#alice oseman you’ve done it again

[sbblake]

this narlie hug is the Bane of my existence i am crumbling to the floor as i type this Let me tell u why . it’s bc in this scene, for the whole week nick had to endure being forced to sit next to b*n in his revision period; endured his taunts and shitty attitude and the doubt he was trying to plant into nick’s mind, listening to him only think of nick’s boyfriend as an object and bully charlie behind his back. and what’s even better? his homophobic brother is home from uni, so nick practically gets the same treatment he does at school at home but instead of ben, it’s his own brother. on top of that, he’s stressed about his exams, trying to navigate coming out, and of course, charlie was grounded. but charlie snuck out for nick anyway to see him, and i just. you can FEEL how much that meant to nick; that charlie was there for him and willing to break the rules if it meant he could see nick even if he’d get in trouble. and then when they meet up, they hug and it’s the way you can see Nick hold Charlie so tight despite only having one arm to, burying his face into charlie’s shoulder and scrunching his eyes up tight— you just know nick needed that hug SO bad. he’s been having to put up with so much shit from other people, he’s been so stressed out, but none of that really matters when he has charlie there to hold and to talk to and to cheer him up.

tldr ; THAT BOY IS NICK’S HOME AS LONG AS CHARLIE IS THERE WITH HIM EVERYTHING IS OKAY OIUUUGGHH HE IS SO IN LOVE 🙁🙁🙁🙁

[facelessxchurch]

Alright, now that we got the basic unbiased info established and out of the way, here are my personal thoughts:

First Impression: That cover is ugly as Hell. It has the same pale blue I disliked about the HBL cover but has swapped the ugly neon yellow with a somehow even uglier neon green. And randomly threw in a neon magenta for the secular title.

This is visual vomit, my eyes feel assaulted and I am sickened to my core.

Regarding the story, I'm very unhappy that it's set after UtE. For all I'm concerned the last book ruined the universe and made Val too OP for there to even be a chance for any story set in that time period to be even remotely good.

The title is so fucking generic too.

The Artwork: I don't like it, especially not the cover. I know I said I really wanted an SP comic, but I said that under the assumption Todor Hristov (the Grimoire comic artist) or someone with a similar style would be drawing it. Instead we get this.

It's this cheap classic American comics style which I despise so much and not the more 'painterly' European graphic novel style I much prefer. This is ironic bc the main artist is from Northern Ireland. I do get that Landy likes this style bc he's probably nostalgic for it, but quite frankly, the classic comic style is a big part of the reason why I never really got into comics.

I would have loved to see how Todor Hristov draws the nasties, but I dread to see how THIS artist would draw them.

While this is mostly a personal taste thing I also see a few things I would say are art sins. Like the shading on the lower part of the hair. Why would you cross hatch/texture shade there. The shading lines should go with the flow of the hair like it was done for the top part of the hair. One eye brow is thicker than the other. And the way the nose is shaded makes it look like the face is looking to the viewers left while the nose seems to be pointing towards the right?? The nose shading is super weird in general. No idea what's going on there.

And I dislike the way the skull was stylised. Too long upper jaw, to short lower jaw. And why is his jaw so wide??

Considering that Landy is writing this and he's going full control freak on it again, the art is the only thing an SP comic would have going for it. And so far, I don't like what I'm seeing.

They could have at least put more effort into the cover art considering that's what makes people pick up a comic in the first place :/ (comic cover art is often not done by those that illustrate the actual comic)

Regarding the TheBookSeller Article (there is alot to unpack here)

" The 144-page, full-colour graphic novel Bad Magic will be a completely new “self-contained story” which builds its own distinct lore separate to that presented in the book series."

I'm ok with the selfcontained part. But why does it have different lore from the main series?? It's not only set in the same universe it's the same goddamn characters!

"The author explained: “I didn’t want it to be just for the hardcore [Skulduggery] reader or even the casual reader. You can pick it up even if you’ve never read a Skulduggery book."

Yet ANOTHER entry to the series. A sure sign that things are going well regarding this IP. (sarcasm)

"Introducing a graphic novel to the universe was then a “natural fit” for a Skulduggery story and tied with HarperCollins’ desire “to lead the market and do different, new, exciting things”."

"Bad Magic arrives when graphic novels, spearheaded by Alice Oseman’s record-breaking Heartstopper series, are becoming increasingly popular [...] Yet the timing is, in part, due to luck: “We sort of loved to say that it was a clever plan, but it also ended up being serendipitous,” says Lake. Landy concurs: “The new emphasis that is now on graphic novels ever since Heartstopper is fortuitous; it’s not the impetus [for Bad Magic], it’s not how it started.” 

"Bad Magic will undoubtedly tap into the pool of Skulduggery readers while hoping to entice new ones and appeal to the growing graphic novel audience."

Landy might have been wanting to do an SP graphic novel for a long time, but I'm sure that the reason HC greenlight it as bc comics are currently THE thing. In their minds anyways.

Seems like HC wants to use the current trendy thing to breath new life into Landy's dying IP.

"Readership has always been at the centre of Landy’s ethos: he will always add an extra element, such as an extra chapter or a deleted scene, to every new edition of his books."

Oh please, if he respected his fanbase his writing in phase 2 wouldn't have been so goddamn lazy. Every fight scene that was meant to be one of the big ones was either vaguely described or not at all. The pandering is half assed and ill-informed and releasing the Grimoire in the state it was in was an insult to his readers. Not even the bootlikers could bother faking liking it.

And adding 'something extra' to new editions is the exception, not the rule. Plus, I know examples of deleted scenes/What-Could-Have-Been, but I'm not aware of him adding new chapters to books?? Do they mean the short stories?

"Unlike other prequels which act as an opening into the world, Hell Breaks Loose requires the reader to have already read the entire series. [...]“If you’re a fan, even though it’s not book 16, you need to read it.”"

That's in direct contradiction to how HBL is marketed as entry point for new readers tho.

[source]

"It [HBL] definitely hinges on reading all 15 books, because it deals with a piece of the series’ history, [...] The novel promises to reveal two things “that will blow the fans’ minds"

"Bad Magic and Hell Breaks Loose are the first steps in an extensive publishing plan for the Skulduggery universe. “The excitement doesn’t stop after 2023,” Lake notes, with plans for the 20th anniversary of the first book in 2027 and into 2028. A redesign of the backlist can be expected, alongside “very, very, very secret things”."

Ah, so this is the rebranding Landy was talking about. So all new covers will be a fucking eye sore. Great. Amazing. Can't wait to bleach my eyes out.

I thought it was finally over with phase 2 but they have plans at least 5 years into the future. How are they still going?? Globally phase 2 is a complete failure. Despite multiple attempts SP never became popular in America and I know that at least Bulgaria stopped translating and in Germany the book stores have like 2 SP books max when there used to be big displays for every release. And the fandom is pretty much on life support. Half of it hates Landy's guts anyways.

[noodlearg]

i just finished reading solitaire by alice oseman. i started reading it at like 11 pm monday night. i read half of it that night then went to sleep. then i read most of the rest of it last night then went to sleep. and i finished the last 30 pages or so in the past half hour. and DAMN.

it’s not often that i finish a book this quickly. but i was hooked from the very first page. it is a pretty quick read at 260 pages but still most books take a while to actually get interesting. but not this one.

i kinda sorta vaguely knew what was gonna happen in the third act but not really.

anyways. what a rollercoaster of a book. might be a new favorite of mine. alice, you’ve done it again.

[recklessandyoung]

Just started reading Loveless, and I… I can’t I relate to Georgia and Sunil so much

Alice Oseman you’ve done it again

[echoesagain]

#8

Don’t often include trigger warnings but this includes (mild) self-harm and mental health shit. You’ve been warned

Probably going to be a long one this time. It’s been a while since the last one (at least it’s felt like ages), doesn’t affect much anyway. Uni exams all done, my time is coming to an end for first year. Back home, smiles, drinks and making more drunk mistakes- what more could a 19 year old physics student want?

