Middle Grade Madness! discussion

Our very first Reader Recommends event! And our reader this month is the wonderful Ilsen!

Meet Ilsen:
Hi, I absolutely love books! I have been reading since I learned how to read as a kid and I hope within this group, we can all bond about books that we all love and discover books we have not heard of and love. I hope you love my recommendations!

Ilsen’s Favourite Genres:
Contemporary and Fantasy

Connect with Ilsen on Goodreads!
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3...

Ilsen’s MG Recommendations:
Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez
Ilsen’s thoughts:
The synopsis and title is a little misleading, HOWEVER, this is a really good contemporary with a twist of sci-fi with great Latinx rep and very heartwarming family dynamics and friendship!

The Crowns of Croswald by D.E. Night
Ilsen’s thoughts:
Definitely for fans of Harry Potter, this whimsical magical boarding school setting will whisk you away with adventure and their cool alchemist type magic system. You will not be able to put it down! Trigger warning for fatphobia though.

Ilsen’s non-MG Recommendations:
Zodiac by Romina Russell
Ilsen’s thoughts:
One of my all-time favorite sci-fi fantasy series, this is a universe where each planet is a Zodiac sign and the 13th sign is coming to destroy them. I won't say anymore except that it is very action-packed, your heart will break for the characters, and the world-building is so complex. You are in for a wild ride!

The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis
Ilsen’s thoughts:
A very hard-hitting contemporary about rape culture that will make you examine and think about the "norms" of high school and also challenges other issues, such as slut shaming. This book will break your heart but it is so important!

The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi
Ilsen’s thoughts:
A Hades and Persephone retelling in an Indian mythology setting, this beautiful story will captivate you with its writing and decadent world. I absolutely love the characters and the stories intertwining (and the companion to this is even better).

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson
Ilsen’s thoughts:
A very sad summer contemporary where the main character goes back to her childhood vacation home to spend her last summer with her father who is dying. There are uplifting moments and it has a very sweet romance, but family is definitely at the forefront of this story.

The Art of French Kissing by Brianna R. Shrum
Ilsen’s thoughts:
I promise this one doesn't make you cry! This is a fun food-centric contemporary romance where the main character is trying to win a scholarship competition for a prestigious culinary school. Definitely has Chopped vibes with enemies to lovers. So good and it will make you hungry!

Nice! Excited!

Yay!!! Omg I’m so excited! I hope you all like my picks!

Looking forward to your list!

Looking forward to seeing your picks, Ilsen :)

@Ilsen I might go to your profile and have a sneak peak there to maybe figure out which books I will be reading next month haha

So yeah I looked haha. Looks like they're are going to be some amazing picks, can't wait! Some might be already on my TBR.

@Robin it’d be cool if you managed to guess one of them!

I get the feeling you guys are going to like these picks! Ilsen’s thoughts on all of them really sell them to you👏🏻😂 I’m excited to get to read some of them in Feb!

@Robin Honestly there were so many to recommend! I had to be really selective about it but if you read all of them and somehow love all of them (I hope so), I can maybe give out some more just for suggestions!

I hope one of them will be Warcross and also Red, white and royal blue, because I will be reading those regardless in February.

There might be some that I have already read, saw some on your shelf Ilsen, so always am glad to learn about more great books, especially unknown ones.

Can't wait, Ilsen.

Ilsen's recommendations have now been posted above! Which are you excited to read in February?

Ooh I might read Second Chance Summer! It's on my TBR and could count for my TBR challenge

@Spencer that's smart👏🏻 2 birds with one stone, or perhaps we should say 2 challenges with 1 book😂

I'm looking forward to reading The Crowns of Croswald. After I looked it up because of Ilsen's list I happened to find a copy on Netgalley even though it was published years ago (it's strange but I'm not going to question a free copy😂) so I'm reading it both for this and to help my reviewing stats on Netgalley (2 challenges with 1 book for me too!). The cover is so so beautiful and the official poster art for it is too. So I really hope I like the book because I want to make the poster art my iPad wallpaper and it'd have so much more meaning if I also happen to like the book. Plus if I like book 1, book 2 and 3 are on Netgalley too!

The Female of the Species sounds like a great read. I've just learnt it's a mystery book as well as having an interesting social message so I might read it in Feb because I haven't read a YA mystery in a while!

I unfortunately can only read 2 of the books, those are available to me:
The female of the species
Second chance summer

@Robin oh that's a shame, but at least we can discuss The Female of the Species if you decide to read it! Do you have a device to read digital books on? You can get a Netgalley account and they provide you with an ebook of The Crowns of Croswald in exchange for a review if you're interested in doing that!

@Kadi I only use the Read now page on Netgalley, so my account is full to the brim with free books haha so they probably won't accept my request and am not sure the book is something for me

@Robin I had about 6 pending reviews and only 2 reviewed galleys when they accepted my request so I get the feeling they grant the request to anyone, maybe that's why the book is still on Netgalley even though it was published ages ago and they're just looking for reviews from anyone. Although the fact that I added that I host this group in my bio may have helped them decide to grant my request, who knows how it works!

If you have a lot of other stuff to read anyway then never mind! I'm sure Feb will still be packed with books for you to read!

Yay!! I’m glad you all are super excited! I’m going to try to get to the sequels of my MG favorites and maybe I’ll reread some of my favs.

