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  • The Last Cuentista
    Book Reviews - Middle Grade - Science Fiction

    THE LAST CUENTISTA by Donna Barba Higuera │Review

    November 9, 2024 - By Veronica

    Hey Bookworm friends, today’s review is for #ScifiMonth2024! I recently read the middle-grade spacetravel tale The Last Cuentista and since it features a generation ship leaving Earth forever, it’s a perfect contender for the One Way Ticket prompt. Link-ups Thanks to the Sci-Fi Month hosts: Imyril at There’s Always Room…

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2024 Reading Challenge
Veros has read 17 books toward their goal of 80 books.
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17 of 80 (21%)
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Veros's bookshelf: currently-reading

The Bane Chronicles
The Bane Chronicles
by Cassandra Clare
tagged: favorites, ya-fiction, short-story-collection, fantasy, and current...
Assassin's Apprentice
Assassin's Apprentice
by Robin Hobb
tagged: currently-reading
World of Warcraft Chronicle: Volume 1
World of Warcraft Chronicle: Volume 1
by Blizzard Entertainment
tagged: currently-reading
A Brief History of the Druids
A Brief History of the Druids
by Peter Berresford Ellis
tagged: currently-reading

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October Wrap-Up I didn't manage to read many autu October Wrap-Up I didn't manage to read many autumnal or Halloween reads but considering how busy my month was, I'm glad I even got to read this much! I did continue two series which is nice :) The Physical Books: 📚The Queen's Man, Sharon Kay Penman - 4⭐ 📚Witch Hat Atelier, Vol. 12, Kamome Shirahama, 3⭐ (Manga) The E-Books: 📱Tale of the Flying Forest, R. M. Romero - 4⭐ 📱Pumpkinheads, Rainbow Rowell - 5⭐(Graphic Novel) 📱The Unlikely Story of Felix and Macabber, Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou & Juni Ba - 1⭐ (Graphic Novel) The Audiobooks: 🎧Tuesdays At the Castle, Jessica Day George & narrated by Suzy Jackson -5⭐ 🎧A Murderous Relation, Deanna Raybourn & narrated by Angele Masters - 5⭐ ❓Tell me something you like about November 🖤 Or, what are you currently reading?
The Mushroom Knight, Vol 2 by Oliver Bly Thanks The Mushroom Knight, Vol 2 by Oliver Bly Thanks to #Netgalley and #MadCaveStudios for the ARC, I leave my review voluntarily. A teenage girl called Lem is searching the woods near her home for her missing dog. A mushroom faerie named Gowlitrot is on a mystical quest to protect the biome from catastrophic ruin. Now that they've met, their friendship develops and Gowli uses his tracking skills to help uncover the fate of the missing dog. However, he can’t stay long—he’s needed in the Fae Kingdom of Glöd for an important and sombre duty. I read the first volume of The Mushroom Knight at the start of 2024 and, while I enjoyed it, I was also left a bit confused and hoping for clarity with the next installment. Fast forward to November 2024: volume two is now out! I’m happy to say it delivered the clarity I’ve been waiting for, along with a dash of whimsy, and a dark mystery, all wrapped together with a running thread of environmentalism. The story is set in Philadelphia in the ’90s and the sense of time is embedded in every detail of Lem’s bedroom, toys, and clothing and as a ‘90s kid, I was eating it up! This second vol is where both protagonists begin to interact with each other in the way I was hoping for in vol. 1. I’m a big fan of ‘fish out of water’ stories and watching Gowli get his bearings in the human world was deeply charming and adorable. While Gowli’s misadventures are funny and integral to the plot, they also provide an outside perspective on how the fae creatures see the human world: a wasteland. This leads into the other POV of this story. While Gowli is away, the citizens of the Fae Kingdom of Glöd are forced to bear the burden of humans' carelessness toward their shared environment. The bulk of the drama in that POV centers around a caravan of trash. But this is also where parts of the conspiracy from the first volume are being cleared up and new questions are arising. The mystery element keeps me engaged, and I'm eager for the next installment, where I hope Hoppalong, Gowli’s frog steed can be part of the adventure once more; I did miss the ‘lil guy! That being said, I suggest you read the volumes back to back for best results.
