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The Written Review
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My letters are for when I don't
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Need a good read for a bad day? Here's a Booktube Video all about it!!
The Written Review
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My letters are for when I don't want to be in love anymore. They're for good-bye. Because after I write in my letter, I'm not longer consumed by my all-consuming love...My letters set me free.
Lara Jean has had plenty of crushes. Plenty.
And she's fallen in and out of love with said crushes without them ever knowing.
Do you know what it’s like to like someone so much you can’t stand it and know that they’ll never feel the same way?
Her secret to getting over a crush is to write them a letter - one detailing all the things that have caused her to fall out of love with them - and then seal it away.
You'd rather make up a fantasy version of somebody in your head than be with a real person.
Each letter contains painfully embarrassing sentences from her younger self but at the same time, she's able to free herself from the crush forever - or so she thought.
Her secret letters (hidden within her secret box) were mailed (secretly) and now all of Lara Jean's secrets are not-so-secret anymore.
The letter are mailed and the drama is spreading. One of the boys, Peter, has developed into one of the most popular guys in school. The other is her sister's ex-boyfriend.
And Lara Jean is horrified. Absolutely horrified.
High school is completely over.
...or is it?
It’s fun to think of the what-if. Scary, but fun. It’s like, I thought this door was closed before, but here it is open just the tiniest crack. What if?
In short - YES! This was the fluffy drama I never knew I wanted but desperately needed.
Lara Jean was over-the-top in just the right ways, the drama was high but ultimately fun (and believable).
And this book was so relateable.
Who hasn't had a high school crush from afar? And who hasn't daydreamed of the moment he (or she) falls for you?
I didn't fall for you, you tripped me!
Lara Jean lives out that fantasy in hilarious high definition.
I also LOVED the strong family support. So many teen books rely on a broken family to propel the main character into action - and this is (wonderfully) not the case.
Lara Jean lost her mother years ago, but her father and sisters are as close as possible. They constantly rely on each other in times of trouble and they help each other out without a second thought.
This is definitely one of my faves of the year so far. I'm only disappointed that it took me so long to get there!
It's not like in the movies. It's better, because it's real.
Mia Corvere used to be the daughter of a respectable family but all that c4.5 stars
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The brighter the light, the deeper the shadow.
Mia Corvere used to be the daughter of a respectable family but all that changes when her father is strung up for leading a rebellion.
'Never Flinch.' A cold whisper in her ear. 'Never fear. And never, ever forget.' The girl nodded slowly. Exhaled the hope inside.
Just ten years old, Mia watches her father dance at the end of a rope and silently swears revenge upon them all.
But in order to extract her revenge, she first needs training. For the next six years, she learns all she can in order to pledge her allegiance to (and receive training from) the Red Church and the Lady of Blessed Murder.
The Red Church trains assassins every year but only a few make it to the final stages. Mia will have to come in top of class in either blades, poisons, manipulation or thievery.
Mia does have a "secret" weapon in the form of Mr. Kingly, a vaguely cat-shaped shadow creature who feeds upon her fear and in exchange obeys her in battle.
With deadly assassins on every side, will Mia triumph? Will she even make it out alive?
You'll be a rumor. A whisper. The thought that wakes the bastards of this world sweating in the nevernight. The last thing you will ever be, girl, is someone's hero.
Wow. This one was addicting!
There were so many things that absolutely worked in this novel that I had a tough time putting this down. I loved the World Building, the Tone and the Side Characters.
The World Building
Mia lives in a world with three rotating suns (hence Nevernight) and the author did a fabulous of incorporating that in the book. I also really enjoyed all of the little details he includes - like the sand creatures or the odd customs from the other characters.
The lore from their religion really helped ground such a fantastical world. Also, I enjoyed that the Gods weren't imaginary - that they were real and they did influence the human world.
The Tone
I really expected this to be a MB - but it ended up being like Harry Potter with a deadly twist.
With Mia and the other assassins going on adventures and misadventures, the whole book ended up being far more lighthearted than I imagined.
Beauty you're born with, but brains you earn.
There were areas where I was surprised by the violence but the main character had such a cute-yet-deadly take on things that the book was not overbearingly dark.
The Side Characters
This is an absolutely amazing. Jay Kristoff pulled out all the stops with the quirky, weird and wonderful secondaries. Honestly, the side characters made this book shine.
I loved the odd dynamic between the twins (Kristoff really brought this one to life!) - they were so creepy and fascinating. All of the masters at the school were so interesting - I really wish we could've spent more time with them.
