Fictional Books I Want to Read in 2018

Hey everyone! I wanted to share what books I really want to get to in this New Year! Since I don’t read as much as I used to, I wanted to keep this post small and to the point. Majority of these books have been released already and some I am still waiting for! The list is an no particular order. Without further ado, let’s get started! (all links lead you to the goodreads page)

 

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas a YA Realistic Fiction take on the black lives matter movement and police brutality.

Tash Hearts Tolstoy by Kathryn Ormsbree a YA Contemporary book about a girl who’s an “overnight” internet sensation and when an online flirtation can happen in real life, how will she tell him that she’s a romantic asexual?

Ringer (Replica #2) by Lauren Oliver a continuation of the YA SciFi Dystopian novel Replica. After discovering some uncomfortable truths about the Haven Institute and cloning, we see what happens afterwards in Ringer.

Hunting Prince Dracula (Stalking Jack the Ripper #2) by Kerri Maniscalco the continuation of the YA Historical Fiction Mystery Stalking Jack the Ripper, we follow the main character Audrey in another adventure featuring Vlad the Impaler. 

Obsidio (The Illuminae Files #3) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff in continuation of the amazing YA SciFi novels Illuminae and Gemina, comes Obsidio with more action and adventure. This is the finale of the teams and oh my heart be still.

Wonder Woman: Warbringer (DC Icons #1) by Leigh Bardugo a YA Fantasy following one of my favorite heroes, Diana, who has risked exile for saving a mortal which changes everything.

Unearthed (Unearthed #1) by Amie Kaufman and Megan Spooner a YA SciFi that has to do with earth getting a message from a long extinct alien race, infiltration, secrets, and survival.

Children of Blood and Bone (Legacy of Orïsha #1) by Tomy Adeyemi a YA Fantasy about magic disappearing in Orïsha under orders of a ruthless king, yet the main character is struggling with controlling her powers and feelings towards the enemy.

Daughter of the Pirate King (Daughter of the Pirate King #1) by Tricia Levenseller  a YA fantasy that has a female pirate, adventure, and hidden map!

Renegades (Renegades #1) by Marissa Meyer a YA Fantasy about secret identities, powers, vengeance, and justice.

The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell a YA Fantasy filled with time-travel and historical fiction, one character has to travel back in time to 1902 to steal an ancient book. However Old New York is filled with gangs, secret societies, and too much magic.

Godsgrave (The Nevernight Chronicle #2) by Jay Kristoff this Adult Fantasy continues the journey of our ruthless assassin main character where she is still looking for revenge.

The Girl in the Tower (Winternight Trilogy #2) by Katherine Arden a Fantasy Historical Fiction, this story continues the adventure of main character Vasya and what lies ahead for her.

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and that is all for this post! any of these books you’re looking forward too? or you’ve read already? i would love to know your thoughts in the comments!

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The Cruel Prince Non-Spoiler ARC Review ft. Lilly @ Lair Of Books

Title: The Cruel Prince (#1)
Series: The Folk of the Air
Author: Holly Black
Genre: YA Fantasy
Publisher: Little Brown Books
Format: ARC Paperback
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Pub. Date: January 2, 2018
Synopsis:

Of course I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.

And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.

Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.

To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences.

In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.

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***thank you to little brown books for providing an arc***

Trigger Warnings: Suicide, Graphic Scenes

At the age of 7, Jude, her twin sister Taryn, and older sister Vivienne witnessed their parents murdered and were stolen away by Vivienne’s biological father Madoc. All three girls went from living in the human world to Elfhame. 10 years later, Jude and Taryn are trying their hardest to belong in Elfhame, more so Jude where she’s trying to become a Knight. Vivienne could not care less about the place and will forever hold a grudge against her biological father, Madoc. While Jude tries to fit in a world where she is not wanted and obtaining a place in the Court, she has to deal with the cruelest son of the High King, Prince Cardan and his gang of friends. However, as soon as she starts dabbling with the palace and her inner turmoil, secrets start spilling and so does blood. Jude will have to choose her humanity or Faerie.

