5 Books I’m Most Excited For This Autumn

Autumn, my favourite time of the year! It is perfect for wrapping up with a blanket, a hot cup of coffee on the side and brand news books on my shelves, because there are quite a few new ones that I am looking forward to.

The last three months haven’t been great for my blog or my reading, mainly because things have been so hectic with my freelance work. However, I am finally starting to get into a routine and I want to get back to blogging again. I can’t promise there will be posts on certain days but I will be reading a lot more than I have been (because I’ve been averaging a book a month when I used to read one in 4/5 days). I have to thank Vicious by V. E. Schwab for pulling me out of my three-month long reading slump because I read that book within 4 days and it was incredible! You can expect to see a review on that very soon.

So, the books I am excited to read this Autumn are…

1. Vengeful by V. E. Schwab

After falling in love with the first one, how could I not want to read the second one? While I may not have it in my possession yet, I will be ordering it when I get paid next week. I’ve only heard great things and some people are saying it is even better than the first! There is something about Schwab’s writing that makes her books perfect to read at this time of year. I definitely got X-Men vibes from the first book, so if you are a fan of the franchise you should check out Vicious.

2. Two Dark Reigns by Kendare Blake

This set of books is one of my favourite darker YA series and I cannot wait to get my hands on the third instalment. While I pre-ordered it back in July I unfortunately have to wait until the end of October to have it as I ordered it with another pre-order that isn’t out until then and I chose to bundle them together to save money on shipping. Either way, people are already loving this book and I can’t wait to see new parts of this dark world that Blake has created.

3. Tower of Dawn by Sarah J. Maas

In preparation for the final book in the series, I will be reading Tower of Dawn this month and hopefully finishing it before Kingdom of Ash is released. I’ve been having issues with regards to her other series, A Court of Thorns and Roses, because it took me forever to read the second book and I am still trying to finish the third one. However, I am hoping that Tower of Dawn will be different and can get me excited to see how this series will end.

4. Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas

Can I just comment on how beautiful this cover is in the white version because wow…it is my favourite! After the ending of Empire of Storms I couldn’t wait until this book was released because of that cliffhanger. This will be a huge book with 992 pages (lord help me) but I am sure it will be worth it and give the series a satisfying end and hopefully it won’t make me cry. I have no idea what to expect, but I can’t wait to read it!

5. Godsgrave by Jay Kristoff

Again, another book that I don’t actually own yet but I intend on buying it when I purchase Vengeful. I absolutely loved Nevernight because it was unlike anything I’d ever read before and completely captured my attention (and you can check out my review here). Plus, it is dark and moody which is perfect for Autumn when the nights are getting darker and everything is spookier, especially around Halloween. I’ve seen a lot of people say they were upset at the ending, which makes me even more excited to read it and find out what will happen to the characters.

These are all the books that I hope to get to this Autumn, which gives me until the end of November to read them all. Fingers crossed I can do it! What book are you looking forward to reading the most this month?

WWW Wednesday – In Love With This Series!

I am currently writing this blog post while the World Cup is on in the background (which I am being forced to watch, but it’s fine). I also have a book next to me ready for half time because I gotta take any chance to read at the moment.

I’m so glad it’s halfway through the week already because it’s one step closer to the weekend and I can spend it reading, writing and drawing. And hopefully finish reading the book I am currently making my way through, which happens to be a very long one.

What Are You Currently Reading?

This book is incredible. I’m already obsessed with this series, the characters and the story. I haven’t read a book like this about the Fae ever before and I am captivated by the magic of this world. I didn’t think Maas’ writing could get any better than the Throne of Glass series, but I was wrong. As the story progresses I am finding my thoughts and feelings on certain characters are changing drastically (hint: it’s Rhys). I am nearly 40% of the way through and it’s taking me much longer to read this story than others. However, I think it’s because there is so much detail in the writing and I just want to savour it. I’ll let you know my thoughts on this series soon.

What Did You Recently Finish Reading?

I know, I know, I haven’t written the review for this yet. I am so behind because life has been all over the place lately, but I am going to try and catch up soon. This book completely blew me away, which you can probably tell as I jumped into the second one straight away. I don’t think I’ve ever smiled so much while reading a book, but at the same time be so tense (especially with that ending). This may be another series that will go down as being one of my favourites ever, so long as the books continue this way.

What Do You Think You’ll Read Next?

