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Reading Habits in 2010 vs 2020 (Ooh How I’ve Changed)

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It’s time to compare my reading habits in 2010 vs 2020.

Even as I typed out that blog post title, I started laughing quietly and bitterly to myself, like BOLD OF ME to assume I remember what I was like in 2010. The other day I found a half finished novel in my email files that I was apparently co-writing with my sister in 2012 and do I remember it? Do I have any memory at all of writing it??? no.

(I’m concerned too. πŸ˜‚)

2010 vs 2020

So back in 2010, I was 16 and I think we need to acknowledge that I was (a) a very young sixteen, and (b) about as oblivious and useful as an upside down turtle. So this should be interesting.

How much did you read?

2010 me β†’ At 16 I was…hm. Just finishing up school so I was mostly reading historical fiction school books, 90% of them would’ve been either adult or middle grade too. I’d JUST started using a local library more and but I don’t think I’d even read the Hunger Games. This is even PRE- STIEFVATER. So basically I was unformed and unbaked as a person. I would’ve read less than 50 books per year and considered myself a voracious reader.

2020 me β†’ I’m aiming to read 150 books this year (but I usually read 200) so we can definitely say I’m THRICE THE BOOKWORM I ONCE WAS. But I had no one to be competitive with back then. Now I have all of you to race. πŸ€—

 

Did you write reviews?

2010 me β†’Β This was pre-Goodreads for me, but I did write reviews! In a little notebook! I found it the other day and realised I rated everything backwards. Get ready for this stroke of genius. So “first place” obviously means “1 star”, right!? RIGHT!?!??!Β  Anyway all my favourite books are rated 1 star in this notebook. I am wheezing.

2020 me β†’ I actually write less reviews than I used to because I am old. but I also don’t write negative reviews now so I skip to the ones I love and go into detail and flailing for those. (Flailing + detail = fletail. Don’t argue. Just say out out loud and bask in my quality content here.) Now I review on Goodreads primarily, and I’ll do ARCs and blog tour books here on my blog.

 

Favourite books?

2010 me β†’Β oh wow I DO NOT REMEMBER. I’ll take a stab in the dark and say: Moccasin Trail by Eloise Jarvis McGraw, A Murder For Her Majesty by Beth Hilgartner, and Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff.Β 

2020 me β†’Β I mean. Everything Maggie Stiefvater writes of ever? Β―\_(ツ)_/Β― But I also adore wholly: Holly Black, Cassandra Clare, Jenn Lyons, Scott Lynch, Laini Taylor, K. Ancrum, Nora Sakavic, Leigh Bardugo and Hannah Moskowitz.

 

Where did you get your books from?

2010 me β†’Β Mostly second hand reads that my mum would buy for school reasons (we homeschooled and had a very literature based curriculum which was GREAT, except for the fact one book was meant to last, erm, 2 weeks? Fools). I also started getting into library books more and cruising the YA section like a wilful little shark. Did I buy books? Never full price. Only rarely second-hand and it would have to be if I had birthday money.

2020 me β†’ Oh I buy books. I do. 😌 Maybe 3-5 books per month though, so it’s nothing too wild. Most of my books come from publishers or Netgalley or the library. I was deprived of a library for the last 2 years, so now I have one back and I borrow aaaall the things. They’ve ever bought a few books I requested. This is so good because I would never be able to afford enough to sate my bookish appetite. πŸ˜‚

 

What things annoyed you most in books?

2010 me β†’Β Ugh I’m trying to remember. I didn’t have such fierce opinions back then because I was an unformed potato, but I do remember hating books by boys who didn’t really do anything but be “dumbly heroic”. I was scathing to things like Biggles and the Hardy Boys (aka my brother’s books). I hated classics. I plotted the DEATH of Robinson Crusoe, I swear. I despised slow books. And I hated when books didn’t have solidly closed endings with no sequels.

2020 me β†’Β I really am tired of the “badass heroines” who are mean in the name of being empowered. Ugh. It’s not the same thing. Right now I’m wearying of YA characters who do not act like teens, all the fantasies that have marriage as pivotal plot points (?!!? why!!!), and being expected to forgive horrible characters. 🀨 Erm, no I don’t care about your tragic backstory if you are casually cruel to others. Go eat a raw egg.

 

Who did you discuss books with?

2010 me β†’Β Only my mum and sister. 😭 I had the kind of “friends” who thought reading was only for school and then it was a real chore to get through. And I look back now and understand why I was so disconnected with them when my life was 80% plotting fantasy worlds in my head.

2020 me β†’ YOU ALL!!!! Oh wow, I seriously have so many people to turn to when I need gush about a book. I have so many incredible friends just a DM away, blog and instagram followers to talk to, and I can write goodreads reviews and engage with the community any time?! I am not starved for bookish discussion. It is so good.

 

What’s been the biggest change?

Reading more diversely. Reading from LIVING authors. Reading books about people who wholly different to me that I just really learn how rich and wild and deep the world is.

Also my TBR pile. It’s 1000 x taller. πŸ‘€

alright tell me your 2010 vs 2020 comparisons for reading habits?! does anyone remember what they were like 10 years ago? πŸ˜‚(and if you are super young and about to say “I couldn’t even read 10 years ago, c.g.” i will feel old and cry on you, be warned)

10 Recent Books I’ve Been (Casually) Obsessing Over (I’m Fine)

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Finding new favourite books has been hard for me lately, so when I love a book…I really really love it.

It’s like my brain has bypasses “ooh this book was fun we should like it” and just goes to “THIS BOOK WILL DEVOUR A PIECE OF YOUR SOUL AND LIVE THERE INSTEAD.” All casually stuff. I like to be lowkey, not dramatic, in everything I do.

So this year I’ve liked quite a few books (though not as many as I hoped?!) but I’ve gotten seriously obsessed with some and am still thinking about them. Bookhangovers? I’ve been having them. πŸ˜‚ Either I feel nothing or everything.

[Top Ten Tuesday | The Last Ten Books That Gave Me a Book Hangover]

  • You can’t stop thinking about the book.
  • You don’t want to read a new book because you cAn’T focus on it.
  • Several times in your day, you suddenly look up from your task at hand, your eyes glaze over, and you say, “BOOK” in a way similar to a chicken.
  • You want to read the book you’re obsessing over again, for the first time.
  • Or you feel like the book is one room in a huge house and you would like to see into the other 57 rooms — oh did you say FANFIC, WELL OKAY THEN–
  • You’re trying to decide if you want everyone to read it. Or do you want to protect it? It is yours. It belongs only to you.
  • The next book you read tastes of ash.πŸ˜ͺ

It’s all very dramatic and sad and difficult to live like this but you press on like a true and valiant warrior.

So let me tell you about the last 10 books I’ve read that have given me book hangovers.

also I want to admit that a book doesn’t have to be perfect for me to be obsessed with it. It just has to click with something deep deep in my soul. I don’t even know what that thing is!!! Just SOME specific thing!!

1. The Ruin of Kings

I’ve been talking about this one a lot recently, so you know!! The obsession is strong!!! My favourite part of my sudden intense love for this is…I wasn’t sure I was deeply in love with it to start with?! I was a bit “eh I love it but it could be better.” But now I find myself just obsessing about the world and characters and “what if this” and “what if that” — my eyeballs GLOW into LOVE HEARTS with how much I enjoyed this book.

2. The King’s Men

I sneakily put this on here because while this list is supposed to be about recent reads (and I read this for the first time in 2018), I just reread the trilogy in January, 2020. Which COUNTS as a recent obsession. I’m still so wholly obsessed. πŸ₯ΊIt’s the characters for me here. The plot? The sports? Eh. Sometimes I think about sports and also sometimes I think about near death experiences. Same difference. But these broken, messy, adorable dumbasses!? I just love them. I love how Neil went from being so abused he couldn’t look at people, to nesting in burrito blanket pile with his team because they are there for each other. πŸ₯ΊπŸ’›πŸ’›πŸ’›

3. One Of Us Is Next

Okay, admittedly, I didn’t even think I’d like this because I didn’t love the first book. And then — ooomf — there I went, slightly obsessing and also deciding I desperately need to write a thriller?! I think that’s why this one lit up my eyes. It inspired me for writing! And I just really liked the characters and how real they felt. I keep thinking about it!! Especially those last pages!! OH. THAT. TWIST.

