Finishing a beloved series is difficult. 

   I'm more of a realist in the sense that everything needs to end eventually. You can make a series 10+ books if you want, but you need to stop at some point. Rachel at Beauty and the Bookshelf had a fantastic discussion about the continuation of a series, and she ended it by asking if we were the kind of reader who would never want a series to end. I realized I wasn't, and said that the quality of the story would lesson as time went on. There's magic in the story because it has a cause. Whether that be from overthrowing a totalitarian government or stopping an evil villain (if we're talking fantasy here), or overcoming the death of a family member or getting into the college of your dreams, we're hooked by this quest. If we care about the characters, we want to see them overcome whatever obstacle that stands in their way. We care, sometimes too much.
   So, for me, even though it physically hurts to finish a series, especially one that has hooked me in and sunk its claws deep, I'm also happy it's ending. It deserves a good ending. So, like I said earlier, finishing a beloved series is difficult.
   As some of you may or may not know, I listen to music when I read. I made a post about it, with some examples of my favorite books and their corresponding music. To sum it up: I pick my song based primarily on sound, not by the lyrics. It has to fit the mood of the book. If it doesn't, it's like nails on a chalkboard for me. Finding that perfect song enhances my reading experience tenfold, and I honestly can't imagine not listening to anything while I read. Plus, I have a slight case of ADD, so listening to music blocks out any distractions so I can focus more on the story.
   I'm not sure if this happens with everyone or not, but playing a song repeatedly while reading a book almost, I don't know, glues the song to the story. You know how shows have theme songs? Take I'll Be There For You, the Friends theme song. You can't play it without thinking of Friends. Every vocal chord, sound, and instrument is ingrained in that show. If you hear a similar note in a different song, you think of it. That's how it is for me. If one of my theme songs comes on, for a split second, I'm ripped away from whatever I'm doing and thrown into a kaleidoscope of that book. Characters, scenes, and feelings come rushing at me. Then it pulls back, like the tide, and I'm back to reality, but it's resting in the back of my head, always sitting next to me and reminding me of the book or series.
So, not only do I mourn the ending of this series and its character's and their struggles, but I'm mourning the feelings. I'm mourning that kaleidoscope, because it'll never be as strong as it is when I finish a book. I'm 100% immersed in the story and the music, which creates this entity that I really have no words for. It's like the finishing notes at a play; you realize it's ending as the music is being drawn out, and you're simultaneously trying to fit every sound and smell and feeling into your memory, while thinking to yourself "This is it, this is it, this is it."

   Which leads me this: my review of The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater. I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to construct this post. I knew I wanted to write a little something before, since this is an anticipated final book in a series, but since I wrote so much, I decided to write this review in two parts. The first will be a very short overall summary of my feelings. The second will feature some of my concerns, which will obviously contain spoilers. So, let's get into it!

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
Publisher: Scholastic
Publication Date: April 26th, 2016
Pages: 439
Song I Played While Reading: Faith and How Deep Is Your Love by Calvin Harris
Rating: 4 stars

Nothing living is safe. Nothing dead is to be trusted.

For years, Gansey has been on a quest to find a lost king. One by one, he’s drawn others into this quest: Ronan, who steals from dreams; Adam, whose life is no longer his own; Noah, whose life is no longer a lie; and Blue, who loves Gansey… and is certain she is destined to kill him.

Now the endgame has begun. Dreams and nightmares are converging. Love and loss are inseparable. And the quest refuses to be pinned to a path.

   I thought The Raven King was a fantastic ending, especially for its characters, which isn't very surprising since this is a character driven story. I do have a couple concerns and a slight disappointment for how a certain quest in this story ended, but it was overshadowed by the overall feeling of rightness. Steivfater's writing was even more amazing, which I didn't think was possible. If you've read the rest of these series, but for some reason have yet to read this, READ IT. Please.

