Blogmas Book Review: The Ruby Circle by Richelle Mead

GoodReads Summary:
Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets – and human lives.
Their forbidden romance exposed, Sydney and Adrian find themselves facing the wrath of both the Alchemists and the Moroi in this electrifying conclusion to Richelle Mead’s bestselling Bloodlines series.
When the life of someone they both love is put on the line, Sydney risks everything to hunt down a deadly former nemesis. Meanwhile, she and Adrian becomes enmeshed in a puzzle that could hold the key to a shocking secret about spirit magic, a secret that could shake the entire Moroi world and alter their lives forever.
Don’t miss their unforgettable final chapter…
Review:
The final book in this series, The Ruby Circle, was not my favorite. Honestly, I think things could have ended at book four with a great happily ever after. I still enjoyed it because I’m obsessed with these characters.
I’m going to start here and say like I did in my last review that if you haven’t read any of the books in this series you should stop reading now. I would write this without spoilers but that’s pretty much impossible at this point. So, if you don’t want to be spoiled please stop reading here.
Sydney really started to stand up for herself and I loved that. She asked for help when she needed it. She made deals where she saw they would benefit her and her loved ones. I just really love her. She’s brave and stubborn and does whatever it takes to reach her goals and protect those she cares about.
Adrian was honestly kind of losing it in this book. Spirit is starting to take over and I hated that. I hated that he let it get to this point, but I loved the way things ended. He proves again and again how strong he is, and that he won’t let spirit win.
The part of this book that I didn’t like about this book was Jill. She’s been kidnapped at the end of Silver Shadows and while it’s obviously a big deal, they basically do nothing about it until the end of The Ruby Circle. I just didn’t feel like it was a big of a deal as it was supposed to be. Everything else kept getting in the way. I think maybe this was because Sydney and Adrian weren’t allowed to help, so we didn’t get to see the start of others looking for Jill.
Overall, I still enjoyed this book. This series is one of my favorites and I’m really glad they have withstood time, unlike many other books. Richelle Mead is an incredible writer. She’s created such a loveable group of friends that manage to work past their differences and care about each other anyway. Also, Richelle, when are we going to get a series about Declan as an adult? Because I would make some serious sacrifices to the gods for another series in this world.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

Blogmas Book Review: Silver Shadows by Richelle Mead

GoodReads Summary:
Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.
In The Fiery Heart, Sydney risked everything to follow her gut, walking a dangerous line to keep her feelings hidden from the Alchemists.
Now in the aftermath of an event that ripped their world apart, Sydney and Adrian struggle to pick up the pieces and find their way back to each other. But first, they have to survive.
For Sydney, trapped and surrounded by adversaries, life becomes a daily struggle to hold on to her identity and the memories of those she loves. Meanwhile, Adrian clings to hope in the face of those who tell him Sydney is a lost cause, but the battle proves daunting as old demons and new temptations begin to seize hold of him. . . .
Their worst fears now a chilling reality, Sydney and Adrian face their darkest hour in this heart-pounding fifth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where all bets are off.
Review:
Man am I a sucker for a forbidden love. I’m just going to go ahead and say that if you haven’t read the Vampire Academy series or any of the books in the Bloodlines series you should stop reading this review now. It’s practically impossible for me to say anything about this book without spoiling things in the previous books. So, stop reading now and come back when you’ve read the books.
Sydney really broke my heart in this one. Not because of anything she did, but because of the things she had to deal with. She’s been taken by the Alchemists and sent to reeducation, a place that is basically the worst nightmare of the Alchemists. She endures it to the best of her ability. She’s stubborn and determined to help anyone that she can that happens to cross her path. Despite literally being tortured, she still manages to help her fellow Alchemists that have been sent to reeducation. I just love her more and more in each book.
Then there’s Adrian, who does not handle things as well at Sydney does. He basically loses his shit and I really had a hard time with his chapters. I was so mad at him that I didn’t even want to listen. I was so glad when he finally pulled his life together and came up with a plan to save Sydney.
As always, I adore all of the supporting characters. They’re such a tight-knit group of friends and I just really love them.
Overall, this one was probably my least favorite in the series, but that’s not to say it was bad. It was a four-star read, but I just didn’t love it because Sydney and Adrian were apart for most of the book. I did however absolutely adore the turn their relationship took after Sydney was away from reeducation. The end of this book was terrible. I just want them all to be safe and happy already. Richelle Mead really has a way of ending a book leaving me shrieking into the void. I’m actually listening to the final book in the series as I type this review because I just couldn’t wait.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

