stardustreviews

[stardustreviews]

After months of inactivity, I have returned with two posts! One of them was my Summer of Salt review, but now I’d like to look toward the month ahead. It’s weird to think that it’s already June 2nd, isn’t it? The upcoming days bring me lots of things to look forward too: the end of a busy semester, my birthday, and plenty of time to read. That’s why I’ve given myself an 8-book long TBR for the month! Perhaps it’s a bit ambitious; perhaps essentially knocking out the rest of my Goodreads Reading Challenge is a bit of a stretch. Nevertheless, between book clubs and trips to the library, I’ve made the commitment for pretty much all of these. 

This list isn’t as queer as I wanted it to be for Pride Month, but I also have a secondary TBR (I Wish You All The Best; The Disasters; Red, White, & Royal Blue; etc) in case I do manage to finish all 8 of these.

Without further ado, here’s what my next month in reading will look like!

In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan This cover caught my eye when I was browsing in the library. My friend Cas had recommended it to me ages ago, and the prospect of a nice, lighthearted portal fantasy sounded good. In fact, I’m about 100 pages into it, and the humor combined with biting sociopolitical commentary absolutely delights me.

Girls With Sharp Sticks by Suzanne Young This one I’m buddy-reading with @sampagnereads and Sage. Normally dystopia isn’t my thing, but I love the prospect of women growing enraged at the system which repressed and opressed them, and responding with furious violence.

Song of the Current by Sarah Tolcser SotC has been on my TBR for AGES, but it’s always been low priority whenever I visit Barnes & Noble. Once I went to the library, I was overjoyed to see it! Water-oriented swashbuckling adventures in fantasy realms are always my cup of tea, even when they’re straight.

Blanca & Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore After I read Wild Beauty this spring, I fell deeply in love with McLemore and the magical realism genre as a whole. There’s something so wondrous in the tales she spins, the settings she so carefully enchants. As soon as I entered my library, I made a beeline for this book, and I cannot wait to cry as I finish the last 50 pages.

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan Yes, I’ve already read GoPaF, but I enjoyed it and I am a devout believer in rereads. Besides, the WLW book club I’m in chose this as their June novel. And this TBR really does need some more queer books.

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff Sci-fi isn’t really my thing, but The Illuminae Files bowled me over. When I heard the authors were coming out with another series, I jumped at the chance to own it— and, as it turns out, Aurora Rising is @sixofcrowsnet‘s first network book club read! I’m excited for the witty dialogue and tight plots I’ve come to expect from this dynamic duo.

We Hunt The Flame by Hafsah Faizal Everyone and their mother is talking about We Hunt The Flame, and according to some trusted friends, it’s worth all the hype. While I probably won’t join in on Barnes and Noble’s book club discussion of it, this still presents a good excuse to buy and devour WHtF immediately.

All The Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater I’m fairly certain Megan ( @sargents), Jenna ( @sabetha) and Caro ( @astranautics) would kill me if I didn’t put this on here. Anyways, I’m happy to read it. Over a year and a half ago, I stumbled upon a signed copy at the mall, but for some reason I haven’t picked it up yet. Now I’m determined to finish it. Maggie’s singular writing style has always enchanted me, and the magical realism setting is certain to be my death.

#monthly tbr #june tbr

[stardustreviews]

5 STARS

Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno

synopsis:

A magic passed down through generations . . . Georgina Fernweh waits with growing impatience for the tingle of magic in her fingers—magic that has been passed down through every woman in her family. Her twin sister, Mary, already shows an ability to defy gravity. But with their eighteenth birthday looming at the end of this summer, Georgina fears her gift will never come. An island where strange things happen . . . No one on the island of By-the-Sea would ever call the Fernwehs what they really are, but if you need the odd bit of help—say, a sleeping aid concocted by moonlight—they are the ones to ask. No one questions the weather, as moody and erratic as a summer storm. No one questions the (allegedly) three-hundred-year-old bird who comes to roost on the island every year. A summer that will become legend . . . When tragedy strikes, what made the Fernweh women special suddenly casts them in suspicion. Over the course of her last summer on the island—a summer of storms, of love, of salt—Georgina will learn the truth about magic, in all its many forms.

This beautiful, heartwrenching puzzle of a book is absolutely the weirdest thing I'll read all year, and I absolutely loved it.

