June TBR!

Hello everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be taking a look at the books I hope to read this June. Of course, this doesn't always mean that I'll read them; I'm a mood reader, after all. 

Nevertheless, here are the 10 books that are at the top of my list. 

The Last Hope (The Raging Ones #2) by Becca and Krista Ritchie

The Last Hope is the sequel to Krista and Becca Ritchie's sci-fi/fantasy novel, The Raging Ones. While I did find The Raging Ones slow, I thought the premise and characters were so strong, pushing me to download the sequel from Netgalley. I just started this one, and I have high hopes for this conclusion to the duology. You can read my review of the first book here.

Again, but Better by Christine Riccio

I mentioned earlier this year that Again, but Better was one of my most anticipated reads. I have watched Christine's videos since the dawn of time (at least, it feels that way), and have been watching her progress with Again, but Better since her first video on it. Needless to say, I was excited. However, I started hearing some pretty mixed things, so I took my time with picking it up. I'm about 100 pages at the time of writing this post, and most likely will be done by the time you're reading. I'm enjoying it now, even though I see the flaws others have discussed. 

The Lady Rogue by Jenn Bennett

It's no secret that Jenn Bennett is one of my favorite authors. Read my rave reviews of her contemporary novels here (Serious Moonlight), here (Starry Eyes), and here (Alex, Approximately). After hearing that Bennett's upcoming release was a historical fiction, I wanted to give it a go. I don't stray away from my contemporary reads that much, but I will for Bennett.

Bewitching by Jill Barnett

This might come of as an odd pick, and you're right! This year, I've decided to participated in Romanceopoly. Though I haven't done as well as I hoped with the challenge this year, Bewitching does fit the prompt for my current challenge to read a romance novel where the protagonist can wield magic. Now I just have to make the time for it!

Twisted Family Values by VC Chickening

I'm not too sure if I'm going to have time for Twisted Family Values this month, but I do want to get to it soon, so I decided to be an optimist today! I received Twisted Family Values via Netgalley, and ever since interning at Algonquin Books last semester, I've wanted to read more literary/adult fiction in my free time. This fits the bill!

The Fever King (Feverwake #1) by Victoria Lee

Much like Twisted Family Values, The Fever King is also a book I received via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I actually started to read this right before finals last semester, but put it down once finals season was really upon me. It's now been about a month since I've been out of school, and I definitely have the time to now to read this e-arc.

Wild and Crooked by Leah Thomas

Okay, there's definitely a trend here. And yes, I know I need to read my ARCs! Yet again, Wild and Crooked is another arc I downloaded. Honestly, I downloaded this on a whim and I'm not too sure what it's about, but I've seen some good reviews from bloggers whose opinions I tend to agree with lately, so I think I'll like it. 

The (Other) F Word: A Celebration of the Fat and Fierce

I saw this a week or so ago on Netgalley and immediately requested it. I don't read too many anthologies, but The (Other) F Word: A Celebration of the Fat and Fierce really spoke to me, solely from its title. As someone who is trying to accept her body, I've begun to read more fat-positive literature (I highly recommend There's Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon), and this fit the bill.

Start Here by Trish Doller

I received a physical arc of Start Here from Simon and Schuster just a week after contemplating on requesting it from Netgalley. This came at the perfect time, and I'm looking forward to reading a a novel that seems to balance the fun of a summer read and more somber topics. 

Containment by Caryn Lix

Last but certainly not least is...you guessed it! Another arc. Do I have a problem? Yes. However, I actually haven't downloaded this one yet, so my NetGalley ratio is perfectly in tact. After reading Sanctuary by Caryn Lix last year (review here), I have been wanting to read the sequel since. Once I get through some of the other books on this list, I'm going to head over to NetGalley and download.

Are any of these books on your list or have you read any? What were your thoughts?

Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading! 

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

What I'll Be Reading this Spring Semester!

Hi everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be sharing what I'll be reading this upcoming spring semester.

If you don't know, I'm a double major at UNC. I am studying English and Women and Gender Studies. This semester, I'm not taking too many classes - only 4 - for a total of 12 hours. My last three semesters, I've been taking 5 to 6 classes each, totally 15 to 18 hours. I'm really looking forward to a more relaxed semester, especially because I have an internship as well. 

Without further ado, here are the books I'll be reading this semester! Today is actually my first day of classes, so let the reading begin! 