4.Β  Only Mostly Devastated

This is part romcom, part family drama. And it managed to make me laugh and get all squashed and choked up at the same time. You know that moment when a book winds up and punches you in the throat and while you’re gasping on the ground for air, it tells a lot of cute jokes to make up for it?? THIS ONE. I loved it. 😌 I also felt it dealt well with the way people can be problematic when they’re hiding themselves, how fear is valid, how being closeted is so awful for your mental health, how no one deserves to be hurt for love. gAH FEELS.

5. Gideon The Ninth

This one is also odd, because I spent so long, so so lost. After about 100pgs, I was sure all my intelligence had just fallen out my ears and pooled muddily on the ground because I DIDN’T GET IT. But that’s the beauty of a lot of this book? It doesn’t guide you through the world. You get hurled in and you keep up or die. Plus it is scifi and full of lesbians and murder and necromancy and complex history that is interwoven to bring out deliciously dark reveals at the end. Good stuff. I can’t stop thinking about it.

6. Queen of Nothing

I mean HELLOOOOOO OF COURSE!!!! Gah, I was so so freaking out about this book. I was in the bookstore at 9am, scouring the shelves, having a silent meltdown once I had it in my clammy paws. IΒ devoured it. And it was so so good. It was fast-paced, taunt, emotional and vulnerable, as well as full of tricky twists that made my heart leap. It was JUST what I wanted!!!! (And okay, small rant moment: I don’t get why so many people hate it and call it disappointing or reads like fanfic or whatnot or wasn’t sexy enough. I mean!! Hello it’s actually YA! It’s not an SJM book. It was backstabby but hopeful and I think more books should be like that.)

7. Call Down The Hawk

Oh you know. YOU KNOW how much I love Stiefvater books. 2019 was basically me counting down till November so I could have this precious novel I’d ached over for so so long. 😭It was perfect: complex, peculiar, aching, vulnerable and dangerous. I hold so much awe for Maggie Stiefvater’s prose too?! Sometimes you feel caught in a loop of lucid mad dreaming — and the next you’re laughing softly at the everyday domestic shenanigans. I just !!!! Love it so much. It took me AGES to stop thinking about it.

8. Sick Kids In Love

So I knew I’d love this one because I really liked Moskowitz’s other books — but GAH this one was so amazing?! Like I still think about it now and smile sappily.😍πŸ₯°It BROKE ME in the best possible way. And the dialogue was just perfect? I wanted to be absorbed into this book forever and not let go. And tbh, it just raised the bar for contemporaries so high. I need more books like this!!!!

9. Can You See Me

I loved this one so so much I even got my mum to read it!!! Which is such a score for me because she usually only reads historical romances — my recommendation skills are unstoppable. 😌This is a middle-grade novel about autism, but it’s written so accurately that I ached while I read. It’s relatable but also explains things really well from an autistic perspective. (As an autistic, I found myself going: “ohhh sot hat’s why I do that.”) READ IT. I still think about it.

10. Wayward Son

I am hungover from this one because of that cliffhanger!!!! YOU KNOW THE ONE. Omg. Rainbow Rowell likes to gently torture us all forever. But this whole book wasΒ soft. It really captured how hard it is to be mentally ill but unwilling to tell anyone what’s going on with you. I just wanted the boys to TALK and work things out but, gah, they are self-sabotaging hard. But all the domestic scenes made my day, so basically 10/10, the worst part of this book was that it ended and I didn’t have anymore pages.

 

what was the last book you were super obsessed with?! and do you get book hangovers often?

 

8 Bookish Opinions I Changed My Mind About

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You know that moment you put an opinion on the internet and someone shouts “YOU’RE WRONG!!”

And that someone is…you?

Okay okay πŸ˜‚ so let’s talk about changing opinions. Because as bloggers — no, as humans — we very rarely stay static in our opinions and feelings. We grow. (Some of us even grow taller but obviously that is not me.) We change. Sometimes we soften up on an old opinion or else we get toothily hard over it instead. We change opinions after learning more, or seeing it from another perspective, or maybe it’s just a silly inconsequential change like I loved peanut butter once and now I don’t!!!Β  (Actually. I still love it but I’m sort of allergic and it peeves me daily.)

The awkward part about being online is telling everyone your steadfast opinions and then…you…erm…change. πŸ˜‚But hey! Nothing like a self-roast with a bit of salt.

So today I am writing a post to delightfully disagree with…mYSELF.

“Happy endings are overrated! Break my heart! Make me feel things!”

I can’t even begin to stress how very very veryΒ wretchedly soft-hearted I’ve become. I recall writing a post somewhere and demanding death in series finales. And now? Aw just let them all live. It’s okay. Let everyone live. πŸ₯ΊLet them all have jam and warm toast at the end of the novel and nothing bAD HAPPENS EVER AGAIN.

Alright, I still want realism…and if it’s an epic fantasy series where everyone gets out without a scratch, it’s a bit eye-roll-worthy. But I’m jUST SAYING. I much prefer happy endings now. Make me suffer for 300 pages, but for the last 10 pages — make everything go right. Pls. So much pls.

“I’m so tired of all these romances in YA books…”

Oh πŸ˜‚ how did this happen. I became a slight romantic. Okay, I am still fussy! I don’t always ship couples. Sometimes YA is over here featuring these veritable babies and I’m just the 90yo ancient saying “no. ur too young for love” and I mentally black out over YA plots about marriage. But I get really sappy for so quite a few romances now. I used to feel bored of them all, but now I’ll be reading a slowburn romance and it’s been 3 books and thEY JUST HELD HANDS AND I’M 😍😭😍😭😍😭.

Who am I!!!!!

“Why would you buy a book twice ugh.”

This is adorable, because part of me is still sighing at myself and my 4 editions of City of Bones. But the rest of me is just shouting, “Let me live!!” Collecting multiple editions is still something I only get to do cautiously, and mostly happens when I’m gifted them. But I just absolutely love it? I get why people buy books they’ll technically never read. I mean (a) for bookstagram haha, but (b) it’s just a way of feeling close to a book you adore while supporting the author and appreciating the aesthetic beauty of a cover to remind you how that story made your heart overflow with fierce emotions. SO I GET IT.

(But truly…I am lucky to be gifted editions a lot for promo/work because I couldn’t afford and justify it otherwise ha.)

“I don’t need a crown for book photos.”

Like, I do. And I did. And I got one. And it’s the best purchase I ever made apart from the time when I was about nine years old and bought Turkish Delight even though everyone said I’d hate it but I loved it ha. Or did I love it out of spite? Now we’re getting off track. (But fyi I am Edmund Pevensie.)

“I hate love triangles.”

This needs massive clarification! BecauseΒ usually I hate love-triangles. Maybe I can even say the word *mostly*. But can we talk about love triangles built on three friends being obsessed with each other? Or love triangles where they all end up together. Or just awkward lowkey triangles in quiet YA contemporaries. Or cleverly done triangles that aren’t built on emotional manipulation but rather escalate the stakes and layer articulate intrigue. Because those I have discovered I really really like.

“I don’t like adult lit.”

See all these blanket-statements from a younger and more foolish me? SO adorable. Least to say, this opinion changed because (1) I got old lol, but also (2) I think I never tried the kind of adult lit thatΒ suited me before. Now I’m obsessed with books like Ninth House, The Lies of Locke Lamora, Jade City, Gideon the Ninth, Red White & Royal Blue…I have discovered some downright delights. I still prefer accessible adult lit, ones that read more like YA. But I’ve discovered adult lit that is darker and more muddy with grey characters. I crave that. 😍 (I still avoid SO many adult books though. Most don’t catch my eye at all or are dryly told. But now I at least give more a chance and keep being pleasantly surprised!!)

“I wish this author would write faster!”

I think this is product of me being an author now — but I realise how much work goes into a book, how long the publishing process is, how it is full of sleepless nights and stress and anxiety. It’s rewarding YES. But I also now understand when authors push back release dates, even if it’s a book I’m dying for. I hope you get a nap, authors. πŸ˜‚ Please take your time.

“I’ll never get my TBR under control–“

Oh. Oh wait no. This opinion hasn’t changed. It is 100% true and I just glanced to the left and saw my bedside TBR of like 30 books and wondered if it was leaning more threateningly closer to me than usual. #RIPPaperFury

have you ever changed your mind about any old bookish opinions?? let me know in the comments!!

