Review: The Darkest Minds

Title: The Darkest Minds (The Darkest Minds #1)
Author: Alexandra Bracken
Released: December 2012
Pages: 488
Genre: Dystopian, Science Fiction
Favourite Quote: “I'm a monster, you know. I'm one of the dangerous ones.
No you aren't, he promised. Your one of us.” 
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When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious disease that’s killed most of America’s children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control. Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones. When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she’s on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her—East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can’t risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents. When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living

My Review

Initial Thoughts: This book had me on the edge of my seat for pretty much the whole way through. I loved the main character and supporting characters and I am so eager to get started on the next book.

The Darkest Minds follows sixteen year old Ruby who has been locked at a 'rehabilitation' camp by the Government after a deadly disease resulted in all children around her age to possess powers. Sent to a rehabilitation camp so that they can be 'cured', Ruby escapes and meets Liam, Chubbs and Zu who all have powers of their own. They are on the run, desperate to never return to the rehabilitation camps and eager to find East River, a place known to be a safe haven for people like them.

The Pros: I really loved the characters in this book. I loved the main character and I loved the supporting characters - Liam, Chubs, Zu. I loved how they were all different yet were all able to get along (well, mostly). When they did fight, it was for proper reasons and not for some dumb reason. I understood all sides to the story and why they were fighting (when they did). 

I also enjoyed the action in the novel. There are so many villains within this one novel so therefore it never got boring. It had its funny moments and serious moments.  I was always so eager to find out what happened.

The Cons: Nothing really. I can't think of any. Maybe that it is like nearly 500 pages? But really, that is not really a negative. It was enjoyable all the way through

Would I recommend this book? Yes of course. This book helped me to get out of a reading slump (a slump I seem to be having a hard time to get out of). It was been on my to-be-read shelf for some time now and I am so glad I finally read it. It is one of the stand out books that I have read this year

Review: My True Love Gave To Me: Twelve Holiday Stories

Title: My True Love Gave To Me: Twelve Holiday Stories
Edited: Stephanie Perkins 
Released: October 2014
Pages: 320
Genre: Short Stories

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If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favourite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you’re going to fall in love with MY TRUE LOVE GAVE TO ME: TWELVE HOLIDAY STORIES by twelve bestselling young adult writers, edited by international bestselling author Stephanie Perkins

My Review

Initial Thoughts: My True Love Gave To Me is a collection of twelve short stories each written by a well known Young Adult writer. Did I enjoy all the short stories? No. But I did enjoy most of them. I have about 6 favourites and the rest I either liked (but didn't love) or just didn't like. Some were confusing (like the Kelly Link one) but it was still an enjoyable read.

The Pros: I loved how sweet and adorable all of these stories were. For example, Kiersten White's story 'Welcome to Christmas, CA' I particularly enjoyed because it was so damn cute. The girl who is so eager to leave her town and start her own life away from Christmas (the town's name) but meets the 'bad boy'

My other favourite story was by Stephanie Perkins (no surprise there!) called 'It's a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown'. He sells Christmas trees for his family and she wants to use his voice for a project of hers but is a bit nervous to ask him. So she ends up buying a tree even though she had no plans to buy one. 

I also loved Jenny Hall's story too. It is about a girl who was adopted by Santa and lives in the North Pole with the elves, so essentially, she doesn't quite fit in there. I thought it was really cute and I didn't expect to read about elves when picking up this book. It reminded me of the movie Elf (and that is my favourite Christmas movie)

The Cons: A lot of the time I wanted MORE. The stories would just end and I would be like 'hey, hey, can't you tell me what happened after that?'. It makes sense why it would end (they are short stories after all), but as I am an over thinker (like, it can get really bad. I always think beyond about what could happen etc) I want to know how they would tackle some of the problems I know will be faced later on like college and will they still be together and how will they make it work (told you, over thinker). I would honestly read a whole book based on these characters lives 

Would I recommend this book? If your in the mood for some holiday stories to get you in the mood for Christmas, then this will definitely do the trick. It has gotten me excited for Christmas 

