Reread 2022 (Audiobook): ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers, Andrews McMeel Publishing, for an ARC unabridged audiobook of Shine Your Icy Crown by Amanda Lovelace in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

As you can see, I have read this book once before as an e ARC and absolutely loved it! So it is no surprise that I was eager to give the 2022 audiobook release a go, and I was not disappointed! Amanda Lovelace narrates the audiobook which immediately had me excited, as I love when authors narrate their own books. It adds another dimension to the work and, with Amanda's narration, you could really hear her love and passion for the poetry coming through. The music accompaniment os gorgeous and magical, not to mention a wonderful way to enhance the reading experience. Overall an absolutely wonderful listen and 5 stars for both the poetry and the unabridged audiobook version.

Read 2021 (eBook): ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
"When other people choose not to believe in your magic, you must take it upon yourself to believe in your own magic. There will be no greater satisfaction than proving them wrong." - page 7

I was given an eARC of this book to read from NetGalley and the publisher, Andrews McMeel Publishing, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Release Date: 26 January 2021

I loved Break Your Glass Slippers, the first installment in this series, so I was incredibly excited to have an eARC of book 2 to read. While I didn't enjoy Shine your Icy Crown as much as I did book 1, it was still an empowering and beautiful collection of poetry. Amanda Lovelace is, in my opinion, an unbelievably talented poet, and I could not put this book down until I had reached the end. Even then, I wished there was more. Combined with the gorgeous illustrations and layout of the book itself, this was an inspiring read! I cannot wait to buy my own copy of this once it is released.

"Make them rue the day they underestimated you." - page 73

Beautiful. I needed to hear a lot of these things. A beautifully empowering collection.
I appreciate the way Amanda reads this; slowly, deliberately, just as she wrote it.

The second book in the You Are Your Own Fairytale serie is exactly what the title of the serie says : a woman who reclaims herself and creates her own story, her own fairytale. It's inspiring words for girls and women who've been stuck being a king's princess, a prince's princess, instead of being their own princess.

It's a lovely book, with heartwarming words and powerful imagery. I loved it and I loved the reading, performed by the author herself. I'd easily recommend this book.

3 out of 5 stars.

i had the same issues with this book as i did the last book, but i still thought it was an enjoyable, short read.

i had really high hopes in the beginning for this one. it starts off with a little story, and i thought that the story was going to continue to the end, but that unfortunately didn't happen! however, i liked how it was framed as an ice queen retelling about two sisters (and the ends of the poems were what the older sister tells the younger sister).

my main issue with these books is that they often feel more like little motivational instagram poems spliced together instead of one cohesive story. i wish that the author was able to spin her beautiful poetry into more of a story setting, as opposed to mentioning some sort of setting and characters, and then having the rest of the book just be different poems about completely different subjects. it feels more like the author is pushing a hot-button topic or empowerment, and bringing up a fairy tale element to somewhat connect it, versus truly interweaving it with a fairy tale.

and the parts were more confusing this time too. the second part always switches into first person, but it is so hard to tell who is speaking (especially when there are supposed to be two characters? maybe?)

anyway, enjoy! - lindsey

I like how the author made sure to put trigger warnings before continuing to reading her book. This book hits home for me. The trigger warnings itself shows why this book hits home and how self-love should be the standard. This deserves 4.75 stars.

TW: Child Abuse, Toxic Relationships, Sexual Assault, Eating Disorders, Mental Illness, Self-harm, Sexism, Suicide, Trauma and more.

Another Amanda Lovelace collection that has absolutely blown me away. With every word that she writes sits deep within me and moves me in ways I never thought I could be moved. These poems both broke my heart and reminded me how beautiful things around me really are.

This collection sat with me for hours after I finished them because they absolutely broke my heart. Obviously Amanda uses her magic to put my heart back together but she does such a beautiful job making me think about everything before the book is done.

Everything she writes impacts me, but the poems in this collection specifically were everything I needed and more. Absolutely amazing.

An excellent sequel that continues to build. This one is very much focused on sisters. Whether you are the big sis or the baby sis, or don't happen to have a sister, every female should read this!

Amanda Lovelace never fails to to dissect heavy topics in a context that can be so relatable (in this case, princesses and royalty). Unfortunately, this book resonated a bit less with me. However, I can still appreciate this book for expressing what it does.

