SequinBooks

I don’t think that I have ever been as spooked as I was when reading Hollow Kingdom and there was an exact description of my apartment. So weird!

This apocalypse book told mainly from the perspective of a crow was so bizarre and fun. Starting the moment the apocalypse beings, Hollow Kingdom follows the reactions to the animals as the human race quickly falls. Buxton nails on the head everything that is wrong with society while taking an in-depth look at what makes nature so magical. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about this book since I read it, remembering vivid characters (including my favorite, Genghis Cat) and thinking about Buxton’s commentary on society. I quickly learned though that it was not a good book to read on my lunch breaks because boy oh boy was it graphic. Be warned that, as the book goes on, the number of just disgusting and bloody descriptions grows. I read this book slowly, wanting to live in each and every moment with ST the crow as he tried to figure out what was going on in the world.

If I had to describe my favorite genre, it would have to be goofy dysfunctional family stories. And There’s a Word for That by Sloane Tanen perfectly fits the bill. I originally picked this one up because the cover called to me and I’m so glad I did. After years apart, Marty and Bunny find themselves pulled back together when they end up at the same fancy rehab facility. What follows is a comedy of errors featuring both of their families. Fame, family, and love are dealt with using humor in a way that makes even the least relatable things relatable. Tanen has created such realistic yet messed up characters and I loved every moment I spent with them. My biggest complaint is that it ended. Definitely give this one a read. This is the perfect beach read with depth and substance.

This book is a master class in dramatic irony. Bridget Collins has created a book that explores what the world would be like if books weren’t made for reading and instead were vessels that stored away memories that people don’t want to remember. She explores deep questions like morality and the importance of learning from the past while also writing a great love story.

Her world, while not incredibly different from the real world, is so well thought out. Every aspect of the binding world is explained beautifully and she shows characters with many different views about the good and bad of binding. With three very distinct parts to the story, she keeps the reader on their toes.

This book is beautiful and dark, magical yet very realistic, and filled with so much love, hate, and anger.

This debut novel by Dutch author Jaap Robben is absolutely beautiful.  Robben is a poet and children’s book author and you can see the influence of both of those writing styles in the books,  His writing is poetic yet sparse.  You Have Me to Love tells the story of a young boy, Mikael, as he grows up on a remote island.  Robben really explores what it would be like to go through puberty in a void, away from other teens and with his mother as the only female in his life.  I feel completely in love with Mikael and only wanted the best for him.  The entire time I was reading it, I just kept telling everyone at work, “You have to read this.  It’s amazing.”  A tough but definitely worthwhile read that will have you thinking about it for a long time after you finish reading it.