For Tag Tuesday, I decided to do the Cliché Book Tag video, in which I match up clichés with books. It was a fun one to do!
My February Mid-Month Wrap-Up
This is my mid-month wrap-up video in which I discuss all the books that I read in the first half of February.
Books mentioned in this video (Amazon Links):
1. The Binding by Bridget Collins (00:45): https://geni.us/Z9ir0mF
2. Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon (02:34): https://geni.us/h7IT
3. A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer (05:20): https://geni.us/Ks5lKpT
4. Tin Heart by Shivaun Plozza (07:34): https://geni.us/CBASt
5. Between the Lies by Michelle Adams (10:16): https://geni.us/kZPk
6. Vicious by V.E. Schwab (12:38): https://geni.us/qa7rdcF
7. The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware (16:00): https://geni.us/IE08Nac
8. Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid (19:15): https://geni.us/KxWIT
Book Review of On the Come Up by Angie Thomas (Video)
You can check out On the Come Up here at Amazon: https://geni.us/rPiy
In this video, I review Angie Thomas’s latest book, “On The Come Up” which follows a young teen girl who has dreams of becoming a famous rapper. But when she makes a video in anger — and it goes viral — all hell breaks loose.
Review of Anne Frank’s Diary – the Graphic Novel
Anne Frank’s Diary is the only graphic novelization of Anne Frank’s diary that I’m aware of. The breathtaking, expressive artwork in this adaptation by David Polonsky as well as actual excerpts from her diary really brings this literary classic to life, while maintaining its original integrity.
There are so much humor and emotion in these illustrations, and they make Anne feel like a real person, someone we can relate to. We get a true sense of Anne as a frighted, confused and somewhat saucy teenaged girl.
It was such a treat to journey along with this visual guide to the historical events in Anne’s diary, and I felt that the images and text captured Anne Franks diary beautifully and emotionally. This was an exciting new perspective to an old classic that really resonated with me, especially the ingenious manner in which the artist rendered Anne’s emotions, thoughts and observations through the vivid illustrations.
From the drawings and text snippets, it’s easy to see Anne’s hope, despair, passion, vulnerability, introspection, courage, humor, and sarcasm, all of which render her all the more lifelike.
All in all, a beautifully moving adaptation with stunning illustrations that, while keeping to the… spirit, I guess… of the original material, helps us to see this young girl in a different light I loved how the illustrator expertly brought her thoughts and feeling into relatable art. The editor and arctic took Anne Franks diary and transformed it into a delicately told story, with stunning pictures and heartfelt scenes.
I can’t begin to imagine what a daunting project this must have turned out to be. But in my opinion, it was a successful one, exquisitely rendered in pen and ink and I’m so glad that I came across it.
Review of Tin Heart by Shivaun Plozza
Shivaun Plozza is an Australian writer who is new to me, but the plot interested me so I couldn’t wait to delve into this book.
Tin Heart is a contemporary novel that follows 17-year-old Marlow Jensen who, suffering from a congenital heart condition, had come to accept the fact that she was going to die…and soon. But that all changes one day when she receives the call that a heart from a 17-year-old boy has become available for transplant.
The transplant is a success, and our story opens one year after the operation during which Marlow is trying to figure out who she is and how she fits into her world. After both she and her peers had thought of herself for so long as “sick girl” or “dying girl,” she’s now at a loss to figure out who she really is.
In her search for meaning, she’s resolved to discover who her anonymous heart donor is, hoping to contact the family in order to express her gratitude. Though transplant recipients are forbidden to contact donor families, Marlow pursues forward with some interesting — and sometimes cringe-worthy — results.
In addition to the intrigue surrounding Marlow’s heart transplant and her search for the donor family, we also delve into Marlow’s unique family. Her mother is a passionate vegan activist who opened a vegan shop next to the neighborhood butcher and has taken up the personal mission of protesting in front of the butcher shop whenever possible. Naturally, this has created quite an enemy of the shop’s owner. She also expects her children to support her and adhere to the same high moral standards as herself. But when the rivalry between Marlow and the butcher’s son Leo (whom she has nicknamed “Butcher Boy) turns into romance, all sorts of humorous hijinks ensue.
Then there’s Marlow’s upbeat always-smiling crossing-dressing younger brother Pip who dresses up for school as though every day were Halloween. I laughed out loud many times at the descriptions of his outrageous and flamboyant costumes, and I found him to be one of the most interesting and likable characters of the book.
Overall, Tin Heart was a beautiful story about a sensitive subject that the author handled with grace. It was a potent story about grief, organ donation and second chances, as well as the importance of family. It was riveting to follow Marlow’s transition from being given a death sentence to that of a recovering survivor, and I loved seeing how she moved from victim mentality to that of a self-confident and resilient young adult — although she made a few morally questionable decisions along the way.
The topic of this novel was an intense one, especially as Marlowe struggled and finally came to terms with the fact that the only reason she is alive is because someone else had to die. Organ donation is one of those subjects that people rarely think about or talk about until disaster strikes, and I don’t recall ever having read a fiction novel where this particular subject matter played a central role. So in this way, the book encourages us to think about this important topic and perhaps even paves the way to discussion with friends and family.
