#brand new 52

[reincarnatedasacupcake]

Oh man, I'm on summer vacation and I finally have the time and energy to read again! But what am I having so much trouble reading and why are my eyes always so tired? Braeby needs glasses you say... Braeby is farsighted and shouldn't be reading or on the computer without said glasses you say...

Well, that explains a lot. Looking back over the last couple months I've mostly been listening to audiobooks or reading comics and there are very few actual books. On a brighter note, I picked out some cute purple frames and they should be ready any day now. FYI: I totally look like a librarian in them. Anyhoo... here is what I managed to squint at and read this month:

The White Rose (The Lone City #2)

by Amy Ewing

308 Pages (8:31 Hours) 

The compelling and gripping sequel to Amy Ewing's debut, The Jewel, which the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books said, "Will have fans of Oliver's Delirium, Cass' The Selection, and DeStefano's Wither breathless with anticipation for the sequel."Violet is on the run--away from the Jewel, away from a lifetime of servitude, away from the Duchess of the Lake, who bought her at auction. With Ash and Raven traveling with her, Violet will need all of her powers to get her friends, and herself, out of the Jewel alive.But no matter how far Violet runs, she can't escape the rebellion brewing just beneath the Jewel's glittering surface, or her role in it. Violet must decide if she is strong enough to rise against the Jewel and everything she has ever known.

I found myself really enjoying this series and this book just confirmed that. I was worried that it would be another book about her being captive, but she manages to escape and joins the rebellion. The cast of characters is really great and I couldn't wait to find out what happened next.

Black Canary: Kicking and Screaming (Black Canary TPB #1)

by Brenden Fletcher, Annie Wu, Pia Guerra & Sandy Jarrell

168 Pages

Dinah Lance hits the road! After years as a soldier and vigilante, the last place Dinah saw herself is on stage…but she’s quickly learning she’d die to protect the gang of misfits she’s fallen into. And she just might have to—for some reason, the newly rechristened band Black Canary seems to be a magnet for trouble…and Dinah’s not gonna believe it when she finds out the reason why!

This was a really great comic and was a lot of fun. I never thought that the perfect place for Black Canary would be in a band, but it's pretty ingenious. I love all the side characters, which makes it even more enjoyable. Can't wait to read more.

The Black Key (The Lone City #3)

by Amy Ewing

289 Pages (8:09 Hours)

For too long, Violet and the people of the outer circles of the Lone City have lived a life of servitude, controlled and manipulated by the royalty of the Jewel. But now, the secret society known as the Black Key is preparing to seize power and knock down the walls dividing each circle.

And while Violet knows she is at the center of this rebellion, she has a more personal stake in it—for her sister, Hazel, has been taken by the Duchess of the Lake. Now, after fighting so hard to escape the Jewel, Violet must do everything in her power to return, to save not only Hazel, but the future of the Lone City.

As soon as the 2nd book was finished, I managed to get my hands on a copy of the 3rd book. This one takes place back in the Jewel, but you get a new perspective of it, which is nice. I was sad that they fridged one of the characters so that a different love story could take place, but I guess it was inevitable. Too bad though, she was really sweet. I enjoyed the conclusion to this series and look forward to reading her other series.

Rat Queens, Vol. 2: The Far Reaching Tentacles of N'rygoth (Rat Queens #2)

by Kurtis J. Wiebe, Roc Upchur & Stjepan Šejić

128 Pages 

This booze-soaked second volume of RAT QUEENS reveals a growing menace within the very walls of Palisade. And while Dee may have run from her past, the bloated, blood-feasting sky god N’rygoth never really lets his children stray too far.

You can't go wrong with Rat Queens. It's just too much fun! Although graphic, this book had a neat plot that I really enjoyed, especially the eldritch horror aspect. I want more of these books!

One Dark Throne (Three Dark Crowns #2)

by Kendare Blake

464 Pages (11:10 Hours)

The battle for the crown has begun, but which of the three sisters will prevail?

With the unforgettable events of the Quickening behind them and the Ascension Year underway, all bets are off. Katharine, once the weak and feeble sister, is stronger than ever before. Arsinoe, after discovering the truth about her powers, must figure out how to make her secret talent work in her favor without anyone finding out. And Mirabella, once thought to be the strongest sister of all and the certain Queen Crowned, faces attacks like never before—ones that put those around her in danger she can’t seem to prevent.

In this enthralling sequel to Kendare Blake’s New York Times bestselling Three Dark Crowns, Fennbirn’s deadliest queens must face the one thing standing in their way of the crown: each other.

Sooooo good. The fight is on to win the crown and I want them all to have it for one reason or another. Or at least, I don't want any of them to get killed off.  Now I am patiently waiting for the 3rd one to come out in audio! Why isn't it out already?

Guards! Guards! (Discworld #8)

by Terry Pratchett

432 Pages

‘Vimes ran a practised eye over the assortment before him. It was the usual Ankh-Morpork mob in times of crisis; half of them were here to complain, a quarter of them were here to watch the other half, and the remainder were here to rob, importune or sell hotdogs to the rest.’

Insurrection is in the air in Ankh-Morpork. The Haves and Have-Nots are about to fall out all over again. Captain Sam Vimes of the city’s ramshackle Night Watch is used to this. It’s enough to drive a man to drink. Well, to drink more. But this time, something is different – the Have-Nots have found the key to a dormant, lethal weapon that even they don’t fully understand, and they’re about to unleash a campaign of terror on the city. Time for Captain Vimes to sober up.

Back to Discworld and the crazy characters that always seem to find themselves in the strangest of quests. It's hard not to love the Discworld characters, and this book is no exception. I need to read more of these, I just need to.

Gotham Academy, Vol. 2: Calamity (Gotham Academy #2)

by Becky Cloonan, Brenden Fletcher, Karl Kerschl, Mingjue Helen Chen & Msassyk

144 Pages

Olive has received information that her mother might be alive—and now, she and her friends must investigate! Of course werewolves, ghosts, and new student Damian Wayne won’t make it easy! Collects issues #7-12

Although not as good as the first volume, this one does hold more explanation, which is nice. The synopsis makes it sound like Damian is a new main character, but he's only there for part of one of the stories. He's also not as big of a jerk as I thought he was going to be, so that's nice. Maps is still the best and I think will always be my favorite character.

Ahsoka (Star Wars Disney Canon Novel)

by E.K. Johnston

400 Pages (7:04 Hours)

Fans have long wondered what happened to Ahsoka after she left the Jedi Order near the end of the Clone Wars and before she reappeared as the mysterious Rebel operative Fulcrum in Rebels. Finally her story will begin to be told.

Following her experiences with the Jedi and the devastation of Order 66, Ahsoka is unsure she can be part of a larger whole ever again. But her desire to fight the evils of the Empire and protect those who need it will lead her right to Bail Organa - and the Rebel Alliance.

I was really excited about this book when I came across it. I haven't been listening to many Star Wars books lately, but how can I pass up Ahsoka? I was even more excited when I realized that Ashley Eckstein was reprising her role as our favorite former Jedi padawan, as she narrates the entire book! YAY! (btw: she's coming to Toronto on Monday, so look forward to a post about that!)

The story was fun and I enjoy the background sound effects, but sometimes they can get a bit irritating and headache inducing. Oh well, worth it.

Fables Vol. 2: Animal Farm (Fables (Fables #2)

by Bill Willingham (Goodreads Author), Mark Buckingham

128 Pages

Ever since they were driven from their homelands by the Adversary, the non-human Fables have been living on the Farm—a vast property in upstate New York that keeps them hidden from the prying eyes of the mundane world. But now, after hundreds of years of isolation, the Farm is seething with revolution, fanned by the inflammatory rhetoric of Goldilocks and the Three Little Pigs. And when Snow White and her sister Rose Red stumble upon their plan to liberate the Homelands, the commissars of the Farm are ready to silence them—by any means necessary!

This was an interesting story, as it dealt with the Fables that couldn't pass for human and had to be kept away from downtown New York. As these animals rebel, you can see that they have a point, but are going about it in the wrong way. It was a really neat take on more fairy tales.

Big Mushy Happy Lump (Sarah's Scribbles #2)

by Sarah Andersen

128 Pages

Sarah Andersen's hugely popular, world-famous Sarah's Scribbles comics are for those of us who boast bookstore-ready bodies and Netflix-ready hair, who are always down for all-night reading-in-bed parties and extremely exclusive after-hour one-person music festivals. 

In addition to the most recent Sarah's Scribbles fan favorites and dozens of all-new comics, this volume contains illustrated personal essays on Sarah's real-life experiences with anxiety, career, relationships and other adulthood challenges that will remind readers of Allie Brosh's Hyperbole and a Half and Jenny Lawson's Let's Pretend This Never Happened. The same uniquely frank, real, yet humorous and uplifting tone that makes Sarah's Scribbles so relatable blooms beautifully in this new longer form.

Sometimes you just need to laugh at everyday life and Sarah Scribbles is great at providing that. It's hard not to chuckle at all of life's problems when they're so relatable. I didn't realize that this was the 2nd book until after I finished it, but like most comics of this genre, it doesn't really matter. Most enjoyable.

Potions and Pastries (Magical Bakery Mystery #7)

by Bailey Cates

279 Pages

In this New York Times bestselling mystery series, witch Katie Lightfoot bakes enchanted treats--and faces more than her fair share of toil and trouble.... 

It's been exactly two years since Katie and her aunt and uncle opened the Honeybee Bakery, where they serve delicious--and bespelled--treats to the good people of Savannah. After a dinner celebrating the bakery's anniversary, they all take a stroll along the waterfront and meet Aunt Lucy's friend Orla, a colorful character who has been telling the fortunes of locals and tourists alike for years.

The next day, Orla meets with what seems like a terrible accident, but Katie's witchy intuition tells her it was something more sinister. Together with her trustworthy coven and her firefighter boyfriend, she'll race to find out what happened to the unfortunate fortune-teller before the piping hot trail goes cold....

I was a bit disappointed in this book. Not because of the story, that was good, but because of the language used. It uses the word G*psy. A lot. Now, people don't always know that this is considered a slur and that Romani or Traveling People tend to be preferred. Now in this case they were Irish traveling people. Now, it's not just that they used it multiple times, but they even explained like I just did about the word, yet it still gets used. I find that aggravating. It should've been corrected at the beginning and then not used again. 

Besides that, the story was good enough.  

Adulthood Is a Myth (Sarah's Scribbles #1)

by Sarah Andersen

109 Pages

Are you a special snowflake? 

Do you enjoy networking to advance your career? 

Is adulthood an exciting new challenge for which you feel fully prepared? 

Ugh. Please go away.

This book is for the rest of us. These comics document the wasting of entire beautiful weekends on the internet, the unbearable agony of holding hands on the street with a gorgeous guy, dreaming all day of getting home and back into pajamas, and wondering when, exactly, this adulthood thing begins. In other words, the horrors and awkwardnesses of young modern life.

Once I had discovered that the first book I read was actually the 2nd in the series, I had to go back and find the 1st one. I was not disappointed. Now that I'm in my 30's I actually have to admit that I'm a adult, although I certainly don't feel like it most of the time. At least we can enjoy this book and make fun of ourselves. 

The House of the Stone (The Lone City #1.5)

by Amy Ewing

87 Pages

In The Jewel, we followed Violet in her servitude under the Duchess of the Lake. Now we'll hear Raven's story and her time as a surrogate for the Countess of the Stone in this digital novella from Amy Ewing.

When Raven is bought at the Auction, she knows immediately that things will not go well. And when she arrives at the Countess's palace, Raven quickly discovers that the Countess is much less interested in having a baby than experimenting with Raven's mind and body. Raven can only hope for an escape…and to see Violet again, all the while reminding herself that she is Raven Stirling, and she does matter.

HarperTeen Impulse is a digital imprint focused on young adult short stories and novellas, with new releases the first Tuesday of each month.

After listening to this series, I was excited to find out that there were a few short stories out there as well. I love Raven, so I was super excited (if not morbidly curious) to read about her. But her story pretty much reflects Violet's story but from a different perspective. Literally. They are the same scenes in which both of them are present, but from a different angle. It was a bit of a let down. I wanted new content. Oh well, it was still good.

Batman: Nightwalker (DC Icons #2)

by Marie Lu

272 Pages (8:44 Hours)

Before he was Batman, he was Bruce Wayne. A reckless boy willing to break the rules for a girl who may be his worst enemy.

The Nightwalkers are terrorizing Gotham City, and Bruce Wayne is next on their list.

One by one, the city's elites are being executed as their mansions' security systems turn against them, trapping them like prey. Meanwhile, Bruce is turning eighteen and about to inherit his family's fortune, not to mention the keys to Wayne Enterprises and all the tech gadgetry his heart could ever desire. But after a run-in with the police, he's forced to do community service at Arkham Asylum, the infamous prison that holds the city's most brutal criminals.

Madeleine Wallace is a brilliant killer . . . and Bruce's only hope.

In Arkham, Bruce meets Madeleine, a brilliant girl with ties to the Nightwalkers. What is she hiding? And why will she speak only to Bruce? Madeleine is the mystery Bruce must unravel. But is he getting her to divulge her secrets, or is he feeding her the information she needs to bring Gotham City to its knees? Bruce will walk the dark line between trust and betrayal as the Nightwalkers circle closer.

I am totally loving this DC Icons series! This one follows a young Bruce Wayne as a bit of an awkward, naive teenager. It's pretty amazing. One of the things that I love it that he actually realizes how privilaged he is as a rich, white male and does his best to make the world better. That's the Bruce I know and love. I can't wait until the Catwoman book comes out later this year!

The Impossible Earth

by John Knight

212 Pages

Miles Militis is your average thirty-something male living in the 21st century. Despite the difficult life that he leads, and his frustration with the way that things are happening in the world around him, he feels powerless to influence any positive change. But when a violent windstorm strikes, everything does changejust not in a way that he ever imagined possible! Upon being swept away to an alternate planet Earth, Miles discovers that this world had taken a more idealistic approach, and improved upon things that he had wished he could change. While attempting to discover where he was and how he got there, Miles becomes embedded in seemingly unrelated events that he inevitably becomes an important part of. But there is more going on in this utopian society than anyone realizes. When the truth finally comes to light, it appears that it might be too late. In this science fiction adventure, an earthling unwittingly swept into another realm is led down a path towards a destiny that teaches him that the power to instigate change lies within ones own self.

If you're thinking about reading this book, don't.... just don't.

I'd say more but then I would write a huge long post about how terrible this book was and I'd be wasting everyone's time, including mine.

Just don't bother.

It's Your Universe: You Have the Power to Make It Happen

by Ashley Eckstein

208 Pages

Ashley Eckstein grew up inspired by all things Disney. She launched Her Universe, an apparel company catering to fan girls, which has become a preferred partner for Disney and their girl power initiative.

In IT'S YOUR UNIVERSE, Ashley shares her own life lessons, as well as lessons from iconic Disney characters, as a way to inspire girls to create big dreams and work to make them a reality.

Ashley tells her story of being a little girl dreaming of being on a Disney stage, voicing the first female Jedi, Ahsoka Tano, and starting Her Universe, a blockbuster clothing line and community for fangirls.

With space for readers to make journal entries and quotes from iconic Disney characters, Ashley shows how princesses, Jedis, and super heroes were great role models for choosing her own path.

I'm not one for autobiographies usually. But this is Ashley Eckstein and I want to support pretty much anything she does. This was a cute mix of her story, reiterated with lessons learned in Disney movies, cute quotes, inspirational messages and places to fill in your own dreams. I'm pretty sure it's meant for preteens, but it was still a fun read. As stated above, she's actually on a book signing tour for this book and is coming to Toronto on Monday, so I'm going to get to meet her and have her sign my book! YAY!

Oh, and this happened this month too! Yup, I hit and continued past my challenge! Woot!

Books that I am currently reading

A Fine Balance

by Rohinton Mistry

65 of 603 Pages

Ascent of Women

by Sally Armstrong

145 of 320 Pages

The Forbidden Heir (The Four Arts #2) by M.J. Scott  105 of 352 Pages

Long May She Reign by Rhiannon Thomas 7:45 of 10:37 Hours Update: Got my glasses finally! Check out my fancy purple frames!

[reincarnatedasacupcake]

Art by Sam Davies

Books will save the day... or is that love?

In this month of love, why can't it be both? Let's find books that do away with prejudices. Let's have interracial/inter-species love stories. Let's do away with old, poisonous, harmful tropes that reach out of the books we love and hurt people in real time.

Let books set an example. Let us do better.

Let books save the day

So, with that said, here is what I read this month:

Shadow and Bone (The Grisha #1)

by Leigh Bardugo

385 Pages (8:55 Hours)

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

This is a prequel series to the Six of Crows books. I was so caught up in the World when I read them, I jumped on a chance to hear more about the World and understand more about the Grisha's and their powers. I wasn't disappointed. I loved everything about this book and can't wait to read the rest of the series. 

Late Eclipses (October Daye #4)

by Seanan McGuire

372 Pages

October "Toby" Daye, changeling knight in the service of Duke Sylvester Torquill, finds the delicate balance of her life shattered when she learns that an old friend is in dire trouble. Lily, Lady of the Tea Gardens, has been struck down by a mysterious, seemingly impossible illness, leaving her fiefdom undefended. Struggling to find a way to save Lily and her subjects, Toby must confront her own past as an enemy she thought was gone forever raises her head once more: Oleander de Merelands, one of the two people responsible for her fourteen-year exile.

