Hey Bookworms!
Welcome to another Reading Recap. Where I explore what I have been up in the past three months!
Category: Wrap Up
#ReadingRecap: April, May & June
Hey Bookworms!
Welcome to another Reading Recap. Where I explore what I have been up in the past three months!
#ReadingRecap: January, February & March
Hey Bookworms!
Welcome to another Reading Recap. Where I explore what I have been up in the past three months!
#2017 End of Year Survey
Hey, Bookworms!
Let’s welcome to the new year with a look back on how 2017 went in regards to reading. Hope you enjoy my bookish escapades, have a great year!
You can find the original post here at Jamie @ Perpetual Page Turner’s blog if you want to inquire or do it yourself. So without further ado, here are my book stats for 2017:
Number of Books You Read:
155 books + 49,620 pages
Number of Re-Reads:
4
Genre You Read the Most From:
Fantasy / Sci-Fi
Best Book You Read In 2017?
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas was the best book I read in 2017. It is such an important book for everyone to read and I’m so happy it’s been doing so well since it debuted back in February!
Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?
When I heard there was going to be a sequel to The Diabolic I was so excited. Sadly what I got was a big bag of disappointment. Definitely didn’t meet my expectations and could have been so much better!
Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?
This was just plain bad. I went in thinking I was going to love it. I mean come on, a historical YA retelling of Vlad the Impaler but as a female? And what I got was 500 pages of pure boredom.
Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?
Not too shocking considering how much I love Shaun David Hutchinson’s books! All queer, all AMAZING. So what are you waiting for? GO READ IT.
Best series you started in 2017? Best Sequel of 2017? Best Series Ender of 2017?
- Best female anti-hero I read this year. Seriously. She gave me chills.
- It’s Harry Potter… k bye.
- Late to the game with this one, but it was well worth the wait!
Favorite new author you discovered in 2017?
Traci Chee is the lovely author of The Reader. Her writing is beautiful, her world building is stellar and her characters give me life!
Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
I read maybe 15 contemporaries last year of almost 160 books… so it’s safe to say it’s not a genre I read often. But saying that, this one hit it out of the park. A sweet little story where it’s okay to be a little different!
Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?
I love this series so much. I just want to live in this world forever and ever!
Book You Read In 2017 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?
This book makes you feel things. ALOT OF FEELINGS I DIDNT KNOW I HAD LIKE HOLY SHIT SO MANY EMOTIONS.
Favorite cover of a book you read in 2017?
Look at this beauty right here. The colors, the sparkles, the dagger! Heart eyes for days.
Most memorable character of 2017?
Empress Xifeng 100000000%
She is the ruthless character I was talking about up above. Though this is not the real Xifeng from the book, it just serves as what I envision Xifeng to look like!
Most beautifully written book read in 2017?
The writing of this book was raw, real, and true to the setting and characters that inhabit New York. Because of this, it was very beautifully written. Like I cried real tears… I DON’T CRY OK. I DON’T.
Most Thought-Provoking/ Life-Changing Book of 2017?
If this book isn’t everyone’s answer to this question, then they either haven’t read it, or they are blind. There is nothing more important than the message from this book this year. Seriously.
Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2017 to finally read?
Yeah I know. Crucify me now. Get it over with. I still haven’t finished reading the Harry Potter series. BUT I’m doing it slowly and surely!
Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2017?
“It’s impossible to let go of the people we love. Pieces of them remain embedded inside of us like shrapnel. Every breath causes those fragments to burrow through our muscles, nearer to our hearts. And we think the pain will kill us, but it won’t. Eventually, scar tissue forms around those twisted splinters like cocoons. They remain part of us, but slowly hurt less.”
Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2017?
From 98 pages to 870.
Book That Shocked You The Most
Sexy thrillers FTW!
OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)
Fight me on this. But I’m totally on board with Xifeng and the Emperor. Forget the little farm boy… muahahaha
Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year
Yes this relationship had a slight crack into the romance side… but ultimately it was much more about the friendship!
Favorite Book You Read in 2017 From An Author You’ve Read Previously
I will read anything this guy writes. He literally vibes off my soul and get’s me through his writing!
Best Book You Read In 2017 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure:
I seen that Maria from Big City Bookworm read this one and it sparked my interst so I picked it up for myself! And if you read above, you will know how much I loved it!
Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2017?
My precious little Arcus baby. I just want to put him in my pocket and protect him forever!
Best 2017 debut you read?
