Among the Beasts & Briars | Book Review

My Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

Title: Among the Beasts & Briars

Author: Ashley Poston

Format: eBook (borrowed)

Pages: 352

Categories: Young Adult, Fantasy, Fairytale, Romance

Cerys is safe in the kingdom of Aloriya.

Here there are no droughts, disease, or famine, and peace is everlasting. It has been this way for hundreds of years, since the first king made a bargain with the Lady who ruled the forest that borders the kingdom. But as Aloriya prospered, the woods grew dark, cursed, and forbidden. Cerys knows this all too well: when she was young, she barely escaped as the woods killed her friends and her mother. Now Cerys carries a small bit of the curse—the magic—in her blood, a reminder of the day she lost everything. The most danger she faces now, as a gardener’s daughter, is the annoying fox who stalks the royal gardens and won’t leave her alone.

As a new queen is crowned, however, things long hidden in the woods descend on the kingdom itself. Cerys is forced on the run, her only companions the small fox from the garden, a strange and powerful bear, and the magic in her veins. It’s up to her to find the legendary Lady of the Wilds and beg for a way to save her home. But the road is darker and more dangerous than she knows, and as secrets from the past are uncovered amid the teeth and roots of the forest, it’s going to take everything she has just to survive.

World Building ~ this book is told like a fairytale. It’s so light, magical, and full of fantastical things like a fox that turns into a boy. It has villains, a mysterious wild wood, a legend about a kind and so forth. All of it worked beautiful to me. There are two kingdoms, separated by the wildwoods. And in these woods are scary creatures like the ancients and bone-eaters and a fog so thick it’s easy to get lost in.
Characters ~ we have Cerys/Daisy a gardener’s daughter with a touch of wild magic in her. A fox, who becomes a boy. A villain who wasn’t always one. I love Cerys and Fox’s relationship even though Fox had to do some soul searching. Their romance was sweet, it was barely anything until the end, so I liked seeing them bicker as friends do. Fox might be my favorite character in the book because he is so conflicted but with good reason.
I love how whimsical the story is – but it did have it’s dark parts especially when dealing with the ancients and bone-eaters. I enjoyed it all! The story felt like it was a combination of Beauty and the Beast and Sleeping Beauty mashed together (without the sleeping parts, just the briars). For me it was about pure escape!
We get a happy ending…and maybe a sequel? I’m here for it if we get a story about Seren and the Lady of the Wilds.

This story is like a fairytale and so if you are looking for a heavy detailed ya fantasy, this is definitely not it. It seems like it’s made for teen readers (has some profanity in it), and I don’t usually enjoy teen fantasy and gravitate more towards mature YA or NA but I found this one was really fun to read!

I didn’t know what to expect with this book because I borrowed it mostly due to it’s beautiful cover art! I was pleasantly surprised when I couldn’t put the book down. I was swept away in this magical world with a girl and a fox trying to save the people she loves. If you like light young adult fantasy stories that read like a fairytale, you may enjoy this one.

🦊 ~ Yolanda

Aloha Friday | 12/18/20

Another week over but my son is finally on winter break – hooray! Christmas is in a few days, are you done with Christmas shopping? Or do you usually shop last minute?

This was my week!

New Books Acquired:

NetGalley~

Amazon Unlimited~

Amazon Kindle Deals~

I can’t believe this trilogy was on sale for only $2.99! 😱

TV, Movies, Etc…:

The Prom on Netflix ~ ugh…am I hormonal? It made me tear up at the end. I can’t believe the character Alyssa who is played by Ariana DeBose is the bullet in Hamilton. I was like…wait, that’s her?! She has an amazing voice in The Prom. And the actress who plays Emma, Jo Ellen Pellman, has such talent too. I look forward to see what they do next! Honestly, the whole cast did great and hello Meryl Streep 👑, Nicole Kidman (give it some zazz!) and Kerry Washington made me cry at the end. 👏🏼👏🏼 I loved the storyline, the dance numbers and music. It made me happy!

