Month: July 2019

I Won the Reading Rush! | July Wrap Up

The Reading Rush is over and I’m so sad but at the same time, I feel so accomplished. I read a total of NINE books this year! This is the first year that I’ve actually won all the challenges. It’s so exciting because I haven’t been reading much this year and I just read nine books in one week. I love this readathon for this exact reason. Even when I haven’t been reading or don’t feel like reading, it always puts me in the mood to finish a good book! Here’s all the books I read, some ratings, and what challenges I matched them with. Let’s start off with what my TBR was originally!

Processed with VSCO with a6 preset
Here’s my original TBR. Did I stick with it? No..

I ended up reading three of the books on my TBR. I know, kind of embarrassing… BUT WHO CARES! I read nine books anyway. From the books on my TBR, I ended up reading:

This was my first read for the Reading Rush and I finished it at midnight at the beginning of the week. I ended up giving it five stars so that completed the “Read a five star book” challenge! I also used this for the “Read a book in the same spot the entire time” challenge. OH, I think I also used this book for “Read a book with purple on the cover” because it looks like someones wearing something purple on the cover!

This was my second read which I first all in one sitting on the first day. I ended up giving it 3 stars because it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting but I didn’t hate it. This completed the “Read a book with five or more words in the title” challenge.

I literally loved this book even though the “couple” in this book don’t meet until the very end. I ended up giving five stars because Rainbow Rowell is everything and is only able to write five star books. This completed the “Read an author’s first book” for me!

Now, for all the books that weren’t on my TBR, but I still read them!

Screen Shot 2019-07-29 at 3.59.22 PM

This book was so cute! I enjoyed every minute of it so I obviously ended up giving it five stars. This was just to get to seven books in a week!

I decided to listen to this on audiobook since I had it saved on Hoopla and it’s very short. I liked it but ended up giving it three out of five stars! This was just another read for fun.

AH. I loved this book so much. Hazel was such a fun character to read and their dynamic was the cutest. I can’t say I’m a big fan of the ending though. This would’ve been five stars but I just didn’t like where the book ended. I didn’t need that epilogue either! I ended up giving this book four out of five stars. This was just another book for fun!

I’ve always loved Lang Leav’s poetry but this book just didn’t do it for me. I liked it a lot less than her other books so I ended up giving it three out of five stars! Again, it was just another book to get to seven books in a week. It didn’t complete any other challenges!

I needed to finish two challenges near the end of the readathon so I used this graphic novel to complete both. It completed the “Read and then watch a book to movie adaption” and “Read a book with a non-human main character” I ended up giving this graphic novel only three out of five stars because it was nothing stellar and I didn’t enjoy the writing at times.

Last but not least, I read another romance! This book was so fun to read and I truly enjoyed the entire thing. I’m definitely going to be picking up more Helen Hoang after this. I ended up giving it a four or 4.5 stars! This was just another book I read for fun. 🙂

Now for the books I read AFTER the Reading Rush!

Lastly, I finished off July by reading yet ANOTHER Christina Lauren book! I was lucky enough to get an ARC of this book so I will be posting a review for it closer to the release date! As for now, it feels like a solid four star read for me!

 

What did you read this month? I can’t believe I read TEN whole books this month! It feels good to be reading again. 🙂

 

 

Advertisement

August YA Releases | 2019

Here’s a list of the upcoming August YA releases! Which ones are you most excited for?

39679076“In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed.

Annaleigh lives a sheltered life at Highmoor, a manor by the sea, with her sisters, their father, and stepmother. Once they were twelve, but loneliness fills the grand halls now that four of the girls’ lives have been cut short. Each death was more tragic than the last—the plague, a plummeting fall, a drowning, a slippery plunge—and there are whispers throughout the surrounding villages that the family is cursed by the gods.

Disturbed by a series of ghostly visions, Annaleigh becomes increasingly suspicious that the deaths were no accidents. Her sisters have been sneaking out every night to attend glittering balls, dancing until dawn in silk gowns and shimmering slippers, and Annaleigh isn’t sure whether to try to stop them or to join their forbidden trysts. Because who—or what—are they really dancing with?

