Friday 23 September 2016

You Know Me Well by David Levithan and Nina LaCour

07:14:00 0
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

 Who knows you well? Your best friend? Your boyfriend or girlfriend? A stranger you meet on a crazy night? No one, really?

Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed.

That is until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way.

When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other -- and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more.
Reading The Riot Act Blog

You Know Me Well by David Levithan and Nina LaCour
Published June 2nd by Macmillan Children's Books
Paperback 247 Pages

 I am not a huge David Levithan Fan...Levifan?

Never have been, there's no reason why, his writing has just never spoken to me. I'm also not a fan of books written by multiple authors. I find them lacking the connection, that sometimes authors are too different or there is one style I really don't like. However, Nina LaCour is the perfect author to write alongside Levithan. They complimented each other and it actually made me enjoy Levithan's writing which is pretty incredible.

We follow two protagonists, Kate and Mark, both gay, both in love with people they can't have. During the last week of senior year they create a friendship that is so strong you forget it has only been a week. Mark is in love with his best friend, they fool around a lot, but when his friend gets a new boyfriend he relies on Kate to bring him back. Kate on the other hand is in love with a girl she's never met. She's fantasied about meeting her for years and finally, on the night she's waited for, she runs away and stands her up. Between love misconnections and fear for the future, the friendship that blossoms between these too is innocent and real and stunning.

I had an issue with some parts of the story, but only because I'm reading it from an older point of view. I find that a lot these days when teens have an existential crisis, I tutt and click my tongue like I never felt that way and sometimes, I just find it frustrating. These characters stand in the way of there own happiness, they overthink and worry and it drives me crazy, but it's also the beauty of this story. The conflict is internal and self-destructive and that is why this book stood out for me.

 Overall, this book did not change my life,  but I do think it did a fantastic job of representing the LGBT community without stereotype or shyness, that's why I have given it a totally respectable 3 Stars! 
Happy Reading.
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Thursday 22 September 2016

Nerve by Jeanne Ryan

10:28:00 0
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

A high-stakes online game of dares turns deadly
When Vee is picked to be a player in NERVE, an anonymous game of dares broadcast live online, she discovers that the game knows her. They tempt her with prizes taken from her ThisIsMe page and team her up with the perfect boy, sizzling-hot Ian. At first it's exhilarating--Vee and Ian's fans cheer them on to riskier dares with higher stakes. But the game takes a twisted turn when they're directed to a secret location with five other players for the Grand Prize round. Suddenly they're playing all or nothing, with their lives on the line. Just how far will Vee go before she loses NERVE?

Nerve by Jeanne Ryan
Published July 28th 2016 by Simon&Schuster
Paperback 294 Pages

 I am a huge fan of books turned into movies. I often think book trailers should be more like film trailers (books are a visual medium after all) because the film trailer can always entice me into reading it. I read nerve before seeing the movie and the book only heightened my excitement for what seemed like a blockbuster.

Nerve follows Vee (as in Venus) who is quiet, smart and downtrodden. After a brutal betrayal by a friend and a few insults dressed as compliments, Vee finds herself a part of this colossal reality television game show. She meets a smoking hot guy and wins a ton of cool prizes, but that's not why Jeanne Ryan wrote this book. The plot takes a keen twist into a beautiful and resounding statement about reality tv. As someone who has been on reality television, I can relate and press the idea that there is nothing real about reality television - something myself, and Vee, learned the hard way.

Poor Vee is in over her head and yet summons this astonishing strength to hold her own against so many aggressive competitors and tasks. Struggling with a hidden past, the game becomes all too real and she becomes the kick ass heroine we all knew was in her from the start. It is a fantastic tale about inner strength, a corrupt world and the danger of trusting the media too much. I highly recommend.

 Now, onto the specifics.

I hate that they changed the end in the movie. I found that so disappointing as this ending was tense. When all the local competitors are in that room and the tasks escalate and escalate. Damn I wish there was a sequel - it was left open for one but no news yet.

Vee is literally a superhero, she was doing these things and I got that feeling I got when I read divergent. That moment when Tris is about to jump off the building, not knowing if there is a net there. I felt real panic and real fear - just as I did with this book. I was there. I was with her. And I was pooping my pants. Ian is a dreamboat and I loved the fact that afterwards she was only allowed out to run and he came and met her. That was just a really cute image. (For some reason I began with the ending - good job self!)

 In the movie I did miss the backstory of Vee. On film she has a protective mother because her brother died and a few really terrible friends. I hate friendzoned characters - I hate the term in general, but the movie really amped up Tommy's character and turned him into this gross stereotype. I felt that way about her best friend too (I can't for the life of me recall her name). She felt 2D in the movie, I knew her motivation and it was just to be a bitch. Then there was all that crap with the hackers - I'm not even going into that!

