#LOVE SPELLS TO MAKE SOMEONE FALL IN LOVE WITH YOU IN GREER

[edehaffey]

Avenue south residence

A typical evergreen pine forest stands on a photo. An onlooker may assume that this could be in Colorado, Europe, Alaska, or at least if it was taken in the great Grand Canyon State then the foliage would be restricted to some very very far distant isolated mountain top. This is not the case, as there are conifer expanses in AZ that stretch for hundreds of miles, including some very fantasy like biotic communities.

The photograph recognition scenario photo could involve a location in Arizona. yet it may not. Most people, however, would not ever associate this type of plant life as such. This local expansive portion of the Earth's surface is well endowed with many vivid displays which mirror much of the climactic, geological, biological, and other ranges that exist all other places around our graceful planet's reaches.

If you don't have the cash to go to the Black forest in the southwest of Germany or happened to be planning a trip to the Grand Canyon or Sedona, then stop by one of Arizona's magical hinterlands, the lush foliage saturating the White and Blue Range Mountains, along with the mighty alpine summit of Escudilla.Tall straight pine trees, open vibrant fields looking as if they were massive front lawns, a predominant older culture, Avenue south residence  a plethora of flowing and resting waters, and the sounds of wildlife are just a few things that these two far distant lovely countrysides share.

The two beautiful landscapes make for an interesting contrast of latitude versus elevation, and the similarities wrought by the relative cancellation of these factors. What about the spectacular Triberg waterfall one may ask? One word comes to mind for me, Pacheta. Located deep within the heavily forested landscape lies this cascading gem, smaller than its distant cousin in Baden Württemberg, yet huge in its own right and just as inspiring.

Nowhere else on Earth is quite like the city near the vertically plummeting waters just described, however Greer, Arizona also shares that distinction. Similar to Triberg, this small town lies between thick stands of both conifer and broadleaf vegetation growing on the steep sides of the mountains which they are nestled in. The falls in the geographical region are not in this direct vicinity, but three sparkling lakes lie adjacent to this little hamlet.

The Titisee, yes it really is spelled like that was names after General Titus of ancient Rome who passed through the region around 41 A.D, This deep blue body of water is a marvel of the natural world. To behold this would probably feel like living within an old fantasy story. The Grand Canyon State also offers an exceptional blend of green and blue in the form of many lakes. One of these locations holds records for both the state's highest recorded rainfall and coldest known temperature. This gorgeous gem goes by the name of Hawley Lake. The two fantastic bodies of water are roughly the same size, albeit different shapes.

Whether it be the Danube or the Little Colorado River, the respective wrinkled examples of the Earth's crust have produced impressive watersheds. Springerville, as Freiberg offers itself as a portal to the higher elevation, densely packed, woodlands beyond. Both peak top areas host a very lucrative ski resort as well. Baldy peak stands proudly atop its less prominent peers.

Arizona residents and visitors may frequent this pristine giant as fellows form the Schwarzwald do so the mighty Feldberg. they have the Schluchsee, we have Sunrise lake, they have the Mummelsee and the Feldsee, we have Christmas tree and Lee Valley lakes, the list could go on and on.

We Arizonans have our own "Black" Forest right here in our "White" Mountains sector of the land. This is truly an enchanting kingdom .Everything in the real world is however not black and white so let's look at a few more amazing potential travel destinations.

Have you ever wanted to gaze across the savagely wonderful plains of the Serengeti without all of the dangers involved in being in the presence presence of too many hungry large animals ? Well somewhere else right here in my sector of the Earth, only a few hundred miles form our "Black Forest" lies The Plains of Sonoita and the San Raphael Valley, collectively making up the saguaro State's own sprawling savannas.

Although pronghorn, mountain lions, wild cattle and horses, prairie dogs, coyotes and a rare a jaguar roam the areas they do not account for even nearly the same population density as those grasslands of Africa, hence the greater chance of survival. The bird variety however often surpasses that of the rift valley continent's plains. Unfortunately the occasional poacher will turn here up as well.

Las Cienegas is reminiscent of many a portion of the Serengeti as is the nearly African duplicated valley of the south, named after Saint Raphael. In the San Raphael the grasses grow many feet tall, enough to hide a person sitting down or perhaps mask a predator's presence, although, unlike the beautiful African plains, wildlife incidents are almost unheard of.

The entire vicinity is marked by a mostly uniform flat yellow ground covering flanked by rolling hills dotted with trees. These often lone arbor sentinels changes to brilliant green, rich in color in the wake of summer rain. A trek to Kenya or Uganda would definitely be unbelievable but perhaps for someone on a tighter budget this piece of Arizona may be just right!

Arizona is well know for dryness spanning opposing horizons, however, typically the larger cities are associated with or located very close to what is known as the "Upper Sonoran" Zone, which is more humid and a little cooler often that the lower elevation, more arid lands to the south and west. The stretch of foliage sparsity and searing temperatures, includes the extent of the Mojave Desert within the boundaries of Arizona south to the Cactus and Laposa Plains, plunging farther south into the Sonora desert. The Sonoran desert portion of AZ is comprised of a gentle arc shaped stretch consisting of the Kofa, Castle Dome, and smaller associated satellite mountains in the North and West and the Yuma and Lechugulla deserts well as the Mohawk Valley to the South and East.

These scorching nearly moisture devoid regions make up the areas which would strike most people as visually being much closer to a typical desert environment that Hollywood had often portrayed as the American Southwest.

Many areas located within the arid zone are sandy, much like the enigmatic Northeast, Navajo land. There are native stands of palm trees in the Kofa Range, (which stands for King OF Arizona (Mines)). These palms cling to the rocky mountain recess within steep walled canyons absent of almost all vegetation. These conditions are much like those located in the largest hottest desert on the Earth.

[hellskittcn-blog]

have you ever noticed that ( patricia walker ) from the ( marvel universe ) looks a lot like ( rachael taylor )? but ( she ) also goes by ( hellcat ). having the abilities of ( enhanced agility and titanian enhancements ) sure makes them a force to be reckoned with. they’re known to be ( ambitious, ) but also ( frenetic, ) and they’re ( thirty-three ) years old. 

{ trigger warnings : mental illness, implication of assisted suicide, child abuse, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, addiction, drugs, anorexia, bulimia —> but most those are in the section called patricia’s backstory, the rest is clean to read if you skip that part }

hey everyone, i’m ty!! i’m trash and neglected my sweet angel baby by forgetting to post her intro, so here it is now!  

