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2.15.2022

currently reading: Home Body by Rupi Kaur

i just finished home body actually, but it is as all of kaur's writing is: insightful, wonderful, etc. all of the positive adjectives. a few of the poems really made me consider myself, while others made me consider my position with other women and people. it was a really eye-opening thing to read, honestly. i always love her work.

i also finished the host this week. smeyer finished the novel in a way that she shouldn't have, i was disappointed, but i was not surprised. the book, though, was not an adult book like it's marketed. a few sexy kisses and one talk about birth control does not an adult novel make. so i think i'm officially done with smeyer now. she has given me nothing, so in return, she shall get nothing.

read rupi's poems.

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2.11.2022

currently reading: The Host by Stephenie Meyer

*i bought the book thrifted so she didn't get any money*

i finally finished the shatter me series, which felt good, but i was ultimately disappointed. like i read three books for the series to go on for too long is how it felt. but i've made enough posts about that series so i'm moving on (but if you do want to hear more about my thoughts on the series, feel free to leave asks or message me privately!).

i have wanted to read the host since i first saw the movie when it first came out, but it was too dense for me back then. now, though, it's entertaining, and falls right into the new adult fiction area where it isn't ya but it isn't smut, and i like it. it's also stand-alone which i needed after the six-book series i just read, so it was the perfect time to read it.

side note: this is the first book i've also used color tags and sticky notes to annotate and do an interactive read, and i have to say, it's really fun. i like being able to mark my reactions, and to kind of track when i predict things versus if/when they happen. if you want to know more about this, let me know!

we all feel the same about smeyer. and this book, despite all the things i like about it, continues to prove why we don't really like smeyer.

lets get into it, with the usual spoiler warning of course.

first and foremost, when melanie and jared fall in love, melanie is seventeen and jared is twenty-six. so it's pedophelic in nature, and i literally hate it. there's also no reason for her to be that young when the book starts; it does nothing for the plot. so smeyer is just jumping on the train of really young girls with much older men and not in appropriate age brackets and i don't like it. he's even like "we shouldn't because of our ages" and then still does. nasty. don't like it.

secondly, the souls that take over earth have been to multiple other planets, and some of them choose to keep their names from previous planets, such as faces sun, or fords running waters, or things like that. but most of them are nature based and feel reminicent of indigenous names that we here from first nations and native tribes, and, knowing what we know about the quileutes and smeyer, i feel like there's something nefarious about it, but i could be reading too far into it. it just feels off.

also, the trope where ian tries to kill wanda (literally chokes her) and then falls in love with her? it almost takes enemies to lovers too far, but i see the appeal i suppose. i just don't know where his about face came from, so that's missing something for me. however, the romance between the two of them, and the love...square? between he, melanie, wanda, and jared is very entertaining.

the plot is also pretty well-developed. wanda is hiding from her seeker, feels like she doesn't belong with her kind, bonds with the humans. the thing that i don't get is that there is no secret that wanda has for like 150 pages, then it gets introduced when she thinks the humans are going to torture her, and then they haven't talked about it really since. i don't understand the significance of introducing this if it doesn't seem to be a motivating factor--especially if, with us being inside melanie and wanda's head--we don't know the secret. because instead of us rooting for her and wanting to protect it, we now want it out in the open just so we want it too. it works against us rooting for wanda because why is she keeping secrets from her allies?

anyway, i have about 200 pages left (it's a pretty long-ish book--625 pages) and i think it's gonna be a four star rating. that's how i feel right now anyway. i haven't really gotten bored, and it's interesting to watch wanda become human.

but meyer will be meyer. so...

