March 2015 - Looking Back

I'm getting further and further behind on these wrap up posts, I'm so sorry! But today, let's talk March. I ended up reading several books in March, continuing on with several series I had read previously as well as finding a few new reads and authors I'd never read before. I was pretty busy, but I did have some family time which was much appreciated, and announced A Week of Recommendations that I did earlier this month. Anyways, without further ado, here's March:

My Reads:

The Shadow Cabinet, the third in the Shades of London trilogy by Maureen Johnson

3.5 Stars

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

3.5 Stars

Winterspell by Claire Legrand

4 Stars

Dead of Winter, the third book in The Arcana Chronicles by Kresley Cole

4 Stars

The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab

4.5 Stars

*a new favorite!*

Princess of the Silver Woods, the third in The Princesses of Westfalin Trilogy by Jessica Day George

5 Stars

*a new favorite!*

The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall

3.5 Stars

The Storyspinner by Becky Wallace

3.5 Stars

Reviewed on the blog

Overall, it was definitely a great reading month. I really enjoyed all the novels I read, and so I was very happy to have started a few new series, finished one, and continued on with several others.

My Posts:

A Top Ten Tuesday on Books Added to my TBR recently
A review on Of Metal and Wishes
I announced A Week of Recommendations
What (Posts) I've Been Reading
A Top Ten Tuesday on my Spring TBR
A review of All Fall Down
A Top Ten Tuesday of my All Time Favorite Books
and of course, continuing on with the tradition of being behind on posting wrap ups...
January 2015 - Looking Back
February 2015 - Looking Back

Posts I Loved:
I was considering doing this as a separate post entirely, but I've seen several bloggers mention posts from other's they've enjoyed in their wrap ups and it seems like the best way to share all of the amazing blog posts I've seen during the month. For some of the other posts some bloggers have shared that I read and loved this past month, check out What (Posts) I've Been Reading.

Alexa Loves Books did an amazing review of one of Juliet Marillier's series that I'm really excited to read about, after seeing how she compared them all and discussed how great the books are. You can read her amazing review The Faithful, The Fiery & The Fearful.

Snuggly Oranges talked about the importance of character development and I couldn't agree more. Check out her amazing post I Read for Characters.

The Library Canary had several posts this month I thought were really great. One was another recommendation of a certain genre, and this time she shared fantasy picks, which I've been wanting to read more high fantasy. You can see her recommendations in her post So You Like Fantasy? Get Ready to Hurt Your TBR... Another one of her posts I really enjoyed was her discussion about Going In Blind and not knowing much about the novel before you read it.

I didn't end up keeping track of my book buying for the month, because it's been pretty sporadic lately anyways. 

Let me know if you guys would like to see any reviews of the books I read in March (except The Storyspinner, which I reviewed recently on the blog and linked above). I'm planning on doing a review of Dead of Winter since I've reviewed the first few books in The Arcana Chronicles, and do a Series in Summation about The Princesses of Westfalin Trilogy, and also possibly a Goodreads review on Starcrossed. But anyways, let me know if there are any reviews in particular you'd like to see on the blog next, and I'll be back soon with another post!

From the paper world,
V

March and April 2015 - Most Anticipated New Releases

Somehow I missed posting my Most Anticipated New Releases for March, and since a ton of books that I'm excited about came out in March, and there are plenty I'm excited for in April as well, I decided to share them all with you!

March 3, 2015

The Storyspinner by Becky Wallace 

(I read this book in March, let me know if you would like to hear my thoughts about it!)

Dead to Me by Mary McCoy

Mosquitoland by David Arnold

March 10, 2015

Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman, the sequel to Seraphina

The Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows

March 17, 2015

The Wrong Side of Right by Jenn Marie Thorne

March 24, 2015

Liars, Inc by Paula Stokes

March 31, 2015

We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach

April 7, 2015

Miss Mayhem by Rachel Hawkins, the sequel to Rebel Belle

April 21, 2015

Finding Paris by Joy Preble

April 28, 2015

Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

Rook by Sharon Cameron

The Girl at Midnight by Melissa Grey

Here are the books that have been released in the past month or are coming soon and I'm really excited to read. Let me know if you've read any of these and what your thoughts on them are! What are some books you're really excited about that are coming soon? Also, let me know if you guys would like a review of The Storyspinner!

From the paper world,

V

Books Recently Added to My TBR - Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, and each week there's a different topic to discuss. This week we're talking about books we've recently added to our TBR! I'm really excited about this prompt- I went on Goodreads and picked a few of the recent additions to my TBR to share. Here, I'm talking about books that I've added to my to-read on Goodreads.