INTRODUCTORY INFORMATION ABOUT PATRICIA //

ok i don’t even want to talk about how much s2 of jessica jones did my girl dirty. so for the most part (excluding backstory, which i’ll get to in a second) patricias life story is more heavily based on the comics canon, just more of a modernized character like in jessica jones.

basically this means: shes much less likely to parade around spouting phrases like good golly. and more likely to answer to trish than patsy.

it also means ill be keeping the comic version of how she got her powers & what those powers are ( more on that below )

PATRICIAS CHILDHOOD BACKSTORY // ( pls skip over this if it’s likely to trigger you <3 )

her mom was super obsessed with her growing up and wrote a comic about her call it’s patsy

when she was about 5-6 her mom forced her into the limelight, creating a tv show based off of the comic series

patsy was a childhood star and her mom was her agent. she was always forced to eat what her mom wanted her to eat and look how she wanted to look. her mom forced her to become anorexic and bulimic, something she would eventually recover from, but not until her mid-to-late twenties.

patricia though grew tired with her mom’s obsession and fixation on her, so she tried to rebel against the patsy brand. this resulted in their relationship becoming even more strained, dorothy verbally and physically abusing her daughter. the physical abuse would stop around the time when they fostered jessica jones, but the verbal abuse continues still to this day.  

she became a teenage pop sensation, starring in multiple music videos, as well as hollywood films, as patsy. her whole life reflected around being someone else, wearing different coloured wigs, dressing in her mother’s image. she never developed an identity of her own — perhaps that’s part of the reason why she also became so fixated on super heroes, due to most of their alter egos.

regardless, trish had an equally rough time in her adolescent and early-to-mid 20’s. her mother forced her, at the ripe age of 15, to start giving head to (and often engaging in intercourse with) male directors so she would get better parts in films. she fell into the hollywood party scene, and became very addicted to drugs. she could often be found in bathroom stalls completely inebriated, throwing herself at any man she could, just so she could feel something. being in such a vulnerable state made her very susceptible to being taken advantage of, particularly sexually, and this influenced her need to later make sure “no one touches her again unless she wants them to”.

BECOMING HELLCAT // ( tw implication of assisted suicide )

trish was eventually married to a man named robert baxter, a childhood friend of hers who was training in the airforce. trish lived on and off the base for a couple of years, when her husband was moved to a secret facility where Beast was working, she learnt more about superheroes and started working with the avengers. it’s at this time that she found the suit greer nelson aka tigra had used under the alias The Cat and sported it as hellcat.

her marriage then had a falling out, so when the titanian priestess known as moondragon offered  to take her back to Titan for a period of training, trish was quick to accept. there she had her potential enhanced by titanian technology and was trained in several forms of martial arts (though, keeping in line with the Jessica Jones canon, krav maga is her favourite).

she came back to earth and started working with the defenders (probably so she could work with jessica, just saying). she met daimon at this time, fell in love with them, they got married and moved to san fransisco and worked as occult investigators, working especially with the avengers west coast branch

when daimons dark soul started getting corrupted again, trish had a mental breakdown. she was depressed to the point of near-vegetation, until a mercy killing entity called the Deathurge came to her. trish begged the entity to kill her, and therefore removed her soul from her body, killing her.

HELLCAT’S RETURN//

she ended up in mephisto’s realm fighting in the arena of tainted soul from which she would eventually be freed when daimon tricked the avengers into resurrecting trish

she came back, wrote an autobiography, and started a book tour.

after teaming up with mephistop, hela, and pluto, trish stopped dormammu from taking over all the dimensions of hell. she then went back to her life as hellcat.

the rest of her life up until this point has been a constant string of working as a PI (particularly for occult related things), being kidnapped to some dimension of hell by daimon or some other high ranking demon ruler, working with the defenders, avengers, working as an undercover agent, going rogue, working as a partner of jennifer walters, or taking a break to write more books and go on more tours.

all in all, trish has done it all, and will continue to do it all. she’s determined and motivated, resilient, and loves to keep busy. really the only thing she’s missing in her life to truly make her fulfilled (aside from a partner who won’t kidnap and drag her for hell for all eternity,,,, whoops) is a family of her own.

seriously, bring me trish children. that is all <3

A BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF HER POWERS//

enhanced strength, speed, endurance, agility, and reflexes

sensitivity to psychic phenomenon: including seeing things on an infrared spectrum, detecting mystical energy even from a distance, and seeing through magical glamours and illusions ( particularly ones caused by demons ) 

in near death situations the true extent of her psionic powers will activate and she can move objects with her mind and release telekinetic, concussive blasts. however, excessive use of her psionic powers lead her to chronic migraines so she opts not to use them unless necessary. 

she can magically summon her hellcat costume on command & swap it for whatever item of clothing shes wearing. basically an anime girl

being tortured in mephistos realm gave her magical resistance to the point of near-immunity. she can break free from magic spells and even deflect magical attacks off her aura 

MISCELLANEOUS//

trish is a raging bisexual. that is all

also she has a bruise k!nk

her hair was bleached blonde by her mother at a young age and she was forced to wear ginger and strawberry blonde wigs throughout her life. the redhead patsy from the comics in my opinion is a wig she wears that’s part of her hellcat suit. otherwise she keeps her hair blonde, because it’s part of the only identity she has.

she loves fashion and makeup and overall girly things but will also throw down with the nastiest of them do not get on her bad side

one time she summoned an army of demon rabbits to magically build a bridge for her to cross 

can u say badass

[needsmoresarcasm]

Favorite Books of 2018

I read a lot of books in 2018. Here are my favorites (not counting books I re-read), in basically no order. (But actually kind of an order.)

22. Going Rogue, Drew Hayes

Going Rogue is the third book in Drew Hayes’s Spells, Swords, and Stealth series. The series is told in two parts: it follows a group of people playing a Dungeons & Dragons-style role-playing game and a group of non-playable characters in the world of said game. The thrust of the story is on the group of NPCs, which unfolds as a typical fantasy adventure. It’s got a straightforward quest narrative, an adventuring party (turned found family), and impossible odds. As the stories progress, the players begin to sense that the game has its own agency and the characters begin to sense that there may be someone controlling their world. But mostly it’s a fun, self-aware take on a typical fantasy adventure that toys with fantasy tropes. 

21. Americanah, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

I steeled myself for dense literary fiction when I cracked open Americanah, the story of Ifemelu, a Nigerian girl who moves to America and wrestles with race and identity. But that was all for naught because Americanah was one of the easiest reads of the year. The writing is breezy, and the story is funny and brisk. It dissects race and culture in America both by showing (Ifemelu’s struggles to define herself in a new country) and telling (Ifemelu’s hilarious blog posts). Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie seems to have perfected the art of delivering dense observations in delightful, consumer-friendly prose. Old white dude authors should probably take note.

20. What If It’s Us, Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera

If I’m going to read a romance, I want it to be light, fluffy, gay, and conflict-free. And that’s exactly what What If It’s Us delivers. The book begins with a meet cute: while mailing a box of his ex-boyfriend’s stuff, Ben bumps into Arthur at the post office. Arthur and Ben are both appropriately awkward and endearing, bumbling and pawing their way through a relationship as only teenagers can. Every character is essentially kind and caring. There are no villains or bullies, no one gets ostracized or beaten, no one dies. The tension mostly stems from the fact that Arthur is only in the city for the summer, which only barely counts as a conflict. And while the universe of the story may be unrealistically polished, their relationship is refreshingly imperfect. Adam Silvera and Becky Albertalli are telling a story of young love, not necessarily true love.

19. The Collapsing Empire / The Consuming Fire, John Scalzi

John Scalzi built an astoundingly engrossing world in The Collapsing Empire. The human race has colonized far flung planets with the help of the Flow system, naturally occurring pathways between various planets across the universe that allows otherwise impossible interstellar travel. The Collapsing Empire follows the sharp, sarcastic Cardenia Wu, the newly crowned empress, and sweet, in-over-his-head Marce Claremont, a Flow physicist in far-flung End who has discovered something off with the Flow. It’s got a roiling pace, packed with space battles, political jockeying, and a whole host of delightful characters. It’s one of those audiobooks (narrated by Wil Wheaton) that was so compulsively listenable that I ended up taking long, meandering walks just to hear what happened next.

