Books I Hope Santa Brings/Bookish Wishes | TTT | Top Ten Tuesday | 12/24/24

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 I Hope Santa Brings/Bookish Wishes

Santa is ME or gift cards from loved ones. LOL…so here are some books I want to put on my shelves. Honestly, I’m okay just waiting for these books to go to Libby so I can borrow them and save money.

Onyx Storm by. Rebecca Yarros – of course I’m super excited for this one!

Where the Library Hides by. Isabel Ibanez – a book I saw at B&N but I just didn’t want to pay for it. Lol…I’ll buy it if it goes on sale or when I see in on Libby.

Immortal Dark by. Tigest Girya – so curious about this one! I’ve heard good things.

Poison in Their Hearts by. Laura Sebastian – would love to finish the series.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by. Suzanne Collins – With the new book coming out next year, I need to read this one.

A Sky Beyond the Storm by. Sabaa Tahir – I really need to finish this series.

What’s on your TTT?

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Goodreads Monday: A Sea of Unspoken Things by. Adrienne Young

Happy Monday!

Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme where you chose a random book from your Goodreads TBR and show it off. This meme is hosted by Budget Tales Book Blog.

Title: A Sea of Unspoken Things

Author: Adrienne Young

Pages: 288

Links: Goodreads | Amazon

Publication Date: 1/7/25

Synopsis:

A woman investigates her brother’s mysterious death while coming to terms with her own haunting past in this atmospheric novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Unmaking of June Farrow

The only thing James and Johnny Golden have ever had is each other. For as long as she can remember, James’s deep connection with her twin brother, Johnny, has gone beyond intuition—she can feel what he feels. So, when Johnny is killed in a tragic accident, James knows before her phone even rings that her brother is gone and that she’s alone—truly alone—for the first time in her life.

When James arrives in the rural town of Hawthorne, California to settle her brother’s affairs, she’s forced to rehash the ominous past she and Johnny shared and finally face Micah, the only person who knows about it. He’s also the only man she’s ever loved.

But James soon discovers that the strange connection she had with Johnny isn’t quite gone, and the more she immerses herself into his world, the more questions she has about the brother she thought she knew. Johnny was keeping secrets, and he’s not the only one. What she uncovers will push her to unravel what happened in the days before Johnny’s death, but in the end, she’ll have to decide which truths should come to light, and which should stay buried forever.

Do you have plans to read this book? Let me know in the comments below!

Weekly Wrap Up | 12/22/24

Aloha friends!

It was a long week at school for the kiddos and we can’t wait for winter break which starts this Saturday! Are you all feeling in the Christmas spirit at all? It’s still warm here so for me, I feel like it isn’t the holidays at all.

I’m gonna try make some Christmas cookies for a Christmas eve party we got invited too. Maybe that will put me in the spirit!

Anyway, I hope you all have a great week!

Blog Posts:

Not Here to Be Liked by. Michelle Quach | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Goodreads Monday: Breath of the Dragon by. Shannon Lee & Fonda Lee
The Last Fashion House in Paris by. Renee Ryan | ARC Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Books on My Winter 2024-2025 to-Read List | TTT | Top Ten Tuesday | 12/17/24
A Song to Drown Rivers by. Ann Liang | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
WWW Wednesday | 12/18/24
Looking Back on 2024: Series That I Started or Finished
Looking Back on 2024: New to Me Authors
The End of the Year Book Tag – 2024 Edition

Books I Read:

The Lotus Shoes by. Jane Yang

Currently Reading:

Lies on the Serpent’s Tongue by. Kate Pearsall
North is the Night by. Emily Rath
Breath of the Dragon by. Shannon Lee & Fonda Lee

Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:

Football

How was your week? Did you get a lot done? Watch anything good? Read any amazing books or books you didn’t finish? What are you reading?…Leave me a comment below!

The End of the Year Book Tag – 2024 Edition

I didn’t do one of these last year even though I thought I did. 🤔. It’s a fun post and I get to look back on the year, so let’s take a look!

Are there any books you started this year that you need to finish?

Not in Love by. Ali Hazelwood – I don’t know what it was but the first chapter was okay and I put it aside to read some arcs and never picked this one back up.

Worst in Show by. Anna E. Collins – My borrowing time came to an end on this one but I do want to read it!