Series I Want to Continue

Dreamless by Josephine Angelini, the sequel to Starcrossed

I recently read Starcrossed, and I definitely enjoyed the novel. It's one I picked up awhile ago, and I finally picked it back up and finished it recently. I am definitely interested in continuing on with the series, and so I added Dreamless to my to-read right away!

Ice Kissed by Amanda Hocking, the sequel to Frostfire (this is a series set in the same world and after her Trylle trilogy)

I read Frostfire earlier this year with my friend over at These Stardust Words, and so I'm excited to pick up the sequel when it comes out in May. I read the Trylle trilogy awhile ago and really enjoyed it, so I'm excited to be continuing on in this series that takes place in the same world.

Of Dreams and Rust by Sarah Fine, the sequel to Of Metal and Wishes

This is another novel that I read recently and really enjoyed, and so I'm excited to continue on with this series once the sequel comes out in August. Also, while I was looking up the Goodreads link for the sequel, I saw that a novella is going to be published that has part of the first book told from another character's point of view, so I'm definitely adding Of Shadows and Obsession to my to-read as well.

Retellings

As many of you know, this is one of my favorite genres. I talked about some other blogger's posts that I'd read and loved earlier this month, and one of the ones I mentioned was Rebecca of The Library Canary and her post all about retellings, So You Like Retellings? I've Got a List For You... I definitely got a ton of recommendations from this post, and I'm excited to be reading more retellings this year, as it's always a genre I've read and loved.

The Stars Turned Away by Lisa Maxwell

This book sounds very intriguing and mysterious, as the protagonist has to navigate a labyrinth and decide who to trust. Although it doesn't have a publication date other than 2016 listed on Goodreads, this is a unique sounding retelling, as I haven't read many Peter Pan retellings other than Second Star by Alyssa B. Sheinmel.

The Isle of the Lost by Melissa de la Cruz

This is a series that also has a movie in the works I've heard about, and I know Rebecca mentioned in her post as well. Basically, this book sounds a little different from the movie premise I saw on IMDB, but I think that this book also revolves around the lives of several villains' children and their lives.

(as noted above, this is a temporary cover)

Hunted by Meagan Spooner

I'm signed up for Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner's newsletter, and so when I heard about this Beauty and the Beast inspired retelling, I was so excited. It's not going to be out for a long time (2017), but I am definitely still excited.

Adult Fiction Novels I've Added to my to-read

The Lies of Lock Lamora by Scott Lynch

This one I actually heard about from a Buzzfeed quiz and I know several have mentioned enjoying the series, and I saw it was really highly regarded on Goodreads, so I'm curious to learn more about this book and read it. If you've read this book, let me know your thoughts!

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

This is a book that Cassi of My Thoughts...Literally! recommended to me one time while we were talking, and so I'm definitely excited to pick it up and read it sometime!

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

I've heard about Khaled Hosseini's novels before, and so I added several to my to-read.

Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier

I read Shadowfell by Juliet Marillier awhile ago, I think back before I started blogging, and then picked up the sequel to continue on with the series. But I hadn't known much about her adult fantasy novels, and when I heard about Wildwood Dancing, I thought it would be interesting and so I added it to me to-read.

There are 10 of the books I've added to my to-reads recently on Goodreads. A lot of these are ones that won't be published for awhile, but several are also already published and ones that I'm excited to read. If you want a look at books I've added to my TBR and purchased, take a look at my monthly wrap ups, such as my February 2015 Looking Back here. I hope you enjoyed my list for Top Ten Tuesday, and let me know what your picks are!

From the paper world,
V

Of Metal and Wishes Review

There are whispers of a ghost in the slaughterhouse where sixteen-year-old Wen assists her father in his medical clinic—a ghost who grants wishes to those who need them most. When one of the Noor, men hired as cheap factory labor, humiliates Wen, she makes an impulsive wish of her own, and the Ghost grants it. Brutally.

Guilt-ridden, Wen befriends the Noor, including their outspoken leader, a young man named Melik. At the same time, she is lured by the mystery of the Ghost and learns he has been watching her … for a very long time.

As deadly accidents fuel tensions within the factory, Wen must confront her growing feelings for Melik, who is enraged at the sadistic factory bosses and the prejudice faced by his people at the hand of Wen’s, and her need to appease the Ghost, who is determined to protect her against any threat—real or imagined. She must decide whom she can trust, because as her heart is torn, the factory is exploding around her … and she might go down with it.

