5-8/12

My Summer in Review

                

         Well, I started school this week. Yay. It’s senior year so, yay again . . . but for real this time. You would think that summer would mean reading all day every day. Actually, it was more like X-Files all day every day and then reading at night because I was seriously freaked out by the X-Files. Eventually, I will pick a permanent blogging day for this year. Wednesday is looking pretty good right now but we’ll see once my schedule evens out. Anyway, into the part of the post you came for.

May

Books I Read:

·                   

•       Percy Jackson and The Olympians by Rick Riordan
• ·        Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
• ·        The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

Haul:

·              

•         The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

Thanks Liz ;)

June

Books I Read:

·         

•      The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
• ·       The Shannara Chronicles: The Elfstones of Shannara by Terry Brooks

Haul:

        None. Self-control killed it this month.

July

Books I Read:

·         

•       A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
• ·       Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson
• ·       Live Original by Sadie Roberston

Haul:

·         

•      A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
• ·      Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson
• ·       Fairest by Marissa Meyers

What can I say? Target was having a really good sale.

August

Books I Read:

·       

•         Miss Mayhem by Rachel Hawkins
• ·      Fairest by Marissa Meyer

Haul:

·       

•          The Alliance by Jolina Petersheim
• ·      The Calling by Rachelle Dekker
• ·      The Occupied by Craig Parshall

Anyone else seeing a theme here?

Currently Reading:

1.    Pride & Prejudice & Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Graham
2.    Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Next Post:  Undetermined (That’s me tryna be professional. But I guess I just ruined it by using “tryna”)

Queen Me

Confession? I didn’t blog last week. Another confession? Disney shows still make me laugh. No matter how cheesy. Anyway, I wanted to write a post that was concise since I really didn’t feel like blogging today. Is that confession number three?

 The Ruler of Books Tag

What book would you make everyone read?

Definitely The Kiss of Deception by Mary E Pearson. I NEED someone to talk about that plot twist with! Plus, it is basically perfect in every way.

What would you abolish in book construction?

Prices. All books would be free. BOOM. Okay, but serious answer? All paperbacks would be semi-floppy. I hate it when the book makes you feel like it doesn’t want to be read because it just keeps trying to close on you. I mean, how rude is that?

What author would you commission to write you any book?

I would make Suzanne Collins re-write Mockingjay so that Finnick escapes and there would be a very long epilogue at the end about how he and Annie live happily ever after with their adorable baby boy. That would make my LIFE.

What book would you demote to the library basement to make room for new books?

               

            All books from the 20^th century sporting men with voluminous hair and low cut shirts. Yes, I’m talking about you 1970s Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers.

What cover artist would you commission to make a beautiful mural?

             

             Nicola Yoon’s husband is the artist behind the beautiful cover of her book Everything Everything. The colors and attention to detail would be absolutely stunning on a larger scale.

What character’s face would you put on a coin?

                

             I think Katniss is such a huge and inspirational character that she deserves her face on coin. And it would be so cool if there was a Mockingjay on the back like the eagle on the back of a quarter.

Who would you award the “Ruler of Books 2016” prize to?

              

            Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart reminded me of my horse crazy days and I loved every page.

               

That’s a wrap! I hope you enjoyed my book world. If only it was real. . .

Currently Reading: Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson

Next Post: ???

Mind. Blown.

Mary E. Pearson is probably one of the best writers of all time. The Kiss of Deception intrigued me from first page. That momentum never slowed throughout the rest of this book. The main character is a girl named Lia who is about to be married off to a prince she has never met. Sounds pretty cliché at first right? Wrong. From there it builds itself into something so complex you are pulled into the story and can't find your way out. Not that I wanted to. I could've stayed in that world forever.

(Please, I always read casually in our garden)

This was a book shrouded in secrecy. I loved that some things weren't completely explained, which, instead of annoying me, it made me even more interested. Pearson chose the right things to leave unexplained and did a beautiful job of immersing you in this political fantasy without feeling like you were being info dumped. I found myself really enjoying the political aspect of this world.

The thing that made this book was the plot twist. It. Was. Fantastic. I didn't even realize what was happening at first. I literally put the book down and looked it up on YouTube, thinking I had made a mistake. Then I re-read parts of the book to assure myself it was real. But it was the best thing ever. I realized Pearson had woven the story so deceitfully. She relied on how she thought readers would respond to certain cues and used that against them. Genius. Just Genius.

