August Wrap-Up

Perfect (Pretty Little Liars 4)- Sara Shepard
Vicious- VE Schwab
Replica- Lauren Oliver DNF
Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock- Matthew Quick
F*ck Love- Tarryn Fisher
Adnan's Story- Rabia Chaudry

I would love to lie to everyone and say that since there are only a few days left in the month that I will try and sneak in a few more books before it ends, but we all know that's not true. I've just been so busy working, and in such a big slump that I had to "force" myself to even pick up the few books I did this month. I think September will be a little better reading wise because my work schedule is more set and isn't as all over the place. I believe I have every weekend off in September so that constant might help me get out of this slump. Not only am I in a reading slump, but I'm in a reviewing slump too. Every time I open my laptop to write a review I get about two sentences in and just don't feel up to it anymore. I have so many books to review, and I don't think I have more than a paragraph written for a single one. Which, when you write for a book blog isn't a good thing. I'm letting this messy funk last the right of the month and then September will be all about shaking it off! The only other thing that really happened this month is that I did my first ever buddy read with Sandra from a Gotathingforthings!  It was so much fun! Like I said in my review for Vicious, getting a chance to read this with someone that is geographically so far away from me was so amazing! It made the experience that much better!

Go click the link and watch her video review, because it is so good! She basically takes the words right out of my mouth. Even though she is team Eli and I am team Victor lol.

Favorites: Vicious by VE Schwab. Yep, that was my only 10 star (5 star) read for all of August.  Kind of have a love hate when this happens. "This" being when I only love one book the entire month. Think it shows how much the book really stood out against the others. Vicious is about two college friend who find out that under the right circumstances that you can acquire extraordinary powers. This book was so dark and had so much depth to it. I think the two things I like best about it is that first, it had this feel where the whole time I could imagine it being a movie. So much so that I actually did a whole post where I dreamcasted it. Second that the book has such a heavy grey area about which guy is right and which guy is wrong in their beliefs. Both were right and both could easily be wrong. I didn't have a single complaint about this novel.

Middle: If you follow me you know I've never done a "middle" before, but I'm only doing it this time because I'm kind of in a pickle. On goodreads I gave F*ck Love by Tarryn Fisher and Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick the same 3 star rating, but the issue is I don't feel the same about them. Hopefully that makes sense. I actually really enjoyed reading FL but by the end I was just ready for it to be over. I was left feeling like something was missing. When it came to FMLP I had the opposite issue. I didn't enjoy reading it at all, but gave it the rating it got because the message behind the store is so strong and was presented so well. I think if I would have read it in middle or high school I would have appreciated it more.

Fails: Replica by Lauren Oliver. I was so bored reading this book. If you haven't heard about this book it actually really unique. You can either read it one way, or flip it over and read it that way, or alternate chapters. I decided to alternate chapters. Then I started feeling like reading this book became too much work and I think it ended up taking away from my reading experience. So half way through each side I just gave up. Also felt like it was a story that I've read far too many times before.

That's it. That's all I read in the month of August. If by some freak chance I finish anything else before the end of the month I just slap it only Septembers list.

Currently Reading: And I Darken by Kiersten White.
September TBR: Harley Quinn's Little Black Book issue 5 (?), Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler, Empire of Storms by Sarah J Maas, Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen, Y: The Last Man Volumes 2 & 3, Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo, and Gold by KA Linde (might do Off the Record instead). Ambition TBR I know, especially since my reading has been so slow. That and since EOS is like a billion pages long I might not even be able to get to everything. I know for sure I'll be doing EOS and Crooked Kingdoms.

-Angela

Q&A Pt2

Recently I asked my friends on Goodreads to send me questions they would like me to answer. So, here's a new and updated Question and Answer post. Some of the questions I got were the same as last time but oddly some of the answers might have changed. I love doing these and plan to do more as time goes on.

If your whole life were written in a book, would you want to read the ending? (aka get life spoilers?)
No! I hate spoilers! I get so enraged when someone spoils a book (or movie for me). Special place in Hell for people who spoil books for others.

If you had to introduce any male fictional character to your family who would it be and why?
Daemon Black, my family is very supportive of my alien obsession.