Tiny Pretty Things on Netflix ~ I never read the books. 🤦🏻‍♀️ As for the show…it definitely wasn’t what I was expecting! It’s a soapy sexy young adult ballet drama, it’s a mess…it’s VERY dramatic. It is dark, has lots of nudity (mostly backsides though), lots of sex scenes (straight and gay), body dysmorphia, drug use, abuse, scandal, sexual harassment, racism, sex trafficking and there is a crime mystery too. Sooo many triggers. And what is the age of these ballerinas? Are they over 18? Because if they aren’t the whole teacher/student affair thing is gross.😫 Honestly without knowing much of the story I first assumed they were college age but I’m not sure. To top it off, the acting is not the best (I struggled through episodes) but I give them credit for using real dancers though because those parts are really beautiful. I love when Oren and Neveah dance together, they are stunning together. I couldn’t binge it straight through because of the acting and all the unnecessary sex scenes, but thank goodness for the skip button. I get it, it’s supposed to be racy but I wanted more of the story instead. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Adulting:

son’s projects are DONE! And hooray for winter break!
I haven’t poured resin and crafted in a whole week which was seriously NICE. We shall see if I continue with it or go back to hand stamping metal or a new craft! Something that takes up less space to make haha. I’m always ready to learn something new.

How was your week? Stay safe out there.

🎄 ~ Yolanda

Moon Claimed | Book Review

My Rating: 3/5 Stars

Title: Moon Claimed (Werewolf Dens, #2)

Author: Kelly St. Clare

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 344

Categories: New Adult, Urban Fantasy, Werewolves, Romance

The pack of lies continues.

My mother isn’t my mother.
A werewolf wants me for his one-and-only baby mama
Oh! And I’m the new leader of a tribe I joined weeks ago.

Messed up doesn’t begin to explain it.

I’m more desperate than ever to uncover an explanation for Mum’s mounting betrayals. Because this time, I’m not sure forgiveness is possible.

But the mating meets with Sascha must continue if I want to escape our bond for good. An entire tribe is relying on me to win a centuries-old game against freakin’ shifters. And at this point, well… I have a few secrets of my own.

Keeping them is the new game.

Would you confess the truth and risk forfeiting the one person you have left?

Andie embracing her wolf is the best part of this book, because it was inevitable and we know she’s going to end up with Sascha, it’s just too many things are so complicated. But she can’t fight it much longer.
Sascha is so patient with Andie – like seriously. He wants her but he will let her decide in the end and I’m glad. Andie has a lot of issues to work through and she has no choice but to deal with now after the ending of this sequel.
Wade is ride or die for Andie and she’s lucky to have him. He really listens and has her back.

This is supposed to be a quick read but it took me days to finish because I wasn’t feeling it, so it was more like a 2 star read for me but I know Andie needs to go through some challenges to break through her wall so she definitely grows in this one. The first book was much more intriguing, but now I don’t even care why they have to play this game. It seems pointless to me right now.
Rhona has a right to be seriously mad at Andie. Andie is lying (wayyyy to much) to protect Rhona but she just lost her dad, she’s going through a tough time on top of her sister lying to her. I just wish she confessed earlier, but the drama was dragged on until her relationship with Rhona broke. Sad. I was tired of Andie in this one.
This one made me question if I was more team vampire than team werewolves haha. Like…I don’t think I’m enjoying this wolf story as much as the vampire story she did previously. So…🤷🏻‍♀️.

I’m bummed this one didn’t hold my attention but I’m still going to read book three just to see how things pan out with Rhona and Andie. It’s obvious Andie and Sascha are fated mates so I’m not worried about that. But for me the story is Rhona and Andie. They are family and I hope things can be fixed between them.

🖤 ~ Yolanda

WWW Wednesday | 12/16/20

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam over on Taking on a World of Words.

The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:

What are you currently reading?

What have you just finished reading?

What are you going to read next?

What are you currently reading?

What have you just finished reading?

What are you going to read next?

What about you? ☺️ ~ Yolanda

Top Ten Tuesday | 12/15/20

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 her website for more TTT topics!

This week’s topic is:

Books On My Winter 2020-2021 TBR

I have a bunch of NetGalley arcs to get through this Winter so you can see I’m not reading many new releases unless I have time to fit them in. I’m trying to get through books on my shelf that have been sitting there neglected haha, so I need to read them before buying any more new books.

What’s on your Winter TBR?

💕 ~ Yolanda

You Have a Match | ARC Review

My Rating: 4/5 STARS

Title: You Have a Match

Author: Emma Lord

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 320

Publication Date: 1/05/21

Categories: Young Adult, Identity, Family, Friendship, Romance, Coming of Age, Adoption

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

When Abby signs up for a DNA service, it’s mainly to give her friend and secret love interest, Leo, a nudge. After all, she knows who she is already: Avid photographer. Injury-prone tree climber. Best friend to Leo and Connie…although ever since the B.E.I. (Big Embarrassing Incident) with Leo, things have been awkward on that front.

