Graphic Novels & Comics Read In 2017

Hey, guys!

      I read quite a few graphic novels and comics this year, especially towards the end of the year. I really enjoyed reading the interesting storylines and getting to see how the authors and illustrators imagined their characters. 



The School For Good & Evil: The Never Ever Handbook by Soman Chainani

My Rating: 4 stars

My Review: {click here}

This really made me excited to read book #4! I can't wait to get to it! I definitely recommend you read it after The Last Ever After!















Red Hood & the Outlaws Volume 1: Redemption by Scott Lobdell & Kenneth Rocafort

My Rating: 4 stars


I really enjoyed this! I borrowed this from my boyfriend a couple months back and I really enjoyed the art style and story. I'm really behind on reading all of the back story, but I really enjoyed the first volume of Red Hood & the Outlaws!









Dragon Ball Z Volume 1 by Akira Toriyama

My Rating: 4 stars

I really liked this too! Alex is a big DBZ fan and when I found this at Goodwill I knew it would be fun little surprise for him...and then he let me read it. I thought this story was really interesting. Though I don't have time to actually read all of the volumes or watch the show, I know I'd be interested in reading/watching more eventually. 












Jem & the Misfits by Kelly Thompson

My Rating: 3 stars 

I really liked the art style of this comic. I think I'd continue with it if I found the other issues for as cheap as I did this one. I think that the characters could be really cool and I think the way the story was going could be really funny too. 

The Backstagers Act One by James Tynion IV

My Rating: 5 stars


Of the comics that I bought with my Christmas money, this one was probably one of my top favorites. I really enjoyed the characters, the art style, the story, and the plot. I can't wait to get my hands on more issues. I've been looking for the full first volume for about a week now. 










Ladycastle by Delilah S. Dawson & Ashley A. Woods

My Rating: 4 stars

This comic really has a great story and some really awesome characters that I want to know more about. I cannot wait to find more Ladycastle issues!















The Runaways (#1-#4) by Rainbow Rowell & Kris Anka

My Rating: 5 stars all together

Alex and I have really gotten into the Runaways lately, so I'm really excited to get the next issues purchase the full first volume. I love the story and I love the characters. Rainbow Rowell's writing is phenomenal and the art style is awesome. 














Saga Volume 1 by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

My Rating: 4.5 stars

My Review: {click here}

This was a reread, but I loveeee this story and this series. I can't wait to continue on with this series.













Saga Volume 2 by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

My Rating: 4.5 stars


I looooved this volume! This series just gets better and better! I cannot wait until I can just buy the mega volumes and binge them all. This story is so great!!!












Saga Volume 3 by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

My Rating: 5 stars

This was definitely my favorite of the three volumes I read. I really love how this story is developing. I can't wait to read the rest of the volumes and I can't wait to see where the characters go.












Anne of Green Gables: A Graphic Novel by Mariah Marsden, Erika Kuster, Brenna Thummler, & Kendra Phipps

My Rating: 4.5 stars


I just adore Anne's story. While this illustrated parts of the story beautifully, it wasn't the full book, so don't expect a full graphic novel version of the classic story. This graphic novel was STUNNING! I was absolutely floored by how gorgeous the illustrations were. I'm so glad that this book is a thing. It included almost all of my favorite parts of the original book. I highly recommend this graphic novel if you love Anne of Green Gables!





Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

My Rating: 5 stars
My Review: {click here}


This is one of my favorite graphic novels and one of my favorite graphic novel artists and writers. I read this back in 2015 and I really really loved it. When I picked up a copy for myself this year, I had to read it again. This is one of my favorite stories and when someone asks for a great graphic novel I, of course, recommend this one. 










Wolf Children: Ame & Yuki by Mamoru Hosoda & Yuu

My Rating: 3 stars

My best friend, Emmie, let me borrow her copy of Wolf Children and it was very interesting. I really like the art style and the length of the book, but the story was very very strange and kind of unsatisfactory. Overall, the story was good, but it wasn't my favorite.











Night Shift by  Debi Gliori

My Rating: 4 stars

My Review: {click here}

This was sent to me for an honest review, and wow was I glad I accepted the request. This book is so powerful and has such a great message. 





I'm really happy with the graphic novels, mangas, picture books, and comics I read this year. Comment down below if you read any of these or if you'd like to read any of them!

Happy New Year!
Olivia
~LivTheBookNerd~

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My Favorite 2017 Reads

Hey guys!

