June Wrap Up (2020)

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And it's the end of June, so my next post is the June Wrap Up (2020)!

I read a lot of books this month. I didn't even think I was going to get my monthly TBR finished this month honestly, because of how large the first three books were. But I did, and I even read extra, to my enormous surprise.

Enjoy!

-BOOKS-

I read a total of 9 books this month, and just like last month, I've enjoyed every book (some more than others though.)

Here's what I read this month.

1. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (The Hunger Games #0), by Suzanne Collins

If you want to see more of my in-depth thoughts of this book, the link to the review is in the title. But to sum it up, I thought there were both good parts, and things that could have been improved. But, I'm hoping, that if Suzanne Collins is able to write a book like this for a character we're not meant to like, then she should be able to write an even better book for a character we do like (like Finnick, Mags, Haymitch, Johanna, Cinna or Effie- please Suzanne Collins?) But, I read this book so I could form my own opinions on this book, because so many people are divided on this one.

2. Seasons of War (Skulduggery Pleasant #13), by Derek Landy

I've been following the Skulduggery Pleasant series since I was 12 years old, and it hasn't disappointed me once. Once again we follow Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain in their next adventure. This time around, they travel to another dimension, to stop them taking over their reality. They make the journey with a (mostly) new bunch of characters and it was nice to meet the people that clearly weren't all they seemed. I also feel like I found out a lot more about Valkyrie on a personal level in this one, which isn't something I was expecting to read about. Of course there was lots of action, and I'm bummed I have to wait a whole year until the next book. (Also that there's only two books left until the end (I've been following this series for so long, even two years feels like nothing to me where this series is concerned.) But, this was just as fantastic as all the other instalments have been. Welcome to the collection, Seasons of War.  

3. Beneath the Sugar Sky (Wayward Children #3), by Seanen McGuire

After loving the first two books of this series, I was excited to see what came next in the series. This one was a little confusing compared to the first two books, but it was also a kind of story, because it wasn't focused on a particular character, and the main action did take place at Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children either. It was kind of a group adventure where they have to try and save a character, before she ceases to exist (in the past, her mother was killed before she was born- try working that one out.) But it was an interesting chapter in the Wayward Children universe, and it can't have been that confusing because I'm currently listening to the fourth instalment of the series.  

4. All Your Twisted Secrets, by Diana Urban

This was so good! I can't think of one thing I could say that this book could improve. Addictive, intense and full of surprises, All Your Twisted Secrets is about six teenagers that are invited to a scholarship dinner- or that's what they think. But when they get there, they realise that there's no such thing. Stuck in a room with no clue what's going on, they're left with a choice: choose one to die, or they all do. At first there is disbelief, of course. But as the bomb continues to count down, disbelief turns to fear, and fear to panic. Is this a trick? Or will they really have to choose? I flew through this, and I'm not surprised. If I didn't know that this is Diana Urban's debut novel, I wouldn't have thought so. If you like the One of Us Is Lying series, I highly recommend this.  

5. Gemina (The Illuminae Files #2), by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

The second book in The Illuminae Files and even though I feel like this one had a different pacing to the first one, (I didn't feel like I was thrown into the action straight away like in the first one), I was still amazed by how much I grew to love the characters. I also can't wait to pick up Obsidio to see what happens to this fantastic cast of characters in the conclusion. (Have no idea what's going to happen, but I hope there's action... wait, of course there will be.) Anyway, Gemina introduces us to two new protagonists: Hannah, the daughter of the captain on-board the Heimdall, and Nik, her drug dealer. Thrown together to defend their home from invaders, soon they're not just fighting for their own survival, the fate of everyone on the Hypatia- and possibly the known universe- is in her hands.  

6. The Henna Wars, by Adiba Jaigirdar

I loved this book so much, I had to write a review for it- link is in the title if you want more in-depth thoughts. But the first thing I will say is that this was such a well-written story. The Henna Wars follows Nishat, a Bengali girl who is allowed to be whoever she wants- except a lesbian. When her school announce a contest where the students can start their own business, both Nishat and Flavia- a girl she used to know, who has recently enrolled at her school, both decide to start a Henna stall. I have to say, I love everything about this book- but my favourite part was the relationships. Nishat and Priti (her sister) was the most realistic, but it was Nishat and Flavia's relationship that was spark that kept the will they, won't they get together question stuck in the back of my mind the entire book. It's such a cute book, but I love how it deals with serious issues too, like racism, or a character being outed too. Top class.

7. The Call (The Call #1), by Peadar O' Guilin

I read this years ago, back in 2016, and donated it, so someone else could enjoy it. Four years later, when I bought the sequel, The Invasion, I decided to give it a re-read on my Kindle. The Call is about Nessa, a girl that has been training for four years, to prove to everyone that she can survive the call, where adolescents are transported for a day of hell, where the creatures that reside there like nothing more than to twist and torture the teenagers of Ireland. Having suffered from Croup as an infant, Nessa's legs are little more than useless, but she is determined to prove everyone wrong. Can she survive? This is a classic horror book if ever I've read one. The writing is gruesome, and you can't help but wince at some of the prescriptions. If you're in the mood for a short horror story, this is the one for you.

