The Weekly Hufflepuff #52

Woop I finally reached 52 Weekly Hufflepuffs! I started this feature almost two years ago, yet I only reached a year worth of weekly wrap ups now haha #isuckasablogger

I made slow progress Anne of Windy Poplars again. I am enjoying it, but it’s so long and such a slow read. Plus I miss all the old characters and none of the new ones really jump out. I also felt the sudden urge to reread Anna and the French Kiss last night, which I finished this morning. Finally, I started Heroine Complex, but I can’t really say anything about it yet. I’m not far enough yet.

Last week I said I was planning on spending more time at home, which I did! I only went to work for a bit on Friday, but other than that (and doing some grocery shopping) I spent some well-deserved time at home. The last few weeks had been so busy, I really needed to just… not go anywhere lmao. That sounds incredibly lazy but I just needed to lie around, watch some tv shows, read books, write and blog.

Since I didn’t do much, I don’t have much to share here either haha.

Wow this section was completely unnecessary

BUT THIS SECTION IS NOT UNNECESSARY YAY

LOOK

Though I changed my goal again, this time to 10.000, I’m happy with the fact that I wrote, wrote a little more than 10k and with what I wrote (which is obviously really important too). While I initially set out to write 25k, there was no way I would’ve been able too. Sure, I technically had the time or could’ve made it, but it would’ve tired me out (physically and mentally), and how would that do my writing any good?

I might share some snippets later this week depending on how I’m feeling. I just hope that I’ll be able to finish this novel this year. I’m going to need to come up with a plan haha

💛 I finally got my review for Queens of Geek up (which reminds me I need to take a picture of The Upside of Unrequited so I can get that review up too ahhh)
💛 I talked about the behaviour of some of the Supergirl cast members and why I had already stopped watching the show
💛 I talked about why you should watch the Disney Descendants movies
💛 And I also talked about why you should read Zodiac Starforce – lot’s of me trying to convince you guys to love the things I love haha

💛 Marie shares her book blogger bucket list and honestly… same
💛 Ilsa talks about 10 awkward blogging moments #relatable
💛 Julianna talks about blogging organisation (and is actual blogging goals omg I want to be that organised)
💛 Analee talks about 7 things all us bookworms wished we had known before becoming a bookworm
💛 Lia did the 777 Challenge and thus shared some lines from her WIP
💛 CW’s love for The Epic Crush of Genie Lo shines through her wonderful review
💛 Elly talks about the next Doctor being a woman
💛 Balie talks about 4 unique tropes she’d like to see more of
💛 Fadwa talks about reviewing books outside your lane
💛 Kat did The Writer’s Tag
💛 May talks about reasons for unfollowing blogs
💛 A.J. talks about what to do with problematic books you own
💛 Beth talks about managing your expectations for hyped books
💛 Mikaela wonders if you too get tired of seeing the same books around the blogosphere

And that’s another wrap! I don’t have anything scheduled for this week which makes me sliiightly nervous, but I’m definitely getting an Artsy Hufflehoe up tomorrow. I mean, it’s the last day of the month. I have no choice. Anyway, I doubt I’ll disappear, but I may not post three times which is my usual minimum. If I do disappear I hope I’ll be writing haha (watch me waste my time by marathoning shows instead).

How was your week? Any great blogposts that I didn’t list here? How’s Camp NaNo, or writing in general going? Let me know in the comments!

BewarenBewaren

Around The World In YA Books Tag

Thank you Cátia for tagging me and sorry that it took me like a year to do this. If you haven’t yet, check out her blog!

The Rules

List a country, and then show which favourite book of yours is set in that country. You can use the countries I have used, add your own, or use completely different ones!

FRANCE

How can I not go with Anna and the French Kiss? Speaking of which, it’s time for a reread… Though of course I could also go with Scarlet, another favourite, though I feel more like I’m in France while reading Anna then while reading Scarlet.

CANADA

I recently read Anne of Green Gables, and while I didn’t think I would like it at first since the beginning was pretty slow, I fell in love.

CHINA

Like Cátia, I’m going with Cinder. Sadly I haven’t read that many books set in China (if any besides Cinder? My memory is terrible), but this one is also one of my favourites of course.