Time is growing short and the stakes are getting higher, for the Queen of the Mists has her own agenda. With everything on the line, Toby will have to take the ultimate risk to save herself and the people she loves most—because if she can't find the missing pieces of the puzzle in time, Toby will be forced to make the one choice she never thought she'd have to face again...

This book gave me more feelings about the characters than any of the other books combined. I was not expecting the twists and turns that were in this. More and more of Toby's missing past is revealed and the mystery behind it is slowing beginning to unravel. This is seriously the hardest book series to find. I'm having to order each book individually and then waiting patiently (or not so patiently) for it to arrive. Sadly, it's not something i can do very often, so I have to wait even longer than I want to. Oh well, at least it's very much worth the wait.

Rise of the Governor (The Walking Dead #1)

by Robert Kirkman & Jay Bonansinga

308 Pages

In the Walking Dead universe, there is no greater villain than The Governor. The despot who runs the walled-off town of Woodbury, he has his own sick sense of justice: whether it’s forcing prisoners to battle zombies in an arena for the townspeople’s amusement, or chopping off the appendages of those who cross him. The Governor was voted “Villain of the Year” by Wizard magazine the year he debuted, and his story arc was the most controversial in the history of the Walking Dead comic book series. Now, for the first time, fans of The Walking Dead will discover how The Governor became the man he is, and what drove him to such extremes.

I found this whole series in a Little Free Library months ago, but the first one was missing! After searching everywhere for it, I found it in the same LFL (guess someone read it and returned it) Lucky for me, I was the one who found it. I love The Walking Dead and had been wishing for something else with that edge to it, so I happy lost myself in the first book. It was okay. Not great, just okay. Although the story had that grittiness to it, it had a few rape/torturous moments that seriously made me want to put down the book. Then they tried to justify them by making him feel bad. Not really helpful for those poor women. There were a few other things that bothered me about it as well; it was weirdly preachy, which the show has been good about not being. Also, they kept using the term zombie, which I know is a word that the show hasn't used on purpose, so that always broke me out of the story when I saw it. I'm trying to decide if I'm going to read the rest of them or put them back in the LFL when the person who took the first one can get to the rest.

Grimm's Fairy Tales

by Jacob Grimm & Wilhelm Grimm

518 Pages

The Brothers Grimm The Grimm brothers were early 19th century writers best known for their fairy tales coming from Scandinavian, Icelandic and Germanic origins. By 1807 there was a growing interest in German folk tales. The Grim brothers were academics who invited friends to their home and asked them to relate stories they had heard. They soon published their first collection of tales and from there several more volumes followed. Included in this collection are Hansel and Gretel, Briar Rose, The Fisherman and His Wife, Rapunzel, The Frog Prince, Little Red Riding Hood, Rumpelstiltshin, Tom Thumb and many more. These stories are a delight to read and will rekindle up many childhood memories as they are reread.

I'll admit, reading Grimm is easier than reading Anderson, which I think is saying something when it comes to traditional fairy tales. The stories are a little more coherent is a weird way. I know these are all stories that have been passed down and then collected by the Brothers, but I find it interesting how much they overlap. So many have similar themes; You better know that if you're a King and set weird tasks for the hand of your daughter, that some fool you don't like is going to find a way to win her. Or if you're a good man and find yourself in a death-defying situation that isn't going your way, you can always trick some other poor fool to take your place (and ultimate death). The youngest son is always the purest and will do whatever he can to save the day and will be richly rewarded for it while elder brothers are always lazy thieves who usually die. Always be nice to fairies and dwarves, because they will repay you either way

Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #2)

by Sarah J. Maas

418 Pages (12:01 Hours)

From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena's world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie... and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.

I really like this series, but I'm sad that they fridged one of my favorite characters half way through the story. Boo to this trope... boo I say. The rest of the story was great, and had some wonderful twists and turns, but that really put a damper on it for me. I still want to read the rest of the books and see what is to come for all the other characters that I still like.

Marked in Flesh (The Others #4)

by Anne Bishop

489 Pages

In the fourth in the "stunningly original" (Kirkus Reviews) New York Times bestselling series, the Others will need to decide how much humanity they're willing to tolerate--both within themselves and their community...

Since the Others allied themselves with the cassandra sangue, the fragile yet powerful human blood prophets who were being exploited by their own kind, the dynamic between humans and Others has changed. Some, such as Simon Wolfgard, wolf shifter and leader of the Lakeside Courtyard, and blood prophet Meg Corbyn see the closer companionship as beneficial. 

But not everyone is convinced. A group of radical humans is seeking to usurp land through a series of violent attacks on the Others. What they don't realize is that there are older and more dangerous forces than shifters and vampires protecting the land--and those forces are willing to do whatever is necessary to safeguard what is theirs....

I have been waiting a year for this book to come out in paperback and I was there in the bookstore that day trying to get my hands on a copy. I din't even finish the other book that I was reading before getting into this one and my god, was it good. It was worth the wait of a year and I think the next one will be too, although I really want to read it NOW. Through the other books, there has been a tenuous line between the Others and the humans and you never know which way the line is going to go or if it's going to break completely. This book breaks that line and it is incredibly difficult to put down the book when it does. It's also amazing to read about during such I time of fear and hate in the real world. perhaps this should be a lesson to us all?

The Crown Conspiracy (The Riyria Revelations #1) by Michael J. Sullivan

296 Pages THEY KILLED THE KING. THEY PINNED IT ON TWO MEN. THEY CHOSE POORLY. The Crown Conspiracy is book one of the multi-book saga: The Riyria Revelations. The series is told through six novels conceived as a single epic tale. Across the entire chronicle, mysteries build, characters evolve, and plots thicken, but each is self-contained and can be read independent of one another. In the first episode, the reader is introduced to Royce Melborn, a skilled thief, and his mercenary partner, Hadrian Blackwater, who make a profitable living carrying out dangerous assignments for conspiring nobles until they become the unwitting scapegoats in the murder of the king. Sentenced to death, they have only one way out...and so begins this epic tale of treachery and adventure, sword fighting and magic, myth and legend. Theft of Swords was my RBA pick for this month. Little did I know when I picked up this 681 Page monstrosity, that it was actually a compilation and 2 books in one. Now I don't mind reading 2 books at all, but I hate that Goodreads will only count it as one. Sadness... Anyway, I decided to keep it on my RBA list as 1 book, but with each book under it. That way i still get to count is as 2 and will read the other one at another time. I first came across this series when Audible gave me some free short stories about the characters that I really enjoyed listening to. I put the actual series on my to-read list and later found out that Adam owned them. Awesome! They are fun and silly in an action movie sort of way, you know, without dimension and full of plot holes, but still super fun. Glass Sword (Red Queen #2) by Victoria Aveyard

448 Pages (14:39 Hours) If there's one thing Mare Barrow knows, it's that she's different. Mare Barrow's blood is red—the color of common folk—but her Silver ability, the power to control lightning, has turned her into a weapon that the royal court tries to control. The crown calls her an impossibility, a fake, but as she makes her escape from Maven, the prince—the friend—who betrayed her, Mare uncovers something startling: She is not the only one of her kind. Pursued by Maven, now a vindictive king, Mare sets out to find and recruit other Red-and-Silver fighters to join in the struggle against her oppressors. But Mare finds herself on a deadly path, at risk of becoming exactly the kind of monster she is trying to defeat. Will she shatter under the weight of the lives that are the cost of rebellion? Or have treachery and betrayal hardened her forever? The electrifying next installment in the Red Queen series escalates the struggle between the growing rebel army and the blood-segregated world they've always known—and pits Mare against the darkness that has grown in her soul. I'm also really enjoying this series and find it so interesting to see rebellion grow out of injustice. As in all these books the main character must become what she hates in their quest to free her people. I always enjoy the struggle of such a character as they have to decide what is too much before they too fall too far over the edge. Do you need to be a monster to stop a monster or can you save yourself before it's too late?

Books that I am currently reading

Vision of the Future (Star Wars: The Hand of Thrawn #2)

by Timothy Zahn

71 of 694 Pages

Bone Shop (Marla Mason #0.1)

by T.A. Pratt

115 of 244

Tower Lord (Raven's Shadow #2)

by Anthony Ryan

342 of 602 Pages (24:39 Hours) A Thousand Nights (A Thousand Nights #1) by E.K. Johnston217 of 352 Pages Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (Extraordinary Voyages #6) by Jules Verne 50 of 394 Pages

[reincarnatedasacupcake]

My Friend works at Scholastic and her and her boyfriend are giving out books for Halloween! I mean, how awesome is that? Candy is all well and good, but books? That would be my favorite house to got to for Halloween. Speaking of reading, here's what I read this month:

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

by Robert Louis Stevenson

92 Pages

The gripping novel of a London lawyer who investigates strange occurrences surrounding his old friend, Dr. Henry Jekyll, and the misanthropic Mr. Edward Hyde. The work is known for its vivid portrayal of a split personality, split in the sense that within the same person there is both an apparently good and an evil personality each being quite distinct from the other...

Keeping with my Serial Reader Monster Movie kick, I picked up this classic next. It was pretty good. I was a little sad with how the reveal that Jekyll and Hyde being the same person was portrayed. It's never actually witnessed by the protagonist but revealed through letters at the end. There isn't even a reaction to the letters, so it sort of came across very clinical and didn't really have a high climax, Still a fun read though.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

by Washington Irving

73 Pages

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a short story by American author Washington Irving that has become a Halloween and horror classic. Set in 1790 in Tarrytown, New York, Ichabod Crane encounters a mysterious figure who carries his head not on his shoulders, but in his saddle.

Did you ever see the Disney version of this book? I used to watch it all the time when I was a kid, despite the fact that it terrified me. When I picked this up, I was surprised how close Disney came to getting it right. It's almost spot on (except more hymns and less silly songs) I couldn't believe it. It was quite amazing. It was a fun little read and I'm glad I picked it up for this spooky month

The Painted Girls

by Cathy Marie Buchanan 

357 Pages

A gripping novel set in Belle Époque Paris and inspired by the real-life model for Degas’s Little Dancer Aged Fourteen and the era's most notorious criminal trials,

Paris. 1878. Following their father’s sudden death, the van Goethem sisters find their lives upended. Without his wages, and with the small amount their laundress mother earns disappearing into the absinthe bottle, eviction from their lodgings seems imminent. With few options for work, Marie is dispatched to the Paris Opéra, where for a scant seventy francs a month, she will be trained to enter the famous ballet. Her older sister, Antoinette, finds work — and the love of a dangerous young man — as an extra in a stage adaptation of Émile Zola’s naturalist masterpiece L’Assommoir.

Marie throws herself into dance and is soon modelling in the studio of Edgar Degas, where her image will forever be immortalized as Little Dancer Aged Fourteen. Antoinette, meanwhile, descends lower and lower in society, and must make the choice between a life of honest labor and the more profitable avenues open to a young woman of the Parisian demimonde—that is, unless her love affair derails her completely.

Set at a moment of profound artistic, cultural and societal change, The Painted Girls is a tale of two remarkable sisters rendered uniquely vulnerable to the darker impulses of “civilized society.”

I was really hoping that this book would be better. In all the reviews I read people either loved or hated this book, I didn't really have much feeling for it either way. I didn't really feel anything bus sad for the characters as you watch them work against themselves and begin their downward spirals. Yet everything somehow works out in the end as it jumps ahead to years later leaving a questioning in the reader as to how it came about so perfectly.

A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1)

by Sarah J. Maas

416 Pages (16:07 Hours)

Feyre's survival rests upon her ability to hunt and kill – the forest where she lives is a cold, bleak place in the long winter months. So when she spots a deer in the forest being pursued by a wolf, she cannot resist fighting it for the flesh. But to do so, she must kill the predator and killing something so precious comes at a price ...

Dragged to a magical kingdom for the murder of a faerie, Feyre discovers that her captor, his face obscured by a jewelled mask, is hiding far more than his piercing green eyes would suggest. Feyre's presence at the court is closely guarded, and as she begins to learn why, her feelings for him turn from hostility to passion and the faerie lands become an even more dangerous place. Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse, or she will lose him forever

When you get a retelling of a fairy tale, you really never know what to expect. It can be very hit or miss, but this time it was a complete hit! This retelling of Beauty and the Beast is quite captivating. I love what she did with the fey and the incorporation of the evil queen and the trials Feyre must face in order to save her true love and the oppressed faeries of the realm. Well played, can't wait to read the next one!

From a High Tower (Elemental Masters #10)

by Mercedes Lackey

320 Pages

From a High Tower is the newest adventure in Mercedes Lackey's Elemental Masters series.

When a man is caught stealing from a walled garden owned by a strange woman, he bargains away his youngest daughter in return for food for his family. The woman, rumored to be a witch, takes the golden-haired child and locks her away in a high tower. Sixteen years later, Giselle has lived an isolated life, but her adoptive mother has trained her in Air magic, and Giselle must use her new skills to keep herself and her new friends safe...

Speaking of hit or miss fairy tales, these Elemental Masters books are not holding up to what they use to be. I've been disappointed in this series for sometime now and this one did not help with that. The tie-ins with fairy tales use to be very strong and make a lot of sense in the story. Now they just feel like they're tacked on to a story that could've stood fine on it's own. This really wasn't a Rapunzel story for me. The attack on her person at the beginning in her tower was unnecessary and left her afraid of men and what they might try on her. At least until half way through the book where she's totally fine with a total stranger grabbing her by the arm and dragging her away. If you're going to have that as a prominent part of your character you really have to have that there the whole time or at least make her react or have a reason not to react.

Spell Games (Marla Mason #4)

by T.A. Pratt

352 Pages (9:10 Hours)

Brain-eating fungi, wannabe sorcerers, long-lost relations–does even a hard-core witch stand a chance?

Mad sorcerers, psychic vampires, an army of vengeful demons, Marla Mason would rather face them all than a flesh-and-blood ghost from her dysfunctional family past: her con artist brother, Jason. As Felport’s chief sorcerer, Marla would ordinarily consider it her duty to protect her town from such an unscrupulous ne’er-do-well. As his sister, things are a lot…trickier. Now, as Marla attempts to train an apprentice oracle whose magical wires have gotten crossed, Jason is setting up an elaborate sting and drawing her ever-so-corruptible partner Rondeau into the ruse. 

Their patsy is a filthy-rich wannabe mage and their bait is something so valuable, so dangerous, so sought after, it probably doesn’t exist. But now word’s gotten out that the Borrichius spores do exist and instead of a sucker Jason and Rondeau have a much bigger–and much deadlier–fish on their line: a reclusive sorcerer whose devotion to the mushroom god and command of vegetal magic could bring a fungal apocalypse to Felport. It’ll be the mother of all bad trips unless Marla can pull off the ultimate magical switcheroo…and somehow live to tell about it.

This was my least favorite in the series the first time I read it, and probably still is. That being said, I still love it and reading it again was great. I've been taking in a lot more from the series the second time through. I hate Marla's brother soooo much! He just makes me so angry, but it was interesting to watch him again knowing what was going to happen in the end. It does leave the end as a cliff hanger, but this time I wasn't left hanging. This time I came prepared the the next book in the series which I started listening to right away. It was a much better way to read them.

The Bloodsworn (Bloodbound #3)

by Erin Lindsey

352 Pages

The bonds of family, love, and loyalty are pushed to their limits in this thrilling conclusion to the epic saga started in The Bloodbound...

As the war between Alden and Oridia draws to its conclusion, the fates of both kingdoms rest on the actions of a select group of individuals—and, of course, the unbreakable bonds of blood...

Unbeknownst to most of Alden, King Erik, in thrall to a cruel bloodbinder, is locked away in his own palace, plotting revenge. To save her king, Lady Alix must journey behind enemy lines to destroy the bloodbinder. But her quest will demand sacrifices that may be more than she can bear.

Meanwhile, as the Warlord of Oridia tightens his grip on Alden, the men Alix loves face equally deadly tasks: her husband, Liam, must run a country at war while her brother, Rig, fights a losing battle on the front lines. If any one of them fails, Alden could be lost—and, even if they succeed, their efforts may be too late to save everyone Alix holds dear...

To be honest, I'm glad this series is over. I hate saying that but the whole series left me wanting.

There were too many cliches; the King's brother being a traitor, the Royal Bastard, the hidden away Royal twin! I mean, how many siblings can you hide and reveal as plot points? At least she finally stopped being wishy-washy over which brother she was in love with. 

One of the other things that really annoyed me was the fact that she is the rashest people in the whole book and never stops to think about what sh'e doing before charging head first into trouble, yet she's the "best scout" they've got. She's terrible at sneaking and she doesn't have the patience to pull of stealth. There was a time where she lets them be lead into the middle of an open field in enemy territory before she stops to think that maybe they might be too out in the open, which of course they are. Even I know better than that. The only thing I can possible think of is that the other scouts are just even worse than her.

