Top Ten Tuesday: A Winter TBR

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by  The Broke and the Bookish.

My planned TBRs always end up becoming such a mess because I get too ambitious or sidetracked and end up not reading the books I planned on reading. That being said I’m still going to try and have a TBR for the winter here and HOPEFULLY I will read at least a few of these. I really am terrible.

Also some of these will be included in an upcoming Book Haul I’m going to be doing I didn’t want to spoil ALL of the books I received and bought! I have a TON of ARCs that I’ll have to be reading here this winter as well but as I said I’m not going to spoil all of them!

These are in no particular order.

10.) Dear Martin by Nic Stone

I JUST got this from the library so I’m going to be reading it right away here, I’m super excited to finally be reading this book! I’ve heard nothing but amazing things about it so I’m expecting to love it.

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9.) There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins

Another library book I’m going to finish here quickly. I’ve heard a lot of mixed things about this book so I decided to just read it myself and see what I think although I’ll go in with lower expectations.

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8.) Final Girls by Riley Sager

Once again another horror/thriller that I’ve heard mixed things about and yet again I wanted to read it myself and see what I think of it. I just really love the idea of the “final girl” trope being used in a book!

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7.) Strange The Dreamer by Laini Taylor

I know, I know. I have been adding this to my TBRs FOREVER and I still haven’t read it! Once I battle through all of the ARCs I have to read I WILL READ THIS BOOK! I stare at it every time I pass my bookshelf!

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6.) Because You Love To Hate Me

Another book I “had to have right away” and still haven’t read but I really do want to get to it sooner rather than later! It’s a collection of short stories so I feel that it will be a quicker read.

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5.) A Torch Against The Night by Sabaa Tahir

After reading the perfection that is “An Ember in the Ashes” I seriously need to get on to reading the sequel! I’m ready to be emotionally wrecked again, bring it on.

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4.) City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty

I’ve had this book on my TBR for a while but since it released this month I’ve seen TONS of great reviews so I’m even more excited to read it. I love fantasy but a fantasy set in Egypt is right up my alley.

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3.) Between the Blade and the Heart by Amanda Hocking

I’m SUPER excited to be reading this ARC and I’m going to be a part of my first blog tour with it as well so be on the look out for my review this coming month!

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2.) A Conspiracy of Stars by Olivia A. Cole

Another ARC I’m excited to read here soon, it’s a YA sci-fi and it has one gorgeous cover.

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1.) The Fire Queen by Emily R. King

I received an ARC of the first book in this trilogy and actually really enjoyed it! I also recently received an ARC of the last book in the trilogy as well and have a copy of the sequel on its way so I will be reading both of these here this winter but especially the second book.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think?

What’s on your winter TBR?

Let me know in the comments!

My Votes Are In! 2017 Goodreads Choice Awards

100% credit for this post idea goes to the wonderful Melanie @ Mel To The Any so be sure to go check out her post as well as her amazing blog!

This post is pretty straight forward in that I’ll just be sort of discussing my votes in the Goodreads Choice Awards. If you haven’t gone and voted already be sure to go check it out, voting ends November 27th and the winners are announced December 5th!

I will only be discussing the categories I actually submitted a vote in, there are PLENTY of categories with nominees that are on my TBR but since I haven’t read them I didn’t feel it was very fair for me to vote for them (with one exception I will discuss below).

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Best Horror

My Vote: Lost Boy: The True Story of Captain Hook by Christina Henry

I will probably always and forever vote for Christina Henry’s horror books because they’re so well done and well written and just everything in general is fantastic about them. This is a retelling of Peter Pan from the POV of a young James Hook and serves as an origin story for the classic villain. I loved how Henry put such a unique, dark and twisted spin on the original tale it was so well done and utter perfection in my opinion.

You can read my full review of “Lost Boy” here, if you’re interested!

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Best Young Adult Fiction

My Vote: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

There were actually a few I wanted to vote for in this category but “The Hate U Give” is such an important, powerful, and well written story I couldn’t stand the idea of NOT voting for it! This book is perfection, PERFECTION! It deserves to win every award and if you haven’t read this book already I highly, highly urge you to do so because it’s game-changing and powerful.

You can read my full review of “The Hate U Give” here, if you’re interested!

