Tag: Six of Crows

Posted in Book Tags

Ben ‘n’ Jerry’s Book Tag 🍦

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Wednesday, bibliophiles!

I haven’t been able to do a book tag in a bit, so I figured that it would be a good time to do it now that I’m out of school! I found this one over at Laura @ The Corner of Laura, and the tag was originally created by Aimal @ Bookshelves and Paperbacks. I am a devoted Ben ‘n’ Jerry’s lover and a lover of ice cream in general, so this looked like the perfect tag to do!

Let’s begin, shall we?

🍨 THE BEN ‘N’ JERRY’S BOOK TAG 🍨

VANILLA CARAMEL FUDGE: pick a light, fluffy contemporary

Contemporary usually isn’t my go-to, but Perfect on Paper is one of the best YA contemporary romances I’ve ever read—truly excellent bisexual rep!

MINT CHOCOLATE COOKIE: a new release that you wish everybody would read

The Isles of the Gods is my most recent 5-star read—Amie Kaufman never misses with any of her novels!

CHERRY GARCIA: an ending that was bittersweet

The Loves & Lies of Rukhsana Ali was a very emotional read, but the last part of the ending was at least hopeful.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE: a book containing your OTP of OTPs

Not to commit author double-dipping on these tags (I always do…oopsie), but my love for Kal and Auri from the Aurora Cycle knows no bounds. (I’m getting all excited about these books all over again because I got a friend of a friend to pick up a copy of Aurora Rising at the airport…WE CONVERTED HIM)

MILK & COOKIES: two authors, who, if they collaborated, would go perfectly together

I feel like Leigh Bardugo and Roshani Chokshi could do something really interesting together! They’re both excellent at YA heist fantasy novels, so I’m sure their powers combined would result in something super fun…

BOSTON CREAM PIE: a book that had you turning pages late into the night

I got House of Hollow from a Christmas gift card last year! Even though my expectations were low (I tried to keep them low so all of the hype it got wouldn’t disappoint me), Sutherland’s prose was incredible!

CHOCOLATE THERAPY: a book that makes you feel better after a long day of life

As intense as parts of it get, The Mermaid, The Witch, and the Sea has become something of a comfort read for me in the past few years.

COFFEE, COFFEE, BUZZBUZZBUZZ! : a book not yet released that you can’t wait to get your hands on

I was so excited to hear about A Song of Salvation! Anything by Alechia Dow automatically has to go on my TBR, and I can’t wait to have more adventures in her established universe. It comes out in about two months…

I TAG:

Today’s song:

That’s it for this book tag! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Posted in TV

Shadow and Bone, season 2 – Netflix review 🐉

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant
they really just hand the Mal reveal to you right there, huh

Happy Friday, bibliophiles!

Season 2 of Shadow and Bone has finally come out, and with it came so much potential—new and beloved characters were finally being introduced, and with the melding of the original Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows storylines, we were finally getting material that was actually from the latter books. But although it was entertaining overall, it’s clear that a few things have started to get lost in translation in this new season. Still a fun watch, for the most part, but I have more gripes than I did than for season 1.

Now, tread lightly! This review contains spoilers for seasons 1 & 2 of Shadow and Bone, so if you haven’t yet watched it, read this at your own risk!

for my review of season 1, click here!

Enjoy this review!

SHADOW AND BONE, SEASON 2 – NETFLIX REVIEW

THE GREAT:

what’s with Tolya’s expression there 💀

Most of what I liked from season 1 ended up carrying over (CGI, casting, etc.), so, again: see my original review for most of that. But here’s what I liked about season 1 in particular:

  • Nikolai and Wylan: Nikolai and Wylan were my favorite characters from Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows respectively, so I was nervous going into this season. Nothing lives up to how we picture characters in our imaginations, but I’d say that Patrick Gibson and Jack Wolfe both did a good job at bringing these characters to life! Gibson definitely captured Nikolai’s lovably over-the-top swagger and charm, and his outfits were stellar as well. Similarly, Wolfe played Wylan’s shy and sensitive personality wonderfully, and as in the books, he had some solid chemistry with Jesper (Kit Young).
  • We’re actually getting some of the Six of Crows plot now? It had to happen eventually, given that the showrunners were combining both series and the fact that the audience largely liked the Crows more than the Shadow and Bone plot (understandable). Even with the tweaks that happened to make it work into the main storyline, it was still super fun (and also harrowing—the Jordie flashbacks, anyone?) to see some of the more iconic events from the book come to life. And the band’s finally all together! Almost…
  • More screen time for David!! DAVID! MY BOY! He was one of my favorite side characters in the books, and I’m so glad that he got to have more attention in this season. Luke Pasqualino played his gentle, awkward personality so well, and his newfound chemistry with Genya…getting all of the old Shadow and Bone feels from back in the day…🥲 love those two
  • We don’t have to deal with the Darkling anymore…for the time being: The decision to smush the plots of Siege and Storm and Ruin and Rising was certainly interesting one; again, it’s easy to see that it happened after the overwhelming audience preference for the Crows, and it definitely expedited some of the less interesting parts from those novels. Unlike the new Six of Crows stuff from seasons 1 and 2, this felt a bit more seamless, and even though I’m sad that we won’t quite get everything, it still makes sense. It’s messy, but it…kind of worked. And, as the title suggests, I’m glad that we won’t have to put up with hipster Darkling for a while. I say “for a while” because from the “”twist”” ending, it looks like they might be going the King of Scars route if they continue the Shadow and Bone plot…I wouldn’t be surprised if they brought him back. Ugh. They handled him super uncomfortably (see my s1 post for my issues), so I hope they keep him dead in the Netflix series. I can dream.
  • The Hummingbird: HUEHDKSJHSHJKDKHFSHSJKDLFHDJDFHF FANTASY FLYING SHIP GO BRRRRRRRRRRRRR
YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH BABEYYYYYYY

