Review: Shiver (Maggie Stiefvater)

Rating:

”I saw it. I saw her, in a way I’d never seen anything before.
And I stopped it.

I really liked this one, I really did and considering the many negative reviews I read I can’t help but wonder if I’m truly that easy to please. *lol* I guess the answer is “yes” because I definitely would read every single book Maggie ever wrote and if possible I’d even read her grocery list! I just love her writing style, the way she always manages to create an amazing atmosphere, how she weaves a mystery around it all and adds so beautifully broken characters into her plot line. I don’t know how she does it, but I’m addicted to her books and no matter if other readers think that she disappointed them with „Shiver“, all I can say is: Maggie you made me very happy with this book!! <333

”Beck made perfect eggs. More than that. Beck kept me Sam. Back then, with the scars on my wrists still so fresh, I’d been so dangerously close to fracturing into something that was neither human nor wolf.”

Aww Sam!! I swear Sam is such a special snowflake and I loved him right from the start! This boy is precious, so damn precious I can’t even!! I loved that he was always so shy around Grace and that he tried to keep his distance even though he was in love with her. Beck was right; Sam really is the best of them all. And don’t even get me started about his yellow eyes! How cool is that?! A boy that turns into a wolf and has yellow eyes! XD Also his past, oh my! Maggie you have a talent to write the best broken characters and Sam is no exception to the rule. Poor boy and what he had to go through! I just wanted to wrap him into a blanket and keep him warm!!

”I wondered what Grace saw in me, why I fascinated her. What was I without my wolf skin? A boy stuffed so full of words that they spilled out of me.”

And no matter how many people think this is a typical YA story with werewolves. Well, you’re not wrong but you’re definitely not right either. I mean yes we have the insta-love trope and it’s pretty strong in that one, but if you think about it Grace and Sam kinda knew each other for years. *lol* PLUS Sam isn’t the super strong alpha male who’s a tease and tries to get into Grace’s pants! Nope, quite the contrary, he is shy, he’s super sweet, he’s decent, he’s vulnerable and he’s not strong! At least not physically. His mind?! Well, that’s an entirely different story because this boy definitely has a more than just strong will! ❤

”Dull orange-brown leaves, dry and dead, clung to the branches and fluttered in the wind, waiting for the gust of wind that would knock them to the ground. That was what Sam was: transient. A summer leaf clinging to a frozen branch for as long as possible.”

He fought against his change and boy how hard he fought! In fact both of them did. Grace tried her best to help him, but with the temperatures dropping so low this was a real struggle. And this kind of brings me to the next thing I loved about the book: The temperature information at the beginning of every chapter! This was a really cool detail and it really helped me to get a feel for the story! =)

”I felt like things were getting away from me. I’d found heaven and grabbed it as tightly as I could, but it was unravelling, an insubstantial thread sliding between my fingers, too fine to hold.”

As for the side characters: I loved Isabel and I was intrigued with Beck. They both were interesting characters and I’m pretty curious if they will make an appearance in the next book. I can’t really say that I want to see Shelby, but I’m afraid she’ll make an appearance no matter if I want her to or not. *lol* Also can I have more of Paul?! He seemed to be a fun character and he’s the wolf pack leader so I hope there will be more time with him in “Linger”?! XD

All told I enjoyed this immensely and because the ending was so abrupt I feel like I need to dive into the next book soon! I’m afraid I was once again left with thousands of questions and I’m in dire need of some answers, so we better start to read this soon! 😉
(Werewolves are perfect for October, right?! *lol*)

Last but not least I want to thank my awesome Sugar Bun for reading this book with me. As always our buddy read was rather spontaneous but I really enjoyed it and I loved that we tried to guess the ending. =) And in my defence: What would you do without me? You’d never read all those amazing yucky love romances! *lol* ;-P So are you ready for book two? *grins innocently* Haha!

Review: Loveless (Alice Oseman)

Rating: ,5

”Our troupe consisted of two star performers who both wanted to be in charge, one girl who threw up every time she acted, and one boy who might possibly be the love of my life.
It was going to be an absolute disaster, but that wasn’t stopping any of us.”

I guess, Georgia wasn’t all too wrong with this assumption but damn did all the drama and confusion make for a great book. If you’ve followed my reviews closely you’ll have noticed that this was actually the last full-length Alice Oseman book I haven’t read yet and I’m so glad I finally managed to pick this one up. It’s very rare to read about aro/ace reps in books because I think our heteronormative brains are just wired to read about attraction and romance and if a book doesn’t have that people tend to be sceptical. I’m not judging here, I’m merely stating the facts because I’ve read about a gazillion of reviews that mentioned that people didn’t like that there was almost none/no/little romance in book “X” and that’s why they didn’t enjoy it as much as other books. If you’re that single one person who has never ever read a review like that please raise your hand (or write me a comment) because I’d really love to know how you did that. *lol* Anyway! Back to my review!

”I knew what it was like to feel bad about not having kissed anyone.
And to feel pressured into doing it because everyone else was.
Because you were weird if you hadn’t.
Because this was what being a human was all about.
That was what everyone said.”

This book was so real and threw so many facts in my face; to read this was actually almost painful at times. And boy, could I relate to so many of the characters! Honestly, there were about a gazillion of quotes that made me think: “Oh gods, I’m so glad this is written in here because: Same!” I’m not aro/ace but I’m demi and that’s an identity which can be found under the aro/ace umbrella. So it probably shouldn’t have surprised me that I could relate to Georgia’s and her friends feelings, but for some reason it still did?! Truth be told, “Loveless” actually made me question myself once again, but I think that’s good. If a book makes you think that’s always a good thing and yes, I know this is a very personal review so far but for me reading is also a way to learn and to grow and that’s exactly what I did when I read “Loveless”. It’s never too late to learn new things about yourself. 😉

”Almost seven years later, I’d never actually talked to Tommy. I’d never even really wanted to, probably because I was shy. He was more of an abstract concept – he was hot, and he was my crush, and nothing was going to happen between us, and I was perfectly fine with that.”

I mean! THIS!! That was basically me in my teens. I was what people would call a “late bloomer” and I had my first kiss when I was 16 and first real bf when I was 17. Yes, this was considered late in my youth because I had school friends that had their first kiss with 11 or 12. *lol* And I had some crushes but just like Georgia I was totally fine with them just being my crushes. I didn’t feel the need to be with them and never really wanted to end up with them if that makes sense? I only ever got together with boys/girls I knew for a very long time and had a close friendship with before we started dating and a lot of people thought that this was weird. XD I never understood why this felt weird for them and I couldn’t wrap my head around the idea of just having sex with someone for the fun of it without any deep feelings involved. Like how do people even have one-night stands? I could never. Love, mutual respect, trust, that’s what I need in a relationship. Don’t get me wrong, I was always good at innuendos, easy banter and flirting, I still am, but that doesn’t mean I have to actually go through with it with a stranger. It’s more about the intellectual challenge than about actually going through with it.

”People are really out there just … thinking about having sex all the time and they can’t even help it?” I spluttered. “People have dreams about it because they want it that much? How the – I’m losing it. I thought all the movies were exaggerating, but you’re all really out there just craving genitals and embarrassment. This has to be some kind of huge joke.”

Georgia’s struggle felt very real and even though I couldn’t relate to everything, I still understood where she was coming from when she said things like the quote above. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that everyone always thinks about having sex (but maybe that’s just my demi behind?!) but a lot of people do and the concept of being aro/ace would be as foreign to them as sexual attraction is to Georgia. For me it was really interesting to see love and romance the way Georgia experiences it and I loved that Rooney, her roommate, was so open-minded and didn’t judge her for any of her actions. They were complete opposites when it came to love but they still accepted each other the way they were and that was a truly beautiful thing.

Rooney paused. “I think it’s pretty amazing that you haven’t felt peer-pressured into doing anything by now. You haven’t made yourself do anything you didn’t want to do. You haven’t kissed anyone just because you’re scared of missing out. I think that’s one of the most mature things I’ve ever heard, actually.”

The strong friendships and the found family trope was in general something I enjoyed about this book and even though the story started slow at first it totally had me hooked by the halfway mark. I think that’s something typical for Alice Oseman’s books, at first they don’t seem to be magical or special but the longer you read, the more you get immersed into the world and by the end of the book it feels like you’ve won a couple of new and amazing friends. Am I the only one who feels like that or are there other people out there who experience Alice’s books the same way?

