2019 Reading Challenge Reviews: Books 49 & 50
Hello friends!
I've decided to participate in two reading challenges this year: the Pop Sugar Reading Challenge and NEWTS. You can find out more info on both challenges in previous Overview posts.
Here are my book reviews for my 49th and 50th books of 2019:
I gave this book 4/5 stars on Goodreads.
The NEWTS prompt I chose for this was "Care of Magical Creatures: O: Grab onto Fawkes' tail! Read a book with a bird [or you know, a phoenix] on the cover."
Set in a fictional world in the time of samurai in a similar country to Japan, this books follows Mariko. She is the daughter of a samurai who is destined to marry one of the king's sons. However, on the way to the royal palace, her caravan gets robbed and she is assumed dead. Thus begins her adventure of hiding undercover in a group of bandits (The Black Clan) dressed as a boy to try to find out who attacked her caravan and attempted to kill her. While there she learns more about herself, her hopes and dreams, and begins to question everything she knows about how the world is supposed to work, especially for a young woman like her.
I feel like this book was the perfect read for me at the time. I was in a bit of a reading slump, and this book helped pull me back out of it.
A lot of the main characters really drew me into the plot, especially as you get to know more of the Black Clan members. There were a few fun plot twists, and a lot of female empowerment. Though to be honest, sometimes the female empowerment felt a bit forced. I wish that it had flowed a bit more smoothly.
This is the first in a two book series, and I'll review the second book later in the year once I reach that point. Stay tuned. :)
Book 50: Lock Every Door by Riley Sager
I gave this book 4/5 stars on Goodreads, but may have given it 4.5 if half stars were available.
The NEWTS prompt I chose for this was "Herbology: E: Read a book between 350-390 pages."
This book follows Jules, a woman about my age (if they actually mentioned her age, I'm sorry I forget exactly what it was). She has some major life changes that make a 'too good to be true' offer impossible to resist. She becomes an apartment-sitter at the exclusive Bartholomew in NYC, getting paid to live in a luxurious apartment. However, as she starts to get to know the residents and other apartment-sitters, she starts to realize that something strange and possibly sinister is happening around her.
The writing style flowed well and made it a quick read. I was a bit impatient to discover the twist, but once it got there it was well worth the wait.
This was one of my Book of the Month picks, and I'd recommend it as a quick, easy read for any thriller fan.
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