Stacking the Shelves: The Prime Gripe Edition

"Stacking the Shelves" is a weekly haul meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality. It allows book buyers to share their accumulation of books with the online book-loving community.

This week's been pretty rough. For various personal reasons. So I haven't been posting a lot or responding to as many blog comments as I'd like to. Please know that I'm not ignoring you. Life's just a little icky right now. I'll catch up on comments eventually!

Two books this week. Cast in Firelight was a preorder from Amazon that only came in a couple of days ago. I know COVID has impacted shipping, but I feel like Amazon was bad about getting books delivered on release day even in the months before COVID hit. Why am I paying so much for Prime if my deliveries aren't actually being delivered on time? Oh, right, I'm watching Prime shows like The Boys and The Expanse. If I wasn't watching those, I'd totally get rid of Prime. It's not worth it anymore. I've already read this book, though, so at least I didn't have to wait on it to be delivered in order to actually read the story.



Other than Cast in Firelight, I bought an ebook copy of The Invisible Life of Addie Larue. This one is for my book club. It was our first pick of 2021. Originally, I'd planned on getting a physical copy, but it was out of stock almost everywhere, so I went with an ebook. And I'm glad I did because I'm not loving it so far. It's simply okay.

What books have you bought/received lately?

Top 10 Tuesday: New-to-Me Authors I Read in 2020

It’s Top Ten Tuesday time!

If you’re unaware, Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly original feature created by The Broke and the Bookish, and it’s now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week there’s a new Top Ten theme that the blogger responds to with their own list of answers.

This week’s theme is… *drumroll please*…

New-to-Me Authors I Read in 2020

I didn't read a whole lot of new authors in 2020, so this list is fairly short. Plus, I'm having a rough week, so I'm trying to get this post written and scheduled quickly.

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Alexis Hall

I need more from this author! This book was A+!

Dana Swift

Cast in Firelight is so fun! I'm looking forward to book two.

Margaret Rogerson

Loved Sorcery of Thorns so much! But it's the only book I have read by this author, so I can't put her higher on the list.

S. A. Chakraborty

I read The City of Brass in 2020 and it was fire! I recently finished books two and three as well. Can't wait for more from her.

TJ Klune

I went on a TJ Klune binge in 2020, and I can't wait to read his 2021 releases.

***

Alright, there you have it. The five new-to-me authors I read in 2020. What did you put on your list? Let me know in the comments section.

Stacking the Shelves: The Wrong Cover Edition

"Stacking the Shelves" is a weekly haul meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality. It allows book buyers to share their accumulation of books with the online book-loving community.

 I decided to use a different book service in order to support sellers that aren't Amazon, B&N, etc. And for this particular purchase, I very much regret it.

So I made an order on ThriftBooks for Find Me Their Bones by Sara Wolf, as I read Bring Me Their Hearts, the first book in the trilogy, this past December and really enjoyed it. Before I get into the story, know that there was a cover redesign for this trilogy when the third book, Send Me Their Souls, released. Because I have the first book with the original cover, the plan was to get the second book, Find Me Their Bones, in hardcover with the original cover as well. Then, I'd just get book three as an ebook, since I'm not a huge fan of the new black and white cover design for this trilogy (as seen above for book two). Well, ThriftBooks didn't get the memo, and they ended up sending me a hardcover copy of Find Me Their Bones with the new cover. I didn't even know Entangled was making hardcover copies of the first two books with the new cover designs.

Unfortunately, I can't return the book, so I'm stuck with the ugly, non-matching cover. Now, I have to decide if I want to go ahead and purchase all three books with the new covers, try to re-buy Find Me Their Bones with the original cover, or just get rid of both copies and never re-read them again. Honestly, the third option might be what I decide to do (after I've read book two, of course), unless I just love the last two books in the series. It's such a mess. I'm never ordering from ThriftBooks again. I'll stick to a business that allows for returns.



More From Blood and Ash fan art arrived this week. I ordered all of them on Redbubble except the one in the top right corner, which I ordered off Mercari. It's a Dominique Wesson print that was exclusive to a Dreamy & Co. box. Because I'm obsessed with this series and Dominique's art, I paid way too much money to get myself a copy of this print. Yikes.

What books have you bought/received lately?

Top 10 Tuesday: Books I Meant to Read In 2020

It’s Top Ten Tuesday time!

If you’re unaware, Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly original feature created by The Broke and the Bookish, and it’s now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week there’s a new Top Ten theme that the blogger responds to with their own list of answers.

This week’s theme is… *drumroll please*…

Books I Meant to Read In 2020 But Didn’t Get To

I'm super proud of how many books I read in 2020. I'm even more proud that a good portion of the ones I did read were from my backlist TBR books. Unfortunately, though, I didn't get to all of them. This is my list of shame. Lol.

***

Fireblood by Elly Blake

How long has this trilogy been on my TBR? Too long. Because it's been so long, I need to reread book one, Frostblood, and then read this one and the last book. Yikes.

