Welcome to Litsy!

Lord of the Flies meets The Handmaid's Tale, this powerfully gripping YA dystopian story kept me hooked from beginning to end. Tierney, a strong and brave female protagonist, fights against injustice and for what she believes. The Grace Year is a must read!

I honestly not sure what to think of this book. Dystopian can be hard to read, and this was. But it can also be eye-opening, which this was too. You have to get through the hard parts to see the good, and the change that can happen.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ A dystopian future, or perhaps present, where young women are chattel. Not exactly earth-shattering. The “Grace Year” drops 16 year girls in the wilderness vs poachers, and one another, for a weird Handmaid‘s-Hunger-Games situation. Parts were thoughtful and clever, but overall, it just seemed like none of these people were the smartest. A solid #bookclub selection; I look forward to discussing!

Getting back into my kindle and trying to minimize physical things in my house ◡̈

Starting this one in the school pick up line today 🛻 📖 ☀️

I borrowed this from a dear friend who said it was better than Hunger Games and in her top 5 books ever. My expectations were high, but sixty some pages in, it hasn‘t grabbed my attention. I don‘t love the writing (so many sentences starting the same way) nor do I feel any connection to any character. The idea of ‘female magic‘ and the ‘pull‘ they have over gross, lusty men is an interesting facet but, for me, the delivery (and cover 👎) is off.

I will admit - this is a page turner! And I loved the premise. As everyone before me has mentioned, it‘s very Lord of the Flies and Handmaids Tale (although I don‘t agree with it being compared to The Hunger Games). I just feel like it fell flat - too many characters, too many side stories, too MUCH. But it definitely made me want to keep reading, in hopes it would all come together.
⭐️: 3.25/5

I both read and listened to this book.
It was really good! It was engaging and horrible at the same time. It was a mixture of Handmaid's Tale with Lord of the Flies. This is my favorite read for this month. 4 ⭐️

#HHC #Scarathlon @dabbe
#bookspin @TheAromaofBooks #31by31 #littenlisten #spookoween #finalstretch #20in4
@Andrew65 @StayCurious @LiseWorks @TheSpineView @Catsandbooks @aperfectmjk
#bingos

Was able to put a huge dent on the tagged book. I just need a few more pages and I'm done!

#Sprint @LiseWorks
#HHC #Scarathlon #HalloweenHexesCoven
@dabbe @jessieKB @BookmarkTavern @Liatrek @JessClark78 @Chrissyreadit @TheDaysGoBy @LadyCait84 @Sresendez12 @Nessavamusic @kelli7990

Maggie‘s hottest read is “The Grace Year.” This book has everything…mean girls, incels, a brief allusion to flat-earthers (kinda). But that‘s not all…there‘s cannibalism, forbidden romance, & what‘s that over there? A teenage girl single-handedly taking down the patriarchy? Probably not, but she is sowing seeds, literally & figuratively.
Seriously, though, there are not enough stars for this one. If you are a woman, or know a woman, read it now.

Finishing this one up while I (anxiously) watch my Rangers. The wine helps, too, except I‘m battling fruit flies in my house, who apparently like Chardonnay as much as I do. So I have to drink straight from the bottle 😂🤷🏻‍♀️#MaggieDoesntShareWine

I think teenage me would have LOVED this, but grown-up me found it lacking. The first 25%-50% was slow and a bit confusing to me due to the dearth of world-building. I needed more explanation and context for the dystopian world Liggett created. I also would‘ve liked more character development. There was a lot of one-dimensionality which made the some of the “shocking” moments fall flat. All in all, Liggett had a good idea, but did not execute.3⭐️

The Grace Year is about a county where teenage girls are sent out into the wilderness for one year before they are married to break them and get rid of their “magic.” It‘s perilous and dystopian. If you are a fan of The Handmaid‘s Tale or The Hunger Games, you will probably like this book. In my opinion, it has some plot inconsistencies, but overall it was a page-turner.

These are my #LMPBC shelves/crates. There 17 books representing the 17 rounds completed since the club began. We are currently in the middle of round 18. I think I will keep it going until the top shelf is full. Then I will think of something different that I can share with my bookish friends on Litsy.

I read it in about 48 hours, I‘m hoping that there will be a sequel or a continuation of the story because it was that good and so much can be done to further the story

FYI:

#LMPBC Round17 Group H @Maggie4483 @vonnie862

@suvata has mailed a book to @BeckyWithTheGoodBooks

Enjoy!

Read in July 2023 for Litsy Markup Postal Book Club #LMPBC Round 18 - Group H (is for horror)

A speculative YA thriller in the vein of The Hunger Games, Lord of the Flies, Vox, and The Power

No one speaks of the grace year. It's forbidden.
In Garner County, girls are banished for their sixteenth year to release their magic into the wild so they can return purified and ready for marriage. But not all of them will make it home alive.

#LMPBC Round 18 - Group H
@BeckyWithTheGoodBooks @Maggie4483 @vonnie862

Any preferences?

“Look around… we are the only gods here.”

