REVIEW: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Hello Everyone,

It's time for another review! I recently wrote a review on the novel Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (read that review here) and you guys really seemed to like it! So today, I've decided to review another Rainbow Rowell novel that I'm sure you know and one that I absolutely love. This book was by far one of my favourite books of 2014. The characters are so real, relatable and beautifully portrayed. The plot is so amazing and really portrays a real life situation perfectly.

Title: Eleanor & Park
Author: Rainbow Rowell 
Publisher: Orion
ISBN: 9781409157250

Brief Synopsis:

Rating: 5/5

This book is about a girl named Eleanor and a boy named Park. Eleanor has just arrived in town and she really stands out with her curly red hair, strange outfits and her dysfunctional family. Park on the other hand, dressed in black, headphones on and his nose in a book. He thinks that he has made himself invisible to everyone around him. But one person breaks through his field of invisibility... Eleanor. Slowly but surely, Eleanor and Park begin to fall for one another. This book is beautiful, it made me laugh out loud, cry hysterical tears and made my heart swell with love for these characters that I will always keep close to my heart. A-m-a-z-i-n-g!!

This book is beautifully written and deals with themes such as not fitting in, depression, dysfunctional families and falling in love for the first time.

This book received praise from other authors who you probably know and that I absolutely adore:

John Green said  that is reminded him not just what it's like to be young and in love with a girl, but also what it's like to be young and in love with a book.

Stephanie Perkins said that this book is a breathless and achingly good read about love and outsiders.

I recommend this book to every single person reading this and if you haven't already read it then why are you still reading this post? Get to a bookstore a pick this beautiful book up.

Have you read Eleanor & Park?

:)

August Book Haul!

Hello Everyone,

I got quite a large amount of books this month. I think that I have a book buying problem. My family and friends needs to keep me away from bookstores! Don't get me wrong, I love having new books to put on my TBR shelf and then reading said books, but unfortunately my bank account hates it.

There are 10 books in this haul and I love every single one and I cannot wait to read the ones that I haven't read yet!

Lets get right on into it:

Firstly, The Maze Runner Series by James Dashner

I picked this series up on a whim because I had just watched The Maze Runner (the movie) and I was inspired to read the books before the second movie comes out. I started reading The Maze Runner at the beginning of the month and it was okay in my opinion. I'm not sure if I am going to carry on reading this series. Does it get better on book 2? You can read my review of The Maze Runner here!

Next, The Heroes of Olympus: The House of Hades and The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan

I read the Percy Jackson series when I was in grade 8 (5/6 years ago) and since then I have always read any new books that Rick Riordan releases. I hadn't seen these in stores and when I saw them I knew that I had to buy them (bonus: they were really good prices). I'm not going to say much about these books other than they are a part of a series (book 4 and 5 respectively) and that it is a spin-off of the Percy Jackson series. It's good, trust me. Finally, I have completed my Percy Jackson collection!

Next, Magonia by a Maria Dahvana Headley 

I've heard a lot of really good things about this book from other book bloggers and booktubers and when I was it at my local bookstore I just had to pick it up. I'm not too sure about the context of this book but I do know that it is about a girl named Aza who has a lung disease who sees a ship in the sky and no one believes her exempt one of her guy friends Jason. Aza then leaves the world that we know and arrives at a new world, Magonia. I also know that it is a must read for fans of Neil Gaiman and John Green. I'm super excited to read it!

 Next, I picked up the 5th Wave by Rick Yancey. 

I'm currently reading this book now and it is beyond amazing! It is a post apocalyptic book that follows a girl named Cassie as she tries to find her brother. This is a brilliant book and I cannot put it down because the pages just turn themselves.

Next, I got Ghost Flight by Bear Grylls. 

I have waited for this book since June when it came out. It just arrived in South Africa and I raced to my nearest book store to grab myself a copy. This is a historical fiction book about a man named Will Jaeger (who Bear based on his grandfather) and it follows Will's adventures during World War Two and the Hitler era. I love reading historical fiction books like this one and I cannot wait to dig my teeth into this one! I will let you know what I think of it!

