Before She Ignites by Jodi Meadows

Date Published: September 12, 2017

Published By: Katherine Tegen Books

Pages: 400

Edition Read: ebook

Date Read: 8/16/18

Rating: 

 

 

 

 

Goodreads Synopsis: Before

Mira Minkoba is the Hopebearer. Since the day she was born, she’s been told she’s special. Important. Perfect. She’s known across the Fallen Isles not just for her beauty, but for the Mira Treaty named after her, a peace agreement which united the seven islands against their enemies on the mainland.

But Mira has never felt as perfect as everyone says. She counts compulsively. She struggles with crippling anxiety. And she’s far too interested in dragons for a girl of her station.

After

Then Mira discovers an explosive secret that challenges everything she and the Treaty stand for. Betrayed by the very people she spent her life serving, Mira is sentenced to the Pit–the deadliest prison in the Fallen Isles. There, a cruel guard would do anything to discover the secret she would die to protect.

No longer beholden to those who betrayed her, Mira must learn to survive on her own and unearth the dark truths about the Fallen Isles–and herself–before her very world begins to collapse.

 

My Thoughts: I have had my eye on this since before it came out last year and just never got around to reading it until now. I thought that dragons were going to be way more present in the story than they were, so that was a little disappointing. I did really like the development and growth that happened in Mira from the start of the book to the end of the book. I wasn’t the biggest fan of all the time jumping because it was pretty confusing at first and some of the things from the past we really didn’t NEED to know. I am really looking forward to seeing what happens in the next book because all the action in this one took place in the last 100 pages and it was really crazy. I’m hoping the sequel has more dragons in it as well!

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Waiting On… Kingdom of Ash

 

This weeks book is:

Expected Publication Date: October 23, 2018

Publishing Company: Bloomsbury YA

 

 

Synopsis: As the threads of fate weave together at last, all must fight, if they are to have a chance at a future. Some bonds will grow even deeper, while others will be severed forever in the explosive final chapter of the Throne of Glass series.

 

Why I’m Anticipating This: This is the final book in one of my favorite series. I can’t wait to see how things end and all the story lines get wrapped up in this final book. Let me know if you’re also looking forward to seeing how things end in this series!

Nyxia by Scott Reintgen

Date Published: September 12, 2017

Published By: Crown Books for Young Readers

Pages: 384

Edition Read: e-arc

Dates Read: 8/9/18-8/10/18

Rating: 

 

 

 

Goodreads Synopsis: Emmett Atwater isn’t just leaving Detroit; he’s leaving Earth. Why the Babel Corporation recruited him is a mystery, but the number of zeroes on their contract has him boarding their lightship and hoping to return to Earth with enough money to take care of his family.

Forever.

Before long, Emmett discovers that he is one of ten recruits, all of whom have troubled pasts and are a long way from home. Now each recruit must earn the right to travel down to the planet of Eden—a planet that Babel has kept hidden—where they will mine a substance called Nyxia that has quietly become the most valuable material in the universe.

But Babel’s ship is full of secrets. And Emmett will face the ultimate choice: win the fortune at any cost, or find a way to fight that won’t forever compromise what it means to be human.

 

My Thoughts: I received an early review copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

A competition in space to go to a new planet to mine a mysterious new product. It was just as epic and amazing as that sounds. I really loved our main character Emmett, and honestly, the side characters were all pretty good as well. I loved the twists that got thrown at us. The mystery surround Babel kept me very interested. The end was such a cliffhanger and I can’t wait to read the next one as soon as my copy comes into the library. I highly recommend this if you are looking for a sci-fi with a competition aspect to it.

Contagion by Erin Bowman

Date Published: July 24, 2018

Published By: HarperTeen

Pages: 432

Edition Read: hardcover

Dates Read: 7/30/18-8/2/18

Rating: 

 

 

 

 

Goodreads Synopsis: It got in us

After receiving an urgent SOS from a work detail on a distant planet, a skeleton crew is dispatched to perform a standard search-and-rescue mission.

Most are dead.

But when the crew arrives, they find an abandoned site, littered with rotten food, discarded weapons…and dead bodies.

Don’t set foot here again.

As they try to piece together who—or what—could have decimated an entire operation, they discover that some things are best left buried—and some monsters are only too ready to awaken. 

 

My Thoughts: I was expecting to like this because I love space books. However, I enjoyed this so much more than I thought that I was going to. The mystery of what happened and surrounding the one character was so good! ( I can’t say which character, because hello, SPOILERS!) The whole concept was done so well. I was completely sucked into the story the entire time and when I wasn’t reading all I wanted to do was pick the book up and see what was going to happen next. I can’t wait for the sequel to come out because this ended on such a cliffhanger. I am planning on checking out the other books this author has out because of how much I liked this one. Hopefully her other books are just as good! Highly recommend this if you are looking for a good space mystery/thriller!

