Tag: book lover

June Wrap-Up

Hello Readers! another month has passed & with it comes my typically-late-thus-making-it-right-on-time? Wrap Up smh haha! this time around I excluded my haul simply because Bookcon happened & in one day I managed to haul way too many books & that’s not including my regular books bought for the month. Also, I posted my Bookcon haul last year & that was all fine and well because I was new in the blogosphere & was very excited to share my 1st bookish event. Whelp, 1 year later I was still very excited to attend Bookcon but this time around I’d like to think I was a bit more wiser & aware of all the drama surrounding ARCS. Not to mention that book hauls from these types of conventions tend to generate negative attention & I’m not here for that. So I decided to skip the haul & just speak about the event itself…

The best part of the event was seeing my twin aka bff Gretchen who most of you know has a blog called ChicNerdReads (pictured below in the glasses next to me). My hubby also accompanied us which is always fun since he’s also a reader & I’m his source for new book recommendations. The event seemed to have been dominated by Penguin with giveaways every hour on the hour as well as author signings. This made for extremely long lines, stampedes, and overall madness tbh…

I am honestly surprised to have acquired the ARCS that I did but it wasn’t easy & took a bit of prioritizing. Gretchen & I pre-gamed for this event mapping out which books we were aiming for & I do believe this actually helped as much as we thought otherwise during the event. Overall, the event & it’s lack of organization was terrible for our anxiety. The positive however is that we got to spend the whole weekend surrounded by BOOKS & talking about BOOKS and that’s always a fun time no matter what. Also! we met another Puerto-Rican Bookworm who had flown in for the event. She told us about getting caught in the stampede for Warcross on Saturday & how after hours of standing in line she walked away w/out the ARC. My hubby gave up his ARC to Warcross which we had at home. We shipped it to PR & when it arrived she sent me a very happy text which made my week 🙂

Me (left side) & Gretchen (right side)

Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali ★★★★★ (5 Stars)

Song of the Current by Sarah Tolcser ★★★★ (4 Stars)

Bad Romance by Heather Demetrios ★★★★ (4 Stars)

Bearly a Lady (Novella) by Cassandra Khaw ★★★★1/2 (4.5 Stars)

Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue ★★★★★ 5 Stars

Our Dark Duet (Monsters of Verity #2) *Conclusion to duology w/spoilers for This Savage Song ★★★★★ 5 Stars 

Although for the month of June I only read YA, each book was so different from each other that it honestly felt like I read diversely. I read some books with hard topics like Saints and Misfits and Bad Romance which led me to discovering two amazing authors. I had a ton of fun reading The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice & Virtue and Bearly a Lady (novella) with many laughs. Started a new Diverse Fantasy with Song of the Current & can’t wait to read the sequel to this du-ology. I also read the conclusion to monsters of Verity…Our Dark Duet broke me yet it is the most satisfying conclusion I’ve ever read. Yea, I was a bit all over the place but my reading reflected my life as a whole in June haha!

My most highly anticipated flick for 2017 DID NOT DISAPPOINT! Wonder Woman had me engaged from the opening scene. I have always been fascinated by the Amazons & Wonder Woman has always been a icon for me…getting her back story on the big screen felt like the best earliest Christmas gift I never thought to ask for LOL! little Diana was lively & eager to learn the ways of the Amazons & seeing her natural born instincts play out gave her a new sparkle in my eyes. My only regret is not reviewing this movie on the blog when my feels were fresh haha. I loved the entire cast, humor, fight scenes, and plot as a whole! my interest in The Justice League sky rocketed after leaving the theater googling for any bit of early news hinting at a sequel to Wonder Woman. For those who didn’t think Wonder Woman deserved her own solo debut…Gal Gadot sure showed you *5 Stars* 😉

My second date night with the hubby (we got lucky in June with sitting) was great & all but Transformers The Last Night was lackluster. I was really rooting for this one more for the hubby’s enjoyment than mine really. I just went to see Markie Mark & Bumble Bee but the irony in that I tell ya smh! So, as a lover of all Mark Whalberg’s movies I can go ahead and say this…In my opinion, he should’ve never accepted the lead role no matter how badly he wanted to realize his childhood dream of playing with life sized Transformers #jussayin. Love me some Markie Mark but that role really needs to go to another younger guy (not shia Labeouf, that ship has sailed). I’m hoping that the history they introduced means we are due a new main character *fingers crossed* I found myself bored & ended up rating this movie *3.5 stars* 😦

Happy reading in July Bookworms!!! Hope you all had a wonderful June month & are enjoying your summer reads. Read or watched any of these? drop a comment down below <3’s!

Waiting On Wednesday

Devils & Thieves (Devils & Thieves #1) by Jennifer Rush

Publisher: Little Brown Books

Publication Date: October 3rd, 2017

Genre: YA Urban Fantasy

Pages: 336 pages

*click on cover for Goodreads

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at @Breaking The Spine, which spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

 thrilling new urban fantasy filled with magic and motorcycle gangs from Jennifer Rush, author of the Altered saga–perfect for fans of Beautiful Creatures.

