tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43770113414442749462024-03-05T10:46:54.337-05:00Ree's Book NookAll about books! Books I have recently read, am currently reading, want to read, etc. Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.comBlogger140125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-36280174565430307362021-02-12T11:09:00.001-05:002021-02-12T11:09:40.035-05:00Book Review: Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"> <b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Pride and Premeditation</u></span></b></span></p><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica;">by Tirzah Price</span></b></div><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /><b>Source:</b><br />I received a free audiobook from NetGalley & HarperAudio in exchange for my honest review.<br /><br /><b>Genre:</b><br />Historical Fiction, Mystery, Retelling, Romance, Young Adult<br /><br /><b>Synopsis:</b><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818;">It is a truth universally acknowledged that a young woman who desires a law career must be in want of a case. So when sixteen year old Lizzie Bennet hears about a scandalous society murder, she sees an opportunity to prove herself as a solicitor by solving the case and ensuring justice is served.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #181818;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818;">Except the man accused of the crime already has a lawyer on his side: Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, the stern young heir to the prestigious Pemberley Associates law firm. Lizzie is determined to solve the murder before Darcy can so that she can show the world that a woman can be just as good as a man. (The fact that Darcy is an infuriating snob doesn’t help.) But there’s still a killer on the loose, and as the case gets more complicated, Lizzie and Darcy may have to start working together to avoid becoming the next victims themselves.</span><br /><br /><b>Review (may contain spoilers):</b><br />This was my first Voice Galley, and I know that this isn't meant to be a review of the app or recording, but I was pleasantly surprised. NetGalley's app is comparable to the Audible app for listening functions, and it was an all-around pleasant listening experience.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">I thought this was a <i>really </i>fun retelling of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. To be honest, I have never read the original, but I have watched and loved several film adaptations, and would count this retelling among my favourites. I really should try to read the original one of these days... 😂</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">In th</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica;">is </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">completely new and reimagined </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica;">version of Austen's beloved story, Mr. Bennett is cast as a partner in the <span>law firm Longborn & Sons</span></span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">. Mr. Collins is another solicitor in the same firm, and Mr. Bennett's heir. Charlotte Lucas is the firm's secretary. </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">When Mr. Bingley is accused of murdering his brother-in-law, Lizzie jumps at the chance to solve her very own case and prove herself to her father (and all of mankind) and earn a position in the firm. Lizzie gets herself into all kinds of trouble as she follows leads, searches for evidence, interviews witnesses, and cavorts with questionable characters in an effort to prove Bingley's innocence, find the murderer, and beat Darcy.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">I enjoyed the mystery a lot, but the romance didn't <i>quite </i>do it for me. It felt a smidge contrived to fit the original story, and if I'm honest, this version of Darcy is one of my least favourites. He just didn't come across as an exceptional or very interesting character, even at the end. I was much more invested in Lizzie herself, and in solving the mystery.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">My favourite part of this book was probably the characters. I felt that </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">the author stayed true to the personalities of the characters </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">as portrayed in other versions of the story that I have known and loved, </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">which is really important, in my opinion, especially when retelling a well-known classic with such iconic characters.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">I've learned that this is the first in a series of Jane Austen murder mystery retellings which will be coming out in the next few years. I must say that I am very excited to see what other adventures the author will take us on, and I'm also curious to know if there will be any character crossovers. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /><b>My Goodreads rating:<br /></b>I gave this book a 4-star rating on Goodreads and would happily recommend it to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, retellings, murder mysteries, and young adult novels.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg57E6GSk85Dd0lWX2Wc4fTfaU5bNQIkhNT0gxsGSswVGA6naZ3cKzft0e6aufi7vb4BQnAxSjOe1WLaMxsroeFPfvJ-s4rak6G_8n98ztIDe4Wk1q52i0RMwSki0DpcD7L0YdyFTXNoP-2/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="95" data-original-width="481" height="63" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg57E6GSk85Dd0lWX2Wc4fTfaU5bNQIkhNT0gxsGSswVGA6naZ3cKzft0e6aufi7vb4BQnAxSjOe1WLaMxsroeFPfvJ-s4rak6G_8n98ztIDe4Wk1q52i0RMwSki0DpcD7L0YdyFTXNoP-2/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /><br /></span><p></p><p><b><span style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span></b></p>Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-12279586606453049482021-01-06T13:09:00.000-05:002021-01-06T13:09:09.682-05:00Book Review: Ninja Girl Adventures by Melissa Wilson & Phil Elmore<p> </p><div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Ninja Girl Adventures<br /></u></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>by Melissa Wilson & Phil Elmore<br /></b></div><p>
<br />
<b>Source:</b><br />I received an e-version via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.<br /></p><p>
<b>Genre:<br /></b>Young Adult, adventure, ninja, supernatural, fantasy<br />
<br /><b>Overview:</b><br />***CONTAINS SPOILERS***</p><p>Fourteen year old Moira Mackenzie and her sisters, Mindy (15) and Marci (9), are newly orphaned. Their mother, Kameko, died in a car accident, and now their father, Stephen Mackenzie, has disappeared in a plane accident (presumed dead). The girls are now under the guardianship of their father's best friend Morton Gerardi, aka Uncle Mort. Unbeknownst to anyone, their father willed his corporation, KogaTech Consolidated, to 14 year old Moira, instead of leaving it to the girls' uncle, Jiro Akiyama (Kameko's adopted brother) as was expected.</p><p>Through the course of the story, Moira meets her grandmother, Aiko Akiyama, who turns out to be the head of a clan of ninjas! She also learns that Uncle Jiro is also a ninja, head of a branch of Aiko's original clan, and that he is out to get Moira and will stop at nothing to get control of KogaTech Consolidated. Aiko begins training Moira in the art of ninjutsu (and Moira, in turn, begins teaching her sisters), which eventually comes in handy as Moira needs to fight her uncle to save her sisters' lives.<br />
<br />
<b>Review:</b><br />When I first read the synopsis for this book, I thought it sounded like a really interesting middle grade/young adult read with a new twist: ninjas and sisterly love! This is not a subgenre I generally go for, but I thought it sounded fun. Unfortunately, the story really wasn't that interesting to me; it just fell a bit flat. </p><p>After reading the first two chapters, I was ready to quit. I had already encountered two story continuity issues, which I really don't deal well with, and I was tempted to drop the book completely. However, after seeking advice from friends, and taking a couple days to think about it, I decided to give the book a second chance and at least <i>try </i>to finish within the time frame I had left before the book would expire from my NetGalley library, which I did.<br /></p><p>The first continuity issue I encountered was that the main character, Moira, is supposed to be the middle child, but within the first chapter, when describing her relationship with her guardian, Uncle Mort, it says that <i>"he always offered Moira coffee because she was the oldest."</i> It is possible that referring to her as being the oldest is meant to be some kind of inside joke, but it only came across as a confusing error.</p><p>The next chapter talks about the older sister, Mindy, and how she has been skipping school and generally getting into trouble with her friend <i>"Aubry,"</i> but then on the same page, it suddenly starts referring to the friend as <i>"Amy."</i> It is, of course, possible that there are two different friends, but the text just sounds like there is one friend whose name changed in the middle of the page.</p><p>Aside from these errors and some grammatical stuff, the rest of the book seemed technically sound. It is very dialogue heavy, and uses 3rd person omniscient POV.<span></span>
Personally, when I
read a book with this POV, I prefer for there to be
separate chapters using each character's voice. This book just passes to another person's perspective fluidly.
Yet, we only get another person's perspective once in a while. For the
most part, the story is just following Moira in third person. In my
opinion, I think it might have been better to not include the
other perspectives, or to have rewritten them to fit third person
limited, OR to have inserted a short chapter here and there, where
necessary, to share that person's perspective.</p><p>There were also times when a "punchline" of the story was unnecessarily reiterated. The main example being, near the end of the book, when Moira is
facing off against Uncle Jiro and he gets away. They follow his blood
trail and discover it was an illusion, then go back to where he was
injured to see the real trail leading away to the elevators. Moira then
goes on the explain exactly that back to Aiko, who obviously knows what
has happened because she pointed out the illusion to Moira in the first place. <br /></p><p>In conclusion, I did not enjoy reading this book. I found the character names of the sisters too similar and was often getting confused about who was who. If I'm honest, I didn't really like any of the characters all that much. I found Uncle Mort to be an irresponsible guardian. I really couldn't understand why Moira acts like a parent to her siblings when she is the middle child, and only 14? It really bothered me that a 14 year old child would be present at her 15 year old sister's disciplinary meeting at school. Not only that, but this 14 year old is missing school to "take care" of her siblings, when there is a supposedly capable adult guardian around?! And I do get that it's supposed to be a "chosen one" kind of trope, where Moira inherits her father's business because the other girls aren't interested, and then she becomes a ninja because that's also part of the family business/history and makes up the backbone of the story, but... How unlikely is it that a parent would leave his entire fortune and business to the middle child, when that child is only 14 years old? I also think it is unfortunate that the final chapter leaves off with a cliffhanger indicating that there is more to come.</p><p>I don't know if there are planned sequels, but this book should really just be a standalone novel.<br /></p><p>
<br />
<b>My Goodreads rating:</b></p><p>I am usually very generous with my ratings, but I really don't feel I can give this one more than 1 star.</p>Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-56516295519439141302020-12-04T20:50:00.000-05:002020-12-04T20:50:07.183-05:00Book Review: The Girl with the Whispering Shadow by D.E. Night<p> </p><p><br /></p><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>The Girl with the Whispering Shadow (Crowns of Croswald #2)</u></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>by D.E. Night</b></div><p><br /><b>Source:</b><br />After being approached by the publisher (Stories Untold Press) to read & review <i>The Crowns of Croswald</i> via NetGalley, I inquired about also being able to read & review the second book, <i>The Girl with the Whispering Shadow</i>, which they agreed to.<br /><br /><b>Genre:</b><br />Middle Grade, Adventure, Fantasy, Magic<br /><br /><b>Spoiler Warning:</b><br />This review contains spoilers for the first book in the series, <i>The Crowns of Croswald</i> and may contain some spoilers for <i>The Girl with the Whispering Shadow</i>.<br /><br /><b>Review:</b><br /></p><div style="text-align: justify;">When we left Ivy Lovely at the end of <i>The Crowns of Croswald</i>, she had just defeated the Dark Queen at the Ball, had learned her true identity, was given part of a Kindred Stone, and had discovered that the pirate she kept being drawn to in glanageries was actually her family's scrivenist, Derwin Edgar Night.</div><p></p><p style="text-align: justify;">In this book, Derwin then sends Ivy off to "The Town" (the enchanted magical city of scrivenists, called Belzebuthe) to search for the second part of her Kindred Stone and stay hidden from the Dark Queen. It <i>just so happened</i> that the address Derwin sent her to stay at in Belzebuthe belonged to none other than Fyn Greeley and his mother! Ivy spends much of the book running around with Fyn and his friends, getting into trouble and dodging a creepy shadow figure.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">We got to see more of how the magic in Croswald works in this book, which I really enjoyed. Ivy spent most of the story either in Belzebuthe or on other adventures, and only a very small part actually at The Halls of Ivy. It was quite fun to get to know some other settings! The whole world of Croswald still gives me major Harry Potter vibes, and I enjoy it quite a bit.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">In the first book, I didn't find that there was much character building of the secondary characters, like Fyn and Rebecca, but I found that was improved in this book (however I still don't much care for, or trust, Fyn). I did have a bit of difficulty keeping the members of the Quogo Club straight, but that is likely more a personal thing than the characters themselves.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">I don't have much to say on the side of criticism - there were a few grammatical errors here and there, but nothing too serious. This second book also reads like a middle grade novel, which is great. There were moments when Ivy did act a bit more like a 16-17 year old girl than in the first book, but I still feel like she should be around 14, so her age still throws me off and is still a bit of an issue for me.</p><p></p><div style="text-align: justify;">One of my favourite aspects of <i>The Girl with the Whispering Shadow</i> were the stars in Belzebuthe. I love that the stars are wishes, and that a person can rent stargusters to putter around among the stars, and that if one were to catch a star, the wish inside would be granted...! Such a romantic and lovely idea! If I lived in Belzebuthe I would most definitely buy wishes/stars on a very regular basis. I also really love that because this magic system uses quills instead of wands, spells are actually written as well as spoken, and so good penmanship is of quite high importance. I have always loved penmanship, and taken pride in having legible handwriting - I think I would get along quite well in the world of Croswald!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">I continue to recommend this series to others, and am looking forward to reading the next two books at some point!<br /></div><p></p><p><br /><b>My Goodreads rating:</b></p><p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-ury47htLD7fxDqwVtCXsGpQl0U4aGa39JILXL4Nb4dwiYeoJlmz_C2xaFp6tZuBqaCSoKeiJLNXHEwtHgm6KRT6WPLuE59vbZHjee0QmYvvHftfE9VCR2LVFWPJAOoRu-ysxAkSLN8vK/s725/4-stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="149" data-original-width="725" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-ury47htLD7fxDqwVtCXsGpQl0U4aGa39JILXL4Nb4dwiYeoJlmz_C2xaFp6tZuBqaCSoKeiJLNXHEwtHgm6KRT6WPLuE59vbZHjee0QmYvvHftfE9VCR2LVFWPJAOoRu-ysxAkSLN8vK/s320/4-stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div><b><br /> </b><p></p>Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-71722465154858606842020-10-15T20:25:00.003-04:002020-10-15T20:25:59.403-04:00Book Review: The Crowns of Croswald by D.E. Night<p> <br />