   Okay, to try and keep this entire post as short as possible, I'm just going to talk quickly about the few things that either confused me or disappointed me.
Firstly, the anti-climactic scene of finding Glendower. WHAT. WAS. THAT? Was Steifvater trying to shock us? Throw us for a loop? Because I was just disappointed. The gang goes through so much to find this damn king, and yet, he's just dead. "Whoops, I wrote an entire serious where one of the main plot points was finding a sleeping Welsh King that one of my characters spent years of his life pursuing, but I'm just going to crush everyone's dreams and waste everyone's time and have him be dead this entire time. Yeah! Sounds good to me."
   I wanted this huge climactic scene where Gansey dies and everyone is heartbroken and sobbing and finds the king and asks him to spare Gansey. I wanted that angst! Not Gansey fucking fist-bumping Adam, saying "Thanks for everything" or whatever the hell he says, and then telling Blue to kiss him, all the while they're on the side of the road in the middle of butt-fuck nowhere. And then he dies and everyone is just silent. Sad, yes, but virtually silent. The only damn person who was even trying was Henry Cheng. (Who I appreciated, but was also very confused about, because why did Steifvater make him so vital so late in the story?)
   Then we have Noah, who supposedly masterminded this whole Welsh King charade, who's life is constantly in this circular motion, time traveling, very-confusing whirlpool thing. I don't know about anyone else, but time-traveling is very confusing on a good day for me. If it's just thrown in my face very quickly, I might as well be bashing my head against the wall. (And by this time traveling thing, I mean Steifvater spewing out that "Gansey felt like time was slipping away, as if he had already done this" sort of thing. That wasn't the exact sentence, but it was along the lines of that.) And then Noah just kind of went caput. We got absolutely no conclusion with him. Was he still a ghost? Did he finally travel on into the after life? Why was he suddenly having issues keeping up his normal facade now?
   Also, Mr. Gray just went caput too. In fact, that whole scene with him "becoming a king" and wanting to change the magic-dealing business was never wrapped up. What happened after the creepy triplet killed Piper and the demon was feeding from her? I'm assuming Mr. Gray got away. Did he end up going back with Maura or going off on his own? WHY WAS THIS NOT RESOLVED, I LOVED MR. GRAY.
ALSO, WHY THE FLACK DIDNT BLUE AND GANSEY KISS IN THE EPIGLOGUE. I THINK THE FANDOM DESERVED A NON-DEADLY KISS, STIEFVATER.

   Alright, I think that's it. Even though I felt strongly about some of this stuff, I still LOVED this conclusion. The first half of the story, like the toga party and The Orphan Girl, were heart-shatteringly adorable. I could scarcely breathe whenever Gansey and Blue openly held hands or hugged each other.

Let's chat! Have you read The Raven King? If so, what were your thoughts on it? And do you play music while you read? Let me know down in the comments! :)

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Monthly wrap-up: June 2016

Hi guys! As I've said, and felt, with probably every monthly wrap-up, I can't believe this month is already over. June went by SO freaking fast. May had an excuse: the first two weeks were filled with finals, BEA, and visiting friends and family (which was not an easy feet and I don't understand how I survived), while the last half was adjusting back to life and my summer work schedule (which Rihanna summed up with Work because WERK). June was just June, but apparently it wanted to be a fast June, which was kind of okay with me.
I got back on track with my normal reading schedule this month, read some faaaaaantastic books, listened to some faaaaaaaaantastic music, and just apparently had an all around fantastic time. Let's get into it, shall we?

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas - 4 stars // Goodreads

The Dreamer by E. J. Mellow - 4.5 stars // Goodreads

Elementals: The Head of Medusa by Michelle Meadow - 3.5 stars // Goodreads

Mosquitoland by David Arnold - 4.5 stars // Goodreads

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater (reread) // Goodreads

I wont lie: I thought I had read more. But I've been DNF'ing a lot of books lately, so it always seems like I've read more than I actually have. But for only reading five books, they were some kick-ass books, so I guess I would rather read fewer books and enjoy them more, versus reading a lot more and not enjoying all of them. A Court of Mist and Fury and Mosquitoland were both my favorites of this month, ACOMAF because it was fucking ACOMAF and that needs no explanation, while Mosquitoland had bunch of quirky and hilarious characters that pulled at my heartstrings. 

On the blog

I kicked off June with my A Court of Mist and Fury review, then had my usual slew of "Happy Monday!" posts, which are, sadly, being kicked to the curb with some revelations that I had in this blog post. I was a part of two blog tours, The Museum of Heartbreak by Meg Leder and Elementals: The Head of Medusa by Michelle Madow. Next, I talked about my top favorites for the first half of 2016, then did a tag talking about some intimidating books in my TBR. I reviewed The Dreamer (highly suggest for anyone looking for a fun NA fantasy) and Mosquitoland, which I loooooooved. 