Eighteen-year-old Jemmie Carmichael has grown up surrounded by magic in the quiet town of Hawthorne, New York. In her world, magic users are called “kindled,” and Jemmie would count herself among them if only she could cast a simple spell without completely falling apart. It doesn’t help that she was also recently snubbed by Crowe, the dangerous and enigmatic leader of the Black Devils kindled motorcycle gang and the unofficial head of their turf.

When the entire kindled community rolls into Hawthorne for an annual festival, a rumor begins spreading that someone is practicing forbidden magic. Then people start to go missing. With threats closing in from every side, no one can be trusted. Jemmie and Crowe will have to put aside their tumultuous history to find their loved ones, and the only thing that might save them is the very flaw that keeps Jemmie from fully harnessing her magic. For all her years of feeling useless, Jemmie may just be the most powerful kindled of all.

No idea how Devils & Thieves managed to slip from under my radar but it did & so now I sit and wait til release day lol. A motorcycle crew that just so happen to wield magic? YES PLEASE! Set in a quiet New York town? aka my home city? YES PLEASE! threat of forbidden magic aka black magic? MHMMM, I’LL TAKE THAT! a main protagonist with untapped/unknown magic of her own? MY KRYPTONITE! As a big fan of the AMC tv series Sons of Anarchy, this book is practically shouting for me to read it & I shall heed the call 😉

Honestly, they had me at “thrilling new urban fantasy filled with magic and motorcycle gangs”  I’m hoping to love this 1st installment because I’ve been missing Sons of Anarchy something bad & the thought of those guys having magic at their disposal is a scary yet humorous thought. I’d welcome this new series (if I enjoy the 1st book) to fill the void SOA left in my little ❤ 😉

Any readers out there who have read Jennifer’s Altered series? I’m curious about her writing style & very excited to read Devils & Thieves *insert excited emoji*

June Owlcrate & Book of the Month Unboxing

Hello Readers! I come to you with a very late June Unboxing but I didn’t want to post any spoilers for those who receive Owlcrate. Last month I actually skipped the unboxing…more like it slipped my mind…but umm yea I actually like doing these since It gives me an opportunity to hear what you all got in your BOTM boxes & your thoughts on the Owlcrate selection. Some months are better than others, but I’ll admit that I’ve been pretty happy with the last few mths. The April & May Owlcrate boxes (The Upside of Unrequited & Eliza and her Monsters) were a nice surprise because I was lucky enough to have read galleys of these books & LOVED them to pieces. On to my unboxing…

Please click on photo if you’d like to follow my Bookstagram for more bookish snaps 😉

I had seen Sandcastle Empire make its rounds on all of the bookish platforms & immediately added it to my TBR. I heard that it had LOST vibes & there was a time where I lost my head over that show & binged before binge was even a thing! let’s not talk about the last season cuz I skipped it once it started spiraling out of control. I digress…my point is that I haven’t found anything quite like the show & Sandcastle instantly appealed to me for that small comparison lol *fingers crossed*

I’m also VERY pleased to see New World Rising in my box since I have been following Ben over at OfTomes publishing & have added every single book of theirs to my TBR. Not only are the covers all S-T-U-N-N-I-N-G but the synopsis are all sOoO Good! lol *not that fancy with words* The author is a sweetheart and I will be reading & reviewing New World Rising here on LairOfBooks 😉

Please click on photo if you’d like to follow my Bookstagram for more bookish snaps 😉

A bit of a confession here, I have been TERRIBLE in regards to reading the books I’ve been selecting every month for Book Of The Month *sobs* yet I can’t seem to stop picking a book each month *addicted to books* so this month I decided to add a book I already read & loved as my add-on. I was lucky enough to read a galley of A Million Junes & included it in my Top Ten Tuesday as one of my favorites for 2017 so far (see here). Loved it to pieces, it brought back many memories of my own dad & already owns a special place in my <3. The other book I selected had to be the quickest selection I’ve ever made LOL! I mean, we’ve all seen pictures of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo ALL over social media. The books is GORGEOUS & screams HOLLYWOOD! This will probably be the book to break me out of the bad habit, it screams summer read & so I shall read this summer 😉

What are your thoughts on the June Owlcrate box? Have any of my bookish peeps read The Sandcastle Empire? For my fellow BOTM subscribers, what were your selections for June? also, if you subscribe to any other boxes & have a unboxing, drop your links down below <3’s!

Mini Review: Bearly a Lady by Cassandra Khaw

Bearly a Lady by Cassandra Khaw

Publisher: Book Smugglers Publishing

Publication Date: May 26th, 2017

Genre: Paranormal/Rom-Com

Format: Novella/eGalley

Rating: ★★★★1/2 (4.5 Stars)

Zelda McCartney (almost) has it all: a badass superhero name, an awesome vampire roommate, and her dream job at a glossy fashion magazine (plus the clothes to prove it). The only issue in Zelda’s almost-perfect life? The uncontrollable need to transform into a werebear once a month. Just when Zelda thinks things are finally turning around and she lands a hot date with Jake, her high school crush and alpha werewolf of Kensington, life gets complicated. Zelda receives an unusual work assignment from her fashionable boss: play bodyguard for devilishly charming fae nobleman Benedict (incidentally, her boss’s nephew) for two weeks. Will Zelda be able to resist his charms long enough to get together with Jake? And will she want to? Because true love might have been waiting around the corner the whole time in the form of Janine, Zelda’s long-time crush and colleague. What’s a werebear to do?