8. The Invasion (The Call #2), by Peadar O' Guilin

Taking place nearly immediately after the end of The Call, once again we read from the POV of Nessa, going to meet with Anto. But she never gets off, as she is arrested for something that I will not talk about because spoilers, and whisked away to prison. And it all escalades from there. Unlike in The Call, we follow both Nessa's perspective and Anto's over the course of the book. I wouldn't say this would make a good film, but it sure as heck would make a great videogame, because of the balance of character ARCs and fighting for good there is in this book. The concluding book to a decent duology, even though I wasn't expecting it to go the way it went, but that doesn't mean I wasn't satisfied. A decent duology to fly through if you're in the mood for routable characters and a book filled with action.

9. In An Absent Dream (Wayward Children #4), by Seanen McGuire

I literally finished this today, and I'm glad I could fit it in because my TBR for next month is HUGE. Maybe it's because it's my favourite one so far? Cos it totally was. In An Absent Dream is about a very studious girl called Lundy, who doesn't want to conform to a respectable housewife in the future, as well she shouldn't. But when she finds a door to the Goblin Market, full of rules and lies and deals, she thinks she's found her wonderland. Until she makes a deal, one that won't end well. (This is a prequel, so anyone that has read this series knows where she ends up.) But what I loved about this was that it was so much more than what the blurb says, I definitely liked Lundy more as a main character than all the other characters I've met so far. I wish the next book isn't the last one that's currently out.

-FILMS AND TV SHOWS-

Films

1. Table 19 (2017)- Not as amazing as I thought it would be, but still a funny film. Starring Lisa Kudrow and Anna Kendrick.

2. P.S. I Love You- One of my absolute favourites. Should really read the book. Starring Hilary Swank & Gerard Butler. Also worth a mention: this also features Lisa Kudrow.

TV Shows

1. RuPaul's Drag Race- Finished current season.

2. RuPaul's All Stars- Started current season.

3. The Next Step- Slowly making my way through Season 4.

-What I Did This Month-

Honestly, the exact same things as last month. Working, read, running. Not much else.

Okay! That's it for this month! I got a heck of a lot of reading done, more than I think I've ever read in a month (and I hope you had a good reading month too.) I will see you later with my July TBR, and because The Reading Rush is next month, I'll be doing two TBR posts, and that means a whole lot of books!

I hope you all have a wonderful day, and I'll see you soon!

Byeee!

-Abi xxxx

The Henna Wars, by Adiba Jaigirdar

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And I think I see a pattern forming.

Last year, I did little to no reviews. Compared to when I first started this blog, the amount of reviews I used to do, like most of what I posted were reviews, even for books I'd already read.

And I think I got sick of them, and I got bored of planning to post reviews.

Now, I'm on my fourth spontaneous review in three reviews.

And that's what I'm going to do:

For the time being, I'm just going to post reviews for books that I want to review, spontaneously.

Okay, epiphany over.

Today I'm writing my review for The Henna Wars, by Adiba Jaigirdar!

Enjoy!

Title: The Henna Wars

Author: Adiba Jaigirdar

Genre: LGBT Romance

Status: Standalone

Pages: 383

Blurb: "Nishat's parents say

she can be anyone

she wants- as long as

she isn't a lesbian.

Nishat's doesn't want to lose her family,

but she also doesn't want to hide who

she is, and it only gets harder once a

childhood friend walks back into her

life. Flavia is beautiful and charismatic,

and Nishat falls for her instantly. But

when a school competition invites students

to create their own businesses,

both Flavia and Nishat decides to show-

case their talents as henna artists. In a

fight to prove who is best, their lives

become more tangled- but Nishat can't

quite get rid of her crush, especially

since Flavia seems to like her back.

As the competition heats up, Nishat

has a decision to make: stay in the

closet for her family, or put aside her

differences with Flavia and give their

relationship a chance."

My Thoughts

I had thoughts on this book before I even read the first page of The Henna Wars. Two thoughts in particular: 1) The cover is beautiful, incredibly simple, yet it very accurately shows what it's all about to any potential readers, and I love that. 2) The message before the story books, forewarning readers about what's included (content warnings are: racism, homophobia, bullying, a character being outed.) It's great to know that it's at the start of the book, so people are forewarned, in case any of those themes are sensitive to them. 

 But when I heard about this novel I was all for it. I was excited to pick up a book that I had heard discusses the issues surrounding being black and gay, especially in our current circumstances. So I was all too eager to pick it up.

