Lobizona a young adult fantasy novel by Romina Garber promises a story about a young Argentine discovering the truth of her heritage, but this novel is way more than that! Nothing in the blurb of Lobizona prepares readers for the rich and imaginative world that they’ll step into.
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We are now in the second half of Latinx heritage month, and I’ve finished one book on tbr. I may have gotten sidetracked by reading the Venatrix Chronicles (review to come), which has lots of action and adventure that I abandoned my current reads.
Blazewrath Games was amazing and immediately after I picked up Incendiary but the novel wasn’t as fast paced as I liked so I then picked up Lobizona which was more my speed. As I’m slowly making my way through both novels I’ve decided to share some of my favorite quotes from both.
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Fall is officially here! And I know what you’re thinking- Umm, don’t you live in Southern California? Isn’t your fall nonexistent?
And you would be right.
In my part of the world, there’s not an abundance of leaves changing color or the need to bundle up. But that won’t stop me from getting into the seasonal spirit. And one way I do that is by reading some paranormal fiction!
So here is a list of books I would like to read during spooky season and for the rest of fall.
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Blazewrath Games released last year (2020) and is author’s Amparo’s Ortiz debut. This novel is perfect for fans of fantasy, magic, chaotic besties, and most importantly-dragons!
This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and complete a purchase I receive a commission.
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Leaves are falling, sunflowers are blooming, and the smell of pumpkin spice is in the air. Fall brings delicious snacks and the excuse to watch Over the Garden Wall.
But before Fall is officially on the calendar, there’s a special month-long celebration known as Latinx heritage month. Like many book bloggers, I’m going to dedicate this month to reading books by latinx/latine authors.
However, as we are on the eve of spooky season, I will also slip in some paranormal literature novels too.
Curious about the origins of Hispanic heritage month and why I emphasize this an Latinx celebration? Check out the page on the U.S government’s website.
*This post contains affiliate links. I receive a commission if you complete a purchase through one of my links.
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Deadass this story went from a sweet YA fantasy to gore and heartbreak in the last arc. What the hell. I have no words.
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Dystopia? Secret Librarian? Alien boyfriend? Say less?
A Sound of Stars is a dystopian YA novel with a demisexual black protagonist who has no choice but to be her own hero.
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Remember my previous reviews of Vampire academy where I confessed I could not finish the series? Well here’s my last review for the series.
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If you have been following my Vampire Academy reviews then you know I have a love hate relationship with this series and luckily for my readers I’ll be posting my last two reviews for this series this week. You can expect my review of blood promise this Friday.
In the third installment of the Vampire Academy series Rose and Christian grant us that precious frenemy content I craved!
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Holly Black wrote a vampire novel?!
Holly Black is best known for The Folk of The Air Series, where a sad prince falls for a cunning human. This was the only series I’ve read of hers, but the Coldest girl in Coldtown has been on my tbr for a few years, and because I’m in a vampire reading mood, I decided to take the time to read it.
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By now, you must have noticed an influx of vampire novels I’ve been reading and reviewing, and that is because I had the genius idea to read as many as I can. My study is both fun but also informative. I want to trace some common themes in vampire literature.
It can get a little exhausting, so I slipped in Deborah’s Harkness’s A Discovery of Witches onto my tbr for extra credit points.
If you haven’t read or watched the hit series based on a Discovery of Witches, I will quickly summarize the first novel.
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I love the Brown sisters series so much I almost did not want to finish this series. However, after having a rough June I knew I needed a comedic and comforting rom com to read.
*This post contains affiliate links to bookshop. If you click and complete a purchase through one of my links I earn a commission.
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Frostbite is the second installment in the Vampire Academy series, and it’s just as entertaining as the first novel. If you haven’t read my review of the first novel, I thought the series could have been better in a college setting. And I stand by that.
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I read Chilling Effect last year and did not intend to continue the series. Although I loved that it was Latinx space adventure with a badass pilot. My issues with this sci-fi novel involved a slow-paced plot and not enough space cats.
Recently, I found myself wondering about book two in this series and decided to borrow it from the library. And I’m glad I did. Prime deceptions has a much faster pace and lots of space cats content.