It’s been a long time since I’ve picked up a rom-com, the last one probably being Bridget Jones Diary…yea I know, it’s been a while. I also had a Sophie Kinsella phase in which I binged all of her pastel colored books like a kid in a candy story with no regrets. When I first heard the title Bearly a Lady on Twitter, I was immediately curious and the play on words made me smirk lol. After contacting the author Cassandra Khaw & generously receiving a galley that same night, I was excited to dive right in.

I instantly fell in love with Zelda our female protagonist, plus sized bisexual fashionista Werebear. Zelda transforms into a bear once a month & has been a bit down and out about its effect on her dating life or lack thereof. She’s tried her luck with dating co-workers but that never yielded anything substantial. Her vampire roommate Zora is truly tired of seeing her mope around their London apartment watching Netflix & decides to intervene. We get to follow Zelda as she prepares for a date with another shapeshifter who is Calvin Klein ad material. We also get to see her navigate complicated feelings for a female co-worker who she may or may not still have a crush on.

The body positivity & Bisexual representation in Bearly a Lady left my heart wanting more. Diversity in a paranormal rom-com?!?! YES PLEASE! my only complaint is that it’s a novella & I won’t get to follow Zelda as she slays life. There was talk of a Supernatural government that piqued my interest as well seeing as we are introduced to other species of shape shifters. Devil Wears Prada meets Bridget Jones Diary sprinkled with a bit of para-normalcy to make it more interesting & outrageously funny. Would love to see Zelda get her own series 😉

Do any of you lovely readers have diverse rom-coms to recommend? I’d love some reccs, Bearly a Lady has left a void *sobs*  😉

ARC Review: Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali

Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali

Publisher: Salaam Reads/Simon & Schuster

Publication Date: June 13th, 2017

Genre: YA Contemp/Diverse

Pages: 352 pages

Format: eGalley

Rating: ★★★★★ (5 Stars)

*Trigger warning: attempted rape

*HUGE thanks to Salaam Reads/Simon & Schuster, Netgalley & S.K. Ali for the eGalley copy of Saints and Misfits

Saints and Misfits is an unforgettable debut novel that feels like a modern day My So-Called Life…starring a Muslim teen.

How much can you tell about a person just by looking at them?

Janna Yusuf knows a lot of people can’t figure out what to make of her…an Arab Indian-American hijabi teenager who is a Flannery O’Connor obsessed book nerd, aspiring photographer, and sometime graphic novelist is not exactly easy to put into a box.

And Janna suddenly finds herself caring what people think. Or at least what a certain boy named Jeremy thinks. Not that she would ever date him—Muslim girls don’t date. Or they shouldn’t date. Or won’t? Janna is still working all this out.

While her heart might be leading her in one direction, her mind is spinning in others. She is trying to decide what kind of person she wants to be, and what it means to be a saint, a misfit, or a monster. Except she knows a monster…one who happens to be parading around as a saint…Will she be the one to call him out on it? What will people in her tight knit Muslim community think of her then?

Before I get into my review of this wonderful gemstone of a book, I’d like to include two #Ownvoices reviews I found on Goodreads. Both Leenahreads (Muslim & Arab) & Hadeer (Muslim & Egyptian) give a perspective that is much needed in the community & appreciated by this bookworm. Also, today is the release day for Saints and Misfits & on behalf of LairOfBooks, I’d like to wish S.K. Ali a very happy book birthday!!!

In Saints and Misfits we follow our main protagonist Janna Yusuf who is a Arab Indian-American hijabi teen navigating life within her Muslim community & High School. Janna finds herself having a major crush on Jeremy, a Irish student in her school that is non-Muslim. With these feelings come a slew of questions we get to see Janna find answers to along the way. We are introduced to Janna’s family & friends as well as the community she is very involved with. The daughter of divorced/co-parenting parents, living with her mom & slightly older brother…Janna & her family are already viewed as different within their own community. Having a crush on a non-Muslim boy complicates things for her & to add to her plate, she’s harboring a hurtful secret. Janna doesn’t know whether she will be believed if she speaks up since the secret is about a respected individual in the community. This is a story about self reflection, family, community, identity, friendship, strength, faith & courage to face your fears.

