August Wrap-Up

Can someone please tell me where August went? Over here the weather is already bad and rainy so it’s like autumn came in the blink of an eye and decided to stay. Which isn’t nice! I mean I love autumn and spring but I want at least a couple of nice days before it gets all wet and rainy. *lol* Anyway! Let’s get back on track!

So the good news is that my physical therapy is over now, the bad news is that I’m afraid it won’t last for all too long. I’m trying my best to do the excercises they showed me and I’m careful with my body but even this morning I woke up with pain so yeah… it won’t be easy to maintain an excercise routine without the pressure of doing so. Put work, my family and my kid into the mix and you have the … well salad. *lol* As for my reading. I was very ambitious and hoped that I’d read more in August but in the end I was too busy with other things and once again only managed to read 4 books.

The fact I have to get up at 5 a.m in order to get to work cretainly didn’t help to motivate me to read at night. XD Truth be told, I was glad when I managed to watch TV and didn’t fall asleep. Haha! For some reason reading makes me more tired than watching a k-drama with English subtitles. I still don’t get why my brain has no trouble to follow k-dramas but just can’t seem to manage to read a couple of sentences without getting tired. If you know why I’m like that please TELL ME, because I have no explanation for it. *lol* But enough of k-dramas and back to the books I read! ;-P

Books read: 4 (4 books & 0 webcomic, Still not overwhelming but better than nothing. September will be my reading month! I know it. *lol*)

Pages read: 1.639 (The four books I read had plenty of pages so I’m okay with this.)

Average rating: 4,13 (Not bad, considering I totally read out of my comfort zone.  )

Books that were on my reading list: 0 ( 0 from 2019, 0 from 2020 and 1 from 2021. Well, at least one of them was from my TBR! XD)

August Reads:

       

Sawkill Girls:

This book came as a total surprise! I rarely read in the genre of horror but „Sawkill Girls“  was all over my feed and I got super curious about it. Looking at it in retrospective I’m so glad I picked this up because this book doesn’t only have strong friendships and even stronger girls but also challenges misogyny. Plus the icing on the cake: It was diverse and had good LGBTQ+ reps! Considering all this „Sawkill Girls“ had me hooked and I paged through it in no time. 😉 (This said, please read the trigger warnings in my review first before you decide to pick it up.)

The Raven King:

And here comes another book I loved to bits and pieces! I have no idea what it is about this series but whenever I start one of its books I just can’t stop to read it. It’s like some sort of addiction and I live and breathe for Neil Josten and Andrew Minyard! ❤ Those two boys will be the death of me! I swear! Especially with all the things that happened in this book! This book broke and killed me and urgh! T_T I just want my babies to be happy! *sniff*

One of Us Is Next:

It was so good to see Bronwyn, Cooper, Nate and Ash again! Of course they aren’t the MCs in here but they are side-characters and this made the entire book even more enjoyable! XD Plus Maeve, Knox and Phoebe were pretty cool MCs as well! I really loved to guess the culprit and I got about 50% right. The other 50% I would have never been able to discover so yeah. *lol* This was fun and I’ll definitely watch out for McManus’s next book.

The Eleven: ,5

I got a review copy from Paul Gaskill himself and wanted to read this for ages but never got to it. (I’m a horrible person and book reviewer and I promise improvement! XD) This time I was finally able to tackle it though and „The Eleven“ turned out to be a great dark fantasy book. Be aware of the trigger warnings though, some scenes were pretty graphic and hard to stomach. At least for me they were. I’ll make sure to write a proper review about this soon so that you know what you’re getting yourself into. 😉

How was your August? Was it over way too fast too? How is the weather over at your place? (Hopefully better than over here…) Did you read many books in August and if yes, which ones? And the most important question: Does any of you know why I have no problem to follow k-dramas with English subtitles but can’t even focus on reading a single sentence at night? *lol* The struggle is real, my friends!!! T_T So yep!

Talk to me and let me know! 

And as always take care and stay healthy and safe!

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

July Wrap-Up

How was my July? Good question. To be entirely honest July passed so quickly it’s like it began and was over in the blink of an eye. I was so busy, I have no idea how I even survived this month. *lol* We were 2 co-workers short at work so I had to commute every day, then commuted back to pick up my kid, went home and during the evenings I went to physical therapy. To say it was A LOT to handle wouldn’t even get close to the truth so yeah, it was … exhausting.

I basically fell asleep on my sofa and dragged myself to bed when I startled out of my sleep. Which is definitely not healthy. *lol* How come something that is supposed to be good for me was actually causing me even more stress? XD Anyway, let’s not overthink this. The bottom line is that I was so tired in July that I quite literally slept with my eyes open. (another thing the amazing Kim Taehyung and I seem to have in common. *lol* But seriously, our sleeping habits are uncannily similar… at least when everything you hear in interviews is true.)

So yeah, my exhaustion was no joke and it’s the reason why I only managed to read four books. Truth be told, I’m amazed I even managed to read those four. The good news is that I’m on vacation now and that I’ll use it to catch up on my reading. I really hope to finish HP 5 and one of my review copies soon. (Why do I always start so many huge books at the same time?) And before I continue to speak about the books I want to read, I’ll just talk about the four books I actually managed to read in July. ;-P

Books read: 4 (4 books & 0 webcomic, guess it’s obvious that I was pretty busy in July. >_< )

Pages read: 1.568 (Not all too much but I’m okay with it.)

