Category: Uncategorized

Serpent and dove by Shelby Mahurin (review)

Mini Review

4.5/5

Full review to come but really loved this book so much and definitely one of my fav ya fantasy books of the year for surrreee the characters are amazing and all the witchiness is amazing and this book definitely felt really original and fresh and I loved it, always like a book that surprises and feels really new and what I’ve never read about before. So excited for the sequel and need it nowwwww haha

It took me a while to finish as have been really busy recently and haven’t been able to read but so happy I’ve finally finished this book, so perfect for Halloween season too

Tunnel of bones – Victoria Schwab review

Review below

4/5 stars

Was so surprised about this read as the first book I wasn’t really a fan and didn’t really connect to the story but this sequel was so gooood, I enjoy this book and found it 10x better than the first book. I felt like the story was so much more improved and felt like such a solid storyline and was more engaged with the characters and especially near the end felt quite emotional with one of the main characters in the books.

Such a great read and very excited about the next adventure these characters embark on and which city or country they visit. One thing that is a bonus is you do learn about a lot of different aspects of history too which is a really cool touch that is added in to the books too.

Overall a amazing surprise of a book and such a quick and easy book to fly through and perfect for so many ages 🙌🏻🙌🏻.

We are the lost and found by Helene Dunbar

Review below

“Happy. And that’s the odd thing. Not being happy, but realising it. Because how often, when you’re happy, do you have the chance to step back and notice?” – we are the lost and found

I started this book right here (we are the lost and found) earlier today and Flew through this book. Ooo what a book this was, such a moving and heartbreaking book set in New York in the early 80s, during the AIDS epidemic. we follow Micheal and his two best friends and how they are struggling with trying to find a place to fit in the world. but especially our main character Micheal who feels he can’t be himself and wants to stay in the shadows and hide the real him especially after his brother Conor was kicked out the house by his parents for being gay. We see throughout this book how tough Micheal is being on the outside but In the inside he just wants to just wants to tell everyone the truth, but he keeps pushing it back and not ready to just yet.

Oh this book was just such beautifully written with amazing characters that you just want to hug and make sure they are okay, when they feel down or lonely. Just reading about the struggles just pull at your heartstrings. The whole book it does feel like a real persons life in one year and feel like your reading someone’s life and how they saw the AIDS epidemic.

Helene did an amazing job with this book and even though I didn’t really know what this book was I was so pleased that I really enjoyed this book, yes this book might not be for everyone in the way it is written but for me I felt it flowed and was such a cool and interesting writing style.

This story has such great character development, a amazing friendship, brothers who try their best to be there for each other and also all the 80s music mixed in.

Oh and of course got to add that the cover is 😍😍

4/5 stars

The Grace year by Kim Liggett

Review below

Approved for a E-ARC on netgalley by the publishers in exchange for a honest review.

Wow Wow Wow this book was amazing and actually came as a shock to me really, because before reading this book I didn’t know anything about it and I had only seen the cover and I was ooo like this cover. So when I started this book and was so suprised by how good this was I was shook to say the least and let me just tell you the world that the author has been written inside this book is amazing but so so terrifying at the same time.

While reading this books you can just visualise so many of the places that the main character goes to and where she lives and I’m so excited that there is going to be a adaptation of this book and hopefully it is done very well because This book deserves it and I highly recommend this as one to be put to the top of your TBR’s.

The characters in this book are awesome and especially the main character, the way she is courageous and never gives up in a world that tells her she shouldn’t do this or do that, she rises above it and always but her life at risk for her family but also friends.

I don’t want to say much more as would like for everyone to experience this book and hopefully everyone finishes reading this book and loves it as much as I did.

This book is a 4.5/5 stars for me and one that is definitely a favourite of the year.

The beautiful by Renée Ahdieh

Review below

Book sent for review by the publishers

Firstly I have to say that this book was really good it isn’t the best book in the world but I enjoyed reading this book. I know that it has been given a few mixed reviews and from reading them I definitely can see where they are coming from… because when I started reading this book I was like woah this is not what I expected it to be like as it was definitely put differently to me through people speaking of the book and synopsis. It wasn’t the perfect book has it definitely has lots of flaws but overall I really enjoyed this book and The main character is a very cool character. A lot different to what I expected but overall I enjoyed it. Throughout the book we get some very awesome scenes between the two main characters and love how badass Celine is and how she doesn’t back down from anything and will show anyone who tests her that they are messing with the wrong woman 🙌🏻🙌🏻.