”They were all just themselves.
I don’t know how to explain it.
There was no pretending. No hiding. No faking.
In this little restaurant hidden away in the old streets of Durham, a bunch of queer people could all show up and just be.
I don’t think I’d understood what that was like until that moment.”

Another thing I always love about Oseman’s book is the diversity we get! I mean just in the small group of Georgia’s friends we have so much diversity bursting from the pages it was a real pleasure just to read about it. (Wordplay not intended. *lol*) Jason has two dads, Sunil is non-binary (he/they) and an asexual homoromantic, Pip is lesbian and Latinx and Rooney her roommate is questioning her sexuality in the book and figuring it out by the end. (Not gonna spoil anything! ;-P) I have no idea if Jason is part of the LGBTQIA+ community as well, but I got certain vibes from him so I guess the reader is allowed to question his sexuality. I just love that about Alice’s books and I’ll never get tired of seeing so much representation. Also can we just acknowledge the mood of the book, because damn that entire book is such a #mood and for me personally, Sunil was THE MOOD! *lol*

”Sunil had already volunteered to be Viola, saying, “Just give me all of the roles that mess around with gender, please.”

”I feel like I’m going to cry,” Sunil said, and then stuffed three more pieces of popcorn into his mouth.

I mean! THIS!!! I loved Sunil so damn much and he was my favourite character in the entire book. I could relate to his character and I lived and breathed for every little Sunil snippet I got. Sunil was the perfect mixture of serious and funny and wow, I loved that mouth he had on him. The way he put Lloyd in his place and cared about Pride Soc and all of its members! Definitely one of my new book love-interests. <333

”Is it stressful? Being the president?”
“Sometimes. But it’s worth it. Makes me feel that I’m doing something important. And that I’m part of something important.” He let out a breath. “I … I did things on my own for a long time. I know how it feels to be totally alone. So now I’m trying to make sure … no queer person has to feel like that in this city.”

Also I can’t thank Alice enough for showing that even members of the LGBTQIA+ community can discriminate and exclude other LGBTQIA+ identities. I wish I could say this isn’t a thing and that everyone is always inclusive, but being a part of the community I’ve seen it happen way too often and even experienced it myself. So Alice is brave for tackling this topic in her book and I’m very thankful she didn’t shy away from showing a realistic and sometimes hurtful part of our community.  I really liked how this was addressed in the book and the speech Sunil gave Llyod will forever live in my head rent-free! Sunil got fire!! Loved that about him! ❤ And when I’m already talking about Sunil there’s something I need to speak about too. Sunil is introduced as non-binary with he/they pronouns but Georgia only seems to use he/him pronouns whenever she thinks about Sunil. As someone who’s gender-fluid I couldn’t help but wonder if that was on purpose? I mean I know pronouns are tricky and it’s not easy to know which pronouns to use for someone who uses more than one, but usually people who use more than one tend to let people know which ones they are currently using? I dunno. I was just very confused about the fact that I can’t remember a single scene (and maybe that’s just my tired brain) in which Sunil was addressed with they/them pronouns. Just something to think about. 😉 (It’s why I always used he/him pronouns when I spoke about Sunil in this review too.)

”I was angry at the world for making me hate who I was. I was angry at myself for letting these feelings ruin my friendships with the best people in the world. I was angry at every single romance movie, every single fanfic, every single stupid OTP that had made me crave finding the perfect romance. It was because of all of that, no doubt, that this new identity felt like a loss, when in reality, it should have been a beautiful discovery.”

I felt this quote in my bones because I’m sure everyone who’s ever been or felt like a lonely teen can relate at least a little bit to the way Georgia felt. And I loved how Alice Oseman was able to convey all those expectations we grow up with. It’s not easy being a queer kid or adult because just by being yourself you already don’t fit into the heteronormative narration you’ve been raised with your entire life. It’s a way of thinking that’s so ingrained in us, it’s hard to overcome it.

I mean alone the way people think about my kid is interesting and could already be a social experiment. I don’t mention my kid very often when I’m online but when I do I just say “my kid” or “my child”. I almost never mention the gender. Yet that doesn’t stop people from making assumptions. Which is very interesting. When I mention that my kid is ill and that this is the reason I wasn’t online on IG I automatically get messages like: “Oh no, I hope your son is doing better now.” Or “I’m sending your daughter all the healthy vibes.” Why do we jump to conclusions so easily? Why do people automatically assume my kid is a boy or a girl? Just with this little social experiment, you can see that we’ve got a lot of work to do if we want to change people’s heteronormative perceptions for the better. And yes, my dear reader, when I spoke about my “kid” which kind of conclusion did your brain come to? Did you automatically think it’s a girl/boy? I’m very curious what you thought. 😉

Anyway! You can already see Alice writing “Loveless” is a very thought-provoking impulse to think outside of the box. To question things, to think about why all of the fantasy books of my childhood had straight OTPs and why so many well-known fantasy authors still write only m/f relationships and queer bait us with side-characters that barely get any page time. It makes you wonder why almost every story has to end with an OTP, why friendships aren’t considered to be as important as relationships. Lovers come and go, but true friendships, they will stay with you until you’re old and wrinkled. Why is this considered less important in society than having a husband/wife and starting a family of your own? Who said we have to find that one true love and that this is the only thing that will give our life purpose, meaning and fulfilment? Who makes all those rules that cause us to almost break under the pressure and expectations of others when we’re different than the norm? Who even decides what the norm is? Who has the right to tell us what to do with our lives?

No one. We should all live our lives the way we want to and find happiness in whatever way feels good and right for us. Because we are the ones who live our lives and no one else can live our life for us. See, what I mean!? I love the way Alice’s book caused me to think so much!

This said I think “Loveless” is a masterpiece! It might not seem to be one when you start reading it, but the more you think about the story and the characters, the more you’ll find out about society and yourself. Georgia’s journey and the journey of her friends is important. The representation and diversity in the book is amazing and the way it makes you question things, well it’s perfect! Add to this a lot of confusion, a found family, strong friendships and lots of heartbreak and you have the perfect recipe for chaos! It’s a good kind of chaos, though! Promise! If you haven’t read “Loveless” yet, you definitely should give it a try! The world needs more books like this. 😉

ARC Review: Cutting Your Teeth (Caylan MacRae)

Rating:

*I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Caylan MacRae for giving me an opportunity to read this book.*

It’s very rare for me to find a book that hooks me right from the start and keeps me glued to the pages until the very end but this is exactly what happened when I started to read “Cutting Your Teeth”. This story just had everything I craved for and wanted to read about in a book. When I picked it up I hoped it would be similar to “All For the Game” and it actually was advertised for this target audience but the more I read, the more I realized that even though the story might have some AFTG vibes it could still stand on its own.

“Visited the Stag a while back. Been a long time since I’ve seen someone fight like you.”
“What’d that look like?”
“Like you got everything on the line and you’re ready to die for it,” Killian says.

Alone the way the book starts and how Ezra and Killian meet was interesting and it was exciting to dive into that underground fighting scene. Ezra is used to fight and survives by competing against other fighters in the ring. Of course, this is illegal but it’s the only thing he can do to gain money while he’s on the run from his family and as long as he keeps a low profile they won’t find him in those shady places. Well, until one night when everything goes to hell and Ezra’s past catches up to him and forces Killian to act.

”It doesn’t matter. It’s my problem, not yours.”
“Ezra, we’re family now, your problems are my problems.”
The word ‘vampire’ may have knocked the wind out of him, but family is a straight-up evisceration. Ezra held no faith in families, not after the one he’d survived.

And this is the moment we got to the supernatural element of the story which involved not only vampires but also other mythological creatures. I already said it and I’ll say it again: AFTG and “Cutting Your Teeth” might have some similarities when it comes to Ezra’s character. He’s on the run from his family which seems to be some sort of mafia clan, Killian gifts him clothes, it’s a slow burn romance and Ezra doesn’t trust anyone because he’s gone through literal hell. But this is already the moment where all the similarities end and I was so here for it, because I got something totally new and a great story that was amazing in its own right.

”For a year he lived like that, speaking to no one and completely alone. Even with the occasional word from his sister, the isolation had done its damage. He stopped talking for a long while after that, slowly finding his voice again once forced out into the world beyond the family.”