This will come as a surprise to many of you but this is my first Holly Black book. I have passed her books many many times as a teenager when I spent my time at the library. I am so happy that I finally picked up her book because her writing is phenomenal. She dances with a lot of themes but handles them with grace and eloquence. She knows how to write a rich detailed dark world without feeling like it’s too much. Someone should name her the Queen of Faerie because she definitely knows how to write a world. Holly Black also knows how to write the most complex characters ever. I didn’t know who I was rooting for at one point lol.

Holly Black presents a lot of characters to us in the most complex way. We meet the main character Jude which her story is told from her point of view. Jude the fighter and the one who tries hard to fit in, she doesn’t take crap from anyone especially the son of the High King. She knows exactly what she wants and she will not give up until she has it. She will push and shove and go to deep lengths to obtain her wants. We also meet her twin sister, Taryn, who is the opposite of Jude. Where Jude is rough, Taryn is soft. Where Jude is loud, Taryn is quiet. Where Jude is being a rebel, Taryn is being compliant. Although twins, they differ in many many ways. This is a non-spoiler review, you will have to read the book to know where I’m going with this hehe.

Holly Black gives us an older sister, Vivienne. Vivienne is technically the twins half-sister, they have the same mother and different fathers which is why Vivi is fae. However, to all three they are sisters  no matter what. I love Vivienne’s “don’t mess with me” rebel attitude. She definitely has an older sister syndrome, the protector of them all, the fighter and the rebel. I hope I see more of her in the next book to come.

Cardan, one of the High Kings son, a true douchebag. I always cringed with what he was going to do next but I loved him. There was something about him that kept me intrigued. Cardan has many aspects of him that we learn throughout the book. There was also Locke, lover of stories. He loved stories so much that he would create them, it didn’t matter to him who he was hurting or intertwining with. There are many other important characters that we meet, however I would be here all day. (please read the book)

Overall, I loved this book and I cannot wait for the continuing books in this series. Holly Black knows how to write!!!! She gave me plot twist, surprises, darkness, and an amazing expanded world. Although we meet many characters, she definitely flushes them all out while still keeping the complexity. This isn’t the happy dandy book which I actually tend to love more when it comes to Fantasy. Holly Black really has me wondering what she will come up with in the next books.

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My twin Lilly @ Lair Of Books also read The Cruel Prince and you can check out her Spoiler-Free Review here! We asked each other the same 5 questions. And while chit chatting about the book through our FaceTime dates, I found that we felt the same and loved The Cruel Prince. Just like me, this was her first time reading a Holly Black book. In asking what was her experience like reading Holly Black for the first time, Lilly responded that she had a great experience. She enjoyed the dark writing, the lush world building and complex characters. Trust me bookish peeps, you should’ve heard her talking about this book, she was really ecstatic! I then asked her who was her favorite character and she responded with Jude! I mean it’s not that hard to love Jude, she’s pretty awesome. We then started talking about fae books and comparing it to other fae books we’ve read, we asked one another what made the world of Elfhame stand out. Lilly responded that the characters in The Cruel Prince were flushed out and there were also many descriptions in the story such as lush food, the laws, the do’s and don’ts of humans in Elfhame, and there was also political intrigue. In Cruel Prince, we meet Vivi who is the main character’s fae sister and opposes the idea of living in Elfhame. We asked one another if given the choice, would you live in the human world as a fae or would you live as a human in the fae world? Here is where Lilly and I started a fit of giggles! Twin said that she would live as a human in the fae world so she can figure out how to become a fae. She would network her way in similar to Jude and get to know the undergrounds of Elfhame. Lilly, you smart. Lastly we asked one another a vey important question. Do we plan on reading any of Holly’s other books? And the answer to that is OF COURSE!! Lilly definitely wants to read The Darkest Part of the Forest as her next Holly Black book.

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that is all for today book nerds! have you read the cruel prince or plan on to? what are your thoughts? i would love to chat in the comments!

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Secrets of the High Priestess by Nicole Tone Poetry Review

Title: Secrets of the High Priestess
Author: Nicole Tone
Publisher: Magnolia Press
Format: e-book
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Pub. Date: Jan. 2nd, 2018

Synopsis:

Secrets of the High Priestess explores trauma, recovery, and the role of women in a world that’s begun to change physically, with melting ice caps and changing sea levels, and socially, as we accept new definitions of truth and gender roles.