Average rating: 4,13 (Even though I only read 4 books those 4 were actually pretty great. 😀 )

Books that were on my reading list: 2 ( 0 from 2019, 1 from 2020 and 1 from 2021. Is it just me or am I getting better at holding to my TBR? *lol*)

July Reads:

       

If This Gets Out: ,5

I was so lucky to get an ARC of this and it was probably the best ARC I ever got from NetGalley. ❤ No kidding, I’m serious! The entire concept of the book with two boys from a boy band that fall in love behind the scenes was just amazing and then the two authors even tackled a lot of serious topics as well. Hands down one of the best ARCs I ever read! I really want a lot of people to read this! So if you are part of a fandom, love music, enjoy your books with a good LGBTQ+ rep and want to read about the music industry and mental health topics:  Just go for it!! XD (Especially you Taekooker’s out there!!! *lol*) I rated this 5 stars on GR and NetGalley and gave it 4,5 paws on here because I really would have loved the ending to be a little bit less abrupt … or well, I just wanted more of the story after.

I Wish You All the Best:

I think this was the first book I ever read that had a non-binary MC and since I’ve been dying to read this since 2019 I was really happy I finally tackled „I Wish You All the Best“. Ben was a really interesting character but the many things they had to deal with were just… a lot! Thankfully they had an amazing sister and awesome friends that helped them through the tough times. Not to mention the wonderful and precious Nathan Allan who is one hell of a cinnamon roll! ❤

Cress:

This was already book 3 of „The Lunar Chronicles“ and I enjoyed it immsensely! Cress and Thorne were so adorable and there happened so many things that my mind is still reeling! I really need to get to book 4 soon beause ahhh!! I just need to know how it will end! XD Cinder and Kai gave me life and I just want to have more of them in the next book. Plus I’m very curious about Winter and Jacin. Those two seem to be quite an interesting couple. Let’s hope I’ll be able to tackle „Winter“ soon!

Champion:

I finished this book about 2 weeks ago but I’m still not over the freaking ending!!! LIKE AHHHH! How could you do this to me Marie Lu???!!! Her endings always kill me and this one was no exception to the rule! Like it’s hopeful but at the same time it breaks your freaking heart and leaves you bleeding all over the place! GAH! I need to read „Rebel“ and there better be fluffy and sweet and happy moments!!! *dies*

How was your July? Were you exhausted too? Did you ever have to go through physical therapy and if yes did it help you? I can dance again so I take that as a win. XD How was the weather over at your place? In Austria it was super hot and we survived about 3 heat waves already. Did you read a lot of books and if yes which ones?

Talk to me and let me know! 

And as always take care and stay healthy and safe!

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

June Wrap-Up

You don’t even want to know what kind of health troubles I had during June so I’ll just say that it sucked and that I hope it will get better with physical therapy soon. *lol* So this said I’ll only speak about postive things in my monthly wrap up because quite honestly there are enough bad things happening in the world. 

If you have been following my blog you’ll know that I’ve become addicted to k-dramas and I regret absolutely nothing! They are amazing and I can’t get enough of them. If you have some tips for good k-dramas don’t hesitate and drop me a comment, I’m always looking for new ones. ;-P What else good happened in June? Well, with July 1st our one-metres distance rule dropped and I was finally able to hug my bestie without getting weird looks from people on the street. XD And you can bet I hugged the hell out of her. We’re like Taekook when it comes to hugs and cuddles. *lol*

Also we ate Running Sushi together and I was so happy to be able to spend so much time with her! ❤ I really hope things will be more normal again this summer. XD And last but not least I hit the 100 subscribers mark on my BookTube channel and I was so damn happy I can’t even! I’m currently collecting questions for a Q&A video so if you ever wanted to ask me something bookish or otherwise now’s your chance! You can write your questions into the comments and I’ll include them in the video! 😉

This all off my chest let’s finally head to my monthly wrap-up! 

Books read: 5 (5 books & 0 webcomic, not my best month but also not my worst. *lol*)

Pages read:  1.740 (I’m okay with that number, it’s not all too high but I can live with it.)

Average rating: 3,70 (The pickiness continues OR pickiness pt.2. ;-P )

Books that were on my reading list: 2 (0 from 2020 and 2 from 2021. Despite everything I’m pretty good with my TBR 2021. Guess I learned from former years.)

June Reads:

         

   

Caraval:

It took me four years to get to this book and I can’t help but wonder why?! This was great and I totally loved it! I can’t really compare it to „The Night Circus“ but it kind of gave me „The Starless Sea“ vibes?! *lol* Scarlett and Julian were interesting characters but if I’m totally honest I can’t wait to read about Tella and Legend! *lol* I’m so ready to dive into book two and I’m pretty sure it will be amazing! 

You’ve Reached Sam:

I got this book as an ARC from NetGalley when they had it on the „read now“ option and even though I liked the different grief reps and the overall plot there were some things that could have gone more smoothly. Still, for a debut novel this was great and I’ll definitely watch out for Dustin Thao’s next book! Dustin is still a young author and I’m sure he’ll improve so I’m really looking forward to his next book! =)

Sleeping Giants:

Now this book came as a surprise! *lol* I couldn’t get the „ornate metal hand“ out of my mind and therefore finally decided to tackle „Sleeping Giants“. And let me tell you: THIS WAS GREAT! I think this book might have gotten me back into sci-fi and I’m so damn curious where this is series is heading! The characters were great and had a healthy dose of sarcasm and black humour so that was fun! Also the writing style in form of diary entries, interviews and telephone calls was something rather untypical as well and I really enjoyed it. 😉

Superman: , 5

From all the DC Icons books I read so far this was probably the weakest but I don’t think this is Matt de la Pena’s fault! He did a really great job at writing Superman’s/Clark Kent’s character but unfortunately I was never a huge Superman fan. He’s too perfect and good for me and I just prefer anti heroes or at least heroes that are all shades of gray. *lol* Still, for a Superman book this was pretty suspenseful near the end! So kudos for that! 

