Review: The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Reading this gives me so much joy. This was my tenth read. And gosh, it still keeps getting better for each time I read it. Sigh. This book is completely magical and all kinds of beautiful. I will never grow tired of reading it. It is very much a November book which is the best thing. Reading it simply makes me the very happiest.

There is so much I could share about The Scorpio Races. But I will not be writing too much about it this time. I mean, I've already written a whole bunch of reviews for this book before, ha. But it is impossible not to share my love for this beautiful story. Sigh. It is beyond perfect. And every time I read it I'm swept up in the story.

Which is the best thing there is. I adore Maggie and I love her books. But my gosh, this book will always be her very best one. Okay, maybe if there would one day be a sequel to this, it could end up being even better. Probably. And oh. How badly I want another book about Puck and Sean. And Corr. I want to know what happens next with all of them so very badly. Sigh. I mean, sure, the ending of this book was perfect, it always is. But I still want more. There could still be more. No drama, though. And there is no need for drama between these two characters. They are too precious and perfect for that. Which makes me love them even more. Eee. Sean and Puck are my two favorite characters, always. And they are the very best to read about, always.

I will never not love this precious book. And I will try my hardest to read it once a year, every November, going forward too. Reading The Scorpio Races is always fun. And heartbreaking. And makes me love these characters even more than I already to. It also makes me wish I could visit this little island myself. Maybe even take part in the Scorpio Races on a water horse. Though, fine, it would probably be a bit too dangerous for me, ha. But gosh, how amazing it is to read about it all. To fall in love with it all over again.

If you still have not read this most precious book then you are seriously missing out on the best reading experience. Reading about Sean and Puck is the best thing you could do. And reading about their horses too, Corr and Dove. And all of the side characters. Finn and Dory Maud and George Holly and everyone else too. The island is all kinds of magical. The dangerous and deadly water horses are fully interesting and exciting to read about. This is a book everyone must read. Multiple times, like I have done. Go do it.

There is so much I love about this precious story. I shall not mention all of it. As this review of mine will be shorter than usual. I simply adore this story too much. The Scorpio Races is everything I want in a book. The very best characters. The most adorable growing romance. And an exciting story too. The writing is stunning as well. And oh my god how badly I love Sean and Puck. I love their growing friendship. They are too cute together. This book is also beyond rude and cruel at times. And I loved it to pieces. Always.

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In My Mailbox #421

I have done a whole lot of reading this past week. I struggled to finish two books I had gotten for review. They were beyond long with such bad writing and small words on each page. Was simply the worst. But I finished, haha. And now done reading The Scorpio Races, eee. My precious. I finished it tonight and write my review now. Most perfect, always. Feeling a little exhausted, though. Those two awful books took a lot of my energy, ha. As I rushed to finish them. Oh, well. It's done and I made it, haha. And I got some pretty mail this week too. A whole bunch of more pop figures as well. Oops. I love them tons, though, haha :D Hoping to catch up a little bit more this coming week, though. So far behind. Sigh. A few new blog posts :) I shared my review of For the Killing of Kings. Ack. And this week I'm waiting on Seven Devils :D Then I shared my review of Upon the Flight of the Queen. Sigh. And will share my review of The Scorpio Races tonight, eee. My tenth time reading it. Sigh. So so precious. I hope you are all doing well :) December 1st tomorrow! Eee! So very excited for Christmas. For good food and presents and Christmas movies. Sigh.

Supernova + The Guinevere Deception. My personalized copies bought from Mysterious Galaxy have arrived :D Eee. And they both look stunning. Sigh. I love them tons. And love the gorgeous art print :D
Supernova. My international paperback edition has arrived, eee. It is so pretty. Must re-read book 1 soon.
Pop Figures. I won those three gorgeous Halloween ones from Funko Europe :D Eee! And more Harry Potter pre-orders. Oops. So pretty. And my Kristoff. And Sansa. And my Steve Irwin. Whom I love so very much. Sigh. Tiny crocodile is adorable, haha. My Stranger Things monster, though. Hmm. It's ugly. Sobs.

More Instagram photos here. <3

Review: Upon the Flight of the Queen by Howard Andrew Jones

I had a small hope that this second book would be better than the first one. That things would have been improved upon. This was very much not the case. Sigh. The writing was even worse in this one. I tried to get used to it. Which was fully impossible, as every single written word bothered me most. It was never good.

Which does break my heart a bit. As I had wanted to enjoy these two books a whole lot. Instead I spent ages reading two books I did not like at all. Sigh. But I did it. I read them. I gave them my best shot, but these books were very much not worth it. I will not read book three. Curious, but I would not go through this again.

I wish I could say that this book was good. That it was a sequel better than book one. But it was so not. The writing was just as horrible as it was in the first one. There were still too many silly descriptions of every single thing. It was impossible to focus. It grew boring so very fast. And I still do not care at all for these characters. Sure, they were interesting to read about at times, but no love for any of them. There was no romance. Instead it seemed like they all wanted to sleep with each other which they just didn't do. And the author seems to have set it up that Elenai could be with any of the male still alive in this book. Ugh. It was all simply too much. Yet not nearly enough to make this a good book. I sadly found a lot more faults than good things.

