First Impression Friday: “Carry On” by Rainbow Rowell

I've seen this book on the shelves in bookstores for years (it came out while I was still working at BAM), but I never bothered to open it. I heard a few things about it from people online as to how good it was, but honestly, I didn't like the cover and so I didn't …

First Impression Friday: “Gallant” by V.E. Schwab

Confession time: after the abysmal The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue, I thought about cancelling this pre-order so many times. (I'm seriously glad I borrowed Addie from the library instead of buying it outright!) However, I'm glad that I didn't, and I think I'm really going to enjoy this one. From GoodReads: Olivia Prior …

First Impression Friday: “Rule of Wolves” by Leigh Bardugo

I'm so behind on my reading goal for the year (GoodReads claims I'm only 4 books behind, but I feel so much further), but I finally finished the cross-stitch projects that I was working on and thought about picking up a book again. From GoodReads: The Demon King. As Fjerda's massive army prepares to invade, Nikolai …

First Impression Friday: “King of Scars” by Leigh Bardugo

You'll notice that we're jumping right from the Shadow and Bone trilogy to the King of Scars duology, but don't worry - I did actually read Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom in-between these. I've already read those two books, though, so they're not going to make it into the FIF/Book Review posts on this …

First Impression Friday: “Ruin and Rising” by Leigh Barudgo

Well, we've made it to the end of the series, and so far Mal hasn't died. From GoodReads: The capital has fallen.The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne.Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.Deep in an ancient network of …

First Impression Friday: “Siege and Storm” by Leigh Bardugo

I was shocked to find that Mal survived the ending of Shadow and Bone, but I'm sure that every page I turn in Siege and Storm brings him closer to Alina's eventual downfall. From GoodReads: Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a …

First Impression Friday: “Shadow and Bone” by Leigh Bardugo

I accidentally read Six of Crows first, and didn't realize it was actually the second series set in the Grishaverse, so I'm out to right my wrongs. From GoodReads: Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters …

First Impression Friday: “The Hidden Palace” by Helene Wecker

I've been trying to read this book for like four months, and every time I get it checked out from the library I forget about it so it gets auto-returned and then I have to get back on the waiting list and I finally, finally have some time to just sit down and read it …

First Impression Friday: “Anxious People” by Fredrik Backman

A few years ago I picked up My Grandmother Told Me To Tell You She's Sorry by Fredrik Backman, and I enjoyed it so much that I tried A Man Called Ove next, but I read the first chapter and had to put the book down, because there was absolutely nothing in the world that …

First Impression Friday: “A Master of Djinn” by P. Djèlí Clark

I have a terrible habit of checking books out from the library and then forgetting about them until I get a Libby notification that they're due back in three days. So here's the next book I'm reading before it's due back (and I can't extend it, because other people have it on hold). From GoodReads: …