I’m excited to reveal the beautiful cover for the upcoming YA fantasy romance debut The Girl With NoReflection by Keshe Chow!
A young woman chosen as the crown prince’s bride must travel to the royal palace to meet her new husband-but her world is shaken when she discovers the dark truth the royal family has been hiding for centuries-in this lush fantasy debut perfect for fans of Song of Silver, Flame Like Night and Violet Made of Thorns.
Whelp, I DNFed Tress of the Emerald Sea. Given all the rave reviews, this book wasn’t what I expected.
The thing that threw me off the most was the narration style. Even though Sanderson explains this in the back of the book, it wasn’t working for me (or the story, in my opinion). The narrator is a character who appears later in the book. So even though the story is in 3rd person POV from Tress’ point of view, it’s technically actually in 1st person from the narrator’s POV.
The narrator is obnoxious. He’s constantly making side remarks and comments and cracking dumb jokes. It ended up completely taking me out of the story.
It doesn’t help, however, that I feel like I barely got to know Tress as a character. The romance is one dimensional, and the characters also feel one dimensional. The pacing felt off. The spore sea was interesting (the ocean isn’t actually water, but made of fungi spores) but everything else made me put this book down.
(Also, yes, I’m aware that the book is flipped in the photo đ)
DISCLAIMER: I haven’t read Sanderson’s Cosmere series, which is where this book is set. I know I would understand the world more if I did! However, since this book is a standalone, I am reviewing it as a standalone book.
If you want to read a dark satire with an unlikeable main character that delves into the craziness of both the publishing and the writing world (especially online and on Twitter), this is for you. This book was crazy, timely, and easy to fly through!
Now:Winterâs Orbit by Everina MaxwellÂ
Iâm only about a quarter way through this one, but itâs an LBGTQ, political space opera with an arranged marriage. Iâve been getting back into space operas and sci-fi, and I like this one so far. Itâs definitely a little slow-paced and heavy on the politics (as expected!), but Iâm enjoying the worldbuilding and the two main characters.Â
Next:The Bone Shard War by Andrea Stewart
I might have already started this one! I went out of town recently for the first time in a long while, and I started reading it on my plane ride home. I loved the first two, and even though I honestly donât remember much of what happened in the second book, Iâm excited to dive back into this final installment and learn how this trilogy concludes.Â
Have you read any of these books, or are they on your tbr?
The last book I read was Seven Faceless Saints by M.K. Lobb.
I’m currently reading March & Feather by Emma Saska.
And I plan to read A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher next!
Review:
Seven Faceless Saints is a newly released YA fantasy that follows two main characters. Roz is a disciple of Patience, but sheâs also a part of the brewing rebellion. Damian, her childhood sweetheart, is a young war veteran and the youngest captain in the history of Palazzo security.
Roz and Damian team up to solve a string of unsolved murders, even if they are both still heartbroken and at odds with one anotherâŚespecially after Damianâs father had Rozâs murdered.
What I liked:
I love the dark atmosphere and the worldbuilding. The setting, the city of Ombrazia, is Italian-inspired, which works so well considering Ombraziaâs citizens worship saints. Lobbâs descriptions really set up the city as dark and gritty, but with moments of beauty.
I enjoyed the core of both Roz and Damianâs characters. Iâm a sucker for YA characters with tragic backstories that dictates their every move! Roz is hard-headed and angry, and Damian is a soft boy who struggles with PTSD from his time at war. Lobbâs characterization of Damian is especially impactful; it really shows the horror of war and how it impacts young men.Â
Iâm also always down for a fantasy plot that centers around a murder mystery!
What I didnât like as much:
Roz and Damian are full of ANGST. I love me some angsty teens, but I feel like this only worked well in the first half of the book. By the time I got to the second half, their explosive interactions felt as if they were going in circles, and their rollercoaster emotions gave me some whiplash. Itâs a little too repetitive and over-the-top, even for me, and ends up overshadowing the rest of the story.
