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“Is it possible you willfully forgot about the biggest international event of the year because you don’t want to see your arch nemesis?” | Red, White & Royal Blue, Casey McQuiston

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BOOKS READ IN 2020 — catching fire; susan collins

but a spark can be enough to set them ablaze

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65 LGBT Books by Black Authors

In honor of Pride Month obviously, here’s my next list! Please continue to add authors and books to this list! 

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin

Another Country by James Baldwin

Tell Me How Long the Train’s Been Gone by James Baldwin

Invisible Life by E. Lynn Harris

Just as I am (Invisible Life #2) by E. Lynn Harris

I Say a Little Prayer by E. Lynn Harris

Hood Witch by Faylita Hicks

You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson

Full Disclosure by Camryn Garrett

By Any Means Necessary by Candice Montgomery

A Dream so Dark by LL McKinney

The Stars and the Blackness Between Them by Junauda Petrus

Build Yourself a Boat by Camonghne Felix

Little and Lion by Brandy Colbert

Skin Deep Magic by Craig Laurance Gidney

The Summer We Got Free by Mia McKenzie

Juniper Leaves by Jaz Joyner

Queer Africa - Selected Stories

The Yellow Brownstone by Lisa K. Stephenson

Freedom in This Village by E. Lynn Harris

Black Like Us: A Century of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual African American Fiction by Devon W. Carbado

In Case You Forgot by Frederick Smith and Chaz Lamar

Mogul by Terrance Dean

Potomac University Series by Rashid Darden

The Secrets of Eden by Brandon Goode

Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann

Growing Up Girl: An Anthology of Voices from Marginalized Spaces by Michelle Sewell

Talking at the Gates: A Life of James Baldwin by James Campbell

Black Lesbian in White America by Anita Cornwell**

If We Have to Take Tomorrow by Frank Leon, White Roberts, and Marvin K.

Brother to Brother: New Writings by Black Gay Men edited by Essex Hemphill

In the Life: A Black Gay Anthology by Joseph Beam

Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde

Real Life by Brandon Taylor

Here for It by R. Eric Thomas

Romance in Marseille by Claude McKay

A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James

Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta

The House You Pass on the Way by Jacqueline Woodson

Black Deutschland by Darryl Pinckney

A Visitation of Spirits by Randall Kenan

Crossfire: A Litany for Survival by Staceyann Chin

The Other Side of Paradise: A Memoir by Staceyann Chin

Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde

Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender

How We Fight for Our Lives by Saeed Jones

Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lorde

Don’t Call Us Dead by Danez Smith

Lives of Great Men by Chike Frankie Edozien

Burnt Men by Oluwasegun Romeo Oriogun**

She Called Me Woman edited by Azeenarh Mohammed, Chitra Nagarajan, and Rafeeat Aliyu

B-Side and Other Misheard Lyrics by L.M. Bennett

For Sizakele by Yvonne “Fly” Onakeme Etaghene

Black Power Barbie Volume 1: Love Lives of Heroes by Shay Youngblood

Loving Her by Ann Allen Shockley

No Telephone to Heaven by Michelle Cliff

Something Better than Home by Leona Beasley

Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn

Yabo by Alexis De Veaux

Fragments that Remain by Steven Corbin

Vanishing Rooms by Melvin Dixon

Blackbird by Larry Duplechan

B-Boy Blues Series by James Earl Hardy

The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez

**I could not find links to buy both of these books, so if anyone is able to please add them to the post!

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| world war z - movie review |

Rating: PG

Run Time: 116minutes

Genre: action, adventure, sci-fi, horror, & fantasy

Date Released: September 17th, 2013

When former U.N. investigator Gerry Lane and his family get stuck in urban gridlock, he senses that it's no ordinary traffic jam. His suspicions are confirmed when, suddenly, the city erupts into chaos. A lethal virus, spread through a single bite, is turning healthy people into something vicious, unthinking and feral. As the pandemic threatens to consume humanity, Gerry leads a worldwide search to find the source of the infection and, with luck, a way to halt its spread.

