The Strand is my happy place

[nerdy-book-queen]

4/5 Stars

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for feedback.

What a fun adventure. This wasn't what I expected, in the best way. I expected a straight forward retelling, with Belle playing Cinderella's role and vice versus. Instead, I got to strong, independent women on a great adventure to save their kingdom in so many ways, their tales interwoven together in a fantastic way. 

Belle finds herself in Cinderella's cellar, forced into labor by her stepmother when she's found their via blackmail and magic, and helping Ella's prince find both his missing sister and his friend(Ella). She uses her mind and her knowledge of magic through her father's trade to escape Ella's stepmother and help save the kingdom.

Ella finds herself in Belle's home, and through Belle's father's actions, then is trapped in the beast's castle. As she stays, she meets the "beast" and learns more about her, embarking on a mission to break the curse.

Third act chaos ensures, drama is revealed, and our amazing leading ladies have to save the day.

I struggled with it at first but by the end I was having a lot of fun.

[nerdy-book-queen]

We've got a sequel! Another 4/5 stars!

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for feedback

Snow White has an evil stepmother, Rose is living in a woods with her adopted fairy parents, with an impending sleeping curse. But, also, the sleeping curse is taking over the rest of the kingdom first. Oh, and Snow gets pushed into the magic mirror, and suddenly finds herself in the fairy household, while Rose finds herself in Snow's castle.

Rose follows the path of alchemy to try and cure the sleeping curse, while Snow tries to make her way home, with people hunting her as she's being blamed for the curse. Shenanigans ensue.

This is the second iteration of the princesses swapping places, and though I would argue it was less of a swap and in the end more a teamwork deal, it was still a lot of fun. I enjoyed watching these girls struggle and explore, I thought it was funny as heck that both boys that liked them got taken out by the sleeping curse-girls saving the day themselves is always fun- and the ending provided a twist I wasn't expecting, on par with the first story. Overall, I recommend it if you enjoy some fun fairytales.

Snow did take a bit to grow on me, I found myself having to remind myself that she is in fact, twelve, but dang was that princess life showing in the most annoying way. But, she grows, and that's always nice to see.

[nerdy-book-queen]

4/5 Stars

I received a copy of this from Netgalley in exchange for feedback

A lovely instalment in the Out in Hollywood series. Continuing in Spalding's world, we joined Clementine as she explores the world of LGBT people more now that she is no longer dating her ex. Trying to sort out family and friend relationships that think she needs more than just a partner, or being single, to be happy, she finds herself in a fake dating scenario straight out of a romance novel (oh wait) with Chloe, a similarly opposed-to-marriage queer lady. What ensues is a series of shenanigans as she comes out to her friends and family, finds friends that support her, and falls in love as much as she tries not to.

The relationship that grows between Chloe and Clementine is super sweet and I had a lot of fun with it, even though Chloe's panic apart it left me losing my mind, needing her to sort it out cause she was happy and was sabotaging it trying to prove she could be happy single.

Clementine, in the process, finds herself having to learn to stand up for herself and her wants with her friends and family (all my friends hate Greg, he can fuck right off), realizes that she deserves better friendships, and is allowed to not want to get married.

I also love that we got to see Ari and Nina get married! Such a cute culmination to the events of the first book in this series, we love to see it.

[nerdy-book-queen]

4/5 Stars

I received this book from netgalley in exchange for feedback

Prince Charming's face blindness for the win, haha.

Ell's story plays out like every other Cinderella tale.  Her prince arrives, she tries on the slipper, on to happily ever after....expect, she didn't actually go to the ball. Taking what she thinks is merely an escape from her abusers that she will be able to flee from, she finds herself trapped in court intrigue, under the thumb of a cruel king, and trapped in a war between worlds.

This was a ton of fun to read, and I really liked El as a character. This is such a unique take on the story, the idea that Cindy's shoe might fit another girl. It was also really sweet watching her actually fall in love, and while I was at first, disappointed by who she fell for, it was worked out in the end in a way I thought was quite lovely. 

Prince Charming in this world,  Bayard, is an absolute sweetheart, the poor face-blind man. I thought he was quite kind, and it was nice watching him reach the point he could stand up to his cruel father.  Maxim, the prince's friend, I was less of a fan of, but he grew on me by the end.

The rest of the supporting cast featured a slew of fun characters, a sweet lady in waiting, a take-no-shit servant, and of all the surprised, stepsisters redeeming themselves. And of course, a fairy causing all sorts of havoc throughout the tale, just to add an extra level of risk.

Culminating in a happily ever after I didn't see coming, and for a few moments wasn't sure we would get, this book was quite the adventure and a great addition to any retelling fan.

[myreadingislit]

For this Sunday’s @bibliophilicwitch’s Tomes & Tea, I’m reading Ink, Iron, & Glass by Gwendolyn Clare with Oreo cold brew coffee.

I have all the luck in the relationship today, too. I’ve accidentally acquired two free donuts, and Ry is stuck somewhere upstate with a broken car and won’t be able to come home until tomorrow morning.