"it’s perfectly okay if what you want for yourself isn’t what other people want for you. this is your fairy tale, darling—you’re the only one who has to live it, so you’re the only one who has to be happy with it."

Another great collection from Amanda Lovelace. It's relatable, encouraging and just a good reminder that we are all perfect just the way we are.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This collection resonated with me more than book one. It’s all the advice I wished someone had given me as a young girl.

As someone who loves fairytales I adore the way the author takes this concept and makes it relevant to the world now.

Amanda Lovelace, to me, feels like one of the most recognizable modern day poets. Even without knowing it, I guarantee everyone has probably read or heard one of her poems. The best part about these audiobooks is hearing the cadence Amanda means for her poems to be read in, which just adds another layer to their meaning. Absolutely lovely.

Thank you net gallery for letting me review this book. This is the second book in the series.I love how the author makes each poem feel like a conversation you have with friends.

I will always love Amanda Lovelace. I really love that one of her collections which has hit me the hardest and that I love so much is actually narrated by her, which just makes it all that much better.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this audiobook*

Este libro es exactamente tan malo como te imaginás. Acá están mis (no muy ordenados) pensamientos que iba anotando mientras escuchaba:

- literalmente no sigue la temática de princesa/cuento de hadas ??
- no usa recursos poéticos. not one.
- es una especie de self help/mantras del feminismo de 2013 que quizás, quizás, me hubieran gustado si estuviera en 5to o 6to grado. encima algunos consejos son malardos o por lo menos yo no concuerdo.
- si fuera un minuto más largo seguramente lo hubiera dado de baja. lo bueno es que se lee rápido y fácil.

Conclusión: si tenés 11 años o menos, mucha intriga, y 45 minutos para gastar, go ahead. Si no, no.

I've been a fan of Amanda Lovelace for many years, and this book did not disappoint!
The sisterly advice in the poems is beautiful and raw, and it's the advice we should be giving to ourselves. The poems are in Lovelace's signature style and the book is filled with beautiful pictures.
I especially love the inclusion of trigger warnings and reminders for self-care to go along with some of the heavier themes in the book.
It is definitely one of the top poetry collections of the year - perfect for those new to the author and longtime fans.
Lovelace narrates the audiobook herself and listening to the book in the spoken word style was absolute perfection. I highly recommend it for this book.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the advance copy.

This is a brilliant book, and listening to an audio of it, narrated by the author herself, I feel so touched.

Loved how this poetry collections included sisters' relationship, feminism, broken hope and new wings.

There are so many quotes that I lovee that I couldn't choose one! The whole thing is my favorite!

Author: Amanda Lovelace
Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
English level: A2
Recommended age:+16

"She wants someone anyone, who takes the time to understand her. It´s that even possible?
"There is a beginning, a middle and an end to every single book and some books even have sequels. You are only at the beginning of the very first book, give the rest of your story a chance to unfold."

I had never read this author and the theme of this series of poems that for me seemed more like a story told in such a real and careful way. It touches on very sensitive topics such as self-harm, criticism, self-acceptance, eating problems, etc... so watch TW first before reading it.
What I liked was that the author is the one who narrates this series of poems and that gave it a unique touch because when you are reading the poem you can identify the emotion and the feeling that it gives you.
From my point of view, it deals very well with the issues I mentioned earlier and the empowerment of women. While I was listening to it I got very emotional because I felt so identified with the protagonist that she doubted herself, she felt bad about people's comments and she compared herself all the time. It made me realize that there will always be people who want to make our world so small and miserable that we forget that the main person that happens is oneself. We do not realize what we are worth and we destroy ourselves inside and out.
I loved the setting they gave it with the music and I felt like I was in a kingdom of ice.
It is a very short book that is read or listened to very quickly and with a very beautiful message.
I want to read more poems by the author and please give her a chance, you won't regret it.

Autora: Amanda Lovelace
Puntuación: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Nivel de Inglés: A2
Edad Recomendada:+16

"Ella quiere a alguien cualquiera, que se tome el tiempo para entenderla. ¿Es eso posible?
"Hay un comienzo, un medio y un final para cada libro y algunos libros incluso tienen secuelas. Estás solo al comienzo del primer libro, dale al resto de tu historia la oportunidad de desarrollarse".