Review: Before I Fall

Title: Before I Fall
Author: Lauren Oliver
Released: October 2010
Pages: 470
Genre: Contemporary
Favourite Quote: “It's funny, isn't it? When you are young you just want to be old, and then later you wish you could go back to being a kid.” 
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For popular high school senior Samantha Kingston, February 12—"Cupid Day"—should be one big party, a day of valentines and roses and the privileges that come with being at the top of the social pyramid. And it is…until she dies in a terrible accident that night. However, she still wakes up the next morning. In fact, Sam lives the last day of her life seven times, until she realizes that by making even the slightest changes, she may hold more power than she ever imagined.

My Review

Initial Thoughts: To be honest, I'm not quite sure what I think about this book. It had some really good moments that kept me intrigued to keep reading and find out what happened but at the same time it also had moments where I could put the book down for long periods of time and not feel the need to read it. There were times when I would go to continue where I left off, but forgot what happened the last time I read it. And this was because it didn't keep me intrigued or entertained.

Before I Fall follows Samantha - she (along with her group) is the most popular girl in the school. She walks all over people, never caring for how she treats others. She'll happily change herself in order to fit into the 'popular' group. But after a car accident that cost her life, she is forced to relive the same day over and over again until she gets it right.

The Pros: I liked the main message in this novel - how everyone is able to change, whether it be for better or for worse. It was so nice to see Sam change and develop into a nicer person and attempt to fix her past mistakes. It also really shows you how everything can be taken away from you in an instant - in one moment, your life could be lost forever so it's best to stop being the person you are trying to be and instead be the person you are. 

The Cons: There is a bit that I didn't like a this novel. I often got bored at times, reliving the same day over and over again. I often got confused between the events of day 1 and if it happened in day 2. But then again, this could be because I wasn't very invested in this story too much. 

In the beginning of the novel, I found the main character to be very annoying (and that was because of her up her self attitude). I do not like reading about these types of characters as I hate how they only think of themselves and that is it. However, I guess this was necessary to show the character development of Samantha. 

Would I recommend this book? I would recommend this novel to those who do want a moving story to read about. It does tackle the topic of death so if your not prepared to read about car accidents and stuff like that then you may want to give this book a miss. I am happy I finished the novel - I particularly enjoyed the last half of the book. However the first half was very difficult for me to get through.

Sisterhood of the World Blogger Award

Majestical Evie over at Prescription Fiction tagged me for the Sisterhood of the World Blogger Award. Sorry its taken me a few days to get to it, I've had some computer issues. But anyway I'm so excited to do this tag. Thanks Majestical Evie for tagging me. Lets get to the questions

1.    If you could change the ending of any book, what would it be and what would you change it to?
Allegiant from the Divergent Series. Those of you who have read the book know what I'm talking about. I won't go into it because that is a MAJOR spoiler and I would not recommend anyone knowing that before reading the book. For what I would change it to SPOILER I would probably change it to her living and growing old and having kids with Tobias. I really loved their relationship END SPOILER

2.    If you could dump hot noodle soup over the head of any one book character, who would you choose?
Sebastian from the Mortal Instruments Series. He just never seemed to die. And then when you thought he was dead turns out he wasn't. Gosh, he was so annoying

3.    You’re getting married! Choose your soon-to-be spouse, your best man, your bride’s maids and your DJ?
I love this question. I have a lot of fictional boyfriends so this is hard to choose. Umm, I might pick   - Will Herondale (The Infernal Devices Series) for my soon to be spouse
- Best Man would be St Clair from Anna and the French Kiss
- My Bride Maids would be Anna (Anna and the French Kiss), Katy (Obsidian) and Tessa (The Infernal Devices)
- My DJ would be Daemon from Obsidian.I don't know why but something tells me he would be an awesome DJ

4.    Sum up one book with an album or playlist
I think Taylor Swift's 1989 album would best sum up Anna and the French Kiss. It's is full of romantic songs as well as problems faced within a relationship which I think can relate to Anna and St Clair's story

5.    You’ve stole a chocolate fudge cake from the local bakery and you’re about to be shoved into prison for twenty two years with one book character of your choice, who would it be?
Rose from the Vampire Academy books. She is very bad ass so she would attempt to get us out plus also she would a fun person to hang out with

6.    If you could ask any author three questions who would it be and what?
I would ask Stephanie Perkins
1. How do you come up with such adorable characters?
2. What is your favourite romantic movie?
3. Any other books you plan to write/have written?

