Category: Recommendations

I know, I know; before you even say anything about my absence from posting, please let me explain. Over the past three months, I’ve been busy beyond belief—finishing school, exams, traveling, family time, work(!), and preparing for my semester away. Trust me, I’ve been so busy I haven’t even had time to update my summer reading list at all. So, if you’ve been checking that post and wondering why there’s been no activity from me there, that’s why.

However, I’m NEVER too busy not to read, and I’ve especially loved indulging my Y/A and fantasy cravings. After I finished Sapiens, I knew I needed to finish up the Six of Crows duology. It had been calling my name from my bookshelf for a while, and I needed to give it another chance. I must have known that as soon as I got two chapters in, I would be hooked. And sure enough, I remembered how much I loved Leigh’s storytelling and world-building and how much I missed the characters. By the end of the book, I was super nostalgic and sad that it had ended. If anyone has access to it, please send me the petition to add another book to the series—you have my full endorsement.

Crooked Kingdom wasn’t just super fun and fresh because I got to revisit the world of SOC; I also loved getting the expanded version of the plot I saw on Shadow & Bone Season 2. I miss that show so much every day, and didn’t realize the duology’s plot was covered in both sessions, albeit condensed and switched around so that the Ice Court heist in SOC never happened but the Jan Van Eck/Pekka Rollins plot (minus Kuwei) did. Like any book series adapted into a show, it always pays to read the books first because the show inevitably cuts parts of the plot when adapting them.

Speaking of which (not me going on a different tangent), who’s excited for AGGGTM?????? I am so freaking ready, it’s insane!! I literally cannot wait. I was so excited for the 14th because I thought I could watch it by then, but it’s only been released on British streaming services, so I have to wait for August 1st. Ugh! Anyway, from the trailers I’ve seen it looks so incredibly well done and I can’t wait to show it to my friends and family. Sorry, sorry, I’ve completely left my review of CK—getting back on track now.

So, here are a few things I loved about CK and Leigh Bardugo’s writing of the SOC duology in general—I’m being specific here because I’ve read the Grishaverse series and didn’t love it as much as I’ve come to love SOC. I loved getting to see the characters again; they bring me such warmth and happiness and I just want them to be safely tucked away so that they can never be hurt again. Maybe that’s why some people are satisfied with leaving the series where things end up at CK because it’s an ending full of such possibilities and new beginnings—I really don’t want them to get into another scuffle or heist because then someone might be hurt (again). (BTW I did cry. I did. Iykyk, but I cried like a baby when I got to that part.)

I also loved Leigh’s style of world, because there are so many different ways to write fantasy, but I’ve really only seen the style of world-building that appears in the Grishaverse, ACOTAR, Fourth Wing, Cruel Prince, etc. By that, I mean, the kind of world that revolves around a “chosen one,” a confusing and blurry magic system (sometimes it’s not even a system, just a mishmash of stories), and so many plot holes I feel like I’m playing Mario Kart. Now, that’s definitely not to say I don’t like these books I mentioned (ACOTAR is one of my favorite series of all time, and I really liked Cruel Prince), but it does indicate a lack of super intense planning and skilled writing. In SOC and CK, I saw the complex, interconnected plot details that Leigh put together from the very beginning. It’s super satisfying and exciting for readers when that happens because it forces our brain to try to put the pieces together that have been laid far back and are difficult to uncover. It’s like a fun mind game and I loved seeing that in both books. I’ve also seen it in AGGGTM and a little bit in Caraval, which I’ll touch on in my review of Legendary (coming soon).

All in all, I loved this book and had a great time getting back into this series and world I enjoyed so much. But, is it a 10 that I’ll never be able to forget, like ACOTAR and Ranger’s Apprentice? Sadly, no. I’ll definitely think about it and I loved it, but I won’t re-read it or never, ever let the characters leave my brain.

Genre: fantasy, fiction, Y/A

Age: 12/13+ (idk, nothing graphic except Kaz’s insanity but the plot is complex)

Rating: 9.5/10

Hey, guys! Long time no see. It’s been a while since I posted a book review, although I think my most recent post reviewing books was on my YT channel about all the books I read in February. So, yeah, it’s been a hot minute since I posted anything—sorry!

Let’s jump right into all the updates I have for you guys and then we’ll talk about this book I just finished—the last time I posted I was still in school and studying intensely for exams. Since then, I finished the school year last week and finished taking my exams before then, in the first two weeks of May. Exams were so hectic and intense, and now I have nothing to do but agonize over the wait until I get my scores back in July. But, there’s nothing I can do to change them and I’m glad I’m finally done with studying myself to death. Also, I had a fun and bittersweet end to the rest of my classes, so I left the school year pretty happy and sad at the same time to be going away next semester.

