Always Me

❋  ❋  ❋   ❋ I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Azure ‘Azzy’ Brimvine lives in a world decimated by magic, where humans have retreated underground, but Below is no safer than Above. Magic borne plagues continue to eat away at the remaining human cities, a sickness that creates aberrations from the stricken: people twisted by magic. It is an existence of fear and constant dread. When Azzy’s brother, Armin, is infected and cast out into the Above, she sets out after him, determined to be there for him no matter what. The world Above is full of monsters, both wild and cunning, some more human than Azzy was led to believe. Armin is captured and bound for the Auction block of Avergard, a ruthless city of inhuman lords and twisted creatures. To reach him, Azzy must brave the perils of the Above. To reach him, she must find allies and forge new bonds in this broken world. And Azzy must reach him, before Armin’s new power is used to open the Gate once more

How is it almost October?  Where's the time going?  Anyway, now that means that I've completed 18 out of 24 books of  Book Riot's 2019 Read Harder Challenge !  The tasks I completed  this month required me to read a book in which an animal or inanimate object is a point-of-view character and an   historical romance by an AOC .   For the tasks, I selected   Watership Down  by Richard Adams  and  My Beautiful Enemy  ( The Heart of Blade Duology  #2) by Sherry Thomas .   Read on to see my mini reviews and what's next for October: ❋  ❋ I must be in the minority in my thoughts on  Watership Down  by Richard Adams . I didn't really like it all that much. The first hundred pages were good, but it started losing my attention afterwards. Why did this have to be 500 pages? I can appreciate fleshing out rabbit and animal society, culture, language, lore, and religion, but here it bogged the story down. I liked the descriptions of nature, but I didn't connect to a

Happy Monday everyone and welcome back to Music Monday! Let's share some songs we've been enjoying lately!  If you would like to play and I really hope you do, please see the rules and link up below. Rules: Every Monday share a few songs you've been enjoying lately.  It doesn't have to be a specific genre, new, or one of your favorites - just something you'd like to share with others.  If possible, share a music or lyric video of the song and your thoughts on the song(s), artist(s), and/or music video(s). If you would like to participate in Music Monday, please join the link up by sharing your post's url. Happy Monday everyone!  This week I'm spotlighting some of my favorite Matias Puumala songs.  I've been hearing some of his epic music on the classical Pandora radio station and since then I've been listening to him on YouTube.  Some of my favorites are The Art of War, Rebellion, The Awakening, The Wind is Calling, Renegades, and The Cla

Happy Sunday everyone!  Today I'm sharing my wrap up and mini reviews for the  LOHF Anniversary Readathon  hosted by  Ladies of Horror Fiction  and  Alex @ Hey Little Thrifter  in celebration of the Ladies of Horror Fiction's anniversary which will run for the entire month of September.  You can check out my TBR post here .  I just managed to complete all of the books I had on my TBR and for the most part I enjoyed what I read.  Read on to see my thoughts on these books: By an indie author ❋  ❋  ❋   ❋ The Rust Maidens  by Gwendolyn Kiste  is an incredibly atmospheric Cleveland set horror fantasy.  The way the author explores decay in its many forms is fascinating as is the transformation from girl to woman and even other.  I'm going to have to read more from this fellow Ohioan in the future. My review can also be found on Goodreads . By an LGBTQ+ Author ❋  ❋  ❋   ❋ Caitlin R. Kiernan certainly has a way with words, doesn't she?  Wow!  It

Happy Saturday everyone!  This year I'm taking part in  Devour Your TBR which is hosted by Kathy @ Books and Munches and destiny .  Each month the Goodreads Group for the challenge dedicated to knocking out our ever growing TBRs comes up with a themed challenge. October's theme is OWNtober which is dedicated to books that you own - and to get in the spirit of Halloween I'm focusing on horror and urban fantasy novels.  Keep reading to see my potential TBR for October: For a Few Demons More ( The Hollows #5) by Kim Harrison - This Cincinnati set urban fantasy series is so addicting.  I can't wait to see what Rachel and company get up to this time. Drake ( The Burned Man #1) by Peter McLean - I've been sitting on this one for way too long since it sounds exactly like the kind of urban fantasy noir that I'd enjoy. Night Terrors ( Shadow Watch #1) by Tim Waggoner - I don't know about you, but I was sold at Men in Black meets The Sandman .  Plus, Waggo

On Friday's I take part in three weekly link ups - The Friday 56, hosted by  Freda's Voice , Book Beginnings, hosted by  Rose City Reader , and 50/50 Friday is a new weekly link up and it is hosted by  Carrie @ The Butterfly Reader  and  Laura @ Blue Eye Books . For The Friday 56, you choose a book, a book you have just finished, a book you are about to start, your current read, and share a line or a few lines that grab you (but don't spoil anything) from page 56 or 56% of the way through the ebook. Post it and share your post's url on Freda's most recent Friday 56 post. As for Book Beginnings, you share the first sentence or so and your initial thoughts, impressions, or whatever else it inspires, and then link up your post's url with Rose City Reader. Then, for 50/50 Friday, every week there's a new topic featuring two sides of the same coin - you share a book that suits each category and link up on the hosts blogs. This week I'm spotli