So, a lot of shit has happened, as you’d expect. I got a very interesting book called Radio Silence by Alice Oseman and holy fuck, did it wreck me. For context, the only other Oseman content I had read before this was Heartstopper (web-comic then netflix show) and I thought it was alright, loved the art style. But, wow, she writes incredibly. I haven’t cried in over a decade and that book made me have to hold back full on sobs. I had to put it down several times to curl up into a ball and try and block out the avalanche of noise, the tirade of life bearing down on me. I am convinced I had some kind of mental episode as I ended up balling up a fist and pounding it into my desk again and again until the feeling of air on my knuckles caused me to wince, the mere idea of twitching a finger caused me agony.

Quick break- I am not mentally ill. I have never exhibited any mental symptoms before this nor since. I can’t explain why or justify myself, I just felt the urge to let it all out while reading it. In that sense, Radio Silence was one of the most cathartic books I’ve ever read. I promptly bought Solitaire and Loveless and read them in similar “all-at-once” fashions but without the whole going completely fucking insane. Reading this all back, I seem like a troll or an attention-seeker. I promise, I am only the latter, my previous posts are more than enough evidence of that. The worst part is, I don’t know exactly what about Radio Silence caused it to happen. I don’t relate to any of the characters that much (no more than other fictitious characters) and the plot has no resemblance of my life or experiences other than I’m a first year uni student.

It scared me. I scared me. It was such a rush of emotions from nothing and, believe me, I have reread that book three times in as many days (and yes, I got it three days ago). I have had similar reactions each time but I managed to avoid pulping my fist on each re-read. I have found no particular character, plot development or even sentence that had any cause to distress me so. All I know is, that book causes me to slowly build tension in my body until it all comes out and ruins me. I didn’t sleep at all yesterday and I’m writing this at 1:05 am at the uni football pitches working on around 40 hours since I last slept.

For christs sake, I relate to Georgia Warr more than Aled, Frances or Daniel yet for some fucking reason, I can’t let it go. Yeah, apologies that this blog became a kind of fucked up book review/ rant. For what it’s worth, the book is incredible and I cannot describe my experience as negative, only very confusing but very, very interesting. 9/10 because I cannot justify self harm.

Now, I’m forced to question my mental health. I’m hoping it was just a one-off, freak accident caused by decades of bottling up my emotions (#toxicmasculinityftw) but I can’t call myself a self- respecting physicist and write something off as a “random error”, especially when that something is as big as this. Maybe I do relate to Frances or Aled or Daniel more than I thought I did and I just didn’t realise it. Maybe I just got so immersed in the writing style that I just felt so empathetic towards the characters (especially Aled) that I couldn’t help it? Honestly, who knows and, frankly, speculation on a bench at 1:13 am will get me no where. I passed several parties of people on my way here, all presumably celebrating exams end and I couldn’t help but wonder if I envied them or if I’d sooner shoot myself than be in such an environment. Maybe it’s all to do with company.

Sorry, getting too speculative again. All I know is, I need to read Radio Silence again, Alice Oseman is a phenomenal writer and their writing style is just so relatable (maybe that’s how 50’s kids felt when they read Catcher in the Rye? Idk, I enjoyed it but the writing was “so phony” and it “killed me”). Regardless, more research is needed, I’ve never felt more confused (and that’s coming from someone who still isn’t sure of their sexuality) and I need some chips. Until next time!

[booksandwords]

Bloody Spade by Brittany M. Willows

Series: The Cardplay Duology Book 1 Read time: 9 Days Rating: 5/5

The quote: She twirled, white hair and porcelain skin touched silver by the moonlight, with flung water droplets like stars around her. And Iori pictured himself as a meteor among them, no longer caught in this girl’s orbit but plunging helplessly through her atmosphere. Oh. So this was what falling felt like. — Iori Ryone

Warnings: Many and provided by the author. See the bottom of the review for details.

S**t how do I talk about Bloody Spade. I'm going to be totally honest and say it almost got put on the backburner to priritise library loans but I picked it up again and couldn't put it down. For me it was that kind of book. I'm so happy I decided to finish this. Yes there are some definite tropes in play (not to mention a spoiler in the blurb) but it's not about the destination as much as the journey. The representation provided in the characters. This was a joy to read. It is quite unlike anything I've ever read. I will say it is left in something of an odd place at the end but I know this fully intended to be a duology. Now the waiting begins.

I guess I will look at the representation first which is one of the two reasons read this (the other being the genre). Pansexual, Gray-Ace, Asexual, Demiromantic, Demisexual. These are just the four main characters. Among the four main characters, Iori is Pan (as identified by the author). Kyani is demi sexual and demi romantic. Alex is ace. Ellen in this book is only identified as aspec but is grey (again author info). Other characters are gay, bisexual, lesbian, trans and enby. Soren the transmale uses male pronouns. Iris may or may not use they/them. Enby Dax uses xe/xem/xyr. The generation above likewise has same-sex couples. I probably should say here that according to Brittany M. Willows in an answer on Goodreads unless explicitly stated otherwise all the characters are queer/bi, it's jus naturally coded into the world. I identify as aspec or queer I just had a moment of pure glee when I realised exactly how much aspec representation there was in this. When I was reading the author bio one thing caught my attention "bisexual/gray-asexual author, all I could think was 'well that explains the aspec rep'. This level of representation, done well, usually comes from within our community. I will have a look at anything that is tagged asexual but this is, is a whole ever level of representation for aspecs. If you want realism try Alice Oseman's Loveless but if you want diversity and open acceptance (and aren't plot picky) try this.

The lore and plot. Usually, I do characters first but in a world where characters depend so heavily on their lore and position within the world, I have to do that first. The basics of Bloody Spade is urban fantasy set in a fictional world circa 2027. We see no mundanes (those with no powers), we only see within the Empowered world. There is as one would expect some discrimination, primarily the Empowered are limited to one city, Hildegand, by a wall. All of the Empowered have different powers, as one would expect. I do have a theory that but it's only ever going to be implied not outright stated. The Empowered are given three choices when their powers awake, take suppressants, waive the use of their powers (and pay the price if they use them) or join the Jokers at Cardplay. Cardplay's opposite is Blackjack. Where Cardplay is light or on the side of pure magic. Blackjack is dark or on the side of void magic. Operators for Cardplay are called Jokers, Blackjacks operators are called Players. Blackjack are the villains of Bloody Spade. I appreciate the lore reveal. The lore is not provided in one massive piece of exposition. It is given to the reader only as it is needed. Sometimes answering questions you didn't know you had other times answering questions you've possibly had for a while. With its YA intended audience and coming of age (but not quite) feel. The plot has some predictability. But it's more how. And the world. And the characters. The pleasure of seeing the characters are overcoming adversity both of their own making and from external forces. Of battling their own demons and accepting help, of self-discovery of what will help you beat those demons. I will say there is an appendix that includes a meet the cast, both main and supporting, a list of notable locations and a list of magic-related related terms.

Bloody Spade has four main characters. Iori Ryone, the Keeper of the Spade. Possibly the closest thing to a titular character it has, 'Bloody Spade' is the name of his active power. A way Iori is perhaps representative as a character is his handedness, his naturally ambidextrous (important no, but interesting). Iori is the sort of character that has the potential to break your heart. He raised himself on the streets, his physical appearance with its feline attributes is known to all and he blamed releasing void magic on the world. His suit, the Spade, is corrupted while it should be using pure magic it uses void magic, and Iori and the Spade do not get along. Iori resents the Spade. He is all anger against the world and I will become the monster you believe me to be. Until he crosses paths with a certain young Empowered who intrigues both him and the Spade. Enter Ellen Jane, newly graduated Joker with the power to remove the void from a person, to cure them. Not that anyone is made aware of that.

