This book wasn’t what I thought it would be. I keep reading dark romance, hoping it’ll be like Verity. None of them have been yet. Have recs? Let me know!
This is one of our club reads over at Book Battle, and it got voted in as the discussion book of the month! I’ll be diving in and discussing starting today! Come join us here!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and feelings are my own.
A girl searches for a killer on an island where deadly sirens lurk just beneath the waves in this gripping, atmospheric debut novel.
The sea holds many secrets.
Moira Alexander has always been fascinated by the deadly sirens who lurk along the shores of her island town. Even though their haunting songs can lure anyone to a swift and watery grave, she gets as close to them as she can, playing her violin on the edge of the enchanted sea. When a young boy is found dead on the beach, the islanders assume that he’s one of the sirens’ victims. Moira isn’t so sure.
Certain that someone has framed the boy’s death as a siren attack, Moira convinces her childhood friend, the lighthouse keeper Jude Osric, to help her find the real killer, rekindling their friendship in the process. With townspeople itching to hunt the sirens down, and their own secrets threatening to unravel their fragile new alliance, Moira and Jude must race against time to stop the killer before it’s too late—for humans and sirens alike.
– Goodreads
“Twillengyle is a place to be embraced with one arm, with a dagger ready in the other hand.”
What an atmospheric, beautifully detailed novel. Twillengyle is dark, gloomy, cold. It is the perfect backdrop to the events in a novel. A small boy is dead. Sirens are to blame. They have one champion, Moira, who knows the sirens couldn’t have done it. Will she be enough to bring them justice?
Very, very seldom do I see images in my mind as I read. Usually I’m just reading the words. The characters have voices, sure, but no faces. Nothing that makes them stick out. I could never do fan art. However, as I was reading I saw a movie playing in my mind. I could probably fan cast it. This is SO unusual for me, but I loved it!
The mystery was intriguing. I didn’t guess who did it. The ending was so shocking! All the events leading up had my guessing. My guesses were all wrong, of course. In addition to the mystery, there was also a love interest! It was a will-they-won’t-they, which is honestly my favorite kind. I love to see the back and forth!
I would recommend this to anyone who loves mysteries or crime books. It sucks you in and you won’t want to put it down!
So I saw this over at Devour Books with Dana and thought it was a perfect idea for me. My TBR dates back to 2015 and has 1988 books on it. Yep. Almost 2K. Too many. My tastes have changed a lot since 2015, so time for me to go down the TBR and see what to keep and what to delete!
So here’s what you do. Go to your Goodreads TBR shelf. Sort in ascending order. Take the first 5, 10, however many books you decide to do. Read the synopsis. Decide to keep or delete.
I have a lot, so I’ll do 10 a week, every Sunday. I will also try to fit at least one from this list in my TBR each month, starting in January! Yay for fun challenges!
The Host by Stephanie Meyer
Date Added: June 26, 2015
Thoughts: 100% added this because I loved Twilight around this time period. This still sounds good, but the 620 pages are a little daunting. It would be hard to read for a book battle.
Keep or Delete: I’ll keep. The synopsis still sounds great.
Hungry For Your Love by Lori Perkins
Date Added: June 26, 2015
Thoughts: This has super mixed reviews, but the prospect of zombie smut is somehow piquing my interests.
Keep or Delete: Keep – but reluctantly. I want to see what the zombie smut is about, but I’m scared this will be a DNF.
Hearts at Stake by Alyxandra Harvey
Date Added: June 26, 2015
Thoughts: This sounds like a typical teenager-turned-vampire story. Nothing in the synopsis stuck out at me and made me want to read it.
Keep or Delete: Delete
Micro by Michael Crichton and Richard Preston
Date Added: June 26, 2015
Thoughts: Parts of this sound great. The whole microorganisms appearing and trying to find a cure for them. But parts turn me off, like the robots, stuck in the wilderness. I don’t feel like there will be enough medicine/science/biology to keep me interested.
Keep or Delete: Delete
Unbreakable by Kami Garcia
Date Added: June 26, 2015
Thoughts: This sounds like a spinoff of Supernatural. MC finds her mom dead, hot brothers save her from demon, tell her she has to join secret society to help kill demons. Not really my cup of tea anymore.