Sometimes you read a book so dazzling that you wish you could live in it-- Hogwarts, Ketterdam, Red London, you name it. But sometimes you stumble upon a book and you swear you called this place home in another lifetime. It's a strange combination of enchanting and comforting, a song your soul has sung since birth.

For me, Summer of Salt is that book.

There are so many comparisons I could draw up. The highly atmospheric By-The-Sea reminds me strongly of Thisby. The Fernwehs in all their magic and mundanity, as well as the sense of timelessness juxtaposed strongly with modern characters and modern social issues, call Wild Beauty to mind. Still, it feels wrong, reducing this book like that; it's more than reminiscent of another author's work, and its crisp, wry prose helps it stand on its own. Leno does a great job of settling you into the narrator's head and home, of establishing Georgina's everyday life without ever infodumping or turning her family's quiet magic into an oddity.

The characters were all great. Georgina was too, too painfully relatable. A disaster lesbian who dislikes large parties and getting drunk but isn't condescending about it? A small-town girl who never felt like her sexuality was much of a big deal? She's amazing. Then there's effusive, floating Mary, and non-threatening, charming Harrison, and Prue-- Prue, who could easily have been an aloof and mysterious girl, but instead is so sweet.

And even though it's not a book about the LGBT experience, the rep still makes my heart sing. Leno doesn't make her characters suffer for being queer, nor does she have any qualms about saying the words "lesbian", "bisexual", and "aroace". It absolutely improved my day.

TL;DR: I don't know if I vibe really well with magical realism or if I keep picking good books, but Summer of Salt is a beautiful story that had me blinking back tears and pacing in the last quarter. Please, please read it.

The book More reviews My Goodreads

#summer of salt #katrina leno #magical realism #may2019 #5 star read #ya fiction #stardust reviews

[stardustreviews]

5 STARS

Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore

synopsis:

If you could change your story, would you? Jane has lived a mostly ordinary life, raised by her recently deceased aunt Magnolia, whom she counted on to turn life into an adventure. Without Aunt Magnolia, Jane is directionless. Then an old acquaintance, the glamorous and capricious Kiran Thrash, blows back into Jane’s life and invites her to a gala at the Thrashes’ extravagant island mansion called Tu Reviens. Jane remembers her aunt telling her: “If anyone ever invites you to Tu Reviens, promise me that you’ll go.” What Jane doesn’t know is that at Tu Reviens her story will change; the house will offer her five choices that could ultimately determine the course of her untethered life. But every choice comes with a price. She might fall in love, she might lose her life, she might come face-to-face with herself. At Tu Reviens, anything is possible.

This beautiful, heartwrenching puzzle of a book is absolutely the weirdest thing I'll read all year, and I absolutely loved it.

Jane, Unlimited weaves the story of Jane, a young woman who accepts an invitation to stay at Tu Reviens, an extravagant and mysterious island mansion, due to a promise she made to her beloved and recently deceased aunt. After superficially acquainting herself with some of the mansion's strange characters, the narrative turns into a choose-your-own novel of sorts: depending on what Jane decides, she finds herself in a different genre of story, ranging from heist mystery to gothic horror. Along the way, she (mostly) finds happiness and direction in the paths she chooses.

Each section of the book, save for the first, is it's own story, and each narrative's vast differences show off Cashore's unique imagination. Her vivid prose and Jane's surprisingly grounded character keep the sections from seeming too disjointed, and while some endings were so poignant that I had to take a break to mull them over (and oh god, the final ending killed me), it was never too difficult to switch genres. And as each section begins at the same place, there's loads of room for delicious, dramatic irony.

The other characters are interesting, but it's Jane who really shines-- which makes sense, given that it's a book about Jane's search for purpose. Although she crafts artistic homemade umbrellas for fun, she's the most relatable character. Which makes sense, when you think about it. There's a wood-carving servant who also moonlights as a secret agent, and a character who uses his mother's multiverse portal to buy fancy art pieces. Her confusion, exasperation, and grief over the bizarre events of the book take often larger-than-life scenarios and make them more human. God, I love her so much.

This book was nothing like the Graceling Realm books, but it was nonetheless amazing, and now I can't stop gushing about it.

