I'm literally tearing up writing this review. I've been with Rick Riordan books since 2010
"Apollo will fall, but Apollo must rise again."
I'm literally tearing up writing this review. I've been with Rick Riordan books since 2010 when I was this lonely high school freshman. I got no friends to talk to. I wasn't part of the popular kids nor that smart to be really looked up to. I was literally just there existing until someone loaned to me her The Lightning Thief copy. So Rick I don't know if you'll ever going to see this review out of all the mountains of reviews but I just want to say deep down in my heart, thank you. You made me a reader and I will be forever thankful.
"I won't hide, I won't cower. That's not who I will be."
I must admit I indeed struggled a bit in the earlier chapters. I was so worried few hours ago that I might have outgrown this story and its lightness and how formulaic everything is. Was there a threat of the world ending? For the 14th time, yes. Was our hero unsure in facing the big bad/villain? Again for the 14th time, yes. From Percy to Jason to Carter & Sadie to Magnus and now to Apollo, everything just feels the same. That's why it took me so long to finish this because the first half was an okay read for me. What pushed this novel to be a 5 star read was the other half. When Apollo and Meg faced Nero, brilliant. When Apollo finally faced his greatest nemesis Phyton, I got goosebumps and my heart was thumping so fast. The final battle was amazingly done and hopeful and you could see how much Apollo have grown all through out. And the last three chapters killed me. That was it. That was the end. Apollo tied all loose ends for our heroes, past and new.
"To be human is to move forward, to adapt, to believe in your ability to make things better. That is the only way to make the pain and sacrifice mean something."
As for a finale book, Tower of Nero was a great surprise for me. It wasn't maybe as crazy as The Last Olympian and not as powerful as The Serpent's Shadow but still was really good. I was hesitant and excited to read because I thought I was in for another huge disappointment. Both Blood of Olympus and Ship of the Dead have failed me. The former was such a fail for me because Coach Hedge got more lines and exposure than half of the Chosen demigods and what was that final battle with Gaeia? In the latter, the final battle for both Magnus Chase and Loki was very anticlimactic.
"I'll make things right. Or I will die trying."
I know Rick already said that this is the last novel from this world but I'm still hopeful. There were few doors that weren't really closed in the story. A potential Nico and Will stories? Maybe.
"You'll come back?" she asked. "Always," I promised. "The sun always comes back."
tw: rape, physical and sexual assault, victim blaming
"They never see the murder in my eyes."
Basically, the story is told into two perspecttw: rape, physical and sexual assault, victim blaming
"They never see the murder in my eyes."
Basically, the story is told into two perspectives (again, duh.), Dr. Scarlett Clarke and Carly Schiller. Scarlett seems like this Anne Hathaway's Catwoman; appears to be this your ordinary English professor at Gorman University but in reality she is a serial killer. She is insatiable in killing men, both faculty and student, who are to be believed as rapists, wife beaters, etc etc. For 16 years, she has gotten away from murder until something happened. On the other hand, we have Carly Schiller, the shy awkward freshman in the said university. Everything is fun and light to her as she embraces her college life until something happened...
"No way. Only someone with serious mental problems could write something like that." "Yeah?" My fist closes around the pages. "Well, only someone with massive daddy issues could write the shit you do, Mallory." Her mouth snaps shut, eyes already filling with tears.
Three books comes into mind when I started reading this: Samantha Downing's My Lovely Wife, Megan Goldin's The Night Swim and Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl. Man, I was so excited to read this and then it turned out to be an 'okay' read for me. The downside, as for me, would be the alternating point of views of Scarlett and Carly. Usually, I don't really mind reading a story with multiple perspectives but for some reason I did mind in this one. I wasn't really full blown drawn into any of them despite their own tragedies that they carry. Also, there was this clear imbalance between them with respect to thrill, suspense and mystery. For the earlier half I was leaning more into Scarlett and how her mind works, but hers just feels so tiring and repetitive. And then the romance kicked in and I was like 'Eh. Do we really need this? In the middle of all of these?' For Carly's, there was indeed a struggle in the beginning. Her earlier chapters felt more YA-ish to me. I only got invested in it when something sinister happened.
"It's exhausting, being in my head. I wish I could stop thinking. I wish I could be like everyone else."
