Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
How it works:
She assigns each Tuesday a topic and then posts her top ten list that fits that topic. You’re more than welcome to join her and create your own top ten (or 2, 5, 20, etc.) list as well. Feel free to put a unique spin on the topic to make it work for you! Please link back to That Artsy Reader Girl in your own post so that others know where to find more information.
Only queens with hearts can bleed. And those who flirt with evil are the most heartless of them all.
Fairest by Sophia Zaccaria
I have a soft spot for villains’. I always wonder what their backstories are and what caused them to become the bad guy. So, when I read the blurb for Fairest, I knew that I needed to read it. It is not very often where the origins of the Evil Queen from Snow White are explored!! I am glad that I did because this book had me glued to the pages.
Fairest tells the story of Alina (aka Natasha) and her rise/eventual metamorphosis to the Evil Queen. It was a sad but fascinating tale. Starting with the death of her best friend and the discovery of her magic and ending with her mirror, it was a fantastic read.
Fairest is set in Russia and the fictional country of Velaris. It wasn’t stated where in Russia Alina was from, but I figured it was probably closer to St. Petersburg. There is a lot of Russian language in this book. But the author did include a Russian Dictionary at the end of the book, which helped me a ton (I also used my translate button on my Kindle).
Alina was an interesting character to read. Everything she did during the first half of the book was to protect herself and her heart. But once her younger brother died, that is when everything (including herself) changed.
The main storyline, Alina and her powers, was very well written. I hated to see how Alina realized she had powers and what caused them to manifest. I liked seeing her master her powers and by the end of the book, what she did with people who cheesed her off was very interesting.
There was a romance angle to the book. I disagreed with Alina and Cole becoming romantically entangled. They were too dysfunctional together. I wish that the author had stuck with Alina/Mikhail’s romance. They were good together. Mikhail was good for Alina.
There were exciting references to Snow White sprinkled throughout the book. There was a reference regarding Cole and Snow White, which made me go, “Hmmmm.” There was an interesting reference to The Brothers Grimm, which also made me go, “Hmmmm.” I can’t wait to see if the author will bring up either of these references in the second book!!
There were things I didn’t like about Fairest. I wouldn’t say I liked that there were multiple POVs. If the author had stuck to Alina and Cole’s POV, I would have been fine. But there were POVs from characters that disappeared from the book. Also, I wouldn’t say I liked how it switched from 3rd person to 1st person and then back.
I did not expect what happened at the end of the book. There was a huge plot twist that involved Alina and her mother. Talk about shocking. I am hoping that the next book explores what was revealed.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? a place to meet up and share what you have been, and are about to be reading over the week. It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment and er… add to your groaning TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started on J Kaye’s blog and then was hosted by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at The Book Date.
Jen Vincent, Teach Mentor Texts, and Kellee of Unleashing Readers decided to give It’s Monday! a kid-litfocus. If you read and review books in children’s literature – picture books, chapter books, middle-grade novels, young adult novels, or anything in those genres – join them.
Happy Monday (well, as happy as a Monday can be…lol) everyone and I hope you all had a great weekend!!
Our weekend was laidback but not as laidback as it was last weekend. It was still hot and humid. But it also rained off and on all weekend. Actually, the rain is supposed to last all week. I am not complaining. After almost a month and a half with no rain, it is welcome. At least when we mow the grass, it won’t come back up as dust
The kittens’ mom got spayed on Thursday. I felt awful for her because when she was all sort of drugged up when we got her back. She didn’t meow the entire ride home (she cried the entire ride to the vet). I talk to the transport on Wednesday and on Friday, she will be transported to NJ and her new life.
The kittens got for their 3-month appointment tomorrow. They get their shots and I am going to have the vet look at Loki’s tail (I believe it has been broken previous to us taking him in). I am also hoping that I get the go-ahead to get them neutered. Our Humane Society has a program where you can get your kitten spayed/neutered with a microchip for $40.
Miss R got her teacher assignment last week as well as when Open House is going to be. I have never heard of her teacher and am curious to see how Miss R is going to like her.
Mr. Z got his teacher assignments through PowerSchool last week. He is in advanced math (NC Math 1) and advanced ELA. But, he isn’t thrilled that he has PE first period (at 8am). His Open House is being done differently this year. They are doing a drive-through Open House. During that, he will get his Chromebook, schedule, and meet his teachers.
Miss B, on the other hand, has to wait until Wednesday to find out her schedule. She is a little irritated by that. She let the principal know last week when we went to the school to pick up her school certificate (she needs one to get her learner’s permit). He laughed and apologized to her. The great thing about being in a small school, everyone knows the kids. Her Open House is the same day as Miss R and Mr. Z’s, but just a little later in the day.
I haven’t read anything since last Wednesday. I have gotten into playing ESO and building up a dark elf dragon knight (stamina build). But, I did work on the blog. I edited several posts. I fixed images and links. I added in information.
I am behind 1 review, which was supposed to be published last week. I am hoping to finish that book up soon and start on the other 3 books on my Currently Reading list.
What I am Reading Now:
I was a little off with what I said last week about Fairest. I was under the impression, from what I read, that this was going to be a retelling of Snow White. It isn’t. Instead, which I thought was a neat spin, it is about what happened after Snow White ended. I stopped reading right after Mikhail dropped that bomb and I can’t wait to see where this story is going to go.
What I plan on reading this week:
This is a repeat of last week. I am really hoping to get at least two of these books read this week.
What are you currently reading? What did you recently finish reading? What do you think you’ll read next?
What I Recently Finished Reading:
I had a hard time finishing this book. My formatting was messed up and the paragraphs all ran together until almost the end, then it morphed into paragraphs. So, that meant that I had to take my time when reading it. I also had a hard time finding the book. The author changed the name from Cypress Lake to Sip Lake. When I couldn’t find it on Goodreads, I googled it and found a forum with the author addressing it.