The second set of main characters are Ellen's older brother Alexander Jane and Kyani Oto. Alexander is fire type more or less and his temper matches this. He can be emotional and hot-headed. It suits Cardplay at points but when it comes to Ellen that can be a problem. After being orphaned at a reasonably young age Alex took on both the big brother and pseudo father role for her. He has expectations of her to a degree. Alex is one of the strongest Jokers fighting along his best friend. Kyani is the Keeper of the Club. She loves flowers and nature and was until recently a florist. Everything she does she does for the good of her father who for reasons we are unsure of is in some kind of expensive medical care. This has landed her in the hands of Blackjack. She is a kind soul even if it sometimes appears she doesn't appear as such. Her power is tied to her interest in botany she can manipulate plans and replicate the active agents of plants after ingesting them. She has a secret from Blackjack, she sees the auras of people.

Formatting. As well as being chaptered <i>Bloody Spade</i> is broken up into 5 acts. Act I: The blood drenched Spade; Act II: The Club, wilting and withered; Act III: A Diamond blazing in the night; Act IV: A star fallen; Act V: A Heart so full. Each chapter has a number, date and location. If two of the four pov characters are involved in the same event there may be a pov switch mid-chapter indicated by  ♣ • ♠ •✫• ♥ • ♦ but mostly it changes chapterly though not in a pattern (I don't think). The plot does have some substantial time jumps which provide natural places to put the book down for the night in addition to the 5 parts. The four suits, Spade, Club, Diamond and Heart and always capitalised. This is a mark of respect also, an indication that they are alive. Have a dump of just some of my highlights and comments from my reading (there were some 304 before I culled them)

What I can't figure out is when or where-ish it is meant to be set. Yes, I am aware the lands are fictional but usually there is more of a visual of real world element than I'm picking up here. I sort of wish there was a map of the locations too. So we can see exactly how far apart the places are, some idea of exactly how fast Iori's auditory powers can help him move.

“She taught me how to dance and sing. How to write poetry. She was fiercely independent, too. Anything she could do by herself, she would, and that included having me.” — (Iori) This is Iori clearly about his mother. That actually explains something he has quite a strong EQ (emotional quotient, like IQ measures intelligence) common with sons of single mothers.

I'm guessing their magics are somewhat enhancing existing traits. Alex was always fiery and emotional, a tad volatile. Ellen is a born caregiver and healer. She was aiming for medicine. Kyani was a green thumb as a child. Iori has a talent for the auditory, piano and poetry. Dax probably had a gift for computers and hacking. Soren's comes from his personality he is loyal and a lightening force to his friends. Tatiana is a whirlwind of energy. Pavati Varma (wh we only meet once) was probably a sewer. I can't find any justification for Oskar's aquatic power but eh.

This has the most spoilerific blurbs I have ever read in my life. The thing given away in the blurb is supposed to be the big reveal in the closing pages. I get why it makes for an appealing blurb but really?

Empowered, they called them. Nobody could decide yet whether they were the heroes or the villains of this brave new world. Saints or sinners, a gift or a curse. The way Iori saw it, they could be both and neither. Magic didn’t automatically make good people bad, and it didn’t make bad people good. — (Iori) This from the earliest pages. Iori has a wide almost worldly mind for a protagonist in this sort of book. And he is quite young too.

“It’s courage, not bravery,” Alexander said. “Bravery is the absence of fear in the face of danger. Courage is about facing danger in spite of the fear.” — (Alexander) This is a version of a Franklin D. Roosevelt quote. But I still like it. I think it needs to be included here.

Elysian Tower is a key place in the Cardplay Duology world. It is clearly a play on "The Elysian Fields, also called Elysium, are the final resting place of the souls of the heroic and the virtuous in Greek mythology and religion." (via Wikipedia). But the question is more why?

Aryel’s kit making him look like he stepped out of a winter wonderland while Ikkei’s and Naomi’s offered considerably less coverage. Vinyl bands crossed Ikkei’s broad chest and looped around Naomi’s athletic figure, fastened to form-fitting pants by silver clasps. — (Ellen) Add to this that Magnetic Empowered Ikkei and Electric Empowered Naomi Toi are sibs and Cryogenic Empowered Aryel Rizka is the resident drama queen and it tells you all you need to know about them. Oh and Ikkei is Alex's best friend. They are the Joker A-Team and with their powers that work well together and separately you can see why.

To the public, he was a troublemaker. To the police, a wanted criminal. But to Cardplay, Iori Ryone was known primarily as the Keeper of the Spade—an Empowered teenager in possession of a special kind of magic called a Suit. The stuff of legends, literally. They were only able to identify his status early on because he shared his feline traits with a painted depiction of the Spade’s former Keeper. — (Ellen) I missed the import of this quote when I first read it. I missed the section on depictions. That becomes important when it comes to the other Keepers. Those of the Diamond, Club and Heart.

“Wait,” Ellen pleaded, stepping out from her brother’s shadow and into the Keeper’s view once more. “You don’t have to fight us. We can talk this over!” — (Ellen) Something I have thoughts on is that Ellen's impulse is to be a peacekeeper, to negotiate first and to fight last. Iori's is the opposite. Fight first then flee. She is something akin to a peacekeeper he is closer to a weapon.

The Keeper rose from his throne, and with a sweeping gesture, presented the place to her with an ostentation unbefitting of its decayed state. “Welcome,” he said, “to my domain.” — (Ellen) There is true beauty in some of the places described. Particularly the three dreamscapes, making me really wonder what the hearts is and if the spades was always like that. Or if the Spades corruption changed it. Ellen's belief is that it was the corrupted Spade, but it does also suit Iori

"It’s Iori, by the way,” the Keeper said. “Huh?” “My name. I figure you might as well use it since we’re getting so intimate.” — (Iori and Ellen) What I would so good about this line is that they were both working instinct and it wasn't the self-preserving kind. For a bit of context Ellen is about to fish one of Alex's bullets out of Iori's body.

“Don’t make me out to be the bad guy here. You’re the one who hid a killer in our house.” “Iori is not a killer.” “Stop calling him that!” “What, his name?” “Call him what he is—a monster.” — (Alex and Ellen) At this point I started to like dislike Alex. He has valid(ish) reasons for his anger but ugh it's a lot to deal with. Because we see the world through Iori and the empathetic Ellen's eyes. Aside from that I just dislike humans being called monsters. It's all about perception (exceptions do of course apply).

“He was petrified, told us repeatedly to stay away. What we didn’t realize was, he wasn’t afraid of us. He was afraid of what would happen to us if we got too close, and I should have listened, because the second I stepped into the den, every dark shape I mistook for shadow came at us. Ripped through my entire squad. Killed three, left two of us in critical condition. That, Ellen, is how I lost my leg.” A weight settled in her chest. “The Spade took it.” “I don’t believe Master Ryone willed it,” he said. “Those early days saw many magical accidents resulting in injury and death. Likely, the Spade was influenced by his panic. Subsequent incidents also indicate a lack of control rather than malicious intent.” — (Hikaru and Ellen) Okay, so this is a huge part of Iori's story. The death of his mother destroyed him in a way. Iori was 10. But I really appreciate this moment as a way to learn his story. Both his I guess. Hiaru and Iori. Basically everyone is connected. Hikaru raised Ellen and Alex.

How odd, thought Kyani, to look down and not recognize your own legs. Where once her fingers glided along warm beige skin, they bumped over scales from knee to toe. Glossy black things, like chips of obsidian. She couldn’t decide which was stranger—these, or the entirely new appendages at her back. They drooped at her sides, raven feathers frayed and molting. A pair of small and brittle wings. — (Kyani) This is the introduction to Kyani and it is a strong introduction for me. We just walk into her mind and she is thinking this.