Critical Failures (Caverns and Creatures #1)

by Robert Bevan

316 Pages (8:03 Hours)

Tim and his friends find out the hard way that you shouldn't question the game master, and you shouldn't make fun of his cape.

One minute, they're drinking away the dreariness of their lives, escaping into a fantasy game and laughing their asses off. The next minute, they're in a horse-drawn cart surrounded by soldiers pointing crossbows at them. 

Tim now has the voice and physique of a prepubescent girl. Dave finds that while he lost a foot or two in height, he somehow acquired a suit of armor and a badass beard. Julian's ears have grown ridiculously long and pointy. And Cooper... well Cooper has gotten himself a set of tusks, a pair of clawed hands, and a bad case of the shits. He also finds that he's carrying a bag with a human head in it - a head that he had chopped off when they were still just playing a game.

Shit just got real, and if they want to survive, these four friends are going to have to tap into some baser instincts they didn't even know existed in their fast-food and pizza delivery world.

It's fight, flight, or try to convince the people who are trying to kill them that they don't really exist.

Meanwhile, a sadistic game master sits back in the real world eating their fried chicken.

This was fun. I think anyone who has ever played D&D have wondered what it would be like to actually live their stories. Especially those silly ones where you've already made some bad choices or chosen characters that don't quite fit. These were the kind of people that I would've played D&D with and I think they'd be the fun ones to have on my team if this ever happened, even if they can't quite take it seriously. If you're looking for a fun read, this is a great book to start with

Lumberjanes #1 (Lumberjanes #1)

by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis & Brooke A. Allen

29 Pages

Jo, April, Mal, Molly and Ripley are five best pals determined to have an awesome summer together... and they’re not gonna let any insane quest or an array of supernatural critters get in their way!

I've wanted to read this comic for awhile, so I was happy when I got a copy of it. These kick-ass girl scouts are sneaking out of their camp cabin at night and facing of with all sorts of supernatural things. Gotta love girls who are brave and curious and have awesome friends who support them.

Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #2)

by Marissa Meyer

452 Pages

Cinder is back and trying to break out of prison—even though she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive if she does—in this second installment from Marissa Meyer.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother, or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana.

It really was a fairy tale month. I didn't even realize it until now. This is another example of doing fairy tales right. Instead of taking us into the fantasy realm, this series gives us a sci-fi twist to Little Red Riding Hood and takes us into a future with cyborgs and Moon people and genetically altered werewolves. Gotta love it. This was a lot more fun than the first one and I'm really excited to see what happens next.

The Haunted Hotel: A Mystery of Modern Venice

by Wilkie Collins

228 Pages

Is there no explanation of the mystery of The Haunted Hotel? Is The Haunted Hotel the tale of a haunting -- or the tale of a crime? The ghost of Lord Montberry haunts the Palace Hotel in Venice --- or does it? Montberry's beautiful-yet-terrifying wife, the Countess Narona, and her erstwhile brother are the center of the terror that fills the Palace Hotel. Are their malefactions at the root of the haunting -- or is there something darker, something much more unknowable at work?

When I started reading this, I thought it was House on Haunted Hill, but I was sadly mistaken. It's one of those books that takes a long time to set the stage for the grand finale only to have it fall flat at the end. Again it used a play to divulge they mystery, but it was being read and summarized and not performed.  It was also one of those book where you can really tell that the author doesn't think very highly of women and I spent a lot of time rolling my eyes. I knew I shouldn't started with The Phantom of the Opera instead.

Broken Mirrors (Marla Mason #5)

by T.A. Pratt

226 Pages (9:55 Hours)

Sorcerer Marla Mason has never been afraid of a fight, but she's about to face her greatest challenge: herself. Or, at least, an alternate-universe version of herself, a woman who succumbed to the evil power of a cursed artifact and become a monstrous villain. Now this dark doppelganger is loose in Marla's world... and she has an agenda even more terrible than Marla can imagine.

When I discovered that these new Marla Mason books were available on audiobook, I could hardly contain my excitement! I would finally find out what happened after book 4 (see above)

This book was great! Marla rips open a hole in the Universe to try and set events right, but just makes more of a mess when an evil version of her and her best friend Rondeau come tumbling into their World. The Mason (as she likes to be called) has already conquered most of her World and is delighted to try and take over Marla's. Fellport will never be the same after this

Sooooooooo goooooooooood! I can't wait to read the next one and the one after that and the one after that! Books that I am currently reading My Way to Hell (Hell #2) by Dakota Cassidy 290 of 323 Pages Vision of the Future (Star Wars: The Hand of Thrawn #2) by Timothy Zahn 30 of 694 Pages The Wedding Dress by Rachel Hauck 175 of 352 Pages (4:25 of 9:50 Hours) The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux 15 of 360 Pages

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Summer is over and the air is getting cooler and the leaves are beginning to change colour. It's one of my favorite times of the year. Not to mention that it's the perfect time to curl up somewhere and read on those rainy days. Here's what I read this month:

Bone Crossed (Mercy Thompson #4)

by Patricia Briggs

287 Pages

Shapeshifter Mercy Thompson hit the #1 spot on the bestseller list with Iron Kissed... 

And she's planning a return trip.

Marsilia, the local vampire queen, has learned that Mercy crossed her by slaying a member of her clan. Now, she's out for blood. But since Mercy is protected from direct reprisal by the werewolf pack-and her relationship with its sexy Alpha-it's not Mercy's blood Marsilia is after...

These book are getting better, which I'm happy about. There is less and less misogynist crap from the werewolves, although it is still there, at least it's addressed. Mercy actually spends most of this book recovering from the last book and it's nice to see that her PTSD isn't just swept under the rug. 

It was nice to get away from the same old people and places and I'm glad they widened their net.

The Paper Magician (The Paper Magician Trilogy #1)

by Charlie N. Holmberg

224 Pages (7:24 Hours)

Ceony Twill arrives at the cottage of Magician Emery Thane with a broken heart. Having graduated at the top of her class from the Tagis Praff School for the Magically Inclined, Ceony is assigned an apprenticeship in paper magic despite her dreams of bespelling metal. And once she’s bonded to paper, that will be her only magic… forever.

Yet the spells Ceony learns under the strange yet kind Thane turn out to be more marvelous than she could have ever imagined — animating paper creatures, bringing stories to life via ghostly images, even reading fortunes. But as she discovers these wonders, Ceony also learns of the extraordinary dangers of forbidden magic.

An Excisioner — a practitioner of dark, flesh magic — invades the cottage and rips Thane’s heart from his chest. To save her teacher’s life, Ceony must face the evil magician and embark on an unbelievable adventure that will take her into the chambers of Thane’s still-beating heart—and reveal the very soul of the man.

This is one of those books that a character actually goes into someone else's heart and thus sees everything there is to know about said person. It wasn't a bad book, but I'm not overly fond of that trope. I feel there are better ways of getting to know a character and having her fall in love with him through this process got a little creepy. I loved the magic in this book. Paper magic holds a level of creativity that most magic doesn't have. I'm thinking about reading the rest of the series based solely on the fact that I found everything else quite interesting.

The Seventh Bride

by T. Kingfisher

226 Pages (6:47 Hours)

Rhea is an ordinary miller’s daughter, engaged to be married under suspicious circumstances to a man not of her choosing. He has unknown powers and a manor house full of mysterious women.

Rhea has a hedgehog. It claims to be ordinary, but normal hedgehogs don’t act like that.

It’s probably not going to be enough.

This book is loosely based on the story of Blackbeard, which is a fairy tale I'm not overly familiar with. But as a short audio book, it was silly and fun and I found myself enjoying it even when it got weird (I'm looking at your Scarecrow Wife and Clock Wife) Mostly this book made me want a hedgehog more than I already do (which is a lot!) and to have one as my familiar would be even better. I'm curious to read more of Kingfisher's work to see what she does with other fairy tales that I know better.

The Uncrowned King (King Rolen's Kin #2)

by Rowena Cory Daniells

396 Pages

Rolencia's ancestry enemy, Merofynia, has invaded and marches on King Rolen's castle. Powerless to help, thirteen yeard old Piro watches as her father, King Rolen, listens to poisoned whispers against Bryen. How could the King doubt his second son? Determined to prove his loyalty, Bryen races across the path of the advancing army to ask the Abbot to send the warriors monks in defence of the castle.

This book picked up at the exact moment the first one left off. I really love when they do that. It makes jumping into a new book so much easier. This book was as good as the first and I'm beginning to think I might like it even more than her other series, which I loved. Things continue to go to  Hell for this family as they are maneuvered farther and farther apart from each other, yet each story keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what will happen next. I can't wait to read the next one.

The Adventures of Tom Stranger, Interdimensional 

Insurance Agent by Larry Correia

2:04 Hours Have you ever seen a planet invaded by rampaging space mutants from another dimension or Nazi dinosaurs from the future? Don't let this happen to you! Rifts happen, so you should be ready when universes collide. A policy with Stranger & Stranger can cover all of your interdimensional insurance needs. Rated "Number One in Customer Satisfaction" for three years running, no claim is too big or too weird for Tom Stranger to handle. But now Tom faces his greatest challenge yet. Despite being assigned the wrong—and woefully inadequate—intern, Tom must still provide quality customer service to multiple alternate Earths, all while battling tentacle monsters, legions of the damned, an evil call center in Nebraska, and his archnemesis, Jeff Conundrum. Armed with his Combat Wombat and a sense of fair play, can Tom survive? And will Jimmy the Intern ever discover his inner insurance agent? It's time to kick ass and adjust claims. Adam Baldwin (Firefly, Chuck) performs Larry Correia's madcap interdimensional tale of underwriting and space travel, where the only thing scarier than tentacle monsters is a high deductible.

For a short story about an insurance salesman, this one has it all. I listened to the whole book in one go. I just couldn't put it down. It was super absurd, but in a great way. There's even a comicbook convention in it! I love that Adam Baldwin narrates this, since he is actually a character in it as well. Very much worth listening to.

Monster

by A. Lee Martinez

295 Pages

Meet Monster. Meet Judy. Two humans who don't like each other much, but together must fight dragons, fire-breathing felines, trolls, Inuit walrus dogs, and a crazy cat lady - for the future of the universe.

Monster runs a pest control agency. He's overworked and has domestic troubles - like having the girlfriend from hell.

Judy works the night shift at the local Food Plus Mart. Not the most glamorous life, but Judy is happy. No one bothers her and if she has to spell things out for the night-manager every now and again, so be it.

But when Judy finds a Yeti in the freezer aisle eating all the Rocky Road, her life collides with Monster's in a rather alarming fashion. Because Monster doesn't catch raccoons; he catches the things that go bump in the night. Things like ogres, trolls, and dragons.

Oh, and his girlfriend from Hell? She actually is from Hell.

This was a very strange book, cute, but strange. The best part of this book were all the fantasy creatures that kept showing up and causing havoc. They were awesome. The more you read, the more crazy creatures show up. The characters themselves aren't all that interesting, other than the fact that Monster has a condition that turns his skin a different colour every time he goes to sleep and each colour corresponds with a different power, some useful, some not. I guess you don't have to be all that interesting or likable to be thrown together by fate to save the World, but it sure helps.

The Calling (Endgame #1)

by James Frey & Nils Johnson-Shelton

496 Pages

Twelve ancient cultures were chosen millennia ago to represent humanity in Endgame, a global game that will decide the fate of humankind. Endgame has always been a possibility, but never a reality…until now. Twelve meteorites have just struck Earth, each meteorite containing a message for a Player who has been trained for this moment. At stake for the Players: saving their bloodline, as well as the fate of the world. And only one can win.

Endgame is real. Endgame is now. Endgame has begun.

Ever watch a train wreck movie and wonder why you can't seem to stop watching it even though it's pretty bad? Meet Endgame. It's like someone took all the popular YA tropes and threw them together into this book. 

The World is ending, only one highly skilled teenager out of twelve can save their bloodline to re-populate the Earth after the game has been won. Wait... doesn't that mean they will all be related? That's going to get weird with re-population.... And why do the aliens want this game to be played? Seems ridiculous to train humans for generations upon generations for this game that they may or may not get to participate in. To make it worse/better? there are clues throughout the book so that you can play along.

Google Niantic is building a mobile location-based augmented reality videogame inextricably tied to the books and mythology, a major prize will be tied to a puzzle in each book, and Twentieth Century Fox has bought the movie rights.

Read the Books. Find the Clues. Solve the Puzzle. Who will Win?

I'm sure a few people might care and want to solve these puzzles, but I am not one of them. It's an interesting way to get people more involved, if you're in to that sort of thing.

Blood Song (Raven's Shadow #1) by Anthony Ryan

592 Pages (23:08 Hours) The Sixth Order wields the sword of justice and smites the enemies of the Faith and the Realm. Vaelin Al Sorna was only a child of 10 when his father left him at the iron gate of the Sixth Order. The Brothers of the Sixth Order are devoted to battle, and Vaelin will be trained and hardened to the austere, celibate, and dangerous life of a Warrior of the Faith. He has no family now save the Order.

Vaelin’s father was Battle Lord to King Janus, ruler of the unified realm. Vaelin’s rage at being deprived of his birthright and dropped at the doorstep of the Sixth Order like a foundling knows no bounds. He cherishes the memory of his mother, and what he will come to learn of her at the Order will confound him. His father, too, has motives that Vaelin will come to understand. But one truth overpowers all the rest: Vaelin Al Sorna is destined for a future he has yet to comprehend. A future that will alter not only the realm, but the world.

I got this book on sale while looking for a new audio book series. It was recommended to me since I like Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. It was a good read, although had to follow sometimes on audio. It jumps around a lot and there is never enough of a pause to tell you it's a new paragraph, possibly months or years in the future, or in one case, the past. I really enjoyed it though and that just made me pay more attention to what was happening. I do love a good epic and if you do too, I recommend picking this up.

A Local Habitation (October Daye #2) by Seanan McGuire

377 Pages October "Toby" Daye is a changeling, the daughter of Amandine of the fae and a mortal man. Like her mother, she is gifted in blood magic, able to read what has happened to a person through a mere taste of blood. Toby is the only changeling who has earned knighthood, and she re-earns that position every day, undertaking assignments for her liege, Sylvester, the Duke of the Shadowed Hills. Now Sylvester has asked her to go to the County of Tamed Lightning—otherwise known as Fremont, CA—to make sure that all is well with his niece, Countess January O'Leary, whom he has not been able to contact. It seems like a simple enough assignment—but when dealing with the realm of Faerie nothing is ever as simple as it seems. Toby soon discovers that someone has begun murdering people close to January, whose domain is a buffer between Sylvester's realm and a scheming rival duchy. If Toby can't find the killer soon, she may well become the next victim. I love the combination of fey and high-tech in this book. It's the perfect combination of urban fantasy, especially when it takes placing in a tech company. Not only is the place interesting enough on it's own with it's eclectic employees, but it becomes a whodunit mystery with fey dying all around them. I'm really enjoying this series and I can't wait to find and read the rest of them.

Dracula

by Bram Stoker

406 Pages

When Jonathan Harker visits Transylvania to help Count Dracula with the purchase of a London house, he makes horrifying discoveries about his client and his castle. Soon afterwards, a number of disturbing incidents unfold in England: an unmanned ship is wrecked at Whitby; strange puncture marks appear on a young woman’s neck; and the inmate of a lunatic asylum raves about the imminent arrival of his ‘Master’. In the ensuing battle of wits between the sinister Count Dracula and a determined group of adversaries, Bram Stoker created a masterpiece of the horror genre, probing deeply into questions of human identity and sanity, and illuminating dark corners of Victorian sexuality and desire.

This was my 3rd book from Serial Reader, and so far the longest one that I've read. I'm continuing to read book that have inspired famous monster movies. I actually quite enjoyed this book. It's the first time I've read a book written in letters and dairy entries that I have liked. It was extremely well done and actually had a purpose for being written in this form. Definitely worth checking out if you want to read a fun classic.

Books that I am currently reading My Way to Hell (Hell #2) by Dakota Cassidy 153 of 323 Pages

The Taker (The Taker Trilogy #1) by Alma Katsu

452 of 464 A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) by Sarah J. Maas 210 of 416 Pages (8:30 of 16:07 Hours)

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art by Books and Cupcakes

Reading is my therapy. There is nothing I like better that crawling into a good book and getting away from the everyday life. I get really cranky when I don't read enough or if the book I'm reading sucks, I've even gotten better at putting down books that I can't get through or make make me surly. That was City of Bones for me these last few months until I decided that I'd had enough of it. But here are the good books that made me happy this month:

The King's Bastard (King Rolen's Kin #1)

by Rowena Cory Daniells

640 Pages

The Kingdom of Rolencia sleeps as rumours of new Affinity Seeps, places where the untamed power wells up. By royal decree all those afflicted with Affinity must serve the Abbey or face death. Sent to the Abbey, the King's youngest son, Fyn, trains to become a warrior monk. Elsewhere others are tainted with Affinity and must fight to survive. Political intrigue and magic combine in this explosive first book in an exciting new fantasy trilogy.

I really loved her other series and I've wanted to read to read this ever since. I was not disappointed. This series focuses on a Royal Family which seems to have it all and rules their Kingdom justly... that is, until everything starts to fall apart. As always, I love all her characters. She gives them all great depth and drive. I can't wait to read the next one.

