And I Darken By: Kiersten White

Synopsis:

No one expects a princess to be brutal. And Lada Dragwlya likes it that way. Ever since she and her gentle younger brother, Radu, were wrenched from their homeland of Wallachia and abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman courts, Lada has known that being ruthless is the key to survival. She and Radu are doomed to act as pawns in a vicious game, an unseen sword hovering over their every move. For the lineage that makes them special also makes them targets.

Lada despises the Ottomans and bides her time, planning her vengeance for the day when she can return to Wallachia and claim her birthright. Radu longs only for a place where he feels safe. And when they meet Mehmed, the defiant and lonely son of the sultan, Radu feels that he’s made a true friend—and Lada wonders if she’s finally found someone worthy of her passion.

But Mehmed is heir to the very empire that Lada has sworn to fight against—and that Radu now considers home. Together, Lada, Radu, and Mehmed form a toxic triangle that strains the bonds of love and loyalty to the breaking point.

Rating:★★★★

Review:

     I absolutely loved this book! This is the first book in The Conquer's Saga and I can't wait to get my hands on the next one. This book was very character driven for me so majority of what I will be commenting on will be based on the characters personalities and actions. First I want to start off by saying I went into this completely blind, being that this was a title I randomly picked out of my Ravenclaw Recommended Reads Jar. So, I had no idea that this was supposed to be a retelling of Vlad the Impaler in gender reversal, who I knew nothing about anyway.

     I was a little skeptical at first because I was afraid when I saw the words "dracul' because I thought I had been tricked into a vampire story and I was not in a vampire mood but that confusion was quickly washed away. Lada's whole family made an insane first impression as in if they were in modern times 90%, with the exception of Radu, would be institutionalized. Vlad, Lada's and Radu's father, is the definition of abusive to everyone including his children. Lada, Vlad's and Vasilissa's Daughter, is a psychopath and my opinions did not change of her by the end of the book. Vasilissa, Lada and Radu's mother, in my eyes are suicidal and depressed as clear as day. Radu, Vlad's and Vasilissa's, son, is just damaged goods from having a traumatizing childhood resulting from witnessing all of the craziness from his family.

     Lada wasn't my favorite character in the whole wide world at first but I did enjoy the gender reversals. Lada was more tough and unforgiving like a boy, while Radu was more sensitive and delicate like a girl. I very much appreciated Lada more after I got to know her and see why she was why she was. She is the epitome of  a "bad bitch".

     I was not expecting at all some of the scenes in this book, and if you have read this book you know exactly what I mean, but I feel like they were done very nicely. The drama and the action in this book was awesome, filled with a lot of "bad and boujee" women, but I did feel at some points the plot got a little dry and I wanted to skip through some pages to get to the next climax in the story.

     This book is way more than recommendation worthy!!!

Brown Girl Dreaming By: Jacqueline Woodson

Synopsis:

Jacqueline Woodson, one of today's finest writers, tells the moving story of her childhood in mesmerizing verse.

Raised in South Carolina and New York, Woodson always felt halfway home in each place. In vivid poems, she shares what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 1970s, living with the remnants of Jim Crow and her growing awareness of the Civil Rights movement. Touching and powerful, each poem is both accessible and emotionally charged, each line a glimpse into a child’s soul as she searches for her place in the world. Woodson’s eloquent poetry also reflects the joy of finding her voice through writing stories, despite the fact that she struggled with reading as a child. Her love of stories inspired her and stayed with her, creating the first sparks of the gifted writer she was to become. 

Rating: ★★★★

Review:

"But on paper, things can live forever. On paper, a butterfly never dies."

     I really enjoyed reading this autobiography in the format that this is written in. Being written in verse really made this book go by faster than what a normal biography or autobiography would. I loved the fact that I after reading this I feel like I know Jacqueline personally and like I've know her and her family all my life. I thought it was awesome to have the family photos at the end, which made it so much more personal than any other autobiography that I've read. 

     Jacqueline really opened the door and let all of her readers into her world, her histories, and her memories. I recommend this to everyone because it really shows you from a child's point of view, how the world worked and how the world affected a whole society during this huge time of change in America. 