Music I've been loving

It's officially summer, which means my love for county music is reemerging. I was a huge fan in high school, but kind of fell out of it when EDM came and kicked its ass to the side. But there's just something about summer time and country music that go so well together, you know? It's probably because most country music revolves around summer time, but still. I can't jam to country in the winter. No. I've also been reeeeeeally into listening to acoustic in the morning when I'm drinking my coffee and checking my emails. It's such a soothing way to start off my day, and it leaves me feeling happy and content. 

Into You by Ariana Grande // Talk by DJ Snake // Guillotine by Jon Bellion // Too Good by Drake // Needed Me by Rihanna // Can't Stop The Feelings by Justin Timberlake // Bartender by Lady Antebellum // Sangria by Blake Shelton // Home Alone Tonight by Luke Bryon // That's My Kind of Night by Luke Bryon // Runaway by Ziggy Alberts // Home by Dotan // Like Real People Do by Hozier // Georgia by Vance Joy

Books I got this month

I went used bookstore hunting and found some good shit, my friends. REAL GOOD SHIT.

Frankenstein by Shelley Mary

A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly 

Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

World Without End by Ken Follett

I'm a part of the blog tour for Little Black Dresses, Little White Lies by Laura Stampler, then was contacted by Nelou Keramati to read her debut novel, The Fray Theory, which, let me tell you, sounds AMAZING. Then I ordered And I Darken by Kiersten White because I've been wanting this gorgeous novel since I first heard about it.  

Life shenanigans

A lot of exciting things have been happening, especially pertaining to my blog and Instagram. Two publishing companies emailed me saying they loved my Instagram and wanted to add me to their mailing list, while a new book subscription box asked if they could send me a box for free for review. I, naturally, almost died with all of these emails, but the cherry on top was getting asked to be an Ambassador for Lit Without Limits. Lit Without Limits is a non profit organization that sends empowering books to girls in mentoring groups. It's all about being a #girlboss, and I'm so incredibly honored that Haley asked me to join their team. I'll be moving in August to a bigger town, and I plan on going to the local library and asking if I can start a book club in connection with Lit Without Limits. Not only will it be great because I'll be meeting girls who live near me, but it'll bring a strong dose of empowerment to the town, plus I've always wanted to join a book club. So why not start my own? 

If you have any interest in joining, whether that be becoming an Ambassador, volunteering, or even donating, please check out the website for more information! Then email haley@litwithoutlimits.org if you want to jump in on this amazing chance. You don't have to anything crazy or out of your comfort zone. One of the options when becoming an Ambassador was speaking at schools or at a church, and I told Haley right away there was no way I could do that. She replied immediately that I was to do whatever I was comfortable with. I think a book club is a really good start. (Also, if anyone lives near Sacramento, please let me know! I would love it if a fellow book blogger would come to the book club.)

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Revelations, a call for books, and an overall life update!

If there's one thing I've learned since moving cross-country (I'm a midwest gal living in California), it's how to be me. Sort of.
I'm not saying I'm 100% at ease with who I am. There are some days when I wish I could be more outspoken, other days when I wish I was more thoughtful. But I've definitely gotten to know myself better. Not socializing with anyone your age for 3 months, then keeping a close-knit group of friends, really gives you a lot of time to yourself. I've been slowly getting into the groove of blogging and reviewing, which I didn't think would take this long because there's not much to it. In the beginning, I just based what I knew off of what I've seen on other blogs. But I've come to realize that, though blogging is pretty straight-forward, everyone has their own little niche. There's different review styles and post content. Some people strive to post as often as possible while other people prefer once a week.
So, as I've slowly come to this realization, I've been noticing my tendencies. As I tried certain approaches to blogging, I learned what I did and didn't like. It's been pretty interesting, since it completely changed from the beginning. I thought I had realized how I liked reviewing and spacing out my posts, but it's changed in the past couple of months. I'm not sure if it's because I started college, so I don't have as much time to post as often, or if it's because I'm coming into my own. Who knows? This'll probably all change in a few months, and my blogging tendencies will flip again. But what's important is the present and what makes me feel like I'm running my blog that way I want to run it, not somebody else's. So, here are a few of my realizations.

