Stepping Up!

[Natália]

Pike's Peak:
1."The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic" by Leigh Bardugo
2."Daughter of the Pirate King" by Tricia Levenseller
3."Cruel Crown" by Victoria Aveyyward
4."Envy" by Anna Godbersen
5."Rebel of the Sands" by Alwyn Hamilton
6."A Darker Shade of Magic" by V. E. Schwab
7."Traitor to the Throne" by Alwyn Hamilton
8."Glass Sword" by Victoria Aveyard
9."A Pocket Full of Rye" by Agatha Christie
10."The Archived" by Victoria Schwab
11."Adulthood is a Myth" by Sarah Andersen
12."Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon #6" by Naoko Takeuchi

[Natália]

#13:
"Summer Days and Summer Nights: Twelve Love Stories" by Stephanie Perkins & co.
Finished on: February 23, 2018
Rating:★★★★
Comment:I loved Perkins' first short stories anthology, "My True Love Gave To Me" so I was excited to read this one, especially because where I live is summer so it's a perfect match for the season. Yet, I found this one slower and less exciting than the previous one - the tales didn't grip me as much and many of them didn't leave me with that tingly, warm feeling in the end. I still liked pratically all of them - with a few favorites. I LOVED Perkins continuation of the story she wrote for the first anthology - I was thrilled to revisit Marigold and North in another setting. Leigh Bardugo's writing is exceptional as always, Cassandra Clare's creepy circus tale was also so fun and exciting, Veronica Roth was surprisingly deep and emotional and Libba Bray is a horror/humor/romance fantastic combination. Jon Skovron was fun in a Jane Austen kind of way and I enjoyed it a lot. Souvenirs by Tim Fenderle was surprising and kind of bittersweet, but I loved it. Jennifer E. Smith was also adorable and heartwarming. Lev Grossman's...idk, I liked but I didn't love it. It was an interesting concept and a sweet, kind of sad story, but it wasn't the best one here. Nina LaCour's was okay, and it dealt with some really real issues, but it was also just nice. My least favorite one's were Brandy Colbert's (because the protagonist irritated me and came across as selfish and rude for most of the story), and Sick Pleasure by Francesca Lia Block. Still, an enjoyable, mostly quick and cute read.

[Natália]

#14:
"Warcross" by Marie Lu
Finished on: March 8, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment:For me, this is Lu's best book so far. She takes this virtual reality concept and expands it in a very imaginative and realistic way, creating a fascinating and immersive world. I would love to live in a world where Warcross and the Neurolink is real! This is the kind of book that, once you've started, you can't put it down till you finished, especially the final chapters. So many amazing plot twists! I wasn't expecting most of them AT ALL! I was so shocked it took me a while after I finished the book to process everything and I can't help but create a million theories in my mind about what happens next. I'm so happy to have finished it and it's already one of my favorite reads of the year. A well-deserved 5 star book and I highly recommend it to everyone who likes some cyberpunk, sci-fi YA adventure and who enjoys fast paced stories full of unexpected twists as well as amazing characters and an immersive world.

[Natália]

#15:
"A Gathering of Shadows" by V.E Schwab
Finished on: March 12, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment: I already loved A Darker Shade of Magic, and while that first book was more fast paced and had more things going on during the book, this one is more consistent in its pace and it builds the tension and the events until everything explodes in the final scenes...AND WHAT WAS THAT CLIFFHANGER, SCHWAB? I'm not recovered yet and it's going to make me pick the final book right now to know what happens next!

[Natália]

#16:
"Sapphire Blue" by Kierstin Gier
Finished on: March 17, 2018
Rating:★★★★ - actual rating: 3.5 stars
Comment: This trilogy is such a light, fast and uncomplicated reading! I like how fun and entertaining it is and how the whole time-traveling things is handled here. I think I prefer the first book so far, but this one explained a lot of things and it has the addition of some interesting characters (like the demon-gargoyle Ximerious, who is HILARIOUS). The things are kinda predictable (except a little reveal at the very end), but I don't think this is supposed to be this big fantasy novel with lot of surprises anyway, so I wasn't bothered by this. I also love how Gwen is such a realistic 16 year old girl! She is thrust into the whole thing and she struggles a lot, instead of being immediately good at everything - she is not unnaturaly smart, she's an avarage student who likes magazines and movies and fangirls about actors with her best friends and likes to gossip and dreams of romance but still has a kind heart and is so so brave! Yes, she's a little naive and the whole romance with Gideon is a little over the top, but she's a 16 year-old girl and she acts like it. I don't think you're that mature about romance and first love at this age, so of course she's a little ingenuous about this beautiful boy who is suddenly in her life. I'm really curious about how everything is going to end and what is the big secret about Paul & Lucy, why they stole the chronograph and what is Count Saint-Germain's endgame and I hope everything ties up nicely in the final book!

[Natália]

#17:
"Emerald Green" by Kierstin Gier
Finished on: March 20, 2018
Rating:★★★
Comment: This was such a disappointment. It was a weak, rushed conclusion to this otherwise entertaining and fun series. Gwen annoyed me a lot here, more than in the previous books - she seems to have involved instead of developing. Her naivety feels forced here, because by this stage of things she can't be this innocent and naive anymore and she came across as just stupid and childish. Her romance with Gideon, instead of cute like in the previous novels, was even more cliché and unrealistic. The plot twists were obvious again, because from book 2 it was plain what would happen at the end (except for some good surprises at the end) and after it was over it left me like "that's it?". It was very anticlimatic and it didn't wrap all the storylines neatly. For the size of this book compared to the others, I hoped things would be much more well developed and the final book would bring much needed explanations, character developments and the big finish I was hoping. Oh well, at least it's done. Maybe the movies will be more fun.

