The Raven Cycle

July 2017 Wrap-Up

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Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Rating:  ★★★★★
Reading Dates:  July 6 – 11
Read Count:  2
Favorite Thing:  Regency Snark™
Least Favorite Thing:  Lizzie’s mom is even more annoying in the books than she is in the screen adaptations and I had completely forgotten that. That is, she’s just as annoying, but she’s more long-winded in the novel.

I know a lot of people find classics dull, and granted there are quite a few incredibly dull classic novels, but this book is worth a read. There are many scenes that had me laughing out loud and calling other people to read a bit to them so they could appreciate it too.

My Posts About Pride and Prejudice

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
The Raven Cycle, book 3
Rating:  ★★★★☆
Reading Dates:  June 29 – July 17
Read Count:  2
Favorite Thing:  “It was 6:21.”
Least Favorite Thing:  Casual racism…yikes.

I should be posting a Raven Cycle post soon to talk about the series as a whole.

As for this one… The Unmaker gives me anxiety, I love all the Pynch, and Maggie really didn’t do Henry Cheng justice. Oh, and I’m proud of the Gray Man.

My Posts About The Raven King

The Beast is an Animal by Peternelle van Arsdale
Rating:  ★★★☆☆
Reading Dates:  July 30 (read it in a day for the Read-A-Thon)
Read Count:  1
Favorite Thing:  Witchcraft meets midwifery 🙂
Least Favorite Thing:  The freaking elders, like, fuck those dudes AND their bitchy wives…

I’m working on a review, hopefully have it up soon. I do definitely recommend this book. It’s easy to get through, but don’t expect a lot of action.

*** Update: I posted the review! ***

My Posts About The Beast is an Animal

Some quotes from The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

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You know the drill, I liked these quotes, but I didn’t make them into their own posts, so now I’m putting them here:

Calla found him spineless (she was not wrong). Maura thought him misunderstood (she was not wrong). Jimi reckoned he had the longest nose of any man she’d ever seen (she was not wrong). Orla didn’t believe barricading oneself in a supply closet was a sufficient protection against a psychic who hated you (she was not wrong). Gwenllian was, in fact, the psychic who hated him (she was not wrong).

– page 6-7 (Chapter 1)

It looked like a place old ladies might go to die and remain undiscovered until the neighbors noticed a strange smell.

– page 135-136 (Chapter 17)

Adam lived in an apartment located above the office of St. Agnes Catholic Church, a fortuitous combination that focused most of the objects of Ronan’s worship into one downtown block.

– page 140 (Chapter 18)

Greenmantle took a swig of the wine directly from the bottle — when he’d selected it from the kitchen, he had thought it would look more aesthetically pathetic and desperate than carrying a solitary glass, and it did. He wished there was someone here to see just how aesthetically pathetic and desperate he looked.
“Notes of black powder and abandonment,” he told his reflection. He took another swallow; this mouthful he choked on. A little too much black powder and abandonment at once.

– page 181 (Chapter 25)

Version:
Hardcover, 439 pages
Published April 26th 2016 by Scholastic Press

June 2017 Wrap-Up

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A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas
(A Court of Thorns and Roses, book 3)
Rating: ★★★★☆
Reading Dates:  June 8 – 9
Read Count:  1
Favorite Thing:  Feyre’s extremely satisfying manipulation of the Spring Court in part one OR sassy Azriel.
Least Favorite Thing:  Tamlin’s entire personality….

I may write a review of this book later, but at the moment I’m not sure I can do so coherently, so I’ll just leave a few thoughts here:
Once again Sarah has upped the amount of smut! Overall the book was well-written (and wow I especially loved the fights), but there were some brief instances of iffy stereotypes that rubbed me the wrong way. And as always, Tamlin-heavy scenes gave me anxiety attacks, but Inner Circle banter made it all better.

My Posts About A Court of Wings and Ruin

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
(The Raven Cycle, book 1)
Rating:  ★★★★☆
Reading Dates:  June 9 – 10 & June 10 – 30
Read Count:  3
Favorite Thing:  Sass sass sass sass SASS!
Least Favorite Thing:  Barrington Whelk.

So I read this book twice this month, once on my own and quickly, and the second time with a friend a little at a time while reading the rest of the series myself.

If you are interested in the magical realism genre, you should definitely try The Raven Cycle books.

