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Review: Fire Star

The Last Dragon Chronicles book 3: Fire Star by Chris D’Lacey ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4 out of 5. Book 3! I remember the first time I bought this book. I was in third grade and the Scholastic book fair came through my school. I bought it for my brother; he was so excited. Read: November 13 – November 17, 2023 Book contains: breaking the laws of physics, kidnapping, religious judgement, character…

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My 2024 TBR

It’s that time again. I did this for the first time last year, and I managed to read 104 books in 2023. Crazy! Anyway, I ran into a few problems throughout the year, mostly being that I wanted to complete my list, but it limited me to books I already had in 2022, so I had to sneak books in here and there if I wanted to read them. Plus, I didn’t have enough time to read ARC books, which I want to…

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Review: Icefire

The Last Dragon Chronicles book 2: Icefire by Chris D’Lacey ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4 out of 5. Here’s book 2 of the series. The first one didn’t have much about the dragons, but I remember vaguely that it starts getting a lot more real in this one. No more squirrels; we’ve moved on to hedgehogs. Read: November 13 – November 17, 2023 Book contains: evil witch, pregnancy(?) More Dragon Magic in This…

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Orcs in Fiction

The idea of orcs is widely credited to fantasy author J.R.R. Tolkien, but that is incorrect. The term orc/ork refers to a humanoid hellbeast or demon, and its earliest reference is all the way back in Beowulf in the 1000s. Origins In the Old English language, orke closely resembles the term ogre, though the term is likely to have originated from the Roman death deity, Orcus, which in turn…

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Review: The Fire Within

The Last Dragon Chronicles book 1: The Fire Within by Chris D’Lacey ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4 out of 5. I started this series all the way back in elementary school with my mom, but we never finished reading them all, so I wanted to reread them now and see what I missed. Read: November 6 – November 10, 2023 Book contains: out-of-control lawnmower An Excellent Choice for Reading to Kids Twenty-year-old…

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New Website!

I’m leaving WordPress! While the service has been useful to me for the past two years, it is quite expensive and does not give me the kind of design control I’m looking for. I’ve since created a new website entirely from scratch, using the coding and website design skills I learned during university. If you still wish to follow along with my articles and book reviews, fear not! You can subscribe…

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Review: Crime and Punishment

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky ⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 3 out of 5. Another gift from my dear friend Emma, back in high school. On her note to me about the book, she wrote, “This is a serious Russian novel that I hope you enjoy reading!” I did, in fact, enjoy it. Read: October 30 – November 3, 2023 Book contains: murder, guilt, mental illness Hard to Get Into; Enjoyed it by the…

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My Top 10 Favourite Plot Twists

Plot twists are fun to read and even more fun to write. They can be small things or big things, so long as they’re something that ruffles some feather in the plot. Personally, I think the best plot twists are the big ones—the ones that are hinted at time and time again, only for the reveal to blow everything out of the water. I’ve compiled a list of my personal favourites, in alphabetical order,…

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Review: American Gods

American Gods by Neil Gaiman ⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 3 out of 5. I’ve become a fan of Gaiman’s work, so, after reading Good Omens, Neverwhere, and Coraline, that I would try other works of his. I bought this copy at the same time as the others. Read: October 23 – October 27, 2023 Book contains: foul language, explicit sexual content, death, cheating A Complex Web and a Great Story Recently released…

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Vampires in Fiction II

I thought I’d have another go at this topic since the last one was so well-liked, and since I have more to say about vampires. These undead creatures (people?) have gone from stone-cold horror villains in Bram Stoker’s Dracula to hot and mysterious love interests in the more modern-day books like The Vampire Diaries and Twilight. [Related Reviews: Dracula by Bram Stoker; The Twilight Saga book 1:…

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Review: Midnight Sun

The Twilight Saga Companion Novel: Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 3.5 out of 5. This book annoys me slightly, only because, though it’s hardcover, it’s slightly taller than the rest of the books I have in the series. Why do people do that? Make books of the same series in different sizes? Paperbacks vs hardcovers, I understand, but to change the design right at the end? It breaks…

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Inclusive Writing

Disclaimer: This is a difficult subject to discuss. I will do my best to write with the utmost sensitivity, but I cannot speak for all races, ages, sexualities, genders, or body types. I can only write what can be deemed by logic, and I acknowledge that I’m also subject to personal bias based on my upbringing and the media I consume. I would appreciate that any flaws in this article be addressed…

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Review: Breaking Dawn

The Twilight Saga book 4: Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer ⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 3 out of 5. This is the last official book of the Twilight Saga, but I still have the companion novel Midnight Sun to read after this. After that, I’ll watch all the movies; I’ve been avoiding watching then so as not to affect my impression of the books. Read: October 9 – October 13, 2023 Book contains: kissing, allusion…

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How to Do Book Research

Even if you’re the type of person who just sits down and writes a story, research is essential to its quality. Writing a book without doing the appropriate research for it is just sloppy writing, and if you think otherwise, you’re a bad writer. (There, I said it.) It may be harsh, but it is only the truth. Even experts do additional research when they’re writing to ensure accuracy. If you’re…

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Review: The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner

The Twilight Saga Eclipse Novella: The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer ⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 3 out of 5. Funny story about this: one day I got a call from The Book Man saying that the book was in and available for me to pick up—and I had no idea what the employee on the phone was talking about. When she finally mentioned that it was part of the Twilight Saga, I clued in, but I had no…

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Grammar: Sentence Fragments

A sentence fragment is one of those rules that can (and sometimes should) be broken in fiction, though it’s notoriously hard to do well. Beginner authors who don’t know the extent of the rules often break them incorrectly, which is why you should always know the rules before anything else. So, what is a sentence fragment? Well, first, you must know what a sentence is. A sentence can be made of…

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Review: Eclipse

The Twilight Saga book 3: Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 3.5 out of 5. Another hardcover, which I began after getting back from my vacation! Really looking forward to how this book continues. I should probably watch the first two movies as well… Read: October 2 – October 6, 2023 Book contains: kissing, SA (forced kiss), emotional manipulation, non-graphic attack, mentions of…