I read the least amount of books this month that I have read in a really long time, but you know what? I am actually okay with that. This year I have been focusing on not pressuring myself to read, because it takes away from the enjoyment, and rather try to immerse myself fully in the books I am reading and still take part in other things. Plus, I have been heavily revising all of February, so I think I can be fair to myself that a lot of reading was never going to happen.
(These are not listed in the order that I read them, rather the order of preference, from least favourite to favourite)
Never-Contented Things by Sarah Porter
I really wanted to love this one, but it was just way too weird for me to be able to like it. I thought it was going to be about creepy faeries and whimsy and dark magic…and it sort of was? Except the magic was so so weird and the faeries didn’t even play the biggest part in some ways. I liked the diversity – one of the main characters is pansexual, and the other is less clear, but I think maybe non-binary. (I received an arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review)
The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
There was a lot that I liked about this book, but in the end I just grew so frustrated by the main character’s decisions that I just couldn’t like it. The writing was really nice, and the concept was good, but I just didn’t feel the depth of the emotion in it, and the plot was far to focused on the romance and its complications. (Also, she cut up Wuthering Heights?? And didn’t regret it?????????)
Evermore by Sara Holland
This was the sequel to Everless which I read last February and really liked. This….I liked a lot less. It was just so mediocre, and it was reduced to the extremely generic YA fantasy. Also, it was so short, and it very quickly and neatly wrapped up the problems we had in book one. Almost as if the author just didn’t want to write a sequel but felt she had to finish things for readers?
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
There wasn’t anything partiuclarly wrong with this book and I loved the messages it gave about revenge just being a cycle of hatred that doesn’t do anything for anyone, and just causes more hurt. I was kind of confused by the ending though, and I just feel like it wasn’t long enough to have a really strong emotional impact on me unfortunately.
The Scarecrow Queen by Melinda Salisbury
THis was an okay conclusion to this series, but to be fair, it hasn’t really been a favourite series of mine ever, so I think this book is pretty decent. I just didn’t enjoy having to read from Twylla’s perspective again (she’s so annoying!) and such a minute portion of the book was taken up by Errin. Things wrapped up quite easily, but it was satisfying overall.
Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan
This was such a cute read and so wholesome and pure. I loved reading about this little group so much! It is short and sweet and the author wrote it as a Valentine’s story for their friends. You totally get those vibes and I really enjoyed it.
Floored by 7 YA Authors
I wasn’t really sure about this book but it actually ended up being a lot deeper and meaningful than I originally though and I really loved it! Each character was really realistic and they all struggled with different things. I really loved the concept and I thought that the authors worked together really well to create a comprehensible book which could have been really choppy. It wasn’t perfect, but I really liked it.
Song of Sorrow by Melinda Salisbury
State of Sorrow, the prequel to this, was one of my favourite books of 2018 so I was beyond excited for this sequel! This was such a great follow up to what I consider to be an extremely under hyped series (so definitely go and check it out!!). I do have to say I did not love this one quite as much as the first one, but this is such a great duology and please, please read it! I loved the romance here – it is so unique and the people involved are amazing, and there is lots of diversity in here as well.
Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare
This took me such a long damn time to read, but I finally made it through this massive tome! I was so scared that I was going to dislike it, or at least give it a lower rating than the rest of the series, but honestly, once I reached a certain point this book was beyond brilliant and I could not give it less than five stars! The diversity in this series is incredible and the I have so many ships! This is the perfect end to this series, and now I am so hyped for Chain of Gold!
King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo
This book has received some mixed reviews, but I am not ashamed to say that I loved this book with my whole heart! Nikolai is one of my favourite characters in literature, and this book had me hooked from the very first chapter. Leigh Bardugo is an actual master of storytelling, and we are all so lucky to have her stories. That ending though! I can’t wait for the next book – and hopefully there will be even more cross-over with the Six of Crows duology.
Even though I didn’t read as much as I usually do, I am so glad I didn’t put pressure on myself to read this month, because I felt that I got a little lost in how many books I read last year, when I should really have focused on the quality. I found two favourites this month – even if they weren’t much of a surprise! I hope you all read lots of amazing books too!
The Bookish Courtier 