</p><div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>The Crowns of Croswald<br /></u></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>by D.E. Night<br /></b></div><p>
<br />
<b>Source:<br /></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I was approached by the publisher (<i>Stories Untold Press</i>) on Instagram, and was offered a free e-copy of the book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review and following the author on Instagram.<br /></p><p>
<br />
<b>Genre:<br /></b>Middle Grade, Fantasy, Adventure, Magic<br />
<br />
<b>Review:<br /></b></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i>The Crowns of Croswald</i> is the story of 16 year old Ivy Lovely, a lowly scaldrony maid, who suddenly discovers that she has magical powers, and is swept away to master her skills at the Halls of Ivy, a prestigious school of magic. She soon lands herself in all kinds of trouble as she seeks to find the truth about her past and the Halls of Ivy, and tries to keep out of reach of the Dark Queen.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">This basic synopsis may sound very familiar to Harry Potter fans (how could it not?), and I did see <i>many</i> similarities between this book and some other magical series, but I was pleased to note that there were also
many differences. Croswald is definitely a unique world all its own. The similarities between series were just enough to make it feel
familiar, which is not a bad thing in my opinion.<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">As soon as I knew that this was a middle grade fantasy involving a magical boarding school, my interest was instantly piqued, and I feel like it mostly lived up to my expectations. The story flowed very well and there was just enough adventure vs world-building, etc. To be honest, I wasn't that drawn into it until about the halfway point, but after that, I was absolutely hooked and could hardly put it down for wanting to know what would happen next!</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><i>The Crowns of Croswald</i> is promoted as being middle grade, and it does very much read like a middle grade fantasy adventure book. However, that being said, I was constantly surprised by the fact that Ivy is 16 years old. She doesn't act like a 16 year old (even one who's lived her life more or less sheltered in a dungeon as a maid), and 16 seems a little too old for the middle grade genre. I see that others have categorized it as young adult, which the protagonist's age would support, however the author and publisher classify it as middle grade, so I think that Ivy's age is a bit of an oversight<span style="background-color: white;"> by both the author and the publisher. It</span> would have made more sense, in my opinion, for the main character to be around 12 or 13 years old, based on the genre, target audience, and Ivy's maturity. Perhaps I haven't completely grasped how the world of Croswald works, but it also felt a little unlikely that a magical school with four years of study would only begin teaching magic to students at age 16, unless we are to assume that the Halls of Ivy is meant to be more of a college, which <i>really </i>doesn't fit middle grade. However, the school doesn't <i>feel </i>like a college, so again, perhaps the ages are a bit of an oversight. Then again, we are assuming that all the first year students are the same age as Ivy, but maybe Ivy is older than the rest?<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">Some of the dialogue felt a bit awkward, in particular between Ivy and her friends. This may be because I didn't find that either Rebecca or Fyn were particularly well-developed characters; I think I would have liked to have just seen more<i> </i>of them and to get to know them better. Middle grade books are typically very friendship heavy, and I kind of missed that here. For example, all we really know about Fyn is a vague physical description, that he is a third year student and "class facilitator," and he always seems to show up when Ivy is getting herself into trouble (which really made me wonder whether he is good or bad?).<br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;"></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white;">I found it interesting that the royals and sqwinches all attend the same school <i>and </i>the same classes together, while there is such apparent disparity between them in society. I really would have liked it if we would have seen more of what "normal" first year sqwinches are/should be capable of, and <i>how</i> they perform magic. I'm also wondering if the concept of time is actually different in Croswald than it is to us? It seemed that the school year passed very quickly, and I wonder if it was just a lack of reference points (other than moons) such as holidays or semesters to help note the passing of time, or if time just moves at a different rate in this world. Lastly, I wonder how or why the slurry actually inhibits magic?</span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">I do feel I should mention some technical points while I'm here. These do not affect my rating, however they may affect others' ratings, and I think they are things to be noted by the publishers. There were a few spelling & grammatical errors in the e-version that I read. There was also one mistake that I found particularly disturbing, which is found on page 400 of the NetGalley e-book, wherein a background character called Coton is described as having "<b>pupils </b>as green as emeralds" - as a general rule, human pupils are black and the <b>iris </b>has colour. If this character <i>is </i>actually meant to have green pupils, then it should be explained why (for example, what kind of creature she might be if not human).</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Some of my favourite aspects of <i>The Crowns of Croswald</i> were Ivy's forever-fitting dress (I would love to have one of those!), the ballroom, the hairies, and the bedroom bars (how awesome would it be to have unlimited access to the perfect beverage - hot or cold - from the comfort of your bedroom!?). <br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;">To summarize, there were some aspects of the book that I didn't find relatable or believable or that didn't suit my preferences, but overall I did enjoy it and am looking forward to reading the rest of the series at some point. I also would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who has loved Harry Potter and Nevermoor, anyone who appreciates a good middle grade fantasy, and anyone who loves magic, boarding schools, and "chosen one" or "secret heir" tropes.<br /></p><p>
<br />
<br />
<b>My Goodreads rating:<br /></b>I gave this book 3 1/2 out of 5 stars, but rounded up to 4 on Goodreads.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ1rjuYLLIKBKZ-6P8voiPRWyBF1XhdWIGvZPNDgwiAZKBn7F5QO7wPnZuhaXURXCFwGtp5Dc_Hpbv1AVyemQSPo5vBl1Cc2bakFmMWO67pvxTiTs3bsohH_LMF0XhVgbEn2CmzXnVEZCl/s1054/3.5-star.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="192" data-original-width="1054" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ1rjuYLLIKBKZ-6P8voiPRWyBF1XhdWIGvZPNDgwiAZKBn7F5QO7wPnZuhaXURXCFwGtp5Dc_Hpbv1AVyemQSPo5vBl1Cc2bakFmMWO67pvxTiTs3bsohH_LMF0XhVgbEn2CmzXnVEZCl/s320/3.5-star.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><b><br /></b><p></p>Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-48145647709352520782018-08-01T14:01:00.002-04:002018-08-01T14:01:46.568-04:00Year To Date: January - June 2018Hello again!<br />
<br />
Wow... Well, I definitely started writing this post before the end of June, but obviously I then forgot all about it, because here we are freshly into August... Oy.<br />
<br />
So the plan for this post was to first give a quick summary of the books I read in June, then do a little reminiscing about the books I read during this first half of the year gone by, and then finish off with some goals/TBR list for the rest of the year. So, I might as well continue with that!<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong><em>June 2018 reads</em></strong><br />
<em>Aru Shah and the End of Time</em> by Roshani Chokshi - 4.5 stars<br />
<em>The Last of August</em> by Brittany Cavallaro - 5 stars<br />
<em>Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone</em> by J.K. Rowling (audio) - reread<br />
<em>The Serpent King</em> by Jeff Zentner - 5 stars<br />
<em>Legendary</em> by Stephanie Garber - 5 stars<br />
<em>Relative Happiness</em> by Lesley Crewe - 5 stars<br />
<em>Sold</em> by Patricia McCormick - 3 stars<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong><em>2018 Part One</em></strong><br />
So between January and June, I read/finished 41 books on Goodreads. Technically, it's 43 because The Hogwarts Library (<em>Quidditch Through the Ages</em>, <em>Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them</em>, and <em>The Tales of Beedle the Bard</em>) only counts as one on there. We'll keep counting it as one, unless I need more books at the end of the year.;)<br />
<br />
<u>Favourites so far:</u><br />
<em>Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow</em> by Jessica Townsend<br />
<em>The Magic Misfits</em> by Neil Patrick Harris<br />
<em>Relative Happiness</em> by Lesley Crewe<br />
<br />
<u>Pleasantly surprised by:</u><br />
<em>Trouble is a Friend of Mine </em>by Stephanie Tromly<br />
<em>The Hearts We Sold</em> by Emily Lloyd-Jones<br />
<br />
<u>Disappointed by:</u><br />
<em>Neverwhere</em> by Neil Gaiman<br />
<em>The Wizards of Once</em> by Cressida Cowell<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong><em>2018 Part Two</em></strong><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
For July and August, I am participating in a reading challenge called <em>Summer Lovin' Book Camp</em> hosted by the amazing admins of the <strong><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/186315715297970/">TBR and Beyond</a></strong> Facebook group. They created a really cool board game where each square had a different genre/theme. I pre-rolled so that I could pick out a list of books ahead of time, and ended up with eleven. The squares I landed on, and the books I (originally) picked out, are below. I think I will write a separate post to discuss my progress with this challenge. Aside from this summer reading challenge, I have a few other books that have been on my shelves for a while that I would like to finally tackle, and Christmas gifts from this past year. I don't have any specific goals, except continuing toward my Goodreads challenge of 80 books.</div>
<ol>
<li><strong>Diverse: </strong><em>Leah on the Offbeat</em> by Becky Albertalli</li>
<li><strong>Debut author:</strong> <em>Beyond a Darkened Shore</em> by Jessica Leake</li>
<li><strong>Fae:</strong> <em>The Cruel Prince</em> by Holly Black</li>
<li><strong>TBR group read:</strong> <em>Sky in the Deep</em> by Adrienne Young</li>
<li><strong>Paranormal:</strong> <em>Our Dark Duet</em> by V.E. Schwab</li>
<li><strong>Tear jerker:</strong> <em>Where She Went </em>by Gayle Forman</li>
<li><strong>Free space:</strong> <em>Crazy Rich Asians</em> by Kevin Kwan</li>
<li><strong>Retelling:</strong> <em>Fairest of All</em> by Serena Valentino</li>
<li><strong>All the feels:</strong> <em>The Book Thief</em> by Markus Zusak</li>
<li><strong>Purple:</strong> <em>Heart of Iron</em> by Ashley Poston</li>
<li><strong>Summer:</strong> <em>When Dimple Met Rishi</em> by Sandhya Menon</li>
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-6185822071901955062018-06-13T15:38:00.001-04:002018-06-13T15:44:31.038-04:00Progress Report: April - May 2018Well, I have all but given up on book blogging. I just can't seem to make it happen. I'm terrible at writing reviews anyway. I can appreciate how taking notes and writing a review helps to really comprehend what you've read and be able to discuss any topics it raises... I get that. But that's not why I read. I read to escape, for entertainment, to have a harmless pastime. I'm not in a book club so I don't need to discuss anything with anyone. And then it comes down to it, if it was a good book, I will remember the basic premise and my feelings about it enough to either recommend it or not. Admittedly, after some time, I barely remember the plot of most of the books I've read, and I literally have to check Goodreads to see if I've read it or not. *sigh* <strong><em>Anyway...</em></strong><br />
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Since it has been a while, I guess I'll just do a summary of the books I read in April and May, and how I rated them. And I will try to come back in a couple weeks to summarize what I read in June, and do a little 6 month recap! Ok, here goes...<br />
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<strong><em><span style="font-size: large;">April 2018 reads:</span></em></strong><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15107905-the-secret-keeper">The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton</a> (audio) - 5 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17465444-alice-in-tumblr-land">Alice in Tumblr-Land by Tim Manley</a> - 3 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28107444-the-magic-misfits">The Magic Misfits by Neil Patrick Harris</a> - 5 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16177185-the-hogwarts-library">The Hogwarts Library by J.K. Rowling</a> - 5 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16177185-the-hogwarts-library">Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee</a> - 4 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3195455-death-du-jour">Death Du Jour by Kathy Reichs</a> - 4 stars<br />
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My favourite read in April was definitely <em>The Magic Misfits</em>. I loved how interactive it was, with actual clues and puzzles in the book for you to solve as you read. I really enjoyed the story as well, and I am looking forward to reading any sequels.<br />
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My least favourite read in April was definitely <em>Alice in Tumblr-Land</em>. It's just a sort of coffee table book, conversation starter, not exactly a <em>"read" </em>as such. It's basically just comics about the "real" lives of fairytale characters in a modern world. Some were funny, but some weren't. I had picked it up because when I flipped through it there was one that struck me funny, but in the end, not worth it.<br />
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<strong><em><span style="font-size: large;">May 2018 reads:</span></em></strong><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/105732.Neverwhere">Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman</a> (audio) - 3 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18806245-the-shadow-cipher">York: The Shadow Cipher by Laura Ruby</a> - 5 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34079578-the-dollmaker-of-krakow">The Dollmaker of Krakow by R.M. Romero</a> - 4 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18190201-the-doldrums">The Doldrums by Nicholas Gannon</a> - 5 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34455798-the-wizards-of-once">The Wizards of Once by Cressida Cowell</a> - 3 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/352262.How_to_Train_Your_Dragon">How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell</a> - 4 stars<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2213661.The_Graveyard_Book">The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman</a> - 4 stars<br />
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In May I did a reading challenge through one of the Facebook groups I am in, called TBR and Beyond. The challenge was called "Book to School" and we had to read all middle grade books. There was a "report card" to fill out, and at the end of the month we were graded, and every middle grade book read equalled one entry for a prize. My favourite read in May was a tie between <em>York </em>and <em>The Doldrums</em>. They both have so many elements that I love in a middle grade book: adventure, mystery, friendship...<br />
