top ten tuesday #1 unpopular bookish opinions

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:

I assign each Tuesday a topic and then post my top ten list that fits that topic. You’re more than welcome to join me 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.

http://www.theartsyreadergirl.com

So I decided to partake in the Top Ten Tuesday meme since all I’ve been doing are reviews so why not something different for my book blog!

Today’s topics are ten unpopular bookish opinions and I feel like I have the same opinions as everyone else which makes it not really unpopular but why not make a list! If you share some of the same opinions then comment below!

Love Triangles

I actually like love triangles! But only done right lol. I don’t like love triangles where the main character is wishy washy and feels like they must pick between two people. I don’t know, I feel like a good love triangle can spice up a story a bit or add some seasoning to it.

Hardback > Paperbacks

I only say this because it’s aesthically pleasing to my eyes. For reading purposes, paperbacks all the way!

E-readers are underrated

Probably 98% of the books I read from my phone and the other 2% are actual physical copies.

Vampires and werewolves

Honestly, I kind of miss this trend. I feel like it’s been years since the vampire and werewolf era and I think we should bring it back.

Books with fae

People are saying faeries are the new vampires because of Sarah J. Maas and Holly Black books since they’re so popular and now they don’t want to read them. I agree that faeries are starting to be more popular but I’m not tired of them. I actually love the faery trend.

The Iron Fey series

The reason I love faeries is because of this series and I read these books a long time ago and they are popular, during their time but I feel like people have forgotten about this great series. I don’t know in case you haven’t read it, please read the Iron King by Julie Kagawa

The assassin trope is overrated

There I said it. If there’s one trope that’s been over used a lot and I’m quite seek of seeing is when the main character is an assassin.

Colored pages are tacky.

Yes, I said it. I think the colored pages on the side of books or whatever are tacky, extra, and unnecessary.

Sarah J. Maas is a trendsetter.

Ever since the Throne of Glass and A Court of Thrones and Roses became hyped, there’s so many books in a way kind of mimic her books. The Beauty and the Beast retelling, faeries, assassins, or whatever. I really believe anything Sarah J. Maas puts out whether it’s anything about dinosaurs, time travel, or even vampire mermaids, she’s going to start a trend.

The “strong bada–” female character

This one needs a whole post on it’s own because I believe we all need to redefine what makes a character “strong” and “bada–“. In my opinion, being the most powerful person in the series and beating up everyone does not equal to being strong.

What are your unpopular book opinions?

Thanks for reading! đź’›

if i’m being honest by emily wibberly and austin siegemund-broka

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I’m going to try to keep this review short and to the point since I don’t really have much to say about this book.

This book was very underwhelming to me.

I was drawn to he synopsis because I’m a sucker for a mean girls story and I admit, I can be one since I can be so honest and blunt. What I liked about Cameron was that she owned up to who she was, even her ugly side she still acknowledged it and that she still stayed true to herself but still learned her lessons. Even though I liked Cameron, it was hard to get attached to her and the other characters. Anything that happened to them, I wouldn’t even care.

For a book that’s 400+ pages, this was a really quick read to me and I was expecting some more drama and angst in this book and maybe just a little bit dark since this is from the point of view from a mean girl. Honestly, I felt like this book should’ve been more compacted. It was read more like those cute quick contemporary reads.

The romance was okay but I think Cameron and Brendan should’ve been friends longer because it felt like Cameron abandoned her mission a little too quickly to win over her crush.

I also wish the author would detail the aftermath of Cameron’s relationship with her parents. I really wanted to know if her dad ever tried to reach out or something, I needed some closure with both her parents since they were honestly the root of her problems and the author didn’t really mention them towards the end.

To conclude this review, even though I enjoyed If I’m Being Honest, I was very underwhelmed even though I had low expectations. Also I liked the message this book sent out about accepting yourself and not compromising yourself for others.

I rate this book 3.5 stars!

Thanks for reading!

High school senior Cameron Bright’s reputation can be summed up in one word: bitch. It’s no surprise she’s queen bee at her private L.A. high school—she’s beautiful, talented, and notorious for her cutting and brutal honesty. So when she puts her foot in her mouth in front of her crush, Andrew, she fears she may have lost him for good. 

In an attempt to win him over, Cameron resolves to “tame” herself, much like Katherine in Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. First, she’ll have to make amends with those she’s wronged, which leads her to Brendan, the guy she labelled with an unfortunate nickname back in the sixth grade. At first, Brendan isn’t all that receptive to Cameron’s ploy. But slowly, he warms up to her when they connect over the computer game he’s developing. Now if only Andrew would notice…

But the closer Cameron gets to Brendan, the more she sees he appreciates her personality—honesty and all—and wonders if she’s compromising who she is for the guy she doesn’t even want.

