#bookfanatic

“Funny how when we start to tell a secret, we can’t stop. Something falls open in us, and the sheer momentum of letting go pushes us on.”

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This the new beautiful stenciled edge edition of THE NEAR WITCH by Victoria Schwab, available at Waterstone’s! 

A day and a half later, ‘tis finally done!!

Now, I just need to furnish it. But, I’m excited and love that my private space is complete.

Current situation….send help. Why did i think this was a good idea.

“Beware for I am fearless, and therefore powerful.”

-Mary Shelley

I feel like this quote is fitting to all of V’s books

Ok, most of you know that I am trash for Victoria Schwab.

If you didn’t know, well now you do

Recently, V revealed on Instagram, in conjunction with Juniper books, that she helped design a custom book set for The Shades of Magic series. Naturally, I smash the purchase button.

And here they are!! Behold my new Shades of Magic dust jackets in all their glory!

Side note: if you have never seen Juniper books or heard of them I highly recommend checking them out. They have a lot of beautiful custom jackets for a great many different series. Here’s a tiny sneak peek at the catalog.

“ Where love existed, death would follow, a wolf trailing after a wounded deer. Scenting blood in the air. Ayla had learned this the hard way.”

I’ve been in a little bit of a reading slump lately. I have been doing a lot of re-reading. I think because a lot of books right now or just not grabbing my attention. Or my brain is simply broken from being ridden with schoolwork. I tend to think the latter. I just got this though and I’ve been hearing so much about it and from page 1 I’m kind of spellbound. Hopefully I can finish it by this weekend!

Ok guys, vacations over, back on schedule, here’s an update!

This is the current state of my library. ‍♀️ We moved (again). We bought a house! Unfortunately the room that will be my library needs some renovations. It’s a lot of work and it’s hard for my husband and I to coordinate time to get any of the actual work done. So, in the meantime, my pictures are gonna have to take on a little bit of a different background. Which isn’t so bad because fall is right around the corner and makes for the lovely photos!

So, tell me, what are your new favorite books? What upcoming books are you looking forward to?

Finally home from vacation and this beauty was waiting for me!

Victoria Schwab’s second book of her Cassidy Blake series. If you haven’t heard of it or read it, where have you been!? If you like ghosts, haunted places, and the paranormal, it’s a series for you. Plus, it the perfect read for fall!

This edition is from Fox & Wit’s Quarterly Box (it’s a book subscription if you haven’t heard of them). I have an addiction to sprayed edges now and love the aesthetic it adds. A lot of book subscription services are doing this special feature for their books.

What special features of books do you guys like?

(Sorry it’s not an as pretty picture. I was just so excited and had to share.)

AUTHOR: Erin A. Graig

TITLE: House of Salt and Sorrows

PUBLICATION DATE: August 6, 2019

SERIES: No, Standalone

PLOT SUMMARY:

The Salaan islands are home to the People of the Salt. When their Duke’s family, who lives on an isolated island in a manor called Highmoor suffer yet another loss, the People of the Salt can’t help but feel that the family is cursed.

The family has been in a perpetual state of mourning, after the death of their mother and the four eldest sisters, the remaining 7 girls are desperate to shed the cloud of gloom that hangs over Highmoor. The girls ache for happiness and find it through a mystical door that whisks the girls away every night to pageantry and dancing. However, one sister, Annaleigh, is unsettled by the rash death of her sisters and is determined to solve the mystery of her family’s misfortune.

But as Annaleigh gets closer to the truth her nightmares intensify and sinister forces wreak their havoc on her sanity.

REVIEW:   Erin’s writing is rich in detail. Her world-building is lush and evocative. She enraptures the imagination completely and delivers delish chills.

I loved this book! It was everything I hoped for and more. That isn’t to say its without flaw but then what book is. This story is a loose retelling of the Grimm tale of the 12 Dancing Princesses. I had never read it before, so I went in without any expectations. It was dark and creepy, and grotesque and amazing.

