Weekly Roundup: 5th January 2020

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer, it's a chance to post a recap on the past week, show the books we have received and share what we plan for the coming week. Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality and the aim is to show our newest books and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops or downloaded on to their e-reader.

Update:

You know how sometimes life just gets away from you? 2019 was the year from hell for Ann and myself (if you follow us on Twitter you'll know some of why) and we've been really bad at blogging (and reading) as a result. But here at the beginning of 2020 I'm feeling hopeful and ready to plunge back into blogging.

Books We Got This Week:

What We Read:

Clare:

The Nadia Stafford Series by Kelley Armstrong: 4 stars, I'm a huge fan of Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series but I rarely venture into her non-paranormal reads which is a shame because as this series proves they're just as good. The romance was about as slow burn as it can get (although I really could've done without Quinn) and I found even the novellas to be compelling, which is rare for me because I usually just get frustrated when they're over too quickly. Nadia was a very compelling character and Jack was great.

A Darkness Absolute by Kelley Armstrong: 4 stars, Continuing with Armstrong, I read the second book in the Rockton series. I enjoyed it even more than the first (which I'll be honest I don't remember much of) and I'm now looking forward to continuing the series when I can!

Chill Factor by Sandra Brown: 3 stars, A weird one because my experience with Sandra Brown's books are strong on romance, weaker on mystery but this was the total opposite. The mystery kept me guessing throughout, the romance felt stale too quickly. Overall compelling.

A Dark Lure by Loreth Anne White: 4 stars, This was a tough one for me. As a survivor I try to be careful which books containing rape and sexual assault I read but this had such good reviews (deservedly so). The details of her kidnapping were sometimes too much for me but the story and the characters were so compelling that I was propelled through in one sitting. 

It might take us a while to get back into the swing of things but right now just taking joy in writing about books again feels incredible! So bear with us and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Sunday Post: WE'RE BACK (no really this time)

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer, it's a chance to post a recap on the past week, show the books we have received and share what we plan for the coming week. Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality and the aim is to show our newest books and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops or downloaded on to their e-reader.

Happy belated New Year everyone!! We have both been on a ridiculously long hiatus for personal reasons.Ann: I have taken a very long time of blogging and at first it was for exams and then some personal stuff happened that its taken me a while to come back from and I am still not 100%. On top of that, I have been having a lot of health problems currently with my spine(Scoliosis) and also my heart but I am coming back to blogging and I am very excited to get back into this! I am sorry I took so much time of but I am now back.
Clare: I have been taking time to focus on my mental health. I was recently diagnosed with PTSD (previously just called it anxiety) and I've finally been getting the right counselling for me which has been working wonders but has also left me permanently drained. Turns out talking in depth about the worst experience of your life is tough who knew huh?
But now we're both back and super excited to start blogging again. I'd like to apologise to all the books and authors and publishers whose reviews have been put on hold whilst I got my shit together! 


Now back to the fun stuff!! 

Books Clare Got This Week:

So obviously since AUGUST (yikes) we've got quite a lot more books! But who has time for that? So here are the books we got in just the last week (it's still a lot for a week)! 

 

These are all exciting books and I feel sorry for 5 of them because KING OF SCARS IS FINALLY HERE AND I DON'T CARE ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE! It may be my most anticipated book of the year and it may be the most beautiful physical book ever and it may be signed SIGNED. But these other books deserve attention to so...

This Splintered Silence looks kinda scary/fun which is definitely my thing at the moment, Overshare is also signed which is exciting because I love Rose and Rosie and their relationship, Playing for Keeps is the latest book in the Heartbreaker Bay series by Jill Shalvis - the whole series is freaking adorable and I love it, I'll be honest I bought Dragon Pearl primarily because of the cover combined with Rick Riordan Presents but it looks soooo good and A Curse So Dark and Lonely is a Beauty and the Beast retelling and Ann has already tried to steal it from my shelves! 

Next Week: 

• Ann Reviews: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
• Top 5 Wednesday! 
• Friday Reads

Sunday Post 22nd July 2018

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer, it's a chance to post a recap on the past week, show the books we have received and share what we plan for the coming week. Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality and the aim is to show our newest books and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops or downloaded on to their e-reader.

In just four short days Ann and I will be on a train heading to London for this years YALC! We had so much fun there last year and are both excited to go back (although also terrified - but when aren't we?), we will be vlogging as much of it as we can so keep an eye on our YouTube Channel for that. If you're also going to be at YALC let me know so we can freak out together! 

Last Week:

• Bite Size Fiction: Our Favourite Short Stories and Novellas
• Owl Crate Unboxing July

Books We Got This Week:

I cant even decide which of these I am most excited for. Possibly Campfire? I love horror movies and I am forever looking for books that grab me the same way. I've never yet found one though so hopefully this will be it! Competence I am also crazy excited for because I adore Gail Carriger and I love these characters so much. 

