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book review || The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune 

Love. That’s all I can say about this book. It’s love.

5 / 5 stars

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series review || The Shadow and Bone Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo 

Shadow and Bone 

This Was Fine -- January Wrap Up || 9 books!

This was fine. That’s about it. This read like a ya fantasy from 2010 and that’s basically what it is. Alina was pretty boring to me as the main character, I had no investment in the love triangle, and the ending was… sudden and very open.

However, I liked the Russian based world-building we received. I’m intrigued by the magic and power structure we’ve seen. The Darkling character was also my favorite because he was the most interesting. Sure, he's not a great guy, but I like how he’s written. Honestly, I want this story to be focused on him.

Siege and Storm

This Was Kinda Painful -- February Wrap Up || 10 books! This…. Was painful. Honestly, can we just get rid of all the romance drama? It made this book nearly unbearable. Nikolai was the only character I liked. No, scratch that, he was the only thing that kept me going. When the action started off in the beginning, I was hopeful that this would be a fast-paced book, but lord did it drop. I skimmed the majority of the middle because it mostly consisted of Alina making stupid decisions left and right, while Mal brooded, then vice versa. I thought the action at the end would reinvigorate me, but no, it just made me wish we had more on-page time with The Darkling.

Ruin and Rising 

I think this was my favorite of the Shadow and Bone trilogy. This was a fun adventure story and had the best pacing overall, with lots of action throughout, rather than only the beginning and end. Also had the most time with the most enjoyable characters, all the sidekicks. I was, once again, annoyed every time romance came up but managed to push through. The ending climax, however, left a bitter taste in my mouth.

3 / 5 stars

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book review || Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

5 by 5: Historical Fiction Flair -- 5 HF Reads and Reviews

5 / 5 stars

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book review || Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero

This book definitely drew me in with a title that instantly made me think of Scooby-Doo and a funky, bright, and scifi-esque cover.

I think a big part of what made me enjoy this book was the odd writing style. I actually really liked the switching formats, occasional fourth wall break, and unusual metaphors, similes, and comparisons. Cantero's writing was different and might not be the best for everyone, but I found it fun. Very postmodernist. Plus I appreciated all the little pop culture nods like Arkham Asylum and Zoinx River. The characters were interesting. Nate always had amusing, but sometimes rude, comments, Andy was pretty bad-ass, but probably has some anger issues, and Kerri was smart and sweet, but annoyed me at times. Tim was adorable and funny, don't change sweetie. The storyline and mystery were intriguing and kept me interested, but the villain was a bit lackluster for me. They didn't really have any underlying reason for what they were doing, making for a very anti-climactic reveal. Big Cons were insensitivity to trans folks and I wasn't the biggest fan of the end reveal either.

3.5 / 5 stars

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book review || The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

This was okay. I liked the first half of the book, but this wasn't anything like what I expected. I went in thinking this was going to be more a mystery styled story, but instead, it was a very character-driven, talking about how each member of the family handles the loss of Susie and their grief. However, the only character I really enjoyed reading about was the little sister, Lindsey.

Also, the writing was... a bit weird... as well as a bit all over the place. It just felt as though Sebold was trying to add length to a story when it wasn't particularly necessary. Also, Sebold didn't hold strong to the mid-seventies setting, because I completely forgot that was the time period until reading another review. I ended up skimming most of the second half of the book. The ending was so unsatisfying. Susie's mother seems to be accepted back into the family with little resistance, which I found completely ridiculous. Mr. Harvey, Susie's murderer, simply... dies. All of his murders go unsolved. Susie's father, who had previously been so invested in catching Harvey, eventually just accepts his daughter is gone and her killer hasn't been found, which felt very out of character compared to how he acted in the beginning. Oh, and the weird paranormal sex scene was... just a whole lot of wow to that.

2.5 / 5 stars

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book review || Children of Virtue and Vengence by Tomi Adeyemi

First, LOOK AT HOW BEAUTIFUL THIS BOOK IS.

This book was such a rollercoaster of emotions because I both loved and hated every main character at different points (Except Tzain. That boy's a treasure), which I think showcases how well written they all are.

I read 200 pages in 2 days because there was so much action and excitement to keep me going. It did start out a bit slower, but once the action started, man oh man, it didn't feel like it would ever stop. I continue to see parallels between this series and Avatar the Last Airbender, with Roen being a mirror to Jet. Although it started to seem a hair tropey, I still enjoyed it, especially in the context of a culture I'd never read about before. Also, loved getting to see more maji with differing powers. Lost half a star with me because, in all honesty, the ending? Wasn't crazy about it. I liked how things were heading LITERALLY until the last page and epilogue. I have no idea what to expect in the third book.

4.5/5 stars

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book review || The Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club Series by Theodora Goss

"Just another ordinary evening with monsters."

This series was so much fun! I can't believe more people haven't read it!

The Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club is a mystery trilogy filled with a cast of characters from (and inspired by) classic horror and science-fiction novels set in the Victorian era. Goss does a great job of interlacing many of these stories together in intriguing ways, with cool mysteries that drag you in and a cast that keeps you interested.

The Athena Club is a group of Monstrous feminists who would likely scandalize the original authors of the classic characters that Theodora Goss takes inspiration from (except maybe Mary Shelley).  The collection of characters is all fun, interesting women and I love hearing their witty and sassy banter. 

It's tons of interesting reading about this team of women running about England and Europe trying to solve mysteries, rescue friends and passing lots of snarky sass. 

Definitely was a fun ride with this team of monstrous female detectives.

5 / 5 stars

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book review || Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu

Every teenager should read this book. It's such an awesome representation of sexism that young women are subjected to and shows an amazing way to stand up and say, "We're not gonna take it." "This is what it means to be a feminist. Not a humanist or an equalist or whatever. But a feminist. It's not a bad word. After today it might be my favorite word. Because really all it is is girls supporting each other and wanting to be treated like human beings in a world that's always finding ways to tell them they're not."

I grew up in a small town in Texas and went to a high school where football season was similar to a religion, so I could certainly relate to Viv. With plenty of women helping women, some intersectionality, breaking down barriers, and tons of empowerment, this was a fun read that encouraged teens to speak up for what they believe in. I really enjoyed the development of the characters, like how Viv's self-esteem built, Claudia realizing that feminism wasn't a bad word, Seth realizing that he can't understand what the girls are going through, but he's willing to listen and learn. Oh, and Emma! That poor, sweet and brave girl. This book made me mad, laugh and simply, proud to be a feminist.

5/5 stars