This one made my heart skip a beat several times while reading it!
Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?
This book is just beautifully written. You will literally be transported there and experience the story first hand!
Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?
This one was so amusing, I couldn’t not put it down for this one. Yes I know… I made a double negative. Fight me.
Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2017?
First book ever to make me shed a tear… sadly there were many tears. Many many tears.
Hidden Gem Of The Year?
This book literally flew under the radar. No scratch that. It flew so low the radar couldn’t even pick it up. But seriosuly it was such a good read!
Book That Crushed Your Soul?
This one will crush, stomp, rip, tear, and shred your heart and feels to pieces.
Most Unique Book You Read In 2017?
It’s not everyday you get a YA book where the main character who is male has an eating disorder. It was a nice change.
Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?
Ugh…
Well that’s pretty much a recap of my reading year in 2017! I hope you guys enjoyed looking into my book life and I hope you all had just as an enjoyable year as I did!
Until next time,
TWITTER | GOOD READS | INSTAGRAM | BLOG LOVIN’
#ReadingRecap: October, November, & December
Hey Bookworms!
Welcome to another Reading Recap. Where I explore what I have been up in the past three months!
Continue reading #ReadingRecap: October, November, & December
Reading Recap: July, August, September
Hey Bookworms!
Welcome to another Reading Recap. Where I explore what I have been up in the past three months!
Rogue by Julie Kagawa – ★★★☆☆
The Midnight Star by Marie Lu – ★★★★★
Perfect Ten by L. Philips – ★★★★★ – Review
What to Say Next by Julie Buxbaum – ★★★★★ – Review
The Rose and the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh – ★★★★☆ – Review
Naruto Vol. 3: Bridge of Courage by Masashi Kishimoto – ★★★★☆
Our Dark Duet by Victoria Schwab – ★★★★☆ – Review
Harley Quinn Vol. 1: Die Laughing by Amanda Conner – ★☆☆☆☆
Naruto Vol. 4: The New Opponents by Masashi Kishimoto – ★★★★★
He Will Be My Ruin by K. A. Tucker – ★★★★☆
One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus – ★★★☆☆ – Review
Into the Water by Paula Hawkins – ★★★☆☆
And I Darken by Kiersten White – ★★☆☆☆
The Art of Starving by Sam J. Miller – ★★★★☆ – Review
Blood of Wonderland by Colleen Oakes – ★★★★☆
The Lying Game by Ruth Ware – ★★★★☆ – Review
Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake – ★★★☆☆
Empress of a Thousand Skies by Rhoda Belleza – ★★★★☆ – Review
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Vol. 3 by Kyle Higgins – ★★★★★
Bright Thrones by Kate Elliott – ★★★★☆
Batgirl Vol. 1: Beyond Burnside by Hope Larson – ★★★☆☆
Buried Heart by Kate Elliott – ★★★★☆ – Review
Are You Sleeping by Kathleen Barber – ★★★☆☆ – Review
Zero Repeat Forever by Gabrielle Prendergast – ★★★☆☆ – Review
The Court of Broken Knives by Anna Smith Spark – ★★★☆☆ – Review
Fireblood by Elly Blake – ★★★★★ – Review
Girl in Snow by Danya Kukafka – ★★★☆☆ – Review
Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson – ★★★★☆
They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera – ★★★★★ – Review
Flame in the Mist by Renee Ahdieh – ★★★★☆
Black Clover Vol. 4 by Yuki Tabata – ★★★★☆
Wayward Vol. 3: Out from the Shadows by Jim Zub – ★★★★☆
Archie Vol. 4 by Mark Waid – ★★★★★ – Review
Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee – ★★★★☆
A Stranger in the House by Shari Lapena – ★★☆☆☆
The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima – ★★★★☆
Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo – ★★★☆☆ – Review
The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli – ★★★★★
Before She Ignites by Jodi Meadows – ★★★☆☆ – Review
Release by Patrick Ness – ★★★★☆ – Review
Harley Quinn Vol. 2: Joker Loves Harley by Jimmy Palmiotti – ★★★☆☆
The Last Namsara by Kirsten Ciccarelli – ★★★★☆
Warcross by Marie Lu – ★★★★☆
There’s Someone Inside your House by Stephanie Perkins – ★★★★☆
JULY:
13 Books, 2 Manga & 1 Graphic Novels
Pages – 5472
AUGUST:
12 Books, 1 Manga & 2 Graphic Novel
Pages – 4933
SEPTEMBER:
10 Books, 0 Manga & 3 Graphic Novels
Pages – 4222
Well there you have it. Over the last 3 months I managed to get some serious reading in. Hopefully it carries over through the summer!
