Again, but Better by Christine Riccio

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is one of the best, if not the best, contemporary novel I have ever read. To top it off, I couldn’t have read it at a better time in my life; I’m currently writing my review in my hostel in Paris, on a weekend getaway while studying abroad in the UK. This book has made me laugh, cry and gasp at how brilliantly Riccio captured the experience of studying abroad, and the insurmountable pressure we have as college students to succeed.

We follow Shane’s adventures studying abroad, hoping to hit the reset button on her college experience (and her life). She’s gotten through half of her college already in New York and she feels like she’s done college wrong – she’s crossing the ocean to pursue her dream college program (creative writing) against her parents’ knowledge and wishes, who are pushing her into medical school to live out their dream. She sets out to London with a checklist to live her best college life and do it right. While she settles in, we meet Pilot and the gang and follow Shane’s adventures through disappointing her parents, weekend getaways with her flatmates, falling in love for the first time, and striving to impress at her internship (I won’t go into the plot too much to avoid spoilers).Shane and Pilot are the most relatable characters I have ever read, and reading this novel was like reading my personal experience on paper. It was absolutely amazing and I can’t even put into words how much I truly loved this book.

If you are a high school student curious about college and studying abroad, read this book. It’ll give you great tips and a great first look at what its like to study in the UK.

If you are a college student and know the struggles of college life and/or are curious about the experience of studying abroad, read this book.

And if you are like me, and are currently studying abroad or have at some point, you will read this novel with fondness and relive some of your greatest joys (and fears!) that you experienced.

Shane’s story is about finding herself and finding her place in the world. But most importantly, Shane’s journey is also a reminder that we only have one shot at life, and we should *lamppost* make it count; you deserve to do things that make you happy, even if its not always easy.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press for giving me this ARC at YALLFest 2018 – I’m beyond thrilled to have had the opportunity to review it prior to publication.

And finally Christine Riccio, girl, you killed it for your first novel. Congratulations, I can’t wait to see the success you will have when it releases May 21, 2019.

Serious Moonlight by Jenn Bennett

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I loved loved loved this story. I read the entire novel in one sitting, from start to finish, on a train from Cornwall to Wales and I couldn’t put it down. While I am not a mystery aficionado myself, I was entirely enticed with the budding friendship/romance between Daniel and Birdie from the beginning. While I thought from the very beginning that the story was going to be about getting over Daniel in the first chapter, I quickly realized that it wasn’t that type of novel and it was in fact so much better.

 

*spoilers ahead*

 

It was endearing the way Daniel went about to get close to Birdie. When he realized she was closed off to talking about their brief romantic past, he found a way to get close to her by tapping in to her passion for mysteries and detective work.

 

I also really enjoyed the more serious topics Bennett chose to educate her readers with such as the animal rights movement that pops into the hotel with from time to time, Birdie’s mom’s ectopic pregnancy, Daniel’s struggle with his deafness which led to his struggles with depression and suicide and finally, Birdie’s narcolepsy and refusal to receive diagnosis and treatment. Bennett offers enough information and gives a good insight on all these issues, most importantly the personal struggles and challenges the characters encounter as part of their diagnosis or in the face of dealing with someone going through these struggles.

 

A story of loss, grief, growth, and second chances, I loved following Birdie and Daniel’s adventures as detectives. The character arcs in the novel are phenomenal and it was wonderful to see Birdie, Daniel and their entourage to have the courage to face their struggles and overcome them in the end. I highly recommend this novel for anyone who’s looking for a great novel about not only the topics Bennett covers, but also the challenges and changes that come from transitioning into adulthood.

 

Serious Moonlight is set to release April 15, 2019.

The Red Scrolls of Magic by Cassandra Clare

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

It’s no secret that I am absolutely obsessed with Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunter Chronicles and I was beyond ecstatic to receive a DRC for it. Malec is one of my favourite couples in the series and they deserved having a spotlight shine on their story and we are forever thankful to Clare for providing it to us.

(side note: I really love Matthew Daddario’s portrayal of Alec Lightwood in the Shadowhunters series.)

That being said, it was not exactly what I had anticipated at first. The story starts off strong with drama, glitter and Magnus going “oopsies” in his typical fashion and I was laughing from the first chapter. However, while I know diving in that this is going back in time to when Magnus and Alec made their relationship status official following the Mortal War, I found it hard as a reader to situate myself back then (having followed Clare’s publications from 2005 with City of Bones) to the fragile state of their relationship and Magnus and Alec’s tiptoeing around each other. After having experienced and seen their relationship bloom and see how strong and perfect they are for each other, I found it difficult as a reader to remember it hadn’t always been the case. This is not a critique of the story nor of Clare’s writing as much as it is perhaps the timing of the publication (which needed to be following Queen of Air and Darkness for reasons I won’t divulge in this review – go read it and find out!) but perhaps re-reading the first three instalments of The Mortal Instruments prior to reading The Red Scrolls of Magic would’ve been beneficial.

