Hi and welcome to another monthly wrap-up here at Stardust and Words. I feel like January lasted 87,000 years and I am so glad that it's over, even if it means we're one month closer to the hot weather (which I hate). I do often love the month of February, so I am looking forward to seeing what this month brings. I ended up reading 14 books in January, which isn't too shabby if you ask me. I posted five reviews as well! I hope you guys had a good January :)
1. Rejected Princesses: Tales of History's Boldest Heroines, Hellions and Heretics – Jason Porath ☆☆☆☆
Blending the iconoclastic feminism of The Notorious RBG and the confident irreverence of Go the F**ck to Sleep,
a brazen and empowering illustrated collection that celebrates
inspirational badass women throughout history, based on the popular
Tumblr blog.
Well-behaved women seldom make history. Good thing these women are far from well behaved . . .
Illustrated in a contemporary animation style, Rejected Princesses
turns the ubiquitous "pretty pink princess" stereotype portrayed in
movies, and on endless toys, books, and tutus on its head, paying homage
instead to an awesome collection of strong, fierce, and yes, sometimes
weird, women: warrior queens, soldiers, villains, spies,
revolutionaries, and more who refused to behave and meekly accept their
place.
An entertaining mix of biography, imagery, and humor
written in a fresh, young, and riotous voice, this thoroughly researched
exploration salutes these awesome women drawn from both historical and
fantastical realms, including real life, literature, mythology, and
folklore. Each profile features an eye-catching image of both heroic and
villainous women in command from across history and around the world,
from a princess-cum-pirate in fifth century Denmark, to a rebel preacher
in 1630s Boston, to a bloodthirsty Hungarian countess, and a former
prostitute who commanded a fleet of more than 70,000 men on China’s seas
2. Captive Prince (Captive Prince #1) – C.S. Pacat ☆☆☆☆*
Damen is a warrior hero
to his people, and the rightful heir to the throne of Akielos. But when
his half brother seizes power, Damen is captured, stripped of his
identity, and sent to serve the prince of an enemy nation as a pleasure
slave.
Beautiful, manipulative, and deadly, his new master,
Prince Laurent, epitomizes the worst of the court at Vere. But in the
lethal political web of the Veretian court, nothing is as it seems, and
when Damen finds himself caught up in a play for the throne, he must
work together with Laurent to survive and save his country.
For
Damen, there is just one rule: never, ever reveal his true identity.
Because the one man Damen needs is the one man who has more reason to
hate him than anyone else…
3. Prince's Gambit (Captive Prince #2) – C.S. Pacat ☆☆☆☆☆*
With their countries on
the brink of war, Damen and his new master, Prince Laurent, must
exchange the intrigues of the palace for the sweeping might of the
battlefield as they travel to the border to avert a lethal plot.
Forced
to hide his identity, Damen finds himself increasingly drawn to the
dangerous, charismatic Laurent. But as the fledgling trust between the
two men deepens, the truth of secrets from both their pasts is poised to
deal them the crowning death blow…
4. King's Rising (Captive Prince #3) – C.S. Pacat ☆☆☆☆☆*
Damianos of Akielos has returned.
His identity now revealed, Damen must face his master Prince Laurent as Damianos of Akielos, the man Laurent has sworn to kill.
On
the brink of a momentous battle, the future of both their countries
hangs in the balance. In the south, Kastor’s forces are massing. In the
north, the Regent’s armies are mobilising for war. Damen’s only hope of
reclaiming his throne is to fight together with Laurent against their
usurpers.
Forced into an uneasy alliance the two princes journey
deep into Akielos, where they face their most dangerous opposition yet.
But even if the fragile trust they have built survives the revelation of
Damen’s identity—can it stand against the Regents final, deadly play
for the throne?
5. Passenger (Passenger #1) – Alexandra Bracken ☆☆☆☆☆*
Passage, n.
i. A brief section of music composed of a series of notes and flourishes.
ii. A journey by water; a voyage.
iii. The transition from one place to another, across space and time.
In
one devastating night, violin prodigy Etta Spencer loses everything she
knows and loves. Thrust into an unfamiliar world by a stranger with a
dangerous agenda, Etta is certain of only one thing: she has traveled
not just miles but years from home. And she’s inherited a legacy she
knows nothing about from a family whose existence she’s never heard of.
Until now.
Nicholas Carter is content with his life at sea, free
from the Ironwoods—a powerful family in the colonies—and the servitude
he’s known at their hands. But with the arrival of an unusual passenger
on his ship comes the insistent pull of the past that he can’t escape
and the family that won’t let him go so easily. Now the Ironwoods are
searching for a stolen object of untold value, one they believe only
Etta, Nicholas’ passenger, can find. In order to protect her, he must
ensure she brings it back to them—whether she wants to or not.
Together,
Etta and Nicholas embark on a perilous journey across centuries and
continents, piecing together clues left behind by the traveler who will
do anything to keep the object out of the Ironwoods’ grasp. But as they
get closer to the truth of their search, and the deadly game the
Ironwoods are playing, treacherous forces threaten to separate Etta not
only from Nicholas but from her path home... forever.
