Saturday, 25 March 2023
Labels:
A to Z
“Every great love starts with a great story.”
— Nicholas Sparks
There
are lots of reasons why I get invested in a story and its characters. It might be the creative world-building,
or perhaps an intriguing mystery, or a great villain (even better if they have
a redemption arc), or a seemingly insurmountable problem. But no matter the genre,
I’m a bit of a hopeless romantic. If there’s a relationship to root for, I’ll be cheering it on.
With
that in mind, today’s post is a tribute to all of the love stories in YA books.
It’s only a snapshot of what’s out there, but it was a lot of fun to make, and
my TBR list is definitely longer as a result! Thank you very much for visiting
my blog today, and I hope you enjoy my latest A-Z 💕.
A is for Arranged (when parents think they know best)
Red Wolf by Rachel Vincent
“‘The
village of Ashbourne needs you. Whether they know it or not.’
The
field seemed to spin around me as I tried to make sense of what I was hearing. ‘You’re
selling me in service to another village? To people I’ve never met? To a
husband I’ve never even seen?’”
When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon
“As
he ordered at the counter, he watched Dimple, totally relaxed in a way she
hadn’t been with him, talking to Celia. And not for the first time in the past
hour, Rishi wondered how his parents could’ve made such a big mistake.”
B is for Bad (the anti-hero love interest)
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
“His
smile is laced with dynamite. ‘Go to sleep.’
‘Go
to hell.’
He
works his jaw. Walks to the door. ‘I’m working on it.’”
One Of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus
“Nate
Macauley tips his chair back and smirks at me. ‘You make a wrong turn? This is
detention, not student council.’”
C is for Celebrity (ordinary character meets VIP)
Once Upon A Con (series) by Ashley Poston
“I
didn’t know what to say, but I wanted to reach out and touch his shoulder. We
barely knew each other, but it felt like he had just admitted something to me
that he’d never told anyone else before. Maybe he realized that, too, because
his shoulders went rigid. I stilled my hand to keep it by my side.”
D is for Disguise (falling for someone you would never otherwise have fallen for)
“I
wonder if that’s the truth she’s told herself, too. That it doesn’t matter that
I was Weston Lark—because he’s dead. Now I’m just me.”
E is for Enemies to Lovers (or, as Shakespeare wrote, “My only love sprung from my only hate!”)
To Kill A Kingdom by Alexandra Christo
“They
celebrate love as though it’s power, even though it has killed far more humans
than I ever have.”
Starflight by Melissa Landers
“How did he do that? A minute ago she wanted to break his jaw, and now she had to fight the urge to pat him on the head and give him a cookie. That had to be some kind of superpower. She finally understood how he got everything he wanted in life.”
My Mechanical Romance by Alexene Farol Follmuth
“He
smells like clean laundry and summer and I hate it. I hate all of it.”
F is for Friends to Lovers (seeing someone in a whole new light)
Ten Blind Dates by Ashley Elston
“‘I
wish it was me,’ he says quietly, and my head shoots up. ‘You do?’ I ask. He
gets up from the chair and moves slowly toward me. ‘I wish all the dates had
been mine.’”
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
“He
kissed her, and she glowed with that feeling. The one with wings.
‘You
bring the rain down on them, Pip.’”
G is for Ghost (the supernatural love interest)
Ghosted by Emily Barr
“‘I
can’t be a ghost,’ he said. ‘I’m not dead. I’d know if I was dead, wouldn’t I?’”
You've Reached Sam by Dustin Thao
“‘I
don’t want to open my eyes,’ Sam says. But the ride is about to come to its
end. I can feel it. I squeeze my eyes tighter, hoping to stop time or at least
slow it down. Because I don’t want to open mine, either. I don’t want to lose
him. I want to keep them shut and live in this memory of us forever. I don’t
want to open my eyes and see a world without Sam. But sometimes you just wake
up. No matter how hard you try not to.”
A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb
“This
green place in which I stood with James turned slowly around us like a music
box. All my memories returning, and all his. I could see and feel each of his
days and he mine … Our lives overlapped as naturally as two blades of grass brushing
together.”
Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price
“Lizzie
was certain that her father secretly wished she’d been born a boy, and while
Lizzie had no complaints about being a young woman, sometimes she wished she
weren’t a young lady.”
