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❓What do you think about your reading year? Have you discovered any new favorites? So apparently Q1 is over and it's time to look back and share our reading stats. I feel quite good about my reading year so far. I found a couple of new favorites, re-read some books that were due for reread a really long time, discovered new authors I love and just had a good time. I started this year with a mix of genres, but the farther I go, the more I feel attracted to historical fiction/sff or mythology. My Q1 statistics: 💙Books read: 23 🤍Pages: 8892 💙Average rating: 3.98 🤍5-star reads: 2 (The Curse of Chalion by Loise McMaster Bujold and A Brightness Long Ago by Guy Gavriel Kay) 💙Lowest rating: 2 stars - The Witches of Vardo by Anya Bergman 🤍DNF: 3 (Tress of The Emerald Sea, Longshadow - will try both of them again later, Remnants of Atonement - permanent DNF) 💙9 books recommended by 9 friends: 2 🤍Advanced reader copies: 6 💙Longest book: Empire of the Vampire (764 pages) 🤍Shortest book: All Systems Red (159 pages) 💙Top genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Sci-Fi 🤍Top moods: Adventurous, Mysterious, Emotional I tagged some of you to share your stats, but, as always, no pressure 💙 https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq5HZQwLydT/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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🩸”God didn't want me. And the devil was afraid to open the door." ❓What is your favorite vampire book? I've postponed writing my review of Empire of the Vampire for a long time... because I'm not completely sure what I've read. It's hard to describe this book in the right way. But let me try my best. So Empire of the Vampire follows our main character Gabriel, who is a famous vampire hunter. We have three timelines: - young Gabriel becoming a vampire hunter - adult Gabriel on an unexpected quest after his downfall - and the framing timeline where Gabriel is imprisoned by vampires and telling his story What can I say? That style and the story are all over the top. It's like you take the typical vampire story and give it to Quentin Tarantino(whom I love with all my heart bth) for adaptation, then make it 150% more dramatic. All our characters are edgy and prickly, all events are epic and grand, and every chapter ends on some super dramatic line. But it works! It creates a great atmosphere and sucks you into this world and this adventure. This book has amazing action sequences, epic quests, and even some touching moments and proper character development. The story is dark and chilling, sometimes lyrical, sometimes sad, and always really engaging. I enjoyed my time with this book and the writing style was so unusual and immersive in my opinion, but I understand why it can be not so for everyone. You can find some quotes in the carousel to understand the writing style a little bit better. I wanted to give this book 5 stars, but the more I think the more I understand that the final bit reminded me about another story too much and it troubles me. The Empire of the Vampire reworked a lot of tropes and elements that are not new but still used in a fresh way. I don't mind it. But the final part... In my opinion, it had too many similarities to another familiar to me plot. So my final verdict is 4.75, just because of this part. Still a great time - such a great time. Also, I want to praise the artwork in this book made by @monolimeart. It was outstanding. #jaykristoff #empireofthevampire https://www.instagram.com/p/Cqz_ObVrilo/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#jaykristoff #empireofthevampire

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❓Do you enjoy historical fiction or historical SFF? What historical periods and locations are your favorite? Lately, I have been enjoying historical fiction and I was so happy when @this_is_edelweiss and @headofzeus provided me with this digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest review. The events of The Children of Gods and Fighting Men by Shauna Lawless take place in Ireland at the end of the 10th century. Even though I'm not familiar with Irish politics, it was easy to follow this book's intertangled plot. The Children of Gods and Fighting Men is a story of two women. Gormflaith was very young when she married the king of Dublin. Now he is dead and she needs to fight for her and her son's survival and for the power she craves. Fódla is a healer but she is also healing after a huge loss and trying and failing to find reasons to live. She agrees to become a spy for her people in one of the kings' courts, but she has her own goals to achieve. Gormflaith's story is a tale of hunger for power and freedom, of fierce love for her son, and finding power as a woman in men's court. Gormflaith is almost a villain in this story, but there are so many nuances and motivations in her part of the book, it's still really interesting to follow her every step. Fódla's story is full