Random Fridays: YA Would You Rather

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Happy Dragon Appreciation Day! This week's Random Friday theme, sadly, has nothing to do with dragons, but it is really fun: YA Would You Rather? I love "would you rather"/"this or that" games, so I'm super excited to answer Emma's WYR questions.

Would you rather . . .

. . . go to Panem or the world of Divergent?

No question: Divergent world, any day. It's a mess, sure, but it's less than a mess than Panem, and I think I'd have a considerably higher chance of survival.

 

. . . read/reread the Matched trilogy or The Selection trilogy?

Reread The Selection trilogy. I read the first Matched book, and though I'm halfheartedly considering reading the rest of the trilogy in hopes that it'll get better, I'd rather reread The Selection books.

. . . go on an adventure with Hermione or Cinder?

Pffffff. Is that even a question? Cinder, definitely!

. . . be a Gallagher Girl or go to Hogwarts?

Gallagher Girl, as I'm not a Harry Potter fan. Besides, being a spy would be cool. (Though I'd probably be less inclined towards fieldwork and more inclined towards tactics, intelligence analysis, etc.)

. . . be in Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw?

I haven't read HP, so . . . Google to the rescue! From what I read on the Harry Potter wiki, I'd probably go for Ravenclaw.

. . . spend your wish on Disney World or Amsterdam?

I don't know. Probably Amsterdam; the Netherlands are pretty high on my places-I'd-like-to-go list.

. . . date Captain Thorne or Levi (from Fangirl)?

Ooh, that's a hard question. I love Captain Thorne, but I just looked up Levi on Wikipedia (since I haven't read Fangirl), and he sounds really nice. I guess I'll go with Captain Thorne because, y'know, Thorne. 

. . . go back in time to The Book Thief or Grave Mercy?

Grave Mercy. I haven't read it (or The Book Thief, for that matter), but it's set in just-past-medieval times, so it would be cook to visit that time period. Also, I really wouldn't want to live through World War II.

What would your answers to these questions be? Please tell me in the comments, or make your own Random Fridays post!
Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)  

Dragon Appreciation Day!

Hello, everyone! Tomorrow is Dragon Appreciation Day! This celebration of dragons was started in 2004 by Donita K. Paul, an awesome Christian fantasy author, in honor of the release of DragonSpell. It's a day to celebrate dragons in literature, whether by reading about them, making art featuring them, or by doing something else dragon related. In honor of the day- and to help you figure out how to celebrate- I thought I'd tell you about some of my favorite dragon-related books.

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. 

The best place to start is always with the classics- and anyway, who doesn't love Smaug? (Inasmuch as you can love an evil, fire-breathing dragon, anyway.) Or, if you like, you could also try "Farmer Giles of Ham", a short story Tolkien wrote concerning a farmer who's pushed into being a hero when a dragon turns up near his village.

Heartless or Golden Daughter by Anne Elisabeth Stengl.  

Heartless especially. The Dragon is the most terrifying dragon I've ever encountered, and for that reason, he's also my favorite dragon (just barely beating out Smaug). Of course, both these books feature dragons other than the Dragon, though they're less terrifying because- well, fans of Goldstone Wood know why, and anyone else will just have to read the books to find out.

The DragonKeeper Chronicles or Chiril Chronicles by Donita K. Paul

Of course, we can't leave out the books that actually started Dragon Appreciation Day! My favorite part of both of these series is probably the minor dragons. They're so CUTE, especially Gymn. And I know that "cute" and "dragon" are not words one would generally put together, but . . . cute! dragons! It's like cute kittens, only better, because dragons. (Coincidentally, minor dragons also inspired certain dragons in my own writing. I squee over them- well, one of them- too.)

Dragons in Our Mist and sequel series by Bryan Davis

This is the series I'll probably be celebrating with, since it's been on my to-be-reread list for a long while. I love DioM and its sequel series; Mr. Davis is an amazing author, and I love the way he combines Biblical truths, ancient legend, and modern-day fantasy adventure into one great story. (Well, series of stories.) Also, the DioM and sequel series have the most dragons-as-major-characters of any book or series on this list.

