Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Publication Date: April 4th, 2017

Rating: 4 Stars

Source: Purchase

Format: Paperback

Pages: 388

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Summary (from Goodreads):

Classic movie buff Bailey “Mink” Rydell has spent months crushing on a witty film geek she only knows online by “Alex.” Two coasts separate the teens until Bailey moves in with her dad, who lives in the same California surfing town as her online crush.

Faced with doubts (what if he’s a creep in real life—or worse?), Bailey doesn’t tell Alex she’s moved to his hometown. Or that she’s landed a job at the local tourist-trap museum. Or that she’s being heckled daily by the irritatingly hot museum security guard, Porter Roth—a.k.a. her new arch-nemesis. But life is whole lot messier than the movies, especially when Bailey discovers that tricky fine line between hate, love, and whatever-it-is she’s starting to feel for Porter.

And as the summer months go by, Bailey must choose whether to cling to a dreamy online fantasy in Alex or take a risk on an imperfect reality with Porter. The choice is both simpler and more complicated than she realizes, because Porter Roth is hiding a secret of his own: Porter is Alex…Approximately.

In this delightfully charming teen spin on You’ve Got Mail, the one guy Bailey Rydell can’t stand is actually the boy of her dreams—she just doesn’t know it yet.

I decided that I was finally going to pick up Alex, Approximately because I have recently been hit hardcore with ALL the reminders of the boy that I used to talk to online and was just SO in love with in high school.

I was going through my old email that I used to use MSN Messenger for, which is where I primarily talked to this person. I had saved conversations that I was dissecting via email with my friend who spent that school year in Texas. I sent pictures of him to my mom after she moved away and I told her just how SEXY he was. *ultimate face palm*

It also inspired me to to decipher my old, scribbled out journal entries about him, which is a whole new level of cringe. I was just so very head over heels. Oh my goodness.

Anyway, all of that finally inspired me to pick up this book about Bailey, who moves across the country to live with her dad in the beach town where Alex, the boy she has formed an online relationship with, lives. She calls herself an Artful Dodger, meaning she has turned dodging social/confrontational things that she doesn't want to deal with into an art form. So, naturally, she doesn't tell Alex that she moved to his town.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There really wasn't as much emphasis on the online relationship part of the story as I thought there would be. In the beginning, Bailey spends a lot of time scoping out the town, trying to see if she can figure out who Alex is and make sure he's not some kind of creeper. But as she starts to get to know one of her coworkers from her summer job more, she starts to look for and talk to Alex less.

I loved the relationship between Bailey and Porter. They both work in a museum for their summer job. Bailey usually works the ticket booth, Porter is security. Bailey doesn't really care for Porter at first, but he grows on her as they get to know each other more. I also really liked the friendship between Bailey and her fellow ticket booth worker, Grace. They were a fun set of friends.

The story was interesting. I liked watching Bailey and Porter's relationship grow. I liked learning about the traumatic parts of their pasts that they don't really talk about with other people. I liked the conflict with Davy. I liked the family relationships in the story. I just overall adored this story.

The only complaint I have, doesn't have anything to do with the story, but more the writing. In the first couple of chapters, the Artful Dodger thing gets SO repetitive, it started to drive me nuts. Like, the fact that Bailey is an Artful Dodger is so relatable, but like... I got it. I didn't need to hear the term 900 times in like 20 pages. That's a bit of an exaggeration, but repetitiveness in books is probably my biggest writing style pet peeve.

Overall, I really liked this book. I would recommend it if you're looking for a cute, fun, summer-y romance. It doesn't have as much of a focus on the online relationship as I was expecting, which was what I was looking for going in, but it was still so much fun.

Have you read this book? What did you think of it?

Guest Post // First and Last Lines of Iconic Books

Reading the first line of a book is like reading a written invitation addressed to you. If you like what the invitation says, you read on. If you don’t like it, or it doesn’t interest you, you close the book and read a different story. Authors know the importance of those first few words. Some authors even devote several months of time to develop the opening line of their book. Famous author, Stephen King revealed that he has spent up to several years on opening sentences, claiming that the extra time has contributed to the success of his works. 

Though formulating the ideal first line is critical, formulating the last sentence of a story is arguably just as important. While opening sentences invite you in, the last sentence wraps the story up and leaves you with an impression that can last a lifetime. Invaluable created this visual that highlights the beginnings and endings from famous novels. 

What are the first and last lines of your favorite stories?

Bookending Autumn 2019 #1 // Sweater Weather

Bookending Autumn is a quarterly event, running under the umbrella term “Bookend Events," aspiring to bring the book blogging community closer together! Bookending Autumn has a theme of fall/autumn and all things Halloween, but you DO NOT need to stick to this theme at all!

If you're curious about this event, here is a link to the announcement post.

The theme for the first day of Bookending Autumn is Sweater Weather!

The most basic of prompts for Day 1! It’s officially sweater weather, so break out those cardigans from the back of your closet. Name some books that make you feel warm and cozy, like a nice sweater in the fall.