 In the book, Vee tried to commit suicide - but was caught by her parents. Since she had been gaining there trust back and on the night she was finally allowed a longer curfew, she gets caught up in Nerve. In the novel she pretends to be a weird prostitute and all sorts which is so fun to read. Her friends though the tension between them is there with unspoken crushes and resentments, there is something distinctly lovable about them. They are real and good. They are just messed up kids in the book and so their behaviour is a little more excusable. When they come to Vee's rescue at the end, I believe it. I didn't believe it in the film.

It was just a really engaging, easy read. 4 Stars!
If you enjoyed the movie - that is just the tip of the iceberg. There is so much beneath the surface and so many cracking scenes awaiting you in the book. Get it now, read it and come back! I must know you're favourite scene! Mine was definitely the celibacy group in the bowling alley! (CLASSIC!)

 Happy Reading!
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Thursday 25 August 2016

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by Jack Thorne

11:45:00 0
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

 Based on an original new story by J. K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a new play by Jack Thorne, is the first official Harry Potter story to be presented on stage. It will receive its world premiere in London's West End on 30th July 2016.

It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn't much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children. While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes darkness comes from unexpected places.



Where to begin? Where tooooo begin?

 I am not sure where to begin or end with this.

I think I will begin by saying that I do not think a book, no matter what franchise it is a continuation is off, gets a free pass. A bad story is a bad story and the affiliation with J K Rowling and Harry Potter in no way validates the fact that this book should have been published. That is my opinion - they should have left well enough alone. There are moments I enjoyed but if you want a quick summary this play is a waste of time and money. It is a well written fanfiction that in no way belongs within this universe. You can disagree but that is how I feel. So if you don't want spoilers leave now, if not - lets crack on. I am going to review this book in two parts - Acts 1-3 and Act 4, mostly because I feel like I have different things to say about Act 4.

Acts 1 - 3

 I find the description of this play as "well written fan-fiction" to be rather apt. Acts 1 through 3 are a total mess, I just do not care about anything that is happening and I keep reading and reading but it's more of the same. First off I have trouble believing that Harry is a terrible father, he has always been very accepting and very seeing of people, he has never been blind to other people or their feelings and yet there is apparently been this huge character change over the past nineteen years with no explanation. Harry also appears to be terrible at his job, we see his office and it is a state, Hermione basically says he is terrible at his job and his lack of a relationship with Ginny is all too much. I know people change as they get older and life changes and things change but you do not become a completely different person. I also don't believe for a second Harry is someone who lives in his stories, I can't imagine him telling people his stories over and over like that creepy Daniel Radcliffe SNL sketch.

Albus and Scorpius really make this play, they are the best characters and maybe that's because they are the only ones who I don't actually know. Was I the only one who got a vibe from the two of them, kind of a Magneto/Professor X secret love for one another vibe. Well, I did and I totally ship them. That was quite odd in the writing that there were these very intimate moments and then suddenly Scorpius is all over Rose, it was strange.

 Hermione and Ron were disastrous, Ron was squeezed in a the mockable comic relief, no longer even funny from his own wit and humour - just as a cheap laughing stock with his fat gut and balding head. That was a disappointment and so was the display of Ron and Hermione's relationship, it felt forced and wrong and then we had this plot of alternate worlds where they don't get together and I am not choked up about it at all. It felt forced, it felt as though this was written by someone who doesn't know them enough and it showed, it so showed.

Finally, I will get to the plot. Once again fan-fiction destroys stories we love. A secret time-turner to go back and save Cedric. That was bad. Voldemort and Bellatrix having a secret baby that she popped out just before running to the battle of Hogwarts. First off, we saw Bellatrix just before the battle of Hogwarts and she weren't 9 months preggo fellas! Secondly, what would possess him to have sex or a child in the first place? He has never shown to be filed with sexual desire or affection so what the hell Rowling? You approved this story? Really! How could you.

 OK. I'm calm.

Now, if this is getting to negative for you, proceed to Act 4. Things change up. I swear.

ACT 4!!! Thank the universe for ACT 4!

Act 4 had a lot of the issues of the previous acts, yet there were these absolutely beautiful moments. We go back to Godric's Hollow and there things take a change. Notably the moment with Delphi when she is caught and Albus wants her dead, that moment where Harry realises she is this lost child, hidden away and unloved and that essentially she is a victim of her destiny. That moment was lovely, but the one that topped that, that literally made all of the terrible 300 pages worth it. Harry and the gang watch as Voldemort kills Lily and James, knowing they cannot save them without chaning the world. Harry is flinching against the green light and Albus reaches out and takes his hand. It was this wonderful moment of solidarity, of such emotional resonance and strength that is familiar within Harry Potter. The strength Harry showed there was exactly what I expected from him and his son and it was honestly one of the best moments in the entire series.

Yes.

In this terrible book there was the most wonderful scene in all the series.

Then we have another, a close second in which Harry opens up to a portrait of Dumbledore. He lets out everything he was feeling his entire life. Admits that he saw him as a father figure and he never let him know he loved him, instead he raised him as a lamb to slaughter and I thought that was a stunning moment too. Moments that were anchored in the story and the feel of the original books.

