Wrap Up|| July.

wrapup

Hey!

I had a pretty great reading month in July. It was A LOT better than I had last month, that’s for sure. I was stuck in the house most of the month due to rain almost 24/7 in July, so I had nothing else to really do. I think I only read three books last month? This month I was able to read six books and listen to two audiobooks. Here are the books that I read and listened to in July. You can find a full list of these books and the other books I read this year over here. All will be linked to Goodreads below and I will also link to individual blog posts for them if I did a review.

Physically Read Books:
These are the books that I read myself (not audiobooks) throughout the month of July.

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Soul of the Sword by Julie Kagawa – 5 out of 5 stars – Review
I loved Soul of the Sword and I was really happy with everything that happened. It’s a lot darker than the first book (Shadow of the Fox). The twist at the end was amazing. I’m impatiently waiting for that third book, UGHH. Feel free to check out my review for more.

Wilder Girls by Rory Power – 3 out of 5 stars – Review
I was hoping to really love the Wilder Girls, because it has so much hype and just sounded like a really great story. I sadly did not love it as much as everyone else did. While at times it was hard to put down and had the creep factor, it just didn’t blow me away and it felt like it ended unresolved. I didn’t see anything about a sequel, so the ending just felt unfinished. Feel free to check out my review for more.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides – 4 out of 5 stars
The Silent Patient was a really great story. I wasn’t a huge fan of the characters, but the story itself was really great. It definitely left me shocked and surprised.

Heartstopper Volume 2 – Alice Oseman – 5 out of 5 stars
AHHHHHH, my heart. I loved Heartstopper Volume 2 so much. I love Nick and Charlie and I am dying for more. I flew through it in a single day and couldn’t stop smiling.

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim – 4 out of 5 stars – Review
I had so much fun reading Spin the Dawn. I loved the magic and the adventure. There’s two parts to the story and both parts were so great. There’s a competition and then a journey. It’s said to be like Mulan & Project Runaway, which is great comparisons. I can’t wait for the sequel. Feel free to check out my review for more.

love, and you by Gretchen Gomez – 3 out of 5 stars.
I’ve had love, and you for a while now and I am glad that I finally read it. I liked the poems that Gretchen wrote in love, and you. They were heartbreaking and uplifting. I did have a hard time personally connecting to them, which is why my star rating is only a three. The poems themselves though were really great and I would recommend reading.


Audiobooks:
These are the books that I listened to the audio versions throughout the month of July.

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With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo – 5 out of 5 stars.
I LOVE With the Fire on High. I listened to the audiobook and it was so great. I am glad I chose to go this route when picking up the book. I loved the story and the characters. I loved the family aspect of it and all the FOOOOD. 😛 This book was everything, honestly. I highly recommend it.

Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli – 2 out of 5 stars.
I sadly did not love Leah on the Offbeat as much as I hoped I would. I honestly didn’t like Leah that much. She was a lot of the time whiny, annoying, and mean, which is sad because I liked her in Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. Maybe that’s because this book is all Leah, you get more of her than you do in Simon Vs. She made it hard to want to continue the book at times. It was nice catching up with all the other characters from Simon vs. though.


Currently Reading Books:
These are the books that I started to read in the month of July, but didn’t get a chance to finish them yet.

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Heroine by Mindy McGinnis
How to Hack a Heartbreak by Kristin Rockaway (reading next)

I’ve been wanting to read this for awhile now, so I finally decided to pickup my copy. I’m only a few chapters into it so far, but I am excited to read it. I also didn’t get a chance to finish one of my July ARCs this months, so I will be reading that one next (How to Hack a Heartbreak), so I can get it reviewed as soon as possible before moving onto my August ARCs.

What books did you read in July? Have you read any of the books that I read? Feel free to link me to you wrap up post, so I can check it out!

In case you  missed it;
Book Haul|| July.

I hope you have a great day!

ashleyblack

Review|| Spin the Dawn.

spinthedawn

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim
4 out of 5 stars

“Seize the wind. Don’t become the kite that never flies.”

Goodreads Description: Maia Tamarin dreams of becoming the greatest tailor in the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well. When a royal messenger summons her ailing father, once a tailor of renown, to court, Maia poses as a boy and takes his place. She knows her life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she’ll take that risk to achieve her dream and save her family from ruin. There’s just one catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors vying for the job. Backstabbing and lies run rampant as the tailors compete in challenges to prove their artistry and skill. Maia’s task is further complicated when she draws the attention of the court magician, Edan, whose piercing eyes seem to see straight through her disguise. And nothing could have prepared her for the final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the emperor’s reluctant bride-to-be, from the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars. With this impossible task before her, she embarks on a journey to the far reaches of the kingdom, seeking the sun, the moon, and the stars, and finding more than she ever could have imagined.