 

 

 

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*thank you to the author for reaching out to me*

Poetess, Nicole Tone, reached out to me and asked me for an honest review or to blurb her book. I decided to do both because this book needs to be read. Before going into my review, here is what I wrote as the blurb:

Nicole Tone’s poetry will have icicle’s ripping through reader’s hearts with every single word. Secrets of the High Priestess is a raw collection of cold truths that will leave you wading for more in a sea of self-reflection. Be on the lookout for this poetess, she will not disappoint.

Tone’s poetry really marked me. This poetry collection isn’t the pretty kind. There are poems about eating disorders, gender roles, love poems. Nicole writes about the girl she wants to be and yet shares who she was, these are her secrets. The unfiltered secrets that leave you at grasp. She takes us deep into her thoughts. Secrets of the High Priestess has both short poetry and long poetry.

i really look forward to reading more poems from this poetess. here are some of my favorite poems from this collection:

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a crack in the ground split open

the earth yawning wider

swallowing up every

magic white rabbit

every mad queen

until there’s nothing but a cliff

on the edge of a void

that today we call beautiful

but tomorrow

will be sold to the

highest bidder

— wonderland is a lie

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we train wild animals

break them

bend them to our will

and call them our partners.

how can we be equals with

creatures we demand submission from?

how can i find freedom

on the back of a broken thing?

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i celebrate the anniversaries of the times

i lost pieces of myself,

the way other people celebrate birthdays.

on this day,

i gave you pieces of my heart.

on this day,

i gave you the shattered pieces of my soul.

i celebrate the days i lost the things

i can never get back

if only to remind myself

how

far

i’ve

come.

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and that is all for today’s review! happy release day to nicole tone! a kindly reminder to cross review on goodreads and amazon, it help’s us indie authors get noticed. this poetry collection will also be sold worldwide ❤

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WWW Wednesday

Hi everyone! I thought I would participate in WWW Wednesday today. This meme is hosted by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. You can link your blog post to Sam’s website that way we can interact and find other bloggers =)

The questions are:
1. What are you currently reading?
2. What did you recently finish reading?
3. What do you think you’ll read next?

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I am currently reading Wild Beauty by Anna Marie McLemore. I just started this beauty of a book last night (Tuesday) and omg the beautiful lyrical writing, the setting, and the characters so far have me swooning. The world is rich and detailed. I really cannot wait to read more! synopsis:

Love grows such strange things.

For nearly a century, the Nomeolvides women have tended the grounds of La Pradera, the lush estate gardens that enchant guests from around the world. They’ve also hidden a tragic legacy: if they fall in love too deeply, their lovers vanish. But then, after generations of vanishings, a strange boy appears in the gardens.

The boy is a mystery to Estrella, the Nomeolvides girl who finds him, and to her family, but he’s even more a mystery to himself; he knows nothing more about who he is or where he came from than his first name. As Estrella tries to help Fel piece together his unknown past, La Pradera leads them to secrets as dangerous as they are magical in this stunning exploration of love, loss, and family.

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I recently finished two poetry books, them being (titles will take you to goodreads): the sun and her flowers by rupi kaur and Pillow Thoughts by Courtney Peppernell, both with ratings of 5 stars. These poetry books are amazing and I will be doing mini reviews for them. I cannot wait to tell you about them! They both are filled with raw emotions and I related to the both of them very well.

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You would think for someone who recently did a september book haul, I would pretty much know what I’m going to read next right? Wrong. I’ve been in the biggest book slump when it comes to reading anything other than poetry and it sucks. I miss reading fictional books but I’ve had a lot going on this year as well. Here is what I’ll try to read next:

Ringer by Lauren Oliver is the second installment in the Replica Trilogy. This is one of my highly anticipated books of 2017. Lauren Oliver is a favorite author of mine and with the way things left off in Replica, I really want to know what is going to happen in Ringer. I have a full spoiler free review of Replica here if you would like to check it out. I am purposely leaving out the synopsis for Ringer =)

 

 

 

 

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Mortician’s Daughter: One Foot in the Grave by C.C. Hunter is the first in a trilogy. This one releases on the day of Halloween and I seriously cannot wait to read it. C.C. Hunter is another favorite author of mine. She wrote my favorite series, Shadow Falls. I cannot believe that the time is already here and Mortician’s Daughter will be out in less than a week! synopsis:

Her dad’s an alcoholic. Her mom passed away when she was young. She sees dead people. Can seventeen-year-old Riley Smith’s life get any crazier? Yes it can.

