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Month In Review

Courtney/Enchanted.to.Read.You

Guys! Can you believe February is over? This year is flying by already.
In this post I’ll be doing a round up my month of Book Battle. If I finished criteria, what I read for each criteria, and if my team placed!
I’ll also let you know my favorite and least favorite reads of the month! Let’s dive in!

BOOK BATTLE
Criteria:

  • Your Team’s Retelling (Snow White): The Shadow Queen by CJ Redwine ★★★★ (Finished after book battle ended)
  • Another Team’s Retelling (Sleeping Beauty): Spindle Fire
  • Contemporary: You by Caroline Kepnes ★★★★★
  • Second Book in a Series: Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi ★★★★★
  • Badass Female MC: Corpse & Crown by Alisa Kwitney ★★★
  • Book with a Castle: Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi ★★★★★
  • Club Read #1: Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi ★★★★★
  • Club Read #2: Scythe by Neal Shusterman ★★★★★
  • Criteria #1 – poetry: The Witch Doesn’t Burn in this One by Amanda Lovelace ★★★★
  • Criteria #2 – romance: The Billionaire’s Bride for a Day by Shadonna Richards ★★★
  • Book with Love in the Title
  • Book with a Princess: The Princess Saves Herself in this One by Amanda Lovelace ★★★★★
  • Black POV – Dear Martin by Nic Stone ★★★★
  • Book with Kiss in the Title: The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang ★★★★
  • Book with Pink Cover: Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde ★★★★★

So I did not finish criteria. I was two books away. I was liking The Shadow Queen, I just couldn’t stay up to finish it. I never got to book with love in the title, which surprised me. This is only my second time ever to not finish criteria. Both were on short months – December we ended early for Christmas holidays and now February. I don’t like short months!

FAVORITE READ: This one is tough! I read a lot of good books this month. I think my favorite is You. It was weird. It was creepy. It was everything I wanted in a psychological thriller. I can’t wait to listen to Hidden Bodies this month.
Runners up: Scythe, The Gilded Wolves

LEAST FAVORITE READ: I didn’t like Billionaire’s Bride for a day. It got a 3 star rating, but I might have even gone down to 2 star. It just wasn’t for me.

I didn’t rate Spindle Fire. This book came highly recommended by a friend. I listened to the audio and honestly, I was confused throughout the whole book. I’m still fairly new to audios, and some books just don’t translate well for me in that format. This may have been one of those books. I am looking forward to a re-read soon in either print or ebook so I can really see what this book is about!

What were your favorite and least favorite reads for February? Let me know in the comments below!

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What’s Coming Up!

Courtney/Enchanted.to.Read.You

Not a lot has been going on lately! Book battle ended on Feb 22. Snow White won! We had the best most chill team! They were amazing.

Next Sunday, at 4pm EST, we are having a live author chat with Kendra Saunders! Come join us over at Words at Whimsy!

Starting, March 1, the new month of Book Battle will begin! This theme is probably one of my favorites! Come join us for an easy month and see where you fit in!

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Shadow Queen Review

Courtney/Enchanted.to.Read.You
  • Title: Shadow Queen
  • Author: C. J. Redwine
  • Book Form: Ebook
  • Pages: 416
  • Genre: Fantasy, YA, Retellings (Snow White)
  • Rating: ★★★★


Lorelai Diederich, crown princess and fugitive at large, has one mission: kill the wicked queen who took both the Ravenspire throne and the life of her father. To do that, Lorelai needs to use the one weapon she and Queen Irina have in common—magic. She’ll have to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than Irina, the most dangerous sorceress Ravenspire has ever seen.

In the neighboring kingdom of Eldr, when Prince Kol’s father and older brother are killed by an invading army of magic-wielding ogres, the second-born prince is suddenly given the responsibility of saving his kingdom. To do that, Kol needs magic—and the only way to get it is to make a deal with the queen of Ravenspire, promise to become her personal huntsman…and bring her Lorelai’s heart.

