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My Three Little Daisy Buds Part One

Rosella stood outside the school with Maria, waiting for the twins to come out. Even two weeks in, she still wasn’t used to her own school days, much less the routine of picking Lorelai and Jasper up. But Roman was even less used to it. So here Rose was, having to call Maria in again, because fourteen-year-olds weren’t allowed to drive.

The Director of Black Ridge’s assistant never spoke much, and Rose was glad for that. She never knew what to say to this young woman who claimed she was human, but had magic spiralling around her wherever she went. Rose didn’t think Maria was powerful, but she was intimidating. And like everything else in this mundane society, Maria didn’t fit in any of the boxes Rose had in her head. Not for humans or Supernaturals.

The shrill bell of the elementary school startled Rose from her thoughts, and she quickly looked away when she realized she’d been staring at Maria openly.

Parents, teachers, and what looked like hundreds of children swarmed the school doors, and Rose had to remind herself that she wouldn’t lose Lorelai and Jasper in this chaos. She and Maria stood right by the entrance closest to the kindergarten classrooms, and the twins knew to come right out to them. It was a far better plan than to have Rose go in to find them. When she did that the first day, she got so overwhelmed that she missed them entirely and spent what felt like an extra hour finding them.

Rose just wasn’t used to being around so many humans at once. They felt different, smelled different, sounded different, and lived so differently than anything Rose was used to. It wasn’t that she was never around humans before she moved in with Roman Pizarro and his two five-year-old children a few months ago. But being around them all the time, every day, was weirdly exhausting. Not to mention that Rose was terrified of being discovered by the wrong people.

Finally, Rose saw Lorelai and Jasper coming towards them, Lorelai pulling her brother behind her. She walked them confidently to where Rose and Maria stood, like she instinctively knew where they were. Rose wouldn’t put it past the twins for having that kind of intuition. Not only because of the trauma they’d already suffered in their short lives—losing their mother and then being put in the care of a twenty-eight-year-old father who hadn’t known they existed—but also because of what Rose sensed in them the moment she met them. There was magic in their blood.

“Rosie!” Lorelai exclaimed when she finally saw her and ran to throw her arms around Rose’s legs.

Rose gratefully wrapped her arms around Lorelai, able to let out a tight breath. Jasper came more slowly behind his sister, but he grabbed Rose’s hand when she extended it out to him. It took a month and a half before Jasper felt safe enough to speak to Rose, much less touch her. He was even less comfortable around Roman. Rose couldn't blame him.

“How was your guys’ day?” Rose asked

She felt Maria move slightly closer to her side, as more people moved around the school.

The Director’s one job concerning Rose was to keep her safe and under the radar. For the first couple of months, the Director really only had Roman on that job as the rest of her team focused on finding the man responsible for this heightened security in the first place. But since Rose and the twins started school, Maria was put on the job too, coming around the house to see how the kids and Roman were managing, picking the kids up from school when Roman wasn’t around, and acting as Rose’s bodyguard whenever they were out of the house.

“It was weird!” Lorelai answered, like that explained it all.

“What do you mean?” Rose asked, but was already brushing it off. They could talk about it in the car.

Surprisingly, it was Jasper who explained. “Those big guys that took us away from Mommy came for a girl in class today.”

Rose turned back to them in confusion, but it was Maria’s voice that had her concerned.

“What the…”

Maria barely spoke at the best of times, so at the sound of her voice, Rose’s defenses immediately went up. She looked around and saw two police officers escorting a little girl, who seemed even smaller than the twins, out of the school, a teacher at their side.

“They said Gwynie’s mommy was in trouble,” Lorelai tried to explain, “so Gwynie had to go with them. Just like we had to go with them when our mommy was in trouble.”

As the officers came closer, an uncommon but familiar feeling washed over Rose. It took her a minute to remember what the sensation signified and another second to pinpoint where it was coming from.

Rose looked at both officers. No.

The teacher? Also no.

Then Rose’s gaze connected with the little girl, the one Lorelai called Gwynie, and Rose knew.

“Maria,” Rose breathed with urgency. “The girl…”

But they were already at the police cruiser that Rose just noticed. She was still getting used to taking everything in in a landscape that already felt so full. The police car hadn’t stood out to her, but it must have to Maria, which was probably why she was so tense when they got there.

“What about her?” Maria asked, looking concerned. She should be.

“We need to find out her name.” Rose kept watching them. “And I need to talk to the Director. Now.”

For some reason, Maria listened and walked over to the officers. Rose could just make out Maria taking out a badge, which Rose had no clue she even had. Maria’s work was part of a secret branch in the government, one that worked with Rose’s family. Regular police officers shouldn’t know what it was, but whatever Maria said worked, because suddenly the officers were nodding and talking openly with Maria. She nodded a couple of times and then came back towards Rose and the twins.

“The girl’s name is Gwyneth Dare,” Maria said quietly, as she gestured for Rose and the twins to start walking to the car. “Her mother was just apprehended and charged with the murder of her husband, Gwyneth’s father. They live on a farm just outside the city.”

“Take us to the Director,” Rose said as they climbed in. “I need to talk to her.”

“Does Gwynie need a new home, too?” Lorelai asked as Maria drove off. “Is she like you, Rosie? Will she come live with us, too?”

Maria’s eyes briefly shot towards Rose’s in the passenger seat before they went back on the road.

“I don’t know, Laylay,” Rose said. “But she does need a new home. Just like we did.”

Rose could tell Maria wanted to ask her about Gwyneth, but she didn’t. Rose didn’t know what to say if she had.

They finally made it downtown to a high-rise building where Rose was introduced to Director Abba three months ago. The day everything changed for her.

Maria led them up the elevators and through the halls to the Director’s office. Rose didn’t know when, but she knew Maria had given Director Abba a heads-up before their arrival.

Without even knocking, they went inside.

The twins were obviously nervous, and Rose hated herself for not dropping them off at the house before coming here, but she also didn’t like them out of her sight if she could help it. She didn’t know if that was for her benefit or theirs.

Rose clutched both Lorelai and Jasper’s hands as they entered.

Director Abba looked up from her desk, face unexpressive. “What can I do for you, Rosella?”

Rose held her head high. “There’s a little girl at the twins’ school, Gwyneth Dare—”

“Yes, the one whose mother killed the father,” the Director interrupted. “I’m aware.”

“Does the girl have any family to take her in?”

“Why does that concern you?”

Rose didn’t break the Director’s stare. “Does she?”

The Director huffed a sigh, but answered. “No. The father was an only child with elderly parents who died before Miss Dare was born, and he isn’t close to any extended family. The mother doesn’t seem to have any family whatsoever, which is all I could find out before you barged in here. Now, would you like to tell me why you’re wasting my time with a little kid I have nothing to do with? Do you think it’s another one of Roman’s?”

Rose shook her head, holding on tightly to the twins. She wasn’t sure she actually wanted to say the truth in front of them, but she just hoped they didn’t understand the full scope of what she said.

“Gwyneth Dare has Fae blood, I’m assuming from her mom’s side. And it was powerful. I think there’s a reason they lived on a farm outside the city instead of in, and if Gwyneth goes into the regular foster care system, or to some unknown relative on her human father’s side, she’ll be unsafe. She’s too young to know how to control her abilities, and being close to too much iron in the city will weaken her.”

“Then how has she been able to go to school in the city?”

Rose shrugged. “She’s only half-fae, and from what I’ve been told, the Fae can withstand the city for short periods of time.”

The Director arched an eyebrow. “And what are you proposing I do about this?”

“You’re the Director of Black Ridge. Supernatural relations is your job, and I thought you wanted to protect us. Not just my people, but others too. Isn’t that why you brought in Maria?”

Maria visibly startled by the door.

Rose may not know what Maria’s ties were to the Supernatural world, but they touched her blood and soul. She wondered if Maria’s abilities were part of the reason why the Director thought Roman’s household was the best fit for Rosella, with his twins of magic-users. Could Maria sense the twins’ magic? Was that why she came around so frequently to make sure not only Rose was okay, but the twins as well?

Rose’s own senses of the magical world were dimming the longer she was away from her people, but she could still detect the type of magic surrounding a person, a Supernatural. The twins had magic-using blood in their family—what humans called witches, wizards, or sorcerers. Their father, Roman, didn’t have a drop of magic in his blood, so it could only have come from their mother.

Rose didn’t know much about Roman’s brief lover, Evita Flores, besides the fact that she and Roman parted ways before she told him she was pregnant. She also knew that Evita barely scraped by when she got sick and died shortly thereafter. Roman also mentioned once that Evita left her family in Cuba when she was young, and Rose wondered if she was able to come to Canada so easily because she knew the Supernatural world and knew how to use her own abilities. But Rose hadn’t told anyone else about the twins’ blood.

Although that didn’t mean Maria and the Director hadn’t come to the same conclusions.

“And others in your employ,” Rose continued. “So I thought Gwyneth would fall into that same category. She needs help.”

Director Abba watched her carefully. “Those others in my employ are able to work for me. Miss Dare is too young.”

“Then let Roman take her in. He’s already fostering me. Let him foster Gwyneth, too.”

“What about the city’s iron? Roman’s not moving outside of the city anytime soon.”

“I can shield Gwyneth,” Rose said. “If I generate enough energy—well, magic—I can lessen the iron’s effect on Gwyneth.”

“I thought the whole point of you living with Roman was to keep you under the radar. Isn’t using your magic the antithesis of that?”

“My kind doesn’t use magic. We are magic. But our magic, and the ability for others to feel it, is amplified when we are around our kind, and yes, when we expel large amounts of it. But I wouldn’t do anything drastic.”

Director Abba didn’t look convinced.

Rose sighed. “Do you know how my kind can shapeshift into an animal? It’s usually one animal based on our family. Well, I can shift into two, and not only can we shift into them, but we can separate them from our bodies. If I keep at least one of my animals out in the world at all times, the energy generated should expel enough magic to offset the iron’s burn.”

Director Abba actually seemed to consider it. “What about the mother? According to your theory, she would be a full-blooded Fae. Do you want me to get her out of murder charges, too?”

“She’ll waste away in prison. The iron…” Rose started to say, but she really only cared about the little girl. If the mother did kill her husband—and got caught—Rose wasn’t sure she needed protection.

“Most humans waste away in prison,” the Director retorted. “And they don’t have the iron as an excuse.”

“As long as Gwyneth is safe, I don’t care. The mother made her decision.”

“The murder could have been self-defense.”

“Then shouldn’t your human courts clear that up and give her a fair sentence?”

Director Abba looked at her in disappointment.

Rose knew what she said wasn’t true; she’d watched enough human movies and shows, and read enough books growing up, that she knew that the human justice systems were corrupt to their core, but that wasn’t her fight. Not right now.

Finally, the Director gave a slight nod and stood up. “I will get the necessary documents set up for Roman Pizarro to foster Gwyneth Dare. I’m assuming you didn’t run this by him, so I will also break the news and weather his temper tantrum. Anything else?”

Rose just gripped Lorelai and Jasper’s hands and shook her head, ready to leave.

Director Abba nodded to Maria by the door. “Take them home. We’ll reconvene later.”

Not for the first time, Rose thought there was more to the Director and Maria’s relationship than they let on. Their actions and looks fit more between mother and daughter than boss and employee.

The reminder sent a pang through Rose’s entire body, but she shoved down the grief before it could fully emerge.

They followed Maria out without another word.

Next: PART TWO (coming soon...)

SUMMARY

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A Place in This World Part One

The exhaustion settled in her bones as the council members’ voices droned on. It felt like they’d been at this for hours. Her robes felt too tight and too heavy, like they didn’t belong to her.

“I don’t think I need to remind everyone that if the Queen dies, the rest of us perish too! Our life forces are connected to her!” Master Roar’s voice boomed through the chambers. “If we do not keep her safe, none of us are safe!”

“I think we know the stakes, Rick,” Master Kingston answered lazily, the disrespect clear in his tone.

Master Roar leaned forward as if he would retaliate, but another council member piped up before the fifth Master argument of the day could spark.

“Your Majesty, can you repeat what this Zoller fellow said to you?”

The question made her recall the second-worst day of her life, which only happened yesterday. As all eyes turned to her, she tried her hardest to push down the fear and anger and grief that threatened to overtake her. Like in all the other council meetings of the past two months, she would not cower, no matter how much she yearned to.

She sat up straighter and met their eyes from the head of the table, recalling her mother’s words: Do not let them see you weak.

“He said he had ways to sense me. That my magic’s a beacon, especially at Court around other Maghs to amplify it.” She looked at her dad and uncle sitting beside her. “He said there was nowhere I could go that he wouldn’t find me. He has Supernaturals supporting him everywhere.”

Her dad gave her an encouraging smile, but it vanished as soon as it formed.

“So what’s our plan?” Council Member Teller asked. “We clearly can’t keep Her Majesty safe here at Court. And without an heir of her blood, if she dies… as Master Roar said, the Maghs will no longer be. This is serious for our people’s survival.”

“We could always choose a suitor for her now,” Master Kingston said with a shrug. “The humans still conduct child marriages for their daughters all the time, and they don’t have a whole race’s existence connected to them.”

With a bang, both her dad and uncle stood up as the comment sank in.

“That’s my thirteen-year-old daughter, Vallerd!” Her father yelled. “Watch your fucking mouth.”

“It was in jest, Billi,” Master Kingston countered calmly. “But she turns fourteen in a few days, and humans have sold their daughters off younger. And with an heir, we wouldn’t need to worry about our entire race dying out.”

“Be very careful how you talk about my niece, Vallerd,” Uncle Lukas said coolly. “Remember that she’s your Queen now.”

“We know that better than you, Lukas!” Master Roar snapped. “You shouldn’t even be here!”

“Well, since you failed to keep my sister safe, and now her daughter, I think you revoke the right to order me around—”

Master Roar stood up abruptly. “I am Master of the Griffin Order! You will treat me with respect—”

“Oh shut up, Rick! I was there when you streaked naked through Court after downing four bottles of your father’s finest—”

“That’s enough!” Council Member Gold shouted. “Rick, Lukas, stop acting like children! And Vallerd, stop riling up Billi and Lukas. Elsa wasn’t only their Queen, but also a wife and sister. Now her daughter is in danger, and it is our job to keep her safe.”

Again, everyone turned and looked at their new Queen, like they just remembered she was there. Like talking about her mother would finally shatter her. She wanted to. All her mother’s death had done was pile responsibility after responsibility on her shoulders, on top of a mountain of grief threatening to spill out. And the only other person who could understand was the one they were mourning.

“We could hide her in Esparza,” Council Member Benett said. “Or Aquzor or any of the other Borderlands.”

“Her Majesty just correctly pointed out that this Zoller fellow has allies within the Supernatural community,” Council Member Snake argued. “Did we not just fight off members of the Shadowmoon Coven twice now? I sensed many different species of magic-users and Supernaturals in their ranks, and it isn’t like the Supernatural world is large. We are but 1% of the human population. Our Queen would be found in no time.”