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1.27.2022

currently reading: Defy Me by Tahereh Mafi

but this post is actually about girl, serpent, thorn by melissa bashardhoust, which i finished last night finally.

spoilers below, per usual. (also spoilers for shatter me by tahereh mafi because i read these at the same time. there's also a book recommendation at the end.)

so this book was unusually difficult for me to read, not because it has trigger warnings or anything but just because it was really slow. like i felt like literally everything was so forced and boring. which is weird, considering i started reading this before i started shatter me and they have very similar concepts: girl can't touch anyone because her touch is lethal; she meets a boy who doesn't care/can touch her and wants to set her free; and then it diverges but by that point i didn't really know that.

anyway, i liked the book, to an extent. the story was a good coming of age, and it was edgy and angsty, and then it had really excellent bisexual representation. i have to credit that. it wasn't the usual rep where the character will just have sex with anyone, or they're so indecisive that they just don't decide, or they're a cheater. they very genuinely have a crush on a boy, and then a crush on a girl, and it's not sexual -- it's so innocent. and i have to credit the book that. i really enjoyed that aspect of the book.

the imagery in the book was also really nice. there was tons of discussion of beauty, and of finding beauty in ugly things, and the unconventional. so a lot of credit to the author for both of these things.

but when it came to the plot, it was so mechanical. it almost felt too easy. she was just able to do all of these things without much resistence and it felt really staged, almost too easy. she didn't have to make that many difficult decisions, besides acting out in anger. and the characters that we really saw were few, and the ones that were developed were even fewer. i felt like this book had the potential to be a series, to delve deeper, and to be so much more interesting. instead it was like a 300-page outline of a trilogy or saga.

so my final comments are that the story was good, and i liked soraya better than i like juliette -- she was less whiny -- but the story was overall less developed. it left me wanting. and i really wanted more of the romance. there is so little bisexual romance where the representation doesn't make bisexuality look belittled or invalid, and i wanted more of it. i like to be represented as much as the next guy.

another good book for bisexual representation, that also has great mental health representation and the love interests aren't just super sexy, overly gorgeous teenagers, is the last true poets of the sea by julia drake. i love, love, love this novel and will probably reread it this year. there are some trigger warnings on that book, but if you want to know more, go back through my posts to find where i talked about it, or message me! i'm always willing to talk about books. there's also a link to the description of the book on goodreads.

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1.25.2022

currently reading: Defy Me by Tahereh Mafi

i am on book 5 of the shatter me series, all five of which i have read (or at least started) in january. i haven't read like this since before high school. devouring a six-book series in less than six weeks? please. couldn't be post-high school me. but uh...post college me? apparently that's what i do now.

and that's not a complaint. i love it. i love reading this much. i love having the time to read much. highly recommend finishing those degrees so you can read all the books you've been meaning to read guys. i wanted to read 50 books last year and i only read 28. this year i'm trying to read 36 -- but we're three weeks into the new year and i've already read 4 so...i see a positive end to this bookish journey. anyway...shatter me thus far (spoilers -- big boy ones):

i've already complained about juliette. but her powers keep changing. like the other kids have pretty static powers, and juliette's just keep getting more complex and growing and i don't know about that.

warner is basic. meh.

kenji -- we are the same age. kenji -- i want him to be transported to this world so that we can go to a bar and get wasted and have an absolute chaotic blast together. he is just so fun and i want to be his friend. i have a purely platonic crush on kenji and if i never meet anyone like kishimoto in my life then i feel like i will not die fulfilled. it's that simple.

in book four, they introduced nazeera. i love her. not platonic. she is a powerful woman and she makes men fall to their knees and cower and she is just amazing. nazeera. nazeera. the people who get it, get it, and the people who don't, don't, and that's the gist of it.

they also introduce valentina, who they imply is our first transgender character in the series, and i stan the representation. there seems to be a lot of diversity in this book that's missed if you only read the first book. like juliette is cishet, warner cishet, adam cisthet -- and all three are white. and then we meet kenji, who's japanese. now we've met the other commanders' kids as well, who are from kenya, argentina, and asia (they don't get more specific), and some of whom are queer. castle is black. nazeera is implied in her description and in her fan art to be muslim, and it's said that she is originally from iraq. there is a decent amount of diversity very nicely spread throughout the series, and i like it. i like it a lot. it also doesn't feel forced.

lena, however, should get shredded right quick by a juliette scream. transphobic, hateful, cruel girl she is.

anyway, warner and juliette have broken up now because warner is a dark and broody sad boy that has "never had a relationship like this before" and doesn't know how to communicate. and juliette's whole life is a lie and she's in crisis so now her screams kill people. it's a whole ordeal that i don't think i'm that fond of -- but i do like the plot twist of her being part of the scheme. i do like the long lost sister trope, i have to be honest. and i do like the fact that there is a picture of warner and juliette together as children, and of juliette with all the commanders' kids when she was a kid -- before the brainwashing. it adds some spice. book four definitely added something to the story, i think. i'm not losing steam like i thought i would. i want to finish the last two books and it doesn't feel like a chore.