World War Z is a good movie. I could argue even a very good movie. As I may have mentioned in my previous posts, I’m a sucker for a good end of the world story, and this one sure tickled my tastebuds.  The story was very engaging, it had an amazing plot, and during some parts, I found it was unpredictable. Some movies fall into stereotypes, and it makes it boring to watch. You need something that you aren’t expecting, that’s when it makes the viewer feel like they haven’t wasted their time. This movie had the right mix of letting you know exactly what was going to happen sometimes, and a plot twist other times. The acting from almost every actor was good. There are times in movies where the side characters lack the same skills as the main character, which pulls you from the story. But this cast all brought similar energies to the table, which was good. I’m not going to spoil it, but I even enjoyed the ending. Which again, sometimes falls short. When a movie builds you up, and then just kind of... finishes, it’s awful. World War Z left me satisfied, which is all I could ask for.

Rating: 3/4

“Looks like we woke the dead. In that respect, please turn off all pagers and cellphones.” | Captain Speke

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| It Devours! - review |

Author(s): Joseph Fink, Jeffery Cranor

Page Number: 347

Genre: Fantasy, Science Fiction

Date Released: October 17th, 2017

This book was the first audiobook I think I’ve ever listened to. Obviously excluding my parents reading to me when I was but a wee lass. It was an excellent introduction to audiobooks for me. This story is based on the world of Welcome to Night Vale, a podcast written by the same authors, that has been around since 2012. Night Vale is a creepy little town in the middle of the desert, plagued by people who don’t believe in mountains, monster librarians, and scientists who only ever wear lab coats. This particular book is based on said scientists, as they try to figure out what is causing the large, building-swallowing holes to appear around their town. Nilanjana Sikdar is our protagonist, she’s an outsider to Night Vale, so while she tries to figure out the cause of these giant holes, she also has to navigate through the feelings of being in a community which she doesn't feel she’s apart of.  I, myself, would recommend the audiobook. Especially if you’ve come from the podcast, like the first book by our authors (which has no correlation to this book), the audiobook has been narrated by Cecil Baldwin, the voice of Night Vale. 

Like always, this book was littered with both beautiful quotes, and silly ones. Fink and Cranor have a way with words, dipping in and out of serious, inspirational and funny. I often have trouble choosing the quote to leave my posts off with, so here are a couple that may motivate you to read this book.

“He was not so arrogant as to refer to his own death as The End, just one of billions of ends before The End. Death is only the end if you assume the story is about you.”

“It felt like illness, but it was only existence.”

“Saying a moment is awkward has never made an awkward moment better, but it’s a tactic that humans keep trying over and over.” 

“He recognized them for what they were: humans, who were right about some things and wrong about other things and certain about everything.”

“Aren't we all, metaphorically, just looking for a bathroom?”

“Mountains, real or not, ring this desert like the rim of an empty dinner plate. Scattered sparsely along the flat middle are small towns with names like Red Mesa, Pine Cliff, and, right in the center, Night Vale. Above Night Vale are helicopters, protecting citizens from themselves and others. Above the helicopters are stars, which are completely meaningless. Above the stars is the void, which is completely meaningful.” 

I think this book can be picked up by someone who has no idea about the podcast, but it is a little out there in the way it’s written. It’s very true to the Welcome to Night Vale style. I felt as though the characters in this book were a little... flatter? I can’t find the words to describe it, but it’s a little like reading about someone you’ve never met. Which... I suppose I was. It felt like I was looking at them through a sheet of glass, but somehow I was still rooting for them despite it. 

I do like how it was written as a standalone novel. Yes, you can go read the first book the authors wrote, and yes you can go listen to the podcast (I would highly recommend you do so). But it isn’t necessary, you don’t need to think about this book ever again if you don’t want to. It is what it is, and once you’ve finished you can dust off your hands, and leave it alone. 

Overall, I did enjoy this book, and I would recommend it if you want to read something that unnerves you and makes you laugh. Be prepared for a unique style of writing when you go into. I would suggest the audiobook, as Cecil Baldwin’s honey-soft voice will guide you through what is potentially a difficult book to read on its own.

Rating: 7/10

It's a kind of assault, this constant insistence that we can't be publicly acknowledged. Sometimes an act as simple as a person recognizing you, your bulk, the tangibility of your skin. That can mean everything. | It Devours!