One of the worst things about the writing in book one was how every woman was beautiful with small waists and wide hips and their hair was described as manes. All of this still happened in book two. Ugh. The only women that weren't beautiful were the old ones. Or Varama, the only character with blue skin. She wasn't thought of as beautiful either. Of course. Every woman are slim. Slim body, slim eyebrows. And then there was that every single male in this book was so handsome and full of muscles. Hahaha.

Then there was the character of Vannek. I do not think this character was done well at all. It felt silly and not written well at all. Vannek is a woman, but was told by her father that she was to be a man, so now everyone is to think of her as a man. She thinks of herself as a man. Well, not really. There were writing mistakes all over, when Vannek thinks of herself as she, when it is always he. This character was simply not done well. Vannek wasn't sure what she wanted to be. It was only confusing and had so many faults.

The character of Vannek could have been a great representation. But it was not written good enough for that, at least that is how I read it. Which is highly disappointing. Honestly, I could go on and on about how this writing was the very worst I have read in a long time. But I shall not write much more about this, as it bothers me beyond words. One thing that was written all the time was the phrase "on the instant." Which made no sense and was beyond distracting to notice at all the time. This should have been edited more.

And oh gosh. I almost forgot about a quote I have saved from the book. I mentioned that it seemed like the main character, Elenai, could end up with any of the males. This quote is from when she sees one of them working out shirtless, it's her thinking. "Who wouldn't be attracted to such a finely controlled physical specimen?" And gosh. It killed me a little reading that. This entire book was pretty much horrible. Writing was the worst. The characters not really likeable, which was disappointing. As there were many of them.

But I still kept on reading. Because I got these two books for free to read and review. And so I felt like I needed to finish them. Okay, I did not truly need to, but I decided that I would. It took forever to read them both. And I do not feel any better having finished them. They were so completely not worth reading. But I will say that it is a two star because the plot was not all awful. Most of it was not very good, but some of it were interesting. And I wanted to know more about a few certain things, like the creatures and the magic.

But this was sadly not enough for me. Not enough at all. Bad writing can never make me enjoy a book. And this book had bad writing from beginning to end. I feel a little sad about it, but these were not good books. And I have to be honest about how I feel. I didn't mention any of the plot in this second one. And I'm not going to. Only sharing my thoughts about it, which I have done. And honestly, I would really not recommend that anyone read For the Killing of Kings and Upon the Flight of the Queen. Not ever, sadly.

Because even though the plot was good at times the writing would simply never make these books worth suffering through. Which I did. Ugh. Huge thank you to the publisher, St. Martin's Press, for sending me a free finished copy of this book to read and review. I wish I could have written more positive reviews, but also not, ha. Because these books were not good. Sure, some will like them, but we are all different. And to me, these books were nothing special. I simply wish that they had both been more. More of everything.

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Waiting on Wednesday #424

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

SEVEN DEVILS BY ELIZABETH MAY & LAURA LAM

Goodreads Description:

This first book in a feminist space opera duology follows seven resistance fighters who will free the galaxy from the ruthless Tholosian Empire -- or die trying.

When Eris faked her death, she thought she had left her old life as the heir to the galaxy's most ruthless empire behind. But her recruitment by the Novantaen Resistance, an organization opposed to the empire's voracious expansion, throws her right back into the fray.

Eris has been assigned a new mission: to infiltrate a spaceship ferrying deadly cargo and return the intelligence gathered to the Resistance. But her partner for the mission, mechanic and hotshot pilot Cloelia, bears an old grudge against Eris, making an already difficult infiltration even more complicated.

When they find the ship, they discover more than they bargained for: three fugitives with firsthand knowledge of the corrupt empire's inner workings.

Together, these women possess the knowledge and capabilities to bring the empire to its knees. But the clock is ticking: the new heir to the empire plans to disrupt a peace summit with the only remaining alien empire, ensuring the empire’s continued expansion. If they can find a way to stop him, they will save the galaxy. If they can't, millions may die.

Hardcover, 448 pages

Expected publication: August 6th 2020 by DAW

Pre-Order here and here

Eee. I have been a fan of Elizabeth for years, she's an awesome writer and such a sweet person, and so I cannot wait to read this new book by her :D I don't know Laura yet, but I'm sure she's an amazing writer too. And this book sounds all kinds of awesome. And the cover is lovely too. Sigh. I so can't wait for this one :D See more details about the cover here, who made it, and links to the first chapters too :D Go see.
What are you waiting for on this corrupt Wednesday?

Review: For the Killing of Kings by Howard Andrew Jones

I was lucky enough to get book one and two in this series sent to me for free from the publisher. Which I'm so thankful for. I wanted to give these books a try, as the covers are pretty, and the story sounded interesting too. I do not read a lot of adult books, but as this was fantasy I decided to give it a chance. I sort of regret that.

Which is all kinds of heartbreaking, to be honest. I really wanted to end up enjoying these books a whole bunch. But this first book was such a struggle to read through. I hope I will have more luck with book two, but I'm not sure about that. Either way, though, I'll read the second one as well. And I truly hope that it will be better.