There was this one twist I wish and hope the author handled differently. I'm not mad about it because it made me gasp I just knew and I liked to be proven right. My concern is that after learning it, everything seems to clicked in already. Everything made sense. All the pieces of the puzzle started to put themselves together in my head. It eliminated this good potential plot twist that would make me more invested in the story.
"You're a psychotic bitch!" My mouth curves up in a smile. "Yes, I am."
On a positive note, Layne Fargo's writing style was very easy to fly through. Very direct and no words over describing things. As a reader you could just feel the emotions, the anger and the hopelessness of our characters. Some parts of this novel made my skin crawl and I'm not talking about the killings. Overall again this is an okay read for me. It was interesting all through out. My mind was reeling on how all of these will turn out in the end. I think I would love this more only maybe if there's a little bit heart into it and not just this repetitive cycle of vengeance. As of Scarlett's motives of course, you can never extinguish a fire with another fire but the satisfaction in my lips were very hard to remove....more
"i kiss holden parrish, my love for him pulsing through me with fierce pride. because he made it. he's here. he's finally home."
oh my. why
"i kiss holden parrish, my love for him pulsing through me with fierce pride. because he made it. he's here. he's finally home."
oh my. why do i have tears streaming down my face?!?!?!
miss emma scott did it again. she didn't come here to play with her latest mm romance novel within the lost boys series. this book won me over for her. i was quite hesitant at first with my left eyebrow going up because after reading the first part (book is divided into 5 parts) i thought this is going to be some tropey and formulaic romance novel.
two troubled boys meet under troubling circumstances. they fall in love. yada yada blah blah
and part two through part five made me feel things. scott's writing is so excellent in this one wherein as a reader I could feel the emotions-the longing, sadness, anger, love-through her writing. no dull moments for our boys holden parrish and river whitmore. it got intense and very yearning especially when important things started to happen....more
"Arent Hayes was a zealot. His religion was Samuel Pipps."
My mind is fucking blown.
Just read it.
15 or so characters and one of them may
"Arent Hayes was a zealot. His religion was Samuel Pipps."
My mind is fucking blown.
Just read it.
15 or so characters and one of them may or may not be the devil doing some horrific acts and whispering their greatest desires. Samuel 'Sammy' Pipps together with his trusted friend and assistant, Arent Hayes, and their new found allies aboard the ship must race against time to defeat this devil known as Old Tom. Stuart Turton's The Devil and the Dark Water is fast-paced and gripping novel that blown my brains into bits especially the ending. The clues at first in the story were very very vague that got me like "what does this even mean?" but yeah they all caught me unguardedly. This book reminded me so much why I love mystery/thrillers. ...more
"Vile that the hornet nest should take the shape of a womb, she thinks. With a shudder she imagines a baby inside, its head lowered into the c
"Vile that the hornet nest should take the shape of a womb, she thinks. With a shudder she imagines a baby inside, its head lowered into the cone."
CJ Cooke's The Nesting isn't necessarily my kind of great story but still great nonetheless. This is my first take on the gothic horror trope and I could say it was such an experience reading this. Everything was just soooo... atmospheric. Imagine a family living in the wilderness in Norwegian woods and unexplainable things keep on happening in their home. It was fast faced and very gripping for most parts. As readers it tells us two storylines: Aurelia Faraday, the past, and Lexi Ellis, the present. Aurelia Faraday jumped off the cliff where the house is being built due to her being suicidal. Was she really suicidal or was there something sinister and vile been plaguing her?
"Even if you hear something down there, please stay out. "
I highly appreciate the inclusions of these Norwegian folklores/traditions into the story. This made the horror part more realistic, more horrifying. I couldn't sleep last night because I can't stop thinking about some of these things.
"It's the Sad Lady. She lives in our basement. And she doesn't have eyes, just holes."
For me for the first time, the horror outweighed the mystery in this. The mystery wasn't bad as a whole but a bit predictable. When the first piece of the puzzle was shown, it started to rearrange itself in my mind. ...more
"The girl in the mirror is miserable, but at least she's real."
The story is all about these mirror twin sisters, Summer and Iris Carmichael. Yes, "The girl in the mirror is miserable, but at least she's real."