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My least favourite read in May was probably <em>The Wizards of Once</em> just because I had such high hopes and was really disappointed by it. I had never read any of the author's other books. It's classified as middle grade, but definitely geared toward the younger end of the 8-12 age range. I have more appreciation for books that are written for the older end of that range. Her other book, <em>How to Train Your Dragon</em>, was in the same style, but I enjoyed it more, perhaps because of the movie.<br />
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So, as of the end of May, I had finished 34 books out of my goal of 80, putting my 2018 Goodreads reading challenge at 43% complete!Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-23324867936818794222018-04-26T16:25:00.001-04:002018-04-26T16:25:09.968-04:00What I'm Currently Reading...<div style="text-align: justify;">
It's one of those days where I feel like writing a blog post, but I don't really have anything to write about. I haven't got any book reviews ready, it's not a day for any of the weekly memes I have previously participated in, it's not <em>quite</em> the end of the month, and I just did a quarterly update last month... What to do?</div>
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So I thought I might just let anyone who is reading this know what I am currently reading!</div>
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*** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***</div>
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<strong><em>How to Stop Time</em></strong> by Matt Haig</div>
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I started reading this book at the end of March. It didn't immediately grab my attention, so I set it aside and read a couple others in the meantime, but I am still saying I'm "currently" reading it because I do plan on finishing it soon.</div>
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The premise intrigued me. It has a sort of <em>The Time Traveler's Wife</em> and <em>The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August </em>vibe to it. I am drawn to stories about time travel, reincarnation, regeneration, so this sounded like the perfect book for me. The story is about Tom Hazard who has a rare condition: he ages at an extremely slow rate. The story alternates between Tom's present and his past as he relives the tragedies and heartaches that brought him to this point.</div>
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<strong><em>Death Du Jour</em> </strong>by Kathy Reichs</div>
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This is the second book in the <em>Temperance Brennan</em> series (the inspiration for the TV show <em>Bones</em>). I liked the TV show very much, and decided to collect and read the books which inspired it. I have most of the series (with the exception of some of the newer titles) and read the first book probably five years ago.</div>
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I remember thinking at the time that the book was not<em> </em>like the TV show, and that it was a bit darker than I had expected, but then years passed and I couldn't remember why I hadn't read more. It's starting to come back to me... At this point in my life, it's not the writing style or the dark content that is a turnoff, it really is just how different the books are from the show. Basically the only similarities are the main character's name (Temperance Brennan), occupation (forensic anthropologist), and her romantic involvement with the detective with whom she works.</div>
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-78361878328955596792018-03-31T10:00:00.000-04:002018-04-02T12:27:51.950-04:00Progress Report: January - March 2018I knew I hadn't posted for a while, but when I really stopped to look at the calendar I realized that this year is already 25% completed... Things are moving along a bit quicker than I thought! So since I haven't posted in months, this will be a long one!<br />
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Once again, I will <strong><em>try</em></strong> to be a little more proactive in my blogging/reviewing. One of my unofficial goals for the year was to blog more, but I feel that's not really realistic, especially as I am trying to read even more books this year than I did last year. If I couldn't keep up with blogging before, what makes me think I'll be able to now?!<br />
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I've been shifting around all my piles of books recently, and seeing them all piled up together in one place now gives me this overwhelming desire to read as fast as I can, get through them as fast as possible, and try to get rid of some of them. I feel bad getting rid of books I haven't read yet, because (usually) there was a reason I picked up the book... you know? But then I also feel bad getting rid of books I <em>have</em> read, because it's like I'm abandoning them or betraying them. Anyway, bunny trails...<br />
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So, the reading goal I set for myself this year is 80 books. This means I need to be reading 6-7 books every month. That is a fairly average rate for me, but it leaves me no room for slumps or reading breaks. Basically, I need to be chain-reading. So far I'm keeping up (because January I was a book dragon, devouring much more than average), so we'll have to see how the next quarter goes...<br />
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<strong>January</strong> was my biggest reading month so far, partially because I finished up a couple books that I had read large chunks of in December, but also because I was <em>fired up </em>for the new year! Haha! Here's the list of what I read, and how I rated them:<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29622131-the-glass-spare">The Glass Spare by Lauren DeStefano</a> - ****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23848533-the-extraordinary-adventures-of-alfred-kropp">The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp (Alfred Kropp #1) by Rick Yancey</a> - ***<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23354047-trouble-is-a-friend-of-mine">Trouble Is a Friend of Mine by Stephanie Tromley</a> - *****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35758077-ready-player-one">Ready Player One by Ernest Cline</a> - *****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34066636-murder-on-the-orient-express">Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie</a> - ****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27206507-26-kisses">26 Kisses by Anne Michels</a> - ****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34219873-the-trials-of-morrigan-crow">The Trials of Morrigan Crow (Nevermoor #1) by Jessica Townsend</a> - *****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29875413-queen-of-hearts">Queen of Hearts (Queen of Hearts Saga #1) by Colleen Oakes</a> - ****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33913966-blood-of-wonderland">Blood of Wonderland (Queen of Hearts Saga #2) by Colleen Oakes</a> - ****<br />
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In <strong>February</strong>, I participated in the OwlCrate-A-Thon reading challenge, which helped me bust through 3 OwlCrate reads I hadn't yet got to. Here's what I read:<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33913967-war-of-the-cards">War of the Cards (Queen of Hearts Saga #3) by Colleen Oakes</a> - ****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33009320-heartless">Heartless by Marissa Meyer</a> - *****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26309792-the-hearts-we-sold">The Hearts We Sold by Emily Lloyd-Jones</a> - *****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33275690-foolish-hearts">Foolish Hearts by Emma Mills</a> - *****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25735012-career-of-evil">Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith</a> - *****<br />
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There's not much to say about <strong>March</strong>, nothing special happened. These were the books I read:<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28110143-furthermore">Furthermore (Furthermore #1) by Tahereh Mafi</a> - ****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31931941-eliza-and-her-monsters">Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia</a> - ****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/37419320-you-know-you-re-dutch-when">You Know You're Dutch, When... by Colleen Geske</a> - ***<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27391973-north-of-happy">North of Happy by Adi Alsaid</a> - ****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30201327-the-lonely-hearts-hotel">The Lonely Hearts Hotel by Heather O'Neill</a> - ***<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36682619-daughter-of-the-siren-queen">Daughter of the Siren Queen by Tricia Levenseller</a> - *****<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31019841-fantastic-beasts-and-where-to-find-them">Newt Scamander: A Movie Scrapbook by Rick Barba</a> - ****<br />
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So, in summary... Out of the 9 books I read in January, my least favourite was <em>The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp</em>, and I had three favourites: <em>Trouble Is a Friend of Mine</em>, <em>Ready Player One</em>, and <em>The Trials of Morrigan Crow</em>. <em>Trouble</em> was just everything I look for in a book: a) geared toward teens and young adults, b) mystery, c) romance, d) adventure (with a dose of danger). It took me by surprise, and I like that in a book. <em>Ready Player One</em> was a dystopian sci-fi, which I love - also, very excited for the movie! I will hopefully be going with my nephew(s) this weekend (I forced the older one to read the book)! The <em>Nevermoor</em> book was so fun and full of adventure and excitement, and I completely fell in love with Jupiter North...<br />
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Of the 5 books I read in February, <em>War of the Cards</em> was my least favourite, and my favourite was a tie between <em>The Hearts We Sold</em> and <em>Foolish Hearts</em>. <em>The Hearts We Sold</em> also took me by surprise - I was not expecting such fantasy/sci-fi, and I really enjoyed it! <em>Foolish Hearts</em> is a contemporary romance and I found it super, super sweet.<br />
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In March, I lost a bit of steam. <em>Furthermore </em>took me a bit longer than expected to finish. Then I started reading <em>The Lonely Hearts Hotel</em>, which I had pick up at the library the week before - the lesson here being not to pick up books at the library unless you are ready to start reading them <em>now</em>. I'm very much a mood-reader, so when I got to the end of <em>Furthermore</em>, I wasn't really feeling the other one. But I started it anyway, and then got my butt kicked. I realized, too late, that <em>Lonely Hearts Hotel </em>was written by the same author as <em>Lullabies for Little Criminals</em>, which I did not enjoy, and I had said I wouldn't read anything more by that author. The writing style is the same, and I think the only word I can use to describe it is crude. So I took a break, read a couple others, then went back to it. But it kind of took the wind from my sails. I hate not finishing books, so I made myself go back to it... Anyway, so I think it should be obvious that <em>The Lonely Hearts Hotel</em> was my least favourite of the 7 books I read in March. I think I would have to say that <em>Eliza and Her Monsters</em> was my favourite. <span style="color: blue;">I had originally posted this with six books in March, including an audiobook, because I had assumed that I would finish the audiobook in time. I did not. Also, I had read two other small books that I wasn't originally going to include in my monthly reads, but alas, I did read them, so they should count, right? <i>You Know You're Dutch When... </i>was a gift from one of my Dutch penpals, and <i>Newt Scamander: A Movie Scrapbook</i> came in my March Wizarding World box from LootCrate!</span><br />
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At this point, I have read 21 out of 80 books, putting me at 26% - right on target!Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-80480809850711129602018-03-15T13:34:00.000-04:002018-03-15T13:34:48.174-04:00Book Review: The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp by Rick Yancey<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><u><span style="font-size: large;">The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp</span></u></strong></div>
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<strong>by Rick Yancey</strong></div>
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<strong>Source:</strong> Unintentionally ordered through Indigo.ca<br />
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<strong>Genre:</strong> Young Adult, Fiction, Fantasy, Adventure<br />
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<strong>About the book:</strong><br />
This is the first book in a Teen/Young Adult trilogy by author Rick Yancey (of <em>The 5th Wave</em> fame). I have read <em>The 5th Wave</em>, but admittedly have not yet finished that trilogy. I must also admit that I had certain expectations from this book, which were not exactly met.<br />
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This book features parts of Arthurian mythology, it's got some pretty intense high-speed chase and fight scenes, a bit of that "chosen one"<br />
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Alfred Kropp is a nobody. He's just a normal, albeit large, kid with average grades, with an absentee father, a dead mother, living with his uncle. Soon enough, Alfred's uncle gets them both into quite a bit of trouble, resulting in a theft and several deaths (including that of Alfred's uncle). Alfred spends most of the rest of the book feeling guilty for what happened, trying to fix what he thinks was his fault, and continuing to think that he isn't special (when, of course, he is).<br />
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<strong>Review:</strong><br />
There is a special place in my heart for medieval stories and the legends surrounding King Arthur and their retellings, so I was pretty into the synopsis of this book. The cover didn't grab me (just being honest), but the fact that it features the Sword Excalibur, and is written by the author of <em>The 5th Wave</em>, that was enough for me.<br />
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I mentioned that I unintentionally bought this book online... I try to give my nephews a book & something else for Christmas/birthdays, and my older nephew's birthday is January 1st, so I was on the lookout for two books for a teenage boy who likes sports, videogames, and fast cars. Well, <em>Ready Player One</em> was suggested to me and seemed a no-brainer. Two other series that were recommended to me were this one, Alfred Kropp, and the Alex Rider series. I couldn't decide which to buy, so I had all three books in my cart for the longest time. Then I <em>thought</em> I had decided on Alex Rider, and made my order, but when the box came, there were all three books. Whoops. So then, of course, I had a little dilemma over which books to actually give him (because I really wanted to read <em>Ready Player One</em> myself).... Long story, but I gave him the other two because they seemed like they would be more his style, and I kept this one.<br />
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So, all that to say that I did not intentionally buy this book for myself, but I decided to keep it because I'm a good auntie. And I decided to read it right off the bat in January, because, I don't know why... I just wanted to see if it was any good, I guess.<br />
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I gave the book 3.5 stars because it was ok, but there was just something about it that I didn't love. I didn't particularly like the dialogue, and Alfred's character... He was self-deprecating, which isn't exactly uncommon in young adult fiction, but he was kind of clueless and simple-minded. I suppose one could see that as being refreshing (as compared to the typical main characters in the young adult genre who are "wise beyond their years"), but it just fell kind of flat for me, especially when he turns out to be a sort of "chosen one." I might, someday, want to know what Alfred gets up to in the next books, but I definitely won't be going out of my way to acquire them.<br />