7.    You can attend one fictional school for an entire year, which would it be? (Hogwarts is banned from this answer because, well… duh!)
The boarding school in Anna and the French Kiss (sorry, I forgot its name). It is in France and accepts anyone with American heritage. And it's in France (did I say that already?)

8.    Would you rather snog Draco Malfoy, Luna Lovegood or Ron Weasley? State why!
I would snog Ron Weasley. He is just so cute and adorable with his ginger hair. And he is very loyal to BFF Harry

9.    If you had to get a tattoo of one characters face on a body part of your choosing, who and where would you choose? (Keep it clean people!)
Maybe Katniss from the Hunger Games on my arm or something. It is to remind me of how brave she was to put her hand up to go into the Hunger Games and to never give up

10. You can bring one fictional character back from the dead, but by doing so you have to kill another: which two do you choose?
This is going to contain MAJOR ALLEGIANT SPOILERS. So SPOILER WARNING. I would bring back from the dead Tris (no brainer) and I would probably kill Caleb because he is not very trustworthy and kept betraying Tris END SPOILER

I Tag
Speak4Geeks

And my questions are:

1. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
2. You are told to bring one of these characters back from the dead - Voldemort, Bellatrix or Umbridge. Which one would you pick?
3. What book would you gladly burn so that you don't have to look at it again?
4. You are sports star! Which sport would you be playing (and which book is it found in?)
5. You are in a reading slump. What book could bring you out of it?
6. You have a massive crush on a book character. Who is it?
7. There is a spell that is able to erase one book from your mind. What would it be?
8. Most anticipated book you are yet to read?
9. What is a book that everyone is telling you to read, but you haven't yet?
10. Where do you hope your blog will be in a years time?

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Characters You Wish Would Get Their Own Book

It's that time of week again when I link up with The Broke and the Bookish for Top Ten Tuesday. This weeks theme is Top Ten Characters You Wish Would Get Their Own Book. I've only got a few for this topic. So here we go,

Pretty much every character in Anna and the French Kiss. I loved all the secondary characters - I felt as though they were one of the main characters. I wanted to know what they were doing during Anna and the French Kiss as well as what happened to them afterwards (ok, so we kinda found this out in Isla and the Happily Ever After) but I want MORE. I want a whole book from each character (and then another one from Anna's perspective would be nice too)

Hanna from the Delirium Series. So, we kinda got a joint POV in the last book but I wouldn't mind having a book completely from her perspective about how she changed after the operation. I think that would be quite interesting

I actually wouldn't mind a story from Prince Maxon's perspective. I would like to know what was going through his head when he had to choose which girl to choose and how he came to his decision.

Sorry guys, that's all I have for you. I don't really know what other character I would like  their own book. I'll probably remember some when I look through others Top Ten Tuesday's. Anyway, let me know yours

Taylor Swift Book Tag

Well, its been a while since I thought to myself that I wanted to do this tag. But I'm finally doing it. And better yet, I'm doing it while listening to Taylor Swift's new album (cause I'm cool like that). I'll be doing the same one that Katy from Katytastic on Youtube did a few weeks ago but it was created by The BookLife (I think). So, here we go

1. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together - pick a book or series that you were pretty sure you were in love with, but then wanted to break up with.
Divergent by Veronica Roth. I love the first two books (it was the book that got me into reading) but then the third book came along and I wasn't too sure if I was in love with the series anymore. It wasn't because of that situation that occurred in the book (you'll know what I'm talking about if you've read it. I don't want to spoil anyone). Actually, it was part of the reason but just the whole book, I found, to be not as good as the first two

2. Red - pick a book with a RED cover.
The Elite by Kiera Cass

3. The Best Day - pick a book that makes you feel nostalgic.
Anna and the French Kiss (actually, the whole series). It is so cute and adorable and I still think about this book and its characters often.

