Tag: book tag

Book Review | Dorothy Must Die

Published on by Amber2 Comments

“I didn’t know what was worse: to have your shot and screw it up, or to never have had a shot in the first place.”

Dorothy Must Die (Dorothy Must Die, #1)

Goodreads // Amazon // Book Depository

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I didn’t ask for any of this. I didn’t ask to be some kind of hero.

But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado—taking you with it—you have no choice but to go along, you know?

Sure, I’ve read the books. I’ve seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little bluebirds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can’t be trusted, Wicked Witches may just be the good guys, and winged monkeys can be executed for acts of rebellion. There’s still a yellow brick road—but even that’s crumbling.

What happened? Dorothy.

They say she found a way to come back to Oz. They say she seized power and the power went to her head. And now no one is safe.

My name is Amy Gumm—and I’m the other girl from Kansas.

I’ve been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked.

I’ve been trained to fight.

And I have a mission.

This book was extremely weird… It was good and it took awhile for me to read it but I still enjoyed it for the most part. I really like that it does not focus heavily on romance. That was pretty refreshing for a YA book. A lot of things felt super predicable so I wasn’t surprised by anything.

I didn’t feel like there was a whole lot of character development. That was one thing I felt was lacking in the story. Amy was a pretty likeable character. She felt real but she also felt kind of bland. I’m not sure if that even makes remotely any sense.

I like the idea behind the book. I like that it’s kind of like a sequel to the Wizard of Oz. I think it was a very unique idea. I wish somethings would have been executed differently. The middle of the book felt kind of pointless. It just felt like something was missing. The beginning and end were SUPER fun though!

Final Verdict:

Top Ten Tuesday | All About Them Covers

Published on by Amber19 Comments
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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. The topics are provided ahead of time and can be found here.

This weeks topic is: “Cover Freebie”

It’s all about them covers, bout them covers, bout them covers.

Hello friends! I am back with another Top Ten Tuesday! This week is cover freebie! We get to discuss any topic we want that is based on covers! I feel like covers themselves get a lot of love so I’m going to discuss my favorite typography on covers! I feel like typography can really make or break a cover. There are so many great covers with beautiful typography 😀

Girl In Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow || I love how imperfect it is. The words are striked out and look like they’ve been erased and rewritten. It speaks volumes about the story.

The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman || I just love how the glasses make the O’s in “book” hehe.

Landline by Rainbow Rowell || I really like how Landline looks like a landline phone 😀

Say What You Will by Cammie McGovern || A text message title? This looks dope as heck!

The Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes || I really enjoy how this one looks sharp like knives. The “k” and “s” are all pointy. Let the battle begin.

The Poppy War by R.F Kuang || The smokeyness look so fancy. I also like the mix of black and red smoke and text!@

A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi || I love how the title is doubled and in cursive writing. I love me some cursive.

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune, The Dead Girls Club by Damien Angelica Walters, Queen of Geeks by Jen Wilde || I loveeeeeee how these titles are entwined with the cover. They look super neat.

Are there any covers with typography that you love? Let me know down below 😀

Is 3 Stars A Good Rating? || Lets Talk Bookish

Published on by Amber19 Comments
Why Do I Follow_

Hello!

Let’s talk bookish is a weekly meme, created and hosted by Rukky @Eternity Books  & Dani @ Literary Lion, where we discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts.

This weeks topic is: Is 3 Stars A Good Rating?

I really like this weeks topic. 3 stars are different for every person. When I rate a book 3 stars I image myself giving the book a C or a 70%. It’s not terrible, it’s just kind of mediocre. The book was good but it didn’t blow me away. I want to read books that amaze me, make me think, slap me across the face and be like “HERE I AM”.

I have a hard time picking up books when I see that a majority of the reviews on goodreads are 3 stars. I think it’s because I don’t want to read something everyone else seems to think is meh. I want a book that isn’t like anything I’ve ever read.

I don’t think 3 star ratings are bad. I personally think it’s saying the book is okay but it could have been better. I will still recommend 3 star books because everyone has different tastes. A 3 star book for me might be a 5 star book for you.