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opposite of always by justin a. reynolds

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“The things is, you don’t forfeit your whole world to prove your feelings to someone. You bring your worlds together. You get more world, not less.”

Opposite of Always

Where do I even start with this book?

The reason I picked up this book was first the cover, because I loved the art. Second, because the synopsis sounded so unfortunate (and I try to stray from tragedies) that I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

This book made me so sad and happy at the same time because you want to root for Jack so bad but you and even nor Jack can do anything about it because what’s meant to be is what meant to be.

To summarize Opposite of Always, this book is basically about this super cool and funny kid name Jack who meets a girl at a party named Kate and they hit it off. Unfortunately she dies from sickness and Jack gets a chance to time travel back in time to relive the first couple months knowing Kate all over again and having the chance to save her.

Jack is a precious soul that must be protected. Jack has good intentions for everyone but it sucks when he tries to help someone but that action hurts someone else and it just breaks my heart seeing Jack trying to juggle his friendships, family, and his relationship with Kate.

Plus his humor is everything. I wish I was as snarky and funny as Jack because the stuff he says should be hung on a T-shirt and I love his relationship with his friends and parents and it just feels so refreshing to see parents that are THERE in this book.

The ending frustrated me so much because it was the type of ending that was open to your interpretation but I don’t want to decide what happens, I want to know if (minor spoiler) Jack gets his normal life back and stop time traveling but I guess that’s what makes it sadder because Jack possibly won’t turn back until he learns what lessons he needs to learn. SO FRUSTRATING! It didn’t end on a bad note because in a way Jack is happy in the end, but not the kind of happy you know he deserves. It ended more in a pitying note.

I give this a rating of 4.5 stars only because that ending frustrated me but other than that I enjoyed it so much!

Thank you for reading!

Jack Ellison King. King of Almost.

He almost made valedictorian.

He almost made varsity.

He almost got the girl . . . 

When Jack and Kate meet at a party, bonding until sunrise over their mutual love of Froot Loops and their favorite flicks, Jack knows he’s falling—hard. Soon she’s meeting his best friends, Jillian and Franny, and Kate wins them over as easily as she did Jack. Jack’s curse of almost is finally over.

But this love story is . . . complicated. It is an almost happily ever after. Because Kate dies. And their story should end there. Yet Kate’s death sends Jack back to the beginning, the moment they first meet, and Kate’s there again. Beautiful, radiant Kate. Healthy, happy, and charming as ever. Jack isn’t sure if he’s losing his mind. Still, if he has a chance to prevent Kate’s death, he’ll take it. Even if that means believing in time travel. However, Jack will learn that his actions are not without consequences. And when one choice turns deadly for someone else close to him, he has to figure out what he’s willing to do—and let go—to save the people he loves.

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june tbr

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Hellooooooooooo everyone! This is my tbr post for June and really I don’t have many books I want to read in the month of June but my goal as always is to read five books a month and I started working at IHOP too so I’m not going to have as much reading time as usual but I will still try my best to squeeze in some reading time. I also want to start doing tags and memes on my blog but I have no idea what. If you guys have any suggestions I would love to know but here two books I’m interested in reading this month.

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I’m pretty sure I won’t be 100% committed to my tbr because my taste in book changes all the time but I will try my best to stick with my TBR.

ALSO HAPPY PRIDE MONTH EVERYONE!

Thank you for reading!

we hunt the flame by hafsah faizal

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I went into this book with a little to no knowledge of what this story was about. All I knew was there was a girl pretending to be a guy, a prince, and Arabic influence. So I was already sold because I’m already trash for a good book based on Arabic culture such as The Forbidden Wish and The Wrath of the Dawn and I’m a slut for the “girl pretending to be a guy” trope so I was sold already I didn’t even need to read the whole synopsis. Plus, someone even said if you liked Aladdin then you’ll end this story so I’m here expecting an Aladdin story but gender-reversed and instead of Jasmine being a princess, she’s a poor girl who pretends to be a boy and steals and helps the poor. This what I was actually hoping this what this story was about.

Boy was I wrong.

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay wrong.

