1. Crunching leaves: the world is full of colour. Chose a book that has reds, oranges and yellows on the cover. Allow me to take the opportunity to talk about 3 of my favourite books that happen to foot this bill: The Martian by Andy Weir, The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson and The Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor. If you haven’t read any of these books; please be sure to give them a chance! 2. Cosy sweaters: it’s finally warm enough to don warm, cozy clothing. What book gives you the warm fuzzies? What exactly are “the warm fuzzies”…? If you mean that kind of cozy-homey feeling that some books can give you, that you can’t quite describe but we all know what it feels like…? That…? I think most books on my favourite list will foot that bill, simply because they mean a lot to me. Alternatively: I’ve been reading more Middlegrade novels lately, and find they also often give me that feeling. Take for example August Isle by Ali Standish, The Hour of Bees by Lindsey Eagar or Departure Time by Truus Matti: all of which I (re-)read as an adult, and all of which gave me all the fuzzies… 3. Fall storm: the wind is howling and the rain is pounding. Choose your favourite book or genre to read during a storm. Anything really, as that sounds like the perfect type of reading weather to me. Other than the standard answer of fantasy or gothic horror, I’d probably say: something with beautiful language, like some well-written magical realism or literary fiction. For some reason, those type of books appeal to me more in the darker seasons than during the summer. I don’t know if I’m alone in this, but I’ve found that during the winter, I find it easier to get completely lost in an authors beautiful writing and language, whilst during the summer, I’ll sometimes prefer a “lighter type of read”. And I don’t just mean thematically, but also when it comes to the writing style. 4. Cool crisp air: who’s the coolest character, you’d like to trade places with? I tried to think of a more original answer, but I honestly don’t have one… It’s Hermione Granger, has always been Hermione Granger and will always be Hermione Granger. Seriously, who wouldn’t want to go to Hogwarts, and who wouldn’t want to do so with all the bravery, smarts and sass of our favourite female witch of all time. 5. Hot apple cider: what underhyped book do you want to see become the next hottest thing? I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: you all are sleeping on Kirsty Logan as an author! I wish more people would read either The Gracekeepers or The Gloaming by her, as I truly think both are more than worth. 6. Coats, scarves and mittens: the weather has turned cold and it’s time to cover up. What’s the most embarrassing book cover you own, that you like to keep hidden in public. I thought I didn’t have an answer for this one, but oh boy: I sure do. One of my all-time favourite books is The House of God by Samuel Shem, a novel filled to the brim with dark humor and cynicism about the first years of a medical intern in an American hospital. My edition of this book however, is an absolute abomination. It does not represent the content of the story at all, and will make it look like you’re reading some type of cringy, wattpad-doctors-romance story, instead of what it actually is. This is probably one of the few bookcovers that I’d actually cover up when reading it in public. 7. Pumpkin spice: what’s your favourite fall-time comfort food? Soup! I love me my soups all year round, but especially during the colder seasons. I’ll basically appreciate any type of soup, as long as it’s vegetarian, but my favourites during autumn are probably spicy pumpkin, or mushroom-soup. That concludes the Fall-Time, Cosy Time Book Tag, originally created by Novels and Nonsense on Youtube. I hope you enjoyed, and would love to hear: what's your favourite fall-read?

1. What is your favourite thing about autumn? In recent years, autumn weather in the Netherlands has been in a bit of an identity crisis. We flipflop between rainy days and cold temperatures that require sweaters, scarfs and hot drinks to stay warm, only to have an Indian summer with temperatures over 25 degrees just a few days later. I personally love that duality (although the implications of it, regarding climate change terrify me), and it makes me enjoy both types even more. Additionally, I love the atmospheric nature of this entire season: people combating the incoming cold and shortening days with cosy scarves, candle lights and good company. There’s something beautiful to that contrast to that. 2. What book reminds you of your school days? These are not going to be very original ones. First of all: the Harry Potter series, as I read most of them around autumn for the first time, while in school. Other books that come to mind are the Doran series by Monica Furlong, as I remember bringing those books to school, and reading them after I’d finish my work in class during my last years of middle school. 3. What cover reminds you of autumn? The first one that comes to mind is one that is on my autumn TBR-pile for this year: House of Glass by Susan Fletcher, for obvious reasons. The colourscheme and the autumnal leaves are a given. 4. What is your favourite horror or Halloween story? This is more difficult than I thought it would be… I don’t read too many “hardcore horror novels”, but have a lot of favourites that have that atmospheric, slightly unsettling vibe to them. One of my all-time favourite books is A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, which could be considered a Halloween-read in a way. Most recently, I adored the first book in The Diviners Series by Libba Bray, which would make for a perfect Halloween read as well. 5. What is your favourite horror or Halloween film? There are honestly two types of Horror movies that I enjoy watching: first of all, the ones that have genuinely good stories and actually deeply unsettle me. Those are the type of movies that become all-time favourites and stick with me for a long time, even when I don’t particularly like to watch them over and over again. Some examples of this are Hereditary, Annihilation, and recently the Netflix series The Haunting of Hill House. Then there’s the ones that I like to watch over and over on repeat on Halloween. Spoiler alert: most of them are not actually as terrifying. One of my favourite things to watch over and over is It's a Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, as I watched a lot of Snoopy with my mum when I was little, and it brings back great memories for me. 6. What fall book release are you looking forward to? Fall is usually my favourite release-season for books, and this year is no different. My most anticipated release of the year, The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern is coming out in November. Additionally, I’m very much looking forward to Things we Say in the Dark by Kirsty Logan, and The Last True Poets of the Sea by Julia Drake, both released in October. 7. What autumn movie release are you most anticipating? I don’t have one currently. 8. What are three books you plan to read this autumn? I have a full autumn TBR up already, which you can find here. I haven’t been able to find the original creator of this tag, so I’ll just link where I found it. If you know the original creator, please let me know, so I can properly credit them.

Although I’m still not completely ready to acknowledge that summer is already drawing to an end, it’s becoming harder and harder to ignore the decreasing temperatures and browning leaves. The fact that I’m typing this indoors, wearing an oversized sweater, sipping a scolding hot coffee and debating whether or not it’s too early to turn on the heater says enough: autumn is here. I’ll have to find solace in the fact that those cooler temperatures and rainy weather make for prime reading conditions, and I have a bunch of books on my TBR that I’m more than excited to get to. Today, I’ll share 8 books from my autumn TBR, that I hope to get to within the next couple of months. Most of them share that “atmospheric” nature that makes a good autumn-read for me. So without further ado: let’s get into the autumn-reading material. 1. Middlegame by Seanan McGuire High on my list of most anticipated novels of 2019 was Middlegame by Seanan McGuire, and although it’s been out for a few months now, I’ve held off on it until closer to autumn as it seems perfect for this time of year. At the time of writing this post, I’m already about 100 pages into this beast of a book, and man… it’s equal parts weird and awesome so far… I’m really excited to see where this goes next. 2. Lair of Dreams by Libba Bray (The Diviners #2) Mix nineteen-twenties-New York-glamour with an amazing diverse cast of characters and throw in a serial killer and a generous serving of occultism, and you basically get The Diviners. After hearing so much hype over this series, I finally started it at the beginning of 2019, and boy was I sleeping on a gem until now. If you haven’t read this book yet, I highly recommend it, especially round this time of year. As for me: I’ll be picking up its sequel Lair of Dreams sometime soon. 3. Other Words for Smoke by Sarah Maria Griffin I’m honestly not quite sure how to introduce this novel, as I don’t know too much about what it is about and would like to keep it that way. That being said, part of my was so intrigued by the description on the backflap, that I almost blindly bought it upon release. Instead of my summarizing it, I recommend you click the title and read the description for yourself on Goodreads, as it does a better job of giving you an atmospheric impression than I could do. After you’ve done that: tell me that doesn’t sound like a perfect autumn/Halloween read… 4. Things we Say in The Dark by Kirsty Logan Another one of my most anticipated releases of 2019, is the latest work by one of my all-time favourite authors Kirsty Logan. Things we Say in the Dark is a gothic short-story collection that looks equal part enchanting and profoundly unsettling to me. With stories of lingering ghosts in overgrown pools, schoolgirls obsessed with anatomical models, and a monster that calls to a girl at night, this collection promises to address themes of “female bodies, domestic claustrophobia, desire and violence, and more.” I can’t wait to get my hands on this one! 5. House of Glass by Susan Fletcher I started House of Glass earlier this year, but put it down for the time being, as I was unable to get into it properly. Like I mentioned in my wrap up then: this was 100% my problem, not the books, as my mind was just not in it, and I planned on picking it back up at a later time, preferably in autumn. That’s what I plan on doing now. House of Glass is a gothic historical fiction novel that tells the story of a young woman, tasked with creating a miniature paradise within the greenhouse at a mysterious mansion. Things however, are not what they seem around the premises, leaving Clara to explore the secrets of not just the manor, but all its inhabitants. Perhaps even including herself… 6. Things in Jars by Jess Kidd Another historical gothic fiction, this time by an author I’ve been closely watching for some time now: Jess Kidd. Described as gothic mystery set in the dark underbelly of Victorian London, where a female detective is pulled into the macabre world of fanatical anatomists and crooked surgeons while investigating the kidnapping of an extraordinary child… Not sure about me, but this screams “perfect Halloween-eve read” to me. 7. House upon the Between the Lake and the Woods by Matt Bell I won’t lie: I know very little about this second to last one, other than it being recommended by some reviewers I trust and the description from Goodreads. The latter hits all the marks for a good autumn read for me: it’s vague, yet unsettling and sounds whimsical but ominous at the same time. Described as “strange atmospheric magical realism” with fairytale elements, and an underlying tale of obsession and grief: I really hope this one doesn’t disappoint. 8. The God Jar by Phill Featherstone The final book on my list is a bit of a shot in the dark, as again: I know very little about this one, other than the description from Goodreads. I requested an early copy of this novel via Netgalley, purely off of the description, and it sounding like an interesting supernatural thriller. The God Jar follows a young couple, after they find a mysterious, possibly cursed object whilst scuba diving off the Cornish coast. Many of you will know that I have a soft spot for anything with an ocean-(side)setting. Few will probably know that, as much as I adore the ocean from a distance, it’s also one of my greatest fears, so horror/thrillers based around scuba-diving are particularly effective to me. I really hope this doesn’t disappoint, and plan on writing a full review after finishing this one. As per usual, I will probably add and/or make changes to this list as I go along, but at least for now, these are the books I’m most excited to get to this season. I’m looking forward to seeing other peoples autumn TBR’s (or even Halloween TBR’s, as those aren’t far away either anymore), and hope to find some more inspiration there. Until then, stay warm and cozy, and happy reading! Follow me on Goodreads

First of all: I apologize for my complete lack of updates during the course of this month. I’ve had a crazy busy month with work again and haven’t been able to get a lot of productivity done outside that. I’m in desperate need of a vacation, and luckily I have a few days coming up in September. Hopefully then, I will be able to catch up the backlog here as well. That being said: for the next week I’m still in the middle of all of the hectic of my internship, so todays post will be short. I want to mention the books I read in the month of August, which will simultaneously be my wrap-up for the N.E.W.T.s readathon. I will for now only briefly mention the books, and the rating I ended up giving them. A more in depth monthly wrap up, hopefully with linked reviews, will follow later this month. When it comes to the N.E.W.T.s, I’m not quite sure whether I passed or failed them to be honest. I set a TBR for Magical Healer, which includes 10 books, knowing full-well that this was overambitious, and I would probably fail. I technically did read exactly 10 books in the month of August, and all of them could fit one of the prompts. So in that sense: I did complete the Readathon. I didn’t however stick to my TBR, and had to switch some books around in order to make it work. For the Magical Healer career, you are required to get an E in 5 subjects: Charms, Defense against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Potions and Transfiguration. The following books are the ones I used for the corresponding prompts: Charms: A: a book that has a stunning cover On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong Rating: 5/5 stars E: a book that has less than 150 pages Binti by Nnedi Okorafor Rating: 2/5 stars Defense against the Dark Arts: A: a book that is black under the dustjacket Welkom in het Rijk der Zieken by Hanna Bervoets (dutch) Rating: 4/5 stars E: the first book that comes to mind The Need by Helen Philips Rating: 2/5 stars Herbology: A: listen to an audiobook A Fierce and Subtle Poison by Samantha Mabry Rating: 2/5 stars E: a book that has between 350-390 pages Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman Rating: 3.5/5 stars Potions: A: a friends favorite book The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin Rating: 3/5 stars E: a book with your house color on the cover. (In my case blue, since I’m a Ravenclaw) 10 minutes, 38 seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak Rating: 5/5 stars Transfigurations: A: a book that features LGBTQ+ representation Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno Rating: 4/5 stars E: a book that isn’t the first in a series. Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater Rating: 3/5 stars Overall, this wasn't my best readingmonth so far. Not only did I really have to push myself to finish some of these, I actually only ended up loving three out of the 10 books I read. the rest of them, I felt pretty much indifferent towards. Again, a full wrap up with more details will hopefully follow later this month. Until then, happy reading and let me know: did you participate in the N.E.W.T.s? If so, what careerpath did you choose?