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<strong>My Goodreads rating:</strong><br />
I actually gave this book 3.5 stars, but as there are no half-star options on Goodreads, I rounded up.<br />
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-31653486483732913582018-01-22T11:02:00.002-05:002018-01-22T11:02:25.719-05:00Book Review: The Glass Spare by Lauren DeStefano<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<u><strong><span style="font-size: large;">The Glass Spare</span></strong></u></div>
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<strong>by Lauren DeStefano</strong></div>
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<strong>Source:</strong> The November "Castles. Courts and Kingdoms" box from OwlCrate<br />
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<strong>Genre:</strong> Fantasy, Young Adult, Magic<br />
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<strong>Plot:</strong><br />
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Wilhelmina "Wil" Heidle is a princess, the apple of her mother's eye, and one of her father's best-kept secret weapons as a potential spy. Wil is the youngest of four, the beloved daughter after three sons, a spare who will never see the throne. Wil is close to two of her brothers: Owen (the heir), and Gerdie (the second youngest, and alchemist). Baron (second oldest, the first spare) is a despicable character, only loved by his mother, and even she fears him.</div>
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The story of Wil's birth is quite special. By all accounts she appeared to be cursed and should not have lived, but did. She looks nothing like the rest of her family, which makes her excellent spy material. She has a knack for fighting and undercover work (she often escapes the palace to find special ingredients for Gerdie's alchemy). Wil wants nothing more than to travel the world, and if being her father's spy (and thereby earning his approval) is the only way to do it, so be it.</div>
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But soon everything changes. Wil's life is threatened, and in her fight for her life, something inside her awakens. She suddenly has the ability to turn living things to "stone" when she is upset. Actually, gemstones. Emeralds, diamonds, rubies, etc.</div>
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After a series of unfortunate events, Wil's family now believes that she is dead, and she is on the run, trying to find a way to cure the curse, and save her kingdom.</div>
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<strong>Review:</strong><br />
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I found this book to have a bit of a slow start. I mean, I was <em>interested</em> from the beginning, because, what a great premise!, but it wasn't quite able to hold my attention. This may have been due to my own mindset at the time, as I was trying to finish the book in December as part of the Facebook group Life and Lit's Bingo reading challenge, which I guess was a bit too much stress. I decided to set it aside for a couple of weeks, and when I came back to it, things seemed to be a bit more interesting, and by the halfway point I was hooked.<br />
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I seem to have a real problem with fantasy world-building. It doesn't seem to matter what the world is, if it isn't the here and now, I tend to have a hard time picturing it. I found the world in this book to be rather confusing. On the one hand, it sounded medieval to me, King Arthur-esque. However, upon further research, I suppose it's meant to be more like King Midas' time period, which would be Ancient Greece (I honestly didn't remember this from history?). But the presence of modern technology (electricity, elevators...) <em>really</em> threw me off.</div>
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Aside from that, I really enjoyed the adventure, and the sort-of romance. I <em>really</em> like this idea of a cursed princess, I love the "Midas touch" aspect, and I appreciated that it wasn't all about the romance. I was really frustrated with the ending because it's what I consider a bit of a cliffhanger; Wil still hasn't found the cure for her curse, she has to go back to her kingdom to save someone's life, something tragic may have happened back in her kingdom but we don't know for sure, and we don't know what kind of deal she made with the <span style="background-color: white;">Marveler,</span> or what will be expected of her in the future after she returns... *sigh* I guess I'll just have to wait for the sequel!<br />
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Overall, I found it an interesting read, and I think I would recommend it to someone who likes fantasy. :)</div>
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<strong>My Goodreads rating:</strong></div>
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-23177992835356773262018-01-15T14:21:00.001-05:002018-01-15T14:22:23.882-05:00It's Monday! What Are YOU Reading? #8<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good Monday afternoon! Let me tell you, I was not this chipper this morning. I didn't sleep very much last night, my brain was running on high speed, so I was groggy and grumpy this morning, and it was something like -23*C. Yuck. Anyway... feeling a little less murderous this afternoon...</div>
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I have been working on some new book reviews, but they're not quite ready yet, but I thought I should post <em>something</em> for you guys... You know, all two of you, waiting with bated breath... *insert massive eye roll*</div>
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So, what <strong>am</strong> I reading this week? Well that's kind of a long story, that starts before Christmas... If you want the long-story-short version, please skip over the blue text...</div>
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<span style="color: blue;">Right, so I like to try to give my nephews each a book and something else for Christmas/birthdays. I've been gifting my younger nephew the Harry Potter series, so he was taken care of for Christmas, but I needed to find something for my older nephew, plus his birthday is January 1st, so I actually had to find two books for him.</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">I did a little consulting on the Facebook groups, and got lots of great ideas! The most suggested, and the one I thought would be the best-received was <em>Ready Player One</em> by Ernest Cline, especially with the movie coming out in March! So I ordered that one, and then I couldn't decide between two other suggestions. One was the Alfred Kropp series, the other was the Alex Rider series. They both looked pretty interesting, but I thought I had settled on Alex Rider because it seemed a little more his style (these are spy books with a lot of extreme sports, which he loves). As it turns out, I accidentally ordered both books, <em>The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp (Alfred Kropp #1)</em> and <em>Stormbreaker (Alex Rider #1)</em>.</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">I kept hearing good things about <em>Ready Player One</em>, and I <strong>really</strong> wanted to read it myself, so I considered keeping it, (I mean, I <em><strong>really</strong></em> struggled with this...), and just giving him the other two, since I had them. But I knew he would like <em>Ready Player One</em>, and I had bought it for him, so what to do? Well I knew that I wasn't interested in reading Alex Rider myself, and that it would be more his thing, so I gave him that book for Christmas, leaving myself a few days to decide what to do with the others.</span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">What I ended up deciding was just to give him <em>Ready Player One</em>, but start reading it myself. </span><span style="color: blue;">I started reading it, mistakenly thinking I would have enough time to read the whole thing before his party on the 1st, but I only got about halfway through before the party rolled around and I had to give it away! So I put my name in right away for an interlibrary loan copy, thinking I would probably get it this past week. </span><span style="color: blue;">No dice. I only got the call last Friday that it was delivered, but the library is closed on Monday, so I have to wait until tomorrow! Then I will <em>finally</em> be able to finish <em>Ready Player One</em>!</span></div>
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So, long-story-short, I am "currently reading" <em>Ready Player One</em>, even though it has not been in my possession for two weeks, and I will only be able to resume reading it tomorrow. In the meantime, I am also reading <em>Murder on the Orient Express</em> by Agatha Christie. I won't have time to finish it before I get my hands back on <em>Ready Player One</em>, but I just might possibly finish both of them this week - we'll have to see! :)<br />
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What are you guys reading this week? Have you read <em>Ready Player One</em> yet? I was loving it, what I've read so far, and really can't wait to finish it, and then for the movie to come out in a couple months!! </div>
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-29179322425534078012017-12-31T19:17:00.001-05:002017-12-31T19:17:14.733-05:002017 Reads<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hey guys! I thought I would make a complete list of the books I've read in 2017, with links to any reviews I've written. Just, you know, in case you were interested or whatever... You probably aren't, but let's be honest, this isn't about you. ;)</div>
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I believe I had originally set my Goodreads Reading Challenge goal this year to 30, because that's how many books I read last year. I quickly reached that goal, so I pushed it up to 52. I had reached that by the end of... October, I think? At that point I decided not to set a higher goal, but just see how many books I would end up reading by the end of the year. As things progressed I unofficially gave myself a goal of 75, and I have managed to achieve that!</div>
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Reading went really well for me this year! I didn't go through many reading slumps, and I consistently read a minimum of 4 novels per month, at my normal pace - no stressing or pushing to read faster. At the end, I'll admit I read a few shorter books in order to complete a couple challenges and reach my "unofficial goal," but they're still books, and I did read them! ;) There are probably a few areas of my life that I didn't pay as much attention to in order to read more (other hobbies, mostly), but aside from my penpals, I don't think my reading twice as much this year has had much affect on anybody else. I will admit that my penpals may have suffered a bit of neglect this year... :/</div>
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According to my <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/year_in_books/2017/">Goodreads Year in Books</a>, the most popular book I read was <i>All the Light We Cannot See</i>, and the longest book I read was <i>Wildwood</i>. As you can see from the list below, I was doing alright with reviewing for a while, but I quickly got sidetracked (by reading more books!). I think one of my goals for 2018 will be to set aside time every 3-4 weeks to review any books I've finished in that time period. Or to try to review as soon as I've finished (that would be ideal). Actually, ideally, I should take notes as I'm reading, but that would just require too much organization and commitment on my part! ;) </div>
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<ol>
<li>Flawed by Cecelia Ahern (****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/01/review-flawed-by-cecelia-ahern.html">review here</a></li>
<li>The Magician's Lie by Greer Macallister (***) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/03/book-review-magicians-lie-by-greer.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake (****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/02/book-review-three-dark-crowns-by.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/01/book-review-anne-of-green-gables-by-lm.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Da Vinci's Tiger by L.M. Elliott (**) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/02/book-review-da-vincis-tiger-by-lm.html">review here</a></li>
<li>The Woman Next Door by Barbara Delinsky - audio (***)</li>
<li>Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/03/book-review-eleanor-park-by-rainbow.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth (****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/05/book-review-carve-mark-by-veronica-roth.html">review here</a></li>
<li>The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George (**) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/04/book-review-little-paris-bookshop-by.html">review here</a></li>
<li>This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/04/book-review-this-savage-song-by.html">review here</a></li>
<li>P. S. I Like You by Kasie West (***) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/03/book-review-ps-i-like-you-by-kasie-west.html">review here</a></li>
<li>All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr - audio (***)</li>
<li>The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry (****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/03/book-review-ps-i-like-you-by-kasie-west.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Ever the Hunted by Erin Summerill (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/06/book-review-ever-hunted-by-erin.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Caraval by Stephanie Garber (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/03/book-review-caraval-by-stephanie-garber.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Seven Deadlies: A Cautionary Tale by Gigi Levangie (***) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/03/book-review-seven-deadlies-cautionay.html">review here</a></li>
<li>The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (audio / reread) (*****)</li>
<li>A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley (*****)</li>
<li>Grounded by Kate Klise (****)</li>
<li>Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/06/book-review-before-i-fall-by-lauren.html">review here</a></li>
<li>The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/06/book-review-raven-boys-by-maggie.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Servants' Hall: A Real Life Upstairs, Downstairs Romance by Margaret Powell (***)</li>
<li>Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon (*****) - <a href="http://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/11/book-review-everything-everything-by.html">review here</a><span id="goog_1545665473"></span><span id="goog_1545665474"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></li>
<li>The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer - audio (*****)</li>
<li>Wildwood by Colin Meloy (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/07/book-review-wildwood-by-colin-meloy.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell (***)</li>
<li>Look Into My Eyes by Lauren Child (****)</li>
<li>The Girl With the Silver Eyes by Willo Davis Roberts (****)</li>
<li>Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/07/book-review-love-gelato-by-jenna-evans.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Sweet Misfortune by Kevin Alan Milne (****)</li>
<li>The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli (****) - <a href="http://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/11/book-review-upside-of-unrequited-by.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (*****)</li>
<li>Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O'Neill (***)</li>
<li>A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/08/book-review-monster-calls-by-patrick.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Wonder by R.J. Palacia (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/09/book-review-wonder-by-rj-palacio.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (*****)</li>
