Category: Favorites

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Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

I. Am. Not. OK. Don’t even try to talk to me. I finished this book in literally two days, and I haven’t been able to think straight since. I am emotionally wrecked! Someone, please call the ambulance, because this is the book that finally broke me.

I know I say this about every book, but this one is really my favorite book. I absolutely loved the storyline and the plot. But, more than that, I fell in love with the girl we follow, the young teenager we learn about, and the woman we inevitably never understand. The protagonist, Kya Clark (pronounce it Key-uh, but it might also be KI-uh), is one of the most beautifully written and created book characters I have ever come across. I don’t think I can reveal a complete summary of the book because YOU NEED TO READ IT, but I definitely want to give credit to this amazing character I love.

Kya lives in North Caroline in the 1960s and 70s. But, she doesn’t live like most of the people in the area; she lives in the marsh. All alone in the wild wetlands along the coast, this young girl has a tough life. From the very beginning, she is resilient and brave, never backing down from each curveball or full-on sledgehammer thrown her way. Throughout her story, she is confronted by hostility, superstition, and cruel gossip from the town close to where she lives. Kya’s called the Marsh Girl by everyone, and her reputation as a wild, illiterate animal keeps her closed off from the town.

Where the Crawdads Sing follows Kya’s brutal and beautiful story alongside a mysterious murder that takes place in the present, i.e. 1969-70. As the story progresses, we learn that not only did Kya know the future-murder victim/town golden boy, Chase Andrews, but they also had a long history.

The murder mystery stays pretty much invisible for the whole book, but the end plot twist was so satisfying. I can’t reveal what it is, but let’s just say that Kya and her secrets will never be shared with the outside world. Estranged and on The Outside her whole life, Kya Clark’s life remains mysterious to the town that has so ostracized her.

I loved Kya’s character so much, and this story touched something inside me I haven’t even met yet. It’s definitely a re-read for me, so I hope you’re interested enough to GO BUY IT NOW!

P.S. If our girl, Dr. T Swizzle likes it enough to write a bangin’ song about it, why are you still even on this page reading? GO. BUY. IT! (Check out Carolina or burn in hell—don’t look at me; I don’t make the rules)

Genre: contemporary/literary fiction

Age: 13+

Rating: 10/10 (#already sold my soul to the author)

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My Bookography

Get it? Like a discography, but instead of music, it’s books I’ve read? Anyway, ignore my dorkiness. Here are books I’ve read in the past but don’t have good enough recollections of them to create detailed reviews. Take these recs with a grain of salt, because if I don’t fully remember them, then I don’t have a completely accurate memory of how much I liked them. For example, I may remember totally not liking a book a few years ago because I couldn’t understand it, but my readers may think I’m completely crazy because it’s actually a great book. Anyway, here are my past reads—enjoy!

