BOOK REVIEW | Mask of Shadows by Linsey Miller

Title: Mask of Shadows
Author: Linsey Miller
Series? Yes, a duology
Pages: 384
Publication Date: September 5, 2017
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Source: I received Mask of Shadows via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts/opinions are my own. Thank you!

Perfect for fantasy fans of Sarah J. Maas and Leigh Bardugo, the first book in this new duology features a compelling gender fluid main character, impressive worldbuilding, and fast-paced action.

Sallot Leon is a thief, and a good one at that. But gender fluid Sal wants nothing more than to escape the drudgery of life as a highway robber and get closer to the upper-class―and the nobles who destroyed their home.

When Sal steals a flyer for an audition to become a member of The Left Hand―the Queen's personal assassins, named after the rings she wears―Sal jumps at the chance to infiltrate the court and get revenge.

But the audition is a fight to the death filled with clever circus acrobats, lethal apothecaries, and vicious ex-soldiers. A childhood as a common criminal hardly prepared Sal for the trials. And as Sal succeeds in the competition, and wins the heart of Elise, an intriguing scribe at court, they start to dream of a new life and a different future, but one that Sal can have only if they survive.

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Triannual Rewind: Most Disappointing Books

Hey guys and welcome back to my blog! Today I am doing another post that is part of my Triannual Rewind! The following are the books that have disappointed me the most in the first four months of the year.

Once again, I just want to remind everyone that all these opinions are my own and I'm not trying to offend anyone! If you liked a book that I absolutely hated, then more power to you! These will be listed from worst to best. 

Also, I won't be mentioning Sinner by Maggie Stiefvater except for right now. I would pick it on the list, but to be quite frank, I don't want to talk about the book anymore. :D




1.) Together With You by Victoria Bylin
I wanted to branch out this year from my usual genres, but I was so disappointed with this adult romance. I had no idea that this was a Christian romance, and it threw me off. The characters fell flat for me and I just didn't care for their story at all. However, it did shine light on a problem that I was ignorant to, which did make it (almost) worth the read. 

2.) Be With Me by Jennifer L. Armentrout
This is the first book by Armentrout that I didn't like that much. I couldn't connect with the characters that much and I found the plot twists and points cliche and overused. To be honest, I would have rather not read this at all. I just want to read an Armentrout book that actually grabs me and doesn't let me go. 

3.) First by M.A. Grant
First never captured my attention. It was actually two stories in one, and both of them didn't have real substance. This is the first NA book that I didn't like. It is one of my least favorite books of the year, but it's not because its a horrible story. I'm just indifferent towards the whole thing.   


4.) Switched by Amanda Hocking 
Switched is the first book in Hocking's Trylle trilogy. This series is so popular, but I was so let down. I've had my eye on this for years and I was just disappointed. I would have loved this if I read it two years ago, but as I've grown so have my reading tastes. Nothing really happened throughout the book and though I will be continuing on with the story, I'm not expecting as much anymore. 

So those are my most disappointing books that I read in the first third of the year. Even though I was let down by these, it doesn't mean that you will be!

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

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Characters People Love that I Just Don't Get

Hey guys and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni and today I will be participating in the weekly meme hosted by the lovely ladies at The Broke and Bookish! Today's topic are then characters that everyone seems to love that I just don't get. While this doesn't happen usually, there are some well known characters that I just hate.

10.) Jase Winstead from Be With Me
I recently just read Be With Me last month. However, Jase's character just fell flat. I was expecting more out of a Jennifer L. Armentrout love interest. I just didn't really sympathize with him at all. 
9.) Andrea from Scorched
Andrea just annoyed me. This is from yet another Armentrout novel. Scorched is actually the sequel to Frigid, which was the first ever NA novel I read. Andrea was a secondary character in Frigid, and the main character in Scorched. Her character just rubbed me the wrong way and the decisions she made just made me angry.

