Tag Archives: love

Love-a-Thon 2016

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Hey guys! So I signed up for this cool little event called “Love-a-thon.” It’s an event hosted by Alexa (AlexaLovesBooks),  Cee (The Novel Hermit), Hazel (Stay Bookish) & Mel (The Daily Prophecy) who are all wonderful bookish ladies. Love-a-thon is all about spreading the love in the book community and taking the time to recognize a lot of people whether they blog, Booktube, bookstagram, booklr, are an author, or whatever platform they may share their love of books on. It’s all about positivity and love.

So for this first post of love-a-thon, I’ll be posting my answers to a questionnaire! Here we go:

QUESTIONNAIRE

  1. What’s your name? Rayna!
  2. Where in the world are you blogging from? Massachusetts~
  3. How did you get into blogging in the first place? I’ve had other blogs before, but this is my first real blog that I’ve actually stuck to for longer than a year. I got into it because I stumbled upon Booktube. I actually made a Booktube channel before starting this blog here, but I’m so much more a blogger than a Booktuber. It’s much easier for me to write words than to speak them. And honestly, I just wanted to share my love of books and make friends who also love books along the way.
  4. How did you come up with your blog name? I was trying to come up with something clever and “Reader Rayna” just stuck with me. It rolls off the tongue, right? Alliteration~
  5. What genre do you read and review the most on your blog? I mostly read Young Adult books as well as review them. I’m branching out more and introducing more adult titles, but my primary focus is definitely young adult.
  6. What other types of posts do you do on your blog, apart from reviews? I do various types of discussion posts each month, as well as recommendations, book hauls, tags, memes such as Top Ten Tuesday and Top 5 Wednesday, wrap-ups & TBRs, as well as other fun things like movie and TV show talks and reviews. I also started to introduce writing topics on my blog as well.
  7. Best blogging experience so far? I think when I really started to notice people looking at and actually liking my content. I recently just got the most views on a blog post and it made me overjoyed to know people actually want to know my opinion on a topic. It makes me feel loved and welcome in this community.
  8. Favorite thing about the blogging community? Everyone’s wicked friendly and supportive! People are always willing to talk to you and the best part is being able to find other blogs and people with the same interests.
  9. Name the 5 books you’re most excited for this 2016! The Rose & the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh, The Raven King by Maggie Steifvater, TOG 5 by Sarah J. Maas, Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor, and A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir.
  10. Name the 5 books you want to read this 2016 that you didn’t get to in previous years! The rest of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling (I’m on book 4), Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, Carry On by Rainbow Rowell, the rest of The Mortal Instruments & Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare, and the Grisha trilogy by Leigh Bardugo (totally cheated because of series, heheheheeheh).
  11. What’s an underrated book or series that you think everyone should read? A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb. It’s one of my favorite books of all time and I don’t know if it was popular back when it came out about ten-ish years ago, but I think that it’s a beautiful story and one everyone should read.
  12. Which book boy or girl would be your book BFF? Kenji from the Shatter Me trilogy by Tahereh Mafi. He’s sooo funny and goofy, but he really loves and cares for his friends. I think he’d make a great BFF.
  13. Which book boy or girl would be your book boyfriend/girlfriend? Kaden from the Remnant Chronicles by Mary E. Pearson is just… *sigh* I love him. He’s cunning, sure, but he’s smart, kind, strong, multilingual, and just an overall badass. I love him. Again.
  14. Who would you recruit for your apocalypse squad (5 characters max)? Ooh, this one’s a toughy… I think I’d choose Aelin from the Throne of Glass series because she’d kick butt, Juliette from the Shatter Me trilogy because she could protect us long range, Vin from the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson because if we have metals she could catapult us away, and Hermione from the Harry Potter series because we need some brains for this operation.
  15. Apart from reading, what are your other hobbies or interests? I enjoy playing video games, particularly first person shooter and role-play types like Final Fantasy, Call of Duty, Assassin’s Creed, etc.; I also enjoy writing (I mean, I graduated with an English Professional Writing major, soooo…); I like hiking, but not hardcore or anything, just for relaxation and exercise purposes; I love whale watching – so fun!
  16. Apart from book shopping, what else do you like shopping for? Nothing, really… Unless it’s essentials that I need, I try to not shop. Or food. Food is good.
  17. At a party, the DJ suddenly changes the song – and it’s your song. What song would be playing? Oh God. Um. Well, recently I became quite the fangirl of the K-pop group EXO, so I’d choose them and their song “Call Me Baby.“
  18. Pick out either a book you want turned into a film/TV show, or a film/TV show you want turned into a book. Too many to choose from… But, I think I’d love to see the Starbound trilogy by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner made into films. I think it would be so neat to see these characters come to life and to see them try to fight to survive and stuff.
  19. What would your dream library look like? Books. Books as far as the eye can see. Honestly, I’d be happy with a full wall of bookshelves.
  20. Author you want to meet and sit down to tea with? It’s too hard to choose just one, but if I had to pick, it’d be Sarah J. Maas.

