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The Sunday Post is a chance to recap the past week, talk about next week, tell you what I’m reading, and share news. It’s hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer, Readerbuzz, and Book Date.

The Sunday Post #300!

On The Blog Last Week

• On Tuesday, there was a book haul.

On The Blog This Week

• On Tuesday, I try to predict which modern books will become classics.

In My Reading Life

Last week, I finished Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers. It was good. It sat on my shelf for years because it's a thick, intimidating historical fantasy book, and I don't always have the best luck with massive fantasy books. I'm glad I finally read it. It's about a teenage girl who has been blessed by Death. She's living at a convent and working as an assassin. Since she's so good as assassinating folks, the convent sends her to work for the royal family of Brittany. Their kingdom is being threatened by rogue family members and by the French army. Political intrigue and a love story ensue.

Normally, I hate the romances in young adult books because they're forced and over-the-top angsty, but this one is excellent! It's slow burn. The characters are cautious and sensible and (slowly) learn how to work together and trust each other. They both want to protect the Duchess of Brittany, but they have very different ideas about how to do it. They're both strong willed. I enjoyed seeing them work through their issues and get to know one another. It all seemed very natural. Their relationship actually makes sense! They weren't just hooking up because the author forced them to. I was a very happy reader.

I also like the magical elements of the story. The book leans more toward the historical genre than the fantasy genre. The magical elements aren't super complicated, so there isn't a giant learning curve like in other fantasy books. This one jumps right into the action.

I was less interested in the political intrigue, which is a giant part of the book. The secondary characters aren't developed enough for me to be fully invested in the backstabbing. I got a little bored with it. It didn't help that the biggest villain was obvious to me. I spent a lot of time impatiently waiting for the characters to see what I'd already figured out.

I'm on the fence about reading the sequel. If it followed the same main characters, I'd read it for sure. I really like them. It does not follow the same characters. I'm not sure if I'm interested enough in the world to keep going. Tell me what to do!

Right now, I'm listening to the audiobook of You by Caroline Kepnes. All the people who recommended the audiobook are correct: This story is much creepier when you can hear Joe's voice. He's talking directly to the reader and saying scary stuff. It's . . . an intense audiobook experience. This story is narrated by Joe, a stalker and murderer who becomes obsessed with a woman called Beck. He schemes up ways to insert himself into her life. This is a train-wreck novel. You know it will end badly for Beck, but you can't look away.

Also, this book will give you the urge to close the blinds on all your windows and never open them again.

In The Rest Of My Life

Five things that made me happy last week:

1. This is my 300th Sunday Post! Can you believe I've written 300 of these things? That's a lot of Sundays and posts.
2. Easter candy was on sale. The candy I bought won't survive until Easter because I'm already eating it.
3. Speaking of food, I had BBQ takeout. There's a restaurant in my town that has won national awards for its BBQ, but it's so expensive that it's not a practical place to eat. I haven't had their food in years. I can confirm that it's still delicious.
4. I finally restarted Spanish lessons. Week 1 went fine. I haven't had a Spanish lesson since I was 17, but I remembered more words than I thought I would.
5. Who watched The Adam Project on Netflix? It's sweet and funny. Highly recommend.

I Demand Attention!

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Take care of yourselves and be kind to each other. See you around the blogosphere!