Haunted Ever After by. Jen DeLuca – same reason, borrowing time came to an end but I will pick this one off.

Do you have an autumnal book to transition into the end of the year?

No I don’t. I feel like Christmas comes upon us in a rush and Christmas books sometimes publish in October. This one was an arc published in mid-October and I was in a spooky season mood. It didn’t help me transition at all lol but it was such a cute holiday story!

Is there a new release that you’re still waiting for?

A Cruel Thirst by. Angela Montoya – this one comes out on 12/17 but I’m all about borrowing books these days so we’ll see when I get a chance to read it.

What are three books you want to read before the year ends?

Is there a book that you think could still shock you and become your favourite of the year?

The Grandest Game by. Jennifer Lynn Barnes – this was one of my most anticipated reads for 2024 and I’m waiting for it to be on Libby (online library). I might have to buy it lol.

Have you already started to make reading plans for 2025?

Onyx Storm by. Rebecca Yarros – so excited to read this one!
Rebel Witch (The Crimson Moth #2) by. Kristen Ciccarelli – I just re-read book one and oh I can’t wait to get my hands on this one.
Oathbound (The Legendborn Cycle #3) by. Tracy Deonn – I feel like I’ve been waiting on this one forever.

Looking Back on 2024: New to Me Authors

I feel like I read a bunch of new authors this year – let’s take a look!

New to Me Authors in 2024

If I Promise You Wings by. A.K. Small
These Deadly Prophecies by. Andrea Tang
The Summer She Went Missing by. Chelsea Ichado
Snowglobe by. Soyoung Park
Compass and Blade by. Rachel Greenlaw
The Half King by. Melissa Landers

The Last Bloodcarver by. Vanessa Le
Nettle & Bone by. T. Kingfisher
The Fine Print by. Lauren Asher
So Let Them Burn by. Kamilah Cole
The Poisons We Drink by. Bethany Baptiste
A Winter Wish by. Emily Stone

Spindleheart by. T. I. Avens
Beautiful Villain by. Rebecca Kenney
Curious Tides by. Pascale LaCelle
Just for the Summer by. Abby Jimenez
Warm Hands of Ghosts by. Katherine Arden

Flawless Girls by. Anna-Marie McLemore
The Calculation of You and Me by. Serena Kaylor
Dungeons and Drama by. Kristy Boyce
A Magic Fierce & Bright by. Hemant Nayak
This Summer Will Be Different by. Carley Fortune
Not Here to Be Liked by. Michelle Quach
A Song to Drown Rivers by. Ann Liang

Birding with Benefits by. Sarah T. Dubb
All Roads Lead to Rome by. Sabrina Fedel
The Girl with No Reflection by. Keshe Chow
Castle of the Cursed by. Romina Garber
The Monstrous Kind by. Lydia Gregovic
Happy Medium by. Sarah Adler

Filthy Rich Fae by. Geneva Lee
Dishonestly Yours by. Krista & Becca Ritchie
Fledgling by. S.K. Ali
Deja Brew by. Celestine Martin
Fear of the Flames by. Olivia Rose Darling
Road of Bones by. Demi Winters
House of Thorns by. Isabel Strychacz

Eleven Houses by. Colleen Oakes
The Wren in the Holly Library by. K.A. Linde
Bloodguard by. Cecy Robson
Truly, Madly, Deeply by. Alexandria Bellefleur
Cloak of the Vampire by. Sapir A. England
Darkly by. Marisha Pessl

I read from 45 new-to-me authors this year! 👏🏽 My favorites that I would definitely read from again are:

Vanessa Le, Marisha Pessl, Demi Winters, Geneva Lee, Sabrina Lee, Lydia Gregovic, Sarah Adler, Serena Kaylor, T. Kingfisher, Emily Stone, Kristy Boyce

How many new to you authors did you read in 2024? Or who is your new favorite?

Let me know in the comments!

Looking Back on 2024: Series That I Started or Finished

I did a similar post last year to see what series I started and finished during the year. It’s very interesting to see if I stick to a series or not. It’s so hard sometimes to get back into a series after waiting so long for the next book since I don’t re-read a lot of books anymore.

