Let’s Talk Bookish: What Makes You Pick Up a Book

Letโ€™s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books and Dani @ Literary Lion. This weekโ€™s topic was suggested by Rafaela @ The Portuguese Bibliophile and is What Makes You Pick Up a Book.

What makes you pick up certain books? Is a pretty cover enough?

Word-of-mouth is the most powerful influence for me as a reader. If I see a lot of hype, positive reviews, or a friend recommends it, I’m almost guaranteed to pick the book up. As far as browsing on my own goes, covers are the very first thing I notice about a book, before the title and the author’s name even. And I am fully guilty of purchasing books based on their pretty covers and nothing else. Sometimes this turns out great and I fall in love with the book. And sometimes I wish I had actually read the summary or a Goodreads review or two so I’d realize the subject matter wasn’t something I was actually interested in. But since I am a frequent shopper of discount bookstores, I don’t usually count it as such a loss since I didn’t spend much money on the book to start with.

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Double Review: Of the Blood & Of Fire and Water by Cameo Renae

“when a wicked heart remains in the darkness too long, it begins to crave that darkness, until there is no light that can drive it out.”

of the blood, cameo renae

Series: Heir of Blood and Fire #1

Release Date: May 10th 2020

Publisher: Victory Editing

Genre: New Adult Fiction | Fantasy | Paranormal | Romance

Page Count: 432

Source:ย I received a copy of this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley. Thank you!

Summary: Raised in a war-ravaged continent, temptation comes to Calla Caldwell in the form of a charming and mysterious stranger. Giving in to his intimate seduction, her world is forever changed by a single bite. Calla quickly learns the handsome stranger is vampire prince, Trystan Vladu. His bite was an attempt to claim and save her from a plot of vengeance generations in the making. However, the claws of that ancient vendetta are scraping ever closer. Thrust into a new nightmare by the Prince of the corrupt kingdom of Morbeth, Calla is captured, tortured, and starved in the dank confines of his dungeon. While in captivity, she takes part in a sรฉance with a witch of light where she contacts a departed relativeโ€”a Princess of Incendiaโ€”who bequeaths a gift to Calla that will tip the scales of good and evil . . . if she can learn to harness it. With a dark tapestry of secrets, lies, and murder unraveling around her, Calla must learn to embrace the power roiling through her veins, or be snuffed out by the strangling fist of a malevolent darkness.

Rating:

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Top 5 Tuesday: Books You Would Re-Rate

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly series created by Bionic Book Worm and is now hosted by Meeghan Reads. This weekโ€™s topic is Top 5 Books You Would Re-Rate.

I am a chronic re-rater. If you follow me on Goodreads, you might have seen me rate a book upon finishing it only to change the rating when I post my actual review. The more time I’m able to really think about a book and my feelings about it before diving into the next one, the more likely I am to change the rating by a star, either positively or negatively. Here’s my top 5 books that I would rate differently now if I were to re-read them:

1. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

I make it no secret that ACOTAR is one of my favorite series so it might be surprising that this book is on my list. However, the first time I read it, I truly didn’t get the hype. I was new to the fantasy genre (I favored dystopian at the time) so I was left with a lot of questions about things that didn’t make sense to me. Now that I’ve expanded my fantasy reads, I understand that logic is one of the worst things to use when reading them. Fantasy is meant to be enjoyed with the way the writer chose to create the world. It’s not meant to be compared to what makes sense in ours. If I read this book again, I’m sure my 3 star rating which felt generous at the time would be higher by at least a star.

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Let’s Talk Bookish: Book Boyfriend Qualifications

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly series hosted by Rukky @ Eternity Books and Dani @ Literary Lion. This week’s topic is Qualifications for a Book Boyfriend/Girlfriend.

I always see LTB posts on my dash every week and always enjoy reading everyone’s thoughts on the weekly topics but I’ve yet to be organized enough to participate. This week I’ve finally managed to be able to write my thoughts down on a topic so I’m really excited to be able to join. April’s topics look amazing and I can’t wait to read everyone’s posts!

Do you have any book boyfriends/girlfriends?

Yes! Isn’t one of the best parts of reading books falling in love with a character? It always amazes me when I take a step back to look at a book objectively just how much work some authors put into creating their characters. You can tell how much thought and backstory they’ve poured into them even if it doesn’t always make it onto the page. They often spawn fanfiction even because readers love the characters so much and want to continue their stories in some way or place them in an alternate setting and explore their reactions to it. Some of my favorite book boyfriends are:

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Top 5 Tuesday: Middle Grade Books

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly series created by Bionic Book Worm and is now hosted by Meeghan Reads. This weekโ€™s topic: Top 5 Middle Grade Books.

One of my favorite things about middle grade books is that they often hit relatable issues in a simple, accessible way, especially in the case of contemporary books. I’m usually floored by the amount of development within the plot and the characters in such a short amount of time due to their typical shorter page length. I definitely sit in the camp that middle grade can be enjoyed by all ages and have reread some of my favorites as an adult. Without further ado, let’s jump in to my top 5 middle grade recommendations.

1. Crash by Jerry Spinelli

Crash is a favorite from my childhood and has remained a favorite into my adult life–I even reread it a couple of years ago and possibly enjoyed it even more as an adult than as a child. It hits so many important issues in its pages from peer expectations to bullying to the effects of watching people you love grow old and feeble. The main character goes through so much character development as he moves from popular jock preoccupied by what others think of him to learning what’s actually important in life and making new decisions as he matures. Spinelli’s books often have some major life lessons hidden beneath their various faรงades which is one of my favorite things about his books.

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Review: A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer

“choices are never easy. there are good and bad options, but the most dangerous is to not make any choice at all.”

brigid kemmerer

Series: Cursebreakers #2

Release Date: January 7th, 2020

Publisher: Bloomsbury YA

Genre: Young Adult Fiction | High Fantasy | Romance

Page Count: 450

Source: Purchased

Goodreads Summary: Find the heir, win the crown. The curse is finally broken, but Prince Rhen of Emberfall faces darker troubles still. Rumors circulate that he is not the true heir and that forbidden magic has been unleashed in Emberfall. Although Rhen has Harper by his side, his guardsman Grey is missing, leaving more questions than answers. Win the crown, save the kingdom. Rumored to be the heir, Grey has been on the run since he destroyed Lilith. He has no desire to challenge Rhen–until Karis Luran once again threatens to take Emberfall by force. Her own daughter Lia Mara sees the flaws in her motherโ€™s violent plan, but can she convince Grey to stand against Rhen, even for the good of Emberfall The heart-pounding, compulsively readable saga continues as loyalties are tested and new love blooms in a kingdom on the brink of war.

Rating:

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Top 5 Tuesday: Books That Got Me Into Reading

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly series created by Bionic Book Worm and is now hosted by Meeghan Reads. This weekโ€™s topic: Top 5 Books That Got You Into Reading.

Since I fell in love with reading as soon as I learned how to read, I’m afraid my list would just be filled with children’s books such as Madeleine, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, etc.–probably not very exciting or engaging to read in my case. So instead I’m going to put a little bit of a spin on this week’s topic and choose the top 5 books that helped get me out of a reading slump at different times in my life.

1. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

I went through several reading slumps as a teen, mostly because of time constraints due to harsh coursework in school. I’ve always been the type to fall into routine pretty easily (probably thanks to my Virgo moon) so once I’d subconsciously decided I wasn’t allowed to read for pleasure and instead should only read my coursework, it was difficult for me to let go a little. Discovering this series filled with Greek mythology and demigods through my sibling helped revive my love for reading circa 2008.

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