August is over? What?! Where did the time go? I spent a lot of August at the beach folks and in the heat but it was nice because we were visiting with family. My kids had a lot of fun hanging out at the beach or pool – so much that my son already has two absences this month for school. He had so much fun he got a runny nose and sore throat. 😩 And he just started school…oops! 👀
But I am seriously ready for cooler weather and all things fall. We don’t get fall weather in Hawaii so I love all the fall decorations in the store, pumpkin bread in the stores and gearing up for Halloween. I love the holidays. 😍
So let’s get to it! Here’s what I read in August:
I read some awesome books! I do say 2019 have been really good with releases. 💃🏻 If you want to see the reviews for these books, just type the title in the search box or check out my archives menu. I promise I will update my book reviews list sometime this week.
What did you read in August? Leave your link below in the comments!
I’ve been dying to try Owl Crate for months now but I was waiting for a featured book I wanted to own and when I saw that the book for August was House of Salt and Sorrows, I bought it. I got the box last weekend and I was not disappointed!
This is what was in the box:
Just the theme alone I’m so in love with! I am an island girl and love all things ocean and the octopus? Love those tentacled creatures! The pin, bath salts, tea, wooden book mark and pencil case are so lovely! And that lantern? 😍 I’ll be using it as a prop for my bookstagram photos. I’m going to gift a few things but I’m definitely keeping the lantern and book. Isn’t it beautiful? This was a great box, glad I got it!
Now I’m looking forward to the September box and all the Halloween themed items coming! Love this box and I will definitely keep this subscription for now. Stay tuned for the next unboxing! 😘
Have you read the book House of Salt and Sorrow? What did you think? I’ll post my review once I get to reading it!
First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?
Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!
Aloha Friday everyone! It’s the LAST Friday of August, hooray! The closer I can get to cooler weather here in Hawaii, the better, except that may not happen for another 2 months. Yes, it’s usually hot and humid even on Halloween – it makes trick or treating really gross.
Speaking of Halloween – I already got decorations from Target, yup and my daughter, bless her sweet little heart, loves pumpkins. She’s been playing with our pumpkin decorations all week and it’s still summer. It’s hot, I’m tired and I’m just trudging through this heat, staying on top of my son’s homework and yesterday I had to take everything out of the closet because we might have termites in the floor. Yup. SO much FUN – not. It was exhausting but I definitely got to throw out things, and I’m going to donate a lot of stuff too. I guess it’s time to rip out the carpet (This house is only 6 years old! ugh 😩) like my hubby and I have been planning and put the nice flooring we’ve been wanting to since we bought the house.
Anyway enough of that – this weekend is the LAST birthday celebration for my son, he had two weeks of cake, fun with family visiting from out of state, more cake and now with our Hawaii family, we are going to hang out in Waikiki for Labor Day weekend to celebrate his birthday with them. Ladies and gents, I will be getting a margarita or Mai Tai or mojito or something tropical that will make me feel like I’m on vacation, because…I deserve it. 🏝🍹⛱ (honestly I’m so tired of the sun though haha)
With all THAT said…sorry…lol…
Can you guess this book?
“Candlelight reflected off the silver anchor etched onto my sister’s necklace. It was an ugly piece of jewelry and something Eulalie would never have picked out for herself.”
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Intriguing! Has anyone read this book yet? Did you like it? Let me know in the comments below and I hope all of you have an amazing weekend!
I love book crate subscriptions, I’ve tried three of them now and am going to continue trying as much as I can. I’m in the shopping around stage but so far each box has been pretty awesome.
I decided to try the July Fae Crate box because I found a coupon code for it. So I thought, why not?
Here is what was inside it:
In the box:
Renegades Sorting Candle by SpideyScents
Steelheart Lanyard
XL Lunar Chronicles Pouch by. CatarinaBookDesigns
Hero Pop Socket
Mystery Hero Card Collection
Young Elites Collectible Coin
Carry On Collectors Polaroid by. @choink
The book is Collateral Damage by. Taylor Simonds with a super cute reversible dust jacket:
And the edges are sprayed black…
And it even comes with a free ebook download – the book is Deviation by. Christine Manzari
My favorite thing in the box is the XL pouch, looks like it can hold a laptop. What do I do with the rest of the items in the box? I gift them or will put them together for giveaways I do on my instagram account. I haven’t read the book yet, but I’ll get to it eventually!
I thought the box was some cute things, but it’s not my favorite of the three subscriptions I’ve tried. I do like that with Fae Crate you can do a one-time purchase. Some other companies is a monthly subscription and you have to go in a cancel if you don’t want the next box. The one-time purchase is so much more convenient when you are shopping around like I am. I’ll try it again when I see a theme I like. I kind of want to get all the Halloween themed subscriptions 😂 but I’d be super broke if I did that!