I hurt so much with Ezra, because this boy deserved so much better than he got and sometimes to read about his past and what happened to him in the book felt like a stab to my heart. I really loved his character so much and I just wanted him to be happy and safe. It was so nice to see him change and to come to terms with the fact that he wasn’t going to be alone anymore and I really liked that his dog Piper was an active part of the entire book as well. Usually pets just casually appear in books and don’t get all too much attention, but the author made sure that Ezra’s dog was always there and included in the plot. It was so refreshing to see this and considering the influence and importance of Piper’s existence in Ez’s life this was done more than just well. Which brings me to Marigold who is also an important character in the story and I really liked her relationship with Killian. They had such a nice sibling bond and even when they were angry at each other, you could still feel their mutual love. Plus despite looking very innocent Mari is extremely badass and if push comes to shove you definitely would want to have her on your side.

”I’ll give you a good answer for that, promise, but I need you here. With me.” Killian presses their foreheads together to seal the sentiment. “Don’t let yourself drown, Ezra.”
“… I’m here,” Ezra says, halfway lucid.

As much as I enjoyed the AFTG vibes and the supernatural element, what really made this story for me was the found family trope and Killian and Ezra’s slow burn romance. I just loved that they had all those little soft moments together and how Ezra started to trust Killian. This arc was done so well and the way their relationship developed was extremely sweet, which only caused my heart to ache even more the closer I came to the ending. It made everything so much harder to bear and even more bittersweet and painful. I was in pain. I truly was.

”Wish you hadn’t made me like being ‘Ezra’ so much.”

I was in tears at that point and it still hurts to think about. Anyway! If there’s one thing I have to touch on and criticize, then it’s the time span in which the plot of the book unfolds and happens. If I remember it correctly and got it right the entire book plays in the span of about two weeks and this just felt too short for everything that happened. I mean there happens a lot and I personally think it would have been more realistic to let some time pass between all of those events. And if we’re already talking about some of the negative aspects of the book I also have to mention that a little bit more editing wouldn’t have hurt. Sometimes there were sentences that weren’t logical or conclusive and at times the way Killian spoke and acted felt slightly off for his experience and age. This however changed nothing about my enjoyment of the book and since I read an ARC the things I just mentioned might already have been changed in the final version.

Ezra clamps a hand over his mouth to muffle a sound of surprise. He hadn’t expected the sudden detour or the feather light kisses trailing up to the exposed vein. Lighting arcs down his spine, turning any thought he might’ve had into radio static.
“Mo stór,” Killian sights. He curls a hand over Ezra’s heart and sinks his fangs in deep.

All told, I enjoyed this book immensely and it was the perfect read for me. I know some people might see it differently and that’s okay, but for me personally, this story just hit the right spot. Well, maybe there’s another similarity to AFTG after all: This book won’t be for everyone. If you love a good found family trope, a lovely slow-burn romance, supernatural creatures, AFTG vibes and broken boys that learn to heal you’ll definitely enjoy this story though. And last but not least because I just can’t end this review without mentioning it: Killian’s Gaelic endearments killed me! No seriously, whenever he addressed Ezra with another term of endearment I died a little inside. I wish Ez would have understood them and I can only hope he will be able to in book two! I honestly can’t wait to read the sequel but since this was an ARC I’m afraid it’s going to be a long wait. I already know it will be worth it, though.

Trigger warnings:
thoughts of suicide (on page), emotional and physical abuse, illegal fights, assault, attempted murder, violence, inebriation, oppression

3 Bookish Things Tag

Hey there, my lovelies!

It’s been quite a while I last did a tag but today I was in the mood for one and just decided to go with it! Also I finally need to write some reviews! But I was busy, my kid was ill, I’m currently job hunting and I’m still studying! (or should have studied but with an ill kid I did none of that. AHHH!!) So yeah, I needed some stress relief and decided to go for a short tag. *lol* I was tagged for this by the lovely Hundreds & Thousands of Books in March last year?! Whoopsie! So I guess it’s about time I do this! If you haven’t checked out their page yet, you definitely should! ❤ Okay, and now to the tag! Let’s do this! 😀

3 Read Once and Loved Authors

• Maggie Stiefvater: „The Raven Boys“ was the first Maggie Stiefvater book I ever read and I totally fell in love with her writing style and all those amazing characters! I’ve read so many other Stiefvater books by now and damn I loved them all! She’s really such a great writer and I can’t get enough of her books. ❤
• Cassandra Clare: I read „City of Bones“ when I was a teen I think and I’ve been obsessed with every book Cassie Clare has written ever since. The Shadowhunter world is just such an awesome bookish universe and I’d really love to be one of them. Also I always get all the feels and I love Cassie for being the first author to introduce me to an LGBTQ+ couple that stole the show!!! Malec will always be the first. ❤
• T.J. Klune: I can’t believe I only read „The House in the Cerulean Sea“ last year! I’ve heard so much about Klune on BookTube and IG but I didn’t pick up his books until last year when I hosted my #Klunealong. And damn!!! This was the start of it all. I absolutely fell in love with Klune’s books and now I can’t stop reading them and I’m honestly quite happy there are so many of them. XD

3 Titles I’ve Watched but Not Read

• The Kissing Booth: Guilty as charged! I’ve watched all the movies but I haven’t read a single one of the books and quite honestly I dunno if I even want to. I’m scared I might ruin all the fluffy and fun feelings I had after watching the movies. If that makes sense? XD
• To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before:  Haha! I saw all of the movies but I’ve never even considered picking up the books? I dunno why. Maybe I’m more the visual type when it comes to teen romances? *shrugs*
• Call Me By Your Name: I absolutely loved the movie and I cried buckets of tears at the ending because Timothée Chalamet is one hell of a brilliant actor, but I never felt like reading the book?! I heard a lot of weird things about the book so umm I suppose that’s what kept me from reading it so far. *lol*

3 Series I have Binged

• ACOTAR: I remember picking up this series when my little one became a toddler and started to explore the world. *lol* And as soon as my kid took a nap or slept at night I picked up the books and read all night. It was THAT good! XD
• Twilight: Haha! I think I was still a teen or young adult when I picked up this series and I was hooked! I remember a hot and hazy summer and me house sitting my sister’s flat while she was on vacation. Damn one week and I read them all. *lol*
• Codex Alera: This is a series I found at my library and I loved it so much!! I was so happy they had all six books because this fantasy world had me hooked from the beginning to the end. I love to follow a young character that grows with every book and in this one Tavi the MC even becomes an adult later on so this was perfect! ❤

3 Characters I love

Just three???!!! AHHHHH!!!

• Neil Josten & Andrew Minyard: I love them both and they are Andreil so I count them as one. You can say I’m cheating but it is the way it is! ;-P
• Ronan Lynch & Adam Parrish: Once again I say they are Pynch and I stand by it. Haha! Just love them both way too much to mention them alone.
• Manon Blackbeak: This woman is just! Wow! I love her so damn much you have no idea. I adore this dangerous witch and I’m all here for her. ❤

5. 3 Current Favorite Covers

• „Empire of the Vampire“: Because I love the covers of Jay Kristoff’s books so much and this one is gorgeous! The details are always so amazing and they give away some plot points and this is just awesome! Also I mean, look at this beauty:
• The Sword of Kaigen: This cover is just so perfect for the book! I’m currently reading it and the mood of the cover just fits what’s inside. Also if you haven’t read this book yet: What are you waiting for? It’s so good!!!
  Winter: There’s something about this cover! I love how the apple glows and the contrast between the colours? It’s just so vibrant. ❤

6. 3 Things You have used as bookmarks

• Bills: What can I say? They are practical sometimes? *lol*
• Photographs: Yes, I’ve been guilty of using them to mark my books. They have a good size, are pretty handy and nice to look at. 😉
• A Lego figure: Don’t ask. Haha! I was out of bookmarks and my kid always leaves them lying around so I used it as a make do until I found a real bookmark.