Reading Update:

And I Darken by Kiersten White: 4 stars, I wasn't as blown away by this as I wanted to be. Nobody was quite as brutal as I wanted (although Lada in the first half of the book was incredible). But I didn't like any of the side characters and just wanted Lada and Radu to overthrow everyone together. I get the feeling that's not where the series goes though which is sad. 

Sunday Post 15th July 2018

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer, it's a chance to post a recap on the past week, show the books we have received and share what we plan for the coming week. Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality and the aim is to show our newest books and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops or downloaded on to their e-reader.

Last Week on the Blog:

• Ann Reviews: Daughter of the Siren Queen by Tricia Levenseller
• Series Review: The Young Elites by Marie Lu
• Storm Raven by K. Hanson
• Spellbook of the Lost and Found by Moira Fowley-Doyle

Books We Got This Week:

I'm technically on a book buying ban because we're off to YALC in under two weeks now and I will obviously be spending every penny I have up there! But I am buddy reading the And I Darken series so getting Bright We Burn was just sense!! 

Reading Update:

The Cactus by Sarah Haywood: 4 stars, My review for this will go up next week but I keep rewriting it because the more I think about it the more I love this book. The protagonist is unlike anyone I've read (or known) before and the whole tone is so unique and wonderful. 

Sunday Post 8th July 2018

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer, it's a chance to post a recap on the past week, show the books we have received and share what we plan for the coming week. Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and Reading Reality and the aim is to show our newest books and to see what everyone else received for review, borrowed from libraries, bought in bookshops or downloaded on to their e-reader.

Last Week on the Blog:

• Independence Realm by Kevin J. Bernadt
• The Beach Read We All Deserve - Alex Approximately by Jenn Bennet

Books We Got This Week:

  

The Favourite Sister by Jessica Knoll: I know basically nothing about this but sisters combined with reality television makes for a book I HAD to buy. It also looks like a very Halloween read so I might save it! 

My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows: I've already read this and was a bit disappointed to be honest. This was probably one of my biggest excitements of the year and I just got nothing much from it. 

The War in the Dark by Nick Setchfield: Oh boy am I excited for this. This was a total surprise when I got it in the post from Titan Books and I am so pumped. It's spies and Europe and gorgeousness and I will for sure be reading this very soon. 

 

Smoke in the Sun by Renee Ahdieh: I had a super stressful meeting this week so obviously I went to Waterstones beforehand to relax and found these two beauties. I haven't actually read Flame in the Mist yet but I am excited about this duology so already owned it and was just waiting for this to be released and now I can binge them!!!

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik: SIGNED!! One of my favourite authors, in a beautiful hardcover of one of my most anticipated for the year and it's signed. Obviously I bought it immediately. And my Mum who was with me did her best to join in with my excitement even though she was probably thinking more "oh god not more books". Sorry Mum - I love you! 

Beneath the Citadel by Destiny Soria: Received via Netgalley. I only just went on Netgalley because I only just became able to read kindle books again and I am so excited to have been approved for this one. It looks so dark and intriguing! 

Reading Update:

 

The Young Elites/The Rose Society/The Midnight Star by Marie Lu: I still haven't fully decided on my ratings for any of these so I'm not going to risk it. Basically, I loved the first two but felt very disappointed by the third. I will have a series review of these going up next week, which I am excited for (maybe by then I will actually have decided how I feel??).

   

Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett: 4 stars, I've read and reviewed this (review linked above posted on The Regal Critiques). It was fun and sweet with a lovely romance and a very, very summery plot. 

My Plain Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows: 2.5 stars, I already mentioned how disappointed I was with this. I buddy read it with my wonderful co-blogger Vera who posted a review for it yesterday here which you should check out! 

Queen by Josephine Boyce: 3.5 stars, This was a super dark, super intriguing novella. I really wish it had been a full length novel because I feel like there was more there to explore but I was so happy with the direction the story went in. 

 

Rebellion by Josephine Boyce: 3 stars, I liked this less than Queen. At first I loved it, the concept and the world creation were brilliant. But it was spoiled slightly by a badly handled sexual assault sub-plot which I found enormously triggering both the event and the way some of the characters reacted afterwards. 

Independence Realm by Kevin J. Bernadt: 3.5 stars, This was a good start to a series. My review is linked above. It lacked polish but the characters and story were entertaining and I definitely want more.

Spellbook of the Lost and Found by Moira Fowley- Doyle: 4 stars, This was so beautifully written and I did enjoy the story a lot. I wish I'd felt more connection at the beginning of the novel but by the end I was fully invested.