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Best Debut Goodreads Author

My Vote: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

As I said, SHE DESERVES EVERY AWARD! When I was reading “The Hate U Give” I was blown away by her writing, it didn’t feel like I was reading a debut at all but more like the billionth book of a seasoned pro. I am very confident this book will win in both these categories!

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Best Young Adult Fantasy/Science Fiction

My Vote: Strange The Dreamer by Laini Taylor

So as I mentioned I usually don’t vote for books I haven’t actually read BUT I decided I need to make an exception and here’s why:

I love Laini Taylor’s books and I’m 100% confident I will love “Strange The Dreamer”. But another reason I wanted to vote for this book (besides the fact that I will love it when I do get around to reading it) is that I’m really tired of Sarah J. Maas’s books winning every year JUST because they’re Sarah J. Maas’s books. I’m sure her books are good but I’d like to see A DIFFERENT book and author win for once and so I wanted to help boost Laini Taylor because she deserves it.

Have you read any of these books as well? What did you think?

Did you vote for any of these books in the Goodreads Choice Awards?

What books did you vote for?

Let me know in the comments!

Top Ten Tuesday: Unique Book Titles

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by  The Broke and the Bookish.

I don’t have much to say about this week’s choices since the theme is pretty straightforward so this post will be shorter than usual!

These are not in any particular order.

10.) Black Bird of the Gallows by Meg Kassel

9.) And The Trees Crept In by Dawn Kurtagich

Because it’s pretty yet creepy sounding.

 8.) Slasher Girls & Monster Boys stories selected by April Genevieve Tucholke

7.) Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff

6.) Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor

5.) Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

4.) The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

3.) And I Darken by Kiersten White

2.) Wink Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke

1.) Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman

I don’t know why but for some reason I really like the word vengeance?

Have you read any of these books as well? What did you think?

What are some of your favorite unique book titles?

Let me know in the comments!

 

Books I’d Like to Finish Before the End of the Year

So of course I’m going to be pretty busy this month and next month with ARCs but by the time November and December roll around what will I be reading? It’s been a bit of a chore with certain posts to not discuss my planned October TBR, why is it so secret? Just for fun! I have quite a few spooky books set up for October. However, there are a couple books I would for sure like to squeeze in before the year ends that aren’t going to be a part of my Halloween TBR for October. Here are just a few of them!

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Little Monsters by Kara Thomas

I just purchased this book and would LOVE to dive into it soon since it promises to be pretty dark and full of some serious plot twists. If it’s anything like Thomas’s other book “The Darkest Corners” then it’s sure to not disappoint!

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The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

I’m actually ashamed that I haven’t read any of his books yet since I’m an avid fantasy reader! Plus on top of that EVERYONE keeps telling me I must read this series and I know they’re right. I’m really hoping I can manage to make some room for it before the year is up.

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Because You Love To Hate Me Edited by Ameriie

I’m sad I couldn’t fit this in any sooner but the ARCs got the best of me! This should be a fairly quick read since it’s an anthology by some fantastic authors and all about villains. Can’t wait to get to it!

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Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi

I’m all for anything that seems “Alice in Wonderland” inspired and I also have been meaning to give Tahereh Mafi a try. I just got a copy of this book and hoping I can test it out soon, especially with that gorgeous cover!

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The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

I know, I know how can I NOT have read the Heroes of Olympus series yet? I read and adored and loved the Percy Jackson series but just haven’t gotten to this one yet. Fortunately I got a fantastic deal on a box set so now I have no excuse to not just dive into this series finally!

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A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab

I have zero excuses on this one, especially now that the trilogy is complete! I’m hoping I can finally get started on the sequel to the fantastic “A Darker Shade of Magic” because Schwab is Queen!

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The Queen of Blood by Sarah Beth Durst

This book is a little bit more under the radar but I thought it sounded interesting and I have heard good things about it. I’m all for interesting magic systems!

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Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

I’ve been meaning to read this ALL YEAR and still haven’t gotten to it yet! So I’m hoping I can finally read it especially since I adore Laini Taylor’s writing to bits and pieces.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think?

Do you have any of these on your TBR as well?

Have you read any other books by these authors?

What books are you trying to squeeze in before the end of the year?

