Jul 31, 2022

Challenges Monthly Wrap-up: July

CHALLENGE 1: 2022 Discussion Challenge

The Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag
Cover Revamps
Blogging Styles

 

Only three discussions this month. I'm starting to think I set my goal too high! I know, there's still 5 months to go, I can easily get 12 more discussions in! It's just getting harder these days it seems. Currently I'm at 23/35.


CHALLENGE 2: 2022 Series Enders Reading Challenge

Believe Me by Tahereh Mafi (Shatter Me)


Currently at 4/5 on this one! I just need to get caught up on a few things and then I can pick a series to finish...hopefully! Lol.



CHALLENGE 3: The Backlist Reader Challenge 2022

The Crown of Gilded Bones by Jennifer L. Armentrout (4/20/21)
Believe Me by Tahereh Mafi (11/16/21)
The Reaper Rescues the Genie by Kristen Painter (4/17/18)
Heart of the Raven Prince by Tessonja Odette (8/13/21)


Did better this month! Still only at 15/20, but nothing to worry about...yet!



CHALLENGE 4: 2022 New Release Reading Challenge

Eclipse the Moon by Jessie Mihalik (7/12/22)
Go Hunt Me by Kelly deVos (6/14/22)
Scions by Josephine Angelini (10/4/22)--Review to come at a later date
A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw (11/29/22)--Review to come at a later date


Challenge completed! 22/20 new releases read as of now!








 

Stacking the Shelves--The "Oops...I Did It Again!" Edition

 

Stacking the Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts, and of course ebooks! The meme is now hosted by Reading Reality.

 

Well this was another week! Not bad, not great. We had a lot of rain going on this week and there was lots of flooding in the area too. Thankfully we just got rain, no flood damage to our neck of the woods other than a wee leak in the basement, but it just left a trail between a few boxes, nothing serious. Been catching glimpses of the news and it was pretty scary! I mean we desperately needed the rain, but I guess with the amount of fast downpours we got at the beginning of the week, it was just too much for the nearby creeks and rivers. Work was pretty normal, nothing exciting there. But the books! Oh my you guys...I seriously didn't think this was going to be a WOW kind of week, but preorders, a signing, and lack of impulse control led to a few too many wonderful things! Lol.

 

Here's what I bought:

Violet Made of Thorns by Gina Chen--impulse buy...I kept seeing the covers all over the place and I know it's an upcoming book box book, so I impulsively bought the gorgeous B&N edition!
Coached Red-Handed by Victoria Laurie--so vastly behind in this series, but this was one I did in one of the early B&N preorder sales!
When Stars Came Out by Scarlett St. Clair--impulse buy
Master of Iron by Tricia Levenseller--SIGNED! I met Tricia again at my library this week and naturally had preordered a copy in advance for this occasion!
Ebonwilde by Crystal Smith--Italian edition! As previously mentioned I LOVED the original US hardcover design and when I saw the Italian covers kept at it, I HAD to have them in my collection and at last, now I do!


Then for review from the publisher I received (as I will be apart of the blog tour starting next month):

The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber (ARC)--yes, I broke the sound barrier with my squeal when this arrived this week! And yes, I did fall all over myself when asked if I'd like to be on the tour! If one can virtually fall over oneself...because yes, I did that...numerous times!


THANK YOU SOOO MUCH Flatiron Books!!



 
Then just before I found out there was a sale this weekend, I had ordered these prints from Whimsical Publishing, but no regrets!




I got the new Legend print alongside its matching Tella print! Then the Percy Jackson postcard was a freebie I received.

 

Then at Pages of the Night's last sale, I picked up this version of Tella because I loved the hairstyle and that she had Legend's hat. I see it as a "nanny nanny boo boo" kind of thing! Lol.




Then my stepsister came in for a visit and she had went to London earlier this year and she brought me back this super cool print!


And continuing with the Harry Potter love, I ordered these curse coins from LitJoy Crate! And I just saw that there was another coin I somehow missed, so I ordered that one too, I'll probably have it in my StS in two weeks time! Lol.

