Cold Falling White

Cold Falling White is the sequel to the book Zero Repeat Forever.  I was gifted both books by a tiktoker, and I will be forever grateful!  These books are SO good.  Now I know why everyone is talking about them!  Still having a bit of the Beauty and the Beast meets The 5th Wave feel, but also some great secondary love stories included.  I also love the representation, from POC to queer story lines, this book is very inclusive.  Below is my GoodReads review.  (Also, I have e-mailed Amazon AGAIN as to my disappointment in their handling of my review situation.)

This was an excellent follow up to Zero Repeat Forever!  I love that this book has more points of view than the first.  I really enjoyed getting to hear Xander's voice and see what happened for him after the events at the end of the first book. 

What I was really looking forward to, however, was more of Raven and more of August.  And I was not disappointed.  There's not as much as I was hoping for, but just enough to tide me over until the next book...because there's GOT to be a next book.  There's a minor cliffhanger at the end of this book, but not nearly as huge as the one at the end of book one.

I'm amazed by the creativity and writing of the author.  The world is well thought out and the writing is very descriptive without being boring.  I found myself picturing the Nahx and the characters with ease.  I love stories that just suck me in and make me feel as if I am there with the characters.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys sci-fi romance, dystopian fiction, or books like The 5th Wave.

Audiobooks and They Both Die at the End

 A friend gave me some books on Audible and so I have started up with audiobooks again!  It's so nice to be able to listen to a book while I do the laundry or clean the house or cook dinner!  All of these things normally interrupt my reading time.  

In any case, I started with They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera.  With a title like that, I'm sure we can all guess that a few tears were shed.  I have to admit to my continuous hope that it was wrong and the two lovable main characters would defeat death and make it after all.  No such luck, but I did enjoy the ride.  Silvera's writing is beautiful and I found so many quotes in the book that just utterly touched my heart.  It's definitely going to be a story that sticks with me throughout the years.   Below is my GoodReads review, as Amazon is still refusing to reinstate my reviewing capabilities.

This book!  This book was amazingly written and so heartbreaking, but also so touching at the same time.  With the title being what it is, you can just assume there will be tears, but I was pleased with all the happy, funny, and beautiful moments as well.  

Matteo and Rufus are quite different, but end up spending this day together that will change them both for the better.  I love how they each brought out something in the other that they really needed on that day.

I was also fascinated with the premise of the story.  Fascinated and also a bit horrified, but it definitely made for an intriguing look at the possibilities and how I would handle myself in a similar situation.  The apps, and venues that have popped up due to Death Cast are interesting as well.

I enjoyed the writing so much, there are so many lines and quotes that will make their way into my Quotes journal.  I highly recommend this book!

Milestone Mischief

Recently, I came across an author on TikTok who was looking for people to read and review her book "Playing with the Doctor" and I happily volunteered.  (This was when I was still able to review on Amazon.)  I ended up reading that book, which was the first in a series, in one sitting.  I actually stayed up way too late reading it, but I loved it and could not put it down.  Last night, I finished the 2nd book in the series, and I loved it almost as much.  I think I somehow related to the main character in the first book more than I did the one in the second, but they were both absolutely five star reads for me.  The series is called Milestone Mischief and each book can be read independently from the others, but if you want to read them all, I do suggest starting with book one and moving forward from there.  (Just to avoid minor spoilers.)  The following are my reviews for each book, both by author Piper James.

Playing with the Doctor

This is a five star, one sitting read for me! Holy buckets! When I tell you, I love a book that just gets your heart racing and brings you back to that feeling of falling in love, and this book got me in the feels!

The main character, Jessa, is independent to a fault. She has spent her entire life pushing people away and doesn't really see how much she's limiting herself. I loved the romance, but even more than that I loved the growth in this character as she learns, or perhaps just faces, why she does this and sees that it's no way to live. Same for our male character, Rafe, he has spent a majority of his adult life blaming himself for things that weren't his fault and paying his own sort of penance for them. Watching him learn to forgive himself was only secondary to watching Jessa's growth. (And I'll be honest enough to admit that was likely due to my seeing some of myself in Jessa.)

Now, the romance was HOT! I'm talking I had to take deep breaths and fan myself off a few times. Their chemistry is off the charts and the "playing doctor" part? O... M... G... That's going to be a scene that plays in my head for the ages! I happen to know that this author hadn't written adult before, but let me tell you that does NOT show! I'd have thought she was an old pro if I didn't know this was her first.

I very much appreciate when authors lay groundwork for future books, and I could see some definite possibilities being laid out for future stories about some of the secondary characters. Well done Ms. James! I'm eagerly anticipating a story about Nate, and I'll be honest I'm very curious about Lola too. I'd even take a bit of a prequel story about Jessa's dad!

If you like some hot contemporary romance, or if you're into characters who grow and learn about themselves through the course of a book, you're going to love Playing with the Doctor!

Faking with the Enemy

 I just fell in love with these characters and this town when I read book one.  I was so excited to get started on this book, because I just knew that Nate's story was going to get me too.

I'm actually a big fan of enemies to lovers trope, and also a mistaken slight story.  This gave me a taste of both, with a twist of not admitting their feelings.  It was just all the things in a good romance for me.

One of the things I really loved about this story though, was the friendship that has formed between the females of the story.  I feel like Ivy's character needed that friendship growth in addition to the romance story that was unravelling.  I felt like Jessa needed it as well.  The other thing I really enjoyed, was Nate's personal growth as the story wore on.  He admitted things to himself and realized the parts of his personality that needed work.  And I loved how Rafe came to help him with that.

