TTT: Popular Books that Lived Up to the Hype

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish in June 2010 out of a love of lists. It recently changed to That Artsy Reader Girl and that’s where you can find the topics for each Tuesday.

This week’s topic is:

Popular Books that Lived Up to the Hype

I will be mentioning 15 books I remember being late to the party and that definitely got a lot of hype at some point.

I won’t be talking about each of them in particular but this is a list of books that I definitely recommend if you haven’t checked them out yet! Also, if you are interested in checking them out farther, I linked any review I have to the covers.

What are some popular books you think lived up to the hype? 

Advertisement

July Wrap-up and August TBR

Hey guys!!

How has your month been? July was pretty much my holiday month so I managed to read books I’ve been meaning to read for quite a while!

I’ve read 11 books, some that I’ve been meaning for ages like Speak and others that I ended up reading sooner than I thought I would, like ending TMI and TID! Overall I really enjoyed the books I read and I’m excited to continue some of the series I’ve been reading, especially HP!!

Check out what I’ve read this month:

A Thousand Beginnings and Endings

A Thousand Beginnings and Endings edited by Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Published June 26th, 2018
Genres: Anthologies, Short stories, YA, Fantasy, Mythology
Pages: 336
Format: Hardback
Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

Star-crossed lovers, meddling immortals, feigned identities, battles of wits, and dire warnings. These are the stuff of fairy tale, myth, and folklore that have drawn us in for centuries.

Fifteen bestselling and acclaimed authors reimagine the folklore and mythology of East and South Asia in short stories that are by turns enchanting, heartbreaking, romantic, and passionate.

Compiled by We Need Diverse Books’s Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman, the authors included in this exquisite collection are: Renee Ahdieh, Sona Charaipotra, Preeti Chhibber, Roshani Chokshi, Aliette de Bodard, Melissa de la Cruz, Julie Kagawa, Rahul Kanakia, Lori M. Lee, E. C. Myers, Cindy Pon, Aisha Saeed, Shveta Thakrar, and Alyssa Wong.

A mountain loses her heart. Two sisters transform into birds to escape captivity. A young man learns the true meaning of sacrifice. A young woman takes up her mother’s mantle and leads the dead to their final resting place. From fantasy to science fiction to contemporary, from romance to tales of revenge, these stories will beguile readers from start to finish. For fans of Neil Gaiman’s Unnatural Creatures and Ameriie’s New York Times–bestselling Because You Love to Hate Me.

Bright We Burn by Kiersten White

 

Bright We Burn by Kiersten White
Series: The Conqueror’s Saga #3
Publisher: Delacorte
Published July 10th 2018
Genres: YA, Historical Fiction, Fantasy
Pages: 416
Format: Paperback
Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

Haunted by the sacrifices he made in Constantinople, Radu is called back to the new capital. Mehmed is building an empire, becoming the sultan his people need. But Mehmed has a secret: as emperor, he is more powerful than ever . . . and desperately lonely. Does this mean Radu can finally have more with Mehmed . . . and would he even want it?

Lada’s rule of absolute justice has created a Wallachia free of crime. But Lada won’t rest until everyone knows that her country’s borders are inviolable. Determined to send a message of defiance, she has the bodies of Mehmed’s peace envoy delivered to him, leaving Radu and Mehmed with no choice. If Lada is allowed to continue, only death will prosper. They must go to war against the girl prince.

But Mehmed knows that he loves her. He understands her. She must lose to him so he can keep her safe. Radu alone fears that they are underestimating his sister’s indomitable will. Only by destroying everything that came before–including her relationships–can Lada truly build the country she wants.

Claim the throne. Demand the crown. Rule the world.

Owlcrate July 2018 Unboxing

Hey guys! It’s time for another Owlcrate unboxing!!

July’s box theme is Strange & Unusual and it’s better than I expected!

