🤯 It finally came out! Can't wait to read it! 😻

I'm calling this my favorite read of 2019. I love a book with interwoven narratives, a sense of deep history, and references to mythology and folklore. This had all that plus adventure, intrigue, and romance. The ending was a good fit, but I still want more. Please?

My recent book haul! Someone stop me...

Loved how the layers of this mystery (mysteries) kept slowly unwinding until, finally, the whole story was revealed. The story was complicated and painful and very human. All the characters were well drawn and the setting itself was a major presence. Can't wait to catch up with Darren Mathews in the next book in the series!

Listened to this on audiobook as read by NEIL GAIMAN himself! The different voices he used for all the characters added an extra layer of humor. As a straightforward retelling of established myths there wasn't much room for originality. Possibly best appreciated by those with little familiarity with the original tales.
⭐⭐⭐

I love stories based in mythology, and a novel based on Mayan mythology was a fascinating change. Very few of the sharp edges of the source material were softened and plenty of gruesome details remain. The ending, though not at all pat, was satisfying. In short, I loved it! Did not want to return it to the library when done. 🙁
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Book Haul! Today I got not only Favorite Folktales from Around the World, but also the just published first novel of a friend from my MFA program. Floxx is a YA fantasy about an Alaskan teenager who crash lands in another world. Can't wait to read!

I enjoyed this fresh take on a good old fashioned fairy story, particularly the unique portrayal of the fae and their relationship to mortals. I would have liked a bit more fleshing out of the romance, though. In general it could have stood to be longer to give events more time to unfold naturally and comprehensibly to the reader. ⭐⭐⭐1/2 Out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐.

It took a longer than expected to finish this book. I knew going into it that the stories were dark, which sounded right up my alley. I didn't realize that in this context "dark" meant that the whole world these stories take place in was bleak and hopeless. I still appreciated some of the stories, and the look at different lives on a different continent. I would call the title story especially dark, but it's not much darker than the rest.
⭐⭐⭐

😍😍😍

I didn't think I would enjoy this as much as Novik's earlier Uprooted, but I'm the end I may prefer it! The examination of racism, prejudice, and class distinctions felt more relevant than I remember Uprooted being. And so entertaining that I didn't want to get out of my car and stop listening to it. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐.

This book was darker and less magical than I was expecting. It certainly had its heartbreaking moments. But I loved the relationship between the two main characters and could hardly put the book down. Would love to read something else set in this same universe (hint hint, Bridget Collins). ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Book Lover's Day from Jane Austen, Topanga, and me.

I was excited to read this book because gender bent King Arthur in Space! But I was a bit disappointed. It often felt like it was trying too hard, the characters seemed underdeveloped, and I wanted more ancient Arthurian backstory. I will probably still read the sequel, though. Merlin was my favorite character (and the most interesting, imo) and I want to find out more about his backstory. 3/5 stars.

Wow...I'm more or less speechless. Can't quite decide how I feel about the overall effect of the book yet, but I did enjoy it, and I wish there were more. An original story to be sure, and one that appeals to students of prehistory like myself.

Here's a little treat I got myself with some store credit. 😍

Pleased to add this new acquisition to my TBR pile! Which is already the size of a small yurt, but that's beside the point.

"'And then she saw 'im, swingin' by the neck from that there old scaffold,' she went on. ''Is face was awful, she said--like a blackened melon.'
I was beginning to regret that I hadn't brought my notebook."

Isn't Flavia de Luce a charming girl?

I loved this book! Atmospheric, moving (legit almost cried TWICE), and epic: an excellent conclusion to a series with a special place in my heart. Anything to do with mythology, folklore, or fairy tales is an automatic "will read" from me. Add medieval Russian history, a kick-ass heroine with a believable character arc, and a frost demon/death god love interest and I'm pretty well sold. Listened to WotW on audiobook, image of TBatN. ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

"Nobody should be afraid of his little bit of weirdness." --"Nervous"

"After my mother's death, I wash my hands of you: [...] you and I will be as separate as if we had never known each other. You need not think that because we chanced to be born of the same parents, I shall suffer you to fasten me down by even the feeblest claim: I can tell you this--if the whole human race, ourselves excepted, were swept away, and we two stood alone on the earth, I would leave you in the old world, and betake myself to the new."