Book Tag – TBR

Huge thanks to Inkish Kingdoms for tagging us in this TBR Book Tag! It looks like fun. Besides who doesn’t love talking about books that they want to read? Let’s dive right in!

How do you keep track of your TBR list?

Amanda- I mostly don’t. It’s all in my head. I have a general ‘oh I want to read that in the near future’ list that lives in my brain. But I don’t read off of any list, I look at my shelves and pick whatever looks good. I have recently started marking books on GoodReads as ‘to read’ but they’re all books that I mostly already have at home.

Antonia- It’s mostly just in my head as well. The closest I get to an actual list is books I want to get but once I actually have them it depends entirely on what I feel like reading at the time.

Is your TBR list mostly print or ebook?

Amanda- Mostly print as of now. I recently have gone a little book buying crazy. Once I read some of the books I just bought my ebook TBR list will likely be longer because I’ve been neglecting my Kindle for sure.

Antonia- Mine probably leans a little more towards print but I go through random phases where I’ll just read kindle nonstop then switch to print for awhile.

How do you determine which book from your TBR list to read next?

Amanda- I mentioned above that I mostly just look at my shelves and pick whatever looks good at the moment. I don’t do well with specific lists. One it makes it to the “official TBR list” I’m actually less likely to ever read it.

Antonia- Whatever I’m in the mood for. Usually I’ll just stare at my shelves for awhile or read a few summaries and one tends to jump out and say “You have to read me now!”.

What book has been on your TBR list the longest?

Amanda- Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty. I bought this months and months ago (at this point it’s probably closer to a year ago) and I’ve heard nothing but good things about it, but for some reason, I just can’t get myself to pick it up.

Antonia- Hmm… Probably Flamecaster by Cinda Williams Chima. I got so mad at the beginning of the book that I never managed to finish it. Now that I have the second and third books I plan on picking it up again soon.

What book have you recently added to your TBR list?

Amanda- Why do all of these book tags want just one book as an answer? I’m a bookworm and I did just say that I bought a ton of books recently. So here’s a few I’m most excited about.

Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman
War Storm by Victoria Aveyard
The Book Jumper by Mechthild Glaser
Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Antonia- ^Same.
Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst
Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones
Everneath by Brodi Ashton
The Mythean Arcana series by Linsey Hall
A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

What book on your TBR list is there strictly because of the cover?

Amanda- Suicide Notes from Beautiful Girls by Lynn Weingarten. I love simple covers.

Antonia- Everneath by Brodi Ashton. The covers have such gorgeous dresses that I just had to get them.

What book on your TBR list do you never actually plan to read?

Amanda- The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye by David Lagercrantz. I bought this only because I have all of the other books in the series. It sits on my shelf and begs me to read it but I don’t know how likely it is that I’ll ever get around to it.

Antonia- I don’t think I have anything right now. A couple years ago I moved and had to get rid of most of my books so everything I have now are either favorites or ones I’ve gotten recently.

What unpublished book is on your TBR list that you’re excited for?

Amanda- Again, just one book? Really you should just go check out the whole page we have dedicated to books that are being released this year.

Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas
Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare
Windrider by P.C. Cast

Just to name a few.

Antonia- Again, same. I’m really excited for both Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa and Of Blood and Bone by Nora Roberts.

What’s a book on your TBR list that basically everyone has read but you?

Amanda- Warcross by Marie Lu. I have this. It’s staring at me from my shelf as I type this, but I just haven’t read it yet.

Antonia- Probably Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas. I’ve been seeing this for forever but never bothered with it until Amanda made me read A Court of Thorns and Roses which I loved so much I HAVE to read her other series.

What’s a book on your TBR list that everyone recommends?

Amanda- Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman. I’ve heard amazing things about this book. I recently bought it and hope to get around to reading it soon.

Antonia- A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas. I’ve heard a ton of good things about this one even though a lot of people (myself included) don’t like novellas.

What’s a book on your TBR list that you’re very excited to read?

Amanda- All of them? Otherwise, they wouldn’t be on my TBR list, right?

Antonia- Definitely all of them. None stand out more than the others right now.

How many books are on your GoodReads TBR shelf?

Amanda- There are 65 books that I have labeled as ‘Want to Read’ on GoodReads. Most of which are books that I’ve bought recently and plan to attempt to read in the near future.

Antonia- I don’t use my GoodReads TBR shelf. I could never keep track of adding books and taking them off.

That’s all for this one bookworms! We’re going to tag anyone who reads this and feels like doing the book tag! Thanks for reading and feel free to leave your TBR books in the comments!

ABC Book Challenge |H|

Hello, Bookworms! This week we will be talking about books with the letter H.

For those of you that are new here – here’s the deal, each week we post about books beginning with a specific letter of the alphabet starting with A and ending once we’ve gone all the way to Z. We’re going to mention one or sometimes a few books that were super memorable with the letter of the week and also books that are still living on our TBR lists. So without further ado.

Read last week’s post here.

This week’s letter is – H

Most Memorable Books 

Amanda

Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas – As one of my favorite authors and one of my favorite series this book is an obvious choice for this weeks letter.

(The) Heart Forger by Rin Chupeco – This one was memorable for me because the first book in the series was not one of my favorites and I was really hoping this book would redeem the series a bit and it certainly did. Check out my review here.

Antonia

Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts – The fourth book in The Bride Quartet. It was such a nice ending to this series about these four women and their amazing friendship

(The) House of Hades by Rick Riordan – This one was probably my favorite of the series. All the Percabeth feels.

 

 

Books Still on our TBR List

Amanda

Heartless by Marissa Meyer – I read this book shortly after it was published, but I don’t remember a single thing about it. I’ve been hearing about how good it was recently, so I’ve had the urge to reread it.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone by J.K. Rowling – This book is on my August TBR list. I’m planning to read these books to my daughter after she’s born. Start on making her a bookworm and potterhead as early as I can.

