Should I Read Rhapsodic? (Rhapsodic v. ACOMAF)

The Similarities Between Rhapsodic by Laura Thalassa and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

In other words, should I read this book if I'm a SJM fan?

Quick short answer to this question ^^^ at the very end.


General Context about Me as the Writer of this Post:
1. I am a huge Sarah J. Maas fan. Like, massively huge.
2. I am planning on giving Rhapsodic its own full review. This is almost a prequel post so that I can sift through some of my thoughts and reactions.
3. This is, I feel like, old, small, book community tea. Yet, one that I still find interesting.
4. This is not going to be a slam post of any kind. I'm genuinely just curious about the conversation around and between these two books.

Phew. Here we go.
I read the ACOTAR books by Sarah J. Maas as they were coming out. I have very clear memories of hearing about Rhapsodic on Tumblr, Twitter, etc. because there were so many similarities between this book and the second ACOTAR book, A Court of Mist and Fury. (Which, in my own very biased opinion, is one of the best books ever.) There were posts encouraging people to read Rhapsodic, calling it a hangover cure or a tie-over until the last ACOTAR book came out, but there were also posts telling people not to read it because it was too similar and felt like a rip off.

Here's the thing: there is context to me that suggests certain elements of Rhapsodic were inspired by A Court of Mist and Fury.

A Court of Mist and Fury came out May 3, 2016. Rhapsodic came out November 15, 2016. This six month timeline would normally disqualify any notion of the latter copying the former, BUT, I feel fairly certain that Rhapsodic is self-published. Timeline and publishing-- it normally takes about two years for a book to go from agent at the start to on-selves at the end. Self-publishing however, can be very quick, especially if someone is genuinely skilled at writing quickly without the need for editors.

Why do I think Rhapsodic is self-published? Well, I'm actually not 100% certain on this, but when I tried to find anything about the publisher, Lavabrook Publishing Group, the only books that come up are Laura Thalassa's and her husband's. The only bit of information I could get about the publisher was that there is a mailing address for it in Ventura, which is an easy drive away from Santa Barbara (where Thalassa's Twitter says she's from). There's no publisher's website either, which seems very odd. It would also make sense to me from a business perspective for her to do this, because there are times that self-publishing sites bring certain negative presumptions about the kinds of writing someone is about to read. So even though it's self-published, it sounds like a full-standard publishing house novel. And maybe the company is growing and right now it's just her own small business. But the book still has the quick timeline capabilities of a self-published novel.

Now, the real odd wrench in Rhapsodic being "inspired" by A Court of Mist and Fury. There are old blog posts from Laura Thalassa saying that she originally got some of the ideas back in 2014. However, there doesn't seem to be mention to the things that would be common between the two books and it seems like odd timing to me that she didn't talk about Rhapsodic again or come back to it until a month after ACOMAF came out. To me, that seems like there was plenty of time for her to read ACOMAF and use pieces of it to finish up Rhapsodic. Like things clicked all of a sudden and she was able to finish it. Who knows? At the end of the day, these books are their own entities and if there are commonalities between them, well, then so be it. There are some things that can't be claimed by a single author or owned by one person.

Points of Similarity/Difference:

1. Bargains

Des and Rhys make bargains with Callie and Feyre respectively. Funny enough, Des even traditionally tattoos his deals onto the person's skin, sort of how Rhys does to Feyre. For Rhys and Feyre, the tattoo is initially one that shows how Feyre will need to spend a week in the Night Court every month for the rest of forever. But, I don't believe this is typically how Rhys marks his deals. I feel like he partially does this with Feyre to (a) give her a constant reminder about him, and (b) screw around with Tamlin. Also, their mating bond is an identical tattoo on her other arm, so I think it just is a connection between the two of them because Rhys has his own Illyrian tattoos.

Callie doesn't get a tattoo, she gets a bracelet instead with a bead for every bargain she makes. I liked this idea. I don't think I would have liked a bracelet that big, but it worked! But this also shows a difference between the tattooing for Rhys and Des. Rhys tattooed Feyre to get closer to her. Des didn't tattoo Callie so that she wouldn't be just another bargain.

Also, the circumstances around the bargains are very different. Des uses it as a side job and Callie gets bargains because she's bored and needs a friend to hang out with. Rhys I don't think ever makes these deals and Feyre only does it because she's legit dying and has no other choice. Very, very different.

2. Wolflike Boyfriend- Possessive + Temper Tantrum

Tamlin is a bit like Eli, I have to say. They both are super alphaholes, take on wolflike forms, and completely trash a house when they lose control of their tempers. They also are the old love interest that loses, which is a win in my opinion as a reader.