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1.19.2022

currently reading: Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi

hi all!

i bought the entire shatter me series last week as a new years gift to myself. the book as been on my mind for years, and i've just been putting it off and putting it off, and then i got a gift card so i bought the six core books. i'm now on book three (started it last night and i'm already over 100 pages in). it's not the best series i've ever read but i am enjoying it. it's like mind candy.

spoilers below

juliette is so whiny in the first two books i almost can't stand it. like, i understand that she's ailed and that she has this hard time with who and what she is because she's done terrible things but like -- come on, dude. you're a badass. where's the villain ark. they threw you in JAIL?

warner in the first book is a trashbag. warner in the second book is less of a trashbag. warner by the third book is the perfectly morally grey character with his dark and twisted past and i am all for it.

adam was the perfect potential to be a second morally grey character. like they totally could have made this even dicier by making his dark and broody past his villain ark too.

take the brother ark. imagine if they KNEW? and they were heinous together and she had to pick between the bad one that wanted her to be bad and the bad one that wanted her to get revenge and be good? like the villain and the pseudo villain? would've loved it even more. instead adam is just -- wait for it -- whiny. he was perfect for first book juliette. third book juliette needs to let whiny adam go.

james is a national treasure.

kenji has my whole heart and if he doesn't become a real person and become my friend by the time i finish this series, i might reread it just for him. he makes the entire series. he makes it all worth it.

the world building in this book is interesting. i like it, i get the gist of it, but i also feel like she really relied on making things possible without fully fleshing it out i forgot the literary term for this and don't even know how to google it ugh . so instead of having like a fully developed world story, we have just enough to be convinced that it's possible without knowing it all, and i'm skeptical. seriously if anyone knows what i'm talking about in literary terms please tell me because it's going to bother me.

anyway i'm still reading away. i have all this free time now that school is over so hopefully i'll meet my thirty-six book goal this year.

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What do you plan on working as when you're done studying ? Asking because where I live, there aren't many job opportunities for an eng major, so I'm curious

Hi there!

I'm working on getting myself into the publishing industry. I did an internship at a local publishing house, formating manuscripts and learning about the intake process, and now that I've graduated, I'm taking on manuscripts to copyedit.

My goal is to be a book editor -- copyediting, line editing, substantive and comprehensive; editing books however authors need. I love working with manuscripts and with authors to get their work where they want it to be.

But remember this about English Degrees: people lie about them. With an English degree, you are so, so marketable. You can copy write for blogs, magazines, medical journals, etc. You can do media work. You can do travel work. If you would prefer the academic route, you can be a teacher, or be a text book editor. You can be an author, or work in the publishing field as a publicist, editor, or so many other things. The thing about majoring in English is that you can read and you can write so you can basically do whatever you want to do. So don't get pigeon holed. If you have a bachelors and you know what you want to do, nearly anywhere will take you. The trick is everywhere wants you to have some sort of experience, so get some sort of foot in the door position somewhere, or find small and local businesses to gain experience.

Hope this was helpful!

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12.29.2021

currently reading: The Folk of the Air Series by Holly Black

pages: just finished

spoilers (?) below

i read this series on recommendation from my friend, and i really did like it, but i have to say that the story itself left me somewhat underwhelmed. like i feel there were so many twists and turns and plot jumps, etc., that not everything felt resolved even though i know it all kind of did get resolved. and i also kind of wanted jude to be worse. like she wasn't a good character, and cardan wasn't a good character, and suddenly in the last twenty pages they gave them both redeeming qualities and i really didn't want them to. i wanted them to stay garbage.

also when madoc gets got he just...accepts it? it's a break in character and i feel like he wouldn't have reacted that way... there was just something wholely unsatisfying with the ending. i felt like fifty more pages would have been acceptable to get us to something more realistic for the finish of this particular story.

it was still a good series over all and i still recommend -- it was a good read, good folk lore story, good enemies to lovers trope, and a good morally gray story. 3.5/5 stars.

