Weekly Reading Recap

We’ve had a few really nice days in a row:) Too bad I worked them all. Hopefully Friday is nice because I’m off.

Currently reading:

Finished reading:

Reviewed:

What I’m hoping to get to next week: to read

to review

Books read it 2018: 102

Debut YA/MG authors read for 2018: 33

Contemporary: 55

Fantasy: 27

Sci-Fi: 6

Dystopian: 4

Historical: 3

Misc: 1

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Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday was started by The Broke and the Bookish, and has now moved to That Artsy Reader Girl. Every Tuesday there’s a different topic. This week is Top Ten series I don’t plan on finishing but I don’t like giving up on series(even when I probably should) so I did Top Ten series I need to binge read so I can say I’m done or so I’m caught up.

10.  Throne of Glass – Sarah J Maas. I read a couple and enjoyed them but even though I bought them all, it’s taking me forever to pick up the next one to read it.

9.  The Lunar Chronicles – Marissa Meyer. Cinder didn’t actually blow me away but Scarlet made me want to stay with the series. Enough to buy them all at least. Actually pick them up and read them, still working on that.

8.  Fallen – Lauren Kate. I read the first one and I watched the movie. One day I will find out what happens in the rest of the series.

7.  Shatter Me – Tahereh Mafi. I even bought the new one when it came out years after the original trilogy but still haven’t read any of them.

6.  The Dark Artifices – Cassandra Clare. These books are so just huge I keep thinking I could read three books in the time it would take me to read this one. So it remains on my shelf.

5.  Defiance – CJ Redwine. I remember really loving the first book, bought the next two, have read all the books in the author other series, but still have yet to read the other two in this one.

4.  Age of X series – Richelle Mead. I’ve loved her other series but this one keeps being put off.

And 3 series I totally recommend binge reading:

3.  The Darkest Minds – Alexandra Bracken. The movie comes out in August. There’s lots of time. And a new book also comes out this summer!

2.  Snow Like Ashes – Sara Raasch. It can be slow paced but it’s very worth it.

1.  Harry Potter – JK Rowling. There’s never a bad time to binge read Harry Potter.

Book Review: The Truth Lies Here by Lindsey Klingele

The Truth Lies Here

Release date: August 21st 2018

In small town Michigan, Penny, an aspiring journalist, teams up with the nerdy boy-next-door and the town’s star quarterback to find her conspiracy theorist father after he goes missing and several other townspeople turn up dead in the woods.
The deeper she digs, the weirder things start to get. Townspeople repeat the same phrases—verbatim. Men in black suits stroll around Main Street. Chunks of her memory go missing. Pretty soon, Penny’s research leads her to the long-ago meteorite crash in Bone Lake’s woods, and she’s going to have to reconsider her definition of “real” if she wants answers. . . .

This is a great pick for a rainy, dark night when you want a book that has a bit of a creepy factor to it. Or at any time, but it has that definite feel of a dark night read. It was fairly quick to read, fast paced, it kept my interest through the whole book. It did have some twists I found predictable but that could be because it reminded me of Supernatural or The X-Files, two shows I’ve watched so many times I question everything when a book reminds me of them.

The whole book was through Penny’s POV, an aspiring journalist student hoping to use her childhood hometown as the backdrop to a human interest piece that she was sure would put her application over the top. Except her dad never showed to get her at the airport. I could understand her lack of concern at first, she was used to her father putting his work above everything else and they were on complete opposite sides of the journalism spectrum. It made for an interesting relationship even with her father being absent.

There was a bit of a love triangle between Penny, her childhood best friend Dex, and her childhood crush Micah, but it never overtook the story. Both boys added something different to the plot but I was leaning more toward Dex, the geeky best friend who loved conspiracy theories and The X-Files and who was by Penny’s side through her whole investigation, believing in the impossible even when she didn’t. I thought Micah was a good way to show how much Penny had changed from the girl who lived in Bone Lake as a child.

