#acotar is a better standalone novel

[goforth-ladymidnight]

So, I have thoughts re: Feyre’s wedding dress.

It’s pretty much accepted fandom-wide that Feyre’s wedding dress is pretty much the same as the ballgown that Sarah wore in Jim Henson’s Labyrinth (1986), which also happens to resemble Giselle’s wedding gown in Disney’s Enchanted (2007):

I really, truly hated my wedding gown. It was a monstrosity of tulle and chiffon and gossamer, so unlike the loose gowns I usually wore: the bodice fitted, the neckline curved to plump my breasts, and the skirts … The skirts were a sparkling tent, practically floating in the balmy spring air.

I might have dealt with it all if it weren’t for the puffy capped sleeves, so big I could almost see them glinting from the periphery of my vision. My hair had been curled, half up, half down, entwined with pearls and jewels and the Cauldron knew what, and it had taken all my self-control to keep from cringing at the mirror before descending the sweeping stairs into the main hall. My dress hissed and swished with each step. ~ Feyre’s description from ACOMAF

I know it’s canon that Ianthe chose the gown, but it also seems cartoonishly exaggerated for the vaguely medieval fantasy setting we were given in Book 1. (The weirdly modern oversized sweaters and leggings Feyre wears later are another topic for another day.) Now, anyone who’s read my fanfiction knows I’m partial to Feylin as a pairing, but I’d like to imagine an AU where Feyre was actually looking forward to her wedding. (SJM seems to think wedding scenes are corny, for some reason, so I guess it’s no surprise that Feyre hated every aspect of it in the story.) If it were up to me, her wedding gown would have looked something like this:

Source: a now defunct site dedicated to medieval wedding gowns from which I saved this image several years ago.

If I remember right, the gown was called Titania, which seems fitting for a faerie queen’s future Lady of the Spring Court’s gown, don’t you think?

Not to mention how much more annoying it would be if Feyre actually liked her wedding gown when Rhys told her she looked ridiculous in it, but that’s another discussion entirely...

Canon is canon, I get that, but the Titania dress fits the Spring Court aesthetic better than the puffy ballgown ever did, and I stand by that.

[goforth-ladymidnight]

The whole Solstice chapter is hands-down my favorite part of the book. The part that gets me most is when they’re dancing among the will-o’-the-wisps and he pulls her close just to say her name over and over again, because he likes the way it sounds. ❤️

What's your most favorite feylin moments in acotar?

Oh, I have so many. But my top three, if I had to choose, would be

1- That scene where Feylin was lying under the willow tree when Tamlin opened Feyre's senses to the court

2- When Feyre trapped Tamlin in a snare and started petting his hair after he was caught

3- After UTM when Tamlin was meticulously healing all of Feyre's wounds. It was just... such a soft moment, and its probably my favorite one :)

[unitedstatesoflyssa]

ALL OF THE BOOKS I'VE LOVED BEFORE

2024 has been a shitty year for me, reading-wise. I started reading for leisure again in 2022, shortly after I graduated from my English department, because I wanted to try to find the childlike joy books had once given me in a time before pandemics and heartbreaks and boy hands. I read 43 books in 2023. I felt like all I could do was read in 2023. Now, in 2024, I went – like – illiterate there for a minute? But either way. Here it is. In all of its golden glory; a master list of the books I've read this year.

A Court of Silver Flames // Sarah J. Maas

7/10

First read of the year, to cap off the ACOTAR series, which I’d started at the insistence of my little sister in May of 2023. I’ve always hated Nesta. As an older sister, I couldn’t imagine putting my little sisters through what Nesta allowed Feyre to endure; although this book gave me a better perspective of why Nesta came off as detached and downright evil throughout the first half of the series. I relate to her in many aspects. I felt as though this was a solid fantasy, and loved the female friendship aspects of it. However, points off for gratuitous sex scenes and the fact that I still wasn’t wholly sold on Nesta as a character despite feeling like Nesta every day of my life. 

Betty // Tiffany McDaniel

9/10

Practically no notes. Ugh! What a beautiful story of childhood innocence, resilience, and overcoming generational trauma and poverty – all against the backdrop of the Appalachian Mountains. It took me a while to get into this one; I started and stopped it thrice throughout the course of 2023, but once I picked it back up and got through the first two chapters, I physically could not set the book down. It was like reading something on a collision course. Highly recommend. 

The Grace Year // Kim Liggett

10/10

My first perfect rating of the year. The religious trauma leapt out. Think The Hunger Games meets the Salem Witch Trials meets The Handmaid’s Tale. Such a quick read, too – I think I read the entire thing in one day, on two separate flights to Minneapolis and Boston, respectively. My favorite “fantasy” of the year thus far. If there’s one book on this list that I recommend you pick up, it’s probably this one. I think you’ll love it too. 

The Cruel Prince // Holly Black

8/10

This year has been all about catching up on the novels that my friends always said I’d love, but I was to pretentious to read. As the neurons in my frontal lobe snap together, I feel myself getting less proud by the day – something you should probably all be grateful to hear. This was one such read. I loved Jude. A piece of me is Jude, powerhungry and ruthless, but without the penchant for swordplay. However, I got a bit lost in the sauce throughout the middle? Maybe I can blame that one for exclusively reading it on a treadmill. 

House of Flame And Shadow // Sarah J. Maas

Did Not Finish (DNF)

Ah, the book that started the months-long reading slump. Sarah, I’m owed personal compensation for the time you made me waste on reading this. I didn’t even love Crescent City 1, but the character assassination of Bryce, Hunt, and hell, even Ruhn was PAINFUL. Would not recommend. Crescent City 1 is a fun standalone. It’s giving Scooby Doo. Hot people solving crimes with a fun pet sidekick. Read that one and be done. We don’t need the Sarah J. Maas multiverse of madness. (Sorry bestie - still love ya.)

Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup // John Kerryrou

8.5/10

I have a feeling if I’d read this before Elizabeth Holmes’s penultimate trial, it would’ve ranked lower, as a lot of the loose ends were inevitably tied up by Kerryrou’s coverage of aforementioned trial. However, one of my goals for 2024 was to read more nonfiction – stuff like this, creative nonfiction, personal essays, all of it. I want to learn things, and I’ve always had a bit of a morbid fascination with the downfall of Theranos. Kerryrou is a journalist, so this was written in approachable, relatable language; great starter nonfiction if you, too, want to brush up on your niche hyperfixation conversation topics. 

Before We Were Innocent // Ella Berman

8/10

This one ranks highly for two reasons, and not necessarily because of the work itself: 

I was laid up in bed for several weeks with two fractured metatarsals, and confined to the four millennial grey walls of my apartment, I felt like I was losing it a bit. I read this one in an afternoon outside on my back patio, broken foot elevated on a tower of pillows, as my husband practically spoon-fed me fruit salad. This, of course, made for a delicious reading experience. 

Because of the broken foot, I was on a bit of pain medication through this time, and I think it made this book glitter a bit more than it actually did. I think I was just glad to have my mind off of the things I was missing out on – like going to the gym, and going on walks, and dancing in the sun, and running laps in the rain. 

Altogether it’s a fun true crime novel reminiscent of Amanda Knox. Real ones know I went through a total Amanda Knox phase my freshman year of college, and all I could talk about was the miscarriage of justice by Italian police on that one. So sub out my motherland for Greece, and put two strange-acting girls in there instead of one, and boom, you have this novel. Reese Witherspoon never disappoints with her selections. 

8. Bright Young Women // Jessica Knoll

6/10

Ugh, such conflicting feelings on this one. You can tell I was in a bit of a true crime phase here. This one’s a fictionalized version of the Chi Omega murders, which famously brought down Ted Bundy. I don’t love that the author chose replace the real narratives of women who were actually impacted by these horrific acts and commodified this story. However, based off of the acknowledgements – it seems she had their blessing? I usually love the types of commercial fiction that feel real enough to touch. Taylor Jenkins Reid does this masterfully. However, this one felt… insensitive at its best. But the writing style was propulsive, and it quickly became another book I devoured on a travel day. 

9. Five Survive // Holly Jackson

5/10

Another travel day book. One thing about me – I really try to avoid screentime while flying, because it may be one of the only times I feel like I can really detach from whatever’s going on below. You will catch me in my Delta economy seat, legs folded beneath me, thumbing through whatever book I’m reading at record speed. I read this one on a flight to DC and remember thinking that I wished it was longer. Again, the true crime phase. I was deep in it. But yeah. Not much to say here. It’s a thriller novel. 

10. The Nightingale // Kristin Hannah

10/10

Oh, Lord. What do I even say about this masterpiece? 

Some might call it a beach read. Fine, whatever. Sue me. Lock me up and throw away the key – this formerly pretentious English major, who used to impress boys based on her knowledge of Nabokov and Murakami, LOVES a good beach read every now and then. I’ve gotten to a point in my life where, if I’m picking up a book, I want to actually escape into its pages. I’m a bit past laboring over purple prose or analyzing the quality of the text itself. This isn’t to say I won’t give what I read a halfway decent literary critique – I still can’t bring myself to finish books with terrible writing, and I’ll admit that I do still see myself as “above” most BookTok-type books – but at this point, I’m just too beat to care. Like, I can barely afford to keep a roof over my head and purchase healthy groceries, why would I spend the same mental energy that I do at the checkout line whining over prose on the Internet? 

Anyways. This one. Oh my gosh. I really, genuinely have no words. Books don’t often make me emotional. I’ve read everything I could get my hands on since I was, like, three. But this one made me full-body sob. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. Kristin Hannah, I could kiss you.

Side note: I read this one in a night, too, not because I was traveling, but because I actually wanted to. 

11. The Women // Kristin Hannah

9/10

It’s hard to follow up a masterpiece like The Nightingale, although I do think this one held its own. I’m mostly just freaked out that the main character hailed from my father’s San Diego, her love interest from my mother’s San Antonio, and she ended up (spoilers!) in my beloved Garden City of Missoula, Montana. Kristin, if you are in my walls, please get out expeditiously. I’m going to have to ask you to start paying rent. 

And, as an aside, here’s all of the books I’m currently reading: 

Magnolia Parks // Jessa Hastings (which I’m loving. It feeds my Love Island UK proclivities. I never said I wasn’t a whore for reality TV. I said I was pretentious. Those are two different things.)

Everything I Know About Love // Dolly Alderton (sort of what inspired me to resurrect my Tumblr. I found myself relating to her need to do things for the anecdote a bit too much. I thought that maybe, I, too, could immortalize these things to laugh on when I am not twenty-something.)

Demon Copperhead // Barbara Kingsolver (which I think will be a bit like Betty, and I’ll have to power through the first several chapters in order to actually blitz through the rest. Fun writing style, though. Just getting bored of it fast.) 

Adult Drama // Natalie Beach (Okay, okay, I haven’t actually started this one yet, but it’s been on my list. Like I said! It’s the year of the personal nonfiction novel! And admittedly, I worshiped Caroline Calloway when I was sixteen and thought I was deep, so I’m invested in Natalie’s side of the narrative.)

And, I know what you’re thinking: here’s this privileged white girl, reading her privileged white girl books. I know, I know. I desperately need to diversify my reading list, and believe it or not, it is something I’ve been intentional about this year. I really hope to spend the latter half of the year reading books from diverse perspectives. Fiction and nonfiction alike bear such an incredible opportunity to educate and broaden the perspectives of those who read. 

So there’s that. The books from a girl who loves books. Hit my “ask” box for recommendations. I love giving the oddly specific ones. 

Xoxo

Lys

[la-luz-mala]

2023 Reading Wrap Up

Hiya everyone!

So 2023 happened, huh? Pretty chill year, nestled between COVID years and the wild start of 2024 we had in Argentina. So I completely forgot about Tumblrs existence except for Astarion fan edits! Here’s to a better year, productivity wise and every-other-aspect-wise.

