The Last Ten Books – Book Tag

Hello lovelies!

I was tagged by the lovely Margarida @IcthusBookCorner to do the The Last Ten Books Tag !! Thank you so much for tagging me on this fun tag and if you’re not familiar with her blog, go check it out everyone!

Last Book I Gave Up On

I rarely DNF books so I kind of do *research* before diving into a book of the tropes it contains and I read reviews of people I trust to avoid this. Since I can’t remember a book I recently gave up on, I’m going to tell you about the only book I gave up on and that is sadly Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. No one is sadder than I am about not liking this book! It is constantly on my mind and every year I try to convince myself to read it!

The Last Book I Reread

I scarcely reread books because I’m a very slow reader and my TBR is never ending so I don’t have the luxury of rereading. Though, last year, for the first time ever I reread Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid which made me realize that this book is my favourite book ever.

The Last Book I Bought

I was supposed to be on a book buying ban for the whole month of March after my frantic buying in February…well I failed. In my defense, I bought a book I’ve always been curious about. The Shadowhunters universe is everywhere and with the release of Chain of Iron, I thought now was as good a time as any to catch up on the series! I bought a second hand copy of City of Bones and it only cost me 1€ which is really nothing; so did I really buy it? (yes, I’m in denial.).

The Last Book I Said I Read But Didn’t

Haha I rarely say I read a book but didn’t because I’m always so excited to talk about books and if someone engaged a conversation with me about said book and I had nothing to say it would be tragically embarrassing.

Last Book I Wrote in the Margins of

Okay so I didn’t really write in the margins but I highlighted some parts of Act your Age, Eve Brown because well, the book was excellent and it was my ARC copy; I’m going to buy a finished and immaculate copy so it’s fine.

Last Book That I Had Signed

Getting books by English speaking authors in FRANCE is a struggle so the last copy that I had signed was actually The Beholder by Anna Bright which I got from A FairyLoot special edition.

Last Book I Lost

*scoffs* I don’t lose books; who do you think I am? (just kidding, I lose everything; I just can’t remember the last book I lost.

Last Book I Had To Replace

I never had to replace a book, thankfully!

Last Book I Argued Over

I actually argued over The Princess Trap with my sister who I basically forced to read the book! She had some opinions on the book and I had mine! She’s still currently reading it so I hope she ends up enjoying the book a little more.

Last Book You Pre-Ordered

Funny story, after my last mishhap with preordering How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories I decided that I was cursed. I’ve only had catastrophic stories with preordering books which is a shame because I really want to support authors and some of the books coming out genuinely interest me! But no pre-oredring for me to spare me the frustration, tears, money and anger it induces. I have learned my lesson.

Feel free to do this tag if you want to!!

SUMMER WRAP UP/ FAVORITES

Just like the month of August, my summer holidays are coming to an end, and I’m going back to school tomorrow. I thought it would be fun to recap everything I liked, read and watched this summer! Here it goes:

The Beholder by Anna Bright – Review – Readalong style! (Spoilers!)

Hello guys!

I participated in my first Readalong ever with FairyLoot for the May Box “Unlikely Romances”. The book featured in the box was The Beholder by Anna Bright. The Readalong was held from June 17th to June 21st (five days). Since we had to read 12 chapters every day I decided I would do a review about the Chapters of each day!

Summary (Goodreads): After an excruciatingly public rejection from her closest childhood friend, Selah’s stepmother suggests an unthinkable solution: Selah must set sail across the Atlantic, where a series of potential suitors awaits—and if she doesn’t come home engaged, she shouldn’t come home at all.  Selah’s quest will be the journey of a lifetime. But her stepmother’s schemes aren’t the only secrets hiding belowdecks…and the stakes of her voyage may be higher than any happy ending.

It’s supposed to be a retelling of The Odyssey. by Homer and other famous fairytales…

Rating: 3/5 Stars

Day 1: Chapters 1-12

I love the little extracts from actual fairytales (in French and in German…) and the hints to famous storytellers with some of the characters’ names such as ‘Grimm, Andersen, Perrault’. I like the quick and efficient writing style and there are very nice quotes. It’s set in an alternate universe close to ours but I wish there had been a map, I got a little lost.
I was actually dying from second-hand embarrassment for Selah when she got rejected. It was SO predictable. I feel like she is a little too naive or childish. I wish she would stand up a little bit more for herself but I guess that’s the whole point; to see her become braver and more confident.  Since it’s inspired by fairytales, I think her  “smother” is very sketchy and I do NOT trust her the least. She “forsaw” this…um. let me doubt that. However, the only character I immediately liked is her godmother. I also feel like there are too many characters and some don’t bring anything to the story but we will see…
I also suspect some romance with Captain Lang and I can’t wait for Selah to meet her suitors and see which princes they’re inspired by!