genre: historical fiction – Pixel Reads Books

A5. A book with a fruit or vegetable in the title – Tangerine by Christine Mangan

Finished 09/28/18

I was immediately sucked into this story and it was a very quick read. The ending did leave me wanting. I wanted something more final but I guess that’s life and this story was true to that. This is the author’s first novel and I hope she has plans for more books in the future because I enjoyed her writing.

26. A book with an animal in the title – The Bird and the Blade by Megan Bannen

Finished 08/31/18

This was a mystery book in the ShelfLove Crate box I ordered for “Let the Games Begin.” When I first read the summary I wasn’t overly excited to read this book. I ended up getting invested in the story and I really enjoyed it. It’s also rare to find a standalone YA fantasy book, they’re usually all part of a series. For me the ending is what made it. I love those type of realistic (kind of punch to your face) endings. In the author’s note it’s mentioned that this book is based on an opera, which I think is pretty cool. It made for an interesting story and I also liked that it had a solid ending, no ambiguity. It’s a hefty book and I was surprised that I was able to finish it so quickly.

title: Ink and Bone (The Great Library #1)

author: Rachel Caine

my rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
genre(s): YA, Fantasy, Science Fiction -> Dystopia, Historical Fiction

my thoughts: under the cut for possible spoilers.

I love books and I especially love books about books! I really loved reading this and the only thing that knocked it from a 5 to a 4 was the few beginning chapters to get the book going were a tad slow and I really had to push through but it was totally worth it. Such a great read and I’m excited to continue with the series. This book really packs the punches too, you start getting attached to these characters and hoping for the best and then bam! Deaths. Oh man was there death. The book ends in a cliffhanger and from what I saw so do the others in the series, so be aware of that.

Finish date: 08/14/18

40b. A graphic novel – The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang

Finished 08/10/18

I love comics and I love graphic novels. When I saw this book on goodreads I got so excited I ordered it right away and could not wait for it to arrive. The book itself is so pretty! I bought the paperback and the cover is that soft idk velvety (?) covers, you know those smooth but not glossy covers. Anyway this was truly a joy to read. Whimsical and heartfelt throughout the story. I loved the illustrations and the story. I’m very glad I bought this book to add to my collection. I really hope this isn’t the end for Sebastian and Frances.

30. A book with characters who are twins – The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

Finished 07/28/18

This was a doozy of a book. My aunt recommended this book to me ages ago and I finally took the chance to read it. This book was perfect for me, it was daunting at first with the language and how long it seemed to be taking me to read. Once I got to the end of the book it was well worth the initial struggle. This is not a light read, it really took my concentration to pay attention and understand the language as it’s not something I’ve read in a long time.

A4. A book tied to your ancestry – Across a Hundred Mountains by Reyna Grande

Finished 07/21/18

I had a hard time with this one, the books I’ve come across that take place in Spain or Mexico are very politically heavy and I wanted something a little lighter. In the end it was between this and Esperanza Rising (I could not find anything emotionally lighter). I ended up putting both on hold, Across a Hundred Mountains was checked out to me from the library first and that’s how this book was chosen.

This was an intense and painful (in a good way) read, had me in tears. Very heavy subject matter, especially with what’s happening today in the world. If you’re interested in a thought provoking and emotional read I recommend this book. Anyway I’m very glad I read this book and I’m going to be checking out more by this author.

40a. A book you own but have never read – Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

Finished 07/12/18

Now I saw another person doing this challenge separate #40 Your favorite prompt from the 2015, 2016, or 2017 POPSUGAR Reading Challenges into 3 parts for each year. I loved the idea and decided to try it as well. This prompt comes from the 2015 popsugar reading challenge.

Originally I bought this book for a children’s lit class I was taking in college but I never read it. 3 years later I finally got around to reading it and I enjoyed the story. 4/5th grade me would have absolutely loved this book.

36. A book set in the decade you were born – The Carnival at Bray by Jessie Ann Foley

Finished 07/12/18

About the prompt: I had a hard time with this prompt because not many books were available to me that fit into this category. After many google searches I found this wonderful book. I was born in the 90s and this book takes place during 1993-1995, perfectly fits the prompt.

About the book: After finishing this book and having just read Aristotle & Dante by Saenz, I’ve re-discovered my love of coming-of-age themed stories. I used to devour these kinds of books during my middle school and high school days. This book was everything that I would have wanted to read back then and I’m glad I had the opportunity to read it now. It was a great coming of age story, heartbreaking with an uplifting and hopeful ending. You follow Maggie during her teenage/young adult years, trying to navigate the world as she knows it.

A10. A book recommended by someone else taking the PopSugar Reading Challenge – The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Finished 06/27/18

This book was maybe more of a 3.5 because of the narrator and I wasn’t a huge fan of the writing style. You can’t do half stars on Goodreads though so I bumped it up to 4stars. The overall feeling I had after finishing the book gave it that extra .5. I cried, I truly felt for Liesel and the pain she went through. This was a quick read for me but the subject matter is very heavy. There were times I had to step away and read a littler book in between to keep my spirits up.