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This is a very hard book for me to review because no, I did not like it. I will not be considering it a part of the Harry Potter Universe - but there are moments I can truly appreciate. Mostly I just feel disappointed and a little angry. The story (which was Rowling, apparently) was lacklustre and lazy and makes me very angry.

I'm not sure.
I really don't know.
It makes me feel very lost.
I can only give it 2 Stars, and because of that - my heart is breaking.
Maybe you made better sense of it, if you did, feel free to comment down below and help a girl out. Fingers crossed it's better for you.
Happy Reading.
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Monday 15 August 2016

The Girl of Ink & Stars by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

01:59:00 0

Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

Waterstones Children's Book of the Month and The Times Children's Book of the Week.

Forbidden to leave her island, Isabella Riosse dreams of the faraway lands her father once mapped.

When her closest friend disappears into the island’s Forgotten Territories, she volunteers to guide the search. As a cartographer’s daughter, she’s equipped with elaborate ink maps and knowledge of the stars, and is eager to navigate the island’s forgotten heart.

But the world beyond the walls is a monster-filled wasteland – and beneath the dry rivers and smoking mountains, a legendary fire demon is stirring from its sleep. Soon, following her map, her heart and an ancient myth, Isabella discovers the true end of her journey: to save the island itself.

Image from mrripleysenchantedbooks
I am really not sure how to start this review, mostly because I don't know how I feel about this book. Isn't that always an odd one? You finish and you enjoyed it but not sure what to make of it afterwards. Very odd - but I'll give this my best shot.

This book was not what I thought it was going to be. I'm not sure what I was expecting but a floating island, kids adventure death mystery was not one of them. This is not a bad thing by any means, in fact it was refreshingly original. I'm not sure this book is for my audience - I tend to tell through the protagonist who was very young, far younger than myself and it was odd to read from a child's point of view. First of all the length, it was only 200 pages and the narrative arc was not as complex as I would expect so it is difficult for me to love it.

I can appreciate a well-written book with diverse and smart characters. The story is predictable but still cute and it was perfectly enjoyable. I think if I had a child who was just getting into the world of YA this is the perfect transition book. It has all the pieces and expectations only in a smaller package. It's like a gateway drug to young adult fiction, only without the downward spiral afterwards.

I think my issue is that the book is lovely and the characters are lovely but I didn't feel emotionally connected to them. Maybe in only 200 pages that can be difficult for a wisen-old reader like myself - maybe my own expectations let me down, but mostly I was just a little bored. I enjoyed it but with a none active reading boredom. It was very linear, very we are here and I know where we're going - there wasn't space for that time in between, the time when they are just walking and you learn them. It was very fast paced and the ending was rushed.

 I also had an issue with the maturity of these characters, 11 year olds are lining up to sacrifice there lives nobly for the island but are also stupid enough to walk into dangerous territories because someone called them a bad name. In some cases they acted older, like teenagers, then like 5 year olds and then like adults - there is a lot of inconsistency there for me. It is understandable, I could never write the inner monologue of an 11 year old, I don't remember what it was like to be 11 - to me it always felt like now.

In the grand scheme of the story these things are minor and mostly just annoyances. For me it stopped me really connecting with this book, but that doesn't mean other won't. There was excitement, drama, mythology, a strange setting. It would be a great read for someone less picky I imagine - after all if I don't think a book has merits I stop reading and I finished this one. So that really says all you need to know.

 Let me know what you think.
Happy Reading!


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Sunday 7 August 2016

One by Sarah Crossan

04:04:00 0
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

Grace and Tippi. Tippi and Grace. Two sisters. Two hearts. Two dreams. Two lives. But one body.

Grace and Tippi are conjoined twins, joined at the waist, defying the odds of survival for sixteen years. They share everything, and they are everything to each other. They would never imagine being apart. For them, that would be the real tragedy.

But something is happening to them. Something they hoped would never happen. And Grace doesn’t want to admit it. Not even to Tippi.

How long can they hide from the truth—how long before they must face the most impossible choice of their lives.

Image from Girl Reading
Sarah Crossan outdoes herself with yet another book written in verse. Through the eclectic use of poetry we follow the inner working of Grace, one half of a conjoined twin. Grace and Tippi have been connected since birth and now, for the first time ever - have to go to a real school. This is shudder-inducing even without being a conjoined twin.

Tippi is louder, she is often the conversation starter and she is also the rock that Grace leans on. It becomes hard to imagine Grace without Tippi. There is this really striking moment when a classmate says that being a conjoined twin has to be the worst thing ever! and then we have this stunning poem about all the things that are worse, that having someone with you all the time, who knows you better than anyone else is not the worst thing ever and that really struck me. This book becomes more focused on the fact that these girls are people, just girls. They discuss other famous conjoined twins and note how after a lifetime of doing things, on their gravestone it still read conjoined twins - as if this is all they could ever be.

This story is full of these beautiful observations, I think because the form allows it. Grace's words flow in a way that resonates solely with her emotions, that partly the action doesn't even matter because between the lines she is saying something far better. Some of these poems you could frame they are so beautiful, just as a freestanding work.

