Reading Right Now! (212)

What I'm Reading Right Now! is...
I'm actually starting this Friday off Fresh. I'm not in the middle of anything or almost finished with anything. This Friday, I'm just starting something new. So, what I'm Reading Right Now! is...

Magic For Liars by Sarah Gailey -- I'm pretty excited to start this and I hope I love it. I know that it's a magic school, a murder, and a non-magical detective who has to solve the case. I think that's what it is about at least. But I've been seeing this book everywhere. It's blurbed by V.E. Schwab. I'm hoping that it is a great time.

So that's what I'm Reading Right Now! What are you reading?

Fresh Releases: June 25, 2019

These Releases are Fresh Fresh! And I'm excited for them!

 

Kingdom of Exiles (The Beast Charmer #1) by Maxym M. Martineau. There is something about this book that is just calling to me. I've wanted to read it ever since I heard about it. I love paranormal urban fantasy. I'm definitely going to read this at some point. 

Wicked Fox (Gumiho #1) by Kat Cho. Another one that I've been highly anticipating and excited about. I have an arc, it's beautiful, and I just need to read it.

And that is all I've got for Fresh Fresh Releases this week. I know I'm missing some, I always am. Which books should I be on the lookout for?? Let me know.

ReRead Review: Shadow and Bone (Grisha #1) by Leigh Bardugo

I thought I'd do something a little different today and do a review of a book I reread. This is not a revolutionary idea, I'm sure. I used to reread books a lot more than I do now. Now, new books are coming out left and right, and it's a struggle for me to keep up with them all. I don't keep up with them all. But I've realized that sometimes you need a reread, sometimes it's nice to reread. So, I might already have a review of Shadow and Bone up somewhere, but this is like my updated thoughts. There will probably be very, very few of these ReRead Reviews, but I thought it would be fun to post them when I do actually reread something.

Title: Shadow and Bone (Grisha #1)

Author: Leigh Bardugo

Published by: Square Fish/Macmillan

Released: 2012

Source: Library Books

Random Tidbit: Reread

Synopsis: Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart. (Synopsis from Goodreads)

My Thoughts: I'm kinda glad I reread this. It's been quite a while since I've reread anything, and it really showed me how much I missed it. It's nice to revisit old worlds, characters, and see what you missed or looked over during the first read through. My plan is to continue with the series and finally finish it, since I'm now all refreshed. The first time I read this was in 2015, which is crazy. The first time I read it, I was more critical, and a little mean towards it.

I liked it. Things that irritated me the first time I read it, they really didn't bother me upon reread. I'm still unsure on how I feel about Alina. Sometimes she's quiet, but then she'll randomly respond with a highly sarcastic, sometimes a little mean comment. I don't know how to place her in my mind, if that makes any kind of sense.

I still don't get the appeal of The Darkling. Some of the things he did seemed creepy to me, definitely not romantic. So at this point, having only read Book One, I DO NOT SHIP Alina and The Darkling. I don't get the appeal of him. Just my opinion, even though I know it's not the popular one.

I liked this story. I enjoyed the setting. I liked the magic. It has this regal, artsy feel to it. I'm excited to see where the story goes next. I'm excited to finally be on my way to finishing this iconic YA Series. I'm also very excited to see the Netflix Series and how they adapt it, but that might be a while before it comes out.

I say this reread was a success. Who knows when or what I'll reread next.

BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 4/5

Grisha Fabulous! 

Reading Right Now! (211)

What I'm Reading Right Now! is...

Love a la Mode by Stephanie Kate Strohm -- I needed something cute after finishing my last book, which was a dark and craaaazy thriller. I've read almost 50 pages of Love a la Mode and I can tell it's going to be just the palate cleanser I was looking for. This story is about two characters, Henry and Rosie, who get accepted to a prestigious cooking program run by a famed chef. The cooking school is in Paris which is tres chic! Henry and Rosie are in for a Grand Paris Adventure!

Sooo, this book looks super cute!! It's got cooking and Paris. I'm ready for it.

I don't really know what I'm going to read next. I'm still thinking on it.

So that's what I'm Reading Right Now! What are you Reading?

BLOG TOUR: The Perfect Date by Evelyn Lozada with Holly Lorincz

Hey guys! I'm really excited to be a part of the Blog Tour for The Perfect Date by Evelyn Lozada and Holly Lorincz. I was provided with a free e-arc for my honest review. Thanks so much to St. Martin's Griffin and the Authors for letting me be a part of this fun tour.