Reading wise 2023 was fantastic for me. I read more books by more diverse folks and stepped outside my genre comfort zone (with good results!). So here are the details, with graphs!

2023 Goal Vs. 2023 Reality

Woah woah woah! This year I exceeded my goal courtesy of reading comics. I debated whether to add them to the list or not but in the end I decided that yes, I’d count them, seeing as:

I actually read them and they’re a book-adjacent media (are picture books still books? are graphic novels still books? yea they are)

I’m not competing with anybody so who cares

I don’t want to end up not reading comics because they won’t count towards my goal. Am I an idiot? Yes, a bit.

While on it, my average to finish a book is 6 days - averages are lies, some books I read within the day and one specific fantasy book took the entirety of November!

2023 Ratings

Look at all those 5 stars! Lucky me, enjoying stuff so much lol

It’s rare that I pick up a book without reading the blurb and reviews to figure out if it’s actually a fit for me, and on top of that I’m a positive reader: if the book has anything that works for me it’s likely I’ll enjoy it despite any defects, at most dropping it to a 4. Lastly, like in all things in life, having the bar reasonably low allows me to enjoy most things and not be disappointed all that often.

2023 Genres read

Whenever I pop into a bookstore I’ll beeline to the SciFi, fantasy or horror shelves. In 2022 I decided to diversify my reading by choosing either the winner or one of the runner ups of each genre in Goodreads Choice Awards, but kinda forgot about this in 2023 - still, my 2022 plan clearly made an impact as it’s not a 3 wedges pie chart!

2023 Part of a Series Vs. Standalone

Pretty balanced, but the real question is: did I finish any series? How many of those did I just start and abandon? At a quick glance… I only finished one series (ACOTAR), continued a bunch and started some others. I might have trouble committing.

2023 Author stats

These stats might be irrelevant for some people, but as a lifelong horror fan I realized I was reading mostly white men - decided to widen the pool a bit and it’s a smidge better - still have a ways to go.

2024 Goals

Based on these stats, I set some goals for this year:

Read more books: This one is basic, I’ve been increasing my goal by 10 every year so I’d have to set it to 60 but as I’m now tracking both manga and graphic novels I’m setting it to 90 books. Wish me luck!

Read more books by women and LGBT authors: my favourite genres are unfortunately dominated by white men, so this requires some legwork - for now I already have some women authors I’m interested in and will have to do some more research on authors before purchasing.

Read more BIPOC and non-global-north white authors: I swear I’m not trying to be complicated, it’s just that whiteness is a complicated term when including LATAM - would you say Borges was white or Latin American? Because he was definitely both. So what I’ll try is to include BIPOC or non-global-north white authors. This will also require legwork - small indie books don’t really hit the shelves here in Argentina, so I’ll have to both purchase more local authors and request more BIPOC authored books in NetGalley.

Finish a series: Self-explanatory - I’ll pick one or more of the series I started last year and finish it before starting a new one.

Read more manga & graphic novels: Already started on this one!

If you're still reading, thank you for bearing with me this far! In any case, I hope to use this posts as some form of track record and for accountability :) Wish me luck for this 2024!

[azaleavi]

thank you so much for tagging me babes @ritesofreverie and @buckysbiota 💖💖 i had a lot of fun while doing this!

rules: tag 9 people to learn their interests.

music:

fave genre?

pop, kpop, r&b i guess and a little rock

fave artist?

BTS, Spencer Sutherland, 5SOS, Monsta X, WEI, Jessia, Tiny meat gang, Bebe Rexha, Set it off, Jxdn,

fave song?

not in the same way by 5sos, plot line by emlyn, shame by spencer sutherland, wolf in sheep's clothing by set it off

most listened to song?

love be harder - Woodz according to spotify lmao

5 fave lyrics?

"I love you, you love me / But not in the same way" by 5sos

"You're not my happy ever after / But you came close to it [came close to it / I don't need another chapter / I read most of it [read most of it] by emlyn

"You drive me to the edge once again, is this all in my head, i think you want me dead" by spencer sutherland

"Our house on fire / We're burning / We dance inside / You're hurting / If you leave me in the morning / I'll have such a / Such a lonely heart" by 5sos

"You've got a million reasons to hesitate / But darling, the future's better than yesterday / I wasted so much time on people that reminded me of you / Gave you a million reasons to walk away" by 5sos

radio or your own playlist | solo artists or bands | pop or indie | louder or silenter volume | slow or fast songs | music video or lyrics video | speakers or headset | riding a bus in silence or while listening to music | driving in silence or with radio on

books:

fave book genre?

fantasy romance

fave writer?

sarah j maas, kelly st clare.

fave book series?

acotar by sarah j maas

fave book?

shifter wars by jenny st clare

comfort book?

the deal by elle kennedy

perfect book to read on a rainy day?

the inheritance wars by jennifer lynn barnes

fave book characters?

rhysand and cassian from acotar, the darkling from sab, sascha from shifter wars

5 quotes you know by heart?

i am a dumbass so i don't know any by heart

hardcover or paperback | buy or rent | standalone novels or book series | ebook or physical copy | reading at night or during the day | reading at home or in nature | listening to music while reading or reading in silence | reading in order or reading the ending first | reliable or unreliable narrator | realism or fantasy | one or multiple POVS | judging by the covers or by the summary | rereading or reading just once

tv and movies:

fave tv/movie genre?

i don’t really have one because i'm indecisive

fave movie?

transformers, captain america: winter soldier, black widow, knives out,

movie you watch every year?

harry potter movies

comfort movie?

atlantis: the lost empire, big hero 6, any marvel movie really, pokémon: mewtwo strikes back (2019)

fave tv show?

teen wolf, the vampire diaries, sweet home, the witcher, the falcon and the winter soldier

comfort tv show?

teen wolf, falcon and winter soldier,

most re-watched tv show?

the vampire diaries, teen wolf,

5 fave characters?

