The year is 1666, and widowed Abitha is left to fend for herself amongst a Puritan community who shuns her boldness and outspokenness. But when she chances to awaken the ancient spirit of Slewfoot, she makes a deal with the devil—and both are destined to discover deep truths about themselves and the world around them, forever bonded by blood and bone.
“𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐬, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐬.”
I could not put this down. It was witchy and worldly, dark and disturbing, it was everything I love about historical fantasy! If you are looking for something spooky to read this October, this author has some amazing stories to choose from!
Mansfield Park
“𝘼 𝙛𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙮 𝙙𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙, 𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙚 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙞𝙩𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛.” —𝘑𝘢𝘯𝘦 𝘈𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯, 𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘬
𝘚𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘑𝘢𝘯𝘦 𝘈𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯: 𝙈𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙛𝙞𝙚𝙡𝙙 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙠
If I’m being honest, this has been my least favorite of all of Jane’s works. But I guess there always has to be one 🤷♀️ To me, it just felt a bit boring, and I don’t think I can get over the ick of Fanny and Edmund’s relationship. Though I will say there were some fantastic symbolism—the gate and the chain stood out to me as very poetic! Overall, not my fav, but still gets a solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️ for the style and story.
Athena’s Child Book Tour
When faced with a monster, who ever looked to see beyond the teeth and talons?
For readers of Madeleine Miller and Claire Heywood comes the story of the most infamous monster of Greek mythology: Medusa.
First, they loved her. Then, they abused her. Finally, they made her a villain.
Gifted and burdened with stunning beauty, young Medusa seeks sanctuary with the Goddess Athena. But when she catches the eye of the lecherous but mighty Poseidon, she is beyond protection. Powerful men rarely answer for their actions, after all.
Meanwhile, Perseus embarks on a seemingly impossible quest, equipped with only bravado and determination…
Medusa and Perseus soon become pawns of spiteful and selfish gods. Faced with the repercussions of Athena’s wrath, blamed for her assault, Medusa has no choice but to flee and hide. But can she do so without becoming the monster they say she is?
Medusa’s truth has long been lost. History tells of conquering heroes, of men with hearts of gold. Now it is time to hear the story of how history treats women who don’t comply.
Thank you to @sourcebooks and @storygramtours for sending me a copy of the book and including me on this tour!
#AthenasChildTour #AthenasChild #HannaMLynn #sourcebooks #storygramtours
A Pocketful of Crows
“𝙇𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙨 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙨. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙨 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙖𝙡𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 —𝙖 𝙡𝙖𝙬, 𝙖 𝙘𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙡𝙚, 𝙖 𝙡𝙞𝙚.” —𝘑𝘰𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦 𝘏𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘴, 𝘈 𝘗𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘴
Love made her a prisoner. Revenge will set her free.
A story of the fae and the folk; of the mountains and the sea, the lakes and the moors and the rivers and the bees. A modern fairytale of love, loss, and revenge. The circle of life, the wheel—ever turning.
Here is another beautifully written tale by one of my favorite authors, @joannechocolat, and illustrated by the fabulous @bonniehelenhawkinsartist.
For anyone who likes fairies, folklore, and fantasy.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Into The Bright Open Book Tour
YA contemporary, retelling, LGBTQ
RELEASE DATE: September 5, 2023
This queer YA reimagining of The Secret Garden subverts the cishet and white status quo of the original in a tale of family secrets wonderful and horrifying.
Mary Lennox didn’t think about death until the day it knocked politely on her bedroom door and invited itself in. When a terrible accident leaves her orphaned at fifteen, she is sent to the wilderness of the Georgian Bay to live with an uncle she’s never met.
At first the impassive, calculating girl believes this new manor will be just like the one she left in Toronto: cold, isolating, and anything but cheerful, where staff is treated as staff and never like family. But as she slowly allows her heart to open like the first blooms of spring, Mary comes to find that this strange place and its strange people—most of whom are Indigenous—may be what she can finally call home.