While the novel is largely centered on Malec, we get more of other favourites such as Jace’s antics and Isabelle’s sly remarks as well as other characters we’ve encountered throughout the chronicles making a comeback (and in some cases, chronologically a first appearance) and it was a joy to read. While the setting was hard for me in the beginning, the more I read the more I remembered the beginning of their relationship and in turn, the more I enjoyed seeing Alec blossom as a character and a young man falling in love for the first time. My DRC copy ended abruptly just as the action was about to start near the end of the novel so I will have to wait patiently with the rest of you until April 9th to see how the novel concludes. I can’t wait!

I’m going to finish with a gif of our favourite cinnamon rolls, to get you excited release day. Happy reading!

Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I was so sad to hear that Sarah J. Maas was concluding her incredible Throne of Glass series with Kingdom of Ash. And I really really wanted to give the final installment a 5 star rating.. but I can’t. It took me months to get through this novel, I would read a few chapters, lose interest, and move on to read something else then would circle back to it read a bit more, repeat. The first half of the book seemed to drag on FOREVER and while most of the information and plot is relevant, it felt at times like it was simply being dragged on for no apparent reason. Additionally, while I love a good story with multiple point of views, in this case it changed often without necessarily adding anything to the storyline. Worry not, it gets better.

**spoilers ahead**

Now, Celeana is one of my all-time favourite characters, with the swaggering and the grins and her impeccable sense of humour. Obviously, I loved her as Aelin, if anything because she become even more insufferable to others as the Lost Queen of Terrasen and I loved her even more. However, due to her imprisonment with Maeve, that characterization as disappeared and made way to an Aelin who is dealing with the trauma she went through. And while I recognize that its a normal progression to the story and absolutely normal for her to go through, I couldn’t help mourn the Aelin we have known and loved in the previous novels. Perhaps that was Maas’ point – make us feel as Rowan does, useless in the face of Aelin’s sorrow and exhaustion of her quest – everything she had to give and give up and still not being home free from it.

I must admit, I wasn’t a fan of Manon Blackbeak and the Thirteen when we first met them back in Heir of Fire. But as one of the greatest character arc and redemption, Manon and the Thirteen soon became some of my favourite characters. I was devastated upon their death.

“We are the Thirteen,” she said. “From now until the Darkness claims us.”

I was devastated by Asterin’s last words to Manon.

“Live, Manon. Live.”

I was so devastated, I cried the whole train ride between Bath and Cornwall. I couldn’t deal.

This was the catalyst for me – before this point, the novel was a 3 star- from this point on, the novel was more towards a 5 star but I can’t give it a 5 star rating with half of the novel not reflecting the rest. Ouf, that was a mouthful.

The rest of the novel went as I had anticipated, and even though I had a hunch about Gavriel’s demise, I still wasn’t ready to accept it when it happened. I was sad for the cadre to lose one of their own, their lion. I felt for Aedion who would’ve given his father a chance post-war. Let it be a lesson to all, to forgive easily rather than regret it when it’s too late, as our poor Aedion most likely will for the rest of his life. So much death and carnage in the war, a reflection of how war really does affect citizens and soldiers and their families.

The end of the novel was somewhat anticlimactic – It ended somewhat the way I anticipated it would and I would’ve loved to see a bit more in the future; how everything turned out for Aelin and her court to truly have a satisfying end to the series. Alas, it was still a good read but definitely not my favourite – that honour remains with Queen of Shadows.

Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare

“Ah, Watson,” said Ty. “You may not yourself be luminous, but you are an extraordinary conductor of light.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

WOW what an amazing way to finish The Dark Artifices trilogy. The first two novels in this series were thrilling and I wasn’t expecting anything less for this final one. While I thoroughly enjoyed the ride, I am so going to miss Julian Blackthorn and his ruthless heart.

My love for Julian Blackthorn is no secret – Clare just keeps on creating such amazing characters for us to invest in and follow on an adventure. First there was Jace Herondale, which thankfully makes a significant appearance in this novel, and we all loved Will Herondale and his dramatics as well as the literal gem James Carstairs (I couldn’t help the bad pun). And now Julian Blackthorn. Not only is his love for his family fierce and the root to his ruthlessness, but his all-consuming love for Emma is hard not to get consumed by. And in this novel, we really get to deal with a more grown-up version of the characters since Lady Midnight – Julian, Emma, Ty, Dru, Mark, Helen and even Tavvy have all grown up so much and it was a thrill to grow alongside them.