The month of July, despite the readathons, turned out to be a bit of a mixed bag as far as ratings go. I read a total of 13 books, 5 of which were on audio, with an average rating of 3.1 stars. I feel like I've already given plenty of intro about this month in my other posts (see my Readathon Wrap Up, as well as my Best of 2019 and Life Updates), so therefore, I'm going to get straight into the books. 1. Rolling in the Deep by Mira Grant I picked up Rolling in the Deep on audio on a complete whim, and kind of regret doing so: man was I disappointed in this. Rolling in the Deep follows a film crew shooting a mockumentary on mermaids hiding deep within the Mariana Trench. They come fully prepared, bringing everything from a group of actresses to play the mermaids to a biologist who is willing to twist the truth a little to fit the documentary’s narrative. What they didn’t come prepared for, however, was finding actual creatures living in the deep. And they’re far from friendly… I probably should have lowered my expectations from a story based on killer-mermaids a little bit, but every underwater horror has the potential to greatly terrify me, so I wanted to go in with an open mind. I came out feeling like I had just read any other creepy-pasta on the internet… It was predictable, heavily relying on every trope in the book, and not written particularly well. I’m guessing the publication had something to do with Seanan McGuires name (albeit a penname) being attached to it. Suffice to say: this was not for me unfortunately. My Rating: 1/5 stars 2. The Color of the Sun by David Almond The Color of the Sun has a premise that sounded very much up my alley, and I was lucky enough to be provided an ARC by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Unfortunately, this was a bit of a disappointment. The Color of the Sun is the 2019 YA contemporary novel by David Arnold and centers around the inner world of a teenage boy who has recently lost his father. We follow him during a single day, mere weeks after his father’s passing, on a walk through his small town, as he interacts with his environment and towns folk, and tries to rediscover the beauty in what surrounds him. You can find my full review and thoughts via the link here My Rating: 2/5 stars 3. Nocturna by Maya Montayne Nocturna received quite a lot of buzz before and surrounding its release, prompting me to give this a try. Unfortunately, I don’t think it deserved the hype it got… This was a very standard YA-fantasy, about two magically gifted teenagers (a prince and a thief) teaming up to fight an ancient force that has been unleashed and is threatening to destroy the kingdom. Although it was perfectly enjoyable, it lacked the originality and uniqueness to be memorable to me. You can find my full review here. My Rating: 2/5 stars 4. Stardust by Neil Gaiman Stardust was the groupbook for the Book Junkie Readathon, and although it was on my “want-to-read” shelf on Goodreads, I doubt I would have picked it up anytime soon if it weren’t for that. Gaiman and I have proven not be the greatest match over the past years. Although I almost always love his ideas, to the point where I feel they have to translate into five-star books for me, I’m always left a little disappointed near the end. The same goes for Stardust to some extent. Stardust felt like a childrens fairytale. Nothing more, nothing less. As with many of Gaimans books, despite some of the dark imagery, this reads extremely “young” to me, as if written for a middle-grade audience. Due to the aforementioned disturbing imagery or sexual references the author includes, it clearly isn’t meant for that audience however… Leaving me to wonder: who is this written for…? If you are an adult, who loves fairytales, especially combined with some dry English humor, this is probably the book for you. English humor aside, I don’t think I’m that person necessarily, making this a disappointment for me. My Rating: 2/5 stars 5. Mona in Three Acts by Griet Op de Beeck Mona in Three Acts was technically both an ARC, aswell as a reread for me. This is the first English translation of one of the most popular books by well-known Flemish author Griet Op de Beeck. I’ve read all but one of her many novels in the original Dutch, including “Kom Hier, dat ik u Kus”(the books original title), but was very curious to see as to how this would translate into English. Upon rereading it however, I did find my opinion on this book has changed over the years since I first read it. I found I had a lot more issues with it than I originally had, and therefore gave it a lower rating than expected. That being said; this is still a very beloved book, both in The Netherlands and Belgium, and I’m happy that it will become available for more people to read with the new translation. You can find my full review linked here. My Rating: 2.5/5 stars 6. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater I’m not sure what came over me this summer, but I had the sudden craving to reread the Raven Boys, a series I haven’t thought of revisiting for years now. This series genuinely needs no introduction in the bookish world, nor does it need much explaining on my part as to what I loved about it. This has never been an all-time favorite, 5-star series for me, but the characters and settings are still quite dear to my heart and I had a great time revisiting them. I’m especially looking forward to reading book 3 next month, which I remember originally being my favorite of the series. My Rating: 3.5/5 stars 7. The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater Being the sequel to The Raven Boys, I can be quite short about this one as well. I’ve always found this the least interesting book in the series, which this reread confirmed so far. For that reason, half a star less than The Raven Boys: still a worthwhile addition to the series. My Rating: 3/5 stars 8. And the Ocean was Our Sky by Patrick Ness Patrick Ness… Mad genius, or just madman…? That question always comes to mind with this man’s books, as all of them just have an element of bizarreness that seems to be unique to his brand. And the Ocean was Our Sky was no different in that regard. There is no better way to explain this than saying it’s a “species-flipped” retelling of Moby Dick. Yeah, you heard me right: species-flipped. In this beautifully illustrated retelling we follow a crew of Whales on their version of a hunting vessel, searching for the monster that has terrorized whalekind for years now: the terrible human Toby Wick. Yes, this book is a little ridiculous. It’s also quite brilliant at times, especially when it comes to the worldbuilding and symbolism. You can find my full thoughts in my review, linked here My Rating: 3.5/5 stars 9. Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi With my finishing update, I wrote on Goodreads that I wanted to write a review about Freshwater, but needed some time to set my thoughts straight, as there is so much to unpack in this little book. I still stand by that update. Even though it has already been two weeks since then, my thoughts are not much clearer than they were straight after finishing it. Freshwater weaves a Nigerian woman’s struggle with her sexual and personal identity, together with African spirit-mythology, into an intricate and tapestry with an important message. I’m not sure if I’m the correct person to review this novel, as I share none of the struggles of sexuality or race with the protagonist and couldn’t share any insight on that part. No matter what I decide to do (write a review, or don’t), I’m going to sit on this one for a while, to fully let it sink in. It’s a very interesting novel, and no matter your background, I encourage you to read it and judge for yourself. My Rating: 3.5/5 stars 10. Petra’s Ghost by C.S. O’Cinneide My final and favorite ARC I read this month was Petra’s Ghost; a travel-story with a ghostly twist, that made for a very impressive debut by C.S. O’Cinneide. We follow a recently widowed man, walking the Camino de Santiago (the 500-mile road to Santiago de Compostella) in honor of his wife with the goal of scattering her ashes at the end. He meets a young woman along the way, and the two continue their journey together, until both of them find themselves haunted by literal (?) ghosts of their pasts. You can find me full review linked here. My Rating: 4/5 stars 11. Grief is the Thing with Feathers by Max Porter I’m going to be short about this one, as I’ve reread Grief is the Thing with Feathers many times before, and tried to talk about it as many times. I usually fail at the latter, mind you. This book is very personal to me, as it’s inseparably linked to the death of my mother, and my teenage self’s grieving process over that. Rereading it is therefore more a kind of therapy, than anything else, which means that I can’t possibly view this objectively in any way. As a book it has always been a 4.5 star for me, even thought my emotional attachment over the years has probably well cemented it as a 5-star favorite by now. My Rating: 4.5/5 stars 12. The Comet Seekers by Helen Sedgwick After a false start in June with the audiobook of The Comet Seekers (due to the voices and accents the narrator choose being very jarring to me), I almost put down The Comet Seekers for good. However, as is by a sign from above, a stunning hardcover, deckled edge copy of the physical book showed up in perfect condition at my local used bookstore for only 4 euro’s . I took it home, I read it and I loved it. This beautifully crafted multigenerational magical realism story starts with two people under a comet-lit night-sky in Antarctica, and encompasses different countries, families, cultures and generations. If you like familybased stories with a magical realism twist (like for example The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender), you might want to consider picking this one up as well. Full review to come My Rating: 5/5 stars 13. Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor Lastly, my favorite book of the month is one that doesn’t require much introduction either. Muse of Nightmare, is the sequel to Strange the Dreamer and was many people’s (including my own) most anticipated 2018 release. I had heard some mixed reviews from people that I trust, and as I absolutely adored Strange the Dreamer, I was terrified that Muse of Nightmares would ruin that magic for me. Fortunately, the opposite was the case. I was, again, transported into Laini Taylors wonderous world from page one, which I didn’t realize I’d missed so much until I returned to it. Although I can understand some of the problems other readers had with it, it was still a near-perfect conclusion to a near perfect duology for me. You can find my review for the duology as a whole linked here My Rating: 5/5 stars That conclude my July 2019 wrap up. Normally, this would be where I talk about a few of the books I’m planning to read for the next month, but as I’m planning on participating in another readathon over the month of August, I already have a separate TBR up on my blog for that. I’d love to hear what your favorite book of the month was, and what you’re planning on reading during August. Until then, happy reading and see you soon!

During the month of July, I “officially” participated for the first time in a readathon, since starting this blog. I had for my own fun matched my reading to the challenges of a readathon before, but I had never posted about it, nor had I ever strictly kept to that TBR in any way shape or form. In that regard, July was a bit of an experiment, and a successful one at that. I’ve been in a bit of a weird headspace lately. I’ve been extremely busy, a lot has been happening, and time seems to fly by faster than I can keep up with. As a result, I’ve been less motivated to read lately. Having a structured TBR, and a “goal” to work towards (even if it’s a artificial, self-imposed goal) has actually helped me pick up and enjoy a lot more books than I otherwise would have. That being said, I decided to join in on another readathon for the month of August. One that I’ve followed for a few years already, but never got around to joining: the N.E.W.T.s Magical Readathon, hosted by one of my favorite booktubers Bookroast. You can find her announcement video, where she explains the readathon in detail by clicking the link here. Because the N.E.W.T.s readathon is a follow-up readathon to the O.W.L.s, which were held back in April, I technically had to complete those challenges before being able to join in. Luckily for me, I was able to match a lot of titles from the Book Junkie Trials Readathon up with the prompts for the O.W.L.s, so I completed the required challenges in the month of July. Like last month, I’m going to have a very busy schedule, as medical school/internships don’t adhere to the regular summer breaks. I have no idea how many books I’ll be able to complete this month, but I just picked the career that suited me best, and will see how far I come. If I don’t complete every book in time, I’ll just allow myself three turns on the Time Turner (a.k.a. continuing in the first week of September) to help me out. If McGonagall enabled Hermione for being an over-achiever, she probably would extend me the same curtesy for doing Magical Med-School and Muggle Med-school at the same time… Yes, I’ll of course be taking the one logical career-path for me: becoming a Magical Healer. Enough intro for now: let’s get into the prompts, and therefore my August TBR. O.W.L.s Wrap-up 1. Ancient Runes: Read a retelling And the Ocean was Our Sky by Patrick Ness 2. Astronomy: a book with the word “star” in the cover Stardust by Neil Gaiman 3. Care of Magical Creatures: a book with a land animal on the cover Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi 4. Charms: an adult book The Comet Seekers by Helen Sedgwick 5. Defence Against the Dark Arts: Reducto, a book title that starts with R. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater 6. Herbology: a book with a plant on the cover I could give many answers for this one...: Petra’s Ghost, Adaptively Radiant, Freshwater… They all have plants on their covers. 7. Muggle Studies: a contemporary Mona in Three Acts by Griet Op de Beeck 8. Potions: the next ingredient, a sequel The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater 9. Transfigurations: a book with sprayed edges Nocturna by Maya Montayne N.E.W.T.s TBR (Magical Healer career) Charms: A: a book that has a gorgeous cover 10 minutes, 38 seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak Since it’s the first of August as I’m writing this, I’ve technically already started this novel. Although I knew little to nothing about it, it was the premise as well as the beautiful cover that drew me to it in the first place. In this recently released literary fiction that I’ve heard nothing but great things about, we follow a woman during the 10 minutes and 38 seconds that her brain remains active after her body has died, in which she revisits key-memories of her life. With this very interesting premise comes a story of coming of age, immigration, desperation and hope. This promises to be a hard-hitting, but beautiful novel, and I hope it delivers on that. E: a book under 150 pages Binti by Nnedi Okorafor I feel like Binti barely needs an introduction at this point, as it has gained some sort of cult-following in the book community over the last years. And I still haven’t read it… With only 92 pages, this sci-fi novella seemed the perfect fit for this prompt. Defense against the Dark Arts A: a book that is black under the dustjacket Middlegame by Seanan McGuire The book of this TBR (and possibly the entire year sofar) I’m most excited about is Middlegame. Even though I know barely anything about it, other than it’s a dark fantasy that features alchemy and mystery by Seanan Mcguire, I have heard nothing but great things sofar, and I can’t wait to immerse myself in this one. I truly hope that it doesn’t disappoint. E: Gilderoy’s memory charm: the first book that comes to mind On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong or When the Moon was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore Both these books come to mind, as I said I wanted to read both of them during summer, but still haven’t. I’ll let my mood at the time decide which one of the two I pick up. Herbology: A: listen to an audiobook A Fierce and Subtle Poison by Samantha Mabry This was the only audiobook that had vaguely botanical vibes, focusing on a cursed girl with seemingly magical plant-based powers, so it seemed appropriate enough. There’s a chance I might change this book out for any other audiobook I currently have on my library app, depending on my mood, allowing myself a little wiggle room in this TBR. E: a book that has between 350 and 390 pages Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett It’s sinful how long this “lighthearted imagining of the apocalypse” by Gaiman and Pratchett has been on my TBR now (at least since 2015), and it’s high time that I finally get to it. Luckily for me, my library has the tall paperback edition that has 384 pages, allowing me to perfectly fit it for this prompt. Potions: A: a friends favorite book The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin I’ve tried to read this series before once, and couldn’t get into it then. However, since it is the favorite of one of my best friends in real life, I’ve decided I wanted to give it a retry. If I’m (again) unable to get through it, I’ll switch this one out for a reread of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, because what favorite fits a HP-themed readathon better than that?! E: a book with your house color on the cover House of Salt and Sorrow by Erin Craig As a Ravenclaw, my house colors are blue and bronze. The closest cover I could find to match that is House of Salt and Sorrow, which combines some of my favorite tropes like seaside settings, family bonds, grief and a possible family curse. It’s one of my most anticipated releases of 2019, coming out this month, so I hope to get my hands on it in time. If not, my back up book will be The Storm Keepers by Catherine Doyle, which lacks the bronze, but makes up for it in having a lot of blue on the cover. Transfigurations: A: a book with LGBTQ+ representation Summer of Salt by Katherine Leno I had a lot of options to choose from for this prompt, but I ultimately went with one that I felt would be perfect for summer. Again: some of my favorite tropes are present here: magical island/sea-side setting, magic passed through generations, magical realism and from what I’ve heard some amazingly written atmosphere… this can’t go wrong! E: a book that is not the first in a series Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater During July, I started a reread of the entire Raven Cycle, which I plan to continue this month with Blue Lily, Lily Blue. I remember this being my favorite one of the series the first time around, so I’m hoping to have the same experience with it now. That concludes my TBR for the N.E.W.T. Magical Readathon, and the month of August. I’d love to hear from you: are you participating in this readathon? If so, what was the career path you’ve chosen? You can follow my progress throughout the month on Goodreads. Otherwise, I wish you all happy reading, and hope to see you again in my next post!

Genre: YA Fantasy Published: Balzar and Bray, May 2019 My Rating: 2.5/5 stars I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get exactly what I was expecting going into this book: a very standard, middle of the road YA-fantasy, that is entertaining enough but ultimately adds nothing new to the genre that we haven’t seen a million times before, if not better. That could pretty much be my one sentence review of this book unfortunately. We follow our two magically inclined protagonists, a face-shifting thief and a prince with the ability to create and travel through portals, on their quest to rebind an ancient magic that wreaking havoc on the kingdom. Add in a Latinex setting, a one dimensional villain, and a lot of elements from different YA books and you get Nocturna. I respect that it is very hard to be wholly original in this day and age where media is so widespread and influential, but when I say it borrows “a lot of elements” from other books, I mean a lot! The main inspiration seems to have been A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab, as the similarities are just very hard to overlook. Female heroine Finn is basically a clone of Lila Bard, male hero Alfehr has the same doorknob/portal magic as Kel does, and large parts of the plot play out along pretty much the same beats as ADSOM. Other influences seem to include The Grisha verse by Leigh Bardugo (mainly in the magic system, as well as the heist-parts), Harry Potter (the direct lifting of the vanishing cloak), and some other very well known YA series in lesser parts. Again: I don’t expect every book to be world-shatteringly original, but in this case, the book felt like it just had too little of its own to offer to compensate. I don’t want to be completely unfair to the book, as it does have some virtues and vices of its own. Let’s start with the former, shall we: - I do like the magic system presented here, and the way it matches a pivotal occurrence in the characters life/character. For example: Alfie wants to be like his brother, and his propio manifests as the ability to match his magic to that of someone else. Although I do think I’ve seen this before, I still very much like the idea of it, and the way it was used here. - I actually quite liked the main characters, despite their similarity to those of ADSOM. Unpopular opinion incoming, but I actually didn’t care for the Darker Shade of Magic series, didn’t quite like Kel, and despise Lila as a character. Alfie and Finn somehow were less annoying to me, and their banter felt a little less forced. Then for the negative: - Why, of why, book, did you feel the need to fucking shorten the main character’s name to “Alfie”?! Seriously…? I realize how petty this is of me, but during the first chapters it just grinded my gears so bad I couldn’t get into the story. It’s hard for me to get immersed in a Latinex inspired fantasy world, when the main characters name conjures images of a 12-year old pre-teen who probably has a tik-tok following. Seriously: why not just stick to Alfehr?! - Mild spoiler: What was up with “Voidgirl”? I get Maya Montayne was trying to give her an ARC, but once again: flipping like a leaf does not equal an ARC! - I’m clearly not the person to speak about the Latinex-representation here, but it did feel rather thin to me, and I’ve heard the same from some own-voice reviewers unfortunately. The thing that was a little iffy to me personally was the use of the Spanish “spells”. Somehow, when you actually speak some Spanish, it ruins the magical feeling a little. Voy literally means “I travel”, which happens to be the only verb that has some accord of grammar for some reason. The other spells are all dictionary verbs reparar (“to repair”), romper (“to break”), parar (“to stop”). This is probably just me being peevish, but still… In the end, Nocturn feels like a perfectly decent read to pass the time, but unfortunately not one I’ll remember for years and years to come. If you just want a new YA-fantasy, especially with a summery setting to entertain you over the summer break, this is a fine choice. If you’re looking for something wholly original that you’ve never read before, I don’t think you’ll find that here. Find this book on Goodreads

In addition to my regular monthly wrap up, where I talk a little more about the books I read and what I liked about them, I wanted to post a short wrap up of the two readathons I participated in this month. The first and main one The Book Junkie Trials, hosted by Rachael Marie Bookjunkie. In the end, I completed a total of 11 out of the 17 possible books, and started a twelfth one. 5 of them were the required challenges for my chosen path as a Scribe. The remaining 6 fit the challenges for the other teams. All that being said, here are the prompts for the Book Junkie Trials Readathon again, along with the books I read to fulfill them. I will only give a star rating for all of them for now: if you are interested in some more of my thoughts, please check out my monthly wrap up that is to come in a few days. 1. Dwarf Mount: You spot a fair tavern wench, however the Dwarf Mines, grimey and dusty, didn’t evoke a very romantic feeling. Read a book with a hint of romance to get you in the mood The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater 3/5 stars 2. Apothecary Towers: Where the wizards dwell. Tricksters. They have blind-folded you and randomised all your books. Choose a book at random from your bookshelf. Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi 3.5/5 stars 3. The Great Library: Ahh the great archives… Find and read a book that has been on your TBR forever. The Comet Seekers by Helen Sedgwick 5/5 stars 4. The Drowning Deep: The Whirlpool... is so.... mesmerising. Read a book with rich world-building that will suck you into its own world, instead. The Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor 5/5 stars This also fulfilled my Scribe-weakness: read a book over 500 pages 5. The Bookie Grail: Here you find a lost manuscript, delivered on this forgotten island by a fallen star. Read the group book: Stardust by Neil Gaiman 2/5 stars 6. Orc Grove: Some say there is no talking to Orcs, but a good political relationship is needed. Learn some Orc customs by reading a book that is gruesome, gory, or gritty. Rolling in the Deep by Mira Grant 1.5/5 stars I originally put Kings of the Wyld on my TBR for this, but I couldn’t get it from the library in time, so I used my Scribe-power to change it. 7. Ol’ Pirate Cove: Shiver me timbers. You shall be walking the plank if you don’t learn how to sail better. Read a book that takes place, at least in part, on sea. And the Ocean was Our Sky by Patrick Ness 3.5/5 stars 8. Queendom Stone: The stone of our Royal Majesty - what are the royal customs of other lands? Read a book featuring Royalty. Nocturna by Maya Montayne 2.5/5 stars 9. The Forgotten Forests: All those open series, the forest knows and feels your forgetfulness. It will sing a mournful lament, tormenting you until… Read the next in a series. The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater 2.5/5 stars 10. The Weeping Falls: To pass through the rapids unscathed, you must give to the Falls .Read a tear-jerker. Grief is the Thing with Feathers by Max Porter 4/5 stars 11. The Hallow Isle: here lurk incorporeal monsters and the ghosts of your past: Read an atmospheric or horror book to pass this test of nerve. Petra’s Ghost by C.S. O’Cinneide 4/5 stars 12. Giant Squid: a fearsome fellow. Read a book that intimidates you, and this foe shall be a doddle. The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton DNF for now Unfortunately, this book was a little too intimidating to me. I started it, but had to put it down after about a hundred pages. I will for sure pick it back up at a later time, but I couldn’t quite get into it at this point. I had a lot of fun with this readathon, despite the fact that my enjoyment of the books themselves was a little all over the place. A massive shout-out and thank you to Rachael Marie are in place. From what I understood, she is planning on continuing this readathon on a yearly basis in July, and you can bet that I’ll be joining the next rendition if at all possible!