I received an ARC of Spin the Dawn from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. It was released on July 9th.

When I seen that Spin the Dawn was a mix between Project Runaway and Mulan, I knew I needed to read it as soon as possible! I had so much fun reading Spin the Dawn. There are basically two different parts to this story, which I really liked. You have the competition and then the journey that Maia goes on to get the materials to make the dresses. I really enjoyed both parts of the story, but felt like the actual second part was overall the best. Maia gets to go on a crazy adventure and see different parts of the world that she never has before. There are quite a few obstacles along the way, but it made the story interesting and on the edge of my seat at times. I really enjoyed the world building and the descriptions of the different places that Maia had to travel; it made it really easy to envision them.

I loved Maia’s character so much. At the start she seemed a bit unsure of things, but continued to grow throughout the story as she experienced and learned more of the world. I really liked how much she loves her family and what she’s willing to go through for them. Edan was a fun character and I liked the relationship development between him and Maia. It did seem odd and a bit insta-love at times though. There are some characters that I hope we learn more about in the sequel, like the Emperor and Lady Sarnai. Even more about Edan would be great as well. I feel like not enough was written about them or what they went through in the past leading up to the events in this book. I think a lot of the focus was on Maia and her development, so I am hoping the sequel tells more about other key characters in the story.

Overall, I really enjoyed Spin the Dawn. I loved the magic, the adventure, and I had a lot of fun reading it. The ending was perfect and has left me wanting more!

In case you missed it;
Book Haul|| July.
Review|| Wilder Girls.
Friday Finds #82.

I hope you have a great day!

ashleyblack

 

 

Book Haul|| July.

bookhaulyellow

Hey!

It’s been about a week and a half since I last updated. I’m still in a weird head space and even more so this month. I think it has to do with how crappy the weather has been. It’s been raining every single day this month, so our plans usually get cancelled which always sucks. I’ve been pretty much stuck in the house almost 24/7 for a month. It hasn’t been good on me mentally…at least I don’t think it has. I’m just so “blah” about everything these days, which has kind of hurts me with blogging and stuff. I was able to go do things this past weekend when the hubby’s parents visited for the weekend, so that was nice. 🙂

Anyway, I am rambling! I’m posting my July book haul today. It’s a week early for posting my haul, but I don’t think I will be getting anymore books this month. I don’t have any on order or plans to buy any others this month, so why not post now?

Books I Bought:

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Destroy All Monsters by Sam J. Miller
Heartstopper: Volume Two by Alice Oseman

When I came across Destroy All Monsters, I really loved the sound of it and it said “and Patrick Ness”…so I basically had to get it. I love Patrick Ness, so if Destroy All Monsters is similar to his books I had to check it out. I had to on pre-order and it was finally released earlier this month. Heartstopper Vol 2 was released this month as well and I had to have it. I loved the first book and I REALLY loved volume two. I read it in a single day. I am dying for the next volume.


Books from Publishers:

A Dream So Dark (sequel) by L.L. McKinney
The Revolution of Birdie Randolph by Brandy Colbert
The Wives by Tarryn Fisher (Netgalley)

I am really stoked that I was sent a copy of A Dream So Dark. I didn’t get the chance to read my ARC of the first book (A Blade So Black), so I am planning to read them both in September and doing a review for both. I love an Alice in Wonderland retelling. I am also so happy that I was sent an ARC of The Revolution of Birdie Randolph, because it sounds so amazing and I am really looking forward to reading that one in August and getting my review up. I’ve read a couple Tarryn Fisher books and enjoyed them. I also own quite a few others of hers that I need to read. I was happy to see that I was approved for her new book The Wives on Netgalley, because it sounds so good. Maybe it’ll also give me the push to finally read her other books that I own.


E-Books:

Foolish Hearts by Emma Mills
Ravensong (sequel) by TJ Klune
The Outcast Hours by Mahvesh Murad & other authors

I was really stoked to see Foolish Hearts go on sale, so I had to pick that one up. Ravensong is the sequel to Wolfsong. I’ve seen a lot of good things about Wolfsong and since I already owned the first book in e-book, I decided to just get the sequel as well since it was on sale. I hope to read the series soon. I’m not a huge anthology fan, but I’ve seen mixed reviews about The Outcast Hours and wanted to check it out for myself since it was on sale for only 99 cents. I think I may save it for an October read.

What new books did you get in July? Have you read any of the ones that I got? Feel free to link me to your haul post, so I can check it out!