Blogmas Book Review: The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead

GoodReads Summary:
Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the wolds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets – and human lives.
In The Indigo Spell, Sydney was torn between the Alchemist way of life and what her heart and gut were telling her to do. And in one breathtaking moment that Richelle Mead fans will never forget, she made a decision that shocked even her…
But the struggle isn’t over for Sydney. As she navigates the aftermath of her life-changing decision, she still finds herself pulled in too many directions at once. Her sister Zoe has arrived, and while Sydney longs to grow closer to her, there’s still so much she must keep secret. Working with Marcus has changed the way she views the Alchemists, and Sydney must tread a careful path as she harnesses her profound magical ability to undermine the way of life she was raised to defend. Consumed by passion and vengeance, Sydney struggles to keep her secret life under wraps as the threat of exposure — and re-education — looms larger than ever.
Pulses will race throughout this smoldering fourth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where no secret is safe.
Review:
I’ve been rereading the Vampire Academy and Bloodlines series via audiobook over the last month and I’m just so happy that I still love these books just as much as I did when I first read them. It really had been so much fun getting sucked back into the incredible world that Richelle Mead has created. I can’t help but love these characters with my whole heart and feel like I’m just a part of the gang.
The Fiery Heart might be my favorite of the series (we’ll find out after I finish the last two books), because everything for Sydney is just perfect, right up until it isn’t. Mead has a way of pulling you into the story with her writing and not letting you go until the very last page. And even then, those last pages are always filled with things that leave you screaming and rushing to pick up the next book. I’d forgotten about this talent of Mead’s until I needed to stop listening to write this review before starting the next book.
Sydney has really grown and it’s clear in this story. She’s accepted that she might not agree with all of the things the Alchemists believe and that while she still agrees with some of the things, she was taught growing up, she knows that so much of the ideas and values instilled in her are wrong. I just adored this confident and clever Sydney that is finally starting to put herself and her wants first.
But then her sister Zoe is assigned to live with Sydney in her dorm and assist on the assignment of protecting Jill. Zoe complicates things because she still firmly believes in every Alchemist value and has a burning desire to please their father. This causes a bit of conflict now and again when Zoe unknowing rats on Sydney for doing things that aren’t entirely in her job description. I really wanted to like Zoe, but what she did in the last chapters of this book were unforgivable. I don’t remember anything that happens in the next books, so I’m interested to see whether or not the Sage sisters can fix their relationship.
Adrian is amazing. I love him. I will forever love him. He’s doing his best to stay away from drinking and smoking cigarettes. He tries to limit his Spirit use, and he even goes to therapy. He and Sydney are relationship goals. I was sad for them having to sneak around so much after Zoe comes to live with Sydney, but also very happy at the times they did get to spend together. They are just such a good team. They really bring out the best in one another and I adore them so much. My heart broke for Adrian with the cliff hanger in the ending.
The rest of the gang is as loveable as ever. Eddie is a forever favorite. He’s honorable and brave. Jill is finally starting to fit in. I would like to see a bit more interaction between her and Lissa, but I have a feeling that’s coming. Angeline was hilarious. She just adds the perfect amount of comedy to this series. She says ridiculous things and acts without thinking. Or with her own sort of thought process. The newcomer, Neil, was kind of bland, though I think that was intentional.
Overall, I would die any day of the week for every single one of these characters. Richelle Mead’s writing is so well done. Her characters are well developed and all around loveable. I cannot wait to dive into the next book.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

Amanda’s Top Ten Tuesday – Hidden Gems

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Each week we talk about our top ten with a different topic provided by Jana. This week’s topic is top ten – Hidden Gems books that haven’t been talked about as much or haven’t been marketed as strongly that I think deserve some recognition.
1. Flamecaster (The Shattered Realms series) by Cinda Williams Chima – I love this series and this author. I just feel like I don’t really see her books advertised anywhere. I don’t see other bloggers talking about her books like I do. I definitely think she should be a more widely read author with the incredible worlds shes built full of diverse and loveable characters.
2. Bloodlines by Richelle Mead – This one I feel is always overlooked in favor of Vampire Academy. Because they’re part of the same world everyone turns to VA instead of talking about these books.
3. A Shade of Vampire by Bella Forrest – I found this series on my Kindle but it’s definitely one that I think more readers should try. The reviews vary but I think Forrest has built quite the reading adventure with this 50+ book series.
4. Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum – Buxbaum’s debut novel was so excellent. I thought I would hear more about it from my fellow bloggers. It makes me sad that I don’t hear more about it.
5. Sleeping Giants (Themis Files) by Sylvain Neuvel – I listened to this audiobook at the recommendation of a BookTuber (Thoughts on Tomes) but aside from the brief mention as one of her top audiobooks I haven’t hear others talk about this series. This is a mistake because Sleeping Giants was insane and amazing.
6. Moon Chosen (Tales of a New World) by P.C. Cast – I found this series outside of the blogging world. I haven’t heard a single blogger talk or write about this book/series. It’s a shame because they’re super interesting books with unique storylines and great character development. I can’t wait for the third to be released later this year.
7. Incarceron by Catherine Fisher – An older book, but still great. Creative and full of mystery. I don’t know why more people don’t talk about this story.
8. Talon by Julie Kagawa – While I see that her other series, The Iron Fey, get attention I never see bloggers reading this series.
9. The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa – See above comment.
10. Zeroes by Scott Westerfeld, Deborah Biancotti, and Margo Lanagan – With the superhero obsession that’s been going on the last few years I’m unsure how this series hasn’t made a bigger splash in the reading world.

What books do you love that you think deserve more attention?

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

I Heart Characters!

I Heart Characters! is a weekly meme hosted by Dani @ Perspective of a Writer to showcase our book blogger love for characters! Each week she’ll supply a topic and we’ll supply the character. Post on whatever day suits you, about characters from whatever media you love (books, movies, K-dramas, television, manga, anime, webtoons, whatever!) and link up on Thursday so we can all blog hop and share the character love.

