You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

I loved the fact that this book is a standalone! It was a surprise to me but a good one. During my Owlcrateathon, I read so many new fantasy series that this was what I needed.

I loved the characters so very much! I think that Silas might have been my favorite. Elizabeth was like all of our dreams come true! Her and the library are just so magical and I was living for it. Who on earth doesn’t want to live in a magical library?! I loved how she was so adamant to do the right thing, even though it would cost her everything that she loved so desperately. At the same time, she’s learning that there’s more to the story. Especially, when it comes to Nathaniel. She’s questioning everything she’s ever been taught.

The world building in this book is fantastic! I loved everything about it and it sucked me right in, from the very beginning. The writing was great and flowed so well. There is a lot going on but sometimes the pacing was a little bit slow at times. For the most part, pretty great.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I’m so happy to finally be reading a standalone fantasy after several series starters. I haven’t read her previous book, which I own. I know there’s a lot of mixed feelings on that one. I do think you would enjoy this one though!

You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

This was a really strange read. I was a bit confused with a bit of the story and it lost my interest at times. I was totally surprised about how things were done but not who did it! It’s kind of a magical murder mystery. I did not realize it was a retelling until after! lol

There were 12 sisters but now there are only 9. Annaleigh, is convinced her most recent sisters’ death is a murder. I’m not sure if anyone else was getting any Jane Austen vibes in the beginning? All the sisters who are desperate for a ball and to come out to society. I just kept thinking of the beginning of Pride & Prejudice! Anyways, the characters in this book were fine.. I wasn’t really too attached to any of them but that’s okay. I mean, there are a lot of them!

Anyways, there is a lot of mystery and some interesting magic in this book. I was really intrigued at first because it had so much promise! Half way through things just dragged and fell flat for me. Honestly, things don’t really happen until the last 150 pages or so. I think the way they author went was really cool but her executions is where I struggled. The overall, “who did it” part was 100% something I figured out right away.

Something else that I didn’t really enjoy was that this book is C-R-E-E-P-Y!! There are times that I just had to skim because the descriptions were freaking me out. I do not like horror or scary stories whatsoever. I feel like I might have a nightmare or two. There’s also quite a bit of violence. Her descriptions were really well done, so that part of the writing was awesome.

Overall, I it was just an okay read for me. I did enjoy the last 150 pages of the book because things finally happen. It was a really good climax but I wish the beginning and middle weren’t so slow! If you don’t like disturbing violence, I would give this one a pass. I think the creepiness is also a reason I didn’t love this one.

You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

This was my first Christina Lauren book and I’m wondering, WHY?! I really feel like I need more. Please, give me so more recommendations by them!

I have been reading a lot of fantasies and I just needed a break. I think I’m going to go with some contemporaries/romances for a bit. I have heard so many people recommend and rave about this book. I saw it at my local bookstore and picked it up! I am so glad I did. I loved this one so much!

I flew through this book and read it so fast. I just couldn’t stop because I needed to know what was going to happen next. I really love the enemies-to-lovers trope. I love it so much because I always find the banter hilarious. This book was no exception. It was so witty and it made me laugh out loud a lot. My husband looked over and said, “I am glad you are enjoying your book.”

You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

I totally understand why this was raved by so many people! It’s such a cute contemporary that I really enjoyed.

I mean, it has one of my favorite tropes- hate to love! It’s definitely a trope that I live for and will always read. haha. I thought the names Pepper and Jack were pretty cute, since it is a book about a grilled cheese twitter war. One of my favorite things were the tweets! They were pretty funny and reminded me A LOT of Wendy’s and their tweets. Guys, are you following Wendy’s on twitter? If not, YOU NEED TO NOW! They roast people (mostly McDonald’s & Burger King) and have THE BEST comebacks. It’s pretty much amazing. Okay.. I got off topic..

Anyways, I really liked Pepper and Jack. They are both going through a lot of challenges in life. They are trying to figure what they want to do with their life after graduation. Pepper is also dealing with the fallout between her mom and sister after the divorce. She’s moved to a new school and it’s really competitive. Jack is dealing with the fact that he thinks his brother is the golden child. He doesn’t want to stay behind to run the shop but feels like his parents aren’t giving him a choice. Throughout the book, you see both of them deal with these issues and work through them. I love how they brought out the best in each other!

I think the only thing I disliked was that this book was constantly making me hungry!! haha. Everything sounded so good and I just wanted a grilled cheese and some monster cake!

It was a really sweet romance and not too corny! Sometimes these contemporaries can be over the top in regards to being corny. Some of it was a little predictable but I didn’t mind at all. If you are looking for a fun, fast, cute read, this one is for you!

You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

3.5 stars

I think it’s time for me to accept that OwlCrate knows what they are doing with their book picks! A lot of them, I’m think I wouldn’t like it but I’ve ended up loving them. I really enjoyed this one too!

At the start, I did have trouble really connecting with Amora. She was really into herself and it was more than just being confident. She was really annoying and I was a bit worried that it would ruin the book for me. Thankfully, she kind of gets knocked back down a bit. You see her really change into a different person throughout the book. She learns that not all things are as they seem.

Honestly, my favorite thing about this book were all the side characters. I really enjoyed them and how they were all so very different. I would love a spin-off book about Vataea, the mermaid. She was pretty awesome and I really find her story so intriguing! I just kept wishing to know so much more about her!

There were some twists in this book but it was all pretty predictable. This is were a major star reduction comes because I saw it all coming. It makes the end of the book feel kind of “eh”. We do get some fun adventures and that makes the book really interesting. I think the journey was the best part of this book.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read. There’s some really interesting magic going on and the side characters are awesome. I’m looking forward to the next book!

