 The heart is an arrow. It demands aim to land true. -Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo This is a quote from my current read, Six of Crows. Yesterday, I finished the Shadow and Bone trilogy and wanted to re-read Six of Crows (and Crooked Kingdom). So, I decided why not? I am super excited to notice some new things and references in Six of Crows! If you have a Teaser Tuesday post, feel free to leave the link in the comments and I will make sure to check it out!  Criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker has been offered wealth beyond his wildest dreams. But to claim it, he'll have to pull off a seemingly impossible heist:
Break into the notorious Ice Court (a military stronghold that has never been breached) Retrieve a hostage (who could unleash magical havoc on the world) Survive long enough to collect his reward (and spend it) Kaz needs a crew desperate enough to take on this suicide mission and dangerous enough to get the job done - and he knows exactly who: six of the deadliest outcasts the city has to offer. Together, they just might be unstoppable - if they don't kill each other first.
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 Guess what day it is? Monday! That means it's time to finally update you on what I am reading! I am seriously reading only one book at the moment. I have taken a break from Midnight so that I can finish the series that I am reading. This series is pretty popular in the book community, so you may have heard of it. I am reading Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo! It is the second book in the Shadow and Bone trilogy. I am absolutely loving it! I am currently almost finished with the book and can't wait to jump into the next one! Keep your eyes peeled for reviews coming soon on both of them!
Let me know in the comments what you are reading this week! Feel free to leave a link to your IMWAYR post and I will make sure to check it out! I recieved a free advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. There's nothing quite like the aroma of a bloated corpse to get one in the mood for adventure.  Title: Hunting Prince Dracula Author: Kerri Maniscalco Series: Stalking Jack the Ripper, #2 Genre: Historical, Mystery Publisher: Little, Brown & Company Date Published: September 19, 2017 Pages: 432 Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Goodreads Synopsis: In this hotly anticipated sequel to the haunting #1 bestseller Stalking Jack the Ripper, bizarre murders are discovered in the castle of Prince Vlad the Impaler, otherwise known as Dracula. Could it be a copycat killer...or has the depraved prince been brought back to life? Following the grief and horror of her discovery of Jack the Ripper's true identity, Audrey Rose Wadsworth has no choice but to flee London and its memories. Together with the arrogant yet charming Thomas Cresswell, she journeys to the dark heart of Romania, home to one of Europe's best schools of forensic medicine...and to another notorious killer, Vlad the Impaler, whose thirst for blood became legend. But her life's dream is soon tainted by blood-soaked discoveries in the halls of the school's forbidding castle, and Audrey Rose is compelled to investigate the strangely familiar murders. What she finds brings all her terrifying fears to life once again. Review: Hunting Prince Dracula is one of the best books I have ever read. I loved everything about it. To start, I want to mention that I absolutely adored the inclusion of the dates, places, and pictures in the book. It added a wonderful element to the book that I don’t think I’ve ever seen before. I also really loved the subtle references to the previous book (Stalking Jack the Ripper). Hunting Prince Dracula also included Romanian words and phrases. This added a unique aspect that made the book ten times better. Along with the Romanian words, there were also letter between various characters. That is another aspect that made Hunting Prince Dracula even better. This book is also extremely descriptive which adds to the suspenseful and mysterious vibe that is going on throughout the book. It also adds to the history in the book. Next, I am going to talk about Audrey Rose and Thomas. I ship them so so much. They make the cutest couple and I am so excited to see how their relationship, as friends or more, progresses. Finally, I want to mention how I never would’ve guessed the killer. When you read this book, you will be shocked when the killer is revealed. Overall, Hunting Prince Dracula was a phenomenal book and I highly recommend it! Buy Hunting Prince Dracula:
 I was nominated to do the Liebster Award by Simone over at Dog Days and Delights. Thank you for nominating me! The rules: -Answer the questions that were left for you -Nominate your favorite new bloggers (or those with less than 500 followers) -Write 11 questions for them to answer -Follow all of the blogs linked (including mine)! 1. How long have you been blogging? I've been blogging for a year and a month (give or take a few days)! I started Shoshi Reads back in July of 2016! It feels like much longer than that, but I've really only been blogging for a little over a year. 2. What is your favorite book? My favorite series is the Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. I can't choose my favorite out of that series, so I am just using the entire series. Some of my other favorite books include Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare and the Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo. 3. Do you have children? Nope. I am only in high school! 4. What is your blog about? My blog is about books. I post tags, awards, reviews, memes, and more! 5. What makes you laugh out loud? The last thing that made me laugh was a certain scene in Crooked Kingdom. 6. Do you blog on WordPress, Blogger, or another platform? As you can probably tell, I blog on Weebly. I am one of the few book bloggers on Weebly, but I like how it works and I don't want to change my blog to another platform (at the moment)! 7. Do you have any blogging goals? One of my top blogging goals is to reach 100 follows/subscribers. 8. Did you have a favorite childhood toy? I am actually not sure. 9. Tell me an interesting fact about yourself. I have a cat named Shadow. He is gray and super soft. 10. Do you listen to the radio? If so, what's your favorite radio station? I don't listen to the radio. 11. Do you have a favorite food? I don't have a favorite food but some foods I like are raspberries, avocado, watermelon, and waffles. The bloggers I am nominating for this award: -Alaina @ An Infinite Book World -Debbie @ My Eclectic Reads -Anny @ The Mystique Reader -Ash and Lo @ Windowsill Books -Megan @ Megxnmarie -Tracey-J @ Books and Other Pursuits -Hanna @ Hanna's Book Obsession -Kathy @ Books and Munches -Haley @ Fangirl Fury -Alex @ Coffeeloving Bookoholic -Emily @ Who Gave The Write My questions:
1. When did you start blogging? 2. What are you currently reading? 3. How do you organize your books (by series, rainbow order, etc.)? 4. Do you create TBRs for the month to help you decide what to read? If so, what are some books on your TBR? 5. What is your favorite season and why? 6. What is your favorite drink? 7. Are you doing the Goodreads reading challenge? If so, what is your goal for 2017 and how many books have you read so far? 8. What is your favorite book read in 2017? 9. If you could meet one author who would it be? 10. What device do you blog on? 11. What is your favorite genre? I would have come for you. And if I couldn't walk, I'd crawl to you, and no matter how broken we were, we'd fight our way out together- knives drawn, pistols blazing. Because that's what we do. We never stop fighting.  Title: Crooked Kingdom Author: Leigh Bardugo Series: Six of Crows, #2 Genre: Fantasy Publisher: Henry Holt and Company Date Published: September 20, 2016 Pages: 546 Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Goodreads Synopsis: When you can't beat the odds, change the game. Kaz Brekker and his crew have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn't think they'd survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they're right back to fighting for their lives. Double-crossed and badly weakened, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz's cunning and test the team's fragile loyalties. A war will be waged on the city's dark and twisting streets―a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of the Grisha world. Review: I honestly don’t know where to begin my review. Crooked Kingdom rendered me speechless. Have you ever had a sequel been so hyped up that it let you down when you read it? Fear not, this was absolutely NOT the case with Crooked Kingdom. Given, it was really hyped up but it lived up to every aspect of the hype. The first thing that I absolutely have to mention is how much I loved the diversity. Forgive me if I miss some, but in Crooked Kingdom (and Six of Crows), we have multiple people of color, characters with different sexualities, characters with PTSD, a disabled character, and probably more that I am forgetting. It is rare to see diversity in fantasy novels, let alone this much diversity. I can’t properly explain how happy I am that Crooked Kingdom included all of this diversity. Next, we have the characters. First up, Kaz Brekker. I mean, how can you not love him? I do understand that he is a thief but the development in his character combined with all of the things he has been through makes him tough to hate. We also get to see Kaz start to face some of his fears, which I found to be extremely well executed. Then we have Inej, also known as the Wraith. The things that she is able to do never cease to amaze me. In addition, her character as a whole is just phenomenal. Jesper the sharpshooter is up next. He adds some much needed humor to the book. He also undergoes a big change in character throughout the book, which I really loved! Wylan finally gets more chapters in Crooked Kingdom which really makes the reader understand more of his story. Nina is another character that undergoes a big change in this book. She displays immense strength which is truly admirable given the circumstances. Matthias was such an intriguing character to read about because I started out disliking him and then loving him. Then we have Kuwei. He plays a huge part in Crooked Kingdom and also has some pretty hilarious scenes. Finally we have Pekka Rollins and Van Eck. Honestly, as far as I’m concerned, they are some pretty terrifying villains. In Crooked Kingdom, we also get introduced to some new characters, some of which play a crucial role in the book. I can’t write this review without talking about Kaz for some time. In this book, he creates insane schemes that I thought were going to fail on multiple occasions. It’s really hard to tell if what’s happening if something that Kaz has planned for, but fear not, he usually has something up his sleeve. Crooked Kingdom is an insane and thrilling ride from start to finish. It is intense and constantly changing. It is heartbreaking (especially the last several chapters) but it is also beautiful. I can’t put into words how phenomenal this book was. So, I am going to end the review at this: if you don’t read Crooked Kingdom, you are really missing out on an absolutely extraordinary book. Buy Crooked Kingdom:
 Hi! Today is Wednesday which means a Top 5 Wednesday goes up on my blog! This week's theme is Books from Before I Joined _______. I decided to do books from before I started my blog. So without further ado, let's get into this post! 1. Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout I read Obsidian right before I started my blog. As you probably know, Obsidian is what inspired me to start my blog, so I just had to include it on this list! 2. Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins Sweet Evil is a book that I read right before Obsidian. I discovered Obsidian through Sweet Evil. Sweet Evil is a book that I definitely won't forget even though I read it a while ago. 3. Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout Again, I read the first three books of this series before I started my blog. I am running out of good books to include on this list so I figured I might as well include this one. 4. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare I started this book before I started my blog, but I finished it after. So, I am just going to go with it and use it anyway! 5. The Siren by Kiera Cass
I read this book way before I started my blog, and loved it then. Given, my tastes in books have changed and if I re-read it I probably would find several problems with it. I still included The Siren because I really enjoyed reading it when I did.  It's Monday! And you know what that means! It's time to update you on what I am reading. First, I am reading Midnight by L.J. Smith. Midnight is a continuation of The Vampire Diaries novels. I am not very far into it at all, but from some information I've heard, I think it will either be a hit or miss (hopefully a hit)!