I’ll catch up with all of your posts and comments soon. Maybe I’ll do some blog hopping today and tomorrow to catch up with you guys. 🙂

In case you missed it;
Review|| Wilder Girls.
Friday Finds #82.
Review|| Soul of the Sword {sequel}.

I hope you have a great day and weekend!

ashleyblack

Review|| Wilder Girls.

wildergirls

Wilder Girls by Rory Power
3 out of 5 stars

Goodreads Description: It’s been eighteen months since the Raxter School for Girls was put under quarantine. Since the Tox hit and pulled Hetty’s life out from under her. It started slow. First the teachers died one by one. Then it began to infect the students, turning their bodies strange and foreign. Now, cut off from the rest of the world and left to fend for themselves on their island home, the girls don’t dare wander outside the school’s fence, where the Tox has made the woods wild and dangerous. They wait for the cure they were promised as the Tox seeps into everything. But when Byatt goes missing, Hetty will do anything to find her, even if it means breaking quarantine and braving the horrors that lie beyond the fence. And when she does, Hetty learns that there’s more to their story, to their life at Raxter, than she could have ever thought true.


I received an ARC of Wilder Girls from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. It was just released on July 9th.

Wilder Girls had so much promise, but sadly it didn’t live up to the hype for me. At first I was really into the story and I couldn’t put it down. I was so invested in finding out what was happening to all of these girls and finding out what the Tox really was. So many crazy and disturbing things were happening to them. They were cut off from the world and had to survive on limited supplies and while battling the Tox and sometimes each other. It was pretty intense, especially at the beginning.

Eventually I started to get a little bored with what was going on around the halfway point, because nothing really did happen after awhile. Some of the girls started to really annoy me and some things started to get a little too weird or confusing. I felt like there were some unanswered questions and the ending was really underwhelming. I felt like it wasn’t a complete ending. I don’t know if there is plans for a book two (I didn’t see anything about it), but I felt like the book just all of a sudden ended and that was that. There was no resolution or anything. I was really confused by that.

Overall, I did like Wilder Girls and thought it was hard to put down at times. It was pretty creepy and disturbing. I just wish there were more to it, especially the ending. It felt like so much information was missing and that nothing really got resolved. Maybe it was setup that way in case there is a sequel one day? Who knows…that just really bugged me though. I will forever have all of these unanswered questions. I don’t want to go into what they are though, because it’ll be spoilerish. I just wanted more and wasn’t happy with how things just all of a sudden ended.

In case you missed it;
Friday Finds #82.
Review|| Soul of the Sword {sequel}.

I hope you have a great day!

ashleyblack

Friday Finds #82.

fridayfinds

These are books that I have added to my Goodreads TBR shelves recently. I don’t own them (YET), but they are books that I really want to read one day!


Hey!

It’s been awhile since I’ve done this type of post. I am going to just jump right into it. I have five books that I recently added to my Goodreads shelf to share with you today. I’ve included the book descriptions below and linked them to Goodreads as well, in case you want to add them to your TBR. You can see more of my TBR shelves over on my Goodreads account over here and feel free to add me as a friend!

thebirdandtheblade

The Bird and the Blade by Megan Bannen

Goodreads Description: As a slave in the Kipchak Khanate, Jinghua has lost everything: her home, her family, her freedom … until the kingdom is conquered by enemy forces and she finds herself an unlikely conspirator in the escape of Prince Khalaf and his irascible father across the vast Mongol Empire. On the run, with adversaries on all sides and an endless journey ahead, Jinghua hatches a scheme to use the Kipchaks’ exile to return home, a plan that becomes increasingly fraught as her feelings for Khalaf evolve into a hopeless love. Jinghua’s already dicey prospects take a downward turn when Khalaf seeks to restore his kingdom by forging a marriage alliance with Turandokht, the daughter of the Great Khan. As beautiful as she is cunning, Turandokht requires all potential suitors to solve three impossible riddles to win her hand—and if they fail, they die. Jinghua has kept her own counsel well, but with Khalaf’s kingdom—and his very life—on the line, she must reconcile the hard truth of her past with her love for a boy who has no idea what she’s capable of … even if it means losing him to the girl who’d sooner take his life than his heart.


