Esther's Ever After

I am so thrilled to partner with Penguin Teen to celebrate the recent release of Lesley Livingston's THE TRIUMPHANT , the third and final book in the Valiant series. If you haven't yet picked up this series, I highly recommend you do! You can check out my reviews on the first two books here . Today's tour post includes information about the book, my thoughts, as well as Penguin Teen's 5 favorite quotes from the book. I always love getting posts like this from the publishers. It's fun seeing what parts of the book they enjoyed too.  PENGUIN TEEN'S TOP 5 FAVORITE QUOTES FROM THE TRIUMPHANT:  1. “I miss the days when all we had to worry about was beating the living tar out of each other.” 2. “I’m no more a lady than either of you two are lords. We’re all just gladiators, after all.” 3.   The murder itself was over in mere moments. The consequences would ripple down through the days and years to come. 4. “All of you,” Cleopatra continued. “All of you are extraordina...

By : Tricia Levenseller Published by : Feiwel & Friends Released on : February 26th, 2019 - TODAY Purchase Link Add it to Goodreads Source : e-arc from publisher  An eighteen-year-old chieftain's daughter must find a way to kill her village’s oppressive deity if she ever wants to return home in  Warrior of the Wild , the Viking-inspired YA standalone fantasy from Tricia Levenseller, author of  Daughter of the Pirate King .   How do you kill a god?  As her father's chosen heir, eighteen-year-old Rasmira has trained her whole life to become a warrior and lead her village. But when her coming-of-age trial is sabotaged and she fails the test, her father banishes her to the monster-filled wilderness with an impossible quest: To win back her honor, she must kill the oppressive god who claims tribute from the villages each year or die trying. Levenseller does it again! Much like her previous books, this new release has a twisted storyline, and a fierce h...

Image source  Happy New Year's Eve! It's hard to believe it's the last day of 2018. I feel like I just wrote our 2017 Top Ten Favorites lists. This year has flown by. As I'm writing this post I feel like I ran out of time to read more books, write more reviews, and post more bookish features. While I wasn't as active here on the blog, I have posted a lot more bookish features over on Instagram. Check us out here . I am so excited to share one of our favorite posts of the year! Our top 10 favorite reads of the year. Normally it's hard for us to narrow our lists. In previous years we couldn't, and ended up with more than ten. This year we may have been a bit more pickier with our 5 star ratings than in years past.  Without further ado, here is our Top Ten Favorite Books of 2018 !  We always love comparing our lists after we make them. We love seeing which books we collectively have on our lists. This year we only had 4 books that were on at least tw...

By : Marie Lu Published by : Penguin Teen Released on : September 18th, 2018 Series : Warcross #2 Purchase Links Rating : 4.5 stars Source : purchased book  An Instant  New York Times  Bestseller! Return to the immersive, action-packed world of  Warcross  in this thrilling sequel from #1  New York Times  bestselling author Marie Lu Emika Chen barely made it out of the Warcross Championships alive. Now that she knows the truth behind Hideo’s new NeuroLink algorithm, she can no longer trust the one person she’s always looked up to, who she once thought was on her side. Determined to put a stop to Hideo’s grim plans, Emika and the Phoenix Riders band together, only to find a new threat lurking on the neon-lit streets of Tokyo. Someone’s put a bounty on Emika’s head, and her sole chance for survival lies with Zero and the Blackcoats, his ruthless crew. But Emika soon learns that Zero isn’t all that he seems–and his protection comes at a price. Caught in a ...

By : Melissa de la Cruz, Nic Stone, Amiee Friedman and Kasie West Published by : Point Released on : October 30th, 2018  Purchase Links Source : Purchased book What's better than one deliciously cozy, swoon-worthy holiday story? Four of them, from some of today's bestselling authors. From KASIE WEST, a snowy road trip takes an unexpected detour when secrets and crushes are revealed. From AIMEE FRIEDMAN, a Hanukkah miracle may just happen when a Jewish girl working as a department store elf finds love. From MELISSA DE LA CRUZ, Christmas Eve gets a plot twist when a high school couple exchange surprising presents. From NIC STONE, a scavenger hunt amid the holiday crowds at an airport turns totally romantic. So grab a mug of hot cocoa, snuggle up, and get ready to fall in love... I am a huge fan of holiday anthologies, especially around the holidays. There's just something about reading a collection of feel good short stories centered on the holidays that I enjoy. This ...

By : Tahereh Mafi Published by : Harper Teen Released on : October 16th, 2018 Purchase Links Add it to Goodreads Source : Borrowed book  It’s 2002, a year after 9/11. It’s an extremely turbulent time politically, but especially so for someone like Shirin, a sixteen-year-old Muslim girl who’s tired of being stereotyped. Shirin is never surprised by how horrible people can be. She’s tired of the rude stares, the degrading comments—even the physical violence—she endures as a result of her race, her religion, and the hijab she wears every day. So she’s built up protective walls and refuses to let anyone close enough to hurt her. Instead, she drowns her frustrations in music and spends her afternoons break-dancing with her brother. But then she meets Ocean James. He’s the first person in forever who really seems to want to get to know Shirin. It terrifies her—they seem to come from two irreconcilable worlds—and Shirin has had her guard up for so long that she’s not sure she’ll ever be a...

