or four! Yay, for long fantasy series!).

 

This book made me feel a lot of things. Like, a lot of things. One moment I was feeling happy for Celaena and then the next I was heartbroken alongside her. I thought Sarah J. Maas dealt with a lot of topics seriously and did it well, and I thought Celaena dealt with some things that happened very realistically.

 

Overall, this book was a very strong addition to the series and I've heard it just keeps on getting better with Heir of Fire (which I really need to read. Like, now.).

 

My rating on this book is: 4 ½ stars and a spot on my favorites shelf! I can feel that this series is definitely going to become a favorite of mine in the future.

 

 

Friday Reads [#03]

So, it's the last Friday of the school year, and I know I'm excited. But at the same time I'm dreading it because finals next week... and because it's supposed to get above 90 degrees Fahrenheit this weekend and nope. No, no, no. I do not do summer. I do not like it. At all.

This week, I actually read more than I thought I had. The first book I read in one sitting (it was a graphic novel) and that was In Real Life. Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas was one I finished just yesterday, which I loved. The ending was maybe a little bit slow, but it was fine. I also read The Heir by Kiera Cass, which I absolutely and totally loved. I read it in one day, of course. I'm thinking of maybe doing a review on one or both of them, so let me know if you're interested.

So what am I currently reading? Good question. I'm reading a book I've been looking forward to for a long, long while, and that is...

Defy by Sara B. Larson!

It's the first in a fantasy trilogy. The first book is about a girl who is forced to dress like a boy and join the prince's personal guard. And let me tell you, I'm ~100 pages in, and this is a great read already! I mentioned in my "Beach Bag" Top Ten Tuesday post that I had been wary of reading this one, because, well, the reviews on Goodreads were not the best...

But I'm so happy to be able to say that I'm enjoying it! It's a page-turner for sure, and the main character is a WOC (although as aforementioned she's disguised as a man) so, yay, diversity!

However, there are some topics in this that might be considered triggering for some people (death, rape, though rape isn't actually shown "on screen") so yeah. I know that's what has been causing a lot of the negative reviews on Goodreads, so if those are triggering for you I'd recommend that you not check out this book.

In other news, BEA was last week and although I did not attend, it's definitely on my bucket list so I love reading or watching all the vlogs, book hauls, and experiences. It looks like such a fun event, if a little overwhelming.

And, non-bookishly, my birthday was last Saturday, so... go me? (I deserve cake. Again.) I got to go to a very large bookstore, and I got a total of three books, plus a $50 gift card to the same place. I'll probably do a book haul on what books I got soon.

What are you reading?

Top Ten Tuesday #9: Movies/TV Shows

Hello, everyone. It's time for another Top Ten Tuesday, which is, as always, hosted by the lovely ladies of Broke and Bookish. Today's topic is one of my favorites, because it combines two of my favorite things: books, and TV. Yup. The topic this week is 'Top Ten Books You Think Would Make Good Movies/TV Shows'.

1. THRONE OF GLASS by Sarah J. Maas:  OK, so this is going to be on everyone's list. I know that. But do I regret a single thing by adding it to my own? Nope. With all the action, romance, and kick-butt sequences in these novels, the six-book series would translate perfectly to the TV screen. Six books for six seasons, right? Right. It would be perfect. (I would definitely binge watch this.)
2. THE SELECTION by Kiera Cass: I've heard rumors of this book being made into a movie, but honestly? I'd prefer it as a TV show. It reads as a reality TV show already, and with all the drama that goes down in these books, it would make an addicting television series.
3. WARRIORS by Erin Hunter: I'M SORRY I HAD TO. This book series was the first fandom I ever got into, and its the reason I consider myself a fan girl to this day. Yup. So, if there was an anime television series of this, I would be over the moon excited. I mean, there are 24 books. 24 books! That gives a lot to work with, people. It could have four or five seasons... if this was done right, it would be perfect.
4. FABLEHAVEN by Brandon Mull: Yup, please do this. I can see the opening scene of the promotional trailer already... the things that the directors would be able to do with this! The opportunities are endless. I'd like to see this one as a TV series as well, since it also has quite a few books. (Well, only five. But five is enough for multiple seasons.)
5. CINDER by Marissa Meyer: This one was also on a lot of lists that I've seen, but let's be real. It deserves to be made into an awesome TV show with POC as main characters in the cast, and epic scenery, and just a lot of things. This book deserves a lot of things.
6. THE DEMON KING by Cinda Williams Chima: I tried so hard not to mention my favorite series in this post, but I failed. (The shame!) But I need to see this on my television screen right now, okay?! Just the storyline, the scenery, the sequences, the emotions translating to screen... all of it would be perfect. If it were done right, of course. I wouldn't even care if this were a movie or a TV show (though I would, of course, prefer a TV show).
7. AIRBORN by Kenneth Oppel: I read this back in November 2013, while writing my NaNoWriMo novel, and staying in a vacation home, and... I just have such fond memories of this book? While the rest of my family went snowboarding, I stayed in the ski lodge, warm with cocoa and reading this book. But enough sappiness! This would make the perfect movie. I would watch this movie many, many times, and it needs to happen. Please, please, please, make this happen.
8. TIGER'S CURSE by Colleen Houck: This is another one that I've heard movie rumors for. And I hope they're true and work out really well, because I can definitely see how this would translate to the big screen. It has plenty of action, adventure, and romance that would keep audiences hooked. It would certainly keep me hooked.
9. HATTIE BIG SKY by Kirby Larson: Rarely does a book make me cry, but this one made me shed a tear! And if it were translated to movie form, I would probably be a sobbing, emotional, mess. It's historical fiction, so it would have to be done really well, but I am crossing my fingers that it is and we get a great movie one day.
10. THE PENDERWICKS by Jeanne Birdsall: Yes, this is another book from my childhood, but these characters are the most real characters I have ever read about. And that's saying a lot, as someone who has read thousands of books in her lifetime. I have a hard time connecting to characters, but these ones, I did. So to see Rosalind, Skye, Jane, and Batty, and Jeffery come to life? Yes. Yes, please.

Aah, this one was so much fun to do! I had a lot of trouble narrowing it down and even had to delete a couple previous answers to add in new priorities. My top choices would have to be Throne of Glass, Warriors, and Fablehave television shows. What are your top picks?