First Lines Friday #31

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?  If you want to make your own post, feel free to use or edit the banner above, and follow the rules below:

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first (I cheat a little bit here 😉)
  • Finally… reveal the book!

If you’re using Twitter, don’t forget to use #FirstLinesFridays!


Hello, reader!

We’ve made it to the end of another week and that means it’s time for First Lines Friday! I would be more hyped about the end of the work week, but I’m actually working this weekend. So, to get me in a better mood, I figured I would feature a book that I’ve started reading recently and has me wanting to read nothing else!

I know the first few lines captured my interest, but let’s see if they can entice you, as well.


The Line(s):

“Time had run away from me again, but I couldn’t afford to let it escape, not today. It chastised me like an unruly student with every tick and tock. Even as a child, I could never be constrained by time, could never obey its laws or heed its lessons. Time had finally grown impatient with my attempts to catch up.”


The Hints:

This is a recently published fantasy that is the first in a series.

The world contained in this story is centered around a myriad of gods.

And the mortals are as varied as the gods that rule over them!


The Reveal:

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Red (Taylor’s Version) Book Tag

Hello, reader!

Today on the blog, I’m bringing a music inspired book tag. This is the Red (Taylor’s Version) Book Tag as created by Tiffany @ Gazer of Books! Now, I’m not the biggest Swiftie, but I do like her a lot of her music. Folklore was on repeat in my car for an embarrassingly long amount of time. I also love her current project of redoing her old albums so they reflect how she really wanted them to sound. So, while I wasn’t waiting with bated breath for the release of the new and improved Red album, I still enjoyed it when it came out.

That being said, when Tiffany put out a call for bloggers who would like to be tagged, I jumped at the chance. Now, let’s put some music and get to the post!


The Rules:

  • Link to the original creator and her post: Tiffany from Gazer of Books
  • Declare the rules and list of prompts in your post (Feel free to copy the original format and graphics!)
  • Tag all the Swifties in your life!

The Prompts:

Red blurred background,text says: State of Grace - A Painful Romantic Love

State of Grace – A Painful Romantic Love

Though I don’t know how their romance will ultimately end, the first one that popped into my mind was Alyce and Aurora from Malice by Heather Walter. Everything in this story is conspiring against these two and it makes my heart hurt! I loved this story quite a bit and I’m eager to see how their love story will end in the sequel.


Red blurred background, text says: RED - A Book or Character That Makes You See RED

Red – A Book or Character That Makes You See RED

Ooo, do I get to talk about my hatred of Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë again? Because that book is the WORST! I apologize to all the WH lovers out there, but I hated this book so much, I “lost” it as soon as I was done with it. I liked literally nothing about it; not the characters, not the plot, not the writing. Everything about this book made me want to raaaaage. Ugh… never again…


RED blurred background, text says: Treacherous - A Book You Couldn't Help But Buy

Treacherous – A Book You Couldn’t Help But Buy

Definitely House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas. Look. I wanted to try a SJM book and this cover was very pretty.

I also came across it in a Target, I believe, and I just… couldn’t… resist! I snapped it up and now it sits on my TBR bookshelf with all of my other impulse buys 😂

Still, I am excited to read this one!

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WWW Wednesday: Jan 18, 2022

It’s time for another WWW Wednesday! This is a bookish meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words where bloggers answer the 3 Ws:

  1. What are you currently reading?
  2. What did you recently finish reading?
  3. What do you think you’ll read next?

If you’d like to learn more about any of these books, click on the cover to be taken to the Goodreads page.


Current Reads

  • False Value by Ben Aaronovitch: I started the eighth book of the Rivers of London series for an informal readalong and, y’all… I think this one might be my favorite in the series so far. I’m in the middle of Part Two, so it may be a little earlier to call it, but I am loving this addition to the world! It’s funny to think how much Peter has grown as a character since the first book. I think this one is showcasing it more than any of the previous installments. I’m eager to keep going!
  • The Thirteenth Hour by Trudie Skies: I started reading this yesterday as The Write Reads blog tour for it is coming up soon. Everyone. Listen. This book has absolutely captured my imagination! It’s a complex world filled with gods and different societies that are equal but not. It started off with a bang and I am hooked! It makes me even more excited to do my tour post 😄
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Mini Reviews: Novellas Edition

Hello, reader!

