Month: September 2019

Review: Cupid’s Match (Cupid’s Match #1)

Title: Cupid’s Match (Cupid’s Match #1)
Author: Lauren Palphreyman
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publisher: Wattpad Books
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: October 1, 2019
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

He’s mythologically hot, a little bit wicked, and almost 100% immortal. And he’ll hit you right in the heart . . . 

“Miss Black, we have a big problem.”

Lila Black doesn’t believe in matchmaking, let alone soul mates. So then why is she constantly being hassled by the Cupids Matchmaking Service? But this gilded, cherub-bedecked dating agency isn’t exactly what it seems . . . and it’s about to turn Lila’s entire world upside down. 

It turns out that Cupids Matchmaking is the real deal. As in, it’s run by actual cupids—who don’t look at all like they do in the paintings—and they have a serious problem with Lila’s “match.” Because this guy shouldn’t be in the system. He shouldn’t have a match. And while he’s irresistibly hot, he’s also incredibly dangerous. Because Lila’s true love match is Cupid. The original bad boy of love. And he wants her. 

Now Lila’s once-normal teenaged world has exploded into a mythological nightmare overrun by crime-lord sirens, wrathful cupid hit men, magic arrows that cause no end of trouble, and a mischievous, not-so-angelic love god she can’t seem to stop herself from falling for . . . 

Adored by 50 million readers on Wattpad, Lauren Palphreyman’s smash-hit book is now in print for the first time. 

Review:

This story was a cute combination of mythology and a contemporary romance.

The world building of the Cupid matchmaking service became very developed by the end of the story. The beginning was more contemporary, as the characters were introduced. There were some other mythological figures who made an appearance by the end, which I loved.

There were a lot of cheesy references in the first half of the book. The names of places in the town Forever Falls included the Love Shack and Romeo’s. There was a street named after Juliet, to go along with Romeo. I also found it a little confusing that all of the Cupids had names that started with “C.” It made it easier to tell who was a Cupid, but I kept getting the names mixed up.

Despite the sickly sweet references, this was a fun story!

Thank you Wattpad Books for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

Valentine’s Day (Cupid’s Match #2) by Lauren Palphreyman

Have you read Cupid’s Match? What did you think of it?

It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? – September 30

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 Cupid’s Match by Lauren Palphreyman.

What I’m currently reading:

I’m currently reading Cursed by Thomas Wheeler, Frank Miller.

What I’m reading next:

Next I will be reading The Dark Lord Clementine by Sarah Jean Horwitz.

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

Jill’s Weekly Wrap-Up – September 29

Here are my reviews for the week with my ratings:

I did 9 weekly blogging memes:

I’m also hosting a giveaway for The (Other) F Word, which you can find here:

How was your week? What did you guys read?

Sundays in Bed With… Cupid’s Match

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 Cupid’s Match by Lauren Palphreyman.

Goodreads Synopsis:

He’s mythologically hot, a little bit wicked, and almost 100% immortal. And he’ll hit you right in the heart . . . 

“Miss Black, we have a big problem.”

Lila Black doesn’t believe in matchmaking, let alone soul mates. So then why is she constantly being hassled by the Cupids Matchmaking Service? But this gilded, cherub-bedecked dating agency isn’t exactly what it seems . . . and it’s about to turn Lila’s entire world upside down. 

It turns out that Cupids Matchmaking is the real deal. As in, it’s run by actual cupids—who don’t look at all like they do in the paintings—and they have a serious problem with Lila’s “match.” Because this guy shouldn’t be in the system. He shouldn’t have a match. And while he’s irresistibly hot, he’s also incredibly dangerous. Because Lila’s true love match is Cupid. The original bad boy of love. And he wants her. 

Now Lila’s once-normal teenaged world has exploded into a mythological nightmare overrun by crime-lord sirens, wrathful cupid hit men, magic arrows that cause no end of trouble, and a mischievous, not-so-angelic love god she can’t seem to stop herself from falling for . . . 

Adored by 50 million readers on Wattpad, Lauren Palphreyman’s smash-hit book is now in print for the first time.

What book are you in bed with today?

Six for Sunday – Books I Read at School

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

This week’s prompt is Yellow Books. Here’s my list:

1. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

2. Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

4. The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz

5. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

6. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling

Did you write a #SixforSunday post? What was your list of Books You Read in School?