[nerdy-book-queen]

The Bone Witch- Review

I really liked this story overall. I enjoyed reading it for the most part and liked the characters. I need more, and I was definitely not expecting the ending. It was a great read. What I liked: I …

[nerdy-book-queen]

Books

[ur-daily-inspiration]

[nerdy-book-queen]

4/5 stars

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for feedback.

Brewed with Love follows Sage, a witch, in her mission to find a heartbreak cure in the form of a potion (tonic) she’s working on. To cure how she feels about an old friend. Who is now her coworker. But when a breakin occurs and a misbrewed potion costs a classmate her memory, Sage must team up with her old friend to find the culprit before the incident costs her family their store, the classmate’s memory loss becomes permanent, and harm falls to their coven. Oh, and there’s a mega corporate trying to destroy their family business, drawing the stakes up even more. To further cause chaos, their magic is acting odd, not as strong as before.

Watching Sage give this a second chance, taking a new perspective on her friend (Ximena) and healing old wounds while reviving old feelings, was a lovely time. With the backdrop of this investigation and the stakes ever increasing, this was a great adventure and a fun romance.

There were several interesting characters, solid twists and fake outs I wasnt prepared for, and a very cool magic system (they all draw magic from their woods, are able to manipulate plants, and each family has their own special abilities). I enjoy this world and honestly wish I could get more of it.

[petalier]

- by cherylraharjo on Flickr.

[a-chorus-of-storytellers]

reading and dog sitting

[sheabutterrosesandeucalyptuspls]

_lifeinfullbloom [ S h a n i k a T h o m a s ]

[nerdy-book-queen]

5/5 stars

Format: Audiobook

I received a copy of this audiobook from netgalley in exchange for feedback

Oh my goodness I love this book a ton!

Cat is so much fun and man it feels like I had my personality dragged into a character. She starting writing romance for an up and coming choice based game, encountering a game dev she idolizes…who hates her after their brief meeting, and because they don't want romance in their tale. Meanwhile, she starts dating Sally, who… isn't the best match. But they launch into a fake dating scheme to make Sally's ex jealous and please Cat's parents.

Meanwhile, the other dev, Andi, is diving into her own game after being used by an old company for "yay diversity" points while dealing with a creepy boss, which led to the world of the internet tearing them to shreds.

These two fall in love while trying to hash out the romance plot line for the game, get back at shitty dude-bros, and dealing with corporate shenanigans to come out on top. I loved all the little twists and turns to the story, watch Cat and Andi grow both together and on their own, and of course, the sheer amount of nerdy references throughout the book (I saw that Undertale ref!)

If you want a fun and nerdy queer romance, this is a great one, and I know its only 22 days into the year but it might already be on my list for favorite book.

[nerdy-book-queen]

I received a copy of this from netgalley in exchange for feedback

Following two women in the past in France, we join them in facing both literal and figurative beasts, that of an actual beast prowling their woods and killing their peers, other young women and children, and the figurative ones, the cruel men that prowl their town and make victims of the women there. 

Joséphine is headstrong and impulsive, tempered by the woman she loves, Clara, as they grew up together in their town. Joséphine often finds herself at odds with the men, both for her personality and her unwillingness to lie down and take their cruelty. 

After finding the body of a young boy, and her surviving sister, they set out on a mission to rescue at first this girl and her sister, and then more, including themselves, from the men, using the beast as cover. But, as they make it seem as if the beast has more victims, they revive the beasts in the town, the superstition men seeking an answer, and the king's men trying to kill it, and eating them to the brink of starvation in the process. 

This was a fantastic adventure with discussion of how women are treated and what society allowed, and forces, them to deal with. I was quite stressed the whole way through, not sure how this tale would end with both human and animal beasts seeking to harm our protagonists. The ending was great, but that would be spoilers. And that this was based on real historical events? Wild information to get at the end of the tale.

[nerdy-book-queen]

Snotgirl: Mini Review

This was such a weird and interesting read. I enjoyed it but it was a bit confusing. I gather most of the confusion was intentional, though, since you’re following the character and she&#8217…

[nerdy-book-queen]

Mirage: A Review

I listened to this via audiobook, so if my spelling isn’t super accurate, I apologize. And unrelated to that actual book, the narration was great, I really enjoyed it. I did really enjoy this…

[nerdy-book-queen]

4/5 Stars

I received this from Netgalley in exchange for feedback.

What a fun adventure. This wasn't what I expected, in the best way. I expected a straight forward retelling, with Belle playing Cinderella's role and vice versus. Instead, I got to strong, independent women on a great adventure to save their kingdom in so many ways, their tales interwoven together in a fantastic way. 

Belle finds herself in Cinderella's cellar, forced into labor by her stepmother when she's found their via blackmail and magic, and helping Ella's prince find both his missing sister and his friend(Ella). She uses her mind and her knowledge of magic through her father's trade to escape Ella's stepmother and help save the kingdom.

Ella finds herself in Belle's home, and through Belle's father's actions, then is trapped in the beast's castle. As she stays, she meets the "beast" and learns more about her, embarking on a mission to break the curse.

Third act chaos ensures, drama is revealed, and our amazing leading ladies have to save the day.

I struggled with it at first but by the end I was having a lot of fun.

[cicivford]