March TBR

 

  

 

Rogue: Untouched by Alisa Kwitney

The Near Witch by V.E. Schwab

 

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

The Shadow in the Glass by J.J.A. Harwood

What are you planning to read in March?

Can't-Wait Wednesday - One For All

  

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a feature hosted at Wishful Endings where people showcase an upcoming book they are looking forward to.

 

This week I'm anticipating . . . 

Title: One for All

 

Author: Lillie Lainoff

 

 Pages: 400

 

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

 

Release Date: 8th March 2022

 

 

Blurb from Goodreads:

 

An OwnVoices, gender-bent retelling of The Three Musketeers, in which a girl with a chronic illness trains as a Musketeer and uncovers secrets, sisterhood, and self-love.

Tania de Batz is most herself with a sword in her hand. Everyone in town thinks her near-constant dizziness makes her weak, nothing but “a sick girl”; even her mother is desperate to marry her off for security. But Tania wants to be strong, independent, a fencer like her father—a former Musketeer and her greatest champion.

Then Papa is brutally, mysteriously murdered. His dying wish? For Tania to attend finishing school. But L’Académie des Mariées, Tania realizes, is no finishing school. It’s a secret training ground for a new kind of Musketeer: women who are socialites on the surface, but strap daggers under their skirts, seduce men into giving up dangerous secrets, and protect France from downfall. And they don’t shy away from a swordfight.

With her newfound sisters at her side, Tania feels for the first time like she has a purpose, like she belongs. But then she meets Étienne, her first target in uncovering a potential assassination plot. He’s kind, charming, and breathlessly attractive—and he might have information about what really happened to her father. Torn between duty and dizzying emotion, Tania will have to lean on her friends, listen to her own body, and decide where her loyalties lie…or risk losing everything she’s ever wanted.

This debut novel is a fierce, whirlwind adventure about the depth of found family, the strength that goes beyond the body, and the determination it takes to fight for what you love.

 

 

 

 

Why I'm Anticipating This Book:

 

 Female Musketeers + Own Voices + the protagonist has chronic illness?

Sign me up!

 

February Wrap-Up

 

 *Contains spoilers for the February FairyLoot book*

WHAT I READ

 

 Rabbits by Terry Miles - eARC - 2.5/5 stars - read my review here.

Ungodly (Goddess War, #3) by Kendare Blake - paperback - 3/5 stars.

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie - audiobook - 3/5 stars.

The Infinity Files (The Infinity Files, #1) by S.M. Wilson - eARC - 2.5/5 stars - read my review here.

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien - audiobook - 5/5 stars

The Appeal by Janice Hallett - paperback - 4/5 stars.

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh - eARC - 3.5/5 stars - review to come.

HAULED BOOKS

 

Physical books:

 

I got The Pursuit of Love from Bookswap and Daughter of the Moon Goddess was the February FairyLoot book, which has the most gorgeous sprayed edges I have ever seen.

NetGalley ARCs:

My thanks to the publisher!

 

 

BLOG POSTS

 

February TBR

Review - Rabbits by Terry Miles

Can't-Wait Wednesday - The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea

Review - The Infinity Files by S.M. Wilson

 

 CURRENTLY READING

 

The Shadow in the Glass by J.J.A. Harwood

 

 

What did you read in February?

 

 

Review - The Infinity Files (The Infinity Files, #1) by S.M. Wilson

 

 

Title: The Infinity Files (The Infinity Files, #1)

Author: S.M. Wilson

Pages: 416

Publisher: Usborne Publishing

Release Date: 4th March 2021

 

Blurb from Goodreads:

 Get in. Get Out. ⁠⠀
Keep to the task.⁠⠀
Leave no trace. ⁠⠀
⁠⠀
Ash Yang dreamed of being a starfighter pilot. But when she crashes out of her final test – literally – she somehow lands the most powerful job in the universe. As Guardian of the Infinity Files she must secretly planet-hop through the galaxies, stealing or returning treasures that have the power to stop wars...or start them.⁠⠀
⁠⠀
But when her home planet is the one at war, can she get the job done?⁠⠀

 

Goodreads | Storygraph | Amazon UK | Amazon US | Bookshop

My Review:

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Usborne Publishing and NetGalley*

 

 

Ash Yang's home-world is at war, and she has been working towards becoming a starfighter pilot to help.

When Ash fails the final test, her dream is left in tatters.

However, Ash is offered the unique position of Guardian of the Infinity Files. As Guardian, Ash travels to distant planets, returning or taking important objects that could change the future of worlds.

Will Ash be happy being Guardian?

 

The premise for this book intrigued me, but it ended up falling a bit flat, unfortunately.

