Top Five Wednesday: Favorite Book Covers on my TBR

February 17, 2021February 15, 2021 fangirlfury9 Comments

I don’t often write entire blog posts dedicated to book covers, but I couldn’t help but love this week’s Top Five Wednesday theme. I wouldn’t say I’m a reader who judges a book by its over…. but I do admit that a beautiful book cover sometimes distracts me from other books on my TBR. I’ve really been loving the illustrated book cover theme over the past few years, especially when it comes to contemporary romances.

Today’s Top Five Wednesday is all about the top 5 books on our TBR that are especially screaming for our attention because of their covers.

Last Chance Books by Kelsey Rodkey – I will absolutely be reading this YA You’ve Got Mail inspired contemporary just for that synopsis alone, but I distinctly remember running to add Last Chance Books to my TBR just because its cover screamed bookishness. The books on the cover remind me so much of the Penguin Drop Caps.

It’s Been a Pleasure, Noni Blake by Claire Christian – As mentioned above, I can’t help but love illustrated covers for contemporary romances like It’s Been a Pleasure, Noni Blake. I’m also currently in a bit of a winter rut – I’m so sick of the snow and am counting down to my first beach weekend this year – so this cover screams to my current warm weather need.

What’s Not to Love by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka – This might just be my favorite Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka cover yet because I love the purple color scheme and bookshelves in the background. My absolute favorite element of the entire cover is that their other other YA books are featuring on the shelves – I can spot Time of Our Lives and If I’m Being Honest easily, and I think the female model may be holding Always Never Yours?Read More »

Top Five Wednesday: Books That Took Me the Longest to Finish

October 21, 2020October 19, 2020 fangirlfury9 Comments

Today’s Top Five Wednesday post is all about the books that tend to sit in our “currently reading” piles for weeks or months. I really don’t mind DNF’ing books. Although yes, I feel guilty DNF’ing a book that I’ve already read the first 100 pages or so, or have spent quite a bit of time reading, but I’ve learned over the years that I’d much rather read a book I actually like than struggle through one I’m not enjoying too much. However, books for today’s Top Five Wednesday could also be ones that just genuinely took us a long time to read. I usually fall into this category when it comes to audiobooks or longer books. In most cases, I end up reading 2 other books on the side when I’m also reading a lengthier book.

Becoming by Michelle Obama – It took me about 7 weeks over this past April and May to listen to Becoming as an audiobook. While the physical book is slightly over 400 pages and I believe the audiobook is about 19 hours long on a regular speed, I blame taking this one slowly on the fact that I was reading Becoming during the height of the pandemic and was rarely driving anywhere. I was then only really listening to Becoming on walks or during the occasional adult coloring book session. You might know that while I love listening to podcasts and have grown to enjoy audiobooks, but I have to be doing something that forces me to focus only on the audio (aka when walking and as something to listen to while driving).

Supernova (Renegades #3) by Marissa Meyer – I’m probably cheating with this one because Supernova only took me about 2 weeks to finish, but compared to the first two books in the Renegades series, I slugged through it. These books are on the longer side for YA at about 400-600 pages each, but I distinctly remember laying in bed at home during Thanksgiving break and winter break respectively bingeing Renegades and Archenemies. My mistakes with Supernova were that I read Renegades and Archenemies fairly back to back and then read Supernova two months later, I read it during a super busy time during the spring semester and couldn’t fully dedicate myself to it…and I just didn’t enjoy it as much as the first two books. Read More »

Top Five Wednesday: Romance Books I Should Read

September 16, 2020September 11, 2020 fangirlfury10 Comments

Today’s Top Five Wednesday topic is called “Reader Canon,” where we are prompted to talked about books that everyone in our bookish community has read. We can take this topic in any direction we’d like, whether that’’s by talking about five books we consider to be must reads, books we want to read, or books we just haven’t read. I’m going to take the second direction and talk about some contemporary romances I want to pick up.. eventually! I always tend to have books in the back of my mind or on my TBR that I know I should read. When I’m in the mood for that said genre or book, I usually just go to the library and pick it up that day!

