#2021reads

[penelopecat]

I finished this box set (which means I’ve walked 4 days in a row this week) and I am completely floored by this episode. All I can think to say is that this cannot possibly be the end! #thismakesmehappy #2021reads #books #audiobooks #audiodrama #bigfinishproductions #gerryanderson #ufo #ufobreakingpoint #nicholasbriggs #jamieanderson #barnabykay https://www.instagram.com/p/CqLJlVRr0a3/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[moondeerdotblog]

Digging this out again, since my Morning Joe pundits still can't seem to differentiate between there arses and the barrage of holes in the ground.

On Trumpism

Trump was a formula … not a force, a tool … not a tyrant. If your focus remains on that puffy little can of Orange Blush, you are missing the core of the challenge we face in defending our forefathers …

6:38 PM • Aug 29, 2021reading time 3 minutes

[musicallisto]

books i read in 2021 [5/?] — “catching fire”, by suzanne collins

“𝐀𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐝.𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐢𝐭.”

[moonlightsreader]

books read in 2021: shadow and bone by leigh bardugo

[rrrhysand]

books I read in 2021: The Bridge Kingdom, Danielle L. Jensen

“Fear and bravery are often one and the same. It either makes you a warrior or a coward. The only difference is the person it resides inside.”  

add me on goodreads

[hessabookishgirl]

They’ll Never Catch Us by Jessica Goodman

rating⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐.

Jessica Goodman does it again. I was blown away by her first book, They Wish They Were Us, and had such high hopes and was not disappointed at all. This book had me hooked from the start. Both Ellie and Stella were compelling protagonists, who I loved. I couldn't put the book down and finished it in a few hours. Every time I thought I knew who the killer was, another twist was thrown our way. I am excited to see what else is in store for Jessica and her next book. ~Hessabookishgirl on GoodReads

More in depth review under the keep read, will contained spoilers

As stated above, Jessica Goodman is an amazing author and I love every book she has released. This one was no different and had me from the the start. The characters, the plot, the pacing, and the twist were everything I wanted in a book and more.

The main characters are Stella and Ellie Steckler, sisters on the cross-country time that are trying to outdo each other and get into college. Both girls are relatable and easy to imagine yourself as. 

At the start they are both coming off summer. Stella is returning home as the black sheep of the town, and Ellie had some personal issues that sets her whole goal for the sister.

I adore them both, of course I had a favorite of the two, Stella, but they both were amazing. I want to applaud Jessica for writing a main character that was lesbian, without making it her whole identity. 

I have a theory, that when reading a murder mystery within the first 60 pages, you have met the killer. So I made a mental list of all the characters and who could do the murder. Of course there hadn’t been any current murders yet in the story, just the ones from a decade ago, and I was still thinking it was the same person, so I was a bit stumped.

But on page 93, Ellie tells Noah that she told Mila, their secret. Which is they been sleeping together during the summer, Ellie got pregnant and had an abortion. 

To me that gave him Motive. The means, I would say yes, and had yet to have an opportunity, though it would be easy, considering they go to school together and on the same team, he could give her a ride or something.

By the time that Mila goes missing, I was grinning, knowing it had to be Noah, though when they find her phone, I was a bit stumped, but still confident. Maybe he has help from either his girlfriend and friends. He was trying to frame Stella since he was around when the Id fell out of her locker.

Ellie behavior with Nate, farther confirmed it for me, and Ellie was his accomplice, though I didn’t understand why she was helping her sister when she could let her take the fall, but that would have been out character for her.

But everything was falling into place. Ellie was the girl in the photo with Mila the day of her death. Nate and her looks, their talk in the forest. It was all adding up. When Noah attacks Ellie in her room, I was positive I had got it right. Ellie told Stella what happened and it made sense.

And then it didn’t. Like Stella, I notices somethings didn’t add up, like the phone and Id. Plus Noah and Ellie never went into the pit, so why was here shoe not with her body and missing the laces. Why did she had broken ribs and head trauma when she only had a broken ankle when they left her.

I was stumped, when they get to the lodge and Julia ask Tamara to call the police and she says no. I though, HA, it’s her, and yet still I was wrong. Raven being the killer was something I thought at one point during the first 60 pages, just because she was already introduce, but dismissed it early one.

But in the end, it was Raven. Her motive was heartbreaking, and in the end I did feel for her, though I didn’t like her trying to frame my homegirl Stella.

The thing about Jessica Goodman books is that the killer motives are the most terrifying because they are so comment and relatable. We have all bee jealous and wished to one up someone. Wished they would go away so we could shine.

The truth that any of us could turn into a Raven is what makes the story so haunting.

[omgreadingonceuponatime]

What I read in May.

[onlythedarkestreads]

4.5/5 Stars

Pub Date: Sep 28, 2021

“I don’t want to share not even with a dead man.”

Survivors of a traumatic event in their teen years, best friends Andrew and Eddie are inseparable. Bonded beyond brotherhood.

When Eddie gets early admission to Vanderbilt, for a program they both will be attending, they spend an agonizing spring apart. Andrew can’t wait to join him but Eddie seems less eager for him to come to Nashville.

When Eddie turns up dead from an apparent suicide, Andrew refuses to believe that happened.

So Andrew heads to Nashville and steps into Eddie’s life. His house and his friends, his thesis and the research that could’ve got him killed.

What follows is a story dripping grief from every page. Fast cars and bad decisions. Dark academia and pitch black family histories. Violence, curses, ghosts and haunted houses. I’d be remiss to not mention all the angst and sexual tension 😅. Sam. Oh, Sam.

This queer neo-noir southern gothic horror was exactly what I needed.

Thank you to Net Galley and Tordotcom for an ARC of this title.