As the Council continued to go back and forth, an idea came to her mind unbidden. It was the last thing the rest of the Council would agree to, but it was something her mother would say.

Before she could stop herself, she spoke aloud.

“I could hide in the human lands.”

The entire room went silent.

Not only did she rarely speak unless spoken to, but she also just barely made it through a second attempt on her life. She doubted anyone thought she would say much at this meeting.

But she was still Queen, and so they were forced to listen to her.

“I could live with Uncle Lukas while the rest of you eliminate Zoller. Or any of the other Maghs in the human world.”

She eyed specific council members around the room whose families had left the Magh Court to live in peace with the humans. Something she dreamed of doing in her darkest moments, even before her mother died.

Council Member Blank held her gaze, being one of the ones whose parents fled the Court and left him here to take their place on the Council. He was only two years older than her.

“I think, Your Majesty, that being around other Maghs is part of the problem,” he said, but not condescendingly. Just as a fact. “Your magic is stronger when you are with your people, so wouldn’t hiding with Maghs, even exiled ones, make you into the same beacon you are here?”

She bowed her head and was about to murmur an agreement when Uncle Lukas spoke.

“What about Black Ridge, the government operation that knows about us? They could help.”

“What could they do?” Master Roar demanded.

“They could help hide the Queen,” Council Member Snake said, holding her gaze while addressing the rest of the council. “With the might of the federal government and the absence of magic, Her Majesty would be hidden from this Zoller fellow. Or at least not be a beacon to him. They have capable enough humans to keep her safe for a time.”

Council Member Snake was also her uncle, but through marriage on her dad’s side. She was surprised he agreed with Uncle Lukas, though, since Council Member Snake felt personally affronted when Uncle Lukas left Court to marry Aunt Kat—a human. Uncle Lukas was part of House Snake after all, and left behind more than his family. She’d heard whispers that Uncle Lukas had the potential to be very influential at Court before he left. Her mother always said he could have changed so many outdated traditions, but his leaving made the Court even more set in their ways, and made her mother even angrier and more stifled.

“She would also be hidden from us,” Council Member Benett argued.

“Maybe that would be for the best,” Council Member Snake countered. “Lest we accidentally give away her location.”

Beside her, her father and uncle looked at each other with brows furrowed, like they were actually contemplating it.

She sure was.

“I think it’s a great idea,” she said. “I could live among the humans, hidden from the entire Supernatural community so Zoller can’t use any of his Shadowmoon network to find me.”

“But how would we contact you, Your Majesty?” Council Member Farland asked.

“I’m sure the Court can function without me for a while. It’s not like I will be with the humans forever, and without the need to protect me 24/7, you can expend more resources to locate and eliminate Zoller.”

“Are you sure, Your Majesty?” Council Member Teller asked. “The only way we would know if you were in danger is if the Director of Black Ridge contacts us.”

“Are we seriously thinking about this?” Council Member York demanded. “Humans cannot be trusted!”

“We cannot really depend on humans to keep our Queen safe!” Another member added.

“It would be like entrusting her to children!”

“They’ll probably do more harm to her than keep her safe!”

“ENOUGH!” Master Roar yelled.

The chamber immediately quieted.

Master Roar stood. “If the Queen thinks this is the right course of action, then we must take it seriously!”

“Are you sure about this, Your Majesty?” Her father’s oldest sister asked, one of the most influential members of the Council, being married to Council Member Snake and the sister of the Queen’s Consort—the previous Queen’s Consort, he was now the new Queen’s father.

It was difficult to think of herself as Queen, especially since she had not been officially crowned yet.

“We can’t be sure of anything right now,” she told her aunt, silently pleading to stop questioning her. How am I to know anything? “I shouldn’t be gone long anyway.”

Her aunt gave a curt nod and looked over at Council Member Snake and Gold. Both men nodded and got up from the table.

“We will contact the Director of Black Ridge now and see what she thinks about a plan of action,” Council Member Gold said.

“Then this meeting will be adjourned until we find out the next steps,” Master Roar said. “We’ll stand by.”

With a nod from the Queen, the rest of the members got up and left the room. Her father and uncle trailed her from the chambers and followed as she walked to the Royal Apartments.

“Bud, are you really sure about this?” Her father asked softly as they turned a corner and lost sight of the other members.

She rounded on him. “I have no idea, Dad! How am I supposed to know anything? Mom’s gone, and I’m not— I’m not—”

Suddenly, the pressure was too much, and sobs overtook her body.

Her dad reached her quickly, wrapping his arms around her. “I know, rosebud, I’m sorry.”

It was as if her body wasn’t her own anymore. She had no control over the pain and misery roiling through her.

“I just want to be away from this stupid Court,” she cried into her father’s shoulder. “I need out. Just for a bit.”

“But sweetheart, Zoller might not be defeated that quickly,” Uncle Lukas said softly beside them.

“Your uncle is right,” her dad said, pulling back slightly to look her in the eye. “We’ve been trying to track down Zoller since your mother—”

He paused, face collapsing.

“Since Elsa died,” Uncle Lukas finished for him. “For these two months, we haven’t been able to find Zoller, nor could we predict or prevent his attack on you yesterday. He has some way to evade our senses, which is quite concerning considering that every able Magh is being used and deployed to find and defeat him.”

She knew that her stint in the human lands might not be the months-long vacation she dreamed it would be, but ultimately she didn’t care. Living at Court and being Queen was shaping up to be the worst experience of her life.

One Year Earlier…

Loud voices sounded from the kitchen. Her parents must have thought that she and her brother were still training, but one of her mom’s personal guards brought them home early. Her brother was outside in the backyard, and her parents probably didn’t see him as they arrived, or else they wouldn’t talk so freely, or loudly, about the Council.

As was often the case when her parents got home from Court, her mother couldn’t keep the anger in any longer, but the explosion was usually contained a lot better than this.

With a sinking heart, she crept closer to the stairs to better listen to her mother’s frustrations.

“They’re such bigots and hypocrites!” Her mom shouted. “They think we’re so much better than humans because we don’t harm or discriminate against our own, but if one of our own loves a human, we cast them out the exact same way humans do!”

“I know, Elsa,” her father said, attempting to be soothing. “They are idiotic when it comes to their perceptions of humans, but they are still the Council, my love. Together, they hold as much power as you. More even.”

“That’s what’s worrisome, Billi! And I know it’s not the entire Council, but Rick and Vallerd are the worst, and they equal me in power! I need to stop them!”

“You know that Vallerd hates humans for good reason, Elsa, and Rick is just a contrary ass—“

“They won’t let me visit my own brother, Billi!” Her mom screamed. “And they want to take my nieces away from their mother! The Council are turning into monsters!”

There were rumours that the Council wanted all the exiled Maghs to give their children the option to live at Court, but the exiled Maghs gave up their firstborns to the Council on the condition that no one would bother their younger children. Uncle Lukas never made that kind of deal when he was exiled, and he didn’t leave because he didn’t agree with the Council anymore. He left because he fell in love with a human.

But did that mean her cousins were fair game?

Could the Council forcefully take them?

Were humans that awful?

Or was she and her family just too different from the Council and Court to ever understand?

Was she too different?

She ran to her room then, unable to hear more. She hated when her mom cried, and she hated the Council for making her, and she hated them for making it harder to see her aunt and uncle and cousins. Her cousins were better than half of the Magh children at Court. The same children who were supposed to be her friends and future subjects, but who whispered behind her back.

Human-sympathesizer, weirdo, not a true Magh.

Not a true Queen.

And then the tears started to fall.

Her parents must have heard her run up the stairs because suddenly there were footsteps following her and a knock at her door.

“Sweetie?” Her mom said softly. “I’m sorry I yelled. I didn’t want you to hear that.”

Without waiting for a response, her mom came in and climbed on her bed. The bed wasn’t big enough for the both of them, but they made it work. Then there were arms wrapping around her.

Her mom sighed. “The Council just makes it hard to be Queen.”

“I’ll never be Queen!”

Her mom tensed.

“Honey…” her mom paused. “Is something else bothering you?”

She sniffed and buried her face deeper into her mom’s sweater. “They don’t like me, Mama,” she cried. “They keep saying my favourite books and movies are beneath me and that I shouldn’t like them because they’re not real or serious. That they’re written by humans. They don’t like Percy Jackson without ever reading it! They’ll never accept me as Queen.”

“Is it the Heirs saying this?”

“It’s all the kids at Court! They make fun of me, Mama. They hate that I got my blue jeans from shopping with Aunt Kat, Josi, and Emilia. They hate it when I put on my music during training. They hate everything I like! I’ll never be good enough!”

She started sobbing again as her mom held her even tighter.

“Oh, baby, I know it’s hard. All the kids at Court just listen to their parents’ ignorant comments. They forget that without the humans, we wouldn’t exist. The first Maghs were human before they became what they are. But remembering that will make you an even better Queen.”

She looked up at her mom. “But why do I have to be even more different than them? They already keep their distance because I’ll be Queen one day, but now it’s also because I’m a human sympathizer!”

“There is nothing wrong with sympathizing with humans or any other species.” Her mom held her gaze, intensely serious. “I know it’s hard, honey. Gods, do I ever know, but you have to remember what’s really important. Whether we like it or not, the whole Supernatural community rests on our shoulders, and so do our people. Our responsibility is everyone. Not just Supernaturals, and not just humans.”

“But our direct responsibility is every Magh.”

“Yes, it is, my little rosebud. And it is a heavy burden to carry, but we can carry it together.”

She leaned into her mom, her body finally exhausted from crying.

“Together.”

Next: PART TWO

PART THREE

PART FOUR

SUMMARY

Favourite Webtoons Part 2

Okay so since the first part didn’t have every single one that I loved, I decided to make another part and I’m sure I’ll do more in the future. So here again are my favourite Webtoons and if you’re interested in more, here is my part 1 of the list.

KillMax by Kennycomics & SilentMaru

KillMax has such a cool concept and beautiful visuals that I instantly loved it. Sadly it was slow going for the creators getting pages out and now they are on hiatus getting ready for season 3, but I really think it is worth the read. It was hard to remember certain things because of the large gaps between getting pages out but I reread it multiple times and that in itself was very enjoyable so I do recommend. It’s about a witch girl who gets famous on the internet which grabs the attention of witch hunters and I love the badass-ness of the main female character and also male lead as well. So if you like strong female characters, then definitely give this a read because you will not be disappointed.

Siren’s Lament by instantmiso

This was the first completed Webtoon I’ve read and I loved it so much it’s crazy. The only problem is that I am so sad it’s done! I wish I had more because I loved the characters so much and the art style is so beautiful (like all of the Webtoons I’ve talked about so far). This story is a romance with a love triangle where somehow you are always rooting for all three of them to be together because as a group they are just absolutely adorable. The concept is that the main lead is turned into a siren but only gets half of the “curse” from the siren guy she kissed so they have to figure out why it happened that way. The whole plot was beautifully done and like I already said, all of the characters are so likeable and all of their relationships are adorable but still complex, so I highly recommend.

To Love Your Enemy by Jungyoon & Taegeon

This one I recently started and it is very cute and fun to read. I don’t think it’s my favourite Webtoon ever, but it updates twice a week which is wonderful, and the beginning for me was very solid. It’s also a romance with the trope of fake relationship + hate to love, and I think that was my favourite part— the two characters falling in love with each other. But now that the story has progressed so much I don’t really know how I feel about the whole romance aspect of it. I think now it’s just that I’m anxious for the characters because (SPOILER, although it’s a romance so not really a spoiler because we all know what happens) they are together and I want them to stay together. Once romances get to the point of the two leads getting together, the next big storylines and plot points are the drama of them trying to stay together and that’s a little nerve racking further in this Webtoon. But I still do enjoy it very much. Also forgot to say what it’s about, but it’s about a girl that worked in a pyramid scheme (I think) finally gets out of it and goes to university where a guy there knows who she is and hates her for what she’s done, but then she starts a rumor that they’re together and it goes from there.

Men of the Harem by Alphatart & Yeongbin

Another one that I started recently and which doesn’t actually have a lot of pages out is Men of the Harem, which I am loving so much! This one was recently started so a lot of the story foundation is still being made and the real drama hasn’t started yet, but the potential for this story is very promising. It’s a fantasy that has our lead becoming the Emperor for her kingdom and she surprises everyone by wanting to create a harem of men instead of being a normal female emperor and having only one male consort. Honestly I just love that concept in and of itself and the story so far has been delivering in the best way possible. I love that we have a strong female ruler that breaks the rules of being the stereotypical girl and makes the power move of having her own harem. So if you’re into that then you’ll love this Webtoon.

The Advanced Player of the Tutorial Tower by Bangguseok Gimssi & Omagam

This one was also started recently so there aren't many pages out but it is really good so far. It’s about our modern world being overrun by monsters and people have to start fighting them to stay alive. But there is also this tower that randomly selects people to complete it where they either die or defeat all the monsters inside alive and become monster fighters/hunters in the real world to protect the normal citizens. There is a lot more to it than that but that’s the bare bones, and the main character was put into the tower when it first appeared and completed it but was never let out until 12 years later, so he’s now the most powerful monster hunter guy in the world. I love having a main character that is all powerful because I always love seeing the bad guys underestimate them and then get destroyed because they’re so cocky. So if you like action (and I think this is actually the only non-romance Webtoon on either of my lists) then you’ll love this one.

The Remarried Empress by Alphatart & Sumpul

Another strong female lead in a patriarchal fantasy setting with romance and drama created by the same creator as Men of the Harem. This one updates twice a week and is so good it’s crazy! The main character is the Empress of this kingdom because she had an arranged marriage with the Emperor, but they were always good friends growing up so it’s supposed to be all good. But then dummy Emperor dude goes out and gets himself a stupid mistress who ruins everyone’s day and who has an agenda of her own. This one does get you really angry at certain characters but you also fall in love with the lead so much it’s worth it. Also her new love interest is absolutely great, so read it for that reason too! But yeah, if you like fantasy, fantasy politics, drama, romance, and magic then check this one out.

Unholy Blood by Lina Im & Jeonghyeon Kim

The last one I want to mention is this one, Unholy Blood, which is a vampire Webtoon that is such well developed plot/world building-wise that I think it’s worth it just for that reason. The main character lives in a world where there is a vampire disease that is running wild in the form of crazy vampires turning humans and killing them on the streets. Because of that the world lives in fear with a curfew and the police are doing all they can to destroy the vampires, but they have their claws in every part of society. The main character has some traumatic stuff happen to her which makes her have to go find all these evil vampires responsible and kill them. It’s very action packed with a tiny bit of romance later on, but like I mentioned already, it’s the whole world, concept, and plot that makes me love it coupled with awesome badass characters as well.