Happy Tuesday everyone!  Welcome to the Top Ten Tuesday now hosted by  That Artsy Reader Girl .  This week's topic is Books On My Fall 2019 TBR.  All of the books I've listed below are ARCs I'm looking forward to reading, part of my Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge, or Beat the Backlist Challenge.  Here we go, in order alphabetical order by title: Across a Broken Shore by Amy Trueblood The Art of Theft ( Lady Sherlock #4) by Sherry Thomas Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake by Frank W. Abagnale with Stan Redding Elementary, She Read ( Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery #1) by Vicki Delany The Eye of the World ( The Wheel of Time #1) by Robert Jordan The Girl with No Face ( The Daoshi Chronicles #2) by M.H. Boroson In the Hall with the Knife ( Clue Mystery #1) by Diana Peterfreund Ordinary Girls by Jaquira Diaz The Scalpel of Scotland Yard: The Life of Sir Bernard Spilsbury by Douglas G. Browne and E.V. Tulle

Happy Monday everyone and welcome back to Music Monday! Let's share some songs we've been enjoying lately!  If you would like to play and I really hope you do, please see the rules and link up below. Rules: Every Monday share a few songs you've been enjoying lately.  It doesn't have to be a specific genre, new, or one of your favorites - just something you'd like to share with others.  If possible, share a music or lyric video of the song and your thoughts on the song(s), artist(s), and/or music video(s). If you would like to participate in Music Monday, please join the link up by sharing your post's url. Happy Monday everyone!  This week I'm spotlighting a couple of songs I've recently heard in Welsh that I've absolutely fallen in love with.  I started studying the language on Duolingo and it definitely helps me to hear and see media in the language just like learning any language.  My first pick is a Welsh folk song called Dacw 'Ngha

On Friday's I take part in three weekly link ups - The Friday 56, hosted by  Freda's Voice , Book Beginnings, hosted by  Rose City Reader , and 50/50 Friday is a new weekly link up and it is hosted by  Carrie @ The Butterfly Reader  and  Laura @ Blue Eye Books . For The Friday 56, you choose a book, a book you have just finished, a book you are about to start, your current read, and share a line or a few lines that grab you (but don't spoil anything) from page 56 or 56% of the way through the ebook. Post it and share your post's url on Freda's most recent Friday 56 post. As for Book Beginnings, you share the first sentence or so and your initial thoughts, impressions, or whatever else it inspires, and then link up your post's url with Rose City Reader. Then, for 50/50 Friday, every week there's a new topic featuring two sides of the same coin - you share a book that suits each category and link up on the hosts blogs. This week I'm spotlig

Happy Tuesday everyone!  Welcome to the Top Ten Tuesday now hosted by  That Artsy Reader Girl .  This week's topic is Favorite Things to Eat/Drink While Reading (submitted by Jana’s mom). Apples Arnold Palmer Half and Half Grapes Orange Vanilla Coke Popcorn Pretzels String cheese Swedish Fish Toast Tortilla chips What are some of your favorite snacks and drinks to have while reading?  As always, thanks for visiting my blog and perhaps even commenting down below!

Happy Monday everyone and welcome back to Music Monday! Let's share some songs we've been enjoying lately!  If you would like to play and I really hope you do, please see the rules and link up below. Rules: Every Monday share a few songs you've been enjoying lately.  It doesn't have to be a specific genre, new, or one of your favorites - just something you'd like to share with others.  If possible, share a music or lyric video of the song and your thoughts on the song(s), artist(s), and/or music video(s). If you would like to participate in Music Monday, please join the link up by sharing your post's url. Happy Monday everyone!  This week I'm spotlighting a couple of  oneboredjeu Mashup  videos that really work together more than you might expect - It's A Little Complicated which is a mashup of Complicated by Avril Lavigne and High Hopes by Panic! At The Disco & Old Crown Road which is a combo of you should see me in a crown by Billie Ei

Happy Sunday everyone!  Today I'm sharing three mini reviews with you:   Craven Street ( Whitechapel Paranormal Society #0.5) by E.J. Stevens  (released June 25th, 2019),  The Witchkin Murders ( Magicfall #1) by Diana Pharaoh Francis  (available June 7th, 2019), and Dark Magic ( Online Kingdom #2) by Jakob Tanner (released February 5th, 2019).  Thank you very much to NetGalley for providing me with ARCs of Craven Street and The Witchkin Murders  and Jakob Tanner for Dark Magic  in exchange for my honest reviews.  Read on to see my thoughts on these two books: ❋  ❋  ❋ Craven Street ( Whitechapel Paranormal Society #0.5 ) by E.J. Stevens is a good little novella for fans of gothic mysteries with a dash of fantasy. It goes quick and the world that Stevens has created is very atmospheric, but I have to admit I felt somewhat out of the loop. There's much more I'd like to know about the world the characters inhabit. This is my first time reading anything by th