I've fallen off my blogging game in the past few months. Life is busy, and life is hard. Other projects have been taking up most of my spare time, but I've found that I've missed this little blog. Before, when I was writing about all of the stories I'd read, it felt like I remembered those stories better over time. Like those worlds and their characters stayed with me for longer than they normally would before inevitably being replaced by new worlds and new characters (why can't our brains manage to hold onto these things for longer? I wish I were more capable of hoarding stories and all of their details -- kind of like a dragon and its treasure. . . ).
Anyway. I want to be spending time reflecting on the things I read, and so I want to commit to posting more. I've said that before, and life has gotten in the way. But perhaps if I don't take it as seriously and don't treat this like my job (as the perfectionist in me is wont to do with just about everything), it will be easier to stick with it.
To ease back into things, I figured I'd write briefly about my top five reads of 2022 so far. I haven't been reading as much as I'd like to, and I've been rereading some favorites, so my sample size is limited. Regardless, the following books have more than earned their spots at the top of my list of favorites this year (in no particular order, because that's too hard).
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
"Hope can be a powerful force. Maybe there's no actual magic in it, but when you know what you hope for most and hold it like a light within you, you can make things happen, almost like magic."
My Rating: ★★★★★
Genre(s): Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Publication: September 27, 2011 (Hachette Book Group)
Synopsis:
Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.
In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.
And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.
Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages -- not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out.
When one of the strangers -- beautiful, haunted Akiva -- fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?
Review:
Characters: Quirky, dynamic, original. Angels, chimaera, and humans. Karou, a human girl with a missing past and family of chimaera -- apparent "demons" -- who use her to hunt teeth in exchange for wishes, has to be one of the most original protagonists. Madrigal, a chimaera who has sympathy for the angels at war with her people, is a beacon of hope in the darkest of world. It is so satisfying to read about Akiva, a merciless, unfeeling angel warrior, who slowly finds his way back to himself over the course of the book. There are several distinct and either distinctly hilarious or distinctly heart-wrenching side characters that add to the story's charm and make it that much better.
Plot/Setting: A gothic and whimsical version of Prague (that makes me want to visit the city) alongside Eretz, a parallel realm in which conquering angels battle chimaera in a thousand-year war that is mysteriously fueled by the collection of teeth, of all things -- you'll have to read the book to learn why. It's even darker than it sounds.
Book Lovers by Emily Henry
"Sometimes, even when you start with the last page and you think you know everything, a book finds a way to surprise you."
My Rating: ★★★★★
Genre(s): Romance, Romantic Comedy
Publication: May 3, 2022 (Berkley Books)
Synopsis:
Nora Stephens' life is books--she's read them all--and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laidback dream girl, and especially not the sweetheart. In fact, the only people Nora is a heroine for are her clients, for whom she lands enormous deals as a cutthroat literary agent, and her beloved little sister Libby.
Which is why she agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina for the month of August when Libby begs her for a sisters' trip away--with visions of a small town transformation for Nora, who she's convinced needs to become the heroine in her own story. But instead of picnics in meadows, or run-ins with a handsome country doctor or bulging-forearmed bartender, Nora keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a bookish brooding editor from back in the city. It would be a meet-cute if not for the fact that they've met many times and it's never been cute.
If Nora knows she's not an ideal heroine, Charlie knows he's nobody's hero, but as they are thrown together again and again--in a series of coincidences no editor worth their salt would allow--what they discover might just unravel the carefully crafted stories they've written about themselves.
Review:
Characters: Super flawed, workaholic book lovers trying their best to relax (ha). Nora is not the "hopeless romantic" heroine I would associate with a rom-com, which I very much appreciated (though admittedly, I'm not typically one for rom-coms and have read very few). She's described as "the shark," but she's very relatable -- she's lost, she doesn't know who she is, and she's crumbling under the pressure of trying to be who she thinks her family needs her to be. Charlie is straightforward and no-nonsense, much like Nora, and this makes for hilarious banter between the two of them.
Plot/Setting: Set in the quirkiest of small towns (almost satire of what you'd expect from a Lifetime movie), this story has ample opportunity to provide some genuinely funny moments. One of the things I appreciated most about this book is that it's more about life than it is about the romance. It's about figuring out who you are and what you want, and it's about sacrifice versus living for yourself as opposed to others.
Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin
"There are some things that can't be changed with words. Some things have to be seen. They have to be felt."
My Rating: ★★★★≛
Genre(s): Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance
Publication: September 2, 2019 (Harper Teen)
Synopsis:
Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.
As a huntsman of the Church, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. But when Lou pulls a wicked stunt, the two are forced into an impossible situation--marriage.
Lou, unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, must make a choice. And love makes fools of us all.