8.) Josh from To All the Boys I've Loved Before
Josh annoyed me so much! Besides Alex (he's coming soon!), Josh is my least favorite Jenny Han character. I just....ugh. I didn't like him and how he was the 'other love interest" for Lara jean in the first book of the duology. 
7.) Christian from the Unearthly Trilogy
Yet another love interest I didn't like! Once I get on a ship, I start really disliking the other love interest. This was definitely the case here. I felt that Christian was really one dimensional, and didn't really serve a purpose except in the first book. 
6.) Alex Lind from Burn for Burn Trilogy
Oh man. I really don't like Alex. If I said that Christian is one dimensional, Alex doesn't even exist. He's that cookie cutter boy next door that secretly loves you. Instead of that being endearing, he just came off as pathetic to me. Maybe I'm just angry at how the series ended?
5.) Ren from the Tiger Saga
Here is the biggest reason that I do not like Ren: he's a sexist. I understand he was born in that time period, but when the book takes place its modern time. He's lived throughout the years and has seen women rights progress, so why is it so hard for him to accept that women also have valid opinions?
4.) Day and June from Legend
The reason I don't like Day and June is because I didn't feel anything for them. I've noticed that there has been a disconnect between me and Marie Lu's characters. Legend was a fun novel to read, but it didn't do anything for me. 
3.) Daemon from Obsidian
Before you freak out, I only didn't like Daemon from Obsidian, the first book in the Lux series. I actually loved him in the third, fourth, and fifth novel. However, Daemon frustrated me to no end in Obsidian. 
2.) Jace and Clary from City of Bones
When I read City of Bones for the first time, I didn't really like it. Both Jace and Clary annoyed me to no end. They seemed much too juvenile and petty in the first book. However, I started liking them in City of Ashes and I adore them now!
1.) Tamlin from ACOTAR
Here's my number one! It's not that I don't like Tamlin, it's just that I like Rhysand so much more. I don't understand how people obsess over Tamlin so much! He kind of creeps me out sometimes. But if you look back on my reaction after I finished reading the book, I absolutely loved him. I think my taste in love interests have shifted since then.  

So that was my top ten for this week! What are some characters you just don't like?

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

Happy Reading! 

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!  

Top 5 Wednesday: Disappointing Eye Candy

Hey guys and welcome back to my blog! I'm Genni and today I am participating in the weekly meme Top 5 Wednesday! It is hosted by Lainey of gingerreadslainey. If you want to know more information, click here to go to the goodreads post!

This week's topic is disappointing eye candy. Esentially, we are showcasing some beautiful books that weren't as pretty on the inside as they were out. Here are my top five disappointments and reasons why I don't judge a book by its cover.

5.) Dark Metropolis by Jacyln Dolamore
I put Dark Metropolis at the end of the list just because the cover wasn't as beautiful as the others. However, the typography is downright amazing! Dark Metropolis left me disappointed. You know when a book doesn't speak to you when you forget the characters names soon after, and that is what happened to me.

4.) The Luxe by Anna Godbersen
I read The Luxe a while back, and the main feeling I remember reading this was me being underwhelmed. The ending was interesting and at first made me want to continue the series, but I decided against it. I didn't care for the characters and if the first book left me confused, I would be even more so continuing the series.

3.) Earthbound by Aprilynne Pike
Earthbound wasn't necessarily bad, it was just un-compelling. The novel didn't do anything for me and I will not be continuing on with the series. While the premise was promising, the book just didn't deliver to me. Besides that, the characters never made me feel anything and I hated the love triangle.

2.) The Fill in Boyfriend by Kasie West
Would you expect anything less than this book on my list? If you're new to my blog, you should know that I was beyond frustrated by this novel. If you want to check out my rant review, go check it out here! This book was also featured on my list of biggest disappointments and least favorite books of 2015. The main character annoyed me to no end and I could not connect to the story at all. I should probably stop mentioning this so much on my blog! XD


1.) The Fallen Series by Lauren Kate
When I read Fallen, the first book in this series, I absolutely hated it. I decided to give the series one more go, and read the second book, Torment. Let me tell you, it was a torment to read the book. Because I like torturing myself, I even went to read the third book and DNFed around half way through. While some people absolutely loved this series, I just couldn't do it. The main character and love interest were both frustrating and they never seemed real. There are some times that I even stop and think about continuing on with the series even though I hated the first two books. I'm crazy, I know!

Those are my top five disappointing eye candy novels! What are some of yours?

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

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

10 Biggest Disappointments of 2015

Hey guys and welcome back to my blog! Today I'm going to be doing something different. I figured with the end of the year recaps of all the amazing books I have read this year that are to come, I would showcase the books that I was a bit underwhelmed by.

Keep in mind that by no means are these books bad. Just because I was disappointed doesn't mean I didn't necessarily like it, and no way means that you won't either!