Tweet Cute:

This was super adorable and I had such a huge smile on my face whenever I read it! ❤ I loved the Twitter war and both MCs! Jack and Pepper were quite something and I lived and breathed for their interactions! *lol* If I’d have to describe this book in short I’d probably say that it’s a modern frenemies to lovers story. ;-P If you want something cute and easy to read just go for it!

How was your June? Was it full of k-dramas as well or did you watch something different and if yes which kind of tv shows do you watch? =) Are you allowed to be close to your loved ones again as well or is your country still in lockdown? Which kind of books did you read last month? Do you have some intersting questions for me? 

Talk to me and let me know! 

And as always take care and stay healthy and safe!

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

May Wrap-Up

At the risk of repeating myself, May was another month my health wasn’t at its best. Tbh it feels like my body is putting me through a lot of trouble and I have no idea how I’m supposed to make it better. At the beginning of May my gums hurt so much that I had a sleepless night and went to the dentist the next day… Well, what can I say? My hurting gums turned into a full blown root canal therapy and for two weeks I was in immense pain. It’s better now but I’m still not done with the therapy and there are days it still hurts.

Well, and if that wouldn’t have been enough already a vein in my left eye burst and I looked like one of the zombies in „28 Weeks Later“. *lol* My eye is still red while I’m typing this and I really hope it will look better soon because it certainly doesn’t look nice on my BookTube video and kids apparently get scared by it. XD But that’s a story for another day. *lol* So yeah, the show must go on and I tried everything possible to keep my blog and BookTube running.

Aside from all the health troubles this May was also very cold and wet. Not that we could have done a lot because our country was still in lockdown until May 19th, but the fact the weather also sucked certainly did nothing to improve my mood. I just hope June will be more sunny and that all those health troubles will be behind me soon. For some reason my reading wasn’t affected as much as I thought it would be so I actually managed to read 6 books which I consider to be a lot under those circumstances. *lol* So if I’m already talking about books I might as well jump right into my monthly wrap-up, right? ;-P

Books read: 6 (6 books & 0 webcomic, one book more than last month and most of them were around 300 – 500 pages so that’s good!)

Pages read:  2.187 (This is definitely a better number than last month. *lol*)

Average rating: 3,75 (Is it just me or did I get picky lately? XD)

Books that were on my reading list:  5 (1 from 2019, 1 from 2020 and 3 from 2021. I’m kinda impressed I actually read books from all of my 3 book lists. *lol*)

May Reads:

          

        

King of Scars:

This book was not what I expected but it definitely surprised me! *lol* At first it was very slow and we got to know about the current state of Ravka and all the troubles the characters are facing and halfway into the book the plot took a totally unexpected turn and I was trying to keep up with it. XD So even though I really enjoyed „King of Scars“ it didn’t qualify to get all 5 paws from me. (I told you I’m getting picky. ;-P) Still, I can’t wait to read „Rule of Wolves“ and to see what is going to happen next, because quite honestly that ending THREW ME!!!

On the Come Up: , 5

I really enjoyed „On the Come Up“ and I loved to see Bri’s thought process and the way she came up with those amazing rap lines. =) It reminded me a lot of my own thoughts when I write my poetry so this was great. I guess the only problem I had with this book is that I couldn’t really relate to Bri and her actions and that took away some of my enjoyment. If you want to know more about why this got 3,5 paws from me you can read my entire review: here!

Broken Throne:

For a colletion of short stories this was pretty good. Some of them got 4 paws from me but others didn’t really do it for me so a 3 paw rating it is. (Yep, I’m definitely getting picky lately. *lol*) „Queen Song“, „World Behind“ and „Fire Light“ were definitely my three favourites. I was really sad there wasn’t more Maven in this and I definitely would have wished for… well, just more! *sighs* There would have been a lot of potential and just like in „War Storm“ it wasn’t used. =(

The Queen of Nothing:

And here we go with another book that surprised me! *lol* Seriously some of the plot twist in here hit me like a bucket of ice cold water. Like seriously! WTH? Haha! I still loved it though and was happy with the way this trilogy ended. Plus, I’ll always ship Cardan and Jude. Those two are the perfect enemies-to-lovers trope couple and the entire faerie aspect of twisting words and court intrigues only made me love this even more. ❤

The Ash-Born Boy:

I wanted to read this right after I read „The Near Witch“ but of course it took me a while to get to it. XD „The Ash-Born Boy“ was a nice addition to the main story and it was really good to finally get to know Cole a little bit better. I was very curious about his past and finally got some answers. I already suspected a lot of the things that were a part of this story, but others surprised me. A great short story if you want to know more about Cole. 😉

White Hot Kiss:

This was a reread and I paged through it as fast as I did when I read it for the very first time. *lol* So yes, I still love this and Roth and Layla are amazing! ❤ What I like about this book is that it’s about demons and wardens (which are some sort of gargoyles) and their war against each other. So this is a rather new concept for a YA book series and I really enjoyed that! Also how could I resist Roth’s charm? That boy is made of awesomesauce! XD

How was your May? Was it as wet and cold as mine? Did you read any of the books I read and if yes did you enjoy them? Am I the only one who’s turning into a zombie with a toothache and a red eye? *lol*

Talk to me and let me know! 😉

And as always take care and stay healthy and safe!