Keep or Delete: Delete
Storm of Visions by Christina Dodd
Date Added: June 26, 2015
Thoughts: Eh. Sounds like a typical PNR series. Boy sees girl. Boy wants girl. Girl says no, finds out boy is paranormal, ends up saying yes. Plus there’s some bad reviews that are kind of turning me off.
Keep or Delete: Delete.
The Painted Man by Peter V. Brett
Date Added: June 26 ,2015
Thoughts: Adult fantasy which is so hit or miss for me. Humans battle demons in the night, hoping to not get wiped out to extinction. Three survivors decide to go beyond the magic wards to try to save humanity.
Keep or Delete: Keep. This is a debut novel that is striking my fancy.
Heroes of the Valley by Jonathan Stroud
Date Added: June 26, 2015
Thoughts: YA fantasy about a boy waking up a long since put to rest blood feud. Just not sounding like something I’ll want to read.
Keep or Delete: Delete
Orcs: Bad Blood by Stan Nicholls
Date Added: June 26, 2015
Thoughts: This sounds like a spin-off to a previous series. One that I don’t feel I would be too invested in.
Keep or Delete: Delete
Edge of Hunger by Rhyannon Byrd
Date Added: June 26, 2015
Thoughts: Paranormal romance. Both MC have the same ~sexy~ dreams of each other before meeting. They meet and have to defeat an enemy. I’m here for it.
Keep or Delete: Keep
Conclusion
I deleted 6 of 10 books, bringing my TBR to 1981. Not anywhere near manageable, but still at least 6 less. I am going to try to fit one of these into my TBR this month too, I think. I have four to choose from! Probably not The Host though. That one is so long. I’ll have to do that one over a vacay.
Also, all of my books were added June 26, 2015. Is this the day I created by GR account? Is there any way to check that? Someone let me know!
Are any of these on your TBR? Have you read any of them? Loved or hated them? Let me know in the comments below!
From New York Times bestselling author Kiersten White comes a new fantasy series reimagining the Arthurian legend, set in the magical world of Camelot.
There was nothing in the world as magical and terrifying as a girl.
Princess Guinevere has come to Camelot to wed a stranger: the charismatic King Arthur. With magic clawing at the kingdom’s borders, the great wizard Merlin conjured a solution–send in Guinevere to be Arthur’s wife . . . and his protector from those who want to see the young king’s idyllic city fail. The catch? Guinevere’s real name–and her true identity–is a secret. She is a changeling, a girl who has given up everything to protect Camelot.
To keep Arthur safe, Guinevere must navigate a court in which the old–including Arthur’s own family–demand things continue as they have been, and the new–those drawn by the dream of Camelot–fight for a better way to live. And always, in the green hearts of forests and the black depths of lakes, magic lies in wait to reclaim the land. Arthur’s knights believe they are strong enough to face any threat, but Guinevere knows it will take more than swords to keep Camelot free.
Deadly jousts, duplicitous knights, and forbidden romances are nothing compared to the greatest threat of all: the girl with the long black hair, riding on horseback through the dark woods toward Arthur. Because when your whole existence is a lie, how can you trust even yourself?
-Goodreads
Thank you to Netgalley and Delacorte Press for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This was the first King Arthur retelling I’ve read, and I enjoyed it. I don’t know why it took me so.long. to read this. 10 days! Parts were a little slow, but not slow enough to take me 10 days to read. I don’t know what was going on.
This was an interesting story. Guinevere was sent to Camelot to marry Arthur and protect him at all costs. She knew that was her goal, and that’s what she was going to do. She took some risks to protect him. Some worked, some didn’t. She was strong and level-headed. I loved her!
The supporting characters were also great! I loved her maid-turned-friend and also Arthur’s cousin. At points Arthur was a little flat for me.
Some of the writing seemed almost childish. That could have just been me though. From the start, I read Guinevere’s voice in a childish manner. Very simple speech, almost? I’m not sure exactly how to describe it. I loved her actions, her dialogue not so much.
This was book 1 of the Camelot Rising Trilogy and I can’t wait to read book two! I would recommend this to anyone who loves King Arthur or just a good ole YA Fantasy!
Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. By age twenty, in fact, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she’s thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world’s most elite universities on a full ride. What’s the catch, and why her?
