Emily

Literally, I am so incredibly shook by this book! I should probably take some time to process before writing my review, but I'm riding the high. This book moved me in ways I didn't think I could be moved by a YA fantasy. The storytelling in this book is impeccable. The whole experience of reading it was incredibly immersive. The imagery, the characters, the struggles, the pain... every bit of it was so well done. This is book 1 of 4 in the An Ember in the Ashes Series, and let me tell you, I will be downloading book 2 immediately after I write this review. @sabaa tells us the story of two individuals find themselves in desperate situations. One character craves freedom from a life of cruelty and the other longs for family. Both of these characters come together with a common goal of doing the right thing for the right reasons. Laia is a great female main character. Her longing and determination throughout the book are deeply felt. Elias... Oh Elias. This poor tortured and damaged man tugged on my heartstrings throughout the entire book. Reading his POV often created a visceral response from me. The way the author describes his desperation to be free and the things he has to do and witness stirred up all the feelings for me. I'm getting slow burn romance vibes, but we only get slight glimpses of that in this book... obviously hoping for more in future books! This book evoked so much emotion from me. I was angry one page, crying on others, cheering on my favorites the next. I love when a book checks all the boxes, and this one certainly did. There is a trials sequence, which has me on the edge of my seat with my heart pounding nearly every single trial. This is a YA Fantasy series, I personally think 16+ for themes and violence.

Spoiler-free review:

I picked up this book for 2 reasons. First, you never know when you will need a quick read to fill space, and second, I love the movie Stardust! The book was very similar to the movie and it was nice to be able to picture the characters from the movie to visualize those in the book. Obviously things were different in the movie for dramatic effect, but I found it to be fairly similar. This was a quick read (only 233 pages) and such a sweet fairytale. Epic adventure, fantasy and even a little romance thrown in there. I docked a star simply because the writing style was hard for me to understand at times. If you're looking for a quick read with lots of adventure, definitely pick this up!

I finished The Poppy War last night and haven't been able to stop thinking about it. The story, the writing, the characters, the heartbreak. This was my first R.F Kuang book, and it won't be my last. There were moments where I felt so immersed in the world that she created. I did a combined audio and physical book read. The audiobook was extremely well done. Single narrator, but she did an amazing job of bringing the different characters to life. The Poppy War tells the story of Rin, a war orphan who ends up being much more than that. The story is one of the tragedy and brutality of war, and parts of the book were very difficult for me to read. I don't think I'll stop thinking about this book any time soon, and I look forward to seeing the rest of the story play out in books 2 and 3. The Poppy War is an adult fantasy, 18+ for content, themes, and violence.

There's something about reading a book that a friend loves and loving it so much yourself. It's just so special to share love for the same stories and share what you experienced while reading. I have loved the movie, Practical Magic, for a very long time, but I never had read the book. I'm usually very much a read before watching girlie, but I didn't even realize the film was adapted from the book until a few years ago. This is a beautiful story of mothers and daughters, sisters, friendship, and love. It's a much deeper look into the lives of our favorite Owens women and their relationship with love and everything that love brings with it. This edition has an introduction written by the author, and she spoke about how she hears often from readers of how their mothers shared this story with them. This story is truly multi-generational— you have the aunts, Sally and Gillian, and Antonia and Kylie (Sally's daughters). Three generations of Owens women determined to not be like the generation before them, but through life discovering the importance of love and family. As someone who has sisters, friends I view as sisters, and three daughters, this story really spoke to me! Practical Magic is adult fiction, 16+ for language and content.