 Lastly, These Broken Stars by Aime Kaufman and Meagan Spooner. 

I tried to read this book but, I was in a reading slump and I couldn't get further than page 70 something. I have heard amazing things about this book and I will pick it up again soon because I did enjoy those 70 pages. This book is about a girl and boy who have to survive after their space ship crashes and they cannot find anyone else who was on the ship. They only have each other. There's space, adventure and love what more could you want in a sci-fi book?

Do you want to read any of these books? 

Have you read any? 

:)

REVIEW: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Hello Everyone,

I just finished reading A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. It was by far one of the best books that I have read this year. It is a beautiful story with phenomenal characters! Overall, it is amazing, beautiful and every other positive word that you can think of. A Court of Thorns and Roses is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, and a brilliant one indeed! A Court of Thorns and Roses is the first book in a trilogy and I cannot wait for the second book to come out next year.

Title: A Court of Thorns and Roses
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Publisher: Bloomsbury Children
ISBN: 1619634449

Brief Summary:

My Rating: 5/5 

The story follows a girl named Feyre, a nineteen year old huntress who will do anything to protect her family and to make sure that her father and her two sisters always have food to eat and are cared for. One day when Feyre is out hunting, she comes across a wolf - fearing her life, she kills this wolf not thinking anything of it. Then, a beast like creature appears at her home and demands retribution for the death of his wolf friend> He gives her two options - that she either allow this beast to kill her or, she can accompany him to the faerie realm that she has only heard legends about. As she grows to know this beast as a high fae named Tamlin. Her feelings for him turn from hatred to love. But, something is threatening Tamlin and his world. Threatening to tear him and Feyre apart. Feyre must now do everything that she can in order to save the man that she has fallen in love with, her new friends and their world.

I could not put this book down. Hands down one of the most amazing books ever and I highly recommend it to everyone who looks for amazing books. The adventure, the story and the amazing romance cannot be missed! A must read for  every single person who enjoys fantasy books. I will forever recommend this book!

Are you going to read this book?

Have you read it? What did you think/rate it?

:)

REVIEW: The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Hello Everyone,

Title: The Maze Runner

Author: James Dashner (dashnerarmy.com)
Genere: Fantasy/Adventure/Dystopian
ISBN: 0385737947
My Rating: 3/5

In honour of the release of The Scorch Trials (the second instalment in The Maze Runner series) coming out soon I decided to finally give in and give these books a read! I only recently watched The Maze Runner and I really enjoyed it so I decided to give the books a read to see if I would enjoy them! The answer? So far the first one has been amazing! I don't think that I am going to marathon this series because I have so many books on my TBR shelf that I desperately want to read that I'm going to read a few of them first before I complete the series!

Basic Summary:

The Maze Runner is about a group of boys who arrive/live in an area called "the Glade" that is surrounded by a maze that moves and changes at night and where creatures called grievers roam. These boys arrive in the Glade one by one and they have no recollection of their past. The only thing that they can remember is their name (and general knowledge but they cannot recall anything particular to them) So when a boy named Thomas arrives at the Glade, things start to change. Firstly, a girl arrives. The first girl ever. As conflict between Thomas and the rest of the Gladers mounts. Thomas convinces a few of the allies that he has made that there has to be a way out and by following him, he will get them out of the Glade.

This books is an action-packed, adventure/dystopian book that is really intriguing and entertaining! This book has great plot and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it!

This is the first book in The Maze Runner series. The second book is The Scorch Trials, followed by The Death Cure and the prequel, The Kill Order

Have you read these books? What would you rate them?

:)

REVIEW: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Hello Everyone,

Today's post is a review of the amazing book by Rainbow Rowell called Fangirl. I read this book a few months ago and I loved it so much that I just had to write a review of it because I want everyone to read this book because it was so amazing and relatable. Especially because when I read it I had just started university! I highly recommend this book if you like authors like John Green, Stephanie Perkins, David Levithan and other similar authors!