The concludes my second list of recommendations and favourite Webtoons. I hope some of these interest people and make them want to read them or just get on the Webtoon app and check out some other stuff because these creators really deserve the support.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#siren's lament #instantmiso #the remarried empress #alphatart #sumpul #killmax #kennycomics #silentmaru #to love your enemy #jungyoon #taegeon #men of the harem #yeongbin #the advanced player of the tutorial tower #bangguseok gimssi #omagam #unholy blood #lina im #jeonghyeon kim

Favourite Webtoons Part 1

Recently I’ve gotten really into Webtoon and all the different comics there are on there, and I thought I would make a list of all my favourites. These are only the ones I’m reading and obsessed with currently but I’m sure there will be many more in the future that become obsessed with too. But for now, here they are in no particular order, and I tried not to put spoilers in there but I suck at non-spoilery things.

Cuckoos Three by Cassandra Jean & Mosskat

This is an adorable story about two guys falling in love (although we’re not at that part yet) after one of the characters, Jacob, moves to the country from the city and meets his neighbour Murry. I’ve been following this story since the first time Cassandra Jean mentioned making it here on Tumblr and even though it’s been full of multiple starts and restarts, I am so happy that it seems to be continuing officially on Webtoons (and on Cassandra Jean’s patreon). It is just a super heartwarming story that makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Lore Olympus by Rachel Smythe

This is like the number one story on Webtoon and for good reason. I love this story so much! It’s a Hades and Persephone retelling in a modern Olympus (although an ancient human Greece) that is full of adorable moments. It is so well done and the art is spectacular and the story covers lots of emotional topics. I’m also super excited that it’s coming out as a physical graphic novel soon as well, so if anyone is interested in starting it, but likes to read physical books, I’m pretty sure it’s the first 25 episodes that come out in the first volume October 5th. For sure worth the read and deserving of the hype.

SubZero by Junepurrr

This is the next story that I became obsessed with and even though Junepurrr’s on a hiatus to get ready for season 2 right now, it is worth it to read the whole first season. It’s about two enemy rulers— who can turn into dragons— being forced to marry to stop the war between their two kingdoms. It is a romance and has the whole arranged marriage trope and a love triangle situation, so if your into that then you’ll love this. But also if you just love dragons and fantasy stories that have royals, which I love, then you should also check this out because I loved reading it and the art is gorgeous!

Midnight Poppy Land by Lilydusk

Midnight Poppy Land is also on a hiatus right now, getting ready for season 2, but again it is so worth it to read season 1! I love this story so much and the art is also so beautiful and makes me fall in love with the characters even more. This story is also a romance and is about this girl getting caught in some mafia stuff without meaning to, which is where she meets the main male lead who is one of the mafia tough guy killers who takes it upon himself to protect her. It’s such a cute story and a really nice escapism story that I was really excited for every week that a new page came out.

True Beauty by Yaongyi

Now we have True Beauty which is still going and it’s already on season 2 so if you’re interested to start it, you have to get through a lot to catch up. It’s also a romance with the love triangle trope about a girl who goes to high school and wears her makeup like a mask because without it she looks like a very different person and it’s just her story about that. I became really obsessed with it in the first season and I like it enough to keep reading, but the main character is really frustrating because she’s so naïve and honestly kind of stupid most of the time, just waiting around for her boys to save her, and it feels like the makeup aspect, which I thought would have the message of loving yourself even without makeup, was lost for the second season and kind of also went away. So kind of mad about that since that’s why I started reading it, thinking it would have that type of positive message, but that went away and now I just read it for the dumb drama, the hot guys, and beautiful art. So if you’re into that, I recommend checking it out.

Love Me Knot by Sophia

This last one here I more recently got into and it still seems to be getting to the really good parts, because the first pages have been a good setup for future drama I think, but it’s a very cute story. I love all the characters because they’re just so cute and likable and I also love the whole concept. So the concept is that everyone has these strings connecting them to their soulmate, but they’re invisible to most people but not the main character. The main character’s string is actually cut (like doesn’t attach to anybody) but she can see everyone else’s strings and who they attach to. Because of this she thinks that she’ll never be in love but then she meets a guy who also has his string cut and who can see strings and it goes from there. It also has a sort of love triangle aspect later on, but like I mentioned there hasn’t been much drama and I feel like since there aren’t that many pages yet, the foundation is still being made for the story and more stuff will come soon. In other words, I see a lot of potential for this story and I can’t wait to see where it’s headed!

So that’s it for this first part and I’ll have a second part coming soon since I couldn’t fit all of my recommendations onto this list because there are so many, and I think I will be doing even more in the future. So I hope that someone found an interesting Webtoon on here that they want to read because I think that all of these creators deserve all the support they can get (and yes even the well known Webtoons, because they’re well known for a reason!) So if you’re interested please check them out.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#lore olympus #rachel smythe #sub zero #junepurrr #cuckoos three #cassandra jean #mosskat #midnight poppy land #lilydusk #true beauty #yaongyi #love me knot #sophia #webtoon #favourite webtoons

Book of the Month (Mar): A Court of Silver Flames

Okay that was a crazy ride… holy mother sh*t. I don’t even know where to start and I have so many thoughts it feels like my heart and head will explode. Just like my Chain of Gold review (which you can find on my post page) this will probably be long and full of spoilers so sorry in advance, but I just need to get it out. Also these are the other books I read in March (it was a crazy month with a SJM and Cassie Clare book!):

A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas (5 stars)

Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare (5 stars)

Siren’s Lament Season 2 by instantmiso (5 stars)

Frankenstein 1818 edition by Mary Shelley (unrated)

Characters

So to start I of course need to talk about Nesta, her being one of the main characters, but also because it’s NESTA. Like many people, I hated Nesta for all of the previous books. Like actually hated. She just made me so mad. The only time and reason I didn’t totally hate her was during the war in ACOWAR and mostly because I wanted Cassian to be happy and I could tell they were mates. But after that, especially in ACOFAS, I disliked Nesta so much it hurt. For her whole life she (and Elain, but I’ll get to her later) just let and expected Feyre to do everything for them and keep them alive. And after all of that, she blamed Feyre for being Made into a Fae, when Feyre was literally the only reason she was alive. As an older sibling myself, that made me so mad. I would never rely on my younger sibling because I would do everything in my power to keep them safe and provided for (like what Nesta did for Elain, which also riled me up because Feyre never got the same treatment). Going into this book I was worried that this whole thing was going to be about Nesta being a whiny bitch, but instead, the redeeming feature of Nesta, was her knowledge and acknowledgment of how shitty of a sister she’s been. I know that it took her a long time to actually be nice again, but I was happy that she actually knew that she was being terrible and deep down wanted to be better. She wasn’t just being terrible because she felt entitled which was the vibe I got from her before, but instead was terrible because she thought it was too late to get better. After that I thought her journey was very relatable and heart wrenching. While I still was mad every time she got mad and was mean to Feyre or any of the Night Court group, I could still sympathize how she felt like she was intruding on their family and that she didn’t fit in.

Now let’s talk about Cassian— I love him. That’s about it. JK… Okay, I have always loved Cassian, but this book made me appreciate him in a more emotional way. All of his insecurities had me crying for him while relating to him so well too, and when we heard more about his mother and how when he was younger he didn’t get physical touch which is why now he always needs physical touch… MY HEART COULDN’T HANDLE IT! God, that was such a precious moment when he needed to hug and kiss Feyre’s forehead, because that’s how he best shows affection and needs affection warmed my heart in so many ways, but also made me cry. And although it hurt me when Cassian would doubt himself and feel lesser because he was born a bastard, I still felt that pain brought Nesta and him closer in more ways. It wasn’t just him helping her, but she helped him too, and both allowed each other to grow on their own but also together. I fucking loved that.

Relationships

Now I’m just going to jump right into relationships, because I feel like individual characters besides Nesta and Cassian can only really be talked about through their relationships with other characters since it was only Nesta and Cassian’s povs in the book.

So first let’s talk about (obviously) Nesta and Cassian— I mean I already started to talk about them together above, but this book was so powerful for me because of the way the two of them worked together to heal themselves. That was beautiful. But also it is a tiny bit annoying how both Feyre and Nesta were unaware of their frickin mate bonds! I know, I know… neither were born Fae so they don’t have the same knowledge of the mate bonds that everyone else does, but come on! I knew Nesta and Cassian were mates since they first met! And I know that it definitely wouldn’t have been smart or healthy for Nesta to accept the mate bond at the beginning, but at the end when she still has to talk to Cassian like he isn’t her mate, after they literally consummated the mate bond on several occasions, I was kind of annoyed. I know it was still part of her growth, but also wild that she still was playing dumb like that. But I’m happy they finally admitted everything at the end.

Next let’s discuss the Archeron sisters— So really their relationship at the start just made me sad, seeing none of them get along (except Feyre and Elain). Especially since I still kind of felt like everyone should just be falling at Feyre’s feet and apologizing about how terrible they were for mostly her whole life (even Elain, since she also never helped keep them alive in the human world. Really she was just as bad as Nesta but wasn’t an outright bitch about it). But even though Nesta was encouraging nasty behaviour from them (because she was also being mean) Feyre and Elain both were just as mean to her sometimes. I mean, when Elain went to the house and Nesta and her got in an argument, Elain was just as harsh as Nesta was to her. But I guess Elain has just never been my favourite person. I’m still a little pissed how both Feyre and Nesta do everything for her and she just sits still and looks pretty, but I’m betting that will change in future books. Anyways, I was very happy at the end of the book that all three sisters got on good terms and even went to visit their father’s grave together. That last scene got me pretty emotional.

Nesta & Emerie & Gwyn— In contrast with the Archeron sisters’ relationship, I loved this new friendship that Nesta found with Emerie and Gwyn. I think now that Nesta found those two, she really appreciates the relationship between family that isn’t blood, because they are now like her sisters too. I loved both Emerie and Gwyn so much in this book and I was so happy that Nesta found them and let them into her life. Feyre found a family in the Inner Night Court, and Nesta found her own people with her Valkyries, and that felt very poetic to me. The family you choose is the family that sticks with you forever (although you can choose blood family too, and I’m glad Nesta found her way back to Feyre and Elain, but I’m glad she found more family too).

Nesta & Amren— Okay, this relationship had me very mad for most of the book because I just wanted to scream at Nesta so bad! I can’t believe that Nesta got mad for “choosing” Feyre’s side, when literally Feyre and Amren were family first! Amren and Feyre were close and part of the Night Court family before Nesta came in, and even though I was happy that Nesta was making friends with Amren, she can’t get mad at Amren for being friends with Feyre too! Especially since she was friends with Feyre first! Again, not saying that Amren and Nesta being friends was a bad thing, I just got mad that Nesta was being so weird about it when she has no claim on Amren to be just her friend. Sorry I just had to get that off my chest, but I am happy that both of them seem to be friends again now :)

Nesta & Rhysand— Throughout the book I totally understood both Nesta and Rhysand being unfriendly to each other, but boy was I in tears when Rhysand fell to his knees before Nesta because of what he did for Feyre. That was the most beautiful brother-in-law/sister-in-law moment in the entire world. Really I don’t want to even talk about Nesta and Rhys’s relationship in most of this book because I feel like that’s now in the past, I just want to focus on their amazing family relationship going forward, because now they will be in-laws from both sides (Feyre and Nesta being sisters, and Rhys and Cassian being brothers).

Nesta & the House— This was a beautiful relationship and I was beyond happy that Nesta became best friends with the House. Super heart-warming and those are honestly my only thoughts. I can’t wait to see more of Nesta and the House in the future!

Cassian & Rhys & Azriel— Again, I just love the three of them! Their brotherly bond is adorable, but it also makes my heart break when they all take on each other's pain, because it’s just so beautiful and sad at the same time. I don’t know how else to explain it. When Cass and Az still feel hurt about not being able to help Rhys when he was underneath the mountain, and the pain Rhys and Az feels for Cass’s past, and the same for Az’s past. It’s beautiful but sad because I can just feel the love they have for each other and the true pain they feel and it hurts me too.

The Night Court Inner Circle— This is also just a short pop in to say how much I love this whole family together: Rhys, Az, Cass, Feyre, Mor, Amren, and now Nesta, Elain, and Nyx. They are all a big beautiful family that makes my heart ache just thinking about them. I can’t wait for more scenes about all of them interacting with baby Nyx, because that will kill me and give my life again in the best way possible (again not sure if that made sense, but that’s the only way to explain it).

And for the big finale in relationships… my Elain/Azriel/Lucien/Gwyn thoughts— to start off, I’m not dissing any ship anyone makes and I think all thoughts are valid. But I don’t know, for some reason I just don’t think Az and Elain are meant for each other. I just think it’s too obvious and cliché (for lack of a better word) to have all three brothers fall in love with all three sisters. BUT I also see how it is obvious and cliché to have mates end up together too. So I really don’t know what to expect. But one thing is for sure— and again no hate please— but I totally understand why Elain and Lucien are mates and “equals”. Throughout this book it is mentioned multiple times that Elain doesn’t belong in the Night Court while Nesta definitely does (like the scene where they visit the Court of Nightmares but I do remember it being mentioned other times as well). This also explains why Azriel’s shadows don’t go close to Elain, because she literally represents light. Lucien on the other hand, is literally the son and heir to Helion, High Lord of the Day Court (even if he is unaware at the moment), the ambassador to the Spring Court (full of light and flowers), and ambassador to the human lands, somewhere Elain misses very much. I know none of this should mean he has any claim to her, but it definitely makes sense why they would be considered mates and “equals”, because Lucien’s birth and life matches the light that Elain represents. Just some food for thought. And concerning Gwyn and Az, I just think they would be really cute together, honestly. I think that Az being the first one to rescue Gwyn on the most traumatic day of her life is significant, and will have something to do with Gwyn’s own healing in some way, but of course that doesn’t have to mean sexual or romantic. I thought both of the extra bonus scenes at the end of ACOSF (yes I’ve read both) are really setting up for the next book which will cover Elain and Az’s journeys, but I don’t think that means they will get together. I thought Rhys’s comment about Elain in the Feysand one was very true, and Elain isn’t the innocent helpless girl we’ve been made to believe. I think she has a lot to share from her own story, and I think that Az needs to have his moment in the spotlight too.

Plot

Lastly, let’s talk about plot, which is essentially the next war that may be gearing up to happen. I hope for all of my babies’ sakes it won’t happen and it’ll just be a little negotiation and everything will be well, but I have a feeling that won’t happen. This dude in this lake is very intriguing though (sorry, can’t remember his name) and I’m excited to see what will happen next. But most importantly, I think in the future a lot of shit will happen with Mor too, because since she was gone so much in this book I think that’s SJM getting us ready for a big Mor moment. I have a feeling there was more to her negotiating on the other continent than we know about yet, and also I feel like there's something more about what happened with her and Eris that I’m excited to find out about.

I just feel like this was more of a character driven book (which are my favourite books) than a plot driven book, and a lot of the information we learned in ACOSF will be more important in the future books. So for now, I’m okay with not talking about it (although side note, I’m really happy that crone queen bitch is dead. I did not like her!)