Antonia

Here, There be Dragons by James A. Owen – I’ve had my eye on this series for a long time but recently saw a few reviews that convinced me to finally get it. It seems like the ultimate bookworm book and I’m so excited to read it.

Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout – This is the first in her The Covenant series and I’ve actually read it before but for some reason just never got farther into the books. I’d like to finally read them all the way through.

 

 

 

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

Summary:
Sometimes it’s the little lies that turn out to be the most lethal.
A murder… A tragic accident… Or just parents behaving badly? What’s indisputable is that someone is dead.
Madeline is a force to be reckoned with. She’s funny, biting, and passionate; she remembers everything and forgives no one. Celeste is the kind of beautiful woman who makes the world stop and stare, but she is paying a price for the illusion of perfection. New to town, single mom Jane is so young that another mother mistakes her for a nanny. She comes with a mysterious past and a sadness beyond her years. These three women are at different crossroads, but they will all wind up in the same shocking place.
Big Little Lies is a brilliant take on ex-husbands and second wives, mothers and daughters, schoolyard scandal, and the dangerous little lies we tell ourselves just to survive.
Review:
Big Little Lies has been on my TBR list for well over a year. It has been calling to me, begging for me to pick it up and read it for so long. I honestly don’t know what took me so long to pick this up, but I am sure glad that I did. I started this book a few days ago at the beach and made it about fifty pages in. I couldn’t wait to pick it up again. I spent most of my birthday reading and made it more than halfway through. I had to finish the book the next day.
I loved everything about this story. It had me laughing out loud – which certainly caused a few funny looks from my husband. These characters kept me laughing. The story kept me on my toes. I was never really sure what to expect. It was written with the perfect amount of suspense. My questions were slowly answered in an acceptable pace. So many mysteries like this don’t answer my questions until the end all in a rush. We were given just enough information to keep the reader wondering what was going to happen next. I like books like this that give me answers as we go along. This was a murder mystery and we didn’t even find out who was killed until the last hundred pages of the book.
The characters are what really made this story. Madeline was hilarious. She stood up for what she felt was right. She didn’t take crap from anyone and stuck to her guns. I really liked Madeline the best. I really felt for her. I think because I am a kid from a family of divorce with half-siblings and step-parents and a complicated situation. I feel for her and the struggle she goes through with her older daughter Abigail. Madeline was a super relatable character and I really enjoyed her inner conversation. She had me laughing out loud quite a bit.
Jane, our young single mother, is one we get to know slowly. She’s just trying to do the best she can for her kid. Doing the best she can to leave the past where it belongs and raise her son to be a good human. Jane had the most plot twists following her and they each more than surprised me. I liked Jane and really felt that she deserved all the good things that she found once she moved to the little beach town this story takes place in.
Celeste is the one that I pitied. She lived what everyone thought was a perfect life, but in reality, was living in her own sort of hell. I admired her strength but I also felt super bad for her when she fell into the stereotype of her situation. Sometimes I just wanted to shake her and others I was sitting there cheering her on.
The relationship that these three women had was my absolute favorite. They stuck up for one another and supported each other. They had me laughing and almost crying through the whole book. Between the relationship between these three and the dynamic of all the other school mothers, this story was excellent.
There were plot twists galore that I didn’t see coming in any way shape or form. The characters were fabulous. They made me feel all of the emotions but mostly made me laugh my butt off. I loved every page of this book and I can’t wait to read more stuff by Liane Moriarty.

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!

Magical Readathon – O.W.L.s Update

I’m here to give an update on my progress for the readathon that I’m doing this month! For those of you that missed my TBR post for this reading challenge (find it here) here’s the deal. A YouTuber by the name of Book Roast created this awesome reading challenge. We read books that meet certain requirements for each of the classes that you could take an O.W.L. exam for. I chose a book for each of the provided courses but definitely don’t plan to read them all. Just as many as I can so that I have more options to take when I decide to do the N.E.W.T. Exam reading challenge.

So I’m going to go over the books I’ve read and those that I still have left now that I’m just about two weeks into this reading challenge. I’ve had fun with all my choices for my TBR list so far. Without further delay here’s my update!

O.W.L. Exams Completed

Divination – A book featuring prophecies

Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa (ebook)

History of Magic – A historical fiction novel

My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows, & Brodi Ashton (print book)

Muggle Studies – A muggle non-fiction novel

Yes Please by Amy Poehler (audiobook)

Potions – A book with or about alchemy 

Allies by Bella Forrest (ebook)

Transfiguration – A book with transfiguration / shapeshifting or a book with a cat on the cover

Paranormalcy by Kiersten White (audiobook)

O.W.L. Exams In-Progress

Defense Against the Dark Arts – A book about or with a secret society or club

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare (print book)

Herbology – A book with a nature-related word in the title

Air Awakens by Elise Kova (ebook)

O.W.L. Exams Still TBR

Ancient Runes – A book with a symbol on the cover

The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw (print book)

Arithmacy – A book with a number on the cover or in the title

Zeroes by Scott Westerfeld, Deborah Biancotti, & Margo Lanagan (print book)

Astronomy – A science fiction novel

This Mortal Coil by Emily Suvada (print book)

Care of Magical Creatures – A book that includes magical creatures or features magical creatures on the cover

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling (print book)

Charms – A fantasy novel

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab (print book)

Pass

Outstanding – sit and pass at least 5 OWLs
Exceeded Expectations – sit and pass at least 3 OWLs
Acceptable – sit and pass at least 2 OWLs

Fail

Poor – sit only one OWL
Dreadful – start but not finish any OWLs tasks
Troll – do not show up at your OWLs examinations

So according to our grading scale for these exams, I will already be receiving an O for Outstanding. I still have until the 29th to finish the books I’m currently reading and get to the ones that are still on my TBR list. I’ll see you readers in two more weeks for my final update of the Magical Readathon!

