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Weekly Wrap-Up #12

It’s Friday, the happiest day of the week!  I didn’t do a weekly wrap-up last week because the last day of the month fell on a Friday – you can read my June round-up here.

It has been a tough week for reading and blogging because of general life things (again, all good stuff), but I did manage to read one book this week.

 

Books I read

A Gathering of Shadows by V. E. Schwab

A_Gathering_of_Shadows

A Gathering of Shadows is the second book in Schwab’s Shades of Magic series.  I have to say I enjoyed this one much more than the first, which I thought had a lot of unreached potential.  This book filled in a lot of the gaps I saw in A Darker Shade of Magic, such as character growth and the clear establishment of rules for the magic system.  I’m looking forward to finishing up the series with A Conjuring of the Light!

 

Books I DNFed

Flight of a Starling by Lisa Heathfield

9781405285902

I know that Lisa Heathfield is much beloved in the YA genre, but oh boy could I not get through this book.  It’s filled with all the things that kept me away from YA for so long: insta-love, irresponsibility, and the ‘I’ve only known him for two days but he’s changed my life forever’ trope.  I don’t think it’s my age – I can’t see myself liking this as a teenager either.  Maybe I’m just grumpy.

I struggled through until about 33% before putting it down.  I might make another push to give it a chance, but probably not.

giphy

 

Books I am currently reading

How to Stop Time by Matt Haig

The Cardinal’s Man by M. G. Sinclair

I’m only about 10% in to How to Stop Time, and I’m absolutely loving it.  I’ve never read any of Haig’s fiction, but Reasons to Stay Alive was a fantastic and funny treatment of the author’s horrible struggles with depression.  How to Stop Time is wonderful so far – it’s inventive and funny and compelling.  I can see myself settling down for a whole day of reading with this book.

I’m starting up The Cardinal’s Man tonight, so I’ve included it here!  I’m really looking forward to participating in my first blog tour.  I really love Black and White Publishing – they’re an independent publisher that puts out some great stuff.

blogtour (1)

 

That’s it for this week!  I’m hopping on a train after work and heading to London to spend some time with the family.  We’re a bunch of readers, so lots of quiet book time will be had and I’m very excited!

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It takes longer to get the cats out of the suitcase than it does to pack the suitcase

 

Have you read any of these?  Are any on your to-read list?  What did you read this week?  Let me know!

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Justine

Book reviews, discussions, recommendations, and more!

8 responses to “Weekly Wrap-Up #12”

  1. Holly Avatar
    Holly

    I haven’t read any of these, but I desperately need to read the rest of the Shades of Magic series.

    Also, your cat is ADORABLE ❤

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Justine Avatar
      Justine

      Thank you!! Her eyebrow game is strong so she always looks disappoving, but she’s a big cuddler 🙂

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  2. Nandini Bharadwaj Avatar
    Nandini Bharadwaj

    The Shades of Magic series is on my TBR. I feel a bit ashamed that I’ve not read any of Schwab’s books because she’s such a popular and well-loved author. I hope to finish at least one of her books in 2017. I follow Matt Haig on Twitter and I’m aware of his books, but I haven’t been able to pick one up yet. They’re on my ‘maybe-someday’ list though. Probably if they’re available on audiobook or something. I’m not too sure, but I definitely want to read it in this lifetime. 😂
    I’ve never DNF-ed a book in my life but that’s just how I am as a reader. However, I completely understand it when people do and if you’re just not feeling a book, then I get why you would do that. I don’t like any of those tropes in YA either, so that GIF seems very appropriate. 😁 Flight of a Starling wasn’t on my radar, but I’ll probably give that one a hard pass. Pity, because the book cover and title seem very intriguing.

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    1. Justine Avatar
      Justine

      I don’t love the series as much as many of the other people you’ll see around here, but I do think it’s improving! I love the author so much because she’s a lovely person who is really open about how difficult writing is. Matt Haig is great so far! He’s another one who is really open with his writing and depression struggles and seems to be an all around good person 😀

      I used to never DNF books, but I realised that sometimes books I didn’t enjoy really negatively impacted my reading habits. I usually give a regular book about 100 pages — unless I’ve had a friend recommend reading past that point because it has a long set-up — but I’ll give an advance copy more time. I feel an obligation to read as much as I can!

      YA is a tough genre for me because there’s so much I do like, but so much that I don’t like. I’m 29, so a lot of the insta-love and a character’s world revolving around their romantic interest just don’t do it for me!

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      1. Nandini Bharadwaj Avatar
        Nandini Bharadwaj

        I agree! If it’s a romance-heavy YA book, I tend to avoid it because 70% of them seem to include unrealistic and overdone tropes. I’m trying to read more diversely and want to pick up more aro/ace rep partly because romance won’t be its main focus.
        I think I’ll get into the habit of DNF-ing as well. Till now I had all the time in the world to give the book a thorough read even if I wasn’t enjoying it, but having a full time job has cut that down dramatically. Let’s see how that affects my reading habits!
        I love V. E. Schwab on Twitter. Not only does she post incredibly cute cat pictures, she’s also my inspiration to write. I respect her as an author, which is why I feel more guilty about not picking up her books. Definitely someday!

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Justine Avatar
        Justine

        Yeah! I absolutely love a good romance, but can struggle with them. I’m also trying to read more diversely! Especially as a white woman and a fantasy reader, I can fall into the trap of reading lots of books only featuring white people in white settings. YA fantasy is one of the most interesting and diverse areas of the fantasy genre right now.

        Working full time can cut down your reading time so badly! I like reading at lunchtime, but I used to have to hide from well intentioned coworkers who thought I was bored and lonely! I now work in publishing, so we all understand and respect each other’s reading time :).

        Her new kitten is SO SO cute! She’s so inspirational and so upfront and honest. Let me know if you end up picking up her books!

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      3. Nandini Bharadwaj Avatar
        Nandini Bharadwaj

        Sure, I’ll let you know. 🙂
        Ah, my friends think I’m being rude if I try to read in their company, so the only time I do read is during the commute. Having bad roads means I end up with a headache when I try to read, so I’m going to try more audiobooks from now on.
        I agree with you about YA fantasy. I love it when it has a dash of romance and it doesn’t hijack the entire story. I obviously enjoy a good level of world-building because LotR has set such a high standard. 😅
        What field were you in before moving to publishing? If you don’t mind sharing, that is.

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      4. Justine Avatar
        Justine

        I was in finance before I moved over to publishing. It just wasn’t for me and I was lucky enough to be able to go back to school and get my Publishing masters!

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