Ever come across a fictional character who has qualities you yourself wish you possessed? such is the case with my admiration of Janna Yusuf. She is by no means perfect but strong willed and firm in her beliefs. Like any teenager she deals with High School crushes and social pressures both on & offline. Seeing her navigate through certain situations gives you a feeling that you’re reading one confident character. For the most part Janna is confident which was refreshing, I loved seeing her take pride in wearing Hijab. Janna’s sarcasm proved to be one of my fave qualities since witty characters always win me over. Perhaps my most favorite trait of Jannas is her interactions with those around her & how empathetic she is even when she doesn’t want to be lol. I also loved the relationship between Janna and her slightly older brother Muhammad. Throughout the book Janna’s older brother is courting another Muslim girl his age & he has asked Janna to supervise their dates. Janna does so even though she’s not a fan of his romantic interest & in doing so we get to see them spend more time around one another. It was nice seeing Muhammad be so attentive to Janna that he was able to pick up on there being something wrong. His genuine concern for his little sister made me wish he was my big brother *sobs*

Janna also has a non-Muslim bestie  who I’m just going to go ahead and say it….Tats = Ride or Die Bestie for life! Tats is such an amazing friend to Janna & respectful of her beliefs even when social pressure got in the mix. Of course they had moments where Tats didn’t understand fully but it wasn’t for lack of trying. Ultimately Tats respected Janna & had her back, love seeing positive f/f relationships. Lastly, one of my fave characters was Mr. Ram who lived in Janna’s complex and who Janna would take to/from a community center for the elderly. Mr. Ram has a passion for poetry & for encouraging Janna to pursue what makes her happy whether it’s sketching or photography. He imparted so much wisdom to Janna & just loved life so much his good spirits were contagious right through the page. There were many other characters in this book but I fear that going into them all would take away from the fun it was getting to know them. Overall, an amazing cast of characters!

I have so much love for this book I don’t even know where to start honestly! as a diverse blogger, I know the importance of seeing these books on our shelves. Most recently I read a Latinx YA book that left me smiling from ear to ear because I saw myself on the pages. In reading reviews such as the ones I linked in the intro to my review, I get a sense that this will be the case for many Muslim, Hijab, Arab, Indian-American readers. I can honestly say this book gave me so much more than a few hours of enjoyment, the lessons I took away are of much higher value. S.K. Ali organically wove bits & pieces of culture, religion, and faith throughout Saints and Misfits making for a rich reading experience. Our main protagonist is holding onto a hurtful secret & Ali gives us a realistic view of the situation. What it really would be like to expose a religious leader & the ugly truth of it all. A strong message is delivered ,many will stand against you but also, many will stand WITH you. The strong theme of community at the core plays an integral role in Janna’s life & I believe Ali captured that well with Saints and Misfits. I 100% reccomend this book to any & all, I just can’t wait to read more from S.K. Ali! 🙂

Will you be picking up Saints and Misfits today? If you’ve already read & reviewed, please drop a link & I’ll most def swing by your corner of the interwebz 😉

Waiting On Wednesday

Invictus by Ryan Graudin

Publisher: Little Brown Books

Publication Date: September 26th, 2017

Genre: YA Sci-Fi/Time Travel

Pages: 464 pages

*click on cover for Goodreads

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at @Breaking The Spine, which spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

 

Time flies when you’re plundering history.

Farway Gaius McCarthy was born outside of time. The son of a time-traveling Recorder from 2354 AD and a gladiator living in Rome in 95 AD, Far’s birth defies the laws of nature. Exploring history himself is all he’s ever wanted, and after failing his final time-traveling exam, Far takes a position commanding a ship with a crew of his friends as part of a black market operation to steal valuables from the past. 
But during a heist on the sinking Titanic, Far meets a mysterious girl who always seems to be one step ahead of him. Armed with knowledge that will bring Far’s very existence into question, she will lead Far and his team on a race through time to discover a frightening truth: History is not as steady as it seems.

In this heart-stopping adventure, Ryan Graudin has created a fast-paced world that defies time and space.

I legit hadn’t heard of Invictus up until a few nights before I attended Bookcon this past weekend. Turns out that there was an ARC drop & I missed it which was sucky but September is right around the corner & before you know it *grabby hands* haha! I also haven’t done a Waiting on Wednesday for quite some time because I’ve been very blessed to already have copies of my most highly anticipated books of the year & for that I am very thankful. Until Invictus came along, caught my eye, made me trip over my own feet with outstretched hands LMAO! Time Travel is my drug of choice folks, I can’t resist a good one & this one has EPIC stamped all over its cover. I already have questions just off the blurb…like how in the world is it even possible for Far to exist with parents who each exist in different time periods?!?!? I’m SUPER intrigued by the parents origins. Next, there’s mention of the Titanic & a heist….So, Far seems like the most innnneresting fictional character I haven’t met yet. Being that this book is close to 500 pages, I’m also hoping for a kick a** crew of misfits that I’ll inevitably grow attached to. Yup, it’s definitely a haul worthy book for me in September 😉

Sci-Fi (yes!). Time Travel (Yes!). Heists (Yes!). Titanic (Yes!)…*heart eyes*

Is Invictus on your radar for September? Already snag a copy? don’t tell me! *side eye* Haha! 😉

Review: The Hundredth Queen by Emily R. King

The Hundredth Queen by Emily R. King

Publisher: Skyscape

Publication Date: June 1st, 2017

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pages: 300 pages

Format: eGalley

Rating: ★★★★ (4 Stars)

*HUGE thanks to Skyscape, Netgalley & Emily R. King for the eGalley copy of The Hundredth Queen

As an orphan ward of the Sisterhood, eighteen-year-old Kalinda is destined for nothing more than a life of seclusion and prayer. Plagued by fevers, she’s an unlikely candidate for even a servant’s position, let alone a courtesan or wife. Her sole dream is to continue living in peace in the Sisterhood’s mountain temple.

