Friday, April 5, 2024

March 2024 Book Haul


Another month, another book haul! This month I had enough books to actually make my haul its own separate post. However, I didn't spend a lot this month so I'll consider this to be a pretty successful haul in that regard. I'm pretty excited about everything that I got so let's go ahead and dive right in!



Up first, I have Saint by Adrienne Young. Adrienne is one of those authors that has snuck her way onto my auto-buy list. I've loved every book I've read by her and Saint is one of the ones that I've not yet gotten to reading. It's set in her world of the Narrows as a prequel to Fable, which is probably my favorite book by her. I was at the bookstore with my mom and this was on one of the bargain tables for less than $7. I knew I had to get it at that point as I was planning on buying it at some point this year anyway. 

The next two books I got this month were my Valentine's Day treats to myself. This was my first Valentine's Day that I've been single since 2019 so I knew it was going to be a bit of a bittersweet day for me. Originally, I was going to treat myself to some nice takeout but I decided that I wanted to spend that money on these next two books instead.

The first of these was Pack Darling: The Complete Duology by Lola Rock. I ordered directly from the author's website which is the only place you can get this hardcover bind-up. Mainly, I wanted a signed copy as I absolutely fell in love with this duology at the beginning of February. Now that it's here, I am just itching to reread it all the time. It's such a fun, addicting set of books with characters that I've completely fallen for. 

I also picked up a signed copy of Redfang Royal by Lola Rock while I was in her shop. This is a sequel/spin-off to Pack Darling and I was quite eager to read it. Each of the books came signed but also came with a bookmark, a sticker, and a little postcard. They're so cute and I can't wait to properly display these on my favorite reads bookshelf in the future.
 
Then one of my most anticipated reads of the year came out: City of Lies and Legends by Kayla Edwards. This is the third book in one of my favorite urban fantasy series, House of Devils. After the pain of the last book's ending, I am incredibly excited to finally have this book in my hands. I definitely need to reread the first two books before I dive into this one but luckily I've been able to avoid spoilers rather easily up to this point. 

I had a gift voucher to a local bookstore so I decided after a particularly long set of shifts to stop in and pick something out. I ended up walking out with three beautiful titles. The first of these is The Way of the Househusband, Volume 1 by Kousuke Oono, which I had to replace after leaving my original copy in London when I moved back to the States. This is a manga about an ex-Yakuza member who has turned into a househusband for his career-focused wife. It's lighthearted, wholesome, and incredibly funny. I've already checked out the rest of the available books from the library and I'm making my way through them whenever I've got a free moment.

I also picked up Spy x Family, Volume 1 by Tatsuya Endo. This is another manga series that I've seen floating around for years and I finally picked up a copy. I don't know much about this one except that the main character is a spy who has to find a family for a cover story and he supposedly ends up with an assassin wife and a kid with special abilities. My plan is to dive into the series after I finish Househusband as my local library has all of them on Libby. 

The last book I picked up was Last Violent Call by Chloe Gong. I absolutely love this little novella bind-up and I've had the US edition on my wishlist since it came out. The US edition has each novella printed separately with different cover art and then housed in this slipcase. I was at the bookstore and this was on one of the bargain tables for less than $8 so I couldn't help myself to finally snag a copy. 



Thanks for reading!
xoxo
Lauren



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Monday, April 1, 2024

March 2024 Wrap-Up


March was a long month but I also felt like it passed quickly, if that makes sense. Once again, books and reading have been a lifeline for me lately. I didn't read as much this month but I still knocked out a good number. I finished a few books by one of my favorite authors and began my manga journey this month as well which was quite fun. 