Changeling by Yasmine Galenorn

This book might be cheating. Technically, I've already read this, but I'm trying to reread the series. So far, I've only re-read book one.

Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

I kind of wanted to read this book last year, but I kind of didn't as well. With book three not out until fall of 2021, I'm not in a huge hurry; however, I feel like I'm missing out by not reading the series now.

Bone Crier's Moon by Kathryn Purdie

Bought an ebook of this book and haven't read it yet.

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

I've been trying so hard to get through this series. I hate that SJM changes the love interest in her series and going into ACOMAF knowing who the main couple will be is not making me happy. I wouldn't keep trying except I actually think I'll love the side characters. I just hate the main couple. Here's hoping that my fourth(?) time picking up the book will be the lucky time I make it through.

Winterspell by Claire Legrand

I wanted to read this in December. I guess February isn't too far away, right?

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

Started this one in the middle of my mini slump/hangover. I didn't finish it before the end of the year.

Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

A lot of people love this series. I'd like to read it soon. I had hoped to read it in the summer/fall of 2020, but my reading slump/hangover got in the way.

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

Another first book in a trilogy that I'd like to read soon. I'm hoping to pick it up in the next couple of months.

Master of One by Jaida Jones & Dani Bennett

To be fair, I got this one in late December, since it was in the December FairyLoot box. But I want to read it ASAP.

***

Alright, there you have it. The ten books I should've read in 2021, but I just didn't get to them. What did you put on your list? Let me know in the comments section.

Review: Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

Cemetery Boys

Aiden Thomas

Publication Date: September 1, 2020

Hardcover, 352 pages, Swoon Reads

Genres: YA, Paranormal, LGBT+

Goodreads

A trans boy determined to prove his gender to his traditional Latinx family summons a ghost who refuses to leave in Aiden Thomas's paranormal YA debut Cemetery Boys, described by Entertainment Weekly as "groundbreaking."

 

Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can't get rid of him. 

 

 When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his true gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free. 

 

However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school's resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He's determined to find out what happened and tie off some loose ends before he leaves. Left with no choice, Yadriel agrees to help Julian, so that they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants to let him leave.

My Review

Ghosts and boys? Brujos and Latinx family feels? Heck yes! Cemetery Boys is such a fun, wholesome urban fantasy romp that gave me major Meg Cabot Mediator series and Supernatural vibes. I truly wish I had read it during spooky season and not right after the winter holidays. Major fail on my part.

Yadriel, our main character, just wants to be accepted by his family as a real brujo. And oh my, is Yadriel such a cinnamon roll. But he's a cinnamon roll with a purpose. He knows what he wants and he goes after it with the help of his cousin, Maritza, who was also super fun. She's very protective and fierce. It was nice to see her so supportive of her cousin and watch her get roped into all of his schemes.

Our other main character is Julian, and, despite being a ghost, Julian is such a full-of-life character. He made me smile continuously. His friends were fun too, though they didn't get a lot of page time.

As for the plot, it had its ups and downs. The family dynamics and interactions provided all the family drama feels, and Yadriel's conversations with Julian just gave me all the warm fuzzies. However, the antagonist was, unfortunately, pretty easy to spot on their first introduction. I didn't know exactly how everything would resolve, but the sequence of events lined up pretty closely to my original guess. It was still an entertaining journey though, and I don't regret taking it.

All in all, Cemetery Boys is a book not just for trans kids. It's for everyone who feels out of place in their family, school, or even career path. Though, for trans and any other teens, this book might be a great way to find a story that gets them sucked into reading. It's pretty addicting.

*Note: I received a copy of this book as a gift from a friend. This in no way affected my opinion/review.

Stacking the Shelves: The Surprise ARC Edition

"Stacking the Shelves" is a weekly haul meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality. It allows book buyers to share their accumulation of books with the online book-loving community.

 I didn't buy any books this week. However, I do have some I received. Yay for free books!

The Brightest Night by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Crush by Tracy Wolf
The Last Watch by J.S. Dewes

So I randomly received an unsolicited ARC of The Last Watch. I'm not sure why it came to me. Don't get me wrong, I'm ridiculously excited, as it was on my Top 10 Most Anticipated Books of Early 2021, but it just kind of showed up out of the blue. I'm not sure if a friend from Tor sent it to me, if I won a copy, or if they just want me to review the book. Whatever it is, I got a free book, so that's cool. As for the other two, my parents bought them for me.



I can't get away with saying I didn't spend any money on this week's haul, unfortunately. While I bought the pictured fan art prints a couple of weeks ago, they just now made it to me. One is a print of characters from Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard which I bought through Facebook, and the other two are portraits of the two main characters in the Blood and Ash series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. (The prints are available through Flickerwix.) I've spent way too much money on fan art for that series. You'll see the damage it's done in my next few hauls.

What books have you bought/received lately?

My Thoughts on Wonder Woman: 1984

I thought I’d share my thoughts and feels on the DCEU’s new Wonder Woman: 1984 film. In case you have no idea what I’m talking about (How is that possible?), I’ve posted the trailer below.