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

April Wrap-Up

I guess April must have been the worst reading month ever because I can’t remember a single time I only managed to read 4 books in an entire month. *lol* I guess my bad health and trying to function like a normal human being eventually took its toll on me. >_< Not being able to breathe properly causes me to be exhausted and between giving 100% at work, doing household chores and taking care of my kid I was too tired to read at night.

The fact that I’m currently reading 6 books that all have more than 300+ pages („A Court of Silver Flame“ even has 757) certainly didn’t help to finish them either. *lol* So yeah, my reading suffered and I fell in some sort of involuntary reading slump. (Is a reading slump ever voluntary? XD) I can only hope that my appointment at the docs will help to get my health under control… well either this or that all those pollen finally cease to fly around like there’s no tomorrow. >_<

I still managed to maintain my BookTube channel and my blog though so there’s that! Also if any of you enjoy my BookTube channel please make sure to spread your positive energy over there as well! =) I’m not gonna lie, sometimes it feels pretty lonely on BookTube and even though I try to engage with other YouTubers it’s not easy to become a part of that close-knit group. Guess that’s the reason why I’m usually steering clear of social media and stick to goodreads and wordpress instead. Why did I start a YouTube channel again? *lol*

Anyway! Let’s talk about the good things of life and spread postive vibes by talking about the few books I manged to read in April!

Books read: 4 (4 books & 0 webcomic, I really hope I’ll read more in May again. Four books is a personal low. *lol*)

Pages read:  1.553 (Those books were all pretty short so the page count isn’t very high this time around.)

Average rating: 4,0 (I might have read only four books but they were all great in their own way so the rating was actually pretty high. =)

Books that were on my reading list:  2 (2 from 2020 and 0 from 2021. I tried to work off a couple of books from my TBR 2020. ;-P )

April Reads:

          

Wicked Lovely:

This book series will always be among my favourites and I’ll never get tired of speaking about it. Melissa Marr wrote ruthless and cunning faeries long before Sarah J. Maas and Holly Black did so this was the first faerie series I ever read. And it totally got me hooked on faeries. I’ll be forever grateful I stumbled upon it in my library. XD „Wicked Lovely“ is the first book in the series and a really slow read, the series picks up pace in the other books though. If you want to read my full review you can do it here! ;-P

Jack of Hearts (And Other Parts):

What a great LGBTQ+ book! The cast was diverse, the story line intriguing and the mystery element more than just compelling! Moreover this is finally a YA book that doesn’t shy away from speaking the truth about being intimate with each other. Jack’s voice is blunt, honest and straightforward. His advice is great and I think every teen should read this book! „Jack of Hearts“ was super realistic and didn’t romanticize sex the way YA novels usually do so that was great! If you want to know more just read my review!

Serpent & Dove:

I read this as a love story and not as a fantasy book because a lot of people warned me that the focus is on the romance. Thankfully I got that warning because if I’d have read it as a fantasy book I might have been disappointed. If given a chance the world building could be really interesting and I hope the author will explore it in the second book. The great idea is there it just needs to be brought to life. 😉 Also this felt pretty insta-lovey to me even though we’re dealing with the enemies-to-lovers trope so mhmm… I wasn’t an all too big fan of that sudden love. *lol*

The Near Witch:

This was such a great debut novel and I loved to read it! Schwab can do mysterious, magical and atmospheric we all know that. I just didn’t know she can do poetic too. XD Well, after reading this I finally know and I’m so glad I picked this up and gave „The Near Witch“ a chance. =) It’s always interesting to see where an author started and as expected this was a great beginning for an amazing career.

How was your April? Did you read more books than I did? (I hope you did! *lol*) Were you in a reading slump as well? Are you on BookTube? Which books did you read and did you love them? Can you recommend them?

Talk to me and let me know! 😉

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

March Wrap-Up

Well, March was definitely not my month. *lol* I barely managed to read anything and my health was basically non-existent for about two weeks. Some of you might already know that I have asthma because I’m pretty certain I already wrote about it in one of my former blog posts and this year it was acting up big time again. In the middle of March I could barely breathe and every single breath was an effort, well and then I had some sort of anaphylactic shock because apparently I ate something wrong and from there on out things only got even worse. >_< I got a respiratory tract infection on top of everything else and was knocked out for two weeks straight.

It was so bad I actually didn’t leave my flat for those two mentioned weeks and spent my days just sleeping and doing nothing. At the end I could at least watch Netflix, but it took me really long to be healthy enough to read again. So yeah, my reading suffered and my new BookTube channel collected some dust. XD Thankfully the subscribers I already had didn’t desert me and just patiently waited for more content. *lol* If you’re one of them and reading this now: THANK YOU SO MUCH!! ❤  I think the only reason my blog didn’t suffer was because I always write my blog post at least 2 weeks in advance … I did struggle when I got back though. I had no more blog posts and still didn’t feel well enough to write new ones. Somehow it still worked out, don’t ask me how because I really don’t know! Haha!

I’m really sorry if I missed some of your blog posts and I’ll definitely make sure to catch up on everything! I’m currently taking my asthma spray each day so that it won’t act up again and I went back to work as well. Let’s hope it will never get this bad again. XD This said let’s talk about the 5 books I actually DID manage to read! *lol* ;-P

Books read: 5 (5 books & 0 webcomic, Considering the month I had 5 books is actually an achievement. *lol*)

Pages read:  2.527 (I finally finished „Darkdawn“ and „Crescent City“ so that’s why the page number is so high.)

Average rating: 4,4 (I’m not surprised about this rating because the books were all great!)