Having finished it, I can say that there's a lot to love about this book. The Henna Wars follows a Bengali girl named Nishat, who has to juggle her family's shame and denial to her coming out as a lesbian to them at the start of the novel, as well as the racism and homophobia constantly at school.

Nishat's character was my favourite part of the book honestly. She felt like a very fleshed out character, not rushed at all. All she wants is to be accepted by her parents, and not feel like she has to hide her sexuality like some shameful secret.

Although I don't have a personal experience similar to Nishat's, it was easy to gauge and sympathise with what she was having to deal with. What I liked was that she didn't seem to have just one emotion throughout the entire book, it felt like I was reading the story of a real person, not just a character. She was nervous at social situations, got butterflies at the thought of her crush, and stood up for herself when confronted about her sexuality.

Other than totally falling in love with Nishat's character, the best part for me was the relationships she shared with her sister, Priti, and her crush, Flavia.  I don't know whether I'm just reading the wrong books or what, but one thing I don't see a lot is that sibling love, particularly sisters.

But I love how Priti is always Nishat's cheerleader, it was so dear to see.

Although we didn't see Flavia and Nishat together as much, their romance was a nice relief between all the shite Nishat had to put up with. I liked how for the whole book there was a question of will they kiss, or won't they? As for whether Flavia felt the same as Nishat did? I was on tenterhooks as for what would happen, whether they'd get together, or Nishat would end up without Flavia.

Although there were a lot of heavy issues discussed in The Henna Wars, I feel like the sweet and the shite moments were very well balanced out, and very well-written. I liked how Jaigirdar was able to address social issues whilst keeping it lightweight, not too heavy.

I'm not saying The Henna Wars didn't discuss heavy topics, far from it. I was impressed by how she was also able to incorporate the beliefs of Bangladesh in a critical manner, whilst also showing Nishat's love for her culture.

The only critique I would have for this is that the writing was a bit simple, which is why I rated this 4 stars, instead of 5. There were just a couple of sentences that didn't sit well.

Overall, a wonderful novel, I can't wait to read more of her work, because I thoroughly enjoyed this. I can't wait to see this get the hype it deserves, because it was amazing. I highly recommend to anyone who likes Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda because this read very similar to that.

Right! Those are my thoughts on The Henna Wars, by Adiba Jaigirdar! I hope you enjoyed it, and I feel free to comment down below.

I hope you have a wonderful day and I'll see you all soon.

Byeeeee!

-Abi xxxx

The Mid-Year Freakout Tag

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And even though I do this tag every year, it never gets old. At least for me anyway.

So I'm doing it again.

Enjoy.

1. The best book you've read so far in 2020.

I really don't know with this!

I can't decide now, but here's my top three:

-Illuminae (The Illuminae Files #1), by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

-Skyward (Skyward #1), by Brandon Sanderson

-What If It's Us, by Adam Silvera & Becki Albertalli

They're all amazing, I recommend picking up any of them. Clearly, What If It's Us is a contemporary, it's an LGBT romance that takes place in New York, and there's musical theatre references too so it's frickin adorable. Skyward is an amazingly well crafted novel about proving people's opinions of you wrong, and Illuminae is a case study made out of reports and text messages, it's not structured like an ordinary tale. Obviously there's more to these amazing novels, these are just sum ups, but all three are fantastic in their own right. (And the authors are absolutely phenomenal.)

2. Best sequel you've read so far in 2020.

I haven't read a whole lot of sequels yet this year for some reason, but so far, this is my favourite sequel:

I finished this today, so I'm counting it! This series is so amazing, unlike anything I've read before, especially with the format, and aside from that, it's basically surprise after surprise, that I just didn't see coming. More on my wrap up, but if you haven't read this, come and join! Jump on the bandwagon. It's a crazy ride.

3. New release you haven't read yet, but want to.

I'm planning on getting every book from my April-June anticipated releases post that I haven't read yet for my TBR next month, and out of all the books that are left, The Lightness of Hands is the one that's been stuck in my brain the longest. The Lightness of Hands is about sixteen-year-old Ellie, and after her Dad's magician gigs dry up (after he fails on the biggest stakes trick ever), their insurance lapses, leaving her Dad's heart condition unchecked, and forcing Ellie to battle her bipolar II disorder without medication. But when he's offered a chance at redemption, a second chance to perform the trick that ended his career, Ellie takes it and lies about it to drag him across the country. But when her lie is exposed, Ellie will have to take her illness head-on- to save her father- and herself.

4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year.

I'm not going to go into a huge amount of detail on this one, if you want all the in-depth information on Grown, you can see it here. Grown is a story based on the allegations and accusations of the R&B star R Kelly, but there are a long list of trigger warnings, and even though I feel like this is a book I need to read, I urge people to do your research on what this book discusses before jumping into it. This comes out in September, and you can bet I'm going to be tearing through the pages as soon as I get my hands on it.

