“Coriolanus releashed the fistful of cabbage into the pot of boiling water and swore that one day it would never pass his lips again.”
First line in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
Author: Suzanne Collins
Published: May 19th 2020
Genre: YA Sci-Fi/Dystopia
Series: The Hunger Games #0
My rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
Synopsis:It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.
The odds are against him. He’s been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined—every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute . . . and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.
A villain will never think of themselves as a villain. The reason why the villain origin story is so appealing to us is because we want to see how they justify their actions. How do they live with themselves? How can a human being be so evil? That is what The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes sets out to show us through Coriolanus Snow’s experiences during the tenth Hunger Games.
We are introduced to the Snow family’s life which is still heavily effected by the war ten years prior. It’s a struggle to make ends meet and Coriolanus is working desperately not only to remedy the situation, but also hide it from the rest of the Capitol. This is interesting because you would think this would make the reader pity Snow and feel sorry for him, but it actually doesn’t. And that is one of the main great things about this book. He is in no way redeemed with this book or absolved from his future sins. You’re very clearly not meant to like him. That doesn’t make him any less interesting though.
The way Collins builds his character is very much through his interactions with people around him. She has made sure that his life contains both genuienly good people and absolutely horrible people. And also some morally gray ones inbetween. He makes his own choices as to which of these people he’s influenced by, which I really like. It is not his poor background that has made him evil, but his own choices. I could always follow his thought-process and understand why he choose to way he did which I think is a sign of great writing.
Turning to some of the less positive things about the book, I need to stress that this book is too long. Especially the first third seemed to be making the same points over and over again. There isn’t much of a plot either so that first part was sort of missing a direction. Like what are we doing? I’m not a reader who needs a definitive plot but if you are, I can almost guarantee that you won’t like this. It’s much more about Snow as a character and there just happens to be some stuff going on around him that he reacts to.
The stuff going on around him, though, is also pretty interesting. We really get to see how The Hunger Games started out and how different they were back then. I think that’s important to show because the Games we see 60 years later are so extravagant and unreal. Seeing the progress of getting to that makes it even more plausible that, yes this is something we as human beings can create.
So now the question: do I recommend this? Yes. But only to those who already really love The Hunger Games and are interested in a slow-paced villain origin story. There has been some polarizing views on this book and I definitely see how. This is not for everyone, although I found it interesting. It’s just as brutal and thought-provoking as the original trilogy even though it in other aspects doesn’t reach their level.
First line in The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
Hi, guys. It’s time to freak out because it’s the middle of the year, although I do seem to have been in a permanent state of “freak out” for the entire year. Can 2020 please end?
Nevertheless, the Mid Year Book Freak Out Tag is a great way to sum up the first six months of the year. I have read a lot of books if I compare to my normal standards. So far I’m on 35 and might even be able to read more books than I ever have before in a year. My current best is 65 so I think it can be done. But let’s move on to the questions!
What is the best book that you’ve read so far in 2020?
Or rather the best book I’ve read that doens’t fit any other question in this tag. That means that I’m choosing The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. This one opened my eyes to how much I actually love books about books. Mix that with a fairy tale-like story and Morgensterns immersive writing and it simply has to become one of my favorite books of the year.
What has been your favourite sequel of the first half of the year?
I hate this question because I’ve actually read a total of four 5-star sequels so far this year. I’m picking Chainbreaker by Tara Sim because this series needs more attention. It’s a diverse historical fantasy/steampunk series that manages to stay highly relevant and educational. It has the most wholesome characters, too. I really loved the second one for how it just took everything to the next level and expanded on both the world and the story.
Is there a new release that you haven’t read yet but you’re really excited to?
Chosen Ones by Veronica Roth. This follows a group of ‘chosen ones’ 10 years after they defeated the bad guy and really seemed like it was going to dive deep into their PTSD. It didn’t exactly and I’m so disappointed. The story had so much potential. Instead of following all of the chosen ones, we only follow one and the plot itself could have been more relevant to their PTSD.
What is your biggest surprise so far?
Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson. A hyped YA fantasy book is something everyone needs to be wary of, but I hadn’t needed to with this one. Rogerson’s writing really makes this story come off the pages so I couldn’t help but be invested. Then you have the characters and their banter and their friendships and their romance. Oh, and the plot is centered around books that come alive!
What is your favourite new to you or debut author?
A. J. Hackwith, the author of The Library of the Unwritten.
What is your favourite fictional crush from this year?
I’ve already mentioned this book, but I really love Nathaniel from Sorcery of Thorns so I guess that’s my answer.
Who is your new favourite character?
Rune Saint John from The Tarot Sequence series by K. D. Edwards. He is such a layered character. He has a big heart and cares deeply about the people around him. He’ll protect them at all costs and is very self-sacrificing in that regard. No character deserves as much love as he does.
A book that made you cry?
Only one book has made me cry this year and that is The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne. This one follows the life of Cyril Avery as he grows up and tries to live his life to the fullest as a gay man in Ireland. As any other life-story, his has its ups and downs, and there was one moment in particular that touched my heart and made me tear up. Amazing book!
A book that made you happy?
I don’t really read ‘happy books’ so this was kind of hard. I’m going with the first and only graphic novel I’ve ever read which is Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell. A very sweet Halloween story about friendship that was really uplifting to read.
Your favourite book to movie/tv show that you’ve seen so far?
I can never remember what I’ve watched. I guess I’m going with 13 Reasons Why because the fourth season came out in June and I watched all 10 episodes in a day. It’s based on the book Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, which I have not read. Most people seem to hate the show but I really love it for tackling difficult topics and not being afraid of being controversial. I’m so sad it’s over.
What is your favourite post that you’ve written so far this year?
The two posts I’ve written about the Danish translations of Harry Potter (book 1 and book 2) where I really allowed myself to be a language nerd. Those were so much fun to make and looking forward to writing the rest of the series. I’m also pretty proud of my discussion post about embracing the nuances of the fantasy genre.
What is the most beautiful book that you have bought?
I bought the US paperback editions of the entire Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden. I love looking at them on my shelf.
What are some books you need to read by the end of the year?
I did a post recently about my reading goals for 2020 and what books I still needed to read. Just to mention some other books I need to read:
Harry Potter (book 3-7, reread)
King of Crows by Libba Bray
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez
Burn by Patrick Ness
That was it for my mid year check in. Was it the best book you’ve read so far in 2020?
“For my kind, the first sign our world was ending came on October 24, 1946.
First line in The Hanged Man by K. D. Edwards
Hi, guys. We got to the end of another month so here you have the mini-reviews for the books I read in June. It was a pretty standard month for me reading-wise. Even though I felt like I didn’t read very much, I still hit my usual 5 books. Take a look at my stats:
So I read male authors this month, although not on purpose. This is the first time this year that I’ve read more male authors than female so I’m going to say that’s alright.
I read two books this month that only feature in the pages read statistic. One because I DNF’d it and the other because it was too short to rate and review. The DNF was Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin, which I still have a mini-review for in this post. The short book was The Sunken Mall by K. D. Edwards, which is a short story from the Tarot Sequence series. Highly enjoyable but I’m not writing a review for it. However, I do have 5 other mini-reviews for you so enjoy!
This book was not only boring as hell but also kind of pointless. Extremely little happened in this book to push the plot along. Instead, it focuses on the side-characters a lot and I guess this book is meant to develop them a little more. However, their character development is minimal. The only one I really enjoyed reading about was Perrin. The rest of them hasn’t managed to use their brain in this series yet.
I also think Jordan’s pacing is a little off. Small menial tasks the characters do get more pages than the final showdown. That’s kind of frustrating. The ending left me with a “that’s it?”-feeling. It just cemented my belief that this book should only have been half as long.
The Hanged Man (The Tarot Sequence #2)
Author: K. D. Edwards
Published: December 17th 2019
Genre: Fantasy
My rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Read the synopsis for the first book in the series, The Last Sun.