*This post contains an affiliate link. If you complete a purchase through my link I earn a small commission.
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This past June has been a really rough month for me. Luckily kindle unlimited has become a welcome distraction. On Kindle unlimited you can read all the books in the ice planet barbarian series, but once you finish up reading all that smut, check out these reads.
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Remember when I blogged a list of the books for teens tired of reading Shakespeare? Well, I should have also considered YA novels inspired by classic retellings. This is where A Taste For Love by Jennifer Yen comes in.
A Taste For Love is a pride and prejudice retelling with fla’va. I mean that in the most literal sense, of course.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you complete a purchase through one of my links I earn a small commission.
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I’ve been reading so much fantasy literature these past months that I decided to dig deep into my Tbr for a novel I’ve been neglecting.
You had me at Hola by Alexis Daria is a romantic comedy told in a dual perspective and has a telenovela flare. This novel was not only funny but features great romantic tension and a few steamy sex scenes.
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I asked my followers on Instagram for vampire book recommendations and Vampire Academy was my only suggestion. I came into this series not knowing much about it and I was not prepared for the world I entered.
Alright I’m just going to say it. I think Vampire Academy would have flourished if set in college. Are these fighting words or do other readers agree?
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Published in 2008, Graceling by Kristin Cashore is the first novel in a fantasy YA series. Yeah, it’s been a hot minute since this novel was published, but I think it deserves more attention. This novel has idiots to lovers, a hot prince, medieval fights, a toxic uncle, a killer heroine, and a soft prince who practices botany.
While I love fantasy novels with cute princes, see my short review for Kill the Queen, I enjoyed this novel because Katsa is a cute idiot!
This post contains affiliate links. If you complete a purchase through one of my links I earn a small commission.
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I was in the mood for more elf princes after finishing Deal with the Elf king so I decided to read Enchanting the Elven Mage by Alisha Klapheke. This story is a Sleeping Beauty retelling with a delicious twist.
I mean the author didn’t have to add dragons, elves, witches, faeries, and killer wolves but we got it all.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and complete a purchase through one of my links I earn a commission.
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Yes, I did it! I finally finished We Unleash this Merciless Storm. Originally I began this novel last summer, but to be honest, I wasn’t much in the mood to read it. But then I said forget it let’s dive in!
We Unleash this Merciless Storm is the Sequel to Tehlor Kay Mejia’s We Set the Dark on Fire (Here’s my review for that novel). Set immediately after the previous novel, explosive ending, We Unleash this Merciless Storm gives readers a change in perspective.
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When I started this blog I was overwhelmed with the reading required for my major. My brain struggled to decode these older texts and by my 3rd year in college, I decided to mix in young adults novels in between reads.
Young adult novels have become very diverse and with the rise of Own Voices novels, I began to prefer these novels because I feel like they explore modern themes.
Not to hate on Shakespeare, but forbidden teenage romance like that of Romeo and Juliet do not speak to teens in the U.S as say Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give does.
The list I’ve complied contains YA books that hold similar plots and themes. Whether you’re in a book slump or looking for your next read, I hope you find this list helpful.
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Deal with the Elf King is a new adult fantasy novel with a Hades and Persophone twist.
Deal with the Elf King is written by fantasy author Elise Kova this stand-alone novel takes readers into a world of magic and unexpected romance.
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Whoa, if you are tired of boring romance novels with problematic storylines and toxic love interests, check out the brown sister series.
Get a Life Chloe Brown is the first novel in the brown sister series written by Talia Hibbert, an author who loves to write diverse romance.
This series follows three black sisters living in the UK as they fall in love. I have previously reviewed Take a Hint, Dani Brown and loved it, so don’t forget to check out my thoughts.
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Hey book lovers, I am back again this week, not with a book review but a collection of them. I feel like I’ve bombarded this blog with so many book reviews that I’m a little tired of them. So today, I felt like I would change things up and tell you about all the novels I read this month.
I had originally planned to finish my reread Six of Crows before Shadow and Bone premiered but these nine other novels were more tempting.
Some of the novels I am going to mention have their own published blog post already- I will speak on them briefly-but I will link their posts if you want to read more of my thoughts.