“They had a fight?” Ikkei howled a laugh. “Right in the middle of the restaurant, too. Let me tell you, pyric and electric types do not do civil debate.” — (Ellen and Ikkei) This is about Alex and Naomi. While reading that fight I could almost see the sparks coming off Naomi.

“It doesn’t bother me, really! It’s just kind of tingly.” He arched a brow. “I make you tingly?” “Don’t make it weird.” — (Ellen and Iori) They have this light playful banter nearing flirtation that I really appreciate. It's worth realising that 'don't make it weird' coming from Ellen an aspec.

Alexander’s purposeful stride a contrast to Iori’s nonchalant stroll. Two very different people with very different strategies, their techniques about as diverse as their gait. Professionally trained versus self-taught. Military-style teachings versus a rudimentary weaponization of acrobatics. — (Iori) This is critical in a way. The contrast between the formal training of the Jokers represented by Alex and Iori's free-flowing nature. Alex sees Iori as a threat to Ellen (and everyone else), Iori just kind of wants to prove himself worthy of her faith. This being a fair fight requires both of them keeping their cool and holding it together. It was never going to happen it was just a case of how badly it went.

“You taught me to stand up for what I believe in,” she said. “I believe in him, and I’m not going to let him bin his chance at a decent life because you can’t let go of some petty grudge.” — (Ellen-to Alex) This is Ellen. This is also a total mood. Even had that moment when your parents look at you with surprised pikachu face when you act as you were raised? Yeah that is happening here.

In conflict, Ellen always tried to see things from the other party’s point of view, but his was clouded by rumor and conjecture and a couple of unfortunate encounters that had forever marred the Keeper of the Spade in his mind. What would it take to change his perception? What if it couldn’t be changed? — (Ellen) This is part of the key point of the book.

“Your battlemaster was right. To some extent, this thing inside me is influenced by my feelings. My emotions. I’m a mess, Ellen. If I stay, sooner or later, someone is going to get hurt. Someone could die.” His hand slipped from the folds of his shirt, falling heavy to his side. “Nobody should want a monster like me.” — (Iori) This broke my heart. Iori needs a hug. And serious human contact. These two could heal each other. They are the balance to each other. He can teach her to live and embrace experiences. She can teach him trust and control.

“You want me to pay rent for occupying your couch?” “For occupying my couch unnecessarily,” Ikkei specified. “Consider it bitch tax.” Alexander scowled. “Excuse me?” “You have a perfectly gorgeous house waiting for you in the rich district. The only reason you’re crashing in this dump is because you’re being too much of a bitch to share said house with the sister you unfairly disowned. Thus, I say again: bitch tax.” — (Alex and Ikkei) I adore Ikkei okay. He makes me smile. And this is a brilliant play. Alex needs to hear this. It is true friendship.

"The streets foster this kind of ‘screw-it’ mentality. Everybody’s already decided what you are, so why bother trying to be anything else? Be the troublemaker, be the thief. Fit the mold society’s carved out for you. And when every good thing that does come along gets ripped away—I guess that’s why I ran. Suddenly there were all these promising new paths in front of me, and instead of being excited, I got scared because it meant I had something to lose.” — (Iori) This feels like it still so true now.

“Darling, may I hold your hand?

The moonlight permeating the balcony curtains illuminated Iori’s shape on the bed, his back to her, a faint rise and fall to his chest. One of his ears was already turned in her direction, and when she didn’t soon move along, his gaze followed next. — (Ellen) This is such an appealing image. I can't even say why. It's not so much the intimacy of it but the feline feel to it. The moonlight, the sense of noise and the awareness. His feline self goes well beyond the ears for me.

Get a grip. He buried his burning face into his palm, trying to banish those thoughts—those images—from his brain. He couldn’t be envisioning her like that when he didn’t even know if these feelings were mutual. Well, not these precise feelings. He knew they weren’t—not to the same degree, anyway. The black band on her middle finger, the “why frick-frack when you can snick-snack” shirt she wore to the gym, plus numerous other signs pointed to her being on the asexual spectrum. Where exactly he couldn’t say, but that didn’t matter. Not that it wasn’t important. It was. It simply had no bearing on his desire to be with her. — (Iori) Two massive things here. One God bless consent and understanding. He respects her sexuality but also respects his attraction to her. But he is also aware it's a spectrum. That it is not like a light switch, there might be some chance. Two i adore this representation of a modern aspect woman. Confident in her sexuality and more than willing to show it publically, black aspec rings are a thing (and I will be getting one) they have been around since 2005 and that shirt? Omg yes. It's just an all round good piece of writing.

In Ellen’s company, those terrors grew tamer. Fewer. He’d noticed it shortly after his arrival at Cardplay, how safe he felt when she was near—an irony not lost on him as his whole purpose here was to protect her. And all these months later, he still couldn’t explain why her presence was such an effective salve. — (Iori) All I can say to this is he protects her while they are awake. She protects him while they're asleep.

Warnings to keep in mind. Brittany M. Willows has very kindly provided a list of warnings for Bloody Spade which I will also include here. "Content Warning - Coarse language - Blood and violence - Moments of gratuitous violence/torture - Emesis - Body horror - Anxiety/panic attacks - Trauma related to kidnapping/physical abuse - Parent death (discussed, glimpsed in flashbacks) - Car accident (discussed, glimpsed in flashbacks) - One instance of a forced kiss (not intended to be romantic or sexual)" For those like me who are unaware emesis is essentially vomiting. That last one related to the forced kiss is especially important to those in the aspec community. It really isn't intended as romantic or sexual, it is almost painful to read is what it is. On parent death that is more than one parent and may be particularly triggering to some readers.

Second quote: There was a fluidity to Iori’s movements. The gentle sway of his body, the way he led her delicately along. Of course, she should have known he’d have a knack for this. From their not-quite-legal river skating adventure, his fighting style, and even from the carefree swagger he adopted in a cheerful mood, it was clear rhythm was ingrained in him. — Ellen Jane

@godzilla-reads​ Simple Reading Challenge. Filling the June prompt: "Choose a Light Fantasy Novel" Bloody Spade is generally classified as Urban Fantasy a sub genre of Light Fantasy. If I hadn't found this book I think this prompt could have been difficult for me. I guess I could have gone Paranormal but I'm glad to have the opportunity to promote a book with 3 aspec protags during Pride month.

[six-of-ravens]

mid-year book freakout

tagged by @bigcats-birds-and-books, thank you!!!!!

Best Book You’ve Read So Far in 2021? Tough choice but I think it’s A Dark and Hollow Star by Ashley Shuttleworth! Or The Scapegracers by Hannah Abgail Clarke... it’s a good year for YA urban fantasy!

Best Sequel You’ve Read So Far in 2021? A tie between A Closed and Common Orbit and Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers! I feel like I didn’t really “get” her writing when I read The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet, but now that I do I love every Wayfarers book more than the last.

New Release You Haven’t Read Yet, But Want To? Aaaahhhhh so many! Mister Impossible by Maggie Stiefvater is the first to come to mind, but there are a TON of June releases on my library holds that just haven’t come up yet.

Most Anticipated Release For Second Half of 2021? VERY excited for A Lesson in Vengeance by Victoria Lee!!

Biggest Disappointment? Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth. It just didn’t click with me, and I found the writing style annoying (how many times can one say “dear reader,” seriously? also footnotes annoy me if an author doesn’t use them very carefully, either for necessary information or actual funny jokes. using the to point out your own clever wordplay is *eyeroll*). The whole movie thing could have gone MUCH harder into horror, it felt just kinda gimmicky and half-assed. We get the super intense historical plot with the headmistress/teacher slowly going mad, but with the modern-day stuff it was like “haha this is totally just the film crew playing tricks!! OR IS IT??? Lol no it totally is don’t worry.”

Biggest Surprise? I think The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year (Volume Ten). Rented it from the library just to read Tamsyn Muir’s story, but figured I’d skim the rest to see if there was anything I liked since I thought it’d be all “serious hard SFF” stuff that doesn’t interest me, but I actually loved all but one of the stories (and that one was good, it just had some fucked up alien sex lmao).