Title: The Perfect Date

Authors: Evelyn Lozada with Holly Lorincz

Published by: St. Martin's Griffin 

Released: June 11, 2019

Source: Review Copy from Publisher

Goodreads  Amazon Purchase Links  

Synopsis: Angel Gomez only wants to get through nursing school and earn enough to support her mother and her son, Jose. Her bartending job helps bring in some extra cash, and the last thing she’s interested in is flirting or men in general.

Caleb “The Duke” Lewis is an up and coming star for the Yankees, known for getting around. However, his last breakup left him distracted and made him turn to drink. When he’s caught by the Yankees manager at a party instead of training, he’s suspended and sent back to the Bronx to get his head straight.

Angel and Duke’s worlds collide one night at the club and sparks fly. Though Angel wants nothing to do with Duke, he has no intention of letting her slip through his fingers. She isn’t star-struck by his fame, and this might be just what he needs to get things in order. He’ll do anything to convince her…even make her an offer she can’t refuse. (Synopsis from Goodreads)

My Thoughts: I received a Free Review Copy from St. Martins Griffin of The Perfect Date for my honest thoughts and opinions. I was so excited when they asked me to be a part of the Blog Tour. I was immediately drawn to the cover of The Perfect Date because it just looks so cute!!

I enjoyed the story. It was fun, it was fast, and I did like the romance. I really enjoyed the premise of The Perfect Date, that's probably what drew me in the most. I wanted to get to know these characters, see what would happen in their lives, and be watching for their Happily Ever After.

I won't say Angel Gomez and "The Duke" were my favorite characters ever. They had some issues. They weren't nice all the time. I don't know if I'd want to be friends with them, but I was interested in reading their story.

I thought the writing was pretty good. It flowed really well and I never got bored.

If you're interested in The Perfect Date, I'd definitely say give it a read. I know the Goodreads Rating it has right now is a little scary, but I'm of the belief that you should form your own opinions about books (or anything really) instead of just going with the herd.

Thanks so much again to St. Martin's Griffin. I really enjoyed being a part of this Blog Tour!

The Authors

EVELYN LOZADA, is a high-profile American-Latina reality television personality, entrepreneur, author and philanthropist. She is best known for her role on VH1’s hit series Basketball Wives (2010-present), OWN’s hit series Livin’ Lozada (2015), author of the first installment of the book series: The Wives Association: Inner Circle (2012) and creator of Healthy Boricua (A Puerto Rican Lifestyle Guide to Healthy Living). Evelyn has become a national trendsetter, a “go to” fitness export, jewelry designer, fashion and beauty maven, social media royalty and a stimulating voice and proactive supporter of causes that effect women and girls through the Evelyn Lozada Foundation. Evelyn is a Bronx native, mother of two (Shaniece Hairston and Carl Leo Crawford) that currently resides in Los Angeles.

Holly Lörincz is a successful collaborative writer and owner of Lorincz Literary Services. She is an award-winning novelist (Smart Mouth, The Everything Girl) and co-author (best-selling Crown Heights, and How to Survive a Day in Prison) living in Oregon.

Review: The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

Title: The Silent Patient

Author: Alex Michaelides

Published by: Celadon Books

Released: February 2019

Source: Library

Synopsis: ALICIA

Alicia Berenson writes a diary as a release, an outlet – and to prove to her beloved husband that everything is fine. She can’t bear the thought of worrying Gabriel, or causing him pain.
Until, late one evening, Alicia shoots Gabriel five times and then never speaks another word.

THEO
Forensic psychotherapist Theo Faber is convinced he can successfully treat Alicia, where all others have failed. Obsessed with investigating her crime, his discoveries suggest Alicia’s silence goes far deeper than he first thought.

And if she speaks, would he want to hear the truth? (Synopsis from Goodreads)

My Thoughts: Very Good! This thriller got me. I did not see that twist coming. It pretty much smacked me in the face. I have a feeling my review is going to be very vague, because this is a book that you have to experience for yourself. It takes you on quite a ride, quite a read. It was clever.

When I first started this book, I was unprepared and kind of surprised in the way that it was told. It's all first person perspective from Psychotherapist Theo Faber's point of view. He's kind of obsessed with Alicia Berenson and her case. He's convinced that he will finally make her talk. Through Theo's perspective, Alicia is portrayed as a woman of mystery. We don't really know what makes her tick, what she's thinking. She's there, but it's almost like she's not. It gave me a little bit of Night Film vibe by Marisha Pessl, but not all the way.

We did get a little of Alicia's perspective from her journal entries. They were always a nice little break between Theo's chapters.

One thing I did wonder was why the police didn't investigate it more, the original crime, but I guess since they had their murderess right in front of them, there was no point. But you would think some journalist or someone really obsessed with the case would have tried to put the pieces together.

