Tag: young adult

ARC Review of A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi

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A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi

Publication Date: March 28, 2017.

Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin.

Genres: Fantasy and Young Adult.

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Selling points: Lyrical writing, amazing and fleshed out characters and magical world.

Purchase here: Amazon | The Book Depository

Synopsis: Gauri, the princess of Bharata, has been taken as a prisoner of war by her kingdom’s enemies. Faced with a future of exile and scorn, Gauri has nothing left to lose. Hope unexpectedly comes in the form of Vikram, the cunning prince of a neighboring land and her sworn enemy kingdom. Unsatisfied with becoming a mere puppet king, Vikram offers Gauri a chance to win back her kingdom in exchange for her battle prowess. Together, they’ll have to set aside their differences and team up to win the Tournament of Wishes—a competition held in a mythical city where the Lord of Wealth promises a wish to the victor.

Reaching the tournament is just the beginning. Once they arrive, danger takes on new shapes: poisonous courtesans and mischievous story birds, a feast of fears and twisted fairy revels.

Every which way they turn new trials will test their wit and strength. But what Gauri and Vikram will soon discover is that there’s nothing more dangerous than what they most desire.

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Thank you, St. Martin’s Griffin, for my eARC of A Crown of Wishes. I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review; this does not affect my opinion. Any quotes mentioned below are taken from the ARC and are subject to change upon publication.

A Crown of Wishes is a magical story that follows the Fox Prince and the Jewel of Bharata through a Tournament of Wishes with them seeking and fighting for their dreams and hopes. Roshani Chokshi with her lyrical writing has a way of pulling you in and making you feel every word on the page, every smell, touch, and feeling as if it were your own. If you love fantasy you are guaranteed to love this book, but even if fantasy is not what you usually read I know the writing and the characters in A Crown of Wishes will sweep you away like the wind.

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Zodiac Recommendations #8 Virgo Books

Olivia Chanel8 Comments

Hi everyone, and welcome to my eighth week of Zodiac Book Recommendations. Every week I’m recommending books for one of the zodiac signs, starting with Aquarius and ending with Capricorn, after chronological order. This week I have three book recommendations for Virgo.

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The earth beneath you is the element of Virgo, and it’s the one you should embrace this week with my book recommendations. Like every other zodiac sign, the Virgo have their strengths and weaknesses, and with these qualities in mind I have tried to find suitable book recommendations. I hope that whoever you are, whether you are a Virgo yourself or someone who knows a Virgo, you’ll enjoy these book recommendations.

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For the Zodiac sign Virgo I’m recommending the following books,

The books I’ve chosen are ones that I think celebrate Virgo qualities in one way or another. I hope you’ll love these books, and maybe even find a new favorite. Check out my book recommendations for the other zodiac signs too. Next week I’m doing Libra, see previous recommendations here.

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Zodiac Recommendations #7 Leo Books

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Hi everyone, and welcome to my seventh week of Zodiac Book Recommendations. Every week I’m recommending books for one of the zodiac signs, starting with Aquarius and ending with Capricorn, after chronological order. This week I have three book recommendations for Leo.

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This week we are embracing fire, the element of the Leo, the one that they carry inside of them. Like every other zodiac sign, the Leo have their strengths and weaknesses, and with these qualities in mind I have tried to find suitable book recommendations. I hope that whoever you are, whether you are a Leo yourself or someone who knows a Leo, you’ll enjoy these book recommendations.

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For Leo I’m recommending the books below,

The books I’ve chosen are ones that I think celebrate Leo qualities in one way or another. I hope you’ll love these books, and maybe even find a new favorite. Check out my book recommendations for the other zodiac signs too. Next week I’m doing Virgo, see previous recommendations here.

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Waiting on Wednesday #6 The Gallery of Unfinished Girls by Lauren Karcz

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Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating. This week I’m anticipating The Gallery of Unfinished Girls by Lauren Karcz. This book sounds so good I need summer to come sooner.

28147258The Gallery of Unfinished Girls by Lauren Karcz

Expected publication: July 25, 2017

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, LGBT

Add to your To Be Read shelf on Goodreads.

Pre-order on Amazon or Book Depository.

Synopsis: Mercedes Moreno is an artist. At least, she thinks she could be, even though she hasn’t been able to paint anything worthwhile since her award-winning piece Food Poisoning #1 last year.

Her lack of inspiration might be because her abuela is lying comatose in faraway Puerto Rico after suffering a stroke. Or the fact that Mercedes is in love with her best friend, Victoria, but is too afraid to admit her true feelings.

Despite Mercedes’s creative block, art starts to show up in unexpected ways. A piano appears on her front lawn one morning, and a mysterious new neighbor invites Mercedes to paint with her at the Red Mangrove Estate.

At the Estate, Mercedes can create in ways she never has before. She can share her deepest secrets and feel safe. But Mercedes can’t take anything out of the Estate, including her new-found clarity. As her life continues to crumble around her, the Estate offers more solace than she could hope for. But Mercedes can’t live both lives forever, and ultimately she must choose between this perfect world of art and truth and a much messier reality.