THE NOT-SO-GREAT:

Again, most of my gripes from season 1 carry over. I’m staying mad about Nina not being plus-sized. Do better, Netflix.

  • Tamar and Tolya: Other than Nikolai and Wylan, a lot of the newly introduced characters in this season felt especially gimmicky, and these two fell right into that. I remember thinking that they were mildly interesting in the book, but they were sort of forgettable in my experience. And Netflix somehow made them…worse? Had it not been for the “teehee Tolya will take any opportunity to recite poetry, silly goofy man,” and their genders, these two would’ve been indistinguishable. And both of them ended up being annoying—again, Tolya just had the poetry gag, and Tamar was just there to deliver slick one-liners and look cool. Not really a highlight. Eh.
  • Why are they making some of the characters so gimmicky all of the sudden? I know. This is a show based off of a YA book, and a lot of these characters are meant to be over-the-top. In the case of Kaz Brekker, for instance, it still works. But it feels like they’ve just taken qualities of existing characters and amped them up for no reason? I saw it most prominently with Jesper; there’s so much more nuance to his character than just being a charming gunslinger, but that’s…the only thing season 2 ever did with him. They just reduced him to being the comic relief character and erased all of his other characters, which is a massive disservice to him and Six of Crows as a whole. And don’t even get me started on that ridiculous attempt to break the fourth wall and then cut away. WHY.
my boy deserves better
  • The New Six of Crows plotline. Again. The initial Six of Crows plot in season 1 was somewhat entertaining, but it was pretty obvious that it was shoehorned in just so that they could try and fix up the timeline. And somehow, by some horrific miracle, they managed to make another new plot that was EVEN WORSE. WHAT WAS THAT. They weren’t even trying to hide the fact that they needed some time to stall before getting to the more climactic parts of the series. They just went on a sloppily-written heist and then got trapped in a room with a poisonous gas that somehow made them all relive their tragic backstories? How much more hackneyed can you get? Some of the laziest writing I’ve seen in ages…
  • The Darkling’s henchmen: Again: gimmicks. Ridiculous. No wonder they were so disposable.
  • THIS ONCAT ERASURE WILL NOT STAND: self-explanatory. You thought you could tide us over by throwing a goat in season 1 for comic relief? THE PEOPLE HAVE SPOKEN, AND WE WANT THE CAT.

(it’s me, I want the cat)

NOT NECESSARILY GOOD OR BAD, BUT JUST KIND OF FUNNY:

  • Why is Freddie Carter constantly making that face? You know the one. Does the role of Kaz Brekker somehow have a prerequisite for being in a constant state of sucking in your cheeks?

Inej: I will have you without armor, or I will not have you—

Kaz:

Overall, I have much more mixed feelings about this season; a lot of the issues I had initially were exacerbated much more this time around, but it was still entertaining to watch and somewhat well-acted. As a longtime fan of the books, it’s been interesting to see how they’ve been adapting these two series, and although they were less faithful this season, I’ve still been compelled to see how it all plays out. So I’d give it a solid 3.5 stars since it was still fun, if not frustrating.

TW/CW: graphic violence, war themes, animal death, depictions of illness, child death, loss of loved ones, body horror, blood

Today’s song:

what a great album

That’s it for this TV review! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Posted in Book Tags

The Fantasy Tropes Book Tag 🧝🏻‍♀️

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Wednesday, bibliophiles!

I’ve been meaning to do another book tag for a while, and now that I’m on spring break, it seemed like the perfect time! I found this one over at Georgia @ Lost in Neverland, and it was originally created by one’s peculiar. Fantasy is a genre that I always end up coming back to, so I thought this would be a fun tag!

