2018 Movies!

Hey guys! Happy New Year!  It's 2019, which is crazy!

I decided to have this post be sharing all the movies I watched in 2018 [only 2018 releases] + my ratings and then I will show you my favorite(s).  I didn't see very many movies this year, so this post should be pretty short.

Let's get into it. 

MOVIES

1.  The Greatest Showman ~ 5 Crowns

This movie actually released on December 8, 2017 but it released in most countries in 2018 so I'm counting it here.  I loved this so much! It's kind of fitting how in both 2017 and 2018, I started it off with a musical. I love the soundtrack, the characters and the plot. It is a beautiful movie and everyone should watch it. I have practically every song memorized by now. 

2.  Black Panther ~ 4.5 Crowns

This was released on February 16, 2018. I really enjoyed this movie. I loved getting to know a whole new superhero who became part of the Marvel movie universe in Captain America Civil War. I loved seeing new characters and settings. 

3. A Wrinkle in Time ~ 3 Crowns

This was released on February 26, 2018, though I saw it in the summer. I thought this was pretty good. I loved the visuals a lot, though quite a bit was changed from the book which was a little disappointing. I did like how the actors portrayed their characters though. 

4. Love, Simon ~ 5 Crowns 

This was released on March 16, 2018. I loved this movie so much and I'm surprised I didn't go see it multiple times. I really liked how great of a book-to-movie adaptation this was. I thought it was done really well. All the actors portrayed their characters beautifully and the book plot was translated to the screen really well. 

5. Ready Player One ~ 3 Crowns

This was released on March 29, 2018. I also saw this in the summer after it came out on DVD. I enjoyed this one more than the book. I thought it was executed pretty well and I liked how they managed to throw in so many of the references from the book.

6. Avengers Infinity War ~ 4.5 Crowns

This was released on April 27, 2018. I really enjoyed this even though it made me really sad. I liked how we finally got to see almost all the Avengers in one movie even though they weren't all together. 

7. Solo: A Star Wars Story ~ 4.5 Crowns

This was released on May 10, 2018. I didn't really know what to expect from this movie as of course it is a prequel to the Star Wars original trilogy but I ended up seeing it and really enjoying it. I loved how much of Han Solo's backstory that we got in this and how interesting all the new places and characters were. 

8. Ant-Man and the Wasp ~ 4.5 Crowns

This was released on July 6, 2018. I only watched the first Ant-Man movie in 2018 because the sequel was coming out. I really like these movies as they're funny and different from the rest of the Marvel movies. 

9. Christopher Robin ~ 4.5 Crowns

This was released on August 3, 2018. I loved this movie so much! I was hesitant to watch this at first because I wasn't sure if it would be as sad as people had said Goodbye Christopher Robin was. Luckily, a friend of mine watched it and loved it so I went to see it. I did a full review of this on my blog and you can find it here.

10. To All the Boys I've Loved Before ~ 5 Crowns

This was released on August 17, 2018. I loved this movie so much and I've seen it several times. I love how well they adapted the book into a film and the casting is amazing as well. I highly recommend this movie on Netflix if you haven't seen it already. 

11. Fantastic Beasts The Crimes of Grindelwald ~ 4.5 Crowns

This was released on November 16, 2018. This movie has gotten so many mixed reviews but I was one of the ones who really enjoyed it. I liked how Newt Scamander's story progressed with this movie, however, I didn't like how some of the plot points in Harry Potter were changed for this movie as it made it very confusing. 

AND MY FAVORITE(S) OF THE YEAR WERE: 

THE GREATEST SHOWMAN AND TO ALL THE BOYS I'VE LOVED BEFORE

I loved both of these movies a lot. The Greatest Showman was such a good new musical and I am so happy that musicals are coming back! To All the Boys I've Loved Before was my other absolute favorite of the year. I loved how well Netflix adapted this book into a movie and everything was done well. Lana Condor perfectly embodied Lara Jean and Noah Centineo was amazing as Peter Kavinsky. 

I will see you all soon with a post about my anticipated 2019 movies!

To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo Book Review

This is a spoiler free review.

To Kill a Kingdom
Written by Alexandra Christo

Genre: Young Adult/Retellings/Fantasy

Publisher: Feiwel Friends

Release Date: March 6, 2018

Pages: 352
Source: Bought

Places to Get this Book: Amazon Barnes and Noble Book Depository

Recommended Age: 13 and up!

Summary:

Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most—a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen or remain a human forever.

The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby—it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good—But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy? 

(Summary from Goodreads)

Review:

Seductive, dark and beautiful, To Kill a Kingdom is a new favorite of mine. YA Siren stories are often a hit or miss with me, with Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller being a favorite of mine and The Siren by Keira Cass being a complete failure for me.

To Kill a Kingdom contained so many elements that I love. Enemies to Lovers: check! Vicious Sirens: check! Pirates: check! Royalty: check! A Fairytale Retelling: check!