Owlcrate is an amazing YA bookish subscription box that I would highly recommend getting. Plus, if you live in Europe like me, it still arrives incredibly fast and somehow  (for me) it doesn’t get more expensive than any other box coming from Europe – although obviously, it changes from country to country…

I’ve been loving every single box, and I loved the theme of this one but it was even better than I expected! It’s so well themed and balanced!

If you wanna check out what this box included, just keep reading! I will show photos of all the items, information on them and some of my thoughts!

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

 

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare
Series: The Infernal Devices #3
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
First published March 19th, 2013
Genres: YA, Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance
Pages: 570
Format: Paperback
Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

If the only way to save the world was to destroy what you loved most, would you do it?

The clock is ticking. Everyone must choose.

Passion. Power. Secrets. Enchantment.

Danger closes in around the Shadowhunters in the final installment of the bestselling Infernal Devices trilogy.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

 

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
Series: N/A
Publisher: Square Fish
First published October 22nd, 1999
Genres: YA, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary
Pages: 198
Format: Paperback
Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

The first ten lies they tell you in high school.
“Speak up for yourself–we want to know what you have to say.”

From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a big fat lie, part of the nonsense of high school. She is friendless, outcast, because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so now nobody will talk to her, let alone listen to her. As time passes, she becomes increasingly isolated and practically stops talking altogether. Only her art class offers any solace, and it is through her work on an art project that she is finally able to face what really happened at that terrible party: she was raped by an upperclassman, a guy who still attends Merryweather and is still a threat to her. Her healing process has just begun when she has another violent encounter with him. But this time Melinda fights back, refuses to be silent, and thereby achieves a measure of vindication.

In Laurie Halse Anderson’s powerful novel, an utterly believable heroine with a bitterly ironic voice delivers a blow to the hypocritical world of high school. She speaks for many a disenfranchised teenager while demonstrating the importance of speaking up for oneself.

Speak was a 1999 National Book Award Finalist for Young People’s Literature.

A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir

 

A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir
Series: An Ember in the Ashes #2
Publisher: Harper Collins
First published August 30th, 2016
Genres: YA, Fantasy, Romance
Pages: 464
Format: Paperback
Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

The sequel to the explosive New York Times bestselling debut AN EMBER IN THE ASHES that s captivated readers worldwide.A TORCH AGAINST THE NIGHT takes readers into the heart of the Empire as Laia and Elias fight their way north to liberate Laia s brother from the horrors of Kauf Prison. Hunted by Empire soldiers manipulated by the Commandant and haunted by their pasts Laia and Elias must outfox their enemies and confront the treacherousness of their own hearts.In the city of Serra Helene Aquilla finds herself bound to the will of the Empire s twisted new leader Marcus. When her loyalty is questioned Helene finds herself taking on a mission to prove herself a mission that might destroy her instead. About the AuthorSabaa Tahir grew up in California s Mojave Desert at her family s eighteen room motel. There she spent her time devouring fantasy novels raiding her brother s comic book stash and playing guitar badly. She began writing An Ember in the Ashes while working nights as a newspaper editor. She likes thunderous indie rock garish socks and all things nerd. Sabaa currently lives in the San Francisco Bay area with her family.

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

 

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
Series: Shades of Magic #1
Publisher: Tor Books
First published February 24th, 2015
Genres: YA, Fantasy
Pages: 398
Format: Paperback
Buy: Book Depository | Amazon

Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black.

Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see.

Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they’ll never see. It’s a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.

After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.

Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they’ll first need to stay alive.

TTT: Favorite Novellas/Short Stories

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish in June 2010 out of a love of lists. It recently changed to That Artsy Reader Girl and that’s where you can find the topics for each Tuesday.

This week’s topic is:

Favorite Novellas/Short Stories

I don’t read many novellas but I do tend to go for short-stories, especially fairytales! I love reading classic short-stories and I’m cr some at the moment, which I will mention at the end of the post.

I don’t have many novellas or short stories to talk about… But for me, the best way to read short stories is getting anthologies because it’s always guaranteed you will like some of them!

Also, any review I have will be linked to the covers!

What are some of your favorite novellas/short stories?