Brief Synopsis:

This book is about a girl named Cath and her twin sister Wren who have grown up without a mother and have a very busy and eccentric father. They are heading off to university and for the first time in Cath's life, Wren doesn't want to be Cath's other half. This book is about finding yourself and getting out of your comfort zone! This book revolves around Cath and her adventures writing fan fiction and making friends and experiencing things for the first time. Read as Cath finds friendship, love and conflict with her sister Wren who is pulling away and isolating Cath from her. This is a fun book that has some really great characters and deals with real world problems that teenagers go through on a daily basis. This book is very informative because I really goes into the topic of moving out for the first time and moving out of adolescence and into adulthood and all of the themes that revolve around this such as peer pressure, anxiety and other things that young adults go through as they transition into adulthood and away from the eyes of their parents/guardians.

I absolutely love Rainbow Rowell's work and this book definitely lived up to my expectations! I absolutely loved this book and would rate it 4,5/5.

If you like uplifting, fun contemporary books then do me a favour and pick this book up if you haven't already done so!

Find Rainbow Rowell here: www.rainbowrowell.com

Have you read this book? What did you think?


xx

The Summer Lovin' Book Tag!

Hello Everyone,

Today I thought that I would complete the Summer Lovin' Book Tag because I just watched a video that Jesse the Reader from Booktube did and he tagged everyone watching so I decided to give it a shot! It's also the end of winter where I live and spring is about to start so that timing seems right too!

You can watch the video that Jesse did here!

Now, let's start this tag!

1. The Beginning of Summer - Pick a book with an attention grabbing first sentence:

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

I chose this book because Scorched Earth is coming out soon and I'm really excited about that (Thomas/Dylan...mcm). The first sentence in this book is "He began his new life standing up, surrounded by cold darkness and stale, dusty air". I think that this sentence really draws you into the story because it is exciting because you want to find out who this mysterious "he" is and why is he starting a "new life" and why is he surrounded by "cold darkness"?? Questions that can only be answered by continuing on with this awesome book series!

2. Too Hot to go Outside - Pick a book for a day inside:

Inside Out and Outside In by Maria V. Snyder

The only time that I read outside is if I go to the beach, and considering that I am only going to the beach at the end of december... I don't think that I am going to be reading much outside until then. Therefore, anything that I read inside could be read outside. For the sake of this tag, I think that something such as Inside Out and Outside In by Maria V. Snyder purely because these are sitting on my TBR shelf and I absolutely cannot wait to read them. I'm so excited!

3. Summer Road trip - Pick a book that you would take with you on a road trip: 

Harry Potter series by J.K Rowling 

I would choose a good adventure book/book series because I you are going on an adventurous road trip with your friends or family then I think that by reading an adventure book your amazing road trip would be even more enjoyable! I think that I would reread a few of these books on a road trip because I loved them so much and would love to reread them and for some reason I think that a road trip would be the perfect time to reread them! (Lame, I know!)

4. Ice Tea Goodness - Pick a book with a cold setting:

Let It Snow - John Green, Lauren Myracle, Maureen Johnson

Good riddance winter (just kidding, I love winter so much) This book is one of the only winter books that I can think of right now and I just love how the three short stories in this book intertwine and how all of the characters are connected. Also... John Green. What more can I say, It's amazing!

5. Nasty Sunburn - Pick a book that you have disliked so far this year

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

I started reading this book last week and I was in such a reading slump that I wasn't sure if I would ever crawl out of the deep dark hole of not being able to read two pages before putting my book down. I'm out of my reading slump now (would you like a "how to overcome a reading slump" post?)
and I hope that I can go back to reading this book soon. For now though it is going to have to sit on my TBR shelf. I hope that when I go back to read this book that I will enjoy it because, I really love space books!

6. Sizzling Read - Recommend one of your favourite books:

The Study series by Maria V. Snyder! 

I absolutely adore these books and all of the characters both good and evil! These books took me on an adventure and I couldn't put them down once I started reading them!

I tag everyone reading this to do this tag. Even if it is nearly winter where you live, give it a go anyway!