Gracias a Netgalley y a la autora por dejarme escuchar este audiolibro a cambio de mi honesta opinión.
Nunca había leído a esta autora y la temática de esta serie de poemas que para mi me pareció más una historia contada de una forma tan real y cuidadosa. Toca temas muy sensibles como es el daño a uno mismo, criticas, auto-aceptación, problemas alimenticios, etc... así que vean primero los TW antes de leerlo.
Lo que me gusto fue que la autora es quien narra esta serie de poemas y eso le dio un toque único porque al estar leyendo el poema se puede identificar la emoción y el sentimiento que le da.
Desde mi punto de vista trata muy bien los temas que mencione anteriormente y el empoderamiento de la mujer. Mientras lo escuchaba me puse muy emotiva porque me sentí tan identificada con la protagonista que dudaba de si misma, se sentía mal con los comentarios de la gente y se comparaba todo el tiempo. Me hizo darme cuenta que siempre va a haber personas que quieran hacer de nuestro mundo tan chiquito y miserable que nos olvidamos que la principal persona que eso ocurro es uno mismo. No nos damos cuenta de lo que valemos y nos destrozamos por dentro y por fuera.
Ame la ambientación que le dieron con la música y sentí que estaba en un reino de hielo.
Es un libro muy cortito que se lee o escucha muy rápido y con un mensaje muy hermoso.
Tengo ganas de leer más poemas de la autora y porfavor denle una oportunidad no se van a arrepentir.

I have already read the other books by Amanda Lovelace, so I was quite excited to dive into this book. There were a lot of really nice and cute poems. However, I think I liked her other collection a bit more. The book felt a bit redundant in some places. Overall it is a good poetry book though and I'm happy that I got to enjoy it.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the audiobook arc of shine your icy crown. My opinions are my own.

Trigger warnings: child abuse, toxic relationships, sexual assault, eating disorders, mental illness, self-harm, sexism, suicide, trauma, & possibly more. remember to practice self-care before, during, & after reading.

I gave this book 4.5 stars.
I loved this audiobook. Amanda is very clear and gets through the emotions very nicely in this self-narrated poetry collection of hers. The poems are amazing and have encouraged me a lot. The poems expand through a lot of topics but focus on shining the surface of "you" more.

This is the second instalment in you are your own fairy tale series, which can be listened to as a standalone.

Reasons why I love this audiobook:
– background music is awesome, gives feels
– it has poems under “big sister says” and let me tell you its one of the best things about it, going to talk more about it as well
– the poems are diverse
– this is a roller coaster of a journey

This is more of hugs and showing the truth through poems; things maybe you don’t want to hear but will have to, is filled in this mixture and though sometimes bitter, it left me relaxed and calm. The major focus of the poems is always “you”, the person who is listening and the message is clear and inspiring. The poems are rebellious and should be as well, why should one listen to things that have been fed to them since childhood or the mainstream book storytellings or folk story; the wonder of a female is real which is told here and the patriarchy is told how the society looks at females so much differently than men and how it binds us but it shouldn’t, do what you feel is right, not what should be done. The poems are about a mixture of topics like female empowerment, self-beliefs, and so much more.

Sometimes the poems may not feel so much aligned with the mainstream thoughts but it’s okay, we are all allowed to think in our way. Some poems I couldn’t understand in one go, I do now, it’s progress and makes me understand things. So give them time to settle in and put fire on your thoughts, we gotta change sometime, not now but maybe some time and change is good.

Amanda is the narrator of the poems and she really sounds soothing and adds emotions to her poems in the right amount as should be put. I felt it in my core.

“make them rue the day they underestimated you.” is one of my favourite poems here.

Yes, I did write quite a lot of them and now I feel like physically having this book too.

Who would I recommend this book to? Well if I had a little sister, I’d have had gave her this book, and read it to her or told her to read and try to understand it. So yes, females do read this, as one I loved it.

I was nervous listening to my first poetry audiobook, but loved it as much as when I read this book. This one is one of my favorites from Amanda Lovelace. Amanda narrated her own work so beautifully. I recommend to anyone who needs something short and sweet, yet dark and powerful to read. She really empowers her words and in turn empowers you to go on and keep fighting the fight. Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to listen in exchange for a review.