MARCH TBR

Wow, I can’t believe it’s March already! Excited for everyone to see what I have picked for this month, it’s gonna be a good one!

Ashes Of Gold by J. Elle
Genre: Fantasy, Fiction, YA

The Circus Infinite by Khan Wong
Genre: Adult, LGBT, Sci-Fi

Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tann
Genre: Fantasy, Retellings, Romance

Finlay Donovan is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
Genre: Adult, Fiction, Mystery

Flames Of Chaos by Amelia Hutchins
Genre:Adult, Fantasy, Romance

The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian
Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

Gallant by V.E.Schwab
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, YA

The Goddess of Nothing At All by Cat Rector
Genre: Adult, Fiction, Fantasy

Heavenly Bodies by Imani Erriu
Genre: Fantasy, Fiction, Romance

How High We Go In The Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

A Hunt of Shadows by Elise Kova
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, YA

Hunt The Stars by Jessie Mihalik
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley
Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

The Quarter Storm by Veronica G. Henry
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Mystery

The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams
Genre: Contemporary, Fiction, Romance

The Reunion by Meghan Quinn
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

River of Shadows by Karina Halle
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Star Mother by Charlie N. Holmerg
Genre: Adult, Fiction, Romance

Second Star To The Left by Megan Van Dyke
Genre: Fantasy, Retellings, Romance

Seven Devils by Laura Lam & Elizabeth May
Genre: Adult, LGBT, Romance

Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

What Lies Beyond The Veil by Harper L. Woods
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Romance

The Winding by Avi Datta
Genre: Adult, Fiction, Sci-Fi

The Woman In The Window by A.J. Finn
Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

Yes and I Love You by Roni Loren
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

FEBRUARY TBR

I can’t believe it’s February! Very excited to share my tbr for this month, I have some good ones picked out.

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, & YA

Deliah Green Doesn’t Care by Ashley Herring Blake
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, LGBT

Don’t Overthink It by Anne Bogel
Genre: Mental Health, Non-Fiction, Self-Help

Digging Up Love by Chandra Blumberg
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Group Therapy by BB Easton
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

House of Earth & Blood by Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Romance

House of Sky & Breath by Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Romance

How To Fail At Flirting by Denise Williams
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

John & Hazel’s Guide To Not Dating by Christina Lauren
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Make It Sweet by Kristen Callihan
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Not The Witch You Met by April Asher
Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Romance

The One Night by Meghan Quinn
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Novella

Opposites Attract by Camilla Isley
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

One True Loves by Elise Bryant
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Rosaline Palmer Takes The Cake by Alexis Hall
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, LGBT

Sincerely Confusingly, Yours by Hailey Gonzales
Genre: Contemporary, Fiction, YA

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Weather Girl by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

When You Get The Chance by Emma Lord
Genre: Adult,Contemporary, Romance

Yes & I Love You by Roni Loren
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Fiction WRAP UP

Hey everyone! I can’t wait to share my fictions reads with you so let’s get started.

Having just moved back to his old home in London to settle down and take up work as a school teacher. But, Tom has a very dark secret as he’s not who people think he is as he might look a young forty one year old high school teacher but in reality, he’s been alive for centuries as a result of a rate condition. He has lived through some of the most important dates in history but now he just wants a normal life. Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen as shortly after the beginning of the school year, he breaks a rule that could potentially ruin everything that he’s ever wanted.

I wasn’t quite sure if I would like this book as sometimes historical fiction is hit or miss with me but I ended up liking it more than I thought. The plot was what got me interested as it something unique yet interesting.While I did like the plot, I wasn’t crazy about Tom as their were parts in the story where he really annoyed me and I feel like he wasn’t as compelling as I thought he would be. But, the other parts of the book helped make up for that so if you’re into fantasy and time travel stories, you would like this book!

Paige has always been scared to be herself. The real Paige who is proud to be a nerd and stick out in the crowd, who has no problem making friends, talking about books, and losing her virginity. But, no one knows who the Paige as only quiet Paige exists. But, with a new opportunities arriving as Paige will be starting at a new school, it could be the perfect time to embrace who really is and stop hiding behind a mask.