What is your favourite summer read? Let me know in the comments so that I can pick your favourites up!

:)

REVIEW: Magic Study and Fire Study by Maria V. Snyder

Hello Everyone,

These are the second (Magic Study) and third (Fire Study) books in the Study Series by Maria V. Snyder. An amazing book series I must add! I've already done a review on the first book Poison Study. You can read it here.

I absolutely love Maria V. Snyder's work and for me this series is beyond amazing! I has everything that I look for in a book. The characters are so well developed and the storyline is amazing. The places that she has invented and the personalities that she has created are everything that I could ask for in a book! I'm going to try and not reveal any spoilers but I'm not perfect. 

Brief Synopsis of Magic Study:

Author: Maria V. Snyder

My Rating: 4,5/5

The books follow a girl called Yelena who has already escaped execution by working for the commander of Ixia as his personal food taster. This book continues to follow Yelena's quest into the unknown territory of Sitia and the family that she she was taken from too early in her life. Reunited with her family, this books follows Yelena as she learns how to control her magic powers and as she makes new magician friends. But, nothing good ever seems to last too long for Yelena because just around the corner there is even more drama. Read this book for an action-packed amazing sequel to Poison Study.  And, look forward to some more romance between Yelena and Valek! I could reread this book over and over again!

Brief Synopsis of Fire Study:

Author: Maria V. Snyder

My Rating: 4,5/5

Continuing on Yelena's journey in Sitia, this book follows he adventures in both Ixia and Sitia. With Ixia and Sitia both on the brink of war, Yelena has to do all that she can to prevent this from happening because it seems as if as hard as she tries she just cannot stay away from danger! This book is so full of action and there are so many unexpected twists along her way! Cliffhanger after cliffhanger, I could not put this book down! The pages turn themselves this this book. (Bonus: more Valek!)

If you search far and wide for a magic adventure filled, with an undercurrent of romance like me. Then this book is definitely a must read for you! I really recommend that you join Yelena's world as she makes lasting friendships and meets her soulmate! Also, how she amazingly manages to escape dangerous situations no matter how the odds are stacked against her! 

If you are in the mood for an awesome book about a heroic heroine then definitely give these books a try!

I highly recommend this book and would definitely rate it 4.5/5! 

Are you going to pick these books up or if you have read them what would you rate them?

xx

My Reading/Bookish Pet Peeves!

Hello Everyone,

Today I thought that I would write about some of my Bookish/Reading Pet Peeves! These are just a few things that annoy me about reading and all the things that come with being a bookworm. If you have any suggestions for future posts please let me know (I'm in a reading/blogging slump)

1. Books that change covers halfway through a series - Don't you hate it when you start reading a series and halfway through the series you go to your bookstore and suddenly the cover is completely different to the books that you already own and your bookstore cannot get the cover that you desperately need. For me, this happened with the I Am Number Four series by Pittacus Lore. It completely irritates me but it's something that I just have to learn to deal with.

2. Stickers on book covers - Nobody wants a nasty residue mark on their brand new book. If the sticker peels off easily then it's fine but, if it pulls off a section of the laminated cover and leaves a mark that cannot be removed. This really bugs me!

3. Different sizes of books in a book series - When the series starts off with normal, average sized books and then the new book in the series is released and it is ten times bigger than the rest of your books.

4. Broken Spines - Nothing annoys me more than the white line running down the spine of a book. When I read a paperback book I treat it like it is a delicate flower so that when I finish reading it it is in perfect condition. Also, when the spine is so bent out of shape it it becomes a "u" shape instead of straight.

5. When bookstores have every book in the series you are reading except the one that you need. What are you going to do on your Saturday night now?! 

Do you have any bookish pet peeves that I haven't mentioned here? Let me know in the comments! :)

Enjoy your day!

xx

The R.I.P. it or Ship it Tag! (Part 2) & BookTube-A-Thon Update

Hello Everyone,

I did this tag about two weeks ago and I had so much fun writing it and you guys seemed to really enjoy. So i decided that I would do a part two today. I have taken the characters that I pul

led out in part one so that there is not any repetition.