[hyperventilatinghermit]

lo.reads

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Back to the work grind after a week away…take me back to vacay life and give me all the reading time ✨

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| the list - review |

Author: Patricia Forde

Page Number: 336

Genre: Dystopia

Date Released: April 16th, 2015

The first book of the year! Woohoo! I received this book from my sister for Christmas, so it was definitely going to make it onto the 2019 TBR, and as I already had it, and didn’t need to hire it from anywhere, I decided to give this one a jolly old go.  The List is a book set in the future, after the ice caps all melt, and flooded the world, killing billions of people. One man - John Noa - has stepped up to lead the new civilisation called Ark. He deems that the reason the world got messed up the first time was because of language, this brings us to the List. The List is a set of every legal word, ones that don’t make it on that list get forgotten by the public. Our main character, Letta, is a wordsmith, she has access to all words. Basically, the book is about Letta realising that this John Noa guy isn’t as good as he appears to be, and rebelling against him. So, on to the review.

I didn't hate it, but it’s not my favourite dystopian I’ve ever read. The writing is okay, and so is the plot. The idea that she had for it is a really unique one. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would as I got further into the book. It’s interesting, and while it wasn’t one of those can’t-put-it-down books, I was left wondering where it would go. 

And a HUGE green light for me was that there wasn't any romance! It has been set up, and I spent the whole book feeling a little exasperated at the thought of romance being brought into it, but it hasn’t! Not yet. In saying that, it is a series, so at some point, it’ll be brought it, but for now it hasn’t. Letta spent a little of her time pining over the thought of one of the characters but brought herself back into focus for the task at hand. I was super refreshed by this concept, because as we know, YA usually has a tonne of unnecessary romance. 

The plot wasn’t the strongest in the world, but it wasn’t terrible. So, overall, it was a quick, entertaining read. I actually quite enjoyed it, it was different and refreshing. It was interesting to think about life if we didn't have words to communicate with, how would we communicate? If you’re looking for a quick read, I would suggest this one! 

Rating: 5/10

The here and now is only the smallest part of who we are, each of us is all that we have been, all our stories, all that we could be. | The List

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2019 TBR List

This list has been a little while coming, and it still isn’t finished because my school has decided that they won’t return until mid-January, so I can’t finish it yet. Which is frustrating, but we’ll continue on!  So this year I’ve decided to pick 24 books to read. The only rule to choosing the books is that I want to read them, unlike the past years where I tried to force myself to read certain books. So, if I don’t fall into my monthly reading slump, I should be good!

Orbiting Jupiter, Gary D. Schmidt When Jack meets his new foster brother, he already knows three things about him:    Joseph almost killed a teacher. He was incarcerated at a place called Stone Mountain. He has a daughter. Her name is Jupiter. And he has never seen her. What Jack doesn’t know, at first, is how desperate Joseph is to find his baby girl.    Or how urgently he, Jack, will want to help. But the past can’t be shaken off. Even as new bonds form, old wounds reopen. The search for Jupiter demands more from Jack than he can imagine.

The Gentlemen’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, Mackenzi Lee Henry “Monty” Montague was born and bred to be a gentleman, but he was never one to be tamed. The finest boarding schools in England and the constant disapproval of his father haven’t been able to curb any of his roguish passions—not for gambling halls, late nights spent with a bottle of spirits, or waking up in the arms of women or men.    But as Monty embarks on his Grand Tour of Europe, his quest for a life filled with pleasure and vice is in danger of coming to an end. Not only does his father expect him to take over the family’s estate upon his return, but Monty is also nursing an impossible crush on his best friend and traveling companion, Percy.    Still it isn’t in Monty’s nature to give up. Even with his younger sister, Felicity, in tow, he vows to make this yearlong escapade one last hedonistic hurrah and flirt with Percy from Paris to Rome. But when one of Monty’s reckless decisions turns their trip abroad into a harrowing manhunt that spans across Europe, it calls into question everything he knows, including his relationship with the boy he adores.