Until next time,
TWITTER | GOOD READS | INSTAGRAM | BLOG LOVIN’
Reading Recap: April, May & June
Hey Bookworms!
Welcome to another Reading Recap. Where I recap what I have been up in the past three months!
Blacklist by Alyson Noel – ★★★☆☆ – Review
Spindle Fire by Lexa Hillyer – ★★★★☆ – Review
The Love Interest by Cale Dietrich – ★★★★☆ – Review
Bang by Barry Lyga – ★★★★☆ – Review
Detective Comics Vol. 1 by James Tynion IV – ★★★★★
Power Rangers Vol. 2 by Kyle Higgins – ★★★★★
All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda – ★★★★☆
I Found You by Lisa Jewell – ★★★★☆ – Review
At the Edge of the Universe by Shaun David Hutchinson – ★★★★★
Black Clover Vol. 1 by Yuki Tabata – ★★★★★
The Traitor’s Kiss by Erin Beaty – ★★★☆☆ – Review
Black Clover Vol. 2 by Yuki Tabata – ★★★★★
The Perfect Stranger by Megan Miranda – ★★★☆☆
Archie Vol. 3 by Mark Waid – ★★★☆☆
Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas – ★★★★☆
Naruto Vol. 1 by Masashi Kishimoto – ★★★★☆
Bravest Warriors Vol. 5 by Breehn Burns – ★★★★☆
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab – ★★★☆☆
The Duke of Bannerman Prep by Katie A. Nelson – ★★★☆☆ – Review
Jughead Vol. 2 by Chip Zdarsky – ★★★★★
Naruto Vol. 2 by Masashi Kishimoto – ★★★☆☆
Dividing Eden by Joelle Charbonneau – ★★★★☆ – Review
The Party by Robyn Harding – ★★☆☆☆ – Review
Black Clover Vol. 3 by Yuki Tabata – ★★★★☆
Replica by Lauren Oliver – ★★☆☆☆
The Young Elites by Marie Lu – ★★★★☆
Talon by Julie Kagawa – ★★☆☆☆
Roar by Cora Carmack – Unrated
The Blackthorn Key by Kevin Sands – ★★★★☆
The Rose Society by Marie Lu – ★★★★☆
The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh – ★★★★☆
Truthwitch by Susan Dennard – ★★★☆☆
Josie and the Pussycats Vol. 1 by Marguerite Bennett – ★★★☆☆
APRIL:
6 Books, 0 Manga & 2 Graphic Novels
Pages – 2463
MAY:
4 Books, 4 Manga & 1 Graphic Novel
Pages – 2745
JUNE:
12 Books, 2 Manga & 2 Graphic Novels
Pages – 5433
Well there you have it. Over the last 3 months I managed to get some serious reading in. Hopefully it carries over through the summer!
Until next time,
February 2017 Wrap Up!
Hey guys!
Is it just me or was the shortest month of the year the one that seemed to go by the slowest? It was probably just me, who am I kidding. Not a lot of things went down this month. I got to attend the HarperCollins HCCFrenzy Spring Preview this past weekend which was one. It’s always nice to here a publishing company talk about the books that they’re publishing. Plus I walked away with 6 new ARC’s too! But anyways..
Let’s take a look at what I got down to this month on the book blogging side of my life!
The Cruelty by Scott Bergstrom – February 2nd, 2017
Batman Vol. 1: I Am Gotham by Tom King – February 4th, 2017
The Impossible Fortress by Jason Rekulak – February 4th, 2017
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas – February 10th, 2017
What She Knew by Gilly MacMillan – February 20th, 2017
Jughead Vol. 1 by Chip Zdarsky – February 22nd, 2017
The Fire By Night by Teresa Messineo – February 25th, 2017
Batman Vol. 1.5: Night of the Monster Men – February 26th, 2017
Nightwing Vol. 1: Better Than Batman – February 26th, 2017
Driven by M.B. Mulhall – February 27th, 2017
A total of 6 novels + 4 graphic novels!