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

I mentioned this book in my Top Ten Books/Series of 2014 post, and what I said there still stands: Seraphina is awesome, and the dragons aren't quite like any others I've read. There are similarities, true, but they're still very much unique. The worldbuilding is also very good- not Sanderson or Tolkien level, but impressive all the same.

Are you going to do to celebrate Dragon Appreciation Day? How? What are your favorite dragon-related books? Please tell me in the comments!
Nai haryuvalyë melwa rë!

-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)   

THAW Series Launch!

Hello, everyone! I'm finally breaking my silence to join the blog hop for a new fairytale retelling series that just released this weekend: Thaw, by E. Kaiser Writes!

The Thaw series, books 1-3:

 Winter's Child

A barren king and queen pray for a child, and when in their loneliness, they make one out of snow, their prayers are answered in a special, and unusual way. 

 Sometimes, when we get what we wish for, we don't know what to do with it.

Winter's Queen

A slightly pampered girl allows her avoidance behavior to isolate her from the world... and it's only when she takes the final step that the realizes the wall she's built in the name of safety is also the one that will hold her prisoner forever... unless she discovers how to destroy it.

 The only one who can break a neurosis... is the one who has it.

Prince of Demargen

The whole world knows his guilt, and is absolutely correct about it, but how far can a man go to regain respect so swiftly lost?
 Or is an honorable death the best a fallen star can hope for?

 The only person who can help him... is the one he most deeply wronged.

I'm always excited for new fairy tale remakes, and these ones sound really cool (pun very much intended). They retell the stories, "The Snow Maiden", "The Snow Queen" (of Frozen fame), "Snegurken" (which I had to look up because I've never heard of it), and others. Since I haven't seen a lot of retellings of these fairy tales, I'm eager to find out what the Thaw series will be like. Apparently, there's also going to be a spin-off series with retellings of "The Twelve Dancing Princesses", "Cinderella", "Rapunzel", and possibly others, which I'm nearly as excited about. (Anyone want to guess which one in particular I'm most looking forward to?)  On her site, the author describes the series as "a ride into the world of the unknown, on glittering icy swans and a wind that can blow you anywhere you'd least expect it"- sounds like lots of fun to me!

So, who else is excited for the Thaw series? While you're waiting to check it out, be sure to click through the rest of the blog hop and enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for a chance to win one of six copies of this series! You can also connect with E. Kaiser Writes on her blog, her website, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Goodreads.  

Thanks for reading!

-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)  

Merry Christmas

 

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Christmas Music!

Christmas is almost here- there's less than a week left to wait! To make the time go faster, I thought I'd share about one of my favorite parts of the Christmas season: the music. I'd happily listen to Christmas music all year round, except that then it wouldn't be Christmas music anymore. (Also, my family holds to the "no Christmas music before Thanksgiving" thing.) Anyway, for your enjoyment, here are seven of my favorite Christmas songs!

1. "The Promise" by Michael Card

If any Christmas music could be given the title of "epic", I think it would be this song. It's beautiful and, in a way, powerful. I just love everything about it: the melody, the lyrics- especially the chorus- and the whole feel of it. It also sounds like something that could be sung by one or two of my favorite novel characters, which is a bonus- not many Christmas songs have that distinction.

2. "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" by PureNRG

I don't think a lot of people have heard of this song, which is sad, because it's really awesome. I love how triumphant it sounds, particularly the last verse.

3. "Joy to the World" 

This is actually one of the first Christmas songs I remember learning. When I was a really little girl- maybe four or five years old- my Sunday school class (and maybe the class above mine as well) learned four Christmas songs to sing in front of the church. This is the one that's stuck with me the most. My favorite part is the third verse, though it seems to be left out a lot (at least in my experience). It's a great reminder that, even if the world is messed up, it won't be forever.

4. "Merry Christmas" by Third Day

This is just a really sweet song. It and two other similarly themed songs- "All I Really Want" by Steven Curtis Chapman and "This Christmas" by TobyMac- are some of my favorite modern Christmas songs just because they're so touching. They also remind me of some of my novel characters, coincidentally. (Though, as I think the songs came first, maybe the songs influenced my creation of the characters and I just didn't realize it . . .)

