state of the arc #6

State of the ARC is a monthly meme hosted by Avalinah's Books. It's a way to track your reading progress and see how fellow book bloggers are doing as well.

The rules for State of the ARC are quite simple; I couldn't put them any better than Evelina already has:

• Mention that you’re linking up with State of the ARC @ AvalinahsBooks, which is a fun way to share our ARC progress, challenges, wins, woes and mishaps.
• Include the link to this post, or the current State of the ARC post. You can use my State of the ARC image too.
• Don’t forget to visit all the other people in the link-up and comment.
• And most importantly – have fun!

book review: acceptance

Acceptance by Jeff VanderMeer
Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 341 pp.
Published September 2, 2014

It is winter in Area X, the mysterious wilderness that has defied explanation for thirty years, rebuffing expedition after expedition, refusing to reveal its secrets. As Area X expands, the agency tasked with investigating and overseeing it--the Southern Reach--has collapsed on itself in confusion. Now one last, desperate team crosses the border, determined to reach a remote island that may hold the answers they've been seeking. If they fail, the outer world is in peril.

Meanwhile, Acceptance tunnels ever deeper into the circumstances surrounding the creation of Area X--what initiated this unnatural upheaval? Among the many who have tried, who has gotten close to understanding Area X--and who may have been corrupted by it?

In this last installment of Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach trilogy, the mysteries of Area X may be solved, but their consequences and implications are no less profound--or terrifying.

down the tbr hole #21

As my Goodreads to-read shelf creeps closer to 500 books, I've been eyeing it with a growing feeling of apprehension. It would take forever to get through so many...and that's not counting all of the new books I hear about along the way. Thankfully I discovered Lost In A Story's series (by way of Boston Book Reader) at the beginning of the year and it sounds like a great way to trim down my TBR.

The guidelines, per Lost In A Story, are simple:

• Go to your Goodreads to-read shelf
• Order on ascending date added
• Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
• Read the synopses of the books
• Decide: keep it or should it go?

I'll be going through 10 books every week, meaning it should take me almost the whole year to reach the end! If you'd like to do this yourself, be sure to visit Lost In A Story's original post and let her (and me!) know you'll be joining in the fun.

book review: sunburn

Sunburn by Laura Lippman
William Morrow, 290 pp.
Published February 20, 2018

One is playing a long game. But which one?

They meet at a local tavern in the small town of Belleville, Delaware. Polly is set on heading west. Adam says he’s also passing through.

Yet she stays and he stays—drawn to this mysterious redhead whose quiet stillness both unnerves and excites him. Over the course of a punishing summer, Polly and Adam abandon themselves to a steamy, inexorable affair. Still, each holds something back from the other—dangerous, even lethal, secrets that begin to accumulate as autumn approaches, feeding the growing doubts they conceal.

Then someone dies. Was it an accident, or part of a plan? By now, Adam and Polly are so ensnared in each other’s lives and lies that neither one knows how to get away—or even if they want to. Is their love strong enough to withstand the truth, or will it ultimately destroy them?

Something—or someone—has to give.

Which one will it be?

sunday post #24

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Caffeinated Reviewer. It's a chance to recap posts from the past week and tease upcoming content, as well as share new books, reading challenge progress, and anything else you've come across in the last seven days.

The movies at the film festival last weekend may have been a little disappointing, but I made up for it this week with an early screening of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom! I absolutely loved this sequel, much more than the first in the "rebooted" Jurassic Park series. Granted, I don't go to these types of movies expecting grand, dramatic Oscar material; it did deliver on the blockbuster attitude and plethora of dinosaurs, though, so I'm already looking forward to catching another screening in a few weeks when the crowds have thinned.

On a related note, I was totally a "dinosaur kid" growing up, but best I can remember I loved all the different dinosaurs equally. Did y'all have a favorite dinosaur when you were younger?

book review: sky in the deep

Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young
Wednesday Books, 352 pp.
Published April 24, 2018

DISCLAIMER: I received a free digital ARC of this book from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley for reviewing purposes. This did not inform or influence my opinion in any way.

