Waiting on 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. 

Dangerous secrets and forbidden desires lead to shocking consequences… Don’t miss book two of the fantastical Harbinger trilogy from #1 New York Times bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout.

“Jennifer L. Armentrout’s intoxicating new fantasy is her best yet!” — New York Times bestselling author Gena Showalter on Storm and Fury

A half human, half angel and her bonded gargoyle protector must work with demons to stop the apocalypse while avoiding falling in love. The Harbinger is coming…but who or what is it? All of humankind may fall if Trinity and Zayne can’t win the race against time as dark forces gather.

As tensions rise, they must stay close together and patrol the DC streets at night, seeking signs of the Harbinger, an entity that is killing Wardens and demons with no seeming rhyme or reason. Forbidden to be with each other, Zayne and Trinity fight their feelings and turn to unusual sources for help—the demon Roth and his cohorts. But as deaths pile up and they uncover a sinister plot involving the local high school and endangering someone dear to Zayne, Trin realizes she is being led…herded…played for some unknown end. As anger builds and feelings spiral out of control, it becomes clear that rage may be the ruin of them all.  

SQUEE!! So excited for this one! No other words necessary.

TITLE: Rage and Ruin

AUTHOR: Jennifer L. Armentrout

PUBLISHER: Inkyard Press
GENRE: YA Paranormal

RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2020

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.

"As I turn around, I hear the click of a trigger and look into the mouth of James Hook's pistol. My throat goes dry." p 45

TITLE: Pan's Revenge
AUTHOR: Anna Katmore
PUBLISHER: Self
GENRE: YA Fantasy
RELEASE DATE: July 3, 2014

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 topic is: Top Ten Things I’d Have at My Bookish Party

*in no particular order

DECORATIONS:

10. BOOKMARKS--that hang from the ceiling! 

9. BOOK FLOWERS--you know those gorgeous flowers people make from book pages.

8. COVER ART POSTERS--self explanatory

FOOD:

7. CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES--inspired by the Lux series! (and likely other books, but for this party, it's all Daemon!)

6. SUGAR COOKIE BOOKISH CUTOUTS--every Xmas we make cutout sugar cookies, so this would be that but bookish shapes. Like a book, or a broom for witches, a cauldron for witches or Harry Potter...things like that!

5. PIZZA--because Pizza Piscary's was awesome! (a Hallows references) and because PIZZA!

5a. NAPKINS & WET WIPES--because this is a bookish party with bookish items around! Gotta have clean hands! LOL!

4. BUTTERBEER--self explanatory

PARTY FAVORS:

3. BOOKISH CANDLES--probably ones related to the covers that are on the walls! ;)

2. BOOK SLEEVES--obviously! Lol!

GAME:

1. NAME THAT BOOK--this came to me as I was doing my decorations, basically, I imagine it being the cover art minus title and author name and you have to name the title! It'd be fun and challenging to get some of those covers that have the same models but have a tweak to color or something to make it different! Challenging indeed!

 

Review--Neverland by Anna Katmore

Why is there a boy who doesn’t want to grow up?
 
How can an apple start the sweetest romance in fairytale history?
And what does a ruthless pirate have to do with it all?

Angelina McFarland loves reading fairytales. But she never dreamed of falling right into one herself. That’s exactly what happens when she slips on her balcony and a flying Peter Pan catches her mid-fall.

Ending up in Neverland where no one seems to age and laws of nature are out of control, Angel has no idea how to get home. Worse, the ruthless Captain Hook captures her and keeps her trapped on his ship, the Jolly Roger, where she gets caught between the lines of a timeless battle. But the more time Angel spends with the captain, the more she sees beneath his ruthless façade.

As Angel desperately tries to find a way to return to her real life, she discovers a train ticket to London in her pocket. It won’t be any help in getting off the island, but as her memory fades away the longer she stays, this is all she has left to remind her of her former life and why she can’t give up trying.

Or is staying in Neverland forever the better choice after all?