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

 

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Summary:
Mare Barrow’s world is divided by blood – those with red and those with silver. Mare and her family are lowly Reds, destined to serve the Silver elite whose supernatural abilities make them nearly gods. Mare steals what she can to help her family survive, but a twist of fate leads her to the royal palace itself where, in front of the kind and all his nobles, she discovers an ability she didn’t know she had. Except…her blood is Red.
To hide this impossibility, the king forces her into the role of a lost Silver princess and betroths her to one of his own sons. As Mare is drawn further into the Silver world, her actions put into motion a deadly and violent dance, pitting prince against prince and Mare against her own heart.
From debut author Victoria Aveyard comes a lush, vivid fantasy series where loyalty and desire can tear you apart and the only certainty is betrayal.

Review:
This is a great fantasy series that’s told in the first person by our main character, Mare Barrow. I liked this. I feel like we get most fantasies told in the third person, but with the first person, we just get thrown into the story with the necessary bits and pieces being told to us through Mare as they come up. I enjoyed seeing the world build for me this way. I think this world was built very well. I also liked that it was focused more on the struggles that the Reds faced and the extreme difference of the treatment and lifestyles between those with Red blood and those with Silver. This was a really interesting dynamic.
I really liked our main character, Mare. She’s a girl who’s mostly resigned to the fate that she sees as inevitable. Being conscripted and going to fight in the war is her future and she’s accepted that, but until then she will continue with the small rebellions that make her feel better even though they’re not actually making a difference. Mare really cares about her family and Kilorn. I like the family aspect of the story because it shows Mare’s loyalty. She’s loyal to those that she loves and will do whatever she needs to in order to keep them safe and well taken care of. I think the only thing that bothered me when it comes to Mare is that things just sort of happening to her. She’s a thief so she’s bound to get into trouble but by chance, she runs into someone who gets her a job so that she doesn’t have to go fight in the war. On her first day there she finds herself in the craziest situation. I think this is something that’s a little overplayed. The main character just finding themselves in trouble or having magic powers, it’s just a bit overdone at this point but other than that I really liked Mare.
The two princes went back and forth trying to win my favor. I like them both and I’m not going to say which I like better. Cal has a ridiculous sense of honor and what he’s ‘supposed’ to do. He knows that things should change and that life is ridiculously unfair for anyone with Red blood, but he doesn’t think he can and/or won’t do anything to change their lives. I understood his thought process but was also frustrated by it. That about sums up my feelings with Cal, I understand him but he frustrates me. Maven. Oh, Maven. I loved him. I loved his friendship and relationship with Mare and I really wish he hadn’t done certain things because this was totally a ship I could get behind. I can’t say too much without giving anything away. I loved Maven for who we thought he was. I did not like the real Maven.
I enjoyed this book. I liked the characters. They were entertaining and believable. I liked the world that this story took place in. I’m excited to see where this story is going with the way that Red Queen ended. This book was written well and overall was a fun relatively quick read that left me wanting more.

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 link (just click on the book cover) to support us!

Book Tag – 20 Questions

This book tag was created by Buydebook but I found it done by the wonderful Sumedha at The Wordy Habitat. Feel free to go check out their pages! We’re going to dive right into this week’s book tag.

1. How many books is too many books in a series? 

Amanda- I don’t believe that this is a thing. I’ve read the Shade of Vampire series by Bella Forrest. I think she just released book number sixty or sixty-one in this series. I guess it depends on the series though because there were entirely too many books in the House of Night series. I’m going to say six is a good amount and if there are more books than that you better be able to keep my interest.

Antonia- It absolutely depends on the series. The Redwall series by Brian Jacques has been a favorite of mine since I was a child. It ended with twenty-two books and I don’t think that’s too many; however, it doesn’t just follow one character. The series follows the history of the world Jacques created with very little character crossover between books. Some of them have centuries between the timelines so a lot of books works because it’s all so different. Books with other formats (like The House of Night) can start to feel redundant after only a few books.

2. How do you feel about cliffhangers? 

Amanda- They’re fine as long as I have the next book ready and waiting for me to read it. But if I have to wait a year or more for the next book I’m definitely going to just perish.

Antonia- I have lots of mixed feelings. On the one hand, good cliffhangers tear our hearts out and make us that much more invested with the characters and story; on the other hand, ARE YOU KIDDING ME I NEED THE NEXT BOOK RIGHT NOW.

3. Hardcover or Paperback?

Amanda- Hardcover. They’re more solid. Longer lasting. Prettier (usually).

Antonia- Surprisingly enough, paperback. I agree, hardcovers are usually prettier but they’re harder to read, physically. I can hold a paperback with one hand, but not usually hardcovers. They also take up less space which means room for more books.

4. Favorite book?

Amanda- For a standalone, Looking for Alaska by John Green, will always be my answer. For a series, A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas is holding its own as number one on my list.

Antonia- Too many. My usual answers are: The Obsidian Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory, Beastly by Alex Flinn, and The Witness by Nora Roberts.

5. Least favorite book?

Amanda- I haven’t posted this review yet, but I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman was an audiobook I finished recently and I almost stopped listening halfway through. I wouldn’t say that I have a book that I disliked so much that it sticks in my brain as least favorite though.

Antonia- I don’t usually think too much about books I didn’t like after the fact. The one that tends to pop into my head though is Fallen by Lauren Kate. I really didn’t like any part of this book and never finished the rest of the series.

6. Love Triangles – Yes or No?

Amanda- No. The only love triangle that doesn’t absolutely infuriate me is the one between Stephanie, Joe, and Ranger in the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich.

Antonia- NO. NO. NO.

7. What’s the most recent book you just couldn’t finish? 

Amanda- See above question #5. I don’t often DNF books, I usually just never end up reading them.

