Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard

“No one is born evil, just like no one is born alone. They become that way, through choice and circumstance.”

Welcome back to the world of Red Queen! We reunite with Mare Barrows as her journey continues as a runaway criminal!

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If there’s one thing Mare Barrow knows, it’s that she’s different.

Mare Barrow’s blood is red—the color of common folk—but her Silver ability, the power to control lightning, has turned her into a weapon that the royal court tries to control. 

The crown calls her an impossibility, a fake, but as she makes her escape from Maven, the prince—the friend—who betrayed her, Mare uncovers something startling: she is not the only one of her kind.

Pursued by Maven, now a vindictive king, Mare sets out to find and recruit other Red-and-Silver fighters to join in the struggle against her oppressors. 

But Mare finds herself on a deadly path, at risk of becoming exactly the kind of monster she is trying to defeat. 

Will she shatter under the weight of the lives that are the cost of rebellion? Or have treachery and betrayal hardened her forever?

The electrifying next installment in the Red Queen series escalates the struggle between the growing rebel army and the blood-segregated world they’ve always known—and pits Mare against the darkness that has grown in her soul.

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The book picks up right where it left off in Red Queen. Mare and Cal are 'rescued' by the Scarlett Guard after escaping Maven, now King of Norta. Thinking they are safe with the Guard, they instead find themselves going back to the outside world to look for New Bloods, Red bloods who posses the powers of silvers, like Mare and her brother Shane. The whole point of the book is Mare and her team tracking down these new bloods before Maven kills them all.


Okay...so I have mixed feelings. This book was 'entertaining'. It took a while for me to get really into this book. It was definitely a good second book, especially after the success of Red Queen. Now, let's get to the book!

“If I am a sword, I am a sword made of glass, and I feel myself beginning to shatter.”

Mare Barrows changes through out this book. She isn't the same girl who cared for those around her and tried to return to her family. Nope, this Mare is cunning, ruthless, and cruel! One can expect this from her especially after the events of Red Queen. She didn't are about killing anymore and slowly became, well, a monster. The biggest problem about Mare is that she had began to lose the fight within her. She didn't even give off the impression of 'Mare, Queen of Reds' like she did in the first book. There were even moments were I was so annoyed at her that I rolled my eyes and thought to myself 'just get it over with!"

“No one is born a monster. But I wish some people were. It would make it easier to hate them, to kill them, to forget their dead faces.”

We do get to explore more of Norta through out the book due to the adventures of the characters. Of course, the story does take place in a post-dystopian United States. There were some actions scenes thanks to my favorite character...Prince of Fire, CAL! I wanted more of him just like in Red Queen  but nope I didn't get that. 

But my biggest COMPLAINT is that someone died in almost every action scene but it was never explained. I would be done reading the action scene and then BAM! Someone died....WHAT!?


Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Overall, this book was defiantly an alright sequel not great not good, but alright. Parts of it was just a bit dragged for me. The ending in my opinion was the best part because of the plot twist. 

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Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren

“But at the end of the day", she says, and puts her hand outside the open window, letting the wind pass through her fingers, "being myself is enough. I'm enough.”

Hello everyone! Welcome back to my blog and for today's review. This review I am going to be talking about Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren. I first heard of Christina Lauren when I was browsing for some new books to read, especially after I read Wallbanger by Alice Clayton. That's when I ended up reading Beautiful Bastard, their first book. Ever since that first read, I have been a huge fan of theirs. So, it's no surprise that this book is definitely one of my favorites. It's actually my seventh favorite book of 2018. With that being said, let's get to the review.


This is the synopsis:

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Hazel Camille Bradford knows she’s a lot to take—and frankly, most men aren’t up to the challenge. If her army of pets and thrill for the absurd don’t send them running, her lack of filter means she’ll say exactly the wrong thing in a delicate moment. Their loss. She’s a good soul in search of honest fun.

Josh Im has known Hazel since college, where her zany playfulness proved completely incompatible with his mellow restraint. From the first night they met—when she gracelessly threw up on his shoes—to when she sent him an unintelligible email while in a post-surgical haze, Josh has always thought of Hazel more as a spectacle than a peer. But now, ten years later, after a cheating girlfriend has turned his life upside down, going out with Hazel is a breath of fresh air.

Not that Josh and Hazel date. At least, not each other. Because setting each other up on progressively terrible double blind dates means there’s nothing between them...right?

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Now, I really loved this book! It was everything I was looking for in a chick-lit book. It was funny, cute, sexy at times, perfect characters, and a good story. Josh and Hazel were such a cute couple and I love how they first met. They met back in college when Hazel, typical Hazel, threw up on Josh's shoes plus when he became her TA. They always had these chanced encounters and I loved it!

"Sometimes your lack of filter kills me,” he says. “It’s not even like you lack a filter; you lack a funnel.”

Hazel was exactly what I looked for in a female character in a rom-com. She was the kind of person that once you met her, it was hard to forget her. Josh even pointed out how many times he heard stories about her during their college days. Another thing I loved about Hazel was how she knew she was different, sometimes she would even apologized for being too much.

“Sorry. I’m being too Hazel-y.”

 I watch her wash the dishes and manage to clean up the kitchen quite capably while I pick at my breakfast. She isn’t pouting, and it doesn’t seem like I’ve hurt her feelings—she honestly just seems to have heard something in my tone that I didn’t intend. “What does that mean,” I ask, “ ‘being too Hazel-y’?”

Turning with a dish towel in her hand, she shrugs. “I tend to be too chatty, too silly, too exuberant, too random, too eager.” She spreads her hands. “Too Hazel-y.”

Hazel was simply adorable with her brood of equally quirky pets. There's Winnie the poodle, Vodka the parrot, Janice Hoplin the rabbit, and the fish Daniel Craig. I mean, seriously. This is rom-com magic right here. But I digress. Hazel knows what her faults are, and she knows that she's doomed to short lived relationships because of it. Men seem to think that her over the top personality is cute at first, but then they expect her to settle into being a 'normal' girlfriend. And when she doesn't, things end. Hazel, overall, is my spirit sister!

“But at the end of the day", she says, and puts her hand outside the open window, letting the wind pass through her fingers, "being myself is enough. I'm enough.” “But at the end of the day", she says, and puts her hand outside the open window, letting the wind pass through her fingers, "being myself is enough. I'm enough.” 

Josh, on the other hand, has a calm manner and unassuming personality, the opposite of Hazel. He can be serious at times but I love that he doesn't try to 'normalize' Hazel like other people do. He knows she is crazy but he goes along for the ride.

"I can’t believe I’m encouraging this conversation, but you were telling me about your gynecologist snubbing you and I’m actually curious to hear how it turned out.”

 “So I stopped in the middle of the gymnasium and smiled at him—not my courtesy smile, but my real one—and he just walked by.” 

“Maybe he didn’t see you.” 

“He definitely saw me—and don’t get me wrong, I run into guys all the time who’ve seen my vagina and pretend not to know who I am. Things don’t work out and that’s fine. But I paid this guy.”

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★  ☆
This book was beautifully written and just so funny! If you ever get the chance to read a Christina Lauren book, it is a must! I love these ladies' stories, their characters, and just their overall style. Plus, if you haven't read any of their books, I would totally recommend them. 
Thanks for reading!
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Buy the Book with the link(s) below!
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Current song: First Love by Utada Hikaru