stiles (teen wolf), yelena belova (black widow), bucky barnes (winter soldier), damon (the vampire diaries), bumblebee (transformers)

tags (no presssure and i know some of you might have already done this lol): @loveaffaire @mickey-henry @golden-bucky @belowva

[honey-from-hell]

I never jumped on the ACOTAR, The Selection, and The Cruel Prince train (not suggesting that there's anything wrong with these books, just are not my cup of tea), so I thought I would make list of books that are my cup of tea

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

It's my all time favorite standalone novel. The writing and the tone are just fantastic. You will laugh and cry at the same time. Native American representation. (Y/A)

They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera

Sad? A bit. Ultimately a feel good coming of age in a day story with LGBTQ+ and Hispanic representation? Yes. (Y/A)

Wink Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke

It's eerie in the summer (such a wonderful combination) and a fast read. Fascinating characters in a non-fantasy story that still manages to have a supernatural vibe. (Y/A)

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

The WRITING. Just the feel and the lyricacy are fucking fantastic. Made me feel emotions that I was severely unprepared for. Also has LGBTQ+ and Hispanic representation and is set in the late '80s. (Y/A)

Vicious by V.E. Schwab

Did someone say morally gray characters? On all sides? With multiple POV? And found family? With NO ROMANCE? You won't even know you're reading a book about superheros. (Adult)

Call Down The Hawk by Maggie Stiefvater

It's only the first book in the trilogy but I might like it better than TRC. The characters and the story are so WEIRD and it works so nicely. Plus, this one so far doesn't give me the problematic vibes TRC did. (Y/A / New Adult)

[jemdeserveslove]

What do you think about this?

Q: Can you tell us anything about the upcoming books in the ACOTAR series? Sarah: There are a lot of fairytales I would like to explore, although many of these ideas are not at all final. I started writing a story for myself during ACOWAR because I wanted to explore new characters and before I knew it I had 250 pages of a new project. I had dinner with my editor and had a few to many drinks, and ended up pitching her three novels and a few novellas in the world. I can say that each standalone will follow a different romantic pairing, both based after and before ACOWAR. There will possibly be a story about a snow queen, and I really like the story of Vasilisa the Beautiful along with Swan Lake. I’m excited because of how much I love romance series following couples in these same storyline.

Hi! Sorry for the long wait

So, I personally don't see a problem with an author pitching new ideas as they're writing. I am no writer myself, but I think it's a very normal thing to happen and I have no issues with it, as long as it's consistent with the previous writing. I remember reading a couple of book series that introduced new ideas as the books progressed and they were so messy and poorly executed (in my opinion) that I could not read the whole thing (it really bothered me lol)

Acosf introduced new ideas like that, such as the Dread Trove for exemple. (correct me if I am wrong, but I'm pretty sure we never had anything on them before acosf) I don't think the Trove was poorly added in the story, hence why it didn't bother me, and the reason for that is because acotar had a trilogy with it's own plot, a plot that was solved. Now, there are new things to solve as the story progresses and I feel that the Trove was a good addition that worked really well with the story. Like, the Trove connects with some plot points in the story that had been opened since acowar, such as Koschei and even the Illyrians (there are theories connecting Ramiel and the 4th item. Is it gonna happen? I don't know, but it's not pure speculation in my opinion) My point is: Sarah added something new to the story that only worked in favor of what she already had at the end of acowar.

I know that there are some inconsistencies in acosf, I remember that as I was reading there were some things that I didn't remember that happened in the previous books, then later, when I finished the book, I opened Tumblr and a lot of people were pointing out these inconsistencies. (so I was like "thank God, cause I started to think I just didn't remember anything lol") Sorry that I can't remember any of them right now, I think they were all little details, but that, you know, are important, so, I understand why a lot of people were really disappointed with this lack of attention to detail.(just one example of something people were disappointed with, there are many) Honestly, it didn't bother my reading experience that much, I think there were a lot more new positive things that were put in acosf that worked well with the (new) plot and I decided to enjoy.

I definitely think that a big part of the fandom wants Sarah to be this perfect and flawless author, which she's not. So, a lot of people just go around online lashing out on sjm that "something didn't happen" or that "something was wrong" and things like that. If people are complaining about couples I think it's really ridiculous and petty (she's the author, so she knows better about these things), but if it's something about her lack of representativeness or criticism as to how it was done, I think it is really valid and necessary. Constructive criticism about books is always good and important and people should do it (I think Sarah doesn't use social media anymore, but maybe the editing company sees it? Idk)

I definitely went off topic lol, I'm sorry. About the " (...) pitching her three novels and a few novellas in the world. I can say that each standalone will follow a different romantic pairing, both based after and before ACOWAR." I don't know when this question was asked, but I remember reading about the confirmation of 3 novels and 2 novellas (acofas being the first novella and acosf being the first of the 3 novels) Acosf covered a couple based before acowar and I'm pretty confident that next novel is Azriel's with Gwyn's pov in it (a couple based after acowar) and that the last novel is Elain's with Lucien's pov (before acowar) + Mor and Emerie that are based after acowar (I think Mormerie could happen in the next novel, but who knows? we'll have to wait and see). I have read that the novella is supposed to be in between the novels and help with the plot construction (so maybe no couple?), but I'm not sure about the veracity of this information.

I'm not that well informed about fairy tales in general, but Sarah seems to really like to put her twists in them (I like her twists) so I don't see why it wouldn't happen. She talked about some of these fairy tales in a couple of interviews, so I strongly believe it will happen. (I probably won't notice right away, because I don't know that much about these fairy tales lol maybe I'll try to be informed, because it is a interesting topic to theorize about it)

This answer was longer than it was supposed to be lol I hope I covered everything and thank you for your ask!

[alittlebook-ish]

18 Book-ish Questions for 2018!

Ahoy there my fellow readers and book eaters! Welcome to 2018! 

I hope you all are having a marvelous year so far, and you are all buckling down trying to make progress on your reading goals! If not, don’t fret, there’s still a long year waiting for us! 