 

2020 New Young Adult Books We Need Before We Slightly Scream!!! [Ft. January, February and March Releases]

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It’s that time of year again when I make your TBR weep obtrusively! 😍

Look I’m not even sorry about this, but I’m about to present you with YA 2020 releases from January to March — yes, only the first three months because I legit have so many to talk about. I amΒ hyped for this year and I didn’t want to overwhelm you too much, too soon. So many books have me absolutely shivering with delight.

There are 72 here. SEVENTY TWO. My brain is rather short-circuiting because I definitely can’t afford my ambitious reading lifestyle and I also planned to read less this year so. I’ll just go bury myself, it’s fine.

Anyway they look SO GOOD so please suffer with me in this year of good books, our 2020!!

The Night Country (Hazel Wood #2) by Melissa Albert | Goodreads

I only read The Hazel Wood last year and directly fell in love and am just completely heart eyes for it forever. And there’s a sequel oh, thank u.

In The Night Country, Alice Proserpine dives back into a menacing, mesmerizing world of dark fairy tales and hidden doors. Follow her and Ellery Finch as they learn The Hazel Wood was just the beginning, and that worlds die not with a whimper, but a bang.With Finch’s help, Alice escaped the Hinterland and her reclusive grandmother’s dark legacy. Now she and the rest of the dregs of the fairy tale world have washed up in New York City, where Alice is trying to… make a new, unmagical life. But something is stalking the Hinterland’s survivors―and she suspects their deaths may have a darker purpose. Meanwhile, in the winking out world of the Hinterland, Finch seeks his own adventure, and―if he can find it―a way back home…
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Loveboat, Taipei by Abigail Hing Wen | Goodreads

This one I’m hooked on from recommendation! SO many authors I love are blurbing it, plus my friend @anovelescape loves it…and I’m always keen for more #ownvoices stories. It sounds like it’ll have messy squad dynamics which, I am here for.

Perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Sarah Dessen, and praised as β€œan intense rush of rebellion and romance” by #1 New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Garber, this romantic and layered Own Voices debut from Abigail Hing Wen is a dazzling, fun-filled romp.
β€œOur cousins have done this program,” Sophie whispers. β€œBest kept secret. Zero supervision.”
And just like that, Ever Wong’s summer takes an unexpected turn. Gone is Chien Tan, the strict educational program in Taiwan that Ever was expecting. In its place, she finds Loveboat: a summer-long free-for-all where hookups abound, adults turn a blind eye, snake-blood sake flows abundantly, and the nightlife runs nonstop. But not every student is quite what they seem.
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Scavenge the Stars by Tara Sim | Goodreads

I really loved Tara Sim’s debut Timekeeper (I’m still mad at myself for not having finished that trilogy ah! But THIS YEAR) and I’m so excited for this. All the author’s tweets about it sound like it’ll be morally grey, queer, and schemey. Yesss.

When Amaya rescues a mysterious stranger from drowning, she fears her rash actions have earned her a longer sentence on the debtor ship where she’s been held captive for years. Instead, the man she saved offers her unimaginable riches and a new identity, setting Amaya on a perilous course through the coastal city-state of Moray, where old-world opulence and desperate gamblers collide.
Amaya wants one thing: revenge against the man who ruined her family and stole the life she once had. But the more entangled she becomes in this game of deceptionβ€”and as her path intertwines with the son of the man she’s plotting to bring downβ€”the more she uncovers about the truth of her past. And the more she realizes she must trust no one…
Packed with high-stakes adventure, romance, and dueling identities, this gender-swapped retelling of The Count of Monte Cristo is the first novel in an epic YA fantasy duology, perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Sabaa Tahir, and Leigh Bardugo.
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The Storm Of Life (Brilliant Death #2) by Amy Rose Capetta | Goodreads

Oh IΒ loved The Brilliant Death so so much, so knowing it’s getting a longed-for sequel just has my heart bursting with delight. It’s #ownvoices with nonbinary streghe (magicians) in an Italian-esque fantasy world. And yes I already have it preordered. 😌

Teodora diSangro and Cielo, the strega she loves, are on a mission to save their country of Vinalia from its manipulative leader, who wants to exploit streghe and use them as his weapons. But will marshaling a small but powerful band of streghe be enough to wrest power from a cunning dictator? And what if Teo’s been setting her sights on the wrong enemy all along? This epic sequel to The Brilliant Death completes the Italian-inspired fantasy duology with shocking twists, steamy romance, and magic that will dazzle your imagination and make you wish Vinalia were a real place.
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Woven In Moonlight by Isabel IbaΓ±ez | Goodreads

I actually firstly fell in love with the cover of this one! And then found out it’s a Bolivian inspired fantasy and will involve GHOSTS. I love ghosts (but just fictional ones, thx).

A lush tapestry of magic, romance, and revoluciΓ³n, drawing inspiration from Bolivian politics and history.
Ximena is the decoy Condesa, a stand-in for the last remaining Illustrian royal. Her people lost everything when the usurper, Atoc, used an ancient relic to summon ghosts and drive the Illustrians from La Ciudad.
Now Ximena’s motivated by her insatiable thirst for revenge, and her rare ability to spin thread from moonlight. When Atoc demands the real Condesa’s hand in marriage, it’s Ximena’s duty to go in her stead. She relishes the chance, as Illustrian spies have reported that Atoc’s no longer carrying his deadly relic. If Ximena can find it, she can return the true aristΓ³crata to their rightful place.
She hunts for the relic, using her weaving ability to hide messages in tapestries for the resistance. But when a masked vigilante, a warm-hearted princess, and a thoughtful healer challenge Ximena, her mission becomes more complicated. There could be a way to overthrow the usurper without starting another war, but only if Ximena turns her back on revengeβ€”and her Condesa.
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A Love Hate Thing by Whitney D. Grandison | Goodreads

Um, hello I LOVE love-to-hate romances, and this is also #ownvoices for black rep and seems like it’ll talk about depression too?! I’m really keen for it!

When Tyson Trice finds himself tossed into the wealthy coastal community of Pacific Hills, he’s ready for the questions, the stares and the feeling of not belonging. Not that he cares. After recovering from being shot and surviving the rough streets of Lindenwood, he doesn’t care about anyone or anything, much less how the rest of his life will play out.
Golden girl Nandy Smith has spent most of her life building the pristine image that it takes to fit in when it comes to her hometown Pacific Hills where image is everything. After learning that her parents are taking in a troubled teen boy, Nandy fears her summer plans, as well as her reputation, will go up in flames.
Now with Trice living under the same roof, the wall between their bedrooms feels as thin as the line between love and hate. Beneath the angst, their growing attraction won’t be denied. Through time, Trice brings Nandy out of her shell, and Nandy attempts to melt the ice that’s taken Trice’s heart and being. Only, with the ever-present pull back to the Lindenwood streets, it’ll be a wonder if Trice makes it through this summer at all.
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A Heart So Fierce and Broken (#2) by Brigid Kemmerer | Goodreads

Okay January is HERE for us with sequels but omg I really loved A Curse So Dark and Lonely and it hit us with a lot of plot twists right at the end!!! I actually have an ARC for this so I’m excited to dive in.

Find the heir, win the crown. The curse is finally broken, but Prince Rhen of Emberfall faces darker troubles still. Rumors circulate that he is not the true heir and that forbidden magic has been unleashed in Emberfall. Although Rhen has Harper by his side, his guardsman Grey is missing, leaving more questions than answers.
Win the crown, save the kingdom. Rumored to be the heir, Grey has been on the run since he destroyed Lilith. He has no desire to challenge Rhen–until Karis Luran once again threatens to take Emberfall by force. Her own daughter Lia Mara sees the flaws in her mother’s violent plan, but can she convince Grey to stand against Rhen, even for the good of Emberfall?
The heart-pounding, compulsively readable saga continues as loyalties are tested and new love blooms in a kingdom on the brink of war.
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Every Other Weekend by Abigail Johnson | Goodreads

I really like angsty family-centric contemporaries…and this one has two teens with very complex families who end up finding solace in each other.