This weeks topic is Supernatural Hottie (Literally a character who is drop dead gorgeous and from a supernatural race or less literally a sexually diverse character who is a hottie).

Amanda- This is going to be obvious to those that read any of my bookish posts. I’m actually obsessed with the Darkling from Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. I’m a sucker for a good villain and the Darkling is a great villain. I loved getting to learn more about him in the second and third books of the trilogy. He was a well-rounded character. Dark and mysterious at first but then we started to understand his motivations and the things that are driving him to be so horrible and evil and fantastic. Learning his backstory also makes you feel a little bad for him and want to love him and fix him and help him be good. I don’t know what it is but I really just love a good villain and the Darkling is a wonderful one.

Antonia- There’s just so many to choose from. Roth, the demon prince from The Dark Elements series by Jennifer L. Armentrout, has always been one of my favorites. I adored Adrian from The Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead since he was first introduced in the Vampire Academy series. Acheron from The Dark-Hunters series by Sherrilyn Kenyon was a supporting character throughout the series that I always swooned over and when he finally got his own book and I read about his absolutely heartbreaking backstory, it only made me love him more. Seriously guys, do you actually expect me to choose just one?

Thanks for reading! What characters would you choose for this weeks topic? Let us know in the comments or leave us a link to your post.

Antonia’s Top Ten Tuesday- Travel Bug

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week we’re given a new prompt for a top ten list of all things bookish. This week’s topic is – Top Ten Books That Awaken the Travel Bug in me. I had trouble with this one because most of the books I read don’t take place in the real world. So I came up with five books I’d want to travel to and five books I don’t.

 

Places that Awaken the Travel Bug in Me

 
1. Beastly by Alex Flinn- This is the only book that’s ever made me want to visit New York City even though it barely even takes place there. (The characters rarely leave the house.)
2. Paper Towns by John Green- ROAD TRIP. Their crazy, headlong trip up the East Coast (including pit stops timed to the second) just seemed like so much fun.
3. Friday Harbor series by Lisa Kleypas- I immediately wanted to visit this cute little island off the coast of Washington. I actually now live on another cute little island off the coast of Washington so I plan to visit Friday Harbor sometime soon. (It’s just a ferry ride away.)
4. Cousins O’Dwyer Trilogy by Nora Roberts- Ireland has always been at the top of my travel list but I’d love to visit almost all the settings from Nora’s books.
5. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen- Yes, I know this takes place in the past. However, the regency era books are the ones that always made me want to visit England.

Places that Don’t Awaken the Travel Bug in Me

 
1. Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout- I loved this series but most of it takes place in West Virginia which, no offense, but I have no interest in going to.
2. Bloodlines by Richelle Mead- I also loved this series but I’m definitely more of a beach girl. The desert just sounds awful.
3. Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts- This one takes place in Montana and I have never in my life thought to myself, “I’d like to go there”. (Again, no offense to Montana.)
4. Year One by Nora Roberts- Fantastic book. However, I could really do without two-thirds of the world’s population dying.
5. Maximum Ride by James Patterson- For me, this one’s mostly included because so many negative things happen to the characters that it skewed the way I thought of all the places they went to.

 

Well these are my answers for this week. I’d love to hear what everyone else came up with. Thanks for reading!

-Antonia

Antonia’s Top Ten Tuesday- Favorites From the Last Three Years

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week has a different prompt for you to make a top ten list about. This week is Top Ten Books You Would Classify As ALL TIME FAVORITE BOOKS from the past 3 years (you can extend it to 5 if you need to).
I expected this topic to be really difficult for me. When I saw it I immediately texted Amanda freaking out. But she didn’t panic with me; she simply pointed out that I reread alot of books. With this reassurance in mind, I sat down with my book lists from previous years, positive I could find ten favorites even if I had to use only rereads. Then a funny thing happened: I didn’t need any. Within ten minutes, I had ten books/series’ for my list with no need to use all the old favorites I’ve had for years. Which is how I’ve come to the conclusion that almost every book I read instantly becomes a new favorite. I’m still trying to decide if this has any downsides…
So here are my top ten all-time favorites from the last three years (in no particular order):

1. Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead- I love Sydney. I adore Adrian. This is a series I could read over and over again.

2. The Witness by Nora Roberts- My favorite Nora Roberts book. It has everything I love about her writing.

3. Seven Realms series by Cinda Williams Chima- These are the types of books I wasn’t expecting to like but as soon as I started I couldn’t put them down. I even had to take emergency trips to the library to get the rest of the books. It’s one of the most well-written YA series I’ve ever read.

4. Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout- This is another one I got because I was bored but didn’t have much hope for it. It was an instant favorite for Amanda and I.

5. Maximum Ride series by James Patterson- Everything about these books is amazing. They’re quick, fun, emotional reads that I would recommend to everyone.

6. Crown of Vengeance by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory- I was waiting a couple years for this book to come out and it didn’t disappoint. Lackey and Mallory can do no wrong together.

7. Looking For Alaska by John Green- Amanda spent years trying to get me to read this book but I kept putting her off. When I finally read it, I was instantly in love.

8. Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George- I didn’t expect to love this book as much as I did. Everything about it was perfect.

9. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith- I’d expected this book to just be a silly YA romance but it wasn’t even close. Smith took a childish idea, like love at first sight, and made it sweet and reasonable. I loved it so much I immediately went to the library to get her other books (i.e. #10).

10. This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith- I found this book emotional, funny, and romantic. I’ll definitely be looking for more of Smith’s books.

Do you share any of these favorites? Let me know some of yours in the comments. Thanks for reading.
-Antonia

Antonia’s Top Ten Tuesday- Favorite Heroines

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week has a different prompt to which you make a top ten list. This week’s prompt is favorite heroines. Since my list of favorite heroines is infinitely long, I tried to choose the ones who had the biggest impact on me while reading. Here they are (in no particular order):

1. Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen- She will forever be my all-time favorite heroine. She’s witty, tough, loves her family unconditionally and isn’t afraid to admit she’s wrong. She was who I wanted to be when I grew up.



2. Maximum Ride from the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson- She’s badass and caring and makes tons of mistakes. But she’s always trying her hardest to fix them. It’s so easy to relate to Max that she instantly became one of my favorite characters.
3. Elizabeth/Abigail from The Witness by Nora Roberts- I connected with Abigail from the beginning. I loved watching her grow into a strong, compassionate woman.
4. Vestakia from The Obsidian Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory- From birth, she had everything working against her but she refused to let it control her life. She’s genuinely kind and brave even when she’s absolutely terrified.
5. Lyra Belacqua from His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman- She was one of the first characters to have a real affect on me. She’s stubborn and talks back and impulsive but she always does the right thing.



6. Wanderer from The Host by Stephenie Meyer- I will never stop loving Wanda. She’s an alien possessing a human girl and she still manages to be the most honest and caring character in the book.
7. Katsa from Graceling by Kristin Cashore- Another character I related to instantly. Her uncle, the king, has used and controlled her since she was a child but she had the courage to fight back, even when she believed her powers made her a monster.
8. Sydney Sage from the Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead- One of the bravest heroines I’ve ever had the pleasure to read about. She goes against everything she was taught to believe to save people who she was raised to think of as evil. She risks everything because she can see the best in people.
9. Hyacinth Bridgerton from It’s In His Kiss by Julia Quinn- She’s one of the funniest characters I’ve read about. She’s sarcastic and smart and not afraid to speak her opinions during a time when women were expected to act a certain way. I wish I could be best friends with her.
10. Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling- I almost didn’t put her on this list simply because I knew so many others would. But when it came down to it, I couldn’t think of anyone else who met the standards she set. There’s a reason Hermione has shown up on so many lists this week. She’s smart, brave, funny, loving. She believes in herself and in her friends and even when she’s scared she’s always there for the people who need her. The great thing about Hermione is that she’s always true to herself and never lets anything change her.

Do any of your favorites coincide with mine? For the same or different reasons? I’d love to hear some of your own choices so leave them in the comments or link to your own post if you have one. Thanks for reading.
-Antonia

Silver Shadows by Richelle Mead

Summary: Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the world between humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets-and human lives.
In The Fiery Heart, Sydney risked everything to follow her gut, walking a dangerous line to keep her feelings hidden from the Alchemists.
Now in the aftermath of an event that ripped their world apart, Sydney an Adrian struggle to pick up the pieces and find their way back to each other. But first, they have to survive.
For Sydney, trapped and surrounded by adversaries, life becomes a daily struggle to hold on to her identity and the memories of those she loves. Meanwhile, Adrian clings to hope in the face of those who tell him Sydney is a lost cause, but the battle proves daunting as old demons and new temptations begin to seize hold of him…
Their worst fears now a chilling reality Sydney and Adrian face their darkest hour in this heart-pounding fifth installment in the New York Times bestselling bloodlines series, where all bets are off.

Oh. My. God. I HAVE SO MANY FEELINGS ABOUT THIS BOOK.
First of all, Adrian and Sydney are apart for most of the book and it pretty much just made me want to cry the entire time. (I settled for really weird, pathetic noises that Amanda got sick of fast.) The good thing about them being separated was that I was able to follow two completely separate storylines that kept the pace fairly steady even when nothing serious was happening.
But trust me, a LOT was happening. I started this book at around ten-thirty last night, and finished it around three this morning. There was no way for me to put it down; between the awesome characters, amazing writing, and the absolutely crazy plot, I was hooked.
As always, I adore Sydney and Adrian, both individually and as a couple. Though they both have somewhat extreme personalities, I’m able to relate to them while I read. I almost always love the characters in the books I read but in the Bloodlines series, I connect to them more than usual. I would absolutely love to have Sydney as my best friend and, much as I love her, I would totally date Adrian (you know, if I didn’t have a boyfriend…Love you, honey!). Mead gives such depth to her characters that it’s impossible not to care about them.
This book was much darker than the previous ones in the series mainly because Sydney’s in re-education, which is basically the Alchemists nice way of saying brainwash and torture. Even though Mead kept it from being terribly gruesome, some of the scenes with Sydney were harder to read emotionally.
It was the same way with Adrian. He might not have been tortured and starved but the love of his life was missing and he had no way to contact her. I’d loved watching the progress he’d made in previous books to overcome his addictions and the effects of Spirit so it was that much harder to watch him spiral back downward without Sydney to help hold him up.
The ending took so many twists and turns that I could barely keep up with what was happening and even when I thought everything would be okay, the last page threw another curveball and I no longer know what’s going to happen with the last book. All I know is that it really needs to come out RIGHT NOW. Next February is way too long to wait for The Ruby Circle.
I would love to hear your thoughts on my review or this book. Amanda hasn’t read it so I can’t talk to her about it yet. Did you see the end coming? Because I sure as hell didn’t.
-Antonia