Then one night Mary discovers Olive, her cousin who has been hidden away in an attic room for years due to a “nervous condition.” The girls become fast friends, and Mary wonders why this big-hearted girl is being kept out of sight and fed medicine that only makes her feel sicker. When Olive’s domineering stepmother returns to the manor, it soon becomes clear that something sinister is going on.
With the help of a charming, intoxicatingly vivacious Metis girl named Sophie, Mary begins digging further into family secrets both wonderful and horrifying to figure out how to free Olive. And some of the answers may lie within the walls of a hidden, overgrown and long-forgotten garden the girls stumble upon while wandering the wilds…
The publisher has decided to partner with us and do a giveaway! Please follow the link to enter: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/1e4a114d84/
Other Remixed Classics:
A Clash of Steel (Treasure Island)
So Many Beginnings (Little Women)
Travelers Along the Way (Robin Hood)
What Souls Are Made Of (Wuthering Heights)
Teach The Torches to Burn (Romeo & Juliet)
Into the Bright Open (Secret Garden: coming September 2023)
Most Ardently (Pride & Prejudice: coming January 2024)
Thank you to @turnthepagetours, @mackidsbooks, @cherie.dimaline for sending me a copy of the book and teaming up with me for this tour! nd a huge thank you to @macmillaaudio for providing me with a widget of the audiobook! I loved it!
#turnthepagetours #intothebrightopen #cheriedimaline #indigenousauthor #macmillankids
The Invisible Hour by Alice Hoffman
“𝘛𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘮𝘺, 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵, 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴, 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧.” —𝘼𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙃𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙢𝙖𝙣, 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙄𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙃𝙤𝙪𝙧
My first audiobook of September 🎧
Alice Hoffman is an auto-buy author for me. I love her style of storytelling, and this was one of my most anticipated books of the year. It did not disappoint! Lucky for me I was able to borrow the audiobook on Libby, but it’s definitely another that I want to add to my collection!
In this 𝘚𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵 𝘓𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 inspired story, MC Mia falls in love with literature and becomes the hero of her own fairytale—saving herself by breaking away from the oppressive cult she was raised in. She ultimately finds herself transported back to another time, and meets her favorite author, Nathaniel Hawthorne himself. Their worlds collide and together they form a bond that time itself cannot break. Half-historical fiction/half-fantasy, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘳 is a truly enchanting exploration into the power of love, loss, time, and literature. A beautiful story of books and magic and love 📚✨❤️
M͙u͙s͙t͙ R͙e͙a͙d͙ I͙f͙ Y͙o͙u͙ L͙i͙k͙e͙:͙
-historical fiction
-magic
-romance
-time travel
-books about books
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Hag: Forgotten Folktales Retold
I really enjoyed this collection of British folktale retellings! My favorites were 𝘚𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘭, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘛𝘢𝘭𝘦, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨, and 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘺, but all were really interesting short stories packed full of symbolism and meaningful lessons. Would highly recommend this to anyone who likes fae lore, mythical creatures, and fantasy ✨
💚 A Retelling (The Green Children of Woolpit) @djdaisyjohnson
🥛 Sour Hall (At, We’re Flittin’) @naomi_r_booth
Rosheen (The Dauntless Girl) @irenosenokojie
🦭 Between Sea and Sky (The Great Silkie of Sule Skerry) @kirstylogan
🥻 The Panther’s Tale (Chillington House) @mahsudasnaith
🌿 The Tale of Kathleen (The Tale of Kathleen) by Emiear McBride
👯♀️ The Sisters (The Brothers) @livslittle
👁 The Dampness is Spreading (My Fairy Midwife) @emmas_window
🧜♀️ The Droll of the Mermaid (The Old Wandering Droll-Teller of the Lizard, and his Story of the Mermaid and the Man of Cury) @natashacarthewofficial
🧚♀️ The Holloway (Old Farmer Mole) @girlhermes
The Lost Library Book Tour
The New York Times bestselling authors of Bob, Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass, introduce readers to a little free library guarded by a cat and a boy who takes on the mystery it keeps.
When a mysterious little free library (guarded by a large orange cat) appears overnight in the small town of Martinville, eleven-year-old Evan plucks two weathered books from its shelves, never suspecting that his life is about to change.