THE UK

I could be original and not go with Harry Potter, but where’s the fun in that?

JAPAN

Harriet goes to Japan in Model Misfit and it’s GLORIOUS. I love Japan and it really felt like I was there with Harriet. I love Harriet, her story and the supporting characters by themselves, but in Japan? Sign me up

Okay so I won’t tag anyone specific again, so if you want to do this, feel free to do so! What is a country you want more YA books set in? Let me know in the comments!

Isla and the Happily Ever After Review

Genre: Contemporary // Romance
Category: YA
Series: Anna and the French Kiss #3
Goodreads rating: 4.14
My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hopeless romantic Isla has had a crush on introspective cartoonist Josh since their first year at the School of America in Paris. And after a chance encounter in Manhattan over the summer, romance might be closer than Isla imagined. But as they begin their senior year back in France, Isla and Josh are forced to confront the challenges every young couple must face, including family drama, uncertainty about their college futures, and the very real possibility of being apart.

Featuring cameos from fan-favorites Anna, Étienne, Lola, and Cricket, this sweet and sexy story of true love—set against the stunning backdrops of New York City, Paris, and Barcelona—is a swoonworthy conclusion to Stephanie Perkins’s beloved series.

I debated with myself about the rating for the longest time: three or four stars? This wasn’t the case with Anna and Lola; I instantly knew I was going to give them five stars. You can say I was a bit disappointed by Isla and the Happily Ever After. There are two things that saved this book from a three stars rating: the ending and Anna, St. Clair, Lola and Cricket. Yeah, the protagonists from the other two books saved this book. That shouldn’t be the case right? I loved Anna, St. Claire, Lola and Cricket’s relationship in Lola and the Boy Next Door, but I know I would’ve loved the book without Anna and St. Clair or with just a small cameo. But Isla? I don’t know. Without these four I probably would’ve given the book three stars, which isn’t bad, but not because of the story or the characters, but because of Stephenie Perkins writing. I can’t give her below three stars, because I love her writing style.

First of all, I didn’t really like Isla and Josh. I didn’t hate them either, I just… I don’t know. I often felt nothing towards them and if I did feel something, it was annoyance. I can’t really elaborate on why I didn’t like them or the things that annoyed me, as I don’t want to spoil anything.

I didn’t like their romance either. I know it didn’t come out of nowhere, but I felt it happened way too quickly and I never squealed. The first time I squealed in this book was because of Anna and St. Clair. The second time because of Lola and Cricket. I think you get what I’m getting at. I need chemistry in order to ship people. For me, there was no chemistry between these two. Sure, the ending made me smile, because I’m a romantic and all that, but did they give me feels? Nope. Not even one tiny feel.

I didn’t really like the story of this one either. There was a lot of unnecessary drama, that felt like it was only there for the sake of drama. I understand love comes with problems, but I didn’t find them to be real problems, or at least big problems. They could’ve easily solved them by talking. You know that thing you do with your mouth and sound comes out of it? Do you Isla?*

What I did like was their trip to Barcelona. I loved how Perkins described the city and it was like I was there all over again. It brought back memories, especially when Isla and Josh left Park Güell. I found it funny how quickly they found their way out of the park, as we ended up in the middle of nowhere, haha.

I also did laugh a few times, especially when Anna, St. Clair, Lola and Cricket appeared, just not as much as I did in Anna and Lola. I guess my expectations were just really high because of the previous two books, or I wouldn’t feel so dissatisfied after finishing the book.

* This is Michelle from 2020 jumping in to point out that I KNOW talking can be hard. 99% of the time I don’t talk about my feelings, but the way this was written just annoyed me a lot. I can’t elaborate because I haven’t reread Isla since, but I just wanted to let you guys know that I don’t think this trope in itself is bad. Lowkey want to reread to write a better, more eloquent review since back in 2014 I sucked, but I probably won’t since looking back I really didn’t enjoy Isla that much. Nowadays I definitely wouldn’t have given this 4 stars.

How did you feel about Isla? What is your favourite in the series?