Have you tried book box subscriptions? Any you would like to recommend?
Categories: Sexual Abuse, Drug Abuse, Young Adult, Contemporary, Mystery
A missing girl on a journey of revenge. A Serial―like podcast following the clues she’s left behind. And an ending you won’t be able to stop talking about.
Sadie hasn’t had an easy life. Growing up on her own, she’s been raising her sister Mattie in an isolated small town, trying her best to provide a normal life and keep their heads above water.
But when Mattie is found dead, Sadie’s entire world crumbles. After a somewhat botched police investigation, Sadie is determined to bring her sister’s killer to justice and hits the road following a few meager clues to find him.
When West McCray―a radio personality working on a segment about small, forgotten towns in America―overhears Sadie’s story at a local gas station, he becomes obsessed with finding the missing girl. He starts his own podcast as he tracks Sadie’s journey, trying to figure out what happened, hoping to find her before it’s too late.
Courtney Summers has written the breakout book of her career. Sadie is propulsive and harrowing and will keep you riveted until the last page.
Sadie is an important book. It is a story that cover tough subjects like child abuse, drug abuse, and murder. It broke my heart.
The way the book is written is really interesting because it starts off with a podcast. West McCray the show’s host is trying to find Sadie by following the trail she’s left behind. But time is not linear in this book, it starts off with the show, but when Sadie shows up in the story and we are following her, these are flash backs. They are trying to find her trail but I don’t know, with the ending…is it too late for Sadie? As West rushes to put the clues together, we learn the horrifying things that has happened to Sadie through her memories. Sadie’s journey made me feel so helpless.
I was engaged in the story right away but in all honesty, I started this book and put it down for a week because my out-of-state family was visiting and I didn’t want to read something sad. The beginning of the story gave me a feeling this would not end happily. ☹️ Sadie is a gritty character, a girl with a stutter who was already ostracized so much for that in her short life. She is a girl hurting so bad and she’s so empty – you just wish you could protect and help her. Sadie is also angry, resourceful and has a desire to hurt the man who’s hurt her and her sister. I was cheering her on, but oh was I scared for her.
Sadie has had it rough since birth – all stemming from her mom’s drug abuse. The only joy and love she had in life was for her little sister Mattie. And when Mattie’s life is taken, Sadie is more than devastated. What she uncovers on your journey to find her “father” is more sick and depraved men like him. Stories like these gut me and make me afraid for my own kids, there are some scary people out there, and it’s the ones you don’t suspect. For Sadie, all she wants is revenge and to find the man that hurt her. But everyone else back home is trying to find Sadie. Of course, she doesn’t know that. 💔
The only thing that bugged me about the story was the open ending – ugh…..I want to know what happened to Sadie. 😫😢 I have a feeling she died…did she die?! If you did read this already – what do you guys think about the ending? What are your theories? I know that part doesn’t matter, because the story was about the girls out there being preyed on – the ones who don’t, can’t, or won’t tell their story because they are dead, very afraid, or just too broken. But goodness, in the time I spent reading Sadie (and it’s a quick read), I felt like she was real and I had to know if she’s okay.
The story subject matter is not enjoyable, but it is real. We hear the stories, we see it in the news, we know people who have been been abused or abused drugs. The story is raw, suspenseful, heart-breaking and relevant. Read it if you can, but if you can’t, that’s okay too.
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. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Please check out That Artsy Reader Girl for more Top Ten Tuesday topics and other awesome stuff!
This week’s topic is…
Books I’ve Read That I’d Like In My Personal Library
(perhaps you checked it out, borrowed it from a friend, received it for review, etc. and want to own it yourself.) (Submitted by Annemieke @ A Dance with Books)
I have so many I want – now only if I had the space…haha…
Vow of Thieves by. Mary Pearson – because the Dance of Thieves duology is one of my favorites. I love Kazi and Jase! ❤️ Read it as an arc and need it to complete my set.
The Nightingale by. Kristin Hannah – it’s the book that got me reading all of Kristin Hannah’s work. Read it as an ebook and definitely need a hard copy.
The Cruel Prince, The Wicked King, & The Queen of Nothing by. Holly Black – I’m actually getting the Barnes & Noble trilogy set when it releases in November. Can’t wait!
Every Judith McNaught book in Hardcover – because her books made me fall in love with reading when I was a teenager.
Most of Lisa Kleypas historical romance books – I want almost all of them, because after Judith McNaught stopped writing, Lisa Kleypas books filled that void for my love of historical romance novels.
His Hideous Heart by. Dahlia Adler – because I love Edgar Allan poe and only read this as an arc. Will add it to my collection once it releases.
The Bridge Kingdom by. Danielle L. Jensen – hopefully I can get the set once the series is complete. Love this first book, hope the rest lives up to it!