My thoughts
This second book in The Tarot Sequence fixed the few problems I had with the world-building in book 1, and it did it very early on. I had a much better grasp on how everything worked which just helped me to be more invested in the story. I can tell that there are still more to know about the world but that’s part of this series’ charm. You don’t get information before the narrator, Rune, decides you need it. It works so well to keep the suspense building. You never know what he might spring on you.
The relationships between these characters are still my favorite thing about this series. It’s almost like I don’t need all the action (which there’s plenty of), and would love it just as much if it was all about conversations between these characters. They are so deep and meaningful that I just want more! The different dynamics between the characters also make it all so interesting to follow.
Serpent and Dove (Serpent and Dove #1)
Author: Shelby Mahurin
Published: September 3rd 2019
Genre: YA/NA Fantasy
My rating: DNF at 70%
Synopsis:Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.
Sworn to the Church as a Chasseur, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. His path was never meant to cross with Lou’s, but a wicked stunt forces them into an impossible union—holy matrimony.
The war between witches and Church is an ancient one, and Lou’s most dangerous enemies bring a fate worse than fire. Unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, a choice must be made.
The fact that I don’t DNF books but couldn’t finish this one, should tell you all you need to know about my feelings towards this.
The short version is that I didn’t like a single thing about it. The characters were annoying, the world-building wasn’t prioritized because the romance needed to be developed (but they actually had zero chemistry), and at 70% I still wasn’t sure what the plot was about.
One thing I want to talk about in more detail is the sexism towards men in this book. It clearly wants to portray “strong female characters”, but I would argue that the women in here are only perceived as strong when they are demeaning to the men. The men have so many flaws to their character and it seems like they’re there only for the women to exploit and show how powerful they are. I don’t like that. Isn’t that just the gender-bent version of what we’ve been complaining about for years? So yeah, this book completely misses the mark of equality for me.
However, I guess I can see why people would like this. If fantasy romance is your favorite genre, this would be a much better fit for you than me. Also just wants to make sure that you know you’re allowed to like a book even if some people find it sexist.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1)
Author: Becky Chambers
Published: July 29th 2014
Genre: Science Fiction
My rating:
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Buzzwords: wholesomeness, diversity, friend group
Synopsis:Follow a motley crew on an exciting journey through space—and one adventurous young explorer who discovers the meaning of family in the far reaches of the universe—in this light-hearted debut space opera from a rising sci-fi star.
Rosemary Harper doesn’t expect much when she joins the crew of the aging Wayfarer. While the patched-up ship has seen better days, it offers her a bed, a chance to explore the far-off corners of the galaxy, and most importantly, some distance from her past. An introspective young woman who learned early to keep to herself, she’s never met anyone remotely like the ship’s diverse crew, including Sissix, the exotic reptilian pilot, chatty engineers Kizzy and Jenks who keep the ship running, and Ashby, their noble captain.
Life aboard the Wayfarer is chaotic and crazy—exactly what Rosemary wants. It’s also about to get extremely dangerous when the crew is offered the job of a lifetime. Tunneling wormholes through space to a distant planet is definitely lucrative and will keep them comfortable for years. But risking her life wasn’t part of the plan. In the far reaches of deep space, the tiny Wayfarer crew will confront a host of unexpected mishaps and thrilling adventures that force them to depend on each other. To survive, Rosemary’s got to learn how to rely on this assortment of oddballs—an experience that teaches her about love and trust, and that having a family isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the universe.
It’s weird. This is a perfectly good book with diverse and unique characters… but it still failed to make me care. I think that’s due to the fact that this is a very optimistic and hopeful story without too many issues that need to be solved. I prefer my books a little more hardhitting, but if you don’t, I don’t foresee you having any problems with this one.
One thing I really liked about it, though, was Chambers’ use of contrasts between the alien species and humans. It’s a really great tool to make the reader reflect on certain topics. While reading, I often had the thought “yeah, that’s actually a pretty weird thing to do now that I think about it.” simply because the alien would do the complete opposite. I loved these parts of the book and think it could have been exploited even more.