8. 3 Unpopular Bookish Opinions

• I hate „The Catcher in the Rye“: I know it’s a beloved classic and so many people love it, but I honestly don’t. I hate this book with a fierce passion and I’ll never pick it up again.
• I dislike BookTok! I’m probably the only person on this planet who doesn’t like BookTok but I just think most of the time it does more harm than good? Like people only have a short amount of time to talk about a book and this causes them to focus on the basics. Books that don’t deserve it get hyped and books who’d deserve all the attention get cancelled and uff. I just prefer BookTube where you can talk about books as long as you want and get your point across! 😉
• I would never rate a book I dnf’d. I mean I’ve never dnf’d a book but I also don’t understand how you can rate a book when you only read about 20% of it. A lot of books only start at 30% or more. So I think the first 20% don’t say anything about a book and I personally wouldn’t rate them.

9. 3 Book Goals For the Year

• Read 45 books: I decided to be realistic this year and so far it’s going good. 🙂
• Write all the reviews and get rid of my backlog: Like seriously!!! By now I’ve such a huge backlog I don’t even know how to write them all. But I want to catch up on them because I know it will only get worse if I don’t. XD
• Finish reading my 2019 TBR: It’s time to get this done! Just 6 books left! I mean I already made TBR lists for 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023! I need to finish the one from 2019 at least before I go for my 2024 one. >_<

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Okay, that was the tag! This was a fun one and I really enjoyed it! It definitely kept my mind occupied and was a good stress relief! *lol* Anyway! I still need to tag some of you so here I go:

Elli @ AceReader

Hollis @ A Take from Two Cities

Destiny @ Howling Libraries

Janine @ The World Was Hers For The Reading

Always Reading Romance

Lyn @ Nomadic Worlds

And everyone who wants to do it! =) As always you don’t have to do the tag if you don’t want to do it, but I would love to read your answers! ❤

This said: What are your unpopular opinions? Do you dislike „The Catcher in the Rye“ too or am I the only one? *lol* Do you binge series or are you like me and binged most series when you were a teen? (Now I can’t do this anymore because life is keeping me too busy. XD)

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

For once I’m actually early with my monthly Wrap Up post. Mostly because I didn’t write a lot of reviews lately and fell behind again. >_< I swear the closer the end of my educational sabbatical gets, the busier I become. *lol* At the moment it feels like I’m trying to do everything at once and it’s not easy. I’ve to finish my last course, I’ve to navigate family life and I’ve recently started to go job hunting again. So it’s just been a lot … XD

Add to that a sick kid, lots of appointments, a death in the family, a very ill relative and lots of other things and you can see that my plate is pretty full right now.  My kid is still ill as I type this and I’ve paused writing this post about 5 times already. Honestly, I have no idea how I’m supposed to get my homework done this week, let alone to go job hunting. Naturally my reading suffered as well and I didn’t write a single review in two weeks. Ooops.

But hey, I managed to get up my May TBR on BookTube so I count that as a win. *lol* (It helped that the video was on the shorter side for once. Haha!) So you can see April was quite the rollercoaster with the usual madness added to the mix. XD I really hope May will be a better month again but I’m not all too sure it will be. Guess we’ll have to see what’s going to happen. 😉

For now I’ll just head to my monthly wrap up and hope for the best! *fingers crossed*

Books read: 5 (5 books & 0 webcomic, Since I added the book I read with my kid too, it were actually 5 books. *lol*)

Pages read: 1.764 (Not too bad this month. )

Average rating: 4,40 (I had so much fun with all of those books and it shows in my rating!  )

Books that were on my reading list: 2 ( 0 from 2021, 1 from 2022 and 1 from 2023.  Well, not my best TBR month but I managed to read two books so that’s better than in some other months. *lol* )

April Reads:

       

   

Winter’s Orbit: ,5

I wanted to read this ever since I stumbled upon the ARC on NetGalley, but unfortunately I was declined and it took me about a year to actually get to the book. I honestly didn’t expect my library to have it but here we are and it was amazing! I absolutely adored Prince Kiem and I really liked Jainan! Also this was such a unique setting! I mean it plays on another planet and there was a mystery element surrounding the death of Jainan’s former husband and a lot of political intrigues. The romance took kind of a backseat here but I personally loved everything about this book except of the huge miscommunication trope. I mean I get why there was one, it makes perfect sense once you read the entire book but I’m no fan of that sort of trope so this is basically the only reason why this got 4,5 paws from me an not all five.

Flash Fire: ,5

I laughed tears reading this book! I didn’t think this was possible but it probably was even more hilarious than book one! *lol* Nicky and his antics will never cease to amuse me and I was so happy to see that him and Seth are in such a steady relationship. Gibby and Jazz were adorable too and I love that we have a kickass lesbian side couple here. Also why is Nick so relatable? I love him and his thoughts! ❤ But of course it’s not all rainbows and sunshine and T.J. Klune tackled a lot of serious topics as well. I can’t wait to dive into book three. =)

She Gets the Girl:

I’ve been on a roll when it comes to f/f books and this one was super cute and really great! I loved this enemies-to-lovers relationship and Molly and Alex were perfect together. I found it super interesting that there were quite the heavy topics in this one as well and I felt really sorry for Alex at some parts. She always seemed to be so composed and cool but beneath the surface there was a lot of trouble and it was really nice to see how Molly got to know her even better with every time they met. I actually managed to get up a full review for this one so you can just follow the link if you want to read it in all its glory! *lol* 😉

Cutting Your Teeth:

THIS BOOK!!! *screams in excited* OMG!!! This was pegged as AFTG meets vampires and I was so happy I got an ARC of it! AND I was not disappointed!!! Damn, I loved this so much! ❤ Were there some typos and could the writing need some editing? YES! Was it amazing nonetheless? Also YES! I just loved all the AFTG/Neil Josten vibes I got from Ezra and Killian was the perfect mysterious love interest. But beware, while this book might have some AFTG vibes this doesn’t mean that it is similar. It totally could stand on its own and I loved that this was such a unique story with vampires, two distrustful boys, a found family trope and other supernatural creatures. This was the first in a series and I honestly can’t wait to read book two. This might be my new obsession. Oh and yeah, fair warning: The romance is very slow-burn! xD

Lichterland:

This book was so much fun! I know it’s a children’s book, but even my adult butt had a lot of fun reading this with my kid. We read a new chapter each night and I absolutely loved the drawings and the world in which the two MCs Karla and Frederik lived. Frederik is a Prince and Karla is a common girl but they meet in the „Glimmerwald“ and then become besties that go on an adventure to find a magical amulet. I loved all the creatures in this book, no matter if it were elves, shadow biters, Wirbelwutsch’s, candle leprechauns etc. If you have a kid and can read in German you should definitely go for it. 😉

This said: How was your April? Did you read many books? Which book was your favourite and did you read as many great books as I did? Did you already read the books I mentioned and if „yes“ did you enjoy them?

Talk to me and let me know! 

And as always take care and stay healthy and safe!

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

Review: She Gets the Girl (Rachael Lippincott & Alyson Derrick)

Rating:

”Even though she makes me want to rip my hair out most days … she’s also the only person I’ve ever met and not been related to that I can be completely myself around, without buckling under the weight of my anxiety. I haven’t totally figured out why yet.”

But I have and it was a lot of fun to watch Molly come to the same conclusion. ;-P Those two!! I enjoyed this book so much and read it in a couple of days, which is very untypical for me. This is always a good sign and shows that I obviously had an amazing time. *lol* So what is the book about? Well, I guess you can already gather that from the blurb but I’ll still give you my two cents. In short you might say “She Gets the Girl” is about two girls that try to help each other out, but then accidentally end up falling in love instead. So far so good, sounds like a typical rom-com, but it’s not because the two MCs have quite a lot on their plates.

”Even though I’m finally gone, it suddenly feels like I’m right back in the house I left behind. Just waiting. Waiting for Mom to come home.
My mind would always get the better of me. I couldn’t stop obsessing over where she was. Who she was with. How much she was drinking. How much she was spending when we had a whole stack of bills on the kitchen table.”

Alex just moved out of her childhood home and is trying to start a new life in another city, but unfortunately, that’s not as easy as it sounds. She’s constantly broke because of her mom’s addiction, tries to juggle school and a new job, her roommate doesn’t like her because her boyfriend apparently has the hots for Alex (not that she would be even interested) and desperately tries to get her girlfriend back as well. So yeah, you might say Alex’s first week didn’t start all too well.

”I give her another hug because while I know it’s lame … we’re basically best friends. We’ve never explicitly called each other that, but when you’re this close with someone, it doesn’t need to be said. She’s been my closest friend all through high school. My only friend, if I’m honest.”