The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang – I feel guilty calling myself a contemporary romance reader when I haven’t read one of the most popular contemporary romance reads, The Kiss Quotient. This is a case of the hype keeping me away, but I know I’ll likely pick it up one day at the library.

The Happily Ever After (The Friend Zone #2) by Abby Jimenez – The Happily Ever After completely took over my Instagram and blog feeds this spring. I know The Happily Ever After is the companion novel/second book to The Friend Zone, and while I believe there’s spoilers for the first book, so many people have said that you don’t need to read the first book to absolutely fall in love with this one. Read More »

Top Five Wednesday: Favorite 2019 Book Covers

November 13, 2019November 8, 2019 fangirlfury1 Comment

2019 has not only been filled with ALL the amazing books, but also ALL the amazing covers for said books. For today’s Top Five Wednesday, I’ll be sharing my top five favorite covers for 2019 releases.

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Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo– Google Images does not do Ninth House‘s cover justice. I love the way the snake pops out on the physical copy.

Maybe This Time by Kasie West– For a while, I wasn’t in love with real people on book covers, but the 2019 cover game has changed this for me. Maybe This Time is definitely my favorite Kasie West book cover and overall captures the story’s aesthetic.

There’s Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon – I firmly believe that Sandhya Menon has some of the best book covers in the YA world. Regarding There’s Something About Sweetie specifically, I love the contrast of those purple and primary splashes of color. I also love the back of the book featuring Dimple and Ashish on the track. As expected, since the Dimple and Rishi books are now considered a companion series, I really love how When Dimple Met Rishi, There’s Something About Sweetie, and now 10 Things I Hate About Pinky flow so well together. While not part of the series, From Twinkle, with Love also falls into their aesthetic.

Top Five Wednesday: End of 2019 TBR

November 6, 2019October 31, 2021 fangirlfury5 Comments

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year” andddddd my TBR is still (wonderfully) going to likely topple over me.

Christmas-themed jokes are always the best way of evaluating what books you need to get to by the end of the year, at least in the Fangirl Fury handbook. I am perfect content with the amount of books that I have read so far this year, but there are definitely some specific books that I need to read before the end of 2019.

I create a decent amount of TBR posts (that I don’t end up following too closely 50% of the time), but I am for sure reading all 5 books on this list before the end of the year. I actually read all the books on my end of 2018 TBR before the new year okay, I Capture the Castle did go into January, but it still counts! I’ve been somewhat planning out my monthly TBRs this fall, thanks to my hectic school schedule, so I can say that I am 100% committing to this one. Since I can dedicate more time to reading in December, I also love knowing what books I want to dive right into once the school break begins

The Toll (Arc of a Scythe #3) by Neal Shusterman- I’m not going to say too much above this one because everyone knows how much I have been anticipating this book since reading Thunderhead back in February 2018. I am for sure making sure I have The Toll on my end of 2019 TBR checked out from the library for my Thanksgiving break.

The Queen of Nothing (The Folk of the Air #3) by Holly Black- My end of 2019 TBR is apparently somewhat about trilogy conclusions, of course including The Queen of Nothing. This is another trilogy case in which I loved the sequel so much (The Wicked King) that I need book #3 ASAP.

Renegades (Renegades #1) by Marissa Meyer- Renegades is not allowed to show up on any future TBR posts of mine. I usually bring books back to school with me after weekend visits home, and you better believe Renegades came back with me after my latest trip. I am SO committed to finally getting to this one, with the trilogy conclusion, Supernova, out in the world. If I enjoy Renegades enough, I definitely see myself binge-reading Archenemies and Supernova before the new year.

One Day in December by Josie Silver– I think I tried getting my hands on One Day in December from the library last December, but I was still on the holds list in January. I love reading as many Christmas/holiday-themed books as I can between October and December.

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren- A book that I tried reading this summer, but another book that sat on my library on-hold list for too long and then I was back at school for the fall. The Unhoneymooners is many of my friends’ favorite Christina Lauren book.

Top 5 Wednesday is a collaborative group of book bloggers from various platforms who love sharing lists on Wednesdays. The T5W group can be found here on Goodreads.

What books do you want to read before the end of the year? Have you read any of the books above? Share in the comments!