COVER

The cover of this book is gorgeous. It perfectly captures the story and some of it's key elements. I love how simple it is and how there is just the title in the center and the key elements are along the boarder.

WORLD-BUILDING

The world-building is done brilliantly which is great because there are so many places that they visit in this book. Alexandra Christo doesn't use ridiculously long passages filled with description and yet I was still able to see everything clearly. She had a way of almost immersing readers into the story and could make you feel like you were with the characters. Also, the places were so unique and exciting. There was a kingdom of frost with a blue lipped king. A kingdom that had a Midas feeling to it. And many different cultures that were thrown in.

The distinguishing between sirens and mermaids, was also done beautifully and showed their similarity but also the fact that they were completely different species which I think is often not talked about in YA Fiction.


Then there are the characters.

LIRA

The story alternates between two perspectives and the first one that we are introduced to is Lira, the daughter of the Sea Queen who is known as the Prince's Bane. Each year she harvests a prince's heart on her birthday in order to secure her spot as her mother's heir. Lira is not a sweet girl on the inside with a ruthless exterior. She is unapologetically vicious, cold-hearted and terrifyingly beautiful. We quickly see that a lot of that is the end result of a lifetime of abuse from her mother who when Lira doesn't kill a prince for her, she is exiled and given two legs instead of a tail.

When she is stranded on a pirate ship, she's feisty, angry and mean and yet manages to keep herself very likable to the reader. She can't be viewed as a complete 'villain' because of how badly her mom treated her throughout her life. And I was often rooting for her, despite also rooting for the prince.

ELIAN

Elian is a prince and yet he's a pirate at heart and spends most of his time on his ship with his crew, sailing the wide open ocean. Except, he's not the typical pirate and despite him coming from royalty, he's not a hero. Elian roams the seas, hunting down sirens and trying to make the seas safer. Elian's parents want him to embrace the fact that he's the heir to their kingdom but he wants adventure and his family who were composed of loyalty and friendship instead of his blood one. Elian is an antihero who is a pirate: capable of thievery, ridiculously clever and incredibly sneaky. Alexandra Christo never forgets to remind us that he is not a hero. (Also, he's probably biracial/black as his father is black but we are never told his mother's ethnicity. And while he is the 'Prince Eric' character, he is very different from the Prince Eric we know in The Little Mermaid.)

FRIENDSHIP/FAMILY

Prince Elian considers his crew to be his family as they are loyal and his best friends who care about him and each other. Then we look at Lila who has a complicated relationship with her mom as her mom only cares about keeping the siren's vicious and scaring the humans and she doesn't care much about her daughter.

PLOT

To Kill a Kingdom is meant to be a dark Little Mermaid Retelling but it is so much more than that. Lira, the Prince's Bane, has a heart for every year she's been alive, in order to keep her mother 'happy'. Elian, the Siren Hunter, spends his days on the ocean with his pirate crew, hunting down mermaids. One day, the two cross paths. Lira has searched for him as she wants to add his heart to her ever growing collection but when a mermaid intervenes, she doesn't go after him. The Sea Queen isn't pleased and exiles her to stay on land with two legs instead of a tail and an instruction to rip Elian's still beating heart out of his chest. He

Elian wants to exterminate all the sirens and their Queen, while Lira wants to take the throne that belongs to her. When Elian pulls Lira out of the sea, she doesn't tell him of her real identity as they are sworn enemies. They forge a necessary alliance in order to achieve their goals, unaware of how much this will change them and the world around them.

ROMANCE

This romance is an enemies-to-lovers slow-burn romance with two characters who start out as complete enemies who are trying to complete their own goals but they ultimately need each other. There is hilarious witty banter between Lira and Elian as they move from distrust and loathing to something more. Their friendship and love makes them strong and they manage to emerge with more wisdom and more complete.

WRITING

The writing was gorgeous. Alexandra Christo had the ability to bring her characters and settings to life. It often felt as if everything was real as I could almost see and feel everything. The description was beautiful and the narration made me feel as if I was standing or sitting near the characters while they spoke, argued and lived. Her world building and prose were full of magic and imagination which is exactly what I wanted from the book.

FINAL THOUGHTS

To Kill a Kingdom is a beautiful but dark book. Alexandra Christo managed to bring her story to life through her description and narration. The world building was done fantastically and the settings were so original. The two main characters were fully fleshed out and were interesting to read about. I highly recommend this book as it is a brilliant Little Mermaid retelling as well as Fantasy story.

Quotes from the Book:

“Technically, I’m a murderer, but I like to think that’s one of my better qualities.” 

“How strange that instead of taking his heart, I'm hoping he takes mine.” 

My Rating: 5 out of 5 Crowns

Weekly Recap: 12/10 - 1/6

Weekly recap is where I update you on my life, reading and watching. Plus any posts I have done or will do.

Hello everyone! I am sorry that it has been so long. I am back for the New Year and hoping to get more blogging done. Also, I am reading more and have a lot of books from the library that I'm working through. 

Also, I've been trying to catch up on TV and Movies!