What I am currently reading:
I am almost done with Fairest. Actually, Goodreads marked me as finished but I am 75% done. It is an interesting take on the Snow White/Evil Queen fairy tale. I feel awful for Alina (for some reason, she is called Natasha in theblurb) and I can’t wait to see where this story goes. I also loved the Russian angle too!!
What books I think I’ll read next:
There is little change from my IMWAYR post. Still a whole bunch of ARCs. I am hoping to get these read by next Monday. They all look like fast books but I could be wrong.
It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? a place to meet up and share what you have been, and are about to be reading over the week. It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment and er… add to your groaning TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started on J Kaye’s blog and then was hosted by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at The Book Date.
Jen Vincent, Teach Mentor Texts, and Kellee of Unleashing Readers decided to give It’s Monday! a kid-litfocus. If you read and review books in children’s literature – picture books, chapter books, middle-grade novels, young adult novels, or anything in those genres – join them.
Happy Monday (well, as happy as a Monday can be…lol) everyone and I hope you all had a great weekend!!
We had another hot, but laidback, weekend. It’s too hot and humid out to do anything outside (the humiditytoday is96% and was similar over the weekend). We ended up watching the Olympics, eating homemade Chinese food, and just enjoying the AC.
Loki and Jesper’s mom had her vet appointment last week. She is around 2 years old, which surprised us because we thought she was younger. She was negative for feline leukemia, FIV, and heartworms which was another huge relief. She had a laceration on her back paw but it was healing, so the vet didn’t do anything but give her an antibiotic shot. She was underweight (barely 6lbs) but it wasn’t because of worms (she didn’t have any). It was because she was starving (well until we started feeding her). She got her vaccines and I dropped her off at her temporary foster (agood friend of mine). She gets spayed this coming Thursday and my friend will keep her until August 20th. That’s when she will be transported to New Jersey to the rescue who will put her up for adoption.
We are in the home stretch before school starts. I am waiting on Miss R’s teacher assignment and paperwork for Mr.Z. I need to turn those in at Open House in order to get his schedule. Miss B, on the other, will get her schedule two ways. One way is through PowerSchool and the other way is through her Open House. I also still have yet to buy school supplies. The supply list for 2nd grade is short (3 things) and 8th grade only has the basics (we have to seewhat the individual teachers want). 10th grade, nothing has been posted.
I have read 3 books since Wednesday. I got stuck on Sip Lake and struggled to read it. But, I powered through!!
I am still behind on writing my reviews. I wrote 2 over the weekend (which I never do) and I have 3 more to write….sigh. I meant to write 2 of those yesterday but I decided to watch Infinity War and End Game back to back followed by the ending ceremonies of the Olympics.
What I am Reading Now:
I started reading Fairest last night. I only got through the prologue but it has me wanting more!! If you couldn’t tell from the blurb, this is a Snow White retelling from the Evil Queen’s POV. I have read only one other book (Forest of a Thousand Lanterns) written from her POV and I loved it!! So can’t wait to read how this story will be.
What I plan on reading this week:
This week is all about the ARCs from NetGalley and I am hoping to cut down on that pile…sigh. I always go overboard with them. Thankfully, the books that I am reading are by authors I have already read before or I have seen good reviews for.
t’s Monday! What Are You Reading? a place to meet up and share what you have been, and are about to be reading over the week. It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment and er… add to your groaning TBR pile! So welcome in everyone. This meme started on J Kaye’s blog and then was hosted by Sheila from Book Journey. Sheila then passed it on to Kathryn at The Book Date.
Jen Vincent, Teach Mentor Texts, and Kellee of Unleashing Readers decided to give It’s Monday! a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children’s literature – picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels or anything in those genres – join them.
Happy Monday (well, as happy as a Monday can be…lol) everyone and I hope you all had a great weekend!!
This weekend was kind of laid-back for us. It was super hot on Friday. The temp was 96 with the real feel temp being 106. Miss R did have her horseback riding lessons but the lesson was shortened and the instructor asked for it to be earlier in the day (when it was more cooler).
Saturday, we hit Sam’s Club. Our pandemic supply of toilet paper and paper towels had finally been demolished (before the pandemic hit, I accidentally bought two things each of toilet paper and paper towels) and we needed more. Of course, once you’re there, you can’t just buy what you came for. We ended up with baguettes, a huge thing of grill spice, an 80 pack of water on top of the tp/paper towels. Then we came home and hibernated (aka watchedthe Olympics all day).
Sunday was a bit cooler. Miss B had her final 2 hours of driving (she drove highway and did fantastic!!). She completed the course and now we are waiting for September to roll around to get her permit (the DMV here isscheduling Teen 1 testing a month out). Then, she’s driving. Other than that, we relaxed.
We take Mama Cat (or Sarah, the rescue named her) to the vet tomorrow. It has been very stressful. I worried because of the heat (we opened our outdoor storage to help her cool down) and I currently worry because I’m afraid she’ll disappear. I also took out the cat carrier and found out that she is very food orientated. She likes treats and went right into the carrier when I placed treats in it. So, hopefully (knock on wood), I will have no issues with crating her tomorrow. After she is spayed and gotten shots, she is going to a friend of mine for temporary fostering. Then, when I get the email from the rescue, I take her to the transport and she goes off to her new life!!!
I finished 5 books last week which is really good for me. I am hoping to read 5 more this week also.
I have been writing books reviews like a madwoman. But, you guys have only seen two of them….lol. Even with me busting my butt writing, I am still behind 3 reviews….sigh.