Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. This week's topic is: Books to Read by the Pool (a.k.a. my summer TBR pile!) 1. Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn: This is a book that has been on my TBR shortlist forever. I love thrillers and horror novels at any time of the year, but there's just something about a chilling page-turner book in the summer. I loved Flynn's other novel, Dark Places, so I have nothing but high hopes for this one. 2. Rebel of the Sands (Rebel of the Sands #1) by Alwyn Hamilton: I actually started reading this one while I was in Mexico back in April, but stopped reading when I came home and then my library hold expired. Time to pick it up again, and hopefully continue on with the series. 3. Hollow City (Miss Peregrine #2) by Ransom Riggs: Another young adult series which I started but never continued reading. With the release of the fourth book looming, I've been seeing lots about this series again and I want to pick it back up. 4. Stillhouse Lake by Rachel Caine: This thriller takes place near a remote lake in the Midwestern United States. I can't think of a better place to read it than by the lake or pool here in my own province. I've heard many good things about this series, especially from the Litsy community, so again my expectations are high. 5. Into the Drowning Deep (Rolling in the Deep #1) by Mira Grant: For years, I have been on the hunt for a genuinely scary mermaid novel. Mira Grant is well-known for her zombie series, so I have a pretty good feeling that this might hit the spot. Marketed uniquely as a mythological thriller, I am looking forward to what this has in store. 6. The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert: This is on my summer TBR for no reason other than the fact that it has been on my radar (and Audible queue) for far too long. Learning about the potential demise of our species might not be everyone's idea of great summer fun, but this blog's title didn't come from nowhere! 7. Gun Love by Jennifer Clement: I preordered this one back at the beginning of the year, and it was one of my most-anticipated book releases of 2018. I am drawn to books written from childrens' perspectives, and especially those about violence and other adult subjects. 8. Almost Love by Louise O'Neill: I have read two other books by Louise O'Neill - Asking For It and Only Ever Yours. Both tackled contemporary issues from a feminist standpoint. In Almost Love, she tackles an abusive, emotionally-controlling relationship from the perspective of a teenage girl. I have so far been impressed with how O'Neill handles tough issues, so I have high hopes. 9. IT by Stephen King: I've tried to read this book so many times that I've stopped keeping score. It's time to finally sit down and finish it, no matter how the length intimidates me! I have both the audiobook and paperback versions on standby, so no excuses can be made. 10. The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline: This one has been on my radar since it was part of Canada Reads back in the winter. I would like to read more Indigenous Canadian literature, and this dystopian tale seems extremely fascinating.
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Can't Wait Wednesday is hosted by Wishful Endings. Every week, we post about upcoming releases that we can't wait to get our hands on! This week, I'm featuring The Summer Wives by Beatriz Williams. I've never read a book written by this author before, but the synopsis of this book reminds me of The Boston Girl, one of my favorite novels of all time. I haven't yet found a book that can match the way I felt when I read The Boston Girl; I am hoping that The Summer Wives might just do that while also introducing me to a new (to me) historical fiction author. New York Times bestselling author Beatriz Williams brings us the blockbuster novel of the season—a spellbinding novel of romance, murder, class, power, and dark secrets set in the 1950s and ’60s among the rarified world of a resort island in the Long Island Sound . . . In the summer of 1951, Miranda Schuyler arrives on elite, secretive Winthrop Island in Long Island Sound as a naive eighteen year old, still reeling from the loss of her father in the Second World War. Although a graduate of the exclusive Foxcroft Academy in Virginia, Miranda has always lived on the margins of high society. When her beautiful mother marries Hugh Fisher, whose summer house on Winthrop overlooks the famous lighthouse, Miranda is catapulted into a heady new world of pedigrees and cocktails, status and swimming pools. Isobel Fisher, Miranda’s new stepsister—all long legs and world-weary bravado, engaged to a wealthy Island scion—is eager to draw Miranda into the arcane customs of Winthrop society. But