Favorite New Author? Cannot possibly pick just one cause I’ve read some GOOD BOOKS lately. I’ll say Ashley Shuttleworth, Krystal Sutherland, Hannah Abigail Clarke, and Robin McKinley.

Newest Fiction Crush? Alecto/Nausicaa from A Dark and Hollow Star OTL

Newest Favorite Character? again, Alecto/Nausicaa from A Dark and Hollow Star. I love a fast-talking asshole who’s good with knives...

Book That Made You Cry? Didn’t expect Record of a Spaceborn Few to punch me in the feels like that. Also, Radio Silence by Alice Oseman didn’t have to go that hard...

Book That Made You Happy? Spindle’s End by Robin McKinley was thoroughly delightful

Favorite Book Adaption You Saw This Year? Shadow and Bone! They did SUCH a good job with the show!! 

Favorite Review You’ve Written This Year? Oh boy I don’t think I’ve written any actual reviews? I made a half-coherent late-night post on the book blog about how The Scapegracers was everything I’ve ever wanted in a piece of teen witch media, like all the tropes were So Right, and I think that still stands, at least. 

Most Beautiful Book You Bought So Far This Year? I haven’t received it yet, but the cover for Persephone Station by Stina Leicht is gorgeous!

What Books Do You Need To Read By The End of The Year? For my new year’s goals: The Riddle, The Crow, and The Signing by Alison Croggon; The Fall of the Kings by Ellen Kushner; Souless and Changeless by Gail Carriger; The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch; and The Anatomy of Curiosity by Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, and Brenna Yovanoff. For my personal sanity though, I’d like to finish/catch up on some of the half-read series lurking on my shelves, ie.: The Illuminae Files, the Strange the Dreamer duology, The Book of Dust series, and the Lady Helen trilogy. And then there’s the endless stream of library holds...

Not sure who’s done this or not, so tagging anyone who wants to! 

[karolinaofbookland]

hi this picture has nothing with the caption but I just finished Loveless by Alice Oseman and I am sad that it’s over and I want to reread it right away. I need to get the physical copy so I can read it again and annotate it and cry over it. okay bye, I’m done 🤍 come talk to me about Loveless if you’ve read it 💜 #books #bookstagram #instabooks #oscarwilde #thecantervilleghost #classicliterature #classiclit #bookstack #vanityfair https://www.instagram.com/p/CDg3-TcA2y5/?igshid=1mh5z7o3cssso

[gold-from-straw]

Fanfic ask game

I was tagged AGES ago by @stardustloki and then got distracted!! So here it is lol! I think I might fill this in for original fic for my blog on Wednesday too ^_^

At what age did you start writing fanfiction? Actually, I only learned it was a THING in 2017 (I was 32)!! I stumbled on AO3 by accident and fell in love, and immediately started writing about Loki haha! 

However, when I was 12 or so I did start writing a story about the brothers in the Willard Price books - they were written in the 50s, about two boys who went around the world capturing animals for zoos, and were surprisingly accurate... I probably still have that story. I was Roger’s twin sister in the story, and I think the big brother Hal got shot. It was very angst. I have no idea how it was meant to end lmao!

Who is your favorite author?

Aahhh this is pretty hard! I think Alice Oseman (@chronicintrovert), Radio Silence is possibly my favourite book ever, but I’ve also always loved Kate Atkinson (though she’s very dark) and Dorothy Koomson... and Terry Pratchett obviously! And also Haruki Murakami... I understand literally nothing he writes, but I love it anyway, he just does these THINGS with language and I drift away in bliss!

My favourite fanfic author... oh god, how do I choose?? @ikeracity - I would probably read everything they write, especially Cherik! And STARSdidathing for Frostiron mutual pining! And shiiit so many Drarry writers... @llendrinall definitely!! Their HP universe is mind blowing!! And Saras_girl! I got a non-fandom person into fanfic by sending their sliding doors AU to her, she STILL talks about it!

Favorite type of scene to write?

Aaaaannnggsssttttt. I love writing angst and hurt/comfort, particularly really self-indulgent hurt/comfort. I use writing as part of my therapy, and I find it particularly helpful to write someone going through things I’ve experienced, and then having a person give them what they need. It makes me feel like I’ve received that help too.

What is your favorite fanfic?

Oh god... OK, I can’t choose just one, as you’ve probably been able to tell from before lol! So here’s a bunch! Erik Lehnsherr’s Guide To Saving The Universe by Madneto and Pangea - basically the Fifth Element AU where Charles is Leeloo but NOT Born Sexy Yesterday. Been There, Done That by AsYouWish (a time loop of X-Men First Class). Veiled Truths by @ikeracity is VERY close to my heart but PLEASE check the tags first. Turn, by Saras_Girl (The Drarry fic I sent to my non-fandom friend). Life Skills Outside the Curriculum by @llendrinall - that one with the BEST alternative magic basically invented by street-kid Harry. And Like The Cycle Of The Year... by @katherynefromphilly - it’s commonly accepted as Merlin season 6, it just IS. Fractals of a Criminal Mind by STARSdidathing (or really anything by STARS tbh...). The Housemates Series by @coneycat - a crossover of Thor 1 and Being Human, which is the first thing I remember absolutely LOVING on AO3 (I still re-read it) And THIS!! Few Experience (What You Really Are) by @flightinflame is a WIP but I’m lucky enough to have read ahead and HOLY COW GUYS BOOKMARK THIS!! It’s got Charles being all BAMF and dark (or is he...?) and Erik... Erik is brilliant and so brave and his past is revealed so organically, it’s WONDERFUL!

What tags do you avoid like the plague?

I am very careful with self-harm, and especially with anything about CSA, non-con, incest and underage

What AU do you wish to write but feel like you won’t manage?

I’d LOVE to see something that was prompted on the Cherik discord, where the guys from Umbrella Academy end up in the Xavier school when they time travel to the Vietnam war era, where Charles is sinking into depression, and decide ‘hey, you’re our new dad!’ I don’t know the Umbrella Academy NEARLY well enough but I would LOVE to read that!

What has been your favorite story to write so far?

I actually don’t know!! I am very attached to all of my stories lol! There are some I’ve found difficult to write, others I put too much of myself in for them to be enjoyable (writing therapy lol) and a few that I wrote almost obsessively trying to spill all the words out in one go! But I think the one I had a load of FUN with the universe and creating the magic system was Spectres, where Loki is a mythical creature a bit like something Miyazaki would put in his films (that was the aesthetic I was going for) and Tony was a monk who is officially there to fight him, but actually just flirts a lot. Then Peter (Tony’s apprentice) goes missing, and Loki helps get him back. I just wrote that thinking ‘I have NO IDEA where all this insanity is coming from but I will ride the heck out of this wave!’ It was fun!

Do you prefer to write one-shots or multi-chapters? Why?

Multi-chapters, definitely - I like coming up with plot, breaking my characters, and fixing them again to make them happier than they were before (and would be in canon!)

What is your favorite kind of comment?

God, any of them!! I have someone who writes <3 on my fics, on whatever chapter they read, and I am very fond of them! Some people write me an entire LITERARY CRITIQUE of my story and I feel very unworthy of such hard work and attention (that was @amordantia - it was an essay. I would have printed it out and kept it in my diary if my printer wasn’t utterly useless). I had someone recently write ‘what the fuck?? This has no right to be as good as it is!’ on a crackfic, and that just made me laugh so hard. Oh, and someone once wrote ‘I’ve never heard of this TV series but I’ll read everything you write because I know it’s worth it’ and I just... wanted to bow down and worship them.

Why did you start writing fanfiction? Why are you still writing it?

