Tome Topple Round 14 Wrap Up!

Hello Patrons! 🙂

I wanted to wrap up my reading journey through this past round of Tome Topple. Besides reading Chain Of Iron by Cassandra Clare (which was 656 pages), I read about 55 pages of Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy and about 35 pages of Four Hundred Souls by Ibram X Kendi.

Not much happened in Anna Karenina so far. It’s a lot of families doing family things and being horrible people. (Spoiler alert if you did not know this). Anna and Vronsky have just started making advances toward each other. Kitty has gotten sick after falling in love. You know the usual in mid-19^th century in Russia stuff. I like the description of nature and people. I think the translation is fantastic. It’s very readable, and the footnotes help a ton. I am interested to see if I were to pick up another translation of Anna Karenina what I would think if I were to have the same experience. I have a little bit left of part 2, so I am excited to see where the plot goes.

On the completely other end of the spectrum, Four Hundred Souls is both very educational and incredibly disheartening. American history has been taught to us all wrong folks! Spoiler alert. Kendi and other contributors dismantle the history we’ve been taught in school surrounding the topic of slavery and race. After every 10 essays there is a poem on the time of history that was just discussed. I thought that is a cool touch. I am … (enjoying is the wrong word) still intrigued when reading this. I am going to continue reading this in April, along with Anna Karenina.

If you participated in Tome Topple tell me what your read in the comments. Have you read any of the books I talked about today? Let me know. Take care of yourselves, wash your hands, wear a mask in public, practice some self-care, and…

Stay Golden! 🙂

Leila

Tome Topple Round 14 week 2 Update: My Final Thoughts on Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare

Hello Patrons! 🙂

I finished Chain of Iron last night and omg I am shook (as the youths say).

I am going to keep my thoughts non-spoiler-y at first and then go into some spoiler-y stuff.

Non-Spoiler-y Stuff

So this book made me hate James Herondale even more than I already did. Yes, he’s Jace’s grandfather in a way, but that doesn’t make him a likable dude. He just kept making dumb decisions for no reason. Like you have feelings for someone. TELL THEM! Don’t do this moody not communicating for 600 pages. Cordelia could do so much better than him. If it was up to me at the end of the year of being married to James, she should divorce his sorry butt and marry Mathew, James’ Parabati. (Mathew grew on me this book).

Also I have no idea how Cassie Clare is going to top herself next year with Chain of Thorns. I also thought that at the end of Chain of Gold so I have high hopes for book 3. (I can’t wait for March 2022! Just btw.)

Matthew is the sweetest and I want the best for him btw. We learn a lot about him in this book and I think he deserves the best.

Spoiler-y Stuff

(If you haven’t read Chain of Iron click away or read at your own risk!)

Lucie needs to be okay! Even if Jessie doesn’t get raised. She’s my favorite female character in this book. On that same note, Lucie and Cordelia need to become Parabati! They are good for each other.

Can Cordelia get out of being Lilith’s paladin?! Cordelia thought she was going to be Wayland the Smith’s Paladin but shenanigans happened and it turned out to be Lilith.  That needs to be addressed in book 3. Belial needs to also be dealt with because he is just also an issue.

Cordelia with Cortana; drawn by Juliet bx Romance

Tatiana needs to be vanquished! She cares about nobody but herself, not even her own son Jesse. She’s vile. She suggested Grace seduce Jesse if they are able to bring Jesse back from the dead, so that Tatiana can have him again. Jesse is Grace’s adopted brother. Also, Grace needs to be taken down a peg. She went to James and wanted to seduce him again. (She has these powers over men that are wild!) James was a moron and didn’t tell her to get lost.

(Mathew told Cordelia that he loved her, and it broke my heart! They left to go to Paris after shenanigans happen and my heart was squishy!)

Thomas and Christopher are my favorite characters (besides Mathew and Lucie and Cordelia and Anna) for totally different reasons. Christopher is so sweet and kind, and nerdy. I just want to wrap him in bubble wrap so he doesn’t get hurt. Thomas is a gentle giant I just want to hug. Basically I love every character except James, Grace, and Jessamine (a ghost at the institute).

