The characters from The Mortal Instruments Series are witty, funny, and wonderfully relatable (even if most of us don’t fight demons on a regular basis).
But I’m here to help you answer one very important question: If you were a part of the series, which character would you be? Are you as witty as Jace or feisty as Clary?
Take this quiz to find out!
Let us know which character you got in the comments below!
We’re celebrating the 5 year anniversary of The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein‘s Duology! This time last year (give or take a few days) the final book, Such Wicked Intent was released! To celebrate, you can read the full book of This Dark Endeavor here on Riveted!
Why should you read This Dark Endeavor? Well, I’m glad you asked! This Dark Endeavor was one of my FAVORITE novels when it came out in 2011. I’m a huge Frankenstein fan, so anything set in the world of Frankenstein, I have to pick up! Here’s the full summary:
In this prequel to Mary Shelley’s gothic classic, Frankenstein, 16-year-old Victor Frankenstein begins a dark journey that will change his life forever. Victor’s twin, Konrad, has fallen ill, and no doctor is able to cure him. Unwilling give up on his brother, Victor, his beautiful cousin Elizabeth, and best friend Henry begin a treacherous search for the ingredients to create the forbidden Elixir of Life.
Impossible odds, dangerous alchemy, and a bitter love triangle threaten their quest at every turn.
Victor knows he must not fail. But his success depends on how far he is willing to push the boundaries of nature, science and, love — and how much he is willing to sacrifice.
If that summery didn’t convince you to read it, here are my 5 reasons to read This Dark Endeavor ASAP!
It’s a wonderfully fun and energetic prequel to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. The story of Victor and his monster Frankenstein has been told over and over again, however, the Victor’s backstory story doesn’t have as many renditions. This Dark Endeavor was a refreshing take on Frankenstein!
I’m usually not a fan of love triangles but Kenneth makes the situation believable. It didn’t feel overdone or dramatic, instead it added an extra dimension to the story!
There’s nothing better than a series to binge read! You don’t have to wait for the cliff hanger to be resolved because both books are already out! Settle in this weekend for a wonderful binge reading marathon.
If you don’t know Kenneth Oppel, I highly recommend reading his books. He’s also the author of the middle grade novel, The Nest. Even if you don’t typically read middle grade, the writing style will draw you in, just as he does with This Dark Endeavor!
I can’t give too much away without spoiling the story, but so much happened in this novel, it was intense! (Especially in the end!) You’ll have to read it for yourself to see what I mean.
“Pride and Prejudice meets Animal Planet’s Finding Bigfoot” After reading the tagline of Sasquatch, Love, and other Imaginary Things I knew I had to pick up this book. The rest of the summary gets even better.
Hunting for monsters was never so awkward.
It’s bad enough that Samantha’s parents, charter members of the Northern Ohio Bigfoot Society, have dragged their daughter around forever, hunting for yetis. But now they’re doing it on national TV, and worse, in front of an aristocratic prep-school crew including a boy who disdains Samantha’s family.
But when he scorns her humble Ohio roots, she becomes determined to take him down. As they go to war, their friction and attraction almost distract them from the hint that Sasquatch may actually be out there somewhere…
If that doesn’t convince you to pick up this book, here are 6 reasons why I think you should put Sasquatch, Love, and Other Imaginary Things on the top of your TBR pile! You can even read an extended excerpt here on Riveted until August 28th!
The words Pride and Prejudice pretty much always get me on board! I’m a huge Austen fan, and Pride and Prejudice is the first Austen book I read, so it holds a special place in my heart. Betsy and Carrie did a fantastic job retelling this classic story! They hit all the important plot points but were still able to tell an extremely original story.
Every Pride and Prejudice fan has a thing for Mr. Darcy, and any successful P&P retelling has to have a perfectly swoony male lead. Sasquatch, Love, and Other Imaginary Things has the perfect Darcy in Devan. I loved the banter between Sam and Devan and I loved every second of their romance. Devan went straight to the top of my favorite Darcy’s!
