Summer Reading 2022

Welcome back to school, all! Here's an update of all the books I've read since the end of May. To begin with, I finished reading The Immortal Throne by Bree Despain the first week of June. The third book of the Into the Dark trilogy, this fantasy novel is about Daphne Raines trying to escape the underworld and her betrothal to Haden's half-brother, Garrick, who is the new King of the Underrealm. Haden has been banished to the mortal realm and Daphne is the only one who can save him. The Immortal Throne is definitely an excellent and satisfying conclusion to the series, and I truly enjoyed the romance and the magic. I would recommend it to anyone who loves Greek mythology especially the story of Hades and Persephone.

Then, I read The Gauntlet, a science fiction novel by Megan Shepherd. In this finale of The Cage series, Cora and her friends are now on Armstrong, a small moon, after they escaped from the Kindred station. Although they thought it would be safe, Armstrong is ruled by a power-hungry sheriff and they're enslaved in the mines. With limited time, Cora has to figure out how to escape from Armstrong and win a competition called the Gauntlet in order to prove humanity's intelligence. Although I loved how the suspense built up throughout the book, especially during the different challenges of the Gauntlet, I thought the ending was bittersweet. I definitely felt a little disappointed with how the romance was handled. It is an entertaining book, though, if you like action and adventure.

After reading The Gauntlet, I enjoyed the The Lives of Saints by Leigh Bardugo. This story collection features tales about the different saints from the author's novels taking place in Grishaverse. Although many of the stories in this book are dark, the illustrations are beautiful and I loved learning about all the different miracles and martyrdoms. It was definitely a fascinating read, and I would recommend it if you want to continue to immerse yourself in the world that Bardugo created with the Shadow and Bone trilogy.

From the end of June to the beginning of July, I read The Here and Now by Ann Brashares. This standalone science fiction novel is about Prenna James, a seventeen-year-old girl who comes from a future devastated by a mosquito-borne illness and has always been told that she must follow the rules. When Prenna begins to fall for Ethan Jarvis, she decides that some of the rules are worth breaking, especially if it means preventing the plague that kills millions. Like most books I've read by Ann Brashares, this one was bittersweet, but I did find it thought-provoking because of how the world has been currently dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. If you want to read a book that is both thrilling and heartbreaking, this is a great choice.

The next book I read was Blade Breaker by Victoria Aveyard. I especially enjoyed reading Realm Breaker last year, so I was really looking forward to the sequel and it did not disappoint. After the events of the first book, Corayne and her group of companions are recovering from their battle with the Kraken and closing one of the Spindles. Needing an army, the companions decide to head north next before going back to the temple where Taristan murdered his brother to close the Spindle there. The journey is dangerous, but they find new allies even while Queen Erida and Taristan take over another country and open more portals. This fantasy novel kept me on edge and I couldn't stop reading it. Although they're the antagonists, I was most compelled by the relationship between Erida and Taristan. Despite the fact that they're destroying the realm together, I love how they grew closer on romantic level. There were victories and losses for both sides, and by the end, I was left desperate for the third book in the series. If you've read Realm Breaker, this is a must-read.

Later in July, I read Dance of Shadows by Yelena Black. In this paranormal thriller, Vanessa Adler goes to an elite ballet school in New York City to find out what happened to her sister when she disappeared three years ago. Although she feels like she's not as good as her sister, she captures the attention of the choreographer, Josef, who casts her as the lead in The Firebird. As she rehearses for the role, she grows closer to the gorgeous male lead, Zep, even as he hides a dark secret from her. When one of her friends disappears, Vanessa begins to believe that something strange is going on at the ballet school. Even though another boy, Justin, also has his suspicions about what's going on, Vanessa doesn't trust him and pushes him away whenever he tries to help. With opening night approaching, the danger surrounding Vanessa grows and she must perform the dance perfectly or she could be the next victim. I've always enjoyed novels taking place in ballet schools, and this one has got to be one of my favorites now. I love how it incorporated mystery and paranormal elements. Even though I was as enamored by Zep as Vanessa was at first, I found myself to be drawn to Justin, who seemed to really be looking out for Vanessa even when she wanted nothing to do with him. The ending left me wanting to the sequel, too, which I'm definitely going to have to read soon. If you like ballet and mysteries, this is an irresistible choice.

Last, but not least, I most recently read Undertow and Raging Sea by Michael Buckley. These science fiction novels are the first two in a trilogy about Lyric Walker, a seventeen-year-old girl whose family is keeping a huge secret. When the Alpha, a group of warriors, arrived from the sea three years ago, Lyric's hometown of Coney Island was forever changed, becoming a military zone. Then, as she begins her senior year, a group of Alpha teenagers are forced to go to her high school and she has to help their crown prince, Fathom, adjust to American life. Although he can be violent and angry, Lyric begins to fall for him. With tensions growing between humans and the Alpha, Lyric has to make the difficult decision to either run with her family so their secret stays hidden or work with the Alpha to save humanity from something worse that lives beneath the ocean's surface. Even though I immensely enjoyed the action scenes in both books and thought it was awesome when Lyric learned that she can harness the power of water, I felt the romance was underdeveloped and wasn't as torn up as I thought I would be by the time it fell apart. I'd definitely recommend this series, though, because it's suspenseful and I like the way it explores the dynamics of prejudice and unethical experimentation. I also think fans of Stranger Things would like this series.