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11.26.2021

currently reading: Heartless by Marissa Meyer

i just finished reading a court of mist and fury for the second time this year. its the best book in the acotar series and you can't tell me otherwise. if rhysand came here right now and wanted to kidnap me, i would go willingly.

in other news, i'm now trying to finish heartless because i've been reading it since august and school got in the way of me finishing it. i have about 100 pages left. it's good. i liked the lunar chronicles better, but it is still an attention-grabbing story, so i can't bash it. three and a half or four stars for sure. i'll let you know once i get to the end.

what are you guys reading this holiday season? have you asked for any specific books for christmas or hannukah or the other holidays that come about this time of year?

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11.12.2021

currently reading: The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury -- Heartless by Marissa Meyer -- 1984 by George Orwell

i feel like i apologize every time i come on this website for not being present so i'm just going to skip over that part.

hi all, haven't been doing a ton of reading lately because of school and such, but i have been doing some so i'll give you the lowdown on that. this will be a short post but we'll get right back into it. i'm determined to make a post a week or more from here on out so hopefully i can actually keep up on that promise.

hopefully i will because my goal was to read 50 books this year and i have only read 22, so i'm trying to get as close to that 50 mark as possible (though the odds of me reaching it at this point while also trying to get a's in all my classes for my last college semester are slim...but i'm going to try).

the books that i've been reading most recently:

1. A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas -- four stars 2. Bane's Choice by Alyssa Day -- three stars

spoilers below:

the martian chronicles

so i have not actually read anything by ray bradbury before, but i am reading this and i am absolutely loving it. there is so much social commentary and commentary on colonization and such, as well as it being sci-fi and space exploration. i'm about halfway done with it, and i have to say it is really, really good. recommending it for sure.

a court of silver flames

this is a tome of a novel in the court series by maas, but it's still good. it takes a minute to ge into, but i really liked it, though the action in it i felt was lacking -- it's more a romance and self-discovery novel than anything. it also doesn't focus on rhys and feyre like the original three books do, but i still say it's worth the read. it's a bit dirtier than the other books (a lot of sex -- not that i'm really complaining) but it's good and i would say if you want to round out the stories or keep up with the books that i'm sure to follow it, or nesta's story, it's worth getting into.

bane's choice

mind candy. i'm not really recommending it. i read it. i'm willing to talk about it if people want to, but if you're looking for vampire romances, there are other better ones for sure. twilight ranks higher in my book.

heartless

i've been reading this book since the beginning of the semester and it's really good. i love marissa meyer's work and i really want to finish it so hopefully soon.

1984

i just started it. i'm on page 12, so more on that in a week or so, so long as my school essays and my buddy reads don't prevent me from reading it.

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*falls into room for dramatic purposes* HELLO! *waves* Have you heard that a second Aristotle and Dante book is coming out in October? Because if not: THERE'S A SECOND ONE COMING OUT! I loved the first book and I saw a post of yours saying you're/you were rereading it so in case you didn't know and/or wondering why I seem an excited bastard, THIS BE WHY. I'M SO EXCITED!!!!! I HOPE YOU ARE TOO! Farewell, I wish you luck in your endevours! peace! *slides back out of room*

*squeaks* you said WHAT?

*immediately searches*

Aristotle and Dante is my favorite book. i will be purchasing the sequel. I will read and post about it. I will tag you. thank you.