Ashes to Ashes by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

I had high hopes for the last book in the Burn for Burn trilogy. The whole entire book was going spectacularly, and then the ending happened. Every single couple that I wanted to end up together did not and the ending was just really weird. The last 100 or so pages had all these massive twists and even though I didn't like how it ended, the book was overall really good. You can tell that my opinion isn't the only one; the second book had a rating of 4.2 stars while this concluding novel had an average of 3.75 stars.


This is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E Smith

Jennifer E Smith is known for her cutesy contemporary novels. I read her novel The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight and adored it back in 2014. I had high expectations for this one, and it just fell flat. It took me 26 days to read this! Twenty six! That is the longest a book has taken me to read and it really shows that I just didn't care about the book or its outcome.
Earthbound by Aprilynne Pike

Earthbound is the first in a trilogy that tells the story of Tavia Michaels and the adventure that follows when she realizes she has super natural powers. Throughout the book there is a love triangle as well. That was the only aspect that I was continually drawn to throughout the novel. Overall, I was just really bored and didn't care for Tavia or her love interests. However, the last 80 or so pages were really interesting and I just might pick up the second book.

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

I actually really liked Clockwork Angel, it just didn't live up to the excessive hype for me. People say that the Infernal Devices trilogy is the best that they have ever read, and I just didn't see it here. I'm obviously going to be continuing this series along with the Mortal Instruments, and I believe by the end of the trilogy, I will be connected to the characters. You can find my full review here!

Scorched by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Scorched is the companion novel to the first new adult novel I ever read, Frigid. There is a special place in my heart for Frigid, and I think that is why I was a bit disappointed with Scorched. The novel was my no means bad, I just didn't like it as much as its predecessor. To read more about my thoughts of this book, see my full review here!

Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins

Okay, here's the thing: I really didn't like Sweet Evil. But as the series continued, I grew to love it! Sweet Reckoning, the third novel, was such a great concluding addition. Sweet Temptation, which encompassed all three books in Kai's POV, was even better for me. Though Sweet Evil made me want to rip my hair out, the other books made up for it time and time again. I gave Sweet Evil 2 stars, Sweet Peril 3.25, Sweet Reckoning 4 Stars and Sweet Temptation 4.25 stars. You can find my review of Sweet Temptation here!

Fill In Boyfriend by Kasie West

Dear lord, The Fill in Boyfriend infuriated me to no end. I expected a fun, light contemporary where I would root for the characters. My friends on goodreads adore this book, and frankly, I expected to do the same! Instead I got a self obsessed and superficial main character that I despised reading from. There were some redeeming qualities, and it wasn't Kaie West's writing that got to me, just the story-line, so I gave it two stars. If you want, check out my rant review here. The Fill in Boyfriend has to be my biggest disappointment of the year.

Nowhere But Here by Katie McGarry

I had big expectations for Nowhere But Here. It is much loved in the book community, and was even nominated for a goodreads choice award. I just don't see it though. I've read plenty of books by Katie McGarry, but this one just fell a bit flat. I did really love the book in the last third or so, but the exposition just killed me. The character development and secondary characters really appealed to me, so I will be continuing with the series. I just won't be expecting as much. Read my review here if you want to know what disappointed me!

Biggest Flirts by Jennifer Echols

I have a feeling I just don't like protagonists that only have three letters in their name. Tia, the main character in this book, frustrated me almost as much as Gia in The Fill in Boyfriend. The thing that made me like this book just a bit more was the family relationships and friendships in this book. Even with that, I kind of hated this book half the time and really liked it the other times. The story just didn't really do anything to me and I actually face palmed from the horrible decisions the main characters made. Stop on by here for my review!

Freak of Nature by Julia Crane

Last but not least is the self published science fiction novel by Julia Crane. What disappointed me the most was how juvenile all the characters were portrayed. Instead of acting their age, which was in the late teens to early twenties, they came off to me as 13 years old or so. Another thing that just irked me were all the errors, grammatically and plot wise, that I picked up on. Granted, Freak of Nature did not have a professional editor, so I gave it a bit of a leeway. This novel wasn't necessarily bad, but it wasn't my cup of tea.

Want to know which other books I've been disappointed in? Check out my shelf on goodreads that is devoted to just that! What were some of your biggest disappointments of 2015?

Thanks guys for stopping by!

Happy Reading! :)

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!