Other books I’ve started:
History is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera – 5/5
The Impossible Fortress by Jason Rekulak – 4/5
The Cruelty by Scott Bergstrom – 4/5
The Wish Granter by C.J. Redwine – 4/5
The Sidekicks by Will Kostakis – 3/5
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas – 5/5
(Click the links to read the reviews)
Reviews Coming in March:
Waiting On Wednesday
Goodbye Days – February 1st, 2017
The Bone Witch – February 8th, 2017
Shadow Run – February 15th, 2017
A Crown of Wishes – February 22nd, 2017
Top 10 Tuesday
Fantasy Romances (Valentines Day Edition) – February 14th, 2017
I Loved Them More Than Expected – February 21st, 2017
February Awards
N/A
February Achievements
800 Twitter Followers – February 2017
34,500 Blog Views – February 2017
14,000 Blog Visitors – February 2017
Lunar New Year Book Tag – February 5th, 2017
The Alphabet Book Tag – February 18th, 2017
Why I Quit NetGalley & Edelweiss – February 4th, 2017
Bookish Pet Peeves – February 25th, 2017
January 30 to Febraury 5th – BIG REVEAL: Siege of Shadows
February 6th to 12th – BIG REVEAL: They Both Die At the End
February 13th to 19th – BIG REVEAL: One Dark Throne
40 Books / 40 Reviews
January:
I See You by Clare Mackintosh
The Sidekicks by Will Kostakis
REVIEW: I See You
February:
What She Knew by Gilly MacMillan
Jughead Vol. 1 by Chip Zdrasky
REVIEW: The Sidekicks
Total: 4 Books / 2 Reviews
And that was February. Phew. That was a big month and I am glad I could get a lot of reading done! See you guys in March!
Until next time,
January 2017 Wrap Up!
Hey guys!
Another month has come and gone. It’s been a great start to the new year. I quit one of my jobs. It’s a long story, but it was for the better! Not too much has happened this month as I am in money saving mode for my Euro Trip in April/May! I can’t wait. But that means no unnecessary book buying. I guess I will be paying the library a visit soon!
Let’s take a look at what I got down to this month on the book blogging side of my life!
What We Pretend to Be by Shaun David Hutchinson – January 1st, 2017
Frostblood by Elly Blake – January 3rd, 2017
I See You by Clare Mackintosh – January 16th, 2017
The You I’ve Never Known by Ellen Hopkins – January 24th, 2017
Bravest Warriors Volume 3 by Joey Comeau – January 25th, 2017
Bravest Warriors Volume 4 by Eric M. Esquivel – January 25th, 2017
The Sidekicks by Will Kostakis – January 26th, 2017
The Wish Granter by C.J. Redwine – January 28th, 2017
A total of 5 novels + 1 novella + 2 graphic novels!
Other books I’ve started:
The Cursed Queen by Sarah Fine – 5/5
Frostblood by Elly Blake – 4/5
The You I’ve Never Known by Ellen Hopkins – 3/5
I See You by Clare Mackintosh – 3/5
(Click the links to read the reviews)
Reviews Coming in February:
Waiting On Wednesday
At the Edge of the Universe – January 4th, 2017
Empress of a Thousand Skies – January 11th, 2017
A Conjuring of Light – January 18th, 2017
The Hate U Give – January 25th, 2017
Top 10 Tuesday
N/A
January Awards
N/A
January Achievements
800 Blog Followers – January 2017
32,500 Blog Views – January 2017
13,000 Blog Visitors – January 2017
Ruler of Books Tag – January 27th, 2017
This or That Tag – January 29th, 2017
N/A
January 2nd to 15th – BIG REVEAL: Shadowcaster
January 16th to 22nd – BIG REVEAL: Iron Gold
January 23rd to 29th – BIG REVEAL: ACOWAR
40 Books / 40 Reviews
January:
- I See You by Clare Mackintosh
- REVIEW: I See You
Total: 1 Book / 1 Review
And that was January. Phew. That was a big month and I am glad I could get a lot of reading done! See you guys in February!
Until next time,
Top 16 Books of 2016 | Books at Dawn
Hey guys!
Welcome to a new year. How crazy has time flown by though; so insane. Well to start off the new year right, it only makes sense to list my favorite reads from 2016. The top 16 best books to be exact. Get it, 16 for 2016. I know, how original.
By doing this I hope to discuss some of the books that we both read together, or bring to your attention some books that you might have overlooked last year. So without further ado, here is my Top 16 Books of 2016:
16. Siren’s Song
Nym and Draewulf prepare to face off in a battle destined to destroy more lives than it saves.