When Annaleigh’s involvement with a mysterious stranger who has secrets of his own intensifies, it’s a race to unravel the darkness that has fallen over her family—before it claims her next.”

 

33224061

“By day, seventeen-year-old Jo Kuan works as a lady’s maid for the cruel daughter of one of the wealthiest men in Atlanta. But by night, Jo moonlights as the pseudonymous author of a newspaper advice column for the genteel Southern lady, “Dear Miss Sweetie.” When her column becomes wildly popular, she uses the power of the pen to address some of society’s ills, but she’s not prepared for the backlash that follows when her column challenges fixed ideas about race and gender.

While her opponents clamor to uncover the secret identity of Miss Sweetie, a mysterious letter sets Jo off on a search for her own past and the parents who abandoned her as a baby. But when her efforts put her in the crosshairs of Atlanta’s most notorious criminal, Jo must decide whether she, a girl used to living in the shadows, is ready to step into the light.”

 

40942619. sy475 “There are so many ways the world could end. There could be a fire. A catastrophic flood. A super eruption that spews lakes of lava. Ellis Kimball has made note of all possible scenarios, and she is prepared for each one. What she doesn’t expect is meeting Hannah Marks in her therapist’s waiting room. Hannah calls their meeting fate. After all, Ellis is scared about the end of the world; Hannah knows when it’s going to happen.

Despite Ellis’s anxiety — about what others think of her, about what she’s doing wrong, about the safety of her loved ones — the two girls become fast friends. As Ellis tries to help Hannah decipher the details of her doomsday premonition, she learns there are secrets Hannah isn’t telling her. But with time ticking down, the search for answers only raises more questions. When does it happen? Who will believe them? How do you prepare for the end of the world when it feels like your life is just getting started?

Katie Henry, the author of Heretics Anonymous, delivers an engrossing and thoughtful tale about how people survive — with some faith in family, friends, and maybe a few prepper forums.”

 

44139388. sy475 “The day after the funeral all our mourning clothes hung out on the line like sleeping bats. ‘This will be really embarrassing,’ I kept saying to my family, ‘when she shows up at the door in a week or two.’

When Deena’s wild and mysterious sister Mandy disappears – presumed dead – her family are heartbroken. But Mandy has always been troubled. It’s just another bad thing to happen to Deena’s family. Only Deena refuses to believe it’s true.

And then the letters start arriving. Letters from Mandy, claiming that their family’s blighted history is not just bad luck or bad decisions – but a curse, handed down through the generations. Mandy has gone in search of the curse’s roots, and now Deena must find her. What they find will heal their family’s rotten past – or rip it apart forever.”

 

34196663

“Kazi and Jase have survived, stronger and more in love than ever. Their new life now lies before them―the Ballengers will be outlaws no longer, Tor’s Watch will be a kingdom, and the two of them will meet all challenges side by side, together at last.

But an ominous warning mars their journey back, and in their rush to return to Tor’s Watch, just outside the fortress walls, they are violently attacked and torn apart―and each is thrust into their own new hell.

Unsure whether the other is alive or dead, Kazi and Jase must keep their wits among their greatest enemies and unlikeliest allies. And all the while, Death watches and waits”

38097294“Perfect for fans of Nina LaCour and Nicola Yoon comes a novel about first love and family secrets from Stonewall Book Award winner Brandy Colbert.

Dove “Birdie” Randolph works hard to be the perfect daughter and follow the path her parents have laid out for her: She quit playing her beloved soccer, she keeps her nose buried in textbooks, and she’s on track to finish high school at the top of her class. But then Birdie falls hard for Booker, a sweet boy with a troubled past…whom she knows her parents will never approve of.

When her estranged aunt Carlene returns to Chicago and moves into the family’s apartment above their hair salon, Birdie notices the tension building at home. Carlene is sweet, friendly, and open-minded–she’s also spent decades in and out of treatment facilities for addiction. As Birdie becomes closer to both Booker and Carlene, she yearns to spread her wings. But when long-buried secrets rise to the surface, everything she’s known to be true is turned upside down.”

 

Color Me In“Debut YA author Natasha Díaz pulls from her personal experience to inform this powerful coming-of-age novel about the meaning of friendship, the joyful beginnings of romance, and the racism and religious intolerance that can both strain a family to the breaking point and strengthen its bonds.

