The Month of January & Resolve ~ A Wrap-Up

Lovelies!
I'm finally finding time to have a better monthly wrap-up for you guys! How were was your January and your Happy New Year?? The month of resolve! We make resolutions and plans for the year- and then watch them fall to... (a word I can't say) for the rest of the year. Isn't it wonderful?! 😀

Here's a look at my month of resolve a.k.a January!!

~ My YouTube Channel ~

What videos did I do on my YouTube this month?


My 2019 Reading Goals

The Book Jumper by Mechtild Gläser | BOOK RANT

Top DISLIKES OF 2018





~ Favorite Blog Posts This Month! ~


Exploration of Creation posted a New Year Tag!

BOOKIVERSE shared their Writing Beast Strategic Planning

Books of Amber gave her 2019 Reading, Booktube and Blog Goals

Bookwyrming Thoughts gave a review on White Stag by Kara Barbieri

Chuckles Book Cave's Top Ten Tuesday- Festive TV Fun

Corner folds shared a post on the difficulty of sticking to TBRs

Crazy for YA gave a review on The Falconer by Elizabeth May

Do You Dog-ear? shared her thoughts on Two Can Keep A Secret by Karen McManus

For The Love Of Words posted about their Top Anticipated Reads in 2019

JennReneeRead gave a review on City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab

Owls Reads shared what books she Wanted to Read in 2018

Read All The Things! posted her Top Ten Authors she would read again.

Sharing Inspired Kreations gave her Top Ten Books I Would Love To Receive As Gifts

Sunny Buzzy Books listed the Movies she's excited about

The Artsy Reader Girl shared her Top 8 New-to-Me Authors she tried in 2018

What Makes A Good Book posted the Top 5 Series She Wants To Read This Year

D. Books and Reviews did the Ravenclaw Book Tag!

Keep on Reading have her 2018: A Year In Review

Paperback Princess re-read Twilight and gave a review for it!

Reviews of a FearStreetZombie gave a cover reveal for The Haunting of Elmwood Manor

Abby's Reading Corner shared a Keeper of the Lost Cities Playlist

Andrea's Bookish Thoughts shared the Top 10 Books in 2010 she wanted to read

BiteIntBooks gave a review for Seeds of Hatred

Book Haven gave their Top Ten Most Recent Addisions To My TBR

Diva BookNerd gave a Review of Emergency Contact

Du Livre had a post for Waiting on Wednesday

For What It's Worth had a Monday Musings post

Little Bookworm Reviews had a review for A Gathering of Shadows

Pages of Wonderland had a Reading Resolution post

Tea, Chocolate and Books gave a review for Why We Broke Up

Waves of Fiction shared the Best Books she Read in 2018

My Guilty Obsession  gave a review of A Curse So Dark and Lovely






~ What Did I READ This Month?? ~

Beauty and Her Beast by Addison Carmichael is a short prequel to her newest werewolf series.
[3.5 stars Review Here]


Knight by Addison Carmichael, Book 1 in the Sons of the Alpha series- which is to be released in February 2019! [4.5 stars Review here]

The Book Jumper by Mechthild Gläser
[4 stars Review here]

So well built! I suggest this for any book lover!!

                                        Rook by Sharon Cameron
                                       [4 stars] Review Coming Soon!

I was in love with The Forgetting by Sharon Cameron, so I gave this book a try- and though I didn't love it, I did thoroughly enjoy it!

The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest by Melanie Dickerson
[4 stars]

I expect nothing less from a Melanie Dickerson book- always so good!

                                        The Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas
                                        [4.5 stars]
SO CAPTIVATING!!! I am in love with the Throne of Glass series now!

Fallen by Lauren Kate
[2 stars]

I was very disappointed with this read, I thought the book would be about something else... I was wrong.







What did you guys read this month?? Have you read any of these before??
Hope you had a great January!

Thanks for reading!!
~Books with Noel

Ace Of Shades by Amanda Foody

Another long, long overdue book review I owe you guys.

Title: Ace of Shades

Author: Amanda Foody

Published: April 10th, 2018



[Synopsis:     Welcome to the City of Sin, where casino families reign, gangs infest the streets…and secrets hide in every shadow.

Enne Salta was raised as a proper young lady, and no lady would willingly visit New Reynes, the so-called City of Sin. But when her mother goes missing, Enne must leave her finishing school—and her reputation—behind to follow her mother’s trail to the city where no one survives uncorrupted.

