Stranger Things Review

I know I'm late with this review, but I promise I did watch this show last summer when it came out. I love how the first episode started out. It's just these kids hanging out and playing their favorite game and being friends. Then it gets weird, but all the weirdness is continually balanced out with this friendship right here. 

So crazy science starts to happen. Conspiracies, telekinesis, experiments, and all that good stuff. 

Enter, Eleven. 

Eleven is a little girl with a killer poker face and a superbrain. Mike adopts her into his friend group because he is at the age where he's discovering girls can be his friend too. Eleven doesn't know what a friend is, but she's willing to try it out after much persistence. 

Mike doesn't know his new bestie comes with a slew of troublemaking scientists who want to experiment on her and kill anyone else who meets her, but he's willing to roll with it. 

Meanwhile, we have Nancy. Nancy is Mike's older sister who initially seems to be a normal girl with a best friend and a crush. But then Nancy gets dragged into everything after she tries to be nice to Jonathan, also her best friend gets eaten by a monster while Nancy is making out with her boyfriend. 

I really warmed up to Nancy. First of all, she looks like a doll. She's just so cute and little and classic, but then she starts hunting monsters and shooting guns and slapping scumbags. I'm a fan. 

Once Barb goes missing, Nancy gets really interesting. She searches for her friend and stumbles onto a lot more information than she expected. But like her brother, she takes it in a stride. And like her brother, she keeps it a secret. I love how at the end, Nancy and Mike both realize the other knew about the monsters and they could have definitely cross referenced their data. 

Season 2 should be released this summer and while we know the show is in the 80s, they've officially announced that the second season will be set in 1984. I've heard that we'll start to see more 80s trends in this upcoming season, including big hair. 

So much to look forward to and so many months of waiting. 

New Favorite Author

I discovered Jennifer Lynn Barnes last Fall when I picked up The Fixer at the library. Fast forward several months and I have read everything I can get my hands on with her name on the cover, including the Naturals series. Bad Blood came out somewhat recently, which meant I had to go back and reread the first three books because they're that good.

As a devoted fan of Ally Carter's Gallagher Girls and Heist Society series, along with James Patterson's Maximum Ride books, I was dying to get my hands on something with just as much intrigue, mystery, and tough heroines that didn't make me want to tear my hair out.

In the Naturals books, Cassie seems like a classic girl next door except for the fact that her mother was murdered, the same mother who raised her on the road and trained her to profile people. Cassie works with other teenage FBI agents with extraordinary talents and together they solve mysteries and save each other from serial killers, psychos, and stressful parents.


What I love about The Fixer books is the fact that it's basically the show Scandal on a prep school scale. It's all the political drama of Washington D.C. from a teenager's view.

The Squad books have this beautiful idea of making cheerleaders into spies. It's a fabulous combination and a couple of entertaining stories. I didn't quite enjoy the characters as much as Barnes' other books. Toby especially got a little irritating sometimes, but I could understand bringing in someone who was vastly different from your classic cheerleader.

Some of her other books include Raised by Wolves, Every Other Day, Nobody, Tattoo and Fate, and Golden and Platinum.

I haven't quite finished all of them, but I'm getting there. With all the mysteries, spies, cheerleaders, and social behavior theories, I'm excited to see what Jennifer Lynn Barnes writes next.

Throne of Glass Series

I first discovered Queen of Glass parts I, II, and III when I was in high school. My best friend emailed me a link and told me I HAD to read these books NOW.

I did read them, and they were amazing. I loved Celaena, the princess turned assassin. I laughed at her clever comebacks, candy binging, and obsession with beauty. I loved the Cinderella spin on part II and cheered for Celaena and Dorian's romance throughout the series.

Then the books were published.

I was thrilled for the author and her success. I picked up Throne of Glass every time I saw it at a bookstore. I read the back, admired the cover, and flipped through the pages. It didn't seem terribly different. But for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to read it. What if it was different? What if I didn't like all the changes?

Then I read Court of Thorns and Roses, filled by Court of Mist and Fury. I was drawn in by the Beauty and the Beast aspect, then totally supported the characters when they realistically dealt with the aftermath of the situation. The first book was amazing, but the second book took it to a whole new impressive level. I remembered exactly why Sarah Maas is an incredible author.

So I picked up Throne of Glass one more time. I finished it. I finished the whole series and now I'm left pining for the sixth and last book.

I loved all the familiar characters, Celaena's scheming, Chaol's discipline, Dorian's curiosity, as well as new characters like Mannon. I love Mannon. I'll be honest, I skimmed the first couple times she was introduced. I didn't recognize her, didn't know who she was, didn't particularly care, let's get back to Celaena. But Mannon is awesome. Like all the women in this series, she is strong and smart and funny.

There is so much character development. The plot is huge and the characters aren't just the people who are carrying it out. They are realistic and interesting and flawed. The characters make the series.

Recently, news has popped up about a television show. Well, here is my dream cast for this epic story.

Celaena: Cara Delvigne
Nehemia: Zendaya
Mannon: Elle Fanning
Elide: Hailee Steinfeld
Kaltain: Sarah Hyland
Lysandra: Anna Daines
Maeve: Cate Blanchett
Elena: Alexis Bledel

Dorian: Matthew Daddario
Aedion: Will Poulter
Chaol: Matthew Lewis
Rowan: Liam Hemsworth
Arobynn: Michael Fassbender