Book Tags

’90s Movies Book Tag

Happy Friday bookish people! I was looking for something fun to post today and I thought I haven’t done a book tag in a while so I will have go at ones of them and so I chose the ’90s Movies book tag. I was born at the very end of the 90s so I wasn’t really a 90s kid but I have seen a lot of the films from that decade. I found this tag on Zeezee with Books’ blog but it was created by A Book Lovers Playlist. I hope you enjoy the book tag!

She’s All That: Name a book couple that are an odd pairing but they still fit perfectly.

For this one I instantly thought of Jeremy and Sophia from Deadly Curious by Cindy Astley. Jeremy is a new recruit to the Bow Street Runners who is investigating a murder and Sophia is the daughter of a wealthy family and she desperately wants to become a detective and constantly puts herself in the middle of the investigation to help with it. As a couple, they shouldn’t work but they do.

10 Things I Hate About You: A Book Series that you have a love/hate relationship with

The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefavater. I have read the first book in the series and I didn’t love it but I liked it enough to continue the series, mainly because the premise is intriguing and I want to see what happens with it but I keep putting the second book on my monthly TBR’s and never getting around to reading it.

Clueless: A character that is totally clueless but you love them anyway

Kai in The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman. He isn’t as clueless as he comes across sometimes but in comparison to Irene that is how he sometimes seems but I love him anyway.

Titanic: Name a book that made you cry

I can’t really answer this one, I actually can’t think of any books right now that have made me cry. There must be loads of them but I just cannot think of one.

American Pie: A Book that makes you laugh

The Spellslinger series by Sebastien De Castell, his books always make me laugh.

Can’t Hardly Wait: A book with a crazy party

This was a difficult one but what I came up with in the end is Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz. Technically the reader doesn’t actually see the party but they hear about it and how different people were acting during it.

Cruel Intentions: Name a character you can never fully trust

Victor Vale from Vicious by V E Schwab. He is a morally grey character that I love but I’m never completely sure what he’s doing is right or whether he will turn into a villian at some point in the near future.

Drive Me Crazy: Name your favourite boy next door or girl next door couple

For this one all I could think of is Eve Brown in Act Your Age Eve Brown, which I haven’t read yet but I feel that it gives off girl next door couple vibes.

Scream: A book with a memorable villian

Shadow and Bone. Whenever I read something about villians I always think of the Darkling. I’m not even sure why.

The Craft: Name a book with witches

Serpent and Dove is one of my favourite books with witches in, I loved everything about it – even though I haven’t gotten to the second book in the series yet. The magic system and the way the witches are treated is a part of the book that is written so brilliantly.

That’s it for this book tag, I hope you all enjoyed it! What books would you have said for your answers?

Uncategorized

My 5* Predictions

Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all good. Today I am bringing you a blog post about all the books I own and haven’t read yet that I think will be a five star rating. I believe there are nineteen books I think I will give five stars which in comparison to the 300+ books I own and haven’t read is not that many.

Up first is…

Assassins Apprentice by Robin Hobb

I am excited to get around to reading this book because I have seen so many people read it and love it recently which makes me really want to read it soon. Also, it is my first proper adult fantasy, as I am trying to branch out of YA. I will still be reading that genre just not as much.

Up next is…

Sabriel by Garth Nix

I bought the rest of this series after I read Lireal earlier this year. My partner persuaded me to read it, he even bought it for me that’s how much he wanted me to read it, and I ended up loving it so I think I will have the same reaction to the rest of the series including Sabriel and the book up next…

Abhorsen by Garth Nix

I also anticipate the next two books in a series will be a five star read…

The Girl in the Tower and The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden

The Bear and the Nightingale is a very dark fantasy read but I loved it! And I gave it five stars so I am excited to read the rest of the series and I have high hopes that I will enjoy them just as much as the first book.

Now the next group of books is also a series – this is a common theme for me, if I read the first book and give it five stars immediately I anticipate the rest of the series getting five stars too..

Queenslayer, Crownbreaker, Way of the Argosi and Fall of the Argosi by Sebastien De Castell

I absolutely love this series, I have read Spellslinger, Shadowblack, Charmcaster and Soulbinder so far and every single one of them has been so enjoyable. I haven’t actually given any of this series five stars so far but I really think the rest of these books are going to push me to giving that five star rating.

