#SixforSunday – Spring Colours

Happy Sunday Bibliofriends,

Continuing the colour theme this week in Six for Sunday by thinking about all cover colours which are spring-like! I could have had so many choices for this one and then some which could have crossed over into next week’s summer colour post as well so it was actually fairly difficult to pick just six!

For those who don’t already know, Six for Sunday is weekly meme hosted by Steph over at A Little But A Lot


Spring Colours

Spring is probably my favourite season. It feels such a relief after the winter to see the sun shining for longer, to have animals coming out of hibernation and new blossoms and leaves growing on trees. I could do without the April showers but when mixed with sunlight I love the rainbows they make. For this season theme, I’m thinking ore along the lines of pastel colours to remind me of hazy blue skies and pink cherry blossoms.

  • Gardens of Delight by Erica James
  • Girl, Serpent, Thorn (Fairyloot Exclusive Edition) by Melissa Bashardoust
  • Fierce Like A Firestorm by Lana Popović
  • The Little Bookshop of Lonely Hearts by Annie Darling
  • Love and Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch
  • Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao

What colours do you think of when you think of Spring? What would your favourite season be? Do you think of yourself as a seasonal reader?
As always, leave your links below or drop me a comment to chat!

T xx

May TBR

Hey Biblifriends,

We’re nearing the middle of May so I thought I’d better post my May TBR already… 🙈😂

April’s OWLs Magical Readathon was so brilliant and I’m thrilled I passed 11 of my 12 exams, but I’ve got to admit, it’s really knocked the stuffing out of me! It’s almost like I binged on books during April and now I can’t bear to read…or post…or bookstagram. I’ve hit the slump big-time!

To add to this, life has also been hectic. Next week at work, my little darling Year 6 kids are sitting their end of Key Stage 2 SATs exams so we’ve all been revising our socks off trying to get ready. I’ve also been spending my non-working life doing lots of things with friends including catching up with movies, going to our pub quiz and spending almost the entire bank holiday weekend listening to live music at the Cheltenham Jazz Festival (more on that in my monthly wrap at the end of the month).

Hence my little Biblioshelf hiatus – sorry guys!

Anyhow, in a bid to get myself out of my slump, and in preparation for one of 2019’s most anticipated series finales, I’m rereading Caraval by Stephanie Garber which is the first of my May TBR books.

My other three books are: Legendary by Stephanie Garber; Finale by Stephanie Garber; Obsidio (Illuminae Files #3) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff.

Crates I’m expecting this month:

  • FairyLoot’s May Unlikely Romances Box
  • FairyLoot’s Finale Collector’s Edition Box
  • ShelfLove Crate May Box: We Hunt the Flame and Romanov – this will be my first ShelfLove Box and I’m super excited as I cannot wait to read these two titles!
  • Wizarding World May Box (which I think is themed around Quidditch)

So it looks set to be an exciting month in bookish terms, here’s hoping I actually get myself out of this slump in time to actually read! 😂

What are you all reading this month? Are there any hot new releases you’re really excited for? As always, drop me a comment to chat!

T xx

April Wrap Up

Wow, what a busy month April was, particularly the end of the month, hence the lack of posting on here and on my Instagram. I’m hoping to catch up at some point soon… 😂 Participating in the OWLs Magical Readathon has definitely helped my reading challenge. After being about 2 books behind schedule last month, I’ve now read 21 of my target 50 books and am 6 ahead of schedule! Having two weeks off for the Easter holidays definitely helped! You can read more about my Magical Readathon escapades here. I’m hoping to get a wrap post up for it during the start of May.