When Riley’s attempt to help a spirit leads her to the discovery that the young woman’s death wasn’t an accident, she finds herself face-to-face with the killer. And just when things seem like they couldn’t get any more complicated, she’s visited by another ghost, a boy her age, whose smile makes her melt. Her job is to convince him to pass over, but her heart doesn’t want to let him go.

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have you read any of these books or plan too? what’s on your www? let’s chat in the comments below!

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august/september wrap-up, life update, and 6 months of love, and you?

hi hello hola! i am back!! i missed you all and it feels great to be back after a month of me gone. a lot has happened and i’m not sure i’m ready to talk about it. september was a really hectic month with everything i spoke about in my hiatus post, my birthday, and hurricane maria..it’s a lot to deal with at the moment but i’m happy to be back in my element again. it’s been a little over a month and i just wanted to come back so bad *cries for ever*

 

 

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if you are wondering why i mentioned hurricane maria or if you don’t follow me on twitter, then know i am Puerto Rican. although i have my immediate family here in the states. i want to say 98% of my family is in Puerto Rico. ever since the hurricane hit, this has been one of the toughest times. with not knowing about my family for a few days, to then us finding out that yes they are okay and alive but there’s no food and water. being over here and feeling so helpless. it’s a lot to take in. my family also happens to be on the west side which is always forgotten. the town my family is in isn’t even receiving supplies. this whole situation just sucks..let’s not even talk about the president *eye roll* therefore, i wanted to use this platform and let you know that there is a way to help by maybe donating here:

• Unidos Por Puerto Rico (United for Puerto Rico)
• Hispanic Federation

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The Wrap Up’s

i didn’t read much these past two months due to everything that has been going on in my life. i read 3 poetry books and 2 YA novels.

• Stalking Jacking the Ripper (SJTR #1) by Kerri Maniscalco
  A 4 star read for me! This YA Historical Fiction Mystery is definitely a book that I would highly recommend. I loved the story, the setting, the steampunk elements and the mystery. This book was worth every single turned page. I cannot wait to read Hunting Prince Dracula which I am seeing is getting tons of more love. If you click the title of the book, it will lead you to my review =)
• Warcross (Warcross #1) by Marie Lu
  A 5 star and all of the above read!!!! This futuristic YA Sci-Fi novel will set you in a technological advanced world where you get to live in a virtual reality and still live in the real world. This book was definitely a favorite read for 2017. I cannot wait to read the next books!! The title of this book will lead you to my rave review.

each of these poetry books were 5 stars
titles will take you to goodread page

• [redacted] by trista mateer
  “This comes in the form of handwritten notes and poetry fragments, iPhone note poetry, tweets, Craigslist ads, and more. This mix of poetry and prose spans a single month and covers topics such as heartbreak, gender, sexuality, and forgiveness.”
  That’s the goodreads synopsis. Are you convinced yet? You should read it.
• Mad Woman by Kat Savage
  “Mad Woman whish is comprised of 40 pieces that capture her stream on conscious, her confessions, and her strange thoughts. In Mad Woman, she bears it all and embraces her madness driven by loneliness and disappointment.”
  I CRIED SO MUCH WHILE READING THIS BOOK. I FELT LIKE SHE WROTE THIS ONE FOR ME. FOR THE BROKEN GIRLS WHO FEEL LIKE THEY CAN’T EXPRESS THEMSELVES. OMG THIS BOOK!!
• The Last Time I’ll Write About You by Dawn Lanuza
  “Should I be
  Thankful
  Or
  Regretful
  That my only idea
  Of love
  Is
  You?”
  A book filled with heartbreak poetry and words of love and loss. I loved reading this. I was nodding my head with a lot of these poems because I understand the author’s words.

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today so happens to be the 6 month anniversary of love, and you…which i can’t quite believe and i wrote a thing for all of you ❤ if you want to check more on my poetry book, click here.

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and that is all for now. sorry i’m a little all over the place lol. it feels great to be back and i cannot wait to blog hop, check what all of you have been up to. i plan on doing a book haul and book tag soon. maybe post a poem later on this week about my island puerto rico. my heart lays heavy. love you all!