But she didn’t know she’s a younger sister.

When the DNA service reveals Abby has a secret sister, shimmery-haired Instagram star Savannah Tully, it’s hard to believe they’re from the same planet, never mind the same parents—especially considering Savannah, queen of green smoothies, is only a year and a half older than Abby herself.

The logical course of action? Meet up at summer camp (obviously) and figure out why Abby’s parents gave Savvy up for adoption. But there are complications: Savvy is a rigid rule-follower and total narc. Leo is the camp’s co-chef, putting Abby’s growing feelings for him on blast. And her parents have a secret that threatens to unravel everything.

But part of life is showing up, leaning in, and learning to fit all your awkward pieces together. Because sometimes, the hardest things can also be the best ones.

My Attention: read in one day

World Building: Washington State – mostly at camp

Writing Style: easy to read and relatable

Crazy in Love: friends to lovers

Creativity: Abby’s life gets a bit tangled and she learns to unravel some of the things tying her up in knots.

Triggers: adoption

My Takeaway: Sometimes when you try to find yourself…you find a sister along the way.

Emma Lord is becoming a must-read author for me. I love how she writes young adult contemporary that is filled with relationship problems, whether it be between a romantic interest or issues that arise with family and friends.
Abby’s not doing so well in school, her parents have her scheduled with tutoring. But her grandpa passed away, and she’s in love with her best friend – then on top of that she finds out her parents have been hiding a secret all her life. Talk about trying to manage all her emotions at once! It’s rough and she isn’t one to confront things happening in her life, but she learns how to when Savvy comes into her life, since Savvy is all about putting herself out there.
The story is heart-warming. I love her friendship with Leo but she wants more and she doesn’t know what he wants. And when Abby and Savvy get to know each other, watching their relationship grow after a few rough spots…I wanted them to be in each other’s lives forever by the end of the story.
The secret that Savvy and Abby’s parents share and hide is just so unfortunate, but I can see it as being totally realistic in adoption cases. I felt Abby’s mother’s pain and Savvy’s adopted mother’s as well.
Not only is Savvy adopted but Leo is adopted too. He and his sister was adopted from the Philippines (love the rep!) – and he starts to open up about wanting to know his roots, and his people, through food dishes. I thought that was so fitting because as a Filipino myself…food is everything, it’s so connected to our family/history/culture/memories.

It takes awhile for Leo and Abby to get together haha – lots of back and forth of not knowing where the other stands, but I did adore their friendship. Abby is a Junior so the angst is expected.

You Have a Match is a heartwarming story about finding yourself and family and friends along the way. Abby is grieving her grandpa, wishing she was “better” at everything so her parents could stop trying to fix her, and she’s in love with her best friend. In the end, she realizes her parents support her, and that the boy she loves, loves her back – she just had to open up and tell them what she felt. I enjoyed this story about Abby Day finding herself and also finding a sister.

💕 ~ Yolanda

Uncaged | Book Review

My Rating: 3/5 Stars

Title: Uncaged (Unspoken, #2)

Author: Celia McMahon

Format: eBook (own)

Pages: 402

Categories: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Review for Unspoken (Book #1)

Not every queen needs a crown.

After escaping Stormwall, Izzy and Fray have finally crossed through the Archway and into The Old Kingdom in search of allies. But finding a place within Fray’s former pack is harder than they imagined. When Izzy’s father warred with the Gwylis, it made a lifelong enemy of the Rowan name. Fray’s betrayal of siding with Aquarius in the war makes him no less an enemy to the pack.

Izzy struggles to understand her newfound magic and build a relationship with her new family, but when the new king’s soldiers arrive in The Old Kingdom, Izzy must fight to secure the protection of her new home. With war looming once again, Izzy is thrust back into the life she tried to leave behind.

As danger mounts, past, present, and future collide between kingdoms, and the lines of allegiances are drawn. Izzy must decide who she is willing to fight for, and where her loyalties truly lie.

UNCAGED is the stunning sequel to Celia McMahon’s debut UNSPOKEN, the first in her fantasy trilogy set in a world of curses, wolves, and war.

