My Favorite Book Romances

Hi guys. As it'll be Valentine's Day soon, today I thought I would share with you my favorite literary romances. Now I don't read lots of romance books as a rule but I do enjoy romance in my books when it's really well done. So, no insta-love for me please, just no! 

Since I'm focusing on the love aspect of the book and the couples featuring in it, I won't be going too much in details about the plot. You can find out more about the books though by clicking on the book titles, which will take you to each book's Goodreads page. Also, this post is absolutely spoiler-free.

Eleanor and Park 

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These characters are from the book by the same name by Rainbow Rowell. Eleanor is plump, has unruly curly red hair and wears horribly mismatched clothes and due to a little bit of all those things, she's a popular target for school bullies. Park is a half-Asian kid who's trying to play it cool by coming to school dressed mostly in black and likes to keep to himself on the school bus, his headphones on. These two couldn't be more different and yet, after discovering a shared love for comics and music, they slowly become friends. As the story unfolds, this unlikely friendship eventually grows into the sincerest of young loves. If you love YA novels and are tired of popular tropes and clichés, do yourself a favor and pick up this book. It's unique and simply beautiful. 

Percy and Annabeth 

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This couple appears in two series (so far) by Rick Riordan, including the Percy Jackson and The Olympians series and the Heroes of Olympus series. In the beginning of the first series, Percy and Annabeth are around 12 and we get but the slightest of hints that something could happen between these two one day. Then, as the books progress, we see their relationship go from a great friendship to a really sweet romance. What I love about their relationship is that while they care a lot for each other, they always value and trust each other's strengths. Percy knows his girl can take care of herself. Likewise, while Annabeth and Percy are strong enough on their own, they also operate really well as a pair, as can be seen in the various action scenes throughout the books. They respect each other's capabilities as much as they love each other and that is something we need to see more among YA couples. Totally giving you the side-eye Edward...

Cath and Levi

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It seems that Rainbow Rowell really gets young love! Cath and Levi appear in her much beloved book, Fangirl. Cath has just started uni and being super shy, she's having a hard time navigating her new environment. Eventually though, she starts to meet new people and one of them is Levi. I feel that to tell you more about their relationship would spoil the book a little for you so I'm just going to suggest you check out Fangirl and see what I mean for yourself. Their story is very down to earth and super relatable. In fact, when I first read the book, I was surprised by how down to earth is was. Rowell doesn't sugar coat their romance at all. And yet, despite that, it does shine out as one of the sweetest book romances I've ever read. 

Tiger Lily and Peter Pan

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Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair... Aw, I love this line <3 

Here I'm actually talking about the characters from the Peter Pan retelling by Jodi Lynn Anderson called Tiger Lily, so calm down Wendy purists XD In Tiger Lily, we're offered a completely different take on the original Peter Pan story. Tiger Lily is the daughter of her tribe's shaman. She's an accomplished hunter and considered as being very different even by the other tribe members. Peter Pan is known among them as one of the most dangerous beings in Neverland. And yet, one day, as Tiger Lily's and Peter's paths cross, what ensues is a really poignant romance as it is very rarely depicted in YA fiction. After finishing the book, all I wanted to do was read it all over again because it was simply beautiful. If you want to know more about the actual plot and my thoughts about the book, check out my non-spoilery review of Tiger Lily here. 

So those were some of my favorite book romances. What book romance makes you swoon? Let me know in the comment ^^

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Cover art by Of Stacks and Cups via Pagemodo

Graphic Novel Recommendations

Hi guys. Today I'm here to recommend some graphic novels and comics to you. Whether you're new to the genre or you're simply looking for a new comic or graphic novel to pick up, I hope you'll find this post useful. 

This post is divided into two parts to make it easier for you to browse these titles. The first part looks at series of graphic novels and comics, both completed and ongoing and the second part looks at stand alone graphic novels.

Graphic Novel and Comic Book Series

Saga

Status - Ongoing comic series

Writer(s) - Brian K. Vaughan

Artist(s) - Fiona Staples

Alana and Marko are runaway soldiers from opposite sides of a huge ongoing galactic war. After falling in love and becoming parents to a child born of the two warring races, they find themselves prey to military forces and ruthless mercenaries alike. Mixing fantasy and science fiction in a space opera as sexy as it is action packed, this series is my go-to graphic novel recommendation for new and old fans of the genre.  

