Wednesday 29 April 2015

Waiting on Wednesday (#7)

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
Published by: St. Martin's Griffin 
Publication date: 6th October 2015
Genres: YA, Romance, Fantasy

Rainbow Rowell continues to break boundaries with Carry On, an epic fantasy following the triumphs and heartaches of Simon and Baz from her beloved bestseller Fangirl.

Simon Snow just wants to relax and savor his last year at the Watford School of Magicks, but no one will let him. His girlfriend broke up with him, his best friend is a pest, and his mentor keeps trying to hide him away in the mountains where maybe he’ll be safe. Simon can’t even enjoy the fact that his roommate and longtime nemesis is missing, because he can’t stop worrying about the evil git. Plus there are ghosts. And vampires. And actual evil things trying to shut Simon down. When you’re the most powerful magician the world has ever known, you never get to relax and savor anything.

Carry On is a ghost story, a love story, a mystery and a melodrama. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell story — but far, far more monsters.
 

Monday 27 April 2015

Lure by Tarynn Kerr: review

*This book was given to me for free by Xpressoreads in return for an honest review, however this doesn't effect my opinion*
Lure by Tarynn Kerr
Published by: Self Published
Publication date: 18th March 2015
Genres: Paranomal, fantasy

Her lips just barely moved, and I heard faintly on a breeze, “I will come back for you.”

David was looking forward to doing some hiking on his family camping trip. That is, until he’s lured into another world. Now he has to hike through the fae world, where fairies, hellhounds, and all sorts of magical creatures are lying in wait. These aren’t nice, fairytale creatures. No, everything here seems determined to kill David and his family. He has to escape this dangerous realm, but the one fairy that can help him may be the one that keeps him here.


My Thoughts
I don't have much to say about this book so the review is going to be quite short.

Lure is an extremely short book with something like 98 pages and it isn't the fastest paced book but there was no point in the book where I was bored. It was highly entertaining. I didn't really like David's mum I thought she was quite rude to Cearon (anyone know how you pronounce that).

I didn't actually realise how much I liked the book until the end where it just ended on one of the biggest cliff hangers the world has ever seen and I started sputtering at how I needed to know what happens next. Because I do.

I'm giving this book 3/5 stars because it was a fun entertaining book but not much more then that. If you have already got it, it's worth the read but not a book I would recommend you rush out to the store to buy.

Wednesday 22 April 2015

Waiting on Wednesday (#6)

Fans of the impossible life by Kate Scalsa
Published by: Balzer + Bray
Publication date: September 8th 2015
Genres: contemporary,LGBT

This is the story of a girl, her gay best friend, and the boy in love with both of them.

Ten months after her recurring depression landed her in the hospital, Mira is starting over as a new student at Saint Francis Prep. She promised her parents she would at least try to act like a normal, functioning human this time around, not a girl who sometimes can’t get out of bed for days on end, who only feels awake when she’s with Sebby. 

Jeremy is the painfully shy art nerd at Saint Francis who’s been in self-imposed isolation after an incident that ruined his last year of school. When he sees Sebby for the first time across the school lawn it’s as if he’s been expecting this blond, lanky boy with a mischievous glint in his eye. 

Sebby, Mira’s gay best friend, is a boy who seems to carry sunlight around with him like a backlit halo. Even as life in his foster home starts to take its toll, Sebby and Mira together craft a world of magic rituals and secret road trips, designed to fix the broken parts of their lives. 

As Jeremy finds himself drawn into Sebby and Mira’s world, he begins to understand the secrets that they hide in order to protect themselves, to keep each other safe from those who don’t understand their quest to live for the impossible.

A captivating and profound debut novel, "Fans of the Impossible Life" is a story about complicated love and the friendships that change you forever.

Friday 17 April 2015

Neverland by Shari Arnold : review

*This book was given to me for free by netgalley in return for an honest review, however this doesn't effect my opinion*
Neverland by Shari Arnold
Published by: CreateSpace
Publication date: April 7th 2015
Genres: classic retelling

It’s been four months since seventeen-year-old Livy Cloud lost her younger sister, but she isn’t quite ready to move on with her life — not even close. She’d rather spend her time at the Seattle Children’s hospital, reading to the patients and holding onto memories of the sister who was everything to her and more.

