Month: December 2020

Review: Stepsister

Title: Stepsister
Author: Jennifer Donnelly
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: May 14, 2019
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Isabelle should be blissfully happy – she’s about to win the handsome prince. Except Isabelle isn’t the beautiful girl who lost the glass slipper and captured the prince’s heart. She’s the ugly stepsister who’s cut off her toes to fit into Cinderella’s shoe … which is now filling with blood.

When the prince discovers Isabelle’s deception, she is turned away in shame. It’s no more than she deserves: she is a plain girl in a world that values beauty; a feisty girl in a world that wants her to be pliant.

Isabelle has tried to fit in. To live up to her mother’s expectations. To be like her stepsister. To be sweet. To be pretty. One by one, she has cut away pieces of herself in order to survive a world that doesn’t appreciate a girl like her. And that has made her mean, jealous, and hollow.

Until she gets a chance to alter her destiny and prove what ugly stepsisters have always known: it takes more than heartache to break a girl.

Review:

Isabelle has a beautiful sister named Ella, whose foot fits into the glass slipper that the Prince sent around town. Isabelle tried to cut her food to pieces to make it fit, but Ella’s foot was a perfect fit. While Ella goes to live in the palace, Isabelle has been left behind to be jealous of her stepsister’s new life. Her life slowly crumbles around her, making her more bitter, until one day she’s given a chance to find her destiny.

This story gave a different perspective of Cinderella’s fairy tale. It began where Cinderella’s tale ends, after she is discovered to be the girl that the Prince loves. Usually, that’s where the stepsisters are left behind and forgotten, however in this story, that is just where Isabelle’s story begins.

Isabelle’s story was being plotted by Chance and Fate. They were side characters who were trying to map out her destiny. Fate, chance and destiny are important elements of fairy tales. These elements were brought to life in this story and played an active role in Isabelle’s life.

This is a great, original fairy tale retelling.

What to read next:

Poisoned by Jennifer Donnelly

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

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

Top Ten Tuesday – Books I Hope Santa Brings

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and it is now hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s theme is Books I Hope Santa Brings. Here’s my list:

1. The Damned by Renée Ahdieh

2. A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown

3. Fable by Adrienne Young

4. The Camelot Betrayal by Kiersten White

5. Magic Dark and Strange by Kelly Powell

6. You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson

7. Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

8. Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

9. Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson

10. The 4% Fix by Karma Brown

(All book covers from Goodreads)

What’s your list of books on your Top Ten Tuesday?

Review: A Christmas Carol (Easy Classics)

Title: A Christmas Carol (Easy Classics)
Author: Charles Dickens, Philip Gooden, Pipi Spósito (illustrator)
Genre: Children’s
Publisher: Sweet Cherry Publishing
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: October 15, 2020
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Who can help a mean old man to love Christmas? How about a ghost? (…or three!)

Scrooge’s heart is colder than snow, he’s richer than half the banks in England and meaner than, well, everyone. But when three seriously spooky ghosts turn up to take him on an adventure through time, he soon learns that being cold isn’t cool. Can he change his ways before it’s too late?

Review:

Ebenezer Scrooge is a grumpy old man. He doesn’t treat his employees well, and he doesn’t celebrate Christmas. On Christmas Eve, the ghost of his former colleague visits him. Scrooge will see three ghosts that night to show him his Christmas past, present, and future. These ghosts persuade Scrooge to change his ways.

This is a great children’s adaptation of A Christmas Carol. The language was simplified and easier to read for children. There were cartoon style illustrations to go along with the story, which demonstrated what was happening in the story.

This version of the story was a little more optimistic and not as depressing as the original story. Scrooge’s employee, Bob Cratchit, still struggled to give his family a happy Christmas, but their suffering wasn’t as prominent in the story. This made the story focus more on Scrooge’s transformation from a mean man to kind hearted.

I really liked this adaptation of A Christmas Carol.

Thank you Sweet Cherry Publishing for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

The Old Curiosity Shop (Easy Classics) by Charles Dickens, Philip Gooden, Pipi Spósito (illustrator)

Have you read A Christmas Carol? What did you think of it?

It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? – December 21

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 The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab.

What I’m currently reading:

I’m currently reading Christmas Island by Natalie Normann.

What I’m reading next:

Next I will be reading Charming as a Verb by Ben Philippe.

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

Jill’s Weekly Wrap-Up – December 20

Here are my reviews for the week with my ratings:

I did 9 weekly blogging memes:

How was your week? What did you guys read?

Sundays in Bed With… A Gathering of Shadows

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 A Gathering of Magic (Shades of Magic #2) by V.E. Schwab.

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Goodreads Synopsis:

It has been four months since a mysterious obsidian stone fell into Kell’s possession. Four months since his path crossed with Delilah Bard. Four months since Prince Rhy was wounded, and since the nefarious Dane twins of White London fell, and four months since the stone was cast with Holland’s dying body through the rift–back into Black London.

Now, restless after having given up his smuggling habit, Kell is visited by dreams of ominous magical events, waking only to think of Lila, who disappeared from the docks as she always meant to do. As Red London finalizes preparations for the Element Games–an extravagant international competition of magic meant to entertain and keep healthy the ties between neighboring countries–a certain pirate ship draws closer, carrying old friends back into port.

And while Red London is caught up in the pageantry and thrills of the Games, another London is coming back to life. After all, a shadow that was gone in the night will reappear in the morning. But the balance of magic is ever perilous, and for one city to flourish, another London must fall.

What book are you in bed with today?

