Sunday, May 14, 2017

May 2017 New Release Giveaway Hop

Hey guys! This month I'm participating in the monthly New Release Giveaway Hop hosted by Shannon over at It Starts at Midnight


So I'll be giving away a book of your choice released in May 2017, worth $20 or less. The giveaway is open internationally, so long the Book Depository ships to your country. 

The Books

If you win, you may pick a book even if it's not featured in the pictures here, so long it is a May 2017 release.

Credit: It Starts at Midnight


The Giveaway

Enter here to win one of those new May book releases. This giveaway ends May 31st. Good luck ^^



Check out my latest post for a non spoiler review of A Court of Wings and Ruin



I recently uploaded my spoiler free review of ACOWAR by Sarah J. Maas, which you can find and read here. In case you were wondering, I loved it!!!!! My spoiler discussion of the book is also coming up on the blog very soon, so be sure to keep an eye out for that if you want to discuss spoilers with me ^^


Now you can go ahead and hop on to the other blogs who are also participating in this giveaway hop :)



Thursday, May 11, 2017

Non-spoiler review: A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas

Hi guys ^^ Today I'm very excited to share my non-spoiler review of ACOWAR with you. I finished the book in roughly two days and I absolutely loved it. Was it perfect? Nope. Do I love this book to bits anyway? Hell yeah! 


I'll also be posting a full spoiler discussion of the book on the 20th of May. So if you've finished the book already and want to discuss about it with me, you can look forward to my upcoming spoiler discussion. Also, please note that while this review does not spoil ACOWAR, it does spoil the first two books in the series. 

Still here? Let's start ^^

High Lady


Without spoiling anything, I'll just say that Feyre totally delivers as High Lady. The story starts with Feyre back in the Spring Court and while I can't tell you much about what happens there, I'll just say that Feyre didn't disappoint at all. You know, I didn't even like Feyre in the first book but when I look back on the trilogy and see how much she has evolved as a character, I can't help but seriously root for her. Usually, in YA and new adult fantasy stories, I tend to prefer the male lead over the female main character. But Feyre is one of those very few female leads to have totally won me over. Rhysand is still my favorite character of the entire series. Not to mention my favorite book boyfriend of all time. But Feyre is definitely my second favorite character in the series. 
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Tamlin the Tool


It was announced by Sarah J. Maas well before ACOWAR was released that Tamlin would be offered a shot at redemption of some sorts in this book and like many people, I had my reservations about that. Again, I can't give specifics without treading into spoiler territory but I'll just say that I was very happy with Tamlin's character arc in this book. He wasn't villainized, which I personally appreciated as that's something I had been dreading to see and which had kind of started to happen in ACOMAF. I feel like Sarah did justice to Tamlin in ACOWAR by giving him a character arc that isn't just realistic but which is also true to his character. Is he still a jerk? Has he redeemed himself? You'll have to wait for my spoiler discussion to learn more about that. I'll just say though, that I never considered Tamlin to be evil, not even after the shocking reveals in ACOMAF. For me, Tamlin is just as broken as Feyre and Rhysand by the events of Under the Mountain. He just didn't really do a great job getting over it unlike these two. 

I have so much stuff to say about Tamlin though. Be sure to check out my upcoming spoiler discussion if you also want to share your thoughts about him with me ^^

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The Fae Courts


Again, it was announced before the book's release that in ACOWAR we'd get to see the other Fae Courts and their High Lords. Plus, that's literally on the blurb at the back on the book. Of course however, I can't really tell you the circumstances in which we visit the courts and what happens there. I'll just say though that while we do get to see them, I feel that we didn't spend as much time there as we could have. It was fun getting to know the other High Lords, but again, we didn't really get to spend a lot of time with them. The plus side to this is that it leaves a lot of opportunity for future books to expand on the Fae Courts. That being said, the Night Court and Velaris are still my favorite places in all of Prythian <3. 

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The ships


We go into this book rooting (or not) for quite a few ships following the events at the end of ACOMAF. Feyre and Rhysand don't even count as a ship at this point because their relationship is just that great. With regards to our other ships though, mainly Nesta & Cassian, Azriel & Mor and Lucien & Elain, without actually revealing anything, I must say that overall I was very satisfied with how everything played out. And yes, Sarah did manage to pull some stunts I didn't see coming with regards to these ships. So, have all ships sailed? Hmmm, I guess I'll let you find out for yourself XD. Or you can tune in when I post my spoiler discussion because trust me, there's A LOT to discuss about!!! 
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So, what about the characters themselves?


I liked all the story arcs linked to the members of the Inner circle. Some didn't get story arcs as developed as others but since we know we're getting three more books starting from next year, I don't really mind since I know we'll see more of these characters in the future. 