Night Shift By: B. R. Meyers

Synopsis:

At Willard's department store, none of the night security guards survive for long, and eighteen-year-old Daniel Gale is about to discover why. 

Tired of living out of his backpack, he ignores the clerk's gossip about the old building being haunted and accepts the latest vacated position of night guard. On his first shift Daniel narrowly escapes a fatal fall down an elevator shaft and is rescued by Mary—a bossy and intriguing girl far too beautiful for after hours inventory. 

Anticipating every night shift as a chance to be with her, Daniel thinks his traveling days are over hoping that Manhattan is the place to call home. But as his life becomes more entwined with Willard's, Daniel senses unnatural changes and bizarre coincidences both with Mary and the store itself. Soon he begins to suspect Willard's is hiding something more sinister than gossip about ghosts—something that could make him the next casualty of the NIGHT SHIFT.

Publishing Co.: Backlit PR
Rating:★★★

Review:

**I received this e-ARC from Netgalley and Backlit PR in exchange for my honest review**

     Based on the synopsis I thought something really creepy and dangerous was going on. I really thought I was going to see someone die or at least get seriously injured, leading to the brink of death, but I was wrong. This book wasn't scary at all I was hit with more of the curious factor than actual fear, which kind of disappointed me. 

     Now don't get me wrong, what was actually going on at Willard's was a really good concept but I felt like it could have been executed better. I started to get bored in the middle of the story to the point where I just had the "lets just get it over with" attitude, and that's not the best feeling to have while reading a book that you want to enjoy.

     Going beyond the plot of the story I did feel connected with the characters. I felt bad for Mary and the crew being stuck in the situation that they were in, I really just wanted to see them get out and be free.

     This story had a weird concept which was different in a good way but it was sadly very predictable  in various spots throughout the book and the concept, in my opinion, could have been handled a lot better.

A Midsummer Night's Dream By: William Shakespeare

Synopsis:

Shakespeare's intertwined love polygons begin to get complicated from the start--Demetrius and Lysander both want Hermia but she only has eyes for Lysander. Bad news is, Hermia's father wants Demetrius for a son-in-law. On the outside is Helena, whose unreturned love burns hot for Demetrius. Hermia and Lysander plan to flee from the city under cover of darkness but are pursued by an enraged Demetrius (who is himself pursued by an enraptured Helena). In the forest, unbeknownst to the mortals, Oberon and Titania (King and Queen of the faeries) are having a spat over a servant boy. The plot twists up when Oberon's head mischief-maker, Puck, runs loose with a flower which causes people to fall in love with the first thing they see upon waking. Throw in a group of laborers preparing a play for the Duke's wedding (one of whom is given a donkey's head and Titania for a lover by Puck) and the complications become fantastically funny.

Rating:★★★★😊

Review:

I am shocked by how much I liked this book/play simply because this is my first work of Shakespeare that I have read on my own, without it being required reading for school. I went into this not know anything about it except that it's not a very popular piece of literature that you hear about like you would Hamlet, Macbeth, or Romeo and Juliet, which made this all the more exciting to read.

This is a comedy set in ancient Athens, Greece and it is a very magical, mythological time period seeing that there are faeries that wield magic and the Duke referring to be Hercules's cousin. I really enjoyed the drama in the retrospect of blood apparently not being thicker than water to some characters, who are willing to sacrifice those that won't jump when they say jump. 

I hated Helena because she was so soft and let anyone, let alone a man, make her feel lower than dirt. She was willing to do anything to and betray anyone to be accepted by Demetrius.

The six stooges who were given the task of putting on a play for the Duke's wedding were too much for me. At some times they were so dumb it was funny but at others I was left scratching my head wondering how some can be so dumb.  

But in general this was a very short and a simple romantic drama that I would widely recommend to anyone that is venturing out into Shakespeare or into classics in general.

The Wiccan Waltz By: Pragya Vishnoi

Synopsis:

Anika is a young, impulsive girl who hopes to solve the mysteries of life by following Wicca. On this path, she encounters the joy of first love, the fear of uncertainty and the power of complete surrender. This is not as simple as it seems, hidden in the shadows are conspiracies, secrets and betrayals. Will Anika be able to survive in this mysterious world?