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Warcross by Marie Lu ARC Non-Spoiler Review

Title: Warcross (#1)
Series: Warcross
Author: Marie Lu
Genre: YA SciFi Thriller
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books
Format: ARC Paperback
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Synopsis:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Marie Lu—when a game called Warcross takes the world by storm, one girl hacks her way into its dangerous depths.

For the millions who log in every day, Warcross isn’t just a game—it’s a way of life. The obsession started ten years ago and its fan base now spans the globe, some eager to escape from reality and others hoping to make a profit. Struggling to make ends meet, teenage hacker Emika Chen works as a bounty hunter, tracking down players who bet on the game illegally. But the bounty hunting world is a competitive one, and survival has not been easy. Needing to make some quick cash, Emika takes a risk and hacks into the opening game of the international Warcross Championships—only to accidentally glitch herself into the action and become an overnight sensation.

Convinced she’s going to be arrested, Emika is shocked when instead she gets a call from the game’s creator, the elusive young billionaire Hideo Tanaka, with an irresistible offer. He needs a spy on the inside of this year’s tournament in order to uncover a security problem . . . and he wants Emika for the job. With no time to lose, Emika’s whisked off to Tokyo and thrust into a world of fame and fortune that she’s only dreamed of. But soon her investigation uncovers a sinister plot, with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.

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***Thanks to BookCon and Penguin for providing an ARC.

Here you have Virtual Reality, Bounty Hunters, Tokyo, plus tons of Diversity! Warcross, the biggest known virtual reality game across the whole world. Everyone links in to watch, this is one huge phenomena. 10 years ago, Hideo Tanaka who’s Japanese created this virtual reality called NeuroLink through a pair of glasses and since then, the world has changed. Emika Chen, a Chinese American bounty hunter and hacker, struggles in real life to make ends meet and pay her bills. She and her roommate, Keira, are about to get evicted within days. Due to the virtual reality world, gambling has become a serious issue where people buy things off through NueroLink and sell them in the real world, converting notes to money. After Emika loses a bounty and the money that came with it, she gets impatient about how she’s going to survive another day. During the Warcross championships, Emika comes up with an idea to hack the games and take a power-up in order to gamble and make it into money. What she doesn’t know is that when she hacks into the game, the game glitches and she is automatically thrown into the game to be seen by everyone. LITERALLY EVERYONE IN THE WORLD. In an instant, Emika Chen becomes an overnight sensation and her life changes in an instant. Emika Chen is worried about getting another arrest due to her hacking the Warcross Championships but what she doesn’t know is that Hideo has other plans for her, he flies her off to Tokyo and the rest is for you to read.

I am not new to Marie Lu, one of my favorite series happens to be Legend and if you’ve read Legend, then you’re in for a nice surprise with this one. Marie Lu has created such a detailed rich world in Warcross, she transported me from my own life to Warcross. She isn’t complicated with her words, Marie Lu knows how to explain everything smoothly and still have you imagining a vivid world. She draws you in with her plot, characters, and setting. I was addicted to this book and couldn’t stop reading it. Marie Lu is an amazing writing.

I loved every single character. We meet a wide range of characters filled with diversity and I am so happy that Marie Lu made this organic, as it should be. It never felt forced and I wanted to hug ALMOST (some I couldn’t stand) all of these characters lol. We first meet Emika Chen, our Chinese American MC with rainbow hair. Who is this amazing kickass chick from the boogie down ayyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!! (aka the bronx for those who don’t understand NYC lingo lol). Emika has been through a lot in life and Marie Lu definitely tells us how she got to where she is, her story was very heartwarming. We also meet Hideo Tanaka, the Japanese billionaire who created Warcross and everything that comes with the NueroLink. I feel like his character was a little trope-y lol (if that’s a word), if you like the “guy who has a shitload of money but has tons of secrets” trope, then you are going to love Hideo.

We also meet TONS of side characters that I really enjoyed and look forward to maybe reading more in the next books to come *fingers crossed*. We have from the Warcross Championships: Asher, Hamilton, Roshami, and Ren. I enjoyed all these characters and how flushed out they were. Marie Lu definitely gave us great insight to them.