With the loss of Tulla still fresh in mind, Rasha’s fate unknown, and Lord Myles taken over by the dark ability, Nym and the few Bron soldiers rush to warn Cashlin’s queen. Only to discover it may already be too late for the monarch and her eerie kingdom. As the Luminescents are sifting through Nym’s past memories and the queen is reading into her future, Nym is given a choice of how to defeat Draewulf, but the cost may be more than she can bear. And even then there are no guarantees.
With that reality burrowing into her bones—along with the guilt of the lives she will sacrifice—Nym returns to her homeland of Faelen to raise an army of peasants through promises of freedom. But when the few friends she has left, along with the world and citizens she loves, are staring down the face of a monster and his undead army, will Nym summon every element her blood is capable of controlling . . . or surrender to a different strength—one of sacrifice?
Because in the end, death may be more merciful for them all.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
4 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
Siren’s Song Review
15. Paper Princess
From strip clubs and truck stops to southern coast mansions and prep schools, one girl tries to stay true to herself.
These Royals will ruin you…
Ella Harper is a survivor—a pragmatic optimist. She’s spent her whole life moving from town to town with her flighty mother, struggling to make ends meet and believing that someday she’ll climb out of the gutter. After her mother’s death, Ella is truly alone.
Until Callum Royal appears, plucking Ella out of poverty and tossing her into his posh mansion among his five sons who all hate her. Each Royal boy is more magnetic than the last, but none as captivating as Reed Royal, the boy who is determined to send her back to the slums she came from.
Reed doesn’t want her. He says she doesn’t belong with the Royals.
He might be right.
Wealth. Excess. Deception. It’s like nothing Ella has ever experienced, and if she’s going to survive her time in the Royal palace, she’ll need to learn to issue her own Royal decrees.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
4 Stars
My Thoughts:
Paper Princess was a deliciously addictive contemporary romance with tons of drama, sex, and swoon worthy bad boys. I can’t wait to pick up the sequels in the near future!
14. Air Awakens
A library apprentice, a sorcerer prince, and an unbreakable magic bond…
The Solaris Empire is one conquest away from uniting the continent, and the rare elemental magic sleeping in seventeen-year-old library apprentice Vhalla Yarl could shift the tides of war.
Vhalla has always been taught to fear the Tower of Sorcerers, a mysterious magic society, and has been happy in her quiet world of books. But after she unknowingly saves the life of one of the most powerful sorcerers of them all—the Crown Prince Aldrik—she finds herself enticed into his world. Now she must decide her future: Embrace her sorcery and leave the life she’s known, or eradicate her magic and remain as she’s always been. And with powerful forces lurking in the shadows, Vhalla’s indecision could cost her more than she ever imagined.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
4 Stars
My Thoughts:
Air Awakens is the beginning of what I imagine is going to be a vast and intriguing fantasy about the last of her kind. This book sets up a lot with characters, world, and history. I look forward to some more action and adventure in the future installments!
13. The Swan Riders
Greta Stuart had always known her future: die young. She was her country’s crown princess, and also its hostage, destined to be the first casualty in an inevitable war. But when the war came it broke all the rules, and Greta forged a different path.
She is no longer princess. No longer hostage. No longer human. Greta Stuart has become an AI.
If she can survive the transition, Greta will earn a place alongside Talis, the AI who rules the world. Talis is a big believer in peace through superior firepower. But some problems are too personal to obliterate from orbit, and for those there are the Swan Riders: a small band of humans who serve the AIs as part army, part cult.
Now two of the Swan Riders are escorting Talis and Greta across post-apocalyptic Saskatchewan. But Greta’s fate has stirred her nation into open rebellion, and the dry grassland may hide insurgents who want to rescue her – or see her killed. Including Elian, the boy she saved—the boy who wants to change the world, with a knife if necessary. Even the infinitely loyal Swan Riders may not be everything they seem.
Greta’s fate—and the fate of her world—are balanced on the edge of a knife in this smart, sly, electrifying adventure.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
4 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
The Swan Riders Review
12. The Impostor Queen
Sixteen-year-old Elli was only a child when the Elders of Kupari chose her to succeed the Valtia, the queen who wields infinitely powerful ice and fire magic in service of her people. The only life Elli has known has been in the temple, surrounded by luxury, tutored by magic-wielding priests, preparing for the day when the queen perishes—and the ice and fire find a new home in Elli, who is prophesied to be the most powerful Valtia to ever rule.