With regards to the Archeron sisters, I will confess that I was a little scared to see how things would unfold after the super unexpected Fae transformation of Feyre's sisters. I was very satisfied with how things turned out though. And while Elain is fleshed out a bit more than in previous books and gets her own very promising storyline, one which is sure to be continued in future books, it was Nesta who had the best character arc in my opinion. I hated Nesta in the first two books and I still kind of have a little bit of a grudge against her for being such a bitch to Feyre. But Nesta as a Fae is, simply put, Nesta at her best. Again, I can't say much without spoiling some stuff but to put it bluntly, in ACOWAR Nesta pretty much gets her shit together and undergoes quite an interesting character evolution. Hell, by the end of the book I realized that I had even begun to like her. LOL. 

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Another character whom I was really looking forward to see was Lucien and while his storyline caught me a little by surprise, overall I was happy with it. Lucien is basically Feyre's first friend in the entire series and just like with Tamlin, I feel like Sarah really did his character justice in this book. I know we'll get to see more of him in future books and quite frankly, I'm really looking forward to seeing more of our russet-eyed Clever Fox. 

Loose ends and future books


While I liked the ending of the book, which I think rather nicely concluded this first trilogy with Feyre as our main character, ACOWAR did have quite a lot of loose ends. Now, we know we're getting three more books in this series and Sarah J. Maas has also recently announced that each of these books will be focused on a different couple. So personally, I'm quite excited to see how these loose ends are developed and resolved in future books. Personally, I feel like not only did the first trilogy come to a satisfying end, but the unresolved subplots give us some new stories to look forward to and be excited about in the upcoming books. 

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Final word and rating 


Like I said at the beginning of this review, this book is by no means a perfect one. It does have its flaws, including some that have come to be quite recurrent in Sarah J. Maas's books. And yes, I will be expanding more on these in my spoiler discussion. Overall though, I was very satisfied with the turn the story took, as well as the various character arcs. Rhys and Feyre are now two of my favorite characters of all time. Also, the sheer excitement of anticipating the book's release, the frenzy that came with finally getting the book and later participating in group chats with fellow fans... All these things, as well as the merciless roller-coaster of emotions that came from reading the actual book... All these things will make ACOWAR forever be one of my favorite books of all times. Or perhaps I should say, one of my favorite reading experiences of all time. ACOWAR was not just a book. It was an event. One that I got to share with a bunch of equally crazy and passionate fangirls. And for that alone, as well as the pure enjoyment of reading it, I can only give ACOWAR 5 stars. I might reduce that rating once my excitement over it has dampened and I finally reread it. Until then though, I'm going to keep my rating at 5 stars 💗

Enter my giveaway for a chance to win a paperback copy of A Court of Wings and Ruin (Open Internationally!)


I'm currently also hosting a giveaway for a free copy of ACOWAR. And yes, it's even open internationally ^^ If you haven't already done so, you can click here to enter for a chance to win a copy of this book. 

Sunday, May 7, 2017

Awesome ACOTAR bookish goodies to fangirl about (Part Two)

Hi guys. Today I'm bringing you Part Two to my post featuring a selection of bookish items derived from Sarah J. Maas's ACOTAR series. If you haven't seen Part One yet, you can check it out here. So for this post, I'm again working with some lovely people from Etsy who have selected some really cool ACOTAR bookish goodies for you . If anything catches your eye, you can check out the links I've included below to know more about all these cool products and maybe add one or two to your wishlist... or your shopping cart ^^

And now let's begin ^^

Watercolor Print by Indigo Eleven


This gorgeous watercolor hand lettering art print, made using a brush lettering and color blending technique, features one of the most beautiful quotes of A Court of Mist and Fury. This art print comes with a signature of the artist, as well as the original date on the back. 

For more details on this print, you can visit the Etsy shop here and for more of similar awesome original artwork, you can also check out the shop's Instagram, Facebook and Tumblr.

Rhysand soap by Story Scentsations 


Inspired by Rhysand, this beautiful soap is a deep midnight blue with a touch of starry violet to reflect his eyes. The soap also smells of the ocean with a splash of citrus. 

For more details on this product, you can visit the Etsy shop here. You can also follow Story Scentsations's Instagram and Facebook to check out their other bookish soaps. 

Sip and Read's ACOTAR bookmarks


All of Sip and Read's bookmarks are printed on thick matte ivory paper and each is of the size 5.5 x 17 cm. There are 4 main bookmark designs to choose from. Aside from the one based on Starfall and the one with the "To the people who look" quote, you can also choose between bookmarks inspired by the covers of the books and those inspired by the Fae Courts. And in case you weren't sure which of the 7 main courts you prefer, the shop even offers a special rainbow bookmark inspired by the Court of Dreams! 

