Stormlings | A Stormheart Playlist

If you haven’t started The Stormheart series yet, you should! I’m getting so hyped for the release of Rage (book 2) and just finished a re-read of book 1, Roar, so decided to create a playlist for Aurora and all the different storms they face throughout the series. If you could be any type of weather, what would you be? What song would you use to describe yourself?

The Breakdown

I decided to pull together songs that reminded me of certain characters like Aurora, our princess turned storm hunter, but also songs that just gave of a “stormy” vibe. Check out some of my faves below, and why I chose them!

Come Clean, Hilary Duff

This song definitely screams Aurora at the beginning of Roar. She’s naive, secluded, and just wants to start fresh away from her mom and all the expectations that have been set for her. giphy.gif

Notable Lyrics: “Let the rain fall down, and wake my dreams
Let it wash away my sanity. ‘Cause I wanna feel the thunder. I wanna scream
Let the rain fall down. I’m coming clean”

Thunder, Imagine Dragons

This song reminds me of the entire storm hunter crew that Aurora joins, but especially Locke. They all dream of bigger and better things, and use their powers to get what they want. Also, it’s a song about being like thunder, so if that doesn’t fit the bill, I don’t know what does.

giphy.gif

Notable Lyrics: “I was dreaming of bigger things
And wanna leave my own life behind…
I was lightning before the thunder”

Roar, Kary Perry

If there ever was a theme song for Roar, it’s this. She goes from damsel to outright fighter/survivor by the end of book 1. And she is back and ready to fight for her kingdom.

giphy.gif

Notable Lyrics: “I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter
Dancing through the fire
‘Cause I am a champion, and you’re gonna hear me roar”

Talk To Me

What did you think of my picks? What songs would you add? Do you have any playlists you’d want me to create?

Top 5 Tuesday | Favorite Fantasies

Copy of Copy of Copy of Book Tag-3

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the amazing Bionic Book Worm!

Today’s Top 5 is all about fantasy stories and it was so hard for me to choose only five because 98% of what I read is considered fantasy – lol. Here’s my attempt at choosing my faves…but just know this changes on a monthly basis depending on what I’m reading!

The Shadowhunter Chronicles by Cassandra Clare

SURPRISE. The Shadowhunter Chronicles is of course on my list of all time favorite fantasy series. The world is rich, unique, and so amazing. Angels, demons, mundanes. Vampires, Werewolves, Faeries. Magic. Battles. Death.

IMG_5027.jpg

Harry Potter by JK Rowling

I don’t care if Harry Potter has been around for decades. It will never get old. The Wizarding World just has a tendency to make me feel at home and I will not stop waiting for my letters to Hogwarts (Or Ilvermorny or Beauxbatons). My wand and school regalia are prepped and waiting for the day.

IMG_4009

The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven Cycle is urban fantasy, but I’m putting this on my list because I’m obsessed with the magical Virginia suburbs from this series. The main crew is dysfunctional, angsty, and full of pent up energy. They’re adapting this into a SyFy series and I literally can.not.wait.

IMG_4989

The Remnant Chronicles by Mary E. Pearson

A doomed land, a magical prophecy, fierce lady heroes, swoon-tactic male leads. The world building in this entire series, as well as the spin-off books, is so rich and intense – and amazing. The first book is written in a very “whodunit/Clue” way, where you don’t know which character fits what role (prince or assassin?) and it’s UH-MAZE. Please read.

IMG_3991_.jpg

The Stormheart Series by Cora Carmack

So far only book one is out, but that first installment is filled with magical storms, hottie stormhunters, a runaway princess, and a very mysterious/eerie villain (like so creepy he lays with dead people for fun. WTF?) I can’t wait to read the sequel – it comes out August 2019!

IMG_3755.jpg

Talk To Me

What did you think of my picks? Do we have any favorite fantasies in common? Any I should add to my list?

Top 5 Tuesday | I Could NOT Put These Books Down

Copy of Copy of Copy of Book Tag-2

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the amazing Bionic Book Worm!