Frankenstein

by Mary Shelley

273 Pages

Mary Shelley began writing Frankenstein when she was only eighteen. At once a Gothic thriller, a passionate romance, and a cautionary tale about the dangers of science, Frankenstein tells the story of committed science student Victor Frankenstein. Obsessed with discovering the cause of generation and life and bestowing animation upon lifeless matter, Frankenstein assembles a human being from stolen body parts but; upon bringing it to life, he recoils in horror at the creature's hideousness. Tormented by isolation and loneliness, the once-innocent creature turns to evil and unleashes a campaign of murderous revenge against his creator, Frankenstein.

Frankenstein, an instant bestseller and an important ancestor of both the horror and science fiction genres, not only tells a terrifying story, but also raises profound, disturbing questions about the very nature of life and the place of humankind within the cosmos: What does it mean to be human? What responsibilities do we have to each other? How far can we go in tampering with Nature? 

This was the second book I picked up in Serial Reader. It was quite unlike anything I had been led to believe about it. I was expecting a mad scientist and his hunch-backed assistant. But any adaptation that I've seen of this has not held true to the original. And I understand why. Frankenstein spends most of the book morosely regretting his decision to make life and wonders the wilds while the monster, having given up on humanity accepting him, asks him to make him a mate so that they can go off and never bother anyone ever again, but he refuses and instead kills everyone that Frankenstein loves. Seriously though, don't go on Netflix after reading this and try to watch any of the movies, they are terrible.

The Forgotten Garden

by Kate Morton

552 Pages

A tiny girl is abandoned on a ship headed for Australia in 1913. She arrives completely alone with nothing but a small suitcase containing a few clothes and a single book; a beautiful volume of fairy tales. She is taken in by the dockmaster and his wife and raised as their own. On her twenty-first birthday, they tell her the truth, and with her sense of self shattered and very little to go on, "Nell" sets out to trace her real identity. Her quest leads her to Blackhurst Manor on the Cornish coast and the secrets of the doomed Mountrachet family. But it is not until her granddaughter, Cassandra, takes up the search after Nell's death that all the pieces of the puzzle are assembled. A spellbinding tale of mystery and self-discovery, The Forgotten Garden will take hold of your imagination and never let go.

This book was my TBR for the month. As with all my TBR's, I never really expect to like them, but usually find that I quite enjoy them. Although I understand that this book has a mystery that has to be put together, and that it wouldn't be revealed until the end, the story felt a bit choppy. It jumps between 3 generations of women and while you are involved in the actual story, jumping to the later generations always felt like a bit of a let down. I can't really figure out any other way for it to work though. It was really good.

A Memory of Light (The Wheel of Time #14)

by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson 

909 Pages (41:55 Hours)

Since 1990, when Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time® burst on the world with its first book, The Eye of the World, readers have been anticipating the final scenes of this extraordinary saga, which has sold over forty million copies in over thirty languages.

When Robert Jordan died in 2007, all feared that these concluding scenes would never be written. But working from notes and partials left by Jordan, established fantasy writer Brandon Sanderson stepped in to complete the masterwork. With The Gathering Storm (Book 12) and Towers of Midnight (Book 13) behind him, both of which were # 1 New York Times hardcover bestsellers, Sanderson now re-creates the vision that Robert Jordan left behind.

Edited by Jordan's widow, who edited all of Jordan's books, A Memory of Light will delight, enthrall, and deeply satisfy all of Jordan's legions of readers.

The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass.

What was, what will be, and what is,

may yet fall under the Shadow.

Let the Dragon ride again on the winds of time.

I've finally done it. I've read (or listened) to all of Wheel of Time from front to back! It was really nice not having to wait years in between books. It's also sad that it's over again. I know there were people who didn't like how the book ended, but I wasn't one of them. I LOVED IT! If you haven't read this series yet, I once again recommend  that you go out and buy it. You can thank me later.

The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents (Discworld #28) by Terry Pratchett

288 Pages It's not a game any more . . . Every town on Discworld knows the stories about rats and pipers, and Maurice - a streetwise tomcat - leads a band of educated ratty friends (and a stupid kid) on a nice little earner. Piper plus rats equals lots and lots of money. Until they run across someone playing a different tune. Now he and his rats must learn a new concept: evil . . .

I wasn't swept away by the first Terry Pratchett book that I read, so I was leery about picking up another one. But Adam recommended it and since it was so short, I figured I'd give him another chance, and I was blown away! For a YA novel, it was filled with serious questions about what it means to be alive and intelligent. I often found myself pondering right along with the Educated Rodents. I didn't like Maurice much, but he seemed more of a secondary character to me anyway. I will definitely read more of these books in the future.

Dead Reign (Marla Mason #3) by T.A. Pratt

336 Pages (9:47 Hours) Death has come calling, and one woman has what he wants most of all... As chief sorcerer of Felport, Marla Mason thought she’d faced every kind of evil the magical world had to offer. But she’s never faced a killer like this. He’s dark, glib, handsome as the devil—and exactly who he says he is. Death—in the flesh. He’s arrived in Felport with a posse composed of a half-insane necromancer and the reanimated corpse of John Wilkes Booth, and he isn’t leaving until he gets what he came for. Only Marla is crazy enough to tell Death to go back to Hell. With the Founders’ Ball just around the bend, drawing together the brightest, meanest, and most dangerous of Felport’s magical elite, the last thing Marla needs is all-out war with the King of the Underworld, but that’s exactly what she’s got. As the battle lines are drawn, she can count on her hedonistic, body-hopping partner Rondeau…but how many of her old allies will stand by her side when facing the ultimate adversary? To save her city, Marla will have to find a way to cheat Death…literally.

I love me some Marla. Since WOT is done, I now need to find more audio books to listen to. I figured that The Marla Mason series was all in audio (and not totally in paper) that it was a good choice for what to listen to next. And I was right. This book is even better in audio than on paper, which is saying something because I looooved it on paper. There's something in the reading that just gives it that extra edge. This is the perfect example of how to do a flashback book. When Marla travels to Hell, she must face her past and the people that she has sent there. Everyone is different, every emotion raw and real. nothing is handled like you think it would be. So good, so good....

Books that I am currently reading

My Way to Hell (Hell #2) by Dakota Cassidy 122 of 323 Pages Bone Crossed (Mercy Thompson #4) by Patricia Briggs 205 of 287 Pages Dracula by Bram Stoker 122 of 488 Pages The Paper Magician (The Paper Magician Trilogy #1) by Charlie N. Holmberg 135 of 224 Pages

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art by Risa Rodil

Truer words have never been spoken, especially this month. I've been so busy with social engagements and so stressed out and exhausted the rest of the time that I feel like I've barely read a thing for the challenge this month. Okay, so 5 books is nothing to complain about, but it's still less than I usually read. Here is what I managed to actually read this month

Honeyed Words (Sarah Beauhall #2)

by J.A. Pitts 

416 Pages

Sarah Beauhall is a blacksmith, has a night job as a props manager for a low-budget movie, and spends her free time fighting in a medieval re-enactment group. Her world falls apart when she discovers that dragons are real and live among us as shapeshifters; in fact, it is they who have been the secret masters of our world from time immemorial. On top of all this, it appears that Sarah has managed to reforge an ancient sword that everyone suddenly wants... and those who don't want the weapon want Sarah to take on her destiny and become humanity's saviour.(☆) 

As Sarah tries to make her way in this new world, she discovers just how little she knows of reality. Fairies and dwarves and giants abound, the fault line of the Pacific Northwest is rife with ancient Norse magic. Odin himself appears with ravens at his side and cryptic advice for the fledgling heroine. And the cherry on the sundae? The discovery that Sarah's girlfriend (⚥) is from a family that has been battling these forces for generations and they look to Sarah as their last best hope.

What's a girl to do when the powers of the world decide that you're responsible for cleaning up the magical mess?

I have been looking for this for this book everywhere! For some reason, no copies of this book exist in Toronto, so I eventually just ordered it in. It's not as good as the first book, which is often the case with middle books, but it was still pretty good. This book is more about the consequences of the previous book and how it affects their normal and magical lives. There isn't as much reaction to events as I would like. An acquaintance gets kidnapped at the beginning, and they try and fail to stop it, but that doesn't seem to have any lasting effect on them. The next day they are out exploring the city and picnicking in the park. It's very odd.

I'm very much looking forward to the last book in this series (if I can find it) as I imagine it will actually wrap up all of these plots that are left hanging.

Towers of Midnight (The Wheel of Time #13)

by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson 

863 Pages (38:24 Hours)

The end draws near....

The Last Battle has started. The seals on the Dark One’s prison are crumbling. The Pattern itself is unraveling, and the armies of the Shadow have begun to boil out of the Blight.

The sun has begun to set upon the Third Age.

Perrin Aybara is now hunted by specters from his past: Whitecloaks, a slayer of wolves, and the responsibilities of leadership. All the while, an unseen foe is slowly pulling a noose tight around his neck. To prevail, he must seek answers in Tel’aran’rhiod and find a way--at long last--to master the wolf within him or lose himself to it forever

Meanwhile, Matrim Cauthon prepares for the most difficult challenge of his life. The creatures beyond the stone gateways--the Aelfinn and the Eelfinn--have confused him, taunted him, and left him hanged, his memory stuffed with bits and pieces of other men’s lives. He had hoped that his last confrontation with them would be the end of it, but the Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills. The time is coming when he will again have to dance with the Snakes and the Foxes, playing a game that cannot be won. The Tower of Ghenjei awaits, and its secrets will reveal the fate of a friend long lost.

This penultimate novel of Robert Jordan’s #1 New York Times bestselling series--the second of three based on materials he left behind when he died in 2007--brings dramatic and compelling developments to many threads in the Pattern. The end draws near.

Dovie’andi se tovya sagain. It’s time to toss the dice.

Things are finally coming together in the Wheel of Time. I guess they have to when it's the second last book of the series. This is a great book even if it's not focused on the characters we want all the time. My favorite plot line is always Mat's. The much anticipated trip to the Tower of Ghenjei was worth the wait and made this book for me.The other plot lines are pretty good too; hunting the Forsaken in the White Tower (#), the battles between the wolves and Slayer, Graendal's plots and plans (⚥), even Aviendha in the Waste was interesting. Not to mention, we finally find out what's in Mat's letter from Verin! I can't wait to read the next one! (!) 

Devil's Punch (Corine Solomon #4)

by Ann Aguirre

316 Pages

"The power swelled inside me, burning, hurting, but I let it center me. Pain means I’m still here, fighting. I envisioned it swelling in my hand in a seething rush, gathering, gathering, and then I sent it out on my resolve like a dark and winged thing riding the magickal wind."

As a handler, Corine Solomon can touch any object and learn its history. Her power is a gift, but one that’s thrown her life off track. The magical inheritance she received from her mother is dangerously powerful, and Corine has managed to mark herself as a black witch by dealing with demons to solve her problems.

Back home, Corine is trying to rebuild her pawnshop and her life with her ex Chance, despite the target on her back. But when the demons she provoked kidnap her best friend in retaliation, Corine puts everything on hold to save her. It’s undoubtedly a trap, but Corine would do anything to save those she loves, even if it means sacrificing herself…

This book goes straight to hell, literally. When Shannon gets kidnapped by demons, Corina, Chance and Butch (^..^) actually head down to the Demon Underworld to rescue her. Unbeknownst to Corine, her Solomon blood (☆) carries the Queen of the Sheol, who begins to speak with her and then slowly starts to take over. The melding is done so well that it's hard to figure who is actually in control some of the time. The lines between good and evil is definitely blurred and we begin to see that maybe we've misjudged the demons. It's an interesting concept that is pulled off thanks to Aguirre's writing. As always, I'm happy to have read another good book by her.

Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell (The Cosmere)

by Brandon Sanderson

2:07 Hours

Originally appearing in the Dangerous Women anthology and now available as a solo ebook, Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell is a chilling novella of the Cosmere, the universe shared by Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series and the #1 New York Times bestselling Stormlight Archive.

When the familiar and seemingly safe turns lethal, therein danger lies. Amid a forest where the shades of the dead linger all around, every homesteader knows to follow the Simple Rules: "Don't kindle flame, don't shed the blood of another, don't run at night. These things draw shades." 

Silence Montane has broken all three rules on more than one occasion. And to protect her family from a murderous gang with high bounties on their heads, Silence will break every rule again, at the risk of becoming a shade herself.

2:07 Hours

When I read the above description, I was excited to find out that all of Sanderson's books take place in the same Universe.

The Cosmere is the greater universe in which The Stormlight Archive and all other Brandon Sanderson's adult fiction books take place. That is, each book he writes is set on a unique world, and each of these worlds is set in the same Cosmere. All of the books share a single creation myth, a single cosmology and are connected by an overarching story. However, none of them dominate the storyline of any of the books.

I can't wait to read everything and put it all together. This was an interesting short story about a woman and her daughters who survive on the edge of a haunted forest by running an inn and taking on bounties. It shows the lengths women will go to to keep their families safe in unsafe times.  I really enjoyed this interlude into the Cosmere  

Apron Anxiety: My Messy Affairs In and Out of the Kitchen

by Alyssa Shelasky

272 Pages

Apron Anxiety is the hilarious and heartfelt memoir of quintessential city girl Alyssa Shelasky and her crazy, complicated love affair with...the kitchen.

Three months into a relationship with her TV-chef crush, celebrity journalist Alyssa Shelasky left her highly social life in New York City to live with him in D.C. But what followed was no fairy tale: Chef hours are tough on a relationship. Surrounded by foodies yet unable to make a cup of tea, she was displaced and discouraged. Motivated at first by self-preservation rather than culinary passion, Shelasky embarked on a journey to master the kitchen, and she created the blog Apron Anxiety (ApronAnxiety.com) to share her stories. 

This is a memoir (with recipes) about learning to cook, the ups and downs of love, and entering the world of food full throttle. Readers will delight in her infectious voice as she dishes on everything from the sexy chef scene to the unexpected inner calm of tying on an apron

I picked up this book at a free little library thinking that this would be the perfect book for me. I mean Aprons & Anxieties (#) are my things. lol. I was not mistaken. This book spoke to me on so many different levels. I have been in many of her positions in my life and I felt a deep camaraderie with her. This book seemed to revolve around love, but in the end, it was even more about loving yourself and appreciating your family and friends (⚥) and the amazing women in your life, oh and bringing everyone together with food. How wonderful!

I can't wait to try out some of these amazing recipes.

Books that I am currently reading

My Way to Hell (Hell #2)

by Dakota Cassidy 74 of 323 Pages

City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments #1)

by Cassandra Clare 266 of 485 Pages

A Memory of Light (The Wheel of Time #14) by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson 138 of 909 Pages (35:41 of 41:48 Hours)

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Books, books, books... So many books, so little time. What am I talking about? I'm already 87% into my yearly challenge and it's not even June yet! Still, there are always more books waiting to be read and I intend to read them all! Here's what I read this month:

Magic to the Bone (Allie Beckstrom #1)

by Devon Monk

355 Pages

Using magic meant it used you back. Forget the fairy-tale, hocus-pocus, wave a wand and bling-o, sparkles and pixie dust crap. Magic, like booze, sex, and drugs, gave as good as it got. 

Everything has a cost. And every act of magic exacts a price from its user - maybe a two-day migraine, or losing the memory of your first kiss. But some people want to use magic without paying, and they Offload the cost onto innocents. When that happens, it falls to a Hound to identify the spell's caster - and Allison Beckstrom's the best there is.

Daughter of a prominent Portland businessman, Allie would rather moonlight as a Hound than accept the family fortune - and the strings that come with it. But when she discovers a little boy dying from a magic Offload that has her father's signature all over it, Allie is thrown into the high-stakes world of corporate espionage and black magic.

Now Allie's out for the truth - and must call upon forces that will challenge everything she knows, change her in ways she could never imagine ... and make her capable of things that powerful people will do anything to control.

I picked this book up for a couple of bucks at BMV hoping that it would be a good urban fiction. As I was reading it, I found that I was actually enjoying it. But the end ruined it for me and now I'm not sure I actually want to read the rest of the series.(!) (SPOILERS: I mean, memory loss? Why even write the book if you're just going to eradicate it in the end)

I like the use of magic in this book where everything that you cast has a physical or mental (#) price tag. And if you overuse it it can really damage you. I also thought it was interesting that you could pay someone to offload your magical price onto them.  What kind of money/spell ratio are we talking about? I want to know more about that. So maybe I will pick up the next book after all. I guess we will see.

Magic and Macaroons (Magical Bakery Mystery #5)

by Bailey Cates

304 Pages

For magical baker Katie Lightfoot, the only way to beat the Savannah summer heat is to whip up some cool treats for the Honeybee Bakery’s patrons. But when a meeting of the spellbook club is interrupted by a stranger collapsing on the floor of her shop, mumbling something about a voodoo talisman, Katie drops everything to begin investigating.

