**Reading Roundup: March Edition**

I recently read three fantastic books that I just have to share with all of you. First up was "The Star-Touched Queen" by Roshani Chokshi, which I won in a Twitter giveaway hosted by the author herself! This book is set to release in May and I'm beyond excited for it. As someone who loves Hades and Persephone retellings, this book is right up my alley. The writing in here is truly unique and beautiful, with a whimsical and mysterious tone that reminds me of authors like Neil Gaiman or Patrick Ness.

The story follows a girl born with a horoscope that predicts marriage to death and destruction - talk about a tough start in life! But I adored the protagonist, who's stubborn and impulsive, making her all too relatable. The world-building is also incredible, with a fantasy realm that feels like something out of a fairy tale. I loved the way the author wove Indian mythology into this unique retelling, creating a world that's both familiar and yet completely new. With its beautiful writing and magical atmosphere, I highly recommend "The Star-Touched Queen" to anyone who loves a good fantasy story.

Next up was "The Winner's Kiss" by Marie Rutkoski, the final book in her Winner's trilogy. I've reviewed the first two books already, but this one is just as amazing, if not more so. The world-building is once again top-notch, with a complex and nuanced exploration of politics and power that had me hooked from start to finish. The characters are all so well-developed and relatable, especially the protagonist, who undergoes an incredible transformation throughout the story.

I have to admit, I'm not always a fan of finales - there's something about knowing that things will never be the same again that can be a bit disorienting for me. But "The Winner's Kiss" is no exception; it's a beautifully written and emotionally exhausting conclusion to the series that had me cheering and crying in equal measure. Marie Rutkoski is truly a master of her craft, with a writing style that's both lyrical and brutal at the same time. If you haven't read the Winner's trilogy yet, do yourself a favor and pick up "The Winner's Kiss" as soon as possible.

**My Thoughts**

I have to say, I'm still reeling from my experience with these three books. Each one has left me feeling all the feels, in different ways. From the whimsical magic of "The Star-Touched Queen" to the brutal honesty of "The Winner's Kiss", each book has been a journey worth taking.

I've already mentioned how much I love Marie Rutkoski's writing style - it's like she's speaking directly to my soul with her words. And yet, Roshani Chokshi's writing is just as enchanting, with a unique blend of mythology and fantasy that had me completely swept up in the world of Akara.

One thing that stands out to me about both books is their focus on complex characters and relationships. Both protagonists are multi-dimensional and relatable, with flaws and strengths that make them feel all too real. And the way they interact with each other - oh my goodness, it's like watching a beautifully choreographed dance.

Overall, I'm so glad I got to read these three books this month. Each one has left me feeling satisfied and eager for more, even if some of them did leave me feeling emotionally drained (I'm looking at you, "The Winner's Kiss"!). If you're a fan of fantasy, romance, or just great storytelling in general, do yourself a favor and check out these books - I promise you won't regret it.