But when the queen dies defending the kingdom from invading warriors, the magic doesn’t enter Elli. It’s nowhere to be found.
Disgraced, Elli flees to the outlands, home of banished criminals—some who would love to see the temple burn with all its priests inside. As she finds her footing in this new world, Elli uncovers devastating new information about the Kupari magic, those who wield it, and the prophecy that foretold her destiny. Torn between her love for her people and her growing loyalty to the banished, Elli struggles to understand the true role she was meant to play. But as war looms, she must choose the right side before the kingdom and its magic are completely destroyed.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
4 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
The Impostor Queen Review
11. Court of Fives
On the Fives court, everyone is equal.
And everyone is dangerous.
Jessamy’s life is a balance between acting like an upper-class Patron and dreaming of the freedom of the Commoners. But away from her family, she can be whomever she wants when she sneaks out to train for the Fives, an intricate, multilevel athletic competition that offers a chance for glory to the kingdom’s best competitors.
Then Jes meets Kalliarkos, and an improbable friendship between the two Fives competitors—one of mixed race and the other a Patron boy—causes heads to turn. When Kal’s powerful, scheming uncle tears Jes’s family apart, she’ll have to test her new friend’s loyalty and risk the vengeance of a royal clan to save her mother and sisters from certain death.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
4 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
Court of Fives Review
10. Empire of Dust
In Macedon, war rises like smoke, forbidden romance blooms and ancient magic tempered with rage threatens to turn an empire to dust.
After winning his first battle, Prince Alexander fights to become the ruler his kingdom demands—but the line between leader and tyrant blurs with each new threat.
Meanwhile, Hephaestion, cast aside by Alexander for killing the wrong man, must conceal the devastating secret of a divine prophecy from Katerina even as the two of them are thrust together on a dangerous mission to Egypt.
The warrior, Jacob, determined to forget his first love, vows to eradicate the ancient Blood Magics and believes that royal prisoner Cynane holds the key to Macedon’s undoing.
And in chains, the Persian princess Zofia still longs to find the Spirit Eaters, but first must grapple with the secrets of her handsome—and deadly—captor.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
4 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
Empire of Dust Review
9. Fate of Flames
Years ago, everything changed. Phantoms, massive beasts of nightmare, began terrorizing the world. At the same time four girls, the Effigies, appeared, each with the unique power to control a classical element. Since then, they have protected the world from the Phantoms. At the death of one Effigy, another is chosen, pulled from her normal life into the never-ending battle.
When Maia unexpectedly becomes the next Fire Effigy, she resists her new calling. A quiet girl with few friends and almost no family, she was much happier to admire the Effigies from afar. Never did she imagine having to master her ability to control fire, to protect innocent citizens from the Phantoms, or to try bringing together the other three Effigies.
But with the arrival of the mysterious Saul—a man who seems to be able to control the Phantoms using the same cosmic power previously only granted to four girls at a time—Maia and the other Effigies must learn to work together in a world where their celebrity is more important than their heroism.
But the secrets Saul has, and the power he possesses, might be more than even they can handle…
🌟🌟🌟🌟
4 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
Fate of Flames Review
8. Boy Robot
Seventeen-year-old Isaak discovers the truth about his origin and the underground forces that must come together to fight against a secret government organization formed to eradicate those like him in this high-octane science fiction debut.
There once was a boy who was made, not created.
In a single night, Isaak’s life changed forever.
His adoptive parents were killed, a mysterious girl saved him from a team of soldiers, and he learned of his own dark and destructive origin.
An origin he doesn’t want to believe, but one he cannot deny.
Isaak is a Robot: a government-made synthetic human, produced as a weapon and now hunted, marked for termination.
He and the Robots can only find asylum with the Underground—a secret network of Robots and humans working together to ensure a coexistent future.
To be protected by the Underground, Isaak will have to make it there first. But with a deadly military force tasked to find him at any cost, his odds are less than favorable.
Now Isaak must decide whether to hold on to his humanity and face possible death…or to embrace his true nature in order to survive, at the risk of becoming the weapon he was made to be.
In his debut, recording artist Simon Curtis has written a fast-paced, high-stakes novel that explores humanity, the ultimate power of empathy, and the greatest battle of all: love vs. fear.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
4 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
Boy Robot Review
7. The Sun is Also a Star
Natasha: I’m a girl who believes in science and facts. Not fate. Not destiny. Or dreams that will never come true. I’m definitely not the kind of girl who meets a cute boy on a crowded New York City street and falls in love with him. Not when my family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. Falling in love with him won’t be my story.