Evan and his best friend Rafe quickly discover a link between one of the old books and a long-ago event that none of the grown-ups want to talk about. The two boys start asking questions whose answers will transform not only their own futures, but the town itself.
Told in turn by a ghost librarian named Al, an aging (but beautiful) cat named Mortimer, and Evan himself, The Lost Library is a timeless story from award-winning authors Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass. It’s about owning your truth, choosing the life you want, and the power of a good book (and, of course, the librarian who gave it to you).
Thank you to @mackidsbooks for sending me a copy of the book and teaming up with me for a great giveaway! Check out how to enter below:
GIVEAWAY
Enter to win a copy of The Lost Library
– follow me, @mackidsbooks, @rebstead, @wendy_mass and @storygramkids
– tag a friend you think will be interested
RULES
– Giveaway will end Sept 4th at midnight EST
– US Only
– not affiliated with Instagram
-must be 18 or have parents permission
-must be a public account
#TheLostLibraryTour #TheLostLibrary #RebeccaStead #WendyMass #mackidsbooks #storygramkids
Susan: A Prequel by Alice McVeigh
Susan, a Jane Austen Prequel by Alice McVeigh, revisits the story of Lady Susan and tells the story of her as a young girl.
The story introduces readers to sixteen-year-old Susan Smithson who has just been expelled from a school for young ladies in London. While visiting with Lady Catherine de Bourgh, she attracts a young nobleman. But, at the first hint of scandal, her guardian sends her to her uncle Collins’ rectory in Kent “where nothing ever happens”, in the hopes that her sensible cousin Alicia can help to tame Susan’s wild ways.
I found this to be a delightful Jane Austen fanfic, on par with Joan Aiken’s Jane Austen Sequels, and now I can’t wait to explore more of these Jane Austen Prequels!!
Worlds collide as familiar Austen characters are reintroduced—Frank Churchill, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, Darcy himself—but the mischievous and manipulative Susan is the star of this story. Fans of Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton and Joan Aiken’s Jane Austen Sequels will enjoy this classic Regency romance, the first in a six-book series.
I found this younger version of Susan more likable than the elder Lady Susan, though she still embodies the mischievous and scheming character she is written as. This also lends to the trickiness of her character—her allure and charm is deceptive, and is the main reason why she is such a “dangerous creature” as Lady Susan. Her moral compass doesn’t always point North, but her adventures were definitely fun to follow!
I would have personally preferred her to be written as more of the anti-heroine Jane Austen intended for her, but I appreciated the backstory given to her character and the attempt to show why she evolved into more of a villainess in her later life.
I loved how various characters were pulled from Austen’s works and woven into Susan’s story, suggesting that Jane Austen’s books may exist writhing the same universe (very much in the same style as Claudia Gray’s Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney series).
Thank you to the author for providing a Spotify Audio code for this book! I loved it!
Lady Susan + Love and Friendship
Lady Susan is an early novella written by Jane Austen that was only published after her death; Love and Friendship is one of her juvenilia stories. I combine them here because I always confuse them (thanks to the 2016 film!)
Lady Susan (posthumously published novella): written in letters, this story follows the widowed main character, Lady Susan Vernon, on her search to find a new husband for herself and a husband for her 16-year-old daughter, Frederica.
I find it interesting that Lady Susan is one of Austen’s only anti-heroes. Even Emma, who Jane wrote specifically as “a heroine whom no one but myself will much like”, has redeemable qualities, whereas Lady Susan’s mischievous schemes characterize her entirely. Throughout the story she is constantly plotting, saying one thing to someone and something else to others, and it makes her unlikeable and untrustworthy. She is tricky and charming, but discerning readers can see through her façade. Still, her plots and ploys are entertaining to follow — the book itself reminded me of modern reality TV: messy, dramatic, and pure entertainment! I honestly loved it!!