of anguish and pain. But also of hope for peace and love. It's really beautiful. It was fascinating to follow her - she suffers from gaslighting and many little lies she was told. It's amazing to see her finding some other truths in the world and with them - reasons to live and fight. The interesting detail is that both our main characters are descendants of two long-living magical races and there is a hidden war between them. Magic doesn't play the biggest role in the story, but it is here and it's interesting and important nonetheless. This book is layered and discusses many difficult topics, the writing is beautiful and engaging and I couldn't put it down. Now I just can't wait for the second book in the series, The Words of Kings and Prophets, to be released ❤️🖤 https://www.instagram.com/p/CqpsD6ZraDq/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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❓Have you read The Lost Metal? What do you think about the conclusion of Era 2 of Mistborn? I actually never shared my review of The Lost Metal event though I included it in a couple of my book lists already. So, what can I say? I loved it, I had a good time with it, I laughed, I almost cried and I enjoyed the style and the action aspect of the book. It made it on my top 10 reads of the year list. Let's start with the parts I loved about this book - the characters and humor. For me, the character arcs of our main cast came to satisfying conclusions - I loved where every character ended up. And my girl Steris made me proud. The character dynamic also was great, I appreciated seeing the comradery between Wayne and Marasi, moments where Steris and Wax worked together, and of course, Wax&Wayne. The humor was as always great, Wayne was hilarious and Steris made me smile and laugh a lot. Also, I can say that there were quite a lot of action scenes that worked for me. I love allomancy&feruchemy and their blend with more modern weapons and fighting style is fascinating. The plot was ok. I enjoyed the investigation part and some small details, but the grand part of the plot wasn't something special. Here come the things that made me worried and didn't work for me. And it's the Cosmere aspect. I'm always here for some easter eggs and hidden connections, but it's important to me that these books work as self-contained stories. And for The Lost Metal it's a stretch. There were a lot of Cosmere moments. And I don't know. Even though I read all the Cosmere books, it was too much for me, I felt overwhelmed. I just didn't want it to take the leading role in the story. And in my opinion, the Cosmere inclusion made the plot more shallow and took from the story. I know that many readers enjoyed it and it's great. But sadly for me, it didn't work out. So in the end, I loved this story and it made me really emotional in a couple of moments(mostly with Wayne), but it made me worried too. So, I guess, we just need to wait and we'll see what is next. https://www.instagram.com/p/Cqh7X_0LfhM/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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❓What was the last series you started? Did you enjoy it?   Dead Country by Max Gladstone follows a craftswoman Tara who returns to her home village to bury her father. The village and Tara have a really complicated past and both feel endangered by the other. We meet raiders and old friends, ghosts of the past and new opportunities, reasons to give up, and things to die for.   The premise sounds really intriguing and promising. And I think that the story was crafted rather well. But sadly it didn't work for me.   One thing that didn't work for me is a vast and overwhelming world. Maybe it's my fault. I knew that it was a new series in an already existing world. So maybe if I read the previous series, things would work out better for me.    The other thing maybe has the same reason – I wasn't attached to the characters too much and that is why I didn't care. Maybe it is because I didn't know Tara before this book(she was a character in the previous series too). Or maybe it's due to the book's length – it's relatively short and it's hard to build new relationships in such a short time. I can't be sure.   Nonetheless, the world and the magic system in Dead Country seemed fascinating to me – it's rather hard, but there was something poetic about it as well.   The prose is polished and exquisite(it's rather similar to the one I encountered in another Gladstone's book – This Is How You Lose The Time War). I think it will not work for everyone, but there will be definitely many readers who will appreciate it.   All in all, it seems like an interesting start for a new series and I can recommend it to readers who love hard but abstract magic systems and flowery writing style. (Also, maybe if you're intrigued, your best starting place is the first book in raft Sequence - Three Parts Dead)   I'm grateful to @netgalley and @tordotcompub for providing me with this advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review. #maxgladstone #deadcounty #craftwars #netgalleyreview #tordotcompublishing https://www.instagram.com/p/CqQK3y1IfUP/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#maxgladstone #deadcounty #craftwars #netgalleyreview #tordotcompublishing