18. The Shell Collector, Anthony Doerr

Anthony Doerr’s writing is incredible. His sentences all feel divined from the ether. And the short story is the perfect vehicle for that writing, lasting just long enough to build an atmospheric world. Most of the stories are tinged with a little magical realism, used mostly to underscore the unique, grounded humanity of his characters. The collection dives into the histories of people who are in various degrees removed from society and intertwined with nature. But the ultimate thesis, refreshingly, is not about the corruption of society, but rather the inherent value of people.

17. Giovanni’s Room, James Baldwin 

I don’t know that I have anything new or interesting to say about James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room. A story about desire, and maybe love, between David and Giovanni, every word of that book is filled with intense, crushing emotion desperately crashing onto the pages. It’s about love and sexuality, told in an intimate-verging-on-claustrophobic manner. It’s powerful and interminably depressing and beautiful and devastating. But it’s not devastating because it’s gay, it’s just both devastating and gay.

16. Goodbye, Vitamin, Rachel Khong

Goodbye, Vitamin opens with the main character, Ruth, going through a breakup and dealing with early signs of her father’s Alzheimer’s disease. And somehow, Goodbye, Vitamin is also fun, funny, and heart-warming. The book is sunny and endearing, even as Ruth herself struggles with caring for her father and finding her own identity. Most things described as quirky may be better described as annoying, but there truly is no better word for this book’s sensibility than quirky. The specificity of the descriptions and the cleverness of the wordplay make for a delightful, sometimes deeply poignant, read.

15. Less, Andrew Sean Greer

In many ways, Less shares beats with the incredibly overdone, deeply uninteresting novel about a middle-aged white guy who goes through a midlife crisis and suffers the pain of his own brilliance. Indeed, Less follows Arthur Less as he hits fifty, gets invited to his ex’s wedding, and then travels around the world to avoid confronting any of his problems. But Less is decidedly different: it’s gay. Which means it’s funnier, sharper, and drastically more self-aware. Arthur Less - and Andrew Sean Greer - recognizes the absurdity of his disproportionate reaction to relatively minor problems. He has no delusions of grandeur. He’s not on a journey to unlock his inner genius, just a journey to maybe buy a new jacket and have a fling or two. It’s delightful and funny and warm even as it pretends not to be.

14. More Happy Than Not, Adam Silvera

The devastation of More Happy Than Not cuts in sharp pains and deep gashes. The tragic turns - and in a book about a teenage kid who considers a science fiction equivalent of gay conversion therapy there are many - come as punches to the face, not as lingering aches. And yet, the book doesn’t feel punishing to read. Adam Silvera derives no pleasure from Aaron’s, the aforementioned teen, suffering and carefully builds the foundation of Aaron’s character on his triumphs and joys. Aaron’s life is vibrant and bristling with possibility, streaked, but not consumed, by pain. More Happy Than Not is meticulously plotted and paced, with a few moments of genuine surprise. As always, Adam Silvera writes about tragedy in an entirely uncynical way, with a deep well of generosity for his characters.  

13. Witchmark, C.L. Polk

In many ways, Witchmark feels like the book I spent this entire year trying to find. Witchmark takes place in a pseudo-historical early 20th century England-style setting, in the throes of some capital-W War. Most of the book is styled as a mystery: Miles, a former army doctor, and Tristan, a mysterious outsider, track down clues and chase leads to find a murderer. And, of course, maybe they fall in love along the way. And, oh yeah, Miles is a witch. Oh and also, maybe there’s some royal family drama happening as well. And maybe also some government conspiracies. And also maybe a much larger mystery that involves all of the above. There’s magic and romance and mystery and intrigue and action, and every part of it is completely satisfying. Especially if you’re the type of person who would like to read a scene in which said army doctor needs help undressing because he broke his wrist, and luckily there’s (literally magically) handsome mystery man there to help him!!! (Listen, I never said this was particularly profound literature.) But like, five stars.

12. Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore / Sourdough, Robin Sloan

If you want a cozy, feel-good novel that has just the slightest dash of magic, then pick up a Robin Sloan book. Both Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore and Sourdough read as relaxing balms to help soothe aches brought on by the disaster fire of reality. In both books, a young twenty-something attempting to figure out their life discovers a niche world (book collecting and bread baking) and gets swept up in a fantastical mystery. They’re breezy, warm, and brimming with genuine affection and curiosity for the subjects at their centers. Sloan’s writing is incredibly sensory; you can taste the bread and smell the books. They have that Great British Bake Off quality to them: impossibly compelling despite low stakes and uniform pleasantness.

11. Little Fires Everywhere, Celeste Ng

Celeste Ng’s second novel is a careful study of privilege of all sorts, and an especially incisive look into whiteness. Little Fires Everywhere takes place in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a progressive slice of white suburbia. At the book’s center are the Richardsons, a well-off white family who are the types of people that may tell you that they don’t see race--in part because everyone they see is also white.  Things get shaken up when Mia Warren and her daughter Pearl arrive in town, marked as strange by their relative lack of wealth, and marked as even stranger by their lack of shame about it.  Each sentence is beautifully written, and each paragraph immaculately constructed. But honestly, the book is best summed up as: this is some white people nonsense.

10. The Lymond Chronicles (#1-6), Dorothy Dunnett

The Lymond Chronicles books are both the most high brow and most low brow books I read this year. They are densely written and plotted, with an inexhaustible supply of names for characters and teeming with minute details that almost all portend some future event or revelation. But they’re also chock-full of soap opera-style twists and tropes, aimed to quench your id’s every desire. All this makes for books that demand a lot, but then pay off with hilarious jokes, action sequences that convey more physicality and movement than most movies, and ridiculous third act reveals that are so incredibly satisfying. And like, on a selfish level,  it’s also real satisfying to read about people falling in love with and then aggressively berating Francis Crawford for three thousand pages. (He deserves it.)

9. My Life as a Goddess, Guy Branum

I read, or rather listen to, tons of memoirs - by comedians, actors, politicians, and writers. And Guy Branum’s My Life as a Goddess is easily my favorite of the year. Branum incisively writes about growing up as a gay kid in truly the-middle-of-nowhere California, touching on issues of masculinity, sexuality, class, body image, and education. Unsurprisingly, My Life as a Goddess is hilarious, chock-full of jokes and witty observations. More surprisingly, My Life as a Goddess is also deeply emotional, especially as Branum writes about his relationship as his father. Even more surprisingly, My Life as a Goddess is weirdly informative about a very specific slice of Canadian history. I cannot recommend the audiobook of this enough, as Guy Branum’s narration is smart, funny, and winning.

8. All the Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr

Does anyone really want to read a Pulitzer Prize winning literary fiction novel written by some white dude about World War II half from the point of view of a goddamn Nazi? No. No one wants to read that. Except, maybe I do. Because that’s exactly what All the Light We Cannot See is, and man is it a true revelation. The sheer humanity that Doerr imparts in his story creates a profoundly moving story, about goodness and cruelty and the indiscriminate destruction of war. The events of the story are uniformly bleak, as expected in a World War II novel, and yet the book’s tone feels decidedly hopeful, hungry to extract optimism from human persistence. It’s a stunningly written book that lays bare the complexities of people and the horrors of war.