Finale by Stephanie Garber

This is the last book in the Caraval series, I love the first book. I gave Caraval five stars and it is one of my favourite books I have read. I didn’t like Legendary as much but I still liked it and I can’t wait to finish this series.

Kingdom of the Cursed by Kerri Maniscalco

I loved reading Kingdom of the Wicked, the first book in the series, and the main characters are some of my favourites in all the books I’ve read. I can’t wait to be back in that world and see what happens next with Emilia and Wrath.

Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson

I loved both her other books and something I really like is that they are all standalones and I get a full story all in one, it gives me a good feeling when I finish the book and so I am excited to read this one as well. I think it’s about nuns which sounds pretty interesting.

The Box in the Woods by Maureen Johnson

The Truly Devious series is a great mystery series with plenty of twists to keep you guessing and I am hoping this next segment of that series is going to be just like that.

Master of One by Jaida Jones and Dani Bennett

I am highly anticipating this book because to me it has the same structure as six of crows, with a heist and a group of misfits being forced together. This is the type of fantasy adventure I really enjoy.

Blood and Honey and Gods and Monsters by Shelby Mahurin

I loved Serpent and Dove and the whole premise of the story so I definitely think that the next two in the series will also be five star reads just like the first one.

and finally…

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel

The Tudors is my favourite period of history and I love any book that is about them and I have heard such good things about the Wolf Hall series so I am excited to try it.

That’s it for all of my five star predictions, I hope you all enjoyed it!

Monthly Wrap Ups

October Wrap-Up!

Happy Monday bookish people! It is the first of November and that means it is time to share with you my wrap up for the month of October.

October was once again a really busy month for me, I officially started my PhD course and I have had to sort lots of things out in preparation for my Masters graduation while also dealing with some issues with my health. It has been a long feeling month that is for sure, but we are now in November and I am feeling great about reading and the books I have chosen (my November TBR post will be going up later today!).

So, in October I was planning on reading lots of spooky books and mysteries and… well, I didn’t do as well with my TBR as I’d hoped. I wasn’t feeling the books I had on my TBR when it came time to read them and then now – the first day of November I am really in the mood to read them. That is very annoying.

Anyway, let’s get into what I did and didn’t read in the month of October!

October TBR and Thoughts:

  • A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik – I did not read, I was very excited this book was finally on my TBR but I just didn’t get a chance to pick it up.
  • Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody – another book I was so excited for but didn’t get around to.
  • Act Your Age Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert – I didn’t read this one but it has been moved to this month’s TBR…
  • Capturing the Devil by Kerri Maniscalco – I NEED to get around to reading this soon but I didn’t manage it in October
  • City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab – I did read this one, I actually read this entire trilogy this month
  • Cream Buns and Crime by Robin Stevens – I also read this one
  • The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton – I did not read this one
  • Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff – I’ve heard such good things about this one but I haven’t read it yet
  • Good Girl Bad Blood by Holly Jackson – I didn’t get to this one
  • Legendborn by Tracey Deonn – I’m disappointed I didn’t get to this one it was the perfect month for it
  • Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder by T A Willberg – This is the one I’m now really in the mood to read so I’m just going to do it, I’m going to read it in November
  • Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia – I am so scared to read this because I heard it’s classed as a horror so I didn’t read it in Ocotber
  • Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo – I did not read this one
  • Once Upon A Crime by Robin Stevens – I did read this one
  • One Of Us Is Lying by Karen M McManus – I did not read this one
  • People of Abandoned Character by Clare Whitfield – I didn’t get around to this one but I am very excited to read it soon
  • Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price – I did not read this one
  • Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch – I didn’t read this one
  • Take A Hint Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert – I didn’t read this one
  • The Devil Makes Three by Tori Bovalino – Another book I was too scared to read
  • The Painted Dragon by Katherine Woodfine – it turns out this book is from a series and I don’t have the first ones in it and I’m not sure if I need to read them first
  • The Winterhouse Mysteries by Ben Guterson – another book that it turns out is in a series and I didn’t read because I don’t have the first few to read before this one
  • The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava reid – I did not read this one

So, out of my TBR I read five of the books which isn’t great but it isn’t awful either. Outside of my TBR I also read the first three books in the Araminta Spook series by Angie sage which takes my October total to eight books. Considering everything that has happened this month I’m pretty happy with that total. Although I definitely plan to read more in November so we will see how that goes.