Where do I start with this disaster of a movie? I guess I'll begin with what I liked about it, so I don't come off as an angry troll. And be warned, SPOILERS are inevitable.

The beginning scene is all about young Diana entering an Amazonian competition on the Themiscrya. Unlike a lot of people, I loved this scene. Maybe I'm a sucker for any storyline featuring the awesome Amazon women. Honestly, I'd love a whole show about them with or without small Diana. HBO Max, make it happen!

I also really enjoyed the mid-credit scene at the end of the movie. (Technically it's a mid-credit scene, but there isn't an end-credit one, so....) However, I felt that the entire purpose of that mid-credit scene was undermined by the fact that the golden armor Wonder Woman wore played no real role in the storyline whatsover.

Now, onto the dislikes. One, is the plot, which was boring and convoluted. A wish stone combined with a business mogul who wants to take over the world does not captivating television make. I also, unlike many, didn't think Pedro Pascal's acting was all that great here. Kristen Wiig's as Cheetah on the other hand, I very much enjoyed despite the script being ridiculously stupid. Also, can we stop depicting women who wear glasses and can't walk in heels as nerds? Barbara, aka Cheetah, worked in the Smithsonian for Pete's sake. All of her co-workers were nerds. She's also a skinny attractive white woman in the '80s.

But wait! The dumbness of the plot thickens. Chris Pine comes back as Steve Trevor, but he does so in someone else's body! And since Diana sleeps with Steve, she also sleeps with this guy's body. Non-consensually. Where's this dude's conscious? Does he know he slept with Diana? From the ending it doesn't seem so, but yikes. This plot point could have been written any other way, but Patty Jenkins, writer and director, chose to go this route.

Back to the boring and confusing parts of the story again, the wish stone apparently has no consistency. The businessman played by Pascal also just runs around trying to improve his career aspirations, and I guess he can interpret the wishes however he sees fit? Because some of the wish stone wishes he grants are not exactly what the character making the wish asked for, especially in the case of Barbara. Who also kind of got a second wish when you're supposed to technically only get one. Oh, and somehow Diana can fly now? And turn things invisible? Which makes no sense in the continuity of the DCEU since she couldn't fly or produce invisibility in Batman v. Superman or The Justice League. And let's not talk about how the Smithsonian just happens to have fully-functional planes laying around.

All in all, this movie is a hot mess. I am so disappointed in it. Since Wonder Woman was the only thing holding the DCEU together, in my opinion, I feel like this film did a great disservice to her character and her future appearances. Do yourself a favor, do not watch this movie. It's not worth risking your health for in theaters, and it isn't worth the price of an HBO Max subscription. If you already have HBO Max, sure, go for it. Just know that it is nothing like the first film and, in this case, that is not a good thing.

Top 10 Tuesday: Bookish Hopes for 2021

It’s Top Ten Tuesday time!

If you’re unaware, Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly original feature created by The Broke and the Bookish, and it’s now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week there’s a new Top Ten theme that the blogger responds to with their own list of answers.

This week’s theme is… *drumroll please*…

Bookish Hopes for 2021

I already made a 2021 reading resolutions post, so I just thought I'd share some random bookish hopes for the year. None of these are really in chronological order, even though they're labeled that way. I simply listed out whatever came to mind first.

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Read a book someone recommends me. By this I mean directly recommends, not a blogger/reviewer sharing their opinions to their followers. I realized I don't talk books with people very much anymore. I want that to change.

Get off my phone and read more. Should be simple, right?

Read more adult books and less YA. This is also on my reading goals post, so I put it lower on this list just because I'm already trying to do this. While I don't want to dictate hardcore what I can and can't read, I know there are some fabulous adult books out there that I haven't read yet, simply because I'm so focused on YA fantasy sometimes.

Get my bookshelves all pretty. I have a bunch of fan art that I'd like to display on my shelves next to my books. It'd be nice to do that this year.

Read a classic. Maybe a Jane Austen book.

Read a nonfiction book. I don't read non-fic. Ever. One in 2021 would be cool. I doubt it happens, but it would be nice if I could find one I like.

Catch up on all my unread Jennifer L. Armentrout books. I have one left in the Wait for You series, a few YA contemporaries, some Wicked-world novellas, and the Return series left. I also would like to purchase some as physical books. I only have ebooks for a few, but now that JLA's getting uber popular, I'm worried about getting my hands on some of her indie/self-published books.

Read more mass market paranormal romance. I would like to read Karen Marie Moning, Yasmine Galenorn, Nalini Singh, Kresley Cole, and whatever else I can find.

Read more diverse books. I increased this a wee bit in 2020, but not by nearly enough. I need to read 20+ books by POC authors each year, at least.

Read a 5-star book. My highest rated books of last year were all 4.5 stars. I'd like to get at least one perfect 5-star read in 2021.

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Alright, there you have it. My bookish hopes for 2021. What did you put on your list? Let me know in the comments section.