I’m back with some mini reviews today. As a big consumer of fantasy, I tend to read a lot of longer books. Fantasy writers have a lot to get into a story and, sometimes, that can lead to some chonky books. Lately, though, I’ve found myself really getting into shorter fiction. That’s why I figured it was time to do a mini review of some mini books, aka novellas!

I’ve been having a great time with the novellas I’ve read recently, but am so behind on actually reviewing them! That being said, let’s jump into this post, shall we?


Title: Remote Control

Author: Nnedi Okorafor

Publisher: Tor.com

Genre: Science Fiction

CW/TW: Child abuse, body horror, grief & loss depiction, death of a family member, gun violence, animal death

Rating: ★★★★

Links:
Bookshop::TBD::B&N::Amazon::
Goodreads

Nnedi Okorafor has been on my radar for quite some time, but this was my first experience reading her work. Now, I wish to read everything she has ever written!

In Remote Control, we follow the story of a young girl who has lost her name and been adopted by Death. After a tragic event, Sankofa becomes her new name and death follows wherever she goes. She spends her days wandering Ghana with her small fox companion, trying to find answers and an object that fell from the sky and changed her life.

This was such an incredible, quiet read. You would think a book about a girl that brings death with her would be more in-you-face, but this book is much more a character study that was strangely calm. Even when the character was surrounded by death and destruction. I absolutely loved the writing in this story and how it gripped me from beginning to end. I loved Fatima/Sankofa and following her around as she searches for answers to her suffering. Watching her character growth and her interactions with the world around her was a treat! And, even though I could have followed this story for chapters and chapters more, it still felt like a fully formed and finished book in this short amount of pages. I can’t wait to read more from this author!

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#5OnMyTBR – Celebrity/Famous

#5OnMyTBR is a bookish meme hosted by E. @ Local Bee Hunter’s Nook where you chose five books from your to-be-read pile that fit that week’s theme. If you’d like more info, head over to the announcement post!


Hello, reader!

It’s time for another 5 On My TBR and the theme for this week certainly made me think. The theme is celebrity/famous and it took me a minute to figure out how I wanted to interpret this. Did I want to choose books written about celebrities or famous people? Did I want to choose fiction where the main character is a celebrity or famous? What I ended up choosing are books written by a celebrity!

It was literally the only way I could get to five books 😂

I’m not one who follows celebrities and their lives and I’m not a huge fan of memoirs. So there was a moment where I didn’t think I would have enough books to do this week’s post! But I found five books on my TBR that fit the bill. Let’s get to the list so I can share them with you.


#1. Yes Please by Amy Poehler

Amy Poehler is probably one of my favorite comediennes on the planet. I loved her in Parks & Rec and I feel like this book would be a lot of fun. I also wouldn’t mind learning more about her as a person. She just seems like she would be cool to hang out with, ya know? Anyways, that’s why this memoir (not my favorite genre, as we’ve established) has stuck around on my TBR.

#2. America (The Book) by Jon Stewart

I was a big Daily Show fan back when Jon Stewart was the host. Not saying Trevor Noah is bad, just that I no longer have cable. That’s probably why this book ended up on my TBR. I like his humor and learning more about politics and civics, so this seemed like a perfect fit for me! We’ll see if I ever actually read it, though, because I always forget it’s a thing 😅

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The 12 Challenge: 12 months, 12 books, 12 friends

Hello, reader!

If you spend anytime in the online bookish community, you probably already know what this post is about. You probably saw a certain graphic floating around the internet at the beginning of 2022. If not, let me give you a peek at the beautiful template made by @shadowbooker over on Instagram!

Image

This graphic/challenge prompts you to read 12 books that have been recommended to you by 12 friends. It sounded like fun (and was literally everywhere), so I figured I would give it a shot! So, through a mix of both online and IRL friends and family, I cobbled together a TBR of twelve recommendations that I wish to read in 2022.


My 12 Challenge

First, I want to say “Thank you!” to everyone who gave me a recommendation! I made sure to ask for books beyond my usual SFF realm and y’all certainly delivered. I think I have a good mix of SFF, mystery/thriller, and romance going on here and that’s exactly what I asked for. I do love my fantasy and science fiction, but 2022 feels like a good year to try and branch out a little more. That being said, let’s take a look at the books that I ended up choosing from all your wonderful recommendations ❤

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ARC Review: These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong

Title: These Violent Delights

Author: Chloe Gong

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Genre: Fantasy

Content/Trigger Warnings: For a list of potential content and trigger warnings, check out this book’s page on BookTriggerWarnings.com

Rating: ★★★★★

Book Links:
Bookshop::TBD::B&N::Amazon::
Goodreads

One Sentence Synopsis

Juliette Cai and Roma Montagov are the heirs to two rival gangs in 1926 Shanghai who must work together, despite their difficult past, to save their city.