Antonia- Tequila and Tea Bags by Laura Barnard. I couldn’t connect with the protagonist in even the tiniest way.

8. What are you currently reading?

Amanda- As I type this I am listening to Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson, but I’m also in the middle of Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa (an eARC I received from NetGalley) and Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira on my Kindle.

Antonia- The Paper Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg. Amanda and my mom both had amazing things to say about this series.

9. What’s the last book you recommended to someone? 

Amanda- Without a doubt, one hundred percent, no hesitation I have been shouting from the rooftops about my newfound love for Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel. Such a great story, I just couldn’t stop listening.

Antonia- I recommended Die For Me by Amy Plum to Amanda. It was a really interesting idea, executed very well.

10. What’s the oldest book you’ve read? 

Amanda- I had to check my booklist for this one and have determined Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling wins. But this is probably wrong, I just can’t think of any others that are almost as old as me right now.

Antonia- Ummm… I have no idea. I’ve read a lot of classics and I don’t exactly look up when they’re written. I’m going to assume it’s The Iliad and The Odyssey though.

11. What’s the newest book you’ve read? 

Amanda- Newest finished book would be One Small Thing by Erin Watt, but I’m currently almost finished with Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa (thanks NetGalley!) that hasn’t been released yet.

Antonia- I think it’s Crime of Magic by Linsey Hall. It just came out in May.

12. Who is your favorite author?

Amanda- Just one? Yeah right.

John Green
Nora Roberts
Sarah J. Maas
Janet Evanovich
Ellen Hopkins
Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Leigh Bardugo
Denise Grover Swank
Cinda Williams Chima
Cassandra Clare

Antonia- Oh boy. A lot.

John Green
Nora Roberts
Sarah J. Maas
Cinda Williams Chima
Richelle Mead
Mercedes Lackey
Brian Jacques
J.K. Rowling
J.R.R. Tolkien
C.S. Lewis
Jennifer L. Armentrout

I could literally go on forever.

13. Buying books or borrowing?

Amanda- I have to buy certain books. Like anything by any of the authors I listed above. I’m okay with borrowing especially when it comes to new books, but if I love it enough I might buy it so I can reread it and make highlights and what not.

Antonia- Well I definitely prefer buying books. I think we’d all love to have never-ending libraries. But money tends to be an issue so I’m okay with borrowing books too.

14. A book you dislike that everyone else seems to love?

Amanda- This is hard because I don’t dislike books very often. I’m going to have to go with any of the classics. Jane Austen’s books specifically are so well loved and I’ve never been able to read them.

Antonia- I could never get into Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin. I like the show but always struggled with the books.

15. Bookmarks or dog-ears?

Amanda- Don’t fight me, but both. If there’s something within reach that I can throw in my book that’s great, but if not I usually have no problem dog-earring the book (unless it’s brand new and still super nice).

Antonia- Definitely both. I never dog-ear with books I don’t own and I try to be better with pretty, new hardcovers but just the other day I dog-eared a page and from across the room my husband goes, “Did you just dog-ear that book?! What is wrong with you, you monster?!”

16. What’s a book that you can always reread?

Amanda- Just one book? Not likely. I can pretty much reread anything because I have a terrible memory. Like I’ve gotten books from the library thinking that they’re books I’ve never read and then I get halfway through and realize that I’ve read it before.

Antonia- As usual, I agree with Amanda. I absolutely LOVE rereading books. It’s like hanging out with old friends. It never gets boring for me.

17. Can you read while listening to music?

Amanda- There are people that can read without listening to music? I need some sort of background noise that isn’t something I will be distracted by.

Antonia- Yes, Amanda, there are. I actually have trouble doing most things while listening to music. Except cleaning since it doesn’t require much focus. But I can’t read or sleep or write reviews while music’s playing. I get so distracted by the songs that I can’t concentrate.

18. Single P.O.V. or multiple P.O.V’s?

Amanda- It depends completely on the story. I like multiple when the story is more complex because I get a better idea of the world and what’s really going on in it.

Antonia- Definitely depends on the story but I love both fairly equally.

19. Do you read a book in one sitting or over multiple days?

Amanda- Again, this completely depends on the story. If it’s a super good story that has me hooked I won’t stop until I’ve finished (as long as everything in the rest of my life allows for that). Bigger, more in-depth books tend to be read over multiple days because I have to read it slower to fully grasp everything going on.

Antonia- ^Agreed. With A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas, I stayed up until two in the morning finishing it (and yelling at my husband every time he interrupted me), until I remembered that I had to wake up early for once. With other books, I can put them down and be a responsible adult with no problem.

20. One book you read because of the cover?

Amanda- Again, just one book?

Suicide Notes From Beautiful Girls by Lynn Weingarten
Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
Girl in Pieces Kathleen Glasgow
And I Darken by Kiersten White

Antonia- Just recently I got The Revenants series by Amy Plum and The Everneath Trilogy by Brodi Ashton specifically for the gorgeous dresses on the covers.

If you’re reading this post, we tag you! Feel free to play 20 questions, or not. Tag us if you do! Thanks for reading bookworms!

ABC Book Challenge |G|

Hello, Bookworms! This week we will be talking about books with the letter G.

For those of you that are new here – here’s the deal, each week we post about books beginning with a specific letter of the alphabet starting with A and ending once we’ve gone all the way to Z. We’re going to mention one or sometimes a few books that were super memorable with the letter of the week and also books that are still living on our TBR lists. So without further ado.

Read last week’s post here.

This week’s letter is – G

Most Memorable Books 

Amanda

(The) Glittering Court by Richelle Mead – I absolutely loved this book. It actually also is on my TBR list for a reread because the third and final book just came out. Check out my review here.

Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow – This was a recent read for me but I’m still thinking about it. It was a powerful story about substance abuse, addiction, and self-harm. You can read my review HERE.

Antonia

(The) Golden Compass by Philip Pullman – One of my all-time favorite series since I was a child. I love everything about it, even if the third book makes me bawl my eyes out.