Let me know in the comments!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Loved The Year I Started My Blog

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Another week, another Top Ten Tuesday! This week’s theme is a throwback freebie so it can be anything you’d like to discuss about older books such as: books published 10 years ago, older books you forgot you loved, or books from the year you started blogging (which I’m doing!).

There are so many books I read a while ago that I don’t talk about enough and some of them I do talk about plenty. This is going to be a list of my favorite reads from 2015 back when I started this blog!

These are in no particular order and I do have reviews up for each of these books but I’m not going to link them since they’re older and slightly embarrassing! Still though they are available if you want to hear my full thoughts on some of them.

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10.) A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

This was one of the first books I read when I started my blog because there was a ton of hype and glowing reviews for it! Of course I’m super happy I gave Schwab a try because she’s one of my favorite authors now.

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9.) Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

I had read “Gone Girl” as well as “Dark Places” before I gave this one a go because I really enjoy the way Flynn tells her stories, they’re also super twisted. This one is probably one of my favorites of hers now as well because of that twist at the end!

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8.) Slasher Girls & Monster Boys stories selected by April Genevieve Tucholke

This was a new release when I started my blog and I had heard a few good things about it and I’m ALWAYS looking for some great, creepy YA horror books. This is an anthology and pretty much all of the stories were fantastic plus some of them definitely did not fail to give me nightmares!

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7.) Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor

I actually mention this book quite frequently but when I first started blogging I was digging around for some great books to read that I hadn’t heard of before. “Lips Touch” was one of the ones I found and it definitely is very underrated. It’s three short stories told by Laini Taylor and her writing here is just as beautiful as it is in her other book “Daughter of Smoke and Bone”. Highly recommend checking out if you’re a fan of hers!

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6.) The Girl From The Well by Rin Chupeco

I bought this book when I got “Slasher Girls & Monster Boys” as well because I had heard mixed things about it and was looking for more scary reads. I’m really terrified of Japanese horror stories every since getting nightmares in the fourth grade from the movie “The Grudge” so I was easily scared reading this book, which was fun!

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5.) The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich

I hadn’t actually heard much about this book but I saw it in my local bookstore and the cover was so intriguing and creepy that I HAD to buy it. It’s also told in a really unique format consisting of transcripts of video footage, journal entries, and even drawings. It’s an interesting and pretty suspenseful psychological thriller.

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4.) The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

This book….broke my heart! It came highly recommended when I was searching Goodreads for new books to read since I started my book blog and while it was fantastic and very well written….it was also completely emotionally devastating!

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3.) Alice by Christina Henry

Okay, okay I KNOW I mention this book all the time but that’s only because it’s so fantastic! I think it’s pretty good for me to still be recommending a book two years after reading it! This is a very twisted, gritty retelling of Alice in Wonderland and is very much worth reading through in my opinion.

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2.) Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh

This book was actually recommended to me by one of my blogging besties Arianna @ The Quirky Book Nerd and I of course always take her recommendations to heart! This was such a hilarious graphic novel and I enjoyed every minute of it, it’s a great book to brighten up your day!

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1.) Vicious by V.E. Schwab

Probably my most highly recommended book I’ve read and I was pretty proud reading two of Schwab’s books in half a year too when I started all of this! It’s got morally ambiguous characters with freaking superpowers….so yeah I was definitely impressed. I’m also DYING to read the sequel!!!!

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A Few Honorable Mentions:

• You by Caroline Kepnes
• The Wrath & The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
• The Steep & Thorny Way by Cat Winters
• Uprooted by Naomi Novik
• The Martian by Andy Weir
• Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch

Have you read any of these books as well? What did you think?

What are some of your favorite books from the year you started blogging?

How about some older favorites in general?

Let me know in the comments!

Top Ten Tuesday: Hidden Gems in Fantasy

Hello fellow book lovers!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week’s theme is Hidden Gems in whichever genre you’d like to pick! Of course I adore hidden gem recommendations and I have more than a few to give but fantasy is my most read genre so that’s the genre I went with. Some of these may be a little more iffy as far as having them be considered fantasy but there are fantasy elements none the less and most of them are 100% pure fantasy. Some of my choices also might be a little more popular than others and some of you may not consider them a “hidden” gem but they still aren’t super popular so I’d like to recommend them!

I will link up each title to my full review as well if you’d like to be convinced some more to add these to your TBR! Also these aren’t in any particular order!