What book are you anticipating this week? Are you also excited for The Gallery of Unfinished Girls?

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Zodiac Recommendations #6 Cancer Books

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Hi everyone, and welcome to my sixth week of Zodiac Book Recommendations. Every week I’m recommending books for one of the zodiac signs, starting with Aquarius and ending with Capricorn, after chronological order. This week I have three book recommendations for Cancer.

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We are talking about Cancer this week, the zodiac sign that embraces the element water. The Cancer have their strengths and weaknesses, which can be read about in the graphics, and with these qualities in mind I have tried to find suitable book recommendations. I hope that whoever you are, whether you are a Cancer yourself or someone who knows a Cancer, you’ll enjoy these book recommendations.

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For Cancer, the books I’m recommending are the following,

The books I’ve chosen are ones that I think celebrate Cancer qualities in one way or another. I hope you’ll love these books, and maybe even find a new favorite. Check out my book recommendations for the other zodiac signs too. Next week I’m doing Leo, see previous recommendations here.

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Review of My Year of Epic Rock by Andrea Pyros

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My Year of Epic Rock by Andrea Pyros

Publication Date: September 2, 2014.

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky.

Genres: Middle Grade, Young Adult, Music, Contemporary, and Realistic Fiction.

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Selling points: Amazing allergy rep, a cute gang of kids who all play in a band together, and calling out mean girls.

Purchase here: Amazon | The Book Depository

Synopsis: If Life Was Like a Song.

Nina Simmons’ song would be “You Can’t Always Eat What You Want.” (Peanut allergies, ugh). But that’s okay, because as her best friend Brianna always said, “We’re All in This Together.”

Until the first day of the seventh grade, when Brianna dumps her to be BFFs with the popular new girl. Left all alone, Nina is forced to socialize with “her own kind”–banished to the peanut-free table with the other allergy outcasts. As a joke, she tells her new pals they should form a rock band called EpiPens. (Get it?) Apparently, allergy sufferers don’t understand sarcasm, because the next thing Nina knows she’s the lead drummer.

Now Nina has to decide: adopt a picture-perfect pop personality to fit in with Bri and her new BFF or embrace her inner rocker and the spotlight. Well..

Call Me a Rock Star, Maybe.

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“Bringing my EpiPen with me everywhere I went was like having a stupid pimple that never went away! Besides, like I was going to have the guts to stab myself with a giant needle in the leg if I ate something I was allergic to anyway. Wouldn’t I bet too busy barfing or fainting or something else awful to be my own doctor?”

I’ve had severe allergies since the day I was born, and it hasn’t really been easy or fun most of the time. Having allergies can be extremely lonely, and pretty scary too, especially when your allergies can kill you in a matter of minutes. This book is a book I wish I had when I was younger. We all know that representation matters, and as I read My Year of Epic Rock it was as for the first time someone else had all the same fears and quirks as I did about my allergies.

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Zodiac Recommendations #5 Gemini Books

Olivia Chanel2 Comments

Hi everyone, and welcome to my fifth week of Zodiac Book Recommendations. Every week I’m recommending books for one of the zodiac signs, starting with Aquarius and ending with Capricorn, after chronological order. This week I have three book recommendations for Gemini.

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Since we are talking about Gemini this week, I hope you’re embracing the air around you so that you can take in the element of the sign. Like every other zodiac sign, the Gemini have their strengths and weaknesses, and with these qualities in mind I have tried to find suitable book recommendations. I hope that whoever you are, whether you are a Gemini yourself or someone who knows a Gemini, you’ll enjoy these book recommendations. May at least one of these books help you channel your inner Gemini.

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The books I’m recommending this week, in the name of Gemini, are the following,

The books I’ve chosen are ones that I think celebrate Gemini qualities in one way or another. I hope you’ll love these books, and maybe even find a new favorite. Check out my book recommendations for the other zodiac signs too. Next week I’m doing Cancer, see previous recommendations here.

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Five Days of Romance: Day 5 – Anticipated Romance Reads

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Hi everyone and welcome to the last day of Five Days of Romance. Even though Valentine’s Day is over doesn’t mean the romance has to be. Personally I love romance the most, and have a bunch of books I own I’ll be reading when I get more time away from some of my ARCs. I thought I’d share some of the romance books I’m truly anticipating to read at the moment.