What if your safe place…is a person? Adam Moynihan’s life used to be awesome. Straight As, close friends and a home life so perfect that it could have been a TV show straight out of the 50s. Then his oldest brother died. Now his fun-loving mom cries constantly, he and his remaining brother can’t talk without fighting, and the father he always admired proved himself a coward by moving out when they needed him most.
Jolene Timber’s life is nothing like the movies she lovesβ€”not the happy ones anyway. As an aspiring director, she should know, because she’s been reimagining her life as a film ever since she was a kid. With her divorced parents at each other’s throats and using her as a pawn, no amount of mental reediting will give her the love she’s starving for.
Forced to spend every other weekend in the same apartment building, the boy who thinks forgiveness makes him weak and the girl who thinks love is for fools begin an unlikely friendship. The weekends he dreaded and she endured soon become the best part of their lives. But when one’s life begins to mend while the other’s spirals out of control, they realize that falling in love while surrounded by its demise means nothing is ever guaranteed.
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Don’t Read The Comments by Eric Smith | Goodreads

I mean the title alone speaks to me πŸ˜‚ me @ liking a book and then going to read Goodreads reviews where everyone ate a lemon (sigh). BUT ANYWAY! I also admire the author (he’s also an agent!) on twitter and it’s about gaming, messy unlikely friendship dynamics, and it sounds really good!!

Divya Sharma is a queen. Or she is when she’s playing Reclaim the Sun, the year’s hottest online game. Divyaβ€”better known as popular streaming gamer D1Vβ€”regularly leads her #AngstArmada on quests through the game’s vast and gorgeous virtual universe. But for Divya, this is more than just a game. Out in the real world, she’s trading her rising-star status for sponsorships to help her struggling single mom pay the rent.
Gaming is basically Aaron Jericho’s entire life. Much to his mother’s frustration, Aaron has zero interest in becoming a doctor like her, and spends his free time writing games for a local developer. At least he can escape into Reclaim the Sunβ€”and with a trillion worlds to explore, disappearing should be easy. But to his surprise, he somehow ends up on the same remote planet as celebrity gamer D1V.
At home, Divya and Aaron grapple with their problems alone, but in the game, they have each other to face infinite new worlds…and the growing legion of trolls populating them. Soon the virtual harassment seeps into reality when a group called the Vox Populi begin launching real-world doxxing campaigns, threatening Aaron’s dreams and Divya’s actual life. The online trolls think they can drive her out of the game, but everything and everyone Divya cares about is on the line…
And she isn’t going down without a fight.
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Spellhacker by M.K. England | Goodreads

Okay so The Disasters was GREAT (also full of disasters!!!) and I am definitely here for more sci-fi-chaotic-queer-squad dynamics. (Also I like sci-fi standalones!) So yes and thank you. Also: HEISTS.

In Kyrkarta, magicβ€”known as mazβ€”was once a freely available natural resource. Then an earthquake released a magical plague, killing thousands and opening the door for a greedy corporation to make maz a commodity that’s tightly controlledβ€”and, of course, outrageously expensive. Which is why Diz and her three best friends run a highly lucrative, highly illegal maz siphoning gig on the side. Their next job is supposed to be their last heist ever.
But when their plan turns up a powerful new strain of maz that (literally) blows up in their faces, they’re driven to unravel a conspiracy at the very center of the spellplagueβ€”and possibly save the world.
No pressure.
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Ashlords by Scott Reintgen | Goodreads

This immediately had me with the pitch of “Red Rising x The Scorpio Races” ummm…my FAVOURITES!? I think it’s epic fantasy and the cover is just divine too.

Every year since the Ashlords were gifted phoenix horses by their gods, they’ve raced them. First into battle, then on great hunts, and finally for the pure sport of seeing who rode the fastest. Centuries of blood and fire carved their competition into a more modern spectacle: The Races.
Over the course of a multi-day event, elite riders from clashing cultures vie to be crowned champion. But the modern version of the sport requires more than good riding. Competitors must be skilled at creating and controlling phoenix horses made of ash and alchemy, which are summoned back to life each sunrise with uniquely crafted powers to cover impossible distances and challenges before bursting into flames at sunset. But good alchemy only matters if a rider knows how to defend their phoenix horse at night. Murder is outlawed, but breaking bones and poisoning ashes? That’s all legal and encouraged.
In this year’s Races, eleven riders will compete, but three of them have more to lose than the rest–a champion’s daughter, a scholarship entrant, and a revolutionary’s son. Who will attain their own dream of glory? Or will they all flame out in defeat?
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What I Carry by Jennifer Longo | Goodreads

Okay if you know me…I wrote The Boy Who Steals Houses (came out last year) that deals with a lot of topics of homelessness and just!! This blurbΒ immediately pulled at my heart and I want to read it. Plus it’ll have found-family I think! Also that COVER.

For readers of Robin Benway’s Far From the Tree, a powerful and heartwarming look at a teen girl about to age out of the foster care system.
Growing up in foster care, Muir has lived in many houses. And if she’s learned one thing, it is to Pack. Light. Carry only what fits in a suitcase. Toothbrush? Yes. Socks? Yes. Emotional attachment to friends? foster families? a boyfriend? Nope!
There’s no room for any additional baggage. Muir has just one year left before she ages out of the system. One year before she’s free. One year to avoid anything–or anyone–that could get in her way.
Then she meets Francine. And Kira. And Sean. And everything changes.
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Seven Deadly Shadows by Courtney Alameda and Valynne E. MaetaniΒ | Goodreads

This promises a band of unlikely heroes and the unimaginable evil and demons (personal? real? hopefully BOTH). I’m very intrigued by this πŸ‘€ Seems like it’s #ownvoices for the Japanese mythology part too, and it sounds dark and exciting!

Kira Fujikawa has always been a girl on the fringe. Bullied by her peers and ignored by her parents, the only place Kira’s ever felt at home is at her grandfather’s Shinto shrine, where she trains to be a priestess.
But Kira’s life is shattered on the night her family’s shrine is attacked by a vicious band of yokai demons.
With the help of Shiroβ€”the shrine’s gorgeous half-fox, half-boy kitsuneβ€”Kira discovers that her shrine harbors an ancient artifact of great power . . . one the yokai and their demon lord, Shuten-doji, will use to bring down an everlasting darkness upon the world. Unable to face the Shuten-doji and his minions on her own, Kira enlists the aid of seven ruthless shinigamiβ€”or death godsβ€”to help stop the brutal destruction of humankind. But some of the death gods aren’t everything they initially seemed, nor as loyal to Kira’s cause as they first appeared.
With war drawing nearer by the day, Kira realizes that if this unlikely band of heroes is going to survive, they’re going to have to learn to work together, confront their demons, and rise as one to face an army of unimaginable evil.
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Darkest And Deepest Red by Anna-Marie McLemore | Goodreads

So I always love this author’s books…like still not over the gorgeous lush prose and the way they make fairy tales a whole new level of MAGICAL. This is a the Red Shoes retelling!! And also historical fiction this time.

Summer, 1518. A strange sickness sweeps through Strasbourg: women dance in the streets, some until they fall down dead. As rumors of witchcraft spread, suspicion turns toward Lavinia and her family, and Lavinia may have to do the unimaginable to save herself and everyone she loves.
Five centuries later, a pair of red shoes seal to Rosella Oliva’s feet, making her dance uncontrollably. They draw her toward a boy who knows the dancing fever’s history better than anyone: Emil, whose family was blamed for the fever five hundred years ago. But there’s more to what happened in 1518 than even Emil knows, and discovering the truth may decide whether Rosella survives the red shoes.
With McLemore’s signature lush prose, Dark and Deepest Red pairs the forbidding magic of a fairy tale with a modern story of passion and betrayal.
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Diamond City by Francesca Flores| Goodreads

I adore dark cities and questionable found-families, so I’m fairly going heart-eyes at even the thought of this book! I’m really lucky to have gotten an eARC so ahhhhh. Diving in ASAP.

Good things don’t happen to girls who come from nothing…unless they risk everything. Fierce and ambitious, Aina SolΓ­s as sharp as her blade and as mysterious as the blood magic she protects. After the murder of her parents, Aina takes a job as an assassin to survive and finds a new family in those like her: the unwanted and forgotten.
Her boss is brutal and cold, with a questionable sense of morality, but he provides a place for people with nowhere else to go. And makes sure they stay there.
DIAMOND CITY: built by magic, ruled by tyrants, and in desperate need of saving. It is a world full of dark forces and hidden agendas, old rivalries and lethal new enemies.
To claim a future for herself in a world that doesn’t want her to survive, Aina will have to win a game of murder and conspiracyβ€”and risk losing everything.
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Honourable Mentions…

Yes No Maybe So by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed | Goodreads

Pretty much can’t even CONTAIN my excitement for these two epic master-authors teaming up together!! I am in love with Becky Albertalli’s past books so 😍excuse me while my soul flourishes. IΒ am a little concerned this is very American-politics centric, but hopefully I’ll still connect with it!