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📖"Who would we be without our scars?"   So let's talk about To Poison A King by S.G.Prince. What can I say? I loved it. I was absolutely charmed. It was such an immersive and beautiful read. I finished it in 2 days and only the strength of my will didn't let me devour it in one sitting.   The story follows a young physician Selene who finds herself entangled in her mother's mysterious schemes and ends up trying to poison a king. The attempt goes wrong, a king lives though crippled and Selene is abandoned, full of guilt and remorse.   After it, we follow the poisoner and the poisoned king, Elias(all through Selene's POV) struggling with the aftermath of it through the years.   The plot is simple but engaging - it has intrigues, it has a romance, it even has an adventure. I enjoyed it despite predicting some plot turns and twists.   But honestly, the plot isn't what feels so special for me in this book. I was immersed in the atmosphere and the writing. The prose feels lyrical, but not too flowery to distract.   The story explores the character struggles deeply, the themes of love and forgiveness, guilt and acceptance, finding your own strength and purpose, uncertainty, and anxiety.   It has an interesting blend of atmospheres and themes - it has wood-witch vibes and castle politics, a slow-burn romance and inner struggles, fairytale notes, and even a quest. All the little details we meet throughout the book play some role in the end.   I love character work and both main characters feel real to me. I love their growth, their flaws, and the dynamics between them. (Also both of them resonate with me on a personal level and I share my favorite theme in the carousel). My favorite part is when our characters spend a lot of time together, get to really know each other - the pictures of them together are so vivid.   I can recommend it to readers who love immersive fantasy romance with a focus on the inner character journey and who like the fairytale vibe in books.   I'm so grateful to the story's author for providing me with the advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review. https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp-ZJtSIO8W/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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❓ Do you like vampire stories? What vampire book is your favorite? The Lights of Prague by Nicole Jarvis is a unique and interesting book. It blends an atmospheric historical setting with a vampire story and it works together really well. I liked the writing style – it made vivid pictures of Prague – mysterious, old, beautiful, and dangerous. It was a pleasure for me to re-visit this city throughout the book, to walk narrow streets and beautiful bridges, to look at palaces and churches, to take a break in the city parks. The plot was interesting too. It had elements of a detective story, dynamic action scenes, and a romance. This book follows two main characters – Domek and Ora – who are investigating rumors about some mysterious vampire cure from different angles. They are very different in backgrounds and experiences but have a common cause, and it's all that matters on the dark streets of Prague. From the things that could be executed better, I can highlight the character work. Most of the characters(and especially villains) were rather generic and had rather typical motivations, and I didn't feel like there was some big character development throughout the book. It doesn't spoil the book for me – I was engaged and the story was a fun ride. I'm really curious about the next book from Nicole Jarvis - A Portrait In Shadow and can't wait to read it this year. Big thanks to my twinnie @jonesandthebooks for the recommendation! 🤍🖤 And I'm grateful to Edelweiss and Titan Books for providing me with this digital reading copy in exchange for my honest review. #thelightsofprague #nicolejarvis #edelweissplus #titanbooks https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp2fiTXIt2g/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#thelightsofprague #nicolejarvis #edelweissplus #titanbooks

