BOOK REVIEW | Ascend by Amanda Hocking

Title: Ascend
Series: Trylle Trilogy #3
Author: Amanda Hocking
Publication Date: April 24, 2012
Pages: 326
Source: I own a bind up of the trilogy, which I got on BookOutlet.

Wendy Everly is facing an impossible choice. The only way to save the Trylle from their deadliest enemy is by sacrificing herself.  If she doesn't surrender to the Vittra, her people will be thrust into a brutal war against an unbeatable foe.  But how can Wendy leave all her friends behind... even if it’s the only way to save them?

The stakes have never been higher, because her kingdom isn't the only thing she stands to lose. After falling for both Finn and Loki, she’s about to make the ultimate choice... who to love forever. One guy has finally proven to be the love of her life—and now all their lives might be coming to an end.

Everything has been leading to this moment.  The future of her entire world rests in her hands—if she’s ready to fight for it.

Amazon | Author's Website |  B&N | Book Depository | Goodreads

T5W: Books to Get out of a Slump

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be participating in Top 5 Wedensday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam from Thoughts on Tomes. Lainey from Gingerreadslainey is the founder of Top 5 Wednesday. 
 
This week we are featuring the top five books that we recommend to get you out of a reading slump! When I am feeling slumpy, I always pick up new adult romances, but I'll be (trying) to feature different types of genres. 

Waiting on Wednesday #18

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! This week I will be participating in Waiting on Wednesday. WoW is a weekly meme hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine. Every week we showcase upcoming releases that we are excited about. Tressa @ Wishful Endings has recently taken lead in this meme, considering Jill hasn't been posting on for a while. Learn more here!

BOOK REVIEW | Reawakened by Colleen Houck

Title: Reawakened
Series: Reawakened Trilogy
Author: Colleen Houck
Publication Date: August 11, 2015
Pages: 400
Source: I checked this out from my local library!

When seventeen-year-old Lilliana Young enters the Metropolitan Museum of Art one morning during spring break, the last thing she expects to find is a live Egyptian prince with godlike powers, who has been reawakened after a thousand years of mummification.

And she really can't imagine being chosen to aid him in an epic quest that will lead them across the globe to find his brothers and complete a grand ceremony that will save mankind.

But fate has taken hold of Lily, and she, along with her sun prince, Amon, must travel to the Valley of the Kings, raise his brothers, and stop an evil, shape-shifting god named Seth from taking over the world.

From New York Times bestselling author Colleen Houck comes an epic adventure about two star-crossed teens who must battle mythical forces and ancient curses on a journey with more twists and turns than the Nile itself.

Amazon | Author's Website | B&N | Book Depository | Goodreads

Waiting on Wednesday #17

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! This week I will be participating in Waiting on Wednesday. WoW is a weekly meme hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine. Every week we showcase upcoming releases that we are excited about. Tressa @ Wishful Endings has recently taken lead in this meme, considering Jill hasn't been posting on for a while. Learn more here!

This week I chose Roar by Cora Carmack!

In a land ruled and shaped by violent magical storms, power lies with those who control them.

Aurora Pavan comes from one of the oldest Stormling families in existence. Long ago, the ungifted pledged fealty and service to her family in exchange for safe haven, and a kingdom was carved out from the wildlands and sustained by magic capable of repelling the world’s deadliest foes. As the sole heir of Pavan, Aurora’s been groomed to be the perfect queen. She’s intelligent and brave and honorable. But she’s yet to show any trace of the magic she’ll need to protect her people.

To keep her secret and save her crown, Aurora’s mother arranges for her to marry a dark and brooding Stormling prince from another kingdom. At first, the prince seems like the perfect solution to all her problems. He’ll guarantee her spot as the next queen and be the champion her people need to remain safe. But the more secrets Aurora uncovers about him, the more a future with him frightens her. When she dons a disguise and sneaks out of the palace one night to spy on him, she stumbles upon a black market dealing in the very thing she lacks—storm magic. And the people selling it? They’re not Stormlings. They’re storm hunters.

Legend says that her ancestors first gained their magic by facing a storm and stealing part of its essence. And when a handsome young storm hunter reveals he was born without magic, but possesses it now, Aurora realizes there’s a third option for her future besides ruin or marriage.

She might not have magic now, but she can steal it if she’s brave enough.

Challenge a tempest. Survive it. And you become its master.

TTT: Favorite Hate to Love Romances

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! Today I'll be participating in Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and Bookish. This week's topic is "All About Romance Tropes/Types," so I chose my ten favorite hate to love romances.

First off, Happy Valentine's Day! Whether you have a significant other or not, I hope your day was fabulous and you had some quality time with the people you love. :D

These aren't in any particular order and don't encapsulate all my favorite hate to love romances!

I love hate to love romances because of the interactions between the two characters! It is always so fun to see them banter and argue and slowly but surely fall for each other. Normally hate-to-love romances add a bit of fun into a dire situation.

1) Aelyx and Cara from Alienated by Melissa Landers
I don't know if I would necessarily call this hate at first sight, but Aelyx and Cara definitely did not understand each other. Aelyx and Cara are from two different planets, and therefore have many differences, which obviously leads to a lot of misunderstandings. Eventually, Aelyx and Cara become close friends and then something more, and I loved watching their relationship grow throughout the trilogy!

