I'm not usually a huge fan of short stories, but I like to try them every now and again. This was one of my favorite collections so far. Of course there were some stories I really enjoyed and others I didn't. I was hoping that it was going to be more horror-themed, but it was more sci-fi.

Overall, definitely a worth while read.

My story rating breakdown:
The Blameless 2.5/5
Word Doll 4/5
The Angel Seems 4/5
Mount Chary Galore 2/5
A Natural History of Autumn 3/5
Blood Drive 4/5
A Terror 4/5
Rocket Ship to Hell 4.5/5
The Fairy Enterprise 4/5
The Last Triangle 4.5/5
Spirits of Salt: A Tale of the Coral Heart 2/5
The Thyme Fiend 5/5
The Prelate’s Commission 2/5

A tough, but incredibly important read for all.

My only issue with the book was the organization (with all the overlapping timelines and flashbacks, I got a bit confused at times) and the repetition (my usual irk).


Favorite lines/passages:

He was nineteen years old and should have felt as sweet as a bluebird in the dew, but in the awful damp of the early morning, after another night of sleeping on cold concrete -or not sleeping- he moved like an old man, grumbling like the world was out to get him, had in fact perhaps already gotten him, struck him down without mercy or care or intent as if it hadn't even seen him standing there, he had just been in the way.

Let the pilot and copilot read the dials and mark the birds; Victor only wanted to recline his seat and watch the border recede below him like a line of marching ants following a trail of sugar to its source.

King knelt back down in front of them. Looked at him with eyes so green he understood how you could drown in someone and never want to come back.

Another very fun read! While a bit slower than the first book, this one was still action packed and exciting! I really enjoyed seeing more about their zodiac powers and how they could warn the individual when something was wrong.

I absolutely love that this series has illustrations included.

Can't wait for book 3!

Favorite passages:
“Being defeated is a valuable experience,” Maxwell said. “It’s humbling. It forces a person to take stock, to examine what’s really important. To focus more directly on his goals and take careful steps to reach them. Would you like to know the steps I took?”
“Please, teach me, Yoda,” Steven muttered, his eyes still closed.

Then he held out his arms. "Group hug," he said. "Grug."
Steven frowned. "Is that a thing?"
"It is now." Duane gestured at his computer. "I just added it to Wikipedia."

This book was given to me by a friend who also sent me the audiobook narrated by Lin Manuel Miranda. And what a treat it was to read along to Lin's narration!

Though it took me a while to get into this, I really enjoyed the book! I enjoyed it so much that I read it in one day. I thought that the story was beautifully written and I found myself marking so many passages and quotes (below).

The story itself was about two boys trying to find their places in the world while dealing with adolescence and some issues at home. The storyline was slow-paced but in a really good way.

I loved the tone of the book, though there were some sad/scary bits, the overall story was very happy and easy going. I adored all of the main characters and the friendship between the two boys was absolutely lovely.

I would highly recommend this book.

*POTENTIAL SPOILERS BELOW*

My favorite lines and passages:
"Poetry," he said. "It won't kill you."
"What if it does? Boy Dies of Boredom While Reading Poetry."
He tried not to laugh, but he wasn't good at controlling all the laughter that lived inside of him.

Words were different when they lived inside of you.

Through that telescope, the world was closer and larger than I'd ever imagined. And it was all so beautiful and overwhelming and - I don't know- it made me aware that there was something inside of me that mattered.

I could hear him talking to my mother. Dante never had any trouble starting up conversations. He was probably telling my mom his life story.

But the worst part was that those words were living inside me. And they were leaking out of me. Words were not things you could control. Not always.

It was so beautiful and scary, I wondered about the science of storms and how sometimes it seemed that a storm wanted to break the world and how the world refused to break.

"Boring game, Dante. Are we interviewing each other?"
"Something like that."
"What position am I applying for?"
"Best friend."
"I thought I already had the job."
"Don't be so sure, you arrogant son of a bitch."

He smiled and then, I don't know, there was this look on his face and it was so hard to tell what he was thinking for feeling, which was strange because Dante's face was a book that the whole world could read.

I felt like a soccer ball after a game.

My mother and father held hands. I wondered what that was like, to hold someone's hand. I bet you could sometimes find all of the mysteries of the universe in someone's hand.

The problem with trying hard not to think about something was that you thought about it even more.

"It if matters, then it matters."

One of the secrets of the universe was that our instincts were sometimes stronger than our minds.

Another secret of the universe: Sometimes pain was like a storm that came out of nowhere. The clearest summer morning could end in a downpour. Could end in lightning and thunder.

