Month: August 2016

August “Fast Times at YA High” OwlCrate Unboxing!

Kat Impossible20 Comments

AOwl

It’s weird, because this was one of the earliest OwlCrate boxes I have received so far, but also the one I was least excited about. That should in no way mean that it was a bad box, just not AS amazing as I have perceived the previous ones. But first things first, In case you don’t know what that means, OwlCrate is a monthly book subscription box. There is a different theme for each month, but you neither know which book you are going to get, nor which 3-4 awesome goodies it will include. You can find out more details by clicking here.

The Book

To my utter shame I have to admit that I have never read a Kasie West book before, but P.S. I Like You seems so cute and is simply beautiful without it’s dust jacket on. From what I hear, people have sometimes finished it in one sitting, because it’s a fast and fun read. I already scheduled it as one of my reads for my September TBR and can’t wait to dive into something light and fluffy!

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The Goodies

So, here’s what was featured in the August box in addition to the book:

  • A custom-designed Eleanor & Park necklace – which is just adorable! I already wore it and it has the perfect length!
  • A Harry Potter print by Susanne Draws – I like to look at the prints OwlCrate includes, but I honestly don’t really know what to do with them. Still, it’s really cute and apparently exclusive to the box.
  • A Hogwarts button by Taryn Draws – OwlCrate is spoiling me with Harry Potter gifts and I feel more and more guilty for never having read the books.
  • A decomposition notebook – one can NEVER have enough notebooks, that’s a fact! And I like dinosaurs and the colour green, so I really cannot complain about this at all.
  • Adult colouring book by Blue Star Coloring – I’ve seen those colouring books everywhere these days, heck we are even selling them at the shop I work at. However, I don’t know how I feel about them and I am terribly scared to ruin them by actually colouring them … so I am not sure they do relieve stress for me. But I will try!

Next month’s theme is already buzzing around the internet, being “Darkness” it seems to intrigue as all. There are a couple contenders for the book, but my guess is on Three Dark Crowns. We will see if I was right once again! September I will get an OwlCrate box AND a Fairyloot one, so double the unboxing by this time next month – yay! If you want to join in on the fun and order a box for yourself, just click here! And don’t forget to use the code WELCOME15 to get 15% off your first order! 

What do you think about the August box? Would you want one as well? Are you ordering the September box?

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater (Book Review)

Kat Impossible18 Comments

TDT

Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Page Count: 450

The Dream Thieves is the second book in the Raven Cycle. If you have missed out on my review for the first one a couple days ago, you can click here to check it out!

I thought that after The Raven Boys, I had an inkling of an idea as to how this book would go down. Well, turns out I didn’t. Of course, it did still talk about Glendower, which was the main plot in book one, but only very loosely in my opinion. It focused on different things instead, but you definitely won’t hear me complaining. While the first book was very Gansey and/or Blue focused with a bit of Adam, I felt that this one really showcased Ronan and Adam in a more detailed way.

I am not going to lie, I had my troubles with Ronan in The Raven Boys. He was arrogant and mean, not exactly the lovable kind of characteristics I am looking for. However, and this in no way means that he has changed much, I actually feel like I begin to understand him now and he’s grown on me so much since then. Basically everyone has! I love all the different POVs. It’s the perfect way to show the workings of all the characters, even the “villains”, which makes it all extremely engaging.

The plot … I guess I could talk about it, but there is something about the series that makes me want to keep everything secret so that no one gets spoiled. It’s such an intricately and beautifully written series that always manages to surprise you and pull you in. I already feel like I have known all of the boys and Blue forever, like I am meeting up with old friends as soon as I open the book. You sort of become part of their circle, seeing all those relationships unfold right in front of you. Again, this was so brilliant to read because of the characters and not what was happening.

There sure is a ton more to say, but I just don’t have the proper words to express it, so here is a quote:

TDT2

Fazit: 5/5 stars! I wish I could continue with the series right now, but duty calls.

5stars

Did you read The Dream Thieves? Did you enjoy it as much as I did? I heard this is the one that split quite a few opinions.