Top Five Wednesday: Most Halloweenish Books on My TBR

October 23, 2019October 17, 2019 fangirlfury1 Comment

Some of you may know that I am not the biggest fan a scary movie fan. I can’t even try to pretend that I enjoy them—and yes, I am that person who jumps and screams at the slightly jump scare. Even though I haven’t read a ton of them, I luckily have a better time reading horror or gothic/horror-esque thriller books. I’m also here to admit that I don’t have a ton of them on my TBR either, choosing to go down the mystery and spooky route instead.

With Halloween approaching, I wanted to do a holiday-themed evaluation of my TBR and talk about the most mysterious or scariest books on my TBR. The following books have something to do with mysteries, paranormal happenings, and darker themes & atmospheres.

The Archived by Victoria Schwab – I think I keep putting off reading Victoria Schwab’s The Archived in hopes that one day she’ll be able to publish the third book. True to Victoria Schwab, The Archived falls into the spooky/creepy category. I’ve heard that this is the quintessential Halloween read, as the main character’s job is to prevent the stories of the dead from wrecking havoc on the living.

Now Entering Adamsville by Francesca Zappia – I have much love for Francesca Zappia’s Eliza and Her Monsters and Made You Up, so I couldn’t be more excited to pick up her latest release, Now Entering Adamsville. The book screams mystery, as Zora must clear her name after being accused of starting a fire that results in a death. With the help of her cousin, Zora finds herself following ghost stories and uncovering a string of fires that left others in her Indianan town dead.

Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody – Another mystery-esque read, Amanda Foody’s Ace of Shades has a darker, mysterious & fantastical setting. After her mother goes missing, Enne is forced to enter the City of Sin and a world of magic and violence.

Top Five Wednesday: Fall TBR (& a Somewhat Life Update)

September 25, 2019September 21, 2019 fangirlfury1 Comment

Although Top Five Wednesday is still on hiatus, I thought that I would borrow from the spirit of the group for today topic: my fall TBR!

I admit that some of the books below might have been mentioned on older TBR posts. Since the second half of August, life has been super hectic with the start of my college senior year. Between two jobs and a pretty heavy course load, this semester has easily been my most challenging and busy- but hopefully the most rewarding, because I genuinely love almost everything I am studying and doing. I wish that I had more time for the blog and reading because I hold this space very close to my heart. Blogging and reading also allows me to escape from ‘school stuff’ for a bit, which is another reason why I wish I had more time for it! On a side note, I have to commute to the city twice a week for class and being able to read for fun most of the time during my commute is THE BEST.

Anyway, I wanted to create a mini TBR for what’s left of September and October and November, so I can share my reading plans with everyone and hold myself somewhat accountable (see ignoring old monthly TBRs). I definitely foresee myself reading more than 5 books this fall, but the following five books are my absolute priority.

Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell- Ready for another mini life update? On top of school and life things, I am getting my wisdom teeth pulled during my fall break (which happens to be tomorrow). One of the positives in this whole situation called my life is that Wayward Son is officially out in the world! That being said, my plan for this upcoming weekend is to lay in bed and eat up this sequel to Carry On. I admit that I’ll be both happy and sad (because I always need more Rainbow Rowell books) that I’ll hopefully have read my favorite author’s two 2019 releases in the same month. Catch me also likely rereading Pumpkinheads in bed.

The Beautiful by Renee Ahdieh(ARC)- Yes, it is very much true that this blogger is still making her way through her Book Expo 2019 haul. Although I wasn’t the biggest fan of Renee Ahdieh’s The Wrath and the Dawn series, I am really excited to give her books another chance with The Beautiful. It’s really pulling me in for its New Orleans setting and seamstress protagonist.

Top Five Wednesday: Books I’m Intimidated By

August 21, 2019August 16, 2019 fangirlfury6 Comments

While Top Five Wednesday is on hiatus for the summer, I’ve been revisiting some older topics. Today’s throwback topic is from April 2016, in which I’ll be discussing books I’m intimidated by. From page length to hype, there are books I’m definitely nervous about picking up, but I mostly see myself picking up no matter my reading fears.