(The) Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson – I didn’t love this book. So why is it on this list? Because I pushed through to finish the trilogy anyway and ended up LOVING the second and third books. This book always reminds me to give the whole series a shot even if I wasn’t in love with the beginning.

 

Books Still on our TBR List

Amanda

Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard – I finished reading Red Queen at the beginning of August. This is on my TBR list for the month as I slowly reread the whole series now that the final book has been released.

Girls Made of Glass and Snow by Melissa Bashardoust – This was a BookOutlet buy for me. The cover is pretty and I really enjoy fairytale retellings.

Antonia

(The) Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith – I’ve been wanting to catch up on her books for awhile and this one sounds particularly interesting. Since I’ve been in long-distance relationships (before we were married, my husband was stationed in Japan for two years while I stayed home in Massachusetts), I’m curious to see how Smith portrays it in her book.

(The) Glass Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg – I recently started the first book, The Paper Magician, on audiobook. I’m barely a half hour into it. Unfortunately, I’m not enjoying the narrator much so I might just switch to kindle for the rest of it. It’s so interesting though that I’m already excited for the second book.

 

 

Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow

Summary:
You can spot the girls who have it easy.
And then there is me.
Charlotte Davis is in pieces. At seventeen she’s already lost more than most people do in a lifetime. But she’s learned how to forget. The broken glass washes away the sorrow until there is nothing but calm. You don’t have to think about your father and the river. Your best friend, who is gone forever. Or your mother, who has nothing left to give you.
Every new scar hardens Charlie’s heart just a little more, yet it still hurts so much. It hurts enough not to care anymore, which is sometimes what has to happen before you can find your way back from the edge.

Review:
This book was beyond powerful. I really enjoy books that talk about powerful and real topics like this. Topics like self-harm, addiction, and mental illness are ones that need to be more widely talked about. While this story is entirely fiction, the events that occur within its pages that are things that happen in the real world all too often. I’m someone that has firsthand experience with addiction because I am an alcoholic. I’ve been to rock bottom and lived there. I think that gives me a different perspective when reading books like this one. I think maybe that gives me a better view of what this world is really like. Because of this, I can say that this story was very realistic. This is something I appreciate about books of this subject matter. It’s not just some story. It’s real life. It’s hard and dirty and sometimes horrible, but it’s real. The other side of this was the predictability of the story. I could see most of the plot coming from a mile away. I don’t know if this is because I’ve been in part of this world or because of something else, but the direction of the story was super obvious to me.
Charlie, our main character, is a girl who you want to root for. She’s a likable girl that the world seems set on beating down with one awful thing after another. She seems to be let down by everyone in her life again and again. Those that are supposed to be there to care for her continually prove that they’re not up for the task. Charlie seems like she wants better for herself. She knows she can do better and be better, but she doesn’t always make the best decisions to support that. Including the friends that she makes.
Mikey is one of them. He seems to want to be able to help Charlie and rescue her until he realizes her feelings for him. I loved but also hated Mikey. Read the book and you’ll understand why. He’s got all of these opinions about Charlie’s life and what she should be doing, who she should or shouldn’t be friends with, but he’s not actually there to support her because his job requires him to leave on music tours. I think he has good intentions and poor execution.
Riley, oh Riley. I couldn’t help but love him even though it’s obvious that he’s pretty much trash. He’s everything that Charlie doesn’t need to complicate her life any further but down the rabbit hole she goes.
There are a few others that Charlie meets that I don’t want to mention specifically as to not spoil anything. But there are quite a few good eggs in this story that pick Charlie up when she’s drowning at rock bottom. The world needs more people like these characters. The ones that look out for the broken and the beaten down, people that throw kindness around like confetti. These characters made the story just that much better.
The ending was excellent. I really enjoyed the realistic ending. It was a mostly happy ending, but there were lessons in it. It was open-ended but doesn’t leave you hanging. Charlie leaves us on a good note, that she’s taking the right steps (finally) to make a better life for herself. Other characters (hint: Riley) also work on getting their lives together. It’s not a ‘happily ever after’ but the characters are going after their own fresh starts.
Girl in Pieces was written in an interesting way. It’s almost as if each chapter was a journal entry of Charlie’s. It’s written in first person point of view following Charlie after a suicide attempt. There are times when it gets a little confusing because it’s written almost as if we’re reading Charlie’s stream of thoughts, but I think that just made the story better and more authentic. I really enjoyed the formatting of the story.
I loved this book. It was real and powerful and thought-provoking. It’s filled with characters that you will love and hate and that will make you laugh and scream. I couldn’t put this book down. I finished reading it in less than a day. I’d recommend this book to anyone that enjoys reading about these difficult subjects, but forewarn anyone that struggles with similar issues because this book does not hide anything.

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!

Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson

GoodReads Summary:
Ellingham Academy is a famous private school in Vermont for the brightest thinkers, inventors, and artists. It was founded by Albert Ellingham, an early twentieth century tycoon, who wanted to make a wonderful place full of riddles, twisting pathways, and gardens. “A place,” he said, “where learning is a game.”

Shortly after the school opened, his wife and daughter were kidnapped. The only real clue was a mocking riddle listing methods of murder, signed with the frightening pseudonym “Truly, Devious.” It became one of the great unsolved crimes of American history.

True-crime aficionado Stevie Bell is set to begin her first year at Ellingham Academy, and she has an ambitious plan: She will solve this cold case. That is, she will solve the case when she gets a grip on her demanding new school life and her housemates: the inventor, the novelist, the actor, the artist, and the jokester. But something strange is happening. Truly Devious makes a surprise return, and death revisits Ellingham Academy. The past has crawled out of its grave. Someone has gotten away with murder.

The two interwoven mysteries of this first book in the Truly Devious series dovetail brilliantly, and Stevie Bell will continue her relentless quest for the murderers in books two and three.