Not that Molly is doing much better on her end. (At least for her standards.) She just moved into her room and realized that she has a single dorm, so that means no roommates which was basically something she was afraid of but also desperately wished for because her social anxiety is already bad enough and it would have been easier to make friends. But alas no luck. Molly is stuck in a single dorm, has no idea how to cope with being at a foreign place, misses her mom who was her only friend and finally wants to get to know her crush a little bit better. Thankfully, she’s invited to a party, a party where her crush seems to flirt with Alex and Molly is not amused!

A conflict between the two is almost inevitable and they realize that they don’t like each other very much. Which was so much fun, because this was some sort of enemies-to-lovers trope and as you all know I love them! Anyway! It doesn’t take a genius to realize Molly is head over heels for Nora and Alex is pretty sure she can help her get the girl and prove to her kind of ex-girlfriend Natalie that she can have a friendship with other girls without lusting after them. (If you ask me that’s a red flag and tells you enough about Natalie’s character to understand that she’s a bad influence and not good for Alex. The way Natalie treated her… *shakes head*)

”But like … how? I’m not you.”
“You don’t have to be. You were yourself with him. You found something you knew about him and used that to work your way in. That’s all it is. I just want you to be more you, instead of a little ball of quiet anxiety in the corner of the party.”

So the two make a deal and start spending time together, which ultimately causes them to get to know each other even better than they wanted to. And this was done so well. I really liked how they went from enemies at first sight with a real strong animosity to tentative allies that became good friends and even more in the end. The way they started to share food and thoughts was amazing and it all felt so natural. I mean there are those two girls that try to win over their love-interests, yet at the same time they spend so much time together and get to know each other in the most intimate and open way possible. They don’t have to hide anything from each other because they both know who they are. They know each other’s weaknesses and strengths and can just “be” when they spend time together. They can be brutally honest and candid and just say what they think and feel.

”It’s been a while since I’ve had someone to hang out with like …” She motions back and forth between us. “Well, like this.”
That breaks my heart a little, but … I get it.
It’s been a while since I just hung out with someone like this. Someone I wasn’t trying to date or flirt with or keep comfortably at arm’s length. Someone that just wanted to hang out with me.
“Yeah. Me too,” I say.

This was such a lovely aspect of the story and I really appreciated how their relationship was portrayed. Which brings me right to their chemistry on page. Those two girls had many cute moments and even though they were rather brief you could still feel the growing tension between them. No matter if it was Alex or Molly, they both became acutely aware of each other and it was extremely sweet to see them struggle with their feelings and the sudden realization that there might be more between them than just friendship.

”Did I screw it up?” She tugs at the shirt tied around her waist.”It’s the flannel, isn’t it? I knew I should’ve just worn a button-down instead …”
“No. You just … look … you look … really pretty,” I manage to get out, looking at the way the jeans accentuate the curve of her hips.
Molly’s hips, I remind myself, and pull my eyes quickly away.

Plus I really liked that Molly always invited Alex to lunch, dinner, etc. For Molly it was no big deal but for Alex it was basically her love language! XD Which was kinda funny to realize while I read the book, because due to Alex’s circumstances she never has all too much money to spend on food or nice things and here comes Molly spoiling her senseless with treats. *lol* This was really cute because Molly didn’t even think about it and just wanted to do something good for Alex. Thankfully Alex was one of those girls that didn’t take offense and actually could accept the offer.

”Some things have to fall apart because they don’t belong together, but some things belong so much they could never break.”

It wasn’t all sunshine and falling in love, though and the more serious parts of the book hit pretty hard as well. Molly’s social anxiety and all the troubles it entailed, her conflict with her mom because she’s too protective and doesn’t give her space to discover and find herself and her wish to be proud of her Korean heritage that’s constantly thwarted by the fact that her mom hates being Korean. It’s not easy to find your identity and if your parents don’t acknowledge an important and integral part of themselves, how are you supposed to do it?

”I don’t want to be an open book. I can’t be. Because I’m rotten just beneath the surface, and deep down I’m scared she knows that.”

Alex’s problems were of a different nature and my heart broke so much for her. To grow up like this, to constantly be worried about your mom and that she might end up dead because you’re not around to pay the bills anymore or to make sure she eats and doesn’t waste her money on booze. To work twice, as hard because she knew sooner or later she would have to pay a lot of money to get her mom out of trouble again. It was really hard to read about and gosh, I’m so glad Jim was on her side because without this precious man Alex probably would have lost it. He’s an angel, I swear. Gruff teddybear. I love him. <333

”Maybe she’s not the girl that gets everything so easily.
Maybe she’s so good at helping me show myself to the world because she’s put up a front of her own.”

Considering it all the book tackled many serious topics as well and I think the mixture of the light-hearted moments and the harsh ones was done very well. I also appreciated that they were addressed and challenged and that all the loose ends were tied up by the end of the book. I really don’t like open-endings that keep me guessing about the characters so to have full closure after finishing the story was nice. =) All told I had a very good time reading “She Gets the Girl” and I can’t wait to read another book of those two authors. This story was worth the hype and I’m glad I was finally able to read it.

Review: The Three Musketeers (Alexandre Dumas)

Rating:

”All for one, one for all.”

I honestly don’t even know where to start with my review of “The Three Musketeers” because the book was so very different to what I expected it to be. When we watch the movies, the three musketeers and d’Artagnan are always made out to be those honourable and noble heroes that save the day and serve their country and whilst the latter description is true, I can’t really say that the former one is as well. Or more directly, there is barely anything noble or honourable about them aside of the fact that they always feel offended in their honour and therefore get into plenty of trouble and fights. There I said it. Am I already drawing a pack with pitchforks? Well, I’m sorry, but it won’t get any better. XD

”Never fear quarrels, but seek adventures. I have taught you how to handle a sword; you have thews of iron, a wrist of steel. Fight on all occasions. Fight the more for duels being forbidden, since consequently there is twice as much courage in fighting. I have nothing to give you, my son, but fifteen crowns, my horse, and the counsel you have just heard.”

Considering that’s the advice d’Artagnan’s father gave him before he went out to “seek adventures” I’m not surprised he spent about 75% of the book getting himself in life threatening situations and drew problems like a dungheap draws flies. Me being salty? Oh boy, I barely even started. You might continue to read my review or if you love this book with all your heart like about 76% of goodreads seems to do (I actually recalculated that, I’m noting but thorough), just stop reading and abort this mission. Fair warning. I won’t blame you. ;-P

”People, in general,” he said, “only ask advice not to follow it; or if they do follow it, it is for the sake of having someone to blame for having given it.”

Athos was a clever one, you might head his advice or blame me for not taking my warning seriously. Whatever floats your boat. I’ll just continue saying my piece. I know this book is beloved by so many and I’d be lying if I’d say I didn’t enjoy some parts of it. I did. It wasn’t all bad, but it wasn’t all good either and I’m too much of a 21^st century person to let some things slide. So this said let’s get down to business.

”What have I to fear,” replied d’Artagnan, “as long as I shall have the luck to enjoy the favour of their Majesties?”
“Everything, believe me. The cardinal is not the man to forget a mystification until he has settled account with the mystifier; and the mystifier appears to me to have the air of being a certain young Gascon of my acquaintance.”

I think by now everyone knows about the main plot of “The Three Musketeers”. A young Gascon named d’Artagnan arrives in Paris to become a Musketeer in the King’s service. But right after he arrives he already offends 3 musketeers and challenges all of them to a duel that is interrupted by the Cardinal’s men. The four men bond over their mutual adversaries and become friends that help the Queen regain her diamond ear studs she gave to her English lover Buckingham before she has to wear them on a ball. Another one of the Cardinals malicious schemes against the queen is thwarted and the three musketeers saved the day. So far so good. What’s interesting is that this only makes about 200 pages of this 560+ pages book. Where all the movies usually end the actual book continues for 350 more pages. So what happens in those pages?!

”Capital! Adieu, Chevalier.”
“Adieu, Countess.”
“Commend me to the cardinal.”
“Commend me to Satan.”
Milady and Rochefort exchanged a smile and separated.

