What I’ve Read January 2020-March 2020

Hey guys! Long time, no talk! I’ve been dealing with this quarantine and have started to do the things that make me the happiest and that has to be blogging. I know I haven’t been here in a while but I have a lot of ideas of the kind of blogs I want to post! I’ve also been reading a lot lately. I’ve been reading some amazing YA books but have also found myself reading and loving new adults/romance novels. They’ve started to mean a lot to me, to just see characters who are experiencing some of the same things as me so I’ll be mentioning some of those reads in future posts.

I read about 6 books during the first 3 months of 2020 so I decided to name them here so that you know what I’ve read so far. I will also be mentioning the books that I’m currently reading!

 

Rating: 4.5/5 I’ve been trying to read this for a couple months but once I hit halfway through the book, I literally sped right through and couldn’t put the book down. I’m obsessed with the characters and the whole plot and setting was just so interesting and intriguing. I had different relationships with each queen and I think by the end of it, my favorite is Arsinoe. Her loyalty to her friends and her people and just everything about her was one of my favorite chapters to read. I also did love Mirabella and her friendship with Bree and Elizabeth and how she longed for a relationship with her sisters. Katharine is still someone that needs to sit with me a little bit. She was kind of boring in my opinion and her world was definitely not my favorite to be apart of. I’m hoping that in the future books, I create a bond with her because it didn’t really happen in this one. The ending realization had me shook and it really made everything make sense. I can’t wait to see how the story progresses with this newfound information! This is a series that I can’t wait to finish and share my thoughts with you guys! I definitely recommend this book to anyone!!

 

Rating: 3.85/5 I had to sit on what I was going to rate this book because I genuinely enjoyed myself and the whole idea of studying abroad. There were a lot of things that I didn’t agree with, especially when it came to Shane’s decisions and actions. I also found a lot of the storyline kind of predictable, besides the turn that it took in the middle of the book (if you’ve read it, you know what I’m talking about); it just kind of changed the whole vibe of the story; it was really creative but I don’t know if it actually did what it could’ve done for the story. I did love the relationship between Pilot and Shane; it was a lot of fun and it was nice to see such a slow burn of a relationship since it also didn’t feel so slow at the same time. Overall, this was an experience reading this book and it took me on an emotional rollercoaster. I’m really proud of Christine (as she’s the first booktuber I’ve watched and who I still think highly of) for such an amazing debut novel and I cannot wait to read what she’s been working on. I also did enjoy going through the writing progress with her and I would actually love to watch those videos, now that I know the story.

 

Rating: 4/5 Just like the first book in this series, I listened to this on audiobook and it literally made this reading experience even better and I definitely recommend the audiobooks for these stories. They are definitely spooky and Victoria Schwab really knows how to put her characters into the setting which makes everything more vivid. This time, the story was set in Paris, France which I didn’t know was as haunted as it is. These stories really show adventure but also such beautiful and enriched histories on the hauntings of different cities all over the world which makes them even more enjoyable since I’m obsessed with those things. I know that the 3rd book is set in New Orleans which is one of the cities that I’ve been wanting to visit because of its haunting experience so I’m super excited for that book.

 

Rating: 3.5/5 I read this book for my women’s literature class in a single night because I procrastinated my paper. Overall, this was heart wrenching and definitely a page turner but there were definitely moments where I found myself really disliking the characters, which had a big impact on how I rated the book at the end. I think this book is something every college girl should read and where every girl should learn from Koren’s mistakes and do better because of it. Especially, when it comes to protecting each other, especially in a scary setting, like a college party. Overall, I had a lot of feelings throughout this book where I sympathised with the character and moments where I didn’t. It’s definitely an emotional rollercoaster.

 

Rating: 2.5/5

I read this story for my Women and Lit class and it did show a beautiful friendship between women but it did also feel like Ann was exploiting her friend, especially so close to her death.
There were a lot of moments in this book where I was thinking, “maybe she shouldn’t have included this”.
There were times in the novel where she made Lucy’s friendship feel exhausting and Lucy as an annoyance and for some reason that just left a sour taste in my mouth.
There were moments I definitely enjoyed but this book just ended up being just okay for me.

 

Rating: 5/5

Even though, this book literally tells you how this book is going to end with the title, it still really hurt. I found myself thinking “Don’t get attached to them” but I also found myself getting attached to them.
The ending was bittersweet. I was obsessed with their relationship and the side characters were really interesting and I found myself wanting to know more about them. Adam has a way with his writing that his really gets you invested and even though, it’s fiction, it feels so real.
It had me thinking about the way I live my life and what I would change and do in order to live with no regrets like Rufus and Mateo did on their End Day.
It’s definitely one of my favorite books of the year and it’s one that I’ll be recommending for a while. I can’t wait to read more of Adam’s books.

 

Obviously my favorite book was They Both Die at the End and my least favorite was Truth Beauty.

 

Currently Reading

(reread)

 

What are you currently reading? What was your favorite/least favorite books from this first quarter of 2020?

Stay safe everyone! Love you guys!

 

-Ang