You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

This is my second book for #owlcrateathon. I am loving this so far because I read another great book! I didn’t know what this was about.. at all. I went in blind and I’m so glad I did. It’s funny, the book I read before this was about a girl pretending to be a boy… and here we are again!

If you think this book is just about a girl wanting to be a tailor, it’s so much more. I was not expecting so much from this book!! Of course, that’s how we start. Maia is basically running her father’s shop but on the down low. Girls/Women can’t be tailors, only men. She’s fierce and strong, do you think that’s going to stop her?

What I didn’t expect in this book was so much magic. It was everywhere and Maia doesn’t even know it! In fact, she doesn’t believe in it, at the start. There’s so much going on in this book that you will never get bored. I just couldn’t put it down because I needed to know what was next! The world building is amazing! It’s a really well written book.

The characters are so amazing. I loved Edan so much! He has so many secrets going on that I have no idea what’s going on with him. Turns out there’s a lot of tragedy and it’s actually something in common with a lot of these characters! They all have so much depth and I really can’t wait to learn more in the second book.

The second half of the book she has to go on a journey to prove herself. She goes with Edan and that’s when the romance really takes over the book. I didn’t mind that much but I felt it did take away from the actual challenges she’s facing. It kind of skims over them a bit and I found that disappointing.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book! It is really cool how the author took something like sewing and made it very magical. This is a fun journey with magic, romance and overcoming trials.

You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

I’m slowly starting to get into graphic novels more and more. I happen to see this one at one of my Half Price Book stores, on sale. I picked it up and I’m so glad I did.

It’s always nice to break up some intense fantasy reading with a nice quick graphic novel. This one did not disappoint.

It’s a really quick read and had amazing artwork. I loved that most of it was white/black/grey and then you get pops and splashes of pink. It was so visually appealing and I loved it so much!

The thing that I loved the most about this was the actual story. It’s about a girl who starts to learn that she deserves more. Being treated less than okay, is not okay. We’ve also had those friends who are all consumed by their relationship that they let their friendships fall to the wayside. No? I definitely have. It’s quite annoying. It was great to see her grow and realize what she deserved and didn’t deserve. I think all teens need to read this & some adults!

You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

This was the first book in my #owlcrateathon and I’m so glad it was. I really need to be better at reading my OwlCrate books because there are some gems!

All I knew about this was Phoenix riders! That’s all I really cared about because that’s just awesome. I’m actually really excited for the next book because we will get a lot more of them, I hope.

This book starts out really slow. It is such a journey because you are getting so much information and a lot of depth. I always love when there’s a lot of world building but it was a very slow pace. I think it’s really my main critic of this book.

I did really enjoy the story from the past that was filtered in, with the letters! I actually think it was brilliantly done.

I loved Veronyka so very much! She starts out extremely naive and I just loved how her character grew by the end. For a lot of this book, she’s pretending to be a boy, so she can get into the phoenix rider camp. Of course, you can guess things that will unfold. I tend to get so much anxiety in books when this situation happens. I hate conflict, in real life & in books. So, you KNOW that it’s coming. I actually didn’t really have much of a problem in this book. By the time we get to this point, things start to pick up. I was sucked into this story and I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next.

You get multiple POV’s in this book between Veronyka and Sev. I tend to like multiple POV’s and this one didn’t disappoint. You get so much more of the picture, world & supporting characters. It was awesome to see how their stories would end up crossing.

I loved the ending so much. I kind of feel like I knew the twist but then again, I didn’t. I was just shocked and I am SO excited for the next book. I just purchased it this last weekend.

Overall, this is such a great story. If you don’t mind a slow paced book with a lot of world building and character driven, give it a shot. I mean… phoenixes and phoenix riders… so awesome!

You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

I loved the thought of this book and really all of these Disney books. It’s been sitting on my shelf for a while and deiced to read it.

I’m always so intrigued by the villains side of the story. I’ve read a few different retellings and I didn’t like this one as much as I hoped.

Throughout the book, we are getting the “Queen’s” story. We never get her name, it’s just always The Queen, which is kind of annoying. She talks about her past, which was so very sad. I feel like there’s always a tragic story and it really shows that your parents can really do a lot of damage.

I felt like this story had so much promise but I just felt like something was missing for me. I did really like to see how she was good and kind in the beginning. She even loved Snow. She then turns into this “evil” person and I felt like it was a little strange and drastic. The “sisters” were just so creepy and I felt like they didn’t really fit into the story that well.

Overall, it was just okay. It wasn’t terrible but I really didn’t fall in love with this story. I will definitely be reading the other books in the series.

You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

This is my first book by Emma Mills! I have had this sitting on my bookshelf for a couple years now. This year, I’m focusing on my own bookshelves. I’ve got three of her books and decided it was time to read them.

I loved this book. I wasn’t completely hooked into the plot, at first. I had no idea where Mills was going with this story. It was a slow read for me. This isn’t a particularly long book and it wasn’t because I was bored. Just because it was slow, didn’t mean it was a bad thing. This book is just packed with so many intense moments. The writing in this book is just so beautiful.

One of my favorite things about this book are the relationships. I loved the relationship between Ezra + Devon, Devon +Foster, & Foster +Ezra. They were all so different but equally important. What I loved was that this wasn’t a book based on romance. It was really about Foster and his relationships with Devon and Ezra, for most of the book. They are all going through some really tough things and it was just so beautiful to see them come together.

I’m not sure if I’m articulating this correctly. It was just so refreshing to have a book based on relationships in various ways and not solely on a love interest. There is a love story in here but it’s a slow burn. It’s not the forefront of everything. Plus, it wasn’t love at first sight, they actually got to know each other.

This was such a lovely story and it’s one that I’ll be thinking about for a while. It actually had me tearing up a bit at the end. I really enjoyed this and can’t wait to read more by Mills!