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Book Challenges Book Reviews Books

I Read Only Books With Blue Covers | Here’s What That Weird Rule Revealed

Not all that long ago, I read books that were red on the cover, and now here are some that are blue… maybe I should do another colour next 😛

Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice For Murderers

Honestly so funny for a book about a death in a tea shop.
Vera was hilarious and I know so many Aunties like this. She was great, and the perfect balance of nosy and caring.
All our characters had interesting secret lives that unravelled so nicely. I wanted to know the tea (wink wink) and they spilled it on such a great progression.
Getting sucked into Vera’s world was absolutely hilarious, and I actually just loved it.
The mystery itself was really great. I did call the killer about halfway through HOWEVER another twist in there through the story was NOT foreseen so props for that.

Grab the book Here

Little White Lies

This book was so utterly boring and forgettable which was quite confusing because normally I like this author. I don’t know if it was the Setting, characters, or plot, but it just didn’t work for me.
I wasn’t invested and I don’t think there was enough setup for the characters for me to become invested. It felt a little all over the place in regards to the plot and how that unfolded and almost likely were thrown into the middle of something without enough context.
The little posts from the anonymous site felt unusual and out of place, I don’t know why they were there in the first place we could have completely done without them.
I don’t understand the flashback element whatsoever, it was completely unnecessary. If you were gonna do it, those scenes should have been longer and had more value to the story.
The follow up books Is going to be a miss for me.

Grab the book Here

The Next Worst Thing

woodley

Characters were good.
Wedding stuff was fun and interesting. Rivalry / enemies to lovers was great.
Ending was rushed which meant less satisfying but all characters ended up pretty good.
Main characters were really good and I enjoyed their banter and progressions.

Grab the book Here

Just One Taste

Interesting blend of working holiday writing a cookbook answer grief of a parent death and very complex relationship.
I liked our two main characters and thought their progression was good.
The finding recipes and food in Italy for the cookbook was a really nice backdrop and plot, and was the best part. If two other characters were doing the same thing, it would have also been good. Might say something about these characters being interchangeable and pretty boring on their own, but they worked alongside the Setting and plot.

Grab the book Here

Better Than The Movies

painter

Funny, littered with fun romcom references and fully what you want from a romance.

I loved the banter, I loved the characters and their relationships. I loved the old school style and references to classic romantic comedy’s.

It was such a fun ride and I finished almost the whole book in just one afternoon!

Grab the book Here

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Book Reviews Books

The Choosing by Rachelle Dekker: Why the Moral World Hits Differently Than Expected

Estimated Reading Time: 3min

A book that explores what happens when your worth in society is fully at the whim of if you are desirable, and what happens if for some reason, you aren’t chosen. How does your life look then? Do you actually hold value if the people around you don’t? Is there another purpose for life, and does it matter?

The Choosing

Like all citizens since the Ruining, Carrington Hale knows the importance of this day. But she never expected the moment she’d spent a lifetime preparing for–her Choosing ceremony–to end in disaster. Ripped from her family, she’ll spend her days serving as a Lint, the lowest level of society. She knows it’s her duty to follow the true way of the Authority.

But as Carrington begins this nightmare, rumors of rebellion rattle her beliefs. Though the whispers contradict everything she’s been told, they resonate deep within. Then Carrington is offered an unprecedented chance at the life she’s always dreamed of, yet she can’t shake the feeling that it may be an illusion. With a killer targeting Lints and corruption threatening the highest levels of the Authority, Carrington must uncover the truth before it destroys her.

Grab the book Here

Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical Abuse, Misogyny, Torture
Moderate: Violence, Murder

My Review

I loved this book!
The writing was so easy to fly through, and the story felt like The Selection + Divergent (Abnegation vibes).
I loved the process of characters developing and realising that their worth does not come from labels that others give them, that nobody is worthless, and we can overcome the lies we’ve been told.
Overall, a maddeningly amazing novel.

Content warning for young readers: some moderate violence and torture scenes

Would I Recommend This Book?

YES! Every day, every year – I would recommend everyone to read this book, but especially people who struggle with self-worth. The second book looks at a more male perspective in this world, but I still think this is a fantastic book for everyone to read and reflect on.

Similar Books You Might Like

If you are thinking what kind of books would have similar feel, themes or content, here is a list that you can consider:

  • Divergent (Veronica Roth)
  • Matched (Ally Condie)
  • Red Queen (Victoria Aveyard)

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Life

True Salvation Leads to Transformation

Estimated Reading Time: 6min

One of the doubts I hear a lot from other believers is wondering whether they are truly saved or not. Are they really going to make it to Heaven? How do they know for sure that they are really saved and they won’t end up standing in front of Jesus with him saying “depart from me, I do not know you”?