As for the saints themselves, the different groups of disciples remind me of the different factions in Divergent. I think part of the reason why is because we only get the bare bones of the religion. I need to know more about the saints and how the disciplesâ magic works; I want to learn more!
I’m generally very picky about the books I buy, so you know I love all of these! âŁAnd for those of you who have stuck around for a while, you wonât be surprised by my choices.Â
The Raybearer duology
This is a fantastic YA fantasy series that’s inspired by West-African mythology. If you’re usually into adult fantasy but want to delve into YA fantasy, this is a great place to start. It has a complex magic system and worldbuilding and a dynamic main character.
The Forestborn duology
Are you tired of me talking about the Forestborn duology yet? This duology has the perfect mix of great characters, adventure, shapeshifting, romance, and politics.
The Legendborn Cycle
This YA contemporary fantasy series has hard-hitting themes and a crazy amount of action and worldbuilding. Itâs such a fun yet emotional series. Even if youâre not into King Arthur retellings, you should pick it up.
The Defy the Night series
Defy the Night is pure fun. It has a plague, enemies-to-lovers (thatâs technically enemies-to-lovers to friends-to-lovers and back again) and plenty of court politics.
The Drowning Empire series
This adult fantasy series has multiple POVs, an animal sidekick, bone magic, a heavy dose of mysteries, a revolution, and (you guessed it) drowning islands. If you’re looking for a unique read, I havenât read anything else quite like it.
Some series not included in the picture include the A Court of Thorns and Roses series, which has enough hype without me talking it up even more, the Six of Crows duology, and the YA sci-fi series The Infinity Courts.
I hope you all have had a great reading month so far. It feels like January has been crawling by!
Happy new year from me and my new book cart! The top shelf is my physical TBR (will I ever get to it?) And the bottom is shelf overflow. âŁ
I’m currently reading an ARC of A Song of Salvation by Alechia Dow, as one of my goals for this year is to delve into more sci-fi/space operas. ⣠Here’s a long list of books I would love to get to at some point in 2023.âŁ
Know My Name by Chanel Miller
The Little Village of Book Lovers by Nina George
Notorious Sorcerer by Davinia Evans
Empire of Exiles by Erin M Evans
The Ashfire King by Chelsea Abdullah
Song of Silver, Flame Like Night by AmĂŠlie Wen Zhao
Threads That Bind by Kika Hatzopoulou
Never a Hero by Vanessa Len
The Bone Shard War by Andrea Stewart
The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten
A Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross
The City of Dusk by Tara Sim
When In Rome by Sarah Adams
Seven Faceless Saints by M.K. Lobb
A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid
Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig
I also saw that there’s some interesting discourse going around in the book community (I mean when is there not?). Apparently, some readers think it’s a red flag when someone mostly reads new books.
I’ve always enjoyed reading newer releases. As a writer myself, I love supporting authors during and after their book launches, because some day, I hope that will be me! I’m also all for reading what you like and what you want, as long as it isn’t hurting anybody.
In 2022, I read a total of 69 books. My top three genres were literary, mystery, and contemporary, although not as many mysteries made it to my top books this year. I read 93 percent fiction and 7 percent nonfiction. Oopsâ one of my reading goals for 2022 was to read more nonfiction. Maybe next year!
Reading Tracking App
This year, I stopped using Goodreads and switched over completely to The StoryGraph to track my reading. Why? Goodreads is owned by Amazon and The StoryGraph is independently owned. I also just prefer itâ The StoryGraph is more user-friendly, you can actually select the correct edition youâre reading, there are trigger warnings and each book is tagged by its mood, pacing, and genre. I also like that you can tag the books you own and digitally line up your TBR.
