REVIEW: Septimus Heap series by Angie Sage

Guys, the heavens have opened, the angel choirs are singing, and I'm basking in the glorious light of I FINALLY FINISHED THE SEPTIMUS HEAP SERIES AND I CANNOT EVEN BELIEVE IT HAPPENED!!! 

I started this series over 2 years ago (which is why none of you would have any clue as to why I'm so excited about this) on a whim. I was getting ready to head off on a long car trip with my boyfriend and his family and I wanted to bring a book... but hadn't brought my own. So I grabbed Magyk off his shelf and began this rough and tumble ride of 2 years. 
I feel like I want to breathe a sigh of relief big enough to bowl over a few small trees. Golly gosh I'm excited!
Bonus content for why I'm so pumped: it took me about 2 and a half weeks to read the seventh book, Fyre. I started it as an audiobook and hardly touched it for a week, then tried an e-book and read a little...then went on a week-long trip with no Wi-Fi... and finally, I've finished it. I feel so accomplished. Somebody bake me cookies. Please. :)
ANYWAYS, I really liked this series. And I'm going to tell you why. Which might maybe take a little while because this series is humongous and ridiculous. 

The Short Story:

This series has highly developed characters, complex and intense plot lines (yes, that is VERY plural), and a super fantastic and unique magic system. It is middle grade, and on the younger end of middle grade, but that does not discredit it as a series. It resembles a younger-reader Harry Potter to some degree and I would recommend it for HP fans. My only complaint, which is actually somewhat big, is that the series felt like it could have ended after every book. It is a good SERIES, but each book feels like a fine standalone. Still highly recommended, especially for a middle school reader.

The Long Story:

Septimus Heap has the most complicated life on the planet. In a world of Magyk, mistaken identities and long-lost Magykal artifacts seem commonplace! This series follows Septimus through his life, from about 10 years old until (I think) 17. Each book is a new adventure with some new characters and some stick-with-you-through-it-all best friends. The Heap family is wonderful and a little Weasley-ish. Marcia Overstrand must be the fiercest book woman ever in her purple python boots. Spit Fyre, the Drummins, and Marcellus are just a few more wacky characters you get to meet while living with Sep. This series is so all-encompassing and entertaining. It also has a Rick Riordan feel to it, with lots of humor and silliness. The plot is always thick and filled with details that you won't realize are important until they are and it blows your mind. You grow with the characters as they face each and every obstacle and DEAL WITH IT. 
Maybe this won't be such a long story after all. I honestly cannot give many details without spoiling important moments in any of the books. Trust me, it is okay to go in blind. I get nervous sometimes when people tell me to do so because I want to know what it is about, but for this series it really is the best choice. PLEASE give it a try. Like I said in the Short Story above, my only problem with this series is it seemed to go on for too long. But that doesn't totally diminish the last few books. If you read this and get to the middle books and want to give up, I really think the last book, Fyre, makes sticking it out worth it. It was an amazing conclusion to such an epic series. 

Series rating: 4.25/5 stars. 

Happy reading!

INTIMIDATING TBR TAG!

Even thinking about doing this tag has been intimidating! My TBR is out-of-this-world huge (I have unread books on my shelf in great numbers AND a list on my phone that exceeds two hundred books...guys, help) and it's hard to narrow it to the most intimidating books on it... But here we go! 

What book have you been unable to finish?

I probably finish 98% of books that I read. But I tried reading Denton Little's Deathdate and I couldn't get into it. The concept is so unique and sounds like something I'd enjoy, but when I actually tried to read it, I couldn't stand the characters and the style was too odd for me. So I still haven't finished it and I'm most likely going to DNF it.

What book have you yet to read because you haven't had the time?

Oh my goodness the entire Throne of Glass series. I want to read them. I need to read them. But just look at those books! Every time one is published it's bigger than the last one!! I don't know what to do about this one except drop all my responsibilities and hide in a box until I finish the whole thing. Yep.

What book have you yet to read because it's a sequel?

Lady Renegades by Rachel Hawkins is the last book in the Rebel Belle trilogy and I'm having a hard time coming to terms with finishing it...so I haven't even tried. I've been avoiding review like the plague because I don't want anyone to tint my reading of this finale, but I need to get to it SOOOOON so I'm not spoiled.

What book have you yet to read because it's brand new?

The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan. Now let me tell you a thing: I wanted this the day it came out. But other things (read: bills) prevented that dream from coming true. So I bought it a few days ago, which makes it super brand new to me! And I still haven't started it yet. What's wrong with me? I honestly have no clue. It's still only about a month old, so it's brand new, but I have no excuse because I own it now. Oy.

What book have you yet to read because you read a book by the same author and didn't enjoy it?

I have a weird answer for this one, and it's The Land of Stories by Chris Colfer. Now, Chris hasn't written other novels before this series, so the problem isn't that I haven't liked previous books, but that I'm super skeptical about books by actors that I've been a big fan of in the past. I loved Glee when I watched it and now I'm not sure about a book written by "Kurt." Maybe it's just me.

What book have you yet to read because you're just not in the mood for it?

I read Kerstin Gier's Ruby Red trilogy last year and loved every second and every word on every page of the whole darn thing. And now she has another series that starts with Dream A Little Dream and I'm super excited to read it...sometime. Her books are certifiably mindboggling and I'm just not quite in the mood for a book that is going to take my brain and twist it until I can't see straight. But it's on my TBR for this month so hopefully I'll get this one solved soon!

What book have you yet to read because it's humongous?

One word: ACOTAR. Ha, see what I did there? It's an acronym so it's actually several words but looks like one...okay, I'm done. Anyway, A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas has hype for days (and days and days) and that's one part of its hugeness. The other part is physically it's very tall and quite a few pages and it scares me. I want so much to read it. But it's so BA I feel like it will consume me entirely.

What book have you yet to read because it was a cover buy that turned out to have poor reviews?

Eleanor Herman's LEGACY OF KINGS, no doubt. I bought this at the beginning of this year and I was so pumped to have it! It is gorgeous and epic-looking and I want to stare at it all day. But recently I've been hearing not great things about it and that makes me super anxious. I think I'm still going to love it, but I've kind of been putting it off.

What is the most intimidating book in your TBR?

I'm cheating a teeny bit, but it's my most honest answer. The remainder of the Ranger's Apprentice series is easily the most intimidating item on my TBR. I read the first book over a year ago and was blown away by how much I enjoyed it. But then other things came up and I got distracted by pretty covers and such and now it's been so long and I haven't continued the 12-book series. Yeesh. I know I'm going to love it, but there are so many books and world and characters and wow I'm dizzy.

Who do you tag? 

I've tagged several AWESOME people over on the bookstagram community (@the.storied.shelf) and you should check out their responses there!

And there y'all have it! This tag succeeded in making me feel super guilty about having not read these books AND made me want to built a cave out of my unread books and hide away in it. But hey, it was still fun! 

What's your most intimidating TBR?? 

Happy reading!!