So thanks for reading till the end if you did. Sorry for any grammar or spelling errors; I’m too tired to read over this.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#a court of silver flames #sarahjmaas #a court of silver flames spoiler #acosf spoilers #acosf #acotar #nesta archeron #cassian #nessian #elain archeron #feyre archeron #rhysand #azriel #amren #morrigan #lucien

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Chain of Iron Review

Like my Chain of Gold review (which you can find on my post list or here) this is going to be a hot mess of emotions and feelings with very many spoilers. If you’re wondering if you should read this book (a review without spoilers) my thoughts are go fricking read everything by Cassandra Clare and fall in love with me. Yes, I highly recommend everything that woman has touched with a pen. But besides that, let's get into this review.

Characters

James Herondale- first let's start with one of the main characters who was a big part of this novel. To be honest I don’t have much to say about him personally without getting into his relationships with others and the plot points in the book (which I will talk about later), but I guess I will talk about my love for him. I was unsure at first (before Chain of Gold) how I was going to feel about James and if he would be a typical Herondale boy and be very similar to his father or his descendant, Jace. I was worried that he would be too similar to Will and Jace that he would not stand out, but like in Chain of Gold, I was very happy with his individual character traits and personality. While he is like Will and Jace, James is also very different and his own person. He’s a typical heart throb Herondale, while still having this very reserved and responsible side to him that I love so much. His only flaw is something he can’t control, so yeah… strong character.

Cordelia Carstairs- Like last book, I LOVE Cordelia, although this book was harder to read because of what she went through. Multiple times I wanted to just give her a hug and let her cry on my shoulder. I wish she hadn’t had to go through so much trauma in this book, but I know she’ll become a better character because of it. The whole ordeal with being Lilith’s paladin hurt very much, her unrequited (not really) love for James was heartbreaking to see continuously played on (I JUST WANTED THAT DAMN GRACELET OFF), and the parts about her father also hurt. I need to read Chain of Thorns now, just to make sure that Cordelia is alright in the end.

Matthew Fairchild- talking about Matthew makes me sad because I absolutely love him as a character and I just need him to get better. I’m so happy that he opened up to Cordelia in this book, but I need him to start loving himself again. The pain I feel when reading about him trembling and drinking himself to honestly too much (especially since he’s just a fictional character). And that’s really all I want for Matthew, is for him to be okay one day.

Grace Blackthorn- this was very interesting in Chain of Iron because we got a lot of flashback scenes from Grace’s point of view and that made me not hate her as much anymore. I still am very annoyed at her, but I like that I can finally see more of her side and sympathize with her. I’m very interested to see more of her character development, especially individually without all the stuff with James obscuring my image of her.

Lucie Herondale- someone else that I found I loved much more in this book was Lucie. In the last book, from what I can remember, Lucie was a little interesting at parts (I kind of want to say annoying, although that’s a little too harsh of a word), but I loved her in this book. She had much more character development (I thought) and her personality came out more in a less hectic way. Her inner thoughts started to make more sense to me, and I loved learning more about her as not someone who is just James’s sister, or Cordelia’s future parabatai, but as her own person.

Jesse Blackthorn- Another character I loved to see more of although we mostly just saw him through Lucie’s eyes, and I also already loved him even before. He became a much more understanding and developed character in this book and I can’t wait to see more of him now that he’s alive!

Alastair Carstairs- I totally fell in love with him in this book too! Holy shit, all I wanted to do was hug him and tell him that it would all be alright. Because he is an older sibling I think I can relate to him a lot more now, especially with all this baggage that he was keeping and trying to protect Cordelia from. I found the scenes with just him in them (like when he’s thinking about the future while looking out the window in his house after his father dies and thinking about his new baby sibling that will be born) absolutely amazing and captivating. Obviously I used to hate him because of the short stories that he was in the Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy and other extra short stories, but now I need more of him and I’m internally hurting for him.

Thomas Lightwood- Another character I am hurting for and I just need him to be okay. I loved and hated the fact that he felt so hurt for James because of the killer and he wanted to unburden James by catching the killer. I was just so moved but also so angry that he was putting himself in danger that it was a very emotional time reading (like me clutching the book and shouting at Thomas to stop and go back). But I will always love Thomas and can’t wait to see more of him.

Christopher Lightwood- Last but certainly not least, is Christopher, who I am obsessed with. That one POV moment that we had from him was one of my favourites and now I need to hear from him more. I love all of his quirks and his inner thoughts are the most adorable thing but also makes me sad because he has no one but Henry to share them with and who fully understands and appreciates him for who he is. Also I still really find it wild that he’s the son of Cecily and Gabriel, who aren’t science-y people at all and who are both much more sarcastic characters, while Christopher is just so sweet and perfect. (Not saying Cecily and Gabriel aren’t perfect, but still never would have imagined them to have a kid like Christopher, but at the same time I find it so perfect that they did). Also I just love Christopher so much! I know I said that already, but I just can’t get over it. I need more of his inner thoughts and just more of HIM.

Relationships

Now we can finally talk about the characters in terms of their relationships with other characters and since I was just talking about Christopher I need to start with…

Christopher and Grace! — I loved that little moment they shared when they were in Henry’s laboratory and were bonding of the pithos. It was the best moment in the whole book and I keep thinking about it in my head. I know of the family tree from the Clockwork Princess inside cover, it says that Christopher and Grace will get married and have the Lightwood offspring, but I just hadn’t really realized that significance until now. They are so cute together and even though I have expressly said I hated Grace in the past, the way she understood Christopher and the way they could talk together, warmed my heart so much and was the most redeeming part of Grace’s character for me. I just need more moments of Grace and Christopher.

Now to the next most pressing relationship…

The James, Cordelia, Matthew love triangle!

Let's start with Cordelia and James— I love them together. Even with all the annoying shit with James and the bracelet, their relationship shone in this book and I was so happy about it. They are so perfect for each other and all of their moments together I was bursting with joy. Their chemistry, but also their solid foundation for their relationship is so well written that it’s impossible for me not to see them as together. This is their story and I’m in love with it.

Now Cordelia and Matthew— I also love them, but probably not as much. The thing is, I’m just obsessed with Matthew, so while I love the relationship just because I want Matthew to find happiness, I think James and Cordelia are better together. The problem is with Matthew is that he needs to work on himself first before he could ever hope to fully love someone else and share a life with someone else. I’m very happy for the moment though that Matthew has Cordelia at his side and that he even shared his biggest secret with her because I do think that Cordelia has the capacity to help Matthew (maybe even on this trip to Paris) but I also don’t want it to be too much for Cordelia since she already had to deal with similar issues with her dad and I don’t want it to bring up hard memories for her. But either way I just need the next book to see what happens after that VERY emotional cliffhanger. Cassie did me dirty with that one.

James and Grace— Well I hate the fricking bracelet (also side note, I absolutely love that the fandom nicknamed the bracelet, gracelet. I love that so much). But I also see why Grace felt like she had to put it on and why she couldn’t take it off, but it still makes me so mad. Especially the way she still felt she could manipulate James in the end because she had nowhere else to go. I hate that part of her, the part that her mother taught her that it’s okay to manipulate men. But I was also so happy how James went off on her at the end, it was very satisfying until Cordelia ran off, but still very happy that James got to yell at Grace like that.

Lucie and Jesse— another couple I am now fully invested and in love with. This book made me like Lucie more BECAUSE of her development with Jesse. I liked Jesse before, but this book, where we got to see lots of their development as a couple and be completely honest with each other, sealed the deal for me. I can’t wait to read more about Jesse and Lucie in the future because I am so happy for them and so in love with their love, it’s actually kind of ridiculous.

Alastair and Thomas— again, I just fell completely in love with them in this book. The scenes with them locked up together were some of my favorite scenes, but I was beyond sad when Alastair still broke it off with Thomas in the end. I needed one couple to find some sort of happy at the end of this book, but all of them ended badly! I was very mad, but I can’t wait for the next book to see them get together (because they have to get together).

Anna and Ariadne— I just love Anna so much and I want her to be happy, but in this book I also felt for Ariadne too. At first I didn’t like her because of the fact that she broke Anna’s heart, but now seeing her try so hard to make up with her… it just makes my heart break for the both of them. Also the only parts in this book that had these two in it, were scenes about their relationship, which is why I didn’t have anything to say about their individual personalities, but I would like to add that Anna is definitely one of my favourite Lightwoods and one of the best minor characters in the Shadowhunter universe.

Lucie and Cordelia— for these two I wish that we had more scenes of them as friends, but I think one of the most powerful parts of this book that made it so sad, was the fact that Cordelia and Lucie didn’t talk. The way the two girls were by themselves with their problems definitely was a huge factor of why everything went bad, and I’m very certain that if Lucie and Cordelia had talked more, things would have ended differently. So I see and understand why they weren’t able to be the parabatai pals that I wanted them to be, but I still am waiting desperately for more scenes of the two of them just being friends. Another reason I cannot wait for the last book of the series.

Grace and Jesse— because of all the flashback scenes of Grace, I was able to appreciate her relationship with her brother more. The bond that they have between brother and sister is so strong and beautiful that it’s another thing that redeems Grace as a character, and makes me sympathize a lot more with her.

The Merry Thieves— just want to say that I love them so much. I will always love them and I just need more scenes of the group of them plus Lucie, Anna, and Cordelia. That is all.

Plot

For plot details in this book, I just have a couple things to talk about, the first being: WHERE THE FUCK WAS THE REAL MAGNUS! Honestly, I know where he was, but I felt so betrayed when Lilith revealed herself to be a pretend Magnus. Every Shadowhunter book has Magnus helping to save the day, and my theory is that the reason everything went so shitty was because Magnus wasn’t there. Jem and Magnus are always needed for these Shadowhunter children who just keep getting caught up into shitty situations. He better help more in the next book (which I already know he will, since at the end of Chain of Iron he was there with Will). On that note, I also thought it was clever of Cassie to have Will and Tessa gone for the majority of the book, because I feel like if they had been there, shit wouldn’t have gotten that bad, both concerning Belial and the kids’ love lives. It wouldn’t have been believable if they had been there but all the events happened in the same way, because I’m pretty sure Will or Tessa would have given more advice to James and Lucie.

Secondly, that was some crazy business with Belial and Lilith, and also I’m so excited that Lilith is back. I think she’s such an interesting villain being Adam’s first wife and all. But also I don’t like who she’s a manipulative bitch, but I think that’s part of her charm.

Next, the gracelet. I hate it. Period. Glad it’s off.

Next plot point— all the stuff with Malcolm! Oh my goodness that was so interesting to see how Malcolm’s villain origin story started. I can’t actually believe that it was Grace that told Malcolm straight up about Annabel (I can actually believe it, I just think it ironic that she’s also a Blackthorn, and really only Blackthorns seem to have messed up Malcolm’s life). I’m very interested to see more of what he does with Jesse and Lucie now that Jesse is alive and Malcolm knows more about Lucie’s powers.

Lastly, I wanted to touch on the extra short story from the first editions of Chain of Iron, with Magnus and Jem. I think that it was an important scene concerning the future Eldest Curses novel, The Black Volume of the Dead, and maybe even the Wicked Powers series. It just made me even more excited for the future Shadowhunters books and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us moving forward!

And that’s all I have to talk about. Thank you if you read to the end and were able to sift through my thoughts. This is totally unedited, so sorry for stupid mistakes and such.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#cassandraclare #shadowhunters #chain of iron spoilers #chain of iron #the last hours #james herondale #cordelia carstairs #matthew fairchild #lucie herondale #jesse blackthorn #grace blackthorn #alastair carstairs #thomas lightwood #christopher lightwood #anna lightwood #ariadne bridgestock #chain of iron review

Top 9 Favourite MaasVerse Couples

I did a favourites list of couples in the Shadowhunter universe last year that was really fun so I thought I would do one with all of the couples from Sarah J. Maas’ universe, especially after reading A Court of Silver Flames (review coming soon). Because of all that and given that Sarah J. Maas never fails to be sneaky with which guy the main character ends up with in the end, this favourites list will be full of spoilers. So like before, the top couples all are couples that for sure end up together, while the honorable mentions are couples that I like or ones that I think would be good together or who I want to be together.

Honorable Mentions

To start off we have character couples that I love but don’t know enough about to be super invested.

Amren & Varian- from ACOTAR. I just think that they are so cute and I love Amren and I’m so happy that she has someone who is there for her. I also think Varian is an interesting character who is the perfect balance for Amren’s intensity, also at all the family gatherings with Varian there, he just feels like the typical come-home-for-christmas-with-a-guy boyfriend who the family gets to know, but also plays around with because he’s new (don’t know if that makes sense, but if you’ve ever had a sibling or cousin bring a partner home for the holidays to a joking-around type family then you’ll get it).

Kallias & Viviane- from ACOTAR. Also don’t know a lot about them, but for the few interactions we see of them, I think they are super cute! The other courts always intrigued me, but especially the Winter Court because I love snow and I also love how close Kallias, Viviane, Rhysand, and Morrigan are (especially Viviane and Mor). I just think it’s so nice that they have other friends in other courts, and again they just seem sweet.

Juniper Andromeda & Fury Axtar- from Crescent City. We only find out that they are a couple near the end, but from the few times we see them together, I think Juniper and Fury are adorable. Fury is just that super badass bitch that I love to see vulnerable in a couple. I just like seeing that badass girls can still have a very raw and human side, especially when they are with their significant other. Also Juniper was always a favourite minor character throughout the book because she’s such a good friend to Bryce. I can’t wait to see more of them as a couple in the next books!

Next I have people who I want to end up together:

Ruhn Danaan & Hypaxia Enador- from Crescent City. I thought Ruhn and the mediwitch had a great amount of chemistry, and when it was revealed that she was actually the young Queen Hypoxia of the witches, I was so excited! I feel like her and Ruhn will end up together, and because I love Ruhn and just want to see him happy, I think that the two of them as a couple would be great!

Morrigan & Emerie- from ACOTAR (more specifically ACOSF). When Emerie saw Mor in the latest book, I giggled so hard! I think the two of them would be adorable and it’s high time that Mor got a new love interest who will make her happy. (I also really want Emerie to be happy now that I’ve gotten to know her more as a character, and I do think the two of them would work really well together!)

Elain & Lucien // Azriel & Gwyneth- from ACOTAR. This next one I won’t talk a lot about because I’m saving it for the review for ACOSF, but just so you know what side of the debate I’m on, I really do think Lucien and Elain would be good together if Elain gave him a chance, and now since reading the special edition short story about Azriel at the end of ACOSF, I ship Azriel and Gwyn together. (Although I’ll honestly be happy with whoever ends up together as long as all the characters are happy!)