But Lorelai is nothing like Kol expected—beautiful, fierce, and unstoppable—and despite dark magic, Lorelai is drawn in by the passionate and troubled king. Fighting to stay one step ahead of the dragon huntsman—who she likes far more than she should—Lorelai does everything in her power to ruin the wicked queen. But Irina isn’t going down without a fight, and her final move may cost the princess the one thing she still has left to lose.

– Goodreads

This book took me a bit to get through. It wasn’t the writing. It wasn’t the story. It wasn’t anything about the book.

I think it was me.

I was on Team Snow White this month. We won! YAY! But at first, I was not excited. Snow white is my least favorite fairy tale. And I think I just had a mental block of ‘I don’t want to read about this chick. I hate her.’ But really, this book was great! And C.J. Redwine is the sweetest! If you ever see her ask her about her worst wardrobe malfunction. You won’t be disappointed.

Now, for the review.

I loved how badass Snow White, er, Loralei was. She was amazing. She was a warrior through and through who could think on her feet and could always find a way out of sticky situations. She always put the good of her people and her kingdom before the good for herself, and that’s what makes a really great leader.

Kol was nice too. I liked how he and the Eldrans could turn into dragons and had a human heart and a dragon heart. That was a unique twist on the story and really caught my attention.

Irina was awful, as all villains are. But this book makes you think about her. It shows you backstory and things that happened to her. It makes you feel for her. Like CJ said in her chat, she was one decision away from being good or evil. You could really see that in this book and you kind of feel for her.

Overall, I gave this book a 4/5 star rating. I loved the battle at the end. I loved the action scenes, and the relationship that unfolded between Loralei and Kol. Places were slow moving for me, but again, that could have just been my mental block against Snow White.

This is a good, clean read for young readers who are maybe above their aged reading levels. Read it if you love Snow White. Read it if you love fantasy, action, and dragons. I’ll be reading the sequels.

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Scythe Review

Courtney/Enchanted.to.Read.You

Title: Scythe

Author: Neal Shusterman

Book Form: Audio

Pages: 435

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Dystopian, Sci-FI

Rating: ★★★★★


Thou shalt kill.

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.

Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own. 

– Goodreads

So. This book. Had me ON. THE. FLOOR.

I just. The twists and turns. I can’t even.

Jordan at Words & Whimsy has been recommending this book since I joined back in September of 2018. I kept putting it off. I’ts one of those books where you finally read it and think, WHAT TOOK ME SO LONG!?

This book is about killing. Yes, you heard me correctly. Two teens had run-ins with Scythe Farraday on two separate occasions. He decides to take them both on as apprentices in the art of killing – or as they call it – gleaning. Then shit. Goes. Down.

Citra and Rowan, the two teens that were training under Scythe Farraday, get separated. Citra goes with Scythe Curie, who is compassionate. She brings families over after she gleans their loved one, cooks them supper, and listens to stories about the one they’ve lost. It truly is such a sweet, loving gesture from someone who has just taken someone’s loved one.

Rowan gets stuck with Scythe Goddard, who has much different ideals. I won’t go into too much detail, because I don’t want to spoil it, but his time is much different than Citra’s.

There were times I was reading and my jaw was on the floor. I wanted to cry in despair and sadness over some passages. I wanted to yell out in surprise or anger. You should have seen the messages I sent to friends who had already read the book. It just brought out so many emotions.

The sequel, Thunderhead, is on my TBR next month. No doubt.

This is another 5/5 star book for me. I can’t recommend it enough. There are so many plot twists and surprises. It keeps you guessing. Please read it. You won’t be disappointed.

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February Owl Crate

Courtney/Enchanted.to.Read.You

So this month was my first time getting Owl Crate, or any book box for that matter. I was SO EXCITED when it came I had to open it immediately to see what goodies I got!

So. First, we have Crown of Feathers with gorgeous purple pages. I mean, purple is my favorite color, so I was super gooped to find this!
Then there’s a 60 page graphic novel, The Tea Dragon Society.
Next is the Harry Potter hat and umbrella. The umbrella is adorable. Its such a cute design. And the hat, I mean, everyone loves unicorns.
There’s the haku dragon keychain.
Phoenix rider’s club pin.
Pixie Dust soap. Which is a gorgeous green. With glitter. In love. It’s so pretty I don’t want to use it.
And then next months sneak peak! The theme is murder mystery! And each Owl Crate box will get a travel mug! Super exciting! I can’t wait to see next month’s book and see what else is in the box!