*faints*

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7.6.2021

trigger warning: this post will discuss s*xual ass*ult and p*doph*lia below the spoiler line as it pertains to the novels that i am reading. please read with discretion.

currently reading: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah -- Into the Wild by Jon Krakaur -- Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

pages: 179 / 289 -- 100 / 207 -- 311 / 389

hi all sorry for being gone for so long, i've been busy with life things. it seems that things never slow down so i never find a moment to read, let alone post, but i'm trying. i've also been writing lately as well, which makes me feel amazing. so hopefully i'll get back into the swing of posting soon, though i always say that so we shall see :).

the first two of these books is for school and the last i am reading for a book club/read-a-long. i have discussions of the books below. there are spoilers so please don't read if these books interest you.

born a crime

i have learned so much from this book about apartheid, the very first being that it happened, because i'd never heard about it until this point. i highly recommend this book because it's an excellent mix of coming of age, self reflection, and reflection on the government and political climates from around the world. there is so much to learn from this book, both in fact and from personal experience. i don't know anything about noah outside of this novel -- i don't watch his shows or his comedy or anything -- but i do recommend this book. especially if you are white. read non-white books and educate!

into the wild

this book is...it's interesting. it has intrigue. but it is definitely written as if alex/chris is a hero and he really isn't. he didn't do anything significant, he died because of a dumb mistake, and the author even admits to him not being the first or last person to succumb to the alaskan wilderness, so why is he being idolized? the journey is intriguing. i'm fascinated by the puzzle that krakaur pieced together in order to tell this story. the journalism and detective work is there. but the story...i don't know. i'll reassess once i've finished. it is mildly eerie though and i kind of dig that.

norwegian wood

trigger warning: discussion of SA and pedophilia below

this book is considered a masterpiece. it's, like, highly acclaimed, described as profound...

except the representation of mental health is poor, the representation of women is worse, the representation of lgbtq+ folks is downright offensive, and he...glorified p*d*phelia? and r*pe? i just...i am incredibly shocked, angry, and offended by this book honestly. i can't believe that it's still in print and highly acclaimed? it's not a coming of age love story but like an ego stroke for this Nick-esque, non-character who only thinks about sex and has not one single original or driving thought in his head?

and don't even get me started on the portrayal of women. they're all basically glorified sex objects, just there to be ogled by the men in the story. they have no personality or redeeming factors of their own. and when they don't get what they want they have mental breakdowns and have to be hospitalized. like that's how we're going to represent women and mental illness?

things i considered: this book was written in the 80s, based in the 60s, in japan, so there is an entirely different dynamic and expectation in literature then versus now in 2021 america. except -- except there is no excuse for anyone to allow writing a sex scene -- and a really detailed one at that -- between a thirteen year old and a thirty two year old -- and have that be an account of rape instigated by the little girl. because either way the 32 year old is at fault. also this encounter was between two females, and the woman feels guilty for being so turned on and shit by a woman, not offended by the fact that she was an actual child so i just don't? someone please help me understand.

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5.23.2021

currently reading:

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz -- pages 294 / 359 -- reread

What I Thought Was True by Huntley Fitzpatrick -- pages 43 / 422 -- first time

How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster -- pages 32 / 314 -- reread / educational

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas -- pages 0 / 433 -- buddy read

sorry i've been gone for three months. i haven't read a single book because school has been awful and i've been in a very severe reading rut. but i'm back, i have no game plan, i'm reading what strikes me. the list above is what's going on right now, some have popped up on my feed before, some are new to me, some are new to you but not to me.

a very brief discussion of each of the books above:

1. aristotle and dante is the best book i've ever read and everyone should go read it right now thank you.

2. what i thought was true was written by the same author that wrote my favorite romance novel and honestly...so far i should have stopped at the other two books that fitzpatrick read because this one is kind of stock character palooza.

3. how to read literature... is an academic book that i'm reading to help me with my reading and writing abilities and anyone who's looking at literature in a serious light should probably take a glance at it. it really helped me in my analysis classes.