Books that were on my reading list:  3 (0 from 2020 and 3 from 2021. Finally a month in which I actually read books from my 2021 book list! *lol*)

March Reads:

           

 

     

 

Darkdawn:

 

I really enjoyed the final book in this trilogy, especially because it was a buddy read with my Yoongi! ❤ Unfortunately the ending was a little bit too much for my taste and even though we finally got some answers „Darkdawn“ wasn’t as good as the other two books. I wasn’t happy about how things ended and after everything Mia went through I really wished for idk… more closure. A different kind of closure? *lol* I still can’t put my finger on it. All I know is that I didn’t like the ending and a certain someone! XD Yoongi, you know who I mean! Haha! ;-P

 

Heartstopper:

 

I love this comic series and I’ll always love it until the day I die. Am I exaggerating? Nope! Never! It’s really such a great series and Alice Oseman knows exactly what she’s doing. I love all the diversity, the relatable characters, the many LGBTQ+ reps, the strong friendships, the different troubles and the fact that the sibilings and parents actually care about the MCs! This is such a heartwarming comfort read and I can recommend it to everyone! If you crave to read something wholesome: This is the right choice for you! 

 

Beach Read:

 

This book totally surprised me and definitely wasn’t what I expected it to be! It was really great though and despite the very serious topics that were tackled it was still an enjoyable read and I paged through it in no time. January and August were a great couple and I loved the little snippets we got of the real life of authors. XD Also I think Emily Henry named them January and August not only to give them both month names but also to emphasize how different they are. *lol* Smooth move! XD

 

House of Eart and Blood:

 

 

This book was one hell of a ride and even though the real action only started after page 500 it was still amazing! I loved to get to know this world and all the different houses and hierarchies within it. This was well thought-out and I adored all the strong friendships and bonds between the characters. ❤ Also the slow-burn that started as a friendship and with time turned into more was great! We definitely need more books like that! My full review will be up on here soon! 😉 

Dead Beat:

 

 

I think this was one of the best Dresden Files books so far! I mean there were necromancers, vampires, fallen angels, a little bit of faeries and of course Thomas, Harry’s dog and Bob the skull! XD What’s not to love? *lol* This series is definitely getting darker and darker with every new book though and I’m kind of curious where Butcher will go with Harry’s character. Considering this was only book 7 it seems like I’ve a lot to look forward to. And tell you what? I’m ready. *lol*

 

 

How was your March? Did you read many books and if yes were they good? 🙂 Are you allergic too or am I the only one who’s suffering in spring? What have you been up to in March? Were you able to go out and to enjoy the nice weather or is your country in another lockdown like mine? XD

Talk to me and let me know! 😉

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

 

February Wrap-Up

It’s kind of shocking how little I managed to read in February. >_< You could say it’s because it’s the shortest month of the year, but since it’s only 2 days shorter than other months that doesn’t really count. XD I think my lack of reading time had other reasons, one of them me being just busy with well… life. Work has kept me pretty occupied those last couple of weeks and whenver I got home I had to take care of my kid and do house work which basically resulted in me crashing on my sofa every night. *lol* Come to think of it, it’s some sort of miracle I actually managed to read some pages. 😛

Despite my rather busy life I also made the decision to actually go for my own BookTube channel and after years and years of pondering the idea I spoke with my sister and brother-in-law when we celebrated my birthday (yes, my birthday was in February and even though we celebrated 2 weeks too late we still did. *lol*) and they were so enthusiastic about it that I decided to just go for it. Without their support I probably would have never gone for it, but the opinion from people that know me in real life and grew up with me finally persuaded me to make the leap.

Well, their support and the countless comments of my GR friends that gave me enough energy to tackle this project! Seriously, I don’t know where I would be without you guys, I’ve come such a long way from my first review and some of you were with me every step of the way. ❤ I always say that the bookish community is the most supportive community I know and I stand by it! You guys are amazing and all such lovely human beings! XD It’s a privilege and and honor to be a part of this community and I’m grateful every day. 

And before I get really sappy here I’ll just say one more thing and head right to my Wrap-Up: Feel loved because you are! ❤

Books read: 5 (5 books & 0 webcomic, Okay, one of them was a short story but it still counts. ;-P )

Pages read:  1.275 (In comparison to January that’s kinda pathetic *lol* but I just didn’t manage to finish the huge books and they’ll all fall into March instead. So I guess I can live with this.)

Average rating: 4,2 (The quality of the few books I actually DID manage to read was great. XD)

Books that were on my reading list:  2 (0 from 2020 and 2 from 2021. It looks like a good start for My Book List 2021. 😉 )

February Reads:

          

 

     

 

Scarlet:

This was already book 2 of „The Lunar Chronicles“ and this series only seems to get better with every book. I loved that we got to see Cinder’s storyline as well as Scarlet’s and Wolf’s. Scarlet was such a strong character and it’s kind of obvious Marissa Meyer loves to write about strong female leads. This said Wolf’s story was pretty intriguing as well. Plus we got to see a little bit of Thorne and Kai! XD I’m really curious about „Cress“ now because almost everyone says it’s the best book in the entire series. I can’t wait to see what will happen next. *lol* If you want to read my full review you can do it: here!

I Was Born for This:

I absolutely loved and adored this book!! ❤ Like seriously, all the paws and even more!!! Alice Oseman is such a great writer and she captures the voice of young people so well! If you’re a k-pop (or BTS) fan, make music yourself, blog about the things you’re passionate about, well then this is the perfect book for you! I could relate to almost all of the characters and to read this made me so damn happy! XD I already wish I could read this for the first time again. Haha!