Frightened and alone, her only lead is a name: Levi Glaisyer. Unfortunately, Levi is not the gentleman she expected—he’s a street lord and a con man. Levi is also only one payment away from cleaning up a rapidly unraveling investment scam, so he doesn’t have time to investigate a woman leading a dangerous double life. Enne’s offer of compensation, however, could be the solution to all his problems.
Their search for clues leads them through glamorous casinos, illicit cabarets and into the clutches of a ruthless mafia donna. As Enne unearths an impossible secret about her past, Levi’s enemies catch up to them, ensnaring him in a vicious execution game where the players always lose. To save him, Enne will need to surrender herself to the city…
And she’ll need to play.]

   So originally when I first saw the cover for Ace of Shades earlier in 2018 (before I read the synopsis or it had even come out) my first thought had been ''Alice in Wonderland re-telling''! That could not be further from the truth, but what can I say? I'm a sucker for a good re-telling.

I finished Ace of Shades back in 2018, but I really needed to get this review out! (Whoops, it's a little late!)


  I didn't get attached to Enne until about halfway through the book, which was a little disappointing- but it was made up for in the end. I really enjoyed reading from both her and Levi's point of view, though I do have to say that they were both idiots several times (at very frustrating times might I add).
 It was slightly more enjoyable to read Levi's chapters than Enne's but that was mostly because he was my favorite of the two at times.


The world and plot were really good- much better than I was expecting- and everything Amanda Foody revealed in the story was genius. I loved all of that! 
(Spoiler) Towards the end, you start to see somethings connect, and my only thought was ''Anastasia!'' It's one of my favorite movies, so of course, I really liked that twist/reveal. (Spoiler Over)

  If I personally am in love with a book, or really really like it, I will re-read it several times! I'm a big re-reader. However, Ace of Shades was not one I would re-read. Reading it once is enough, but that's not to say I was disappointed with it!
 I will definitely read book 2 when it comes out, but I think it has a lot to hold up to. While there were some aspects I didn't love or particularly like in Ace of Shades, each thing that moved or drived the story on was very interesting and kept me from dying a boring death.


Overall, I would suggest giving Ace of Shades a try. If you don't fall in love with the characters right off the bat, there's still the world and plot aspects that make up for it later on. Even the characters get better later on too.


[My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐]



Have any of you read this book yet? What did you think of it?? I've read one of the author's books before- which was good, but not as good as this one.

Thanks for reading!
~Books with Noel

Knight by Addison Carmicahel (Sons of the Alpha Book #1) | ARC Book Review

*I was sent an ARC of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review, my thoughts and opinions are my own!*

 [Synopsis: Alexia Raine has a major problem--she’s being stalked by very dangerous men for some unknown reason, but one that will turn her entire world on its axis.

Neil Duran has five major problems: Just when he’s closing in on a vicious werewolf hunter that is kidnapping, torturing and killing their people, he’s pulled from the case by his High Alpha, Rob Bryant, to locate and return the daughter of their most valuable and gifted shifter. If he doesn’t, their entire Wolf Pack in the Pacific Northwest might collapse and lose all hard-won territory, shifting the balance of powers and throwing the entire were-kind species into a world war.

Problem one—Alexia Raine never knew her real father.
Problem two—She doesn’t even know that shifters or were-kind exist.
Problem three—Their rival Pack wants her and will stop at nothing to acquire her for several unspeakable reasons.
Problem four—She’s the most aggravating, infuriating, intoxicating woman he’s had the displeasure to rescue. And he may very well be falling in love with her.
Problem five—A wolf always finds and protects his mate.]

Welcome to Addison Carmichael's newest series, Sons of the Alpha, that introduces a world of paranormal twists with crazy characters and steamy romances!
 So this is one of the only werewolf stories I truly enjoyed and would love to reread again! I want this book in my hands and on my shelf right next to the rest of the author's works!

For those of you who don't know Addison, she is an awesome author and I have had the pleasure of reviewing her books for a while now. Her first series, The Guarded Trilogy, had three books that I reviewed- Guarded Wish, Guarded Heart, and Guarded Crown. (The links take you to the reviews.)

But we're talking about her new series right now! Speaking of, I honestly might have liked Knight a bit more than the Guarded Trilogy... Just that so much more tied me in for this new series- and I literally want it in my hands right now (I read the ebook version, not a physical copy).


Knight is book 1, and there is a prequel which I have already reviewed (here's the link)- named Beauty and Her Beast. Remember that?
  So apparently for each book in the series- the author has a short prequel that takes place before them! Really cool idea and I definitely suggest reading the prequel first- it gives you quite a bit of insight and makes it a more enjoyable experience.


