We’re back with another Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl.
This week’s topic is Thankful/ Thanksgiving Freebie!
#TopTenTuesday: Thanks, 2024 Reads.
Book Review: Castles in their Bones by Laura Sebastian
Castles in their Bones (Castles in their Bones #1)
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pub Date: 1 February 2022
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Panda Rating:
(4.5 pandas)
📖 SYNOPSIS
The plot: overthrow a kingdom. The goal: world domination. The plan: marriage.
Trained for from birth in espionage and seduction, the triplet princesses of Bessemia must travel to three distant lands to marry three princes and enact their Queen mother’s plan to rule from sea to sea. But when they arrive, each sister discovers her task is not so simple, and their mother’s motives may not be what they seem.
⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS
Classism, sexual harassment, paedophilia mentioned, alcohol consumption, murder, poisoning, riots, filicide, assassination attempts, brief imprisonment, mild violence
I first read this book in 2023 but didn’t manage to write a proper review so I’m writing it now on re-read and kind of mashing up my first and second read thoughts. Sorry if it’s a mess! 🤭
TL;DR: I loved this more than I thought I would! With three perspectives to contend with, I was worried that I’d find certain perspectives more boring than others but I ended up feeling incredibly invested in all three sisters, their tasks and their romances too. There is plenty of courtly political drama, expected and unexpected betrayals, tenuous romantic bonds, and fragile friendships but through it all, it’s always about family and loyalty. After that absolutely WILD ending, I can’t wait to pick up the next book in the series ASAP. 💜
Read More »
Sundays in Bed With… #MyWeeklyWrapUp [258]
We’re back with another Sundays in Bed With… meme! This meme dares to ask you what book has been in your bed this morning and is hosted by Midnight Book Girl. Come share what book you’ve spent your time reading in bed or wish you had time to read today.
I’m spending Sunday night in bed continuing my re-read of Stardust in their Veins by Laura Sebastian. It’s the second book in the series and it’s definitely giving “moving all the chess pieces into place” but I’m still enjoying it a lot! Daphne is truly trying my nerves though, lol.
Book Review: Hitched to the Gunslinger by Michelle McLean
Hitched to the Gunslinger (Gunslinger #1)
Publisher: Entangled: Amara
Pub Date: 24 August 2021
Genre: Historical Western Romance
Panda Rating:
(5 pandas)
📖 SYNOPSIS
Gray “Quick Shot” Woodson is the fastest gun west of the Mississippi. Unfortunately, he’s ready to hang up his hat. Sure, being notorious has its perks. But the nomadic lifestyle—and people always tryin’ to kill you—gets old real fast.
Now he just wants to find a place to retire so he can spend his days the way the good Lord intended. Staring at the sunset. And napping.
When his stubborn horse drags him into a hole-in-the-wall town called Desolation, something about the place calls to Gray, and he figures he might actually have a shot at a sleepy retirement.
His optimism lasts about a minute and a half.
Soon he finds himself embroiled in a town vendetta and married to a woman named Mercy. Who, judging by her aggravating personality, doesn’t know the meaning of her own name. In fact, she’s downright impossible.
But dang it if his wife isn’t irresistible. If only she’d stop trying to steal his guns to go after the bad guys herself.
There goes his peace and quiet…
⚠️ CONTENT WARNINGS
Death of parent (off page), gambling, alcoholism (side character), gun violence, extortion, attempted murder
#WWWWednesday: 20 November 2024
Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:
- What did you read last?
- What are you currently reading?
- What will you read next?
#TopTenTuesday: Oldest Books On My Shelves
We’re back with another Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl.
This week’s topic is Oldest (aka Earliest Published) Books On My TBR (submitted by Nicole @ BookWyrm Knits)
Book Review: Starling House by Alix E. Harrow
Starling House
Publisher: Tor Books
Pub Date: 3 October 2023
Genre: Gothic Fantasy
Panda Rating:
(5 pandas)
📖 SYNOPSIS
A grim and gothic new tale from author Alix E. Harrow about a small town haunted by secrets that can’t stay buried and the sinister house that sits at the crossroads of it all.
Eden, Kentucky, is just another dying, bad-luck town, known only for the legend of E. Starling, the reclusive nineteenth-century author and illustrator who wrote The Underland–and disappeared. Before she vanished, Starling House appeared. But everyone agrees that it’s best to let the uncanny house―and its last lonely heir, Arthur Starling―go to rot.
Opal knows better than to mess with haunted houses or brooding men, but an unexpected job offer might be a chance to get her brother out of Eden. Too quickly, though, Starling House starts to feel dangerously like something she’s never had: a home.
As sinister forces converge on Starling House, Opal and Arthur are going to have to make a dire choice to dig up the buried secrets of the past and confront their own fears, or let Eden be taken over by literal nightmares.
If Opal wants a home, she’ll have to fight for it.
⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS
Grief, death of a parent (recounted), drowning (recounted), car accident (recounted), blackmail, fire, brief imprisonment, asthma attacks, poverty, racism, slavery, implications of sexual assault/incest/paedophilia, child marriage, gun violence (minor), implications of drugging, violence, blood
Why is it always the hardest to review a book you love? The words are swirling around in my head but they just won’t come out in the way I need them to! So sorry if this is a ‘mid’ slightly nonsensical ramble of a review.