RULES:

  • Mention the creator ( one’s peculiar )
  • Answer the questions
  • Tag as many people as you like
  • HAVE FUN!

Let’s begin, shall we?

🐉THE FANTASY TROPES BOOK TAG🗡

THE LOST PRINCESS: A book/series you lost interest in halfway through

I loved the first book in the Invisible Library series, but I ended up quitting at book 3—with such an inventive concept for the series, it just felt like Genevieve Cogman was no longer doing anything interesting with it.

THE KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR: A hyped book/series you were swept up by

Leigh Bardugo has yet to let me down with any of her fantasy novels, but Six of Crows is a rare series—it lives up to almost all of the hype it’s been given over the years, in my experience!

THE WISE OLD WIZARD: An author who amazes you with his/her writing

At the risk that I’ll sound like a broken record, I’ll talk about an author that I don’t talk about as often; I’ve only read The Wide Starlight and The Depths, but the the former was an unexpected 5-star read for me—Nicole Lesperance’s prose was endlessly stunning and beautiful! Although I didn’t enjoy The Depths quite as much, she made use of an incredibly underused setting for horror, and built up her suspense wonderfully.

THE MAIDEN IN DISTRESS: An undervalued character you wished had a bigger storyline

I wouldn’t say that Silas from Sorcery of Thorns was an undervalued character, but he was so compelling that I wished we’d gotten more page time from him!

THE MAGICAL SWORD: A magical item/ability you wish authors used less

This isn’t necessarily an item or ability, but I’ll never get the trope where the protagonist (most often a woman, in this case) loses her powers at the end of the book. The only exception I can make is if said powers are destroying her from the inside/making her a shell of her former self (ex. Aurora Rising), but if not, it just feels icky to me. LET OUR FANTASY LADIES KEEP THEIR AGENCY!!

THE MINDLESS VILLAIN: A phrase you cannot help but roll your eyes at

Any “romantic” quote that comes from the clear male-manipulator love interest (see: The Darkling, Cardan). There are way too many of these guys that the authors intended to be terrible people, but end up turning into the bad boy teen idols of their respective fandoms…

THE UNTAMED DRAGON: A magical creature you wish you had as a pet

I wouldn’t say no to a magical familiar like Mousebones from The Raven and the Reindeer!

THE CHOSEN ONE: A book/series you will always root for

I will always vouch for the quality of The Smoke Thieves trilogy—still one of my favorite fantasy series!

I TAG:

Today’s song:

That’s it for this book tag! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Posted in Book Review Tuesday

Book Review Tuesday (7/5/22) – Among Thieves

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Tuesday, bibliophiles!

I forget when or how I came upon this book, but looking back, I sadly wish that I’d passed it by; I put it on hold at the library to have another queer fantasy book to read, but I ended up finishing it in about an hour feeling sorely disappointed. The reviews promised Six of Crows but gayer (of course you have my attention), but what I read ended up being a shameless Six of Crows ripoff.

Enjoy this week’s review!

Among Thieves (Thieves, #1) – M.J. Kuhn

Ryia Cautella is an infamous assassin, earning the name of The Butcher with her axe-wielding tactics. What she hides, however, is her past; after narrowly escaping the Guildmaster, the tyrant ruler of her kingdom, he and his lackeys have been searching all over the city of Callowwick for her. The only way out is to find her way into the Guildmaster’s highly fortified stronghold, and it’s a job she can’t do alone. With the help of Cal Clem, the head of a failing crime syndicate, and a band of criminals and misfits, Ryia may finally have a chance at freedom. But will her search for freedom cost Ryia her life?

TW/CW: slavery, violence, dismemberment, mentions of branding

I’ve noticed a trend over the past few years with YA; after the dystopian craze (mostly) blew over, fantasy heist books in the vein of Six of Crows started becoming far more popular. Unlike a lot of the dystopian books that came after books like The Hunger Games, however, the fantasy heist trend actually produced plenty of really fun, memorable books with a lot of originality. However, with every book trend, there come books that are obvious, blatant ripoffs of their inspiration. I hate to say it, but Among Thieves is one of them.

Now, I try to preface my negative reviews with this: I 100% understand how hard it is to put yourself out there into the book world. And there’s some slack I’m willing to give Among Thieves since it appears to be M.J. Kuhn’s debut novel.

That being said…all I can really say about Among Thieves is that it’s basically a Walmart version of Six of Crows.

