REVIEW: The Matchmaker's List by Sonya Lalli

**I received an ARC from the publisher. These are my honest opinions, and in no way was I compensated for this review.**

The Matchmaker's List by Sonya Lalli

Release Date: January 22, 2019

My Rating: 3.75 stars

Summary: One devoted modern girl + a meddlesome, traditional grandmother = a heartwarming multicultural romantic comedy about finding love where you least expect it

Raina Anand may have finally given in to family pressure and agreed to let her grandmother play matchmaker, but that doesn't mean she has to like it--or that she has to play by the rules. Nani always took Raina's side when she tried to push past the traditional expectations of their tight-knit Indian-immigrant community, but now she's ambushing Raina with a list of suitable bachelors. Is it too much to ask for a little space? Besides, what Nani doesn't know won't hurt her...

As Raina's life spirals into a parade of Nani-approved bachelors and disastrous blind dates, she must find a way out of this modern-day arranged-marriage trap without shattering her beloved grandmother's dreams.

MINI-REVIEWS: The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare

I'll be honest, this is part-review, mostly confessional, because I have a lot of feelings and memories after marathon-reading all 6 books in 6 days. And then Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy the next day. I am so tired. So tired.

Now, I've never read all 6 books back-to-back before. I first read the series in 2011, after City of Fallen Angels came out, and I probably reread them before book 5, but by the time the last book released, I was pretty much off the series so. It was certainly very different reading them now, all at once and as I'm older. I'll expand on this more later, but when I first read the series, I was head-over-heels in love with the books, and honestly . . . I think I was dragged back in. Yes, all of this is problematic (this was mostly a nostalgic and guilty reread), but I can't help but love being back in this world again.

I also live-tweeted my reread, so I'll include some of the better tweets here. Profanity ahead, because some of all of this was so ridiculous, I couldn't help it. Also many, many spoilers ahead, for all of the series in the Shadowhunter universe. And, in case you're wondering, I use the original covers to fully express the embarrassment this series brings me. The new covers are too good.

LIST: a book for every mood

for every sad mood:

for when you're feeling sad and want to laugh:

feel-good contemporaries with distracting plots:

• Royals by Rachel Hawkins
• Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson
• Save the Date by Morgan Matson
• Trouble is a Friend of Mine by Stephanie Tromly
• I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo

low fantasies with a whole lot of jokes:

• The Epic Crush of Genie Lo by F.C. Yee
• Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins
• In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan

for when you're feeling down and need something cute and fluffy:

cute YA contemporaries:

• To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han
• When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon
• From Twinkle, with Love by Sandhya Menon
• The Secret of a Heart Note by Stacey Lee
• I See London, I See France by Sarah Mlynowski
• Love & Luck by Jenna Evans Welch
• The Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene Goo

steamy adult romances:

• Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren
• Dating You / Hating You by Christina Lauren
• The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

for when you're feeling melancholy and need some hope:

tales of low points and healing:

• Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta (cw: depression)
• Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta
• The Lumatere Chronicles by Melina Marchetta (tw: rape)
• Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore (tw: mentions of rape)
• Solitaire by Alice Oseman (cw: depression, suicide)
• Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno (tw: rape)
• The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan (tw: depression, suicide)
• Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi
• Final Draft by Riley Redgate
• We Are Okay by Nina LaCour
• Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman (tw: rape)
• The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
• Saints & Misfits by S.K. Ali (tw: attempted rape, sexual assault)
• Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman (tw: parental abuse, emotional abuse, child abuse)

cloudy mindsets and happy endings:

• Cloudwish by Fiona Wood
• First & Then by Emma Mills
• Places No One Knows by Brenna Yovanoff
• American Panda by Gloria Chao
• I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
• You Know Me Well by Nina Lacour and David Levithan

for when you're feeling angsty and still want more angst in your life (but with some happiness mixed in):

• The Lynburn Legacy by Sarah Rees Brennan
• Summer Skin by Kirsty Eagar
• To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo
• The Only Thing Worse than Me Is You by Lily Anderson
• This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills
• Foolish Hearts by Emma Mills
• Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
• Noteworthy by Riley Redgate
• Curseworkers series by Holly Black

for every happy mood:

for when you're feeling DRAMATIC and you want some exuberance:

contemporary novels filled with *insert Skam gif* dramaaaa

• Royals by Rachel Hawkins
• Prince in Disguise by Stephanie Kate Strohm
• Not Now, Not Ever by Lily Anderson
• Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
• The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall
• Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett
• Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett
• Blood for Blood by Catherine Doyle

lush fantasies/sci-fi with breathtaking prose:

• For a Muse of Fire by Heidi Heilig
• Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore
• Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao
• The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi
• A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi
• Rebel Seoul by Axie Oh
• A Spark of White Fire by Sangu Mandanna
• Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan (tw: sexual abuse, violence)
• Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake
• The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco
• Want by Cindy Pon

for when you're feeling a spin-around-the-room, bask-in-the-warmth kinda mood and you want to smile/laugh even more:

adorable YA contemporaries:

• To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han
• When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon
• From Twinkle, with Love by Sandhya Menon
• The Secret of a Heart Note by Stacey Lee
• The Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene Goo
• This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills
• Foolish Hearts by Emma Mills
• Summer of Salt by Katrina Leno (tw: rape)
• Cloudwish by Fiona Wood

bonus!!

for when you're feeling angry:

books with angry protagonists (features uh some hero-to-villain/antihero stories):

• The Epic Crush of Genie Lo by F.C. Yee
• The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco
• The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang (so many tw's, pls google them before reading)
• Tiny Pretty Things by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton

stories with facing injustice and handling it like a pro and/or with just kicking ass:

• The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
• Dear Martin by Nic Stone
• The Lines We Cross by Randa Abdel-Fattah (cw: racism, anti-immigration)
• Lucy and Linh by Alice Pung (cw: racism, racial slurs, bullying)
• Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin
• Outrun the Moon by Stacey Lee
• Heroine's Complex by Sarah Kuhn
• Jade City by Fonda Lee (tw: violence)

for when you're feeling nostalgic:

(I personally think that sometimes, you just gotta give into the nostalgia and read those books you maybe read 10 years ago and haven't really touched since then. if you're feeling low, it honestly helps tbh)
books you might have read a billion years ago but haven't touched since then:

• Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan
• Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan
• Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling (I know...problematic, but HP is a world that I personally return to for a feel-good read. just don't forget all of its flaws)
• The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare (I always reread this when I'm feeling like reliving the cringeyness bc honestly, it's hilarious and a great pick-me-up)
• The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare (this one...sometimes I just like reliving the pain)
• Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
• Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins
• Gallagher Girls by Ally Carter
• Heist Society by Ally Carter
• Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

for when you're in a book slump:

books that you physically can't put down (i.e. books I read in 1-2 sittings):

fantasy/sci-fi:

• A Spark of White Fire by Sangu Mandanna
• Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan (tw: sexual abuse, violence)
• Rebel Seoul by Axie Oh
• To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo
• In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan
• Bring Me Their Hearts by Sara Wolf
• Jade City by Fonda Lee (tw: violence)

contemporary:

• This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills
• Foolish Hearts by Emma Mills
• Royals by Rachel Hawkins
• When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon
• From Twinkle, with Love by Sandhya Menon
• The Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene Goo
• I See London, I See France by Sarah Mlynowski
• Summer Skin by Kirsty Eagar
• Dating You / Hating You by Christina Lauren

TOUR / REVIEW: This Cruel Design by Emily Suvada

**I received an ARC for this tour. These are my honest opinions, and in no way was I compensated for this review.**

This Cruel Design by Emily Suvada

Release Date: October 30, 2018

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Summary: Cat  thought  the  Hydra  epidemic  was  over,  but  when  new  cases  pop  up,  Cat  must  team  up  with  an  enemy  to  fix  the  vaccine  before  the  virus  spirals  out  of  control  in  this  thrilling  sequel  to  This  Mortal  Coil,  which  New  York  Times  bestselling  author  Amie  Kaufman  says  “redefines  ‘unputdownable.’”

The  nightmare  of  the  outbreak  is  finally  over,  but  Cat’s  fight  has  only  just  begun.