Reading Journal
Instead of using my main bullet journal, this year I tried chronicling my reading in a separate reading bullet journal. I found it pretty tedious and stopped about halfway through the year. Even though I find that journaling helps me remember and process a book better, I need to stop writing so much of the summary or I get too burned out to actually journal. Luckily my in-laws got me a templated reading journal for Christmas, which Iâm going to try using this year.
So without further ado, letâs talk about the best books that I read this year! Iâm not attempting to rank these; I loved them all.
I could not stop reading The Push and it haunts me to this day. This is a fast-paced yet deeply character-driven thriller about a mother who is convinced her daughter is evil, but no one else believes her. Itâs about how terrifying parenthood is and how you might not have as much control over your child as you think.
I was hesitant to read this since I did not enjoy the only other book Iâd read by Emma Straub, The Vacationers. But I loved This Time Tomorrow! It centers on a father/daughter relationship and how that changes as we age. Itâs also about being happy where you are in life while recognizing that itâs okay to feel nostalgic for the past. It also involves time travel! I canât wait to reread this one.
This coming-of-age book has a lot going onâsome themes include mental health, sexuality, and our obsession with true crime. It follows Zoe, a struggling college student who becomes involved in a dangerous scheme when she and her study abroad roommate move into the apartment of a famous mystery writer. Itâs a little slow in places but has so many elements I love that I couldnât stop reading.
This was one of the first books I read in 2022, and it continues to stick with me. Itâs literary fiction about two friends living with drug addiction. Tucker writes about the heartbreaking cycle of addiction in a way that humanizes it without glorifying it. The writing is beautiful, I loved the friendship between the two main characters, and the ending still gets me.
After reading (and loving) the Monk & Robot series by Becky Chambers, I was excited to jump into this sci-fi series. This first book was so fun and featured a diverse, lovable cast of characters that travel space together in a rag-tag ship called the Wayfarer. Iâm looking forward to continuing the series!Â
Itâs hard to write about mental health in a fresh, new and meaningful way, but Meg Mason does it. Marthaâs mental illness is never named in Sorrow and Bliss. We just know itâs a very stigmatized disease. I loved the role of family in this book, and that a large part of Marthaâs journey is about accepting their love and support.
Modern Irish fiction is among my favorite, and this slim, âquietâ novel packs a punch. I read this one in early January, and itâs the perfect book to read around Christmas time. It makes you question what you would actually do when confronted with someone in need around what is supposed to be the happiest and most giving time of the year.
Iâve loved every Emily St. John Mandel book Iâve read, and this one is no exception. Itâs almost impossible to describe what Sea of Tranquility is about, but it follows different characters across different timelines and worlds. Slowly their stories start to weave together. I loved the sci-fi and dystopian elements of this one as well!
This was one of my most anticipated new releases of the year, and it did not disappoint! No one writes historical fiction like Maggie OâFarrell. This retelling of the life of the duchess Lucrezia de Medici is set in Renaissance, Italy. We know from the beginning that Lucrezia is killed early in her marriage by her husband. The Marriage Portrait is beautifully written, full of tension, and I loved the direction it went.
I donât read much YA any more, but I picked up this one and liked it so much that I also read Allison Saftâs other book,A Far Wilder Magic, this year.I preferred this one, which follows Wren, a young healer who visits a gothic, crumbling mansion to figure out its dark secret. It also has a romance plot, which I actually enjoyed (Iâm not huge on romance in my reading these days). The way the relations between the different kingdoms are written in this one is really well done. Â
Kathryn Miles explores the life and death of Julie Williams and Lollie Winnans, avid hikers who were murdered while camping in Shenandoah National Park. As a woman and frequent hiker of Shenandoah, I was intriguedâand terrifiedâby what Miles has to say about how the places we consider the most peaceful are not actually safe, especially if youâre a woman.
I knew nothing about model Emily Ratajowski before reading her memoir. Now, I respect her. Her essays recognize that Emily uses her body as currency and that itâs made her wealthy. Yet she challenges the perception that a woman canât be sexy, intelligent, and call herself a feminist and a writer all at once.