#18:
"Annihilation" by Jeff Vandermeer
Finished on: March 23, 2018
Rating:★★★
Comment: I don't know how I feel about this book. I like the concept, but I don't think I liked how it was done. I love mysteries and thrillers and suspense mainly because at the end we have the big explanation, answering the questions we had during the novel. I need to know things in the end, that's why I love Agatha Christie's book and detective novels in general. And the main thing that bugged me here is that we're left at the end with even more questions than when we begin and almost no answers at all. All the weirdness is just for the sake of being weird, and that's that. So I was really angry when I finished this. Also, I couldn't like the main character at all. She's hateful and definitely have some neuropsychological issue. I enjoyed the movie adaptation more than the actual book, and I don't know if I'll continue with the trilogy.

#19:
"Big Mushy Happy Lump" by Sarah Andersen
Finished on: March 24, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment: Sarah Andersen's comics are so relatable! I absolutely loved and related to the anxiety and introvert illustrated essays at the end of the book. I could see myself in a lot of the situations she illustrates and laughed a lot again.

[Natália]

#20:
"Dealing in Deception" by Samantha Joycer
Finished on: March 25, 2018
Rating:★★★★ ★
Comment: This was such a good surprise! I was expecting this uncomplicated hot romance novel, with lots of teasing between the couple, the whole love-hate relationship and all, but I got much more than just that! It's a well rounded book, with admittedly a very chick-lit, romantic novel plotline, but that had a well developed and natural romance, complexe and interesting characters with good evolution during the book and it dealt with some very strong themes and handled it amazingly. The way the author handled Veronica's emotion and her reactions after a certain incident during the book was just so real and well done! I felt for her a lot, she was this strong character with a complicated and difficult past that made her like she is today and still she overcame a lot and I admired how far she came. Bax is such a precious, truly good person. I absolutely loved him. He genuinely wants to help people and save the world and he has such a big, beautiful heart! There was only one situation were he was not 'perfect' and it made me frown, but it was such a tiny thing next to everything else! The ending is not rushed or forced and it felt like watching a good romantic movie. I'm so happy I picked it up to lighten me up a bit after Annihilation! A well deserved 5 stars!

[Natália]

Yes! I can't even believe it, I've read 10 books this month! 8 counts for this challenge, so I sprinted my way up Mt. Blanc! Let's hope I can do just as well next month!

[Natália]

#21:
"Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher
Finished on: March 26, 2018
Rating:★★★ - actual rating: 3.5 stars
Comment: I liked this book but it wasn't the mindblowing book I was expecting. Yes, it was sad and I enjoyed the approach to depression, suicide and other important themes - it shows that it's tiny little moments that undermines someone's mind and will, and your actions have consequences, no matter how unimportant you think they are. I felt for Hannah so many times during this book and my heart broke for her. There were times when she was clearly crying out for help and no one 'cared' or listened. Clay just annoyed me a lot, though. He was constantly mulling over his feelings for Hannah, how HE was feeling and a little bit judgmental of Hannah and her decisions & thoughts. I really want to check out the tv series, though, because I watched the first episode and enjoyed it a lot (also, I liked Clay better in that version).

[Natália]

I'm on a roll this last week!

#22:
"The Sun is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon
Finished on: March 31, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment: THIS BOOK! I ended it with a huge smile on my face and a light heart. It's so cute! I'm not a huge fan of contemporary YA romances, but this one won me over. I like the way Nicola Yoon tells the story, alternating the POV's between Natasha and Daniel, but also inserting bits of other background characters stories or some facts about especial things to the story and the characters. It makes for a quicker read and it makes everything more interesting. The epilogue was the cherry on top this beautiful book! I do hope there's a movie adaptation after the success it was "Everything, Everything"!

#23:
"The Grift of the Magi" by Ally Carter
Finished on: March 30, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment: Such heart-warming, quick and light novella from the world of Heist Society. This novella takes place in Christmas after the end of the 3rd book and it has everything it was lacking in the previous book, I think. Yes, there were some drama here, especially with Hale & Kat (again), but also with Gabrielle and her mom - this story is a a lot about family. I really enjoyed it and left feeling satisfied.

And that's a wrap on March! Wow, what a month! I've read 12 books, 10 of each counts towards this challenge. I'm 1 book short of reaching the top of Mount Blanc! Let's hope April is just as good!

[Natália]

#24:
"The Score" by Elle Kennedy
Finished on: April 18, 2018
Rating:★★★★
Comment: Dean's book was such a surprise for me! I was not expecting to like his character so much or for it to be such an emotionally charged book, especially at the end. I like how Elle Kennedy weaves some serious issues and realistic situations into her books, making the plot into more than just the romance and steamy scenes. I loved Allie, along with Hannah she may be my favorite female protagonist in this series. The ending left a helluva cliffhanger for the final book (that I found out was not so final, because the author is doing a spin-off series with the younger Briar players YAY) and I can't wait because I really like Tuck since book 2!

And that's Mt. Blanc for me! April's been a slow reading month for me, because I haven't had as much time as I thought I would. I've read 4 books so far, 3 of them shiny new ones and 1 that counts towards this challenge. I'm on plowing through Jane Eyre and a couple of other books that will fit in this challenge. But, I'm on my way to climb Mt. Vancouver now, at least!

[Natália]

Jessika wrote: "Congrats on moving up again!"
Thanks! I'm hoping to pick up some speed in May & June!