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🐉 Do you like books about dragons? What type of story with them do you prefer? Dragonfall by L. R. Lam for sure was a ride. I'm surprised how much I was engaged by it even though it didn't feel like my type of book. Dragonfall follows two main characters. Everen is the first male dragon in ages who is destined to save his race. Arcady is a genderfluid thief whose dark heritage secrets can bring a painful death. A chance brings them together and they don't have any options other than to cooperate, but they both, of course, have a hidden agenda. Dragonfall is promoted as an adult fantasy, but for me, it felt rather YA. The difference is for sure blurred, but our main characters are rather young(and both describe themselves as barely adults) and the feeling of the plot and characters gave me distinct YA vibes. What I liked about this book: • Character dynamics. It was written well, and the tension between our characters was real. There was an enemies/lovers aspect and it worked. • The plot was interesting and I was always curious about what was next. Especially, I liked the heist part, who doesn't enjoy a good heist? • The concept and the idea of the world, the history of dragons and humans, the political, social, and religious aspects were nicely developed as well. What didn't work for me: • Characters. I'm just a little bit tired of edgy and prickly never trusting characters. I won't say they didn't have their reasons, I've just read too many such books and it didn't feel too deep for me. • Some writing aspects. The book has a lot of info-dumbs(especially the initial part), but still, some things were rather confusing. And at some moments in the book, I wasn't sure I fully understood what was going on. The ending was partly open but satisfying. Honestly, I'm rather eager to read the next book. Considering the first book hasn't been released yet, it's a lot of waiting for me. And my final rating for this book is 3.75/5. I'm grateful to Netgalley and DAW for providing me with this advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review. #dragonfall #lrlam #netgalleyreview https://www.instagram.com/p/CpsBHbSrUUj/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#dragonfall #lrlam #netgalleyreview

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❓Have you ever participated in some reading challenges? What do you think about your experience? I can't believe it but I finally finished my first book bingo in February. It was a bingo hosted by the subreddit r/Fantasy, it’s an annual thing - it starts every year on the 1st of April and lasts a year. Every year you get a new bingo card with 25 themes you need to find and read books about. I'd never participated in such challenges and it was an interesting experience for me. There were pluses and minuses to my reading in it and I'll share them below. (And I'll prepare a post with my bingo highlights for you as well) The good part: - The main advantage for me was definitely diversifying my reading. While I searched for books for bingo categories I found new authors and sub-genres, explored topics I never read books about before, and tried series I've never heard of before and it's refreshing. - The other good thing for me was that it helped to structure and plan my reading, so I always had a list of books I need to read next and it helped me to read more than I usually did. - Bingo helped me in understanding what books from my TBR I want to read the most. Because it was them I desperately tried to find the right category for. The bad part: - The main downside for me was the filing of obligations. There were a couple of books I really wanted to DNF, but I read them for bingo and I didn't want to search for another book for the category, so I finished them anyway. - For some categories, I didn't have books I was excited to read but had to read something anyway. So now I'm not sure I will participate in bingo the next year. Having you and your recommendations I feel like my TBR becomes more and more diverse anyway, and I enjoyed DNFing books this year. I don't like when my reading pressures me and it's hard to evade it completely with bingo. But on the other hand, it's such an interesting bookish experience and I want to thank r/Fantasy for everything. They do a great job every year helping people in finding the right books for all bingo categories, share recommendation lists, and answer questions about every bingo theme. https://www.instagram.com/p/CpkQISBLBVI/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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🤍“Events may be horrible or inescapable. Men have always a choice - if not whether, then how, they may endure.” ❓Have you already discovered a new favorite this year? Because I definitely have! Let me tell you about it. The Curse of Chalion follows our main character Cazaril who is trying to rebuild his life after years of tragedies and failures. With a little help from people he knew as a child, he stands on the road to healing and ends up messed up in royal politics and intrigues. That is where this story begins. You just can't imagine where it will lead us. The Curse of Chalion was a pure joy to read for me and every new chapter expanded the story and the book to the scale I didn't expect from it. It has it all. The AMAZING main character Cazaril who deserves all the love in the world. He is the center of the story, the lead that was written strongly. For me, it was impossible not to love him. The secondary cast of characters was