Synopsis:Richard Mayhew is a young London businessman with a good heart whose life is changed forever when he stops to help a bleeding girl—an act of kindness that plunges him into a world he never dreamed existed. Slipping through the cracks of reality, Richard lands in Neverwhere—a London of shadows and darkness, monsters and saints, murderers and angels that exists entirely in a subterranean labyrinth. Neverwhere is home to Door, the mysterious girl Richard helped in the London Above. Here in Neverwhere, Door is a powerful noblewoman who has vowed to find the evil agent of her family’s slaughter and thwart the destruction of this strange underworld kingdom. If Richard is ever to return to his former life and home, he must join Lady Door’s quest to save her world—and may well die trying.
I finally found a book by Gaiman that I loved! His writing really shines in this one where he has an entire underground world to play with. I love experiencing these kinds of worlds in books where the author seems to start out with the sentiment of ‘the weirder the better’. I mean, there’s an entire group of people who worships rats in this one, and that’s not even close to being the weirdest thing.
I also have a thing for anything British and Neverwhere is practically screaming British-ness. Not only from its London-setting and references to places there, but also from its humor and its jokes about typical British behaviour. It really helps build the world up as realistic and therefore more immersive.
My last thoughts are about the fact that before starting this, I saw people having it shelved as horror on Goodreads. Now that I’ve read it, I get it. The two villians in here are absolutely horrible people. I was actually scared of them and I remember feeling the same way about the villain in another Gaiman book, The Graveyard Book. Is he actually the master of creating scary villains?
The only reason I took off half a star is because I wish I had connected a little more with the characters. They are great characters but I don’t consider any of them my favorite characters ever if you get what I mean.
Those were the 5 books I read this month. Have I inspired you to read any of them? And please, let me know if you’ve already read them and what you thought. Hope you had a great month and happy reading in July!
“The night before he went to London, Richard Mayhew was not enjoying himself.”
First line in Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
Hi, guys. I hope you’re all doing great. Today I’m using WWW Wednesday as usual to give you a reading update. WWW Wednesday a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words, and it’s meant to give you all a little insight into my reading this week. I’ll answer the 3 questions:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish?
What do you think you’ll read next
What did you recently finish?
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, which I gave 4.5 stars! Bloody amazing! The underground world of London was so fascinating. It had so many details and not everything made sense which was great. It reminded me a little of The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern due to this imaginative world the main character just happens to stumble upon. Apparently that’s a favorite trope now.
What are you currently reading?
I’ve just started my next commute book which is Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare. Only 68 pages in so I’m still drowning in new characters and getting to know everyone. I feel like everybody is somebody’s cousin and I’m trying to keep family trees in my head (it’s like watching Dark on Netflix all over again).
Also still reading The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins. Currently at 76% and I’m determined to finish it this week. I have no idea how this is going to end so I’m excited to read it.
What do you think you’ll read next?
I actually don’t think I’ll be starting anything within the next week. When I finish Songbirds and Snakes, I’ll focus only on Chain of Gold because that’s a big one.
“From the observation deck of the Eiffel Tower, the city was spread at Magnus Bane and Alec Lightwood’s feet like a gift.”
First line in The Red Scrolls of Magic by Cassandra Clare
Hi, guys and welcome to another Top Ten Tuesday. Today we’re talking about the new releases coming in the remaining half of 2020 (yes, we still have a whole 6 months left of this hell year). Since I don’t care very much about new releases, my list is mainly made up of sequels to series I’m already reading, although there are a few starters to series/standalones in there. Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.
The Faithless Hawk by Margaret Owen(August 18) – The Merciful Crow #2. A great fantasy-spin on caste systems.
The Lost Book of the White by Cassandra Clare(September 1) – The Eldest Curses #2. More Magnus and Alec? Yes please!
The Left-Handed Booksellers of London by Garth Nix(September 22) – Standalone. Your favorite hand determines your ability in an alternate London? Oh, and they’re all booksellers apparantly because why not?
The Archive of the Forgotten by A. J. Hackwith (October 6) – Hell’s Library #2. My favorite group of people trying to prevent books from running away.
The Captive Kingdom by Jennifer A. Nielsen (October 6) – The Ascendance Series #4. A series I thought was over but of course ready for another adventure with Jaron.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab (October 6) – Standalone. You all know what this is.