6. Wayfarer (Passenger #2) – Alexandra Bracken ☆☆☆☆
All Etta Spencer wanted
was to make her violin debut when she was thrust into a treacherous
world where the struggle for power could alter history. After losing the
one thing that would have allowed her to protect the Timeline, and the
one person worth fighting for, Etta awakens alone in an unknown place
and time, exposed to the threat of the two groups who would rather see
her dead than succeed. When help arrives, it comes from the last person
Etta ever expected—Julian Ironwood, the Grand Master’s heir who has long
been presumed dead, and whose dangerous alliance with a man from Etta’s
past could put them both at risk.
Meanwhile, Nicholas and
Sophia are racing through time in order to locate Etta and the missing
astrolabe with Ironwood travelers hot on their trail. They cross paths
with a mercenary-for-hire, a cheeky girl named Li Min who quickly
develops a flirtation with Sophia. But as the three of them attempt to
evade their pursuers, Nicholas soon realizes that one of his companions
may have ulterior motives.
As Etta and Nicholas fight to make
their way back to one another, from Imperial Russia to the Vatican
catacombs, time is rapidly shifting and changing into something
unrecognizable… and might just run out on both of them.
7. Green But For A Season (Captive Prince Short Stories #1) – C.S. Pacat ☆☆☆
Green but for a Season is the first of a series of four Captive Prince short stories. It follows the relationship between Jord and Aimeric and is set during the events of Prince’s Gambit.
8. The Summer Palace (Captive Prince Short Stories #2) – C.S. Pacat ☆☆☆☆
"When all this is over, we could take horses and stay a week in the palace..."
Set after the events of the Captive Prince trilogy, The Summer Palace is a story about Damen and Laurent. It's an epilogue of sorts to the Captive Prince series.
9. It Ends With Us – Colleen Hoover ☆☆☆
Lily hasn't always had
it easy, but that's never stopped her from working hard for the life she
wants. She's come a long way from the small town in Maine where she
grew up - she graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her
own business. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon
named Ryle Kincaid, everything in Lily's life suddenly seems almost too
good to be true.
Ryle is assertive, stubborn, and maybe even a
little arrogant. He's also sensitive, brilliant, and has a total soft
spot for Lily, but Ryle's complete aversion to relationships is
disturbing.
As questions about her new relationship overwhelm
her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan - her first love and a link to the
past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When
Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is
threatened.
With this bold and deeply personal novel, Colleen
Hoover delivers a heart-wrenching story that breaks exciting new ground
for her as a writer. It Ends With Us is an unforgettable tale of love
that comes at the ultimate price.
This book contains graphic scenes and very sensitive subject matter.
10. The Two Gentlemen of Verona – William Shakespeare ☆☆
The Two Gentlemen of
Verona is commonly agreed to be Shakespeare's first comedy, and probably
his first play. A comedy built around the confusions of doubling,
cross-dressing, and identity, it is also a play about the ideal of male
friendship and what happens to those friendships when men fall in love.
11. I'll Give You the Sun – Jandy Nelson ☆☆☆☆☆*
A brilliant,
luminous story of first love, family, loss, and betrayal for fans of
John Green, David Levithan, and Rainbow Rowell
Jude and her
twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. At thirteen, isolated Noah
draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next
door, while daredevil Jude cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and
does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah
are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in
different and dramatic ways . . until Jude meets a cocky, broken,
beautiful boy, as well as someone else—an even more unpredictable new
force in her life. The early years are Noah's story to tell. The later
years are Jude's. What the twins don't realize is that they each have
only half the story, and if they could just find their way back to one
another, they’d have a chance to remake their world.
This radiant novel from the acclaimed, award-winning author of The Sky Is Everywhere will leave you breathless and teary and laughing—often all at once.
12. The Bear and the Nightingale – Katherine Arden ☆☆☆1/2
At the edge of the
Russian wilderness, winter lasts most of the year and the snowdrifts
grow taller than houses. But Vasilisa doesn’t mind—she spends the winter
nights huddled around the embers of a fire with her beloved siblings,
listening to her nurse’s fairy tales. Above all, she loves the chilling
story of Frost, the blue-eyed winter demon, who appears in the frigid
night to claim unwary souls. Wise Russians fear him, her nurse says, and
honor the spirits of house and yard and forest that protect their homes
from evil.
After Vasilisa’s mother dies, her father goes to
Moscow and brings home a new wife. Fiercely devout, city-bred,
Vasilisa’s new stepmother forbids her family from honoring the household
spirits. The family acquiesces, but Vasilisa is frightened, sensing
that more hinges upon their rituals than anyone knows.
And
indeed, crops begin to fail, evil creatures of the forest creep nearer,
and misfortune stalks the village. All the while, Vasilisa’s stepmother
grows ever harsher in her determination to groom her rebellious
stepdaughter for either marriage or confinement in a convent.