By : Wendy Higgins Published by : Harper Harper Released on : 3/8/16 Series : Eurona Duology #1 Purchase Links Add it to Goodreads Source : ARC from publisher to review When a strange beast terrorizes the kingdom of Lochlanach, fear stirs revolt. In an act of desperation, a proclamation is sent to all of Eurona—kill the creature and win the ultimate prize: the daughter of King Lochson’s hand in marriage. Princess Aerity knows her duty to the kingdom but cannot bear the idea of marrying a stranger... until a brooding local hunter, Paxton Seabolt, catches her attention. There’s no denying the unspoken lure between them... or his mysterious resentment. Paxton is not the marrying type. Nor does he care much for spoiled royals and their arcane laws. He’s determined to keep his focus on the task at hand—ridding the kingdom of the beast—but the princess continues to surprise him, and the perilous secrets he’s buried begin to surface. Inspired by the Grimm Brothers’ tale “The Singing Bone,” N...

By : Leah and Kate Rooper Published by : Entangled Teen Released on : June 4th, 2018  Series : The Chicago Falcons Series #2 Add it to Goodreads Source : e-arc from the publisher in exchange for my honest review Star hockey player Daniel Sacachelli wants only two things: 1) for the Falcons to win next season, and 2) for his secret — the fact he’s actually the prince of Eldonia — to never make its way to Chicago. But if Daniel keeps avoiding his crown, their family will lose their kingdom forever. Madison Myong can’t believe that her will-they-or-won’t-they best friend Daniel is really a prince! He’s always seemed more rebel than royal. But now, he needs to clean up his image, fast. Posing as his long-time girlfriend, Madison accompanies him back to Eldonia, intending to give Daniel a makeover fit for a king. Only, the more royal Daniel becomes, the more Madison misses her best friend. And if she does her job right, she’ll lose him forever... This was the kind of read I needed. Whe...

By : Stephanie Garber Published by : Flatiron Books Released on : May 29th, 2018 Series :  Caraval #2 Purchase Links Add it to   Goodreads Rating : 5 Stars - I LOVED It! Source : Purchased Book The instant #1  New York Times  bestseller! Stephanie Garber’s limitless imagination takes flight once more in the colorful, mesmerizing, and immersive sequel to the bestselling breakout debut  Caraval A heart to protect. A debt to repay. A game to win. After being swept up in the magical world of Caraval, Donatella Dragna has finally escaped her father and saved her sister Scarlett from a disastrous arranged marriage. The girls should be celebrating, but Tella isn’t yet free. She made a desperate bargain with a mysterious criminal, and what Tella owes him no one has ever been able to deliver: Caraval Master Legend’s true name. The only chance of uncovering Legend’s identity is to win Caraval, so Tella throws herself into the legendary competition once more—and into the p...

By : Jennifer L. Armentrout Published by : Tor Teen To Be Released on : October 30th, 2018 Series :  Origin Series #1 Pre-Order from :  Tor Teen  |  Amazon  |  B&N  |  IndieBound Add it to   Goodreads   Rating : 5 Stars - I LOVED IT! Thank you to Tor Teen for providing an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review When seventeen-year-old Evie Dasher is caught up in a raid at a notorious club known as one of the few places where humans and the surviving Luxen can mingle freely, she meets Luc, an unnaturally beautiful guy she initially assumes is a Luxen...but he is in fact something much more powerful. Her growing attraction for Luc will lead her deeper and deeper into a world she'd only heard about, a world where everything she thought she knew will be turned on its head... #1  New York Times, USA Today,  and internationally bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout returns to the universe of the Lux in this bra...

By : Stephanie Garber Published by : Flatiron Books Released on : January 31st, 2017 Series : Caraval #1 Purchase Links Add it to Goodreads Rating : 5 Stars - I LOVED It! Source : Purchased Books Remember, it’s only a game… Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over. But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner. Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Neverthel...

By : Megan Shepherd Published by : HMH Teen Released on : October 2nd, 2018 Series : Grim Lovelies #1 Purchase Links Add it to Goodreads Rating : 4 stars A copy of this book as provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest review Seventeen-year-old Anouk envies the human world, where people known as Pretties lavish themselves in fast cars, high fashion, and have the freedom to fall in love. But Anouk can never have those things, because she is not really human. Enchanted from animal to human girl and forbidden to venture beyond her familiar Parisian prison, Anouk is a Beastie: destined for a life surrounded by dust bunnies and cinders serving Mada Vittora, the evil witch who spelled her into existence. That is, until one day she finds her mistress murdered in a pool of blood—and Anouk is accused of the crime. Now, the world she always dreamed of is rife with danger. Pursued through Paris by the underground magical society known as the Haute, Anouk and her fellow Beastie...