nice and lovable too. Interesting and at the same time light worldbuilding - you don't see a hard magic system or tomes of history in it, but it has just enough for the world to feel real. Engaging political intrigues. Teological discussions. The feeling of good old-school fantasy. And the plot that comes to a beautiful and logical conclusion - all the pieces we encountered throughout the book, even the minor ones, all just click together. This book isn't a light one and there are many deep topics and rough moments both in the past and the current plot. BUT I still grinned like a fool throughout all this book because Bujold created such a thoughtfully balanced tone in it. She can discuss serious topics and still weave some humor or hope into it. Beautiful. Just beautiful. Honestly, I am outraged by how rarely I see Bujold's work discussions up here. It's a sin and a crime. Bujold skyrocketed to the list of my favorite authors and I can't be more grateful to @bookdragonoffire for this recommendation. 📖“The gods' most savage curses come upon us as answers to our own prayers. Prayer is a dangerous business.” #loismcmasterbujold #thecurseofchalion https://www.instagram.com/p/Co9on25LPJi/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#loismcmasterbujold #thecurseofchalion

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❄️“In all the old stories, the only thing that ever won was love. And occasionally a good sharp knife.” ❓Do you usually enjoy fairytale retellings? What is your favorite? Winter is still here, so for those who still want to read something seasonal, I have this recommendation. The Raven and The Reindeer by T.Kingfisher is a whimsical and sly Snow Queen retelling, so I think, there is no need to dive deep into the plot description. But as always with T.Kingfisher's books, it's not what it seems. This book has another tone from the original fairytale and puts the accent on other parts of the story. And even though our plot is rather similar to Gerta's quest in the fairytale, the results and the meanings are quite different - and for me, it's the part that really matters. I liked Gerta's character and her companions a lot, and her adventures were engaging and sometimes a little bit disturbing. The book is full of humor and strangeness and a whimsical fairytale mood. Also T.Kingfisher loves adding animal companions into her stories and this one isn't an exception. Here we have a grumpy raven and you'll love him. And talking otters are pure joy and they are so hilarious. I just love how T.Kingfisher manages to surprise me and bring new amazing and unexpected animal companions every time. All in all, it's a great and short winter read for those who love strange books and modern fairytale reimaginings. #theravenandthereindeer #tkingfisher https://www.instagram.com/p/Corn3jVLnvZ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#theravenandthereindeer #tkingfisher

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❓Have you read any books in The Realm of Elderlings? What do you think about them? I finished the first three trilogies from The Realm of Elderlings sometime around 2013, and now I finally return to this world to re-read old stories and to discover new ones. And Assassin's Apprentice is the first book in my re-reading quest. What can I say? Returning into this world felt like coming home for me. It's an amazing compliment to Robin Hobb's writing and character work. Maybe I didn't remember all the plot details, but I remembered almost all the characters, and all my feelings for them - they were so bright and vivid in my mind all these years. It's just amazing. The story follows a royal bastard Fitz from his childhood. The plot of Assassin's Apprentice covers his journey from 6 years to 15, if I remember correctly. But don't be mistaken - the tone and the themes of this book are anything but childish. Hobb executes it masterfully and sends all the right messages and serious plot points, but still leaves a place for a young and naive main character. As you could guess from the book's title Fitz becomes the assassin's apprentice and it's an ugly story, realistic and truthful, about how a royal bastard can be useful to his family. This book has everything, an engaging plot, the main character you feel a lot of empathy for, and an amazing cast of secondary characters. Being older now I think I felt the drama of our secondary cast even deeper. A man who was young and healthy and wanted to serve, but lost some of his strength and was left behind, a woman who wanted, but couldn't give a child to her husband, a man who was always taught how to be a second, but was forced to become the first, a woman who was ready to be a sacrifice for her people, but still fought for those she loved. I think these people and their stories together with Fitz make this series so strong and amazing. Yes, they are all flawed, as we all are, but it's hard to ignore their feelings and don't feel compassion. All in all, it was a great read and a strong start for the series. #farseerfriday #thefarseertrilogy #assasinsapprentice #robinhobb https://www.instagram.com/p/CoexZr3rWij/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#farseerfriday #thefarseertrilogy #assasinsapprentice #robinhobb