Review:
I’ve heard nothing but good things about this book and all the others that Maureen Johnson has written. So when I saw that it was immediately available to borrow as an audiobook from my library I thought I’d give it a try. I’m glad I did.
If you like murder mysteries this will absolutely be a book for you. The story follows two mysteries. One that happened years ago that, while someone was convicted of the crime, many still think of as unsolved, and another following our main character, Stevie, and the adventure she embarks on in an attempt to solve the decades-old murder. I was sucked into this mystery right from the start. I love stories about kids going away to boarding school and Ellingham Academy is one that sounds awesome. The school itself is shrouded in mystery with tunnels and mysterious students and what not. I think this book ultimately left me with more questions than it answered.
The characters were fantastic. Stevie is a Sherlock Holmes nerd and aspires to be a detective when she’s old enough. She’s constantly questioning everything she sees and everything she knows. She’s just an inquisitive person. This seems to rub some individuals the wrong way. Her two closest friends, Nate and Janelle, are great. They both have distinct and unique personalities that made me laugh and kept me interested. I liked this combination of three together. They balanced one another out well enough. Then there were the other three students living in the same dorm as the three friends. Because they all lived together they became a makeshift group of friends who sat together at lunch and dinner times and did other miscellaneous things as a group. Ellie was totally out there. I liked her for most of the book. She was the wild child, the free spirit that did what felt good and said what came to her mind. Hayes was the airhead. An aspiring actor, he came off as kind of flaky to me. He seemed to have a bigger sense of self like he thought he was better or more important than everyone else but didn’t make it super obvious like the typical snob. Then there’s David. I liked him right from the start, even though Stevie didn’t. I don’t know what it was that made me like him, but I liked him the whole book. He was probably my second favorite after Stevie. He was just so intriguing I guess. I think maybe it’s because learning more about him was like pulling teeth. Stevie mostly tried to stay away from him, until she stopped trying to stay away and started to try to get to know him. Much to her frustration, he wasn’t interested in letting her learn a whole lot about him. I think that mystery is part of what made me like him so much. And then, of course, the way this book ended (HELLO CLIFFHANGER) just makes me want the next book so that I can know what is actually going on in the world because the lack of information is literally going to kill me.
Anyway, overall, aside from the cliffhanger that left me asking more questions than I got answered through the whole book, I loved it. I thought the audiobook was read very well. The story was interesting and kept my attention the whole time. I ate up every word of both present day and past mysteries. I can’t wait for the next book to come out so that maybe I can have my sanity returned because I don’t even know what just happened with that ending.

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 link (just click on the book cover) to support us!

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.

I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman

Summary:
Around the time that Freya loses her voice while recording her debut album, Harun is making plans to run away from everyone he has ever loved, and Nathaniel is arriving in New York City with a backpack, a desperate plan, and nothing left to lose. When a fateful accident draws these three strangers together, their secrets start to unravel as they begin to understand that the way out of their own loss might just lie in help¬ing the others out of theirs.

Review:
I was mostly underwhelmed by this story. This was my latest audiobook choice from my library. I picked it because I’ve read other books by Gayle Forman and enjoyed them. The description sounded interesting enough and I’ve heard some good things from those in the book blogging community that has read it already. I think maybe my opinion would have been different if I was reading this book instead of listening to it, but I listened to it.
This story follows three characters that have all ‘lost their way.’ The first being Freya who has lost her voice and is unsure that she will ever get it back. She’s unsure where her life can go from here. The second is Nathaniel who has lost everything that matters in his life and arrives in New York with a backpack and a destination until he runs into Freya that is. Our third main character is Harun who is letting life take him in a direction that he doesn’t really want to take. He’s letting others make choices for him so that he can hide from his problems and his true self for just a little longer. While I liked the characters, these people who are deeply flawed, just trying to figure out who they are and what their next step is in their lives, it was confusing having three different main characters. We’re following the story where the three characters meet and their stories intertwine with one another, but at the same time, we’re alternating between the three characters getting to know their histories and how they got to where they are now. So I was confused from time to time when we would switch from someone’s backstory back to the present day where the three characters were together. There was just a lot going on that was a little hard to follow in a few places.
As for the story itself, I found it pretty uneventful and unexciting. There were quite a few moments that made me think, “Hm, what an interesting connection.” But there wasn’t actually much action, the characters didn’t really do much. The majority of the plot was our characters learning things about themselves through their conversations and interactions with one another. I don’t mean to say this is a bad thing, it just wasn’t my favorite thing. I love when there’s a bit of both, self-realization but also a little bit of craziness.
I did enjoy the narrators of the audiobook. There were three different narrators and I think they did a great job reading the story and keeping me interested where the plot failed.
Overall I was underwhelmed by this story. I’m not really sure what I was expecting with this book, but I guess it was more than what I was given. I don’t think it was a bad book, not bad enough for me to DNF it, though I did consider it when I was about halfway through listening. I might recommend this to those that prefer more thought-provoking stories rather than one full of adventure and action alongside the thought-provoking aspects.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

*We recently have become Amazon Affiliates. 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 link (just click on the book cover) to support us!

ABC Book Challenge |E|

Hello, Bookworms!

This week we will be talking about books with the letter E. For those of you that are new here – here’s the deal, each week we post about books beginning with a specific letter of the alphabet starting with A and ending once we’ve gone all the way to Z. We’re going to mention one or sometimes a few books that were super memorable with the letter of the week and also books that are still living on our TBR lists. So without further ado.

Read last week’s post here.

This week’s letter is – E.

Most Memorable Books 

Amanda

Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas – This book was absolutely incredible. The way that it ended was just mindblowing and heartbreaking at the same time. I might even say it was my favorite of the series, but I could change my mind when I do my reread this fall in anticipation of the final book.

