Book Series I Finished In 2018

Hello everyone! 

How are you all? We are rapidly heading towards the end of the year with only 16 days left before we welcome in 2019. We all know what the end of the year means for us readers, all the wrap-ups! So today I will be wrapping up all the series I actually managed to finish this year. 

As many of you will know I am a big series reader, I much prefer them to stand-alone books. In some ways this is great as it means I get to really immerse myself in a new world, but on the flip side it means I am in the middle of a lot of different series and can get quite bogged down and distracted. I decided this year I would try to finish as many series as I could :-) I'll list them in chronological order and talk about my favourites at the end! 

1.  The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare - 5 Stars 
2. The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare - 4.5 Stars 
3. Wintersong duology by S. Jae. Jones - 3.5 Stars 
4. The Illuminae Files by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman - 5 Stars 
5. Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan - 4 Stars 
6. Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan - 4 Stars 
7. Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo - 4.25 Stars 
8. The Old Kingdom by Garth Nix - 5 Stars

As you can see above I gave the series star ratings overall and hopefully most of you will agree with my ratings! I adored the Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare and actually preferred them to the Mortal Instruments. Infernal Devices puts a whole new spin on the Shadowhunter world, placing our main characters in Victorian London. Clare manages to weave such a narrative spell, balancing plot twists, engaging story and heart-wrenching character relationships! I would recommend these to anyone who loves fantasy. 

I listened to the Illuminae Files on audiobook as I had heard they were good and man were they! There was a different narrator for each character and there were all sorts of sound effects, which made the case file format of the story so easy to digest and stay connected to. These books are a triumph of deep space adventure, featuring criminal organisations, deadly viruses, exploding planets and really witty characters. These books are for lovers of Doctor Who! 

It goes without saying that Garth Nix's Old Kingdom series would be a 5 star series. I have been loving these books for years and finally got around to reading the short story collections which accompany the main book series. The series follows a range of characters fighting evil spirits in an almost medieval magic setting. Garth Nix has a fantastic narrative style and can draw in old and young readers with these books. I really hope he continues to write stories set in this world! 

As a parting note, I just want to give a little nod to the adorable Percy Jackson! I really enjoyed diving (see what I did there!) into his world and am quite excited to be including more Rick Riordan series on my lists for 2019. 

What series have you guys wrapped up this year? Let me know your reading plans in the comments below :-)

xoxo

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Zoella Book Club 2017

Hello everyone! 

I'm back again with some more book reviews. This time I wanted to talk to you about the Zoella and Friends Book Club 2017 with WHSmith. I have always been a big fan of Zoella and I have loved her previous two book clubs, so it will come as no surprise that I was very excited about this one. As soon as it was announced I hopped online and ordered the box set. Then I had to wait 2 months for my exams to be over before I could binge read them all! 

Yes I know, I read them at the end of August and it is now February, but I thought that this collection of books would be a perfect way for you all to get a scent of summer in your reading. That way you can escape from all this horrible weather we're having in the UK. Let me tell you a little about each book.

Letters To The Lost by Brigid Kemmerer 

This story runs in parallel lines between Juliet Young and Declan Murphy as they fall in love through letters and messages all the while not knowing who the other person is. Juliet is the perfect dutiful student, prim and preppy, but destroyed on the inside by the recent death of her mother. Declan is your typical bad kid, he has a bad reputation and a bad attitude to match. Their worlds collide when Declan finds a letter Juliet has written to her mother in the graveyard where he does his community service. This book is heart-wrenching and hard to read, but will take you right back to that person who everyone disapproved of, but turned out to be the best thing for you at the time. 

After The Fire by Will Hill 

I was so excited to see this book on the list and it definitely lived up to my expectations. It is loosely based on the Waco scandal in America and I remember reading about that happening so was very intrigued. The story tells the life of Moonbeam both before and after the fire that started her life. She grew up in a religious cult in the American desert ruled by the disgusting and ruthless Father John. Moonbeam knows the world she lives in is wrong so she starts a fire to break out and change it all for the better. This is a gripping 5 star read through and through! 