The thing is, this book was not really all that bad. The story was pretty interesting. These characters were somewhat okay. I liked learning more about this world as I found it to be pretty good as well. But there was simply nothing that could save this book from the writing. The writing really needs to be good for me to enjoy a book. And in this case, the writing was well and truly awful. I kept hoping that it would improve. That I would at least grow used to it. But it did not and I did not. It was simply not good writing. At all. There were way too many descriptions about everything, all the time, and not done in a good way. It made me forget about what I read as I could not focus. Which is so not a good thing. Sigh. All I wanted when reading was for it all to finally end. Ouch.

I wish this had been a fast read. It was not. The pages had small script as well, meaning the bad writing never ended. And I had to focus even more just to read the words. Ugh. I did try to get used to it. But I never did. And to make it even worse, a whole lot of the book was from the point of view of a man less than thirty years old. He thought about sex a lot. And every female he saw had soft eyes, small waists, wide hips and swayed when they walked. Hahaha. It was all kinds of gross. And it never ended. Yuck.

Oh, and he also commented on their mane. As in, their hair. So weird and such bad writing. I'm unable to mention it more. As I want to stop thinking about it right away. The writing was simply not good and that is all. Because of this this book is a two star for me. I did want to know what happened next to all of these characters, but I never loved them. And I wanted the book to end because I could not stand reading the writing. I wish it had been better. But it was not. I hope it will have improved by the second book, though.

I'm not even sure where to begin with describing this book. It is set in the past, everything seemed middle aged. But then there was also the one time the queen mentioned the word awesome. Yeah. That did not fit in at all with the fantasy world. It was simply weird. But despite that, I found the world of this book to be somewhat interesting. I enjoyed learning more about it. There are creatures in it, though described badly, they were interesting to read about. It's a world with magic. Well, very small parts of magic. Wanted more.

The book begins with the point of view of an old guy. Which was all kinds of boring, to be honest. They are honoring the death of his friend, much younger than him, that died in battle seven years before. Then this old guy finds out that the sword they have for him, locked up, is not the real sword. And he is killed because of his suspicious that same night. It could have been told much faster, though. This whole book could have been faster. As there were much time where nothing happened. Much should have been cut.

The old guy was teaching squires to become full soldiers. Which was important in this world. One of the squires were twenty five year old Elenai. She learns of his death the day after and becomes entangled with another soldier, Kyrkenall. They have to flee after killing a few people. And so this is a story about them being on the run while searching for the truth about things in this kingdom. There were a lot of plot things and secrets. Some of them were kind of interesting to read about, but nothing was special, sadly.

I do not feel like describing the plot of this book. It is the story of Elenai and Kyrkenall. Then the story of some others too, which includes the man with sex on his mind. I somewhat liked him, if it weren't for the bad writing of him, ugh. The magic part of the story was interesting too, though I wish it had been more, to be honest. And gosh. The names in this book. I thought I would get used to them. I never did. Because they are impossible to pronounce for me. Which only made me dislike this book even more, sadly. Sigh.

I wish I could have loved For the Killing of Kings. But the writing made me almost hate it. But I did not fully do that either, and so it is a two star for me. I'm sure there are others who will love this story. But I wasn't one of them and I would not really recommend this book to many people. Though I'm so curious to know what you would all think of it. Huge thank you to the publisher, St. Martin's Press, for sending me a free finished copy of this book to read and review. I wish I could have enjoyed it more, but it was impossible.

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In My Mailbox #420

Eee. I have gotten all my Christmas things up this week. Oops. A bit early, usually get it up on December 1st. But I do not mind. Wanted all the pretty out as soon as possible :) Now just waiting for Christmas to arrive, haha. I have had a busy week. Exhausted, all the time, but doing things despite that. I finished The Secret Commonwealth. Sigh. And now reading another book that I got from the publisher. It is.. not very good. Sigh. The writing is so bad. But I'm surviving it, haha, and will read book two after it as well. Ack. I shall survive, hopefully, haha. And also trying to play a little of Pokemon Sword each day too, which I love so very much. Eee. Only wishing I'm not so exhausted. Hmph. Anyway. Some lovely mail this week, eee. I love it all. Sigh. Only two new blog posts, though. I shared my review of The Secret Commonwealth. Ack :) And this week I'm waiting on The Notorious Virtues :D Hope you are all doing well. I'm doing my best :)

Clockwork Angel. Eee. 10th anniversary UK edition. And it looks so very gorgeous. Sigh. I love this one.
The Queen of Nothing. Okay, fine. I haven't read book one. But now I have them all. And peeked too :D
Call Down the Hawk + The Scorpio Races + The Raven King. Ah.  My personalized copies from Fountain Bookstore :D Maggie is the best. <3 And love the exclusive swag too. Can't wait to read her newest book.
Call Down the Hawk. Got my special UK copy from Seven Stories as well :D Love the sticker bookplate.
Pokemon Sword. Eee. I got this perfect game for my Switch. And I already love it so so very much. Oops.
His Dark Materials. There was a new version of the BBC cast audiobooks. Oops. And I had to get it, ha.