I liked Lia as a main character. I know some people said she annoyed them as first but I didn't experience this. I related to her personality and think I would've made the same decisions in a lot of the situations. Maybe that means that I'm annoying to some people…

I could go on and on about this book. I loved everything about it. But as it’s now almost 12:30 a.m. I think I should wrap things up for my sake and the family’s. My final thoughts are this: Get the sequel on my shelf already and read this book immediately.

 Stay alive, frens.

P.S.  If you got that reference I love you so much rn

P.P.S. I love you anyway 

Language: Mild

Alcohol/drugs: Visitors drink ale and hard cider in a tavern

Violence: 3

Sexual Content: A supporting character has a child out of wedlock, there is some mild yet romantic kissing, and talk of ways to flirt with men in the tavern.

Spiritual Content: The Fantasy world they live in believes in gods and the have temple-like places to worship. They pray and sing holy songs called Remembrances throughout the book although this is mostly done by supporting characters.

Currently Reading: The Elfstones of Shannara by Terry Brooks

Next Post: Books That Were WEIRD

Half-bloods

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Book #1: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

           I will be posting on Tuesday for a little while and after next weeks review I will be taking a break from blogging until SATs are over. Also, I decided to flip this weeks and next week’s books because I finished this one first. Is that cool? Okay, good.  Percy has just found out he is a demi-god. Half Greek god, half human. He accepts a quest: retrieve Zeus’s stolen lightning bolt in order to restore peace in Olympia. Along the way he comes across many monsters and gods who try to stop him from completing his quest.

“At its core it is a wild adventure story about friendship, courage, and rising above labels.”

Language:

              

  None

Alcohol/drugs:

             

        Percy’s step-father has poker parties where beer is abundant. Throughout the book Percy shows his disgust for him and his treatment of his mother. Basically, the guy is the typical "jerk" character that provides conflict for the main character.

Violence:

              

        As this is a fantasy novel battles and monsters being slayed are frequent throughout the book. It is mentioned that the stepfather has hit Percy’s mother. I would rate the violence a 4.5.

Sexual Content:

              

        The whole idea of demi-gods stems from the fact that gods came to earth and had affairs. It’s not explained upon or talked about in a sexual way but as a fact of their existence.

Spiritual Content:

             

         By now, you have definitely picked up on the fact that this book is about Greek gods. They are pictured as immortal beings who each have their own personalities and faults. They are not depicted as things to be worshiped and certainly not as a religion. To put it plainly, it’s more like they are just giant people with super powers who live up in the sky. It follows Greek mythology and all its stories as if they really happened (which includes the underworld).

            

         Percy inquires once as to whether or not there is an all-powerful God and it is quickly made clear that that is not something to be discussed at the moment. My impression of the exchange was that God existed but, his exact role in this fantasy world was not going to be explained.

Currently Reading: A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro

Next Post: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

4/12

April Wrap-up, Haul, and May TBR

               

                I am happy to say I got myself out of my slump this month and actually ended up reading quite a lot of material. I say material because some of what I read was comic books and a graphic novel. This post kick-starts middle-grade May which is where I review only middle-grade books all May. These reviews will be heavily geared towards parents.

The lineup so far:

May 8^th Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart

May 15^th Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K Rowling

May 22^nd Percy Jackson and The Olympians Book 1: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Books Read

What got me out of my slump are these guys right here:

Nightwing Comics. They were given to me by my uncle and I thought they looked pretty cool so I started reading them immediately. Nightwing is in the same "world" as Batman. In fact, I’m pretty sure he was the first Robin the Wonder Boy. I thought these comics were super entertaining and Nightwing is just . . . awesome.

I was then (finally) able to finish The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry and move on to the next books which were Sudden Mission and Nasty Leftovers by Guy L. Pace. I wrote a full review on both books and they were both pretty cool.

Next, I read my first graphic novel Through the Woods by Emily Carroll. The art in this book is just stunning. Seriously, the pictures don’t do it any justice. This is a book of short horror/spooky stories and I loved every one of them.