Soon due to health complications with Grace's heart, being surgically separated is no longer just an option for an easier life. Now it is life or death. The lovely thing about this book, is that the separation is a small part of the story - the little 50 pages at the end, because it isn't what this book is about. The book is about Grace becoming more than just Tippi's sidekick. She becomes louder, braver even daring to fall in love when Tippi tells her outright this isn't something they can have. She stops worrying about the idea that when one of them dies they both die and starts enjoying her life, making friends, going away on trips and finding a way to provide for their crumbling family. She really is this thoughtful, quiet heroine who's battle against evil is fought within herself.

Grace and Tippi are surrounded by a broken supporting cast, each of them as tragically flawed as the next. Their sister has an eating disorder, their father is an alcoholic and there best friend has HIV. Everyone has there damage, every character has there issues but they are fortunate enough to not show it physically. There are points when you forget all the broken cast, when you forget Grace and Tippi are conjoined, when you forget Dragon is starving herself in the name of ballet beauty - you forget that these people are broken and then it hits you, hard - because not one of these characters gets away without any baggage, and that's kind of beautiful.

If you want something unputdownable, or want a book that will give you something thoughtful and lovely to think about and make you grateful that you live in a world where books like this exist - then this is the book for you. You'll forget it's written in verse and the words will just flow. It really is as good as that. I'm always giving Crossan 5 Stars, and today is no different!

Happy Reading.


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Friday 5 August 2016

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

03:46:00 0
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

Lou Clark knows lots of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in The Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick.

What Lou doesn't know is she's about to lose her job or that knowing what's coming is what keeps her sane.

Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he's going to put a stop to that.

What Will doesn't know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they're going to change the other for all time. 
Image from booksweheart
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
Published December 31st 2012 by Pamela Dorman Books/Viking
Hardcover, 481 pages
          
Me Before You is set in the English countryside, Yorkshire I assume. I'm from Cumbria so this is like
next door to me and that makes me really happy. Moyes got the setting built really well as I live and have
been to these types of villages many times. That and the fact the protagonist is named Lou (I'm a Lou)
pulled me in immediately. What a shame I didn't like Lou that much - but I'll get to that.

 Immediately Lou loses her job. She lives with her family who are a bit hard done for, so the loss of money is 
a definite blow. She tries working at a few jobs that are gruesome or terrible until finally, she falls into being
a caregiver for Will. Will has Quadriplegia meaning he is mostly paralysed from the chest down, with a little
bit of movement in his arm. There relationship is pretty rocky to say the least until a mutual attraction forms.
They fall in love it's gushy and romantic and cute - but then we have this underlying issue. Will wants to die.
Will promised his parents 6 months to change his mind and if not he would be going to Dignitas to end his life.

 Naturally this is a huge aspect of the book and has caused a lot of controversy. People seem to be concerned that
what Moyes is saying is that Will's life is meaningless now, that he is disabled so he wants to die because he thinks
his life is never going to be good enough. I disagree, personally I never got that reading of it. What I understood
from the book was that Will is a rich boy, he has probably never had to want for anything in his life and I imagine
when that's the case and to want for something so simple that you can never have -that has to be so hard. I don't think
Will as a person, from the way he was raised or whatever, is not equipped to look on the bright side.

I won't touch on euthanasia much but for me, the story was not saying all disabled people want to die. For me it
was about Will as a person rather than a man with quadriplegia. I think Will does not accept second best, even if
that second best is a happy life with Lou, and that is ultimately the tragedy of this book. When she lays it all out on the
beach, telling her she loves him and she can make him happy and he still says no. That was hard to read, it felt so final.

 Lou at first really bugged me. I found her very childish, rather annoying and it was a struggle to push through until we
met Will - who was hilarious, charming and complicated. It's just every two seconds I wanted to shake her around and
give her a kick up the arse. She was so hard to get through too, but once Will did she became this whole new person.
Confident and actually honest with herself because I knew very early on that Patrick was awful, they were terrible together,
they barely got on and when she moved in with him it was just so awkward. She spent most of the book going through the
motions of what she thinks she should be doing and it was great to see Will knock some sense in to her.

The romance really was not as big of a part of this novel as it was advertised but that is fine by me. It was steady and real
and slow and I liked that. Moyes did not create insta-love or have her checking him out as he wheeled into the room -she let
the characters do it, almost to the point where you barely notice the change- it was some stunning writing.

 That final scene in Dignitas, when they know it's about to happen and she rushes there to see him - BEAUTIFUL. I almost 
couldn't believe it was happening it was so awful but it was also just so great. I would have to say this book got better as it
went along. The more we learned about both these characters, the more they reached out of the page and slapped me with
emotion. I think it is a damn fine book, but if I have to read Patrick running one more time - I will throw it at the wall.

 I hope this helps, let me know what you thought of the book (or the movie).
Happy Reading.

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Saturday 18 June 2016

The Liebster Award

15:14:00 4
The lovely Zoë at My Bookish Wonderland has nominated me for The Liebster Award.

