March has been a month of shadowhunters and lots of amazing superheroes. It has also been yet another month of neglecting this blog. Sharing my thoughts on books is one of the things I love the most. But I haven’t had the energy to do much about it so far this year. I hope you enjoy my monthly wrap-ups, because thus far in 2018 they are the only kind of post I’m certain of posting every month. I have a lot of stuff clogging my mind lately, most of it being about the classes I’m taking, but hopefully it won’t last forever. Anyway, here are my favorite books of the month, the TV shows I watched, books I reread and what’s on my radar for April.
Favorite books of the month
I’ve boiled it down to my two absolute favorite books of the month. One of them I inhale-read and the other made me love one of my most read authors even more.
Eliza and her Monsters by Francesca Zappia is a young adult contemporary novel about fandom and how it connects people. Like many YA contemporaries it focuses on a romantic relationship between two rather awkward teenagers. I sped through it because of how easy it is to love the characters and because of the straightforwardness of the writing. There are countless cute and funny moments. One time I even found myself flapping my hands for a full minute due to cuteness overload.
I finally got my shit together and read Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare and I loved it. Shipping is not really my thing, but I cannot get over how much I want Kit and Ty to happen. Actually I just love Ty in general and I want to see more of him. I love the world Cassandra Clare has created and I’m absolutely elated that she has planned more series taking place in the world of shadowhunters.
TV and movies
I had a couple of sick days in March, which meant binging TV in bed all day. I’m not complaining.
Black Panther was amazing. I enjoyed all of the characters, especially Shuri, black panther’s sister. I always have to pee when I’m at the movies. This time I just couldn’t leave, because I didn’t want to miss a thing. I might be wrong, but I believe they’re going to make a sequel and I’m all for it. WAKANDA FOREVER.
The Flash is probably my favorite superhero show. I’m not entirely sure yet, but it’s up there. I just started watching it again, but since I’m caught up on neither Legends of Tomorrow nor Arrow, I can’t watch the crossover episodes. That’s why I decided to put The Flash on hold until I’m all caught up.
Like I said, I decided to watch Arrow and Legends of Tomorrow, starting with the latter. I’m currently just starting season two and it’s a really cool show to be honest. I wasn’t sure about liking it or not, but now I know I do. I mean, it has time travel. What’s not to like?
I only have a couple of episodes left of American Gods season one. I read the book by Neil Gaiman, which the show is adapted from. While it didn’t make my favorites list, I found the world enormously intriguing. The TV show is just as strange as the book and I think they’ve done a good job capturing the atmosphere of the story.
Audiobooks
I’m a big fan of audiobooks. I love going for walks with a story in my ears. And again this month, I discovered a couple of good ones.
Magnus Bane, warlock extraordinaire, is always a pleasure to read about. The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare was a joy to listen to. Some stories were vastly better than others, but even the less fun stories did not take away my overall enjoyment of it. All of the stories are narrated by different people, which surprisingly wasn’t an issue for me. I like consistency, but in this case it worked none the less. My favorite story of the bunch is The Midnight Heir.
The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan. I love Rick Riordan’s books. A couple of years ago I read all ten of the Percy Jackson books and The Heroes of Olympus books back to back. I’ve tried reading this series, The Kane Chronicles, multiple times before, but I wasn’t liking the format for some reason. It’s meant to be kind of like a transcript of a recording of the main characters’ adventures, which I just couldn’t get into. That was then. Recently I decided to try the audiobook, and I’m glad I did. Although I’m not as invested in the story and characters as I am with the author’s other series, I enjoyed it immensely. Immediately after completing this first instalment, I went ahead and got the second book on audio as well. I’m excited to see what happens next and learn more about the Egyptian pantheon.
Rereads
I’m happy to say that I’ve reread not one but two books in March. Rereading hasn’t been a huge thing for me, but recently I’ve been feeling this urge to revisit some of my favorite worlds. This month has been a massive trip to the world of shadowhunters.
I listened to City of Bones by Cassandra Clare on audio this time around. It’s been awhile since I first read it in 2014, but I still liked it a lot. Compared to The Infernal Devices and The Dark Artifices series, The Mortal Instruments is my least favorite. That being said, it’s not a bad series. It has a special place in my heart. It’s the book that got me hooked on the shadowhunter world. I love it, because it gave me peace from my thoughts for a while, which is always nice. I think I liked this book as much as I did this second time around because of nostalgia, and honestly, that’s as valid as liking it for any other reason.
The Infernal Devices series in general, and therefore partly Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare, cemented my love for Clare as a storyteller. It’s magically addictive and I love every second of the series. I almost never ship, almost being the operative word, but as with Kit and Ty from Lord of Shadows, I love the idea of Tessa and Will. I guess Cassandra Clare knows how to make me want love to happen.
On my radar for next month
There is only one thing that I’m overly excited for in April. Sure there probably are some books that I’d like to read coming out. But nothing beats this.
Westworld is FINALLY returning April 22nd with the second season. I adore this show. I love everything about it. Especially the music, I listen to the soundtrack all the time. I never much cared for the wild west aesthetic before watching this show. I’ve forgotten a great deal since watching the first season, which of course means it’s time to rewatch it and get really excited for the new season.
What were you’re favorite books you read in March? Which books and/or shows are you anticipating?
Eliza and Her Monster was so good, one of the best YA contemporaries out there! I should try a superhero show! I (FINALLY) watched the first two Thor films this month, so I feel like an expert on the genre now ? Of course, I didn’t watch the new one, which is the one I actually wanted to see – cause three movies in a month is asking too much, but at least I started ?