What I'm currently reading, and a bit of a catch up!

Greetings on this dreary, dreary Monday...

Well in Chicago at least, that is. I had a bit of a break in my work and decided it's now or never to catch this little blog up.

I said I was going to post a November to be read and then just....didn't. I have been reading, I just haven't been updating. So far this month I've gotten through four books and am trying to get that to five or maybe even six before December starts. 

I've picked up crocheting and knitting in a bid to make everyone's Christmas presents this year, so I haven't had as much free time to just read as I usually do, and I feel like that will only decrease as that holly jolly holiday creeps up on me.

Among the books that I've had my paws on this month, are the third and fourth books in the LUX series by Jennifer L. Armentrout:

I started the third book, Opal, Saturday afternoon and finished it up Sunday evening. These books have been compared to the Twilight series, so I was super hesitant on picking them up, but I flew through the first two and rushed to get the rest. Seriously, these books are very entertaining. And they're about aliens...come on.

I started the fourth book in the series, Origin, late last night and am hoping to finish it up by Thanksgiving since I'll only have a couple of hours a night to dedicate to reading it. So far, I'm liking the fourth one. I loved the three I've finished so far, so here's hoping the series doesn't fizzle out at the end like so many others tend to do.

For a description of the first book in the LUX series, Obsidian, click here.

I realize that the covers really aren't the best covers in the world, but look at the originals in that link I attached and you'll be thankful for the new ones.

If anything has been a lesson in the old "don't judge a book by it's cover" thing, it's been this series.

If you do decide to pick this series up, I hope it entertains you as much as it did/does me!

Here's to Thursday getting here at the speed of light!

...Except not really because for the first time in my existence, I have to cook my entire Thanksgiving meal with just my boyfriend and I'm exhausted just thinking about all the meal prepping we've yet to start...

October wrap up!

Happy Wednesday book nerds!

I meant to post this little diddy over the weekend, but instead opted to cook fun foods with the boy and veg out on Vampire Diaries. Not even mad.

Until I discovered BookTube at the end of September, I hadn't really read anything in months. But after hours of watching people talk about books with pretty covers, I felt the familiar itch to crack open my long lost best friends. After buying too many books at the beginning of October, I'm pleased to say I managed to read a total of 8 books last month.

Instead of bogging you down with pictures of them all, I'm going to just tell you about them, so here we go...

1. The Daughter of Smoke & Bone: The more you read about the main character, Karou, the more you begin to realize that she's not just your average, not so average, artsy fartsy character. I mean homegirl's hair grows out of her head BLUE. B-L-U-E. It took me a while to psych myself up to read this book, but I'm glad I finally did. My eyes glazed over a bit towards the end when things are revealed, but overall I really enjoyed the book and can't wait to get the last 2 books in the series. 3.5 out of 5 stars

2. Throne of Glass:  Celaena Sardothien is an assassin. Not just any assassin, but the best assassin in all of the kingdom. Like, strikes fear into people's hearts when they hear her name, level of assassin. Except for the past year she's been prisoner in the salt mines of Endovier, a place where people don't generally last very long. So, when she's taken out by the Prince, who proposes she compete to be King's Champion, and promises that after 4 years of service she can have absolute freedom, she is game.I really really liked Celaena, so I really really liked this book. As you saw in my October haul, I already bought the 2nd and 3rd book in the series. Boom. 4 out of 5 stars

3. Legend: I already gave a full review and overview of this book in my first book talk tuesday post, so clicky click if you want to know about that. 3.5 out of 5 stars

4. The Mark of Athena: I linked this one to the first book in the Heroes of Olympus series, because spoilers. If you haven't read any of the Percy Jackson books, GET ON WITH IT. Seriously, both series with Percy Jackson are so good. So So So good. 5 out of 5 stars

5.  Not that Kind of Girl: I LOVE the show Girls on HBO. So I felt that I had to get this book. Parts of it were funny. Most of it was weird. And about 3/4 through I just stopped caring. Do with that what you will. 3 out of 5 stars

6. Anna and the French Kiss: There was so much hype around this book on BookTube. I'm just glad I got the book after they switched the covers over, because the original cover...no thank you. This book was all parts adorable. Some parts annoyed me, but this book was definitely worth the read. And I'm definitely going to pick up the last two books in this series. 4 out of 5 stars

7. LUX Beginnings: This is a bind up of the first two books in the LUX series. It reminds me of Twilight except not as awful. Definitely a guilty pleasure read for me, but I don't even care because it's seriously so fun. I already bought the second bind up of books three and four AND the final book. NO REGRETS. 4 out of 5 stars

Stay tuned for my November TBR! Hopefully it'll be going up tomorrow.

Happy reading!

October book haul!

Looking at this stack of books I'm about to show you, it has dawned on me that I should probably hold off on buying more books until I make a dent in the ones I already have to read. But then I just added ten more books to my Amazon wish list, so...yeah.