Daniel: I’ve always been the good son, the good student, living up to my parents’ high expectations. Never the poet. Or the dreamer. But when I see her, I forget about all that. Something about Natasha makes me think that fate has something much more extraordinary in store—for both of us.
The Universe: Every moment in our lives has brought us to this single moment. A million futures lie before us. Which one will come true?
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
The Sun is Also a Star Review
6. Tell Me Three Things
Everything about Jessie is wrong. At least, that’s what it feels like during her first week of junior year at her new ultra-intimidating prep school in Los Angeles. Just when she’s thinking about hightailing it back to Chicago, she gets an email from a person calling themselves Somebody/Nobody (SN for short), offering to help her navigate the wilds of Wood Valley High School. Is it an elaborate hoax? Or can she rely on SN for some much-needed help?
It’s been barely two years since her mother’s death, and because her father eloped with a woman he met online, Jessie has been forced to move across the country to live with her stepmonster and her pretentious teenage son.
In a leap of faith—or an act of complete desperation—Jessie begins to rely on SN, and SN quickly becomes her lifeline and closest ally. Jessie can’t help wanting to meet SN in person. But are some mysteries better left unsolved?
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
Tell Me Three Things Review
5. The Serpent King
Dill has had to wrestle with vipers his whole life at home, as the only son of a Pentecostal minister who urges him to handle poisonous rattlesnakes, and at school, where he faces down bullies who target him for his father’s extreme faith and very public fall from grace.
The only antidote to all this venom is his friendship with fellow outcasts Travis and Lydia. But as they are starting their senior year, Dill feels the coils of his future tightening around him. Dill’s only escapes are his music and his secret feelings for Lydia neither of which he is brave enough to share. Graduation feels more like an ending to Dill than a beginning. But even before then, he must cope with another ending one that will rock his life to the core.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
The Serpent King Review
4. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter is midway through both his training as a wizard and his coming of age. Harry wants to get away from the pernicious Dursleys and go to the International Quidditch Cup with Hermione, Ron, and the Weasleys. He wants to dream about Cho Chang, his crush (and maybe do more than dream).
He wants to find out about the mysterious event that supposed to take place at Hogwarts this year, an event involving two other rival schools of magic, and a competition that hasn’t happened for hundreds of years. He wants to be a normal, fourteen-year-old wizard. But unfortunately for Harry Potter, he’s not normal – even by wizarding standards.
And in his case, different can be deadly.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 Stars
My Thoughts:
Can you believe that I am almost 25 years old and I am finally reading Harry Potter for the first time? That’s insane right? Well I am LOVING it. HP and the Goblet of Fire is by far my favorite one in the series so far. Just like it was my favorite of the movies also. I love how much more character growth and insight we get from the books. I’m hoping I can finish the series by years end!
3. We Are the Ants
There are a few things Henry Denton knows, and a few things he doesn’t.
Henry knows that his mom is struggling to keep the family together, and coping by chain-smoking cigarettes. He knows that his older brother is a college dropout with a pregnant girlfriend. He knows that he is slowly losing his grandmother to Alzheimer’s. And he knows that his boyfriend committed suicide last year.
What Henry doesn’t know is why the aliens chose to abduct him when he was thirteen, and he doesn’t know why they continue to steal him from his bed and take him aboard their ship. He doesn’t know why the world is going to end or why the aliens have offered him the opportunity to avert the impending disaster by pressing a big red button.
But they have. And they’ve only given him 144 days to make up his mind.
The question is whether Henry thinks the world is worth saving. That is, until he meets Diego Vega, an artist with a secret past who forces Henry to question his beliefs, his place in the universe, and whether any of it really matters. But before Henry can save the world, he’s got to figure out how to save himself, and the aliens haven’t given him a button for that.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
We Are the Ants Review
2. Golden Son & Morning Star
Darrow is a rebel forged by tragedy. For years he and his fellow Reds worked the mines, toiling to make the surface of Mars inhabitable. They were, they believed, mankind’s last hope. Until Darrow discovered that it was all a lie, and that the Red were nothing more than unwitting slaves to an elitist ruling class, the Golds, who had been living on Mars in luxury for generations.