7. Bad Blood, John Carreyrou

Bad Blood was truly the most unbelievable story I read this year. Wizards? Aliens? Time travel? All relatively believable compared to the intense, densely plotted, thrilling tale that unravels in Bad Blood, made all the more incredible by its truth. Bad Blood tells the story of Theranos, a Silicon Valley startup that claimed to be revolutionizing blood testing, and its founder Elizabeth Holmes, once described on magazine covers as “the next Steve Jobs.” John Carreyrou, the author, was the journalist who first broke the story of Theranos’s rampant fraud, and he stitches together a coherent, mesmerizing narrative from first-hand accounts of Theranos employees. Elizabeth Holmes is a fascinating antagonist, an ambitious, callous, maybe sociopath. The story is exciting and frustrating and will make you have even less faith in rich, powerful white people. But because this is non-fiction, the entire time you know that Elizabeth Holmes is  eventually going to end up being charged with numerous federal crimes. A truly satisfying ending.

6. Hyperbole and a Half, Allie Brosh

Allie Brosh didn’t invent the internet, but she at least has as much claim to modern internet culture as any other individual. Hyperbole and a Half is a collection of her best blog posts, with some additional, equally hilarious, stories thrown in. I hadn’t revisited her blog in years, and so it was striking just how little her style has aged. In a time where internet memes have life spans measured in hours, Hyperbole and a Half feels fresh nearly a decade later. The influence of her style and perspective on the internet is far-reaching. From the hilarious (her distinctively drawn self-rendering triumphantly declaring “CLEAN ALL THE THINGS” while holding a broom) to the insightful (her two-part essay on the amorphous gray muck of depression), her stories all feel as though they could be the origin story for any piece of internet ephemera. Hyperbole and a Half is at times farcical, at times poignant, and always raucously funny.

5. Shades of Magic (#1-3), V.E. Schwab

The Shades of Magic series (A Darker Shade of Magic, A Gathering of Shadows, and A Conjuring of Light) is the perfect fantasy adventure: the characters are imminently rootable, the world is seeped in magic, and the plot is intoxicating. The books are set in London, or Londons, rather. There are four parallel Londons, which have embraced, rejected, or surrendered to magic to varying degrees. Our protagonist, Kell, is one of the few with the ability to travel between the different Londons. And, well, hijinks ensue. Dark, sprawling, brutal, violent, life-consuming hijinks.

The Shades of Magic series is unburdened by its worldbuilding; V.E. Schwab could probably teach a semester’s worth of history lessons on her world, but does not feel the need show that off in the books themselves. They’re books to be devoured, not dissected. But it’s the characters that make the series so engrossing. Everyone is an archetype-a street-worn thief, a charming prince-but so well-drawn and understood that every character moment sparkles. And the central relationship of the book, between Kell and his brother Rhy, felt as though it was perhaps extracted directly from my brain. Kell is stoic, burdened by responsibility but determined to protect. Rhy, the aforementioned charming prince, injects Kell’s life with mischief and levity, and they’re so fundamentally dedicated to each other that it hurts. If a bunch of well-meaning idiots trying to save the world with magic is your thing, A Darker Shade of Magic may be the series for you.

4. Everything I Never Told You, Celeste Ng

If you thought a quiet, contained rumination on race, gender, nationality, and culture couldn’t also be a compelling, tense page-turner, let me introduce you to Everything I Never Told You. Everything I Never Told You is nothing short of literary alchemy. It begins with the death of Lydia, the model daughter of the Lee family--and, really, the model daughter of 1970s America. The book unravels the mystery of Lydia’s death, told through the vignettes from the lives of the Lee family members.

Celeste Ng is a master at using a paragraph to describe years of a character’s history and decades of American society all at once. Her characters are specific and sharply drawn, rooted deeply in their time and environment. Lydia, with a Chinese father and a white mother,  is mixed race (a term not added to the U.S. Census until 2000)--“one of only two Orientals” at her school.  The other, her brother Nathan, has learned to live in Lydia’s shadow in their parents’ mind’s eye.  Marilyn, Lydia’s mother, had her own ambitions sidelined by family. With a deft, heartfelt touch, Everything I Never Told You viscerally conveys their regrets for the words left unsaid and lives left unlived.

3. History Is All You Left Me, Adam Silvera

As this list makes clear, I loved a lot of Adam Silvera this year, and History Is All You Left Me stands out as my favorite. In dual timelines, History Is All You Left Me tells the story of Griffin after and up to the accident in which his ex-boyfriend Theo dies unexpectedly. And so, yes, the book is soaked in grief and loss. And, yes, it’s devastating and aching. But it’s also incredibly kind and empathetic. The characters are teenagers and make the choices of teenagers. Their actions are messy and rash and stupid, and Silvera leans into that, landing more than one self-inflicted heart-wrenching blow. But Silvera is also unfailingly patient with teenagers and understands their resilience; he lets his characters make mistakes and has faith that they will survive. And so the book is heavy, but optimistic. A refreshing reprieve from the gratuitous suffering and bleakness that tortures so much LGBT-themed fiction.  History Is All You Left Me is the most affecting book I read all year, and it still lingers in my bones. But the impression it has left is of life, not loss.

2. An American Sickness, Elisabeth Rosenthal

I bristle when someone describes a book as “important.” It always seems patronizing and self-serving, and my natural contrarian kicks in. I get it, you want to tell everyone how well-read or socially conscious you are because you read an “important” book. So it is with eyes wide open, and more than a twinge of self-loathing, that I say An American Sickness is an important book. It feels like essential reading, certainly for anyone trying to affect American healthcare policy, and at the very least useful for anyone who ever has to deal with the American healthcare system. It will make you angry and frustrated, but hopefully it will also arm you with information.

An American Sickness is broken up into two distinct parts: the first half lays out the issues with the current healthcare system, including how it came to be, and the second half presents solutions. Dr. Elisabeth Rosenthal writes accessibly about potentially dry, dense subject matter. The book’s purpose is not to exhaustively detail the history of healthcare, but to better equip the average person to navigate the system. Dr. Rosenthal provides anecdotes to anchor the matter in tangible issues and gives just enough context to sketch the motivations of the various actors - doctors, hospitals, insurers, pharma companies, etc. She presents solutions from two perspectives: (1) changing healthcare policy as a whole, and (2) navigating the system as an individual. In a methodical, step-by-step manner, the book explains concrete things a regular person can look out for, questions they can ask, and actions they can take to avoid--or challenge--exorbitant medical bills. There’s literally an appendix with fill-in-the-blank form letters to use to request billing information and challenge bills. You don’t have to read this book, but I want you to.

1. Chemistry, Weike Wang

Sometimes a book is so intimately catered to you it’s as if the author waded through your subconscious, fished out the tangled threads of your thoughts, and then wove them into a tapestry that displayed every single one of your hopes, dreams, and aspirations. For me, that book is Chemistry. Chemistry follows an unnamed Asian American protagonist who is discontented with her current situation: her long-term boyfriend, her Chemistry PhD program, and her relationship with her parents. And the novel unfolds as she comes to terms with that discontentment.