Earth’s End by Elise Kova – Book three in a five book series that I read as a boxed set on my Kindle. This whole series was incredible and probably one of my top ten new reads of the year (you’ll see it pop up all over with the other book tags and bookish lists I post.)

Antonia

Every Last Breath by Jennifer L. Armentrout – I’ve loved her books ever since I picked up Obsidian on a whim. This one is the last book in The Dark Elements series. It has a really well done angels vs. demons theme and the most swoon-worthy bad boy.

Eragon by Christopher Paolini – This was one of the first books I really obsessed over. The end of the series was so bittersweet and a little devastating but I’ll always have such pleasant memories of this book. (No one even think about mentioning the movie.)

 

Books Still on Our TBR Lists

Amanda

(An) Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir – I’ve read this book before but I honestly don’t remember anything about it. The third book came out recently so the whole series is on my TBR list with the first two books as a reread.

(The) Emerald Sea by Richelle Mead – The third and final book in the Glittering Court Trilogy and I am beyond ready and excited to see what’s going to happen in this series conclusion.

Antonia

Everneath by Brodi Ashton – I just got all three books in this series and am really excited to see how the Orpheus/ Eurydice myth ties into it.

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon – I saw the movie trailer and thought it was interesting before I ever knew it was a book. After Amanda’s review of it, I knew it had to go on my TBR list.

 

This is what we’ve come up with for this weeks letter! Do you have any memorable books that start with the letter E? What about books that you haven’t managed to read yet? Feel free to answer in the comments and thanks for reading!

Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel

Summary:
A girl named Rose is riding her new bike near her home in Deadwood, South Dakota, when she falls through the earth. She wakes up at the bottom of a square hole, its walls glowing with intricate carvings. But the firemen who come to save her peer down upon something even stranger: a little girl in the palm of a giant metal hand.
Seventeen years later, the mystery of the bizarre artifact remains unsolved—its origins, architects, and purpose unknown. Its carbon dating defies belief; military reports are redacted; theories are floated, then rejected.
But some can never stop searching for answers.
Rose Franklin is now a highly trained physicist leading a top-secret team to crack the hand’s code. And along with her colleagues, she is being interviewed by a nameless interrogator whose power and purview are as enigmatic as the provenance of relic. What’s clear is that Rose and her compatriots are on the edge of unraveling history’s most perplexing discovery—and figuring out what it portends for humanity. But once the pieces of the puzzle are in place, will the result prove to be an instrument of lasting peace or a weapon of mass destruction?
Review:
What in the actual F just happened? I can’t even with this book. I one million percent understand the hype about this series now. Guys, I finally get it. Now I just need the second book and I will be okay. I will recover. But it’s more than a six-week wait for the next audiobook through my library and I might just die in the meantime.
Okay, sorry about that, but I just finished listening to this audiobook and I think I definitely died on the inside a little bit with that ending. Sleeping Giants was freaking incredible. I want to stand on the roof and shout at people walking by that they need to read this book. The story was just incredible. It was so creative and unique that I could not stop listening. I legitimately listened to this book in two days. It would have only been one day, but I’m a real adult and I had to be responsible and get my college work done. I’m honestly just blown away at how much I enjoyed this book.
First of all, the storyline was like nothing I’ve ever read before. It was so incredibly creative and unique that I’m just blown away. This book may just become one of my new all-time favorites depending on how I like the rest of the series.
The characters in Sleeping Giants were awesome. They all had such interesting and distinct personalities. Each character brought something important to the table. They each played an important part in the task that was this giant hand that they’re still researching and trying to learn more about. I can’t even write about half the things I’d love to mention because I don’t want to spoil anything.
I really liked how the story was written. Instead of the traditional story, it was read to me as a series of interviews. With a nameless, unidentified man heading this mysterious project he led interviews with all of those that were involved in the research. There were army pilots, geneticists, mathematicians and physicists that created an extremely interesting group of people that was hilarious and sad and explosive all at the same time. I’m still left wondering who this nameless interviewer is though. He seems to be the man in charge; even at the end of the book when everything is seemingly falling apart he still manages to flip the situation around to benefit him and the team.
I just still have so many questions that I know won’t be answered until I get the next book. I’m honestly still reeling from the craziness that was this story because I just finished listening and I think my brain is still trying to reform after being melted.
The audiobook for Sleeping Giants was seriously impressive. All the different characters had their own narrators so it was more like a performance rather than one person just reading the book. This was my first audiobook that had multiple narrators and it just makes the listening experience that much better.
I honestly have nothing bad to say about this book. Starting today I will be recommending this book to anyone and everyone who wants to listen to me. I will absolutely recommend it as one of my favorite audiobooks and just all around as an amazing story. There were fantastic characters who played their parts in an incredible story and I just wish there was more for me to read or listen to.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

*We recently have become Amazon Affiliates. 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 link (just click on the book cover) to support us!

 

Amanda’s Top Ten Tuesday – Sensory Memories

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 is top ten books with sensory reading memories. I was going to skip this topic this week and choose my own, but Antonia helped me see that I have more books that fit this topic than I originally thought. Here’s my top ten for this week in no particular order.