Genre: YA, Magical Realism, Contemporary Published: Candlewick Press, September 2019 My Rating: 2/5 stars The Color of the Sun is the newest YA story by well-known author David Almond, about a boy trying to find his place in the world after the death of his father. We follow him throughout a single day in his life, as he makes his way through his hometown, talks to a variety of people and tries to find back the beauty in everyday life. If you know me, you know how deeply up my alley this type of book is, and you can imagine my excitement when I got approved for an ARC. For that reason, I genuinely feel bad for saying: this was a miss for me. Let me start off by saying: I can imagine (even remember) the feeling of those first weeks after the death of a parent, and all the ways that colors your view of the world around you. Even in ways you wouldn’t necessarily expect... I believed this book was trying to capture just that, and I was rooting the entire time that it would succeed at that. Unfortunately, I just didn’t feel it…. That distinct headspace and vibe was the only thing this book needed to capture for me to potentially love it, but for me personally, it just missed the mark. The Color of the Sun is quite the ambitious book, that tries to do a lot of things in very little page time. It covers coming of age, captures a small town vibe, tackles the way grief plays with the mind, and encompasses a variety of very expansive topics such as faith, religion, hatred and the difference between truth and interpretation. Although I can appreciate the authors ideas behind all of this, I don’t feel like the topic got the depth they deserved in this barely over 200 page format. Just as we barely start scratching the surface of something interesting, the novel pulls us away and meanders in a different direction again. And for better or for worse, this book sure does like to meander… It meanders from thought to thought in Davie’s head, from person to person and place to place. In the context of the story, I actually liked that style of writing. It gives a feeling of fleetingness to every contact, which makes a lot of sense to be the experience of a boy who’s recently been confronted with death and mortality. It will also make it hard to relate to, or get to know the characters, which I feel might deter young readers from picking up this book. With stories like this, I always try to take into consideration the intended audience, as well as my personal opinion. In this case, I don’t think this is a book what’ll have a mass appeal: it’s going to be for a specific kind of reader, looking for a very specific thing. If you’re looking for a slow built, slice of life story, that focusses on life after loss and is more about emotional ambience than actual plot points: this might be for you. That being said, I feel that I, in this case, was the target audience, and still personally didn’t find quite what I was looking for. In the end, I feel there is a lot of good at the heart of this book, but you might need to dig a little deeper to find it. Grief, and the experience after a loss is a very personal one, and this book feels like it matches that. The fact that I didn’t connect with it personally, should not deter you from picking up this book, especially if it feels like something that you’re looking for. Sometimes the most polarizing books on topics like this are the best ones for you as an individual. The Color of the Sun might just be that kind of book, even though it wasn’t the right fit for me. Find this book on Goodreads

Genre: fantasy, illustrated novel Published: Walker Books, September 2018 My Rating: 3.5/5 stars ‘’For there are devils in the deep But the worst are the ones we make’’ As with most of Patrick Ness' books, I'm not sure if this premise spawned from the mind of a genius, a mad-man, or perhaps a little bit of both... And the Ocean Was Our Sky is a sort of flipped Moby Dick retelling, from the perspective of the whales, and it's as original and bizar as that sounds. I'm not even sure how best to review this, as it's a book that is best experienced, instead of talked about. So I guess this is going to be a short one. What I liked: - The illustrations These had to be the first thing I mentioned, as I feel they added at least an extra star to the story. The novella is full of illustrations, in the same style as the gorgeous coverart, to support the story, and it works wonders. I’m not usually big on illustrated stories, graphic novels and a like but in this case, it added an extra layer to the atmosphere that drives this book. - The originality and worldbuilding Topnotch Patrick Ness... The upside-down world of the whales, the whale-ships, their almost military society... Again: I'm not sure if Patrick Ness is a genius or just insane. - Symbolism As you might expect based on the synopsis, and the fact that this is a Patrick Ness story: it's filled with so many layers of symbolism. This story is like the ocean it describes: their is a world below the surface, if only you dive into it. What I didn't like: - The characters More specifically, their development. I feel the story might have been a little too short for them to come to full fruition, so most of them felt a little surface level to me. To a lesser extend: this goes for the whale-society as well. I'd have loved a little bit more background and build up for this, and I feel I would have enjoyed the novel more if it had been a little longer. - The bizar-ness Although the bizarre nature of Ness' stories are often a selling point; in this case it kept me from being fully immersed in the story. In the end, I do recommend this book, but probably not as your first book by this author. I feel like I appreciated it more, because I was already familiar with his style, and I imagine it could be a bit of a "culture shock" if you're completely unfamiliar with it. Find this book on Goodreads

Genre: Fantasy Published: Hodder & Stoughton, 2017-2018 My Rating: 5/5 stars, all-time favourite “Beautiful and full of monsters?" “All the best stories are.” Here’s the thing: I love writing reviews about books I enjoyed. I often know exactly what it was that made me love them, but also what didn’t work for me. For some reason, that same logic doesn’t fly for my all time favourite books. The best way I can describe it, is that there are many books I love with my head, and a few books I love with my heart. The latter doesn’t like explaining itself. The Strange the Dreamer duology is a “heart-case” for me. For that reason: expect a bit of a scatterbrained review that will attempt to cover a lot, but will probably ultimately fail at that. Before I get started, somewhat of a spoilerwarning: this review will not contain major plot spoilers. However, I will mention some characters and a bit about the worldbuilding that is only introduced later in the book, and therefore could be considered a spoiler. If you want to go into this book blind, which many people including myself have recommended, please return to this review after you’ve finished the book. The Writing First things first: let’s address the citadel sized elephant in the room that is going to make or break your enjoyment of this book: Laini Taylors writing style. For me this is without a doubt a make. It’s gorgeous, it’s lyrical and for sure in my top 3 of style’s I’ve ever read. If I could chose any author whom style I could have for my own writing, at this point in time it’d probably be Laini Taylors. To some people, lyrical writing can be intimidating, and as someone whom first language isn’t English, I can relate to that feeling. Yet Taylors writing somehow flows like water and reads as effortless as letting yourself float away on its stream. That stream eventually drags me in completely and allows me to completely drown myself in the rich universes that she has created for us. I read both Strange the Dreamer and Muse of Nightmares during times where I desperately needed some escape: a story to completely envelop me, and transport me to other realms. I could not have picked a better book for that purpose. For me, reading Strange the Dreamer was less about the plot of the story, and more about wrapping myself in the warm blanket that is this world. Taylors choice of words in her metaphors, the scenery and imagery she invokes paint a clear but dreamlike picture in my mind that perfectly suits her story. It’s a textbook example of matching your tone of writing with the nature of the worlds you create. The Plot That isn’t to say the plot is subpar in any way. We follow Lazlo, a librarian with a special interest in a forgotten, mythological city, now only known as Weep. He’s often mocked for his interest in this “fictional” city, until he’s recruited by a group of scholars and explorers on a mission to find this place of legends. From there follows an adventure that includes magical places, and equally as magical people, that will change Lazlo’s life forever. To avoid spoilers I’ll not go into the plot in detail, but let me say that it was so much more than I was expecting. The Atlantis-esque trope of finding a lost, mysterious city was what drew me in originally, yet there’s so much more behind this story than first meets the eye, and it was a joy to (literally) see that world open up before my eyes. I do have to say that the plot in both books is quite slow. A lot of time goes into world- and character building, so if you’re the sort of person that needs a fast, plot-driven story, this might not be the book for you. The Characters I’m beginning to sound like a broken record (see what I mean about my heart not being able to explain stuff well), but I have a history of adoring Laini Taylors characters. In the case of the Strange the Dreamer duology, that was even more true than ever. First of all: Lazlo. I’ve said many times before that I don’t think I have ever had a “fictional crush”, but Lazlo is probably the closest I’ve ever come to one. I love me my sensitive and wise male protagonists, that are more brain than brawl, and I wish we had some more of them in fantasy. For some reason Lazlo reminded me of Eddie Redmaynes portrayal of Newt Scamander, in the best way possible. The same soft, sweet but intelligent nature and care for others. Sarai, of course, is another incredible character. I love her personality, I love how thoughtful and smart she is, and I love her powers (true story: before reading this book I once dreamed about a girl doing that moth-thing, and I though “I need to write a poem about this or something”. Imagine the chills I got once I read that passage of Sarai showing her powers for the first time). Then we have Minya, who I’ve seen people having mixed reactions to. For me, she was the perfect villain. She’s complex, and so very relatable, which makes her even more terrifying in my opinion. Lastly: the entire cast of secondary characters. Rarely do I have such strong feelings about secondary characters (the last time was probably Suzanna and Mick, also by Laini Taylor) as here. Again: I won’t go into too many details to avoid spoilers, but I adored Sparrow, Ruby, Feral and even Nova. Final Verdict: This book truly is what it says on the cover. “Something beautiful and full of monsters…” And as such, it goes onto my all-time favourite shelf. If you haven’t read this book yet: I can only highly recommend it. As someone who is often deterred by books that are this hyped: this one is worth it! Find these books on Goodreads: Strange the Dreamer Muse of Nightmares

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Travel Journal Published: Dundurn Group, August 2019 My Rating: 4/5 stars “We all have our ghosts, Daniel” Rob says (…) “The question is not if they exist, it is what message do they bring.” This beautifully haunting debut by author C.S. O’Cinneide had me immediately intrigued with its premise, yet still surprised me with how deeply I ended up enjoying it as a whole. I was lucky enough to receive an early copy via the publisher, in exchange for an honest review. Let me tell you: it’s one of the best ARCs I’ve read this year. We follow Daniel as he walks the Camino, the famous pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostella, carrying the ashes of his recently deceased wife Petra, in order to scatter them at his final destination. Along the way, he meets Ginny, a bubbly Californian girl making the same solo journey, and the two of them decide to continue together. Both find themselves haunted by the (perhaps literal) ghosts of their pasts along the way, and we slowly find out that both of them carry more than just the weight of their backpacks on their shoulders on this journey… Petra’s Ghost reads like a travel journal, it reads like a psychological mystery thriller and like a gothic novel all at once. At times it reminded me of The Salt Path by Raynor Winn (which I loved), mixed with Melmoth by Sarah Perry and something else, that I can’t quite place. It was the Pilgrimage to a loved ones final resting place that originally drew me in, as I feel like I can relate to it, albeit on a smaller scale than the 800 km Camino. I believe the author herself has walked the Camino before, and she does a great job of conveying the atmosphere and “personality” of the trail. The same can be said for the effect that the protagonists mood has on his experience of the trial. Grief can put a weird, almost surrealist and dark filter over things, which was portrayed wonderfully with the hint of horror/thriller elements along the way. Speaking of which: it was the mystery that kept drawing me back to the book as soon as I put it down. Often with stories like this, I feel like either the mystery or the protagonists emotional background is tucked in as an afterthought. In Petra’s Ghost, the two entwine perfectly with each other, as well as with the previously established atmosphere. Lastly, it was the ending that delivered the final emotional punch to make this book memorable to me. It was brave without being sensational, and emotional without being dramatic. Very fitting ending to this story in my opinion. I do have one piece of criticism, probably aimed at the publisher, more so than the author. There is a line in the synopsis of the final copy of the book (that wasn’t in the description of the ARC), which gives a major clue to one of the final reveals. To me, this actually made it very predictable, and spoiled the potential of surprise in the end. If that line hadn’t been in the synopsis, it would have taken me longer to figure it out. If you have the chance to read this book without reading the full synopsis in detail, that might be something I’d recommend doing. All in all, there were a few things that kept this from being a full five star to me: mainly a few inconsistencies in pacing, and some of the mystery elements being a little predictable. That being said, this is one of the stronger 2019 debuts I’ve read so far, and I feel it’s both a book and an author to keep an eye on. Find this book on Goodreads Many thanks to Dundurn Group for providing me with an early review copy.

Genre: Fantasy, Adventure Published: Self Published by Joseph E. Henning, June 2019 My Rating: 3/5 stars In this 2019 fantasy adventure debut, we follow 2 young voyagers, embarking on an exotic journey across Japan, Hawaii and the United States West Coast after they find a mysterious pouch containing 9 stones of great significance. Along the way, they discover that there is much more at stake then they originally anticipated. Adaptively Radiant left me with some mixed, but ultimately positive, feelings upon finishing it. First things first: it’s clear to me that this novel’s greatest strength lies in the beautiful descriptions of the different settings, and the incorporation of the local folklore and mythology of those places. I’m a sucker for these type of stories, especially around the summer times, as they almost act as a vicarious vacation to me. Adaptively Radiant did just that: I felt like I was there, traveling along with the characters and visiting all these places, and learning new things about them. I was personally not familiar enough with either of the cultures to speak to the accuracy of these elements, but I can say that I absolutely loved being introduced to them via this way. Secondly: the story is very fast paced, plot driven, and for lack of a better word: “cinematic”. It read like a movie in my mind, and I finished it within a day. That being said, for me personally, these stories unfortunately tend to be the least memorable ones to me. For all the character the settings had, I couldn’t help but feel a little let down by the development of our protagonists who remained very one-dimensional throughout the novel. The same goes for the mystery plot-line; although it was on point at times, it felt a little rushed and underdeveloped in others. I appreciate there’s only so much you can do in just over 200 pages, but I often felt the right ideas were there, but just didn’t come to fruition. Personally, I would have liked the book to have been a little longer, allowing for a bit more depth in all aspects. Lastly (and this is not a critique, but more of a question), I kept wondering what age-range this book would best be suited for. Considering the protagonists age, and the darker elements of some of the culture and mythology, this seems targeted at adults, or at least older teens. For that target audience, it did read a little “young” to me. I can’t quite put my finger on why (perhaps because of the simplicity of the plot, and the high focus on adventure), but the thought kept occurring to me. All in all, I really enjoyed Adaptively Radiant, and I’d recommend it if you’re looking for a high paced, adventure packed novel, with a high focus on travel and exploring different lands and cultures. Find this review on Goodreads

Genre: Literary Fiction Originally published: September 2014 by Prometheus To be published in translation: November 2019 by AmazonCrossing My Rating: 3/5 stars Mona in Three Acts is the first novel by well-known Flemish author Griet Op de Beeck to be translated into English, and the first one I read both in translation, as well as in its original Dutch. Many thanks to the publisher AmazonCrossing for providing me with an early copy of the former. As with most of Griet Op de Beecks books, Mona in Three Acts is a literary contemporary novel, that centres around coming of age in a slightly dysfunctional family-unit. As the title would imply, we follow Mona in a story that is split into 3 parts with a substantial time jump in between each of them. In part 1, we get to know her as a 9-year old, shortly after the death of her mother, coping with the fact that her father is getting remarried. We see her navigate her way around all these new emotions and see her relationship with her stepmother and stepsiblings play out. In part 2, her story continues when Mona is around 25 when she moves in with her boyfriend and faces the first struggles in her starting career. In part 3, Mona returns home to take care of her father on his sickbed and many puzzle pieces of the last years begin to fall into place. I have to commend the novel for its consistency- and build up of characters. We see how the way that Mona was brought up influences the way she forms relationships later in life, which makes up the central theme of the novel. Not just Mona, but the other reappearing characters follow this line. All of them have distinct personalities and all of them are just the right amount of flawed to be realistic, but not too unlikable. That being said, the nature of this novels theme almost directly prevents character growth in the main character. Op de Beeck does an exceptional job at writing from a childs perspective, which is why I probably enjoyed part 1 the most. Unfortunately, Mona retains that naïve childish outlook throughout the rest of the novel, which got on my nerves quite fast. My second problem, which is also inherently linked to the theme this novel goes for, is that everything is so oversimplified. Yes, people are creatures of habit, that have a tendency to stick to the same patterns. Yet the way the author psychoanalyses her character down to a single thing in her past just rubs me the wrong way. As a literary device, it treads the thin line between “character background” and “psychology for dummies”. As an outlook on life, it completely removes all agency from the person and labels them as a victim of their past, rather than an individual capable of taking responsibility for their own life. As a final note I’d like to say that I actually enjoyed the English translation more than I did the original. Op de Beeck has a tendency to try a little too hard when writing dialogue, which results in overly-directed, “too profound” sentences that feel out of place in the mouths of the characters that deliver them. I think the translator did an excellent job of bending them into a more moderate form, without losing the core of the message. This novel is out in Dutch under the original title “Kom hier dat ik u kus” by Prometheus, and will be released in November 2019 via AmazonCrossing in it’s English translation.