Who is Nevaeh Levitz?

Growing up in an affluent suburb of New York City, sixteen-year-old Nevaeh Levitz never thought much about her biracial roots. When her Black mom and Jewish dad split up, she relocates to her mom’s family home in Harlem and is forced to confront her identity for the first time.

Nevaeh wants to get to know her extended family, but one of her cousins can’t stand that Nevaeh, who inadvertently passes as white, is too privileged, pampered, and selfish to relate to the injustices they face on a daily basis as African Americans. In the midst of attempting to blend their families, Nevaeh’s dad decides that she should have a belated bat mitzvah instead of a sweet sixteen, which guarantees social humiliation at her posh private school. Even with the push and pull of her two cultures, Nevaeh does what she’s always done when life gets complicated: she stays silent.

It’s only when Nevaeh stumbles upon a secret from her mom’s past, finds herself falling in love, and sees firsthand the prejudice her family faces that she begins to realize she has a voice. And she has choices. Will she continue to let circumstances dictate her path? Or will she find power in herself and decide once and for all who and where she is meant to be?”

 

43352274

“Lena and Campbell aren’t friends.

Lena has her killer style, her awesome boyfriend, and a plan. She knows she’s going to make it big. Campbell, on the other hand, is just trying to keep her head down and get through the year at her new school.

When both girls attend the Friday-night football game, what neither expects is for everything to descend into sudden mass chaos. Chaos born from violence and hate. Chaos that unexpectedly throws them together.

They aren’t friends. They hardly understand the other’s point of view. But none of that matters when the city is up in flames, and they only have each other to rely on if they’re going to survive the night.”

 

Pre-order any of these at your local bookstore!

Upcoming Reviews | 7/26/19

Hello everyone! These are all the ARCs I have to read into 2020. I will be posting a review for all of them and I hope to meet each of the deadlines I gave myself. I obviously might not post on each of these days but I plan to. As you might’ve noticed, most of these days I plan to post are a week BEFORE the release date. I’ve always done reviews like this because it gives me more time to read the books and it allows me to promote my review whenever the book is published. I’m also probably going to be reviewing more books but might not have the ARCs yet or it’ll be a review of some random book I just read. If you have any questions, just let me know!

  • We Are Lost and Found by Helene Dunbar

Release Date: September 3rd, 2019

Review Date: Most likely August 26th, 2019

  • Imaginary Friend by Stephen Chbosky

Release Date: October 1st, 2019

Review Date: Most likely August 24th (I’m hoping for this but it’s also a VERY long book so who knows)

  • Twice in a Blue Moon by Christina Lauren

Release Date: October 22nd, 2019

Review Date: Most likely October 15th, 2019

  • Infinity Son by Adam Silvera

Release Date: January 14th, 2020

Review Date: Most likely January 7th, 2020

  • Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

Release Date: January 21st, 2020

Review Date: January 16th, 2020

 

Mid Year Book Freakout TAG

We’re already half way through the year! I’ve read 21 books so far this year. I’ve been quite satisfied with the books I’ve been reading which is exciting. Here’s a little tag to talk about all the books I’ve read 🙂

 

1. Best Book You’ve Read So Far in 2019?

I’m gonna have to give this one to Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid! I really loved this book and how it was written. It’s different from what I usually read but I think that’s what makes it so good. I’m so excited for the adaptation! I have a review for it here.

 

2. Best Sequel You’ve Read So Far in 2019?

Saga Vol. 9 was SO amazing. I am highly anticipating the next Saga release even though it won’t be for a while. I can’t believe they decided to go on hiatus after that ending! I have a mini review here.

 

3. New Release You Haven’t Read Yet, But Want To?

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff! I recently bought it and everyone has been talking about it so I’m so excited to finally get around to it.

 

4. Most Anticipated Release For Second Half of 2019?

  • Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell
  • Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
  • Call Down the Hawk by Maggie Stiefvater
  • Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks

  

5. Biggest Disappointment?

It’s probably Vengeful by V.E. Schwab. I really enjoyed Vicious but I wasn’t really a fan of this sequel. It was just okay. I love V.E. Schwab so much and I can’t believe there’s a book by her that I didn’t quite enjoy.