Any thoughts on this month’s box? Guesses for next month’s book? Let me know in the comments below!

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Queens of Geek Review

Courtney/Enchanted.to.Read.You

Title: Queens of Geek

Author: Jen Wilde

Book Form: Audio

Pages: 262

Genre: Contemporary, YA, LGBT, Romance

Rating: 5 Stars


Three friends, two love stories, one convention: this fun, feminist love letter to geek culture is all about fandom, friendship, and finding the courage to be yourself.

Charlie likes to stand out. She’s a vlogger and actress promoting her first movie at SupaCon, and this is her chance to show fans she’s over her public breakup with co-star Reese Ryan. When internet-famous cool-girl actress Alyssa Huntington arrives as a surprise guest, it seems Charlie’s long-time crush on her isn’t as one-sided as she thought.

Taylor likes to blend in. Her brain is wired differently, making her fear change. And there’s one thing in her life she knows will never change: her friendship with her best guy friend Jamie—no matter how much she may secretly want it to. But when she hears about a fan contest for her favorite fandom, she starts to rethink her rules on playing it safe.

Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde, chosen by readers like you for Macmillan’s young adult imprint Swoon Reads, is an empowering novel for anyone who has ever felt that fandom is family.

– Goodreads

So, as you may or may not know, I’m a nurse. I work in an office, so I spend a good amount of time on the phone. I devoured this audiobook in ONE DAY! Now i know you’re probably thinking, ‘It’s 6.5 hours on audio. Listen at 2x speed. That’s nothing.’ But believe me, at my job, it’s an accomplishment. I may or may not have let the phones ring an extra time or two so someone else would have to answer and I wouldn’t have to interrupt this gem. It was SO cute and SO good!

First, can we just talk about this cover? GORGEOUS! I used to have the underside of my hair dyed pink and the cover took me back to the good old days where I could actually do that and had way less responsibilities. Such a great, nostalgic feeling just by looking at this book.

So, as the blurb said earlier, this is about three friends, two romances, and one con. The book takes place over three days – the span of the convention. So you do have to believe in that giddy, love at first sight, things moving a little fast type of love. But honestly, what geek hasn’t fantasized about a con romance? No? Just me? Okay, moving on…

One couple was the love at first sight kind, and the other was friends who became more. Both troupes are represented, and I love me a good HEA. This romance has it all!

There was so much great representation in Queens of Geek. Bisexual, gay, interracial couples, characters on the spectrum, characters with anxiety.
They tackled tough subjects like slut shaming, internet trolls, fat shaming, and homophobia. They did so in a way that wasn’t dark or super heavy. It was still a light, fun read. It’s so important to shed light on these topics, and Queens of Geek did it in an amazing way!

And pop culture references. OMG. Video games, old movies, arcade games. It was all there. I was in heaven!

I gave this book 5/5 stars. I loved the diversity of the characters and the ways the spoke to heavy subject matter. I was engrossed in the love stories and really pulling for the couples. It was a fun, quick, lighthearted read that I would most definitely recommend!

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Corpse and Crown Review

Courtney/Enchanted.to.Read.You

Title: Corpse & Crown

Author:  Alisa Kwitney

Release Date: February 12, 2019

Book Form: ARC E-Book

Pages: 320

Genre: YA, Retellings, Historical Fiction

Rating: 3.5 stars


Agatha DeLacey’s family isn’t rich or titled, so studying nursing at Ingold’s East End hospital in London is a rare opportunity for her. Despite the school’s focus on the innovative Bio-Mechanical program, Aggie cares more about the desperately poor human patients who flood the hospital, even if that means providing unauthorized treatment after-hours…and trusting a charming, endlessly resourceful thief.