I is for Insta Love (when lightning strikes)
Opposite of Always by Justin A. Reynolds
“Don’t
be afraid. Take chances. And when those don’t work out, take more.”
J is for Jilted (getting over a breakup by finding someone new)
A Cuban Girl's Guide to Tea and Tomorrow by Laura Taylor Namey
“Miami
held my most cherished relationships, the ones I cry for in secret. Abuela.
Andrés. Stefanie. My heart and body and memory are not finished with them yet.”
K is for Knight in Shining Armour (escaping a bad situation)
Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter
“But
Logan had to laugh when he realized that he was the maiden in this scenario.
And he didn’t care one bit.”
L is for Love Conquers All (anything is possible)
The Aurora Cycle (series) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
“You
will not lose me. I am yours forever. When the fire of the last sun fails, my
love for you will still burn.”
M is for Meet Cute (a memorable beginning)
Breaking Magic by Alex C Vick (because Cal and Alanna = one of my favourite couples)
“‘Don’t
expect me to bend down and kiss your feet just because you said sorry,’ she
retorted.
‘Kiss
my feet?’ I repeated. I scrunched up my toes in their dusty brown boots. She
blushed bright red. Zack and Albany grinned at each other.
‘I
don’t want anything from you,’ I said nervously.
‘Good,
because you’re not getting it!’
‘Good,
because I don’t want it!’”
N is for Not Enough (not everything can be fixed)
All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
“I’m
broken, and no one can fix it. I’ve tried. I’m still trying. I can’t love
anyone because it’s not fair to anyone who loves me back.”
O is for Opposites Attract (having nothing in common but falling in love anyway)
The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
“I’m
not going to fall in love with you.”
“How
do you know?”
“I
don’t believe in love.”
“It’s
not a religion,” he says. “It exists whether you believe in it or not.”
P is for Proximity (characters forced together by factors outside of their control)
The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
“You
don’t have to kiss me. You don’t even have to like me, Heiress, but please
don’t make me do this alone.”
Twin Crowns by Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber
“He
sighed as he straightened. ‘I don’t want your money, Princess. And I don’t like
the term kidnapper. I’m really more of an accomplice. Shen, the middle man. I’m
just in charge of getting you from point A to point B.’”
Q is for Quest (when love and adventure go hand in hand)
The Bone Spindle by Leslie Vedder
“Maybe
falling in love wasn’t something you dreamed about, or something you left to
destiny. Maybe it was something that happened when you were having too much fun
to notice.”
The Beholder by Anna Bright
“I
had no idea what to make of the boy in front of me, or what to do with him,
except to play his game and see if I liked it.”
R is for Royalty (princes and princesses are just as clueless about love as the rest of us)
The Glass Spare by Lauren DeStefano
“As
though they were always meant to end up here: this boy who had murdered and
stolen, and this girl made of secrets and lies, their cursed hearts pounding.”
Tokyo Ever After by Emiko Jean
“We
wouldn’t have worked out long-term anyway. He likes girls who don’t wear
make-up. I like guys who don’t tell girls what to do with their bodies.”
S is for School (love in the classroom)
Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum
“My
mom once told me that the world is divided into two kinds of people: the ones
who love their high school years and the ones who spend the next decade
recovering from them.”
All's Fair in Love, War, and High School by Janette Rallison
“I
don’t know why it’s so hard for me to find just one ideal guy. I’ve probably
read a hundred romances, and every single one of them has my ideal man in it.”
T is for Triangle (it’s complicated)
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
“For
a moment, the three of us stare at one another in wordless comprehension. I
look between the two of them—a fallen angel, and a king, the dark and the
light, and feel a deep, churning thrill at what I’ve done. What we’ve done.
This is how it will be now. Oaths between us. Bound to each other. Forever.”
Kate in Waiting by Becky Albertalli
“They’re
both just going to make fun of us for having yet another communal crush.
According to Riana, Anderson and I are enmeshed, which basically means we’re
codependent. Apparently some people believe falling in love is a thing you’re
supposed to do on your own.”
U is for Unrequited (loving someone who doesn’t feel the same—or do they?)
Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally
“One
thing I learned a long time ago is that even if you think you’re meant to be
with someone, that doesn’t necessarily mean you get to be with them.”