The economy of Weike Wang’s writing is spellbinding. She uses words so efficiently and so cleverly to craft sentences that seem fundamental. On seemingly every page, there was a new observation that felt so obviously true that I was surprised I had never read those exact words before. The book is filled with jokes, driven by the protagonist’s wry sarcasm and gentle disdain for things and people generally. The whole thing is somehow both simple and complex, an easily digestible read with a deceptively complex flavor. There are no splashy revelations or sudden tragedies, only hard-earned emotional truths and the realities of getting by. Chemistry nails the general spirit of just attempting to function as a normal human person in 2018.

[kickassfu]

PART TWOOOO

“Your adventure awaits, darling.”

BREAK. 

They separate with few words.

“Good luck.”

“Stay in touch.”

“I wouldn’t recommend it, sweets.”

“Oh… I forgot.”

“Unless Nik is in town, don’t spare me many thoughts.”

“I don’t suppose I’d be in yours.”

“You’d be the furthest thing from my mind.”

She set herself up from the sting, seeing as he’d be the last familiar face she’d see in the while, but it could be worse. She could be facing one of the many she foolishly called friends back in Mystic Falls.

“Remember, live your life to the fullest. We’re fortunate to get another chance.”

“You, too. I hope you get to experience more of it.”

“Off you go, your train departs in two minutes.”

“Bye, Kol…. Thank you. For everything.”

“Don’t mention it.”

She was left to her own devices for six hours. She wondered if she could get a hold of Enzo, but London was so big. What’s the chance of running into him? In the meanwhile, she found herself lost in the landscape. Who knew what she was missing? She leaned against the window, smiling for the first time since she escaped the deathly entrapments of the Other Side.

 No one knew they had escaped, not even Bonnie who conjured the miraculous spell. If they had, they didn’t try to reach out to Caroline. She didn’t know which alternative felt worst. A tear slips from one of her eyes, but she wipes it away. Luckily, she stowed herself away from the crowd and no one noticed her emotional plight.

She should make a memorial for her mother – since she can’t go back to bury her. Maybe Stefan or Damon would do the Sheriff right and give her a proper funeral. She’d try to read about it, she determined.

She uses her cash sparingly. She finds a cheap hotel and settles in for the night. In the meanwhile, she shops for a weeks’ worth of clothes and a luggage bag she can tow on her shoulder. She’ll try to find another source of income to garner other necessities. She missed having her curling iron, however frivolous it may be.

Kol told her to not settle but damnit, she needed money.

So, she took a job at a book shop, imagine that.

Turns out, that job reaped more perks than not. First, during her spare time, she read like crazy. She memorized places, phrases, history, you name it.

Hell, she even looked up census records for Enzo St. John in hopes she could find his own residence. She explored the city, memorized the routes, and found herself familiarizing faces.

Exactly what she had been advised not to do.

However, one of those faces became a valuable network point. He was an elderly gentleman with no heirs. He was captivated by the American blonde manning the desk. He offered her wisdom, food for money, and explained she reminded him of his granddaughter. Both she and his only son perished in a tragic car accident. He was widowed not long after. His time was up, and he was grateful she could provide him some closure with her mere presence.

When he passed three years later, she was truly heartbroken. It was nice to have someone to talk to. In his will, Audrey Greer received his estate – a small two-story home and his savings that equated to two-hundred-thousand American dollars. On top of what she had already saved from her job by renting the pathetic excuse of an apartment, she put in her two weeks noticed and abandoned her hopes to find Enzo in London, and London altogether.

Her next stop was Ireland.

She found a decent place in Galway and worked nights at the Pub. She began networking there. Vampires flourished in Galway (especially her port city). They could be rough, but she held her own. She even befriended a couple of them who recommended another place to stay. (“I know the fellow who rents the old schoolhouse. They got a spare, if you’d like. I could put in a good word.”)

She fit in like a glove.

She loved the sea, she loved the cobblestone, and she adored the accents.

She ventured to the rolling green hills during her free time. She basked in the sunlight that broke through the clouds. She sailed once, manned by her friend Bryce. She stood bravely on the cliff’s edge overlooking the sea. She rode a horse over the fields and felt truly liberated on the white-seared stallion.

She held onto those memories, even though she stayed no more than two years.

Kol had tipped her that Klaus was heading to Ireland for private matters. He had sent a mutual friend, Liam, that had no idea the message he conveyed was directed towards her. (“I was told to look out for this bloke’s brother coming through soon.”) She never packed faster in her life. Her friends hosted a dinner in her honor and she kissed them all affectionately, hoping she’d see them again one more day. She didn’t explain the real reason why she left suddenly – simply that she heard a friend had died and needed to get their affairs in order.

They sent with her a commemorating photo – the one of her adorning her favorite blue blouse and shorts while adjusting ropes on Bryce’s boat. She didn’t know if it’d be suspicious to ask them to not show anyone else but by then it was too late. She was a thousand of miles away.

Literally.

She was in Queensland, Australia.

She put her experience in bartending to good use and obtained a job at a local tavern. She shared a photo with one of those goliath spiders – a huntsman, she recalled – that her coworker shot of her before she screamed bloody murder. The experience was a fond one, looking back, and she saved it in her collection.

She loved the beaches and the warmth. It was nearly tank top whether every day and she basked in the sun. She missed those days. She stayed for four years. It was pure bliss – aside from the critters and that one snake that refused to die that lingered outside her porch.

She had to relocate, once again reminded by Kol’s advice. Klaus wasn’t sighted but Katherine was. She could not afford to be sold out by the notorious opportunist. So, she switched gears and relocated to Los Angeles, CA.

It nearly killed her budget, but she loved the sunshine too much to part with it quite yet. She waitressed for a while but found it painfully exhausting. She was a vampire! For almost ten years, she spent covering her identity with demeaning jobs and barley any roots.

She ventured back to Ireland. She’d come to love it and the people there. She reunited with her friends briefly before venturing out, to Dublin, where her networking connected her to mutual friends that had reserved her a modest rental and a job already lined up, this time managing a hotel.

It was a huge leap.

She utilized the access of the University library often.

St. Patrick’s Day was astounding. She’d make a promise to attend it every year.

She also fancied Irish dancing but wasn’t as talented at as her friend Iona. That didn’t deter her from trying. Certainly, there were photos recounting the times she paled miserably compared to the busty redhead. Nonetheless, the laughed heartily, and split a beer.

She split from Dublin after two years. She boldly declared she would venture from her safe haven and try something new: France.

She studied the language meticulously and needed more experience, so off she went. The farewell was bittersweet, but she bravely ventured to Paris.

It was beautiful.

At first, it was intimidating but the locals were encouraging and were impressed by her attempts. She flourished under the city lights and embraced the fashion. She admired the art, flocked to the museums, and got a job as a curator.

It was risky, given she knew Klaus had a hand in the art community, but damnit, she deserved to flourish, and that was a great job.

She had many suitors, but she declined them all. She pretended her heart was in Ireland, which was true, but not in the form of a man, rather she dreamed of the majestic hills and the people who welcomed her.

Until one day, a familiar face came into work.

“Hello, gorgeous.”

She nearly dropped her phone.

“How – I looked for you, in London,” she let it slip in English.