While there are some very clear indicators of the fruit of salvation that Scripture shows us to look out for, there is also one overarching truth that can be a quick guide for the niggle of doubt for a believer.

Salvation is the free choice of acknowledging the blood sacrifice of Jesus to take our place of punishment. Often likened to a court room drama where we are the ones on trial with a death penalty called out on our guilt. Then, Jesus stands up, though he had nothing to do with our crimes, and takes the chair in our place. While I don’t mind that analogy, I think we miss what comes after by focussing only on that part of the story.

The next part is what we do afterwards. We don’t just go back out into the world and continue living how we want to, putting ourselves first, our ambitions and goals above anything that Jesus’ own Father asks of us. Instead, we are now owned by God, because he paid for us.

I believe that we are losing the severity of the decision to put Jesus first in our lives, and to recognize Him as the Lord (or ruler) over our lives. We are voluntarily deciding to be a servant. We are saying to God the Father, I see what your Son did in going to the chair in my place, so now, as you have paid for me, I am going to serve in your house. You are in charge of my life, because you paid for it.

The good part about this decision, is that God is not another human with motives that are cruel and self serving. Instead, he doesn’t treat you like a servant, but like a son or daughter. Instead of living a life as a slave who has no rights, He sees you like family and treats you as such. Not only did you choose to give up your own life, but God gives you a royal one instead.

When that is the decision you make, you cannot help by have a transformation in your life.

The way that you live changes.

The way that you think changes.

The way that you treat other people changes.

The way that you view God and His church changes.

Everything changes. You are no longer the person you were before you were saved. Your life is different. People around you can see that you are not who you were. You are not who the rest of the world is. If you see in your life the fruit of living as a royal member of God’s family, with all the benefits and responsibilities that entails, you have had transformation in your life.

Don’t get me wrong, saved believers can get things wrong, go backwards, make mistakes and miss the mark. In fact, we do it all the time. When you feel convicted about going another more selfish direction, that’s a sign that you have been transformed. Without the guidance of the Holy Spirit, you wouldn’t blink an eye to do something that serves your own interests. Now, you have God pulling you back onto the path that is best for you and those around you to travel on.

While there are many examples in Scripture of what a walk with God can look like (both good and bad), if you can look at your life as a whole and see a transformation into becoming like Jesus (we aren’t perfect, my friends, but we’re trying our best to walk as He did) you don’t have to let doubt creep into your life and steal away the joy that comes with Salvation.

You have hope in what is unseen that you are saved, you will see Jesus, and you will spend eternity with Him. Any doubts that come in after your Salvation caused transformation, is an attempt from the enemy to drag you down. To drown you in doubt, lead you to decisions you shouldn’t make, and mindsets that become strongholds to drag you down.

When doubts begin to form if you’re really saved, and you wonder if you’re part of God’s family, look to the fruit of your life and see if it matches what Scripture tells us believers will look like. Dive into the Word that guides us. Line up your life to what it says. Check if you’ve undergone transformation and speak to someone you trust. Someone who is longer on the journey with Christ than you. Someone who walks with you in your life, is leading and discipling you.

God loves you, and I hope you have a church family to walk through this journey of life that we are on.

See You in the Adventures!

Categories
Book Reviews Books Booktok/Booktube

A Forbidden Alchemy: Magic, Rules, and What Happens When You Break Both

Estimated Reading Time: 4min

Peaky Blinders meets a fantasy world of supernatural abilities and breaking down the class system… don’t forget the banter and second chances.

A Forbidden Alchemy

Nina Harrow and Patrick Colson are twelve years old when they are whisked away from the shadows of their disenfranchised mining towns to dazzling Belavere City to discover their magical potential. Those who pass Belavere’s test will become Artisans, wielders of powerful elemental magic destined to fulfill the city’s grand ambitions. For Nina, the Artisan School symbolizes a dream and an escape from her harsh reality, while Patrick yearns to return to his Craftsman family, whose extraordinary physical strength serves the idium mines keeping the city alive.
 
And then they uncover a devastating truth: Artisans aren’t born, they’re chosen. They part ways on very different paths, leaving them to carry the burden of this secret alone.

Grab the book Here

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual Content
Moderate: Toxic Relationship, Murder, War

My Review

If this book wasn’t open door it would have easily been five stars. I love the story, it was funny, it was interesting, the magic system was great. I loved every part about it, the banter between the main characters was so much fun (and the other characters also). All the characters were great, and the way they engaged with each other was great, I loved the setting and nods to different time periods – everything was stunning.