That’s it for now! Let me know which author you would sit down to tea with and what song is your song that you’d be jamming out to. I’d love to know! See you for the rest of love-a-thon!

Beautiful People: Valentine’s Edition

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Hey peeps! I found this cool new meme and since I’m a writer, I wanted to join in! It’s hosted by Cait @ Paper Fury and Sky @ Further Up & Further In. If you want to know more about Beautiful People, you can check out the FAQs page here.

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So this month’s topic is about ships. You know exactly what I’m talking about: the relationships that form in your own writing. (Yes, writers ship their own characters, in case you were wondering.)

So for this one I decided to go with two of my lovelies, Maddock and Abby, who are from a fantasy I’m writing and they’re just two of my favorites (of course). I’ve never really talked about them, but here’s a little bit to know about them before I jump into the questions:

  • Maddock is part of the royal guard, but having only been enlisted for a few years, he’s not high up in the ranks. He’s got a keen eye for detail and is fiercely loyal to his comrades. He’s also kind of the gentleman (mama raised him right). He’s twenty-two years old and ready to take on the world. He can be quick to react sometimes, but he has the best intentions.
  • Abigail, or Abby for short, is a maid in the palace and has been working there since she was a little girl. She was born there and so she grew up in servitude. Her father left to find a better life for them when she was little, but never returned, and her mother died of cancer when she was fifteen. She may seem quiet on the surface, but she’s not afraid to speak her mind when it’s called for. She does have a few secrets, though, that she doesn’t want others to know.

And that’s all I want to give you because I have to rewrite my first draft (which isn’t even finished yet) and fix a bunch of things because they developed so much as the story progressed. BUT, one thing is for certain: I ship them so hard.

So, here are the questions for this month’s Beautiful People:

  1. How did they first meet? They first met in the palace when Maddock and a few members of his squadron were on their way to a meeting and Abby crashed – literally – right into Maddock.
  2. What were their first impressions of each other? Instant attraction, but not insta-love. Maddock is about a head and a half taller than Abby, so Abby thought he was a mountain and Maddock thought she was cute with the freckles across her nose and cheeks.
  3. How long have they been a couple? I think for about half the story so far? Maybe less than that. They kind of go through a lot of rough things together on the journey that they take to find a killer, so that created a bond between them. Their feelings developed over time, but they haven’t really been a “couple,” per se.
  4. How committed/loyal are they to each other? Would they break up over a secret or a disagreement? Could stress drive them apart? Would they die for each other? They wouldn’t break up over a secret or stress or anything. I wouldn’t ever do that to my babehs. I don’t know that they’re at the “dying for each other” stage just yet where they’re at in the story, but… hell, who am I kidding, of course they would! They fight alongside one another on multiple occasions and I just love how they mesh together.
  5. List 5 “food quirks” they know about each other. (Ex: how they take their coffee, if they’re allergic to something, etc….and feel free to mention other non-food quirks!) Hmm.. I honestly don’t think they do know! At least, not said in writing. Behind the scenes: Maddock knows Abby isn’t a fan of seafood and that she loves to have her bread buttered with some basil on it. Abby knows Maddock eats fast – wicked fast – because he always has to be ready at a moment’s notice so there’s not really any time for him to enjoy his meals. As for non-food quirks? Abby fiddles with her fingers when she’s nervous and Maddock hums when he’s relaxed.
  6. Does anyone disapprove of their relationship? None thus far.
  7. What would be an ideal date? A picnic on the hillsides near the palace – they’re some of the most maintained and beautiful with fields of flowers covering large spaces.
  8. What are their personality dynamics? Similar? Contrasting? Do they fight a lot or mesh perfectly? They actually mesh pretty well, which surprised even me. Where I thought Maddock would be kind of stoic, he’s actually just a very focused individual. Abby is a hard worker and strives to do the best she can in any situation, so they balance each other nicely like that. They’re actually pretty similar, now that I think about it, but not in a way that you can’t tell who’s who.
  9. What have been their best and worst moments together as a couple? Best: Their first kiss, dancing, first flirtations. Worst: Almost getting killed, Abby getting kidnapped.
  10. Where do they see themselves and their relationship in the next few years? In the next few years, they see themselves living in a nice place near the mountains. They’d have everything they could desire at this point, and possibly a child on the way.

And there you go! Writing about them makes me want to get back into writing the story and progressing the plot… or just start the revisions now, SOMEBODY HELP.

Anyway, there’s a little insight into two of my characters and their relationship together.

If you’re a writer, how hard do you ship your characters? Are they more of a tragic romance, or ones that will last forever? I want to feel the feels, so let me know!

The Book Love Tag

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Hey peeps! I’m here with another tag and since we’re getting closer to Valentine’s Day, I decided to do this tag that Anette of Anette Reads made! It’s pretty straight forward, so here we go:

1. Your favorite book couple. Too. Many. Umm… If I have to pick one couple for the purposes of this tag then I choose Cath and Levi from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell.
2. Your top 3 book boy/girlfriends. 1. Kaden from The Remnant Chronicles by Mary E. Pearson. Forever. Love him. // 2. Aeduan from Truthwitch by Susan Dennard. He’s an angry ball of yesness. // 3. Curran from the Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews. Meeeeowwww.
3. Imagine your favorite book couple. Who would propose, and how? (If there’s already been a proposal: who would be more into organizing the wedding?) It would totally be Levi because Cath would be either too shy or just be like, “Um, so…”

So Levi would probably buy Cath some flowers, chocolates, the whole nine yards, and probably take her out to dinner. Of course he’d have gotten her father’s and sister’s permissions before this, and then when they’re out on the date (maybe a picnic at his parents’ farm?), he’d get down on one knee and ask. Cath would be so flustered that she wouldn’t know what to say. So cute.
4. Unpopular opinions time! Name a popular pairing you can’t stand. Lia and Rafe from The Remnant Chronicles. I’M SORRY. I just can’t imagine them together. Maybe it’s because my love for Kaden makes me blind. I don’t know.
5. What’s your favorite and least favorite romance trope? Favorite: Strong, masculine thief/dark type. Oh my, bring on those bad boys. (Yes, I’m one of THOSE.) // Least Favorite: The I’m-super-angry-at-the-world type that doesn’t really show much redemption or anything like that. I don’t know how to explain.
6. Do you ship non-canon couples often? Name some if you do. Lia/Kaden. Iseult/Aeduan, omgyessss.
7. Your opinion on love triangles. Go! If they’re done right, then I’m fine with them. Example: The Remnant Chronicles by Mary E. Pearson. Otherwise, I’m over it.
8. Favorite and least favorite love triangle? Favorite: Lia/Kaden/Rafe // Least Favorite: Maxon/America/Aspen. Ugh.
9. Sometimes romance just isn’t the way to go. Favorite friendship? Kenji/Juliette. I love them together! They’re great friends to one another, I think.
10. What’s your favorite scene with your bookish OTP? Probably when Cath is reading some of her fanfiction to Levi and they end up falling asleep next to each other and sharing a sweet little kiss that Cath wasn’t sure if it was real or not.
11. Imagine your favorite book couple again. Who’s most excited about Valentine’s Day (either ironically or genuinely)? Genuinely: Levi. Ironically: Cath. Hands down. Oh man, Cath would be like, “Can’t we just stay in?” And Levi would be like, “No! Cather, we have reservations. We’re going.” With the biggest grin on his face.