Girlhood by Cat Clarke 

Sadly this one was a little bit of a let down, I wanted it to be a much darker thriller than it actually was. It follows Harper trying to escape her past and the loss of her sister by throwing herself into her new school life, but then a new girl arrives and her story is scarily similar to Harper's. After her arrival Harper's world starts to fall apart, leaving Kirsty as her only connection to her old life. The ending was much fluffier than I wanted it to be, but it is a good example of how forgiveness and understanding can go a long way in improving a situation. Definitely still worth a read if you like light thrillers. 

History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera

I was a bit dubious about this one as I had read quite a few mixed reviews and I don't think it was really the right book for me. It has great representation and deals with loss and LGBTQ+ relationships very well, but I found it difficult to connect with Griffin as a character. Griffin needs to come to terms with the sudden death of his ex-boyfriend Theo and rebuild his life and friendships on new ground. He turns to Theo's new boyfriend and for answers and comfort, but it doesn't turn out quite how he was expecting. It is a well written story of life after death and new starts, worth a read if you are a fan of David Levithan. 

Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu

Aaaaah this book! Every woman and girl on the planet should read this book at the age of 12-16 and take home its very important message. Women are not disposable, we are not the weaker sex and we can stand on equal footing with men. Feminism is not about pushing men down to let us women rise, it is about finding a place to stand next to them as equals and working together. This book is everything I wanted The Power to be. Vivian Carter is the woman we should all be. She is fed up with being downtrodden by her male teachers, subject to chauvinistic remarks that go un-reprimanded. She creates a feminist zine and takes her school, her town and the world by storm! 

Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt

This book ripped my heart out, shredded it like confetti and threw the bits to the wind. Jack's family have taken in 14 year old Joseph as a foster child. Joseph has come straight out of juvenile detention after a very troubled back-ground lands him in serious trouble. Joseph isn't what Jack expected, Joseph is sensitive, kind and completely heart-broken. As he opens up to Jack, he tells him how he fell in love and how that love resulted in a little girl called Jupiter. Joseph has never even seen her, but his longing for his daughter is so strong that he enlists the help of sensible Jack in his quest to find her. Read this book, it will break you, but it is worth it. 

The Start Of Me And You by Emery Lord

This story is super cute and quite fluffy, probably the only fluffy book in this selection. My Mam is actually afraid of water so I enjoyed how the author dealt with the protagonist Paige's new found phobia. This phobia sprung to life after her boyfriend drowned. Now Paige is not only dealing with a very real fear, but with the new label of "dead guy's girlfriend". What Paige struggles with most isn't the loss of her boyfriend, but the loss of their potential. They weren't together very long and now their chance of a future has gone. This inspires Paige to make a list of goals in the hope that it will bring her back to life. This brings her into Max's world. Max is everything a nerd love interest should be, he is geeky, kind and really funny. I fell in love with him on the first page he featured. Read this book if you want to feel uplifted by new chances and teenage friendships! 

The One Memory Of Flora Banks by Emily Barr

My Mam reckons this book will be a classic one day. Flora has short term retrograde amnesia, meaning she loses her memory several times throughout the day and has to have lists and post-its at the ready to remind herself who she is. Then one night she kisses Drake at a party and remembers it. She goes on a quest to find Drake, but he has moved to The North Pole. Defying everything anyone expects Flora follows him there, all the while trying to remember how she got there! This story is gripping, funny and very difficult to not get attached to. Flora's struggle is inspiring and I wish more people would read this book. 

Wow, that's it! All 8 books from the selection. As you can see they cover a really wide array of topics and genres within the YA heading. There is definitely something in there for everyone and if you ever thought Zoella's book club would be full of fluffy insubstantial romances I hope I have changed your mind! 

Have you read any of these? What were your thoughts on them? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

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A Beginners Guide To H. G. Wells

Hello everyone! 

Today I'm here to talk about the grandfather of classic science fiction - H. G. Wells! This author has long been a favourite of mine, ever since I discovered The War Of The Worlds. Which I'm sure many of you will know from the excellent movie. The problem with this movie is that it can overshadow the books a little so I'm going to give you a beginners guide to reading this amazing author's work. 