As
danger circles, Vasilisa must defy even the people she loves and call on
dangerous gifts she has long concealed—this, in order to protect her
family from a threat that seems to have stepped from her nurse’s most
frightening tales.
13. History is All You Left Me – Adam Silvera ☆☆☆☆
When Griffin’s first
love and ex-boyfriend, Theo, dies in a drowning accident, his universe
implodes. Even though Theo had moved to California for college and
started seeing Jackson, Griffin never doubted Theo would come back to
him when the time was right. But now, the future he’s been imagining for
himself has gone far off course.
To make things worse, the only
person who truly understands his heartache is Jackson. But no matter how
much they open up to each other, Griffin’s downward spiral continues.
He’s losing himself in his obsessive compulsions and destructive
choices, and the secrets he’s been keeping are tearing him apart.
If
Griffin is ever to rebuild his future, he must first confront his
history, every last heartbreaking piece in the puzzle of his life.
14. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man – James Joyce ☆☆☆1/2
The first, shortest, and most approachable of James Joyce’s novels, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man portrays
the Dublin upbringing of Stephen Dedalus, from his youthful days at
Clongowes Wood College to his radical questioning of all convention. In
doing so, it provides an oblique self-portrait of the young Joyce
himself. At its center lie questions of origin and source, authority and
authorship, and the relationship of an artist to his family, culture,
and race. Exuberantly inventive in style, the novel subtly and
beautifully orchestrates the patterns of quotation and repetition
instrumental in its hero’s quest to create his own character, his own
language, life, and art: "to forge in the smithy of my soul the
uncreated conscience of my race."
xx
Caroline
Showing posts with label kings rising. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kings rising. Show all posts
Monday, January 30, 2017
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
top ten tuesday: books to make you laugh
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted over at The Broke and the Bookish! This week's theme is: "April 19: Ten Books That Will Make You Laugh (or at least chuckle)" I don't know that I choose books based on whether they might make me laugh, but I do enjoy humorous moments, especially when they're peppered throughout the novel.
So here's my list of books that might be serious but have funny moments throughout!
1. Simon Vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.
With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.
2. Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can't seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse—Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him. When Percy's mom finds out, she knows it's time that he knew the truth about where he came from, and that he go to the one place he'll be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon a mystery unfolds and together with his friends—one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter of Athena—Percy sets out on a quest across the United States to reach the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in Hollywood) and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods.
3. Kings Rising by C.S. Pacat
no description for this because of spoiler reasons... but this book made me LOL at many different points
4. Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green & David Levithan
Will Grayson meets Will Grayson. One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two strangers are about to cross paths. From that moment on, their world will collide and lives intertwine.
It's not that far from Evanston to Naperville, but Chicago suburbanites Will Grayson and Will Grayson might as well live on different planets. When fate delivers them both to the same surprising crossroads, the Will Graysons find their lives overlapping and hurtling in new and unexpected directions. With a push from friends new and old - including the massive, and massively fabulous, Tiny Cooper, offensive lineman and musical theater auteur extraordinaire - Will and Will begin building toward respective romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history's most awesome high school musical.
5. Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
"Hi, I'm the guy who reads your e-mail, and also, I love you . . . "
Beth Fremont and Jennifer Scribner-Snyder know that somebody is monitoring their work e-mail. (Everybody in the newsroom knows. It's company policy.) But they can't quite bring themselves to take it seriously. They go on sending each other endless and endlessly hilarious e-mails, discussing every aspect of their personal lives.
Meanwhile, Lincoln O'Neill can't believe this is his job now- reading other people's e-mail. When he applied to be "internet security officer," he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers- not writing up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke.
When Lincoln comes across Beth's and Jennifer's messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can't help being entertained-and captivated-by their stories.
By the time Lincoln realizes he's falling for Beth, it's way too late to introduce himself.
What would he say . . . ?
6. Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
“I’ve left some clues for you.
If you want them, turn the page.
If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.”
So begins the latest whirlwind romance from the bestselling authors of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist. Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on a favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. But is Dash that right guy? Or are Dash and Lily only destined to trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations across New York? Could their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions? Or will they be a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?
Rachel Cohn and David Levithan have written a love story that will have readers perusing bookstore shelves, looking and longing for a love (and a red notebook) of their own.
7. Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
She’s more gunpowder than girl—and the fate of the desert lies in her hands.
Mortals rule the desert nation of Miraji, but mystical beasts still roam the wild and barren wastes, and rumor has it that somewhere, djinni still practice their magic. But there's nothing mystical or magical about Dustwalk, the dead-end town that Amani can't wait to escape from.
Destined to wind up "wed or dead," Amani’s counting on her sharpshooting skills to get her out of Dustwalk. When she meets Jin, a mysterious and devastatingly handsome foreigner, in a shooting contest, she figures he’s the perfect escape route. But in all her years spent dreaming of leaving home, she never imagined she'd gallop away on a mythical horse, fleeing the murderous Sultan's army, with a fugitive who's wanted for treason. And she'd never have predicted she'd fall in love with him...or that he'd help her unlock the powerful truth of who she really is.
8. Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
The graphic novel debut from rising star Noelle Stevenson, based on her beloved and critically acclaimed web comic, which Slate awarded its Cartoonist Studio Prize, calling it "a deadpan epic."
Nemeses! Dragons! Science! Symbolism! All these and more await in this brilliantly subversive, sharply irreverent epic from Noelle Stevenson. Featuring an exclusive epilogue not seen in the web comic, along with bonus conceptual sketches and revised pages throughout, this gorgeous full-color graphic novel is perfect for the legions of fans of the web comic and is sure to win Noelle many new ones.
Nimona is an impulsive young shapeshifter with a knack for villainy. Lord Ballister Blackheart is a villain with a vendetta. As sidekick and supervillain, Nimona and Lord Blackheart are about to wreak some serious havoc. Their mission: prove to the kingdom that Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and his buddies at the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics aren't the heroes everyone thinks they are.
But as small acts of mischief escalate into a vicious battle, Lord Blackheart realizes that Nimona's powers are as murky and mysterious as her past. And her unpredictable wild side might be more dangerous than he is willing to admit.
what is on your lists this week?
xx
Caroline
So here's my list of books that might be serious but have funny moments throughout!
1. Simon Vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.
With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.
2. Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can't seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse—Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him. When Percy's mom finds out, she knows it's time that he knew the truth about where he came from, and that he go to the one place he'll be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon a mystery unfolds and together with his friends—one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter of Athena—Percy sets out on a quest across the United States to reach the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in Hollywood) and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods.
3. Kings Rising by C.S. Pacat
no description for this because of spoiler reasons... but this book made me LOL at many different points
4. Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green & David Levithan
Will Grayson meets Will Grayson. One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two strangers are about to cross paths. From that moment on, their world will collide and lives intertwine.
It's not that far from Evanston to Naperville, but Chicago suburbanites Will Grayson and Will Grayson might as well live on different planets. When fate delivers them both to the same surprising crossroads, the Will Graysons find their lives overlapping and hurtling in new and unexpected directions. With a push from friends new and old - including the massive, and massively fabulous, Tiny Cooper, offensive lineman and musical theater auteur extraordinaire - Will and Will begin building toward respective romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history's most awesome high school musical.
5. Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
"Hi, I'm the guy who reads your e-mail, and also, I love you . . . "
Beth Fremont and Jennifer Scribner-Snyder know that somebody is monitoring their work e-mail. (Everybody in the newsroom knows. It's company policy.) But they can't quite bring themselves to take it seriously. They go on sending each other endless and endlessly hilarious e-mails, discussing every aspect of their personal lives.
Meanwhile, Lincoln O'Neill can't believe this is his job now- reading other people's e-mail. When he applied to be "internet security officer," he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers- not writing up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke.
When Lincoln comes across Beth's and Jennifer's messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can't help being entertained-and captivated-by their stories.
By the time Lincoln realizes he's falling for Beth, it's way too late to introduce himself.
What would he say . . . ?
6. Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
“I’ve left some clues for you.
If you want them, turn the page.
If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.”
So begins the latest whirlwind romance from the bestselling authors of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist. Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on a favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. But is Dash that right guy? Or are Dash and Lily only destined to trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations across New York? Could their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions? Or will they be a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?
Rachel Cohn and David Levithan have written a love story that will have readers perusing bookstore shelves, looking and longing for a love (and a red notebook) of their own.
7. Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
She’s more gunpowder than girl—and the fate of the desert lies in her hands.
Mortals rule the desert nation of Miraji, but mystical beasts still roam the wild and barren wastes, and rumor has it that somewhere, djinni still practice their magic. But there's nothing mystical or magical about Dustwalk, the dead-end town that Amani can't wait to escape from.
Destined to wind up "wed or dead," Amani’s counting on her sharpshooting skills to get her out of Dustwalk. When she meets Jin, a mysterious and devastatingly handsome foreigner, in a shooting contest, she figures he’s the perfect escape route. But in all her years spent dreaming of leaving home, she never imagined she'd gallop away on a mythical horse, fleeing the murderous Sultan's army, with a fugitive who's wanted for treason. And she'd never have predicted she'd fall in love with him...or that he'd help her unlock the powerful truth of who she really is.
8. Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
The graphic novel debut from rising star Noelle Stevenson, based on her beloved and critically acclaimed web comic, which Slate awarded its Cartoonist Studio Prize, calling it "a deadpan epic."
Nemeses! Dragons! Science! Symbolism! All these and more await in this brilliantly subversive, sharply irreverent epic from Noelle Stevenson. Featuring an exclusive epilogue not seen in the web comic, along with bonus conceptual sketches and revised pages throughout, this gorgeous full-color graphic novel is perfect for the legions of fans of the web comic and is sure to win Noelle many new ones.