5. Biggest disappointment.

After loving Tomi Adeyemi's debut, I had high expectations for the sequel. Children of Blood and Bone took the Booktube community by storm when it's own voice narrative struck the YA section in 2018, so I had high hopes. And even though I still enjoyed it, I didn't hold a candle to the first book in the series. If there's one more book, I've managed the first two, so without a doubt I'll continue to the end, but Children of Virtue and Vengeance just fell flat for me. (Don't hate me please.)  

6. Biggest surprise.

Although I'd heard everyone singing this book's praises, I didn't truly believe it until I listened to the audiobook back in April. Every Heart A Doorway takes place at Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children, for children that have come back from secret lands (through magical doors that take them to places outside of the ordinary world) and haven't been able to deal with it. The tale starts when Nancy first arrives at the Home, and before basically 5 minutes, disaster strikes. And it just starts from there. I was so surprised at how much I instantly loved this, and how much was packed in within 174 pages/ 3 ish hours (audiobook), that I had to choose this. I'm three books in now, and this series continues to be amazing.

7. Favourite new author. (Debut or new to you.)

I finished this just last Friday, and the ending is still spinning in my mind. (Yes, even after picking up Gemina after.) I'm telling you now, Diana Urban is an author to watch. All Your Twisted Secrets has a simple, yet incredibly deadly, fast paced, edge of your seat plot- 6 teenagers trapped in a room with one instruction- kill one of them, or they all die. The character development is spot on, it's so easy to link events to the characters, I never had any problems. Such an addictive read.

8. Newest fictional crush.

I'm pretty sure I skipped this one last year, and the trend continues...
I don't really have a new fictional crush.

Oh wait...

KELL!

I suppose he counts.

(Of course he does, I'd never forget you, my dear Kell.)

9. Newest favourite character.

I really hate to name two characters from one series...
But not enough to not do it anyway!
LILA BARD.

She's not stupid, she doesn't try to take on the world. (Often.) She's incredible with a knife, and I think her and Tanith Low would be an awesome team. Maybe not Lila and Valkyrie though. But she's awesome.

10. Book that made you cry.

There are a few contenders for this one, so I'm just going to list them:
-The Light Between Oceans, by M.L. Stedman
-The Mercies, by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
-A Girl in Three Parts, by Suzanne Daniel
Go and read these three, they're all masterpieces. (In my opinion.)
Also I love all of these covers.

11. Book that made you happy.

Although this wasn't Mo Farah himself talking in my ear when I was listening to this audiobook (the physical copy is out of print at the moment), it was fantastic to hear about his experience from a scrawny secondary schoolboy to Great Britain's golden medal winner he is today. Being the runner and athletics fan that I am, I found it truly inspiring, hearing about the work he put in for years, as he faced obstacle after obstacle. But he did it, and it wonderful to find out about his journey and how he reached his success.

12. Most beautiful book you've bought this year (or received.)

Just look at that cover. The physical copy is just as gorgeous, and it's perfect for the plot too. I mean, Marie Lu has always had stunning covers, but this one really takes the cake. And the language for The Kingdom of Back is just as luxurious and beautiful as the cover. I'm so glad I was able to read it when I did because it's pretty phenomenal for a debut historical fiction novel.

13. What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

These are the only books I need to read to complete all of my TBR Jar Challenges for the year. The reason I haven't devoured these yet is because I'm saving them for October (I already have a special spooky TBR planned and it includes The Chronicles of Alice duology.)

Okay! That's it for today!

As always, if you want to do this tag, you're certainly free to do so.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend full of reading and I'll see you all next week. I'll be starting The Henna Wars, by Adiba Jaigirdar this weekend. What are you reading?

Byeeee!
-Abi xxxxx

Anticipated Book Releases (July-September 2020)

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And because we're halfway through June, it's time for the next Anticipated Releases post! Most of these are in September, but there's still a couple in July and August, so enjoy!

July Releases

1. Loveless, by Alice Oseman
Release date: 9/7/20

Having read all of Alice Oseman's books a few months back, I'm firmly on the bandwagon with anything she writes, because I know it'll be wonderfully written, with fantastic characters, and at least some LGBTQIA representation. Loveless is Georgia, who even though she has never had a fleeting romance, or even a crush, is out to find what her definition of love is. As she starts university with her friends (can I just say that I love that this takes place in University, by the way), she forms a "romance plan" to find what she's always been looking for. But when her plan goes disastrously wrong, she starts to question, why love seems to be so easy for everyone but her. With terms like asexual and aromantic, Georgia is more confused than ever. Is she destined to remain loveless? Or has she just been looking for the wrong thing for all this time? I can't wait for the next Alice Oseman book to be released, and thankfully, I don't have to wait long. And I know I'm not alone in this, because book for Alice Oseman and her LGBT reads always gather the largest amount of hype in the Booktube community.