Alexia was a funny and sassy main character, that gave everyone else a piece of her mind- but she was vulnerable at the same time which made her very easy to love for me. I really liked seeing her interact with the other characters (a certain one, in particular, *winks*), but that doesn't mean there weren't times where I was second-hand embarrassed by her decisions or things that came out of her mouth.

  Now Alexia's father I had a harder time with- especially after reading his love story with Alexia's mom (the prequel mentioned above). I personally had a harder time forgiving him for his fake death- but there was a heartwarming moment when Alexia finds out- along with the readers- what his thoughts and hopes had been for the past two decades for their family. It was revealed in such a way that I may or may not have squealed!
 What can I say? I wasn't expecting it!


And now we must discuss the romance! 😍😍
  So the romance between our two main characters was delightfully progressed and built throughout the story- and yes, I mean there was not exactly ''Instant Love''!
Considering Alexia had already gone through a really bad - and I do mean bad- breakup and the fact that she couldn't stand Neil's arrogance for quite a while...I would say their relationship progressed very well! I am still giddily happy about certain parts where they were just too cute!!


And finally the plot twist(s) and ending...
There were a few surprising things in the plot that I had not even considered, and then certain characters' betrayals were...again unexpected. That may have to do with the fact that I was way more focused on my new OTP though... *shrugs* They're just so cute!!
 And then that ending...I have not been so happy with a book's ending in so long!! (I probably have, but this book just had me all over the place and I was so relieved.)


[My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐] [4.5 stars]

Definitely going to be a re-read!


Knight is to be published February 1st, 2019!!



Have you read any of Addison Carmichael's books?? If so, what did you think? If not, would this be something you'd want to read?
How's your reading going for January so far??

Have a awesome day!!
~Books with Noel

My Weekly Pull | 8 |

  My Weekly Pull is something I do every Wednesday to show which anime or manga I had pulled for myself that week. My friend Lindsi @ Do You Dog-ear? hosts My Weekly Pull for comics that she has read or is reading, so make sure to check her out because it was such a cool and fun idea that I asked if I could do it for anime and manga (I don't get to read a lot of comics sadly)!


                   ~                    ~                    ~                     ~                       ~


Last Week's Anime...


One- it has been two weeks since I last did one of these posts, so I apologize about that!

Second- this section will be an overview that covers all the anime I watched in that time period (which was sadly not a lot).



My Little Monster  [Tonari no kaibutsu-kun]

 Either name works for the anime, there are 14 episodes and I am halfway through episode 5! I am LOVING it!! Hilarious, romantic, and reminds quite a bit of Inu x Boku Secret Service- where the girl is smart and complex and the guy has a secret background but is a loveable goofball despite dark background!


Fairy Tail  [Season 2 Episodes: 6 & 7]

 While I did not get as much farther in as I would have liked, I did manage to squeeze in an episode or two! For those who don't know: I'm trying to rewatch all of Fairy Tail to prepare for the new season.
Though I'm honestly thinking I will start the manga as well... we'll see though...




Last Week's Manga/Comics...

Last week I read two comics but no manga- and the comics were wonderful!!

I defintiely want to read more of these comics, but we'll see!




This Week's Anime...


This week my goal for anime watching is some more of My Little Monster!

The anime is rather short so it will be nice to start and finish an anime in a reasonable amount of time if I'm being completely honest.



This Week's Manga...


This week I have one manga to read (I have a long January TBR, so let's not make it impossible).

One Piece Vol. 4!



I'm very eager to find out what happens next in Luffy's adventures, especailly because of where we just left off!


What are you guys currently reading/watching for anime or manga?? Have you seen or read any of these?

Thanks for reading!!
~Books with Noel

Ravenclaw Book Tag

My lovely friends! I have another book tag for you, this one, however, I made myself. For my fellow Harry Potter fans, and my fellow Ravenclaws!

1) Yes, I am a Hufflepuff, but Ravenclaw is actually my second house. My hobbies and likes fit Ravenclaw, whereas my personality fits Hufflepuff. (Weird, I know)

2) I will actually be tagging some of my blogger friends at the end of this, I usually don't but I decided to this time.


So here we go!



Our House Colors!
A book that you've been wanting to read that has a blue cover (or blue on the cover)

Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl! Book 2 in the Beautiful Creatures series, I still need to read it!




Our Animal: The Eagle
A book that made you so happy you felt you were soaring at some point in the book

So a book that made me giddy at least one point in the book? Bliss by Kathryn Littlewood!




Element: Air
 A book that had a scene that took place in the sky (flying, riding a Pegasus, etc.)

Pegasus by Kate O'Hearn, that's what the entire series is about basically.




Ravenclaw Tower
A book that is higher up on your favorite list

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, always!!



The Intelligent Ravenclaw
A character that was smarter than you

There's too many of these... how about Cinder from the Lunar Chronicles?



The Wise Ravenclaw 
A character that was wiser than the other characters in the book

I'd have to say Dana from Glimmerglass by Jenna Black. That girl was an awesome protagonist that was smart- and didn't just fall for the hot guys. She used her head.



The Creative Ravenclaw 
A book that's world was so creative it still sticks with you

Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger will always be my answer!




The Original Ravenclaw
A book that was so original and unique- its own kind of special- that you would reread it over and over again

Believe it or not, there's actually quite a lot of these kinds of books for me. How about the Ever Afters Series by Shelby Bach?




And that's the tag! What did you guys think?? I didn't have time to do another ReadAThon for Ravenclaw, so book tag it was Lol.



I tag:

Desara @ D. Books and Reviews

Elle @ Keep on Reading 

Tessa @ Crazy 4 YA

and Abby @ Abby's Reading Corner




Thanks for reading!!
~Books with Noel  :D

January's TBR + Reading Updates!

I didn't plan on doing a TBR post for January, but looks like I will be! Along with giving you guys some updates on what I've just finished- the first books I've read in 2019!!

The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest by Melanie Dickerson!

This actually was one of the books I finished a few days ago- the first ones of January and the new year!!
I was very happy with this new book Melanie Dickerson's, and thoroughly enjoyed everything it had to offer.

The Book Jumper by Mechthild Gläser!

This book looked too amazing to not pick up!

Fallen by Lauren Kate!

So I actually finished this a few days ago and... I didn't like it. This book is definitely not for me.

The Knowing by Sharon Cameron!

This is a companion novel to The Forgetting by Sharon Cameron- that I am absolutely in love with, so can't wait to try this!!

Rook by Sharon Cameron!

Since I loved Cameron's The Forgetting, why not try some of her other books??

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas!

I'm finally going to (hopefully) read book 2 in the Throne of Glass series!






The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge

This short middle-grade book had a movie based off it called ''The Secret of Moonacre'', I fell in love with it and soon found out about the book- so now it's on my TBR!




~ Reading Goals + Updates ~

Reading Goals and Plans for 2019:


January's Reads~

Besides the books listed above, my goal for reading this month is really just to read books that get me excited for 2019 or books I am already super excited for!

Total Book Goal~

My total reading goal for 2019 is 76 books!



What are your reading goals and TBRs for 2019 and January??

Have a awesome one!
~Books with Noel

Beauty and Her Beast by Addison Carmichael

The first book of the new year!!

*I was sent an ARC of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review, my thoughts and opinions are my own!*

Title: Beauty and Her Beast

Author: Addison Carmichael

Series: This is a short prequel to the author's new werewolf series

Genre: short story, werewolf, supernatural, romance

Published: December 22nd, 2018



[Synopsis: A tale as old as time--with a Paranormal twist! 
   Rebecca Hartford hates Valentine's Day. That is, until the mysterious, attractive Erik Leonid bursts into the café where she sits eating alone that afternoon. Then her entire world, and all of her preconceptions turns upside-down and will never be the same. That means learning to love someone from the inside-out regardless of her fears and those seeking to harm them both for their forbidden relationship. She only hopes it will be enough.]



  This was indeed a short story that gives way to the first book in Carmichael's new werewolf series (that I am eagerly anticipating)! A prequel that explains and introduces this new paranormal world that secretly exists inside of our human one.

  Quick and easy to read- but sucks you in and then leaves you sitting there with wide eyes. Literally, my one thought was: what the mac 'n cheese and ketchup just happened?! (My own curse word I invented.)

  So this story is a steamy romance that introduces a love interest with a dark and mysterious secret (later revealed, and not hard to guess if you know what the story's about to begin with), and builds you up for the Sons of Alphas series (coming in 2019).

Literally, I'm so ready to jump into the first book after reading Beauty and Her Beast!

  Now, the only thing(s) that kill me in this story- and I do mean that it literally hurt- was when Erik made poor decisions about ignoring a *certain someone*, and then THAT ENDING.
I can't decide if I should cry with some ice cream or scream into a pillow right now- and all thanks to that twisty ending that I should have seen but totally did not as I was focused on everything else (once again)!!!

And to think- the author did prequels for each book in the Son of the Alpha series!


[My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐]


Have any of you read this yet? What are your thoughts on it?? How was you guys' NEW YEAR???!!!

Thanks for reading!
~Books with Noel