Favorite color?
Grey

Most Over-hyped/Under-Hyped book? 
Over hyped-We Were Liars by E Lockhart and Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire
Under hyped- Fractured Skies Series by Theresa Kay, Under Different Stars by Amy Bartol, and The Devil's Intern by Donna Hosie

Favorite Fandom show:
Teen Wolf or Mistfits


If your house was on fire and you could only save one book what would it be?
Tell me you didn't see this coming? UGLY LOVE! I would basically try to save any Colleen Hoover book. 

Book store or online?
Online. Sadly, our stores don't have the best selection.

Favorite author: 
Colleen Hoover, Christina Lauren, and Sarah J. Maas

Favorite Disney Princess:
I actually love this question. Mulan and Merida.

What was your dream job growing up?
I was a really interesting child. The first job I ever wanted was to be the Easter bunny. Then I wanted to be a taxi driver. Then I wanted to be a Nun for the longest time because of the movie Sister Act. Finally, and even up to this day, I want to be the person who writes the one-liners at the bottom of movie posters.  

Favorite book as a child?
Harry Potter... I know it's really cliché but I don't care. I remember going to those amazing book fairs and buying so much Harry Potter.


Celebrity Crush?
Girl crush is Lily Collins and guy crush is Nick Bateman. (just saying his name gets me weak in the knees)

Natural Hair Color?
Black 

How many tattoos do you have? What are they/Are they all book related?
I have 10. Only one is book related. I have my dad's signature on my foot. A rose with my mother name on my knee. I have an hourglass on my thigh that says I will rise from the ashes in Latin. I have a bird on my other thigh. I have stars on my lower stomach. I have a treble clef tattoo on my arm. A compass rose on one arm. I have the word Ignite on my arm from T Mafi's Ignite. I have remember to live in Latin on my upper shoulder. And I have my whole back done with a Indian.

Who are you favorite fictional book boyfriends/girlfriend/and OTP?
Angela: My favorite fictional guy is still Warner. My favorite fictional lady crushes are Celaena, Cassie, and Ringer. My favorite OTP changes all the time but currently it's probably Celaena and Rowan. Oh and Ridge and Sydney from Maybe Someday will always be one.

Favorite fictional universe?
Wizarding World

Favorite book friendship?
Juliette and Kenji from Shatter Me

If you could only read one book the rest of your life what would it be?
Ugly Love or Maybe Someday... Basically anything CoHo

What book has altered your on life?
I have two. A House in the Sky by Amanda Lindhot and It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover.

Favorite TV show?
I have a lot. Here are some: Misfits, Friday Night Lights, Lost, Survivor, and Seinfeld.

Where do you work?
I work at a salon

Fictional Book Boyfriend Pt. 18 Vicious Edition

I recently read Vicious by VE Schwab... and I'm kind of obsessed with the idea of this becoming a movie. So, instead of doing my typical FBB post I decided to mix it up and dream-cast my choices for Vicious if it were to ever become a movie. 
My top choice will be listed first (left).

Victor Vale

Jamie Campbell Bower or Tom Felton

Eli Evers

 

Bill Skarsgard or Dane Dehaan

Angie Knight

Annalise Basso or Emma Stone 

Sydney Clarke

Talitha Bateman

Serena Clarke

Dove Cameron or Cara Delevingne

Mitch Turner

Kellan Lutz

Vicious by VE Schwab

Victor was throw into prison ten years ago. Now he has broken out of prison and is determined to catch up to his old friend, now foe( Eli), aided by a young girl with an unbelievable gift.

“Be lost. Give up. Give In. in the end It would be better to surrender before you begin. be lost. Be lost And then you will not care if you are ever found.”