4. Love Story - pick a book with forbidden love.
Delirium Series - I will forever be team Alex

5. I Knew You Were Trouble - pick a book with a bad character you couldn’t help but love.
This one is a no brainer - It's Obsidian's male lead Daemon. I hated him in the beginning (he was so up himself, arrogant and rude) but then I couldn't help but fall in love with him when we get to know more about him and why he acts the way he does

6. Innocent (written b/c of Kanye West!) - pick a book that someone ruined the ending for.
Actually, I haven't had a lot of endings ruined for me. Part of the reason is that I don't have a lot of friends who enjoy reading and the other one is if I do happen to come across a spoiler on the internet, I usually forget it (unless I'm currently reading the series)

7. Everything Has Changed - pick a character from a book who goes through extensive character development.
Allyson Healey in Just One Day by Gayle Forman. In the beginning of the novel, she is very shy, quiet and a rule follower. But as the novel progresses she grows and changes

8. You Belong With Me - pick your most anticipated book release.
At the moment, it'll probably be The Heir by Kiera Cass. But it could change. I have finished a lot of my series (I try to read the series when all the books have been released or it's close to the release date)

9. Forever and Always - pick your favorite book couple.
Again, it's from Anna and the French Kiss. It's Anna and St Clair!

10. Come Back, Be Here - pick the book you would least like to lend out, for fear of missing it too much.
Clockwork Princess (Infernal Devices #3) by Cassandra Clare. I absolutely LOVE that book. It was not what I expected

BONUS QUESTIONS:
11. Teardrops On My Guitar - pick a book that made you cry a lot.
It's a tie between The Fault in Our Stars by John Green or If I Stay by Gayle Forman

12. Shake It Off - pick a book that you love so much, you just shake off the haters.
Well, there is not much hate in the book community for Anna and the French Kiss, but some of my friends 'hate' on it cause of the title. But when they read it (and they will. I'll make them LOL), they'll love it as much as I do

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I Want To Reread

Today, I'm linking up with The Broke and the Bookish for their weekly feature Top Ten Tuesday. I haven't done one of these for a while, so it's nice to be getting back into it. Today's topic is Top Ten Books I Want To Reread. As I am not a frequent re-reader (as I often don't enjoy the book as much as the first time. I think it's because I know what is going to happen) I am going to do my Top Ten Books I Want To Reread in an ideal world (the ideal world being a world where I enjoy rereading).

All these books had some effect on me. Whether they got me into reading (divergent), out of a reading slump (Anna and the French Kiss), took me on a rollercoaster of feelings (Obsidian, Vampire Academy), made me cry (TFiOS, If I Stay, Where She Went), amazed me with its awesome conclusion (Clockwork Princess), got me to think (We Were Liars) or simply because I connected with it (Looking for Alibrandi), I would love to reread these books and experience those feelings again.

Are some of your books the same as mine? Let me know below

Halloween Cupcakes

In order to get into the spirit of Halloween, me and my friend over at Speak 4 Geeks decided to make some Halloween inspired cupcakes. We decided to make Red Velvet Marble Cupcakes (red velvet because it can symbolise blood for Halloween) and then we decorated it using green/white frosting (we did a marble type frosting) and lollies. Throughout the process, I took some pictures  and thought I might show it to you guys

The Red Velvet that we mixed into the cake

The cupcakes tasted delicious and I would definitely be making them again (maybe not with the Halloween style decorations). If you want to check out the recipe, my friend posted it on her blog here. I would recommend you check out her blog as well.

Happy Halloween :)

Update

Hey Everyone,

Sorry for my lack of posting over the last two months. I've had a lot going on with school work and because of that I wasn't able to read a lot, let alone write up posts. But I'm happy to announce that I now have a lot of time on my hands (yay) so I should be able to post way more than I have been lately.