Her search for answers quickly leads her into a dangerous blend of Savannah’s infamous voodoo queens, a powerful missing charm—and a deadly witch who seems to be targeting the city’s magical community. And with the case getting hotter by the second, Katie will have to work fast to track down the talisman and the killer before the timer runs out…

I feel like every book series that has to do with magic (and always cop shows for some reason) inevitably play the voodoo card. Maybe they're running out of ideas? Maybe they want to take a new crack at it? I'm not really sure to tell you the truth. I just know that I find it cliche and never done very well. I feel bad for those people that do practice Voodoo (Vodou/Vodun/Voudoun) and have their religions misrepresented in such a blatant way. As far as voodoo goes though, this book handled it better than a lot of other ones that I've read (or seen) and mostly focuses on the positive side of the culture. Katie is finally figuring out what being a Lightwitch (☆) means and finds a new mentor to help her along the way. It's mostly just Katie and Cookie working together in the book and not the usual full Book Club and their familiars (^..^). It was nice to get to know Cookie better, but I worry about her relationship with her new Husband. Perhaps it will get resolved in the next book

The Gathering Storm (The Wheel of Time #12)

by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

783 Pages (33:02 Hours)

Tarmon Gai'don, the Last Battle, looms. And mankind is not ready.

In this epic novel, Robert Jordan's international bestselling series begins its dramatic conclusion. Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, struggles to unite a fractured network of kingdoms and alliances in preparation for the Last Battle. As he attempts to halt the Seanchan encroachment northward---wishing he could form at least a temporary truce with the invaders---his allies watch in terror the shadow that seems to be growing within the heart of the Dragon Reborn himself.

Egwene al'Vere, the Amyrlin Seat of the rebel Aes Sedai, is a captive of the White Tower and subject to the whims of their tyrannical leader. As days tick toward the Seanchan attack she knows is imminent, Egwene works to hold together the disparate factions of Aes Sedai while providing leadership in the face of increasing uncertainty and despair. Her fight will prove the mettle of the Aes Sedai, and her conflict will decide the future of the White Tower---and possibly the world itself.

The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow.

This was the first book that came out after Robert Jordan's passing. All the fans of WOT cried out at this great loss and wondered what would become of our favorite book series. But there was still hope:

The final volume of the Wheel of Time, A Memory of Light, was partially written by Robert Jordan before his untimely passing in 2007. Brandon Sanderson, New York Times bestselling author of the Mistborn books, was chosen by Jordan's editor---his wife, Harriet McDougal---to complete the final book. The scope and size of the volume was such that it could not be contained in a single book, and so Tor proudly presents The Gathering Storm as the first of three novels that will make up A Memory of Light. This short sequence will complete the struggle against the Shadow, bringing to a close a journey begun almost twenty years ago and marking the conclusion of the Wheel of Time, the preeminent fantasy epic of our era.

No one knew what to think of a new author taking over. Lucky for us, we had nothing to worry about. Brandon Sanderson picked up the mantle and held it with pride. He breathed new life into old characters (⚥) and blended his voice almost seamlessly with Jordan's. I can't even pick out which parts each of them wrote. This may actually be one of my favorite books of the series. Egwene and Rand steal the show in this book, which is a nice change for their characters. (!) The Shattered Court (The Four Arts #1) by M.J. Scott 

313 Pages

Entangled in a court ruled by tradition and intrigue, a young witch must come to terms with newfound power and desire—and a choice between loyalty and survival.…

The royal witches of Anglion have bowed to tradition for centuries. If a woman of royal blood manifests powers, she is immediately bound by rites of marriage. She will serve her lord by practicing the tamer magics of the earth—ensuring good harvests and predicting the weather. Any magic more dangerous is forbidden.

Lady Sophia Kendall, thirty-second in line to the throne, is only days away from finding out if she will be blessed—or perhaps cursed—with magic. When a vicious attack by Anglion’s ancient enemies leaves the kingdom in chaos, Sophia is forced to flee the court. Her protector by happenstance is Lieutenant Cameron Mackenzie, a member of the royal guard, raised all his life to be fiercely loyal to the Crown.

Then Sophia’s powers manifest stronger than she ever imagined they would, (☆)and Cameron and she are inextricably linked in the process. As a witch unbound by marriage rites, Sophia is not only a threat to the established order of her country, but is also a weapon for those who seek to destroy it. Faced with old secrets and new truths, she must decide if she will fight for her country or succumb to the delicious temptation of power.…

I took a gamble on this book, not knowing if it would be a really good fantasy or a really terrible romance book. I was happy when it turned out to be somewhere in the middle. Yes, it falls into bad romantic fiction at some points, but it was done well enough that I was okay with it. The plot was actually pretty good and I, like Shophie, wanted to get to the truth of the matter of magic. Although not all my questions were answered, I'm hoping that the story will continue to unfold in the next book (whenever it comes out) (!)

Alien: Out of the Shadows by Tim Lebbon

4:31 Hours An Audible Original Drama As a child, Chris Hooper dreamed of monsters. But in deep space, he found only darkness and isolation. Then, on planet LV178, he and his fellow miners discovered a storm-scoured, sand-blasted hell - and trimonite, the hardest material known to man. When a shuttle crashes into the mining ship Marion, the miners learn that there was more than trimonite deep in the caverns. There was evil, hibernating and waiting for suitable prey. Hoop and his associates uncover a nest of Xenomorphs, and hell takes on a new meaning. Quickly they discover that their only hope lies with the unlikeliest of saviors.... Ellen Ripley, the last human survivor of the salvage ship Nostromo. It's been a long time since I've listened to a radio drama. Perhaps War of the Worlds when I was in elementary school. I came across this while on Tumblr and quickly looked it up on Audible.  They've decided to start doing Drama productions and this was one of their firsts. Now, I can't resist the Alien franchise and was super excited about this. I downloaded it and started listening to it immediately. It takes place between Alien and Aliens and I had no idea how they were going to make everything cannon. As in a typical Alien movie, once the discovery of Xenomorphs is made, everything else goes to hell in a hand basket (or a transport ship in this case). Throw in a rogue AI who's interfaced with all the computers and wants to capture an Alien for further study and and a woman who's seen it all before and is suffering the consequences (#) and you're in for a crazy, scary fun story. The voice actors were amazing and Laurel Lefkow, who played Ripley, sounded exactly like Sigourney Weaver. I actually wondered if it was her for awhile. Seriously though, if you're a fan of this series you need to check this out pronto. The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle #2) by Maggie Stiefvater

437 Pages (12:45 Hours) If you could steal things from dreams, what would you take? Ronan Lynch has secrets. Some he keeps from others.(⚥) Some he keeps from himself. One secret: Ronan can bring things out of his dreams. And sometimes he's not the only one who wants those things. Ronan is one of the raven boys - a group of friends, practically brothers, searching for a dead king named Glendower, who they think is hidden somewhere in the hills by their elite private school, Aglionby Academy. The path to Glendower has long lived as an undercurrent beneath town. But now, like Ronan's secrets, it is beginning to rise to the surface - changing everything in its wake. I didn't like Ronan in the first book. He always seemed angry and annoying, but maybe it was just because I didn't know Ronan. They never really get into any of his stuff other than he has a starnge history with his father's murder, a quick temper and a raven named Chainsaw (^..^). But this book is all about Ronan and what he can do. We find out more of his history and the secrets he's been keeping from the others. He can pull things out of dreams, but what he pulls out aren't always good things. Nightmares sometimes leak out too. So what happens when other people start discovering his hidden talent? Some want to hunt his down, some want to teach him. Some just want his friendship. This is a story about Ronan. Sure, Everyone else is around too. Gansey is forever Gansey, as is Blue ever Blue. Adam, whom I loved in the first book, continues to spiral out of control trying to figure his life out. I can't wait to read the next book. Godslayer (The Sundering #2) by Jacqueline Carey

416 Pages IF ALL THAT IS GOOD CONSIDERS YOU EVIL, ARE YOU? Once human but now immortal, Supreme Commander Lord Tanaros fled the realm of Men and chose darkness when he killed his adulterous wife and his liege king who cuckholded him. A thousand years have passed in service to his master, the dark god Satoris. The world view Satoris as Evil Prime and the name of Tanaros is the byword for treachery. The races have united in their quest to rid the world of the Dark God and his minions. The key to the prophecy is the beautiful Elvish princess Cerelinde—and Satoris has captured her. Yet not all tales told are true and evil may have another face. Satoris refuses to act like the monster that he is made out to be for he recognizes in Cerelinde a spark of the love that he once bore for his fellow gods. But this spark of light might prove to be a danger to Satoris...and a greater danger for Tanaros and all that he holds dear. For Cerelinde might remind him that the heart that he willed to iron an eon ago is still very much mortal. This book was my TBR for the month. I read the first one last year and wasn't really sure how I felt about it, so I kept putting off reading the second one. I like when there is a clear cut villain in a story so I know who the good guys and the bad guys are. In this story, the lines are blurred. The POV is from the "evil" character's perspective and you come to realize that they are not as evil as they have been made out to be, yet they are forced to make hard choices that make you hate them a little. The "good" guys are no better. They've been indoctrinated their entire lives to believe that the war they bring is righteous in it's cause and that they serve the greater good. You can't help but hate them even though you'd be cheering for them if the perspective was the other way around. It's very confusing not knowing who to cheer for and knowing that all the characters will break your heart in the end. (^..^) (!) (#) Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper by Diablo Cody

212 Pages

Decreed by David Letterman (tongue in cheek) on CBS TV’s The Late Show to be the pick of “Dave’s Book Club 2006,” Candy Girl is the story of a young writer who dared to bare it all as a stripper. At the age of twenty-four, Diablo Cody decided there had to be more to life than typing copy at an ad agency. She soon managed to find inspiration from a most unlikely source— amateur night at the seedy Skyway Lounge. While she doesn’t take home the prize that night, Diablo discovers to her surprise the act of stripping is an absolute thrill. This is Diablo’s captivating fish-out-of-water story of her yearlong walk on the wild side, from quiet gentlemen’s clubs to multilevel sex palaces and glassed-in peep shows. In witty prose she gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at this industry through a writer’s keen eye, chronicling her descent into the skin trade and the effect it had on her self-image and her relationship with her now husband. My best friend bought me this book purely for the name of it. Candygirl is his long standing nickname for me. Not only is the name perfect, but I find her whole journy to be fastinating. It can be hard to be a woman and embracing our sexuality is something that is never encouraged, so reading about her journy and her courage to get up on that stage was exihilerating! Not to mention funny, shocking (⚥) and hard to put down.  This was also a TBR book that I wish I had picked up sooner. To Kill a Kettle Witch: A Novel of the Mist-Torn Witches (The Mist-Torn Witches #4) by Barb Hendee 

336 Pages National bestselling author Barb Hendee returns to the world of the Mist-Torn witches, as two sisters who can see the secrets of the past and the mysteries of the future begin a quest to save the family they never knew existed.… Powerful prince Malcolm is facing ruin in the wake of a curse that has destroyed his harvest. He blames the band nomadic Móndyalítko who summer in the meadow below his castle—and he is determined to root out the people who caused the blight by any means necessary. When Céline and Amelie Fawe, descended from the Móndyalítko, learn that their mother’s people are under suspicion of sabotage and treason, they set out to use their magical gifts to save their estranged relatives and learn about their own origins. Now it’s up to the sisters—along with their motley escort, including a prince’s lieutenant, a shape-shifter, and an old woman with a murky past—to discover the source of the curse to restore life to the ravaged land and protect the innocent from unfair vengeance. This book was good. It wasn't great, which was too bad, because this series has been up until now. The story was interesting, but I felt like it didn't really go anywhere. Most of the side plot was dropped without much of a resolution. It just seemed like there were no consequences to anyone's actions through the whole book, leaving more questions than answers. I love that Amelie and Jaromir finally get together, but the thing with Céline and Marcus and their past life connection seemed weird and unresolved. It was nice to finally get to know Helga a bit better and worked out favorably in the form of a flash back, even if it was a little long winded. Not every book can be gold, but when most of them are it's hard when they are just silver. I will keep reading these books for sure

Books that I am currently reading

My Way to Hell (Hell #2)

by Dakota Cassidy

of  323 Pages Towers of Midnight (The Wheel of Time #13) by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

of 863 Pages ( of  38:42) City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments #1) by Cassandra Clare of 485 Pages

[reincarnatedasacupcake]

April is over and so is winter, finally, even here in Canada. It's much easier to get out and walk and listen to my audio books and soon it will be warm enough to sit in the park and read! I can't wait for that!

Here's what I managed to read this month:

Rosemary and Rue (October Daye #1)

by Seanan McGuire

346 Pages

October "Toby" Daye, a changeling who is half human and half fae, has been an outsider from birth. After getting burned by both sides of her heritage, Toby has denied the Faerie world, retreating to a "normal" life. Unfortunately for her, the Faerie world has other ideas... 

The murder of Countess Evening Winterrose pulls Toby back into the fae world. Unable to resist Evening's dying curse, which binds her to investigate, Toby must resume her former position as knight errant and renew old alliances. As she steps back into fae society, dealing with a cast of characters not entirely good or evil, she realizes that more than her own life will be forfeited if she cannot find Evening's killer Back in February, I discovered this author and found I really enjoyed her writing. So when I came across the first book in another one of her series, I couldn't help myself. I'm glad that I picked it up, because I really enjoyed it. It was the first book in a while that I got completely lost in the pages of.

I really liked her mix of Urban Fantasy, from the streets of San Francisco to the random kelpies wandering the streets trying to lure in unexpected victims. It was a nice touch and well integrated. I'm looking forward to reading more of this series and more by this author (!)

A Sheetcake Named Desire (A Piece of Cake Mystery #1)

by Jacklyn Brady

304 Pages

New Orleans pastry chef Rita Lucero is out to bake her way to the top. But when she finds her almost-ex-husband killed with a chef's knife in his back, she becomes suspect number one. Now it's up to her to find the real killer before she winds up as the next victim served.

I was devastated when I finished this book and found out that someone had ripped out the recipes!!!

Who would do such a dastardly thing? That's the main reason I pick up these baking mysteries! I mean, sure, the book was actually pretty good and I was happy that the characters actually seemed to mourn for the victim, but RECIPES!!! That was the real crime in this book.

Calamity (Reckoners #3)

by Brandon Sanderson 

421 Pages (11:51 Hours)

When Calamity lit up the sky, the Epics were born. David’s fate has been tied to their villainy ever since that historic night. Steelheart killed his father. Firefight stole his heart. And now Regalia has turned his closest ally into a dangerous enemy.

David knew Prof’s secret, and kept it even when the Reckoners’ leader struggled to control the effects of his Epic powers. But facing Obliteration in Babilar was too much. Prof has now embraced his Epic destiny. He’s disappeared into those murky shadows of menace Epics are infamous for the world over, and everyone knows there’s no turning back…

But everyone is wrong. Redemption is possible for Epics—Megan proved it. They’re not lost. Not completely. And David is just about crazy enough to face down the most powerful High Epic of all to get his friend back. Or die trying.

This book, like the others before it, blew my mind. I couldn't stop listening to it and finished it much quicker than I would have other audio books. Everything in the other books leads up to this point and it's a nail biter. David continues to be one of my favorite characters in any series and that's saying something. His enthusiasm and terribly amazing analogies keep me grinning long after I've stopped listening. I've already reccommended this series to lots of my friends and I think that you should read it to! (!)

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

496 Pages “Our Dragon doesn’t eat the girls he takes, no matter what stories they tell outside our valley. We hear them sometimes, from travelers passing through. They talk as though we were doing human sacrifice, and he were a real dragon. Of course that’s not true: he may be a wizard and immortal, but he’s still a man, and our fathers would band together and kill him if he wanted to eat one of us every ten years. He protects us against the Wood, and we’re grateful, but not that grateful.” Agnieszka loves her valley home, her quiet village, the forests and the bright shining river. But the corrupted Wood stands on the border, full of malevolent power, and its shadow lies over her life. Her people rely on the cold, driven wizard known only as the Dragon to keep its powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as falling to the Wood. The next choosing is fast approaching, and Agnieszka is afraid. She knows—everyone knows—that the Dragon will take Kasia: beautiful, graceful, brave Kasia, all the things Agnieszka isn’t, and her dearest friend in the world. And there is no way to save her. But Agnieszka fears the wrong things. For when the Dragon comes, it is not Kasia he will choose.