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These are 14 Romance novels that I own and am dying to read, but haven’t gotten around to just yet. They all come highly recommended by friends and loved ones, and I’d take their recommendations over anyone’s so I know these books will be great. Hence, why I’m excited to read them. The books I’m anticipating to read are,

  1. Act Like It by Lucy Parker.
  2. Dare to Love by C.P. Santi.
  3. Ash by Malinda Lo.
  4. If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo.
  5. Last Will and Testament by Dahlia Adler.
  6. More Than Distance by Elizabeth Briggs.
  7. Trade Me by Courtney Milan.
  8. Keeping the Distance by Clarisse David.
  9. Not Your Sidekick by C.B. Lee.
  10. Something in Between by Melissa De La Cruz.
  11. Love On My Mind by Tracey Livesay.
  12. That Thing Between Eli & Gwen by J.J. McAvoy.
  13. Under the Lights by Dahlia Adler.
  14. The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon.

This was Day 5 of Five Days of Romance, and the end of this blog series. However, the romance lives on, and we can always find it in a book whenever we desire. To check out my earlier posts for Five Days of Romance, go here.

Have you read any of these books, or are you also excited to read any of them? Is there a special book you have your eye on?

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Five Days of Romance: Day 4 – Recipe for the Perfect Date

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Happy Valentine’s Day my loves, and welcome to another day of Five Days of Romance here on my blog. Today I’m here to give you the recipe for the perfect date. You don’t want to miss this. In only five steps you’ll be sure to have the perfect date by tonight, amazing right? Well I won’t keep you waiting, for all my single people and not so single people. Here is how you get the perfect date in only five steps.

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The first step to fixing the perfect date is to choose who your date is going to be, and yes my friends, the perfect date is of course a book! So be it an old favorite or a new book you’ve had your eyes on for ages. Date night is all about you and a book you would love to read at the moment, nothing more, nothing less. Just pick a book you want to read and ignore all other distractions.

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The second step to a perfect date is deciding where you want to have it. Where will you and your date have the most amazing time together? Now this all depends on the weather, opportunity and circumstance but a few excellent options are listed above. If the air is not chilly and the sun is out, perhaps a picnic outside is the way to go. However, a library or café might be a better option if you want to go out but the weather is not that welcoming. To make it extra cozy, a blanket and pillow fort or a bubble bath might be just the right way to spend your perfect date.

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On your date, the mood is also very important, which leads us to step three. In order to make the perfect date you might need a few mood setters, perhaps a few lit candles, your favorite music or fresh flowers. Anything that will make your evening feel more magical is just what you need for the date. Truly, the sky is the limit. If it helps you relax and enjoy your date, it’s clearly perfect.

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The fourth step to create the perfect date is to bring snacks with you, because what is a date without something to snack on? It sure isn’t perfect. Deciding exactly what to bring will differ depending on where you go, but having something to drink with you is always a smart move. With your date you can eat cupcakes, cookies, cake, chocolate dipped strawberries, a bowl of watermelon or potato chips. Mix and choose however you like, all depending on what you love to snack on when you spend time with your date. Do you prefer it sweet, sour, salty or a mix of them all somehow?

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The last step is choosing what to wear to the date and it’s probably the easiest step out of the five. The clear answer is, wear what you love to wear, so be it nothing at all or your favorite pair of jeans and a top. If the weather allows it, a fluffy dress might also be just what feels right. The best part is that no matter what you wear, I can 100 % guarantee that your date will love it. You look gorgeous just the way you are.

This was Day 4 of Five Days of Romance. Tomorrow we’ll have Anticipated Romance Reads, and you don’t want to miss it. To check out my earlier posts for Five Days of Romance, go here.

These five steps were it for my Recipe for the Perfect Date, what did you think? Will you be following these steps tonight for date night?

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Five Days of Romance: Day 3 – Book Girlfriends

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Welcome to another day of romance, and this time I have some book girlfriends for you. Eight of them to be exact. Honestly, these girls are the best literature have to offer, they are beautiful, strong, vulnerable and you need them on your radar. Trust me on this. Don’t hesitate to get to know them and fall in love with them as much as I have.

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My first book girlfriend today is Jamaican-American Baylee Wright from Infini by Krista & Becca Ritchie. This amazing girl loves to dance, especially to soca music and together with her best friend Luka. Baylee also loves juggling with all her heart, which is done in the Las Vegas circus, and she is truly a star in the show Infini. She’s a born and bred New Yorker, loves grilled cheese sandwiches and deserves the world. When I read Infini I fell in love with her, and have not looked back since.

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My second book girlfriend is Giselle Stewart, often just called Gigi, from Tiny Pretty Things by Sona Charaipotra & Dhonielle Clayton. She’s a ballerina in a very competitive world, where the girls are vicious and competition relentless. Gigi is sweet and truly wants to be the best at what she does without any cheating or fighting. She dreams of being the third black ballerina to succeed in the company, and she deserves it so much. You cannot help but love her, and her sunshine personality.

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The third book girlfriend on my list is pansexual Chris Morrison from The Melody of You and Me by M. Hollis. This girl is confused about what to do with her life, and when I read about her struggles I cried and then laughed because finally, someone put into words how I feel about my dreams, university and finding the right path in life. Chris loves to read books, works in a bookshop and plays the guitar. She’s totally amazing, could eat all the pizza and I really love her.

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