But when she meets the mysterious and illusive Meyer she is drawn into a world of adventure, a world where questions abound.

Is she ready to live life without her sister? Or more importantly, is she brave enough to love again?

In this modern reimagining of Peter Pan, will Livy lose herself to Neverland or will she find what she’s been searching for?
 


My Thoughts

Neverland is possibly the most beautiful book I have ever read. The writing is so enthralling and the characters were great. I loved Sheri's take on neverland, it was heart breakingly beautiful.

So in case you can't tell I loved this book soooooo much it is unbelievable. It's just stunning and so imaginative. Sheri has obviously read Peter pan and then written a book loosely based on Peter Pan, neverland is completely different to J. M. Barry's version. The book was not at all like I expected it to be as I had expected Peter Pan just modernised. Not at all what it was.


The whole book was surrounded by mystery as Meyer would never answer any of Livy's questions. You would get little hints of who Meyer actually was but never definite answers and usually with characters like this I am screaming at the other characters to get away and not to trust them but Sheri just wrote Meyer so you couldn't help but love him (and yes I am aware of how many times I said 'but' in that sentence).I loved Meyer, he was so naive and didn't understand Livy's reaction to a lot of things yet at the same time he was extremely mature and always understood how Livy was feeling. (hmm, just realised how contradictory that sentence is. It's still true though). 

I originally didn't particularly like Livy but she really grew on me to the point where every time she got upset I felt like someone had just ripped my heart out. There's a possibility that's a bit of an exaggeration. In all honesty I loved everyone like a lot, Meyer more then anyone else though.

The ending was so amazing I loved it. It just showed an extra depth to a certain character and was so beautiful. It was so amazing and I would love to go into detail about the ending but I can't do it without spoiling the book. If anyone reads this book please message me and we can talk about the ending and talk about how Sheri needs to write a sequel.

In conclusion I loved this book more then words can explain. I think everyone should read it because there wasn't one thing I disliked about it. It was just so beautifully written with such a beautiful plot and a beautiful ending. It was so beautiful, in case you can't tell.  But unlike a lot of beautiful books there was an exciting plot with twists and turns you didn't expect. I loved it. 5/5 stars from me. This book is definitely in my top 5 books ever, which means there are now 2 Peter Pan retelling's in my top 5 which is ironic given I hate the original book. I just hate J. M. Barry's writing style. Really hope you read this book.

Wednesday 15 April 2015

Waiting on Wednesday (#5)

The Devil You Know by Trish Doller
Published by: Bloomsbury USA children
Publication date: June 2nd 2015
Genres: contemporary, thriller

Eighteen-year-old Arcadia wants adventure. Living in a tiny Florida town with her dad and four-year-old brother, Cadie spends most of her time working, going to school, and taking care of her family. So when she meets two handsome cousins at a campfire party, she finally has a chance for fun. They invite her and friend to join them on a road trip, and it's just the risk she's been craving-the opportunity to escape. But what starts out as a fun, sexy journey quickly becomes dangerous when she discovers that one of them is not at all who he claims to be. One of them has deadly intentions. 

A road trip fling turns terrifying in this contemporary story that will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

Monday 13 April 2015

Into a Million Pieces by Angela V. Cook : review

*This book was given to me for free by author in return for an honest review, however this doesn't effect my opinion*
Into a Million Pieces by Angela V. Cook
Published by: Red Adept Publishing
Publication date: January 27th 2015
Genres: Paranormal, Suspense, Romance

Allison McKready is a succubus. So is her twin sister. But while Allison spends her summer break hiding in the library behind her Goth makeup, Jade fools around as often as she can. Allison can’t believe Jade would ignore their mother’s fatal example so recklessly, but concealing a cursed bloodline and its dangerous effects is far from Allison’s only problem. Mean girl Julie’s snob mob is determined to ruin her summer, and Aunt Sarah’s Bible thumping is getting louder. Only her new friend, Ren Fisher, offers safe haven from the chaos of her life.