5. "Christmas Ceilidh" by Celtic Christmas

I discovered Celtic Christmas music about two years ago, and it- like most Celtic music- is lovely. This is the only song I could find on YouTube from my favorite Celtic Christmas album. (This one, by the way. It's super cheap to download it digitally; I definitely recommend it.) Thankfully, it happens to be one of my favorites from the album. I love the pictures it creates in my mind of the friends gathered for their Christmas celebration, their singing and enjoyment of one another.

6. "Carol of the Bells" by BarlowGirl

To me, this song sounds really eerie for a Christmas song, but that's why I love it. It gives me this image in my head- almost a story, but I can't quite turn it into words yet. I imagine the darkness gathering, trying to snuff out the light- but it's stopped by the bells and their reminder of the Light. Or something like that. Eventually I'll figure it out- I hope.

7. "Christmas is Coming"- traditional

  I like the Danny Byram version best, but it's not on YouTube. This one is pretty good, though. It's just a fun little song, and I can imagine it echoing from one corner to another of a busy village square in some English town of a hundred-odd years ago. (It'll also get stuck in your head, and you'll likely be humming it the rest of the day. You're welcome.)

What are your favorite Christmas songs? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)  

Top Ten Tuesdays: Books/Series I Read in 2014

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Book-wise, 2014 was a really awesome year. I discovered new series to love, branched out into a genre I usually wouldn't consider, and added Brandon Sanderson to my top three favorite authors. My reading adventures took me from the Shattered Plains to Middle Earth, from the Gallagher Academy to Adarlan, from Goldstone Wood to Newcago, and so many other places. I met new character-friends and revisited old ones. With all that, choosing my Top Ten Books- or even Top Ten Series- of 2014 will be difficult, but I'm going to try my best. (Though . . . I may go a few over just ten.)

1. Golden Daughter by Anne Elisabeth Stengl.

This book was insanely amazing. There is one Tale that I like better than it, and that one is Heartless. I stayed up until almost midnight on a school night reading it, and I never do that. Never. Except, obviously, for this book. If you want to hear me obsess over it more, you can read my review.

2. The Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson
The Mistborn trilogy was mind-blowing. I'd be reading them, and I'd be like "Ok, this is really cool" one minute, and then the next I'd be like "Oh my pumpernickel what just HAPPENED?" I saw next to nothing coming- and yet I'd think about it and realize that the clues were there; I'd just missed or misinterpreted them.

3. The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson
Like Mistborn, The Stormlight Archive is seriously mind-blowing. The worldbuilding, the twisted and tangled plots and backstories, the characters- it's all seriously incredible and definitely deserving of the title "epic". Also, Words of Radiance evoked the largest emotional reaction of any book I've ever read. I am not exaggerating. 

4. Shadow Hand by Anne Elisabeth Stengl
This wasn't my favorite of the Tales of Goldstone Wood, but it was still awesome. It's hard to say a lot without giving out spoilers, but  . . . Time is a very interesting thing. Also, I never thought I could like Foxbrush as much as I did in this book.

5. The Queen's Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner
This series isn't quite like anything I've ever read, which is part of what makes it so amazing. I love the characters, especially Eugenides. Also, the author has a way of giving you just enough information that you think you know what's going on and then springing a twist on you with that one piece of information that you didn't know. My favorite in the series was The King of Attolia, but they're all awesome.

6. Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
I've read a lot of books about dragons, but none portray these magnificent (if sadly fictional) beings in quite the same way Seraphina does. Rachel Hartman takes traditional dragonic features, gives them little- but powerful- twists, and then adds in new elements to create a very unique take on dragons, which I loved. I also liked the mystery in the story; it was very well done.

7. Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson
Superheroes gone bad? Sounds awesome- but that's only the start. Add in amazing characters- Cody and David in particular- a dystopian city of steel, and Brandon Sanderson's insane plotting skills and you get this amazing book. If you like action or superhero stories (or even if you don't), you should definitely read this book.