I don’t know if you guys would want it but if you want more options, I can set up a favorites shelf on my page so you can look for more option because I have way too many favorites XD

@Ilsen if you want to set up a favourites shelf I would definitely check it out! You could share a link on here if you like too in case anyone else would also be interesting in seeing it👏🏻

@Kadi I won't mention my Netgalley status XD.

Yeah, I have A LOT planned for February as always haha.

@Ilsen Uhmm, YES! I would love that. In January I read so many good books because of that challenge, so I really wanted to do that in February as well. So yes please :)

Kadi wrote: "@Ilsen if you want to set up a favourites shelf I would definitely check it out! You could share a link on here if you like too in case anyone else would also be interesting in seeing it👏🏻"

Yes, I would like to see it.

Oooh, I've wanted to try something from Roshani Chokshi for a while, and hearing that she has a Hades/Persephone retelling is a super plus 🥰

Hey everyone! What I like to call Ilsen’s month starts tomorrow! Anyone planning on starting off the month with one of her recommendations?

I’ll be reading The Crowns of Coswald as soon as I finish the 2 buddy reads I’m doing👏🏻 and I can’t wait. I’ve already set one of the beautiful posters made by the cover artist as my iPad Lock Screen wallpaper and it looks so pretty😍

I'll be reading Second Chance Summer along with Exile tomorrow. I need a good cry fest, it's been a while

@Spencer you know it’s been a while for me too! And I like a good sob fest every now and then. Let me know what you think of Second Chance Summer and I might read it after you if you deem it a real tearjerker!

I will read it if it isn't hahaha

I have a long audiobook that I need to finish first, but after that I will start with The female of the species. Super excited! Going in blind, so extra fun :)

@Robin you not a fan of tearjerkers? Also you haven’t read the summary or seen the reviews for the Female of the Species, is that what you mean by going in blind?

After my buddy read which starts tomorrow, I'm going to be reading , and I have coming this week from the library.

@Lynn looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the Female of the Species! Looks like you’ll be reading it before me too

@Robin No, I don't. A book like A little life I will never read. I don't find to feel sad. Feel sad enough times, don't want to add to that with sad books.

And yes, that's going in blind for me. Haven't read the synopsis.

Kadi wrote: "@Lynn looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the Female of the Species! Looks like you’ll be reading it before me too"

Well, I didn't like it at all. What bothers me is that all of my friends that read it, gave it 5 stars. My review is linked below.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Oh man.... I’m so sorry you didn’t like it. Maybe you will like the next one?

@Lynn it’s a shame you didn’t like it but that is such a great savage review😂👏🏻 somehow your review makes her want to read it even more. Will I end up agreeing with you? Or with all the other people who rated it 5 stars? Can’t wait to find out!
Are you planning on reading any of the other recommendations next?

@Deaflower ooh I hope you enjoy it!😊

Ilsen wrote: "Oh man.... I’m so sorry you didn’t like it. Maybe you will like the next one?"

I think I just got a different vibe from the story than most others who have read it.

Next for me is The Art of French Kissing. I'm guessing a much lighter story.

Kadi wrote: "@Lynn it’s a shame you didn’t like it but that is such a great savage review😂👏🏻 somehow your review makes her want to read it even more. Will I end up agreeing with you? Or with all the other peopl..."

Judging by the other reviews I've read, I don't think you will agree with me. My take on it was just different, I guess.

@Lynn hopefully I'll be able to get around to it this month! I've started to realise I'm a bit cramped for time with so many 300+ page books I planned to read. So I was going to take a break before my next buddy read that starts on Monday but I've decided I don't have the time and I'm starting The Crowns of Croswald tonight!

I really hope you like The Art of French Kissing! It’s super cute and definitely underrated!!

Oooh yay! I absolutely love Morgan Matson and I recommend any other book by her! But Second Chance Summer holds a special place in my heart.

Ilsen wrote: "I really hope you like The Art of French Kissing! It’s super cute and definitely underrated!!"

It definitely sounds good. I'll read it next after I finish .

@Lynn I want to read that book! Let me know what you thought of it after you finished. It seems really good.

Kadi wrote: "@Lynn I want to read that book! Let me know what you thought of it after you finished. It seems really good."

You saw my review - and thanks, by the way, for the like - so you have some idea of what I thought. It's well written and the research is terrific. All we really ever know about Art is that he is smart, which makes him seem a little one-dimensional, but overall it is a good story and worth the read.

@Lynn it might sound strange but I can’t actually remember having liked your review. I remember seeing your progress update for the book but not the review. Never mind, after you reminded me I checked out your review. The QR codes seem like a fun twist and I’m glad to see you liked it. Feeling like I should definitely read this now!

Kadi wrote: "@Lynn it might sound strange but I can’t actually remember having liked your review. I remember seeing your progress update for the book but not the review. Never mind, after you reminded me I chec..."

It was a pretty quick read, and it was fun.

I just finished . It was a quick read and a lot of fun. The cooking challenges added some interesting layers to the story. Here is the link to my review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I just read your review! I’m glad you liked it better than the Female of the Species! I think it’s a super fun read

Ilsen wrote: "I just read your review! I’m glad you liked it better than the Female of the Species! I think it’s a super fun read"

I agree - much lighter and more fun than Female of the Species. That one just hit me wrong for some reason.

@Lynn Maybe you had your review for The female of the species on Spoiler, but I wanted to read it and the first sentence is a huge spoiler.