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater (Book Review)

Kat Impossible45 Comments

RB

Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Page Count: 408

I’ve wanted to pick up this series in what feels like forever, so when I FINALLY got all the books at once, I suddenly became scared. I have never read anything by Maggie Stiefvater before, but you know how you sometimes hype something so much for yourself that there is absolutely no way it can possibly hold up? Well, I hyped this book A LOT! But as soon as I actually started reading, I realised that I had no clue what the book was really about. Heck, I even thought Blue was a boy (which she’s not. She’s a cool and eccentric girl). It’s pretty difficult to be disappointed about something when you didn’t even have a picture in your mind as to what exactly to expect. So, long story short, I loved it and am SO happy about that!

When we jump into the story it actually starts off kind of sinister but even though there are a ton of creepy vibes, I never felt scared. Which is a good thing, because I don’t like to be scared and also don’t think that the story is supposed to do that. In fact, I laughed a lot, while also being completely pulled into this world. It was way more magical than I expected, while at the same time I thought “yes, that is totally how I would have loved to spend my time during High School”.

Which brings me to my favourite part of the book – the characters. They are always such an essential part of any book really and this one is no exception. Blue and the boys don’t meet on the best of turns and it’s simply hilarious to read, because you know their fates are intertwined. There is bantering and friendship and love (platonical, familiar and a tinsy bit the romantic kind). They are immediately the kind of people you’d identify as squad goals! However, I didn’t love everyone from the beginning. In fact, I thought some of them were just plain weird or mean, but in the end they definitely grow on you. They aren’t just one-dimensional, they do have problems, and not just the magical kind, but real-life-relatable-problems.

There really isn’t much more I can say without spoiling people who haven’t read it (*keeping my fingers crossed I am not the last person in the universe who hasn’t*), but there were some great twists. You knew that something was up, but I honestly doubt that I would ever have made the connection myself. Twists are great, I really love them, but I would have freaked out if I had read the book without a possibility to continue with the series. It’s such a small statement, yet it changes everything. I am so looking forward to binge-read the rest!

Fazit: 4.5/5 stars! I want more, more, more! (Good thing I have all the books right here on my shelf!)

5stars

Have you read the Raven Cycle? Which book was your favourite (without spoiling me please)? Is it only going to get better?

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab (Book Review)

Kat Impossible15 Comments

ThisSavageSong

Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Page Count: 427

This Savage Song was featured in the July OwlCrate box and so far I have not been disappointed by any read I have got from them, this one not being an exception – I loved it!

I know that Schwab has quite an impressive bibliography, but I haven’t read anything other than the Shades of Magic books so far. While I did enjoy them, I did not necessarily love them though, but now I have simply fallen for This Savage Song.

She created this world full of monsters and music. No one is safe. No one is truly good or evil – or at least that’s what the premise promised, but I thought it was pretty obvious who was on which side. I think that might have been a point that disappointed people a bit, but I personally didn’t really mind it. Good people have to do terrible things all the time. It’s how they deal with it afterwards that makes me decide if I still consider them good people or not and whatever August and Kate had to do in the book, you saw with a certainty that they did not fully enjoy doing really terrible acts.

At first I was a little confused with the set-up. Why were the monsters there? How were they created? How can something just begin to exist with a plop and be this fully developed being? The thing is, we don’t really get answers to that, but that is the exact same thing August is struggling with. You get a vague break-down of what happened, but it didn’t feel like a real explanation to me. Going through the same process as the character makes all the difference though and was maybe also the reason why I liked August a tiny bit more than Kate. She was tough and had something to prove, but I felt more connected to August’s struggle to just hold on. He soon turned into my baby that I just wanted to protect, but failed miserably at it.

One of the things I liked most was that it all was so quietly exciting. You got an in depth feel of the characters and their inner workings, but the real action didn’t start until the final third and I was totally okay with that. Also, I was glad to find that the ending open but not with a terrible cliffhanger. I knew going into this that it was a series and I am really looking forward to the continuation of the story. Right now our MC’s are all over the place, but I am sure they will find their way back together (just like Kell and Lila).

Fazit: 5/5 stars! It was an exciting, character-driven story that I cannot wait to dive back into with the sequels!

5stars

Have you read This Savage Song? Do you share my feelings for it or did you have a different experience? Let’s discuss!