You can read part 1 here: The R.I.P. it or Ship it Tag (Part 1)

Let's jump right into it!

How does it work?

For example: if you pick Caleb Prior (Divergent) and Anna Oliphant (Anna and the French Kiss) - you would have to decide whether or not you approved (Ship) or disapproved (R.I.P.) of their relationship. (friendly/romantically...)

Round 1:

Anna Oliphant from Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins and Peter Hayes from the Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth. 

There is no way that I could Ship these two together. Anna is so kind, sweet, loyal and loving. She would never intentionally harm someone near her or anyone for that matter. Peter on the other hand is mean spirited and his character goes out of his way to be horrible to Tris, Four and their friends/allies. He is a vindictive and cunning character. Therefore I 100% R.I.P. Anna and Peter ever being romantically involved or even friends for that matter! It's a R.I.P. for these two!

Round 2:

Harry Potter and Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. 

SHI,P SHIP,SHIP! Who is Harry without Ron and Hermione and who is Ron without Harry and Hermione?! These two are the best of friends in the books/movies. I could not imagine a world where they are not friends. It's too painful to think about! In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire when Ron and Harry weren't talking... it was just terrible! They will always be the best of friends, for eternity! Therefore SHIP!!

Round 3:

Cath from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell and Clary Fray from the Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare 

I do not see these two being friends because Cath writes fan fiction about Simon Snow and Clary Fray comes from a world where vampires are real and she fights them and other creatures that go bump in the night for a living.  I think that things between these two would be awkward because I feel like Cath would get a little starstruck over meeting some one from her fantasy world that she has created for herself. Therefore I do not think that these two should be friends because it would be strange and awkward and they would not be able to fit into each others worlds. They are too different. Therefore I R.I.P. them. (Clary's best friend is Simon...coincidence?!)

Round 4:

Ari from the Study series by Maria V. Snyder and Four (Tobias) from the Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth.

I'm pretty sure that these two would be friends. They are both skilled, excellent fighters. They are both intelligent and where Tobias wants to protect Tris, Ari wants to protect Yelena. Therefore I think that these two would be a good match for one another because they would be able to relate to one another and I think that they could become really good friends, maybe Four would even become friends with Ari's best friend Janco as well. Therefore I Ship these two together for sure!

I hope that you enjoyed this little R.I.P. it or Ship it Tag and if you want me to to a part three then let me know. Also, do you agree with my R.I.P-ing and Shipping? 

BookTube-A-Thon Update:

Things haven't gone to plan because I have been ill since the beginning of the week and have not had the energy to read a lot. I've finished Fire Study by Maria. V. Snyder. I am now a good chunk into These Broken Stars by Meagan Spooner and Amie Kaufman. I want to finish this book today so that I can move onto the next one. I want to try and finish 4 or 5 of the 7 books that I want to read but as of right now I do not think that I will be able to finish all 7. I will update you guys again tomorrow! 

August TBR Books!

Hello Everybody,

The time to write my August TBR list has arrived. I know that it is the 5th of August already but, better late than never right? Because I am trying to complete the BookTube-A-Thon and another read-a-thin in a week or so there are quite a lot of books that I want to try and complete. I am not going to write a detailed description of the books that I am reading for the BookTube-A-Thon because I already did a blog post on those earlier this week. I am just going to list them for you. You can read more about them here!

Books for BookTube-A-Thon:

1. Fire Study - Maria V. Snyder

2. These Broken Stars - Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

3. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

4. The 5th Wave - Rick Yancey

5. Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley

6. Invisibility - David Levithan & Andrea Cremer

7. True Grit - Bear Grylls 

Other books that I want to read this month:

The first book that I want to read is The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks. This book has been sitting on my TBR shelf for way too long! I really enjoyed the movie because it was so sweet and beautiful. It basically revolves around two couples love stories. One old and one new.