The whole idea of the award is to discover new blogs and already I have discovered three.

The rules for this award are as follows:

1. Acknowledge the blog that nominated you and display the award.
2. Answer the 11 questions that the blog gives you.
3. Give 11 random facts about yourself.
4. Nominate 5-11 blogs that you think are deserving of the award that have less than 200 followers.
5. Let the blogs know you have nominated them.
6. Give them 11 questions to answer.

This is really good news for me because I never know where to look for a new book blog. You can follow the chain, go see Zoe, see who she nominated, see who nominated her and so on and so forth until your email is simply brimming with fine blogs. So thank you Zoë!
These are the questions I was given.

 1. What's your favourite genre?
This is a hard question because it changes. Right now I'm loving some YA and NA Fantasy, but I also love some Contemporary YA.  I like variety, I've never been took picky about Genre as long as it's good but YA does seem to cover my shelves more than anything else.

2. Do you listen to music while reading?

I couldn't personally pay attention if I was listening to music. I do when I write and some authors create playlists on Spotify that I listen to as a reread passages. Sarah J Maas is great for those, even in her newsletter she tells you which section goes with which music and I love seeing how the beats fall, but only in a reread.

3. Are you good at predicting plot twists?

I like to think I am, but I am also one of those terrible people who reads the last few pages before I start. Something about not knowing exactly where I'm headed freaks me out a little bit and I don't think I get too spoiled from the last couple pages. I like a good surprise as well so I don't often make predictions.

4. Do you want to write a book yourself one day?

Yes, yes I do. This year I have got a degree in Creative Writing and made way through two books I wish to eventually publish. One is a collection of feminist short stories and the other is the first in a fantasy series. I plan to have the first draft down by the end of this year and then leave it as a write the first draft of a contemporary that just screaming at me to be written. I'll get there eventually. I'm working on it.

5. Do you like going to libraries and borrow books there?

I think libraries are a great resource, my mother is a librarian and I borrowed Asking For It by Louise O'niell from the library today. I used it more when I was younger because I couldn't afford all the books I wanted to read. I think libraries are great, especially if you just want to try a book on for size.

6. What do you do when someone loans a book of yours and brings it back in bad condition?

I don't lend out my books and if I do, it's to someone who I know will take care of it. They ruin it, they buy me a knew one. The signed ones stay with me.

7. Who is your favourite character (doesn't have to be from a book)

I have to say Celaena Sardothien from Throne of Glass, Manon is a close second but I just relate to Celaena in such a crazy way. She is one of the only characters I know who loves herself but also hates her very being. She is so complex and I just love reading her. Seeing her strength gives me strength in return. She is as much in my heart as Harry Potter or Katniss.

8. How many books are on your TBR list?

I lost count about five years ago, now I consider my thoughts on buying books to be that of Alaska from Looking for Alaska. I always have something to read, way too much in fact - like a bookcase worth.

9. How many books would you like to read this year?

Every year I aim for 100 books. The past two years have been difficult with my degree and work so I have fall dismally short. I will still aim fro 100 but likely I'll get maybe 50 if my reading picks up now I'm finished with University. Next year 100 for sure!

10. When in the day do you read the most? 

I read the most at night before bed. I think most adults who struggle to find time can always put an hour away before bed, but a sunny afternoon in a garden can be pretty productive too. 

11. If you could meet any author who would it be and what would you ask him/her?

I have met a few authors before, Sarah J Maas, Maggie Stiefvater, Patrick Ness, but I always tend to be a little bit nervous and awkward. Sadly I have never met J K Rowling. I always wanted too and almost did but she didn't want anyone talking about Harry Potter or wearing merchandise or brining to books so it seemed a little pointless. I hope I do get to meet her one day and I'd ask about the museum in Edinburgh. If you've been there you'll know what I mean. Coincidence? I think not.

Now for 11 facts about me, I guess:

1. I have a deep seeded hatred for slugs and onions and dolphins.
2. I am allergic to wasps.
3. I always read the acknowledgments when I start a book, (Sometimes they are super romantic).
4. My favourite holiday is Halloween, because DUH! COSTUMES!
5. I am incredibly well travelled for someone my age.
6. I'm twenty two.
7. I own some impressive and beautiful notebooks I haven't written in...yet.
8. I hate the smell of lilies.
9. If I could live off doughnuts, I would.
10. I can remember quotes terrifyingly fast.
11. I judge a book by it's cover.

I nominate:

 The Review Diaries
Boats Against The Current (Love your Sarah J Maas posts! Book blogger Cliche's all the way!)
YA Bookaholic
The Book Nerd In Me
Caterfee Reviews! Sup Girl!

 These are all top notch blogs I personally love and I think you will too.

My 11 Questions to you guys are:

 1. What sparked your passion for reading?
2. What is your favourite reading spot?
3. What is your favourite cover art ever?
4. How do you deal with your TBR shelf?
5. Best book you read in the past year? (No rereads)
6. Who is your favourite booktuber?
7. First book you ever read?
8. What is your go to reading snack?
9. Why is reading important to you?
10. Where would you be without reading?
11. What is your favourite thing about yourself? (Not book related but still important to know).

