A Look Into My Bookshelf Pt. 1

Welcome back! I’m going to be sharing some of my favorite books in my bookshelf. I’ve been reading A LOT during quarantine, hence I am gaining a pretty large collection of books XD All righty let’s get started! 

***books listed will not be in any specific order***

1. Seafire by Natalie C. Parker

Publication date: August 28, 2018

Genre: YA Fantasy, Adventure, Fiction, Science Fiction, Dystopian,

Book summary: "After her family is killed by corrupt warlord Aric Athair and his bloodthirsty army of Bullets, Caledonia Styx is left to chart her own course on the dangerous and deadly seas. She captains her ship, the Mors Navis, with a crew of girls and women just like her, who have lost their families and homes because of Aric and his men. The crew has one mission: stay alive, and take down Aric's armed and armored fleet.

But when Caledonia's best friend and second-in-command barely survives an attack thanks to help from a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia finds herself questioning whether to let him join their crew. Is this boy the key to taking down Aric Athair once and for all . . . or will he threaten everything the women of the Mors Navis have worked for? " 

Number of pages: 374

Favorite quote(s): I actually have many favorite quotes from this book, but I’ll narrow it down to just a few :)

 “Remember when they call you girl, they're trying to tell you something. They're trying to tell you that they're more than you, that the body you're in makes you less. But you know, and I know, that you're exactly what you need to be.”  

“Never underestimate the girls of this world” 

“ Just because there are bad things behind someone doesn’t mean they only have bad things inside them.”

Series?: Yes

Stars: 5/5

Books in series: Seafire, SteelTide, StormBreak. (In order)

Thoughts: Oh my goodness I loved this book sooo much!! I was a little skeptical because I had never read a book like this one, but as soon as I read the first few pages I was in love. It’s very fast paced and exciting. There was never a ‘good’ place to stop.

2. SteelTide by Natalie C. Parker

Publication date: September 17, 2019

Genre: YA Fantasy, Adventure, Fiction, Science Fiction, Dystopian,

Book summary: “Caledonia may have lost her crew, but she's not done fighting yet. After nearly dying at the hand of a powerful foe, Caledonia is pulled from the sea and nursed back to health by a crew of former Bullets that call themselves Blades. The Blades escaped Aric Athair's clutches and now live a nomadic existence, ready to disappear at a moment's notice should trouble come their way.

But Caledonia wants to do more than just hide. She wants to find the Mors Navis and her beloved sisters. She wants to continue fighting Aric's fleet and to take back the Bullet seas. She'll need to do everything in her power to convince the Blades that fighting is their only option, that there has to be a life better than the one under Aric Athair's reign, and that finding the women of the Mors Navis is the first step to revolution.”

Number of pages: 448

Favorite quote: “When we fight for each other, we win, no matter what.”

Series?: yes

Stars: 5/5

Books in series: Seafire, SteelTide, StormBreak. (In that order)

Thoughts: I think SteelTide Might actually be my favorite book in this Trilogy.

3. StormBreak by Natalie C. Parker

Publication date: February 9, 2021

Genre: YA Fantasy, Adventure, Fiction, Science Fiction, Dystopian, 

Book summary: "Aric Athair is dead. But the fight for the Bullet Seas is far from over. Caledonia's nemesis, Lir--the one responsible for getting her parents killed and for turning her brother into a Bullet--has seized control of the warlord's army.

Caledonia and her crew have fled to Cloudbreak to prepare for an all-out war. And they are not the only ones. Defecting soldiers begin to show up in droves to join their fight. But just as it seems like the tides might be turning, a surprise attack decimates the growing rebellion.

Desperate, with much of her crew missing or worse, Caledonia is forced to make an unlikely and unsteady alliance with a new enemy. It's a gamble that could cost her everything, but with the fate of the seas in her hands, Caledonia will do whatever it takes. War has come, and it's time to sink or swim." 

Number of pages: 421

Favorite quote(s): “Why?’ Because mercy is what is left when glory fails us”

Series?: yep

Stars: 5/5

Books in series: Seafire, SteelTide, StormBreak. (That order) 

Thoughts: This book took a little longer to get started, although it was just as good as the others. Sometimes in a series the last book/movie etc. isn’t as good as the first, but that’s not the case here.