Grab a happy thought and follow Angel on an adventure that will keep you breathless and smiling long after you read the last page… 

I went into Anna Katmore's Neverland thinking it was a New Adult version of Peter Pan! That's why I remember adding it to my TBR pile at least. But quickly after starting it, I learned that this is NOT NA, in fact it's pure Young Adult! Not a problem there, but a part of me was really looking forward to an NA Peter Pan story because how cool would that be?!

As it is though, this was still a unique take on the Peter Pan story we all know and love! Peter is more of a teenager than the 12 year old boy I always imagined him as and, Hook is more like nineteen. So big changes there!

The story begins with Angelina tending to her younger sisters one night, she was just getting ready to tuck them into bed when a bizarre accident sends her tumbling over the edge of her balcony and instead of crashing two stories to the ground, she lands herself in Neverland! There she meets the one and only Peter Pan who is excited to see a new person in Neverland, and a girl no less! He's ready for her to join his clan of Lost Boys and sets off showing her around the island, his hideout, and his treasure. Much like the excited boy who never wanted to grow up, he has quite a few childlike tendencies and its these tendencies that leaves him to abandon Angelina later that night after an argument of some sort. It was likely more Angelina telling him she needs to find a way to get home that set him off.

The next day as Angelina is wandering about the nearby town she meets the enigmatic Jamie. True, he didn't impress her at first, but then when he offers to help her find a way to get home, she's more willing to accept his offer. She soon learns however that Jamie is short for James as in Captain James Hook (though truthfully, Hook isn't even his name either!).

James is determined to find Peter's treasure because it was actually his treasure that Peter stole. Among the pieces is a locked chest that has something he very much wants because it's the key to everything he wants. Mysterious enough for you? 

James plans to use Angelina to make her lead him to the treasure or the very least to Peter's hideout so he can make Peter tell him where it is, but once again, things go awry. And now James finds himself with Angelina on his hands permanently as Peter is still mad at her. Naturally, you know what this will mean.

But Angelina learns in a roundabout way, the more time you spend in Neverland, the more you forget yourself. In fact, upon arriving in Neverland, Angelina didn't even know her own name. She remembered absolutely everything else about her life, except for that. I found that part a little odd. Not remembering yes, that makes sense. But she literally remembered EVERYTHING except for her name. As the days pass by while she's on Neverland, she slowly starts to forget the everything else a little at a time.

The relationship that slowly developed between James and Angelina was the sweet slow burn kind. Everything you thought you knew about Hook is about to be challenged in this story. In fact, everything you thought you knew about Peter Pan is about to be challenged as well! I enjoyed this unique take on the Peter Pan story. There's a surprising backstory to Peter and James that will leave you shell shocked! The way things set up the story we already know and loved will be forever changed!

But back to that slow burn romance...you'll be swept away by how sweet and tender it was! I also enjoyed that though the story was told mostly through Angelina's point of view, at a certain point we start getting added chapters from James' point of view.

The story ends in a surprising way! I don't know what I was expecting to be honest. The turns the story took was shocking and yet, not unbelievable either. Though something that nagged at me every now and then was when James would spout off a little too modern slang. I mean...Neverland is another place entirely, and though he was amazed to hear about airplanes and cars in London, which was nicely done, I was a bit baffled by him knowing certain adjectives that didn't seem to fit the old-timey feel of Neverland itself.

The story almost wraps itself into a neat little bow until the very end which has quite a bit of a cliffhanger! I'm off to get myself a copy of the sequel so I can start it asap because what with the final book's title, I am positively dying to know what will happen...and what already happened prior to that ending! Lol! Needless to say things were wild and shocking!

Overall, Neverland was an interesting read. It caught me by surprise right away what with my misinformation regarding "age level," but the story itself was still pretty good! There were a few minor things within the writing that didn't always mesh with the story at hand, but they could easily be overlooked. Definitely picking up the next book asap!


Overall Rating 3.5/5 stars

It's Monday! What are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. It's a fun meme where we gather to share what we've read last week and our reading plans for this week.