The last book I read is Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart which you will see a full review of next week. I’m so excited to write the review for this book because it was SO GOOD.

April Haul

The first book is one I bought and it’s The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I have read the entire series but do not have the physical copies of any of them. I received an Amazon gift card as  thanks for some work I did and purchased Miss Mayhem by Rachel Hawkins, Nimona by Noel Stevenson, and Through the Woods by Emily Carroll. I also went to a book talk at a high school near me and got to bring home two ARCs. The Land of 10,000 Madonnas by Kate Hattemer and Fiona by Meredith Moore.

               

My May Reading List

1.  Finish Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling

2.  Finish Percy Jackson & The Olympians Book 1: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

3.  A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro

4.  Entertaining Angels by Emerald Barnes

Currently Reading: Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling and Percy Jackson & The Olympians Book 1: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Next Post: Full Review of Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart

Rapunzel, Rapunzel

Cress by Marissa Meyer

This series just keeps getting better and better and that’s exactly how it should be. This is a review of book three in The Lunar Chronicles and this is my new favorite. I’m pretty sure I’ll say that for each new book that I read in the series but for now Cress is my favorite.

I found Cress’s character to be very endearing and I instantly fell in love with her. Her “crush” on Captain Thorne was so cute and made for some hilarious moments. Thorne’s character really developed and matured in this book. He was actually kind and heroic which is a side of him we haven’t seen until now. I also loved that Cress brought that out in him. He wanted to be those things for her.

As much as I initially loved Cinder my opinion of her decreased in the last book Scarlet. I don’t know what it was but I just wasn’t impressed. But, I’m happy to say she did some pretty spectacular things in this book that made me eager to see her character progress. Kai was adorable as usual but that’s about it. I didn’t see a whole lot of grown in him either. I mean, I understand the difficulty of his position and all but he just wasn’t the character I hoped for.

The story line as a whole was spectacular and I loved every second of it. Cress is inspired by the fairy tale Rapunzel. The similarities in  the story were weaved throughout well and I loved that aspect of it. It held my attention for long periods of time (the longest was four hours straight) and I was constantly surprised by the events and twists. Meyer’s writing is just so easy to read and understand. You can really get inside the story which is exactly what you want your readers to do.

Language: None

Alcohol/drugs: Some characters are mentioned to be drinking

Violence: Gun and fist fights. Someone is tortured with hallucinations and mind control (a power of the Lunars)

Sexual Content: Kissing here and there most of it is mild and some is a little more passionate but nothing more than that.

Spiritual Content: None

Currently Reading: The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

Next Post: Special Announcement and Full Review of Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon

3/12

March Wrap-up, Haul, and TBR

Books Read

This is going to be a very short post because I am in a dreaded reading slump. I finished Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas and started The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry. I have yet to finish this book and am about ¾ of the way in. I really wish I read more but I’m not one to force myself to read unless I have a deadline. So, we’ll see when my slump ends.

March Haul

I received Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart from Scholastic (Thank You!) it is a middle-grade historical novel based in the Midwest about a boy who goes on a search for his horse. I had my eye on this book for a couple months now and was surprised to receive it in the mail.

               

My March Reading List

1.       Finish The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

2.       Sudden Mission by Guy L. Pace

I decided to keep it small since I’m in a slump but hopefully I can read more than this!

Currently Reading: The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

Next Post: Full Review of Cress by Marissa Meyer

The Wrong Day

Books, And the Songs to Listen to While Reading Them

I know, I know, it’s Tuesday. The lighting isn’t good enough to take pictures so I decided to do a post I created a while ago for my blogging class instead of my next review. Music is one of my favorite pastimes because like books, it transports you. I have compiled a list of songs that represent the characters, plot, or mood of a book.

Characters

Wolf - The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer

           Songs:  Human - Of Monsters and Men & Raised by Wolves - Family Force 5 

           

            Celaena Sardothien – Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

            Song: Semi-Automatic - twenty-one pilots & Upgraded - Capital Kings

           

            This song represents three heroines. All of who become part of something bigger than themselves and later accept they are in the middle of it all or the cause of it all. Tris Prior – Divergent Series by Veronica Roth, Katniss Everdeen – The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins, Celaena Sardothien – Throne of Glass Series by Sarah J. Maas. It could apply to so many more but these are three well-known heroines.