Books I’ve read this month:

  • Mirage by Somaiya Daud – musings here.
  • Five Give Up the Booze by Bruno Vincent
  • Circle of Shadows by Evelyn Skye – musings here.
  • The Lost Sisters by Holly Black
  • Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
  • Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff – musings here.
  • Stardust by Neil Gaiman (reread)
  • Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander [J.K. Rowling] (reread)
  • To Best the Boys by Mary Weber
  • The Silmarillion by J. R. R. Tolkien [audiobook]

Films I’ve seen this month:

  • Wild Rose (15)

I love country music so a film about a single mum trying to get to Nashville was definitely going to be on my “must-see” list. Also, it has Julie Walters so it’s a win-win! Asides from the brilliant soundtrack, the film has a great sentimental message at the heart of it too.

  • Greta (15)

This film FREAKED ME OUT – but in that great ‘scary-movie’ kinda way! It isn’t a jumpy film with the non-existent soundtrack and bad guys jumping out from everywhere but it definitely leaves you really reconsidering the phrase ‘the kindness of strangers’. Kudos to Isabella Huppert for playing one hell of a scary psychopath! Basically her character utilises her lonely widow status by leaveing fake handbags on the subway in the hope that people will bring them back to her. She befriends them but then gradually wields her stalkerish and obsessive ways with them. If you love films that leave you with the chills, then this one may just be right up your street.

As the calendar has been quite busy and I was away for part of the holidays, I didn’t really get to see as much as I like at the cinema. May is definitely going to be busier as I’ve already got three films scheduled this weekend and one of them is Endgame! 😆

Other life stuff:

  • My friend Emma got married in April! This was my second wedding of four this year. She lives in Lanzarote so she and her now-husband had a quiet UK ceremony for their friends and family over here before flying back to Lanzarote for the ‘party’ part of the celebrations and their friends over there. It really was the perfect celebration to suit my friends; her dress was beautiful and the lace hair piece (which she had instead of a veil) was so gorgeous and intricate. It was a wonderful day which very nearly ended up with us crashing a country dancing event that was also going on in the hotel!
  • Keeping with the wedding theme, I spent the last weekend in April on a hen party for my Potterhead friend who I’ve known since primary school. We had Potter-themed T-shirts, went on a cauldron cocktail making experience at the Cauldron Pub in London and then finished with a Witchcraft and Wizardry escape room at Escape Leicester. Cocktail making was so much fun – there were robes, interactive wands, magically stirring drinks, fire, mythical beast heads and alcohol a-plenty! It’s amazing we made it back to the train in one piece! The Escape Room was also an absolute blast. Unfortunately, we didn’t quite make it out of the room as we ran out of time, however we’re hoping to go back sometime to complete it again. We’re all such competitive people that the idea of not finishing the game left us slightly dejected until we saw online that it only had a 51% success rate… at least we weren’t the only ones not to finish!
  • The Racing Club I am a part of were treated to a morning on the gallops to watch one of our new horses whose stable-name is ‘Happy’. She wowed us with her speed so we’re looking forward to seeing what she can do once the summer season commences fully. Afterwards we were treated to some deliciously home-baked cakes. One of our members really has top-notch baking skills.
  • The rugby team I support has made it into the top 4 of our league which means we get to enter the play-offs this month! Our boys have worked so hard this year and we’re looking forward to seeing them get their rewards. The final games of the season will be super exciting!

April has been so fantastic and it seems like there is going to be so much to also look forward to in May.

How was your April? Did you meet your reading goals or see any cool films? What are you most looking forward to doing in May? As always, drop me a comment to chat!

T xx

 

Six for Sunday – Debut Books and Authors

Six For Sunday – Debut Books and Authors

Like a lot of us, I own way too many books! I would say that my TBR would be reaching, if not exceeding, the 100 mark and as we are planning on moving house fairly soon I’ve been on a self-imposed book buying ban since January (my Fairyloot subscription box doesn’t count!). Amazingly, I have been able stick to this and even more amazingly, I have been able to visit bookshops without buying anything! 😱 Most of my YA Fantasy books tend to come from my Fairyloot box therefore this year I’m trying to branch out and read more widely around the genre, especially as there are so many amazing authors and novels out there. I thought I would base my Six for Sunday this week on six debut books and authors which are on my TBR that I haven’t got around to buying/reading yet. Six for Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by Steph @A Little But A Lot   Pictures, title links and synopses all thanks to Goodreads.