4. acotar i have started and now am restarting for a buddy read but i have to say so far...it's kind of predictable and feels like the author has a lot of hands on with what's happening in the story. kind of disappointed after all the hype the story gets but i'm determined to read it.

some links:

i gave up on the montly lists and defaulted to a yearly of the books that i have completed.

you can always ask me for personalized recommendations or give me recommendations for books you think i should peek at, through direct messages or through my asks . i would love to interact with more folks on here so don't hesitate to reach out about bookish things.

if you guys want to know what i'm reading and want to read along with me, feel free to dm me because i'm no longer making plans for what i'm reading. i'm picking from one closed cover to the next opened one.

hopefully i will post again before the next seven day period is up with an update and a plan as to how the blog is going to proceed! please be patient with me while i get back into the swing!

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currently reading: Tiger’s Quest by Colleen Houck

pages: 250 / 479

2.25.2021

so it’s been a minute. school is in full swing and work is taking up a lot of my reading time, so i’m falling behind in my yearly challenge, but i’m hoping that breaks and summertime will allow for me to make it back up. anyway, my february reading list is going to branch out into march, so there’s no new list for next month.

~you can see that list from my last post here or on my goodreads here.~

side note: if you guys have read any fantasy stories with strong and not whiney female leads (or even not straight female leads as well?) please drop in the comments. i have fifty books to read this year and nowhere near that many books on my tbr (well...). kindle unlimited books are appreciated because i want to make the most of the subscription i got for christmas. also accepting audiobooks!

side side note: i found out how to use colors and there's no stopping me.

if you want to know my thoughts on the series so far, keep reading! (spoilers)

tiger’s quest is my least favorite of the series because even though i love kishan, i know that kelsey is supposed to be with ren and ren’s absence is very very apparent. i also think it’s weird that they don’t go after ren even though i know why they don’t? but that isn't to say that i don't still love the book.

also (even though i love him) i still hate that kishan makes so many moves toward kelsey. like, obviously she doesn't love you, man, so please back off?

and my final thoughts so far: kelsey is a strong lead and i like that she has this super cool power and she trains and combat and stuff, but she's still so whiney. just for once i would like to not have a whiney female lead.

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reminder that this blog, while not politically focused, supports BLM. bootlickers and racists aren’t welcome here, and never will be.

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i know that my books don't always have a lot of diversity when i'm talking about them but that's because like a lot of people i haven't had the exposure to the diverse side of ya lit. so here's a small list of diverse books for you guys (and me) to check out!

YA literature? You mean books about Super Special White Girl and Her Mysterious Brooding Boyfriend?

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currently reading: Tiger’s Curse by Colleen Houck 

pages: 0 / 403

2.1.2021

january reading list: 

1. Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong 2. Empire of Night by Kelley Armstrong 3. Forest of Ruin by Kelley Armstrong 4. Tiger’s Promise by Colleen Houck  5. The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare et. al.  -- DNF 

february reading list: 

1. Tiger’s Curse by Colleen Houck 2. Tiger’s Quest by Colleen Houck 3. Tiger’s Voyage by Colleen Houck 4. Tiger’s Destiny by Colleen Houck 5. Tiger’s Dream by Colleen Houck

i finished all but the bane chronicles for my january reading list, but i also finished midnight sun during january so i hit my five book goal after all. i don’t think i’m going to read it right now but i will this year because there is cassandra clare on my 2021 reading list. but i want to work through some series/new books i got over the holidays, so the tiger’s curse is up. 

forest of ruin and tiger’s promise book discussion below (with spoilers): 

forest of ruin // age of legends series 

i am so underwhelmed to the ending of forest of ruin. the series was good, i give it 3.5 stars over all, but the ending was so anticlimactic in my opinion. the action leading up to the end was excellent -- the shadow stalkers in the children, zuri, alvar showing up, the slaughter of the Tatsu heirs, gavril taking that last blow; but the actual ending after gavril gets struck...alvar just gives up, and that doesn’t seem to make sense to me. i understand that alvar was a coward and that’s what he was trying to show, but if not losing his son, he lost his heir to the empire he was trying to build after trying and trying to have children and never succeeding, so i feel like his death would at least cause him to fight. i think he would stand up and fight even in a blind rage because of gavril’s death. he wouldn’t have just stood there. 

