Jill's Book Blog

‘Waiting on’ Wednesday – August 28

This is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. In this post we highlight a book that’s highly anticipated.

The book that I’m waiting on this Wednesday is The Babysitters Coven by Kate Williams. The expected publication date is September 17, 2019.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Adventures in Babysitting meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer in this funny, action-packed novel about a coven of witchy babysitters who realize their calling to protect the innocent and save the world from an onslaught of evil.

Seventeen-year-old Esme Pearl has a babysitters club. She knows it’s kinda lame, but what else is she supposed to do? Get a job? Gross. Besides, Esme likes babysitting, and she’s good at it.

And lately Esme needs all the cash she can get, because it seems like destruction follows her wherever she goes. Let’s just say she owes some people a new tree.

Enter Cassandra Heaven. She’s Instagram-model hot, dresses like she found her clothes in a dumpster, and has a rebellious streak as gnarly as the cafeteria food. So why is Cassandra willing to do anything, even take on a potty-training two-year-old, to join Esme’s babysitters club?

The answer lies in a mysterious note Cassandra’s mother left her: “Find the babysitters. Love, Mom.”

Turns out, Esme and Cassandra have more in common than they think, and they’re about to discover what being a babysitter really means: a heroic lineage of superpowers, magic rituals, and saving the innocent from seriously terrifying evil. And all before the parents get home.

What books are you waiting on this week?

Review: Crown of Coral and Pearl

Title: Crown of Coral and Pearl
Author: Mara Rutherford
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: August 27, 2019
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

For generations, the princes of Ilara have married the most beautiful maidens from the ocean village of Varenia. But though every girl longs to be chosen as the next princess, the cost of becoming royalty is higher than any of them could ever imagine…

Nor once dreamed of seeing the wondrous wealth and beauty of Ilara, the kingdom that’s ruled her village for as long as anyone can remember. But when a childhood accident left her with a permanent scar, it became clear that her identical twin sister, Zadie, would likely be chosen to marry the Crown Prince—while Nor remained behind, unable to ever set foot on land.

Then Zadie is gravely injured, and Nor is sent to Ilara in her place. To Nor’s dismay, her future husband, Prince Ceren, is as forbidding and cold as his home—a castle carved into a mountain and devoid of sunlight. And as she grows closer to Ceren’s brother, the charming Prince Talin, Nor uncovers startling truths about a failing royal bloodline, a murdered queen… and a plot to destroy the home she was once so eager to leave.

In order to save her people, Nor must learn to negotiate the treacherous protocols of a court where lies reign and obsession rules. But discovering her own formidable strength may be the one move that costs her everything: the crown, Varenia and Zadie.

Review:

This book is an amazing start to a new series!

I loved the character development in this story. Nor and Zadie looked alike but they were complete opposites. Nor wanted to be chosen to become the princess of Ilara, but since she was scarred, she wasn’t beautiful enough to be chosen. Zadie was the more perfect girl, but she wanted to stay behind to be with the boy she loved. Nor ended up showing that you can get anything you want, as long as you try for it.

There was a variety of settings in this book. Nor and Zadie come from a village on the ocean. The castle is in a mountain, and some smaller villages on land were described as well. These different settings challenged the characters who weren’t used to the different kinds of land.

I loved this book so much! I don’t know how I will wait to read the next book!

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

Top Ten Tuesday – Books I’ve Read That I’d Like in My Personal Library

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’ve Read That I’d Like in My Personal Library. Here’s my list:

1. The Raging Ones (The Raging Ones #1) by Krista and Becca Ritchie

2. A Crown of Coral and Pearl by Mara Rutherford

3. The Last Magician (The Last Magician #1) by Lisa Maxwell

4. Ace of Shades (The Shadow Game #1) by Amanda Foody

5. The Dead Queens Club by Hannah Capin

6. There’s Something About Sweetie (Dimple and Rishi #2) by Sandhya Menon

7. Serious Moonlight by Jenn Bennett

8. Five Feet Apart by Rachel Lippincott, Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis

9. Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

10. The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware

(All photos taken from Goodreads)