Children of Blood and Bone by Tori Adeyemi34728667

This is one of those books that I saw hyped up all over social media, so when I saw it last year on the shelves of Tesco no less… I had to buy it straightaway. I’ve heard lots of good thing so I’m really hoping that I’ll get to it at some point this year.

They killed my mother.
They took our magic.
They tried to bury us.

Now we rise.

Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.
But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope.
Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.
Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.

Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young

34726469The blurb of this sounded amazing and I loved the Viking vibe as it added a new dimension to the YA Fantasy genre back when it was released last year. Sadly, I haven’t got around to reading it yet but I’ve heard that the audiobook is supposed to be good so I’m tempted to try that.

Raised to be a warrior, seventeen-year-old Eelyn fights alongside her Aska clansmen in an ancient rivalry against the Riki clan. Her life is brutal but simple: fight and survive. Until the day she sees the impossible on the battlefield—her brother, fighting with the enemy—the brother she watched die five years ago.

Faced with her brother’s betrayal, she must survive the winter in the mountains with the Riki, in a village where every neighbor is an enemy, every battle scar possibly one she delivered. But when the Riki village is raided by a ruthless clan thought to be a legend, Eelyn is even more desperate to get back to her beloved family.

She is given no choice but to trust Fiske, her brother’s friend, who sees her as a threat. They must do the impossible: unite the clans to fight together, or risk being slaughtered one by one. Driven by a love for her clan and her growing love for Fiske, Eelyn must confront her own definition of loyalty and family while daring to put her faith in the people she’s spent her life hating.

The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw

The Wicked Deep was another one of my impulse buys – purely because the title seemed to refer to the ocean/sea (and I still have no clue whether this book does or not!). It was also in one of those rare 3 for 2 offers that real-life bookshops seem to be doing less these days so Win/Win! It’s on my 2019 TBR pile…35297394

Welcome to the cursed town of Sparrow…
Where, two centuries ago, three sisters were sentenced to death for witchery. Stones were tied to their ankles and they were drowned in the deep waters surrounding the town.

Now, for a brief time each summer, the sisters return, stealing the bodies of three weak-hearted girls so that they may seek their revenge, luring boys into the harbor and pulling them under.

Like many locals, seventeen-year-old Penny Talbot has accepted the fate of the town. But this year, on the eve of the sisters’ return, a boy named Bo Carter arrives; unaware of the danger he has just stumbled into.

Mistrust and lies spread quickly through the salty, rain-soaked streets. The townspeople turn against one another. Penny and Bo suspect each other of hiding secrets. And death comes swiftly to those who cannot resist the call of the sisters.

But only Penny sees what others cannot. And she will be forced to choose: save Bo, or save herself.

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

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I remember when this book came out; there was an interview on BBC with Samantha and I am positive that I heard this was a 7 novel series and the film rights had already been sold before the book was even published. Now whether that’s still true I’m not entirely sure, but this is one of those ‘must-read’ series I keep hearing about over and over again so I’m interested in getting around to reading it.

The year is 2059. Nineteen-year-old Paige Mahoney is working in the criminal underworld of Scion London, based at Seven Dials, employed by a man named Jaxon Hall. Her job: to scout for information by breaking into people’s minds. For Paige is a dreamwalker, a clairvoyant and, in the world of Scion, she commits treason simply by breathing.

It is raining the day her life changes for ever. Attacked, drugged and kidnapped, Paige is transported to Oxford – a city kept secret for two hundred years, controlled by a powerful, otherworldly race. Paige is assigned to Warden, a Rephaite with mysterious motives. He is her master. Her trainer. Her natural enemy. But if Paige wants to regain her freedom she must allow herself to be nurtured in this prison where she is meant to die.

