My Most Anticipated Books of 2018

What's this?

Am I actually writing a blog post again?

It's a shock I know but hey, I'm planning on properly doing this now. I've realised that if I'm gonna do this, I need to do it properly. So I'll finally be writing non-review posts regularly as well as talking about non-book things occasionally.

And what better thing to start myself off with then by talking about the books I'm most excited about next year? I'm going to try and focus on standalone novels or the starts of new series rather than sequels.

Oh and the release dates I'll be posting will be the ones from Amazon UK due to that being from when I can get my hands on them! Thought I'd do a favour for my fellow British readers~

ARC: Everless by Sara Holland

So I've been a little absent...again. I think I might have to start blogging about other things as well as books if I want to be writing on this a little more regularly. We'll see. I have a few book posts I'd like to write that aren't reviews and I'm going to the London Comic Con this Saturday so I might write a roundup after.

We'll see.

But for now I bring you a review of an amazing debut novel that is coming out January next year and that's Everless by Sara Holland. Due to technical issues, I don't have a picture but I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Everless is a YA fantasy that focuses on Jules, a girl who winds up returning to work for the family she and her Father had run away from years ago so her Father wouldn't trade the rest of his life to pay the bills. Time is currency in this world and though that sounds a little like the film In Time, this book is nothing like it. I will add the film is still good though!

ARC: My Side of the Diamond by Sally Gardner

This book took it's time getting here but unfortunately there were shipping problems merp. It happens though and all it means is that review is being posted after the book has already been published. That's not exactly a problem, is it?

Anyway, I received my copy of My Side of the Diamond through ReadersFirst. This is a really short and easy to read YA book by Sally Gardner and it's one that looks absolutely gorgeous. The book has a soft cover and can be closed with a convenient strap which gives it the feel of a notebook. Why you ask? Because notebooks are important to the characters...you see this book focuses on Jazmin, a girl whose writer best friend disappeared after falling off a tower with a boy. The story goes back to when the girls first grew close when Jazmin and Becky talked about Becky's stories.

ARC: Ringer by Lauren Oliver

Replica was a book that I'd been meaning to read since it had come out but hadn't gotten around to. So when I saw that Ringer was on offer and how good the plots looked, I knew I had to finally read this duology. So I requested Ringer, grabbed Replica from the library and got started on this series!

Oh and I should say that my copy of Ringer was provided to me by Book Bridgr in return for an honest review.

Ringer is set a few months after Replica with both Lyra and Gemma having to get used to how their lives have changed. When Gemma overhears something she goes to warn Lyra to get out but the other girl was already leaving to follow after Caelum. Both of these stories are a lot more action-packed than the first book and they can be read either one after the other or in alternating chapters.

ARC: The Crow Garden by Alison Littlewood

So The Crow Garden isn't a book that I'd usually pick up. The plot looked interesting but I don't very often read historical or horror fiction. But this time I thought, why not, I need to read more out of my comfort zone and I requested it from Book Bridgr. I was very lucky to actually receive a copy of this gorgeous book and it's one I'm glad I picked up even if I realised that the writing maybe isn't to my style.

The Crow Garden focuses on a Doctor Nathaniel Kerner, a young man who has recently left Oxford and is now settling into his new life as a doctor within a Yorkshire asylum. There he meets an interesting woman, one whose husband is desperate to get her home sane, and in his desire to fix her due to his own growing interest, he winds up opening the doors to mesmerism and something strange.

ARC: Shadowblack by Sebastien De Castell

You might remember that a few months back I received a copy of Spellslinger by Sebastian De Castell through Readers First. It was my first physical ARC and I thoroughly enjoyed it. A couple of weeks back Readers First put Shadowblack up to request and I had enough points to claim it. I was super excited about getting the chance to read it and now I'm so glad that I did. Shadowblack was even better than Spellslinger and you won't regret picking it up.

Shadowblack is set a few months after Spellslinger and starts with Kellen and Reichis getting in trouble in the borderlands. As they travel they run into another Argosi wanderer named Rosie and her charge, a seemingly blind girl called Seneira. Kellen and the gang wind up joining the other two on their journey to the borderlands capital and there they stumbled onto a dangerous plot.

Rain by Amanda Sun

Oh man, that was so good. I'm going to have to share some quotes in this review and write a different style of review than I usually would.

Rain was the second book in the Paper Gods trilogy and it was just as thrilling as the first. There were some issues with...well...white girl being important within a Japanese mythos. The way it happened does make sense but it still makes me go meh a little.