I loved how each sister exhibited their own personality, they all had their own quirks, but they were also alike in some ways. To me, it exhibited their close bond. I enjoyed the world-building; it was incredibly lush with detail. The only thing I wish Erin would have expanded on was the Pantheon of Gods. I feel like there is a lot of potential there for some great storytelling.

While some of the story was a bit predictable, there were also twists that I never expected.

Overall, this is a gothic fairy tale not to be missed!

SUBJECT HEADINGS: Fairy-tale, retellings, folklore-inspired, gothic fiction  

APPEAL: This is a gothic fantasy, with a twist on a classic tale. The writing is descriptive, and the tone of the book is atmospheric and creepy with a touch of romance. This is a compulsive read with a lot of twists that will keep you up all night reading.  

Cassidy Blake and her ghost bestie Jacob are back for another haunting adventure, this time, in Paris.

I know this series is meant for middle graders but IT’S VICTORIA SCHWAB! I had to read it! ♥️

This follow up was so good! It’s full of suspense and action making it such a fast read. Cassidy and Jacobs friendship is evolving and I love how the two are growing independently and as a team.

The witty banter and Harry Potter references are strong with this one. And Victoria’s descriptions of famous Paris landmarks really helps transport the reader and create a atmospheric tone.

I’m ready for book 3!

So, I thought it would be fun to show you guys the progression of my Schwab collection.

This is when I first started to collect. Everything was Shades of Magic since it was the only series of hers that I had read at the time.

I branched out and started reading more of her work and become hooked. I started collecting more and more stuff.

My collection got so big, it needed its own wall…

However, I still hadn’t peaked yet.

Today, my collection is massive and has become my pride and joy. It is my addiction.

(What’s kinda funny/sad is that not all my Schwab items are in this picture!)

Here is a shot of all her books I have (minus 1, Tunnel of Bones arc).

And there is my addiction in a nutshell . I hope to collect more foreign editions of her books and of course I have preorders of her upcoming books. I’ve read all her books EXCEPT the Everyday Angel series and I hope to read it soon with my daughter ♥️.

It took, what feels like, FOREVER to receive my Goldsboro edition of AURORA RISING. Having this beauty in my hands makes it worth it! AND it’s #55 of 500!

I finished Aurora Rising a couple of weeks ago and it left me SHOOK! I had never been a fan of Sci-FI, much less space operas BUT Jay and Amie have showed me the light! Sci-Fi is now of my favorite genres. If you loved The Illuminae Files you definitely want to pick up Aurora Rising

The 3 editions I have are the US hardback, Goldsboro limited edition with purple sprayed edges, andlastly,Illumicrate exclusive edition with alternate cover color and pink sprayed edges.

Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Recommend?: YASSSSSS!!!!

Pub Date: June 11th.

So I finished this about a week ago and

Holy hell!

I don’t even know where to begin!?

I have a passion for all things dark and spooky. I’m the sicko who hates clowns but wants to watch scary clown movies. I hate/love being scared.

This book achieved that! I was completely mesmerized by this authors writing. Her descriptions were so lush it spooked the hell out of me reading certain parts.

I loved the mash up/inspiration of Faust. It’s such a compelling story and this take and twist on it made my dark heart skip a beat.

The plot is so intricate but it all comes together nicely.

I LOVED these characters. Roan and Emma both headstrong and sharp tongued. Rapley and his brooding self! Seamus, my poor sweet boy . But what happened to Jenny!? Did I completely glaze over her!?

The pacing was good. There were a few lulls but they didn’t last long. The whole atmosphere of the book is shifting. It gets progressively darker as it goes.

But that ending!? My poor shriveled heart! I can’t stand it. I desperately need a book 2.

PLEASE. TELL. ME. THERE. IS. A. BOOOK. 2!!

*a huge thank you to NOVL for the advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

**maNiacAl LauGHteR**

I am so very excited to read this! I don’t care if the intended audience is middle grade, Cassidy and Jacob give me life. Not to mention, V always slays it with the world building and creating atmospheric reads. ♥️

I collect many bookish items but my pin collection is probably my favorite aspect of my collection. These are my V. E. Schwab pins (of course!).

Do you guys collect book inspired items?

What are your favorite kinds of items?