The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity, Vol. 3 by Saka Mikami

The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity, Vol. 3 by Saka Mikami

Kauro Hana wa Rin to Saku #3, 192 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Rintaro and Kaoruko have been spending more and more time together, beginning to feel comfortable with each other despite their schools' rivalry. Yet their growing bond is nowhere near strong enough to break down the barriers between their two communities. In fact, Rintaro is starting to feel at a loss with his own friends, as keeping his relationship with Kaoruko a secret means continuing to lie to them! And so, Rintaro calls Kaoruko and her friend Subaru to a meeting, hoping to find a solution...

The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity, Vol. 2 by Saka Mikami

The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity, Vol. 2 by Saka Mikami

Kauro Hana wa Rin to Saku #2, 192 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Chidori High second-year Rintaro is a gentle soul, with a fierce face and an even fiercer reputation. Used to being judged by everyone around him, he finds himself thrown off balance when he meets the open-hearted Kaoruko, a girl who attends a rival school and should be his polar opposite in every way. But her genuine attitude slowly makes his walls crumble. Despite their growing relationship, the rivalry between the two schools becomes a deep chasm that may be hard to cross, especially after Kaoruko's best friend, Subaru Hoshina, finds out about their relationship...

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

 

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
332 Pages | 2007
Star Rating: ★★★⯨☆
Overly good title storyline wise for age range, but there are errors that should have been caught in the editorial phase. More care could have been taken.

Summary: Lissa Dragomir is a Moroi princess: a mortal vampire with a rare gift for harnessing the earth's magic. She must be protected at all times from Strigoi; the fiercest vampires—the ones who never die. The powerful blend of human and vampire blood that flows through Rose Hathaway, Lissa's best friend, makes her a dhampir. Rose is dedicated to a dangerous life of protecting Lissa from the Strigoi, who are hell-bent on making Lissa one of them.

After two years of freedom, Rose and Lissa are caught and dragged back to St. Vladimir's Academy, a school for vampire royalty and their guardians-to-be, hidden in the deep forests of Montana. But inside the iron gates, life is even more fraught with danger... and the Strigoi are always close by.

Rose and Lissa must navigate their dangerous world, confront the temptations of forbidden love, and never once let their guard down, lest the evil undead make Lissa one of them forever...

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

Empire of Storms

 Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas Bk 5 733 pages

Synopsis: The long path to the throne has only just begun for Aelin Galathynius as war looms on the horizon. Loyalties have been broken and bought, friends have been lost and gained, and those who possess magic find themselves at odds with those who don't.

With her heart sworn to the warrior-prince by her side, and her fealty pledged to the people she is determined to save, Aelin will delve into the depths of her power to protect those she loves. But as monsters emerge from the horrors of the past and dark forces become poised to claim her world, the only chance for salvation will lie in a desperate quest that may mark the end of everything Aelin holds dear.

My Thoughts: This book really sets Aelin in stone as a major character who wants to save her kingdom and ultimately the world. She's the anti-hero you didn't know you needed to read about. The choices each character has to make are heart-wrenching, and all of these choices are leading up to the big war. 

Queen of Shadows

 Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas 672 pages bk 4

Synopsis: Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, she must fight.

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die for her. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen's triumphant return.

Everyone Aelin loves has been taken from her. Everything she holds dear is in danger. But she has the heart of a queen-and that heart beats for vengeance.

My Thoughts: I love Throne of Glass. I haven't read this series in a long long time, and I began it again, and I forgot how much I love book 4. The pacing, the plot, the characters. I love that this is the first series she wrote, and she wrote it more plot-driven than the other series she's created. I always cry at the end; Aelin is the most 3-dimensional character I have ever witnessed, and she is one of my favorites. 

Snow White with the Red Hair, Vol. 2 by Sorata Akiduki

Snow White with the Red Hair, Vol. 2 by Sorata Akiduki

Snow White with the Red Hair #2, 208 pages

⭐⭐⭐.5/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Shirayuki is an herbalist famous for her naturally bright-red hair, and the prince of Tanbarun wants her all to himself! Unwilling to become the prince’s possession, she seeks shelter in the woods of the neighboring kingdom, where she gains an unlikely ally—the prince of that kingdom! He rescues her from her plight, and thus begins the love story between a lovestruck prince and an unusual herbalist.

Shirayuki begins her duties as a court herbalist apprentice in the castle, but her mentor is a bit odd. He’s quiet, shy, moody and…a child? Her first official duty is to accompany the prince to help quell an illness going around one of the forts that house Clarines soliders. Will she be able to discover the cause of the outbreak in time?

