24 Best Book Deals for 4/13/19 : Yes Please, It’s Not Like It’s a Secret, Wild Beauty, Feminist Fight Club, and more

You guys might have noticed (or not) but I’ve been MIA for a little over a week now. My personal life has pretty much just exploded and I’ve been crazy busy (I’ve barely even had time to read let alone blog). I’m hoping to get back in the groove of things soon, but it might not happen until April’s over. Until then, here are some book deals.

As of this posting, all of these deals are active, but I don’t know for how long!

Free

Ella, the Slayer by A.W. Exley

Less than $1

Aru Shah and the End of Time (Pandava Series #1) by Roshani Chokshi

I’ll Be Yours by Jenny B. Jones

Let’s Get Lost by Adi Alsaid

Less than $2

Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

Get It Together, Delilah! by Erin Gough

Suicide Notes by Michael Thomas Ford

Catwoman: Soulstealer by Sarah J. Maas

Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo

Batman: Nightwalker by Marie Lu

Geekerella by Ashley Poston

Denial: Holocaust History on Trial by Deborah E. Lipstadt

Love That Dog by Sharon Creech

Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray

It’s Not Like It’s a Secret by Misa Sugiura

Less than $3

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond

Bearskin by James A. McLaughlin

One Plus One by Jojo Moyes

Yes Please by Amy Poehler

The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd

Loves, Lies and Spies by Cindy Anstey

Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore

Less than $4

I Might Regret This: Essays, Drawings, Vulnerabilities, and Other Stuff by Abbi Jacobson

Feminist Fight Club: An Office Survival Manual for a Sexist Workplace by Jessica Bennett

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Top 10 finished series | Binge away!

Who else loves a good series binge??? One of my favorite things to do is to jump immediately from one book to the next in a series. No waiting, no forgetting who characters are or what happened to them. Just reading. So here are some of my favorite series that you can just BINGE.

The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven Boys; The Dream Thieves; Blue Lily, Lily Blue; The Raven King

Why I loved it: Great characters, magic, treasure/scavenger hunt, deliciously evil antagonists

Wolf by Wolf duology by Ryan Graudin

Wolf by Wolf; Blood for Blood

Why I loved it: Motorcycle race!, alternate history, STRONG female lead

The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer

Cinder; Scarlet; Cress; Winter

Why I loved it: Strong women in typically “male occupations”, swoony romances, sassy robots, fairytale retellings

Crazy Rich Asians trilogy by Kevin Kwan

Crazy Rich Asians; China Rich Girlfriend; Rich People Problems

Why I loved it: SO MUCH DRAMA, some really likable characters, the food descriptions, depictions of extremely extravagant lifestyles

Daughter of Smoke & Bone trilogy by Laini Taylor

Daughter of Smoke & Bone; Days of Blood & Starlight; Dreams of Gods & Monsters

Why I loved it: Fascinating magic concept, fantastic world building, star-crossed lovers, beautiful writing, EVIL VILLAIN

Inkworld trilogy Cornelia Funke

Inkheart; Inkspell; Inkdeath

Why I loved it: Super readable, great characters, watching Maggie grow up

Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo

Six of Crows; Crooked Kingdom

Why I loved it: Heists!, complicated relationships, great friendships, worldbuilding

Finishing School series by Gail Carriger

Etiquette & Espionage; Curtsies & Conspiracies; Waistcoats & Weaponry; Manners & Mutiny

Why I loved it: Great group of girlfriends, secret floating spy school, Sooties and Picklemen

The Madman’s Daughter trilogy by Megan Shepherd

The Madman’s Daughter; Her Dark Curiosity; A Cold Legacy

Why I loved it: Science-minded female protag, gothic classic retellings

Monsters of Verity duology by Victoria Schwab

This Savage Song; Our Dark Duet

Why I loved it: Monsters, broody violin player, tough-as-nails female protag, not-so-happy ending

What are some of your favorite finished series? Let me know which ones I should binge in the comments!

5 Horror(ish) Books to Get Through Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day has never been my favorite holiday. I mean, I like chocolate as much as the next person, but it’s this holiday that comes with a lot of pressure if you’re in a relationship and can make people feel a little self-conscious if they’re not. I’m sure there will be many lovey-dovey posts today, but I wanted to do something a little different by posting a few horror(ish) recs.

None of the following books are super scary. I’m a bit of a scaredy cat so I don’t usually read books that are too scary.

