February 2020 Wrap-Up + Haul

Hello everyone! Today I'm here with my February Wrap-Up and I'm actually very happy with how this month went in terms of reading! I only read 2 books in January, but after this month, I'm almost back on track with my Goodreads challenge. Plus, I got through a bunch of amazing books! I read a total of 12 books this month so let's go ahead and dive on in!

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BOOKS READ

1. 

Title: Our Nig

Author: Harriet E. Wilson

Rating: n/a -- read for class

This was a very interesting read and quite emotional at times. It follows the story of Frado, a free black child in the North. However, while she's technically free, she is stuck in an indentured servitude which is pretty much the same thing as being a slave. While the story itself was interesting and easy to read, it also provided a look into what the North was like at that time since, at least in my schooling, we're taught that the North was a happy wonderland for black people in that time period, when it really wasn't the case. 

2. 

Title: Secrets From the Grave
Author: B.L. Brunnemer
Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars
Review
-reread-

Rereading this was fun, but I also realized that compared to the first few books in the series I didn't feel as connected to the characters. Still, it was fun to revisit and I'm glad I reread and found details I'd forgotten or missed from the first time around. 

3.
Title: When the Dead Have it Easy
Author: B.L. Brunnemer
Rating: 4.5 //5 stars
Review
-reread-

This was another reread on my approach to reading the newest release in this series. I did enjoy it, though as with the first time, not much happened in this book outside of the relationship. I'm still glad to have read this book, but I will admit that there were times where I was bored which usually doesn't happen in this series.

4.
Title: When the Dead Come Home
Author: B.L. Brunnemer
Rating: 5 // 5 stars
Review

5.
Title: The Shadows Between Us
Author: Tricia Levenseller
Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars
Blog Tour Review

6.
Title: All the Stars and Teeth
Author: Adalyn Grace
Rating: 4 // 5 stars
Blog Tour Review

7.
Title: The Backstagers, Vol 1: Rebels Without Applause
Author: James Tynion IV
Illustrators: Rian Sygh & Walter Baiamonte
Rating: 3.5 // 5 stars

All three of these graphic novels were really cute and fun. As someone who dabbled in theater (but didn't do a lot of it actively), it was fun to get to see theater getting combined with magic and whatnot. Plus, these characters were super cute and I really enjoyed the art style!

8.
Title: The Backstagers, Vol 2: The Show Must Go On
Author: James Tynion IV
Illustrators: Ryan Sygh & Walter Baiamonte
Rating: 3.5 // 5 stars

9.
Title: The Backstagers, Vol 3: Encore
Author: James Tynion IV
Illustrators: Ryan Sygh & Walter Baiamonte
Rating: 3.5 // 5 stars

10.
Title: The Sky Weaver
Author: Kristen Ciccarelli
Rating: 4 // 5 stars
Review

11.
Title: Writing Fiction
Author: Janet Burroway
Rating: na/a--read for class

It's the same as every other generic writing fiction book. That's not a bad thing, because it does its job and lays out the basics of writing, but there was nothing in this that I felt catapulted it into a must-have guide.

12.
Title: David Walker's Appeal to the Coloured Citizens of the World
Author: David Walker
Rating: n/a rating--read for class

I had to read this for school and it was definitely interesting. It's not a fiction story, it's a very real appeal to people about the state of things during slavery. It wasn't nice or easy to read, but it opened my eyes a lot more to things that went on because of slavery that I'd actually never learned about before. 

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BOOK HAUL

Guys...my haul was so small this month that I could include it in my wrap-up again! Additionally, I didn't buy either of these! The first of these I was sent by a publisher for review (coming in March) and the second I won in a giveaway. This is actually a pretty big deal to me because it's the first month since June 2015 where I haven't bought a single physical book. It's been over four and a half years of me consistently buying books and, as I'm trying to cut back on buying them, I'm actually really proud that I managed not to buy any in February. Of course, with March being the month of Crescent City, I will be buying some soon but I'm still overall very happy with this because it showed me I can stick to a book-buying ban.