Last Week I Read:

Our Dark Duet by Victoria Schwab (3.5 stars)

Starfall by Melissa Landers (5 stars)

In the End by Demitria Lunetta (4.5 stars)

Currently Reading:

Neverland by Anna Katmore

What I Plan to Read Next:

Pan's Revenge by Anna Katmore

Other Posts of Interest:

Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays 

Waiting on Wednesday 

Random Thursday 

Book Blogger Hop 

Challenges Monthly Wrap-up: APRIL 

Stacking the Shelves 

 

Stacking the Shelves

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 Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality.


There doesn't seem to be an end in sight yet for the stay-at-home orders here. Personally, I'm dying to go to Kohl's to buy new pillows. I am in pretty bad need of some and I didn't like the ones I found at Walmart and Target, so I'm anxious for the store to open because I already ordered two sets online and they didn't result in a good night's sleep. One was too hard, the other too soft...so obviously the third set I'll buy has to be just right! Right? Lol! Other than that life is still normal. Still looking for a job, still stuck in the one that I hate. I also feel like once society is allowed to open again then I might get better luck with the job hunt.

Despite not getting my Fairy Loot box which has been sitting in the FedEx facility since early Friday morning, I did get some good things! I can only hope people hold off on their spoiler posts for a few more days. I'm not sure how long FedEx plans to hold my box hostage. I'd go pick it up myself if I only knew where they were located!


Anyways, here's what I did get this week! This first set of books is what I ordered way back in March to help support indie bookstores, I saw that Vanessa Garden's series was being republished and I HAD to get them because it's a series I wanted to finish but couldn't find the books anywhere! Luckily they went through a reprint about 5 years later! 

Captivate by Vanessa Garden--I remember I read this one as an ARC way back in 2014 and liked it despite some Stockholm Syndrome issues, but really, Beauty and the Beast has that too and I still adore that tale!

Impulse by Vanessa Garden--this one I did get as an ebook back when it released but never read it in time. Then I learned there was another book that couldn't be found...until now of course!

Release by Vanessa Garden

Compulsion by Vanessa Garden--this one was actually a prequel that came later on! So I plan to read this one first then re-read (yes, again! Lol!) Captivate before diving into the rest!

Then I made a trip to the only B&N in my area that was open and boy did I have a wild time there! I wore my mask despite there only being a few other customers, better safe than not, right? It also appeared that the store was getting new furnishings, so browsing was a mite difficult, but I still had a wild time! Only a bookworm, right? Lol!

Starbreaker by Amanda Bouchet--I still need to finish her first series and read the first book of this one. But I've learned the hard way of waiting to read the first book of the series and waiting to buy the rest. See below.

Hard Breaker by Christine Warren--I am enjoying Christine's first series and I bought the first book of this Gargoyle series of hers and thought I'd buy the rest after I read book 1...well, after browsing online I realized books 2-4 are nearly out of print and are impossible to find! So I snatched this one off the shelf when I saw it. Once the world opens up again, I'll be hitting up my HPBs to see if I can find the rest! I just hope book 5 is easy to find still...

Finale by Stephanie Garber--the U.S. paperback! Yes, I saw this on the shelf early and while I normally wouldn't buy a book before its release date, I made an exception this time around. Mostly because of all the other stores being closed and this only open one is a good drive's away from my home, so I fell victim to impulse buying. That and it was the last one on the shelf, so there's no saying it'd still be there come Tuesday!

 

 

 

And speaking of Caraval...

I got my preorder of The Enchanted Bookshop's gorgeous Caraval pin! It's the symbol of Caraval naturally, and I immediately added it to my Caraval pin hoop! I had to rearrange them a bit...so now I have room for another pin! And you know, to avoid the noticeable empty space I better find another one to buy asap! Lol!

And then I finally hit gold with a trip to yet another Walmart and found this:

Say hello to the blogging planner of 2020-2021! This is the one I saw online and decided I'd like that one for this (academic) year's planner! Was SO happy they had it! Cause I was going to need it soon what with all my blogging ahead lately!

