Posted on by Hermione · 22 Comments

Wrap Up #August2021

Okay, can somebody EXPLAIN how we are already starting a new month because my head is seriously very muddled up…and time seems to make no sense anymore. I HATE IT when time decides to just start sprinting or start a marathon against another time in another parallel universe to see which one reaches some specific date in the future…like WHAT??

I admit I am a crazy person but parallel universes do exist…

Total number of books read: 7 *rapid blinking* *extremely proud of herself for managing seven books and more-than-10-tests* (I am very lucky they were small tests otherwise I would have had a mental breakdown…)

By the way, I actually changed my blog theme because I didn’t like the old one😂. Now, it is much more of something that I like. I was always scared of changing my blog theme because one I accidentally did that and it was a total fiasco but don’t worry, the problem has been resolved.

[All links are the reviews I posted]

The Queen Will Betray You (Kingdoms of Sand and Sky #2) by Sarah Henning (Fantasy)

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My Ratings: 4.5/5

Okay, well, I did wait a lot to read this book since I finished The Princess Will Save You like two months ago and this book DID NOT DISAPPOINT. So for fans of bestfriend-to-lovers trope, go read this. But start with The Princess Will Save You though, haha!

BTW, it is also action-packed and a has a strong and fierce female main character. Greatly recommend.

You Have A Match by Emma Lord (Contemporary)

You Have a Match
Source: Goodreads

My Ratings: 3.5/5

Again…bestfriends-to-lovers trope and I tell you…this book is so sweet and definitely makes people smile. It has a great friendship which was portrayed so perfectly in the book. I mean, I really liked this book so if you have read Tweet Cute by the same author, then this is definitely for you!

Wilder Girls by Rory Power (Horror)

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Source: Goodreads

My Ratings: 4.5/5

Rory Power is one of those authors with totally weird and unique ideas. This is the second book I have read by Rory and well…it was so different from Burn Our Bodies Down. It is a horror book with gruesome parts, blood, weird body deformities so proceed with caution. Or just go read it. It made me think a lot of the Covid since there is a contagious disease in this book but it is nothing like it. I mean, the whole plot of the book was original and the cover is just so BEAUTIFUL!!!

Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson (Fantasy)

Sorcery of Thorns
Source: Goodreads

My Ratings: 5/5

First of all….WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT THIS COVER! The author is literally SO LUCKY to have written a book which deserved such a cover! And I love the dark turquoise on the cover. I have never seen such a cover in my life…it is too beautiful for my eyes really😂…

This book is just fantastic. Why? Because we have characters who 1. Are pure SLYTHERIN (Nathaniel…I SEE YA) 2. Who have another level of sarcasticness (this isn’t a word) (haHA! Silas, you are just purrfect…I…) 3. Main character who loves books and practically LIVED IN A LIBRARY! (Okay Scrivener, I am jealous of you right now😑)…

Let us just say this book has major Slytherin vibes, sarcastic vibes and lovable demons (Silas, you aren’t invisible and I can very well see you) and totally relatable main characters.

House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland (Horror)

House of Hollow
Source: Goodreads

My Ratings: 4.5/5

This book surprised me in so many ways but mainly for its uniqueness and originality. I really recommend this book but again, proceed with caution since there is a lot mentioned about blood and just check a few trigger warnings before reading. But again, for fans of horror, this book is DEFINITELY FOR YOU. It has a natural way of blending horror an magical realism together and has the aspect of ‘Otherworlds”.

Tweet Cute by Emma Lord (Contemporary)

Tweet Cute
Source: Goodreads

My Ratings: 4/5

AAAAAAWWWW! Cheesy. Cute. Adorkable. Funny. Witty. Just go read this if you badly need to smile right now. It sets people smiling in the great need of grilled cheese…

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (Fantasy)

The Scorpio Races
Source: Goodreads

My Ratings: 4.5/5

SEAN KENDRICK!! PUCK CONNOLLY!! I FREAKING SHIP YOU BOTH!! By the way, review coming soon!