Absolutely loved this book and not only because the lead was asexual but because it was a super cute and fun book to read through. I found Paige very relatable as she struggled to embrace her real self and not hide. That’s something that still sticks with me even as an adult who has now accepted her flaws and all and I felt like it was written very well. Not only did I love Paige but the other characters especially the friendship between Paige and Shawn, the boy she becomes very close with. The asexuality aspect of the book made me very happy because it’s super hard to find asexual characters written well so I was happy that I found this book. I will reading the second book for February so stay tuned!

Romance WRAP Up

A little change up as I feel like is more easy to do, I’m going to combine all my genre reads into one post so I don’t feel like it’s a chore to make separate posts for them.

Rosie Taft and Jane Breslin couldn’t be more different as books are Rosie’s life as she owns a bookstore that was originally her mother’s. With living in Manhattan, the young girl seems to have it all except for one thing: a love life. While Rosie is wishing her love life to take shape, Jane Breslin operates as a real estate owner by day and a streamer by night where she uses the alias of Brie and spends her time flirting with a mysterious person who happens to be Rosie. When Rosie finds out that Jane’s family business has terminated the lease to her beloved bookstore, romance is on the back burner but there is no denying the sparks between them, will the two find a way to meet in the middle or is it another heartbreak for the young women?”

What a super cute book with a fun and engaging plot! I loved the relationship between Rosie and Jane as it developed throughout the book. It had everything you could want and I found myself relating to both characters as they had their own quirks and flaws that made them feel so real. The plot was cute and although I’ve read books with this similar plot, the author does of a good job of changing up a few things so it’s not so familiar. Overall, a super cute and fun book and I can’t wait fro the second installment of this series.

For the last year, Jo Stewart has been working on a bucket list while working as a yacht stewardess and she’s been excelling with her list while enjoying her time before her birthday. Jo is feeling good and on track with her bucket list when tragedy strikes and Jo”s world comes crashing down as she’s forced to confront painful memories from her past and process through difficult emotions. While trying to stay on track with her list, she finds herself developing feelings for a young man, Alex Hayes and this further complicates her relationships and she must make a choice to stop playing it safe and embrace her past or she will lose what matters the most.

I really enjoyed this book as it touched upon serious issues like grief, mental health, emotions, and family issues in a way that wasn’t over the top but still very real. I loved Jo, I thought she was a very relatable character and I felt for her throughout the book as she struggled to come to terms with her past in order to embrace the present and choose what matters most to her rather than playing it safe. That struck a cord with me as I went through similar changes so I was rooting for her the entire time. The romance was very cute and I did enjoy the plot! I would totally recommend this book to others! A fun, interesting, and heartwarming read about embracing the past so you can live the life you’ve always wanted for yourself.

If there was one person Catalina Martin couldn’t stand, it was Aaron Blackford and the feeling is mutual. But, desperate times call for desperate measures as she needs to bring someone to her sister’s wedding or else she’ll never live it down. It’s just a simple trip with the most obnoxious, aggravating, and nosiest man she’s ever met. Or is it?

Ahhhhh, this book was so much fun!! I loved it from beginning to end. The enemies to lovers trope is my favorite and it was so well done and felt very real! I love their relationship and how it developed through the book. The plot, characters, and how the story developed were fleshed out together so that it made a very fun read.

To everyone who knows them, best friends Meil and Sam as are strange as they are inseparable.The pair has magical abilities that are on opposites sides of the spectrum as roses grow out of Miel’s wrist and Sam is known for the moons he paints and hangs out in tree’s and while not much is know about him or his mother before they moved here, even they know to stay away from the Bonner girls, who are witches. But, when Miel and Sam discover that the witches want Miel’s roses that grow out her skin as they believe the scent can make anyone fall in love, the two must do what they can to not only protect Meil and every secret she’s sworn to protect but their loved ones.

Oh Anna-Marie McLemore, you really have a way with words. This was such a heartwarming and beautiful read as I was hooked from beginning to end. I’ve been a huge fan of her writing and she never fails to disappoint with how she develops her characters and I always feel like I know them. The struggles of the characters are what drive this particular story as it follows, Latina Miel and Samir, an Italian-Pakistani trans boy and McLemore does an excellent job with tackling these serious issues in a way that feels real. A truly beautiful tale of friendship, belonging, and finding your inner voice.

