Contradictions Book Tag

I haven’t done a book tag in quite some time but I love doing them so I definitely need to do more in future. This book tag is called the Contradictions Book Tag and was created by Only If For A Page on booktube (the original video). I saw this tag going around over the last few months and thought it an interesting tag so let’s get on to it!

1) I love this genre but I didn’t like this book

Queen of Coin and Whispers by Helen Corcoran – Fantasy is one of my favourite genres but I read this book last year and didn’t really like it. It’s not a bad book, I just felt that nothing really happened so it felt a bit boring to me.

2) I rarely read this genre but I loved this book

The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green – I rarely read nonfiction but I recently read this book and loved it. I really enjoyed reading John Green’s thoughts on some of the topics he talked about in the book.

3) I love this trope but I didn’t like this book

Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin – I do like the enemies to lovers trope but I didn’t really like this book. I didn’t like Reid at all and thought he was boring which made me dislike the romance.

4) I hate this trope but I loved this book

Crave by Tracy Wolff – This series has some instalove in it which really isn’t my favourite trope but I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the book and the sequel, I still need to read the third book but I’m excited for it.

5) I love this author but I didn’t like this book

I’ve loved a lot of Taylor Jenkins Reid‘s books but I was a bit disappointed in Malibu Rising. I didn’t hate the book but I didn’t love it either, I didn’t find it as emotional as her previous books but I’m still excited for future books by TJR.

6) I previously disliked a book by this author but I loved this book

I read The Wicker King by K. Ancrum a few years ago and I did enjoy most of the book but the ending left me really disappointed. A year after reading The Wicker King I read The Weight of the Stars by K. Ancrum which I loved and it became one of my favourite books of that year, I also really liked the ending of it.

7) I love this cover but I didn’t like this book

Perfectly Preventable Deaths by Deirdre Sullivan – This book looks and sounds so interesting but I didn’t like it, the characters were very unlikable and I didn’t like the ending.

8) I don’t like this cover but I loved this book

Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse – I really like the US cover for this book but the UK one doesn’t really stand out. Even though I don’t like the UK cover I still knew I was going to love this book since it sounded amazing and I’d heard so many greats thing about it and I was right. This is a great urban fantasy series and I can’t wait to read more books in the series when they are published.

Have you read any of these books?

The Life’s A Beach Book Tag

I was tagged to do the ‘Life’s A Beach’ Book Tag by Mermaid Reads and it was originally created by Lefty Reads. I love how summery the questions are for this tag and I liked answering all the questions. Let’s get on to it!

QUESTIONS:

The Sand – A book that stuck with you long after you finished reading it

The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu – I loved this book and I love how Marie Lu writes this story that discusses the limitations placed on women’s lives in the past by telling the story of Nannerl (Mozart’s sister) who had the same dreams as Mozart but wasn’t allowed to pursue them because of her gender. This is such a heart wrenching, thought provoking book and I loved it.

The Sun – A book that burned you

An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green – I heard so many good things about this book so I was excited to read it but I ended up not liking it.

The Waves – A book that calms you down after a long day

Urban fantasy/paranormal is my favourite genre so books from that genre are my go-to for when I need to be calm. The Guild Codex series by Annette Marie is one of my recent favourites in this genre.

The Bathing Suit – A book with a pretty, summery cover

Under A Dancing Star by Laura Wood – This book is even prettier in real life because it has gold foiling on it.

The Birds – A book that is everywhere

A Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson – This book is on my tbr and since I’ve put it on there I’ve been seeing it everywhere and everyone who has read it seems love it so I hope I do too.

The Company – A book with wonderful characters

The Diviners by Libba Bray – I love the characters within this series and I liked how each character was fully fleshed out and given their own back story. I also loved when they came together as well.

The Ice-Cold Drinks – A book you absolutely gulped down

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown – I was so surprised at how fast I read this book, I just wanted to keep reading.

The Fun Memories – A book you can’t wait to return to

A Sky Painted Gold by Laura Wood – I’ve been wanting to reread this book recently so I think I’ll be rereading this soon, it’s a great summer book so I hope to reread it before summer ends.

Have you read any of these books? What would be some of your answers to these questions?

Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag 2021

I say this every year but it’s still true, this is one of my most favourite book tags to do and I look forward to doing it every year. I love how there are so many different prompts that really make you reflect on your reading at the halfway point through the year. A lot of the books I picked could’ve fit multiple answers but I decided to not choose the same book twice.

QUESTIONS:

1) Best book you’ve read so far in 2021

Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko – Raybearer is such a fantastic book, I loved the writing and I think the author is a great storyteller. I loved everything about this book from the characters and the plot to the amazing writing and themes of the story and can’t wait to read the next one.

2) Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2021

A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire (Blood and Ash #2) by Jennifer L. Armentrout – I loved this book more than the first and think it’s a great sequel. I loved the development of the romance and loved the different character dynamics between some of the characters in this book.

3) New release you haven’t read yet, but want to

Monstrous Design (Battalion of the Dead #2) by Kat Dunn – I loved the first book of this series and can’t wait to dive right into this book and see what these characters get up to next.

4) Most anticipated release for the second half of the year

Redemptor (Raybearer #2) by Jordan Ifueko – I’ve already talked about my love for Raybearer so of course Redemptor is my most anticipated releases of the second half of the year.

5) Biggest disappointment

An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green – I’d heard a lot of amazing things about this book before I read it but I was disappointed by it, I really disliked the main character.

6) Biggest surprise

Rejected (Shadow Beast Shifters #1) by Jaymin Eve – I was really surprised about how much I enjoyed this book and this series. It took me a while to get into the book at the beginning but once it got going I was really into it. I loved when Shadow was introduced and I loved reading the interactions between him and Mera.

7) Favourite new author (Debut or new to you)

Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson – This is my first Margaret Rogerson book and I loved it. I really liked the writing of it and can’t wait to read other books by this author.

8) Newest fictional crush

I don’t really get many fictional crushes and I can’t remember any from this year.

9) Newest favourite character

Malik from A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown. I loved how close of a bond Malik has with his sisters and his struggles with anxiety really make him such a relatable character. I loved how his character developed over the course of the book.

10) Book that made you cry

A Court of Silver Flames (ACOTAR #4) by Sarah J Maas – ACOSF is a very emotional book as Nesta goes on a self reflective journey and tries to overcome her past trauma. I loved this book and as always SJMs writing is always heart wrenching.

11) Book that made you happy

The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune – This is such a uniquely whimsical book that I think is perfect for all ages, it made me so happy to read and I loved the deep themes of it.

12) Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received)

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

13) What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

The Midnight Lie by Marie Rutkoski, Skyhunter by Marie Lu, Smoke Bitten (Mercy Thompson #12) by Patricia Briggs and Crier’s War by Nina Varela.

Have you read any of these books? What are some of your answers to these questions?

Bookish Memory Check #1

I saw this tag recently on A Dance With Books and thought it was a great tag and something I would really like to try, the tag is from Where Stories Lie. The whole purpose of the tag is to see how much you remember a book and this is something I think I struggle with so I thought it’d be fun to try and see how I do.

The Rules:

1) Go to your Goodreads ‘read’ shelf
2) Sort by random
3) Test your memory on the top 5 books

Book 1: The Magician’s Nephew (Chronicles of Narnia) by C.S. Lewis

What I remember: This book is about the creation of the world of Narnia where a young boy stays with his uncle and ends up somehow in this deserted land and witnesses it all coming to life and sees Aslan for the first time.

After reading the blurb: It seems like I remember a lot of this book since what I thought was very similar to the blurb.

Book 2: Men of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong

What I remember: This is a collection of short stories set in the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong and I remember really liking them but can’t remember much about the individual stories.

After reading the blurb: There are four short stories in this collection that centre around three members of the pack in the Otherworld books. I remembered about these being short stories but I forgot who they were about.

Book 3: Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children #1) by Seanan McGuire

What I remember: I recently just reread this book so of course I remember it even more now. It’s about Eleanor West’s Home for wayward children where children go after they come back from travels to magical lands and need time to process what’s happened. They also hope for their door to open again and the main character of this book wants to get back to her world. There’s more to the story but I don’t want to spoil the plot.

After reading the blurb: I remember all that was in this blurb but since I reread this a few days ago I’m not that surprised that I remembered this well.