Locke and Key

Status - Completed graphic novel series

Writer(s) - Joe Hill

Artist(s) - Gabriel Rodriguez

After their father’s murder, the Locke siblings move with their mother to Keyhouse, an old mansion that has belonged to their family for years. Soon after they move in, Bode, the youngest of the family, accidentally uncovers a door that gives him strange abilities. As Bode and siblings begin to truly explore their new home, they begin to uncover strange keys which lead to secret doors hidden all over the house, each one with a unique magic of its own. Unbeknown to them though, aside from its magical secrets, Keyhouse is also home to an ancient malignant being. This series was written by Joe Hill, who is none other than Stephen King’s son and seems to share his father’s gift for crafting beautiful but dark stories. This series is a must for fans of horror novels and is a personal favorite of mine. It does contain some gore though so you might keep that in mind should you check it out.

Fables

Status - Completed comic series

Writer(s) - Bill Willingham

Artist(s) - Various

Forced into exile after a powerful enemy takes over their lands, fairy tale creatures from various stories and myths come seek shelter in our world. Now, in modern day New York, their secret society has grown into a private community of their own which they call Fabletown. A reformed Big Bad Wolf is their sheriff while Snow White is their ever efficient deputy mayor. All seems to be going well until Snow’s wild child sister, Rose Red, is reported as murdered. The suspects? Rose’s notoriously psycho ex-lover Bluebeard and her current boyfriend, Jack, made famous for his beanstalk climbing antics. With its sharp humor, cool intrigue, plot twists and the occasional unexpected death, Fables is right now my favorite comic series. While it starts as a mere murder mystery sprinkled with humor and fairy tale elements, the series quickly escalate into a phenomenon of sheer epicness that will make you keep turning the pages.

Alex + Ada

Status - Completed graphic novel series

Writer(s) - Johnathan Luna

Artist(s) - Sarah Vaughn

In a near future, where humans have developed artificially intelligent androids, a new and somewhat controversial type of android has been release on the market, the X5. These high-priced robots are made to look like normal people and are equipped with a huge database of intelligence which gives them the ability to act almost human. Because of this, these androids have been adopted by rich people for companionship purposes. Our main character, Alex, one day receives an unexpected gift for his birthday from his wealthy grandmother. Alex opens the box and to his shock, finds within a female X5 android ready to be switched on and activated. What he chooses to do next changes his life forever. This is one of the best comics I've ever read. The artwork is rather simplistic but beautiful at the same time and works perfectly with the brilliant character development and gripping story. Trust me, you don’t even have to be a sci-fi fan to enjoy this one.

Stand Alone Graphic Novels

In Real Life

Status - Stand Alone graphic novel

Writer(s) - Cory Doctorow

Artist(s) - Jen Wang

Anda has newly joined Coarsegold Online, a massively-multiplayer role-playing game, where she goes on virtual missions and adventures through her in-game persona, a powerful redheaded warrior. Things take a complicated turn when Anda come across a gold farmer, one of the strange, silent avatars who seem to be illegally collecting valuables intended to be sold to other players. When the avatar talks to her, Anda is intrigued and immediately wants to know more about the avatar, and the person who controls it. The avatar turns out to belong to a poor Chinese boy who is paid to conduct these illegal in-game dealings. There are many others like him and while what they are doing is illegal, it's also pretty much the only thing that keeps them safe and fed. Anda thus comes to question what's morally right or wrong and embarks on her own real life mission to strive to be the hero who's only so far been real in her imagination.

Anya's Ghost

Status - Stand Alone graphic novel

Writer(s) - Vera Brosgol

Artist(s) - Vera Brosgol

After Anya falls at the bottom of a well, she makes the unexpected acquaintance of a ghost. The two become friends and soon, Anya’s ghost is accompanying her everywhere, helping her navigate school halls and giving her tips to make her more popular. After a while though, Anya begins to realize that being haunted isn’t as fun as she originally thought… Spooky at times, deeply touching at others, this isn’t quite a ghost story but rather a coming of age story with its fair share of ghostly elements. It’s definitely not a horror though and is one I’d recommend to everyone. 