More Instagram photos here. <3

Waiting on Wednesday #423

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

THE NOTORIOUS VIRTUES BY ALWYN HAMILTON

Goodreads Description:

Bestselling Rebel of the Sands author Alwyn Hamilton is back with a glittering thriller about a glamorous media darling, a surprise heiress, and the magical competition of a lifetime.

At sixteen, Honora “Nora” Holtzfall is the daughter of the most powerful heiress in all of Walstad. Her family controls all the money–and all the magic–in the entire country. But despite being the center of attention, Nora has always felt like an outsider. When her mother is found dead in an alley, the family throne and fortune are suddenly up for grabs, and Nora will be pitted against her cousins in the Veritaz, the ultimate magical competition for power that determines the one family heir.

But there’s a surprise contestant this time: Lotte, the illegitimate daughter of Nora’s aunt. When Lotte’s absent mother retrieves her from the rural convent she’d abandoned her to, Lotte goes from being an orphan to surrounded by family. Unfortunately, most of them want her dead.

And soon, Nora discovers that her mother’s death wasn’t random–it was murder. And the only person she can trust to uncover the truth of what happened is a rakish young reporter who despises everything Nora and her family stand for.

With everyone against her, Lotte’s last hope is hunting for the identity of her father. But the dangerous competition–and her feelings for Theo, one of the Holtzfalls’ sworn protectors–turns her world upside down.

Incredible tests, impossible choices and deadly odds await both girls. But there can only be one winner.

Paperback, 368 pages

Expected publication: May 5th 2020 by Faber & Faber

Pre-Order here and here

Eee. This cover is all kinds of stunning :D And I simply need to get the UK and US edition of this book, haha. My favorite is this one, the UK one, the silver. Though the gold version is pretty too. Sigh. And also, this book sounds all kinds of awesome. I adore Alwyn. And I just cannot wait to read this gorgeous. Eee.
What are you waiting for on this notorious Wednesday?

Review: The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman

I do not know where to start. I have waited years for this book to come out. To know more about Lyra, now age twenty. But then it was out. And I learned all the spoilers. And I knew there would be parts of this book I was going to hate. But despite that, I still did my re-read of His Dark Materials, which I still love beyond words.

And I re-read La Belle Sauvage, which I also still adore so much. But then I had to read this new book. And I wish I could say that I loved it so very much. But I did not. I knew I would not, but it still hurt my heart so very much. I had waited so long for this book. I had imagined so much. I thought it would be perfect. I was wrong.

There is so much I have to say about this book. First, I'm giving it three stars. Which I think feels fair. The writing was still gorgeous. The world is the very best. Just reading about the old characters gave me joy. Which is why it is as much as three stars. Because the plot and story was not worth that much at all. Okay, fine, the story was exciting and I wanted to know more. But parts of it were simply not okay. And I have so much I need to write down. There will be spoilers below. Because I can't write about this book without writing about what was wrong about it. And there was a whole lot of wrong with this book. Ugh. I wanted to love it the most. I so did not. I still have hopes about the third and final book, but I'm also certain that my hopes will be crushed. Again. Sigh.

Where to begin, though. I hope I will remember to write down everything I want to. This book is written from many point of views. First there is Lyra again, now twenty years old. It has been eight years since the ending of The Amber Spyglass, since she left Will in his own world. There is also the point of view of her dæmon, Pantalaimon. Pan and Lyra have been fighting for months now. They pretty much hate each other. And it was the worst thing to read about. Also because it didn't feel like them at all. Ugh. Annoying.

But I did enjoy reading from Pan's point of view. Though both he and Lyra were being silly about why they were fighting. Hmph. Then there was also Malcolm. He was eleven in La Belle Sauvage, and he is now a huge man aged thirty one. I loved him in the first book. I hated him in this one. I could not help it. There was also a little about Alice, which I did enjoy. Except that we now learn that she was in fact raped in the first book. And I just. It was not clear when it happened. I feel so angry and hurt and oh. It was the worst.

But then there was Malcolm. And the reason for why I felt such hate towards him. Turns out he is in love with Lyra. He is eleven years older than her. This was gross, because of how he mentions thinking about her when he was her teacher, and she was fourteen or sixteen years old. He says she smelled like warm young girl. What the hell. It was so super gross. It is mentioned all the time how he loves her. But. Why? Why does he love her? He doesn't know Lyra. They aren't friends. They don't spend time together at all.

Until this book. When Lyra is suddenly told that Malcolm saved her when she was a baby. She was first thinking of how awkward it was to be around Malcolm, that they didn't go along together. But now learning that he saved her she is suddenly seeing him differently. Just. How? It makes zero sense. She only sees him that one time, then they are parted. They write letters. She thinks of him often. It was beyond gross. Where were her thoughts about Will, her actual true love? Malcolm and Lyra does not fit together. Yuck.

And then there was the fact of Lyra being unfaithful to Will. Yeah. That happened too. What even. The whole of The Amber Spyglass was about Lyra and Will falling in love, the most in love anyone had ever felt. It was perfection. And she couldn't even stay faithful to his memory for eight years? It makes zero sense. This was so not the Lyra I knew and loved. The Lyra in this book was different and I hated her at times. Which also completely ruins my heart. This book was supposed to be perfect. It was so much not.