10.) Alice (The Chronicles of Alice #1) by Christina Henry

This is more of a horror book than anything but it still counts as fantasy in my mind especially since it’s a dark retelling of “Alice in Wonderland”. This book isn’t for the faint of heart, it’s truly terrifying, graphic, brutal, and violent and yet it’s still an addictive story. I highly recommend reading it if you’re looking for a unique retelling!

You can read my full review of “Alice” here.

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9.) Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor

A collection of three short fairy tale-esque stories all revolving around a kiss but trust me when I say it’s not the gushy romance fest you think it would be! Laini Taylor’s writing is gorgeous and she weaves together such creative tales with mythology of her own making, these stories are fantastic. Plus the illustrations are gorgeous as well!

You can read my full review of “Lips Touch: Three Times” here.

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8.) The Impostor Queen (The Impostor Queen #1) by Sarah Fine

This is such an underrated fantasy novel it isn’t even fair! The magic system is one of the best I’ve come across with both fire and ice users but the magic doesn’t come without it’s costs. The Valtia is the queen of the land who is the only wielder of both ice and fire magic and when she dies it passes on to the next but when the magic doesn’t enter Elli she is forced to flee. Great characters and great world building, go give this book some more love!

You can read my full review of “The Impostor Queen” here.

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7.) The Forbidden Wish by Jessica Khoury

This book is a little more well known but still not enough in my eyes! It’s an Aladdin retelling where the genie is female and they have a relationship, it’s got some great world building, badass female characters, and gorgeous writing! What more could you want?

You can read my full review of “The Forbidden Wish” here.

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6.) Labyrinth Lost (Brooklyn Brujas #1) by Zoraida Cordova

Not only does this book have a gorgeous cover and diverse characters but it’s also filled with magic and a very Wonderland-esque adventure. Alex is a bruja (a witch) and wants to rid herself of her powers but when she tries her whole family vanishes into thin air.

You can read my full review of “Labyrinth Lost” here.

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5.) Kingdom of Ash and Briars by Hannah West

I recommend this book ALL the time and it’s probably the book on here I feel is the most underrated. It has a great story, world building, and characters plus on top of all of that it has four retellings weaved into the plot which include: Sleep Beauty, Cinderella, Hua Mulan, and Jane Austen’s Emma. It’s a fantastic story!

You can read my full review of “Kingdom of Ash and Briars” here.

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4.) The Bone Witch (The Bone Witch #1) by Rin Chupeco

This is a dark fantasy featuring a witch with the gift of necromancy who goes to train under another bone witch. She must control her powers if she is going to aid her fellow witches with the war that is brewing in the kingdoms. I really loved how dark and sometimes creepy this book got especially with the necromancy, great world building too!

You can read my full review of “The Bone Witch” here.

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3.) Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Once again this one is a little more popular so it may not be considered a true hidden gem but it’s not a book I see tons of people talking about all of the time either. This is a Peter Pan retelling revolving around the character Tiger Lily, her backstory, and her relationship with Peter. It’s a darker version of Neverland and you’ll definitely be heart broken by the end.

You can read my full review of “Tiger Lily” here.

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2.) The Hundredth Queen (The Hundredth Queen #1) by Emily R. King

A girl raised by the Sisterhood is chosen to be the Rajah’s 100th wife and she must fight in gladiator style battles against his other 99 wives in order to secure her place. This book is full of magic and some badass females, it may not be the best written book ever but it was highly addictive and entertaining!

You can read my full review of “The Hundredth Queen” here.

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1.) Mask of Shadows (Untitled #1) by Linsey Miller

This book is pretty hyped up at the moment but still isn’t receiving as much hype as it should. This is everything I wanted and expected “Throne of Glass” to be with the brutal competition to be the Queen’s assassin, plus we get a genderfluid main character!

You can read my full review of “Mask of Shadows” here.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think?

What are some of your hidden gems in YA fantasy?

Let me know in the comments!

Books With Romances I Actually Enjoyed

Hello my fellow book lovers!

I think it’s safe to say if you’ve been following me for a bit that you all know that I am not the biggest fan of YA romances, romance heavy plots, or just the romance genre in general. However, I promise you my heart is not completely made of ice! Here are a few of books that had romances that melted even my heart!

