The Legend Series (Legend, Prodigy, And Champion) By Marie Lu ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This Is

Elemental Tag Game

Thank you so much for tagging me, @feathered-inkling!

Rules: bold the statements that apply to you, italicize your aspirations, then tag nine people.

AIR

i have small hands / i love the night sky / i watch small animals and birds when i pass them by / i drink herbal tea / i wake to see dawn / the smell of dust is comforting / i’m valued for being wise / i prefer books to music / i meditate / i find joy in learning new truths from the world around me

FIRE

i don’t have straight hair / i like to wear ripped jeans and overalls / i play an organized sport / i love dogs / i am not afraid of adventure / i love to talk to strangers / i always try new foods / i enjoy road trips / summer is my favorite season / my radio is always playing

WATER

i wear bracelets on my wrists / i love the bustle of the city / i have more than one set of piercings / i read poetry / i love the sound of a thunderstorm / i want to travel the world / i sleep past midday most days / i love dimly lit diners and fluorescent signs / i rewatch kids’ shows out of nostalgia / i see emotions in colors not words

EARTH

i wear glasses or contacts / i enjoy doing the laundry / i am a vegetarian or vegan / i have an excellent sense of time / my humor is very cheerful / i am a valued advisor to my friends / i believe in true love / i love the chill of mountain air / i’m always listening to music / i am highly trusted by the people in my life

AETHER

i go without makeup in my daily life / i make my own artwork / i keep on track of my tasks and time / i always know true north / i see beauty in everything / i can always smell flowers / i smile at everyone i pass by / i always fear history repeating itself / i have recovered from a mental disorder / i can love unconditionally

I won’t specifically tag anyone but if seeing this makes anyone want to do it as well, feel free to say that I tagged you!

Last Line Tag

Thank you for tagging me, @musicofglassandwords!

I’ve mostly just been editing/revising old writing lately, thanks to being really out of practice. Here’s a bit from my most recent writing that’s actually new though!

He tore the note from the journal and set it next to her belongings before gathering his own and heading back outside. Securing the bag of supplies to the saddle, he mounted Sage again and headed back towards town.

Not the most interesting bit, I know, but for once it appears I actually finished a scene when I finished writing. What a shocker.

Tagging: @radley-writes @eggletine @wildler

I don’t have a ton of mutuals in the writing community here so I’m not tagging too many people. Feel free to skip this if y’all want and, for those of you that see this but weren’t tagged, feel free to tag me if you’d like to do this as well!

i am overcome with the urge to deal out unsolicited writing advice

happy storyteller saturday! what are some of your characters’s favorite childhood memories?

Happy sts! Thank you so much for sending a question again, @feathered-inkling! I love answering these!

Oliver’s favorite childhood memories all surround the rare times he and his siblings got to just be kids. Times like playing hide and seek when his parents weren’t home and staying up late telling ghost stories with his younger brother. Shiloh’s favorite childhood memories are just whenever her dad gave her metalwork lessons and taught her anything new surrounding his forge.

Why do seals swim in salt water? Because pepper water makes them sneeze.

Graceling By Kristin Cashore ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I absolutely loved this book. Yes, I’ve said that before for other ones but this book was such a fun adventure to go through and the main character developed sooooo much to be such a great person. The book is about a graced young woman who doesn’t have really any friends and is almost completely under the control of her twisted King. If you like adventure, a little bit of romance, and action I highly recommend this book to you!! Can’t wait to read the other two books corresponding with this one.

Review: The Songbird’s Refrain by Jillian Maria

Summary: When a mysterious show arrives in town, seventeen-year-old Elizabeth Brighton is both intrigued and unsettled. But none of the acts capture her attention quite like the blue-eyed woman. Locked in a birdcage and covered in feathers, the anguish in her voice sounds just a little too real to be an act—because it isn’t. The show’s owner, a sadistic witch known only as the Mistress, is holding her captive.

And she’s chosen Elizabeth as her next victim.

After watching the blue-eyed woman die, Elizabeth is placed under the same curse. She clings to what little hope she can find in the words of a fortune teller and in her own strange dreams. The more she learns, the more she suspects that the Mistress isn’t as invulnerable as she appears. But time is against her, and every feather that sprouts brings her closer to meeting the blue-eyed woman’s fate. Can Elizabeth unlock the secret to flying free, or will the Mistress’s curse kill her and cage its next victim?

Before I begin, I’d like to mention that I received a free digital copy of this story from @byjillianmaria in exchange for an honest review. Before being selected for this, however, I was completely certain I would purchase the book anyway, making this a fantastic opportunity to take in the story. 

All in all, this story was a great read and I really enjoyed it. It’s not very often that I get to read a story with such an organically and naturally written character that’s a member of the LGBT+ community and, as a member of that community myself, Elizabeth was a great main character to read. The relationships between the characters, too, were incredibly interesting to learn about throughout the story and, I’ll admit, were my favorite aspect of this novel.

About two-thirds of the way through the story, the plot began to feel somewhat jumbled to me. Newly introduced details, despite having ties back to the beginning of the novel, felt forced to me, and it made it difficult to read a handful of the later chapters. I’m unsure as to whether this confusion was intentional, as Elizabeth may have been overwhelmed by the information, or if it was due to rushing the plot progression (or my own misunderstandings). Either way, this did clear up in the last couple of chapters, allowing me to fully enjoy the ending.

I enjoyed this book, and I think this would be an enjoyable book for anyone that enjoys fantasy stories with elements of horror and mystery such as this one! 

The Year We Fell Apart by Emily Martin ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book. The author did a great job of giving the main characters very easy to follow yet quite complex backgrounds and personalities. I thoroughly enjoyed the storyline and was very satisfied by the ending. I recommend this book to anyone that likes a nice YA novel and/or the author Sarah Dessen.

The Smell Of Other People's Houses by Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This story is about four characters who, given their individual upbringings and struggles, all end up helping each other through their problems. I didn't expect the story to go how it went but I was definitely not disappointed. The characters were all very real and their stories were super interesting and somewhat relatable. I suggest this book to anyone that likes to read about people's problems, how they get through them, and how they can affect others.

COVID-19 Support

Hi, everyone! I try to keep this blog as on topic as possible but I wanted to talk a bit about the impact COVID-19 has had on a lot of us.

First, I want to express to anyone that may need to hear it that it’s completely valid and understandable to be scared right now. Many of our lives have been completely uprooted thanks to this pandemic. Many of us have lost our jobs, been abruptly sent home from school, worried about our health, and dealt with difficulties staying home and away from others.

As cheesy as it may sound, no one is alone in this. We all, technically, have easy access to our friends and family still thanks to social media/texting. It can be difficult to actually reach out to others, however, and to help out with that I’d like to offer my support to all of you that may need it.

I know that most—if not all—of you that read this are not at all close to me, nor have I previously spoken with almost any of you, but if you need someone to talk to right now—about anything, really—feel free to message me. As long as your message doesn’t strike me as odd or threatening, I’ll gladly reply. If you want to talk anonymously, feel free to send me anonymous asks and I’ll gladly respond to them. Keeping our community happy and healthy is one of the most important things we can do right now and I really hope you’re all doing okay right now.

Stay safe out there,

Sonja