Enter Milady one of the Cardinal’s most trusted and valuable assets. Truth be told, for me Milady was probably the most interesting character in the entire book because she was multi-layered, cunning, as beautiful as resourceful and had absolutely no scruples to do what she had to do in order to get what she wanted. We love a woman that is manipulative af. *lol* Honestly, the way she cheated her way through this book was really admirable and I had to grin when she spent about 6 chapters seducing a man by claiming she was a Protestant only to “convert” to being a Catholic as soon as it served her purpose.

”Who – – I?” cried Milady; “I a Protestant? Oh, no! I call to witness the God who hears us, that on the contrary I am a fervent Catholic!”

Fervent Catholic? Yeah, bet Felton turned in his gave when he heard that coming from her lips. *shakes head* Yet despite being one of the most intelligent pieces on the board she still seemed to be very naïve when it came to certain things. I mean how did she even mistake d’Artagnan for her lover? (Not one of d’Artagnan’s best moments btw. He basically raped an unknowing and averse woman. If she’d known it was d’Artagnan she would have never even considered to sleep with him. But it was dark. Oh what a plot device. Seriously, Dumas, are you kidding me?!) Which brings me right to d’Artagnan and the three musketeers.

”D’Artagnan and Athos put themselves into saddle with their companions, and all four set forward; Athos upon a horse he owed to a woman, Aramis on a horse he owed to his mistress, Porthos on a horse he owed his procurator’s wife, and d’Artagnan on a horse he owed to his good fortune – the best mistress possible.”

I think that sentence and short description is the “four musketeers” in a nutshell and I can’t really say that I’m a huge fan of them. I used to love Aramis the most and I think of all of them he’s still my favourite because he might have the same flaws as the others but he is more or less tame in comparison to them. Yes, he has an affair with a woman even though he wants to become a priest but him yielding to this temptation only makes him more human. Plus he isn’t as hot-headed as the others. Still, when it comes down to it I can’t really be a fan of either of them because I just can’t condone their actions.

I mean they basically only drink, gamble and fight their way through the entire book. They have affairs with married women, can’t seem to be able to hold on to a single coin and treat their hosts as well as their servants poorly. I honestly don’t get why their servants stuck with them because they didn’t get paid for most of the book. Either the musketeers were too stupid to keep money and gave it away like it was nothing (and this even though they were always broke) or they gambled with the little they had and lost it again. Well, and if their servants demanded pay they just hit them and the thing was settled. Talk about real role-models right there. I stopped counting the moments I rolled my eyes or facepalmed myself. Also d’Artagnan literally falls in love with every woman that’s pretty and talks to him and they all suffer because of it. One way or another giving d’Artagnan their affection never ends well. XD If you’re a woman you better stay away from that young Gascon, he’s trouble. 😉

”Take my wealth, my fortune, my glory, all the days I have to live, for such an instant, for a night like that. For that night, madame, that night you loved me, I will swear it.”

As for the other players in the game. I think there wasn’t enough of the cardinal and we barely found out anything about him. Lord de Winter was okay, I suppose? Buckingham was probably the only truly honourable man in the entire story which is almost comical because him being an English man automatically makes him the enemy of France and therefore of the musketeers. Yet his love and devotion to the Queen was unyielding and he didn’t even think of another woman like a certain someone *cough* d’Artagnan *cough* who changed them like his underwear. Yes, I just said that. You can quote me if you want to. I stand by it. *lol*

I personally think that Milady was the most intriguing character of the entire book, yet at the same time, she was limited by being a woman. No matter how cunning or cruel she was, she could only move in certain patterns and the fact she even got arrested speaks volumes about how women were treated back then. This is a theme that’s running like a thread through the entire book, while the men have all the opportunity in the world and never have to fear any consequences, the same can’t be said for the women in the story. Well, and the way it all ends? Let’s just say the only woman that comes out of it in a good way is actually the Queen and she’s the Queen so I think that says A LOT.

All told, I came out of “The Three Musketeers” feeling quite disenchanted. The heroes I loved as a kid aren’t the heroes I read about. In the movies they were honourable and courageous, fighting against everything that was thrown their way and charmed their way into the beds of their love interests. In the book we get to see an entirely different side of them and I guess that only proves that Hollywood knew what it was doing when it adapted the book into a movie. XD I never thought I’d say this but I think I’ll stick with the movies this time around. I know “The Three Musketeers” is a classic and beloved by many. It has its merits and interesting, whimsical and funny parts, I’ll give you that, but it ultimately wasn’t for me.

Review: Delilah Green Doesn’t Care (Ashley Herring Blake)

Rating:

„I’m very, very queer,“ Delilah whispered, releasing the words slowly while her bottom lip brushed the shell of Claire’s ear. The other woman inhaled softly, the sound fluttering low in Delilah’s stomach.

Now that’s how you build tension between two women! Honestly, I think I finally read an f/f book that delivered on that front, because so far the sapphic stories I read were either too tame or not as cute as the m/m books I usually read. I think that’s mostly due to the fact that it’s not easy to pull off a female romantic relationship. Women are just generally more touchy-feely and have a stronger connection to their friends than men. For once it’s actually a gender thing and in Europe you’d never see men kiss each other on the cheeks or cuddle. (Might depend on the country though. *shrugs*) Usually it’s just not done here and if men do it everyone automatically assumes they are queer and in some sort of relationship. (I don’t like it but it’s the way it is over here and it’s something that’s kinda ingrained into our social norms. Things like that are hard to fight because you’d have to fight them on a socio-cultural scale and that’s just… tough. XD)

Anyway!!! What I’m trying to say is: Women cuddling, hugging and holding hands is considered to be normal. No one would bat an eye in my country if they’d see two girls walking down the street holding hands. So whilst it’s fairly easy to write down tension when it comes to two boys or men, it’s extremely hard to do the same thing with two girls/women. I don’t make the rules, it’s just the way it is and a lot of authors who write sapphic stories seem to have a hard time to convey the sexual or romantic aspect of their MCs relationships. It’s not easy, but it obviously can be done because for me Ashley Herring Blake nailed it!

”Claire shifted. Closer. The finger on Delilah’s chin slid to her jaw, then Claire’s whole hand skated across her face, to her neck, and around to her nape. Delilah’s eyes fluttered closed, every inch of her skin covered in goose bumps.”

I mean, wow! The sexy times those two women spent together?! They were amazing! Also since this is a romance and everyone knows that the two MCs will eventually end up together I don’t think it’s a spoiler when I say that the sex scene was one of the best f/f sex scenes I’ve ever read. It was done so well and wasn’t only relatable but also felt extremely realistic! As did the entire book for that matter. From the struggles Claire has to face as a single mom right to Delilah’s troubled past and her career as a photographer. Everything about the story felt real and true-to-life.

”You’re what?” Delilah asked. “The mom? The woman? So that means you have to give up your whole life and he doesn’t?”

Also can we acknowledge how self-assured and strong all those women were? Not to mention them all being out and proud and secure in their sexuality. It was so refreshing to read about women that know exactly what they want and I totally appreciated this adult approach. Then again, Delilah is 30 if I remember it correctly and Claire is about the same age so this automatically makes them more mature than characters in a YA book. Still, I loved to read about characters that already had their coming-out and had figured themselves out years ago. They just lived their lives the way they wanted to and that was so nice to see. No questioning, just them being them and being content with it.

”She’d definitely feel more comfortable approaching a woman or someone nonbinary. Since coming out as bi when she was a junior in high school, she’d always felt more drawn to other queer people or femmes. Josh being one of the few, albeit huge, exceptions.”

The friendships in this book were so much fun as well and I couldn’t help but fall a little in love with Delilah and Iris. *lol* Those two were so funny together and I’m really glad there are two other books in this series because I can’t wait to see more of their shenanigans and antics. I’m especially looking forward to Iris’s story and hope the other characters will have cameos in it too. Iris might have only been a side-character in here, but boy did her interactions with Claire, Astrid and Delilah give me life. This woman is great and definitely deserves her own book! I’m very happy she got it. 😉

”Did we ever like him?” Claire asked. “Like, when Astrid first introduced us?”
“Hell no,” Iris said. “I mean, okay, he looks like a god with that hair and those biceps, so maybe we were a bit distracted by that at first. You know, beautiful people getting away with murder and all that.”
“God, I hope he’s not a murderer.”