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Amanda’s Top Ten Tuesday – Favorites in Genre X

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post giving our top ten on different topic. This is hosted by THE BROKE AND THE BOOKISH. This weeks topic is Top Ten All Time Favorite Books in Genre X. I thought this was a really interesting topic and I really had to think about which genre to pick. The genre I came up with isn’t technically a genre, but I’ve decided that I’m using it anyway. I’ve decided on my top ten all time favorite vampire books. Here’s what I came up with:

1)Twilight by Stephenie Meyer– The fifteen year old reader in me is putting this on my list. This was the book that started my love of paranormal books. I have great memories enjoying the pages of this saga.

2)Bloodlines by Richelle Mead– If you’ve read any of these books you know why this is on my list. I’m obsessed with this series and I can’t wait for the next to come out.

3)The Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead– Vampire Academy came in a very close second to Bloodlines. I love both stories.

4)Evernight by Claudia Gray– This is another addition from fifteen year old me. I got really attached to this series when I was younger.

5)The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa– I just love anything Kagawa writes. I love the Blood of Eden series. I’m also beyond excited for The Forever Song to come out this April.

6)A Quick Bite by Lynsay Sands– Really of the Argeneau novels are included with this. They’re on the more trashy romance novel side, but hey who doesn’t love a good romance novel every now and then.

7)Shadow Falls Series by C.C. Hunter– Shadow Falls has more than just vampires, but I wanted it on this list because I loved reading the Shadow Falls series. I flew through the books, loving every page.

8)The Circle Trilogy by Nora Roberts– These also have more than just vampires but these books were exciting and fun and crazy.

9)Blue Bloods by Melissa De La Cruz– Cruz put an interesting and unique twist in her vampire series. I put off reading the series for quite a while because I knew I needed to read them all together.

10)The House of Night Series by P.C. and Kristen Cast– I wasn’t a huge fan of this series toward the end. The last one is coming out this year and I might give them a try again.

These are my top ten all time favorite vampire books. What are yours?

Keep on reading lovelys, Amanda.

Amanda’s Top Ten Tuesday – Person X

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week we have a different topic that we write our top ten about. This weeks topic is top ten books I’d recommend to X person. I’m choosing my younger sister. She’s fourteen years old and seriously doesn’t like reading. It baffles me because I was such a freaking bookworm at that age. So here are the top ten books I would love for her to want to read.

1)Looking for Alaska by John Green– If any of you have been paying attention, it’s kind of my favorite book ever. I’ve tried to get my sister to read it several times. I will succeed eventually.

2)Six Months Later by Natalie D. Richards– I bought this book for my sister about a month ago to try and get her to read something. She still hasn’t read it. I’ve read it and reviewed it. It was pretty good.

3)Graceling by Kristin Cashore– I’d like for my sister to read this book because I think it would be the perfect book to get sucked into the fantasy world and the crazy adventures. It hopefully would make her want to get away in more books.

4)The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins– I feel like this needs to be on this list because it’s such an age appropriate book for her right now. Also, the second movies coming out. Oh, and I love these books and she needs to as well.

5)Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard– This is another that I’d like on here because it’s very much age appropriate for her. Along with the fact that she loves watching Ravenswood with me. And this series goes right along those lines so I know she’d like them.

6)Divergent by Veronica Roth– When I was reading this series my sister seemed really interested. She’d ask a bunch of questions about the books while I was reading. I adored this trilogy. I reviewed all three. I’d like to push these on her if I could.

7)Peace Love & Baby Ducks by Lauren Myracle– This is a book pretty much entirely about sisterhood and being able to maintain your relationship with your sister. Which I think she could use some advice on.

8)Bloodlines by Richelle Mead– I think this ones on the list specifically because I need her to love this series as much as I do.

9)Burned by Ellen Hopkins– Burned has to be in this top ten because it’s on my list of favorites. This book was one I read over and over again through high school. I’d love to be able to share that with my sister.

10)The Bride Quartet by Nora Roberts– This saga is VERY much not age appropriate for my fourteen year old sister. But I figured I could end my top ten with a book I’d like to get her to read after she’s read all the others and is as obsessed with books as me.

These are my top ten books I’d suggest to my younger sister. What books would you suggest?

