Most Anticipated YA Releases for January 2017

So I did a little looking on Goodreads and found a couple of books being released next month and I thought I'd share a few that I thought would be worth reading.

P.S. Click the book covers for a link to Goodreads.

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

This book sounds interesting and different, almost along the same concept as A Court of Thorns and Roses (which I loved) so I thought it wouldn't hurt to read.

Scarlett’s sister is kidnapped and forced to be the prize of Caraval. A game of love, heartbreak and magic. Scarlett must find her sister and prevent the consequences of Caraval before the five nights of the game are over.

Poison's Kiss by Breanna Shields

I've never seen a book about Indian folklore and I'm curious, plus this sounds like it'll be a good read.

Marinda is visha kanya, a poison maiden who's kiss is lethal. She serves the Raja by killing his enemies with only her lips as the weapon. When she receives orders to kiss Deven, a boy she knows too well to think he is capable of anything bad, she begins to wonder who she is really working for. In this fantastical and fast-paced adventure, Marinda must rebel against her fate and the people with power over her.

Words on Bathroom Walls by Julia Walton

This just genuinely sounds like it would be a good read and I enjoy reading about people who have mental illnesses.

Adam is schizophrenic and he has found a drug trial that helps him ignore his visions, finally giving him a fresh start. Everything becomes possible and he meets Maya but when the miracle drug beings to fail, he will do anything to keep his illness a secret and be the great guy she thinks he is. Will he manage to keep it from Maya or ruin everything in the process?

But Then I Came Back by Estelle Laure

So a while back, I read and reviewed another book by Estelle Laure called This Raging Light and really enjoyed it so I'm definitely looking forward to this one.

Eden wakes from a coma after surviving a near fatal accident and must reconnect to her life again. She forms an unlikely relationship with a boy named Joe who visits Jasmine, a girl also in a coma in the room next to Eden. Eden must also get through to Jasmine and save her, because she may be gone forever. Will she be brave enough to face a world she never knew was so big?

Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones

Goblins and sacrifice? Yes please.

Liesl knows about the Goblins. Their the muse of her music and the topic of her childish fancies. When her sister is kidnapped by them, and she has to go the Underground to save her but a price has to be paid for her sisters freedom. She must become the Goblin King’s Bride. As the unlikely pair get closer, they must decide what it is that they must sacrifice, Liesl’s life, her music or the end of the world.

I'm definitely looking forward to this one.

The Wood by Chelsea Bobulski

This reminds me a little of Stranger Things and I’m a sucker for mystery and creepy novels. I'm probably most excited about this novel, it just sounds so mysterious and dangerous.

After Winters father goes missing in the woods, she seeks the truth bout what happened and finds a young man travelling in the woods who seems to know something he shouldn’t. They work together to find out the truth behind the disappearance of travellers in the woods and discover that the wood is poisoned - and changing into something sinister.

   

Quote Compendium: A Court of Thorns and Roses

The following are a compilation of some of the noteworthy lines and quotes from Sarah J. Maas' novel A Court of Thorns and Roses. I loved this novel and all my thoughts can be read here.

I have the Bloomsbury paperback edition with 416 pages. Let's go and beware of spoilers, you must read this great novel before you go on.

"The forest had become a labyrinth of snow and ice."
- chapter 1, pg 1

"Once I'd dreamed and breathed and thought in colour and light and shape."
- Feyre, chapter 1, pg 3

"The world was awash in hues of dark blue, interrupted only by shafts of buttery light escaping from the shuttered windows of our dilapidated cottage. It was like striding through a living painting - a fleeting moment of stillness, the blues swiftly shifting to solid darkness."
- chapter 2, pg 9

"We need hope, or else we cannot endure."
- chapter 2, pg 19

"I'd prefer not to wear that dress."
"And why not?" Lucien crooned.
It was Tamlin who answered for me. "Because killing us is easier in pants."
- Feyre, Lucien, Tamlin, chapter 7, pg 59