Nimona is an impulsive young shapeshifter with a knack for villainy. Lord Ballister Blackheart is a villain with a vendetta. As sidekick and supervillain, Nimona and Lord Blackheart are about to wreak some serious havoc. Their mission: prove to the kingdom that Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and his buddies at the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics aren't the heroes everyone thinks they are.
But as small acts of mischief escalate into a vicious battle, Lord Blackheart realizes that Nimona's powers are as murky and mysterious as her past. And her unpredictable wild side might be more dangerous than he is willing to admit.
what is on your lists this week?
xx
Caroline
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
february wrap-up
Welcome to another monthly wrap-up here at Stardust and Words! With Leap Day behind us, we're moving onto March, which will cause me to hunker down in my apartment and not go out for fear of being absolutely attacked by springtime allergies. But hey! More time to read, right? February was a really productive month for me, in life and in reading. I managed 14 books and 7 reviews, with a lot of those being classics that I read for school and really enjoyed. I also had 14 posts on here, which is awesome for me :) Hope y'all had a great February!
1. November 9 – Colleen Hoover (4.5)
Beloved #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover returns with an unforgettable love story between a writer and his unexpected muse.
Fallon meets Ben, an aspiring novelist, the day before her scheduled cross-country move. Their untimely attraction leads them to spend Fallon’s last day in L.A. together, and her eventful life becomes the creative inspiration Ben has always sought for his novel. Over time and amidst the various relationships and tribulations of their own separate lives, they continue to meet on the same date every year. Until one day Fallon becomes unsure if Ben has been telling her the truth or fabricating a perfect reality for the sake of the ultimate plot twist.
2. The Coquette – Hannah Webster Foster (3)
The Coquette tells the much-publicized story of the seduction and death of Elizabeth Whitman, a poet from Hartford, Connecticut.
Written as a series of letters--between the heroine and her friends and lovers--it describes her long, tortuous courtship by two men, neither of whom perfectly suits her. Eliza Wharton (as Whitman is called in the novel) wavers between Major Sanford, a charming but insincere man, and the Reverend Boyer, a bore who wants to marry her. When, in her mid-30s, Wharton finds herself suddenly abandoned when both men marry other women, she willfully enters into an adulterous relationship with Sanford and becomes pregnant. Alone and dejected, she dies in childbirth at a roadside inn. Eliza Wharton, whose real-life counterpart was distantly related to Hannah Foster's husband, was one of the first women in American fiction to emerge as a real person facing a dilemma in her life. In her Introduction, Davidson discusses the parallels between Elizabeth Whitman and the fictional Eliza Wharton. She shows the limitations placed on women in the 18th century and the attempts of one woman to rebel against those limitations.
3. Me Before You – JoJo Moyes (5)
Lou Clark knows lots of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in The Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick.
What Lou doesn't know is she's about to lose her job or that knowing what's coming is what keeps her sane.
Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he's going to put a stop to that.
What Will doesn't know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they're going to change the other for all time
4. City of Bones (TMI #1) Cassandra Clare (5)*
When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder― much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing―not even a smear of blood―to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?
This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know...
Exotic and gritty, exhilarating and utterly gripping, Cassandra Clare's ferociously entertaining fantasy takes readers on a wild ride that they will never want to end.
5. Reign of Shadows – Sophie Jordan (4) (link to GR review)
Seventeen years ago, an eclipse cloaked the kingdom of Relhok in perpetual darkness. In the chaos, an evil chancellor murdered the king and queen and seized their throne. Luna, Relhok’s lost princess, has been hiding in a tower ever since. Luna’s survival depends on the world believing she is dead.
But that doesn’t stop Luna from wanting more. When she meets Fowler, a mysterious archer braving the woods outside her tower, Luna is drawn to him despite the risk. When the tower is attacked, Luna and Fowler escape together. But this world of darkness is more treacherous than Luna ever realized.
With every threat stacked against them, Luna and Fowler find solace in each other. But with secrets still unspoken between them, falling in love might be their most dangerous journey yet.
With lush writing and a star–crossed romance, Reign of Shadows is Sophie Jordan at her best.
6. City of Ashes (TMI #2) – Cassandra Clare (5)*
Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go — especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil — and also her father.
To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings — and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?
In this breathtaking sequel to City of Bones, Cassandra Clare lures her readers back into the dark grip of New York City's Downworld, where love is never safe and power becomes the deadliest temptation.
7. Captive Prince (Captive Prince #1) – C.S. Pacat (4.5)
"This was Vere, voluptuous and decadent, country of honeyed poison"
Damen is a warrior hero to his people, and the truthful heir to the throne of Akielos, but when his half brother seizes power, Damen is captured, stripped of his identity and sent to serve the prince of an enemy nation as a pleasure slave.
Beautiful, manipulative and deadly, his new master Prince Laurent epitomizes the worst of the court at Vere. But in the lethal political web of the Veretian court, nothing is as it seems, and when Damen finds himself caught up in a play for the throne, he must work together with Laurent to survive and save his country.