1) Victorian Literature and it's Retellings

Charlotte Bronte in all her (glaring) glory

This semester, I'm taking a class all about Victorian literature and modern retellings. From January to May, I'll be reading these books: 

• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
• Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
• The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
• Possession by A.S. Byatt
• Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
• Jack Maggs by Peter Carey
• Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
• Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones

 Out of this list, I'm most interested in reading Jane Eyre and Wide Sargasso Sea. Last semester I was taking a Jane Austen class, and my professor talked about Jane Eyre and Wide Sargasso Sea several times. I know the reveal of Jane Eyre, and I think the racial implications of Mr. Rochester's wife provide a more dire and horrifying revelation that is ignored in Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. Out of those two books, I don't know too much about anything else. I didn't love The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, so I'm a little wary about reading something else by her. I've also never read Dickens in my life, so we'll see how that goes!

2) Middle Eastern Literature by Women

What I love about being a double major studying English and Women and Gender Studies is that there is so much overlap! While this class is coded for Women and Gender Studies, we'll be studying literature written my middle eastern women. I don't know too much about the middle east, and I think it will be fascinating to learn more about the culture and feminism there! I don't recognize any of the books we are supposed to read, but here they are.

• Stone of Laughter by Hoda Barakat
• Wild Thorns by Sahar Khalifeh
• Opening the Gates: An Anthology of Arab Feminist Writing
• Loved Ones by??

I'm not familiar with any of these books or authors, but I think they'll be really eye opening and insightful. It's easy to just read strictly from US or white authors, as they are heavily published, and I'm ready to read from diverse POVs. Also, I have no idea what Loved Ones is, since my professor didn't put an author or ISBN with it.

3) Diverse Literature

Okay, I know. This is the most vague heading ever, but that's the name of the class I'm taking! Based on the reading list, we'll be focusing on African-American and/or black literature. Here's what I'll be reading

• The Bluest Eye
• I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem
• Kindred

While only three books long, this required reading really strikes my fancy. This will be my fourth semester at UNC, and the third where I was required to read Kindred by Octavia Butler, which I love. I've never read Toni Morrison, but I hear she is a provoking author, so I'm looking forward tot he reading experience and discussing it with my peers. I've never heard of I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem, but I'm looking forward to reading diversely this semester! 

Have you read any of these books? What did you think? If you are in college, what books are you reading this semester?

Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

TTT | Backlist Books I Want to Read

Hello everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'm going to be joining in on Top Ten Tuesday, or TTT. TTT is a weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's topic is, "Backlist Books I Want to Read." In case you don't know, backlist books are older books avaiable from a publisher, rather than newer releases, that are sometimes referred to as the frontlist.

There are a ton of backlist books I want to read, but here are ten that I am eager to read, in no particular order!

10) Gone by Michael Grant

Goodreads

Michael Grant's seven (?) book long series is so well known in the YA community. As an avid YA reader, I feel like I should give this one a look! 

9) Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

Goodreads

I read Butler's Kindred last year, and absolutely loved it. I watched an operatic musical of this book, and thought it was great. So now I just need to actually read the book! 

8) Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Goodreads

I don't know how I did it, but I managed not to be spoiled about this, except for some minor things. I definitely want to read and watch the movie, but this isn't a priority right now. One day!

Books I Plan on Reading Over Fall Break!

Hi everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be talking about the books I'm going to be reading this fall break. My fall break isn't too long - it starts from 5pm on October 17th to 8am on October 22nd. Essentially, I have Thursday and Friday off. Even though it's only a four day weekend, I do have some reading plans!

Here are the books I plan to finish over fall break! 

1) Mr. Nice Guy by Jennifer Miller and Jason Feifer

I've been sitting around the 75-80 percent mark of Mr. Nice Guy for some time. I'm just not enjoying the book as much as I wanted to. I just need 30 minutes or so to finish this one up! I hope to finish this one Wednesday night so I can focus on books that I'm currently reading and enjoying a lot more.

2) Analee, in Real Life by Janelle Milanes

I've read almost 150 pages of Analee, in Real Life. The book is a little over 400 pages, and I know I can knock this one out. If I'm being ambitious, I want to finish this one Wednesday night. If I'm being realistic, I'll probably finish this one sometime Thursday.

TBR | ARCtober 2018!