I've read other books by Naomi Novik before (see Empire of Ivory below) and haven't been overly taken with them, but I wanted to read this book even before I realized that it was by her. And I was happily surprised at how good it was. As you can tell by the blurb above, it's not Kasia, but Agnieszka that's chosen by the Dragon (☆) for she posses a magical ability unlike any of the magicians of her age. And, of course, it will take something unconventional, something extraordinary to clear the tainted woods of their evil magic and save the surrounding villages. This is a great twist on a Beauty and the Beast theme and I hope that she decides to write more books along the same line The Raven Boys (The Raven Cycle #1) by Maggie Stiefvater 

416 Pages (11:08 Hours) Every year, Blue Sargent (☆) stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue never sees them--until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks to her. His name is Gansey, a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble. But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can't entirely explain. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul whose emotions range from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher who notices many things but says very little. For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She doesn't believe in true love, and never thought this would be a problem. But as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she's not so sure anymore. I picked up this audio book when Audible was having a sale on introductory books, trying to lure people into series. I had heard good things about this book, but I always feel a little leery about YA, despite the fact that I've enjoyed all of the books I've read so far. And although I wasn't sure that I liked it in the beginning, I quickly found myself pulled into the story and the characters. Of course the question that prevails through the entire book is who will Blue fall in love with and maybe kill? Will it be Adam or Gansey? (I'm Team Adam, I think, but I do really like Gansey as well.) But for me, I'm glad that their friendship is more important in the book. I really enjoyed how the characters changed as they got to know each other, how they all seemed to soften a bit around the edges.  Also, I really love that Ronan named the raven Chainsaw (^..^) Empire of Ivory (Temeraire #4) by Naomi Novik

404 Pages Tragedy has struck His Majesty’s Aerial Corps, whose magnificent fleet of fighting dragons (^..^) and their human captains valiantly defend England’s shores against the encroaching armies of Napoleon Bonaparte. An epidemic of unknown origin and no known cure is decimating the noble dragons’ ranks–forcing the hopelessly stricken into quarantine. Now only Temeraire and a pack of newly recruited dragons remain uninfected–and stand as the only means of an airborne defense against France’s ever bolder sorties. Bonaparte’s dragons are already harrowing Britain’s ships at sea. Only one recourse remains: Temeraire and his captain, Will Laurence, must take wing to Africa, whose shores may hold the cure to the mysterious and deadly contagion. On this mission there is no time to waste, and no telling what lies in store beyond the horizon or for those left behind to wait, hope, and hold the line. I decided since I was already reading Naomi Novik this month (see above) that I would pull her other series off of my TBR for the month. I have a hard time reading this series due to the tactical breakdown of the Corps. I just can't get into books about armies. The fact that there are Dragons, that all act like giant children, keeping the Captains and their crew humble helps a lot. I felt bad that the Dragons were sick through most of the book, but the book didn't really get interesting until they headed deep into the African jungle to try and find mushrooms for a cure. They come across wild Dragons who have their own society and hate anyone that they associate with the slave trade. The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy: A Handbook for Girl Geeks by Sam Maggs

208 Pages Fanfic, cosplay, cons, books, memes, podcasts, vlogs, OTPs and RPGs and MMOs and more—it’s never been a better time to be a girl geek. The Fangirl’s Guide to the Galaxy is the ultimate handbook for ladies living the nerdy life, a fun and feminist take on the often male-dominated world of geekdom. With delightful illustrations and an unabashed love for all the in(ternet)s and outs of geek culture, this book is packed with tips, playthroughs, and cheat codes for everything from starting an online fan community to planning a convention visit to supporting fellow female geeks in the wild. If I could go back in time and give younger me one thing, it would be this book. This is everything I ever wanted anyone to ever tell me about being a geek girl. Through the years I've had to figure it out all by myself, so it's really amazing to see it written down in so many words. I love that there is such a prevalent geek girl culture out there now that deals with everything from anxiety (#), to feminism, to how to deal with trolls (!) and finding out that we are like other girls (☆), and how awesome that is! This book lets us know that we're included no matter what or who our OTP's are (⚥) Here's to celebrating geek girls!! Unbound (Magic Ex Libris #3) by Jim C. Hines

373 Pages For five hundred years, the Porters have concealed the existence of magic from the world. Now, old enemies have revealed the Porters’ secrets, and an even greater threat lurks in the shadows. The would-be queen Meridiana, banished for a thousand years, has returned in the body of a girl named Jeneta Aboderin (☆). She seeks an artifact created by Pope Sylvester II, a bronze prison that would grant her the power to command an army of the dead. Michigan librarian Isaac Vainio is powerless to stop her, having been stripped of his power and his place among the Porters by Johannes Gutenberg himself. But Isaac is determined to regain his magic and to rescue his former student Jeneta. With no magic of his own, Isaac’s must delve into the darker side of black-market magic, where he will confront beings better left undisturbed, including the sorcerer Juan Ponce de Leon. With his loyal fire-spider Smudge (^..^), dryad warrior Lena Greenwood, and psychiatrist Nidhi Shah (⚥), Isaac races to unravel a mystery more than a thousand years old as competing magical powers battle to shape the future of the world. He will be hunted by enemies and former allies alike, and it will take all his knowledge and resourcefulness to survive as magical war threatens to spread across the globe. Isaac’s choices will determine the fate of his friends, the Porters, the students of Bi Sheng, and the world. Only one thing is certain: even if he finds a way to restore his magic, he can’t save them all… I really like this series. Not only is it a really interesting form of magic, but the pop culture references that crop up are amazing! There was an entire scene where he gets turned into a newt, just so that they could make a Monty Python reference! Awesome! Not to mention the shout out to Wheel of Time! But all that aside, it was a really good book. Issac has to deal with his depression (#) over losing his magical ability and I think it was really important that they reference that as well as they did. Nidha, being a psychiatrist, plays a prevalent part in making sure that everyone's metal health is taken care of. It's really quite refreshing.

Books that I am currently reading

The Gathering Storm (The Wheel of Time #12)

by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson 425 of 783 Pages (18:10 of 33:02 Hours) Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper by Diablo Cody

33 of 212 Pages

Magic to the Bone (Allie Beckstrom #1)

by Devon Monk 

221 of 355 Pages

[reincarnatedasacupcake]

art by Regina Vega

I can't believe that March is over and that I've actually read as much as I have.

yup, that's right. It's only March and I'm already over halfway to my reading goal of this year! How crazy is that? I don't even feel like I've been reading all that much, but I guess I have. Here's what I read this month:

Fudge Cupcake Murder (Hannah Swensen #5)

by Joanne Fluke

304 Pages

Bakery owner Hannah Swensen just can't keep her hands out of the batter when murder stirs things up in Lake Eden, Minnesota, leaving the sheriff dead, an innocent deputy accused, and a killer still on the loose...

For Hannah, life seems to be lacking a certain flavor. It's not that she doesn't enjoy teaching a weekly "Potluck Cooking Class" at the community outreach center. Or that she's not excited about her sister Andrea's bun in the oven -- watching the very pregnant Andrea try to sit on a stool at The Cookie Jar is worth it every time.

Maybe it's this year's sheriff's election that's got her down. For years, Sheriff Grant's been the iron hand in town. But now, Hannah's brother-in-law Bill is giving the old blowhard the fight of his long, dubious career -- and Grant's not taking it in stride, especially once the local polls (and The Cookie Jar gossip) show Bill pulling ahead.

But before anyone can get a taste of victory, things go sour. Just as Hannah's emptying the trash, she makes a very unappetizing discovery: Sheriff Grant's body in the dumpster behind the high school where she's teaching her cooking class. And if that weren't bad enough, the poor man still has fudge frosting on his shirt from the cupcake she gave him earlier. She'd been trying to find the secret ingredient left out of the recipe. Now she has a more important mystery to crack.

The number one suspect is none other than Bill. In fact, he's the only suspect. But Hannah's not swallowing it. Plenty of people had reason to hate Sheriff Grant, starting with all the deputies whose cases he stole during election years just so he could take the glory. Soon, Hannah's dishing up scandalous secrets, steaming hot betrayals, and enough nastiness to keep the gossip mill at The Cookie Jar going through several pots of decaf. And the closer Hannah gets to the truth, the closer she gets to smoking out a murderer with a very nasty recipe for silencing people. Will Hannah be able to stand the heat when someone wants her out of the kitchen... for good?

I wish the book was filled with as many bad baking puns as that summary was. That was just delicious! But puns aside, this book was actually quite fun. Maybe I finally gave up on trying to put logic to the plot and just let it take me for a ride instead, because I found that I liked it much better than any of the previous books. I love that it doesn't even phase Hannah any more when she finds the murdered bodies of people she knows. She just goes home and watches TV. Sure, she's going to investigate it for some thin plot point or another. To be honest, the plots in these books never really changes; she finds someone she knows who's been murdered, she decides to investigate for some reason, the police tell her not to, she does anyway. Blah, blah investigation, blah blah can't decide which man she wants to commit to, figures out whodunit, somehow gets trapped by them, gets saved, happy ending...

Seriously though, 5 books in and she still can't get out of her very boring love triangle. Also, this book totally would've fit into my trends from last year (@)

Ah, who am I kidding,,, I'm in it for the recipes

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1)

by Marissa Meyer 

387 Pages

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. 

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

I've wanted to read this book since I started my fairy-tale kick.  It's not the best one that I've read, but I did find that I enjoyed it for simple YA. Enough so that I think I will read all of them. Without saying so on the back, you can pretty much figure out by the cover that this is a Cinderella tale. I giggled through the twists like moon people with glamours, felt moved by the plight of the people lost to disease and looked forward to the inevitable loss of her foot. !

The Janus Affair (Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences #2)

by Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris

416 Pages

Certainly no strangers to peculiar occurrences, agents Wellington Books and Eliza Braun are nonetheless stunned to observe a fellow passenger (⚥) aboard Britain's latest hypersteam train suddenly vanish in a dazzling bolt of lightning. They soon discover this is not the only such disappearance - every case inexplicably unexamined by the Crown.

Oh, where do I begin with this book...

I read this book because I initially put the 3rd one on my TBR list without realizing it was the 3rd, so I went out and bought the 2nd book only to find out it was the 4th. These books are terribly labeled!  So I ended up having to order in the 2nd book (which is this one) and I figured I might as well get it out of the way so I can read the 3rd one later.

I was hoping that this one would be better than the 1st book, and it was, just not by much. I was intrigued by the Suffragist movement, that was having it's members whisked away by bright flashes of lighting. What devious plot would want to undermined this movement so badly? Turns out a terrible plot that had nothing to do with the movement at all. To be honest, the story kind of fell apart the closer to the end that it got. 

It also bothered me that they took the entire premise of the book (a buddy-cop story but with a tough, gun toting female and a bookish male) and swapped it so that the bookish male was the hero who could suddenly out shoot his counterpart and saves her and the day, while she didn't do much of anything. Sigh...!  

Knife of Dreams (The Wheel of Time #11)

by Robert Jordan

783 Pages (32:19 Hours)

The Wheel of Time turns, and Robert Jordan gives us the eleventh volume of his extraordinary masterwork of fantasy.

The dead are walking, men die impossible deaths, and it seems as though reality itself has become unstable: All are signs of the imminence of Tarmon Gai'don, the Last Battle, when Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, must confront the Dark One as humanity's only hope. But Rand dares not fight until he possesses all the surviving seals on the Dark One's prison and has dealt with the Seanchan, who threaten to overrun all nations this side of the Aryth Ocean and increasingly seem too entrenched to be fought off. But his attempt to make a truce with the Seanchan is shadowed by treachery that may cost him everything. Whatever the price, though, he must have that truce. And he faces other dangers. There are those among the Forsaken who will go to any length to see him dead--and the Black Ajah is at his side....

Unbeknownst to Rand, Perrin has made his own truce with the Seanchan. It is a deal made with the Dark One, in his eyes, but he will do whatever is needed to rescue his wife, Faile, and destroy the Shaido who captured her. Among the Shaido, Faile works to free herself while hiding a secret that might give her her freedom or cause her destruction. And at a town called Malden, the Two Rivers longbow will be matched against Shaido spears.

Fleeing Ebou Dar through Seanchan-controlled Altara with the kidnapped Daughter of the Nine Moons, Mat attempts to court the woman to whom he is half-married, knowing that she will complete that ceremony eventually. But Tuon coolly leads him on a merry chase as he learns that even a gift can have deep significance among the Seanchan Blood and what he thinks he knows of women is not enough to save him. For reasons of her own, which she will not reveal until a time of her choosing, she has pledged not to escape, but Mat still sweats whenever there are Seanchan soldiers near. Then he learns that Tuon herself is in deadly danger from those very soldiers. To get her to safety, he must do what he hates worse than work....(!)

In Caemlyn, Elayne fights to gain the Lion Throne while trying to avert what seems a certain civil war should she win the crown....

In the White Tower, Egwene struggles to undermine the sisters loyal to Elaida from within....

The winds of time have become a storm, and things that everyone believes are fixed in place forever are changing before their eyes. Even the White Tower itself is no longer a place of safety. Now Rand, Perrin and Mat, Egwene and Elayne, Nynaeve and Lan, and even Loial, must ride those storm winds, or the Dark One will triumph.

Book Eleven is where the story line finally starts to resolve it's self and that is a really really great thing. Plots that have taken books to cover are finally coming to a close so that the characters can finally start focusing on the fact that The Last Battle is approaching.  It's where things start to get really interesting, especially Egwene. I originally thought her story line was going to be dull, but it's actually one of my favorites. (⚥) Sadly, this was the last book that Jordan wrote before passing the torch to Brandon Sanderson and passing away. He is still greatly missed.

The High King's Tomb (Green Rider #3) by Kristen Britain

656 Pages More than a thousand years ago the armies of the Arcosian Empire, led by Mornhavon the Black, crossed the great sea and tried to conquer the land of Sacoridia using terrible dark magic. Eventually Mornhavon had been captured, and his evil spirit imprisoned in Blackveil Forest, protected by the mighty D'Yer Wall; and in the centuries since the war's end, knowledge of the working of magic had disappeared from Sacoridia. Karigan G'ladheon was now a seasoned Green Rider—a member of the magical messenger corps of the king. But during her first year as a Rider, a rogue magician had cracked the D'Yer Wall. The spirit of Mornhavon, sensing the weakness, had begun to wake, seeking vengeance. Karigan had managed to transport the spirit of Mornhavon into the future, buying valuable time for her king and country. But how far in the future was Mornhavon now? There was no way to tell. And though Karigan and her fellow Riders scoured the land searching for lost magical knowledge, they were unaware of a threat to their kingdom that lay far closer: the descendants of ancient enemies had spent generations honing their powers of dark magic—a force against which the Sacoridians had no defense. The High King's Tomb is the thrilling third installment of the Green Rider series. I'm really enjoying this series. This one went back to it's roots a little more and had Karigan actually out on Rider business and all the fun, crazy, amazing trials that went with it, including staying at a brothel (⚥), going to get more of their special horses (^..^) and meeting a deity and also, you know, saving the realm (!) I really love how her story isn't the only focus, that there are multiple story lines going on that take their own time and pace. I really love reading about the Wall and what's going on with the spirits inside. This is the kind of writer that I want to be and I find it inspiring A Treasury of Royal Scandals:  The Shocking True Stories of History's Wickedest, Weirdest, Most Wanton Kings, Queens, Tsars, Popes, and Emperors by Michael Farquhar

324 Pages From Nero's nagging mother (whom he found especially annoying after taking her as his lover) to Catherine's stable of studs (not of the equine variety), here is a wickedly delightful look at the most scandalous royal doings you never learned about in history class. Gleeful, naughty, sometimes perverted-like so many of the crowned heads themselves-A Treasury of Royal Scandals presents the best (the worst?) of royal misbehavior through the ages. From ancient Rome to Edwardian England, from the lavish rooms of Versailles to the dankest corners of the Bastille, the great royals of Europe have excelled at savage parenting, deadly rivalry, pathological lust, and meeting death with the utmost indignity-or just very bad luck. Wow! I mean what can one really say about this book, other than Wow! If I didn't know that this was History, I would've laughed and assumed that it was just crazy fiction. It's amazing that people let the monarchy get away with a lot of this stuff and also amazing that we as a society today would never stand for any of this, which I think is both good and bad. I certainly have no issues with royalty and such loving as they wilt (⚥) but the murders and torture were just awful and unimaginable! It also amazed me how much mental illness there was (#) It certainly made me feel less alone in a weird way. This was one of my TBR books for the year and I was surprised that I actually finished it as quickly as I did. There were times where I just had to keep reading to see what outrageous thing happened next. Half a King (Shattered Sea #1) by Joe Abercrombie

368 Pages “I swore an oath to avenge the death of my father. I may be half a man, but I swore a whole oath.” Prince Yarvi has vowed to regain a throne he never wanted. But first he must survive cruelty, chains, and the bitter waters of the Shattered Sea. And he must do it all with only one good hand. The deceived will become the deceiver. Born a weakling in the eyes of his father, Yarvi is alone in a world where a strong arm and a cold heart rule. He cannot grip a shield or swing an axe, so he must sharpen his mind to a deadly edge. The betrayed will become the betrayer. Gathering a strange fellowship of the outcast and the lost, he finds they can do more to help him become the man he needs to be than any court of nobles could. Will the usurped become the usurper? But even with loyal friends at his side, Yarvi finds that his path may end as it began—in twists, and traps, and tragedy. This was a good book, good enough that I think I will read the rest of the series. I felt sorry for poor Yarvi in the beginning. All he wanted was the join the Ministry and give up his life as a Prince, but when his Father and older Brother are murdered, he is forced to become the King he never wanted to be and to swear an oath to avenge the family he didn't even really like. But when he's betrayed and sold into slavery, becoming King and fulfilling his oath seem to be the only things that matters. Despite the hardships that he goes through, everything seems to continually fall into place for him. He always seems to know the language of anyone he meets, he rises quickly through the slaves and he always gets what he wants pretty much right as he needs it. (!) I found the further along the story got and the closer her got to reaching his goal, the less I liked him as a character. I found that it was very to do that with your main character. Transformers: Windblade by Mairghread Scott & Sarah Stone