For Damen, there is just one rule: never, ever reveal his true identity. Because the one man Damen needs is the one man who has more reason to hate him than anyone else...
8. Prince's Gambit (Captive Prince #2) – C.S. Pacat (5)
The second novel in the critically acclaimed trilogy from global phenomenon C. S. Pacat—with an all-new chapter exclusive to the print edition.
With their countries on the brink of war, Damen and his new master, Prince Laurent, must exchange the intrigues of the palace for the sweeping might of the battlefield as they travel to the border to avert a lethal plot.
Forced to hide his identity, Damen finds himself increasingly drawn to the dangerous, charismatic Laurent. But as the fledgling trust between the two men deepens, the truth of secrets from both their pasts is poised to deal them the crowning death blow…
Includes a bonus chapter (print edition only)!
9. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl – Harriet Jacobs (4)
The true story of an individual's struggle for self-identity, self-preservation, and freedom, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl remains among the few extant slave narratives written by a woman. This autobiographical account chronicles the remarkable odyssey of Harriet Jacobs (1813–1897) whose dauntless spirit and faith carried her from a life of servitude and degradation in North Carolina to liberty and reunion with her children in the North.
Written and published in 1861 after Jacobs' harrowing escape from a vile and predatory master, the memoir delivers a powerful and unflinching portrayal of the abuses and hypocrisy of the master-slave relationship. Jacobs writes frankly of the horrors she suffered as a slave, her eventual escape after several unsuccessful attempts, and her seven years in self-imposed exile, hiding in a coffin-like "garret" attached to her grandmother's porch.
A rare firsthand account of a courageous woman's determination and endurance, this inspirational story also represents a valuable historical record of the continuing battle for freedom and the preservation of family.
10. Their Eyes Were Watching God – Zora Neale Hurston (4)
When Janie, at sixteen, is caught kissing shiftless Johnny Taylor, her grandmother swiftly marries her off to an old man with sixty acres. Janie endures two stifling marriages before meeting the man of her dreams, who offers not diamonds, but a packet of flowering seeds ...
'For me, THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD is one of the very greatest American novels of the 20th century. It is so lyrical it should be sentimental; it is so passionate it should be overwrought, but it is instead a rigorous, convincing and dazzling piece of prose, as emotionally satisfying as it is impressive. There is no novel I love more.' Zadie Smith
11. Kings Rising (Captive Prince #3) – C.S. Pacat (5+)
Damianos of Akielos has returned.
His identity now revealed, Damen must face his master Prince Laurent as Damianos of Akielos, the man Laurent has sworn to kill.
On the brink of a momentous battle, the future of both their countries hangs in the balance. In the south, Kastor's forces are massing. In the north, the Regent's armies are mobilising for war. Damen's only hope of reclaiming his throne is to fight together with Laurent against their usurpers.
Forced into an uneasy alliance the two princes journey deep into Akielos, where they face their most dangerous opposition yet. But even if the fragile trust they have built survives the revelation of Damen's identity - can it stand against the Regent's final, deadly play for the throne?
12. Go Down, Moses – William Faulkner – (2.5)
“I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance.” —William Faulkner, on receiving the Nobel Prize
Go Down, Moses is composed of seven interrelated stories, all of them set in Faulkner’s mythic Yoknapatawpha County. From a variety of perspectives, Faulkner examines the complex, changing relationships between blacks and whites, between man and nature, weaving a cohesive novel rich in implication and insight.
13. City of Glass (TMI #3) – Cassandra Clare (5)*
To save her mother's life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters - never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.
As Clary uncovers more about her family's past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadowhunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadowhunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he's willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City - whatever the cost?
Love is a mortal sin and the secrets of the past prove deadly as Clary and Jace face down Valentine in the third installment of the New York Times bestselling series The Mortal Instruments.
14. Learning to Swim – Annie Cosby (3)
"... a darkly romantic beginning to what promises to be an unusual contemporary YA fantasy series."
- Serena Chase, USA Today
When Cora’s mother whisks the family away for the summer, Cora must decide between forging her future in the glimmering world of second homes where her parents belong, or getting lost in the bewitching world of the locals and the mystery surrounding a lonely old woman who claims to be a selkie creature—and who probably needs Cora more than anyone else.
Through the fantastical tales and anguished stories of the batty Mrs. O’Leary, as well as the company of a particularly gorgeous local boy called Ronan, Cora finds an escape from the reality of planning her life after high school. But will it come at the cost of alienating Cora’s mother, who struggles with her own tragic memories?
As the summer wanes, it becomes apparent that Ronan just may hold the answer to Mrs. O’Leary’s tragic past—and Cora’s future.
What did you guys read and love in February?
xx
Sunny
1. November 9 – Colleen Hoover (4.5)
Beloved #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover returns with an unforgettable love story between a writer and his unexpected muse.