Hello everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be talking about all the ARCs I'm planning on participating in the ARCtober Reading Challenge. If you want to know more about ARCtober, check out Nancy's (from Tales of the Ravenous Reader) post!

Essentially, the goal of ARCtober is to read ARCs, whether they be old or new.

Here are the ARCs I am planning on reading this month!

ARCs I Have (Top Priority)

Mr. Nice Guy by Jennifer Miller and Jason Feifer

Release Date: October 16, 2018

 Goodreads

Mr. Nice Guy is my current ARC right now. If I'm being honest, I am not liking the book that much. But, I am over halfway through, and I want to finish the book. Hopefully the last 40 percent is an improvement!  

Mirage by Somaiya Daud

Release Date: August 28, 2018

 Goodreads

I have had the ARC of Mirage for a pretty long time, but never managed to take the time and prioritize the read. I think I am around halfway through the book. So many bloggers raved about Mirage, and though I was enjoying it, I had yet to fall in love with the novel. The plot was just picking up right as I took a break from the book, so I think I will really like the rest!

TTT | Books on My Fall TBR!

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'm participating in Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Today's topic is "books on my fall TBR!" I always associate fall with school, so for me, fall has already begun! Nevertheless, here are ten books that I hope to read! Most of these are ARCs, simply because I focus on them during school!

10) The Raging Ones by Krista and Becca Ritchie

 

Goodreads 

I have an ARC of this, and I haven't started it yet! I haven't read sci-fi in a while, and I'm looking forward to getting back into the genre. To be honest, I don't know much about the book, but it has gotten pretty good reviews! The 4.12 average rating on goodreads is promising. 

9) Mirage by Somaiya Daud

Goodreads

I am determined to finish Mirage. I was about 60 percent of the way through before I moved into university. Mirage moves a bit slower than I'm accustomed, so I already wasn't making quick progress. when I moved in, I wanted quick reads, like romance novels, so I put this one on pause. I've really loved what I have read though, so I want to acutally finish it! 

Goodreads Chooses my May TBR!

Hi everyone and welcome back to my blog! Today, I decided to do something a little different. A couple weeks ago, I was thinking about how I didn't know what I wanted to read after my first year of university ended. Lala from BookandLala on youtube has recently been doing videos where her husband, son, etc. chooses her TBR for the month. So, I decided to give that a spin and have goodreads choose my TBR!

*As I was planning this, a new video by Riley Marie did the same thing! Make sure to check out her video. :)

If you are new here or aren't aware, I do not do well with TBRs! I'm a mood reader, but hopefully I'll get to a couple of the books that goodreads suggests.

For this TBR, I'm going to goodreads and randomizing my want to read list. I'm going to pick the first book on the list, and then refresh. If a book comes up that is not yet released, or that I don't own and isn't at my local library, then I'll just choose the next one on the list that is easily available to me. Since I am a mood reader, I decided to pick seven books in the hopes that I will read two of them.

1) Uprooted by Naomi Novak

This book was all the rage in 2015. I was interested in it (I mean, it's a standalone fantasy!) but I was overwhelmed by all the hype surrounding it. Now that talk of this has died down, I'm looking forward to reading this one. 

2) Frostfire by Amanda Hocking

I was happy to see that this ended up being one of my picks! I actually checked this out from my local library a year or two ago during the summer, but realized it was connected to a broader series. So, I went back and read the Trylle series by Hocking instead. I don't remember much of the world (besides that there were trolls and my ship sailed), but I'm looking forward to getting back into it! 

Top Ten Tuesday | Books on my Spring TBR!

Hey everyone and welcome back (or to!) my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be participating in Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Until this 2018, The Broke and Bookish hosted the meme!

The topic of this week are books that are on our spring TBR. If you don't know, I'm a huge mood reader. Because of that, I have a lot of books that I'm interested in, but not necessarily a set list. So these 10 books are what I'll hopefully read, but I won't be surprised if I don't get to them.

Without further ado, here are 10 books that I may read this spring!

Top Ten Tuesday | Books I Meant to Read in 2017 but Didn't!

Hi everyone and welcome back to my blog! Today I'll be participating in Top Ten Tuesday, a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Today is actually the last day The Broke and the Bookish is hosted Top Ten Tuesday. The meme will now be hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl!