I'm probably thinking too hard about this, but I don't know what a warm and cozy feeling from a book is so I am just picking books that give me a warm and FUZZY feeling. Which is basically just another way to say I'm listing some books that are my favorites in some way!

Well Met by Jen DeLuca

Goodreads

At the point of writing this post, Well Met was the most recent book that I read and I absolutely ADORED it. I'm not sure why exactly I loved it so much, but I did. It is definitely my favorite romance novel (let's just ignore the fact that I haven't read very many, hahahaha). I would die for Simon Graham.

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

Goodreads

If we're going by books that make me feel warm and fuzzy inside, can I really NOT include The Darkest Minds? My favorite book and series ever? I mean, at this point, it can probably just go without saying, but if I can convince someone new to my blog to read this series, the repetitiveness is worth it. :)

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Goodreads

Delirium is the book that got me to be an avid reader. It's the first series I ever remember going hard on and binging like a boss. I was ready to leave my house at 2 am to go to Walmart to buy Pandemonium after binging this book. Requiem was the first book I ever preordered. It arrived a day early and I binged that one as fast as I could so I could say that I read it before the rest of the plebs could. It's the first time I ever remember being SO disappointed by the end of a series and the series that made me realize that I hate open endings. But I love it. I kinda want to do a reread of this series, but I'm terrified that I won't like it as much.

A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

Goodreads

I am including this one because Beauty and the Beast is my all time favorite Disney movie and I think that this book is probably my favorite retelling of it. Which is funny because when I picked it up, I really didn't think I was actually going to like it. I am SO ready for A Heart So Fierce and Broken! 

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time by Akira Himekawa

Goodreads

This year I have really gotten into reading mangas, so I think it would be fitting to include a manga! And The Legend of Zelda is my all time favorite game franchise (and almost the only game franchise I even bother to play). AND before Breath of the Wild came out, Ocarina of Time was my favorite Zelda game so this particular manga was really fitting to include in this list. If you know the storyline of any of the games that have a manga, you really won't get a whole lot of new information from this, but the mangas give Link a personality, which I loved.

But I will THROW my money at Akira Himekawa if she ever comes out with a Breath of the Wild manga series. That game is my jam.

What are some books that make you feel warm and cozy like a fuzzy fall sweater?

Review // Well Met by Jen DeLuca

Well Met by Jen DeLuca

Publisher: Berkley

Publication Date: September 3rd, 2019

Rating: 5 Stars

Source: Purchase

Format: Paperback

Pages: 336

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Summary (from Goodreads):

All's faire in love and war for two sworn enemies who indulge in a harmless flirtation in a laugh-out-loud rom-com from debut author, Jen DeLuca.

Emily knew there would be strings attached when she relocated to the small town of Willow Creek, Maryland, for the summer to help her sister recover from an accident, but who could anticipate getting roped into volunteering for the local Renaissance Faire alongside her teenaged niece? Or that the irritating and inscrutable schoolteacher in charge of the volunteers would be so annoying that she finds it impossible to stop thinking about him?

The faire is Simon's family legacy and from the start he makes clear he doesn't have time for Emily's lighthearted approach to life, her oddball Shakespeare conspiracy theories, or her endless suggestions for new acts to shake things up. Yet on the faire grounds he becomes a different person, flirting freely with Emily when she's in her revealing wench's costume. But is this attraction real, or just part of the characters they're portraying?

This summer was only ever supposed to be a pit stop on the way to somewhere else for Emily, but soon she can't seem to shake the fantasy of establishing something more with Simon, or a permanent home of her own in Willow Creek.

That's it, that's the review.

But if you wanted a little bit more than that, I loved this book. I loved the Ren Faire setting. I loved the characters. I loved the enemies-to-lovers romance. I loved that I actually read a book where I can swoon over Simon Graham aka Captain Ian Blackthorne and I'm not cradle robber. I want to read this book for the first time all over again.

This book follows Emily, who I thoroughly enjoyed as a main character. Her life is pretty much in complete upheaval after her breakup with her long time, rising attorney boyfriend and losing her apartment. So the timing is perfect, however unfortunate it might be, when she has to move in to her sister's guest room and take care of things for her while she heals from her nasty car accident. Running errands and carting her niece around gives her a purpose while she figures out what she wants to do with her life now.

On top of that, she has to volunteer for the school's Renaissance Faire as her niece's chaperone so that she can participate. And that's how she meets Simon, who she gets off on the wrong foot with almost immediately. The Ren Faire is his life and he doesn't care for Emily's lighthearted and less serious approach to it.

Simon, as a love interest, I adored. He took over the organization of the Ren Faire after the death of his brother, who started it. He is a stickler for the rules and making sure everything is perfectly the way his brother had it. But when the actual Ren Faire rolls around, in character, he is a lot more fun, flirty, care-free, etc. And then you get to see another side of him when him and Emily finally get to know and LIKE each other. I don't know what to say, Simon was just...

I liked the enemies-to-lovers romance. Real life Simon is not Emily's favorite person, but when she meets Captain Ian Blackthorne, she can't believe they're the same person and it makes her start to get more curious about the man behind the persona. And I loved it.