-Amanda

The Indigo Spell – Richelle Mead

Summary:
Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets-and human lives.
In the aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she struggles to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do.
Then she finally tracks down the elusive, enigmatic Marcus Finch-a former Alchemist who the organization denies exists, and who lives in shadows, on the run. With Marcus’s help, Sydney realizes that the group she’s been loyal to her whole life has been hiding the truth from her. Is it possible that her golden lily tattoo might have more power over her than she thinks?
As she struggles to come to terms with what that might mean, Sydney is compelled to use her growing magical powers to track down an evil magic user who is targeting powerful young witches. Using magic goes against everything she always thought she believed, but she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her special blood-or else she might be next.
Forging her own way is harder than Sydney ever dreamed. Maybe by turning off her brain-and following her heart-she’ll be able to finally figure out where she belongs.
Review:
The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead is the third in the Bloodlines series. This series so far has been so good. I started The Indigo Spell at about 12:30am when I got home last night and finished it before I went to bed. It was that good. So much happens in this book and I loved every page.
Like my last two reviews, we’ll start with Sydney. She’s grown so much throughout this series. In this book specifically, she’s started to give up resisting that she’s special and can do things that most humans can’t. But she definitely has a hard time giving up the beliefs that have been drilled into her for her whole life which is understandable. And I’m so proud of her for making the huge effort that she has to come to terms with everything she’s dealing with. She’s started doubting herself less, except toward the end of the book when everything that’s been going on finally comes to light. She feels like she should have known all along and that she made a bunch of mistakes which kind of irritated me because when I was reading that part I was basically in shock and never saw it coming. Sydney also starts finding out some things about the Alchemists that she doesn’t like. She realizes that she’s being lied to by her superiors and she doesn’t like that. Sydney changes so much in this book, for the better. She starts making her own decisions rather than just blindly following orders like she used to. I can’t wait to see what she does next in The Fiery Heart.
Onto my favorite part. Adrian. In the first two books, it’s totally obvious that Sydney and Adrian are going to end up together. And at the end of The Golden Lily, Adrian professes his love for Sydney then the book just ends. Throughout The Indigo Spell Sydney tries her hardest to deny her feelings for Adrian because she still agrees with some of the Alchemist’s beliefs. As the book progresses she has an increasingly more difficult time trying to ignore her feelings. And towards the end, she makes a really tough decision to let Adrian go. It was the right thing to do at the time even though I want them to forever love each other. The book ends happily for this new couple which I loved.
Eddie and Angeline end up dating. I didn’t really care for these parts of the book because I don’t want them to be together. Their relationship isn’t a huge part of the storyline, but it definitely has significance. And I get what I want in the end. Then comes Jill. In my last review, I complained about how I wanted to see more from Jill. I got what I wished for. Except for the part the Jill plays is more something that’s supposed to get in the way of Sydney and Adrian’s relationship and to add onto the piles of stress Sydney already has. We do get to watch Jill grow up a bit in this book. She really shows that she’s growing up. She tries to handle things by herself and gives Sydney an inspiring talk that may have had more effect than one of Sydney’s lectures would have. I liked seeing Jill growing up in this book and I’m glad she has a more significant part, even if it wasn’t all good. Then there’s Ms. Terwilliger. Sydney’s mentor when it comes to magic. I love this old lady. Even when she infuriates me. She doesn’t tell Sydney what’s going on, just that something life or death bad is about to happen. She does finally come out with the problem and tries to help Sydney as much as she can. I’ve like Ms. Terwilliger through all the books, and the more I read about her the more I like her.
Now comes the ending of the book. Let me just tell you, HOLY FUCKING CLIFFHANGER. I could kill Richelle Mead for putting me in these situations. I can’t stop thinking about this book, all I want is to know what happens next. She gives all this crazy information then just stops. She plays with my heart and I don’t appreciate it. Regardless of this, I’m going to keep reading her books because she’s a fantastic author. I don’t care who you are or what you like to read. Go get these books, and the Vampire Academy books too, sit down and read them all.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

*Please be aware that the book cover on this post is a link to purchase this book through Amazon. Feel free to purchase with our affiliate link (just click on the book cover) to support us!

