May Recap

Life lately

What a month May has been! Literally on May 1, Alexa and I jetted off to Paris for five days and I can't think of a better way to start off the month. And once we got back, it's been fairly non-stop almost every week. There was the Rebecca Minkoff sample sale, a James Bay concert, the Red White and Royal Blue book event in Long Island City, seeing the Whipped Cream ballet at Lincoln Center and hanging out with Kristin this past weekend. Plus Carina and I spent a Saturday brunching, shopping and getting manicures too. Then with the fam, we had a bbq for my cousin's birthday and Mother's Day to celebrate. And of course, the last week of May means BookExpo and BookCon and while I didn't attend, I am going to some of the bookish events open to bloggers. I honestly can't wait for a weekend of lazying about, even after a long weekend we just had!

This month's

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On the blog

Book Reviews We Hunt the Flame (Sands of Arawiya #1) by Hafsah Faizal Symptoms of a Heartbreak by Sona Charaipotra The Key to Happily Ever After by Tif Marcelo There's Something About Sweetie (Dimple & Rishi, #2) by Sandhya Menon The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary Passion on Park Avenue (Central Park Pact #1) by Lauren Layne

Features Links + Loves Stacking the Shelves (70) Table for Two #29: Fuku What I'm Listening To | May Personal Recent Purchases I'm Obsessed With Announcements: New blog design + Friends Read Here! Paris, je 'taime | Day 1 & 2 Paris, je 'taime | Days 3-5 Spring Day!

Read but not reviewed

• City of Heavenly Fire (The Mortal Instruments, #6) by Cassandra Clare - 5 stars; I finished my re-read of The Mortal Instruments! My rating for this one stayed the same and in some ways, I think I may love it more now. Jace/Clary are forever my faves, as a OTP and individuals.
• Vortex Visions + Chosen Champion (Books 1 and 2 of Air Awakens: Vortex Chronicles) by Elise Kova - 3.5 stars; I don't like it nearly as much as the original series but I still had fun reading it! I loved being back in this world and seeing what old characters are up to. Plus Elise Kova continues to reel me in with her cliffhangers. I always want to know what happens next so I can't wait to get my hands on book 3. 
• Golden Guard Trilogy by Elise Kova - 3 stars; Once I was back in this world I couldn't stop so I read the prequels too. I enjoyed seeing how the Golden Guard came to be and what it really meant for the individuals that made it up. It's only touched upon in the Air Awakens series but even then, it was clear it held a lot of meaning.
• Soul in Darkness by Wendy Higgins - 4 stars; I definitely considering this book for favorite read of May. I bought it and read it at work on a whim and it exceeded my expectations. Can Wendy Higgins please do more New Adult paranormal Greek mythology retellings? This version of Psyche and Cupid was just great.
• The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare - 3 stars; I had to keep going with the re-read and I can't say I'm surprised by how I feel now. This was never my favorite series of hers but I still rated it very highly the first time around (the first two got 4 stars while the last got 5). In my reread, I changed everything to 3 stars. I will say that I continued to love the London Institute and the people who comprise it tremendously. Clare does a wonderful job of presenting a group of individuals who felt like a real family and could make me smile with their antics. I loved the banter and the different quirks each person brought to the table. But I really hated the love triangle. It was so unnecessary because while Tessa may love both boys, it's clear who she is IN LOVE with from literally the first few chapters of book 1 (don't come @ me on this one). Instead of the love triangle, I wish there had been more focus on developing Tessa (who bored me half the time) and giving more weight to the villain (who I didn't care about). Also, I just really love Herondales because Will and Cecily were my favorites in the series, along with Charlotte Branwell.
• Kiss the Girl (The Naught Princess Club, #3) by Tara Sivec - 2 stars; I basically just wanted to finish the series. It started off really fun with a bit of crazy and then got too over-the-top for me. the women started to feel more like caricatures than actual people. 
• Beautiful Bastard by Christina Lauren - 4 stars; I finally read their first book and I'm a fan! I was hesitant on this one but I was so curious about the series that made them so popular. It's definitely very smutty and straightforward in terms of plot but what can I say, they're just so good at creating intense chemistry, heroines who take charge, and men who are a mix of alpha male and heart.  

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How's your month been?