Tag: reads

Review: Crystal Fighters

DeAnneLeave a comment

Through a series of events, she discovers that other players in the game have created a secret magical girl fight club that adds a whole new world of thrills and challenges to her mundane world. Now that she’s gotten her wish of finding peers like her and something exciting in her life, she also discovers a dark side to magical girls, and finds herself having to prove her worth in a series of tournaments where if she loses she can never come back.

What drew me to this graphic novel was the cover, then I read the premise and immediately wanted to pick it up. A virtual reality game where a glitch leads to a cutthroat arena? Yes, please. Stella could definitely use some more fleshing out as a character but she was by far the most individual of everyone. I really hope this becomes a series as there are a few characters I would love to find out more about, and I’m very interested in the events that were alluded to at the end.

I loved the art style of this graphic novel, so many poppy bright colors and saturated tones. The illustrations themselves were very dynamic and moved the story along wonderfully. It’s a fun adventure that I’m excited to see more from if more comes out.

Happy reading!

Review: Ivy in Bloom

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Ivy in Bloom captures the weariness of a young girl tired of a long winter. “I stare out the window,” she says on the first spread of brown and gray, “looking for birds or flowers / or even warm showers / but I don’t see any such thing.” But then Spring comes when “March is out of breath snow melting to flowery waters and watery flowers spring rose from its wintry rest.” And Ivy’s “heart dances with daffodils.” As these words also dance across each spread, Ivy’s world erupts into a riot of color.

Ivy in Bloom is an adorable children’s book that melds the author’s own words with poetry from famous poets. All of the poems are woven together to tell a story about a girl lamenting for spring and the time it takes to arrive.

I loved the way the poems were mixed together and another great feature is that all of the poems used and their authors are explained in a section at the end of the book, making this not only a great children’s book, but a way for the reader to seek out and find classic poets and their work.

Happy reading!

Review: Snug

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Why bother getting out of bed when you could stay bundled up with that special someone and a book of cozy, cute comics. From the author of the bestselling Little Moments of Love comes Snug, a collection of comics that perfectly captures the honest, playful, and relatable snapshots of romantic life.

Chetwynd’s second book has the same charming and inviting style as her first and includes 50 percent new, never-before-shared comics. Snug is a celebration of the quirks and peculiarities of every one of us—and the magic that happens when we find our matching puzzle piece.

I’ve followed Catana Comics for a long time on Instagram so I was very excited when I saw that there’s a book coming out. I love her art style and the little vignettes into her relationship which funnily enough is a lot like the relationship I’m in. It’s a perfect representation of being in a loving relationship with someone who is not only your partner but your best friend who you are (for the most part) on the same level with.

This collection is a fun read that would make almost anyone feel warm fuzzies and put a smile on their face. If you’re looking for something that will be uplifting and cute, pick this one up.

Happy reading!

Review: Dark Carousel

DeAnneLeave a comment

A balmy summer night in 1994. Four teenagers out for an evening of fun on the boardwalk take a ride on the “Wild Wheel” – an antique carousel with a shadowy past – and learn too late that decisions made in an instant can have deadly consequences. What begins as a night of innocent end-of-summer revelry, young love, and (a few too many) beers among friends soon descends into chaos, as the ancient carousel’s parade of beasts comes chillingly to life to deliver the ultimate judgment for their misdeeds.

After reading this I may never look at a carousel the same way. This was my first foray into Hill’s writing and I was not disappointed. It was the right mix of descriptive language, dark subject matter and a good dose of lingering fear for the narrator.

Since this is a short story I don’t want to say too much as almost anything beyond the blurb would be a spoiler, but it’s an interesting look at what a cursed carousel and its animals may do to those it feels has wronged it.

If you’re looking for a dark story that is a quick read, pick this one up.

Happy reading!

Review: Provocation

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Doctor Victoria Ward has been killing men for over thirty years. Her victims all have one thing in common: they’re abusive. Righteousness is a close companion—it helps her sleep at night—and she holds the virtue closely as she defends the innocent, upholding the law when it won’t rise to protect those who need it most. When she meets a young girl named Kelly, and follows her down a twisted path of deception, Doc Ward finds herself face-to-face with a ghost from her past. Never before has she wavered in her resolve—but can she defend another against someone she loves?

This book was definitely a wild ride and not what I expected. It was far more gritty and dark than I expected, so keep in mind that this includes murder, torture, abuse and assault of all kinds. I enjoyed the switching back and forth between the past and present as it really explained Victoria’s psyche and motivation for her actions.

Though the content is darker and there are a lot of heavy subjects, it could be an important discussion regarding domestic abuse in some ways, but the actions portrayed probably shouldn’t be used as the model of behavior. I did feel that the ending was very abrupt and wished it had been drawn out just a little bit more, a deeper look into the motivations of others besides Victoria.

If you’re a fan of Dexter or serial killer stories this would probably be right up your alley. Happy reading!

Review: Your Heart is the Sea

DeAnneLeave a comment

Let poetry help you examine the depths of your wounds. Let it remind you that no matter how deep it goes, you will be able to heal it because you have been able to heal every single wound inflicted on your heart and soul before. Let these words show you that you will be able to find the light at the end of the wound because you have always found your way before.

By now I’ve discovered that I’m just going to love everything Nikita Gill writes. I’m pretty sure this is the last of her collections that I hadn’t read it and again, I loved it.

The way she weaves topics such as assault, abuse, depression and more into things like mythology and stories is just beautiful. Her writing is both powerful and lyrical, with emphasis in the best places. For someone who doesn’t always love modern poetry, hers is the stuff I love.