Let's start with the most accessible of his novels: The War Of The Worlds and The Time Machine. Both of these novels are fast paced and thrilling. The War Of The Worlds details an alien invasion of planet earth, bringing with it the near destruction of human kind. The Time Machine tells the story of the nuttiest of all professors creating a time machine taking him thousands of years into the future. What he finds there is at first glance utopia, but with a little digging he learns that all paradises come with a dark price. When I read these novels I completely forgot they were written in the 1800's, the language is fluid and easy to read. These are the best place to start for H. G. Wells, once you've read these there is no going back and you'll be begging for more stories! 

The Invisible Man is almost as fast paced as the above, but it is a little slower to get into which could be off-putting as your first read. Once you are used to H. G. Wells' writing style you'll fly through this one. It follows Griffin, a mad scientist who has perfected a formula for making creatures invisible. This sounds amazing in theory, but it leaves Griffin desperate and friendless, slowly descending into murderous madness. He will stop at nothing to find the cure. I love the flow of this narrative, it jumps backwards and forwards in time as Griffin's tale becomes clearer, leaving you desperate for more after each page. 

The next two books aren't really hard to get into, but they do fall on the weirder end of the H. G. Wells scale. The Island Of Doctor Moreau is all about the horrors of vivisection and the ultimate mad scientist. Doctor Moreau lives on a deserted island with only his "creations" for company, creations is a kind word really. They are more like monsters, blended from the corpses of men and animals. This is a cautionary tale of what can happen when you try too hard to control nature.

Penguin's Little Black Classics collection is pure genius and they did not miss their mark with their choice of three short stories. The Sea Raiders tells of man-eating sea creatures raiding a seaside resort, which sounds comical, but when you read it it's terrifying! The Magic Shop and The Land Ironclads are two of his strangest stories and are not for the fans of realism. These two would not be out of place in Wonderland! The Magic Shop walks that fine line between tricks to delight children and sinister illusions made to frighten and horrify adults. The Land Ironclads tells a story of destruction on the battlefield at the hands of unstoppable mechanical fiends. Both these stories are bizarre and twisted, more for those who appreciate surreal literature. 

H. G. Wells is the perfect author to read if you love Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, he perfectly captures all the dangers of scientific advancement whilst weaving tales of terror and suspense. His novels are timeless and I wish more people were still reading these! 

Have I inspired you to read any of these or have you already read them? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

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Mad for Murakami

Hello everyone! 

I am back again with another Haruki Murakami review! I know I only recently wrote a post about Norwegian Wood, but I enjoyed that so much that I decided to read another of his books. Today I'll be talking about South of the Border and West of the Sun. 

This book is another stunning read, I actually enjoyed it a lot more than Norwegian Wood as it wasn't tinged with the same sadness. It follows the narrator Hajime as he journeys from twelve years old to his late thirties. Hajime is definitely a character who lacks direction, always searching for that special indefinable quality in life. As a twelve year old he found this in his close friend Shimamoto, but after he moved away they lost touch and life got in the way. In his early thirties he bumps into his future wife, settles down with her, has two daughters and grows two successful businesses. However, he still can't shake that longing for the girl he used to love. 

One plain, rainy day she walks back into his life sending him into a spiral of desire, confusion, guilt and elation. His feelings for her remain, but is she worth walking away from the life he built? The concept of this was really interesting, I think a lot of people are questing for something unknown, that "missing" factor that would make their life perfect and their souls complete. This book addresses this is a very clever way, taking us through each emotion as Hajime feels it. 

At first I thought he should walk away and be with the love of his life, but as I read further I changed my mind. I don't believe she was right for him, she might have been at one stage, but not now. She is mysterious, beautiful, funny and clever, but also dark and full of pain. She is a woman who needs saving, but might not want to be saved. I'm not going to spoil this by telling you what he chose or how the book ended, but I will say that I was uplifted by the ending and filled with hope. Hajime comes through his spiral, becoming a better man and knowing more about himself than he could ever have hoped. 