Besides the romance, Emily is also forming lots of other relationships in this new, small town. Her sister is 12 years older than her so they've never really been close. As Emily puts it, by the time she was starting to get 'interesting', her sister was off to college. So in this arrangement they have going on, she's finally getting to have a relationship with her sister. And by being her chauffeur, she is able to get closer to her niece who is only around ten years younger than she is.

Besides familial relationships, she is also forming friendships with the rest of the Ren Faire volunteers, particularly her fellow tavern wench, Stacey, and the attractive coach-in-a-kilt, Mitch.

Before long, she starts to consider that after she's done helping her sister, maybe she could stay and make a life in Willow Creek.

If I was going to complain about anything, it would be how quickly Emily just jumps to the worst possible conclusions about things without talking to people first. There is one big thing in particular that I'm thinking of where she jumps to the worst conclusion about something that is going on when she has literally not a single, solitary shred of evidence or real reason to believe that worst thing. It was a little bit annoying. But that just can't damper my enchantment with this novel.

Overall, this book was so so so good. Everything about it was just *chef's kiss*. I would highly recommend this book if anything I've said sounds like it could remotely be up your alley. I'm not entirely sure what exactly stood out to me so much to make me feel so strongly about it, but I am here for this book.

Have you read this book? What did you think of it?

Review // The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman

The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman

The Devouring Gray #1

Publisher: Titan Books

Publication Date: April 2nd, 2019

Rating: 3.5 Stars

Source: Purchase

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 368

Add it on Goodreads!

Summary (from Goodreads):

On the edge of town a beast haunts the woods, trapped in the Gray, its bonds loosening…

Uprooted from the city, Violet Saunders doesn’t have much hope of fitting in at her new school in Four Paths, a town almost buried in the woodlands of rural New York. The fact that she’s descended from one of the town’s founders doesn’t help much, either—her new neighbours treat her with distant respect, and something very like fear. When she meets Justin, May, Isaac, and Harper, all children of founder families, and sees the otherworldly destruction they can wreak, she starts to wonder if the townsfolk are right to be afraid.

When bodies start to appear in the woods, the locals become downright hostile. Can the teenagers solve the mystery of Four Paths, and their own part in it, before another calamity strikes?

Four Paths is a small town in a woodsy part of New York that was founded by four families in the 1800's and who's descendants are now responsible for keeping the rest of the town safe from the Beast with different powers that are passed down through each founder family.

Recently, the town has been experiencing an influx of deaths caused by the Beast and the town is starting to become disenchanted with the founders and question what exactly they're doing to keep everyone safe because it certainly doesn't seem to be working. 

This book mainly follows four characters, one from each family.

Violet Saunders has just moved to Four Paths, her mother's hometown, after the death of her sister, Rosie. She is thrown into this whole founder family thing and has to figure it out without the help of her mother, who seems to have no idea what's going on. I liked Violet, but I felt like she just accepted literally everything anyone told her at face value. 

Justin Hawthorne is basically the town's golden boy. He is popular, athletic, the son of the town's sheriff. He basically spends the whole book trying to help everyone and make up for his past wrongdoings. He is also SUPER "woe-is-me" throughout the book about everything.

Isaac Sullivan was probably my favorite character. He's kind of like the destructive, bad boy one in the group. He's probably the one with the most interesting (read: sad) past and the one that I am the most curious about in the future of this series. I want all the good things for Isaac Sullivan.

Harper Carlisle is the outcast of the group, having been shunned after failing her ritual and losing her arm. She is angry, and rightfully so, but it didn't feel like there was all that much to her beyond her anger and her basically hating that she still wants Justin Hawthorne after everything he put her through.

Overall, I liked the characters, I just wish that there was more to some of them. But I liked seeing how they all came to be friends or at least tolerate each other after Violet came to town.

I would have liked to know more about the Beast and where it came from. You don't even really get to know what the Beast even IS in this book and I feel like it raises some questions about who is really the bad guy in the grand scheme of things in this town. So, interesting, would like to know more.

There really wasn't a lot of romance in this book. There are no pairings by the end of the book. But there are some feelings brewing and I liked one of the pairs more than the other, but for a book with so many characters that are bisexual, there don't seem to be any main m/m or f/f pairings in the works, which is a little bit disappointing.

I have not seen Stranger Things, but I feel like the Raven Cycle series is an adequate comparison, it has a similar vibe, but maybe doesn't feel QUITE as atmospheric or eerie.

I enjoyed this book for the most part but, I felt like some of the writing wasn't my favorite. Some of the pacing was a bit off for me. Like for example, one minute, Violet was leaving her house with her aunt sitting on the porch with her cat, Orpheus, and then it felt like the next minute, Violet was in the woods and Orpheus was already there.

And the other thing for me was each character being explicitly described by their skin color. Besides the fact that this felt unnecessary because I only remember one small character being black, there are only so many points of view I needed to know that one character was white from. I am pretty sure there were at least two points of view that we first saw Violet from and they both said something along the lines of "there was a white girl standing there". I'm not saying trying to say that this is a bad thing, it's definitely not. I'm just saying that there are probably more ways you can describe a person besides JUST black and white. Which, later in the book this did get slightly better, but it was really prevalent in the beginning.

