Tag: book review

Book Boyfriend Box: AKA Why I Haven’t Been Blogging

Published on by Bailey Mae Wolf2 Comments

So I’m still here (though it’s okay if you didn’t miss me or notice I was gone). But I’ve been pretty preoccupied with my new project. As some of you followers might now, I love subscription boxes. I think they’re genius! But I was tired of being disappointed with the boxes I was subscribed to month after month and not finding the perfect box to fit my needs.

So I started one of my own with the help of Taylor!

I’m proud to introduce you to Book Boyfriend Box!

Book Boyfriend Box, inspired by popular books and characters (particularly of the swoon, male variety), brings a new favorite book and book crush to your door every other month. I wanted to create a box with not only awesome items that any bibliophile can enjoy, but also introduces you to new characters for us to love and cherish.

We debuted in September, and the first box was a great success that I’m super proud of. Especially because I didn’t really know what I was doing haha. I even had my first interview, which you can check out here. This is a dream come true for Taylor and I, as we’ve both always wanted to be entrepreneurs.

I’m having so much fun putting these boxes together and trying to find the perfect book! But, yes it does take up a lot of my time. And on top of that, little Ollie is a rambunctious toddler now, so we have our work cut out for us.

img_5755Our December box is on sale now, and by golly, it is perfect! The theme of the month is “Love Letters,” and along with an amazing newly released novel, the box will contain Jane Austen inspired products for all those Mrs. Darcys out there. Seriously this box is sweet! If you’re interested in picking one up, use the code BBBWELCOME at checkout for a 10% discount off your first box.

And that’s what I’m up to everyone! Book Boyfriend Box! For fangirls by a fangirl (and her nerdy hubby).

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Where Have I Been? / Ice, Ice Baby: Frostblood by Elly Blake

Published on by Bailey Mae Wolf1 Comment

Here I am. I am indeed well and alive. Thanks, Daley Downing, for reaching out and checking up on me. I’m sorry I haven’t been around for anyone that missed me. I needed a break. I didn’t know I needed a break nor did I intend on taking one. It just sort of happened.

A couple things led to that.

For one, I’ve been busy with a new business venture that I’m super excited about. I’ll give you details on that later.

I realized I had worn myself out. I was losing track of why I started this book in the first place. Instead of writing and reading for the sake of my love of books, I’d become a bit too consumed with deadlines, obtaining ARCs, cranking out reviews, and reading for others more than for myself. I was losing sight of why I enjoyed reading and blogging in the first place.Obviously, those things can be important but they had overtaken my life to a point where I wasn’t enjoying myself, and I’m not enjoying reading than what is the point?

Basically, I felt like I was losing my personality and becoming a review robot.

And I’d rather write less and be awesome.

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SO! I will keep blogging and reviewing but expect some changes! A few things I’d like to do differently are more concise reviews. I was reading Kirkus Reviews lately, you know the ones that are always on the Praise section on the back of your book, and I realized that they are incredibly and wonderfully short! They don’t dance around their opinion. They use precise language to make their point and are done with it. I’d like my reviews to be more like that so I don’t dread writing them.

Second, I was manic about making sure I wrote Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at the very least sometimes more. While I think consistency is important, I have a one-year-old that needs my time and attention. So from now on, expect a post on Monday. If I write more than that, great. If I don’t, then oh well. That’s the consistency I can offer at this point in my life.

Hopefully though, if I’m writing shorter reviews for the most part, it won’t be such a chore to write a post multiple times a week.

I hope you understand and that this won’t dissuade you from keeping up with me! But if it does, I totally understand…sort of. Kind of. Okay not really because I’m awesome, darn it!

With further ado, here is my review of the upcoming book Frostblood, which is to be released in January 2017!

27827203Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: January 17th, 2017

Series: Frostblood Sage, #1

Genre: Fantasy, YA

Rating: 4/5

Ruby is a Fireblood, born in a kingdom ruled by the powerful Frost King, who has decreed an end to her kind. After she is imprisoned and her mother killed by his soldiers, she heartily agrees to an opportunity to kill the king, even if it means learning to take control of her unpredictable and dangerous powers after years of suppressing them.

