January has passed in a blur of cold wintry days, lazy weekends spent lounging and reading and catching up on all our TV shows and long weeks of work. Let's not forget to mention the underlying anxiety that's been dogging me all month, related to what's going on in the world to date. But, all in all, January was a solid start to a new year.

WHAT I DID

My favorite thing about January is that it started off on a lovely sunny day where we (Macky, myself, Mel & Kahl) went off to Central Park for a walk, and ended with our first Shake Shack of the new year. I also got to attend the Wayfarer event at Books of Wonder, and found it truly delightful to see Alex again. Dress fittings, dinners out, brunch dates, music sessions, reading binges - it was really very chill.

WHAT I READ

As of January 30, I managed to read a total of 18 books, as well as 12 comics/manga/graphic novels. Apart from that, I'm be finishing up an audiobook today, as well as hopefully finishing the portion of Les Miserables that I'm meant to read this month. But that's off topic; let's get to my favorites of the month!

Passenger / Wayfarer / Monstress, Vol. 1: Awakening / All the Light We Cannot See / I Capture the Castle

WHAT I POSTED

The Picky Pledge | Stats All, Folks!, 2016 Review, The Picky Pledge 2017

Personal | Alexa's 2017 To Do List, An Interview with Patrick Ness, Alexa's Adventures #5, All Good Things #2, Table for Two #1

Reviews | Abbreviations #31, Five Nights Only, Phantoms & Fairytales, Curses x Two, Life with Cassandra, Libraries & Love, TYRR#1: All the Light We Cannot See

Features, Tours and Tags | FOF Book Club: Anne Bishop, The Year of Recommended Reads, The Sunday Mix #38, Alexa's A to Z | Passenger Duology, The Lunar Year Book Tag, {Bookish} Style Files: Lady Helen Series

YouTube | Alexa's 2017 To Do List, January 2017 TBR, December Wrap-Up #2, A Haul-y Jolly Christmas,  January Wrap-Up #1, 10 Books I Want to Read in 2017, Alexa's A to Z | Passenger Duology, All the Light We Cannot See Book Review, Inside & Out Book Tag

One month has passed, and I've already managed to read quite a lot of fantasy! I'm pretty pleased with my progress - 19 books (11 graphic novels or manga, 1 reread and 7 books, to be specific). I read Passenger, Wayfarer, Monstress, Blueberry Pancakes Forever, Traveler, Naruto Vol. 63-72, Rise of Fire, Wintersong, The Bone Queen and Zodiac Starforce: By the Power of Astra. What fantasy books have you read this month? Don't forget to link up to your reviews, TBRs, or other fantasy-related posts below! (Don't forget that you've still got time to sign up for Flights of Fantasy 2017! If you want more information, here's the introduction and sign-up post.)

I'm also thrilled to announce that the sign-ups for the 2017 Love-a-Thon are officially here! Please check out the introduction post for details, and feel free to tweet me any questions (or leave a comment down below).

I'm always excited to be doing an edition of {Bookish} Style Files! This month, my dress picks are inspired by both the book covers from the Lady Helen Series (The Dark Days Club and The Dark Days Pact) by Alison Goodman. I have yet to read the books, but they're definitely on my TBR because it's historical fantasy and it's written by an author whose work I have previously read and enjoyed. Here's a little bit more about The Dark Days Pact and author Alison Goodman!

The Dark Days Pact by Alison Goodman

Series: Lady Helen #1

Previous Book in Series: The Dark Days Club

Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: January 31, 2017

Buy The Book: Book Depository | Amazon | IndieBound

Summer, 1812. 

After the scandalous events at her presentation ball in London, Lady Helen has taken refuge at the fashionable seaside resort of Brighton, banished from her family and training as a Reclaimer with the covert Dark Days Club. She must learn to fight the dangerous energy-wielding Deceivers and prepare to face their master, the elusive Grand Deceiver. 