Fade Into White

“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

On the outside, Thea Fenton’s looks perfect but looks can be deceiving as her life is falling apart and she’s struggling to pick up the pieces. The young girl is wracked with anxiety that no one around her seems to care about or understand so she resorts to self-harm to deflect the pain inside. But, when a local teen commits suicide, Thea’s world completely unravels as her anxiety skyrocket’s and things beginning happening that she can’t explain leaving her trapped in her own chaotic mind. The lines between reality and another world are starting to blur leaving Thea to feel like the world is caving in on her. That is until she meets Khi, a mysterious new boy from a coffee shop that seems to know Thea better than anyone does even herself. She finds herself drawn to him and is able to tell him how she really feels and he listens and tries to help her sort through her own thoughts to make sense of them.

Well this is probably one of the best novels about Mental Health in particular anxiety that is very accurate which made me super happy as it’s hard to find good rep with mental health. Sometimes, I feel like the authors don’t do the research or portray it correctly and it’s more romanticized than it needs to be. As someone who was diagnosed Generalized Anxiety Disorder, I found Thea extremely relatable and felt for her as she developed throughout the book with character growth. I felt like the author did a very good job at portraying anxiety and how it differs from feeling anxious and how that anxiety can be so exhausting and draining that you don’t even know how to explain it. It was truly well written and I loved the end result of where Thea ended up on her journey with finally coming to accept who she is. She never thought she would get there and she does and I think it was really well done and I enjoyed the book from beginning to end.

Heartstopper by Alice Oseman

Rating: 3/5

“You can’t tell whether people are gay by what they look like. And gay or straight aren’t the only two options.”

Heartstopper follows Charlie and Nick, two grammar schools guys who couldn’t be more different. Nick, is a cheerful and soft spoken football player and Charlie is a high-strung over-thinker. For Charlie, school hasn’t been that great especially since he was outed and bullied for months. Nick heard about the bullying but knows very little about Charlie so when the two start talking to one another and get close, will it blossom into something more or will it go down in flames?

While very predictable and a bit cliche, I did enjoy Charlie and Nick’s relationship as it was very cute. I felt for Charlie being outed and bullied as a result because no one should have that happen to them. On top of being outed, he was bullied and that just made things worse for them. The plot has been done a lot of times so it was a bit predictable but a very cute book. Seeing how the relationship progressed through the book was enjoyable with Charlie and Nick getting to know one another and become closer.

A very cute book so if you’re looking lots of fluff and cuteness, you’ll find it in this book!

Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender

\

Rating: 4/5

TW: Being outed, Cyber-bullying, Transphobia, Emotional Abuse, Absent Parent


“I’m not flaunting anything. I’m just existing. This is me. I can’t hide myself. I can’t disappear. And even if I could, I don’t fucking want to. I have the same right to be here. I have the same right to exist.” 

Felix Love has never actually fallen in love and yes they are aware of the irony. The book follows Felix on a journey of self-acceptance, love, belonging, and living their truth with who they are. It ends up becoming so more about finding self-acceptance and belonging with themselves than finding with someone else.

“It could’ve been easy to say I was hurt because I’m trans, because someone singled me out for my identity, but there’s something weird about that – something off, about suggesting that my identity is the thing that brought me any sort of pain. It’s the opposite. Being trans brings me love. It brings me happiness. It gives me power.”

I had no idea that this book would become a favorite of mine but here we are. This is defintely one of the best reads for this year as I enjoyed it from beginning to end. It seems like that I have a struck gold with YA Contemporary recently and Felix Ever After is definitely my faves out of the ones that I’ve read. Not only is Felix is a likeable and relatable character, I found myself invested in their story and wanted them to find the happiness that they deserved. I hurt for Felix especially with the transphobia that they experienced and how impacted their mental health as one can imagine.

“It can be easier, sometimes, to choose to love someone you know won’t return your feelings. At least you know how that will end. It’s easier to accept hurt and pain, sometimes, than love and acceptance. It’s the real, loving relationships that can be the scariest.” 

What I loved about the book even more is that it touched on the labels and how they are different for people. Acknowledging that some people are fine with and it helps them feel connected while others don’t want that kind of pressure. As someone who struggled for years with labels, I like Callender discusses how people react to labeling differently and that’s fine and I think it’s something that’s very important to discuss openly and for people to feel accepted whether or not labeling is for them.