The plot focused on Penny’s father’s disappearance and her and Dex’s investigation. It was fast paced and there was a lot of back and forth as they argued over a realistic explanation vs a paranormal one. The more they investigated, the more strange things they uncovered, which led to more questions. Some of the twists were predictable, as mentioned, but they were still enjoyable.

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Weekly Reading Recap

It’s on time this week! I think I’ve determined a good balance of reading and VR playing. I have learned that some games are just not for me.

Currently reading: 

Finished reading: 

Reviewed: 

What I’m hoping to get to next week:  to read

 to review

Books read it 2018: 98

Debut YA/MG authors read for 2018: 31

Contemporary: 53

Fantasy: 26

Sci-Fi: 5

Dystopian: 4

Historical: 3

Misc: 1

Cover reveal: Circle of Shadows by Evelyn Skye

Evelyn Skye, the author of The Crown’s Game duology is back with a new book! This one’s coming out January 22 2019 and the cover is soooo pretty.

What it’s about:

Sora can move as silently as a ghost and hurl throwing stars with lethal accuracy. Her gemina, Daemon, can win any physical fight blindfolded and with an arm tied behind his back. They are apprentice warriors of the Society of Taigas—marked by the gods to be trained in magic and the fighting arts to protect the kingdom of Kichona.
As their graduation approaches, Sora and Daemon look forward to proving themselves worthy of belonging to the elite group—but in a kingdom free of violence since the Blood Rift Rebellion many years ago, it’s been difficult to make their mark. So when Sora and Daemon encounter a strange camp of mysterious soldiers while on a standard scouting mission, they decide the only thing to do to help their kingdom is to infiltrate the group.Taking this risk will change Sora’s life forever—and lead her on a mission of deception that may fool everyone she’s ever loved.
Love, spies, and adventure abound as Sora and Daemon unravel a complex web of magic and secrets that might tear them—and the entire kingdom—apart.

The cover!

I was excited before but now I’m counting down the days!

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday was started by The Broke and the Bookish, and has now moved to That Artsy Reader Girl. Every Tuesday there’s a different topic. This week is Top Ten books to read on the beach/poolside, or Summer TBR. I did Summer TBR. I usually find there’s less books being published in the Summer months that are on my must-read immediately list so it’s usually a good time for me to get ahead on some ARC reading.

10. The Darkest Legacy – Alexandra Bracken. I’ve been waiting to go back into the Darkest Minds world.

9. The Life Lucy Knew – Karma Brown. I’ve been trying to read more fiction this year.

8. Catwoman: Soulstealer – Sarah J Maas. The DC origins books have been pretty good so far.

7. Wildcard – Marie Lu. Warcross was one of my top reads last year so I can’t wait for this one.

6. Nightblood – Elly Blake. I’ve loved the first two and can’t wait to read the end.

5. The Towering Sky – Katharine McGee. Another ending that I’ve been waiting for.

4. Neverwake – Amy Plum. I have the feeling something big will happen in this sequel.

3. Sadie – Courtney Summers. This sounds creepy and perfect for a stormy night.

2. Rule – Ellen Goodlett. This sounds very Three Dark Crowns-ish so I’m intrigued.

1. For a Muse of Fire – Heidi Heilig. This one just looks epic.

Book Review: Grace and Fury by Tracy Banghart

Grace and Fury

Release date: July 31st 2018

In a world where women have no rights, sisters Serina and Nomi Tessaro face two very different fates: one in the palace, the other in prison.
Serina has been groomed her whole life to become a Grace–someone to stand by the heir to the throne as a shining, subjugated example of the perfect woman. But when her headstrong and rebellious younger sister, Nomi, catches the heir’s eye, it’s Serina who takes the fall for the dangerous secret that Nomi has been hiding.
Now trapped in a life she never wanted, Nomi has only one way to save Serina: surrender to her role as a Grace until she can use her position to release her sister. This is easier said than done. A traitor walks the halls of the palace, and deception lurks in every corner. But Serina is running out of time, imprisoned on an island where she must fight to the death to survive and one wrong move could cost her everything.