A lot of times when I rate a book a 3 star it’s because it’s not a book I’m going to remember. I’ll probably forget the characters names or what happened in the story. I ended up stopping the rating scale on my blog because it’s hard for me to rate them but I still end up rating them on goodreads. XD

Overall, I don’t think 3 star ratings are bad. I think they’re a pretty average rating for most bloggers. I tend to rate most of the books I read either a 3 or 4 star on goodreads! What about you? Do you think they’re good? Do you think they’re bad? Let me know down below!

Thoughts And Feels I Have While Reading

Published on by Amber14 Comments

Why Do I Follow_

Hello!
Are you like me where you like to shout at the characters or to yourself while reading? I decided to do a relaxing post today. Enjoy my crazy thoughts and feels! Those darn characters, I tell ya. I also like to talk to myself because I never saw a twist coming. XD But I also tend to cry a lot, lol.

The Thoughts:

What Are You Doing Wtf GIF by Masterchef - Find & Share on GIPHY

“JUST COMMUNICATE *eye rolls*”

“Ugh, he is so cute, my heart is mellllting”

“OMG, HOW DID I NOT FIGURE THIS OUT!?”

Shocked Holy Shit GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY

“Okay, but like the other guy is way better for you”

“WHY DO YOU HAVE TO BREAK MY BABY BOYS HEART!?”

“It’s okay, I’m okay, everything is okay”

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“FINALLLLLY!!!!!”

“KISS KISS KISS KISS KISS”

“I KNEW IT! God I’m so smart”

The Feels

Sad Anthony Anderson GIF - Find & Share on GIPHYSad Tears

Happy My Heart GIF - Find & Share on GIPHYHappy Tears

Nawww GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHYD’awwww

Judge Judy Reaction GIF - Find & Share on GIPHYSeriously though?

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Want to know the books I was thinking of while writing this post? The darn culprits are…

Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

 

What thoughts and feels do you have while reading? Let me know down below 😀

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Books Paired With My Favorite Drinks

Published on by Amber4 Comments

Hello! Today I decided to pair some books I enjoyed with my favorite drinks! After doing this post, I realized I do not have many favorite drinks, lol! If you want to learn more about the books I have posted, just click on the pictures 🙂

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Hot Tea and Gods of Jade and Shadow
I love hot tea when I’m freezing. It makes me feel so warm and cozy. I also drink loads of tea when I don’t feel well. Gods of Jade and Shadow made my heart so happy. I felt all warm and cozy while reading it. Drinking hot tea makes me want to read Gods of Jade and Shadow. You can read my review here 🙂

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White Wine and The Selection

Drinking wine reminds me of socializing and get togethers. It’s also just really refreshing. It needs to be sweet thought. I hate dry wine. Drinking white wine makes me want to read The Selection, mostly because The Selection reminds me a lot of the Bachelor XD. There is also a ton of drama and for me, drama needs some wine to go with it.

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Iced Tea and The DUFF

I love drinking iced tea on a nice, hot summer day. I love being able to tan outside and have a nice refreshing tea by my side. I choose The DUFF because I love reading this book during the summer time. It’s one of my favorites even if it is super cheesy. Drinking iced tea makes me want to read The DUFF because they both remind me of summertime.

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Warm, Cozy, Fires, Christmas, Comfort

Coffee and Harry Potter

I saved the best for last. Coffee is my comfort drink. I love drinking it just for the heck of it. It also reminds me of fires and Christmas. I’m not sure why. Harry Potter also reminds me of Christmas and reading by the fire. Drinking coffee makes me want to read Harry Potter because Harry is also my comfort book. I love reading Harry Potter and watching the movies when I’m sad. They make me so happy, just like coffee. ❤

What books would you pair with your favorite drinks? Let me know down below! 😀

2020 Goals\\ Blogging & Reading

Published on by Amber6 Comments

2020 Goals

2019 was a terrible year for me for both blogging and reading. 2018 was pretty rough too, to be honest. I want 2020 to be a fresh start for me in terms of doing what I love. A year and a half ago I decided to go back to college and finally finish my college degree. I only have another year and a half left! WOOO. Almost there. I am going to college full time so I won’t have a ton of time to read and blog but I’m hoping I can do more than what I have done in the past! Fingers crossed ❤

My goals for 2020 are the following:

  • Read backlist books.
    • there are so many books I have on my shelves that have been published before 2017. It is time I finally read them! Some of the books I’m excited to get to are…
    • These are just the select few. There are so many more than I am also hoping to read!
  • Blog at least once a week
    • I don’t think blogging at least once a week should be terrible even going to school full time. I’m not sure what I’ll post but I do have several ideas lined up and will hopefully review the books I read.
  • Read at least one book a month
    • I went months without reading this year. I want to try and read at least one book a month. I really miss reading.