I LOVED THIS BOOK AND I NEED THE OTHER BOOK RIGHT NOW BECAUSE HOW IS THAT MARIE LU IS GOING TO DO THIS TO ME WITH THAT ENDING?!?!?!?!? *THROWS A TANTRUM AND DOESN’T CARE WHO’S WATCHING*. This book was just utterly amazing. A lot of people compare this to Ready Player One, I tried reading that book and couldn’t get into it so if you are like me, then I would say to still give this one a shot because it’s amazing and vastly different. I loved the way she gave us enough information on the characters but it never felt like info-dump. Marie Lu always gave a smooth transition (in my opinion).

I really cannot wait to see what Marie Lu does with the rest of the series and how it ties into some of my theories. If you read Legend, then you’ll know what I’m talking about lol. I remember staying up for a few hours researching connections. You can still read Warcross without reading Legend though.

Marie Lu is definitely an auto-fave for me and now I need to marathon The Young Elites trilogy for sure. I definitely recommend Warcross!

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have you read Warcross or anticipate it?? or any Marie Lu book at all? let’s chat in the comments! i would love to know your thoughts!

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Top Ten Tuesday: Ten book Recommendations for Modern Poetry and Fiction Readers

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature with new topics every Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. If you would like to participate, the link provided will lead you to the feature and upcoming topics for the rest of the month.

Today’s topic is: Ten book recommendations for ______________

I will be splitting this meme into 5 book recommendations for modern poetry and 5 for fiction readers. basically a faves list that everyone should read.

*titles will lead you to Goodreads

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Modern Poetry

• the princess saves herself in this one by amanda lovelace
  poems on women empowerment, feminism, self-reflection
• the chaos of longing by k.y. robinson
  break-up poetry and self-love poetry
• we carry the sky by mckayla robbin
  poems on feminism and uplifting women
• soft magic. by pile chisala
  poems on identity, self-love, self-acceptance
• [redacted] by trista mateer
  loves poems and break-up poetry

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Fiction

• Identical by Ellen Hopins
  a young adult novel written in verse with regards to mental health
• Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
  romance contemporary taking place during the Y2K
• Burying Water (Burying Water #1) by K.A. Tucker
  new adult novel that will gut your soul
• Rooms by Lauren Oliver
  paranormal story all about a haunted house filled with ghost
• Vicious (Villains #1) by V.E. Schwab
  a paranormal book filled with supernatural elements and experimenting.

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that is all for today! let’s chat in the comments! have you heard or read any of these? would love to know!

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Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco Non-Spoiler Review

Title: Stalking Jack the Ripper
Series: Stalking Jack the Ripper
Author: Kerri Maniscalco
Genre: YA Historical Fiction, Mystery
Publisher: Jimmy Patterson
Format: Hardcover
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Audrey Rose Wadsworth was born a lord’s daughter, with a life of wealth and privilege stretched out before her. But between the social teas and silk dress fittings, she leads a forbidden secret life.

Against her stern father’s wishes and society’s expectations, Audrey often slips away to her uncle’s laboratory to study the gruesome practice of forensic medicine. When her work on a string of savagely killed corpses drags Audrey into the investigation of a serial murderer, her search for answers brings her close to her own sheltered world.

 

 

 

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Set in the late 1800s, the opening pages start with our main character Audrey Rose in a laboratory working on a cadaver. Immediately you get the feel and tone of the book, very mysterious and dark. In a society where misogyny is on a all time high, many people expect Audrey Rose to hide her love for science and all things forensic medicine which includes dead bodies, Audrey Rose has a different take.

To get away from her father’s madness and society’s rules, Audrey often slips away to her uncle’s laboratory. Audrey has been helping her uncle with the corpses of this madman serial killer, theorizing and trying to figure out who it is and why are they doing this. When trying to go public with help backfires on her, she starts secretly searching for clues and the answers she is searching for will lead to something never expected.

The writing was very well done. I honestly feel that the author wrote this book in a realistic way. Yes, some parts were boring but they felt authentic and necessary. Kerri Maniscalco definitely gets into detail with the mutilation of the bodies and how they were killed, therefore please read with caution if gore isn’t your thing. Definitely do not eat and read this book at the same time. However, I actually loved that the author wrote those scenes in such detail, showing us how dark this book can get without filter.

“the dead speak to those who listen. Be quieter than even them.”