Of Metal and Wishes on Goodreads

Visit the Author's Website

Hey, everyone! I'm excited to be sharing a review with you all about Of Metal and Wishes, an amazing Phantom of the Opera retelling I read. Of Metal and Wishes is a retelling that is dark and mysterious, much like the original story, but in a unique setting and story that follows some really interesting and complex characters. This book is fast paced and interesting, with a lot of unique elements to it that make it a fantastic retelling. I gave Of Metal and Wishes 4.5 stars, and it's a definite favorite read of mine. 

The story takes place in a factory setting that has a dark, gritty, and harsh atmosphere. It's a really difficult life for the characters, and for the protagonist Wen as she navigates the world of the factory, which is filled with danger and intrigue. The book starts off and almost immediately there are mysterious occurrences and goings on. The Phantom was portrayed in a really unique way as well as the way the people viewed him. In addition, this is a really unique story- it definitely has a lot of the elements of The Phantom of the Opera, but as the story unfolds I couldn't predict some of the plot twists and what occurred. The story has an amazing group of characters that are well developed- even secondary characters have flaws and problems but good qualities as well. 

The main characters are also really dynamic and well developed. Wen is a young girl who has to try and navigate the life before her, and she goes through a lot of character development. She's thoughtful and caring. Reading from her perspective made the story intriguing as Wen is thrown into the mysteries surrounding the factory. I loved learning more about her character throughout the novel. In addition, her interactions with the other characters brought a lot of dimension to them all. This novel is action filled, but also very character driven. We're given a lot of insight into life at the factory and how it impacts everyone from Wen to the workers, and each person has good and bad qualities to them. 

The story is fast paced and action packed, with a lot of twists and turns. There are definitely some great retelling elements woven in as this Phantom of the Opera retelling goes on, and I really appreciated reading this story. I am so excited for the sequel that comes out in August, and to read on with this story. 

From the paper world,
V

Coming Soon... A Week of Recommendations

Hey everyone! Lately, I've been trying to do about two blog posts a week, mixing in reviews and weekly features along with discussions. However, I wanted to do a week of posting every day and sharing posts that weren't reviews or features. So, I decided to share a week of recommendations with you all! This is going to be running soon, with a post on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, and each day will be a different theme of recommendations. I've been wanting to give some recommendations of my favorite genres and genres I've read more of, so here's the schedule for this:

Monday: Historical Fiction
Tuesday: Fantasy/SciFi
Wednesday: Contemporary
Thursday: Paranormal
Friday: Retellings

I'm really excited to be sharing some books I've read and loved with you all, and these are recommendations of books I've read any time from last week to years ago! I hope you all enjoy and share your recommendations with me as well! A Week of Recommendations is still a little ways off, but it's coming soon! 

Please join me for A Week of Recommendations, April 6-10! I can't wait to share some of my favorite books with you all, and hear your recommendations, too! 

From the paper world,
V

What (Posts) I've Been Reading - March 2015

I've seen people talk about posts they've enjoyed reading from other bloggers in the past, such as Jamie of the Perpetual Page-Turner and Alexa of Alexa Loves Books in their monthly wrap ups, and I know several people like to do these sorts of posts, but lately I've been thinking about how sometimes, I stumble across posts that I'm super excited to see, or posts that make me think about something, or awesome posts in general, and I want to share them with you all so that you can find some blogs/posts to enjoy, and see what I've been reading on blogs as well. I know this is something a lot of bloggers do from what I've seen, so I just want to join in and share some other blogger's awesome posts with you all as well.

Rebecca of The Library Canary wrote a post called So You Like Retellings? I've Got a List For You... that I was super excited to see because retellings are some of my favorites to read and also there were several on here I had never heard about and I'm super excited to read- I definitely added a bunch to my TBR!

Alexa of Alexa Loves Books had a great post recently called On the Acquisition of Books. I know that's a topic that's been discussed a lot lately, but she also discusses a challenge she's gotten involved with that works to reduce book buying and how her book buying has changed. A lot of how she said her buying changed before and after blogging was true for myself as well- I definitely never used to stock up on books, and then I went through a phase where I would get a lot of them, get very excited, and then not getting around to reading all of them and suddenly have a huge TBR. I haven't joined The Picky Pledge before, but I'm definitely going to be looking into it after reading Alexa's great post!

Jamie of The Perpetual Page-Turner had a post called I Recognize the Insanity... I Do. about having a huge TBR as well, except in Jamie's case, she talked about how she would go to the library a lot. This post made me think because I'm not really one who goes to the library a lot, even though I definitely should. I think for me I feel bad getting books from the library when I'm not sure I'll be able to read them in the allotted time. She also linked an older discussion post she had written in 2014 called The Best Medicine When I'm Feeling Down... that I read and really enjoyed.