How do you write a Pride and Prejudice retelling and make it original? Add Sasquatch hunters! I can honestly say I’ve never read a P&P retelling like this one. I was a bit hesitate at first, because a story about Sasquatch Hunters does sound a bit strange, however, Betsy & Carrie did a fantastic job adding this quirky and fun element to the story.
I LOVE the cover of this book. The attention to detail is perfect, from the heart in the tree and the Sasquatch footprints. The colors scheme is so different than any other books I own, it was exactly what my bookshelf was missing. AND the spine is a tree trunk! How cute is that!
Reality TV is a train wreck you can’t look away from. It’s also atopic that isn’t addressed in many YA novels, so it helped make this retelling feel fresh. I loved how Mr. Collins was recreated as the relationship exploiter, it was the PERFECT part for him. If Jane Austen was alive right now, I firmly believe she would approve.
The interactions between Sam’s parents and the other Sasquatch hunters were HILARIOUS. And the banter between Sam and Devan was just as fun! I was giggling constantly as I read this novel. Sasquatch, Love, and Other Imaginary Things is the perfect light hearted novel to cheer up your day!
The rules of the SAT’s change every few years, sections of the test come and go, and vocabulary words are never the same. However, the pressures surrounding the dreaded SATs will always come with hilarious but cringe-worthy stories!
The Odds of Lightning takes place over one night—the night before the SATs, during a wild thunderstorm that threatens to shut down New York City. That’s when lightning strikes. Before they know what’s hit them, four teens embark on an epic all-night adventure to follow their dreams, fall in and out of love, reconcile the past, and overcome the fears that have been plaguing them since that one lost summer. By the time the sun rises, odds are that they’ll discover there’s a fine line between science and magic, and that the mysteries of love and friendship can’t be explained. Start reading an extended excerpt of The Odds of Lightning right now until August 14th!
Unfortunately, not every SAT story can involve magic, fthese Riveted horror stories will make you laugh. And no matter what happens for your SATs, it’s not the end of the world, it’s only one test (that you can even take again!).
A bunch of friends and I signed up to take the SATs at the same time and place, so we could meet up before and after for moral support. As the start time for the test got closer, though, I couldn’t find my friends. When I texted them asking where they were, they responded, “We’re here, where are you? You’re going to miss the exam!” It turned out, my dad had dropped me off at Livingston High School instead of Governor Livingston High School, where I’d registered. Miraculously, they were giving the SAT at the same time at the high school I was at, so after a kerfuffle and some hand-wringing, the proctor allowed me to take the test even though I wasn’t on her roster. Talk about stressful!
My SAT tutor had encouraged everyone in the SAT prep class to eat “brain foods” before the test. You know, Salmon, broccoli, vegetables, etc. I was obsessed with eating these things the entire week before the exams, so I could be as prepared as possible. The most important brain food, I was told, was eggs. So I got up early the day of my SATs so that I could calmly eat eggs before making my way to the test location. My mom, being the supportive woman that she is, even offered to make them for me. Now, my mom isn’t the best cook (sorry mom), so when I started eating them and they tasted a little funny, I didn’t really think anything of it.
BIG MISTAKE.
I started feeling sick almost as soon as I got to the school. But I sat down and tried to do it anyway, determined to not let all my hard work the week before go to waste. I got through two sections of the test before the nausea became overwhelming. I raised my hand to beg to go to the bathroom, but it was too late and I wasn’t strong enough. I projectile vomited all over the poor girl in front of me, not to mention all over myself. I even got it on my test paper! The worst part was that neither of us were even allowed to leave. I had to sit behind her for another couple of hours, she had to take her test covered in vomit, and I had to try to transfer my answers from one test-sheet to another while also trying to answer the subsequent sections. And no, I didn’t get any extra time. Needless to say, it wasn’t my best score. Luckily, I took it again a couple of months later and drastically brought up my numbers.