**Rating**

* "The Star-Touched Queen" by Roshani Chokshi: 4/5 stars

* "The Winner's Kiss" by Marie Rutkoski: 5/5 stars

Stay tuned for my in-depth review and gush of "The Winner's Kiss" on Monday - it's going to be a doozy!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enyou know it's spring when all the bugs start congregating on your window when you're filming at night because they feel like your windows are a giant Street Lamp disgusting they should go back to hell where they belong hey guys it's Sam and this is my March wrap-up I thought I was going to end up having a bad reading month in March because the first book that I read which I'm sure you guys already know about because I've talked about it a lot already I didn't enjoy and I thought I was going to get into reading slump which I was for a few weeks but I end up pulling out of that reading something the last bit of the month and I read about three more books in 3 days so I think I have six books to show you but either way let's get going the first book that I picked up was the bronze horse and M Pina Simons and this is the first book in an epic historical romance that takes place in lenrad in World War II and I hated it a lot I've done a full review and gripe on this which I will link on the screen but I hated the characters I found them flat I thought the main character had no agency and I found the romance to be extremely toxic and borderline abusive actually emotionally manipulative and abusive and it no I did not enjoy it I enjoyed the historical parts of it though I enjoyed the historical elements they were beautifully done and very gripping and very accurate and I loved that and I wish there had been more of that and less of the romance but it is a love story supposedly so I have done a full review and gra link on the screen but I gave this one 1.5 out of five stars the next book that I picked up was addicted to you by Christa and Becca Richie and this is the first book in a long new adult contemporary romance and the first book follows Lily and low who are two best friends in college and both of them are struggling with their various addictions Lily is addicted to sex and low is an alcoholic and they have a fake relationship in order to hide their addictions from their friends and family and I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this one but I end up really enjoying it I gave this 3.5 out of 5 stars and I have a review which I will link on the screen as well and I liked the characters the couple that's the main focus in here wasn't my favorite couple but there are other couples and Other Side characters that come in that I really enjoyed I enjoyed these this couple but I didn't enjoy him as much as the other couples and I'm really interested to see how this whole story progresses and how these other characters weave in and out of the story and focusing on them I just found it really gripping I enjoyed the new adult aspect of it because a lot of times I feel like new adult romances can get very angsty and very toxic and I found that this relationship was discussed in a way that they were saying that this relationship is toxic but they need to fix this and this is not okay and there was no like shaming and stuff like you get in a lot of new adult books a lot of the new adult tropes I don't enjoy weren't present in this and I read this I think in one or two sittings I enjoyed it so much and I cannot wait for the rest of the series I then picked up Polaris by Mindy Arnette which is the second book in the Avalon duology but Avalon which is the first book follows a crew of teenagers who are a Band of Thieves that steal spaceships for a warlord and a Crim Lord in the space and it is amazing I love the first book if you're a fan of Mass Effect you're going to love these books these books are a ton of fun and there's a lot of similar elements between the Mass Effect video game franchise and this not the same story but a lot of the different sciency aspects of it I feel like are very similar to this so I enjoy the second book but I didn't enjoy as much as the first one the first one I gave four out of five stars this one is more of a three star book I actually think that there could have been more done if it was a Trilogy I think that a Trilogy would have made it have a lot more room to grow which I don't typically say I prefer duologies honestly I think a lot of trilogies could be put into duologies but this one I think needed a little more room to expand so I wasn't as attached to the characters as I would have liked I didn't really find myself willai to read this when I put it down I was fine reading it when I picked it up and I enjoyed it but when I put it down I kind of forgot about it I didn't really feel on the edge of my seat when the characters were in danger and I just didn't feel that attachment to them like I would have liked to so ultimately a good book a good read a good introduction to science fiction but just a three star for me and the next book that I picked up was the Forbidden Wish by Jessica Corey and I enjoyed this book so immensely this was our random readalong group book for this month and I I loved it I wouldn't have picked this book up if it hadn't have been for read along but I'm so glad that I did this is Aladdin retelling in which the Jenny is actually a girl but it is not the typical Aladdin story that you've heard before it is not the like Arabian Nights anything like that that you've heard as far as Aladdin it is its own unique story there's a few key elements that are left in but overall it's a retelling that is completely different it is so much more focused on the female characters the character of the genie is amazing one of my favorite female characters of all time and you know who's up there in the ranks for that so that's really saying something I adore her she was written so well there's also a couple Side characters that I really enjoyed and there is a gang of Lady assassins in here which just speaks to my every being honestly and they're a bunch of badasses and I love them so the female characters in this book are just powerhouses and I absolutely loved it and the writing is beautiful and I loved the world it's a unique fantasy world and in that it's not the typical thing that you see it's you know like a middle eastern kind of setting which you don't see a ton of in fantasy and I loved it I didn't particularly love the romance in here I don't have a big problem with it and I'm honestly in the minority when it comes to not liking the romance it just didn't read as very believable to me and that is just my opinion but overall I love this book and I gave it 4.5 out of five stars our live show has actually been rescheduled for tomorrow which is Sunday at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on Sarah Jan's channel so if you have read this book please join us for the live show we're going to be talking all about it and all the wonderfulness that is this book I then picked up the star touch Queen by rashne chaki so I actually won this book in a Twitter giveaway that was hosted by the author and I am so excited that idea this book comes out in May and it speaks to me on so many levels I actually included this in my most anticipated reads of the spring and that is because this is a Hades and pany retelling that is told with Indian mythology mixed in you guys know how I feel about hies and pranie and this book did not disappoint the writing in