I spent all of May in Philly, studying and taking exams, and then hanging with friends and family once those were over. Then, we all flew to Chicago for my eldest sister’s graduation. I still can’t believe she’s done with college and will get her first job and fully start her adult life in NYC. The graduation was rainy and some of the family weren’t able to make it, but we had a great time and then flew back to the boat, which my parents sailed during May up the East Coast to South Carolina. Having the boat in the US feels a bit odd, mostly because we’ve never done it, but we’re also showing my dad’s family, who live in South Carolina, the boat for the first time. We have a bit of a family reunion over the next week, and then begin sailing Daf farther up the East Coast to Connecticut.

Well, that mostly sums up my life over the past month so I don’t have to write a full-length (boring) summer post. Now I can focus on this super awesome book I read last week during the graduation. It’s by Adam Grant, who’s an organization psychologist, has written several other books, has a podcast, and teaches at Wharton Business School in Philly. I love reading psychology books and this one was especially interesting.

It focused on rethinking and opening our minds to opposing ideas, arguments, concepts, or discussions. This is such a universal concept that translates to every aspect of today’s world, and I felt that I learned so much important stuff reading it. Additionally, it’s a book that could benefit literally every person in the world because it’s about the universal human experience and how our brains attach to concepts and values that we need to rethink constantly. I learned how to approach conversations or people with more emotional distance, how to think more like a scientist, and how to value and understand opposing opinions.

Again, I think this book can change everyone’s opinions on arguing, the increased polarization we face today, how to approach others who have different opinions than you, and how to rethink your own values and opinions.

Genre: psychology, self-help, non-fiction

Age: 13+

Rating: 9.5/10

All right, we’re back with another book review! It hasn’t been that long since I wrote a review because I posted the Iron Flame review about a week ago. But, I did read one book between that and this one, Caraval, which I didn’t think was worthy of a lengthy review because it didn’t feel like the type of content you guys might be looking for. But, if you’d like to hear about it (it’s called Less is More by Jason Hickel), I will post a review. Now, back to business!

I read Caraval in about two days, which is pretty close to my record of a day and a half (no surprise, that was Icebreaker), but I think that’s a pretty big indication of how much I liked the book. It was a super cool and fun world, and the layout and structure felt similar to a heist, fantasy book, so I loved the vibes of Six of Crows that it gave me. I love Six of Crows, so that was definitely a pro. But, it was unquestionably Y/A, had little smut/physical romance, and was a super simplistic writing style. That’s probably why I flew through it; I was super engaged the whole way through and could understand what was going on easily.

That’s not to say the plot twists and turns didn’t surprise the heck out of me, because they did. I was gasping and nuh-uh-ing for my life in the last half of the book, which gave me such an awesome feeling of drama, theatrics, and high tensions. That was the vibe of basically the whole book, and it was absolutely what I needed. I have little to no complaints about this book. Would it be one of my all-time favorite books? No. Did it change my life and force me to question my soul? Nope. But it took me back to parts of my childhood while also appealing to my taste in books right now. I loved the Six of Crows vibes, the fantasy and tension, and the colorful, magical, performance world. It was difficult not to visualize everything about the book, which is one of my favorite things to do, so I enjoyed that as well.

In conclusion, I had lots of fun reading Caraval, breezed through it, and didn’t see the plot twists coming—but then again, I never do. It was a great read for me to have at the moment and a perfect world to escape to, which is what I love about fantasy and fiction.

Genre: Y/A, fantasy, fiction, light romance

Age: 12+

Rating: 8/10

I don’t remember whether I’ve told you guys this, but I really love summer reading. Now, don’t get it twisted, I didn’t say “summer”; I said “summer reading.” Summers are usually just as busy and hectic if not more, than school years. But, the one perk is being able to read whatever I want and visiting a lot more bookstores—which are my happy places—than I normally do. Of course, the summer is also when I get to visit friends and family, but that can be super stressful and tiring. So, I find as much solace and peace in exploring my literary interests, some of which are anything but educational…

However, in the case of this book, I really did continue my educational reading spree into the summer. I’m preparing to take AP English Lit in the fall, as well as two other APs, so I’m trying to get ahead of the class by reading a lot of educational books over the summer. This will help when I begin to prepare for the test in the spring because it centers around having a wide knowledge of many books. My headstart this summer is to read as many classic, great books as I can. I’m sadly a bit behind, as “smart” books are more difficult and longer to read than my usual fun, summer reads. I’ve managed to get through Emma, about a third of Metamorphoses, and now Of Mice and Men.

I loved Of Mice and Men, and it was such a great second Steinbeck read. I read The Pearl a few years ago, and I remember it being so incredible and beautifully terrible at the end. Of Mice and Men had that same feeling and was such a testament to a great writer and the power of stories. I’m constantly blown away by books, but especially in this one, being so short and yet still so lovely.