Return of the Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (October 6) – The Queen’s Thief #6. My level of excitement for this is indescribable.
Northern Wrath by Thilde Kold Holdt(October 27) – The Hanged God Trilogy #1. Vikings and Norse gods!(!!)
Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson(November 17) – The Stormlight Archive #4. You’re not getting a description of this one either.
A Sky Beyond the Storm by Sabaa Tahir(December 1) – An Ember in the Ashes #4. Finally!!! A slave tries to save her brother (and possibly the world) in this brutal, Roman inspired setting.
Those are 10 books I should be reading the day they come out but probably won’t. I feel excused on October 6 because four of these are published on that exact date. Why is that date so special?? I need to know!
Well, I’m super excited to read all of these. What are some of your most anticipated releases?
Hi, guys. Lately, I’ve been stressing myself out a lot with all the books I need to read. There are just too many, and it’s actually affected more than it should. I feel a pressure to read all the popular fantasy books to be able to be a part of online discussions. Then I also have to read all the underrated gems to support those authors. And let’s not forget that all while doing that, I also have to fill out the diversity bingo card or get “cancelled”.
To do something active about this stress feeling, I decided that I needed to remove the books from my TBR that I actually didn’t want to read anymore. Some of those I added a very long time ago and now have to realize that I’m never gonna get to. Let’s start!
The Hunchback of Notre-Dameby Victor Hugo
The fact that I read about one classic a year, should have told me that I was being very optimistic by adding this chunker to my TBR. I had found out that it was different from the movie and wanted to know how. But I could also just read a summary…
The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore
This has been on my TBR since February 2018 and was one of those books I added to my TBR when I just discovered BookTube. It was compared to The Night Circus and that was all I needed. Now I know that McLemore’s books tend to lean more towards magical realism and that just not my genre.
The Inexplicable Logic of My Life by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Added because the same author wrote Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. The synopsis itself isn’t something that really speaks to me and since it’s been on my TBR for more than 2 years, it’s going off.
Remaining Books by Rick Riordan
Please don’t kill me. I’ve read the Percy Jackson series and the first 3 books in the Hero of Olympus. I liked the first series well enough growing up, but reading the last three books as an adult simply hasn’t worked for me. Riordan’s formulaic writing means that it feels like I’ve read the same book 8 times. It’s incredibly boring and I’m not going to do it another 8 times. Life’s too short.
Loki: Where Mischief Lies by Mackenzi Lee
As much as I love Marvel, I’ve realized that I’m going to just stick to the movies. Reading about superheroes (or whatever you’d call Loki) isn’t something I’m extremely interested in.
King of Fools by Amanda Foody
This is the sequel to Ace of Shades which I gave 3 stars. It had potential so I added the second book to my TBR. However, my library never got it and when I have to buy a book, I get a little more picky with what I read. I’ve had to realize that I’m just not that excited about it.
In total I removed 11 books from my TBR (there were a few Rick Riordan books), so it went from 98 to 87. 87 might not sound like a lot but it’s not completely accurate either. When reading series, I only add the one book I need to read next in case it’s so bad I want to quit on the series. So in reality my TBR is a lot bigger and never grows smaller. But this clean out did help a little. Do you remove books from your TBR once in a while?
“One summer night I fell asleep, hoping the world would be different when I woke.”
First line in Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Hi, guys. Sooo… it’s my birthday today. I’m officially 27. I’m not someone who cares very much about my birthday. That’s why The Birthday Book Tag is perfect. Instead of talking about myself, I get to talk about books. Way more fun. This tag was originally created by Antonia. Let’s jump into the questions!
Birthday Cake – A book with a plot that seems cliché but you adore it anyway
The Seven Realms series by Cinda Williams Chima. I mean, it has all the clichés and all the tropes you would expect from a YA fantasy series. But it works for some reason. There’s action and political intrigue and I just really loved reading it.
Party Guests – Your most anticipated book release this year
I’m going to assume they just forgot to add an ‘s’ on release because you can’t expect me to only mention one. I have a standalone and continuations of two of my favorite series coming in the Fall. The standalone is, of course, The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V. E. Schwab.