So those were my graphic novel and comic book recommendations. If you have recommendations for me based on the titles I've included here, do share them with me in the comments ^^

Mini Reviews - My January Wrap-Up

Hi guys! Today I'll be reviewing 3 of the books I read last month. So in January I read 23 books. Yep, 23 books! January was definitely a great reading month for me because I ended up reading a bunch of different stuff. To see all the books I read and the rating I gave each one of them, feel free to check out my Goodreads shelf by clicking here ^^

And now let's start with the reviews...

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

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Genre: YA Fantasy 

My Rating: 4 stars

The Plot: Celaena Sardothien, one of the kingdom's best trained assassins, is taken out of the salt mines where she had been enslaved following her capture by the king's men, in order to participate in a secret competition organized by the king. The end game? If she is able to defeat the other contestants, she will have to serve as the king's personal assassin for a few years after which she will be granted her freedom. With this contest as Celaena's last shot at freedom, she accepts the challenge...


My Review: This book was such a fun ride! I was pleasantly surprised by how complex the plot ran and really enjoyed the writing. Celaena was such as awesome main character, too. I love how she was both kick-butt while retaining a softer side to her personality along with a unique sense of humor. Celaena was strong but she was also a realistic character with her set of fears and desires. The romance in this book also felt fresh as compared to other YA books and that's because it actually builds up over the course of the entire book rather than pop up as soon as Celaena meets the male leads. I already have the other books and will probably be finishing them up throughout February!

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Genre: YA, Retelling 

My Rating: 5 stars

The Plot: Tiger Lily is the daughter of her tribe's shaman. She's an accomplished hunter and is seen as being very different and strange by the other tribe members. Peter Pan is known among them as one of the most dangerous beings in Neverland. And yet, one day, as Tiger Lily's and Peter's paths cross, despite everything Tiger Lily thinks she knows about Peter, she lets him slowly drag her into his world. Before Wendy, there was Tiger Lily and her story is as beautiful as it is tragic.

My Review: The prose was very beautiful and world building was simply on point, making it very easy to envision this book’s version of Neverland and the things that were happening there. The pacing of the story was also very well done. Despite the book being on the short side, at no point did I feel like the story was rushed. In fact, everything unfolded at a nice pace, resulting in a very unique and well developed ending. And speaking of the book’s ending, regardless of whether you’ve read the original material or not, I can assure you that the ending isn't predictable at all. Character-wise, the author did a fantastic job portraying Peter Pan and Tiger Lily. They were unique enough to stand apart from any cliché associated with their characters in popular culture and had distinct and complex personalities. I also really enjoyed the character of Tinker Bell. She’s the narrator of this story, which I think was a really nice idea. She’s a sort of silent observer, not participating herself in the story, but seeing and remembering all of it anyway. While I was not expecting to love this book so much, it ended up completely blowing me away and I can definitely see myself re-reading it soon.

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Genre: YA Fantasy 

My Rating: 4 stars

The Plot: Four friends, called the raven boys for the emblem of the academy they all attend, are hunting for ley lines. These are magical energy spots, said to make strange and mystical things happen where they exist. It is also said that if you follow the ley lines, they’ll lead you to the resting place of an ancient sleeping knight. Whoever is able to find him and wake him from his slumber, will be then granted a magical favor. As the hunt becomes even more complex, the raven boys cross the path of Blue, the daughter of a local psychic, who also takes an interest in the boys’ quest. But Blue and the boys are not the only ones searching for the ley lines and soon, their hunt begins to take a darker and more dangerous turn that any of them could have anticipated.

My Review: Wow, I hadn’t thought I would end up enjoying this book as much as I did! I loved all the characters. All of them! The titular Raven boys were all so cool, each with a well-fleshed out and complex personality of his own, and with one of the best friendships I’ve read in YA so far. Our main female character, Blue, was also pretty unique and was a refreshing take on a YA female lead. I loved Stiefvater’s writing. It flowed so well and was very descriptive. The world building was nice and we got to visit some pretty cool, mystical places. The story moved at a really nice pace and each chapter came with a fresh load of twists and surprises that made it very hard for me to put the book down! I love how this book’s main story was pretty much resolved within this book itself. Overall, this was a really well written book with a fresh and unique plot and fantastic character dynamics. I definitely recommend it!

So those were my reviews for some of the books I read in January. What were your favorite books of last month? Let me know in the comments :)

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