Ace of the Diamond, Vol. 1 by Yuji Terajima

Ace of the Diamond, Vol. 1 by Yuji Terajima
Ace of the Diamond #1, 200 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)
Eijun Sawamura had his heart set on the middle-school national baseball championships. But his team is eliminated thanks to a wild pitch thrown by Eijun himself. He’s planning to go to high school with his teammates and try again next year when he’s scouted by the famous Seido High School Baseball team. When he goes for a campus visit, he finds himself on the receiving end of a baptism by fire! His experience forming a battery with up-and-coming catcher Miyuki rekindles his passion for baseball!!

Caraval

 Caraval by Stephanie Garber 407 pages

Synopsis: Scarlett has never left the tiny island where she and her beloved sister, Tella, live with their powerful and cruel father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval, the far-away, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show, are over.

But this year, Scarlett's long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to attend. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season's Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. But whether Caraval is real or not, she must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over, and her sister disappears forever.

My Thoughts: I finished this book in a day, that was how much I enjoyed this book. This book reminded me of another book I had read, but this one is much more YA friendly. I loved the idea of the Caraval performers doing what Legend (the mastermind behind Caraval) has told them to do. It's magical and mysterious, no one knows who Legend is, everyone is just playing the game and nothing is as it seems. 

Cinder

 Cinder by Marissa Meyer 400 pages

Synopsis: Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth's fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She's a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister's illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai's, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world's future.

My Thoughts: I've had this book on my shelf for quite some time and I was always saying oh I will get to it eventually. I finally did and I'm so mad it took me this long to start it. This book is loosely based off of the Cinderella trope, but it's futuristic and set in Asia.

Perfect

Perfect bk 3 by Sara Shepard 298 pages

Summary: Aria can't resist her forbidden ex. Hanna is on the verge of losing her BFF. Emily is freaking out over a simple kiss. And Spencer can't keep her hands off anything that belongs to her sister.

Lucky me. I know these pretty little liars better than they know themselves. But it's hard keeping all of their secrets to myself. They better do as I say... or else!

My thoughts: Oof I'm still hating all these main characters, but in this book several of them are starting to realize how horrible Allison actually was and that they weren't very good people either. This book focuses on tearing down the Liars even more so than usual and it's entertaining watching their lives blow up. However, Emily's family not accepting she's gay was the heart-wrenching and trying to "fix" her is so stupid. Can't wait to read book 4. LOL

Flawless

 Flawless bk 2 by Sara Shepard 330 pages

Summary: Spencer stole her sister's boyfriend. Aria is brokenhearted over her English teacher. Emily likes her new friend Maya . . . as much more than a friend. And Hanna's obsession with looking flawless is literally making her sick. But the most horrible secret of all is something so scandalous it could destroy their perfect little lives.

And someone named "A" is threatening to do just that.

At first they thought A was Alison, their friend who vanished three years ago . . . but then Alison turned up dead. So could A be Melissa, Spencer's ultracompetitive sister? Or Maya, who wants Emily all to herself? What about Toby, the mysterious guy who left town right after Alison went missing?

One thing's for certain: A's got the dirt to bury them all alive, and with every crumpled note, wicked IM, and vindictive text message A sends, the girls get a little closer to losing it all.

My Thoughts: Holy cow. It's amazing how much I connect more with these teen liars in the tv show than in the books. The books have them more shallow and mean like the popular mean you see in movie and shows. It's much harder to really care that they are being stalked by "A" but I want to keep going to see if i start to like them and see how much different it is from the show.

LITTLE WOMEN (LITTLE WOMEN #1) by LOUISA MAY ALCOTT

 LITTLE WOMEN (LITTLE WOMEN #1) by LOUISA MAY ALCOTT (Pgs 449) 

Grown-up Meg, tomboyish Jo, timid Beth, and precocious Amy. The four March sisters couldn't be more different. But with their father away at war, and their mother working to support the family, they have to rely on one another. Whether they're putting on a play, forming a secret society, or celebrating Christmas, there's one thing they can't help wondering: Will Father return home safely?

I have loved this book since I was a child, and re-read it every few years.