here is beautiful it is so unique it kind of feels like the writing that you would expect from like Neil Gaiman or the Fairyland series like that very kind of whimsical mysterious writing and it fits so well in that this is like weaving its own own fairy tale because this is not necessarily Hades and pranie it's inspired by Hades and pranie but its own unique story and its unique characters and the writing just makes the world feel so magical and so different and like anything anything goes you just have to expect with this book that things are just the way they are because they are and I kind of love that about a lot of books that's why I like Neil Gaiman and stuff like that because like I said this feels kind of like the ocean at the end of the lane or Stardust and that there's things that you're told and that's just how it is and the writing is beautiful and Hades and pranie and you know how I feel about them and it's just wonderful so this particular story tells the story of a girl who was born with a horoscope that predicts marriage of death and destruction and it just it just speaks to me I love the characters I love the protagonist she is stubborn and she is impulsive so I know she's a character that not everybody is going to enjoy but I adored her I enjoyed the love interest I enjoyed the world like I said because it's so unique and again another fantasy world we don't really get to see and it's beautiful and I highly highly enjoyed it so a review will be coming for this closer to its release date but I gave this one four out of five stars and the last book that I read this month which will come as no surprise and that is the Winner's Kiss by Marie rowski this is the third and final book in the winnner trilogy and I have done a review on both of the first two books which I will link on the screen so you can check those out if you have not read the series but this was amazing I loved it I read this book in one setting because I am trash and I could not put it down and I was terrified of being spoiled so as soon as I got it I just read it and I just stopped to eat and that's it and then I was exhausted and went to bed like right after I finished it because these books are emotionally exhausting Marie rowski is so amazing at writing emotion and angst in a way that is believable and not in just there's angst just to have angst and the characters are wonderful and the world is a different kind of fantasy world and that it's a fantasy that doesn't really have magic and the political Intrigue and interweaving and the intelligence of the main characters and this was everything to me I loved it so so much and it was just the perfect conclusion for the story and for the themes of the story and the characters and what they went through this entire time and the character development they're so different from what they were in the first couple of books and I loved it so so much this book is not my favorite in the series I do have problems with finales usually I don't like when things end and I always feel like they're going to end in a different way and so that makes me a little disappointed sometimes but overall this book is amazing this is still five out of five stars yes I enjoyed the first two books a little bit more they're a little a little bit higher but they're all five stars so you can't can't really say that one's necessarily better than the other because they're all Five Star reads to me I'm going to be having a review and a gush coming up on Monday for this book so if you're interested in all of my in-depth thoughts and in-depth feelings and just me a lot of me just like fangirling as my gushes are then check that out on Monday so that is it for all the books that I read in March comment down below and let me know your favorite book that you read this month so thank you all for watching and I'll see all you guys soon byeyou know it's spring when all the bugs start congregating on your window when you're filming at night because they feel like your windows are a giant Street Lamp disgusting they should go back to hell where they belong hey guys it's Sam and this is my March wrap-up I thought I was going to end up having a bad reading month in March because the first book that I read which I'm sure you guys already know about because I've talked about it a lot already I didn't enjoy and I thought I was going to get into reading slump which I was for a few weeks but I end up pulling out of that reading something the last bit of the month and I read about three more books in 3 days so I think I have six books to show you but either way let's get going the first book that I picked up was the bronze horse and M Pina Simons and this is the first book in an epic historical romance that takes place in lenrad in World War II and I hated it a lot I've done a full review and gripe on this which I will link on the screen but I hated the characters I found them flat I thought the main character had no agency and I found the romance to be extremely toxic and borderline abusive actually emotionally manipulative and abusive and it no I did not enjoy it I enjoyed the historical parts of it though I enjoyed the historical elements they were beautifully done and very gripping and very accurate and I loved that and I wish there had been more of that and less of the romance but it is a love story supposedly so I have done a full review and gra link on the screen but I gave this one 1.5 out of five stars the next book that I picked up was addicted to you by Christa and Becca Richie and this is the first book in a long new adult contemporary romance and the first book follows Lily and low who are two best friends in college and both of them are struggling with their various addictions Lily is addicted to sex and low is an alcoholic and they have a fake relationship in order to hide their addictions from their friends and family and I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this one but I end up really enjoying it I gave this 3.5 out of 5 stars and I have a review which I will link on the screen as well and I liked the characters the couple that's the main focus in here wasn't my favorite couple but there are other couples and Other Side characters that come in that I really enjoyed I enjoyed these this couple but I didn't enjoy him as much as the other couples and I'm really interested to see how this whole story progresses and how these other characters weave in and out of the story and focusing on them I just found it really gripping I enjoyed the new adult aspect of it because a lot of times I feel like new adult romances can get very angsty and very toxic and I found that this relationship was discussed in a way that they were saying that this relationship is toxic but they need to fix this and this is not okay and there was no like shaming and stuff like you get in a lot of new adult books a lot of the new adult tropes I don't enjoy weren't present in this and I read this I think in one or two sittings I enjoyed it so much and I cannot wait for the rest of the series I then picked up Polaris by Mindy Arnette which is the second book in the Avalon duology but Avalon which is the first book follows a crew of teenagers who are a Band of Thieves that steal spaceships for a warlord and a Crim Lord in the space and it is amazing I love the first book if you're a fan of Mass Effect you're going to love these books these books are a ton of fun and there's a lot of similar elements