I entered March with a very small TBR consisting of 5 selected titles. Needless to say, I still managed to derail thanks to some wonderful book mail. But I did complete 3 out of 5. I still need to read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them & The Sky is Yours. I do have several more titles that need to be reviewed for May, so it looks like I have another small TBR for April.
April’s (Ever Tentative) TBR
The Queen of Sorrow (The Queens of Renthia #3)
By Sarah Beth Durst
Publisher: Harper Voyager
ARC due to be released 5/15/18
*Super excited about this one! The Queens of Renthia is a favorite series of mine.
Synopsis:
The battle between vicious spirits and strong-willed queens that started in the award-winning The Queen of Blood and continued in the powerful The Reluctant Queen comes to a stunning conclusion in The Queen of Sorrow, the final volume of Sarah Beth Durst’s Queens of Renthia trilogy.
Queen Daleina has yearned to bring peace and prosperity to her beloved forest home—a hope that seemed doomed when neighboring forces invaded Aratay. Now, with the powerful Queen Naelin ruling by her side, Daleina believes that her dream of ushering in a new era can be realized, even in a land plagued by malevolent nature spirits who thirst for the end of human life.
And then Naelin’s children are kidnapped by spirits.
Nothing is more important to her than her family, and Naelin would rather watch the world burn than see her children harmed. Blaming the defeated Queen Merecot of Semo for the kidnapping, Naelin is ready to start a war—and has the power to do it.
But Merecot has grander plans than a bloody battle with her southern neighbors. Taking the children is merely one step in a plot to change the future of all Renthia, either by ending the threat of spirits once and for all . . . or plunging the world into chaos.
The Forgotten Beasts of Eld
By Patricia A McKillip
Publisher: Tachyon Publications
Review Copy
This edition was released in Septemeber 2017, but this was received last month.
Synopsis:
Young Sybel, the heiress of powerful wizards, needs the company of no-one outside her gates. In her exquisite stone mansion, she is attended by exotic, magical beasts: Riddle-master Cyrin the boar; the treasure-starved dragon Gyld; Gules the Lyon, tawny master of the Southern Deserts; Ter, the fiercely vengeful falcon; Moriah, feline Lady of the Night. Sybel only lacks the exquisite and mysterious Liralen, which continues to elude her most powerful enchantments.
But when a soldier bearing an infant arrives, Sybel discovers that the world of man and magic is full of both love and deceit—and the possibility of more power than she can possibly imagine.
The Shape of Water
By Guillermo Del Toro & Daniel Kraus
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Just for me read!
Synopsis:
It is 1962, and Elisa Esposito—mute her whole life, orphaned as a child—is struggling with her humdrum existence as a janitor working the graveyard shift at Baltimore’s Occam Aerospace Research Center. Were it not for Zelda, a protective coworker, and Giles, her loving neighbor, she doesn’t know how she’d make it through the day.
Then, one fateful night, she sees something she was never meant to see, the Center’s most sensitive asset ever: an amphibious man, captured in the Amazon, to be studied for Cold War advancements. The creature is terrifying but also magnificent, capable of language and of understanding emotions…and Elisa can’t keep away. Using sign language, the two learn to communicate. Soon, affection turns into love, and the creature becomes Elisa’s sole reason to live.
But outside forces are pressing in. Richard Strickland, the obsessed soldier who tracked the asset through the Amazon, wants nothing more than to dissect it before the Russians get a chance to steal it. Elisa has no choice but to risk everything to save her beloved. With the help of Zelda and Giles, Elisa hatches a plan to break out the creature. But Strickland is on to them. And the Russians are, indeed, coming.
Brief Challenge Update
Feel like I am knocking it out of the park with 2018 Popsugare Challenge at the moment.
Total Completed: 22
In Progress: 1
Remaining (If I go for Advanced): 28
Recently Finished Challenge Reads:
Every Heart a Doory by Seanan McGuire – Thoughts on GR
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
Brain of Fire by Susannah Cahalan
If you have not noticed, I am way running way behind of reviews. Some of these, I will try to update on Goodreads.
⭐⭐⭐Book of the Month⭐⭐⭐
Brain of Fire
Review to Come!
If you are currently working on challenges for 2018, how are they progressing? What recent reads from March would you be most likely to recommend?
Happy Reading,
Danielle ❤
The only reading challenge I have for 2018 is the Goodreads one. I committed to reading 50 books this year and am already on 30 so it should be fine. Have a wonderful Easter, Danielle.
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You are speeding right along! I went with 50 for goodreads this year as well. I am nearly completely and have no desire to up the number this year 🙂 Have a wonderful Easter as well Robbie!