I've  heard all over Goodreads about how amazing VE Schwab is. How everything she writes is amazing. With the hype came me putting off reading this book. So, when Sandra picked this book out for us to buddy read I was happy that I would finally get around to it. Vicious follows Victor and Eli who were best friends and college roommates. When it comes time for their college thesis assignment starts the two of them begin working on the idea that under the right circumstances you could give a person extraordinary abilities. The two decide to take their theories a step further, and goes from idea to an experiment gone wrong. Ten years later Victor breaks out of prison determined to find Eli again, but when they meet again they will be meeting as enemies. Victor and Eli are some of my all time favorite male characters. Getting characters that are as dark, morally grey, and layered as these two is hard to find. They are complete anti-heroes. It's amazing how they can both be the hero and villain of the story, and that Schwab easily wrote them so. Victor and Eli character wise have the same relationship as Professor X and Magneto in Xmen. Eli is this smooth talking, genius, with the killer smile. While Victor is more of the odd ball loner. Them being two polar opposites perfectly sets them up to be enemies. Each of them brings so much to the table. Victor and Eli felt very real. That's because each of  them had their own opinions about right and wrong. They both had this odd way of hating each other while admiring each other. This making them not only some of my favorite characters, but help build how complex and unique they both were. when it came to side characters, they were also flawless. There's one character I wont talk about. I know it wont be a spoiler if I did, but I honestly rather leave them out just in case. However the other two are Sydney and Mitch. Mitch is one of those characters you know you'll like right away, but still know he'll take some warming up to. His character is slowly revealed and as his traits are given to us, you'll fall in love with him. Plus all this quirky aspects didn't hurt. Sydney was my favorite character in the book. I loved how she was both an innocent and kind of evil at the same time. She's cute, funny, and her back story is amazing.

When it came to the plot-line for Vicious I just couldn't get enough of it. The opening scene of this book will without a doubt pull you in. It's one of the best opening scenes I've read, and perfectly sets the dark tone of the novel. From then on the novel bounces back and forth between past, present, and then even hourly. The first part of the novel breaks down how the two meet how their experiment became, and how to two turned enemies. I loved how deep and dark Schwab took the start of this story. Every little detail is perfectly planted. I couldn't get over why a certain person got the powers they did. It's perfection. The last half of the book is where all the set up, and add ons start revealing themselves. All this leading up to the epic conclusion of an ending.  You know eventually the two will come face to face and when it happens you wont be let-down, because in the end...

Vicious was the perfect summer buddy read. I died when I heard there will be a second book, because that ending. Also re-died when I heard this has been opted for a movie. The entire time I was reading this I could see it playing out so perfectly on film.

10/10 Stars
-Angela

I buddy read this book with Sandra. This is the first time her and I have done a buddy read together, and so happy to say it wont be the last. She is a booktuber/review from Norway!  She puts out amazing and hilarious videos on her channel, gotathingforthings, so check it out! We had so much fun reading and talking about this book together. I just wanted to comment on how great it is having this bookish friendship, and how reading this novel with her made reading it even better. Being able to talk to someone and have a connection with something as simple as reading is something I'm so thankful for.

9 Books I'm Embarrassed To Carry in Public

I love reading New Adult books! I love it! However, when it comes to reading NA I am faced with one big problem... reading in public. "Reading in public?! Why would you have trouble reading in public?", because sometimes the covers... well, the covers can be a little bit much. I personally don't have a problem with it, but being hardcore stared at while sitting in the park because there is a half naked dude on the cover can be very distracted while read.  I figured I would make a list of the top ten book covers I (physically) own that I am too "embarrassed" to read in public. These are in no particular order.

 

                   

       

Manwhore by Katy Evans

Mudvein by Tarryn Fisher

Fallen Too Far by Abbi Glines

Bad for You by Abbi Glines 

The Deal by Elle Kennedy

The Mistake by Elle Kennedy

Beautiful Bastard by Christina Lauren

Cam Girl by Leah Raeder (Elliot Wake)

Addicted to You by Krista & Becca Ritchie

Hope yall saw that this was meant to be a funny comical post and that it made you smile. Please never be too embarrassed to read ANYTHING in public. More than likely the person judging you doesn't even read, so they have no point to judge.

I also think that soon I'm going to do a post about the embarssing things I have on my kindle... because yall will die seeing what weird things are on there.

Angela

Zenith by Lindsey Cummings & Sasha Alsberg

"Most know Androma Racella as the Bloody Baroness: a powerful mercenary whose reign of terror stretches across the Mirabel Galaxy. To those aboard her fearsome glass starship the Maurader, she’s just Andi, their captain and protector.