YES
Jamie Goldberg is cool with volunteering for his local state senate candidateβ€”as long as he’s behind the scenes. When it comes to speaking to strangers (or, let’s face it, speaking at all to almost anyone), Jamie’s a choke artist. There’s no way he’d ever knock on doors to ask people for their votes…until he meets Maya.
NO
Maya Rehman’s having the worst Ramadan ever. Her best friend is too busy to hang out, her summer trip is canceled, and now her parents are separating. Why her mother thinks the solution to her problems is political canvassingβ€”with some awkward dude she hardly knowsβ€”is beyond her.
MAYBE SO
Going door to door isn’t exactly glamorous, but maybe it’s not the worst thing in the world. After all, the polls are getting closerβ€”and so are Maya and Jamie. Mastering local activism is one thing. Navigating the cross-cultural romance of the century is another thing entirely.
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The Gravity of Us by Phil Stamper | Goodreads

Kids who are obsessed with space!!! I do love the stars and can even name the moon so, I consider myself definitely an astronomer. Also queer #ownvoices m/m romance and I think it might have spacey conspiracy theories.

As a successful social media journalist with half a million followers, seventeen-year-old Cal is used to sharing his life online. But when his pilot father is selected for a highly publicized NASA mission to Mars, Cal and his family relocate from Brooklyn to Houston and are thrust into a media circus.
Amidst the chaos, Cal meets sensitive and mysterious Leon, another β€œAstrokid,” and finds himself falling head over heelsβ€”fast. As the frenzy around the mission grows, so does their connection. But when secrets about the program are uncovered, Cal must find a way to reveal the truth without hurting the people who have become most important to him.
Expertly capturing the thrill of first love and the self-doubt all teens feel, debut author Phil Stamper is a new talent to watch.
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Heartstopper Vol 3 by Alice Oseman | Goodreads

I confess this is the only graphic novel series I actively keep up with but !! it’s just SO CUTE and wholesome. UKYA at its finest omg I may cry. Soft queer boys and it has the best friendships and the art is incredible.

In this volume we’ll see the Heartstopper gang go on a school trip to Paris! Not only are Nick and Charlie navigating a new city, but also telling more people about their relationship AND learning more about the challenges each other are facing in private… Meanwhile Tao and Elle will face their feelings for each other, Tara and Darcy share more about their relationship origin story, and the teachers supervising the trip seem… rather close…?
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If You Only Knew by Prerna Pickett | Goodreads

Okay this one is “boy recently released from jail and the daughter of a prosecutor fall for each other against the odds” I mean PEAK FORBIDDEN ROMANCE!!! I am so excited for this contemporary!

Corey has just been released from jail, and all he wants is a new beginning. But when his former gang comes knocking, Corey agrees to vandalize the home of Kent Hopper, the prosecutor who put him away.
To erase the guilt she carries from getting away with a crime, Tessa spends most of her nights riding her motorcycle. When she catches Corey destroying her father’s car, she doesn’t see a criminal: She sees a way to finally right her own wrongs. So instead of turning Corey over to the police, she convinces her father to give Corey a second chance.
As Tessa and Corey spend more time with each other, it becomes difficult to ignore the pull between them. But they’re both keeping secrets, and when those secrets come to light, they’ll each have to face their demons in order to have a future together.
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This Train Is Being Held by | Goodreads

This sounds delightfully angsty and here to tackle prejudices. I believe it’s #ownvoices Latinx rep too? And I just really love diverse contemporaries and chance meetings. 😍

When private school student Isabelle Warren first meets Dominican-American Alex Rosario on the downtown 1 train, she remembers his green eyes and his gentlemanly behavior. He remembers her untroubled happiness, something he feels all rich kids must possess. That, and her long dancer legs. Over the course of multiple subway encounters spanning the next three years, Isabelle learns of Alex’s struggle with his father, who is hell-bent on Alex being a contender for the major leagues, despite Alex’s desire to go to college and become a poet. Alex learns about Isabelle’s unstable mother, a woman with a prejudice against Latino men. But fateβ€”and the 1 trainβ€”throw them together when Isabelle needs Alex most. Heartfelt and evocative, this romantic drama will appeal to readers of Jenny Han and Sarah Dessen.
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Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhy Menon| Goodreads

I’ve LOVED this author’s contemporaries, and now she’s writing contemporary-fantasy-fairytale-retellings?! Be still my beating heart. I think this is going to be a series too! I am SO excited. Beauty & The Beast and #ownvoices Indian rep!

Will the princess save the beast?
For Princess Jaya Rao, nothing is more important than family. When the loathsome Emerson clan steps up their centuries-old feud to target Jaya’s little sister, nothing will keep Jaya from exacting her revenge. Then Jaya finds out she’ll be attending the same elite boarding school as Grey Emerson, and it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime. She knows what she must do: Make Grey fall in love with her and break his heart. But much to Jaya’s annoyance, Grey’s brooding demeanor and lupine blue eyes have drawn her in. There’s simply no way she and her sworn enemy could find their fairy-tale ending…right?
His Lordship Grey Emerson is a misanthrope. Thanks to an ancient curse by a Rao matriarch, Grey knows he’s doomed once he turns eighteen. Sequestered away in the mountains at St. Rosetta’s International Academy, he’s lived an isolated existenceβ€”until Jaya Rao bursts into his life, but he can’t shake the feeling that she’s hiding something. Something that might just have to do with the rose-shaped ruby pendant around her neck…
As the stars conspire to keep them apart, Jaya and Grey grapple with questions of love, loyalty, and whether it’s possible to write your own happy ending.
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Belle RΓ©volte by Lindsay Miller | Goodreads

This is a life-swap between the rich and poor girl in a fantasy world — and I’m pretty sure it will be queer and I JUST. The COVER THOUGH. The blurb just has meπŸ˜šπŸ‘ŒπŸ»yes thank you. I will take this.

Emilie des Marais is more at home holding scalpels than embroidery needles and is desperate to escape her noble roots to serve her country as a physician. But society dictates a noble lady cannot perform such gruesome work.
Annette Boucher, overlooked and overworked by her family, wants more from life than her humble beginnings and is desperate to be trained in magic. So when a strange noble girl offers Annette the chance of a lifetime, she accepts. Emilie and Annette swap livesβ€”Annette attends finishing school as a noble lady to be trained in the ways of divination, while Emilie enrolls to be a physician’s assistant, using her natural magical talent to save lives.
But when their nation instigates a frivolous war, Emilie and Annette must work together to help the rebellion end a war that is based on lies.
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All the Stars And Teeth by Adalyn Grace | Goodreads

I think this is going to be one of the Big Hyped Books, and I always want in on those πŸ˜‚And besides the cover being nice…it’s also about an underwater kingdom of vengeful mermaids.

As princess of the island kingdom Visidia, Amora Montara has spent her entire life training to be High Animancerβ€”the master of souls. The rest of the realm can choose their magic, but for Amora, it’s never been a choice. To secure her place as heir to the throne, she must prove her mastery of the monarchy’s dangerous soul magic.
When her demonstration goes awry, Amora is forced to flee. She strikes a deal with Bastian, a mysterious pirate: he’ll help her prove she’s fit to rule, if she’ll help him reclaim his stolen magic.
But sailing the kingdom holds more wonderβ€”and more perilβ€”than Amora anticipated. A destructive new magic is on the rise, and if Amora is to conquer it, she’ll need to face legendary monsters, cross paths with vengeful mermaids, and deal with a stow-away she never expected… or risk the fate of Visidia and lose the crown forever.
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Ink In The Blood by Kim Smejkal | goodreads

So the pitch for this is “dark YA fantasy debut that weaves together tattoo magic, faith, and eccentric theatre in a world where lies are currency and ink is a weapon” and I am sold. Instantly. The darker the fantasy, the better. And I crave unique magic systems.