My Star Rating and Final Thoughts:

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I gave Chain of Iron 4/5 stars. Something was missing from this book to make me give it a full 5 out of 5 stars. A couple of characters made decisions that didn’t make sense. (Also James alone could have taken away a whole star). I had a good time reading this book overall.

If you’re a Cassie Clare fan pick this series up! If this interests you and you haven’t read any of Cassie’s books, pick up City of Bones and start with that series first. You’ll get more explanation in that series about the world. If you were to start with this series, The Last Hours, you will be confused!

Currently Reading:

I started Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert. I am only a couple chapters in, but I think Eve stands apart from her other two sisters. Not in a bad way, just a different way. I think it’s cute so far. Jacob is a stuffy guy, so I am so excited to see what happens.

Tell me what you’re reading in the comments below. Are you a Cassie Clare fan? Let me know. Take care of yourselves, wash your hand, wear a mask when you’re in public, practice some self-care, and…

Stay Golden! 🙂

-Leila

Only Short Books: My April 2021 TBR!

Hello Patrons! 🙂

I surprisingly have more time than I thought today, so I decided to work ahead and chat with y’all about my April TBR.

Because I am still reading Chain of Iron and do not see finishing it before the end of March, I decided that April will be all short books. Well, that and all the books I want to read in April are short. Like with the two previous months, I am only going to prioritize reading 2 books. Both books are rollovers from other months TBR’s.

The two books I want to read in April are The Ex-Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon (which was in my January TBR (?)) and Act Your Age Eve Brown (The Brown Sisters #3) by Talia Hibbert (which was on my March TBR). The Ex-Talk is about two people who host a radio show and banter about their bad dates. I loved Today, Tonight Tomorrow which I read last year. I have loved both other Brown Sisters books, so I am excited to see if the finale holds up.

If I finish those books, I want to read Namesake (Fable #2) by Adrienne Young. I put this on hold from the library, but it has still not shown up. I might just buy it. Fable is about a girl by the same name who is trying to find her father to work on his ship with him.  I loved Fable when I read it in December and have been patiently waiting for book 2 ever since.

We’ll see how I progress in April. Tell me what you’re reading or listening in the comments below! Have you read any of the books I talked about today? Tell me in the comments.

Take care of yourselves, wash your hands, wear a mask in public, practice some self-care, and…

Stay Golden! 🙂

-Leila

Tome Topple Round 14 Week 1 Update

Hello Patrons! 🙂

I am *just* under 50% of the way through Chain of Iron and I got some opinions (as I usually do), about some of the shenanigans that have went on.

If I spoil this book by mistake, I am sorry, I just have feelings. Let this be your warning for spoilers.

So, we finally get a demon attack and it was so anti-climactic. I hope that a) we get another demon hunter scene in this behemoth of a book and b) I am going to assume that we will get an arc with the demon hunting. (I am hoping that in Chain of Thorns we get a lot of demon hunting. I don’t know what it is but I like it).

Also, we learn more about Grace and … I still don’t have any empathy for her. Like, you don’t like your mom, why do you just continue to be like this! Girl get it together. Get some personality.  

I want to smack James around and give him a good psychological analysis. Like are you dumb?! Grace doesn’t care about you. At all. (I also want someone to break that stupid bracelet off of his wrist). Again, I hope that this changes in the last book. Please Cassie Clare!

Cordelia’s dad … got his comeuppance. He was being a *searching for a particular word* crappy person to James and then stuff happened. I also do not have empathy for him. *hand motions*

I like the subplot of Ariadne and Anna. Anna is slinky like a cat. Ariadne is … cute-ish.

Thomas and Christopher are my favorite characters. They are just such good friends to Matthew and James. (Matthew is an interesting character as well, but I am not as drawn to him.)

