Harry Potter Spells Book Tag

The end of July was Harry Potter’s birthday. Since I haven’t done a book tag in a long time (quite unusual for me), I decided to do a Harry Potter-themed one (although I’m a few days late for his birthday…happy belated?).

The Harry Potter Spells Book Tag was created by Kimberly Faye Reads.

An upcoming release you wish you could get your hands on right now

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

I’m still a little upset that I missed out on getting a copy of this AND meeting Erin Morgenstern at the ALA Conference in June. I love her Night Circus novel, which is about a magical circus that’s open only at night where two magicians compete to see who’s best. It’s beautifully written and easily sweeps up the reader in the story. I’m hoping The Starless Sea will be the same.

Favorite series starter

Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

It’s one of my favorite fantasy books and it’s the first book in a series. By now most people are familiar with the Song of Ice & Fire series because of the show, so I won’t give a brief synopsis. But this book does a great job of laying the groundwork for the larger story that follows.

A book that gave you all the warm fuzzies

Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend

This is a middle-grade fantasy novel about a girl everyone believes is cursed who’s taken away to a new land where she competes to be accepted in a prestigious society for people with unique abilities. The story is obviously influenced by the Harry Potter books and I love it for that. It gave me the “warm fuzzies” for the Harry Potter series and made me nostalgic for the moments when I first read those books.

A book that made you ugly cry

The Golden Fool by Robin Hobb

Well it didn’t make me ugly cry, but I did shed a tear or two at certain moments. This is my favorite book so far in Robin Hobb’s large Realm of the Elderlings series, which is made up of several trilogies and one quartet. This large series begins with the story of a bastard son of a prince who becomes an assassin’s apprentice. I’m enjoying the series and am one book from the end. 😥 I’m gonna miss it all when I’m done.

Bookish hero or heroine you want around to protect you in real life

Kylar

If I was going to get into some deep shit, I’d want Kylar there to protect me. He’s the protagonist from Brent Weeks’s Night Angel trilogy, a fantasy story about a street urchin who becomes an wetboy’s (assassin) apprentice.

A book you intentionally spoiled for yourself

Allegiant by Veronica Roth

Insurgent was such a disappointing read that I refused to read the last book of the Divergent series. Instead, I accepted a blogger’s offer to tell me everything that happens so I wouldn’t have to suffer through the end.

A book you wish you could make everyone read because you loved it so much

The Shape of Water by Guillermo del Toro and Daniel Kraus

I love this story. I saw the movie first and then read the book, and I loved them both. Although the movie was made before the book, I love the book more. It’s historical romance with a hint of fantasy. Set in the early 1960s, it’s about a mute woman who falls in love with an amphibious man. The writing is beautiful and is part of the reason why I love the story so much. The acting and storytelling is great in the movie, but the book gives the characters more depth. I HIGHLY recommend both the movie and the book.

A book or series you wish never ended

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

I love this story. 🙂 I love the writing and the setting and the magical atmosphere it’s infused with. I appreciate that it’s a standalone novel, but I wish the story had continued in some form. I just want more of it. It’s so wonderful. As I mentioned above, it’s about a circus that’s held at night where two magicians compete to see who’s best.

A book with an uplifting ending or message

You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero

I completed it fairly recently. In it, Sincero encourages her readers to strongly believe in achieving their goals to manifest them. The book was motivating and was just the kick I needed to push on with what I’m pursing. I listened to the audio book, which was great; it’s narrated by Sincero.

A book you wish you could forget you ever read

the Harry Potter books

Maybe the Harry Potter books. That way I could read them again as if for the first time and experience the charm and magic all over again. 🙂

An author whose books always get you out of a slump

Rick Riordan

If I feel a reading slump coming on, I either read a comic book, magazine, or favorite novel. The later is usually Harry Potter, Song of the Lioness, or a Rick Riordan book because they are light, entertaining reads that I can quickly complete. I enjoy the Percy Jackson books for its take on Greek and Roman mythology and for it’s silly adventures.

A swoon-worthy hero or heroine

Black Panther

Oh yes! Black Panther. What’s not to love about Chadwick Boseman in that black leotard doing kick-ass moves and striking swoon-worthy poses?

A book that caused you to stop doing all other things until you finished it

To Night Owl from Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer

I could not put this book down when I read it. It’s a middle-grade contemporary novel about two girls whose dads are dating each other. The dads send the girls to summer camp so they can meet and get to know each other, but the girls vow never to be friends. This was such a hilarious read. I enjoyed every minute of it. I was so hooked that I basically completed it in a day. I either stopped what I was doing or did everything one-handed.

A book that was painful to read (for whatever reason) or broke you

Behind the Canvas by Alexander Vance

This is a middle-grade fantasy book about a girl who must enter the world of paintings to help a boy there she has befriended. I was eager to read this story because I liked the concept, but, ugh, it was painful to read because of how BORED I was the entire time I read it. I was disappointed.

A book that had you laughing out loud

To Night Owl from Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer

I didn’t mean to reuse the same book, but I couldn’t quickly think of another book that made me laugh out loud as I read it. This one did. It’s very enjoyable. Definitely check it out.

A book that made you want to send it (or your e-reader) flying

The Fires of Heaven by Robert Jordan

I wanted to chuck this book every time Nynaeve tugged her braid in frustration or bullied someone. I was so annoyed by her. After several rereads, I’ve started to understand why she’s so annoying but that hasn’t stopped me from being frustrated by her still.

The Fires of Heaven is the fifth book in the extensive Wheel of Time series, which is about three farm boys who learn that they are essential to the fate of world as good battles evil, a.k.a. the Dark One.

Bookish world you wish you could visit

Tortall

Apart from the Harry Potter world and The Night Circus, Tortall would also be a cool world to visit. Tortall is the land that Tamora Pierce’s YA fantasy series the Song of the Lioness is set in. The story is about a girl named Alanna who disguises herself as a boy so that she can train to become a knight. It’s one of my favorite stories and one of the books that got me hooked on fantasy as a kid.

A book with a shocking twist or ending

Beyond the Shadows by Brent Weeks

This didn’t exactly occur at the end, but Dorian’s transformation shocked me, and it happened so gradually that at first I didn’t notice. I was shocked and upset with Brent Weeks because Dorian is one of my favorite characters. I wish there was a book (or trilogy) about him because it seems that he had a redemption arc until he got to this book. Beyond the Shadows is the last book in the Night Angel trilogy.

A character death that destroyed you

no characters died in this one (well, no one essential)

There is a character death in the Realm of the Elderlings books that affected me, but I can’t say who it is because that’s a huge spoiler. (It occurs in the Tawney Man trilogy, I believe.) But I’m dreading that Fitz or the Fool might die — like, seriously dreading this. I’m 80% sure that Robin Hobb might do this to me and shred my heart to pieces because they’ve both been through so much. 😥 I hope they don’t die and the series has a happy ending. I have just one more book to read to find out.

Best series conclusion

Angel Stone by Juliet Dark

This is the third book in the Fairwick Chronicles, a paranormal romance novel about a woman who moves to upstate New York to teach at a small college, where she learns that faerie creatures are real and most attend the college. She also ends up in a relationship with an incubus. The books were fun reads, and I liked the ending. I don’t usually complete the series I begin, so I didn’t have much option for this category, but The Angel Stone wrapped up well and in an exciting way because there was time travel, faerie politics, and a battle between magical creatures. But I think I liked it more because relationships heal in this one.

Well, that’s it for my celebration of Harry Potter’s birthday (which I don’t usually celebrate so YEAHIE for trying something new).

Consider yourself tagged.

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