Inferno and Mafiosa by. Catherine Doyle – I have Vendetta, from the Blood for Blood series but need the other two. One of my favorites!
The World on Either Side by. Diane Terrana – read this as an arc and I absolutely loved it.
The Bone Witch Series by. Run Chupelco – because I need more filipino authors on my book shelf and I love this series.
What books do you want on your bookshelf? Leave me your answers or link in the comments below! I’d love to hear from you!
Categories: Romance, Coming of Age, Young Adult, Contemporary
As everyone at her Brooklyn high school announces their summer adventures, Olivia harbors a dirty secret: Her plan is to binge-watch horror movies and chat with her online friend, Elm. Olivia and Elm have never shared personal details, apart from their ages and the fact that Elm’s aunt is a low-budget horror filmmaker. Then Elm pushes Olivia to share her identity and sends her a selfie of his own. Olivia is shocked by how cute he is! In a moment of panic, assuming she and Elm will never meet in real life, she sends a photo of her gorgeous friend Katie. But things are about to get even more complicated when Olivia’s parents send her to the Catskills, and she runs into the one person she never thought she would see. This sweet and funny summertime romance is perfect for fans of Love and Gelato and The Unexpected Everything.
Happy Messy Scary Love is a cute, light-hearted, young adult romance about a horror movie fan named Olivia who unexpectedly meets her online friend and fellow horror lover, Elm. Instead in real life his name is Jake. There’s a bit of unintentional catfishing going on and yeah, all Olivia needed to do was come clean, but….well, we all have fears right?
Olivia pretty much has a good life, attends an amazing school in Brooklyn, and has cool friends. The only problem she has really is deciding what to do after she didn’t get into NYU. I did relate to her when she didn’t believe in herself enough to start writing the horror movie screenplay she’s been dying to write. When everyone around her seem so focused and ambitious, she flounders and feels like a loser, which is harsh – but haven’t we all been there? Especially in our teen years? Eventually, Olivia learns a few things about being brave at her new summer job and along with Jakes help, starts to believe in herself again.
The romance between Jake and Olivia is cute, and clearly built on lies – but I was rooting for the situation to have a happy ending. It’s rare you see a couple in a book bonding over horror movies, but I enjoyed that and thought it was refreshing! I’m too afraid to watch horror movies, but I grew up in the 80’s and was forced to watch horror movies because of my older male cousins. And even though I hated it, my favorite was Poltergeist. 👻 I know horror movies have come a long way since then!
This book clocks in at under 300 pages, so I got through it in one night. Overall, I thought it was a quick, cute and fun story, suited for horror movie fans and non-fans as well.
Title: Realm of Knights (Knights of the Realm, #1)
Author: Jennifer Anne Davis
Pages: 270
Publication Date: September 10, 2019
Categories: Young Adult, Fantasy
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Reid has spent her whole life pretending to be a man so she can inherit her father’s estate, but when a chance encounter threatens to expose her lie, she is forced to risk everything.
In the kingdom of Marsden, women are subservient to men and land can only pass from father to son. So when Reid Ellington is born, the fifth daughter to one of the wealthiest landholders in the kingdom, it’s announced that Reid is a boy.
Eighteen years later, Reid struggles to conceal the fact she’s actually a young woman. Every day, her secret becomes harder to keep. When one of Marsden’s princes sees her sparring with a sword, she is forced to accept his offer and lead her father’s soldiers to the border. Along the way, she discovers a covert organization within the army known as the Knights of the Realm. If Reid wants to save her family from being arrested for treason and robbed of their inheritance, she will have to join the Knights and become a weapon for the crown.
To protect her family, Reid must fight like a man. To do that, she’ll need the courage of a woman.
Thank you to Reign Publishing and NetGalley for giving me a chance to read this eARC.
I love the cover of the book, it’s what drew me to the story. Plus this is a girl dressing as a boy trope and I like those stories, I mean, Mulan – right? 🤷🏻♀️ After reading this arc, I can say I liked what the story was trying to do and I’m looking forward to book two. I can’t quite describe how I feel about this book thought – I want to read book two right away, but book one left me feeling…just okay.
Reid Ellington, a Duke’s daughter is living as a boy because her father has no male heir. To protect the title and lands, Reid grows up as a boy. Duke Ellington is breaking the law by lying to the court about having a male heir. Then one day the two princes of Marsden, Ackley and Gordon happen to stumble upon Reid, and they think her ability to disguise herself is a skill they need and blackmail her into being a spy for the crown. If she passes muster the princes will tell their brother, King Eldon, to pardon the Ellington family for lying.
What I Liked:
Girl living as a boy trope because I like when the big reveal happens.
Prince Ackley seems really intriguing, what is he playing at? Is he good or bad? I still don’t know. I don’t trust any of them, Reid shouldn’t either! He seems to pull the strings though, or should I say move the pieces. 🤔
When Reid enters enemy territory, Axian, and meets her enemies…the princes there seem more intriguing than the ones in her kingdom! I want to learn more about Dexter and Colbert.