When one of Jade’s risky dates leads to humiliation and sudden tragedy, Allison reels, and Ren catches her. But as her feelings for him grow, so does her fear that she’ll hurt him—or worse—in an unguarded moment. The choice is coming—love him or save him—but Allison might not live to make it. One way or another, the curse will have its due.


My thoughts

I had never heard of succubus before this book so I can't comment on her use of the succubus folk law but I found it really interesting the idea of being able to suck someone's soul out by kissing them. One of the great things about this book was that although the whole book was about a girl who is a succubus, it wasn't all about her being one. There was a great family theme running through the book as Allison is quite protective of her sister.

I found the book really hard to get into. It didn't have a bad start it was just I always thought of other things to do rather then read but once I got into it is was great. I never expected any of the plot twists. Can we all just take a second to think about how great Ren was. If my friend told me she was a succubus I would think so had gone mental but Ren was completely fine with it and not in like an odd way like a 'I completely trust you way'

In conclusion I'm giving this book a 3/5 stars because it ws really enjoyable and nt to deep though it took a bit of a long time to get into and sometimes it was hard to believe that was people's genuine reaction. Though I really enjoyed this book and think it would make quite a nice summer's read as it was mainly a romance book. Though there is a theme of suicide running through the book.





Saturday 11 April 2015

Birthday haul

Hi guys

Given I have stopped stacking the shelves. I'm going to do a haul for all the books I got for my birthday. They were all bought for me by my parents.

Scholastic Gothic classics
I have been wanting these books for ages so when I got the scholastic magazine, I instantly asked my Dad if he could buy me that for my birthday.


Slated Trilogy by Teri Terry

I have no idea what these books are about. My dad just said he found them when buying the other books and thought it sounded like my kind of book.

Friday 10 April 2015

blog update


Hi guys

I have decided to change my blog around a bit. So no more blog blitz, I realised when any blog I follow on bloglovin' has a book blitz I always end up clicking mark as read so I'm not writing what I wouldn't want to read. I am also stopping doing stacking the shelves instead I am just going to do a haul when ever I have a lot of books or it is a special occasion like Christmas or my birthday. I will still be doing Waiting on Wednesday I just completely forgot this week. Sorry!

I am planning on making this blog so I do more discussion post because I really enjoyed writing my post on Age Appropriate Books. Please always feel free to comment if you have any ideas for a discussion, I've recently been think about writing a discussion on Sexism in Book. Does that sound like an interesting post?

I would also like to say that I am not sticking to a schedule if one week I don't have enough time to write a blog post then I won't as I want to still enjoy writing my blog not feel pressurised into writing every week.

I really hope you like what I am going to be doing with the blog.

Sunday 5 April 2015

Innocence by Rebecca Yoder : review

*This book was given to me for free by the author in return for an honest review, however this doesn't effect my opinion*

Innocence by Rebecca Yoder
Published by: self published
Publication date: March 10th 2015
Genres: YA, Paranomal, Mystery

Who would steal her innocence first? The dark-haired hottie in her new high school...or the mysterious danger lurking in the woods behind her house? All Mint wants is a stable life, to stay in one place long enough to finish out the school year, but her single mom, with a pension for bad relationships, has done it again and now Mint is stuck in a small country town that gives her the creeps. But after she meets Ben, a dark-haired senior at her new high school, Mint may just have found a reason to be glad for yet another move--if only Ben wasn't suspiciously linked to the mysterious death of a high school girl. Innocence is the first mini-book (a book less than 10 chapters long) in the Gold Dragon Series, a tale of relationships, mystery and a paranormal being lurking in the woods that you've never seen before. If you are innocent, you may be the next victim.