8. Cress by Marissa Meyer
These books just keep getting better! Cress is definitely my favorite Lunar Chronicles heroine- maybe because she's so much like me. I loved just about all of this, particularly the ending- no spoilers, but it was beautiful. Except for the cliffhanger, which was . . . not so beautiful. But it was worth it. 

9. The Knight and Rogue series by Hilari Bell
A good fantasy-mystery can be hard to find, which makes the Knight and Rogue books that much better. I heard about this series several times from a friend of mine, but never tried it until this year. Oh, am I glad I finally picked it up! Really getting into the first book took a chapter or two, but once I'd picked up a few things about the characters and setting, I really enjoyed it, and the next two books are awesome.

10. The Word Changers by Ashlee Willis
Bookish girl gets stuck inside a book? It sounded like it would be right up my alley, and it was! I especially loved the idea of characters in books having lives of their own (and the explanation of why, in some books, you're always discovering details that you didn't remember before), and of what might happen if they rebelled
against their Author.


11. The Hollow Kingdom trilogy by Clare B. Dunkle
This trilogy reminds me of Howl's Moving Castle in some ways. It's lighthearted, humorous fantasy with just the right twist of unexpected romance. The characters were great, particularly Marak, and I liked the somewhat unusual take on goblins and elves and their rivalry.

12. Five Glass Slippers by Elisabeth Brown, Emma Clifton, Rachel Heffington, Stephanie Ricker, and Clare Diane Thompson
Five unique Cinderella retellings in one book? What's not to like? Each of the five stories is awesome in its own way. My favorite is "The Windy Side of Care"- I love the dialogue, the characters' plotting, and the twist of humor.

Honorable mentions go to the Girl of Fire and Thorns series and the Throne of Glass series, both of which are also awesome but have some romantic stuff that's borderline on what I'm comfortable with. (I had to skip one scene in particular in the second Throne of Glass book.) What about you? What were your favorite books of 2014? Please tell me in the comments, or feel free to make your own Top Ten Tuesdays post!

Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)  

Shelfies to Share

Back in November, the lovely Katie Grace tagged me with the Shelfie Tag. I'd seen the tag floating around the internet for a while, and thought it looked really fun, so getting to it for myself was pretty exciting. I haven't been able to get around to it for a while because of NaNoWriMo and Christmas preparations, but I finally have the shelfies to share with y'all!

I'll start with the bottom two shelves of my larger bookshelf. This is where I keep all my classic books, other than LOTR.

The next shelf up contains more variety in terms of genre than the entirety of my other bookshelf.

From left to right, we have: biographies, historical fiction, contemporary fiction, and a few how-to books. (Also, yes, I have The Dangerous Book for Boys despite having only girls in the house other than my dad. It was a dollar and looked like it could be useful for story research.)

The top two shelves of this case also contain a conglomeration, though with less variety of genre.

On the top we have fairytale retellings and similar, as well as three Ranger's Apprentice books that wouldn't fit on the shelf below. The second shelf contains dystopian and/or sci-fi books and most of the Ranger's Apprentice series.

Now we move on to my other (smaller) bookshelf, which is devoted exclusively to one genre. I'm sure you can guess which genre it is.

 

Bryan Davis is the only author whose books get a shelf all to themselves, mostly by virtue of his having written more books than any other author I read other than Brian Jacques, whose books occupy the next shelf down. The Inheritance Cycle books also reside on this shelf, since I know I won't be getting any more Jacques. I own almost all of his books, and most of those I don't own, my sister does Also, fun fact: the only one of the books on the lower shelf that I bought new was Redwall, which is almost hidden behind Mattimeo. The rest? Library book sales (aka the best place ever to find cheap books, at least in popular series).

This is the top two shelves of the smaller bookcase. The upper contains mostly Tolkien and Batson, with a few other authors. (The empty space is where Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers should go, but my sister is currently borrowing those books.) The lower shelf contains various Christian fantasy.

Finally, my desk has two shelves, which are partially occupied by books and partially taken up by miscellaneous other items.

