WWW Wednesday: Aug 17, 2022

August 17, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd2 Comments

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:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
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

A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger: I’m reading this for one of my Goodreads groups and, so far, I’m really enjoying it! It has an interesting structure and I love both Nina and Oli. I might be a little partial to Oli, but that’s probably because I find the concept of animal people fascinating! Also, Oli is adorably sweet and I feel like I must protect him at all costs. I’m looking forward to getting more into this one.
The Hawthorne Legacy by Jennifer Lynn Barnes: I’ve finally started the second book in the The Inheritance Games series! Not gonna lie, I may have forgotten quite a few details from the end of the first book. Thankfully, the author does a great job of weaving a mini-recap into the narrative of this story. I’m enjoying getting to know Avery and the Hawthorne boys again and, though I’ve just started, there are already riddles on top of riddles. I will say that the audiobook narrator’s Texan accents are… not great, but I’m not gonna hold it against her 😂

Continue reading →

top 5 tuesday

Top 5 Tuesday: Books With Swords

August 16, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd3 Comments

Top 5 Tuesday is a fun, weekly meme that asks you to pick 5 books that fit that week’s theme. It was created by Bionic Bookworm and is currently being hosted by Meeghan Reads. You should check out their wonderful blog for more details and the list of prompts!

Hello, reader!

We’ve arrived at another lovely Tuesday, which means it’s time for a Top 5 Tuesday post! This week, I had a much easier time with the scavenger hunt. That’s because I had to find books with swords on the cover and, apparently, I read a lot of sword books 😂 I’ve trimmed the list down to five of my favorite books that feature a large piece of cutlery on the front.

That being said, let’s get to my list!

#1. Nimona by N.D. Stevenson

This is probably one of my favorite graphic novels, so I’m glad one of the characters is holding a sword so I could feature it! Lord Blackheart happens to be my favorite character, too. Nimona is a shapeshifter that is bound and determined to become the villainous Blackwell’s minion. This was such a wild ride with action and adventure on every page. It also made me get a bit teary-eyed with Nimona and Blackwell’s backstories. It was such an incredible read!

#2. The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter

There is quite an assortment of weapons on the cover of this one, but there’s definitely at least one sword. It makes sense as this book follows a nation at war and a man seeking revenge. The first book in The Burning series was such an intense ride! It’s an incredibly compelling story that has fantastic world-building. The characters have to be my favorite part of the story, though, especially Tau. He is single-minded yet complex and it’s fascinating watching his growth throughout this novel.

Continue reading →

book blogger hop

Book Blogger Hop: Aug 12 – 18

August 15, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd2 Comments

The Book Blogger Hop was originally created by Crazy-For-Books and is currently being hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer. Every Friday, a new question is posted for book bloggers to answer in the coming week. The purpose of the hop is connection and community. You can discover new blogs to follow, new books to read, and you may end up with some new followers, as well!

This Week’s Question

What are some of your favorite books?

Submitted by Julie @ Stepping Stone Book Reviews.

Continue reading →

blog tour · book reviews

Blog Tour: Hag of the Hills by J.T.T. Ryder

August 14, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd5 Comments

Hello, reader!

I’m bringing you yet another tour stop today sponsored by The Write Reads! This time, I’ll be talking about an historical fantasy immersed in Celtic mythology and set on the Isle of Skye: Hag of the Hills by J.T.T. Ryder. If the gorgeous cover doesn’t pull you in, perhaps the promise of a well-researched story that blends historical fiction and fantasy will appeal to you!

Before we jump in, though, I want to thank Dave @ The Write Reads and all of the crew for giving me a spot on this tour! I also want to thank the author for sending me a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review! It is, as always, much appreciated.

Now, let’s get into the post!

Title: Hag of the Hills
Author: J.T.T. Ryder
Publication date: March 1st, 2022
Genre: Fantasy
Age group: Adult
Content/Trigger Warnings: Slavery, violence, gore, blood, suicide, child death

Book Links

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

“Nothing is unconquerable; even our gods can die.”

Brennus is destined from birth to become a warrior, despite his farmer’s life. But when the Hillmen kill his family and annihilate his clan, he now has the opportunity to avenge those who he loved.