Favorite Quote

“Memories were beastly little creatures, after all – they rose with the faintest whiff of nourishment.”

Read More »

First Lines Friday #30

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?  If you want to make your own post, feel free to use or edit the banner above, and follow the rules below:

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

If you’re using Twitter, don’t forget to use #FirstLinesFridays!


Hello, reader!

We’ve made it to another Friday, which means that it’s time for First Lines Friday! Today, I’m featuring a book that I started reading recently and am absolutely loving! It’s hard putting this one down when I start reading and that’s always a good sign.

The story certainly already has me hooked. Now let’s see if the first few lines can capture your interest, as well!


The Line(s):

“They shouldn’t have been out on the snow.
‘The snow hides death,’ the Fira people would claim, one of the many cheerful sayings taught to their children as soon as they were old enough to learn. And with good reason. The snow was a deadly place to be.
But the ball wasn’t that far away.”


The Hints:

This is a middle grade novel that is the first in a series.

This book is a perfect read for the winter season.

It has incredible illustrations that really add to the story!


The Reveal:

Read More »

Down the TBR Hole #22

It’s time for a new round of Down the TBR Hole! This is where I go through my Goodreads ‘Want to Read’ shelf and do a bit of cleaning up. If you want to see the full description of what this post is all about, check out my first round HERE.


Hello, reader!

As you may recall from my last round of Down the TBR Hole, I had added a ton of books to my Want to Read shelf and I didn’t take many off. There were a lot of incredible sounding books in the last one, I couldn’t help myself. Still, I managed to get my TBR list down to 721 books. And where am I sitting currently?

*cough*728 books*cough*

To be fair, there have been so many “2022 Most Anticipated!” lists and blog post coming out and ya girl is weak! At least I’ve been good about sticking to my buying ban. We are only on the second week of the new year, though… give it time. Still, that’s why I do this post! To try and whittle this TBR down, though we all know it’s a never-ending thing, haha.

With that being said, let’s get into round 22!


Descendants by Rae Else

I don’t remember putting this on my TBR, but that’s not really saying much 😂 After reading the synopsis, it sounds like a generic YA fantasy, though. Girl has mysterious power she didn’t know she had until she caused some catastrophe and now she’s on the run from powerful forces. I think I’ll give this one a pass.

Verdict: Remove


In The Heights by Lin-Manuel Miranda

My love of Broadway is peeking through with this TBR addition! I already own this book, so it’s definitely staying on the TBR. In The Heights is one of my favorite Broadway musicals, so I kind of had to pick this up. Eventually I will get around to reading it, probably while listening to the soundtrack for max effect!

Verdict: Keep


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

Oh, I’m most definitely keeping this one! This is a beloved book in the bookish community and one I’ve wanted to read for awhile. I actually have the audiobook because it’s narrated by the man who wrote the previous one, haha. Perhaps I’ll make this my first audiobook of 2022!

Verdict: Keep

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WWW Wednesday: Jan 12, 2022

It’s time for another WWW Wednesday! This is a bookish meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words where bloggers answer the 3 Ws:

  1. What are you currently reading?
  2. What did you recently finish reading?
  3. What do you think you’ll read next?

If you’d like to learn more about any of these books, click on the cover to be taken to the Goodreads page.


Current Reads

  • Revenge of the Beast by Jack Meggitt-Phillips: This is the sequel to one of the funniest middle grade books I read in 2020! I’m reading it for my first The Write Reads tour of 2022 and I’m so excited to participate. So far, this is just as tongue-in-cheek and engaging as the first book. I’ve only read a couple chapter, but I’m loving it!
  • Frostheart by Jamie Littler: I’ve been wanting to read this middle grade novel for ages! Winter seems like the perfect time to do it, as well. This is the January pick for Middle Grade Marvels. I love discussing middle grade novels with this group and I’ve found some new favorites because of them! I’ve just started this one, too, and, so far, I’m having a great time.
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