106 Pages In the aftermath of Dark Cybertron, Windblade takes the planet by storm! But where did she come from - and what does her secret mean to the future of the Transformers? Wow, that description tell you absolutely nothing. This is the story of Cybertron in the aftermath the war where Starscream, of all bots, runs Cybertron. Windblade is a city speaker who can speak with the city-bot itself who has neen badly damaged (#) and is in need of fixing. Windblade is trying her hardest to help it fix itself, but someone is trying to sabotage it and blame someone else, including Windblade. It was pretty good, although I felt like I was missing a lot by not reading the comics that lead up to it. I'm loving that they are finally making more female transformers and I'm loving Windblade. The Sorcerer's House by Gene Wolfe

302 Pages In a contemporary town in the American midwest where he has no connections, Bax, an educated man recently released from prison, is staying in a motel. He writes letters to his brother and to others, including a friend still in jail, to whom he progressively reveals the intriguing pieces of a strange and fantastic narrative. When he meets a real estate agent who tells him he is, to his utter surprise, the heir to a huge old house in town, long empty, he moves in. He is immediately confronted by an array of supernatural creatures and events, by love and danger. His life is utterly transformed and we read on, because we must know more. We revise our opinions of him, and of others, with each letter, piecing together more of the story as we go. We learn things about magic, and another world, and about the sorcerer Mr. Black, who originally inhabited the house. And then knowing what we now know only in the end, perhaps we read it again. I started reading A Time of Exile (Deverry #5) by Katharine Kerr  and could not get into it. I finally decided that I have wasted too much time and money on a series that I don't even like and I really don't want to invest in 10 more books just to say that I finished it. So I did what I should've done years ago and took the series to my nearby free little library and washed my hands of them. Since this book was on my TBR list, I needed to replace it with a different book, so I chose this one (which was the first book I took from a free little library last year). Although this book went faster, it certainly wasn't better. It might have even been worse. The entire book was written in letters, which would be really dull if you were on the receiving end of such letters. He goes into way too much detail and isn't consistent to whom he writes to, so no one is getting the full story, which I imagine is confusing for them. This is another case of everything falling into the main character's lap: a house, money, ladies (one is a fox familiar {^..^}) even servants and more land. It really doesn't make any sense. He also doesn't seem to really care about anything and accepts everything as it happens like it's no big deal. The blurb above says that once you find out what happens at the end you'll want to read it again, so I was expecting something profound to happen that would change the whole thing (like the Sixth Sense) but that totally didn't happen at all. In fact, the end was left totally open to interpretation and obviously left out something important. I was disappointed. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke

849 Pages (32:30 Hours) Two magicians shall appear in England.  The first shall fear me; the second shall long to behold me... The year is 1806. England is beleaguered by the long war with Napoleon, and centuries have passed since practical magicians faded into the nation's past. But scholars of this glorious history discover that one remains: the reclusive Mr Norrell whose displays of magic send a thrill through the country. Proceeding to London, he raises a beautiful woman from the dead and summons an army of ghostly ships to terrify the French. Yet the cautious, fussy Norrell is challenged by the emergence of another magician: the brilliant novice Jonathan Strange. Young, handsome and daring, Strange is the very opposite of Norrell. So begins a dangerous battle between these two great men which overwhelms the one between England and France. And their own obsessions and secret dabblings with the dark arts are going to cause more trouble than they can imagine.  This book was super long and quiet slow, but still very good. It was to be my TBR book for last month, but it took me much longer to read than expecpted. I was having a hard time reading it, so I decided to skip the next WOT book and listen to this instead. This made it go much faster. As this is an alternate history, the author took the time to go into all that was different with the world and it's magic, citing book passages and stories and I was impressed (as well as often bored) with the amount of effort she put into creating this AU. The magic was quite fastening, except when being explained by Mr. Norrell, who is quite a dry character. There was a great subplot in the book about The Man With The Thistledown Hair (the fairy Mr. Norrell uses to bring back young Mrs. Pole) and his distaste for the magicians and his liking of a servant, Stephen Black, whom he is constantly whisking away into fairie. (^..^)  (#)

[reincarnatedasacupcake]

With February being the month of love, it seemed fitting to talk about how much I love books. What would life be without them? Dull and boring, that's for sure. Some of the best dates I've ever had have taken place in bookstores and it wasn't just my Man's good looks that drew me to him in the first place, but also his bookshelf.

It's true, I love a man with lots of books Anyhoo, here's what I read for the challenge this month:

Crossroads of Twilight (The Wheel of Time #10)

by Robert Jordan

704 Pages (26:04 Hours)

In the tenth book of The Wheel of Time from the New York Times #1 bestselling author Robert Jordan, the world and the characters stand at a crossroads, and the world approaches twilight, when the power of the Shadow grows stronger.

Fleeing from Ebou Dar with the kidnapped Daughter of the Nine Moons, whom he is fated to marry, Mat Cauthon learns that he can neither keep her nor let her go, not in safety for either of them, for both the Shadow and the might of the Seanchan Empire are in deadly pursuit.

Perrin Aybara seeks to free his wife, Faile, a captive of the Shaido, but his only hope may be an alliance with the enemy. Can he remain true to his friend Rand and to himself? For his love of Faile, Perrin is willing to sell his soul.

At Tar Valon, Egwene al'Vere, the young Amyrlin of the rebel Aes Sedai, lays siege to the heart of Aes Sedai power, but she must win quickly, with as little bloodshed as possible, for unless the Aes Sedai are reunited, only the male Asha'man will remain to defend the world against the Dark One, and nothing can hold the Asha'man themselves back from total power except the Aes Sedai and a unified White Tower.

In Andor, Elayne Trakland fights for the Lion Throne that is hers by right, but enemies and Darkfriends surround her, plotting her destruction. If she fails, Andor may fall to the Shadow, and the Dragon Reborn with it.

Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn himself, has cleansed the Dark One's taint from the male half of the True Source, and everything has changed. Yet nothing has, for only men who can channel believe that saidin is clean again, and a man who can channel is still hated and feared-even one prophesied to save the world. Now, Rand must gamble again, with himself at stake, and he cannot be sure which of his allies are really enemies.

This book is an odd one. I had to wait years for this book to come out in hardcover and it was not what I was anticipating at all. The whole book takes place around one event; the ending of book 10 when Rand clears the Source. Pretty much every other character is feeling or seeing the event from afar and it effects what everyone is doing. They all interpret the event differently and no one has any idea what's actually going on. Reading it in sequence and not having to wait for it makes a lot of difference in how I feel about it. It's much better as part of the story than a stand along for many years.  It's certainly not the best book in the series, but it's still pretty good. 

Sadly, this was when Robert Jordan was diagnosed and it was harder for him to write. 

I was happy to realize that this book has an interseting representation of being born into the opposite body (⚥); as Aran'gar is reborn into a female body, although can still channel saidin as if still a man.  As time passes, she starts to forget her life before as Balthamel. She finds her sexual attraction hasn't changed from before, but has widened to include both sexes.

Sanctuary (The Outcast Chronicles #3)

by Rowena Cory Daniells

559 Pages

The mystic Wyrds have been banished by King Charald, whose descent into madness grows ever steeper. Exiled and forced to set sail on the first day of winter, Imoshen’s people are packed onto seven crowded ships. Tensions flare under the pressure and the all-fathers and all-mothers are put to the test controlling their hardened warriors. Ronnyn and his sister Aravelle have been separated, just as they feared, and look to an uncertain future. Sorne is betrayed and captured on the seas. Tobazim faces a confrontation with the bloodthirsty All-father Kyredeon and his notorious assassin, Graelen. And, while Imoshen has promised the T’Enatuath a home with the Sagoras, the enigmatic scholars have not yet replied to her plea for sanctuary. This is the thrilling climax to The Outcast Chronicles.

They say thrilling climax, and the book is thrilling, but I found the ending left much to be desired, or at least, much unanswered. I really enjoyed this series and I found it left me on the edge of my seat for most of it, but when I finished it, the first thing I did was to check to see if there was another book in the series. I even checked the author's website, but all she says is that she might one day revisit the characters. What?! But I need answers now....

I still will recommend this series to people, but with a warning about the end. 

The representation is amazing (⚥) and the conflicts strike a cord with me, as they are based out of fear and I can easily see these types of prejudices reflected in our own society. 

Dragonvein (Dragonvein #1)

by Brian D. Anderson

308 Pages (10:43 Hours)

Carentan, France 1944 - Ethan Martin, a soldier in the 101st Airborne, is fighting for his life. But soon he will learn what peril truly is when he is ripped from his world and transported to a land of magic, swords, and dragons. And though the Nazis are now far, far away, danger is closer than ever. 

The Eternal Emperor, Shinzan has destroyed the mages and only a few dragons remain in exile. And now that Ethan, son of Praxis Dragonvein, has returned he must destroy him as well. Faced with unimaginable power, Ethan has only one hope - to reach the dwarf kingdom of Elyfoss before Shinzan can find him. 

This book was on sale for $3 on Audible and I figured for that price, I couldn't really go wrong. Well, maybe not wrong, but not really right either. This seemed like a very typical fantasy novel, where everything happens just at the right time. The right people always show up or show their true nature just when you need them to. The character's didn't have much depths and I found that I didn't really care about most of them one way or another. I did quite like Kat until she inevitably fell in love with the main character only to be rejected by him for being too young. After that, she becomes lovelorn and jealous and stops being interesting. Way to ruin a spunky, street-wise princess? kid. I hope she gets better in the other books, but to be honest, unless I also find them for $3 or less, I probably won't read them. But then again, this book has dragons, kinda (^..^) and that might be worth reading more about

Closer to Home (Valdemar: The Herald Spy #1)

by Mercedes Lackey

362 Pages

Mags was once an enslaved orphan living a harsh life in the mines, until the King's Own Herald discovered his talent and trained him as a spy. Now a Herald in his own right, at the newly established Heralds' Collegium, Mags has found a supportive family, including his Companion Dallen. (^..^)

Although normally a Herald in his first year of Whites would be sent off on circuit, Mags is needed close to home for his abilities as a spy and his powerful Mindspeech gift. There is a secret, treacherous plot within the royal court to destroy the Heralds. The situation becomes dire after the life of Mags' mentor, King's Own Nikolas, is imperiled. His daughter Amily is chosen as the new King's Own, a complicated and dangerous job that is made more so by this perilous time. Can Mags and Amily save the court, the Heralds, and the Collegium itself?

Why is this series still going?  Yes, I realize that it says #1 up above, but really, this is just a continuation of an already too long and not all that good of a series. What's worse, is that Mags & Co. don't really need to be in it at all. If anything, they are all secondary characters in their own book. The main plot revolves around a really terrible Romeo & Juliet plot line that would have worked much better for one of her Elemental Masters series that take after fairy-tales and stories. 

Or if she really wanted it in this World, she could have easily replaced Mags & Co. with new Heralds that were more interesting. Also, as a new series, it relies a lot on you having read the other series, especially the last book where Mag's cousin mind-melds with him to upload new skills and information that would've taken too much story to actually teach him. 

 Every time I pick up one of these books, I tell myself that this one is going to be different. It's Mercedes Lackey, she won't let me down again, and every time I am disappointed.

Indexing (Indexing #1)

by Seanan McGuire

404 Pages (12:05 Hours)

“Never underestimate the power of a good story.”

Good advice...especially when a story can kill you.

For most people, the story of their lives is just that: the accumulation of time, encounters, and actions into a cohesive whole. But for an unfortunate few, that day-to-day existence is affected—perhaps infected is a better word—by memetic incursion: where fairy tale narratives become reality, often with disastrous results.

That's where the ATI Management Bureau steps in, an organization tasked with protecting the world from fairy tales, even while most of their agents are struggling to keep their own fantastic archetypes from taking over their lives. When you're dealing with storybook narratives in the real world, it doesn't matter if you're Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, or the Wicked Queen: no one gets a happily ever after.

Indexing is New York Times bestselling author Seanan McGuire’s new urban fantasy where everything you thought you knew about fairy tales gets turned on its head.

I'm finding that I'm really enjoying books that take fairy tales and giving them their own twist. I've read a lot of great fantasy and urban fantasy with these twists, but this one was one of the bests. Not only was the story great, but the performer who read it, did a really great job. The characters, despite having their personalities aligned with their stories, are pretty well rounded. Sure they all fall into their tropes, but it's nice to see them fighting against it to have their own lives. This is another great book for representation (⚥) Henry and her twin were born into a Snow-White/Rose-Red senario, but when Gerry transitions (FTM) the Story frees him and forces Henry into a regular Snow White. I really appreciated that the Story respects this transition, as do Henry and all of her friends. Sloane even dated him for awhile and they have very sweet interactions. It's nice to see this done right.  

Iron Kissed (Mercy Thompson #3) by Patricia Briggs

287 Pages

I could smell her fear, and it satisfied something deep inside me that had been writhing under her cool, superior gaze. I curled my upper lip so she could get a good look at my sharp teeth. I might only weigh thirty or so pounds in my coyote shape, but I was a predator... Mechanic Mercy Thompson can shift her shape - but not her loyalty. When her former boss and mentor is arrested for murder and left to rot behind bars by his own kind, it's up to Mercy to clear his name, whether he wants her to or not. Mercy's loyalty is under pressure from other directions, too. Werewolves are not known for their patience, and if Mercy can't decide between the two she cares for, Sam and Adam may make the choice for her...

This book was pretty typical for this series. It wasn't great, but wasn't too bad either. There are a lot of things that I like and dislike about this series. I really don't like how the werewolves treat women and I've not enjoyed the ongoing fight over Mercy since the first book. Thankfully that has finally been resolved. I like that there is representation of both LGBTQA+ characters (⚥) who are being excepted into the world and that they are open to dealing with mental illness, or at least PTSD (#)

The anti-fey groups strike a nerve with me, as it reflects too closely to the hate and fear that we see in real life. I imagine that's the point though. That very much seemed to be a theme this month with a lot of the books I read.

Reflections (Indexing #2)

by Seanan McGuire 

325 Pages (12:18 Hours) “For her to love me, she had to be willing to kill me. Anything else would show that her heart was untrue.” The struggle against not-so-charming storybook narratives isn’t the only complicating factor in Henrietta “Henry” Marchen’s life. As part of the ATI Management Bureau team protecting the world from fairy tales gone awry, she’s juggling her unwanted new status as a Snow White, dealing with a potentially dangerous Pied Piper, and wrangling a most troublesome wicked stepsister—along with a budding relationship with Jeff, her teammate. But when a twisted, vicious Cinderella breaks out of prison and wreaks havoc, things go from disenchanted to deadly. And once Henry realizes someone is trying to use her to destroy the world, her story becomes far from over—and this one might not have a happily ever after. The first book was so good, I had to get the second one immediately so I could start listening to it right away. And had there been a third book I would've done the same. Actually, I'm kinda sad that there isn't a third or forth or fifth book. I totally would've read the whole thing. The whole crew is back (⚥) for another great book that takes you even deeper into the stories. Henry discovers the Whiteout Wood in her dreams where the Snow Whites of the past and present go once they've been poisoned. Each fairy tale has it's own version of the Woods and Henry must figure out how to navigate them when an Evil Snow White takes possession of her body, stranding her there. Vision In Silver (The Others #3) by Anne Bishop

493 Pages The Others freed the cassandra sangue to protect the blood prophets from exploitation, not realizing their actions would have dire consequences. Now the fragile seers are in greater danger than ever before—both from their own weaknesses and from those who seek to control their divinations for wicked purposes. In desperate need of answers, Simon Wolfgard, a shape-shifter leader among the Others, has no choice but to enlist blood prophet Meg Corbyn’s help, regardless of the risks she faces by aiding him. Meg is still deep in the throes of her addiction to the euphoria she feels when she cuts and speaks prophecy. She knows each slice of her blade tempts death. But Others and humans alike need answers, and her visions may be Simon’s only hope of ending the conflict. For the shadows of war are deepening across the Atlantik, and the prejudice of a fanatic faction is threatening to bring the battle right to Meg and Simon’s doorstep… This is another series that I love and can't wait for the next books to come out. Although I hate waiting for them, they are totally worth the wait. Trouble is brewing amidst the humans, who have formed hate groups against the Others and although things are starting to look grim, the Others are still trying their hardest to make things work. With the help of Meg (☆) they are trying to help the other cassandra sangue settle into normal lives after years of living in captivity (#) by creating a how-to guide. Despite the anger and aggression of the Others, there is also a sweet naivety to them that is quite wonderful. I really enjoy watching their human-clan grow and envelope more people who are understanding and care about the Others. Books that I am currently reading Knife of Dreams (The Wheel of Time #11) by Robert Jordan 214 of 783 Pages (9:27 of 32:19 Hours) A Treasury of Royal Scandals by Michael Farquhar 177 of 324 Pages Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke 94 of 846 Fudge Cupcake Murder (Hannah Swensen #5) by Joanne Fluke 150 of 304

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Another year has begun, filled to the brim with books! What a great way to start off the year! With the way it's going so far, I might even surpass last years challenge! Although only time will tell. Here's what I read in January:

Exile (The Outcast Chronicles #2)

by Rowena Cory Daniells

509 Pages

Book two of The Outcast Chronicles; the thrilling story of Imoshen, Tobazim, Ronnyn and Aravelle, continues. The story follows the fate of a tribe of dispossessed mystics. Vastly outnumbered by people without magical abilities, they are persecuted because ordinary people fear their gifts. This persecution culminates in a bloody pogrom sanctioned by the king who lays siege to the Celestial City, last bastion of the mystics. When the city falls, the mystic leader negotiates their surrender and her people are exiled from their homeland. 