3. Heroine is taken away to a different kingdom

Feyre is forced to go to the Night Court with Rhys. Callie is "forced" to go to the Court of the Night. Yeah, they're kind of similar in this way, but even the tone of the "taken away" is different for these books. For Feyre, she really really did not want to go. She was there in the Night Court, throwing shoes and asking when she could leave. For Callie, she puts up a little bit of a fight, and then acquiesces once Eli trashes her house. So.... it's similar, but also very different.

4. Secret pent-up love

Not even going to touch this one because it is such a strong trope across all books, not just YA/NA fantasy. Is it there? Yes. Moving on. 

5. A Nighttime Court/Kingdom

Rhys is Lord of the Night Court, Des is king of the Court of Night... clearly there is a similarity, but honestly not one that I think is remarkable. Sort of like the "pent-up love" thing I didn't bother going into detail with, this is something that just seems common. Thalassa could have gotten a night court idea from literally dozens of places. And it's not like she had Des looking like Rhys on top of it. They have very different descriptions. The courts looks different as well, again highlighting the difference here between one as a fantasy novel and one as an urban fantasy novel.  So again, similar theme, but different execution.

If you notice, none of those things are unique ideas. So many authors use them so many different ways. What is slightly curious to me is the huge reaction that I saw this having on the social medias back when they were both new releases. But I think ultimately, while they use similar themes or pieces, they are very different stories. For one thing, ACOMAF is TWICE as long as Rhapsodic. It's also a complete fantasy whereas Rhapsodic is an urban fantasy. There are different creatures, different rules, different kingdoms, different travel, different writing styles and foci... a whole lot of differences.

So should I read rhapsodic? I would say it depends on what you're looking for, especially if you're coming off a Sarah J. Maas read.

If you're looking for that new adult, sort of edgy, fae romance, then yeah, go for it.

If you're looking for the complex character game and political development, then maybe not.

Thanks for reading!

Review of The Trouble with Hating You by Sajni Patel

The Trouble with Hating You by Sajni Patel

4.03 out of 5 Stars

 

~ Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. ~

This book came across my reading list at the most perfect time. I was stressed and I needed something as adorable and reassuring as this. The Trouble with Hating You was definitely intense. There were a lot of very low lows and definitely back out if you think there are themes you can't read. But, it is a triumphant story and the romance was one of the most adorable things I have read. It's a hate-to-love trope, so take that into consideration when you pick it up. I like those :) and that trope definitely lent itself to my enjoyment this book.

Liya and Jay are literally one of my favorite couples. Seriously. When Liya was stepping up and taking the initiative at work, Jay didn't complain or give her crap about it. No-- he cleaned up her lab equipment, bought them food, and just kept her company while she worked. That may be one of the most heartwarming things I've ever read. It was pure support! I loved it. And they just kept supporting each other over and over. And the banter. THE BANTER. I love a good banter between the ship in a book. Not fighting, but the little comments and pokes that are borderline snippy and playful and remind you of an old married couple. They had that banter down perfectly. A+

I think there's a lot of great conversation that can come from this book as well. About family, friends, intersection of personal life and work life, religion, community... it wasn't just a light and fluffy romance. There's really good substance to it as well. And I don't want to say that romance books don't typically have substance, but in here specifically, there was a potency to the substance and the themes. It elevated the story for me.

A highlight for this book that I think is tangential to the romance is the amazing friendships. They seriously were fantastic to see portrayed to be so real. The friend group that Liya has is so strong, yet they are all so different. And they all have different life goals, opinions, and sometimes step on each other's toes. But like the relationship with Jay, there was just so much wonderful support and it would bring a smile to my face to read about this group of lifelong friends.

The Trouble with Hating You is a perfect summer romance read. It is sweet, and funny, and I could definitely see a group of friends reading this together!

Thanks for reading!

Review of From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout

This cover is beautiful and I love it :)

From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout

4.82 out of 5 Stars

 

Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God Oh my God

PEOPLE

Oh my God

Okay no more of that.

So I love this author, I love her books, I love her characters, I lover her humor. I freaking ******* loved this book. Dare I say it, I think it surpasses all her other books that I love.

What is?
From Blood and Ash is a new adult fantasy in a world where there was a huge war that overthrew the vampires (I'm blanking on the term right now and I loaned my copy to a friend... #fail). There are now the Ascenders that rule over these walled-in cities in the kingdom and they protect the people from the craven, which are like these vampiric zombies. Poppy is our main girl in the story and she is known as the "Maiden." As the Maiden, she's some secluded, sequestered, all-white robes wearing version of a Handmaiden on steroids. Essentially, she's a candidate for Ascension and is meant to marry a prince (I believe) after she has Ascended.