The Bone Season introduces a compelling heroine and also introduces an extraordinary young writer, with huge ambition and a teeming imagination. Samantha Shannon has created a bold new reality in this riveting debut.

The Near Witch by V.E. Schwab

42370636*Shock alert* – I have not read a single V.E. Schwab book! My mission for this year is to at least make a start and what better way then with the republication of her debut novel. I really liked the way that Schwab said the only thing she would change about it was the cover, rather than any of the actual writing. She also made a post on Instagram recently which was one of those meaningful comments which come into life at the exact moment you need to hear it (I had to write it down and stick it into my diary straightaway). I’m really hoping I love her work just as much as the hype suggests I will!

All-new deluxe edition of an out-of-print gem, containing in-universe short story “The Ash-Born Boy” and a never-before-seen introduction from V.E. Schwab.

The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children.

If the wind calls at night, you must not listen. The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.

There are no strangers in the town of Near.

These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life.

But when an actual stranger, a boy who seems to fade like smoke, appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true.
The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion.

As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi’s need to know about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy.

 

Descendant of the Crane by Joan He

36430989Ok, I know this book is not quite published yet, however I am so excited for this release and the cover looks beautiful. My bookstagram is full of people who seem to be loving this! It may very well be the book to break my self-imposed book buying ban for!

Princess Hesina of Yan has always been eager to shirk the responsibilities of the crown, dreaming of an unremarkable life. But when her beloved father is found dead, she’s thrust into power, suddenly the queen of a surprisingly unstable kingdom. What’s more, Hesina believes that her father was murdered—and that the killer is someone close to her.

Hesina’s court is packed full of dissemblers and deceivers eager to use the king’s death for political gain, each as plausibly guilty as the next. Her advisers would like her to blame the neighboring kingdom of Kendi’a, whose ruler has been mustering for war. Determined to find her father’s actual killer, Hesina does something desperate: she enlists the aid of a soothsayer—a treasonous act, punishable by death, since magic was outlawed centuries ago.

Using the information provided by the sooth, and uncertain if she can trust her family, Hesina turns to Akira—a brilliant investigator who’s also a convicted criminal with secrets of his own. With the future of Yan at stake, can Hesina find justice for her father? Or will the cost be too high?

There we have it – six debut books and authors that are on my never-ending TBR list. Have you read any of these? Which one should I start first? Drop me a comment, I love to chat!

T xx

TTT – Books on my Spring TBR

Bibliofriends, it’s Tuesday! That means it’s time for one of my favourite lists of the week!

Top Ten Tuesday is a book tag hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s theme is ‘Books on my Spring TBR’. Last week I could barely think of ten things to put in my list whereas this week there are absolutely no shortage of books which could fit into my top ten; I could probably write a Top 50 to be honest! Saying that, my time for reading is becoming increasingly shorter and I cannot thank Goodreads enough for the persistent reminder that I am ‘3 books behind schedule’. 🙄

So here is my Top Ten Spring TBR or as I like to call it – “a list of all the Fairyloot books I haven’t read yet, with some others from my shelf”.
[Synopses from Goodreads]

10) The Storm Crow by Kalyn Josephson [Fairyloot]
An extra ARC goodie from December’s Dragon box!

In the tropical kingdom of Rhodaire, magical, elemental Crows are part of every aspect of life…until the Illucian empire invades, destroying everything. That terrible night has thrown Princess Anthia into a deep depression. Her sister Caliza is busy running the kingdom after their mother’s death, but all Thia can do is think of all she has lost. But when Caliza is forced to agree to a marriage between Thia and the crown prince of Illucia, Thia is finally spurred into action. And after stumbling upon a hidden Crow egg in the rubble of a rookery, she and her sister devise a dangerous plan to hatch the egg in secret and get back what was taken from them.

9) Skyward by Brandon Sanderson [Fairyloot]
Rookie alert: I have never read anything by Brandon Sanderson and I’m not a typical Sci-fi kinda girl BUT I’ve been hearing loads of great things about this one.