<li>The Blackthorn Key by Kevin Sands (*****)</li>
<li>Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/07/book-review-six-of-crows-by-leigh.html">review here</a></li>
<li>A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab (*****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/07/book-review-darker-shade-of-magic-by-ve.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Future Perfect by Jen Larsen (****)</li>
<li>Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli (****)</li>
<li>All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven (*****)</li>
<li>Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller (*****) - <a href="http://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/10/book-review-daughter-of-pirate-king-by.html">review here</a></li>
<li>A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle (***)</li>
<li>Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (****)</li>
<li>All There Is: Love Stories from StoryCorps by Dave Isay (****)</li>
<li>New World: Rising by Jennifer Wilson (****)</li>
<li>Peter Pan by E.M. Barrie (****) - <a href="https://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/08/book-review-peter-pan-by-jm-barrie.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Everland by Wendy Spinale (****)</li>
<li>Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman (*****)</li>
<li>What to Say Next by Julie Buxbaum (*****)</li>
<li>13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl by Mona Awad (**)</li>
<li>The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee (*****)</li>
<li>The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling - audio (**)</li>
<li>The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater (*****)</li>
<li>Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst (***) - <a href="http://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/10/book-review-of-fire-and-stars-by-audrey.html">review here</a></li>
<li>One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake (*****)</li>
<li>Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater (*****)</li>
<li>A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (****) - <a href="http://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/12/book-review-man-called-ove-by-fredrik.html">review here</a></li>
<li>The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith - audio (*****)</li>
<li>A Good Day to Buy by Sherry Harris (****)</li>
<li>The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith - audio (*****)</li>
<li>The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater (****)</li>
<li>Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco (****)- <a href="http://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/11/book-review-stalking-jack-ripper-by.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Warcross by Marie Lu (****)</li>
<li>Glass Houses by Louise Penny (*****) - <a href="http://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/12/book-review-glass-houses-by-louise-penny.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Miracle on 5th Avenue by Sarah Morgan (***)</li>
<li>Dear Santa: Children's Christmas Letters and Wish Lists, 1870-1920 (*****)</li>
<li>Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore (***) - <a href="http://a-msbookreviews.blogspot.ca/2017/12/book-review-wild-beauty-by-anna-marie.html">review here</a></li>
<li>Before She Ignites by Jodi Meadows (****)</li>
<li>A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro (*****)</li>
<li>The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate (****)</li>
<li>The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling (****)</li>
<li>Matchless by Gregory Maguire (***)</li>
<li>For One More Day by Mitch Albom (****)</li>
</ol>
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And that's it for 2017! I think this is the most books I have ever read in a year, and I'm pretty stoked about that. If it isn't, it certainly has been years since I've been able to achieve that.</div>
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So, I've just set my Goodreads Reading Challenge goal for 2018 to <b><i>80</i></b>. Five more than 2017, which I think should be achievable. Providing that the new year goes as smoothly as this past year, with no real obstacles... We'll see! I will definitely try to continue reviewing the books I've read this year (or at least the ones I really liked), and will try to be more on top of the blogging/reviewing situation in 2018.</div>
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Happy New Year everyone, and happy reading!</div>
Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-31726223919716114222017-12-27T18:00:00.001-05:002017-12-27T18:00:02.349-05:00Book Review: Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u><br /></u></span></b>
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Wild Beauty</u></span></b></div>
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<b>by Anna-Marie McLemore</b></div>
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<strong>Source: </strong>Received in an OwlCrate box (October "Find Me In The Forest")<br />
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<strong>Genre: </strong>Fantasy, Young Adult, Magical Realism<br />
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<b>Synopsis:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span id="freeText11641636495943985746"><em><b>Love grows such strange things.</b><br /><br />For nearly a century, the Nomeolvides women have tended the grounds of La Pradera, the lush estate gardens that enchant guests from around the world. They’ve also hidden a tragic legacy: if they fall in love too deeply, their lovers vanish. But then, after generations of vanishings, a strange boy appears in the gardens.<br /><br />The boy is a mystery to Estrella, the Nomeolvides girl who finds him, and to her family, but he’s even more a mystery to himself; he knows nothing more about who he is or where he came from than his first name. As Estrella tries to help Fel piece together his unknown past, La Pradera leads them to secrets as dangerous as they are magical in this stunning exploration of love, loss, and family</em></span></blockquote>
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<b>Review:</b><br />
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I'm not sure if it's the magical realism, or the author's writing style, or what exactly it was that I didn't like about this book, but I was disappointed. We received it in the October OwlCrate box, which I was soooo excited about! I had added this one to my Goodreads To Read list ages ago, because it was so gorgeous. Then when we got it in the box, with the exclusive cover, I was just over the moon. So I read it fairly soon after, and, well... Not what I was expecting or hoping for from this book.</div>
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I have a huge tendency to not really read too much about a book before I pick it up. Very generally speaking, if somebody posts a picture of a book cover on Instagram with a little blurb (ex: it's about this family of women who live in a beautiful garden and grow flowers from their hands), that's usually enough for me. Sometimes I will read the full synopsis on Goodreads, or if I'm holding the physical book I might read the flyleaf, but I really truly unapologetically judge books by their covers and the recommendations of my peers. Not reviews - I never read reviews before I read a book - but if someone I know says "I loved this book!" and it's a genre I enjoy, and it has a pretty cover, to boot... good enough!</div>
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All that to say that I honestly hadn't read what the book was about before it came in the OwlCrate box. The synopsis is intriguing, so I was anxious to read it, but, I had a really hard time enjoying it.</div>
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The imagery is absolutely beautiful, there is no denying that. The author's description of flowers and colours is exceptional. The story itself, I felt a bit lost in. I see how everything tied together in the end, but getting there... there were many things that just felt like distractions from the main story, or unnecessary embellishments, or I don't know... I really wasn't sure where things were going or what the purpose of all these characters was, or anything until probably 2/3 into the book. The characters also weren't all that special to me. I liked them, but didn't feel there was much to connect to, and there were <i>so many</i>!</div>
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I may give the author's other books a chance, should I ever come across them, but I wouldn't go out of my way to find her books, based on how I felt about <i>Wild Beauty</i>. They all have great synopses, but so did this one, so...</div>
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In the end, it was an ok read for me. It only has a 3.73 star rating on Goodreads so I obviously am not the only one who feels it may have missed the mark. Not sure I would recommend it, but I know that <i>a lot</i> of people on the Life & Lit and OwlCrate Society groups <i>loved</i> it, so... Read at your own risk, I guess! :)</div>
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<b>My Goodreads rating:</b><br />
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<br />Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-85252037802517957172017-12-18T18:08:00.002-05:002018-01-15T14:21:30.512-05:00It's Monday! What Are YOU Reading? #7<div style="text-align: justify;">
So I will be writing a Year in Review type post next week, most likely, but I just felt like I haven't been super active in the last couple weeks, so I thought I would write a quick Monday post!</div>
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One of the Facebook groups I'm in, called Life & Lit, has been doing different challenges and activities all month long, under the theme of Yule Ball (from the Harry Potter books/movies). One of the biggest challenges is the Yule Bingo. The bingo card is divided into 16 squares, with one column for each of the four houses (Griffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff), and each square is a character or major element from the Harry Potter stories, which represents a theme of a possible book (ex: Butterbeer is a for a sweet book, and Harry is for a book with the "chosen one" trope). You get one point for your house per square you block off, and if you block off the whole column for your house, you get a bingo, which means 5 points! It's a lot of fun!</div>
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So, I've been working away at the Yule Bingo. I have read five books so far this month for that. I need to read two more from the Ravenclaw column to get bingo, and then if I read just one more book after that, I will have reached my unofficial goal of 75 books! I think it's totally achievable! At the end of November I wasn't so sure I'd be able to make it, but I've been doing really well. Admittedly, a couple of the books I've read this month were shorter/kids' stories, but still!</div>
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I got into a bit of a slump over the weekend, but my current read is <i>The Glass Spare</i> by Lauren Destefano, which came in the November OwlCrate box. It sounds good, and what I've read so far has been good, but I just haven't felt like reading that much lately, and I had other stuff going on this weekend.</div>
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After I finish <i>The Glass Spare</i>, I intend to read <i>Matchless: A Christmas Story</i> by Gregory Maguire. It's a shorter one, so I should be able to finish it in a day, depending on what else is going on. And then I think I'd like to try to read <i>Ready Player One </i>by Ernest Cline, before I give it to my nephew for his birthday on January first!</div>
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What are you guys reading this week? How have you done with your reading goals this year?</div>
Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-43770420247096637722017-12-13T10:00:00.000-05:002017-12-13T10:00:13.375-05:00Book Review: A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>A Man Called Ove</u></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>by Fredrik Backman</b></div>
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<strong>Source: </strong>Found a used copy in a book sale<br />
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<strong>Genre: </strong>Contemporary, Fiction, Humour<br />
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<b>Synopsis:</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span id="freeText8510385037686030776"><em>A grumpy yet loveable man finds his solitary world turned on its head when a boisterous young family moves in next door.<br /><br />Meet Ove. He's a curmudgeon, the kind of man who points at people he dislikes as if they were burglars caught outside his bedroom window. He has staunch principles, strict routines, and a short fuse. People call him the bitter neighbor from hell, but must Ove be bitter just because he doesn't walk around with a smile plastered to his face all the time?<br /><br />Behind the cranky exterior there is a story and a sadness. So when one November morning a chatty young couple with two chatty young daughters move in next door and accidentally flatten Ove's mailbox, it is the lead-in to a comical and heartwarming tale of unkempt cats, unexpected friendship, and the ancient art of backing up a U-Haul. All of which will change one cranky old man and a local residents' association to their very foundations.</em></span></blockquote>
<b>Review:</b><br />
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This book had a slow start for me. It didn't quite grab my attention at the start. That was partially due to the fact that I was (once again) attempting to read several books at once. However, I had heard some really wonderful things about this book, so I definitely wanted to stick with it and give it a solid shot. I decided that I would need to set aside any other books I was reading and force myself to read <em>A Man Called Ove</em>, otherwise I would be too tempted to read faster paced Young Adult novels. </div>
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Once I was focused on this book alone, it was still kind of slow for me. There were some funny parts (poor old Ove just can't catch a break!), but it still didn't really mean much to me, and I was finding the flashbacks a bit annoying.<br />
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After about the 3/4 mark, however, I was completely invested. It wasn't that anything significant happened, or anything like that; something in my mind just clicked, I guess, and I suddenly really <em>needed</em> to know what was going to happen to Ove and his neighbours. I suppose I was also starting to see the picture the flashbacks were tying to show us.<br />
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And then the ending... Well, once I got there, I finally knew what everyone had been talking about! This certainly is a very moving story, with a tear-jerking ending. As curmudgeonly an old grouch as Ove is, he's a really loveable character. I enjoyed how we see Ove's crusty old frozen heart slowly melt and soften to encompass those around him - both new and old.<br />
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It was especially <strike>funny</strike> entertaining for me to read this story, as I work with the elderly on a daily basis. Trust me, I've met a few Ove's. Of course, Ove isn't really as old as he acts, which I suppose is part of his charm.<br />
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Overall, a touching story, and I do recommend it!<br />
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<b>My Goodreads rating:</b><br />
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-34652239504176657122017-12-06T10:00:00.000-05:002017-12-06T10:00:41.862-05:00Book Review: Glass Houses by Louise Penny<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><u><span style="font-size: large;">Glass Houses</span></u></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>by Louise Penny</strong></div>
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<strong>Genre:</strong> Mystery, Contemporary, Fiction<br />