The first book that I got was an ARC of The Winter Duke by Claire Eliza Bartlett which was sent to me by Novl. This one actually releases at the beginning of March so there isn't too long of a wait for it! I will be taking this will me to London on spring break and I can't wait to read it!

The second book I got this month was an ARC of Lobizona by Romina Garber (also known as Romina Russell). I've read one of Romina's other books and enjoyed it quite a bit so I was excited when I won the Goodreads Giveaway for a copy of her newest upcoming release! I believe this releases in May but it is available for preorder.

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BLOG POSTS

January 2020 Wrap-Up
BLOG TOUR: "All the Stars and Teeth" by Adalyn Grace + Giveaway
Valentine's Day Book Tag
Book Review: "When the Dead Come Home" by B.L. Brunnemer
BLOG TOUR: "The Shadows Between Us" by Tricia Levenseller + Giveaway
Book Review: "The Sky Weaver" by Kristen Ciccarelli
Books I HAVE to Read in 2020

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Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Lauren

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Book Review: "When the Dead Come Home" by B.L. Brunnemer

Title: When the Dead Come Home

Author: B.L. Brunnemer

Series: "The Veil Diaries" #8

Genre: RH Supernatural Romance

Page Length: 326 pages

Publication Date: February 14, 2020

Date Started: February 17, 2020

Date Finished: February 17, 2020
Rating: 5 // 5 stars

Goodreads

*This review will be spoiler-free for book 8, but I cannot promise that there won't be spoilers for previous books in the series*

This book. THIS BOOK. This book is what I love about this series. The last couple of books in the series, while great and developmental in their own ways, just felt different to me. They didn't give me the same feeling as the others in this series. This book, though, made me feel like I was right back at home with this series. 

A lot happens in this book. I will admit, I did fly through reading it because I was so excited to finally have this installment. There's a lot in terms of character, relationship, and world development and it was great. I felt like this book had a good balance between all three, whereas the last two books, while great, each focused heavily on ONE of these things and not blending all of them together.

I don't want to spoil anything, so I'm trying to keep this brief and a tad vague. After the events of book 7, I was really excited to see how things would progress between characters in this novel. I was not disappointed in the slightest. The character dynamics have shifted in interesting ways and I quite liked getting to see the different sides of certain characters. It was fascinating to watch how they dealt with different things under the various pressures throughout the book.

There were also plenty of high-action scenes, which I really enjoyed after the more slow previous book. I quite liked how some things were finally being revealed after a few years of speculating and how others were being hinted at but not confirmed.

Overall, I really enjoyed this installment and I'm just very excited for the final book to come out later this year and then the sequel series after that. I think this one set up the finale quite well and, while it wasn't ended with a cliffhanger, there are still a lot of open questions and plot points that could go very different ways. I loved it. 

Book Reviews
Veil Diaries:
Book 1: Trying to Live With the Dead
Book 2: When the Dead Come A Knockin'
Book 3: When to Fear the Living
Book 4: Whispers from the Dead
Book 5: When Evil Comes to Play
Book 6: Secrets From the Grave
Book 7: When the Dead Have it Easy

Books of Stone:
Book 1: Found

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Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Lauren

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You can follow my bookstagram here for more bookish content!

To get more awesome posts like this post, click the follow button to the right!

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Get free worldwide shipping with Book Depository using my affiliate link

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December 2019 Wrap-Up!

December was such a whirlwind month for me. SO MUCH happened and I was so busy throughout. I only read three books, but I got halfway through two others so I'd say I'm pretty happy with that since this month was so busy that I didn't even finish a book until December 21st.

The beginning of this month was filled with me finishing up final papers and projects and then finishing up my time abroad in London. I had a wonderful last few weeks there and it's so bittersweet being home--I miss London so much already. It was a really tough few first days transitioning back--harder than when I had to initially adjust to London--and I know there's still a lot of adjusting to do. I'm just not ready at all to return to regular schooling and responsibilities.