Now, let's get into recapping.

New Books

Purchased:

Library: 

Received for Review: 

In Case You Missed It

November + December '18 Wrap-Up
2018 Challenges and Goals Wrap-Up + 2019

This Week I Read

This Week I Watched

This Week I Listened To 

Mamma Mia Here We Go Again Soundtrack
Sabrina Carpenter
A Little Wicked by Valerie Broussard
Blood in the Cut by K. Flay
Killer Queen by 5SOS
Enough About Me by Forever In Your Mind
Toxic by 2WEI

Next Week I'm Reading

Upcoming Reviews

Upcoming Posts

Monday: TBD

Tuesday: TBD

Wednesday: TBD

Thursday: TBD

Friday: TBD

Saturday: TBD

Sunday: Weekly Recap

Around the Blog Community

2018 Challenges and Goals Wrap-Up + 2019

Happy New Year!

I did a post like this last year with all the goals that I hoped to complete during 2018. This time, I'm going to include the challenges I want to complete or attempt.

But first, let's see how I did in 2018!

 2018 RECAP 

1. Read 80 Books: COMPLETE

YES! I did complete this goal! My Goodreads Challenge was set at 80 books and I ended up reading 103 books.

2. Edit Parts 1 and 2 of Camelot Anew: NOT COMPLETE

I did not end up completing this goal but I did start editing part 2 which means I half completed this goal.

3. Finish Writing One Novel: NOT COMPLETE

2018 was a very jam-packed year and I didn't end up finishing a novel but I have put in a lot of work towards it!

4. Plot Out my Whole Pirate Novel: NOT COMPLETE

My pirate novel is something I plan on focusing on when I finish Camelot Anew so I didn't finish this.

5. Reach 80% on NetGalley: COMPLETE

I did this! I reached 80% on NetGalley which has taken me so long to do. This has led me to get more books that I request.

6. Reread At Least Five Books: COMPLETE

I'm not sure how many books I reread but I did reread a lot this year. It is hard to reread books when I have so many on my TBR.

7. Try to Read 5-6 Books a Month: COMPLETE

I believe that for every month I ended up reading five or more books which is how I read a total of 103 books this month. I feel so accomplished!

8. Possibly Start a Bookstagram Account: COMPLETE

I did make a bookstagram account this year and it is adorable. I am going to do a whole post on bookstagram as soon as I can.

9. Write at Least One Book Review a Week: NOT COMPLETE

Book reviews are still hard for me and I really need to work on this. I did not end up writing a book review a week which I'm disappointed to say.

10. Try to Post At Least Twice a Week: NOT COMPLETE

2018 wasn't a good blogging year for me. While I did end up reading a lot, I didn't have time to write blogposts as they take a long time and I don't often have the motivation.

2019 BOOKISH AND WRITING GOALS 

1. Read 75 Books

I set my Goodreads challenge for this year lower than last year despite reading 103 books last year. I set it at 75 books because I'm in college and I haven't been reading as many books per month as I did last year.

2. Finish Writing Camelot Anew

I am determined to finish this goal in 2019, preferably by the end of the summer. I am almost 3/4 through writing the book.

3. Try to Post at Least Once a Week

I want to post something once a week on my blog that isn't a quick recap post. I have a lot of posts that I want to do in the coming year and I'm excited for them.

4. Read 5-6 Books a Month

I love to read so this shouldn't be hard but sometimes carving out even ten minutes to read is hard when you're busy in school and trying to complete the many assignments you have. I am going to try to read on average 5 books a month.

5. Write Two Book Reviews a Month

I feel like this is easier than writing one a week. I am hoping that I will actually stick to this.

6. Keep 80% on NetGalley

I reached 80% on NetGalley in 2018 so I am hoping I can keep it that way.


That's all the goals I have for 2019 and now onto the challenges.


CHALLENGES FOR 2019 

1. Goodreads Challenge
Hosted By: Goodreads

I pledged to read 75 books this year which I definitely think is possible.

2. Retellings Challenge 
Hosted By: Cornerfolds

I love retellings so much so I am excited to do this challenge. My goal for this year is Warrior Princess (6-10 retellings).

TBR for Next Year: The Case for Jamie, RoseBlood

3. Audiobook Challenge
Hosted By: Caffeinated Reviewer

I read audiobooks a lot now but I am not sure how many I'll finish this year so I am not aiming for any goal. I'm just trying to finish as many as I can.

4. New Release Challenge
Hosted By: Unconventional Bookworms

I love reading new releases and I am getting better at reading them in the year they come out. My goal for this year is New Release Newbie (1-30 books).

TBR for Next Year:

5. 2019 Backlist
Hosted By: The Bookwyrm's Hoard

I have so many books that I own and have yet to read so this challenge is possible.

TBR For Next Year: The Cruel Prince, The Case of Jamie, Sense and Sensibility


And that is it for this blogpost. I hope you all enjoyed and maybe considered adding one of these challenges for your list for 2019.