The political intrigue is complicated, more secrets are going to be revealed. I’d like to see how Reid gets out of her current situation.
What I Didn’t Like:
Reid is an okay character. She can fight…pretty good. She can blend in as a girl or boy but she doesn’t have much of a personality other than that she can follow orders. I hope more of her personality comes out in book two! I want her to fight a little more.
The budding romance for Reid is unnecessary because there wasn’t much build up to it at all. There was a hint of something and then feelings! 🤷🏻♀️ But just because I think it’s unnecessary in book one, I hope to goodness there is romance in book two! An enemies to lovers…please. 😂
I don’t know if it felt rushed because of how short the book is (270 pages), but at times I felt like it was rushing from one scene to the next. I wanted some things to build, like the relationships. I couldn’t feel for any of the characters until we are introduced to people in Axian. I keep wanting to say Axia instead of Axian… I don’t know why!
The missions the Knights gave Reid, didn’t seem risky enough. I get they were tests, but I feel like there was no intensity or suspense to the scenes, except when she had to go on a mission given to her by King Eldon.
I don’t even feel Reid is special enough yet to warrant everyone needing her help! And they all seem to need her skill at disguising herself! 🤦🏻♀️ But because I am intrigued about Axian and the cliffhanger ending, I will definitely read book two. Overall, I find this a solid start to a new young adult fantasy series.
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Her dream is to open a music hall. Only one thing stands in her way—the man she loves. The final Wicked Wallflowers novel from USA Today bestselling author Christi Caldwell.
Leaving behind her life as a courtesan and madam, Clara Winters is moving far from the sinful life to which she was accustomed in the gaming hell the Devil’s Den. Her more reputable and fulfilling endeavor is a music hall for the masses. One night, when she sees a man injured on the streets of East London, she rushes to his aid and brings him home. It’s then that she discovers he’s Henry March, Earl of Waterson, and a member of Parliament. No good can come from playing nursemaid to a nobleman.
When Henry rouses to meet his savior in blonde curls, he is dazzled. This smart and loving spitfire challenges his every notion of the lower classes—and every moment together is a thrill. But after Henry returns to his well-ordered existence, he strikes a political compromise that has unintended consequences. Will his vision for London mean dashing the dreams of his lovely guardian angel?
Thank you to Montlake Romance and NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this eArc.
I love Christi Caldwell. She has a large body of work but her most recent series is one of my favorites. The Spitfire, is book number five in the Wicked Wallflowers series and I really enjoyed it!
Clara Winters used to be a courtesan but she left that life and now is in the middle of building her dream: a music hall. But one night she crosses paths with a nobleman, Henry March, who is a powerhouse in Parliament. She saves his life, in turn, his business in parliament has caused some complications for Clara achieving her dreams.
This seemed at first like the nobleman gets rescued by a woman, opposites attract trope but there is an interesting element to this story: Henry March. He’s as stuffy and starchy as they come, just so strait-laced! His life is so centered on his job at Parliament, he recites laws in his head to focus! Henry doesn’t tease, doesn’t have much enjoyment outside of work, doesn’t really have any friends but when he and Clara are together – the sparks. Oh the sparks! I liked watching Clara light him up, so to speak. 😅 They were just so different in personality I love how their attraction grows.
I love Clara as a character. We learn about how her life took a turn for the worse when she had no one to protect her. She’s strong, she’s outspoken and passionate. Henry is passionate as well, about his family and his work.
Now I loved Clara and Henry’s interactions in this story and they have a very steamy scene together…but the ending seemed rush. But I’ve read enough of this author’s work to know that yes, sometimes her book endings are rushed, which is frustrating because it can feel abrupt. But honestly, I loved watching Clara tease Henry so much, it was an enjoyable read for me. If you are reading this series, I think you will enjoy this latest installment very much.
First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?
Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!
Happy Aloha Friday everyone! What a week! We have visiting family from New York and California, so it’s been busy around here. We have been hanging out at the beach a lot and since my son turns 7 years old in five days and our family leave this weekend, we have been doing birthday celebrations. Lucky him, he’s having the best birthday ever I think. 🤗
So like I’ve been doing the past few weeks – here are some photos of my week before I do my First Lines Friday.
Summer time, summer time…
Hope you enjoyed that! So let’s get to the lines:
“People lived because she killed. And if that meant braving the Arz where even the sun was afraid to glimpse, then so be it.”
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I hope this one is good! I know there was a lot of hype around it so we shall see. I do love the map inside it. 😍
How has your week been going? What are you reading? Have you read We Hunt the Flame? I would love to hear from yo! Let me know what you think in the comments below. 😘
Past Midnight Book Reviews & More 