As she struggles to put aside her genteel upbringing, Helen realizes that her mentor, Lord Carlston, is fighting his own inner battle. Has the foul Deceiver energy poisoned his soul, or is something else driving him towards violent bouts of madness? Either way, Helen is desperate to help the man with whom she shares a deep but forbidden connection.

When Mr. Pike, the hard bureaucratic heart of the Dark Days Club, arrives in Brighton, he has a secret mission for Helen: find the journal left by a mad rogue Reclaimer, before it falls into the hands of the Deceivers. Coerced by Pike, Helen has no choice but to do as ordered, knowing that the search for the journal may bring about Lord Carlston’s annihilation.

Alison Goodman (www.alisongoodman.com.au) is the author of the internationally bestselling and award-winning Eon/Eona duology, as well as a YASF thriller, Singing the Dogstar Blues, and the adult novel A New Kind of Death (originally titled Killing the Rabbit). She was a D.J. O'Hearn Memorial Fellow at Melbourne University, holds a Master of Arts, and teaches creative writing at the postgraduate level.

I'm really excited to dive into this series soon! It honestly sounds like it'll be incredibly fun, plus I'm a sucker for this particular time period in my fictional reads. But now, on to the main event - the dress picks I've got for today's post! I decided to try and pick out dresses that reminded me of the vibrant colors of the paperback edition of the first book, as well as the matching cover of the second. 

Curating Clientele A-Line Dress | The Dark Days Club | Convivial Connection Midi Dress in Mist | Applaud Your Elegance Maxi Dress

Atlanta Adventure A-Line Dress in Goldenrod Tile | Brings Out the Bistro in You A-Line Dress | The Dark Days Pact | A Lot to Author A-Line Dress in Black

Thanks to the fine folk over at Penguin, there is a tour-wide giveaway going on! Enter for a chance to win either one (1) grand prize set of Lady Helen books, including a paperback of The Dark Days Club and a hardcover of The Dark Days Pact by Alison Goodman (ARV: $28.98), or to be one of five (5) second prize winners to receive paperback copies of The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman (ARV: $10.99).

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Enter between 12:00 AM Eastern Time on January 23, 2017 and 12:00 AM on February 13, 2017. Open to residents of the fifty United States and the District of Columbia who are 13and older. Winners will be selected at random on or about February 14, 2017. Odds of winning depend on number of eligible entries received. Void where prohibited or restricted by law.

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1/23 – A Page With a View – Like/Try/Why

1/24 – Tales of a Ravenous Reader – Interview

1/25 – Twinning for Books – Review + Mood Board

1/26 – My Friends Are Fiction – Guest Post

1/27 – In Wonderland – Review

1/30 – Alexa Loves Books – Bookish Style Files

1/31 – The Reading Nook Reviews – Interview

2/1 – Xpresso Reads – Playlist 

2/2 – The YA Book Traveler – They Did What?!

2/3 – Icey Books – Guest Post

2/6 – YA Book Central – Excerpt

2/7 – Fiction Fare – Guest Post

2/8 – Forever Young Adult – Coming-Out Ball Mishaps

2/9 – Dark Faerie Tales – Interview

2/10 – Adventures of a Book Junkie – Reasons to Read

When I saw that Tiff of Mostly YA Lit had tagged me to do The Lunar New Year Book Tag (which she co-created with Joey of Thoughts & Afterthoughts), I decided it would be most appropriate for me to get this tag up on the actual date of Lunar New Year.

Just one? I honestly have so many books that I’m looking forward to in 2017 that it’s nearly impossible to narrow it down. But I’m going to pick Before She Ignites by Jodi Meadows for my answer, mostly because I love Jodi, I love her books and this one has dragons in it!

I tend to draw the most comfort from historical romances in general, and I usually read one when I'm in need of a pick-me-up. My favorite to return to time and again has always been (and probably will be) Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas, simply because there's a particular set of chapters that always makes me smile.

I have a few options for this question, but I'm going to go with The Only Thing Worse Than Me is You by Lily Anderson. It's a modern day spin on Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, featuring a special academy for really smart teens, lots of nerd references and really adorable relationships.

