Tag: popsugar2018

Review: Queen of Shadows (Throne of Glass #4)

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. MaasTitle: Queen of Shadows

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Series: Throne of Glass, #4

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Publication Date: September 1, 2015

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars)

The queen has returned.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she’s at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past…

She has embraced her identity as Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, she must fight.

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die for her. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen’s triumphant return.

The fourth volume in the New York Times bestselling series continues Celaena’s epic journey and builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.

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Review: This Fallen Prey (Rockton #3)

This Fallen Prey by Kelley ArmstrongTitle: This Fallen Prey

Author: Kelley Armstrong

Series: Rockton, #3

Genre: Mystery, Thriller

Publication Date: February 6, 2018

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars)

When Casey Duncan first arrived at Rockton, the off-the-grid, isolated community built as a haven for people running from their pasts, she had no idea what to expect. There are no cell phones, no internet, no mail, and no way of getting in or out without the town council’s approval. She certainly didn’t expect to become the town homicide detective. But, the very last thing she expected was for the council to drop a dangerous criminal into their midst without a plan to keep him imprisoned. And she never thought that she’d have to be responsible for him.

The longer Oliver Brady stays in town, the more people seem to die around him. When evidence begins piling up that someone inside Rockton is working as his accomplice, Casey races to figure out who exactly Brady is and what crimes he’s truly responsible for committing.

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Review: All the Beautiful Lies

image1 (10)Title: All the Beautiful Lies

Author: Peter Swanson

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction

Publication Date: April 3, 2018

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)

Harry Ackerson has always considered his stepmother Alice to be sexy and beautiful, in an “otherworldly” way. She has always been kind and attentive, if a little aloof in the last few years.

Days before his college graduation, Alice calls with shocking news. His father is dead and the police think it’s suicide. Devastated, Harry returns to his father’s home in Maine. There, he and Alice will help each other pick up of the pieces of their lives and uncover what happened to his father.

Shortly after he arrives, Harry meets a mysterious young woman named Grace McGowan. Though she claims to be new to the area, Harry begins to suspect that Grace may not be a complete stranger to his family. But she isn’t the only attractive woman taking an interest in Harry. The sensual Alice is also growing closer, coming on to him in an enticing, clearly sexual way.

Mesmerized by these two women, Harry finds himself falling deeper under their spell. Yet the closer he gets to them, the more isolated he feels, disoriented by a growing fear that both women are hiding dangerous—even deadly—secrets . . . and that neither one is telling the truth.

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Review: Force of Nature (Aaron Falk #2)

image1 (8)Title: Force of Nature

Author: Jane Harper

Series: Aaron Falk, #2

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction

Publication Date: February 6, 2018

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)

Five women go on a hike. Only four return. Jane Harper, the New York Times bestselling author of The Dry, asks: How well do you really know the people you work with?

When five colleagues are forced to go on a corporate retreat in the wilderness, they reluctantly pick up their backpacks and start walking down the muddy path.

But one of the women doesn’t come out of the woods. And each of her companions tells a slightly different story about what happened.

Federal Police Agent Aaron Falk has a keen interest in the whereabouts of the missing hiker. In an investigation that takes him deep into isolated forest, Falk discovers secrets lurking in the mountains, and a tangled web of personal and professional friendship, suspicion, and betrayal among the hikers. But did that lead to murder?

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Review: Daughter of the Pirate King

image1 (7)Title: Daughter of the Pirate King

Author: Trisha Levenseller

Series: Daughter of the Pirate King, #1

Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, YA, Fiction

Publication Date: February 28, 2017

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (3.5 stars)

There will be plenty of time for me to beat him soundly once I’ve gotten what I came for.

Sent on a mission to retrieve an ancient hidden map—the key to a legendary treasure trove—seventeen-year-old pirate captain Alosa deliberately allows herself to be captured by her enemies, giving her the perfect opportunity to search their ship.

More than a match for the ruthless pirate crew, Alosa has only one thing standing between her and the map: her captor, the unexpectedly clever and unfairly attractive first mate, Riden. But not to worry, for Alosa has a few tricks up her sleeve, and no lone pirate can stop the Daughter of the Pirate King.
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Review: The Favorite Sister

image1 (5)

Title: The Favorite Sister

Author: Jessica Knoll

Genre: Fiction, Drama, Mystery

Publication Date: May 15, 2018

Rating: ⭐️⭐️✨ (2.5 stars)

When five hyper-successful women agree to appear on a reality series set in New York City called Goal Diggers, the producers never expect the season will end in murder …

Brett’s the fan favorite. Tattooed and only twenty-seven, the meteoric success of her spin studio – and her recent engagement to her girlfriend – has made her the object of jealousy and vitriol from her castmates.

Kelly, Brett’s older sister and business partner, is the most recent recruit, dismissed as a hanger-on by veteran cast. The golden child growing up, she defers to Brett now—a role which requires her to protect their shocking secret.