Exhausted,  wounded,  and  reeling  from  revelations  that  have  shaken  her  to  her  core,  Cat  is  at  a  breaking  point.  Camped  in  the  woods  with  Cole  and  Leoben,  she’s  working  day  and  night,  desperate  to  find  a  way  to  stop  Lachlan’s  plan  to  reprogram  humanity.  But  she’s  failing—Cat  can’t  even  control  her  newly  regrown  panel,  and  try  as  she  might  to  ignore  them,  she  keeps  seeing  glitching  visions  from  her  past  everywhere  she  turns.

When  news  arrives  that  the  Hydra  virus  might  not  be  as  dead  as  they’d  thought,  the  group  is  pushed  into  an  uneasy  alliance  with  Cartaxus  to  hunt  down  Lachlan  and  fix  the  vaccine.  Their  search  takes  them  to  Entropia,  a  city  of  genehackers  hidden  deep  in  the  desert  that  could  also  hold  the  answers  about  Cat’s  past  that  she’s  been  searching  for.

But  when  confronted  with  lies  and  betrayals,  Cat  is  forced  to  question  everything  she  knows  and  everyone  she  trusts.  And  while  Lachlan  is  always  two  steps  ahead,  the  biggest  threat  to  Cat  may  be  the  secrets  buried  in  her  own  mind.

#waitingonwednesday: girls of paper and fire

This week's #waitingonwednesday book is Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan! I'm fortunate to have already read it (check out my review here), but I'm still so, so excited for this beautiful masterpiece of a book to be released into the world. It comes out in a little less than 2 weeks: November 6, 2018, and there are some cool preorder prizes!

REVIEW: The Wicked King by Holly Black

**I received an ARC from a trade. In no way was I compensated for my review, and these are my honest opinions.**

The Wicked King by Holly Black

Release Date: January 8, 2019

My Rating: 5 stars

Summary: The enchanting and bloodthirsty sequel to the New York Times bestselling novel The Cruel Prince.

You must be strong enough to strike and strike and strike again without tiring.

The first lesson is to make yourself strong.

After the jaw-dropping revelation that Oak is the heir to Faerie, Jude must keep her younger brother safe. To do so, she has bound the wicked king, Cardan, to her, and made herself the power behind the throne. Navigating the constantly shifting political alliances of Faerie would be difficult enough if Cardan were easy to control. But he does everything in his power to humiliate and undermine her even as his fascination with her remains undiminished.

When it becomes all too clear that someone close to Jude means to betray her, threatening her own life and the lives of everyone she loves, Jude must uncover the traitor and fight her own complicated feelings for Cardan to maintain control as a mortal in a Faerie world.

TOUR: The Geography of Lost Things by Jessica Brody

 

The Geography of Lost Things by Jessica Brody

Release Date: October 2, 2018

Summary: In  this  romantic  road  trip  story  perfect  for  fans  of  Sarah  Dessen  and  Morgan  Matson, a  teen  girl  discovers  the  value  of  ordinary  objects  while  learning  to  forgive  her  absent  father.

After  Ali’s  father  passes  away,  he  leaves  his  one  and  only  prized  possession—a  1968  Fire-bird  convertible—to  his  daughter.  But  Ali  doesn’t  plan  on  keeping  it.  Not  when  it  reminds  her  too  much  of  all  her  father’s  unfulfilled  promises.  So  when  she  finds  a  buyer  three  hundred  miles  up  the  Pacific  coast  willing  to  pay  enough  money  for  the  car  to  save  her  childhood  home,  Ali  can’t  wait  to  get  going.  Except  Ali  has  no  idea  how  to  drive  a  stick  shift.  But  guess  who  does?

Ali’s  ex-boyfriend,  Nico.  And  Nico  has  other  plans.

He  persuades  Ali  that  instead  of  selling  the  car,  they  should  “trade  up”  the  items  they  collect  on  their  trip  to  eventually  reach  the  monetary  amount  Ali  needs.  Agreeing  with  Nico’s  crazy  plan,  Ali  sets  off  on  a  unique  adventure  that  is  unlike  anything  she  ever  could  have  ex-pected.

And  it’s  through  Ali’s  travels,  through  the  strangers  she  meets  and  the  things  that  they  val-ue—and  why  they  value  them—that  Ali  eventually  comes  to  understand  her  father  and  how  his  life  may  not  have  been  as  easy  and  carefree  as  she  previously  thought.  Because  just  like  the  seemingly  insignificant  objects  Ali  collects,  not  everything  is  exactly  as  it  appears.