Winter Reading: Diving into YA fiction

I am normally a Historical Fiction reader, but lately I have jumped into some REALLY wonderful Young Adult Fiction and don’t plan on turning back any time soon. I am not sure what took me so long to join the party actually:)

My favorite read of 2019 so far is THE WICKED KING by Holly Black. I was OBSESSED with THE CRUEL PRINCE late last year, and the 2nd in the series DID NOT disappoint!! This is the FIRST book I have ever pre-ordered on Amazon…and I was waiting by the mailbox when it came…not even kidding. I started reading as soon as the kids went off to bed and at 4 am I finished. And when I say finished, I mean throwing the book across the room because I COULD NOT believe how it ended. And then staying up for 2 more hours trying to figure out how the ending could actually all play out in the 3rd book. And then thinking about it for days and trying to convince EVERYONE to read it so that I could talk to them about the ending. It sort of ruined my life for a few days…but in a good “I really liked this book and got all emotionally wrapped up and didn’t want to let it go” way.

Here is the blurb from the back of the book (spoiler alert if you have not already read THE CRUEL PRINCE…turn back now):

You must be strong enough to strike and strike and strike again without tiring.

The first lesson is to make yourself strong.

After the jaw-dropping revelation that Oak is the heir to Faerie, Jude must keep her younger brother safe. To do so, she has bound the wicked king, Cardan, to her, and made herself the power behind the throne. Navigating the constantly shifting political alliances of Faerie would be difficult enough if Cardan were easy to control. But he does everything in his power to humiliate and undermine her even as his fascination with her remains undiminished.
When it becomes all too clear that someone close to Jude means to betray her, threatening her own life and the lives of everyone she loves, Jude must uncover the traitor and fight her own complicated feelings for Cardan to maintain control as a mortal in a Faerie world.

THE HAZELWOOD by Melissa Albert seems to be a book that people either LOVE or HATE. I think I fell somewhere in the middle…but less hate than love. I guess you could say I fell in pretty good LIKE with this book. I usually need a protagonist that I can cheer for…and Alice was NOT that for me. I did love the storytelling though…and the creepy fairytale world of The Hinterland that the author created was crazy and creepy and amazing. And even though this book wasn’t all perfect 10’s for me, I know I will read the next book when it comes out…I REALLY do not like not knowing how a story ends:)

Just an FYI…because of the language and certain adult topics, I wouldn’t suggest this book to the actual young adults in my life. My 10 year old daughter is FOR SURE not ready for this one any time soon.

Wonder what it is all about?? Here is the back of the book description:

Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice’s life on the road, always a step ahead of the uncanny bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice’s grandmother, the reclusive author of a cult-classic book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate, the Hazel Wood, Alice learns how bad her luck can really get: Her mother is stolen away―by a figure who claims to come from the Hinterland, the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother’s stories are set. Alice’s only lead is the message her mother left behind: “Stay away from the Hazel Wood.”

Alice has long steered clear of her grandmother’s cultish fans. But now she has no choice but to ally with classmate Ellery Finch, a Hinterland superfan who may have his own reasons for wanting to help her. To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother’s tales began―and where she might find out how her own story went so wrong.

CARAVAL and LEGENDARY by Stephanie Garber are part 1 and 2 in this magical series. Part 3 FINALE comes out May 7th and you better believe I will be reading it on May 7th and crying because it is over on May 8th…mark your calendars.

I normally have a ridiculously good story radar and can figure out how a story is going to play out… but NOT with these books. The entire storyline revolves around the magic of Caraval…which is a bit like if a circus and an escape room had a baby. And then just when I thought I had figured out the freak show escaping circus baby, BOOM another twist. I LOVED that!!!

One more back of the book blurb to suck you in…

Scarlett has never left the tiny island where she and her beloved sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval, the far-away, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show, are over.

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. But she nevertheless becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic with the other players in the game. And whether Caraval is real or not, she must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over, a dangerous domino effect of consequences is set off, and her sister disappears forever.

Welcome, welcome to Caraval . . . beware of getting swept too far away.

I am plugging right along on my 2019 reading goal of finishing 26 books this year, and have LOVED adding books back into my life…it was a hobby I NEEDED back for my mental health. My house is not as clean, my family sometimes has to tap me to get me to listen, and I am often up WAYYYY too late finishing “ONE more chapter,” but my heart is MUCH happier. Any books I need to add to my TO-READ list??? Beware though…if you suggest a book to me, you have to be prepared for my 4 am text asking WHYYYYY??!!?!?!