To be careful with people and with words was a rare and beautiful thing.

I enjoyed this book more than the first! The storyline itself was exciting, even if the ending was a bit obvious. I loved seeing the characters develop more as they settle into their roles. I also loved that we were given more information about the setting (the tunnels, the town, etc.)- it just felt more descriptive and "real" to me compared to the first book. Of course the magical factor in this book was lovely! I can't wait to see what else happens in the series.

My biggest complaints about this book were:

#1- yet again, the super short chapters. However, this time I found myself being annoyed by HOW the chapters were split up as well. Sometimes the chapter breaks vs the section breaks made sense, but other times they did not make any sense at all. For example, there were chapter breaks right in the middle of intense scenes that didn't make any sense, then just a few paragraphs down, the author used a section break when I thought it would have made much more sense to use a chapter break. The more I noticed this, the more I found myself wanting to reorganize the book for better flow.

#2- all of the dramatic exits. Good lord. How many times does a character need to get the last word and then storm out before the person they had been speaking to can respond?

Overall a very enjoyable read. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!

First of all, this book is absolutely stunning- the cover, the spine, the endpapers, the full page illustrations as well as the smaller ones, the fonts used- I loved everything! The attached ribbon bookmark was also a lovely touch.

Second, this collection was absolutely everything I was hoping for. It was like an Aesop's Fairy Tales collection for Peculiars. I loved every single one of the stories! I wish there were more!!

Third, I loved the illustrations from Andrew Davidson. Each one was wonderfully done and very fitting for the story they preceded.

Fourth, just the detail that was put into this book was perfect. I loved that it was "put together" and annotated by Millard Nullings. I thought that his forward was very Lemony Snicket-esque (which I loved). And I really enjoyed the first edition notice!

I would highly recommend this book for any Miss Peregrine fan.

This book was dark and absolutely heartbreaking- but also hopeful. This was a very tough read for me. I found myself taking a lot of breaks just to distance myself from the story.

Was it worth reading? Absolutely. This is an important read. I would highly recommend it. Just prepare yourself for a rollercoaster of emotions.

The story itself was beautifully written and incredibly descriptive. I loved the organization of the story, how we dove right in but then learned more about Cassie through flashbacks.

Favorite lines:
"Sometimes it seems like everybody wants to put their noise into the world until you can't have enough quiet to even know you exist."

"I watched her go, my longing stretches toward the car like a rubber band, snapping back with a sting as she disappeared around the bend."

"Anxiety kicks up like dust, making the air thick to breathe."

"...how calm the ocean is now, how things change from day to day, how life moves despite our greatest efforts at resistance, how much it can surprise us."

I really enjoyed this book! Though it did take me quite a while to get into it. I believe it was around page 130 that I realized I was finally hooked.

I was nervous about Celaena's two love interests- thinking that it would be overdone and cheesy. But I was relieved that she really held her own and didn't get sidetracked from her mission.

My biggest complaints about this book were #1- the super short chapters. #2- the lack of set up.

The story just started with a bang and didn't really explain the world or where the characters had come from. Even though you do learn more as the story goes on, I wish there had been more at the very beginning.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book.

Favorite line:

"Courage of the heart is very rare...let it guide you."

This book made me sad-cry quite a few times, but more often I found myself happy-crying. This was the second book I have ever read that made me want to stand up and clap once I had finished it.

Though upsetting at times, this book was an absolute joy to read.
Another must-read for EVERYONE.
Five stars!!


Side note:
My only issue with this book was the Justin section, just because of how it was formatted. The exclusion of capitalization and quotes to indicate who was talking drove me nuts.

***Potential Spoilers***
My favorite lines:
"When given the choice between being right or being kind, choose kind.”- Dr Wayne W. Dyer

“You don’t need your eyes to love, right? You just feel it inside you.”

“I think there should be a rule that everyone in the world should get a standing ovation at least once in their lives."

“I didn’t destroy a Death Star or anything like that, but I did just get through the fifth grade. And that’s not easy, even if you’re not me."

This one is a really tough review for me. On one hand, I thought the story itself was incredible. I don't read a lot of historical fiction and this one was haunting and absolutely heartbreaking. It's a story where certain scenes are going to stick with me for a long time.

But on the other hand, I really disliked the use of the varying POV's. I think I would have enjoyed the book more if it had been from just one or two POV's. I also thought the story dragged on for a long time and then ended very abruptly. So for the first half of the book, I kept debating putting it down. Once I realized I was hooked, the book was over very soon after.

Overall, a very tough read emotionally but absolutely worth reading.