There you have it! I think that that pretty much covers my thoughts and feels on some book love related things.

If you want to do this tag, please feel free to do so!

Who are your OTPs and who do you think would ask who out on a date? Let me know!

Remembering Why You Blog

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So I wanted to talk about something that I think is extremely important: remembering why you started blogging in the first place. I got this idea from Jeann’s post on Happy Indulgences about how, as readers, why it’s important to remember why you started blogging in the first place.

And so, I wanted to talk a little bit about that.

Why I Started Blogging

Because I love books. I love to read and be taken to places I’ll never go, have never been, have traveled to before, and can only dream about. Books are amazing, wonderful gifts granted to us, and I think that, as readers, we can sometimes take that for granted when it comes to blogging.

As Jeann said in her post, “Reading is a passion, but by pressuring yourself to keep up with the long TBR, it can become a chore.”

I think that we sometimes it can be difficult to remember that when it comes to reading, it truly is about the passion and love for it. When people get ARCs or review copies or even buy a crap ton of books, they can often feel overwhelmed by that pile and lose sight of why they started blogging in the first place.

And Sometimes, I Forget That

I’ve mentioned in several posts about how stressed I am when it comes to reading, or how hard it is to keep up and read as many books as I can in a month.

I’ve been told many times (directly and indirectly) that it doesn’t matter how many books you read in a month as long as you’re reading. Heck, I think I’ve even said that before – and it’s true! As long as you’re still acting on your passion and love for reading, it doesn’t matter if you read one book in a month or fifteen.

And I think when it comes down to the blogging side of it, I forget that it’s okay to not always have a review every week of a different book. Yes, sometimes I disappoint myself, and I’m sure that’s inevitable, but I’m still putting out content about the things I love and care about. I think that’s what’s most important.

Sometimes You Need a Push

I think that it’s good to be reminded once in a while about why you started blogging in the first place. Was it to “get big” and well known? Was it to share your passion and love for something? Was it to just journal for yourself, but on a more public platform? I think that remembering just why we started, we can reflect back and see if we felt more successful before or after any changes may have taken place.

For me, personally, I did it to connect with others and get my own opinions out into the world. Yes, I’ll admit that part of me did want to get “followers” and whatever, but after I started to really get into it – especially this year – I discovered how much I just loved talking about anything and everything that had to do with books, reading, hot topics, and the community.

I found that, even if I didn’t get a lot of people looking at my content, it was okay because I still was happy with what I put out, and I think that’s the key.

Reading Is a Passion

If you’re a book blogger like I am, then you probably love books. I’ve always loved reading, but I never really understood and fully grasped that love until just this past year. I have read more books this year than ever in my life at one time, and I find that amazing.

This community has brought so much joy and happiness to my life, and I think I forgot that for a while.

As Jeann also said, “Whether we blog, bookstagram, booktube, tumblr, or whatever, WE’RE ALL READERS. We are a community of people who are passionate about books, and we should be appreciating how each and every one of us contributes to the love of reading. There aren’t enough people in the world who appreciate reading as a hobby, so it’s important to love, enjoy and appreciate it together.”

I sincerely hope that you remember why you started blogging and why you chose reading as your passion. It’s an amazing and wonderful journey we’re on together as readers, and I hope that we can all enjoy it together.

Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Why do you blog? What first motivated you to begin your blogging? What motivated you to read?