Aesthetics ~ the covers for the whole series are so good! I love the color scheme and the cover art is just so beautiful.
World Building ~ Izzy and Fray have left Stormwall and now they are in The Old Kingdom which is very detailed. I enjoyed learning about this land of Gwylis who aren’t voiceless, the Gwylis history and their way of life. We get a lot more wolves in this book as Izzy meets Fray’s old pack.
Characters ~ I like meeting the new characters like Olio (he’s my fave). Sonia is tough as nails too and we learn a little about her. Branch is cool too since he comes off scary in the beginning but starts to train Izzy and she needs training.
There is a darkness to Izzy now and I’m sure it will be explored more in the final book of the series. Whatever powers she inherited from the Gwylis, Aquarius, has come with some consequences that she has to figure out.

This one was slower than the first one because Izzy is new to the Gwylis and finding where she belongs. She is also busy training and learning her powers. I know Izzy is a strong female and now even more powerful with her Gwylis form but at times I feel like she doesn’t listen to anyone and I wish she would.
I’m not sure why Ashe is trailing her and what his role is? To remind Izzy of what she once was? Human? 🤔 I guess we shall see in book three.
Speaking about feelings – what is happening with her and Fray? They were tight and now unravelling. They do not communicate very well even though they can communicate through sign and with voice! 🤦🏻‍♀️ I know she’s going through some things though.
Triggers: grief, violence

This felt like a second book because how slow the story became and we spent time just watching Izzy trying to find where she belongs and learning all about her new powers. I think it definitely sets up some things to go down in book three where she has to go back and figure out what to do with her home Stormwall. This was a solid sequel but not my favorite of the series so far – but I do enjoy this world of wolves this author has created.

🐺 ~ Yolanda

Spell the Month in Books: December

Hi all, I thought this would be a fun tag to do. I saw a bunch of bloggers doing it, like One Book More. It was originally created by Reviews from the Stacks, and the idea is to spell the month using the first letter of book titles. So let’s try out December:

I tag everyone else who wants to do it! 😘

Aloha Friday | 12/11/20

I’ve been so busy with holiday orders, also my son’s big project to end 2nd quarter and Christmas shopping. Oh the holidays! I barely got any blogging or reading done. 😟

Let’s see how my week has been like:

New Books Acquired:

NetGalley ~

Overdrive Library ~

Amazon Kindle Unlimited ~

TV, Movies, Etc…

The Queen’s Gambit on Netflix – I started this and haven’t finished it. I like it so far though, it’s kind of dark, but fascinating.
Selena on Netflix – not going to lie, it took me awhile to get into this one because the actress looks so old playing teenager Selena and the wigs – oh my!…yes I am an 80’s child and I had a perm and teased bangs 😆😅, but some of the wigs just didn’t look good on that actress. Now my favorite person on the show has to be her sister, Suzette, I like her spunk! I think learning about the family dynamics are interesting, their mom is so supportive, bless her heart. AB looks like he’s being pushed to his limit – but will I watch the second season? Yes because that’s when Como La Flor comes out and she blows up big time! 😍 Another thing I did like about the series, all the 80’s music I listened to growing up playing in the show, made me relive my childhood. Good times! Overall…the the show is okay, I don’t love it, I love the music though.
One Night Only: The Best of Broadway on CBS – music got me through 2020 and I love musicals. Jersey Boys was supposed to make its way to Hawaii this past summer and I saw it on Broadway, my first trip to NYC in 2009 with one of my best friends. But covid happened so…oh well, I hear they rescheduled the show to 2022!

Adulting:

helping my son with his projects 😓 and entertaining my daughter at the same time.
my daughter got a stomach bug and had diarrhea all weekend (boo!) poor kiddo – she’s still recovering but doing so much better, it’s been exhausting for both of us.
finishing and sending my Etsy orders.
cooking for the first night of Hanukkah – I was a little ambitious and thought I had enough flour to make challah and Sufganiyot (fried donut) but just donut bites (like donut holes). I did not have enough flour hahaha – so my challah leaves came out smaller than I thought they would and the donuts didn’t form. Oh well! I’ll try again once I get more flour. The kids loved their presents and challah, my hubby got his Matzo ball soup and I’m just happy they were happy! 💙🕎

Happy Hanukkah to you all!

Top Ten Tuesday | 12/8/20

This week’s holiday freebie topic is:

Books That Take Place in Cold Weather

I used to read much more holiday romance books but now it looks like I’ve been reading more fantasy set in cold weather haha. What’s on your TTT today?

❄️ ~ Yolanda