Lost in Hell, trying to find Paradise

Joanna. 19. Imagination. Beauty. Love.

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Series Review: The Nevernight Chronicles by Jay Kristoff

Series Review: The Nevernight Chronicles by Jay Kristoff #stabstabstab #darkdawn

**This blog post will have spoilers!

The Nevernight Chronicles is a beloved adult fantasy trilogy by Australian author Jay Kristoff. I’ve always heard about these books and how much people love them, but I didn’t pick them up until July of 2019, and I ended up reading all three (thank you to Edelweiss for an earc of Darkdawn) in five days. Epic fantasies usually take me much longer but I could…

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ARC Review: Loki: Where Mischief Lies by Mackenzi Lee

ARC Review: Loki: Where Mischief Lies by Mackenzi Lee

Before the days of going toe-to-toe with the Avengers, a younger Loki is desperate to prove himself heroic and capable, while it seems everyone around him suspects him of inevitable villainy and depravity . . . except for Amora. Asgard’s resident sorceress-in-training feels like a kindred spirit-someone who values magic and knowledge, who might even see the best in him.

But when Loki and Amora…

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Book Review: Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan

Book Review: Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan

A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself.

A prince in danger must decide who to trust.

A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings. 

Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war.

In a centuries-long war where beauty and brutality meet, their three paths entwine in a shadowy world of spilled blood and mysterious saints, where a forbidden…

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Series Review: Shadow & Bone Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo

Series Review: Shadow & Bone Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo

Shadow and Bone: 3.75 stars Siege and Storm: 3.5 stars Ruin and Rising: 3.75 stars

This year my goal is to read series that are on my TBR. One of those was the Shadow and Bone Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo. Last year, I read Six of Crows and really loved it so I was eager to pick this series up. I was nervous though because even though so many people love it, there are also those who absolutely hate…

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ARC Review: I Wish You All The Best by Mason Deaver

ARC Review: I Wish You All The Best by Mason Deaver

When Ben De Backer comes out to their parents as non-binary, they’re thrown out of their house and forced to move in with their estranged older sister, Hannah, and her husband, Thomas, whom Ben has never even met. Struggling with an anxiety disorder compounded by their parents’ rejection, they come out only to Hannah, Thomas, and their therapist and try to keep a low profile in a new school.

But…

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ARC Review: Silver in the Woods by Emily Tesh

ARC Review: Silver in the Woods by Emily Tesh

There is a Wild Man who lives in the deep quiet of Greenhollow, and he listens to the wood. Tobias, tethered to the forest, does not dwell on his past life, but he lives a perfectly unremarkable existence with his cottage, his cat, and his dryads.

When Greenhollow Hall acquires a handsome, intensely curious new owner in Henry Silver, everything changes. Old secrets better left buried are dug up,…

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ARC Review: The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

ARC Review: The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

Olive is always unlucky: in her career, in love, in…well, everything. Her identical twin sister Amy, on the other hand, is probably the luckiest person in the world. Her meet-cute with her fiancé is something out of a romantic comedy (gag) and she’s managed to finance her entire wedding by winning a series of Internet contests (double gag). Worst of all, she’s forcing Olive to spend the day with…

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ARC Review: We Contain Multitudes by Sarah Henstra

ARC Review: We Contain Multitudes by Sarah Henstra #bookblogger #bookreview

Jonathan Hopkirk and Adam “Kurl” Kurlansky are partnered in English class, writing letters to one another in a weekly pen pal assignment. With each letter, the two begin to develop a friendship that eventually grows into love. But with homophobia, bullying, and devastating family secrets, Jonathan and Kurl struggle to overcome their conflicts and hold onto their relationship…and each other.

Thank…

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Release Day Review: Sherwood by Meagan Spooner

Check out my review of Sherwood by @MeaganSpooner! #bookblogger #bookbirthday

Robin of Locksley is dead.

