Review of The Lost Queen by Signe Pike

Please excuse me while I catch up on some reviews of books I read in 2018 but some of them are too good not to share!

Read for: Recently Added/ Subscription Box

Synopsis: "Mists of Avalon meets Philippa Gregory in the first book of an exciting historical trilogy that reveals the untold story of Languoreth—a powerful and, until now, tragically forgotten queen of sixth-century Scotland—twin sister of the man who inspired the legendary character of Merlin.

Intelligent, passionate, rebellious, and brave, Languoreth is the unforgettable heroine of The Lost Queen, a tale of conflicted loves and survival set against the cinematic backdrop of ancient Scotland, a magical land of myths and superstition inspired by the beauty of the natural world. One of the most powerful early medieval queens in British history, Languoreth ruled at a time of enormous disruption and bloodshed, when the burgeoning forces of Christianity threatened to obliterate the ancient pagan beliefs and change her way of life forever.

Together with her twin brother Lailoken, a warrior and druid known to history as Merlin, Languoreth is catapulted into a world of danger and violence. When a war brings the hero Emrys Pendragon, to their door, Languoreth collides with the handsome warrior Maelgwn. Their passionate connection is forged by enchantment, but Languoreth is promised in marriage to Rhydderch, son of the High King who is sympathetic to the followers of Christianity. As Rhydderch's wife, Languoreth must assume her duty to fight for the preservation of the Old Way, her kingdom, and all she holds dear.

The Lost Queen brings this remarkable woman to life—rescuing her from obscurity, and reaffirming her place at the center of the most enduring legends of all time."

My Review: I never saw this book coming, it wasn't on my radar but luckily I received it in a book box and was able to read it. I picked up the audio book to listen along with reading, the accent of the narrator added so much more to the story. I absolutely fell in love with Langoureth and her dedication and determination throughout the story. The sibling relationship between Langoureth and her brother is beautiful even with different paths and jealousy, it remains strong. I love the touch of romance but that it doesn't take over the book. The ending was rather abrupt but I was okay with that, then I found out there will be another book and I am beyond excited!

My Rating: I picked this book up after a bit of a reading slump and it was the perfect choice! I couldn't put it down and was completely absorbed in the story throughout the book. I give this one a rating of Four Paws and a Stump Wag!

Frankenstein Personal Book Box 2.0 with Giveaway & Discount Code

If you have poked around on my blog for any amount of time, you will come across some mention of my all time favorite book Frankenstein.  I usually re-read it this time of year because it is such an atmospheric book and definitely suits the autumn/Halloween vibe. However, since I re-read the book earlier this year in a readalong, I decided not to read it again now, I did enjoy putting together my own little book box at the end of that readalong and decided to do it again, only with higher end items that I have been drooling over for ages.

This also kicks off a full week of Frankenstein, so I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, I have a lot of great adaptations and re-tellings to share with all of you!

So I have for you a fantastic Frankenstein Book Box, full of high end merchandise items and as part of this post I also have a discount code and a giveaway to share my love of all things Frankenstein!

So on with my selections . . .

So included in my box I have

The Parade Special Collector's Edition celebrating the 200th Anniversary of Frankenstein I found at my local Barnes and Noble.

I also found a Frankenstein's Monster Cookie at my local grocery store.

Of course I had to add another edition to my collection, and this time I picked the Knickerbocker Classics edition

I am absolutely in love with this long sleeve tshirt from Thornfield Hall Co. on Etsy, I even wore it to the Boston Teen Author Festival. It is super soft and comfy and I wear it as often as possible!

a close up from Thornfield Hall Co. 

and for those wondering the quote because it isn't super legible

“My heart was fashioned to be susceptible of love and sympathy, and when wrenched by misery to vice and hatred, it did not endure the violence of the change without torture such as you cannot image.” — Frankenstein's Monster

Then I have this pillow that looks like the book (and even opens up to the first page of text) from Brassington Hollow on Etsy. I had actually ordered this for the original book box but it took a very long time coming. But it was totally worth the wait!

Image from BrassingtonHollow on Etsy

Now I am always cold, while at work on the computer and while reading my hands get especially cold because they aren't always under a warm blanket. So I finally used this as an excuse to pick up these fingerless gloves from Storiarts, they are not super thick and bulky so they are perfect for just keeping that chill away while still allowing you to turn the pages.

picture from Storiarts as I can't hold the camera and take a picture of my hands ;)

And of course finally I need a way to carry all of my Frankenstein goodies! I have been drooling over this tote bag from LiteraryBookGifts for a few months now. I love the classic novel style of art and the font style.  I ordered a large tote, and it is HUGE! It is also a nice thick canvas so it can definitely hold up to those big book shopping sprees or large library visits!

Image from Literary Book Gifts

So what do you think? Which is your favorite item? Is there any book you wish had more fan merchandise or is there any one particular item you have been drooling over?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So I can't get all the good stuff and leave you guys hanging, so I have a few goodies for you too!

First Melissa at Literary Book Gifts so kindly contacted me regarding her site and products and offered a discount code for my followers. So you can use the code EASTERNSUNSET20 for 20% off your purchase of anything in the story, and you can use it unlimited times, no minimum purchase. When I ordered my tote, I also ordered the moonlight Sonata shirt and it is so soft and the image beautiful! It is also not like a lot of the shirts you get that have a clear silk screened image that seem a little shiny and start to peel after a few washes, this one really seems a part of the shirt, it is very well made and super comfy and soft.  So head over to LiteraryBookGifts.com and start your Christmas shopping for those bookish loved ones or yourself ;)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And if that isn't exciting enough, I also have a little giveaway for you!