Haha! Them bitching about Spence behind his back was just hilarious. And if I’m already talking about Spence: THIS MAN WAS SUCH A DOUCEBAG! Like seriously! How could Astrid even consider marrying him? If I would have been Claire and Iris I would have tried to get rid of him too. You probably couldn’t find a more misogynistic and macho numpty even if you tried. XD His actions and the way he behaved and treated Astrid. Oh boy, I wouldn’t have been able to keep my mouth shut. I was really thankful Delilah didn’t take his shit and subtly but aggressively gave him in kind. *lol*

”And Delilah had gotten through life by putting herself first; only concerning herself with what she knew was true, because she’d learned a long time ago that she couldn’t control anyone but herself.”

Despite all the coven fun and the sexy times “Delilah Green Doesn’t Care” could be pretty serious as well and the grief representation was something I didn’t expect. I was positively surprised to find one in this book and the fact it was done so well only added to my enjoyment of the story. It’s hard to lose your loved ones, especially when you’re as young as Delilah was and the way she shut herself off from the people around her was very realistic. If you grieve you’re in your own world and it’s not easy to break out of it because no one feels the way you do. Grief is an individual thing and Delilah, her step-mother and Astrid all grieved in their own way. They couldn’t comfort each other because they were all too preoccupied with their own feelings. Plus Delilah’s step-mother wanted to keep the perfect façade intact and therefore most definitely didn’t ask for help. Which makes her a pretty bad mom because not matter how hard it is and no matter how difficult it might be to accept help, if you’re suffering and your kids are suffering too, you should at least do everything you can to lessen the pain of your children. Adopted or not, Delilah and Astrid both would have needed someone to talk about their trauma and to sweep all their grief under the carpet obviously didn’t help. Could have told her that this would bite them all in their asses later on.

„Delilah Green didn’t care. Because they’d never once cared about her.“

Last, but not least, I’ve to mention Ruby, Claire’s daughter and a constant presence in the book! As it should be! Honestly, it happens way too often that adult MCs have kids in books and then they are barely even mentioned and always only appear when they are important for the plot. Or it seems like they are not important at all and therefore barely get any page time. Which is so unrealistic it hurts. If you write about a character that has a kid you have to allow the kid to be present on page because if you’re a parent you know that your kid is your life and everything you do revolves around it. (At least if you’re a good parent. ;-P) So it was really nice to see that Ruby was an active and important part of Claire’s life and that there existed some valid reasons if she wasn’t at home for a night. Like having a sleepover with her friend or spending time at her father’s place etc. Ruby was woven into the plot so effortlessly it was amazing! I can only give kudos to the author for pulling this off as well.

”Literally, for a few seconds as Ruby rested her head against Delilah’s chest, arms tight around her waist, she couldn’t find enough air, her eyes stinging with a swell of sudden tears.
But then she moved her arms around Ruby, pressed her cheek o the top of her hair. She exhaled what felt like a decade’s worth of anxiety, and accepted the girl’s love.”

This said “Delilah Green Doesn’t Care” was an awesome story and I enjoyed every single moment I was able to spend with this book. It was a more mature narrative with a lot of humour, a good dose of serious topics and sexy times that restored my faith in great f/f romances again. So all in all just the right story for me. I’m very curious about book two and three now and I’ll make sure to pick them up soon. 😉

March Wrap-Up

It’s March Wrap Up time and this month wasn’t any less busy than the ones before. How come I’m always so busy? You’d think I would have more time but it seems like I have less and less time each month? It’s kinda weird but it is the way it is. I honestly don’t even know what to say about March because I had so many appointments and did so many things that it all kinda blurred together and now my mind is blank and I can’t even think of a single thing I did even though I did plenty?! Do you ever have month like that or is it just me? *lol*

Reading wise I didn’t get done all too much either because me being so busy made it hard to find some reading time. The fact I read two classics probably didn’t help as well because I just realized that I’m no big fan of classics. XD So if March taught me anything then that I better should only read a few classics every once in a while and not read them in one month. It took me 7 days to finish „Of Mice and Men“ and this book had like 171 pages. Haha! And I took „The Three Musketeers“ with me from February. So it took me 2 months to finish this beast of 567 pages. Classics are either short or super long but I never seem to enjoy them as much as the other books I read. >_< At least I didn’t enjoy those two as much as I thought I would. Anyway!

Before I try to think of more things I did or didn’t do in March, I’ll just cut my brain some slack and go for my monthly wrap-up instead! I mean that’s what you’re here for, right? 😉

Books read: 4 (4 books & 0 webcomic, I really should get back into my webcomic era. *lol*)

Pages read: 1.575 („Of Mice and Men“ was short but the rest clearly made up for it. )

Average rating: 3,5 (I blame it all on the classics. Haha! )

Books that were on my reading list: 1 ( 0 from 2021, 0 from 2022 and 1 from 2023. Okay, this month was bad. *lol* Only one book from my TBRs. >_< )

March Reads:

       

Here’s to Us:

Believe it or not but I’ve been dying to read this book! The minute I finished „What If It’s Us“ in 2019 I wanted to get a sequel because that ending! That ending killed me!! T_T As it seems Becky and Adam heard their fans pleas and decided to go for a sequel and boy this was everything I wanted it to be! I’m so happy I was finally able to get my hands on a copy and it was so awesome to be back in NYC with Arthur, Ben and their friends! This was exactly what I needed after finishing „What If It’s Us“ and I’m a very happy camper right now. If you want to read my full review you can do it here! 

Of Mice and Men:

I read Steinbecks „East of Eden“ a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it, so I thought why not read „Of Mice and Men“ too? I mean a lot of BookTubers I follow were raving about it and said it’s a good book so I kinda expected to love it too? Unfortunately this didn’t happen and while I get what the author wanted to say with this book I still don’t like the execution of the idea?! It’s hard to explain it without going into too much detail and maybe that’s why I always had the impression that it’s a good book. Because all the YouTubers that spoke about it, kept their review very general and without any spoilers. What it comes down to is that it’s a good book but that I had my issues with it. If you want to read my full review about it (including small spoilers because I wanted to explain my reasoning for giving it 3 paws) you can follow the link above.

Delilah Green Doesn’t Care:

I really, really enjoyed this book! It’s so rare to come across well written f/f books that have a believable and realistic portrayal of a sapphic realationship and this book totally delivered on that front! Honestly, I was so happy I read this! It restored my faith in f/f relationships in books and I was very thrilled to find out that this is a series with 3 books in total! I’ll definitely pick up the other two books as well because I can’t wait to see what will happen to the other characters! Especially Iris! She’s the coolest! *lol*

The Three Musketeers:

I finally finished „The Three Musketeers“ after taking the book with me into March. I started to read it with other BookTubers as part of a readalong in February but because the book is so huge I fell behind and couldn’t keep up with the others anymore. (I blame my busy months for that. XD) Also the book wasn’t bad but it also didn’t sweep me off my feet and this made it hard to pick it up at night. If you’re already tired to read a 560+ pages classic probably isn’t the best reading choice. *LOL* And I kinda came out of this book disenchanted with the glorious tale of the three musketeers and d’Artagnan. This certainly didn’t help the books cause and I found myself pushing through it in the end. >_< I’ll make sure to write a coherent and longish review to explain what I did and didn’t like. Please stay tuned for that one. 😉

This said: How was your March? Did you read many books? Which book was your favourite and which book was a disappointment? Did you already read the books I mentioned and if „yes“ did you enjoy them? Are you a classic fan or are you like me and mostly end up not enjoying them? XD (I can’t be the only one, right?! Please tell me I’m not the only one!)

Talk to me and let me know! 

And as always take care and stay healthy and safe!

*hugs’n’kisses*

The Sassy Library Fox

Review: Here’s To Us (Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera)

Rating:

”Everyone looks so happy, and I hope this is the first of many documented memories this summer. And maybe the more I share my world with him, the more he’ll want to be part of mine and let me into his.
This is every relationship. You start with nothing and maybe end with everything.”

Oh boy did this book kill me! I swear Adam Silvera and Becky Albertalli definitely don’t do things by halves. When I finished “What If It’s Us” in October 2019 I was so heartbroken and instantly demanded a “do-over” of Ben and Arthurs love story. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one because Becky and Adam obviously graced us with a sequel and to say I’m a happy camper doesn’t even get close to the truth. This ending! It was everything I wanted to read and more! It was legit the best do-over EVER and I cried and laughed and smiled through my tears and was a total mess by the end of this story, but it was worth it! So, so worth it! T_T

”People don’t warn you that heartbreak is a chronic condition. Maybe it quiets down a little over time, or you can muffle it with distance, but the ache never quite dials down to zero. It’s there lurking in the background, ready to flare back up the minute you let your guard down.”