The story is all about these mirror twin sisters, Summer and Iris Carmichael. Yes, you read it right. Mirror twins! I didn't even know this concept existed until I read this book. Summer is the golden girl and her heart and internal organs are in the right place. Iris, on the other hand, the cynical and boring twin. As the mirror twin of Summer, her heart and internal organs are in the wrong places. At present, Summer has the perfect husband with an adorable stepson in a breathtaking getaway. During their vacation, she calls Iris for help in which the latter accepted. For Iris, it is time to navigate within Summer's world. Again.
Rose Carlyle's The Girl in the Mirror was exciting, thrilling and little bit tropey. It was quite ridiculous too but at the same time I didn't really complain because everything was pulled off correctly. The characters were for me the biggest and most positive thing in this book. They were flawed and highly entertaining. They seemed real to me at times especially how Iris feels for her sister. If you have a sibling, you would know!
Why the four stars? The present plot barely moved in like the 40% of the story. Also, I got bombarded with all these backstories and technicalities when it comes to sailing. I could live with former because backstories with this tension between twins will never get old for me. The latter, however, not so much. I'm used to characters sailing from time to time in books but I'm not used to characters sailing in a highly detailed manner....more
"It was real then. And it's real now. I wish you were here."
I thought I was so over with all these cheesy YA romances but look at me now!!
The stor"It was real then. And it's real now. I wish you were here."
I thought I was so over with all these cheesy YA romances but look at me now!!
The story all started with a dare to Bryson Keller, famous star athlete at Fairvale Academy. According to the dare he has to date the first person who asks him out every Monday morning until Friday. In short, different person every week. What happens when a guy named Kai Sheridan asks him out?
Basically nothing new just cute and swoon worthy romance. Two teenage boys being each other 'pretend' boyfriends within five days. The romance between Kai and Bryson of course was cheesy at best. But at the same time it was dreamy as hell. The fact that this book brought this huge grin on my face and made me crave for something I wouldn't really want in real life was definitely a fun time.
"Let me?" With ease, he places the book in its rightful place. He pauses and whispers, "What's the point of having a tall boyfriend if you aren't going to use him?" The absurdity makes me smile.
Originality is not the strongest attribute of the novel and characters are nothing but carbon copies of other YA characters. However, when it was time to get serious to discuss some serious things, it hit the spot for me. The emotions and the heart were there. The struggle that can be seen in the eyes of the person having a hard time to be in terms with his sexuality to me felt very raw and real. I wouldn't get tired of these stories as long there are still kids out there getting bullied or beaten up for living their truth....more
"Our guests are disappearing one by one, like some bad horror movie."
Eight coworkers of a tech company named Snoop and two staff members are now t"Our guests are disappearing one by one, like some bad horror movie."
Eight coworkers of a tech company named Snoop and two staff members are now trapped due to an avalanche in a chalet high up in this snowy mountain. Electricity has been cut off. No signal for their phones to call for help. Food is running out. Everyone is close in losing their minds in this holiday gone wrong scenario. What's the worst thing that could happen next? Two things. Dead bodies and a killer in their midst.
One by One is told in two perspectives. One in Erin, the chalet girl with her buddy Danny. Another is from Liz, one of the coworkers from Snoop. As readers, we get to see what is happening between the two groups. Apparently, the colleagues are not here purely on vacation and Liz is caught in the middle. After reading Turn of the Key last year, I realize that Ruth Ware is one of those authors I will look out for every year. Her books are just waaaaay too atmospheric. Based on the two books I have read, her stories are not these full blown horror but at the same time the chilling effect is there.
Originality is not the strongest attribute of this novel. Reading the blurb you could probably know how some or not most things would happen. Thankfully I don't really mind book tropes as long it was written well. I got invested in this the moment I finally get to know these bunch of characters. I could just feel the panic and tension. What a great time!
I don't know for the others but personally I enjoyed these characters. I didn't like them but I have to give it to them for being not bland. Normally these are the type of people I wouldn't really mingle in real life but reading them here, with their own agendas, was surely entertaining as hell.
The thing I didn't like would be the 'plot twist'. Like, everyone is expecting that right? Funny thing was that I stayed up until 4 am earlier because I told myself I'm not sleeping until I get to know the killer's identity. Then I read that. I really wished it was different though. It felt like the story went downhill for me from that point.