Without further ado...the ridiculousness that I let happen in October...

These aren't including books I bought in October but have already read...heh. Definitely have a problem. 

*For a synopsis of any book, just click on the title and it'll take you to the goodreads page. In the case of a book I have being from later in a series, I attached links for the synopsis' for the first book in them. Doing my duty to keep things spoiler free people.*

1. The Light between Oceans by M. L. Stedman

2. The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

3. Me before You by Jojo Moyes

4. Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

5. Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

These are the last two books in the Throne of Glass trilogy. So, if you haven't read the first one Throne of Glass, clickety click on the name for the synopsis. I didn't want to add the link for the second and third books because...spoilers and all.

6. Prodigy by Marie Lu

7. Champion by Marie Lu

Same goes for these two. Their the last two books in the Legend series. So to find out what it's all about here you go.

8. Lux Consequences ( book two and three of the LUX series) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

9. LUX Opposition by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Want to know what the LUX series is about? Boom. This series is my guilty pleasure right now. It's reminiscent of Twilight but the tiniest bit less cringe worthy. And the main character in this one is a lot better than Bella. And that annoying insta-love doesn't happen in this one. So kudos to you Jennifer L. Armentrout, kudos to you.

10. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

11. The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

12. The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

13. Unwind by Neal Shusterman

14. Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick

15. Seconds by Bryan Lee O' Malley

16. Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life by Byran Lee O' Malley

These are my first two graphic novels EVER. I'm trying to dip my toes slowly but surely into different book genres, and these two looked like good starters for graphic novels. Fingers crossed!

Last but certainly not least, The House of Hades by Rick Riordan. This is the fourth book in the Heroes of Olympus series. So, if you haven't read the first three, here's a synposis on what the first book, The Lost Hero, is about. The last book in this Percy Jackson spin off if you will, came out at the beginning of October and I'm trying to rush through this one because I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS. Ugh.

I'm hoping to post an October wrap up and a November to be read (TBR) at the end of this week or during the weekend even, so be on the lookout for that!

Happy reading lovelies!

Book talk Tuesday: Legend by Marie Lu

I know I'm extremely late to the game with this one, but I bought and finished up Legend by Marie Lu last week. I was hesitant of it at first, because I don't typically like war type books. I finally gave in and bought it after BookTube bashed the need for it into my brain.

The gist of this book: The western United States is now the "Republic", and it's always at war with it's neighbors. Some people, mostly people in the Slums *hint hint* keep contracting this disease/infection/virus thing. If you're lucky enough to have the money for the vaccine then you're fine. If you're the majority of the Republic though, you have to hope you're lucky enough to not get it.

 Enter June, she was born into an elite family in the Republic and from a young age has been groomed to be a super badass Republic soldier. So,of course the other lead in this book is the exact opposite. Day is born in the Slums of the Republic. And at fifteen years old he's somehow managed to be the most wanted criminal in the country. One day, Day is checking up on his family when he sees the guards in charge of checking for any new infected mark his house with a symbol indicating someone in that house is infected. 

 Twist and turns in the form of June's older brother being murdered and Day, who broke into a hospital looking for an infection cure, is the prime suspect, ensure the two are pitted against each other from the get go. Throw in some conspiracy and secrets being found out, and you get Legend. 

End result? I liked it. Yes, it was extremely predictable at every turn. But it somehow managed to keep me very entertained, despite being able to guess what was about to happen. And that's a feat in itself. This book is a mix of romance and urban Dystopian tendencies, it wasn't overruled by the romance, which I really liked. I was interested and wanted to know what happened bad enough to buy the rest of the series, so that's something.

Overall rating: 4 out if 5 stars

Who would like this book? If you liked Hunger Games, Divergent, and books like that, then you'd definitely enjoy the Legend Series.

Sidenote: Did you know that Marie Lu came up with the character of Day when she was only 15 years old? Then came up with the Legend concept one day when she was watching Les Mis? After I read this, I visited her website and read all about her and now have a bit of a writer crush on her.

Happy Tuesday book lovers!

I'm convinced all you need is a cozy nook and a good book.

                                          

J.K Rowling once said, "Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic. Capable of both inflicting injury, and remedying it." 

Books are my magic. They're my therapist. My doctor. My stress relief. My pharmacist. They're that old friend that when you're around them, you can't help but release that long breath you didn't know you were holding in. 

It basically comes down to the fact that I'm obsessed with books. I buy too many of them and then stay up too late because I just have to know what happens. I took my obsession to another level last year by getting a Harry Potter tattoo. It's almost a problem, I know.

What better way to feed my reading obsession than to blog about it? Book reviews, new releases, most anticipated books of the year, books I want to read, books I wish I hadn't read. It'll have a little bit of it all.

So cozy up to my little nook of the Internet if you will and let's talk books, yeah?

xx