I don't like posting more than 3 times a week.
Hell, I almost don't even like posting more than once a week! Obviously, if I have a multiple reviews scheduled for a certain week, then I'm just SOL and it's my fault for not looking at the dates. Or if things just happen to align during a single week, that's fine. But to me, I want to post quality reviews, discussions, or monthly recaps. I don't want to whip out posts that are just 'eh', just for the sake of having new content all the time. Quality over quantity, my friends.
The issue with this though, is my weekly "Happy Monday!" post. If you just stumbled upon my blog, "Happy Monday!" is a weekly post I do on (you guessed it) Monday's that feature what I read the week before, what I'm currently reading, my TBR for the week, music I was loving, posts I uploaded prior, etc. It's basically the Sunday recap post I see a lot of people do, but I just choose to do it on Mondays. For the sake of my sanity, I'm just going to throw that out and cram all that in my monthly recap.

I'm not going to review every book I read.
You're probably thinking "What?! You review every book you read?" YES. I DO. It didn't even occur to me that people didn't do this! What's funny is that I only noticed this in the last month or so. I remember I was looking for a certain review on someone's blog, because I had seen on their Instagram that they had read the book, and I was confused on why they hadn't written one up yet. I write my reviews pretty quickly after I finish a book because everything is fresh in my mind. I'm still (usually) drowning in the feels and need to write my thoughts down. So, as I've been following more and more people on Instagram and seeing what they're reading, and then seeing their lack of reviews, I was puzzled. It really hit me when I was stalking Grace Smith's blog and noticed how little reviews she had, considering she reads 200-300 books a year. It was literally a smack to the face: people didn't review every book they read??? Oh my god. Then I asked on twitter if everyone formally reviewed every book they read, and literally every person said no. I'm still stunned.
It's going to be really hard to break the habit. It literally makes my cringe, since I just have a natural tendency to let everyone know my feelings on every book I read. But a) that won't work with my one-post-a-week revelation, and b) that seriously won't work with my one-post-a-week-revelation. My one comfort in this is that I can post smaller reviews on Goodreads. I rate everything on there as it is, so if I don't want to write up a full blown review, I can just write a small thing on there and link it in my blog. Or I can do a post on a bunch of mini-reviews. There are possibilities, Mariah, and either way, people will know your feelings. CHILL. BREATHE.

My taste in reading material is broadening.
I find myself yearning to read non-fictions, biographies, poems, and basically every genre all of the sudden. I love YA dearly, and this isn't me saying I'm growing out of it. Hell to the no. Go look at my TBR bookcase and the huge ass pile of YA books that can't fit on it, and dare me to say I don't love YA. But I want to read more and learn about everything. I'm even reading about the news and politics, which before, I could barely stomach to do. I just thought it was too depressing and stressful. But I'm sick of being unaware. I don't want to be ignorant to the world, because it's real and scary and important. Knowledge is power, which is apparent when I'm informing my own mother of things happening in the world and I feel a sudden sense of strength, like hell yes I (kind of) know what I'm talking about!
So, please, please, PLEASE comment down below any favorite poems, non-fictions, historical fics, biographies, and basically anything else informative and interesting. For example, I'm reading Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain, and am absolutely loving it. So cool!

Don't stress over blogging.
This is a huge thing. A couple weeks ago, I wasn't in the mood to read. It wasn't a book-hangover, or even a book slump (though, at the time, I called it that). I just didn't want to read. Instead, I watched the entire first part of season one of Outlander (and it was amazing). I called it a book slump just because that was my natural reaction to this feeling of not wanting to read, which is a little ridiculous, as if something was wrong with me.
If I don't want to read, that's OKAY. I had to realize that. At first, I struggled with not forcing myself to read because I knew it would set me back on my Goodreads challenge. Then I worried that I wouldn't have any blog posts for the week, and stressed over that for a couple hours. I had the whole week off from work, so I had lots of free time, and it was amazing how guilty I felt just because I wasn't reading. I need to get "BLOGGING IS A FUN HOBBY," tattooed on my forehead. Also, "IT'S OKAY NOT TO READ SOMETIMES," and "JAMIE FRASER IS A BEAUTIFUL."
I think my quality over quantity mentality will really help in my quest to not stress over blogging. So what if I don't read anything? So what if I don't post something in a week? So what? Blogging, when it comes down to it, is for me. No one else. There's just an added bonus that I have followers.

Don't stress over blogging pt. 2
It used to bother me that I had so many more followers on Instagram than I did on here. I've seen other people do this sort of comparison, and it comforted me knowing that other people shared this insecurity. But I've come realize that that's just what makes me... me. I'm better at taking pictures, writing a short caption, and letting it fly free on Instagram than I am blogging. It's more personal, which is definitely something I'm very good at controlling. Blogging is more professional, and I'm not quite there yet. There's a lot more that goes on behind the scenes of a blog than there is in an Instagram post.

Course it's not like anything is going to really change. All you're gonna notice is that I'll be posting less (ish). But I wanted to get this out there just in case things are a little wacky at first, since I'm still settling into these new revelations. I also have some super exciting things going on that I can't wait to talk about, so stay tuned! Thank you guys for being so amazing and kind and understanding.

Let's chat! What are your favorite non-YA books? Have you ever struggled with anything I've mentioned? Are you also drowning in your TBR pile? Because SAME.

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Elementals: The Head of Medusa by Michelle Meadow giveaway + excerpt!

Elementals: The Head of Medusa by Michelle Madow
Publisher: Dreamscape Publishing
Publication Date: June 19th, 2016
Pages: N/A
Song I Played While Reading: Nocturnal by Disclosure
Rating: 3.5 stars

When Nicole Cassidy moved to a new town, she discovered that she was a witch descended from gods. But that was nothing compared to learning that it was up to her and four others with mysterious elemental powers to help save the world from the Titans, who would soon return to Earth. 

Now her relationship with Blake -- the fire Elemental -- is finally heating up. But she must remain focused, because Typhon, one of the deadliest creatures in history, has escaped from the weakening prison world. Only one object can destroy him -- the head of Medusa herself. 

Follow the Elementals as they journey to the end of the Earth, facing choices that will put their lives and the entire world at risk. Will they all survive the mission?

This book takes the cake for my fastest read. Even though it technically took me five days (life seems to enjoy getting in the way a lot), of the five days, it took me a grand total of 3 1/2 hours to read. An hour and a half for the first half, two hours for the last half. 
The first half was a struggle for me. I can blame some of it on my mindset: I was tired and rushing through the story, not really soaking anything in. My mom had the TV on as well, so I was constantly being yanked out of the story by something flashing on the screen. But I'm always a little caught off guard at first by how naive these characters are. They're very tame compared to some teenagers in books, so it's difficult at first to get used to the drastic changes. But that's just how Madow wrote this series, so it's really no surprise, but I'm always caught off guard in the beginning. Once I get used to it, I slip into the story like it's nobody's business. 
When she emailed me with the eARC, she mentioned that this was the most emotional book yet in the Elementals series, so I was ready for it. And I definitely see what she meant: some of the characters get gorgeous character arcs, and the group as a whole faces their toughest opponent yet, all the while dealing with personal relationships, suspicious foes, and shattering loss. I'm the kind of girl who reacts to a lot of blood and action in one way: vicious happiness and awe. So, at one point in the climactic scene, Madow goes full force and ratchets up the tension, and it was glorious. I seriously want to spill the specifcs, but don't want to spoil anything, so you'll just have to see. 
Nicole's inner turmoil and thoughts, though a little stiff at first, smoothed out beautifully by the end, ensuring a solid arc that had me rooting for her. I'm a little cynical, so it's hard for me to read about happy-go-lucky characters who are constantly optimistic and see the best in people. I like when things get a little dark, so, even though it pained me for Nicole to have go through it, I thought a little injection of real life was necessary for her to be more relatable. She's still such a sweet-pie though, and a small part of me really admires her for it. I can't imagine having the fate of the world on my shoulders at 16. No, thank you.
With it's gnarly cliff-hanger of an ending, Elementals: The Head of Medusa will having you scrambling for more of Nicole and the gang as they struggle to keep Earth safe from the clutches of the Titans!

Buy on Amazon / Add to Goodreads

Excerpt:

"What were about to do is scary. Terrifying, even. But we've been through things that were just as challenging. We played our first monster together in that cave, we escaped the Land of the Lotus Eaters when everyone there was trying to kill us, we blew up one of Scylla's heads, we played the hydra, and we stole the Golden Sword of Athena from a goddess's ice palace. No matter what challenges we face, we've always come out on top. Tonight won't be any different. We're the Elementals. We train together, we fight together, and we win together. And don't any of you ever forget it."

Giveaway

Michelle is offering up a fabulous prize during her Elementals: The Head of Medusa Virtual Tour event. One lucky winner will receive a signed paperback copy of the first book, Elementals: The Prophecy of Shadows! 

Enter here: a Rafflecopter giveaway 

About the author: 
Michelle Madow writes fast-paced YA (young adult) fiction that will having you turning the pages wanting more!