But a visit from the tyrant Rajah Tarek disrupts Kalinda’s life. Within hours, she is ripped from the comfort of her home, set on a desert trek, and ordered to fight for her place among the rajah’s ninety-nine wives and numerous courtesans. Her only solace comes in the company of her guard, the stoic but kind Captain Deven Naik.

Faced with the danger of a tournament to the death—and her growing affection for Deven—Kalinda has only one hope for escape, and it lies in an arcane, forbidden power buried within her.

In Emily R. King’s thrilling fantasy debut, an orphan girl blossoms into a warrior, summoning courage and confidence in her fearless quest to upend tradition, overthrow an empire, and reclaim her life as her own.

The Hundredth Queen centers around Kalinda who was really trying to live a low key life in the Sisterhood’s mountain temple where she’s lived all her life as a orphan. Prone to strange fevers, Kalinda isn’t able to train as the other sisters do in the ways of the sister warrior Ki. Spending her days sketching or in the infirmary is what she is used to. Due to her sickness, she isn’t the strongest or what they’d consider the prettiest either. A moment of righteousness shines a spotlight on her placing her on Rajah Tarek’s path. She is selected as his One Hundredth Queen & yanked out of the one true home she ever knew. Taken to the palace as a wife is considered by many in the Sisterhood to be a privilege and a honor. Rajah Tarek has wives & consorts all living in the palace separated by position (wives vs. consorts) but the One Hundredth Queen holds a very special place. See, the One hundredth has the luck of being open to challenges. Any consort may challenge Kalinda for her position in the tournaments held whenever the Rajah brings a new wife to the palace. The difference here is that since she will be his last wife, it will also be the tournament to end all tournaments. This would be the only opportunity for any of the courtesans to knock Kalinda off her highly esteemed position. From the moment she enters the palace walls, all eyes are on her and she is sized up for some as competition and others a threat. Kalinda may not be the strongest however, deep within her she holds a power that is old and unknown to her. The underlying emphasis placed on friendships between women was one of my favorite aspects of this book. The Hundredth Queen is filled with lush world building, action, cunning, betrayal, and plenty of curve balls you won’t see coming.

The characters in The Hundredth Queen are primarily female, we first get introduced to Kalinda’s best friend Jaya. the friendship between these two was more akin to blood sisters than friends & it was refreshing to see them look out for one another. Once selected as the one hundredth, she is escorted by the Rajah’s captain of the guards, Deven. This character serves as a love interest to Kalinda & I must admit he felt a bit lack luster to me lol but to others he may be swoon worthy 😉 he did manage to grow on me but that was more towards the final chapters. Once in the palace where the Rajah’s wives & courtesans live, we meet some very interesting women to keep an eye on. Starting with the one to fear the most. the Rajah’s Kindred aka 1st wife. She is not playing nice & throughout the book Kalinda must watch her back at all times. The Rajah himself is a worm! baha! I knew I wouldn’t like him the minute I read the Goodreads blurb. The man is a polygamist who has some deep rooted issues with women & there were plenty of times I wanted to square off with him lol. I was left very intrigued by Deven’s brother who shares the same powers as Kalinda (shhhh secret!) and others like them introduced towards the end. I’m hoping to get to know them better in the next book, also Deven’s brother was way more alluring to me jeje.  The characters are not the most fleshed out you’ll come across in Fantasy seeing as this one is more plot driven, but they do let you get to know them just enough to want to know more.

Overall The Hundredth Queen is filled with the magic and fantasy it promises in the blurb. I did wonder when I started reading whether this was truly YA considering it’s a story about a polygamist tyrant. Although there weren’t any sexual scenes depicted, it was implied given the nature of this book. I was honestly swept away by the story itself that my loathing for the Rajah was ever present but it didn’t prove to be an obstacle in my enjoyment of this story. I do wish Kalinda as a character was a bit more fleshed out but there’s plenty of implied growth for the sequel that I’m looking forward to. In regards to the world building, I am aware that there’s some buzz on the author’s inspiration. King does preface the book with a Author’s Note that briefly states the following:

“The religion of the Tarachand Empire, the Parijana faith, is a fictional variation derived from Sumerian deities. However the Parjina faith and the Tarachand Empire do not directly represent any specific historical time period, creed , or union. Any other religious or governmental similarities are coincidental and do not depict actual people or events”

To be honest, it didn’t seem like any one particular culture/religion rather bits and pieces gathered to create this fantasy setting. I’ve made my rounds reading reviews & looking out for solid issues found within this book & I have not yet found one. On the contrary, I have seen readers who are cautious & insightful when reading/reviewing diverse books, give The Hundredth Queen the green light of approval. I may be wrong, and if there are any solid reviews out there providing insight, I’ll def read them. For now, I’ll sign off by saying that I look forward to Kalinda’s continued adventures in the sequel The Fire Queen 😉

Have you read The Hundredth Queen? Isn’t the cover gorgeous?!? have you seen the cover for the sequel?!?! *heart eyes*

 

Review: Eliza And Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia

Eliza And Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia

Publisher: HarperCollins

Publication Date: May 30th, 2017

Genre: YA Contemporary

Pages: 400 pages

Format: eGalley

Rating: ★★★★★ (5 Stars)

*Trigger Warning: Suicide & attempted suicide

*HUGE thanks to HarperCollins, Edelweiss & Francesca Zappia for the ARC copy of Eliza And Her Monsters.