Soon after the book started, I noticed all the pieces falling into place for a vague Six of Crows ripoff; apart from a little gender-swapping, most of the characters were nearly carbon copies of the iconic characters from Six of Crows; the only major difference I found was that there was a sapphic romance (sort of?) between Ryia (Inej, basically) and a gender-swapped version of Wylan (Evelyn), and that Cal (Kaz) just stood there on the sidelines. Otherwise, it was almost offensive how much these characters were almost carbon-copies of SoC characters—most notably Ivan, who was so, so similar to Matthias that it nearly gave me a headache. Same appearance, same vaguely-Northern/Western-European fantasy background, same personality…the only difference was that he was a forger. That was it. It’s always great if you take inspiration from certain books when you create your book—in fact, it’s impossible not to take some inspiration from something—but if it becomes as blatant as a ripoff as this, it’s just a steaming, unoriginal pile of garbage.

Nothing made much sense after Cal and Ryia assembled their crew. Granted, as soon as I saw how ripped-off the characters were, I started to lose faith in everything else. That being said, most of the heist made little to no sense, and the progression just felt like being tossed around to random places with seemingly no sense or purpose. They’re trying to break into this stronghold, and…now they’re in a prizefighting ring? Now they’re at sea again? It just felt like “now we’re in an airplane!” kind of nonsensical plot progression without any rhyme or reason.

As for what the reviews described as “Six of Crows but gayer,” I felt…more than a little let down. There was sapphic representation (sort of a will-they-won’t-they romance between Evelyn and Ryia), but they seemed to be the only queer characters. I would’ve liked it more if I was more invested in the characters, but it was…just alright. Nothing groundbreaking, and it wasn’t exactly “gayer” than SoC, since it had the exact same amount of queer rep that SoC did. I love sapphic fantasy any day, but it left me wanting a lot more. Most of the book did, really.

All in all, a half-baked ripoff of Six of Crows that seemed far too obvious for its own good. I slapped on a half star to my rating since Kuhn’s writing style had moments of being good, but that’s about all of the positives I can think of for this book. 1.5 stars.

Among Thieves is M.J. Kuhn’s debut novel, and the first novel in the Thieves series, followed by the forthcoming Thick as Thieves, slated to be published in 2023.

Today’s song:

That’s it for this week’s Book Review Tuesday! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Posted in Book Tags

The Book Club Book Tag

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Wednesday, bibliophiles!

My school district called a very rare snow day today, so I had the day off!! I’ve still had quizzes to study for, but it was so nice to sleep in and spend the day in pajamas. So here I am, still in my pajamas.

This tag is an original from Becca @ Book It With Becca. (If you don’t follow her already, check out her blog, it’s great!) I’m the president of my high school’s book club, so this is the perfect tag for me!

RULES:

  1. Answer the tag (prompts below) on the platform of your choice (blog, booktube, twitter, anything goes!): If you’re part of a book club, yourself, you can answer with the books you’ve read with them — or you can freestyle it with whatever book fits the question! Or with a specific character from a book who matches the prompt. Really, however you want to do it!
  2. Link to the original post and give me a pingback or comment below, so I can see your answers.
  3. Tag friends! They can be fellow book club members or simply bookish friends who make your day a little brighter.
  4. The most important rule: Have fun!

I’m going to try and use books that I’ve read in my school book club for this tag…let’s see how it goes…

Let’s begin, shall we?

📖THE BOOK CLUB BOOK TAG📖

AVALANCHE ⇆ X-MEN GIF SERIES - KURT WAGNER; ONE - Wattpad

THE FEARLESS READER—reads everything, constantly, and probably started the book club, not realizing how much work it would be to keep everyone on-track

Amazon.com: The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle: 0760789268267: Turton, Stuart: Books

We read The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle last year, and it was so creative and complex—very fearless in its premise and execution!

THE ACADEMIC—tries to elevate the conversation and suggest Serious Books but is always stymied by the rest of the group (generally doesn’t mind)

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde: 9780307743527 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

Technically, I didn’t get to discuss this one (since my school is pretty big, we have two lunch periods, and we have book club during lunch) since it was in the lunch I wasn’t in, but I read it anyway since I’d been meaning to read it for a while. I think The Picture of Dorian Gray is the only “classic” book I’ve read for book club in all 4 years of high school.

THE JOYRIDER—never knows what book the club is reading but happily shouts encouragement and brings refreshments

Once & Future (Once & Future #1) by A.R. Capetta

Once & Future is very much a joyride—across time and across space!

THE AGENT OF CHAOS—just what it sounds like: enjoys stirring things up and dropping chaos bombs before disappearing in a cloud of smoke

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, Paperback | Barnes & Noble®

On some level, every single main character from Six of Crows is an agent of chaos; the same can be said for all the twists within Kaz’s heists. (Is there a Wylan pun in here somewhere too?)

THE MOM—is very concerned with the emotional and physical health of the rest of the group and of the characters in the books

Amazon.com: The Hazel Wood: A Novel (The Hazel Wood, 1): 9781250297327: Albert, Melissa: Books

Whew, this was a hard prompt…

I settled on The Hazel Wood for this one because of its emotional, introspective nature; even though it’s steeped in magical realism, there are lots of themes of looking inward as opposed to the outward fantasy.

