genre: young adult – Pixel Reads Books

31. A book mentioned in another book – The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo

Finished 11/25/18

This was not the book I had originally planned for this prompt but after reading the Six of Crows duology, starting the Grisha Trilogy, and pre-ordering King of Scars (which all take place in the same world) I got hyped and bought the hardcover of this book. It’s so pretty and I started reading right away. The stories collected in this book are talked about in the Crooked Kingdom so I used it to check off this prompt. Easy peasy! This ended up being my last prompt for the challenge.

Now for the book, I really liked it. There’s six fairy tales, some retellings of classics but with a Grisha twist to them. The artwork is beautiful and adds to the whole experience while reading this book. I definitely recommend this to fans of the Grishaverse.

A3. A book that was being read by a stranger in a public space – The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

Finished 10/30/18

This ended up being one of the hardest prompts to fulfill. I couldn’t see any of the titles of books that were being read and I’m a very quiet person. I can’t just talk to someone out of nowhere, it makes me uncomfortable. I finally just went with a book that I saw someone pick up at the bookstore and that ended up being Raven Black. I also saw two other books that interested me but they weren’t readily available at my library. Unfortunately something happened with the hold I put on the book and it was checked out again and I just didn’t want to wait 21days for it to be available. I’m still planning on reading Raven Black but not for this prompt.

Now finally finally I was able to actually find a book being read out in the wild! I was so excited because 1. I actually found someone myself and 2. It’s a book that I’ve been wanting to read. The Hazel Wood. I was lined up for the Disney Designer Collection exclusive Princess Jazmine barbie (I wasn’t called in the raffle sad) but in line I saw someone sitting down reading this book.

Okay okay enough with my unnecessary explanation in picking the book. Though to be fair this feels more like a diary that I’m keeping for myself. I doubt anyone will see this or even read it. Anywayyyy hahaha on to the book review.

The actual book review: I really enjoyed the story. It definitely is a typical fairy tale, it was all the ingredients for one. There’s also a lot of mystery and answers to questions that are not straightforward. If that’s not your thing avoid! But I don’t mind cliches and tropes and I really ended up caring for the characters and the story.

13. A book that is also a stage play or musical – Dear Evan Hansen by Val Emmich

Finished 10/25/18

I was going to originally read Wicked for this but I just wasn’t feeling it. I will read it eventually but as I was looking for alternatives I found that there was a novelization of Dear Evan Hansen coming out in October. Well I immediately pre-ordered the hardcover.

Eeeeeee!! I absolutely loved the cover! And the message from the authors in the beginning was great! Anyway I’ve never seen this musical but my sister has (she LOVES musicals and always watches them) I love them too but not as much as she does. She told me I had to watch this musical back when she first saw it and I had plans to do so but still haven’t. But I know what she likes and she knows what I like so recommendations to each other are always amazing. I loved this book. Seriously. It was amazing and heartbreaking and what a depiction of life right? I fucking sobbed! I 10000% recommend. Now I’m off to go find the musical xD

title: Ash Princess (Ash Princess Trilogy #1)

author: Laura Sebastian

my rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
genre(s): YA, Fantasy

my thoughts: under the cut for possible spoilers.

First off beware the dreaded love-triangle. Okay if it’s your thing, this story has it and if it’s not well again this story has a love triangle. Now they don’t really bother me that much, only enough to make a note of but not avoid a book. This wasn’t a bad story just a tad slow and boring for me and there was a lot of potential. I really kept waiting for something to happen, there was so much lag in between any action and even the action wasn’t very… action-y. The main, Theo, kept trying to see the best in people even after they showed their true colors and then she’d give them a second chance. One example her friend Cress, she showed she only cared for “Thora” so long as she stayed in her lane but that was as far as her humanity stretched. And Theo kept giving her the benefit of the doubt, twice she tried to appeal to Cress and even in the end after Theo tried to kill Cress, she felt bad for her and guilt. Girl make up your mind, was she your friend or not? (imo not). Ugh sorry this review is terrible. I just wasn’t feeling this book but I am planning on reading the rest in the series since it’s only a trilogy.

Finish date: 09/16/18

title: Daughter of the Pirate King (Daughter of the Pirate King #1)

author: Tricia Levenseller

my rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
genre(s): YA, Romance, Fantasy

my thoughts: I really enjoyed this! It was a really fast read, not very long but wonderfully written imo. The story pulled me in right away and I did not want to put the book down. I also love the story behind Alosa’s conception. I’m a sucker for cover art and this one got me hooked before I read the summary.

A little tidbit about me, I get all my books from the library first and if I really like the story I’ll go and buy it to support the author. As soon as I started the book I knew this was going on my books to buy wish list. This book left me wanting to read more by Tricia Levenseller.

Finish date: 09/12/18

A9. A book about a problem facing society today – The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Finished 09/07/18

When I saw this prompt I thought oh boy this is going to be a heavy one no matter what the subject. I had three books in mind for this prompt, The Hate U Give, Dear Martin and Still Alice. At first I had decided on Dear Martin because my sister owns the book and I was planning on borrowing hers. Then I decided to do another reading challenge alongside the PopSugar one and The Hate U Give could easily fit this prompts in both of my reading challenges. I still plan to read the other two but for the challenge I went with this one.

This is a very intense read, I definitely cried. I don’t even know how to review it because I’m not an expert on the subject matter nor have I experienced it. I will say that it was informative and eye opening and I recommend this book. I think Angie Thomas did a great job at painting a picture to show a glimpse into these characters lives that very much portrays what is going on in society today.

A7. A book by an author with the same first or last name as you – Marked by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast

Finished 09/05/18

First, this prompt was not my friend. I had a difficult time and sort of bent the prompt so I could actually complete it. This book was published in 2007 and it needs to stay there. Quite a few of my fellow book lovers on goodreads marked this with 4 stars & up so I gave it a chance. It was also the only book with an authors name that was even remotely close to mine and I had to force myself to push through. I really tried to give it a chance but it was terrible. I was a sophomore in high school when this was published and my fellow teens were not this terrible. I’m not saying they don’t exist but it was so hard to relate or give a shit about these characters, they were that terrible. TBH the behavior of these characters reminded me more of when I was in middle school than high school. It was like all the cliche teen shit from mean girls x10 with vampires. Actually now that I think about it, it was fucking mean girls! The new girl going under cover with the popular mean girls clique, liking the main queen b’s ex-BF. There was even the gay best friend whose name was also Damien. No thanks, I won’t be continuing with this series.

title: Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1)

author: Marissa Meyer

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

my thoughts: I absolutely loved this retelling of Cinderella. I’m weary of retellings because sometimes they can get repetitive but this was it’s own thing with some hints of Cinderella. I did figure out the big reveal 1/3rd of the way into the book but it was still pretty cool to see that I was right (for once lol). I’m excited to continue with the rest of the series and find out what happens next.

Finish date: 09/05/18

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: Nimona

author: Noelle Stevenson

my rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
genre(s): YA, Graphic Novel, Fantasy, Lgbtqa+

my thoughts: This was a genuinely fun read, had me laughing in the first few pages right away. Nimona is not only funny but is also a deep and sincere story. I do hope that someday in the future there will be more of this trio.

Finish date: 08/22/18