🖤🖤🖤Best Book of the Month🖤🖤🖤

Sorcery of Thorns
Source: Goodreads

Other Posts:

BTW, you can check out my first two Sunshine posts down below:

What I Plan to Read Next:

ISDK(I Seriously Don’t Know)

Life Update: (In bullet points)

  • My best-friend celebrated her thirteenth birthday on the 22nd of August and Happy Birthday you annoying girl!😂 (I mean…SHE IS)
  • I realized that my two best-friends are already thirteen but I am not yet.
  • Spent the whole month trying to convince myself I DO NOT have a crush on Silas (Sorcery of Thorns) but ended up giving up and now I hate myself for this. (I mean I hate myself for actually admitting that).
  • Then, I was wondering whether or not I have a crush on Luc from The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. Currently, the right and left side of my brain are currently debating but soon, all of my organs will join in😂🤦‍♀️
  • I think I have a thing for characters who are demons…
  • Disappointed with myself for losing 3 marks in French (22 out of 25) because of two repeated mistakes and one stupid mistake and going into a full blown panic attack because 22 out of 25 is 88 out of 100. 😱 #horrified
  • Actually realizing that stupid me didn’t know what a light pen was and because of that, lost one mark in my ICT test.

Since discussing grades must be a boring topic and soil particles is even duller let us just move on…

  • Convinced my best-friend (the one who turned 13 this August) to read Sorcery of Thorns and SHE ACTUALLY LISTENED!! I love you bestie🖤
  • Started my Bharatanatyam course this month (it was disrupted because of Covid and we just resumed) and actually enjoying them but despising the teacher. Ooop-
  • Painted a pear for my Art Class and it ACTUALLY TURNED OUT GOOD!! I think I am actually good at painting with watercolor but when it comes to shading with pencil…let us just say I have to practice that.
  • Actually realized that anytime, an APOCALYPSE CAN OCCUR! The problem…my friends agree but don’t take it seriously enough.

September Goals:

  • Read at least 8-10 books.
  • Complete that Design and Technology project (AND MAKE SURE YOU GET GOOD MARKS GURL. UNDER 90 ISN’T ACCEPTABLE)
  • Don’t waste your time Spend less time doing silly things (like secretly watching YouTube because you are bored)
  • And do what makes you happy (even if this includes staring at the dark ceiling at night thinking of useless things or sending stupid texts to your best-friends like arguing whether the moon landing is fake or if Area 51 has aliens or if we are just aliens from another planet that have conquered the Earth and living on it for like 100 000 years.

Yes…now I am finally done! *reads the September goals…and wondering if I have actually lost my mind in the process*

And I also have to say that all those bloggers who did the Top Ten Tuesday post on Fictional Crushes, I really enjoyed all of them😂. I mean, it is very weird, fictional crushes are like one of the most interesting topics when it comes to talking about books. I am laughing like right now😂

See you all with another post! Do drop a comment down below! How was your month btw?? What did you read?

Posted on by Hermione · 2 Comments

House of Hollow-A Book Review

Hey all people!

I hope none of you are getting stuck in other worlds or worlds of the dead or worlds between the lands of the living and of the dead or anything of this sort because I tell you…I have read enough about these to know that when you get stuck in some other world, it is very difficult to come back. So don’t go opening mysterious doors…

Well, the review shall not be forgotten haha.

  • Title: House of Hollow
  • Author: Krystal Sutherland
  • Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thriller, Magical Realism
  • Category: YA
  • Publisher/Publishing Date: April 6th 2021 by G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
House of Hollow
Source: Goodreads

Can somebody tell me? How many beautiful covers exist in this world? My god!! Just look at the ants, beetles and flowery pattern on this face! I mean, how can people draw so beautifully?

WOW.WOW.WOW.

And tell me? How can any author be THAT lucky to have a cover that beautiful in a book????

Iris Hollow and her two sisters are the human definition of ‘strange’. Strange in a way that all three possess a half-moon scar at the base of their throat and a mysterious connection that binds all three to each other…almost magically. Iris doesn’t remember how she ended up with a scar but something happened to her during her childhood that she can’t recall, not even put a finger on.