Series That I Started or Finished in 2024

Here’s what I started:

A Tempest of Tea (Blood and Tea, #1) by Hafsah Faizal
Heartless Hunter (The Crimson Moth, #1) by. Kristen Ciccarelli
A Fate Inked in Blood (Saga of the Unfated, #1) by. Danielle L. Jensen

Snowglobe (Snowglobe Duology) by. Soyoung Park
The Last Bloodcarver (The Last Bloodcarver) by. Vanessa Le
The Veiled Kingdom (The Veiled Kingdom) by. Holly Renee

Curious Tides (Drowned Gods) by. Pascale LaCelle
When the Moon Hatched (Moonfall) by. Sarah A. Parker
Heavenbreaker (Heavenbreaker) by. Sara Wolf

The Ever King (The Ever Seas Series) by. LJ Andrews
Butcher & Blackbird (The Ruinous Love Trilogy) by. Brynne Weaver
Heir (Heir Duology) by. Sabaa Tahir

The Dagger and the Flame (The City of Fantome series) by. Catherine Doyle
Dishonestly Yours (Webs We Weave series) by. Krista & Becca Ritchie
The House at Watch Hill (The Watch Hill Trilogy) by. Karen Marie Moning

Fledgling (The Keeper’s Records of Revolution series) by. S.K. Ali
A Fire in the Sky (A Fire in the Sky series) by. Sophie Jordan
Fear the Flames (Fear the Flames series) by. Olivia Rose Darling

The Road of Bones (The Ashen series) by. Demi Winters
The Games Gods Play (The Crucible series) by. Abigail Owen

Filthy Rich Fae (Filthy Rich Fae series) by. Geneva Lee
Fangs for Nothing (The Nevermore Murder Club & Smutty Book Coven) by. Steffanie Holmes
The Wren in the Holly Library (The Oak and Holly Cycle series) by. K.A. Linde

Zodiac Rising (Descendants of the Zodiac series) by. Katie Zhao
The Half King (The Half King series) by. Melissa Landers
Bloodguard (Old Erth series) by. Cecy Robson

The ones I won’t be continuing are:

Snowglobe (Snowglobe Duology) by. Soyoung Park – from what I remember it was intriguing but don’t know if it’s enough for me to read part two.
When the Moon Hatched (Moonfall) by. Sarah A. Parker – this first book was SO long, but I pushed through. I don’t know if I have the patience to read a book two.
Butcher & Blackbird (The Ruinous Love Trilogy) by. Brynne Weaver – read this because of the hype and this was entertaining but not interested in the rest of the series.
Fledgling (The Keeper’s Records of Revolution series) by. S.K. Ali – entertaining dystopian read but would have to be in the right mood to read it.
Fear the Flames (Fear the Flames series) by. Olivia Rose Darling – I liked this one but didn’t love the flow and wasn’t connecting to the characters.
Fangs for Nothing (The Nevermore Murder Club & Smutty Book Coven) by. Steffanie Holmes – this was fun but no interest in continuing unless I have nothing else to read
The Wren in the Holly Library (The Oak and Holly Cycle series) by. K.A. Linde – bought this because the book cover was pretty but ugh, I didn’t love the story, wanted more from the story.
Zodiac Rising (Descendants of the Zodiac series) by. Katie Zhao – interesting world building but didn’t love.
Bloodguard (Old Erth series) by. Cecy Robson – another pretty cover but story was okay.

Here are the series that I finished:

I finished 12 series this year! Many were duologies which makes it easier to finish.

Ruthless Vows (Letters of Enchantment series) by. Rebecca Ross
Destroy the Day (Defy the Night series) by. Brigid Kemmerer
The Prisoner’s Throne (The Stolen Heir Duology) by. Holly Black

A Fire Endless (An Elements of Cadence series) by. Rebecca Ross
Ghostsmith (House of the Dead series) by. Nicki Pau Preto
The Mirror of Beasts (Silver in the Bone series) by. Alexandra Bracken

Nothing Like the Movies (Better Than the Movies series) by. Lynn Painter
The Blood Orchid (The Scarlet Alchemist series) Kylie Lee Baker
Wisteria (Belladonna series) by. Adalyn Grace

Fangs for Nothing by. Steffanie Holmes

The Whispering Night (The Luminaries series) by. Susan Dennard

The Darkness Within Us (The Shadows Between Us series) by. Tricia Levenseller

What series did you start or finish in 2024?