I don’t have a ton of goals. I don’t want to push myself too much. I want to slowly get back into the hobby I love which is reading and blogging.

What are your goals for 2020? 🙂

Children of Blood and Bone Review

Published on by Amber4 Comments

It doesn't help that Stella has Asperger's and French kissing reminds her of a shark getting its teeth cleaned by pilot fish. Her conclusion_ she needs lots of practice — with a professional. Which is why she hires e (1)

Goodreads || Amazon || Book Depository

Favorite Quote

“I won’t let your ignorance silence my pain”

Thoughts:

oh, wow, okay. i don’t know what to feel right now.

Literally just finished this and now writing my review. why? good question. I’m still wondering myself. Tomi’s writing was so beautiful and captivating. I was in the mood for some fantasy and this book was the perfect fit.

Honestly, I cannot explain my love for these characters. They all felt so alive. They struggled with their own inner demons and their own fears. The more they fought, the stronger they became. Tzain was one of my favorite characters. I was sad there were zero chapters in his point of view when all the other main characters got a chapter.

I love how this book focuses on oppression. I can’t say I have felt oppressed but you can tell in the writing that Tomi has experience. I could feel Tomi’s pain in her writing. It made the book come alive. It broke my. It made me happy. It made me laugh. It made me cry. It was everything.

For me, the biggest down fall of the story was the romance. It was pretty instalovey. It made me so mad I almost didn’t want to finish the story. It felt so unnecessary. Thinking about it now still makes me extremely upset. Although I love the characters themselves, I was not rooting for their love story. I was more disappointed than anything.

I love this book so much. I love the writing. I love the characters. I love the plot. I’m excited to read the next book!

1 Favorite Book Per Genre

Published on by Amber6 Comments

I know there are so many genre’s out there but these are the only ones I can think of for my personal favorites 🙂

Fantasy-
The Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

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Chick Lit-
The Hating Game by Sally ThornUntitled design (1)

Contemporary-
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
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Dystopian-
Divergent by Veronica RothUntitled design (3)

Paranormal-
Twilight by Stephanie Meyer

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Historical Fiction-
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

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Middle Grade-
Wonder by R.J. Palacio

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Mythology-
Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

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Mental Illness-
WinterGirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

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Reading YA As A 25 Year Old

Published on by Amber4 Comments

Young Adult As an Adult
Reading YA books in my 20’s, especially my mid twenties, is a strange experience. The older I get, the more my reading tastes change. When I was in my teens, my favorite books of all time were contemporaries. I loved me a good romance with some nice family drama thrown in. Now? Not so much. Now I just find myself getting annoyed reading about young love and how it feels like they’re going to be “together forever”. Every synopsis always feels like the same story line. But also, I feel weird reading young adults with kids having sex. I know they’re just characters, but I feel kind of… pervy reading books with 15 year old characters experiencing sex for the first time.

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As I reach my mid twenties, I find myself wishing there were more books that had characters between 18 and 29. A lot of books seem to be centered around characters between 14 to 17 or characters that are 30+. I know there is new adult books with characters relatively close to their 20s but those books always feel like they’re about sex and only sex.

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I am getting more and more drawn to fantasy, which is funny because I use to hate it. I found it so boring. As an adult, I feel like it’s easier to under the world? I’m not sure if that makes any sense. Young adult fantasies feel so much more magical than adult fantasies. I get so immersed in the story. It’s always a fun adventure battling things such as evil villains and scary monsters.

