August Wrap-Up

    Hello everyone!  I'm actually doing a wrap-up on time for once!!  I've also finished most of the books that I promised I'd read this month, so I'm feeling pretty accomplished right now.  I'm taking huge strides into being an actual adult.  I'll be starting more courses next week since it's officially September (where did August go?!) so I feel comfortable in my 3 book limit.  My next post will dive into the books I hope to read this month and I'm already excited about my prospects.  Here are the three books I read in the month of August.

(goodreads.com)

    I FINALLY finished Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson!!  The first half of this book dragged on for soooo long with me, I didn't think I could manage it, but about half way through I changed my mind and soldiered on, with great results.  The second half of this book was full of action, intrigue and mystery that had me reading faster to see what would happen.  Surprisingly, there was a lot more court politics in this book than I had originally anticipated, especially after the first half taking place in the slums mostly.  Although the story was interesting, I didn't feel as connected with the characters like I have with other books.  I enjoyed Vin the most for her wit and determination, with Kelsier and Elend as close seconds, but everyone else seemed pretty forgettable.  The setting was all over the place during the second half so at times it was difficult for me to picture what was going on.  Overall I'll probably pick up the second book in this series, but not any time soon.  I gave this book a 3.5 out of 5 stars.

(goodreads.com)

    Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch: This book had been on my radar since I finished A Court of Thorns and Roses last year because of the seasonal kingdoms similarity.  Although I enjoyed the story (after getting through the first few chapters where nothing really happened) I wasn't really invested in it.  I thought all the characters were very unsure of themselves and Meira was the only one to really take any risks, and even then she blamed herself.  Her life goal seemed to be pleasing her Captain, which is a pretty lame existence to be sure.  I caught on to the "big secret" about half way through because it was somewhat predictable.  The setting was interesting, but again, not as much detail or charisma as there was in the description from ACOTAR.  The world building seemed lacking to me.  I had high expectations for this book that just weren't met.  I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either, so I just sort of feel "meh" about the whole thing really.  I  may finish the trilogy and I might not. I've heard mixed reviews about the second book, so it may take me awhile to get to it.  I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars.

(goodreads.com)

    This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab: I decided against reading Cursed Child until October because I want to be in more of a fall mood when I read it, so I chose this book instead and I regret nothing.  I knew that I would enjoy Schwab's writing because honestly, who doesn't, but this book surpassed my expectations tenfold.  I went into this not really knowing what to expect because the concept of the plot was so unlike anything I've read before or that Schwab has written about before.  I was actually somewhat hesitant to pick this up, but I'm so glad I did.  The world was similar to what I read in Tell the Wind and Fire in the sense that there are two halves of a whole city who are at war with each other, but that's really where the similarities stop.  There are monsters in this Dystopian world who come into being as the result of violent events.  The three types of monsters are the results of various stages of violence and each have different abilities.  Kate Harker's father runs and protects the prosperous area of the city while August Flynn's adoptive father assumes control of the dangerous zone.  These two teens come together to prevent a war and in the process come to discover what it really means to be human.  I wasn't sure where this book was going until the middle and then I could barely put it down.  The only thing I'm still on the fence about it the lack of romance.  The story really didn't call for it, but while I was reading I could tell that there was something there that wasn't being addressed and it KILLED ME, but I was still happy with the outcome of the story.  There will be two more books in this series, so maybe my prayers will be answered, but even if they're not, I'll be waiting patiently for the next Schwab book.  I ended up giving this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.

    So there you have it, those are the three books I managed to finish last month.  Let me know in the comments below if you've read any of these and what your thoughts are.  I also recently started writing book reviews at the library I work at, so if you're interested in reading those, I'll leave a link here so you can follow me there!  I'll be back soon with my September TBR, which I'm very excited about because there are a few highly anticipated releases coming out this month that I'm itching to get my hands on!  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

August TBR

    Sorry it's taken me so long to get to my TBR for this month, but this past weekend was super crazy!  Boston Comic Con was awesome and I'd do it again in a heartbeat, but after three packed days and a lot of walking around the city, I was totally spent.  I definitely needed the 10 hours of sleep.  Unfortunately, I also had no time to read, so it looks like my August TBR may be a bit small in comparison to last month, (since August is already half way done).  Here are the books I'll attempt to get to this month.

