Read in April

It's that time of the month again where I wrap up the books I've read.

This month was one of the best reading months I've had in a while. I had a week where work was pretty chill which gave me time to read, and I really pushed myself to read more than what I would have chosen myself.  Still, this effort didn't really manage to drag me out of my reading slump (maaaaybe it's time for me to admit that I'm in a massive reading slump. Also I haven't even looked at my 2019 TBR pile in months..........). Anyway, onto the actual wrap up.
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# of books read: 5

- King of Scars (Nikolai Duology #1) by Leigh Bardugo
- Broken Homes (Peter Grant #4) by Ben Aaronivitch
- Vad gör man inte by Maja Hjertzell
- Om vi bara kunde byta kroppar med varandra by Johanna Nilsson
- Vänd rätt upp by Emelie Novotny

This month, I decided to get a lot of Swedish YA from my local library. Swedish YA is sort of a hit and miss for me; a lot of it is very good but a lot of it also...isn't. I admit I am also very bad at keeping up with books being released locally, hence why I tend to check 4-5 Swedish YA books from the library out like once a year. (Instead of, I don't know, keeping up with current releases like a normal person).

Best book of the month: King of Scars, probably. While it wasn't perfect and there were things I wish were different (I rated this 4 stars I believe), I really did enjoy it. It was good fun and I enjoyed being back in this universe.

Worst book of the month: Om vi bara kunde byta kroppar med varandra. There were several things wrong with this book but what bothered me the most was that it wasn't realistic at all. I believe transgender teens benefit from realistic novels and not one like that. I do enjoy other books from that author though, so I believe this one was just a dud for me.

See you next month in my wrap up!

Review: King of Scars (Nikolai Duology #1)

TITLE: King of Scars (Nikolai Duology #1)

AUTHOR: Leigh Bardugo

RELEASE DATE: January 24 2019

RATING: ★★★★


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I am so glad to be back in this series. So, so glad! And by series I, of course, mean 'universe' because I am dumb and tired and can't think.

So, King of Scars is the first part of the King Nikolai duology. King Nikolai is the king of Ravka, one of the major countries in the Grisha universe. At this point I'm pretty certain very many of you have heard of Leigh Bardugo's Russia-inspired Grisha verse, where different countries are at war and you follow Grisha (basically people that have magical powers and were trained at the court in the kingdom of Ravka).

Honestly, I probably won't go into the background of this universe too much because it's so well known. This universe is high fantasy, there's definitely some magical elements to it and now also dragons! It's pretty much your standard YA high fantasy that also has magic; this series basically does a lot of really common things but what makes it different from other series, though, is that it does those things really well!

I personally think Bardugo's strenght lies in her ability to create good characters, lovable characters in fact, that are flawed and that you connect to. Coming back to this universe, I found myself longing to be back among these characters, with their unique sets of characteristics and whatnot. I may be alone but I care more about the characters than I do the actual series, and for me it's definitely enough to make me want to keep reading.

As for the story itself, it's your fantasy story. The story progresses from where the previous series and spin-off ended. It took nearly half the book to get going, but once it did I really enjoyed myself. It did feel like the first part of a series/duology and nothing significant in terms of how Bardugo's books usually go did really happen, but still I was entertained.

I will most certainly pick the next installment of this duology up!

To be read in April

My TBR for April is a mixed bag of goodies, both in terms of content but also in terms of genre.

- King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo. I'm still reading this book; I continued it the second I was approved for it from the library and I'm around 60% done as of today. I really am enjoying myself and I feel like it's really starting to pick up now. I can't wait to continue this series.
- Broken Homes by Ben Aaronovitch. I got this one from the library because I honestly couldn't wait to get back into this universe again. I've missed PC Peter Grant!
- Waves is a graphic novel by Ingrid Chabbert. It has lesbian mermaids and I was approved to read it as an ARC back in December. Its release date is in May so I figured I should read and review it now before it's released (and also; LESBIAN MERMAIDS! Do I even need to say more?)
- Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin is another book I got at the library. I know it has an intersex character (who, if I remember correctly, uses male pronouns) and I recognized it from my TBR while at the library and naturally I picked it up!
- The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner. Because I've told myself I need to finish this series this year and also because I've been enoying fantasy lately. I'm currently on the waiting list at the library so who knows when I'll actually end up with the book.
- Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi. I picked this up at the library because it has a college setting, it seems easy/cute enough and I was in the mood for something lighter.

I think this might be a bit too ambitious; I'll check back in with you at the end of the month to let you know how this went!

Read in March

Hi guys,

this is easily the worst reading month I've had since I started this blog. Which is okay, I've had a lot of stuff happening in my 'real life' that made me unable to read a lot this month, and that is perfectly okay. Anyhow, onto the (slightly belated) monthly wrap up!

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# of books read: 3

- Us Against You (Björnstad #2) by Fredrik Backman
- How Long Has This Been Going on? by Ethan Mordden
- Summer of '69 by Todd Strasser

I'm happy because all books I did read I sort of liked! All in all, a good reading month.

Best book of the month: Us Against You. Man, did I love this series and this universe a lot. I should probably do a cumulative review of those books.
Worst book of the month: Summer of '69. Which definitely wasn't bad, it just wasn't as good as I'd hoped it to be in some regards.