            

             Song: I Of The Storm - Of Monsters And Men

Books

            The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

            Song: Hometown - twenty-one pilots

            All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

            Song: Flaws – Bastille

            Divergent by Veronica Roth

            Song; Lean On – Major Lazor (feat. MO & DJ Snake)

I have linked all the YouTube videos in the song titles. They are all lyric videos and the songs are “clean”.

Currently Reading: The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

Next Post: Full Review of Cress by Marissa Meyers

Halflings

After being inexplicably targeted by an evil intent on harming her at any cost, seventeen-year-old Nikki finds herself under the watchful guardianship of three mysterious young men who call themselves halflings. Sworn to defend her, misfits Mace, Raven, and Vine battle to keep Nikki safe while hiding their deepest secret and the wings that come with.

A growing attraction between Nikki and two of her protectors presents a whole other danger. While she risks a broken heart, Mace and Raven could lose everything, including their souls. As the mysteries behind the boys’ powers, as well as her role in their earthly mission, unfold, Nikki is faced with choices that will affect the future of an entire race of heavenly beings, as well as the precarious equilibrium of the earthly world.

This book definitely has an interesting concept. This is a young adult urban fantasy/supernatural novel and that in itself intrigued me because I hadn't read a book in this genre before. The book starts off with Genesis 6:2 “The sons of God saw that the daughters of earth were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose.”

 In the book, the offspring of these sons of God are still on the earth and have been shown mercy by God who has assigned several angels to look out for and mentor them. They are given a chance to be allowed entrance into heaven upon their death if they do not become like their fathers, fallen angels, or succumb to earthly desires like their mothers, humans.

Three Halfling brothers (Mace, Raven, and Vine) save a human girl, Nikki, from demon dogs and so the drama begins. I found Nikki a bit confusing one moment I thought I knew her character and could relate and another I found her a bit…bi-polar. She is sassy, and sometimes irresponsibly strong willed but, she is smart and is able to make pretty good decisions in the face of a threat though they might be risky. Although, I feel she didn’t have as much character depth as I would like to have seen and the same goes for the brothers.

 The brothers…I would have to describe them as stereotypically dreamy. Mace, the kind-of leader of three is tall with blond hair and blue eyes. Nikki goes into great detail about how attractive he is. I would definitely say he was the “Good Guy” out of the three. He’s responsible, kind, and respectful. Raven, also tall, blond hair and blues eyes is the “Bad Boy.” He is the exact opposite of mace. Rude, selfish, vain, and irresponsible. I mean, he even has a bad boy name. Vine is the youngest and has the same qualities as his brothers. He is the only brother who we don’t get a POV from in the book.

Writing was decent. A bit amateur, but decent. I noticed that the transition between some scenes were a bit awkward and unexplained. The characters would say they were going somewhere or doing something. Then, it would go to the next scene and you would have to assume they have already done although it was not mentioned or written about. I think, it would have been beneficial to the story if Burch went into better detail about how or when they did it.

But, all that said. It is a very enjoyable fun and easy read if you wish to take a break from literary greatness and just cruise. I got through this book quickly and had no trouble reading it for extended periods of time and not becoming tired of the story or characters.

Language: none

Alcohol/drugs: none

Violence: 4.5

Sexual Content: none

Spiritual Content: The main theme is supernatural warfare. There is a big distinction between God as the good side and “The Enemy” as well…the enemy. The only blurred line is the Halfings who struggle with the fact they are on caught in the middle of the war of good and evil.

Currently Reading: Nothing, because I haven't decided what to read next :/

Next Post: Cress (Lunar Chronicles # 3) by Marissa Meyer

2/12

February Wrap-up, Haul, and TBR

Books Read

I finished reading All the Bright Places in the beginning of the month and then moved on to Cress (The Lunar Chronicles #3) by Marissa Meyer. Let me tell you, I could not put it down. I read it for four hours straight one Sunday afternoon and finished it three days. There will definitely be a review coming soon.  

After Cress I tried to read Eleanor by Jason Gurley but couldn’t get into it. Not after how amazing Cress was. So I actually didn’t read for a few days. When I was ready to dive into a book I picked out something I knew would be good. My TBR challenge this month was “A book with non-human characters”. What I picked is my current read and my last book of the month. Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas. It has…creatures in it.