The other book that I am reading is Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo. I absolutely adored Six of Crows. From the amount of Crooked Kingdom that I have read so far, I think I will love it just as much as the previous book. Let me know in the comments what you are reading this week! Feel free to also leave a link to your IMWAYR post and I will definitely check it out!  I was nominated to do The Sunshine Blogger Award by Courtney over at Paperback Beaches. I have done this award before, but since there are a different set of questions, I figured I would do it again! This lovely banner was made by Alaina over at An Infinite Book World! I'm super excited to answer Courtney's questions, so let's jump right in! The rules: -Thank the blogger that nominated you and link back to their post -Answer the 11 questions sent by the person who nominated you -Nominate 11 new blogs to recieve the award and write them 11 new questions -List the rules and display The Sunshine Blogger Award in your post and/or on your blog 1. What's the best book recommendation you've ever received from someone? The reason I read the Lux series is because it was recommended by Wendy Higgins. This is by far the best book recommendation I've ever gotten because it gave me a new favorite series. 2. What are some goals you have for your blog and yourself as a blogger? One of my main goals for my blog is to reach 100 followers/email subscribers! I would be over the moon if that happened! Another goal that I have is to be able to get enough views to start conversation type posts. Finally, a goal for myself as a blogger is to be able to post good quality content as often as I can! 3. What's your proudest moment as a blogger? Either when I first published my blog or when I got my first comment. 4. Who is your favorite fictional character and why? How can I answer that? I have so many favorites, I don't even know where to start. I am just going to name my top 10. Kaz from Six of Crows, Inej from Six of Crows, Katy from the Lux series, Daemon from the Lux series, Julian from the Dark Artifices, Tessa from the Infernal Devices, Aiden from the Covenant series, Kaidan from Sweet Evil, Rhysand from ACOTAR, and Jace from the Mortal Instruments. Keep in mind, this list is always changing! :) 5. What's the funniest thing that ever happened to you? I can't think of anything super funny that has happened to me. 6. Name 3 shows you've been wanting to watch, but haven't gotten around to watching them yet. Outlander, The Flash, and Stitchers. 7. If you could travel anywhere in the world today, where would you go? There are so many places that I want to go to! I am going to go with Europe in general because half of the places that I want to go are in Europe. 8. What was the name of the last book you picked up, but couldn't finish? Empire of Storms. I will finish at some point, but I am having a really tough time finshing it. 9. How were you inspired to become a blogger? After reading the Lux series and discovering book blogging, I knew that I wanted to blog. 10. Which bloggers inspired you to become a better blogger? Someone who I really am inspired by is Alaina over at An Infinite Book World. She is an amazing blogger and a great friend! 11. What's the name of your favorite book store? I don't really have a favorite book store but I buy most of my books on Amazon or at Barnes and Noble. Here are the people that I am nominating for this award: -Alaina @ An Infinite Book World -Analee @ Book Snacks -Anny @ The Mystique Reader -Alex @ Coffeloving Bookoholic -Rimpy @ Rimpy Reads -TJ @ Books and Other Pursuits -Kathy @ Books and Munches -Flavia @ Flavia the Bibliophile -Haley @ Fangirl Fury -Emily @ Who Gave the Write -Ash and Lo @ Windowsill Books My questions:
1. Who is your favorite author? 2. What is one random fact about you that not many people know? 3. What are your favorite blogs? 4. How many books have you read in 2017 so far? 5. What do you look for when you buy a book? 6. What is something that you would love to accomplish as a blogger? 7. What do you write your blog posts on (laptop, phone, etc.)? 8. How many times have you re-read your favorite book/series? 9. What places have you always wanted to visit? 10. Have you ever been to a book festival/author signing? 11. What is your dream job? I'm ready to lose myself, but I'm not ready to lose you. I'm ready to find myself, but I'm not ready for you to know what I find.  Title: You Know Me Well Author: Nina LaCour and David Levithan Series: Standalone Genre: Contemporary, Romance Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin Date Published: June 7, 2016 Pages: 248 Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Goodreads Synopsis: Who knows you well? Your best friend? Your boyfriend or girlfriend? A stranger you meet on a crazy night? No one, really? Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed. That is, until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way. When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other—and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more. Told in alternating points of view by Nina LaCour and David Levithan, You Know Me Well is a story about navigating the joys and heartaches of first love, one truth at a time. Review: I have very mixed feelings about You Know Me Well. On one hand, I really enjoyed reading the book. In fact, immediately after finishing, I was going to give it a 5 star rating. However, as I spent some more time thinking about it, I realized that there were some issues with this book that I hadn’t noticed right after reading it. The main problem that I had with You Know Me Well was that it was unrealistic. I mean, becoming best friends with someone instantaneously after never talking to them before? That is pretty unlikely in my mind. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the friendship that Mark and Kate created, but it happened too fast for my taste. Ultimately, that is why I had to lower my rating from 5 stars to 4 stars. Other than that, You Know Me Well was a really fun book. I found it to be really great how amidst all of the other stuff going on, there was still plenty of room for humor. Which, at some points in the story, was well needed. The jokes strategically placed throughout the book made it really fun to read. The best thing about You Know Me Well was definitely the story. We have Mark in love with his best friend, Ryan. And we have Kate meeting and getting to know Violet, the girl she has been wanting to meet forever. Another great thing in this book was the representation. It’s not often that you see books with so much representation, but You Know Me Well is filled to the brim with it! Overall, You Know Me Well has a few flaws, but it is also filled with some amazing things. In addition, it is also very entertaining to read! Buy You Know Me Well:
 I was tagged by Alaina over at An Infinite Book World to do the Disney Princess Sidekicks Book Tag! As usual, the banner credit goes to her :). I am a huge fan of Disney so I am super excited to get into this tag! 1. Mushu from Mulan/Olaf and Sven from Frozen: Name your favorite hilarious character or your favorite comedy/funny book I definitely have to go with Alex from the Covenant series by Jennifer L. Armentrout for this question. Alex has a great sense of humor throughout the series. In addition, she also is generally a very sarcastic person. 2. The Seven Dwarfs from Snow White: Favorite group/ensemble Kaz, Inej, Nina, Matthias, Wylen, and Jesper! Anyone who has read Six of Crows will know that this group of characters are badass, amazing, and intriguing. 3. Pascal from Tangled: A book that started out one way but changed for you I am going to have to go with City of Bones for this one. When I first started reading it, I had a really tough time getting into it. I actually put it down for a while and when I picked it up again, I really enjoyed reading it (and the entire series)! 4. Meeko from Pocahontas: Name a plot twist that you did not see coming Oh my, Lord of Shadows for sure! I'm obviously not going to spoil the ending, but for me, the plot twist at the end was definitely one that I did not see coming. 5. Rajah from Aladdin/Flounder from The Little Mermaid: Name your favorite best friend in a novel Dee Black from the Lux series! She is a wonderful best friend and I would love to have a best friend like her. 6. Louis from The Princess and the Frog/Sebastian from The Little Mermaid/Cogsworth, Lumiere, Mrs. Teapotts, and Chip from Beauty and the Beast: Name a novel where music played a big part or made you want to sing its praises Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo made me want to sing all sorts of praises. I absolutely adored this book! 7. Maximus from Tangled: Name a character that faces a lot of obstacles There are so many characters that face tons of obstacles, so I am going with the one that I thought of first. That would be Feyre from A Court of Thorns and Roses. Throughout the ACOTAR series, Feyre had to overcome many obstacles. 8. Hamish, Hubert, and Harris from Brave: Favorite family dynamics in a novel Hm. I'm going to go with Damon, Dee, and Dawson from the Lux series. I really love the protective family thing that they have so, I couldn't resist picking them. 9. Ray from The Princess and the Frog/ 3 Fairies from Sleeping Beauty: Book that most impacted your life Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout! Obsidian caused me to start my blog, and blogging has really positively impacted my life. 10. Hei Hei from Moana: Name a character that steals the show Manon from Throne of Glass. She is one of the main characters, but I find that she steals the show in any scene that she is in. 11. Gus and Jaq from Cinerella: Name your favorite or worst opposites attract pairing I am going to have to go with Daemon and Katy for this one. They are pretty much complete opposites, but they make an adorable couple! I am tagging these bloggers to do this tag:
-Coffeeloving Bookoholic -Tracey-J @ Books and Other Pursuits -Ash and Lo @ Windowsill Books -Analee @ Book Snacks |
Currently Reading:The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Reading Challenges:Goodreads 2021: 3/20
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