She truly takes on hard hitting subjects head on, whether from personal experience or not, and makes each poem relateable to people who have gone through similar experiences. I can’t say enough good things about her poems, just make sure to go into them knowing that they will tug at the heart and sometimes physically hurt after reading.

Happy reading!

Review: The Crowns of Croswald

DeAnneLeave a comment

In Croswald, the only thing more powerful than dark magic is one secret…

For sixteen years Ivy Lovely has been hidden behind an enchanted boundary that separates the mundane from the magical. When Ivy crosses the border, her powers awaken. Curiosity leads her crashing through a series of adventures at the Halls of Ivy, a school where students learn to master their magical blood and the power of Croswald’s mysterious gems. When Ivy’s magic—and her life—is threatened by the Dark Queen, she scrambles to unearth her history and save Croswald before the truth is swept away forever.

This book was such a fun adventure! I hesitate to compare any books to Harry Potter, because I know that such a suggestion can bring certain preconceived notions to mind, but if you’re looking for something about a magical world including a school setting then this will definitely fit the bill.

I love that a good chunk of this book is world building and that special attention was paid to fleshing out different aspects of the magic system. I’m super excited about the future books and getting to learn even more about the history of this world and its magic and creatures.

Ivy as a character is very impulsive, but driven by an inner purpose. Her moments of vulnerability are understandable and fitting for her situation. While she didn’t always full think through her decisions, she knew that there was a reason for the things she had to do and let herself be led by her instincts, which was both bad and good. While only a couple other characters were truly fleshed out, most of those who had a voice were distinct and individual.

All in all this was a great adventure full of twists and turns and I can’t wait to read more from this series!

Thank you again to Stories Untold and D.E. Night for sending me a copy of this book. D.E. Night’s books can be found on Amazon, or purchased through her website at DENight.com.

Happy Reading!

Review: The Hashtag Hunt

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The only reason Lauren entered the Hashtag Hunt was for the $10,000 grand prize. She needed seed money for her startup, and it sounded easy enough: twelve hours to text twelve photos to someone called the Wizard. For hashtag number five, Lauren needs a #HottieInTheWild, and with the help of her best friend, Ivy, she finds the perfect subject.

The only reason Brenner entered Barkley’s Pub was to have beers with Scott, an Army brother back in town. The reunion is interrupted when a woman is caught crouched in a dark corner, taking pictures of Brenner. Lauren explains, and though embarrassed, she accepts Scott and Brenner’s offer to help with hashtag number six.

While hunting for hashtags, Lauren finds adventure and romance with her #Hottie, but she must stay focused to beat the clock and win the cash. 

I didn’t know much of anything about this going in, but it was an incredibly fun adventure that takes place all in one night. We follow Lauren who is competing in The Hashtag Hunt. Along the way she meets new people, has some adventures that are a little out of her comfort zone and finds new friends.

There are definitely some elements that you have to suspend disbelief for, but this book was so fun I had to give it five stars. It was that good based on enjoyment alone, while also briefly touching on some heavier subjects regarding the individual characters.

All in all this was a great time and I would definitely pick up other books by this author.

Happy reading!

November 2019 Wrap Up

DeAnneLeave a comment

Contrary to my hopes November ended up being my worst reading month of the year. Some of this could be blamed on how busy I was, or how I was trying and failing to do NaNoWrimo, but really I have just been in a major slump and it has been hitting me hard. I’m eternally hoping that it’s run its course so that I can end the year on a high.

This month I read 11 books total (which still hurts my heart a little) but I did manage to take care of four review books and three books that I had physical copies of. The others were either e-books or audiobooks. I also managed to do blog posts for all but one of them, which will be linked in this post. The last review will be posted in December as part of a blog tour so keep an eye out!

Of all the books, I only had two 3 star books and the rest were all four stars, so overall a good reading month quality wise and really that is what is most important. I don’t want to read a ton of books that I don’t like.

Fingers crossed that December goes well, I do already feel better regarding my headspace for reading, so that’s already an improvement.

The reviews posted of the books I read this month are:
Review: Meant to Be Yours
Review: The Claiming
Review: Summer Frost
Review: Build Yourself a Boat
Review: The Way You Make Me Feel
Review: Ark
Review: Emergency Skin
Review: Aru Shah and the End of Time
Review: You Have Arrived At Your Destination
Review: The Case of the Missing Bubble Gum Card

Happy reading!

November Book Haul

DeAnneLeave a comment

Well, November was an interesting month. I was super busy with a trip (which contributed most of the books for this month) and a ton of stuff at work. So without further ado, let’s get into it.

In early November I went to the Portland Book Festival. Thankfully I had stashed some money so I didn’t have to hugely worry about my budget. I picked up a number of books directly at the festival. It was great meeting authors and publishers but it was also definitely a strain on my anxiety since there were tons of crowds. Still, I had a great time.

In the same trip my boyfriend and I went to the main Powell’s and I had a shopping spree there. Thankfully he’s used to me roaming bookstores for extended periods of time so he let me wander. I managed to do quite a bit of damage there as well, but I had known ahead of time that the Portland trip would definitely be the bulk of my purchases for the month.

Then there were my Book of the Month books, I chose Get a Life, Chloe Brown and then added Song of the Crimson Flower as an add on. I always do either one or two of their selections, you can’t beat the prices.

I had told myself that those were going to be all the books that I got this month but then today found myself in Barnes and Noble. I wanted to pick up Queen of Nothing since I wanted all my editions to match, then let myself pick up a few more.

So that’s all the books I picked up this month. Since today is the last day of the month I know there won’t be any others being added to the list. I had known that this month would be pretty full and budget busting. I’m hoping I can decrease the amount in December. I don’t have any major buying plans, so most of what I get will likely be gifts.

What did you pick up this month? Happy reading!