Overall, I had a good time reading this as a whole. Lock room/who-done-it mysteries are becoming a thing to me. I was a little bit unsure or iffy with regards to that ending but I'll take it....more
"Always her, never me. Even if she weren't in my dreams, her ghost would still be with me."
I DNFed The Woods twice because I just couldn't get int"Always her, never me. Even if she weren't in my dreams, her ghost would still be with me."
I DNFed The Woods twice because I just couldn't get into it before but I decided to push through and it was worth it in the end. It was heavier on the family drama with a bit of thriller here and there. Usually I don't like these kind of books because I feel cheated. You either go all out on thrillers or not at all. The thing that sucked me in this story was the characters themselves and their complex relationships with each other. I wouldn't enjoyed this as much if the characters were far from stellar. I sympathized some of them while the others I want to strangle. As for the ending, it was good. No crazy twist or whatsoever but still reasonable.
"It's no wonder I can't remember what happened-I've been running from everything that reminds me of that summer, living a life that isn't mine, that I never wanted."...more
"Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me."
The story follows this past and present narrative. In the past, Emily Bennett "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me."
The story follows this past and present narrative. In the past, Emily Bennett was a member of this bully girl gang in middle school known as the 'Harpies'. Enter quiet new girl Grace Farmer. The Harpies did something to her in that time. Something terribly bad and concerning. After with what happened to Grace, the Harpies took a blood oath not tell anyone what they did to her. Fourteen years later, Emily is a therapist helping children to fight their own troubles. While working her mother texted her telling that one of her former best friends committed suicide. Later she learned that six months prior to that another friend also died under a different circumstance. Was there any foul play in it? Or is it Grace Farmer back for revenge?
Girl Gone Mad is a powerful debut from Avery Bishop dealing about mental illness, toxic friendships and the evils of peer pressure. Wow, what a wild ride reading this one! One of those stories that I will always remember. Hesitant to read this one because first it talked about things which are quite difficult for me to read and second the length. A thriller book with 400 pages? Huh okay. Time to push through!
This was unapologetically painful and felt raw especially their time back in middle school. Generally backstories are misses for me because books that follows this kind of narrative seems to get dragged but it's just different with this one. It felt necessary to understand more the present characters. It helped me to be emotionally invested all through out.
I appreciate the author's take on the mental illness and/or depression in this book. It didn't feel cheap. It wasn't clickbait. It felt real. I read past works from certain authors before where the main twist in the end revolves around the mental state of the character. 299 pages of showing the same character to be sane then on the last page out of the blue suddenly she's suffering from some personality disorder. I loved those books before and gave them 5 stars but if given the chance to read them again I believe my rating wouldn't be the same.
I thought the overall pacing was really good. Things are happening right away. Glimpses from the past were inserted in most parts of the story to create a good build up. Right from the beginning when Emily learned the apparent suicide of her former best, former Harpy right there and there you already know something dark is about to happen. And yeah it did.
Lastly as for the twists and the ending, I never guessed it obviously. I have like 3 alternate endings in my mind waiting for one of them to somehow fit. It didn't. I felt betrayed in a really shocked way. The betrayal stemmed from not because the book turned sour but more of I just thought I already knew things when in fact I was far from the real truth....more
"Quinn had never been scared of the dark. And before tonight, she'd never even thought to be afraid of clowns."
To give you guys some non-spoilery "Quinn had never been scared of the dark. And before tonight, she'd never even thought to be afraid of clowns."
To give you guys some non-spoilery blurb on what this all about:
After a recent tragedy, Glenn Maybrook and her daughter, Quinn, moved from Philadelphia to Kettle Springs, a small town surrounded by this vast of cornfield. Glenn is the new doctor in town while of course, Quinn is the 'new girl'. New girl goes to her new school, Kettle Springs High. New girl meets her new set of friends-Cole, Janet, Ronnie, and Mat- whom are considered by the town as troublemakers. Apparently, Founder's Day is just right around the corner. Everyone is geared up. Everyone is excited for it. Nothing could go wrong right?
You know what I'm just gonna say it. I expected Clown in a Cornfield to suck so bad and I'm literally over the moon right now to say that this exceeded my expectations. I'm so good in sabotaging myself in these things. If there's a clown, that's me. I'm eating my words right now. I haven't read any good YA horror like for months so naturally I was skeptical in picking this up.
