Fond of Fonts

Onyx and Ivory , by Mindee Arnett, was a complete spur of the moment buy at the bookstore and  I am forever patting myself on the back because this YA fantasy novel is a hit! The cover caught  my  attention on the shelf, but the synopsis-- a "traitor's" daughter at a point of finding out secrets and rekindling love with an unsuspecting partner? Count me in! Following Kate's story was simple and riveting from the get-co. Magic influenced Kate from birth and  she spends her adolescence hiding it -- a final rule and request from her father before he was executed by  the crown. The crown being Kate's supposed love -- Price Corwin. Corwin undergoes his own growing pains  and turmoil as he's set up against his older brother to,   literally ,   contend for the future of the crown!  Between personal discovery and growth both individuals deal with, magic has a stronghold influence on  the storyline, primarily between those who...

  A Sequel to Remember! When first introduced to Adalyn Grace's story of All the Stars and Teeth , I was transfixed by Amora Montara's family history of legendary soul magic. A kingdom of different islands all dedicated to unique types of magic ranging from elemental to healing and everything in between. I appreciated the map imaging afforded to the reader in both the first and second book of this duology, depicting the locations of the islands for those living in the kingdom of Visidia. In this sequel, All the Tides of Fate , Amora's lost her father and ascended the throne. Her mother is her supporter but has made it clear Amora needs to win the hearts of her people and what better way to do that than by giving them something to root for--such as, a marriage! This novel follows Amora traveling to the islands of her kingdom in search of a future husband and (eventually) another Montara heir. However, that's her cover story that she keeps up to the best of her ability. I...

  A familiar story for my liking! I'd originally only seen the movie a handful of times (I've mostly only seen Nicholas Sparks movies as opposed to books) and was interested in reading this book. I appreciated the film adaption and was looking forward to comparing it to the written version (although the word is always better) and I wasn't disappointed! It was easy to follow the love story that unfolded between Katie and Alex, just as easy as watching it in the movie. Obviously the ability to know what was happening between either character due to the third person, omniscient narrator worked in the reader's favor as well. The description of Kevin was done up to par as well, almost too up to par because some instances were disturbing. Reading about the abuse was different from viewing it in a movie, also the movie hadn't shown as much of the abuse--it was merely apart of flashbacks that simultaneously occurred. Kevin also focused increasingly on sex. The idea that Ka...

I've taken the initiative and decided to read Stephenie Meyer's 10th Anniversary edition of "Twilight Reimagined", AKA Life and Death . Meyer rewrote the story of Twilight with a change in gender roles for each of the characters, except Charlie, Renee, and Phil. I'm unsure as to why she wouldn't consider changing them, especially if she changed every other gender role (even down to the secretary in the high school or the biology teacher). It could be for the simple fact that (despite it sounding genderized), it'd be more difficult to have a workaholic mother who didn't notice every small thing about her child compared to a father. In all regards, however, what reader of the Twilight Saga didn't absolutely LOVE Charlie's character? Maybe it's for that simple fact that Meyer didn't change his role and for that, I can be content with. Despite the gender roles switch, the storyline was fairly similar to Twilight's overall structure. Sub...

     Jenna Evans Welch has returned once more! Love and Olives introduces Liv (a new-and-improved version of Olive). She's lived with her mom for the past nine years and hasn't spoken with her father since he scurried across the Mediterranean Sea to settle into his home town of Santorini, Greece.  Liv's grown up believing her father had abandoned her and her mother in order to discover the Lost City of Atlantis, something both Liv and her father had worked on studying together for most of her childhood. Liv has the summer planned to-a-T with her boyfriend, Dax. They'll be camping with each other in a few weeks, making last memories with each other before senior year and colleges in the future. Liv was looking forward to having everything structured... until she receives a postcard with distinctive handwriting informing her that he's very close to finding Atlantis and could really use her help. It was her father and he was reaching out.      In true ...

  2020 was a devastating year for many people, if not everyone, around the world. I stepped into the year with hopes to allow myself a change in mindset. I'd lost my Uncle in 2019 unexpectedly and it changed my perspective on day-to-day activities dramatically. I was treading water for the last leg of the year and looked forward to a new year in order to look forward to things changing. Then 2020 happened and the entire world (literally) broke on it's axis. I worked through the entire pandemic in healthcare, never got COVID-19 (luckily), and still find myself there to this day. I've lost countless residents throughout the year, fellow coworkers, and overall energy and the love of life. I've lost myself over this past year and losing my Grammy towards the end of the year (a few months past my Uncle's one-year anniversary) was the unwanted icing on my 2020 shit-cake. She hadn't even passed of COVID-19 and I can't explain the amount of unhappiness I've felt...

Another YA romance novel for the books! I've been looking forward to reading Jenn Bennett's current publication and I wasn't disappointed in the slightest! Bennett's story line was easy to follow, full of descriptions and delved into numerous settings--both on and off the water! Main character, Josie, has returned to her hometown of Beauty with her mother after five years of roaming from place to place (out of necessity). Josie and her mother have an extremely strained relationship and upon returning to Beauty, they've agreed to watch the family bookstore that's been around for generations. Both Josie and her mother agree that they'd avoid any chaos or unwanted attention, however, that's entirely unavoidable upon their return. Past time gossip and old memories resurface for both ladies and Josie cannot bring herself to keep under the black blanket of stealth, especially when her life-long best friend, Lucky, shows up hanging around the family bookshop c...