Yesterday, I finally posted up my Isla and the Happily Every After review that I read ages ago (I just didn't have the time to properly format the post cause that can be very time consuming but I finally got around to it). I also plan to post more movie review posts (not necessarily book to movie adaptations) as I'll also be watching way more movies in the coming weeks and months.

Anyway, I just wanted to post this to let you guys know what has been happening and that no, I haven't abandoned this blog but I'll be getting back into posting more often now. I'm so excited, so many books to read and movies to watch. But for the next hour or so, I'll be listening to Taylor Swift's new album (Actually, I'm listening to it while writing up this post. But hey, I've been waiting for ever for this.)

Monica

Review: Isla and the Happily Ever After

Title: Isla and the Happily Ever After (Anna and the French Kiss #3)
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Released: August 2014
Pages: 352
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Favourite Quote: “I’m…getting there. I’m beginning to think that maybe it’s okay to be a blank canvas. Maybe it’s okay that my future is unknown. And maybe,” I say with another smile, “it’s okay to be inspired by the people who do know their future.”
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Hopeless romantic Isla has had a crush on introspective cartoonist Josh since their first year at the School of America in Paris. And after a chance encounter in Manhattan over the summer, romance might be closer than Isla imagined. But as they begin their senior year back in France, Isla and Josh are forced to confront the challenges every young couple must face, including family drama, uncertainty about their college futures, and the very real possibility of being apart. Featuring cameos from fan-favorites Anna, Étienne, Lola, and Cricket, this sweet and sexy story of true love—set against the stunning backdrops of New York City, Paris, and Barcelona—is a swoonworthy conclusion to Stephanie Perkins’s beloved series.

My Review

Initial Thoughts: Isla and the Happily Ever After follows Isla (we briefly met her in Anna and the French Kiss for like two seconds). Ever since she can remember, she has always had a crush on Josh but was always too scared to do anything about it. But after a chance meeting in New York at a small cafe, the two catch up. However, the next time she sees him isn't until they both arrive back at school in Paris for their senior year of school. Will they finally become an item?

The Pros: This book is just so damn cute and Josh and Isla are just so cute together. I couldn't stop reading it. I loved how finally I get to see two characters together for the most part of the book (unlike Lola and Anna where they get together in the end) and it was so cute seeing them interact together. I loved how she supported his drawing and how he was so smitten with her.

The crossover where Anna, St Clair, Lola, Cricket, Mer, Josh and Isla are all in Paris together. AT THE SAME TIME. INTERACTING. Perkins definitely knows how to make me have all those feels. And what happened with between two specific characters. I did not see that coming. Everything was so perfect. I loved seeing where all the characters were now and what's to come in their future. 

The Cons: Although the relationship was super cute, I found it to be a bit of insta-love. I get why Isla loved Josh - she's had a crush on him for like forever. But I didn't really understand how Josh could like her that quickly. I felt as though he only really took notice of her properly when he saw her in New York. I didn't believe that he could love her that quickly. But I'm not complaining too much. They were adorable to read about. 

Some of the problems the characters faced within the book I found to be quite small. Problems, I found, were often blown out of proportion and I think a lot of these problems could have gone away if they actually talked about it. But then again, I could easily see these problems being present in a real life relationship.

Would I recommend this book?  Overall, it is a really cute book. If you loved Anna and Lola, then you will love this book. I'm really upset now that this will be the end of the Anna and the French Kiss series. It was so enjoyable to read about and it helped me get back into reading when I was in a reading slump. This series will forever be one of my all time favourites. 

Discussion: What makes me love a book

We all have those times where we just can't get into the books were reading. I'm kind of going through that right now. Usually, I try to persevere and finish the book just so I can mark it as 'Read' on Goodreads (let's face it, that's the only reason I will continue to read it). But I want to talk today about the books that make me want to continue reading. You know, those things that make a book enjoyable. So today, I'm going to go through what a book generally has to have in order for me to like it. It doesn't necessarily have to have it all of them, but have a few and I'm hooked.