But the Artful Dodger is barely a step ahead of his underworld rivals, the menacing Bill Sykes and mercurial Oliver Twist, and Aggie’s association with him soon leads her into danger. When a brutal attack leaves her blind, she and the Dodger find themselves at the mercy of an experimental Bio-Mech surgery. Though the procedure restores Aggie’s sight, her new eyes come at an unnerving cost, and the changes in Dodger are even more alarming—instead of seeing Aggie as the girl he fancies, he now views her as a potential threat.

As war between England and Germany brews on the horizon and a sinister medical conspiracy threatens to shatter the uneasy peace in Europe, Aggie and the Dodger must find a way to work together so they can protect their friends and expose the truth…even if it means risking their own survival.

– Amazon

First, let’s get this out of the way. I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and Harlequin Teen in exchange for my honest review.

Now then. Maybe I didn’t fully read the synopsis. Maybe I stopped at ‘oh there’s a nurse treating patients at night on the down low? THIS IS FOR ME!’

I’m a nurse, so I was like, I can totally relate to this character. I would be the one in these times who would try to treat HUMANS in the age of bio-mechanicals. I would take from the hospital I worked at to treat humans at night. Like, this girl is me!

I was wrong. This ended up being more of a Frankenstein retelling. It focused more on the bio-mechanical aspect and the conflict of Germany and England pitting their best bio-mechanicals against each other to see who was superior. Unsuspecting characters turned out to be bio-mechanicals. There was a lot of sci-fi involved, which honestly, isn’t my favorite subject matter. All in all, this book was not bad. The story was intriguing. I just wished that it would have been the story I hoped for. But that’s completely on me, guys!

Final thoughts, if you like Frankenstein retellings, read this. It’s good. It has some wonky put together people in it. If you like sci-fi, give it a go.

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The Dreaded First Post

Courtney/Enchanted.to.Read.You

I never know how to start things like this. It’s always so awkward. But I’m awkward, so maybe that’s why. Anyways, I’m Courtney. I’m 29 years old, married, mom to an almost-two-year-old, and I’m a full time nurse. I’m the content moderator in Words & Whimsy Book Club. We do 3 club reads a month, have a ton of great recs, and have fun posts like Fan Casting and Fandom Friday. Oh, we also have live chats with best selling authors like Kendare Blake, Annie Sullivan, and Roshani Chokshi. Come check us out! I’m also a helper with Book Battle, the first game of it’s kind, where readers are sorted into teams and read books based on criteria to see who can get the most points in a month! We have bonuses and team challenges. It’s super fun and SO addicting!

Oh yeah, and I’m an avid reader.

I decided to start this blog because I have recently found out I really enjoy reviewing books. I started reviewing them when I started playing Book Battle. I could get 10 bonus points for my team by reviewing 10 different books. They didn’t have to be long reviews. Just a couple of sentences. But as time went on, I found the reviews got longer and longer. Then I found I wanted a space to really share my thoughts and feelings, not just a few sentences. So Mithah Reads was born. Well, the name came from my instagram, which came from my wow character’s name, but that’s a whole ‘nother story.

So this blog will mainly be my book reviews. I’ll review every book I read for book battle, which will be roughly 15 books a month. I also plan to feature a start of the month post, which will show my TBR for the month, and what book I plan to read for what criteria. I also participate in The Book Democracy‘s Book Bingo and The Booket List‘s TAG games, so I’ll list those as well. It’s like a puzzle trying to get a book to fit for all three games! I love it! I’ll do a monthly round up as well, showing which criteria I completed, my favorite and least favorite books read, any DNFs, and a comprehensive list of all my ratings! What fun!

One more thing I plan on showcasing are my book boxes! I am currently subscribed to Owlcrate and Lillypost. I have ordered the February and March boxes of Spellbound. I just can’t make myself subscribe to two book boxes. I’m scared of getting duplicate books! In the last half of February, I’ll be reviewing Owlcrate, Lillypost, Spellbound, and my January Shelflove that I’m waiting on. 🙂

I think that’s enough of an intro post. You know why I’m here. You know what I’m going to do. Let’s get this thing started! The first book I’ll be reviewing is an ARC I received from Netgalley – Corpse and Crown by Alisa Kwitney. I’m currently 65% in, so look for it in the next couple of days!


via GIPHY