1. The Ugly Duckling by Iris Johansen – My Nana showed me this book when I was a teenager. It’s one of the books that helped me become the bookworm I am today. I have such good memories of sitting in my Popa’s chair reading this book.
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling – This book came out right before I went to summer camp and I brought it with me. I ended up reading it aloud to all the girls in my cabin throughout the three weeks that I was there and we ended up having like ten extra girls come to our cabin so that they could listen too.
3. Breaking Dawn by Stephanie Meyer – This book came out on my birthday. I had it preordered and didn’t think I would actually get it on my birthday. I was so excited when I saw it on my front step after coming home from my best friend’s house. I tried to read it as soon as I got home, but I hadn’t slept the night before and so I fell asleep reading.
4. Looking for Alaska by John Green – Will forever make me think of my husband. He showed me this book in high school. I remember seeing it on his bookshelf the first time I ever went to his house. It’s been my favorite book since he let me borrow his that day so long ago.
5. Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer – Antonia and I sort of became friends because of this book. She was staying at my house because she was friends with my step sister. They fought about something dumb and so Antonia asked what I was reading and she climbed up into my bed (I had a bunk bed) and we read this book together and have been friends ever since.
6. The Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead – Antonia and I have read most of these books aloud to one another. We call it story time. Between the six books and our two bedrooms, I have so many memories of us reading to one another, passing the book back and forth between chapters to switch off whose reading.
7. House of Night by P.C. and Kristen Cast – I used to go on vacation with Antonia and her family every year for Memorial Day Weekend. One of the trips we spent pretty much the entire time in our beds in our cabin reading whatever the newest HON book had come out.
8. The Argeneau Series by Lynsay Sands – I don’t remember which book in this series it was but I went to high school with some typically immature boys. Said boys loved to steal my books (Antonia’s too when we had lunch together) and find the sex scenes and read them out loud. Sands books have some particularly descriptive sex scenes and the boys ate it up.
9. The Magic Tree House Series by Mary Pope Osborne – I was absolutely obsessed with this series when I was growing up. I ate these books up. My dad couldn’t buy the next one fast enough for my liking. I have such good memories of sitting in my yard reading this series in the summertime or by the fireplace in the winter.
10. The Shadow Children Series by Margaret Peterson Haddix – I remember spending way too many nights staying up too late with my closet light on, always keeping an ear out for my dad coming down the hallway. I also remember spending copious amounts of time in my middle school library reading these books.

I had more fun with this week’s post than I thought I was going to. I didn’t think I was even going to come up with ten books for this topic, but I actually have a few more that I could add but won’t. What books remind you of good bookish memories?

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst

Summary:
Betrothed since childhood to the prince of Mynaria, Princess Dennaleia has always known what her future holds. Her marriage will seal the alliance between Mynaria and her homeland, protecting her people from other hostile nations. But Denna has a secret. She possesses an Affinity for fire-a dangerous gift for the future queen of a kingdom where magic is forbidden.
Now Denna must learn the ways of her new home while trying to hide her growing magic. To make matters worse, she must learn to ride Mynria’s formidable warhorses-and her teacher is the person who intimidates her most, the prickly and unconventional Princess Amaranthine-called Mare-the sister of her betrothed.
When a shocking assassination leaves the kingdom reeling, Mare and Denna reluctantly join forces to search for the culprit. As the two become closer, Mare is surprised by Denna’s intelligence and bravery, while Denna is drawn to Mare’s independent streak. And soon their friendship is threatening to blossom into something more.
But with dangerous conflict brewing that makes the alliance more important than ever, acting on their feelings could be deadly. Forced to choose between their duty and their hearts, Mare and Denna must find a way to save their kingdoms-and each other.
Review:
I picked this book up from my local library the last time I went for a visit. I found this on the ‘Pride Month’ feature (which yes I know, was last month but I’m forever a step behind on everything.) I’m super glad I picked this book up. It was incredible and made me realize that I don’t read enough LBGTQ books. I think the thing I liked the most about this book was that it didn’t scream “HEY THIS IS A BOOK ABOUT GIRLS FALLING IN LOVE.” It told the story and just let the romance unfold and I really enjoyed that.
The first thing I thought while only a few pages into the story was that all of the characters have really weird but interesting names. I’m not mentioning this because it was bad; I mention it because it took me a minute to figure out how to say the names. I liked the unique names. It’s something that will make the story memorable to me. With the interesting and unique names, I thought it was a little odd that the descriptions in the story were so minimal. There was enough to set the scene but still left a fair amount to the imagination. With a fantasy story like this one, it was a little surprising to me. Most fantasy that I’ve read are teeming with descriptions and world building. This book had them but still left much for the reader to fill in with their own imaginations. I actually didn’t mind this at all. I tend to not read fantasy because of the amount of world building and setting descriptions, so this book was the perfect amount for me. There was also some odd language used that I didn’t like at first, but it grew on me throughout the story. Instead of hours, the characters referred to “sunlengths” and little things like this.
As for our characters, there are a ton that I could mention, but I’m just going to talk about our princesses. Mare and Denna are just about as opposite as you can get aside from their determination and drive. Mare does her best to be the farthest thing from a princess as she can. She spends her days dressed as a peasant drinking in bars trying to collect information. She is constantly underestimated by her father and her brother. Mare is desperate to find the freedom she craves so badly. Denna, on the other hand, has been raised her whole life to do the right thing, to be the proper princess, to do her duty to the kingdoms. Denna is a girl dedicated to her duty, the one she was assigned in childhood, to become a queen. She’s educated and clever, but lets herself get bossed around rather than standing up and saying, “Hey I have this great idea that you should all probably listen to.” So when she and Mare start to bond and Mare starts to listen to Denna’s thoughts and ideas, the not so proper feelings start. I enjoyed every page of watching these girls realize that the love they’d both been looking for their whole lives was right there in front of them. I’m a total sucker for the forbidden love trope. I love that this love was forbidden, but not because it’s love between two women because one of the women is already engaged to be married.
Overall I loved this book. Between the two female main characters that I just couldn’t get enough of as they figured out who they are and what exactly they want from life and one another. The forbidden love aspect had me hooked from the beginning. And the world the story takes place in was interesting enough to leave me pining for the next book that doesn’t come out until next year. I’m dying to know what’s going to happen in this world that frowns upon magic, which may just lead to the end of the world. This book had a great ending for our two princesses but definitely left me wanting more. This was a great young adult fantasy and I would recommend it to anyone.

Keep on reading lovelies, Amanda.

*We recently have become Amazon Affiliates. 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 link (just click on the book cover) to support us!