Sip and Read's ACOTAR prints 


Sip and Reads also offers art prints featuring quotes from the books and each print come in either glossy or matte paper, as well as two size choices. While the "To the people who look" is in a similar theme as the Starfall bookmark, the "To the stars who listen" print has a dark violet and blue galactic watercolor background with the quote as its main focus.

For more details on all these cool bookmarks and prints, you can check Sip and Read's Etsy store here

SPECIAL OFFER: The store also has an ongoing special sale throughout May for the release of ACOWAR. BUY AT LEAST ANY TWO ACOTAR SERIES BOOKMARKS OR ART PRINTS OR BOTH FROM THE ETSY STORE AND GET A STARFALL BOOKMARK FREE


Enter my giveaway for a chance to win a paperback copy of A Court of Wings and Ruin (Open Internationally!)



I'm currently also hosting a giveaway for a free copy of ACOWAR. And yes, it's even open internationally ^^ If you haven't already done so, you can click here to enter for a chance to win a copy of this book. 

I can't wait to share my thoughts on ACOWAR with you guys! Up next on the blog, I'm going to be having both a non-spoiler review of the book, as well as a full spoiler discussion. Plus, with my ACOTAR event still ongoing, there are more fun stuff and giveaways in store for you. So do keep an eye open for all that fun stuff ^^

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Here are some awesome ACOTAR bookish goodies for you to fangirl about ^^ (Part One)

Hi guys ^^ As many of you probably know, today A Court of Wings and Ruin finally comes out (yehhhh!). I'll be heading to the bookstore later today to pick up my pre-ordered copy. I'm so excited!!! What about you? Do you already have your copy? I know a lot of people got theirs a bit early. Lucky people! So since many of us are super excited about this book, today I thought we could celebrate the book's release by fangirling together over some cute ACOTAR bookish goodies.

So continuing with my ACOTAR event, for today's post, I'm working with some lovely people from Etsy to bring to you a selection of bookish items derived from Sarah J. Maas's ACOTAR series. If anything catches your fancy, you can always find a link to the store under each item so that you can look it up and maybe purchase it if you want ^^

Let's start ^^

1. Jo Painter's Bookmarks 


Photo by _livelaughread

Jo Painter's artwork comes to life in these beautiful double sided bookmarks featuring original illustrations of Rhysand and Feyre. They are printed onto thick card with a silk finish so that the colour and details stand out to their fullest and are durable enough to be used either within the books or simply to be displayed on bookshelves or in a frame! 


There are memorable quotes on each bookmark that represent what the art was inspired by. The collection can be bought as a whole or simply pick and choose which bespoke bookmark you would like to own! There are also prints of various sizes available and much more exciting merchandise on the way later on in the year over on her Etsy.


To check out these bookmarks, visit her Etsy shop here and for more of her awesome original artwork, check out her Instagram, her Tumblr and her website

2. ACOTAR Hollow Book Safe by Secret Safe Books



Secret Safe Books sells handcrafted hollowed books which double as awesome secret safes. They come with a magnetic closure that keeps the hollowed book closed, even when it's upright.


Their ACOTAR hollow book safe comes in hardback and has the book's original dust jacket, as well as the original red endpapers lining the interior of the book. 

To check out this unique ACOTAR hollow book safe, visit the Etsy shop here. For more similar awesome products, check out their InstagramFacebook and Twitter

3. Fictional Flames's Night Court Inner Circle Candle Set



This amazing candle set comprises of 6 candles, each inspired by the members of the Night Court's Inner Circle. The candles are charcoal in color and also comprise of glitter of varying shades based on the character is was inspired by. My personal favorite is Feyre's charcoal with black and gold glitter candle <3 

Each candle also has a unique scent which is also inspired by the 6 different characters and feature a different quote on the side. For more details on the individual candles' scent and color, visit the shop here. You can also check out the shop's Instagram here to discover more of their awesome bookish candles.


Some of you might have recognized this awesome candle shop from one of my recent posts. I'm currently hosting a giveaway for another ACOMAF inspired candle from Fictional Flames. The candle being offered is their beautiful Velaris candle and you can still enter the giveaway for a chance to win it by clicking here

Enter my giveaway for a chance to win a paperback copy of A Court of Wings and Ruin (Open Internationally!)


I'm currently also hosting a giveaway for a free copy of ACOWAR. And yes, it's even open internationally ^^ If you haven't already done so, you can click here to enter for a chance to win a copy of this book. 

I can't wait to finally get my hands on ACOWAR guys! I'm planning to do both a non-spoilery review as well as a full spoilery discussion of the book as soon as I'm done reading it. So be sure to look out for that if you want to hear my thoughts on ACOWAR ^^