The Queen’s Army:

 

 

Now this was a really informative short story about Wolf’s history and how he ended up in Queen Levana’s army. It was nice to find out about what happened before he met Scarlet and to get a glimpse at what Levana is doing to her own people. That woman is horrible, I tell you! So yeah, if you want to get some background about everything that happens under Levana’s reign (and why she definitely shouldn’t become Kai’s wife), I can really recommend this short story. 😉 

Dear Martin:

 

This was a really powerful book and I think everyone should read it! From the issues that were tackled it’s rather close to „The Hate U Give“ but they both had different approaches and each of them is important in its own way. „Dear Martin“ was definitely a book that made me think and I want to emphasize its importance! Because no matter who you are or what skin colour you have, what you do and how you deal with problems is what makes you you! Don’t close your eyes to injustice, open them and try to make this a better world! #BlackLivesMatter

 

Ten Tales of a Dark Tomorrow:

 

This was my second book of Kevin A. Kuhn and I gotta say it was so much fun to read! „Ten Tales of a Dark Tomorrow“ is a short story collection that’s inspired by the original „Twilight Zone“ series and let me tell you this: Those science fiction stories weren’t only different but also very enjoyable to read. XD Some of them made me shudder, others caused me to think and some of them were even amusing. So if you’re looking for a sci-fi short story collection: What are you waiting for? *lol*

 

How was your February? Did you read more than me? (I hope you did! *lol*) Is work keeping you busy as well? And am I the only one who crashes on the sofa after a tough day? XD How are you doing and what have you been up to? Is the Covid-19 situation getting better at your place? What do you think about my BookTube channel project? (I promise I’ll try my best to make it work)

Talk to me and let me know! 😉

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

 

January Wrap-Up

So far 2021 started good and because I don’t want to tempt fate I’ll just knock on wood now. *knocks on wood* Okay, better! *lol* For me January was some weird mixture of stress and relief. Stress because at first to balance work and my kid was quite a challenge and relief because there actually was an end in sight. XD Last year I mentioned that I increased my working hours and for a while this was going good but now I’m really happy to say that I reduced them again.

And tell you what? I didn’t even realize how tough those last months were and how stressed out I actually was. I suddenly have a little bit more time to breathe and it makes all the difference! 😀 Well, that and the fact that our circumstances changed as well. So I’m really grateful for all those changes because they make life so much easier to deal with. *lol* There I’m finally positive again!!

That my birthday is soon might help as well and the fact that I’ll even be able to see my parents in person! Since February the 8th it’s allowed to meet another household and you bet that I’ll meet my parents on my birthday. Of course I’ll keep my distance but still. Just to see them in person after 7 weeks will be the best present ever. ❤ And speaking of presents I’ll use my birthday coupons for a new winter coat and boots because they are both broken and due to lockdown I’ve been running around with a defective coat (damn that zipper *lol*) and boots that are made for autumn and spring. >_< (My snow boots died after many years. RIP. *lol*) Does anyone else have troubles buying things in lockdown times or is it just me? Especially when it comes to shoes and coats I just need to try them on first before I buy them…

But enough of dead clothes and back to the topic at hand! My monthly wrap-up!

Books read: 7 (7 books & 0 webcomic, I’m kind of impressed I managed to read 7 books, but I’m pretty sure it will be less in February.)

Pages read:  3.074 (Did I ever hit that number before? I think that’s a really high amount! XD)

Average rating: 3,71 (Rating wise this really wasn’t my best month but I’m sure February will be better again!)

Books that were on my reading list:  4 (1 from 2019 and 3 from 2020. YAY! I finally managed to finish some of my 2020 books! Don’t ask me about My Book List 2021 though. *lol*)

January Reads:

       

       

The Heir:

My bestie borrowed me this book before my country fell in an endless lockdown so I figured I might as well pick it up. *lol* I really enjoyed the Selection trilogy and I thought why not give America’s daughter a chance? Well, I guess my rating says it all. I mean there’s something to be said about the sweet guys in this book (I really liked Henry, Eikko and Kile) but Eadlyn as the MC was horrible. She’s really not very likable and even though she has a slight character arc it just wasn’t enough for me. I might read the last book though, just to know how it all ends. (Let’s hope curiosity won’t kill the fox. ;-P )

The Delinquent Crown:

Sydney Faith was so kind to provide me with a free reading copy of her book and I had fun reading her story. A lot of readers classified it into the genre of YA but for me it rather fell into middle grade. There’s just something about the fast pacing and change of scenery, mixed with a lot of fantasy elements that made me think this would be a great book for a younger audience. Also the romance is really, really chaste. Aside from blushing and holding hands nothing happens. XD

The Mark of Athena:

I was warned that I’d regret starting this without having the next book at home, but my library was closed so I thought: Ahh, hell. Why not!? It won’t be THAT bad. XD Needless to say my after-The-Mark-of-Athena-me wanted to bite itself in its …. Well, you get the idea. *lol*  This was so good but very serious as well and I can’t wait to read the next book because that ending!! AHHHH!!!! *dies once again* You can read my full review here if you want. 😉

Elusion:

Okay, I’ll be honest here: This book was kind of crazy. *lol* Due to the prison setting it was extremely dark which wouldn’t have been all too bad if it wouldn’t have started to get slightly repetitive. About 50% of the book were torture, trying to fix wounds, experiencing new atrocities, lather, rinse, repeat. And after the 50% mark things got extremely … calm and it felt like I was reading an entirely different book than the one I started. I might be curious enough to give book 2 a try but I’m not convinced yet. For now I’ll just give myself some time to digest it. XD

The Wicked King:

I loved, LOVED, LOVED!!! this so much! ❤ Jude and Cardan are made of awesomesauce and I adore them both! Also I just about died whenever they had a scene together. Their love-hate relationship gives me life and I live and breathe for their conversations and… encounters. *lol* Also Cardan lounging on his throne is my new aesthetic and I’ll always think of him like that. ;-P If you’re not already fed up with me raving about „The Wicked King“ you can always read my super long review over: here!

