Good evening, bookworms! I’m finally doing an update in this place. I’m also making this post an apology of sorts. I have to admit, I’ve neglected not only my posts and the site a little bit, but as I’ve said before, some delays in my reading schedules. In a prior post, I mentioned (I think) that I got a job promotion so my focus has been on training and trying to balance my current job, as well as learning all the new responsibilities. It involves a lot of book and account keeping, and to me, that’s a totally foreign language. My literature-oriented brain is drained by day’s end trying to learn proper computer programming skills, memorizing codes, blah blah.. etc.
Anyway, back to the books! I know I just brought you guys two reviews not long ago and if I’m honest, I’m struggling a little bit in deciding what to read at the moment. My TBR pile is stacked up to my eyeballs and I want to read so much at once, that I find myself not able to decide on one single thing, so I’m not reading anything. While I contemplate my choices (feel free to leave your suggestions in the comments), I’m going to get back on top of things and bring you guys two book hauls that I did at the beginning of this month. Seriously, even my bookstore outings have suffered. Fingers crossed I get back into the swing of things and settle into a routine again soon.
So back at the beginning of the month, I got an e-mail from B&N saying I received money from some settlement. I had no clue what it pertained to, but hey, they gave me money to shop, and shop I did, which is where I picked up these gems. I’ve always been into history, and lately, I’ve been obsessed with the Hamilton soundtrack, so I HAD to pick up this biography. After I finished the Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Maas, I had to see what else she had (I had picked up book one in this series prior) and grabbed book two in her Throne of Glass series.
Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow:
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Ron Chernow presents a landmark biography of Alexander Hamilton, the Founding Father who galvanized, inspired, scandalized, and shaped the newborn nation.
In the first full-length biography of Alexander Hamilton in decades, Ron Chernow tells the riveting story of a man who overcame all odds to shape, inspire, and scandalize the newborn America. According to historian Joseph Ellis, Alexander Hamilton is “a robust full-length portrait, in my view the best ever written, of the most brilliant, charismatic and dangerous founder of them all.”
Few figures in American history have been more hotly debated or more grossly misunderstood than Alexander Hamilton. Chernow’s biography gives Hamilton his due and sets the record straight, deftly illustrating that the political and economic greatness of today’s America is the result of Hamilton’s countless sacrifices to champion ideas that were often wildly disputed during his time. “To repudiate his legacy,” Chernow writes, “is, in many ways, to repudiate the modern world.” Chernow here recounts Hamilton’s turbulent life: an illegitimate, largely self-taught orphan from the Caribbean, he came out of nowhere to take America by storm, rising to become George Washington’s aide-de-camp in the Continental Army, coauthoring The Federalist Papers, founding the Bank of New York, leading the Federalist Party, and becoming the first Treasury Secretary of the United States.Historians have long told the story of America’s birth as the triumph of Jefferson’s democratic ideals over the aristocratic intentions of Hamilton. Chernow presents an entirely different man, whose legendary ambitions were motivated not merely by self-interest but by passionate patriotism and a stubborn will to build the foundations of American prosperity and power. His is a Hamilton far more human than we’ve encountered before—from his shame about his birth to his fiery aspirations, from his intimate relationships with childhood friends to his titanic feuds with Jefferson, Madison, Adams, Monroe, and Burr, and from his highly public affair with Maria Reynolds to his loving marriage to his loyal wife Eliza. And never before has there been a more vivid account of Hamilton’s famous and mysterious death in a duel with Aaron Burr in July of 1804.
Chernow’s biography is not just a portrait of Hamilton, but the story of America’s birth seen through its most central figure. At a critical time to look back to our roots, Alexander Hamilton will remind readers of the purpose of our institutions and our heritage as Americans.
Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #2) by Sarah J. Maas:
“A line that should never be crossed is about to be breached.
It puts this entire castle in jeopardy—and the life of your friend.”
From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.
Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.
Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena’s world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie… and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.
I kid you not, the day after I bought these books, I went back to the bookstore with a friend and wound up with another haul. I have no explanation other than you just don’t say no to the bookstore. Here’s what I got.
Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass #3) by Sarah J. Maas:
Celaena has survived deadly contests and shattering heartbreak―but at an unspeakable cost. Now, she must travel to a new land to confront her darkest truth . . . a truth about her heritage that could change her life―and her future―forever. Meanwhile, brutal and monstrous forces are gathering on the horizon, intent on enslaving her world. Will Celaena find the strength to not only fight her inner demons, but to take on the evil that is about to be unleashed?
The bestselling series that has captured readers all over the world reaches new heights in this sequel to the New York Times best-selling Crown of Midnight. Packed with heart-pounding action, fierce new characters, and swoon-worthy romance, this third book will enthrall readers from start to finish.
The Assassin’s Blade (Throne of Glass #0.1-0.5) by Sarah J. Maas: Contains all five novellas.
Celaena Sardothien is Adarlan’s most feared assassin. As part of the Assassin’s Guild, her allegiance is to her master, Arobynn Hamel, yet Celaena listens to no one and trusts only her fellow killer-for-hire, Sam. In these action-packed novellas – together in one edition for the first time – Celaena embarks on five daring missions. They take her from remote islands to hostile deserts, where she fights to liberate slaves and seeks to avenge the tyrannous. But she is acting against Arobynn’s orders and could suffer an unimaginable punishment for such treachery. Will Celaena ever be truly free? Explore the dark underworld of this kick-ass heroine to find out.
Judgment in Death (In Death #11) by J.D. Robb: In an uptown strip joint, a cop is found bludgeoned to death. The weapon’s a baseball bat. The motive’s a mystery. It’s a case of serious overkill that pushes Eve Dallas straight into overdrive. Her investigation uncovers a private club that’s more than a hot spot. Purgatory’s a last chance for atonement where everyone is judged. Where your ultimate fate depends on your most intimate sins. And where one cop’s hidden secrets are about to plunge innocent souls into vice-ridden damnation…
That’s all she wrote for now! I hope you all have a lovely week/weekend filled with your favorite and new reads! Any suggestions, please feel free to leave a comment below!