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<strong>Synopsis:</strong><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span id="freeText10546421416542378082"><em>When a mysterious figure appears on the village green on a cold November day in Three Pines, Armand Gamache, now Chief Superintendent of the Sûreté du Québec, knows something is seriously wrong. Yet he does nothing. Legally, what can he do? Only watch and wait. And hope his mounting fears are not realized.<br /><br />From the moment its shadow falls over Three Pines, Gamache suspects the creature has deep roots and a dark purpose. When it suddenly vanishes and a body is discovered, it falls to Gamache to discover if a debt has been paid or levied.<br /><br />In the early days of the investigation into the murder, and months later, as the trial for the accused begins in a Montreal courtroom on a steamy day in July, the Chief Superintendent continues to struggle with actions he’s set in motion, from which there is no going back. “This case began in a higher court,” he tells the judge, “and it’s going to end there.”<br /><br />And regardless of the trial’s outcome, he must face his own conscience.<br /><br />In her latest utterly gripping book, number-one New York Times bestselling author Louise Penny shatters the conventions of the crime novel to explore what Gandhi called the court of conscience. A court that supersedes all others.</em></span></blockquote>
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<strong>Review:</strong><br />
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<b><i>As always, I must warn you that this post may contain spoilers. I don't find that I have much of a filter when it comes to these things.</i></b><br />
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Honestly, I don't think I will ever <i>not</i> like a Louise Penny book. I'm only sorry I didn't read this one sooner, and that when I did start reading it, I didn't give it the attention it deserved. I adore the world that Louise Penny has created in these books. Not just Three Pines, and not just because it's set in the region where I live... I love the people as if they were my own friends and neighbours, and I love the atmosphere, and I love the attention she gives to food.<br />
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So before I read it, I saw a <i>ton</i> of reviews that toted this novel as her "best one yet" and everyone saying it was their favourite... I won't say that, but I will say that it took on a slightly different feel, and I liked it. It made me cry, and that's usually a sign of a very good book. (Or maybe I was just an emotional wreck when I was reading it... Who knows?)<br />
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The story goes back and forth between the events leading up to a murder that took place in Three Pines in November, and the Montreal courtroom in July, where the case is being tried and Armand is giving his testimony.<br />
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Of course there is more to the story than the murder itself. In previous books, Louise dealt with corruption in the government; in this one she addresses drug cartels. In order to stop this one significant source of crime and death in Quebec, Gamache and his team must launch a huge top secret undercover operation which results in many more deaths, and crimes that they themselves must commit, for the greater good. The line between right and wrong is not always clear.<br />
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I mentioned it in my Goodreads review, but I'll say it again here, the last three chapters were really what got me. The major action scenes happen then (which were what made me cry), we finally discover who the murderer was, as well as the identity of the head of the drug cartel, and we are left in suspense to find out whether or not Armand Gamache will maintain his title as Chief Superintendent of the <span style="text-align: start;">Sûreté du Québec!</span></div>
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<strong>My Goodreads rating:</strong><br />
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-4045533920076809222017-12-01T13:13:00.002-05:002017-12-01T13:13:12.445-05:00Progress Report: October - November 2017<div style="text-align: justify;">
<strong>*Phew*</strong></div>
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Let me tell you, I thought that the summer went fast, but the last two months were like a flash! Ok, so maybe October dragged a bit for me due to personal reasons, but November... Where did it go?!</div>
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Alright, so I just thought I should do another brief overview of my reading for tthe last two months. In October I read the following <strong>5 books and 1 audiobook</strong>:</div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHzB2rDxju_PW3Nno5Lm-n0I-hvyqbaDa0UV1K9k7deW4QJMeLObFFrXypZ9_VuiFi-f-1BN_hyphenhyphenem8A-X2_ALzBwlU7nHyHR1m88bGIWePwa73SDNn_STdq0QFByBClH6Hlwni353XIeip/s1600/blue+lily.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="314" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHzB2rDxju_PW3Nno5Lm-n0I-hvyqbaDa0UV1K9k7deW4QJMeLObFFrXypZ9_VuiFi-f-1BN_hyphenhyphenem8A-X2_ALzBwlU7nHyHR1m88bGIWePwa73SDNn_STdq0QFByBClH6Hlwni353XIeip/s200/blue+lily.jpg" width="131" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My fave October read</td></tr>
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<em>One Dark Throne </em>by Kendare Blake *****</div>
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<em>Blue Lily, Lily Blue</em> by Maggie Stiefvater *****</div>
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<em>A Man Called Ove </em>by Fredrik Backman ****</div>
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<em>The Cuckoo's Calling</em> (audio) by Robert Galbraith *****</div>
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<em>A Good Day to Buy</em> by Sherry Harris ****</div>
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<em>The Raven King</em> by Maggie Stiefvater ****</div>
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And in November I read the following <strong>4 books and 1 audiobook</strong>:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFEVdJ2O-31XjT5WKiUiSIcBwSypvMokm22CsOk37IRQLLB08jPFFS6Pc6n1zoLB1cSTP6GjNz4khGEYFlR64cT8ZoP4OblMVp_8i03x5arNpCreE4TfzQQjCijPwmBETNz6P4-9UTl7Sl/s1600/warcross.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="311" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFEVdJ2O-31XjT5WKiUiSIcBwSypvMokm22CsOk37IRQLLB08jPFFS6Pc6n1zoLB1cSTP6GjNz4khGEYFlR64cT8ZoP4OblMVp_8i03x5arNpCreE4TfzQQjCijPwmBETNz6P4-9UTl7Sl/s200/warcross.jpg" width="130" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Even though I rated a<br />couple others higher,<br />this was my fave<br />November read!</td></tr>
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<em>The Silkworm</em> (audio) by Robert Galbraith *****</div>
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<em>Stalking Jack the Ripper </em>(ebook) by Kerri Maniscalco ****</div>
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<em>Warcross</em> by Marie Lu ****</div>
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<em>Glass Houses</em> by Louise Penny *****</div>
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<em>Miracle on 5th Avenue</em> by Sarah Morgan ***</div>
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I had reached my Goodreads goal of 52 in September, and decided not to increase it, just to see how many books I would read without feeling the pressure of a deadline. As of today, I have read 67 books in 2017! I was sort of unofficially aiming for 75, but that might be a bit of a stretch at this point. I'm not sure exactly how much reading time I'll be putting in between now and Christmas, what with work and Christmas parties, and gifts to finish crafting/buying... But we'll see! Maybe I will surprise myself! ;)<br />
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Just to finish the update, I am currently reading <em>Wild Beauty</em> by Anna-Marie McLemore. It is mystical and magical and intriguing, but I'm not feeling a real connection to the story or characters yet. I don't think I like the way it is written, but I'm going to stick it out and see if my opinion changes. Last week I picked up, but haven't dug too deep yet into, <em>Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps </em>by Kelly Williams Brown. And last night (technically December 1st, but we are the first, so... I'll mention it...) I started <em>Dear Santa: Children's Christmas Letters and Wish Lists, 1870-1920. </em>It should be a very sweet Christmas-y read to kick off the season.</div>
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I'll be back at the end of the month for a complete 2017 Year in Review post!</div>
Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-40649858297758888032017-11-29T10:00:00.000-05:002017-11-29T10:00:40.723-05:00Book Review: Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Stalking Jack the Ripper</span></u></b></div>
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<b>by Kerri Maniscalco</b></div>
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<b>Source:</b> I bought a e-version fairly cheap on Google Books<br />
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<b>Genre:</b> Young Adult, Historical fiction, Mystery, Horror<br />
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<b>Synopsis:</b><br />
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<i><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818; font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">Seventeen-year-old Audrey Rose Wadsworth was born a lord's daughter, with a life of wealth and privilege stretched out before her. But between the social teas and silk dress fittings, she leads a forbidden secret life. </span></i></div>
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<i style="background-color: transparent;">Against her stern father's wishes and society's expectations, Audrey often slips away to her uncle's laboratory to study the gruesome practice of forensic medicine. When her work on a string of savagely killed corpses drags Audrey into the investigation of a serial murderer, her search for answers brings her close to her own sheltered world. </i><br />
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<b>Review:</b><br />
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It took me two weeks to finish this book, for a few reasons. One being that I was trying to read three books at once, which rarely goes well for me. Another being that it was an e-book, which I generally find more difficult to read. They're handy because I can read them on my phone, which I always have with me. However, if I have my phone screen in front of me, the temptation to do any- and everything <i>other</i> than read is strong.</div>
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That said, I did find that the beginning was a little uninteresting. It wasn't exactly slow, the murders start happening almost immediately, but it didn't quite <i>grab</i> me until a few chapters in.</div>
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I really enjoyed the characters. I loved how independent, spunky, and feminine Audrey Rose was, and I fancied how odd, brilliant, and flirtatious Thomas was. I just really liked their chemistry and dialogue.</div>
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I appreciated the inclusion of period photos, they helped to really put you in the setting. The photos were creepy, but not gruesome; ranging from medical diagrams to a leper to evidence from the Jack the Ripper case.</div>
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I was quite intrigued by this teenage female MC in Victorian England, being so interested in the inner workings of bodies, forensic science, mystery solving, etc. She knows where her interests lie, and nobody's going to stop her - I love that! I loved that her uncle recognized her brilliance and drive and was willing to apprentice her, despite her father's wishes. And, of course, I loved that Thomas was attracted to her brains.</div>
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For Audrey Rose's character alone I would give the book five stars, but on top of that, there was a really interesting interpretation of the Jack the Ripper case. I was relatively surprised by the identity of Jack (by that point it was really only down to two possible suspects, in my opinion), and the resolution of the case and how the final evidence was presented to confirm this character's guilt was delightfully creepy and weird.</div>
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I found the story to be very tastefully executed, despite a horrific topic. The conclusion was satisfying and could pretty easily be left at that, but it leads so tidily into the next book that I am quite looking forward to reading <i>Hunting Prince Dracula. </i>I believe I would recommend this book, but only if the person appreciates horror and murder mysteries. I wouldn't <i>exactly</i> describe this as a horror, myself, but it does describe some of the horrific facts of the historical case, so... it's kinda creepy and gross in that way.</div>
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<b>My Goodreads rating:</b><br />
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-10466360180435870202017-11-28T13:28:00.001-05:002017-11-28T13:42:09.505-05:00Top Ten Tuesday: Books On My Winter TBRHey guys! I'm hoping that by starting early I will actually get this Top Ten Tuesday posted on time, and not forget about it... This week's Top Ten Tuesday theme (hosted by <a href="http://www.brokeandbookish.com/">The Broke and the Bookish</a>) is books that are on our winter TBR piles!<br />
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If you've visited my blog before when I've talked about TBR piles, you'll know that I don't really plan my reading. I mean, I'll pick out a bunch of books at the beginning of the month that I'd <i>like</i> to get to, but I most likely won't. I am very much a mood-reader, so when it comes around time to pick up the next book, that little pile for the month is often not very attractive anymore. So, all that to say that it is kind of difficult for me to do TBR posts like this, and actually read the books. But, if I <i>were</i> the type of person to plan my reading (and stick with it), these are the books I'd like to read this winter:<br />
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<b><u>8. </u></b><u style="font-weight: bold;">Winter by Marissa Meyer</u> - I started reading this a few winters ago and simply could not get into it. It's been so long now since I've read the others that I'll probably have the same problem again, but I really would like to finally finish this series.<br />
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<u style="font-weight: bold;">7. Heartless by Marissa Meyer</u> - I am ashamed to admit that I still have not read many of the books that came in OwlCrate boxes in the past year, this being one of them. I love Alice in Wonderland, and I adored the box this book came in, so I'm really not sure why I've put this one off for so long...<br />
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<u style="font-weight: bold;">6. Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore</u> - Another OwlCrate book, this one was actually on my Goodreads TBR long before we got the box, so I am pretty excited about it!<br />
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<u style="font-weight: bold;">5. The Last Star by Rick Yancey</u> - Again, just really need to finish the series. It's been a while now since I read the others, but I feel like it will come back to me quickly enough.<br />
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<u style="font-weight: bold;">4. Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman</u> - I read <i>A Man Called Over</i> earlier this year and came across this other work of his at a used book sale, so I'm looking forward to seeing if all his books have the same feeling.<br />
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<u style="font-weight: bold;">3. The Little Old Lady Strikes Again by Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg</u> - (alternate title, <i>The Little Old Lady Who Struck Lucky Again</i>) I enjoyed the first book, <i>The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules</i>, which was entertaining, so I'm looking forward to seeing what antics the League of Pensioners get into in this book.<br />
