Month: December 2018

Review: Princess in the Spotlight (The Princess Diaries #2)

Title: Princess in the Spotlight (The Princess Diaries #2)
Author: Meg Cabot
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Library
Format: Ebook
Release Date: June 26, 2001
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

She’s just a New York City girl living with her artist mom…
News Flash: Dad is prince of Genovia. (So that’s why a limo meets her at the airport!)

Downer: Dad can’t have any more kids. (So no heir to the throne.)

Shock of the Century: Like it or not, Mia Thermopolis is prime princess material.

Mia must take princess lessons from her dreaded grandmére, the dowager princess of Genovia, who thinks Mia has a thing or two to learn before she steps up to the throne.

Well, her father can lecture her until he’s royal-blue in the face about her princessly duty–no way is she moving to Genovia and leaving Manhattan behind. But what’s a girl to do when her name is Princess Amelia Mignonette Grimaldi Thermopolis Renaldo?

Review:

There are a lot of changes in Mia’s life in this book. Her mother is pregnant and is planning on marrying her algebra teacher, Mr. Gianini. Her mother plans to have a small wedding at the city hall, but her paternal grandmother takes over the wedding and plans a big event at the Plaza. It was fun to see how everyone reacted to this big wedding (both in anger and excitement), which most people dream of but cannot afford to have. 

Mia also has a secret admirer in this book. She hopes it is her crush, but she only finds out who it is at the end of the book. 

This book takes place over a very short period of time. It only spans about a week and a half. It is fast paced because the chapters were short and quick to read. 

I love rereading this series. Some references are a bit dated, but it is still a great series for young adult readers today. 

What to read next:

Princess in Love (The Princess Diaries #3) by Meg Cabot

Shadowland (The Mediator #1) by Meg Cabot

Have you read Princess in the Spotlight? What did you think of it?

Best Books of 2018

These are my best books of 2018. These books were published in Canada in 2018. There were so many great books published this year! I divided the books into 3 lists of ten books: Adult, Middle Grade, and Young Adult. It was so hard to choose ten books for each list because there were so many great books! These lists are in no particular order. Here are my lists:

Top Ten Adult Books

Keep Her Safe

Thing to do When It’s Raining

Find You in the Dark

Then She Was Gone

The Home for Unwanted Girls

Come From Away

Queen of Kenosha

The Kiss Quotient

Another Woman’s Husband

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

Top Ten Middle Grade Books

The Strange and Deadly Portraits of Bryony Gray

A Possibility of Whales

Tara Takes The Stage

Clara Voyant

Misfits (Royal Academy Rebels #1)

The Truth About Martians

Blended

Father Christmas and Me (Christmas Series #3)

Kate’s Really Good at Hockey

Pickled Watermelon

Top Ten Young Adult Books

The Cruel Prince

American Panda

The Hazel Wood

The Wicked Deep

The Queen’s Rising

Kens

Isle of Blood and Stone

Golden Hour

Save the Date

The Light Between Worlds

Did you enjoy these books? What are your best books of the year?

It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? – December 31

This blog meme is hosted by Book Date. It is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week.  It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment, and er… add to that ever growing TBR pile!

What I just finished:

This weekend I finished Seven Days by Patrick Senécal.

What I’m currently reading:

I’m currently reading If the Magic Fits (100 Dresses #1) by Susan Maupin Schmid.

What I’m reading next:

Next I will be reading The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman.

What are you guys reading this week? Have you read any of these books?

Jill’s Weekly Wrap-Up – December 30

Happy New Year!

Here are my reviews for the week with my ratings:

I did 7 weekly blogging memes:

How was your week? What did you guys read?

Six for Sunday – 2019 Books

This meme is hosted by Steph at A little but a lot. The weekly prompts for 2018 can be found here. The weekly prompts for 2019 can be found here.

This week’s prompt is 2019 Books. Here are the six books I’m most excited about for 2019:

1. Romanov by Nadine Brandes

2. Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen M. McManus

3. King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo

4. The Wicked King by Holly Black

5. On the Come Up by Angie Thomas

6. The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab

Did you write a #SixforSunday post? What was your list of 2019 Books?

Sundays in Bed with… Seven Days

The meme that dares to ask what book has been in your bed this morning? Come share what book you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed, or which book you wish you had time to read today! This meme is hosted by Midnight Book Girl.

This Sunday I’m reading Seven Days by Patrick Senécal.

Goodreads Synopsis:

For fans of Stephen King’s Misery and Jo Nesbø’s The Snowman comes an engrossing thriller about a monster who becomes a victim and a victim who becomes a monster. From Patrick Senécal, the Quebec author who has sold over a million books worldwide.

One sunny fall day, Dr. Bruno Hamel’s life changes forever.

His beloved seven-year-old daughter, Jasmine, is the victim of a tragic crime. Grief-stricken, Hamel sets in play a meticulous plan. He will kidnap the man responsible for his daughter’s death and make him pay horribly for what he has done. He manages to ambush a police transport and disappear with his target.

