Things have definitely been a bit crazy over the last year, but it’s given me time to indulge in my love of reading again. My own, personal way to escape everything that's going on.
Throughout the latter half of 2020 I managed to read some note-worthy books, so I wanted to do a quick roundup of a handful that've suck with me (and dip my toes very slowly back into reviews).
I'll try to keep them spoiler free, but please do proceed with caution!
1. Midnight Sun by Stephanie Meyer
I was a teenager when I first read Twilight and yes, I was one of those fangirls - I had the merch, I went to the midnight screenings of the movies and I semi-stalked the cast's social media for any updates. Despite not being a re-reader, Twilight is one of the few series that I keep hold of. You know, just incase.
When Midnight Sun was originally leaked, I loved it and I loved the idea of a whole book from Edwards' perspective. So of course, when I saw it was actually getting published years later, I ordered it. Unfortunately, in the month it took me to read Midnight Sun, the original excitement wore off and I found myself wondering what people were even reading to give it 5 stars.
The story is quite literally just a repeat of Twilight. Only it's a lot more detailed and littered with cringey snippets from Edwards mind-reading ability, which is why it was a whopping 700 pages long.
Kudos to Stephanie because her writing has definitely matured over time, however my issues stand with how repetitive some of the scenes felt. I found myself skim-reading over a lot of Edwards inner monologue, it became incredibly tedious to read about how he thought Bella was so amazing and beautiful and then his raging hatred for basically everything else. He's also just a massive creep and it made me seriously uncomfortable.
I was always #TeamJacob and this book only instilled that further into me.
We did get to see more insight from the Cullen clan, which I really enjoyed. Especially seeing more of the dynamic with Alice's visions/how they affect Edwards decisions. There were also little bits of canon that were missing from Twilight, like when Edward was missing from school for a few days after initially meeting Bella, which were filled in and probably the most redeeming features of this book.
Overall, I still love the Twilight saga. I love what it did for me as a teen and for how many young readers it brought into the fandom. I wouldn't even say no to a spin-off (come on, we were all expecting it, right? Cue a Renesmee series), but please can we leave Edwards' brooding back in 2010?
2. Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
"People lose things when they have a mental lapse. Then they find that thing again from the lost place. But my mother isn’t lost. She’s gone."
Firstly, incredibly blown away to find out that this is actually a debut novel. Secondly, this was hands down my favourite book of 2020.
It is an urban fantasy following sixteen year old Bree Matthews, a student who is grieving the death of her mother, as she heads off to a prestigious early college program at UNC Chapel Hill. The very first night on the campus, Bree finds herself drawn to a mysterious bad-boy and ends up smack bang in the middle of a magical attack on the school. From there she unearths family magic, discovers a prestigious secret society and has to face the truth of her ancestral history.
This book was incredibly fast paced. It was, despite having a complex world to build up, very easy to fall into and I found myself reading until 2am and not wanting to put it down.
The story itself is a fantastical Arthurian retelling, taking the Knights of the Round Table for a new twist within a young adult setting. For those who may not be too clued up on King Arthur, don't worry because I'm not either (I'm not really a historical person) but that didn't stop me from loving the concept of this. There was a lot of magical world building, lore, history and character development throughout. The magical system was all very unique and not something I'd come across before, either.
"Not good, Bree. Focus on the task at hand and not the nice boy who smells nice too."
Of course, as with every YA, there was some love interest; a trope-y insta-love and a definite potential love triangle. But I really appreciated seeing our characters developing and in turn their relationships with each other change throughout the book, it's something I'm eager to see more of in future.
I also wanted to note that I really admired how inclusive it was. Not only was our main character black and we got to see a lot of what life's like to live as a black woman (facing racist remarks, discrimination etc), but her best friend Alice was American-Taiwanese, there were several LGBTQ relationships and a non-binary character, too.
This book honestly left me gasping and wanting more. Not only is it an incredible new take on an old tale, with demons, magic and action; it also covers important topics such as grief and racism. I'm very excited for the next instalment!
3. My Best Friends Exorcism by Grady Hendrix
This one was a little bit of a spur-of-the-moment read when I was drawn to the cover and I'm glad I ended up picking it up, because I really enjoyed it.
The premise of this story is pretty much exactly what the title suggests - an exorcism, except it's dipped in 80's pop-culture, teen drama and some questionable (though very relative to the time) humour. We follow main characters Abby and Gretchen as they navigate the world of high school (and friend group fall-outs) when suddenly Gretchen starts behaving strangely and their friendship is tested under disturbing circumstances.
It was a very slow burning read to begin with, the first half was mostly just teen girls being exactly that - teen girls. However that wasn't necessarily a bad thing, it just left more time open for building up our characters, explaining their relationship and of course throwing in a bunch of 80's nostalgia such as roller-skate parties and hair-brush sing-a-longs.
The book wasn't as scary as maybe I would have expected with it being labelled a 'horror', but it did harbour a few chilling moments and the actual exorcism scene featured some great imagery. It's also quite reminiscent of Jennifers Body in parts because of how the possession manifests.
Overall it was a fun, almost cheesy read that I think would portray really well as a movie (especially with the ending). It wasn't too intense but still peaked my interest and had me gripped; laughing, gritting my teeth and reminiscing my own childhood (although I was a 90's kid, but still..). It was my first Grady Hendrix book, but 100% will not be my last.
Have you read any of these books? Plan on picking them up? I'd love to know any thoughts you have.
I'm planning on doing a few more of these bookish round-ups, perhaps monthly? I suppose it depends how much I manage to read and how much I have to say .. We'll see.
Until next time,
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