Friday Reads November 23, 2018

Hello and happy holidays! I managed to finish last week's read, Malice, after eating too many servings of mashed potatoes at family Thanksgiving this year. I am officially at 99 books read in 2018 so far! One more and I will reach my new goal of 100 books for the year.

As far as my channel, the past couple of videos I posted didn't get many views but I had a lot of fun making them so I'll count it as a positive. If you're interested I put up a reading vlog and then played the Book Bachelor Game to see which book I've read in the past two and a half months was going to win my heart! I think I might try a new tag for this coming Tuesday (it's Thank U, Next) and skip uploading on Sunday this week...or maybe put up another reading vlog. We will see!

Today was Black Friday shopping. I had originally planned to try and go to Barnes & Nobles and Half Price Books to snag some great savings on books, but the crazy crowds meant I ended up only having time to stop at Barnes before heading home. Check out below to see the three books I got for 50% off (and two of them are even signed) as well as a book I got earlier in the week!

Happy reading!

Title: Vita Nostra
Author: Marina and Sergey Dyachenko
Translator: Julia Meitov Hersey
Page Count: 404
Progress: 31
Format: Hardcover
Genre: Fantasy
Keywords: Magic, Science, Russia
Kid Appropriate: Probably not

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Our life is brief . . .

The definitive English language translation of the internationally best-selling Russian novel – a brilliant dark fantasy combining psychological suspense, enchantment, and terror that makes us consider human existence in a fresh and provocative way.

‘A book that has the potential to become a modern classic.’
Lev Grossman, best-selling author of The Magicians

Our life is brief . . .

While on holiday at the beach with her mother, Sasha Samokhina meets the mysterious Farit Kozhennikov under the most peculiar circumstances. The teenage girl is powerless to refuse when this strange and unusual man with a sinister air directs her to perform strange and uncomfortable tasks. He rewards her efforts with a strange golden coin.

As the days progress, Sasha carries out other acts for which she receives more coins from Kozhennikov. As summer ends, her new domineering mentor directs her to move to a remote village and use her gold to enter the Institute of Special Technologies. Though she does not want to go to this unknown town or university, she also feels that somehow it’s the only place she should be. Against her mother’s wishes, Sasha leaves behind all that is familiar and begins her education.

As she quickly discovers, the institute’s ‘special technologies’ are unlike anything she has ever encountered. The books are impossible to read, the lessons maddeningly obscure, and the work refuses memorization. Using terror and coercion to keep the students in line, the school does not punish them for their transgressions and failures; instead, their families pay a terrible price.

Yet despite her fear, Sasha undergoes changes that defy the dictates of matter and time; experiences which are nothing she has ever dreamed of… and suddenly all she could ever want.

A complex blend of adventure, magic, science, and philosophy, filtered through a distinct Russian sensibility, this astonishing work – brilliantly translated by Julia Meitov Hersey – is reminiscent of modern classics such as Lev Grossman’s The Magicians, Max Barry’s Lexicon, and Katherine Arden’s The Bear and the Nightingale, but will transport them to a place fantastical and new.

Thoughts so far:

Definitely a darker, older version of Harry Potter! I am really enjoying it so far. If you're interested in Post-Soviet Russia, this would be a great read for you!

Title: Girls of Paper and Fire
Author: Natasha Ngan
Page Count: 380
Progress: 21
Format: B&N Exclusive Signed Hardcover
Genre: YA Fantasy
Keywords: LGBTQ+, Concubines, Magic
Kid Appropriate: Teens, but trigger warning for sexual assault

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Each year, eight beautiful girls are chosen as Paper Girls to serve the king. It's the highest honor they could hope for...and the most cruel.

But this year, there's a ninth girl. And instead of paper, she's made of fire.

In this lush fantasy, Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most oppressed class in Ikhara. She lives in a remote village with her father, where the decade-old trauma of watching her mother snatched by royal guards still haunts her. Now, the guards are back, and this time it's Lei they're after--the girl whose golden eyes have piqued the king's interest.

Over weeks of training in the opulent but stifling palace, Lei and eight other girls learn the skills and charm that befit being a king's consort. But Lei isn't content to watch her fate consume her. Instead, she does the unthinkable--she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens the very foundation of Ikhara, and Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide just how far she's willing to go for justice and revenge.

TW: violence and sexual abuse.

Thoughts so far:

I'm not 100% sure what is happening or how this world works, but I am really enjoying it. The writing is enchanting and the concepts of demons are presented in an interesting and unique way. I'm hoping that it continues to progress into a great read.

One weird thing, the Moon caste are fully animalistic demons in this world...I keep picturing them as Zootopia characters! Which makes for a weird reading experience!

Title: Ogre Enchanted
Author: Gail Carson Levine
Page Count: 352
Format: Signed Hardcover
Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy
Keywords: Curses, Shrek, Magic
Kid Appropriate: Yes

Synopsis from Goodreads:

In this prequel to Ella Enchanted, which can stand on its own, young healer Evie is transformed into an ogre by the meddling fairy Lucinda. She’ll turn back only if someone proposes and she accepts!

Returning to the land and many of the characters from her beloved Newbery Honor–winning Ella Enchanted, Gail Carson Levine has written a delightful tale about a clever and endearing heroine who is determined to defy expectations.

Evie is happiest when she is healing people, diagnosing symptoms, and prescribing medications, with the help of her devoted friend (and test subject) Wormy. So when Wormy unexpectedly proposes to her, she kindly turns him down; she has far too much to do to be marrying anyone. And besides, she simply isn’t in love with him.

But a certain meddling fairy named Lucinda has been listening in, and she doesn’t approve of Evie’s rejection. Suddenly, Evie finds herself transformed from a girl into a hideous, hungry ogre. Evie now has only sixty-two days to accept another proposal—or else be stuck as an ogre forever.

Note:

I haven't even started reading this yet but it is giving me serious Shrek vibes. Anyone else???

Title: Sadie
Author: Courtney Summers
Page Count: 311
Format: Hardcover
Genre: YA Mystery
Keywords: Family, Missing, Revenge
Kid Appropriate: Teens and older

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Sadie hasn't had an easy life. Growing up on her own, she's been raising her sister Mattie in an isolated small town, trying her best to provide a normal life and keep their heads above water.

But when Mattie is found dead, Sadie's entire world crumbles. After a somewhat botched police investigation, Sadie is determined to bring her sister's killer to justice and hits the road following a few meagre clues to find him.

When West McCray—a radio personality working on a segment about small, forgotten towns in America—overhears Sadie's story at a local gas station, he becomes obsessed with finding the missing girl. He starts his own podcast as he tracks Sadie's journey, trying to figure out what happened, hoping to find her before it's too late.