A Curse So Dark and Lonely:

For a „The Beauty and the Beast“ retelling this was pretty good. 🙂 Just like ACOTAR it was kinda dark though and Lilith’s character was quite something to digest. Evil sorceress that she is she certainly falls into the extremely vicious and cruel category. Harper and Rhen were great characters but if you ask me Grey stole them both the show! Most definitely one of the best side-characters ever! ❤ So if you like TBATB retellings you should definitely give this one a try! It’s worth it! 😉

And I Darken:

Ahh where do I even start? For me „And I Darken“ was perfect. It’s historical fiction, it had lots of intrigues and schemes and what’s even more important: It had a great character cast! Lada and Radu were such well-thought-out and complex characters and their sibling dynamic is certainly one of a kind. I still don’t get why everyone loves Mehmed but that’s okay. *lol* Maybe he’ll surprise me in the next two books? Who knows? All I know is that I’ll definitely read them! I’m hooked! ;-P

How was your January? Did you have a good start into the new year? Is there anything that stresses you out? (Aside from your, no doubt, huge TBR for 2021? ;-P)  Am I really the only one who has troubles to get good clothes during lockdown? *lol* How are you doing and what did you read? Any new favourites I should know about?

Talk to me and let me know! 😉

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

December Wrap-Up

I don’t know about you but I’m kind of relieved 2020 is over and that we can start into a completely new year. 2021 has to be better than 2020 ever was because I finally want to be able to say something positive in my Wrap-Ups. *lol* December was… in many ways as shitty as all the other months of 2020 and on some days it was even worse so yeah. Add work and stress to the mix and you get an idea how bad it actually was. XD

Anyway! I won’t be negative and we need all the positivity we can get in order to start 2021 right so I’ll think about nice things! For instance the Christmas dinner with my family on the 24th. We only were allowed to meet up to 10 people on two days (the 24th & 25th) and I celebrated Christmas with my family on the 24th. It was so good to see them after almost two months and I’m just happy I could celebrate and eat dinner with them. ❤ I hope there will be more family dinners in 2021 again and I’m already looking forward to the summer when hopefully everything will get a little bit more normal again.

This said I was able to spend two weeks at home and it was amazing! I needed those two weeks off work and I’m so glad I could indulge in my hobbies. For instance I started to do Yoga again and I got super motivated to dance which is mostly due to BTS. They are all so amazing and they made me want to get back into dancing. I know I’ll never reach their level again (I actually was at their level before I injured my knee and added insult to injury with a muscle fibre rupture in my shoulder a couple of years ago. Yes I’m a wreck. *lol*) but just to dance makes me so damn happy and I’m basically glowing ever since I started to do it more often again. =) It brings me joy and heaven knows we need to grasp every thread of happiness we can get. So even though I can’t do things like the amazing ballet spin (Jungkook and Jimin did at the 2020 MMA’s) anymore, I’m still happy I can dance! 😀

And before I continue to gush about dancing I’ll just head to my Wrap-Up! *lol* So here we go:

Books read: 7 (7 books & 0 webcomic, At first it looked like I’d only read two books in December and then the holidays happened so 7 it is. XD)

Pages read:  2.698 (That’s a lot of pages because many of those books had more than 400 pages.)

Average rating: 4,00 (This seems to be a precision landing once again. *lol*)

Books that were on my reading list:  3 (0 from 2019 and 3 from 2020. Guess my efforts to read some of my 2020 books paid off in the end. 😉 )

December Reads:

            

         

Imagine Me: , 5

Everyone who read my review of „Imagine Me“ knows how bitter I felt about this book. >_< After the initial amazing trilogy and the great fourth and fifth book I expected something awesome or at least a worthy ending for such a long series. But all I got were even more questions and a half-baked plot that constantly made me want to … well puke. (at least the Juliette chapters) The only thing that saved this for me were Kenji and Warner and even those two weren’t enough. So: Nuh-uh! No, nopedy nope. T_T

Dear Evan Hansen:

I absolutely love the „Dear Evan Hansen“ soundtrack and I’ve been listening to it like crazy after I read the book. I can’t help but wonder if the musical and the book are the same though. In general this wasn’t a bad book but I kind of disliked that Evan lied so much and that it ultimately didn’t have all too many consequences for him. I don’t know if the musical is the same but all that lying made me feel really uncomfortable. Especially because he wasn’t called out on it. That’s just my opinion though. If you want to read my full review you can do it here!

