January Wrap-Up 2017

HI EVERYONE!!! How’s your day treating you so far? How about month? How’s the new year so far? Cause here in the USA we’re going through it and we need a miracle like yesterday. K thanks lol. Anyways, I read 3 books and 1 I’ve DNFed. Let’s jump right into what I’ve been reading and up to =)

What I Read:

 

Broken Flowers by R.M. Drake ★★★★
Genre: Poetry
This is my second R.M. Drake. I love his writing and he talks a lot about loss and brokenness within yourself and relationships. I have a non-spoiler review with even some of the poems here.

 

 

 

 

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The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern ★★★★★
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Romance
My favorite of the month!! What a magical world I got to live in for the days that I read this. This circus is everything I would love to visit and more! I have a full non spoiler book review here. I would love to reread this one day in the future and may be even see it as a movie adaptation. This one definitely deserves all the hype!

 

 

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Gilded Cage (Dark Gifts #1) by Vic James 
Genre: YA Fantasy/Dystopian
This is the one I DNFed. Not because it’s bad cause trust me, I was really liking it. However, with everything that is going on in the country I live (USA) which is very much like a dystopian novel at the moment, it was affecting my reading experiencing with this one. So I decided to put it down till I am ready to pick it up again.

 

 

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The You I’ve Never Known by Ellen Hopkins ★★★★ 
Genre: YA, Verse, Realistic Fiction, LGTBQ+
Definitely a heart wrenching novel about two girls that don’t even know each other but eventually cross paths. About knowing yourself, relationships, and family dynamic. I have a non spoiler review for this book here.

 

 

 

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Poetry:
Another month where I know I didn’t post much poetry. And I’ll explain all of that in another post I have coming on Friday. Here’s what I did post in January though:
People I Once Knew – Part 15
so what do you think?
People I Once Knew – Part 16
women’s march
looking at human’s on my train ride
and we’re all just entertainers

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Memes of the month:
I participated in some meme’s this month that mention other books that I’m excited for!
Waiting on Wednesday – The Seafarer’s Kiss
WWW Wednesday
Top Ten Tuesday – Graphic Novels

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Exciting News!

I FINISHED MY FIRST DRAFT OF MY POETRY BOOK COMING THIS SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! I literally cried once I typed up the last poem. I cannot wait to share with you all more details in the next coming months! I can’t believe this is happening. I didn’t even have this book in mind till I was a few poems in and thought that I should just make a book out of it. I know I’m being vague but just give me some time, I will eventually share the synopsis, links, and all that good stuff coming in a few weeks. I’m still working on some things and haven’t set an official date but it’s looking like June =)

what have you all beautiful human beings been up to? did you read any of these books? let’s talk in the comments!

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Instagram: @chicnerdreads
Twitter: @ChicNerdReads
Goodreads: Gretchen (ChicNerdReads)

 

December Wrap-Up 2016

Hello there! The last month of 2016 was filled of so many ups and downs but I am grateful that we have started a new year with new expectations and goals. I am very satisfied with how I ended my year in reading. I read a total of 5 books and 1 I DNFed (did not finish). Let’s get onto the books and what I’ve been up to this month!

What I Read:

 

 

Midnight Hour by C.C. Hunter ★★★★★
Genre: YA Paranormal
Midnight Hour is the 4th book to the Shadow Falls: After Dark spin off series. I wrote a full non spoiler review for that book and you can check it out here! This is one of my favorite series and I still cannot believe that it is over.

 

 

 

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Replica by Lauren Oliver ★★★★★
Genre: YA SciFi
This is the first book the Replica series. A book all about clones and two girls that are linked in all of this somehow. One of my favorite reads of 2016. I definitely would recommend this. If you want to read a in-depth non spoiler review, then click here!

 

 

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RoseBlood by A.G. Howard
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Retelling
This is the book I DNFed. This is what I wrote on Goodreads: DNFing at 80 pages. I really thought I was going to love this book but I found the story too slow paced for me and a little all over the place with the elements involved. Nothing was really making sense and things got a little repetitive already.