But oh-ho-ho, things get tricky because Poppy starts to question things around her. Plus there are some murders. And then there's Hawke (oh will we talk about Hawke). And historical secrets. And it all just leads up to so much wonderfulness as a reader that I absolutely adored this book.

SPOILERS BELOW (SERIOUSLY- I am going to spoil things. Please do not read further if you have not yet read the book.)

PLOT:
I'm intrigued. I went into this book pretty blind because that is literally how much I trust JLA to write a good book, so as things progressed, I was just strapped in and let the story take me where it went. Looking back on it, the plot is an oddly even amount of fantasy and romance. There were times when I was hooked into the larger political structure and dangers lurking about, but then there were also times when I was fully invested in PoppyxHawke (which, do we have a ship name????).

There's a lot that happens. If I were to break down the plot into "acts", I think there's five? ---Editing me interrupting real quick. Lol I didn't realize this book was 634 pages, which is double the page length of her other books like Obsidian or Half-Blood. I read this as an ebook in one sitting hahaha, whoops.--- It just seemed like the story was never ending. And for the most part I mean that in a good way because I loved the characters and the dialogue and the suspense of not understanding this weird position Poppy was in.

I don't think I can pull out a single "best moment" either because there were so many amazing moments. There's the first time we see Poppy take away someone's pain, the whole dignity in death stuff was really touching, there's the time Hawke was like, "dude, how'd you sneak out of the room," the poetic yet dramatic justice the Duke gets (which, let's be real, we all knew was Hawke's doing), Poppy's freak out, and the last scene. Scratch that, the last LINE: "We go home to marry, my Princess." Dead. I'm dead. I'll talk more about that moment later when it comes to Cas, but holy alien babies (JLA fans- I had to use this phrase, ya know?) what a way to end the book.

What's going to happen next??!?!!!?!? I want to see Cas's parents. I want to know what the new game plan is about saving his brother, because it would kill me to see Cas have to give up Poppy as was the original plan. I don't think he will. I have a gut feeling on this one that they're "mates" or whatever the "mate" equivalent will be in this series. Although, I'm also intrigued by Kieran's comment about everything ending in "another tragedy." Was Cas involved with the other Maiden? WAIT. What if it was his brother that was involved with the other Maiden and somehow that all led to his brother's capture? I think I need to reread this and write up a crackpot theory post about where the series will go.

The big question: do I want to see a wedding? Ummmm... not like how it is set up now. I'm not thrilled with the dynamic between Cas and Poppy at the very end of the book. Cas is too controlling for my comfort level. And maybe he's freaked out about something that we as readers don't know about yet, and when Poppy finds out she'll confront him and get him to back off a bit. Or maybe she'll just confront him in general and straight up say, "dude, you can't decree our wedding." I do like the ship, but we're not seeing enough right now for me to be comfortable with a wedding. I'm 96% sure Poppy still thinks she'll get traded away in some political game with the Ascenders for Cas to save his brother. A marriage doesn't make sense with the information and development we have right now. Maybe it could once things are cleared up and their voices in the relationship is even, but I don't think we are there yet as of the end of the book. This was this biggest issue I had with the book, sadly.

Also, Dear JLA, I love you. Truly, I do. I adore your books and your writing, but.... I couldn't help but notice that there's no book two spot on Goodreads yet for this series. And it hurts my heart just a little bit. There's just a teeny tiny gaping hole of fear in my chest that for some reason we won't get another book. Which, logically, doesn't really make sense because there is a "series" list for the first book, which would mean there are going to be others.


CHARACTERS:
Poppy: I feel like Poppy is the victim of a cult upbringing. Actually, she really is because she is centered around some artificial religion meant to perpetuate a literal feeding farm for the Ascenders. The more we learned about Poppy, the more my heart broke for her because it was just so much for anyone to be raised in. Her role was insane and I was so happy for her the moment she decided she wasn't going to put up with being some weird trophy religious figure anymore. I loved that she knew how to defend herself. I loved that she questioned her upbringing. And I really loved that she didn't automatically swallow what Hawke was telling her at the end. It wouldn't  have made sense for her to suddenly switch out of the stories she had been raised to believe as truths. She still has a lot of mental scarring and new fears and doubts, all of which make sense, but I am so hopeful for her development to see where she goes for the rest of the series.

