Mid Year Book Freak Out Tag

So when I saw Stephanie from Bookfever doing this tag, I thought: "Hey, it's been a while... why not?" 

What is the best book you've read? 

"Could I come with you at least?" "No." "Sorry, my mistake, I said that wrong. What I meant to say was, I'm coming with you." 

Land of the Beautiful Dead by R. Lee Smith. You can find my 5 stars review here. 

This was hands down one of the best books I've read in a long while.
I was skeptical at first, as the cover didn't really catch my interest and the synopsis sounded interesting yet strange.
But boy, once I started reading it... I couldn't stop. 

The dialogue, the characters, the romance, the complexity of this world.
I loved it. 

Don't let its appearance fool you, and pick it up. You'll be addicted before you even know it. 

I haven't given a book 5 stars in over a year... and longer before that.
I may be becoming jaded, and maybe 4 is my new 5, but... every now and then when this kind of book comes along I know it deserves to be special. 

What is the best sequel you've read? 

"Maybe he'd try not to growl at her. It'd be difficult since he'd been in a bad mood for twelve months, but scaring an E wasn't a thing to be proud of - It was like stomping on a kitten."

Wolf Rain by Nalini Singh was one of the best books I've read so far this year. So addictive, so awesome, it's no wonder I just adore every book this author writes. 

For those of you who don't know Nalini Singh, she writes fantastic fantasy romance book series (most call is paranormal but I don't really use that word much). She has two main series and she writes her books in those worlds. Each book usually centers around a different couple but they all revolve around a much larger plot.

One is about vampires/angels - called Guild Hunter, the other is of Psy/Changeling (called exactly that). 

I urge to you pick those books up. You should probably start with the Guild Hunter books because you'll get the basics of Nalini Singh world building/writing before jumping into the psy/changeling ones that are a bit more complex at the beginning. 

These are adult fantasy books though, so beware adult content.  

What release haven't you read yet, but want to? 

"It is very hard to be human, little fox. Even the humans themselves don't do a great job of it." 

Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa. 

I'm sure there are many more I haven't read - or even discovered - yet, but this one has been on my TBR for a while and I still haven't picked it up. 

I'm a fan of Julie Kagawa from her Iron Fey series (one of the best series I've ever read), but I'm ashamed to say I haven't picked up any of her other books yet. *sigh*. 

What is your most anticipated release of the second half of the year? 

Since I couldn't pick just one, here are a bunch of them! 

Each holds a different level of excitement for me, naturally, as they're very different from one another, but all of them are very much anticipated. 

"The books we love, they love us back. And just as we mark out places in the pages, those pages leave their marks on us. I can see it in you, sure as I can see it in me. You're a daughter of the words. A girl with a story to tell." 

Darkdawn by Jay Kristoff = I'm dreading this book, people. I'm dreading it so much :') I actually still haven't finished Godsgrave because I'm scared and I want Darkdawn to release first before I do.  

"Sometimes you don't know you've crossed the line till you're on the other side." 

Deviate by Jay Kristoff = Jay Kristoff is probably the only author I know who gives us more than one book per year (3 books this year! 3!). I love him so much for this. Even though most of his books make me shake in fear before I pick them up, and of course after I finish reading them. I am just as dreading - I mean, anticipating, Deviate as I am Darkdawn. 

"Just when you think you're having a scene without Simon, he drops in to remind you everyone else is a supporting character in his catastrophe." 

Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell = Thank goodness! I absolutely loved Carry On but was so disappointed with the rushed ending. Now that we're getting a second book of this I could not be happier. I want more of those boys! 

"So you would have me throw Shazi to the wolves?" "Shazi?" "Jalal's grin widened. "Honestly, I pity the wolves." 

The Beautiful by Renee Ahdieh = While I didn't really love Flame in the Mist by Renee Ahdieh (I had some complicated feelings regarding it), and still haven't picked up the sequel Smoke in the Sun (am still not sure I will), I still remember how much I loved The Wrath and the Dawn and therefore I am excited about this new - possibly duology - by the author! 

What is your biggest disappointment? 

Sorry, but this turned out into another bunch of books. 
These are some of books I expected to love but ended up rating below 3 stars. 

His mouth twitches. "You give a siren a secret... and she asks for another." "You have so many of them," I say. "Don't be a Grinch." 

Rhapsodic by Laura Thalassa = I heard good things about this trilogy and the author's other books in general, but just ended up feeling "meh" about it. Great review right here, I know. It was a nice story but didn't make me want to continue. 