It was also Christmas, which is a big thing for my family since I have a huge family. I was all over to different houses and whatnot for Christmas. Then came New Year's and I was prepping for that and hanging out with friends I hadn't seen in a while. Add on top that this is my busiest time of the year on my blog because of all the posts wrapping up 2019 and heading into 2020.

Of course, this is also my favorite time of the year. I love wrapping up the year and looking forward to the next one. I love meeting up with all of my family and friends. I just love this time of year and so, even though I didn't read very many books this month, I'm still really happy with December.

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BOOKS READ

1.

Title: Trying to Live with the Dead

Author: B.L. Brunnemer

Rating: 5 // 5 stars
Review
-reread-

I was so glad to do this reread. It's always so nice to be back with these characters and it seems fitting that I read it towards the end of December as the first time I read it was around this time a few years ago. This was my sixth reread but each time I'm always finding things I'd forgotten or didn't notice the first times around. I'm not going to jump straight into rereading the second book, but I do know that I'm excited for when that time comes.

2.
Title: The Caged Queen
Author: Kristen Ciccarelli
Rating: 4 // 5 stars
Review

3.
Title: Queer Eye: Love Yourself, Love Your Life
Authors: Bobby Berk, Antoni Porowski, Tan France, Jonathan Van Ness, and Karamo Brown
Rating: 4 // 5 stars

Really fun to listen to and insightful. I think having the physical book would have been better, though, since it is more of a coffee-table book and is very visual. Still, I enjoyed getting to hear from all of my Fab 5!

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BLOG POSTS

Book Review: "The Last Namsara" by Kristen Ciccarelli
November 2019 Wrap-Up!
Studying Abroad in London: Strikes & A British Thanksgiving
Studying Abroad in London: Date Nights & Gift Giving
Studying Abroad in London: Last Days & An Early Christmas
Studying Abroad in London: The End of London
Twelve Days of Christmas Book Tag
Book Review: "The Caged Queen" by Kristen Ciccarelli
Anticipated 2020 Book Releases
Disappointing Reads of 2019

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Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Lauren

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You can follow my bookstagram here. A brand new giveaway will be posted soon!

To get more awesome content like this post, click the follow button to the right!

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Anticipated 2020 Book Releases

Hey everyone! We are at the start of my favorite time of the year: the holidays and winter break! This is my favorite time of the year for a few reasons, the first being Christmas, the second being winter break and time off school, and the third being all the amazing bookish blog posts I get to write this time of year! I love wrapping up the year and looking forward to the next one, which is what I'm going to be doing in this post today.

This upcoming year (and decade in general), are promising to bring a lot of amazing book releases. I have many upcoming releases on my radar and preorder list, but I thought I'd narrow it down to my top 10 to share with you all! Some of these are coming very soon, others may be months away, but I'm excited for all of them nonetheless!

At number 10, we have the second book in the Chronicles of Avilésor by Sara A. Noë, Phantom's Mask. The first book, A Fallen Hero, was one of my favorite reads of 2019 and I've been eagerly anticipating any news on the second book. We have no cover yet but there is a title and an excerpt already that have me so excited for its release.

Number 9 we have the fourth An Ember in the Ashes novel by Sabaa Tahir. While I admit that I haven't yet read the third book in this series, that's only because I am planning on doing a complete series binge when the final book releases. There's no confirmed release date yet but based on a lot of stuff from the author's writing updates, I hope it will be coming in 2020.

For number 8 I have Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco. This is another book with no cover yet but we do have a synopsis that is absolutely killing me! I absolutely adore Kerri's Stalking Jack the Ripper series and I am so excited to see what she's going to do next. This one is the first in a new series and is set to come out in the fall!