100daysofsunlight

100 Days of Sunlight by Abbie Emmons

Goodreads Description: When 16-year-old poetry blogger Tessa Dickinson is involved in a car accident and loses her eyesight for 100 days, she feels like her whole world has been turned upside-down. Terrified that her vision might never return, Tessa feels like she has nothing left to be happy about. But when her grandparents place an ad in the local newspaper looking for a typist to help Tessa continue writing and blogging, an unlikely answer knocks at their door: Weston Ludovico, a boy her age with bright eyes, an optimistic smile…and no legs. Knowing how angry and afraid Tessa is feeling, Weston thinks he can help her. But he has one condition — no one can tell Tessa about his disability. And because she can’t see him, she treats him with contempt: screaming at him to get out of her house and never come back. But for Weston, it’s the most amazing feeling: to be treated like a normal person, not just a sob story. So he comes back. Again and again and again. Tessa spurns Weston’s “obnoxious optimism”, convinced that he has no idea what she’s going through. But Weston knows exactly how she feels and reaches into her darkness to show her that there is more than one way to experience the world. As Tessa grows closer to Weston, she finds it harder and harder to imagine life without him — and Weston can’t imagine life without her. But he still hasn’t told her the truth, and when Tessa’s sight returns he’ll have to make the hardest decision of his life: vanish from Tessa’s world…or overcome his fear of being seen.


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The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow

Goodreads Description: In the early 1900s, a young woman searches for her place in the world after finding a mysterious book in this captivating and lyrical debut.In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the halls: carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place. Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own.


unpregnant

Unpregnant by Jenni Hendriks, Ted Caplan

Goodreads Description: Seventeen-year-old Veronica Clarke never thought she would wish she’d failed a test until she finds herself holding a thick piece of plastic in her hands and staring at two solid pink lines. Even the most consistent use of condoms won’t prevent pregnancy when your boyfriend secretly pokes holes in them to keep you from going out-of-state for college. Veronica needs an abortion, but the closest place she can legally get one is over nine hundred miles away—and Veronica doesn’t have a car. Too ashamed to ask her friends or family for help, Veronica turns to the one person she believes won’t judge her: Bailey Butler, Jefferson High’s own little black cloud of anger and snark—and Veronica’s ex-best friend. Once on the road, Veronica quickly remembers nothing with Bailey is ever simple and that means two days of stolen cars, shotguns, crazed ex-boyfriends, truck stop strippers with pro-life agendas, and a limo driver named Bob. But the pain and betrayal of their broken friendship can’t be outrun. When their fighting leads to a brutal moment of truth, Bailey abandons Veronica. Now Veronica must risk everything in order to repair the hurt she’s caused.


fulldisclosure

Full Disclosure by Camryn Garrett

Goodreads Description: Simone Garcia-Hampton is starting over at a new school, and this time things will be different. She’s making real friends, making a name for herself as student director of Rent, and making a play for Miles, the guy who makes her melt every time he walks into a room. The last thing she wants is for word to get out that she’s HIV-positive, because last time . . . well, last time things got ugly. Keeping her viral load under control is easy, but keeping her diagnosis under wraps is not so simple. As Simone and Miles start going out for real–shy kisses escalating into much more–she feels an uneasiness that goes beyond butterflies. She knows she has to tell him that she’s positive, especially if sex is a possibility, but she’s terrified of how he’ll react! And then she finds an anonymous note in her locker: I know you have HIV. You have until Thanksgiving to stop hanging out with Miles. Or everyone else will know too. Simone’s first instinct is to protect her secret at all costs, but as she gains a deeper understanding of the prejudice and fear in her community, she begins to wonder if the only way to rise above is to face the haters head-on.

All of these books sound so amazing and I am dying to get my hands on them. Have you added any new books to your TBR? Feel free to link me to your posts if you have one or leave a comment letting me know what new books you added to your TBR recently.

I am so happy the weekend is almost here. I am so tired this week and I just want to lay in bed and watch Homicide Hunter all weekend. I’ll probably get some reading in and blog hopping/replying to comments during the weekend too.

In case you missed it;
WWW Wednesday #63.
Review|| Soul of the Sword {sequel}.
Book Haul|| June.

I hope you have a great day and weekend!

ashleyblack

WWW Wednesday #63.

wwwwednesdayflower

WWW Wednesday is a weekly MEME hosted by Taking on a World of Words. Simply answer the following questions. 🙂

The three Ws are:
What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

*All books linked to Goodreads below.


Hey!

I’m still kind of in this reading/blogging slump, which sucks. I just want to be back to normal with things, UGH. I had so many library e-books get checked out to me at the exact same time (that’s how it always goes) and I ended up having to sadly return them all and get back on the hold lists, because I knew I would never get to them this month with this slump and with the other books that I plan to read.