The first character who popped into my head is Kelsea Glynn from The Queen of the Tearling trilogy by Erika Johansen. She's been brought up in seclusion with only books and two teachers, but she's got a strong moral compass and is constantly trying to do right by her kingdom... no matter what the cost.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson is definitely a book that has stayed with me. It's one of the most raw young adult stories that I've ever read, and the emotions I felt while Melinda's story played out were really intense. It's a hard read, but well worth it.

I read a lot of books with a little romance in them, but one of my recent favorites was Shuffle, Repeat by Jen Klein. I mention this book a ton, but I can't help it! It's just so adorable, and so wonderful, and so well-written.

I'm going to go with The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson, as it's been a while since I've been able to mention that one at all on my blog. I absolutely loved this YA fantasy novel (and its sequels), and would highly recommend checking them out.

There's a character in The Bone Season series by Samantha Shannon that is totally manipulative (more than one, really, but there's one I'm specifically thinking of). Granted, Paige finds a way to override the manipulations in the situation she's in, but still!

I really loved The Secret of a Heart Note by Stacey Lee. It's a fun YA contemporary with a dash of magic to it, about a girl and her mom who are both aromateurs that can help people fall in love via scent. It's sweet and charming and utterly wonderful.

I absolutely adore the cover of This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills. It definitely captures the feel of the story, and it also happens to be primarily in my favorite color.

Autumn Collins is in the unfortunate situation of being accidentally locked in the library for an entire weekend. To make matters worse, she discovers that she’s locked in with Dax Miller, a boy who is rumored to be a whole lot of trouble and not exactly someone she wants to be stuck with. But as the hope of her friends returning for her fades and the two of them start to talk, Autumn discovers that there’s more to Dax than meets the eye. But when they’re free from the library at last, will their connection survive or will things go back to the way they used to be?

Plot? As with all the other Kasie West novels I’ve read, this book reads exactly like a teen romantic comedy or a Disney Channel Original Movie in book form. I was certainly rooting for the romance, in spite of the fact that I felt like things could escalate greatly in terms of drama and the fact that there were a couple of situations that made me uncomfortable. It was definitely just the sort of fluffy contemporary read I wanted at the time I read it, so I enjoyed it on the whole. (Also, can we talk about how not fun being stuck in the library was made out to be? Because it seriously made me rethink saying that I wouldn’t mind being stuck in one…)

Characters? Autumn, our main character, is a fairly typical teen gal who is just trying to navigate through the ups and downs of high school as best she can. She’s concerned about how her friends regard her, and also pines after a boy who might possibly be into her. So, as I said, she’s almost exactly what you’d expect. What I wasn’t expecting was West’s portrayal of Autumn’s anxiety. I was really surprised by how closely it mirrored my own experiences with anxiety, so I thought that was pretty cool and something that made Autumn a little bit more to me. 

Writing? The writing is fairly typical of a Kasie West novel, light, easy to read and very quick to get through. She peppers her story with a lot of really adorable and light-hearted moments, but also manages to sneak in that moment of real emotion that I always want in my romantic comedies.

Overall? I thought By Your Side was cute, though it did make me uncomfortable with certain moments that are included in the narrative. (There’s one particular scene that made me really anxious, though I suppose that was the point.) It was another cute rom-com YA read from Kasie West, and I think people who want something light and fluffy will likely enjoy reading this.

By Your Side by Kasie West

Publisher: Harper Teen | Publication Date: January 31, 2017

Source: e-ARC downloaded from Edelweiss (Thanks!)
(I'm a Book Depository affiliate! It would be lovely if you used my referral link if you wanted to buy this book, as I get a very small commission from it and will be putting that cash towards giveaways and other blog-related things.)

I’ve been meaning to read I Capture the Castle for a really long time now, specifically ever since I first saw Hannah’s glowing review – and it finally happened this month. I’m really pleased to tell you that I absolutely loved it! It’s all about six months in the life of Cassandra Mortmain, a young lady who aspires to be a writer and has determined that it would be good practice to keep a journal. She writes about her home among the ruins of a castle in the English countryside, the eccentric members of her family and about her own feelings as her life changes irrevocably when two young gentlemen appear. 