House of Salt and Sorrows:

I absolutely adored this retelling of „The Worn-Out Dancing Shoes“ and for a debut this was amazing! =) The dark and eerie atmosphere of Highmoor was super creepy and I loved that this played on an island. I could almost taste the salt creeping into every corner of that manson by the sea and I lived and breathed for this haunted house. *lol* Truth be told this would have been a great Halloween read. XD

The Starless Sea:

This was AWESOME! Like seriously, an entirely different level of awesome! I loved this book so much and even though I know that it won’t be for everyone I can definitely say that it was perfect for me! 😉 I just loved everything about „The Starless Sea“ and I adore Erin Morgenstern’s imagination. It’s no wonder it always takes her so long to write her books but if that is what comes out of those many years I’ll accept the long wait without complaining. Such a masterpiece of storytelling. I just loved it! ❤

Teddy Spenser Isn’t Looking for Love:

I got this as an ARC from NetGalley and I enjoyed it a lot! XD I wanted a sweet rom-com and I got one with „Teddy Spenser Isn’t Looking for Love“. Of course some of the tasks they had to do in this book were kind of ridiculous but it definitely made for good entertainment. *lol* Also I loved that there was a pan rep in here! They are rare to find and it was nice to see one, though admittedly it could have been more pronounced. Still, if you want to escape reality for a few hours I can totally recommend this book! 😉

Godsgrave: ,5

Jay Kristoff managed to WOW me once again! This went in an entirely different direction than I expected but it was amazing nevertheless. I loved Mia’s character arc and that she started to question her decisions. And can we please appreciate all those plot twists I never saw coming? >_< Just amazing! I can’t wait to read „Darkdawn“ but I’ve to admit that I’m scared as hell. *lol* As long as Sabrina @ Notes From A Paper Plane Nomad is going to buddy read this with me as well I’ll be fine though. XD

Heartstopper:

When my library finally got this as a paperback I just couldn’t resist! I’ve been reading „Heartstopper“ for years as a webcomic but it felt really good to hold it in my hands and to turn the pages! =D Plus I finally had the time to look more at the details and to enjoy the drawings and facial expressions. This will always be one of my fave LGBTQ+ stories and Alice Oseman will always be one of my fave authors as well. ❤

How was your December? Did you have a roll over the holidays too? Did you eat too many cookies and spend your time at home as well? What about your New Year’s resolutions? Do you love to dance and are you a dancer as well? And most importantly are you ARMY too? *lol*

Talk to me and let me know! 😉

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

My Book List 2021

Hey there my lovelies! =)

In my „Top 15 of my bookish 2020“ blog post I mentioned that I would try to read 45 books this year and that there were only 40 on my list so far. I asked you for recommendations to fill in those last five blank spots and as always your suggestions were amazing! XD

I wrote them all down and put them into a bowl. Well, and then I pulled out 5 of them!  This said: Thank you so much for participating! I really appreciate all the time and effort you put into your answers and I hope you’ll find your recommendation at the end of the following list! ❤ (light cobalt blue colour) Also for the first time ever I put emojis next to the books in order to classify them for you. I think they are pretty self-explanatory but if you have questions what they mean you can always ask me in the comments! ;-P

So here I go:

1.) Us Against You – Fredrik Backman 

2.) La Belle Sauvage – Philip Pullman

3.) The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer – Michelle Hodkin

4.) Beach Read – Emily Henry

5.) The Republic of Thieves – Scott Lynch

6.) On the Come Up – Angie Thomas

7.) Cemetery Boys – Aiden Thomas

8.) Hunting Prince Dracula – Kerri Maniscalco

9.) A Gathering of Shadows – V.E. Schwab

10.) Camp – L.C. Rosen

11.) The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue – V.E. Schwab 

12.) Caraval – Stephanie Garber

13.) The Queen of Nothing – Holly Black

14.) Felix Ever After – Kacen Callender

15.) Scarlet – Marissa Meyer

16.) Champion – Marie Lu

17.) Daisy Jones & The Six – Taylor Jenkins Reid

18.) The House in the Cerulean Sea – T.J. Klune

19.) Darkdawn – Jay Kristoff

20.) The Silvered Serpents – Roshani Chokshi

21.) Clockwork Princess – Cassandra Clare (re-read) 

22.) The Voyages of Trueblood – Suanne Laqueur

23.) The Raven King – Nora Sakavic

24.) House of Earth and Blood – Sarah J. Maas

25.) The Burning God – R.F. Kuang

26.) One Last Stop – Casey McQuiston (release date: June 1st)

27.) A Court of Silver Flames – Sarah J. Maas (release date: February 16th)

28.) Dark Rise – C.S. Pacat (release date: October 5th)

29.) White Hot Kiss – Jennifer L. Armentrout (re-read)

30.)  The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet – Becky Chambers

31.)  All the Light We Cannot See – Anthony Doerr

32.) The Fever King – Victoria Lee

33.) We Are the Ants – Shaun David Hutchinson

34.) My Dark Vanessa – Kate Elizabeth Russell 

35.) The Guest List – Lucy Foley 

36.) Gideon the Ninth – Tamsyn Muir

37.) The Sun Down Motel – Simone St. James 

38.) Tweet Cute – Emma Lord

39.) Any Way the Wind Blows – Rainbow Rowell

40.) I Was Born for This – Alice Oseman

41.) Set Fire to the Gods – Sara Raasch

42.) The Enchanted – Rene Denfeld

43.) Legendborn – Tracy Deonn

44.) Kingdom of the Wicked – Kerri Maniscalco

45.) These Violent Delights – Chloe Gong

I’m really looking forward to read all of those books and I hope that this time around I’ll actually manage to get to them. Or well, at least most of them! *lol* I’m pretty confident that I’ll get through this list though, because most of those books I had in my mind for quite a while and a lot of them are rereads I want to finish. And of course I’ll try to get through My Book List 2019 as well as My Book List 2020.  On my 2019 list there are only 8 books left I have to tick off and I know I can do it! I totally can! *gives myself a pep talk*

Anyway! What about you? Did you already read some of the books on my list or are you planning to read them in near future? How many books do you want to read in 2021? Are you taking part in the GR challenge? Which releases of 2021 are you looking forward to? Talk to me and let me know!

And as always: Stay healthy and safe! ❤

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox