CURRENTLY READING: NOVEMBER 25, 2019
In the spirit of trying to get back into the swing of being more active in the bookish community again, I'm going to try to blog more. I'm going to do a multitude of things such as an update on what I'm currently reading, a tentative TBR, what books I've bought, etc. Normally people try to make these new habits on New Year's, but no time like the present.
This past weekend I started, "Winterwood" by Shea Ernshaw. This is her second book, and I actually read her first book, "The Wicked Deep", which you can read my review for that here. I read "The Wicked Deep" when I was in school for our book club and rather enjoyed it. It wasn't amazing, but it hit off pretty much everything I need from a book to enjoy my time. When I heard about the second book, I knew I was going to want that bad boi on my TBR. Luckily for me, "Winterwood" was in included in the November OwlCrate box.
At the time of this post, I'm about 25% through. Not a ton has happened, but you can tell there is stuff that is about to pop-off. The main plot-driving point seems to have been introduced and I have an idea of where things could go, so I'm excited.
This book definitely seems slow-burning compared to what I'm used to, which is fine. I don't know a whole lot about the characters, but I enjoy them just fine. I know in my heart there is going to be a romantic element added to the story at some point. I don't think it needs which, but it's going to happen.
Overall I like the magic system that's been explained and the eerie tone throughout all of this. This probably would have been better to read around Halloween, but it is what it is. I'm excited to keep reading this. If I really push myself, I could probably finish it tonight, but I might not just so I have something to read on my commute to work tomorrow and Wednesday.
What are you guys currently reading? Have you read "Winterwood"? If so what were your thoughts on it? I'd love to read your thoughts in the comments down below.
Book: The Queen of Nothing
Author: Holly Black
My Rating: ★★★★
Synopsis: He will be destruction of the crown and the ruination of the throne.
Power is much easier to acquire than it is to hold onto. Jude learned this lesson when she released her control over the wicked king, Cardan, in exchange for immeasurable power.
Now as the exiled mortal Queen of Faerie, Jude is powerless and left reeling from Cardan’s betrayal. She bides her time determined to reclaim everything he took from her. Opportunity arrives in the form of her deceptive twin sister, Taryn, whose mortal life is in peril.
Jude must risk venturing back into the treacherous Faerie Court, and confront her lingering feelings for Cardan, if she wishes to save her sister. But Elfhame is not as she left it. War is brewing. As Jude slips deep within enemy lines she becomes ensnared in the conflict’s bloody politics.
And, when a dormant yet powerful curse is unleashed, panic spreads throughout the land, forcing her to choose between her ambition and her humanity…
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, comes the highly anticipated and jaw-dropping finale to The Folk of the Air trilogy.
Well the day has finally come. "The Folk of Air" trilogy, aka "The Cruel Prince" trilogy has come to an end. It came sooner than I expected and now that it's over I'm really sad. I need more in my life. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's start back in the beginning.
When "The Cruel Prince" first came out, I knew I was going to like it. Holly Black has quickly become one of my favorite authors, and as I have previously mentioned, she made me not hate fae anymore. That being said, it actually took me quite some time to read the first book. The first time I tried to read the first chapter, I hated it, which to be fair, the first chapter wasn't the greatest. I soon realized I just wasn't in the correct head space to read it and put it off for some time. When I was finally in the mood, I devoured that bitch and loved it. "The Cruel Prince" was everything I needed in a book and made me love being a reader.
I waited a whole ass year for "The Wicked King" and soon as that book arrived in my dorm room I binge read the shit out of it. I loved the second book even more than the first book. The second book is what really drew me into Carden and Jude's relationship. I was hesitant in the first book because their relationship didn't really add up to me, but the second book sealed the deal. And besides, that cliffhanger was the cliffhanger to end all cliffhangers. I couldn't believe what I had read when it went down, and the fact that I had to wait another year to read the conclusion killed me.
Finally, the conclusion has arrived. Fortunately/unfortunately for me, I happened to come down with the flu the day after the book arrived, so I didn't go to work and just spent the entire day switching between sleeping and reading. So all that being said...
I thought the conclusion was pretty great. It wasn't excellent. It wasn't perfect. It was pretty great. I thought the pacing was a little too fast and the plot took a weird turn, but not necessarily a bad turn. I really wish that there had been more Jude/Carden interactions, but from the plot perspective I also understand why that wasn't the case. This book was the shortest out of the trilogy and you can really feel that. I wish it were longer, not just because I want more content, but because I think it would have helped flushed out some of my issues.
This book focused a lot on Jude dealing with the consequences of the events that went down towards the end of the second book and it was an interesting time to say politely. All the paths that got started came to a close and while I wish we could get more from this story, I can honestly say that it did everything it needed to do. I would absolutely love a spin-off series with Carden or maybe years down the road following Oak, but I guess I'll have to deal with either rereading the books or seeking out fanfiction.
I'm so glad I didn't give up reading "The Cruel Prince" when it came out. This trilogy reminds me why I love being a reader and why I love being a part of the bookish community. If I wasn't in the community, I'm sure this book would have never crossed me radar, of it it had, it would have been further down the road. This trilogy helped strengthen some bookish friendships that I'm grateful for having. Overall this trilogy is one of my favorites and will hold a special place in my heart. I loved every second of reading all of this and I hope others can experience the joy I felt with these books.
SO WHERE HAVE I BEEN???
Hi, it's me Sierra, aka The Nerdgirl Review. You may not remember who I am because it's been over two months since I've disappeared from this blog. Where have I been and what have I been up to? Well that's what this post is all about.
So let's see, where did I leave off. I think the last time I posted was the beginning of September. I had just got back from my Bahamas cruise with my mom. Things got crazy because while I was on the cruise at work. My team changed departments, got a new boss, and our new boss decided to dock all of our pay. That was a lot to deal with and I'm honestly still dealing with it. I've lowkey been looking for another job because my new boss just doesn't make this a good work environment.
Despite the bullshit, I was able to go on vacation again with my mom at the end of September/beginning of October to Europe. We went to London, Dover, Paris, Lucerne (Switzerland), Venice, Borano, Florence, and Rome. We were gone for two weeks and I'd do it again in a heartbeat, just not with my mom. (Me and my mom don't have the best relationship as of recent since she decided to divorce my dad in the most inhumane way possible.) I got to see and experience so much and I'm so glad I was able to finally do something that's been on my bucket list for years.
Coming back from Europe, I had to deal with the bullshit that is work, once again. We went from salaried employees to hourly, so that was a big change for me because I was used to having my own schedule and not being pressed. In addition to work, as a I mentioned, my parents are getting divorced and my dad did not take it well at all, so I was dealing with him. I don't have particularly personal relationships with my parents, but me and my dad definitely bonded more through this experience.
Finally, throughout all of this I was in the process of applying to graduate schools to pursue my PhD in Neuroscience. As of last week, I'm finally done applying! It's such a weight to have all of that off my shoulders. Now I just have to wait to hear back which is super anxiety-inducing, but it is what it is.
So did I read throughout all of this time? A little bit. Not as much as I would have in past years, but as evidenced by everything above, it's been quite a couple of months. I've read a whopping 4 books in the past two months. In my next post I'll probably do some mini-reviews for those books. This has been the lowest amount of books I've read in a year since probably elementary school. It feels pretty bad but I also realize books aren't everything and as an adult I have to deal with real shit now.
Well, that's what I've been up to. Hopefully I can get back into the swing of reading and posting since my life has calmed down some. Today "The Queen of Nothing" by Holly Black was released so you bet your ass I'm going to binge read that shit.
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