Hi, it's Olivia, and you can find me on my channel, iLivieSimone.
But it is 2022, so first and foremost, Happy New Year,
I hope everybody is having a really good start to their year.
I hope you're reading some good books.
And if not, maybe I can help you out a little bit [LAUGH] with this
book haul that I have for you today for the month of January.
So let's just get started.
So starting us out we have Here's To Us by both The New York Times bestselling
authors, Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera.
And this is the sequel to their first book, What If It's Us.
And first actually I should mention, if you get your hands on this copy,
turn it around to the back.
I just love this, [LAUGH] these two pigeons exchanging a pizza.
And if you can't tell from the cover that this takes place in New York.
This is a feel-good, heartwarming rom-com, and we can always use one of those,
am I right?
[LAUGH] And this basically, I'm not gonna tell you too much about the plot,
because this is a sequel.
But all you need to know is that our two main characters, Arthur and Ben,
we're just seeing if they get their happy ever after with each other or
with other people.
So next up we have The Ivory Key by Akshaya Raman.
And this is her debut young adult epic fantasy, and
it is also the first in a duology.
At the core of this story,
we are following the relationship between not two, not three, but four siblings.
And how they each have kinda their own different motivations and reasons for
wanting to find the Ivory Key.
And the Ivory Key is rumored to unlock this new source of magic.
So this is filled with the family drama that follows from that, and
puzzle solving, and code breaking.
And so this would definitely be good for fans of adventurous,
mysterious stories like Indiana Jones, National Treasure, and The Goonies.
So next up we have The Monarchs, which is also by a fun author duo.
We've got Kass Morgan, who is also the author of The 100 Series,
which is the basis for the CW show.
And then also Danielle Paige, who also wrote The Dorothy Must Die series.
So they've teamed up again to write this sequel, which is for
their series The Ravens.
At the heart of the story we have magic and sororities that highlight girl power,
because this also has a very strong cast of women and
it focuses on themes of friendship and sisterhood.
This also has the crossover appeal of being set in college with relatable
characters.
So this would appeal to the YA readers who are in high school or headed to college,
or maybe if you're just nostalgic for the college days.
So in that way this book kind of also would appeal to those who've liked books
like Ninth House.
And last but certainly not least about this book is that we do have our evil
encounters that our characters face like, well, spoiler alert.
But they battle a demon in the basement of their sorority house,
which has also become a portal to hell.
So it'll make you think twice the next time you pass a sorority house.
But anyway, if you like those witchy, spooky elements,
or if you want a fast-paced read, definitely get into this series.
Next up we have One True Loves by Elise Bryant.
And this is the companion novel to Happily Ever Afters.
So you don't have to have ever read Happily Ever Afters to enjoy this one.
And my gosh, I adore this cover.
I know I say that a lot, but I really do, I love the color scheme.
I love that you can kind of get an idea of her personality with the Polaroids and
the stickers all over her suitcase.
So this is a young adult rom-com full of self discovery.
We love a rom-com with relatable themes, and Black love.
And our main character, Lenore, she's headed out to NYU soon, and so
her family decides to go on a post-graduation European cruise.
And it's while she's on this cruise that she meets Alex.
I just love the backdrop of this, that sounds like such a fun rom-com.
It just sounds like a great time, a really feel good story.
And again, we can always do with another one of those.
Next up we have My Fine Fellow, A Delicious Entanglement by Jennieke Cohen.
And this is a diverse historical rom-com that is also a retelling of My Fair Lady.
So in this we are in a reimagined 19th century Victorian England.
And culinarians, who are the top elite chefs, they are at the top of society.
And so we have two characters who team up to turn a street vendor into one of
those top chefs.
And so you'll wanna have snacks on hand, because there are food references galore.
And I don't know if you could tell from the cover,
I love little details like this.
But these little designs, they're actually forks and spoons, and
there's a whisk right here on the side, and it's just super cute.
So if that sounds like it's right up your alley or if you also are a fan of things
like Bridgerton or Dickinson, you'll wanna pick this one up.
So next up we have Beyond The End Of The World, which is by another author duo, so
we have Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner.
And this is the forbidden love,
science fiction fantasy sequel to their first book, The Other Side Of The Sky.
So in this continuation, we follow Nim, who is a goddess of the world, and
North, who is a prince of the City in the Sky.
And they are both on these desperate missions to save their worlds.
So as the back says, goddess and prince, destroyer and last star, Nim and North.
So we've got this star-crossed lovers in here,
we've got really unique immersive worlds.
And this is all supposed to be really good for fans of Laini Taylor and
Brandon Sanderson.
Next up we have The Storyteller by Kathryn Williams.
And as the front says, the truth is in the telling,
this is a story all about the power of stories.
So our main character, Jess Morgan, she finds her aunt's journals.
And while going through them,
she starts to piece together that her aunt may actually be the long lost princess
Anastasia, who survived an assassination attempt.
So this would be a really good pick for you if you like kind of a mix of genres.
It's got a royal mystery, it's got romance, it's got historical fiction.
It's got your name on it, [LAUGH] if that sounded like something you like, so.
And last but certainly not least, we have Loveboat Reunion by Abigail Hing Wen.
And this is the companion story to the instant New York Times bestseller
Loveboat, Taipei.
And in exciting news, if you didn't know, it's being turned into a movie, and
it's filming right now in Taipei.
So this is a really good time to get onto these books.
In this book we follow two fan favorites, Sophie and Xavier.
And they did date the previous summer on the Loveboat and it didn't work out, but
now they're friends.
And Sophie is now in college and she has sworn off boys and
she is determined to just be the best student she can be.
And meanwhile,
Xavier is trying to get out from underneath his controlling father's grasp.
And both of these characters are headed back to Taipei for a Loveboat reunion.
And of course, this means we've got some drama and romance coming back too.
And we will see appearances from characters from the other book, and
this is just a book filled with vicarious thrills and fun and romance.
So it's also in the vein of, if you like a book like Crazy Rich Asians.
So again, look out for this one for sure.
But these are all the books from today.
Thank you so much for watching.
I would love to know your thoughts on any of these books.
You can check out the description below for the links to any of them,
if you wanna get your hands on them.
Or feel free to check in with your local library,
see if they have any of these books.
And yeah, I hope everyone has a great start to their year, and
thank you for watching, bye.