Brennus must survive endless hordes of invading Hillmen and magic-wielding sidhe, aided by only a band of shifty mercenaries, and an ancient bronze sword.

Failure means his family and clan go unavenged. Victory will bring glory to Brennus and his ancestors.

Hag of the Hills is a heroic fantasy novel set in 200 B.C. on the Isle of Skye, steeped in Celtic mythology and culture.

Continue reading →

blog tour · book spotlight

Blog Tour Spotlight: Advocatus by A.R. Turner

August 13, 2022 kerrimcbooknerdLeave a comment

Hello, reader!

Today, I’m participating in another blog tour hosted by the incredible The Write Reads tour company! I’ll be spotlighting a fantasy novel that has been getting some rave reviews: Advocatus by A.R. Turner! Come join me as I tell you more about this fascinating sounding book.

Before we jump into my post, though, I want to thank Dave @ The Write Reads and all the lovely people behind the scenes for allowing me to participate in this tour! It is, as always, very much appreciated. If you’re a book blogger looking to participate in book tours, you can’t go wrong with The Write Reads.

Now, let’s get to my post!

Title: Advocatus
Author: A.R. Turner
Publication date: January 17th, 2022
Genre: Fantasy
Age group: Adult

Book Links

Amazon::Goodreads

Continue reading →

first lines friday

First Lines Friday #57

August 12, 2022 kerrimcbooknerdLeave a comment

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 *cough*)
Finally… reveal the book!

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

Hello, reader!

It’s Friday and I actually have Saturday off so I’m extra excited 🥳 It’s also time for another First Lines Friday! This week, I’m featuring a book that has been on my TBR for what feels like an eternity. I’m listening to the audiobook and I’m kind of in love. It’s fun, funny, and magical in a way that somehow feels nostalgic.

The first few lines certainly captured my interest. Now let’s see if they can capture yours, as well!

The Line(s):

“There was once a young man who wished to gain his Heart’s Desire.

And while that is, as beginnings go, not entirely novel (for every tale about every young man there ever was or will be could start in a similar manner) there was much about this young man and what happened to him that was unusual, although even he never knew the whole of it.”

The Hints:

This is a fantasy that was released in the late 90s.

The audiobook is narrated by the author.

It features a young man trying to catch a star.

The Reveal:

Continue reading →

blog tour · book reviews

Blog Tour: These Fleeting Shadows by Kate Alice Marshall

August 11, 2022September 10, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd2 Comments

Hello, reader!

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a blog tour, hasn’t it? It seems like it has! I’m happy to dive back in with a young adult horror novel that sent shivers down my spine: These Fleeting Shadows! This tour is hosted by TBR & Beyond Tours, so I must thank them for introducing me to such a perfectly creepy tale. I also want to encourage you to follow along with the tour, as there are a ton of incredible bookish content creators involved! You can find the tour schedule here.

Now, I’ve thanked TBR & Beyond Tours for introducing me to this book, but I also need to thank them for giving me a spot on this tour! And a special thank you to the publisher, Viking Books, for sending me a finished copy to review. It is, as always, very much appreciated! All opinions contained within this post about the book are my own.

Alright, now let’s get to my blog tour stop!

Title: These Fleeting Shadows
Author: Kate Alice Marshall
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Publication date: August 9th, 2022
Genre: Horror
Age group: Young Adult
Content/Trigger Warnings: Blood, body horror, murder, child death/murder, queerphobia, abuse, alcoholism, sexual assault (referenced), lobotomy

Book Links

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

The Haunting of Hill House meets Knives Out in a bid for an inheritance that will leave Helen Vaughan either rich…or dead.

Helen Vaughan doesn’t know why she and her mother left their ancestral home at Harrowstone Hall, called Harrow, or why they haven’t spoken to their extended family since. So when her grandfather dies, she’s shocked to learn that he has left everything—the house, the grounds, and the money—to her. The inheritance comes with one condition: she must stay on the grounds of Harrow for one full year, or she’ll be left with nothing.