We’re halfway through the year, and although I’ve already done the Mid-Year Freak Out Tag, I still wanted to do somewhat of a wrap up post on the past 6 months. I want to start off with my top 11(because I'm indecisive) books I’ve read so far in 2019, and continue with a bit of a life-update/what’s to come for the upcoming months, for those who are interested. I have a feeling this might be a long one, so without further ado, let’s get started. Best of 2019 (January-June) These are in order in which I read them, not in order of preference. The Diviners – Libba Bray The Book of Strange New Things – Michel Faber The Unseen World – Liz Moore The Book of M – Peng Shepherd The Girl Aquarium – Jen Campbell The City of Woven Streets – Emmi Itaranta These Rebel Waves - Sara Raasch Sight – Jessie Greengrass August Isle – Ali Standish Where the Forest Meets the Stars – Glendy Vanderah Recursion – Blake Crouch Life Update + What’s coming I’ve had quite the eventful year so far, which had its repercussions on my reading as well. Without going in too much detail, I’ve had some bad luck with my health (again) at the start of the year. In no shape or form do I want to complain, because I’m well aware that I got quite lucky, and things could have ended very differently. That being said, I would be lying if I told you it didn’t affect me. Around that same time, I finished my research internship and returned to my full time clinical rotations (for those who don’t know: medical school), which tends to be quite intense as well. Throughout all of that, I felt like I often wanted a shoulder to lean on, or just a little bit of escape when I got home. As usual for me, books footed that bill, hence the large amount I still managed to read during these busy times. Regardless I hesitate to call it a “good reading year”. I read quite a lot of 4- to 5-star books, yet only 2 out of the 60+ books managed to make it to my all-time favourite list, as I was just missing the emotional connection to the rest. Additionally, I’m not 100% happy about my consistency in reviewing or posting on this blog. My backlist of “reviews to come” has been growing and growing, and I have decided not to accept or request any ARCs at this point, because I simply cannot guarantee to review them before release. I have a long list of posts, discussions and more in depth booktalks I wanted to publish, but unfortunately I just haven’t found the time or energy consistently to do so. I do apologize for that and hope you’re willing to bear with me for the time being. To end this update, I wanted to give you guys a sneak peak of the things that are in the pipeline at the moment and (hopefully) will follow shortly. More reviews of (underrated) 2019 releases! I’m currently giving priority to them, especially the ones that haven’t been covered by millions of other reviewers. The same goes for backlist books that I loved, and feel have not gotten the attention that they deserve yet. Continuation of my Books in Pairs recommendations series I have so many ideas left, including some non-bookish pairs. For example: book recommendations based on your favorite films, videogame or even travel destination. Grief-recommendations To those of you who requested this; I’ve heard you! The same goes for the recommendations of books about cancer and/or chronic illness. I really want to do these, but am currently still compiling a list, as I don’t feel I have enough good ones to recommend just yet. Overly Specific Book recommendations I completely stole this idea from one of my favourite booktubers Kayla at Booksandlala, so please make sure to check out her videos and give her the credits she deserves. I adored this idea and I’ve loved every video she has done so far in her series, and it completely inspired me to some of my own “overly specific recommendations” to come soon. I have more things planned down the line, but these are the ones I hope to give priority to for the next upcoming months. Of course, let me know if there’s anything else you’d love to see from me: you can message me via my blog or via Goodreads, and I’ll make sure to respond to you. Again: thank you for having patients with me as I try to sort stuff out. I’m not only ridiculously thankful to the books that give me comfort and distractions, but also for the bookish community for doing the exact same thing. I hope to see you back soon, and until then: happy reading! Love Renée

Where Booktube and Bookblogs often focus on the books we’re hyped for, I thought I’d do something a little different today. Instead of talking about my anticipated releases for the rest of the year, I’m going to focus on some 2019-releases that were on my radar at some point, but I’ve lost interest in. Some of them are already out, some of them have yet to be released. Obvious disclaimer: this is not a bash of any of these books, as I haven’t read them. It’s simply me keeping my TBR in check and explaining why I suspect some of these releases won’t be for me. King of Scars – Leigh Bardugo What it’s about: The start of a new spin-off series centering around Nikolai from the Grisha trilogy. Why it was originally on my radar: anything by Leigh Bardugo will automatically grasp my attention. Why I lost interest: I have a bad track record with spin-off series, or unplanned additions to existing series in general. I’m often left with the feeling that they don’t add anything, other than money to the publishers/authors pockets. Additionally, I feel I may have outgrown the phase of my life where I enjoyed the original Grisha series. I don’t want to risk tarnishing the nostalgic feeling I have about that series, so I’ve decided to stay away from this one. Ship of Smoke and Steel – Django Wexler What it’s about: A fantasy story of a girl chasing down a legendary ghost ship on the high seas. Why it was originally on my radar: I love a good sea-set story, and the legend of the Flying Dutchman (which this seemed inspired by) is one of my favorites. I was very excited to see what Wexler would do with that in a fantasy setting. Why I lost interest: The review for this novel have been pretty much all over the place, but a few people I really trust have said some stuff that really put me off. Very poor writing of female characters, awkwardly written F/F romance that feels very voyeuristic, weird use of made up words/slang… I don’t know… I might still give this a try if I can get it through the library, but I won’t be spending money on this book, just for now. The Beholder – Anna Bright What it’s about: A girl from a royal family is send out on a treacherous sea journey along the (fictionalized) European coasts on a mission: find a suitable wedding candidate, or never return home. Why it was originally on my radar: It was originally sold to me as a YA-fantasy retelling/inspired by the Odyssey, and I was all over that. Also; this is until this day the best cover of 2019 in my opinion. Why I lost interest: It is not a YA-fantasy retelling/inspired by the Odyssey. In fact it’s more of a romance set in a fantasy world, inspired by Cinderella, both of which are anti-buzz words for me. I’m very sad that I won’t be getting my Odyssey retelling, but since this book isn’t going to be that, it had to move off my TBR. Storm and Fury – Jennifer L. Armentrout What it’s about: A YA-fantasy about a blind girl who has the ability to speak to ghosts and spirits. Said to be dark, feature gargoyles and demons and a supernatural war. Why it was originally on my radar: I was really, really stoked to see a blind main character in fantasy. Other than that: the hype got to me… Why I lost interest: Similarly to The Beholder: when I actually looked into this, I discovered it’s a YA romance, disguised as a fantasy. I’m just not about any of that. A Curse so Dark and Lonely – Brigid Kemmerer What it’s about: A Beauty and the Beast retelling, set in a fantasy world, featuring a protagonist who is constantly dismissed and underappreciated by her family because of her cerebral palsy. Why it was originally on my radar: continuing in the line of my deep desire for protagonists with physical disabilities in fantasy: I really wanted to see this main character with cerebral palsy. Also: I did love Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer, even though the premise sounded like something I should hate. Why I lost interest: The main reason is that I really have zero interest in a(nother) Beauty and the Beast retelling, no matter how well written. After hearing some opinion from reviewers I trust, I just don’t think this will be my cup of tea. Daisy Jones and the Six – Taylor Jenkins Reed What it’s about: The story of the lead singer of a sixties rockband singer in LA, from struggling artist to rock-legend. Why it was originally on my radar: The hype. Just like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, everybody seems to love this book. Why I lost interest: Where do I start… Nothing about this book appeals to me. I don’t care for books about bands, I don’t typically enjoy books written in interview format, and most importantly: I don’t care for Taylor Jenkins Reid books in general. I seem to have been the only person on the planet who didn’t like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, so I have zero interest in picking up any of her other books. Although I always appreciate you recommending books to me: this one is just not going to happen. To Be released: Bone Houses – Emily Lloyd Jones What it’s about: A YA fantasy about necromancy, folktales, the rising dead and a teenage gravedigger. What more do you want…? Why it was originally on my radar: The cover, the hype, the author, the … Pick any. Why I lost interest: This is probably very petty of me, but hear me out. I originally missed a key point in the synopsis: this story centers around Fae, which is probably the most overdone trope of the past years, and I immediately lost every interest once I saw that. Here There Are Monsters – Amelinda Bérubé What it’s about: A Blair Witch inspired story about an unknown horror in the swampy woods, and a group of teenage girls who try to find out the truth behind the legend. Why it was originally on my radar: Blair Witch, monsters in the woods, searching for the truth behind creepy urban legends… basically all of those things are my jam. Why I lost interest: I feel like I’ve read this book so many times before now… Sawkill Girls, The Devouring Gray, Strange Grace, even Stranger Things, just to name a few. Not to mention that I’ve been disappointed by ¾ of those. Unless this gets fabulous reviews, I’m skipping it. Children of Virtue and Vengence – Tomi Adeyemi What it’s about: The sequel to what was probably the most hyped fantasy of 2018: Children of Blood and Bone Why it was originally on my radar: I have so many people in my environment who adore Children of Blood and Bone. I even tried to reread it this year, in hopes I’d like it more the second time round. Why I lost interest: I couldn’t even finish Children of Blood and Bone upon reread. Everything I disliked the first time, I disliked even more now. Where it got a 3 star-rating from me the first time around, I’m tempted to lower it to a 2 after my second try. Apart from the all black cast, this is one of the most generic, mediocre YA-fantasy’s I’ve ever read, and I have zero interest in continuing in this series. I hope you enjoyed this list. Let me know if there are any books that you were originally on your radar, but you lost interest in. Also, if I'm completely wrong about any of these novels and you think i will very much enjoy them: please let me know as well. Until then, happy reading and I hope to see you back soon.

After a disappointing month of May, June was a breath of fresh air… Not literally though, as we’ve had a heatwave for the past week in The Netherlands, but reading-wise for sure. I have 11 books to talk about, of which I finished 10, with an average rating of 4-stars. Not only is that my highest average of the year so far, I also read 2 books that I think will be all-time favorites. Without further ado, let’s get into what I read in the month of June. 1. House of Glass – Susan Fletcher The first book I have to talk about was my third DNF of the year. This was very much a case of “it’s me, not the book”, as I kept objectively seeing that what I was reading was good, but I just didn’t feel it. House of Glass is a highly atmospheric gothic mystery novel, that has quite a lyrical and literary writing style. Although that is something I usually enjoy, at this moment in time I just couldn’t get into it, and decided to put it down at around the 40%-mark. I hope to pick it back up at some other time, preferably around the autumnal season. DNF 2. The Ghosts of Heaven – Markus Sedgwick Marketed as “Cloud Atlas in YA-form”, I was very interested to see the directions The Ghosts of Heaven would take. Unfortunately, this was a big disappointment to me. Like in Cloud Atlas, we follow 4 different stories, connected by an overarching “theme”. Unlike Cloud Atlas, I didn’t feel like that connection was strong enough to elevate The Ghosts of Heaven to more than the sum of its parts. My full review can be found here. Rating: 2/5 stars 3. Voyages in the Underworld of Orpheus Black – Markus Sedgwick & Julian Sedgwick I’m saddened to say that my second disappointment was by the same author. Voyages in the Underworld of Orpheus Black is part novel, part graphic novella, about brotherly love in the second world war. Although I loved the ideas and the art style, it was a hard one to get through, and I felt lost throughout most of it. I’m often drawn to Sedgwicks ambitious and original concepts, but more times than not I’ve been disappointed by the execution. Although none of it is objectively bad, maybe he’s just not for me, and I don’t expect to be picking up more of his work in the foreseeable future. My full review for Voyages in the Underworld of Orpheus Black can be found here Rating: 2.5/5 stars 4. Godsgrave – Jay Kristoff From here, we’re going uphill fast, as we get to my favorite sequel of the year sofar: Godsgrave by Jay Kristof. I realize The Nevernight Chronicles are among the most beloved adult fantasy books out there, so 3.75 is on the lower end of the ratings I’ve seen. For me, that’s still a good rating though, especially for a sequel. I really enjoy both books in this series, but I do have some problems with them, preventing me from rating them higher. My full (spoiler free) review can be found here Rating: 3.75/5 stars 5. Semiosis – Sue Burke Next up, we have a very happy surprise, that I didn’t expect liking as much as I did. If you’ve read my post on “My bookish buzzwords”, you’ll know that botanical magic is one of them. When I found what can be considered the sci-fi alternative to that (an alien lifeform in the shape of sentient plants), I was immediately drawn to it. The more I thought about that premise, the more apprehensive I got though… This could either be a very smart an unique take on the genre, or a ridiculous version of plants-versus-zombies in literary form. Luckily, it was the former. Semiosis is exactly the kind of first-contact novel I adore: where the alien lifeform isn’t completely anthropomorphic in both appearance, thoughts and philosophy. This felt highly original, and you can tell that the author put a huge amount of thinking and research into the subject, when creating this world. Despite a few minor flaws, this multi-generational first-contact novel was unlike any other I’ve read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Rating: 4/5 stars 6. Salt Slow – Julia Armsfield I originally gave 4.5 stars to Julia Armsfields short story collection Salt Slow, but I’m lowering it to a 4 star a few weeks after finishing it. It contains 9 magical realism stories of which my full review, and rating per story can be found here. The only reason I’m lowering it, is that some of the stories are already slipping from my mind. Where most of my favorite books stay with me for years, this is already beginning to fade, indicating that it may not have impacted me as deep as I originally thought. Rating: 4/5 stars 7. Sawkill Girls – Claire Legrande Don’t ask me why yours truly found a heatwave in the middle of June the perfect time to pick up this Halloweeny read… I was in that kind of mood, and life is too short to wait for the turning of seasons. Sawkill Girls is set on a small island, where young girls go missing and rumors of a mysterious entity behind these disappearances run ramped. 3 girls, who each lost someone close to them to the islands curse, take it upon themselves to investigate, and put a stop to it. The book had a bit of a slow start for me, but fortunately, it did revenge itself near the end, earning it 4 stars. In many ways, this was what I wanted The Devouring Gray to be, but didn’t get from that one. I would like to talk about my thoughts on it in more depth, so a review will follow (hopefully) fairly soon. Rating: 4/5 stars 8. This is Going to Hurt – Adam Kay This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay was a book that has been on my radar ever since it came out, yet I somehow never had the inclination to pick it up, until this month. I’m very glad I did, as this meant more to me than I had expected it would, for multiple reasons, but mostly because of my own experiences in the medical field. It made me laugh, and made me deeply sad in the span of just a few pages, basically as life in the medical field can also do. I’ve talked about it in some other tags and post recently, and wrote a short review on Goodreads, but don’t currently feel up to write a full in-depth review on it. I might still get to that in the future. Rating: 4.5/5 stars 9. Recursion – Blake Crouch The last 3 books I finished in July happened to be some of the best of the year. Starting with my most recent read Recursion… Wow… I was highly anticipating Recursion, as I’ve loved Crouch’s past work so much. One of my most vivid reading-memories of the last few years has been frantically reading Dark Matter at 2 am on a work-day, because I simply could not put it down. I wasn’t expecting Recursion to be able to match that experience, yet somehow it did! All I want to say about the synopsis, is that we follow two characters in the midst of the chaos that erupts when the world is confronted with a curious condition known as False Memory Syndrome. A detective and a neuro-scientist team up to find out what is going on, and trust me: some mind-bending shit ensues… If you like sci-fi, thrillers, speculated fiction, or especially if you were a fan of Dark Matter: you cannot pass this up! Rating: 5/5 stars 10. Lanny – Max Porter From the author of one of my all-time favorite works Grief is the Thing with Feathers, comes Lanny. Equally as “weird”, equally as emotional, and perhaps even more masterfully written. I have a full review on this one, so I won’t go into details here. Suffice to say: 5/5 stars, and Max Porter has very much secured his place on my auto-buy author list with this one. Rating: 5/5 stars 11. Where the Forest meets the Stars – Glendy Vanderah Last but not least, I have to mention what was probably my favorite book of the year so far. Where the Forest meets the Stars is an adult contemporary novel, with a slight magical realism vibe, that both thematically and tonally seemed almost made for me. (The last time I said that about a book was with A Monster Calls, which is still in my top 3 of all time. ) We follow a graduate student in her mid-twenties, who has isolated and buried herself in her thesis on bird-nesting, in order to keep her mind of the recent events in her personal life. She has recently survived cancer, but only after losing her mother to the same hereditary tumor, and has not allowed herself the time to grieve either of those losses. A remarkable friendship with the similarly reclusive egg-salesman next door, and a mysterious girl who claims to have come from the stars, helps her to find her way back to other people, and to face her feelings and her future again. This novel was eerily relevant to me, with regards to the events of past winter in my own life, and maybe for that reason, it really meant a lot to me. It was hard at times, but simultaneously so heartwarming to read, and I can already say that it’s going to stay with me for years to come. I will need some time to write a coherent, full review, but I do plan on doing that someday. Until then, I’d love to hear from you if you’ve read, and urge you to do so if you haven’t and feel comfortable with the subject matter. Rating: 5/5 stars Usually, this would be where I’d name some of the books I plan on reading over the course of the next month. In July however, I’m going to be participating in the Book Junkie Trial Readathon, for which I have a separate TBR up already, which you can find here. I have quite a busy month ahead, so I hope I have time to get to as many of them as possible, although I won’t blame myself if I don’t even finish my “required” 5. I hope to find the time to update in the meantime. Until then, happy reading!