We follow Julian and Emma and their family and close friends (the whole lot reappear and it was so lovely) through their world on the brink of civil war. Clare does a great job at painting a vivid picture of what a nation in political disaccord looks like as well at all the ways in which it affects in denizens. While I don’t usually enjoy more politically inclined novels, there is something about Clare’s world and politics that is fascination to watch unfold.

Clare once again delivers an amazing adventure and a satisfying ending to her series. I have had the pleasure of reading Cassie’s novels since she started publishing and it has been lovely to see her writing evolve and flourish with each series, and mostly evident in this one. Her writing has gotten more mature and so has the content in my opinion which seems to transition slightly from Teens more to Young Adult/New Adult in this series and appropriate for older audiences. If you have not tried a hand at The Shadowhunter Chronicles yet, you are sorely missing out.

Favourite quote:

“Alec and I are unafraid to express our manly love,” said Jace. “Sometimes he carries me around like a swooning damsel.”
“Really?” said Kit.
“No,” said Jace. “I’m very heavy, especially when fully armed. What did you want to talk to me about?”
“Actually, that,” said Kit.
“My weight?”

The Wicked King by Holly Black

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️: Once again, Holly Black has me FLOORED. The Queen of Faerie novels has gripped my heart out of my chest and chucked it off a cliff. Holly writes faeries so hauntingly and beautifully and its terrifying. I am absolutely obsessed with her world of Faerie and the characters she’s drawn. Cardan. Jude. Locke. Madoc. Cardan. Cardan. CARDAN. (Okay I’ll stop). I read The Cruel Prince in one sitting and I read The Wicked King in the same manner because I am that obsessed with The Folk of the Air series.

This review could be summed up with one word: Cardan. I love LOVE his character arc and I feel like he really blossomed as a character in this instalment. While we still get to see Jude play political games running a kingdom, I felt like at times it was a little too much about the political side and less about the character development for Jude. Cardan however, makes up for it. I am super biased because I always love the villain in novels but I couldn’t help but almost want to skim to the parts where he’d be in the scene again, just to see what kind of trouble he’d stir. And see what type of torment he’d inflict on Jude’s emotions (and he’s so good at it – you just wait and read).

Favourite quote:

“The three of you have one solution to every problem. Murder. No key fits every lock.” Cardan gives us all a stern look, holding up a long-fingered hand with my stolen ruby ring still on one finger. “Someone tries to betray the High King, murder. Someone gives you a harsh look, murder. Someone disrespects you, murder. Someone ruins your laundry, murder.”

The last few chapters of the novel can be summed up as such:

Once again, Holly leaves us with a hell of a cliffhanger, rendering the next year unbearable to wait for the conclusion. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be Googling Cardan fanart to hold me off until January 2020.

Restore Me by Tahereh Mafi

“I touch his face, almost without meaning to, gently, like he might be a ghost, like this might be a dream and the tips of my fingers graze his cheek, trail the line of his jaw and I stop when his breath catches, when his body shakes almost imperceptibly and we lean in as if by memory eyes closing lips just touching

“Give me another chance, ” he whispers, resting his forehead against mine.
My heart aches, throbs in my chest. “Please,” he says softly, and he’s somehow closer now, his lips touching mine as he speaks and I feel pinned in place by emotion, unable to move as he presses the words against my mouth, his hands soft and hesitant around my face and he says, “I swear on my life,” he says, “ I won’t disappoint you” and he kisses me
Kisses me right here, in the middle of everything, in front of everyone.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

*May Contain Minor Spoilers*

Tahereh Mafi’s writing makes my heart race and squeeze painfully whenever Warner opens his mouth. I don’t know about you but he gets to me – his heartfelt words pull my guts out and I just can’t.

I’ve shed tears, laughed out loud, whooped and screamed reading this book. Aaron and his all-consuming love and passion for Juliette, Kenji’s humour and Adam finally coming to terms with things have kept me hooked from beginning to end (which I should mention, was in the same day. It was that good).

I am so happy Tahereh decided to revive this series for an additional 3 books – one could NOT be more excited.

Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi

“Don’t do that,” he says. “Don’t ask me questions you already know the answers to. Twice I’ve laid myself bare to you and all it’s gotten me was a bullet wound and a broken heart. Don’t torture me,” he says, meeting my eyes again.
“It’s a cruel thing to do, even to someone like me.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️: I absolutely ravaged through this series. Read the 5 books in 5 days while I was at BookCon. Had the chance to go to Tahereh’s panel and met her in the autograph line and she is one of the sweetest individuals I have ever met.