Six for Sunday – Books I’ve Bought for Gifts

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 Books I Want to But for Christmas Gifts, but I don’t want to spoil it in case anyone on my gift list sees this, so I’m doing Books I’ve Bought for Gifts in the past. Here’s my list:

1. American Royals by Katharine McGee

2. Cinder by Marissa Meyer

3. The Queen’s Secret by Karen Harper

4. The Girl from Widow Hills by Megan Miranda

5. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

6. One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus

(All book covers from Goodreads)

Did you make a Six for Sunday list?

Review: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Title: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
Author: V.E. Schwab
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Romance
Publisher: Tor Books
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: October 6, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

A Life No One Will Remember. A Story You Will Never Forget.

France, 1714: in a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets.

Thus begins the extraordinary life of Addie LaRue, and a dazzling adventure that will play out across centuries and continents, across history and art, as a young woman learns how far she will go to leave her mark on the world.

But everything changes when, after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore and he remembers her name.

Review:

In France in 1714, Addie LaRue made a deal with the god, Luc. She will live forever, but she will be forgotten by everyone she meets. Addie quickly realizes that this curse will be difficult to live with. She cannot create anything or leave her mark anywhere. She must steal to survive. Everything changes in 2014 when she walks into a bookstore in New York. She meets Henry, who remembers her when she returns the next day. With Henry’s help, Addie can leave her mark on the world.

Any review cannot do this book justice. It was so beautiful from beginning to end. I read this book slowly, over a couple of weeks, because I didn’t want to rush through it. I needed to savour the beautiful prose and the heartbreaking story of Addie LaRue.

Addie’s life was heartbreaking from the beginning. There were many instances of people forgetting her over the course of 300 years. Some of her close friends who knew her from before her curse didn’t recognize her after she made her deal. I kept hoping that someone would remember her after they had left, and eventually she found Henry, who remembered.

The time period jumped between chapters. I sometimes find that kind of jump in narrative disorienting because the setting is constantly changing. However, the alternating time periods in this story made sense to the story. Each chapter answered questions or demonstrated the meaning of an event from the previous chapter.

Addie’s story was so moving and heartbreaking, but also filled with love. This is one of my favourite reads of 2020!

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

What to read next:

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

Vicious by V.E. Schwab

Have you read The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue? What did you think of it?

Top 5 Saturday – Fiction by Celebrity Authors

This is a weekly meme hosted Devouring Books. This week’s prompt is Famous Authors, so I decided to do Fiction by Celebrity Authors. Here’s my list:

1. The Wishing Well by Chris Colfer

2. Bliss by Shay Mitchell and Michaela Blaney

3. Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks

4. Elixir by Hilary Duff

5. Bonfire by Krysten Ritter

(All book covers from Goodreads)

If you’d like to do this list too, consider yourself tagged!

Did you make a Top 5 Saturday list?

Review: Booked for Christmas: A Short Story

Title: Booked for Christmas: A Short Story
Author: Lily Menon
Genre: Romance, Short Story
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Source: Purchased
Format: Ebook
Release Date: October 13, 2020
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

This new novella from Lily Menon, author of Make Up Break Up, is sure to get readers in the holiday spirit.

Novelist Sophia Hart (real name: Sophie Bartholomew-Kaur-Hughes, but try fitting that on a book cover) absolutely hates her loudest critic—Evan Wolfe, evil mastermind behind the Lone Wolfe book review column. They’ve never met, but Wolfe’s favorite pastime seems to be dumping on Sophie’s unapologetically happy, magical romances. Sophie, not one to be left behind, gets her revenge in her own ways (never annoy a writer in search of a villain). 

When Sophie decides to throw a holiday party at her cabin, Wolfe is the last person on her mind. But the universe has a twisted sense of humor. Not only does Wolfe show up as someone’s plus one, but a massive snowstorm blows in, stranding them both alone together in Sophie’s cabin.

Over the next few days, Sophie begins to realize that Wolfe isn’t as odiously cynical a man as she’d originally thought. In fact, he’s kind of…sweet. And impossibly hot. But still, Sophie’s been hurt before and she has so much to lose. What she needs is one sure sign that she and Wolfe are meant to be together. Will Sophie and Wolfe get their Christmas miracle?

Review:

Sophie Hart is a romance novelist. Her archenemy is Evan Wolfe, a book critic who always tears her books apart in his reviews. They’ve never met, but Sophie has saved every one of his reviews of her books. Sophie throws a holiday party for her friends. She’s surprised to open the door and see Evan standing there. His friend invited him to the party, and he didn’t know she would be there. When a huge snowstorm is announced, her other guests leave just in time, but Evan gets stuck there. Sophie reluctantly invites Evan to stay, and she realizes he isn’t as bad as she thought. She may get the happily ever after this Christmas that she’s given to all her characters.

This is a fun “hate to love” story. Enemies to lovers is one of my favourite romance tropes. I could relate to both Evan and Sophie, because I’m a writer and a reviewer. I know how heartbreaking it can be to have my writing criticized, but I also know it’s important to give honest reviews. They had a lot of strong emotions, that were easily flipped from hate to love.

The only thing I would change in this story is I would love to see it as a longer novel. I felt like the romance was rushed to fit into the short story format. I loved seeing Sophie and Evan together, so I wish I could have spent more time with the characters. Sophie’s friends were also interesting characters that I would have liked to see more of. I hope these characters will appear in future romance novels.

This is a cute, short holiday romance!

What to read next:

In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren

Wrapped Up in You by Talia Hibbert

Have you read Booked for Christmas? What did you think of it?