    It's that time again! This year it was actually really hard to pick a complete list of 17 books that I REALLY enjoyed. This year was just so busy and I really wasn't completely wow'd by the books I read, so I decided to just list my top favorites and leave it where it ended. This year it came out to 13 and 2 rereads. 

     I expect to read a couple more short books and a few more comics/mangas/graphic novels, so who knows if this list is absolute. I usually post this within the first couple weeks of January, but I'm switching it up! 

Here are my top favorite reads of 2017! They aren't in any particular order...but ACOWAR is #1!!!

1. A Court Of Wings & Ruin (A Court of Thorns & Roses #3) by Sarah J. Maas
2. Eliza & Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia
3. This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills
4. Shadow & Bone by Leigh Bardugo
5. Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass #3) by Sarah J. Maas
6. Queen of Shadows (Throne of Glass #4) by Sarah J. Maas
7. Empire of Storms (Throne of Glass #5) by Sarah J. Maas
8. Whichwood (Furthermore #2) by Tahereh Mafi
9. If I Fix You by Abigail Johnson
10. Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo
11. Runaways #1 by Rainbow Rowell & K. Anka
12. Backstagers #1 by James Tynion IV 
13. The Assassin's Blade (Throne of Glass) by Sarah J. Maas

Favorite Rereads:

• A Court of Thorns & Roses (ACOTAR#1) by Sarah J. Maas
• A Court of Mist & Fury (ACOTAR #2) by Sarah J. Maas

(Honestly, who didn't see those two coming? I never shut up about them!)

      What were your favorite books you read this year? I'm pretty happy with my list. I can't wait to read more this next year. The books I have planned for the next few days are going to be great! 

Happy reading!!!
Olivia
~LivTheBookNerd~

~LivTheBookNerd~

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{Review} Queen of Shadows (Throne of Glass #4) by Sarah J. Maas

Page Count: 648

Published on: September 1, 2015

Published by: Bloomsbury USA Childrens

Genre(s): Fantasy, High Fantasy, YA, Romance

Source: paperback 

Age Rating: YA

Where To Find It: Goodreads // Amazon // Book Depository

My Rating: 5 stars

Goodreads synopsis:

The queen has returned.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she’s at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past…

She has embraced her identity as Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, she must fight.

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die for her. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen’s triumphant return.