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The Shape Of Water sounds lovely! I hope to read it someday 🙂
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I loved the film, so I think the book will be a hit with me. Soon I hope. My pile is daunting 🙂
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Forgotten Beasts of Eld. I am looking forward to what you think of it. My initial read of it back in ’07 or so was “eh” but my recent re-read of it, I loved it! I hope you are able to enjoy McKillip’s flow of words, it is just beautiful writing 🙂
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I am having trouble keeping focus on it honestly, but I think it is because I am reading another book. So I put it on pause until I finish Nyxia and then hope to devour it 🙂
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I love that cover of the Forgotten Beasts of Eld.
I really want to read Shape of Water too because I loved the movie. And I’m so pissed at myself because I had the e-copy on hold at the library, got access to it yesterday, and fumbled around and returned it by accident. 😦 I’m so mad. Now there’re like 100+ people waiting for a copy. I guess I’ll have to purchase it if I want to read it soon.
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Ouch! Sorry you have a wait ahead of you now. I was lucky to snag a copy with a discount so it was a steal. The book is lovely. I adored the film also, so I am looking forward to! I hope we both enjoy ❤
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I hope so too. 🙂
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The Vorkosigan Saga!!! *lol*
Bet you saw that one coming!
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Bahahaa you are killing. I am seriously loving your enthusiasm. How many of the books have you found at this point?
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I have two and a half left to read. I think I have found…. Almost all of them, thanks to Abesbooks and the local used bookshop.
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That is great! If there are any you cannot find, drop me a line and I will hit up Powell’s on my next trip 😉
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Thanks! I think I found all of them via Barnes and Noble and Abesbooks. 🙂
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So cool that you got The Forgotten Beasts of Eld! It did get some nice praise from Bookstooge. I do wonder what your take on it will be! Also curious to finally hear someone’s thoughts on Shape of Water (the book). Especially since you already saw the movie too! Happy reading, Danielle!
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I am really looking forward to the Forgotten Beasts of Eld. However, I have tried a few times and it seems that I am having a hard time keeping attention. The prose is almost lyrical. I am going to try to knock out a few titles and then see if I can give it undivided attention 🙂 I am very excited to start the Shape of Water. I cannot remember, have you watched the film?
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Nop, I’m just waiting for it to get on Netflix hahah
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Haha now thaqt sounds like me.. but with Del Torro I have little patience 😉
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I’m on top of my reading challenges for the most part, so I can’t complain 🙂 Really looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the Shape of Water novel! I loved the movie and you always have the loveliest fantasy recommendations, so I hope this one joins the list.
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Oh thank you JJ! I am excited to see how it compares to the film, which I was a huge fan of. I hope they captured the slow, poeticness of it all 🙂
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I ABSOLUTELY LOVED BRAIN ON FIRE ❤ . I've read that back in 2015 and I still remember it so clearly. I wanna try the novel Shape of Water too !! 😀 Wonder how will that go!
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It was such a fantastic read! ❤ I am going to start The Shape of Water very soon. The movie was stellar. Did you watch it?
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oh wow that cover for forgotten beast 😍
so pretty!!!
hope you’ll have a wonderful month!
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Thank you Norrie! It is a gorgeous cover indeed. I hope that I can give it much deserved attention soon. Have a beautiful week and month ahead!
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Strangely so, I’m intrigued about Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them and I’ve heard it’s written in the format of a play or something… I can’t wait to hear what you think about that! You’re doing really good with your challenges, wow! I only have my Goodreads challenge and I’ve read 18 out of 60 books so I’m still on course :-).
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As usual we are running on the same wavelengths haha! I’m also really running behind on my book reviews. I love seeing your updates though! & the fact that you’ve really enjoyed The Queens of Renthia trilogy or series so far, has me thinking of starting it soon. AaaaH! Shape of Water is one I recently discovered & need to read for myself as well, text me your thoughts 🙂
Happy Reading! ❤
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The Shape of Water is a book??? I would have loved to read that! I keep ruining things for myself by watching the movie or show!
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The Forgotten Beasts of Eld sounds good, and I need to read The Shape of Water! Speaking of challenges… I could use it for the movie-to-book category on my Better World Books reading challenge. I am doing good on my Beat the Backlist challenge, I think, but I noticed that I have only read one, well currently reading one, from my BtBB priority list. I need to step that part up. 😇
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The Shape of Water is movie to book! Read it 🙂 I hope to start it next week. I am excited to see if I enjoy it as much as I did the film, which was oddly charming and quaint in a way only del Torro can manage ❤
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