Itâs that time of year again! That time when we start thinking about everything we read in the past yearâwhat we loved, hated, and everything in between. This year, I revolutionized my reading by keeping a reading journal within my bullet journal. I kept notes there on each book I read. I found that this helped me internalize each book, think critically about the plot and writing style, and more clearly remember the books I read throughout the year.
Looking back on my reading in 2021, hereâs what I found:
My top genres were mystery and thriller, which Iâve never read much of before this year. Many of my favorite books of the year fall into this genre, including my favorite series of the year, Tana Frenchâs The Dublin Murder Squad and Anthony Horowitzâs Susan Ryelandâs series. In contrast, I also read some really bad thrillers and came to the conclusion I prefer crime/murder mysteries over physiological thrillers. Weâll see if this genre sticks!
I didnât read much nonfiction at all, coming in with one essay collection, Disability Visibility, and just one memoir, Flesh and Blood by N. West Moss. I love memoirs, especially, so thatâs something I want to read more of again in 2022!
Letâs get to the best books I read this year, by genre but in no particular order:
Literary Fiction
The Rain Heron by Robbie Arnott
Summary: In a world divided by a coup, climate disaster rages. The Rain Heron follows different characters as they try to survive as well as the appearance of a mythical rain hero.
Summary: Silvieâs dad is an Ancient Britain/Iron Age enthusiast. He forces his family to spend 2 weeks a year living in the woods with an Archeology class and professor. This year, things change.
Favorite Quote: âWithout a house, it occurred to me, it is much harder to restrict a womenâs movement. Harder for a man to restrain a woman.â – page 59
This coming-of-age novel manages to have a conversation about misogyny and abuse in so little pages.
Content Warnings: Physical & Emotional Abuse
The Water Cure by Sophie Mackintosh
Summary: Three sisters grow up on an isolated island with their father and mother. Theyâve been told the outside world isnât safe, and they are made to perform horrible experiments on each other. When men arrive from the outside world, they realize their parents might not be telling the truth.
Summary: This is a fictionalized account of William Shakespeareâs family and the death of his son, Hamnet, during the Black Plague.
Warning: This book will make you cry. I loved the magical element and creative liberties OâFarrell took with Shakespeareâs history.
Content Warnings: Death; Grief
Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
Summary: Lifelong friends and penpals Eileen and Alice live very different lives. One is a wealthy, successful author post-mental health collapse and the other has been stuck in the same job for years. When they finally decide to visit each other, tensions mount.
Donât come at me, Sally Rooney haters. No one writes characters, dialogue, and life like Sally Rooney. This is a beautiful novel about mental health, fame, and how friendships change over time.
Thriller & Mystery
The Likeness by Tana French
Summary: When a woman named Lexie is found dead, Detective Cassie Maddox, who looks just like her, goes undercover as Lexie.
This is my favorite of the Dublin Murder Squad books so far and has dark academia elements.
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
Summary: Drawing Master Walter Hartright teaches art at an estate and becomes intrigued by a crime and the mysterious presence of a woman in white.
This massive book is surprisingly readable and reminded me of my love for Victiorian fiction.
Like all Victorian fiction, there are themes of madness, surveillance, and lack of womenâs agency in society.
Northern Spy by Flynn Berry
Summary: Tessaâs word unravels when she finds out her sister is a member of the IRA.
This is a twisty novel about family, loyalty, and lies that helped contextualize the conflict in Ireland for me.
The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James
Summary: Carly drops out of college and travels to the haunted town of Fell, New York to investigate the disappearance of her Aunt Viv 20 years earlier.
There are some really terrifying ghost scenes in this, but this is ultimately one of the most heartwarming thrillers Iâve ever read.
Content Warnings: Sexual abuse
Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz
Summary: A woman, Cecily, disappears from Branlow Hall and the answer is hidden in a book by the late mystery writer Alan Conway. The family asks his ex-editor, Susan Ryeland, to find Cecily.