Iris has always wanted to be a normal person but fitting in is not what the Hollow sisters do best. When Grey Hollow, Iris’s eldest sister suddenly goes missing, Iris and her other sister, Vivi will do anything to find her. Life cannot get any weirder than that can it? Even for the weirdest people?

Following mysterious trails and unraveling secrets along her way, Iris and Vivi’s mission won’t be easy. Horned men start following the two sisters, and the corpse of a man is discovered in one of Grey’s apartment. It isn’t the end either. Memories unfurl…memories of the sisters’ childhood that Iris starts to remember in fragmented pieces…all Iris and Vivi can hope is that things don’t become more complicated, impossible to solve and most of all, that their sister isn’t dead…but probably, she is. Already.

About the Author:

Krystal Sutherland

Krystal Sutherland is an internationally published author. Her latest novel for young adults, House of Hollow, was released by Penguin in April 2021. Sutherland’s first novel, Chemical Hearts, was published in over 20 countries and was named by the American Booksellers Association as one of the best debuts of 2016.

[Picture and text taken directly from Goodreads]

My Ratings: 4.5/5

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

My Thoughts:

Okay, if there is one thing I like, it is mystery thrillers with magical realism and in this book, the author blends those two EXTREMELY well. It was dark, mysterious and had the concept of ‘otherworlds’ (if any of you were wondering why I started this post with a very *hemhem* weird introduction). It wasn’t the sort of ‘otherworld’ that is about parallel universes and lands of the dead but rather the part between the land of the living and the land of the dead. And this place is mentioned under the name of the ‘Halfway‘ in the book. Unique I tell you.

Iris is the definition of weird, mysterious, dark, way-too-beautiful-but-doesn’t-know-how-to-take-advantage-of-it. The story is told in her point of view of course since she is our main character. She is a sort of person who wants to be NORMAL. Like lead a normal life where people don’t point at her wondering if she remembers anything about her childhood or thinking about whether she is a witch and if she is too dangerous. Haha, considering the fact that her and Vivi’s life fall upside down when Grey isn’t here. Like they are Grey’s fiercely loyal soldiers and Grey is the main commander and without her…well…upside down life it is.

This is why Iris and Vivi go nuts when their sister isn’t here. They have such a strong sister bond which I admire (considering the fact that me and my sister are constantly bickering and always have one major fight ever day)…

Vivi, is this person who almost HATES her beauty and even shaved her head for this. She has loads of tattoos and is the human definition of rock-n’-roll. She is that sort of person who wears crop tops, jeans, mini-skirts. And she ruins her health…okay…cannot live without smoking or drugs for a day and every day without is a day ruined for her😂. She is fierce, caring, a little clumsy when it comes to manners and loves her sisters very much.

Grey…the most enigmatic of all…she is a supermodel and owner of her own designer brand called House of Hollow where she designs clothes and being a very weird person, inserts secret runes or pieces of paper into the hems and all. She, unlike Iris, knows her worth very well and embraces her uniqueness. She uses her beauty as an advantage and is fiercely protective of her two smaller sisters (includes death threats to her own parents…and we see more things in the book.)

Other than that, the plot was unique and unlike any I have read before. Magical realism makes the book so out of the ordinary and you know what I explained above about the concept of the ‘otherworld’ which was definitely a different one. I have never read a book about an otherworld between life and death so that was an aspect that really liked.

There is just a way in which everything is explained in the book and nothing is left out. Like the childhood mystery wasn’t left unsolved. Like everything was part of of the main goal in the book.

Since I guess I have definitely talked enough, I should probably end this post and draft my August Wrap-Up since I haven’t yet done it and I cringe every time I think of it…😭

Well, I think that is all for today otherwise this post will become a very-long-post so bye for now!!!

Love, hermione!

P.S. Next post will be my August wrap up or a review of Tweet Cute by Emma Lord so be sure to stick around for more!!