...I really wanted to. That’s basically it? I have been writing original fic for years, and I’d already self-published my first book by the time I found out about fanfic, I think (or else those two things were very close together), so writing fanfic was just... I really wanted to. I had plot bunnies. I still write it for that reason now, only I’m massively incentivised by the actual HEROIN that is comments and kudos?!?! It’s THE BEST feeling ever to have people read your work and enjoy it ;_;

I’ve tagged a LOAD of people in the body of this! If it’s your thing, have a go! If you’re reading this as you scroll past, consider that I’m tagging you too! Fly, my pretties...

[sbblake]

Tbh i think a Lot about how every time Nick is with Charlie and in a situation/place where he clearly expresses feeling unsure/nervous/uncomfortable about something he almost immediately goes to look for/look at Charlie (see: when Nick wanted to tell the group at Tara’s party that he gave Charlie his hicky, when he went to leave the room at Charlie’s sleepover before he came out to Imogen, when Nick’s dad asked if him or Charlie had found girlfriends yet at the Nelson+Spring dinner get together, when Nick got overwhelmed and started to panic at the bonfire party, etc etc) because THAT IS HIS COMFORT PERSON!! THAT’S NICK’S ROCK!! Charlie makes Nick feel safe and comfortable and grounded in situations where he struggles to feel those ways on his own!! All he has to do in a stressful situation is turn his head and see that Charlie is right beside him, and he isn’t going anywhere any time soon, and just his mere presence is enough to sooth Nick’s worries and/or give him the confidence he needs to deal with whatever it is that’s bothering him. Charlie is the eye of Nick’s storms. He takes one look at his boyfriend, Charlie will give him that small, reassuring smile/look, and everything starts to feel, at the very least, just that much easier and more bearable for Nick to handle because at the end of the day he knows that if everything goes to shit he’ll still have Charlie by his side, and what could matter more than that? Nick Nelson loves Charlie Spring, when he said Charlie was his favorite person in s1, HE MEANT IT!! Charlie encourages Nick in such subtle and seemingly minuscule ways that are always extremely effective in giving Nick those little nudges he sometimes needs (to be reminded that !! hey everything’s alright I’m here for u !!) because of how much they love eachother and i just think that is such a sweet, sweet thing :(

Tldr ; Sometimes I remember how Kit Connor once said Charlie is like home to Nick and therefor i am once again Narlie brainrotting

[tracle0]

11/11 (make a wish)

I was tagged by @the-unwritten-writer​ (HI HELLO) for these cool kid questions which can I just say :D I’ve seen this one before and it looks cool so thank you for tagging me! Rules: Answer the 11 questions of the person who tagged you, make up 11 questions, then tag 11 people to answer them.

Read more under the cut because Long Post

When did you start calling yourself a writer? I think it was around 2016? I’d been writing since 2013 but always casually, always because I wanted to, it was never serious. But I wrote Sonder for the first time in 2016 so I went ‘huh well I wrote this entire novel - guess I’m a writer.

What type of music do you listen to on the daily? Would you say it reflects your writing? I’ve been listening to this playlist I made for walking a lot recently (because I’m walking a lot lol) and you’d be hard-pressed to find a song in there that I don’t associate with a story.

Do you write more in the day or the night? Which do you prefer? I think I prefer writing in the day because I don’t get hecking tired, but I write mostly during the night. 

Do you prefer writing things out on paper, or typing them? Typing 100% - my handwriting SUCKS so not being able to read what I’ve written is a major issue. Although I did once write in a notebook and when it came to editing, I had a Good Time with that. 

What’s something you’ve had to Google for your WIP (or anything you’ve written) that would make someone pretty suspicious out of context? Beyond the usual ‘how much blood does a person have to lose before they die’ and ‘bullet wound fatality’ - Collateral had me searching up so many illegal things. Hacking based especially. 

Who was your first OC? Tell me about them! Oh no uhhhh my first first OC? That’d be like an imaginary animal or something. We could just go with... let’s just go with the first OC I can fully remember.  Oh, wait it’s Andy that’s no better.  Okay, he’s this punk who really isn’t in the wrong - he’s a hungry kid who wants to Not Be Hungry and is willing to do borderline anything to make sure he’s not. Most of the time he can be found snarking at people or, if it’s winter, ice skating around. Like everyone who lives in Glalis, he has white hair because Edgy Trade Is Edgy, and he wears a red hoodie 84% of the time. While I was writing Sonder, I also wore a red hoodie 84% of the time. Coincidence? 

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received? Write.  Or the advice to cut down on the word ‘just’ because holy heck did I overuse that.

Who’s your favorite author? What do you admire most about them and/or their writing? I don’t have one so have a list:  I admire Alice Oseman for tackling topics that are IMPORTANT but no-one talks about (RADIO SILENCE I’M LOOKING AT YOU) and for her dedication to her craft (Heartstopper, anyone?). I admire Sarah Barnard for talking about girls being friends in the same way people talk about romance (Beautiful Broken Things broke my fucking heart). I admire Michael Grant for approaching issues he’s faced himself and putting them into fiction (Messenger Of Fear primarily, I don’t think he’s been stuck in the FAYZ before). I admire Scott Westerfeld for having such a freaking diverse range of books (I’ve read most of them. I love most of them).  I admire Adam Silvera for writing a book I needed desperately and also for unashamedly writing about his own issues (History Is All You Left Me is so tender man). I admire Rebecca Stead for writing for an under-represented market and making it So Damn Good (Liar and Spy is such a good book go read it). I’ll stop for now c;

How much research do you put into your writing? Are they quick Google searches, or lengthy research sessions? It depends - Sonder was mostly a ‘shit wait how does this thing work’ and a quick Google search. Collateral I am still in the process of revising for, and it’s been two years. So - depends how much experience I have in the topics I’m writing about.  WIP 3 I plan to literally learn the basics of the violin which will not be a small thing, so it’s looking like a big project again

Do you have a pet? Can I see them, please!? Yes, we have a tortoise named Georgie, she’s under this question thing because the formatting is angry at me.

If you weren’t a writer, what else do you think you’d be doing? Probably trying to be an artist of some sort. Maybe an animator? Something in the media, definitely. Making stories. Reading books. 

She ((screm))

Tagging: @kaatiba @timetravelingpigeon @minnowf @thatfizzyyyy @joyful-soul-collector @albatris @aroaceauthor @writing-and-nutmeg @alexis-writes-sometimes @hyba and @dove-actually to answer these questions 

(but like only if you want to yo)

1) What’s the first book you remember reading?  2) What’s the first book/story you remember writing?  3) What’s a piece of media (book, series, film, whatever) that you go back to when you’re sad?  4) Can you draw parallels between your OCs and characters in published fiction? If so, list a few (or all of them I’m not your boss) 5) Think of an OC. Any OC. Now express their general mood in their story in one (1) emoji. 6) What’s a plot point that makes you cackle when you think about it because omg it’s such good writing? 7) Have you ever done an Accidental Smart in your writing? If so, what? 8) What songs do you associate with your stories?  9) Are you better at dialogue or description?  10) Have you ever gotten better at doing something because you put it in a story and had to research? If so, what?  11) Have you had a drink of water recently? Go on, drink some water. It’s good for you.

[thebookiemonster14]

2017 End Of Year Book Survey!

2017 was One Hell Of A Year in all senses of the phrase, but I did get a lot of reading done! This survey is apparantly taken from The Perpetual Page Turner so yeah, credits to them :)

2017!

Books read: 54 (find them here!)

1. Best Book You Read In 2017?

It would have to be Vicious by VE Schwab (amongst very stiff competition I have to add!)

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t? 

The Love Interest by Cale Dietrich. Incredible premise, I just think it could have been pulled off differently.

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?

One Of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus. Kind of expected it to be a trashy contemporary, it kind of was but W O W that plot twist!!  

4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?

Probably Strange The Dreamer by Laini Taylor.

5. Best series you started in 2017?

The Girl at Midnight trilogy by Melissa Grey.

