Shelflove Crate February 2019 Unboxing

In this post I am going to be unboxing the February 2019 Shelflove crate box. (What follows will contain spoilers so please do not read if you don't want to know what is in the box)

Shelflove Crate is a monthly book subscription box. Each month you receive a new YA book release (either fantasy or sci-fi) and 4 or more theme-based items. The theme chosen is based on the chosen book.

The theme this month was Warrior Women (Spoiler filled post under the cut)

Weekly Wrap Up 1st - 10th March

Between 1st and 10th March I managed to read a total of 5 books.

Audiobooks -

  A Touch of Gold by Annie Sullivan
Narrated by Alana Kerr Collins
Length - 8h 52m
Star rating - 5 stars

I adored this book so much and highly recommend it. Read my full review here.

Mary Poppins by PL Travers
Narrated by Olivia Colman
Length - 3h 51m
Star Rating - 3 stars

I am sad to say this disappointed me quite a lot. After growing up with the Mary Poppins film (and the recent sequel too) I was looking forward to hearing the original tale but sadly the character of Mary was awful and the children rather dull. Overall it just didn't have to appeal to me that the movie did.

The Boneless Mercies by April Genevieve Tucholke
Narrated by Saskia Maarlevand
Length - 8h 10m
Star Rating - 4.5 stars

I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. It took me a while to get into it but once it became a quest like story it had me hooked. I really liked Trigve and Frey, though I was hoping for something a little more there perhaps but overall it was a strong story with interesting characters. The ending felt a little anticlimactic perhaps but then perhaps that suited the slower style of the story. I liked it enough to recommend it to others though.

 Novels  -
                                           

Matilda by Roald Dahl
Length - 3h 51m
Star Rating - 5 stars

I love this book, it has been a favourite since childhood and the re-read was just as enjoyable. Matilda is a lovely child and Miss Honey is the most amazing teacher in the whole world. The story is engaging and imaginitive, as most Dahl books are in my opinion, and the years have not diminished anything. A great little easy read.

                                                                               

State of Sorrow by Melinda Salisbury
Length - 464 pages
Star Rating - 5 stars

This was a re-read led by Melinda herself in the run up to the release of the second book in the duology 'Song of Sorrow'. This was a favourite of mine in 2018 and I really enjoyed getting to read it again. We read a chapter a day which was a nice pace even if I did want to read ahead a few times in anticipation of what was going to happen next. I cannot wait to start Song of Sorrow and hopefully finish it in the next week.

Review - A Touch of Gold by Annie Sullivan

Details:

Title: A Touch of Gold

Author: Annie Sullivan

Publisher: Zondervan

ISBN 13: 978-0310766353

Synopsis:

King Midas once had the ability to turn all he touched into gold. But after his gift—or curse—almost killed his daughter, Midas relinquished The Touch forever. Ten years later, Princess Kora still bears the consequences of her father’s wish: her skin shines golden, rumors follow her everywhere she goes, and she harbors secret powers that are getting harder to hide.

Kora spends her days locked in the palace, concealed behind gloves and veils, trying to ignore the stares and gossip of courtiers. It isn’t until a charming young duke arrives that Kora realizes there may be someone out there who doesn’t fear her or her curse. But their courtship is disrupted when a thief steals precious items from the kingdom, leaving the treasury depleted and King Midas vulnerable. Thanks to her unique ability to sense gold, Kora is the only one who can track the thief down. As she sails off on her quest, Kora learns that not everything is what it seems—not thieves, not pirates, and not even curses. She quickly discovers that gold—and the power it brings—is more dangerous than she’d ever believed.

Midas learned his lesson at a price. What will Kora’s journey cost?

Review:

February 2019 Wrap Up

So in February 2019 I managed to read a total of 11 books.