Hawke: Or should I say Cas? Muahaha I love that Hawke ended up being the prince. Overplayed trope? *shrugs* Maybe. I don't really care though. Honestly, I though JLA did a really great job balancing us at the edge of wondering if he is the prince, if he's close to the prince, or if he's just a rebel. I'm curious though if that was just me. Because while I was reading, I could tell that something was up with his character, but it took me a good amount of time to pick up that Hawke was Casteel. Sort of like I said earlier though, his character is the one that gives me pause. It's why I can't give this book a full five stars: I'm worried about how he develops, especially in regard to his relationship with Poppy. He's too controlling at the moment, and not even in a hey-Poppy-play-along-there's-a-reason-here-it-is kind of way, but like an everyone-is-in-the-dark-and-he's-deciding-they're-getting-married kind of way. Personally, I'm not comfortable with that. BUT, I don't think we have the full facts or development because there was nothing else in the book to suggest Cas by nature would just override Poppy's voice like that. If anything, I feel like it was the opposite because he would be the one to encourage her to find her own voice and make her own independent decisions -- to be her own person. So while I don't like the direction we see him take at the end of the book, I don't think that's the full story and I'm really sincerely hoping he changes so that he's not domineering over Poppy.

Vikter: It is a truth universally acknowledged that there are rarely any good living parents in YA books. So of course our good father-figure had to be killed. Her parents were already dead, which is bad enough, but we couldn't even have a father-figure for a whole book. I liked Vikter. I liked having that parent role model in Poppy's life and it will be interesting to see how the grief affects her. But I miss him. It was such a tragic moment and I just wanted to acknowledge him for a moment. He will go down as one of the good YA dads. **And I know this is a NA book, not YA, but still.**

Tawny: Maybe I'm the only person wondering this, but what's going to happen to Tawny???? Thank goodness Cas insisted she stay behind at the castle because otherwise she'd be dead! That would have been horrible! And lowkey a part of me hopes that Poppy at some point has that revelation because Cas really did her a solid there. Yes, there's a lot of death. And yes, there is some proportional amount of blame that he carries (that's a whole different equation I don't want to get into). But to me, this was a big moment when he chose to protect her best friend, knowing that Tawny was planning on Ascending and knowing everything that Ascension entailed. Where will Tawny go in the future though? Will she meet back up with Poppy? Will she accept the truth the way Poppy did? Will she not Ascend? There's a lot of questions spinning in my head, that's all.

The creep: I don't remember his name. I don't particularly care. But you know the guy? The one that made your skin crawl? Yeah, I'm glad he and the Duke are dead.

WRITING/WORLD:
I'm not going to lie, I just dove into this book headfirst and didn't realize that it was a full-on fantasy. That being said, JLA writes a lot of great urban fantasy, so for a solid chapter or two I was so confused as to where the story took place. And then I realized what was going on and it all made so much more sense. While we didn't get to see the full new fantastical world that she has created, I am optimistic about how it will be revealed to us. Even just with the historical background of the war between the Atlantians and the Ascenders, I think she was able to really cleverly convey the disparity between what the people believe and what is true. And from there, build a foundation of understanding the politics of the world from the eyes of the people in it. I think she'll hit this one out of the park once we get a full view of Atlantia and the capital for the Ascenders. Oh! And I would love a map. :)

A big plus. Because it was a complete fantasy novel, there were no contemporary pop culture references. I don't necessarily mind those in JLA books, but they can throw off things like humor if I can't follow what the joke is. It was so nice to see JLA's wit come out in a way that was completely even and original to the story. I really enjoyed how there was still banter, and she was able to do it without the aid of a pop culture reference. A small minus. I kept thinking of Atlantis every time I saw the word Atlantia. And the book is about vampires, not mermaids.

I don't think I could give this a full 5 star review because of some questions and concerns I have about the characters' traits and relationship dynamics. And they're concerns that are more than just fleeting, so we'll have to wait and see what happens. But, I'm hopeful it will all balance itself out and in terms of everything else... amazing. I am really really looking forward to the next book.

Thanks for reading!!!!!
(Also, I 100% had way to much caffeine while I was writing this, but I'm just going to leave it :) as is.)

Celebrity Reads Part 2

Recommendations Based on Celebrities

Part 2

Here's part 2 to my recommended reads based on celebrities! Part 1 linked here.


Naomi Scott
The Year of Secret Assignments by Jaclyn Moriarty
Naomi just seems so bubbly and into fun, and this book is hysterical. It's been awhile since I've read it, so the age group for the audience might be on the lower end of YA, but all I remember is literally laughing out loud while I read. It's about three girls at an Australian high school becoming pen pals with three boys in a different high school, and it was written in 2005, so it has that signiture atmosphere of 2000's comedies. 


Stephen Colbert
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
You got humor. You got politics. Need I say more? I really think I hit this one dead on because it perfectly combines these two things, which Stephen Colbert is a pro at. There's a lot of buzz around this book for a reason: it is irresistible. Rom-com between the son of the U.S. and the prince of England combined with wonderful, hilarious writing, and the whole thing was just all-around amazing.