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You know that feeling when one of your favorite book series gets turned into a movie/tv series?
Yep.
It’s time for a Shadow and Bone show review. If you haven’t watched this amazing adaptation yet, go and do it, please!
Read More »My Soul to Keep is the latest novel in Rebekah Weatherspoon’s vampire sorority sister series. Previous novels in the series focused on a college student becoming a vampire queen, and two exes deciding to marry each other. I have reviewed the other two novels already. If you want to read my thoughts on Better off Read and Blacker than Blue then follow those links.
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Hello booklovers! Today’s review is an idiots to lovers story courtesy of romantic prince and a stubborn theif, That’s right today am reviewing Nocturna by Maya Motayne.
Nocturna is Maya Motayne’s debut novel and the first in the Forgery of Magic series. This series is high fantasy, set in Latin America, and contains lots of magic.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you complete a purchase through one of my links I earn a small commission.
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Hello readers! I am back with another smutty vampire review!
Blacker than Blue is the sequel to Rebekah Weatherspoon’s Better off Red, a sapphic vampire love story which I reviewed last week. Blacker than Blue is set in the same sorority house and follows Cleo and Benny, two side characters we met in Better off Red. Like Better off Red, Blacker than Blue is also an interracial love story.
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Better Off Red by Rebekah Weatherspoon is the vampire love story I didn’t know I needed to read! So, if your a fan of vampires check out my review.
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Before I start this review I wanted to leave some links to support the Asian American community. In case you don’t know what happened in the US this past week 8 people of Asian descent were killed because of ongoing Covid racism and ignorance. If you witness hate aimed at Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders you can report the incident to the Stop AAPI Hate website.
To donate directly check out these sites:
Napawf.org (Works for social, political, and structural change for Asian American and Pacific Islander women and girls)
Asian Mental Health Collective – aspires to make mental health accessible and approachable to Asian communities worldwide. Check out their U.S directory if you are seeking mental health services. Check out the Canadian directory.
A few years ago at the Los Angeles Festival of books, I listened to Gloria Chao confess that she named the love interest in American Panda after Sailor Moon’s boyfriend. I found it adorable and never forgot it.
Coincidentally, I stumbled across Rent a boyfriend while browsing and decided to pick it up, unaware it’s penned by the same author.
Rent a Boyfriend is a novel by Gloria Chao that you might recognize from such books as American Panda and Our Wayward Fate.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you click one of my links and complete a purchase, I earn a commission.
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Family curses, paranormal investigators, a witch working as a librarian? Black Witch Magic was a novel I knew I needed to read.
Thank you Netgalley for providing me an arc in exchange for my honest review.
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Hello romance novels! Have you read any good romance novels lately? Well I’ve recently read Take a Hint Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert and loved it! Seriously add this novel to your tbr!
This post contains affiliate links to bookshop. If you complete a purchase through one of my links I earn a commission. If you would like to know more about bookshop’s affiliate program check out my blog post.
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Hello book lovers! Have you looked at the new Shadow and Bone pictures Netflix released? Did you see the photo of Alina and the Darkling together? This man is toxic but I’m still excited to see that part of the story. Speaking of Shadow and Bone, I’ve collected my thoughts for this last novel and gathered them together in this post for your enjoyment.
If you have been following this series from the beginning then you know I’ve been spoiling all the books over on my youtube channel. And today is no different, so if would like to know all the juicy plot points for this series head on over to my youtube Living in Libros.
If you want to live a spoiler free life read the summary and dip. My thoughts are full of spoilers and a rant for the whole series. Proceed with caution.
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Hello Book Lovers!
Welcome back to another review of the Shadow and bone series. Today I’m discussing Siege and Storm otherwise known as book 2.
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Hello book lovers! If you lurk on the book side of social media then you probably know by now that Leigh Bardugo’s book series Shadow and Bone has been turned into a Netflix series and we can expect the show to premiere in April. I am a big Six of Crows fans so when I heard this news I knew I needed to read Shadow and Bone too!
If you’re curious about this series and want to know what it’s all about before the show premieres, well I got you covered…
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Hello Book Lovers! I hope your February is off to a great start! My February has been busy! Which reminds me I have some big news!