Stephanie, the first black cast member and the oldest, is a successful bestselling author of erotic novels. There have long been whispers about her hot, non-working actor-husband and his wandering eye, but this season the focus is on the rift that has opened between her and Brett, former best friends – and resentment soon breeds contempt.

Lauren, the start-up world’s darling whose drinking has gotten out of control, is Goal Diggers’ recovery narrative – everyone loves a comeback story.

And Jen, made rich and famous through her cultishly popular vegan food line plays a holistic hippie for the cameras, but is perhaps the most ruthless of them all when the cameras are off.

The Favorite Sister explores the invisible barriers that prevent women from rising up the ranks in today’s America—and offers a scathing take on the oft-lionized bonds of sisterhood, and the relentless pressure to stay young, relevant, and salable.

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Review: I See You

image1 (3)Title: I See You

Author: Clare Mackintosh

Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

Publication Date: July 28, 2016

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (3.5 stars)

It all starts during her commute home one night. Zoe Walker glances through her local paper and sees her own face staring back at her in a classified ad. With the grainy photo is a phone number and a listing for a website called FindTheOne.com.

In the following days, she sees other women in the same ad, a different one every day, and nearly all of them show up in the newspapers as victims of increasingly violent crimes–including murder.

With the help of a determined cop, Zoe uncovers the ad’s twisted purpose…And suddenly, the man on the train sitting across the car–the one smiling at Zoe–could be more than just a friendly stranger. He could be someone who has deliberately chosen her and is ready to make his next move…

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Review: All the Things We Never Knew

image1 (2)Title: All the Things We Never Knew

Author: Sheila Hamilton

Genre: Non Fiction, Mental Health, Memoir

Publication Date: January 24, 2017

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 stars)

I missed much of the unfolding of my husband’s mental illness. By the time I’d pieced together the puzzle of who David actually was, he was falling apart.

All the Things We Never Knew is the powerful true tale of Sheila Hamilton’s struggle to understand and cope with her husband’s mental illness and suicide and its effect on her family. With the brutal benefit of hindsight, Hamilton walks you through their tumultuous relationship in its entirety and into the difficult years following David’s choice to end his life.

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Popsugar Reading Challenge: 2018

I’m a tad late to the game in posting, but this year, I’m tackling the popular Popsugar Reading Challenge, which offers a varied 40 prompts, as well as 10 advanced prompts for overachievers. Even though I managed to sneak in a bunch of titles already in my TBR, I can tell that some of these are going to force me to stretch myself outside my reading comfort zone – and I couldn’t be happier!

If you’re anything like me, there’s an immense sense of satisfaction that comes from ticking off check boxes. I thought I’d turn that aspect of the challenge into something fun, too. I’ve been getting into the concept of bullet journaling lately because I wanted a less daunting way of tracking my fitness and diet routines as I prepare for fights. It’s a lot of fun and strangely relaxing, and if you haven’t heard of it before, I definitely recommend you check it out!

For the Popsugar challenge, I’ll be coloring the book spines as I go, so at the end of the year, I’ll have a unique souvenir of all the varied reading I did 🙂

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Review: This Is How It Always Is

This Is How It Always IsTitle: This Is How It Always Is

Author: Laurie Frankel

Genre: Fiction

Publication Date: January 24, 2017

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars)

“So these kids just get to pick who they are?” Frank searched for an apt metaphor and finally settled on, “It’s like a video game.”

“No, it’s like a fairy tale,” said Penn. Rosie rolled her eyes at him. “Maybe you look like a filthy scullery maid, but inside, you’re really a princess, and if you’re good, you find the right grave to cry on or the right lamp to rub, and you become a princess on the outside too.”

This Is How It Always Is is, without a doubt, one of the most emotional and important books I’ve ever read, and it’s going to resonate with me for a long, long time.

At its core, this is a story about family, about learning to embrace and celebrate change, and about fairy tales and how happily ever after might not exist … but that’s okay because it isn’t a happy ending you should be striving for, but a happy now.

There’s something instantly recognizable in the hectic Walsh-Adams family. The anecdotal nature of the storyline makes it easy to find something to connect with, whether it’s the challenges of parenthood or the endless frenzy of a bunch of siblings. Aspiring novelist Penn and resourceful doctor Rosie already bring diverse personalities to the table as parents, and the chaos of having four boys in the household creates an loving environment equal parts open and unpredictable. There’s surly Roo, precocious Ben, and the wild twins Orion and Rigel. And then, of course, there’s Claude.

When Claude begins to express his desire to grow up to be a girl, it’s refreshing how willingly his family embraces the idea and allows him to become Poppy. But the safe haven of their household can’t blanket the entire world, and closed minds and brushes with violence prompt the family to relocate to more liberal Seattle. Suddenly, the promise of a fresh start and the question of whose business is Poppy’s history anyways has the Walsh-Adams unintentionally keeping a secret that feels weightier and riskier with every year that passes. Until suddenly it’s not a secret anymore.

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