Its length was actually exactly what I wanted. It’s an amazing book to have under my belt, but I didn’t want to sacrifice so much time to read it, especially when I still have so many books left for the summer. It could be read all in one sitting, but because I’ve been rather busy, it took me about three days to finish. Highly recommend!

Age: 13/14+

Genre: Fiction, historical fiction

Rating: 8.5/10

So, I’ve read Pride and Prejudice, and I loved it; it was a fan favorite of my family. Also, the movie and TV show adaptations slap, especially Pride and Prejudice and Zombies—so freaking good! (Side note: P&P&Z is also a book, and it’s so good as well!) But, I’ve automatically transferred that love for P&P to Jane Austen. I’ve started saying, “Oh, I love Jane Austen!”, when in fact, I’ve only fully read and loved her most famous book. If it really matters, I’ve partially read/listened to Sense and Sensibility, but I never finished it. (It was for a writing competition and I was very busy at the time—give me a break, guys!). The point is, I’ve never actually read an original, un-modernized, or adapted Austen’s work beside P&P. Reading Emma, I felt I could finally change that statement.

Emma just reaffirmed all my opinions about Austen; it displayed her wit, her complex mind, and her wonderful character-building. I had felt that when reading P&P, but it was more beautiful to see it for the first time in another work that wasn’t as familiar.

Now, for my shame; you guys are never going to forgive me for this. I’ve actually seen the 2020 movie adaptation…I know, I know! You can kill me after I post this review—I give you full permission. But, just hear me out: I had never really heard of Emma before then and I was only told afterward that it was Austen. I felt so extremely dirty, you have no idea. Thankfully, even though I can’t undo what I did, it was long enough ago that I can’t specifically remember what happened and so much of the book was still surprising.

I also had some pretty visuals randomly floating around in my head as I read it, which was helpful for setting the scene and giving a flowery, light academia vibe to the book. I’m definitely not going to say I’m thankful for watching the movie before (heavens, no), but it did have some advantages that I liked. Now, after finishing the book, I can rewatch the movie and feel it all over again. (Anya Taylor-Joy, I heart u!)

Emma just gives me pretty, period-piece vibes, which are one of my favorite genres. Also, Austen makes Emma not as perfect as you would think she is. She’s far from perfection, and we see all the rough edges. She reminds me a bit of Taylor, honestly: always scheming, keeping plans quiet, being careful with love, and having a strategy for everything—just overall blonde goddesses give me Taylor vibes!

Austen, as well as just any antiquated book or movie that brings me to olden times just hits different. That’s probably the main reason I rated it so high and loved it, but I think also the entire story is beautiful. I love Clueless as well—go watch it!

Genre: period drama (is this a book genre?), romance, fiction

Age: 14+ (this is more about the reading level than maturity or uncouth language)

Rating: 9/10

Oh my, this was a beautiful book! So honest about all the secret regrets and things we hate about ourselves, as well as definitive lessons on how to let go and embrace the spectacular now. A wonderful lesson, for all age ranges, with no difficult language, and a short read. Everything you could want, packaged up nicely. 

I will confess, I had a hard time getting into the story of Nora and the confusing alternate dimensions were hard to wrap my head around, but I loved the story in the end. To see someone who genuinely didn’t want to be alive anymore and was looking for any way out suddenly realize that everything was perfect in her life just as it was a beautiful concept. I am a human, and as such, I have regrets. I think this book will touch other humans who also have regrets because it is a universal truth that we all have regrets. That’s my pitch, thank you for coming to my TedTalk. 

I loved the lesson, and I’ve been thinking a lot about it since I finished the book. We all wish we could have done something differently—taken that other offer, chosen something else, made that different decision. And, life is full of these small choices we make every single day to get to where we are right now. Sitting here, me, writing, you, reading, we both had to have made exactly the same decisions that we did in this life in another one to end up here. I know that doesn’t make sense, but I think you get the idea, right? 

Either way, just think about how your life would have changed entirely if you had done something minorly different—everything would be different. Now, this can be seen as an escape by many people, and for Nora, it is. She hates her life, feels like she’s let down everyone around her, has missed every opportunity, and made nothing of herself. Then, she has the chance to change herself, to live in an alternate dimension where she made a different decision at a certain point in time. 

For a time, Nora can’t believe her luck; this is exactly what she wanted! But is it, really? As she tries out the various different versions of herself, she finds that they all don’t feel right. They don’t feel like her; it’s almost as if she’s trying to live a life where she has to be someone she’s not. 

The lesson of the book is such an important one. We all feel like we regret so much about our lives, and wish we could do better, when in reality, there’s only one you, and you don’t realize how many things are going the way they’re supposed to be. 

Genre: literary fiction

Age: 12+

Rating: 8/10