Nyx & Unborn Child of Rowaelin- from ACOTAR and Throne of Glass. I saw this post one day of someone shipping Nyx (Rhys and Feyre’s son), and the unborn daughter of Rowan and Aelin, I fangirled so hard! No matter if Rowan and Aelin have a girl or boy first, I already ship them so hard with Nyx. We already know that Nyx would have been born during the time of the war at the end of Kingdom of Ash (because Aelin fell through the worlds and saw pregnant Feyre and Rhys standing during Winter Solstice) so if Aelin and Rowan had a child not long after, they would be close to the same age, and because of that moving between worlds moment, we know that’s it’s possible for the two kids to meet one day. (Also I have a theory that what happens in the Crescent City books will tie into the possibility of world jumping because it’s already talked about in there how most species in Crescent City came from different worlds, so yay!) I know that this is all just wishful thinking, but I think that would be the cutest thing Nyx being together with Rowaelin’s child! Let me believe what I want to.

9. Nesryn Faliq & Sartaq

This list was so hard to make and I’m sad that these two are so low on it, but I just couldn’t get them any higher! At any rate, I loved these two during Tower of Dawn and when they ended up together I was ecstatic! First of all, I think Sartaq would be an amazing Khagan of the Southern Continent and he’s honestly the only real good one of his siblings. Him and Nesryn leading the Southern Continent will be amazing and I love the way that they bonded over riding the ruks. I do wish that we got to see them even more, but considering all of the characters and storylines, I was still satisfied with the development of their relationship and themselves as characters (just want more content with anything from the Throne of Glass series because I know it’s over and that makes me sad!)

8. Dorian Havilliard & Manon Blackbeak

Next is another couple that I love so much but had to put lower on the list because there are just too many great couples in the Sarah J. Maas universe! I never thought that Dorian and Aelin (or Celaena at the time) would be good together, but was absolutely heartbroken when Sorsha died. BUT that death did lead to so much sexual tensions between Dorian and Manon that it was all worth it! I love these two because, again, it is so nice to see a badass female character also have a loving side, but also seems pretty “dominant” (for a lack of better word) in the relationship. I think Manon and Dorian are so great together, and their banter and cute nicknames (Princeling and Witchling) just gave me life! Even though the end of Kingdom of Ash left me completely shattered, I was very happy that Dorian and Manon still had each other, and I think the two of them will be great monarchs in their separate kingdoms, but also together.

7. Elide Lochan & Lorcan Salvaterre

Another amazing couple from the Throne of Glass series! Even though Lorcan was kind of an asshole when you first met him, when he and Elide had their whole adventure together, I fell in love with the two (especially Lorcan). I love a good “bad” boy “good” girl trope, and Lorcan and Elide were definitely that perfect fit. The way that Lorcan cared so much for Elide while they had to travel together was really cute, and I was so happy to see how Lorcan softened up and Elide became strong as well. It was nice that they still weren’t the typical weak girl, always rescued by the strong Fae. Lorcan and Elide made each other show the world their other sides as well.

6. Nesta Archeron & Cassian

This couple I have a lot of thoughts and feelings about but most of that will be in my ACOFS review coming soon, but for now I will just say that I LOVE them! We always knew that Nesta and Cassian were probably going to end up together, but still their journey as individuals and a couple was so fantastic to read. The way that the two of them helped each other out in terms of mental health while still being the individually strong characters was so good to see. Their sexual tension was great to read, and I loved the way that their whole story arc developed through the book.

5. Chaol Westfall & Yrene Towers

Again, I loved these two so much probably because they had their own book practically dedicated to them. I loved Chaol in the first two books from the Throne of Glass series, but like most people, I lost that love as the series went on. Going into Tower of Dawn I was really worried that I wasn’t going to like it because of Chaol being the central character, but like always, Sarah J. Maas writes such good redemption and flawed character arcs that it was impossible not to love Chaol again, and the woman who brought the light back to him. Similarly, I really liked Yrene when we first met her in The Assassin’s Blade stories (The Assassin and the Healer), and I was so happy that we got to learn more about her in the whole Tower of Dawn book. The way that Chaol and Yrene went from hating each other to falling in love was done absolutely perfectly, and by Kingdom of Ash when we found out that Yrene was pregnant, I almost threw my book in happiness, I was so excited. This couple is well deserving of the number five spot!

4. Aedion Ashryver & Lysandra

Now we have another favourite couple from the Throne of Glass series (that series is just so big and full of characters, most of the people on this list are from there). I really loved the idea of Aedion and Lysandra from the beginning when we start to see Lysandra play a bigger role in the series. Again, it’s the banter between these two characters that gets me every time, and the way they make fun of each other while also flirting is just so great to read. I was a little worried about what was going to happen to their relationship in Kingdom of Ash, especially since everything was going so well in Empire of Storms and then ended so badly at the end, but knowing that they got married almost immediately after the war was exactly what I needed. Also I LOVED Aedion with Evangeline and all their interactions, which was also why I knew that Aedion had to end up with Lysandra. Every time a kid comes into the picture I feel like I ship that couple just a bit harder. The three of them make the most perfect family.

3. Bryce Quinlan & Hunt Athalar

I know that technically we don’t know for sure if these two will be endgame, but if they aren’t I will sob and never forgive SJM! I love these two with all my heart and the only reason that they are in number three (and not higher!) is because we only have one book with them. I would not be surprised if they went up higher on my list after the next books come out. First of all, their sexual tension is fabulous. Second, I just adored how they both helped each other health through the book and how they went through so much together emotionally. I feel like that made the strongest foundation for a relationship, and if that foundation breaks, I think I might just dig myself a hole and stay there. While both are strong characters separately, they are just so much better together! Every scene of them was like magic, and they were the whole reason I could stop reading HOEAB. I need the next books so badly, just because I need to see them together more!

2. Aelin Ashryver Galathynius & Rowan Whitethorn

Finally at the top two, and this decision was probably the hardest one I’ve ever had to make. I love both Rowaelin and Feysand so much, this was impossible to decide, but it came down to the fact that out of every SJM book, A Court of Mist and Fury is my favourite. That book is a f*cking masterpiece and the reason for that is because of Feysand. So Rowaelin is second. Aelin and Rowan are amazing characters individually, but like the reason for all of these favourite couples, the journey that they go on together and help each other through, is what makes them so special and so strong as a couple. Rowan helped Aelin in a way that Chaol or Dorian never could, and Aelin in turn helped Rowan through centuries of pain just because they understood each other so well. The best and strongest part of all these couples is that they became friends first, before going into a romantic relationship (except for Nessian a couple others, but you know what I mean). Being able to create a strong bond before anything physical is so important with these characters, especially helping them get through so much trauma, and ultimately seeing that growth on the page connects you so much more with them as a couple. Seeing these characters go through so much together was really what made me love them to this degree (which is a high degree) which is also why I’m having a hard time believing that their stories are done. I will always need more Rowaelin content.

1. Feyre Archeron & Rhysand

And now we’re at the top. Like I just said, this was a hard decision, but it also feels so right. Feyre and Rhysand had an amazing development as a couple through the books, and A Court of Mist and Fury is definitely my favourite SJM book precisely because we see their relationship develop. I am beyond happy that we aren’t at the end of the ACOTAR world and we get to see more Feysand in the years and books to come, because I am not ready at all to say goodbye yet. Just thinking of Feyre and Rhys’ lives now (especially with Nyx) brings a smile to my face, and I think that it's amazing how an author and a book can do that. Both Feyre and Rhysand’s characters are so strong and their journeys were so heart wrenching to follow but so worth it at the same time. There is really nothing bad I can say about this couple, besides the fact that I want to thank Sarah J. Maas for writing such great characters, and I can’t wait to see more to come!

Thanks to anyone who read to the end. I know it was a long ramble again. Stay tuned for my ACOSF review coming soon as well.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

TV Shows of the Month: February

This last month I watched 5 different seasons of TV shows from 3 different shows. I definitely didn’t watch as many as I did in January, but I still think I did a good job and I enjoyed all of them. Again all of these were shows I haven’t watched before while I’m still waiting for more seasons to come out for other shows I’m obsessed with.

How I Met Your Mother Seasons 1 & 2 & 3

The first show that I started and became obsessed with this month is How I Met Your Mother which my family and I watched the first three seasons of and loved. I think that this show is just pure joy and such a fun comedy to get you laughing after a hard day or week. All of the characters are fun to watch and get to know and unlike many shows, the quality and jokes haven’t gone downhill since the first season. I think that everything has actually just got better even when we have some repeated storylines going (like Ted and Robin’s relationship), but they also are good at bringing in new elements into the story too. Overall it is just a really fun show and I can’t wait to continue.

Tiny Pretty Things Season 1

This was a very addictive show to watch. I loved the mystery aspect of it and even though it played with a lot of tropes and stereotypes that happen a lot in dance stories, I thought they actually did well with them. I personally wasn’t offended with the familiar tropes or anything because I’m not a dancer and I also don’t think that those tropes are not true to a point. But even if you don’t like the show for those reasons, I was still so addicted and watching to know more and more about what was going to happen that I really didn’t care for all of the petty drama. I just couldn’t stop watching which I think marks a good show, even one with lots of problems with it. Also after watching this show, I really want to read the books to see the differences and similarities with the story to see if it was just the TV show producers that made certain elements annoying or worse than what the author actually did in the original story.

Fate: The Winx Saga Season 1

Again this was a very good show that I couldn’t stop watching or thinking about. I liked it better than Tiny Pretty Things but, of course, still had some things I didn’t like about it. First of all, I really loved the whole storyline of the show and found that the fairies in this show were really interesting and well done, but I can’t say that all of the characters were my favourite. Again it was mostly the plot that made me really addicted and wanting to know about what would happen next, but the characters I found to be kind of really annoying, except the Headmistress who (SPOILER) dies at the end! I liked how all of the girls became friends at the end, but the way that they got there was pretty stupid and petty, and the way that Bloom was always jumping to conclusions and making situations worse was annoying. Like she was the reason that all the bad shit happened in the end. But I still loved the show.

And those are all my thoughts of the shows that I watched in February. Thanks for reading my weird rants.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#tv shows of the month #TV Show Reviews #netflix tv shows #how i met your mother #tiny pretty things #fate the winx saga

Book of the Month (Feb): The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

In the month of February I read four books with one of them being a reread and another one that was for school. Although I don’t consider any rereads for my Book of the Month picks, this one was a close first against the reread, which was no surprise given both of these books. But anyways, this is the list for the books I read in February and then I’ll get into the review:

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins (4.5 stars)

A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas (reread- 4.5 stars)

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (4 stars)

Antigone by Sophocles (unrated)

Characters

First I would like to say that I usually really like a villain backstory and an anti-hero character. I just love the way an author can make you hate and understand a character so well, and I think the psychology of how a “villain” becomes bad is so interesting. If done well of course. And Suzanne Collins did a very good job in my opinion. Coriolanus Snow is not someone you like, but seeing his life in a post-war environment with bigotry all around him, you can very much see how he got to the places he did. And even though he does such bad things in the end, I could totally understand and sympathize with how he got there and why he became the evil president in the end. Throughout the whole book, Coriolanus is just focused on survival for himself and his family, much like Katniss in The Hunger Games, but unlike Katniss he doesn’t fully stick to his values and he gets lost in this complicated world he is trying to navigate. I found it so interesting with where his mind would go while thinking about everything he had to keep secret from everyone else, but I could also really sympathize with the way that he needed to keep it all a secret too. He was just trying to make a better future for himself and his family, which I can relate to, but it is also obvious that the way he did it was not good either.

The next character that I want to talk about is Lucy Gray, our lead lady, who I thought was magnificently written. She was the perfect opposite position for Coriolanus’ view points, bringing him down to earth multiple times to make him see what she lived everyday because she was district. But besides the relationship between her and Coriolanus (I’ll talk about that more later), as an individual character she was super interesting to read about mostly because of all the relationships with her music and the songs that we know about from The Hunger Games. To see that connection between Lucy Gray and our future Katniss was really cool and the mystery of what happened to her in the end I found to be really fitting for Lucy Gray and her character.

Relationships

I can’t really talk about anymore characters without talking specifically about their relationships to Coriolanus so this next part will also fill in what I think about certain characters. First I want to touch on the relationship of Coriolanus and Lucy Gray, which I thought was also well done. It was nice to see how Coriolanus had some humanity in him before he was corrupted by the government around him into the President Snow that we know now. Lucy Gray was the biggest part of showing us his human side while also being a big part of his downfall. His insecurities revolving around her were really what set him off, and it was so interesting to see how her relationship with the musical mockingjays and Coriolanus’ reaction to them was so different and was an interesting metaphorical take on their views of government and control.

Another super interesting relationship was Coriolanus and Sejanus Plinth, which honestly made me mostly anxious. Sejanus was such an interesting and good character, but really it was stressful to see his goodness also be his downfall. He trusted Coriolanus too easily and was definitely too open with his secrets, which I guess just showed how manipulative Coriolanus could be but also was a sort of metaphor on how easily the trustworthy and honest people are killed off in a corrupt society. Most of the time I was just really hoping that Coriolanus would be more understanding of Sejanus and not betray him in the end, but being able to hear Coriolanus’ thoughts and how he continued to be annoyed with Sejanus and his treachery to the Capitol, almost made me feel the same. It’s crazy how believing in something so much can really make even your friends not be enough to change you. And their whole relationship really made the end hurt more when Coriolanus betrayed him and watched his death only to steal his spot as a rich man’s son when he got back to the Capitol. I really wished it didn’t have to end that way (but I also knew that it would).

The last relationship I wanted to talk about was Coriolanus and his cousin and grandmother. I thought it was very interesting that even though Coriolanus’ grandmother was so against District people, both him and Tigris were actually sympathetic to the Districts at the beginning. It was very interesting to see how much Tigris believed in the hunger games being bad and wanting to find peace with them, when her cousin- practically brother- became the biggest controller and leader of those games. It just really shows how even if you grow up in the same way as someone, that doesn’t mean that you will grow up to be the same as them, especially when you are put into different situations outside of the family unit.

Plot

Now for the final points, we move to plot which was overall well executed but still crazy. The only reason why this book got a 4.5 rating instead of 5 was because I thought that the book was a little bit longer than necessary, especially comparing it to it’s previous Hunger Games books, which are much shorter. Although that being said, every chapter did feel like it was important (even if some weren’t as interesting as others). I have to say that I was very very surprised with the plot twists, namely when Coriolanus became a Peacekeeper and goes to District 12 and when he almost runs away with Lucy Gray. I was not expecting that from the future President of Panem. Because of those interesting surprises, I thought this book was incredible, and I really did think that it was worth the read. I know that a lot of people are saying that this book didn’t need to be added to the world of The Hunger Games, I disagree. If you are like me and you like having background knowledge of the way a certain world is formed and made into the world it becomes in a previous book, then you’ll like this (because it explores the whole invention of the games and how they become the crazy TV sensation that you know in the original trilogy). Also, if you love philosophy and questions on morals and law vs. lawlessness then you will also like this book, because it totally explores it from multiple angles which were very cool. Overall, I think that it was a really good read if you liked The Hunger Games and love to go back to series that are already “finished” then this is the book for you.

