Mount TBR 2018 discussion

Pike's Peak:
1."The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic" by Leigh Bardugo
2."Daughter of the Pirate King" by Tricia Levenseller
3."Cruel Crown" by Victoria Aveyyward
4."Envy" by Anna Godbersen
5."Rebel of the Sands" by Alwyn Hamilton
6."A Darker Shade of Magic" by V. E. Schwab
7."Traitor to the Throne" by Alwyn Hamilton
8."Glass Sword" by Victoria Aveyard
9."A Pocket Full of Rye" by Agatha Christie
10."The Archived" by Victoria Schwab
11."Adulthood is a Myth" by Sarah Andersen
12."Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon #6" by Naoko Takeuchi

Mt. Blanc:
13."Summer Days and Summer Nights: Twelve Love Stories" by Stephanie Perkins & co.
14."Warcross" by Marie Lu
15."A Gathering of Shadows" by V.E Schwab
16."Sapphire Blue" by Kierstin Gier
17."Emerald Green" by Kierstin Gier
18."Annihilation" by Jeff Vandermeer
19."Big Mushy Happy Lump" by Sarah Andersen
20."Dealing in Deception" by Samantha Joycer
21."Thirteen Reasons Why" by Jay Asher
22."The Sun is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon
23."The Grift of the Magi" by Ally Carter
24."The Score" by Elle Kennedy

Mt. Vancouver:
25."Dorothy Must Die Stories vol.2" by Danielle Page
26."Half-Blood" by Jennifer L. Armentrout
27."Wake" by Amanda Hocking
28."Grave Mercy" by Robin LaFevers
29."Days of Blood and Starlight" by Laini Taylor
30."The Thousandth Floor" by Katharine McGee
31."Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
32."A Tale of Two Cities" by Charles Dickens
33."Scythe" by Neil Schusterman
34."Very Good Lives" by J. K. Rowling
35."Our Dark Duet" by Victoria Schwab
36."A Tyranny of Pettitcoats" by Jessica Spotswood & 13 female authors

Mt. Ararat:
37."King's Cage" by Victoria Aveyard
38."The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet" by Bernie Su
39."Night of Cake & Puppets" by Laini Taylor
40."Sharp Objects" by Gillian Flynn
41."The Dream Thieves" by Maggie Stievfater
42."Splintered" by A.G Howard
43."The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken
44."Deadly Cool" by Gemma Haliday
45."Blue Lily, Lily Blue" by Maggie Stievfater
46."The Silkworm" by Robert Gailbrath
47."Social Suicide" by Gemma Halliday
48."Obsidian" by Jennifer L. Armentrout

#49:
"False Hearts" by Laura Lam
Finished on:October 11, 2018
Rating:★★★ - 3.5 stars
Comment:I really liked the premise of this book and enjoyed the story overall. The mystery is intriguing and I found myself wanting to know more, but I thought some things were resolved too quickly and the plot twists, although interesting, were a bit predictable (I guessed some almost right before it happened). I did liked how the author mashed the past and present and how to every few Taema's present chapters, we would have Tila's recounting of the past and how it would correlate with what Taema was living and dropping little clues about the Hearth and how they got to where they were. It was also a good way to develop the twins personalities and how different their POVs were on the same subject.
There's also a lot of diversity (we have a bissexual main character, yay!) and I enjoyed how in this society, color of skin and sexuality is not important at all - you can be what you want to be, as long as you're a good citizen. The world building was also interesting and I can't wait to know a little more in book 2, since it seems the author will explore more on the Zeal drug and other aspects of this society.
It was a good, enjoyable book, although sometimes slow going, but nothing extraordinary.

#50:
"Onix" by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Finished on:DNF - 50%
Rating:★★
Comment:Yes, I did enjoy the first book and was curious about the direction the story would take in this second installment. It was interesting and there's some things that picked my interest and I think expanded the mythology in a good way, But all that was essentially put aside to give way to Kat & Daemon's romantic drama through the most part of the book. Things only started to move forward about halfway through and by then I was already so irritated that I couldn't bring myself to care and to continue on. Kat was annoying and dramatic, Daemon was a jealous, overprotective douche the entire time. Dee had glimpses during the half of the book and she was reduced to a guest appearance who's only concern was shag her alien BF. Jennifer's writing is fluid and overall easy to read and makes you plow through the story without even realizing, but even that didn't make up for all the unnecessary drama. I'm officially giving up on this series. Maybe third time's the charm, but I don't see myself reading any of Armentrout's books in the near future.

Nice to see you on your final peak Natalia. Good luck. 10 books to go for both of us :)

Karen wrote: "Nice to see you on your final peak Natalia. Good luck. 10 books to go for both of us :)"

Thanks,Karen! Hoping we can both make it!