Included in the giveaway is one of the Pillow Books from above (yes I got a second one to share with you), a Frankenstein's Monster Cookie, a First and Last Line bookmark and your own copy of Frankenstein (an edition I don't even have in my collection).

You know the drill, same rules as the rest of the giveaways this month, but I am going to have to make this one US only due to the size and the food product, I am super sorry about that but I hope you will all forgive me and come back for more giveaways coming up soon that will be open to all.

~You must be 16 or older to enter 

~This giveaway is for my followers, as a thank you for sticking with me over the years, or joining me now, I, of course welcome new followers!

~Enter the giveaway via the below Rafflecopter methods (I will be checking the required items and if you are not a follower as required, your entry is void, I have had too many entries in the past looking for quick handouts and not actually interacting with my blog).
 ~Open to US only, sorry :(
~Giveaway ends midnight on the 30th, winners will be selected the next day (I will be contacting you via email)

Arrg-ust Pirate Themed Book Box (Discount Code Included)

If you have stopped by either here or on my Instagram much, you will know that I love getting book subscription boxes. Earlier this year I made my own Frankenstein themed book box and of course having so much fun with the Arrg-ust theme this month I wanted to do that again!  Sadly, with the big family vacation and all the craziness at home in the office, I wasn't able to get everything together.  So instead, I am going to show you what I would put in a Pirate themed book box.  And luck for you, one of the shops I would have gotten an item in has offered a discount code just for my followers, so be sure to stay tuned for that!

Now on with my dream Pirate Book Box:

You couldn't have this box without having it all packaged in a treasure chest!

Everyone needs a map and I loved this big tapestry map from Amazon that could hang on the wall, be an instagram prop or even a light throw blanket.

When you mention pirates one of my first thoughts is the Goonies and One Eyed Willie, so of course I had to included these awesome Goonie Pencils from Define Design from Etsy

We definitely need a notebook to use those pencils in and I LOVE this Peter Pan notebook by Hardback YoYo on Etsy that not only features this awesome cover but included with the blank pages are also some pages from the book.

While I haven't been a big Pirates of the Caribbean fan, I love this quote and it makes a great bookmark from Otter Nonsense Designs on Etsy for those pirate books.

We need to be able to carry all our pirate booty with us and I love the classic style of this Treasure Island Tote bag from Literary Book Gifts

And finally the books, it was a hard choice because there are so many great books pirate books out there, but I decided I would included a classic and a new release. 

So of course we had to go with The Princess Bride by William Goldman in the Deluxe Edition that came out last year. I haven't actually read this book, but the movie is such a classic and this edition is just so pretty and I will be reading it in the near future!

The new release, which came out yesterday is Seafire by Natalie C. Parker.  I had the opportunity to read this one early and it was amazing, full of lady pirates and high seas battles. 

What would you include in your pirate themed book box? 

How about a little coupon code to get something awesome from Literary Book Gifts?!  I was contacted by Melissa, the owner of the Literary Book Gifts online shop to offer all of you wonderful followers and exclusive discount!  Use the code EASTERNSUNSET20 for 20% off any item in the shop! She has a great selection of classic literature inspired clothing and totes.

This post is completely voluntary, while I was contacted by Literary Book Gifts, this is not a paid promotion or advertisement.

Frankenstein Read-Along Wrap Up & Personal Book Box

So as most of you know, I spent the month participating in a read-along of Frankenstein hosted by Stef at Novel Tea Corner on Youtube.  If you have been here for any amount of time you will know that this is my all time favorite book and I re-read it often.  This being the 200th year of it's publication, I definitely had to re-read it this year.  I actually found a copy of the original 1818 version of the text (as differs from the 1831 text that appears in most published versions commonly available) and decided to read this version instead.  

I have answered questions and discussed the progress throughout the month long readalong and you can see those Here, Here and Here.   You can see Stef's Video with her final thoughts HERE 

I am not going to bore you with another review of this book but you can see my review in full for this version of Frankenstein HERE and also my review of the 1831 version HERE.

If you don't know this about me, I am a bit addicted to Bookish Subscription boxes, I love all the themed goodies that come in those boxes. Not to long ago Stef at Novel Tea Corner had made her own subscription box for a book she had read and enjoyed, and it inspired me to do the same.  Instead of getting items that I may not like or books I may not be interested in, why not put together a little box of items that I really want, all surrounding my all time favorite book?  So that is what I did, I made myself a little (well big really) Frankenstein Book Box!

So included in my box:

2 new editions of Frankenstein (because I love unique and beautiful editions of this book)

5 bone pens 

A pillow case from Andrew Gordon on RedBubble

A reproduction of the first page from Quest Adventures on Etsy

2 First & Last Line bookmarks from LiteraryEmporium on Etsy

Text Pencil Pouch from Luv2right on RedBubble

Quote Notebook from EliseAbril on RedBubble (with my favorite quote)

Old Books perfume from Apothescary Scents on Etsy

Mary Shelley Tea from Literary Tea Company on Etsy

Mary Shelley Mug from Tami Wicinas on Society6

Title Page Sticker from KMC-Artworks on Redbubble

Sci-fi Sticker from nuraaaly on RedBubble

The Book Was Better Sticker from TheShirtYirt on Redbubble

Bookstack Sticker from Kuhtina on Redbubble

Here are a couple close ups of some of the items

I love this mug, you can see Mary Shelley writing Frankenstein with a creature outside the window!

I love this idea of putting together a book box of items I really want for books that I really love and I may have to start doing this for myself instead of order subscription boxes, though it does take some of the surprise out of it (and it was way more expensive because I wanted so many things).