Murakami's narrative is utterly spellbinding, whenever I read his books I feel as though I am really there. I can see it, smell it, hear it and above all feel it. His descriptive prose and deeply relatable characters leave an imprint on your mind long after you put the book down. I would say that anyone starting university or facing a tumultuous time of life should read this book. 

Have you read this? Let me know what you thought in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

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A Vintage Wedding Book Review

Hello everyone! 

For a while now I've been reading a lot of heavy books, so I decided to go for something a bit more light hearted. A Vintage Wedding by Katie Fforde is a lovely, summery book! I think it's perfect to read on holiday. Let's dive right in with a little review shall we? 

Vintage Weddings features three women, Rachel, Lindy and Beth, who all find themselves in a bit of a life rut. They are all struggling to make their mark and find something to make them happy. When a chance meeting in the run down village hall sparks off a friendship they decide to make the most of it. Rachel is a recently divorced, OCD accountant, Lindy is a young, single mum of two and Beth is just looking for a nice job and a way to prove her overbearing mother wrong. 

Beth's sister Helena is getting married and has asked Beth to organise it, when she asks her new friends for advice it turns out they all have useful skills. Lindy is a whizz at sewing and crafts, Beth is full of fabulous ideas and Rachel is the most organised person on the planet. And so on a boring evening in the pub, Vintage Weddings is born. With many ups and downs, both romantically and at work they learn how to run a successful business and cement themselves into the community. 

Although this book isn't very deep or challenging, it is heart warming and very funny. Sometimes you just need an easy, predictable book that you know will make you smile. It was such a lovely, enjoyable read! I would recommend it for sure as a beach or pool side book. It makes you dream of flowers and sunshine, you end up wishing the characters were your friends too! 

Have you guys read anything good recently? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo

Hunger Games Hype

Hello everyone! 

So the hype of The Hunger Games is over now, the last movie was of course as big a hit as the first one! However, a lot of people seem to forget about the books in all the movie excitement. I have this deal with Mr.Gingersnap, when it’s a huge movie that we watch together I don’t read the books until we’ve seen the movies. That way one of us doesn’t know more than the other! Which is why I only recently read the books behind this controversial series. 

Aside from the violent themes and their inevitable controversy, the story is a really good one! It has it all, self sacrifice for those you love, struggles against poverty, hunger and an oppressive government, friendship, loss and of course a decent love triangle. I think the political undertones deserve a post all of their own so let’s leave those out of this one, right? 

Warning, there may be spoilers ahead!! 

I didn’t realise how different the movies are to the books! Yes the story is essentially the same and most of the events are also the same. What is missing from the movies are Katniss’s constant feelings for Peeta. In the movie she seems very pre-occupied with Gale from almost day 1, when in fact she doesn’t consider him as more than a friend until well into the second book. Her feelings for Peeta are mixed throughout and she experiences constant turmoil when thinking of him. On one hand he is her enemy, but on the other there is her gratitude to him which barely conceals her undoubtable affection. From the very beginning it is clear that he is right for her, that he can heal all that is broken. 

Gale is strong and passionate, but his feelings for Katniss aren’t pure. I’m not denying his love for her, it was borne out of long years of friendship and mutual dependency, but he has a vicious streak which Peeta lacks. He is far too angry, anger wouldn’t be enough to fix Katniss and she realises this very early in the books. 

In the movies she is very wooden and shows next to no emotion, but in the books you hear her thoughts and see how much it all affects her. Her on screen actions show she feels, but you don’t see much of the games’ lasting effects. A large part of the books is about how she copes and slowly comes to terms with the trauma, I just wish this was in the movies a bit more! You see her strong love and loyalty to her district, her desire to do more and frustration at her own limits, which I feel makes you emotionally invest more in her character. 

I’d recommend reading the books even if you weren’t much a fan of the movies, you get a different side of Katniss. Although I can’t pick which one I liked best! What did you guys think of the books vs. the movies? Let me know in the comments below :-) 

xoxo