This one caught my attention when it was compared to The Handmaid’s Tale and I was really intrigued by the concept. There were some tropes and similarities to other books that made certain twists feel predictably but overall, I loved the girl power vibe and I loved the relationship between the sisters even though they were in separate areas. They couldn’t have been more different from each other but they had each other’s backs no matter what.

Serina was the older sister, the one who’d been training to be a Grace her whole life, the one who was supposed to be chosen by the prince to serve him and save her family from poverty. Nomi was the younger and serving as Serina’s handmaiden, which meant leaving her twin brother behind. Nomi was rebellious and everything a Grace shouldn’t be but she ended up catching the attention of the prince. The author didn’t waste any time setting up the stakes of the book with Nomi chosen as a Grace and Serina taking the fall for a secret her sister was hiding very early on in the book.

With the sisters separated, it gave the book the chance to show other female characters and gave the sisters other people to turn to besides family. This was especially true of Serina, who was imprisoned on an island with many other women and I enjoyed seeing the survival aspect while also seeing that these women took care of each other, even though they were forced to fight each other for food. Nomi had less female influence in her corner. She had her handmaiden to help her with dressing and daily tasks but they other two girls she spent the most time with her other Graces, who would likely go running to the King or Prince if they caught wind of Nomi doing anything wrong. It was really interesting to see each sister have to transform into someone they’d spent their whole life trying not to be: polite and submissive Serina had to learn to fight while rebellious Nomi had to learn how to fit in with the demure Graces.

The story caught my attention right away and didn’t let go. It was a very addictive read with lots of twists, some predictable and others more surprising. I definitely cannot wait for the next book.

*I received a copy of this book from Indigo Books & Music in exchange for an honest review.

Series Spotlight: Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Thursday I’m going to be putting the spotlight on a book series and talking about it. It might be one I’ve read, one I’m reading, or one I haven’t gotten to yet, depending on what I feel like talking about that week. This week’s series is one that started off strong, almost lost me in the middle, but ended back on a strong note.

The Red Queen series by Victoria Aveyard

Review status: 3/4, Red Queen, Glass Sword, King’s Cage

All books are released, own in hardcover.

This series started off so well, I was so hooked into the first book. It really dragged in the second and, though the third picked up a bit, it still lacked what made the first one special. The last book ended the series strong but the only reason I finished is because I try not to give up on series.

Favourite character: Maven and Killorn. I like my characters dark and twisted with some underlying issues. And I like the supportive best friend who because a great character in their own right.

Favourite book: Red Queen. It’s the one that got me hooked and started it all.

Status: Finished.

Author status: Buy if intrigued. Only one series so it’s hard to be auto-buy just yet.

Next up from Victoria Aveyard: Nothing I could find listed but I wouldn’t be surprised if she was taking some time to herself after a 4-book series. Plus probably still touring to promote it.

Weekly Reading Recap

I bought a VR headset and a PS4. Wonder how this will cut into my reading time. This was also supposed to be out yesterday with Series Spotlight today but do to VR, it’s a day late. Ooops.

Currently reading: 

Finished reading: 

Reviewed: 

What I’m hoping to get to next week:  to read

 to review

Books read it 2018: 94

Debut YA/MG authors read for 2018: 31

Contemporary: 50

Fantasy: 26

Sci-Fi: 4

Dystopian: 4

Historical: 3

Misc: 1

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday was started by The Broke and the Bookish, and has now moved to That Artsy Reader Girl. Every Tuesday there’s a different topic. This week is Top Ten bookish travel related so I did top ten real places/things books have made me want to see/do.

10. A cruise. Never been on one.

9. Road trip. So much more epic in books.

8. Summer camp. It seems so much more fun in books.

7. Volunteer at an animal shelter. Every time a character does it, I’m reminded that I keep saying I want to do that.

6. Karaoke. I cannot sing and I’m not a bar/party person so I never have.

5. New York. So many books are set here.

4. San Francisco. It sounded like fun.

3. Scotland. Can I have a Jamie Fraser too?

2. Paris. Thanks, Anna and Isla.

1. London. Harry Potter stuff!