But Hamel hasn’t accounted for Hervé Mercure, a detective with a troubled past who becomes certain he can track down Hamel by studying clues in his past—and in the increasingly unsettling phone calls Hamel makes to his partner, Sylvie.

Both riveting and provocative, this daring thriller is an enthralling meditation on what it means to be human—and to battle the monster within and without. 

What book are you in bed with today?

Review: Roller Girl

Title: Roller Girl
Author: Victoria Jamieson
Genre: Middle Grade, Graphic Novel
Publisher: Dial Books
Source: Library
Format: Ebook
Release Date: March 10, 2015
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

For fans of Raina Telgemeier’s Smile, a heartwarming graphic novel about friendship and surviving junior high through the power of roller derby. 

Twelve-year-old Astrid has always done everything with her best friend Nicole. So when Astrid signs up for roller derby camp, she assumes Nicole will too. But Nicole signs up for dance camp with a new friend instead, and so begins the toughest summer of Astrid’s life. There are bumps and bruises as Astrid learns who she is without Nicole…and what it takes to be a strong, tough roller girl. 

Review:

I learned a lot about roller skating from this book. I’ve read books with girls who play in a roller derby, but I didn’t actually know the rules of the game. It was fascinating, but I would be too scared of all the shoving and falling to play it myself.

Astrid is facing a difficult time in her life with her friends. Her best friend and her are growing apart. They have different interests and go to different camps for the summer. Astrid also has to learn how to be open with her mother when she is caught in some lies. She grows as a character through the story.

I really enjoyed this book about teamwork and friendship.

What to read next:

All’s Faire in Middle School by Victoria Jamieson

Kate’s Really Good at Hockey by Christina Frey and Howard Shapiro

Have you read Roller Girl? What did you think of it?

Stacking the Shelves – December 30

This is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews and Reading Reality. Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

I received had a NetGalley wish granted from Disney Book Group:

The Everlasting Rose by Dhonielle Clayton

Thank you Disney Book Group for granting my wish!

What books did you get this week?

Review: Watching You

Title: Watching You
Author: Lisa Jewell
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Canada
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: December 26, 2018
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Melville Heights is one of the nicest neighbourhoods in Bristol, England; home to doctors and lawyers and old-money academics. It’s not the sort of place where people are brutally murdered in their own kitchens. But it is the sort of place where everyone has a secret. And everyone is watching you.

As the headmaster credited with turning around the local school, Tom Fitzwilliam is beloved by one and all—including Joey Mullen, his new neighbor, who quickly develops an intense infatuation with this thoroughly charming yet unavailable man. Joey thinks her crush is a secret, but Tom’s teenaged son Freddie—a prodigy with aspirations of becoming a spy for MI5—excels in observing people and has witnessed Joey behaving strangely around his father.

One of Tom’s students, Jenna Tripp, also lives on the same street, and she’s not convinced her teacher is as squeaky clean as he seems. For one thing, he has taken a particular liking to her best friend and fellow classmate, and Jenna’s mother—whose mental health has admittedly been deteriorating in recent years—is convinced that Mr. Fitzwilliam is stalking her.

Meanwhile, twenty years earlier, a schoolgirl writes in her diary, charting her doomed obsession with a handsome young English teacher named Mr. Fitzwilliam…

Review:

I loved this book!

The chapters were short which made the book a quick read. I read it in one day! It was fast paced too, with important plot points in every chapter.

Even though there were many characters, it was easy to follow them. All of their lives were woven together, but it wasn’t obvious at the beginning. I loved the way that the story slowly unfolded until the end.

It took a long time for me to figure out who was the victim and who did the crime. I figured it out just before it was revealed. It wasn’t an obvious crime, but it made sense.

This is a great thriller!

What to read next:

Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell

I Found You by Lisa Jewell

Have you read Watching You? What did you think of it?

First Lines Friday – December 28

This is a weekly meme hosted by Wandering Words, where you give the first few lines of a book to hook your readers before introducing the book.

Here are my first lines:

“You are about to read the true story of Father Christmas. Yes. Father Christmas. You may wonder how I know the true story of father Christmas, and I will tell you that you shouldn’t really question such things. Not right at the start of a book.”

Do you recognize these first lines?

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

And the book is… A Boy Called Christmas (Christmas Series #1) by Matt Haig.

goodreads-badge-add-plus-71eae69ca0307d077df66a58ec068898-2.png

Goodreads synopsis:

You are about to read the true story of Father Christmas.
It is a story that proves that nothing is impossible.
If you are one of those people who believe that some things are impossible, you should put this book down right away. It is most certainly not for you.
Because this book is FULL of impossible things.

Are you still reading?

Good.

Then let us begin . . .

A Boy Called Christmas is a tale of adventure, snow, kidnapping, elves, more snow, and an eleven-year-old boy called Nikolas, who isn’t afraid to believe in magic.

Have you read A Boy Called Christmas? What did you think of it?