OND ELDR. BREATHE FIRE.

Raised to be a warrior, seventeen-year-old Eelyn fights alongside her Aska clansmen in an ancient rivalry against the Riki clan. Her life is brutal but simple: fight and survive. Until the day she sees the impossible on the battlefield—her brother, fighting with the enemy—the brother she watched die five years ago.

Faced with her brother's betrayal, she must survive the winter in the mountains with the Riki, in a village where every neighbor is an enemy, every battle scar possibly one she delivered. But when the Riki village is raided by a ruthless clan thought to be a legend, Eelyn is even more desperate to get back to her beloved family.

She is given no choice but to trust Fiske, her brother’s friend, who sees her as a threat. They must do the impossible: unite the clans to fight together, or risk being slaughtered one by one. Driven by a love for her clan and her growing love for Fiske, Eelyn must confront her own definition of loyalty and family while daring to put her faith in the people she’s spent her life hating.

my favorite bookish b*tches

The word bitch often gets deployed against any woman, fictional or not, with more personality than a 1940's animated Disney princess. It seems as though the list of acceptable qualities in a woman that make her "likable" keeps getting shorter, while the ways in which she can offend grow ever more numerous. Sometimes there's a clear double standard at play: the level of selfishness, ambition, or independence that's acceptable in a man is a mark against his female counterparts. But sometimes, a female character really is bitchy—and that's okay!

To me, whether she's good or bad, a bitch is always interesting. Maybe she's the villain, or hasn't made up her mind if she wants to be one yet. Maybe she's just gotten tired of everyone else's nonsense. Or maybe she's a fundamentally good person forced into making unthinkable choices, ones that she could never win. Regardless of their personal narrative, I think it's time we celebrate the bookish bitches we love—or love to hate. Each of them is complex, challenging, and make a story more compelling because of their presence in it.

book review: the queen's rising

The Queen's Rising by Rebecca Ross
HarperTeen, 464 pp.
Published February 6, 2018

When her seventeenth summer solstice arrives, Brienna desires only two things: to master her passion and to be chosen by a patron.

Growing up in the southern Kingdom of Valenia at the renowned Magnalia House should have prepared her for such a life. While some are born with an innate talent for one of the five passions—art, music, dramatics, wit, and knowledge—Brienna struggled to find hers until she belatedly chose to study knowledge. However, despite all her preparations, Brienna’s greatest fear comes true—the solstice does not go according to plan and she is left without a patron.

Months later, her life takes an unexpected turn when a disgraced lord offers her patronage. Suspicious of his intent, and with no other choices, she accepts. But there is much more to his story, and Brienna soon discovers that he has sought her out for his own vengeful gain. For there is a dangerous plot being planned to overthrow the king of Maevana—the archrival kingdom of Valenia—and restore the rightful queen, and her magic, to the northern throne. And others are involved—some closer to Brienna than she realizes.

With war brewing between the two lands, Brienna must choose whose side she will remain loyal to—passion or blood. Because a queen is destined to rise and lead the battle to reclaim the crown. The ultimate decision Brienna must determine is: Who will be that queen?

sunday post #23

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Caffeinated Reviewer. It's a chance to recap posts from the past week and tease upcoming content, as well as share new books, reading challenge progress, and anything else you've come across in the last seven days.

Happy Father's Day to those who are celebrating it—and a happy Sunday to everyone else! My family takes a relaxed approach to holidays, so most of our festivities today center around my cooking some of dad's favorite foods. It's a nice cap to a weekend highlighted by the film festival that I covered Friday and Saturday. Despite only going to a couple of movies, the commute to the theater and finding parking once you're there is a bit of a hassle; not having to deal with herds of inattentive drivers is nice!