Though the storyline was no doubt a serious one and pulled at the reader’s heartstrings in many places throughout the novel, the story was also sprinkled with plenty of humor, lighthearted banter and wit, rendering it an especially enjoyable and satisfying read.
All in all, Tin Heart is a well-crafted, stunning contemporary novel of many layers, with a huge heart and an important message and is the kind of book that will hit you right in the heart (pun intended). Recommended.
A huge thank you to Shivaun Plozza and Flatiron Books for providing me with a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Review of A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer
“Do I look like a princess?”
“You look like a queen.”
I’ve been a fan of Brigid Kemmerer ever since I’ve read her Elemental series years ago about four brothers with magical powers, so I was excited when I heard that she was doing a contemporary fantasy retelling of Beauty and the Beast, though it’s much darker than the original tale. I immediately pre-ordered it and read it the day I received it in the post.
The story follows the enigmatic Prince Rhen, AKA “The Beast,” crown prince of Emberfall who was cursed by a powerful enchantress named Lilith. How his curse works, is that for the past 300 plus seasons, Rhen has repeated the autumn of his eighteenth year over and over, after which he turns into a different beast every time but a creature hell-bent on destruction. Over the years, he — or the beast — has murdered his family, his guards, his army and many innocent townspeople. In fact, a man named Grey, Rhen’s loyal guard commander, is the only living person left at the castle with him and Prince Rhen’s only friend.
Now the stipulation of the curse, is that it can be broken only if a woman falls in love with him before the end of autumn and each season Grey, who has the power to travel to our world, captures a girl and brings her back for Rhen, hoping that perhaps this time, she will be “the one.” Of course, it’s not easy to love a blood-thirsty beast, so he hasn’t been successful in finding his true love.
At this point in the story, overcome by angst and tragedy, he has pretty much given up all hope given that he’s pretty much lost everything over the years; his family, his kingdom, the respect of his people and eventually, his friendship with Grey. He’s also ripped apart by guilt for every vile act he’s committed during his time as The Beast. At this point, he longs for death.
Enter Harper, a young woman with cerebral palsy whose mother is dying, and her brother is in a whole heap of trouble with the both of them desperately trying to hold their family together. When she tries to save a woman who appears to be in the process of being abducted, she ends up sucked into a parallel world — Rhen’s world to be exact — with no way back home for at least an entire year and ends up being the latest pawn in the “break the curse” game.
Now Harper is not a pushover, but a firecracker of a woman — determined, resourceful and scrappy who refuses to play the role of victim. But as she spends more time with Rhen and the people of Emberfall, she begins to understand just how much is at stake. Rhen soon realizes that this woman is entirely different from the many, many others he has tried to charm. She mocks him, fights against him, taunts him, antagonizes him and before he realizes it, begins to fall for this feisty woman — a woman who challenged him to be more, to be better, to be who he was meant to be.
Because of Harper, Rhen soon finds himself daring to hope for the impossible — that there may be a way to breaks his curse after all.
But there is more going on here than just Prince Rhen’s curse. Powerful forces are threatening to destroy Emberfall, and its people and our characters soon understand that it will take more than ending the curse to save the kingdom. Harper has to make a powerful choice: go home to save her family or stay in Emberfall and save Rhen’s kingdom.
There is so much to love about this book, but I especially enjoyed the fresh, original take on one of my favorite classic fairytales. I do love retellings, and this was definitely one of the better ones with a delightfully chilling villain; a fierce and determined kick-ass heroine, high-stakes political intrigue that builds throughout the story; a handsome yet someone angsty prince; a mysterious storyline; a looming war; and the colliding of the modern world (DC to be exact) with a fantasy medieval-feeling fairytale kingdom. This reimagining ticked all the right boxes for me. I loved how every character in the book became a better version of themselves by the story’s end.
Harper was my favorite character. All of her life because of her Cerebral Palsy, she was seen as weak and as someone who needed to be protected, especially by her brother Jack. But in Emberfall, she really came into her own and took charge – and instead of needed to be protected, she filled the role of the compassionate protector of others.
And rather than being defined by her handicap, she rose above it by sheer will and determination, and in so doing, ended up accomplishing amazing things. She’s definitely the least classic fairytale princess that I’ve come across, and I loved her for it.
The story is told from Rhen and Harper’s alternating points of view which helped get to know the characters and what makes them tick. Usually, I’m not a fan of dual POVs, but I thought it worked exceptionally well in this instance.
All in all, A Curse So Dark and Lonely was a delightful, fast-paced, action-packed retelling of an old favorite with evocative imagery, beautiful writing, amazing characters, and exquisite world-building. Though the ending was entirely satisfying, I understand there is going to be a sequel entitled “A Heart So Fierce and Broken,” and I for sure will be picking it up. But yeah, this was a solid 5-star read for me.
Purchase A Curse So Dark and Lonely at Amazon