Thank you for anyone who made it to the end of this. I know my thoughts are always pretty much all over the place, but I had to get them down.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#TheHungerGames #Suzanne Collins #suzannecollins #the hunger games #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #president snow #catching fire #mockingjay #book of the month #book review

Top 11 Albums of 2020

Much like my top EPs of 2020, this consists of all the albums that came out in 2020 that I really enjoyed. I just did a small description of my favourite things about these albums, and for all of them, I highly recommend them.

11. Weird! by Yungblud

This one was a very big surprise for me because I generally don’t like the type of music Yungblud creates (a more punk/pop rock-ish sound), but many of the songs on this album made me fall in love with it. Yungblud knows how to use his voice to inflict raw emotion that gave me goosebumps particularly in his song “mars,” “teresa,” “love song,” “it’s quiet in beverly hills,” and “god save me, but don’t drown me out.” These are for sure my favourite songs on the album. He has such an interesting voice and even my least favourite songs, I can still listen to and enjoy because they evoke other types of emotions that really resonate with me.

10. Rare by Selena Gomez

Next we have Selena Gomez’s new album after a five year hiatus, which now feels like it came out a million years ago, but it was just last January (a little more than a year ago). I also had quite a few songs that I liked on this album and the whole theme of mental health and finding yourself I really enjoyed. Not all of the songs were my favourite which is why it’s lower on my list, but many of the songs also grew on me more as time went on. Almost all of them are also really catchy so I found myself singing them in my head at random times, which also made me realize the genius of some of these songs.

9. Leave It Beautiful by Astrid S

Like Selena Gomez’s album, this new one by Astrid S had a lot of good singles that I fell in love with even before the album came out. But when the album came out, I wasn’t as impressed with the rest of the songs, even though some have really grown on me with time. I think I was just wishing for some more ballads and stripped down songs like from her Down Low EP. But besides that, this is Astrid S’ debut full length album, which in itself is really exciting since I’d been waiting for this forever.

8. These Two Windows by Alec Benjamin

Next is Alec Benjamin’s new album, which definitely has some songs that make me pause and give me goosebumps. I really liked how on this new project, Alec Benjamin had some more interesting and different production styles in the songs, so they weren’t all the same, or very similar, styles like in his last album. By that I mean that he used his voice in different ways and there were cool sound effects in the background of the songs that added something extra to them. Although that being said, I think I have to say that the last album had superior storytelling skills than this one, and even though I really did like the lyrics in these songs, in the last album I felt like there was more of a variety of topics and stories that I missed in this album.

7. Wonder by Shawn Mendes

And finally Shawn Mendes came out with a new album this year too, which was really exciting. I overall thought that this album was really good because it was so different from his older stuff. I know that some fans didn’t like this album for that reason, but for me I thought it just made it better. Shawn Mendes is still growing as an artist and I liked seeing him try out different styles of songs that he wouldn’t normally do in his other albums. When “Wonder,” the single, first came out I was sold on this album, and I liked how he did have a theme of wonderland and love and wonders about life throughout the album. It made it feel like a very complete project. (I also loved how there was a song called “Dreams” on this album and Camila Cabello also had a song called “Dream of You” on hers!)

6. Loves Goes by Sam Smith

Sam Smith’s new album was also long awaited, especially when I thought it was coming out in the first half of 2020 instead of the last half. But I can’t say that the wait wasn’t worth it. I was worried that Sam Smith was going to do a whole pop album, but instead I was very happy when they came out with many songs that are still slower ballad heart-wrenching pieces. Most of the songs I really loved, and I also kind of wished that they had an album with none of the bonus tracks from their original album since I felt that just the new songs made it feel more complete, if that makes sense. But even with the old songs that aren’t really my favourites still there, the new songs definitely make up for it.

5. Confetti by Little Mix

Little Mix’s new album is absolutely stellar. I loved so many of the songs on this album and I thought it was all done really well. They were all really fun and make you want to dance and sing along, while still being original and different from their older projects (although some songs take inspiration from older ones which I also liked). They did release a lot of the songs before the album even came out, and I got a little nervous because when that happens, I usually like the singles more than the other songs on the album, but that didn’t happen here. I loved the non-singles probably more than the singles, which I didn’t think possible. They also played around with different production sounds in this project, which I also thought was a very smart idea, and this album just makes me love Little Mix more and more.

4. Only Child by Sasha Sloan

Also a very anticipated release, I was almost in tears when Sasha Sloan said she was finally releasing his debut album this year. I have been obsessed with her EPs for a long time and now having a full length project is such a treat and she definitely did not disappoint. All of these songs on the album are amazing and so many of them are so relatable it almost scares me. I really don’t think there is a song on this album that I truly dislike, and every time I re-listen to the songs, I find a new love and appreciation for them. These songs just feel so personal like a diary entry, which also makes them feel so powerful, and even though Sasha Sloan is known for being a sad girl, this album also has a lot of happy songs when talking about love that made me smile.

3. Heartbreak Weather by Niall Horan

I was very surprised with myself for putting this album in the top three, but I really have to say that I love it so much. I was not even expecting to have a Niall Horan album on this list, but this album took me by surprise in all of the best ways possible. This is the type of album you can just continuously listen to on repeat because all of the songs are different and so good that you just never get sick of them. I love singing along to all of them and I’m obsessed with almost every single song on the album (which usually doesn’t happen with long projects like this one).

2. Folklore & Evermore by Taylor Swift

I put these two together because they do feel like one project and I needed to talk about them as one. First off, I’m just obsessed with the lyrics, the production, Taylor Swift’s voice… you name it, I love it. These albums are just perfection in every way, I can’t find any bad things to say about them. Also the fact that we were gifted with TWO albums instead of one is amazing, and the fact that they have different stories in them with literal characters is also superb. I don’t think there is anything negative or something I don’t like about these and I feel like you can just look at anything a Swifty says to know what I like about these albums.

1. Manic by Halsey

And finally my favourite album of the year, and probably of all time, is Halsey’s Manic, which makes me smile just thinking about it. This was the exact project I dreamed of getting from Halsey and she delivered in every possible way. I loved all the different styles of music in here and every lyric that she wrote. Listening to the album all the way through on repeat makes me so happy that I can’t ever turn off the music until it’s run through all the way. And just having been on this journey with her for this long, makes it so much more special because you understand all of the little meanings in the lyrics and the story that she’s telling. This is definitely my favourite album from her and my favourite album ever!

And that concludes my top favourite albums of 2020, and I also have a top favourite list of EPs if anyone’s curious.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

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Top 9 EPs of 2020

Finally doing my top EPs of last year, which I have to say, even with all the ups and downs of the year, the music was still amazing. The only “rule” for this list is that the EPs have to be considered EPs by a music platform and they have to have been released in 2020. So without further ado, these are my top 9…

9. Validation by Lana Walsh

This first EP is actually by an artist that I used to go to school with and I have to say that I really enjoy it. A few of the songs really speak to me like “Girls that Cry” and “Validation” which actually make you want to cry, so because of that this EP feels really relatable. Definitely recommend to people that like slower melancholy music.

8. Stripped by Faouzia

The only reason this EP is so low on my rating is because I had already heard these songs and these are now just the stripped down versions. We did get one more new song which is probably my favourite song of Faouzia of all time, which was nice, but I just can’t help but want a full album from her. All of her singles are amazing but they also just make me yearn for more!

7. Piano Sketches by Birdy

I am so happy Birdy’s back! This was such a great surprise and I love all of the songs that are in this EP but there were only 4 songs which again is why this is so low on my list. I am super excited for her upcoming album in a few months, but for this one it just felt like a small teaser for what is to come which has got me excited but also impatient at the same time. But for those that love piano ballads, this EP is full of them!

6. Evolve by Anna Clendening

This was such a great project from Anna Clendening, mostly because I just needed more music from her. I loved her last EP so much and this one definitely did not disappoint and gave me some new favourites from her including “Fazed” and “Sorry That I Do That”. The only thing I wanted more of was a ballad or slower song since these were all pretty upbeat-ish. (I need another song like “Dead End” or “Drowning”!)

5. Half Written Story by Hailee Steinfeld

Again I was mostly just so happy that we finally got another project from Hailee Steinfeld, and the first two singles from this EP were absolutely amazing! The rest of the songs are also good but none, in my opinion, could top off those first two, “Wrong Direction” and “I Love You’s”. I do love how the songs are so savage though. Like Hailee is really putting this ex in his place (*cough cough* Niall Horan *cough*) and I’m living for it! Can’t wait for more from her.

4. The Results of My Poor Judgement by Olivia O’Brien

The next EP on here is technically a mixtape not an EP, but I loved all three of these songs so much that I had to put it high on my list. Each song is such a jam and I listen to them on repeat all the time. They just make you want to cry and dance at the same time and I love that. “Josslyn” was in my head for weeks and I’m still obsessed every time I listen to it. I cannot recommend this EP or any of Olivia O’Brien’s music enough.

3. Elated! by Bea Miller

It had been feeling like forever since I had listened to some new music by Bea Miller, but when this EP came out, I was so happy words cannot even describe. All of these songs are masterpieces and I personally think that this is her best work ever. Every song was so relatable and I fell in love with Bea Miller all over again and never ever ever want her to stop making music because she is too good at it.

2. The End of Everything by Noah Cyrus

In second place we have Noah Cyrus’ The End of Everything, which was stellar (obviously, it’s in my top two). I had thought that her first EP, Good Cry, was impossible to beat, but this one somehow tops it. Her voice is just so mesmerizing and all I want to do is fall into her world and songs headfirst. She’s just so good at capturing certain emotions and speaks so well to the deep dark on your soul. That sounds kind of weird but I don’t know how else to describe it.

1. Real Growth Takes Time by Sody

And in first place we have Sody, who I have become utterly obsessed with. The only reason that she’s here at the top is because out of the 6 songs on here, I love every single one of them so much. They sound so raw but refreshing every time you listen to them and I do think that Sody deserves so much more recognition than what she gets. Her voice and songwriting is so beautiful and perfect that I can’t even find words to say how amazing it is. If you haven’t listened to her yet, please do yourself a favour and look her up.

And that concludes all my favourite EPs of 2020 and I will be putting up my favourite albums list next week. If you read to the end of this, thank you and I hope you learned about some new artists today or agree with some things that I said.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#validation #lana walsh #stripped ep #Faouzia #piano sketches #birdy #evolve #anna clendening #half written story #hailee steinfeld #the results of my poor judgement #olivia o'brien #elated!#bea miller #the end of everything #noah cyrus #real growth takes time #Sody

TV Shows of the Month: January

Another fun little thing I want to try to do each month is talk about each TV show season I’ve finished in that month. I just have a lot of feelings and things I want to talk about and doing it each month would be a fun challenge. So for this first month of January 2021 I finished 6 TV show seasons, 4 of which were first seasons of shows I’m now obsessed with.

Bridgerton Season 1

The first TV show I finished this month was Bridgerton which isn’t much of a surprise since the whole internet seems to have gone crazy over it. I have to say that the craziness has been warranted and I also completely loved it and cannot wait for season 2. Each episode was very well done with plenty of surprises and the characters were just so loveable. I liked how this first season wasn’t just focused on Daphne and Simon, but also got you really excited, and set up for, the future couples, which you know are coming if you know about the books. Because even though I enjoyed Daphne and Simon’s love story, I’m much more excited for the rest of the siblings to find their people too!

Cobra Kai Season 3

Next show that I finished was Cobra Kai Season 3 which was a wild ride. I became obsessed with this series just last year (when it came onto Netflix) and was waiting impatiently for this next season, but I don’t really know how I feel about it. I find that season 1, for me, was a smashing success and season 2 was also really good, but the last episode started to get to be a bit much for me. Sadly, because that last episode of season 2 had gotten the wow factor that the creators wanted, you could tell that they kept trying to replicate these big and unrealistic fight scenes all throughout the third season. And I’m not saying that I don’t like the show or anything, but I just feel that it could be falling into a totally unrealistic karate show, which is hard to get behind. I know that the fighting is a natural part of it, but the way that these teenagers are going after each other is kind of ridiculous. Although with that said, I still can’t wait for the next season.

Sherlock Series 4

And I finally finished Sherlock! I’m so happy I finally got through it but I also miss it so much. I really hope that they make more series and continue Sherlock’s story, since I heard that the producers aren’t opposed to doing more seasons. It was a very emotional start to the season and it was a very crazy ending, which I did think brought everything nicely together from the previous seasons. I love the whole story and the characters, especially Sherlock and Watson, and was very pleased with the ending, even if it did give me heart palpitations the whole time. Definitely recommend it and really hope that more Sherlock comes in the future. (I’m also now just a huge fan of Benedict Cumberbatch and everything he’s in!)

Baby-Sitters Club Season 1

This was another series that I started and now love. It was so cute and wholesome and just brought me back to all of the good memories of pre-high school life. The characters were very likeable and their friendship and individual storylines were really fun and intriguing. I can’t wait for more of it and recommend it for cute mind-numbing entertainment.

Bling Empire Season 1

The fifth TV show that I finished this month was the new reality TV series on Netflix, which I admit is a sort of guilty pleasure. The beginning of the series was super fun and entertaining and totally made me think of Crazy Rich Asians which I thought was a blast. The only thing was that at the end of the series it was kind of like they were trying to make it more into a detective thing, which I thought was a little stupid, but after that was done, it was much better. If you like stupid reality TV then you would definitely enjoy this.

Space Force Season 1

And for the last show in January, I watched Space Force with my family which was a very funny show. I admit that you have to be into the stupid humor to be into this, but that is exactly the kind of stuff that I like so it was perfect. The concept was funny and I’m so sad that it ended on a cliff-hanger because now I need more but I’m not fully sure if they were renewed for another season. Either way, I really hope it does come back and I will definitely watch any more seasons that will come.

Anyways, that’s all the TV show season that I watched during the month of January and I can’t wait to get into a bunch more this year. Thanks for reading these small rants of mine.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#netflix tv shows #tv shows of the month #bridgerton #cobra kai #Sherlock #baby-sitters club #bling empire #space force #tv show reviews

Book of the Month (Jan): The Hand on the Wall

So I’ve decided I want to start this little series where for every month I choose the best book I read of that month and do a little review on it. The only sort of rules that I have are that I finished the book in the month that it is for, it isn’t a reread, and in terms of my new obsession with Webtoons stories I have to have completed the season or whole comic in that month, which will be harder to do since most of the comics I am reading are still going on and only come out once a week. I also want to make a small list for all the books I read that month and show my ratings for them. So for the month of January 2021 I only read 4 books which will probably be my new normal (or even less) in this upcoming year, but my favourite was definitely The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson, which was also my last read of the month. The rest of my list in order from favourite are:

The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson (5 stars)

How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories by Holly Black (5 stars)

Siren’s Lament, Season 1 by instantmiso (5 stars)

The Huntress by Kate Quinn (4 stars)

Characters

Now onto the actual review, like I did with the Chain of Gold review, I break it up into three parts, my thoughts on the characters, relationships, and plot. In terms of characters, I love the cast in the Truly Devious novels! I love Stevie and how her mind works. It is so interesting to read. She’s such a relatable but also unique character that it’s hard to really pinpoint one thing that was so amazing about her. But I feel like the way that she goes through life, and this book, constantly trying to find the logical meanings from the clues but also having to remember to behave like a human was written really well and done fascinatingly. She had the perfect amount of flaws and imperfections while also being truly amazing and almost robotic when it comes to solving her mysteries, which I have to say is something I’ve always loved about detective stories like Sherlock Holmes or Charlotte Holmes. (I have to admit that I haven’t read that many detective mystery stories). But even though she has the same feel as Sherlock Holmes or Charlotte Holmes in a sense, she also is completely her own individual character and has many aspects that make her even more relatable than Sherlock.