She grew up in Baltimore, and now lives in Boca Raton, Florida, where she writes books for young adults. Some of her favorite things are: reading, pizza, time travel, Broadway musicals, and spending time with friends and family. Michelle went on a cross-country road trip from Florida to California and back to promote her books and to encourage high school students to embrace reading and writing. Someday, she hopes to travel the world for a year on a cruise ship. 

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Goodreads

Follow the tour!

June 29^th
3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, & Sisssy, Too! - Review
Ana Loves - Review
Beyond the Book Reviews - Review
Carries Book Reviews - Review
books and photograph - Spotlight
Happy Tails and Tales Blog - Review
Just Books - Spotlight
What Is That Book About - Spotlight
Love, laugh, and read - Spotlight
BookHounds YA – Spotlight

June 30^th
An Infinite Book World – Review
Fiona Reads and FoodSpots – Review
Kayl's Krazy Obsession – Review
Lisa Loves Literature – Review
Random Things In Action – Spotlight
The Secrets In Books – Spotlight
Vibin With Books – Review
What the Cat Read – Spotlight

July 1^st
Booking With Lana – Review
Julian's Book Angels – Review
Rainy Days and Pajamas – Review
Starbound with Books – Spotlight

July 2^nd
Beckys Barmy Book Blog – Spotlight
I Smell Sheep – Spotlight
St. Sisters Book Reviews – Review

July 4^th
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books! – Review
Haddie's Haven – Spotlight
Wonder Struck – Spotlight

July 5^th
A Bookish Escape – Review
Sofia Loves Books – Review
Voracious Bookling – Review
Amy's Bookish Life – Spotlight

July 6^th
MrsLeif's Two Fangs About It Book Reviews – Review
Nic's Book Pics – Review
Emeraldfire's Bookmark – Spotlight

July 7^th
Dazzled by Books – Review
mythicalbatreviews – Spotlight
The Book Adventures of Annelise Lestrange – Spotlight
Bookish Youth – Review

July 8^th
Functioning Insanity Reviews – Review
Just Us Book Blog – Spotlight
Story For Dessert – Review
The Grace Lucy Review – Spotlight

July 11^th
deal sharing aunt – Spotlight
RoloPoloBookBlog – Review
T&L Book Reviews – Review
One Book Two – Review

July 12^th
JUST PARANORMAL ROMANCE – Spotlight
My YA NA Book Obsession – Review

July 13th

Amanda's Book Nook - Review

Mama Reads Hazel Sleeps - Review

Whovianwholikesgirls - Spotlight

What's Beyond Forks - Review

Bookwyrming Thoughts - Review

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Happy Monday!

(I'm currently writing this on Sunday night, and can barely string two words together because of lack of sleep and a previous night of shenanigans. So. I really hope this makes sense!)

Read last week

Elementals: The Head of Medusa by Michelle Madow, which was cute, fun, and fast-paced, but I struggled with the first half, so I gave it 3.5 stars. I'm a part of the review tour and my date is the 31st, so I'll have my review up then! Then I finished Mosquitoland by David Arnold, which I positively adored. Here's my review!

Currently (re)reading

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater. I'm only 30ish pages into it, but obviously it's fantastic. The Raven boys and Blue are actual #squadgoals.

To-read

The Raven King by Maggie Steifvater, then maaaaaaaybe The Witch Hunter duology by Virginia Boecker. June has crept up on me (it's already the 27th?!), and I have a packed TBR for July that I could really use a head start on, so we'll see how fast I finish TRK!

Books I've obtained

Ah! For once I have something to post in here. I went to two used book stores during the week and got some goodies:  

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly

Falling Kingdom by Morgan Rhodes

A World Without End by Ken Follett

Then I got this GORGEOUS first edition history book from an antique shop yesterday, and y'all. I'M OBSESSED.  Look at how beaten up it us! And then my grandma loaned me her 1911 second edition of Classic Myths in English Literature and in Art by Charles Mills Gayley. It's all about greek mythology and it's so freaking beautiful. There's pictures and 'family trees', so to speak, and I absolutely adore it. There's something so precious about first editions, and I'll seriously cherish these for the rest of my life. 

Music I've been loving

I've been getting really into acoustic music lately, and even created my own playlist on Spotify. I play it a lot in the mornings just so I can get into the right kind of mood. It also seems to bring out the creative side in me: I always want to write up blog posts or journal whenever it's on.