Also just a fun little side note that I had “We Go Together” from Grease stuck in my head the entire time I wrote this for some reason:

So of course I’m going to be talking freely about the romances in these books and why I loved them so much and as a result there will be potential spoilers for some of the books. Some books it comes pretty obvious who is going to get involved with who but a few of these are surprises so here is the spoiler warning!

**** Please note that there are potential romance related  spoilers for the following books: The Night Circus, The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, Queens of Geek, The Diabolic, And I Darken, My Lady Jane, The Forbidden Wish, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, The Winner’s Curse, and Six of Crows!!*****

Anyways! I will link up my full reviews for each title if I have them!

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Celia and Marco’s romance is subtle, magical, and star-crossed what’s not to love about all of that? Their romance does have elements of insta-love but I honestly didn’t mind it at all since it felt like they were fated to be together from the very first pages (which of course they were since that’s what the book is about but you get what I mean!). They’re the kind of pairing that felt destined, like soul mates and I couldn’t wait for them to be together!

I don’t have a full review up for this book unfortunately, I just don’t know how to review it!

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The Forbidden Wish by Jessica Khoury

This romance is between Aladdin and Zahra, the genie of the lamp, and as the title implies it’s a bit of a forbidden relationship. There were no tropes present here at all and Aladdin and Zahra’s relationship actually takes quite a while to develop, a nice slow-burn romance if you will. I was so desperate for them to get together while reading and was so satisfied when it finally happened!

You can read my full review of “The Forbidden Wish” here.

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The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

I don’t think I’ve shipped a paring so hard in a long time! Monty and Percy were straight up adorable and I think what made me ship it even harder was that they were both so clueless to the other’s feelings that they spent a majority of the book thinking their love was unrequited! They’ve been friends forever though and we start the book with both of them secretly loving the other so there aren’t any tropes such as insta-love here!

I do have a full review up for this book!

I just can’t link it since both posts were pre-scheduled as I am currently on vacation sorry for the inconvenience but if you’d like to read it you can search for it under my review index or search bar!

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Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde

Love, love, loved the romances in this book! There are two different relationships that develop throughout the story and that would be between Taylor x Jamie who have been friends for a while already and Charlie x Alyssa two YouTube vloggers we also get to see some awesome diversity here since Charlie is Chinese-Australian and Alyssa is African- American and both are bisexual. Plus on top of all of that the romances are just so positive, fluffy, and adorable!

You can read my full review of “Queens of Geek” here.

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The Diabolic by S.J. Kincaid

Nemesis and Tyrus kind of  had a “forbidden love” romance and there were definitely NO tropes or cliches with it either this was a complete slow burn romance and it definitely is secondary to the plot. I think that Nemesis and Tyrus fit so well together because they’re both ruthless but also with a strong underlying goodness to them. I also spent a good chunk of the book waiting for them to just love each other already! 

You can read my full review of “The Diabolic” here.

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And I Darken by Kiersten White

The romance definitely isn’t the only thing going on in this book which is probably part of why I liked it so much, it was more in the background. There definitely isn’t any insta-love at all and it’s actually quite a slow-burn romance, however, there is a love triangle but it isn’t your typical love triangle since it’s two sibling competing for the same man and is completely unrequited on the one side. It’s actually really complicated now that I think about it….

Anyways I really wanted Lada and Mehmed to get together just because they both spent so much time pining after one another in secret. The tension! I just wanted them to kiss!

You can read my full review of “And I Darken” here.

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My Lady Jane by Jodi Meadows, Brodi Ashton, and Cynthia Hand

While this may not be the most swoon-worthy romance to me it was still amazing because it was slow-burn and trope-free! Jane and Gifford were extremely cute and adorable and I loved how they disliked each other right away but slowly grew to care for one another by being themselves. It was realistic!

You can read my full review of “My Lady Jane” here.

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The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski

This was one of those books that I thought was going to be a mess of YA romance tropes but fortunately I was proved very wrong! There is no insta-love, no love triangles, or anything! Kestrel and Aren’s romance is very much slow-burn and forbidden love but I loved all of it! I felt that both characters were just really good for each other as well.

You can read my full review of “The Winner’s Curse” here.