Next we have David who I have to admit I’m in love with. He’s got the perfect amount of troubled bad boy who doesn’t give a shit, but also vulnerable and kind and caring. It was interesting to delve a little bit more into David’s character and his problems with his dad, but I feel like in this last book to the trilogy it was more the end to the mystery where we knew practically everything about the characters, so it didn’t have the same wow factors with the plot twists in David’s character like the first two books had.

And to add with that, that is the reason I found that in this book individually, the rest of the gang fell a bit more flat than the previous books. By the gang I mean Stevie’s friends from Minerva House, Nate, Janelle, Vi, and Hunter (although Vi and Hunter technically don’t originally live in Minerva House, but they're still part of the gang).

Relationships

Onto relationships… Even though I said that the characters all kind of fall a bit flat in this last book because it’s more focused on the plot, I still have to say that I loved the small development of Stevie and Nate’s friendship. I felt like in the book it felt closer and more valuable, although I feel like that’s the wrong word to explain it. It just felt like Nate and Stevie had more trust and understanding between each other, especially since he’s the one Stevie told first about her solving the mystery.

The second relationship that I was happy ended well, even when they didn’t start well in this book, was Stevie and David. I was really sad when they sort of broke up in the last book because like I already said, I love David. Even though David can kind of be an asshole from time to time, he really does pull through and cares a lot for Stevie even when he tries to pretend otherwise. I was just happy it ended well.

And the last relationship that I just love is the relationship between Stevie and Larry. I just always felt like they had such a cute either father-daughter relationship or a mentor-mentee thing which I always really loved. So I was happy that Larry came back in this book and played a pretty big role in the end with helping Stevie solve the whole mystery. It just makes the book feel so much more realistic when there are actual adults helping the kids in these YA or middle grade novels because that’s what you’d hope actually happens in real life.

Plot

Finally now, let’s talk about the plot. Like I already mentioned this final book in the series was definitely more plot driven than the other books were, obviously because it was the final book where the whole mystery had to be solved, and while there were still cute character moments, it was still all heavily developed with the plot and moved the plot forward. And even though I usually like a book that focuses more on the characters than the plot, I loved this book for finally revealing the full picture of the mystery of Truly Devious. It was very satisfying and everything felt so intentional. It really did feel like the last piece of a very big puzzle and I loved that feeling so much. I liked learning more about the Ellingham’s back in the 1930s and I loved all the tie ins to the present day.

Overall I just loved this series so much which was probably why this book was my favorite for the month because in my mind it reflects the whole series. It was super well written and kept me on the edge of my seat, and it was also a very fast read once you got into it. I can’t wait to read more in Stevie’s world and honestly hope these books go on forever with just different mysteries. Highly highly recommend these books.

I hope more people read these books and find joy in the mystery just like I did, and sorry for all of my jumbled thoughts, this post is kind of a mess, but oh well.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#maureen johnson #truly devious #The hand on the wall #book review #book of the month

Top 12 Books of 2020

In this crazy year of 2020 I only read 32 books, but that doesn’t mean that I still don’t have too many good five star books that I want to share. But because I’m pretending that this is a top ten list with two honourable mentions, I had to narrow it down to only my top twelve. So let's get started.

12. Catharsis: Pain by Rowan Dugray

To start off, I wanted to mention this really amazing collection of poetry that I picked up. It’s not very well known but it is really well done. Since I’m not the biggest fan of poetry, I usually stray away or get very nervous going into a poetry novel, but this one was a nice surprise. I didn’t let myself dwell on the fact that I don’t always understand the intended meaning of the poems, and instead let myself take my own meaning from the words. In the end I felt like I really had gone through a process of catharsis and released a lot of built up tensions and emotions. A great read.

11. Vow of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson

This book is the second book in the Dance of Thieves duology and it was a treat to get back into the Remnant Chronicles world. It had been a while since I had read the first book so it took a bit for the character relationships and names to come back to me, but after they did this book was a great conclusion. I loved all of the big plot twists and the way that the story went, and couldn't have asked for a more well done novel.

10. Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

This book was a surprise hit which I had been putting off for a while, so I was happy when I finally got to it. The way that the novel is written and presented intimidated me a bit, but I was surprised with how easy it was to read after I got into it. But the biggest surprise, which made for a wild experience, was that the book had a big plot line of a deadly virus. It was kind of scary cause it hit so close to home, but also made it relevant and somehow better. It was a great example of how reading a book at a perfect time in your life enhances so many things about it and that was definitely this one for me. So if you’re into sci-fi books, check this one out.

9. Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody

Next was my first experience reading a Amanda Foody novel although I’ve wanted to read her stuff for a while, and I was not disappointed. This book has some similarities with Caraval, where both have sort of game elements, although this one goes more in the direction of gangs and crime bosses which I loved. The whole book was very well done and fast paced where I just wanted to keep reading until I got to the point that I just couldn’t put it down at the end. Highly highly recommend it, and I can’t wait to get into the next one sometime this year.

8. A Crystal of Time by Soman Chainani

Again this is one that I had been putting off because I hadn’t read the other ones in the series for a while, but when I finally committed to picking this one up I was shocked with how much I enjoyed it. I thought that the book before this one in the School for Good and Evil series kind of repeated a lot of plot points from the previous three books, but this one took a whole different turn. It was nice to see the familiar characters again, but I felt that some of the newer characters were also just as intriguing and kept me wanting more. Now I’m just hoping I don’t take another crazy long time to pick up the last book, especially since it’s already out.

7. The Lost Book of the White by Cassandra Clare & Wesley Chu

No surprise that this book is on my list since it’s a Cassandra Clare novel, and it’s also filled full of Magnus and Alec. This one was super light hearted and fun and was a nice break from the rest of the world. All of Cassandra Clare’s books are just comforting and it feels like I’m coming home every time I get into one. There’s humor, friendship, romance, demons, and shadowhunters… What else could you ask for?

6. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Finally we’re halfway and boy are we getting to the goodies! This is the second book I’ve read by Taylor Jenkins Reid and it matched and exceeded all of my expectations. I didn’t think anything of hers could top Daisy Jones and the Six, but this one did. I’m not saying that Daisy Jones isn’t amazing, but Evelyn Hugo is just a whole different type of moment. I don’t even know how to explain it. All I can say is if you love old hollywood stories with all of the drama and show biz it brings, then you will fall in love with this novel.

5. Beartown by Fredrik Backman

This book was my first Fredrik Backman read that I finished all the way back in January, so exactly a year ago, but I have to say that it is still stuck in my head. I frequently still think about this book and the story, and I badly want to read all of Fredrik Backman’s novels. His writing style is so unique and the way he fits every part of this story together is incredible. It’s actually the work of a genius! Beartown is all about a hockey town and the dark places it can go when too much pressure is put on young teenage boys.

4. Anxious People by Fredrik Backman

Unlike Beartown, this is a recent read for me, and I have a feeling it will stay in my head like Beartown but in a totally different way. It is written in Fredrik Backman’s same style that Beartown was written in, although it goes back and forth between timelines, which made it to be a wild ride. There were so many plot twists in this novel that I was jumping up and down in every chapter. It was crazy! I loved how this one shows the natural ways that life can suck which made it so relatable and probably why it beat Beartown in the end, even though I didn’t think any other Fredrik Backman book could.

3. I Would Leave Me If I Could by Halsey

Now in the top three we have my three favourite creators in the world!! First here we have Halsey, who I hadn’t expected to publish a book, but I’m more than happy that she did. Halsey, being a woman of many many many talents, did not disappoint in this beautiful poetry collection. Again, I’m not the biggest fan of poetry, but Halsey has made me rethink that. I think because I’ve been such a big fan for a while now, her poetry was that much more special for me. So many of her poems are where my favourite lyrics to her songs originated, so to see the way and form that they were first born was very personal. There’s nothing more to say than I just love it.

2. Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare

Well since I wrote a whole long review about how much I love this book, it’s not surprising to see that it’s almost first on the list. This book was one of the best books I’ve ever read, and it is agonizing to have to wait for the next one. If you want a more concrete reason for why I love this book so much, then you can read my review for it which is on my post list. Besides that, I guess I just have to say that I love this book so much and everyone should read it and all of Cassandra Clare’s novels.

1. House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas

And now we have finally come to my favourite book of 2020, House of Earth and Blood. Sarah. J Maas is my second favourite author of all time, beaten only by Cassandra Clare, but at first I have to say that I was worried about this book. It wasn’t purely about the Fae or had a connection with the Throne of Glass or ACOTOR series. For those reasons I wasn’t sure I was going to fall in love with it as much. Oh how wrong I was. This book is an absolute masterpiece. There isn’t much more to say. It is filled with grief, romance, but has a very prominent theme of friendship at its core that was what really hit me hard. Everything about this book was amazing and every character was amazingly developed and interesting. I could not put it down and even though it was supremely long, I was never bored. Not one page. It was just incredible. If you are over 18 and like fantasy novels, read this book. You will be doing yourself a favour.

And that concludes my list of favourite books in 2020! I hope some of these spark your interest and become your favourites in the future.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

Favourite First Books in a Series: Cassandra Clare Books

I know the title of this post is long and confusing, but essentially what I am going to be talking about are Cassandra Clare’s first book series books, in order from my least to most favourite. I’ve been reading Cassandra Clare’s books for a while now and have several other posts on my favourite’s from her series or reviews of her books, so if you're interested in that, check out my posts page. Any-who, for this post I will be putting in order my favourite first books from her five different series, although two of her series have just started so there are only the first books out, and I’m not including The Magisterium series that she wrote with Holly Black. In other words, only the series that are in the Shadowhunter world.

5. City of Bones: The Mortal Instruments

To start off we have the book that started it all, City of Bones. This book will always have a special place in my heart because it was the first Cassandra Clare book I’ve ever read, and it introduced me to this world of Shadowhunters that I will always love. This is probably my least favourite book by Cassandra Clare overall, but that just shows how she’s just gotten better and better with each book she’s published/written.

4. Clockwork Angel: The Infernal Devices

Again, this book just started us off in the Victorian Shadowhunter world and was only the fourth book Cassie had ever written so it isn’t her best work, but it still is a great start to a great trilogy. It introduced us to the best love triangle ever written (in my opinion) with Will, Tessa and Jem, and a whole new cast of characters that I love dearly and can’t wait to see more of in the Last Hours series.

3. Lady Midnight: The Dark Artifices

This book I have mixed feelings about. I do think that it was written beautifully and the whole series is absolutely incredible, but if you’ve read my favourite fictional siblings post, then you know some of the characters are not my favourite. In his book in particular I was really annoyed with Emma and the Blackthorn siblings, except Julian and Mark. But, besides those characters, I have to say that this was and exceptional story and if you haven’t read this series, you should go do it (although I do recommend reading all of Cassie’s books in publication order, but if you really don’t want to read the other series, then you can still read this one but you might not appreciate the whole story as much.)

2. The Red Scrolls of Magic: The Eldest Curses

Going into this book I was not expecting to love it, just because it’s technically going back to a time when Alec and Magnus, a couple I adore, to the beginning of their relationship. And since I already know everything that happens after, I wasn’t sure how Cassie would get me to love it. But I completely adored it. It was everything I wanted and more, and showed the beginning of Aline and Helen’s relationship which I didn’t know I needed until I got it, and really touched my heart in ways I hadn’t expected. To conclude, Cassie even threw in some twists and turns I didn’t see coming which was crazy since I already thought I knew what was going to happen. But I was wrong! And when it comes to Cassie, I love being wrong.

1. Chain of Gold: The Last Hours

At the top of the list, we have Chain of Gold, which shouldn’t be a surprise in any way, especially since I’ve said that Cassie gets better with each new book she writes. You can just tell that she’s growing with her writing and storytelling which is very admirable. Honestly, by this book I was worried that it would fall short or wouldn’t impress me as much, but boy I was wrong. She still made it more incredible than the last and made me super excited to read the next books in the series!

So that concludes this list, I know it was a little shorter, but I hope you still enjoyed it. I highly recommend anything and everything that Cassandra Clare writes and if you can stick with her for her newest series and other novels, it will be worth it.

Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

#cassandraclare #the mortal instruments #the infernal devices #the dark artifices #the last hours #the eldest curses #city of bones #clockwork angel #chain of gold #the red scrolls of magic #lady midnight

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Top 7 Favourite Shadowhunter Couples

I was going to do just a Top 5 list, but when I actually started to think and plan out which couples I wanted to talk about, I realized that I could never just fit 5. I am also going to do some honorable mentions for the couples that I just want to give some love to. I love Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunter world and I’ve read every single book that she’s written in that world (and every extra-novella/short story book too!) I am just fully invested in her characters and the universe she has created. (Also this is going to be full of spoilers so if you haven’t read any Cassandra Clare books, this might not be the thing to read).

Honorable Mentions

So for my HM’s I just wanted to mention four couples that I really love, but just couldn’t make it on the list, so those are:

Bat & Maia- from The Mortal Instruments. I just love them together so much and I always wanted them to find someone special, especially Maia, who’s just been through so much. I was happy when she was with Simon (but I preferred him with Izzy) and I really loved her with Jordan, but they just didn’t seem to click in the right way and Maia didn’t feel the way he felt about her (she didn’t love him). But then Jordan dies and I really wanted Maia to find someone who she could love… and she found that with Bat which was super cute!

Charlotte & Henry- from The Infernal Devices series. I love them so much and the reason they are not on the actual list though, is because we just never really saw their journey in actually falling in love, we only saw them after they were married. But all of the scenes with the two of them together makes me very happy and I can’t wait to see more of them in the next Last Hours books.

James & Cordelia- from The Last Hours. I also put them here because we actually don’t know for sure if they end up together (I think they will but you never know with Cassie!) They are on the family tree and are said to be together, but Cassie has said many times during the release of Chain of Gold, that we cannot trust the family tree. (It already got the date of Lucie’s birthday wrong). Anyways, I just really want both James and Cordelia to find happiness (and Matthew!)

Ty & Kit- from The Dark Artifices. These two didn’t really have a happy ending in the series, but Cassie did say that we would see more of them in The Wicked Powers series, which I am very excited for. Also, I am not fully certain that these two are meant to be romantically involved, although I do know lots of people in the fandom ship them together and they were very good friends in the books, I don’t know if they were very really heading down that road. But it doesn’t matter since I think that they would be really cute together and since they already have so much history, I think that they could make it work too.