The book More reviews My Goodreads

#jane unlimited #kristin cashore #fantasy #jan2019 #5 star read #ya fiction #stardust reviews #sampagnereads

[stardustreviews]

end of the year book tag!

one of my absolute favorite people @sampagnereads tagged me in this, and while uni has slowed down my reading schedule significantly, i still think it’d be really fun!! answers below the cut

1. Are there any books you started this year that you need to finish?

I’m actually pretty good about finishing books, but there are 2 that I’m in the middle of: Children of Blood and Bone, which I borrowed from the library but couldn’t finish in time due to AP tests; and my absolute favorite book, Girls Made of Snow and Glass!

2. Do you have an autumnal book to transition into the end of the year?

Actually, about a week ago I finished a reread of Labyrinth Lost, a spooky little book that takes place in October and is chock full of witches, blood, and darkness!

3. Is there a new release you’re still waiting for?

I’m very bad at keeping up with new releases, but according to litloversnetwork‘s calendar, there are two books that have yet to come out. The first is Outrun the Wind, which my good friend Sage gave a raving review. THe second is The Cursed Sea, the sequel to The Glass Spare by Lauren DeStefano!

4. What are three books you want to read before the end of the year?

I won’t count books for school even though there are some gems in there (Coraline, Graceling). My top choice is Vengeful, because everyone and their cat has read this already, but I was supposed to get as a birthday gift and my mother never,,,, actually ordered it. But I love V.E. Schwab and cannot wait to return to her works! The second isn’t a specific book, but I want to read at least one book by Anna-Marie McLemore. I’ve heard such wonderful things about her books, yet Overdrive didn’t have any! So I’ll probably brave the cold weather to go to my local library back home. And finally, I really want to read Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan Mcguire!

5. Is there a book that you think could still shock you and become your favorite book of the year?

If I manage to fit in The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, I think I might really enjoy it, although it’ll have to beat a lot of good contenders-- I read so many wonderful books this year.

6. Have you already started making reading plans for 2019?

I never plan anything

Tagging @ravkanreads @fjerdanreads and @readinggays

#end of the year book tag #*book tag

[stardustreviews]

4 STARS

The Lies of Locke Lamora

synopsis:

An orphan’s life is harsh—and often short—in the mysterious island city of Camorr. But young Locke Lamora dodges death and slavery, becoming a thief under the tutelage of a gifted con artist. As leader of the band of light-fingered brothers known as the Gentleman Bastards, Locke is soon infamous, fooling even the underworld’s most feared ruler. But in the shadows lurks someone still more ambitious and deadly. Faced with a bloody coup that threatens to destroy everyone and everything that holds meaning in his mercenary life, Locke vows to beat the enemy at his own brutal game—or die trying.

This is it, y'all. This is the book that broke me.

The Lies of Locke Lamora is an elaborate scheme (fitting, considering it's about elaborate schemes) on the part of Scott Lynch to slowly rip my heart out, stab it a few times with a rusty blade, and then insert it back into my chest. Don't be fooled by the snippy dialogue, the tight plot, the fantastic worldbuilding-- this book is PAINFUL. About 65% of the way through, I had to set it down to spew verbal abuse at my fellow book club members, because I was convinced they'd chosen this book to murder me with the emotions it evoked.

So, basically, I absolutely loved this book and am going to read everything Scott Lynch publishes from now until the end of time.

Here's a quick breakdown of some very very good things about The Lies of Locke Lamora:

1. The worldbuilding. Lynch weaves a dense tapestry depicting a world adjacent to medieval Venice, packed with so many details that you feel as though you could walk down the streets of Camorr-- not that you'd want to. The setting is gritty without feeling too heavy, magical without feeling too ungrounded from reality.

2. The Gentleman Bastards. With their witty lines and casual camaraderie, they're the right balance between uncouth criminal and likeable protagonist that the audience has no trouble relating to them and crying when they're hurt. Locke in particular is a strong main character; everything he does is absolutely iconic, and for someone so clever, he really doesn't know when to quit.

3. The plot. For a book about amoral thieves, coldhearted murder, and gruesome torture, Scott Lynch really did nurture his storylines with the spirit of a gentle mother. You can see the care with which he planned his heists and twists. It's always thrilling for me when I can't predict what's going to happen next, and Lynch delivered with those sweet sweet reveals. Holy fuck, it was Illuminae-levels of well-constructed.

