Welcome to Litsy!

YA, dystopian, sapphic, cli-fi(?). It was just ok, the ending was blah, but there's obviously going to be a sequel. YA doesn't hit for me like it used to. Which I suppose makes sense, since I'm not the target demographic.

I‘m not sure if it will ever not be weird for me to read a pandemic ‘tox‘ story published before 2020. This is an Us against Them YA story with a particular angle on the origins of a toxin infecting the population. It had nothing to do with American politicians playing to their base, facts be damned - unfortunately that‘s where my head gets stuck these days when I attempt to read dystopian novels.

March #DoubleSpin Category: Pub 2016-2019.

2 ⭐️s
Ugh. I debated having this be a DNF but then it started to get good and I thought, “Okay, I‘m starting to see some potential.” Then it all started going downhill again. I really started to worry when I was running out of pages and there was no way the story could be finished. Then I turned the page and BAM book done. I literally flinched and looked around a room I‘m in BY MYSELF, as if the walls would give me some answers. Not worth my time.

I finished this book yesterday and I‘m still trying to collect my thoughts. I loved it, that‘s for sure. The characters were really well written and the plot too, to the point where it was almost terrifying (😅). There were scenes that had me giggling, sobbing or muttering “what the hell” over and over again under my breath (just ask my family, it‘s true).
5⭐️

#AutumnPlease #Day12 #Sweater It‘s bloody hard to find a book with either Sweater in the title or someone wearing one on the cover! Or is it just my library? This dystopian novel is about a girls boarding school is put in quarantine after a disease called “the Tox” makes their island too dangerous to traverse. #Scarathlon #SpookyGhostClub 6pts

thank you Amy!!! I love this package that I opened early and used for serotonin and dopamine. ❤️❤️❤️Grateful for you❤️

Finished this book this morning. #EasterOMC @Clwojick @LadyKatrina and #AwesomeAprilReadathon @Andrew65 Off to a good start on the readathons.

I didn't hate the book or the story, I was just confused as to how this happened. I felt like I was dropped in the middle of a story. There is no beginning and no ending. I have so many questions. But this got me another bingo spot for#NSR23 #Booktok made me read it. @Nessavamusic and 2 bingo spots for #ISPYBINGOAPRIL @Clwojick @TheAromaofBooks

#EasterOMC These are my reading goals for this challenge. @Clwojick @LadyKatrina #1ShareGoals

✨️4/5⭐️✨️

I enjoyed this book. It reminded me a bit of The Grace Years' book, which I also loved. I requested this book through netgally because of all the reviews I seen and I was scared that it wouldn't live up to the hype, but to me, it did. It was creepy, scary, and gory. All the things i love in a book. I would read more of this author book.

What. Did. I. Just. Read??? I'm not really even sure what to say about this book. What a crazy, crazy ride. I needed more of a conclusion though. I felt the author left her audience hanging and wondering what happened. Really reminded me of The Strain with a mix of The Walls Around Us. If you enjoy creepy, gruesome, and suspenseful books this one would be for you.

#readKY #mystery #academy #isolatedisland #lordoftheflies #wilderness #survival

Book 173🎧 4⭐️

I‘ve always loved this cover💕

I got total Nick Cutter vibes from this story! Just MUCH more tame… you know what I mean😂 and this was still pretty graphic!

The Tox is incurable… and it does extreme things to the body. Who do you trust when you‘re up against the impossible?

Different and quite good. Girls quarantined on an island at their boarding school. I can‘t say much more without giving too much away, so read it! 😊

*PIC TO COME*
I really loved this book. I‘m a huge fan of horror, and this had it all. Mysterious sickness? Horrible superpowers? Sapphics? I would recommend this book to anyone who‘s a fan of superpowers that have downsides and the Aliens franchise. A fantastic #pridemonth read.

Read my full review at: www.rainyreader.com/single-post/wilder-girls
#pride #LGBT #horror #sci-fi

What. The. Fuck. I actually really liked this book, but I am at a lose for words. The main character Hetty contradicted herself so much and pretty much used everyone around her for her own benefit. And I feel as tho nothing makes sense, I get what the author was trying to get at, but I need more details. And the way the book ends. What!? Just dropped off like that? WTF. I liked it but left me so confused. 3.5/5

Excellent. 5 stars. Definitely reading more by this author. #dystopian #queer

Continuing my #queer reads. This one is giving me Plain Bad Heroines vibes.

“The same…memories told like stories until they belong to everybody. Parents sliced up to share, first kisses exchanged like gifts.”

This book was so overrated! I‘ve been looking forward to it for a while now & have heard nothing, but great things, but it simply didn‘t live up to the hype. I found the relationships Hetty had with both Byatt and Reese confounding and shallow. Hetty basically uses others, and feels no guilt about it. I won‘t ruin the ending in case you‘re still wanting to read Wilder Girls, but I promise you, it is just as disappointing as the rest of the book.

Wilder girls follows three friends while they are in quarantine in their boarding school due to something called the Tox. The girls would have to survive and wait till the cure that was promised arrives. Picked this one up because of how interesting the premise sounded and it was great. Loved the relationships between the girls and how they develop through the book. I definitely recommend it if you are looking for a cool and thrilling read :)

They must have implemented that teaching after my dad retired in 1994, because in my 18 years as one, and I don't recall getting any instruction in how to be a Navy daughter.

