Sunrise on the Reaping (The Hunger Games #0.5)by Suzanne Collins (2025)
YA Fiction | Dystopian
Blurb:
When you’ve been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for?
As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes.
Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.
Divine Rivals (Letters of Enchantment #1)by Rebecca Ross (2023)
YA Fiction | Historical | Fantasy
Blurb:
When two young rival journalists find love through a magical connection, they must face the depths of hell, in a war among gods, to seal their fate forever.
After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again. But eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow just wants to hold her family together. Her mother is suffering from addiction and her brother is missing from the front lines. Her best bet is to win the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette.
YA Fiction not only unafraid of the darker side of life, but that goes after it staring into its depths unflinching and writing down what it sees.
I’ve officially caught up on (almost) all things Mindy McGinnis, finally reading her entire backlist except things like short stories and co-writing projects done for other authors. But McGinnis’ solo stuff? I’m all caught up and what a wild ride. The first book of hers that I read was The Female of the Species and from that moment I was hooked (it’s still my favorite though I wish they hadn’t changed the cover recently. The original cover shown in this post looks like it’s a book with something to say while the new cover just looks like creepy semi-abstract art imo). I read Heroine, Be Not Far From Me, The Initial Insult duology…then it was time to partner with my library’s resources to find everything else I’d missed. My conclusion? She’s still one of my top favorite authors who can tackle any genre that comes to her mind and one day I hope to meet her.
In this post I’ve included brief reviews for all of her books (except sequels though most of her books are stand-alones anyway) and if I’d written a longer review (you know how I like to ramble haha) then I’ve included the link. So scroll through and see if anything catches your fancy. She really is a talented author and at the very least her books will make you think twice before settling in Ohio lol.
YA best-selling authors team up with the superhero cash cow. An exciting partnership or a basic marketing ploy?
The year was 2017. I’m obsessed with Leigh Bardugo and Sarah J. Maas while the movie industry is obsessed with superheroes. Again. Or, rather, still? The publishers are making bank off of several popular YA authors and have an idea of how to make more. DC’s perk? They reach the up-and-coming audience. But while I was voraciously willing to pick up anything by these new favorite authors, the release of DC Icons made me pause and choose to save my carefully rationed pennies not only because I was hesitant about the genre but because by several accounts these books were, in a word, disappointing. However now it’s 2023 and I’ve remembered that libraries exist.
I’m so excited to be a part of the grand cover reveal for ABERRATION by author Cathy McCrumb!! This is the highly anticipated second book in the thrilling Children of the Consortium science fiction trilogy and I absolutely cannot wait to read it! Keep scrolling to find out more and don’t forget to add it to your TBR so you don’t miss out!
Iron Widow (Iron Widow #1) by Xiran Jay Zhao (2021)
YA Fiction | Fantasy/Sci-Fi
Blurb:
The boys of Huaxia dream of pairing up with girls to pilot Chrysalises, giant transforming robots that can battle the mecha aliens that lurk beyond the Great Wall. It doesn’t matter that the girls often die from the mental strain.
When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it’s to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister’s death. But she gets her vengeance in a way nobody expected—she kills him through the psychic link between pilots and emerges from the cockpit unscathed. She is labeled an Iron Widow, a much-feared and much-silenced kind of female pilot who can sacrifice boys to power up Chrysalises instead.
This Vicious Grace (The Last Finestra #1) by Emily Thiede (2022)
-eARC Review-
YA Fiction | Fantasy
Blurb:
Three weddings. Three funerals. Alessa’s gift from the gods is supposed to magnify a partner’s magic, not kill every suitor she touches.
Now, with only weeks left until a hungry swarm of demons devours everything on her island home, Alessa is running out of time to find a partner and stop the invasion. When a powerful priest convinces the faithful that killing Alessa is the island’s only hope, her own soldiers try to assassinate her.
I’m so excited to be a part of the grand cover reveal for RECORDER by debut author Cathy McCrumb!! This is the first book in the new and exciting Children of the Consortium science fiction trilogy and I cannot wait to read it! Keep scrolling to find out more and don’t forget to add it to your TBR so you don’t miss out!
Janella’s spellbinding debut novel is an unforgettable combination of Moulin Rouge and Phantom of the Opera with a dash of Erin Morgenstern’s The Night Circus. A star showgirl must win a magician’s competition riddled with danger in order to secure her freedom, even as a handsome magician distracts her heart, in this lush, debut fantasy. Keep reading this post for an excerpt and review! Continue reading →
This cover is so intriguing that I had to jump on and help promote the series! Keep reading for more on the books and the author, plus click on the tour banner to visit the official tour stops! Continue reading →
pooled ink 