Let me know in the comments!

WWW Wednesday | 12/18/24

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?

There is one week until Christmas! Are you ready? (if you celebrate). I am but also we have Hanukkah in our house so my kids love the holidays – they get a bunch of presents lol. Then it’s my daughter’s birthday the following week, so she REALLY loves the holidays! I did finish a few books and am still working on some arcs but I’m all about easy reads right now and not so many heavy world-building fantasy books.

What are you currently reading?

The Lotus Shoes by. Jane Yang (arc) – 24%, I need to finish this one because I’m on the blog tour.

Lies on the Serpents Tongue by. Kate Purcell (arc) – 5%

Unhallowed Halls by. Lili Wilkinson – 6%

What have you just finished reading?

Not Here to Be Liked by. Michelle Quach – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Blood of Gods (#2) by. Sapir A. Englard – ⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Song to Drown Rivers by. Ann Liang (KU) – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Girl Most Likely To by. Julie Tieu – ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Heartless Hunter by. Kristen Ciccarelli – a reread because book two is coming soon! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

What are you going to read next?

What are you reading right now?

A Song to Drown Rivers by. Ann Liang | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: A Song to Drown Rivers

Author: Ann Liang

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 325

Publication Date: 10/1/24

Categories: Historical Fiction, Romance, Politics

Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China, A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic historical fantasy about womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love against all odds.
Her beauty hides a deadly purpose.

Xishi’s beauty is seen as a blessing to the villagers of Yue—convinced that the best fate for a girl is to marry well and support her family. When Xishi draws the attention of the famous young military advisor, Fanli, he presents her with a rare opportunity: to use her beauty as a weapon. One that could topple the rival neighboring kingdom of Wu, improve the lives of her people, and avenge her sister’s murder. All she has to do is infiltrate the enemy palace as a spy, seduce their immoral king, and weaken them from within.

Trained by Fanli in everything from classical instruments to concealing emotion, Xishi hones her beauty into the perfect blade. But she knows Fanli can see through every deception she masters, the attraction between them burning away any falsehoods.

Once inside the enemy palace, Xishi finds herself under the hungry gaze of the king’s advisors while the king himself shows her great affection. Despite his gentleness, a brutality lurks and Xishi knows she can never let her guard down. But the higher Xishi climbs in the Wu court, the farther she and Fanli have to fall—and if she is unmasked as a traitor, she will bring both kingdoms down.

Content Warning: violence, death

I’ve heard lots of good things about this book so when I saw it on KU I had to read it.

This is a really fascinating historical fiction story about Xishi, one of the most beautiful women in China, and I had never heard about her and her legendary beauty but I was engrossed with this tale.

Xishi is telling this tale about how she has had a rough childhood because of the war between the Yue and Wu. And we learn she is the most beautiful girl in the village and that draws the attention from a military advisor from the Yue side. They want to use her to infiltrate the Wu kingdom, make the king fall so deeply in love with her that they won’t know what hit them when the Yue attack. But can she do it? This girl from a lowly village with the most beautiful face?

I thought the training part of the book went super fast and wish it was more detailed. I wasn’t confident in Xishi’s skill to woo a king at the end of her training. At times I felt her character was so weak, I wasn’t sure how Fuchai would become obsessed with her, but he does. She must be that beautiful but I wanted more from her personality. Also I felt like Zhendang’s story fizzled out too fast – she poses as Xishi’s lady’s maid but I felt like she barely had a role when they are at the Wu’s.

The romance that built between her and Fanli was filled with so much tension, angst, longing even if they don’t have many scenes together. Maybe it’s a bit of insta-love but I don’t mind it with how things were taking place for Xishi.

And even though King Fuchai of the Wu was the enemy I liked how he and Xishi interacted with one another. She had to pretend to like him but I think eventually she did, at least as a friend. It was just sad all around how everything ended but I love how this story showed how war is something created by the powerful and everyone else is a bystander and gets caught in the crossfire.

