[SERIES REREAD] Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan

 

Rating: ★★★★☆ 4.5 stars

Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy, Mythology

Trigger warnings: violence, death

“Twelve-year-old Percy Jackson is on the most dangerous quest of his life. With the help of a satyr and a daughter of Athena, Percy must journey across the United States to catch a thief who has stolen the original weapon of mass destruction — Zeus’ master bolt. Along the way, he must face a host of mythological enemies determined to stop him. Most of all, he must come to terms with a father he has never known, and an Oracle that has warned him of betrayal by a friend.” (Summary of the first book, The Lightning Thief)

In response to the announcement for a Disney+ series, and also for nostalgia’s sake, I decided to reread Percy Jackson and the Olympians! It’s been a while since I’ve read any of Rick Riordan’s books and I plan to also reread The Heroes of Olympus and start The Trials of Apollo. I don’t read any middle grade books anymore but this series has such a big place in my heart because it’s the series that got me into reading in the first place! I absolutely adore all the characters and the themes throughout this series (and those after it as well). I decided that I wouldn’t focus much on Riordan’s writing style (since it’s written for middle grade readers) and rather focus on the characters, their development and interactions with one another, and themes present. 

[ARC] The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart

 

Rating: ★★★★☆ 4.25 stars

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, LGBT

Trigger warnings: violence 

“The emperor's reign has lasted for decades, his mastery of bone shard magic powering the animal-like constructs that maintain law and order. But now his rule is failing, and revolution is sweeping across the Empire's many islands.

Lin is the emperor's daughter and spends her days trapped in a palace of locked doors and dark secrets. When her father refuses to recognise her as heir to the throne, she vows to prove her worth by mastering the forbidden art of bone shard magic.

Yet such power carries a great cost, and when the revolution reaches the gates of the palace, Lin must decide how far she is willing to go to claim her birthright - and save her people.” 

*Thank you Goodreads for this ARC!

[BOOK REVIEW] The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Rating: ★★★★★ 5 stars

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Mythology

Trigger warnings: war themes, slavery, rape, character death, human sacrificing

“Greece in the age of heroes. Patroclus, an awkward young prince, has been exiled to the court of King Peleus and his perfect son Achilles. By all rights their paths should never cross, but Achilles takes the shamed prince as his friend, and as they grow into young men skilled in the arts of war and medicine their bond blossoms into something deeper - despite the displeasure of Achilles' mother Thetis, a cruel sea goddess. But then word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped. Torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus journeys with Achilles to Troy, little knowing that the years that follow will test everything they hold dear.”

[BOOK REVIEW] On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

Rating: ★★★★☆ 4.25 Stars

Genre: Fiction, LGBT

Trigger warnings: bullying, abuse, drug addiction, mental illness, homophobia

“A letter from a son to a mother who cannot read. Written when the speaker, Little Dog, is in his late twenties, the letter unearths a family's history that began before he was born — a history whose epicenter is rooted in Vietnam — and serves as a doorway into parts of his life his mother has never known, all of it leading to an unforgettable revelation.”

[BOOK REVIEW] Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

Rating: ★★★★☆ 4.25 stars

Genres: Contemporary, Fiction

Trigger warnings: depression, implied suicide

“Lydia is the favorite child of Marilyn and James Lee, and her parents are determined that she will fulfill the dreams they were unable to pursue. But when Lydia’s body is found in the local lake, the delicate balancing act that has been keeping the Lee family together is destroyed, tumbling them into chaos.”

August 2020 TBR

Hello again! I hope everyone’s July went well! I finally finished summer school, so I think I’ll be able to read more books this month (and actually get through my TBR for once). I don’t have a lot of new reads planned for this month since I’m going to reread a couple of my favorite series! The (only) new read this month will be a book I’ll be buddy-reading with a friend! I just hope to relax and read some nostalgic books this month :D

Here are the books I plan to read this month!

Books Mentioned:

This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Percy Jackson & the Olympians Series by Rick Riordan

Saga Vol. 1-9 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples

July 2020 Wrap-Up

Hello it's been a while! Although I only got through half of this month’s TBR, I managed to finish 4 books and 3 volumes of a graphic novel! I sort of fell into a reading slump mid-July (and perhaps got distracted by video games again…). Nevertheless I found two new favorite books and branched out of my comfort zone to read some contemporaries! While I do enjoy some of the contemporary genre, I realized it takes me forever to get through these books compared to fantasy books. I still plan to read more contemporaries in the future, but ] I probably won’t read more than two in a single month.

Here are the books I read in the month of July!

Books Mentioned:

The Wicked + The Divine Volumes 2, 3, & 4 by Keiron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

*this was written before I wrote a full book review for each one, so I apologize in advance if I don’t have too much to say or if some thoughts are incoherent!