{Review} The Tea Dragon Society, The Tea Dragon Festival, & Dewdrop by Katie O' Neill

Hey, guys!

This summer I fell deep into love with Katie O'Neill's writing style, art style, and overall skill. Her books are so engaging and entertaining. I've loved all three that I have read and they have been instant 5-star reads.  

If you adore beautiful art, wholesome and complex stories with wonderful and complex characters, and engaging story-lines --- YOU WILL LOVE THESE BOOKS! 

Please read these books! They deserve every bit of hype that they receive!

Dewdrop is out April 7, 2020

an eARC copy of this book was provided via NetGalley!

This is such a wonderful and uplifting little book.

Dewdrop is so encouraging and works to empathize with their friends to try to make sure that they aren't damaging their mental or physical health.

The different characters all have different struggles that they face. They all overcome their issues with simple, relatable solutions, and they're generally positive and relatable overall.

I think that this is such an important little book for young readers. It shows readers that everyone struggles at times, but with the proper encouragement and a different look on life, you can accomplish anything. I cannot wait to share this with my younger reader friends, older friends, kiddos --- well, anyone! This was such a delight!

I'm definitely going to be a long-term Katie O'Neill fan! 

The Tea Dragon Festival was released September 17, 2019

An eARC was provided via NetGalley for my honest review

This was such a lovely and perfect little story. I absolutely adore everything about this story, the art style, the plot, and the characters. The representation in this book was so freaking wonderful! Wonderfully done! I loved learning more and more about the world of dragons and tea dragons. I'm so in love with this world. I hardcore recommend this book to anyone who loves whimsical, lovely, soft stories. Everything by Katie O'Neill is perfect so far.

The Tea Dragon Society was released on October 31, 2017

I borrowed this sweet book from my local library

This was such a perfect story. It made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me feel so much emotion! If you haven't read this beautiful story yet, you are missing out!

Katie O'Neill has a magical, heartwarming storytelling skill that I rarely find in my favorite books. I tend to go for the darker, more violent stories and protagonists, but this book and her later books made me really appreciate the more wholesome and fluffy aspects that I love in my favorite characters, fantasy worlds, and my dragon babies. 

I don't want to spoil too much of this book, but I honestly think that every moment of it is perfect. I cannot wait to read it again and binge all of O'Neill's books. She deserves the world!

Happy reading!

Olivia

~ Liv the Book Nerd ~

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New Adult Reviews -Colleen Hoover & Erin Watt Edition

Hey, guys!

I'm back with another group of reviews! This past year was a really great year for reading new adult romance. I really enjoyed exploring the genre and finding the authors that I enjoyed. I'm excited to see what other new adult books I pick up in 2019. Stay tuned for more reviews and maybe some rereads!

November 9 by Colleen Hoover

Page Count: 310

Published on: November 10, 2015

Published by: Atria Books

Genre(s): Romance, New Adult, Contemporary

Source: Print

Where To Find It: Goodreads// Amazon  

My Rating: 4 stars

TW: trauma, questionable advances, non-consensual sexual advances 

     I have a love-hate relationship with this book. I absolutely adore the characters - Fallon and Ben. I loved the whole concept of this book. It was really unrealistic but so addicting to read and I couldn't put it down. I really wish it had been executed a little differently, but overall I really enjoyed the story. Though I really enjoyed the concept and the characters. I also really loved how the book would make fun of itself sometimes. It was sort of meta, but also not? I'm not sure what to think. 

     With that being said, there were also quite a few aspects that were really problematic. I'm still not sure what to rate this book because of these elements. I really did not enjoy how Colleen used trauma and exploited the character's self-confidence issues to further the relationship. That really irritated me and made me feel gross for enjoying the book. Ben also really did not understand what consent meant. Some of the "romantic" scenes made me very uncomfortable and I wish they had been handled with more care. I understood what Colleen was going for, but the execution was just not stellar. 

      I think I'm going to reread this book in 2019. I'd love to mark up my book and write a longer review. I'm just so unsure at this point, but I really wanted to get my initial thoughts down. 

When reading this book, read with caution. 

It Ends With Us ~ 3 stars

Page Count: 367

Published on: August 2, 2016

Published by: Atria Books

Genre(s): Romance, New Adult, Contemporary

Source: Print

Where To Find It: Goodreads// Amazon  

My Rating: 3 stars

     I read this book while on a plane to and from Seattle, Washington and let me tell you...this was a hard book to read. The topic was incredibly impactful and very hard to stomach at times. This probably the most impactful CoHo book to date. I really did enjoy this book quite a lot. Lily is such an admirable and wonderful character. I absolutely adored reading her story. She is one of those characters that I can't help but root for and be proud of. She was raw, she was realistic, she was vulnerable, she was stronger than I could ever be. 

     The powerful message of this book is so inspirational but so heartbreaking. I love the originality of this storyline and I'm so glad that I picked this up. If you read this book, I implore that you read the author's note after finishing this book...but only AFTER, okay? It's pretty essential to the whole ending of the book. 

All Your Perfects by Colleen Hoover

Page Count: 306

Published on: July 17, 2018

Published by: Atria Books

Genre(s): Romance, New Adult, Contemporary

Source: Print

Where To Find It: Goodreads// Amazon  

My Rating: 4 stars

     This was another CoHo book that I could hardly put down (that tends to be the case whenever I read her books). This was another romance novel that touched on such a relevant and heartbreaking for both parties in the relationship: infertility. While reading this book, I felt so incredibly empathetic for Quinn and Graham. Their love is so beautiful and real, but when they begin to have problems having a child, their relationship and marriage are tested. 

     This story was absolutely beautiful. It is definitely my second favorite CoHo book. I can't wait to read what Colleen gives us next. 

     I'm also so glad that I got to go see Colleen during her Chicago tour stop. It was definitely an adventure to remember. 

Follow Courtney and Mallory @bookishmalpal and @courtney_ann_g

Paper Princess by Erin Watt

Page Count: 370

Published on: April 4, 2016

Published by: Timeout LLC

Genre(s): Romance, New Adult, Contemporary, Young Adult

Source: Print

Where To Find It: Goodreads// Amazon  

My Rating: 3 stars

    I'm not usually prone to reading romance novels that are solely written for those who just want drama drama drama. I'm not usually a mega fan of books that are so unrealistic and fantastical that I roll my eyes every other page, but I surprisingly was quite engaged when reading this book. It was just so mindless and fast that I couldn't put it down. I'm not sure if I'll continue the series, but we'll have to see. I might pick them up from the library. 

    This was just really fun to read. If you're looking for something mindless, potentially sexy, and full of drama..this is for you! 

When It's Real by Erin Watt

Page Count: 413

Published on: May 30, 2017

Published by: Harlequin Teen

Genre(s): Romance, New Adult, Contemporary, Young Adult

Source: Print & ebook

Where To Find It: Goodreads// Amazon  

My Rating: 3 stars

When I first started this book, I was absolutely addicted. I loved it so much, but once it hit the half-way mark I really started to hate it. Once the two love interests got together, it was just bad. I was not a fan of the romance. One of my comments was "gag me with a tuning fork". I think I said that two or three times while reading this book. 

Overall, the first half of the book was excellent, but the last half really killed it. I just really did not enjoy the cringy-ness of the relationship. It wasn't executed well.

Happy reading!

Olivia

~LivTheBookNerd~

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