Would I Recommend This Book?

Yes, if you are alright with open door scenes, this was exciting and worth the read.

Similar Books You Might Like

If you are thinking what kind of books would have similar feel, themes or content, here is a list that you can consider:

  • The Prison Healer (Lynette Noni)
  • Red Queen (Victoria Aveyard)
  • Dance of Thieves (Mary E Pearson)

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Book Reviews Book Series Books Booktok/Booktube

The Red Queen Series: Power, Politics, and Why the System Stops Making Sense

Estimated Reading Time: 5min

When the bad have the power, the rest are powerless (wink if you know), and a select few are planning to prove the current power structure and system is wrong. This series was brutal, bloody, powerful and political.

Red Queen

Mare Barrow’s world is divided by blood–those with common, Red blood serve the Silver-blooded elite, who are gifted with superhuman abilities. Mare is a Red, scraping by as a thief in a poor, rural village, until a twist of fate throws her in front of the Silver court. Before the king, princes, and all the nobles, she discovers she has an ability of her own.
 
To cover up this impossibility, the king forces her to play the role of a lost Silver princess and betroths her to one of his own sons. As Mare is drawn further into the Silver world, she risks everything and uses her new position to help the Scarlet Guard–a growing Red rebellion–even as her heart tugs her in an impossible direction.

Grab the book Here

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Blood
Moderate: War, Torture, Murder
Minor: Suicide, Death of a Parent, Child Death

My Review

I actually really liked this book.
I liked the “super power” element rather than magic, and the separation of Red and Silver is something we can relate to (with various divisions we have in our own world).
I did gloss over the world and surroundings descriptions, but the plot was good. Granted, it was similar to other YA dystopians but if you know what you’re getting into, I don’t see that as a problem.
I liked the characters, but admittedly looked up the spoilers before reading so I didn’t have any shock moments at the various twists and turns.
No graphic sexual content but pretty violent fights and scene depictions. Not really any cuss words either.

Glass Sword

aveyard

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, War
Moderate: Child Death, Murder, Fire
Minor: Pregnancy, Panic Attacks, Grief

My Review

A lot darker than the first.
Little to no hope throughout was a theme. Dark emotions, dark choices, refusal to let go and revenge and darkness the guiding force in pretty much all characters.
Powers are interesting, and it makes the fighting great. Just wish the characters were a little more likeable and a little less of a combined whine and bloodthirsty mess.

King’s Cage

Content Warnings

Graphic: War Violence, Death
Moderate: Torture, Grief, Pregnancy
Minor: Sexual Content, Alcohol, Cursing

My Review

The first half of this book could have been 25 pages instead of 250. It was entirely too long, and I was so close to calling it quits when read 200+ pages of a non plot same old same old. THEN, it started getting good. Honestly, I wish it had reached the halfway point way sooner, because that book would have been amazing. The second half was great but by the time I got there I was almost over the whole thing. It was quite long and the last book is even more so…
The powers are always fun to see play out. Characters were the same, and while some were good, others were tiresome.

War Storm

Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Violence, Death
Moderate: Grief, Torture, Blood
Minor: Death of a Parent, Kidnapping

My Review

Book 1 was Court Politics
Book 2 was Rebel Politics
Book 3 was Prisoner Politics
Book 4 was War politics

We finally made it to the end (if you don’t count the mish mash follow up of Broken Throne.. which I don’t – at least for now). This was the longest book by far, and the one that was the least interesting for me. Politics of three nations/groups all battling in secret and in the open, with personal stakes and grudges… it was quite dull. Outside of the scenes where people were actually using their abilities, I found myself feeling scenes drag on way too long, and things were quite convoluted.

Real world politics does have run in a similar way from my understanding, but I think this kind of a story is not where my interest lies. Give me the action scenes with way less back and forth and I would have been happier. Having said that, I think it was a true to story and character ending. Drawn out, but oddly satisfying.

Would I Recommend This Book?

Yes, I would. Keep in mind some of the darker themes and content warnings – the first two are DEFINATELY a good read, the second two were debatable for me, but on the whole I really enjoyed the world and the series and Victoria’s writing.