And I just want to know how a cat that seems to be fairly active can spend the entire book with a piece of red yarn tied around his ear? Like, it's adorable, but it just kinda... sounds fake.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It was interesting and I am pretty sure that I would die for Isaac Sullivan. If you liked the Raven Cycle series, this is definitely worth a try. I am excited to see where this series goes.

Have you read this book yet? What did you think of it?

Waiting on Wednesday // The Deep by Alma Katsu

The Deep by Alma Katsu

Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons

Publication Date: March 10, 2020

Pages: 432

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Summary (from Goodreads):

From the acclaimed and award-winning author of The Hunger comes an eerie, psychological twist on one of the world's most renowned tragedies, the sinking of the Titanic and the ill-fated sail of its sister ship, the Britannic.

Someone, or something, is haunting the ship. That is the only way to explain the series of misfortunes that have plagued the passengers of the Titanic from the moment they set sail. The Titanic's passengers expected to enjoy an experience befitting the much-heralded ship's maiden voyage, but instead, amid mysterious disappearances and sudden deaths, find themselves in an eerie, unsettling twilight zone. While some of the guests and crew shrug off strange occurrences, several--including maid Annie Hebbley, guest Mark Fletcher, and millionaires Madeleine Astor and Benjamin Guggenheim--are convinced there's something more sinister going on. And then disaster strikes.

Years later, Annie, having survived that fateful night, has attempted to put her life back together by going to work as a nurse on the sixth sailing of the Britannic, newly refitted as a hospital ship to support British forces fighting World War I. When she happens across an unconscious Mark, now a soldier, she is at first thrilled and relieved to learn that he too survived the tragic night four years earlier. But soon his presence awakens deep-buried feelings and secrets, forcing her to reckon with the demons of her past--as they both discover that the terror may not yet be over.

Featuring an ensemble cast of characters and effortlessly combining the supernatural with the height of historical disaster, The Deep is an exploration of love and destiny, desire and innocence, and, above all, a quest to understand how our choices can lead us inexorably toward our doom.

What books are you looking forward to this week?

What I've Read Recently // #3

Hello everyone! I am back with another update of what I have been reading since I last updated you on what I have been reading!

I am so proud of myself, not gonna lie. I have never hit one of my Goodreads goals before, but I think this might be the year! Honestly, there are two books on this list that I counted as three because they contain three different volumes that could all be counted individually on Goodreads, but whatever gets me from point A to point B, right?

Also, I am currently 11 books ahead of schedule! I am at 46/52 at the moment and I definitely think that I can read 6 books in four months. Readathons and not requesting books from Netgalley have been the most productive things for my reading lately.

Anyway, let's get on with what I have been reading recently.

          

1. Hollow Fields by Madeleine Rosca

This is one of those books that is actually a bind up of all three volumes that I counted individually on Goodreads. It's about a girl who is on her way to start school and accidentally ends up at the wrong one and is stuck going to a school for evil geniuses and mad scientists where each week the student with the lowest scores is sent to detention and never seen again. It was pretty interesting.

My boyfriend picked this one up from a rummage sale for me. He has come such a very long way from buying huge boxes full of books indiscriminately for me just because, "They're books! You like books!"

2. What Was I Scared Of? by Dr. Seuss

This used to be my mom's favorite Dr. Seuss book to read to my sister and I. And I stumbled across a glow-in-the-dark version? Yes, please! I picked this one up one day and read it out loud to my boyfriend so that he could say he consumed one whole book this year.

3. Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan

This was the first book I read for the NEWTs this year. I listened to this one as an audiobook and I kind of wish that I would have read it physically, I don't think I dedicated enough concentration to this book and didn't really like it, but also didn't really DISlike it. I don't really know what to think of it, but I think I might reread it physically if the general consensus for the rest of the series is good.

          

4. The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones

I was sent an ARC of The Bone Houses and I was SO excited! Welsh mythology + undead goat sidekick + reanimated corpses = 5 stars from me! If you think that sounds like fun, I would highly recommend you check this one out!

5. Wilder Girls by Rory Power

This one, unfortunately, was a miss for me. I literally couldn't bring myself to care about anyone or anything happening in this book. I think my main problem with this book could have been the writing style, but overall, I just didn't enjoy it. It wasn't my idea of a good time.

6. Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian

I listened to Ash Princess for the NEWTs as well. I got the audiobook shortly after the book came out because I actually got an eARC that I never got around to reading and I felt bad. But relatively recently the author has said some things on Twitter that I didn't really like and I don't know that I really want to support that so I probably won't go out of my way to review this one. I liked it. I really like the trope of a queen reclaiming her rightful throne. But this book isn't anything particularly revolutionary or unique. If I can manage to acquire the rest of the series without buying it, I might read it, but I'm probably not going to go out of my way to do so.