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❓Do you like books with illustrations? What book is your favorite? I didn't know I needed books with illustrations before I opened Empire of the Vampire. It just adds something to your reading experience, gives more to your imagination to work with, and immerses you into the world even deeper. Honestly, this post is just Empire of the Vampire art appreciation post. You saw how much I enjoyed it while reading the book and I just want to save it in my feed as well. @monolimeart made an exquisite job for this book and I can't wait to see what awaits us in book two of the series(not only from the plot but from illustrations as well). And now, knowing how much I enjoyed this book, I want to hear some illustrated book recommendations from you as well. Who knows, maybe this way I'll find another new favorite. #empireofthevampire #jaykristoff #bonorthwick https://www.instagram.com/p/CoZlEAKrtz2/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#empireofthevampire #jaykristoff #bonorthwick

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🍾One year of writing about books!🍾 I can't believe I'm already here, but yes, I shared my first review(Malazan book 1 - Gardens of the Mood) a year ago! Thank you all for being here with me, for liking and sharing, for coming in comments and DMs to discuss books(and not only books)! I'm really grateful for every one of you.🤍🖤 A year ago I couldn't imagine it would come this way. And the most surprising things about bookstagram so far: - An amazing community. When I started writing about books I hoped to find some people to share our opinions, but honestly, I didn't know how friendly and warm the bookish community was up here. And I 100% didn't imagine I would find amazing people to discuss books, some bookish things, and some not bookish things at all. And for this, I'm really grateful. - Change in my TBR. Before bookstagram, I was mostly part of bookish communities for books I always liked or my favorite genres. And up here we share our diverse reading and bring new authors and genres to each other. We are trying to promote not only super-popular authors but our favorite new authors and indie authors, and it brings so much into my reading. That's just amazing - Change in my reading habits as well. Who knew you can read multiple books in parallel or not read all books from a series in a row? I definitely didn't - You can have a book blog without owning any books. That was one of my main concerns starting this blog. But with time, I think, I found my style and I'm enjoying it. Thank you all who complimented my feed and my blog aesthetics - it means the world to me. - You can feel like a part of publishing even if you have a small blog. I didn't know that advanced reading copies(ARCs) were a thing before I started this blog and I'm still surprised that publishers are ready to share free advanced reading copies in exchange for my review. I'm always happy to receive a new book for review. It's such a nice feeling to be able to read and review some books before release. I'm curious about what the next year will bring me, but I'm happy to be here. Thank you all! https://www.instagram.com/p/CoMsiIQrAiF/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

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🌕“I felt a strong desire to howl at the moon. It was such a howlable moon. But I restrained myself.” ❓Do you like books with non-human protagonists? Which one is your favorite? I recommended A Night in The Lonesome October on my short SFF list. But I know that Roger Zelazny is not very popular on bookstagram right now, so it seems like a good idea to share my review of this book as well. So this is a really curious book. Our main character is a watchdog named Snuff and he is a good dog. He is reliable, smart, and friendly. He cares about his master Jack and helps him in his endeavors. We are in London, it's gloomy and murky, and Halloween is coming soon. And with it, some dark ritual will come into place. As readers, we don't understand what is going on from the beginning, but with every chapter, we get more and more clues about the ritual, and "the game". We meet vampires, magicians, sorcerous, and shapeshifters. But most importantly we have a lot of time to get to know Snuff better and it's a great experience. Instead of a spooky and dark story, it could be from the premise and setting it becomes a cosy story about friendship and loyalty. It still has some elements to make in a proper spooky season read, but it's not the main focus for sure and it isn't scary, but atmospheric. This book has 31 chapters - from October 1 to October 31, so you can read it chapter per day for a perfect October reading experience, or you can pick it up right now and read it really quickly because it's short and engaging. 📖“I took Jack his slippers this evening and lay at his feet before a roaring fire while he smoked his pipe, sipped sherry, and read the newspaper. He read aloud everything involving killings, arsons, mutilations, grave robberies, church desecrations, and unusual thefts. It is very pleasant just being domestic sometimes.” #rogerzelazny #anightinthelonesomeoctober https://www.instagram.com/p/Cn_3tZHLmx4/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#rogerzelazny #anightinthelonesomeoctober