This book was thrilling and horrifying from the 30 percent until the end. I went from "huh this is okay" to "WHAT IN THE WORLD IS HAPPENING". Personally I think the things that happened here is too much for a YA novel. I believe the writing was the best part in this story. It was captivating and vivid making me to clearly picture in my head the action sequences. I feel like I was watching Scream or any good slasher movie.
As for the horror I don't know if this is type of horror most horror junkies would like. The horror in this was far from paranormal or supernatural. If you're expecting Pennywise kind of horror then you're in for a disappointment. It was realistic. The horror in this was the "someone's running fast towards you with a chainsaw so you gotta run faster" kind of horror. This book was pure adrenaline and loved it.
To be petty, I honestly hoped there was more background as to why and how these things are happening. It was explained in the novel but still I wished there was more backstory to it? Yeah. ...more
New Review!! Decided to give this 3 stars because to me it felt like nothing really happened here other than flirtations and banter between the charactNew Review!! Decided to give this 3 stars because to me it felt like nothing really happened here other than flirtations and banter between the characters. Almost no depth at all. Cheesy, yes, but wish there was more substance into the story. Maybe just me!! _________________________________________________ A Guy Walks Into My Bar is Lauren Blakely's first MM romance and honestly wow. Just WOW. I highly enjoyed and appreciate her take to this genre. Dean Collins and James Fitzgerald's whirlwind of a romance was definitely swoon worthy. The sex was steamy. The banter was good and funny. Everything was perfect for them. Too perfect.
The only thing I didn't liked in this was the length. There was this part of the book that could have ended it but no the story still went on. The last 100 pages or so felt unnecessary to me. It was still entertaining but I just wanted for everything to wrap up already. And 3 epilogues in the end? Kill me now.
"There was a little girl who had a little curl right in the middle of her forehead. And when she was good, she was very very good, but when sh
"There was a little girl who had a little curl right in the middle of her forehead. And when she was good, she was very very good, but when she was bad, she was horrid."
The story follows Jane North Robinson and her mother Ruth as they settle to their new house in Bells Hollow, Maine. Called as the North Manor but dubbed by the townspeople as 'creep house.' Ruth's old family home and this is the first time Jane knew such house existed. For 17 years, Jane didn't know that her mother had a life here too in Bells Hollow. Why Ruth kept her past life a secret?
I heard so many great things about Katrina Leno's works but at the same time I didn't really bothered because most of them involve a trope I'm not a fan of. MAGICAL REALISM. When I read a book with this book trope before, it felt trippy to me. So when I watched some booktube videos and saw Miss Leno is going to release a YA horror/thriller I got really excited. And that cover? Straight up gorgeous. Black roses over the pale skin and white hair. Looks so good!
Horrid is my first novel from this author and I loved it. The plot is this slow burn horror/mystery in Jane's perspective and her quest for the truth. There were parts in this that I had to reread twice because I couldn't believe that such things were happening. The first chapter revealed this situation that Jane has a habit of doing and I was like 'huh okay that's good to know' and then pages after I had to reread it again because I'm dumbfounded.
"Three little girls all eating they weren't supposed to eat. Three little girls all eating in order to fill their bodies with something other than the anger, the rage, that would otherwise consume them."
The characters are likable as well. Two characters dealing with this heavy grief because of the passing of their loved one. Day by day we could see them struggling to keep it together. Their actions may not be ideal sometimes but I gotta agree with Ruth., that dealing with grief is different from everyone.
"Mom, I hate it here." "I hate it here too, Jane."
Was this book horrifying? I think it depends on what you perceive as 'horror'. The horror in this was more of the Haunting of Hill House type. Spooky and emotional at times. The horror antics were there such as the unknown footsteps, tapping the window noises, the feeling of someone is behind you but at the same time as a reader you could feel that the words here emit sadness, anger, and longing.
"You be careful up there. In Bells Hollow. These old towns all have histories. Some of them are darker than others."
I’ll discuss a bit of the ending within the spoiler tag. (view spoiler)[The book ended in a ambiguous way. I wish the author went with a different route. There was no finality in it. I’m not fan of endings open to the reader’s interpretation. I want something. Something I can grasp on. Hence, the 4 stars. (hide spoiler)]...more
I immediately lost my interest in Trouble the moment one of the MCs sta"I could fucking worship you."