          

7. Saga vol. 1 by Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples

I was kinda scared when I picked this one up that I wouldn't really like it because Monstress didn't really work for me and I irrationally decided that it was because it was a graphic novel. Because clearly one graphic novel (my first!) not working for me, meant none ever would. I just couldn't really follow Monstress and nothing stuck in my head. But I didn't have that problem with Saga. It was a lot easier to follow for me. I think it was because the artwork wasn't as busy.

8. Saga vol. 2 by Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples

9. Wolf Children: Ame & Yuki by Mamoru Hosoda

I have had this manga for so long and finally got around to reading it as my last necessary book for the NEWTs. I enjoyed it, but I feel like it wasn't super exciting. I liked the characters and things didn't go the way I was expecting them to in like.. any part of it. But overall, not the most exciting story I've read recently.

     

10. Kiss of the Rose Princess by Aya Shouoto

I could NOT follow what was happening in this manga at all, the artwork was FAR too busy for me and it definitely affected my enjoyment of it. I kinda knew what was going on from the dialogue, but there was just too much going on for me otherwise. It's probably not that bad and I'm probably just being a baby, but probably my least favorite manga I've read.

11. House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig

I really enjoyed this one. It is a retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses tale. I've never heard that tale before, but it might mean something to you. I have seen this book described as a horror fantasy, but paranormal mystery/thriller feels more accurate. But it was a solid start to my spooky season reading.

I would say that The Bone Houses, House of Salt and Sorrows, and then Saga were probably my favorite recent reads, with Kiss of the Rose Princess and Wilder Girls being my least favorite.

Have you read any of these lately? What has been your favorite read lately?

Review // House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig

House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig

Publisher: Delacorte

Publication Date: August 6th, 2019

Rating: 4 Stars

Source: Purchase

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 416

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Summary (from Goodreads):

In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed.

Annaleigh lives a sheltered life at Highmoor, a manor by the sea, with her sisters, their father, and stepmother. Once they were twelve, but loneliness fills the grand halls now that four of the girls' lives have been cut short. Each death was more tragic than the last—the plague, a plummeting fall, a drowning, a slippery plunge—and there are whispers throughout the surrounding villages that the family is cursed by the gods.

Disturbed by a series of ghostly visions, Annaleigh becomes increasingly suspicious that the deaths were no accidents. Her sisters have been sneaking out every night to attend glittering balls, dancing until dawn in silk gowns and shimmering slippers, and Annaleigh isn't sure whether to try to stop them or to join their forbidden trysts. Because who—or what—are they really dancing with?

When Annaleigh's involvement with a mysterious stranger who has secrets of his own intensifies, it's a race to unravel the darkness that has fallen over her family—before it claims her next.

House of Salt and Sorrows is apparently a retelling of Twelve Dancing Princesses. I immediately wanted to say a darker retelling, but I've never heard the tale of the Twelve Dancing Princesses, so really, how would I know?

Anyway, this story follows Annaleigh after the death of her sister Eulalie, who is the fourth of the 12 sisters to end up dead. But Annaleigh thinks there is something fishy going on and starts trying to figure out if her family is actually cursed or if there is someone out there murdering her family one by one.

With a new stepmother who wants her child to be the heir to the family's seaside manor and an attractive new guy on one of the islands who knows things that he shouldn't, Annaleigh has her hands full trying to figure out what's going on.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There is a large cast of characters, seeing as there are eight living sisters who are all obviously important to the story plus the other characters important to the household and a love interest... There's just a lot of people to keep track of. I personally didn't have too much trouble keeping track of the people that needed to be kept track of.

Like all of the sisters are important characters, but not all of them are so important to the point that you need to be able to distinguish all of them super well. Maybe just what group they're in. Like there's the dead sisters, Camille (the newest heir), Annaleigh, the triplets, and the Graces (which are just the youngest three).

I liked Annaleigh. She is the only one who seems to believe that, rather than her family being cursed, something sinister is afoot. She especially starts to think something is up when she starts to see her dead sisters around. I don't really know what else to say about her, I read this book all in one sitting so maybe some things aren't as clear as they could be.

I liked the romance in this book. I almost thought there was gonna be a love triangle going on here, but there really wasn't. I feel like the romance doesn't really start until kind of late in the book, but that could be because the beginning of the book is really rather slow. Annaleigh and her love interest are so cute together, I absolutely adored it. However, I did feel like it was definitely a bit insta-lovey. But I loved it.

I loved the story and how things went. I thought at several different points that I definitely knew what was going on, but when it was revealed I didn't really know what to think. I feel like, looking back, there were probably enough hints and I probably knew in the back of my mind that this is what was going on, but I was still a bit surprised.

Obviously this book will hit you in the feels at least a little bit. At the start of the book, the Thaumas family is holding their fifth funeral, which is the four sisters and also the mother. And if you think the death stops there, well... you had better think again. This book hurt my feelings.