Wrap Up: July 2018

 

This was a pretty good reading month! I managed to read six full novels and one short story. Overall, I enjoyed the things I read. I purchased one book this month. I also completed two more challenges this month.

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22. A book you have high expectations or hopes for
29.  A book with a “Clue” weapon on the cover or title (lead pipe, revolver, rope, candlestick, dagger, wrench)

 

 

Grace and Fury (review)
June 2018 Wrap Up
Waiting On..Neverwake
Crimson Dagger (review)Crimson Dagger (review)
Dividing Eden (review)
Simon vs the Homosapiens Agenda (review)
Waiting On… Not Even Bones
Anticipated Releases: August 2018
The Lonliest Girl in the Universe (review)
Everless (review)
The Poppy War (review)

Everless by Sara Holland

Date Published: January 2, 2018

Published By: HarperTeen

Pages: 362

Edition Read: ebook

Dates Read: 7/24/18-7/29/18

Rating: 

 

 

 

Goodreads Synopsis: In the kingdom of Sempera, time is currency—extracted from blood, bound to iron, and consumed to add time to one’s own lifespan. The rich aristocracy, like the Gerlings, tax the poor to the hilt, extending their own lives by centuries.

No one resents the Gerlings more than Jules Ember. A decade ago, she and her father were servants at Everless, the Gerlings’ palatial estate, until a fateful accident forced them to flee in the dead of night. When Jules discovers that her father is dying, she knows that she must return to Everless to earn more time for him before she loses him forever.

But going back to Everless brings more danger—and temptation—than Jules could have ever imagined. Soon she’s caught in a tangle of violent secrets and finds her heart torn between two people she thought she’d never see again. Her decisions have the power to change her fate—and the fate of time itself.

 

My Thoughts: The concept of this book was so promising, however, I don’t think it was executed as well as it could have been. I was going to give this book 2 stars initially, but the twist in the last like 50 pages bumped it up to a 3. I think that the twist was a unique one. The characters were all pretty standard ya characters. Nothing special. It was a pretty typical ya fantasy in my opinion. I am interested enough that I might consider picking up the sequel when it comes out. Overall, it was just mediocre.

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

Date Published: May 1, 2018

Published By: Harper Voyager

Pages: 544

Edition Read: hardcover

Dates Read: 7/14/18-7/29/18

Rating: 

 

 

 

 

Goodreads Synopsis: When Rin aced the Keju—the Empire-wide test to find the most talented youth to learn at the Academies—it was a shock to everyone: to the test officials, who couldn’t believe a war orphan from Rooster Province could pass without cheating; to Rin’s guardians, who believed they’d finally be able to marry her off and further their criminal enterprise; and to Rin herself, who realized she was finally free of the servitude and despair that had made up her daily existence. That she got into Sinegard—the most elite military school in Nikan—was even more surprising.

But surprises aren’t always good.

Because being a dark-skinned peasant girl from the south is not an easy thing at Sinegard. Targeted from the outset by rival classmates for her color, poverty, and gender, Rin discovers she possesses a lethal, unearthly power—an aptitude for the nearly-mythical art of shamanism. Exploring the depths of her gift with the help of a seemingly insane teacher and psychoactive substances, Rin learns that gods long thought dead are very much alive—and that mastering control over those powers could mean more than just surviving school.

For while the Nikara Empire is at peace, the Federation of Mugen still lurks across a narrow sea. The militarily advanced Federation occupied Nikan for decades after the First Poppy War, and only barely lost the continent in the Second. And while most of the people are complacent to go about their lives, a few are aware that a Third Poppy War is just a spark away . . .

Rin’s shamanic powers may be the only way to save her people. But as she finds out more about the god that has chosen her, the vengeful Phoenix, she fears that winning the war may cost her humanity . . . and that it may already be too late. 

 

My Thoughts: TRIGGER WARNING: rape, assault, language 

I honestly didn’t have many expectations going into this other than I had heard it was really violent in the second half of the book, so I was expecting to see some pretty big violence. The first half of the book not a whole lot happens. As a matter of fact like two and a half years is covered in the first half of the book. I really liked all of the lore in this. Those parts of the story really held my attention. I found that once I picked the book up to read I didn’t want to put it down. I just got sucked into the story. I really loved Rin, she was sarcastic and such a badass. I will say that once you got into part two of the book things picked up a bit. There were definitely some parts that were a little hard to read and things got pretty violent in the last 200 pages or so of the book. I don’t recommend this for younger readers and I would definitely take the trigger warnings seriously. I really loved this book, way more than I was thinking I would. I really hope that there is a sequel because I would love to see what happens after the events at the end of this book. I am considering raising my rating to a 5, but for now I think I will stick to 4.5. I highly recommend this book!