Today we’re talking the top books I could not put down. You are probably going to see a lot of familiar titles on this list, because I definitely rave about my favorites whenever I can (so they probably made some of the my other top 5 lists).

Gemina by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

The Illuminae Files is one of my favorite series is ALL TIME. It has crazy artificial intelligence, aliens, evil space corporations, and ALL the sassy characters. My favorite is the second in the series, Gemina. The stakes are high, Nik Malikov is the best, and did I mention the aliens?!

giphy.gif

A Court of Mist & Fury by Sarah J Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses is a solid 3-star book in my opinion, BUT the sequel is such an amazing book. There are unexpected twists & turns, hot faerie boys, and so much emotion. And did I mention the hot faerie boys?

giphy

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Another series that I’m obsessed with. I couldn’t put down any of these books, but the first book is my favorite. Rich boarding school boys, feminist badass heroines, and tons of magic.

giphy.gif

Roar by Cora Carmack

This series is about magical storms, a princess with epic powers, and a kingdom that needs saving. I’m SO excited for Rage and all I can think about is Prince Cassius, Aurora, and probably the most creepy villain I’ve ever encountered.

giphy.gif

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

This series involves X-Men like storm powers, one of the WORST betrayals I’ve ever felt, and a monarchy that is just dying to be taken down. While the series has its ups & downs, the first book is amazing. I could not stop reading.

giphy.gif

BONUS: Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare

If you know me, you know I cannot go one post without talking about something Shadowhunters-related. So, I’m adding a bonus section to talk about my love for all things Cassie Clare. There were so many to choose from, but I went with Lord of Shadows because it’s an EPIC sequel. I lie awake at night thinking about how my heart was ripped out of my chest at the end…

giphy

Talk To Me

What did you think of my picks? Do we have any of the same unputdownable books? Any I should consider?

TL; DR | January Speed Reviews

It’s the end of January already?! I managed to get through 6 books this month and I’m still 1 book behind schedule for my Goodreads 2019 reading challenge (LOL. Dead.) This was a month of unfinished series for me. I read the first book in 4 different series and now patiently wait to have time to catch up on them all. Everything I read this month was surprisingly solid, though. I made good life decisions with these, apparently.

The Rook img_3866

By: Daniel O’Malley

Overall Rating: ★★★★

The Verdict

This is an amazing fantasy/sci-fi read. There’s a rich world, strong characters, and enough mystery to go around. I can’t wait to get my hands on the second book, Stiletto!

Full Review Here

 

Blue Lily, Lily Blue (Reread)

By: Maggie Stiefvater

Overall Rating: ★★★★

The Verdict

This isn’t my favorite book in the series – that would go to The Raven Boys or The Dream Thieves depending on my mood – but it’s still amazing in it’s own right. The dark, rich urban fantasy world that is Henrietta, Virgina speaks to my soul. Everyone should read The Raven Cycle series!

Roar img_3755

By: Cora Carmack

Overall Rating: ★★★★

The Verdict

Read Roar! The magical world of Pavan is fresh, intriguing and Aurora will draw you in with her attitude and wit.

Full Review Here

 

The Traitor’s Kiss img_3857

By: Erin Beaty

Overall Rating: ★★★★

The Verdict

I didn’t know I could appreciate a fantasy world without magic, but Erin Beaty did the trick. I loved Sage and Quinn’s dynamic, and even though some of this was predictable, I still really loved the dangerous atmosphere brought on by impending war. I picked up book 2 immediately (see below).

The Traitor’s Ruin

By: Erin Beaty

Overall Rating: ★★★★

The Verdict

Book two wasn’t as great as book one, but Sage and I have some type of connection. I also loved that Alex managed to be kind of a jerk (like almost Chaol-level status for my TOG fans) but he didn’t cross the line and I still adore him. Please be the captain of my heart, Alex Quinn.

Caraval img_3942

By: Stephanie Garber

Overall Rating: ★★★★

The Verdict

Okay, what in the actual F*** just happened? I loved this book so, so much. It reminded me of all great magic movies – picture having all these concrete conclusions in your mind and everything being ripped away at the last minute. A total mind-trick and a great magical, mystery worth reading.

