The Best Bookish Surprise

Yesterday my order of my Hogwarts Library came in!
 

My day couldn't get any better! But then it did because I realized that my copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard is SIGNED!!!!!!




This is the most beautiful thing ever. J.K. Rowling signed one of the books I OWN!!!!!!!!!!!!



Without further ado, here's my signed copy and box set in all its beauty. :D

 

Isn't it beautiful? What's your most prized novel? Do you have any special signed copies? Let me know down below!

A Belated Book Haul

               

Yay a book haul! It's been a while and I had a lot of fun filming.:D

Have you read any of these? Let me know down below! Link me to book hauls. I love looking at pretty books.:)

Radiant by Karina Sumner-Smith

Radiant by Karina Smith Sumner
First in the Towers Trilogy

3.5 stars

Xhea lives in the ruins beneath the floating Towers, where most of the magical influential people reside, and even in the slums she’s an outcast. Xhea is magicless. She lives in a world where magic is key to everyday survival and she has to pickpocket and con people to survive. She does have something she can use to her advantage- she has the ability to see ghosts still tethered to this world. A rich man from the floating City comes to Xhea with a spirit of a young girl attached to him. Shai, is a Radiant, she has so much power generating within her that she sustains her Tower to keep floating in the sky. Shai’s Tower won’t let her go so easily and this outcast is going to have to learn to make a friend and save a life.



"Maybe up close you don’t notice it, but Towers are always falling, always rising. Fortunes made and lost, goals achieved, lives ruined. Little shifts of magic and status, horizon to horizon.”

Radiant is like witches and zombies in a dystopian world, but not actual witches or zombies. The most unique thing about Radiant in a sea of overhyped dystopian dribble is that the world itself is complex. The world ended long ago and the humans that remain all have magic within them. Certain people have enough magic that they are able to sustain or help sustain Towers- which are giant skyscrapers floating in the sky. People who don’t have this much ability or weren’t born into families that live there live in the desolate remains of New York City. Xhea as a character in this world is even more complex because she is magicless, or so she thinks. It is revealed very early on that Xhea does have a magical ability, but it isn’t one of much use and she is technically still useless in this magical world. The zombies who aren’t really zombies are even more complicated. They are basically these creatures who roam around at night in the slums of NYC and it’s not 100% revealed if they eat people are if the reanimations of dead people from before the destruction of the city occurred or after. This probably makes zero to no sense.


The coolest thing about Radiant is that there are flying elevators! How cool is that? The elevators are controlled by magic and Xhea doesn’t use them for a long portion of the book because well she is magicless and has no use for them.


Also because Xhea doesn’t have magical abilities her whole world is only black and white, which is a pretty amazing concept and it was very well done. I liked the feeling of a bleak outlook through Xhea’s eyes. It made it easier to see how different she was in this world.



"Normal people don’t have ghosts.”

The main female characters are Xhea and Shai. I really like both Xhea and Shai. Xhea has a lot of great backstory that is slowly revealed bit by bit in different times of the story. Her past is what really molded Xhea to be the reclusive, untrusting, snarky person we meet. She was also very sneaky, but it’s a talent she needs to survive and evade the people who try to capture her. Xhea did have her annoying moments and there were times when she would just become a drag to read about (but it isn’t overwhelming to the story). I like Shai, but I also feel like she didn’t have enough development or background. She did get a good bit, but I feel like I never truly met Shai. It was always Shai the Ghost, not Shai before she died.


Kick-Butt Heroine Scale: Xhea-6.5 Shai-6

There is NO romance in this story.

I know it’s a weird thing to come across now days in YA dystopian, but there’s only friendship and me shipping Xhea with this guy named Brend. I’m not 100% sure why I shipped them because I read this story last year (June-November).


There weren’t too many characters in this novel besides Shai and Xhea, but the ones introduced didn’t feel concrete or as impactful to the story’s development as they should have been.


Character Scale: 5

The thing that bogs Radiant down is that there is too much going on at one time. Just the world alone is weighty. Throw in all the action and character development of Xhea and this book feels like it’s sinking in water. This book is 400 pages and that’s not a lot, but because of how much is packed into this story it felt a bit overwhelming. The ending was solid and action packed, fun, but it was wrapped up very nicely. Maybe a little too nicely for the first novel in a trilogy. While I do think I’ll give this series a shot, with the ending I feel like it’s not something I need to pick up because it was pretty satisfying.


Cover Thoughts: I like the cover a lot. It has a very good perception of the world and it fits the story, but why does the girl have blonde hair? I was under the impression that she wasn’t white because she had dreads.