That’s it for my October wrap-up I hope you all enjoyed it! Let me know how you all did with your October reading.

friday first and lasts

Friday First and Lasts Round 2

Happy Friday bookish people! Today I am bringing you the second round of my newest series Friday First and Lasts. The series in which I take the first sentence of one book and combine it with the last series of another book to see what we get.

For this round I will be giving you three sets of first and lasts, the books up first are:

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik and Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder by T A Willberg

“I decided that Orion Lake needed to die after the second time he saved my life/ however long it took” – This sentence actually turned out really well. It creates a very dramatic line.

Up next are the books:

Capturing The Devil by Kerri Maniscalco and Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson

“A blast of frigid air greeted me as I unlatched the carriage door and stumbled onto the street/filled with thoughtless joy I turned Priestbane to follow” – this one doesn’t work quite as well as the first set, but it still works and has a good flow to it.

The final set for today are from the books:

The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict and The Gilded Cage by Lynette Noni

“Snow is falling/and then she would be dead” – This is the one that probably works the least out of the three sets but it has an intense and sinister ring to it that I quite like.

That’s it for today, I hope you all enjoyed it! If you’ve got any good ones, please leave them in the comments below, on my Instagram @the_blind_scribe or on Twitter @oliviatempleto6.

Book Reviews

Book Review: Once Upon A Crime by Robin Stevens

Happy Monday bookish people! It’s time for another book review and the one I am bringing you today is for Once Upon A Crime by Robin Stevens. This book is a collection of short stories from the world of the Murder Most Unladylike series by Robin Stevens and I got it so that I could have a taster of the series before going out and buying them all.

In this book review I will give star ratings to four categories and I will write a little bit about each one. I will try to keep it as spoiler free as possible. I hope you enjoy my book review.

Once Upon A Crime Plot:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I was intrigued to see how the short stories would all be plotted and I ended up really enjoying most of them. I felt some of them were a little long for a short story but they were filled with subtle details that made the world come to life. One of my favourite short stories in the collection was May Wong and the deadly flat because it was different to the others both in character and in plot. Reading this collection made me excited to pick up the main series.

Once Upon A Crime Characters:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

The two main characters in this series is Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong. I think the characters are written beautifully and are very distinct. Personally I liked Hazel more because she is the quieter intelligent type and I can relate to the quietness of her character more than I can to the character of Daisy who is a lot more outgoing.

Once Upon A Crime Writing and Dialogue:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I really liked the writing in this book. Although it is a middle grade novel the writing didn’t feel too young. I felt comfortable reading it and enjoying it.

Once Upon A Crime Overall:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I gave this book four stars because I thought it was a great introduction to the characters and the world and I’m looking forward to starting the main series.

Blurb/Synopsis:

A thrilling new short story collection in the number-one bestselling, award-winning Murder Most Unladylike series.

Featuring six marvellous mini-mysteries, including four original, brand-new and never-seen-before stories:

The Case of the Second Scream
: set aboard the ship carrying Daisy and Hazel back from Hong Kong

The Case of the Uninvited Guest: Uncle Felix and Aunt Lucy’s wedding is the target for an unlikely threat

The Hound of Weston School: the Junior Pinkertons investigate a mysterious arrival

The Case of the Deadly Flat: introducing Hazel’s little sister May, who’s determined to be the greatest spy ever

The Case of the Missing Treasure: the detectives crack fiendish codes to catch a daring thief who is targeting London’s famous museums

The Case of the Drowned Pearl: murder follows the Detective Society wherever they go, even on holiday…

The perfect book for all Detective Society fans and avid readers of the Murder Most Unladylike series.

That’s it for this book review, I hope you all enjoyed it!

blog tours, Book Reviews

As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson Book Look and Top 5 Reasons to read.