I’m posting this later than I intended because I’ve been so wrapped up in some winter cleaning! But here it is: a glimpse into my 2018! 

How many books did you read in 2017? What did you set your 2018 reading goal as?

I set my goal for 20 books this year, and I read 29. 

As for 2018, I set my current goal to 35 books, but it wouldn’t be surprising if I end up changing in. For my Spring semester alone I’m required to read 15 books, along with texts from the Shakespeare textbook (I just don’t know if they’re full plays). There’s at least 30 books I want to read on my own free time...so I’m interested to see where this year takes me. 

Thoughts about your year in reading?

I think overall I had a really good year! A majority of the books I read this year were either 4 or 5 stars for me, and I found two authors who’s books I honestly love with every inch of me! My biggest regret tho was my reading slump between September and November, where I had a hard time finishing anything because I just wanted to read a specific book that I couldn’t have quite yet. Also, it was a really big year for buying books....really big year. 

How many books are you planning to read this year?

Somewhere between 35-40 books. With school and my job I just don’t have the time or patience to read every book I want. Compared to 2017′s reading goal of 20 books, 35-40 seems ambitious, but I need to read about 16 of those for my English minor.

What are your goals in 2018 as a reader?

1. Read more diversely. 

2. Read different genres. 

3. Read through at least half the books I own before buying more.

4. Read the books lent to me that I’ve been holding onto for forever.

5. Finish the books I’ve abandoned.

6. Read more classics. 

What are the Top 5 books on your TBR for 2018?

1. All of Maria V. Snyder’s books (that I haven’t finished...counting these as one)

2. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

3. Storm and Siege by Leigh Bardugo

4. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor 

5. The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog  by Dr. Bruce Perry 

An author you’d like to read (that you’ve never read before):

Leigh Bardugo. I’ve heard nothing but praise for her work, and as a lover of all things fantasy I think I’d really be into her books! I always walk past her books while I’m browsing in Barnes and Noble, and 9/10 times I’m drawn to at least pick it up. I also couldn’t count the amount of times someone has recommended Six of Crows to me. Hopefully next year I decide to follow through and buy one of her books! 

A book you’d like to read:

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas. SJM gets a lot of praise in the book community, and a lot of people recommend A Court of Thorns and Roses and the remainder of that trilogy (or is it a quartet? I can’t remember). While I can’t say ACOTAR is of interest to me at this point in my life, I was always drawn to the Throne of Glass series...but I never bought the first book because I didn’t like the cover (yes...I’m one of those people). However, the UK edition made me want to purchase at least the first installment in the series because I am a total sucker for that white aesthetic. 

A book you’d like to re-read:

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie. And Then There Were None has always been one of my favorite required readings, and it’s been seven or eight years since I’ve read it cover to cover. This past summer I picked it up several times to try and re-read it, but I always ended up putting it down in favor for another book. Hopefully this year, I’ll finally make it through. 

A book you’ve had for ages and want to read:

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein. I bought this book on Amazon in May of 2014. That poor book has been sitting on my shelf for over three and a half years, waiting for someone to pick it up and read it’s story. Again, this book is talked about a lot by some of my favorite Goodreads reviewers, and they hold this book in high regard. This will probably be one of my summer reads, but I’m going to try and make it happen!

A book you started in 2017 and need to finish

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. There’s at least a hundred other books I should read but this one...I kinda need to return. I love swashbuckling adventures, and my coworker lent me this book to read but school and life happened, and I was never able to get through the first few dozen pages. But...I kinda need to finish it before summer.

A big book you’d like to read:

Iluminae by Amie and Jay Kristoff. It’s not that big of a book, but it’s 599, which is probably one of the bigger books I intend on reading in 2018. Though Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss are up there too (it’s just a matter of if and when I get to them). 

An author you’ve previously read and want to read more of:

Agatha Christie. I’ve started collecting up her paperback books, because I honestly love a good detective story mixed in with all the fantasy I read! Whenever I go to the bookstore I tend to spot a lot of cozy mysteries, and I’m not necessarily into all of that side of mystery, thought they are fun to read. However, Christie was such a great writer, and a lot of her books are true classics. 

A book you got for Christmas and would like to read:

Wizard: The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla: Biography of a Genius by Marc Seifer. Before Christmas, I had an argument with my grandma about Einstein and Tesla, and how much better Tesla was. I guess that prompted her to buy me a biography on him (actually...two biographies). Regardless, I really want to try to read more nonfiction this year and to learn something new. 

A series you want to read from start to finish:

Avry of Kazan trilogy by Maria V. Snyder. Once I close the cover on Ixia and Sitia, I want to pick up Snyder’s other fantasy trilogy! I love how Maria explains her worlds and her magic system, so I can’t wait to start something new! (Book 1, 2, 3)

A series you want to finish that you’ve already started:

The Chronicles of Ixia series by Maria V. Snyder. The Study books are some of my favorite books of all time, and I’m three books from finishing the 9 book series! (Book 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)

Most anticipated 2018 release?

The Darkest Legacy by Alexandra Bracken. Set for release on August 7th! I’m so excited that Zu is getting her own standalone novel! The Darkest Minds trilogy is one of my favorite trilogies of all time, and I love everything Alexandra Bracken writes. 

Most anticipated book turned movie/TV show?

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken. Set to be in theaters September 14th! I can’t tell you how long I’ve waited to see a trailer for the movie, and when I finally see it I might honestly cry. 

Any New Year’s Resolutions?

I’m really trying to get my shit together this year. I spent the two weeks completely gutting my room, getting rid of all the old stuff that no longer makes me happy or no longer need. I must’ve had almost 20 bags of trash because I honestly just got rid of absolutely everything. I sorted out books and clothes for donations as well! It feels good to just relieve myself of all that clutter, and I intend on doing so for the rest of the year! 

I also want to work on some writing this year. I just finished a Creative Writing course and it was honestly so much fun being able to just let my thoughts flow, so I’m going to try and do some more this year. Especially with my camp season coming up!