I am hoping to finish Chain of Iron by the end of the month. We have 2 weeks left of the month. Hopefully, it’s doable. We will see. Because I have a lot of adulting to do this week. But I have it on audio so that could help.

In non- Chain of Iron reading news, I am still liking Anna Karenina. I was nervous about books in translations because I have had some books that didn’t work for me that were in translation. But this translation is easily understandable. I am not constantly being withdrawn from the story, thinking “That’s the word they chose?” (The translation my book club chose won an award for like best translation and it shows).

I am still also reading Four Hundred Souls. I am both incredibly angry at America and incredibly sad. But that is what history is.

Let me know what your reading, or what you read this week. Are you participating in Tome Topple? Let me know. What are you planning on reading next? I am planning on reading next is Act Your Age, Eve Brown. I keep seeing that on Instagram, and am getting more excited to read it each time I see it.

Take care of yourselves, wash your hands, wear a mask in public, practice self-care, and…

Stay Golden! 🙂

-Leila

Tome Topple Round 14 Day 0: My Initial Reaction to Chain of Iron!

Hello Patrons! 🙂

I wanted to come and divulge my initial thoughts on Chain of Iron thoughts before Tome Topple started (because this week is gonna be crazy!).

If you have not read Chain of Gold yet go read my thoughts on that from last year. (Spoiler alert: I was in quarantine, so it was a lot of rambly spoilery stuff).

Let’s get into it!

So first, James is rude! I am not empathetic toward him whatsoever. (This also started a bit in Chain of Gold so I was prepared.) Like bro try harder. M’kay! *hand flip motion*

Someone needs to cut off that bracelet on James’ wrist and break it into a bajillion pieces. Tatiana/Grace is controlling him with it and nobody has thought of that yet! *Angry Muppet noises* Or, spit balling here, just cut James’s wrist off. It may cause him to build some character. Just a thought.

Grace is still questionable. Her motives are sketchy. She’s not as much of a B as she was in Chain of Gold but that vibe is still there.

Cordelia’s dad irks me. He has only been in the book for a chapter, but I can’t stand him. There is a scene in this book at Cordelia and James wedding that made me so annoyed. (trying not to spoil everything…)

Okay for a series about Demon hunters there has been a serious lack of demon hunting! There has not been a single scene of demon hunting. I am just over 100 pages in, and I want my demon hunting action scenes. I’m a simple gal. Give me the demons!

So with my schedule this week being crazy this is how we’re going to do updates; I am going to update y’all on next Sunday (March 21^st) with my midpoint-ish thoughts, and again on the last day of the readathon (March 28^th) with my ending-ish thoughts (depending on where I am in the book!). if I somehow have more time in between that I will give mini updates, but don’t count on it.

Other Tome Topple updates; I am still reading Anna Karenina by Tolstoy and am liking it better than I thought. I credit that to the translation. I am also still liking (not exactly the best word but I am going with it) Four Hundred Souls by Ibram X Kendi.

Please tell me what you’re reading or listening to, in the comments below. Are you reading Chain of Iron or are you not a fan of Cassie Clare? Let me know. Take care of yourselves, wash your hands, wear a mask in public, practice some self-care, and…

Stay Golden! 🙂

-Leila

It’s a Whole Saga: My Future Plans for the Rest of March!

Hello Patrons! 🙂

I finally got my copy of Chain of Iron Tuesday afternoon (along with my copy of Act Your Age, Eve Brown) and immediately started reading from where I left off from the audiobook. I like being back in the Shadowhunter universe. I am currently on chapter 2. While I was waiting on Chain of Iron I started reading The Girls I’ve Been by Tess Sharpe. This is pitched as a thriller about the daughter of a con artist. I didn’t get far, only about 30%, so things were still slow. The book follows Nora who is a daughter of a con artist and she and her friends are held hostage one day when they go to their local bank. I might pick this back up after I am done with Chain of Iron (or after I finish Act Your Age Eve Brown which will most likely be my next read). This all depends on how I feel at the end of Chain of Iron.