Review: Black Canary, Volume 1: Kicking and Screaming

Title: Black Canary, Volume 1: Kicking and Screaming
Author: Brendan Fletcher, Annie Wu, Pia Guerra, Lee Loughridge
Genre: Graphic Novel
Publisher: DC Comics
Source: Library
Format: Ebook
Release Date: March 2, 2016
Rating: ★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Dinah Lance hits the road! After years as a soldier and vigilante, the last place Dinah saw herself is on stage…but she’s quickly learning she’d die to protect the gang of misfits she’s fallen into. And she just might have to—for some reason, the newly rechristened band Black Canary seems to be a magnet for trouble…and Dinah’s not gonna believe it when she finds out the reason why!

Collecting: Black Canary 1-7, Sneak Peek

Review:

I had never read a Black Canary graphic novel before this one, and I didn’t know much about her. Black Canary, or Dinah Drake, has a special “Canary cry,” which can harm her enemies. In this story, she is the lead singer of a band called Black Canary. They have to protect one of their band mates, a child who is being chased by a number of people.

Since I didn’t know much about Black Canary before this story, I would have liked it much more if she was the focus of the plot. The band members kept talking about feuds they had before Dinah arrived, so I was left wondering what happened before the story. There were a few subplots that were started, but they weren’t completed by the end of the graphic novel.

One problem with this graphic novel is that it tried to use sound to convey the story, yet there is no sound to the graphic novel. Dinah and the other characters had to use sound to fight off their enemies, yet that was hard to show on the page. That left many pages with just images to portray the story. This became confusing because some characters looking the same, and there wasn’t enough space to show who was in the panel.

Unfortunately, this graphic novel didn’t work for me. There is a new Black Canary adaptation coming out later in the year by Meg Cabot, which I’m looking forward to trying out!

It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? – August 26

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 Crown of Coral and Pearl by Mara Rutherford.

What I’m currently reading:

I’m currently reading The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware.

What I’m reading next:

Next I will be reading Dear Haiti, Love Alaine by Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite.

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

Jill’s Weekly Wrap-Up – August 25

Here are my reviews for the week with my ratings:

Angel Catbird, Volume 1 ★★★★
Two Peas in a Pod (Whatever After #11) ★★★★★
Tidelands (The Fairmile #1) ★★★★★
Hideaway ★★★★
How to Talk to Girls at Parties ★★★
Fan the Fame ★★★★★

I did 9 weekly blogging memes:

How was your week? What did you guys read?

Sundays in Bed With… Crown of Coral and Pearl

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 Crown of Coral and Pearl by Mara Rutherford.

Goodreads Synopsis:

For generations, the princes of Ilara have married the most beautiful maidens from the ocean village of Varenia. But though every girl longs to be chosen as the next princess, the cost of becoming royalty is higher than any of them could ever imagine…

Nor once dreamed of seeing the wondrous wealth and beauty of Ilara, the kingdom that’s ruled her village for as long as anyone can remember. But when a childhood accident left her with a permanent scar, it became clear that her identical twin sister, Zadie, would likely be chosen to marry the Crown Prince—while Nor remained behind, unable to ever set foot on land.

Then Zadie is gravely injured, and Nor is sent to Ilara in her place. To Nor’s dismay, her future husband, Prince Ceren, is as forbidding and cold as his home—a castle carved into a mountain and devoid of sunlight. And as she grows closer to Ceren’s brother, the charming Prince Talin, Nor uncovers startling truths about a failing royal bloodline, a murdered queen… and a plot to destroy the home she was once so eager to leave.

In order to save her people, Nor must learn to negotiate the treacherous protocols of a court where lies reign and obsession rules. But discovering her own formidable strength may be the one move that costs her everything: the crown, Varenia and Zadie.

What book are you in bed with today?