“Had some business in Berlin,” he replied. “I heard from Kol that you’d be somewhere in Galway, but I was too late. I went to Dublin when Liam said you went there. Your friends said I was late a couple of months. I almost gave up on you,” he explained, “until I caught wind you’d be Louvre.”

“From who,” she asked in a panic.

“A redhead?”

“Oh,” she breathed in relief. Iona – the one who had a contact in management – the ex-lover, Pierre. She stepped forward and embraced the brunette. “I’m so glad to see you,” she mumbled into his shoulder. He squeezed her just as surely, inhaling her hair.

“I missed you, too,” he whispered. He hesitated to let her go but relented after a moment had passed. He held her at arm’s length, taking her in. “You look good.”

She was breath taking. A true vision. Her meticulously curled hair shone. Her blue-green eyes sparkled. Her red-lipped smile beamed.

He was dark haired and handsome. She liked the warmth of his eyes, his dimples, and the way his combed his hair back. She reluctantly let her hands fall from his broad shoulders – another featured she admired about his frame.

“I can say the same for you,” she returned jovially. “I’m almost done. Let’s go out for lunch! Hold on a moment.”

They caught up for the past decade over handmade pastries outside a charming café. She invited him to her apartment rather than him paying for hotel fare. It was a dangerous request, but she knew what she was getting into. The moment they reunited, sparks flew, and she promised both Kol and to herself she’d start taking chances.

Her blouse didn’t survive ten minutes the moment they walked through the door.

Neither did his shirt. Luckily, they both had a spare – which she stole his next morning to flaunt post-coitus.

The sex was phenomenal. Toe curling, mind-blowing sex. She had lovers before – one-night stands that didn’t quite understand her body in drunken episodes. Enzo, however, was the most selfless of them all. He worshipped her body, caressed her tenderly, took her roughly, and left her boneless in bed while whispering sweet things in her ear.

They ravished each other on the counter.

They cleared off her desk in a flurry and christened the mahogany.

She spoke dirty things in both English and French. She may have uttered some Old Irish, too.

Enzo, by far, had the best endurance yet, and she wasn’t quite yet ready to part with his talented hands or lips. Or tongue.

“I’m going to New York. Only for a short while,” he added, seeing her face fall. “I’ll come back. I promise.” He kissed her, hands not quite bruising her thighs as she pulled him by her legs. Her arms entangling around his neck and she bores into his eyes, revealing a new layer of vulnerability that she didn’t realize was there.

“You better or else I’ll hunt you down, St. John.”

“Wouldn’t want that,” he grinned, kissing her swollen lips one more time.

“Go, or else I’ll make you stay,” she threatened playfully.

“Minx,” he bit into her skin. The next moment, he was gone, and she felt the void almost immediately. She would never admit she cried or that she wiped her tears with the sleeves of his forgotten shirt.

He came back four days later. She refused to let him go.

“Missed me?”

“Yes,” she mumbled, not the least bit shamed.

His hand soothes her hair, starting from the crown to the base of her neck and the other fisting the back of her shirt.

“Good, because I couldn’t stand the distance,” he growled, pulling away only to latch his lips onto hers. He didn’t bother to break the kiss when his bag broke a lamp after he’d thrown it carelessly across the room. Neither did she.

She didn’t think she’d hit her climax so many times in a row, but Enzo wouldn’t be satisfied until she saw stars. She did.  She definitely did.

He took her dancing – the classical kind, where distance didn’t exist. She wore a striking red dress and he wore his best shirt. It’d been the most romantic thing since Klaus’s sketches. (She didn’t have those anymore – nor did she want them). They enjoyed evening strolls. They had a strict regimen each morning that required at least one orgasm each – it was wonderful.

Kol said it was sickeningly sweet when he eventually visited the couple. By then, Paris was behind them, and relocated to Berlin where Enzo was the main translator. Caroline was quick to learn though.

“Have you been to Moscow yet?” Kol quizzed.

“No,” Caroline answered from the kitchen. Enzo was close behind, tending to the vegetables as they prepared dinner. (“So domestic. It’s nauseating.”) “Why? Should we retreat there?”

“Oh no, I was going to say steer clear. My dear brother – Elijah, not Nik – has ventured there for business. You’re fine. I heard Nik is in New Orleans. Same old news – some uprising here, rebellion there, massacre all the same. You’re fine. Continue with your bloody honeymoon,” Kol faked a gag.

“What about yourself? You don’t want to find someone that makes you feel… like home?” Enzo pried. Caroline smiled adoringly at him and joined his rank, hugging him from the side while his arm curled around her frame.

“I like being a nomad,” Kol declared himself. “I will not be trapped. Not even by a pretty face like yourself.”

“Suit yourself,” Caroline shrugged. She returned to the pot on the stove and stirred. Enzo offered his finished product and poured the celery into the boiling mix. They quickly pecked and exchanged incandescent words – something about the day’s festivities – Kol overheard.

“I will take my leave,” Kol announced. “Glad to see you survive so far, Caroline. You, too, Enzo.”

“Nice see you, too, Kol,” Enzo saw him out. They shared a pat on the shoulders and locked the door when he left. He returned to the blonde and kissed her temple. “I have a feeling we should be worried.”

“You aren’t the only one,” she affirmed, the doubt evident in her eyes. “Where should we go?”

BREAK

They have their wedding in Paris, twelve years after they reunited at the Louvre.

Kol is invited and surprisingly, he shows, wearing a tuxedo.

“Glad you came, mate,” Enzo greeted tenderly.

Caroline fussed over her dress, accompanied by her friends. Iona from Ireland and her beau, Pierre (for the 5th time), Aishling, Sherri, Christa, Jacqueline, and Serena composing as her party of bridesmaids. She reminisced about her childhood friend, Bonnie, but she forced the thoughts back. She’d be there in spirit but nothing more.

Caroline had a new chapter in her life and could not afford to return to the ones she’s closed.

 Iona earned the title of maid of honor and she graced the reception with her brilliant Irish dancing. Kol stayed throughout the whole ordeal of a wedding, captivated by the success of the two resurrected vampires coming together in undeniable happiness.

Caroline was beautiful. She chose a vintage design, with the fabric hanging off her shoulders so they’d be bare (aside from the brilliant necklace he gifted her) and the rest of the dress staying close to her skin rather than plum out.  Her hair, longer now, cascaded in waves down her back and some thrown over her shoulder. A modest veil covered her face until it was no longer needed.

Kol had walked her down the aisle when she almost broke down and (luckily didn’t) spoil her makeup over the reminder she had no parent to give her away. He then joined Enzo’s side as one of the best men.

Enzo was radiating joy like no other.

They wedding was small – composing of friends who had stayed in touch – and witnessed the vows shared between ‘Audrey Carolina Greer’ and Lorenzo St. John.  They cheered at the kiss between husband and wife and took more photos than Caroline knew she could manage in her scrapbook.

At the end, they commemorated her parents by presenting empty seats – occupied by the memory of the late Forbes’ (although everyone else knew them as the Greer’s). Enzo did a similar set, as but added two more for his missing sisters.

The first dance was magical, as was the second. They all got sloshed at the pub and Kol carried an unconscious Caroline to their apartment while Enzo leaned heavily on his left. They didn’t remember any of it other than waking up blissfully in the other’s arms. Kol had departed by then, retreating to his York estate. He did leave a note congratulating them and wishing them the best.