It felt like such an intimate read, since we readers are being granted the privilege of having Cassandra’s memories recounted for us by the girl herself. As someone who used to (and still tries to) journal about my life, it is no surprise that this format really worked for me. It fascinates me to be learning about a character and reading their story through their own perspective, and I definitely enjoyed getting a glimpse into who Cassandra was and her life at the time she ‘wrote’ this tale. She’s funny, charming and smart, and all of that comes across in her recollection of the things that have happened to her and to her family. I was absolutely delighted to be spending so much time with Cassandra, who is one of my new favorite literary characters.

In addition to a main character I adored, I Capture the Castle is also written in a lovely manner. It reminded me, in the best ways, of Jane Austen and L.M. Montgomery. Dreamy musings, funny little bits, evocative descriptions – you’ll find all of this, and maybe a little bit more, in Cassandra’s story. It was perfectly wonderful and cozy to be ensconced in this world so completely as I was reading this book on a Friday night. I’m so glad that I finally read I Capture the Castle, and got to experience this beautiful classic for myself. I only wish I’d read it sooner rather than later! So, my advice is: don’t make the same mistake of putting off reading this one, particularly if you already like the sound of it based on my thoughts here.

This was my first read for The Picky Pledge Reading Challenge we came up with for 2017! I'm really excited to cross an item off my TBR for this challenge. Apart from reading one book every month, Hannah & I also decided we would answer a set of questions to post with our reviews.

1) How long has this book been on your TBR? It’s officially been on my TBR since November 2015, though I’m confident that I heard about it way before that when I read Hannah’s review. I only acquired it that month, however, thanks to the lovely Hannah sending me a copy of it!

2) What did you like about the cover? I actually exchanged the copy Hannah gave me (which was the movie tie-in version, I believe) for this lovely floral patterned cover when I found a copy for sale at one of my favorite bargain bookstores. I’m all about really striking, simple covers on my classics, and I loved this one a whole lot.

3) How many books are on your TBR because of the cover? To be honest, as I discussed this month with Hannah, I actually rarely pick up books just because of the cover, particularly in the last two years (thanks to The Picky Pledge!). I do have a lot of books that happen to have pretty covers, true, but I primarily picked them up to read for other reasons. So, I can actually and truthfully say – none.

I absolutely love Alexandra Bracken's Passenger duology - Passenger and Wayfarer. It is a cleverly constructed, incredibly imagined story of time travel and adventure, of family and friendship and romance, of questions of morality and truth.

Passenger is the start of the journey, where Henrietta "Etta" Spencer is kidnapped and finds herself in a world of time travel and traveler clans. She's forced to go on a scavenger hunt through time and space for a family heirloom she's never heard about before, in order to save her mother. Fortunately, she's not alone - she's got the help of Nicholas Carter, a slave's child and a sailor determined to find his freedom on the open sea, and a few other people along the way. Wayfarer is the sequel that reveals the consequences of the first novel's events. It is the beginning of a second journey for Etta and Nicholas, one where the stakes are even higher and the outcome ever more uncertain than the first. It's a clashing of goals and morals, of families and friends and foes, and it finishes out the duology beautifully.

Both novels are incredible stories! I loved the way time travel was constructed, especially because Bracken really defined the parameters. I loved the way the different time periods and settings were written, because the level of detail - in clothing, location, food and other little things - was incredible and immersive. I loved the characters and their relationships, how every single one of the main players was an incredibly complex individual who was neither good nor bad just morally gray. And I loved how exciting the story was - the hijinks, the battles, the near misses, the triumphs. It was all just extremely well-crafted, and I loved every single bit. If you've yet to read the Passenger duology, you absolutely must. It's an adventure that you don't want to miss out on, narrated by characters that you'll be certain to love - and it's wonderful from start to finish.