(All book cover images from Goodreads)

Review: Tunnel of Bones (Cassidy Blake #2)

Title: Tunnel of Bones (Cassidy Blake #2)
Author: Victoria Schwab
Genre: Middle Grade, Paranormal
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Source: Owlcrate Jr. Box
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: September 3, 2019
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Trouble is haunting Cassidy Blake . . . even more than usual.

She (plus her ghost best friend, Jacob, of course) are in Paris, where Cass’s parents are filming their TV show about the world’s most haunted cities. Sure, it’s fun eating croissants and seeing the Eiffel Tower, but there’s true ghostly danger lurking beneath Paris, in the creepy underground Catacombs.

When Cass accidentally awakens a frighteningly strong spirit, she must rely on her still-growing skills as a ghosthunter — and turn to friends both old and new to help her unravel a mystery. But time is running out, and the spirit is only growing stronger.

And if Cass fails, the force she’s unleashed could haunt the city forever.

Review:

I’ve loved paranormal stories since I was a kid. This series reminds me of The Mediator series by Meg Cabot, which is one of my all time favourites! It has a similar storyline, with a girl who has a best friend who’s a ghost, but for a middle grade audience.

One of the best parts of these books is that it teaches kids about different cities. Cassidy and her parents went to Edinburgh in the first book, which is somewhere I’ve always wanted to go. In this book, they went to Paris. I went to Paris 10 years ago and I was constantly reminded of that trip while reading this story! We went to many of the tourist attractions also featured in this book, such as the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre, but not the Catacombs. The Catacombs sound fascinating, but I don’t know if I’m brave enough to go there!

This is a great story! I can’t wait to see where Cassidy Blake travels next!

What to read next:

Shadowland (The Mediator #1) by Meg Cabot

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Harry Potter #1) by J.K. Rowling

Have you read Tunnel of Bones? What did you think of it?

Stacking the Shelves – September 28

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 was approved for a book on NetGalley from Graydon House Books:

One Night Gone by Tara Laskowski

I was approved for three books on NetGalley from Penguin Random House Canada:

Ho’onani: Hula Warrior by Heather Gale, Mika Song

Sergeant Billy: The True Story of the Goat Who Went to War by Mireille Messier, Kass Reich

King Mouse by Cary Fagan, Dena Seiferling

I was approved for a book on NetGalley from Harper Impulse:

Ten Things My Cat Hates About You by Lottie Lucas

I was approved for a book on NetGalley from Disney Book Group:

The Fowl Twins by Eoin Colfer

I received two books from Simon and Schuster Canada:

You Are Awesome: How to Navigate Change, Wrestle with Failure and Live and Intentional Life by Neil Pasricha

Frogcatchers by Jeff Lemire

Thank you Graydon House Books, Penguin Random House Canada, Harper Impulse, Disney Book Group, and Simon and Schuster Canada for these books!

What books did you get this week?

Review: Harley and Ivy Meet Betty and Veronica

Title: Harley and Ivy Meet Betty and Veronica
Author: Paul Dini, Marc Andreyko, Laura Braga
Genre: Graphic Novel
Publisher: DC Comics
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: September 4, 2018
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Hiram Lodge (Veronica’s father) wants to invest in the future by building a university with free tuition for Riverdale’s residents. His site is a protected swamp on the outskirts of town, and once news of the plan reaches Gotham City, a certain eco-warrior (a.k.a. Poison Ivy) is determined to prevent the dream from becoming reality.

However, once Poison Ivy and her bestie Harley Quinn arrive, they get mixed up in the sort of hijinks that can only happen in Riverdale. At a superhero-themed costume party, the night’s entertainment–Zatanna– manages to place the personas of the Gotham City Sirens into the bodies of the town’s notorious frenemies: Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge. While Ivy (in Ronnie’s body) seeks to derail Lodge’s agenda from within, more than a few nefarious forces–from Jason and Cheryl Blossom to the Clown Prince of Crime himself–have their own foul plans.

This groundbreaking miniseries teams up two of fandom’s best-known duos, bringing the ladies of Gotham and Riverdale together for the first time! This madcap mayhem comes courtesy of Paul Dini (Harley Quinn) and Marc Andreyko (Wonder Woman ’77), with art by Laura Braga (DC Comics: Bombshells)! Collects Harley & Ivy Meet Betty & Veronica #1-6. 