everyone was also so shocked when gavril came back to life because they couldn’t believe that alvar played with death magics to bring him back...but was the entire series not centralized about shadow stalkers, which are literally corrupted spirits, or death magics? also, i get that alvar brought gavril back so he could still carry on his lineage, but alvar obviously did not love his son, so i still don’t quite understand why he was brought back. like i feel like leaving him dead brought a something to the novel and series that it needed because up to this point, everyone that died hadn’t had a connection to the readers. i honestly liked that gavril died because it was unexpected and added a secondary level to the action of the novel. and then she brought him back had alvar basically forfeit the fight, and like breezed to the end. 

things that also should have happened: an epilogue that showed us if moria’s vision came true and if she was part of it; a resolution to the curse thing that happened in the first few chapters of book one that they never acknowledged again even though it was a greater curse and ashyn put it back, not moria; a better resolution to the ashyn/ronan story;  more of the children throughout the novels, because i often felt that they were pushed to the background when they had been the initial catalyst. i just felt like she tied the story up too neatly and there was more that needed to happen. overall, i’m keeping 3.5 stars because it was entertaining and enjoyable, but seems like it just wasn’t edited like it should have been. 

tiger’s promise 

i’ve read tiger’s curse before, the core 4 books, and it is my favorite series. i was soooo excited about when i heard there was a prequel and a sixth book to the series. the minute i got them, i couldn’t wait to read them, and that’s why i’m going to read them in february. 

but the tiger’s promise novella was kind of underwhelming. it was important to see yesubai’s background and how she bonded with both men, but ren’s affections for yesubai make no sense to me. kishan’s do, and i felt like there should have been no competition. however, i get why it’s there and why people thought it was important to know those parts and i am glad that i read it, but i kind of wish it had been longer so i could get more from it. it felt like a summary of the things that were happening, though i know that the focus was her father, i would have wanted more of the romance because that is the driving force behind the curse and behind the entire core series. but i liked it still it was a good little addition to the story. three stars. 

[x-justanotherbookblog-x]

currently reading: Forest of Ruin by Kelley Armstrong

pages: 369 / 432

1.29.2021

swamped with homework and i start a new job on monday, so i probably won’t finish my january reading list. but my classes are interesting and engaging, and hopefully my job will be fun and not an absolute chore. and i’ll still be finding time to read. 

50 books for my goodreads challenge this year! I should have this book done before the weekend is up and then it’s on to the tiger’s curse series. i think i’m going to put the bane chronicles back into my tbr pile and dive in to some more series right now -- i like consistency of characters when i’m stressed out a bit.

january reading list: 

1. Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong 2. Empire of Night by Kelley Armstrong 3. Forest of Ruin by Kelley Armstrong 4. The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare, et. al.  5. Tiger’s Promise by Colleen Houck 

february reading list: 

1. Tiger’s Curse by Colleen Houck 2. Tiger’s Quest by Colleen Houck 3. Tiger’s Voyage by Colleen Houck 4. Tiger’s Destiny by Colleen Houck 5. Tiger’s Dream by Colleen Houck 

book discussion with spoilers below: 

forest of ruin: let me just say that sticking with this series this far was great. the characters really did get some development, and the romance actually started to get some traction. but this is definitely an action-based novel and i really like the action. the dragons? the betrayal? all the convoluted murder attempts and the lies? it’s absolutely crazy and i’m absolutely here for every single step of it. the one thing that i don’t like is that there is sooooo much travel time in the novel. like they really talk about the journeys they have to take very often and while i see it’s importance (both for plot and for character development), i feel like there could have been a touch less of it and the points she was trying to make would have still been made. 

i’m also still waiting for the damned curse from the first book to come back around. i also wonder why moria is never in her “vision” of tyrus with the dragon. 

i adore zuri, she has my whole heart. 

i feel like everyone trusted gavril too easily again. like i know why they did but they were just back to being all okay with him without even a decent explanation as to why he did what he did -- even though the explanation (filial piety) was absolutely jank. warrior codes are not for me, that’s to be sure. moria’s fire is everything i want to be (even though i am most definitely ashyn). 

rating so far is four stars.