I'm so excited to be writing this post! It has been too long since I shared some book reviews with you all. For at least this month I'm going to switch it up a little and do these posts every other Saturday. This way you get more book reviews per post! If you want to follow along with my reading in real time - make sure you are following ReadWithKaylaXO on Instagram!
Let's dive in to the NINE books I've read so far in 2021!
Anyone else just really wish they were Aelin Galathynius? Just me? Okay.
I've loved the entire Throne of Glass series, but my biggest complaint about the last book (Queen of Shadows) was how many POVs there were that weren't intertwined. It was so nice to have a vast majority of the book be full of POVs that worked together and though we were still seeing the same amount of POV characters, they were at least together more often than not.
I'm starting to get sad that I'm almost done with this series. I'm not ready to see Aelin's story come to an end!
Rating: ★★★★★
Read if you love: Throne of Glass, assassins, badass women, adventure
Purchase: Barnes and Noble | Amazon
If you know anything about me, you know I am a sucker for a good teen romance. I may be an old lady (okay, I'm only 26... but I work with kids and teenagers for a living and to them I'm ancient!), but I will still happily read a teen romance or watch a good teen romcom. Lucky for me - this series is both! I really wanted to re-read all of the books before the third movie comes out (February 12th - eep!), and I ended up devouring the whole series in four days... oops!
I love Lara Jean and Peter's story. It feels real and relatable, even though it starts under some seriously wild circumstances. I also definitely was a Margot/Lara Jean hybrid in High School and so they definitely are two of my comfort characters. It's fun to reminisce through books!
Rating: ★★★★★
Read if you love: The TATBILB movies, romance, awkward teen love stories, strong sister bonds
Purchase: Barnes and Noble | Amazon
Alright... I'll admit it... I watched all of Bridgerton before reading this book... twice... SHAME!
But honestly, I had heard nothing about this book series or that it was being made into a Netflix show until I opened Netflix and saw the show. I binged it in one whole day and absolutely loved it! I immediately ordered the first book, and in true Kayla form, loved it so much more than the TV series.
This book was fast-paced and kept me engaged the whole time. I loved getting to read about the world I had already seen on screen and fell in love with the characters all over again. And though I think TV Simon is far handsomer than book Simon, I did love book Simon's personality a lot more. He was more hurt than angry when the betrayal occurred and that made the ending make a lot more sense.
I also really enjoyed that there was far less focus on figuring out who Lady Whistledown was. With eight books in the series, it's somewhat disappointing that we learned her identity so early on in the TV show. Had I read the books first I probably would've been upset with the reveal.
I cannot wait to read the other Bridgerton siblings stories!
Rating: ★★★★★
Read if you love: Bridgerton, sexy dukes, Regency era novels
Purchase: Barnes and Noble | Amazon
6. The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever by Michael Bungay Stanier
I was asked to read this book for an alumnae leadership program I am taking place in through my sorority, but to be honest, I was incredibly excited to do so!
My career being so focused on education and the fact that I usually (in non pandemic times) have a team of staff under me that I work with, on top of my advising role within the organization, makes the idea of learning to be a better coach and mentor incredibly important to me.
I loved that this book was based around questions and guiding your staff, mentees, students, whoever to the solutions that they need to find instead of just being a fixer, which I'll admit I have a tendency to do. It was full of tangible advice and I'm excited to put it into practice.
Rating: ★★★★
Read if you love: improving your leadership style, leadership books, habits
Purchase: Barnes and Noble | Amazon
I put off reading this book for so long because I was not ready for Jude's story to be over. I've loved the world of Elfhame and reading about how these mortals born in the modern/human world interact with the Fae Folk. This last book did not disappoint.
I felt like it was a great wrap up to Jude's story and though I would love to see more of her future in Elfhame, the conclusion was incredibly satisfying.
Rating: ★★★★★
Read if you love: adventure, enemies to lovers, fantasy
Purchase: Barnes and Noble | Amazon
I genuinely put this book on my TBR list based solely on how beautiful the cover is, and I was right to judge this book by its cover. The story is just as beautiful as it is!
I loved how so many different fairytales were woven into this story about a princess who, because of a curse, has been hidden away from all but her mother, brother and two other children for her entire life. Soraya's story is empowering and full of twists and turns that I never predicted. Though it has a satisfying and fully wrapped up ending, I can't help but want to know more about what comes next for Soraya, her family and her kingdom. These characters are lovable and interesting and well developed. I loved this book.
Rating: ★★★★
Read if you love: fairy tales, fantasy, family drama, badass women
Purchase: Barnes and Noble | Amazon
I wasn't sure how I would feel about a Throne of Glass book that was just about Chaol, Nesryn and Yrene and so far removed from the actual action going on with Aelin, Dorian and co. But I surprisingly really loved this book! Yrene wasn't a character I was super interested in during her appearance in The Assassin's Blade, but I absolutely adored her in this book!
There were so many incredible character relationship dynamics at play, and I loved all of the new characters introduced in Antica. I definitely wasn't expecting to grow so attached to so many of them. AND I DEFINITELY was not expecting there to be so much CRUCIAL information revealed to Nesryn and Chaol of all characters.
This may be one of my favorites in the series and I definitely have a new favorite ship! Dreading saying goodbye to this series in just one more book!
Rating: ★★★★★
Read if you love: adventure, unexpected romance, Throne of Glass
Purchase: Barnes and Noble | Amazon
It's been really nice to have so much reading time at the start of this year, but I'm sure these posts won't always have NINE books... especially not two SJMs! I set my reading goal for 2021 at 75 books, and I can't wait to share what they end up being with you all!
xo,
Kayla
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