Thank you, Edelweiss for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I'm sorry for my absence. I've been in a bit of reviewing slump and lost my mojo. I'm trying to focus on school right now and while I want to write reviews every week or even several times a week, I can't at this moment. 

I Can't Pronounce Words in Books

As a lover of books I've noticed I can't pronounce half of the words I read aloud. Are any of these words or books full of hard words for you, too? Let me know down below in the comments.:D

 

Let's Discuss: Fanfiction

I'm sure I'm not adding anything to this discussion and it's probably been over talked, but I made a video about my thoughts. I really want to discuss fanfiction. Leave me comments down below and let's talk!

An Intro into Graphic Novels

I've recently started reading graphic novels and here's just a few.

Outcast by Robert Kirkman and Paul Azaceta

Volume 1

4.5 stars

Outcast focuses on demons. Kyle Barnes has been surrounded by demonic possessions his whole life. He doesn’t know why or why he can get rid of demons with one touch, but he wants to find out. Basically this is a badass comic about demons similar to Sister Mary Eunice.

I don’t know about you but Sister Mary Eunice was one of my favorite things about Asylum and while demons freak me out and sometimes make me uncomfortable, I really enjoyed the plot behind this volume. Robert Kirkman is probably one of the best known comic artists of our time. (If you don’t know Kirkman is writer and creator of The Walking Dead.) This is my first taste of Kirkman in anything besides TWD TV show, but I definitely want to check out the comics now. The artwork in Outcast is complex and gripping. Outcast has an awesome plot and I’m curious to see where the storyline goes from where it left off. Here’s a taste of the art:



Cover Thoughts: I love the cover and I love the art on it. The colors are beautiful and I like the tone it sets.

Thank you, Netgalley and Image Comics for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Good-bye Geist by Ryo Hanada and Julianne Neville

2 stars

I’m honestly not sure how to describe the storyline of this manga. It’s not because I don’t want to spoil anything or because the storyline was so complex that I just don’t know how to word it. It’s because I didn’t know what the fuck was going on throughout all 176 pages of it.

I’m not sure what the purpose behind this manga was. The plot was confusing and convoluted. I wasn’t able to keep up with where the story was going with weird character breaks and storyline jumps. I used to be a huge manga lover. It was all I read at one point, but I’m honestly questioning my sanity it my manga tastes or if all manga I read was like this. Here’s the art (decide for yourself if you want to be tortured):



Cover Thoughts: This cover is weird. I like the pink, but the longer I look the cover the more I dislike it.

Thank you, Netgalley and Gen Manga Entertainment for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.  

The Wicked + The Divine by Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie

Volume 1
3.5 stars

Here’s one of those plots that I’m not a hundred percent sure how to explain so here goes: Basically this young girl gets involved with famous people who happen to be gods. There’s a lot of blood, great artwork, and high sarcasm levels from a character that was the best thing about this comic. The opening for this graphic novel is confusing, but don’t let that stop you from continuing on. The artwork is beautiful and once the story it gets going it gets good. There are a lot of moments where I was confused but it’s not hard to look past in times where it snags. In all honesty the best thing about the graphic novel was the storyline about Gods. It was pretty cool! Here’s some beautiful art:




Cover Thoughts: The reason I requested this graphic novel was because of the cover and the fact that I thought it would be one of the more entertaining graphic novels.
Thank you, Netgalley and Image Comics for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. 

Have you read any of these? Do you want to? Let me know down below in the comments.:D

An Intro Into the Grishaverse

What is the Grishaverse? It's a nickname for the Grisha trilogy by Leigh Bardugo. I'm currently reading the sequel to Shadow and Bone, Siege and Storm. I realized recently that I hadn't reviewed Shadow and Bone and it's novellas that I enjoyed. So here are the reviews for The Witch of Duva, Shadow and Bone, and The Tailor.

The Witch of Duva by Leigh Bardugo

Prequel to the Shadow and Bone trilogy

5 stars

There was once a monster in the woods of Duva. Little girls would wonder in and be eaten. No one knew who the monster was or where it came from, but Nadya’s father is getting married to the monster… or so it seems. Nadya finds herself in the woods with a witch… who could be the monster just as much as the one hiding in her house. I love folktales. There’s just something about folktales that always entrance me and make my palms sweat and my heart race with wonder. As a child, Hansel and Gretel was one of my favorite stories. A witch in the woods who fattens kids up with sweets and eats them was horrifying, but I couldn’t get enough of the story. Bardugo loosely bases this Ravkan folktale on this children’s tale. If you haven’t read the Shadow and Bone trilogy, Ravka is the setting of the trilogy. I really enjoy the corporation of a folktale into Ravka society. I love to learn little things about fantasy worlds because that’s what makes the world. Reading about a story that centers on a folktale told around Ravka to scare children makes the world seem solid and real.