You can now find me on Youtube!
Yes, Living in Libros is now on youtube! You can now find me gushing about baddies in lit on a screen near you.
My dream for this Youtube channel is not only to review novels but for my audience to get to know me a little more. I plan on sharing my sewing adventures, give Kdrama recs, and sharing more of my hobbies.
Check out my first video if you’d like and subscribe to see more.
until next time keep living in libros,
Gaby
Hello book lovers! I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy. For this week’s blog post, I wanted to share a book that isn’t super popular, No Ordinary Star- written by M.C Frank- a physicist turned author and editor in chief.
This novel is written as a whimsical dystopian with dark and light moments and set in the snowy tundra. Reading this book put me in a chilly mood, and I needed to read it cozied up in an oversized hoodie.
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Hello book lovers, I hope your reading this week is going great, or you found a new tv show or even a kdrama to binge. I’m currently reading the second novel in the Shadow and Bone trilogy. Today I wanted to review a recently released romance novel.
I ended my year by reading Lyssa Kay Adams’ Crazy Stupid Bromance. This novel is both funny and dramatic and includes a chunky cat named beefcake, who’s a little on the naughty side. This book immediately caught my attention.
This post contains affiliate links. If you click one of these links and complete a purchase through bookshop I earn a commission.
Read More » Happy new year, book lovers! I hope the new year has been treating you well and that you’re not stressing too much, although if you’re a U.S resident, please take time away from the internet to distress and have a mental break. Watch some cat videos or your favorite tv show.
*This post contains an affiliate link to my bookshop store front. If you complete a purchase using this link I earn a small commission.
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Hello readers! I hope you’ve had happy holidays and have entered the New Year fresh and with some zest. But if you didn’t, that’s cool too. I hope my review can take your mind off of things for a bit. I finally finished the Raven cycles series, and the last book was interesting and exciting, but I do have some questions.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you complete a purchase through one of my links I earn a commission.*
Read More »Hey readers! I hope you’re having a happy holidays staying safe and dodging covid. This year has looked a lot different than what we are all used to. So to lighten the mood I thought I’d share one of my best 2020 experiences. Disclaimer I went to this pop up before covid was considered a pandemic in the U.S. and before everything was shut down in March.
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Hello readers! I am back again with another review of the Raven cycle. This week I jumped into the third installment known as Blue Lily, Lily Blue. Check out my other reviews of the Raven Cycles series here.
Previously on the Raven Cycles series, Adam learned to control his gift from Cabeswater, Ronan discovered his mother was a dream creation and rewrote his father’s will, Gansey and Blue began taking late-night evening drives but ultimately decided not to date each other because they didn’t want to hurt Adam. Muara Sargent begins dating Mr. Gray, a former assassin, and accidentally gets herself trapped in a cave.
*This post contains affiliate links, If you decide to complete a purchase through one of my links I earn a commission.
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Books for everyone on your list!
The Pandemic has made this year hard for everyone, and while we may not be able to gather around with family during the holidays, we can still send them some books to let them know we’re thinking of them.
I don’t know if it’s just the book lover in me, but I often find myself giving books as gifts during the holidays. Of course, it’s also cool to have someone else to discuss plot points, ships, and hot antagonists with.
Whether you ship these books or safely drop them off to your loved ones, I hope this gift list is helpful.
*This post contains affiliate links if you complete a purchase on bookshop through one of my links I earn a commission.
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The Raven teens are off on a new adventure in this second installment to Maggie Steifvater’s The Raven Cycle. If you read my previous review of The Raven Boys, then you know how much I enjoyed the first novel. Luckily the sequel has lived up to my expectations.
Unlike the first novel, where readers got to learn all about Blue and the Raven Boys, Dream Thieves focuses more on Ronan.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you click one of my links and make a purchase through it I earn a commission.
Summary:
We begin this novel with Ronan confessing to his friends that he can manifest things from his dreams into real life. Meanwhile, Adam’s deal with Cabeswater has taken a toll on him, and he struggles to decipher what is real and what is a vision. Adam’s new vision is negatively impacting his relationship with Blue. As a result, Blue and Gansey grow closer, leaning on each other when drama becomes too much. And Noah is the same chismoso (gossip lover).