V is for Vampire (a classic: the love interest with fangs)
Metallic Red by Jennifer Ann Shore
“I
closed my eyes and tried my best to think of anything other than the delicious,
metallic scent of blood. When the bell rang, I was relieved to open my eyes and
discover that everyone around me was too caught up in their own selves to see
the half-human, half-vampire teetering on the brink of insanity.”
The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
“Even
from the beginning, that was the problem. People liked pretty things. People
even liked pretty things that wanted to kill and eat them.”
W is for Wealth (one character has it and the other doesn’t)
The Distance Between Us by Kasie West
“‘And
you are?’ He meets my eyes.
‘Her
daughter.’ I know he’s asking for my name, but I don’t want to give it. The
first thing I learned about the rich is that they find the common folk an
amusing distraction but would never, ever want anything real. And that’s
fine with me.”
X is for Ex (when the Ex is still in the picture)
Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare
“I
am a Herondale. We love but once.”
“That
is only a story.”
“Haven’t
you heard?” James said bitterly. “All the stories are true.”
Heartbreak Boys by Simon James Green
“I
don’t know why other people have to make things so hard.”
Y is for Your Own Perspective (there is no “one size fits all” when it comes to love)
Loveless by Alice Oseman
“I
used to dream of a spellbinding, endless, forever romance. A beautiful story of
meeting a person who could change your whole world. But now, I realised,
friendship could be that too.”
Z is for Zigzag (“The course of true love never did run smooth” –Shakespeare)
This is Not the Jess Show (duology) by Anna Carey
“I
tried to get a better view into the car, to see Kipps one last time, but the door
slipped down in front of me, closing him off. Then the car pulled away, ripping
down a deserted road. And just like that, Kipps was gone.”
Thursday, 5 January 2023
“For last year’s words belong to last year’s language
And next year’s words await
another voice.
And to make an end is to make a
beginning.”
― T.S. Eliot
The start of a new calendar
year can be a bit of a strange time. For better or worse, the previous twelve months
are over, and it doesn’t matter how you feel—good or bad, nostalgic or relieved—you
can’t go back. But there is so much potential too. The future never seems more accessible
than in the New Year. It’s right there at your fingertips, a bit like turning
the page to read the second book in a series. Maybe you have some expectations
based on what came before, and maybe there are a few things that you wish would
go a certain way, but really, anything could happen.
Of course, real life is a
little different because the year ahead hasn’t been written yet. We can choose.
And to that end, today’s blog post contains my three reading and writing
resolutions for 2023.
I have to admit, I didn’t make
any resolutions for 2022 because I knew that real life was probably going to get
in the way (and it did). I’m sure 2023 will bring its own surprises, but hopefully
I’ll still have time to discover some new stories ☺.
1️⃣ Finish writing the fourth book to complete the Beyond Androva series
I can finally stop calling Averine’s
story “the fourth book” because it has a title and a tagline! The title is Bound
in Magic, and the tagline is below.
Divided loyalties. Stolen
magic.
Some bonds are made to be broken.
Here’s a short extract:
I stared back at him, my throat
so tight and dry that I couldn’t have said anything even if I’d wanted to. I
felt about two inches tall. All day I’d been bracing myself for him to be angry
about the bond, and I’d missed the point entirely.
2️⃣ Read a complete YA fantasy series from my TBR list
I haven’t finally decided yet, but I’m leaning toward choosing The Folk of the Air, by Holly Black. Everyone tells me that Jude and Cardan have the ultimate enemies to lovers arc, and I’ve seen some amazing quotes from the books that really make me want to understand the context.
“Cardan’s gaze catches mine,
and I can’t help the evil smile that pulls up the corners of my mouth. His eyes
are bright as coals, his hatred a living thing, shimmering in the air between
us like the air above black rocks on a blazing summer day.”
“Have I told you how hideous
you look tonight?” Cardan asks, leaning back in the elaborately carved chair,
the warmth of his words turning the question into something like a compliment.
“No” I say, glad to be annoyed
back into the present. “Tell me.”
"I can't.”
“For a moment, Cardan just
stares at me with stupid, crow-black eyes. Then one corner of his mouth curls.
“Oh,” he says. “You’re going to regret doing that.”