beneath the Island’s patrician surface, there are really two clans--the summer families with their steadfast ways and quiet obsessions, and the working class of Portuguese fishermen and domestic workers who earn their living on the water and in the laundries of the summer houses. Uneasy among Isobel’s privileged friends, Miranda finds herself drawn to Joseph helps his father in the lobster boat, but in the autumn he returns to Brown University, where he’s determined to make something of himself. Since childhood, Joseph has enjoyed an intense, complex friendship with Isobel Fisher, and has a catastrophe that will shatter Winthrop’s hard-won tranquility and banish Miranda from the Island for nearly two decades. Now, in the summer of 1969, Miranda returns at last, as a renowned Shakespearean actress hiding a terrible heartbreak. On its surface, the Island remains the same--determined to keep the outside world from its shores, fiercely loyal to those who belong. But the formerly powerful Fisher family is a shadow of itself, and Joseph Vargas has recently escaped the prison where he was incarcerated for the murder of Miranda’s stepfather eighteen years earlier. What’s more, Miranda herself is no longer a naive teenager, and she begins a fierce, inexorable quest for justice to the man she once loved . . . even if it means uncovering every last one of the secrets that bind together the families of Winthrop Island. WWW Wednesdays is hosted at Taking on a World of Words. I participated in this feature way back when it was hosted by MizB and I was blogging on my old Blogger site. I was so excited to see that it's still around! What are you currently reading? I just recently started reading two young adult books. On my tablet, I am reading Thunderhead, which is the sequel to Scythe and the second book in the Arc of a Scythe trilogy. It's too early to have a true opinion on this one, but I loved Scythe so I have high expectations. This morning, I also started listening to Sky In The Deep, a Nordic-inspired YA fantasy debut which was on many bloggers' most anticipated lists for the year. What did you recently finish reading? I finished listening to the audio version of White American Youth earlier this week. The subject matter made it a very challenging read, but also an important one. Reading about Christian Picciolini's experiences in the white supremacy movement, and his journey to advocacy and acceptance, was a chilling and fascinating experience. What are you going to read next? I have a few Hoopla and Libby holds waiting for me. In particular, I'm hoping to get to The Once and Future World, The Witch Doesn't Burn in this One, and Archie (vol. #5) this week. Ambitious, I know! Next up on Audible is most likely Legendary (Caraval #2). Title: Scythe (Arc of a Scythe #1) Released: November 22, 2016 Average Rating: 4.35/5 My rating: 5/5 Dates Read: May 11 - June 9, 2018 Synopsis (from Goodreads): Thou shalt kill. A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control. Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own. My review: I read this book after hearing many, many amazing things about it on Instagram and YouTube. I'm not usually a YA reader, but I read some series from the same author as a teen and enjoyed his style at the time. After reading the synopsis for this book, I knew I wanted to read it. I love any book that challenges the limits of society and technology. This book is very Black Mirror-esque. In this world, technology has advanced to the point of eliminating death and illness. To control the population, specially trained individuals called scythes must glean lives. The idea of mortality falling into the hands of flawed humans is a unique, fascinating one. Needless to say, there are several perspectives regarding how death should be decided - who should die, and how? I enjoyed seeing the evolution of the two main characters, Rowan and Citra, and watching them adapt to the perspectives of their mentor scythes. As for the plot, there were several twists and turns to keep me reading through all 435 pages. I was able to predict some of the major "surprises" pretty far in advance, but that didn't stop me from enjoying every moment. Between the excellent character development and exciting plot, this book easily finds its place on my "all time favorites" list . The second book in the trilogy, Thunderhead, is already queued up on my tablet! |
About MeHi there, and thank you for stumbling across my little corner of the book blogging world! I'm Kendra, a special education teacher living in Alberta, Canada. I read mostly thrillers, horror, investigative nonfiction, true crime, and YA. The more dreadful, the better! Currently ReadingArchivesCategories |
Photo used under Creative Commons from Bodomi