Instead this book was about a girl who pretends to be a boy who hunts in a magical forest for her starving village and she’s known famously at “The Hunter”. A witch convinces her to help restore magic to their kingdom by shipping her off to this island to find this book but there’s an assassin, also a prince known infamously as “The Prince of Death”, who’s sent to kill “The Hunter” and retrieve the book and then stuff happens from there.

Honestly I’m pretty sad it wasn’t what I thought it was lol but the author did tell a good story but there was so much issues I had with this book.

The pacing was so weird. The first quarter of the book was so slow and boring and it was so hard to get into the story that I keep getting distracted by other things. It starts getting interesting right when Zafira (The Hunter) goes on her journey and this book had both Nasir (The prince) and Zafira POV and I was getting excited when Nasir was set on his mission to kill her but that excitement quickly faded away as I continued reading on the book because this characters literally don’t do anything majority of this book until the end and then there’s that cliffhanger.

The plot twists the author threw in this book were really underwhelming. It wasn’t predictable, it’s just when certain information were reveal, it didn’t make me gasp and clench my pearls, like that cliffhanger in the end.

If there was a campaign for the president of brooding men, I would vote for Nasir because I swear this guy can be so depressing and dark to read and he gets kind of repetitive at times. I’m glad we had Altair in the story because his humor not only got Nasir through tough times but me through this book, he was honestly my favorite character in this book and the only character that really shined in this book.

I honestly think this book was more centered towards the character than the plot since majority of the book the characters didn’t do anything and I find Benyamin (or however you spell his name) and the girl (whatever her name is) so random because they came out of no where and I don’t exactly know how they even came into the story and what were their purpose in this story. I really wished we could’ve seen more character development with the girl because she was honestly this warrior princess with no personality and I wish her and Zafira had some type of friendship or showed some girl power.

I’m also a little disappointed in the romance. It wasn’t insta-love but I was really hoping for some enemies-to-lovers vibes and we barely got any and I really couldn’t tell why they like each other except the fact they’re attracted to each other.

What really bugged me was SHE WASN’T EVEN A DUDE FOR THE MAJORITY OF THE BOOK! I was looking forward to that the most and plus basically everyone already knew she was girl so I’m here in confusion as to what was the point of her disguise???? Like I know the message this book sends on feminism but I was really looking forward to the “girl disguised as guy” trope and love interest questioning his sexuality (I’m going to assume homosexuality is a taboo in the story since it’s based on Arabic culture).

I think my expectations kind of got in the way of the book but honestly the author did tell a good story and I did enjoy reading it. I will be looking forward to the second book. This review was a big expection vs reality.

I rate this book three stars!

Thanks for reading!


People lived because she killed.
People died because he lived.

Zafira is the Hunter, disguising herself as a man when she braves the cursed forest of the Arz to feed her people. Nasir is the Prince of Death, assassinating those foolish enough to defy his autocratic father, the king. If Zafira was exposed as a girl, all of her achievements would be rejected; if Nasir displayed his compassion, his father would punish him in the most brutal of ways. 

Both are legends in the kingdom of Arawiya—but neither wants to be.

War is brewing, and the Arz sweeps closer with each passing day, engulfing the land in shadow. When Zafira embarks on a quest to uncover a lost artifact that can restore magic to her suffering world and stop the Arz, Nasir is sent by the king on a similar mission: retrieve the artifact and kill the Hunter. But an ancient evil stirs as their journey unfolds—and the prize they seek may pose a threat greater than either can imagine.

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the bride test by helen hoang

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This book is one of the cutest contemporaries I’ve read.

This book is about a half-white and half-Vietnamese girl named Esme (This is her American name) with a daughter who lives in a very small home in Vietnam with her mother and grandmother and she works as a custodian at a hotel I believe. She’s presented with an opportunity to attempt to swoon a mother’s son and get him to marry her in America and she takes that opportunity and the story takes off from there.

Now as someone who had a sibling with autism, Asperger syndrome specifically just like Khai, I am pleased and really enjoyed this book. I’m so glad that this book didn’t romanticized his condition or insult his condition. There’s so much similarities between my sister and Khai, from the keeping things orderly, being good at math, the accounting, and just having a different way of communication.

Even though is was a short book, the pacing of the book was not rushed at all but in my opinion, I think the romance was just a bit rushed in Esme’s end but I’m not complaining. I really loved Esme in this book and how she was so determined to get her green card and start a life of her own without her dad or a marriage. I loved loved loved those scene.

There were also so many scenes that were just hilarious and most of those scenes were with Khai and his brother Quan. There interactions are so funny and seeing Quan trying to explain the simple act of sex with him and referring him all the books was so funny like poor Khai but at the same time you can’t help but just go awww too.