3️⃣ Start writing something new
I’m going to explore one of the
other worlds discovered by Androva before the treaty. I like the idea of
keeping a link to the original series, although it won’t be a spin-off in the
way that Beyond Androva was. Depending on how Bound in Magic ends, I think
Galen and the others deserve a little peace and quiet!
Androva opened portals to seven
new worlds including ours. So far, I’ve written about Imbera (Controlling
Magic and Breaking Magic) and Xytovia (Beyond Androva
series). That leaves Lignora, Hiberna, Trowen, and Distorra to choose from.
Maybe Terra will figure again too—it depends how the world-building goes and
whether it makes sense to include a Terran character. I can’t wait to find out.
Have you made any book-related New Year’s resolutions? And if you’ve read The Folk of the Air, would you recommend it? Thank you very much for visiting my blog today, and I hope you have a brilliant 2023 💕.
“The world before us is a postcard, and I imagine the story we are writing on it.”
― Mary E. Pearson
An aesthetic is a form of
visual inspiration. And when you’re writing a story, it’s also helpful if your
imagination has a focal point—something to make sure you don’t get carried away
with too many new ideas. Putting together a collection of images about the central
themes and characters can be a great way to make sure you stay on course. Also,
it’s a lot of fun ☺.
I’m past the halfway point in writing
the fourth Beyond Androva book, and that’s when I would normally create a new
aesthetic. But it’s also the beginning of December—time for Christmas
decorations and holiday-themed reading choices. So for today’s blog post, I
decided to include some seasonal aesthetic content too.
There are also a couple of Christmas stories in previous blog posts featuring the Legacy of Androva characters. The first one takes place at the end of Seeking Magic, and you can find it here. The second one is an epilogue to the series, and I posted it here.
A is for Averine
I’m really enjoying the
challenge of writing Averine’s story. When I first started, I thought she had
everything figured out in terms of who she was and what she was doing. That’s
the way I tried to write her, but it didn’t go so well. Eventually, I realised my
impressions of Averine were based almost entirely on what Kellan believed, and his perspective was incomplete. Averine’s reality turned out to be a lot more
complicated! Which makes sense, I guess, especially after what her father did.
And that’s without the additional complications created by a new villain and a
dangerous magical bond.
Here’s the aesthetic. Most of the
images are related to alchemy, Averine’s chosen profession, or Phidiom, the new
territory she visits during the story.
B is for Blenheim
I visited Blenheim Palace last weekend to see The Kingdom of the Snow Queen. Blenheim is a famous stately home in Oxfordshire, built over three
hundred years ago as a gift from Queen Anne to the first Duke of Marlborough. These days, it’s open to the public and famous for its Christmas activities.
I was surprised that the combination
of extravagant fairy-tale decorations and a centuries-old palace worked so
well. I don’t think my photos do it justice! And the storytelling journey was
perfect, starting with a giant Christmas tree resting on top of the evil magic mirror, and ending
with the Snow Queen herself.
Of course, I had to choose a Snow Queen retelling for this year’s holiday reading. I decided on Queen of Snow, by Laura Burton and Jessie Cal.
Description
Welcome to the Chanted Forest,
where Fairytales are real... but not as you know them.
After losing his grandfather,
Jack feels lost, unsure of what his future holds.
Until he sees the reflection of
a beautiful young woman inside his grandfather’s mirror. A mirror he never knew
existed.
She beckons to him, and he’s
pulled through a portal to the Chanted Kingdom where fairytale characters are
real.
Princess Aria’s family was
killed by the Evil Queen, and after spending a year running for her life and
hiding with Robin and his band of misfits, she’s so close to completing the
Mirror of Reason, which she plans to use as a portal to leave the Chanted
Kingdom forever.
All she needs is to catch a
young man named Jack in exchange for a mirror shard. Things get complicated as
Aria’s feelings for Jack, as well as her ice powers, start to grow stronger.
Soon, she finds that using her powers to save everyone she loves, will come at
a great cost.
C is for Cat (or Christmas Cat)
The final aesthetic is just for
fun. My cat is a big fan of Christmas because she thinks the tree and the
decorations make perfect cat toys. Four years ago, she actually climbed the
tree and knocked it over, but fortunately she learned quickly and hasn’t repeated
the experience!
Thank you very much for visiting
my blog today, and I wish you happy holidays and happy holiday reading 💕.