[ireadingbooks]

or maybe we are free the moment we’re born. maybe everything we’ve ever done is by our own hands.

- Malibu Rising, Taylor Jenkins Reid (2021) -

[kirstypedia]

A post about my 2021 overall reading stats is now live! I love looking back and compiling various stats of what kind of books I read, bought, and borrowed over a year. Link in bio if you're nosey. #readingstats #2021reads #nerdyreadingthings #bookstagram #shelfie #booksbooksbooks https://www.instagram.com/p/CYMQpXYjkEQ/?utm_medium=tumblr

[ornithomance]

My top 10 (fiction) books of 2021 - in no particular order! I read 87 books this year, despite two wild semesters of grad school. That’s a full 30 more than last year ... but it somehow feels like I read less?

@the-z-part​ adapted an awesome Reading Superlatives list from BooksandLala’s annual list, which I am shamelessly copying. For the sake of diversifying the titles, I did not include my top tens or repeats! (This made for a very difficult task, and I had to cheat once.)

✨Superlatives:✨

Favorite 2021 release: The Witness for the Dead by Katherine Addison

Favorite older title (5+ years): Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. DIck

Lived up to the hype: Black Water Sister by Zen Cho

Didn’t live up to the hype: Goldenhand by Garth Nix

Biggest reading accomplishment: The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djèlí Clark (an accomplish because I finally laid hands on it! My library doesn’t have it.)

Fav character: 💕✨ Keyne from Sistersong by Lucy Holland ✨💞🌟

Least fav character: Everyone but Sevro in Red Rising by Pierce Brown lol

Most surprising moment: The lovely end to Sergeant Jackrum’s story in Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett

Best prose: Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

Book you’ll be recommending: The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

Fav newly discovered author: Martha Wells! Martha Wells!

Fav cover: Beowulf: A New Translation by Maria Dahvana Headley

Made you cry: None, unless I cheat and say Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas (good tears)

Made you laugh: The Affair of the Mysterious Letter by Alexis Hall

Fav reread: El Ladrón del Rayo (The Lightning Thief) by Rick Riordan (do second language rereads count? It was my first Spanish audiobook!)

Most surprising 5 star: The Last True Poets of the Sea by Julia Drake (not my usual fave genre - but a fantastic book is a fantastic book!)

Least fav overall: The Dog Stars by Peter Heller

[penelopecat]

I started the last episode in this set this morning. This time around I find myself captivated by the personal drama between Commander Straker and his family, a story I expected to be unnecessarily teased out for a lot longer. (I’ve been conditioned by too many traditional TV dramas and my expectations are low.) And for those keeping score, this means I’ve walked 3 days in a row so far. It was a struggle getting up this morning, but I did it. Check back tomorrow to see if I make it to four days! #thismakesmehappy #2021reads #books #audiobooks #audiodrama #bigfinishproductions #gerryanderson #ufo #ufobreakingpoint #nicholasbriggs #jamieanderson #barnabykay https://www.instagram.com/p/CqImVkGLsy0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[rukhsandbooks]

Over the last year, I have found myself gravitating towards anthologies and collections of stories more and more. I used to read these a lot (and write some) when I was in highschool and I'm excited to be reading them again. I also hope this might inspire me to start writing more too.

This particular collection of stories is synonymous with, "a bundle of joy!" (not the baby kind, but definitely equally cute and swoon worthy).

I started reading this book because not only is it a collection of short stories but also because the stories are set in COVID times. If you follow me on Twitter you know I have not so patiently been waiting for this since the pandemic was declared. These stories did not disappoint and as Irfan aptly noted, "these stories are better together rather than apart". (By the way Irfan, I'm so thankful for our COVID friendship. Our story should be in a collection like this!)

So many of the stories left a goofy grin on my face, making this the perfect, "life is overwhelming" read. The majority of the stories also made me very hungry, which is totally fine and very authentic since most of our lives have revolved around food during the pandemic and lockdowns. Pretty sure I have annoyed most of my friends and new acquaintances with all my talk about food! Sorry y'all.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to sit here for a moment and bask in the wonderful feeling of having read such a lovely bunch of stories.

[musicallisto]

books i read in 2021 [4/?] — “siege and storm”, by leigh bardugo

“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐚𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲.”

[rrrhysand]

books I read in 2021: From Blood and Ash & A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire, J. L. Armentrout

“Fear and bravery are often one and the same. It either makes you a warrior or a coward. The only difference is the person it resides inside.”  

add me on goodreads

[hessabookishgirl]

I am doing a kingdom of the wicked reread, and I don’t remember all the little details from the first time around,( don’t judge me my mind is bad), but I’m about a little under half way through the book and for some reason I keep thinking what is Wraith is the devil?!?

She just assumes that it is pride because the devil is always associated with pride, but it’s not confirmed? In the story right? What if the story he tells about him helping pride is the other way around. Her sister made the deal with pride to marry the devil, and Wraith came to collect because he is the devil. All his weird confusing feelings for her at the start could have something to do with her being the one that held both amulets when there were children and gain so sort of power over him, his affection.

Then the nightmares began. Demons screeching, claws scraping, an unfamiliar woman with midnight eyes and fire in her soul, cursing me. A city of fire and ice. An obsidian throne room. A crown forged of flames and smoke. Enormous gates crafted from bone and leathery wings, bursting open. Betrayal.

I know I am probably forgotten a big part that disproved this theory, but I can no sleep as I think about it. In the opening maps in the book, his home is bigger than Pride’s, she had that odd dream when they were in the bath and she dreamt of a throne and a kingdom and betrayal, what is more of a betrayal then the person you love being the devil?

Im sure this isn’t a new theory but I just can’t stop thinking about it. So one come talk to me about this.

What’s are so more examples pointing to Wraith being the devil or Theories you have about the next book?