7.Simon (Lewis) Lovelace & Isabelle Lightwood

I love these two!! I mean, they have just been through so much and I think that in the end they have shown everyone that they are meant to be together. From the start with Simon being in love with Clary and Izzy having lots of other boyfriends, to Simon becoming a vampire and playing both Izzy and Maia, to them finally being together and then Simon gets all of his memories taken away! They just had all the obstacles and got through them all too! I thought it was the most romantic thing for Simon to fight for Izzy in Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy even though he knows he can’t give her everything she wants. They make it all work out in the end and are engaged finally (but I don’t think they’ve gotten married yet… but I might be wrong.)

6. Clary Fairchild & Jace Herondale

These two have also had it hard. From being siblings to being possessed and winning a war, Jace and Clary went against all odds to come out together. But they still didn’t get the immediate happy ending when they went on their own little adventure in The Dark Artifices and Clary doesn’t want to marry Jace because she thinks she’s going to die soon. And even after it’s all said and done, and we think they can finally be happy and at peace, frickin Jace from that other realm has to come and want to tear them apart again! Like, haven’t they been through enough!? But I have a feeling that they will still come out of it all together and I hope one day maybe even… become… parents? That would be exciting!

5. Diana Wrayburn & Gwyn ap Nudd

The two of them were a blessing to read about. I absolutely loved every single scene with them together and was shipping them from day one. I thought it was also very fitting that the characters from The Dark Artifices all be involved with the Fae in more than one way. We have the Blackthorns being connected to Mark, and Christina is connected to both him and Kieran, and the Seelie Queen is connected to the TMI characters. So I thought it was perfect that Diana got her own personal connections to the Leader of the Hunt and you could see how many faeries are actually good people and can fall in love with Shadowhunters.

4. Christina Rosales, Mark Blackthorn, & Kieran

I LOVE THESE THREE! Really, I was totally shipping Christina with Mark from the beginning and actually was not too fond of Kieran with Mark, but when I saw that Kieran also loved Christina AND Mark and all three of them could be together, I felt completed. Prior to reading Cassandra’s books I was pretty uncultured and unaware of the types of lives that LGBTQ+ members had to live, and all of the types of relationships humans could have. Mind you, I was young when I first started these series and when Alec and Magnus first got together I was so happy, until I started to realize more things outside of my bubble of reading. I started to understand that our world is not full of acceptance and these relationships are frowned upon. I honestly hadn’t realized that when I was small. But reading about people like Christina, Mark and Kieran so casually in these books, gives me hope for the future. So thank you Cassie, for showing the truth in your books. You educate us.

3. Tessa Gray & Jem Carstairs

Now from the beginning of The Infernal Devices series, I always loved Will the most. Maybe it was because of him being this alluring bad boy type, but I just loved him and he loved Tesse, so I wanted him to get Tessa. That doesn’t mean that I don’t love Jem. Jem is such an amazing character who I also love and wish happiness for, but he’s just not Will. At the end of the series when we find out Jem turns into a Silent Brother and Will isn’t cursed, I was really happy, but still sad for Jem. When Will dies and Tessa has to live hundreds of years alone, I was very sad, because Jem was there. In TMI when Jem is fried from being a Silent Brother and got to be with Tessa, I was beyond happy. They finally got their own love story and are now married with a daughter and an adopted son, all of which they deserve. It was the best thing Cassandra Clare could do, giving Tessa both Will and Jem, and letting them both have families of their own. So that is why, even though I wanted Will to be with Tessa from the beginning, I am still in love with Tessa and Jem being together.

2. Alec Lightwood & Magnus Bane

Alec and Magnus's love story has been rocky, but that makes it all the more special. Where they are at the end of everything is together with two adorable boys to call their own. I love Magnus as a character. I did a whole project about him in school once. He is my favourite character of all time. I have watched him grow and be in relationships and grow from them and be heartbroken and everything. But what he has with Alec is special and they deserve each other and are definitely two halves of the same soul. They are for sure my second favourite couple from the Shadowhunter world… and probably of all time. I just love them and their family like no other. (Well maybe like one other…)

1. Tessa Gray & Will Herondale

And we’re finally at the top (or bottom) of the list. Like I said in Tessa’s and Jem’s part, I was shipping Will and Tessa from the start, and even though I love Tess and Jem together, Tessa and Will have a love story that surpases it all. They were meant for each other and they deserve to be together and the fact that they got to start a family together and be together for the rest of Will’s life, is beautiful. The biggest part I was excited for going into reading Chain of Gold, was the fact that I was going to see Will and Tessa together and see them as parents and them be happy. Now that I’ve read the book I’m also there for their kids and their stories, but I started it for Will and Tessa and I will keep reading the series for them and all the other characters. It is beyond me, how Cassandra Clare can write characters and relationships that have everyone so invested in them and their lives. It is a gift, her writing, and I can’t wait for more couples to come together and for more beautiful love stories in her next books.

If you got to the end, thank you, and if you didn’t… well you’re not reading this then so it doesn’t matter. Until next time!

~Rose Reviews

Top 7 Favourite Fictional Siblings

Out of all the books and series I’ve read, I’ve always loved to read about siblings and their relationships. Being an older sister myself, I always thought it was fun to see the relationships of different characters and how family plays a big role in many books and stories. This post will also probably contain minor (or major) spoilers so be warned. Here is a list of my favourite siblings and their relationships with one another.

7. Vivienne, Jude, Taryn, and Oak Duarte

From the Cruel Prince, or Folk of Air series, by Holly Black, this is the main character and her siblings, both biological and adopted. Jude is the main character while Taryn is her twin sister, Vivienne is her older half sister, and Oak is their younger step brother (which you later find out is actually adopted and you see why in the books). First off, I love Jude and that’s mainly why she and her siblings are on this list. I also love Jude’s relationship with her foster father, definitely more than with her siblings, but that’s for another list. So at the start and end of the series, Jude is really close with all of her siblings, but during the whole middle when I like Jude the most, her siblings anger and annoy me. As an older sister, Vivienne does not do much to protect her younger siblings especially when they need it most, also mostly looking out for herself and failing to even try and understand the situations they go through to stay alive in Faerie. That always made me resent her a little bit because both Jude and Taryn could have used a lot of advice on how to survive in Faerie from their part Fae sister, but all Vivienne focuses on is getting out of Faerie and leaving them behind. Of course she makes up for it at the end and isn’t as bad as Jude’s next sister, Taryn. Now I’ve read every book Holly Black wrote related to the Cruel Prince, even the short story from Taryn’s point of view, but I still dislike her very much. She backstabs her twin sister with Locke and later, when she sees how much of an asshole Locke is, she runs back to Jude asking for her help because she’s scared of him. And Jude actually helps her! Ugh! Taryn is just so stupid and needy and so unfair to her sister who does everything for her. Even when she redeems herself at the end, I still hate Taryn and the way she treats her sister, so that’s the main reason these siblings are so low on my list. The last one is Oak who is the baby of the family, and sometimes it bugs me that he doesn’t help Jude out as well, but I can also understand his side and he’s just too young to grasp what’s going on. I agree with all the characters that Oak needed to be protected at all costs because he’s precious, but he makes Jude’s life hard at points, which upsets me.

6. Nesta, Elain, and Feyre Archeron

From the ACOTAR series by Sarah J Maas. I love this series and I love Feyre, so this one might sound very familiar to my feelings on Jude and her siblings too. At first, you hate Feyre’s sisters, and so do most of the other characters too, but they do get a sort of redemption arc which satisfies you at the end. But I gotta say the feelings of dislike were strong at the start of the series. It all starts off with Feyre, her OLDER sisters, and their father being very poor because of some bad deals he made and lost all their money. Because of this, they are struggling to survive, and Feyre (the YOUNGEST SISTER) does all the work to keep them alive. That frickin bugs me how Feyre does everything for her father and sisters when she’s the youngest, the baby, of the family. She has TWO older sisters who just sit on their asses and do absolutely nothing to help their own family (both waiting for their father to take control because he made the mess in the first place but he’s frickin depressed and injured!) Anyways, Feyre’s sister’s do help her out in the end, but I can’t help but still get really mad when thinking back to the very beginning of the story. Nesta was too upset with their father to do anything, and honestly I don’t even know what Elain’s problem was. She was just the good sister, who was too pretty and proper and nice to do any work whatsoever. Again, I now like them as characters, even though Nesta sometimes still makes me mad, but I also can’t wait for her new story to come out next year! (Sarah J Maas did say she was almost done writing it and that it was super personal to her, so for that reason I can’t wait). Also though, I think I am due for a reread of all her books because there are some details that I forget and I would love to be in her world again. Anyways, I can’t wait to read more from the Archeron sisters in future books and negative feelings toward the characters usually disappear when I read the latest books, so that’s good.

5. Helen, Mark, Julian, Tiberius, Livia, Drusilla, and Octavian Blackthorn

From the Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare, this family was my favourite family to read about, although, like the previous two sibling groups, I have a lot of positive and negative feelings about how all the siblings treated each other and so on. Like Jude and Feyre, Julian is my favourite Blackthorn sibling, and my feelings towards the other ones are based on the way they treat Julian. Now I do understand how the whole novels and series show all the hardships that the Blackthorns go through, which is why some characters act the way they do, but it still makes me frustrated. To start off, I do love each sibling individually and I thought Cassandra Clare did a good job in giving each character their own distinct personalities, but in relation to Julian, they made me upset, specifically Ty, Livvy and Dru. Tavvy is honestly too young for me to get mad at and that’s probably the only reason why he doesn’t annoy me too. Firstly, Ty, Livvy and Dru all look up to Julian, which I understand, but they totally depend on Julian, and when something doesn’t go the way they want it to, they honestly kinda blame him. This was evident when Mark first came back to the family (I also love Mark), and he came from years of living with the Fae and doesn’t even remember how to function in regular society. But the kids still expected him to be the new big brother even when he can’t function and literally get mad when Mark doesn’t fill in Julian’s role. During this time, they just dismiss everything Julian has ever done for them and say that Mark can take care of them from now on! Like… WHAT? How could you expect that from Mark and how could you take that away from Julian? Furthermore, when Helen comes back and tries to repair ties with her family and truly take over for Julian because she feels like she should have done that since the beginning, FRICKING DRU IS A BITCH TO HER! Honestly I do not really like Dru. Cassandra Clare got her preteen attitude spot on which especially makes Dru a bitch because she’s young and learning. I remember those years, but that doesn’t make me like Dru. The whole time she’s whining and complaining that no one treats her like an adult but at the same time gets mad when Helen doesn’t make her pancakes for breakfast. IF YOU WANT PANCAKES, MAKE YOUR OWN DAMN PANCAKES! That’s when I started to love Aline though, Helen’s wife, because she stood up for Helen and then Dru started to like her big sister again. Lastly it annoyed me how much the kids depended on him. Like Tavvy I understand because he’s a baby, but the rest of them… UGH! They all demand his attention 24/7 and Julian has his own life to live! Like Julian watches horror movies with Dru, and picks bugs with Ty, and does spy shit with Livvy… like give the man a break. You watch your own horror movies Dru! You don’t need Julian to watch with you and then get mad at him for not fully paying attention! Honestly most of my problems stem from Dru, but the rest of them are just as annoying, including Emma, but we won’t get into that here. Last thing I want to mention (which is a major spoiler!) is that Livvy was the only decent one and then she died. She literally died just after talking to Julian about how much he does for them and how she wanted to help more so he could live his life. I got mad to say the least.

4. Lada and Radu Dragwlya

From And I Darken series by Kiersten White. These two are definitely different from the other siblings I’ve talked about, and that’s mostly because I don’t dislike them as much. It’s kind of weird, but Lada and Radu had a worse relationship from the beginning but I loved them as siblings more than other siblings. I was actually rooting for them from the beginning, wanting them to finally get close and show their love and understanding, and by the end they were practically there. They honestly always had lives separate from each other, especially in the later books, but the whole time Lada always wanted to care for her brother and have him by her side, even if he didn’t want the exact same thing. Although I do believe that Radu loved his sister, but he had to take his own journey through self-discovery and learn to love who he was and realize he deserved more than Mehmed. Honestly both Lada and Radu deserved better than Mehmed. Anyways, I think that the two of them had a strong bond that couldn’t be broken no matter everything that happened in the books and the way they both started, disliking each other.

3. Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny Weasley

You can’t have a list of favourite siblings and not include the Weasley siblings. You just can’t. If you don’t know, this family is from the Harry Potter series and they are the best. All of the siblings are super close and love each other and they are a beautiful family to read about. Even Percy, who can be an asshole, is still part of the family and in the end, shows his love for his siblings. Fred and George are my favourite by far, and they are such good older brothers to Ron and Ginny, and when we finally meet Bill and Charlie too, they are such sweethearts. There’s not many specific things I have to say about the Weasley’s, except that I love them.

2. Alec, Isabelle, Jace, and Max Lightwood

From The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare, these guys are like the OG Cassandra Clare siblings. They’ve been with us from the start and have gone through so much as a family and characters, that I feel like I really know them and feel for them. Technically Jace is not a Lightwood by birth, but I still consider him a part of the family. I loved watching them all grow together and one of the saddest parts in the whole series was when (SPOILER) Max Lightwood died in the third book. He was just such an innocent boy that tied the family together, and honestly when he died, the family kind of fell apart (mostly the parents). For the name Max to live on with Alec and Magnus’s son is just wonderful and he’s definitely my favourite character. Watching Alec, Jace and Isabelle together as siblings, with their banter and sass, makes me happy and brings me in a good mood. You can just tell how close they are from the way they fight together and laugh together and are in sync with each other. I will forever love the Lightwood family and the ones who I met first.

1. Jonathan and Clarissa Morgenstern

Also from the Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare. Most people will be surprised that this is my top but I never said that this list was made up of the healthy types of siblings. I honestly love Jonathan and Clary as siblings because they are the whole reason for the series and I think that both characters have so much depth to them because they are siblings. (SPOILER) But one of my favourite scenes from the whole series, and actually of all the Shadowhunter books, is when Clary is in the demon realm and is shown a vision of what she most desires in her life. And it shows Jonathan being a normal older brother that loves her and wants to protect her (which he sort of wants to do anyways) and how life could have been if Valentine hadn’t been a psychopath and infused Jonathan with demon blood. Even at the end when he dies and is laying there with his normal green eyes, Clary and her mom mourns him. They mourn the boy he could have been and I thought that was really powerful. Even with Jonathan as a demon crazy person, he still only wants love in the world and someone who would understand him. He thinks that biologically, Clary has to feel that towards him so he fixates on her, which is bad, but you can see what he wanted. You can kind of see his side, which I always thought made a good bad guy. Although Jonathan was still bad in every way because he was literally a demon inside, but I always loved reading about his character.

Thanks for reading my rants and until next time!

~Rose Reviews

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