between the Mass Effect video game franchise and this not the same story but a lot of the different sciency aspects of it I feel like are very similar to this so I enjoy the second book but I didn't enjoy as much as the first one the first one I gave four out of five stars this one is more of a three star book I actually think that there could have been more done if it was a Trilogy I think that a Trilogy would have made it have a lot more room to grow which I don't typically say I prefer duologies honestly I think a lot of trilogies could be put into duologies but this one I think needed a little more room to expand so I wasn't as attached to the characters as I would have liked I didn't really find myself willai to read this when I put it down I was fine reading it when I picked it up and I enjoyed it but when I put it down I kind of forgot about it I didn't really feel on the edge of my seat when the characters were in danger and I just didn't feel that attachment to them like I would have liked to so ultimately a good book a good read a good introduction to science fiction but just a three star for me and the next book that I picked up was the Forbidden Wish by Jessica Corey and I enjoyed this book so immensely this was our random readalong group book for this month and I I loved it I wouldn't have picked this book up if it hadn't have been for read along but I'm so glad that I did this is Aladdin retelling in which the Jenny is actually a girl but it is not the typical Aladdin story that you've heard before it is not the like Arabian Nights anything like that that you've heard as far as Aladdin it is its own unique story there's a few key elements that are left in but overall it's a retelling that is completely different it is so much more focused on the female characters the character of the genie is amazing one of my favorite female characters of all time and you know who's up there in the ranks for that so that's really saying something I adore her she was written so well there's also a couple Side characters that I really enjoyed and there is a gang of Lady assassins in here which just speaks to my every being honestly and they're a bunch of badasses and I love them so the female characters in this book are just powerhouses and I absolutely loved it and the writing is beautiful and I loved the world it's a unique fantasy world and in that it's not the typical thing that you see it's you know like a middle eastern kind of setting which you don't see a ton of in fantasy and I loved it I didn't particularly love the romance in here I don't have a big problem with it and I'm honestly in the minority when it comes to not liking the romance it just didn't read as very believable to me and that is just my opinion but overall I love this book and I gave it 4.5 out of five stars our live show has actually been rescheduled for tomorrow which is Sunday at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on Sarah Jan's channel so if you have read this book please join us for the live show we're going to be talking all about it and all the wonderfulness that is this book I then picked up the star touch Queen by rashne chaki so I actually won this book in a Twitter giveaway that was hosted by the author and I am so excited that idea this book comes out in May and it speaks to me on so many levels I actually included this in my most anticipated reads of the spring and that is because this is a Hades and pany retelling that is told with Indian mythology mixed in you guys know how I feel about hies and pranie and this book did not disappoint the writing in here is beautiful it is so unique it kind of feels like the writing that you would expect from like Neil Gaiman or the Fairyland series like that very kind of whimsical mysterious writing and it fits so well in that this is like weaving its own own fairy tale because this is not necessarily Hades and pranie it's inspired by Hades and pranie but its own unique story and its unique characters and the writing just makes the world feel so magical and so different and like anything anything goes you just have to expect with this book that things are just the way they are because they are and I kind of love that about a lot of books that's why I like Neil Gaiman and stuff like that because like I said this feels kind of like the ocean at the end of the lane or Stardust and that there's things that you're told and that's just how it is and the writing is beautiful and Hades and pranie and you know how I feel about them and it's just wonderful so this particular story tells the story of a girl who was born with a horoscope that predicts marriage of death and destruction and it just it just speaks to me I love the characters I love the protagonist she is stubborn and she is impulsive so I know she's a character that not everybody is going to enjoy but I adored her I enjoyed the love interest I enjoyed the world like I said because it's so unique and again another fantasy world we don't really get to see and it's beautiful and I highly highly enjoyed it so a review will be coming for this closer to its release date but I gave this one four out of five stars and the last book that I read this month which will come as no surprise and that is the Winner's Kiss by Marie rowski this is the third and final book in the winnner trilogy and I have done a review on both of the first two books which I will link on the screen so you can check those out if you have not read the series but this was amazing I loved it I read this book in one setting because I am trash and I could not put it down and I was terrified of being spoiled so as soon as I got it I just read it and I just stopped to eat and that's it and then I was exhausted and went to bed like right after I finished it because these books are emotionally exhausting Marie rowski is so amazing at writing emotion and angst in a way that is believable and not in just there's angst just to have angst and the characters are wonderful and the world is a different kind of fantasy world and that it's a fantasy that doesn't really have magic and the political Intrigue and interweaving and the intelligence of the main characters and this was everything to me I loved it so so much and it was just the perfect conclusion for the story and for the themes of the story and the characters and what they went through this entire time and the character development they're so different from what they were in the first couple of books and I loved it so so much this book is not my favorite in the series I do have problems with finales usually I don't like when things end and I always feel like they're going to end in a different way and so that makes me a little disappointed sometimes but overall this book is amazing this is still five out of five stars yes I enjoyed the first two books a little bit more they're a little a little bit higher but they're all five stars so you can't can't really say that one's necessarily better than the other because they're all Five Star reads to me I'm going to be having a review and a gush coming up on Monday for this book so if you're interested in all of my in-depth thoughts and in-depth feelings and just me a lot of me just like fangirling as my gushes are then check that out on Monday so that is it for all the books that I read in March comment down below and let me know your favorite book that you read this month so thank you all for watching and I'll see all you guys soon bye\n"