The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead

Summary:
Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. Alchemists protect vampire secrets-and human lives.
Sydney would love to go to college, but instead, she’s been sent into hiding at a posh boarding school in Palm Springs, California-tasked with protecting Moroi princess Jill Dragomir from assassins who want to throw the Moroi court into civil war. Formerly in disgrace, Sydney is now praised for her loyalty and obedience, and held up as the model of an exemplary Alchemist.
But the closer she grows to Jill, Eddie, and especially Adrian the more she finds herself questioning her age-old Alchemist beliefs, her idea of family, and the sense of what it means to truly belong. Her world becomes even more complicated when magical experiments show Sydney may hold the key to prevent becoming Strigoi-the fiercest vampires, the ones who don’t die. But it’s her fear of being just that-special, magical, powerful-that scares her more than anything. Equally daunting is her new romance with Brayden, a cute, brainy guy who seems to match her in every way. Yet, as perfect as he seems, Sydney finds herself being drawn to someone else- someone forbidden to her.
When a shocking secret threatens to tear the vampire world apart, Sydney’s loyalties are suddenly tested more than ever before. She wonders how she’s supposed to strike a balance between the principles and dogmas she’s been taught, and what her instincts are telling her.
Should she trust the Alchemists-or her heart?
Review:
Richelle Mead has done it again. She’s sucked me in and spit me out leaving me wanting so much more. Good thing I have The Indigo Spell waiting for me to start once I’m done with this review. What to say about this book. I loved everything about it, just like all her other books. Her characters are phenomenal. She’s the perfect amount of descriptive. And she knows just how to pull my strings and make me fall more and more in love with this book with the flip of each page.
Let’s start with Sydney. I think I mentioned this in my review of the first in this series, Bloodlines. Sydney has no faith in herself. I mean, she knows that she’s good at everything and that she’s never going to fail. But she doesn’t actually believe in herself which really bothers me because I have so much faith in her. And she’s not even real. This and the fact that she’s dreadfully naive when it comes to dating, but that should be expected with the upbringing she’s had, are the only two things that even slightly bother me about Sydney. What I love the most is that she’s fiercely loyal to her new vampire family even though she’s supposed to barely tolerate being around them. The perfect example of this is when she seeks out one of her teachers that’s going to help her go against everything she believes in to help one of her vampire friends. She even risks her life in this endeavor. She’s the most selfless person I’ve ever known. And she’s finally starting to realize that the Alchemist ways may not be the only way to think. Her character is just developed so well as the books go on.
Now we get to the good part. This is a slight spoiler, but it’s mentioned in the description of the book, so I’m talking about it anyway. In The Golden Lily, Sydney finds a boyfriend. His name is Brayden and he’s basically a male version of herself. He’s super smart and likes all the same things she likes. At first, I loved seeing the two together. I just thought they were so damn cute. Although I wasn’t a fan of Brayden from the start, there’s just something I didn’t like about him. They were so adorable as a couple. This was partly because they were both so freaking awkward around each other and partially because this was Sydney’s first boyfriend. They were cute while they lasted, but in the end, I’m glad they broke up.
Adrian and the rest of the crew also play a key part in sucking me into this book. With Angeline throwing herself at Eddie any chance she gets, Adrian being well, Adrian, and Jill trying to her best to make life at school better I couldn’t help but feel as if I had become part of this group of friends.
Adrian never thinks very highly of himself. He sees himself as this big screw up that’s just going to forever be a disappointment to everyone. This is something that Sydney definitely helps him with. She inspires him to get his shit together and prove everyone that thinks so little of him wrong. Toward the end of the book, you can tell that she’s helped him.
Eddie spends a decent chunk of the book having his own personal pity party because he loves Jill but doesn’t think he’s worthy so he lets his roommate Micah date the girl of his dreams. As the book progresses he gets better, and eventually, he gets over himself and asks another girl out.
Then there’s Angeline. She doesn’t seem to understand the importance of everything that’s going on until she almost screws it all up. Sydney does as she usually does and gives some inspiring words of wisdom and Angeline starts acting much more appropriately and taking everything more seriously. I really enjoyed watching Angeline grow as a person in this book. Considering that she’s so young and coming from a completely different set of rules, this new school is kind of a culture shock for her. And I think she handles it relatively well, with some exceptions.
Last, but certainly not least there’s Jill. I feel like Jill’s character could have gotten more in depth with her development. But she still does pretty well. She never lets her feelings for her human boyfriend get in the way of what she knows as fact. In the end, she does the right thing and shows that she understands the severity of the situation. What I liked most about Jill was that she always seemed to stay pretty level-headed throughout the book. She didn’t let her wants and needs get in the way of anything else.
This book is a must read. Well, after you read the first of course. It will chew you up and spit you out as soon as you read the first page.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

*Please be aware that the book cover on this post is a link to purchase this book through Amazon. Feel free to purchase with our affiliate link (just click on the book cover) to support us!