Also, I adored Mr. Kindly - he is the best evil(ish) shadow cat in existence. His ruthlessness towards the world and his love for his human made him absolutely perfect.
And who could resist that little the bit of romance blooming between Tric and Mia (though, with that ending...ooooo....Kristoff has a lot of explaining to do!).
Overall
Really, truly enjoyed this one. It did become a bit too much for me at times but overall - yes! Loved it! Cannot wait for the next one!!
Audiobook Comments Read by Holter Graham - and wow. He did an amazing job with the audio. The only thing that threw me off was Tric's voice. He sounded more like an old man who smoked one too many cigarettes than a teenage kid in love.
The 2018 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge - a book about death or grief
New week, New BookTube Video - all about the best (and worst) literary couples
The Written Review
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If I cannot be better than
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New week, New BookTube Video - all about the best (and worst) literary couples
The Written Review
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If I cannot be better than them, I will become so much worse.
Jude (and her twin, Taryn) are human but their older sister (Vivi) belonged to another world.
Their mother fled when she was pregnant with Vivi and escaped to the human world. Their mother gave birth to the half-fairy Vivi, married and soon had Jude & Taryn.
But their little family could not stay hidden.
Madoc (her mother's ex husband) belongs to the fae and according to their wild ways, he was honor-bound to murder their mother for abandoning his family and stealing away Vivi.
Operating by that same sense of honor, he took in the now-orphaned children to be raised as his own.
Father, I am what you made me. I’ve become your daughter after all.
Jude and Taryn embrace this wondrous and fearsome world - finding their place among the crazed and the creative, the beasts and the beauties, the tragedies and terrors.
However, as much as they try, fairyland is no place for humans.
If you hurt me, I wouldn't cry. I would hurt you back.
As Taryn cringes in fear, Jude stiffens her spine. If they get tormented, Jude taunts back. And when Jude is pushed, she attacks.
Cardan looks at me as though he's never seen me before. He looks at me as though no one has ever spoken to him like this. Maybe no one has.
Simply a stunning modern fairy tale a la Holly Black.
The beginning was a bit slow, so if you aren't feeling it at the beginning - keep going! Once the setting and characters are established - wow. Seriously wow. And that ending - I literally cannot wait for book 2.
Because you’re like a story that hasn’t happened yet. Because I want to see what you will do. I want to be part of the unfolding of the tale.
The 2018 ABC Reading Challenge- C
Audiobook Comments Read by Caitlin Kelly and she absolutely rocked it. An absolute pleasure to listen to!!
But if you didn't believe in monsters, then how were you going to be able to keep safe from them?
Tana lives in a world wherHolly Black is my Queen
But if you didn't believe in monsters, then how were you going to be able to keep safe from them?
Tana lives in a world where vampires are no longer creatures of myths. Only Holly Black can take such a worn out trope and breath fresh life into it.
Even from the beginning, that was the problem. People liked pretty things. People even liked pretty things that wanted to kill and eat them.
And, like any good government, the US immediately banished the "new" citizens to concentration camps...well, technically walled cities with a good internet connection. But there is extreme poverty, disease and death for all the humans living inside.
And the vamps love it. They use the internet to lure in humans - the downtrodden and the adventure seeking - to join their city and become food. People go in but never out.
Tana wants none of that but when an accidental encounter leaves her potentially infected, she knows she's going to have to go to Coldtown to protect herself and her family.
Remember that I’m still a monster. I can listen to you scream and cry and beg and I still won’t let you out.
I love the characters in this book. Tana and her little sister had such a realistic give-and-take relationship. Also, the vampire (Gavriel) was such a refreshing twist - he was just the right mixture of moodiness, insanity and danger.
This is my second time through and I enjoyed it just as much as the first.
Audiobook Comments The book was a 4.5 for me but listening it it - 5.0 - definitely. This is one of my all time fave audiobooks - huge thank you to Christine Lakin for reading this one.
I've read a few books that use music in between chapters and I'm normally not a fan. This book just blew me away. The music drifts in and out to build the story. There's haunting melodies, fanfare for the tense moments and gah it just brings the tension and intrigue to the next level.
And I really enjoyed listening to the reader's voice. She just had this evocative and electrifying tone. Loved it. She's one of the few female readers that actually rocked it when she read the guy voices.
If you've ever wondered which literary world would be the best to live in, wonder no longer, cause there's a BookTube Video to answer that!
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If you've ever wondered which literary world would be the best to live in, wonder no longer, cause there's a BookTube Video to answer that!