P.S. The eggs that tasted funny? Yeah, that was because there was dish washing liquid left on the pan my mother used. So I literally ate eggs and soap for breakfast…
The school I was testing at decided to test their PA system and alarm bells during the SATs. There were thin wall partitions between testing rooms, so we could hear the announcement and bells going off on either side of us throughout the exam…not exactly ideal conditions, but definitely not as bad as being thrown up on!
During my SAT test there was a large spider running around the room! Okay, maybe it wasn’t “large” but it was a spider and I’m deathly afraid of spiders. I kept looking at the spider through out the test. It’s hard to focus on questions when you’re worried about a spider climbing up your leg! At one point the proctor yelled at me for cheating because I was looking across of the room, and I had defend myself by informing the rest of the room about the spider.
Everyone has a bad dating story or two (unless you’re one of the lucky ones). Harper Anderson from Little Black Dresses, Little White Lies by Laura Stampler, is one of the lucky ones. She doesn’t have any dating drama to write about. Instead, she uses her best friend’s dating stories in her application essay for the chance to intern at a popular teen magazine. That essay impresses the magazine so much that they hire Harper to write about her dating life (yeah…that nonexistent one)! Once Harper gets to New York for her internship, she sets out to create dating stories of her own since she’s pretty much used up all her best friend’s. Here at Riveted we have quiet a few bad dating stories, so we thought we would help Harper out by sharing them!
Check out our stories and then read an extended excerpt of Little Back Dresses, Little White Lies (available until August 14th) to read about Harper’s experiences dating in New York City!
I was at a Halloween party with some friends and got a text message from a boy I had been texting a bit. He invited me over to his house for a party and a few of my friends decided to join me, but we didn’t have a car. One girl said she had a friend who was picking her up so they could go elsewhere, so they could drop us on the way. On the way to his house, we all talked about the boy, but I never thought to mention him by name. It was fun until we got close and started giving the girl directions. We slowly pulled up to the house and she says, “Um, this is my ex-boyfriend’s house.” Needless to say, I felt uncomfortable the rest of the night and more than that, guilty I had made this girl drive me to her ex-boyfriend’s house. He ended up being a jerk anyway.
I once went on a blind date with a guy who literally thought he was Weird Al Yankovitch (my LEAST favorite artist of all time) and would just randomly start singing at me, as if to impress me. Longest date of my life.
One time, I decided to go to a speed dating event with a friend. Basically, we sat at tables and every eight minutes, a different guy would come sit at our table so we could chat. I had some nice, normal conversations, but then a guy sat down and asked what I did for a living. When I told him I edit children’s books, he scoffed and said, “Do children’s books need editors? It’s not like it’s hard to write a children’s book.” I was so shocked and offended that I almost started laughing. Was this guy for real? Then later, he asked where I lived in the city and when I told him, he said, “Oh, my ex-wife used to live there. Isn’t that neighborhood infested with rats?” Mercifully, our seemingly endless eight minutes together were up shortly after that.
A guy I was seeing in college vomited all over me once (I’m talking all over, including face and hair).
I met my first boyfriend in high school during Volleyball practice. Our coach was always yelling out our names, so when I started talking to Matt we didn’t introduce ourselves. After our first few dates and becoming “official” Matt finally told me that his name is actually Mike. The coach had been saying it wrong for over a year and Mike/Matt stopped correcting him. I had been dating this guy for weeks and didn’t even know his name! (We broke up a week later).
Feel free to share some of your own dating horror stories in the comments!
Pretty in Pink is a CLASSIC teen movie because it’s relatable, hilarious, and romantic! Everything you love about Pretty in Pink is emulated in The Education of Margot Sanchez. Margot, just like Andie, has to navigate two complete separate social spheres—one in her private school and another at home in the Bronx. These two worlds collide and drama ensues! If you love Pretty in Prink, The Education of Margot Sanchez is the perfect book to pick up next. Here’s the full description:
Things/People Margot Hates:
• Mami, for destroying her social life
• Papi, for allowing Junior to become a Neanderthal
• Junior, for becoming a Neanderthal
• The supermarket
• Everyone elseAfter “borrowing” her father’s credit card to finance a more stylish wardrobe, Margot Sanchez suddenly finds herself grounded. And by grounded, she means working as an indentured servant in her family’s struggling grocery store to pay off her debts.