Happy Wednesday bookish people! I am so excited to be part of the book tour for As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson, the third book in the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder Series. I absolutely love this series and I am excited today to be bringing you a ‘book look’ and my Top 5 Reasons for you to read As Good As Dead!

Thank you to TbrBeyond tours for having me on this tour and sending me an e-copy of this book.

So, first let me show you my book look! I looked at the colours on the cover, black, grey and red, and I chose a red top and a pair of grey jeans.

(This photo was taken in my hallway by the way, it’s the place that had the best light)

Onto my Top 5 Reasons To Read As Good As Dead…

Top 5 Reasons To Read As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson:

  1. If you have read the first book, or the first and second book in this series you’ll already know how good it is and can’t wait to pick up the third book – I felt like this and I was not disappointed, I thought As Good As Dead was brilliant.
  2. If you like school based murder mystery books like Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson then this book series would definitely be for you!
  3. The characters have you on their side before you even know you’re on their side. It’s really that quick and the characters are some of my favourites in YA books.
  4. The book has a large focus on family and friendship which is something I particularly enjoyed, if you’re like me and you enjoy seeing this in books there is plenty of it in this series.
  5. There is mixed media – like emails and transcripts of interviews which is a unique element that adds to the story.

Blurb/Synopsis of As Good As Dead:

The highly anticipated, edge-of-your-seat conclusion to the addictive A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series that reads like your favorite true crime podcast or show. By the end, you’ll never think the same of good girls again.

Pip’s good girl days are long behind her. After solving two murder cases and garnering internet fame from her crime podcast, she’s seen a lot.

But she’s still blindsided when it starts to feel like someone is watching her. It’s small things at first. A USB stick with footage recording her and the same anonymous source always asking her: who will look for you when you’re the one who disappears? It could be a harmless fan, but her gut is telling her danger is lurking.

When Pip starts to find connections between her possible stalker and a local serial killer, Pip knows that there is only one choice: find the person threatening her town including herself–or be as good as dead. Because maybe someone has been watching her all along…

You can find the rest of the tour schedule here: https://tbrandbeyondtours.com/2021/08/27/tour-schedule-as-good-as-dead-a-good-girls-guide-to-murder-3-by-holly-jackson/

Author Holly Jackson:

You can buy the book here:https://www.waterstones.com/book/as-good-as-dead/holly-jackson/9781405298605

And here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/As-Good-Dead-thriller-everyone-ebook/dp/B08T6YS245

That’s it for my post today, I hope you all enjoyed it!

Book Reviews

Book Review: Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Happy Monday bookish people! Today I am bringing you the book review for one of my favorite books that I have read – Caraval by Stephanie Garber! I can’t wait to share my thoughts with you all.

In this book review I will give star ratings to four categories and I will write a little bit about each one. I will try to keep it as spoiler free as possible. I hope you enjoy my book review.

Caraval Plot:

Rating: 5 out of 5.

I happened to pick this book up in a WhSmith in one of those service stations on the motorway while on a long car journey because I liked the sound of a circus-y themed competition story. I didn’t know then that this book would start an obsession with all things circus, particularly books with that setting. I love the plot of this book, it is filled to the brim with magic and escapism and one of the things I always love in books – not knowing who or what you can trust. This book completely messes with your head while at the same time being joyously beautiful and whimsical, dashed with danger. I could not put this book down.

Caraval Characters:

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Scarlett Dragna is one of two sisters, Scarlett and Tella, and in Caraval we follow Scarlett after Tella goes missing and Scarlett must compete in Caraval to find her. She is headstrong and fierce, especially in her loyalty to her sister. Scarlett is the character that I wish I could be (and who I will be dressing up as for YALC next year). The other character who features heavily in this book is Julian de Santos, he’s a cheeky, charming, mysterious man often described as looking like a rogue/pirate. As soon as I read that I knew I was going to love him, he’s definitely in my top five male book characters.

Caraval Writing and Dialogue:

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Stephanie Garber is an exceptionally good writer who has such talent that she drew me in from the very first sentence of the book and has captured my interest ever since. I have read the first and second book in the series so far and I find myself thinking on it all the time.

Caraval Overall:

Rating: 5 out of 5.