I really enjoyed this book. If I was going to complain about anything, it would just be that the beginning is slow and it feels like it takes a looong time for things to pick up. It was a perfect book to start my spooky-ish, atmospheric reading list. I think I have seen this book described as a horror fantasy, but it wasn't particularly scary or really fantastical. I think that kind of like a paranormal mystery/thriller would be more accurate.

If you have been on the fence about picking this one up, I would personally recommend it if anything I've said sounds like it could be up your alley.

Also, sorry if my review is atrocious, I still feel SO rusty getting back into writing reviews. I have been going into these reviews with the intention of trying to say a lot with few words, but I am WINDY, my friends.

Have you read this book yet? What did you think of it?

Waiting on Wednesday // The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

Publisher: Pan Macmillan (UK) (^^edition) // Little, Brown and Company (US)

Publication Date: February 6th, 2020 // February 11th, 2020

Pages: 256

Add it on Goodreads!

Summary (from Goodreads):

"Every once in a while, a modern day parable, perfectly told, reflects all that could happen in a world gone mad." - Adriana Trigiani

Finnmark, Norway, 1617. Twenty-year-old Maren Magnusdatter stands on the craggy coast, watching the sea break into a sudden and reckless storm. Forty fishermen, including her brother and father, are drowned and left broken on the rocks below. With the menfolk wiped out, the women of the tiny Arctic town of Vardø must fend for themselves. 

Three years later, a sinister figure arrives. Absalom Cornet comes from Scotland, where he burned witches in the northern isles. He brings with him his young Norwegian wife, Ursa, who is both heady with her husband's authority and terrified by it. In Vardø, and in Maren, Ursa sees something she has never seen before: independent women. But Absalom sees only a place untouched by God, and flooded with a mighty evil. 

As Maren and Ursa are drawn to one another in ways that surprise them both, the island begins to close in on them, with Absalom's iron rule threatening Vardø's very existence. 

Inspired by the real events of the Vardø storm and the 1621 witch trials, The Mercies is a story of love, evil, and obsession, set at the edge of civilization.

Last weekend, I was going through upcoming 2020 books and figuring out what I was going to be looking forward to next year and this book jumped out at me.

So, a few weeks ago, I was aimlessly scrolling through Pinterest and I stumbled across a pin that said, "Are there any witches in your family tree? Here's how to find out." And I said, "I don't know. ARE there any witches in my family tree? Let's find out!"

So I spent two weeks obsessively creating a family tree on Ancestry and trying to go back as far as possible. That is a lot more work than it felt like it should be. The amount of hints you get when you get going is OVERWHELMING.

Anyway, in one little wing of my family tree, I got back to Norway to about the time of the events this book is based on and the name looked vaguely familiar from my family tree search. It's probably a made up name, and after loudly gasping and double checking, there isn't anyone in what I have filled out of my tree by that name. I think it just looked familiar because there is at least one, but possibly a few people by the name of Marit and I'm pretty sure I also came across the name Magnusdatter. But not together.

But how cool would it have been to find the answer to my aimless Pinterest scroll by doing a mostly aimless Goodreads scroll?

Anyway, this book sounds really interesting and I'm excited to check this one out in February! I'm thinking about preordering the UK version after I balance my checkbook because the cover (pictured) is way prettier than the US version.

What books are you looking forward to this week?

Review // Wilder Girls by Rory Power

Wilder Girls by Rory Power

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Publication Date: July 9th, 2019

Rating: 2 Stars

Source: Purchase

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 353

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Summary (from Goodreads):

It's been eighteen months since the Raxter School for Girls was put under quarantine. Since the Tox hit and pulled Hetty's life out from under her.

It started slow. First the teachers died one by one. Then it began to infect the students, turning their bodies strange and foreign. Now, cut off from the rest of the world and left to fend for themselves on their island home, the girls don't dare wander outside the school's fence, where the Tox has made the woods wild and dangerous. They wait for the cure they were promised as the Tox seeps into everything.

But when Byatt goes missing, Hetty will do anything to find her, even if it means breaking quarantine and braving the horrors that lie beyond the fence. And when she does, Hetty learns that there's more to their story, to their life at Raxter, than she could have ever thought true.

Okay, so picking up Wilder Girls, for me, was a choice made due to the cover and the hype, both of which let me down terribly. I have heard so much good stuff about this book, but unfortunately, it just wasn't for me.

Wilder Girls primarily follows a girl named Hetty while she navigates life at Raxter, formerly her all girls' boarding school, now the place where she and the rest of the girls infected with the Tox are quarantined, waiting for a cure.

The Tox affects each girl differently. It fused the eyelids on one of Hetty's eyes shut, it gave her friend Reese a silver, scaled hand, and it gave her friend Byatt a second spine. I don't think this book ever really explains how the Tox came to be on the island where their school is. 

What can I say about the characters? I didn't really like any of them. I didn't really care about any of them. I didn't really understand why Hetty and Byatt were friends with Reese, I never really got the feeling that they liked her that much.

This book is pitched as a sapphic horror novel. The only relationships in this book are f/f. Romance isn't a big part of this book at all. I didn't really care about the romance in this book. Up until the point that they kissed, I had absolutely no idea which of the girls Hetty was going to end up with. It was a bit of a surprise to me.