I first just wanted to start off this post by saying THANK YOU to the women at The Broke and the Bookish. Before I started my blog, I somehow stumbled upon their Top Ten Tuesday posts. I visited their blog every now and again, and after around a year and a half after seeing these posts, I started my own blog here. I want to take the time to thank The Broke and Bookish for introducing me to this wonderful community, and being one of the main factors in my decision to start blogging.

With that done, let's talk books!! Here are ten books I said I would read in 2017, and didn't. I decided to look at my posts from last year about my most anticipated releases or those I wanted to read for challenges, and pick the ones I'm still the most excited about.

1) Flame in the Mist by Renee Ahdieh
I have a signed hard copy of this! SIGNED. And I still haven't read it.... What am I doing?

2) Compulsion by Martina Boone
I've owned this book since it's release, when I went to a book signing and got this signed. Once again, I'm not reading my signed books! I did read a teaser of this online one day, and liked what I read, so hopefully I'll actually read it this year.

3) Infinity by Jus Accardo
I proclaim that YA sci-fi is one of my favorite genres, and yet I have owned this book for around 2 years and have yet to read it. *sigh*

4) Map of Fates by Maggie Hall
I absolutely loved The Conspiracy of Us. It's been so long since I've read the first book, but now I own the second, so I can get back to the series. However, it's been quite a while, and I'm worried that I'll have to do some rereading/skimming of the first to remember everything.

5) Ten Thousand Skies Above You by Claudia Gray
This is a sequel to A Thousand Pieces Above You, which I did enjoy but thought was problematic after reading this blog post (please read it!!). I'm torn on reading this series and promoting the series through reviews, so I might not put a review up on this book. 

6) The Rose and the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh
Another Ahdieh book makes another appearance! I really enjoyed The Wrath and the Dawn (review here!).  Why haven't I read the sequel? Because I want to own the matching sequel book cover, and I haven't bought it yet (I have a hard time buying books when there's libraries). BUT I will be buying the sequel and I will be reading it!

7) We Are Okay by Nina LaCour
Nina LaCour isn't one of my favorite authors, but she has the potential to be. I loved Everything Leads to You and Hold Still, so there's really no plausible reason why I haven't read this, especially because I have an ARC copy of it...yikes!

8) Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray
So this is the on my radar the least out of all ten books, but I might give it a whirl. But the synopsis sounds amazing, and while I haven't *loved* any books by Gray, the two I have read were enjoyable for the most part.

9) Fireblood by Elly Blake
Fireblood is the sequel to Frostblood (review here), which while it wasn't original, I did enjoy. I decided to read this series for a year-long challenge, so now I actually need to read this!

10) The Body Electric by Beth Revis
Last but not least, is another signed book I got very soon after it's release at a book event! Beth Revis wrote the Across the Universe trilogy, which I loved at the time of reading them. I have started this book several times (and the first 20 pages are great), but then I always get super busy and put it down. One of these days I will read more than the first 20 pages!

Have you read any of these books? What did you think? 

Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

Sci Fi Month 2017!!

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! This post is a little late, but I wanted you the know that this month I am participating in Sci-Fi Month! I've participated twice before, and this will be my third year in a row. Sci-Fi Month is hosted by Lisa @ Over the Effing Rainbow and Imyril @ x+1!

This whole month, I'll be focusing on reading science-fiction. As the mood reader I am, I will probably read a mix of genres, but I'm gibing science fiction more attention. 

So, here are some of the books I plan on reading this month! I'm also planning on reading some short stories, which I want to do a collective review of. 

5 Star Read Predictions!

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be predicting my next five star reads! I got this idea from Sam. Check out her video on the same topic here! She's one of my favorites and so well spoken. :)

Anyways, the idea of this post is to choose books on my TBR that I think will be five star reads. I don't anticipate most of my books that I put on my TBR to be five star reads, but there are a couple here and there that I have a good feeling about!

Without further ado, here are some 5 star read predictions!


1) Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett
Starry Eyes makes this list because Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett is one of my favorite books. Not of just young adult, or contemporary, but of everything. I thought it was such a fun and endearing read, and I've skimmed it a couple times whenever I need a pick me up. Because of how spectacular Alex, Approx was, I have high hopes for Starry Eyes, which is due this upcoming March!


2) From Twinkle, With Love by Sandhya Menon
From Twinkle, With Love is on this list for the same reason Starry Eyes is! Though When Dimple Met Rishi is one of my favorite YA books, it's not one of my favorite books ever. However, the story was so warm and fluffy and adorable, just like a cute furry puppy. I hope all of that cuteness in WDMR is in From Twinkle, With Love!