King Chald has banished the mystics. Their leader, Imoshen, hopes to find a new home for her people but first they must reach port. Fearing they will be waylaid, robbed and murdered, Imoshen offers a reward for living mystics. 

When he arrives in port, Tobazim discovers the mystics’ ships have been stolen and merchants are charging exorbitant prices for supplies. Meanwhile, Ronnyn and his family are kidnapped by fishermen eager for the reward. 

Whether the ships are ready or not, on the first day of winter all the mystics must leave. Those who remain behind will be hunted down and executed. Time is running out for Imoshen, Tobazim, and the children.

I'm really loving this series. I would've read them all back to back, but I couldn't find them anywhere in the city and had to order them in (Just got in book 3) Once I picked up the book, I couldn't put it down. It is a tragic tale of a people being destroyed because others don't understand them and fear them. Which is a shame because the T’en have a really amazing culture (⚥). Although it can border on barbaric sometimes, it's still less barbaric than that of the True-men culture, where I just feel sorry for everyone.

I would say that this is one of the best series that I have read in a while

Steelheart (Reckoners #1)

by Brandon Sanderson

386 Pages (12:14 Hours)

Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary men and women extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics. But Epics are no friend of man. With incredible gifts came the desire to rule. And to rule man you must crush his wills.

Nobody fights the Epics...nobody but the Reckoners. A shadowy group of ordinary humans, they spend their lives studying Epics, finding their weaknesses, and then assassinating them.

And David wants in. He wants Steelheart - the Epic who is said to be invincible. The Epic who killed David's father. For years, like the Reckoners, David's been studying, and planning - and he has something they need. Not an object, but an experience.

He's seen Steelheart bleed. And he wants revenge.

I've been a big fan of Brandon Sanderson for a long time (well, more like a Wheel) and I thought I had read most of his stuff, but then I found out that he wrote a few YA series and they happened to be on sale on Audible and I needed more books to listen to, so it was win-win. And Sparks (!) it was amazing! Not only is the story really, really good, but the voice actor was spectacular! He really made me me feel like I was part of the book. I got swept away by the combination  of author and actor. I loved the main character, David. He was cheery and silly and had the best horrible metaphors. They were terrible, but always made sense in a weird way and I often found myself giggling in the grocery store as I listened.

Mitosis (Reckoners #1.5) by Brandon Sanderson

96 Pages (1:04 Hours) From "New York Times" bestselling author Brandon Sanderson's action-packed novel "Steelheart" comes "Mitosis," a short story set in the world of The Reckoners series, exclusively available in the digital format. Steelheart may be dead, but Epics still plague Newcago and David and the Reckoners have vowed to fight back. This was actually the short story that tipped me off to this new series. It was free on Audible and I realized it was part of a larger series when I started to listen to it. It was a great follow up story to Steelheart and shows what is happening in the aftermath of the first book.  Same author, same actor, another great story (!)

Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 (Mouse Guard #1)

by David Petersen

192 Pages In the world of Mouse Guard, mice struggle to live safely and prosper amongst harsh conditions and a host of predators. Thus the Mouse Guard was formed: more than just soldiers that fight off intruders, they are guides for common mice looking to journey without confrontation from one hidden village to another. The Guard patrol borders, find safeways and paths through dangerous territories and treacherous terrain, watch weather patterns, and keep the mouse territories free of predatory infestation. They do so with fearless dedication so that they might not just exist, but truly live. Saxon, Kenzie and Lieam, three such Guardsmice, are dispatched to find a missing merchant mouse that never arrived at his destination. Their search for the missing mouse reveals much more than they expect, as they stumble across a traitor in the Guard’s own ranks. I always forget how much I love graphic novels and how much joy and entertainment I get out of them. I decided that I'd like to read more of them this year and add more types of media to my reading. I decided to start off with Mouse Guard, since I've been meaning to read it for a long time. It's hard to reconcile so many adorable creatures in such a horrid and intense story. This is not a story for children as it involves treason, wars, getting eaten and many other serious issues. It's really quite in depth and very good. I'm looking forward to reading the next one. Firefight (Reckoners #2) by Brandon Sanderson

416 Pages (11:37 Hours)

From the #1 "New York Times" bestselling author of Words of Radiance coauthor of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series, and creator of the internationally bestselling Mistborn Trilogy, Brandon Sanderson presents the second book in the Reckoners series: Firefight, the sequel to the #1 bestseller Steelheart. They told David it was impossible--that even the Reckoners had never killed a High Epic. Yet, Steelheart--invincible, immortal, unconquerable--is dead. And he died by David's hand. Eliminating Steelheart was supposed to make life more simple. Instead, it only made David realize he has questions. Big ones. And there's no one in Newcago who can give him the answers he needs. Babylon Restored, the old borough of Manhattan, has possibilities, though. Ruled by the mysterious High Epic, Regalia, David is sure Babylon Restored will lead him to what he needs to find. And while entering another city oppressed by a High Epic despot is a gamble, David's willing to risk it. Because killing Steelheart left a hole in David's heart. A hole where his thirst for vengeance once lived. Somehow, he filled that hole with another Epic--Firefight. And he's willing to go on a quest darker, and more dangerous even, than the fight against Steelheart to find her, and to get his answers.

Holy Sparks (!) another one of these? Yup, here's book 2 of this series, still read by the amazing actor.  This book starts to get deeper into what actually happened to bring on Calamity and the changes it wrought. Matters aren't as cut and dry as everyone once thought they were, now there are even more question to be answered. Can the Epics be good or does their power corrupt absolutely? 

I really love the set of of Babylon Restored. It's really quite beautiful, especially after the Steel city of Newcago. The city has been flooded, and people live in the tops of high-rises, but fruit trees have begun to grow everywhere and they glow in the dark and give people a surplus of food and hope. 

The next book in the series comes out next month and part of me want to run to the store on release day and buy it, but the other part of me wants to wait until it's recorded so I can keep living in the story the same way.

The Emperor's Soul (Elantris) by Brandon Sanderson

175 Pages  (3:55 Hours) A heretic thief is the empire’s only hope in this fascinating tale that inhabits the same world as the popular novel, Elantris. Shai is a Forger, a foreigner who can flawlessly copy and re-create any item by rewriting its history with skillful magic. Condemned to death after trying to steal the emperor’s scepter, she is given one opportunity to save herself. Though her skill as a Forger is considered an abomination by her captors, Shai will attempt to create a new soul for the emperor, who is almost dead. Probing deeply into his life, she discovers Emperor Ashravan’s truest nature—and the opportunity to exploit it. Her only possible ally is one who is truly loyal to the emperor, but councilor Gaotona must overcome his prejudices to understand that Shai’s forgery is as much artistry as it is deception. Brimming with magic and political intrigue, this deftly woven fantasy delves into the essence of a living spirit. When I decided to look up and see if there were any other Brandon Sanderson books that I didn't know about, I came across this little gem. This was a great short story, and although it took place pretty much in one room, it was always interesting. As Shai learned about the Emperor, she finds that she understands him more and more. The job becomes less of the price of freedom and more of a challenge for herself to see not only if she can actually complete the soul, but if she can help shape the man she now knows he can be (!)

First Rider's Call (Green Rider #2)

by Kristen Britain

596 Pages Karigan G'ladheon had been a Green Rider, one of the king of Sacoridia's elite magical messengers. In the messenger service she had been caught up in a world of deadly danger, and though she had defeated the Eletian who cracked the magical D'Yer Wall—which had protected Sacoridia for a thousand years from the dark influence of Blackveil Forest, and Mornhavon the Black's evil spirit imprisoned within it—she had nonetheless been tainted by his wild magic.Exhausted in body and spirit, Karigan had returned to her home in Corsa. But Karigan's determination was no match for the Rider's call. Ghostly hoofbeats echoed in the deep regions of her mind, and she returned to the court to find the Green Riders weakened and diminished. Rider magic was becoming unreliable, and she herself was having ghostly visions of Lil Ambriodhe, First Rider, and founder of the Green Rider corps. But why was she appearing to Karigan? And would Karigan be able to seek the help of a woman who had been dead for a thousand years? First Rider's Call is the thrilling second novel of the Green Rider series. I wasn't hugely impressed by the first book in this series, so I'd been putting off reading the sequel. But boy am I glad that I decided to pick it up. It was really great! Much better than the first one. I guess some series take a few books to really hit their groove. There was a lot happening in this book, the riders were losing control of their powers, the evil creatures were attacking the outlying kingdom towns, the Wall was being to break down, even the horses (^..^) were acting strange. Karigan begins to see ghosts and starts to figure out what might be happening. I couldn't put this book down. I wanted to know what was going to happen next and I wasn't disappointed. I've already picked up the next book! Koko Takes a Holiday (EBK #1) by Kieran Shea

400 Pages

Five hundred years from now, ex-corporate mercenary Koko Martstellar is swaggering through an easy early retirement as a brothel owner on The Sixty Islands, a manufactured tropical resort archipelago known for its sex and simulated violence. Surrounded by slang-drooling boywhores and synthetic komodo dragons, Koko finds the most challenging part of her day might be deciding on her next drink. That is, until her old comrade Portia Delacompte sends a squad of security personnel to murder her. This book was recommended to me while I was perusing for new books at Chapters. She told me it was like an awesome action movie, but with a female protagonist. I was sold! Sadly, the book did not live up to my standards.  Yes, it is like an action movie, but one where I didn't like any of the characters. I appreciated that some of the side characters were diverse (⚥) and interesting, at least until they killed all of them off. The story was written in present-tense and it was really disconcerting.  I think what pissed me off the most was that the secondary character, Flynn, who suffers from Depressus (#), an incurable depression that ends with people committing mass suicide. Not only do all of these people give up and kill themselves, they're encouraged to do so and it's made into a grand event. Koko is convinced that Depressus isn't real and that Flynn just needs to "live a little" to fix himself. The worst part is that it works! As someone who lives with a mental illness, I was furious at this. I was furious at the whole handling of  mental illness in this book. Needless to say, I will not be reading the sequel. Miss Scarlet's School of Patternless Sewing by Kathy Cano-Murillo 

352 Pages Sometimes to find your life's true path, you have to stray outside the lines . . . Scarlet Santana is never happier than when creating fabulous fashions for women of all shapes and sizes. Now, after years of hard work, she finally has the chance to live her dream and study under the hottest designer in New York. To raise money for her move, Scarlet opens an after-hours sewing school in a local record shop, teaching a type-A working mom whose rigid parenting style is causing her family to unravel and an enigmatic seamstress with a mysterious past. But as stitches give way to secrets and classmates become friends, the women realize an important truth: There is no single pattern for a good life. Happiness is always a custom fit. This was my first TBR book of the year! It was actually to go on last years TBR list, but I already had too many books on it. That's how long this has been sitting unread on my shelf. (⚥) I've been doing a lot of sewing lately, so I thought this book would be a good fit and it was! It was really good! Although it was pretty predictable in the end, it was a great journey to get there. I really do love books about women coming together and helping each other out. It was also super positive when it came to loving ourselves as we are and bringing out the best in ourselves. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms (Inheritance #1) by N.K. Jemisin

427 Pages Yeine Darr is an outcast from the barbarian north. But when her mother dies under mysterious circumstances, she is summoned to the majestic city of Sky. There, to her shock, Yeine is named an heiress to the king. But the throne of the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms is not easily won, and Yeine is thrust into a vicious power struggle. This was a really neat book. I really liked the premise of it. The siblings and children of the Sun God have been beaten and now reside as playthings for the Royal Family of the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. By their commands, the godlings (⚥) are forced to do whatever the royal family wishes. But when Yeine comes to court, instead of controlling them, she befriends them. The games that the royal family and the godlings are playing, both revolve around her and she must figure out what side she'd on and how to deal with all the plots and save her home and people. I was surprised to find out that this was the first book in a series. I'm very interested in finding out what happens next. Books that I am currently reading Crossroads of Twilight (The Wheel of Time #10) by Robert Jordan 556 of 704 Pages (23:18 of 26:04 Hours) A Treasury of Royal Scandals by Michael Farquhar 94 of 324 Pages Sanctuary (The Outcast Chronicles #3) by Rowena Cory Daniells 168 of 559 Pages

[reincarnatedasacupcake]

It's a Brand New Year with Brand New Books and Brand New Trends.

I thought about continuing the trends from last year, since they seem so prominent, but I thought maybe it would be better to do all new trends this year.

Here are last year's trends:

Rape - 40/76

Friendship Romance - 13/76

Failed  Bechdel-Wallace Test - 14/76

Microwave Tea - 2/76

Magical Heritage - 21/76

Love Triangle - 25/76

As you can see, Rape was the biggest one.

Ugh....

I thought about adding Rape in again, just to make the point of how prevalent it is, but I still think a clean slate is the better way to go.

Each trend will have its own symbol. It will look something like this @ - 0/52

The symbol will appear in my blog reviews with every book that it applies to. That symbol will link back to this page, so you can see what trend it is. The number is to keep track of how many books this year have fallen into this trend. At the end of the year I will review my findings.

Here are this year's trends:

You're Not Like Other Girls

We live in a weird World where not being like other girls (or boys) is something that we are suppose to strive towards, as if it makes us special instead of just putting everyone else down.

"On the surface, it's nice to hear someone say you're special. It's flattering to the ego to hear that you're better than the competition. That might be why this line is almost only found in young adult and teen stories. Writers may not expect teens to take subtext or larger social implications into consideration.

However it's meant, this line can be interpreted as a backhanded compliment. By saying that your intelligence, sense of humor, or independence make you "different from other guys/girls," it's implied that the rest of your gender sucks " - TV Tropes

☆ - 0/52

LGBTQA+ Representation

Representation is so important in books and media these days. It shows people that they are not alone in the World and that there are other people out there that they can relate to. I love when authors think outside the hetero-normative box and include people of all genders and sexual orientations. Extra props if there is more than one person in the book. I'm really hopeful for this category.

⚥ - 0/52

Animal Familiar

Does your main character have a cat/dog/horse/mini dragon/other animal that they share a bond with? Is it like the animal can understand or empathize with them? Can they talk? Are they bonded only with that person? Then yes, you have yourself an animal familiar. They might as well be a person, but instead, they're an animal!

^..^ - 0/52

Alternate Curse Words

Writers often feel weird about cursing in their books. I get it. You never know who's going to be reading it. With TV, most words wouldn't get by censoring. But if you replace the curse word with a gibberish word, then it's easy to get away with it. Like Frak in BSG.

! - 0/52

[reincarnatedasacupcake]

Another new year and another 52 books to try and read. 

I've enjoyed this challenge so much, that I'm planning on doing it again this year.

Last year I read a whopping 76 books! Oh man! I'm not sure I'll make it that far this year, but I'm sure as hell going to try to at least beat 52. 

If you're interested in joining the challenge yourself, you can sign up here.

Or if you're more interested in just following what I read, I will continue to update every month on what I've read and you can look to the bottom right of my blog (you may have to scroll down) where I will be keeping a list of what books I've finished, links to Goodreads and a bar of my challenge progress.

Also, since I enjoyed most of the books in my TBR pile last year, I'm going to do it again. And as always, I will come back to this list and cross them off as I go. If any are replaced, they will be crossed out and red and have the new one underneath.

My TBR (to be read) Pile Challenge List

1. Godslayer (The Sundering #2) - Jacqueline Carey 

2. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell - Susanna Clarke

3. A Treasury of Royal Scandals: The Shocking True Stories of History's Wickedest, Weirdest, Most Wanton Kings, Queens, Tsars, Popes, and Emperors - Michael Farquhar

4. The Forgotten Garden - Kate Morton

5. The Wives of Bath - Wendy Holden

6. My Way to Hell (Hell #2) - Dakota Cassidy

7. Empire of Ivory (Temeraire #4) - Naomi Novik

8. Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper - Diablo Cody

9. Dawn's Early Light (Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences #3) - Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris

10. A Time of Exile (Deverry #5) - Katharine Kerr 

11. Miss Scarlet's School of Patternless Sewing - Kathy Cano-Murillo

12. Vision of the Future (Star Wars: The Hand of Thrawn #2) - Timothy Zahn 

Added Challenge:

The Wheel of Time - Robert Jordan/Brandon Sanderson

No, I didn't quite finish Wheel of Time last year, although I did manage to knock out 9 of the 14 books, so that leaves only 5 more to go. Read in 2015

1. The Eye of the World

2. The Great Hunt

3. The Dragon Reborn

4. The Shadow Rising

5. The Fires of Heaven

6. Lord of Chaos

7. A Crown of Swords

8. The Path of Daggers

9. Winter's Heart To Read in 2016 

10. Crossroads of Twilight

11. Knife of Dreams

12. The Gathering Storm

13. Towers of Midnight

14. A Memory of Light

Get those arm muscles working, we've got a lot of books to support this year!