This book definitely leaves some openings for other possible stories in this world, and after reading the first two books in this series, I simply can't wait to see what Ms. James comes up with next!

BookTok and Zero Repeat Forever

 After joining TikTok during quarantine, I usually used it for entertainment.  Funny videos, cute cat videos, etc.  At one point I posted a video about my job and a few about my cats.  But then, I found this marvelous group of people who identified themselves as BookTok.  Y'all, I had found my people!  Now, I have over 800 followers and enjoy creating bookish content to share.  Over the course of this journey I have made new friends and added to my TBR and wish list exponentially!  One of the books I kept seeing was Zero Repeat Forever by G.S. Prendergast.  I was lucky enough to win a BookTok giveaway and was gifted both the first and second books by the giver of this giveaway.  I was super excited and immediately added those (and some other generous gifts) to my February TBR.  If you are reading this blog and you love books but have hesitated to join TikTok, I encourage you to join and find BookTok, you will not be disappointed.

I finished Zero Repeat Forever on Friday night.  In fact, I was so close that I wouldn't let myself sleep until I finished that book.  I have been SO hooked on this book!  It's not a genre that I've been into currently.  Actually, the alien factor is not something I've been into really ever except for a few select books or authors.  But this book, people, it's a must read!  The writing is excellent and descriptive.  I found myself latched on to the growth of the character Raven.  The following is my review that's posted on GoodReads, BookBub and StoryGraph.  

Wow!  I have to thank BookTok for introducing me to this book, and even a specific booktoker for sending it to me after I won her contest.  But however I came across this book, I'm so grateful to have read it!  This book is amazing and the writing is outstanding.  I wasn't even sure what this book was about before I received it in the mail, I just knew that a lot of people said they couldn't put it down and that's the kind of book I wanted to read.

This story is dystopian in nature and has a definite sci-fi feel to it.  There's a take over in place and, of course, a group of people who are set on rebelling and taking back their world.  What I found to be a bit different in this story than what I've read before, was first of all the relationship that emerges between Raven and Eighth.  I found the growth between these two characters and the growth the two characters had in and of themselves to be intriguing and fascinating.  The other part of the story that sticks out to me for being so different is the shock at the end.  I won't spoil you, but I will say that I has suspicions throughout the story that I kept dismissing and then picking back up.  Only to have been proven partially correct, though not in the way I anticipated.

Warnings... there are deaths in this book.  Not everyone will make it.  There is some violence and and actions that might trigger some people.  There is also a cliff hanger.  You WILL want book two as soon as possible.  Lucky for you (and me) the 2nd book is already published.  Happy Reading!

Amazon Rant

 So, last week I went to write a review of a book I had read (verified purchase) and was told that my account had some "unusual activity" and therefore all of my reviews had been deleted and I was not able to post any new reviews.  Obviously, this made me very upset.  I e-mailed them right away and upon further reflection, ended up doing the customer service chat.  The lady was very nice and said she had "escalated" my request and I would hear by January 31st.  The only thing I heard by the 31st is that they had no answers and didn't know when they would, but that they suspected one of the following things: I am friends with someone I write reviews for, I receive compensation for my reviews, or my account is being used to leave fake reviews.  On Tuesday, I contacted customer service via chat again.  This time I was told they could "escalate" the situation again, but that would move me to the bottom of the queue.  Of course, I said no, please don't do that!  Anyway, at this point three of my reviews have been reinstated, but I'm still unable to post new reviews.  If anyone has any experience with this or advice, let me know!  From what I'm hearing in bookish circles, this has been happening more and more frequently.  It's frustrating because I do write reviews for everything I read, and I'm being told that possibly this could be because I do review books I may have purchased elsewhere or checked out from the library.  But honestly, all I've ever tried to do is help those authors out with my reviews!  In the meantime, I am still posting my reviews on GoodReads, BookBub, and StoryGraph.  And, as you can all see, I've resurrected this blog to post a few as well.

Princess of Thorns

 

Last night, I finished Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay.  This is one of my many amazing finds from my local Dollar Tree stores.  I know that most of them are older titles, but they are often very good books, and who can beat a dollar for an amazing story or adventure?  This one was even in hard cover!

This book was touted to be "Game of Thrones meets the Grimm's fairy tales" and I'm not sure about the Game of Thrones part.  However, I'll be honest and admit I've not read the books.  In fact, I'm only on Season five of the show.  But it seemed much less gruesome than Game of Thrones.  There are some dark themes in the book, such as soul eating, but it's not described in much detail and I wouldn't think much of a middle schooler reading this book, where as, I imagine I would not want the same student reading the Song of Ice and Fire books. 

In any case, here's the review I've posted on GoodReads and BookBub... an additional post will be coming regarding Amazon reviews...

I'm a big fan of retellings or fairy tale spin offs, or anything of that nature really. So it's no surprise that I truly loved this book. Not only is it about Sleeping Beauty's daughter (named Aurora, but they never call Sleeping Beauty by that name, so I assume that's a difference from the Disney version at least,) but there is a whole Swan Princess feel to the Prince's story line as well.

I love how, in this story, the Princess has to save the world, the Prince just has to help her. I think there's something to having the female of the story be the one to control her life and destiny. I like that it helps us to raise our daughters to be stronger and more self-reliant, but still ask for help when it's needed. There's a balance there.

I have read books by this author before and have yet to be disappointed. Well done Ms. Jay.