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💙“As I could, I loved you.” ❓Have you read The Winternight Trilogy? What do you think about it? The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden was one of the best reads of 2022 for me. And The Winter of The Witch was a perfect conclusion for this series. I think that in this book Arden masterfully balanced the fairytale atmosphere and feeling of The Bear and The Nightingale and the adventurous mood of The Girl in The Tower. This book startedbrutally, but I loved this part of the story - it was honest. We saw a hunger for power and love, the feral fear, and how easy it was(and is) to manipulate the crowd. It was important to the whole story and it hurt so much because it was a rather realistic part of the plot. The middle part was… magical. I think that this part of the book was my favorite of the whole trilogy. Magnificent, full of living fairytales in its atmosphere, and full of passion and raw feelings in writing. I was bewitched by this part and finished it in one sitting. And then everything came together to the epic conclusion - folklore and real history of Rus, choices and their consequences, endings and new beginnings, people of church and cherti. It was a grand final, but it also was a very personal story. I appreciate Vasya's character arc from the beginning to the end of the series. It was so great to follow a character that flowed, that passionate, and that lovable. And Morozko just stole my heart. It's really hard to write a folklore creature for readers to love and to understand, make him human enough to inspire feelings, but eternal enough to be believable for his role. And again, I think, Arden succeeded in it. I want to send my thanks to @thebookish.isle and our group for an amazing reading experience. I loved our weekly discussions and they added a lot to my understanding of the series. It was a magnificent experience for me and I hope it's not the last adult fantasy series from Katherine Arden. 📖“There are no monsters in the world, and no saints. Only infinite shades woven into the same tapestry, light and dark. One man’s monster is another man’s beloved. The wise know that.” https://www.instagram.com/p/Cnt1U0yLitc/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[the-mad-bird-diaries]

🖤"San Isidro was supposed to be my victory. My future. My home. Now all I could do was hope that it wouldn’t be my tomb." ❓Do you like gothic fiction? What are your favorite books in this genre? The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas was my closing read of the autumn reading season and was a perfect conclusion(I'm a little behind with my reviews, you see...). I really wanted to find some atmospheric gothic horror/thriller to highlight my prolonged spooky season. And I was so happy to find The Hacienda. This is the story of a young woman Beatriz, who arrived at her new husband's hacienda in hopes of finally finding stability and safety in a new home, but instead was trapped in a rather uneasy situation with the hacienda that definitely had some dark secrets. The only person who maybe could help her was Padre Andrés, our second POV, but he had his own secrets to hide and to protect. So there were two of them against some unsettling forces and hidden past. The gothic atmosphere was immaculate in this book and the writing immersed me from page one. This book was full of malevolent summer heat, stuffy suffocating rooms, and foreboding feelings. I just couldn't put this book down. It was spooky, but not in a bad, but in a thrilling way. And the mysteries of the hacienda were unraveled in an interesting way. Our characters both were written well - flawed, but inspiring compassion. Also, there was a romance in this book and it worked surprisingly well for me! The switch between chilling moments and the tension between our characters was executed in an amazing way and it encouraged me to read faster and faster. The final part had some strange and straightforward moments, but honestly, it didn't spoil this book for me at all and I fully enjoyed this read from the first line to the last. 🤍“Our relationship was founded on one thing, and one thing only. My world was a dark, windowless room, and he was a door.” #thehacienda #isabelcañas #isabelcanas https://www.instagram.com/p/CnmDiP8rdap/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#thehacienda #isabelcañas #isabelcanas