Tamlin straightened a bit and said, "You look...better than before."
Was that a compliment? I could have sworn Lucien gave Tamlin an encouraging nod.
"And you hair is...clean."
- Tamlin, chapter 7, pg 60

"Has anyone ever taken care of you?" He asked quietly.
"No." I'd long since stopped feeling sorry for myself about it.
- Feyre, Tamlin, chapter 12, pg 110

"Why?"...
"Because I wouldn't want to die alone," I said, and my voice wobbled as I looked at Tamlin again, forcing myself to meet his stare. "Because I'd want someone to hold my hand until the end, and awhile after that. That's something everyone deserves, human or faerie."
- Tamlin, Feyre, chapter 17, pg 153

"Don't feel bad for one moment about doing what brings you joy."
- Tamlin, chapter 19, pg 172

"Your human joy fascinates me-the way you experience things, in your life span, so wildly and deeply and all at once, is... entrancing. I'm drawn to it, even when I know I shouldn't be, even when I try not to be."
- Tamlin, chapter 19, pg 172

"Magic-everything was magic, and it broke my heart."
- Feyre, chapter 23, pg 210

 "If I offer you the moon on a string, will you give me a kiss, too?"
- Tamlin, chapter 24, pg 215

"Do you lie awake at night to come up with all you witty replies for the following day?"
- Feyre, chapter 25, pg 222

"I was a loosened, a top whirling around and around, and I didn't know who I danced with or what they looked like, only that I had become the music and the fire and the night, and there was nothing that could slow me down."
- Feyre, chapter 25, pg 226

"I was as unburdened as a piece of dandelion fluff, and he was the wind that stirred me about the world."
- Feyre, chapter 25, pg 228

"I love you," he whispered, and kissed my brow. "Thorns and all."
- Tamlin, chapter 27, pg 248

"I came to claim the one I love."
- Feyre, chapter 34, pg 297

"There are those who seek me a lifetime but never we meet, 
And those who kiss but who trample me beneath ungrateful feet.

At times I seem to favour the clever and the fair, 
But I bless all those who are brave enough to dare.

By large, my ministrations are soft-handed and sweet,
But scorned, I become a difficult beast to defeat.

For though each of my strikes lands a powerful blow,
When  kill I do it slow..."
- Amarantha, chapter 35, pg 313

"He's playing a dangerous game, though," Lucien said, slipping out the door. "We all are."
- Lucien, chapter 39, page 353

"It took me a long time to realise that Rhysand, whether he knew it or not, had effectively kept me from shattering completely."
- Feyre, chapter 49, pg 369

"You can leave if you're going to insult me."
"But I'm so good at it."
- Feyre, Rhysand, chapter 42, pg 382

"When you healed my arm... You didn't have to bargain with me. You could have demanded every single week of the year." My brows knit together as he turned, already half-consumed by the dark. "Every single week, and I would have said yes." It wasn't entirely a question, but I needed an answer.
A half smile appeared on his sensuous lips. "I know," he said, and vanished."
- Feyre, Rhysand, chapter 43, pg  385

"As i lifted the ash dagger, something inside of me fractured so completely that there would be no hope of ever repairing it."
- Feyre, chapter 43, pg 392

"I love you," I said, and stabbed him.
- Feyre, chapter 43, pg 397

"But I gave myself again to that fire, threw myself into it, into him, and let myself burn."
- Feyre, chapter 46, pg 312

"Why?" I asked.
He knew what I meant, and shrugged. "Because when the legends get written,  I didn't want to be remembered for standing on the sidelines. I want my future offspring to know that I was there, and that I fought against her at the end, even if I couldn't do anything useful."
I blinked, this time not at the brightness of the sun.
"Because," he went on, his eyes locked with mine, "I didn't want you to fight alone. Or die alone."
- Feyre, Rhysand, chapter 46, pg 413

"Everything I love has always had a tendency to be taken from me."
- Rhysand, chapter 46, pg 414

"Be glad of your human heart, Feyre. Pity those who don't feel anything at all."
- Rhysand, chapter 46, pg 414

Enjoy!!