The second book that I want to read is The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North. From what I understand, it is about a man named Harry. Every time Harry dies, he comes back as a child again and again. But, he remembers all the lives that he has already lived! It is all about him trying to save his past and prevent any future lives form occurring.

The last two books that I want to finish are Inside Out and Outside In by Maria V. Snyder. I picked these books up because I have finished reading Fire Study by Maria V. Snyder, the third book in the Study Series and I've really enjoyed them and how Maria writes so I wanted to give these a try!

These are the books that I want to try and finish in August, I am not sure if I am going to be able to read all eleven of these books this month but I am going to try my best! Get ready for reviews of these books coming soon!

Tomorrow's post is going to be a fun one so, stay tuned!

What books are you reading this month?

 xx

July Wrap Up! and BOOKTUBE-A-THON UPDATE

Hello Everyone!

Welcome to my July wrap up post! I read 6 books in July, so I think that it was a pretty good month of reading for me.

The books that I finished in July were:

1. Mud, Sweat & Tears by Bear Grylls - This is an autobiography by the king of adventure Bear Grylls. It is a really motivational and uplifting read and really shows you how you can conquer anything that you put your mind to. I really recommend this book if you want to read about a man who has done so many amazing things in his life so far. I did a review on this book already. If you want to give that a read to find out more about this amazing book then click here!

2. All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven - This book is definitely at the top of my "favourite books of all time list". There is so much emotion in this book and the character development throughout this book is phenomenal! If you like YA contemporary novels then put this book your must read list! I have nothing but good things to say about this book! I have also done a review on this book, click here if you want to read it!

3. Dash and Lily's book of dares by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn - This is a short, easy Christmas read that centres around love. It is a really quirky and funny book that contains some really sweet moments. It is the perfect book to read around Christmas time (yes I read it in July... don't judge me) whether you are sitting bundled in blankets by the fire with a cup of hot chocolate or getting your tan on at the beach, this is the perfect, light holiday read.

4. Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter - A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! Zombies and cute boys and love and adventure what more could you ask for in a book! Incredible and I really hope that I can get my hands on the sequels as soon as humanly possible! Read my review of this book here!

5. & 6. Poison Study & Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder - I am in love with this book series. I haven't read a book that has taken me on such an amazing adventure in a long time. The characters are amazing the plot is amazing. Its just perfect all around! If you have not read these books then do yourself a favour and run to your nearest bookstore to pick them up. They are incredible. I don't want to spoil anything here but you can read my review of the first book Poison Study

What books did you read in July? Are you going to or have you read any of the ones that I did?

BOOKTUBE-A-THON UPDATE

I have almost finished the first book that I am reading, Fire Study by Maria V. Snyder and as soon as I finish this post I am going to sit and finish it so that I can start the next one.

How is your BookTube-A-Thon experience so far?

BookTube-A-Thon 2015

Hello Everyone,

I've decided to take part in the BookTube-A-Thon this year. I know that it is Booktube based but I really wanted to take part because my TBR shelf is getting ridiculously large and I need to try and read a large chunk out of it.

If you don't know what the BookTube-A-Thon is, it is basically a set of "challenges" where you try to read 7 books from August 3rd until August 9th.

The challenges and the books that I am going to read are:

1. Read a book with blue on the cover - These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

2. Read a book by an author who shares the same first letter of your surname - A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. I could not find a book written by an Author with a surname beginning with an 'O' so I chose one that started with a 'M' (close enough right?!) 

3. Read someone else's favourite book - Fire Study by Maria V. Snyder (it has got to be someone's favourite book right?) 

4. Read the last book that you got - The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

5. Finish a book without letting it go - Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley (it's a pretty short book so I will not have to hold it for too long

6. Read a book that you really want to read - Invisibility by David Levithan & Andrea Cremer

7. Read a total of 7 books - True Grit by Bear Grylls 

I'll keep you guys updated everyday as to what books I finish and how my experience is going!

Find BooTube-A-Thon on Twitter: @BookTubeAThon
Youtube as BookTubeAThon

Are you taking part in the BookTube-A-Thon this year? If you are what books are you reading?