Similar Books You Might Like

If you are thinking what kind of books would have similar feel, themes or content, here is a list that you can consider:

  • Shatter Me (Tahereh Mafi)
  • Divergent (Veronica Roth)
  • Legend (Marie Lu)

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Book Reviews Book Series Books

The Curious Realities Duology: A World That Feels More Fragile Than It Should

Estimated Reading Time: 3min

I didn’t think Alice In Wonderland could get any crazier… I was wrong. This was a trip, it was fascinating and it had so many twists and turns that I could barely keep up while keeping the original story and references in mind! Ready to fall down the rabbit hole?

The Wonderland Trials

All Alice Liddell wants is to escape her Normal life in Oxford and find the parents who abandoned her ten years ago. But she gets more than she bargained for when her older sister Charlotte is arrested for having the infamous Wonder Gene—the key to unlocking the curious Wonderland Reality.

Soon, Alice receives a rather cryptic invitation to play for Team Heart in this year’s annual—and often deadly—Wonderland Trials. Now she has less than twenty-four hours to find her way into Wonderland where nothing is impossible . . . or what it seems.

Grab the book Here

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of a Parent, Abandonment
Moderate: Injury

My Review

Thoroughly enjoyable.
Alice in Wonderland references with new twists and additional world building elements. It was interesting, exciting and as expected, full of nonsense.
The games were a fun touch, and I liked how the familiar characters were included.

The Looking Glass Illusion

Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, War, Injury
Minor: Death

My Review

What a bunch of nonsense… intentionally so.
Lovely nonsense mixed together so you don’t know which way is up, or which way is down (or side to side for that matter).
The first book at least made a little More sense but this one was pretty chaotic. I still caught the train of thought (😜) and followed along. I still understood the twists and turns of the ultimate plot. I still followed the characters as they navigated the craziness.
All in all, I’m pretty tired… but I appreciate what the story did.

Would I Recommend This Book?

Yes, I would recommend but only if you are good at keeping a lot of threads in your mind at once.

Similar Books You Might Like

If you are thinking what kind of books would have similar feel, themes or content, here is a list that you can consider:

  • Splintered (A.G. Howard)
  • Heartless (Marissa Meyer)
  • Red Queen (Victoria Aveyard)

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Book Reviews Book Series Books

Wilder by Rebecca Yarros: A Romance Built on Risk, Healing, and Emotional Fallout

Estimated Reading Time: 5min

Xtreme sports meets Suite Life On Deck with Zach and Cody… oh, and don’t forget open door intimacy and a saboteur… okay, that sounds like a lot going on but really, there is!

Wilder

After two lost years, I’m forcing the wake-up call on my life with a nine-month work-study cruise. See the world, experience all of it to the fullest, and maybe (if I’m lucky) find the life I’ve lost.

I just wish I’d known what I was signing up for.

My scholarship depends on tutoring a student. But not just any student, oh no. That would be too easy. Instead I get Paxton Wilder, daredevil influencer and X Games champion. And wherever he goes, documentary cameras, groupies, and high-octane stunts will follow.

I want to hate him. I want to kick his arrogant ego right off this boat. But from the second we touch, my stomach does a full-on bungee jump and I know that Wilder is as much stay-away danger as he is addictive adrenaline.

Grab the book Here

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual Content
Moderate: Death, Car accident, Injury/Injury Detail

My Review

Took me by surprise, Reminded me of The Suite life on Deck if they were doing extreme sports. Outside of the Instant attraction these 2 people seemed to have 21 another, It didn’t really see why they would want to spend time together outside of when they had to. I don’t know how Realistic it felt for people to build a foundation based only on attraction.
I did like the trying to find the person sabotaging angle, I enjoyed the extreme sports and the way it tied into the cruise ship around the world and the university experience, And I thought the characters Made sense and their motivations and decisions also seem to lineup with who they were written as In general.

Would I Recommend This Book?

Yes. If you don’t mind open door scenes, the extreme sports angle was very interesting and the doing college on a cruise ship around the world was really fun.

Similar Books You Might Like

If you are thinking what kind of books would have similar feel, themes or content, here is a list that you can consider:

  • Things We Never Got Over (Lucy Score)
  • Love and Other Words (Christina Lauren)
  • The Graham Effect (Elle Kennedy)

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace

Categories
Book Challenges Book Reviews Books

Jennifer Lynn Barnes Books I’ve Read: Why Her Puzzles Keep Working

The Inheritance Games train keeps on going, and I’ve read every single one that’s been released so far… Plus a few other Jennifer Lynn-Barnes books, so let’s have a look at the wins and losses.