Anyway. Turns out that Lyra had a relationship with a boy named Dick. Ha. Yeah. They parted as friends. And now every time she sees him she kisses him. I hope it's on the cheek, but did not seem like it. She thinks about how they had slept together. How she liked his touch on her. Gross. And at the same time she says this was not being unfaithful to Will. Because they didn't say i love you. What the hell. Sleeping with someone else while you claim to love another is beyond not okay. I am furious. And so heartbroken.

I don't give a damn that Will and Lyra have not been together for eight years now. Will is her soul mate. She mentions one time that she think of him every hour. She still feels the same type of love for him. And just. What. You do not feel that kind of love for someone and then go sleep with someone else, and kiss someone else and flirt with every boy you see. It's completely wrong and beyond gross and so very much not okay. If Will and Lyra ever see each other again, well. I'm not even sure how I would feel about it now.

Oh, yeah. There was no Will in this book. No mention of them ever being able to see each other again. Which I thought was the whole point of writing another book about Lyra. She barely thinks of him. Near the end, when she is all alone, she thinks of everyone she wishes was there. Will is not one of those. But Malcolm is, and her thought lingers on him. It was gross. They spent barely an hour together, and now it is like they are meant to be together forever. Nothing has happened between them yet. But I'm sure it will.

And it is pissing me off beyond words. There are so many hints in this book about Lyra and Malcolm. That makes it seem like they are meant to be. He loves her. It was goddamn horrible to read about and I hated every single second of it. They are not meant to be. Not at all. And to even think that is wrong. I hate how Philip have written this. I hate hate hate it. But I'll still hope book three will change everything. There are other hints as well. But I do not have a lot of hope, to be honest. This book ruined my heart. In a bad way.

Then there was how much Lyra had changed as a person. She had no imagination. Which Pan goes on about a lot. And when Pan leaves her early in the book, she travels to look for him. And she seemed so pathetic. She was always thinking about how alone she was. How sad she was. She was scared all the time. She was whiny and not brave. She was not the same as the girl I loved. Not even a little bit. And that is why I disliked it so. No hint of the old Lyra, almost nothing. She was so weak. My Lyra is not weak.

Then there was the fact that everywhere she went men stared at her body. She mentions it several times. She mentions how she flirts with boys often. It was simply weird. And then near the end of this book she was almost raped. It was brutal to read about. And there was no reason for this scene to be included. The book was brutal enough. Adding this almost rape did not help. And it made my dislike for this book even higher. Lyra was all alone during that too. She only escaped because of someone opening a door. Hmph.

Which makes me think of something another person said about the book. That Lyra did nothing in it. That everyone did everything for her. And I noticed this too. She has help with every single thing. She does not do anything on her own. And all she does do in this book is travel, to look for Pan in Asia. All the travelling was interesting to read about, but I did not want this book to be about travel. It was so boring most of the time. Lyra had such a boring part in this book. I wanted and was expecting way more from the book. Sigh.

Then there was a whole bunch of other point of views. This book focus even more on political things. With the Church and those who are in charge. New people looking for Lyra, wanting her dead. Most of it was all kinds of boring and lasted for ages. But yeah. I was interested in the whole book. It was, after all, this world that I completely loves. But it was too different. There was no magic. There was no fantasy. There was no Will. And there wasn't even Lyra and Pan together. This whole book was mostly depressing. Ugh.

I wanted so much more. All I got were things to remember and be angry and sad and heartbroken about. Which hurts my heart so badly. Sigh. I wanted more from The Secret Commonwealth. It was a book that took me ages to read. As I did not want to read it. I did not want to start hating Lyra and Malcolm. But that is what this book did to me. It made me slowly start hating both of them. And I will never in a million years ship them together. It is gross and beyond wrong. Lyra only ever belongs with Will. Ugh. So beyond sad.

I was worried that I would not be able to write this review of mine. I was worried I would forget to mention things. Okay, I'm certain there must be things I have forgotten, ha. But I have written down the important things. And this review is now much longer than it was going to be. But once I began writing I could not stop. Not for a single moment. I had to get it all down. Sigh. I wish this book had been better. I wish I had loved it. But it was impossible. Too much to dislike. Oh, how I hope Philip fixes it all in book three. Please.

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All of my Philip Pullman posts sorted by date

In My Mailbox #419

Another week gone by. Now it is even closer to Chritsmas, eee :D Although I pretty much already have Christmas, haha. We have snow. I'm listening to Christmas radio all day. And drinking Christmas soda and eating some Christmas cookies. Oops. I could not resist, haha. Christmas is the best :) My health still sucks, ugh. But trying to deal with it all. I'm just so very exhausted. And tired. Sleeping pills are somewhat working. I'm sleeping. But now having weird life-like dreams often too. Hmph. Don't want that, at all, haha. Anyway. I have spent all week reading The Secret Commonwealth. I will finally finish it tomorrow. I have so many thoughts. Ugh. Many many many bad ones, which ruins my heart. But I knew it would be. Sigh. Still, so sad. Only one new blog post this week, ack. I have been too slow at reading. Oops. But making progress. Anyway. This week I'm waiting on The Girl and the Witch's Garden. <3 I also got a whole lot of books this week. Ahh. Bunch of pre-orders. And so many pop figures too. Oops. A bunch of pre-orders with those as well, haha :) I love it all so much. Hope you are all doing well. I'm doing as best as I can :)