THE LOVABLE GHOUL— Mostly harmless but likes to stand in the corner muttering — we pretend it’s normal

An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1) by Sabaa Tahir

An Ember in the Ashes was the first book that I ever read for my book club, but it didn’t really do anything. My experience was that it was entertaining, but rather forgettable. Not bad, but not life-changing either.

I TAG:

Lets Read GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY

Today’s song:

NEW LUCY DACUS SINGLE AAAAAAA

That’s it for this book tag! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Posted in Book Tags

Winter Wonderland Book Tag ☃️

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Thursday, bibliophiles!

I have a few winter-themed book tags saved in my sticky note, and I wanted to do one of them over break, so here we are! I was tagged by Riddhi @ Whispering Stories (thank you!). However, I’m not sure who originally created the tag, so if you know, please let me know/comment below so I can credit them!

Let’s begin, shall we?

Winter GIFs - Get the best GIF on GIPHY

☃️WINTER WONDERLAND BOOK TAG☃️

1. What book is so happy and so sweet that it just warms your heart?

Amazon.com: Tweet Cute: A Novel: 9781250237323: Lord, Emma: Books

I don’t usually gravitate towards rom-coms, but Tweet Cute was just so consistently heartwarming and adorable!

2. What’s your favourite book with a white cover?

Amazon.com: Sword in the Stars: A Once & Future Novel (Once & Future, 2): 9780316449298: Cory McCarthy, Capetta, A. R.: Books

Sword in the Stars has a pretty, white cover! I have it in hardcover, and the details on the metallic parts are very glossy and satisfying…

3. You’re sitting in a nice, comfortable chair with a cup of hot chocolate. What monster book are you reading?

Hellboy, Vol. 2: Wake the Devil: Mignola, Mike, Mignola, Mike: 9781593070953: Amazon.com: Books

I looked through a few other people’s interpretations of this prompt and there wasn’t a definitive consensus as to whether this prompt was about long books or books with monsters, so I just went with the monster book part. And Hellboy is the best paranormal/monster comic known to man, so I wanted to put it in here anyway.

4. It’s snowing outside and you decide you want to have a snowball fight. What fictional character do you want to have this snowball fight with?

Aurora's End (The Aurora Cycle, #3) by Amie Kaufman

I’d do anything to experience a six-way (five-way? four? nvm) snowball fight with Squad 312. I feel like Kal would turn it into a death match, but…y’know. Scarlett and Finian would be worthy snowball fight opponents.

(wait, isn’t there a meme about this?)

(oh, I guess there is…)

Aurora Rising | Book humor, Book fandoms, Incorrect quotes
credit to @miriosface on Tumblr

5. Sadly, your campfire is dying. What last few chapters of a book would you throw in the fire to revive it and keep yourself warm?

As a rule of thumb, I’m not really for burning books, but…okay, maybe I’d let An Absolutely Remarkable Thing, Off Balance, or most of my previous DNFs get toasty.

6. What book do you love so much that you would buy another copy of it to give to someone as a Christmas gift (or any gift really) to inspire them to start reading?

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, Paperback | Barnes & Noble®

Six of Crows isn’t my favorite book (though I love it), but I feel like it hits the rare sweet spot where it’s accessible to both new readers and longtime bookworms. Plus, with all the people that are getting into Leigh Bardugo’s books through the Shadow and Bone show, I bet a lot of people have this on their lists!

7. Who do you tag?

I TAG:

Funny Gifs : charlie brown GIF - VSGIF.com

Today’s song:

That’s it for this book tag! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Posted in Book Tags

Squad 312 Book Tag 💫

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Friday, bibliophiles! I’m glad to be out of school for Thanksgiving break…I need some time off.

This book tag has been sitting in my blog sticky note for a while, but I figured it would be the right occasion to do it since I’ve just finished Aurora’s End (🥲). The tag was originally created by Jemma @ Starry Eyed Reader, and I found the tag on her blog as well. The Aurora Cycle is my favorite series, so I just had to do this tag!

Let’s begin, shall we?

27424908._SX540_
all character art in this tag is from @kiranight_art

💫SQUAD 312 BOOK TAG💫

TYLER JONES—THE ALPHA: Your favorite main character

Amazon.com: Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle): 9781524720995: Kaufman, Amie, Kristoff, Jay: Books
The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow

I’m trying to stray away from using any of the Aurora Cycle books for these prompts, which makes this question…[ahem] difficult…

But for this one, I chose Ellie Baker from The Sound of Stars—she’s rebellious and relatable, and she runs a secret library! Great taste in music, too.