At number 7 I actually have two books but they're within the same series: the 8th and 9th novels in The Veil Diaries series by B.L. Brunnemer. It's no secret that this series is one of my favorites and we're finally approaching the end (well, is it the end when there's a sequel series following the same characters but a different storyline?). I cannot wait to reread the entire series in anticipation of the newest book, which should be out in January while the last should be out later in the year.

For number 6 I have the fourth Witchlands novel by Susan Dennard. There's been some talk that it's not going to come out until 2021, which would be sad, but as of right now there's still a chance it will  be 2020 so I'm going to include it on this list. This is a series I discovered at the end of 2018 and binged in the first few months of this year. I absolutely fell in love with the characters, the world, and Susan's writing. I cannot wait for the next book!

Number 5 we have Lightbringer by  Claire Legrand, the final book in the Empirium trilogy. I am absolutely stoked for this book. After the cliffhanger in Kingsbane, I've been desperately needing to know what happens and we're only a few months away (okay, like 10 months away but still). I'm sad the trilogy is coming to a close but I'm also excited to finally have resolution with the characters and a (hopefully) happy ending.

At number 4 I have The Empire of Gold by S.A. Chakraborty. This is the third and final book in the Daevabad trilogy and I'm so excited. I discovered this series at the beginning of the year and, after binging them rather quickly, I am dying to know what happens next. I'm already planning a reread of the first two books and I'm just so excited for when the time will finally arrive.

For number 3 I have the fourth A Court of Thorns and Roses novel. While it's not confirmed to be out in 2020, the most recent announcement said it would be coming at the end of 2020, so I'm holding out hope for it. I'm so excited for this spin-off novel and I can't wait to see how Sarah writes these new character perspectives and new story.

At number 2 is Blood & Honey by Shelby Mahurin, the sequel to Serpent & Dove aka my favorite book of 2019. I absolutely adored Serpent & Dove and I cannot wait to get more of the characters, magic system, and high stakes in the sequel. I also just know that there's going to be an absolutely gorgeous cover for it to match the first one.

And, lastly, we have House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas. This is the first book in Sarah's new adult fantasy series and I am so excited for it. ARCs have started going out and I have serious jealousy at everyone who's gotten one. I already have four editions preordered and I know that more will probably follow. I have such faith in Sarah and I cannot wait to read a new story from her set in a contemporary fantasy world!

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Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Lauren

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You can follow my bookstagram here. A brand new giveaway will be posted soon!

To get more awesome content like this post, click the follow button to the right!

I am a "BookishTextDesign" Influencer! Use my code LAUREN10 for a discount off your bookmark purchases! Check out the shop here

Get free worldwide shipping with Book Depository using my affiliate link

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Thanksgiving Book Tag: 2019 Edition

It's that time of year again! The time where all us Americans gather around with our families and stuff our faces until we can barely move. I'm in London this year so I'm going to be having quite a different Thanksgiving experience from usual. One thing that won't change, though, is me laying around all day eating turkey and also doing this book tag! I'm limiting it to books I've read this year, though, just to make things interesting. Let's go ahead and just dive right in!

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1. Bread - What book is purely fluff, and has no real plot line?

I feel like a lot of books can fall into this category but that doesn't necessarily mean that they're not good books. I myself need a fluffy book every once in a while. For this, I'm going to go with Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell & Faith Erin Hicks. I really enjoyed this graphic novel, but there  wasn't much to it beyond just messing around. It was definitely super cute and fluffy, though.

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2. Turkey - What book made you want to fall asleep?

I have to say, any of the books I read for class this year made me want to fall asleep. Outside of those, Lord of Shadows really bored me for most of the book. There are a few others, but that one came to mind first. I will say that while it bored me, I still enjoyed it a little. It's definitely not my favorite Cassandra Clare book, though. You can find my review here. 

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3. Gravy - What book makes the whole series worth reading?