My Posts About The Raven Boys

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater
(The Raven Cycle, book 3)
Rating:  ★★★★☆
Reading Dates:  June 12 – 19
Read Count:  2
Favorite Thing:  That entire scene in the Dollar City.
Least Favorite Thing:  Kavinsky is deeply annoying… (Um “substance party”? Ugh…)

I also really loved The Gray Man. I just enjoy the way he thinks about things, it’s so calming to read. And every interaction between him and the Fox Way ladies is just gold.

I have to admit — and I feel terrible about it — I don’t like Adam in this book hardly at all. He’s occasionally frustrating in the The Raven Cycle, but in The Dream Thieves he crosses the line to just plain unlikable.

My Posts About The Dream Thieves

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater
(The Raven Cycle, book 3)
Rating:  ★★★★☆
Reading Dates:  June 20 – 26
Read Count:  2
Favorite Thing:  Greenmantle dialogue!
Least Favorite Thing:  Greenmantle actions…

I love Jessie Dittley, I would like to request a Jessie Dittley from the universe, please.

My Posts About Blue Lily, Lily Blue

Thursday Quotables: June 29, 2017

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This weekly feature is the place to highlight a great quote, line, or passage discovered during your reading each week; whether it’s something funny, startling, gut-wrenching, or just really beautifully written.

Her mother’s voice was coming from the house’s single shared bathroom, and when Blue got there, she found her mother, Calla, and Orla all sitting in a full bathtub, all fully clothed and all equally soaking. Jimi was sitting on the closed toilet lid with a burning candle in her hands.

Summary:

The fourth and final installment in the spellbinding series from the irrepressible, #1 New York Times bestselling author Maggie Stiefvater.

All her life, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love’s death. She doesn’t believe in true love and never thought this would be a problem, but as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

Thank you Bookshelf Fantasies for this fun book meme!

Thursday Quotables: June 22, 2017

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This weekly feature is the place to highlight a great quote, line, or passage discovered during your reading each week; whether it’s something funny, startling, gut-wrenching, or just really beautifully written.

His wife (although he didn’t like to use that word, wife, because it made him think that he was now over thirty, which he was, but still, he didn’t need to be reminded, and anyway, he still had his boyish good looks; in fact, the cashier at the grocery store had flirted with him just last night, and even though it could have been the fact that he was overawingly overdressed for a cheese-cracker run, he thought it was probably his aquamarine eyes because she had been virtually swimming in them) was taking the move to Henrietta better than he had expected.

Summary:

The third installment in the all-new series from the #1 NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author Maggie Stiefvater!

Blue Sargent has found things. For the first time in her life, she has friends she can trust, a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. Their problems have become hers, and her problems have become theirs.

The trick with found things, though, is how easily they can be lost.

Friends can betray.
Mothers can disappear.
Visions can mislead.
Certainties can unravel.

Thank you Bookshelf Fantasies for this fun book meme!

What Are You Reading Wednesdays: June 21, 2017

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What Are You Reading Wednesdays #WAYRW is a weekly feature on It’s A Reading Thing. Everyone is welcome to participate.

Grab the book you are currently reading and answer three questions:

  1. What’s the name of your current read?
  2. Go to page 34 in your book or 34% in your eBook and share a couple of sentences.
  3. Would you like to live in the world that exists within your book? Why or why not?

  1. Blue Lily, Lily Blue (The Raven Cycle, book 3) by Maggie Stiefvater
  2. Even thinking about the pit made long-ago venom hum and burn in his throat; effortlessly he conjured the image of warning-striped insects prowling the thin skin between his fingers. He had nearly forgotten how horrifying and compelling it was to relive the moment.
  3. Oh, of course. Who could resist a world with modern conveniences and magic and masterful sass? Not me!

Teaser Tuesday: June 20, 2017

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Did other people’s mothers vanish into holes in the ground during their midlife crises?

– Maggie Stiefvater, Blue Lily, Lily Blue (The Raven Cycle, book 3), page 14

Version:
Hardcover, 391 pages
Published October 21st 2014 by Scholastic Press

Welcome to Teaser Tuesday, hosted by Ambrosia at The Purple Booker, the weekly Meme that wants you to add books to your TBR, or just share what you are currently reading. It is very easy to play along:

  • Grab your current read
  • Open to a random page
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
  • BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
  • Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! Everyone loves Teaser Tuesday.