Margot Robbie
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Because Margot Robbie has played such a wide variety of roles, this one was a little harder to pick. Ultimately, I was thinking of Birds of Prey and picked something with that group-action vibe. While Six of Crows is not an all-girl group, it is a fantasy that follows a gang as they perform an impossible heist. It's so intense, and the characters are so well-developed, that there is a lot to sink your teeth into and keep you on the edge of your seat.


 
Hasan Minhaj
The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams
Lol this one may be a stretch. The reasoning behind this choice boils down to two things: (1) humor, and (2) sports. Hasan is one of my favorite comedians ever, so the book needed to be funny (which this one is). But then, Hasan is also really into basketball. This is not a basketball book, BUT, it is a baseball book. Similar enough? Hahaha maybe. . . maybe not at all. Either way, this is still a really enjoyable read about family and sports life. 


Rita Ora
Entwined by Heather Dixon
So in my mind, I think Rita Ora would be a great Disney princess. She just seems so nice and I love her voice, so she'd nail all the songs. Moving on to potential Disney princesses, Entwined is a retelling of "The Twelve Dancing Princesses," and so far as I know, Disney does not have a movie for that yet. It is my favorite fairytale, so I would love some sort of adaptation or story line based on it with Rita Ora in the cast. :)


Michael Buble
Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones
For Michael Buble, there needed to be some incorporation of music in the book. (Just like John Legend, ya know? Like, how could there not be music?) Wintersong is a combined retelling of The Magic Flute and the 1986 film Labyrinth. There's composition, performance, a Goblin King. . . I loved it. It is very rich writing, so not everyone may like it, but I thought it was super creative and the words of the writing sounded lovely.


Ana de Armas 
Kira-Kira by Cyntha Kadohata AND/OR
Belleweather by Susana Kearsley
Honestly, I don't have a super strong pulse on what sort of books to assign to Ana de Armas, so I went with ones that were simply touching. I think she has a sincerity about her so I picked books that have sincerity in them as well.
_____ Kira-Kira is a middle-grade novel about sisters. It has been a long time since I've read this, and I actually think I'll reread it again soon after thinking about how long it's been. Anywho, I don't remember ~too~ much about this book other than the sister connection is so strong, and the book is so heartbreaking and hopeful at the same time.
_____ Belleweather is a historical romance set in colonial America. Interestingly though, it is a romance between a colonist and a French-Canadian soldier. They don't speak the same language so their connection is so heartwarming as they still find a way to connect to each other during the war.




Rami Malek
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo AND/OR
Everneath by Brodi Ashton
I absolutely love Rami Malek and I think he seems like such a cool and kind guy, but the only thing sticking in my mind right now is his upcoming role as the Bond villain. So I picked books that have great "antagonists." The really complex ones that you sort of like, and sort of are just fascinated with.
_____ Shadow and Bone is another Leigh Bardugo book, high fantasy, but this one is about a young girl exploring this rare power she has. The antagonist in the story though, the Darkling, is such such such an interesting character. And he was this close to full redemption. It was great. To put it in perspective, there are people who ship the Darkling with the main character Alina.
_____ Everneath is an urban fantasy, but it has the same sort of super sympathetic antagonist. This antagonist is Cole, and he is literally so similar in his role of the story as the Darkling is in Shadow and Bone where there is a relationship with the main character. Not going to lie, I fully ship Cole with the main character Nikki (I even made a ship post).

 
Ali Wong
Between Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys
I know Ali Wong is a comedian, and I know Between Shades of Grey is not a funny book. BUT Ali seems to read more about family ties and personal growth in characters. And this is one of my all-time favorite books, partially because I think it touches on those points so delicately, yet strongly. It is set in WWII Lithuania and follows a young girl and she and her family is deported. She gets separated at times and overcomes the horrors that happen to her. *Warning: it is incredibly sad.


Benedict Cumberbatch
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
When I think of Benedict, I think of Sherlock and Dr. Strange- but mostly Sherlock. Either way, this would equate itself to a book that requires a lot of mind work, and I think this book fits the bill perfectly. It has an unreliable narrator, involves some heavy psychological theories, and then throw in some paranormal stuff just to mix it up some more. It really is such a thrill ride and you will constantly be trying to figure out what is going on. 

Thanks for reading and stay safe!

Celebrity Reads Part 1

Recommendations Based on Celebrities

Part 1

Yeah, so this post doesn't really have a whole lot of sense to it, other than I wanted to give book recommendations because we could all use some reading right now, and I wanted to give it a fun theme too.
:)
I also realized that this was a lot longer than I thought it would be, so I took out half of the list and I will make that a Part 2 to this list later. 