With each order of deli meat she slices, Margot can feel her carefully cultivated prep school reputation slipping through her fingers, and she’s willing to do anything to get out of this punishment. Lie, cheat, and maybe even steal…
Margot’s invitation to the ultimate beach party is within reach and she has no intention of letting her family’s drama or Moises—the admittedly good looking but outspoken boy from the neighborhood—keep her from her goal.
Eagle Eye is an intense thriller that keeps you hanging until the last possible moment. The tension between the male and female leads, both innocent people trying to avoid being murdered, adds to the dynamic movie. If you’ve been looking for another action packed adventure, you HAVE to pick up Out of Control by Sarah Alderson! Everything you could possibly need or want from a thriller is present in Out of Control!
A girl looking to escape her past in New York City ends up on the run from a dangerous conspiracy in this sizzling, high-stakes novel.
When seventeen-year-old Liva came to New York City, all she wanted was to escape the painful memories of her past and finally find a fresh start. Her hopes for a new future were dashed the moment she became the sole witness to a brutal murder. When she’s taken into police custody—supposedly for her own protection—she realizes something isn’t right, but it’s too late. Soon, bullets start flying, and Liva realizes that she is not just a witness, but the target.
With the help of Jay, a sexy car thief that she met at the station, Liva manages to escape unharmed, but now the two of them are alone in New York, trying to outrun and outwit the two killers who will stop at nothing to find them. Liva and Jay are living on the edge, but when you’re on the edge, there’s a long way to fall.
You can read the full book on Riveted until August 14! Don’t miss your window of opportunity!
“Gangs of New York meets Six of Crows in this captivating new series about a girl who must travel back in time to find a mysterious book that could save her future.”
As soon as I read this tagline I KNEW I had to read The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell ASAP! This isn’t an easy tagline to live up too (Gangs of New York and Six of Crows are both FANTASTIC), but somehow The Last Magician makes it happen. The plot, the setting, the characters, EVERYTHING was perfect! I couldn’t put it down. I was walking around my house with my nose actually stuck in the book (I even spilled some coffee on me because I was so distracted).
Fantasy has been ruling Young Adult recently and I’m not complaining. There’s something magical about the genre that makes you forget everything around you and just be immersed in the fantasy world. The Last Magician embodies the best parts of fantasy, so it’s no surprise it’s a New York Times Bestselling novel! If you’re somehow not convinced to start reading this AMAZING book yet, here are 5 reasons why I think you should start reading The Last Magician RIGHT NOW.
The magic in The Last Magician was intense, I felt like it was vibrating around me. I had no problems picturing myself surrounded by magic in Lisa Maxwell’s world. As long as I can remember, I’ve been a sucker for stories with any kind of magic. To be able to teleport myself into a different time or wiggle my nose to make something happen would make my life a million times easier. The Last Magician helped me remember exactly why I fell in love with magic in the first place. You can learn more about the magic used in the world of The Last Magician here.
Is this a weird thing to like about a book? Reading about the different gangs that ruled New York was thrilling! I couldn’t help picturing some of the characters talking like they were in The God Father or Gangs of New York. For the romance (I won’t tell you who because that would be a spoiler!) I pictured Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling in Gangster Squad! I love Emma and Ryan’s chemistry and I picked up the same vibe from The Last Magician characters!
Who doesn’t love a good time travel story?!? Most of The Last Magician takes place in the early 1900s of Manhattan, which is the tale end of the gilded age in New York. If given the chance to time travel, it’s also one of the fist places I would go. It’s such an exciting time to read about! You can also travel back in time like Esta (without actually having to time travel) with Riveted’s Time Traveling through New York!