[wayfaringreader]

I was tagged by @sneirrbooks​ to do the “ask 11, answer 11″ thing!

1. What is your favorite book in/translated from another language (than your native language)? I haven’t read too many translated books, but my favorite is probably 172 Hours on the Moon by Johan Harstad because while some of the writing is weak (probably due to translation) it’s disturbing and scared me so much I cried. 

2. Is there any book you wish you could un-read - for whatever reason? I have several, but the worst one is probably Call of the Wild, because it was the first book I ever hated. 

3. If you were to write a book, who would the main character be? A girl who really wants to go on an adventure and actually ends up sucking at a lot of things, and none of the typical things come naturally to her. 

4. What’s a trope you’re sick and tired of? Girls hating on other girls for no good reason, and I’m not sure if it’s a trope necessarily, but books that are in this cool world and ignore all of the actual plot to focus on the romance. 

5. What’s a trope you can’t get enough of? Slow Burn Romance (again I’m awful at what ‘is and isn’t’ a trope, oh well)

6. What books are you most excited to read in 2017? I’m finally starting LOTR, and then I’m excited for the next books in the Thunder Road series, the ACOTAR series, and the Throne of Glass series that are being published this year!

7. What got you into reading? I got myself into reading. I was always a curious little kid and read everything I could get my hands on.

8. Ebook or paper? Ebook when I’m at school, paper for when I’m at home and for books that take more thinking to get through. 

9. Do you prefer long or short books? It depends on how it’s written. If it’s dragging on too much, I prefer short, but if I’m completely captivated by it, then I prefer long. 

10. What is your favourite classic? Probably The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath or The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

11. Is there a book you think should be made into a movie or TV series? The Thunder Road series by Katie McGarry would be great TV series, and Ready Player One by Ernest Cline would be a great movie. 

I tag @neontotoro @justlikejosephine @kennak12 @books-and-squats @thelibraryofmars and literally anyone who never gets tagged in anything like this and wants to do it. My 11 questions are:

Have you read any graphic novels? 

What’s your favorite book that was mandatory reading for school?

Do you think there are any movie/TV adaptations that are better than the books? 

Are you doing any reading challenges/reading goals in 2017?

What’s a genre that you dislike for no legitimate reason?

Borrow books from the library or buy them at a bookstore?

Books you think aren’t worth the hype they get on tumblr?

Books you think deserve more hype on tumblr?

Do you have any bookish merch?

What book has been on your TBR the longest, and how long have you been meaning to read it?

Are there any standalone books that you wish had sequels, or were part of a series? 

[goforth-ladymidnight]

My Thoughts on the Official ACOTAR Coloring Book

The official ACOTAR coloring book was my official introduction the world of ACOTAR back in 2017 (I kept the barcode sticker with the date on it and everything). However, I didn’t officially join the fandom until 2021, around the time ACOSF came out. However however, it wasn’t until recently that I realized that the coloring book was all about Feyre and Rhys. I know it seems obvious, but hear me out.

Book 1 of ACOTAR is, at its core, a retelling of Beauty and the Beast and the Ballad of Tam Lin. It is Feyre and Tamlin’s story, despite what the rest of the series became. However, you wouldn’t know that if you only read the snippets included in the coloring book.

This realization came to me when someone on Reddit requested a spoiler-free color-along guide, complete with chapter numbers. This was so they could read the books, then color along when they came across the matching chapter. Since I was procrastinating had some free time, and I have the trilogy on Kindle (it makes research for fanfiction so much easier), I typed something up for her. But in doing so, I noticed at long last that the ACOTAR portion doesn’t tell Feyre’s and Tamlin’s story.

There is exactly one image that is even romantically coded for Feylin, and it’s this one: (art by Yvonne Gilbert, coloring by me)

It’s a beautiful illustration, but... They’re not even looking at each other.

I’ve never worked as an illustrator (even though I’ve taken my fair share of art classes), but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the only image where Feyre and Tamlin have eye contact is the scene UTM right before she stabs him.

If SJM had any say in which scenes were included in this book, then that excerpt doesn’t surprise me at all. (You can see some more examples of the included pictures on the wiki page here.)

I looked through my copy of the book, and there are eight images of Feyre and Rhys together. Eight. ACOTAR’s portion ends with Rhys and Feyre talking, instead of Feyre and Tamlin walking off into the sunset, which is how the book actually ends.

At this point, you may be wondering why I’m so passionate about this, so I’ll tell you. Once upon a time, I wanted to be an illustrator. Back in 2017, I was studying real-life examples of coloring books and trying to learn from the experts. I’ve since made art more of a hobby to focus on writing, but the interesting thing about studying art and writing is this: The official coloring book doesn’t tell a comprehensive story.

Book 1 is my favorite book in the series, and I would love to see it get more love as time goes on, instead of being dismissed as a “boring prequel”. It set up what the rest of the series became [insert rant about the tonal shift between books, the discarded sequel that was eventually written into ACOMAF, and my feelings about the portrayal of Tamlin’s character in general].

It is a good book on its own... but I couldn’t tell you that if I had to sum it up from the coloring book excerpts alone. Important characters like Lucien are never given an introduction page, unlike the ACOMAF section, where each member of the Inner Circle was highlighted in addition to getting a group shot. Honestly, I wouldn’t want to take that away from them, since they are important to the series, but I would prefer to give more characters like Lucien or Tarquin a chance to shine instead of adding in a picture of the Attor or the Middengard Worm Wyrm. For those who don’t have the coloring book, if you look through the images on the wiki, yes, pictures of those ugly creatures are really in there. Mmm. Just what you want to color in a romance book about sexy hot faeries.