Still searching for answers to this herself, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. These eight windowless “tombs” are well-known to be haunts of the future rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street and Hollywood’s biggest players. But their occult activities are revealed to be more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive.
– Goodreads
Queen Leigh has done it again. She’s completely engrossed me in a world in which I wish I lived.
What I liked:
Only everything. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again. Leigh Bardugo is an exceptional storyteller. She pulls you into her stories so quickly and easily. You just become immersed in this world that you want to be a part of. Her characters are all so diverse, interesting, and morally gray – which makes them oh so real.
What if there was an underground world of secret societies at Yale that really does control, well, everything? They use magic to do it. And what happens when the balance gets out of wack? People die. And that’s where Lethe, the Ninth House, comes in. They investigate crimes the most powerful eight houses commit and try to right their wrongs.
Alex knew the girl was murdered. When she was written off, that only made her want to find the truth more. I loved the investigative parts of this story. I’m a huge crime junkie so this was mixing two of my favorite things into one.
I loved the magic. There were different ways to use the different types of magic, and no one mastered them all. It was distinctly different from Shadow and Bone, which I appreciated. And like all good magic stories, you can’t just use the magic. Something has to be taken to use it. I loved the ghost element of it as well. That only certain people could see ghosts, and even fewer could talk to them.
What I didn’t like:
I guess I’ll just put this here. There were a lot of trigger warnings for this book. In my opinion, they were blown way out of proportion. I know different people will see this differently, but it wasn’t too bad for me. Also – this is an ADULT book! Please do not confuse with her YA series. It’s adult and oh so good!
Would I recommend?
Is the world round? Is the sky blue? Yes, of COURSE I would recommend! I already have! Seriously, this is a perfect Halloween book and everyone needs to read it. Leigh did an amazing job with her adult debut. I can’t wait to go to Hell in book #2!
Dastardly deeds aren’t exactly the first things that come to mind when one hears the name “Clementine,” but as the sole heir of the infamous Dark Lord Elithor, twelve-year-old Clementine Morcerous has been groomed since birth to be the best (worst?) Evil Overlord she can be. But everything changes the day the Dark Lord Elithor is cursed by a mysterious rival.
Now, Clementine must not only search for a way to break the curse, but also take on the full responsibilities of the Dark Lord. As Clementine forms her first friendships, discovers more about her own magic than she ever dared to explore, and is called upon to break her father’s code of good and evil, she starts to question the very life she’s been fighting for. What if the Dark Lord Clementine doesn’t want to be dark after all?
– Goodreads
Thank you to Netgalley and Algonquin Young Readers for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Also thanks for inviting me on the blog tour! All views and opinions are my own.
The Dark Lord Clementine is such an adorable Middle Grade novel about coming of age, choosing your path, and stickin’ to your guns!
Clementine has been training since she was born to be the next Dark Lord. But Clem has some secrets. She takes care of animals, grows flowers instead of poisons, and maybe, just maybe, she doesn’t want to be so dark.
Clementine has to make some tough choices that will shape her entire life. She handles it with such grace, especially for a 12 year old girl! She’s such a good example of being unsure of yourself, but making a decision and sticking to it.
I feel like she is such a strong role model for young girls. She is trained to be bad, but shows that goodness always wins.
What I didn’t like:
The start was a little slow for me. I wasn’t interested until about 30% in, but then I couldn’t put it down!
Would I recommend?
Oh, for sure! Such a great read, especially for young girls! I’ve already recommended it to my friend, Sarah!
The Last Magician meets A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue in this thrilling tale filled with magic and set in the mysterious Carpathian Mountains where a girl must hunt down Vlad the Impaler’s cursed ring in order to save her father.
Some legends never die…
Traveling with her treasure-hunting father has always been a dream for Theodora. She’s read every book in his library, has an impressive knowledge of the world’s most sought-after relics, and has all the ambition in the world. What she doesn’t have is her father’s permission. That honor goes to her father’s nineteen-year-old protégé—and once-upon-a-time love of Theodora’s life—Huck Gallagher, while Theodora is left to sit alone in her hotel in Istanbul.