Trick or Treat!🎃 As a little treat for Hallow Trick or Treat!🎃 As a little treat for Halloween I'm sharing the mood boards for my Bookish Halloween Themed Playlists that I made on my Dark Shelf of Wonders blog. If you like lists and are interested in themed book recommendations as well as songs that you can add to your Halloween playlists, I recommend you give my blog a looksy 😉 (Link in Bio)!! Playlists feature Werewolves, Vampires, Ghosts, and my newest one Witches! I don't usually talk about my blog posts on here but I'm super proud of these ones so I figure why not share! 👻. If you've been wondering why I haven't been as active on IG with my posts, it's because I've been focusing my creative energies on the blog. I'm not planning on leaving booksta or anything, I love the community here too much 🖤. If you also have a book blog please let me know as I love to find and follow new ones!! Whether you celebrate Halloween or not, I hope you have a wonderful day!
My 5 Top Fives starring my Halloween costume as Ev My 5 Top Fives starring my Halloween costume as Evie (From 1999's The Mummy) but if she had somehow unearthed a lightsaber 😂. I'm pretty pleased that I was able to pull a semi-recognizable costume last minute and I have always wanted to dress like Evie🥹. I've seen this fun meme going around and thought now is my time to join in! I've already done a similar meme in the past 'the comfort challenge' so won't list the same things again (if you're wondering, The Mummy is included in that one). Instead these are my current favs in these categories. 📚Book Series, Fav Installment to represent the whole series -Penric and Desdemona by Lois McMaster Bujold -Wayward Children by Seanan McGuire -Innkeeper Chronicles by Ilona Andrews -Veronica Speedwell by Deanna Raybourn -Monk & Robot by Becky Chambers 🎶Albums: -This Heathen Land by Green Lung -God Is Dead by Twin Temple -Thornstar by Lord of the Lost -Impera by Ghost -Vaxis Act II: A Window of the Waking Mind by Coheed and Cambria 🎲Board Games: -Wavelength -Wingspan -Bargain Quest -Stonespine Architects -Just One 🎞️Movies: -Nimona -D&D Honor Among Thieves -Wolfwalkers -The Wild Robot -Emma 📺TV shows: -Star Trek TNG -Hazbin Hotel -The Owl House -The Great Canadian Baking Show -Taskmaster What are any of your recent favs in these categories? I'm especially curious about what board games are your favs!
🌹Tale of the Flying Forest by R. M. Romero🎶 🌹Tale of the Flying Forest by R. M. Romero🎶 Thanks to @tbrbeyondtours & @rmromeroauthor for including me in this tour! (Swipe for mini mood boards) After her mother’s death, Anne Applebaum finds solace in the pages of the book of fairy tales her mom gifted her. ‘The World to Come’ tells fantastical stories of the flying forest of Bei Ilai and magic exists. So when a raven tells her she has a missing twin brother called Rainer, she doesn’t doubt him for long. After all, Anne has always felt that something in her life has been missing. As she sets off to find her twin brother, she discovers that Bei Ilai is a real place and that’s where Rainer is— only it’s way more dangerous than in the stories! This was a fun and delightfully whimsical story structured like a classic quest! Our brave protagonist is called into adventure, encounters a series of dangers, and meets magical friends along the way. The first half of the story serves to explore Bei Ilai’s atmosphere and magical creatures as Anne hunts for clues of Rainer’s whereabouts. The story is divided into 7 parts (you see, there is power in the number 7) and while I enjoyed parts 1-3, it wasn’t until the 4th one that I felt the story was truly coming together. Once it did, I was invested and found that Anne and Rainer’s sibling bond was the main strength of this book for me. Both siblings had lost trust in adults in different ways and the devotion, care and support they showed each other was genuinely heartwarming. We also get to meet a lot of creatively delightful side characters along the way such as a fox in a waistcoat, and the Librarian of Songs! I think any reader would find the concept of a Librarian of Songs captivating but I especially appreciated the way music and songs played a huge role in the magic system of this world. Read if you like: •Jewish Folklore • Fairy Tale Retellings • Portal Fantasy & Quest Stories •Less well-known magical creatures (such as the Tatzelwurm & Lindwurms) •Stories About Siblings •Found Family ❓Would you rather meet a talking crow or a fox wearing a waistcoat?