Book 4: State of Sorrow (Sorrow #1) by Melinda Salisbury

What I remember: This is a YA fantasy book where there are two lands that are almost at war with each other and Sorrow (the mc) is the daughter of one of the leaders and her land has been in a permanent state of mourning since her mother died years before the book begins. The plot centres on the politics of these two lands and how to stop them from fighting with each other.

After reading the blurb: The blurb mentions Sorrow’s brother as the one who their land is mourning instead of her mother but I think it’s both in the book. It also mentions a childhood romance that I had forgotten about but other than that I think I remembered this fairly well.

Book 5: Lover Revealed (Black Dagger Brotherhood #4) by J.R. Ward

What I remember: Lover Revealed is Butch’s story in the BDB world. It’s about his and Marissa’s love story and how they get together despite him not feeling worthy of her since she has a higher standing within the society of this world.

After reading the blurb: I remembered most of what this book is about too.

Do you think you have a good bookish memory? Have you read any of these books?

The Quick Fire Fantasy Book Tag

This is an interesting tag that has quick fire questions all about fantasy books, the original creator is thebookwormdreamer. Fantasy is one of my favourite genres so I’m very excited for this tag!

The Questions:

1) Five Star Book – Raybearer (Raybearer #1) by Jordan Ifueko

2) Always Going To Recommend – Heart of Mist (The Oremere Chronicles #1) by Helen Scheuerer

3) Own It But Haven’t Read It Yet – Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson

4) Would Read Again – State of Sorrow (Sorrow #1) by Melinda Salisbury

5) In Another World – Throne of Glass (Throne of Glass #1) by Sarah J. Maas

6) Back On Earth – Three Mages and a Margarita (The Guild Codex: Spellbound #1) by Annette Marie

Have you read any of these books? What are your thoughts on them?

The Bookish Rave and Rant Tag

The Bookish Rave and Rant tag was created by TheWordyHabitat and I saw it on WordsaboutWords blog. This seems like such a fun tag and I love that this tag gets you talking about books you loved and about books you disliked.

Questions:

RAVE: a book you loved but don’t talk enough about

Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko – I read this book earlier this year and loved it. I was so immersed into the story and I thought the writing was very captivating and the plot and characters were so intriguing that I just wanted to keep reading. Here is my full review of it.

RANT: a book you didn’t like and haven’t spoken about

To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers – I have talked about this book last year sometime on my blog but I disliked this book. Both the characters and the story felt very boring to me and the book read like an information leaflet on terraforming.

RAVE: an author who’s works you love

Marie Lu – I’ve read so many books by Marie Lu from all different genres and I’ve loved them all so now everytime she releases a book I’m always excited for it.

RANT: an author who’s works you just cannot like

V.E. Schwab – I’ve read quite a few books by V.E. Schwab and some I’ve liked and some I’ve disliked but even the ones I’ve liked I forget about kind of quickly after I’ve read them and I don’t know why that is because the premises for all this author’s books sound so amazing but they just don’t stick with me.

RAVE: a book you recently loved that you want everyone to read

The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune – This book is already so hyped but I’m still going to hype it up again anyway. I think this is a wonderful story for all ages, it has great morals and themes throughout and I loved reading it.

RANT: a book you did not finish recently and haven’t spoken about

The Shadows Between Us by Tricia Levenseller – I was excited for this book for a while but I ended up DNFing it. I just didn’t really care much about the main character and I also thought there was no chemistry between the main character and the love interest.

RAVE: a book you would recommend to everyone

The Air You Breathe by Frances de Pontes Peebles – The Air You Breathe is a historical fiction book about female friendship and music set in Brazil in the 1930s and continues throughout the decades that follow. It’s such a beautifully poignant book that I feel that not many people have read or heard of.

RANT: a book which others like and you don’t understand why

An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green – I don’t think I ‘got’ this book. I really disliked the main character and I know that was a part of the story because it was to show how fame changes a person but I didn’t really like her before she became ‘famous’ and thought she was a bad friend/girlfriend. She was very selfish as well and I thought the plot didn’t really make sense.

Have you read any of these books?
What books have you ranted or raved about recently?