Hey, guys, I guess since we are pretty much all under a quarantine my brain as decided to give up on 2020 because as I was typing up the title I almost put March 2019 wrap up Hah! I hope everyone is staying safe in these scary and crazy times and that you are getting a lot of reading done!
Also, I want y’all to remember to keep an eye on your mental health state! If you are feeling stressed or filled with panic take a deep breath, hug your animals, maybe go for a walk around your block or on your balcony if you live in an apartment. Just remember that it’s all going to be ok and we’ll get through this!
Now here are my reading stats for the month of march:
This month I said I was going to read seven books and I accomplished that!
Yay me!
Of the seven book six were pyshical copies and one was a e-book.
Book One: Of Blood and Bone by Nora Roberts
From Goodreads:
The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the epic Year One returns with a new tale of terror and magic in a brand new world.
They look like an everyday family living an ordinary life. But beyond the edges of this peaceful farm, unimaginable forces of light and dark have been unleashed.
Fallon Swift, approaching her thirteenth birthday, barely knows the world that existed before—the city where her parents lived, now in ruins and reclaimed by nature since the Doom sickened and killed billions. Traveling anywhere is a danger, as vicious gangs of Raiders and fanatics called Purity Warriors search for their next victim. Those like Fallon, in possession of gifts, are hunted—and the time is coming when her true nature, her identity as The One, can no longer be hidden.
In a mysterious shelter in the forest, her training is about to begin under the guidance of Mallick, whose skills have been honed over centuries. She will learn the old ways of healing; study and spar; encounter faeries and elves and shifters; and find powers within herself she never imagined. And when the time is right, she will take up the sword, and fight. For until she grows into the woman she was born to be, the world outside will never be whole again.
Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Fiction, Romance
New read or reread? New read
Final Thoughts: 5 out of 5 stars!
Finished copy or ARC: Finished Copy
Physical copy or E-book: Physical Copy
Book Two: The Shadows Between Us by Tricia Levenseller
From Goodreads: Alessandra is tired of being overlooked, but she has a plan to gain power:
1) Woo the Shadow King.
2) Marry him.
3) Kill him and take his kingdom for herself.
No one knows the extent of the freshly crowned Shadow King’s power. Some say he can command the shadows that swirl around him to do his bidding. Others say they speak to him, whispering the thoughts of his enemies. Regardless, Alessandra knows what she deserves, and she’s going to do everything within her power to get it.
But Alessandra’s not the only one trying to kill the king. As attempts on his life are made, she finds herself trying to keep him alive long enough for him to make her his queen—all while struggling not to lose her heart. After all, who better for a Shadow King than a cunning, villainous queen?
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance
New read or reread? New Read
Final Thoughts: 5 out of 5 stars
Finished copy or ARC: ARC
Physical copy or E-book: Physical Copy
Review Link:https://lynnstidbits.home.blog/2020/03/30/book-review-the-shadows-between-us-by-tricia-levenseller/
Book Three: Horse Crazy: The Story of a Woman and a World in Love with an Animal by Sarah Maslin Nir
From Goodreads:
In the bestselling tradition of works by such authors as Susan Orlean and Mary Roach, a New York Times reporter and Pulitzer Prize finalist explores why so many people—including herself—are obsessed with horses.
It may surprise you to learn that there are over seven million horses in America—even more than when they were the only means of transportation—and nearly two million horse owners. Acclaimed journalist and avid equestrian Sarah Maslin Nir is one of them; she began riding horses when she was just two years old and hasn’t stopped since. Horse Crazy is a fascinating, funny, and moving love letter to these graceful animals and the people who—like her—are obsessed with them. It is also a coming-of-age story of Nir growing up an outsider within the world’s most elite inner circles, and finding her true north in horses.
Nir takes us into the lesser-known corners of the riding world and profiles some of its most captivating figures. We meet Monty Roberts, the California trainer whose prowess earned him the nickname “the man who listens to horses”; George and Ann Blair, the African-American husband and wife who run a riding academy for inner city youth on a tiny island in the middle of Manhattan’s East River; and Francesca Kelly, a wealthy London socialite whose love for an Indian nobleman shaped her life’s mission: to rescue an endangered Indian breed of horse and bring them—illegally—to America.
Woven into these compelling character studies, Nir shares her own moving personal narrative. She details her father’s harrowing tale of surviving the Holocaust, and describes an enchanted but deeply lonely upbringing in Manhattan, where horses became her family. She found them even in the middle of the city, in a stable disguised in an old townhouse and in Central Park, when she chased down truants as an auxiliary mounted patrol officer. And she speaks candidly of how horses have helped her overcome heartbreak and loss.
infused with heart and wit, and with each chapter named after a horse Nir has loved, Horse Crazy is an unforgettable blend of beautifully written memoir and first-rate reporting
Genre: NonFiction, Memoir
New read or reread? New Read
Final Thoughts: 4 out of 5 stars
Finished copy or ARC: ARC
Physical copy or E-book: E-book
Book Four: Percy Jackson and the Olympians
From Goodreads: All year the half-bloods have been preparing for battle against the Titans, knowing the odds are against them. Kronos is stronger than ever, and with every god and half-blood he recruits, his power only grows.