Fallon meets Ben, an aspiring novelist, the day before her scheduled cross-country move. Their untimely attraction leads them to spend Fallon’s last day in L.A. together, and her eventful life becomes the creative inspiration Ben has always sought for his novel. Over time and amidst the various relationships and tribulations of their own separate lives, they continue to meet on the same date every year. Until one day Fallon becomes unsure if Ben has been telling her the truth or fabricating a perfect reality for the sake of the ultimate plot twist.
2. The Coquette – Hannah Webster Foster (3)
The Coquette tells the much-publicized story of the seduction and death of Elizabeth Whitman, a poet from Hartford, Connecticut.
Written as a series of letters--between the heroine and her friends and lovers--it describes her long, tortuous courtship by two men, neither of whom perfectly suits her. Eliza Wharton (as Whitman is called in the novel) wavers between Major Sanford, a charming but insincere man, and the Reverend Boyer, a bore who wants to marry her. When, in her mid-30s, Wharton finds herself suddenly abandoned when both men marry other women, she willfully enters into an adulterous relationship with Sanford and becomes pregnant. Alone and dejected, she dies in childbirth at a roadside inn. Eliza Wharton, whose real-life counterpart was distantly related to Hannah Foster's husband, was one of the first women in American fiction to emerge as a real person facing a dilemma in her life. In her Introduction, Davidson discusses the parallels between Elizabeth Whitman and the fictional Eliza Wharton. She shows the limitations placed on women in the 18th century and the attempts of one woman to rebel against those limitations.
3. Me Before You – JoJo Moyes (5)
Lou Clark knows lots of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in The Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick.
What Lou doesn't know is she's about to lose her job or that knowing what's coming is what keeps her sane.
Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he's going to put a stop to that.
What Will doesn't know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they're going to change the other for all time
4. City of Bones (TMI #1) Cassandra Clare (5)*
When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder― much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing―not even a smear of blood―to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?
This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know...
Exotic and gritty, exhilarating and utterly gripping, Cassandra Clare's ferociously entertaining fantasy takes readers on a wild ride that they will never want to end.
5. Reign of Shadows – Sophie Jordan (4) (link to GR review)
Seventeen years ago, an eclipse cloaked the kingdom of Relhok in perpetual darkness. In the chaos, an evil chancellor murdered the king and queen and seized their throne. Luna, Relhok’s lost princess, has been hiding in a tower ever since. Luna’s survival depends on the world believing she is dead.
But that doesn’t stop Luna from wanting more. When she meets Fowler, a mysterious archer braving the woods outside her tower, Luna is drawn to him despite the risk. When the tower is attacked, Luna and Fowler escape together. But this world of darkness is more treacherous than Luna ever realized.
With every threat stacked against them, Luna and Fowler find solace in each other. But with secrets still unspoken between them, falling in love might be their most dangerous journey yet.
With lush writing and a star–crossed romance, Reign of Shadows is Sophie Jordan at her best.
6. City of Ashes (TMI #2) – Cassandra Clare (5)*
Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go — especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil — and also her father.
To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings — and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?
In this breathtaking sequel to City of Bones, Cassandra Clare lures her readers back into the dark grip of New York City's Downworld, where love is never safe and power becomes the deadliest temptation.
7. Captive Prince (Captive Prince #1) – C.S. Pacat (4.5)
"This was Vere, voluptuous and decadent, country of honeyed poison"
Damen is a warrior hero to his people, and the truthful heir to the throne of Akielos, but when his half brother seizes power, Damen is captured, stripped of his identity and sent to serve the prince of an enemy nation as a pleasure slave.
Beautiful, manipulative and deadly, his new master Prince Laurent epitomizes the worst of the court at Vere. But in the lethal political web of the Veretian court, nothing is as it seems, and when Damen finds himself caught up in a play for the throne, he must work together with Laurent to survive and save his country.
For Damen, there is just one rule: never, ever reveal his true identity. Because the one man Damen needs is the one man who has more reason to hate him than anyone else...
8. Prince's Gambit (Captive Prince #2) – C.S. Pacat (5)
The second novel in the critically acclaimed trilogy from global phenomenon C. S. Pacat—with an all-new chapter exclusive to the print edition.
With their countries on the brink of war, Damen and his new master, Prince Laurent, must exchange the intrigues of the palace for the sweeping might of the battlefield as they travel to the border to avert a lethal plot.
Forced to hide his identity, Damen finds himself increasingly drawn to the dangerous, charismatic Laurent. But as the fledgling trust between the two men deepens, the truth of secrets from both their pasts is poised to deal them the crowning death blow…
Includes a bonus chapter (print edition only)!
9. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl – Harriet Jacobs (4)
The true story of an individual's struggle for self-identity, self-preservation, and freedom, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl remains among the few extant slave narratives written by a woman. This autobiographical account chronicles the remarkable odyssey of Harriet Jacobs (1813–1897) whose dauntless spirit and faith carried her from a life of servitude and degradation in North Carolina to liberty and reunion with her children in the North.