I think my biggest problem with this book was the writing style. I don't know how to describe it, maybe it felt kind of distant and eerie? Whatever it was, I just could NOT get into it. In the beginning it felt really jarring to me. I feel like I noticed an abundance of commas being used throughout the book. I feel like if it hadn't been for the writing style, I might have liked this book at least a bit because I could have possibly gotten into the story.

Since I kept seeing this book being described as horror, I thought that it was going to be maybe somewhat scary. I mean, in a way, yeah it kind of is. But I was expecting for the book itself to be scary, not the part where you're thinking about how this book could relate to real life.

I think that this book is kind of a look at a possibility of what could happen in real life due to global warming? I remember reading an article a few years ago about how ancient illnesses could start popping up because of so many layers of permafrost melting and releasing bacteria and parasites that have been frozen for ages. And I think at the end of the book, it's mentioned that the illness the girls are experiencing could have been caused by a parasite that had likely been frozen and relatively recently thawed out.

And it feels like this book just kind of ends. Like, I have no idea what the characters are supposed to do from the point that this book ends. I feel like the ending is mildly hopeful for the characters, but also could be bleak. I literally don't know.

Overall, this book just wasn't for me. I literally didn't care about anything in it the whole time I was reading. I kept reading, just hoping that it would hook me, but it never happened. I think I am in the minority on this one, it seems to have mostly good reviews. So, if you're curious you should give it a shot. I don't think that I would personally recommend it though.

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

Review // The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd Jones

The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: September 24th, 2019

Rating: 5 Stars

Source: TheNovl

Format: Physical ARC

Pages: 352

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Summary (from Goodreads):

Seventeen-year-old Aderyn ("Ryn") only cares about two things: her family, and her family's graveyard. And right now, both are in dire straits. Since the death of their parents, Ryn and her siblings have been scraping together a meager existence as gravediggers in the remote village of Colbren, which sits at the foot of a harsh and deadly mountain range that was once home to the fae. The problem with being a gravedigger in Colbren, though, is that the dead don't always stay dead.

The risen corpses are known as "bone houses," and legend says that they're the result of a decades-old curse. When Ellis, an apprentice mapmaker with a mysterious past, arrives in town, the bone houses attack with new ferocity. What is it about Ellis that draws them near? And more importantly, how can they be stopped for good?

Together, Ellis and Ryn embark on a journey that will take them deep into the heart of the mountains, where they will have to face both the curse and the long-hidden truths about themselves.

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

The Bone Houses follows Ryn, a gravedigger from the small village of Colbren, through a forest in medieval Wales as she tries to end a curse that brings back the dead every night. Along with her new friend, Ellis, who is a mapmaker, and a dead goat, she makes her way to the abandoned fortress of the Otherking to find and destroy the cauldron of rebirth, which is supposed to give life.

So.. I loved this book. I don't know what it is with me and books about reanimated corpses, but I love them so much.

I loved our main character, Ryn. Since her father disappeared, she has taken over his position digging graves for the villagers to earn money for her family. In fact, she seems to be entirely motivated by her family in one way or another. She will do whatever she has to do for her brother and sister. Her main reasons for helping Ellis with creating his map of the mountains are to get coin for her family and to see if she can find her father.

She is also one of the only people who believes in the bone houses, who generally stay within the confines of the forest. Until something changes and they start to venture out further and even begin to attack her village. She has taken to spending nights outside of the village to keep an eye on the bone houses and taking care of any that get too adventurous with the axe that she carries around with her.

I really liked Ellis as well. He is so dedicated to his mapmaking. His motivation with his maps seems to be to make sure that people don't get lost in their travels and villages and their people don't get forgotten about because nobody can find them. He has chronic pain from an injury he received as a child. I can't speak to whether it's good rep for chronic pain or not, though. His history is super interesting.

I really enjoyed the romance in this book. It's super slow burn. Ryn and Ellis get along so well in this book, that was something that I really appreciated about them. And it never feels like either of them were really chasing the other. It just kind of felt like they accidentally fell for each other on their journey. So more of this book felt like it was about what the characters were trying to accomplish rather than building a romance.

This story seems to be based heavily on Welsh mythology which, I thought was really interesting. I liked the questions about whether or not death changes a person. Are the bone houses just mindless zombies? Or are they just themselves, but dead? I liked the descriptions in this book. I thought the writing was lovely without being overly flowery.

Overall, I really liked this book! I didn't want to put it down while I was reading and I already have a finished copy preordered! If you're into dark standalones, Welsh mythology, ReAnImAtEd CoRpSeS(!!!), and slow-burn romance, I would recommend this book. It would be a perfect, atmospheric read for the spooky season.

Have you read this book or are you looking forward to it?

Review // Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan

Girls of Paper and Fire #1

Publisher: Jimmy Patterson Books

Publication: November 6th, 2018

Rating: 3.5 Stars??