I am participating in a readathon this month! It’s unexpected but it fits with my TBR this month. I was on YouTube a couple days ago and saw that Sam from Thoughts on Tomes announced that she is throwing another round of Tome Topple! Round 14 of the Tome Topple runs from March 15^th to March 28^th. My TBR for Tome Topple is Chain of Iron (duh), I am also going to continue with Four Hundred Souls by Ibram X. Kendi, and also continue reading Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. I am only planning on finishing Chain of Iron. My life currently will not allow me to finish more chunky books than that. I just wanted to tell y’all that because I am so excited! I love the Tome Topple, its one of my favorite readathons.

I also ordered a copy of The Ex-Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon from my local indie bookstore, Downbound Books, yesterday! (I started my new job this week, had plumbing issues, and got my first Covid vaccine (whoop whoop!), so I deserved it.) I should get that in the next couple days. Extremely excited for that as well. The Ex-Talk is about two people who cohost a podcast and fall in love. I originally put this book on hold at the library, but I was 32^nd out of 50 for like 10 copies so that was not fun.

With that, tell me what you’re reading in the comments below. Are you reading any chunky books this month? Have you picked up any of the books I talked about? Let me know. Tell me what you think about what your reading (or listening to) currently!

Take care of yourselves, wash your hands, wear a mask in public, practice self-care, and…

Stay Golden! 🙂

-Leila

I Finished Some Things and Started Some Things: What I Read this Week!

Hello Patrons! 🙂

I have been so busy this week with life that I forgot to update when I finished the book I was reading! So I finished listening to The Doctors Blackwell by Janice P. Nimura on Monday afternoon, and then Love is a Revolution by Renee Watson on Tuesday evening, and started listening to Mediocre: The Dangerous Legacy of White Male America by Ijeoma Oluo on Monday and finished it on Thursday.

(I also started reading Dear Juystce by Nic Stone on Wednesday and I am 70% through. I think it’s fine. It’ll probably be 3.5 stars.)

Let’s get into it and talk about my ratings and my other thoughts about each of these books.

I am going to go by order of when I finished the books.

The Doctors Blackwell

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

This is about the 1^st and 3^rd female doctors in the United States. I found the Blackwell sisters prickly, not super endearing. That is just who they were. I liked learning about how medicine was in the mid-19^th century. The narrator’s voice of this audiobook was odd as well. By the time I finished the audiobook I was like okay….? I have no idea what could’ve been different with this book though. If you want to learn about medicine pick this book up. If you want a feminist history in medicine, I don’t think this is exactly it.

Love is A Revolution

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 3 out of 5.

So, around the 60% mark the tone of the book took a hard left turn into sounding like an afterschool special from the 90’s. The tone was saccharine. I liked that Nala learned to love herself and focus on herself, but I felt it could’ve been done differently. Also, Imani, Nala’s cousin annoyed me. I was just underwhelmed in the second half and that took the whole book down for me. Will I read more of Renee Watson’s books in the future? Maybe. We will see.

Mediocre

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

If you want a book to fill you with rage read this book. I learned so much about American History that made me so angry and intrigued. I read Oluo’s first book, So You Want to Talk About Race a couple months ago and really liked it. This is along the same vein but with more of a historical flavor to it.

Overall Thoughts:

I am bummed that I am starting off March with books that I am not wowed by, but I have positive vibes for the rest of the month. My copy of Chain of Iron is coming on Tuesday and I am going to start it the minute I have it in my hands. (I listened to the first 2 chapters on audiobook and am so excited to also read it physically!) I also started reading Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy for book club next month. It’s good so far, and if I finish Dear Justyce before Tuesday I will continue reading that. Will I bring it into work with me? No. I will figure something to take to work.

Tell me what you read this week or what you’re reading in the comments! Tell me what you’re listening or listened to this week as well. Take care of yourselves, wash your hands, wear a mask in public (!!!), practice selfcare, and…

Stay Golden! 🙂

-Leila