February Haul

               

                The first book, I got for my birthday. It is a Puffin Chalk edition of The Wizard of OZ by L. Frank Baum. It’s my favorite classic and I’ve been eyeing this edition forever. I also received the first book in The Shannara Chronicles by Terry Brookes. It is the TV show edition titled The Elf Stones of Shannara. This book is a high fantasy novel, set in a fictional world called the Four Lands. It follows the quest of Wil Ohmsford and Amberle Elessedil to create a new Ellcrys, a magical tree that serves to banish all Demons from the Four Lands.

               

                Later in the month I bought some books on Amazon the first being The Kiss of Deception (The Remnant Chronicles #1) by Mary E. Pearson. This story follows a seventeen-year-old princess who is betrothed to a prince she does not know and runs away on her wedding day. She settles in a distant village and meets two mysterious men. One, the prince, and the other, an assassin sent to kill her. It sounds so good and I can’t wait to read it! The other book is The Love that Split the World by Emily Henry which is a sci-fi novel with time travel. That concludes my February haul!

My March Reading List

1.       Finishing up Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas

2.       The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

3.       Allegiant by Veronica Roth

4.       TBR- A book with plants on the cover

Currently Reading: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas

Next Post: (I haven’t decided yet)

First Out of Twelve

January Wrap-up, Haul, and TBR

         It’s the end of the first month of 2016 and five days till my birthday. This month I read three books, and accumulated six. In this post, I’m going to talk about what I read, what books I received/bought and the books I’m going to read in February.

Books Read

The first book I read is one I received for Christmas from my parents. It is the second book in The Lunar Chronicles titled Scarlet written by Marissa Meyers. Scarlet was sooooo good and I will gush further about this book in my next review post.

            The Second book I read is an indie novel that was sent to me by the author for review. The book is The Warrior Spy by Dony Jay. It is a military thriller novel and the first I’ve ever read in that genre.

            The Last book was my TBR challenge jar pick which was “Finish a book you started in 2015." The book I chose was All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven. I started this book in November but was not really getting into it so, I put it down. I’m so glad I took a break from it. Because, going back to it, I love it so much more!

January Haul

Here is a list of all the books I got in January and where I got them.

Eleanor by Jason Gurley- Sent to me through Books for Bloggers by Penguin Random House.

Cress (Lunar Chronicles #3) by Marissa Meyer- A Christmas present from my friend

Pride + Prejudice + Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith- I bought this on Amazon with a gift card I won.

Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #2) by Sarah J. Maas- An early birthday present 

Five Children and It by E. Nesbit- Also bought with my gift card.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley- Bought because I needed it for school . . .

My February Reading List

           #1 on my list is Pride + Prejudice + Zombies. #2 is Eleanor and #3 is my TBR challenge which is “A book with a non-human character.” I’m going to pick Cress (Lunar Chrinicles #3) by Marissa Meyer. This series is so amazing! This book a few non-human charcters such as a Iko (the droid), Wolf (The wolf hybrid), and Lunars (a race of people who live on the moon). I want to see what happens next SO bad. I may or may not have cheated and looked through my jar to find a TBR that fit this book instead of picking one at random . . .

Currently Reading: All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

Next Post: Full review of Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer

Miss Maas

If you read the word assassin what image comes to mind?

Don’t get too attached now, because I’m about to change things. But don’t worry, it’s for the better. Now, I want you to take that image, put it on the floor, and smash it with your heel. Enter your assassin’s replacement : Celaena Sardothian; avid reader and bookworm, lover of food, also, one of the most feared people in all the land.

         In a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She comes not to kill the king, but to win her freedom. If she defeats twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition, she is released from prison to serve as the king's champion. Her name is Celaena Sardothien.

         The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her. But something evil dwells in the castle of glass--and it's there to kill. When her competitors start dying one by one, Celaena's fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival, and a desperate quest to root out the evil before it destroys her world.

Does that sound amazing or what?

Celaena is probably one of the most unique characters I have ever come across. Maas totally annihilates the typical heroine. She takes a selfish, enslaved assassin and turns her into something so relatable you forget that everyone is afraid of her. Oh, and did I mention she has a soft spot for puppies?