Theo did have a tendency to ramble at times. It would be about things that didn't really matter or long explanations into why he chose his career path. The story is also interspersed with Theo's personal life, which was interesting enough.

The Silent Patient was a really good thriller. It had a great twist. It was fun to read. I was interested throughout the whole thing. It was fast. I liked it.

BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 4.3/5

Wowza

Reading Right Now! (210)

What I'm Reading Right Now! is...

The Masked City by Genevieve Cogman. This is the second book in The Invisible Library Series. I quite like it. The first book was a little confusing when it came to world building, but this second book works better because all that introduction was already taken care of. Do I still understand all of it? No, but I'm not being hit over the head with the explanation in this second book, which is appreciated. It's fun. I'm about 70% of the way through and I'll most likely finish it Friday or Saturday. That is, if I'm serious about reading and just don't waste time scrolling through my phone.

I also ship Kai and Irene. Not an obsessive ship, like I do for Bellamy and Clarke in The 100. If you haven't watched that show DO IT!!! But yes, I'm not obsessive about the Irene and Kai ship, but I think it would be nice and I'd get behind it.

So, after I finish this, I definitely plan on continuing the series. I already put the third book on hold.

What I would like to read next...

My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing. I've heard good things about this one, and I need to read it so I can return it back to the library. People probably have it on hold and want to take it from me. I'm not sure I know a lot about this one. I think, it's a married couple who try to spice up their romance with murder. Kind of dark, yes.

So that's what I'm Reading Right Now! and what I'm planning on to read next? What does your weekend reading look like?

Fresh Releases: June 11, 2019

These Releases are Fresh, Fresh!

  

  

God of Broken Things (Age of Tyranny #2) by Cameron Johnston. Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune by Roselle Lim. Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey. Storm and Fury by Jennifer L. Armentrout. Recursion by Blake Crouch. Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner.

And a Couple From Last Week

 

Magic For Liars by Sarah Gailey. Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson.

And that's my Fresh Fresh Releases for this Week! What books are you excited for? Any super important ones that I missed? 

Review: Friend Request by Laura Marshall

Title: Friend Request

Author: Laura Marshall

Published by: Grand Central Publishing

Released: September 2017

Source: Review Copy from Publisher and Netgalley / Physical Copy from Library

Synopsis: Maria Weston wants to be friends. But Maria Weston is dead. Isn't she?

1989. When Louise first notices the new girl who has mysteriously transferred late into their senior year, Maria seems to be everything the girls Louise hangs out with aren't. Authentic. Funny. Brash. Within just a few days, Maria and Louise are on their way to becoming fast friends.
2016. Louise receives a heart-stopping email: Maria Weston wants to be friends on Facebook. Long-buried memories quickly rise to the surface: those first days of their budding friendship; cruel decisions made and dark secrets kept; the night that would change all their lives forever.

Louise has always known that if the truth ever came out, she could stand to lose everything. Her job. Her son. Her freedom. Maria's sudden reappearance threatens it all, and forces Louise to reconnect with everyone she'd severed ties with to escape the past. But as she tries to piece together exactly what happened that night, Louise discovers there's more to the story than she ever knew. To keep her secret, Louise must first uncover the whole truth, before what's known to Maria--or whoever's pretending to be her--is known to all. (Synopsis from Goodreads)

My Thoughts: Thank you so much to Grand Central Publishing and Netgalley for letting me read and review an early copy of Friend Request by Laura Marshall.

I really liked this. Friend Request is Laura Marshall's debut thriller book, and I am impressed. She did a great job of writing an interesting and addicting thriller. It was a very fast read. I kept turning the pages because I was interested, and needed to know what was going to happen next. It was a book that I didn't want to put down.

This story switched back and forth, between past and present timelines. It focused on Louise's high school years and then switched to her present day life. I liked how our main character wasn't an innocent victim in this whole situation. It dealt with the subject of bullying and our main character helped take part of it. Louise wasn't the most popular girl, she lived on the fringes, but she did have a popular friend. Louise had to choose between fitting in or being a "loser". Louise helped make a girl miserable in high school and that had a pretty big impact on her life. It was definitely hard to read the bullying scenes because I wanted Louise to do better. I wanted her to not be that girl. Louise definitely struggled with her actions, but ultimately, she wanted to fit in more than she wanted to be a good person. That was just really interesting to read about.

I also enjoyed all the twists and turns in Friend Request. It takes you in one direction only to switch it up later. It also shows how dangerous social media can be. How anonymous it is and how threatening it can be.

I really enjoyed Friend Request. It's a book that kept me on my toes, racing to the last page to see how it would all end. I'll definitely be on the lookout for other books by Laura Marshall. 

BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 4/5

Very Good!

Reading Right Now! (209)

*sneaks in quietly* Well, hey there! I'm a potato. The laziness continues when it comes to my blog, my posts, my life. Work has been a little all over the place this week. I've had to cover at different locations, and when I come home I just feel like doing nothing. So that's my crappy reasoning for being a slug.
Anyway, back to the good stuff. What I'm Reading Right Now! is...

The Lying Woods by Ashley Elston -- I'm on a bit of a mystery kick for June. I mean, if you can count two mystery-ish/thriller books at the beginning of June a kick. I don't know. I actually got The Lying Woods quite a while ago as a review book on Netgalley, but we all know I suck at reading Netgalley books. Doesn't stop me from requesting them though. So I never read the e-galley version, but I did find a physical copy at my library. I love a physical copy. I've been meaning to read Ashley Elston for a while. I bought one of her books, that one that has the deer antlers on the cover I think. Still haven't read it.

I really didn't know much about The Lying Woods going into it. I still don't really know a lot about it almost 200 pages in. This book has very high ratings on Goodreads though, which intrigues me.

I'm liking it a lot. It's holding its cards close to the chest. I'm really enjoying it. It's about a boy named Owen Foster who is living the nice life, but that all comes crashing down when his father is accused of stealing company money from his employees and vanishing. Owen is forced to leave the fancy schmancy school he was going to and move back to his hometown. Everyone now hates him there because his dad's business was the lifeblood of this little town. Owen is feeling anger, resentment, the starting stages of guilt. Why would his dad do this? Where is his dad? What happened to all that money?

While he's wallowing in his self pity, he's offered a job helping an older guy named Gus with his Pecan Farm. The same place his dad worked at for a summer.

That's where I'm at right now. That's what I know. It alternates between Owen's perspective in the present and then goes back to the past, to his dad that summer he worked at Gus's Farm. It's a slow burn kind of thing, but it's really interesting, I'm really enjoying it. The writing is good. And once I finish it, I can finally review it years late haha.

I don't know what I'm going to read next. Maybe it will be another mystery. Who knows? So that's what I'm Reading Right Now! What are you reading?

May 2019 Wrap-Up!

I am so inconsistent when it comes to doing monthly wrap-ups and I don't know why. Well, I guess I do know why, and it's because I suffer from laziness. Anyway, I thought I would do my May 2019 Wrap-Up. I didn't do awful this month reading wise. I read six things, which is decent. I tried to read more than one book at once, which I'm still not sure how I feel about doing. It didn't make me read faster. I didn't finish a book a day like BAM BAM BAM! I will just have to accept that I'm a medium fast reader and be okay with it. I might try again. Who knows. 
Now for the books I finished in May!

  

  

After the Fire by Will Hill -- This was an interesting story about a religious cult. I appreciated that it didn't go on an attack on religion, but rather showcased how power hungry, evil people can twist religion for their own purposes. BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 3.7/5

All Systems Red (Murderbot Diaries #1) by Martha Wells -- There was a lot of hype for this book and I'm happy to say, it lived up to it. It's about an anti-social security robot, who has hacked its government module so it's able to think for itself, and loves to binge watch TV. I wish it had been longer, it's only a novella. I'm definitely going to continue with this series. BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 4.3/5

Friend Request by Laura Marshall -- I got this one free for honest review from the publisher through Netgalley. I really liked this. It was a debut thriller, it definitely kept me interested and kept me reading. It had a lot of twists and turns. It dealt with bullying and trying to fit in. Our main character wasn't innocent. It was very good and I'd definitely read more from this author. BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 4/5

Death Or Glory, Vol. 1 by Rick Remender and Bengal -- This comic was okay. It felt like a B Action Movie. I liked the art, the colors, the style. I don't know if I was blown away by the story. BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 3.3/5

A Bad Deal For the Whole Galaxy (The Salvagers #2) by Alex White -- I liked this, but I wasn't blown away by it. I had the same kind of feeling about the first book. It's fine, but it's not my favorite sci-fi series ever. This had a very second book feel. It was overly long for what it was. I enjoyed the ending and I'll definitely check out the third book. BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 3.7/5

Blood of a Thousand Stars (#2) by Rhoda Belleza -- This was the second and final book in the Empress of a Thousand Skies Duology. It was great!! And I'm sad it's over. It went by so fast. I kind of wished it had been stretched out into more books, because I would have loved to have more time with these characters. I definitely recommend this. BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 4.3/5

Favorite Books of the Month

 

And that was my Reading Month for May 2019! I'm hoping that June gives me all the good books. How was your reading month? Did you find any new favorites? Let's see if I can keep this up for June.