Acoustic favorites: Home by Dotan // Barcelona by George Ezra // Amadeus by Family and Friends // Dust to Dust (acoustic version) by The Civil Wars // Old Pine by Ben Howard // Tenerife Sea by Ed Sheeran

Other music I've been loving: Too Good by Drake // Sangria by Blake Shelton // Home Alone Tonight by Luke Bryan // Needed Me by Rihanna // BOSS by Disclosure // Can't Stop The Feeling by Justin Timberlake // Welcome To The Black Parade by My Chemical Romance (tbt!!!)

Posts I uploaded

Happy Monday! on 6/20

My Intimidating TBR book tag! on 6/22

Mosquitoland by David Arnold on 6/24

Elementals: The Portal to Kerberos by Michelle Meadow cover reveal + giveaway! on 6/25

Life shenanigans

I've been thinking a lot lately about my blog. I'll write up a more in-depth post on it soon, but basically, I've been thinking about what kinds of books I want to review for it (I asked on Twitter if you all formally review every book you read or not, and I got an overwhelming "No"), what I post on here, and how often. I've come to a few decisions and I'm excited to share them with you! I'll have that post up this week :)

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Elementals: The Portal to Kerberos by Michelle Madow cover reveal + giveaway!

Elementals: The Portal to Kerberos by Michelle Meadow
Publisher: Dreamscape Publishing
Publication Date: September 20th, 2016
Genre: Young adult fantasy
Format: Ebook and paperback

She will venture into hell to save the one she loves.

After being betrayed by one of their own, Nicole watches helplessly as Blake is snatched into the prison world of Kerbers - along with Medusa's head, which is the one item they need to stop the Titans from rising again. Now Nicole and the other Elementals must enter the portal, find Blake, and bring him and Medusa's head back to Earth before the deadly monster Typhon returns and wreaks havoc on the world. But there's one catch - their elemental powers one work in Kerberos. In a dimension designed to make those within it lose touch with reality, and that's filled with dangerous creatures who want to stop the from completing their task, will they make ti out alive? 

In this penultimate book of Nicole's story, join the Elementals as they journey through hell to save the world... and before it's too late. 

Preorder here: Amazon / Add to Goodreads

The adventure begins in the first book in the series, Elementals: The Prophecy of the Shadows. To get a copy of the first book for free, visit www.michellemadow.com

Giveaway:
Michelle is hosting a giveaway for a Kindle Fire! To enter, click here.

About the author:

Michelle Madow writes fast-paced YA (young adult) fiction that will leave you turning the pages wanting more!
She grew up in Baltimore, and now lives in Boca Raton, Florida, where she writes books for young adults. Some of her favorite things are: reading, traveling, pizza, time travel, Broadway musicals, and spending with friends and family. Michelle went on a cross-country road trip from Florida to California and back to promote her books and to encourage high school students to embrace reading and writing. Someday, she hopes to travel the world for a year on a cruise ship.

Connect with Michelle: website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Goodreads

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Mosquitoland by David Arnold

Mosquitoland by David Arnold

Publisher: Viking Books

Publication Date: March 3rd, 2015

Pages: 342

Song I Played While Reading: Amadeus by Family and Friends

Rating: 4.5 stars

After the sudden collapse of her family, Mim Malone is dragged from her home in northern Ohio to the "wastelands" of Mississippi, where she lives in a medicated milieu with her dad and new stepmom. Before the dust has a chance to settle, she learns her mother is sick back in Cleveland.

So she ditches her new life and hops aboard a northbound Greyhound bus to her real home and her real mother, meeting a quirky cast of fellow travelers along the way. But when her thousand-mile journey takes few turns she could never see coming, Mim must confront her own demons, redefining her notions of love, loyalty, and what it means to be sane. 

There's nothing I love more than a road trip coming-of-age story. If it's executed well, it's glorious. And Mosquitoland was glorious with a capital G. Throw in a quirky, and possibly-insane narrator, and you've got my perfect novel. In lieu of the sweet acknowledgements in the back of the book, I decided to pull a David Arnold: I am 110 percent positive that some mad author created this novel in his home to perfectly compliment the book specifications of one Mariah Sarah Smith. (I tweaked his line a little, since I obviously couldn't state that "I am 110 percent positive that some mad scientist created you in a lab to perfectly compliment the specifications of a David Wesley Arnold." Very cute, but a little different.)