Obviously, they aren't happy spells but my bookish coin geek was drooling over these when I saw them! AND I had a $10 coupon so it made it all the easier in deciding! Sadly, I had no coupon on my last impulse spell coin purchase but oh well. It will rack up points for next time!


Then when I went to pick up my B&N books...thought I was smart and did the buy online pickup in store thing, but then I saw this...and lost all control of myself again!

But come on! What booklover could say NO to this beautiful bookmark?! And yes, I have too many of these too, but it's been ages since I bought a new one!


And finally, while not bookish, when I was out running my errands I was overcome with SUCH JOY as I was finding some stores were putting their Halloween decorations out EARLY! I was going nuts! I didn't go crazy with the shopping as I more so scoping things out and seeing what was what and what I needed now vs what I could wait to get after MORE came out! Here's what I broke down for...the pumpkin was a steal too! They were all marked at $15 but this one had its old price-tag of $13 on it, so yes, I definitely spoke up to save my $2! Lol.

The Rae Dunn mug was totally impulse decision since I don't really drink mug related beverages, but come on; Vampire Juice?! And it's RED inside!! So yeah...but it was a Marshall's purchase, so it was  steal! Then I saw this gorgeous fake book box and thought it was just so pretty! It's hard to tell but there are lots of stars and a crescent moon on here that is gold and shiny! Naturally, my lighting was terrible at showing this off, but it was a must! Plus another steal at $5!



And that was my unintended mega haul! Seriously, I thought I'd just be showing you guys the one preorder and the Tricia Levenseller one! But then stuff came in...and I found stuff, and then I found more stuff...and I was shopping solo so no one told me not to! Lol! 

So what fun and exciting things did you get this week? Both bookish and not?









Jul 29, 2022

Book Blogger Hop

 

 
This meme is hosted by Billy at Ramblings of a Coffee Addict!
 
 
This week's question is: If you are listening to an audiobook, do you follow along with the print version? (submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver's Reviews)
 
 
 
MY ANSWER: I don't listen to audiobooks, so I can't really answer this. I suppose this would be the right way of going about audiobooks, though it would be pricey. Plus I'd still feel like reading at my own pace and whatnot. So I guess I will go back to not really answering this one. Lol.








Jul 28, 2022

Random Thursday

 

Today wraps up our section on History and Politics in Shane Carley's True Facts That Sound Like Bull$#*t! There's just one chapter left in this book and that's literally a Potpourri category, so anything goes!


(image borrowed from Encyclopedia Britannica)

Did you know that one of Julius Caesar's mistresses was Brutus' mother?!


(image borrowed from Wikipedia)

Apparently, the book thought people though that Mt. Rushmore was way older than it is. Mt. Rushmore was completed in 1939, so it's only 83 years old today.


I kind of thought it wasn't like wayyy old. Though I'd still like to see it one day.


(image borrowed from Daily Sabah)

In The Battle of Karansebes, the Austrian army mistook tone of their own armies for their enemy and lost up to 10,000 soldiers.

 

(image borrowed from Wikipedia)

In 1893, Australia tried to create a New Australia in South America. It ended up being a colony in Paraguay.


(image borrowed from Wikipedia Commons)

Did you know that estimations put about 0.9% of the U.S. population in jail at any one time?





Jul 27, 2022

Can't Wait Wednesday

 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine.

 

Who will be the one to fall? In this terrifying spin on the old rhyme, a family moves to a seemingly perfect town only to discover that it is anything but normal.

The scent of the town engulfs Parker in its perfume the moment she enters the gates. So much so that she nearly forgets all about the life that she left behind and the best friend she abandoned. Coronation is a place where she and her parents can have a new start. And as soon as Parker gets there, its peacefulness puts her at ease. Everyone is nice. The tennis team immediately accepts her. Even the boys are easy to talk to. The only thing that she can’t quite understand is the town’s history—its devotion to the saint, Rosamund, who helped the original town settlers survive their first winter all those years ago.