If I had my way, here are the scenes from ACOTAR that I would choose to tell the story properly. To make it more of a challenge, I kept it to 18 scenes, to match the number of illustrations that were chosen for ACOMAF:

Feyre aims for the deer and sees the wolf [technically it’s already in there, so it can stay, but I would change the excerpt and the illustration. I’m just not crazy about that particular artist’s comic book style here, since it doesn’t suit the fairy tale nature of the book]

Feyre speaks to the mercenary [not only does it highlight a criminally underrepresented badass character, it defines the danger of Prythian, and the overall conflict in the book]

Tamlin’s beast form in the cabin as he bargains with Feyre [which is different from the one where they’re walking away from the cabin; the excerpt that was chosen doesn’t have the same impact, imo]

The Spring Court manor [it’s in there, so it can stay, and besides, John Howe’s work is beautiful]

Tamlin’s High Fae reveal [Yvonne Gilbert’s illustration of Tamlin and Lucien is gorgeous, but it’s a shame that Lucien isn’t mentioned by name in the excerpt] 

Lucien and Feyre on horseback as they discuss the Suriel [as interesting as it was to see the Suriel depicted by itself, we need context to know why it’s there]

The Suriel and its advice to Feyre: “Stay with the High Lord” [*cough cough* it was always about Tamlin *cough cough*]

Tamlin takes Feyre to the glen, as shown above [although this could also be traded out for the art gallery or the willow scene]

Rhysand taunting Tamlin, and Lucien protecting Feyre [this ties in better to the theme of the book, instead of his description on Fire Night as “the most beautiful man” she’d ever seen. Let’s stay on track, people, and keep it to one love interest per book, mm’kay?]

Tamlin sends Feyre home in the carriage [as much as I would love to highlight Solstice, it doesn’t have the same impact on the plot. Besides, I do love Yvonne Gilbert’s illustration of the scene; even if Feyre isn’t looking at Tamlin, it is thematically appropriate]

An illustration of Feyre’s family, not just of Elain gardening [thus showing what Feyre is giving up by choosing to return to Prythian]

Alis takes Feyre to the cave [this illustration is one that piqued my interest when I first flipped through the book, so it stays]

Amarantha’s intro [it’s perfect as-is; gotta love Charlie Bowater’s work, though I would have loved for the image to be bigger]

Feyre runs from the Worm Wyrm [much more interesting instead of just showing it by itself, because pink and brown does not make for a compelling color palette, thank you very much]

The tattoo and the bargain [it can stay, only because it does affect the plot and future books *grumble, grumble*]

Amarantha taunts Feyre about killing Tamlin [the current version was a big spoiler to me when I first saw it, but the scene needs to be included in some form]

Feyre’s transformation to High Fae, perhaps surrounded by a couple of the other High Lords [the current scene with her and Rhys talking about her human heart works, but it’s very Feysand-centric in a book that should be about Feylin. Plus, more character reveals!]

Feyre and Tamlin’s return to the Spring Court as they walk off into the sunset [ft. Tamlin without his mask!!]

Done.

Now, I know this doesn’t cover all of the scenes I would have loved to see illustrated, but it does make up for the severe lack of Feylin compared to all of the Feysand illustrations. If I feel like it later on, I might do the same excerpt review for ACOMAF and ACOWAR, because I had no idea what was happening in those books from the illustrations and excerpts alone. (And I still haven’t read ACOWAR all the way through. Way to hook me on the plot, promotional material.) We don’t even see what the villain in those two books even looks like! That’s a royal shame (pun intended).

If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading! You don’t have to agree with my takes, but this is something that’s been on my mind for a while now, and with Tamlin Week 2023 coming up, I felt inspired to finally put my thoughts together. Maybe this will also inspire someone to make something for the event? Maybe this is a sign I should pull out my markers and paints more often... Hmm. If nothing else, this was a good exercise. And I don’t want to be the sort of person who criticizes something without offering suggestions for how it could be better.

I am glad that ACOTAR exists, because it has inspired so much creativity in myself and my fellow fanfiction authors and artists. It has also inspired a lot of people to pick up reading again, and if that leads to people reading more and making new stuff, so much the better. :)

[goforth-ladymidnight]

I see so many ACOSF fixit stories but no ACOMAF and beyond fixits where Feyre, Tamlin and Rhysand are actually in character from ACOTAR and where things progress naturally and it bothers me! I don’t even necessarily hate that feysand became canon, but the implosion of feylin was not only unnecessary, it was so ooc and lazy that I think of the first book and the rest of the books as two different series really. ACOTAR is a standalone novel in my head. Like honestly ACOMAF could’ve had a couple of chapters in the beginning to set up the backstory and it could’ve been its own series.

I like you, nonnie. 😘 ACOTAR makes so much more sense as a standalone novel. And in ACOMAF especially, it feels less like the mysterious fairy tale world that I--we--fell in love with, and more of an urban fantasy. We've got paperwork, canned soup, sweaters over leggings, and vomiting into flushing toilets. Not to mention the ooc behavior of our main cast.

As much as I love Feylin, I really do like the concept of Feyre being stolen away as the bride of spring. But SJM didn't have to make Tamlin an ignorant brute over it. And Lucien! Where's his spark? (I think Cassian was given most of Lucien’s personality, actually, and as a result, SJM decided against shipping Lucien and Nesta together. I really think they could have worked. But that’s a whole ‘nother rant...)

At the start of ACOMAF, I got the sense that too much happened off-page, and yet not enough. We left Feyre and Tamlin at the end of ACOTAR walking hand in hand into the frickin’ sunset: "Let's go home", to find Feyre waking from a nightmare and he's sleeping through it. Umm... am I really supposed to believe they’ve already grown distant after three months?

I know many people liked that this story turned the happily ever after on its head, because in real life, your first love isn’t your last love... I get it. But this is fiction, and I was hella disappointed.

If I had my way, I would have loved to see seven standalone books, one for each court. Make that eight, because I love the concept of a Dusk Court. We could have had one court per fairy tale, and we could even get cameos of the characters we’ve come to know and love appearing in each. But each book would be a different couple. Of course, that’s not going to happen.

