Series I Absolutely Need To Finish This Year

Hello everyone! 

Who am I? I've been posting so much recently that I bet you're wondering if I've secretly been replaced by an alien. I have been on such a blogging kick so here's hoping it'll carry on all through the year. *Shrugs*. We'll see...

One of my resolutions for this year is to finish at least 5 series I have already started. I am awful at getting stuck into series and then getting bogged down by other series. It's a vicious spiral. I end up not knowing what to read next and getting overwhelmed by choices. Aaaannnnddd voila, the reading slump! You feeling stressed yet? I sure am! 

Fingers crossed if I make a list of 5 series then I'll manage to stick to it and finish that resolution fairly easily :-) 

The first series I want to finish is the Shades of Magic series by V. E. Schwab. I read the first two books last year and really enjoyed the world building. I liked the characters so much that I even named on our kittens Kell! This series follows Kell and Lila as they fight for survival across the four worlds and the four Londons. Each London is deadly in its own way with Black London being the worst. The second book ended on a huge cliffhanger and I swore I would pick up the third book straight away, but instead it has been sat on my shelf gathering dust for the last 6 months! 

This next one should be fairly easy, *she prays*. Katherine Arden's Bear and the Nightingale blew me away last year and the sequel just took it to a whole new level of brilliant. The third, and final book Winter of the Witch came out yesterday so I raced off to pick up my pre-ordered copy. It is the next book I'm picking up as I am really feeling the wintry Russian vibes!

Finale by Stephanie Garber is a final book on a lot of people's lists this year. Sadly we do have to wait a few months before this final follow-up in the whimsical Caraval series is released. This series features circus like magic, plot-twists, gorgeous love interests and some serious darkness. If that doesn't sell it to you then I don't know what will. 

I have been reading Rachel Caine's Great Library series since it first came out, which has made the wait for the final book agonising. This series follows a group of young students as they become ever more entangled in the dark web of the library of Alexandria. For centuries the library has been the highest power in the world, but now it is falling to corruption and fanaticism. Jess and his friends are trying to change that. Sword and Pen comes out later this year and I can guarantee I will be reading it as soon as it comes out! 

If anyone knows the artist for this please give them credit, because it is amazing :-) 

So this one may be a cheat because technically the series isn't really finished as more books are coming, but I have 5 books to catch up on so I'm including it to the challenge. That's right, I'm talking about the Shadowhunters series by Cassandra Clare. I still have The Dark Artifices to read, The Bane Chronicles and Tales From the Shadowhunter academy to catch up! 

What series are you planning on wrapping up this year? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

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Book Shame - Series I Need to Finish

Hello everyone, 

So it may be August, but that has not stopped me from curling up in a blanket with hot chocolate and re-runs of Vampire Diaries while I write this post! I'm still deep in a book ban while I try to reduce my tbr pile from rivalling the Empire State building to maybe Eiffel Tower height. This ban has also served an unexpected purpose, it has revealed just how many book series I still need to finish. 

Instead of wallowing and hiding my shame in a box at the back of my wardrobe I thought I would share it with you here! That way all you other bookworms can sympathise and feel less lonely in your own shame. 

Now this is by no means an exhaustive list, but these are my priorities. 

1. Shades Of Magic by V. E. Schwab
I really can't explain why I haven't finished this series yet, I only have the last book left and it is an amazing series! It follows Kell as he travels between different worlds via their one common feature - London. Black London is rising from the dead and bringing with it a lethal form of dark magic, one that only Kell can fight. 
I seriously need to finish this series and as soon as I own the last book I will! 

2. The Gentlemen Bastards by Scott Lynch 
Again, another series I love. This one is high fantasy following Locke Lamora, infamous thief of Camorr as he and his friends get embroiled in the most intricate plot the city has ever seen. Any lovers of Robin Hood will adore this darker version and I am beyond excited to read the next one :-) 

3. Peter Grant by Ben Aaronovitch 
Okay, so I'm not sure this one even counts as I am currently reading book 2, but this series is too good not to be included. Now I love police stories and I love magic/fantasy so this book series about a division of the metropolitan police that deals with magic is so perfect! Every time I open these books I end up getting so sucked in that I can't put them down! 

4. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff
Now this one is a big source of shame... I feel like the world and his wife has read the first 2 instalments of this book and are eagerly awaiting book 3, all except me. I have tried reading Nevernight and just could not get past the first 100 pages. The narrator is just so irritating!! He keeps interrupting at exactly the most annoying moments, which I do get, he's trying to be Lemony Snicket, but he isn't and I just want him to stop and let me get on with the story!
I will try to pick this one up again, but I make no promises.

5. Song Of Shattered Sands by Bradley Beaulieu 
I pinky swear I will read this one because I am head over heels for this series! I have good reason for not reading it yet too! I am waiting to read it nearer the next book release so I don't have to wait so long. Ceda's fight to assassinate the 12 kings of Sharakhai has me completely spell-bound <3 

6. Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs 
Picture me blushing bright red with shame over this one. I feel like this series is an essential part of YA fantasy, but as usual I am late to the party and have only read book 1. I bought and read book 1 years ago, hoping it would be super dark and gothic. To be brutally honest, I was underwhelmed by this and felt it could have been waaaayyy scarier! 

7. Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan 
Guys I have no idea how I completely missed out on these books as a teen, I must have lived under a rock or been so far into the vampire/twilight phase that nothing without fangs penetrated my tunnel vision. Recently I have been playing binge catchup with these books and am now onto book 2 of the Heroes Of Olympus section, so I'm making good progress! I plan to continue onto the Kane books and then Magnus/Apollo so I can be all up to date :-) 

8. The Old Kingdom by Garth Nix 
I am so close to being done with this one!! I adore this series and have been dragging it out on purpose as I don't want to run out of story. I really hope Garth writes another book! The last one left for me to read is a set of short stories called Across The Wall and I'm hoping to get to it in the next couple of months :-)

What have you guys been reading? Any series you need to finish? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

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