 
As I was writing my review, I kept drifting off into a just a gush of words about everything and I just thought it would be better to separate my ‘rant’ from my review so as not give anyone spoilers and cut down the length of my review, because if I didn’t, the year would be over once you finished reading.

An accurate description of me whilst reading this whole book:

• Let’s start with the fact that I didn’t realise how much I missed my Shadowhunters until I read this. I bought the book in New York and it’s a signed copy (so I was absolutely over the moon about that) and then I started reading and all the memories and feels from TID and TMI started flooding back and CC why are you just so amazing at making me feel all this things and make me talk in sentences that are much too long and have a bad grammar with a lot of caps and exclamation marks. 
• I can’t believe how funny the book was. Honestly, I must have laughed every chapter. Cassandra just writes humour with such ease and I love how the dialogue is so witty. Even Mark, who had lost his grip on ‘humanity’ or ‘shadowhunter ettiquette’ if you will and just made small comments that I found so funny. 
• “We're late," she said, "The show is supposed to start in ten minutes. If some people hadn't decided that 'semiformal' meant 'seminaked'-" "Why are you calling me 'some people'?" Mark inquired. "I am only one person.” Mark you are just so precious.
• Moving on, my biggest pet peeve was the communication between characters. WHY DIDN’T ANYONE TALK TO EACH OTHER? EVER!!! Everything just kept going wrong and it was so annoying because it could have been prevented if Julian and Emma just took a moment to talk, or they thought maybe it would be a good idea to just voice their thoughts. It was just so frustrating.
• Christina Rosales. What a queen. She was just such a likeable character and I felt such sympathy for her. "But I like the Hulk. I would like to heal his broken heart." What a jem (at first I unintentionally spelt it with the j and then only realised after i proof read it but oh well, it fits) She is probably my favourite female character alongside Tessa and I’ve only read one book about her. I wanna know more about her and Perfect Diego. Personally, I feel like there is something off about him but maybe he is just as perfect as everyone kept saying so who knows.
• Also, Christina and Mark!! Mark and Kieran!! i can’t decide who i want to be together more but I ship both. I really want to know more about Kieran too, like who is h3, why, what, where and how. I want more of him and Mark’s time together and what they did and just everything. 
• I guess I just really want to know more about the Faerie, particularly the Wild Hunt.
• And the scene where Christina cut Mark's hair! I just love Cassandra Clare.
• Julian Julian Julian. I'm so in love. The way he cared for his siblings and just worried about them so much was so SWOON. I just wanted to hug him better because he didn't think he was doing enough when he did more than enough. I totally love CC for making his character. He just has such a beautiful heart and I'm just so confused how can think all these feelings for fictional characters. The YA world will never know. I feel like Lady Midnight definitely has the best characters so far. All of them I just love. “I love you, Julian Blackthorn. I love you more than starlight.”  - Couldn't have said it better myself.

• And what about Emma and Julian on the beach??? I hated it. I really did. I thought it was just such a cheap excuse and rushed and against their character. I thought they were smart and mature and intelligent and knew better than to just do that when they knew someone could have seen them. Even the sand? Wouldn't it get in weird places, and Emma had just almost drowned too. Everything was just wrong and the circumstances were thrown off.
• Also what the hell is that birth control rune? I felt like Clary could have created something a lot better than I rune that prevents pregnancy. Something badass at least, rather than just convenient. I was cringing.
• OMG AND KIT IS A FREAKING HERONDALE- my heart still whimpers at the sound of the name. I’m so excited. Beyond excited actually. Ecstatic. Over the moon. Elated. I was like no no no no no yes yes yes yes yes why are my emotions conflicting all the time yes yes yes. And then when Tessa and Jem arrived, my heart may have leaped from my chest and I needed to take a two minute break to recuperate and spam my friend about my emotions. I still haven’t received from that epilogue. 
• The following is a depiction of me at during that chapter:

• Moving on, how is this forbidden parabatai thing going to turn out if they’ll die by having their marks stripped or they’ll be excommunicated. I feel like it would be too convenient for an easy way out and everything would have been a waste of time if they could just simply say a spell or something like that. I want drama and demise and something bad to happen. I’m also sooooo excited to learn about Annabel Blackthorn. Obviously she is going to appear in the sequel and I’m curious as to how it will shake things up.
• On the subject of Malcolm, there was never really a hint of this dark, determined side that made him so destructive for love in any of the other shadow hunter books and I felt like it wasn’t explored enough in the book too. There was something empty about it too, even the death of Emma’s parents. It felt careless. I hated that, I felt like Cassandra perhaps focused a little too much on everything and lost focus during the play. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely want to read about all the steamy and angsty romance but the whole purpose and drive for the plot was just ‘bleh’.
• THE ENDING - by far my favourite moment when Mark and Emma decide to do the unthinkable, but I see how it can potentially ruin the story line as it will harm so many relationships and possibly bring the novel into a bigger cliche. Everyone is so annoyed by it, am I the only one who is actually excited!! Like, right after I read it I just couldn’t stop beaming and thinking how good Lord of Shadows was gonna be.
• He held out a hand to her, half-beckoning, half-offering. "Why lie?" he said.”  I am just so excited, May, could you possibly come any quicker?

Harry Potter Spells Tag

Hey guys, today I'll be doing the HARRY POTTER SPELLS TAG. This tag was created by TrulySympathy on Youtube and I thought it'd be fun to do and who doesn't love Harry Potter?

There are 10 spells and a question associated with each. Lets do it.

1. EXPECTO PATRONUM

A childhood book connected to childhood memories.

I owned this book and I used to read it religiously. Angela Anaconda always made me laugh. It was a TV show too and I remember sitting down in front of the TV every other day, eager to watch Angela's next adventure.

Angela Anaconda is an eight year old girl with freckles all over her face and short auburn hair who leads a strange and funny life. It tells the story of her and her three best friends they survive school and situations of bad luck. Angela also rivals against a snobbish faux French girl named Nanette and manipulative teacher named Mrs. Brinks.

2. EXPELLIARMUS

A book that took you by surprise.

When I first started reading I had NO idea that it was going to be so good. I had heard good reviews but didn't realise that it was going to be the strange, mysterious and beautiful book that it is.

Ever since she was young, Blue Sargent has known that she will kill her true love with a kiss. St. Mark's Eve is when the soon-to-be-dead walk past and Blue is never able to see them until this year. She sees a boy, a Raven boy, named Gansey.
She befriends Gansey and his best friends Adam, Noah and Ronan under unlikely circumstances and together they search for the Sleeping Kings. A legend Gansey wholeheartedly believes is true. During the search, Blue will finally understand the danger of her fate and discover new truths about the world are both strange and sinister. Now she must guard her heart more strongly than before.
The characters of the book were just amazing and all loveable and Maggie Steifvater's writing style was so beautiful and refreshing to read.

I'm re-reading The Raven Boys at the moment so expect a review soon.

I was also torn between The Raven Boys and The Night Circus, so I'll put it in for good measure.

3. PRIOR INCANTATO

The last book you read.

I definitely forgot how much I missed ready J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter novel's until I finished the Cursed Child
I didn't love it but I also didn't hate it. My thoughts will appear somewhere on this blog at some point.
The book is in the form of a play, so it's quite different but still managed to be as enjoyable as the other novels.

Years after the final battle of Hogwarts, Albus Potter, Harry's youngest son finally attends Hogwarts but it isn't all chocolate frogs and quidditch games. Albus struggles with the weight of his fathers legacy and makes a big decision to do something that will fix his problem.
Fusing the past and present, Albus and his friend Scorpious embark on a journey through time where learn that darkness cannot always be escaped and can turn up in the most unexpected of places.

4. ALOHAMORA

A book that introduced you to a genre you had not considered before.

Before I read The Hunger Games, I don't even think I knew what the Dystopian genre was. The idea of an imaginary society that was different and often dehumanising was refreshing and intrigued me immensely. I've kind of grown out of the genre now and have grown tired of its recurrence in young adult novels. Nevertheless, I do still enjoy them when I come across a good one and with the Hunger Games, I wouldn't have ventured into the genre.                                                                                         

I don't think I need to explain the plot but here is a quick run down. The nation of Panem holds an annual Hunger Games in which two children from each of the 12 districts fight to the death.
When Katniss Everdeen's sister is chosen this year and she immediately volunteers in her place. Katniss must learn to survive now and go against people who have trained for this moment their whole lives. Will she outlive her death sentence?

5. RIDDIKULUS

A funny book you've read.

Cassandra Clare never fails to make me laugh, even with such a deep story like Lady Midnight. There is something about witty remarks and dry humour that often makes me laugh for five minutes straight when I'm reading CC's books.                                 
Lady Midnight is about Emma Carstairs and her investigation of her parents strange death. Along with Her Parabatai - best friend, partner in battle - Julian Blackthorn, she unravels a secret that reveals a world of death and dark magic.                                   Emma also unravels some new secrets. What has Julian been hiding from her? Why are Parabatai forbidden to fall in love? Is she ready to find out who killed her parents?                                                                                                                                         
You can read my review here.

6. SONORUS

A book you think everybody should know about.

When you can't find the right gif...

I think everybody already knows about A Court of Thorns and Roses, but nevertheless, I'd just like to reinforce the sheer amazingness of this book.

Sarah J. Maas weaves fantasy, danger and romance in this compelling and beautiful novel that is a loose retelling of Beauty and the Beast

It tells the story of nineteen year old Feyre who, after killing killing a faerie is dragged into their magical land to serve a sentence with her captor, Tamlin.

Whilst in the other world, Feyre begins to develop feeling for her captor who isn't the dark and treacherous faerie she perceived him to be. But an evil lives in the faerie world, threatening Feyre and she must find a way to stop it, before Tamlin's world is turned upside down.

I recently finished this book and it's sequel A Court of Mist and Fury, and absolutely adored it. Maas just writes with such ease and intrigue, it's a crime if you don't read this.

7. OBLIVIATE

A book or spoiler you would like to forget having read.

I read We All Looked by Tommy Wallach recently and if I could get back the time it took me, I would. I found the book boring and dragging and it wasn't that bad, but I could have been reading something that I enjoyed.

It's about four teens, Eliza, Andy, Anita and Peter who all don't hang out with each other and then under special circumstances become entwined in each others lives. They find out an asteroid is about to come down and end Earth's lives so they all decide to finally live.

It was another of those books with a great ideas but is executed poorly. Unfortunately, this book was a miss for me.

8. IMPERIO

A book you have read for school.

I had to read Briar Rose by Jane Yolen when I was in year 7 and learning about archetypal themes in literature and I actually really enjoyed it.
It's a loose retelling of the Sleeping Beauty and a compelling and mystical read.

Rebecca's grandmother has always claimed that she was Briar Rose, the princess from the fairy tale, since she can remember. After Gemma dies, Rebecca makes a promise that will begin her journey to uncover the truth about her grandmother. On that journey, she will discover pain, suffering and horror but also love and survival.

Briar Rose is also about the Holocaust, and the reader can travel through past and present to help unravel Gemma's inheritance along with Rebecca.

9. CRUCIO

A book that was painful to read.

Honestly, I was never the biggest fan of the Divergent series by Veronica Roth, and after I read Insurgent, I thought perhaps I was changing my mind, and then I read Allegiant.

I hated it the whole way through, especially the dual point of views, plot holes and overly scientific explanations. 

In the third novel, Tris' life is shattered again when she learns about the world beyond the fence. New discoveries unravel new truths that throw the balance of what she believed and changes the hearts of those she loved.

Tris must battle the people who want her dead again and this time she is faced with more impossible choices and sacrifices than before.

I didn't enjoy one moment of this whole book and it definitely was painful to read. Even that predictable ending.

10. AVADA KEDAVRA

A book that could kill.

I wasn't sure how to interpret 'a book that could kill' but I decided to go this way, with Clockwork Princess. Anyone who has read this will immediately know what I mean when I say it could kill you. I still haven't gotten over the epilogue. 

Clockwork Princess is the third and final instalment in Cassandra Clare's trilogy The Infernal Devices and follows Tessa as she is once again faced with danger, loss, love, betrayal and secrets. Mortmain plans to use his Infernal Devices, an army of pitiless automatons, to destroy the Shadowhunters. He needs only one last item to complete his plan: Tessa Gray.

But when Mortmain abducts Tessa, the boys who lay equal claim to her heart, Jem and Will, will do anything to save her. For even though Tessa and Jem are now engaged, Will is as much in love with her as ever. As those who love Tessa rally to rescue her from Mortmain’s clutches, Tessa realises that the only person who can save her is herself.  

Read my full review of Clockwork Princess here.

So that's the Harry Potter Spells Tag. What books would you answer with?

My Most Anticipated for December 2015

Here are six upcoming releases for December this year that I'm looking forward to getting my hands on along with the synopsis' and book covers.

This Raging Light by Estelle Laure

So I recently reviewed this, which you can find here, but I am looking forward for it to come out so every one else can read it too. I really enjoyed this book and I plan to buy the published copy for myself when it is released this month.

Can the best thing happen at the worst time?

Her dad went crazy. Her mom left town. She has bills to pay and a little sister to look after. Now is not the time for level-headed seventeen-year-old Lucille to fall in love. But love—messy, inconvenient love—is what she's about to experience when she falls for Digby Jones, her best friend's brother. With blazing longing that builds to a fever pitch, Estelle Laure's soulful debut will keep readers hooked and hoping until the very last page.

Hellraisers by Alexander Gordon Smith

Horror. Fantasy. Thriller. YES. I am looking forward to this new series called The Devil's Engine - and the first book is coming back this month.

There is a machine from the darkest parts of history, concealed in an impossible location, that can make any wish come true, and the only price you have to pay is your soul. Known as the Devil’s Engine, this device powers a brutal war between good and evil that will decide the fate of every living thing on Earth. When a 16-year-old asthmatic kid named Marlow Green unwittingly rescues an ass-kicking secret soldier from a demonic attack in the middle of his Staten Island neighborhood, he finds himself following her into a centuries-old conflict between a group of mysterious protectors and the legions of the Devil himself. Faced with superpowers, monsters, machine guns, and a lot worse, Marlow knows it's going to be a breathless ride—and not just because he’s lost his inhaler along the way.

Thicker Than Water by Brigid Kemmerer

A book about kids figuring murder mysteries with a twist of romance. *Clapping excitedly*

On his own

Thomas Bellweather hasn’t been in town long. Just long enough for his newlywed mother to be murdered, and for his new stepdad’s cop colleagues to decide Thomas is the primary suspect.

Not that there’s any evidence. But before Thomas got to Garretts Mill there had just been one other murder in twenty years.

The only person who believes him is Charlotte Rooker, little sister to three cops and, with her soft hands and sweet curves, straight-up dangerous to Thomas. Her best friend was the other murder vic. And she’d like a couple answers.

Answers that could get them both killed, and reveal a truth Thomas would die to keep hidden… 

Their Fractured Light by Amie Kaufman

I haven't read the first two books in this series but I'm interested in them and I am considering reading this series (and look at how gorgeous the cover is). We'll have to see, but here is the synopsis.

A year ago, Flynn Cormac and Jubilee Chase made the now infamous Avon Broadcast, calling on the galaxy to witness for their planet, and protect them from destruction. Some say Flynn’s a madman, others whisper about conspiracies. Nobody knows the truth. A year before that, Tarver Merendsen and Lilac LaRoux were rescued from a terrible shipwreck—now, they live a public life in front of the cameras, and a secret life away from the world’s gaze.

Now, in the center of the universe on the planet of Corinth, all four are about to collide with two new players, who will bring the fight against LaRoux Industries to a head. Gideon Marchant is an eighteen-year-old computer hacker—a whiz kid and an urban warrior. He’ll climb, abseil and worm his way past the best security measures to pull off onsite hacks that others don’t dare touch.

Sofia Quinn has a killer smile, and by the time you’re done noticing it, she’s got you offering up your wallet, your car, and anything else she desires. She holds LaRoux Industries responsible for the mysterious death of her father and is out for revenge at any cost.

When a LaRoux Industries security breach interrupts Gideon and Sofia’s separate attempts to infiltrate their headquarters, they’re forced to work together to escape. Each of them has their own reason for wanting to take down LaRoux Industries, and neither trusts the other. But working together might be the best chance they have to expose the secrets LRI is so desperate to hide.

What's Broken Between Us by Alexis Bass

Tragedy, secrets and romance are all what draw's me into this new release and here is the synopsis so you can understand what I mean.

A year and a half ago, Amanda Tart's brother got behind the wheel drunk and killed his best friend. Today, he's coming home from prison.

Amanda's been the one living with the fallout, made worse by her brother's recent unapologetic TV interview. People think he's a monster. Still, she loves him. It's her dark secret, until she starts getting close to Henry again--whose sister is paralyzed from the accident.

A year and a half ago, her brother destroyed his life. Now Amanda has to decide if she'll let his choice destroy hers. 

Instructions For The End of the World by Jamie Kain

I've been getting into family-oriented/self discovery books lately and this seems like another that I would be interested to read. It also has a 'survival' kind of vibe to it that I really enjoy reading about in books.

He prepared their family for every natural disaster known to man—except for the one that struck. 

When Nicole Reed’s father forces her family to move to a remote area of the Sierra Foothills, one without any modern conveniences, it's too much too handle for her mother, who abandons them in the middle of the night. Heading out to track her down, Nicole’s father leaves her in charge of taking care of the house and her younger sister, Izzy. For a while, Nicole is doing just fine running things on her own. But then the food begins to run out, the pipes crack, and forest fires start slowly inching their way closer every day. Wolf, a handsome boy from the neighboring community, offers to help her when she needs it most, but when she starts to develop feelings for him, feelings she knows she will never be allowed to act on once her father returns, she must make a decision. With her family falling apart, will she choose to continue preparing for tomorrow’s disasters, or will she take a chance and really start living for today?

The Raven Boys - Book Briefing

“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family, money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

I started reading The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater last night and I'm super excited to get into this series. The whole premise seems really interesting to me and the ratings are pretty high which must mean that it has to be good, if not great. I'm not much for the paranormal genre but after reading this synopsis, I've decided to widen my horizons. I've also wanted to read this for a while due to the hype and a few years ago, I decided to pick up Maggie's other trilogy, The Wolves of Mercy Falls, (When I had an obsession with books about hunky werewolves) but I decided not to read it due to a couple of poor reviews. Hopefully, The Raven Boys will live up to my high expectations and if I enjoy this I will most likely read Maggie's other series too.

I'll update you when I finish this and include a brief review too. Comment if you've read this or want to.