I’ve been trying to push through though, so when I’m not glued to true crime TV shows (currently it’s Homicide Hunter, I love Joe Kenda), I am reading here and there. I’m trying to get a lot of my ARCs read and reviewed, so all the books you see in this post are ARCs. That’s another reason why I decided on returning all of my library books even though I had been on hold FOREVER for them. I want to read all my review books first. Here are the books that I’ve been reading and hope to read next. 

Currently Reading:

wildergirls

Wilder Girls by Rory Power

I am currently reading Wilder Girls right now and so far it’s pretty interesting. I’ve seen it marketed as being like Lord of the Flies. I loved Lord of the Flies, so I’m here for it. Right from the start it was really creepy and crazy what is happening to these girls. It’s actually disturbing and also addicting to read. Maybe this will be the book to get my out of my reading slump? I’m currently 25% into it. Wilder Girls was just released yesterday, so it’s out in the world if you’re interested. Review to come as soon as I finish it.


Recently Finished:

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Soul of the Sword by Julie Kagawa

I finished Soul of the Sword the other day and it was everything I hoped it would be! I loved it so much. It was a lot fun to read and I was so stoked to be back in that world. I actually posted my review for this one on Monday, which I will link at the end of this post. I highly recommend picking up Shadow of the Fox (first book). This series is so amazing so far and I am dying for that third book.


Reading Next:

spinthedawn

Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim

Next up I’ll hopefully be reading Spin the Dawn. It’s marketed as “Project Runway meets Mulan” and I am LIVING for that. I remember watching all the Project Runway seasons when I was younger and I love Mulan. I hope I love it, because I need a physical copy of this haha. That cover is amazing. Spin the Dawn was just released yesterday as well, so it’s out in the world if you are interested.

What are you currently reading? Recently finished? Reading next? Have you read any of these books? Feel free to link me to your posts, so I can check them out!

I am hoping to catch up with all of your posts and comments either today or tomorrow. I am still working on my picture update post and my mid-year freak out tag. I’ve been kind of hestant about the picture update post, because I’m already so close to being out of picture space on here. I’m nervous that if I upload the 50+ pictures I have, it’ll take all of my space. That’s mostly why I haven’t done it yet. I need to figure something out with that or I guess upgrade my account to the next level, so I can more space. Feel free to follow me on Instagram if you do want to see some pictures until I figure out what to do with this situation. My username is: heyyitsashley. Anyway, that’s all for now.

In case you missed it;
Review|| Soul of the Sword {sequel}.
Book Haul|| June.
Wrap Up|| June.

I hope you have a great day!

ashleyblack

Review|| Soul of the Sword {sequel}.

soulofthesword

Soul of the Sword by Julie Kagawa
5 out of 5 stars.

I am not going to put the Goodreads description in this post, because this book is a sequel to Shadow of the Fox and I don’t want to give away spoilers if you haven’t read Shadow of the Fox. Above title linked to Goodreads though. My review may have spoilers of Shadow of the Fox though since it is a sequel, but I’ll try not to. I’m not very good at writing sequel reviews because fear of giving anything away LOL. 😛


I received an ARC of Soul of the Sword from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. It was just released on June 25th.

I read Shadow of the Fox last year and absolutely loved it (check out my review over here). I was so stoked to dive back into the world again with Soul of the Sword. As with the first book, I loved the continued world building and more of the Japanese legends and culture. I thought Julie did a great job at recapping the events in the first book in this one, so it was really easy to jump back into the story and not have to worry too much about forgetting certain things that happened in the first book.

I thought Soul of the Sword was an amazing sequel and I had so much fun reading it. It was such an adventure with so many things happening. Once again filled with so much tickery and magic. I loved how Yumeko grew throughout the journey and learned to better use her Kitsune magic. She did some pretty amazing things with her illusions and magic. I was living for the interactions between Okame and Daisuke. I am dying to see what happens with these two in the next book. You get to be in the head of Hakaimono, which is really cool and while I didn’t like him too much…I also kind of did? You’re also introduced to more key players and more creepy creatures.

Overall, I really loved Soul of the Sword and I was really happy with everything that happened. I thought it was a lot darker than Shadow of the Fox, which I loved. It’s a lot more gory and violent than the first book as well, but honestly I love that kind of stuff. The twist toward the end was so amazing and I didn’t see it coming. I am actually really excited about it though, because it’s going to make book three even more interesting. I can’t wait! The wait for it is going to be so hard. I highly recommend reading Shadow of the Fox, because Soul of the Sword was such a great book and needs to be read! If you’ve already read the first book…what are you waiting for? Pick up the sequel ASAP! 😛

In case you missed it;
Book Haul|| June.
Wrap Up|| June.
Top Ten Tuesday|| Summer TBR.

I hope you have a great day!

ashleyblack