 

 

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The Bear and The Nightingale by Katherine Arden ★★★★.5
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Adult
A Russian Folklore that will have you wanting to read every single word and will make you feel like you are there in the village with the family. I have a full spoiler free review here. Definitely a book worth reading.

 

 

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we carry the sky by McKayla Robbin ★★★★★
Genre: Poetry
A poetry collection about femininity, identity, violence and healing. One of all time favorite poetry collections. I have a spoiler free review that includes some of the poems here.

 

 

 

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Black Butterfly by Robert M. Drake ★★★★★
Genre: Poetry
A poetry collection about the transformation and rebirth of life and death. r.m. drake wrote this for all the people who have lost someone either living dead. I have a full non spoiler review that includes some of the poems here.

 

 

 

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Poetry:
I know I didn’t post much poetry this month and that was because since the holidays were around I didn’t want to post dark things during happy times. I decided to back off a bit on it but nevertheless I did post and in case you missed it:
not what you say i am
a question and a question and a question
People I Once Knew – Part 14
untitled; a teaser from the book i’m writing
it’s not that easy.

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I’ve also been working on my poetry book and I posted a couple of Waiting on Wednesdays, Top Ten Tuesday, Standalone Sunday, and Series Saturday. If you want to check out my memes then please click here. I hope you’re all having a lovely new year. Have you read any of these books or plan on too? Let’s chat in the comments!

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Follow me on Twitter: @ChicNerdReads
Friend me on Goodreads: Gretchen (ChicNerdReads)

My Holiday Filled Household

If you’re new to my blog, then you might not know that I like to decorate my room and bookshelves according to seasons/holiday. In our household we celebrate Christmas which means tons of family/family-friend time! My mother loves the time off my brother and I get because she gets to see our faces more.

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Let’s start off with my room:

I didn’t have much to put on this shelf so I placed a little TBR plus the notebooks in which I’m writing a book in and the other my poetry/random ramblings.

I decided to keep it more simple compared to how I did it last year which had lights and ornaments hanging around. I noticed that the Christmas lights gave me a headache last year…that’s because I actually dislike lighting…whelp #moonchild lol but I’m still in love with this more simple outcome!

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I also decorated the whole house…my mother (yes I still live with my parents, no shame) woke up one Saturday and was like “we should put a Christmas tree up”…we haven’t had a Christmas tree IN YEARS so I was like “WHAT?!?! LET’S GO RIGHT NOW I’M BUYING EVERYTHING”…I literally did and the smile on her face was priceless!

Our little chimney area that say’s Santa Paws because of my son (dog) Baxter ❤

Mom wanted to change the centerpieces for the coffee table and dining table to make it look more Christmasy so while we were at Dollar Tree and looking around, I totally got inspired with this idea all of a sudden and made this for her. She’s madly in love with it and so is her BFF.

The other centerpiece I made for her. There are 3 vases just filled with red and gold ornaments.

And that is it!!!! Just wanted to share with you all. Thoughts? Do you decorate for the holidays? I hope you all stay safe out there. Don’t know about where you live but here in New York City, things get kind of really hectic. Take care! xoxo

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Follow me on Twitter: @ChicNerdReads
Friend me on Goodreads: Gretchen (ChicNerdReads)

Autumn Book Haul

Hello everyone! I hope you are all doing well. I like to do seasonal book hauls since I stopped buying so many books….that was a joke for this season because I HAVE WAY TOO MANY BOOKS!!!!!! Many of these books are included in other hauls (special events, birthday, and unboxing) which I will have links to at the bottom! Let’s get started!

Physical Copies:

• Labyrinth Lost (Brooklyn Brujas #1) by Zoraida Cordova is a YA Fantasy/Paranormal:
  Alex is a bruja, the most powerful witch in a generation…and she hates magic. At her Deathday celebration, Alex performs a spell to rid herself of her power. But it backfires. Her whole family vanishes into thin air, leaving her alone with Nova, a brujo boy she can’t trust. A boy whose intentions are as dark as the strange markings on his skin.
  The only way to get her family back is to travel with Nova to Los Lagos, a land in-between, as dark as Limbo and as strange as Wonderland…
• Flawed (Flawed #1) by Cecelia Ahern is a YA Dystopian: Celestine North lives a perfect life. She’s a model daughter and sister, she’s well-liked by her classmates and teachers, and she’s dating the impossibly charming Art Crevan.
  But then Celestine encounters a situation where she makes an instinctive decision. She breaks a rule and now faces life-changing repercussions. She could be imprisoned. She could be branded. She could be found flawed.
• Monstress Vol. 1: Awakening by Majorie M. Liu is a Steampunk Graphic Novel:
  Set in an alternate world of art deco beauty and steampunk horror, Monstress tells the epic story of Maika Halfwolf, a teenage survivors of a cataclysmic war between humans and their hated enemies, the Arcanics. In the face of oppression and terrible danger, Maika is both hunter and hunted, searching for answers about her mysterious past as those who seek to use her remain just one step behind…and all the while, the monster within begins to awaken… 

• The Novice (Summoner #1) by Taran Matharu is a YA Fantasy: 
  When blacksmith apprentice Fletcher discovers that he has the ability to summon demons from another world, he travels to Adept Military Academy. There the gifted are trained in the art of summoning. Fletcher is put through grueling training as a battlemage to fight in the Hominum Empire’s war against orcs. He must tread carefully while training alongside children of powerful nobles. The power hungry, those seeking alliances, and the fear of betrayal surround him. Fletcher finds himself caught in the middle of powerful forces, with only his demon Ignatius for help.
  As the pieces on the board maneuver for supremacy, Fletcher must decide where his loyalties lie. The fate of an empire is in his hands. The Novice is the first in a trilogy about Fletcher, his demon Ignatius, and the war against the Orcs.
• The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan and Maureen Johnson is a Mortal Instruments book (might as well make it a genre): 
  Short stories of Magnus Bane in one book

• A Gathering of Shadows (Shades of Magic #2) by V.E. Schwab is Fantasy:
  I’m purposely going to avoid a synopsis on this one because I have yet to read the first book which is A Darker Shade of Magic.
• Made You Up by Francesca Zappia is a YA Contemporary: 
  Alex fights a daily battle to figure out the difference between reality and delusion. Armed with a take-no-prisoners attitude, her camera, a Magic 8-Ball, and her only ally (her little sister), Alex wages a war against her schizophrenia, determined to stay sane long enough to get into college. She’s pretty optimistic about her chances until classes begin, and she runs into Miles. Didn’t she imagine him? Before she knows it, Alex is making friends, going to parties, falling in love, and experiencing all the usual rites of passage for teenagers. But Alex is used to being crazy. She’s not prepared for normal.
• Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver is a Middle Grade Paranormal/Fantasy:
  Liesl lives in a tiny attic bedroom, locked away by her cruel stepmother. Her only friends are the shadows and the mice,until one night a ghost appears from the darkness. It is Po, who comes from the Other Side. Both Liesl and Po are lonely, but together they are less alone. That same night, an alchemist’s apprentice, Will, bungles an important delivery. He accidentally switches a box containing the most powerful magic in the world with one containing something decidedly less remarkable. 
  Will’s mistake has tremendous consequences for Liesl and Po, and it draws the three of them together on an extraordinary journey.

Poetry:

• Memories by Lang Leav:
  Best-selling poet Lang Leav presents a gorgeous hardcover gift book featuring the best of Lullabies and Love & Misadventure plus thirty-five new poems for fans to discover, along with original color illustrations by the author.
• Born to Love, Cursed to Feel by Samantha King:
  Born to Love, Cursed to Feel is about love—the good, the bad, and the confusing. It touches on morals and how when emotions are involved it’s not as black and white. The poetry is frequently written in a narrative manner that evocatively pulls you in and makes you feel. This book is about falling in love, bad decisions, and ultimately growth. The essence of it all is to show that no matter how far one falls all the mistakes don’t have to be what defines them.
• Envelope Poems by Emily Dickinson:
  These manuscripts on envelopes (recycled by the poet with marked New England thrift) were written with the full powers of her late, most radical period. Intensely alive, these envelope poems are charged with a special poignancy—addressed to no one and everyone at once.