#51:
"The Rose Society" by Marie Lu
Finished on:October 27, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment:This book left me shocked and anxious to pick up the final installment. Adelina's story evolves in such an unexpected, dark way and Lu manages to make the reader feel for her despite all the awful things she does. I love a good origin story and I like this idea that villains are not born, they are made and Marie Lu manages to write a compelling character that slowly descends into madness and darkness and become this cruel villain, but you can't help but feel that she could have somehow be saved and that there were things that went terribly wrong for her and pushed her towards this path. I also enjoyed that no one was this pure-hearted, morally good character - all of them, Rafaelle, Enzon, Teren, even Violetta, were morally grey and sometimes did things that should be frown upon, no matter if they were for protection or for the greater good of things. All the characters felt real because of that and had their own complexities and individual plots. I loved the new characters, especially Magiano and Maeve, and they contributed greatly not only to move the plot along but to the relationships in the story. I can't wait to see more from them and how everything will conclude after the explosive events of this second book (THAT FINAL SEQUENCE OF EVENTS, OMG!)

#52:
"Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon #7" by Naoko Takeuchi
Finished on:November 02, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment: One of my favorite arcs is the S season, especially because I LOVE the Outer Senshi, the dynamics between Usagi and Haruka (and the fact that it's confirmed that Haruka is gender fluid), ChibiUsa and Hotaru's friendship (and maybe more, because it's hinted by Hotaru that she has feelings for ChibiUsa AND I SHIP IT SO HARD) and the whole Sailor Saturn arc (I love how powerful she is and she's the Senshi that represents my star sign, yay!). It's an exceptionally dark arc in the series, and it's even darker in the mangá. Takeuchi doesn't shy away from certain things and it ups the stakes for our heroines. Also, Mamoru is much more present here and it's more useful than in the anime. It almost makes me like him as much as Seiya & Haruka.

#53:
"Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon #8" by Naoko Takeuchi
Finished on:November 02, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment: The conclusion of the Death Buster's arc and the beginning of my queen Neherenia's Super S arc! I love the Dead Moon Circus, the Amazoness Quartet and the Dark Moon plot. I'm not a fan of ChibiUsa's protagonism and the whole Elios/Pegasus debacle, but oh well. It's visually my favorite arc, though, so I'm enjoying it.

#54:
"Career of Evil" by Robert Gailbrath
Finished on:November 02, 2018
Rating:★★★★
Comment:This had to be my favorite novel from this series - not only the stakes are higher than ever, but the relationship between our protagonists have reached new levels and their dynamics are better than ever. The atmosphere is darker and more gruesome, partially thanks to the fact that we have access to the killer's POV and it's equal parts fascinating and horrifying. Strike is taking new steps into his development as a character, and we get to see more of his past and understand some of his personality and relationships a little better because of it. I liked to get to know how his friendship with Shanker started and how close they really are. It was one of my favorite things in the novel, as well as the character - who is proven loyal, and has a crooked sense of moral, but is nonetheless empathic and fun. Robin had its ups and downs in this - although I love her character and admire her strength, her objectiveness and her intelligence, she was sometimes irrational and led by conflicting emotions during the novel. Yes, I understand what she was going through, but even she admitted that she was being irrational, and still went through with it. Her harshness and impulsiveness were very unlike her and it bothered me. Not only that, but she made some very questionable decisions, especially regarding Matthew - after everything that happened between them. I guessed the real killer right before it was revealed, but the mystery kept me on the edge of my seat and second-guessing everything I thought till the very end and that's something I love in mystery/detective novels. I can't wait to see were J.K is leading Cormoran and Robin in the next case!

#55:
"Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon #9" by Naoko Takeuchi
Finished on:November 04, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment: The Dead Moon Circus arc advances and their final endgame is clear. I liked to see the chapters of how each Senshi overcame their inability to transform and what their dreams are. I like how this whole arc is about dreams and seeing those dreams give them the strength they need to come into their new power and help Sailor Moon. My favorite is obviously Minako's, not only because she is my favorite character, but because as the Inner Senshi leader, she has her own protector in the form of Artemis, her story had to have a bigger importance and I loved how it explored her relationship with Artemis and how much they care for each other. The Outer Senshi's chapter was another favorite, I love their little 'family' setup and how they really came together to raise Hotaru. Now everything is set up to the finale of this arc!

#56:
"The Girl of Fire & Thorns" by Rae Carson
Finished on:November 07, 2018
Rating:★★★★
Comment: I absolutely adored this book. It was so different from other fantasy novels I've read so far! It has so much representation in it, starting up with the fact that it's based on Hispanic/Latino culture, with a rich world-building. Second of all, our heroine is an overweight girl who faces serious eating disorders and anxiety and is not your usual badass-fighter main character like in most fantasies. She's not confident and is shy, but her mind is sharp and she is an excellent strategist and she'll grow into a leadership role on her own during the novel and her development through the story is amazing. It's a different spin on the 'chosen one' troupe and I liked it very very much. The pacing is super fast and every page brings a new emotion, a new discovery, an exciting plot twist and I couldn't put it down. The ending was a bit rushed, though, and some things were discovered too quickly after being put aside for almost the entire novel. I feel like this could be standalone, since so much happens here, but I agree that there's more to be explained and for the author to explore and I'm excited to see where this trilogy is going.