All books should have female characters that are as badass as Esta. I aspire to be as confident as Esta (and if I could have her magical powers, that would be GREAT too). Also, honorable mention to Viola! I can’t say too much because she appears further into the story BUT she deserves the world to know she’s as kick-ass as Esta (if not more!).
Esta is able to steal anything from anyone. Ever since I read Ally Carter’s Heist Society, I have been ADDICTED to heist novels and movies! I’ve seen Ocean’s Eleven probably a hundred times. The Last Magician is centered around a heist and it’s the reason that Esta travels back in time in the first place! PLUS the heists in this novel are taken to the next level with all the magic involved!
Jace, Peeta, Warner, Rhysand. It’s probably not a surprise that reading YA has made me such a hopeless romantic. I believe in sparks, soulmates, meet-cutes, and if you’re meant to be together, the universe will make it happen. I didn’t think there was anyone who believed in romance as much as I do, until I read Museum of Heartbreak. The main character of this romantic, hilarious, and emotional novel, Penelope, is as hopeless of a romantic as hopeless romantics come. She believes in everything that being a hopeless romantic stands for and can never meet the right guy because of it. No one is ever perfect enough for her. Even Penelope’s best friend, Audrey, points out how Penelope is rarely attracted to a real person, and WOW, I can relate to that. These YA boys have just RUINED me (looking at you Rhysand & Jace). There’s so much to love and relate to in Museum of Heartbreak, especially if you’re a heavy YA reader, and since you’re here reading this, you probably are (Also, HI! We should be friends!).
I devoured this story in a matter of hours, and lucky for you, you can start reading Museum of Heartbreak RIGHT NOW! The extended excerpt is available until July 31!
There’s something special about New York City in the Winter. The snow, the lights, and wonderful food venders; it’s all perfect! Everyone is bundled up in cute puffy coats, scarves, and hats. Of course, this doesn’t apply to teenage guys who, for some reason, avoid coats and scarfs at all costs. WHY!?! I will never understand this and one of my favorite comments Penelope makes is about all the different boys she knows and their lack of good and warm clothing decisions.
Penelope is surrounded not only by her family but her best friend Eph’s family as well. I loved how important each family is to this novel, they’re always around Penelope, and are invested in her life. Parents are weirdly lacking in many YA novels so I always appreciate a good family when they show up.
This is THE REAL DEAL. Sure, in high school you might breakup about a guy or two, but when you drift from your best friend or have a friendship breakup, IT HURTS. A best friend can hurt you in a way that no one else can, especially in high school when any romantic relationships are so new. If you breakup with a best friend, it’s probably a friend you’ve had for a decade. Penelope’s struggle with this in Museum of Heartbreak is so realistic and hurt me right in the FEELS (more so than any of her romantic breakups).
Penelope isn’t just a hopeless romantic but she’s a a true bibliophile. The geeky fun references are scattered throughout the novel. The first one to pop up was a Buffy reference in a Spike vs. Angel fight (I’m Angel ALL THE WAY). Penelope also yells at someone to stop slut shamming Buffy and that’s the moment I knew I was going to LOVE this book.
^see all of the above. I just LOVED everything about Penelope. I related to EVERYTHING about her. Sure, she makes some bad decisions here and there, but they are the same bad decisions I would have made in the moment. Everyone but Penelope could tell Keats was a bad cookie, but I would have fallen for the literary references and mysterious nature too (and his name is Keats, teenage Danielle would have been sold right there)!
No summer truly is complete without a relaxing day (or multiple days) lounging by the pool or at the beach! As a proud Jersey girl, I’ve spent countless summer days relaxing on the beach for hours on end. If my friends and I ever had a day off from our summer jobs, the only place you’d be able to find us would be on the beach. There’s a weird protocol for behavior the beach (at least for locals in Jersey), we don’t do much talking. Instead, we lay on our towels (mine is always under an umbrella because I’m the palest person you will EVER meet), and just listen to the waves crashing on the shore. It’s a relaxing and soothing experience, until a kid kicks sand in your face or worse…ON YOUR BOOK!