Six for Sunday – Yellow Books

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. Giant Days, Vol. 1 by John Allison, Lissa Treiman, Whitney Cogar

2. The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe

3. Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson

4. Sink or Swim (Whatever After #3) by Sarah Mlynowski

5. Please Send Help… (I Hate Everyone But You #2) by Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin

6. The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation by Shannon Hale, Dean Hale, and LeUyen Pham

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

Review: Fan the Fame

Title: Fan the Fame
Author: Anna Priemaza
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Indigo Fall Preview
Format: Paperback
Release Date: August 20, 2019
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Equal parts Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl and Jennifer Mathieu’s Moxie, this fiercely crafted feminist YA novel takes on fandom, accountability, and doing the right thing. Even when it hurts.

Lainey wouldn’t mind lugging a camera around a video game convention for her brother, aka YouTube superstar Codemeister, except for one big problem. He’s funny and charming online, but behind closed doors, Cody is a sexist jerk.

SamTheBrave came to this year’s con with one mission: meeting Codemeister—because getting his idol’s attention could be the big break Sam needs.

ShadowWillow is already a successful streamer. But when her fans start shipping her with Code, Shadow concocts a plan to turn the rumors to her advantage.

The three teens’ paths collide when Lainey records one of Cody’s hateful rants on video. Because she’s determined to spill the truth to her brother’s fans—even if that means putting Sam and Shadow in the crosshairs.

Told through three relatable voices and arriving on the heels of the author’s widely praised debut novel, Kat and Meg Conquer the World, this sophomore novel is a nuanced and timely story about followers, fame, and fighting for what’s right.

Review:

This was a great story!

This story drew a lot of attention to problems in the online gaming community. Lainey wanted to take her brother down from his high position in the community by proving that he is a misogynist and a racist. At the same time, ShadowWillow has to fight for her position in the community even harder just because she is a woman. ShadowWillow even comments on how the panel of all girls at the convention was in the morning, at the least popular time slot.

The character SamTheBrave had a disorder that caused him to pick at his skin. He was bullied because people couldn’t understand his disorder. Even his family bullied him about it. Even if a disorder doesn’t have a “pretty” image, it is important for it to be present in fiction, because it is present in real life. I really liked that Sam had this uncommon disorder, to bring awareness to it.

One thing that would have made this story much more effective was if there were people of colour and LGBTQ characters represented in this story. People of colour in the gaming community were mentioned briefly and there were some very minor LGBTQ characters, but I think there should have been some more representation because they are also part of the community.

I really loved this story!

Thank you Chapters Indigo for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

Ash Princess (Ash Princess Trilogy #1) by Laura Sebastian

The Last Namsara (Iskari #1) by Kristen Ciccarelli

1. The Raging Ones (The Raging Ones #1) by Krista and Becca Ritchie

2. A Crown of Coral and Pearl by Mara Rutherford

3. The Last Magician (The Last Magician #1) by Lisa Maxwell

4. Ace of Shades (The Shadow Game #1) by Amanda Foody

5. The Dead Queens Club by Hannah Capin

6. There’s Something About Sweetie (Dimple and Rishi #2) by Sandhya Menon

7. Serious Moonlight by Jenn Bennett

8. Five Feet Apart by Rachel Lippincott, Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis

9. Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

10. The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

Heavy Vinyl by Carly Usdin, Nina Vakueva

Josie and the Pussycats, Volume 1 by Marguerite Bennett, Cameron DeOrdio, Audrey Mok

What I just finished:

What I’m currently reading:

What I’m reading next:

Goodreads Synopsis:

1. Giant Days, Vol. 1 by John Allison, Lissa Treiman, Whitney Cogar

2. The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe

3. Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson

4. Sink or Swim (Whatever After #3) by Sarah Mlynowski

5. Please Send Help… (I Hate Everyone But You #2) by Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin

6. The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation by Shannon Hale, Dean Hale, and LeUyen Pham

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

Kat and Meg Conquer the World by Anna Priemaza