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I love adult contemporaries when I’m in the mood for something romantic, but I get annoyed reading those as well. The conflict always feel the same. It feels like every conflict in contemporaries is caused by miscommunication.  The characters mad or thinks the love interest isn’t interested. The characters end up fighting or being sad for several chapters, which is usually a week to months in book land. They don’t even consider talking to each other until another person intervenes. Maybe it’s because I’m in a serious relationship of several years but i cannot stand it. We have our fair share of miscommunication fights, I mean who doesn’t? But we don’t take long to talk it out and solve it.

Are you an adult reading young adult books? What is your opinion? I would love to hear 🙂

13 Ways You Can Afford To Read

Published on by AmberLeave a comment

Now that I have gotten your attention, I am here to talk about how you can afford to read. Of course everyone can afford to read but not everyone can afford to buy the books to read them! I am here to give a few solutions. I’m sure you’ve heard of most, if not all of these. I know a lot of these only apply to USA residents so if you have alternatives feel free to share!

Borrow Them

What I mean by borrowing them is getting them from a friend. I know not everyone likes to loan out their books (i’m one of them unless I trust you with my life). If you have a friend that trusts you, this is a super easy way to read books for free! It only cost a little bit of friendship 🙂

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Bookoutlet

Where oh where have you been if you have not heard of bookoutlet? 😉 jk, but seriously though, bookoutlet is amazing. I’ve bought so many books from them for super cheap. They also do black Friday deals. I think the most I paid for a book is $6 for a hardback.

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Half Priced Books

Half Priced Books is very similar to bookoutlet. I’ve never personally bought anything off this website but I have heard their quality and prices are amazing! They have a ton of things in stock!

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Book Depository

I know book depository isn’t exactly cheap but I added it to the list because you get free shipping worldwide. Shipping can end up costing an arm and a leg depending on where you’re shipping too. I also know a lot of countries don’t always have books or sell them super expensive so book depository has been amazing for a lot of people!

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Library

I know this seems like the most obvious thing but I know a lot of people end up overlooking the library. The library is such an amazing resource for getting books without having to spend money! Sometimes bookstores may stop selling a book you really wanted to read but the library may have it in stock for you! I love using the library so much. I personally use the apps though, which I will discuss later! Libraries also always have amazing library book sales!

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Amazon

Okay, I know amazon is not a great website. I know it doesn’t do great business for the authors; however, sometimes amazon has amazing kindle deals on really well-known books. I’ve gotten quite a few books from amazon for $2.99 for my kindle! I suggest signing up for bookbub so you can get emails every single day on new kindle book deals!

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Netgalley is a wonderful website to use if you’re a book blogger or a booktuber! You can use Netgalley to request books. These are advanced reader copies and it is expected of you to review them if you get them! It’s extremely important to keep your review rate up though otherwise you risk not being accepted to read the books you want! This is something I really struggle with.

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Thift Stores

It’s amazing how many people get rid of their books at local thrift stores! I’m not sure all the thift stores there are but I have found some pretty sweet books at my local goodwill store! These books usually run between $5 or less!

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Scribd

Scribd is a nice alternative to audible. I have never used it, but I have heard it’s way better. It’s $8.99 a month. You can read audiobooks, ebooks, magazines, and more. Either way $8.99 a month is pretty neat. That’s cheaper than netflix!

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Bookstores

There are so many amazing bookstores that have killer deals! There is a bookstore close to me that always has amazing used books in stellar condition! I also know booksamillion usually has some amazing books in their bargain section!

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Garage Sales

Just like thrift stores, there are so many books you can find at different garage sales as well! I’m not a huge garage sale shopper myself but I know some people are. You can find a ton of unknown books. Who knows, maybe it will turn into a new favorite 🙂

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Facebook

I have other people for some recommendations on where to find cheap books and I was told there are several facebook pages were people sell books! I’m not sure what these group pages are called but I’m sure you can do a quick search on your facebook page!

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Library Apps

And lastly, my personal favorite, library apps. You need a library card to use these but they’re so wonderful. A lot of libraries use overdrive. Mine uses cloudlibrary and hoopla. I use them so many times so I can check out books I’m not quick sure on. It’s an amazing solution, especially if you don’t want to spend money on gas driving to the library!

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If you have more ideas, please feel free to tell us below in the comments! ❤