However, a mysterious stranger known as the Grey Man comes to town, and he has a mission to fulfill for his boss, kill the dreamer.
Thoughts:
As I am gathering my thoughts for this review, it has occurred to me that the Dream Thieves reminded me a lot of a Midsummer Night’s dream. Blue is with Adam but wants to be with Gansey, Adam loves Blue but might be catching feelings for Ronan, and Blue’s mother is seeing an assassin.
Shakespeare’s play is all about messy love triangles and unrequited love. And Dream Thieves also had this similar structure.
I may be reaching, but why name this novel the dream thieves? Hmm. Okay, my tin foil hat is off.
Maggie Stiefvater keeps the same whimsical and gothic atmosphere that the first novel had for the sequel as well. The writing is phenomenal, but the pacing feels like it veers off into character development a little too often for my liking. Unlike the first one, where I was uncomfortable with Ronan’s ignorant comment, I didn’t catch another one this time around. This novel also contains more cute moments with Noah and Blue.
I wasn’t the biggest fan of Ronan in the first novel, and a majority of this novel is through his pov. And Ronan grew on me. Ronan gets a more in-depth backstory, and I was left on edge when he started to hang out with Kavinsky. Of course, if Blue comes from a family of psychics, there has to be more paranormal elements to this series. Anyway, I enjoyed the character study of Ronan more than I thought I would.
I was a little frustrated that Adam didn’t have much focus in this novel, and at first, it seemed like this novel was going to drift away from him and the deal he made at Cabeswater. I wasn’t a big fan that the author withheld this arc of Adam’s story, but it flowed well with the novel overall, so I’ll just pout on my own.
The romantic arc in this novel curves in different directions. As I explained earlier, it felt very Shakesperian. Ronan and Adam are giving me a slow burn romance, which I hadn’t expected at all. However, out of the two of them, I think Adam will be the one to fall in love first. I cannot wait to see what the third novel has in store.
Gansey and Blue have realized they have feelings for each other. And their friendship deepens in this novel. I predict they are going to have a hard time denying their feelings for each other and start seeing each other in secret. Overall, I very curious to see how they’ll act around each other when they eventually start to date.
“I wish you could be kissed, Jane,’ he said. ‘Because I would beg just one off you. Under all this.’ He flailed an arm toward the stars.”
Dream Theives Maggie Steivater
And to round off this review, I just want to say I don’t know how to feel about the Gray-man. Although he’s an assassin, he gets some morals when he starts dating Mora and compromises his mission. But I thought it was weird to have Mora fall in love with a guy like that. I’ll check back in on how I feel about their relationship in the following novel review.
The ending plot twist! Who let Maura do that? No!!
If you would like to purchase a copy of Dream Thieves or The Raven Boys and help support independent bookstores, you can do so by purchasing through my bookshop link. If you want to purchase more of my favorite books you can do so through my bookshop store!
I’m currently reading the next novel in this series and I hope to have a review for it soon!
Until next time book lovers keep living in libros,
Gaby
Hello readers! Back in September and October I set out to read Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of everything during Latinx heritage month. After reading many other books, enjoying halloween, and starting the Raven Boys series, I finally finished this novel. This novel is written so poetically you’ll want to reread passages over and over.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you complete a purchase through one of my links I receive a commission.
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Elizabeth Acevedo is quickly becoming an auto read author for me. I loved reading The Poet X a few months ago so I knew I had to read Clap When you Land next!
Clap when you land is a novel in verse written by slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo and tells the story of two sisters separated by a big family secret.
*Disclaimer* this post contains affiliate links. If click one of my links and make a purchase through the bookshop site I earn a commission.
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One day in October, I was living my best carefree life-blissfully unaware of the Folk of the Air series until my dearest friend Nessa decided to ruin my life by casually mentioning this series followed an enemy to lover’s trope.
In case I haven’t made myself clear on my feelings about this Trope, I loved them! This trope is top-quality writing, redemption arcs, soft moments. I live for it all.
*This post contains affiliate links. If you click this link and complete a purchase through my link I earn a commission.
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