I also went and saw Hereditary on my own this week. Have any of you seen it, or plan on seeing it? There were a couple on-the-nose moments but overall I think Ari Aster crafted a superb movie! He genuinely shocked me more than once—a hard task with this cynical horror fan—and Toni Collette deserves to be included in awards chatter at the end of the year. To top it all off I have a lovely little book haul down below, making up for the last few weeks of few to no new books coming in!

tagged: books i'll probably never read

When I saw this tag on Books, Vertigo, and Tea I simply couldn't resist! Danielle saw the original tag post on Orangutan Librarian—please be sure to give both those blogs a peek :)

book review: lies you never told me

Lies You Never Told Me by Jennifer Donaldson
Razorbill, 336 pp.
Published May 29, 2018

DISCLAIMER: I received a free physical ARC of this book from the publisher via BookishFirst for review purposes. This in no way informed or influenced my opinion

Gabe and Elyse have never met. But they both have something to hide.

Quiet, shy Elyse can't believe it when she's cast as the lead in her Portland high school's production of Romeo and Juliet. Her best friend, Brynn, is usually the star, and Elyse isn't sure she's up to the task. But when someone at rehearsals starts to catch her eye--someone she knows she absolutely shouldn't be with--she can't help but be pulled into the spotlight.

Austin native Gabe is contemplating the unthinkable--breaking up with Sasha, his headstrong, popular girlfriend. She's not going to let him slip through her fingers, though, and when rumors start to circulate around school, he knows she has the power to change his life forever.

Gabe and Elyse both make the mistake of falling for the wrong person, and falling hard. Told in parallel narratives, this twisty, shocking story shows how one bad choice can lead to a spiral of unforeseen consequences that not everyone will survive.

down the tbr hole #20

As my Goodreads to-read shelf creeps closer to 500 books, I've been eyeing it with a growing feeling of apprehension. It would take forever to get through so many...and that's not counting all of the new books I hear about along the way. Thankfully I discovered Lost In A Story's series (by way of Boston Book Reader) at the beginning of the year and it sounds like a great way to trim down my TBR.

The guidelines, per Lost In A Story, are simple:

• Go to your Goodreads to-read shelf
• Order on ascending date added
• Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
• Read the synopses of the books
• Decide: keep it or should it go?

I'll be going through 10 books every week, meaning it should take me almost the whole year to reach the end! If you'd like to do this yourself, be sure to visit Lost In A Story's original post and let her (and me!) know you'll be joining in the fun.

book review: my plain jane

My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows, Brodi Ashton
HarperTeen, 464 pp.
Published June 26, 2018

DISCLAIMER: I received a free physical ARC of this title from the publisher for review purposes. This in no way informed or influenced my opinion.

You may think you know the story. After a miserable childhood, penniless orphan Jane Eyre embarks on a new life as a governess at Thornfield Hall. There, she meets one dark, brooding Mr. Rochester. Despite their significant age gap (!) and his uneven temper (!!), they fall in love—and, Reader, she marries him. (!!!)

Or does she?

Prepare for an adventure of Gothic proportions, in which all is not as it seems, a certain gentleman is hiding more than skeletons in his closets, and one orphan Jane Eyre, aspiring author Charlotte Brontë, and supernatural investigator Alexander Blackwood are about to be drawn together on the most epic ghost hunt this side of Wuthering Heights.

sunday post #22

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Caffeinated Reviewer. It's a chance to recap posts from the past week and tease upcoming content, as well as share new books, reading challenge progress, and anything else you've come across in the last seven days.

Another week with not too much happening. The most exciting event was a threading appointment for my eyebrows, and when having itty-bitty hairs plucked off of your face is the thrilling part of your week...it's a boring week! I did get a little bit of my reading mojo back thankfully, although not ever book this week was a resounding success.

Next week will be a touch busier—I'm covering another film festival! This one shows much more eclectic movies than I normally watch, so I don't plan on seeing more than one or two over the entire four days that the fest covers. I am really looking forward to a recently restored silent film about Joan of Arc that's going to have a live score accompanying it, though. A lot of good movies have hit theaters recently too; hopefully I can make it out to one or two and not fall too far behind on my to-watch list!

book review: social creature

Social Creature by Tara Isabella Burton
Doubleday, 320 pp.
Published June 5, 2018

DISCLAIMER: I received a free digital ARC of this title from the publisher via NetGalley for review purposes. This in no way informed or influenced my opinion.