 So answer the questions, tag me in the post and think of your 11 facts because you guys are next.

I hope you keep this chain moving and I look forward to reading your posts.

 Happy Reading!
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A Court of Mist and Fury By Sarah J Maas

13:27:00 0

Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

Feyre is immortal.

After rescuing her lover Tamlin from a wicked Faerie Queen, she returns to the Spring Court possessing the powers of the High Fae. But Feyre cannot forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin's people - nor the bargain she made with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court.

As Feyre is drawn ever deeper into Rhysand's dark web of politics and passion, war is looming and an evil far greater than any queen threatens to destroy everything Feyre has fought for. She must confront her past, embrace her gifts and decide her fate.

She must surrender her heart to heal a world torn in two.
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A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas
Published May 3rd 2016 by Bloomsbury Childrens Books
Paperback 624 pages

We join our heroine Feyre (Fay-RUH) once again in Prythian, where we left off in the first book A Court of Thorns and Roses. I gave the first book in the series a pitiful 3.5 stars. This doesn't seem too pitiful but I hold Maas to a much higher standard. When I read the first book I couldn't connect with  the characters or the plot.

However, A Court of Mist and Fury is a gamechanger!

I have always loved Throne of Glass, it has been my ultimate pick whenever people ask me for book reccomendations. Maas has just beat herself to my favourite book series, she now holds the top two spots, which is pretty impressive.

Feyre defeated Amarantha in the last book, died and was brought back to life as a Fae. A Court of Mist and Fury shows the fallout from this beautifully. Feyre is not only emotionally changed, she is more fearful at first, suffering nightmares and just a downright wreck. She loses a lot of weight and under the pressure of Tamlin's overprotective gaze she is in a very, very bad place. She has these growing powers, accidentally passed on through the high Fae who brought her back to life and within the first 100 pages, all of this comes to a fantastic climax. The bond with Rhysand is immediately a key factor, she calls to him on her wedding day and flees, leaving Tamlin in the lurch.

 Fans of the first book will be upset if they started with a Tamlin/Feyre ship, though I don't know many who did. Honestly Tamlin turning into a controlling and arguably abusive boyfriend was the best thing that could have happened to Feyre. I didn't find him particularly endearing in the first book and I'm glad to be rid of him. Rhysand shows up and frees our heroine from Tamlin's clutches, for a time. As the deal permits, he begins taking her for a week every month and honestly, I see the appeal of Rhysand. He reminds me of Tom Hiddleston's Loki, only fitter, way fitter.

 Eventually life with Tamlin gets too much and Feyre ends up at Rhysand's side. We've been waiting for it and we love. Here we begin a labyrinth of beautifully entwined stories, a love story that feels worthy of a Sarah J Maas novel and a supporting cast that is mind blowing. We see the world from the night court, learn about the intricities of actually running a court and of Rhysand himself. This is not some measly romantic story. This a grand love story with a background in supernatural political warzone. It's stunning just stunning.

 There are these moments, when Feyre is alone and the way it is written is stunning. She looks at the stars and they start falling to the earth and I fall in love with Feyre, I fall in love with all of them in the way she does and I fall in with Rhysand. This love story is so beautiful because you fall in love with these characters, it takes the story to a new level.

We have this looming threat of war in the background. Hybern is readying for war and the night court are the doing the same in secret, they need to destroy the cauldron and defeat Hybern before they break the barrier to the human world and massacre everyone. This is the largest part of the plot and it takes most of the time. Our love story moves with it, almost until they inseperable and it comes to a fantastic climax when Tamlin is working with Hybern to kidnap Feyre or reclaim him property as he sees it.

 I know rught, what a fucking ARSEHOLE! I HATE TAMLIN, I HATE HIM. I hope he dies next book I am so ready for it. It causes so much pain. I knew when he showed up there wasn't enough pages left for good things to happen. Feyre pretends not to love Rhysand, demands the King severe the mating bond between them (yeah that happened) and her sisters become Fae and one of them mates with Lucien! AHHHH! It ends with Feyre in the midst of spring court again, pretending to love Tamlin, pretending she was a prisoner with Rhysand. Even though they already got married and YOU CAN'T BREAK A MATING BOND BRO!

FEYRE + RHYSAND 4 LYF!XO

 It was all very exciting and I can't believe I have to wait a year for the concluding novel.

It is worth mentionging that though ACOTAR is a YA book, ACOMAF is not. A Court of Mist and Fury is a new adult because there are a lot of sex scenes. Normally I have a lot of distaste for scenes like this, they can be crude and not sexy at all. Just see Fifty Shades of Grey is you don't believe me. They were hot, that's all I'm going to say. Hot.

It was great, it really was great and I would highly recommend it. I haven't been excited about a series properly in a while and this book cured my reading block. Love it. LOVE IT! Get it read.