The photos were superb, and one hung in a large frame above the fire place of their new house – a castle Caroline had saved for. It was modest, but it was historic and had the character she desired. It took work, but she loved that castle with all her heart. They walked each morning on the fields, admiring the fog, and hosted many dinners.

They even added horses, one of which became her favorite – a black mare that loved brisk morning walks. There were many photos of them together, and then some with Enzo and his favorite steed, a patient paint named Molly.  

Kol had caught a glimpse of them when he made another visit.

She was a vision, galloping freely through the field. Her hair was flying behind her, shirt untucked. He distinctly remembered her red vest and tan pants.

She was thriving.

Enzo chased after her, laughing all the way as she goaded him.

Kol found their company comforting and could not deny the fact he was seeking them out more often. It wasn’t safe, especially after hearing Nik caught wind of the rumors of Kol’s reemergence. He had to protect his friends, but he couldn’t bear to quite yet part with them.

“Kol!” Caroline delightfully called out when she spotted his figure make his way up the driveway. She steered Morgana – the horse – his way and met him in the middle.

“Mrs. St. John,” Kol smiled. “Lovely to see you.”

“So formal,” she nitpicked. “Caroline will do.”

“Caroline,” Kol remedied. She beamed. Her smile was contagious. He looked around the plot. “I like the changes. Show me around?”

“Of course,” she obliged. She unsaddled her horse and walked him up the driveway.

BREAK

“Will I ever see you again?” Caroline broke the silence.

She was upset. That was underestimate.

“Maybe,” Kol shrugged. “Maybe not.”

He knew he had to tell her this was likely the last time in a long time he’d be able to see them.

“I’ll miss you,” she admitted. “You been a huge part of my life, our life, believe it or not. I know why you have to do it and I appreciate you’re thinking of us but…” her lip trembled. “It’s not fair. You’ve been a good friend to us and I hate to see you go away.”

Kol felt an unusual warmth and heaviness in his chest. Was this what it meant to be cared about?

“I’m sorry you have to go, mate,” mate pulled him into a hug. “I’m glad you could tell us in person. If you need anything, you know where to find us.”

“Give me a hug, too,” Caroline whimpered, on the verge of tears. Kol obliged and picked her up in doing so. She was so much smaller compared to him. She broke down into his shoulder. She held him tight and he felt his throat constrict, hiding his own temptation to shed tears over the moment.

It was horrible. He long since come to terms they were genuine friends. Family was a stretch but, if he could make a family, they’d be what he’d envision. To part with the people that he could trust was a harder feat that he could fathom.

He swallowed harshly and eventually forced some distance between the couple and himself.

“You take care of yourself.” Kol bid them.

“Bye, Kol,” Caroline sniffled. Enzo offered a grim smile.

“You, too, mate.”

---

First of all the first part is here for anyone that hasn’t read it yet. And once again thanks for always writing me lovely things @adelindschade <3

Anyway whaaaat??? They got married? :O That was seriously unexpected haha Also Caroline enjoying life, and learning things and travelling is always great ^^ although if i was a vampire i certainly wouldn’t get any jobs, i’d just use my compulsion to get what I want :P but Caroline doesn’t enjoy using that as much ‘cause of what happened to her...also Carenzo huh?? I wonder if they stay together married, or if they evetually just stay as friends??? is this gonna end up with Klaroline?? Or is this more about Caroline and her life ahhhhhhhhh! Also also Kooool my boy, finally feeling close to someone, considering them friends even perhaps family but knowing he can’t see them because it’d endanger them *cries* he deserves better!! Fuck you Klaus, let my boi alone!!

[b-reads-books]

I read 230 books in 2017.

Down fifteen from last year...I am a math genius and initially miscounted by ten somehow, so I though I had hit 240...this was not so. The fluctuations tell you when I was studying for exams. (I’m done with all my fall exams now so I only have one scheduled for next year!) I did not make a new year’s book-of-the-month resolution and did not really expand into audiobooks more either. Oh well. This was a tough year for me all around and I’m hoping for a better one to follow.

Standouts:

Sorrow’s Knot, Erin Bow

Strange the Dreamer, Laini Taylor

A Conjuring of Light, Victoria Schwab

The Hating Game, Sally Thorne

Always and Forever, Lara Jean, Jenny Han

Thick as Thieves, Megan Whalen Turner

The Hate U Give, Angie Thomas

Now I Rise, Kiersten White

History is All You Left Me, Adam Silvera

Genuine Fraud, E Lockhart

Less, Andrew Sean Greer

In the Wreckage, Hailey Turner

Far From the Tree, Robin Benway

Complete list with more favorites in bold below the cut.

January – 23

The Lovely Reckless, Kami Garcia

The Quiet Gentleman, Georgette Heyer

Bad Blood, Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Soundless, Richelle Mead