Source: Audible

Format: Audiobook

Pages: 400

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Summary (from Goodreads):

Each year, eight beautiful girls are chosen as Paper Girls to serve the king. It's the highest honor they could hope for...and the most demeaning. This year, there's a ninth. And instead of paper, she's made of fire.

In this richly developed fantasy, Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most persecuted class of people in Ikhara. She lives in a remote village with her father, where the decade-old trauma of watching her mother snatched by royal guards for an unknown fate still haunts her. Now, the guards are back and this time it's Lei they're after -- the girl with the golden eyes whose rumored beauty has piqued the king's interest.

Over weeks of training in the opulent but oppressive palace, Lei and eight other girls learns the skills and charm that befit a king's consort. There, she does the unthinkable -- she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens her world's entire way of life. Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide how far she's willing to go for justice and revenge.

Trigger warnings for rape, sexual assault, and animal death.

Girls of Paper and Fire follows Lei, a girl with golden eyes, who is taken from her village and forced to become one of the Demon King's Paper girls, or basically one of his teenage concubines.

Usually there are only eight Paper girls chosen, but Lei was taken from her village by a disgraced general who wanted to redeem himself with the Demon King. So she was kidnapped and made to be the ninth Paper girl, I think mostly because of her eyes and the fact that golden eyes are supposed to be lucky and the Demon King is superstitious.

Based on the synopsis, I thought that her being the ninth Paper girl was going to be more important than it felt to me. I also thought the "fire" part was going to be bigger, but this could all be me not paying close enough attention to the audiobook. Also, the golden eyes, for as much as they were talked about in the beginning of the book, didn't feel like that big of a deal.

So, in Ikhara, there are three types of people. Regular humans are known as the paper caste, they are the bottom class. Steel caste people are half demon and half human. And then the Moon caste people are full demons and they are the ruling class.

When Lei is forced into life as a Paper girl, she follows along dutifully with most everything she has to do because the general who took her said that if she didn't, her family would pay. She eventually kind of settles into life with the other Paper girls because she is hoping that she will be able to find her mother, who was taken from her village in a similar fashion seven years earlier. She makes friends with the girls and goes to her classes and does what is asked of her.

Until the first time she is called to the king's bedroom. When her name is on the paper that the king sends, she is taken to her first ye (?? I'm not sure, I listened to the audiobook) lesson, basically a sex lesson so she will have an idea of what to expect with the king.

So, overall, I do think that I liked this book, but I'm not 100% sure what I think of it. I think part of it is because I listened to the audiobook while I was doing other things. 

I don't know what I think of Lei. I don't actively dislike her, but I don't think I really actively like her either. She rebels against her role as a concubine by refusing the king because this isn't what she wants for herself. Which, I respect that. But I didn't like how she treated other girls who maybe embraced their position for whatever reason. They had no choice, maybe the actually found that they enjoyed it, they didn't want the punishments that came with refusing. Particularly the way she talked to her friend Aoki.

I liked the romance. Lei and another one of the Paper girls end up falling in love. I liked how Lei realized what her feelings were when she was at her first ye lesson and the instructor, Zelle, told her to just imagine during their lesson that she was with the person that she had feelings for instead of imagining the king. I liked how the girls relationship progressed. I feel like the only thing I didn't really like in this regard was how it felt like Lei was kind of demanding some of the other girl's secrets? I don't know. 

I feel like not a lot really happened in this book? Which, of course, so many of my problems could amount to how much attention I was able to give the audio at any given time. But it felt like she got taken, then there was a lot of stuff with the Paper girl business, then some stuff about a rebellion thrown in at the end. I don't really feel like Lei was qualified enough to be given as much of an opportunity to participate in this rebellion as she was. She had like five minutes of training at the end and then was forced into a main role.

The more I write in this review, the less I feel like I should be reviewing it at this point, honestly.

One thing I really didn't like about this book was how one girl was repeatedly described as "feline". As having "feline" features and whatever else. I could see that as being something to describe her once or twice, but after a certain point, I kept forgetting that she was a Paper girl and not a Steel or Moon caste cat form demon.

And one thing that I thought throughout this book (as someone who is absolutely not the target audience) was that it could possibly benefit from being NA or adult even. It is a book entirely about a group of girls who are chosen to be the king's concubines, who are called one by one to his bedroom, and who have sex lessons every time they are chosen by the king. Girls sneak off with lovers. For a book that is so centered around people having sex, I feel like the story would have benefitted from not having to be so fade-to-black.

But once again, I am not the target audience for this and am probably projecting the types of things I want to find out there to read.

So, when I finished this book, I was like, "Yes! This was so good!" And while, I still feel like I liked it, the more I think about it, the more the details are fuzzy (I only just finished it two days ago), and I just feel like I am confused. I will absolutely be continuing on with the series because I am curious to see what happens next. But I will definitely benefit from a physical re-read of this book. Also, the covers are goooorgeous.

This is 100% why I tend to prefer audiobooks for rereads. I always feel like I get more from the original story, with this I just feel confused at this point. What a great starting point for hopping back into reviews! Love this for me. I feel like you can just see where things started going downhill in my head.

Have you read this book? What did you think of it?