🍃September Wrap-Up🍂 I haven't been very acti 🍃September Wrap-Up🍂 I haven't been very active on here lately so excuse the lateness of my wrap-up. Last month I participated in @book_roast 's Magical Readathon and had so much fun. I read all 8 books from my readathon TBR (plus 2 extra unrelated books) so I am exceedingly happy about how well I did!! The E-Books: 📱The Curse of The Dead Man's Diamond - Christyne Morrell, 4⭐ 📱Crying in H Mart - Michelle Zauner, 4⭐ 📱Descender, Vol. 1:Tin Stars - Jeff Lemire, Dustin Nguyen (Graphic Novel), 5⭐ The Physical Books: 📚Poyums - Len Pennie, unrated but liked it a lot (Poetry Collection) 📚Masquerade - O. O. Sangoyomi, 4⭐ The Audiobooks: 🎧Secrets to Reveal - Tilly Wallace, narrated by Marian Hussey, 2⭐ 🎧Thornhedge - T. Kingfisher, narrated by Jennifer Blom, 3⭐ 🎧The Art Thief - Michael Finkel, narrated by Edoardo Ballerini, 4⭐ 🎧The Pumpkin Spice Café - Laurie Gilmore, narrated by Regina Reagan, 4⭐ 🎧Phoenix Heart, Season 1 Omnibus - Sarah K. L. Wilson, narrated by Elise Hoffman, 4⭐ ❓ What are you currently reading? Or, what's your favorite type of book to read in the fall?
Welcome to my stop of #TheCurseOfTheDeadMansDiamon Welcome to my stop of #TheCurseOfTheDeadMansDiamond tour 👻!! (Swipe to see 8 of my favourite quotes) When twelve-year-old Charlie moves from New York to a small town in Florida, she discovers that her new house is haunted! As she struggles to settle into her new home she hears rumours of a curse. If what the townspeople say is true then the three ghosts in her house—Ada, Arthur, and Guff—are stuck because they stole a dead man’s diamond. And it now lies hidden somewhere in the house. Since Charlie is already sick of Florida (and the school bullies that come with it) she hatches a scheme: If she could only find the diamond they’d have enough money to move back to New York! This middle-grade mystery/fantasy charmed me from the start because it felt like a cross between two of my favourite childhood movies: Casper (1995) and The Rescuers (1977). Okay so the references might be outdated but I promise this book is not! We have a creepy haunted house, ghosts, tales of curses, making friends, and school bullies: all topics that a middle schooler (and even adults) will find engaging or relatable. The story is told in alternating POVs: one for Charlie and one for the three ghosts as we follow them from before they were ghosts! The narrative mixes light moments with heavier story beats as we get to know our characters better. We learn about the ghosts’ tragic past and about Charlie’s grief and feelings of guilt—there’s a touching moment about midway through the book that made me tear up. But don’t worry, the dialogue also made me laugh several times, especially when the town’s medium, Madame Rayna, was on the page. She and Cinco, an Argentinian boy with a wonderful character arc, are my favourite characters! I really appreciate how this book discusses what being a true friend means, especially because it’s aimed at an age group where kids start to put a lot of emphasis on friendship. The bullies in the story are not depicted as black-or-white and while it is clear that there is no excuse for bullying, it’s also equally clear that everyone deserves compassion. I loved that the story made space for people to take ownership of their mistakes and for forgiveness.
New Shelf, Who Dis?💁🏽‍♀️ After so muc New Shelf, Who Dis?💁🏽‍♀️ After so much work, I present to you my new bookshelf! I'm showing the 'After' first because it's much nicer than what we had in that corner before. Scroll to see my pile of books organized by genre on the floor, not surprisingly adult fantasy is my biggest pile! And a little surprisingly, both my historical fiction and non-fiction piles were bigger than I expected. I'm also quite happy with the way my small indie collection is growing 💕 Alas, I meant to count them but I forgot. The third slide shows the old corner, with Cheeto's old crate that he refuses to use anymore. It was high time we used that space more efficiently. And don't worry he has his own bed but still prefers to sleep on the couch😆🐶 The process to get here was not as smooth as I would have liked; securing it to the wall was a nightmare and a half. I had to spackle several botched attempts then fix the paint. But Voilà!!! It contains most of my adult fantasy, with the heaviest books on the bottom (I'm not taking any chances here, friends😜). I also decided to dedicate a shelf to "frog things" and then mass paperbacks at the top🖤 ❓Do you see any favourites or books on your TBR?
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