Frostblood reads like an early Sarah J. Maas novel though with more grit and less fluff. The world building was superb, complete, and made a wonderful backdrop for our characters. It was easy to imagine the Frost King’s palace, icicles and all, as though you were actually there.

I though that Ruby and Arcann where fairly well-developed, though they could’ve been pushed a bit further and it may have been more interesting for their romance to be drawn out. However, I still enjoyed them as characters. Both are sassy and strong while still being flawed and having believable likability.  What I really would’ve liked to see though was more development of the secondary characters. I was quite sad that Rasmus, the Frost King, was so one-dimensional as I personally found him to be incredibly interesting and would’ve enjoyed learning more about it. The priests as well were a bit lackluster.

Overall though, a great first novel which gives readers a good glimpse at Elly Blake’s potential.

100 Hours Cover Reveal + Giveaway

Published on by Bailey Mae Wolf1 Comment

Happy 4th of July, everyone! I hope my fellow Americans are enjoying their holiday. Since it’s a busy day, I don’t want to take up too much of your time.

I am so excited to share the awesome cover for 100 HOURS, the first book in a new trilogy by New York Times best-selling author Rachel Vincent, which
releases on March 28, 2017 from Katherine Tegen Books, along with a note from the author about her upcoming novel and an amazing giveaway.

Scroll down to take check out the gorgeous cover, read what Rachel Vincent has to say about 100 HOURS, and enter for a chance to win. And be sure to share your thoughts about the cover in the comments!

Continue reading “100 Hours Cover Reveal + Giveaway” →

Interview with Alexis Lampley: Author, Blogger, Entrepreneur

Published on by Bailey Mae Wolf2 Comments

I’m pleased to announce our first official interview here at Fictional Fox! If you’ll look up at the menu bar, hopefully you’ll notice the new section entitled Bookpreneur. This section will not only have updates on my own entrepreneur adventures and DIY tips, but it is where I will be posting interviews with authors, bloggers, designers, and all the amazing people in the book world.

And an interview with Alexis Lampley is a fantastic way to kick this off!

28484655Alexis is the author of The Onyx Vial, book one of the Shadow of the Nine series. She is also the creator of the recently launched bookish typography and art subscription service, Nerdy Post. I first discovered Alexis and her work via her Instagram account (@dropandgivemenerdy), and I’ve basically been a fan ever since. I’m so grateful she took the time to answer a few questions, despite being not only a bookpreneur but a mom as well. Needless to say, she is a busy woman! Continue reading “Interview with Alexis Lampley: Author, Blogger, Entrepreneur” →

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Mass | Part I: Review

Published on by Bailey Mae Wolf5 Comments

17927395Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children’s 

Publication Date: May 3rd, 2016

Series: A Court of Thrones and Roses, #2

Genre: Fantasy, YA

Rating: 5/5

Okay, if I could go back, I would change my rating of A Court of Thorns and Roses to a three, maybe a two, because not only did I have my issues with the book, but A Court of Mist and Fury was a gazillion times better!

I literally told my husband, “Just skip the first book if you want to read the series. I will fill you in so you can begin with this one.”

I have to have a two part to this review because I want to discuss some spoilers! This first part will be my actually review with minor spoilers at most. The second part will be my discussion of the book and more reasons why I think it’s amazing with all the spoilers in the world.

Okay, here’s my running list of why this was better:

  • Much less hanky panky: Sarah J. Maas’s sex scenes are weird and over-the-top so I appreciated that in the book overall they weren’t as frequent.
  • More angst: However, this book was much more angsty in the sense that the whole time you’re thinking, “Will they? Won’t they?” I didn’t feel that in the first book, whereas this book, I really wanted to see how the relationships evolved and progress.
  • Less romance: Obviously, there’s still lots of romance ^^. But it’s flirtatious and natural and less plot centered. In the first book, the romantic elements are at the heart of the action. I’d actually call the first book a romance with fantastical elements. This book is a fantasy novel with romances in it. This shift alone did wonders for the book.
  • Feyre is her own character now: In the first book, I mostly just thought of her as a Katniss Everdeen copycat. Now I actually think of her as her own character. The development she made was phenomenal! She has some truly dark moments that she has to figure out and get through. She goes from being a martyr to embracing her role. It was awesome.
  • f4caec92c7250f6bd86321200e45c760418c69bac94bbff291a3149671864d12Rhysand, Rhysand, Rhysand: I think Rhysand is basically everyone’s favorite character. I knew from his entrance in A Court of Thorns and Roses that he was going to be mine in the series. I instantly recognized his trope: the bad boy with a secret heart of gold. Those are always my favorites, and he did not disappoint in this book.
  • Less Tamlin: Tamlin didn’t bother me in the first book so much as I was apathetic. I didn’t care for him, nor did I hate him. He was just meh. Though I’m not sure I can totally see the jump from his characterization in the first book to this book, I at least appreciate that he has taken on a more interesting and meaningful role, even though he isn’t in the story as much.
  • A strong supporting cast: We meet a ton more characters in ACOMAF. What’s more is that they are all well-developed. They have backstories, histories, character ticks. They all feel real and relevant. This book is definitely more character-driven than plot-driven, as opposed to the first book.   

There’s one thing though that did drive me nuts about this book, and that was the flying scenes. Sometimes I’d wonder from the description how these things were even physically possible!

But other than that, no complaints. The ending was fantastic. Not a cliffhanger, but left me on the edge of my seat nevertheless. I can’t wait to see what happens next!

What did you think of the book? Who is your favorite character?

Stay tuned for Part II!

Tootle loo, darlings!

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And I Darken by Kiersten White

Published on by Bailey Mae Wolf9 Comments

Okay, the blog might be a hit or miss this week because I am apartment searching again, and it’s a real pain in the butt; the place we’re looking to move is a 40 minute drive away. Thus I may not be home much to do the things I want to do. Please pray for me, everyone, that we find a place because I need to get out of here. I am getting desperate!!!

But let’s get back to the subject at hand.

My tribulations notwithstanding, I had the time this weekend to read this book by Kiersten White called And I Darken. It’s being released at the end of the month.

And. Oh. My. Gosh.

Continue reading “And I Darken by Kiersten White” →

Risuko: A Kunoichi Tale by David Kudler

Published on by Bailey Mae Wolf5 Comments

25700544Publisher: Stillpoint Digital Press

Publication Date: June 15th, 2016

Series: Seasons of the Sword, #1

Genre: Historical Fiction

Rating: 1/5 

As a disclaimer, I have to say that I rarely don’t finish a book even if I hate it. And this book, I even tried to like. I tried so hard. But I got to a point where I just couldn’t do it anymore. I just couldn’t. Continue reading “Risuko: A Kunoichi Tale by David Kudler” →

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Published on by Bailey Mae Wolf9 Comments

16096824Publisher: Bloomsbury Children’s

Publication Date: May 5th, 2015

Series: A Court of Thorns and Roses, #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 4/5 

After seeing the popularity of this book in the blog-o-sphere and all over Instagram, I figured it was high time that I found out what all of the hullabaloo was about. And I must say, now I can why everyone is making such a fuss.

I read this book as fast as I could. And part of me isn’t quite sure why. Continue reading “A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas” →

False Hearts by Laura Lam Review

Published on by Bailey Mae WolfLeave a comment

cover87030-mediumPublisher: Macmillan-Tor

Publication Date: June 14th, 2016

Series: False Hearts, #1

Genre: Science Fiction

Rating: 2/5 

It’s difficult for me to give a definitive review and rating on this book, as I was only given a lengthy excerpt as opposed to the full length novel. However, I shall do my best. Continue reading “False Hearts by Laura Lam Review” →

May #Shelfie

Published on by Bailey Mae Wolf1 Comment

It’s been an interesting month as far as my reading as been concerned. I read some amazing books and some truly heinous books. It was a busy month, yet I still managed to read eight books.

Let’s get right to it then. Continue reading “May #Shelfie” →