My thoughts

I had extremely low expectations. Though Rebecca is lovely, the plot didn't sound great. But I was wrong, very very wrong.
Innocence started of great before I even started the story because in the little disclaimer and copyright section, she put "All the characters and events are fictional, except for Mint sitting alone in the cold, dark trailer waiting for the heat to be turned on. This actually happened to me." which just made me giggle because I often feel like you don't really know what the author is like through the book. Anyway.
The characters in this book were quite mysterious, mainly because the book was so short but Rebecca really knows how to use that to her advantage, by saying something like "You sound like you got into a pack of my mushrooms". Which gives you a teeny bit of information but just never telling you what that really means. Also I feel like whima is going to be one of my favourite characters because she was so quirky and odd.
The plot was great as I have already mentioned I really liked the writing style. The fact that in 38 pages I knew the personality of all the characters and a bit about their backgrounds.
I can't talk about character development because there wasn't enough pages for development but I can tell there is going to be an amazingly written development throughout the series.

In conclusion

I'm giving this book 4/5 stars. I really enjoyed it. It didn't take long to read, which is nice because every once in a while it's nice not to read a 500 page book. So excited for the next book, which is coming out in a week to a week and a half.

You can get 'innocence' on Etsy, Amazon and iBooks.

Saturday 4 April 2015

stacking the shelves (#4)

Hi Guys

This week is my birthday on Sunday. So there will probably be  quite a big stacking the shelves next Saturday. But for now.

Innocence by Rebecca Yoder

My review for this book is coming up tomorrow. It is a mini book with only 38 pages but a great story.

'98 Walls by Katie Pierson

I got this book from Netgalley and I don't really know what it's about except it was an auto approve and released in June.

Friday 3 April 2015

Don't call me kit Kat : cover reveal

Don’t Call Me Kit Kat by K.J. Farnham 
Publication date: May 15th 2015
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult

Synopsis:
Junior high is where things really start to happen. Cliques form and break apart. Couples are made and destroyed. And a reputation is solidified that you won’t ever be able to escape. Everything you do and say, and everyone you spend your time with, matters.
Katie Mills knows that. She gets it. That’s why she tried so hard to get in with the cool girls at school. And why she was so devastated when those efforts found her detained for shoplifting and laughed out of cheer squad tryouts.
But Katie has more to worry about than just fitting in. Her parents are divorced and always fighting. Her sister never has time for her. And her friends all seem to be drifting apart. Even worse? The boy she has a crush on is dating the mean girl at school.
Everything is a mess, and Katie doesn’t feel like she has control over any of it. Certainly not over her weight, which has always topped out at slightly pudgier than normal—at least, according to her mother.
So when she happens to catch one of the popular girls throwing up in the bathroom one day, it sparks an idea. A match that quickly engulfs her life in flames.
Is there any going back once she gets started down this path?
And would she even want to if she could?

Born and raised in a suburb of Milwaukee, K. J. Farnham was a teacher for 12 years and became a freelance writer in 2012. She holds a bachelor's degree from UW-Milwaukee and a master's degree from Carroll University in Waukesha, Wisconsin. A sequel to "Click Date Repeat" is in the works, and she plans to publish her next novel, "Don't Call Me Kit Kat," in the spring of 2015.

K. J. Farnham loves hearing from readers. Connect with her at:
http://kjfarnham.com
http://www.facebook.com/ClickDateRepeat
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8496528.K_J_Farnham





Wednesday 1 April 2015

waiting on Wednesday (#4)

Made you up by Francesca Zappia
Published by: Greenwillow books
Publication date: May 19th 2115
Genres: Young Adult, realistic fiction

Reality, it turns out, is often not what you perceive it to be—sometimes, there really is someone out to get you. Made You Up tells the story of Alex, a high school senior unable to tell the difference between real life and delusion. This is a compelling and provoking literary debut that will appeal to fans of Wes Anderson, Silver Linings Playbook, and Liar.

Alex fights a daily battle to figure out the difference between reality and delusion. Armed with a take-no-prisoners attitude, her camera, a Magic 8-Ball, and her only ally (her little sister), Alex wages a war against her schizophrenia, determined to stay sane long enough to get into college. She’s pretty optimistic about her chances until classes begin, and she runs into Miles. Didn't she imagine him? Before she knows it, Alex is making friends, going to parties, falling in love, and experiencing all the usual rites of passage for teenagers. But Alex is used to being crazy. She’s not prepared for normal. 

Funny, provoking, and ultimately moving, this debut novel featuring the quintessential unreliable narrator will have readers turning the pages and trying to figure out what is real and what is made up.