I had to give this book five stars because as I said, it is one of my favourite books I have ever read.

Blurb/Synopsis:

A legendary competition.
A mesmerizing romance.
An unbreakable bond
between two sisters.

Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over.

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever.

Welcome, welcome to Caraval . . . beware of getting swept too far away.

That’s it for this book review, I hope you all enjoyed it!

blog tours, Book Reviews

Book Review: Stalking Shadows by Cyla Panin

Happy Friday bookish people! Today I’m excited to be bringing you a book review of Stalking Shadows by Cyla Panin as my stop on the book tour. Thank you to TBR Tours and Beyond and Cyla Panin for sending me an ecopy of this book to read and review.

In this book review I will give star ratings to four categories and I will write a little about each one. I will try to keep it as spoiler free as possible. I hope you enjoy my book review.

Stalking Shadows Plot:

Rating: 3 out of 5.

I had heard that this book is a different take on the Beauty and the Beast retelling so I knew instantly that I wanted to read it. Anything that is even slightly reminiscent of Beauty and the Beast interests me. I loved the eerie Gothic feel to this book, it was most prominent in the settings but the whole book was filled with mystery and tension. I enjoyed the mystery and the slight creepyness of it, one thing I wanted more of was the action, I felt the story was too slow-paced for my liking and I would have liked some more intriguing events.

Stalking Shadows Characters:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I really enjoyed the personality of the main character, Marie, she is very caring and brave and loyal to her sister. One of my favourite things about this book is the connection between the sisters, in this book they are the Beauty and the Beast rather than a love interest which was a nice change, there aren’t too many books with such a focus on the sibling relationship and having a sister myself I really felt I could put myself in Marie’s shoes.

Stalking Shadows Writing and Dialogue:

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

The writing in this book is very detailed and atmospheric, it helped to build up the plot layer by layer. I personally felt there was a tiny bit too much foreshadowing which sort of gave away the ending before it happened.

Stalking Shadows Overall:

Rating: 3 out of 5.

I gave this book three stars overall because, although it is a very enjoyable YA debut read, I felt like I wanted a little more from the book than what it gave me.

Blurb/Synopsis:

A gothic YA fantasy debut about a young woman striving to break her sister’s curse and stop the killing in her small French town

Seventeen-year-old Marie mixes perfumes to sell on market day in her small eighteenth-century French town. She wants to make enough to save a dowry for her sister, Ama, in hopes of Ama marrying well and Marie living in the level of freedom afforded only to spinster aunts. But her perfumes are more than sweet scents in cheap, cut-glass bottles: A certain few are laced with death. Marie laces the perfume delicately—not with poison but with a hint of honeysuckle she’s trained her sister to respond to. Marie marks her victim, and Ama attacks. But she doesn’t attack as a girl. She kills as a beast.

Marking Ama’s victims controls the damage to keep suspicion at bay. But when a young boy turns up dead one morning, Marie is forced to acknowledge she might be losing control of Ama. And if she can’t control her, she’ll have to cure her. Marie knows the only place she’ll find the cure is in the mansion where Ama was cursed in the first place, home of Lord Sebastien LeClaire. But once she gets into the mansion, she discovers dark secrets hidden away—secrets of the curse, of Lord Sebastien . . . and of herself.

About the Author:

Cyla Panin is an MG, YA and Adult author who prefers to look at the world through a dusting of magic. After spending most of her childhood wanting to escape into the wonderful worlds her favourite author’s created, she’s now using her own words to craft magical places. When not writing, Cyla can be found playing dinosaurs with her two young boys, watching swashbuckling and/or period TV shows with her husband and, of course, reading.

Her YA debut, Stalking Shadows will be out with Amulet, Abrams Fall 2021. She is represented by Chloe Seager of the Madelaine Milburn Literary, TV and Film agency.

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stalking-shadows-cyla-panin/1138773828

Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stalking-Shadows-Cyla-Panin/dp/1419752650

Blackwells: https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Stalking-Shadows-by-Cyla-Panin/9781419752650

Tour schedule: https://tbrandbeyondtours.com/2021/08/19/tour-schedule-stalking-shadows-by-cyla-panin/

That’s it for this book review, I hope you all enjoyed it!