Gold Spun

Gold Spun by Brandie June 320 Pages

Summary: When seventeen-year-old Nor rescues a captured faerie in the woods, he gifts her with a magical golden thread she can use to summon him for a favor. Instead, Nor uses it for a con—to convince villagers to buy straw that can be transformed into gold. Her trick works a little too well, attracting the suspicion of Prince Casper, who hates nobody more than a liar. Intent on punishing Nor, he demands that she spin a room of straw into gold and as her reward, he will marry her. Should she refuse or fail, the consequences will be dire. Desperate for help, Nor summons the faerie’s aid, launching a complicated dance as she must navigate between her growing feelings for both the prince and faerie boy and who she herself wishes to become.

My Thoughts: This is a YA novel version of Rumpelstiltskin. I found it interesting but I was not as invested as I wanted to be in it. There's a love triangle of course, but both the love interests suck so I am not cheering for either of them at this point in time. . I did enjoy the retelling being the "miller's daughter" being the one who is a thief and manipulator and the one who comes up with the idea to "spin straw into gold". If you enjoy retellings of fairy tales, I would recommend of this. There is a second book, as the first book definitely ended on a cliff hanger, so of course I will be reading the second one. 

Specials

 Specials by Scott Westerfeld 374 Pages

Summary:  Tally thought they were a rumor, but now she’s one of them. A Special. A super-amped fighting machine, engineered to keep the uglies down and the pretties stupid.

But maybe being perfectly programmed with strength and focus isn’t better than anything she’s ever known. Tally still has memories of something else.

Still, it’s easy to tune that out—until she’s offered a chance to stamp out the rebels of the New Smoke permanently. It all comes down to one last choice: listen to that tiny, faint heartbeat, or carry out the mission she’s programmed to complete. Either way, Tally’s world will never be the same.

My Thoughts: And this is where the book series lost me. To me this book was essentially her turned into an alien. The description of how she should look was terrifying and I just hated it, at that point with so many physical and mental and emotional changes she is no longer a human. She is terrifying and not even beautiful. It took way to long for me to finish this book, I didn't want to, but I finally did and I have realized that this series that I enjoyed as a young adult, is no longer my cup of tea. If you like scifi/dystopian weirdness, this book is for you, but it got past the point of believable for me and it lost the magic that the first book had. 

Pretties

 Pretties by Scott Westerfeld 361 pages

Summary: Tally has finally become pretty. Now her looks are beyond perfect, her clothes are awesome, her boyfriend is totally hot, and she’s completely popular. It’s everything she’s ever wanted.

But beneath all the fun—the nonstop parties, the high-tech luxury, the total freedom—is a nagging sense that something’s wrong. Something important. Then a message from Tally’s ugly past arrives. Reading it, Tally remembers what’s wrong with pretty life, and the fun stops cold.

Now she has to choose between fighting to forget what she knows and fighting for her life—because the authorities don’t intend to let anyone with this information survive.

My Thoughts: By the time I got to the second book I was pretty annoyed with Tally. She became pretty so she could willingly take the cure when the time came, but she completely forgot about everything that happened and her first love. Yes, it's supposed to happen like that, but later in the books she's shown to be stronger than the altered brain and in this book she's acting like a dumb dumb. Her best friend Shay who was taken from the Smokies as well is AWFUL in this book and she's extremely horrid to Tally in every possible way. Yet again she escapes and yet again is taken back and she's changed EVEN more so. 

Uglies

 Uglies by Scott Westerfeld 448 pages

Summary: Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can’t wait. In just a few weeks she’ll have the operation that will turn her from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty. And as a pretty, she’ll be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun.

But Tally’s new friend Shay isn’t sure she wants to become a pretty. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world—and it isn’t very pretty. The authorities offer Tally a choice: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. Tally’s choice will change her world forever.

My Thoughts: Look I loved this book series as a teenager. However, reading it today, I did like the first book. the dystopian aspect was intriguing. The beauty standards and how everything affects the environment. I enjoyed reading the inner turmoil Tally faces because society has ingrained in her head that she is "ugly" and needs to be beautiful in order to matter. 

I love that she was strong enough to make the journey to find the Smokies in order to infiltrate and betray them. Her inner turmoil from that point on is should she betray these people or not. This book is about realizing right and wrong, standing up for what you believe in, and friendship. 

The Blonde Dies First by Joelle Wellington

The Blonde Dies First by Joelle Wellington--336 pages

A group of friends fight to choose their own fates in this trope-savvy, self-referential young adult thriller from the acclaimed author of Their Vicious Games , about a demonic force that acts according to horror movie rules in the spirit of the Scream movies.

Devon is always being left behind by her genius twin sister, Drew. At this point, it’s a fact of life. But Devon has one last plan before Drew leaves for college a whole year early—The Best Summer Ever. After committing to the bit a little too much, the twins and their chaotic circle of friends learn why you don’t ever mess with a Ouija board if you want to actually survive the Best Summer Ever, and soon find themselves being hunted down by…a demon?