Top Ten Tuesday: Quotes I Loved from the Past Year or So

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Welcome to another Top Ten Tuesday as hosted by the lovely people over at The Broke and the Bookish. Today’s topic is about our favorite quotes from books that we’ve read in the past year or so. I think books always have that one gem hidden in them somewhere that always manages to shine through, so here are ten of the quotes I loved:

  1. “Happily ever after, or even just together ever after, is not cheesy,” Wren said. “It’s the noblest, like, the most courageous thing two people can shoot for.” – Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
    1. I love this quote because it’s just beautiful and true: happily ever after is extremely hard to achieve, but if two people work hard enough at it, then it’s the best thing ever.
  2. “‘Let’s go rattle the stars.'” – Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas
    1. I just love the simplicity of the statement, but there’s so much meaning behind it. In context, it’s war and fighting for everyone and their survival. Even without context, the line is just simply beautiful. Imagine rattling the stars: how much power, courage, and determination you’d need to do that. Stunning.
  3. “For too long, I’ve made my past my future, afraid to imagine anything else. And I acted like that – static – afraid of my own kinetic energy. Maybe it’s time to start imagining, maybe it’s time to be in motion. Maybe it’s time for me to fight back against the sadness inside of me.” – My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga
    1. As someone who has battled and dealt with depression and suicidal thoughts, I understand this line all too well. It’s the turning point, the realization that it will get better, that it’s okay to live. I love this line because of the desire to live, to push through it all.
  4. “We were both silent for a minute. And I wondered for the fist time whether ‘feeling feminine’ just meant feeling good in your own skin.” – None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio
    1. It’s important to remember that very phrase, regardless if you’re male, female, whatever you identify as: feel good in your own skin. It doesn’t matter what you look like, what you believe yourself to be, identify as, or what other people say: feeling good in your own skin is the most important thing you can possibly do. I’m still working on it, but I’ve gotten pretty good lately.
  5. “He talked about the ocean between people. And how the whole point of everything is to find a shore worth swimming to.” – Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
    1. I think a lot of times people, especially young people, go from relationship to relationship sometimes without realizing that it really is about finding that “shore worth swimming to.” And, when you do find that someone, it’s pretty great. And it doesn’t even have to be a romantic relationship: friendships, family relationships, coworkers, etc, are all important. Keep those “worth swimming to” close to you.
  6. “Words, I think, are such unpredictable creatures.
    No gun, no sword, no army or king will ever be more powerful than a sentence. Swords may cut and kill, but words will stab and stay, burying themselves in our bones to become corpses we carry into the future, all the time digging and failing to rip their skeletons from our flesh.” – Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi

    1. Coming from a reader/writer perspective, this is a beautiful and true statement. Words are so much more powerful than anything in existence. They are there when you go to sleep at night, or when you’re trying to catch your flight. They’re there no matter where you go, and I think that this quote is just so beautiful.
  7. “Life is made of so many moments that mean nothing. Then one day, a single moment comes along to define every second that comes after. Such moments are tests of courage, of strength.” – An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
    1. Many people believe that our lives here are meaningless and that we exist just to exist, but sometimes there are those moments in time where we can’t deny that there’s something more, a bigger purpose than we realized. It can be big or small, but it’s there, and I think this quote nicely defines that, because it truly does take a lot of courage and strength to act on it when it’s there.
  8. “I see only reminders that nothing lasts forever, not even greatness.”
    “Some things last.”
    I faced him. “Really? And just what would that be?”
    “The things that matter.” – The Kiss of Deception by Mary E Pearson

    1. Again, this is so true. Not everything lasts forever, but the things that matter – especially if they matter to you – will last forever. To me, love and hope will last forever.
  9. “There is no pretending,” Jace said with absolute clarity. “I love you, and I will love you until I die, and if there is life after that, I’ll love you then.” – City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
    1. Honestly, this is just too romantic not to be a favorite of mine. So cute, so sweet, so much raw emotion. I love it.
  10. “Just because you can’t experience everything doesn’t mean you shouldn’t experience anything.” – Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon
    1. Seriously: you’re not going to be able to do everything possible in your lifetime. But you still need to experience what the world has to offer you right here, right now.

What are some of your favorite quotes and why? Let me know!