Supernova. Eee. Hardcover finally arrived. And it is gorgeous. <3 I cannot wait to re-read book one soon.
The Starless Sea. Okay, I don't really know anything about this. Oops. I bought it for the cover, haha :)
The Guinevere Deception. I cannot wait to read this book. It seems like it will be so so very awesome :D
Song of the Crimson Flower. Eee! This book was all kinds of adorable. And the hardcover is so stunning.
Keeper of the Lost Cities: Legacy. Ahh! Book eight! B&N exclusive. Can't wait to catch up to them all :)
His Dark Materials. I had to own this new edition of all three books in one. Oops. And it looks so pretty.
The Amber Spyglass + The Subtle Knife. Eee. The rest of the perfect new UK gift editions :D So lovely.
Comet Rising. New paperback edition of this stunning book :D I adore MarcyKate. Her books are great.
Serpent & Dove Pre-Order Swag. Eee! Thank you Shelby for these gorgeous artcards. They're so pretty.
Frozen 2. Couldn't resist buying this sticker book. Cute. Waiting until Christmas for the movie, though..
Pop Figures. Gosh. So many new Harry Potter ones, eee :D And new Game of Thrones. My poor Jorah.

DisneyStore UK. Gosh. I have finally placed another Disney order, haha :D It's been two years since my last order. I love my Disney things the most. Sigh. But so very expensive. And I have no room. Oops. But I needed this gorgeous Rapunzel doll, eee :D So got some Maleficent dolls too, which I adore so much. <3 And new Frozen 2 dolls too, haha :) Minnie plush was free; she's adorable. Plus cute Frozen 2 plush.

More Instagram photos here. <3

Waiting on Wednesday #422

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

THE GIRL AND THE WITCH'S GARDEN BY ERIN BOWMAN

Goodreads Description:

The Secret Garden meets Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children in this rich, charming middle grade adventure about a girl determined to infiltrate her grandmother’s enchanted garden with the help of some magically gifted friends.

Mallory Estate is the last place twelve-year-old Piper Peavey wants to spend her summer vacation. The grounds are always cold, the garden out back is dead, a mysterious group of children call the property home, and there’s a rumor that Melena M. Mallory—the owner of the estate and Piper’s wealthy grandmother—is a witch.

But when Piper’s father falls ill, Mallory Estate is exactly where she finds herself.

The grand house and its garden hold many secrets—some of which may even save her father—and Piper will need to believe in herself, her new friends, and magic if she wants to unlock them before it’s too late.

Hardcover, 288 pages

Expected publication: May 26th 2020 by Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers

Pre-Order here and here

Eee. This middle grade book sounds all kinds of magical and special. And I just know that I am going to love it to pieces. Sigh. Wishing it was May already :D I also very much adore Erin. I so can't wait for this.
What are you waiting for on this magical Wednesday?

In My Mailbox #418

Another week gone by. Gosh. Time is moving way too fast, haha. This week I only got three books, which is way less than every other week, so yay for that, lol. Though I'm pretty sure that there will be more next week. Oops. Oh, well. Getting book mail is the best. Sigh. I have been pretty exhausted this week. Health completely sucks. With new things all the time. But I have taken an xray of my lungs, now just waiting for results. I went back to the hospital for a skin doctor appointment, which went pretty well, I think. And I got my doctor to give me sleeping pills, so that I can finally sleep at night. I think my dose might be too small, but so far they are working. I am getting sleep. But I also have the driest mouth, which is killing me. Gah. And I'm just generally exhausted, as always. Sigh. Hoping it will improve soon. I'm so slow at reading. But will finally start The Secret Commonwealth tonight. I do not really want to. Sobs. But I will. Sigh. Will try to finish it in less than a week. Wish me luck. A few new posts this week too. I shared my second review of La Belle Sauvage :) This week I'm waiting on The Midnight Lie. <3 And I shared the cover for Scammed :D Christmas is getting closer and closer and I am so very excited. Eee. But gosh. The sun is now almost gone too. Sigh. Which I do not like. Will have to take darker photos. Ahh. But I shall survive :) Hopefully.

For the Killing of Kings + Upon the Flight of the Queen. Eee! Thank you so much St. Martin's Press for sending me these two books to read and review :D They look gorgeous. I'm so hoping to love them both.
Call Down the Hawk. Ahh! First copy has arrived. <3 Okay, behind on the series, but excited even so :D
Pop Figures. Eee. Tiny Elsa. So cute. And Hedwig. And the Night King. Oops. I had to get them all, haha.