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Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

The romance between Karou and Akiva is a little rocky for me because on one hand it’s very much insta-love (even though that’s justified later on) but on the other hand I loved the forbidden romance elements in this story. I think when characters can’t be together my brain rebels and declares “THEY MUST BE TOGETHER NOW!”, I’m seeing a pattern here. I digress, I really liked how well developed their romance was though and blame any misgivings I have on the romance due to the fact that I’m not the hugest fan of Akiva in the first place…I’m just not.

You can read my full review of “Daughter of Smoke and Bone” here.

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Honorable Mentions

(aka romances I also enjoyed but not enough to go into great detail)

• Alice by Christina Henry
• The Wrath & The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
• An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
• Red Rising by Pierce Brown
• Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Have you read any of these books as well? What did you think?

Did you enjoy any of these romances or not so much?

What are some of your favorite bookish romances?

Let me know in the comments!

Prettiest Covers On My TBR

Hello my fellow book lovers!

I could honestly do nothing but posts about book covers, I love book covers! So today I’m going to share with you guys the prettiest covers of books I still have on my TBR! I do own physical copies of most of these books with the exception of two, so it’s worse because their pretty covers stare at me accusingly wondering why I haven’t read them yet….

Anywho! There are also a TON of beautiful covers for books I’ve read, because I’m more likely to read the book sooner if the cover is pretty and shiny. Why? I suspect I may be part Niffler…..

But I will be doing up another post in the future mentioning my favorite pretty covers for books I’ve read! Also probably another post about pretty covers on my TBR as well because there definitely are a ton more!

Enjoy!

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

I’m not 100% sure if I’ll truly enjoy this book or not since it sort of has mixed reviews even though it’s such a hyped book! Although I have to say I’m willing to risk it for that gorgeously, dark looking cover!

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Dreamstrider by Lindsay Smith

I remember seeing this before it was released in 2015 and HAD to have it because it’s got “Inception” vibes and this beautiful cover! Of course I still haven’t read it though because I’m a terrible person……But anyways it’s about espionage inside of dreams so it sounds awesome!

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Flame in the Mist by Renee Ahdieh

Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! I love how the black contrasts the orange and purple and makes them pop so much more, plus that peacock is so pretty! I also really like how there are throwing stars mixed in with the flowers it just makes it a little bit more badass.

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Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

I pretty much love ALL of Rosamund Hodge’s covers because they’re always this gorgeous! I think the way the stairs wind into the rose petals is really unique and the font is also really pretty as well. I didn’t really enjoy reading “Crimson Bound” her other book but I’m hoping maybe I’ll like this one better.

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After The Woods by Kim Savage

A huge part of why I ended up buying this book was because of the cover, I mean it’s just so beautiful and I love all the shades of green. It’s a mystery thriller and the premise sounds a lot darker than the cover would make you think!

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Revenge and the Wild by Michelle Modesto

Probably one of my favorite covers ever! I really love birch trees so that’s probably a big part of it but I also love the way the cover looks like it’s burning away. Very unique and very pretty! I have heard this book is quite the blend of genres too with some fantasy, paranormal creatures, western, and steampunk!

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The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi

I really love the starry smoke (if that even makes sense?) that’s on here as well as the gorgeous orange sunset! I’ve also heard that the writing is very beautiful as well so really I think I could say judge this book by its cover.

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Strange The Dreamer by Laini Taylor 

This is the UK cover even though the US one is pretty as well, I really love the blue and the sort of constellation looking patterns on it as well. Plus the back has some pretty galaxy patterns! I’m not a big fan of moths at all but the cover is so pretty that I can easily look past it.

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Bad Romance by Heather Demetrios

It probably might sound a little weird to say that I find the dead flowers pretty? I think it’s really neat looking with them popping out of the frame and I think it fits the title really well since it’s all about a bad romance, hence the dead flowers.

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Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde

I love, love, love the pink hair on this cover! I don’t know why but something about pink hair to me is just gorgeous and awesome. I also like how it weaves through the font too it just adds a little more to the cover. I’m currently reading and loving this book too by the way!

Do you think any of these covers are gorgeous as well? 

Have you read any of these books? What did you think? 

What are some of your favorite covers on your TBR?

Let me know in the comments!