 If you do please do let me know what you thought.
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Thank you for your time and
Happy Reading!
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Sunday 8 May 2016

Rebel of The Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

03:20:00 2
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

 She’s more gunpowder than girl—and the fate of the desert lies in her hands.

Mortals rule the desert nation of Miraji, but mystical beasts still roam the wild and barren wastes, and rumor has it that somewhere, djinni still practice their magic. But there's nothing mystical or magical about Dustwalk, the dead-end town that Amani can't wait to escape from.

Destined to wind up "wed or dead," Amani’s counting on her sharpshooting skills to get her out of Dustwalk. When she meets Jin, a mysterious and devastatingly handsome foreigner, in a shooting contest, she figures he’s the perfect escape route. But in all her years spent dreaming of leaving home, she never imagined she'd gallop away on a mythical horse, fleeing the murderous Sultan's army, with a fugitive who's wanted for treason. And she'd never have predicted she'd fall in love with him...or that he'd help her unlock the powerful truth of who she really is. 

Image from booknerd
Rebel of The Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
Published February 4th 2016 by Faber & Faber
Paperback 358 Pages

How can I describe this book. Some books are given this hype that they don't deserve (in my opinion, I am only one person) - this is not one of them books. I bought this simply because the cover was beautiful, you can't blame me because DAMN! How pretty is that!?  The girl behind the counter told me 'This is great, it's like a spaghetti western mixed with Arabian nights.' I shrugged her off and plopped this beauty on my TBR shelf. Well, aren't I the idiot?!

 I'm maybe a few weeks late to the party, but was this book good? YES! It literally was Aladdin mixed with Clint Eastwood mixed with awesome powers and the journey was amazing. Hamilton, Girl you can write!

 I'm going to start with the ending, because I'm weird like that. Hamilton knows she can write because she ended this badboy at the perfect moment. Big battle won, look off into distance thinking about the uncertain future aaaand curtain fall. She knows the reader has enough closure not to throw the book across the room, she knows your buying the next one, her mama didn't raise no fool.

There is only really one relationship that follows us through the entire book, Amani (our protagonist) and Jin. Of course there is this underlying romance just bubbly beneath the surface, but it takes a step back. It is important so it isn't fully developed, yet. Amani and Jin meet in the first chapter and they end up rather inseparable, first by circumstance and then just by want. I adore when a first book isn't rushing itself to get into the main plot, this book develops that relationship so we don't suffer from an instant connection - meets him one night, bares her soul to him the next, married by the weekend - No thanks! Instead we follow Amani, I learn her voice, the way she thinks, every ounce of her character until anyone could write about her because she is well written. It is so important for writers to know their characters inside and out and Hamilton has hers locked in.

There is also a vibrant supporting cast of characters who flitter in and out and some will stay for sequels but some maybe won't. She manages to create a large cast of supporting characters, of people who interact with Amani and Jin and share parts of their journey and making them connectable, whilst also being able to ditch them on the next page. That is hard, usually books just make these carbon copies for supporting cast and add distinctions to the ones they are going to keep around, but all the supporting characters are distinct and different and we are not pandered to think we can't keep up because we can. We just can't tell who's important enough to keep around. That is why Hamilton can write the dramatic parts of this book, because I don't know who or what is next. This is the first book in a long time that has not followed some pre-set YA formula and that is really refreshing.

There are also these feminist undertones. Amani lives in a world where all the feminist issues of our world are heightened. She is dressed like a boy for the majority of the novel (which is just delicious and hilarious for Amani and Jin's relationship). It is always important, especially in YA fantasy for me, that a book is saying something, like it has a foundation of what it is wanting to say, otherwise, why tell the story?

This book was everything I wished The Assassin's Curse had been. It had drama and these beautiful quiet moments that made me feel like I too was sat in the desert and looking up at the stars. It was stunning, just stunning. Best book I have read in a really long time.

Happy Reading.
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Monday 25 April 2016

The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson

13:28:00 0
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)
Two boys. Two secrets.

David Piper has always been an outsider. His parents think he’s gay. The school bully thinks he’s a freak. Only his two best friends know the real truth – David wants to be a girl.

On the first day at his new school Leo Denton has one goal – to be invisible. Attracting the attention of the most beautiful girl in year eleven is definitely not part of that plan.

When Leo stands up for David in a fight, an unlikely friendship forms. But things are about to get messy. Because at Eden Park School secrets have a funny habit of not staying secret for long…

Image from KittyPann

The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson
Publishined January 7th 2016 by David Fickling Books
Paperback 357 Pages

 This 2016 YA Book Prize Nominee has been given countless critical acclaim. I cannot say I agree, something that has sat really unwell with me. In the story, the main protagonist is David who ultimately wants to be a woman. The issue with this book is not the idea, in fact that was what attracted me to the book in the first place. The issue for me is that both David and Leo, the misunderstood boy from a bad home, are supposed to be sixteen. For you Americans out there, year 11 is the last year of school, yet these characters talk as if they ten years old.
That being said, I had another issue with this book.  David is transgender, he is defined by that. That is his whole personality and that important to me that my character was a person. That can sound weird because obviously characters are ultimately made him two dimensional and flat. Leo too was a stereotype. Every character fit into these perfectly formed categories of how "kids" apparently act. I was sixteen not that long ago, I still remember what it was like and it doesn't  feel from the writing that Williamson does remember.