The Written Review:----------
Update - 12/6/19
Should I cross the insurmountable TBR? Or reread this series again?
I think you know the answer
----------
Here's the original review:
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Feyre is hunting in the middle of the woods to keep her useless starving family alive (Hunger Games, anyone?).
A chance encounter with a wolf - who wasn't entirely a wolf - leaves Feyre on the wrong end of an ancient treaty.
She is forced to go to the fairy realm to live out the remaining years of her human life - no friends, no family and no freedom.
“Has anyone ever taken care of you?” he asked quietly. “No.” I’d long since stopped feeling sorry for myself about it.
At first, she cannot think of anything but escape. Slowly (but surely), she is swept into the fairy realm - in its magic & intrigue, in its danger & hopelessness, and in its wonder & glory.
“Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, Dawn, Day, and Night,” it mused, as if I hadn’t even answered. “The seven Courts of Prythian, each ruled by a High Lord, all of them deadly in their own way. They are not merely powerful—they are Power.”
Feyre lands in the Spring court - which is under a masquerade curse for nearly fifty years.
The court is being attacked by all manner of terrible creatures and there is a blight upon the land .
This blight will soon cross to the human realm - threatening everyone Feyre holds dear.
The first half sucks but keep reading
There's no way around it. From page 1 to about 200, Feyre is annoying and obstinate.
I nearly put this book down half a dozen times (it was like reading Red Queen).
BUT, there was something about it that kept me interested. AND THANK GOODNESS FOR THAT.
Because wow. Seriously wow.
Midway through the book, things turned around magnificently. It was like a whole new book.
Sarah J Maas is a devious little thing.
Suddenly, all the plot holes, nonsensical actions of her fairy captors (Tamlin and Lucien) and Feyre's complete idiocy flipped on their heads.
Everything makes sense now. I literally could not put this down.
Though, and maybe it's just me, but the Tamlin-Feyre arc felt a bit rushed/forced. Her constant love declarations really had me questioning their relationship. But then again, I had a friend who accidentally spilled the beans on that one.
Without giving any spoilers, I sure hope book 2 does a complete character shift on you-know-who (NOT voldemort) because I am not pleased with the way the love interest was hinted at during the end of the book. (He's such a jerk!)
Overall, I am amazed by how much effort Sarah J. Maas put into constructing this story. I'm this close || to rereading the book solely to better appreciate all those little clues that I must have passed over.
So, if you pick this up and just aren't feeling it - keep reading - trust me.
The Finer Books Club - 2018 Reading Challenge: A book recommended by a friend
This is the sort of book that sweeps you on a journey.
"I want to save you, Vasilisa Petrovna," he
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Haunting. Riveting. Entrancing.
This is the sort of book that sweeps you on a journey.
"I want to save you, Vasilisa Petrovna," he said. "I will save you all. There are dark forces that you do not understand."
To his surprise, and perhaps to her, she laughed.
Vasilisa "Vasya" Petrovna lives during the "old Russia" - back when fairy and folk tales were not legends.
Vasya always possessed the second sight, which made for some interesting conversations with the various creatures living in and around her home. All the spirits that live in and around her house were quite peculiar,such as the origins of the domovoi:
I am here because the house is here. If the house weren't here, I wouldn't be either
Soon, Vasya's gentle childhood - spent conversing with the domovoi and the vazila (who guards the stables) - is put to an abrupt end.
Her father remarries and while the new woman has the second sight, she interprets the gentle protective spirits as "demons." In an effort to "protect" the now-teenage Vasya, her father (egged on and persuaded by her step mother) is trying to marry her off.
And, to top it all, a priest moves into their house and is hell-bent (ha) on saving Vasya's soul but all he succeeds in doing is a lot of fear-mongering and weakening of the protective spirits. He quickly becomes obsessed with Vasya and her impertinence.
Without the spirits to protect them, Vasya must face the ever increasing danger of the old gods - alone and armed with nothing by her sheer force of will.
I really enjoyed this one - there's just something so magical about having this novel set in the dead of winter with the old gods circling the dimly lit sleepy cottage.
Vasya lives in a world where being a happy homemaker is the highest achievement of any girl. I appreciated how the author showed Vasya's defiance in small ways (yet ultimately significant ways) - not every girl in YA fiction needs to start an uprising.
A soft voice and a bent head were more fitting when a woman addressed a priest. This girl stared at him brazenly in the face with fey green eyes
Overall, I really enjoyed this one and have already checked out the sequel - I'm so, so curious to see what happens next!