And finally I won this:

$5 Amazon Gift Card from Holly @ World Fueled with Love for the 2020 Series Enders Reading Challenge wrap-up from March! I immediately applied this to one of my preorders that was still dangerously over-priced for Amazon and brought it down to a manageable level! Just in time too! Lol!

And that was it for me this week! Not too bad! I think after I my current series I'm reading (and maybe finishing...depends on how the rest of this one goes), I'll be diving into Vanessa's series here! 

What all did you get this week?

 

 

Review--In the End by Demitria Lunetta

She thought it was the end of the world... But it was only the beginning of the end.

It's been three months since Amy escaped New Hope. Since she's seen Baby, or Kay, or Rice. And she's been surviving on her own, like she did before she was "rescued" and taken to what she thought was a safe haven. Then, in the midst of foraging for supplies, her former fellow Guardian's voice rings out in her earpiece. And in a desperate tone, Kay utters the four words Any had hoped she would never hear:

Dr. Reynolds has Baby.

Now it's a race against time, for Baby is in imminent danger, her life threatened by the malevolent doctor who had helped start the end of the world. In order to save Baby, Amy will have to make her way to Fort Black, a former prison-turned-survivor colony. There she will need to find Ken—Kay's brother—for he holds the key to Baby's survival.

But before she can do any of this, she'll have to endure the darkest places—and people—of the prison. And one small slip-up could not only cost Baby and Amy their lives, but threaten the survival of he people in the After.

Demitria Lunetta has created an utterly compelling conclusion to the story she set forth in In the After. Readers of the Hunger Games trilogy will not be able to pit down this book, which is gripping from beginning to end.

BE ADVISED, THERE WILL BE SPOILERS FROM THE FIRST BOOK OF THE DUOLOGY WITHIN THIS ONE.


After waiting way too many years, I finally picked up Demitria Lunetta's In the End, the thrilling conclusion to In the After! My memories were fuzzy over the first book, I remembered the gist of things after reading my review, remembering a shocking last lines of the first book. Luckily, after starting the book, Amy gives a brief recap of the major events too, so I was good to go!

It hasn't been long at all since Amy escaped New Hope and that dangers within. But she's determined to go back and rescue Baby, her "sister" aka the toddler she rescued a few years ago during the end of the world crisis. Dr. Reynolds, the "evil" doctor who's at the camp is likely running experiments on her too. With help from her friends on the inside, Amy is led to Fort Black, another fortress of safety. The only catch is, the fort used to be a prison and some of the prisoners are still there.

Fort Black proves to be a scary place indeed what with most prisoners still living there, free to roam. Not all are reformed either after the flesh eating monsters known as the Floraes came about. Of course, we now know that these creatures aren't aliens like we did for the majority of the first book. Amy is looking for her friend Kay's brother, Ken, who could be the key to getting into New Hope and rescuing Baby. But as I said, Fort Black used to be a prison and it's still a dangerous place to be.

I'd say about 1/3 of this book takes place at Fort Black where Amy is looking for Ken who isn't the easiest guy to find. She does meet Jacks, a guy around her age who kind of takes her under his wing at this camp. Women are in short supply here, so you can imagine how scary it can be for a young girl. Though Jacks remains ever the gentleman despite telling others she belongs to him. It's really the only way to keep her safe. Especially, when one of the hardened criminals takes a liking to Amy.

Though it's been over 4 years since I read the first book, I was happy by how easily I was able to get back into this story. Yes, some "familiar" faces weren't all that familiar to me. I forgot about Amy's previous love interest from book one as you might imagine being locked up--sometimes literally--with Jacks, feelings are bound to happen. Yet, though it does, I found I didn't mind. Mostly because, yes, I couldn't really remember Rice, but also because Jacks was so kind despite a rough exterior...and maybe because he shares a name with another Jacks I couldn't help but love! Lol!

