OwlCrate Mini Readathon- August 2018
I have been an OwlCrate subscriber since January 2016, which is crazy! I cannot believe I have been receiving some amazing books from this service that long. Not to mention all the bookish items and companies I have found because of being a member. OwlCrate did a longer Readathon this past February which, sadly, I was not able to be a part of. So, when I saw they were hosting a mini-readathon last weekend, I was ready to dive in!
They had two challenges for the overall readathon as well as nightly challenges while we read. They were not required, as this was a fun event, but the challenges were there if people (like me) wanted something more to add to their reading experience.
I have read several of my OwlCrate books over the last three years. I have yet to read a bad one. Of course, some I do enjoy more than others. This could be due to what I am currently in the mood for, themes, characters, writing style, plot, etc. Many of us know how it goes though. We get a book. We are so excited to read it. And then something comes up that pushes the reading to the back burner. By then something else has come in the mail and you are more focused and so sometimes things get neglected not because we want to, but just because life gets in the way.
I have had an extremely busy summer and so the weekend this was hosted was perfect as it was my first weekend alone in a long time. I had no plans and reading sounded perfect.
Picking out which books to read was a challenge. I wanted to read all my back logged OwlCrate books, but I knew this was not possible. So, I took to Instagram and did some polls on my Instagram Story to see what people would like me to read and review. The four books I read are a partial result of that. I will explain why in the paragraphs that follow.
First book I started reading was “From Twinkle, with Love” by Sandhya Menon. The reason I picked this first was I had been reading classics all month for another challenge. I wanted something fun, light, modern, and summer-esque. I had also wanted to read "When Dimple Met Rishi”, also by Menon, since it had been released. “Twinkle” was the perfect choice! I found the writing simple and I could easily follow what was happening in the book. I think it seems a little more geared to younger YA readers due to this though. I found the characters could have been a little more developed but I did adore Sahil Roy. Probably because he reminds me a lot of my husband. His character is also well written. I felt I knew him better than any of the other characters. An added bonus was how short the chapters were! I would give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars. I did run out and get “When Dimple Met Rishi” though because I really did enjoy it.
Next up was “Flawed” by Cecelia Ahern. Let me start off with saying I have been reading Cecelia Ahern's books more than half of my life. I enjoy her thoroughly. My initial thought when I opened this box was *SCREAM*, it is Cecelia Ahern's newest book *SCREAM* some more. Then my mind went to, oh no, I wonder how she will do with YA and the genre of a dystopian/futuristic society. I did start to read it when I first received it and was thoroughly enjoying it. Then life happened. So, I picked it up as my second book for the challenge. I could not put it down and flew through it. I have since started and finished the sequel called “Perfect”. Both books are well written in the sense I feel I can picture everything. For example, if this were made into a movie I feel like I could design the sets, make the costumes, cast the actors because the words and the world were so lucid in my mind. Many times, I have a hard time with this in books so this was a big plus for me. Overall, I would give it a 5/5 stars.
Coming up next was “The Sandcastle Empire” by Kayla Olson who has moved up onto my list of favourite YA authors with just this one book. I just want to find someone else who has read it and enjoyed it as much as I have just so I can talk about it without spoiling anything. Where I thought the story was heading and where it ended up changed from the first to the 455th page. For someone who likes a book that is cliff hanger after cliff hanger this is a perfect read for you. It also starts with action and is non-stop until the very end. The short chapters were fantastic and always ended on a cliffhanger, so it was hard to ever put down. I enjoyed all of the characters in their own way and I could also picture everything going on as well as the world. Like I said earlier, that is hard for me. I am curious to know if this is a stand-alone story or if there will be a sequel. I feel they left it open for a sequel but it could stand alone by itself if need be which I like. Another 5/5 stars for this debut novel!
Lastly, I completed “Three Dark Crowns” by Kendare Blake. Like “Flawed”, it was a book I started and then had to stop for a bit. Problem right out of the gate was I kept getting Arsinoe and Mirabella's names mixed up, as well as who was the naturalist and who was the elemental. For someone who cannot keep this straight it is hard to move forward. For anyone who has read it you understand why it is so important to keep all of that information straight. I found the beginning slower than the last third of the book but not unbearably so. Reading it in smaller chunks did help. So, I did put it down for almost two years. It was a book I kept grabbing to continue reading and then would get distracted which led me reading a chapter here and there for almost two years. I have to say I enjoy all of the queens in different ways. I was expecting to only like one and so I am glad Blake wrote it as such. This readathon helped me sit down, get everything straight, and finish the rest of the book. With all of this said, I have already started “One Dark Throne”, which is the sequel, and cannot wait for “Two Dark Reigns” to come out tomorrow. It is fabulous. If you can make it to the end you will be so pleased that you did. Overall, I would give this a 4 out of 5 stars. If I was a queen I would want to be a naturalist because I love animals and nature. To be a poisoner or elemental would also be cool though.
I would love to know in the comments below if you have read any of these books and if so please let me know what you thought. Please no spoilers! If you would like to try OwlCrate please use my link below to sign up as it would help me out so much!