In RED RISING, Darrow infiltrated Gold society, to fight in secret for a better future for his people. Now fully embedded amongst the Gold ruling class, Darrow continues his dangerous work to bring them down from within. It’s a journey that will take him further than he’s ever been before – but is Darrow truly willing to pay the price that rebellion demands?
Hic sunt leones.
A life-or-death tale of vengeance with an unforgettable hero at its heart, Golden Son guarantees Pierce Brown’s growing status as one of fiction’s most exciting new voices.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 Stars
Darrow would have lived in peace, but his enemies brought him war. The Gold overlords demanded his obedience, hanged his wife, and enslaved his people. But Darrow is determined to fight back. Risking everything to transform himself and breach Gold society, Darrow has battled to survive the cutthroat rivalries that breed Society’s mightiest warriors, climbed the ranks, and waited patiently to unleash the revolution that will tear the hierarchy apart from within.
Finally, the time has come.
But devotion to honor and hunger for vengeance run deep on both sides. Darrow and his comrades-in-arms face powerful enemies without scruple or mercy. Among them are some Darrow once considered friends. To win, Darrow will need to inspire those shackled in darkness to break their chains, unmake the world their cruel masters have built, and claim a destiny too long denied—and too glorious to surrender.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 Stars
For my full thoughts, check out my review:
Golden Son Review & Morning Star Review
1. Frozen Tides & Crystal Storm
CLEO: Reeling after a bloody showdown in Limeros ending with Amara’s abduction of the water crystal, and a vacancy in the Mytican throne, Princess Cleo must cast aside her feelings and look toward her kingdom with the eyes of a Queen.
MAGNUS: With the kingdom in chaos, Princess Lucia still missing and quite possibly in danger, and a shocking realization about Cleo, the steely prince is once again torn between love and duty, leaving him wondering whether he’s strong enough to rule his people.
LUCIA: The young sorcercess has had her vengeance after the cruel death of her first and only love. Heartbroken and unable to trust anyone, she allies with the awoken Fire god, who also seeks revenge.
JONAS: After escaping death by the skin of his teeth, the defeated rebel—along with a mysterious stranger–leader reunites with Princess Cleo, only to find himself a mere pawn in a dangerous hunt for the elusive Kindred.
KING GAIUS: Abandoned by Melenia and betrayed by his own children, Gaius flees Mytica and sails to Kraeshia, where he attempts to ally with the famously brutal emperor across the Silver Sea.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 Stars
My Thoughts:
You all know that the Falling Kingdoms series is my all time favorite. Well book 4 does not disappoint at all! It’s fun, action packed, and a wild ride from beginning to end. So much is revealed in this installment that my brain and feels could not take it anymore! A ship finally gets together… and one of my favorite characters rises from the dead. Considering how many characters have died in this series, it’s not much of a spoiler to who it is!
The ruthless Empress Amara of Kraeshia has taken the Mytican throne, and now uncertainty looms over the three kingdoms. Since Lucia unleashed the fire Kindred, wreaking havoc throughout the land, Myticans have been looking for someone—anyone—they can trust. They believe in Amara, not knowing her grand promises are built on lies.
In Paelsia, Magnus and Cleo reluctantly follow King Gaius to the home of his exiled mother, Selia. Selia is a powerful witch and claims she can help unlock the magic of the Kindred—if the visitors agree to her terms. When Jonas arrives from Kraeshia, he is shocked to find that his rebel army now includes his sworn enemies. Along with Nic, Felix, and the mysteriously resurrected Ashur, the contentious group agrees to cast aside old grudges—for now—and united against their common enemy: Amara.
Meanwhile, bearing the child of a Watcher and feared by all, Princess Lucia travels across Mytica to find her family. But time is running out. The impending storm signals the dark prophecy Timotheus warned her about. Her fate is written, and it includes none other than the rebel Jonas. When their paths collied, Jonas and Lucia must decide between blindly following their destiny or fighting for their own free will.
The battle for power culminates at the Paelsian palace, where Amara resides. Rain pours. Blood spills. And soon all will discover that the darkest magic comes at an even darker price.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 Stars
My Thoughts:
OH-EM-GEE. What a freaking ending that was. How, why, what???? This series has now taken on a whole new level of awesomeness. My poor babies…. what is going to happen to my precious, precious characters?? I guess we will have to sit back and find out!
Well there you have it! My Top 16 Books of 2016. What did you think? What were some of your favorite books of 2016? Let me know in the comments!
Until next time,
Books at Dawn 