Entry tags:
345. BEYONCE'S SECRET SOCIETY OF WINTER WITCHES.
Let's see if I can be one of the cool kids with my summary posts. I'm sorry in advance, but I'm inconsistent with how I format SOCIETY to WINTERNIGHT. /o\
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I've been listening nonstop to Beyonce's COWBOY CARTER album. I think it's one of her best (although I think LEMONADE remains her best work because that album really demonstrated Beyonce being a vocal chameleon, with SELF-TITLED as the game-changing album that changed the fucking industry). Her work is very layered; the Beyhive on Twitter keep finding new things about the songs, which makes it a really enjoyable experience. RENAISSANCE was a party, feel-good album that had heavy production (and I admittedly was not feeling it until I saw snippets of her concert on Twitter, and then I started to love the live versions). I feel COWBOY CARTER is stripped back and lets her vocals stand for themselves.
My favourite songs are YA YA, BODYGUARD, ALLIGATOR TEARS, 16 CARRIAGES, SPAGHETTII, and DAUGHTER.
Beyonce is my favourite artist; I listen to her when I'm sad, angry, happy, need to be empowered, etc. and I really am hoping act iii is a rock album because I desperately need her to do a cover of Proud Mary now that her voice is deeper and richer and she does magnificent growls.
I can't wait to see how the CMAs snub her again and how she doesn't win AOTY again. She's changing the industry; no one does it like Beyonce!
This is the only time I'll ever do a LISTENING TO because I love Beyonce!
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The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
READ FROM 9 NOVEMBER 2023 - 1 APRIL 2024
I listened to the audiobook and I really loved the narrator's voice. This was my first audiobook that I took seriously (I once tried to read one of the Twilight books via audio and kept falling asleep—granted, I listened while I was in bed…).
( SPOILERS. )
✓ Would recommend if you love witches, grumpy cat man/sunshine golden retriever woman couplings, a background but prominent m/m relationship, and kids. Don't expect a lot of worldbuilding, though. There is sex in it, and explicit language. This is a cozy book; expect it to be predictable.
-
The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden
READ FROM 21 MARCH - 28 MARCH 2024
Y'ALL.
Y'ALL.
Y'ALL.
I loved it.
Definitely more faster paced than the first book. I don't know what it is about this world that captures me, but I enjoy Vasya's growth so much. I love that we got to spend time with Sasha and Olga, and see how growing up has jaded them.
( SPOILERS. )
This book definitely served as a bridge between the first and third book, but I feel that it really ramped up the stakes, established that Vasya was no longer in her village and was playing in the real world, and really demonstrated that there were consequences (some absolutely devastating) to Vasya's actions and choices.
✓ RECOMMEND.
All my thoughts belong to the third book, though.
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The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden
READ FROM 28 MARCH - 3 APRIL 2024
This is my favourite out of the series. Vasya comes into her own. The action is fast-paced. I adore that we get more mythological creatures. We get Vasya backstory and family history.
( SPOILERS. )
-
Overall, the Winternight trilogy is such a satisfying story. I like that each book shows progress and growth, and that it's a seamless journey for Vasya to become the woman she is in THE WINTER OF THE WITCH. I feel so satisfied after reading it, and I wish that there were novellas continuing her and Morozko's story. THE WINTER OF THE WITCH is definitely my favourite, with THE GIRL IN THE TOWER following after (I liked the cityscape over the villagescape) and THE BEAR AND THE NIGHTINGALE last as it did a lot of setup and was a bit slower/quieter/intimate than the other two.
( SPOILERS. )
WHY ISN'T YULETIDE TOMORROW??? (I wasn't planning to participate in![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
rarepairexchange despite co-running it and now… well… WHY ARE THERE SO FEW FICS???) Time to dive into the fic now that I have all the context!
✓ In case it wasn't obvious: I would recommend this series if you like fantasy (historical fantasy), female protagonists, good m/f (slowburn, immortal/mortal), mythology, politics, and a main character who makes mistakes and isn't praised for it. It's such a satisfying story!