Full Review Here

Talk To Me

What did you think of my reads this month? Will you be adding any to your TBR? Have you read any of these already?

Review | Roar Has Got the Eye of Tiger, Is A Figher, & So Much More

Roar img_3755

By: Cora Cormack

Overall Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Summary

Aurora Pavan comes from one of the oldest Stormling families in existence. As the sole heir of Pavan, Aurora’s been groomed to be the perfect queen. She’s intelligent and brave and honorable. But she’s yet to show any trace of the magic she’ll need to protect her people.

Legend says that her ancestors first gained their magic by facing a storm and stealing part of its essence. She might not have magic now, but she can steal it if she’s brave enough.

Theme Song

TL;DR:

This book is such a good series opener and I can’t wait for Rage. This is everything I would hope for in a book: a princess who ISN’T a damsel in distress, a heroine who’s smart, haughty and can (kinda) take care of herself, a love interest who is genuine and caring & an unseen, creeper villain who gives you chills. It’s Into The Storm/Twister with some Airbender Vibes and it’s so good.

The Good

Rora Can’t Be Tamed

She starts off as Aurora – weak, powerless, timid. She ends as Roar – powerful, confident and everything you want to read about. Of course there are cliches. She’s the princess without powers who needs to save her people but I still found her story intense and exciting. Haughty boss girls who just want to learn are my vibe.

giphy.gif

Antagonists & Morally Gray Characters FTW

love stories where the threats are looming and that foreboding feeling is stuck in the pit of your stomach because you can’t quite put your finger on who or what is the actual problem. Roar has a lot of issues to deal with including  a creepy storm lord who hangs around and talks to dead guys he’s just killed and Prince Cassius, who I LOVE even though I probably shouldn’t. The political drama is Game of Thrones level, without the blood and gore.

Locke, Where Have You Been All My Life?

I usually find myself stuck with the romantic, primpy guys or the rugged, seemingly feelingless men. Locke manages to be the perfect combo of them all – caring, rugged, stubborn, and to mention he chases magical storms for a living. WHAT MORE COULD YOU ASK FOR.

giphy.gif

The Bad

I Want More

Honestly, the only thing I could think to put here is that I wish there was more to learn and dive into – about the Pavan family, about Storm magic, about everything. Here’s to hoping Rage will bring a lot of answers to my current questions.

The Ugly Truth

Read Roar! The magical world of Pavan is fresh, intriguing and Aurora will draw you in with her attitude and wit.

Talk To Me

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think of it? Will you be adding it to your TBR?

Top 5 Tuesday | Books I Didn’t Get To In 2018

Copy of Copy of Copy of Book Tag-10

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the amazing Bionic Book Worm!

Where has 2018 gone?! According to my Goodreads, I’ve read 72 books and counting this year. But, apparently, 365 days isn’t enough time to get through all the books I wanted to. The struggle of a never-ending TBR list is real. Which leads to today’s topic…the top 5 books I didn’t get to this year (but really, really, really wanted to)!

Godsgrave (Nevernight #2) By Jay Kristoff

I read Nevernight this year and it was Uh-mazing. I made the unfortunate mistake of trying to start Godsgrave right before Kingdom of Ash came out…and so it sits on my shelf…still unread. And it makes me sad.

giphy

Vicious by V.E. Schwab

I got Vicious in my first ever Bookoutlet haul and I’ve been staring longingly at it for months. I know this book came out in 2013 and I’m late to the party – so I’m ashamed that this is still on my TBR list!

giphy

Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

Everyone has been raving about this one and I have yet to pick it up! I’ve put myself in the box of shame for not getting to it this year.

giphy

Dread Nation by Justina Ireland

Zombies + Civil War = Epicness that I wasn’t able to read about this year. It’s still on my TBR…I’ll get to it eventually. But until then…

giphy.gif

Roar by Cora Carmack

All the things I’ve heard about this book have been great. Why it’s still sitting in my bookcase. Unread. Collecting Dust. Since my birthday. I don’t know. Maybe writing this post have given me inspiration to pick it up next…maybe.

Talk To Me

What books are still on your TBR this year? Any I should add to my list?