So, here is our first look at Celaena when we start the book. She has been a slave in the Endovier Salt Mines for over a year. She is unexpectedly summoned and escorted by the Captain of the Royal Guard. 

Being lead through various underground tunnels and stairwells, she contemplates the reason for this…surprise visit. Celaena concludes that she is to be hanged and when they come to a halt in front of two large red-and-gold doors she grows restless. But what she finds behind those doors make her heart freeze in her chest…

Sarah J. Maas takes us on a journey with a girl who, at first, is focused on one thing: Escape. As the story grows and the plot deepens secrets about the strict Kingdom of Erilea are revealed. Celaena surprises everyone, even herself with what she is truly capable of and she discovers that there is more to her magically desiccated kingdom than meets the eye.

Not only does Maas know how to imagine a great plot and characters she knows how to write them. That is what makes this book such an amazing reading experience. You can have tons of great ideas, but you must know how to write them and that’s what makes them come alive.

Language: Mild-2-3

Alcohol/drugs: There is a character who smokes a drug to ease her migraines. She does misuse it and has some unpleasant side effects.

Violence: 7.5

Sexual Content: There is some mentioned lustful looks and a kiss or two

Spiritual Content: This is a high fantasy novel with make-believe religions and revolves around magical elements.

Currently Reading: The Warrior Spy By Dony Jay

Next Post: Full Review of Dark Horizons By J.T. Colgan (A Doctor Who novel)

Cyborgs and Booktube

Cinder

 Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth's fate hinges on one girl. . . .

           Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She's a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister's illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai's, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction.

            Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world's future.

            I am going to use this post to introduce you to two things very close to my heart. Booktube and Cinder by Marissa Meyer. I mentioned Cinder in my 2015 wrap up post so if it looks familiar that's why :)

            Booktube:

 So, if you didn’t know, there is a whole community of people on YouTube with channels dedicated to books. I know, it’s so amazing I need to take a moment…okay, let’s continue. So basically, these young people do book reviews and book related videos. Oh, the joys of spending your afternoon watching people talk about books. Here are the links to some of my favorite Booktubers:

Tasha Polis- https://www.youtube.com/user/tashapolis

Jesse- https://www.youtube.com/user/jessethereader

Christine Riccio- https://www.youtube.com/user/polandbananasBOOKS

Sasha- https://www.youtube.com/user/abookutopia

I also want to introduce you to possibly one of my favorite books ever.

           Ta-da! Isn’t she gorgeous? This book had the whole package, amazing plot, amazing characters, and amazing writing. I finished this 387 page novel in 2 ½ days. Whoop whoop! I’m so excited about this book can’t ya tell? Instead of me blabbering on I am going to insert review of Cinder by one of the Booktubers mentioned above.

Language: None

Alcohol/drugs: There are some drugs used for scientific and medical purposes

Violence: 2

Sexual Content: None

Spiritual Content: None

Currently Reading: Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles book #2) By Marissa Meyer

Next Post: Full Review of Throne of Glass By Sarah J. Maas

So Long 2015

So Long 2015

It’s that time of the year in the book world. The 2015 wrap up. This is my first wrap up post and hopefully I will be writing more in the future. I’m going to tell you my favorite books, movies, TV shows, and music of the year. Plus, how I’m starting off the New Year and my reading goals for 2016.

Top 3 Books Read in 2015

1.       Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1) By Marissa Meyer

The easy to read writing style and engaging story is what gave this book an edge in my mind. All I knew going into this book is that it was about a girl named Cinder who is modeled after Cinderella. She lives in a futuristic Beijing and she’s a cyborg. The world Meyers creates is so detailed, yet the way she writes immerses you into it almost immediately. The characters not one dimensional or run-of-the-mill. They are unique and well, they were just awesome.

2.       Rebel Belle By Rachel Hawkins

Rachel Hawkins’ humor is. . . Spot. On. This book was so much fun to read and I flew through it. The main character Harper Price was so relatable and a pretty good role model considering this is a secular book. The action scenes in this book were written so creatively and the violence, though detailed, was not heavy at all. I think it had just the right amount of every positive aspect a book should have. I have a full length review here.