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<u style="font-weight: bold;">2. The Girl Who Saved the King of Sweden by Jonas Jonasson</u> - Again, I read his other book, <i>The 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared</i>, which was a bit different and darker than I was expecting, so I'm curious to see what this one will be like. Also, it has been sitting on my shelf for a very long time.<br />
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<u style="font-weight: bold;">1. Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly</u> - I watched the movie when it came out in theatres and simply adored it, so I am very much looking forward to reading the book to find out how many liberties they took with it (aka, how much better the book is)!<br />
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Well... I could only come up with eight... I'm sorry! Haha, I left this on the weekend and didn't come back to it, and didn't feel like wracking my brains for more! :PAnne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-4541738555762668812017-11-22T10:00:00.000-05:002017-11-22T10:00:22.544-05:00Book Review: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon<div style="text-align: center;">
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<strong><u><span style="font-size: large;">Everything, Everything</span></u></strong></div>
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<strong>by Nicola Yoon</strong></div>
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<strong>Source:</strong> I bought a paperback copy from BookOutlet</div>
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<strong>Genre:</strong> Young Adult, Romance, Fiction, Contemporary</div>
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<strong>Synopsis:</strong></div>
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<em>My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.<br /><br />But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.<br /><br />Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.</em></blockquote>
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<strong>Review:</strong></div>
I'm gonna go ahead and say right now that this review contains SPOILERS. I just don't really know how to talk about books at any length without giving away pertinent information! I can't do it! I'm sorry! And like, I absolutely <i>hate it</i> when people spoil stuff for me (in fact, this book spoiled the ending of Le Petit Prince, which made me mad!), but I honestly don't know how not to! So, I'm just not going to try.<br />
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Alright, so, that said... I adored this story! I tend to shy away from very cutesy high school romances, but this one was different. Maybe because it wasn't actually set in a high school, or maybe it was just the writing. We're obviously still talking about a couple of teenagers, one being <i>very</i> sheltered, but the story managed to be youthful without being juvenile.<br />
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Here come the spoilers.<br />
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Maddy only really interacts with three people: her doctor/mother, her nurse Carla, and Carla's daughter Rosa (she does her classes online, so she is in touch with other people, but not in person). Maddy never leaves her house, because she is allergic. To everything. Or so she thinks...<br />
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Olly moves in next door, and Maddy is immediately interested. But can you blame her? An attractive, moody teenage boy dressed in black who does parkour? I was into him, too...<br />
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Anyway, so they start communicating through the window, and then exchange e-mail addresses, and then start IM-ing at all hours of the night... And then Maddy convinces her nurse to make arrangements for Olly to come over while Maddy's mom is away. And they, of course, fall in love, as is to be expected.<br />
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Olly's dad is abusive, and things get pretty interesting when Maddy witnesses him beating Olly and she runs outside to help him. If she really is as sick as she's supposed to be, stepping outside for even a moment should result in an immediate and grave reaction.<br />
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But nothing happens.<br />
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Needless to say, Maddy's mom is beside herself that Maddy would go outside, and when she realizes just how well Maddy and Olly know each other, and what's been going on behind her back, she fires Carla and forbids Maddy from talking to Olly anymore.<br />
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Maddy's not having any of that. She plans a trip to Hawaii (because it's on her bucket list), buys the tickets online with her mom's credit card, and convinces Olly to go with her, despite the potential risk to her health, because love makes you crazy like that, right? Olly begrudgingly takes her, and they spend a magical weekend together, but then she starts to get sick. Knowing all about her apparent illness, and already being concerned for her health and his responsibility for her, Olly rushes her to hospital, her mom comes to take her home, and while she is recovering (and not talking to Olly, because, how embarrassing to almost die in front of the boy you love?!) Olly's family moves away.<br />
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After one of the doctors from the hospital in Hawaii contacts Maddy to tell her she <em>doesn't</em> have what she thinks she has, Maddy begins to question her health. She starts snooping through her mom's files and realizes that it has all been a fabrication, all this time. It turns out that her mom had a sort of psychotic break after the accident that took Maddy's father and brother, and fear made her believe that Maddy was ill, and therefore do everything in her power to protect her and keep her safe.<br />
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Maddy, understandably, leaves her crazy mother behind and goes to find Olly to start a new life with him.<br />
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I thought Maddy was awesome - cool and smart and well-read and knows what she wants. Olly was obviously super cool, too - did I mention the parkour? And their love story was super cute. Like, so sweet.<br />
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I loved Carla, too. She so obviously cares for Maddy as if she were her own daughter, and struggles with suspecting the truth about Maddy and her mom.<br />
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Maddy's mom... It's obvious that she meant well - she only wanted to protect this surviving piece of her family... but she's straight up crazy. Though you suspect the truth from the beginning, reading that part of the story is heartbreaking. Maddy's mom was so delusional that she absolutely believed all of it. She had gone so far off the deep end as to have written articles in medical journals about her daughter's super rare disease, and dealing with it... So sad!<br />
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<strong>My Goodreads rating:</strong><br />
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-36418882362387522772017-11-15T10:00:00.000-05:002017-11-15T10:00:08.030-05:00Book Review: The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>The Upside of Unrequited</u></span></b></div>
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<b>by Becky Albertalli</b></div>
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<strong>Source: </strong>Came in the April "Head Over Heels" OwlCrate box<br />
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<strong>Genre:</strong> Young adult, Romance, Contemporary, LGBTQ+<br />
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<b>Synopsis:</b><br />
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<span id="freeText544477565851463151"><em>Seventeen-year-old Molly Peskin-Suso knows all about unrequited love—she’s lived through it twenty-six times. She crushes hard and crushes often, but always in secret. Because no matter how many times her twin sister, Cassie, tells her to woman up, Molly can’t stomach the idea of rejection. So she’s careful. Fat girls always have to be careful.<br /><br />Then a cute new girl enters Cassie’s orbit, and for the first time ever, Molly’s cynical twin is a lovesick mess. Meanwhile, Molly’s totally not dying of loneliness—except for the part where she is. Luckily, Cassie’s new girlfriend comes with a cute hipster-boy sidekick. Will is funny and flirtatious and just might be perfect crush material. Maybe more than crush material. And if Molly can win him over, she’ll get her first kiss and she’ll get her twin back. <br /><br />There’s only one problem: Molly’s coworker Reid. He’s an awkward Tolkien superfan with a season pass to the Ren Faire, and there’s absolutely no way Molly could fall for him. Right?</em></span></div>
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<b>Review:</b><br />
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I was on the fence about reading this book. But, I am a sucker for anything to do with twins - I've always had a real fascination for multiples and especially identicals - so it didn't take much convincing. The fact that others said it was a really fast read made it more interesting too, and I did end up reading it in one day, which is quite rare for me.</div>
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As you can see from the synopsis, the story is about Molly and her twin Cassie. Cassie suddenly falls head-over-heels for her new girlfriend, and Molly feels totally left behind because she's never had a boyfriend and she feels like her twin isn't <em>hers</em> anymore, and the only way to fix it will be for her to find herself a boyfriend. But how can she find a boyfriend when she's so insecure, feeling fat and ugly and like nobody could ever love her more than as a friend...?!</div>
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It was super cute, as most YA romances tend to be. I loved the twin element, of course, and I just really felt like I could relate to Molly, so much. From her self-image to her feelings about Cassie's new relationship, I often feel the same way, even now (maybe even more now) about my friends and peers: that they are succeeding and achieving and drifting away, but I'm still here, not moving... not achieving or changing or succeeding... I can only imagine what it must be like with a twin. Especially when they went from being best friends who told each other everything, to keeping secrets and developing new interests.</div>
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The writing style wasn't necessarily something I enjoyed in this book. It is definitely written for its audience (teens and young adults), and so I can see how the witty banter and blatant sex talk would appeal to rebellious teenagers, but I just didn't enjoy that aspect so much. I was raised very conservatively, so I would even venture to say that I found it a bit scandalous for a YA book. I understand how it can be perceived as "realistic" to have teenagers and their parents talking about these topics so openly, I'm just saying that I myself would <i>probably</i> not have enjoyed this book as a teenager. I don't know. But as an adult, it was an ok read. It entertained, it was cute, and it was fast, so it's a 3.5 stars for me.</div>
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<b>My Goodreads rating:</b><br />
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-7624361888817347892017-11-14T11:25:00.000-05:002017-11-14T11:25:18.911-05:00Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Want My Future Children to ReadHello again! Imagine, two posts back-to-back, in the same week?! This is insanity! ;)<br />
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Well, I'm back again with another Top Ten Tuesday (a weekly meme hosted by <a href="http://www.brokeandbookish.com/">The Broke and the Bookish</a>). This week's theme is <strong>Books I Want My Future Children to Read</strong>. Let's dive right in.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1. Canadian classic. Everyone should read this one!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2. Literally anything by Roald Dahl - love him! But Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a must! Also, James and the Giant Peach! :D</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0WoWYhhHIiUH6yLvAyzl-r9tPz3FJK-hqt_D4ivkiCDWHEU_Xd5i9d1Qmye1DHQd5FalXBP3k7DVR1Y1-AgXF614FmVjQyByAHPk0zTKz6goI3g2T6bqdQVbicAsuSoxnxFplYtcowO1o/s1600/HP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0WoWYhhHIiUH6yLvAyzl-r9tPz3FJK-hqt_D4ivkiCDWHEU_Xd5i9d1Qmye1DHQd5FalXBP3k7DVR1Y1-AgXF614FmVjQyByAHPk0zTKz6goI3g2T6bqdQVbicAsuSoxnxFplYtcowO1o/s320/HP.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">3. I was "not allowed" to read Harry Potter growing up, but I wasn't that interested anyway. Reading the books as an adult, I loved them. I've got my younger nephew reading them, and I certainly wouldn't force them on a child, but if my kids wanted to read them, I wouldn't discourage them!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMoMiHRvThyLWhG60sMUGa_IlCB9ZWpGEt6268tkXNUgwpzIGlyZliWaKqoEujDgDNnim2uCzeMf03CZPjmAA_vn3Vqd4Gm-LaVA_IYMJMrl7ZxpgBGLRksu4nlR-fMrPPO6fKEyNbxyXJ/s1600/Little+House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="318" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMoMiHRvThyLWhG60sMUGa_IlCB9ZWpGEt6268tkXNUgwpzIGlyZliWaKqoEujDgDNnim2uCzeMf03CZPjmAA_vn3Vqd4Gm-LaVA_IYMJMrl7ZxpgBGLRksu4nlR-fMrPPO6fKEyNbxyXJ/s320/Little+House.jpg" width="216" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">4. The Little House series is another must, for sure!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkFGTkuYEM_59esk7WEB5q4sSKmRovzcebyAIJRzjWMnmDSYTEPpIBPaZtXX8SkmMEd2V_EpactefKU83emwppZMenqFk9bCyMGqCm1jXyQ885i3LupKwvtJ9_b-zh8GjwDmtQyIXiKebt/s1600/Love+You+Forever.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="317" data-original-width="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkFGTkuYEM_59esk7WEB5q4sSKmRovzcebyAIJRzjWMnmDSYTEPpIBPaZtXX8SkmMEd2V_EpactefKU83emwppZMenqFk9bCyMGqCm1jXyQ885i3LupKwvtJ9_b-zh8GjwDmtQyIXiKebt/s1600/Love+You+Forever.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">5. Anything by Robert Munsch. In all honesty, Love You Forever is more for the moms, but it's a good one for the little kids, as well, I think! (P.S. Do not read the reviews on Goodreads, they will ruin it for you...)</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUmuMAx3lbs6Cmg11JdF2c0PlB6RS0NCvidlTbpm1PhE8nbg2b6cwDtjUQCk7p6HrEsshBRP8aND0GdYvHEw_lzZ-WnD-CtgkQndsBK-yBYsnrXUiDY2QaUHlrJIubBrde6qOLEFONvzvN/s1600/wonder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUmuMAx3lbs6Cmg11JdF2c0PlB6RS0NCvidlTbpm1PhE8nbg2b6cwDtjUQCk7p6HrEsshBRP8aND0GdYvHEw_lzZ-WnD-CtgkQndsBK-yBYsnrXUiDY2QaUHlrJIubBrde6qOLEFONvzvN/s1600/wonder.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">6. I read Wonder this year, and I'm pretty sure this will be a forced read for my kids. This should be required reading in every middle school.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoafSa5D_QyWlYw7ero9zp1rO01KCNcy2HzJdL0X6Sli8o9lBATRW1MXYqNaax5TG9n2k926mobxfhdK4HukHU-JxEG0x2k8ThBqsCg52MBpHcFoR9Q6-rysu4a0HBG6gjF0ys89QskfT_/s1600/Amelia+Bedelia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoafSa5D_QyWlYw7ero9zp1rO01KCNcy2HzJdL0X6Sli8o9lBATRW1MXYqNaax5TG9n2k926mobxfhdK4HukHU-JxEG0x2k8ThBqsCg52MBpHcFoR9Q6-rysu4a0HBG6gjF0ys89QskfT_/s320/Amelia+Bedelia.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">7. I loved Amelia Bedelia and her antics :)</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFu3Il8dThyZgaPNbwqi_gLPQQma7_LuU11W4TefGtSDD6I3YflMDmJwqjqxlvOaEVSgyWxZczf4KLrzCqD8w3K8ynCx_VBEAs7Q-lxTJV4kM8U_j45q9lcFwSb_3lkxPI_QHCuDMTzmHk/s1600/Animorphs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="459" data-original-width="316" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFu3Il8dThyZgaPNbwqi_gLPQQma7_LuU11W4TefGtSDD6I3YflMDmJwqjqxlvOaEVSgyWxZczf4KLrzCqD8w3K8ynCx_VBEAs7Q-lxTJV4kM8U_j45q9lcFwSb_3lkxPI_QHCuDMTzmHk/s320/Animorphs.jpg" width="220" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">8. My brother and I both enjoyed these as kids. For some reason, we <em>were</em> allowed to read these... I'm thinking my dad didn't know what they were about... lol</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqdHL3wmoxmkInHlkbm7L0E4LYYPQSVMCcXm953fVHvZD4pLOC13upq7Ztldd9lXpjKUtWtvszSUhwS1gdjIOac_9vZB3sf6VxS-1JTxiNJMTllp1gmPfs0HifkAZz2lnSMu_R71fC7vs3/s1600/Curious+George.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="391" data-original-width="318" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqdHL3wmoxmkInHlkbm7L0E4LYYPQSVMCcXm953fVHvZD4pLOC13upq7Ztldd9lXpjKUtWtvszSUhwS1gdjIOac_9vZB3sf6VxS-1JTxiNJMTllp1gmPfs0HifkAZz2lnSMu_R71fC7vs3/s320/Curious+George.jpg" width="260" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">9. Who doesn't love that silly little monkey?</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJyefed1FU219wd7kmg-btPLfJ8MAJ7gwTS9i2OaOAZNxCv86jXNghskyxC3UNkpv_ADDd1pwpuw_b4XLKmE-yG_GzQPwVBY86m8PFgFIE5oDXikrBJ2kmNexNBSYBpz3_mkzlVAubwjPl/s1600/Magic+School+Bus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="268" data-original-width="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJyefed1FU219wd7kmg-btPLfJ8MAJ7gwTS9i2OaOAZNxCv86jXNghskyxC3UNkpv_ADDd1pwpuw_b4XLKmE-yG_GzQPwVBY86m8PFgFIE5oDXikrBJ2kmNexNBSYBpz3_mkzlVAubwjPl/s1600/Magic+School+Bus.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">10. Absolutely, definitely, without a doubt, the Magic School Bus series. If not the books, they will have to watch the shows, because these stories were entertaining, educational, and got our minds working and asking questions!</td></tr>