 

6. Biggest Surprise? 

the Great Alone by Kristin Hannah honestly might make my top five for this year. I didn’t know what to expect going into this book but it really stuck with me.

 

7. Favourite New Author?

Helene Dunbar! I recently read We Are Lost and Found by her and I absolutely LOVED it. I’ll have a review for it soon!

 

8. Newest Fictional Crush?

Kel from A Darker Shade of Magic. It’s not necessarily new but I love him SO much. Also, Holland.

 

9. Newest Favourite Character?

Would it be weird to say Eli from Vicious? I really like his character!

 

10. Book That Made You Cry?

We Are Lost & Found by Helene Dunbar! I cried so hard at the end of this book.

 

11. Book That Made You Happy?

Book Love by Debbie Tung. It was literally the cutest thing I’ve read all year

 

12. Favourite Book To Movie Adaptation You Saw This Year?

I actually haven’t seen one yet!

 

13. Favourite Review You’ve Written This Year?

I’ve never thought of a favorite review but maybe Daisy Jones & the Six?

 

14. Most Beautiful Book You Bought So Far This Year?

I pre-ordered Pumpkin Heads and I already know it’s the prettiest book I own.

 

15. What Books Do You Need To Read By The End of The Year?

Too many. Too many.

 

the Reading Rush | Instagram Challenge Day 2

Since I really tried with this challenge, I’d thought I’d share with you the photo, why I chose this book and how I took it!

Here’s the challenge:

Challenge Day 2: Take a photo of an outfit inspired by a book cover! // Photo by @arianddante! // To enter use the hashtag #rrbookoutfit in your caption! // The prize is open internationally and is the August @owlcrate “Storms & Seas” box, which includes a new signed YA book and bookish goodies! // You have 23 hours to enter and we will announce the winner right before midnight!

Screen Shot 2019-07-23 at 10.55.24 PM.png

Once I heard Laur was chosen for an Instagram challenge, I knew I was going to do it. One of my favorite covers this year is Christine’s book, Again, But Better. I really love the outfit of Shane on this cover and it’s definitely something I’d wear. When I woke up and saw the challenge, I knew exactly what book outfit I’d want to re-create. I mean, come on. I already had an outfit EXTREMELY similar so I decided to go out and take a photo. Mind you, I live in Florida and it was about 90 degrees outside. I had my boyfriend and my mom record videos of me walking back and forth, holding my bag and the book in the correct hands.

It was going to rain soon after this photo was taken so I had to wake up and just take the photo. I had several different edits chosen but I thought this one looked the best.

The editing process wasn’t really that hard. I just added the Again, But Better cover over my photo. Since our outfits are incredibly similar, it almost blends in. I’m quite proud of this photo because I tried really hard to get it to match. My Instagram theme is an entire mess right now but let’s not talk about it. At least my challenge photos are doing well and I’m proud of them!

Are you participating in the Reading Rush challenges? Let me know!

 

a Late Reading Rush TBR

I was totally supposed to post this yesterday but I was too busy watching Love Island UK. I know, embarrassing. Forgive me. Here’s what I planned to read for the Reading Rush! I’ve lowkey already read several things that aren’t on this list but that’s okay!

  • Anne Frank’s Diary: The Graphic Adaptation by Ari Folman (adapter), Anne Frank (Original text), David Polonsky (Illustrator)

Challenge: Read a book in the same spot the entire time [Completed]

I already read this one and absolutely loved it! I’ll be talking about the books I’ve read more in my wrap up but wow, this was so good.

  • Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

Challenge: Read an author’s first book

Challenge: Read a book you meant to read last year

I love Rainbow Rowell so much and this is the only book/story I haven’t read by her!

  • Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune by Roselle Lim

Challenge: Read a book with five or more words in the title [Completed]

I already read this one too! I really enjoyed it. I had some problems with it but it still made for a great read.

  • the Handmaid’s Tale: the Graphic Novel by Renee Nault

I just felt like reading this one and I don’t really have a challenge for it! I think this will just add to the bonus of reading seven books.

  • Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Challenge: Read a book with purple on the cover (I think her pants on the cover are purple but that’s up for debate)

Challenge: Read a book with a non-human main character (BAZ COUNTS OK)

  • Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Challenge: Read a book and watch the movie adaptation

  • Water Runs Red by Jenna Clare

This is Jenna’s first book but I’m reading it to read seven books! 🙂

 

 

Library Haul

Hello everyone! I finally got around to renewing my library card. I decided to check out a bunch of physical books this time. Some of these may or may not be for the Reading Rush but you’ll just have to wait and see!

  • When Katie Met Cassidy by Camille Perry ★★★ (3) /  ★★★★★ (5) stars

“Katie Daniels is a perfection-seeking 28-year-old lawyer living the New York dream. She’s engaged to charming art curator Paul Michael, has successfully made her way up the ladder at a multinational law firm and has a hold on apartments in Soho and the West Village. Suffice it to say, she has come a long way from her Kentucky upbringing.

But the rug is swept from under Katie when she is suddenly dumped by her fiance, Paul Michael, leaving her devastated and completely lost. On a whim, she agrees to have a drink with Cassidy Price-a self-assured, sexually promiscuous woman she meets at work. The two form a newfound friendship, which soon brings into question everything Katie thought she knew about sex—and love.

When Katie Met Cassidy is a romantic comedy that explores how, as a culture, while we may have come a long way in terms of gender equality, a woman’s capacity for an entitlement to sexual pleasure still remain entirely taboo. This novel tackles the question: Why, when it comes to female sexuality, are so few women figuring out what they want and then going out and doing it?”

  • the Handmaid’s Tale: the Graphic Novel by Margaret Atwood

“Everything Handmaids wear is red: the colour of blood, which defines us.

Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead, where women are prohibited from holding jobs, reading, and forming friendships. She serves in the household of the Commander and his wife, and under the new social order she has only one purpose: once a month, she must lie on her back and pray that the Commander makes her pregnant, because in an age of declining births, Offred and the other Handmaids are valued only if they are fertile. But Offred remembers the years before Gilead, when she was an independent woman who had a job, a family, and a name of her own. Now, her memories and her will to survive are acts of rebellion.

Provocative, startling, prophetic, The Handmaid’s Tale has long been a global phenomenon. With this stunning graphic novel adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s modern classic, beautifully realized by artist Renee Nault, the terrifying reality of Gilead has been brought to vivid life like never before.”

  • Circe by Madeline Miller

“In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child—not powerful, like her father, nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power—the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves.

Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus.

But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love.”

  • Anne Frank’s Diary: the Graphic Novel

“The only graphic novelization of Anne Frank’s diary that has been authorized by the Anne Frank Foundation and that uses text from the diary–it will introduce a new generation of young readers to this classic of Holocaust literature.

This adaptation of Anne Frank’s Diary of a Young Girl into a graphic version for a young readership, maintains the integrity and power of the original work. With stunning, expressive illustrations and ample direct quotation from the diary, this edition will expand the readership for this important and lasting work of history and literature.”

  • Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune by Roselle Lim

“At the news of her mother’s death, Natalie Tan returns home. The two women hadn’t spoken since Natalie left in anger seven years ago, when her mother refused to support her chosen career as a chef. Natalie is shocked to discover the vibrant neighborhood of San Francisco’s Chinatown that she remembers from her childhood is fading, with businesses failing and families moving out. She’s even more surprised to learn she has inherited her grandmother’s restaurant.

The neighborhood seer reads the restaurant’s fortune in the leaves: Natalie must cook three recipes from her grandmother’s cookbook to aid her struggling neighbors before the restaurant will succeed. Unfortunately, Natalie has no desire to help them try to turn things around–she resents the local shopkeepers for leaving her alone to take care of her agoraphobic mother when she was growing up. But with the support of a surprising new friend and a budding romance, Natalie starts to realize that maybe her neighbors really have been there for her all along.”

 

Things to Read After Stranger Things 3

So, you just finished watching Stranger Things 3 after sitting there for nine hours straight. This might even be your second time watching it. What now? Well, I’ve compiled a list of all things Stranger Things to read after watching season three!