Bloodlines by Richelle Mead

Summary:
Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic an serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. Alchemists protect vampire secrets-and human lives.
When Sydney is torn from her bed in the middle of the night, at first she thinks she’s still being punished for her complicated alliance with dhampir Rose Hathaway. But what unfolds is far worse. Jill Dragomir-the sister of Moroi Queen Lissa Dragomir-is in mortal danger and the Moroi must send her into hiding. To avoid a civil war, Sydney is called upon to act as Jill’s guardian and protector, posing as her roommate in the unlikeliest of places: a human boarding school in Palm Springs, California. The last thing Sydney wants is to be accused of sympathizing with vampires. And now she has to live with one.
The Moroi court believes Jill and Sydney will be safe at Amberwood Prep, but threats, distractions, and forbidden romance lurk both outside-and within-the school grounds. Now that they’re in hiding, the drama is only just beginning.
Review:
This book was nothing short of the wonderfulness I expected from Richelle Mead. Although, this is my second time reading Bloodlines (so that I can refresh my memory to read the third, Indigo Spell) I enjoyed it the same amount if not more. Richelle Mead just has a way of sucking you into her books and spitting you out when its over. Leaving you wanting so much more. I love everything about this book. The plot, the characters, everything.
My favorite thing about this book is probably Sydney Sage herself. She’s around eighteen and all she does is take responsibility for everyone else. I don’t know many eighteen-year-olds that are like that. She’s selfless; she doesn’t even see that in taking care of everyone else she sometimes forgets that she needs to take care of herself too. But what makes me love her so much is that even though she’s not supposed to ‘sympathize’ with vampires, the whole reason she takes care of the group is that she’s come to care about them. They’re her friends regardless of the fact that she’s supposed to hate them. Which brings me to something else that I like about Sydney. She does what she’s told, most of the time. But she knows when she can get away with being her usual sassy self and how much sass to give. She follows all the rules, but only if she thinks it’s the right thing to do. Sydney never does anything unless its the right thing to do. There’s only one thing that I don’t like about her and that’s the fact that Sydney is almost always berating herself for doing something wrong. She could have done it better, differently, even when everything worked out perfectly. She’s so hard on herself and I didn’t like that. I just wanted to yell at her! But, despite that one thing, Sydney’s my favorite.
Then there’s Adrian, Jill, and Eddie, the gang. They all add perfectly to the story in their own way. Adrian with his sarcastic remarks and all his quirks. I fell in love with Adrian while reading the Vampire Academy Series, but I fell deeper with this book. You see so much more of him and I love it. Jill’s quiet and kind of timid nature. I like Jill well enough, but sometimes she just irritated me. She never stuck up for herself and was always too concerned with being different than everyone else. Yeah, Jill, you’re different. You’re kind of a Moroi fucking princess, ACT LIKE ONE. Toward the end of the book, Jill is definitely better about her poor me attitude, not until after Sydney yells at her of course. And then there’s Eddie. Eddie’s also someone I got to know in the Vampire Academy books. But in Bloodlines, his character is developed a lot more., which I liked. The way Eddie thinks is duty over everything. Even if duty means watching the girl you love hangout with a guy that looks like a dead friend of yours. You can tell Eddie cares about all the people in his life, even if he doesn’t say it, I love this about him. Basically, I love all the characters in this book.
All in all, I really loved this book and its one I would definitely suggest to everyone, everywhere. Go get it, and read it. Now. Although, if you really like vampire/love stories, you should probably read the Vampire Academy series first.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

*Please be aware that the book cover on this post is a link to purchase this book through Amazon. Feel free to purchase with our affiliate link (just click on the book cover) to support us!

Antonia’s Top Ten Tuesday- Characters

This is my first time trying Top Ten Tuesday, started by The Broke and The Bookish. When I saw posts for Top Ten Tuesday, I was really excited about it. There’s nothing I like to talk about more than books. So I sat down to start it, and stopped. What genre was I supposed to pick? I changed my mind at least thirty times before deciding I would just list all my favorite characters, separated into genres, and pick whichever one had ten first. Well, then I had another problem: How was I supposed to choose? I didn’t want to just pick characters because I loved the book. We all know loving a book and loving the characters don’t always coincide. I can love a story but be aggravated by the main character. Or love a character and hate the plotline. I didn’t want to base this list on my favorite books. I really just wanted to think about the individual characters and what I like about them personally. I think I managed it. So without further ado, here it is (in no particular order):
ONE: Kyle Kingsbury from Beastly by Alex Flinn. His growth throughout this book was extraordinary, but realistic at the same time. His transformation gets to me every, single time.
TWO: Colin Singleton from An Abundance of Katherines by John Green. Colin is the type of character I don’t read about often. He’s a child prodigy. Intelligent to the point that I tend to find irritating in a character. But Green manages to make him quirky and funny.
THREE: Fire from Fire by Kristin Cashore. Fire is, for all intents and purposes, a monster. She is hated and feared on sight. However, she is such a strong character that she never lets it change who she is. She’s a good, kind person. She knows right from wrong. I love that she always stays true to herself.
FOUR: Hanson Alister from the Seven Realms Series by Cinda Williams Chima. Han is a thief, a bit of a womanizer, and doesn’t even pretend to be a pacifist. However, his circumstances forced him into things he wouldn’t otherwise have done. He wants to be a good person and never stops trying. I loved how he developed throughout this series.
FIVE: Raisa ana’Marianna from the Seven Realms Series by Cinda Williams Chima. At first, Raisa is a little bit spoiled and I really didn’t like her for most of the first book. She really grew into herself and became the type of queen I really didn’t think she’d become. I seriously enjoyed having her prove me wrong.
SIX: Adrian Ivashkov from the Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead. He’s on this list because he’s currently my number one male character who I wish was a real person and asking me on a date.
SEVEN: Sydney Sage from the Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead. I really, really love how Sydney has broken away from the beliefs she’s had her entire life. As soon as she realizes some of those beliefs are wrong, she does what she knows is the right thing.
EIGHT: Wanderer from The Host by Stephenie Meyer. Wanda is definitely one of my favorite female characters of all time. She’s lived in so many different worlds and here on Earth she’s almost like a baby. She’s still learning everything about humans and her opinions of some things are seriously adorable.
NINE: Ian O’Shea from The Host by Stephenie Meyer. Ian is an asshole. I adore him. I really couldn’t get over the way he fell in love with Wanda. He fought it the entire time but in the end, he really couldn’t help himself.
TEN: Total from the Maximum Ride Series by James Patterson. Total is a talking, flying dog. He isn’t even one of the main characters. But some of the things he said had me literally laughing out loud. The comic relief he brought to the book was absolutely fantastic.
Well, feel free to agree or disagree. I love hearing other people’s opinions.
-Antonia