Audiobooks -

  The Wicked King by Holly Black
Narrated by Caitlin Kelly
Length - 10h 20m
Star rating - 4.5 stars

I read The Cruel Prince last year and wasn't overly impressed to be honest but I did enjoy the audiobook performer so I thought I would give the sequel a go and I actually enjoyed it a lot more. The characters all got some good development and the plot I felt was a lot tighter. Also that cliffhanger ending was a killer! Actually looking forward to the next book a lot now.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Narrated by David Thorpe
Length - 11h 31m
Star rating - 5 stars

My usual genre of choice is fantasy and science fiction and while this is fantasy it's also partly historical retelling but I adored it. Patroclus is a cinnamon roll who needs to be protected at all costs and the relationship between him and Achilles was heartbreaking. It's an absolutely breathtaking book and the storytelling is so engrossing. The narrator had the perfect tone and the characters were distinct. I immediately put Circe on my audible TBR.

Planetfall by Emma Newman
Narrated by Emma Newman
Length - 10h 01m
Star rating - 4 stars

Planetfall was a really unique sci-fi story, it cleverly wove the science fiction elements into a very personal discovery story. I loved the idea that one small secret could change things forever. Renata was a very complex character who made me feel frustrated one minute and sympathy the next. Emma reads it so well and brings another level of personal connection to the story.

Graphic Novels/Manga -

The Mortal Instruments vol 2 by Cassandra Clare
Illustrated by Cassandra Jean
Length - 208 pages
Star rating - 3.75 stars

I read The Cruel Prince last year and wasn't overly impressed to be honest but I did enjoy the audiobook performer so I thought I would give the sequel a go and I actually enjoyed it a lot more. The characters all got some good development and the plot I felt was a lot tighter. Also that cliffhanger ending was a killer! Actually looking forward to the next book a lot now.

The Amulet vol 2 by Kazu Kibishi
Length - 220 pages
Star rating - 4 stars

I find this series an easy one to read with good plot and characters and absolutely gorgeous artwork. I loved the new character that was introduced this time around and look forward to seeing more of him as the story continues.

Heartstopper vol 1 by Alice Oseman
Length - 278 pages
Star rating - 4.5 stars

This was so cute! It's a boy meets boy story that feels so grounded and real that it just makes me feel even more for them. I am already so protective of these boys and this is only the first volume. It deals with some really difficult issues but in such a natural way that it becomes even more meaningful. I am not a contemporary reader but I am now looking into trying one of Alice Oseman's full novels.

The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O'Neill
Length - 60 pages
Star rating - 5 stars

I got the Owlcrate version of this book in my February box and read it one evening in like half an hour. It was so sweet and cute with beautiful art. The characters are all so unique and I loved the whole idea behind the tea dragons. Being a big tea drinker myself I now want a dragon all of my very own!

 Novels  -

The Extinction Trials: Rebel by SM Wilson
Length - 384 pages
Star rating - 5 stars

I thought this was a really good ending to the trilogy. The blurb is definitely right that this series is The Hunger Games meets Jurassic Park but it's so much more as well. The characters are distinct and the plot gripping. And overall I was very happy with how this series wrapped up.

The Quiet at the End of the World by Lauren James
Length - 352 pages
Star rating - 5 stars

I have a full review coming for this book on it's release day. I will link it here once it goes up.
Suffice to say I adore Lauren James and love love love her writing style.

                                                                                                                                                                  

Shadowscent: The Darkest Bloom by PM Freestone
Length - 448 pages
Star rating - 5 stars

I was lucky enough to attend the launch event of this book in London and it got me very excited to read it. PM Freestone is a lovely person and her enthusiasm for this story was infectious. It did not disappoint. I buddy read it with my best friend and we agreed it was brilliant. Killer cliffhanger though! I need the next book now!




 ARCs  -

The Star-Spun Web by Sinead O'Hart
Length - 384 pages
Star rating - 4 stars

I read The Eye in the North by this author last year and really enjoyed it. It was a great middle grade polar fantasy and so I was excited to try this. It was a really interesting read and I liked how the different threads wove together. I especially liked the adults of the childrens home and how they never spoke down to the children but respected them. Will definitely read more from this author, she's on my list to watch for now.