This has its good points, but it definitely feels like a first novel. The author's portrayal of being a Navy daughter is not consistent with my personal experience as a Navy daughter, and her naming of the fictional Navy base was not consistent with naming conventions for real-life Navy bases. Aside from the Navy stuff, I found the characters to be pretty interchangeable. Still, it has promise, and I might check out later work by this author.

Silo is recovering from his second round of dental surgery today, which means I have an excuse to read a novel and cuddle a drooly kitty indefinitely. Poor guy only has four teeth left, but that's many fewer teeth for his immune system to attack than he had six months ago. And they're his canines so he can keep his dignified cat profile (when he's not sticking out his tongue).

Bk29 of June & Bk3 of #20in4 #readathon is done! It‘s also another #14Books14Weeks2021🙌 This was a strange one, another YA it‘s a dystopian that‘s just starting out. Hetty, Byatt & Reese are at Raxters, a boarding school on an island off Maine when teachers & girls start getting sick then mutating. Quarantined by the military, they‘re told there‘s help coming but the truth is far worse. I liked it, not for the squeamish though! #BookspinBingo👇

I'm bailing on my May #doublespin book... after 50 pages, I'm not totally sucked in and it looks like many readers on here were disappointed in the ending...
@TheAromaofBooks

Made me think of Annihilation, but this one had me hooked from the outset. Read in two days, would've been one if I'd had less to do.

If you‘re looking for a dark, dystopian read centered around women, this is the book you‘re looking for. The sufficient detailing is perfect for imagining yourself there at Raxter with the girls. You‘re able to follow the story of three friends as they discover more about their school and the condition that plagues them. The characters and storyline interweave wonderfully and is complete with mystery and suspense.

Absolutely loved this book!
Full review here: *SPOILERS*

https://ohbookishstuff.wordpress.com/2021/03/31/wilder-girls-by-rory-power-book-...

Everyone‘s out for a walk this morning. #audiobook

Very interesting find 💚 Power did a great job telling the story of the girls at Raxter and all of the trials they faced when dealing with the Tox. Would definitely recommend!

new read

Somewhere between So-So and a Pick. But since I've had some good audiobook time with it, I count it as a Pick.

Power does have some nice ideas, it's an interesting sort of pandemic she shows us here. I also liked the setting and the characters were quite nice. But it wasn't a highlight for me, and I guess I will soon forget about it. It's just missing the spark to make it something special to me.

@TheAromaOfBooks #BookSpinBingo

This book was good at first, but it slowly died out. I almost bailed but then decided to just hurry up and finish. The ending wasn‘t very good, to many unanswered questions. I hope there‘s a sequel, because this is not a very good stand alone.

Timely and uncanny, a girls‘ school on an island has to go into quarantine because of a mysterious illness, the Tox, infecting the students and other life forms on the island. The protagonist Hetty sets out to try and figure out what really lies beyond the gates of Raxter and if there really is a cure coming. This YA has an interesting body horror storyline but felt underdeveloped in the end, as did the relationships the author tried to explore.

I liked this book until the end, which I felt was unsatisfying. I hope there is a sequel as I don‘t think this is great as a stand-alone.

A intriguing book, was a interesting read and a wild ride at times! 4/5

The upside (?) to insomnia last night was reading this delightful Lord of the Flies retelling! I could strongly identify to the claustrophobia of quarantine and isolation (thanks 2020) and the fear of a disease that ravages without pattern. Spooky, gory, and with no easy answers or explanations, Power‘s debut is a winner. Perfect for fans of Nick Cutter‘s THE TROOP. #netgalley ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I started this but then just lost interest and it returned itself to the library. Oh well! Perhaps not a good time to be reading about a sinister pandemic anyway...

Hello hello , i am back! I guess 😅😅 currently i am reading wilder girls so far i am hooked and loving it!!

I wanted to read at least one of Rory Power‘s books before her appearance at the Texas Book Festival. I‘m glad I did. I liked this YA about a girl‘s school on an island who have been quarantined there due to a bizarre pandemic called The Tox. This strange illness effects all life forms, from plants to humans to the wildlife. There‘s a queer romance aspect, but it‘s not a big focus of the story. I look forward to the second book!

As soon as October hits, I stock up on creepy, scary books. But this year, I am struggling to try and get through them. This is another that I just couldn‘t do. And again—I think it is really more to do with our current political climate, Covid, being a teacher that may be heading back into the building while there are MILLIONS of unanswered questions, etc. I am thinking I need to read something warm and fuzzy. Real life is scary enough.

#weeklyforecast

I should easily finish Letters from Camp, an absolutely delightful Audible original.

The three physical books are all due at the library Friday, so hopefully I can knock out at least a couple!

@Cinfhen

Today‘s #AudibleDailyDeal has been on my TBR, so I had it get it.

In two days my library decided “I will bestow two body-horror books upon you that you‘ve been wanting to read for a long time” and I couldn‘t be happier!

#horrorbooks #wildergirls #thetroop #librarybooks #scarybooks

I don‘t need the truth anymore. I just want to live.

•

[This quote!!! Is!! The Things!!!

Y‘all, TIL that #YAhorror exists & is something I never knew I wanted but now I *need* MORE of IMMEDIATELY. Also I went to an all girls school for ten years, so the ways this book is punching me in the gut — WHEW.

Pls share any YA horror recommendations you may have! Especially if they feature femme/NB/trans protagonists!!]

#currentlyreading #YA #horror

Spending a week on the Chesapeake bay at my family‘s place means gorgeous views, a huge kitchen & a #vacationstack. (Not pictured: a fully loaded Kindle.... juuuust in case I need something else ;)

🌅📚😎