Additionally, because of my deep love for this series, I decided to create a new Alexa's A to Z video. In this video, I give you 26 reasons - one for each letter - that I absolutely loved these books (spoiler-free) in the hopes of convincing you further that you must read this series. I hope that you enjoy it!

(I'm a Book Depository affiliate! It would be lovely if you used my referral link if you wanted to buy this book, as I get a very small commission from it and will be putting that cash towards giveaways and other blog-related things.)

The Cursed Queen, companion novel to The Impostor Queen, is about a girl named Ansa, who was orphaned at an extremely young age and taken by the tribe that conquered her village. She grows up with them, determined to prove that she is worthy of being called Krigere and that she belongs among their ranks. Together with her best friend and the chieftain’s daughter Thyra, Ansa accompanies their warriors on a trip to wage war against the country of Kupari for glory and fortune – only to have the tides turn, and a full massacre take out everyone except Ansa, Thyra and their friend Sander. As the Krigere are forced to embark on a journey away from the place they’ve called home, everything Ansa believed in is called into question and she must figure out what ought to be done – for the clan, for Thyra and for the curse that threatens all of her dreams of the future.

I was really impressed by The Impostor Queen, and I’m happy to be able to say that I loved The Cursed Queen just as much, if not more, than its predecessor. It was incredibly interesting to read about Ansa, as she marries two things that I love in a character – a fierce, smart warrior and a girl not afraid to be vulnerable, even if only on her own. It’s because I loved seeing her growth that I truly fell in love with this story! Also, Fine does a really good job weaving both Ansa’s individual problems and those she takes on as part of the Krigere clan into one cohesive story. It made her so much more complex than I expected, and I really liked that a lot.

Clearly, I’m very attached to Ansa. But there are other things to love about The Cursed Queen. There is the way that Fine expanded this world she created in The Impostor Queen, including subtle details that readers who have read the first novel will definitely pick up on. There is the additional ensemble of characters, majority of whom are morally gray instead of just good or just evil. There is the story itself, which is a great balance of plot, world and character and also manages to be extremely compelling. All in all, it was a winning combination of elements that resulted in The Cursed Queen and I really enjoyed it! I’d highly recommend reading this book, as well as The Impostor Queen, if you haven’t already or if you’re in the market for a new YA fantasy series to read.

Monstress, Vol. 1: Awakening by Marjorie Liu & Sana Takeda

Series: Monstress #1

Publisher: Image Comics

Publication Date: July 19, 2016

Source: Purchased at New York Comic Con 2016

(I'm a Book Depository affiliate! It would be lovely if you used my referral link if you wanted to buy this book, as I get a very small commission from it and will be putting that cash towards giveaways and other blog-related things.)

Monstress is the story of a young girl named Maika Halfwolf, a girl determined to suss out the truth of her past and the situation in her present. And if that mission requires a touch of violence and murder, well, she's up for it as long as she arrives at the understanding of herself and her history that she needs. What complicates things for Maika, however, is that the world she lives in is a world where two races - humans and arcanics - are in the middle of a stalemate during a war they've been engaged in for many years. As she continues to dig for the truth, Maika faces opposition and friendship in equal measure.

I loved Monstress, y'all.

This first volume of Monstress includes the first six single issues, and it's definitely a substantial amount of story for this trade paperback collection. Readers will get a real glimpse into the incredible world that Liu & Takeda have created as a backdrop for their tale, including detailed art that allows you to get to know the world and characters on a visual level, as well as a couple of randomly inserted history lessons that explain the state of things. It is, without question, one of the most diverse and female-centered stories I've ever read, and that definitely made me happy! The word volume is a bit denser than I expected, but readers are not likely to notice considering the amount of action our characters see as well. There are battle scenes and conversational moments, and they all tie together to become the beginning of an epic saga.

My favorite thing about this story is the main character, Maika Halfwolf. I love that they portrayed her as a girl who can take care of herself in extremely difficult circumstances, a girl driven by her determination to understand, a girl who is also surprisingly vulnerable and unwilling to risk her safety and her mission to be close to others. It makes for a complex character with both an external and internal conflict to contend with, and the authors depicted that very well in these first few issues. I certainly look forward to reading more of her story in the next volume to come, and I definitely would recommend checking out Monstress if you haven't already.