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Making time to read has made me very happy. I can see why those of you who post about what you've finished reading read so much!
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LISTENING TO
I've been listening nonstop to Beyonce's COWBOY CARTER album. I think it's one of her best (although I think LEMONADE remains her best work because that album really demonstrated Beyonce being a vocal chameleon, with SELF-TITLED as the game-changing album that changed the fucking industry). Her work is very layered; the Beyhive on Twitter keep finding new things about the songs, which makes it a really enjoyable experience. RENAISSANCE was a party, feel-good album that had heavy production (and I admittedly was not feeling it until I saw snippets of her concert on Twitter, and then I started to love the live versions). I feel COWBOY CARTER is stripped back and lets her vocals stand for themselves.
My favourite songs are YA YA, BODYGUARD, ALLIGATOR TEARS, 16 CARRIAGES, SPAGHETTII, and DAUGHTER.
Beyonce is my favourite artist; I listen to her when I'm sad, angry, happy, need to be empowered, etc. and I really am hoping act iii is a rock album because I desperately need her to do a cover of Proud Mary now that her voice is deeper and richer and she does magnificent growls.
I can't wait to see how the CMAs snub her again and how she doesn't win AOTY again. She's changing the industry; no one does it like Beyonce!
This is the only time I'll ever do a LISTENING TO because I love Beyonce!
*
READING
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
READ FROM 9 NOVEMBER 2023 - 1 APRIL 2024
I listened to the audiobook and I really loved the narrator's voice. This was my first audiobook that I took seriously (I once tried to read one of the Twilight books via audio and kept falling asleep—granted, I listened while I was in bed…).
( SPOILERS. )
✓ Would recommend if you love witches, grumpy cat man/sunshine golden retriever woman couplings, a background but prominent m/m relationship, and kids. Don't expect a lot of worldbuilding, though. There is sex in it, and explicit language. This is a cozy book; expect it to be predictable.
-
The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden
READ FROM 21 MARCH - 28 MARCH 2024
Y'ALL.
Y'ALL.
Y'ALL.
I loved it.
Definitely more faster paced than the first book. I don't know what it is about this world that captures me, but I enjoy Vasya's growth so much. I love that we got to spend time with Sasha and Olga, and see how growing up has jaded them.
( SPOILERS. )
This book definitely served as a bridge between the first and third book, but I feel that it really ramped up the stakes, established that Vasya was no longer in her village and was playing in the real world, and really demonstrated that there were consequences (some absolutely devastating) to Vasya's actions and choices.
✓ RECOMMEND.
All my thoughts belong to the third book, though.
-
The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden
READ FROM 28 MARCH - 3 APRIL 2024
This is my favourite out of the series. Vasya comes into her own. The action is fast-paced. I adore that we get more mythological creatures. We get Vasya backstory and family history.
( SPOILERS. )
-
Overall, the Winternight trilogy is such a satisfying story. I like that each book shows progress and growth, and that it's a seamless journey for Vasya to become the woman she is in THE WINTER OF THE WITCH. I feel so satisfied after reading it, and I wish that there were novellas continuing her and Morozko's story. THE WINTER OF THE WITCH is definitely my favourite, with THE GIRL IN THE TOWER following after (I liked the cityscape over the villagescape) and THE BEAR AND THE NIGHTINGALE last as it did a lot of setup and was a bit slower/quieter/intimate than the other two.
( SPOILERS. )
WHY ISN'T YULETIDE TOMORROW??? (I wasn't planning to participate in
rarepairexchange despite co-running it and now… well… WHY ARE THERE SO FEW FICS???) Time to dive into the fic now that I have all the context!✓ In case it wasn't obvious: I would recommend this series if you like fantasy (historical fantasy), female protagonists, good m/f (slowburn, immortal/mortal), mythology, politics, and a main character who makes mistakes and isn't praised for it. It's such a satisfying story!
*
Making time to read has made me very happy. I can see why those of you who post about what you've finished reading read so much!