The Friday 56 (176) & Book Beginnings: The Case Study of Vanitas Volume 1 by Jun Mochizuki

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Step once more into the imagination of Jun Mochizuki, creator of New York Times-bestselling PandoraHearts! A tale of vampires and curses set in a whimsical and dark steampunk Paris unfolds! On the streets, rumors abound of a clockwork grimoire said to sow curses among the vampires. Now, guided by the Book of Vanitas, the gears begun to turn, and the story of two men, Noe and Vanitas, takes shape...

Beginning: "Listen well, mon chaton. You must never let anyone steal you're "true name."

56: "Me, a chasseur? A bourreau?? That's rich!"

Comments: I talked about the first volume of The Case Study of Vanitas in January. However, I realized I never selected it as my pick for The Friday 56. Well, I'm here to correct that. So far, I'm enjoying this manga series. It's shaping up to be one of my favorite takes on vampire lore. What are you reading this week?

Review: Come Tumbling Down by Seanan McGuire

Title: Come Tumbling Down
Series: Wayward Children series #5
Author: Seanan McGuire
Source/Format: Borrowed from the library; Hardback
More Details: Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Tor.Com; January 7, 2020

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

The fifth installment in Seanan McGuire's award-winning, bestselling Wayward Children series, Come Tumbling Down picks up the threads left dangling by Every Heart a Doorway and Down Among the Sticks and Bones 

When Jack left Eleanor West's School for Wayward Children she was carrying the body of her deliciously deranged sister--whom she had recently murdered in a fit of righteous justice--back to their home on the Moors. But death in their adopted world isn't always as permanent as it is here, and when Jack is herself carried back into the school, it becomes clear that something has happened to her. Something terrible. Something of which only the maddest of scientists could conceive. Something only her friends are equipped to help her overcome. Eleanor West's "No Quests" rule is about to be broken. Again...

**There are possible spoilers for the first four books in the Wayward Children series in this review. You have been warned…. **

Come Tumbling Down is a slight departure from some of the more hopeful themes of the Wayward Children series. But then again, nothing about Jack and Jill’s story has been anything but a dark trek through the Moors. Even so, Come Tumbling Down was one of the darker installments of the series. It also featured my favorite group of characters and setting from this series, and the overall story was good.

Jack Wolcott has always been one of my favorite characters. With each of her appearances throughout this series, she has always stood out. Even after her appearances in Every Heart A Doorway and Down Among the Sticks and Bones, there was always one lingering question left: What happened to Jack and Jill once they returned to the Moors? Come Tumbling Down firmly answered that question.

As I mentioned above, I liked the story. It was as fast-paced as the others in the series, and the ending left Jack’s story in a much more satisfying—and bittersweet—place. I also enjoyed seeing more of the Moors again. The setting—which is a prominent part of Down Among the Sticks and Bones—was expanded beyond the windmill and the town, most prominently by a couple of new locations.

Come Tumbling Down is one of my favorite sequel stories from the Wayward Children series to date. I’m already looking forward to the next book, Across the Green Grass Fields.

Music Monday (110): KWAYE and Teena Marie

   Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: This week, I wanted to talk about another artist who is new to me: KWAYE. Lost in My Boots was the first song I listened to by this artist, and I immediately loved the sound of it. It’s now one of my favorite songs, and I'll be listening to more music by KWAYE!

Andrea: Who remembers Square Biz by Teena Marie? Well, that's what I'm listening to this week! I'm excited to find out what you've been listening to this week.

What are you listening to this week? We'd love to hear your recommendations in the comments below. 

The Friday 56 (175) & Book Beginnings: Come Tumbling Down by Seanan McGuire

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

The fifth installment in Seanan McGuire's award-winning, bestselling Wayward Children series, Come Tumbling Down picks up the threads left dangling by Every Heart a Doorway and Down Among the Sticks and Bones 

When Jack left Eleanor West's School for Wayward Children she was carrying the body of her deliciously deranged sister--whom she had recently murdered in a fit of righteous justice--back to their home on the Moors. But death in their adopted world isn't always as permanent as it is here, and when Jack is herself carried back into the school, it becomes clear that something has happened to her. Something terrible. Something of which only the maddest of scientists could conceive. Something only her friends are equipped to help her overcome. Eleanor West's "No Quests" rule is about to be broken. Again...

Beginning: "Eleanor West was fond of saying--inasmuch as she was fond of saying anything predictable, sensible, or more than once--that her school had no graduates, only students who found somewhere else to do their learning for a time." 

56: ""No," she said, with surprising strength."

Comments: Come Tumbling Down was just as good as I thought it was going to be. What are you reading this week? Or what are some of the 2020 books you're looking forward to?

Quarterly Recap: January-March

It’s been a very hectic and unpredictable beginning to the year. It’s also finally time for the first quarterly recap of 2020.

January Reviews:

• The Radium Girls by Kate Moore
• The Case Study of Vanitas volum #1 by Jun Mochizuki

February Reviews:

• Dragon's Bait by Vivian Vande Velde
• God's of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

March Reviews:

• The Forgotten Girl by India Hill Brown
• The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert
• The Case Study of Vanitas volume #2 by Jun Mochizuki

Other January Posts:

• Happy New Year
• I'm Back +Some 2019 Thoughts, Blogging Goals, & 2020 Books I'm Looking Forward To

Other February Posts:

• I Watched Labyrinth (1986)
• Favorite Recipe: Pie Crust + Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie
• Short Break

Other March Posts:

• I Listened to Treat Myself by Meghan Trainor
• I Listened to Where Are You? by Abi Ocia

I don’t currently have too many concrete plans at the moment. I do want to do something art related again, since it’s something I enjoy.

Some blog posts that are coming soon…

I got approved for a copy of Heiress for Hire by Madeline Hunter. So you can expect my thoughts about it sometime closer to the release date. I also listened to Death Stranding: Timefall, so there’s going to be a post about that. And, last, but certainly not least, I read one of my most highly anticipated books of 2020: Come Tumbling Down by Seanan McGuire. The review should be live on the blog Wednesday morning next week.