I haven’t read any of the Stranger Things books or comics but I plan to pick up the comic!

1. Suspicious Minds by Gwenda Bond

40535559._SY475_“A mysterious lab. A sinister scientist. A secret history. If you think you know the truth behind Eleven’s mother, prepare to have your mind turned Upside Down in this thrilling prequel to the hit show Stranger Things.

It’s the summer of 1969, and the shock of conflict reverberates through the youth of America, both at home and abroad. As a student at a quiet college campus in the heartland of Indiana, Terry Ives couldn’t be further from the front lines of Vietnam or the incendiary protests in Washington.

But the world is changing, and Terry isn’t content to watch from the sidelines. When word gets around about an important government experiment in the small town of Hawkins, she signs on as a test subject for the project, codenamed MKUltra. Unmarked vans, a remote lab deep in the woods, mind-altering substances administered by tightlipped researchers . . . and a mystery the young and restless Terry is determined to uncover.

But behind the walls of Hawkins National Laboratory—and the piercing gaze of its director, Dr. Martin Brenner—lurks a conspiracy greater than she could have ever imagined. To face it, she’ll need the help of her fellow test subjects, including one so mysterious the world doesn’t know she exists—a young girl with unexplainable, superhuman powers and a number instead of a name: 008.

Amid the rising tensions of the new decade, Terry Ives and Martin Brenner have begun a different kind of war—one where the human mind is the battlefield.”

 

2. Stranger Things: The Other Side 

41392452.jpg “The hit Netflix series from the Duffer Brothers is now a spine-tingling comic that recounts Will Beyers’ harrowing survival in the treacherous Upside Down!

When Will Byers finds himself in the Upside Down, an impossible dark parody of his own world, he’s understandably frightened. But that’s nothing compared with the fear that takes hold when he realizes what’s in that world with him!

Follow Will’s struggle through the season one events of the hit Netflix show Stranger Things! Written by Jody Houser (Mother Panic, Faith) and illustrated by Stefano Martino (Doctor Who, Catwoman)”

 

 

3. Stranger Things: Worlds Turned Upside Down: The Official Behind-the-Scenes Companion

40400267

“The official behind-the-scenes companion guide to the first two seasons of Stranger Things and beyond, featuring exclusive color photos and stunning concept art.

Note: This book has been designed to mimic a used book. The marks, scuffs, and tears on the cover and pages are an intentional design element.

Stranger things have happened. . . .

When the first season of Stranger Things debuted on Netflix in the summer of 2016, the show struck a nerve with millions of viewers worldwide and received broad critical acclaim. The series has gone on to win six Emmy Awards, but its success was driven more than anything by word of mouth, resonating across generations. Viewers feel personal connections to the characters. Now fans can immerse themselves in the world—or worlds—of Hawkins, Indiana, like never before. Inside you’ll find

• original commentary and a foreword from creators Matt and Ross Duffer
• exclusive interviews with the stars of the show, including Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, and David Harbour
• the show’s earliest drafts, pitches to Netflix, and casting calls
• insights into the Duffers’ creative process from the entire crew—from costume and set designers to composers and visual-effects specialists
• deep dives into the cultural artifacts and references that inspired the look and feel of the show
• a map of everyday Hawkins—with clues charting the network of the Upside Down
• the Morse code disk Eleven uses, so you can decipher secret messages embedded throughout the text
• a look into the future of the series—including a sneak preview of season three!

Adding whole new layers to enrich the viewing experience, this keepsake is essential reading for anyone and everyone who loves Stranger Things.”

 

4. Runaway Max by Brenna Yovanoff

 “Don’t miss this gripping, emotional prequel to the hit Netflix series, Stranger Things! The never-before-told backstory of the beloved Dig Dug maven, Max Mayfield, written by New York Times bestselling author Brenna Yovanoff.

This must-read novel, based on the hit Netflix series, Stranger Things, explores Max’s past–the good and the bad–as well as how she came to find her newfound sense of home in Hawkins, Indiana”

 

 

 

 

5. Stranger Things: Darkness on the Edge of Town by Adam Christopher 

 “Chief Jim Hopper reveals long-awaited secrets to Eleven about his old life as a police detective in New York City, confronting his past before the events of the hit show Stranger Things.  