There are very few people in this fandom who prefer the first book to the rest of the series, and the second book is hands-down the favorite. That’s why I’m not surprised there aren’t any ACOMAF fix-it fics, though I would love to read one. If I didn’t have so many other things I wanted to write, I might even try tackling it myself. But, alas. I think I’ll stick to Feylin one-shots and dream of what could have been.

P.S. I actually just posted an answer to a question from my inbox that asked what I thought a Feylin sequel could have looked like. It turned into a kind of ACOMAF fix-it outline (though an incomplete one). If you want to check it out, it’s here.

[goforth-ladymidnight]

Agreed! I've heard of so many SJM fans that skip ACOTAR anyway. It's too different from the rest of the series.

She absolutely could have left it as a generic BatB retelling and changed Tamlin’s name, no question. I am so tired of the antis who call him Tampon and think they're being clever. All the while they are unaware of the Ballad that inspired their beloved series in the first place.

For as much as SJM has proclaimed that R/hysand was always endgame– though I despise that bait and switch with every fiber of my being– I think she re-wrote him into the story to make him more important that he was initially. What do I mean? My theory (with evidence) is below the cut.

Feel free to skip it if your favorite book in the series is A/COMAF. Seriously. If you usually skip most of ACOTAR to get to the R/hysand parts, skip this. You won’t like it.

Keep reading

[goforth-ladymidnight]

Hi, secret santa here! I hope you are doing well! I'm busy working on your gift rn but I wanted to check in to ask how you are? Also, because I think it's good if we got to know each other better (well, me knowing you, obviously I won't uncover my secret identity) I wanted to ask what your favorite books were? Also what is your favorite thing out of everything you have written?

Hi there! I am doing well, thank you. I appreciate you checking in. 😊 And my heart did a happy dance when I read your message. ❤️ What delightful questions! 

Now, I’m going to assume you’re asking about my favorite books in addition to ACOTAR. If you’ve been poking around my blog, you’ll know Book 1 is my favorite in the series and that I prefer it as a standalone because of how different the sequel books became... but I digress.

There are some books on my shelf that are very near and dear to my heart. I often see ACOTAR cited as the book that gets many people out of a reading slump, but for me, that book was “Wildwood Dancing” by Juliet Marillier. Kinuko Y. Craft illustrated the cover of the edition I own, which is what drew my attention to that book in the first place. @/janainaart has done some illustrations for it in the years since; I adore her work. Anyway, the story is a combined retelling of The Frog Prince and The Twelve Dancing Princesses that takes place in the Transylvanian countryside. It has fairies, vampires, and an enchanted frog in a land that fears magic. I told myself I would only read a chapter or two before bed (because I had work the next morning), then whoops, I finished the book at 3 o’clock in the morning. Welp.

I’m also rather fond of Robin McKinley’s work, especially “Beauty” and “Sunshine”, though I do wish her endings didn’t feel so abrupt. Sherwood Smith’s “Crown Duel” is full of fantastic worldbuilding. I would love to see a film or miniseries adaptation of Garth Nix’s “Sabriel”; the story and the world are just *chef’s kiss*. I keep telling myself to pick up some of the more recent YA fantasies to add to my library, but I’m been more focused on writing lately. I have “Spinning Silver” and “An Enchantment of Ravens” on my TBR, though.

And speaking of writing...

I haven’t published anything yet, but I have several projects in the works. Before I got involved in the ACOTAR fandom, I was working on a novel-length retelling of “The Frog Prince” [official title still pending]. I just have to give it an ending (which is the one thing my dad asked for for Christmas, so...). I love classic fairy tale retellings, and I have my own versions of “Cinderella” and “East o’ the Sun, West o’ the Moon” in various stages of completion. One project I’m eager to put my own spin on is “The Snow Queen”. Out of everything I’ve written, though, my favorite bits happen to be the poems that I sprinkle into the stories themselves. 

In my fanfiction “A Court of Frost and Embers [ACOFAE]”, I came up with this poem that Feyre repeats several times: “If a faerie invites thee to dine, taste not its food, drink not its wine. Such is not meant for mortal men, lest ye be bound to Prythian.” Though the lore of ACOTAR doesn’t line up with traditional faerie lore (addictive food, being weakened by iron, inability to lie, etc.), it was fun to imagine that it did, at least for a little while.

My original work keeps that faerie lore intact, such as the beginning of this original spell from my version of The Frog Prince: “The Fae Folk cannot tell a lie, so magic will make truth comply...”

There’s something so satisfying about writing a poem that rhymes and has the right rhythm. *happy sigh* I could go through every one of my stories and find more examples, but I’m nervous about sharing too much of something before it’s published. One day, I’ll share this original work. But for now, my fanfiction will have to do. 🙂

So that I don’t leave you hanging, I’ll tell you that my second favorite thing to write (and read, tbh) is lush description. I have passages marked in my favorite books with descriptions of food, clothing, landscapes... I was able to indulge in this love of detail when I wrote my ACOFAE sequel last Christmas: “Together for Solstice”. In that oneshot, Feyre is noticing all of the winter solstice decorations in the Spring Court manor:

The banister was covered in plump white roses, bound with silver ribbons and accented with fresh sprigs of evergreen. She touched one of the velvety blooms, breathing in the spicy blend of roses and pine. Downstairs, some servants carried silver candelabras topped with thin white candles and garlands of pine boughs. Others carried armfuls of silver streamers and white lace. Feyre’s fingers lightly trailed along the garland of roses as she descended the stairs. For the land of eternal springtime, the effect was perfectly wintery.

It was so much fun to imagine how a place that never sees snow would make it feel Christmas-y (or at least the Prythian equivalent). Where I live now actually doesn’t get a lot of snowfall, not like where I grew up, so that may have been why I was so inspired. It definitely put me in a holiday mood. 🎅

Anyway, thanks for asking about my writing! I struggle with self-promoting (I’m afraid of coming off as annoying), so it’s easier to answer questions. Thanks again for giving me the chance to share my thoughts. 💖

P.S. I look forward to getting to know you when the time comes. 😘