2. Deal With the Devil (Mercenary Librarians #1), by Kit Rocha
Release date: 28/7/20

I stumbled across this when doing research for this post. I already have an extensive TBR for the series I want to start, but this one looks kind of interesting. Also, the opening line for this on it's Goodreads page is that it's a mix of Orphan Black and post apocalyptic Avengers. I haven't read an apocalyptic story in ages, and there's something about this that just stands out. In a world where the US collapsed 45 years ago, for most of the people that remain, survival is the only thing that's important. At any cost. Our protagonist Nina, is an information broker with a mission: to bring hope to the darkest corners of Atlanta. She and her team of mercenary librarians work to use their knowledge to help those in need. But altruism doesn't pay the bills- the real money is in the business of raiding vaults and swapping secret information. Knox is the leader of the Silver Devils, an elite strike squad that chose to go AWOL, rather than slaughter innocents. Before the Devils leave town for good, they need a biochem hacker, to stabilize the experimental implants that grant their superhuman abilities. Only their hacker has been kidnapped, and the ransom for her return is Nina. The bait- information that could set up Nina and her team up for years... if they live that long. This is the first I've heard from this dynamic duo, but from the comments on the page, they have quite a following, so I'm intrigued. Because of the amount of new releases on this list, I might not get to it straight away, but I'll give it a shot.   

August Releases
1. Midnight Sun (Twilight #5), by Stephenie Meyer
Release date: 4/8/20

Who isn't excited for this? We've literally been waiting for this book to be announced for over a decade. This is Twilight, from Edward's perspective, if you didn't know. I'm assuming this is going to be just the one book from this POV, but you can never be sure with Stephenie Meyer. From what I've seen from the comments on Goodreads, people are having moral battles with themselves as for whether to pick it up. But like with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, this is too largely hyped a book for me to not at least give it a chance. Of course, I probably won't enjoy it as much as I would if I was still 12, but let's not judge it before I at least read it.

2. Six Angry Girls, by Adrienne Kisner
Release date: 18/8/20

This sounds like something I haven't read before, and I'm excited to see what I think about it. You jump from two POV's; Raina Petree, whose basically crushing her last school year, until she's dumped by her long-term boyfriend, and (basically) kicked out of the drama club, the college of her dreams slips away, and her arch-nemesis triumphs. The other POV is Miller Goodwin. Her father treats her like a servant, and the all boy Mock-trial team votes her out, even after she spent three years helping to build it's success. Bur after Raina finds new purpose in knitting needles and a politically active yarn barn, the two of them team up, and recruit four other angry girls to not only take on the Mock Trials, but to smash patriarchy in the process. This sounds like an epic book to say the least, full of feminism and politics, and I can't wait to pick this up. I've also never read a book that has the Mock Trial in it as one of it's themes so I'm looking forward to learning more about that as it's a subject I don't know a whole lot about.   

2. Now That I've Found You, by Kristina Forest
Release date: 25/8/20

Evie Jones is the next upcoming superstar that can never soar high enough. Until a close friend's betrayal leads to her being blacklisted. Fortunately, Evie knows exactly what she needs to do to get back into the spotlight. Organize a public event with America's most loved actress- her grandmother, Gigi, aka Evelyn Conaway. Then disaster strikes: days away from her public event, her grandmother does the unthinkable- she disappears. With her career on the line and time running out, she enlists the help of Milo Williams, who was the last person to see her before she disappeared.  As Evie conducts a wild manhunt with Milo, a stranger she's not totally sure she can trust, romance and adventure abounds while Evie makes some surprising discoveries about her grandmother- and herself. I've read very few books about a manhunt round New York, and it's very unlikely that I'll get to go any time soon, so I may as well read about it. Now That I've Found You sounds like a whale of a time, and I hope it's fast paced and fun, and that's really all I'm expecting from it.

September Releases
1. Punching the Air, by Ibi Zoboi
Release date: 1/9/20

Punching the Air is about Amal Shahid, a boy who, even in a Diverse art school, is seen as disruptive and unmotivated. But after one fateful night, an altercation in a gentrifying neighbourhood (an argument in a neighbourhood that's being changed), he's convicted of a crime he didn't commit, at 16 years old. Told in verse, Punching the Air is a story that Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam collaborated on, to make what we see before us. It is high time I read a book purely in verse, and I'm excited that it'll be this one. From what I've seen on Goodreads, this has got nothing but fantastic reviews, and I'm sure I'll enjoy it just as much as them.  

2. These Vengeful Hearts, by Katherine Laurin
Release date: 8/9/20

The Red Court do favours... But every request comes at a cost. And once the dead is done, you're forever in their debt. Whenever something scandalous happens at Heller High, The Red Court are always the name on everyone's lips. Their identities a secret, only revealed to The Queen of Hearts herself, The Red Court consists of the most elite females of the school- and what they do is deal out favours and social ruin in equal measure. These Vengeful Hearts is about sixteen-year-old Ember Williams, who has seen what The Red Court can do- two years ago, they caused the accident that left her sister paralysed. So, she has a goal- to take them down from the inside. But taking down The Red Court will come at a price- will the cost of revenge be more than she's willing to sacrifice? I have to admit, this sounds kind of like Pretty Little Liars, a bit like the One of Us Is Lying series, but like there's something more to it. All I know is, it sounds dark and obsessive, and I am all for it.

3. Grown, by Tiffany D. Jackson
Release date: 15/9/20

Grown is about seventeen-year-old Enchanted Jones, who loves to sing. While auditioning for a singing competition, she meets Korey Fields, an R&B superstar that tells her he can make her dreams come through. At first, Enchanted is dazzled by his luxurious lifestyle and his fabulous life- but then her dreams turn into a nightmare. Behind the dark side, there's rage and an overwhelming need for control- with consequences. And then Korey Fields is dead, and Enchanted is left with no memory of the night before, and blood on her hands. Nobody- not the police, or Korey's fans included- has more questions than her. But now the police are at the door. Who killed Korey Fields? All signs point to Enchanted. Okay, first off: from the ARC reviews on Goodreads, there are a few trigger warnings for this, which include: rape, abuse (mental, physical, and emotional), child endangerment, drug use, sexual assault, mental health, suicide. So if any of those are triggers for you, please think about whether this is a book that you should read. What I didn't know about this was that it's meant to be a loose narrative of the stories and allegations surrounding R. Kelly. I'm not sure what my feelings are towards this book yet, but I definitely think it's an important book to read, and I'm definitely going to do that.    

4. Early Departures, by Justin A. Reynolds
Release date: 22/9/20

Having read Justin A. Reynold's debut novel Opposite of Always last year, when I heard he was releasing another novel, I eagerly added it to my anticipated releases list for the year. Early Departures is about Jamal, and about him trying to making it up to Q (his past best-friend) before he dies (he doesn't know that he's about to die.) Even more complicated, they haven't been best-friends since Jamal's parents died in a car accident, and Jamal thought Q was to blame. But after Jamal saves him from drowning, only to have him die later on in hospital, a new Health-care technology is giving Q a second chance to live for a while, before he dies... permanently. But grief is hard to shake, and he can't tell Q why he suddenly wants to be best-friends again, so how can Jamal fix his friendship with Q if he can't tell him the truth? I have to admit, that was hard, especially figuring out who was who (if that makes sense.) Hopefully it'll be easier to tell in the book. But Early Departures sounds about as fun yet serious as Opposite of Always, and if it's half as good as that book was, I'm thinking I'll have a lot of fun with this.

5. Skyhunter (Skyhunter #1),  by Marie Lu
Release date: 29/9/20

At this point I would read Marie Lu's shopping lists. She is at the top of my autobuy authors list (alongside Derek Landy.) Skyhunter takes place on Mara, one of the few remaining places that the Karensa Federation hasn't brought to it's knees. Robbed of her voice and home, Talin knows firsthand the brutality of the federation, she is now a part of The Legendary Strikers, an elite fighting force trained to fight the mutant beasts the Federation call Ghosts (they're what are sent to destroy Mara.) Yet this team refuse to give up hope. Until a devastating attack seems like this is the end... just when it seems like there's no choice but to succumb, a mysterious prisoner is brought in from the front. Is he a spy from the Federation? Or will he be the person that just might save them all? Obviously there's more to it than that, but that's the gist of it. This reminds me a bit of Skyward, but I'm looking forward to seeing how Marie Lu spins this new series. And that cover is just gorgeous. Just a few months away.

Okay, those are all the releases I'm looking forward to. I hope you all have a wonderful afternoon/ evening, wherever you are, and continue to stay safe.

See you all soon, byeeeee!

-Abi

21-30 Books of 2020

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And today I'll be talking about all the books that I've read recently.

I hope you enjoy, and feel free to comment on any of the books that I mention in this post.

Enjoy!

21. A Gathering of Shadows (Shades of Magic #2), by V.E. Schwab

This was one of the best 2nd book that I've ever had the fortune to watch. The concept for A Gathering of Shadows was absolutely phenomenal, and V.E. Schwab delivered, for sure. I can't believe there aren't more books that have the Olympics (for magic) in them, but I'm glad this was my first time reading about them. There was more to this story than the Olympics, I promise, but that was one of my favourite parts, especially as two of my favourite characters are competing in them. I can't give much more away than that, because it's the second book in the series, but I will say that A Gathering of Shadows is just as good as A Darker Shade of Magic, and doesn't fall down the trap of second book syndrome.

22. The Kingdom of Back, by Marie Lu

I read this in 5 hours. It was amazing. It combines my newly acquired love of historical fiction, classical music, magical realism, and the underdog trope. I read this a month ago and I already want to re-read it. Highly recommend, it's so easy to fly through, as all of Marie Lu's books are. If this is her historical fiction debut novel, I can't wait to see what else she can come up with. The Kingdom of Back is actually very similar to The Light Between Worlds so if you liked that book, then this'll be right up your alley. If you didn't know, it's from the POV of the famous Mozart's sister, Nannerl as she fights to be noticed against her prodigy brother, as she progresses on borrowed time (her father has made it clear that she will only continue to play and compose until she reaches a marriageable age.) It's a wonderful book, one that I think deserves more recognition than I think it gets.

23. Every Heart A Doorway (Wayward Children #1), by Seanen McGuire

Although it takes a bit to get into it (because it's the first one and I had no idea what was going on,) once I'd got my bearings, I fell in love. It opened up a lot of potential stories within this universe, and I can't wait to delve deeper into this series. Every Heart A Doorway deserves every 5 star review, it absolutely lives up to the hype and I mean this when I say that it's the most unique magical realism series I've ever read (even though I'm not even half way through the series yet.) If you didn't know, Every Heart A Doorway is set in a boarding school, that houses children that have travelled to different worlds, and haven't been able to adjust when they eventually returned. I listened to the audiobook (and continue to do so) and it was such a quick read, but the amount of depth Seanen has managed to soak in is amazing.

24. Under the Dome, by Stephen King

This was the opposite of Every Heart A Doorway. It took a while for me to get through. I'm not saying it's not amazing, in fact the detail King puts into his characters, the plot, the relationships, is one of the best I've ever had the fortune to read. I'm just saying it took me a while. And because it's over 850 pages, why wouldn't it? Under the Dome is probably my favourite Stephen King book to date, and although I haven't read a whole lot of his work yet, the list is growing. What I love the most about Under the Dome is how, even though there are a ton of characters, and it takes a while at first to remember whose who, but I love following all the individual stories, and getting attached. If you're in the mood for a brick of a book, and also like Stephen King, I highly recommend this.

25. A Conjuring of Light (Shades of Magic #3), by V.E. Schwab

A fast paced conclusion to an explosive series. I'm not ready to say goodbye to these characters, so I'm holding on to the hope that there are going to be more books with these characters (though I'm guessing probably not, unfortunately.) But I love Lila, I love Kell, and Rhy. And although Osaron didn't scare me, I was wondering how the heck our heroes were going to overcome this. The pacing was a little different to the other two, but altogether such an amazing ending.

26. A Girl in Three Parts, by Suzanne Daniel

I have a review up for this, so if you want to see more of my in-depth thoughts, you can click the link in the title to see those. But to put it mildly, this blew my expectations away like a gust of wind. It's a simple premise, but it's filled with important parts of what it means to become a young women in the 1970s. You wouldn't think this was a debut, because of how well written it is. A Girl in Three Parts is a flawlessly written, powerful novel, and I really hope this gets the hype it deserves because it really is a wonderful book. Highly recommend.

27. Down Among the Sticks and Bones (Wayward Children #2), by Seanen McGuire

I didn't know much going into this. I knew it focused on two characters of the first book, and that this was the world that they went to, before eventually going to Miss West's School for Wayward Children, but I didn't know any more than that. What I got was a creepy and mysterious world where I got to find out more about Jack and Jill. The description of the world was vast, and I never felt like it was rushed at all, or that anything was missed out, despite it's length. Looking forward to seeing what else awaits me in this mystical world.

28. Illuminae (The Illuminae Files #1), by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

When my poll results showed that this would be the next series I pick up, I was a little nervous. I wasn't sure I'd get into the unique way the story was told (it's written in a case study, full of reports, diagrams and text message conversations.) But it turns out, I had nothing to worry about! Illuminae has made it's way to my favourite series' list like the speed of lightning. Providing I love book 2 & 3 as much as this one (which shouldn't present too much of a problem, honestly.) Creativity was dripping off this book, it was so unique and original and even though I know there's not going to be anything like this again, I'm so happy I get the fortune to read something as amazing as this. If you haven't picked this up, what are you doing? Get on it. Seriously.

29. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, by Suzanne Collins

Again, there's a review up for this, so feel free to click on the title if you want more detail, but this was kind of a meh read for me. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. The review's probably on more of the negative side if I had to give my honest opinion. But to sum it up, I didn't like Snow (big spoiler there, right? That's the leading comment between people that have read this), the characters weren't detailed enough for me to care when things happened, but the writing felt the same as the original series, and the cliff-hangers on the ends of chapters were what made the book for me. I read this so I could form my opinion, and although I don't regret picking it up, I do wish it had been from the POV of any other hunger games character (specifically Johanna, Finnick, Mags, Haymitch, Cinna or Effie.)

30. Seasons of War (Skulduggery Pleasant #13), by Derek Landy

I finished this yesterday. Those that know I love Skulduggery Pleasant with all my heart will not be surprised to know that I loved this instalment of the series. And those that didn't know, you do now. Let's hug. Seasons of War is basically Skulduggery, Valkyrie and their own version of the Dead Men travelling over to another dimension to kill someone, whilst battling zombies the whole time. Sounds easy? It bloody well isn't. Seasons of War was basically like every other book in the series: full of action, badass characters, and choc full of sarcastic humour. Once again it had me laughing and gripping the pages just as hard as I could, hoping that my favourite characters wouldn't get murdered. There are two books left until the series is over for good, and I'm nowhere near ready (even though the final book is probably 2 years away). If you're thinking this is a tad premature, you probably don't know that I've been following this since 2008. You do now.

Okay! That's all the books I have to discuss with you all! Once again, feel free to comment what you thought, and if you've read any of them, let me know!

Okay! I hope you have a wonderful evening, and I'll see you all soon!

Byeee!

-Abi xxxxxx

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (The Hunger Games #0), by Suzanne Collins

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And I finished The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes today.

So I'm writing a review about it.

Enjoy.

Title: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Author: Suzanne Collins

Genre: Dystopian.

Status: Standalone

Pages: 517

Blurb: "It is the morning of the reaping that will kick

off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the

Capitol, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow

is preparing for his one shot at glory as a

mentor in the Games. The once-mighty

house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its

fate hanging on the slender chance that

Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit,

and outmanoeuvre his fellow students to

mentor the winning tribute.

The odds are against him. He's been

given the humiliating assignment of

mentoring the female tribute from District

12, the lowest of the low. The fates are

now completely intertwined- every choice

Coriolanus makes could lead to favour or

failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it

will be a fight to the death. Outside the

arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his

doomed tribute... and must weigh his need

to follow the rules against his desire to

survive no matter what it takes."

My Thoughts

I have positive and negative thoughts on this. Some of you will hate these opinions I'm guessing, but they're merely opinions. You're welcome to your opinions, so don't hate on mine.

Okay, here we go.

I didn't love this book, like some people. I also didn't hate this book, like a whole lot of people did. It was just kind of meh.

My favourite part was probably the writing style. It felt very much like the original trilogy, and it made me want to keep going, to find out what happened next, which is what it feels like, reading the Hunger Games.

However, the pacing was all over the place. Most of it was very slow, like it was trying to create intrigue, and then there would be a moment when it got really fast paced, and then, as if that moment hadn't even happened, it would get really slow again. I didn't have a huge problem with it overall, but it could have been better honestly.

Other than that, some of the parts felt really rushed, like they just showed up out of nowhere, with no warning, no clues whatsoever. Especially the ending. It all kind of ended abruptly, with barely any lead up to it.

When it comes to the characters, there left a lot to be desired. There wasn't enough detail to get attached to the tributes for me to feel anything when they were killed in the arena, there wasn't even enough to distinguish which ones where from which district. The mentors weren't much better, only a few stood out, but again, I didn't really feel anything for them either. There were one or two characters that felt like real people, (those characters bumped up the overall rating), but they weren't enough to give this book a higher rating that 3 stars (and even that's being generous.)

Now, Snow. *Sigh.*

Snow kind of felt like a spectator in his own story. It just felt like he was totally accepting of everything that happened. Yes, he saw the struggles the tributes were having in the Capitols, yet he did nothing to change their situation that wasn't prompted by someone else. He didn't seem to have much problem with what the Capitol was instructing, other than what would happen to his reputation if he was seen to be thinking or acting differently.

World-wise, I was expecting it to be more polished than what it was. Like, I get it, this book takes place 64 years before the events of the original trilogy, so it's not going to have the same feel, but it just felt flat.

Also, I feel like there could have been a more interesting way for Snow to question things other than the way it was laid out. (Not giving any spoilers.)

 And I wish The Hunger Games were longer. Going into this, I knew it wasn't going to be much of an emphasis on them in this, because of the spoiler free reviews I'd seen beforehand, but I still wish they had been longer than they were, or at least more of a build-up throughout. The Hunger Games were sub par to me.

Looking back at this review, I'm wondering why I didn't rate this lower. The reason is probably because, despite all it's flaws, it's not terrible. The writing, and the first couple of parts was enough for me to give it an average rating. And it creates a hope that if Suzanne Collins can write a sub par book about a character that we all hate in the original trilogy, what will she be able to do with a character we all love? I'm holding onto the hope that this will kick of a spin-off series of all the characters I wanted this book to be about: Mags, Johanna, Finnick, Haymitch, Cinna, or even Effie.

Will it happen? Probably not. But I can still hope.

Overall, I don't think The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes contributed a whole lot. (Other than wanting to re-read the original trilogy of course.) But I'm rating it 3 stars. An average read.

And I'm done.

Okay! That's my review, and as always, you're free to post your own opinions in the comments below (though I'll be deleting hate comments, mark my words.)

I hope you have a good weekend, and I'll see you all on Monday.

Byeeeeee!

-Abi xxxxx