The only reasons I didn't give this story a full 5 stars were its general treatment of women and its use of "cocksucker" as a pejorative, but I've been told that Lynch listened to criticisms of those nature and improved representation in later books, so I cannot wait to give his stories my full devotion.

The book More reviews My Goodreads

#the lies of locke lamora #gentleman bastards #fantasy #adult fic #4 star read #nov2018

[stardustreviews]

Blog All Day, Meme All Night

over a month ago, actual ray of sunshine @lynchmatthew​ tagged me in this and uhh i finally finished tweaking this blog so why not do it now!!

tagging @the-little-witches-books, @jostenne, @wylans, @pynchvinsky, and uhh anyone else who wants to!

╰☆╮1. YEET – which book would you yeet out of existence?

Highkey? A Court of Wings And Ruin. That was the book that made me realize that I just couldn’t read anymore Maas. I hated the way she wrote romance, how all her male characters were possessive, the half-hearted attempt at “representation”.

╰☆╮2. CRYING KIM K – which book gives you lots of feelings?

Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust. I need to write a review for this at some point, but basically-- it’s an absolutely beautiful book, a feminist retelling of Snow White, and the mother-daughter relationship between Mina (the Wicked Queen character) and Lynet (the Snow White character) is meticulously, wonderfully crafted. I cannot recommend this book enough!

╰☆╮3. AMERICA, EXPLAIN – favourite book set outside the us?

The creator of this tag, @meriknihar​ definitely intended this to be an In-Unvierse question, so uhh,, Illuminae definitely counts, right? It takes place in our cosmos, just very far away in both time and distance. I just love how tight and unexpected the plots were, and the format they chose was so interesting

Otherwise, I’d say The Book Thief, which is set in Germany and made me cry my heart out.

╰☆╮4. RIP VINE – your saddest character death?

MAJOR ACOL SPOILERS AHEAD!!

A Darker Shade of Magic’s Holland Vosijk. V. E. Schwab created a beautiful, tragic character, and even thinking about him makes me sad again. He deserved the absolute fucking world, man.

╰☆╮5. WHAT ARE THOSE? – a book that left you confused?

Caraval by Stephanie Garber. It wasn’t that I didn’t get what was going on, but it was just too disorienting. The reader never really finds their footing in her story, and even at the end I was still not sure what was real and what was part of the performance. I don’t know, I guess I just felt like the protagonist’s agency didn’t mean anything when the rug was being pulled out from under everyone’s feet each chapter, and each twist seemed to negate the last. It was just too much.

╰☆╮6. BIG DICK ENERGY – favourite character with BDE?

It took me a while to figure this one out, but probably The Cruel Prince’s Jude Duarte. She will do whatever the fuck she can to get ahead, she refuses to be intimidated, and she’s an amazing Slytherin queen who is more than welcome to murder me if she wants.

╰☆╮7. I WON’T HESITATE BITCH – favourite book with a morally grey protagonist?

Vicious by V. E. Schwab. I read this the summer of my junior year and I fell in love with the story. She’s just,,, so good at crafting characters, and I need Vengeful now that it’s out.

╰☆╮8. MOVE, I’M GAY – favourite book featuring a lgbp+ romance?

Anyone who’s been around me for more than 2.3 seconds knows I am a weakass hoe for Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova. It’s a fun yet dark adventure novel featuring Latina witches, realistic and loving families, lots of magic, and the softest wlw couple I know. My heart belongs to Alex and Rishi.

╰☆╮9. STREET SMARTS – favourite book featuring a protagonist whose strength is their intelligence?

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore! Bitterblue is a puzzle of a book about mysteries and healing, and unlike the warrior Katsa, the titular protagonist doesn’t have strength or survival instincts. Instead, she has a deep desire to do good, and the brains needed to get to the bottom of the wound her father left on her country. (A close second is An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson; it’s a delightful story about a painter spirited away to Fae territories, and she survives largely due to her cleverness. Plus the book has some wonderful reflections of stagnation vs progress and the price of immortality,,, would highly recommend.)

╰☆╮10. ALEXA PLAY DESPACITO – character death you were happy about?