P.s. There is a glossery located in the last few pages. (hallelujah!) The author used a few common Russian words and a few loose translations (i.e. the spelling of "domovoi" was intended to make it easier for English readers to read). I did struggle a bit to hold all the words in my head...only to discover the glossary at the end. Typical!
The 2018 PopSugar Reading Challenge - A book recommended by a book blogger (Kate)>
...so one day my mother sat me down and explained that I couldn't become an explorer because everything in the world had already been discovered. I
...so one day my mother sat me down and explained that I couldn't become an explorer because everything in the world had already been discovered. I'd been born in the wrong century, and I felt cheated.
I listened to this via audiobook while looking up the images throughout the novel. Note: audiobook Emma's voice grated so, so much on my ears that it almost ruined the book. Picture the most screechy, cockney accent you've ever heard. Now double it.
The initial impression is that this will be a scary novel - with creepy children and terrifying monsters. We get a bit of the monsters when Jacob first meets the THING but not much other than that. The images were far spookier than the actual novel.
Enter Jacob - rich white boy who works at his uncle's store. He screams privilege (actively trying to get fired because he doesn't want to work) and his aloof parents provide the gentle neglect that makes leaving them for an adventure far easier than you'd expect. Jacob comes off as extremely unlikeable in the first few chapters but he grows on you.
His grandfather - who always told wild and crazy stories about Peculiar children - dies, leaving Jacob in despair and seeking answers from the one cryptic clue passed down. Jacob goes in search for the truth and gets more than he bargained for.
Emma and the other Peculiar Children provide a much needed sense of adventure and fantasy - allowing Jacob to grow and develop from his initial flatness. Emma is by far the most developed and I enjoyed that (for once) the girl is stronger in every which way in comparison to the lead. And Jacob, despite being a bit of a snot in the beginning, learns to feel and care for his very peculiar friends.
Note on the movie:: This is something to be avoided if you want to stay true to the books. The first half follows pretty well but after that, the directors go off on their own path. In addition, Emma no longer has fire, instead she has the much more delicate/feminine power of flight while Olive (who in the book, could float) is now full fire.
Audiobook Comments Read by Jesse Bernstein and while it was mostly a good audio...every time Emma opened her cockney mouth, I wanted to strangle her. That accent. My nerves. Ugh.
Stuck at home? Got some time on your hands? Want to start a long series? But you don't want a dud?
Check out thisbooktube video - all about which series are worth your time (and which ones aren't)!
Check Out the Written Review!
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She wasn't interested in telling other people's futures. She was interested in going out and finding her own.
You know that feeling when a book is so perfect that you just want to shove it down everyone's throat?
Ok. Good. I thought I was the only one.
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I adored this book. I've already read this series twice and am itching to go through them again.
So, begs the question, what is this book about? And that's where I start to stumble.
There's just too much, I could never adequately describe it in under an hour - every little detail is essential.
Blue had two rules: Stay away from boys, because they're trouble, and stay away from raven boys, because they were bastards.
Blue is the only normal girl in a family of psychics.
Gansey is on a quest to find the long-lost Welsh King.
Ronan came out a harsher, crueler version of himself after his father died and is struggling to keep his head above water.
Adam fights to stay at top of his class despite being in the throws of poverty.
Noah is an absolutely magnificent ray of sunshine on a cloudless day.
It's a love story. BUT the love isn't your typical romantic ooey-gooey teen romance. It isn't that end-all be-all ROLL MY EYESkind of love.
Yess, there is some ooey-gooey-ness but that develops slowly - not in the 'ugh, this is taking too long', but the kind that has you clutching the book, silently savoring the build and secretly wishing it could last forever.
Plus, there's the spot-on humor.
"You missed World Hist." “Did you get notes for me?" "No", Ronan replied,"I thought you were dead in a ditch.”
and this
Blue tried not to look at Gansey's boat shoes; she felt better about him as a person if she pretended he wasn't wearing them.
and this!
Adam asked, “What is he doing, anyway?” “Peeing.” “Trust Lynch to deface a place like this five minutes after getting here.” “Deface? Marking his territory.” “He must own more of Virginia than your father, then.” “I don’t think he’s ever used an indoor toilet, now that I consider it.”
Honestly, if anyone asks me what to read next...
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Seriously! I could not recommend this more.
Audiobook Comments Probably the best audiobooks I've ever heard. Each characters has a speaking voice, an inside-their-heads-voice and as they get scared, nervous, etc their tone will change, sometimes picking up a suppressed accent or clipping their words subtly. This reader is a master.
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