It’s the end of June, which means we’re currently almost half way through the year, as scary a thought as that is to me… Reading-wise, 2019 has been pretty good to me, as I read 61 books so far, with an average rating of 3.8 stars. That high average rating is mostly due to the sheer number of 4-star books I read this years, and I feel like that represents the overall vibe of my 2019 in books: very good but not quite a new favorite. Without further ado, let’s take a look at the highlights and lowpoints of my reading year so far: 1. Best book you’ve read so far in 2019? This question feels especially hard this year as, like I mentioned: I read a lot of great books, but not that many new ones stood out enough to make it to my all time favorite list. In fact there’s only 1 that I can already say definitively did so, so I think it’s only fair to give it this spot in the tag. That book was Where the Forest Meets the Stars by Glendy Vanderah. It’s a contemporary fiction, which is very hit or miss for me, but this book almost seems made for me with its hints at magical realism and especially the themes it tackles. We follow a biology student who isolates and buries herself in her thesis on birds, in order to cope with the recent loss of her mother, and her own battle with a hereditary cancer. If you’ve been around or know me personally, you’ll probably understand how this got under my skin with regards to my own history and even the events of this year. It’s a novel that so emotional to me, yet so subtle and respectful, and came to me at the exact time I needed it. I highly recommend it, if you’re up for it, as it contains a lot of heavy themes. Including but not limited to the ones mentioned above. 2. Best sequel you’ve read? This is hands down going to Godsgrave by Jay Kristof. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: the Nevernight Chronicles are a series that shouldn’t work for me. I’m not into goriness, I’m over the assassin-trope and it’s very hard for me to get along with a book if I don’t particularly enjoy the authors writing style. All of those things apply to this series, and yet I somehow still love it. Although I had some issues with Godsgrave, I still gave it 4 stars and really enjoyed reading it, especially considering my history with being disappointed by sequels. 3. New release you haven’t gotten to, but want to:? I have 3 answers for this one, so I’m not going into details on all of them, but you can click them to check out their Goodreads descriptions. - Middlegame by Seannan McGuire - On Earth we’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong - How to Make Friends with the Dark – Kathleen Glassgow 4. Most anticipated release for the second half of 2019? My most anticipated release of the entire year is still not out yet, so clearly that’s going to be my answer. The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. Will pre-order. Cannot wait. Other than that, I have a full section on my website all about releases that are on my radar, which I’ll link here. 5. Biggest disappointment? Unfortunately, this was very easy, as I’m still not over how hard I got burned by this book. It was actually on my anticipated list for 2019, but ended up being the only book I gave 1 star this year. I’m talking about Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James. I wrote a full review on it, so for now I’ll stick to saying: it was my least favorite read in a long long time. 6. Biggest surprise? My biggest surprise was a middle grade novel that I picked up completely on a whim, but completely stole my heart in the end. It’s also extremely, extremely underrated (seriously, how does this book have only 100 ratings?!). August Isle by Ali Standish, is a middle grade novel that tackles some heavy and difficult in an incredible way, whilst also putting a smile on my face with the amazing depiction of heartwarming friendship and family love. I truly think this is one that readers both young and old can enjoy. 7. New favorite author (either debut or new to you)? I had to think long and hard about this. I don’t have a single author on my list that had multiple winners this year. Out of my five-star reads we have: David Vann, Michel Faber, Kirsty Logan, Max Porter and Blake Crouch; all of which I’ve read and loved before. That leaves me with Glendy Vanderah, Ali Standish, M.L. Rio, Liz Moore and Pat Barker, who got five stars ánd were new to me. Based on a single book from all of them, I don’t feel comfortable yet calling any of them a new favorite. If I had to give an answer, it would be one of them though. 8. Newest fictional crush? I don’t have an answer to this question. I feel like I rarely crush in real life, let alone on fictional characters, so no idea… 9. New favorite character? I really loved and related to the three main characters of Where the Forest Meets the Stars. However, for the sake of not repeating myself on every question, I’m going with pretty much the full cast of another book: The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi. I know this was a disappointing read to many, but it gave me major Six of Crows vibes, and maybe for that reason I very much enjoyed it. All the characters have quite distinct personalities, but their group dynamic is what sold it to me. 10. A book that made you cry & A book that made you laugh? I’m going to take these two questions together, as they have the same answer for me. As far as the crying part goes: books can often make me feel a lot of things, but the number of books to have physically made me cry can be counted on one hand. This year, I didn’t read any, so I’m going to answer this as “book that made me feel stuff”. In this case, that “stuff” was on both sides of the happiness-spectrum. I’m talking about This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay. It’s a non-fiction biography by a former gynaecologist, who chronicles his experiences in the English healthcare system, mostly whilst working as a resident and registrar. Although the Dutch medical system is a little different from the English one, there are many similarities, and as someone working in that system, this hit me harder than I was expecting. Adam Kay manages to depict the double edged sword that is a love of medicine in a way that I could really relate to. It’s hilarious at times, and painfully sad at others and heartfelt throughout it all. A full review is to come for this, but I highly recommend anybody who works in the medical field to read this book. 11. Favorite book to movie adaptation? Haven’t seen any. I really want to watch Good Omens (based on the novel of the same name by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman) though, but haven’t gotten around to it. 12. Favorite review you’re written? What’s with these difficult questions… I really can’t think of a favorite one… I have the most vivid memories of writing my review on Halibut on the Moon by David Vann as I just had so many thoughts about it. Same (although for different reasons) goes for my recent review of The Poppy War. As far as posts go I’m really enjoying my Books-in-Pairs series, as it allows be to talk about books with a bit of a twist. 13. Most beautiful book you acquired so far this year? One of the prettiest books I actually acquired is the hardcover edition of Halibut on the Moon. Not only am I a sucker for the sea-at-night esthetic, it also has a deliciously velvety dustjacket. Also, I want to mention City of Woven Streets by Emmi Itaranta. Not just because it’s pretty but because I loved it, but couldn’t fit it in any other category in this tag. 14. Books you still need to read before the end of the year? Clearly, there are many of them, as my Goodreads TBR-shelf can confirm… From the top of my head, here are five that I’m currently most excited to get to. - Middlegame by Seannan McGuire - A Winters Promise by Christelle Dabos - When the Moon was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore - Bridges of Clay by Markus Zusak - House of Glass by Susan Fletcher These are one of my favorite video’s to watch on Booktube, so I hope you enjoyed hearing my answers to the questions. I’d love to know: what was the best book you read so far this year. Happy reading for the rest of 2019, I hope to see you back again soon.

The Path of the Magi: 1. Orc Grove: Some say there is no talking to Orcs, but a good political relationship is needed. Learn some Orc customs by reading a book that is gruesome, gory, or gritty. I just finished Godsgrave (sequel to Nevernight), which would have been perfect for this challenge. Alternatively I’m going with a book from my Summer TBR, that promises to be funny and gritty at the same time: Kings of the Wyld – Nicholas Eames 2. Ol’ Pirate Cove: Shiver me timbers. You shall be walking the plank if you don’t learn how to sail better. Read a book that takes place, at least in part, on sea. Technically, this takes part both on and under the sea, but I have a hard time thinking of a more “seaworthy” book than this: And The Ocean Was Our Sky – Patrick Ness 3. Glimmer: This Isle is alight with gems and crystals, one of the most picturesque spots in The High Queendom. Make sure you fit in with a beautiful or colourful book. This new release has one of the most stunning covers of 2019 so far, and I truly hope to get my hands on it in July. The Storm Crow – Kalyn Josephson 4. Draconic Isle: Oh My! This island is swarming with wyverns and dragons. Brush up on your draconic knowledge with a book that features dragons. We automatically think of mighty beasts such as present in The Priory of The Orangetree, the A Song of Ice and Fire series or Eragon. Instead, I choose a book that features a less fearsome fellow, but a dragon nonetheless. The Girl who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill Path of the Outlaws 1. Crimson Peaks: These peaks are about to blow! Re-read a favourite to soothe them into dormancy. A book I absolutely loved this year, and wanted to reread in order to review it properly would be August Isle by Ali Standish. Alternatively, I’ve been wanting to reread one of my all time favorite novels: The House of God by Samuel Shem, ever since I started my own hospital internships. 2. Queendom Stone: The stone of our Royal Majesty - what are the royal customs of other lands? Read a book featuring Royalty. Royalty, again, is a trope I usually steer clear of, because especially in YA fantasy, it’s been so overdone. Other than The Queens of Innis Lear (which I’ll use for a later challenge), the only one on my TBR that came to mind was Nocturna by Maya Montagne. That being said, this is one I’m almost certain I won’t get to this month. 3. The Forgotten Forests: All those open series, the forest knows and feels your forgetfulness. It will sing a mournful lament, tormenting you until… Read the next in a series. The sequel to one of the books featured on my Scribe-TBR: The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater (sequel to The Raven Boys). 4. The Weeping Falls: To pass through the rapids unscathed, you must give to the Falls. Read a tear-jerker. I’ve been wanting to reread this one since I read Lanny by the same author this month. It also happens to be on the very short list of books to have ever made me cry, and might do so again. Grief is the Thing with Feathers by Max Porter Path of the Bards 1. The Elven Guard are surprised by your visit, and are immediately on the offensive: Read a book with war, military or political themes to learn how to help calm the situation. One of the first books I’ll be picking up (if I have time after completing my own path) is going to be a very anticipated 2019 release that I finally got my hands on. It features social and political themes, along many others: On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong 2. The Hallow Isle: here lurk incorporeal monsters and the ghosts of your past: Read an atmospheric or horror book to pass this test of nerve. I’ve been in the mood for these books for quite some time now, so my TBR is full of them. For this challenge, I’m going with an ARC I have to get to, namely: Petra’s Ghost by C.S. O’Cinneide 3. Empty Barrel Inn: everyone deserves a swig or too, some say it even aids warming up those vocal cords. Enjoy An Indulgent Read. The indulgent part of this novel lies mostly in the deliciously lush writing style the author is known for. I’ve loved both of the other books I read by her, so I’m hoping the same for this one: When the Moon was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore 4. Giant Squid: a fearsome fellow. Read a book that intimidates you, and this foe shall be a doddle. A book that’s been intimidating me for a while (and I will most certainly not get to this month), is The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton. I have high hopes that I’ll love it, but the size and density of the writing intimidates me slightly… That concludes my (two-part) TBR for the Book Junkie Trials, for July 2019. Wish me luck in completing as many of them as possible, even though anything over my own 5 is going to be just an extra for me. I’d love to know if you are joining the Book Junkie Trials as well. Please let me know what team you’re on, and what book from your own TBR you are most excited for. Like I mentioned: please visit the creator Rachael Marie and show her some love for all the awesome work she put into this readathon. Until next time and happy reading!

Readathons scare me... Monthly TBRs scare me... Competitive reading and anything even remotely like that scares me… And for that reason, I’ve never done any of those things. Well, in July I’ll be breaking all of my own rules, as I’ve found a readathon that had me só excited that I couldn’t possibly pass it up. I'm talking about The Book Junkie Trials. This readathon was created by the amazingly Rachael from Rachael Marie Book Junkie, and has all the fantasy- and RPG- elements that I love. I highly recommend you visit Rachaels Twitter or watch her Announcement video on Youtube, for all the details on the readathon. Be sure to give her all the love and credits she deserves, for the incredible amount of effort and creativity she put into this. In order to join this readathon, you must choose a class/team to join, and follow their path on the map to reach the Bookie Grail. I’m going to be joining team Scribes. If you are feeling extra adventurous, you can also attempt to complete all of the 17 challenges, in order compete for the title of “Queens Champion”. Now don’t get me wrong: the chances of me completing all of these challenges in a month (especially during my clinical rotations), are about as close to zero as you can get. Depending on how hard neuro will kick my butt, though, I might still be able to complete a few more than the required 5. I got a little carried away in my enthousiasm, and ended up creating a TBR for all of the challenges. I'm of course going to star off with the 5 that match my team, and see how far I come if I have time left over. Even if I get to none of the others, they might still help someone else in compiling your own TBRs. Without further ado, let’s get into my complete TBR for The Book Junkie Trials: The Path of the Scribes Strength: You can change one entry along the way Weakness: You must at least 1 book over 500 pages Teamleader: Sophiesticated Books 1. Dwarf Mount: You spot a fair tavern wench, however the Dwarf Mines, grimey and dusty, didn’t evoke a very romantic feeling. Read a book with a hint of romance to get you in the mood. As someone who doesn’t typically enjoy romance books, I’m a little nervous about this first prompt. My pick will be a reread of a book I've read years ago, and wanted to revisit for a long time now. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater 2. Apothecary Towers: Where the wizards dwell. Tricksters. They have blind-folded you and randomised all your books. Choose a book at random from your bookshelf. I used a random number generator to pick a number on my Goodreads to-read shelf. I don’t even own 10% of the books on that shelf, and don’t have instant excess to the majority of the others via my library, so if that was the case, I drew again. My number was 102, which corresponds to: Freshwater by Akwake Emezi If my library reservation doesn’t come through in time, I’ll use my “strength” to change this entry. 3. The Great Library: Ahh the great archives… Find and read a book that has been on your TBR forever. It’s not only been on my TBR forever, but has been on my last two monthly TBR’s as well, and I still haven’t read it. July is the month… it has to be. The Comet Seekers by Helen Sedgwick 4. The Drowning Deep: The Whirlpool... is so.... mesmerising. Read a book with rich world-building that will suck you into its own world, instead. When thinking of books with incredible worldbuilding, the first book that comes to my mind is Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor. What could be a better pick for this prompt than, then its sequel: The Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor. 5. The Bookie Grail: Here you find a lost manuscript, delivered on this forgotten island by a fallen star. Read the group book: Stardust by Neil Gaiman Click here for part 2 containing the rest of the Challenges.

The Nevernight Chronicle #2 Genre: High Fantasy Published: Harper Voyager UK, September 2017 My Rating: 3/5 stars “Silver at her throat. Stone at her feet. Iron in her heart.” Before we get into this post, a quick disclaimer, as this is the type of book where anything less than a 5 star gush can get you crucified by an entire fandom. I gave this book 3 stars, which is a fairly good rating. It means it was a good book, and I enjoyed reading. It means it’s the best sequel of the year so far, and I can’t wait for the third book to come out. 3 stars also means, however, that I enjoyed it a little bit less than the first book, and had some problems that keep it from being a 4- or 5- star to me. For a book that gets almost exclusively 5-star ratings, I feel it’s fair that those feelings get expressed as well. That’s what this post is for. Firstly, what personally kept Nevernight from being a 5-star read for me, was Jay Kristoffs writing style, that just doesn’t fully click with me. This is purely a matter of taste, but it’s a little too dense for my taste, which leads me to struggle reading long stretches at the time and pulls me out of the story. I still had this problem with Godsgrave although I wanted to speed through it to find out what would happen next, the writing slowed me down. Secondly, and I hate to say it, but… I saw the twist coming. Yes, even the one at the very end. In fact, I was expecting that one to happen at the end of book 1 already. I was frustrated as hell, because I wanted to be surprised, but alas… Thirdly and lastly, I loved Mia as a character, and was all behind her relationships in the first book (even if I wasn’t always comfortable with the explicit of the “sexy-times”). I can’t say I felt the same about the relationships in Godsgrave. The speed with which Mia got over her past lover, and threw herself in the arms of the next, felt ingenuine to me. This in turn, reflected upon their entire relationship. I loved the fact that there is a F/F relationship in this book, and that their sexuality is explicitly portrayed on the pages. Because their relationship felt ingenuine to me, some of these scenes did feel very “fan-servicy”… Perhaps even author-servicy… Someone mentioned in their review that it feels like F/F adult entertainment, written for and by heterosexual males, and ever since I read that, I couldn’t shake the cringy feeling that gave me. Again: I really want to stress that this is not meant to be a bash of this book. Pretty much everything I loved about Nevernight is still there. Amazing worldbuilding, a unique story that dares to take risks and a protagonist (and her shadow familiars) that I still absolutely love! If you want to read more positive opinions, you need only to look Godsgrave up on Goodreads, as over 10,000 people have already sung its praises. And despite its faults, I feel most of those praises are well deserved. Find this book on Goodreads