When news comes that he’s fallen in battle at the King’s side in the Holy Land, Maid Marian doesn’t know how she’ll go on. Betrothed to Robin, she was free to be herself, to flout the stifling rules of traditional society and share an equal voice with her beloved when it came to caring for the people of her land.

Now Marian is alone, with no voice of her own. The people…

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Sex in Young Adult Novels

What do you think about sex in Young Adult novels? #bookblogger

Young adult novels have been hitting difficult topics more and more lately. With the real world being in disarray over immigration and LGBTQ rights, authors have a lot to say and feel a duty to write stories that young people need (and want). But, I wanted to talk about a specific topic that we rarely see in Young Adult books: sex.

According to Planned Parenthood, 17 is the average age people…

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Unboxing: Fairyloot February 2019

Unboxing: @Fairyloot February 2019 #fairyloot #bookblogger

This months theme is Beauty and the Beast! I was incredibly excited for this box because Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorite Disney movies and stories.

The first item we received was a tumblr with confetti inside the wall. It was designed by Taratjah and KDP letters. It says “Tale as old as time” on one side and has the rose on the other! I like the design of this but I have so many…

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Release Day Review: Warrior of the Wild by Tricia Levenseller

Happy book birthday to Warrior of the Wild by Tricia Levenseller! Check out my review #bookreview #bookblogger #bookbirthday

  How do you kill a god?

As her father’s chosen heir, eighteen-year-old Rasmira has trained her whole life to become a warrior and lead her village. But when her coming-of-age trial is sabotaged and she fails the test, her father banishes her to the monster-filled wilderness with an impossible quest: to win back her honour, she must kill the oppressive god who claims tribute from the villages…

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ARC Review: Red, White, & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

ARC Review: Red, White, & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston #bookblogger #bookreview #booknerd #lgbtreads

Red, White, & Royal Blue was one of my most anticipated 2019 releases. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for sending me an e-ARC and helping me out of my reading slump. I swooned so hard thanks to this book and I can’t wait for you all to read it!

First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz is the closest thing to a prince this side of the Atlantic. With his intrepid sister and the Veep’s genius granddaughter,…

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ARC Review: The Music of What Happens by Bill Konigsberg

ARC Review: The Music of What Happens by Bill Konigsberg #bookblogger #lgbtreads

Max: Chill. Sports. Video games. Gay and not a big deal, not to him, not to his mom, not to his buddies. And a secret: An encounter with an older kid that makes it hard to breathe, one that he doesn’t want to think about, ever.

Jordan: The opposite of chill. Poetry. His “wives” and the Chandler Mall. Never been kissed and searching for Mr. Right, who probably won’t like him anyway. And a secret:…

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Top 5 Wednesday: Most Disappointing Books of 2018

Top 5 Wednesday: Most Disappointing Books of 2018 #bookblogger #top5wednesday

In 2018, I read some pretty disappointing books. Some of them were 2019 releases that I received as e-arcs or physical arcs.

You Asked for Perfect by Laura Silverman

  Although this is a 2019 release, I was able to read it early. I expected so much out of this book but it really disappointed me. It felt incredibly rushed and the relationship had no time to develop. It felt so forced which made…

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Top 5 Wednesday: Hyped 2019 Releases I Don't Care About

Top 5 Wednesday: Hyped 2019 Releases I Don't Care About #bookblogger #top5wednesday

Everyone talks about their most anticipated releases of the year (including me), but this is a really fun topic to touch on too! Not everyone likes the same books and authors and it’s interesting to see which books people don’t care about. Here are my five:

Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare

I haven’t read any of Cassandra Clare’s books and I’ve heard awful things about her in regards to…

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ARC Review: The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi

Check out my review of The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi #thegildedwolves #bookblogger #arcreview #bookreview

I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi from bookishfirst.com

This book comes out 15 January!

Paris, 1889: The world is on the cusp of industry and power, and the Exposition Universelle has breathed new life into the streets and dredged up ancient secrets. In this city, no one keeps tabs on secrets better than treasure-hunter and wealthy hotelier, Séverin…

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