But romance was never meant to be apart of the story, though there is love. A sisterly kind of love. Amy is determined to do whatever it takes to save Baby, the girl she loves as a sister. And when we get to that final 1/3 of the book, the action is intense! While I wouldn't call it fast paced until the last handful of chapters, it's still rather intense! We learn things and then more catastrophic things happen and everything is just INSANE! 

The ending was truly perfect. I mean, once you dive into a dystopian toting the apocalypse, you're never sure what kind of ending you're going to get. But as I've always said, the best series finale endings are the ones that are filled with hope for a better future, more adventures, more stories...even if we aren't there to see them. In the End has that kind of ending, though it may not be the one you'd expect. I'd love to know more about what happens after that final page, but obviously, that will have to be left to my overactive imagination...I can only hope I'm not cruel to myself! Lol!

But seriously, the ending was ideal and I loved it! Though I waited way too long to finish this series, what I can remember of the first book combined with this final addition was superb! It was a shocking duology to say the least and it was an intense thrill ride that I couldn't get enough of, even 4+ years later! If you love a good post-apocalyptic story with shocking twists and amazing characters, this is the read for you!



Overall Rating 4.5/5 stars

 

Challenges Monthly Wrap-up: APRIL

CHALLENGE 1: 2020 New Release Challenge

Fractures by Alice Reeds--Review to come towards the end of May

Only 1 read, but that's not too bad!

CHALLENGE 2: Print ONLY 2020 Reading Challenge

Wicked Abyss by Kresley Cole

Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin 

Hungry Like a Wolf by Christine Warren

The Beautiful Ashes by Jeaniene Frost

The Sweetest Burn by Jeaniene Frost

The Brightest Embers by Jeaniene Forst

Capturing the Devil by Kerri Maniscalco

Our Dark Duet by Victoria Schwab

Starfall by Melissa Landers

 

 

Since I'm all cleared out on review books, I've been reading all my TBR books! And since they're all real books it greatly helped this challenge out!

CHALLENGE 3: 2020 Discussion Challenge

Quarantine Blues

Ridiculous Cover Changes

Finale Cover Changes

Not too much happened this month that inspired conversations since I was working throughout the stay-at-home orders. Hopefully more discussions will come to me! I'm still doing good with this one though! Already passed the halfway mark!

CHALLENGE 4: Beat the Backlist 2020 Reading Challenge

 

Wicked Abyss by Kresley Cole (9/19/17)

Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin (9/3/19)

Hungry Like a Wolf by Christine Warren (7/2/13)

The Sweetest Burn by Jeaniene Frost (6/27/17)

The Brightest Embers by Jeaniene Frost (11/28/17)

Capturing the Devil by Kerri Maniscalco (9/10/19)

Our Dark Duet by Victoria Schwab (6/13/17)

Starfall by Melissa Landers (2/7/17)

Almost halfway to my goal!! I dominated the backlist this month! Decided not to count my one re-read in this category either.

CHALLENGE 5: 2020 Series Enders Reading Challenge

The Brightest Embers by Jeaniene Frost (The Beautiful Ashes)

Capturing the Devil by Kerri Maniscalco (Stalking Jack the Ripper)

Our Dark Duet by Victoria Schwab (Monsters of Verity)

Starfall by Melissa Landers (Starflight)

I completed this challenge this month so I decided to up my goal...twice (and still trying to realistically think how many more I can finish this year!)!

Book Blogger Hop

This meme is hosted by Billy at Ramblings of a Coffee Addict!

 

 

This week's question is: Quote your favorite author. (submitted by Billy @ Coffee Addicted Writer)

 

 

 

MY ANSWER: Ooh that's a toughie...let me check my favorite quotes book!

 

 

"There's more to life than staying safe." Stephanie Garber, Caraval

"Every good story needs a villain. But the best villains are the ones you secretly like." Stephanie Garber, Legendary

"...the most magnificent things are worth living for." Stephanie Garber, Finale

I mean obviously they're from the Caraval trilogy! LOL!