Rating:★★½ 😩

Review:

     I was sent this book by the author in exchange for my honest review and I was a little disappointed since I am very interested in hearing stories revolving around witch craft because it can be such a magical topic. The author had the right idea and had the right makings of a good book but could use some work on a few things.

     First, I absolutely hated the scene transitioning! At the beginning for example; one chapter we were following Anika in her home as she was wondering what her parents would think if they knew she wanted to practice Wiccan then in the next chapter we jump to her in college and living in a hostel all of a sudden, with no explanation in between. This lost me a few times and I found myself just trying to catch up with everything that "may" have happened in between chapters. I didn't really care for the vampires and wolves in this story but I guess I must face the fact that where there are witches there will always be vampires and some kind of wolf. I also didn't care for the love triangle which unfortunately is what the whole story was centered around, so much so to the point that I honestly believe that if there was no triangle of love there would be no story. 

     The plot had potential as well as the character relationships. I just wish the plot wasn't relying on the love triangle to survive and I wish the relationships between the characters were a little more developed. There were a lot of action and the plot twist was really good and unexpected.

     It was sort of like reading a low budget version of The Underworld.

I won't be continuing with this series but I am thankful for the opportunity to review this book.    

A Torch Against the Night By: Sabaa Tahir (Bk. 2)

Synopsis:

Elias and Laia are running for their lives. After the events of the Fourth Trial, Martial soldiers hunt the two fugitives as they flee the city of Serra and undertake a perilous journey through the heart of the Empire.

Laia is determined to break into Kauf—the Empire’s most secure and dangerous prison—to save her brother, who is the key to the Scholars’ survival. And Elias is determined to help Laia succeed, even if it means giving up his last chance at freedom.

But dark forces, human and otherworldly, work against Laia and Elias. The pair must fight every step of the way to outsmart their enemies: the bloodthirsty Emperor Marcus, the merciless Commandant, the sadistic Warden of Kauf, and, most heartbreaking of all, Helene—Elias’s former friend and the Empire’s newest Blood Shrike.

Bound to Marcus’s will, Helene faces a torturous mission of her own—one that might destroy her: find the traitor Elias Veturius and the Scholar slave who helped him escape…and kill them both.

Rating:★★★★★😍

Review:

     There is not much that I can say about this book being that it is the 2nd book in a series but I will say I loved this so much and I'm feeling so many different emotions right now that its ridiculous. So far this series is doing more than great in my eyes. Not only did the characters deliver up to my expectations but the plot delivered as well. The action kept my mind running in circles, the plot twist just blew my mind, and even though I was on an emotional roller coaster the whole book, I was not disappointed at all. I just need book 3 and a novella about Izzy and I should be well fed and satisfied. 

"Failure doesn't define you. It's what you do after you fail that determines whether you are a leader or a waste of perfectly good air." 

April 3-in-1

The topic for April's 3-in-1 is Books With 500 Pages or More. The 3 in 1 series was started in a Goodreads group called Booktubers from around the world created by Cherrie Walker.

Booktubers From Around The World ⇨ https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/195015-booktubers-from-around-the-world

1. The Book Thief by: Marcus Zusak
          Total: 552pgs.


   This was an absolutely phenomenal read, way better than I thought it would be. I was so emotional and I love that its a book is not told from a Jew's point of view because you never hear this kind of story told from a German's point of view. I love you Rudy!

2. Jane Eyre by: Charlotte Bronte
          Total: 507pgs.


   Okay, so I'm cheating with this one because technically I didn't READ it but I LISTENED to it as an audiobook. I really loved this one as well and I think I love it more because this was the first classic I've ever read of my own free will. I love the relationship between Jane and Mr. Rochester and all of the ups and downs in Jane's life. This was just amazing and I will reread this at some point.

3. Nevermore by: Kelly Creagh
          Total: 543pgs.


   I read this book a very long time ago and I believe I may have been in middle school when I read it. I love this so much and I want to continue with this trilogy. I love how so much of Edgard Allen Poe's works are sewn into this story and I'm guessing the whole trilogy. I want to recommend this because I feel that this book is under appreciated and lesser known than most books on the market today.