Book Tags

Top 5 Intimidating Books I Want To Read

Happy Friday bookish people! I’m back with another book tag! I was tagged in this by @moonraa23 (sorry if I’ve spelt this wrong) on Twitter, so thank you to them.

The idea of this tag is – telling you all five of the books on my TBR that I find intimidating and why. It was very difficult to get it down to just five, there’s a lot of books that anticipate me for many different reasons. Also, I will say the book title and then I will give you the synopsis of the book and then the reason that it intimidates me.

Let’s get to the first one!

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas

Feyre survived Amarantha’s clutches to return to the Spring Court—but at a steep cost. Though she now has the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can’t forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin’s people.

Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms—and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future—and the future of a world cleaved in two.

So… I read A Court of Thorns and Roses at the beginning of this year and loved it and I’m very excited to pick up A Court of Mist and Fury but it intimidates me. Simply because I’ve heard so many good things about it and especially about Rhysand that I’m worried about reading it even though I’m 99% sure I’m going to love it.

Once Upon A Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber

Evangeline Fox was raised in her beloved father’s curiosity shop, where she grew up on legends about immortals, like the tragic Prince of Hearts. She knows his powers are mythic, his kiss is worth dying for, and that bargains with him rarely end well.

But when Evangeline learns that the love of her life is about to marry another, she becomes desperate enough to offer the Prince of Hearts whatever he wants in exchange for his help to stop the wedding. The prince only asks for three kisses. But after Evangeline’s first promised kiss, she learns that the Prince of Hearts wants far more from her than she’s pledged. And he has plans for Evangeline that will either end in the greatest happily ever after, or the most exquisite tragedy… 

This book isn’t out yet, I can’t wait for it to be published! I absolutely loved the Caraval series and that’s why I’m intimidated by this one, I’m hoping I’m going to love it at least as much but we shall see once I get it in my hands and get around to reading it.

Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee

From Harper Lee comes a landmark new novel set two decades after her beloved Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece, To Kill a Mockingbird. Maycomb, Alabama. Twenty-six-year-old Jean Louise Finch—”Scout”—returns home from New York City to visit her aging father, Atticus. Set against the backdrop of the civil rights tensions and political turmoil that were transforming the South, Jean Louise’s homecoming turns bittersweet when she learns disturbing truths about her close-knit family, the town and the people dearest to her. Memories from her childhood flood back, and her values and assumptions are thrown into doubt. Featuring many of the iconic characters from To Kill a MockingbirdGo Set a Watchman perfectly captures a young woman, and a world, in a painful yet necessary transition out of the illusions of the past—a journey that can be guided only by one’s conscience. Written in the mid-1950s, Go Set a Watchman imparts a fuller, richer understanding and appreciation of Harper Lee. Here is an unforgettable novel of wisdom, humanity, passion, humor and effortless precision—a profoundly affecting work of art that is both wonderfully evocative of another era and relevant to our own times. It not only confirms the enduring brilliance of To Kill a Mockingbird, but also serves as its essential companion, adding depth, context and new meaning to an American classic.

I really enjoyed reading To Kill A Mockingbird, luckily I didn’t read it for school otherwise I might not have enjoyed it as much. I was surprised when they brought out this book and I’m not sure on it because To Kill A Mockingbird worked perfectly as a stand-alone so I want to read it but I also don’t.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M Danforth

Our story begins in 1902, at The Brookhants School for Girls. Flo and Clara, two impressionable students, are obsessed with each other and with a daring young writer named Mary MacLane, the author of a scandalous bestselling memoir. To show their devotion to Mary, the girls establish their own private club and call it The Plain Bad Heroine Society. They meet in secret in a nearby apple orchard, the setting of their wildest happiness and, ultimately, of their macabre deaths. This is where their bodies are later discovered with a copy of Mary’s book splayed beside them, the victims of a swarm of stinging, angry yellow jackets. Less than five years later, The Brookhants School for Girls closes its doors forever—but not before three more people mysteriously die on the property, each in a most troubling way.