But she isn’t the only skeptic. Whatever you do, hold on tight. Don’t fall down, the boy tells her frantically before the town’s yearly Spring Festival—thrown in Rosamund’s honor to encourage the harvest. But Parker can’t help it. The vibrant festival immediately draws her into the gardens, the rows of flowers, the food, the laughter. Linked together with the other girls, Parker finds herself spinning with the other girls, struggling to stay in sync. Tilting forward, it’s as if her balance has been taken from her.

Because Rosamund has been waiting. Parker has been chosen. Coronation’s next Rose Duchess has been crowned, destined to fulfill her role unless she can find a way to uncover the truth.

Ring around the rosie

For long ago the seed was sown.

A pocket full of posies

A sacrifice must be made.

Ashes, ashes

One must die for the town to survive.

We all fall down

The Rose Duchess must follow in her footsteps. Offering herself up to the flames.
 

 

This sounds particularly creepy and I can't wait to read it!

 

TITLE: Pocket Full of Posies
AUTHOR: Shawn Sarles

PUBLISHER: Scholastic Press
GENRE: YA Horror
RELEASE DATE: September 6, 2022






Jul 26, 2022

Review--Heart of the Raven Prince by Tessonja Odette

 

A playboy prince in want of a decoy bride.
A servant girl desperate for a disguise…

Raven shifter Prince Franco is every social climbing debutante’s dream. He’s handsome, heir to the Lunar Court throne, and deliciously single. Every young woman wants to bed him, wed him, or steal a moment of his time. Except, of course, for Ember Montgomery.

Half fae Ember craves freedom from her conniving stepfamily. As if they weren’t enough to deal with, a chance encounter with the arrogant Prince Franco leaves her humiliated and in a fiery rage. Nothing could convince her the prince is anything but a rake. But when the opportunity to evade her scheming stepmother falls into her lap, she’ll pay the price—even if it means impersonating the prince’s newest flame…

To prove himself a worthy heir, Prince Franco must marry a princess. But after far too many unsatisfying trysts, he’s given up on love. With the social season in full swing, and bringing with it a horde of husband-hungry socialites, he’ll do anything to delay the pressures of both marriage and the crown. And what better solution than an alliance with a desperate servant girl glamoured as his false future bride?

Locked in a bargain, Ember must pose as a princess until midnight at the full moon ball. Until then, all she has to do is wear the glamour, pretend to court the prince, and above all else, not fall in love. But when feelings emerge on both sides, she starts to wonder if there’s more to their contrived courtship than either of them planned…

Can Ember and Franco find love when the masks come off? Or will illusions and lies prove stronger than their hearts?

ACOTAR meets Bridgerton in this standalone fairytale retelling of Cinderella. If you like slow burn romance, fake engagements, and snarky fae royals, then you’ll love this swoon-worthy story in the Entangled with Fae series.

 

 

Tessonja Odette returns to the magical world of Faerwyvae with Heartof the Raven Prince! It’s a magical retelling of Cinderella that pays perfect homage to the original tale while shiny perfectly on its own as well. It’s pure magic for a fairytale retelling and is absolutely perfect!

Ember is half fae and half human. For the past three years since her father’s death that she believed she caused with her wild fae abilities, she has been her stepfamily’s servant. Her stepmother forced her into a faery bargain where Ember has no choice to do what she says until she turns 19…which is just two weeks away. After her stepmother’s attempts to have her horrid daughter, Imogen marry a fae king failed, she has moved the family to a new kingdom with new fae royalty to try again. And Ember is just along for the ride.

Franco is a playboy prince with a reputation. He has no desire to seek marriage or responsibility, until his sister pleads for him to take the throne from her so she can live happily ever after with her wife. Franco learns he must attempt a courtship with the fae princess of the Sea Court, Maisie.

Ember soon finds herself in dire circumstances when she learns her stepmother is itching to steal Ember’s inheritance from her by forcing her into a marriage with a horrid man. Through a series of events she’s at Maisie’s door at the palace and that’s when Maisie has the bright idea to have Ember take her place at playing “potential bride” to Franco while she runs away…from unknown problems of her own.