Last one is Return of the Thief by Megan Whalen Turner, the last and long awaited sixth book in The Queen’s Thief series.
It might be a conspiracy but all of these books have the exact same publication date (as I’m writing this): October 6th.
Somebody must hate me.
Birthday Presents – A book that surprised you with how much you loved it
Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson. This one was very popular when it came out but it seemed to get mixed reviews so I’d actually decided I wasn’t going to read it. Experience had told me that those kinds of books rarely hit home for me. Then it fit an O.W.L.s prompt and here we are. The characters, the banter, the romance, the friendships, the library setting. I mean, this book just turned out to have all the right ingredients for me to love it.
The Happy Birthday Song – A book that certainly deserved all the hype it got
A lot of books deserve all their hype but since it’s June and Pride Month, I’m going with an old favorite: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Univers by Benjamin Alire Sáenz. Such a beautiful story about identity and the importance of family.
Happy Music – A book with some very beautiful and truly memorable quotes
The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne. There were so many options for this question but just to proove that this one is a great choice, here are some quotes:
“I remember a friend of mine once telling me that we hate what we fear in ourselves,”
“It’s as if she understood completely the condition of loneliness and how it undermines us all, forcing us to make choices that we know are wrong for us.”
“Maybe there were no villains in my mother’s story at all. Just men and women, trying to do their best by each other. And failing.”
But also this:
“You look like a Greek God sent down by the immortal Zeus from Mount Olympus to taunt the rest of us inferior beings with your astonishing beauty, I said, which somehow in translation came out as “you look fine, why?”
Getting Older – A book that you read a long time ago, but you think that you would appreciate it more if you read as a more mature reader
It was much easier to find the opposite of this – books I probably won’t like as much anymore – but my answer is probably A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin which I read when I was about 16 or 17. The thing is that I really liked it back then but I’m sure I would appreciate it a lot more now and pick up on a lot more. Back then, I wasn’t reading adult fantasy and also didn’t know much about the differences between YA and adult. Now that I’m a more experienced adult fantasy reader and I also know the ending of the series, it would be fun to read the first book again.
Sweet Birthday Memories – A book that kept you incredibly happy during a sad or demanding period of your life
I was really trying to be original but there’s only one answer for this: Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling. I’ve been lonely for a large part of my life, especially in my early teens, but these books gave me an escape so I didn’t have to be sad all the time. Being a part of the fandom also helped me make friends (online of course), and one of them is still my best friend.
These books are also still helping me. During my latest reread of the second book, I was reminded that the bravest thing you can do is ask for help when you need it. It was just the thing I needed to hear to realize that I needed to seek help with my anxiety.
Yeah, it’s not like I’m going to tag anyone lol. It’s a fun tag so I’ll probably do it again next year. Happy reading!
“As she woke up in the pod, she remembered three things.”
First line in The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
Hi, guys. I hope you’re all doing great. Today I’m using WWW Wednesday as usual to give you a reading update. WWW Wednesday a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words, and it’s meant to give you all a little insight into my reading this week. I’ll answer the 3 questions:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish?
What do you think you’ll read next
What did you recently finish?
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers which I gave 3 stars. It was the kind of book where I’m totally aware of the fact that I’m the problem here. It was really well-written and had a great mix of characters. I just didn’t care about anything. I didn’t really latch on to any of the characters so I just felt more like a neutral observer of the story. It’s also a book that’s very optimistic and hopeful and those very rarely do it for me. I need something more hardhitting.
What are you currently reading?
My current commute book is Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, but I’m only 17% in. It’s still a great start though. I really like how Gaiman sort of tricks the reader and circumvent their expectations. It makes everything a little more interesting.
Still reading The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins and now at 52%. I’m taking my time with it so I’ll probably also be reading it next week. I like it when I’m reading it but it’s not one I’m itching to pick back up if you know what I mean.
What do you think you’ll read next?
Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare. I have a weird relationship with Clare’s books as I’m only really excited about them the moment I hold them in my hands. I also know I’m going to be reading those 600 pages really fast.