Until Huck arrives from an expedition without her father and enlists Theodora’s help in rescuing him. Armed with her father’s travel journal, the reluctant duo learns that her father had been digging up information on a legendary and magical ring that once belonged to Vlad the Impaler—more widely known as Dracula—and that it just might be the key to finding him.
Journeying into Romania, Theodora and Huck embark on a captivating adventure through Gothic villages and dark castles in the misty Carpathian Mountains to recover the notorious ring. But they aren’t the only ones who are searching for it. A secretive and dangerous occult society with a powerful link to Vlad the Impaler himself is hunting for it, too. And they will go to any lengths—including murder—to possess it.
– Goodreads
Thank you to Netgalley and Simon Pulse for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
When I started this book I was like, this is gonna be a 4.5 star! Then it was just like….
So, I understand this is not the normal genre for Jenn Bennett. It is the first book I’ve read by her, but I would give her contemporaries a change.
The beginning of this book was SO GOOD. I was instantly thrust into this old world, old way of travel. The main character, Theodora, was likeable and her companion, Huck, even more so. I was so enthralled by this adventure they were going on. I liked probably 70% of the book. The adventure was interesting, looking for Vlad the Impaler’s ring was interesting, the side characters were interesting!
What I didn’t like:
The last 30%? I felt like there was about to be resolution, then there would be issue. After issue. After issue. I felt like the ending just drug on and on, which made this book feel much longer than it’s 384 pages. I think I spent a week reading this novel. I was just so ready for it to end but couldn’t find the umph to keep going. I did finish. I was glad I did. The characters were still likeable and interesting, but the plot just kind of never resolved for me. It was quite disappointing since I was raving about the book at the start.
Would I recommend?
Eh, I don’t know. I would probably warn people the end didn’t live up to the start. I don’t know that it’s completely worth it to read.
Adventures in Babysitting meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer in this funny, action-packed novel about a coven of witchy babysitters who realize their calling to protect the innocent and save the world from an onslaught of evil.
Seventeen-year-old Esme Pearl has a babysitters club. She knows it’s kinda lame, but what else is she supposed to do? Get a job? Gross. Besides, Esme likes babysitting, and she’s good at it.
And lately Esme needs all the cash she can get, because it seems like destruction follows her wherever she goes. Let’s just say she owes some people a new tree.
Enter Cassandra Heaven. She’s Instagram-model hot, dresses like she found her clothes in a dumpster, and has a rebellious streak as gnarly as the cafeteria food. So why is Cassandra willing to do anything, even take on a potty-training two-year-old, to join Esme’s babysitters club?
The answer lies in a mysterious note Cassandra’s mother left her: “Find the babysitters. Love, Mom.”
Turns out, Esme and Cassandra have more in common than they think, and they’re about to discover what being a babysitter really means: a heroic lineage of superpowers, magic rituals, and saving the innocent from seriously terrifying evil. And all before the parents get home.
– GOodreads
Thank you to Netgalley and Delacorte Press for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I was so excited to get an arc of this book, and man. It did not disappoint!
This was such a fast, intriguing debut novel. Esme and her bff, Janis, are fashion queens. I loved the descriptions of their outfits and the names for them. They’re just trying to get through high school then make their way out of their small town. Then something crazy happens. Esme learns she has telekenesis and things.get.cray. I was a babysitter when I was younger, so I loved that so much of the book revolved around that. I loved the magic and spells. Cassandra was iffy at times, but in the end I really liked her! The friendship between Janis and Esme reminded me of me and my highschool friends. We still talk to this day, and I feel like that’s the relation ship they have!
What I didn’t like:
Like I said, Cassandra, a fellow witch, was annoying at times but in the end turned out great!
Would I recommend?
Yes, yes, yes! This is a perfect fall/Halloween book! Curl up with it, a PSL, and a nice blanket and you’re in for a good time! This was a super fast read that kept me intrigued the whole way through. I can’t wait to see what happens to our Sitters in book 2! (Coming fall 2020. SO FAR AWAY!)
In the mythical desert kingdom of Achra, an ancient law forces sixteen-year-old Princess Kateri to fight in the arena to prove her right to rule. For Kateri, winning also means fulfilling a promise to her late mother that she would protect her people, who are struggling through windstorms and drought. The situation is worsened by the gang of Desert Boys that frequently raids the city wells, forcing the king to ration what little water is left. The punishment for stealing water is a choice between two doors: behind one lies freedom, and behind the other is a tiger.