Nikki of There were books involved... had a post called Let's talk audiobooks! and I really enjoyed this post because audiobooks is something I've never gotten into much even though I know it's become quite popular and I would like to try listening to a book. I think for me, my main fear was that I wouldn't be able to follow along with it as much as when I read a traditional novel. However, reading this post about audiobooks and she listens to audiobooks sounded like a way that I could read audiobooks and enjoy them, while re-reading old favorites. I think she also brings up a lot of interesting points about why she isn't always the biggest fan of audiobooks that I think are interesting as well, but after reading her well thought out discussion on the idea I want to start listening to audiobooks!

Here are some of the posts I've read recently and really enjoyed. Let me know if there are any posts you've read and wanted to share as well!

From the paper world,

V

My Spring TBR - Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted at The Broke and the Bookish that involves making lists for a certain theme picked for the week! This week we're talking about TBRs, and books we're excited to read in the coming season! I'm so excited to share some of the books I'm hoping to read with everyone! Since I normally don't do TBRs, I love doing these kinds of posts because it's a way for me to share some of the books I'm hoping to read in the upcoming months.

New Releases I'm Super Excited For (releasing from now to Mid-May)

We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach

Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley

The Wrath and the Dawn by Renée Ahdieh

Illusionarium by Heather Dixon

A High Fantasy Novel I Want to Read

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

Adult Fiction

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

Readalong Pick

Skandal by Lindsay Smith, the sequel to Sekret

I'm reading this along with Cassi of My Thoughts...Literally!

Books I Have and Can't Wait to Pick Up

The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen

This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner, sequel to These Broken Stars

Thornhill by Kathleen Peacock, sequel to Hemlock

If you'd like, let me know what books you might want to read in the upcoming months, and I hope you enjoyed my list for Top Ten Tuesday!

From the paper world,

V

January 2015 - Looking Back

I haven't done anything looking back at the month in reading, posting, and such in awhile, but I wanted to try and bring that back in 2015 for me. This is a great way to look back at the month and the books I read during it. Sorry that this is so delayed by the way- February was super busy and I wanted to take time to participate in the Random Acts of Kindness hosted by The Perpetual Page-Turner and Rather Be Reading and in the 2015 Book Blogger Love-A-Thon hosted by Alexa Loves Books. So, basically, February was super busy as well, but more on that in the next monthly wrap up!

So how did January go?

January was a month that saw me taking on a lot of challenges, bringing back some of the older types of posts I'd done last year and missed, and also just being excited about the new year in general. 

My Reads

A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall

Mortal Gods by Kendare Blake, the sequel to Antigoddess

My Posts

After doing the same type of post last year, I did a My Can't Wait Books of 2015 post, and talked about the books that I had designated to be some of my most anticipated upcoming reads of the year. 
My Favorite Books of 2014
A Top Ten Tuesday of the 2015 Debuts I'm Most Excited For
A Top Ten Tuesday Freebie where I talked about characters I wanted to travel with
I took Jamie of The Perpetual Page-Turner's 2014 End of Year Book Survey
I signed up for a lot of 2015 Challenges and shared my goals
My Most Anticipated New Releases of January 2015
I talked about Reorganizing My Bookshelves and Reading in 2015

My Reviews
A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall

My Book Buying
I ended up getting a few books off of my 'most anticipated new releases of January' list:
All Fall Down by Ally Carter
Frostfire by Amanda Hocking (this takes place in the same world as her Trylle series)

I'm currently finishing up reading both of these, so I can't wait to share my thoughts with you all! If you'd like to see a comprehensive book haul of all the books I got in January and not just the ones from my list of anticipated new releases, let me know in the comments!

So, how did January go for you? Any new favorite reads? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

From the paper world,
V

All Time Favorite Books - Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted at The Broke and the Bookish that involves making lists for a certain theme picked for the week! I am so excited for this week's prompt because it's talking about All Time Favorite Books, and ones that are really just the best of the best to me. These are from the past 3 years, and so I went to my Goodreads favorites shelf, and I looked long and hard at the ones that had the biggest impact on me, and I'm really excited to share them with you all. I grouped series together, but I did share my favorite picks from each.

His Fair Assassin by Robin LaFevers (pictured, Book 1, Grave Mercy)
I have read all of the books in this series.

The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer (pictured, Book 1, Cinder)
I have read Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, as well as the short story The Little Android, and am currently reading Fairest.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Splintered series by A.G. Howard (pictured, Book 1, Splintered)
I have read Splintered and Unhinged, and plan to read Ensnared soon.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Let me know your Top Ten picks, and hope you enjoyed! Be sure to check out the other participants' posts and of course, The Broke and the Bookish! See you next time!

From the paper world,
V