The fourth volume in the New York Times bestselling series continues Celaena’s epic journey and builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.

~~~

Hey, guys!

     If you've been following my blog for very long, you'd know about my avid love for Sarah J, Maas's books. I've been reading her Throne of Glass series for a good part of the year and I'm just so in love with it. Queen of Shadows is probably one of my favorite books of the year...actually, a good majority of my top 17 will probably be books by Maas. Prepare yourself for a ramble-y review (spoilers for the previous books will be in this review). I'll mainly focus on my thoughts on the characters, but know I just love them all. They are so imperfectly perfect. 

    Anyway, I adored this book. It was such a fantastic addition to the series and I love love love the characters that were developed throughout this book. The characters that were introduced in Heir of Fire were just so well developed and so beautifully done in Queen of Shadows. I thought they were fantastically written and it was such a joy to get to know even more. The changes and events that these characters live through are so realistically written and they are just so well done. 

      I especially enjoyed reading more and getting to know Lysandra. She is such a great character and I love love love how her character has developed. I can't wait to read more about her in Empire of Storms. I'd also love to read more about Nesryn because I kind of adore her? She's a major badass and I love her whole personality. She's so loyal and passionate and it's evident that she is falling in love with Mr. Angst (aka Chaol). I just cannot wait to see how she develops in Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn.....I need it! 

     Also! Can we just gush about Aedion? I just love his character. He's so dreamy and I love his relationship with Aelin and I ship him hardcore with Lysandra. I desperately hope that he and Lysandra get together. The tension between them kills me!

    Can we just rave about Rowan? He is just a perfect specimen of fae prince. I just adore his relationship with Aelin. They just fit each other so well and I really want them to just be together forever. They deserve every happiness and I want them to just love each other forever and rebuild Terrasen. I just want it to be so. 

    Arobynn....what a sick, sick dude. I cannot stand him! He needs to just not. I really did not fully realize how awful he was to Celeana until this book. QoS really shows how much Celeana went through and how it really shaped who she is. Arobynn's behavior really opens the eyes of the reader to her trials as a human being. (And then when/if you read The Assassin's Blade, then your heart just breaks. I definitely recommend you read TAB either before or after QoS.)
     
     I just love the interactions between Manon and Dorian. I feel like their relationship is going to be really important in the next couple of books. I really ship them. However, I feel like the death of Sorcha was a major plot device and used to develop Dorian's character. I love how their love changed Dorian and helped him grow, but his grief and heartache just breaks my heart. Maybe it was because I read these books so quickly, but I felt like the potential relationship between Manon and Dorian developed very quickly. It's evident that Dorian is absolutely crushed by the murder of Sorcha, but he just seemed to move on really quickly from it. '

    The amount of world-building and plot detail that Maas includes and continues to include as the series continues is so astoundingly well done. I've always known that Sarah J. Maas is a thorough writer and has the fantastic capability to create a phenomenal world, but she just always blows me away with how fleshed out and intricately detailed her world is. The similarities between the magic system and fae world in her ACOTAR & TOG series are just amazing and it's always so amazing to learn something new about Erilea (and compare it to Prythian). I never see the plot twists or character twists coming, which is always a delight. They never seem to be too convenient or done in order to just complete the plot circle. Everything that happens in these books happens for a reason. I just love it so much.       
      I apologize if this is a bit of a ramble, but my Sarah J. Maas reviews tend to go in that direction. It's so hard to write about something you love so much. I find it hard to read her books very critically because they are a bit of a (not-so) guilty pleasure. Next time, I'll write consistent notes. 

Happy reading, everyone!

My Sarah J. Maas Reviews:

• The A Court Of Thorns & Roses series
• A Court of Thorns & Roses
• A Court of Mist & Fury
• A Court of Wings and Ruin
• The Throne of Glass Series
• Throne of Glass
• Crown of Midnight
• Heir of Fire
• The Assasin's Blade {coming soon!}
• Empire of Storms {coming soon!}
• Tower of Dawn {to read}

Olivia

~LivTheBookNerd~

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{Closed Giveaway} Rings of Time by Renee Veillet

Hey, guys!

      Today I'm bringing you an awesome giveaway for a paperback copy of Rings of Time by Renee Veillet. Renee has kindly sent me 2 copies of her debut novel and one is to go out to one of you! Rings of Time came out in late October of this year, so it's brand-spankin' new! It sounds fantastic, so I can't wait to share a copy with one of you!  

Goodreads synopsis:

Abandoned at birth, eighteen-year old Emilie is searching for her family. Just as she is about to unravel the clues to her mysterious beginnings, she is thrust back in time a century, into the arms of a handsome stranger in the year 1913. Emilie’s attempts to return to the future are quickly put on hold as she gets caught up in the harsh realities of early homesteading, where self-reliance is key to survival. Stubborn and proud, Emilie makes it her mission to thrive in her new surroundings regardless of the inhospitable young man who feels responsible for her well-being.  The past and present collide as unexpected connection are revealed. Secrets and lies become exposed causing Emilie to question everything she believed to be true. How much is she willing to sacrifice for a family and a chance at love?

~~~

Page Count: 276

Published by: Tellwell

Published On: October 20, 2017

Avaliable on: Amazon // Barnes & Noble // Book Depository

**Rings of Time is also available via Kindle Unlimited for Free!**

~~~

Renee Veillet lives in Calagary with her husband and two sons. She has a Diploma in Business Administration from Grande Prairie Regional College and is studying writing at the University of Calagary

Click {here} for a Q&A!









How To Enter To Win: 
Enter through the rafflecopter for multiple entries to win!
When Does It End? 
January 5th! This is a 10-day giveaway!
U.S. only!
What Do I Win? 
A paperback copy of The Rings Of Time

Good luck, readers!

Olivia

~LivTheBookNerd~

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~~~

Follow the Entry options for a chance to win RINGS OF TIME!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

{Review} The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood

Page Count: 199

Published on: 2006

Published by: Canongate Books

Genre(s): Fiction, Mythology, Historical, Fantasy, Cultural

Source: paperback -- for a class

Age Rating: ?

Where To Find It: Goodreads // Amazon // Book Depository

My Rating: 3 stars

Goodreads synopsis:

For Penelope, Odysseus's wife, running a kingdom while her husband is away fighting in the Trojan War is no simple matter. Already distressed that he had been lured away because of the shocking behavior of her beautiful cousin Helen, Penelope must also raise her wayward son, face scandalous rumors, and keep more than one hundred lustful, greedy, and bloodthirsty suitors at bay.

Margaret Atwood gives voice to Penelope, one of antiquity's most infamous heroines, so that she can tell her story at last and set the record straight once and for all.