But I’m getting ahead of myself here so let’s not start with the ending but with the beginning of “Here’s To Us” instead. 😉 At the beginning of the book we get Ben’s and Arthur’s POVs. Two years have passed and they aren’t together anymore and are both with other people instead. Ben is casually dating a guy named Mario but they don’t define as boyfriends (yet) and Arthur is in a relationship with Mikey and they’ve been together for quite a while. None of them is looking for love because they already have someone in their lives. So the universe obviously needs to mix things up a little bit and lands Arthur a job in a New York off-Broadway production. Arthur is once again spending another summer in the big apple and even though he and Ben lost contact for a little while, they start to write messages again and eventually meet.

Ben laughs. “I’m good. Holy shit. Arthur.”
And the next thing I know, he’s hugging me and I’m hugging him back, and it’s as familiar as breathing. The way he smells, the way the toes of our sneakers touch, the way I fit beneath his chin. Maybe these last two years were all a dream. Maybe I’ve been here in Ben’s arms this whole time. Maybe I never left.

Well, it doesn’t take a lot for them to start to hang out together again. They meet for double dates, get to know each other’s love-interests and go for activities with their friends. But despite the fact they are both in love with other people, Ben and Arthur still can’t seem to be able to let go of each other and feel more than they probably should.

”I guess you changed your mind about long-distance relationships, huh?”

That sentence hurt so much! ARGH! It was a stab in the heart because one of the main reasons why Ben and Arthur’s relationship didn’t work out was because they would have had to do long-distance. Something Ben thought he wouldn’t be able to pull off and that ultimately led to them having different lives. T_T Honestly I felt so much for Arthur in this book because uff, his feelings were all over the place and he seemed to be so lost sometimes. Yet at the same time, I also felt sorry for Ben because he wasn’t happy with his life and how things turned out. He decided that college wasn’t for him but had no idea what he actually wanted to do and where his life would go. He felt at least as lost as Arthur did and I could understand his wish to change something. The conversation he had with his dad is one I’ve had as well and I know how tough it can be to own your feelings and to stand by them. You know you’re lucky to have the life you do, but that doesn’t mean you’re happy with it and that you can’t want more out of it. It’s only human to want to be happy and to do something that gives you fulfilment.

”I’m sorry you feel so stuck here, but many people would love to be in your position.”
“I know.”
I’m tired of not being able to own my feelings because someone else has it worse. I know I’m lucky to have a roof over my head and parents who love me and food on the table. I know, I know, I know. I can also want more for myself.

And as if that wouldn’t already be enough, there’s also the fact that they are both drawn to each other but are more (Arthur) or less (Ben) in a relationship with someone else. I swear to read this was so confusing because Mario as well as Mikey are both decent and nice people. I really liked them both and I honestly could see them having a future with Ben and Arthur. The problem is, sometimes you love people but it just isn’t enough and they are not the right choice for you even though it seems to be like they are. Does this make any sense? *lol* I’m speaking from experience here so I can say, just because someone seems to be perfect for you, that doesn’t mean they actually are. 😉 So yeah, I liked Mario and Mikey and I didn’t want them to get their hearts broken even though I wanted Arthur and Ben to get together as well. Talk about conflicting emotions. I was on the fence about how this story should be resolved. *lol*

”They tell me all about their plans, but I get distracted when Arthur and Mikey swap cone and cup, wordlessly, like they’ve done this a thousand times. And when Mikey’s phone buzzes on the table, Arthur silences it for him. I would’ve thought that was passive-aggressive, but Mikey thanks Arthur. Maybe Mikey likes being present, and Arthur knows that about his boyfriend.”

You might say not only Ben and Arthur are struggling, you as a reader are struggling as well, because there’s no way you won’t feel torn about all the relationships in here. Kudos to Adam and Becky for making this realistic once again. The fact that this was so relatable and lifelike reminded me of the first book and I remember loving it so much for it. It’s refreshing to see real obstacles and problems in YA literature every once in a while and what made “What If It’s Us” and “Here’s To Us” so special and interesting for me was exactly that. The problems Ben and Arthur have to face are normal troubles a lot of teens have to get through and I guess in some way this also makes it some sort of coming-of-age story. At least for me it does.

”Delicate but fierce,” says Dylan, “with the face of an angel.”
“No, his face is the worst thing to happen to saber-toothed tigers as a species, including extinction. I was going to say he’s too jammed in there. He’s not winnable.”

And speaking of relatable: Can we acknowledge the fact and truth that Dylan is one of the best side-characters and besties in a book ever?! I just love this man and the way he thinks and I had to laugh every single time he was on page! That saber-toothed tiger conversation between Dylan and Arthur will live in my head rent-free for eternity. *lol* Honestly, Ben’s friendship with Dylan is such a wholesome relationship and it’s obvious they both love and value each other more than they can convey with words. I’m really glad Dylan found Samantha because I think no one else (aside of Ben, of course) would be able to understand him the way she does. =) Those two are a match made in heaven. XD

”Ben Alejo, I love you. I’d never do this without you. I mean, I had to do it without you, but I couldn’t do it without you.” Dylan grabs my hand. “You have been there during all the major steps.”

So yeah, a lot of things happen in this book and emotions are running high, especially near the ending. It’s been quite the roller coaster for me because I love all the characters so much, the old and the new, and I had no idea how to solve this mess! Haha! Thankfully, Adam and Becky took over that part and all I had to do was to read how they decided to resolve it. I was pretty happy with the outcome but I won’t say anything about how this ends because you just gotta read it yourself. No spoilers from me – as always. ;-P

”It’s your life to live, Alejo,” Mario says, resting his hands on my shoulders. “Just make sure you’re living it for yourself and not anyone else.”

All told, I absolutely loved to read this sequel. I always wanted a second book but I had no idea how much I actually NEEDED it. To be back in NYC, to see Ben and Arthur together again, to find out what they’ve been up to, to see how much they grew – It felt like coming home after a very long time. Everything is still the same, yet somehow everything seems to have changed as well. I needed to be back in this world as much as I needed to find closure and in the end, I got both. I’m content, I’m happy and after almost 4 years it feels like my mind can finally relax. I’m once again able to breathe. So yes, for me this was the perfect ending. Thank you Becky and Adam, you did well. =)

And because I just need to write those amazing quotes in my review, because I can’t live with not quoting them here I’ll just place them in a spoiler tag:

spoilers:
”I’m just – I’m so bad at this. How am I so bad at this? You know what I did last night? I watched every love confession scene I could find, and every single one of them reminded me of you. All of them. Notting Hill. Crazy Rich Asians. Ten Things I Hate About You – Ben, I cried watching the end of the Kissing Booth sequel, because for me, it’s always you. You’re the point of every story.”
A tear rolls down Ben’s cheek, and he swipes it away with his fingers.
“And I want to tell you it’s okay that you’re leaving and that I’ll get over you, I’m sure it is, and I’m sure I will. But right now?” I shut my eyes for a moment. “I don’t even know what getting over you looks like. I can’t even imagine it, and – God, I shouldn’t be telling you this. It’s not fair to you.” I wipe my eyes. “I know. I know it’s not.”

”I’m supposed to do my whole life over, twenty-five hundred miles from everything and everyone. Except you – Arthur, you’re like this stowaway in my head. I don’t know how to not bring you with me. Every time I think something weird, I’m like, Arthur would get this. Do you realize that every time, every single time anyone’s smiled at me for the past two years, I’ve compared it to your smile? For two years. As if anyone else could win that game.” He presses a hand to his forehead. “And the thing about being a writer is that it’s not only about telling stories to other people, right? It’s also about the stories I tell myself. Anything and everything I can say that’ll make me believe I’m happy. But I’m done rewriting how I feel because I’m scared of getting hurt again. All that’s going to do is break my heart later when I don’t get my perfect ending. And the perfect ending to my story is with you.”
“You’re –“ I press my fist to my mouth. “I’m going to cry.”
“You’re already crying. Literally right now.” He lets out a choked laugh, grabbing my hands to pull me closer. 

And now excuse me while I cry! T_T They are so adorable, I can’t even.