When a routine mission goes awry, the all-girl crew’s resilience is tested as they find themselves in a most unfamiliar place: at the mercy of a sadistic bounty hunter connected to Andi’s past and a harrowing betrayal." -Goodreads synopsis

There's something I need to say first before putting my review for Zenith out into the world... I've read a ton of reviews where people were bashing this book because one of the authors is a Youtube book reviewer.  I want everyone to know that I never once took that into account when reading or reviewing this book. I actually really enjoy Sasha's reviews, and I loved The Murder Complex by Lindsey Cummings, so when it came to reading this book I put everything aside and just went into it like I would any other. Now on to the review.

I think that I'm going to write this review a little different than others, because I find myself struggling to do a review in my usual fashion. Since this book is closer to a novella/short story, and will be released in parts, I think it's harder to write a bulk review. This is just going to be a list of what I found to be pros and cons for Zenith.

-The world is very different from anything else out there right now. It's interesting and for the most part fascinating. However, I found it lacking depth. This could change as the series continues, but as far as this first part went it was lacking that gripping factor.
-The synopsis of the book will pull you in, but the story doesn't back it up. The synopsis made this book sound so interesting and intense but the story itself was confusing.
-It's said to be around 62 pages, but it's more like 40.
-The world itself might be interesting sounding, but lacked information. They tried to fit so much into such a small space, yet managed to be so vague about everything.
- The writing style was just a con for me. It felt like two different authors were writing it. It was lacking flow.
-The story lacked polish. Felt like Zenith was just list of names.
-The Blood Baroness aka the most notorious criminals in all of Mirabel... well wasn't very intimidating. She was just kind of all talk. Yeah, she killed a lot of people, but I was never scared.
-The plot-line is a bit recycled and feels like many things I've read before.
-I do have a feeling this story could become very likeable with time and a little more effort. (Not saying the authors didn't put their heart into this, I just think they have more to offer, and hopefully with time this will show)
-A lot of the sentences and writing were just.... Awkward. (I don't know if that's the word I'm really looking for, but it's the one I'm going to use.) I found myself asking myself "What??" far too often.

“Breck shrugged. ‘Any money is good money, if it brings us more food stores.’

‘And ammo,’ Gilly said, cracking her knuckles like the soldier she was.
 Andi inclined her head at Lira.
‘Thoughts?’

‘We will see where the stars lead us,’ Lira answered. 

Andi nodded."

-There are a lot of mentioned but unanswered things about the plot... Talks of a war, but nothing about: who started it, who is involved, why it happened, etc. There's aliens? Well maybe. There's someone with green blood and someone with blue skin.
-Feel I was handed all these new worlds, races, species, and social systems and then basically told "here... now figure it out yourself".

        “Marauder and her crew could lose a tail as fast as a Xen Pterran Darowak could fly.” ...

 Ummm what the heck is a Xen Pterran Darowak?!?! Again, just fancy names were expected to just know. I get the authors don't want to give everything away right away, but you have to give us something!

-A big pro for me was diversity. Zenith is oozing with diversity.
-There's too much description without the descriptions.
-Andi being compared to Celaena Sardothien... Okay yall; lets not do this. Andi isn't AT ALL like my girl Ce. Even though Celaena a hired assassin I still feel like there is actual motivation behind her killings. There are reasons she does the things she does. Andi is killing people just for the Hell of it. She's a villain who they are trying paint as something "good". These two characters, though both killers, are nothing alike. POINT BLANK.
-A possible interesting "ship" in the works???? I think the authors have a possible love interest brewing and I dig it! Think it might be a spoiler if I say who between, but I did enjoy the love hate aspect of it.
-The ending will definitely having you wanting to read the next one... BUT I just don't know if its enough to get me to.

I think Sasha is just getting her footing into the writing world, and that Lindsey is doing the same when it comes to learning to CO-writer. Though my rating is low for this story, I strongly believe that these two can find a balance and make this series work in the future. Maybe when the series is full released I'll be more motivated to go back to it.