~~~

Hey, guys!

      The Penelopiad is a retelling set in the Underworld long after the original events of the Odyssey. In the novel, the story is narrated by Penelope and her twelve maids through prose, narrative, and other mishmash ways. I really enjoyed the overall concept and premise of this book, I really enjoyed the mythology and backstory of the classic epic poem, and I really enjoyed Penelope's narration style. Once again, Atwood did not disappoint. I was thoroughly entertained. My friends Gabby, Redd, and I always came to class with something to say about this book. It created a really great discussion in class. 

Overall, I thought this novel was really interesting and fun to read. There was never a dull moment when reading from Penelope and the maids' perspectives. I really enjoyed their speculations concerning the events of the Odyssey, the analysis of the different characters from the other characters, and I especially loved the parts that were completely from the maids' perspective. 

I really enjoyed Atwood's modern take on this epic mythological story. I'm such a huge fan of Atwood and I'm such a sucker for anything that involves mythology, so this was perfect. This book was one of the main reasons why I took the class this semester, but it actually a bit of a letdown and a joy at the same time? It really wasn't what I was expecting (letdown) but it was still fantastic (joy). It was all in my head, so it's kind of hard to explain. Overall, all you need to know is that it was actually really wonderfully written. I really enjoyed the speculation and different takes on the story. 

I couldn't go into major detail with this book because it's really character driven and really plot driven, but it's just short enough that I'd probably spoil something.

I recommend this book if you love mythology, retellings, and fascinating fictional, but maybe historically based stories. Sorry this was a bit of a convoluted mess, but I know y'all would enjoy this book.

Happy reading!
Olivia
~LivTheBookNerd~

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{Tag} All I Want For Christmas Book Tag

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone!

     Today I decided to do a cute little tag to get us in the bookish and holiday mood! I, personally, celebrate Christmas and starting Friday my friends and family are going to begin the actual "festivities" with good food, giving gifts, and just spending time together. I think I got all of my friends and sisters at least one book (what's new?), so I'm excited to see if they like their gifts. 

I originally saw this cute tag on Stephanie's Book Reviews, so I'll link her original post!

1) What fictional character do you want Santa to leave under your Christmas tree?

The answer is always Rhysand! I just adore his character! 

Credit goes to Merwild!

2) What character do you want to kiss under the mistletoe?

....Well, I just used Rhysand....he's always my go-to...

Let's go with Fred Weasley! {RIP)

Credit: emmilinne

3) You write your Christmas list for Santa, what are the top 5 books on it?

....I couldn't pick just 5!

1. A Court of Frost & Starlight by Sarah J. Maas
2. Throne of Glass #7 by Sarah J. Maas
3. Catwoman: Soulstealer by Sarah J. Maas
4. Restore Me by Tahereh Mafi
5. Cruel Prince by Holly Black
6. Geekerella by Ashely Poston

4) It’s Secret Santa at Hogwarts, what do you most want to receive?

Someone's favorite book?

5) You get to the spend the day with the characters and movie adaptation actors from one fandom, what do you pick?

HARRY FREAKING POTTER!

6) What fictional animal would you like to replace Rudolph and be able to meet on your roof?

Buckbeak the Hippogriff? Duh? 

7) You invite 10 fictional characters to your new years eve party, who do you pick?

1. Rhysand
2. Feyre
3. Cassian 
4. Azriel
5. Aelin & Chaol
6. Amren
7. Fred & George
8. Harry 
9. Ron
10. Hermione

I guess I didn't really stray from the Harry Potter & ACOTAR theme, but....IT'S SO HARD GUYS! I WANT TO MEET ALL OF THEM! ALL OF MY FAVORITE CHARACTERS!

8) What character would make a good Santa (Doesn’t have to be appearance, personality counts too)?

Uh...I'm thinking Kenji from Shatter Me? I'm not sure why, but yes? Also Molly Weasley! She is the best!

Credit: TheCarmiBug on Deviantart

I hope you enjoyed this tag as much as I enjoyed answering the questions and finding the fan art. Have a Merry Christmas and a happy holidays!

Olivia 

~LivTheBookNerd~

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