But while there’s no mistaking the creeping, venomous figure is not from around here, their method doesn’t feel very demonic at all. In fact, it’s downright human—going after them in typical slasher movie kill order. And that means Devon, the blonde, is up first and her decade-long crush, Yaya, is the Final Girl who must kill or be killed to end the cycle.

Devon has never liked playing by anyone else’s rules though, not even a demon’s, and the longer this goes on, the more she feels Drew and Yaya slipping away from her even as she tries to help them all survive. Can they use their horror movie knowledge to flip the script and become the hunters instead of the hunted? Or will their best summer ever be their last?

Thoughts: I thought this book was just okay. I really enjoyed the author's sense of humor but there were also moments that felt kind of cheesy. But that could've just been the author's intention because the characters actively discuss horror movie cliches, too. Either way, I got a little bored because of it at times.

 

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A Brown Book 1, 466 pages                                                                                                                                                 Summary: For Malik, the Solstasia festival is a chance to escape his war-stricken home and start a new life with his sisters in the prosperous desert city of Ziran. But when a vengeful spirit abducts Malik’s younger sister, Nadia, as payment into the city, Malik strikes a fatal deal—kill Karina, Crown Princess of Ziran, for Nadia’s freedom.

But Karina has deadly aspirations of her own. Her mother, the Sultana, has been assassinated; her court threatens mutiny; and Solstasia looms like a knife over her neck. Grief-stricken, Karina decides to resurrect her mother through ancient magic . . . requiring the beating heart of a king. And she knows just how to obtain one: by offering her hand in marriage to the victor of the Solstasia competition.

When Malik rigs his way into the contest, they are set on a course to destroy each other. But as attraction flares between them and ancient evils stir, will they be able to see their tasks to the death?

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed the West African mythology that was fun to read about. The storyline was good. Listening to the audiobook really helped with all the pronunciations of the places and people. I did like the internal anguishes the two main characters faced and we got to see them face those internally. I can't wait to read the second (last) book of the series. If you enjoy YA Fantasy and worldbuilding, learning about different cultures and folklore, I'd recommend this book. 

For Lamb by Lesa Cline-Ransome

 For Lamb by Lesa Cline-Ransome -- 304 pages

An interracial friendship between two teenaged girls goes tragically wrong in this powerful historical novel set in the Jim Crow South.

For Lamb follows a family striving to better their lives in the late 1930s Jackson, Mississippi. Lamb’s mother is a hard-working, creative seamstress who cannot reveal she is a lesbian. Lamb’s brother has a brilliant mind and has even earned a college scholarship for a black college up north-- if only he could curb his impulsiveness and rebellious nature.

Lamb herself is a quiet and studious girl. She is also naive. As she tentatively accepts the friendly overtures of a white girl who loans her a book she loves, she sets a off a calamitous series of events that pulls in her mother, charming hustler uncle, estranged father, and brother, and ends in a lynching.

Told with nuance and subtlety, avoiding sensationalism and unnecessary brutality, this young adult novel from celebrated author Lesa Cline-Ransome pays homage to the female victims of white supremacy.

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

Thoughts: I listened to this as an audiobook. It's heavy, but I enjoyed the writing style and it was interesting, although sad. I tend to dislike POV changes in books but it worked well in this book. Had me teary eyed at times all throughout the book, including the author's note. 

To the Bone by Alena Bruzas

To the Bone by Alena Bruzas - 256 pages

It’s 1609 at James Fort, and Ellis has recently arrived from England with Henry Collins and his wife, who she serves as their indentured help. To orphaned Ellis, James Fort is an opportunity – a fresh start in a new world. And now that she has fallen for the bold and glorious Jane Eddowes, she feels even more hopeful about her future. Foolishly hopeful, for soon she comes to understand the horrible realities of her home: the crimes that her fellow settlers have committed against the Native Americans there, the terrible shortage of food they are facing as winter draws near, and the cruelty of her employer, both to her and to his pregnant wife. Ellis will call upon all her fortitude, but will it be enough? Gripping, shocking, and exquisitely told, this is crucial U.S. history seen through the eyes of an extraordinary fictional teenager.

My opinion: I really liked the writing style in this book. As the story went on and the main character become hungrier and hungrier, the punctuation and even the layout of the words on the page changed, changing the pace of the story. I liked how it reflected the main characters state of mind. The content was heavy, but I thought the story was interesting.