1/10 Stars
-Angela

Runes by Ednah Walters

"Seventeen-year-old Raine Cooper has enough on her plate dealing with her father’s disappearance, her mother’s erratic behavior and the possibility of her boyfriend relocating. The last thing she needs is Torin St. James—a mysterious new neighbor with a wicked smile and uncanny way of reading her." -Goodreads synopsis
This book has been popping up everywhere... Booktube, UK list, and was even recommended to me several times on Goodreads. However, I'm a little confused as to why this book has so much growing hype surrounding it. I have a lot of issues with Runes. This is a Frankenstein's monster version of Twilight, Lux, and The Mortal Instruments (very heavy on the Twilight). It's this freak creation that shouldn't have been brought to life.This review is going to be messy and unorganized, but I don't feel like putting that much effort into it. Here are some of my issues with this book...

Raine is a very unlikable character. She's suppose to be this reversed, athletic, bookworm, but everything she does contradict this. She's actually this vapid, controlling, irritating, shallow, and annoying shell of a human being with priorities that are so F'ed up. She's was also constantly using her best friend/boyfriend Eirik to make Torin jealous. She would throw herself on her boyfriend-make out with him- then look to make sure Torin saw it. That just shows what kind of person she really is! BARF!

So yeah, as you might have guessed, there is an awful mess of a love triangle going on. Raine the "good girl" would make out with one of them than walk away with the other!! LIKE WTF! Raine treats Eirik like trash, and uses him as a back burner boyfriend in case her and Torin don't end up being a thing. She is a flawed character! A MC being so flawed can make or break a story, and Raine's flaws broke it. My biggest issue with her however is this... You know how in Twilight Bella knows something is up with the Cullens, and starts to look into it and do research, and quickly figures out what is up... Well Raine isn't like that, she can't put two and two together! For someone who is sooooo book smart you think she would of I don't know PICKED UP A BOOK!! On to the guys. Eirik is a sweet boy, but that's where his qualities ends. He is naive, and basically walks around like a lost puppy dog. Torin, the mysterious bad boy with- the wicked grin, wicked eyes, wicked body, wicked hair, wicked wicked wicked. You know all the things Edward does in Twilight that are creepy yet somehow alluring, well Torin has those qualities too, but the author just decides to let them be creepy. She doesn't even try to make them appealing!

Oh and before I get to the plot I just wanna mention how NASTY her best friend is... making videos about the sexy boys in town and calling herself  "a male aficionado" or some BS like that! This happens in the first ten pages or so. I should have known then to put it down, but I keep trying to give this book a shot.

Okay, the plot... wow the plot is all over the place. I think when an author is writing they have to make you believe the unbelievable. This one massive crazy impossible idea is placed, than everything after it has to build up and make you believe that even though you know it can't be true that it still feels real... If that makes sense. Walters failed to make me believe. The ideas and events are so far out there! You can't just info dump, not give anything to back it up, and thinking covering it up with insta love will fix the problem! Let me give you an example that I think wont really ruin the story for you... So around the middle of this story Raine's friends take her to a nightclub (even thought they're underage they still somehow manage to get in- "guess Eirik took care of everything before we came"), then once in the nightclub the whole school manages to be there for a surprise birthday party for Raine. This is where things start really getting out there for me... there's a town blackout which turns into a giant club riot... yeah people start going insane!!! Fighting and trampling- the whole nine yards! One girl get trampled and Eirik "protect her" with his body, but still ends up in a comma or something. I just don't see things going down like this. One time I was shopping in Harris Teeter and the power went out because of a storm, and since the doors are the automatic kind we were all basically stuck in there till the power came back on. While I was there no one started rioting and freaking out. Everyone basically hung out for thirty minutes and chilled. No one started rioting, grabbing canned goods, and throwing flat screens through the glass Jumanji style. So I found it so hard to believe that things escalated that quickly and in that manor. This isn't a World War Z end of the world kind of event, it's just a power outage. I just... I just can't, and this is just one of the many unbelievable acts that happen.

Everything I dislike reading in Ya books is what made up Runes. I didn't like the characters, I couldn't stand the plot, the romance was lacking everything, and I'm just glad I didn't waste any money on purchasing this. I would say instead of picking up Runes to just re-read Twilight.