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon- The Priory of the Orange Tree definitely falls under the intimidation category because of its 827 page length. I also haven’t read a book by Samantha Shannon, who is much loved by a lot of readers for The Bone Season. This book actually isn’t on my TBR, but more or less on TBR radar (books that I may possibly pick up). I could see myself reading it if I’m particularly in the mood for high fantasy or a fantasy standalone.

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan- With the upcoming sequel Girls of Storm and Shadow coming this fall, Girls of Paper and Fire has been receiving extra hype on book Twitter lately. I’m also always a tiny bit intimidated by fantasy series because I struggle keeping up with multiple unfinished series.

Foolish Hearts by Emma Mills- Another case where I am more intimidated by the hype more than the book itself. I’ve enjoyed Emma Mills’ other three books (This Adventures Ends is currently my favorite), but I know so many readers who consider Foolish Hearts to be their favorite Emma Mills’ book. This isn’t a case where the hype is preventing me from putting it off, but I really hope it lives up to my expectations.

Top Five Wednesday: 2019 Favorite YA Contemporaries

July 24, 2019July 20, 2019 fangirlfury3 Comments

While Top Five Wednesday has been on its summer hiatus, I’ve been revisiting some older topics. However, I decided to switch things up for today by creating my own topic! I’m in a little shock right now both IRL and from a bookish standpoint that it’s July! I can’t believe that there’s only about a month and half of summer left. Blogging wise, I can’t believe that it’s time to start working on my most anticipated books of Fall 2019 post.

Thinking about what books are left to come out this year and my own reading plans for this second half of the year, I decided that I wanted to talk about some of my favorite books of the year so far. Today I’ll be featuring and discussing my top five contemporary books of 2019. I’m sure it’s no surprise that it was super difficult for me to choose the five books below. I decided to limit myself by only talking about YA books released in 2019 so far, considering that three of my favorite contemporaries of the year are new adult (and yes Red, White and Royal Blue is of course one of them). I have a feeling my favorites of 2019 list later in December is going to be a bit lengthy.

If I’m Being Honest by Emily Wibberley & Austin Siegemund-Broka – A slight change I’ve noticed this year in a few YA contemporaries are unlikeable protagonists! Cameron in If I’m Being Honest is definitely not the nice girl in her LA high school, but her personality- and let’s be honest, bitchiness- made her such a complex character.

There’s Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon – Sandhya Menon always make for the cutest feels, but I particularly loved There’s Something About Sweetie. I think rom-com has been thrown around for a lot of YA contemporaries this year as well, and Sandhya Menon’s latest release sure fits the category! Following Ashish and Sweetie’s relationship, this book features a ton of relationship and character growth and plenty of LOL worthy moments.

Maybe This Time by Kasie West- One of the reasons why I started reading Kasie West’s books in 2019 was to prepare myself for Maybe This Time because I loved the synopsis so much! Our main character, Sophie, who works for her small town’s florist, also falls into the unlikeable protagonist category. Maybe This Time is a really unique book, told over nine events over one year.

Top Five Wednesday: Waiting for Books from Favorite Authors

July 10, 2019July 5, 2019 fangirlfury1 Comment

As part of Top Five Wednesday’s summer hiatus, I’ve been revisiting old T5W topics. Today’s post is inspired by the August 2016 topic, “Authors You Are Waiting on Another Book From.” I did a similar T5w post last year (Authors I Need More From): funnily enough, all of the authors in that post have books coming out in 2019 and 2020! Today’s topic more so focuses on authors who either haven’t announced a new book or have given very minimal information regarding their next release. As much as I am excited by this topic, I admit that it was a little difficult for me to write, considering that many of my favorite authors have projects in the works or have new books coming out over the next two years.

Morgan Matson – For the past few years, there have been two years between Morgan Matson’s books. Since Save the Date came out in 2018, she is expected to have her sixth book come out in 2020. To put it simply, Morgan Matson is one of my go-to and absolute favorite YA contemporary authors because of her incredible writing and unique stories. Her synopses always leave me hook, so I’m excited to see what her next book will have in store.

Jenny Han – Jenny Han is very much involved in the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before Netflix adaptations and has been doing so much press for her very much beloved series. I would really love another book with a somewhat Lara Jean-centric character, aka a book with all the baking and cute boys.