ARC: Invictus by Ryan Graudin

So, long time no post! Oops. I've been sort of absent from a lot of things but I'm back with a new ARC from NetGalley. This time I've read the time travel epic Invictus by Ryan Graudin.

Invictus is a book that I've been looking forward to for a little while now. Time travelling thieves? Sign me up! Unfortunately, the blurb didn't really summarise the story all that well for me. I'll admit, the book got better the closer to the end it got but it still wasn't what I'd hoped for.

ARC: Fireblood by Elly Blake

Oh man, I literally had to make myself sleep before I wrote this review after garbling something for GoodReads because otherwise, I'd just be rambling incoherently about how much I loved this book. I was lucky enough to get a copy of this book through NetGalley.

Fireblood is the second book in Elly Blake's Frostblood trilogy and takes place a few months after the end of the first book. Ruby is struggling to fit in with the Frost Court and with visions from the Minax haunting her, everything seems to be going wrong. Arcus is the only light of her life but she feels like she's causing him trouble. When a stranger from Sudesia turns up and invites her to come back with him, Ruby agrees in the hope of learning to master her magic and to find a way to defeat the Frost Minax. Kai and the other Firebloods don't out to be what she expect though and she has to battle both her own emotions and the Queen to figure things out.

ARC: The Diabolic - S J Kincaid

The Diabolic by S J Kincaid is a book that I've wanted for a while now but haven't been able to get my hands on. So you can imagine how excited I was when I saw it on NetGalley. Unfortunately for me, I got it at a busy time so I found myself unable to focus sometimes but that didn't take away from how great this book was.

This is a YA sci-fi book about a genetically engineered girl called Nemesis who was made to protect her owner, Sidonia. Only Sidonia becomes a close friend, one who when is targeted, Nemesis us happy to pretend to be to keep her safe from the Emperor's imprisonment.

ARC: There's Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins

So this is the second book I got recently from Netgalley. There's Someone Inside Your House is by Stephanie Perkins and described as a Scream type plot, it's one of the most widely anticipated books this autumn/winter.

I feel like I should start this review by saying I'm a huge fan of slasher films. I don't think they're scary, far from it, but they have something intriguing about them. So the first time I heard about this book I knew that I had to read it. Unfortunately the book didn't turn out to be what I'd hoped.

ARC: Jenny Sparrow Knows The Future by Melissa Pimentel

Okay, I may have faded into obscurity for a little while but I've either been busy or distracted and I apologise for that. However, I went on a little bit of a NetGalley request binge so I'll have a few good reviews coming up for Y'all.

To start us up is a very funny chick-lit novel published by Penguin Books which I was very pleased to receive. Jenny Sparrow Knows the Future is by Melissa Pimentel, an American living in the UK who has written a book which is the perfect blend of British and American chick-lit. I'm someone who has been reading chick-lit for many years and I love both British and American chick-lit and how each feels so when I come across another that would fit in both markets, it kind of makes me feel all warm inside.

ARC: The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli

Title: The Last Namsara
Author: Kristen Ciccarelli
Publisher: Gollancz
Genre: YA Fantasy
Page Count: 442  (according to GoodReads)
Release Date: 5th October 2017

I got a copy of this book through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

It's been a while since I reviewed an ARC and even longer since I reviewed an e-book ARC so I was very excited to start this book. However, I've also been in a bit of a book slump so I've been giving up on a lot of books and I've been slow when it comes to reading others. You wanna know how long this book took me to read? 2 days. Yep, I got through this book so quickly and easily so this is definitely a good book to get you out of a slump.

'Pimp Your Bio' - #Pitchwars 2017

So this year is my first year of doing Pitch Wars and since a few people seem to be doing this and mentors may or may not take a look... I thought it wouldn't hurt to give this a try.

The Book Blogger Slump and How To Get Out of It

My Attempt At Taking a Picture of An Old Book

I've not been posting much recently, I know. I've not been reading as much and the books I have been reading I haven't wanted to do proper book reviews for. And there is a reason for this. You see, I'm having a bit of a book blogger slump. I know what you're all thinking, you're thinking I mean a reading slump but...not so much. There are books I want to read but the problem is there are too many and I'm not getting ARCs, winning giveaways and I certainly don't have the money for new books.

Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

Stalking Jack the Ripper is a book that I've been wanting to read for a long while. I've spoken to Kerri Maniscalco a few times on Twitter and knowing she was so nice just made me need it even more. The thing is that when it comes to historical novels or stories about serial killers...I'm really picky. If something is wrong I will point it out and it might be why I don't enjoy a huge amount of either.

This novel, however, had mostly good so let's talk about it, shall we!

What We Want In Fantasy and How We're Writing It

Ahhh fantasy, a favourite genre for many including me but one that can be a little predictable. We all love reading stories about the chosen one, about the rebel going out and saving the day. We want those stories but we also want more than that and fortunately, we are starting to get a little more variety.

An example of an amazing YA fantasy

Because of this, I thought I'd write a little something about what I'd like to see more of and how I've included that in my own novel ;). Ah I know, shameless self-promotion but considering I'm still in the editing process, I thought this could be a way to show how authors can be doing these things and to see what readers actually want in YA fantasy specifically.

ARC: The Waking Land by Callie Bates

I received a free copy of this from BookBridgr in return for an honest review.

Isn't the UK cover of this book gorgeous? I really truly adore it and I just wanted to say that before I got into the actual review.

So The Waking Land is Callie Bate's debut novel. It's labelled as YA but I'm more inclined to see it as NA. There is a slightly steamy scene of the more adult variety in the book but as it's not that detailed, it can possibly get away with being YA. Maybe.

Frostblood by Elly Blake

I've pretty much been wanting to read Frostblood since I caught sight of it in Waterstones and immediately brought it. But it waited until my current to read pile and then I placed it near to the bottom due to the size. After speaking to Elly Blake in a chat about the next book I needed to read it even more and I'm so glad I finally have. Oh boy, I'm glad.

Waiting on Wednesday: The Last Magician and Roar

So a challenge I'm taking part in requires you to post a Waiting on Wednesday post about said book and since I've been thinking about doing more challenges anyway... I decided to include another book that comes out sooner that I need and make this a weekly thing if I can.

Buddy Read: Conditional Love by Cathy Bramley

Hello, I'm Rosina and this is a buddy read review! This weekend my lovely friend from deesteasandbooks on Instagram read Conditional Love by Cathy Bramley. 

Hey, I'm Dee.

Okay so my comments will be normal and Dee's shall be italic!

ARC: Song of the Current by Sarah Tolcser

I received an ARC of this book through Bloomsbury and GoodReads giveaways in return for an honest review.

Song of the Current is the YA fantasy debut of Sarah Tolcser. It focuses on Caro, a girl who has spent her whole life waiting for the god of the river to speak to her. When her Pa is arrested she agrees to take on a mission in return for her Pa's release but it turns out the neither the package or the mission is as simple as it should be.

Armchair Book Expo: In Search Of...

Oh god, this is the last post for the Armchair Book Expo and I thought the post on diversity was hard. Well, it was, but this is in a different way. Today I'm talking about what books I'm in search of and my first thought was what the hell am I supposed to talk about?

Armchair Book Expo: Diversity In Fiction

Today's blog post is talking about diversity in books. Now as a white, straight (mostly) cis woman, I'm not exactly the type of diversity people want writing out there anymore. And if I'm honest, that's fair enough. We're always going to have white authors out there writing about white, straight characters and it just gets a little boring. This year I've noticed that there seems to be a stream of diverse books coming out by people about their own cultures or about others cultures and this is really exciting.

A really great YA contemporary about fandom and two boys in love

Armchair Book Expo: What Do Readers Want?

Ahhh, it's time for day 2 of the Armchair Book Expo and I still wish I was at the real thing. However, today was the book birthday of a book I really wanted and I've managed to grab that so being at home isn't all bad.

Being at home has also allowed me to add an actual follower widget that I didn't have before. Ooops. But thanks to the lovely Erica pointing how to do it, you can actually follow my blog properly now and you don't have to follow by email. Though you can do that too if you want. Just how much do you love me ;).

All of this is besides the point though and the point is what the hell do you readers want?!

Hey look, some of my WIP ;)

BEA Armchair Expo 2017 Introduction

Hello!

My name is Rosina and I'm from the not-so-glorious UK. I've been reading my entire life but have only recently gotten into book blogging.

It's me with an owl!

So, of course, I couldn't afford to go to the US to attend a convention. Actually, if I did do that it would be for the San-Diego Comic Con. I'd apologise for that but I'm really not sorry! What I am sorry for is that I wrote this quickly and on mobile due to me being super busy today so please excuse any mistakes in my grammar.

Flame in the Mist by Renee Ahdieh

Flame in the Mist is the new masterpiece by Renee Ahdieh and just like with The Wrath and the Dawn she smashed it. This book is marketed as a Mulan retelling set in feudal Japan but I'm telling you now that the plot and characters are completely different which is great because as much as I love Mulan, it means you're getting a story with a distinctly Japanese feel.

ARC: Mindstomer by A.J Steiger

I received this book from Rock the Boat through a GoodReads giveaway and Rock the Boat books in return for an honest review. This was the first book I've won from a GoodReads giveaway and I adored the first book in this series so I was super excited

So Mindstormer is the sequel to Mindwalker, a book that came out around two years ago now. It continues the story of Lain Fisher as she fights against the IFEN and the type system implemented in URA or the United Republic of America 

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Well, now Six of Crows is a ride of a book, one you don't have to be a fan of the original Grisha trilogy to enjoy. Because yeah, I really don't like them. Six of Crows is a novel the first novel in a duology and it has a lot going on in it.

ARC: Curious Minds by Janet Evanovich and Phoef and Sutton

I received a free copy of this from BookBridgr in return for an honest review.

Okay so technically this book has been out for a while but with book 2 coming out soon, readers are getting a chance to read this one for free. The second I saw Janet Evanovich's name and read the plot, I knew I had to read this and I was so pleased to get it that I read it as quickly as possible.

Hunted by Meagan Spooner

Hunted is a book I've wanted since it came out but wasn't certain about due to my experience with the first novel in Meagan Spooner's solo trilogy before this. Fortunately, the dullness that permeated Skylark was long gone in Hunted and instead you're left with a beautiful...well...everything.

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Well now...why did I wait this long to read this book again? Caraval is a thrilling ride of fantasy and beautiful description and it's just...words escape me but I'll try my best to write something almost as beautiful.

On Writers, Social Media and Ahhhh What The Heck Am I Doing?!

I recently had a conversation with a friend of mine, a published author whose book isn't selling so great and not because of a lack of talent. He's a great guy and we actually met on social media but when I asked him about social media recently, he hadn't thought about it outside of Tumblr and that got me thinking...

ARC: Alice: The Wanderland Chronicles by J.M Sullivan

I received a free copy of this from NetGalley in return for an honest review. Alice: The Wanderland Chronicles is a fast paced read that I read in a single setting. It's basically Alice in Wonderland meets the Blood of Eden trilogy only without vampires and it's so good. More so than you might first expect.

ARC: Spellslinger by Sebastien De Castell

So first of all, I received a copy of this book from ReadersFirst who essentially offer books as part of giveaways or allow you to earn points to claim a free copy of a book. They're for residents of the UK only but all you have to do to earn points and enter giveaways is read and review a preview of the books of your choice. It's super awesome and Spellslinger was actually the first book I requested so I'm really happy I won a copy

The Girl In A Steel Corset by Kady Cross

The Girl In The Steel Corset by Kady Cross is a book that I've been wanting to read for a while now so it was super lucky that I found the edition with the prequel novella in a charity shop. I was so happy and grabbed it up immediately but it's sadly taken until now for me to actually read it.

The Good Girlfriend's Guide To Getting Even by Anna Bell

I initially decided to use this blog to only review any ARCs I've received but I've decided to use it to talk about both my novel and any books I read in general. So starting from today this blog will be a whole not more active!

Amazon

The Good Girlfriend's Guide to Getting Even is the latest chick-lit novel by Anna Bell and is immensely enjoyable. The story follows Lexi Hunter, a sporting widow who decides that she needs to get revenge on her long-time boyfriend Will for lying about why he couldn't go to her best friend's wedding with her, all so he could attend a football match. Then, as part of a writing assignment, she turns her revenge into a blog.

Dawn Study Review

I received a free copy of this from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Protagonist/s: 5/5
Love Interest/s: 5/5
World Building: 5/5
Plot: 5/5

Overall score 20/20 which is 5 stars.

So I should probably start by saying that I'm a huge fan of Maria V Snyder and have been waiting for this book since I finished Night Study last year. So the second I had the chance to read an ARC of this book I was right on it. If you've loved the rest of the Chronicles of Ixia so far then you'll be happy with this book as it's a perfect ending for these characters.

As usual the world building was spectacular, the villains made you wonder what was going on and of course, there were funny moments and some really sad moments but at no moment do you feel the text is stagnant. The only thing is the ending which is still good but without spoiling things...the last sentence just leaves you feeling there should be more. That was my only issue in the entire book though so it's easily ignored.

If you've not started this series before now then get to it because when this book is out it needs a place on your bookshelf and let me be one of many people to say that I'm excited what Maria V Snyder does next.

Welcome to Lace and Dagger Books

This blog was created for me to share reviews about books I've read.

It's still blank for now but expect everything sorted as well as connections with Twitter, Tumblr and Goodreads soon.