The setting and society were very on point. Maniscalco definitely does not hold back with how misogyny took place in this time, sometimes to the point where it was a burden on our main character, Audrey Rose. It also made me cringe sometimes. It sucks that this was something that was very prevalent in that day and age (we still live through it now just not as heavy), however, Maniscalco took that and made it her own. She wrote scenes that showed us how strong Audrey Rose is.

We meet a few characters throughout the book. Some of my faves including Audrey Rose, Thomas, and the Uncle Dr. Jonathan Wadsworth. All three of these are on the same hunt for the serial killer. Thomas who was pretty much Dr. Jonathan Wadsworth apprentice definitely gave me bad vibes in the beginning of the book due to his quiet sarcastic attitude. There were times when I told myself “booooyyyyyy if you do not stop right now” lol. I loved the banter between him and Audrey though! They had me giggling.

“Science never abandoned me the way religion had that night.”

I definitely grew a soft spot for Audrey’s uncle because he always meant well and definitely tested Audrey and Thomas’s limits when it came to forensic medicine. I was sad to find out that Dr. Jonathan Wadsworth and Audrey’s father, Lord Edmund Wadsworth were not in speaking terms. In actuality, Lord Edmund hated the thought of her daughter being in that laboratory for reasons the book gets into later on.  Lord Edmund’s paranoia left Audrey and her brother Nathaniel in a state of despair, not knowing what to do. Lord Edmund’ s madness is due to the death of his wife, Audrey and Nathaniel’s mother. I also enjoyed Nathaniel’s character and their sibling relationship. He was very understanding to his sister’s love for the science and curiosity but also very cautious.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and cannot wait to read the second installment, Hunting Prince Dracula. The character development and the way things flowed was great. Now if you’re wondering as to why I gave the book 4 stars it’s because I found the book to be a bit predictable and some scenes were just boring. Other than that, I really enjoyed Stalking Jack the Ripper.

I loved the characters, the setting, and even the subtle steampunk elements. If you know me, you know I love steampunk. I am also a huge sucker for late 1800s to early 1900s London except for the misogyny of course because we don’t need that. Kerri Mansicalco definitely did a great job with transferring me to this world every time I opened the page.

And that ending??!!?? Although I predicted it, I was still shocked with how some things came about and I kept flipping the pages like nobody’s business. I would highly recommend this!

 

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have you read stalking jack the ripper? what are your thoughts? do any of you anticipate hunting prince dracula? let’s chat in the comments!

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Instagram: @chicnerdreads
Twitter: @chicnerdreads

WWW Wednesday

Hi everyone! I thought I would participate in WWW Wednesday today. This meme is hosted by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. You can link your blog post to Sam’s website that way we can interact and find other bloggers =)

The questions are:
1. What are you currently reading?
2. What did you recently finish reading?
3. What do you think you’ll read next?

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This is a cheat but I will be starting it today lol. I received Warcross by Marie Lu at BookCon, after almost catching an anxiety attack because of the line and the madness that was behind it. No seriously, I almost did and I never want to go through that madness ever again. Which is why I didn’t even attempt to get Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo the following day because I knew it was going to be even worse! However, I got to meet Marie Lu and she’s a lovely human being! I cannot wait to see what I think of this book.

 

 

 

 

 

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I recently finished Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco and I really liked this book! I rated SJTR a 4 star and I am hoping to have a non spoiler review up sometime this week, fingers crossed. I love the main character and how bad ass she is, especially in an era where misogyny is huge. She loves science and isn’t afraid to admit that she does even when people frown upon her for it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Since I am participating in #ARCAugust (click here for TBR post), the next two books will be ARCs that I also received at BookCon.

DO YOU NOTICE THE THEME HERE?!?! I AM LIVING FOR IT!!! YASSSS SLAY MY LIFE!! I cannot wait to read these two. I am really excited for all the reads. I really can’t wait to read Odd & True, a YA Paranormal Historical Fiction, I’ve seen mixed reviews for it which makes me really curious to see how I’ll feel about it. Hunting Prince Dracula is the second installment to Stalking Jack the Ripper and I am hoping for more amazingness!

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any of these books are on your list? what are you currently reading? i would love to chat in the comments! hope you’re all having a great day!

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Instagram: @chicnerdreads
Twitter: @chicnerdreads