Going off of the last question, Queen of Air and Darkness was a lot better than Lord of Shadows. I still think that Lady Midnight was the best of the series but this third one definitely restored my faith in the series and characters. From the beginning page it was already better than the second book. Plus, there was plenty of angst but also hope that really kept the book going. You can find my  full review here.

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4. Stuffing - What book is stuffed full of action scenes?

I read a lot of high fantasy and other action-packed scenes. It was actually a bit difficult deciding what book to chose for this prompt. In the end, I've decided to go with The Girl the Sea Gave Back by Adrienne Young. There was action almost from page one and kept going throughout the book. Not only that, but I just really enjoyed this book. You can find my review here.

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5. Mashed Potatoes - What book looked good, and then wasn’t?

I didn't even have very high expectations going into Wicked Saints and yet it still majorly let me down. I thought it would be somewhat good but every time I look back on it I'm just reminded of how disappointing this book really was form me. Before I go off on a tangent, I'll just leave it with this book was not what I expected.

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6. Cranberries - What book has the sweetest romance?

I obviously have to go with one of my favorite books of the year: Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston. I'd been hearing a lot of hype about it leading up to the release and I knew that I had to read it. Everything about these characters was so sweet and pure and amazing. I already can't wait to reread this book in the future! You can find my full review here.

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7. Corn - What’s the corniest book you’ve ever read?

I decided to go with Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey. I don't know if I would say that this is the corniest book I've ever read but it was approaching that feeling. This was kind of a stereotypical fluffy and steamy novel. However, it was really fun and enjoyable nonetheless.

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8. Green beans - What book is too long and needs to be shortened?

Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor definitely fits this bill for me. It wasn't necessarily a bad book but it was over 500 pages and I could probably count how many big things happened on a single hand. It's a compelling story idea but the book was so long and unnecessarily so. You can find my review here.

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9. Pumpkin Pie - What book do you read to get out of a reading slump?

The one series that never fails to get me out of a reading slump is The Veil Diaries by B.L. Brunnemer. These characters are some of my favorites and the writing is so easy to just fall into. I could read all 7 of the books that are out so far in a week if I let myself. I just love these books and they never fail to get me into a reading mood.

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10. Dog/Cat - What’s your favorite Thanksgiving food that you would steal from the table?

It would have to be my grandma's stuffing for sure. She has her own secret recipe and it's my favorite food to eat at Thanksgiving meals. I always have about a million scoops of it because I just can't help  myself when it comes to how yummy it is.

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Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Lauren

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You can follow my bookstagram here. A brand new giveaway will be posted soon!

To get more awesome content like this post, click the follow button to the right!

I am a "BookishTextDesign" Influencer! Use my code LAUREN10 for a discount off your bookmark purchases! Check out the shop here

Get free worldwide shipping with Book Depository using my affiliate link

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June 2019 Wrap-Up!

So, I had a pretty good reading month even though I'm still a bit disappointed in it. I've definitely had a better reading summer than last year, but I had a lot more that I wanted to get to this month and didn't. I had the time, but I chose to watch Netflix. Still, I don't want reading to become a chore so while I'm disappointed I wasn't up to reading more, I am still happy with what I read this month. I enjoyed everything I read and I found new favorites, so let's just dive in and chat about them for a while!

BOOKS READ

1.

Title: Dark Shores

Author: Danielle L. Jensen
Rating: 3.75 // 5 stars

Review

2.
Title: Only A Breath Apart
Author: Katie McGarry
Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars
Review

3.
Title: When Evil Comes to Play
Author: B.L. Brunnemer
Rating: 5 // 5 stars
Review
-reread-

Rereading this was honestly just so great. I think this series is definitely becoming one of my most re-read series ever and I wouldn't have it any other way. This book definitely takes on a different tone than the first ones and things start to really expand. Also, my heart was somewhat broken but it's okay because I had the next books ready to go. 

4.

Title: Secrets From the Grave

Author: B.L. Brunnemer

Rating: 5 // 5 stars

Review

5.