Christmas, Hawkins, 1984. All Chief Jim Hopper wants is to enjoy a quiet first Christmas with Eleven, but his adopted daughter has other plans. Over Hopper’s protests, she pulls a cardboard box marked “New York” out of the basement—and the tough questions begin. Why did Hopper leave Hawkins all those years ago? What does “Vietnam” mean? And why has he never talked about New York?

Although he’d rather face a horde of demogorgons than talk about his own past, Hopper knows that he can’t deny the truth any longer. And so begins the story of the incident in New York—the last big case before everything changed. . . .

Summer, New York City, 1977. Hopper is starting over after returning home from Vietnam. A young daughter, a caring wife, and a new beat as an NYPD detective make it easy to slip back into life as a civilian. But after shadowy federal agents suddenly show up and seize the files about a series of brutal, unsolved murders, Hopper takes matters into his own hands, risking everything to discover the truth.

Soon Hopper is undercover among New York’s notorious street gangs. But just as he’s about to crack the case, a blackout rolls across the boroughs, plunging Hopper into a darkness deeper than any he’s faced before.”

 

I’ve heard iffy things about some of these so let me know if you have read them or if you’re going to! I’m interested in the comic but that’s about it.

June Wrap Up | 2019

GUESS WHO’S FINALLY READING AGAIN? I finally picked up several books this month and finished them. I’m so excited to finally be able to talk about books I just read so let’s get into it!

 

  • We Are Lost & Found by Helene Dunbar  ★★★★★ (5) /  ★★★★★ (5) stars

I absolutely loved this book. I read it with Amber (I’ll link her Booktube & Instagram here) and it was so fun. I knew I was going to love this book but wow, I ended up loving it more than I thought. I will have a full length review up closer to the release date. The actual date of the post will be on my blog soon! Just check under the “Upcoming Reviews” tab!

  • the Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood ★★★★ (4) / ★★★★★ (5) stars

So glad I ended up getting to this book. I’ve been wanting to read this feminist classic for so long but never got around to it until now. I was supposed to be reading this for the Feminist February book club but I had to discontinue it due to personal stuff in my life that happened that month. I ended up really enjoying it.

  • Autoboyography by Christina Lauren ★★★ (3) /  ★★★★★ (5) stars

Listen, I had really high hopes for this book. So many people told me it’s their favorite book and how wonderful it is but I just didn’t get it. I’m going to be posting a review soon! I promise.

  • Vengeful by V.E. Schwab ★★★ (3) /  ★★★★★ (5) stars

I’m kind of sad about this but I didn’t love Vengeful as much as I loved Vicious. I might write a review for it so I’m not gonna give all my thoughts but it didn’t feel like a solid sequel to me. It felt more like a companion novel.

 

 

Where Have I Been? | Life Update

Hi! I know I haven’t posted in forever and I feel horrible about it. At least I have an excuse? I recently started my summer semester and I’ve been studying a lot since this semester is a lot shorter than usual. It’s also all online so it seems like way more work than usual. I’ve also been working at my new bookstore job and it’s been nice. The days are LONG and exhausting so whenever I’m not at work, I’m usually working on my classes or resting.

My mom also recently had surgery on her knee and I’ve been taking care of her as well. Along with that, I recently found out I have high cholesterol for someone my age. I’m literally nineteen and somehow have high cholesterol. I’m on a primarily vegan diet which is what’s recommended to lower cholesterol so I have no idea what I’m doing wrong. I’m going back to the doctor soon to talk about what I should do and see if maybe it’s hereditary? My mom has it too so who knows. There’s just been a lot going on so I haven’t had time to sit down and write.

I’ve just been so tired so whenever I have time to write blog posts, all I want to do is watch Youtube or something instead.

I hope to start writing again and perhaps I’ll work on a blog post tomorrow at work. I really miss posting and I have SO many ideas drafted. If you’re looking for content from me in the meantime, I still occasionally post on Instagram and Twitter.

Expect more posts near the Reading Rush! I have an account on there because I will be participating and I’m really excited.

I’ll have a wrap up going up tomorrow so look forward to that! I hope to post again soon 🙂