- An engaging story - This is a big one. If the story is boring, I'm onto the next book

- Good writing - A few times the plot of the book seemed really interesting. However, the way it was delivered I didn't like. And it's sad, you know. I could have enjoyed that story but didn't

- Relatable Characters - This one pretty much speaks for itself. If the character seems like someone who will not exist in real life (because of their personality) or if one of the main characters are a complete asshole it can ruin a story for me (not always, but mostly)

- Humor - I love it when books have really funny dialogue or the character themselves are funny (eg. Daemon from Lux Series, Jace from The Mortal Instruments). It makes the book so much more enjoyable. I often love it in action type novels especially. It gives you a break from reading about all the action

- When books grab you from the first line - This I LOVE. For example, the first line in Divergent is 'There is only one mirror in my home'. This grabbed me. Who has only one mirror in their home? And if so, why does it seem as though it is intentional? I want to keep reading to find out why

- A romantic relationship that is super cute - My close friends know that I love fictional relationships whether it's in a book (eg. Anna/St Clair - Anna and the French Kiss) TV show (eg. Hanna/Caleb - PLL) or movie (eg. Becca/Jesse - Pitch Perfect). Those are just a few of my fictional relationship obsessions (actually, mainly I love the romantic interests). I'm always the one fangirling over them. And I love it.

That's all I can think of at the moment. What makes you love a book?

Movie Review: If I Stay

Those of you who know me well know that I adore the book If I Stay. You can read my review about it here. So when the trailers came out for the movie, it looked really good. I was excited. So I went out and saw the movie on the opening day. The first time I watched it, I didn't particularly enjoy it (for reasons that had nothing to do with the movie). So I went and watched it again and it was so much better than the first time. This is why my review is really late to be posted. I wanted to make sure that my first impression of the film was proper and not because of that specific reason

(NOTE: There are spoilers in here for those who haven't read the book. Proceed with caution)

Did it follow the novel? For the most part yes. But they also took quite a bit out. I felt as though some of the scenes that were not in the movie would have been great for those who haven't read the book. Who is Willow? Why was she at the hospital? Was she a friend? Was she a nurse? I don't feel as though it was explained. She was just there. She stopped Kim and Adam getting into trouble by saying to the security guards that they were close friends and she could handle it. But I don't think they told us why she was able to get them out of trouble. It was like some friend of Mia's family came and was like 'Wow. I know that they are actually a bit irrational at the moment, but I know them so let them go'. If she was a nobody, the security guard would have told her to get lost and leave. Obviously she was someone important but who was she? I actually asked my friend (who hasn't read the book) and she said she was confused as to who she was. Why did she have this power to prevent them from getting into trouble with the security guards?

Another part that bugged me was how they changed characters, particularly Adam and Liz. Liz in the book was so friendly, she loved Mia. In the movie, she was just there. She couldn't care less for Mia and it seemed as though she wasn't happy that Adam was in a relationship with her. Adam also came across at times very rude. He wasn't the Adam I feel in love with in the book. Maybe they changed their characters (especially Liz) to emphasize how much Mia doesn't fit into that 'rocker group'. And if that was the reason, I do understand. But it was still heartbreaking to see some of my favourite characters become a bit more rude. If I were to have only watched the movie and not read the book, I don't think I would have loved him very much. And I LOVE book Adam.

I wasn't too fond of the editing either. Towards the ending when Mia 'wakes up', I felt as though I was watching a horror movie. The editing of when basically Mia's life flashed before her eyes, while a good idea, the music that accompanied it was wrong.

What I Liked. I LOVED seeing Mia and Adam's relationship unfold. It was so beautiful and seeing the the parts from the novel on screen was so magical. I loved Mia's parents. They came to life really well.