In conclusion I really enjoyed this book. If you want a quick romance with authentic Vietnamese characters and culture then this is your book!

I rate this book five stars!

Thank you for reading!

Khai Diep has no feelings. Well, he feels irritation when people move his things or contentment when ledgers balance down to the penny, but not big, important emotions—like grief. And love. He thinks he’s defective. His family knows better—that his autism means he just processes emotions differently. When he steadfastly avoids relationships, his mother takes matters into her own hands and returns to Vietnam to find him the perfect bride.

As a mixed-race girl living in the slums of Ho Chi Minh City, Esme Tran has always felt out of place. When the opportunity arises to come to America and meet a potential husband, she can’t turn it down, thinking this could be the break her family needs. Seducing Khai, however, doesn’t go as planned. Esme’s lessons in love seem to be working…but only on herself. She’s hopelessly smitten with a man who’s convinced he can never return her affection.

With Esme’s time in the United States dwindling, Khai is forced to understand he’s been wrong all along. And there’s more than one way to love.

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stepsister by jennifer donnelly

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Usually I would put the book synopsis first in my book reviews but from now on I will just post my review first than the book synopsis afterwards since this book had a really long synopsis and I’m pretty sure you’re here more for my opinion than the synopsis (I hope!).

Anyway, I LOVED LOVED LOVED THIS BOOK!

We all know the tale of Cinderella, both Disney and Grimm version, the girl with the glass slipper, evil stepsisters, and fairy godmother.

Yeah, that story.

Except this isn’t Cinderella’s story, it’s her stepsister’s, Isabelle story and it starts right when she cuts her toes off so she can fit her foot in the glass slipper. Unfortunately, her plan fails and Cinderella actually becomes queen. You know what happens next for Cinderella.

Well, in this book takes part after Cinderella becomes queen and told in Isabelle, her stepsister point of view.

I loved Isabelle so much! She felt so real and her story was so sad because so much people were trying to bring her down and it made me so mad every time someone called her ugly and just try to break her down and I’m so glad she rose above it. This book teaches you that you are more than just a pretty face and that you can be strong and smart and brave just like any man and you can do what any man can. This book is a real feminist story I’ll tell you that.

There’s also a game between Chance and Fate, two entities that are trying to alter and control Isabelle’s. Fate has the power to create maps of people’s lives and decide when it’s time they will die and in Isabelle’s case, she was to die very soon yet there’s Chance, who tries to alter and help Isabelle detour from death. At first, I was really scared for Isabelle because I thought she was really going to have an unhappy ending. I’m sort of glad Isabelle didn’t but at the same time, I wouldn’t mind her getting a tragic ending like what would of happened if Isabelle did get her tragic ending? I’m pretty sure I’ll be an emotional wreck but the beginning just gave that foreboding dark vibe that something bad was going to happen to Isabelle.

I’m also glad their game didn’t last because it was getting old. I was so happy whenever something finally good would happen to Isabelle but there goes Fate and that stupid raven bird, trying to stop everything from going positive.

I’m SO glad the romance wasn’t really the main plot of this story and I’m SO glad that Isabelle doesn’t realize her worth and strength just from a boy. Felix was so cute and help to Isabelle and just so good to her and it was a breath of fresh sir from all of the mean people always bring Isabelle down.

To wrap up this review, I really enjoyed it and loved the message this book sent. All the characters were great and if you’re in a mood for a retelling that doesn’t involve a prince or the other cliche fairy tale then this book is for you.

I rate this book four and a half stars!

Thanks for reading!

Isabelle should be blissfully happy – she’s about to win the handsome prince. Except Isabelle isn’t the beautiful girl who lost the glass slipper and captured the prince’s heart. She’s the ugly stepsister who’s cut off her toes to fit into Cinderella’s shoe … which is now filling with blood.

When the prince discovers Isabelle’s deception, she is turned away in shame. It’s no more than she deserves: she is a plain girl in a world that values beauty; a feisty girl in a world that wants her to be pliant.

Isabelle has tried to fit in. To live up to her mother’s expectations. To be like her stepsister. To be sweet. To be pretty. One by one, she has cut away pieces of herself in order to survive a world that doesn’t appreciate a girl like her. And that has made her mean, jealous, and hollow.

Until she gets a chance to alter her destiny and prove what ugly stepsisters have always known: it takes more than heartache to break a girl.

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