In this momentous final book in the “New York Times” best-selling series, the prophecy surrounding Percy’s sixteenth birthday unfolds. And as the battle for Western civilization rages on the streets of Manhattan, Percy faces a terrifying suspicion that he may be fighting against his own fate.
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy, Mythology
New read or reread? Reread
Final Thoughts: 5 out of 5 stars
Finished copy or ARC: Finished Copy
Physical copy or E-book: Physical Book
Book five: Dogfella: How an Abandoned Dog Named Bruno Turned This Mobster’s Life Around–A Memoir by James Guiliani, Charlie Stella
From Goodreads: How did a former mob enforcer become a compassionate advocate for animals in need of loving homes? How did his hardened heart open up to the plight of abused and abandoned pets?
James “Head” Guiliani was an unlikely candidate to become a passionate animal rescuer. Raised in a religious family in a blue-collar neighborhood, James became involved in street gangs at a young age. By his mid-twenties, he’d become a 6’2″ 250-pound enforcer for the Gambino crime family during the reign of infamous mob boss John Gotti. But after years of worsening alcohol and drug use and a stretch in the Riverhead Correctional Facility, James finally hit bottom.
It was then that he met Lena Perrelli, who helped turn his life around, providing the love and support he’d rejected in the past. And when the couple rescued an abandoned and abused shih tzu, the second phase of James’s salvation began. Lovingly named Bruno, the small dog opened the former enforcer’s hardened heart, and James discovered a new purpose in life as a devoted animal rescuer.
Dogfella tells how this one time altar boy from Queens became a gang member, a mob confidante, an an addict and convicted felon—and how he found redemption by dedicating his life to animals. Alongside his personal journey, James shares stories from his rescue missions with Keno’s Animal Rescue Shelter in Brooklyn: saving pit bulls from a dogfighting ring, driving through six-foot snow drifts to reach 200 cats stranded in a blizzard, taking in homeless ducks from Staten Island, and many more. Sometimes scary, sometimes funny, and often poignant, James’s story shows how the love of an animal can bring even the most hopeless cases a new purpose and a path to redemption.
Genre: Nonfiction, memoir, animals
New read or reread? New Read
Final Thoughts: unrated because I dnf’d it 20 pages in. planning on giving it another go in april!
Finished copy or ARC: Finished Copy
Physical copy or E-book: Physical Book
Book Six: Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
From Goodreads: The #1 New York Times-bestselling sequel to Leigh Bardugo’s thrilling Six of Crows.
When you can’t beat the odds, change the game.
Kaz Brekker and his crew have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn’t think they’d survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they’re right back to fighting for their lives. Double-crossed and badly weakened, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz’s cunning and test the team’s fragile loyalties. A war will be waged on the city’s dark and twisting streets—a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of the Grisha world.
Genre: Young adult, Fantasy,
New read or reread? New read
Final Thoughts: 5 out of 5 stars and I have started rereading it to my mom who is also loving it!
Finished copy or ARC: Finished Copy
Physical copy or E-book: Physical Book
Book seven: Walk on Earth A Stranger by Rae Carson
From Goodreads: The first book in a new trilogy from acclaimed New York Times–bestselling author Rae Carson. A young woman with the magical ability to sense the presence of gold must flee her home, taking her on a sweeping and dangerous journey across Gold Rush–era America. Walk on Earth a Stranger begins an epic saga from one of the finest writers of young adult literature.
Lee Westfall has a secret. She can sense the presence of gold in the world around her. Veins deep beneath the earth, pebbles in the river, nuggets dug up from the forest floor. The buzz of gold means warmth and life and home—until everything is ripped away by a man who wants to control her. Left with nothing, Lee disguises herself as a boy and takes to the trail across the country. Gold was discovered in California, and where else could such a magical girl find herself, find safety?
Rae Carson, author of the acclaimed Girl of Fire and Thorns series, dazzles with the first book in the Gold Seer Trilogy, introducing a strong heroine, a perilous road, a fantastical twist, and a slow-burning romance, as only she can.
Genre: Young adult, Fantasy, Historical Fiction
New read or reread? New read
Final Thoughts: 5 out of 5 stars
Finished copy or ARC: Finished Copy
Physical copy or E-book: Physical Book
I’m so happy that I managed to read seven books and I can’t wait to see what happens in april! So tell me in the comments did you manage to read everything you wanted to? did any book stand out more than others?
I really want to know!
I’ll see y’all in my April tbr post soon! Meanwhile I hope y’all stay happy and healthy! Bye for now Ciao!
Lynn's Tidbits 