Ash was a likeable and relatable protagonist who hadn't had an easy life. At times it did seem like Ash was a bit of a bull in a China shop with the way she didn't think before she acted, but I liked that she wanted to help people.

The concept of the Library and Guardians was interesting, and I wouldn't mind finding out more about previous Guardians.

The plot was enjoyable to begin with, but I did lose interest in the second half. I didn't feel particularly invested in what was happening. I was surprised by one plot point, but nothing else really caught me off guard.

I'm a little disappointed that I didn't enjoy this more, but it didn't reach its potential for me.

 

Overall, this was a mixed read.

 

Can't-Wait Wednesday - The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea

  

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a feature hosted at Wishful Endings where people showcase an upcoming book they are looking forward to.

 

This week I'm anticipating . . . 

Title: The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea

 

Author: Axie Oh

 

Pages: 336

 

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

 

 Release Date: 22nd February 2022

Blurb from Goodreads:

Deadly storms have ravaged Mina’s homeland for generations. Floods sweep away entire villages, while bloody wars are waged over the few remaining resources. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curses them with death and despair. In an attempt to appease him, each year a beautiful maiden is thrown into the sea to serve as the Sea God’s bride, in the hopes that one day the “true bride” will be chosen and end the suffering.

Many believe that Shim Cheong, the most beautiful girl in the village—and the beloved of Mina’s older brother Joon—may be the legendary true bride. But on the night Cheong is to be sacrificed, Joon follows Cheong out to sea, even knowing that to interfere is a death sentence. To save her brother, Mina throws herself into the water in Cheong’s stead.

Swept away to the Spirit Realm, a magical city of lesser gods and mythical beasts, Mina seeks out the Sea God, only to find him caught in an enchanted sleep. With the help of a mysterious young man named Shin—as well as a motley crew of demons, gods and spirits—Mina sets out to wake the Sea God and bring an end to the killer storms once and for all.

But she doesn’t have much time: A human cannot live long in the land of the spirits. And there are those who would do anything to keep the Sea God from waking…

 

 

Why I'm Anticipating This Book:

 

 This sounds like such an interesting book! I can't wait to read it.

And how gorgeous is that cover?!

Review - Rabbits by Terry Miles

 

Title: Rabbits

Author: Terry Miles

Pages: 432

Publisher: Pan Macmillan

 Release Date: 10th June 2021

 

Blurb from Goodreads:

What happens in the game, stays in the game...

Rabbits is a secret, dangerous and sometimes fatal underground game. The rewards for winning are unclear, but there are rumours of money, CIA recruitment or even immortality. Or it might unlock the universe’s greatest secrets. But everyone knows that the deeper you get, the more deadly the game becomes – and the body count is rising. Since the game first started, ten iterations have taken place... and the eleventh round is about to begin.

K can’t get enough of the game and has been trying to find a way in for years. Then Alan Scarpio, reclusive billionaire and alleged Rabbits winner, shows up out of nowhere. And he charges K with a desperate mission. Something has gone badly wrong with the game and K needs to fix it – before Eleven starts – or the world will pay the price.

Five days later, Scarpio is declared missing.

Two weeks after that Eleven begins, so K blows the deadline.

And suddenly, the fate of the entire universe is at stake.

Goodreads | Storygraph | Amazon UK | Amazon US | Bookshop

 

 

 

My Review:

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Pan Macmillan and NetGalley*

There is a game called Rabbits that no one is supposed to talk about. Some people think that the game is used to recruit for the CIA, others that winning will make you rich, or that the underground game can become deadly if you get too deep.

K is obsessed with Rabbits and gives talks on it. One day, Alan Scarpio, a billionaire who supposedly won Rabbits in the past, appears asking for K's help. He claims there's something wrong with the game.

Then Alan goes missing, the eleventh iteration of Rabbits begins, and it has the highest body count yet.

Can K fix the game before it's too late?

When I first read the blurb for this book, I was intrigued. It ended up being quite different to what I expected, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but on this occasion, it ended up being a mixed read for me.

There are some books where after reading them I'm left feeling that I don't know much about the protagonist. This was one of those books. K was a character who I felt sorry for, but I didn't really care that much about what happened to him.

My favourite characters were probably Chloe and Baron, but I can't see them being characters that will stay for me for a long time.

The plot started off well, but around 60% of the way through I began to lose interest and the book dragged for me. I think it could have been 50-100 pages shorter than it was.

The concepts and science were interesting.

The writing style was easy to follow, but I wasn't invested in what was happening.

Overall, this was a mixed read.

February TBR

 

 

Here are the books I'm hoping to read in February:

 

Ungodly (Goddess War, #3) by Kendare Blake

The Appeal by Janice Hallett 

The Infinity Files by S.M. Wilson

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh

 

What books are you planning to read in February?