The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo

Book 1

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

I'm very inclined to say that the Grisha Trilogy is the best book series I've read to date. Bardugo's first book, Shadow and Bone, drew me in and kept me hidden away in my room under the blankets for 12+ hours. Shadow and Bone made me wish I was a Grisha…Something like a Corporakli Healer, or an Etherealki Inferni. Over the course of the books, I grew so attached to Bardugo's characters (The Darkling and Nikolai especially) I'm pretty sure I spent the last half of Ruin and Rising crying tears of blood.

Book 2

I'm not kidding guys. These books are amazing. I can't recommend them enough. I have an issue with what I not-so-affectionately call the book hangover—the complete and utter inability to begin a new book because the one you just finished was just so good/heartbreaking/unforgettable etcetera. I wasn't able to start a new book after the Grisha Trilogy for like a month.

Anyways. Back to the books. 

Siege and Storm picks up right where Shadow and Bone left off. I don't think the pace dropped for even a second. I was fascinated with the world Bardugo had created. Frankly, I'm jealous I didn't come up with this idea. Grisha are cool; it's a fact of life.

It's interesting, because Siege and Storm took a different direction than I thought it would. Over all, I think Siege and Storm was my least favorite out of the series. However, it's by no means lackluster.

Now, for my favorite. Ruin and Rising. This was the book that ripped my heart in half, threw it on the ground, stomped on pieces with sharp metal cleats, sent it through the blender, and then poured it on my head.

Book 3

This book freaking sucks. In a good way though.

There's so much emotion packed into this book I don't know how she didn't just keel over and die writing it. This book destroyed my soul. 

At the end, my blankets were tear stained (I actually think I messed up some of the pages too ;_; ), I could barely see, and I wanted to read more.

It's didn't end how I wanted, but I think over all it was a great wrap up to the series. Plus, I'll always have my head cannons.

So, dear blog readers, I'll leave you with this. Go out there and get your hands on these books. Buy them, rent them, borrow them, steal them, I don't care. Go read these books. They're fantastic.

~ Sincerely, a feels starved reader

NaNoWriMo So Far...

Day three of NaNoWriMo is almost over.

It's only been three days guys and I've already lost control of my life.

I've been sitting back in my room for like, the past four hours trying to do 2000 words.

I. Am. Dying.

But I love it.

I've never written this much so quickly.

NaNo and I have a love/hate relationship.

Anwayssssss. My stats for this week:

Completed words today: 2065
Total word count: 6214
Favorite snippet:  “Pryor Mason,” He whispered. “We are not alone.”
My stomach plummeted, and I cursed myself. Carlton and Ms. Bently should still be here. Why weren't the lights on?
“Carlton?” I whispered, as loud as I dared. Fear and adrenaline coursed through my veins—all I could hear was my pounding heart. If the power was out... Or, if there had been some sort of malfunction…
Exo-glass was reinforced with electricity.
Almost in answer, a ear piercing shriek ripped through the chilled air. Panic rippled through my muscles, freezing them in place. My eyes darted to the left.

I'm going to bed now. 

K. Bye.

*heavy sigh*

Does anyone have the marvelous, beautiful, natural ability to sing whatever you want and sound amazing while doing it? If you do, I envy you. I like to say that when I sing, on a good day, I sound like a dying walrus (which I honestly don't think is an exaggeration). But, I still love to sing, just not in front of people.

I listen to a lot of music while I write and work on school work. Since I live in a house crammed full of people, I don't have much privacy, even behind a closed door. Often, I find myself overwhelmed by the intense desire to belt out the lyrics to songs like 'No Good Deed' and 'Defying Gravity' and 'As Long As You're Mine' and basically every other Wicked song ever.

[BY THE WAYS GUYS, WICKED IS TOURING AGAIN AND THERE'S A SHOW ONLY A FEW HOURS AWAY FROM WHERE I LIVE.]

Anywhoooo, since I have no ability to sing and can't hold a tune to save my life, I compensate by mouthing the words in a flashy, and generally dramatic manner. I find my inner super star is best suppressed by screwing my face up in ugly expressions and flipping my hair around like a mad woman.

I just bought some new headphones. They're fantastic. Like, noise canceling and everything. Unfortunately, they cancel a little too much voice.

Guys. My mom just walked in. 

I have never been this embarrassed.