1. 
Title: A Dream of Embers
Author: Jane Washington
Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars
Series Review TK

2. 
Title: A Castle of Ash
Author: Jane Washington
Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars
Series Review TK

3. 
Title: A World of Lost Words
Author: Jane Washington
Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars
Series Review TK 

4. 
Title: Redfang Royal
Author: Lola Rock
Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars
Review TK

5. 
Title: Charming
Author: Jane Washington
Rating: 3 // 5 stars

6. 
Title: The Way of the Househusband, Volume 1
Author: Kousuku Oono
Rating: 5 // 5 stars

7. 
Title: The Way of the Househusband, Volume 2
Author: Kousuku Oono
Rating: 5 // 5 stars

8. 
Title: The Way of the Househusband, Volume 3
Author: Kousuku Oono
Rating: 5 // 5 stars

9. 
Title: The Way of the Househusband, Volume 4
Author: Kousuku Oono
Rating: 5 // 5 stars

10. 
Title: The Way of the Househusband, Volume 5
Author: Kousuku Oono
Rating: 5 // 5 stars

11.
Title: The Way of the Househusband, Volume 6
Author: Kousuku Oono
Rating: 5 // 5 stars

12. 
Title: The Way of the Househusband, Volume 7
Author: Kousuku Oono
Rating: 5 // 5 stars





Thanks for reading!
xoxo
Lauren



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Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Book Review: "House of Flame and Shadow" by Sarah J. Maas

Title: House of Flame and Shadow
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Series: "Crescent City" #3
Page Length: 838 pages
Publication Date: January 30, 2024
Rating: 4 // 5 stars

*Non-spoiler for House of Flame and Shadow but it will contain major spoilers for previous books in the Crescent City series*

Okay y'all, we're about a month away from me having finished this book and I think I've settled my thoughts enough for a coherent review. I have a lot of complicated feelings about this book and how the series has progressed from the first book. I'll start by saying that objectively this is a 3-star book. But I do have a lot of love for the characters and world so I rated it 4-stars. 

I'll start with my issues, of which there are plenty. First, Ithan and Tharion shared one single brain cell this entire book and it annoyed me to the point where I actively rolled my eyes seeing them on page. Ithan mostly got better but Tharion so far still annoys me. Bryce's characterization in this book also felt completely foreign to me. She didn't feel like the Bryce I'd known in the past two books. And, to be honest, there were times she annoyed me as well. 

The plot was confusing and convoluted at times. The big climax of the series fell flat, the ending was rushed and anti-climactic, the stakes never felt high, and overall I was just confused. I think it read like poorly planned fanfiction.

Honestly, my favorite scenes were the ACOTAR crossover scenes, which shouldn't be the case. I should enjoy those scenes, but Crescent City should be able to stand on its own without needing the support of her most famous series. I think it would have been far more intriguing to see a world that stood on its own where the conflicts didn't tie into ACOTAR. 

And, in probably one of my single biggest issues, the POV switches were absolutely insane. I don't mind multiple-POV books or switching POV's every chapter. But multiple POV switches in a single chapter felt like too much. We were getting POV switches after a single page sometimes. I can only imagine it was to build little cliffhangers or emulate the quick flashing between different scenes in movies or shows that builds tension. It did not work here. Instead, it just annoyed me. I don't mind every chapter or even two POVs in a chapter but there was absolutely no need to switch POVs so many times per chapter as often as they did. 

To me, this book (as well as House of Sky and Breath) didn't feel like Sarah J. Maas books. I think I read somewhere that she switched editors and that might be part of it but, for me, the things that make Maas books addicting weren't present here. The romance wasn't romancing, the plot was convoluted not layered in a fascinating way, the pacing was weird, shock twist moments didn't feel that surprising...it just wasn't executed well. 

Now, I didn't hate the book, even if I was left feeling disappointed. I enjoyed seeing the characters again and there were some that truly carried the book despite the flaws elsewhere. When I was actively reading it, I didn't want to stop, especially in the beginning. But overall I was left feeling disappointed, even though I was already apprehensive going into this book after House of Sky and Breath. That being said, the first book remains a top-tier book and I do love the characters a lot. Sadly, this book didn't do them or their stories justice. 

I'm sure this review is convoluted in its own way at this point. Overall, disappointed but didn't hate it. Four stars for nostalgia and the ACOTAR gang but three stars for literally everything else. 



Thanks for reading!
xoxo
Lauren



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