How was the acting? Quite good actually. I don't have much to complain about in this section. I was a bit uncertain of Chloe Grace Mortez's acting, based on what I saw in the trailer. But I was pleasantly surprised by how happy I am that they chose her. I loved all the casting choices. Adam, Kim, Gramps, Kat. I loved all of them. And Chloe and Jamie looked so cute together as Mia and Adam

Did I cry? Yes I did. Although the movie was sad, I cried because I started thinking what if that was me in that situation? What would I choose? Where would I go if I did choose to stay? It really hit me hard. I know I thought about this while reading the book. And although I don't remember if I cried or not, I do know I was upset. But I guess seeing it on screen really made me cry again. I had to get out my tissues

Overall, the movie was a faithful adaptation and although I do have a few negatives about the film, those were the only ones. It wasn't enough for me to go 'Man, this movie sucks'. It is up there on my list of good adaptations. I would recommend you go to see it. It is an enjoyable movie to watch. I really hope that they make the sequel "Where She Went'. That will break my heart into a thousand more pieces.

Review: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Title: Lola and the Boy Next Door (Anna and the French Kiss #2)
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Released: September 2011
Pages: 338
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Favourite Quote: “I know you aren't perfect. But it's a person's imperfections that make them perfect for someone else.”

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion...she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit--more sparkly, more fun, more wild--the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood. When Cricket--a gifted inventor--steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

  My Review

Initial Thoughts: Man, Stephanie Perkins does it again. I am now officially in love with a new fictional male character. 

Lola has always liked Cricket Bell, ever since they were really young. They would have chats through their windows (they lived next door) and go on walks together 'accidentally'. But after Cricket breaks her heart and then moves away straight after, it was time for Lola to move on. So she did. She met Max - he's 22. She's 17. Although her parents don't approve of their relationship, they are still going strong. But then Cricket moves back into the house next door and a whole wave of emotions start to creep back into her.

The Pros: The flashbacks. I loved how they were beautifully woven into the story. I loved reading about Lola and Cricket's past and how they started to like each other. It was so adorable. It felt as though everything flowed. One minute were were reading about the present and the next we were in a flashback. I didn't even realise because I was so invested in the story. Stephanie Perkins never fails to create adorable stories

The romance was so damn cute. I loved Cricket and seeing what he would do for Lola even though it breaks his heart that she has a boyfriend. I loved how he was the nice guy. He didn't want Lola to cheat on her boyfriend with him even though it was so obvious that he was still in love with her. He was such a sweetheart. 

ANNA AND ST CLAIR. You do not know how much I fangirled seeing them there. And they had such a large part in the story. I think part of the reason why I loved this book so much was because of them. I loved seeing where their relationship was at now, what they were doing, how they were seeing each other. Anna and the French Kiss is my favourite book and basically seeing an update of their relationship in Lola was the best thing ever (can you tell how much I loved this?) 

The Cons: For this novel, I didn't feel as though we really knew too much about the secondary characters, mainly her friend Lindsey. We didn't really get to know her too well, compared what we got to know with Anna's friends in Anna and the French Kiss. But with that being said, I did feel as though we knew her parents really well, which is an unusual thing for a young adult novel. Usually the parents are forgotten about. But it was so good to see some really good parents and a protagonist who loved them so much.

Would I recommend this book? Yes, definitely. Although this book is not a good as Anna and the French Kiss, it will still be very much enjoyed by those who loved Anna. 

 

Review: Anna and The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Title: Anna and the French Kiss
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Pages: 372
Released: December 2010
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Dutton
Favourite Quote: “French name, English accent, American school. Anna confused.”
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Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris--until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all...including a serious girlfriend. But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French kiss?

My Review

Initial Thoughts: I didn’t expect to like this book as much as I did. I mean, I think I always knew I would like it, but LOVE it? Yeah, I didn't think that. I honestly would have finished this book within a day. But due to school and being in an exam period, it took me a bit longer. But all I was thinking about when I should have been studying was St Clair!

The story basically follows Anna's time in Paris after being sent there to boarding school by her father. Very angry with her dad, she reluctantly goes but ends up making a lot of new friends (and starts crushing on the most gorgeous guy in the school, who happens to have a girlfriend).