This month all of the books I read were brilliant! I gave out five 5 star reads which was really good. 

The Book Blogger Memory Challenge Tag

This tag is originally created by Rebecca but I discovered it at The Becca Fowell and decided I really liked the idea of it. The tag was created by Laura at Laura Lovelock.

The rules are as follows:

You must answer these questions without using the internet or looking at your bookshelves.
Once completed tag 5 people (If you want to do it please consider yourself tagged).

1. Name a book written by an author called Michael
Congo by Michael Crichton

2. Name a book with a dragon on the cover
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

3. Name a book about a character called George
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

4. Name a book written by an author with the surname Smith
Frostfire by Jamie Smith

5. Name a book set in Australia
Tomorrow when the war began by John Marsden

6. Name a book with the name of a month in the title
A Million Junes but I can't remember the author

7. Name a book with a knife on the cover
The Caged Queen by Kristen Ciccarelli (US cover)

8. Name a book with the word 'one' in the title
One of Us is Lying by Karen M McManus

9. Name a book with an eponymous title
The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare

10. Name a book turned into a movie
Twilight by Stephanie Meyer

2018 Reading in Review

So in 2018 I set my goodreads target to 50 and managed to read a total of 153 books. Below are some stats about my year of reading.

My best reading month was August 2018 in which I read 18 books and my worst was September when I read 6.

Genre wise the split was as follows:

Fantasy 100
SciFi 28
Historical 8
Dystopia 8
Contemporary 4
Urban Fantasy 2
Adventure 2
Thriller 1

The contemporary surprised me as I don't usually enjoy contemporary but of the 4 I read I most enjoyed Floored.

I read in different formats this year too.
40 Hardbacks
38 Paperbacks
30 Audiobooks
29 Graphic Novels
11 ARC copies
5 ebooks (some arcs were ebooks so this may actually be more)

98 books were YA
28 Middle Grade
27 Adult


87 of the books I read were published in 2018 with the remaining 66 published before then.

I also DNF'd 7 books.

112 of the books I read were part of a series and 40 were standalones. 15 of the series reads completed series and 43 of them were beginnings of new series/duologies. I had 4 re-reads which was all part of the Spellslinger series as I listened to them all on Audiobook.

December 2018 Wrap Up

So in December 2018 I managed to read a total of 14 books, .

In order of reading I completed Ms Marvel vol 2 by Various, Small Spaces by Katherine Arden, Explorers on Witch Mountain by Alex Bell, Blood and Sand by CV Wyk, Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare, Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman, Sakura Clear Card vol 5 by CLAMP, Father Christmas and Me by Matt Haig, Guardians of the Galaxy vol 1 by Various, Skyward by Brandon Sanderson, All the Wandering Light by Heather Fawcett, Poe Dameron vol 5 by Various, New Avengers AIM vol 2 by Various and Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody.

 

 

                            

Stats:

Hardback = 5

Paperback = 1

Graphic Novel/Manga = 5

Audiobook = 3

Ebook = 0

 My 5 star reads were Explorers on Witch Mountain, Queen of Air and Darkness, Thunderhead and Skyward. Explorers on Witch Mountain was a brilliant middle grade polar fantasy sequel which was just as endearing as the first book. Queen of Air and Darkness was a brilliant ending to the Dark Artifices trilogy, with enough set up for the next lot of books too. Thunderhead, blew me away just as Scythe did in November and I now begin the long wait for the last book in September/October time. Skyward was the most amazing sci-fi and my first ever Brandon Sanderson book - but it won't be my last!

This month all of the books I read were brilliant! I don't think any of them were less than a 3 and a half with most getting 4 stars.

(*From 30th November until 30th December I took part in the Summoning Spells: A Summoner Readathon. And all of these books were completed as part of that readathon)

(Original readathon blog post here.)