Eighteen-year-old Eliza Mirk is the anonymous creator of Monstrous Sea, a wildly popular webcomic, but when a new boy at school tempts her to live a life offline, everything she’s worked for begins to crumble.

In the real world, Eliza Mirk is shy, weird, smart, and friendless. Online, Eliza is LadyConstellation, the anonymous creator of a popular webcomic called Monstrous Sea. With millions of followers and fans throughout the world, Eliza’s persona is popular. Eliza can’t imagine enjoying the real world as much as she loves her digital community. Then Wallace Warland transfers to her school, and Eliza begins to wonder if a life offline might be worthwhile. But when Eliza’s secret is accidentally shared with the world, everything she’s built—her story, her relationship with Wallace, and even her sanity—begins to fall apart. With pages from Eliza’s webcomic, as well as screenshots from Eliza’s online forums, this uniquely formatted book will appeal to fans of Noelle Stevenson’s Nimona and Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl.

 Oh this book! *fangirl moment* I can’t stop thinking about Eliza, Wallace, her monsters, and her online friends! When we first meet Eliza she is chatting online with friends she made through her creation Monstrous Sea, a web comic that has blown up world wide. Max aka Apocalypse_Cow & Emme aka emmersnacks are the only 2 people who know Eliza’s real identity. To the world she’s known as LadyConstellation, to Max & Emme she’s just Eliza aka MirkerLurker (private screen name lol). Her whole life revolves around her webcomic & avoiding outdoor activities with her mom, dad, and younger brothers. In school she’s pretty much a loner with not a single friend on site. That is up until she meets Wallace aka the new guy in school who appears in every sense to be a jock if we’re talking physical build alone. Wallace is tall with broad shoulders & prefers to sit alone with a notebook & pen. An odd encounter (no spoilers here jeje) forces Eliza to cross paths with Wallace. What they don’t know is that they actually share a lot in common & both harbor secret identities 😉

We get to see Eliza’s Monstrous Sea web-comic in bits & pieces sprinkled throughout the book. Eliza takes Monstrous Sea & her fan-base very seriously, making sure to post every Friday at the same hour. She’s an amazing illustrator & spends days working on each page she posts weekly, leaving little to no time for anything else. Monstrous Sea isn’t just some silly pass time for Eliza & she does make a profit from the MS Merch she sells online with the help of Max & Emme. When her parents start trying to get her to come out of the house more & be more active, she retreats further away. It is inevitable for her online life to clash with with her offline life (won’t say “real life” cuz Eliza doesn’t like this phrase lol). Once both collide, we begin to see what issues lie beneath…

Eliza is a introvert who finds it easier to make friends & connect with people over the web which isn’t as rare as one would think nowadays. She has social anxiety holding her back from making friends in school or attending social events. Online, she comes alive & I just loved her chat DM’s with Max & Emme. They may have never met but they exchange care packages & know about each others personal lives as well. I’ve made these types of friendships & can honestly say they have turned into amazing ones offline as well. I was able to connect with Eliza’s online comfort and social anxiety but I also gained some outsider perspective from her family. Although in spurts, we do get to know Emme & Max who I LOVED! they help Eliza keep Monstrous Sea operating from banning trolls to site maintenance & her online store. They also genuinely care about Eliza & I kept wishing they lived closer to her. Wallace! OMG *heart eyes* a big guy with a big heart who only managed to upset me once in this book haha! Loved that he didn’t fit the stereotypical mode set for Jocks, Zappia def gives you a vivid image of Wallace. He also has a past & getting to know his side added the depth we were given with Eliza. We get to meet the families for both Eliza & Wallace which gave us a better understanding of underlying issues. I also took away a few lessons from Eliza’s parents & the importance of keeping up with social media when you have kids. Overall these characters were well fleshed out down to Eliza’s fictional monsters 😉

 This is my 1st Zappia book & at first I did not make the connection that she is the author behind Made You Up, a book that has been recommended to me by many close bookworm buddies. A book that i’m ashamed to say has sat on my e-book shelf for far too long. I am more than eager to get to it now that I’ve read & loved Eliza and Her Monsters. The writing style used wasn’t your conventional straight text, instead we get chat DM’s & pieces of her web-comic sprinkled throughout. I felt like I was getting a 2 for 1 deal because I found myself thoroughly enjoying Eliza’s Monstrous Sea. I would LOVE to see more of it in a spin-off or anything really just MORE lol. On a more serious note from what I’ve read about Made You Up, this isn’t Zappia’s first YA book tackling mental illness. In this book we see social anxiety take a toll on Eliza & it all felt very real to me as I was reading her experiencing a panic attack. As someone who deals with anxiety & panic attacks myself, seeing mental health representation in books gives me a much deeper appreciation for authors like Zappia. I hope she continues to write about these topics as I’m sure they’re helping many others. I highly recommend this read to all of my bookworm bloggers/readers since i’m sure we all have a little Eliza in all of us 😉

 Monstrous Sea art by Francesca Zappia found on Monstrous Sea Tumblr

Have any of my bloggers/readers read Eliza And Her Monsters? or perhaps, plan to? also, any fun fandoms you follow? 🙂

WWW Wednesday

WWW Wednesday is a meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On a World of Words and to participate all you have to do is answer the three W’s listed below. Once you’ve posted your WWW, drop a link to your post in Sam’s comments <3’s!