Defeated, crushed, and driven almost to extinction, the remnants of the human race are trapped on a planet that is constantly attacked by mysterious alien starfighters. Spensa, a teenage girl living among them, longs to be a pilot. When she discovers the wreckage of an ancient ship, she realizes this dream might be possible—assuming she can repair the ship, navigate flight school, and (perhaps most importantly) persuade the strange machine to help her. Because this ship, uniquely, appears to have a soul.

8) Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan [Fairyloot]
Pink sprayed edges and the promise of a forbidden romance – I am there!

In this lush fantasy, Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most oppressed class in Ikhara. She lives in a remote village with her father, where the decade-old trauma of watching her mother snatched by royal guards still haunts her. Now, the guards are back, and this time it’s Lei they’re after–the girl whose golden eyes have piqued the king’s interest. Over weeks of training in the opulent but stifling palace, Lei and eight other girls learn the skills and charm that befit being a king’s consort. But Lei isn’t content to watch her fate consume her. Instead, she does the unthinkable–she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens the very foundation of Ikhara, and Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide just how far she’s willing to go for justice and revenge.

7) Mirage by Somaiya Daud [Fairyloot]
This book premise intrigues me (in a good way); I thought it was some sort of Middle Eastern style desert fantasy and then I read ‘star system’…

In a star system dominated by the brutal Vathek empire, eighteen-year-old Amani is a dreamer. She dreams of what life was like before the occupation; she dreams of writing poetry like the old-world poems she adores; she dreams of receiving a sign from Dihya that one day, she, too, will have adventure, and travel beyond her isolated moon. But when adventure comes for Amani, it is not what she expects: she is kidnapped by the regime and taken in secret to the royal palace, where she discovers that she is nearly identical to the cruel half-Vathek Princess Maram. The princess is so hated by her conquered people that she requires a body double, someone to appear in public as Maram, ready to die in her place. As Amani is forced into her new role, she can’t help but enjoy the palace’s beauty—and her time with the princess’ fiancé, Idris. But the glitter of the royal court belies a world of violence and fear. If Amani ever wishes to see her family again, she must play the princess to perfection…because one wrong move could lead to her death.

6) Fire and Heist by Sarah Beth Durst [Fairyloot]
Dragons on the cover; mention of a heist – welcome to the TBR list!

In Sky Hawkins’s family, leading your first heist is a major milestone–even more so than learning to talk, walk, or do long division. It’s a chance to gain power and acceptance within your family, and within society. But stealing your first treasure can be complicated, especially when you’re a wyvern–a human capable of turning into a dragon. Embarking on a life of crime is never easy, and Sky discovers secrets about her mother, who recently went missing, the real reason her boyfriend broke up with her, and a valuable jewel that could restore her family’s wealth and rank in their community. With a handpicked crew by her side, Sky knows she has everything she needs to complete her first heist, and get her boyfriend and mother back in the process. But then she uncovers a dark truth about were-dragon society–a truth more valuable and dangerous than gold or jewels could ever be.

5) Circle of Shadows by Evelyn Skye [Fairyloot]
Espionage ninja warriors…the anticipation builds!

Sora can move as silently as a ghost and hurl throwing stars with lethal accuracy. Her gemina, Daemon, can win any physical fight blindfolded and with an arm tied around his back. They are apprentice warriors of the Society of Taigas—marked by the gods to be trained in magic and the fighting arts to protect the kingdom of Kichona. As their graduation approaches, Sora and Daemon look forward to proving themselves worthy of belonging in the elite group—but in a kingdom free of violence since the Blood Rift Rebellion many years ago, it’s been difficult to make their mark. So when Sora and Daemon encounter a strange camp of mysterious soldiers while on a standard scouting mission, they decide the only thing to do to help their kingdom is to infiltrate the group. Taking this risk will change Sora’s life forever—and lead her on a mission of deception that may fool everyone she’s ever loved.