The Mirror Season


Rating: 5/5

TW: Sexual Assault, Bullying, Homophobia

There is enough alive in me to grow a hundred rosebushes, a thousand blooms, a million leaves”

Oh Anne-Marie McLemore, you really know how to pull at my heartstrings and I love every minute of it. Stunning, haunting, and emotionally raw, this book sheds light on rape culture, the aftermath of sexual assault, and how they survive while pursuing a journey of healing. This wasn’t an easy book to get through, there were times where I cried and had to put the book down. Even with those difficult moments, McLemore intertwines hope, discovery, love, and finding magic in life while on a journey of healing.

“It costs something to listen to someone else’s story. People forget that sometimes.”

On a night like any, the world’s of Ceila and Lock come crashing down when they are sexually assaulted in rooms mirroring each other one fateful night. While Celia can remember what happened, Lock can’t and the guilt begins to weigh heavily on her. That guilt begins to impact her more than she wants as she tries to work through it while also trying to heal herself. The way that McLemore unwraps the many layers of Ceila’s guilt gives it so much more depth and it’s also truly heartbreaking.

“I hope he hasn’t put all this together, this thing we have in common that he can’t remember and I can’t forget.” 

The pain, hurt, loss, and even guilt that Ceila feels towards what happned with Lock especially as he doesn’t remember what actually happened is hard to read at times. I felt for Ceila who was concerned for Lock and took a lot of it on herself. Through this, a budding friendship forms and the two are able to heal each other while trying to take care of themselves. To me, those are the best kind of friendships where two people who may of not met on their own but they brought together by tragic events that happened in their lives. The way that McLemore writes the characters, we see them as real people going through very real situations and trying to heal from it which to me is a sign of a great author.

Months ago, I didn’t cry, and I didn’t scream because I thought if I started crying and screaming I’d never stop. But now, I don’t care if I scream forever. If I scream forever, they will have to hear me forever.

McLemore doesn’t hold back from exploring the power dynamics that pre-exist to that night of Lock and Ceila, both from poor to middle class backgrounds up against their rich white classmates who are related to people who have their names on buildings all over town. For Ceila, her peers not only look at her different because of the color of her skin but also her sexuality. For Lock, it’s the stigmatization and misconception that boys don’t get raped because of their gender that they should be able to defend themselves from being sexually assaulted. I appreciated how McLemore wrote Lock and how he struggled to heal from the trauma, it was raw and real.

But I know this one, the boy who needs light flooding into parts of him that have gone dark. And I am, in some way smaller than my hands, bringing him back to life.

While the subject material in the book are important for us to understand, no one should push themselves through it. Sometimes, I struggle with sexual assault is written in books and that was something that I was worried about while reading this so I was very pleased with how it was done and played out. Anne-Marie McLemore is an incredibly talented and wonderful writer and I have to say that this is her best book to date. So if you want to see if it’s up your alley, feel free but don’t feel pressured that you have to read it!

The Sky Blues


Rating: 3.5/5

I think it’s the timid and slightly terrified energy he gave off; it reminded me of myself, when I get caught up in walking the straight way down the hall, or sounding less gay, or carrying my books like a guy is supposed to. We’ve both been struggling to bury our otherness beneath the surface, but I shouldn’t have assumed our otherness was the same.”

Going into his senior year, Sky is ready to go out with a bang and make his best yet. Sky comes up with a brilliant plan to ask his crush, Ali to the prom and has to do that within thirty days. Sounds easy right? Well, when his brilliant plans get leaked by an anonymous hacker in a deeply homophobic email causes him to wish that he could leave town and finish his year at another high school. But, when his friends and others at the school encourage Sky to find out who is the behind the hack and expose them. Will Sky be expose this person for they are or will his small town blues stop Sky from embracing his true self? Find out in this fun, witty, and heartfelt debut!

This heartfelt debut was definitely one to enjoy from beginning to the end. There were a few things that I didn’t like that but I’ll get into that later. Sky is such a fun, witty, kind, friendly and wonderful main character I felt like I knew him. The other characters were a bit of hit and miss for me, I felt like some were well written and others were added for the sake of diversity. While I did enjoy the story, there were a few things that I think could’ve been better. The subplots felt rushed and quick so it was hard for me to stay invested and the ending was a bit vague.

Other than that, it was a pretty fun read so if you want to check it out, go for it!