  1. The Assasin’s Blade (ToG Series) by Sarah J. Maas
  2. The Atlas Complex (The Atlas Series Book 3) by Olivie Blake
  3. From Blood and Ash Series Book 1 and 2 by Jennifer L. Armentrout
  4. Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
  5. Magnolia Parks by Jessa Hastings
  6. The Shadows Between Us by Tricia Levenseller
  7. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
  8. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
  9. Five Survive by Holly Jackson
  10. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
  11. The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
  12. People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
  13. Akata Woman (The Nsibidi Scripts Book 3) by Nnedi Okorafor
  14. Finale (Caraval Book 3) by Stephanie Garber (reviewed)
  15. Kill Joy (A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder Novella) by Holly Jackson
  16. Legendary (Caraval Book 2) by Stephanie Garber (reviewed)
  17. The Atlas Paradox (The Atlas Series Book 2) by Olivie Blake (reviewed)
  18. Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows Book 2) by Leigh Bardugo (reviewed)
  19. Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari
  20. Think Again by Adam Grant (reviewed)
  21. Ranger’s Apprentice: The Royal Ranger Books 1-6 by John Flanagan
  22. Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid
  23. And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini
  24. Caraval by Stephanie Garber (reviewed)
  25. Less is More by Jason Hickel
  26. Iron Flame (Fourth Wing Book 2) by Rebecca Yarros (reviewed)
  27. Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros (reviewed)
  28. 1984 by George Orwell
  29. Better Than The Movies by Lynn Painter (reviewed)
  30. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
  31. Icebreaker by Hannah Grace (reviewed)
  32. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black (reviewed)
  33. The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake (reviewed)
  34. Twisted Series by Ana Huang (reviewed)
  35. Off-Campus Series by Elle Kennedy (Books 1-3) (reviewed)
  36. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (reviewed)
  37. Passing by Nella Larsen (reviewed)
  38. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut (reviewed)
  39. Emma by Jane Austen (reviewed)
  40. The Secret History by Donna Tartt (reviewed)
  41. Normal People by Sally Rooney (reviewed)
  42. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas (reviewed)
  43. Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid (reviewed)
  44. Reminders Of Him by Colleen Hoover (reviewed)
  45. The Midnight Library by Matt Haig (reviewed)
  46. A Court of Thorns and Roses Series by Sarah J. Maas (reviewed)
  47. As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson (reviewed)
  48. Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson (reviewed)
  49. Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller (reviewed)
  50. The Dew Breaker by Edwidge Danticat (reviewed)
  51. Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (reviewed)
  52. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Shwab (reviewed)
  53. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens (reviewed)
  54. Beach Read by Emily Henry (reviewed)
  55. City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert
  56. Metamorphoses by Ovid
  57. The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
  58. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
  59. Love, Hate, and Other Filters by Samira Ahmed
  60. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
  61. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  62. Looking For Alaska by John Green
  63. The Fault In Our Stars by John Green
  64. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
  65. Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
  66. Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
  67. Shakespeare: Macbeth, Othello, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream
  68. Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven
  69. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
  70. Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
  71. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
  72. Circe by Madeline Miller
  73. Daughters of Sparta by Claire Haywood
  74. Elizabeth Acevedo: Clap When You Land, The Poet X, With The Fire On High
  75. What Would Boudicca Do? by E. Foley and B. Coates
  76. Benito Cereno by Herman Melville
  77. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
  78. Lord Of the Flies by William Golding
  79. Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
  80. The Giver by Lois Lowry
  81. The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
  82. Dear Ijeawele by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
  83. Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward
  84. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
  85. Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbit
  86. The Prince of Los Cocuyos by Richard Blanco
  87. The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
  88. The Pearl by John Steinbeck
  89. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
  90. In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez
  91. Afterlife by Julia Alvarez
  92. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
  93. Nnedi Okorafor: Akata Witch, Akata Warrior
  94. Leigh Bardugo: Six of Crows (reviewed), Shadow and Bone Trilogy
  95. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
  96. Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
  97. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
  98. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
  99. A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder Series by Holly Jackson
  100. Sissy by Jacob Tobia
  101. The Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling
  102. John Flanagan: Ranger’s Apprentice Series, The Brotherband Chronicles, Ranger’s Apprentice: The Early Years Series
  103. Colleen Hoover: Ugly Love, November 9, It Ends With Us
  104. Cookie O’Gorman: Adorkable, Ninja Girl
  105. The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Claire
  106. Punk 57 by Penelope Douglas
  107. The Graceling Realm Series by Kristin Cashore
  108. Jenny Han: The Summer I Turned Pretty Series, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before Series
  109. The Maximum Ride Series by James Patterson
  110. Why Fish Don’t Exist by Lulu Miller
  111. Know My Name by Chanel Miller
  112. The Soul Of An Octopus by Sy Montgomery
  113. The Book Thief by Marcus Zuzak
  114. Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper
  115. Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
  116. I Am Number Four Series by Pittacus Lore
  117. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
  118. Tyed by L.J. Shen
  119. Educated by Tara Westover
  120. Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan
  121. Orphan Island by Laurel Snyder
  122. The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp
  123. The Four Doors Down Series by Emma Doherty
  124. Ali Novak: The Heartbreakers, My Life With the Walter Boys
  125. The Selection Series by Kiera Cass
  126. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
  127. Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon
  128. Kate DiCamillo: The Tale of Despereaux, Because of Winn-Dixie
  129. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen
  130. My Sister Lives On the Mantelpiece by Annabel Pitcher
  131. The Books Of Beginning Series by John Stephens
  132. Love With A Chance of Drowning by Torre DeRoche
  133. Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
  134. Holes by Louis Sachar
  135. The Divergent Series by Veronica Roth
  136. The Hunger Games Series by Suzanne Collins
  137. I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
  138. The Royals Series & Tarnished Crown by Erin Watt
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The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab was an incredible book I recently finished. This book is centered around an enigmatic and charming young woman cursed with living forever but being forgotten by all. With such an incredible story spanning 300 years, traveling between the French countryside and the US, Addie LaRue was a page-turner if I’ve ever known one.

Adeline LaRue grew up in Villon-sur-Sarthe, France during the turn of the 17th century. As a woman in that time, the constrictions of her village began to chaff against Addie’s naturally adventurous and wild spirit. In 1714, when Addie finds herself facing the doom of marriage, she desperately turns to the darkness and hastily sells her soul for the promise of freedom to live the life she wants, uncontrolled by others. This deal is twisted beyond recognition as the impulsive words of a young woman who is abruptly faced with an unwanted future. Addie becomes doomed by another fate; that of life without any tethering whatsoever to another, freedom at its most extreme.

This curse wraps around Addie throughout the next centuries, until she meets Henry Strauss, who remembers her. A break in the matrix, a miracle, and a joy to Addie. However, as the two learn more about each other past though, they discover that the malign stealer-of-souls has plotted against them both yet again.

With the clock ticking on Addie and Henry’s time together, Addie has to come up with a way to save the one person who remembers her, who hears her, who knows her. Can she do it? And what will it cost?

Addie LaRue is a poignant, insightful, and wonderful work, full of captivating moments in history, and following a delightfully wild and clever character throughout her struggles against freedom’s darkest face; disremembrance. As someone who is always interested in historical fiction and fantasy, this book was perfect for my taste. I recommend Addie LaRue for any age group, although, of course, there are a number of sections that would not be appropriate for someone younger than the Jade Age Meter (JAM)—roughly 12 or 13.

Of course, though I absolutely loved this book, I would not recommend it to someone not interested in fantasy and fiction. Although it holds a lot of historical value, the story ultimately revolves around gods and immortality, which are, of course, fictional *wink wink.* So, if you are looking for an accurate book focused solely on history, Addie LaRue is not for you (that rhymes!). Nonetheless, this book was fantastic for someone who values scintillating fiction above boring, accurate history. Addie LaRue is 10/10 stars for me!!

Genre: historical fiction, Y/A fiction, romance

Age: 12+

Rating: 10/10 *chef’s kiss/standing ovation*