Taylor Swift
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
"Admire" isn't a strong enough word for the sentiment I feel when I think about how amazing Taylor Swift's storytelling is. And the same applies for literally anything written by Sarah J. Maas in my opinion. The other series are phenomenal too, but ToG is 7 books long, so take your time and enjoy the nuances and twists and character developments. It's wonderful, just keep going and trust me on that one.


Theo James
Evelina by Frances Burney
Maybe little known, but Theo James was a producer on Sanditon, an amazing and beautiful adaptation of Jane Austen's unfinished work. I think he also studied philosophy (?) which, combined with this production history, makes me think he would really enjoy the classics. Evelina is a treat in my opinion. I don't think it's as widely read, but it is so funny and so interesting.


Kerry Washington
Still Life by Louise Penny
The start to a mystery series, Still Life is set in a cute little Canadian town and Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is the new Sherlock/Pirot. It edges just a little bit on the side of a cozy, but there's still a lot of good mystery and small town relationship exploration there to make it a full mystery. Based on the intense roles that she has had, I think she would really love a good mystery that had this extra complexity of exploring town life.




Michael B. Jordan
An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
The first thing I think of when I think of Michael B. Jordan is Killmonger from Black Panther. There's also all the Creed movies, but generally these are action-packed intense character development stories. So is An Ember in the Ashes! It's set in a world inspired by ancient Rome and the training that Elias and Helene go through is intense, to say the least. There's just so much strength in these characters, in all sorts of different forms. 


Amandla Stenberg
Article 5 by Kristen Simmons
To this day, I associate Amandla Stenberg with Rue from The Hunger Games. She has done so much more since that, I know (like The Hate U Give and Everything, Everything --> great stuff, go read and watch), but to my brain I first knew her as Rue. With that, another dystopian book that I really enjoyed is Article 5.  I know some people have been so done with dystopians for ages now, but if you're not, voila- a (hopefully) new dystopian for you.


John Legend
Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
This recommendation is a weird brain child of combining some La La Land vibes with a love for music. If you don't remember, John Legend was in La La Land and it was amazing, and then I needed a book with music in it because. . . John Legend, ya know? SO, Eleanor and Park. :) I personally haven't read this book yet, which is tragic, but I have only ever heard glowing reviews about how adorable and heartwarming this story is.


Florence Pugh
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
It seems to me that Florence Pugh has really only taken super serious, dramatic roles so far in her career. And while I haven't seen Midsommar because I don't handle horror well, there's also stuff like Lady Macbeth and Little Women. I think she would really like Shatter Me because (A) Juliette is a strong female lead, and (B) it is a little psycho and intense, which I love and think fits into the other roles that Florence Pugh has taken on so far.




Ken Jeong
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
This book has been around for awhile, and I still think just so highly of it. It's a WWII book about Liesel, a young girl growing up in Germany and how she processes death and the horrors around her. I picked it for Ken Jeong for two reasons. (1) There are some funny moments in this despite the intensity, and Ken Jeong is hilarious. (2) There is a great father figure in this book and not only does he play a great father in Crazy Rich Asians, but I get great-father vibes from him in general.


Emma Watson
Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
Another Brooklyn is one of those rare books that somehow is able to check so many different literary and storytelling boxes that the only way I can describe it is that it is a beautiful work of literature. I don't know if Our Shared Shelf has read it ever, but if they haven't, then they totally should. And if the group won't read it, I still think it's an Emma Watson book because it shows a shade of the female experience in such a wonderful, articulate manner.


Idris Elba
Divergent by Veronica Roth
The main Idris Elba role that I first think of for him is the one from all the Marvel/Thor movies. Because those are very action based, I thought I would give an action based book. Also, I just straight up love this book and this series and needed to find a way to fit it onto the list. While there are the Divergent movies, I highly highly highly recommend reading the books. Please. Read the books. Whether you've already seen the movies are plan to never see them, go read the books. :)

Thanks for reading and stay safe!
Part 2 to come!

Review of Crave by Tracy Wolff

Crave by Tracy Wolff

4.07 out of 5 Stars

I feel like this book could spark some big controversies and opinions, but at the end of the day, I really just got sucked into the story, cheesy moments and dramatics and all. Crave is the story you get when you take the odds and ends of Harry Potter and Twilight and put them together. Remember how there used to be "games" where you can create new crayons out of old melted crayons? Crave is the new crayon.