Books I Just HAD To Have…..& Still Haven’t Read

The other day I was looking at my bookshelves and noticing all of the books I’ve bought under the delusion that I could NOT wait and HAD to have them right away……and then still haven’t read them.

This makes me wonder sometimes if I’m actually nuts or not because why do I torture myself like this? Plus everyone always tells me “hey remember when you bought all those books and still haven’t read them? You don’t need more until you read those.” which they’re sort of right….

So I thought that it would be a great idea to share what a horrible reader/book hoarder I am with you all!

Basically this is me:

And then after not reading any of them:

I’ll be putting these in order of how long I’ve actually had these sitting around my house starting with the newest additions!

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon

Of course with all of the hype that was surrounding this book before and after it’s May release date I had to get my hands on it! Most of the time I don’t give into the hype, or at least I like to think so, I just thought everything about this book sounded wonderful: diverse characters and culture, a cute cover, and non-stop glowing reviews!

Then obviously I couldn’t wait to get a copy and then it arrived and now it’s just sitting all lonely on my shelf because I’m a terrible person…….

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Bad Romance by Heather Demetrios

I actually ordered this with “When Dimple Met Rishi” because once again I could not wait and just haaaad to have a copy right away! The cover is absolutely gorgeous and I’ve seen great reviews for it, plus I think it will be interesting to read about a dysfunctional relationship in a YA setting. I know that makes me sound weird but it’s nice to see unique books and books bringing attention to abuse like this (because it happens).

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Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

If I was going to rate all of these books by which book I was literally dying to have “Strange the Dreamer” would be #1 because I seriously acted like I was going to die without this book in my life. I even went to the trouble of ordering a UK edition as well because I HAD TO HAVE THIS BOOK AND LAINI TAYLOR IS LIFE!

And guess where the book is sitting? On my shelf. Unread.

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The Valiant by Lesley Livingston

I was super pumped for this book before it came out and then with all of the great reviews afterwards I was even more excited for it. Female gladiator! That’s all I want in my books so when I was in the bookstore and saw it I decided to splurge and buy it right then and there because I NEEDED IT. Now it’s been sitting on my shelf for a few months……

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Empress of a Thousand Skies by Rhoda Belleza

I bought this book along with my spontanous purchase of “The Valiant” as well. You can see where this got me.

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Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

When I saw this book come out at first I was like: Norse Mythology?! Told by Neil Gaiman?! I MUST HAVE THIS BOOK IMMEDIATELY! So I kind of started it and then slowly it worked its way back onto my shelf where it is still sitting waiting to be finished.

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The Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson

Everyone, everyone, everyone recommends reading this series and I saw the box set on sale on Book Outlet for about $12.00 so of course I was all “Hell yeah!” and bought it right away. Soooooooooo it’s all sitting on my shelf still unread where it will probably remain for a while.

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Vassa in the Night by Sarah Porter

This was a spontaneous buy I got with birthday money last year and I decided to use that money for this book because once again…..I couldn’t resist. It’s even a shorter book and I STILL haven’t gotten to it!

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Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

I asked for this one for my birthday last year because I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY wanted it and so then I actually received it for my birthday…….and haven’t read it yet.

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The Winner’s Kiss by Marie Rutkoski

After reading the first book “The Winner’s Curse” I was blown away by how much I enjoyed it after how much I was expecting not to enjoy it. So then after devouring the sequel as well I NEEDED to read the last book that was just released last year! And guess who still hasn’t finished that trilogy even after buying the last book? Me.

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The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi

This book was super, duper hyped last year and because of that plus the pretty cover and promise of unique mythology I was 100% sold. I saw it when I happened to visit a Barnes & Noble and instantly bought it and now it’s been sitting on my shelf for over a year still unread.

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Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas

This one hasn’t been a new release for a while but I found while reading a bunch of glowing reviews for it and having it recommended a ton. So I found it on Book Outlet and bought it straight away because I love twisted thrillers! I started reading it…..and then set it aside for some reason…..and it’s been sitting there waiting for me to return to it eventually.

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The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

This book is the one I’ve had the longest on this list because back many, many years ago when I was binge reading the Percy Jackson series and finished it and was DYING for more! So I found the Heroes of Olympus series and bought the first book straight away…….it has been sitting on my old Nook Color for ages and honestly it probably won’t get read because I want physical copies now….awkward.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them?

Do you have any of these on your TBR as well?

Did you buy any of these right away and haven’t read them yet either?

Do you buy books and let them sit for a long time?

What are some books you HAD to have and haven’t read yet?

Let me know in the comments!

Book Recs: YA Standalones

I like to read a lot of standalones since I don’t have a lot of patience for series, I’m better at starting a series than finishing it. So standalones are better for me and they might be for you too! So I just threw together a little list of some of my favorite YA standalones, hopefully you can find some new and interesting books to add to your TBR!

Keep in mind these aren’t ALL of my favorites and some of these are short story anthologies, but they still count in my book! I will link up each title to their Goodreads pages and also link up any reviews I have too.

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

You can read my full review here.

This is an absolutely fantastic Peter Pan retelling about the relationship between Tiger Lily and Peter. Although I will warn you up ahead of time, you will cry so many tears! It’s a dark, sad story with many flawed and broken characters but it still manages to be beautiful (thanks to the gorgeous writing!).

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The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

You can read my full review here.

I don’t think I need to hype this book up anymore but I will 100% support all of the hype it has already recieved since it’s worth every bit of it! This is an absolutely amazing book telling the story of a girl named Starr who witnesses the shooting of her friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer, Khalil was also unarmed. We then watch as Starr struggles between voicing what really happened and endangering her life, or not saying anything at all.

It’s not only a diverse read but also a very important and powerful one as well. I highly recommend reading it if you haven’t already!

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The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes

You can read my full review here.

This is the story of a girl who lived 12 years in a cult before it finally burned down and the Prophet was killed. Now she’s part of the questioning on what REALLY happened that night.

Another very quietly powerful book on learning to believe things for ourselves and not what others would have us believe. It’s also very interesting if you have some curiousity about cults and their inner workings.

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Heartless by Marissa Meyer

You can read my full review here.

This is a retelling and origin story for the Queen of Hearts from “Alice in Wonderland”, is that not enough to make you wanna read it? We get to see some interesting twists on all of our favorite Wonderland characters as well as some crazy plot twists. It’s kind of slow to start but the ending is 100% worth it!

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Kingdom of Ash and Briars by Hannah West

You can read my full review here.

I don’t think I can ever mention this book enough! It’s a unique fantasy book that also weaves together little retellings of Mulan, Jane Austen’s Emma, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella. It has great world building and fantastic characters as well, plus the plot itself is very original and has all of the retellings interwoven throughout!

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With Malice by Eileen Cook

You can read my full review here.

A very fast-paced YA thriller that’s about a girl who wakes up in the hospital with anmesia and finds out her best friend is dead and she’s the prime suspect! I don’t want to say too much more because there are TONS of crazy twists that will ensure you zip right through this book.

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The Darkest Corners by Kara Thomas

You can read my full review here.

Another psychological thriller that actually gets pretty dang dark and twisted for a YA book. I mean it this book will mess with your mind and you definitely won’t be able to guess what will happen next. The main character, Tessa, goes back to her childhood home to try and dig up the truth of her friend’s cousin’s death that occured when they were little girls. The thing is they lied about what they saw that night and now Tessa must find out what really happened.

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A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

You can read my full review here.

If you haven’t read this book just….go read it now! It’s the most beautiful, touching story of a boy whose mother is dying of cancer and a monster comes and takes him on an adventure that will change the way he has been viewing things.

Also just a heads up…you will most definitely cry!

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Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor

You can read my full review here.

This is actually a small collection of three stories all by Laini Taylor, so of course it’s gorgeously written and all have unique twists and very original mythology/world building. It’s truly amazing how much awesomeness she squeezed into such short stories!

The stories themselves are all Fantasy and revolve around, you guessed it, kisses but the kisses all have consequences that can be…deadly.

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Slasher Girls & Monster Boys stories selected by April Genevieve Tucholke

You can read my full review here.

This is a YA horror anthology that is actually full of VERY good stories with the exception of one or two duds. Although this isn’t for the faint hearted some of the stories get really scary, gory, and disturbing! But if you’re a big YA horror fan like me you’ll definitely love this anthology.

Did any of these books interest you? Which ones and why?

Do you already have some of these on your TBR?

Have you read any of these before?

What are some of your recommendations for standalone YA books?

Let me know in the comments!