Nevernight, Jay Kristoff    Destined to destroy empires, Mia Covere is only ten years old when she is given her first lesson in death.    Six years later, the child raised in shadows takes her first steps towards keeping the promise she made on the day that she lost everything.    But the chance to strike against such powerful enemies will be fleeting, so if she is to have her revenge, Mia must become a weapon without equal. She must prove herself against the deadliest of friends and enemies, and survive the tutelage of murderers, liars and demons at the heart of a murder cult.    The Red Church is no Hogwarts, but Mia is no ordinary student.    The shadows love her. And they drink her fear.

Long Way Down, Jason Reynolds AND THEN THERE WERE SHOTS Everybody ran, ducked, hid, tucked themselves tight. Pressed our lips to the pavement and prayed the boom, followed by the buzz of a bullet, didn't meet us.    After Will's brother is shot in a gang crime, he knows the next steps. Don't cry. Don't snitch. Get revenge. So he gets in the lift with Shawn's gun, determined to follow The Rules. Only when the lift door opens, Buck walks in, Will's friend who died years ago. And Dani, who was shot years before that. As more people from his past arrive, Will has to ask himself if he really knows what he's doing.

An Absolutely Remarkable Thing, Hank Green  The Carls just appeared. Coming home from work at three a.m., twenty-three-year-old April May stumbles across a giant sculpture. Delighted by its appearance and craftsmanship--like a ten-foot-tall Transformer wearing a suit of samurai armor--April and her friend Andy make a video with it, which Andy uploads to YouTube. The next day April wakes up to a viral video and a new life. News quickly spreads that there are Carls in dozens of cities around the world--everywhere from Beijing to Buenos Aires--and April, as their first documentarian, finds herself at the center of an intense international media spotlight.    Now April has to deal with the pressure on her relationships, her identity, and her safety that this new position brings, all while being on the front lines of the quest to find out not just what the Carls are, but what they want from us.

Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow, Jessica Townsend    Morrigan Crow may have defeated her deadly curse, passed the dangerous trials and joined the mystical Wundrous Society, but her journey into Nevermoor and all its secrets has only just begun. And she is fast learning that not all magic is used for good.    Morrigan Crow has been invited to join the prestigious Wundrous Society, a place that promised her friendship, protection and belonging for life. She's hoping for an education full of wunder, imagination and discovery - but all the Society want to teach her is how evil Wundersmiths are. And someone is blackmailing Morrigan's unit, turning her last few loyal friends against her. Has Morrigan escaped from being the cursed child of Wintersea only to become the most hated figure in Nevermoor?    Worst of all, people have started to go missing. The fantastical city of Nevermoor, once a place of magic and safety, is now riddled with fear and suspicion...

For Every One, Jason Reynolds (There isn’t really a blurb for this one, it’s more just telling giving you inspiration to read it... I think? Moving on.)

The Knife of Never Letting Go, Patrick Ness Prentisstown isn't like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts in an overwhelming, never-ending stream of Noise. Just a month away from the birthday that will make him a man, Todd and his dog, Manchee -- whose thoughts Todd can hear too, whether he wants to or not -- stumble upon an area of complete silence. They find that in a town where privacy is impossible, something terrible has been hidden -- a secret so awful that Todd and Manchee must run for their lives.   But how do you escape when your pursuers can hear your every thought?

A Darker Shade of Magic, V.E. Schwab    Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black.    Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see.    Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they'll never see. It's a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.    After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.    Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they'll first need to stay alive.

The List, Patricia Forde In the city of Ark, speech is constrained to five hundred sanctioned words. Speak outside the approved lexicon and face banishment. The exceptions are the Wordsmith and his apprentice Letta, the keepers and archivists of all language in their post-apocalyptic, neo-medieval world.    On the death of her master, Letta is suddenly promoted to Wordsmith, charged with collecting and saving words. But when she uncovers a sinister plan to suppress language and rob Ark’s citizens of their power of speech, she realizes that it’s up to her to save not only words, but culture itself.