#57:
"The Shadow Cats" by Rae Carson
Finished on:November 07, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment: This novella is set before the actual first novel and explores one of the characters we've seen only briefly in the beginning and gives depth to her character, to her relationship with Elisa and expand the world Rae Carson created by developing more of Elisa's home-kingdom. This is hopefully a sign we'll see more of it in the next installments of the trilogy, and I'm excited to have Alodia, the main character here and Elisa's sister, interact with her now more mature, confident and queenly sister. And I can't wait to see how she fared after the events of book one.

3 more books to go! Does that mean I can think about maybe reaching the top of El Toro this year? One can dream!

#58:
"The Midnight Star" by Marie Lu
Finished on:November 16, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment:What a way to end a trilogy! Lu perfectly wrapped up everything here, leading the reader through one last epic adventure with Adelina and the Elites, with the fate of the whole world on the line. It was the smallest book of the three, but everything that was in it was meant to be there and it managed to tie up all the loose ends in the best way and still end with a bang. It was an emotional rollercoaster through and through and totally worth the ride. She wasn't afraid to make the hard choices and it made the reader feel the danger and urgency that was the tone of this book. The ending was beautiful and a perfect way to end Adelina's story. The title made complete sense in the end and it was a nice touch. I absolutely loved this entire trilogy and it became one of my favorites. I would recommend this to every fantasy lover out there - it's a must-read for sure!

That's another started-but-never-finished series down this year! I'm so happy! Not only am I nearing the top of Kilimanjaro, but I managed to knock another trilogy/duology/series from my eternal unfinished pile. I'm hoping to get at least 2 or 3 more down before the year's end!

2 to go! Or 17... Can you hit another peak? :)

I'm hoping so! There's still time!

#59:
"Lair of Dreams" by Libba Bray
Finished on:November 18, 2018
Rating:★★★★★
Comment:I absolutely loved the first installment of this series and it keeps getting better! The paranormal aura and dark atmosphere of the book left me with some serious chills, especially if I was reading at night. The historical background is on point and not only gives a more realistic feel to the story but it also serves as a great social critique - that's one of the things I love about Bray's writing: despite being fantasy novels, they have this undercurrent of important social aspects, like feminism and racism, and in this case xenophoby as well. The setting of the story is as important as the main characters and New York takes on this magic but the dangerous tone and is alive with music and dreams and ghosts. The characters are also very complex and fleshed-out and I enjoyed how, despite having different goals through the novel and having very different storylines, Bray managed to converge them all and bring them together in the end and make this powerful, amazing squad. Henry and Ling were the stars of this novel for me and I liked how their relationship developed and how close they became. Theta and Sam were also explored a little bit better, which I loved, but I still think Jericho and especially Mabel were underexplored and Jericho especially is a very interesting character and has this mysterious background that has the possibility to bring some answers in the next books, so I wanted a little more of him. Evie was positively annoying here and I there was times I wanted to just skim through her chapters. The whole book was intense, but the end even more so and though I realized the plot twist seconds before the actual reveal in the novel, I was pleasantly surprised and wanted more the minute I finished the last page - I can't wait to get my hands on the next book and see what's in store for the Diviners!

#60:
"Dream A Little Dream" by Kerstin Gier
Finished on:November 29, 2018
Rating:★★★ - 3.5 stars
Comment:Not this fantastic, innovative book, but I had so much fun reading it. I'm into this dream walk vibe recently after Lair of Dreams and I really liked the paranormal aspect of this book, although I think the dream part and how a few 'chosen' can lucid dream should have been better explained - maybe it will be developed in the next books of the trilogy? Let's hope so! Kerstin's writing is simplistic but enjoyable and entertaining and the reading is fast. She mashed up some teen clichés (like a Gossip Girl-like mystery and the private school with snobby girls) and gave it some original twists and it worked. At first, I thought that Liv, our main character, was little too dramatic and annoying, but she was a typical 15-year old teen and she was actually pretty realistic. With each page, though, she won me over with the humorous and light narrative voice and her smart, skeptic personality. I loved the dynamics between her and Grayson and the whole extended family thing, as well as her and Lottie and her little sister Mia. Hers & Henry's relationship was also cute, if not a little too cliché. The ending had this interesting twist at the end and it leaves a nice hook for the next installment. They are fairly quick reads, so, though not my favorite trilogy ever, I'll definitely continue on with the trilogy in between other more complex stories.

Aaand Mt Kilimanjaro is conquered! I've reached my original goal, but do I dare to try and reach higher peaks? I have 5 TBR books I'm currently reading and almost done with and have 2 mangás I can be done with in a sitting. There's also some novellas from book series I started (Percy Jackson alone has 5, not to mention A Girl of Fire and Thorns, Three Dark Crowns and so on) that I can probably squeeze in...but will it be enough? I don't know, but I'll certainly try! Maybe I can beat my own goals from previous years!

Jessika wrote: "Amazing!! Congrats! Good luck as you keep pushing onward!"

Thank you,Jessika! I'm feeling brave, maybe this is the year for El Toro!