But when Kateri’s final opponent is announced, she knows she cannot win. In desperation, she turns to the desert and the one person she never thought she’d side with. What Kateri discovers twists her world—and her heart—upside down. Her future is now behind two doors—only she’s not sure which holds the key to keeping her kingdom and which releases the tiger.
– GOodreads
Thank you to Blink and Netgalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I LOVE Annie Sullivan! She is super sweet. Her second novel did not disappoint. It was an amazing retelling of The Lady, Or the Tiger.
This was such a fierce novel! I loved the training and fight scenes. I felt like I was watching it happen! I love a strong female lead! I also liked the setting was the desert. It’s not something I have read before and I loved being transported there!
The back and forth with the romance was amazing! As always, Annie’s books are clean, so this is perfect for a younger teen!
The story was intriguing and hooked me right from the beginning. I have never read The Lady, Or the Tiger, but I definitely want to now! I’d love to see where Annie drew her inspiration.
At about 30% in, I thought I knew what the outcome was going to be. I was so wrong, and I loved the ending!
Also – myself and my fellow Words and Whimsy modmins are in the acknowledgements. I am so so thankful and grateful to Annie for that! She is the sweetest person, and I love supporting someone like that!
What I didn’t like:
I can’t think of anything I didn’t like! The story was interesting, the pacing was great, the characters were likable. I loved it all!
Would I recommend?
Yes! This is a story anyone can enjoy. It’s also great for younger teens since it is a clean read!
Nikolai Lantsov has always had a gift for the impossible. No one knows what he endured in his country’s bloody civil war—and he intends to keep it that way. Now, as enemies gather at his weakened borders, the young king must find a way to refill Ravka’s coffers, forge new alliances, and stop a rising threat to the once-great Grisha Army.
Yet with every day a dark magic within him grows stronger, threatening to destroy all he has built. With the help of a young monk and a legendary Grisha Squaller, Nikolai will journey to the places in Ravka where the deepest magic survives to vanquish the terrible legacy inside him. He will risk everything to save his country and himself. But some secrets aren’t meant to stay buried—and some wounds aren’t meant to heal.
– Goodreads
Sorry for being absent for a month. First we had family over for labor day, then my husband was sick, then my baby had double ear infections. It’s been a wild month. But I’m back with book reviews! I’ve read a few so far this month! But first we’ll pick up with a book I finished in August and was obsessed with – King of Scars!
Okay. First off, I have to say Leigh is my Queen and I will forever love her. If she publishes a grocery list, I’ll read it. I just.love.her.so.much.
Why did I wait so long to read this? Part of it was I was sad that I wouldn’t have another Leigh book to read and I didn’t want to run out of her amazing stories. Dumb, I know. I won’t do it again.
I fell in love with Nikolai in the Shadow and Bone trilogy and Six of Crows duology. I was so excited to dive into his book and his backstory. The banter was amazing. I loved getting an insight to his thoughts and feelings. And the budding romance. I am SHIPPING.
The story was action packed. It followed two story lines – Nikoli and Nina. More on that later. Both stories were intriguing and I just wanted to keep reading to find out what happened with each. I love being in the Grishaverse. The world building and descriptions are so on point. If I could choose a fictional world to live in, it would definitely be with the Grisha.
Also – THAT ENDING. WHAT?!?!?!?! No spoilers, obviously, but I have theories on what will happen. Message me to know more. I’d love to talk about your theories, too!
What I didn’t like:
So. I mentioned earlier that the novel followed two story lines. I felt like I was reading two books combined into one. Maybe it was just me selfishly wanting another book by Leigh, but I thought it would be better if Nina’s story was a separate book. They didn’t seem to cross over at all. But Leigh is a master and I’m sure she will make them come together in the most amazing way possible in book two!
Also, I started with the audio and quickly switched to ebook. I felt like I wasn’t getting the full effect of the novel. Just a personal preference I guess.
Would I recommend?
Duh. Yes. I recommend Leigh’s books whenever I can. She is a master storyteller and I can’t wait for her next book!
Mithah Reads 