More Instagram photos here. <3

Cover Reveal: Scammed by Kristen Simmons

Eee! Today I'm sharing the cover reveal for Scammed by Kristen Simmons :D It is the sequel to her very awesome con book The Deceivers. <3 And gosh! That book is getting a new cover today too :D And eee. I think they both looks amazing. So different from the original cover, but so pretty too. And I love them. I loved The Deceivers a whole bunch. See my five star review here. And I quite simply cannot wait to read Scammed. It's going to be so awesome :D If you haven't read The Deceivers yet, get moving. It's such a fun and thrilling and mysterious book. Also, Kristen is awesome, and you should definitely read all of her books. The covers feature Brynn, Caleb and Grayson. And they all look stunning. Eee. Also, there is no love triangle in this series. At all. And the romance is so sweet. Sigh. The hardcover of Scammed and the paperback of The Deceivers will both be out on February 4th 2020. Order them already. Links below. <3 About cover design: the design is by Tor Teen and the photographs are from Michael Frost Photography.

Brynn Hilder is living a life she never dreamed possible: She lives in a mansion, getting a top-rate education at Vale Hall. She has friends and an almost-boyfriend. Anything she wants, she can have.

The only catch? To stay in this life, she has to help the director of Vale Hall take down the bad guys of Sikawa City by collecting secrets and running cons.

Getting everything she wants and fighting evil doesn’t seem like such a bad deal. The thing is, she’s not so convinced anymore that Dr. Odin is really going after bad people after all. And the friends and almost-boyfriend that have made her life so different are all liars and con artists—so can she trust that any of it is real?

The stakes are higher. The cons are riskier. And nothing is what you think it is.

Buy Scammed: Amazon - B&N - The Book Depository

Indiebound - Kobo - Books-a-Million - Powell's

Kristen Simmons, the author of the Article 5 series and Metaltown, brings her remarkable imagination to this intrigue-filled contemporary drama where good kids are needed to do some very bad things in The Deceivers.

Welcome to Vale Hall, the school for aspiring con artists.

When Brynn Hilder is recruited to Vale, it seems like the elite academy is her chance to start over, away from her mom’s loser boyfriend and her rundown neighborhood. But she soon learns that Vale chooses students not so much for their scholastic talent as for their extracurricular activities, such as her time spent conning rich North Shore kids out of their extravagant allowances.

At first, Brynn jumps at the chance to help the school in its mission to rid the city of corrupt officials—because what could be better than giving entitled jerks what they deserve? But that’s before she meets her mark—a senator’s son—and before she discovers the school’s headmaster has secrets he’ll stop at nothing to protect. As the lines between right and wrong blur, Brynn begins to realize she’s in way over head.

Buy The Deceivers: Amazon - B&N - The Book Depository 

Indiebound - Kobo - Books-a-Million - Powell's

Kristen Simmons is the critically acclaimed author of the ARTICLE 5 series, THE GLASS ARROW, METALTOWN, PACIFICA, and THE DECEIVERS. She has worked with survivors of abuse and trauma as a mental health therapist, taught Jazzercise in five states, and is forever in search of the next best cupcake. Currently she lives in Cincinnati, Ohio with her husband, where she spends her days supporting the caffeine industry and chasing her son.

Where to find Kristen Simmons:

Twitter. Instagram. Goodreads. Website. Facebook.

Waiting on Wednesday #421

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

THE MIDNIGHT LIE BY MARIE RUTKOSKI

Goodreads Description:

Where Nirrim lives, crime abounds, a harsh tribunal rules, and society’s pleasures are reserved for the High Kith. Life in the Ward is grim and punishing. People of her low status are forbidden from sampling sweets or wearing colors. You either follow the rules, or pay a tithe and suffer the consequences.

Nirrim keeps her head down and a dangerous secret close to her chest.

But then she encounters Sid, a rakish traveler from far away who whispers rumors that the High Caste possesses magic. Sid tempts Nirrim to seek that magic for herself. But to do that, Nirrim must surrender her old life. She must place her trust in this sly stranger who asks, above all, not to be trusted.

Set in the world of the New York Times–bestselling Winner’s Trilogy, beloved author Marie Rutkoski returns with an epic LGBTQ romantic fantasy about learning to free ourselves from the lies others tell us—and the lies we tell ourselves.

Hardcover, 368 pages

Expected publication: March 3rd 2020 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

Pre-Order here and here

God. I cannot wait to read this book. EEE! I loved The Winner's Curse trilogy so so very much. Marie is simply amazing. And this new book by her sounds beyond thrilling. I cannot wait to meet Nirrim. And read from this world again. Sigh. And oh my gosh. That cover. It is gorgeous. I need this book now, please. <3
What are you waiting for on this untruthful Wednesday?

Review: La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman

It's been two years since I first read this book. And so reading it for the second time now was a must. And I am so glad I did so, because reading this book again too was all kinds of fun. And I still loved it so very much. It's all kinds of heartbreaking and rude, though, but so good. This world is simply the best to read about.

I will not write too much about this book this time. Only sharing a little about why I loved it so. First there is the stunning writing. As getting lost in this world is the easiest thing. And getting to know all of the characters is the best. They are all amazing and are all fully complicated. And oh. This book has the most horrible villain.

La Belle Sauvage takes place before His Dark Materials. When Lyra is just a baby, less than a year old. We learn so much about what happened to her as a child. We learn more about Lord Asriel too, whom I still have a love-hate relationship with. He was better in this book, in the past. And he did seem to really love his baby Lyra. Sigh. Which makes it even more sad, what happens in the first books. Hmph. Rude. But he is not in this book all that much at all. Because this is the story of eleven year old Malcolm. And his kind of enemy, Alice. It is sort of also the story about a woman named Hannah, though we never learned what happened to her, which is kind of depressing. I wanted to know more about her. And more about everyone. This was so not long enough.