There is more at stake than money. For as long as she can remember, Harrow has haunted Helen’s dreams—and now those dreams have become a waking nightmare. Helen knows that if she is going to survive the year, she needs to uncover the secrets of Harrow. Why is the house built like a labyrinth? What is digging the holes that appear in the woods each night?And why does the house itself seem to be making her sick?

With each twisted revelation, Helen questions what she knows about Harrow, her family, and even herself. She no longer wonders if she wants to leave…but if she can.

Content Warning: Harm to children/death of children – non-graphic and not on the page, but prevalent in backstory & plot, Death & dying, Body horror (surreal, not gory), Violence (against MC & others), Alcoholism (not a main character), Discussion of a lobotomy performed in the 1800s

Continue reading →

www wednesday

WWW Wednesday: Aug 10, 2022

August 10, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd5 Comments

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:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
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

Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler: I’m slowly, but surely, making my way through this one, haha. It’s not a bad book! The writing is quite good and I love the characters that Octavia E. Butler has created. I’m just so bored. And I can’t even put my finger on why! There’s so much going on. There are secrets and murder and vampire courtroom proceedings… and I just don’t care about any of it. I’m really beginning to wonder if it’s the narrator’s sleepy tone that’s the cause because, with all this action and drama, you’d think I’d be riveted! Sigh… perhaps the ending will blow my mind.
Hag of the Hills by J.T.T. Ryder: I’m reading this for a blog tour and, so far, I’m certainly intrigued. I’ve only just begun, so I haven’t gotten far into the story, but the setting is interesting and I feel like this is going to get magical fairly quickly. I’m stoked to be reading another fantasy centered around Celtic mythology! Here’s hoping I have a good time with this one.

Continue reading →

top 5 tuesday

Top 5 Tuesday: Books With Crowns

August 9, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd2 Comments

Hello, reader!

It’s time for another Top 5 Tuesday! For this week’s cover scavenger hunt, I’ll be looking for some of my favorite books with crowns on the cover. This was, once again, surprisingly difficult, though not as bad as last week’s keys. That being said, I managed to find five books that I truly enjoyed that also have a crown on the cover.

So let’s jump into the post!

#1. Little Thieves by Margaret Owen

Are you looking for a dark fairytale that features a kickass female main character? This might be the book for you! And it has a teeny, tiny crown right about the title, so I get to include it in this list. I loved this story so much; it made me emotional in ways I wasn’t expecting and it was such an incredibly written story. It’s also the first in a series, so I get to read more about our fine gremlin girl, Vanja, and the encyclopedia who loves her, Emeric.

#2. Redemptor by Jordan Ifueko

You all know how much I love Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko. It’s definitely in my top five favorite books of all time! That being said, I don’t talk about the sequel, Redemptor, nearly enough. I loved this book so much! It built on what Raybearer started, growing the world and the characters in the best of ways. It also had some pretty creepy elements that I just ate up! I’m glad Tarisai is rocking a crown on the cover so I could include it on the list.

Continue reading →

down the tbr hole

Down the TBR Hole #35

August 8, 2022 kerrimcbooknerdLeave a comment

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!

I’m back with another round of TBR trimming! This is going to be a shortened one like last time because ya girl has been working for eight days straight and I am T I R E D. But we’re still gonna sift through five books and see if I want to keep them on the TBR or if they’ve gotta go. Also, I went from having 708 books on my Goodreads ‘Want to Shelf’ to 718 books… I honestly don’t know how that happened 😂

Alright, let’s get to trimming!

Furyborn by Claire Legrand

This is a start to yet another fantasy series that I shouldn’t be keeping… but the synopsis sounds so good! It follows two different people in two different timelines who are inextricably linked. I’ve heard so many good things about this book/series, as well. So here I am, keeping yet another series while I finish none, lol.

Verdict: Keep

The Warehouse by Rob Hart

So, if I hadn’t recently read The Paradox Hotel by the same author and thoroughly enjoyed it, this would probably be getting the chop. But I did so here we are! I really loved Rob Hart’s writing style and I’m interested to see what he does with the dystopian world in this one. Also, this one sounds deliciously sinister.

Verdict: Keep

Continue reading →