Written and published in 1861 after Jacobs' harrowing escape from a vile and predatory master, the memoir delivers a powerful and unflinching portrayal of the abuses and hypocrisy of the master-slave relationship. Jacobs writes frankly of the horrors she suffered as a slave, her eventual escape after several unsuccessful attempts, and her seven years in self-imposed exile, hiding in a coffin-like "garret" attached to her grandmother's porch.
A rare firsthand account of a courageous woman's determination and endurance, this inspirational story also represents a valuable historical record of the continuing battle for freedom and the preservation of family.
10. Their Eyes Were Watching God – Zora Neale Hurston (4)
When Janie, at sixteen, is caught kissing shiftless Johnny Taylor, her grandmother swiftly marries her off to an old man with sixty acres. Janie endures two stifling marriages before meeting the man of her dreams, who offers not diamonds, but a packet of flowering seeds ...
'For me, THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD is one of the very greatest American novels of the 20th century. It is so lyrical it should be sentimental; it is so passionate it should be overwrought, but it is instead a rigorous, convincing and dazzling piece of prose, as emotionally satisfying as it is impressive. There is no novel I love more.' Zadie Smith
11. Kings Rising (Captive Prince #3) – C.S. Pacat (5+)
Damianos of Akielos has returned.
His identity now revealed, Damen must face his master Prince Laurent as Damianos of Akielos, the man Laurent has sworn to kill.
On the brink of a momentous battle, the future of both their countries hangs in the balance. In the south, Kastor's forces are massing. In the north, the Regent's armies are mobilising for war. Damen's only hope of reclaiming his throne is to fight together with Laurent against their usurpers.
Forced into an uneasy alliance the two princes journey deep into Akielos, where they face their most dangerous opposition yet. But even if the fragile trust they have built survives the revelation of Damen's identity - can it stand against the Regent's final, deadly play for the throne?
12. Go Down, Moses – William Faulkner – (2.5)
“I believe that man will not merely endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance.” —William Faulkner, on receiving the Nobel Prize
Go Down, Moses is composed of seven interrelated stories, all of them set in Faulkner’s mythic Yoknapatawpha County. From a variety of perspectives, Faulkner examines the complex, changing relationships between blacks and whites, between man and nature, weaving a cohesive novel rich in implication and insight.
13. City of Glass (TMI #3) – Cassandra Clare (5)*
To save her mother's life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters - never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.
As Clary uncovers more about her family's past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadowhunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadowhunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he's willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City - whatever the cost?
Love is a mortal sin and the secrets of the past prove deadly as Clary and Jace face down Valentine in the third installment of the New York Times bestselling series The Mortal Instruments.
14. Learning to Swim – Annie Cosby (3)
"... a darkly romantic beginning to what promises to be an unusual contemporary YA fantasy series."
- Serena Chase, USA Today
When Cora’s mother whisks the family away for the summer, Cora must decide between forging her future in the glimmering world of second homes where her parents belong, or getting lost in the bewitching world of the locals and the mystery surrounding a lonely old woman who claims to be a selkie creature—and who probably needs Cora more than anyone else.
Through the fantastical tales and anguished stories of the batty Mrs. O’Leary, as well as the company of a particularly gorgeous local boy called Ronan, Cora finds an escape from the reality of planning her life after high school. But will it come at the cost of alienating Cora’s mother, who struggles with her own tragic memories?
As the summer wanes, it becomes apparent that Ronan just may hold the answer to Mrs. O’Leary’s tragic past—and Cora’s future.
What did you guys read and love in February?
xx
Sunny
Monday, February 29, 2016
look at her go: reviewin' reviewin: captive prince trilogy
Captive Prince Trilogy: Captive Prince, Prince's Gambit and Kings Rising by C.S. Pacat
☆☆☆☆☆
blurb for book 1: "This was Vere, voluptuous and decadent, country of honeyed poison"
Damen is a warrior hero to his people, and the truthful heir to the throne of Akielos, but when his half brother seizes power, Damen is captured, stripped of his identity and sent to serve the prince of an enemy nation as a pleasure slave.
Beautiful, manipulative and deadly, his new master Prince Laurent epitomizes the worst of the court at Vere. But in the lethal political web of the Veretian court, nothing is as it seems, and when Damen finds himself caught up in a play for the throne, he must work together with Laurent to survive and save his country.
For Damen, there is just one rule: never, ever reveal his true identity. Because the one man Damen needs is the one man who has more reason to hate him than anyone else...
Damen is a warrior hero to his people, and the truthful heir to the throne of Akielos, but when his half brother seizes power, Damen is captured, stripped of his identity and sent to serve the prince of an enemy nation as a pleasure slave.
Beautiful, manipulative and deadly, his new master Prince Laurent epitomizes the worst of the court at Vere. But in the lethal political web of the Veretian court, nothing is as it seems, and when Damen finds himself caught up in a play for the throne, he must work together with Laurent to survive and save his country.
For Damen, there is just one rule: never, ever reveal his true identity. Because the one man Damen needs is the one man who has more reason to hate him than anyone else...
mini-reviews of all three books under the cut!
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