TBR | Bookentine Edition

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be showing you the books I am planning on reading for Bookentine. Bookentine is hosted by Ely and Michelle from Tea & Tiles.  I first heard about this readathon from czai @ The Blacksheep Reader. If you want to know more about this readathon, check out Ely & Michelle's introduction post! The readathon is from the 13th to 20th. :D

The key component for this readathon is to just read more contemporary around Valentine's. This past year, I pushed contemporary aside for more fantasy books. I want to get back into reading the genre, and this is the perfect way to reintroduce myself.

BOOK REVIEW | The Valiant by Lesley Livingston

Title: The Valiant
Author: Lesley Livingston
Publication Date: February 14, 2017
Pages: 384
Source: I got the arc as part of a teen advisory board at a local bookstore!

The youngest daughter of a proud Celtic king, Fallon has always lived in the shadow of her older sister Sorcha's legendary reputation as a warrior. But when Fallon was a young child, the armies of Julius Caesar invaded the island of Britain and her beloved older sister was killed in battle.

On the eve of her seventeenth birthday, Fallon is excited to follow in her sister's footsteps and earn her rightful place in her father's royal war band. But she never gets the chance. Instead, Fallon is captured by a band of ruthless brigands who sell her to an exclusive training school for female gladiators—and its most influential patron is none other than Julius Caesar himself. In a cruel twist of fate, Fallon's worst enemy, the man who destroyed her family, might be her only hope of survival.

Now, Fallon must overcome vicious rivalries, chilling threats and the dangerous attention of Caesar himself to survive the deadly fights that take place both in and out of the arena—and claim her place in history among the Valiant.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Goodreads 

Waiting on Wednesday #16

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! This week I will be participating in Waiting on Wednesday. WoW is a weekly meme hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine. Every week we showcase upcoming releases that we are excited about. Tressa @ Wishful Endings has recently taken lead in this meme, considering Jill hasn't been posting on for a while. Learn more here!
 
This week I chose We Are Okay by Nina Lacour! 

"You go through life thinking there’s so much you need. . . . Until you leave with only your phone, your wallet, and a picture of your mother."

Marin hasn’t spoken to anyone from her old life since the day she left everything behind. No one knows the truth about those final weeks. Not even her best friend Mabel. But even thousands of miles away from the California coast, at college in New York, Marin still feels the pull of the life and tragedy she’s tried to outrun. Now, months later, alone in an emptied dorm for winter break, Marin waits. Mabel is coming to visit and Marin will be forced to face everything that’s been left unsaid and finally confront the loneliness that has made a home in her heart.

January Wrap Up!

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog!! I hope everyone had a great start to their new year. Personally, things have been good for me. My first semester of senior has finished, and because of snow and exams I was exempt from, I had almost two weeks off from school.

Reading-wise, I am off to a pretty great start. All the time off from school allowed me to just relax, hang out with my friends, and also read. 

Here are all the books I read to kick off this new year! All of these are in order from date read.

1) The Substitute by Denise Grover Swank
I had such a weird reading experience with The Substitute. I wasn't liking the first half, and I was actually thinking about DNF-ing it. Then, the book picked up and I really started to like it. I don't know if I'll read another adult romance by Swank, but it wasn't bad!

2) The Valiant by Lesley Livingston

The Valiant was such a solid read. I did have a couple issues, but they were few and far between. I loved the characters and all the kickass females. I really appreciated how there were no knights in shining armor in this book!

 3) Spellcaster by Claudia Gray
Spellcaster is the first book in Gray's witch trilogy. the only other book I've read by Gray was A Thousand Pieces of You, which I did enjoy. I would say though that I liked Spellcaster more, but I'm more excited for the sequel of A Thousand Pieces of You. Though the ending opened some new doors for the series, it didn't make me want to pick up the next book right away.  

Waiting on Wednesday #15

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! This week I will be participating in Waiting on Wednesday. WoW is a weekly meme hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine. Every week we showcase upcoming releases that we are excited about. Tressa @ Wishful Endings has recently taken lead in this meme, considering Jill hasn't been posting on for a while. Learn more here!

This week I chose The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell!
 

Stop the Magician.
Steal the book.
Save the future.

In modern day New York, magic is all but extinct. The remaining few who have an affinity for magic—the Mageus—live in the shadows, hiding who they are. Any Mageus who enters Manhattan becomes trapped by the Brink, a dark energy barrier that confines them to the island. Crossing it means losing their power—and often their lives.

Esta is a talented thief, and she's been raised to steal magical artifacts from the sinister Order that created the Brink. With her innate ability to manipulate time, Esta can pilfer from the past, collecting these artifacts before the Order even realizes she’s there. And all of Esta's training has been for one final job: traveling back to 1901 to steal an ancient book containing the secrets of the Order—and the Brink—before the Magician can destroy it and doom the Mageus to a hopeless future.

But Old New York is a dangerous world ruled by ruthless gangs and secret societies, a world where the very air crackles with magic. Nothing is as it seems, including the Magician himself. And for Esta to save her future, she may have to betray everyone in the past.