4) The Lost Sisters by Holly Black
This is going to be like my slow dose of deliberately administered poison (Jude fans – you get this right?!). I’m going to try and read it little by little just to tide me over until Queen of Nothing which seems so…far…away…! What are the chances I’ll devour it in one go?!

While Jude fought for power in the Court of Elfhame against the cruel Prince Cardan, her sister Taryn began to fall in love with the trickster, Locke. Half-apology and half-explanation, it turns out that Taryn has some secrets of her own to reveal. 
The Lost Sisters is a companion e-novella to the New York Times bestselling novel The Cruel Prince by master writer Holly Black.

3) The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw
This book had me at the word ‘witchery’.

Where, two centuries ago, three sisters were sentenced to death for witchery. Stones were tied to their ankles and they were drowned in the deep waters surrounding the town. Now, for a brief time each summer, the sisters return, stealing the bodies of three weak-hearted girls so that they may seek their revenge, luring boys into the harbor and pulling them under. Like many locals, seventeen-year-old Penny Talbot has accepted the fate of the town. But this year, on the eve of the sisters’ return, a boy named Bo Carter arrives; unaware of the danger he has just stumbled into. Mistrust and lies spread quickly through the salty, rain-soaked streets. The townspeople turn against one another. Penny and Bo suspect each other of hiding secrets. And death comes swiftly to those who cannot resist the call of the sisters. But only Penny sees what others cannot. And she will be forced to choose: save Bo, or save herself.

2) Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo
Wonder Woman + Bardugo = immediate TBR inclusion

Daughter of immortals.
Princess Diana longs to prove herself to her legendary warrior sisters. But when the opportunity finally comes, she throws away her chance at glory and breaks Amazon law—risking exile—to save a mortal. Diana will soon learn that she has rescued no ordinary girl, and that with this single brave act, she may have doomed the world.
Daughter of death.
Alia Keralis just wanted to escape her overprotective brother with a semester at sea. She doesn’t know she is being hunted by people who think her very existence could spark a world war. When a bomb detonates aboard her ship, Alia is rescued by a mysterious girl of extraordinary strength and forced to confront a horrible truth: Alia is a Warbringer—a direct descendant of the infamous Helen of Troy, fated to bring about an age of bloodshed and misery.
Together.
Two girls will face an army of enemies—mortal and divine—determined to either destroy or possess the Warbringer. Tested beyond the bounds of their abilities, Diana and Alia must find a way to unleash hidden strengths and forge an unlikely alliance. Because if they have any hope of saving both their worlds, they will have to stand side by side against the tide of war.

1) A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer [Fairyloot]
Beauty and the Beast is one of my favourite fairytales therefore I was so happy when this came in February’s Beast and Beauty box. It will definitely be the next book I read!

Fall in love, break the curse.
It once seemed so easy to Prince Rhen, the heir to Emberfall. Cursed by a powerful enchantress to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year over and over, he knew he could be saved if a girl fell for him. But that was before he learned that at the end of each autumn, he would turn into a vicious beast hell-bent on destruction. That was before he destroyed his castle, his family, and every last shred of hope. Nothing has ever been easy for Harper Lacy. With her father long gone, her mother dying, and her brother barely holding their family together while constantly underestimating her because of her cerebral palsy, she learned to be tough enough to survive. But when she tries to save someone else on the streets of Washington, DC, she’s instead somehow sucked into Rhen’s cursed world.
Break the curse, save the kingdom.
A prince? A monster? A curse? Harper doesn’t know where she is or what to believe. But as she spends time with Rhen in this enchanted land, she begins to understand what’s at stake. And as Rhen realizes Harper is not just another girl to charm, his hope comes flooding back. But powerful forces are standing against Emberfall . . . and it will take more than a broken curse to save Harper, Rhen, and his people from utter ruin.

There we have it! Have you read any of these yet? Let me know your thoughts!

Happy reading!

T xx