Love and Friendship (Juvenelia story): written in 15 installments, this short story is a parody of the romance novels Austen read as a child (as hinted by the undercutting subtitle “Deceived in Friendship and Betrayed in Love”). In form, the story resembles a fairy tale in featuring wild coincidences and turns of fortune, but Austen is determined to mock the conventions of romantic stories, from fainting spells to marriage. The story shows the development of Austen’s sharp wit and disdain for romantic sensibility, which is so characteristic of her writing style in later novels.
Love and Friendship (2016 movie): Love and Freindship is a film version of Lady Susan, borrowing only the title from Love and Freindship. Although adapted from Lady Susan, the film was confusingly produced under the borrowed title of Austen’s juvenile story Love and Freindship.
Similar Books:
Susan Alice by McVeigh
The Water Outlaws Book Tour
Inspired by a classic of martial arts literature, S. L. Huang’s The Water Outlaws are bandits of devastating ruthlessness, unseemly femininity, dangerous philosophies, and ungovernable gender who are ready to make history—or tear it apart.
In the jianghu, you break the law to make it your own.
Lin Chong is an expert arms instructor, training the Emperor’s soldiers in sword and truncheon, battle axe and spear, lance and crossbow. Unlike bolder friends who flirt with challenging the unequal hierarchies and values of Imperial society, she believes in keeping her head down and doing her job.
Until a powerful man with a vendetta rips that carefully-built life away.
Disgraced, tattooed as a criminal, and on the run from an Imperial Marshall who will stop at nothing to see her dead, Lin Chong is recruited by the Bandits of Liangshan. Mountain outlaws on the margins of society, the Liangshan Bandits proclaim a belief in justice—for women, for the downtrodden, for progressive thinkers a corrupt Empire would imprison or destroy. They’re also murderers, thieves, smugglers, and cutthroats.
Apart, they love like demons and fight like tigers. Together, they could bring down an empire.
Thank you to @tordotcompub and @storygramtours for sending me a copy of the book and teaming up with me for a great giveaway! Check out how to enter below:
GIVEAWAY
Enter to win a copy of The Water Outlaws:
TO ENTER
– follow me, @tordotcompub and @storygramtours
– tag a friend you think will be interested
For an EXTRA entry
– visit @zoranne_’s account tomorrow and repeat these steps
RULES
– Giveaway will end Aug 28th at midnight EST
– US ONLY
– must be a public account
– not affiliated with Instagram
#TheWaterOutlawsTour #TheWaterOutlaws #SLHuang #tordotcompub #storygramtours
The Poetics of Passion Review
I love anything with a bookish/artsy theme, and this poetess heroine/artist hero duo was a lot of fun!
This story takes place in Victorian London, with Musa, a romance poetess who writes anonymously under a secret pen name… until she suddenly finds herself without a publisher. Women authors had difficulty being taken seriously at that time in history, and without the security of her publisher, Musa worries she will no longer be able to support her family through her passion—writing.
Musa decides to try her hand at writing for children in the hopes that she can be published in a more respectable genre. She teams up with an illustrator for her book–only to discover that the artist is actually her secret pen pal (and biggest fan of her alter-ego’s erotic poetry books). Secrets and scandal drive the story forward, and create plenty of drama for the duo to navigate in this You’ve Got Mail-esque historical romance.
Our heroine takes on a lot of responsibility and burden in order to protect her family, and I found her to be a commendable, strong, and hard-working MC that readers can look up to. Though she basically leads a double life, I think she had some good intentions, and I still found her to be noble and well-meaning.
I enjoyed the buildup of the love story between Musa and Sebastian and thought the element of secrecy offered some depth to their journeys. They have a lot in common, more than they realize at first, and they made a really cute couple!
I really enjoyed the references to famous literature and art, though at times the dialogue felt a bit forced. Miscommunication was a heavily used trope throughout the story, and at points I was left wondering why characters were driven to their actions. Overall this book had a really charming premise, and I loved the historical tone.
This was a really solid debut and I would love to see more by this author in the future
MUST READ IF YOU LIKE:
•historical fiction
•stories about female authors
•enemy-to-lovers
•books about books
•poetry & art
Thank you to the author Delphine Ross for sending me an early copy of this book! I loved it!
MANDY'S READING LIST 