Genre: Fantasy Published: Harper Voyager, May 2018 My Rating: 2/5 stars "It was a song of vengeance. It was a horrible song. It was a lovely song." Long review, with some unpopular opinions incoming… The Poppy War won numerous awards, was nominated for the Goodreads Choice Awards in the Fantasy category, and somehow stands at a >4 star average rating with over 18,000 reviews. And it didn’t click with me… First of all, I have to mention that this book is split up into 3 parts, and in order to get my thoughts and critiques across, I’m going to have to talk about all three of them. I’ll keep this as spoiler free as possible, but if you haven’t read this book and want to go in blind, please be aware of that before continuing reading this review. Part 1: We meet our protagonist Rin: an orphaned, peasant girl from the impoverished Rooster province, who dreams of attending the Empires elitist military academy. Rin is quite your typical YA character. She is a bit of a Mary Sue, but she is strong willed, and genuinely comes across as intelligent, which I very much liked. She has a clear goal in mind, and is willing to go to great lengths to attain that. She is ambitious to a fault, and although that make her a realistic character in some sense, it also makes her quite the unlikable protagonist at times. We follow Rin as she participates in the trials to be entered into the academy, and meets her fellow students along the way. The plot is a little predictable (view spoiler). It’s a little grittier and darker than you expect your typical YA novel to be, and I appreciate the author taking that risk. All in all, I quite enjoyed my time with part 1. It reads like a debut, but a good one at that, and I would have given it 4 star probably. Part 2: This is where the novel goes downhill. Or perhaps that isn’t the right way to describe it… You see: it’s not a gradual decline, but more of an unexpected sinkhole opening up and swallowing the book whole. Going into part two, I felt like I had unknowingly picked up a different book entirely… We skip over the later years of the Academy training completely, and are thrown into a situation where the Empire is suddenly wrapped up in a full on war-situation. The worldbuilding, including this war, is heavily inspired by the actual events of the Opium wars, which I really appreciated, but also caused some problems. First of my main two problems being pacing. Because the novel tries to fit so many (actual) events, over such a large scope, into one book, we end up only barely scratching the surface with most of them. It’s especially harrowing when compared to the relatively small scope of part one, where the pacing as a result is slower. Which brings me to my second main problem: I can’t stretch enough how complete and drastic the disconnect between part one and part two is. Not just plot-wise, in almost any aspect, including tone and even cast. The entire cast we’ve come to meet in part one is completely kicked to the curb, and a new cast is brought in, that essentially gets no time to develop at all. Not only did I feel robbed of the closure of the first cast, I didn’t feel connected at all with the second cast, which pulled me out of the story entirely. Part 3: Mostly, my feelings about part three are similar to those about part one, except even stronger. Everything that was built up on part one is completely tossed out of the window. Pacing issues became more blaringly obvious, and I felt like I recognized none of the characters anymore. That includes Rin by the way, who flips like a leaf somewhere between part one and two, and becomes completely unrecognizable. Gone are her rational intelligence, her cunning nature and clear goals. Instead, she seems completely consumed by rash decisions and blind ambition and made choices that seemed completely alien to her character in part one. Now, had this been a proper character-arc, I would have been fine with it. Instead it was literally like flipping a switch, seemingly without lead up… Additionally, part 3 continues that tonal change that happened between part one and three. We basically went from YA to adult grim-dark, brutal and gritty military fantasy. It basically left me with the question for what audience this book was actually intended. I feel like it’s too gritty and too graphic in the latter half to be suitable for a 14- to 15-year old audience. Yet Rin as a character is too immature to work for an adult audience, leaving this book in limbo in between… I have even more notes on this book than I was able to incorporate into this review, but I think I made my overall point clear. I wanted to love it, but I overall just had way to many problems with it. Find this book on Goodreads

Genre: Magical Realism, Short Stories Published: Picador, May 2019 My Rating: 4.5/5 stars “Before him, she had often wondered whether solitude was a skill one could lose, like schoolgirl latin. Or whether it was simply a talent one acquired, bikelike, never afterwards forgotten.” A mesmerizing collection magical realism of short stories from a debut author that I’ll be sure to keep an eye out for in the future. This collection gave me major Kirsty Logan-, Jen Campbell- and Samantha Hunt- vibes, which automatically lets you know it was very much up my alley. It consists of 9 tales that explore themes of female adolescence, body, love and change, whilst consistently balancing the tightrope of the line between reality and bizarre imagination. Julia Armstrong has a beautiful way with words and imagery, where she turns the average upside down and inside out, to show what’s at its core emotionally. As a whole it’s a well-balanced collection that feels coherent, and I liked the majority of stories with the exception of only one. As with any magical realism, there is going to be an element of hit-or-miss based on personal taste. I think the backflap and title (including the stunning cover) do a great job of representing the books content: “women become insects, men turn to stone, a city becomes insomniac and bodies are picked apart to make up better ones”… If that’s the kind of description that draws you in, this is most likely going to be a book for you, as it was for me. Ratings per story: - Mantis: 4/5 - The Great Sleep 4/5 - The Collectables 2/5 - Formally Feral 3/5 - Stop your Womens Ears with wax 3/5 - Granite 5/5 - Smack 4/5 - Cassandra After 5/5 - Salt Slow 5/5 Add this book on Goodreads

Genre: Poetry, Historical Published: Candlewick Press, August 2019 My Rating: 2.5/5 stars ARC provided by publisher. ”Hell is different for everyone. And everyone finds their own way in. This was another thing I learned as the years turned, as the leaves burned, as water dries up, as the ground roasted, as trees died, as time and time again, I made my way to the Underworld.” Part poetry, part graphic novel, centered around a retelling of the Ancient Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, featuring brothers instead of lovers, all set against the backdrop of World War II. When I heard that description, I was already sold. Greek myth retellings are my kryptonite and seeing one transported to a second world-war setting sounded like a story I could not pass up. Many thanks again to Candlewick Press for providing me with the ARC, in exchange for an honest review. Unfortunately, as much as I loved what the authors were trying to do with this novel, I was left with mixed feelings in the end. Voyages in the Underworld of Orpheus Black is takes place mostly from the perspective of Harry, a man who wakes up, wounded and disoriented, in a hospital after surviving a bombing, only to receive the news that his brother has been killed in action. Maddened with grief and posttraumatic delirium, he embarks on a fever dream-like journey, to retrieve his brother from the Underworld. The style of the novel (for better or for worse) resembles the protagonists muddled state of mind, as throughout most of it I had not a single clue what was going on. Although it matches the story conceptually, I don’t think it does much favor to the reading experience in this case. Throughout the entire book I had to work quite hard to remain engaged and understand what I was reading, which I don’t mind as long as there is a good payoff in the end. That pay-off was missing a little for me. It needs to be said that this had some brilliant passages and stunning art work. The cover illustration represents the art style quite well, and I can only tip my head to the illustrator for their beautiful work. Some of the panels by themselves were at a 4 to 5 star level, even if not all of them were finished in the ARC version yet. In the end however, as a whole, I felt like this book may have been the victim of its own ambition. Both we as readers, as well as the authors seemingly had to put in very hard work to make this work. I loved what Voyages in the Underworld of Orpheus Black sets out to do, and I think in parts it even succeeds, but it lacks the fluency and flow of a novel that is seemingly written with ease (and will therefore read as such). This has been my third novel by Markus Sedgwick that has disappointed me recently. I always love his concepts, but I always feel his stories get lost in their ambition somewhere along the way. Maybe it’s just his writing and my taste that don’t align to well. If you enjoyed his other works, I can see how this might be a great read for you. For me, it ended up somewhere in the middle with on a 2.5 star rating. Find this book on Goodreads

It might be a little early, but the end of the academic year is approaching, which means that graduation season is coming. One of my favorite parts of my high school graduation was the yearbook, which I was crazy enough to volunteer putting together, superlatives and all. When I saw this original book tag by ABookOlive on Youtube floating by, I immediately got thrown back to the laughs me and my 2 co-editors got out of that. Consider this my miniature bookish yearbook for 2018/2019. Because I shelve on Goodreads based on the calendar year, it was a bit of a struggle to retrace everything in the academic year, but I here we are; my bookish superlative page 2018/2019. 1. MOST LIKELY TO BE IN THE MOVIES The book that would make the best movie The Anomaly by Michael Rutger Like I mentioned in my review of The Anomaly, this book already reads like watching a movie. Michael Rutger is a screenwriter, and somehow writes such cinematic and actionpacked scenes that I think this book would perfectly translate to film. It’s rumoured that The Gotham Group has already purchased the movie rights, so I’m quite hopeful that it will actually become reality somewhere in the near future. I’ll for sure be in line at the cinema as soon as that happens. 2. BIGGEST DRAMA QUEEN The most (overly) dramatic book or character Hypnos from The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi artwork by Nicole Deal Upon reading “drama queen”, this character was the first to come to mind. Hypnos, to me, embodies sass, attitude and drama in the best way possible. I wasn’t sure if I was going to like him at first, but his character turned out to be the life of the party. He added some much needed spunk to the group dynamic at times, without creating unnecessary group-drama (he isn’t that kind of drama queen), end in the end was one of my favorite characters of the bunch. 3. BEST DRESSED book with the best cover The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker Coverart by Sarah Young I’ve said before that publishers and cover designers have been killing it in the last 2 or 3 years with all the stunning covers coming out, so there was heavy competition here. In the end, I chose a book that always draws my eye if I pass it on a shelf (either at home or at a bookstore), because it’s so unique and different from your typical cover. I love the color scheme, the illustrations and how it matches the story inside. 4. MOST CREATIVE: book with the best or most unique plot, characters or structure Semiosis by Sue Burke I feel like Sci-fi and Fantasy are the best suited for this question, and Semiosis is absolutely one of the most unique ones I’ve read in that genre. It’s a very recent reads, and therefore still fresh on my mind, but I don’t see myself forgetting this one soon. Semiosis is a “first-contact-story”, on an alien planet that for once, isn’t inhabited by anthropomorphic aliens, with societal structures very similar to our western ones. Instead, the dominant species on this planet are sentient plants, who clearly think and behave so differently from us, that it creates some incredibly unique dynamics. Such an interesting book, that I highly recommend. 5. MOST POPULAR: book with the most ratings on Goodreads The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho After consulting my Goodreads “year in review”, I was surprised to learn that this was The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho, which actually ended up on my worst of 2018-list. That’s okay though: you don’t always have to be friends with only the most popular of kids in school… 6. MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED: a book that is going to be appreciated for years to come Lanny by Max Porter For this one I looked for a book that I think would be timeless, as well as original enough not to get burried under a ton of other books just like it. One of the books that made me feel that way in recent years was Grief is The Thing With Feathers, and after reading Max Porters newest masterful novel Lanny, I feel like that's one that would fit this prompt perfectly as well. 7. CLASS CLOWN: A book that made you laugh This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay & Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman I don’t read too many funny books, nor am I someone who often laughs out loud whilst reading. I can think of two books that made me smile, so they’re going to share this place. Although This is Going to Hurt was the funniest to me personally, I think that mainly has to do with how relatable it was to me as a medical intern myself. Many of the situations Kay describes, I’ve been in myself, and much of my enjoyment was probably the kind of misery-loves-company-doctors-humor that I’m frankly not proud of developing for myself. When it comes to genuinely funny writing, I personally really appreciate Neil Gaimans dark, dry humor and wit, especially in the context of his books. Neverwhere was probably my favorite so far by him in that regard. 8. MOST IMPROVED: a book that started out slow, but really picked up The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber This brick of a book was quite intimidating to me at first, and it took me about a 150 pages to really get into the story. Once that happened however, I was completely engaged with the characters and the storyline, and couldn’t put the book down. It’s a very smart, and very original novel, that is beautifully written. So if you, like me, struggle with the beginning a bit: it’s absolutely worth continuing. 9. CUTEST COUPLE: the cutest book-couple Celia and Marco from the Night Circus Art by Micheline Ryckman So… this is where it got difficult. As most of you know; I’m not a fan of romance, and I can count on the fingers of one hand the couples that I actually “ship”. None of them I read (for the first time) in 2018/2019. I read about some great relationships, but none of them I’d call “cute”. I did however reread the Night Circus in summer of last year, so I’m going with Celia and Marco. Not because they’re my favorite couple ever, but they are the closest to a “cute couple” I got in the past 12 month apparently. 10. BIGGEST HEARTBREAKER: a book that broke your heart August Isle by Ali Standish I was going to mention the last book to have made me cry, which was The Astonishing Color of after, but apparently that was over a year ago. Instead I have one of my biggest surprises of 2019, that didn’t bring me to full on tears, but got quite close. August Isle is a middle grade novel about the power of friendship, family, loss, internalized guilt and what growing up does to that fragile sense of home you have as a kid. I went in for a “lighter read”, and got completely emotionally wrecked, in the best way. Middle grades seem to almost have an exclusive on that for me nowadays. Link to the original creator of this tag: Abookolive on Youtube Link to the artists of the featured artwork: Hypnos by Nicole Deal: https://www.nicoledeal.com/ Celia and Marco by Micheline Ryckman: https://whimsicalpublishing.ca/shop/ Coverart of Silence of the Girls: https://www.sarah-young.co.uk/

It’s been longer than I’d planned since I uploaded my previous installment of books in pairs, but I’m finally back with another one. It wasn’t from a lack of motivation on my part, I’ve just been very busy lately. As a matter of fact, I’ve been loving working on this series of posts, as it allows me to think outside my usual box, and talk about books that I don’t usually mention a lot. In part 3, I’m trying something a little different, and pairing a popular tv-show to a book that in some shape or form is similar. I originally had 10 pairs on this list, but decided to remove 2, as I didn’t feel I could properly link those together without spoiling certain plot points. Despite it only being minor ones, I wanted to keep this completely spoiler free. Alternatively, I threw in a little ninth “bonus entry” at the end. If you like this, you might love this: TV and series edition 1. If you liked: Stranger Things you might like: The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman In my review for The Devouring Gray I described it as “Stranger Things in booksform” and I still stand by that description. Both stories take place in a small town in which mysterious events take place and both rely a group of teenagers with extraordinary powers to save the day. The Gray and The Upside-down have many things in common, as do the general atmosphere of both stories. If you like either of these, I think you have a good chance of enjoying the other. 2. If you liked: Dexter you might like: I Am Not A Serial Killer by Dan Wells Although Dexter is based on a book series itself, I wouldn’t personally recommend those together, as they are so different in tone and set up. If you’re still looking for a book about a likable serial killer, I recommend I’m Not A Serial Killer. The main character really reminds me of Dexter (especially in his later teens), and if you like one I think you might like the other as well. 3. If you liked: Gray’s Anatomy you might like: The House of God by Samuel Shem As a medical student and intern I’m quite picky of the many medical dramas that are out there. In the end, my favorites are the first 5 seasons of House MD (for more on that, see my “bonusentry”), followed by season 1 of Gray’s Anatomy. If you enjoyed Gray’s Anatomy for the portrayal of the perils of a medical intern in an American hospital, you might be interested in The House of God by Samuel Shem. It’s basically a modern classic by now, and for good reason. It’s quite cynical and, like Gray’s Anatomy, a little exaggerated, but ultimately contains a lot of painfully funny truths. 4. If you liked: Firefly you might like: The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams If you are still hangover and bitter over the cancelation of Firefly, you may be interested in some hair of the dog in the shape of a book. Both Firefly and The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy feature a combination of Sci-fi, space-travel, humor and that found-family trope that we all love. If that combo sounds good to you, these are the book and show for you. 5. If you liked: Supernatural you might like: American Gods by Neil Gaiman If you are looking for something that combines our modern world with beings and Gods from mythology and legend, you might already have come across Supernatural on Netflix. Although I personally didn’t love the show, I do have a bookish counterpart that I did love. American Gods by Neil Gaiman also features a main character who has to deal with figures from mythology entering our modern day world, and shares the “road trip element” with the show. Shadow handles his encounters very differently from Dean and Sam, yet the overall feel, bizarre nature and occasional dry humor are things both have in common. Of course American Gods has its own tv-show out as well, which I haven’t seen myself yet, but I’ve heard great things about. If you’ve seen it: let me know if it’s as good as the book. 6. If you liked: The X-files you might like: The Anomaly by Michael Rutger In my review of The Anomaly I mention how this is “X-files meets Indiana Jones”. Basically both of those are my guilty pleasures, and so is this book now. The Anomaly doesn’t feature a sassy detective duo, but a group of a different kind of investigators, whom banter is just as enjoyable. Both are thrillers, both have a supernatural element, and both will be spoiled if you know too much going into them. Just pick them up for yourself, and see what you think. 7. If you liked: Black Mirror you might like: Friday Black by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Both have the word “black” in the title, but that isn’t where the similarities stop. Both are a collection of sci-fi/horror/thriller short stories, that offer so much social critique of our modern world that they elevate above the average of the genre. Both are often bizarre, but will keep you thinking for a while to come. 8. If you liked: Gilmore Girls you might like: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell Last on this list are a book and series I’ve never read myself, but have heard so much about, and somehow keep linking to each other in my mind. I think it’s the elements of college and fan-culture in a way, that link them for me, as well as the fact that almost all of my friends who like one, also enjoy the other. I’d love to hear your opinion on this one, as I can’t be sure on this one. Bonus Entry: If you liked House MD you might like: Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle This is a bonus-entry, because I couldn’t in good conscious recommend books/series from completely different series together. Yet I can’t help but feel like House MD and Sherlock Holmes have a lot in common. I don’t know if this is true, but I have the theory that the show and main character are actually loosely inspired by Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective. - Gregory House is a brilliant, but… let’s say “eccentric” doctor. Sherlock Holmes is a detective with a similar personality. - House has a best friend named Wilson, who is a little too sweet for his own good. Holmes has a friend named Watson who is the same way. - House has an addiction to Vicodin, an opioid prescription drug. Holmes has a heroin-addiction. Both love puzzles and solving mysteries that nobody else can figure out, and both will go to great length to do so. Do I need to go on? They may not be the best pairing on this list, but I loved both of them, and I hope you will to. All books mentioned are linked to their Goodreads page for your convenience.Let me know if you got any recommendations, either for series or books out of this.