E-Books:

• The Falconer (The Falconer #1) by Elizabeth May is a YA Fantasy/Steampunk:
  One girl’s nightmare is this girl’s faery tale. The first volume of a trilogy from an exciting new voice in young adult fantasy, this electrifying thriller combines romance and action, steampunk technology and Scottish lore in a deliciously addictive read. (read full synopsis at the link above)
• The Queen of the Tearling (The Queen of the Tearling #1) by Erika Johansen is Fantasy:
  An untested young princess must claim her throne, learn to become a queen, and combat a malevolent sorceress in an epic battle between light and darkness in this spectacular debut—the first novel in a trilogy.
• More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera is a YA LGBTQ Contemporary: 
  In the months after his father’s suicide, it’s been tough for 16-year-old Aaron Soto to find happiness again–but he’s still gunning for it. With the support of his girlfriend Genevieve and his overworked mom, he’s slowly remembering what that might feel like. But grief and the smile-shaped scar on his wrist prevent him from forgetting completely.
  When Genevieve leaves for a couple of weeks, Aaron spends all his time hanging out with this new guy, Thomas. Aaron’s crew notices, and they’re not exactly thrilled. But Aaron can’t deny the happiness Thomas brings or how Thomas makes him feel safe from himself, despite the tensions their friendship is stirring with his girlfriend and friends. Since Aaron can’t stay away from Thomas or turn off his newfound feelings for him, he considers turning to the Leteo Institute’s revolutionary memory-alteration procedure to straighten himself out, even if it means forgetting who he truly is.  Why does happiness have to be so hard?

• My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows is a YA Historical Fiction:
  The comical, fantastical, romantical, (not) entirely true story of Lady Jane Grey. In My Lady Jane, coauthors Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows have created a one-of-a-kind fantasy in the tradition of The Princess Bride, featuring a reluctant king, an even more reluctant queen, a noble steed, and only a passing resemblance to actual history—because sometimes history needs a little help.
  At sixteen, Lady Jane Grey is about to be married off to a stranger and caught up in a conspiracy to rob her cousin, King Edward, of his throne. But those trifling problems aren’t for Jane to worry about. Jane is about to become the Queen of England.
• Paper Princess (The Royals #1) by Erin Watt is a New Adult Romance:
  From strip clubs and truck stops to southern coast mansions and prep schools, one girl tries to stay true to herself.
  These Royals will ruin you..
  Ella Harper is a survivor—a pragmatic optimist. She’s spent her whole life moving from town to town with her flighty mother, struggling to make ends meet and believing that someday she’ll climb out of the gutter. After her mother’s death, Ella is truly alone. Until Callum Royal appears, plucking Ella out of poverty and tossing her into his posh mansion among his five sons who all hate her. Each Royal boy is more magnetic than the last, but none as captivating as Reed Royal, the boy who is determined to send her back to the slums she came from.
  Reed doesn’t want her. He says she doesn’t belong with the Royals. He might be right. Wealth. Excess. Deception. It’s like nothing Ella has ever experienced, and if she’s going to survive her time in the Royal palace, she’ll need to learn to issue her own Royal decrees.
• Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

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For my other hauls, click each banner and it will lead you to the page =)

Have you read any of these books? Let me know your thoughts!! I would love to chat!

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Follow me on Twitter: @ChicNerdReads
Friend me on Goodreads: Gretchen (ChicNerdReads)

My Autumn Themed Room/Bookshelf

Hi everyone! So today’s post is a little different then usual. However!!! AUTUMN IS UPON US!! If you live in the US, then I’m just going to ignore the “Autumn starts on the 22nd Gretchen” I know I know but I can’t help myself!

If you don’t know, Autumn is my favorite time of the year and September is my birthday month. I also love decorating my bookshelves and room according to the time of year.

I wanted to show you what I did to my room now that September is here!

This shelf is across my bookshelves, top of my computer.

What do you think? Do you also decorate your shelves? If you have photos posted on your instagram and/or twitter, then let me know! You can also follow me on ChicNerdReads (same user name on both platforms)

Have a great day everyone and Happy September!