1/10 Stars 
-Angela 

July Wrap-Up

Pines- Blake Crouch
The Force of Gravity- Kelly Stevenson
Runes- Ednah Waters
Zenith- Sasha Alsberg and Lindsey Cummings
Saga Volume 6- Brian K. Vaughn
My Kind of Crazy (ARC)- Robin Reul
Pretty Little Liars 1- Sara Shepard
Flawless- Sara Shepard
When Joss Met Matt (ARC)- Ellie Cahill
Milk and Honey- Rupi Kaur
A Feast of Crows (audio book)- George RR Martin
A Dance with Dragons (audio book- George RR Martin
Every Day (re-read)- David Levithan

How odd is it typing August instead of July!?!? It's insane! The year is almost over, and I feel like it just started. I wish I had more reviews posted for the books I read this month on my actual blog and not just goodreads. I swear they're coming soon! I'm still just adjusting to reading, working a new job, blogging, and trying to figure out how to fit everything in. Recently I thought it would be a good idea to go from posting twice a week (Tuesdays and Saturdays) to posting once a week... I think this might have been a bad call on my part. So, good news is I will be going back to doing two post a week starting August first. There have also been some other very present changes. Clearly the change in my blogs name! If you also haven't noticed the blog went from two writers to just one. Starting this month I'm officially reviewing solo! This is a huge change for me since I've never done blogging alone. I'm excited to see where this new venture takes me. With that big change came the idea to "reinvent" the good ole blog and when one reinvents they must rename. So I guess this is me officially announcing the new name of my blog! Between the Sheets and Covers (clearly right! lol). Hope you think it's as witty as I do!

With all that out of the way; lets get onto what I read in July. I feel like I did a lot better in the month of July than I did in June. When it came to reading this month I matched up books with TV shows. I did both Pines and PLL and watched the shows that matched them. I only watched season one of Wayward Pines before calling it quits, but as of last night I finished season 6 of PLL. It's so oddly addicting! I didn't even want to watch it, but I couldn't seem to stop! Along with watching a ton of netflix I managed to squeeze in two GIANT books thanks to be stuck in massive traffic jams on the way home from work. Every day while driving home I listened to the books in the Game of Thrones series hoping that I can catch up to the TV show. So far it's looking real good.

Favorites:  The Force of Gravity and A Dance with Dragons. Wish this list was longer, but what can ya do. The Force of Gravity was just oh so entertaining! I had so much fun reading this forbidden student teacher romance, feeding off the build-up, and fan casting it in my head the whole time. It was fun, it was lightly smutty, and it was such a perfect summer read. Lastly A Dance with Dragons... God, I just love this series so much! I think this book might just be my favorite so far. If you're wondering if the show follows it well, it really does. Everything about this series has me just dying when I get to the end of a one. George RR Martin always finds a way to leave me wanting more.

Fails: I hate when my fails list is longer than my favorite. Sigh. Runes, Zenith, and My Kind of Crazy. Runes is a book I have seen popping up everywhere, and it's a series I know is big in the UK. However, I have no clue what the hype is surrounding this book! It was so cheesy! and not the good kind of cheese either! Rolled my eyes none stop while reading this. Zenith is another book with a lot of buzz right now, but again one that I'm confused as to why?! It was just 40 pages of unanswered questions, and talk of a strong badass female lead, but the entire book had no pay off. Even though I didn't give My Kind of Crazy one star, for some reason I just felt that I had to put on this list. The snyopsis of this book is gold, but the story itself was bronze. It sounded so funny and comical with a bit of interesting love. However with a great start but a lack luster ending I find myself adding it to the fails list.

What's to come in August:
Planning on kicking my butt in gear and getting out this reading funk. I decided to do the August of pages challenge on Instagram. There's a different topic each day and you post a picture related to it. I'm also starting my buddy read with Sandra! I'm so excited to be doing this with her. With her living in Norway and me in the United States it's really given this buddy read a little something extra.

my tbr for August: What Light by Jay Asher, Twenty Boy Summer by, Sarah Ockler, Seven Days of You by Cecilia Vinesse, Vicious by VE Schwab, and Illumiane by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman. I'm also going to try and mix in at least three graphic novels. Jay Asher is going to fall under my one male author per month challenge too.

-Angela