Picking the perfect read for this atmosphere is weirdly challenging (for me, at least)! I can’t read high fantasy, mystery, or thrillers at the beach. I’m always eager to bring a light contemporary, preferably one with romance. Sarah Dessen, Morgan Matson, and Jenny Han are some of my favorite beach-approved authors. Their books are light and fun, PLUS they all have perfect covers for a beach Instagram shot (which is super important). Another one of my favorite authors to bring to the beach is Jennifer E. Smith! She writes beautiful, relatable, and wonderfully fun contemporaries! This past weekend I brought You are Here with me, I finished it in a matter of hours. I just couldn’t stop reading! This light-hearted contemporary also touches on deeper issues, and is the perfect companion to Riveted’s Summer of Self-Discovery. Check out the description:
Sometimes to find out where you’re going, you have to discover what you’ve left behind: Two teens hit the road in this breathtaking novel from Jennifer E. Smith, author of The Statistical Improbability of Love at First Sight.
Emma and her neighbor Peter are both lonely in a way that only bothers them occasionally. They both come from families they don’t quite understand. They both feel like something big is missing from their lives—and they’re both about to search for answers. When Emma makes a discovery that shakes the foundations of her identity, she convinces Peter to join her for a road trip. Each of them has something to find: For Emma, it is a grave—a grave that may be her only connection to her family. Peter is seeking something harder to define, but perhaps easier to navigate—a freedom, a sense of something more than what he has. Together, they take to the open road, engaging in a universal quest to make sense of who they are and where they come from…and learning a thing or two about love along the way.
Lucky for you, you can also read You are Here on the beach or by the pool because it’s available as a free read on Riveted until July 31st! If that summary didn’t convince you to read it ASAP, here are 8 reasons why you should pick it up right now!
I’ll read anything and everything by Jennifer E. Smith. She has some of the best meet-cutes I have ever read! In the Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight they meet on a plane on the way to London. In This is What Happy Looks Like the love interests meet via email. And in The Geography of You and Me they meet in an elevator. In You are Here, the character are neighbors and have known each other for most of their lives. Jennifer E. Smith can do no wrong in my book. I love EVERYTHING she writes.
Can you ever have too many road trip novels? NO! I want to read THEM ALL. There’s a special atmosphere added to a novel about galavanting across the country in a car, so much can go wrong, so much can go right. It’s AMAZING.
Add an animal to any story and I’m sold! Emma and Peter pick up a stray dog at a rest stop and he becomes a key part of the story. I basically had heart eyes every time they mention the dog.
Peter is obsessed with maps and is basically a human GPS (seriously!). I’m extremely jealous of his navigation skills. Meanwhile, I need google maps to get down the street. His affection for maps becomes contagious, and you’ll find yourself fascinated right along with him.
Is my inner geek showing? I LOVED Peter’s random Civil War facts. I worked in a University Archive for a few years in college and the love of history and historical documents has stuck with me. If you’re the kind of person who can appreciate gaining random fact knowledge, this book’s for you.
This is a friends to romance story that didn’t happen instantly. Instead, Peter and Emma take time to get familiar with one another and learn about each other. I loved how relatable and realistic the romance is in You are Here! You’ll feel like you really understand why they’re falling for each other, and you’ll love every second of it.
You are Here is 251 pages long which is the perfect length to bring to the beach and finish in one sitting (even though I could have read SO MUCH more about Peter and Emma’s story easily). It’s a story that wraps up nicely, but also leaves you daydreaming about more.
Peter’s last name is Finnegan AND SO IS MINE! I couldn’t help but smile every time Peter’s full name was used because, let’s be honest, Finnegan is the greatest last name (I’m not biased or anything). Pro Tip: ALWAYS read a book that stars a Finnegan. You’re in for a real treat.