I’ve got to say I’m very excited for the sequel and feel that it’s definitely going to be better than the first one already especially with how the ending was made and I just need to know what happens next with these characters especially Celine.

One thing that I didn’t really like was I was expecting it to be so much darker and darker, it definitely had its moment of dark but didn’t have much as wanted, with a few scenes I was Like oooo okay this is atmospheric but then it would change back after 10 pages or so to back to how it was before.

As I’ve said before this book was really good and was an enjoyable read, I flew through it so quick and was mostly impressed just had wished it was even darker and more vampire moments as I thought it would be all throughout.

3.5/4 out of 5 stars

Inside out – Demi Moore’s memoir

Review below

Wow Wow Wow!!! Yesterday I read and finished in a day demi Moore’s memoir and what a book this was.

This memoir has got to be one of/is my favourite memoir I have read ever. Demi Moore doesn’t hold back in telling her story, she tells us all about her rocky relationship she had with her parents while growing up, her romantic relationships with Bruce Willis and Ashton Kutcher and also the secret addictions she was facing. While reading this Memoir for me I was getting quite emotional throughout, reading about her childhood trauma and actually also through her career, with the backlash she had received from the public and sometimes people close to her. When Demi talks about the movies she has starred in throughout this memoir, I loved getting little behind the scenes snippets of what it was like in movies such as Ghost, G.I Jane, indecent proposal and so many other great films, but even while she was making these films she was dealing with a battle with her body image, food and exercise. Demi’s life has not been smooth sailing but I love that when reading this you get a sense that even through all the things that have happened to her in her life she is just trying to find peace, hope and happiness for herself for the rest of her life. I would recommend this memoir to anyone, so eye opening and one of the best memoirs I’ve read.

The ten thousand doors of January by Alix E. Harrow

Arc set for review by the publishers at orbit and little brown publishing

Review below

for me this was a 3 star book for me. this book for me is a little hard for me to review as for me I loved the start of the book so much, it was so fascinating and captivating, a story about a girl who finds magical doors dn get transported to different worlds sounded so fascinating to me and for the first half it was so good and really loved the main character who has so many flaws in herself but can be so relatable in many situations throughout this book. but sadly for me as the book was continuing on I felt like I was getting distracted every time I was reading and then I wouldn’t understand some parts of the book, I know that is of course my own fault but sadly I couldn’t connect to the story fully.
sadly for me this book was too slow-paced for me and it seemed like it took ages in the story to really learn about the doors. what I did love though was the writing of the story, this book was written so beautifully and the author has such magical/whimsical writing abilities which was one of my most favourite things about this book.

overall such a great story, beautiful writing and really enjoyed some of the characters in this story, and this will definitely be for so many people and I would recommend it to anyone as I know a lot of people will enjoy their story but sadly for me this wasn’t the book for me, which is a shame but thats the way it goes sometimes.

thank you to the Publishing at little brown publishing and orbit uk for sending me a physical copy of this book in exchange for a honest review

There will come a darkness by Katy rose pool Review

Review

Oh damn what a debut this book was, the magical elements throughout this world, the diversity in the characters throughout this story and the whole crew setting was amazing.

There will come a darkness is the start of a

Epic YA fantasy series, it follows Multiple characters in a world that is starting to corrupt and follows an array of characters from all types of backgrounds and learning about each individuals own lives and the trials and tribulations they are facing was so amazing to read about. The world in which this book is set is absolutely amazing from its very old styled kind of buildings with a mix of modern twist weaved in between it all.

There will come a darkness needs to be on everyones TBR piles and also needs to become a very well known fantasy for all readers.

One of my favourite parts about this book were the characters. The way we meet some of these characters is awesome and even from the first sentenced you are hooked instantly. as I said before the characters are so diverse and its wonderful to read about, even the secondary characters in which we meet are all written about wonderfully aswell and its very cool to see the added bonus of learning about their lives too which I think adds and makes fantasy books better.

when I was reading this book I came attached to some of the characters. my fav character even though they all are amazing in their own ways, has got to be Anton, oh I would love for him to be a friend in real life. His story arc through this book 😦 you feel for him in so many ways and just want to give him a hug in certain situations.