I'm officially back with the very first edition of The Sunday Mix for 2017! Truthfully, I meant for this to go up last Sunday. But it's here now, so better late than never, yes? I've linked to a lot of interesting articles below, as well as some 2017 challenges to consider checking out and a bunch of posts highlighting some awesome 2017 books to watch out for.

It's Friday, and you know the drill - it means a brand new video has been uploaded to my channel! Today, I'm chatting about the ten books that I definitely want to read by the end of 2017. It's a mix of stand-alones, series starters and series enders, and I want to invite you to feel free to (lovingly) yell at me if you see a book on the list that I need to read immediately.

Here's the full list of books I want to read this year:

Pivot Point by Kasie West

The Shattered Court by M.J. Scott

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Ship of Brides by Jojo Moyes

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

The Beauty of Darkness by Mary E. Pearson

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

A Million Worlds With You by Claudia Gray

The Winner's Kiss by Marie Rutkoski

Stars Above by Marissa Meyer

RoseBlood by A.G. Howard

Publisher: Amulet Books

Publication Date: January 10, 2017

Source: ARC received from the publisher (Thanks!)

Rune Germain is in possession of a gift: a talent for opera that is unsurpassed by any other. In an attempt to help Rune overcome her stage fright and train her voice, her mother sends her to a French arts conservatory located in an opera house that is rumored to be connected to The Phantom of the Opera. It is there that Rune meets Thorn – an elusive young man who helps her through her musical transformation and also understands her in a way that no one else can. But Thorn has a secret, and it is this that will lead to the crucial decision he will be forced to make - Rune’s safety or the wrath of the phantom that has been like a father to him all these years.

If you’re anything like me and you find The Phantom of the Opera fascinating, I think that you’ll enjoy RoseBlood. It’s an odd book filled with strange coincidences and eerie details, but these seem sensible things considering the source material Howard drew on. It doesn’t mean I didn’t roll my eyes a time or two, particularly when details were a little too pointed or convenient, but it definitely didn’t hinder my reading experience. In fact, the weirdness was what kept me reading! No, what actually proved to be bothersome in the end were the characters. I just could not find it in me to really care about any of them, even though I could see the effort put into giving them unique personalities. Still, Howard deserves credit for writing a tale that perfectly captures the feel of The Phantom of the Opera while also being an oddly fascinating story that stands all on its own.

(I'm a Book Depository affiliate! It would be lovely if you used my referral link if you wanted to buy this book, as I get a very small commission from it and will be putting that cash towards giveaways and other blog-related things.)

Vasilisa lives with her family at the edge of the Russian wilderness, content to spend her nights listening to her old nurse tell fairytales by the fire. But when her mother dies, her father goes to Moscow and brings back a new wife – a wife who is city-bred, fiercely devout and deathly afraid of the spirits that linger in the house. Vasilisa is the only one who keeps up the rituals to honor the spirits, but her efforts are not enough to battle the tide of darkness and misfortune that threatens to overwhelm the village. With a stepmother determined to tame her by marriage or by convent, and the threat of death and destruction looming over her, Vasilisa must discover her own strength in order to defend the home and people she loves the most in the world.

The Bear and the Nightingale is a perfectly dreamy sort of read best suited to be read in the cold of winter, curled up under a comfortable blanket and with a warm drink at hand. It took me a couple of chapters before I settled properly into the storytelling style Arden employs, though in hindsight, I recognize its similarities to the telling of a fairy tale. But once I was hooked, I was hooked. I was content to allow each chapter to unfold, simply curious to discover what would become of Vasilisa and her family. It certainly helped that it was all too easy for me to feel predisposed towards caring about Vasilisa, who was the sort of brave young lady devoted to what she knows is right that I tend to gravitate towards. Magical and imaginative and utterly transporting, I enjoyed this novel, and believe that others will as well.