3) Obsidio by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
It is almost 99% confirmed that Obisidio will be a five star read for me. Out of the 6 books I've read by Kaufman, four of them have been five star reads. Ergo, the odds are in my favor. And out of my five star reads, my favorites are Gemina and Illuminae, with are the predecessors to Obsidio. So the odds are really in my favor for this one. I cannot wait for the epic conclusion to this series!

4) Endeavor by Amanda Bouchet
Last but not least is a book that I actually know very little about! I've read the synopsis a total of one time, and all I remember is that it is set in space. But... space is one of my favorite settings, and when you put that together with the author of The Kingmaker Chronicles, which is spectacular, it's a done deal that I will love this book. Favorite setting meets one of my favorite authors. Need I say more?

And those were the only ones I found of my TBR (in one pass, mind you) that I think are going to be five star reads! I won't know until all of these release, so it's a long wait to see if I'm right! But if I am, I'll let you know in a follow up post!

Do you have any books that you expect to be five star reads? What do you normally expect your rating to be before picking up a book? I always expect 3.5 stars, and hope for 4!

Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

Books I Want to Read by the End of the Year!

Hey everyone and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be talking about the books I want to read by the end of the year! There are a couple books I know I'll have read by the end of the year, but there are some I'm crossing my fingers that I'll get to.

We all know there are those books that get lost in the shuffle, that you always plan to read, but don't get around to. Here are a couple of those books for me! (In no particular order!)


Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas
Out of all the books on this list, this is actually the one I don't care about as much. I didn't like Throne of Glass that much, but I want to give this series a fair chance. It is so popular, and I'm interested to see what I think of it. I've seen a lot of rave reviews, and a lot of rants as well. Whatever happens, I hope I get a strong reaction out of this!

Map of Fates by Maggie Hall
Map of Fates is the second book in Hall's Conspiracy of Us trilogy. I read The Conspiracy of Us two years ago, which is quite a while ago. I don't remember anything, but I did really like it. I'll probably have to skim the first book or read a spoilery review to restart my memory.

Flame in the Mist or The Rose and the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh
I read The Wrath and the Dawn earlier this year for a readathon, and I really liked it! Ahdieh's writing was so well done, and I hope to read one of her books by the end of this year. I have a hardcopy of Flame in the Mist (that I got for free!!), and I have a library copy of The Rose and the Dagger on reserve. I'm thinking I'll read R+D first, but I have no idea about Flame in the Mist yet.

Ten Thousand Skies Above You by Claudia Gray
Ten Thousand Skies Above You is the second book in the firebird trilogy. Even though I didn't love the first book, I really enjoyed it! (review here!) I wanted to read the second book so much I even bought it, which is basically unheard of for me. The book is sitting in my dorm room waiting to be read!

Some New Adult Book!
So for this one, I have no idea what yet to read but I know I want to read another NA book by the end of the year! Maybe Unteachable by Leah Raeder, Scoring Wilder by RS Grey, or something by Colleen Hoover that I haven't read. This one I'll just leave to the fates!

What are some books that you want to read by the end of the year?

Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

August 2017 TBR!

Hey everyone welcome back (or to!) my blog! I'm Genni, and today I'll be doing something just a tad different. If you're new here, you might not be aware that I barely do TBRs. This is mainly because I'm horrible at keeping to them. However, there are a couple of books that I will for sure be reading this August! Here's a look!

First, I'm giving you a friendly reminder to vote for what I read! I'm participating in the Make Me Read It Readathon, and I would love if you voted! It's best to get as much votes as possible. Here is the link to my poll and more info about the readathon!

Based on the poll (so far, that is) here are the books I'll be reading. I gave 8 options and hope to read three. 

1) The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
This was the book with the most votes, but not by far! Wrath and the Dawn got 6 votes, and I'm glad that it is the top choice! I've been reading to read the book basically since it was released, and now the series is over! But it's never too late, and I hope I love it!

2) P.S. I Like You by Kasie West
Now this is the book I am arguably most excited for! I am in a really big contemporary mood right now, and when I got this from the library today it took a lot of willpower to not crack it open right away. I have read two books by West, and I liked one and hated the other. I have a good feeling about this one though!