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Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-51557074655827005482017-11-13T19:05:00.003-05:002017-11-13T19:12:35.454-05:00It's Monday! What Are YOU Reading? #6<div style="text-align: justify;">
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Good evening Bookish Friends!</div>
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Welcome back for another It's Monday! What Are YOU Reading? post, as hosted by <a href="https://bookdate.blogspot.ca/">The Book Date</a>! Here's what I was reading last week:<br />
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<li>the audiobook of <em>The Silkworm</em> by Robert Galbraith</li>
<li>the ebook of <em>Stalking Jack the Ripper</em> by Kerri Maniscalco</li>
<li><em>Glass Houses</em> by Louise Penny</li>
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I started and finished the first two around the same time, so it took me approximately two weeks to read both of them. The audiobook would've taken that long anyway, because I only listen to them in the car to/from work, so a total of about an hour a day. <em>Stalking Jack the Ripper</em> I would have normally finished faster, but I was trying to read <em>Glass Houses</em> at the same time, which wasn't working very well, so it was a slow beginning for me. Also, I find that I am distracted much easier from ebooks than physical. With a physical book, once I crack it open and start reading, I am pretty well absorbed in it. With the ebook, especially on my phone, I find it so much easier to do anything else <em>except</em> open the book, plus I would be getting notifications and messenger messages, so just very distracting for me. But handier than carrying around a physical book.</div>
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I eventually set aside <em>Glass Houses</em> last week, because <em>Stalking Jack the Ripper</em> was for a book club discussion so I wanted to be sure I finished it <strong>and</strong> the other book club book, which is <em>Warcross</em> by Marie Lu. So, this week I am reading <em>Warcross</em>. I also started the eversion of <em>Where'd You Go, Bernadette?</em> last night, but I most likely won't get much more into that until I have finished both <em>Warcross </em>and <em>Glass Houses</em>. I don't even know why I started it? I guess I was just flipping through my tablet (which I haven't touched in months, and which has a bunch of books in a different program that I can't access from my phone), found it and thought, "Oh that looks good!" so I read a couple chapters. *shrug*</div>
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Everyone says <em>Warcross</em> is a really quick read, and the discussion for it is this Saturday, so I'm hoping I'll be able to finish it by then, and then I'd like to finish <i>Glass Houses</i>. After that, I don't really have much of a plan for November. I had added a couple Harlequin's to my month's TBR pile initially, just because they were at the top of a pile that keeps <strike>judging me</strike> staring at me, and I just want to say I've read them so I can pass them along or whatever. They were gifted to me by a friend, so I do want to actually read them before getting rid of them, if possible. However, if I don't read them by the end of January, I might just have to let them go. The book piles around here are out of hand, and the rest of my family is getting fed up with me.<br />
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Anyway! That's what's up this Monday!</div>
Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-71916074882851652272017-11-09T13:36:00.001-05:002017-11-09T13:36:54.681-05:00Unboxing: LootCrate vs. GeekGear | September 2017<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hey guys, what's up? I've been thinking about unboxing posts lately...</div>
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I've been wanting to do some for a while, with my various subscription boxes, but I never seem to get around to it. More specifically, I have been wanting to do an unboxing post comparing two of the most popular Harry Potter themed subscription boxes out there, namely, Wizarding World by LootCrate and World of Wizardry by GeekGear. So that is what I'm about to do...</div>
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First, a little more information about these boxes: LootCrate is an American-based company. Their Harry Potter box, called <i>J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World,</i> is issued bi-monthly (every other month). They have several different themes of boxes, the Harry Potter one started last November (2016), and I have been subscribing since the beginning. They have a general theme for each issue, and each box contains 5-7 items, which usually includes a t-shirt. Items are licensed and exclusive. They do slip in some Fantastic Beast items as well. When you sign up, you choose which House you would like to be in, and any house-specific items will be for that House. LootCrate's box comes out to around $65 CAD ($51 USD), with shipping.</div>
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GeekGear is based out of the U.K. and they currently have two boxes: a generally geeky one. and Harry Potter/Fantastic Beasts. Their HP box is called <i>World of Wizardry</i> and it is issued monthly. I'm not sure how long they've been doing this box, but I first subscribed in August 2017. This box doesn't really have a monthly theme, but also contains 5-7 licensed & exclusive items, usually including a t-shirt. When you sign up, you can choose a House, or not - if you choose "Any," they will send you random House items when things are house-specific. GeekGear's box comes out to around $43 CAD ($33 USD), with shipping.</div>
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<b><u>LootCrate's September Wizarding World <i>Magical Must-Haves</i> contents:</u></b></div>
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<li>House scarf with leather crest</li>
<li>Harry Potter wand pen</li>
<li>Salazar Slytherin's Locket pin</li>
<li>Honeydukes eraser set (chocolate frog, sugar skull, jelly slug, cauldron cake)</li>
<li>MACUSA office stationery set (folder, sticky notes, paperclips, list pad)</li>
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<b><u>GeekGear's September World of Wizardry contents:</u></b></div>
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<li>House themed socks (HP's glasses & scar print in house colour)</li>
<li>Keychain (<span style="background-color: white;">4 designs: Death Mark, Golden Snitch, Hogwarts Crest, Deathly Hallows)</span></li>
<li>Harry Potter figurine</li>
<li>Newt Scamander's wand</li>
<li>Hogwarts Express print</li>
<li>Niffler tee "Every day I'm nifflin'" designed by Risa Rodil</li>
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I <i>like</i> the items in the LootCrate boxes: this month's stationery set is right up my alley! And I love the scarf, I <i>almost</i> can't wait for cooler weather so I can wear it! ;) But the wand pens aren't really interesting to me, I find the pins over-sized and gaudy, and while I love the <i>idea</i> and the packaging of these erasers, they are pretty useless aren't they? If they had been actual candies I would have been much more excited. :P My <em>favourite</em> part of the box, actually, was the box itself: it is reversible and when you flip it inside-out it becomes a blue Hogwarts trunk - I just love that! :)</div>
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I find that the items in the GeekGear box are just a little bit <i>nicer</i>. I absolutely <strong><em>adore</em></strong> the t-shirt (and have worn it on several occasions, to be asked, "What's nifflin'?" haha!) and will definitely wear the socks. The figurine is admittedly pretty useless, but it is so detailed and lovely that I really can't say anything bad about it. The Hogwarts Express print, while I have no space to display it, is simply gorgeous. And Newt's wand, well... it's wonderful and I only wish it had a little stand or box for displaying (when I <i>eventually</i> get my room made over, I will have my wands displayed on my bookshelves :) ). The only item I really didn't like was the keychain. I don't love PVC keychains that much anyway (they get so grubby so easily), and I got the Death Mark one, which I kind of hate. I would have literally preferred <em>any</em> of the other designs.</div>
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So in general, I like both boxes, but I have to say my preference leans more toward GeekGear. It is less expensive, seems to contain more and better quality items, and I love the Fantastic Beasts franchise just as much as Harry Potter, so I appreciate that they include more items from that fandom (as I said, LootCrate <i>does</i> contain Fantastic Beasts items, but they haven't been all that memorable). Also, GeekGear's tees are way more comfortable and more fun, and you have way more sizes/styles to choose from!</div>
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Please let me know in the comments below if you would like to see more unboxing posts. I will try to do it more faithfully, if there is any amount of interest... I get OwlCrate just about every month, and will be getting both GeekGear and LootCrate again in November (maybe another comparison post?). I'd also like to try out some other boxes in the future, particularly FairyLoot and Unicorn Crate, which are both book boxes. I also saw an unboxing video last week for a Pusheen Cat box (not a book box), which sounds pretty awesome because I definitely <i>love </i>Pusheen Cat! I really enjoy the book boxes because, of course, I love books! But they always include other fun bookish items that I can <i>usually</i> use, and as much as I love new books, sometimes the bookish goodies are what I get more excited about. :)</div>
Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4377011341444274946.post-79189173332290791322017-11-06T11:29:00.002-05:002017-11-06T11:29:48.187-05:00It's Monday! What are YOU reading? #5<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good morning, Internet Land!</div>
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I felt like it was time for another Monday reading update post. I haven't been reviewing books, or being particularly faithful at blogging lately, so this is my (mediocre) attempt at keeping the blog alive for another week.</div>
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<em>It's Monday! What Are YOU Reading?</em> is a weekly meme hosted by <a href="https://bookdate.blogspot.ca/">The Book Date</a>, and is meant to be a place and time to share what you've been reading, what you are currently reading, what you are planning on reading next... Just a good time to gather your wits and organize yourself for the week ahead!<br />
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So, this Monday, I am still reading the books I was reading last week, which I started two weeks ago. I didn't read <em>at all </em>over the weekend, which I am terribly ashamed of. I <em>meant</em> to read both Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon, but darn it, YouTube sucked me in! Anyway...<br />
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The first book I started was an audiobook, which I borrowed from the library, that being <em>The Silkworm</em> by Robert Galbraith, which is book #2 of the Cormoran Strike series. If you were not aware, Robert Galbraith is a penname of our beloved J.K. Rowling. This is a contemporary murder mystery series following Private Detective Cormoran Strike. I also listened to the first book, <em>The Cuckoo's Calling</em>, and really enjoyed it! So far, I am loving the series. J.K. is a masterful writer. I wasn't too sure after reading <em>The Casual Vacancy</em> earlier this year - barf - if she was meant to write contemporary adult books, but I really do love this series so far. Funny side note, I picked up a paperback copy of this very book at a used book sale <em>the same day</em> that I borrowed the audiobook from the library. It just jumped out at me, and I thought, <em>Why not? </em>Because it's audio CD's, I really only listen to it in the car on my way to and from work, which means I am only listening for about an hour a day, so it is somewhat slow going. But it's a great way to make use of that otherwise "wasted" driving time!</div>
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Next, I started reading <em>Stalking Jack the Ripper</em> by Kerri Maniscalco. I had bought an eversion on sale a couple months back, because I had heard some pretty good reviews and the cover is gorgeous and had me lusting. :) But I tend to give a much higher priority to physical books over ebooks, so it kind of got pushed aside. But this month, it was the November book of the month pick for the Facebook "book club" group I'm in, Life and Lit (you should <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/688477338003037/">come join us</a>!), so of course, I jumped on the opportunity to read it. It's very interesting, but I haven't made much progress over the last couple weeks. It's on my phone, and I thought that that would make it a lot easier to read at work, and it is, but... that's basically the only time I'm reading it, is 30 minutes at lunch... So I'm hoping to get a really significant amount read this week, just to sort of get caught up. The protagonist is Audrey Rose Wadsworth, a young woman who is "secretly" learning her uncle's trade of medical examiner, in Victorian England: a time when such acts are considered evil, and well-bred women are meant to attend dinner parties and discuss trivial things and find husbands, <em>not</em> touch dead bodies or skulk around the city after dark. It is obviously set during the time of the Jack the Ripper murders, and Audry Rose, her uncle, and a "damnably handsome" colleague work to solve the mystery of who is committing these savage murders. I particularly appreciate the inclusion of related photos and drawings from the time period.<br />
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Lastly, I started reading my physical copy of <em>Glass Houses</em>, Louise Penny's newest work. I received it at the end of August (when it was published) as a late birthday gift, and haven't taken the chance to read it yet, so it was just <em>time</em>. It has been so lovely to get reacquainted with these old friends from Three Pines, from whom I haven't heard for a year. But, again, it has been a slow process. I haven't made much progress with this one over the last two weeks, either. Because it is a hardcover, and I'm also reading an ebook that is on my phone which I can read anywhere, I decided I wouldn't take this one out with me. So that leaves evenings and weekends to read it, and I just haven't been doing much of that. I've been spending a lot of time on YouTube lately, mostly looking up DIY Christmas gift ideas, if I'm being completely honest. *shrug*<br />
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So, that is my current reading situation!</div>
Anne-Mariehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13888165230376770732noreply@blogger.com0