angelreads, Author at Angel Reads

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Books I Read in 2019 that Surprised Me

Feb 23, 2020

I’m normally the type of reader that knows what I’m reading. Meaning I normally don’t pick up books that I don’t know too much about, or think that I would dislike. I’ve actively been reading for some time so for the most part, I know what I like and dislike in a book. But sometimes there are books that surprise me. I don’t know how I feel going in and then I fall in love with the book, or I fall in love with a new genre. It’s a strange thing. But today I thought I would share the books that surprised me in 2019.

Appetites & Vices (The Truitts #1) by Felicia Grossman: Before last year I hadn’t read much or if any Historical Romance. It wasn’t something that really caught my eye regularly. It was something that I wanted to try and delve into but never did. And then I picked up Appetites & Vices and starting to fall in love with the genre. It just makes me so happy | Review.

Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston: This is going to sound strange on my list I know. Because I adored this book, however, most of the time I find it hard to connect with characters that are ‘famous’ in their story. I don’t know what it is exactly, but I just can’t find common ground with then. But it was totally different in Red, White & Royal Blue, and I fell in love. You can check out my discussion now.

Serpent & Dove (Serpent & Dove #1) by Shelby Mahurin: Over the last year my reading of YA fantasy really dwindled. I just couldn’t love it anymore. Everything was becoming the same and I couldn’t fall in love and stay with the story or the characters. But then I picked up Serpent & Dove and fell in love. It’s everything that I love in a book and I couldn’t put it down | Full Review.

Dragon’s Lair (Wind Dragons MC #1) by Chantal Fernando: This is another sub-genre of romance that I hadn’t really ventured into until last year. I’ve read a couple of books here and there, but nothing along the lines of this. But this was such a fun series. MC books are so interesting and I’m always so intrigued by them, anything can happen and that’s what makes them so engaging.

Secrets of a Summer Night (Wallflowers #1) by Lisa Kleypas: Even though I started to read Historical Romance by this point. I wasn’t expecting to fall in love so much with Lisa Kleypas books. They capture me in such a way that I ended up reading nearly all her books one after the other. They are seriously just so good. If you want to get into Historical Romance then start here.

Halo (Fallen Angel #1) by Ella Frank and Brooke Blaine: I wasn’t expecting to like this series as much as I did. Like I said before, famous people aren’t something that I really love reading about. But this one here was just so good. I love reading it so much. It was entertained but also heartbreaking. But so good.

And that is it for this post! What are some of the books that surprised you when reading them? Do we share any that’s the same? Let’s Chat!

In other news, I’m now offering Beta Reading Services. It’s something that I’m passionate about and have been thinking about for some time, but I finally did it.

The Last Ten Books That Tore Me Apart

Feb 18, 2020

This week I’m sharing the books that tore me apart while reading them. Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and Bookish and is hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl.

I cry quite easily while reading, it’s something that has always happened. But today I’m sharing the books that have recently torn me apart. I don’t mean a little tear here and there. I mean kick to the gut and sob crying. Like always these are in no order.

Great And Precious Things by Rebecca Yarros: Rebecca Yarros knows how to tear me into a million different pieces. I’m not lying here when I say I’ve nearly cried in every book I’ve read of hers. She knows how to hit me right in the guy. My review for this one will be up in the next week, but can I just say I adored it, but was I a baby.

The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling by Wai Chim: I just finished this the other day and damn did it break me. But it was also powerful, beautiful and really good. It’s hard to read at times, I’m not going to lie, but it explores mental illness in families and what happens it breaks that bond | #LoveOzYA

The Last Time We Say Goodbye by Cynthia Hand: If you want to cry like a baby then this book is for you. I put off reading this one for such a long time because I knew that it was going to tear me apart. But I still wasn’t prepared for it all. I was a mess after finishing it, but it was also so beautiful.

The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros: What did I say about Rebecca Yarros tearing me to pieces. I think this one is one of the most emotional books that I have ever read. It literally hurt me to read it, but it’s also so fantastic.

Letters to the Lost (Letters to the Lost #1) by Brigid Kemmerer: This is another author that knows how to make me cry and this one here was the worse. There is so much hurt in this book. But it’s done so well that you just fall right into the trap. Kemmerer knows how to write honest characters and this really shone throughout the book.

The Love That I Have by James Moloney: Anything set in World War II is always bound to make me cry. I don’t know that it is really, but this one tore me apart. Plus that ending! There is so much power in this book and it really gets to the reader – well it did to me.

Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys: I have only read this book once and I don’t think I could do it again. This book left me a less, it tore me to pieces and I mean pieces. But it is also so beautiful and perfect and just what I am looking for. It’s one of my favourite books of all time.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller: I think you all know how I feel about this one here. It’s one of my favourite books of all time. It’s beautiful and heartbreaking and just so perfect. I knew what was going to happen the whole time. I knew it. But that didn’t stop me from sobbing like a baby.

All the Rage by Courtney Summers: Anything by Country Summers tears out my heart. And this one really does do that. It’s a hard book to read and I’m not going to lie it’s not for everyone. It’s also such a powerful and important read. And I think you should definitely try.

Queen of Air and Darkness (The Dark Artifices #3) by Cassandra Clare: There is no surprise that Cassandra Clare made this list. Queen of Air and Darkness absolutely killed me. There is so much at stake, so many things could have gone wrong or happen. I had no idea where it was going to go.

And that is it! What are the books that tore you apart? Do we share anything that is the same? Let’s Chat!

Book Review: Scarred by Drew Elyse

Feb 16, 2020

Scarred (Sailor’s Grave #3) by Drew Elyse

Pages: 228
Publish date: October 8th, 2019
Publisher: –
ASIN: B07YW9H7H3
Purchase: Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU

TRAUMA HAS A WAY OF LEAVING ITS MARK.

It took years to do it, but I can finally look in a mirror and see more than just the scars. If only that were true for the rest of the world.

The whispers, the stares, the pity, they’re familiar now. Except his eyes don’t linger, his demeanor never changes. Maybe that’s why I trust him and take the leap to move in with a virtual stranger. A stranger who might be more scarred than I am.

YET NOT ALL SCARS ARE LEFT ON THE SURFACE.

The day I got a spot at Sailor’s Grave Tattoo Parlor, I had everything. A roof over my head, an honest living, a few friends. The times when I went without no longer factored.

Until she comes into my life. Until I offer her a place to stay. Until she draws me in with that blinding light inside her, and almost makes me forget to keep the past in the dark where it belongs.

Scarred:

I received an e-arc of this book in exchange for a review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts and feelings about the book.

This review should have been up months ago and I mean months. But life likes to change a lot. Anyway, I thought it was time to share my thoughts on the last book in this trio. I’ve really enjoyed the series so far, so I was really looking forward to falling more into this world, and Scarred didn’t disappoint me.

Scarred by Drew Elyse follows Parker and Gwen as they find each other and try and overcome the many hurdles in both of their lives. Parker, we’ve met before. He has been working in Sailor’s Grave Tattoo Parlor for a little while now, but he has always been in the shadows, while Gwen is new to us readers. When Parker goes to the animal shelter that Gwen works at sparks fly, throw in that Parker is giving Gwen a tattoo, things are heating up. And then he offers his spare room to Gwen and the rest is history. But they both have demons, and sometimes those are hard to leave.

Sindy Strife

Parker was seriously such a great male protagonist. I was already intrigued by him from previous books, so it was really great being inside his head in this one. Parker has had a lot of things going on in his life and the reader doesn’t know the start of it, but as the novel goes on and Gwen gets to know him, so do we. His demons not only take over the way that he thinks about life but the way that he thinks about himself. And that was really hard to read at times. Parker’s character arc was fantastic, the reader is really able to see him grow throughout the novel and really come to understand him.

Gwen was also a fantastic protagonist. She was fierce and strong and I just loved getting to know her. She had something about her that just made me connect with her straight away. It was fantastic. Like Parker, Gwen has a lot of demons and it was great seeing her break this down and fight them. I loved seeing Gwen grow throughout Scarred. I loved seeing her become this strong, independent woman who truly starts to understand and know herself. Gwen was so easy to get along with and it made reading the novel so much easier.

The romance in Scarred was so good. I adored Parker and Gwen together so much. While at the start Gwen and Parker seem quite different from one another as the novel goes on, the reader gets to see that they are pretty perfect for one another. They just seem to fit. Parker is able to break Parker down and gets him to talk about his feeling and about this past. While Parker is able to help Gwen realise that she is okay. They were just so great for one another.

Andrew Neel

There was a lot going on in Scarred, but everything worked together so nicely. It wasn’t really any outside things that wreaked havoc, but more of the internal between Parker and Gwen. Sometimes it’s nice not having so many things happening in a novel where everything goes to shit. It was “nice” seeing it was just human mistakes. Or more human guilt and hurt.

Scarred rounds up the Sailors Grave trilogy and can I just say I loved this series so much. It was emotional as hell, but it was also so beautiful. Marked and Inked were both such good reads and I loved getting to know everyone in the parlor. We also got to see some old faces from Drew Elyse’s previous series and that just made everything more perfect.

Genesis Marasigan Castillo

Overall, I loved reading Scarred by Drew Elyse. It was emotional and beautiful all at the same time. Parker and Gwen were fantastic protagonists that really took me on the ride with them. They caught my heart and didn’t let go. I was cheering for them the whole way. Scarred explores what it means to be a family and be loved. But also letting go of your past, because sometimes it’s holding you back. If you are looking for some emotional books, that will also put a smile on your face, pick this series up for sure.