Time to swim against the tides with this one.
I immediately lost my interest in Trouble the moment one of the MCs started talking like those edgy teens in Riverdale. For a highschooler, the way he talks and acts felt highly unrealistic to me. No 18 year old talk like this. Stop being edgy! You still have homework in British Lit!
Also, I didn't vibed with the romance. I'm here for all the taboo and forbidden but this wasn't it. Too smooth sailing. Nothing momentous or controversial was happening. No bumps in the road until the very end. I wish there were more drama in it, more angst. For a forbidden romance, I wanted something nastier. Everything just felt shallow. It tried so hard to be this top tier romance when in the end it wasn't. This is my first from McCormack and I'm highly devastated....more
My heart feels so warm after reading this. Nick and Charlie and their group of friends must be protected at all cost, I swear! I appreciate Oseman's wMy heart feels so warm after reading this. Nick and Charlie and their group of friends must be protected at all cost, I swear! I appreciate Oseman's way of bringing out of the surface things most of us are afraid or hesitant to talk about. Communication and acceptance for me are the main things about here. There was drama but at the same time not overly done? Just the proper amount to spice things up and to give the characters the chance to talk about their issues. Love this!...more
I'm not sorry for cussing because this screwed my brains out. This was so good and thrilling at the same time.
Lion's Den is now my biggeWell, FUCK!!!
I'm not sorry for cussing because this screwed my brains out. This was so good and thrilling at the same time.
Lion's Den is now my biggest surprise for this year. I was hesitant to read this at first because I judged this book way too early. I thought this going to involve only some petty drama between best friends in an expensive vacation to the Mediterranean. IN A YACHT! WITH OVERFLOWING DRINKS SERVED BY GOOD LOOKING CREW! WITH A BREATHTAKING VIEW!
Unfortunately, the holiday went wrong. Things happened. There were those parts that me laugh. There were also those parts that infuriated me. This book turned a complete 180 for me after finishing the first half. I even asked myself if I'm reading the same book LOL.
"A shiver ran through me. I knew that she was broken. I could hear it in her voice."
Defending Jacob meets Good Girl's Guide to Murder in Megan Gol"A shiver ran through me. I knew that she was broken. I could hear it in her voice."
Defending Jacob meets Good Girl's Guide to Murder in Megan Goldin's latest novel, The Night Swim. The plot was a whirlwind of podcast, backstories and a battle of he said, she said. First and foremost I want to give it to Goldin for creating a story so powerful and needed. Her take of rape culture and victim blaming felt raw and hurtful. There were those parts that moved me with rage, disappointment and shame. To think of it, I think that's only thing I liked in this novel.
I hope my friends here don't crucify me for this review but I didn't enjoyed this as much as the others. It wasn't a bad book but far from being the best for my taste. The majority of this, more like 250+ pages, was indeed interesting for it touches a sensitive subject but not that thrilling. I appreciate a good slow burn but I think it wouldn't hurt to sprinkle some thrill goodness in it. It felt info dumpy. I'm glad for people dubbing this book as their year's best but the case is not the same for me. I enjoyed this but not fully. My interest was already waning halfway. My reading experience with this reminded me of The Guest List. All the twists, nasties and pure adrenaline are in the end. ...more
Welcome to another episode of ‘Where the quarantine has taken my reading taste’. Today, I present you bully romance!
I guess being shoved to the wall iWelcome to another episode of ‘Where the quarantine has taken my reading taste’. Today, I present you bully romance!
I guess being shoved to the wall isn’t so bad at all if your love interest does it. No? Maybe? Holy shit. This was phenomenal for me.
This book is dark, gritty and unapologetically painful to read at times but still I loved it. Oh my, I was engrossed all from beginning to end. This book surprised me because I thought its going to focus soley on the bully romance but nope. The whole story is layered and nuanced. It got family dynamics in it, solid friendships, sexual awakening etc etc. Nothing in here is uneventful. The moment Hollis English stepped out of his Mustang and saw Roan Hirsch looking at him, I was like ‘yes I’m in for a wild ride.’ Quite a shame I’m won’t be checking the other books!
I just want to be shoved to the bathroom wall by Roan Hirsch after reading this. It’s always the guys named as Roan or Ronan. These names are cursed but still can’t help falling in love....more