Severus Snape from Harry Potter. I don’t care that he was on The Good Side, and I really don’t care that He Will Always Love Lily. Severus Tobias Snape is a toxic slimebag, and when he joined the Wizard Nazis and called his best friend/crush a fucking slur, got butthurt that she didn’t want to hang with him anymore. He was willing to let an innocent man and a fucking baby be brutally murdered to save Lily, and even after she clearly rejected him, refused to get over her and let it become creepy and borderline-obsessive. The whole thing where he tore a photo of the Potter family so he could have Lily’s picture and no one else’s? And where he tore off her signature too? What the fuck. Also he has the emotional maturity of a 12 year-old, taking his anger out on two innocent and already traumatized children, to the point where he was one of those children’s greatest fear that is not okay. Anyways he can choke.

╰☆╮11. THEN PERISH – a book you DNFed?

Snow Like Ashes. I didn’t get very far into it, but I remember the premise not really grabbing me, and then it was due back to the library and I didn’t really care enough to get it ever again.

☆╮12. KERMIT SIPPING TEA – a book that makes a statement?

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness is a great one. It’s a story about being the side characters, the ones who aren’t the Chosen Ones who get sent on an epic quest against evil. They’re just people, dealing with real problems, mental health issues and conflict with friends, and Ness handles the subject with a deft sort of beauty.

The Twelve Little Cakes also qualifies, too. It’s a memoir of a woman’s childhood in a post-Stalinist USSR-era Czech Republic. Despite the depressing setting, Dery manages to write a book bursting with optimism, with belief in the goodness of people and a better world, and that persepctive is as refreshing s it necessary in this modern age.

╰☆╮13. SAME HAT – the character you relate to the most?

I had,,, a lot of trouble with this one, so I’m going to say that Lara Jean from To All the Boys Ive Loved Before really reminds me of my high school self. She daydreams a lot, loves The Aesthetic, is not very grounded in reality, Is Soft And Kinda Anxious. Sure, let’s say that.

╰☆╮14. OH WORM – a book you didn’t expect to love?

I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson. I’m not normally a contemporary person, but I finished this book sobbing instead of working on a health essay. Books that have conflicts shaped like mysteries and puzzles, where personalities and situations clash in a way that looks a little bit like tragedy? Those are books are automatic favorites.

╰☆╮15. SHREK – favourite book featuring mythical creatures?

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater revolves around the capaill uisce (aka kelpies). Stiefvater is brilliant with characters and atmosphere, so even though her books are more slow-paced, I was still absolutely enchanted.

#book tag #blog all day meme all night #litloversnetwork

[stardustreviews]

5 STARS

Leah On The Offbeat

synopsis:

Leah Burke—girl-band drummer, master of deadpan, and Simon Spier’s best friend from the award-winning Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda—takes center stage in this novel of first love and senior-year angst. When it comes to drumming, Leah Burke is usually on beat—but real life isn’t always so rhythmic. An anomaly in her friend group, she’s the only child of a young, single mom, and her life is decidedly less privileged. She loves to draw but is too self-conscious to show it. And even though her mom knows she’s bisexual, she hasn’t mustered the courage to tell her friends—not even her openly gay BFF, Simon. So Leah really doesn’t know what to do when her rock-solid friend group starts to fracture in unexpected ways. With prom and college on the horizon, tensions are running high. It’s hard for Leah to strike the right note while the people she loves are fighting—especially when she realizes she might love one of them more than she ever intended.

Becky Albertalli, writing this book:

Okay, but Albertalli's writing is sharp and electric, the sort of thing you just have to read in one sitting. Plus she understands what it's like to be a modern teenager so well, it's almost scary. LotO is laugh-out-loud hilarious, heart-breakingly poignant and softly sapphic all at once. Also, I'm a little in love with Leah Burke? She's sarcastic and stubborn and unsure, and doesn't give herself nearly enough credit.

(Plus Abby Suso, can we talk about Abby Suso, she's an actual angel who deserves an amazing girlfriend like Leah.)

The book More reviews My Goodreads

Here's my first review! It's a short one, but hopefully I'll have time for something longer for the book I'm currently reading ;)

#leah on the offbeat #svthsa #love simon #litloversnetwork #sampagnereads #stardust reviews #*loto #5 star read #contemporary #ya fiction #wlw #sep2018