“The end of the world started when a pegasus landed on the hood of my car.”
First line in Percy Jackson and the Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
Hi, guys. As it happens, Top Ten Tuesday is 10 years old! Therefore, the prompt for this week is to pick a previous TTT topic, either redoing one you’ve done before or do one that you missed. I haven’t had this blog for very long so I had loads of options in the ‘missed’-pile. My self-picked topic is: book series I want to start. Remember that Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Let’s begin!
Lumatere Chronicles by Melina Marchetta
First book: Finnikin of the Rock
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
First book: Daughter of Smoke and Bone
Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb
First book: Assassin’s Apprentice
Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne by Brian Staveley
First book: The Emperor’s Blades
The Winnowing Flame Trilogy by Jen Williams
First book: The Ninth Rain
METRO by Dmitry Glukhovsky
First book: Metro 2033
Unwind by Neal Shusterman
First book: Unwind
The Riyria Revelations by Michael J. Sullivan
First book: Theft of Swords
Green Creek by T. J. Klune
First book: Wolfsong
The Licanius Trilogy by James Islington
First book: The Shadow of What Was Lost
That was 8 fantasy series and 2 dystopias that I really want to read right this moment. There are loads more on my TBR but these are the ones I most want to start. But as we all know, starting series is the easiest thing in the world. We’re not going to talk about finishing them…
Let me know which series you plan to start next. Happy reading, guys.
I’ll start by going through the books I’ve managed to cross off the list:
Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
This one featured in my 5-star predictions post, but I ended up rating it 3 stars, unfortunately.
The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima
I didn’t just read this one but the entire series! That’s 3 more books, guys. Maybe I’ll add the companion series to my goals for next year.
Autoboyography by Christina Lauren
I wanted to give this author duo a shot and that turned out to be a great idea. I gave this one 4 stars, and will be looking their way again when I’m in the mood for a contemporary.
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
Well, at least I tried this author and now know that he’s not for me. I gave Dark Matter 2 stars.
Words of Radiance and Edgedancer by Brandon Sanderson
I have loved making my way through the Stormlight Archive. These two books were given 4.5 and 4 stars.
The Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan
This third book in the Wheel of Time turned out to be quite a big miss for me which is sad because I liked the first two. I’m still going to continue with the series and hope this was a one time thing.
That was pretty good, right?. Let’s move on to the pile of books I haven’t touched yet.
The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
I don’t care that it’ll be a while before book 3 in this series sees the light of day. I just want to be caught up. Sadly, I don’t see many positive reviews of this second book so it’s not one I’m really excited about.
The Shadow Rising and The Fires of Heaven by Robert Jordan
Book 4 and 5 in the Wheel of Time. Considering that I need a significant break between each book, I’m a bit worried about the fifth book. I completely blame the closed-down libraries for this because I was meant to read book 3 a lot sooner than I actually did.
Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson
I’m going to have caught up with this series when the fourth book comes out! I hate having to avoid spoilers for this series so I’m going to be reading it very soon. It will probably still take me almost a month to read so I need to just start it.
The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
This is the kind of book where if I don’t read it this year, it’s probably going off my TBR because then I’m clearly not motivated enough to read it. I still really want to read it because it’s one I think I’ll really love as soon as I get into it.
*3 Neil Gaiman books*
My goal was to read 4 books by Gaiman because I haven’t had much luck with him previously. I want to really give it a shot this year and if I still haven’t fallen in love with his work by December, I’m going to stop trying. I’ve only read one book by him so far this year which was Norse Mythology which was alright but difficult to really judge him on. The only one of his other books I’ve planned to read is Neverwhere. Not sure where to go after that. Any suggestions are welcome!
The last book on the list was The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers, which I’m happy to say that I’m currently reading.
That means that I’ve read 8 and a half of the 17 books I wanted to read. Not to brag about my planning skills… but that’s perfect. Halfway through the year and half of the books read. Let’s just ignore the fact that I’ve read all the small books and left all the big ones for the last half of the year.
Do you have goals for 2020? Let me know if you’re on top of everything or now hate me for reminding you. Happy reading!
