So, I picked this book up only because of the cover. I didn’t read what it was about, I was just like that looks awesome, and I wasn’t wrong, YAY! 🤣
This is a YA fantasy about a young girl, Joan, who finds out she’s a monster and the boy she was on a date with is a monster-hunter. Unfortunately, the way she finds out is pretty awful, and she has to run for her life!
Continue reading “Only a Monster by Vanessa Len”
This was a great story of coming-of-age. Berg is a giant without a family. He just wants to find a friend, a place where he can be accepted.
The story takes the reader on a Berg’s journey, and while it’s a bit heartbreaking, I think it’s also uplifting and moving. The story is fantastic, and I think it truly speaks to how children and adults should be treating each other at all times.
Continue reading “The Legend of the Dream Giants by Dustin Hansen”
What We Harvest was an absolutely fantastic book that had elements of family and friendship, magic, and creepy horror. It was the exact amount of horror I can handle too! 🤣 This was an outstanding debut from Ann Fraistat!
Wren lives in Hollow’s End, an old town set in the backdrop of present day. The town has four farms run by four founding families, and each one has its own special element that helps drive revenue and tourism for the town and families. Something has gone wrong in Hollow’s End though. A blight is taking over the crops, sucking the life right out of them, but it’s more than just the crops. People and animals have begun to go missing, and now they are showing up again, but they are shells of the humans they once were, and they are dangerous.
Continue reading “What We Harvest by Ann Fraistat”
I’ve accidently chosen a few Roanoke books lately, and I’ve enjoyed reading the very different ways the authors have chosen to explain what happened. In The Curse That Binds Us, the explanation is quite evil…
The story is told through three perspectives: Redd, John, and Elinor. Redd is a teen with a mom who has odd, overbearing rules and is constantly running from a creepy box that shows up every year on Redd’s birthday. John is a mysterious teen who shows up in Redd’s life with a goal of bringing Redd back to his hometown. Then there is Elinor. Her story is the historical view of what happened at Roanoke. These three characters’ stories intertwine in such a surprising, interesting, and terrifying way.
Continue reading “The Curse That Binds Us by Katie Hayoz”
This was such a magical escape into an underwater world of mermaids! Paradise Royale has a cruddy family that has adopted her, and they are awful! When they go on vacation to Italy, Paradise finds a way into a world of mermaids and mermen. While Aquaria is an escape for her, there are dangers lurking there as well…
Continue reading “Tails from Down Under by Tara Lala”
Holy smokes, this book was AMAZING! I couldn’t stop reading this one!
When Sena was young, she lost her moms to the famous race that her planet is known for. That’s really all her planet has. It’s freezing cold all the time, constantly under some sort of storm, and filled with corporate gangsters. When Sena ends up in trouble with one of the gang boss’s she ends up unintentionally stealing a fighting wolf from him. On the run from the boss, she ends up doing the one thing she swore she would never do…help with the race.
Continue reading “Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves by Meg Long”
Wow, I really got sucked into this book! It’s full of magic, friendships, mystery, and first romance all wrapped up in a coming of age story. When Maeve discovers some old tarot cards, she finds that she has a knack for them, and begins giving readings to all the girls in school. When one goes wrong and someone important to her disappears, she finds that a chain reaction of events has begun and she needs to tap into her unknown magical powers to fix everything.
I loved Maeve’s journey in this, and it is what kept pushing me to read. She is learning so much about herself and her friends. There’s some great LGBTQ representation in this one, and I enjoyed that Maeve is learning how to best support the people in her life.
Continue reading “All Our Hidden Gifts by Caroline O’Donoghue”
So, to be totally honest here, I picked this one up without reading the synopsis because it’s book 2 and I just KNEW I wanted to read it! So…I was surprised to find that this wasn’t going to be a book about survival above ground, but instead one of surviving below…still. So, it took me a little to get over being a bit grumpy about that 😂!
If you haven’t read the first book in this series, Escaping Eleven, you definitely need to start there! It’s an amazing story that I loved!! Book 2 jumps into the story where book 1 left off…SPOILERS… Eve and Wren are above ground, but they soon realize they can’t survive up there. They don’t know anything about the world, what to eat, how to fight animals off, what water is safe, etc. And so, they return to Eleven. Their lives return to normal a bit, there are lover’s spats, Eve punches people, and they realize they need to try to save everyone in the compound, not just themselves. But obviously that’s not as easy as it seems!
Continue reading “Unraveling Eleven by Jerri Chisholm”
I could not ignore this book’s cover! I love how wonderfully it fits the story, I look at it now, after reading, and I just think it was matched so well.
This was a creepy, dark, atmospheric read, and it was so different than what I was expecting! The magical elements were darker and more sinister making this a great gothic story. I loved the characters and their backstories. As the plot wove its way through the pages, I was blown away by what was really going on. It was surprising, and something that I absolutely enjoyed!
Continue reading “What Big Teeth by Rose Szabo”
Okay, this book is a beautiful, amazing, stunning journey that you MUST read! I was completely and utterly in love with Addie and her invisible life. I am now a complete V.E. Schwab fan and must go devour all of the other books by her!
Addie LaRue’s deal with the devil reduces her to a fleeting, forgotten memory to every single person she meets. She can’t die, but she can’t leave a mark on the world. I loved reading about her journey as she learns how to live with each stumbling block.
Just think about it, you can’t rent a room because the person will forget that you paid, you can’t start a relationship because you are forgotten the moment you use the restroom, your family doesn’t remember you, and you live forever…
Continue reading “The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab”
This story is perfect for readers that enjoy Vikings and Game of Thrones type stories and characters! It’s a prequel to the Raghnall series, but you could probably jump in here and not be lost.
I really loved Catherine. She is a sassy, feisty lady that doesn’t take crap from anyone! Reading her story was so much fun, and I’m excited to see how she gets from here to House Raghnall to make this story come full circle! Catherine is rescued after an injury by the Olden clan. They were surprising and full of a variety of personalities, and I enjoyed that the story was told through multiple POVs. I had the chance to get some great insight into other characters!
Continue reading “Shattered Steel by Shauna Richmond”
What a fun fantasy story for middle-grade readers! I really enjoyed the 🐉dragon 😂. I haven’t read a ton of books with dragons in them, so I really liked this!
There are some great themes within the story that will resonate with many readers. Family is an important element throughout the story. I really enjoyed that the family we meet are close relatives as well as ones further along in the family tree. It’s nice to show that a family can consist of a variety of blood relatives as well as strong friends.
Continue reading “The Dragon Thief by Zetta Elliott”
She Just Loves Books 