SCARLETT JONES—THE FACE: Which character could talk themselves out of anything?

Amazon.com: Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle): 9781524720995: Kaufman, Amie, Kristoff, Jay: Books
Jesper Jesperfahey GIF - Jesper Jesperfahey Shadowandbone - Discover & Share GIFs

Jesper from Six of Crows would be able to fast-talk himself out of anything and everything. Would the other Crows approve? Probably not, but that’s not what matters here, right?

ZILA MADRAN—THE BRAIN: A super smart character who would probably kill you

Amazon.com: Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle): 9781524720995: Kaufman, Amie, Kristoff, Jay: Books
Amazon.com: The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea: 9781536204315: Tokuda-Hall, Maggie: Books

Genevieve from The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea is certainly a very deadly and cunning character—I’m interested to see what the sequel holds for her!

FINIAN DE KARRAN DE SEEL—THE GEARHEAD: Your favorite piece of fictional technology

Amazon.com: Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle): 9781524720995: Kaufman, Amie, Kristoff, Jay: Books
Amazon.com: The Soul Keepers (The Soul Keepers, 1): 9781250309136: Taylor, Devon: Books

Does a ship count as a piece of technology? This was a hard one, but the Harbinger—a giant ship that ferries the souls of the dead—from The Soul Keepers is a really cool concept for me. It’s most of the reason that I picked up the book in the first place.

KAL GILWRAETH—THE TANK: A book that made you angry

Amazon.com: Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle): 9781524720995: Kaufman, Amie, Kristoff, Jay: Books
An Absolutely Remarkable Thing: A Novel (The Carls): Green, Hank: 9781524743444: Amazon.com: Books

(my boy Kal deserves a better prompt than this…😔👊)

I DNF’d An Absolutely Remarkable Thing at around the 30% mark; I was already debating whether or not to put it down, but the bisexual rep was HORRIBLY offensive for me, so I jumped ship. Would NOT recommend.

CAT BRANNOCK—THE ACE: A fictional crush you’re still not over

Amazon.com: Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle): 9781524720995: Kaufman, Amie, Kristoff, Jay: Books
Carry On by Rainbow Rowell — Prologue Bookshop | Columbus, Ohio - Books, Games, Gifts, & More

I don’t get book crushes all that often, and my main ones happen to be in Aurora Rising (Kal and Auri are both SO CUTE, I CAN’T HELP IT…now that’s some bi panic for ya), but I’ve always thought Baz Pitch from Carry On looked cute on the cover art.

AURORA JIE-LIN O’MALLEY—THE GIRL OUT OF TIME: If you had to pick just one book or series to read for the rest of your life what would it be? 

Amazon.com: Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle): 9781524720995: Kaufman, Amie, Kristoff, Jay: Books
Amazon.com: Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle): 9781524720964: Kaufman, Amie, Kristoff, Jay: Books

Okay, I’m breaking my self-imposed “I’m not using the book that inspired this tag as answers for this tag” rule, because the Aurora Cycle is the only series that fits this bill. I always come back to the books; in the past two years, they’ve become so uniquely dear to my heart, and I can’t imagine what my life would be like without them in it.

I TAG:

The Aurora Cycle Dream Cast | The Awkward Book Blogger

Today’s song:

it’s been too long since I’ve listened to this song…so sweet

That’s it for this book tag! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves! And of course, Squad 312 forever.

Posted in Book Tags

The Grishaverse Book Tag 🐐

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Saturday, bibliophiles!

Before I get going with this tag, I thought you’d all appreciate this…I’m currently in Florida helping my grandma clean out her house, and we’ve found all sorts of weird things lying around. But yesterday I found something great that I figured my fellow bibliophiles would appreciate…

…it appears Kaz Brekker left his cane in Florida. (My friend suggested that it was Inej’s revenge for him calling her an investment SKDJFHSKJDFHSKDJFH)

We’re shipping this back home soon, so I might just have a Halloween costume for this year…😳

Now for the book tag! I found this over at Kira Jeanette’s blog, and the tag was originally created by Rebecca McPeake on YouTube. I’m a huge Grishaverse fan, so I had to give this one a go!

Let’s begin, shall we?

🦌THE GRISHAVERSE BOOK TAG🐉

KAZ BREKKER: A book you shouldn’t judge by its cover

be kind. — FREDDY CARTER IN SHADOW AND BONE EPISODE...
Amazon.com: Zero Repeat Forever (1) (The Nahx Invasions) (9781481481847): Prendergast, G. S.: Books

UHHH THIS PROMPT WAS REALLY HARD –

Anyway, even though the cover for this edition of Zero Repeat Forever doesn’t make a whole lot of sense before reading the book, but I assure you, this one’s a treasure. (Maybe just stick with book 1, though? Book 2 was…weird, to say the least…)

NINA ZENIK: A book that made you feel empowered

Words Are Life — fairytcpia: NINA ZENIK AND MATTHIAS HELVAR...
Amazon.com: Sawkill Girls: 9780062696601: Legrand, Claire: Books

Sawkill Girls was a PHENOMENAL book – not only was the paranormal aspect amazing, but I loved the themes of sisterhood and feminine empowerment throughout. Highly recommended!