In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters

Another plug for a great author, Cat Winters. This book is set during World War I, which is scary in and of itself, but it’s also during the Spanish Flu. People are dying left and right and that creates this really creepy atmosphere. Add to that some spirit photography and maybe some ghosts? I love the main character in this book because she’s tough and smart in a time when it girls were consistently underestimated.

eBook | Hardcover | Paperback

Spill Zone by Scott Westerfeld

This is a two book series of graphic novels by Scott Westerfeld. I don’t know if I’ve read anything else by him besides the Pretties series, but I really enjoyed these graphic novels. They’re so eerie and the artwork only amplifies that feeling. Especially when the main character goes into the spill zone, the colors are absolutely electric. It’s got a post-apocalyptic feel, a mute little girl, and a creepy doll.

eBook | Hardcover | Paperback

The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd

I’ve definitely talked about this book on here before. This entire series is amazingly gothic and unsettling. The first book is based off of The Island of Dr. Moreau, the second is based off of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and the third is based off of Frankenstein. Each of those would also be a good candidate for this list if you’re interested in a classic horror read. (The eBook for The Madman’s Daughter is only $2.99 right now!)

eBook | Hardcover | Paperback

The Diviners by Libba Bray

I’ve read this book most recently of the ones on this list. It’s a long book, so be ready for that, but I really loved the setting. It’s set in the 20’s in New York which proves to be the perfect setting for this ghost story. The main characters are fun and Evie is especially full of life. The last warning I have for this book is that it’s obviously setting up for a series. There are some story lines that don’t quite resolve and characters that don’t seem super important by the end of this book. If that’s your jam, though, I highly recommend.

eBook | Paperback 

Blue is for Nightmares by Laurie Faria Stolarz

I read this series when I was in high school and it was my first real foray into horror. It’s about a girl who is away at a boarding school (I’ve always been a fan of boarding school books) and she’s having these vivid dreams. At the end of each dream, she wakes up having wet the bed. She’s not sure why this is happening, but she’s had these types of dreams before. Last time, she didn’t listen to them and someone ended up dead. I like that these books have a slight supernatural element to it, but it’s not too heavy.

eBook | Paperback

What do you plan on reading this Valentine’s Day?

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Top Ten Tuesday: Books Set Outside the U.S.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week there is a new topic and this week’s topic is: Ten Books Set Outside The US

So here’s my list. None of these are necessarily going to give you a major case of Wanderlust, but these are some of my favorite books set outside of America.

England/Egypt – Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine (The Great Library series)
England/Scotland – Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger (Finishing School series)
England – Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson
England/Wonderland – The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor (The Looking Glass Wars series)
China/France/The Moon – Cinder by Marissa Meyers (The Lunar Chronicles)
England/Tropical Island – The Madman’s Daughter by Megan Shepherd (The Madman’s Daughter trilogy)
England – Austenland by Shannon Hale
Germany/Japan/Europe – Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin
England – A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
Italy – Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culbertson

A Cold Legacy by Megan Shepherd

Note: This is the third book in a trilogy and my review may contain unintentional spoilers.

Juliet is on the run with Montgomery, Lucy, Edward, and Balthazar. They’re headed to Elizabeth’s estate in Northern Scotland and all they’ve been told is that Elizabeth’s staff are not used to polite company. They have little choice, however, as the police continue to search for them as the cause of the Christmas Day massacre. Once Juliet and her friends arrive, she finds it challenging to keep the darker side of herself hidden–especially from Montgomery.

I’ve really, really liked this trilogy. Each of the three books is based off of a classic horror novel. The first book (The Madman’s Daughter) is based off of The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells, the second book (Her Dark Curiosity) is based on Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, and this book (the third) is based off of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. The stories are loosely based off of these books. I’d say the first one is truest to the story it originates from. But the author has introduced new characters and the books are different enough that it’s more the idea of the old story being portrayed in this new one.

I can’t review the first two books because it’s been too long since I’ve read them, but the thing I like most about A Cold Legacy is the characters. So that fact should indicate that the first two books are pretty good as well since, you know, they have the same characters. Juliet is a smart and pretty independent girl (especially for the time period). Ever since I read this post from Rachael @AwakeandReading I’ve been on the lookout for main female characters who do not dwell on their looks. Now, I don’t remember the character descriptions from the first two books and how much time is spent on them, but in the third book the only thing that’s mentioned is that Juliet has dark hair. This is mentioned a couple of times especially when Juliet is thinking about Lucy and how they have similar dark hair. It’s obvious that she’s beautiful (she’s had a couple of guys after her throughout the three books), but these books really focus on her mind and her scientific ability instead of describing every time she looks in a mirror (which, I think is never in this book).

Montgomery is a great character too…I like him, but I don’t feel like he’s been developed as much as I would have liked. We get some sense of who he is, but I feel like the author could have given us more. I think the second book is where we see most of his development. I like Lucy because she’s been a really true friend to Juliet throughout the series, even if she lets her emotions rule her a little too often. Balthazar…he’s the best. I love him. I love how sweet all of the other characters are to him and I love how kind and good he is.

Okay, this post is getting a little long so I’ll just wrap it up by saying: READ THESE BOOKS. I loved them and they’re definitely books that I plan on owning eventually. I feel like I haven’t seen anyone talking about these books and I’m not really sure why because they are worth talking about. Megan Shepherd has a new book coming out May 26th called The Cage. I’ve liked her style of writing thus far, so I’ll be giving it a try.

Overall Rating: 4
Violence: Heavy. Some fighting scenes as well as some surgery scenes with gore.
Sexual Content: Mild. There’s a wedding night scene, but it’s not explicit.
Language: None
Smoking/Drinking: Mild