Celia Sand and her best friend, Anya Burtoni, are inklings for the esteemed religion of Profeta. Using magic, they tattoo followers with beautiful images that represent the Divine’s will and guide the actions of the recipients. It’s considered a noble calling, but ten years into their servitude Celia and Anya know the truth: Profeta is built on lies, the tattooed orders strip away freedom, and the revered temple is actually a brutal, torturous prison.
Their opportunity to escape arrives with the Rabble Mob, a traveling theater troupe. Using their inkling abilities for performance instead of propaganda, Celia and Anya are content for the first time . . . until they realize who followed them. The Divine they never believed in is very real, very angry, and determined to use Celia, Anya, and the Rabble Mob’s now-infamous stage to spread her deceitful influence even further.
To protect their new family from the wrath of a malicious deity and the zealots who work in her name, Celia and Anya must unmask the biggest lie of allβ€”Profeta itself.
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The Shadows Between Us by Tricia Levenseller | Goodreads

Oh this promises a super Slytherin girl who’s plan is to marry the king and then…ya know…kill him. Β―\_(ツ)_/Β― I mean this is the princess story I want. I haven’t read anything by this author yet but I’m super keen!

Alessandra is tired of being overlooked, but she has a plan to gain power:
1) Woo the Shadow King.
2) Marry him.
3) Kill him and take his kingdom for herself.
No one knows the extent of the freshly crowned Shadow King’s power. Some say he can command the shadows that swirl around him to do his bidding. Others say they speak to him, whispering the thoughts of his enemies. Regardless, Alessandra knows what she deserves, and she’s going to do everything within her power to get it.
But Alessandra’s not the only one trying to kill the king. As attempts on his life are made, she finds herself trying to keep him alive long enough for him to make her his queenβ€”all while struggling not to lose her heart. After all, who better for a Shadow King than a cunning, villainous queen?
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The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow | Goodreads

omggg I am so hooked by this blurb!! It sounds like contemporary-sci-fi where books and art are forbidden and a bookworm girl and a lab-born alien boy get all tangled up together in their (forbidden) love for the arts! I NEED IT.

Two years ago, a misunderstanding between the leaders of Earth and the invading Ilori resulted in the deaths of one-third of the world’s population. Seventeen-year-old Janelle β€œEllie” Baker survives in an Ilori-controlled center in New York City. Deemed dangerously volatile because of their initial reaction to the invasion, humanity’s emotional transgressions are now grounds for execution. All art, books and creative expression are illegal, but Ellie breaks the rules by keeping a secret library. When a book goes missing, Ellie is terrified that the Ilori will track it back to her and kill her.
Born in a lab, M0Rr1S (Morris) was raised to be emotionless. When he finds Ellie’s illegal library, he’s duty-bound to deliver her for execution. The trouble is, he finds himself drawn to human music and in desperate need of more. They’re both breaking the rules for love of artβ€”and Ellie inspires the same feelings in him that music does.
Ellie’sβ€”and humanity’sβ€”fate rests in the hands of an alien she should fear. M0Rr1S has a lot of secrets, but also a potential solutionβ€”thousands of miles away. The two embark on a wild and dangerous road trip with a bag of books and their favorite albums, all the while making a story and a song of their own that just might save them both.
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Rebelwing by Andrea Tang | Goodreads

okay the cover doesn’t do anything for me buuuut…i’m pretty sure this will be full of morally grey girls, magic, black markets and trades gone wrong. Aka, my thing. Entirely. (Also hoping it has #ownvoices POC characters!)

Business is booming for Prudence Wu. A black-market-media smuggler and scholarship student at the prestigious New Columbia Preparatory Academy, Pru is lucky to live in the Barricade Coalition where she is free to study, read, watch, and listen to whatever she wants. But between essays and exams, she chooses to spend her breaks sweet-talking border patrol with her best friend, Anabel, in order to sell banned media to the less fortunate citizens of the United Continental Confederacy, Inc.
When a drop-off goes awry, Pru narrowly escapes UCC enforcers to find that her rescuer is, of all things, a sentient cybernetic dragon. On the one hand, Pru is lucky not to be in prison, or worse. On the other, the dragon seems to have imprinted on her permanently, which means she has no choice but to be its pilot.
Drawn into a revolution she has no real interest in leading, Pru, Anabel, and friends Alex and Cat become key players in a brewing conflict with the UCC as the corporate government develops advanced weaponry more terrifying and grotesque than Pru could have ever imagined.
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Honourable Mentions…

Chain Of Gold (#1) by Cassandra Clare | Goodreads

And we’re starting off the next stage of the Shadowhunter saga and I’m FREAKING OUT WITH EXCITEMENT. This is about Will/Tessa’s kids and set in Edwardian London. Also the cover might be my favourite of the Shadowhunters yet. And honestly I don’t need details. I just need my hardcover preorder to arrive. 😭

Welcome to Edwardian London, a time of electric lights and long shadows, the celebration of artistic beauty and the wild pursuit of pleasure, with demons waiting in the dark. For years there has been peace in the Shadowhunter world. James and Lucie Herondale, children of the famous Will and Tessa, have grown up in an idyll with their loving friends and family, listening to stories of good defeating evil and love conquering all. But everything changes when the Blackthorn and Carstairs families come to London…and so does a remorseless and inescapable plague.
James Herondale longs for a great love, and thinks he has found it in the beautiful, mysterious Grace Blackthorn. Cordelia Carstairs is desperate to become a hero, save her family from ruin, and keep her secret love for James hidden. When disaster strikes the Shadowhunters, James, Cordelia and their friends are plunged into a wild adventure which will reveal dark and incredible powers, and the true cruel price of being a hero…and falling in love.[/su_expand]

When We Were Magic by Sarah Gailey | Goodreads

The pitch for this is “a sly, witchy dark comedy about four teens whose magic goes wildly awry” and Goodreads says it’s queer too!!! I think it’s f/f/? Anyway. OH DO I WANT THIS SO BADLY.

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Alexis has always been able to rely on two things: her best friends, and the magic powers they all share. Their secret is what brought them together, and their love for each other is unshakeableβ€”even when that love is complicated. Complicated by problems like jealousy, or insecurity, or lust. Or love. That unshakeable, complicated love is one of the only things that doesn’t change on prom night.
When accidental magic goes sideways and a boy winds up dead, Alexis and her friends come together to try to right a terrible wrong. Their first attempt failsβ€”and their second attempt fails even harder. Left with the remains of their failed spells and more consequences than anyone could have predicted, each of them must find a way to live with their part of the story.
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Havenfall by Sara Holland | Goodreads

I have an ARC of this so I am STOKED to read it soon! I enjoyed her debut, Everless. This one is about a magical inn that connects worlds, and it seems really unique in premise and I am intrigued πŸ‘€

Hidden deep in the mountains of Colorado lies the Inn at Havenfall, a sanctuary that connects ancient worlds–each with their own magic–together. For generations, the inn has protected all who seek refuge within its walls, and any who disrupt the peace can never return. For
Maddie Morrow, summers at the inn are more than a chance to experience this magic first-hand. Havenfall is an escape from reality, where her mother sits on death row accused of murdering Maddie’s brother. It’s where Maddie fell in love with handsome Fiorden soldier Brekken. And it’s where one day she hopes to inherit the role of Innkeeper from her beloved uncle.
But this summer, the impossible happens–a dead body is found, shattering everything the inn stands for. With Brekken missing, her uncle gravely injured, and a dangerous creature on the loose, Maddie suddenly finds herself responsible for the safety of everyone in Havenfall. She’ll do anything to uncover the truth, even if it means working together with an alluring new staffer Taya, who seems to know more than she’s letting on. As dark secrets are revealed about the inn itself, one thing becomes clear to Maddie–no one can be trusted, and no one is safe . . .
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The Raven And The Dove by Kaitlyn Davis | Goodreads

This one is an avian-inspired, epic fantasy retelling ofΒ Tristan and Isolde,Β which totally excites me because I LOVE retellings. Also I helped do a cover reveal for this one on instagram in 2019 so I am invested. 😌 Isn’t the cover lovely?!

