Tag: Book

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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

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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.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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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)

 Self-Made Boys (Great Gatsby)

 My Dear Henry (Jekyll & Hyde)

 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

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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

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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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

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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 

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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

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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!

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The Watsons by Jane Austen

The Watsons is one of Jane Austen’s two unfinished novels (the other being Sanditon). It is an abandoned fragment that is only about 7,500 words (or 80 pages), about a fifth of the length of her other novels. Though it is thought to be written around 1803 (and abandoned around 1805 after the death of her father), the fragment was given the title of The Watsons and published after her death in 1871 by the novelist’s nephew, James Edward Austen-Leigh.

The heroine of the story is the youngest daughter in the Watson family, Emma Watson. Our MC Emma enters the story after being sent back to her family’s humble country home after having spent her youth raised by a wealthy aunt, who did everything to support a fashionable education for Emma. Unfortunately for Emma, she is now much more well-bred than the rest of her family, who is no doubt meant to be the cause of hijinx in the story. The action starts at Emma’s first ball, where she makes herself likable from the start by showing kindness to a sad little boy (which also warms her to the boys’ family, who happens to include the wealthy Lord of the neighborhood).

Introduced early on are a few of the story’s supporting characters, which gives us a glimpse into where the plot might have been headed—a gossiping sister who introduces us to some minor drama, a sickly father, a gentleman who makes himself unlikeable pretty quickly, a gentleman who makes himself agreeable, and another gentleman who remains mysteriously aloof.

The fragment offers a promising start, and it is just too bad that Jane never got around to finishing the story. The novella ends here, but Jane’s sister Cassandra hinted at a possible ending that had been revealed: Emma is meant to ultimately marry Mr. Howard, after declining an offer from Lord Osborne! What a twist!

Fan Fiction to read if you liked The Watsons:

Fortunately, many authors over the years have written their own continuations of the fragment, though sadly none will ever live up to Jane herself. One particular Jane Austen Fan-Fic author who has earned my devotion is the infamous Joan Aiken—her interpretation “Emma Watson” is an attempt to finish what Jane started with “The Watsons”, and the book does it’s best to follow the intended plot arc (according to Janes sister and closest confidant, Cassandra).

Emma Watson: a Jane Austen Sequel by Joan Aiken

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Teach the Torches to Burn: A Romeo & Juliet Remixed Classic

“𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐮𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝. 𝐓𝐢𝐧𝐲 𝐦𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐬, 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞.” —𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐛 𝐑𝐨𝐞𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐠, 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧

𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧 is a retelling of Romeo and Juliet, with an LGBTQ+ twist.

This was the first Remixed Classic that I have read and I am in love with them already! Written by a diverse range of authors, each book reimagines and reinvents a literary classic, bringing a fresh new spin to beloved stories.

𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧 captures the original story of R&J with a fresh new lens, making this a great companion (or trade-up) to the original story. Told from Romeo’s POV, this remix gave depth to the overall story, brought such passion to his thoughts and feelings, and shed light on the choices he makes.

I loved how Romeo and Valentine came together, the drama that unfolded around them, and their love story! Juliet is in it ofc, but tbh I was expecting her to be a Julio (or something…rather than introducing Valentine as Romeos’ love interest) so that was the biggest change IMO—the story otherwise incorporates many elements from the original.

I am so excited to discover more Remixed Classics, and would love to add the whole series to my collection!

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)

 Self-Made Boys (Great Gatsby)

 My Dear Henry (Jekyll & Hyde)

 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 @netgalley for providing this audio ARC, and to @teatimeliterature for recommending this amazing series!

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House of Roots and Ruin Book Tour

House of Roots and Ruin by Erin A. Craig

In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed.

Annaleigh lives a sheltered life at Highmoor, a manor by the sea, with her sisters, their father, and stepmother. Once they were twelve, but loneliness fills the grand halls now that four of the girls’ lives have been cut short. Each death was more tragic than the last—the plague, a plummeting fall, a drowning, a slippery plunge—and there are whispers throughout the surrounding villages that the family is cursed by the gods.

Disturbed by a series of ghostly visions, Annaleigh becomes increasingly suspicious that the deaths were no accidents. Her sisters have been sneaking out every night to attend glittering balls, dancing until dawn in silk gowns and shimmering slippers, and Annaleigh isn’t sure whether to try to stop them or to join their forbidden trysts. Because who—or what—are they really dancing with?

When Annaleigh’s involvement with a mysterious stranger who has secrets of his own intensifies, it’s a race to unravel the darkness that has fallen over her family—before it claims her next.

Thank you to Turn The Page Tours for sending me copies of this series and including me on this amazing book tour!

Connect with Erin A. Craig on Instagram @penchant4words or visit her website erinacraig.com.

#turnthepagetours #horar #hosas #houseofrootsandruin #houseofsaltandsorrows #delacortepress #randomhousekids #erinacraig

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The Third Daughter Book Tour

A sweeping YA fantasy about legacy, betrayal, sisterhood, and politicizing emotion in the quest for power—all balanced by a slow-burn LGBTQ romance.
 
For centuries, the citizens of Velle have waited for their New Maiden to return. The prophecy states she will appear as the third daughter of a third daughter. When the fabled child is finally born to Velle’s reigning queen all rejoice except for Elodie, the queen’s eldest child, who has lost her claim to the crown. The only way for Elodie to protect Velle is to retake the throne. To do so, she must debilitate the Third Daughter—her youngest sister, Brianne.

Desperate, Elodie purchases a sleeping potion from Sabine, who sells sadness. But the apothecary mistakenly sends the princess away with a vial of tears instead of a harmless sleeping brew. Sabine’s sadness is dangerously powerful, and Brianne slips into a slumber from which she will not wake. With the fates of their families and country hanging in the balance, Sabine and Elodie hurry to revive the Third Daughter while a slow-burning attraction between the two girls erupts in full force.

A must-read for fans of the BookTok sensations Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard, Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson, and These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong. 

Thank you to @thenovl and @storygramtours for sending me a copy of the book.

#TheThirdDaughtertour #TheThirdDaughter #adriennetooley #thenovl #storygramtours

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