I could see myself giving this a higher rating IF the beginning wasn't as awkward as it was. That's really the biggest, and maybe even only, reason why I can't give this above a 4.5. I can get past a couple of awkward scenes or developments throughout a book, but the first 25-30% of this book had some severe awkwardness in the development. At one point, it was super self-aware as a YA romance/new girl/bad boy story, and I literally had to put the book down I was laughing and cringing so hard. Maybe some people enjoy that, but the way that self-awareness was executed was like a punch in the face. It got so much better though after the beginning and I literally couldn't stop reading.

Spoilers Below

Plot:
One of the ways that this felt like an homage or a throwback to early/mid-10's YA was the setup. We got no parents (which hasn't faded out of YA, let's be honest), moving from a big warm city to small cold town, the bad boy in the school, the boarding school, angst. . . a classic recipe. I sort of saw the ending with Lia coming, but it was still gripping when the final scenes came about. And I'm really interested to get more information about where the hell Grace and Hudson are now, because that whole last chapter was kind of vague.

It's mostly all about Grace though and how she is almost killed multiple times for different reasons. Again, this is hella dramatic, but I was here for it. The different motivations were also interesting. Flint wanted her dead to save the world. Lia wanted her dead for revenge and to get love back. There are probably other people out there who want her dead just because. And NOW, she and Jaxon are officially together, so there's an extra target on top of the fact that, suprise!, she's actually not human. She's a gargoyle, which I'm so curious about now because we don't see any other gargoyles and apparent they're super rare. But her dad was a warlock, so was her mom a gargoyle in secret? What else can she do with her gargoyle-powers?

Speaking of creatures, I also really really really loved that there were dragons. I don't know why-- maybe I just loved Flint. But I also don't think dragons with human forms are ever really seen, at least not in YA lit. I just want to see more of them I think. Also, in the back of my mind, I keep spinning the scene between Flint and Grace in the library in my mind. What was that? Is that a ship?

Characters:
Grace:
Grace was pretty cool. My heart went out to her the most and I don't think we're done seeing her cope with the loss of her parents yet. Especially not with the bomb that Lia dropped at the end. I could totally see that revelation pop up at least one more time or haunt her in some way, even as things are going fast paced around her. Speaking of fast, I really loved seeing a YA character embrace and initiate a relationship that she's interested in. I know that she felt the ability to act on her feelings toward Jaxon because of what she learned from the accident, but I think that just shows a certain kind of growth for her character. I'm having trouble thinking of too many other YA books/characters where the female protagonist felt comfortable enough to show her interest in someone, even knowing she may get turned away.

Jaxon:
I love that Jaxon was the stereotypical bad guy warning the main character away with vague threats and comments. But then you peel back the curtain and he's actually all gushy inside and has a stellar moral compass that said bad-y refuses to acknowledge. Jaxon does have his issues. Like, he's a bit too assertive and temperamental, but I think Grace handles that well. The biggest thing I want to see from Jaxon is how he balances Grace being stone and the possibility of his brother coming back to wreck havoc on the world. I think... (and this is very speculative) he would want to take back the "hero" title he refused from Grace. I don't necessarily see him shutting Grace out of the Hudson-debacle, but I could totally see him raising his protectiveness up a dozen or hundred notches since Grace saved him.

An interlude:
One word- mates. I am TRAAAAAASH for a good mate-ship. I'm so beyond curious though as to how mates and those bonds work in this world. In Twilight for example, Bella is Edward's "mate," but it doesn't seem like a primordial spiritual bond between them. It's more like a marriage. That isn't what the mate thing sounds like in this one. This version of "mates" sounds a lot more like a Sarah J. Maas mating where you don't get a say in it. Like, it's there. Jaxon does mention something about Grace needing to accept the mating, but we don't how she would do that. Will it be like ACOTAR and she needs to offer him a bowl of soup or something? Whatever it is, we all know that Jaxon knows about the mate thing, and Grace knows about the mate thing, but neither character knows that the other knows. *UGH* Dramatic irony...

Flint:
So I know Flint tried to kill Grace, but I loved him and I'm glad Grace understood where he was coming from. Because it wasn't like he was trying to kill her for spite or power. He didn't even want to kill her, but he needed to. And before that, he was so kind to her, probably just to get close to her to kill her, but still. That moment in the hallway at the end makes me believe that he genuine does want to be friends with her. ALSO, I need someone else to tell me what they think of that adorable scene between them in the library. Because, while I love Jaxon and I'm 99% sure that's my ship, there's a tiny voice in the back of my head poking at that scene with the marshmallows. I don't know, but I think there is the small possibility of a love triangle even with the mate stuff going on.