Girl in the Blue Coat, Monica Hesse Amsterdam, 1943. Hanneke spends her days procuring and delivering sought-after black market goods to paying customers, her nights hiding the true nature of her work from her concerned parents, and every waking moment mourning her boyfriend, who was killed on the Dutch front lines when the Germans invaded. She likes to think of her illegal work as a small act of rebellion.    On a routine delivery, a client asks Hanneke for help. Expecting to hear that Mrs. Janssen wants meat or kerosene, Hanneke is shocked by the older woman's frantic plea to find a person - a Jewish teenager Mrs. Janssen had been hiding, who has vanished without a trace from a secret room. Hanneke initially wants nothing to do with such dangerous work, but is ultimately drawn into a web of mysteries and stunning revelations that lead her into the heart of the resistance, open her eyes to the horrors of the Nazi war machine, and compel her to take desperate action.

Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë Orphaned as a child, Jane has felt an outcast her whole young life. Her courage is tested once again when she arrives at Thornfield Hall, where she has been hired by the brooding, proud Edward Rochester to care for his ward Adèle. Jane finds herself drawn to his troubled yet kind spirit. She falls in love. Hard.    But there is a terrifying secret inside the gloomy, forbidding Thornfield Hall. Is Rochester hiding from Jane? Will Jane be left heartbroken and exiled once again?

My Lady Jane, Cynthia Hand/Brodi Ashton/Jodi Meadows Edward (long live the king) is the King of England. He’s also dying, which is inconvenient, as he’s only sixteen and he’d much rather be planning for his first kiss than considering who will inherit his crown…    Jane (reads too many books) is Edward’s cousin, and far more interested in books than romance. Unfortunately for Jane, Edward has arranged to marry her off to secure the line of succession. And there’s something a little odd about her intended…    Gifford (call him G) is a horse. That is, he’s an Eðian (eth-y-un, for the uninitiated). Every day at dawn he becomes a noble chestnut steed—but then he wakes at dusk with a mouthful of hay. It’s all very undignified.    The plot thickens as Edward, Jane, and G are drawn into a dangerous conspiracy. With the fate of the kingdom at stake, our heroes will have to engage in some conspiring of their own. But can they pull off their plan before it’s off with their heads?

The Nightingale, Kristin Hannah    France, 1939    In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says goodbye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads for the Front. She doesn’t believe that the Nazis will invade France...but invade they do, in droves of marching soldiers, in caravans of trucks and tanks, in planes that fill the skies and drop bombs upon the innocent. When France is overrun, Vianne is forced to take an enemy into her house, and suddenly her every move is watched; her life and her child’s life is at constant risk. Without food or money or hope, as danger escalates around her, she must make one terrible choice after another.    Vianne’s sister, Isabelle, is a rebellious eighteen-year-old girl, searching for purpose with all the reckless passion of youth. While thousands of Parisians march into the unknown terrors of war, she meets the compelling and mysterious Gäetan, a partisan who believes the French can fight the Nazis from within France, and she falls in love as only the young can...completely. When he betrays her, Isabelle races headlong into danger and joins the Resistance, never looking back or giving a thought to the real--and deadly--consequences.

Little Women, Louisa May Alcott “I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.” 

Onyx and Ivory, Mindee Arnett (I’m not going to put this blurb because it’s its own little novel in of itself. Basically its a story about kings and assassins, it sounds pretty cool.)

The Hazel Wood, Melissa Albert Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice’s life on the road, always a step ahead of the uncanny bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice’s grandmother, the reclusive author of a cult-classic book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate, the Hazel Wood, Alice learns how bad her luck can really get: her mother is stolen away―by a figure who claims to come from the Hinterland, the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother's stories are set. Alice's only lead is the message her mother left behind: “Stay away from the Hazel Wood.”    Alice has long steered clear of her grandmother’s cultish fans. But now she has no choice but to ally with classmate Ellery Finch, a Hinterland superfan who may have his own reasons for wanting to help her. To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother's tales began―and where she might find out how her own story went so wrong.

Caraval, Stephanie Garber    Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over.    But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.    Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever.

Throne of Glass, Sarah J. Maas After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin.    Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for four years and then be granted her freedom. Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilarating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her ... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best.    Then one of the other contestants turns up dead ... quickly followed by another. Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined. 