3.       Everything Everything By Nicola Yoon

This book has one of the most beautiful covers I’ve seen. And I’m happy to say it has story to match. With its short imaginative chapters and playful dialogue it was an easy read that left me so satisfied in the end. The two main characters Madeline and Olli were so good together and the whole idea of a girl with a disease that prohibited her from stepping foot in the outside world intrigued me from the beginning.

Top Movies Of 2015

All my favorite movies summed up in a single sentence.

                

                 Star Wars: (The Force Awakens) - It’s Star Wars, enough said.

                

                The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Pt.2- All the feels.

                

                Avengers: Age of Ultron- My favorite part of this whole movie can be summed up in two words: The Twins.

               

               Jurassic World: Chris Pratt and Dinosaurs.

                

               Cinderella: Have Courage and Be Kind.

My Reading Goals

             

            My goal for this year is to read 30 books. I may not seem like a ton but as the end of the school year rolls around the work piles up and next year I’ll be a senior. Hopefully I’ll surpass that goal but I’d rather exceed the goal then not meet it at all. My TBR challenge this year is 15 reading challenges long and I will draw one out of a jar each month. So, I should be reading one challenge book and one regular book a month. Fingers crossed.

I also want to announce that I have an official date for blog posts. I aim to post every Monday from here on out. At the end of each post I will include what my next post will be and what I’m currently reading. Like this:

Currently Reading: Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #2) By Marissa Meyer

Next Post: Full Review of Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1) By Marissa Meyer

A Lady Never Starts a Fight...

Harper Price, peerless Southern belle, was born ready for a Homecoming tiara. But after a strange run-in at the dance imbues her with incredible abilities, Harper's destiny takes a turn for the seriously weird. She becomes a Paladin, one of an ancient line of guardians with agility, super strength and lethal fighting instincts.

Just when life can't get any more disastrously crazy, Harper finds out who she's charged to protect: David Stark, school reporter, subject of a mysterious prophecy and possibly Harper's least favorite person. But things get complicated when Harper starts falling for him—and discovers that David's own fate could very well be to destroy Earth.

Okay, so just gonna say this has to be one of my favorite reads of the year. I related with the main the character Harper so much (she says her lips are naked without lip product and drinks Earl Grey tea). I felt like I would have made most of the same decisions she did in the different situations that arose.

          She is a strong character who works hard, takes the high road, and has admirable morals. Rachel Hawkins’ writing style is fun and easy to read. I have to confess this is a 345 pg. book and I read it in 2 ½ days. I couldn’t put it down. The dialogue was snappy and fun and I couldn’t wait to see what happened to the characters next.

A southern belle turned ninja-like warrior? The premise of the book intrigued me from the moment I saw a book review of it on YouTube. It was something I hadn’t seen before and something I couldn’t really imagine. I wanted to see how Hawkins pulled it off. The answer? Flawlessly.

As far as content goes I couldn’t find a content review online in the time I needed (of course I found one afterwards) I but decided to wing it anyway and was pleased with what wasn’t in it rather than what was. At the beginning of the book Harper scolds a friend for using the F-word and says “I just think that the F-word should be saved for dire occasions. And having to park a hundred yards from the gym is not a dire occasion.”

I thought this was admirable for a secular book. Now, when someone does say the F-word Harper either notes whether or not they said the actual word or it will be replaced with “effed”. They use it a moderate amount of times but since It is not an actual swear word I will not be including it in the final rating.

In conclusion, I enjoyed this book immensely and as  I said it will probably be included in my top five books of this year which I will be doing a post on in late December or early January. I will also be picking up the second book Miss Mayhem which I am looking forward to devouring.

Language: Moderate, but probably not above 10 words

Alochol/Drugs: There is one mention of “huffing” not related to the main character and there is mention of a teen who was killed while under the influence of alcohol.

Violence: 7 (detailed but cartoonish, at one point somebody gets stabbed with a stiletto).

Sexual content: It is implied by Harper that some of the teens are in a sexual relationship and there is also one or two semi-passionate kissing scenes but nothing graphic.

Spiritual Content:  The whole book’s main theme is mythological powers and magic. One woman is a witch like figure and there are a couple spells and herbal remedies produced throughout the book.