It is the story of Malcolm. His parents work and live at a pub and he helps out there. He has a good and quiet life. He helps out with the nuns at the priory right across the bridge too. And reading about his great friendship with the nuns was all kinds of fun. I adored them all. And I loved how he cared for them. But oh gosh. Just realized that we were never told who died in the flood. Which is all kinds of rude. I must know. How sad. Hmph. Anyway. The nuns were awesome and I liked reading about the priory and the pub too.

I shall not say much more about the story. Malcolm ends up meeting baby Lyra, as she is to stay with the nuns for a while. And he adores her right away. Which I loved so much. Well, I loved it, until I know what happens in the next book. Ugh. I am not pleased. At all. Malcolm was like her older brother in a way, her protector. He took such good care of Lyra in this book. He saved her and kept her safe for days. Which was all kinds of hard to read about but so good and interesting as well. They went through so very much.

And Alice was there through all of it. This girl was all kinds of complicated. Fierce and rude at first. But fierce and kind inside when the book moves forward a bit. I loved reading about her and getting to know her. But oh, how she met the villain of this book ruined my heart. The poor girl and all she needed to go through. It was not fair at all. She was so strong and awesome, though. I so loved the growing friendship between Alice and Malcolm. They were pretty much adorable together. And I loved them both so much.

I simply cannot get over the villain in this story. He was beyond horrible and cruel and truly awful to read about. And also just the worst. He is after Malcolm and Alice. Because they are protecting baby Lyra, and he wants her, for reasons unknown. But this villain is all kinds of scary and dangerous. He looks nice. But he had a hyena dæmon. And not a nice one. It was awful to read about. Some scenes with them together was simply too much. But written well too. This villain was done well, and I did like that there was a villain.

I shall now not say much more about this book. Only that I very much enjoyed my second read of it. And I am glad I finally made myself re-read it. I'm such a slow reader these days. But even though it took a long time to read, it was worth it. This book was still every bit as precious as it was the first time I read it. And I loved that so much. Okay, nothing will ever be as good as the Lyra and Will books, but this new one was great too. I simply adored reading about Malcolm and Alice and their dæmons and their life. So amazing.

I must admit that I have taken so long to re-read La Belle Sauvage because I have been nervous about starting The Secret Commonwealth next. I have heard some bad things. And I peeked and I read even worse things. Which is making my heart break, because I wanted this new book so badly. And now I'm almost too nervous to read it, ha. But I will. And I know that I will love parts of it, because of this stunning world, but I also know that I will hate parts of it, which I have never done with a Philip book before. Oh.

And so I am nervous. But I am excited too. And having re-read these four precious books first have still been the best thing. Because nothing will make me stop loving these books. As they are all precious and perfect and I love them beyond words. Though, well. I loved Malcolm to pieces in this one. I will not love him in the next book. Which hurts me so much. But even so. I will always have this book to love and so I shall be happy about that. Because La Belle Sauvage was still perfect. And you all must read it now too.

 

Goodreads - The Book Depository - Amazon

All of my Philip Pullman posts sorted by date

In My Mailbox #417

Hello. I should be reading this evening. Instead I'm busy updating my blog pages a little. So far behind on updating everything. So I shall finish it now. Oops. But should be reading. Or playing my newest Switch game. Ack. Maybe time for both after I finish with my blog. Fingers crossed. Less books this week, but still so many, oops. Love them all. My health still sucks, ugh, but I have lots of appointments this coming week that I hope will give some answers. Fingers crossed. I also managed to have three new posts this week, so yay for that. I took part in the Legacy Blog Tour :D This week I'm waiting on My Calamity Jane. <3 And I finally shared my Eight Years of Blogging post too :) I'm so far behind on everything, but trying to catch up. Like how I am doing my blog pages now, haha. Slowly catching up, but I will manage, one day. So exhausted, though. Trying my best :) I'm busy listening to Christmas music, waiting for Christmas, lol.

Runaways. Missing the third one, this is number four :D I'm excited to read them all one day soon, eee.
Wayward Son. Hmm. The international paperback. Love. It wasn't supposed to arrive, unsure how it did.
Mortal Instruments Graphic Novel 3. These graphic novels are beyond gorgeous. Will read them one day.
Supernova. Ahh! Third book, UK pback, arrived a week before release :D Eee. I have peeked, haha. <3
The Girl the Sea Gave Back + Into the Crooked Place. AHH! Thank you so so much Aly for trading these two beyond perfect UK ARCs with me. Sigh. I am so so thrilled with them both. You are the very best :)
Pop Figures. Eee! A whole bunch of new Frozen 2 ones :D And glitter Coraline + new Eleven too. Love.
Luigi's Mansion 3. I have not played the earlier Luigi games, so I'm super excited about playing this one.
Happy Hello Bookmarks. Oops. Finally placed a new order for more of these precious bookmarks, haha :)

More Instagram photos here. <3