Strange the Dreamer, Laini Taylor    The dream chooses the dreamer, not the other way around—and Lazlo Strange, war orphan and junior librarian, has always feared that his dream chose poorly. Since he was five years old he’s been obsessed with the mythic lost city of Weep, but it would take someone bolder than he to cross half the world in search of it. Then a stunning opportunity presents itself, in the person of a hero called the Godslayer and a band of legendary warriors, and he has to seize his chance or lose his dream forever.    What happened in Weep two hundred years ago to cut it off from the rest of the world? What exactly did the Godslayer slay that went by the name of god? And what is the mysterious problem he now seeks help in solving?    The answers await in Weep, but so do more mysteries—including the blue-skinned goddess who appears in Lazlo’s dreams. How did he dream her before he knew she existed? And if all the gods are dead, why does she seem so real?

So this is it! My current TBR for 2019! My goal is to read as many of these as I possibly can, and not to beat myself up for it if I don’t get around to it. Do you have any of these books on your TBR?

[hyperventilatinghermit]

By: A N N A | annasofiapark

[hyperventilatinghermit]

I have something to say:

give me characters who boast. give me characters that swear. Colourfully. give me characters who smirk, who look smug. Give me characters who sneer. give me characters who bite back. give me characters who stick out their tongues. give me characters that are sassy and ironic.

make them female.

give me characters who flirt, shamelessly so. give me characters who don’t blush. give me characters with exacerbated sexuality, who don’t care about using it to get what they want. give me characters that are confident in their own skins. give me characters who love dressing up. give me characters that love make-up. give me characters that hate wearing dresses and would rather go to a gala barefaced. even barefoot.

make them female.

give me characters who are angry. Frustrated. Enraged and sad. give me characters who are messy. who don’t know how to deal with their emotions. give me characters who want to learn, but they’re in too much pain right now. Give me characters who need love and support.

give me characters who know their emotions all too well, and can deal with them. give me characters who know they can’t do emotional labour for others. give me characters who would rather be rational, despite being in touch with their emotions.

make them female.

give me characters who are quiet, reserved. give me characters who don’t like speaking to strangers, who don’t like being the center of attention. give me characters who are sweet and loving and fun to be around, but would just rather be alone. give me characters who would go to a party and come home early to finish their book. or wouldn’t even go in the first place.

or give me characters who are shy and quiet until they are around people they know. give me shy characters that love going to parties but would also enjoy staying home drinking their favourite tea.

make them female.

give me characters with dry-humour. characters who are serious. characters who are the antithesis of laid-back. give me characters who don’t speak, they bark when they’re angry. give me characters who can be mean and nasty, but mostly quiet.

give me characters who are scary when they lower their voices. give me characters who don’t have to speak up, or even speak at all, to unsettle everyone in a room.

and make them female

give me characters who have suffered injustices. give me characters who are prepared for vengeance. give me characters who are determined, obstinate and deadly. give me characters who are observant, intelligent and cunning. give me minds that scheme against powerful men.

Make. Them. Female.

[hyperventilatinghermit]

the feeling of an antique bookstore

[hyperventilatinghermit]

| all the crooked saints - review |

**I wrote this review a while ago, but I’ve only just found it again. Enjoy!**

Author: Maggie Stiefvater

Page Number: 320

Genre: Fantasy

Date Released: October 10th 2017

Maggie Stiefvater is an absolute goddess when it comes to writing. I’m in love with the way she crafts her sentences and describes her characters. Although it often – for me, anyway – can feel very abrupt, even though some of her sentences are longer than you would have thought acceptable. So, if someone were to come to me saying they hated her writing style, I would understand. Not agree, but understand.

But anyway, on to the book. I went into this book thinking it had something to do with one of her other series, The Raven Cycle. Alas, it does not. Although they do share a character named Daniel. All the Crooked Saints is a novel about a small town in the desert called Bicho Raro. In this town is a family of Saints, who preform miracles on pilgrims. These miracles help rid the pilgrims of their darknesses, but the Sorias are forbidden to help rid them of their darkness once the first miracle has been granted (there are two miracles.) The pilgrims live in Bicho Raro until they can banish the darkness of their own, and move on with their lives. Also, once the first miracle has been preformed, their darkness becomes ‘real’. For example, one of the characters constantly has a storm cloud over her head, continuously drenching her. And that is the basis of the story, without giving anything major away.

