March Wrap Up!

Hello, Internet! A lot of people love spring because it’s just starting to get nice outside (at least that’s how it is here in the States—I’m not sure if I’m supposed to capitalize that. Oh well) and it's almost shorts season (unless you’re one of the guys who goes to my school who wears shorts year round, no matter the weather). But I’ll let you in on something: I. Hate. Spring.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the idea of it getting less chilly and flowers blooming. It’s the prime season for photography, next to autumn. But I live in the midwest, which means spring consists of 80+ degree fahrenheit weather one day, and literally snowing the next (I’m not even kidding—that’s a thing that happened). Thanks, global warming.

I mean, I stay inside most of the time anyway, but on the rare occasion that I do go outside, it’s awful. Another thing: I’m not ready for legging and jean season to be over. Nuh uh, no siree. Fun fact: my foundation shade is the lightest color that Clinique had available. It’s called linen.

So, needless to say, I’m as pale as a sheet. If you took me outside on a sunny day, I would glow.

But, all the ever changing weather meant that I did a whole lot of staying inside and reading, which was really nice. I read seven books this month, and I’m currently working on the eighth, but I doubt that I’ll finish it in time. So let’s get to it, ladies and gents!

The first book I finished this month was Parallel by Lauren Miller. Free to Fall was so good that I decided to read another one of her books. This is a story about a girl who’s carefully detailed life plans have taken a complete U-turn. Instead of going to Northwestern and becoming a journalist, she finds herself on a Hollywood movie set. Then suddenly, she wakes up the day after her birthday in a Yale dorm room, with no memory of how she got there. This was the result of a collision of parallel universes that leaves her shaken and scared. I’ve been interested in books about parallel universes before, but it’s a risky subject (much like time travel) because if you don’t do it the right way, nothing makes sense and it leaves the reader feeling confused. But Lauren Miller explained it perfectly and logically—with science! And in pretty simple terms, too. I wasn’t left wondering how it was even possible because it was explained well, so I knew what was going on. I really enjoyed this books. It was quick and interesting, and I recommend it.

The next book I read was Saving Hamlet by Molly Booth. I saw this book in a local bookstore in Frisco, Colorado (It’s called Next Page, you should check it out if you live there or are visiting. It’s not a chain bookstore, so you’d be supporting a local business, which is really good!) I picked it up and started reading it this month, and it was so fun! It’s about a girl named Emma who, while working on the set of her school’s production of Hamlet, falls through a trapdoor and lands in the basement of the Globe Theatre in 1601, London, where she’s mistaken as a boy and made their backstage assistant. As Emma switches between worlds, she wonders how she’ll be able to deal with the drama going on in her real life and her life at the Globe. This book was so fun and amazing, I can’t even begin to tell you. It was a really entertaining concept which I thoroughly enjoyed, so go check this one out!

Next up is Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken. I went to an author meet and greet at my library the week of the release, and I swear that Alexandra Bracken is the nicest human being to ever walk the planet! She was so kind and funny, and it was super fun getting to meet her. Anyway, at the time I was already reading quite a few books, so I didn’t get around to reading this one until now. And all I can say is wow. This duology was such a poetic series, and it was just so well written. I mentioned earlier that it’s difficult to write about concepts like time travel and parallel worlds, but like Lauren Miller, Alexandra Bracken wrote it perfectly. She used magic as the basis of the reason why time travel existed, but she made sure that it had its limits. This conclusion was so good and so beautiful. Go check out the Passenger series, because it’s something new and unique amongst a lot of similar books.

Next, we have The Wrath & The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh. I had been meaning to read this for a while, and while I was on spring break, I picked it up and finished it in a day. It was that good. The Wrath & The Dawn is kind of a retelling of One Thousand and One Nights, but with a little twist. In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king (Khalid) who takes on a wife with each new dawn, our main character, Shahrzad, wants revenge on the king who took her best friend’s life. She volunteers to be his next wife, and not only intends to live until the next dawn, but put an end to Khalid’s rule as well. Night after night she spins stories that are so enchanting, they ensure her survival. But night after night, she begins to realize some things about the caliph. This book was insanely good. It wasn’t a mushy gushy type of romance novel, like a lot of the ones I’ve read before. Instead, it was a slowly (but sweetly) developed romance that was beautiful in so many ways. I also love that Shahrzad isn’t just a scared girl who just wants to live another day. Instead, she’s a powerful woman who knows what she wants. I really, really recommend it.

Next, we have The Program series by Suzanne Young, and I did a series review for that so you can go check that out here!

The next book I read this month was Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon. I know that the movie is coming out sometime soon, so I wanted to read the book before I watched the movie, and I’m so glad I did! I have never read a book with this type of concept before, but I really enjoyed it. Maddy has a rare disease that prevents her from going outside, ever. Her life is sheltered, but she’s okay with it. She’s fine with never going outside and living the life she would have without the disease. Until Olly comes along. Olly shows her the world outside her house, and she now longs to go out and see it. But the question is, would she rather die living the life she always wanted, or live not knowing what the world was like? This book went so beyond my expectations, and I loved it so much. Go check it out, it’s really good.

Theeeen we have King’s Cage by Victoria Aveyard. This is the third installment of the Red Queen trilogy, and I really liked it. I’ve been waiting for quite some time, and I was not disappointed! I’m not going to add a synopsis, because spoilers, but I’ll tell you to go read the Red Queen series if you’re in the mood for a dystopian/fantasy-ish novel!

Finally, the last book I read in the month of March was All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven.

I think I’m broken now.

Seriously though, this book made me cry for a good fifteen minutes. It was so beautiful and well written and addressed topics that are really important to talk about. It’s told in alternating points of view, between two people who are struggling to find something worth living for. I loved it so much, and if you’re a fan of teen fiction books that deal with some heavier things, you should go check this one out.

And that is all I have for today, my lovelies! I will see you later in another blog post! Thanks for reading,
-Ari