Best Sequel of 2017?

Ash and Quill by Rachel Caine because OHMYGOD THAT ENDING

Best Series Ender of 2017?

A CONJURING OF LIGHT BY VE SCHWAB

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2017?

I’m so late to the party but PATRICK NESS

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?

Probably The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern as Big Books Scare Me

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick. Read it in about an hour.

9. Book You Read In 2017 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

Possibly Solitaire by Alice Oseman?

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2017?

Ohhh definitely The Girl at Midnight by Melissa Grey.

11. Most memorable character of 2017?

Probably Victor Vale in Vicious by VE Schwab. (Lots of Vs.)

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2017?

Most definitely Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor.

13. Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2017? 

Far and away Troublemakers by Catherine Barter.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2017 to finally read?  

ARI AND DANTE!

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2016?

I rlly can’t be bothered looking for this sorry

16. Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2017?

Shortest is probably The Silver Mask by CC & HB because THEYRE COWARDS and longest was Strange The Dreamer

17. Book That Shocked You The Most

Either Ash and Quill by Rachel Caine, One Of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus, or The Silver Mask.

18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)

Once again, The Silver Mask (LITERAL SOUL MATES, PEOPLE!)

19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

Julia and Maddie from Code Name Verity.

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2017 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

Literally any of the 3 books by VE Schwab.

21. Best Book You Read In 2017 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure

How To Be A Woman by Caitlin Moran

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2017?

Dorian from The Girl At Midnight!

23. Best 2017 debut you read?

I think The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas has to be this one!

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?

Ooooh probably Ash and Quill by Rachel Caine, she’s excellent at worldbuilding. Either that or All The Crooked Saints.

25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?

The Because You Love To Hate Me anthology (I have vivid memories of the giant story)

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2017?

I think the holy trinity of books for this question is Troublemakers by Catherine Barter, Radio Silence by Alice Oseman, and A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness.

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

I think A List of Cages by Robin Roe!

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (WHY)

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2017?

The Wicker King by K. Ancrum by far!

30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?

Once again, THE SILVER BLOODY MASK

Looking Forward...

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2017 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2018?

American War by Omar el-Akkad - very appropriate, I must say!

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2017 (non-debut)?

(hopefully) Vengeful by VE Schwab!

3. 2017 Debut You Are Most Anticipating? 

Oooooh Dread Nation by Justina Ireland!

4. Series Ending/A Sequel You Are Most Anticipating in 2017?

Because I am complete helpless trash, Magisterium: The Golden Tower aka THE END OF MAGISTERIUM WHICH IVE FOLLOWED SINCE BOOK 1

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging Life In 2017?

Stop procrastinating reading in the first half of the year!

[lookingforfairies]

Rules: Answer the 20 questions and tag 20 amazing followers you’d like to get to know better!

Tagged by: @lovelycutiesdanandphil, @lesterscorgi, @softlestell (Thank you guys so much I’m honoured you thought of me! Ahhhh ily!)

Name: Runa

Nicknames: Runi, Runibert (by my mum sometimes), Anur (mostly by people who know me from middleschool. that’s my name backwards geddit?)

Zodiac Sign: Aries (even though I would have almost been a pisces and I identify a lot more with that)

Height: 1.75m (I think? idk)

Orientation: who knows ;)

Nationality: German

Favourite fruit: watermelon

Favourite season: summer!!! I want to wear shorts and summer dresses again!

Favourite book: Radio Silence by Alice Oseman (@chronicintrovert on tumblr - check her out!)

Favourite flower: cornflower

Favourite scent: the scent of home

Favourite colour: some dark-ish shade of red-pink (is there a name for it?)

Favourite animal: manatee

Coffee/tea/hot chocolate: hot chocolate

Average hours of sleep: 6 on week days, 9 on the weekend

Cat or dog person: cats??? not sure

Favourite fictional character: Aled Last from Radio Silence or Colin Singleton from An Abundance of Katherines or Alisa from Die Erben der Nacht (this is very hard for me ok)

Number of blankets you sleep with: 1

Dream trip: somewhere I’ve never been before

Blog created: October 2016

Number of followers: 94

Random Fact: I would die for my best friend chocolate

I tag: @huilens, @soft-pink-sheets, @philling-trashy, @iamnotonfirelmao, @causeimjustateenagefangirlbaby, @vivianadichiara

(Feel free to ignore this if you don’t want to or if you’ve already done it)

[stardusted-owl]

Tagged by:  @consultingzoologist

Name: Kristine

Star sign: Gemini

Height: 5′10″

Put your iTunes or Spotify on shuffle. What are the first 4 songs that popped up

1.  Black Wave - The Shins

2. The Judge - Twenty One Pilots

3. San Francisco - Gregory Alan Isakov

4. A Maker of My Time - The Paper Kites

Have you ever had a poem or song written about you?

Nope (or at least not as far I know)

When was the last time you played guitar?

Uhhh several years ago? And then I was just trying to teach myself how to play it Who is your celebrity crush?

I know I have a couple but my mind just goes blank every time I go to answer this

What’s a sound you hate and a sound you love?

Hate: Sometimes there’s this really low pitched sound by my parents house, I think the source might be a train?, and it tends to gives me a headache so I’m not very fond of it

Love: Wind chimes. There’s few hanging by my window and I love it every time a breeze comes through

Do you drive?

I haven’t for a while, but hopefully I will be again soon

What was the last book you read?

The last book I read, but haven’t gotten a chance to finish, was Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman. I’m not sure what the last book I finished was. Maybe Radio Silence by Alice Oseman?

Do you like the smell of gasoline?

Not really

What’s the worst injury you’ve ever had?

I’m not sure which the worst one was. I’ve had a few cuts that probably should have gotten stitches but didn’t (the worst one happen when I was really little and I still have a noticeable scar and vivid memories). I’ve sprained my ankle pretty badly. I once got a bad enough concussion in gym class that I think I got to go home early, but at that point I really wasn’t paying attention to things and if I remember right that class was at the end of the day anyways, so maybe not.

Do you have an obsession right now?

Not at the moment

Do you tend to hold grudges against people who have done you wrong?

Sometimes

In a relationship?

Nope

[lostinastory]

Since I’ve been on vacation for half of July and August, I’ve decided to it wrap it up at once, but that means this will be a very long wrap-up. I have read a lot over the summer (by which I mean A LOT). So I hope you will still enjoy this, even though it’s very long!

July

I read in total 14 books in July. Which is mind-blowingly much, I don’t know if that’s a word but wow just wow. I’m going to try to keep it as short as possible because otherwise this post will never end.

Blink by Malcolm Gladwell – ★★★★ I was recommended this by my psychology teacher and I really enjoyed it! It was really interesting. This is a pop-science book about mainly how people judge and what happens in those milliseconds in which we make up our mind.

Fallen Flame by J.M. Miller – ★★★☆ I enjoyed this book, I didn’t love it but it was pretty good. Review here!

City of Betrayal by Claudie Arseneault ★★★☆ This is the second book in the City of Spires and I really liked both the first and second book. Both were a little too slow paced I think, but overall I really enjoyed them! Review here!

The Butterfly on Fire by E.L. Croucher ★★★☆ I loved part of this book and the other part not so much. It was really cool though, because the author mixed a contemporary with a fantasy storyline. Review here!

Cinder by Marissa Meyer ★★★★★ This was a reread with the YA Book Bloggers group on goodreads and I loved it!

Chasing Eveline by Leslie Hauser ★★★☆ I did not like the beginning much but I loved it near the ending! Review here!

Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust ★★★★★ I loved this book so much! It was magical and the characters were complex and interesting and I think Melissa Bashardoust should write all the retellings because this was amazing. Review here!

Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins ★★★★ This book was just fun. Not spectacular but really enjoyable.

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab ★★★★★ This was my first Schwab book and I think I’m in love. I’ve heard this was one of the lesser books and I cannot imagine how her other books could be even better. LOVED IT.