Title: When the Dead Have it Easy

Author: B.L. Brunnemer

Rating: 5 // 5 stars

Review

6.

Title: Aurora Rising

Authors: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Rating: 4 // 5 stars

Review

7.

Title: Her Royal Highness

Author: Rachel Hawkins

Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars

Review

8. 

Title: A Court of Mist and Fury

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Rating: 5 // 5 stars

Review

-reread-

I was feeling a bit down in the dumps and decided I wanted to reread a couple of my favorite scenes from ACOMAF. I ended up reading the entire dang book--skim reading at times but entirely from front to back. I loved every second of it. I forgot how much I absolutely adored this world and these characters. I already want to reread the next book, though I know I should wait.

9.
Title: The Good Girl's Bad Boys: The Good, the Bad, and the Bullied
Author: Rubixcube89201
Rating: 4 // 5 stars
Review
-reread-

I mean, this book is in no way a literary masterpiece but I enjoyed it. It's funny, it's addicting, and it has a good message behind it. It's not super realistic but the overall metaphor and message the author is trying to put out there is a good one. I didn't realize rereading this how long it actually is, because it took me so long to read it. There's almost 70 chapters and they're all super long. Even with no official page count I would probably put this book at over 800-900 pages if it were in print instead of on Wattpad. Still, I enjoyed it and am excited to read the sequel because I never got to last time I read this.

10.
Title: Wires and Nerves
Author: Marissa Meyer
Rating: 4 // 5 stars

I forgot how much I missed these characters and enjoyed this world! I was so grateful for the recap at the beginning but I'm definitely feeling like I need a complete reread of the Lunar Chronicles. I'm ridiculously excited that I finally got to read this graphic novel, though, and I'm even more excited to have the second volume checked out on my Libby app and ready to go!

11.
Title: The Prince and the Dressmaker
Author: Jen Wang
Rating: 3 // 5 stars

This was super cute and I really liked the message behind it. I thought the art was beautiful. It had just the right balance of angst and cute moments throughout and I was glad at how the book ended. I can see why so many people love it.

12.
Title: Every Last Breath
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Rating: 5 // 5 stars
Review
-reread-

This was my second time rereading this book but it was like a brand new experience since I didn't remember most of it from the first time. I absolutely loved this reread. This is definitely my favorite Jennifer L. Armentrout series thus far and I can't wait to dive into the spin-off sequel. Even though it follows different main characters, I know these ones make an appearance and I can't wait to see how they're doing. Overall, I just loved this reread and this trilogy is definitely one of my favorite series.

13.
Title: Rhapsodic
Author: Laura Thalassa
Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars
Review

14.
Title: Gone Rogue
Author: Marissa Meyer
Rating: 4 // 5 stars

Wow I enjoyed this one just as much as the first installment. I'm honestly just so happy that I finally was able to read this graphic novel duology. The story was interesting and I was pretty happy at how the ending was resolved. Overall, I just found it fun to be back with these characters and see how things were going after the ending of the Lunar Chronicles. 

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BLOG POSTS

May 2019 Wrap-Up
May 2019 Book Haul
Blog Tour Review: "Dark Shores" by Danielle L. Jensen
Book Review: "Secrets From the Grave" by B.L. Brunnemer
Book Review: "When the Dead Have it Easy" by B.L. Brunnemer
Most Anticipated Book Releases of 2019
Book Review: "Aurora Rising" by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff
Book Review + Playlist: "Her Royal Highness" by Rachel Hawkins
Book Review: "Rhapsodic" by Laura Thalassa

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Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Lauren

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You can follow my bookstagram here. A brand new giveaway will be posted soon!

To get more awesome content like this post, click the follow button to the right!

I am a "BookishTextDesign" Influencer! Use my code LAUREN10 for a discount off your bookmark purchases! Check out the shop here

Get free worldwide shipping with Book Depository using my affiliate link

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