Double Book Review: Aru Shah and the End of Time and Aru Shah and the Song of Death by Roshani Chokshi

A good middle grade book will both entertain and teach the reader something about the world. A great middle grade book does this and makes the reader connect with the characters. Roshani Chokshi's Hindu-inspired Pandava Quartet does just this. If you're looking for a fun romp through Hindu mythology, this is the series to read. …

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Book Series Review: East and West by Edith Pattou

I read East by Edith Pattou years ago, and I had no idea there would ever be a sequel. So when it popped up on 2018 publication lists, I knew I needed to reread East so I could read West. East When a white bear appears and asks Rose to come with him in exchange …

Top Ten Tuesday: Best Books of 2018

This week's Top Ten Tuesday prompt is Best Books I Read In 2018. I read a total of 145 books this year, including audiobooks. With so many titles, it's hard to narrow down to just ten, so I'm only choosing books that were published in 2018. Here are the top ten best books of 2018, …

Book Review: The Boneless Mercies by April Genevieve Tucholke

If you always thought Beowulf needed more female characters, then The Boneless Mercies by April Genevieve Tucholke is the book for you. Frey is a Boneless Mercies—females hired to kill out of mercy. But she's tired of the death trade and longs for glory and fortune. When she hears of a monster ravaging a settlement, …

Book Review: This Splintered Silence by Kayla Olson

Last year, I was blown away by Kayla Olson's debut novel, The Sandcastle Empire, after having a love-hate relationship with YA dystopian novels. I basically told myself I would read anything she publishes, and so when This Splintered Silence was released in November, I bought myself a copy and prepared to dive into a space station …

Book Review: The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzi Lee

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee was the first book I reviewed on Books and Waffles. While I enjoyed that story, all I cared about was Felicity. So I've been eagerly awaiting her story, The Lady's Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, and it did not disappoint. All of Felicity's attempts to …

Book Review: Sanctuary by Caryn Lix

For a while, this book review consisted of these sentences, exactly like this: "THIS WAS TERRIFyiNG AND CRAZY WHAT A WILD RIDE." And honestly, that sums up Sanctuary by Caryn Lix pretty well. Kenzie has trained her whole life for one thing: to become a guard on a space prison for superpowered teens and uphold …

Book Review: Brightly Burning by Alexa Donne

Retellings have become more and more popular over the years, and you can pretty much find a new version of any classic story. One trend I've noticed with retellings more recently is to set them in outer space. With the popularity of The Lunar Chronicles, this form of retelling is cropping up more and more. …

Book Review: King’s War by Jill Williamson

If I'm being honest, I hate long books. It's not that I don't like the story or characters, but sometimes books that are over 500 pages can be quite daunting. Plus, they take longer to read, and with soooo many books in the world to read, I have a hard time concentrating on long books. …

Book Review: The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton

Despite loving fantasy novels, I haven't read that many. As in, I haven't finished reading that many. YA fantasy, yes. But YA fantasy is usually about 200-300 pages less than adult fantasy and less dense. Thus, I have a hard time sticking to a fantasy novel all the way through. But this year, I've been pushing …