"It's always the ones who are quietest who often have the greatest things to say."  

Wolfsong by T.J. Klune = this time, it's not the I expected that much but the general reviews were very positive and yet I still ended up not loving it. I didn't hate it either. I just had no feelings for it. 

She stared at him in obvious confusion. "I wanted to help." "Shouldn't that count for something?" 

Cottonwood by R. Lee Smith = Yep, the same author who wrote my favorite book this year, and one of my favorite of all times, and yet... this was probably the greatest disappointment considering my very high expectations and excitement towards it. You can find my review here. 

"You intolerable lunatic," he snarled at me, and then he caught my face between his hands and kissed me. 

Uprooted by Naomi Novik = Ahh, I really wanted to love this one. The reviews, the synopsis, even the beginning of the book, seemed very promising. And yet it quickly went into dragging and unconvincing "romance" (if I can even call it that). You can find my review explaining this here. 

What is your biggest surprise? 

"Enough," Benyamin said, smoothing out his bedroll. "Kifah, you're keeping watch." "Your wish is my insomnia," the warrior said with a salute. 

We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faziel. 

I definitely didn't expect to like this book as much as I have.
I started it on a whim and ended up thoroughly enjoying it, not wanting it to end, and desperately anticipating the second book. 

Hafsah Faziel has definitely captured me as a fan. 

You can find my 4 stars review here. 

Who is your favorite new author? 

That would be Hafsah Faziel (We Hunt the Flame) and R. Lee Smith (Land of the Beautiful Dead). 

Who is your newest fictional crush so far in 2019? 

This award goes to Nasir from We Hunt the Flame ❤ 

Who is your newest favorite character? 

That would be Auri from Aurora Rising! I love this girl! I'm rooting for her. 

What book that made you cry? 

It really is hard for a book to make me cry, so I can say that so far none has this year. Which is a good thing considering I get depressed after reading books that make me cry. 

What book that made you happy? 

I didn't get to talk about these two yet, even though they're two of my fave so far this year!

"It's a classic love story. I hit on him at a party, he asked me out, then we fought an epic magical battle between good and evil side by side, and now we need a vacation. The thing is, he's a shadowhunter." 

The Red Scrolls of Magic by Cassandra Clare and Aurora Rising by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman were both just delightful to read. I enjoyed every second of them. And I cannot wait for the sequels. 

I quite literally almost highlighted the whole of The Red Scrolls 😂 It tends to happen with Cassandra Clare books. I've got like 54 highlights and that's after restraining myself. 

“I didn’t know Syldrathi blushed with their ears,” Tyler muses. “I am not blushing.” “I mean, it kinda looks like you’re blushing.” “I am not blushing.” “Ooookay,” Tyler nods. “I sometimes have that effect on people, is all.”

You can read my review on Aurora Rising here. 

What is your favorite book to movie/tv show adaptation you saw this year? 

Even though I didn't read the comics, I loved The Umbrella Academy TV show on Netflix. I can't wait for the second season!  

What is your favorite post that you've written so far this year? 

Since I only now returned to blogging after over a year of absence, all of what I've been posting here are book reviews. But hey, this is a book blog so what else would I be posting about 😂 

Since I already linked to most of my book reviews above, here I'll link you with a book review of a book I haven't got the chance to talk about here Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston. 

What is the most beautiful book you bought so far this year? 

Getting your hands on physical copies when you live in a none English speaking countries is... well, a struggle, as I'm sure many bloggers will relate to. 

Due to that, I mostly get my books on Kindle.
This year, however, someone I know bought The Red Scrolls of Magic for me as a present (in physical copy). I was so happy and the book looks soooo pretty 😍 

What is one book that you want to read by the end of the year? 

I'm personally frustrated with myself for not yet finishing The Burning Maze by Rick Riordan, considering he's one of my favorite authors of all times. 

I'll do it though! I must, by the end of the year. Especially considering the next book comes out this year (I'm so excited!). The only reason I haven't included it in my most anticipated this year is that I forgot (and was too lazy to edit :') Sorry). 

And that's it for my Mid Year Book Freak Out Tag.
I hope you enjoyed it, thank you for reading thus far.
See you in my next post ;)

Stay For a Minute - Windshield

Let’s back it up a little. About four hours, to be exact. I know they say to start your story at the exciting bit, but you need to know what’s going on here so you can actually care about me getting vaporized. Because me getting vaporized is totally gonna suck.

         -- Aurora Rising