This review is taking me a long ass time to write up, simply because I can't put into words why I loved this book so much. All I want to do is state obvious facts, like I loved that Mim was so sassy and gritty, and I loved the quirky writing, and BECK (<3333) and then be done with this. Trying to write up a review that does Mosquitoland justice is hard, my friends. Very hard.

I just answered my own question on how I plan on tackling this review, so let's get into it, shall we?

1. MIM. I adored her for many, many reasons. She was unapologetic, strong, sassy, weird, and kind. Flawed characters are important to portray in YA, and Arnold nailed it. I'm always slightly impressed when a male author creates an authentic female character. He even mentions her getting her period! Hallelufuckinglujah. That is definitely not mentioned enough in YA, which is preposterous because it's a normal bodily function for a girl. So kudos to you, David Arnold. Mary Iris Malone is fierce, and I don't think I'll be forgetting about her any time soon. 

2. BECK. I swear, I'm not doing this whole capitalized name thing on purpose, it's just that I'm still riding high on gorgeous Beck and his endlessly witty retorts and sweet whisperings. (And there was a lot of whispering in here. It was nothing sexual, literally Mim or Beck would just decide to whisper something instead of saying it in a normal tone. Don't ask me why.) It was kind of funny, the way Mim fell for Beck. It was definitely an insta-attraction, but I wouldn't say insta-love. Some will say I'm a lying fool, but whatever. It felt authentic to me, and so incredibly sweet. They just got each other. That happens in real life, those kinds of friendships or relationships that are an instant "shit, this person gets me.", so I hate when people go harping the author for this instant googly eyes shit. If a person gets you (and you find them attractive), you're going to googly eye them. DON'T EVEN DENY IT. 

3. The plot was unexpected. I thought she would be on the Greyhound bus the whole time, since it's on the cover, so I was pleasantly surprised when she strayed from it. The thing I love about road trip books is that, even though the premise is the same, they're all so different. They each have their own quirky stops and interesting people and scary moments. I will say that at one point, I was questioning Mim's accountability. There was an accident, and for the life of me,  I couldn't tell if it was real or not. The way Arnold introduced us to the scene (very magical realism-ey and frilly), and our lack of knowledge on what exactly Mim was suffering from, just made the whole scene confusing. 

4. I wasn't overly enthralled with Walt. He wasn't a terrible character, but nor was he great. I just thought he was very bland. Surprisingly, her dad stood out to me the most. I couldn't tell if I was supposed to hate him or not. He struggled with the notion of having good intentions, but executing them terribly. He was so worried about Mim that he smothered her instead of listening to her. Their relationship was complex and real, and I really liked that. Same with her stepmom, Kathy. 

I thought Arnold wrapped it up beautifully, though he almost gave me a heart attack with a certain scene involving Mim and a Reds program. A heart attack and a bad case of book throwing, because I was NOT down for that kind of scenario. Hell to the no. It was a little open-ended, but we could see a slight path outlined for us. Poignant, hopeful, bizarre, and hilarious, Mosquitoland is a must read! 

Quotes

"I am a collection of oddities, a circus of neurons and electrons: my heart is the ringmaster, my soul is the trapeze artist, and the world is my audience. It sounds strange because it is, and it is, because I am strange."

"But you're a true Malone, and as such, this won't be enough for you. You'll need more than just the wheres, whens, and hows - you'll need whys. You'll think Why wouldn't Our Heroine just (insert brilliant solution here)? The truth is, reasons are hard. I'm standing on a whole stack of them right now, with barely a notion of how I got up here."

 

"Live bands are set up in a dozen storefront windows like mannequins, advertising twang instead of tweet. And the honkey-tonks, my God, the honkey-tonks! Until now, I'd only assumed a honky-tonk was a quiet bar full of strange people I would never want to talk to. In reality, they're obnoxiously loud bars full of strange people I would never want to talk to. I pass one with a band blaring something about a bedonkey-donk, which I can only assume is the Official Honky-Tonk National Anthem. I'm already jealous of myself five minutes ago. Because you can never un-know a honky-tonk."

"I don't know how to say good-bye to you."

He opens his eyes, his head still resting on the back of the chair. "I know."

It's quiet for a moment while I try to shape these impossible words. "Maybe it doesn't have to be, like a solid good-bye, you know?"

"As opposed to a liquid one?"

"Yes, actually. I much prefer liquid good-byes to solid ones."

Beck smiles, yawns, stretches. "So - I think my best course of action here is to just, you know, let the ridiculousness of that sentence marinate."

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