Trouble is a Friend of Mine, Stephanie Tromly

A Great and Terrible Beauty, Libba Bray

Rebel Angels, Libba Bray

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling *

The Sweet Far Thing, Libba Bray

Beautiful, Christina Lauren

My Sister Rosa, Justine Larbalestier

Take the Key and Lock Her Up, Ally Carter

Timekeeper, Tara Sim

The Operator, Kim Harrison

Sacrifice, Cindy Pon

Declare, Tim Powers

Zinnia, Jayne Castle

Orchid, Jayne Castle

Trouble Makes a Comeback, Stephanie Tromley

The Hogwarts Collection, JK Rowling

After Dark, Jayne Castle

After Glow, Jayne Castle

Armed and Magical, Lisa Shearin

February – 21

Of Fire and Stars, Audrey Coulthurst

Infini, Krista and Becca Ritchie

Ghost Hunter, Jayne Castle

The Ghoul Vendetta, Lisa Shearin

Blood Red, Snow White, Marcus Sedgwick

Sorrow’s Knot, Erin Bow

The Infinite, Lori M Lee

A Darkly Beating Heart, Lindsay Smith

Dragon’s Bait, Vivian Vande Velde

By These Ten Bones, Clare B Dunkle

Girls on Fire, Robin Wasserman

The Trouble with Demons, Lisa Shearin

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, Mark Haddon

Magonia, Maria Dahvana Headley

Blood Vow, JR Ward

Cherry, Lindsey Rosin

The Female of the Species, Mindy McGinnis

Ella Minnow Pea, Mark Dunn

Cousin Kate, Georgette Heyer

King’s Cage, Victoria Aveyard

The Bear and the Nightingale, Katherine Arden

March – 15

The Black Dagger Brotherhood: An Insider’s Guide, JR Ward

Before the Fall, Noah Hawley

The Killer in Me, Margot Harrison

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, JK Rowling*

Bewitched and Betrayed, Lisa Shearin

Difficult Women, Roxanne Gay

Our Own Private Universe, Robin Talley

One Blood Ruby, Melissa Marr

The Swan Riders, Erin Bow

Passenger, Alexandra Bracken

Silver Master, Jayne Castle

Dark Light, Jayne Castle

Etched in Bone, Anne Bishop

Cowboys Are My Weakness, Pam Houston

Strange the Dreamer, Laini Taylor

April – 13

Aerie, Maria Dahvana Headley

Into the Fire, Jeaniene Frost

Obsidian Prey, Jayne Castle

Midnight Crystal, Jayne Castle

Canyons of Night, Jayne Castle

A Conjuring of Light, Victoria Schwab

Listen to the Moon, Rose Lerner

Beheld, Alex Flynn

Wayfarer, Alexnadra Bracken

The Song Rising, Samantha Shannon

Silence Fallen, Patricia Briggs

Because of the Sun, Jenny Torres Sanchez

The Hating Game, Sally Thorne

May – 19

Big Little Lies, Lianne Mortiarty

Crown Duel, Sherwood Smith

Spindle, EK Johnston

Always and Forever, Lara Jean, Jenny Han

The Bone Witch, Rin Chupeco

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, JK Rowling*

Empress of a Thousand Skies, Rhoda Belleza

The Thief, Megan Whalen Turner*

The Queen of Attolia, Megan Whalen Turner

The King of Attolia, Megan Whalen Turner

A Conspiracy of Kings, Megan Whalen Turner

Thick as Thieves, Megan Whalen Turner

Tales of the Peculiar, Ransom Riggs

It Ends with Us, Colleen Hoover

Hunted, Meagan Spooner

The Chosen, JR Ward

The Girl from Everywhere, Heidi Heilig

Lord of Shadows, Cassandra Clare

A Crown of Wishes, Roshani Chokshi

June – 23

Girl Out of Water, Laura

Radio Silence, Alice Oseman

The Lost Night, Jayne Castle

Caraval, Stephanie Garber

Cold-Hearted Rake, Lisa Kleypas

Starfall, Melissa Landers

Marrying Winterbourne, Lisa Kleypas

How to Be a Person in the World, Heather Havrilesky

Devil in Spring, Lisa Kleypas

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, JK Rowling*

Stranger in My Arms, Lisa Kleypas

Grunt, Mary Roach

Again the Magic, Lisa Kleypas

The Hate U Give, Angie Thomas

A Court of Wings and Ruin, Sarah J Maas

The Cold Eye, Laura Anne Gilman

Secrets of a Summer’s Night, Lisa Kleypas

It Happened One Autumn, Lisa Kleypas

The Devil in Winter, Lisa Kleypas

A Scandal in Spring, Lisa Kleypas

Stiff, Mary Roach*

Damaged Like Us, Krista and Becca Ritchie

Deception Cove, Jayne Ann Krentz

July – 19

White Hot, Ilona Andrews

Now I Rise, Kiersten White

The Distance Between Us, Kasie West

As You Wish, Cary Elwes*

Wintersong, S Jae Jones

Our Dark Duet, Victoria Schwab

A Wallflower Christmas, Lisa Kleypas

The Hot Zone, Jayne Castle

Not Your Sidekick, CB Lee

All-American Girl, Meg Cabot

Indigo, Beverly Jenkins

Mine Till Midnight, Lisa Kleypas

Unnatural Deeds, Cyn Balog

Avenged, Amy Tintera

The Upside of Unrequited, Becky Albertalli

Seduce Me at Sunrise, Lisa Kleypas

Tempt Me at Twilight, Lisa Kleypas

The People We Hate at the Wedding, Grant Ginder

The Ship Beyond Time, Heidi Heilig

August – 15

History is All You Left Me, Adam Silvera

Love in the Afternoon, Lisa Kleypas

Frogkisser! Garth Nix

Dating You, Hating You, Christina Lauren

Wildfire, Ilona Andrews

Swarm, Scott Westerfeld et al

Split the Sun, Tessa Elwood

The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, Mackenzi Lee

Night Hawk, Beverley Jenkins

Unleashed, Sophie Jordan

Masquerade, Laura Lam

The Wish Granter, CJ Redwine

In Other Lands, Sarah Rees Brennan

Married by Morning, Lisa Kleypas

Gem and Dixie, Sara Zarr

September – 14

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, JK Rowling et al

The Angel of Losses, Stephanie Feldman

David, Johnny Worthen

Down Among the Sticks and Bones, Seanan McGuire

Carve the Mark, Veronica Roth

Slammed, Colleen Hoover

Silver Silence, Nalini Singh

Genuine Fraud, E Lockhart

Girl Mans Up, ME Girard

Dreaming of You, Lisa Kleypas

Crazy Rich Asians, Kevin Kwan

Then Came You, Lisa Kleypas

When Dimple Met Rishi, Sandhya Menon

Topaz, Beverley Jenkins

October – 15

Vanguard, Ann Aguirre

The Pearl Thief, Elizabeth Wein

The Ruby in the Smoke, Philip Pullman

The Debt, Karina Halle

Point of Retreat, Colleen Hoover

Crystal Storm, Morgan Rhodes

The Courtesan Duchess, Joanna Shupe

The Harlot Countess, Joanna Shupe

The Lady Hellion, Joanna Shupe

Turtles All the Way Down, John Green

Good Behavior, Blake Crouch

Sunshine, Robin McKinley

Warcross, Marie Lu

Someone to Watch Over Me, Lisa Kleypas

Lovers Like Us, Krista and Becca Ritchie

November – 26

The Scorpio Races, Maggie Stiefvater

Tower of Dawn, Sarah J Maas

Iron Cast, Destiny Soria

Lady Sophia’s Lover, Lisa Kleypas

Worth Any Price, Lisa Kleypas

Where’s My Hero? Kisa Kleypas et al

Roar, Cora Carmack

Somewhere I’ll Find You, Lisa Kleypas

China Rich Girlfriend, Kevin Kwan

Less, Andrew Sean Greer

Because You’re Mine, Lisa Kleypas

All the Dirty Parts, Daniel Handler

Jane, Unlimited, Kristin Cashore

Where Dreams Begin, Lisa Kleypas

The Shadow in the North, Philip Pullman

In the Wreckage, Hailey Turner

10% Happier, Dan Harris

Archangel’s Viper, Nalini Singh

Suddenly You, Lisa Kleypas

The Possible, Tara Altebrando

In the Ruins, Hailey Turner

Before the Devil Breaks You, Libba Bray

Ringer, Lauren Oliver

When Strangers Marry, Lisa Kleypas

Terminal Alliance, Jim Hines

Only with Your Love, Lisa Kleypas

December – 27

The Way I Used to Be, Amber Smith

Want, Cindy Pon

Midnight Angel, Lisa Kleypas

Rich People Problems, Kevin Kwan

Dress Codes for Small Towns, Courtney Stevens

Prince of Dreams, Lisa Kleypas

In the Shadows, Hailey Turner

The Knowing, Sharon Cameron

Release, Patrick Ness

A Line in the Dark, Malinda Lo

Love, Come to Me, Lisa Kleypas

Con and Conjure, Lisa Shearin

Always Hungry? David Ludwig

One Dark Throne, Kendare Blake

In the Blood, Hailey Turner

Rosemary and Rue, Seanan McGuire

The Language of Thorns, Leigh Bardugo

Heat Wave, Karina Halle

Far From the Tree, Robin Benway

All Spell Breaks Loose, Lisa Shearin

The Girl in the Tower, Katherine Arden

A Local Habitation, Seanan McGuire

An Artificial Night, Seanan McGuire

Late Eclipses, Seanan McGuire

One Salt Sea, Seanan McGuire

Wedding Bells, Magic Spells, Lisa Shearin

The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Michael Pollan