Genre: YA Fiction Published: Orion Books, October 2014 My Rating: 2/5 stars “You want to go back to where you began. You want to find the happiness you once had. But you can never get there, because even if you somehow found it, you yourself would be different. You would have changed, from your journey alone, from the passing of time, if nothing else. You can never make it back to where you began, you can only ever climb another turn of the spiral stair. Forever.” Markus Sedgwick’s 2014 novel The Ghosts of Heaven was pitched to me as “Cloud Atlas for a YA-audience.” As one of the (few) people who actually genuinely enjoyed all things David Mitchel, including Cloud Atlas, I had quite high hopes. Sadly, only very few of these hopes were met. Like Cloud Atlas, The Ghosts of Heaven inhabits that grey area between novel and collection of short stories. The book is divided into 4 sections, that can each be read separately, and in any order you’d like, although the author recommends the order they are presented in. The first part (Whispers in the Dark) is set in prehistorical times, and follows a girl who flees into a mysterious cave system where she essentially invents written language. The second part (The Witch in the Water) follows a young women in the 1600’s, accused of which craft by her village. For the third part (The Easiest Room in Hell) we visit a 1920’s insane asylum, where a doctor takes particular interest in a mysterious madman who serenades the sea. And finally for part 4 (The Song of Destiny), we travel into the future, to a spaceship on its way to colonize new planets. Although these stories are seemingly completely unrelated, they are bound by one motif that returns in all of them: spirals. Spirals are everywhere in this book. From the prehistoric cave paintings, to the mathematical equations that launched a spaceship into deep space. They adorn the cover and the chapter headers. They are also in the structure of the novel itself, in the sense that it comes to sort of a circle in the end, yet doesn’t end up in the exact place it started. If this all sounds very ambitious and very abstract: you are right. That, unfortunately, was my biggest problem with this novel. As much as I appreciate an ambitious idea, I don’t feel like this book accomplished what it set out to do. From a novel-perspective, the motif of simply “spirals” just isn’t enough to link the stories together to form a coherent whole, especially as they otherwise are completely unrelated in tone or style whatsoever. Even the way the plot spirals around in the end, was just a little thin to me. When I read the backflap, the idea that immediately jumped into my mind as to how the author would accomplish that, was what exactly what happened in the end. You could argue that this is supposed to be judged as a collection of short stories, rather than a novel. From that perspective, perhaps the link between them would have been enough. Still, I felt the 4 stories were a little too underdeveloped to stand as separate entities for me to enjoy it as such. In addition, I think these type of ambitious set ups can easily border on pretentious, if not executed to perfection. Not to short-sell YA-readers, but in general I feel like this audience has less patience and tolerance for this sort of thing, which made me doubt if the book was targeted to the right audience. To say it bluntly: I think the comparison to Cloud Atlas is fair, yet I personally enjoyed that book a lot more than this one. Both the stories in Cloud Atlas and The Ghosts of Heaven are linked by a motif, and, in the case of Cloud Atlas, thematically. In both, the stories are written in completely different narrative styles and “voices”, which I can only commend both authors for pulling off, as it’s extremely difficult to do. That being said, Cloud Atlas ultimately kept me thinking long after finishing it, and the more I thought about it, the more connections between the stories I found. Cloud Atlas became more than the sum of its parts. The Ghosts of Heaven sadly didn’t. Find this book on Goodreads

Genre: Literary Fiction, Magical Realism Published: Faber&Faber, March 2019 My Rating: 5/5 stars "She laughed, and said she understood, and then off she drifted in that nice way she was. Resposive to the light, I would call it. The type of person who is that little bit more akin to the weather than most people, more obviously made of the same atoms as the earth than most people these days seem to be. Which explains Lanny." Just as unique as Grief is the Thing with Feathers, and possibly even more masterfully written. What an incredible book this was... I feel like Lanny is the kind of novel that is best enjoyed by going in blind and letting it unfold itself fully for your own eyes. All I want to say, is that it’s set against the backdrop of the microcosm that exists within a small English town, and that it centers around a boy. The kind of boy that would in different times have been labeled a changeling; head in the clouds, hands in the dirt. A little closer to the natural world than usual, with a wisdom more suited for a boy much older (or perhaps: one much younger) than his age. This boys name is Lanny. This is his story, and that of the world that surrounds him. I have an incredible amount of respect for Max Porter as an author, based on this book, as well as his previous work. His style is unique, and therefore going to be divisive, and I can see how this won’t be everybody’s cup of tea. From a technical perspective however, for what this novel sets out to do, I think it’s close to perfection. Porters experience in publishing and editing quickly become apparent in the artisanal skill with which this book was crafted. The idea for Lanny was born from multiple inspirations merging together: a story of the relationship between a boy and an older man, the balance between nature and man, a sociological look at England’s nation today… He somehow managed to combine all of that and more into a 224-page novel, whilst maintaining complete tonal, thematical and stylistic coherence. Winding through the entire story like a vine, yet anchoring it like a root is the element of a mythical earth spirit known as Dead Papa Toothwort, who is at least as interesting a character as Lanny himself. Named after a parasitic wildflower that lives off the roots of other species, Papa Toothwort exists outside the normal ecosystem, yet is the essential link that completes the circle of this narrative. (I highly recommend you google this plant if you’re interested, as it adds a complete new layer to the character). As a botanists-daughter, I will always be a sucker for motifs like this. I have no idea how to give you an accurate “one-line-description” of this novel. It’s part Melmoth by Sarah Perry, part Autumn by Ali Smith, part Reservoir 13, and yet, at least for me, better than all those things. All I can say is that Papa Toothwort has planted its seed deep in the roots of my brain. It’s a novel I still think about a lot, and probably (if Grief is the Thing with Feathers was any indication) will for a long time. One of the best literary fiction books published this year for sure. Find this book on Goodreads

Part two of this May wrap up contains all of my favorites of the mont (4 stars and up), aswell as my June TBR. I have a huge list to talk about, so let's get into the books: Books Read Part Two 1. Neverwhere – Neil Gaiman The story of a man who falls through the cracks one day (literally), and ends up in the dark undercity of London below, where Neverwhere is Neil Gaiman at his best: dark urban fantasy, written with a touch of that deliciously dry and slightly messed up humor the author is known for. I loved the worldbuilding and the strange inhabitants of London Below, and actually got a chuckle out of some of the lines. My immersion was almost complete, thanks to the audiobook, and if I could, I’d have probably read this front to back in 1 sitting. The predictability and the cookie-cutter main characters kept it from being a full five-star read for me, but nonetheless, this might be my favorite Gaiman so far. Full review to come. Rating: 4/5 stars 2. Where the Crawdads Sing – Delia Owens Part murder mystery, part coming of age, all beautiful nature writing… Where The Crawdads Sing is one of the overall highest rated novels on my Goodreads shelves, that quite deserves the love it got. Full review can be found here Rating: 4/5 stars 3. Rebecca – Daphne DuMaurier Rebecca is a classic that probably needs no introduction, and I’m frankly a little embarrassed that it took me this long to actually pick it up. Even more so since I loved it as much as I did. A gothic novel about a newlywed woman haunted by the ghost of her husband’s previous wife, that passed the test of time with flying colors, and is now one of my favorite classics. Full review can be found here Rating: 4.5/5 stars 4. The Girl Aquarium – Jen Campbell If you’ve been here for a while you know how much I adore Jen Campbell, so it won’t come as a surprise that her first full-length poetry collection The Girl Aquarium was in my top 5 of most anticipated releases for 2019. Let me tell you: it was worth my anticipation. Full review can be found here Rating: 4.5/5 stars 5. The Silence of the Girls – Pat Barker It’s not a mystery to many of you that I’m a massive sucker when it comes to Greek mythology, especially the stories of the lesser-known characters from it. Therefore it was probably not a surprise to anyone when I picked up and loved The Silence of the Girls. In this novel we experience (part of) The Iliad through the eyes of Brisseïs, former Queen of Lyrnessus, who becomes Achilles’ personal slave as her city falls. I won’t be writing an in-depth review about this one, as I feel there are many people who have already done a great job discussing this, and there isn’t much I’d like to add to that. In short: it was straight up my alley, well written and I highly recommend it if you’re interested in the story of The Iliad, or if you like the works of Madeline Miller. Rating: 4.5/5 stars 6. If we were Villains – M.L. Rio When this book was sold to me as “The YA-equivalent to The Secret History”, I was extremely skeptical, as that’s a darn bold claim to make. Now I’m going to have to eat my own words, because this was actually worth the comparison. A story of obsession, passion, hate, elitism and losing ourselves in the roles we play in our own lives. Highly recommend! Review can be found here Rating: 4.5/5 stars 7. These Rebel Waves – Sara Raasch These Rebel Waves was such a positive surprise to me, as I basically went in with zero expectations, but ended up loving what I got. Political intrigue, a beautifully built caribbean-esque world, botanical magic, and strongwilled and smart characters that stole my heart are at the core of this story. It had me hooked with its interesting world and magic system from start to finish and I can't wait for the sequel to come out in August (especially after that ending). Full review can be found here Rating: 4.5/5 stars 8. August Isle – Ali Standish A well-written middle grade novel has the unparalleled ability to utterly emotionally destroy me for some reason. The penultimate book on this May-list was just such a book, and by far my biggest surprise of the month, possibly even of the year so far. This story about a girl who spends her summer on the small Floridian isle where her mother grew up tackles so much more than you might expect based on the synopsis. It’s a story about friendship, (changing) family dynamics and the internalized guilt, grief and feeling of inadequacy of a young girl after tragedy. This has only 74 ratings on Goodreads so far, and just needs to be picked up by more people. If you take anything away from this wrap up, please let it be to read August Isle for yourself. Even if you don’t usually read middle grade: this is a great one to pick up. Full review to come. Rating: 5/5 stars 9. A Portable Shelter – Kirsty Logan Last but not least this month we have a re-read of A Portable Shelter, the short story collection by Kirsty Logan set in the same world as The Gracekeepers. I don’t have a lot of new things to say: it was an all-time favourite and still is an all-time favourite. Kirsty Logans writing works a type of magic on me that I can’t quite explain, but I’m perfectly fine with being enchanted by it. I still have hope that I can one day write down my thoughts on this (or The Gracekeepers for that matter) coherently, but as I’ve mentioned before: I struggle reviewing my favorites… All I can say is: adored it, and I wish more people would read it. Rating: 5/5 stars June TBR June's TBR is going to be very "free" for me. I have one ARC, and two librarybooks I want to get to, but otherwise I'm basically going to be mood-reading for the rest of the month. The Comet Seekers – Helen Sedgwick Round two for The Comet Seekers, this time in physical edition. Hopefully I’ll enjoy it more without the audiobook’s narrator. Lanny – Max Porter I’ve been wanting to read this since its release, and my library finally came through with my reservation. After Grief is the Thing with Feathers I have high expectations from Max Porters and I’m hoping that this will be as intriguing and unique as it sounds. Mona in Three Parts – Griet Op de Beeck Griet Op de Beeck is a Flemish author of which I’ve read all but one of her books now. Her most read book “Kom Hier dat ik u Kus” is now being translated into English, and I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of the translated version from the publisher. I can’t wait to see how it compares to the Dutch version and how it’ll translate to the foreign market. You can of course follow my progress during the month on my Goodreads, or await next month wrap up. I wish you all a happy reading month, and hope to see you back soon

You can probably tell that I’ve had a few days off in the month of May, because this was (both quantitively as well as qualitatively) one of my best reading months ever. Not only do I have 16 books to talk about, but I also have more 4.5- and 5 star-reads than in any month as far as I can remember. Because of the ridiculous amount of books, this wrap up will be going up in two parts. To make it easier for you guys to navigate I’ll also be going through the books in order of my rating, rather than chronologically. Part one will contain the books that I rated up to 4 stars. Part two will be dedicated especially to all my 4-, 4.5- and 5 star-reads of the month, and will contain my TBR for June. We have a lot to cover, so without further ado: let’s get into part one of my best reading months in recent history… 1. The Comet Seekers – Helen Sedgwick The first book this month is one that has been on my TBR for a very long time, and unfortunately the one I didn’t finish. The Comet Seekers is about two people who meet working at an isolated astronomical observatory in Antarctica and seem to find that they have a connection that is written in the stars. It’s been compared (tonally) to Station Eleven and The Time Travelers Wife and sounded completely up my alley. Unfortunately, my choice to try the audiobook didn’t turn out too well this time. As much as I was enjoying the story, I couldn’t stand the ridiculous and over the top accents the narrator was doing for the foreign characters, and it really hindered my enjoyment of the book as a whole. Instead of letting this taint my view of the book, I decided to move it back to my June TBR, and give it a second chance in physical format. 2. Black Leopard, Red Wolf – Marlon James Expect to see this one on my “Most Disappointing list” at the end of the year, because man, I’m still bitter about it… Black Leopard, Red Wolf had an awesome premise and a lot of hype surrounding it before release, and I was hoping for a new highly original fantasy series to love. “Original” is one way to describe it, “pretentious”, “graphicly disturbing” or “horrible” are others. As you know, I reserve the 1-star rating for books I actively dislike or even hate, and it has been quite some time since I hated a book as much as this one. Full review can be found here as well as on Goodreads. Rating: 1/5 star 3. White is for Witching – Helen Oyeyemi The first book I read in May was an intense one, and it took me a while to decide whether that was in a good or bad way. In the end, I had too many problems with this novel to rate it any higher than two stars. White is for Witching is another gothic-horror-meets-magical-realism story set in a Victorian mansion, where a family is faced with the question which is most haunted: the house they live in or their own minds. It deals with grief, family dynamic and mental illness, more specifically eating disorders. It was the representation of the latter, seemingly for pure shock value, that rubbed me the wrong way a little. I haven’t written a “coherent” review, but I did put my thoughts to paper, which you can find here. Rating: 2/5 stars 4. The Devouring Gray - Christine Lynn Herman Another of my most anticipated releases that turned out to be a disappointment. The Devouring Gray is basically Stranger Things meets The Raven Boys in book-form, but executed nowhere near as good as either of those. It’s a very obvious debut that had a lot of great ideas, but very lacking execution for all of them. In all honestly, I might not have judged it so harsh if it hadn’t been for the ridiculous amounts of hype surrounding its release, which might have helped set it up for failure. Full review to come soon Rating: 2.5/5 stars 5. The Lonely Hearts Hotel – Heather O’Neill Purely based on my personal enjoyment level, this would have been a 1.5 or a 2 star, but I am giving it the benefit or 2.5 stars, as I feel I just wasn’t the right audience for this book. Without going on a full tangent on misleading marketing by publishers, I feel like if this had been marketed properly, I would have known to steer clear of this novel. Despite its magical-realism-historical-fiction marketing, The Lonely Hearts Hotel is really neither of those things. It’s a romance novel. If you enjoy romance, you might like this, but for me it’s the one genre I know going I have zero interest in. Full review to come. Rating: 2.5/5 stars 6. The Hurricane Child – Kacen Callender I recently a video from one of my favorite booktubers Kayla at Booksandlala, in which she talked about one of her favourite, very specific book-tropes: Magical Realism YA books set on an island. Low and behold, that highly specific thing also happens to be one of my favourite things as well, so naturally I added every book she mentioned that I hadn’t already read to my TBR. One of them was The Hurricane Child. The Hurricane Child is a middle grade novel that deals with many important topics like racism, sexuality, homophobia, bullying and the grief over a parent that has abandoned their family. I absolutely loved it for that, but it did have quite a few flaws I couldn’t overlook. The main one being: trying to do too much in a short book, and consequently feeling a little disjointed. Despite not loving it, this is still a middle grade novel I highly recommend, even if just for the themes it can introduce young readers to. Full review to come. Rating: 3/5 stars The Lost Coast – Amy Rose Capetta After the mention of a friend group of teenage witches in the Californian Redwoods setting, coupled with a mystery storyline, I was basically sold on the synopsis of The Lost Coast. I was lucky enough to receive an ARC from the publisher Candlewick for review, and ended up quite enjoying this novel. Think: Spellbook of the Lost and Found meets The Raven Boys with a hint of The Craft. Full review can be found here. Rating: 3/5 stars Click here to read part two of my wrap up