Wow. This book left me speechless. A dark, gory, and disturbing twist on Lord of the Flies/THG filled with feminist rage and power. This was written perfectly, the author never gave away too much. The mystery added to the atmosphere of the book and the big reveal at the end left my mouth gaping open. I loved it. Thanks to @KateReadsYA for sending me this gem! I love our book swaps! 5/5

Mother daughter book club pick with a little Handmaids Tale meets Lord of the Flies. Who wouldn‘t enjoy some dystopian grrl power. It falls flat though. Little feminism and a lot of trope. Started off lovin it, then I hit angry hatred, and ended with mild frustration. All that and yet I still enjoyed it, I just wish it wasn‘t so disappointing male centric.

This was just so similar to other dystopian books that I read and it didn‘t grab my interest like some others that I have enjoyed. I felt like I was reading another version of The Hunger Games.

This was just so similar to other dystopian books that I read and it didn‘t grab my interest like some others that I have enjoyed. I felt like I was reading another version of The Hunger Games.

#12Booksin2022 April I did not have many great reads, but I loved this one. So interesting. Hoping there will be a sequel.

I need a good female action dystopia right about now! (Fingers crossed) Please let this be it?!

#grace #indeliablemoments @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs

Would you rather read Dystopian or Paranormal?

My favorite favorite Genre's so depends on specific book.

The Handmaids Tale meets The Hunger Games. Interesting concept embracing the power of being a woman and the influence of the herd.

a must-read these days...enlightening ⚔

"...???? ?????? ??? ?? ?????????? ???? ??? ???'? ???? ????? ???? ?? ????????."⁣
⁣
I finally got around to reading this and absolutely loved it. I had heard only great things but I love dystopian stories and I love survival stories, so it's like The Grace Year was written just for me. It reminded me a bit of Lord of the Flies, Wilder Girls, and Shusterman's Unwind series.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book so much! I'll be honest halfway through I debated how I felt about it but that's because emotionally it had a lot of depth that I wasn't ready for. I'm never one for anything hard emotionally & this one brings it! What I got out of this book is that girls really have to do better about being there for each other because if we are not who will be? We have to uplift one another and stand tall side by side! Be united.💗.

Cheers to a good Month of Reading this May! Starting the tagged book! I'd like to eventually pick out my stacks for the month early but I'm more of a mood reader.

Wow, I just ate this book up! Something has not grabbed my interest like this one for a while. If you like dystopian, Christian cults, Lord of the Flies-like, feminist books, this one is for you. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Loved this one, it's lord of the flies meets handmaids tale, with a bit of hunger games and the crucible sprinkled in.

100% recommend

What a strange and compelling story! I couldn‘t wait to reach the end to see what happened. #BookspinBingo @TheAromaofBooks #joyousjanuary #readathon @Andrew65 #Pantone2022 #GossamerPink @Clwojick

#currentlisten Housework is more fun while #audiobooking #weekendreading #joyousjanuary #readathon @Andrew65

5/6: Horror #noshamereadathon22
This is the hardest category because I generally do not read horror, but I do like supernatural books and sometimes a gothic story, especially if the two overlap.

1. Thriller: The Grace Year
2. Gothic: Interview with the Vampire
3. Slasher: ??? Any recommendations that aren‘t too scary or that have a supernatural theme?
4. Supernatural: A Terrible Fall of Angels
#NSR22

This is equal bits Handmaid‘s Tale & The Hunger Games, with a magical twist. A part of me wishes it was less about a love story, because it diminishes the feminist theming to a degree. But for YA, it‘s fast paced, honest, sometimes quite gory. 🌺

I always thought it was magic moving through me, but now I know it to be rage.

Wow… wasn‘t expecting that! What an amazing read thank you @kamoorephoto for sending this in my #hhs package! #pageturner

The Glass Arrow is very similar to this book! https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15750874

If you don‘t want a future like The Grace Year/The Glass Arrow/The Handmaid‘s Tale/Vox/Red Clocks/Future Home of the Living God…FIGHT BACK. Think about what you need to do to stay free.
Shown: Womxn‘s March October 2, 2021, Charleston, SC

This book was like a mix of The Handmaid‘s Tale, The Hunger Games, and The Glass Arrow. A dark, dystopian future where womxn have no value…they are literally referred to as ‘Mare‘ and ‘it‘. The old belief that the best, quickest way to keep womxn under control is to marry them and get them pregnant is very much a theme. The Yellow Wallpaper comes to mind. If you want to control a womxn, break her. Sexual power is a theme here as well.

The book pyramid my husband got me for my birthday back in the summer is working very nicely in the car!

Book nerd stuff. 📖📚🔍

Lord of the Flies meets The Hunger Games ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Tierney lives in an isolated community where every year all the 16 year old girls are banished so that they can rid themselves of their magic. This is the Grace Year.

A riveting read that has wonderful descriptions making it very easy to picture. This book reminded me of A Handmaid's Tale. I'm sure that is something to do with red but also because this book is also about a world where men decide women's fates and the rebellion against it.

I liked. I didn‘t like. I thought one of the characters was overplayed otherwise I would have enjoyed it more.

It‘s a mix of The Handmaid‘s Tale and The Hunger Games. I really enjoyed this read. It also surprisingly refreshing to have a stand-alone novel in the dystopian YA genre (even if I do always love a good trilogy).

I was totally deeply invested in this book the whole time. During the day I would dream of getting back home to my night time routine in order to learn more about what‘s going on there!

“Look around […] We are the only Gods here”.