The Inheritance Games

lynn barnes

Interesting puzzles. Fun characters. Solid writing style.
Characters certainly hit the buzz words/characteristics – independent “don’tneedaman” women, “diversity” “broodingandsensitive” and “imamazingbutdontrealisetheyallcareforme”

A *personal* dislike was the few mentions every so often of new age references.

Grab the book Here

The Hawthorne Legacy

Intriguing puzzles and more complex personal dynamics than ever before.
It’s been a while since I had read book 1, but I picked up where I left off pretty well. Short and sharp chapters, clever and always keeping you guessing.

The Final Gambit

Great conclusion to the trilogy.
I wasn’t sure where some of the loose ends would wrap up, and if you can keep track of all the families and all the varying puzzles then it does weave together quite well.
As always, the game was afoot and it was great with twists I didn’t see, and some I did. The journey was fun.

The Brothers Hawthorne

Interesting puzzles, and two concurrent stories to follow. New mysteries open and others come to a close. I liked the flow, and it was a nice change of pace to see the boys POV instead of Avery this time.

The Grandest Game

Interesting puzzles, but only small amounts of character reveals actually came through. Major cliff hanger so if you want answers you need to read another book. The few answers we got are unsatisfying as they’re only half the picture and it’s agitating that I have to wait for a new book to get rather large answers to questions – include the rest of the game.
Some cliff hangers are fine, but the story is literally on pause and I am frustrated.
I liked what we got of the game, great puzzles as always. Characters are interesting and basically secondary background characters getting their own focus – which was awesome.

Glorious Rivals

I had basically forgotten everything that happened before this, so I was coming into it with almost no knowledge of what had already happened in the first part of the story. I am getting a little bit of fatigue reading these characters and the storyline, however for some reason I still bought the book. It was pretty good, The mystery and challenges took a backseat to the drama and interpersonal issues at play. I prefer the mysteries and the puzzles, so that was not necessarily the most preferable plot line that I was looking for. Having said that, I thought that things went pretty well, characters made sense and were pretty consistent. What people went through in the story made sense, and I understand what we were going for.
Things are starting to feel a bit more convoluted than they used to, and even though they were complex and interpersonal mysteries mixed in with the puzzles in the first trilogy of this world, this one is starting to feel a bit flat. Things are so complex, intertwined so much with the first few books, and now with all this new information, that it’s almost impossible to try and keep track. I would have to have a pin board with strings tied to everything and going in different directions like a crazy person just to try and keep everything sorted in my brain. However, even with that, I managed to skip past some of those things and just enjoy the surface level of the story.

Games Untold

lynn barnes

Mixed short stories following the characters we know from the inheritance games. Some were good, some were really interesting, and some only so so. A short story book is always a little challenging to review, because there are so many variables. But I will say, though, I did enjoy seeing the characters again and filling in some of the blanks that the main books didn’t flesh out.
Stories I really enjoyed was Hannah and Toby, I also love Xander. He is such a fun character. Nash is actually my favourite after this short story, I really wish we had more Nash in the main series because he is such a funny character.
Fun and really just for fans to get another little look into the characters that they like.

The Ruling Class

Pretty interesting look into the political “fixer” world in a side door kind of way.
I liked the parallels with the high school version and real world version. Some very serious things going on with real world consequences, as well as personal dynamics going on.

Grab the book Here

Lessons In Power

Second book was a lot more exciting than the first. I actually enjoyed it a lot more, the steaks were higher, it was a lot more interesting to see unfold, the characters felt like they had more at stake even though you could debate that.
The emotional beats hit harder, the mystery was way more interesting, and I just overall liked it better.

Little White Lies

This book was so utterly boring and forgettable which was quite confusing because normally I like this author. I don’t know if it was the Setting, characters, or plot, but it just didn’t work for me.
I wasn’t invested and I don’t think there was enough setup for the characters for me to become invested. It felt a little all over the place in regards to the plot and how that unfolded and almost likely were thrown into the middle of something without enough context.
The little posts from the anonymous site felt unusual and out of place, I don’t know why they were there in the first place we could have completely done without them.
I don’t understand the flashback element whatsoever, it was completely unnecessary. If you were gonna do it, those scenes should have been longer and had more value to the story.
The follow up books Is going to be a miss for me.

Grab the book Here

The Naturals

lynn barnes

I did not finish this one. I used to watch Criminal Minds, and this is basically that for teenagers/young adults. I knew that going in, but for some reason, I didn’t think it would go so dark and deep into things. Especially emotionally walking into someone else’s skin (creepy), and some pretty dark themes and content. It gave me creepy feels, so I decided to DNF.

Grab the book Here

See You in the Adventures!
Christy Grace