INEJ GHAFA: A book with a good balance of character and plot

Just leaving in 2021 | Six of crows, The grisha trilogy, Shadow
Gearbreakers (Gearbreakers, #1) by Zoe Hana Mikuta

Gearbreakers hit the perfect notes for me – I loved the plot, I loved the characters, and those two aspects were balanced so neatly! I am a little partial to all the characters interactions, though, because the chemistry between Eris and the rest of the Gearbreakers was so sweet…🥺

ALINA STARKOV: A unique book, one that is unlike anything you’ve ever read

shadow and bone gif on Tumblr
Amazon.com: Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything (9781534448636): Gilliland, Raquel Vasquez: Books

I’ve seen a lot of genre-bending books out there, but rarely do ones like Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything come along – a seamless mix of sci-fi, contemporary and magical realism that tugged at all my heartstrings!

MAL ORETSEV: A book that always sticks with you

burns, babble & books
Amazon.com: The Darkness Outside Us eBook: Schrefer, Eliot: Kindle Store

Okay, I only finished this one on Tuesday, but MAN. THIS BOOK. The Darkness Outside Us is my most recent 5-star read as of now – it started out like any other sci-fi thriller, but it quickly took a turn for simultaneous darkness, philosophical musings, existential crises, and a little bit of hope. I could not stop thinking about it, and I still can’t. (Expect a review next week!)

THE DARKLING: A book with a dark plot/storyline

general kirigan on Tumblr
ew
I'm Thinking of Ending Things | Book by Iain Reid | Official Publisher Page | Simon & Schuster

There’s a lot of dark things about I’m Thinking of Ending Things – this one could’ve fit with the last prompt as well, since it’s stuck with me for quite a while too…(the movie’s amazing as well!)

JESPER FAHEY: A book that people always seem to leave out

Jesper Fahey Is The Best Character In "Shadow And Bone"
HEHE the giddy grin on my face when I found this gif –
Amazon.com: Heart of Iron (9780062652850): Poston, Ashley: Books

Okay, okay, I know I put this book in every single book tag I do, but HEAR ME OUT…

As I’m starting to see Ashley Poston’s books get the recognition they deserve, it feels like Heart of Iron is left out of a lot of the discussion, which is such a shame, seeing as it’s everything you could ever want in both a space opera and a retelling…

WYLAN VAN ECK: A book that wasn’t what it seemed at first

Amazon.com: Invincible Compendium Volume 1 (8601420907461): Robert Kirkman, Cory Walker, Ryan Ottley: Books

I’m just gonna slap this one in here and count the show in too…without spoiling anything, Invincible starts out like most every superhero origin story, but it gets a lot darker VERY quickly, trust me…

MATTHIAS HELVAR: A book that was bad at first but turned out good

SUOMI FINLAND PERKELE — Hello! May I ask for a song prompt for Matthias...
Amazon.com: The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea (9781536204315): Tokuda-Hall, Maggie: Books

This one was another hard one, so this is the closest I could find…

I wouldn’t say The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea started out badly, per se – it was just a little slow to start. But once it got going, it turned out to be one of my favorite reads of this year so far!

NIKOLAI LANTSOV: A witty book

Amazon.com: How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse: Book One of the Thorne Chronicles eBook: Eason, K.: Kindle Store

How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse had no shortage of sarcasm and tongue-in-cheek parody, and I loved every minute of it!

I TAG:

shadowandbonedit | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs | Tumgir

Today’s song:

That’s it for this book tag! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Posted in Goodreads Monday

Goodreads Monday (8/2/21) – Of Silver and Shadow

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Monday, bibliophiles!

Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme created by Lauren’s Page Turners. All you have to do to participate is pick a book from your Goodreads TBR, and explain why you want to read it.

I’ve seen this one floating around on the blogosphere quite a lot in the past few months, and even though I go in stages of getting jaded with YA fantasy, this one sound like a lot of fun! Plus, I’m told there’s LGBTQ+ rep… 😳😳😳

Let’s begin, shall we?

GOODREADS MONDAY (8/2/21) – OF SILVER AND SHADOW by Jennifer Gruenke

Amazon.com: Of Silver and Shadow (9781635830545): Jennifer Gruenke: Books

Blurb from Goodreads:

Ren Kolins is a silver wielder—a dangerous thing to be in the kingdom of Erdis, where magic has been outlawed for a century. Ren is just trying to survive, sticking to a life of petty thievery, card games, and pit fighting to get by. But when a wealthy rebel leader discovers her secret, he offers her a fortune to join his revolution. The caveat: she won’t see a single coin until they overthrow the King.

Behind the castle walls, a brutal group of warriors known as the King’s Children is engaged in a competition: the first to find the rebel leader will be made King’s Fang, the right hand of the King of Erdis. And Adley Farre is hunting down the rebels one by one, torturing her way to Ren and the rebel leader, and the coveted King’s Fang title.

But time is running out for all of them, including the youngest Prince of Erdis, who finds himself pulled into the rebellion. Political tensions have reached a boiling point, and Ren and the rebels must take the throne before war breaks out.

So why do I want to read this?

inhuman

First off, I just now noticed that the “And Shadow” part of the title ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE A SHADOW ON THE BOOK COVER? Insanely cool, in my humble opinion…

[ahem] anyways, I feel like this one could go either way for me, but I have highish hopes. It looks like the synopsis has everything that I usually love in a fantasy – shady dealings, multiple POVs, and three radically different strangers being roped into a magical conspiracy. I’m sensing some Six of Crows and Smoke Thieves vibes, which were both series that I adored, so this could be good…

And apparently, there’s a sapphic romance that plays a major part in the book? SIGN ME UP!

Animated gif about gif in Fantasy and medieval by Marveline.

Today’s song:

you fool, you thought this was a book blog? Nothing but a front to spam everybody with this summer’s Blur obsession

That’s it for this week’s Goodreads Monday! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!

Posted in Book Tags

Count to 10 With Me Book Tag 🔟

Posted on by madeline @ The Bookish Mutant

Happy Friday, bibliophiles!

I figured it would be fun to do a tag today, so I decided on this one that’s been sitting in my blog sticky note for a while. I found it over at One Book More, and the tag was originally created by Alyce on Booktube. It sounded so cute, so I figured I’d give it a try!

Let’s begin, shall we?

🔟COUNT TO 10 WITH ME BOOK TAG🔟

  1. FIRST BOOK IN A SERIES
Gearbreakers eBook: Mikuta, Zoe Hana: Kindle Store - Amazon.com

Gearbreakers is set to be the first book in a series, but I don’t know how many books there will be…I LOVED this one, though!

2. TWO OR MORE COPIES OF THE SAME BOOK

Amazon.com: Six of Crows eBook: Bardugo, Leigh: Kindle Store

I bought Six of Crows on my Kindle, and then I got a paperback copy from the library (they’d gotten some extra copies), so I have two copies of this one. I normally don’t get several physical copies of the same book, but I have a few duplicates on physical and Kindle.

3. THREE COLORS ON THE COVER

Spellhacker by M.K. England

Spellhacker has blue, purple, and yellow on the cover! This one’s super underrated.

4. FOUR OR MORE PERSPECTIVES

Amazon.com: A Dark and Hollow Star (9781534453678): Shuttleworth, Ashley: Books

A Dark and Hollow Star has four perspectives, but they were…a little imbalanced for me. I feel like Aurelian didn’t get as much page time than the other POVs. I just finished this one yesterday, and it was a bit of a disappointment…

5. A FIVE STAR READ

Before the Fall by Noah Hawley

Before the Fall was my first five-star read of this year! Noah Hawley is an incredible writer.

6. SIX (OR MORE) SHORT STORIES

Amazon.com: Color outside the Lines: Stories about Love (9781641290463): Mandanna, Sangu, Ahmed, Samira, Silvera, Adam, Smith, Eric, McLemore, Anna-Marie: Books

Color Outside the Lines has 6+ short stories, and they’re all about interracial relationships. Highly recommended!

7. A SEVEN ON THE COVER OR THE SPINE

The League of Seven - Alan Gratz

It’s been YEARS since I read The League of Seven, but I remember it being a lot of fun in late elementary school/middle school. I couldn’t think of anything else with a seven in the title…

8. EIGHT LETTERS IN THE TITLE

Salvaged by Madeleine Roux: 9780451491831 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

Oof, this took a bit of trawling through my Read shelf on Goodreads, but Salvaged has eight letters!

9. BOOK ENDS ON A PAGE ENDING IN A NINE

These Violent Delights (These Violent Delights, #1) by Chloe Gong

These Violent Delights clocks in at 449 pages!

10. TEN BOOKS IN THE SERIES

Best Nope GIFs | Gfycat

Yeah, I’m drawing a blank for this one…I rarely read series that are longer than 4-5 books these days…

I TAG:

Pin on Marvel

Today’s song:

GAH, this might be my new favorite Julien Baker song…

That’s it for this little book tag! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!