The questions are:
1. What are you currently reading?
2. What did you recently finish reading?
3. What do you think you’ll read next?

I am currently at the 50% mark in The Hundredth Queen by Emily R. King & enjoying Kalinda’s strong character. However, I will say that this one reads more like an adult Fantasy than YA. Which to me makes sense given the nature of this story. You have a tyrant who is in search of his 100th wife; a tyrant who also keeps courtesans. Then we have Kalinda who doesn’t really fit the mold of the women the Tyrant has “claimed” but somehow manages to be chosen as the 100th Rani aka wife which puts her in a high position = only to that of his 1st wife. With a target on her back, Kalinda has to fight for her thrown as per tradition, one that she never wanted in the 1st place. My main interest is Kalinda & her forbidden power as well as the others like her outside the palace walls that share her powers. We shall see how I feel about this one soon…

I recently finished reading Eliza And Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia & I can’t stop thinking about it! so good! I thought it would be a cute story to read in prep for the Summer days but it turned out to be so much more than that. I was lucky to be approved for an eGalley but when I saw it arrive in my Owlcrate box this month I couldn’t stop hugging it lol. Full review to post tomorrow Thursday. Before that I read New Boy by Tracy Chevalier (review here) which is part of the Shakespeare Hogarth collection. New boy was short but powerful. A inside look to the effects of racism passed down to children. The setting is a playground in a all white school during the 70’s Nixon administration. This book rattled me & left me deep in thought.

Gahhhhh! 2 reads I am so excited to get to & thankful to have been approved for. Saints and Misfits is one that I was highly anticipating ever since I laid eyes on the cover & S.K. Ali is just an overall sweetheart who is very interactive & reachable to her readers (LOVE THAT!). I recently received a Owlcrate box that had a promo card for Song Of The Current (Song Of The Current #1) which led me straight to Goodreads. I love my fantasy, it’s what I read & review most on LairOfBooks so it came as no surprise that a river God, pirates, and magic would call my name. Really looking forward to these two 😉

What are you all currently reading? planning to read next? any good ones? & if you’re reading any of the ones I mentioned, let me know down in the comments what your 1st impressions were <3’s!

1 Year Q&A: Answers Part 2

In celebration of my 1 year blogoversary, I asked readers & fellow bloggers to take part in my Q&A. The turnout left my heart smiling but it also left me having to split my answers post into 2 parts (part I here). This is the 2nd round of answers, I had a ton of fun answering these & hope you enjoy the read…

Kim @ByHookOrByBook

 Q: What fictional character most resembles you?

A: I’ve been called Hermione Granger too many times

Q: Is there a setting in a book/series that left you longing to live there?

A: Ok I won’t say Hogwarts cuz that’s just obvious lol so I’ll go with The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. I’d love to be wherever Le Cirque des Rêves arrives & wear my red scarf every night 😉

Q: If you were shipwrecked on an island and could only have one book, which would it be?

A: Another blogger asked If I only had one book to re-read, what would it be? I’d still say that in my shipwrecked situation that I’d find pleasure in Harry Potter & The Goblet of Fire. Even if the Triwizard tournament would probably set my nerves on a frenzy being stuck on said island haha!

Raven @DreamyAddictions

Q: If you were given a chance to live in a book for a day which book would you choose? 

A: Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray…The world building in that book! I’m not even sure if I could choose just one world to live in from this book, they’re all interesting.

Q:Who inspires you the most? 

A: My 2 tiny humans, they remind me to stay young & fun 😉

Q: Name three of your top favorite fantasy books?

A: Gah! just 3?!?! Ok here goes…Red Rising by Pierce Brown, Red Sister by Mark Lawrence, & of course Harry Friggin Potter! haha!

Stephanie @TeacherOfYa 

Q: what author are you most excited to meet? 

A: I believe Stephanie asked this question as it pertained to Bookcon lol, & this would hands down be Adam Silvera & he asked me on Twitter if I was going & I said yes so *fingers crossed*

Q: what’s the best book you’ve read this year so far?

A: OhMYGosh! so hard with so many great ones but it would have to be The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Shanah @Bionic Book Worm

 Q: if you could have one fictional character as a best friend, who would it be and why?

A: Molly Peskin-Suso from The Upside of Unrequited because I could relate to her experience as it was similar to mine in High School. I can totally see myself on Pinterest boards with her & working on DIY projects in her kitchen lol.

Analee @ Book Snacks

 Q: If you could meet one fictional character who would it be?

A: Nina Zenik from Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo in hopes she brings waffles <3!

Q: Favourite underrated book?

A: A Million Junes by Emily Henry

Q: Favourite/least favourite part of blogging?

