Organising My Goodreads #7

I’m having so much fun going through my Goodreads like this. I got into the habit of adding just about anything to my Goodreads a while back and I haven’t had the energy to search through it, but these posts are making it interesting to do. I’m also coming across books that I forgot I owned, so that’s great.

25. The Black Witch by Laurie Forest

This book was brought to my attention because a ton of people were saying it’s problematic, but I have no idea how true this is. People were saying it’s racist but then other people were defending it saying it’s fantasy races and not based on real life, so I don’t know which side to believe.

Now, I do actually own this. It was on sale for 99p so if it is problematic, please don’t judge me. I’m very curious to see what all of the fuss was about so I may give it a go. If there is problematic content, great I can write a savage review about it, I love writing those.

If this truly is really bad, do let me know because I will bin it instantly. But you can never tell these days if people are hating on things for actual reasons or just to be haters.

Verdict: keep (for now)

Synopsis: Elloren Gardner is the granddaughter of the last prophesied Black Witch, Carnissa Gardner, who drove back the enemy forces and saved the Gardnerian people during the Realm War. But while she is the absolute spitting image of her famous grandmother, Elloren is utterly devoid of power in a society that prizes magical ability above all else.

When she is granted the opportunity to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming an apothecary, Elloren joins her brothers at the prestigious Verpax University to embrace a destiny of her own, free from the shadow of her grandmother’s legacy. But she soon realizes that the university, which admits all manner of people—including the fire-wielding, winged Icarals, the sworn enemies of all Gardnerians—is a treacherous place for the granddaughter of the Black Witch.

As evil looms on the horizon and the pressure to live up to her heritage builds, everything Elloren thought she knew will be challenged and torn away. Her best hope of survival may be among the most unlikely band of rebels…if only she can find the courage to trust those she’s been taught to fear.

26. Everless by Sara Holland

I don’t know what this book is nor do I remember adding it to my Goodreads. It was probably (definitely) a cover add, which I’ve said before, I am terrible for.

The verdict will be easy for this one as I really don’t have any recollection of ever seeing this book.

Verdict: remove

Synopsis: In the kingdom of Sempera, time is currency—extracted from blood, bound to iron, and consumed to add time to one’s own lifespan. The rich aristocracy, like the Gerlings, tax the poor to the hilt, extending their own lives by centuries.

No one resents the Gerlings more than Jules Ember. A decade ago, she and her father were servants at Everless, the Gerlings’ palatial estate, until a fateful accident forced them to flee in the dead of night. When Jules discovers that her father is dying, she knows that she must return to Everless to earn more time for him before she loses him forever.

But going back to Everless brings more danger—and temptation—than Jules could have ever imagined. Soon she’s caught in a tangle of violent secrets and finds her heart torn between two people she thought she’d never see again. Her decisions have the power to change her fate—and the fate of time itself.

27. Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan

I’ve been telling myself for years that I will finally read this and well, it hasn’t happened yet. I do own it though and I am making a conscious effort to read the books I actually own this year. Which to be fair, I’m doing pretty good at so far.

Verdict: keep

Synopsis: Each year, eight beautiful girls are chosen as Paper Girls to serve the king. It’s the highest honour they could hope for…and the most demeaning. This year, there’s a ninth. And instead of paper, she’s made of fire.

In this richly developed fantasy, Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most persecuted class of people in Ikhara. She lives in a remote village with her father, where the decade-old trauma of watching her mother snatched by royal guards for an unknown fate still haunts her. Now, the guards are back and this time it’s Lei they’re after — the girl with the golden eyes whose rumoured beauty has piqued the king’s interest.

Over weeks of training in the opulent but oppressive palace, Lei and eight other girls learns the skills and charm that befit a king’s consort. There, she does the unthinkable — she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens her world’s entire way of life. Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide how far she’s willing to go for justice and revenge.

28. Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson

I am such a huge fan of mysteries set in boarding schools. It’s weirdly one of my favourite genres even though I haven’t read many.

This has been on my to be read for quite some time and I haven’t gotten around to it yet, but I really love the synopsis so I’m definitely keeping it. I did plan to get the audiobook, but apparently, the narrator has a monotone voice, no hate I don’t even know who it is, so I’m not chancing that. I’ll just wait for it to pop up on a Kindle sale or potentially go to the library. Which I definitely need to do more.

Verdict: keep

Synopsis: Ellingham Academy is a famous private school in Vermont for the brightest thinkers, inventors, and artists. It was founded by Albert Ellingham, an early twentieth century tycoon, who wanted to make a wonderful place full of riddles, twisting pathways, and gardens. “A place,” he said, “where learning is a game.”

Shortly after the school opened, his wife and daughter were kidnapped. The only real clue was a mocking riddle listing methods of murder, signed with the frightening pseudonym “Truly, Devious.” It became one of the great unsolved crimes of American history.

True-crime aficionado Stevie Bell is set to begin her first year at Ellingham Academy, and she has an ambitious plan: She will solve this cold case. That is, she will solve the case when she gets a grip on her demanding new school life and her housemates: the inventor, the novelist, the actor, the artist, and the jokester. But something strange is happening. Truly Devious makes a surprise return, and death revisits Ellingham Academy. The past has crawled out of its grave. Someone has gotten away with murder.