Macy:
I want Macy to teach Grace some magic. :) I actually don't even know if that would ever be a thing because Grace is a gargoyle, but her dad was a warlock, so I'm just generally confused as to what that means for her. Macy is just such a sweet character though and I love how her bubbly energy lifts the mood of the story. Her earnestness and protectiveness makes her the perfect bff/family member for the story.

Lia:
Not gonna lie, I saw Lia being the bad guy pretty early on. I don't think it was poorly done or anything, but whenever she wanted Grace to drink some tea I just thought, "Nope. Don't drink the tea." It was like in horror movies when someone's about to go into the dark basement with no protection. You just know it's not going to be good. Lia's character was actually pretty sympathetic though, especially since we've now seen how attached Grace and Jaxon are to each other after only a week. So compare that to Lia and Hudson's relationship for like a year and I could totally see how she would be in that much pain over Hudson's death.

World:
I think I will always love a boarding school fantasy setup. I just will. It also made complete sense in my mind for this school to be in the middle of like a mountain in Alaska. It just all really worked for the scenery. HUGE question though: when was this edited??? I loved the pop music references because I knew them and I love "Put a Little Love On Me" by Niall Horan, but that came out early December. This came out two days ago. That's a four month turnaround for that song to get added in and I'm just sitting here like, huh...? Just a passing thought, that's all.

I think there's actually a lot more going on in this world than what we go to see in the book. Like, the casual mention that Jaxon is the vampire prince (because, of course) could lead to a lot of interesting exploration of the vampire politics. Grace is his mate, but she's not a vampire, or even human I guess. What does that mean for them? Are Jaxon's parents going to throw a hissy fit? Will Grace have to become a vampire? There's so many possibilities running through my head.

There's also the larger political relations between the different species(?). The DrAMa betwen the vampires and dragons for example. What's going to happen there? Are Jaxon and Flint going to fix their friendship? What would that mean for their species? Does each group have a "royal" family or something? Is there like a giant all-species summit once a year? How does this all work? I hope we get to see more of this in future books.

Crave is just what I was craving. (I'm not even sorry for that sentence, just accept it.) It was fun, it dramatic, it had magic and fantastical beings. . . it was great. Some weird moments to start with, but by the end I was shipping people, I was rooting for the characters, and I so badly want the next book. I would definitely recommend this one to pretty much everyone. I think people may sometimes need to remember to just enjoy a read. Enjoy the ride! It's so much fun!

WAIT! I just saw that Universal has already picked up the movie rights to this. Ummmmmmm.... what??? Holy ----. This really is the beginning of like a second Twilight wave. :):):)

Thanks for reading!

Review of The Redpoint Crux by Morgan Shamy

The Redpoint Crux by Morgan Shamy

3.86 out of 5 Stars

~ Thank you to The Parliament House and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. ~

No Spoilers :)

***Lets out a long, low whistle.***
 So, first things first, holey moley I got some really great creepy vibes out of this book. In terms of genre, I think it may be a little confused. It's most clearly a mystery, but there are paranormal undertones that are roped in and out of the story a bit inconsistently for me to decisively say that this book is also a paranormal. A part of me also wants to call it a horror story, but that could just be me getting easily creeped out. The atmosphere was great though. It was excellently creepy and cold and added to the paranoia around the city.

The Redpoint Crux was a surprising twist in my reading schedule. I didn't realize it was going to be as dark as it ended up being, but creepiness aside, the way Shamy describes the theater and the ballet was beautiful. I seriously want to see a live performance of Giselle now. I don't know that I would ever pick it up in a bookstore for myself, but I could definitely see myself recommending this to some friends that are more into creepy/mystery/horror(?) genres.

I'm not sure I completely enjoyed the character development. There were times when I thought the relationships could have been drawn out a bit more, or even have more scenes between the characters to draw out the connections and the plot more. I also don't buy that Liam, a 19-year-old, would be running a theater. I could be very wrong about that and maybe that sort of situation could happen in reality. But, I just had to swallow it in this book and it didn't go down easily. I do however, know that I liked the banter between Meg and Bellamy. I'm not sure if it was an entirely good relationship, but they definitely had strong chemistry on the page.

The biggest issue I took the book was that, and I'm about 85% sure about this, there's a massive plot-hole. I don't want to spoil the book so I won't say what it is, but I finished the book and was like, "But. . . what about. . ." It wasn't super frustrating because I really liked the ending as a whole, but it still is just dangling in my mind unresolved.

I loved the mystery. I had a lot of fun trying to figure out the murderer with way the characters were laid out and introduced. I also really loved how ballet was described in the book. I have never done ballet; I have never studied ballet; I don't know anyone in ballet. There's something so potent though about a niche or fine art like that being described by someone who lived it.

Thanks for reading!