TL;DR: Starling House is a hauntingly beautiful Southern Gothic with a rich fairytale-esque atmosphere. It doesn’t matter that I’ve probably read something similar-ish before because the combination of the author’s lush prose, relatable characters, and well-loved tropes mixed with the creepy foreboding vibe felt unique. I fell in love with Opal, Arthur, and the sentient House with its oddly endearing personality. I loved where Harrow took this story and what it turned into—from a slow beginning that steadily builds to an utterly explosive and ultimately satisfying ending.
This was a buddy read with Leslie and Julie and we had so much to gush about! It was a great group read and I’m so happy to say that all of us really loved it! 😍
Read More » Sundays in Bed With… #MyWeeklyWrapUp [257]
We’re back with another Sundays in Bed With… meme! This meme dares to ask you what book has been in your bed this morning and is hosted by Midnight Book Girl. Come share what book you’ve spent your time reading in bed or wish you had time to read today.
I’m spending Sunday night in bed continuing my re-read of Castles in their Bones by Laura Sebastian. I’m re-reading this so that I can (hopefully) finish the series this year. I’ll be reading the second book with Leslie and then we’ll be reading the third book with Julie too. 💜 I’m excited for it!
#FirstLinesFriday: 15 November 2024
Happy Friday book lovers! We’re back with another First Lines Friday, a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here are the rules:
- Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
- Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
- Finally… reveal the book!
First lines:
“Gray Woodson didn’t know much, but he knew one thing… Life had been a lot easier when he was killin’ people.
This whole retirement thing, on the other hand, was a pain in his saddle-hardened ass.”
The Bookish Questions Book Tag
Hello, friends! It’s time for another round of Tag Thursday. I’ve been keeping today’s tag for the right mood and now the day has finally come! 😂
I found this tag on Budget Tales Book Blog who found it on A Little But Alot. I tried scouring the Google for who was the creator of this tag but there are so many Bookish Questions Book Tag variations that I can’t find the one for this specific tag. If you do find them or know who it is, please leave a comment so I can properly link them up! 💜
On that note, let’s get straight to this tag!
Genre I stay away from
As The Ultimate Chicken™️, horror in general is a genre that I stay away from. More specifically, paranormal horror is something that I try as much as possible to not touch. This goes for books, movies, shows, etc. I’ve dipped my toes in a time or two and I wouldn’t say that I didn’t enjoy it at all but my overactive imagination went into overdrive and I couldn’t sleep for… a while. 👀 It’s just really not my jam!
Worst habit as a reader?
Oh, I’ve got a few bad habits when it comes to books but I think one of them is my inability to DNF. I’m actively trying to improve on this but it’s so hard, friends! My brain always goes “but what if it gets better?” and it very rarely does, yet my brain still convinces me that maybe this time it will. 😂 Let’s just say that I’m a work in progress!
Do I read the synopsis?
I always do… But that doesn’t mean I will remember it. 🤭 Most of the time I simply remember what the gist of the book is about but often times, I forgot details I read in the synopsis. It’s both good and bad (especially if I’m taken completely by surprise in a not good way, lol)!
Do I read used books?
I love used books! When I first started actively reading again post-uni, the books that got me started were secondhand Nora Roberts books I found in one of the only indie bookstores that sold English books in Cambodia! 😂 Sadly, where I live now doesn’t really do “used” books at least not of English books.
Favourite book from last year?
Uhm, ask me to choose one favourite and it’s impossible. I can never choose whenever I make my Yearly wrap-up posts and well, I still can’t choose. So here the Top 5 I listed in my 2023 End of Year Book Survey:
Favourite Classic?
I’m not trying to be difficult but again, it’s a tie between my queen Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion.
Book I always recommend?
Hmm, not an easy question to answer since there’s so much to consider when recommending anything! However, a book I realise that I’ve recommended a lot over the past couple of years is Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree. It’s the perfect slice-of-life cosy fantasy with new beginnings, warm friendships, wonderful characters, and a sweet sapphic romance. It’s so good! 🥰
Current read?
Well, I’m currently “reading” five books but this morning I decided to start yet another one so I’m actually reading Hitched to the Gunslinger by Michelle McLean. It’s a genuinely funny historical romance and I’ve laughed so much at their antics and banter. Julie added it to my TBR three years ago! 🤭
Books I’m looking forward to reading?
There are literally so many that I can’t name them all! Here are five that are a mix of new and old releases.
Books I’m ashamed of not reading yet?
Oh, there are truly so many but the ones I’m really most ashamed of not reading yet are the backlist ARCs on my NetGalley shelf. 🥺 I’m gonna further call myself out here and share a few of the titles that are on the list and some of them are backlist backlist ARCs. (Cue: That Game of Thrones shame GIF!)
That’s it for today’s tag! I won’t be tagging anyone this time but if you do it, feel free to link back so I can read your answers! 😃
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