Franco though is not so fooled by the deception. He doesn’t know who Ember is, he just knows she’s not the princess she’s pretending to be. It serves both of their purposes though if Ember continues the ruse and he continues to pretend a courtship to please his sister.

I was delighted by the dual point of view in this story! Not only do we get Ember’s side of the story but we see what Franco is thinking both with her and without. It’s truly eye-opening to see what he thinks, as this roguish playboy is hiding a few secrets as well.

The relationship that slowly develops between these two is one of the sweetest I’ve read in a long time! They did not get along on their first meeting—which was before their bargain takes place, but that’s another story—and they really didn’t get along too well when the bargain is struck either. Franco is part psy-vampire and can detect feelings from people and when he’s around Ember in disguise, he gets a sense of what she’s feeling. While I wouldn’t really call this a hate-to-love romance, there’s definitely an animosity between the two that slowly evolves into friendship then something more and oh it was so tantalizing!

If you’re a fan of the slow-building romances, you’re going to love this one! The Cinderella elements ran pretty strong in this one too! There’s magical slippers, a ball, evil stepmother and stepsisters…it was pretty perfect in my opinion! And if you read the original fairytale, you know there was no true fairy godmother either, so the absence of one here isn’t even important!

The story was impeccably paced! Ember is counting down the days until she can escape and leave her stepfamily behind, but with her stepfamily so close and acting suspiciously, you just know something is going to happen to strike up chaos! And chaos does ensue in this ending! In some twisted sense, it made me think of the movie Ever After! Another Cinderella retelling with a few different twists. I positively adored that movie and I love seeing a few similar threads from that one feel similar in this story! Totally different stories, mind you, it’s just that overall feeling is the same  and I loved it!!

If you’ve yet to journey to Faerwyvae, I highly encourage you to do so! I am finding that I am enjoying every single minute of it! I plan to go back and read the “first” series Odette wrote that sort of setup this new series of hers. There was past mention of it in this one and I am eager to find out the meaning behind those mentions! Fans of all fairytale retellings will rejoice with Tessonja Odette’s New Adult series! This is not a series to be missed out on!

 

Overall Rating 5/5 stars

 

 

 


 

 

Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays

 

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by Purple Princess of The Purple Booker



Here are the rules:

1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a page
3. Pick out 2 lines that are SPOILER FREE
4. Name the title, author, etc.

 


"That's when I feel it. The sensation that I'm not alone.

I whirl around on the piano bench to find a raven hovering behind me." p 97


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TITLE: Heart of the Raven Prince
AUTHOR: Tessonja Odette

PUBLISHER: Crystal Moon Press
GENRE: NA Fairy Tale Retelling
RELEASE DATE: August 13, 2021



 
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and The Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
 
 
This week's question is:  Top Ten Books from My Past Seasonal TBR Posts I STILL Haven't Read (submitted by Dedra @ A Book Wanderer)
 
 
 
*in no particular order, though it is half spring and half winter
 
 
 

10. THESE HOLLOW VOWS by Lexi Ryan--honestly, I'm not sure how this ended up on the Spring TBR list when I knew it was a duology and I won't start one without the last one!
9. CROSSBONES by Kimberly Vale--hoping to read this one soon...but I've said that before too! Lol.
8. THE BOOK OF LIVING SECRETS by Madeline Roux--this would be perfect for the upcoming spooky season!



7. HOTEL MAGNIFIQUE by Emily J. Taylor
6. EDGEWOOD by Kristen Ciccarelli
5. FOR THE WOLF by Hannah Whitten--from the Winter TBR!



4. LAKESEDGE by Lyndall Clipstone
3. KING OF SCARS by Leigh Bardugo--I was initially waitifor the duology to be finished before starting and here I am now.
2. DEFY THE NIGHT by Brigid Kemmerer





1. EVIL THING by Serena Valentino