Over a century later, the now abandoned and crumbling Brookhants is back in the news when wunderkind writer, Merritt Emmons, publishes a breakout book celebrating the queer, feminist history surrounding the “haunted and cursed” Gilded-Age institution. Her bestselling book inspires a controversial horror film adaptation starring celebrity actor and lesbian it girl Harper Harper playing the ill-fated heroine Flo, opposite B-list actress and former child star Audrey Wells as Clara. But as Brookhants opens its gates once again, and our three modern heroines arrive on set to begin filming, past and present become grimly entangled—or perhaps just grimly exploited—and soon it’s impossible to tell where the curse leaves off and Hollywood begins.

A story within a story within a story and featuring black-and-white period illustrations. 

A murder mystery set in a school sounds amazing to me, and it reminds me of a more adult version of Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson a little bit but I’m intimidated by this book – not only because it is massive, but also because it might be too much of a thriller for me.

The Six Tudor Queens series by Alison Weir

I won’t give you a synopsis here because this is a whole series not just a single book. So, this one I’m intimidated by because I love books set in the Tudor Period and Philippa Gregory is one of my favourite authors but I’ve read all her books so I needed some new Tudor historical fiction and I’m hoping Alison Weir can give me that.

That’s it for this tag, I hope you all enjoyed it!

blog tours, Book Reviews

Book Review: The Hawthorne Legacy by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Happy Wednesday bookish people! Today is my spot on the book tour for The Hawthorne Legacy, sequel to the Inheritance Games, by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. I was so excited to receive a copy of this book to read and review, it was one of my most anticipated releases for 2021. I loved The Inheritance Games, I will be posting my review of the first book in the series later today.

In this book review I will give star ratings to four categories and I will write a little about each one. I will try to keep it as spoiler free as possible. I hope you enjoy my book review.

The Hawthorne Legacy Plot:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

This book picks up almost immediately after where the inheritance Games finishes, and you as the reader are chucked right into the middle of another mystery. And what a mystery it is, I love how intricate and complex the mystery itself is, there’s so many tricks and codes and puzzles. I adore puzzles, any type so I think I would definitely be a little like the Hawthorne brothers with their competitive natures and love of solving puzzles. I really loved that I couldn’t predict where the story was going to take me, it was filled with new and exciting scenarios but also had a balance by constantly referring to things that happened in the first book.

The Hawthorne Legacy Characters:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Avery is a wonderful character to follow, I felt like I was learning about her along with her and this made the book very interesting for me. I like that she can stand up for herself against the family that keep throwing negative things her way. Her sister Libby, there’s something about her that I just always feel like something bad is going to happen. Then there’s the Hawthorne brothers, all charming and enigmatic but also slightly dangerous it feels like. Of course, I have a favourite brother but I’m not going to say which one it is.

The Hawthorne Legacy Writing and Dialogue:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I like that the writing style matches the mystery, it never reveals more than it should and this meant that I was constantly guessing and looking for clues.

The Hawthorne Legacy Overall:

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I gave this book four stars overall because I loved getting back into the world of Avery and the Hawthorne’s.

Blurb/Synopsis:

Intrigue, riches, and romance abound in this thrilling sequel to the New York Times bestselling The Inheritance Games perfect for fans of Karen McManus and Holly Jackson.

The Inheritance Games ended with a bombshell, and now heiress Avery Grambs has to pick up the pieces and find the man who might hold the answers to all of her questions – including why Tobias Hawthorne left his entire fortune to Avery, a virtual stranger, rather than to his own daughters or grandsons.

Thanks to a DNA test, Avery knows that she’s not a Hawthorne by blood, but clues pile up hinting at a deeper connection to the family than she had ever imagined. As the mystery grows and the plot thickens, Grayson and Jameson, the enigmatic and magnetic Hawthorne grandsons, continue to pull Avery in different directions. And there are threats lurking around every corner, as adversaries emerge who will stop at nothing to see Avery out of the picture – by any means necessary.

With nonstop action, aspirational jet-setting, family intrigue, swoonworthy romance, and billions of dollars hanging in the balance, The Hawthorne Legacy will thrill Jennifer Lynn Barnes fans and new readers alike.

That’s it for this book review, I hope you all enjoyed it!