Tag: YA book

Book Lists

Highly Anticipated Book Releases 2019

by amyleighreads3 Comments on Highly Anticipated Book Releases 2019

These are four of my most anticipated book releases for the first half of 2019!

26032887The Wicked King by Holly Black – just want to put it out there I did not like The Cruel Prince. I tried very much to like it because everyone absolutely loves it, but I just didn’t gel to the book. I found Jude to be incredibly unlikeable and naïve and the storyline was a little slow paced and all over the place. But because of that ending I do want to continue on with The Wicked King and give this series one more chance. Release date 8th January 2019

y648The Vanishing Stair by Maureen Johnson – Truly Devious made it to my favourite books of 2018 lists. I was completely taken by surprise by that book as I kind of picked it up on a whim without really knowing too much about it. I was highly entertained throughout the course of the book and plot was woven in such a way that had you second guessing every single character and their motives! Release Date 22nd January 2019

KingofscarsKing of Scars by Leigh Bardugo – I marathoned the Grisha Series and the Six of Crows duology a few years ago and I was obsessed! I believe this is going to be a new series in the same world as the previous books, which makes me very happy! I love Leigh Bardugo’s characters and her plots are always amazing! Release date 29th January 2019

9781509899456Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi – Children of Blood and Bone was I think one of the most hyped books of 2018 when it was released. So hyped in fact that I had to pick it up immediately and give it a read. I will say that I liked it but I didn’t really love it as much as everyone else does. It was very fast paced with a very unique magic system that kept me invested throughout the story. I can’t wait to see where Tomi Adeyemi will take the storyline next. Release date 5th March 2019

 

Reviews

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer Review

by amyleighreads2 Comments on The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer Review

11194970I loved this!

We follow Mara Dyer after she has woken up in the hospital. She was involved in an accident that killed her best friend, her boyfriend and another girl in her year but she doesn’t remember anything about that night. Eager to move on her family agree to relocate to give her the space to heal.

I really liked Mara as a character. She was deeply flawed, yet still so persistent and dedicated to trying to pick up and continue on with her life. She hasn’t lost touch and completely succumbed to her condition, she is still trying to maintain some form of normality, which I thought was commendable. I thought she was witty and the banter she has with Noah and Jamie was fun to read.

I loved Noah… I found his surety and his arrogance very appealing. I think he was written in a way where you can’t help but find him likeable, even when he’s kind of being duchey. I like that we get such a thorough backstory and we see that there is this completely different side of him that he doesn’t show.

I also really liked Jamie. I thought that he was a great friend to Mara and I think it was purely the fact that he only wanted to be friends with her. There were no strings attached, he just seen a kind of awkward, new girl in his year and was nice to her. He gave her some pretty sound advice based on his personal experience but he still let her make her own decisions and still supported her regardless. You don’t really see a lot of these characters and I appreciated him a lot in this book. It kind of sucks how his arc sort of ended abruptly but hopefully he makes a reappearance in the rest of the series.

I also really enjoyed the relationship Mara has with her brothers, especially Daniel. I thought he was so supportive of Mara and didn’t judge her in any way. They still had the typical big brother little sister dynamic but there was a protectiveness that he has for her that I found very endearing.

I was very much sucked into the book from the start! I liked how it was paced; it started off pretty slowly but gave me enough information that I still needed more and that really kept me turning the pages. That paranormal element to the story I felt was executed very well. That aspect of the story was always kind of floating around the edges and then finally when Mara came to the realisation of her powers it was thrilling.

I think this a highly entertaining read and honestly after that plot twist at the end it just made me want to pick up the next book and start reading it right now!

⭐️4.5/5 I loved my experience reading this!

TBR

January TBR

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on January TBR

Its a New Year 😱! I had a great reading year in 2018 and I want to continue on with my momentum into the new year with some new releases as well as continuing my journey in catching up on some cult favourites! So with that being said my TBR for January is:

Flame in the Mist by Renee Ahdieh

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The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

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Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

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The Wicked King by Holly Black

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Nevermoor and Wundersmith by Jessica Townshend

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The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner

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To all the boys I’ve loved before by Jenny Han

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Dance of Thieves by Mary E Pearson

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Reviews

The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy Review

by amyleighreads1 Comment on The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy Review

y648I thought this was a solid sequel to The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue!

In this installment we follow Felicity who is currently in Edinburgh trying to find some form of apprenticeship to train to be a physician. However a sudden marriage proposal has thrown her off track and she makes her way to England to try to further her education at a medical school to get her life back together.

I found Felicity to be a very enjoyable character. She I tenacious and driven and isn’t afraid of hard work. I love that we see her strive so hard and fight for what she feels she has earned, despite the fact that she is a woman. I love that Mackenzie Lee has highlighted the plight of woman back in the 18th century. The growth that Felicity undergoes in the plot is wonderful and to see her become more self aware and ok with herself I feel was a great highlight in the story.

Another character I highly enjoyed was Johanna. From her introduction as the societal princess who enjoys parties and dresses and makeup and then to see Felicity’s perception of her change over the course of the book was great. I loved that we see Johanna challenge Felicity multiple times and expose her kind of elitist mentality. The changes in their relationship in the storyline was very well done and I loved how open and honest they were with each other in the end.

Sim was a little bit up and down for me personally. I didn’t really like her for a majority of the book mainly because we didn’t get enough information about her. She was very secretive and pensive for about three quarters of the story. When we finally get her backstory and history about who she is I became a lot more invested in her character and engaged a lot more with her. I thought the relationship between her and Felicity was a little too forced in my opinion. The three girls were already tied together closely by the plot that including that romantic aspect wasn’t really necessary.

This was a very fast paced and action packed with the storyline evolving and changing very organically which kept me turning the pages. I like the little cameos of Percy and Monty they added a lot of witty banter to the dialogue. I thought the story was very unique and adventurous but still has a relevance to present day.

⭐️4/5 stars I honestly didn’t expect to like this as much as I did!

Updates

⚡️Harry Potter Series Reread⚡️

by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment on ⚡️Harry Potter Series Reread⚡️

img_2564So I’ve decided that it’s high time that I do a reread of the Harry Potter series. It’s been a few years since I’ve read all seven books in full, I usually just reread The Deathly Hallows as it’s my favourite book in the series! So I’ll be starting with this beautiful illustrated edition of Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone that I received for Christmas! I’m going to read them outside of my set TBR for every month and I’m thinking these books are just going to be a spur of the moment pick up whenever I’m in the mood for a little magic! 

Happy Reading📚