I’ve already said this, but one of my favourite things about Maggie’s books, are her writing style. And because I’ve already ranted about it, I’ll leave it at that. I also love how she makes her characters so three dimensional, without going deeply into character backstories. Which is often something I have trouble with in my own writing’s. Instead, she slowly gives you backstory, often times without you realising you’re getting it.

Picking this book up at first was a little tricky, as I did think it was going to be about one of the secondary characters in The Raven Cycle, as I mentioned earlier. But after I realised who it was about (this happened quite quickly, as Maggie is a master of setting up her characters), I was rearing to go with this book, and flew through half of it yesterday. Character wise, my favourite character was Pete, I think. He was cute, he seemed a little shy, hard working, but also sure of himself. But if not Pete, Joaquin was up there as well. I forgot to mention earlier, that this book is set in the Elvis days in Mexico. So Joaquin has a very Elvis Presley sort of feel to him. And he’s also the DJ of a pirate radio station, know as Diablo Diablo. Although there was about a billion different characters with varying personalities in this book, so it’s quite hard to choose.

As it seems to be a recurring thing on this blog, I cannot for the life of me think of anything I disliked about it. It wasn’t my favourite book ever, but it was quite magical, you might say. I’m going to say it’s because if I’m not enjoying a book, I put it down. No matter how disappointed I am because of it. Or maybe, it’s just because I’m fabulous at picking out books. -insert fabulous hair flip here –

So all in all, I really enjoyed it. I’d most likely suggest this book to anyone who’s into the thought of miracles, and people who like deserts. And, if you’re on the verge of reading this book, know this: an angry lesbian cock-fighter shows up for a brief period of time. So if that doesn’t convince you to read it, I don’t know what will!

Rating: 7.5 / 10

“The stars stopped their laughing to watch her gallop beneath them, and the moon covered its face with a cloud, and then, as she grew close, the stars scrambled down below the horizon so they would not have to watch. The sun delayed its rising, too, so as not to bear witness, hesitating just at the edge of the earth, so the early morning hung in an eerie half-light.” | All the Crooked Saints

Side note: Apologies for the lack of posts this year, but I’m feeling very unmotivated, and I can’t really get into the swing of things, if you know what I mean. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get back into the groove very soon, though. Thanks for reading!

[hyperventilatinghermit]

Hermit’s Top 5 Book Series

Hello! It’s been a while.  I’m going to start this off by saying that this year, I’m going to try and consistantly write reviews for you. It’s harder work than I had realised when I started this blog. Partly because I don’t read that many books, and also I don’t always feel like writing a review. But I’m going to try. I’ve started to write myself a TBR for 2019, consisting of about 24 books. So I’ll do my best to read them, and write about them. That’s all on that for now.

I thought I’d start the year off with a Top 5! I haven’t given these a specific order, it was just the order in which I thought of them. I don’t want to offend any of my children.

 The Chaos Walking Trilogy, by Patrick Ness I read this series a few years ago, and I absolutely adored. I can’t pinpoint exactly what I love about this series so much. It’s written fantastically, the format is wonderfully done, the plot was thought out terrifically well, and the character arcs are phenomenally written. Now, enough with all the adjectives. A Brief Explanation: It’s about another planet, and in a specific town, there is only men. On this planet, as well, you can hear the thoughts of men, and animals, but not women. Dude, there is just so much going on in this series, but that’s the base line for the planet.

The Illuminae Files, by Amie Kauffman and Jay Kristoff This series is phenomenal in it’s format. It consists of audio transcripts, and surveillance footage summery’s, chat and audio logs, emails, and so many more different pages. In one of the books, two whole pages are dedicated to a casualty list, there are hundreds(perhaps?) of photos of real people. It’s honestly amazing, and so creative. It’s set in space, and I will admit, in all three of the books, you have to get about halfway through before you start to understand what’s happening, and it’s very confusing. But so worth it. And, because of the format, it’s quite a quick read despite being around 600 pages long. It’s also very well thought out and researched. This series is one of the highest on my list (although it isn’t in order of favourites. Shhh, don’t tell the other books.)