This book-within-a-book may be even better than the first book in this series! The plotting and double mystery is so cleverly written.
Young Adult
Yolk by Mary H.W. Choi
Summary: Jayne moves from Texas to New York for college and to flee from her first generation Korean parents. There she reunites with her older sister, June, who reveals she has cancer.
This is one of the most intense and emotional books Iâve ever read. Unlike other tear-jerker YA books that deal with cancer very badly, Yolk treats it with respect.
Content Warnings: Cancer; Eating Disorders
The Valley and the Flood by Rebecca Mahoney
Summary: Following the death of her best friend, Rose struggles with PTSD. One day, trying to escape her grief, she ends up in a strange town that she canât leave.
Warning: You wonât have a clue whatâs going on for the first 100 pages or so, but this book is so creative, emotional, and interesting that youâll want to keep reading. Itâs all one big metaphor for PTSD.
The Ones Weâre Meant to Find by Joan He
Summary: In a futuristic world destroyed by climate change, Kasey searches for her lost sister, Cee.
This book asks big questions about science and humanity, such as, if we donât act to save the world now, when will we? And, when will we hold big polluters responsible? But at the center of all this is the complicated relationship between two sisters.
The Electric Kingdom by David Arnold
Summary: A group of kids try to survive a post-apocalyptic world ravaged by flu flies.
I loved everything about this book. Itâs about sacrifice, found family, hope, survival, and it had a huge twist that blew my mind.
Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danworth
Summary: Dual timelines one-hundred years apart follow creepy happenings and strange deaths at The Brookhants School for Girls.
Admittedly this book could have been a lot shorter, but this sapphic mystery includes some of the best characterization Iâve ever read in YA.
The River Has Teeth by Erica Waters
Summary: When Natashaâs sister Rochelle disappears, she turns to the witchy girl, Della, who lives by the woods where she went missing.
Set in rural Tennessee, this is a really atmospheric and original fantasy/mystery with LGBTQ+ rep.
Fantasy
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
Summary: A fantasy based on Pre-Columbian American mythology.
This is a complex, perfectly paced fantasy that follows multiple characters. One of the biggest problems I usually have with fantasy as an adult is the length, and this book didnât lag for one second. Black Sun ended on a huge cliffhanger, and I canât wait for the sequel.
Middle Grade
A Place to Hang the Moon by Kate Albus
Summary: When orphaned siblings Anna, Edmund, and William are forced to leave London during World War II, they make a pact to find a new family in the countryside. Instead, theyâre placed with several horrible families. Their only solace: the library .
If you liked: The War that Saved My Life
I binged this cozy middle grade treasure in one sitting. This is a great story about found family, the tenacity of children, and how books can save lives.
Happy reading! I’m excited to see what 2022 brings and hope that everyone has a great year, reading wise and otherwise.
I say this every year, but I can’t believe this year is already over!
Thanks to graduating from grad school and staying inside because of the pandemic, I read a total of 82 books this year, an all-time record for me.
In no particular order, here are my top 10 reads of 2021.
⨠Forestborn âŁby Elayne Audrey Becker ⨠Kingdom of the Cursed âŁby Kerri Maniscalco ⨠The Wolf and The Woodsman âŁby Ava Reid ⨠Defy the Night âŁby Brigid Kemmerer ⨠The Bone Shard Daughter âŁby Andrea Stewart ⨠The Bone Shard Emperor by Andrea Stewart⣠⨠Under the Whispering Door âŁby TJ Klune ⨠For the Wolf âŁby Hannah F. Whitten ⨠Legendborn âŁby Tracy Deonn ⨠The Infinity Courts by Akemi Dawn Bowman
I have some really great books lined up for 2022. There are so many new books coming out that look amazing, but I have some older series on my tbr list, too.
takes two to book review 