Williamson is not a bad writer, the book has many redeeming qualities but none as important as attempting to tell a very difficult story, but the most important moments were ignored whether from fear of messing them up or creating emphasis by ignoring them.

Suffice to say I was unable to finish the book because the character development just wasn't there. I wasn't rooting for anyone because I didn't care and with such an emotionally raw and complex idea, it should have been.

#sorrynotsorry
Happy Reading
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Thursday 18 February 2016

Winter by Marissa Meyer

05:37:00 1
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

Princess Winter is admired by the Lunar people for her grace and kindness, and despite the scars that mar her face, her beauty is said to be even more breath taking than that of her stepmother, Queen Levana.

Winter despises her stepmother, and knows Levana won’t approve of her feelings for her childhood friend—the handsome palace guard, Jacin. But Winter isn’t as weak as Levana believes her to be and she’s been undermining her stepmother’s wishes for years. Together with the cyborg mechanic, Cinder, and her allies, Winter might even have the power to launch a revolution and win a war that’s been raging for far too long.

 Winter by Marissa Meyer
Published November 12th 2015 by Puffin
Paperback 823 pages

Winter is the final book in bestselling The Lunar Chronicles series. This 800 page beast took me two weeks to read just from it's sheer mass but it is so worth it. Winter is the book you always wish would be the final in a series. It is so long and has so much content every question you had was answered and none of it felt rushed.

 We have a lot of near misses in Winter. Our friends get to Lunar within the first 100 pages but it takes so long for us to finally defeat Levana. The length isn't an issue, in fact the pacing is bang on. Every time I start a final book in a series I always panic. It inevitably feels rushed and always feel like there needed to be another book. This was not the case with Winter. It was actually wonderful the amount of detail and the build up to the final fantastic battle for Lunar.

 We join the team on the Rampion after they kidnapped Kai. They return him soon but not after making a master plan to get onto Lunar. Only 100 pages in I start to panic, oh god what is the rest of the book if she becomes queen so quickly. Luckily that didn't happen. A whopping 700 pages later she becomes queen and quickly decides to abolish the monarchy, but we will get to that. The journey there is this up and down roller coaster of fighting and rallying and sickness and poison apples. We have fake murders, real murders, several propaganda videos and finally get to see what is behind that veil.


As the team gets to Lunar they are immediately found. Obviously because Meyer has no interest in making this science fiction space opera more realistic. They flee the capital, this part steam punk, part sci-fi world of Lunar has been a long time coming and it didn't disappoint. Cinder gets caught and breaks free and gets caught and breaks free so many times. She is in so many sticky situations that my fists were clenched and my breath was short with each paragraph. My favourite escape has to be the balcony leap. Cinder is finally caught by Levana, who starts sending cyborg pieces of her to Kai, then at the wedding reception. Guess who's the entertainment? Levana begins this trial of Cinder and then BOOM! Cinder is manipulating guards, wolves are fighting and she rips herself from Levana's grip and leaps from a balcony. It was heart thumping goodness and there are so many other moments like this that I really don't want to spoil. Then with the final battle, it was tense, I felt like I knew that Cinder was going to win but with each passing moment and page I was less and less sure and then as the final fight between her and Levana begins and Thorne is stabbing her and slicing and apologising it was just AHHHHHH!

 There is also this really lovely romantic underlying feel. Even with Cress/Thorne, Scarlet/Wolf and Cinder/Kai we have a new ship that I can so get behind . WINTER + JACE! They are so perfect together and I just adored them even with only one book to really see them, the relationship dynamics were immediately clear and Winter herself was this wonderful, a little nuts princess who was kind of rocking. Towards the end after everything with her manipulating Scarlet I was worried.

 I really don't want to spoil any books here. I really don't, I put the spoiler warning just in case but I really want you to know this book is amazing. The perfect ending to a consistently wonderful series. There is no weak link in this series all the books are amazing. Anyway pick it up, the series or just the book. You won't regret it. There is a reason these books are bestsellers.

 Happy Reading.
P.S - Winter doesn't have to be the end.

STARS ABOVE

A LUNAR CHRONICLES COLLECTION


The enchantment continues. . . .
The universe of the Lunar Chronicles holds stories—and secrets—that are wondrous, vicious, and romantic. How did Cinder first arrive in New Beijing? How did the brooding soldier Wolf transform from young man to killer? When did Princess Winter and the palace guard Jacin realize their destinies?
With nine stories—five of which have never before been published—and an exclusive never-before-seen excerpt from Marissa Meyer’s upcoming novel, Heartless, about the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland, Stars Above is essential for fans of the bestselling and beloved Lunar Chronicles.
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