Solitaire by Alice Oseman ★★★ Since I absolutely loved Radio Silence, I was expecting to love this as well but it was kind of disappointing. I really did not like the main character Tori. She was rude and overly negative and kind of insensitive at times. The story was predictable and I had guessed most of the “big reveal” way before it happened. I did love the fandom references and side characters though! Review here!

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff ★★★★★ I have never read a book like this before. I started out with listening to the audiobook and reading the physical book at the same time but after a while the audiobook started to become a little annoying because it was so slow! And they read all the headers and such out loud, which takes forever. This book managed to make me feel heartbroken, angry, anxious, excited, happy and terrified. All at the same time. IT WAS EPIC AND I NEED GEMINA RIGHT NOW PLEASE THANK YOU. Review here!

The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson ★★★★ I really missed the diversity in this book (I kind of shipped Toby and Bri – both girls – but that never happened 😦 ). I think it could have been so much more!

The Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin ★★★★★  I LOVED Riley. Riley is genderfluid and it was so interesting to read about! I loved the side characters too and I don’t know what to say to make you go read it. Just read it.

Heartless by Marissa Meyer ★★★★ I was warned for the ending, so I was actually expecting it to be even worse *SPOILER IN WHITE* I kind of expected Cath to kill Jest, but that didn’t happen *END OF SPOILER*. I loved the world and I really liked the characters. It was so whimsical and fun!

August

Again I read 14 books in August which is something I still cannot understand. How?? Anyway, let’s get into it:

The Inexplicable Logic of My Life by Benjamin Alire Sáenz ★★★☆ I don’t know what to think of this book, I wasn’t particularly attached to the characters, and this was a very character-based book. I did love the family-focus!

A Million Worlds With You by Claudia Gray ★★★☆ This book sadly just wasn’t quite the epic conclusion I was hoping it would be. It was fun but the build-up and the ending could have been so much better! Review here!

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo ★★★★★ BRILLIANT. EPIC. AMAZING. LOVED IT.

The Geography of Me And You by Jennifer E. Smith ★★★ This was a filler book, I could read this for free from my library app and I didn’t feel like reading any of the other books I brought so I read it. It was fun but that was about all I can say about it.

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandya Manon ★★★★ I wouldn’t say this was as great as everyone seems to say it was, but it was much fun! I missed the science/app developing aspect to it, but it was very funny so I guess that kind of makes up for it?

Night of Cake and Puppets by Laini Taylor ★★★★★ This Daughter of Smoke and Bone companion was sooo cute omg I died. I ADORE ZUZANNA. I want her to be my best friend please.

Let’s Get Lost by Adi Alsaid ★★★★ For a book that was mostly about Leila, it has surprisingly little of Leila in it. She was a bit manic pixie dream girl-ish, but near the end, you got a bit more insight into her and I really liked that part! I did not love Bree’s part, but that was mainly because I didn’t really like Bree.

Geekerella by Ashley Poston ★★★★☆ I reread this because I felt like it and I loved it so much. I’m giving this even an extra half-star after reading it for the second time. I loved the fandom references so much and I NEED Starfield in my life!! I NEED IT.

Flame in the Mist by Renée Ahdier ★★★★ I thought this was a standalone but it wasn’t??? It was a bit slow but I loved the worldbuilding and I even liked the romance although it was a little unnecessary. I wouldn’t say it was amazing but I do am really interested in reading the next book!

A Darker Shade of Magic by Victoria Schwab ★★★★★ THIS WAS SO GOOD I NEED ALL OF SCHWABS BOOKS NOW Review here!

Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne ★★★★★ How did the entire book community fail to tell me how brilliant this book is????? (okay, I’ve heard some things about it but still, it needs all the hype) It was feministic and I adored the friendship and it was about mental health and I was already planning on buying the other books in the series before I was even finished.

The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner ★★★★★ If you didn’t know it yet, this is one of my favourite books of all time and I’ve already read it twice this year soooo it’s fair to say I love it.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas ★★★☆ I think this book had more potential, the writing felt a little flat to me and I couldn’t connect to the characters. The message is very important though.

T is For Tree by Greg Fowler ★★★ I really need to think about this one. A review will be up soon.

A Quick Look at My TBR

What I added to my tbr but haven’t read yet:

Things I’m Seeing Without You, This Mortal Coil and Good Angel are all eARCs and the rest I just NEED TO READ. ASAP.

The current state of my tbr is 29 books, which is 4 books less than in June!

How was your summer? Did you get a lot of reading done? Or are any of these books on your tbr? I’d love to hear your thoughts if you read any of these! (and the chances are pretty high you’ve read at least one of all of these books haha)

July & August Wrap-up | Warning: it’s a long one Since I've been on vacation for half of July and August, I've decided to it wrap it up at once, but that means this will be a very long wrap-up.

[rathertoofondofbooks]

WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words. It’s open for anyone to join in and is a great way to share what you’ve been reading! All you have to do is answer three questions and share a link to your blog in the comments section of Sam’s blog.

The three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

A similar meme is run by Lipsyy Lost and Found where bloggers share This Week in Books #TWiB.

What I’m reading now:

My Dear I Wanted to Tell You by Louisa Young

I’ve had this book on my TBR since 2012 so I thought it was about time I finally picked it up. I’m really enjoying it and wishing I’d picked it up sooner!

Dead Woman Walking by Sharon Bolton

I’m still very much enjoying this book but haven’t managed much reading from a screen, even my kindle, this week as my eyes have been really sore. I hope to get back to this very soon though as it’s such a great read.

The Comfort of Others by Kay Langdale

This book has also fallen by the wayside a bit this week due to my fall last weekend as I’ve been struggling to hold print books even more than normal. I really hope I can get back to this soon as it’s a beautiful novel.

How to Survive a Plague by David France

I’ve read a bit more of this book this week and am still finding it such a powerful read. I really hope to have time to read a big chunk of it soon as I think it is a book to really make time for.

What I recently finished reading:

Block 46 by Johana Gustawsson

This book is one that will stay with me. It’s such a harrowing read at times and yet one that you can’t stop thinking about when you’re not reading it. I’m actually on the blog tour for this today so you can read my review here if you’d like to.

The Wild Air by Rebecca Mascull

This book is wonderful – I enjoyed every single second of reading it and highly recommend you pick it up soon. I reviewed this for the blog tour this week so you can read that here if you want to know more.

Foxlowe by Eleanor Wasserberg

I’ve had this on my TBR for a little while now so when I spotted it was available on my audio subscription service I decided to listen to it. I really enjoy it and listened to it in just two sittings.

The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald

This book is brilliant, I can’t believe I’d not read it before now because once I picked it up I couldn’t put it down. There was so much in this short novel that I already feel like I want to read it again! I highly recommend this if you’ve not read it before.

Radio Silence by Alice Oseman

This is another novel that I listened to over the last week. I’m not sure what I was excepting this to be about but it turned out to be something different – I still really enjoyed it though. It’s a YA novel but it’s done really well and I now want to listen or read the author’s first novel.

Titanic Lives by Richard Davenport-Hines

I found this audio book very interesting. I already knew quite a lot about the people involved with Titanic but there were things I didn’t know that I learnt from this book, which were fascinating. I recommend this if you’re interested in Titanic.

What I plan on reading next:

Into the Water by Paula Hawkins

I had this on pre-order and it arrived on my Kindle yesterday. I was so keen to start reading it immediately but need to finish one of my current reads first – hopefully I can start it today or tomorrow though!

  What are you reading at the moment? Have you finished any good books recently? Any books you’re looking forward to reading soon? Please feel free to join in with this meme and share your link below, or if you don’t have a blog please share in the comments below.

WWW Wednesday (3 May) What are you reading today? WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words. It’s open for anyone to join in and is a great way to share what you’ve been reading!