The Lord of the Rings Book Tag

Hey hi hello friends, and welcome back to my blog! 

Sorry I haven't posted much this month, I've just been slow on the reading (and everything else). But I thought I would do this tag since I'm currently in the middle of my Lord of the Rings reread. This is technically called "The Fellowship of the Ring Book Tag" but I decided to just call it the LOTR tag. I can't seem to find the creator of this tag, so I think they're no longer a part of the BookTube/book blogger community. 

At the moment, I'm at the beginning of Return of the King, so I'm about 2/3 of the way through the full story. I can't wait to do a full spoiler review once I finish! I'm really loving this reread, as I said before it's been years since I first read the series and I hardly remember anything (except the obvious, and the movies, because that's obviously a yearly rewatch). 

Okay, let's get into the tag! 

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1. Gandalf: a book that taught you something

I don't really read books to learn something new, even nonfiction, but I'll say Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. I already knew about the H.H. Holmes case, but it was still fascinating to read, especially juxtaposed against the World's Fair and the making of it. Plus I learned that I like historical true crime through reading that book, so there's that.

2. Frodo: a book that left a mark on you

...The Alchemist by Pa--(sniper rifle goes off)

Loveless by Alice Oseman! If you don't know the story already, I read this book maybe a week after I had come to the realization that I'm asexual, and Loveless is literally about a girl figuring out she's ace. It was a perfect example of "I read this at the right time". I'll always be able to look back on my first time reading Loveless as a core memory. 

3. Legolas: a book that you finished in a single sitting

I tend to read a lot of books in one day or in a single sitting, so I'll just go with the last book that fits this, which would be Dog Songs by Mary Oliver. This is a poetry collection, actually, so it makes sense that it didn't take me long to finish. This was the second poetry collection by Mary Oliver that I've read (the first being Blue Horses) and I won't lie, it made me a little emotional. As the title implies, every poem is about or inspired by one of the dogs from Oliver's life. And as a dog mom myself, I definitely got a little misty eyed reading some of the poems. 

4. Gimli: a book with an unlikely friendship

There are so many books that fit this prompt, but I'm going to go with A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers. I think the friendship between Dex and Mosscap is so unconventional, but that's what makes it work so well. If you want to read something that's basically a warm hug in book form, this is it.

5. Merry: a book that pleasantly surprised you

I think The Witch King by H.E. Edgmon fits this prompt perfectly! I knew I was in for an urban fae story with a sarcastic main character, but I was surprised at how much I grew to really care for these characters. I mean, I was totally attached by the end and picked up the sequel as soon as I could! I call that a major win, especially since I seem to be gravitating away from YA fantasy lately. 

6. Pippin: a book that made you laugh

I don't usually laugh out loud when I read, but Project Hail Mary definitely pulled a few giggles out of me. Part of that is for sure Andy Weir's humor and writing style (The Martian also got me to laugh a few times) but it's mostly due to one specific character. The innocence combative with the snark was just the perfect humor for me. 

7. Boromir: a book that you wish hadn't ended so soon

For this I'm gonna say the Small Spaces series by Katherine Arden, particularly Empty Smiles, which was the last book in the series. It wrapped everything up nicely, but the actual story I feel didn't last very long. The best part of these books is the atmosphere that Arden created (she's masterful at that) but there wasn't enough time to really enjoy the atmosphere of the fourth book. Then again, it was all about clowns, and I hate clowns, so maybe that isn't such a bad thing after all...

8. Sam: a book with memorable side characters

Some of my favorite side characters are in the Keeper of the Lost Cities series by Shannon Messenger. Middle-Grade always has some of the best secondary characters and this series is no exception. I love how we always get new characters and relationships in each book as well. The world just keeps getting bigger and bigger as Sophie (the main character) grows and adapts. Her friend circle is so strong and wholesome. 

9. Aragorn: a good book with a bad cover

I might get some hate for this one, but I really don't like the cover of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. I don't mind the constellation, since it has significance to the actual story, but I'm just not a fan of the text taking up the entire cover. I've never really liked that style. If I wasn't already a huge V.E. Schwab fan, I probably wouldn't have picked this book up at all, let alone as a cover buy. 

10. Gollum: a book that had potential but was ultimately disappointing 

I was super excited about In Defense of Witches by Mona Chollet, I thought it was going to be a history of the witch trials but through a modern-day, feminist lens. Instead it was a book about feminism that used the witch trials as a jumping off point. It focused more on the implications of the trials rather than the actual history itself, which just wasn't what I had gone in expecting. I was sadly mislead, and ended up feeling rather disappointed by this read.

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And that's it for today's post! If you've read The Lord of the Rings (or seen the movies) tell me who your favorite character is! If I'm going off of the movies, Pippin is my boy, I love him so much. But I think as far as the books are concerned, I actually like Aragorn a lot more! I mean, I still love movie!Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen was probably my first celebrity crush) but Pippin really just swoops in there for me. But I love every single member of the Fellowship, it's some of the best character work and development I've ever read! 

Let me know your favorite character in the comments below, or tweet at me @AllyEmReads. I'm definitely on a LOTR kick right now so even if you just want to talk about the series, feel free to DM me!

Until next time!