Manchee deserved better.
The confused and scared "Todd?" on page 350 will forever break my heart.

"'That's the thing with secrets...they never really die. Just when one bursts into flames, another rises up to take its place.'"

I've been meaning to reread Crown of Feathers for the past six months or so, and I finally decided to take the time to do it...and once again, it makes me jealous of all of the characters who get to live in these amazing fantasy worlds.
The book follows three POVs (Veronyka, Tristan, and Sev) in the middle of a war-torn empire in the immediate aftermath of historical battles. Veronyka disguises herself as a boy in order to become a Phoenix Rider. Tristan is the son of the commander of the Phoenix Riders, and he must face his fears of fire if he wants to have an impact on the war. Sev is a magical soldier, hiding in the army to save his own life until he is dragged into a web of spies and betrayal. The pacing is well-done so that there's rarely a dull moment, and I just love the storytelling and the themes of history repeating itself.
I also love the characters and their dynamics. The only character I don't love is Val, but I think there are admirable traits in her. Usually I don't like first-book Sev, but on this read, I found myself excited for his POVs because he's an interesting character morally. Veronyka is such a strong female protagonist and I love how she and Tristan interact with each other. Their relationship is technically romantic, but it gives strong platonic vibes and I just love them so much. I also love the design of the phoenixes.
I know this series is one that gets better with each book, so I am excited to continue. If you're looking for an epic high-fantasy with magical creatures, a strong history and worldbuilding, and lovable characters, I will always recommend Crown of Feathers.
4.75/5

To anyone who thinks they've heard me complain about book characters I hate: I dare you to ask me about this book.

I've read The Fever King five times now, and it's just one of those books that never really gets old (and it's also really good for preventing reading slumps). I do want to acknowledge that this book has some very heavy topics, so readers should definitely be cautious. That being said, I really like the worldbuilding of the story. It's not the most original (magic is gained from survival of a deadly virus), but the idea that magic relates to science that the user already knows is really interesting to me.
We meet Noam, a refugee fighting for the rights of his people, as he is infected with magic and discovers his affinity for technopathy - aka controlling technology). He joins the community of other magical teens living in the military base on Level IV, but things aren't quite what they seem. There are a lot of plot twists that I don't think I called the first time I read this, but they're foreshadowed well. There isn't a ton of action, but the pacing is fast, so I still enjoyed it. There isn't much I can say without revealing plot twists because they truly are what makes the story so enjoyable.
And the characters... there are only really three main characters in this book, although I know they expand on the side characters in the next one. Noam is a complex main character, and I really like him and his inner turmoil. Dara is the stereotypical bad boy at first, but there's a lot more to him than that. He's a sad boy, and he just needs a hug. And then there's Lehrer. I can't explain my thoughts about him yet for spoiler reasons. As for side characters, I really like the other characters, although I wish there were more found family vibes.
The Fever King is a YA sci-fi/dystopian book that deals with trauma, the costs of magic, and what it means to trust someone.

4.5/5

Everyone always says that you should read outside your comfort zone occasionally. Well, I did. I read a book about a werewolf love triangle

Spoiler

(that turns into a threesome??)

, knowing that I don't like books about werewolves or love triangles.
The verdict? I still don't like books about werewolves and love triangles.

Spoiler

Also, they didn't even mention werewolves until 289 pages into the book. That's 77% of the book devoted solely to the love triangle.

Thanks to Spoiler Alert at YCL for the ARC.

Finally some aroace representation in sci-fi/fantasy!!!

This is the first anthology I've ever read, and I'm glad that it gets to be the first. It covers a variety of genres, ranging from contemporary to science fiction to fantasy and each story takes place in its own little universe. My favorite story was "The Mermaid's Sister," but I also really liked "Across the Stars," "Give up the Ghost," "Smells Like Teen Virgin," and "Nylon Bed Socks" (that one was super deep). And all of the protagonists are ace, if not aro so that's a bonus!

Thanks to Spoiler Alert at YCL for the ARC.

If you took the narration style of Percy Jackson and the vibes of Shadowhunters , you'd be left with this book.
I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting to enjoy it because I don't usually like urban fantasies where the main character has to slay monsters, but the humor was well balanced with actual meaning.
Thanks to Spoiler Alert at YCL for the ARC.

Fourteen year old me would've absolutely devoured this book and made it her entire personality.

The Sunbearer Trials is marketed as a mix of Percy Jackson and The Hunger Games , and Xio is a carbon copy of Nico di Angelo while Aurelio and Auristela are Cato and Clove if Cato and Clove were siblings.
Also, this book has some of the coolest official fanart that I've ever seen and I highly recommend checking it out if you read the book.

"The Second Civil War, also known as 'The Heartland War,' was a long and bloody conflict fought over a single issue. To end the war, a set of constitutional amendments known as 'The Bill of Life' was passed. It satisfied both the Pro-life and the Pro-choice armies. The Bill of Life states that human life may not be touched from the moment of conception until a child reaches the age of thirteen. However, between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, a parent may choose to retroactively 'abort' a child … on the condition that the child's life doesn't 'technically' end. The process by which a child is both terminated and yet kept alive is called 'unwinding.' Unwinding is now a common and accepted practice in society."

2007/2008 young adult dystopian books really are a whole different breed.
Unwind is one of those books that's gritty and makes you sick to your stomach. It doesn't shy away from controversial issues---namely the discussion of reproductive rights. It's a book that's banned because of "violence" and "encouragement of civil disobedience" (really, it's banned because it doesn't align with certain political views). While I agree that certain scenes were gory and made me sick to my stomach

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(Roland's Unwinding was absolutely horrific and I can't imagine going what he went through)

, I also believe it has messages that are growing increasingly more important to share.
The more dystopian books I read, the more I fear for what society may become because none of these supposedly fictional worlds are too far off from reality.

I'm petitioning to rename this book Fifty Types of Tragedy .

Final cry count: 6.5 times? I kind of just cried through the entire last ten chapters or so and never really stopped.
Why do I do this to myself? I'm feeling so many things, and none of them are good.

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Neo and Coeur. I will not recover from this. *internal screaming* I'm in so much pain.