The only thing I’ve got to say that is a little negative Is that in some parts of the story I had a incline where the story was going and predicted a few things that would happen before they happened. but that was only on a few occasions. mosts of the twists I didn’t see coming which makes the book even better.

overall there will come a darkness is took over and is now my fav fantasy book of the year so far. As I’ve said the world, characters and the beautiful writing just makes this book what it is and I’m so excited for the next book in the series and very excited to have a new author to love. Congratulations Katy Rose Pool on this absolutely amazing first novel.

4.5/5 stars

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ✨

Summer of salt by Katrina Leno (spoiler warning)

Review

TW – sexual assault,rape, animals death, drug use

I picked this book up on a whim as I have been interested in this book for a long while now, and I needed something either quick or fast paced for me to read. as this was under 300 pages It was a super fast read but the book inside is definitely full of happy times but also some very emotional and upsetting times as well.

this book is a magical realism story which follows Georgina and Mary two twin sisters who live in a small town called by the sea which is set on a island, this island holds the legacy of the fernweh family who Mary and Georgina are apart of and they all have a reputation of possessing magical powers such as, telepathy, flying, floating and so much more. every summer by the sea becomes a tourist attraction for a lot of people as 300 years ago a woman named Annabelle who is also from the feenweh ancestry line turned into a bird and every year people called birdseeds come and visit the Island to find Annabelle and to make sure the rumours are true. This year however something strange has happened and for some unknown reason Annabelle hasn’t turned up, so after a few days of lots of people worrying and birdseeds becoming impatient they go out on the hunt to try ad find Annabelle all over the island. until one night Georgina is told that they have found Annabelle but dead.

as everyone sees the body over the next couple of days the birdheads/ most of the island turn the accustorary finger onto Mary one of the Fernweh twins, but Georgina deep down knows that Mary could never harm a bird or even one as legendary as Annabelle. Georgina starts to second guess herself though because when Annabelle’s corpse was found Mary all of a sudden started to act strange and hide a secret that Mary would not tell anyone about. so Georgina makes it her mission to find out the whole truth.

in the background of this story we see a beautiful romantic relationship start to take shape with Georgina and Prue who arrived on the island with her brother Harrison at the start of the summer. Prue is also a birdied and is very fascinated about the bird as most of the island. Prue and Georgina I really just loved the dynamic of these two together and as it was not the forefront of the story would love to have seen even. more scenes with these two together if the book was longer but overall it was so cute.

Overall this book was such a fantastic read and for me very fast paced. I loved the atmosphere, the magical abilities of the women and the friendships and F/F romance that were really great. my only little bit of criticism is that I wish the book was longer because I could read about these characters for a while or even if Justin a whim if Katrina Leno brought back this story and make a second book that would be amazing. at parts near the end I did feel like everything happened very quickly but overall thumbs up for and I would definitely recommend to people.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Mooncakes by Wendy Xiu and Suzanne Walker

Review below

This Arc was provided by the publishers via net galley in exchange for a fun and honest review..

This Graphic novel was such a fantastic and amazing story, the story has so many aspects that I really enjoyed very much such as. The.magic and family relationships that were so supportive all the time. It was amazing to see rep of a Female/Non binary relationship.(which was the cutest in the world).

This Graphic novel follows Nova a Chinese-American witch who sadly lost her parents and is still trying to grief in the best way she can. Nova lives with her Grandmas ( the best couple alert). All three of them work and look after Rare and special witch books which sometimes people come and and ask to rent them for a couple of days.

We also follow Tam a Non-Binary werewolf, who has come back to New England after leaving many years ago. Before they moved away Tam and Nova were really great friends and grew up together. Tam has came back because where they lived before he was having some issues with their family and they were not very kind at all to them.

I really enjoyed the underlay of the story of trying to find yourself in a world that can be very intimidating and tough at times, I Love how Nova and Tam always stuck together through everything and made sure that the other person was okay. Even though they both have their struggles individually they have that loving bond that can last a lifetime.

I just got to say that the Grandmas in this graphic novel are some of my fav people, they were so supportive, always wanting what was best for Nova and also welcomed Tam in with open arms and loving care.

Overall this Graphic novel was a Queer,Magical read that everyone needs to read when it is released and to meet these amazing characters. The rep in this I loved so much, the characters were amazing and finally the illustrations were gorgeous. Im definitely going to pick up a finished copy once it has been released just

so I can digest these visuals once again they are just the best.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️