A: this is more about me…when I am backlogged in comments it can be tough getting up to date. A 3 day break can lead to spending a whole day catching up which means no blog hopping that day *sobs*

Reads & Reels 

Q: Are you happy with the direction your blog has taken or did you expect a certain outcome at the 1-year mark?

A: Yes I am happy with where I’m at. I’ve pretty much got a handle on what I like/dislike to read & that was big for me. My blog is big on reviews but i’m pushing myself to include discussion posts & more of my other loves like movies & TV shows…further down the road maybe venture into creating my own meme 😉

Lia @LostInAStory

 Q: Which character would you bring to life, even if that meant they had to leave their fictional world and would have to stay in ours forever?

A: Dobby (Harry Potter)…that death scene broke me & yea I’d bring him back in a heartbeat!

Darnell 

Q: Which book was on your TBR the longest? Which book made you rage DNF?

A: Currently still on my TBR & on my shelf unread is Brandon Sanderson’s The Way Of Kings..It’s HUGE! intimidates the heck outta me lol. I don’t really DNF (2 to date) but Roseblood by A.G. Howard really pissed me off with all it’s external beauty it was the biggest let down.

Sam @SpinesInALine

 Q: What was your favourite cover, released or not?

A: Laini Taylor’s Strange the Dreamer *sigh* that beauty that is that book! *heart eyes*

Kee the Reader

 Q: Do you have a favourite book dragon?

A: Kee, I’m going to admit I don’t know what a Book Dragon is *hides* please help! LOL

Rachel @Life of a Female Bibliophile, Megan @BookBirds, Larkin @WonderFilledReads

 Q: What diverse/or just general books would you recommend to read that are often underrated or that haven’t been featured too much in the blogging community

A: American Street by Ibi Zoboi, You’re Welcome Universe, by Whitney Gardner, and When the Moon Was Ours by Anna Marie McLemore

Jackie B @ Death by Tsundoku

Q: What are your favorite pizza toppings?

A: philly cheese steak pizza is dabomb.com! so everything that comes with it haha!

Q: What is the last book your DNF’d?

A: Roseblood by A.G Howard *sigh* BIG let down…

Q: What is your favorite piece of book swag?

A: Generally speaking I’m a sucker for all of the bookish themed candles but if we’re talking about one that I own…my red Caraval tote bag <3!

Q: What is your favorite aspect of blogging?

A: The readers I’ve met along the way. Those who love to read & or blog have given me a a home away from home. My hubby is a reader & for a long time he was the only person I could talk to about books. Now, there are so many of you out there in same/different time zones always up for a good book chat…it’s the best!

Q: If you had one completely useless superpower, what would it be?

A: The ability to have my home cleaned w/out moving a muscle…dream come true!

Amanda @Cover2CoverMom

Q: As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A: This is going to sound super boring but honestly isn’t surprising lol…a English teacher. I thought it was super cool that there was a job where one could read books & talk about them in class. Then I grew up & realized you don’t have to be a teacher to do this! lol it would totally be editor now 😉

Q: Worst dating experience?

A: BAHHHA! I once went out on a date with a guy to dinner & a movie…the following day he called me…scratch that…his wife called me while his 2 kids ran around in the background -_- & THAT was the end of THAT smh. I changed up my screening process after that & started becoming quite the detective before accepting a full on date lol.

Q: List your phobias…

A: EASY. SPIDERS. THE END! *sobs*

Q: If you had to change your name, what would you change it to?

A: something edgy, so tired of my name being considered old timey lol. I dunno, possibly Blake, Rain, Ruby, or River…suck at this but anything that doesn’t scream OLD. Probably why I go by Lilly at all times 😉

Q: How did you come up with your blog name?

A: Hubby & I always joked about heading back to our Lair after watching a Supernatural episode. The one where Dean & Sam discover the Men of Letters Lair & that became our thing. Then we added book shelves & I started getting more involved with blogging, pretty soon it was LairofBooks 🙂

Q: List the book bloggers that are #goals for you (and you can’t say Cait @PaperFury lol)

A: Bookidote, SheLatitude, and TalesoftheRavenousReader there are many more but these are the 3 that came to mind right away.

KrystiYAandWine

Q: So my question would be, after one full year of doing this, do you have any advice on balancing blogging/SM/and actually READING the books?

A: I’m actually still trying to find what works best for me & honestly I think this is something that you will always stay switching up because LIFE. I have recently moved & it deeply affected my blogging time for a bit until I found what works now. For reading in particular, I do feel that reading whenever possible has helped keep me stay on top of my ARCS. Even if its 15 minutes or just 1 chapter…it’s progress. In regards to blogging, I’ve gotten into the habit of scheduling posts which frees me up to blog hop. My Social media, I bookstagram more than I tweet but that’s something I’m also working on getting better at. TBH, interacting within the blogging community via blog hopping has worked out best for me. A lot of times I will catch up on my backlog of comments & visit each of those bloggers while at it. Still working on it though but if you find the secret 1st, please share! 😉

Thank you to all those who submitted questions & just stuck around following my blog & showing love. I appreciate each & every one of you! ❤ ❤ ❤