A princess longing to be free…
On the dawn of her courtship trials, Princess Lyana Aethionus knows she should be focused on winning her perfect mate, yet her thoughts wander to the open sky waiting at the edge of her floating kingdom. One final adventure calls. Upon fleeing the palace, the last thing she expects to find is a raven prince locked in a death match with a dragon.
A bastard aching to belong…
Reviled son of a dead king, Rafe would do anything for his beloved half-brother, Prince Lysander Taetanus, including posing as him in the upcoming courtship trials. When a dragon interrupts their secret exchange, he orders his studious sibling to run. After suffering a fatal blow, Rafe is saved by a beautiful dove who possesses forbidden magic, just like him. Fate brought them together, now destiny will tear them apart…
Unknown to the world above, on the foggy sea ten thousand feet below, a young king fights a forgotten war. He believes Lyana is the queen prophesied to save the world, and with the help of his favored spy, hidden deep in the highest ranks of the dove royal house, he will stop at nothing to have her.[/su_expand]

The Winter Duke by Claire Eliza Bartlett| Goodreads

Okay beyond me being shallowly cover-obsessed — I think this one features STEM girls in fantasy! And there’s a frozen lake and underwater kingdom! And I believe the heroine suddenly inherits the title of duke and her brother’s bride…so maybe it’s also queer!!!

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An enchanted tale of intrigue where a duke’s daughter is the only survivor of a magical curse.
When Ekata’s brother is finally named heir, there will be nothing to keep her at home in Kylma Above with her murderous family. Not her books or science experiments, not her family’s icy castle atop a frozen lake, not even the tantalizingly close Kylma Below, a mesmerizing underwater kingdom that provides her family with magic. But just as escape is within reach, her parents and twelve siblings fall under a strange sleeping sickness.
In the space of a single night, Ekata inherits the title of duke, her brother’s warrior bride, and ever-encroaching challengers from withoutβ€”and withinβ€”her own ministry. Nothing has prepared Ekata for diplomacy, for war, for love…or for a crown she has never wanted. If Kylma Above is to survive, Ekata must seize her family’s power. And if Ekata is to survive, she must quickly decide how she will wield it.
Part Sleeping Beauty, part Anastasia, with a thrilling political mystery, The Winter Duke is a spellbinding story about choosing what’s right in the face of danger.
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The Midnight Lie by Marie Rutkoski | Goodreads

I love this author!! And she hasn’t brought out a book since 2016 so OMG I am so ready πŸ˜­πŸ’›this also is a queer fantasy and has a caste system, and seems like a political fantasy, which I know Rutkoski can doΒ so well. Ahhh!!!

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 usβ€”and the lies we tell ourselves.
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Every Reason We Shouldn’t by | Goodreads

This one looks SO cute!! A romcom about skating and starring a biracial protagonist! Looks like it’ll have a snarky rivalry-to-lovers vibe too which I mean, yes.

Fifteen-year-old, biracial figure skater Olivia Kennedy’s Olympic dreams have ended. She’s bitter, but enjoying life as a regular teenager instead of an athlete… until Jonah Choi starts training at her family’s struggling rink. Jonah’s driven, talented, going for the Olympics in speed skating, completely annoying… and totally gorgeous. Between teasing Jonah, helping her best friend try out for roller derby, figuring out life as a normal teen and keeping the family business running, Olivia’s got her hands full. But will rivalry bring her closer to Jonah, or drive them apart?
Every Reason We Shouldn’t by Sara Fujimura is a charming multicultural romance perfect for the many fans of Jenny Han and Rainbow Rowell.
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Witches of Ash and Ruin by E. Latimer | Goodreads

Bisexual protagonist with OCD!!! I really love books with diverse rep okay 😭And this has witches and is being comped to VE Schwab, so I’m getting super high hopes for it.

Seventeen-year-old Dayna Walsh is struggling to cope with her somatic OCD; the aftermath of being outed as bisexual in her conservative Irish town; and the return of her long-absent mother, who barely seems like a parent. But all that really matters to her is ascending and finally, finally becoming a full witch-plans that are complicated when another coven, rumored to have a sordid history with black magic, arrives in town with premonitions of death. Dayna immediately finds herself at odds with the bewitchingly frustrating Meiner King, the granddaughter of their coven leader.
And then a witch turns up murdered at a local sacred site, along with the blood symbol of the Butcher of Manchester-an infamous serial killer whose trail has long gone cold. The killer’s motives are enmeshed in a complex web of witches and gods, and Dayna and Meiner soon find themselves at the center of it all. If they don’t stop the Butcher, one of them will be next.
With razor-sharp prose and achingly real characters, E. Latimer crafts a sweeping, mesmerizing story of dark magic and brutal mythology set against a backdrop of contemporary Ireland that’s impossible to put down.
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Hello Now by Jenny Valentine | Goodreads

hi everyone, it’s 😭πŸ₯ΊπŸ’›it’s queer time travellers and there is little more I need in life than this. And it sounds soft and summery against a backdrop of fantasy so I’m just!!! DYING FOR IT.Β 

Jude’s life is upended when his mother loses her job and moves them to a little town by the sea to live with Henry Lake–an eccentric old man with rooms to rent. Henry is odd, the town is dull, and worst of all, Jude feels out of place and alone. So when Novo turns up in the house across the street, dressed all in black and looking unbearably handsome, Jude’s summer takes an immediate turn for the better. But Novo isn’t all that he seems to be–or maybe he’s more than Jude can possibly understand. Novo is a time traveler, someone who wakes up in different places and at different points in time with utter regularity. He knows that each Now is fleeting, that each moment is only worth the energy it expends on itself, and that each experience he has will be lost to him before long.
But Jude and Novo form a bond that shifts reality for both of them. Unlike anything he’s ever experienced, Jude begins to question what forever really means–only to find out that Novo knows that forever isn’t real.
And when things go horribly wrong, he and Novo are faced with an impossible question that may change both of their lives irreparably–what is worth sacrificing for love?
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Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie | Goodreads

This is a queer inspired Grease which…I have NEVER SEEN! But πŸ˜‚I appreciate the classics making a comeback. I have an eARC of this so I’ll be reading it soon!

When Ollie meets his dream guy, Will, over summer break, he thinks he’s found his Happily Ever After. But once summer’s ended, Will stops texting him back, and Ollie finds himself one prince short of a fairytale ending. To complicate the fairytale further, a family emergency sees Ollie uprooted and enrolled at a new school across the countryβ€”Will’s schoolβ€”where Ollie finds that the sweet, affectionate and comfortably queer guy he knew from summer isn’t the same one attending Collinswood High. This Will is a class clown, closetedβ€”and, to be honest, a bit of a jerk.
Ollie has no intention of pining after a guy who clearly isn’t ready for a relationship. But as Will starts β€˜coincidentally’ popping up in every area of Ollie’s life, from music class to the lunch table, Ollie finds his resolve weakening.
The last time he gave Will his heart, Will handed it back to him trampled and battered. Ollie would have to be an idiot to trust him with it again.
Right?
Right.
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We Are Totally Normal by Rahul Kanakia | Goodreads

I have high hopes for this one!! (The cover colour scheme is also my favourite but, ahem, never mind that.) And it’s basically two best friends who accidentally hook up and then sexuality crises ensue. Perfect. 😌 Also POC narrator and m/m romance.

Nandan’s got a plan to make his junior year perfect. He’s going to make sure all the parties are chill, he’s going to smooth things over with his ex, and he’s going to help his friend Dave get into the popular crowdβ€”whether Dave wants to or not. The high school social scene might be complicated, but Nandan is sure he’s cracked the code.
Then, one night after a party, Dave and Nandan hook up, which was not part of the planβ€”especially because Nandan has never been into guys. Still, Dave’s cool, and Nandan’s willing to give it a shot, even if that means everyone starts to see him differently.
But while Dave takes to their new relationship with ease, Nandan’s completely out of his depth. And the more his anxiety grows about what his sexuality means for himself, his friends, and his social life, the more he wonders whether he can just take it all back. But is breaking up with the only person who’s ever really gotten him worth feeling β€œnormal” again?
From Rahul Kanakia comes a raw and deeply felt story about rejecting labels, seeking connection, and finding yourself.
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Harley In the Sky by Akemi Dawn Bowman | Goodreads

I loved her debut Starfish SO much and it hit all of my feels. She’s also a biracial atuhor who does such amazing POC and mental illness rep, so I’m hoping for more of that with this circus-centric new story from her!

Harley Milano has dreamed of being a trapeze artist for as long as she can remember. With parents who run a famous circus in Las Vegas, she spends almost every night in the big top watching their lead aerialist perform, wishing with all her soul that she could be up there herself one day.
After a huge fight with her parents, who continue to insist she go to school instead, Harley leaves home, betrays her family and joins the rival traveling circus Maison du Mystère. There, she is thrust into a world that is both brutal and beautiful, where she learns the value of hard work, passion and collaboration. But at the same time, Harley must come to terms with the truth of her family and her past—and reckon with the sacrifices she made and the people she hurt in order to follow her dreams.
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Honourable Mentions…

| talk to me!|

um…is your TBR okay? is yourΒ wallet okay?!?!? anyway tell me which of these made your heart beat faster!! did you find any new ones? any January to March releases to recommend to me?!