(goodreads)

    Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson:  I think I've been working on this book for at least two months now, but I'm determined to finish it!  This book is the first in a lengthy series about a society where certain people can bend metals to manifest extraordinary powers.  These people are rare and most reside with the noble class, whereas the lower class Skaa citizens are treated as slaves.  A rebellion is brewing, led by a Skaa rebel named Kelsier, who is also a Mistborn, someone who possesses the power to wield all metals.  Vin, his young apprentice, gets thrown into the mix as we follow her journey from Skaa street urchin to rebel spy.  I'm about 70% finished and I'm really enjoying it so far.  I'll definitely be adding more Sanderson books to my to-read pile.

(goodreads)

    The next book I'm planning on reading is Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch.  I think I had planned on getting to this one last month, but ended up running out of time, (story of my life).  Someone recommended this series to me after I read A Court of Thorns and Roses because the setting revolves around kingdoms separated by seasons.  The kingdom of Winter has been conquered and enslaved and Meira, a surviving refugee, has taken on the task of retrieving Winter's lost magic and restoring her kingdom back to glory.  This looks like a fun YA Fantasy series and I've been looking forward to starting it for awhile now.  The third book, Frost Like Night, comes out in September, so I'm hoping to get caught up before then.

(goodreads)

    The last book I will hopefully get to before the end of this month is Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling.  This book is actually a published screen play for the theatrical eighth installment of the Harry Potter series and follows the gang and their children almost 20 years after the events of The Deathly Hallows.  I'm surprised at myself for not immediately wanting to read this because I bought it like two weeks ago, but I've been having trouble bringing myself to open it.  I have to read Snow Like Ashes before this because it's a library book that has a due date as opposed to a book I already own, so I will eventually get to this, hopefully within the next few months, but maybe not this month, due to the lack of time.

    So there you have it, my lackluster attempt at a TBR list.  Let me know if you've read any of these books and what you're planning on grabbing next month.  September is a big month for new book releases and I'll be doing a post soon about the books I'm most looking forward to next month.  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

June Wrap-Up and July TBR

    Hello everyone!  Can you believe it's already July?  I'm super hyped about my upcoming camping trip vacation and that means planning out what I'll read on the beach every day.  July is always a great reading month for me because I can usually knock out at least four books if not more while I'm on vacation, not including the rest of the month.  Before we look at my tentative reading list for July, let's talk about the two books I finished last month.

(goodreads.com)

    An Ember in the Ashes was actually a book that I wasn't initially interested in.  Desert fiction and Arabian fantasy don't really interest me or get me excited, so based on my judgment of the cover and synopsis, I didn't think I would like this book.  I judged this book way too quickly, which I will never do again.  The setting was actually based on Ancient Rome, which interests me greatly.  I really enjoyed the characters of this book and the connections between each of them.  The pacing at the beginning was a bit slow for me and I wasn't always sure what was going on.  I still had a tough time picturing the setting throughout the book, so I spent a lot of time going back and forth between the cover and the map inside to help me out.  I think Laia's development over the course of the book was great, especially since I found her annoying in the beginning.  My favorite character was probably Elias because he was very conflicted, but also very noble, which is an anomaly for his "profession."  I'm anticipating the sequel coming out soon to be just as action-packed as this first book, so hopefully I won't be disappointed.  I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars.

(goodreads.com)

    The second book that I managed to finish last month was Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton.  This book was recommended to me by a colleague and I wanted to give it a try.  Set in the Scottish wilderness (and China for a bit) this book follows a young girl named Quinn and her fellow Seekers-in-training John and Shinobu as they work towards their goals of becoming full-fledged Seekers like their parents.  Little do they know the price they are about to pay for that knowledge and power.  I thought the concept of this story was intriguing and the setting was gorgeous.  I'm a sucker for anything in the UK, so bring me there immediately please.  The concept of Seekers, which is the main conflict in the story, still seem to be a bit ambiguous.  By the end of the book, we understand what Seekers are doing now and the powers they possess through their artifacts, but we really don't understand what they are supposed to be doing or what they are supposed to represent, before they were turned into something other.  I'm hoping they elaborate more on that in the second book.
    The characters were a little stagnant for me in the sense that I didn't think that any of them really stood out or did anything to be recognized as cunning, important, strong, etc.  The character I liked the most and the one whom I thought had the best development and story line was Shinobu.  He had the biggest transformation for me and I found myself rooting for him in the end.  The story really revolved around him, with John portrayed as more of a villain (but even then, not really) and Quinn, whom I had thought was the main protagonist, but didn't really seem like it.  Overall, I think I would read the second book just to see where the story goes from where we left off.  I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars.