The Maze Runner series, by James Dashner There’s just something about dystopias that absolutely drive me crazy. In a good way. You see, I can’t do scary movies, or rollercoasters, but give me a good end-of-the-world-and-you-can’t-do-anything-to-stop-it? And I will quake. Not really, but you get the gist. I love the fear that comes along with the fact that you have absolutely no control over the fate of humanity. This could be the end of the world, and you can’t do anything about it. And if the problem has been created by humanity? Even better. And with the Maze Runner, that’s exactly what it’s about. They want to save their planet in the most obscure, terrifying way. What’s better than that?

Six of Crows duology, by Leigh Bardugo Now, similar to the Maze Runner, I also love a good psychopath. Or criminal. Whatever is given to me. So when I picked up a book about a bunch of criminals who are good at what they do, I can’t even explain the happiness that flowed through me. Like a light shredding through my very existence. It was fantastic. And it’s well written, and the plot is good, and it shocked me, and some parts scared me (in a empathy sort of way), it quickly made its way into my favourites. 

Harry Potter series, by J.K.Rowing I feel like this is in everybody’s favourite books, but it’s just, it’s a really good book, you’ve got to admit. It’s so well planned and thought out, it blows my mind when I think about how much she knows about every character, and their background. To be honest with you though, I feel like I couldn’t care less about Harry Potter and the crew. But I adore the world surrounding it, the magic, the history the (other) characters. I, personally, love Fantastic Beasts, and the Marauders, and the side characters more than I think I have ever cared about Harry Potter.

And that’s it! Some of these series I haven’t given a lot of thought to recently, so writing this about them has made me realise all over again how much I love them. I now have a very warm and happy feeling throughout my chest, and I’m exceptionally glad once again that I’ve read all of these books.

If you haven’t read any of these, and you’re looking for books for the new year, please read these ones! I’m landed with the feeling that I need to convince to you read them all, and I don’t know how to. So just.... please? 

That is all! Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a fantastic New Year! Hermit xx

[hyperventilatinghermit]

The more I read, the more I realize that there’s no reason to waste your time forcing yourself to read books you don’t like. Put that book down and find something you enjoy, whether it’s considered “literature” or not.

[hyperventilatinghermit]

| loneliest girl in the universe - lauren james |

I’m going to start this by saying this book was absolutely nothing like I expected. I went into it expecting a nice, easy to read, romance. This was indeed easy to read, I finished it in about two and a half days, but oh my gosh, the ending was so far from what I was expecting.

I was going to write a little bit about the story but I think the blurb is pretty good: 

Can you fall in love with someone you’ve never met, never even spoken to – someone who is light years away?

Romy Silvers is the only surviving crew-member of a spaceship travelling to a new planet, on a mission to establish a second home for humanity amongst the stars. Alone in space, she is the loneliest girl in the universe until she hears about a new ship which has launched from Earth – with a single passenger on board. A boy called J.

Their only communication with each other is via email – and due to the distance between them, their messages take months to transmit across space. And yet Romy finds herself falling in love.

But what does Romy really know about J? And what do the mysterious messages which have started arriving from Earth really mean?

Sometimes, there’s something worse than being alone . . . 

That sounds a little bit scary, and it should. This book turns real dark towards the end, it plays with real-life scenarios that scare the pants off of me, without getting too graphic. 

The characters, to me, weren’t as bad as some other books I've read, and the plot was intriguing enough to get me right to the good stuff. I can’t think of any unnecessary scenes, and I wasn’t bored during the story at all.

I liked how Romy dealt with the problems realistically, or as realistically as you can when you're in space. What I mean is, is that she didn’t go around knowing how to fix everything automatically. She’s anxious, and she’s recovering from some... stuff ;)

Another thing that this book has going for it, is quotes. She’s got some beauties in there, in my opinion!

This is a great book to read if you just want something easy, but not too cliche, or just plain bad. I’d recommend this book to teens upward, if you really wanted them to fully understand the situation. I think that it also did a good job of helping me really understand what it would be like if I had grown up in space, without ever having been to Earth.

Rating: 6/10

Love take so much energy, and it just leads to pain. I think it's probably best for people to be self-sufficient. If I was strong enough to be independent, then I wouldn't be so desperately lonely. I'm sure of it. - Romy Silvers | The Loneliest Girl in the Universe

[hyperventilatinghermit]

“If a book is well written I always find it too short.” Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen