July Wrap Up (2021)

Hey guys, this is Abi here, 

And it's the end of July, which means it's time for my monthly wrap up!

I got a fair amount of reading done this month, though the pacing was a bit all over the place. 

But I'm happy with what I achieved, nevertheless. 

Come and see what I read, I hope you enjoy. 

1. Amari and the Night Brothers (Supernatural Investigation #1), by B.B. Alston

Although I tend to be quite picky with my middle-grades, I'd heard fantastic things about this, so in a spur of the moment decision, I decided to pick this up. (Although I really didn't want to start another series at the time, I figured this was worth it.) 

Amari and the Night Brothers follows Amari, whose brother is currently missing and nobody knows where he's gone. But then Amari discovers a ticking briefcase in her brother's wardrobe, a briefcase for Amari's eyes only. When she opens it, she finds there was more to Quinton than she first though. Turns out he was an agent at a secret magical institution, and he's left Amari a ticket to enrol at this institution. Upon arrival, Amari has one goal: to find out exactly what's happened to her brother. 

Obviously there's more to it than that: student rivalries, trials that test your physical and mental capabilities (for Amari to become an agent) and an evil wizard trying to take over the institution, but that's the main theme. I was so happy that I decided to pick this up and I'm eagerly anticipating the release of book 2! 

2. The Ghosts We Keep, by Mason Deaver 

I was not prepared for the emotional turmoil this book was about to throw at me. Despite that, it was very easy to fall into Liam's head and feel what they were feeling. It literally took me a couple of days to soar through this, and honestly, I wish I could read it for the first time again. 

The Ghosts We Keep is about Liam, who doesn't know which way is up at the moment. After losing his brother Ethan, and growing further apart from his two friends, Liam isn't sure where to go from here. Feeling more alone and isolated than ever, he finds himself wanting to spend more and more time with Marcus, Ethan's best friend, who it seems is the only one to at least understand what Liam is going through. This book discusses issues such as losing a sibling, grief, losing a friendship, also the protagonist is non-binary which is something I rarely read about and I am here for it. 

3. Blackout, by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, Nicola Yoon 

This was a completely spontaneous buy- it reminded me of the In the Heights film I'd seen a couple of weeks previously. Also, it was a number of short romances by a bunch of authors I knew and loved. Of course I was always going to buy it. 

Now, some of these stories I loved, and wanted to carry on reading, and others I really didn't get on with, as is usually the case with books with multiple authors. But, the whole story flowed nicely, none of the chapters felt too long or too short, and overall, this turned out to be a quick and easy read that can be finished in a weekend/ couple of days. 

4. Lore, by Alexandra Bracken 

This has been on so many TBR's, I've honestly lost count of how many. But I finally managed to finish this! With audiobook I have to admit, but it still counts as reading! 

If you didn't know, (which if you don't I'm surprised, because this book has been everywhere since it's release in... January I think?) Anyway, Lore is a book about the agon, which takes place every seven years, and is Zeus' way of getting revenge on the gods, and he turns them into mortals for seven days so the hunters have a chance at assassinating them and becoming gods themselves. Lore fled from God-dom the nights her family was slaughtered, but when the original god Athena shows up at her door, looking for an alliance, and the chance to kill the person that murdered her family, she can't refuse. 

I don't know what I was expecting, but I wasn't prepared for what this book turned out to be. I haven't read an Alexandra Bracken book in a while, so it was probably that. But listening to the audiobook made it so much more fast paced, and I think I enjoyed it all the more because it was something I was listening to. But this truly felt like a book that had everything: friendships, fighting, drama and romance. Favourite Alexandra Bracken novel so far. 

5. The Ocean At the End of the Lane, by Neil Gaiman 

Going into this, I wasn't sure what I was going to think. Basically, over the past year or so, I've been actively been pursuing all of Neil Gaiman's books, and with most of them, I've had fairly major problems with the writing style. But this one was completely different. Whenever I'd asked the opinions of people that were well-read in Neil Gaiman's books, The Ocean at the End of the Lane definitely wasn't a book that was mentioned often. 

But for some reason, I had a feeling about this, that it wasn't going to be like the others. It's why I stuck it on my "Want to Read" shelf on Goodreads (which I very rarely do). And I was totally right! I didn't have any problems with the writing, I loved Nettie and the narrator, I detested Ursula, the world was explained the perfect amount, wasn't too info-dumpy at all, in fact it wayed on the opposite side; and I was engaged throughout. 5 stars, likely to be included in my favourites post at the end of the year. 

Okay! That's my July Wrap Up (2021)! I hope to read some more next month (especially as I'm doing a 24 hour readathon tomorrow, which includes the Kane Chronicles). 

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the post, feel free to comment what you all read this month, and we can talk about it! 

I hope you have a wonderful day and I'll see you all soon with my August TBR (2021)! 

Byeeeee! 

-Abi xxxxx

Books 31-40 of 2021

 Hey guys, this is Abi here, 

And today I'm looking through all the books that I've read recently. 

For the last issue of this post, click here.

Without further ado, enjoy! 

31. Dead or Alive (Skulduggery Pleasant #14), by Derek Landy

The most recent Skulduggery Pleasant, and it's with this book is where I start to get nervous. There will only be one further book after this, and this one shows no sign of slowing down, which makes me think that the 15th and final book will be absolutely heart-breaking. The usual suspects, with a couple of new characters thrown into this, but not a huge amount as it's too far into the series. Top standard as I have come to expect with Derek Landy's stories, with action packed chapters that make me want to keep on reading, because they're so short. 

Gearing up for the final book next year. 

32. Heartstopper: Volume 4 (Heartstopper #4), by Alice Oseman 

Yet another absolutely fantastic volume from Alice Oseman. Now that the basis has been covered, you get to see another side to some of the characters, Nick and Charlie especially. Like I've said a few times before, this volume does take a bit of a more serious plotline and, although I love these characters with all my heart, it was nice to see. It was refreshing, because if the characters didn't grow or change, I wouldn't be nearly as satisfied reading this. 

As the fifth installment is the final one too, I'm thinking about re-reading them all in preparation. Should I? Let me know in the comments. 

33. The Lost Hero (Heroes of Olympus #1), by Rick Riordan 

34. The Son of Neptune (Heroes of Olympus #2), by Rick Riordan 

35. The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus #3), by Rick Riordan

When I first started this series, I was so excited. It read more like a YA kind of mature, rather than the middle grade niche that Percy Jackson had been in. The size of the books intimidated me a bit, but I'd encountered larger books than these before, so I wasn't that worried. 

And then, the further into the series I got, the less I felt motivated to read these books. Maybe it was all the characters being introduced. Maybe it was all the different obstacles they kept encountering, how they never really seemed to get anywhere. But for whatever reason, it just kept taking me longer and longer to finish these books. 

They weren't bad books. They just seemed to drag a lot for me. 

36. The Road Trip, by Beth O' Leary 

To keep the guaranteed reading slump I was heading towards, I decided a change of pace and genre might be in order, which is why I decided to get Beth O' Leary's new book a try. The Road Trip presents the worst scenario for anybody has an ex- having to share a car on the way to a wedding for hours on end. Sounds boring, but this is anything but. There's couple drama as Addie and Dylan try and figure out what went wrong, whilst a whole list of things went wrong. Definitely a helter-skelter read, with tricks and turns seemingly every chapter. Beth O' Leary is now an auto-buy author, as I think this is her best one yet. 

37. Nimona, by Noelle Stevenson 

A graphic novel about bad guys. I've been meaning to read this since September, when I posted my Graphic Novels TBR last year. Nimona is funny, with incredibly cool and unique characters that want to commit terrible atrocities, but actually have morals too. That is, until Nimona comes along. I won't say anything more than that because I want people to read it if they haven't, but you can literally soar through this in an afternoon. I thought there was a clear beginning middle and ending and I am entirely satisfied with how this went. Looking forward to reading more of Stevenson's work in the future. 

38. The House of Hades (Heroes of Olympus #4), by Rick Riordan 

39. The Blood of Olympus (Heroes of Olympus #5), by Rick Riordan

After taking a recuperation break from this series, I was nervous going back to finish off these two. All in all, although it wasn't as easy-going as I was hoping, I definitely needed the break away from this series. I found the last two books to be okay, but by this point, I just wanted to be done. 

Maybe I'll try and attempt the series some time in the future, but I'll leave a question mark next to that possibility. 

40. The Thursday Murder Club (Thursday Murder Club #1), by Richard Osman 

After seeing this seemingly everywhere, I succumbed and picked this up. I didn't know much about this, only that it was about a group of eighty year olds that live in a home, who like to speculate and investigate crimes that had never been solved. Until a real life murder takes place right in their own backyard. 
I loved this book because these characters, Elizabeth and Joyce especially, never let something as trivial as their age stop them from finding out everything they possibly can about this murder case. There were actually points when these senior citizens were running rings round the police, and they didn't even realise. They're so much smarter than you would think, and even though I know that not every O.A.P. is like that, it sure was entertaining to read about. Eagerly anticipating the release of the conclusion at the end of the year. 

Okay! Those are all the books I've read recently! I hope you've enjoyed reading about my thoughts, and feel free to comment yours down below! 

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

Byeeeee! 

-Abi xxxxx

The Mid-Year Freak Out Tag

 Hey guys, this is Abi here, 

And because it's June and thus halfway through the year, it's time for the tag I do every year: The Mid-Year Freak Out Tag! 

Of course I was always going to make time for this, I look forward to it every year. 

And so, enjoy! 

~The best book you've read so far in 2021~

As usual, I find this first one incredibly hard. I don't have a favourite at this point, but I do have a shortlist. 

Those favourites are:- 

1. Queen of Shadows/ Kingdom of Ash, by Sarah J Maas

2. The FlatShare, by Beth O Leary

3. Amari and the Night Brothers, by B.B. Alston 

4. The Ghosts We Keep, by Mason Deaver

5. Instructions for Dancing, by Nicola Yoon

Although these are all completely different, I loved them all anyway. They've all been phenomenal reads, and you can read about why I loved (most of) them in my wrap ups. 

~Best sequel you've read so far in 2021~ 

I haven't read a whole lot of sequels so far this year (that I haven't started and finished anyway). But I loved this sequel (as well as all the other Heartstopper volumes) and I liked how this volume took a darker turn in terms of plot. (Not that I want something bad to happen to the characters, cos they're my babies, but it was nice to see a change in direction.) Can't wait to see where this series goes next! 

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

I have heard so much hype for this book in recent weeks that I couldn't not put this down. 

Tokyo Ever After is a combination of The Princess Diaries and Crazy Rich Asians, it follows Izumi Tanaka, who has never really felt like she belongs anywhere- it's not easy being Japanese American in a small Californian town. Then she finds out something about her previously unknown father- that he's none other than the Crown Prince of Japan. Which means that outspoken Izzie is a literal princess. In seemingly no time at all, Izzie is thrown in a world of royalty, learning maybe a million new rules- surrounded by people that have been learning them their whole lives. Soon she finds herself caught between two versions- the her back home or the new one in Japan. Will Izzie crumble under the weight of the crown, or will she find her own happily ever after? 

Not only do I love the cover, but this premise sounds fantastic. I'm really hoping I'll be able to find the time to get to this soon, because I have a feeling it'll be a 5 star prediction. 

~Most anticipated release for the second half of the year~

This is basically a drama/ orchestra power struggle as two people who hate eachother (at the beginning) have to work together to save the department they both love. There's more to it than that, but you can read more about this (if you're interested) in my anticipated releases post. The release date is 21/9/21, so hopefully I'll be able to squeece it into September. (Just click here for the full details on the Synopsis.)

~Biggest disappointment~

I feel really bad for putting these down but I just thought they dragged. I just wasn't motivated to read them, in all honesty. They were decent books, so maybe it was just bad timing. However, I doubt I'll be going back to the series anytime soon. 

~Favourite new author (new to you)~

Even though I've now read all of Beth O' Leary's books, she still counts as a new to me author. I can definitely say that I enjoy her books, as you can see! I like her books because although they're funny and light-hearted, they always have more to them under the surface, and the characters are always fleshed out and realistic. I can say for certain that I will be reading anything else she releases in the future. 

~Newest fictional crush~

Chaol. Sorry guys, especially those that fell for Dorian. Maybe it was because everybody was rooting for Dorian and Celeana, but for some reason, it was Chaol that I was thinking about the most. So, it's Chaol. 

~Newest favourite character~

Amari, from ______ and the Night Brothers. She's resourceful, likeable and she won't be pushed around by anyone. A pretty decent protagonist, and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens in the sequel. I'll tell you more about what it was about, and what I liked about it in my wrap up. But I will say that it was a fast and entertaining read, with easily relatable characters. 

~Book that made you cry~

I haven't cried with any book yet this year but with this one I sure came close. I wasn't sure I was in the right emotional state for this book but I'm so glad I read this when I did. It's a tough book to read, short and simple, but powerful nevertheless. This book was both good and bad, it was good because of the wonderful relationship between Marin and Mabel; it was bad because of the feelings I was encountering upon reading this. All in all a wonderful book, but be aware of the trigger warnings. 

Trigger warnings: death, depression.

~Book that made you happy~

This book taught to live your life to the fullest, to take every opportunity I can, because there's no telling how long it'll last- a month or a lifetime. This is Nicola Yoon's newest book, and it's my favourite so far. A quick and easy read, but the message underneath is exceptional, and it's also not thrown in your face at every line. Aside from that, it's a book about ballroom! Despite having two left feet, I love reading books about choreographed dancing, because I can find any! There's enough of the other themes for you to like and enjoy this book, even if you're not a fan of ballroom, so I highly recommend this. 

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

THIS. I just love the way the gold shimmers, and coupled with little intricasies of red (and black background), the whole cover looks positively regal. Most beautiful book I've purchased this year by far. 

(Also, I have a review for this, which you can check out here.)

~What books do you need to read by the end of the year~

I'd like to catch up on all the Rick Riordan series', which means:

-The Kane Chronicles trilogy

-Trialls of Apollo trilogy

-Magnus Chase trilogy

Okay! That's the Mid-Year Freak Out Tag! 

As always, I tag everybody who hasn't yet done this yet. 

I always love to do this tag, because it means I can keep my eye on the prize with the second part of the year. It's like the second part can't take place until it's done. 

I hope you have a wonderful evening (or day, wherever you are) and I'll see you very soon! 

Byeeee! 

-Abi xxxxx

July TBR (2021)

 Hey guys, this is Abi here, 

And it's now the second half of 2021! Where has the time gone?

But, that's okay! And with the start of another month comes another monthly TBR!

Now, before this month, I wasn't sure what kind of mood I was in, in regards to what books I wanted to read. 

But since I am now in York for the week, I accquired a fair few new reads, and I'm excited to add them to this month's TBR.

Enjoy! 

1. Amari and the Night Brothers (Supernatural Investigations #1), by B.B. Alston

I'm currently about halfway through this (wish I was further along but as I'm holiday I'm not going to beat myself up about it) and so far it's living up to the hype. I love Amari as a protagonist; she always stays focused on her goal, never lets the fact that she's in unfamiliar surroundings hold her back, and she's very likeable as a character. I had no problem slipping into her world upon starting this. 

2. The Ghosts We Keep, by Mason Deaver

I pre-ordered this a few months back and it's finally arrived. The Ghosts We Keep follows Liam, as he deals with the loss of his brother Ethan in a hit and run accident. Aside from that, he now has to struggle with the fact that he is losing his closest friends because of his grief. When Liam feels like he's at his loneliest, he finds himself hanging out with Marcus, Ethan's best friend, who knows, for better or worse, what he's going through. This sounds like a very sensitive, hard, but important book to read about self healing and finding love, and I have a feeling that I'm going to be ugly crying during this. Looking forward to it. 

3. Lore, by Alexandra Bracken 

I genuinely feel like I've stuck this on the last three monthly TBR's this year. So it's crunch time! I don't care what I have to do, this book will be read, even if I have to pull an all-

nighter to do it. I thought I'd want to read this as soon as I finished the Heroes of Olympus series, but for some reason I just haven't had the urge to pick it up. 

But if I don't pick it up now, I'm concerned that it'll just stay unread, collecting dust. 

This will be a priority this month. Guarantee it. 

4. The Ocean at the End of the Lane, by Neil Gaiman 

Although I haven't had huge successes with Neil Gaiman's books, I have a feeling I'll like this one more. It feels like it has more of a creepy quality to it, more so than the other works of his I've read, so hopefully I'll have more luck with this. 

I'm not exactly sure what'll happen in this, because every time I read a summary of this, it seems like a completely different story. But honestly, this feels like a story that I need to be blind going into. All I know is, the main character returns to his childhood home for a funeral, and although his home is long gone, strange memories return to his memory. That's all I know and want to know, and I'm looking forward to seeing what I think. 

5. Everything I Never Told You, by Celeste Ng

This was purely a spontaneous buy, to tell the truth. Everything I Never Told You is about Chinese-American parents Marilyn and James Lee, and their daughter Lydia. Marilyn and James Lee dote on their daughter, and they have all these hopes for her future. That is, until her body is found in the local lake and the delicate balancing act that has been keeping the tight-knit family is destroyed, throwing them into chaos. This sounds like a real heartbreaking read, and I've heard great things from this author, so I'm thinking that I might need a pile of tissues for this one. Nevertheless, I'm excited to see what I think of her writing, and how she can spin a story together. 

6. Blackout, by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, Nicola Yoon

Just recently (a week last friday) I went to see the new film In the Heights, the new film based on Lin Manuel Miranda's Broadway show. If you've seen the film, or know what it's about, you'll understand what I mean when I say that I thought of it the moment I saw the cover/ read the blurb. Aside from that, the number of incredible authors involved in this, there was no way I was going to be walking out od Waterstones without it. The title is pretty self explanatory but I'm excited to delve into the lives of these characters, read more from the phenomenal authors I already love and become introduced to the authors I don't. It's a relatively short book, less than 300 pages, so I'm hoping this'll be something I can fly through. 

7. Felix Ever After, by Kacen Callender

This is a book that has been on my radar since seemingly the beginning of time (well, since it's release last May). I don't know nuch about it, I just know that the hype for this novel is huge, it's incredibly well loved by many, and it's time for me to pick it up and f-ing read it. 

I don't know much about it to be honest, other than what it mentions on the blurb, but I do know that it's a book about self discovery, about identify, falling in love, and recognizing the love you deserve. 

I know it's not all going to be rainbows and butterflies, but I'm hoping I'll enjoy it as much as I think I will. 

Okay! That's my TBR for the month! I'm hoping to get to all of these, but I won't if I don't get a move on! 

As always, feel free to comment what you're all reading this month and we can talk about it. 

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

Byeeee! 

-Abi xxxxx