    Ok, so now I want to talk about the books that I plan on reading this month.  This will be a tentative list because things tend to come up and I may or may not get to all of these, despite my best intentions.  I also tend to change my mind over the course of a month (for example, I had no intention of reading Seeker last month until my coworker asked me to).  These are books I want to read in the month of July and over the summer or have just been on my TBR shelf for awhile.

(goodreads.com)

    The first book I plan on reading (or finishing) is Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo.  I've already started it and it's taken me a long time to get to this book as it is.  This book follows six outlaws as they strive to complete the most impossible heist.  There's magic, backstabbing, and cunning gangs in this version of the Grisha world, which is a stark contrast to her other books.  I wasn't a huge fan of Bardugo's Grisha trilogy, so I was hesitant to pick this one up, which is set in the same world.  However, many Booktubers have been raving about this book, even if they didn't care for the original trilogy, so I thought I would give it a shot.  So far I'm not disappointed, so we'll see how it goes.

(goodreads.com)

    Hollow City by Ransom Riggs has also been on my TBR list, ever since I finished Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children last fall.  As you may already know, the movie adaptation is being released by the end of the year, so I'd like to brush up before going to see it.  I'm glad Tim Burton is directing, but it seems like they've already changed a lot of things about the characters so far, so I'm a bit wary.  Hollow City is a continuation of the original book, taking place directly after the events of the first book and following Jacob on his quest to London to meet up with other peculiars in order to fend off The Hollows.  This is one of the most interesting and unique story lines I've ever read and all of the characters bring something unique to the table, so I'm excited to continue with this series.

(goodreads.com)

    It's been almost a full year since Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard: Sword of Summer was released and the next one will be coming out soon, so it's about time I read it.  I've never read any of Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series or any of his other books, but the setting in Boston and the focus on Norse mythology had me interested in this book (not to mention the stunning cover).  I've had this book in my hands countless times but have never been able to pull the trigger until now.  This was my number one summer read on my list, so lets hope it lives up to the hype.

(goodreads.com)

    Legacy of Kings by Eleanor Herman recently infiltrated my TBR shelf.  I've been looking to fill the gaping void left by the Falling Kingdoms series (the next book doesn't come out until December) and this looked like a good fit.  There seems to be similarities in the variation in character perspectives as well as the alternative motives and manipulations of these characters.  The story takes place during an alternative past and follows a young Alexander the Great as he attempts to secure his kingdom.  This looks really interesting and I'm totally in the mood for another great fantasy, so bring it on!

(goodreads.com)

    Another book that's recently caught my eye is Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch.  I don't know much about this series besides the fact that the kingdoms are separated by seasons, which reminded me immediately of ACOTAR, obviously.  There seems to be a magical element as well, which is always interesting.  This story follows a young female refugee of the fallen Winter realm as she trains to avenge her people and help them rise to power again.  The cover is stunning as well, so I hope I have time to cram this book into my summer reading pile.

(goodreads.com)

    Last, but not least, another long-time resident of my TBR shelf is the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson.  I really couldn't tackle a huge series with the amount of schoolwork I've had lately, so the summer is really the best time to dive into a new epic fantasy series.  I've also been trying to read more adult books, regardless of genre, so I'm working my way towards that goal (albeit slowly).  This series is raved about on Booktube so much it would be a disservice to myself not to read it.  The main seller of this series is the magic system, which centers around Allomancy, (the manipulation of metals).  Sounds like a fun and epic read to be sure.  I can't wait to get into it!

    As I stated earlier, this is only a tentative list of books I hope to read next month.  In all likelihood, some many end up on August's reading list, but as long as I get to them before the fall, I think I'll feel accomplished either way.  I have some new releases coming out at the end of the summer and the early fall that I have to make room for, so I'm eagerly anticipating the next few months of reading.  What are you planning on reading this summer?  Have you read any of these books yet?  Let me know in the comments!  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.