Review:

I love Harley Quinn and Archie comics so this book was made for me! It definitely lived up to my expectations.

This story was hilarious. Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy go to Riverdale to persuade Mr. Lodge not to develop Sweetwater Swamp into a school and shopping center. While they’re there, the magician Zatanna arrives at a Halloween party (where Betty and Veronica happen to be dressed as Harley and Poison Ivy) and accidentally puts a spell on Harley, Ivy, Betty and Veronica, making the two sets of friends switch bodies. They four girls have to make their way back to their hometowns and their own bodies.

I had never noticed how many similarities there were between the Archie Comics characters and the DC Comics characters. Sabrina and Zatanna are both magical characters. Catwoman came to Riverdale to see Josie and the Pussycats perform because she is a huge fan of them. Reggie, Riverdale’s resident jokester, dressed up as the Joker for the costume party. I loved discovering the similar characters from my favourite comics.

This was an amazing graphic novel! It’s a must read for fans of Harley, Ivy, Betty and Veronica!

What to read next:

Harley Quinn: Mad Love by Paul Dini, Pat Cadigan

Betty and Veronica by Adam Hughes

Have you read Harley and Ivy Meet Betty and Veronica? What did you think of it?

First Lines Friday – September 27

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:

“The day I lost my mom, I turned left instead of right. If I had listened to her instructions, if I had turned right, she would still be here.”

Do you recognize these first lines?

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And the book is… Break in Case of Emergency by Brian Francis.

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Goodreads synopsis:

Dads can be such a drag

Life has been a struggle for Toby Goodman. Her mother died by suicide five years ago, and her father left their small town before Toby was born. Now a teenager living on her grandparents’ dairy farm, Toby has trouble letting people in. She keeps even her closest friend, the brash but endearing Trisha, at arms’ length, and recently ended her first relationship, with Trisha’s burnout brother, Mike. Convinced that she is destined to follow her mother’s path, Toby creates a plan to escape her pain.

But with the news that her father is coming home and finally wants to meet her, Toby must face the truth of her family’s story. Not only is her father gay, but he’s also a world-famous female impersonator—and a self-absorbed, temperamental man-child who is ill-prepared to be a real parent.

When Toby’s careful plans go awry, she is forced to rebuild the life she thought she knew from the ground up. While she may not follow an expected path, through the support of a quirky but lovable circle of friends and family, Toby may finally put together the many different pieces that make up her past, her present, and her future.

Have you read Break in Case of Emergency? What did you think of it?

Review: SLAY

Title: SLAY
Author: Brittney Morris
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Canada
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: September 24, 2019
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

By day, seventeen-year-old Kiera Johnson is an honors student, a math tutor, and one of the only Black kids at Jefferson Academy. But at home, she joins hundreds of thousands of Black gamers who duel worldwide as Nubian personas in the secret multiplayer online role-playing card game, SLAY. No one knows Kiera is the game developer, not her friends, her family, not even her boyfriend, Malcolm, who believes video games are partially responsible for the “downfall of the Black man.”

But when a teen in Kansas City is murdered over a dispute in the SLAY world, news of the game reaches mainstream media, and SLAY is labeled a racist, exclusionist, violent hub for thugs and criminals. Even worse, an anonymous troll infiltrates the game, threatening to sue Kiera for “anti-white discrimination.”

Driven to save the only world in which she can be herself, Kiera must preserve her secret identity and harness what it means to be unapologetically Black in a world intimidated by Blackness. But can she protect her game without losing herself in the process?

Review:

I love video games so I was super excited to read this book! I kept my gaming side a secret when I was younger, because my friends didn’t like playing games. I could relate to Kiera, since she had to keep that part of her life a secret too. However, she had the even bigger secret that she actually created the popular game that she plays!

Race was a huge issue in this book. Kiera created the game as a place for black gamers to celebrate themselves in a game. The cards in the game were named after references to black culture or famous black figures in history. The game became controversial when a boy was killed for playing the game. Then, Kiera had to face the possibility of real life consequences for creating this game.

One thing that the critics of this game in the book often said was that the game excluded people of other races because you had to be black to be invited. It wasn’t created as an exclusionary game, but instead as a safe place for gamers to play a game where they wouldn’t be attacked due to their appearance. Kiera walked a fine line when her game was analyzed by the news, but it’s important for everyone to have a safe space to do what they love.

I loved this book so much!

Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Have you read SLAY? What did you think of it?