They go through both bottles of champagne right there on the High Line, with nothing but the stars over them... They drink and Lavinia tells Louise about all the places they will go together, when they finish their stories, when they are both great writers-to Paris and to Rome and to Trieste...

Lavinia will never go. She is going to die soon.

Louise has nothing. Lavinia has everything. After a chance encounter, the two spiral into an intimate, intense, and possibly toxic friendship. A Talented Mr. Ripley for the digital age, this seductive story takes a classic tale of obsession and makes it irresistibly new.

bookshelves tour: part 1

About a month ago I moved a third bookshelf into my room. With glass doors on the top shelves and cabinets at the bottom, I could finally move some of my collectible titles into safer storage and reorganize my other two shelves! It took a little time to decide exactly how I wanted things to look and, finally, I decided on function over form. (How can you bear to break up a series just to make a rainbow?? HOW?!?)

While they may not go in Roy G. Biv order there is still an abundance of pretty books to see! Size constraints mean that some shelves are still mismatched from where I'd truly like them to be; on the bright side, however, books are no longer stacked on my floor—or on top of one another in the shelves, either!

Over the course of the summer I'm going to do little tours of each of my three bookcases. This week you'll get to see some of my favorite reads that wouldn't fit behind the glass of my newest shelves, as well as a sneak peek at some of the review copies I'll read between now and the end of the year!

book review: brightly burning

Brightly Burning by Alexa Donne
HMH Books for Young Readers, 400 pp.
Published May 1, 2018

Seventeen-year-old Stella Ainsley wants just one thing: to go somewhere—anywhere—else. Her home is a floundering spaceship that offers few prospects, having been orbiting an ice-encased Earth for two hundred years. When a private ship hires her as a governess, Stella jumps at the chance. The captain of the Rochester, nineteen-year-old Hugo Fairfax, is notorious throughout the fleet for being a moody recluse and a drunk. But with Stella he’s kind.

But the Rochester harbors secrets: Stella is certain someone is trying to kill Hugo, and the more she discovers, the more questions she has about his role in a conspiracy threatening the fleet.

sunday post #21

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Caffeinated Reviewer. It's a chance to recap posts from the past week and tease upcoming content, as well as share new books, reading challenge progress, and anything else you've come across in the last seven days.

The sun and soaring temperatures have made it abundantly clear that summer has arrived! That means it's finally time to dust off my social life and, you know, see people again. Earlier this week I got to catch up with friends over happy hour and we're getting a larger group together for brunch later today. It can be hard coordinating several schedules to find a time when everyone can meet for a proper hangout, which means dates like these only happen every month or so. I'm excited to hear what everyone's been up to...and enjoy a mimosa out on a patio!

On the blogging side of things, I'm a little disappointed in myself for a slower reading and review writing pace this past month. Logically I know it's silly—I've just spent time doing things that felt more interesting! Seeing more red than usual on my blogging calendar isn't all that fun though, so hopefully I can pick up a little more reading mojo for the start of a new month!

book review: the girl in the tower

The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden
Del Rey, 363 pp.
Published December 5, 2017

The magical adventure begun in The Bear and the Nightingale continues as brave Vasya, now a young woman, is forced to choose between marriage or life in a convent and instead flees her home—but soon finds herself called upon to help defend the city of Moscow when it comes under siege.

Orphaned and cast out as a witch by her village, Vasya’s options are few: resign herself to life in a convent, or allow her older sister to make her a match with a Moscovite prince. Both doom her to life in a tower, cut off from the vast world she longs to explore. So instead she chooses adventure, disguising herself as a boy and riding her horse into the woods. When a battle with some bandits who have been terrorizing the countryside earns her the admiration of the Grand Prince of Moscow, she must carefully guard the secret of her gender to remain in his good graces—even as she realizes his kingdom is under threat from mysterious forces only she will be able to stop.