The right side of my desk contains photo albums, devotionals, and two Bibles on the top section, which is usually guarded by my Gandalf and Bilbo Christmas ornaments. (They're too awesome to put in boxes all year. After this Christmas ends, Thorin will join them.) Below them are some of my notebooks and folders and such. All those black notebooks have already been filled- they're the first drafts of my fairy tale retellings and the third and fourth Berstru Tales. The rest are still waiting to be used.

And finally, my favorite section of shelves, despite the fact that it's the smallest:

Goldstone Wood and Brandon Sanderson. I'd put Tolkien here too and have all my favorites together, but I didn't want to run out of room. I predict that one day, this section will have taken over the entire top shelf of my desk- and except for the fact that I'd then have to find somewhere else to put the other books, I look forward to that time.

I hope you all enjoyed that little tour of my shelves! Now it's time for me to nominate others for the Shelfie Tag. I choose:
Charlotte of Winding Passages
Jag Swiftstorm of From a Jagged Inkwell
And if you're reading this, haven't already done the tag, and want to participate, feel free to do so! I'd love to see your shelves!

Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)  

Random Fridays: Winter 2014/2015 Reads

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NaNoWriMo is over, and that means we're back to the regular schedule of posting: Random Fridays, Top Ten Tuesdays, and whatever other posts I happen to come up with. Today's Random Fridays theme is Winter 2014/2015 Reads. Since I have a lot of books I want to read in the next few months, I'm going to stick with highlighting the new releases coming out this winter (and one that releases in late fall but I know I won't actually read until winter).

---------

1. The War of Swords by D. Barkley Briggs

It's here! Here! Already! The last book in the Legends of Karac Tor series! I guessed that it would take a lot longer for The War of Swords to come out, but it's here! And I'll finally get answers! (I'm still wondering about Cruedwyn Creed, thank you very much. And Gabe as well, but mostly Cruedwyn because I didn't read a word of him in The Ravaged Realm and I need answers.)

2. Fairest by Marissa Meyer

I want Winter. I really do. But as I have to wait for that, I will content myself with Fairest. I'm sure it'll be good- all the other Lunar Chronicles are- and it'll be interesting to read Levana's story. 

3. Firefight by Brandon Sanderson

Yes, yes, yes, yes. I need this book- now, preferably, but I can live until January when it actually comes out. Steelheart was awesome (is there such a thing as a non-awesome Sanderson book?), and the ending . . . I have to find out what happens, particularly with Megan.

4. Dearest by Alethea Kontis

I was more than a little worried for a while that Dearest wouldn't be released at all- but, yay, it's coming in February! I'm definitely excited to read it. Alethia Kontis's fairy tale retellings have been really good so far, and I've never seen a remake of "The Seven Swans" before.

Short list, I know, but this and the already-released books I want to read will be plenty to keep me busy. What are you hoping to read this winter? Please tell me in the comments, or feel free to make your own Random Fridays post! 

Thanks for reading!

-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Want to join in the Random Fridays fun? Feel free to make a post of your own on the week's topic! Please just be sure to use the Random Fridays banner, link back to Awkwordly Emma, and post the link to your post on the Awkwordly Emma blog so other participants can check out your post. For a list of future Random Friday topics, click here. 

Best Blogging Buddies Award

Hello, all! Ghost Ryter of "Anything, Everything" nominated me for the Best Blogging Buddies Award- which, by the way, sounds like a tongue-twister. Anyone who can say it three times fast gets virtual cookies. This award doesn't have a banner, but it does have a mascot: Dave the Blogging Buddy Owl, who is adorable.

I want to hug him. Now.

Anyway! These are the rules of the Best Blogging Buddies award:

• You must post to show the award on your main blog.
• You must tag the person who nominated you, in your post.
• You must tag all of your best buddies, and those whom you want to become best buddies with, who, to your knowledge, have not been nominated, for this award.
• You must ask your buddies at least fifteen questions on your post.
• You must answer all of the questions your buddies ask you. On your post.

This sounds like fun. I love answering questions- though I'm pretty sure I've told y'all that already. So, let's get started!

1. What is you favorite aspect of blogging? 
Um. I have to choose just one? I suppose I'd have to say sharing my thoughts with others and then reading their responses in the comments.

