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:
June and July were… Months. 😂 Work took over my life—and not in the best way—in June and what should have been a month of decompressing and destressing in July, was filled with personal losses that really broke my heart. They weren’t the greatest months and have solidified the fact that 2023 is a year of utter chaos, confusion and change even more so than the previous years, at least for me personally! I’m hoping that the rest of the year will be significantly better but at this point I’m just trying to do what’s best for me by taking it one day at a time, losing myself in games, and slowly working my way back to books, reading and blogging.
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Special thanks to Skyscape for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!
How to Win a Breakup
Publisher: Skyscape
Publication Date: 21 March 2023
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Panda Rating:
(3.5 pandas)
An “it” couple’s breakup becomes a sporting event in a deliciously charming novel about the games people play in the name of love.
First, math genius and gamer-nerd Samaya gets dumped by her boyfriend. Then he sabotages her job and hooks up with her frenemy. What could be worse? Clearly, her golden-boy ex is winning the breakup. The only way Samaya can get some rebound cred is to find someone new. Even if she has to fake it.
At a volunteer bake sale, Samaya meets a sweet opportunity. Daniel is a handsome hockey jock and a whiz when it comes to lemon squares and brownies. And he agrees to play along. Quid pro quo. He’ll pretend to be the boyfriend of her dreams if Samaya helps him pass calculus.
This may well be the recipe for the best revenge, but Samaya has no idea how complicated it will get. As they whip up an imitation romance, and a bumbleberry pie, resisting each other’s very real charms proves impossible. Samaya finds herself on an unexpected journey of secrets, self-discovery, and the true meaning of moving on.
Bullying/Cyberbullying, Racist slurs, Harrassment, Homelessness, Catfishing, Domestic Abuse (mentioned)
TL;DR: How to Win a Breakup is a fun and fairly angsty YA contemporary romance featuring the fake-dating trope, exes out to best each other, plenty of gaming geeks and an athlete himbo who loves to bake and has a heart of gold. Samaya had a lot of learning and growing to do and although it took a while for her to get there, she does make strides in the end. I loved the friendship she forms with Daniel, who is without a doubt my favourite character in this story! There were some parts that could’ve been stronger and less scattered but overall, this was enjoyable and a perfect summer beach read.
Read More » 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:
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:
Hello, friends! It’s a little past the mid-year mark but I thought why not jump aboard the mid-year check-in train anyway? I’ve been seeing lots of these posts recently and well, compared to previous years, mine is probably not going to be very exciting but I still love this tag so here I am doing it anyway! 😂
As I’ve mentioned a time or three since I started blogging again last week, I’m still trying to find my reading groove after so much disruption this year, especially this past month. Hopefully, coming back to the community and surrounding myself with fellow book lovers will motivate me again. Plus, I’ve missed you all a lot! 💜 On that note, let’s get to The Mid-Year Check-In!
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Happy Saturday, friends! Today I’m excited to share my review for Academy Arcanist by Shami Stovall as part of the blog tour hosted by The Write Reads.
Special thanks to the tour organisers for having me on tour and to the author for providing a digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review!
Academy Arcanist (Astra Academy #1)
Publisher: Capital Station Books
Publication Date: 23 August 2022
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Panda Rating:
(4 pandas)
Hopes. Dreams. And literal nightmares out to kill a young boy.
Gray Lexly, son of a candlemaker, wants to escape his life of old-world technologies and study at the prestigious Astra Academy, a school for arcanists—those who can wield magic. But Gray has a major problem. Every night, as he sleeps, he’s visited by monsters. When they injure Gray in his dreams, he wakes with the same wounds in real life…
On the night Gray might finally die in his nightmares, he is saved by the kind and mysterious Professor Helmith, a powerful arcanist. She offers to protect Gray and invites him to attend Astra Academy.
Before that can happen, Gray must bond with a mystical creature to become an arcanist himself. Will he bond with a unicorn? A pegasus? A kitsune? Whatever he bonds with will determine his magical abilities, so he must choose wisely.
And when trouble finds Professor Helmith, Gray must become powerful enough to help her and fend off the terrible nightmares, before it’s too late…
Blood, gore, death
TL;DR: Academy Arcanist is a fast-paced YA fantasy that’s a little bit dark and filled with a lot of magic! If you love magical creatures/companions in your fantasies then there’s no doubt that you will love this world and the magical system linked to forming a life-long unbreakable bond with a supernatural animal. The characters were intriguing, the plot was mysterious (if not a little predictable) and I adored the found family vibes that always come with starting a new life in a magical academy. Although I struggled with the main character and his perspective at times, there was never a moment I didn’t root for his success. This is a great start to a series and I can’t wait to see where this goes next!
Read More » 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:
Hello, friends! I’m back and diving straight in with a blog tour review for The Third Daughter by Adrienne Tooley. Special thanks to the TBR & Beyond Tours team for organising the tour and including me in it!
Thanks to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Click here or on the banner above to check out the rest of the fantastic bloggers on tour!
The Third Daughter
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 18 July 2023
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Rep: Lesbian, Queer, Bi, Gay
Panda Rating:
(3 pandas)
A sweeping YA fantasy about legacy, betrayal, sisterhood, and politicizing emotion in the quest for power—all balanced by a slow-burn LGBTQ romance.
For centuries, the citizens of Velle have waited for their New Maiden to return. The prophecy states she will appear as the third daughter of a third daughter. When the fabled child is finally born to Velle’s reigning queen all rejoice except for Elodie, the queen’s eldest child, who has lost her claim to the crown. The only way for Elodie to protect Velle is to retake the throne. To do so, she must debilitate the Third Daughter—her youngest sister, Brianne.
Desperate, Elodie purchases a sleeping potion from Sabine, who sells sadness. But the apothecary mistakenly sends the princess away with a vial of tears instead of a harmless sleeping brew. Sabine’s sadness is dangerously powerful, and Brianne slips into a slumber from which she will not wake. With the fates of their families and country hanging in the balance, Sabine and Elodie hurry to revive the Third Daughter while a slow-burning attraction between the two girls erupts in full force.
A must-read for fans of the BookTok sensations Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard, Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson, and These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong.
TL;DR: The Third Daughter is an interesting start to a new duology(?) that I think holds a lot of potential. Tooley’s prose is compelling and it’s easy to become absorbed in the world she has created. Elodie and Sabine are complex, morally grey and not always the easiest to like or even empathise with at times but it makes their arcs even more engaging to follow and their characters feel more realistic. The book takes on a surprisingly darker tone that I wasn’t really expecting, especially in regard to faith and politics and how often and easily those two are mixed to the detriment of society. While I think there were elements that could’ve been written better to make the story even stronger, I’m definitely looking forward to seeing where it goes next.
Read More » 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:
dinipandareads 