 

What Did I Read In 2019? [Ft. End Of Year Recap Where I Read 200 Books!!]

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I am settling down with a hot chocolate while I tell you all about my 2019 reading year. 😍

I have to admit, I absolutely love doing these end-of-year recap posts. Stats! Pie charts! Me, gleefully lining up all my favourite books of the year! Plus this is like end of the DECADE. End of an era. 😭 I’m feeling nostalgic, but also really freaking relieved because 2019 TOOK FOREVER TO END. It was the longest year of my life and I’m just…vaguely kicking it out the door and hoping 2020 will be amazing.

2019 was a mess of good and bad

Incredible things happened…like my second book, The Boy Who Steals Houses, came out in April and was nominated for the 2020 CILIP Carnegie medal which is just — I still cannot freaking believe that happened to me!!! I’ve also have been having the best friendships this year, done successful freelance blogging work, joined MTMC Tours as a social media manager, read SO many good books (andΒ had the actual funds — finally omggggg — to buy books I wanted), moved to live near the beach which makes my soul thrive, and hit some huge follower counts on Instagram (61,000!!!!). I look back and am so grateful for so much this year. Readers’ love. Friends’ support. Magnum ice creams. πŸ₯ΊπŸ’› love u.

…and the bad? I still am rather private about my personal life, so I won’t go deeply into details. But I have depression/anxiety, and add in messy-life-things = it’s genuinely been the worst year. Things have also happened and my author-future has stalled for now — but I’m still working so so hard. And I’m really really proud that The Boy Who Steals Houses is out and people have liked it. Maybe it’s not the world’s biggest release and I can’t promise what happens next with my writing, but it means everything to me that I did this. I have two books out. I DID THAT. I just…thank you so much to everyone who has bought it, reviewed it, taken photos, recommended it. 😭

It’s been a mess of a year, but I’m grateful for the good parts.

But I felt it’s important to say life isn’t perfect and things aren’t always golden after being published and anxiety can be forever debilitating. I want to be honest with you all too, because I find it way easier to just talk about the fun stuff.

For 2020, I want to do things I love. Write the kind of books I love. Read less, but read more FOR ME. Work slower and be kinder to myself. TAKE NAPS WITH NO GUILT. Enjoy the ocean. Daydream, wildly. I’m not making any huge goals for next year and I’m not saying “this is the year I’m not depressed!” The plan is to be less pressured. In reading, blogging, writing, living. I want to stop being mad at myself for going slower. It would just be nice !!!! to be kinder to myself.

And I would like to stack up books in very tall piles and just ADMIRE them. Because yes.

 

and you can catch my old yearly recaps here β†’ 2018,Β 2017,Β 2016Β andΒ 2015.

Getting to 200 was a struggle this year πŸ˜‚And sadly this is my last 200-books-a-year for a while! I’ve been hitting this goal for 6 years now!!!! But when reading is stressful and you’re always behind…you have to ask what’s the point if it’s not fun. πŸ€—And yes, reading is still sort of work for me too (AUTHOR MOOD) but I’m aiming for 150 next year and I want to feel less stressed about it all!!! I also need more writing time because I write slow now and next year I want to write a lot.

I have plans. πŸ‘€

Star Ratings

Hey I’m pretty happy with this! Last year I was at 16% for 5-stars and this year I’m at 20%. πŸ˜šπŸ‘ŒπŸ»I did have a lot of “meh” books this year but is that the books oR THE DEPRESSION. Who can know. 😌I’ll also blame that I read a bunch of comics to catch up on my Goodreads goal, and they were…not good comics.

 

 

GENRES READ?

Fantasy ended up winning this year! Last year was contemporary. But loooook I’m going back to my fantasy roots. 😍Am pleased. I also suck at reading sci-fi and historical-fiction and thriller but this is not new. (I still avoid the really looooong epic fantasies but gAH. Not next year!! Next year I’ll read them all!)

 

 

book type

Paperbacks are where I live, apparently. I didn’t listen to enough audios!! I need to up that.

 

 

 

where did my reads come from?

I moved to a town that actually has a library this year!!!!! I’m SO ridiculously excited (I was library deprived for nearly 2 years) and I absolutely made use of it. Also my habit of only reading ARCs and library books continues…even though I buy books I really want to read?!? I just…don’t read them?!? Would like to talk to me about this too.

 

YEAR PUBLISHED + Country

I read so much USA lit. I feel like a mild country traitor but omg there is just so much USA YA I am obsessed with. And as always, I manage to fail all backlist intentions. πŸ˜‚

 

Diversity

I still haven’t worked out a way to track diversity properly! Because this just means these minorities turned up in a book — not that they were the main character or the focus. So I’ll ponder how to define this better next year. So 132 out of 200 were diverse…and I think that stat could be better. But still makes me happy to know that I pick lots of books focused on portraying our world how it really is — DIVERSE.

And I still wish there were more disability books.

 

I’m trying to mention all the books I loved this year! All covers link to Goodreads Reviews.

I’m limiting myself to my top 10 list but oh am I insufferably in love with these ones. I can’t even express how much they all meant to me. Emotional roller coasters or deliciously clever writing or characters I’m obsessed with. They’re my heart stories for this year!!

Β 

Oh the sequel quality wasΒ excellent this year. And starting off spin-off series (between King of Scars, Red Scrolls of Magic, and Call Down the Hawk) just had me feeling happy. πŸ€—

Can You See Me had some of the best ever autism rep (and it’s MG which isn’t my usual genre but oh I loved it). And I expected to like Darius The Great Is Not Okay…but I accidentally fell wholly in love with it?! It’s quiet YA at its finest, queer and with great depression rep. 😭I don’t usually read anthologies but I loved EVERY single story in Hungry Hearts. It is glorious, diverse, and full of food.

Slay was just powerful and vulnerable and badass. Wicked Fox was just everything IΒ love in YA fantasy…humour, angst, and monstrous girls and soft boys. I read both Elizabeth Acevedo’s books this year and omg LOVE them, but With Fire On High was my ultimate favourite because foodie fiction. 😌Jade City was just INCREDIBLE adult urban fantasy with the best magic system and excellent morally grey characters. And I read two books from Amy Rose Capetta (The Brilliant Death with Italian Mafia fantasy and magic and nonbinary MCs + and The Lost Coast with queer witches!) and AM A FAN of their style!

I read 7 books each from Leigh Barudgo, Maggie Stiefvater, Holly Black and Cassandra Clare. (Including REREADS!) And can I just say these authors inspire me a phenomenal amount?! Especially Leigh Bardugo this year after she was interviewed for this article on Bustle about women fantasy writers having to “prove their trauma” and Maggie Stiefvater talking about her debilitating health issues and how she’s still healing. I love seeing disabled authors succeed so excuse me while I get emotional. 😭

I read quite a few books published in 2015 or earlier. This is because I got library access again πŸ˜‚. But my true proud moment was winning against all 600 pages of The Secret History. I really REALLY wish someone would write a taut, mysterious and pretentious YA version. Please? Someone?

I reread 24 books this year! Not as many as 2018, but I was struggling to keep up with the TBR so much. (I failed πŸ˜‚there is just no winning here okay.) But mY HEART. Gah, it belongs to these books. I’m pretty much counting down to being able to read most of them again in 2020. 😍

Contemporary makes me melt with appreciation, constantly. πŸ₯ΊπŸ’›I read a lot of “quiet YA” this year, and fell in love with so many soft characters. There were also plenty of emotional ones that kept me thinking. Messy teens doing their best is exactly the content I want to read. (I also sense a colour scheme in 2019 contemporary releases.πŸ˜‚ Blue and pink, anyone?)

Can fantasy covers stop being so DOWNRIGHT ATTRACTIVE. But also it was just such a good year for fantasy. I’m realising I do prefer modern fantasy over epic these days, but I still read so many epics that took my whole heart and ran off with it. UGH I LOVE THESE.

 

This is the part where I just casually drag myself. TheΒ worst thing is, most of the ones I listed for 2018 as “I will read them this year!!” …I STILL DIDN’T. But I would like to think I will read these in 2020? πŸ₯Ί

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