2. Your least favorite?
Struggling to come up with topics to post about when I don't have TTT, Random Fridays, or NaNoWriMo to help me. 

3. What's one of the best books you've read this year? 
Not a fair question, precious! I read a lot of awesome, amazing books this year. Buuuut if I have to pick one, I'd have to say Golden Daughter. It was incredible.

4. Describe yourself in five words. 
Daydreaming bookworm and aspiring author.

5. If you were supreme ruler of the world, what would be the first thing you'd do? 
Organize my dominion so that I didn't look like a dictator.

6. What Disney character do you relate to most? (Yes, I did just ask that.) 
Belle, of Beauty and the Beast. We share a love of books and a desire for an adventure or something else outside our ordinary lives. 

7. Do you have many siblings? 
Nope. Just one. 

8. Think of a book, any book at all. Now, what's one thing you would change about that book?
The first book I thought of was Golden Daughter . . . but I can't think of anything I would change about it. No, wait. I just thought of something. I'd insert myself into the book somehow so I could be present for . . .  something. Preferably something that wouldn't get me killed.

  9. Who is one of your biggest role models? (Besides the obvious answer.) 
Hmm . . . probably my mom. She's amazing.

10. Autumn or spring? 
Autumn. Spring's better for photography, but autumn has NaNoWriMo, two birthdays, Thanksgiving, and the start of the Christmas season.

11. What's a yet-unreleased book or movie you are really excited about? 
The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies is the top movie I'm looking forward to, for obvious reasons. I'm also going to go see it with a bunch of friends from TPS (online school I take German at), which pretty much doubles my excitement. For books, I'm really excited for Poison Crown by Anne Elisabeth Stengl and for The War of Swords by D. Barkley Briggs.

12. Realistic fiction, or speculative? Why? 
Speculative! I've always loved fantasy and fairy-tales. They appeal to and fuel my desire for adventure, and they provide an escape from the ordinary. 

13. What is one of your favorite non-fiction books? 
Er . . . I read very little non-fiction, but I guess I'll say Walking With Frodo. It's a devotional book by Sarah Arthur based on The Lord of the Rings, and it's probably one of my favorite devotionals I've ever done.

14. What's something happening this month that you are really excited about? 
Christmas, of course! I have a lot to get done- cards and presents to make and buy, the second half of my Advent poem to write, and more- but Christmas is one of my favorite holidays.

15. Alright then; the last question. You have just had a mysterious ring of great power that can turn the wearer invisible entrusted into your care, and told that it must--must--be destroyed at all costs. What are you going to do?
Not put the ring on, for one thing. And start looking for Gandalf. Or elves. Or hobbits. Or a map to Mount Doom. Oh, and practice a lot more with my bow and arrow, because I'd definitely need it.

Now, my questions:
1. It seems to be tradition, so . . . what's your favorite part about blogging?
2. Is there a song stuck in your head right now? If so, what is it?
3. What's your favorite Bible verse?
4. If you could trade lives with any fictional character for a day, who would you trade with? And at what point in his/her life?
5. What's your favorite Christmas song?
6. What's your least favorite Christmas song?
7. What's the next book you're hoping/planning to read? (For fun, not for school.)
8. Which book/movie villain would you most want to show up on your front doorstep?
9. If said villain showed up, what would your reaction be?
10. If you could have any superpower, what would you pick?
11. What's your favorite place to read/write?
12. Are your bookshelves organized? If so, how?
13. What's one odd quirk of yours?
14. What's one recently written book that your grandchildren will be assigned to read in high school? (Or, to put it another way, what's one recently written book that you think will become a major classic?)
15. Do you like even or odd numbers better?
16. What's your favorite kind of chocolate? 
17. What are you going to do after you finish this tag?

I shall tag:
Ryebrynn of Ryebrynn's Random Ramblings 
Emma of Awkwordly Emma 
Rayne Speryll of Writing in Rivendell 
IDK323 of World of Panin 

Thanks for reading, everyone! And thanks again to Ghost Ryter for tagging me! I hope you all enjoyed reading this!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)