Quotes from the Book:

“When men say they want a lover, what they often mean is they want a mirror; they wish to see themselves reflected back at them in the best light.”
Ann Liang – “A Song to Drown Rivers”

“The men will fight for their thrones and their power and their legacies, but to them we are nothing more than crickets and ants, insignificant, expendable.”
Ann Liang – “A Song to Drown Rivers”

Final Thoughts:

This story is tragic but so compelling. I love how the story was told and how everything unfolded with some twists and turns that I was not expecting. At times I did want more from the characters and the political drama but it was still entertaining. The bravery of Xishi to basically go into a lion’s den to try and take down the opposition was inspiring but her realization who the true enemy was came too late. The love story is filled with such longing – oh the heartbreak! I thought this was a great read and look forward to reading more from this author.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Books on My Winter 2024-2025 to-Read List | TTT | Top Ten Tuesday | 12/17/24

This week’s topic is:

Books on My Winter 2024-2025 to-Read List

The last books I have to read this year! But many of these are arcs and being published in 2025 so here we go:

Breath of the Dragon by. Shannon Lee & Fonda Lee – this one is an arc, and I’m excited to read it!

The Rival by. Emma Lord – Emma Lord is a must read for me. But not gonna lie – I don’t really love this cover. I didn’t love her last book but I hope this one is better.

The Starlight Heir by. Amalie Howard – I love this book cover!

The Girl Most Likely To by. Julie Tieu – some of these romance book covers just do nothing for me – is it the cartoony style? I’m not sure.

Get Lost with You by. Sophie Sullivan – I wasn’t aware of this book but the arc was gifted to me so I’ll be reading it!

Lies on the Serpent’s Tongue by. Kate Pearsall – I enjoyed book one, so I’m looking forward to this one!

The Grandest Game by. Jennifer Lynn Barnes – this one came out this year but I still haven’t read it. I would like to read it soon.

Throne of Secrets by, Kerri Maniscalco – I saw this book at Barnes & Noble and it was beautiful but way too expensive! I’m waiting for it on Libby.

To Shatter the Night by. Katherine Quinn – I thought the first book was entertaining and want to see what happens next.

The Courting of Bristol Keats by. Mary E. Pearson

What’s on your TTT?

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The Last Fashion House in Paris by. Renee Ryan | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Title: The Last Fashion House in Paris

Author: Renee Ryan

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 368

Publication Date: 12/24/24

Publisher: Love Inspired Trade

Categories: Historical Fiction, World War II

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

Thank you to Love Inspired Trade for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

In the heart of occupied WWII Paris, an elegant fashion house is the unlikely headquarters of a daring resistance network. Behind closed doors, courageous women vie to save loved ones and strangers alike from the Nazis in this powerful story of survival, friendship and second chances.

France, 1942

Once, Paulette Leblanc spent her days flirting, shopping and drawing elegant dresses in her sketch pad. Then German tanks rolled into France, and a reckless romance turned into deep betrayal. Blaming herself for her mother’s arrest by the gestapo, Paulette is sent away to begin a new life in Paris, working as apprentice to fashion designer Sabine Ballard.

But Maison de Ballard is no ordinary fashion house. While seamstresses create the perfect couture gowns, clandestine deals and secrets take place out of sight. Mademoiselle Ballard is head of a vast network of resistance fighters—including Paulette’s coworker and friend Nicolle Cadieux—who help escort downed military men and Jewish families to safety.

Soon Paulette is recruited as a spy. Working as a seamstress by day, gathering information at glamorous parties by night, Paulette at last has a chance to earn the redemption she craves. But as the SS closes in and Nicolle goes missing, Paulette must make life-and-death decisions about who to trust, who to love and who to leave behind…

Likes:

+ This story is about a resistance based out of a fashion house in Paris during World War II. We follow a few characters, most of them women, who brave this time to help soldiers and Jews escape occupied Paris.

+ The women in this book are taking very scary chances to help others but also to survive themselves as they watch their country turn on one another during Nazis occupation. I love how woman has a different story but similar heartbreak as they do what they can in war time. It is admirable and inspiring to see these women band together and use what power they have to help people.

+ There were some scenes, very few scenes with romance in it and I enjoyed it because it signaled hope for a better time. A slim hope for a future when the war ends. There are some twists in the story that I really enjoyed

Dislikes:

~ I felt like the ending was rushed, especially where the romance is concerned.

Final Thoughts:

I thought this was a very good read especially in times like these. The story of these women and men and their bravery to help those in danger is inspiring. If you like historical fiction, you might like this one.