Hello
happy readers! I hope you had a good
weekend, mine was long at work but I did get some listening down for a
read-along so I call it a win. I also
found lots of recipes I want to try in the near future so there is that
also. The March book in the Goodreads
read-along I co-host was Strange theDreamer (Strange the Dreamer #1)
by Laini Taylor and I LOVED it! I had
high hopes as I enjoyed her other series but this just blew me away. So the rest will be my full thoughts on the
story though if I miss spell anything I am sorry I listened so I got most of my
spellings from Google.
Rating: 5 Stars
Lazlo
Strange is a war orphan who lives in the dream world of books and seeks nothing
more than to know everything about the mythic city of Weep. The journey would take much more boldness
than the librarian holds but when the opportunity presents itself in the form
of Weeps own hero, The Godslayer, and his warriors it may be the push Lazlo
needs to be bold. Weep is just a city
but it became mythical after it was cut off from the rest of the world some two
hundred years prior. The Godslayer is in
search of people to come to Weep and help them solve their mysterious
problem. Weep holds many mysteries
including what Gods did the Godslayer slay to get his title; why is Lazlo the
dreamer dreaming of a blue-skinned goddess before he knew she could exist and
more?
Okay
so this book. I LOVED IT! Seriously it was amazing and as I got towards
the end I was so anxious and worried and looking to see how long I’d have to
wait to find out what happens next.
Lazlo pulls you in with his pure adoration for learning wanting to spend
all of his time learning all the things he can including his free time learning
anything there is about this city of Weep.
He is genuinely good in a way that we don’t see as much. He doesn’t do anything with the hope of
getting something for himself but because he honestly wants to help. There was just something that made me love
him from the start. Along the way we
meet some good and not so good characters who are vast and varied to be
sure. One of my favorites in the book
who caught me by surprise was Calixtie, she is a gem and I'll leave you with
this to grasp who she is:
"And Women," said Lazlo. "It's a woeful species that's all
male."
"More like a nonexistent species,"
remarked Calixte. "Men lacking both
wombs and good sense."
Along
the way we learn about other characters who have had a very different
life. The citadel and Weep the back and
forth of the two was just heartbreaking at times. There was so much pain and suffering on both
sides. The duality of it all was
beautifully written I cried several times while listening I can’t lie. Every new discovery brought me closer in understanding
the larger picture as a whole. Sarai,
Sparrow, Ruby, Feral, and Minya have a different kind of life and seeing it had
me back and forth on my feelings many times over. I was so sure of some things throughout and
some I was right about and others I was wrong but as I was proven wrong it was
so much better (story wise) than I could have imagined.
There
are a lot of serious feelings in this story and I don’t even know how to
describe them without giving things away.
So in this I will simply say this was a top read for me and I can’t wait
for the sequel. I need it in my life
NOW. I loved the characters and the
imagery. The world was so full of beauty
and imagination. I want to live in
it. The story was
intriguing and kept me emerged it was hard to stop when I got out of the car (I
had it as my car book for the first 65% or so before I broke down and just had
to listen at work) because I found all the different facets interesting. One thing I found with the characters was
their level of self realization and understanding. I was able to forgive or understand the
actions of some characters because of how some of the characters reacted. Sarai really is such a beautifully complex
character knowing both sides of things given her gift. She is raised to know one thing and sees that
side but also in it sees that of her "enemy" and is able to
understand both sides. She as a
character might have a deeper understanding of people as a whole than most
people in the world and that depth really was an amazing feat.
I
can't wait for the sequel and I was thrilled when I heard it was going to
be duology because that means I won't
have to wait for another book after October.
I have so many theories for what is to come and worries because I stress
again this book has some seriously dark moments and is not for everyone. It handles the issues too and they are felt
rather than brushed aside which is another attribute. Is it October yet?
Until
next time…