Is there any other book I could read? I have a feeling July will be the month that I finish a full series (if it’s a trilogy, I’m not sure), with the exception of the novella that I haven’t purchased yet. Of course, I have no idea how the second book will end, but I have a feeling it’ll be a cliff hanger for sure!

What book are you currently reading this week?

My TBR For July – Starting New Series!

Honestly, I’m not sure why I bother giving myself a TBR anymore because my mood changes and I decide to pick up random books throughout the month. Or I get accepted for NetGalley books and have to slide those ones in (which could be the case this month).

For the month of July I want to start two new series, one of which I already started as I just finished A Court of Thorns and Roses last night (and it was incredible!). The books I am choosing for the rest of the month are all quite large books between 500-700 pages long, so I’m not even sure if I’ll finish them all. Either way, I’m going to try my hardest to read the four books on this list.

And they are:

Considering how much I loved ACOTAR, of course the next two in the series are going to be on my TBR. I am so excited to see where this story goes and what happens to the characters. So, far I am loving Tamlin (although I hear everyone loves Rhys) and as the books are MUCH bigger, I’m assuming a lot of great things happen. If I’m honest, I think I’m enjoying this series more than Throne of Glass, and I read five of those books!

Next I will be carrying on with the Shades of Magic series by reading A Gathering of Shadows. It has been a good five or six months since I read A Darker Shade of Magic, so I can’t wait to dive back into this magical world and see what happens.

And finally, I will be starting the book that everyone seems to love, Six of Crows. I think seeing all the fan art on Twitter has made me even more excited to start this series, considering how much I loved the Grishaverse Trilogy.

If I manage to finish all of these books, I will be more than happy because that is a lot of pages altogether! Plus, I’m also preoccupied with my own writing, and finally getting back into my art and drawing.

What book are you looking forward to reading the most this month?

Review: Throne of Glass

Title: Throne of Glass

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Date: August 2nd 2012

Publisher: Bloomsbury

After turning the last page of this book I asked myself one question…Why on earth had I not read this book before now? It has been sat on my shelf for years, gathering dust since I bought it in 2013. For some reason I had put off reading it and then I went through a period of not picking up books at all. Finally I noticed it and made myself promise to read it and I am so glad I did. Fantasy is quickly becoming one of my favourite genres and I’m afraid I’m going to have to buy the rest of the series very soon (apologies to my bank account).

Throne of Glass follows Celaena Sardothien, a deadly assassin who has been locked up in Endovier serving a life sentence, until suddenly she is offered a deal by the Captain of the Guard. If she represents the Crown Prince in a competition to become the King’s Champion, she can have her freedom back. But first she has to win the competition and that will not be an easy feat. All in all there are twenty three contestants, all of whom have been offered the same deal and who would kill for the chance to be free again. Celaena is thrust into a world where politics rule and things are not what they always seem. All she knows is that she has to win, no matter what.

After reading so many amazing reviews of this book, I am happy to say that, for me, it lived up to the hype. I didn’t want to stop reading once I had started. There were so many elements that I loved, the first of which is the world that Maas created. Her writing style made me believe that this Erilea could exist and her descriptions of the castle and the landscapes helped me picture it so vividly. This book was so addictive and I can only imagine that the rest of the series will get better with each book. It took me on an adventure that I didn’t want to end.

I can’t even begin to describe how much I love the character of Celaena. She is everything I want in a female protagonist. She is strong, witty, she knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to go for it. I saw myself in her at times, making her all the more relatable and more than once I found myself smiling while reading. She may seem hard and cold on the outside, the killer assassin, but she is also kind and charming, more vulnerable than the other characters realise. I was rooting for her the whole way through and I am left wanting to know more.

Celaena wasn’t the only character that I loved. The Captain of the Guard, Chaol, grew to also be one of my favourites, even though he can be a tough nut to crack, you can see that he is caring to the people around him, especially his friend, the Crown Prince, Dorian. I can’t figure out who I prefer, Chaol or Dorian. The latter is definitely not what I expected and isn’t a shallow Prince by any means. He is complicated, not nearly as complicated as Celaena though, and I couldn’t help but love their encounters. All the friendships and relationships in the book seemed genuine and realistic, there was nothing forced about it.

I could go on and on about this book! I have a feeling that more of the world Maas has created will be explored and I am looking forward to seeing where Celaena’s story takes us. An incredible novel that I only wish I had read sooner. It gripped me from the beginning and was simply magical. And with no glaring faults, I think that this is going to be my first 5 star review on this blog!