This short story is absolutely gorgeous. The writing is beautiful. The story is shocking. That’s saying a lot since this story is only 43 pages. I can’t say more than that because I don’t want to give anything away. Just know that this story is beautiful and it’s worth the read whether you’re a fan of Bardugo or just in want of a quick story with substance.


Cover Thoughts: I love this cover. It’s so stunning and gorgeous. The Tor.com story always have the best artwork.

You can read this story online free here

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

First in the Grisha trilogy

5 stars

Ravka is a nation torn into two by the Black Heretic who created the Shadow Fold, a sea of darkness with horrifying features looking to feast on human flesh. Alina lives the life of a mapmaker for the army. When she enters the Fold and her best friend, Mal, is attacked she finds a power within herself. She’s a Grisha, but not just any Grisha. She can summon light- branded as a Sun Summoner and the counterpart to the Darkling. Alina enters royal court. She learns that nothing is what it seems in this new world fueled by deceit and strategies that have Ravkans’ lives on the line. A review for Shadow and Bone is long overdue. Like most of my reviews are. I still haven’t reviewed my beloved Harry Potter series (I have some reviews written, but it’s an ongoing process). My love for this book was surprising. I knew I would be intrigued by Shadow and Bone, but I wasn’t expecting to love it the way I did. I read this book in the car. While that doesn’t seem odd for most readers I hardly ever read in the car, but I read this book going and coming back from NOLA. This book was entrancing. I loved every second of Shadow and Bone. The writing was magical. The characters were captivating. The storyline kept me on my toes and anticipating what lied behind the next pages. I was enamored with the Grishaverse. I fell in love. Not in love like some of my novels, but this novel charmed me into loving it. I feel like a school girl who has a first crush while writing this review. I can’t seem to form coherent thoughts. It also probably doesn’t help that I fell for this novel back in July and it’s almost February.



The main female character is Alina. I love Alina’s backstory. Something about reading it was interesting and compelling. I loved her moments in the castle and discovering who she was not only as a Grisha but as a person. Alina is strong and resilient, but she is also caring. The thing I like most about her is that she knows she isn’t the most beautiful girl in the world, but I also wish she had more confidence in realizing that she must be beautiful to attain to very attractive men’s attentions.



Kick-Butt Heroine Scale: 8.5

The main male characters are Mal and The Darkling. Mal… I was conflicted at first. I admit I didn’t like him very much. Mostly because he was too charming (I’m still not his biggest fan), but I also loved those last sweet moments of the book before the shit hit the fan again. He is hard not to like, but with the way Siege and Storm is going Mal is losing his touch.



Swoon Worthy Scale: 7

The Villain- Ah, the Darkling. I would be lying if I said the Darkling wasn’t my favorite thing about this novel. The Darkling is just so powerful, cunning, evil, vindictive, charming, and I love him. I shouldn’t love him because he can be so cruel, but I love him. It’s probably unhealthy, isn’t it?





Villain Scale: 9

Swoon Worthy Scale: 10

I love the complexity of all the characters in this novel. Characters like Genya are my favorite. She was a great character and I don’t want to go into too much detail because then I would spoil it.


Character Scale: 8.5



I think this novel is amazing and I highly recommend it. If you haven’t picked it up yet, give it a shot because it is entertaining and a fun adventure to go on. Plus it will give you feels. How can you say no to that?!?



Cover Thoughts: I love this cover! It is so beautiful and now that I’m reading the second book I just realized that Morozova’s stag’s antlers are on the cover and that gives me feels. This cover is beautifully done.

The Tailor by Leigh Bardugo

1.5 in the Grisha trilogy

4.5 stars

This a short story told from Genya’s point of view set during Shadow and Bone. I loved Genya quite a lot in Shadow and Bone. I thought her character was great. She had a lot of layers.(That could also be a pun because she’s a tailor and it’s cold in Ravka.) Anyway as a short story, I thought this was fantastic. There was character development and a little plot twist from Shadow and Bone that was further elaborated. I think Bardugo has a gift of writing great characters. I want to hate Genya, but I can’t. I like her too much. And Darkling. That man is horrifying and beautiful. Like Tate from AHS.


Cover Thoughts: I want to attend the palace and walk through the halls. It sounds so beautiful.

You can read this story free online here.

What are your thoughts on the Grisha trilogy? Are you a  fan? Let me know down below in the comments.:D