Review:
Characters: Dude. These are some of the best and most memorable characters. Lou is hilarious and clever and vulgar, and Reid is uptight and judgmental and honorable. Both become infinitely better over time -- it's a bit of "opposites attract" until they absorb some of each other's best qualities. The supporting characters are also incredible -- Ansel, Beau and Coco. They shine more in the later books, when they develop into a little found family (perhaps the best trope), but they're great in this first one, too.
Plot/Setting: The plot is definitely interesting -- witches versus the church, daughter versus mother, witch ending up married to witch hunter, etc. But it's definitely a character-driven story first and foremost. The setting does significantly impact the story, though. It's an old-fashioned and hateful kingdom ruled by the church, which burns witches without a second thought. This makes the dynamic between Lou, a witch, and Reid, a witch hunter, infinitely more enjoyable.
For the Wolf by Hannah Whitten
"A forest in your bones, a graveyard beneath your feet. There are no heroes here."
My Rating: ★★★★≛
Genre(s): Dark Fantasy, Adult Fantasy
Publication: June 1, 2021 (Orbit)
Synopsis:
As the only Second Daughter born in centuries, Red has one purpose--to be sacrificed to the Wolf in the Wood in the hope he'll return the world's captured gods.
Red is almost relieved to go. Plagued by a dangerous power she can't control, at least she knows that in the Wilderwood, she can't hurt those she loves. Again.
But the legends lie. The Wolf is a man, not a monster. Her magic is a calling, not a curse. And if she doesn't learn how to use it, the monsters the gods have become will swallow the Wilderwood--and her world--whole.
Review:
Characters: Two masochists fall in love. Red possess a magic she doesn't understand and that she refuses to accept. She doesn't know who she is or what she's meant for other than her role as a sacrifice to the Wilderwood. She's searching for purpose, which she finds in Eammon, the Wolf, a man who is magically bound to the Wilderwood that is slowly killing him. Red needs to accept her magic and help Eammon control the Wilderwood, and Eammon needs to let Red help him, but of course they both refuse to do so, because they love to suffer. Oh, and Red has a twin sister named Neve, but she's utterly boring until the very end . . . .
Plot/Setting: The Wilderwood is a magical forest that keeps dark magic from the rest of the world, and it's seated on the threshold of a religious monarchy. The Wilderwood part -- super interesting and spooky, as it manages to make trees terrifying. The religious monarchy part -- as boring as it sounds, until it undergoes a slow coup by a creepy cult. The setting is super important to the story, and it's very well crafted. The main conflict lies with Red and Eammon learning to control the Wilderwood together while Neve, who desperately wants her sister back, becomes a puppet queen controlled by a cult that is determined to destroy the Wilderwood and release its dark magic into the world. Kind of wild. Super entertaining (aside from all but maybe one of Neve's chapters).
The Gilded Cage by Lynette Noni
"Try as she might, she wasn't ready to give up on her dreams. Because dreams were all she had."
My Rating: ★★★★≛
Genre(s): Fantasy, Young Adult
Publication: October 12, 2021 (Clarion Books)
Synopsis:
Kiva Meridan is a survivor.
She survived not only Zalindov prison, but also the deadly Trial by Ordeal. Now Kiva's purpose goes beyond survival to vengeance. For the past ten years, her only goal was to reunite with her family and destroy the people responsible for ruining their lives. But now that she has escaped Zalindov, her mission has become more complicated than ever.
As Kiva settles into her new life in the capital, she discovers she wasn't the only one who suffered while she was in Zalindov--her siblings and their beliefs have changed too. Soon it's not just her enemies she's keeping secrets from, but her own family as well.
Outside the city walls, tensions are brewing from the rebels, along with whispers of a growing threat from the northern kingdoms. Kiva's allegiances are more important than ever, but she's beginning to question where they truly lie. To survive this time, she'll have to navigate a complicated web of lies before both sides of the battle turn against her and she loses everything.
Review:
Characters: This probably won't make any sense unless you've read the first book, and I'm not about to spoil too much. The main characters were much more flesh out in this second book, which I very much appreciated. I didn't really care for Jaren in the first book, but now I really like him. He's an all-around good guy who is too trusting for his own good. Meanwhile, while I enjoyed everything that went on with Kiva -- holy tension. The fact that she didn't tell Jaren the truth about her identity, even after it was clear that her family sucked majorly, was beyond frustrating. But Kiva's blind loyalty is what made drove this part of the story, so I suppose it was necessary, and it definitely made her a more interesting character.
Plot/Setting: I was interested to see how the story would change taking place outside of Zalindov Prison. It certainly improved things. Kiva had so many more places to go and people to interact with. Those things were very limited in the first book, and because of that, it got a bit stale for me. This is another character-driven story -- it's all about Kiva's indecision with regard to siding with the rebellion versus siding with the kingdom. Personally, I prefer character-driven stories, and this inner conflict of Kiva's made this book a page-turner.
Whew. This is easily my longest post. If anyone is still reading -- cool, and thank you! Regardless, it was nice to revisit some of my favorites so far this year, and I'm excited to get back into writing about the things I love most: stories.