4. Fable by Adrienne Young

Publication date: September 1, 2020

Genre: YA fiction, adventure fiction,

Book summary: “For seventeen-year-old Fable, the daughter of the most powerful trader in the Narrows, the sea is the only home she has ever known. It’s been four years since the night she watched her mother drown during an unforgiving storm. The next day her father abandoned her on a legendary island filled with thieves and little food. To survive she must keep to herself, learn to trust no one, and rely on the unique skills her mother taught her. The only thing that keeps her going is the goal of getting off the island, finding her father, and demanding her rightful place beside him and his crew. To do so Fable enlists the help of a young trader named West to get her off the island and across the Narrows to her father.

But her father’s rivalries and the dangers of his trading enterprise have only multiplied since she last saw him, and Fable soon finds that West isn't who he seems. Together, they will have to survive more than the treacherous storms that haunt the Narrows if they're going to stay alive.”

Number of pages: 304

Favorite quote(s): “Like a weary bird flying out over the most desolate sea, I finally had a place to call home.”

Series?: yes

Stars: 4/5

Books in series: Fable, Namesake, and The Last Legacy is a standalone novel that will be released in September 2021 that goes with this series.

Thoughts: As much as I liked this book, it feels like it’s missing something... that is the only reason it has 4/5 stars. But I totally recommend!

5. Namesake by Adrienne Young

Publication date: March 16, 2021

Genre: YA fiction, Adventure fiction,

Book summary: “Welcome to a world made dangerous by the sea and by those who wish to profit from it. Where a young girl must find her place and her family while trying to survive in a world built for men.

With the Marigold ship free of her father, Fable and the rest of the crew were set to start over. That freedom is short-lived when Fable becomes a pawn in a notorious thug’s scheme. In order to get to her intended destination, she must help him to secure a partnership with Holland, a powerful gem trader who is more than she seems.

As Fable descends deeper into a world of betrayal and deception, she learns that the secrets her mother took to her grave are now putting the people Fable cares about in danger. If Fable is going to save them, then she must risk everything—including the boy she loves and the home she has finally found.”

Number of pages: 400

Favorite quote(s):  “We were salt and sea and sand and storm.”

Series?: Yes

Stars: 5/5

Books in series: Fable, Namesake, and The Last Legacy.

Thoughts: Namesake was definitely my favorite book in the duology. I loved how it had a little mystery. Fable had been told a web of lies her whole life, and she was learning the truth up until the very last page.

6. Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron

Publication date: July 7, 2020

Genre: YA Fantasy, Fiction, Dystopian,

Book summary: “It’s 200 years after Cinderella found her prince, but the fairy tale is over. Teen girls are now required to appear at the Annual Ball, where the men of the kingdom select wives based on a girl’s display of finery. If a suitable match is not found, the girls not chosen are never heard from again.

Sixteen-year-old Sophia would much rather marry Erin, her childhood best friend, than parade in front of suitors. At the ball, Sophia makes the desperate decision to flee, and finds herself hiding in Cinderella’s mausoleum. There, she meets Constance, the last known descendant of Cinderella and her step sisters. Together they vow to bring down the king once and for all–and in the process, they learn that there’s more to Cinderella’s story than they ever knew . . .”

Number of pages: 400

Favorite quote(s): “ It's risky...But sometimes that's the only way to get things done. Take the risk, light the fuse. Onward” 

“Do not be silent. Raise your voice. Be a light in the dark.”

“I don't want to be saved by some knight in shining 

armor. I'd like to be the one in the armour, and I'd like to  

be the one doing the saving.”

“The pockets,” she says. She puts her hands in them and gives a little twirl. “I love pockets.” I relate to this one XD

"I was twelve when I told my parents that I would much rather find a princess than a prince. They had gone into a state of panic, from which they emerged with a renewed sense of determination. They told me that in order to survive I would have to hide how I felt. I was never very good at it, and the weight of that mask grows heavier with each passing year. I want nothing more than to cast it aside."

"The truth is tricky. People want to know it, but when they do, sometimes they wish they didn’t."

"I think sometimes we make the mistake of thinking monsters are abhorrent aberrations, lurking in the darkest recesses, when the truth is far more disturbing. The most monstrous men are those who sit in plain sight, daring you to challenge them."

Series?: I don't think so.

Stars: 6/5 =D

Books in series: None

Thoughts: Cinderella is Dead is one of my top 5 favorite books. I loved how it's not your typical fairy tale of prince saves princess, they fall in love, happily ever after.

 

I have many more books to share so I'll be posting part 2 soon! Bye! Have an awesome day/night!

             What did you think? Have you read or heard of any of these?