*Contains Minor Spoilers*

The FEELS in this book. For those of you who may not know, I have an unhealthy obsession with Aaron Warner. For me, he’s such a well-developed character that shows that even with the right intentions you can still make what seems to be all the wrong decisions. And he just adores Juliette SO. MUCH.

Juliette still has her moments but I like how much she’s grown by the third book – she’s really evolved into her personality and I think that’s thanks to both Warner and Kenji.

Kenji. Once again, he made me laugh out loud so much I’m pretty sure the people next to me at the airport and on the plane thought I was crazy. Read: No effs were given.

He brought out some gold lines such as:

“I am going to MURDER YOU—”
“No,” he says, pointing at me as he shifts backward again. “Bad Juliette. You don’t like to kill people, remember? You’re against that, remember? You like to talk about feelings and rainbows—”

and

“Are you out of your goddamn mind? You think we can take on two hundred soldiers? I know I am an extremely attractive man, J, but I am not Bruce Lee.”
“Who’s Bruce Lee?”
“Who’s Bruce Lee?” Kenji asks, horrified. “Oh my God. We can’t even be friends anymore.”
“Why? Was he a friend of yours?”
“You know what,” he says, “just stop. Just—I can’t even talk to you right now.”

God he makes me die.

To be honest, so far in this series this one has been my favourite – a little more humour, a bit more passion and a bunch of feels and for me it was a thrilling read.

Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

“I want to be the friend you fall hopelessly in love with. The one you take into your arms and into your bed and into the private world you keep trapped in your head. I want to be that kind of friend. The one who will memorize the things you say as well as the shape of your lips when you say them. I want to know every curve, every freckle, every shiver of your body.

I want to know where to touch you, I want to know how to touch you. I want to know convince you to design a smile just for me. Yes, I do want to be your friend. I want to be your best friend in the entire world.”

What we all thought during this scene:

Read the 5 books in 5 days while I was at BookCon. Had the chance to go to Tahereh’s panel and met her in the autograph line and she is one of the sweetest individuals I have ever met.

*May contain minor spoilers*

Ahhh Warner – probably one of my favourite book boyfriends ever. I personally have a weak spot for all cheesy YA Book Tropes, especially the whole anti-hero thing Warner has going on. (I’m sorry but I just love those anti-hero bad boys) (Okay, okay I’ll stop talking about Warner).

Moving on to Kenji. Kenji has made me laugh out loud SO MUCH throughout both this book and the entire series and he just keeps getting funnier.

And finally, the raging hormones. Juliette has been deprived of touch her entire life and now that she knows that two gorgeous men are both equally to do so, well, you can imagine. (*cough* TEAM WARNER)

In my opinion, this series is an amazing dystopian read if you love being taken on a twisted journey and are a sucker for teen love triangles (totally guilty of this). Kenji Kishimoto is probably one of the best, majorly underrated, hilarious sidekick ever – to me, him and Warner definitely make this series worthwhile.

 

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

“I spent my life folded between the pages of books.

In the absence of human relationships, I formed bonds with paper characters. I lived love and loss through stories threaded in history; I experienced adolescence by association. My world is one interwoven web of words, stringing limb to limb, bone to sinew, thoughts and images all together. I am a being comprised of letters, a character created by sentences, a figment of imagination formed through fiction.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This series starts like any other series – world-building and character development so as any other series, the beginning of this book is a little slow. However, once it starts, IT STARTS. I was absolutely hooked. I absolutely ravaged this series. Read the 5 books in 5 days while I was at BookCon. Had the chance to go to Tahereh’s panel and met her in the autograph line and she is one of the sweetest individuals I have ever met.

*May contain minor spoilers*

While Juliette’s character’s issues are definitely troubling, I liked the surprises at every turn from Adam to Juliette’s powers to *sigh* Warner.

I totally put off reading this series for a while just because I had gone through so many dystopian novels in so little time I couldn’t stomach another one. But, this one proved to be different for me – there’s a deeper emotional struggle woven into this series that I thought set it apart from the others. In my opinion, this series is an amazing dystopian read if you love being taken on a twisted journey and are a sucker for teen love triangles (totally guilty of this). Kenji Kishimoto is probably one of the best, majorly underrated, hilarious sidekick ever – to me, him and Warner definitely make this series worthwhile.

Pick this series up, sit back, and enjoy the journey.

Well, go on. GO READ IT.