Genre: (YA) fantasy Published: Balzer + Bray, August 2018 My Rating: 4.5/5 stars Once upon a time, in an office far-far-away, a marketing employee sat down at his desk with this book in their lap. “How do I cheaply and effectively label this book, to appeal to the masses and sell the most copies” they pondered. After much deliberation, an idea sprouted root: “a fast paced fantasy featuring gay pirates at sea” they declared, and thus a misleading blurb was born. This person is an idiot, and needs to be fired. If you just came here for the gay pirates, I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news. There are gay characters in this novel, as well as pirates, but they are not the same people, and neither of them are the focus of this novel. This was reason enough for me to question whether that marketing person had actually read this book. The more important reason however, was that there is so much else to love in here, that I can’t see the need to mislead people like this. What These Rebel Waves does offer is a slower paced fantasy story, focused on political intrigue, a beautifully built Caribbean-esque world, stealing plants to perform botanical magic, and strong-willed and smart characters that absolutely stole my heart. And I loved it… World and atmosphere Our story is set on the tropical island of Grace Loray, a recently liberated colony where alchemically potent plants cover the riverbeds and shores. Tensions are high and tempers short within the newly installed council in the aftershock of the civil war that liberated them. The mysterious shaking-sickness that wreaking havoc over their people, nor the increasing presence of Stream Raiders (pirates who steal Grace Lorays plants to perform botanical magic) do anything to ease that tension. The worldbuilding and magic system were one of the major selling points of this book for me. Integrate, well thought out and completely up my alley: I have nothing to add. Characters Although they often fall within the standard YA-tropes, I really enjoyed the characters. We follow 3 main POV’s: Lu, the smart and family-oriented daughter of an important council member, Vex, the savvy captain of one of the Stream Raiders ships, and Ben, crown prince of a nearby island. I didn’t quite care for Bens perspective as much, but I loved reading from the perspective of Lu and Vex. They are smart, whitty and likable, Sara Raasch manages to elevate them above their “tropes” by adding realistic motivations and character depth. Writing-style This is my fourth book by Sara Raasch, after having read the Snow Like Ashes trilogy some years ago. At the time I wasn’t a big fan of her writing, but I do feel she’s improving with every book. Her writing is not too special, but quite enjoyable. It’s simple, without any unnecessary flourishes, which allowed me to fly through the book. I feel like Raasch’s strength it definitely in writing dialogue, and the banter between the characters was (at times) just a joy to read. Plot Like I mentioned: the plot is slower paced than you might expect going in. Luckily for me, those are often the fantasy plots I enjoy most, if they are done well. While it is a little predictable at times, I did really enjoy the political themes that are perfectly woven into the worldbuilding and history of the different islands. It’s not all dry-talk and politics though, as there are quite some action scenes to mix things up as well. To me, it was the exact right balance between the two, although I can see how you might be disappointed if you went in expecting a mostly action-packed story. The story has a few twists, some of which I saw coming, but the cliffhanger at the end has me desperate to get my hands on book 2. I will 100% continue this series, and I will recommend this series to others, with the disclaimer that you need to go in without the expectations set by the marketing. Don’t expect sea shanties, ocean travels, and wooden legs. Think more along the lines of: water-based thieves that steal plants for botanical magic and a cast of sassy but lovable characters set in and around Island shores. If, like me, that would have sold you on this book just as much as the “gay-pirate-thing”, be sure not to miss These Rebel Waves. Find this book on Goodreads

Genre: YA, Magical Realism, LGBTQ+ Published: Candlewick Press, May 2019 My Rating: 2.5 stars Many thanks to Candlewick Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. “Spellbooks tell you how people have done magic in the past” June explains. “they’re pre-made. Magic is like love. You see how other people do it, you have the stories and instructions they leave behind, but then you have to out how you do it.” Imagine equal portions The Raven Boys and Spellbook of the Lost and Found and sprinkle in a little dash of The Craft and a hint of The Devouring Gray. The result should be something resembling The Lost Coast. We follow Danny, a girl who abruptly moves with her mother to Tempest, California, seemingly without reason. She however, soon discovers that nothing is as coincidental as it seems when she meets The Grays: 4 queer witches that offer her friendship like she’s never had before, but also need her help. Strange things have been happening in the monumental forests surrounding them, including. After their former fifth member Imogen went missing in the woods, The Grays want answers, and Danny seems to be the only one with the skills needed to provide them. Between Californian red woods, magical realism and a witchy friend group, I had high hopes for this novel and was over the moon to receive an advanced copy from the publisher. Whilst it lived up to my expectations in some regards, I was quite disappointed in others, leaving me with mixed feelings in the end. To start off with the good: The Lost Coast largely delivers what it says on the tin. It’s a story of a close-knit, diverse group of queer witches that find friendship and acceptance among each other. If you want to get your diversity kick on; this is the place for you, as diversity seems to have been the first thing on the author’s mind when writing this. Both racial-, sexual- and bodily minorities are represented and you can tell the authors passion for the subject from her perspective as a queer woman herself. I also loved the setting: the foggy and majestic Californian red woods were a perfect choice to serve as the background of a witchy story. Amy Rose Capetta does a beautiful job of bringing the ancient trees, the vibrant foliage and the earthy forest air to life with her writing style that strikes the right balance between lush and readable. I had never read anything by the author, but I’d definitely count the writing style among the pleasant surprises this book offered. My only problem with the writing was that the author sometimes “overtells” things, especially when it comes to points she’s clearly passionate about. Her point will be crystal clear to the reader by the scenes she has just shown us, but she at times can’t resist to tell us the exact same thing literally as well. I’m not sure if it’s a lack of faith in the reader, or in her own ability to bring something across, but it’s unnecessary in my opinion. I felt this especially when the author talked about the characters sexuality, and the acceptance of diversity. That repetition, combined with the clear (and admirable) passion of the author, does come at the risk of almost lecturing the reader on the topic of diversity. Although I don’t think it crossed that line, it was close at times. That also brings me to my next disappointment: the characters themselves. Because the author had such a large focus on their diversity, I feel like some of the development of the rest of their character arcs got lost along the way. It’s something I notice more and more in the last year or two since the surge in popularity of LGBTQ+ books, especially in YA. I have a post on my website all about this coming up, so I won’t go into detail on it here. The short summary is: I’m all for diversity, but even more for equality. A sexuality is not a substitute for a developed personality, and an underdeveloped gay character is still an underdeveloped character, no matter the best intentions by the author. The framework for a great cast of characters was there: I’d just like to see a little more depth and development in them. Finally, I don’t feel the plot was as exciting or unexpected as I was hoping for, mostly due to some pacing issues. I’d have liked the beginning to be a little slower, to ease us into the different POV’s, whereas the middle part could have used a little more action. In the end, I think this is a book that will find a large and loving audience out there, even though it wasn’t a favorite for me. If you like books that focus on LGBTQ+ friendships, or any of the books I mentioned at the top of my review, ánd you enjoy those alternative witchy vibes: this one might be for you! Find this book on Goodreads

Genre: Literary Fiction Published: G.P. Putnam's Sons Publishing, August 2018 My Rating: 4/5 stars “ Kya laid her hand upon the breathing, wet earth, and the marsh became her mother.“ One of my first introductions into reading American literature in its original language was Snow Falling on Cedars by David Gutterson. Clearly, it was a successful intro, as I adored it, and it opened a gateway for me into reading in English pretty much exclusively now. Although there are many differences, Where The Crawdads Sing brought me back to that first reading experience with David Gutterson: a story centered around a court trial in an isolated small town, that leads all involved to revisit memories from years ago. Themes of prejudice, forbidden love and coming of age under unusual circumstances, all pressed together under a dense atmosphere and lush nature writing. Kya has been alone all her life. After her mother walks out without warning one day, leaving her alone with her abusive and mostly absent father, Kya is left to fend for herself in their small home on the outskirts of town. She retreats down into the local swamps and finds her new home there, where she grows up with Mother Earth as her only parent. Shunned all her life by the town people as the pariah “Swamp Girl”, it is to be expected that she is the first to be blamed when a local young man she has known since childhood is found dead near her swamps. Apart from revisiting that Snow Falling on Cedars-vibe, there was a lot for me to love in this novel, above all else the voice in which it was narrated. Delia Owens’ background as a biologist shows in the vividness of her nature writing. Her words bring the pressingly humid marsh setting with all its flora and critters to life to the point where I could almost hear the buzz of insects and smell that heavy, earthy smell of murky water and slightly rotten leaves. I can already say that it’ll most likely be this setting that sticks with me for a long time, possibly even longer than the story itself. The marsh’s almost a character in its own right: acting almost as a parent to Kya in a way. It takes a lost child into its warm, humid embrace, feeds her and protects her. It sings her stories and lullabies in the voices of cicada’s and crawdads, and teaches her the skills and values she’ll carries into adulthood. Nature writing can be a hit or miss for me, but in this case Owens strikes a nice balance of paralleling scenes from the marsh’s wildlife to Kya’s coming of age, without overdoing it, and I loved it. I was a little skeptical when the murder-mystery and trial became more at the center of the story, but ended up enjoying that part the most. It was so interesting to me, seeing the way the town-folk view and react to Kya, and how their prejudices affect their opinions on the trial. Unfortunately, I do have one little gripe, which was the “sag” this book experienced at about 1/3 of the way through. Around page 100-150, very little happens and things become a little repetitive. I could tell that the author was trying to develop her characters more in this part, but as amazing the author is at nature writing, I could tell a little that this was her debut when it comes to character development. I know I’m not the only person who experienced this lag here, as the few 1-star or DNF-reviews I’ve seen all seem to quit around this point. That being said: not a full 5-star read for me, but definitely a 4 or maybe even 4.5. If you enjoy nature writing combined with a coming of age story, want to read about the resilience of a young girl out on her own or just want to be completely transported to the Carolinian wetlands: this one is for you! Find this book on Goodreads

Whether we are aware of it or not, we all have them: bookish buzzwords. A specific word that is mentioned in the title, synopsis or reviews of a book, that always piques your interest. A word in an otherwise “okay” description, that sways you to pick up this particular novel, over the other thousands available. Buzzwords can be anything, from descriptions of the writing style (like “Lyrical” or “fast-paced”), to story elements (like ”pirates” or “space travel”), to even currently relevant themes (often added by the publisher) to indicate a specific audience, such as “feminist”. Either consciously or subconsciously, these buzzwords play a large role in determining the book we’re drawn to. These are some of the ones I’ve identified, that’ll double my chances of reading a book instantly. General Buzzwords - Coastal/Seaside or Island setting “Coastal” or “Seaside” is probably my biggest buzzword currently, strange as that might be. There is something about the atmosphere that salty air, the ocean breeze and the constant hum of the waves in the background adds to a story. I have always had a deep seeded love for the ocean, and for the time I can’t physically be near it, I love to vicariously experience it through books. Although I’ll read any seaside setting, varying from tropical Caribbean shores to the chilly, windy English Canal coast, the latter is my current favorite. Some of my great novels with this setting include: The Gloaming by Kirsty Logan, The House at the Edge of the World by Julia Rochester and The Lightkeepers by Abby Geni. Coastal vibes and magical realism especially, are a match made in heaven, that I simply cannot resist. - Elements of myth or folklore Another match made in heaven are magical realism and myths or folklore. Although I grew up on the European fairytales of the Grimm brothers and Andersen, I’ve had a thing for the more obscure folklore stories for as long as I can remember. Bring me all the changelings, the selkies, the haunted forests and what lurks within them. I’m intrigued by the cultural role that folklore has played in the past, and continues to do now, and I love seeing it explored in fiction, including modern fiction. I don’t need a full blown retelling, but little elements sprinkled throughout a novel get me every time. Examples include: The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden, Melmoth by Sarah Perry and Everything Under by Daisy Johnson. Some of my favorite retelling include the ones of Greek mythology by Madeline Miller, or most recently The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker. - Stories, Language and Memory Similar to the previous point: I love stories that are about stories, and the power of words in general. I don’t mean just traditional fairytales, but stories in the broadest sense of the word. Stories we tell others, but also stories we tell ourselves: the narrative we create for ourselves through memories. Stories are a way we give meaning, and create order in the chaos of our lives. Both personally, as well as professionally as a medical student, it never seizes to amaze me what horrible life experiences people can deal with, as long as they can make sense of the narrative of their own life. We are constantly telling stories, whether true or false, and I always love when a book explores this. - Family relationships/multigenerational storylines When it comes to relationships in fiction, I feel like there’s a divide in the bookish community: half of us adores romantic relationships, and the other half prefers to read about family relations. To me, the latter will always be infinitely more interesting. I love multigenerational tales, and seeing how the actions of one person can start a ripple that grows into a wave through generations to come. If you want to get into multigenerational tales, The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende or The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton are great places to start. When it comes to family, I also adore reading about found families, as sometimes, “family” does not have to require a connection by blood. Look at the Six of Crows Duology, The Raven Cycle, Harry Potter, The Gilded Wolves or even childhood classics like Matilda. Personal to me - Grief The books we love the most, are often the ones that manage to strike a personal note with us. The ones that stay with us for years after we finish them, because we found a little piece of ourselves in them along the way. If you’ve known me for a while, you will know that I have a soft spot for books that deal with grief, for this very reason. In particular, the way children and teenagers grieve, and grief expressed through magical realism. Having experienced personal grief during multiple phases of my childhood and teens, adds an extra dimension to my reading experience. Books have helped me through a lot during, and after, and it has forever changed the way I read them. I may be quite critical when reviewing them, but any book that does grief well, is an easy winner in my book. I have a post just about my favorite novels about grief coming up soon, so I'll save my recommendations for that. - Physical disabilities, (chronic) illness, deformity or otherwise bodily difference. In recent years we’ve seen a surge of novels that deal with mental health, which has allowed people with mental illnesses to see themselves represented in fiction like never before. I couldn’t be more for that, but I do feel like the representation of people with physical illnesses is lacking a little behind. Apart from books about cancer, which there are many great ones but equally as many terrible ones, it’s way harder than you think to find stories that have disability or (chronic) illness as a central theme. From a storytelling perspective, I can understand why this makes sense. Books about acute illnesses often have a clear “stopping point”: the death or healing of the character. We don’t see the aftermath, nor do we see what happens to someone with a chronic illness that doesn’t have an “endpoint”. As someone who has dealt closely with all these topics, either from a personal perspective or as a caregiver for a loved one, I feel like it’s a big hiatus in modern fiction, and one that needs to be filled. I currently don’t feel like I’ve read enough books about this topic to give you any recommendations, but I’d love to be able to make a list in the future. In the meantime: please let me know any and all suggestions you have for me, even more so in this category than any of the others! Genre-specific buzzwords - Botanical/alchemical magic (Fantasy) Maybe this is the high school chemistry nerd in me, or maybe it stems from my obsession with wanting to explore the entire alchemy/potion-system in any RPG I’ve ever played… no matter what the reason behind it is: I find myself adoring this type of magic system again and again. Some well-known examples are: The Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson, the All Souls trilogy by Deborah Harkass, Poison Study by Maria V. Sneijder and the Stream Raiders series by Sara Raasch. If you have any more recommendations, please feel free to let me know, as it’s more difficult that you might think to find books that fit this specific criterium. - Thief/heist (Fantasy/Adventure) This one is easier to find, yet no less entertaining for it. I know it’s an overused trope, I know it’s not original anymore, yet I can’t help but get a little excited when I find a new fantasy centering around a thief or heist crew. My favorites are of course The Six of Crows duology, The Mistborn Trilogy and the Lies of Locke Lamora, but there are many others I could name. I have no idea what it says about me that I’m apparently drawn to some illegal activities in my fiction, but there you go… - Dragons (Fantasy) Specifically dragon-riding/dragon/training etc. Anything that isn’t dragon-slaying. Yes, I’m that basic… I grew up on Eragon, so please blame it on that… - Haunted house (Thriller/Horror/Gothic Novels) Now I don’t mean in the sense that I want to read “poltergeist-the-novel”, in which people are necessarily terrorized by an actual ghost. I mean books in the vein of The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier or In The Nightwood by Dale Bailey, where the hauntings are more psychological than supernatural. The type of novel where you can wonder: is it the house that is haunted, or the people living within it? I love that trope, just as I love the use of ghosts in Magical Realism novels to signify memories in a way. As you can see: in the end, these all tie into each other… Again, I’d love to hear any and all recommendations you have regarding these themes, and I’d love to know if you enjoy any of the themes I do as well. I hope to see you back next time, and until than: happy reading!

Genre: Young Adult, Magical Realism Published: Orion Childrens Books, March 2018 My Rating: 5/5 stars " I want you to remember ... I will. I will remember." It is hard for me to review this book, as it is (again) a very personal one, so excuse my scrambled-brain-"review". This is literally just me putting my first thoughts on paper. As I have said before; I have lost my mother when I was 14, and have suffered from severe depression myself. Therefore, I am rarely unfazed or "neutral" towards books on these subjects. They tend to go towards the 5-star regions, or the 1-star, depending on whether I feel they do a good job of representing this or not. This is definitely a 5-star case. It made me feel an array of feelings, it touched me with some of the metaphors and it made me slow down and reminisce about my own experiences. I struggle with this often, and me saying that a book triggers this reaction in me, is one of the biggest compliments I can give. (This is part of why it took me so long to read it.) Althought this is magical realism, it is more on the "softer side" (it remains unclear whether there is actual magic, or whether it is all metaphors). I personally love these types of books, but if you are really not into magical realism, this may throw you off. Same with the "colour-metaphors". Leigh often uses colours to describe her emotions, sometimes in a way where it is almost like she is synesthetic. This can be very hit or miss, but the words chosen by Emily XR Pan, and the fact that Leigh is an artist, just made it all feel "right". The only other time where I have seen this colour-emotion metaphor done right would be by Death in the Bookthief, which is one of my all time favourites. The writingstyle is simply stunning and goes far above and beyond what we often find in YA. Not only the individual sentences and passages are beautifully constructed, but the novel as a whole has a structure and build that is exceptional, especially for a debut. My only critique I would have it that the book could have been 50 pages shorter. This did not bother me however. In terms of "representation" (even though I hate that word) for depression and losing a parent, I would say excellent! I look for I cannot speak to the Taiwanese representation, but since the author herself if Taiwanese, I feel safe to say that she did a good job here too... Again, I cannot give an objective review on this book, given the subject, but I can say that I 100% recommend you read this. Even long after finishing it: this is one that stays with me, possibly forever. Find this book on Goodreads