I thought this book was going to be one of those cheesy romance novels where she crushes on this guy who she can't have and then she gets upset and so on. And I guess it was sort of like that. But it was so much better.  

The Pros: The characters. Stephanie Perkins has created such enjoyable characters to read about. This story could have easily turned into one of those boring books about a girl trying to win over a guy, but it didn’t because she made the characters relatable. I understood the characters and even when they did do something that I didn't necessarily agree with, I understood why they did it. It made sense.

I was so engaged with the characters that I just kept wanting to read about them. Especially the secondary characters. I felt as though I knew them so well, I wanted to know what they were doing when we were looking at what Anna was doing (don’t get me wrong, I wanted to know what Anna was doing but I enjoyed the secondary characters so much that I wanted to know what they were doing too). Honestly, I would read a companion novel about this whole story but from another persons perspective. It was so enjoyable.

The Cons: To be honest, nothing really. The only thing that comes to mind was that it drove me crazy seeing St Clair and Anna not admitting to each other properly their feelings for one another. But then again, that is what this whole story is about.

Would I recommend this book? Of course! Anyone who, like me, is always fangirling about fictional relationships. Then this is for you (you probably already read it then cause I’m like 100years late to the party). Or if you want something different like a quick, cute and adorable read then this is for you too 

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Book Characters That Would Be Sitting At My Lunch Table

HIII, (can you tell I'm excited?)
Want to know why I'm excited? This weeks Top Ten Tuesday meme, run by The Broke and the Bookish, is Top Ten Book Characters That Would Be Sitting At My Lunch Table, which basically means list all my fictional boyfriends.

So, lets go through who of my fictional boyfriends I mean fictional characters I would choose to sit at my lunch table.

First up is... (drum roll please)

FOUR - (Divergent)

That's right. Four (aka Tobias) will be sitting at my table. I mean, who doesn't like Four? I'm sure he will protect me from all those bullies in the school 

Etienne St Clair - (Anna and the French Kiss)

How can I not choose him? He's so sweet and adorable and man, I just can't think properly right now. He is just so perfect. I can't process how perfect he is right now (fangirling moment)

Adam - (If I Stay)

Adam is just the perfect boyfriend. I'm sure he will always stick by me and he can play me his guitar and sing to me. He could write a song about me

Will Herondale - (The Infernal Devices)

Will. Will. How much I love you.

Peeta - (Hunger Games)

The most sweetest guy ever. And he can bake.   

Daemon Black - (Lux Series)

He can entertain us all with his sarcastic comments. 

Augustus - (TFiOS)

I'm sure he can teach us a thing or two

 

Well, since I should pick some girls to sit at my table (although I'm sure the 7 guys would give me more than enough company) they would be...

Anna - (Anna and the French Kiss)

She is just so nice and caring and patient

Katy - (Lux Series)

Cue the fangirling over fictional characters

Rose - (Vampire Academy)

Her badassness. And her sense of humor. She could entertain my for days 

That was very fun to list. I'm always ready to list all my favourite fictional boyfriends characters.  Are yours the same as mine? Let me know below

Lux Series by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Series: Lux Series (Obsidian, Onyx, Opal, Origin, Opposition)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
First Book Released: May 2012
Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Favourite Quote: “I don't think he meant to kiss me," I said finally.
"What? Did he slip and fall on your mouth? Those things are known to happen.”
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Starting over sucks.

When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.

Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something... unexpected happens.

The hot alien living next door marks me.

You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades.

If I don't kill him first, that is.

My Review 

The review below is for the whole Lux Series

Initial Thoughts: Oh my gosh. Daemon. You can be such a complete asshole but also such a good guy at the same time. This book blew my mind

The story basically follows a teenage girl named Katy. She's just moved to West Virgina with her mother, now a single parent, to have a fresh start after the death of her father. After her mother encourages her to make some new friends, she goes next door to get to know the two teenagers that live in the house. The eldest teen is Daemon. He is arrogant and pretty much pisses Katy off to her max. But after walking onto a road with oncoming traffic, Daemon freezes time which in turn 'marks' her. Until the 'mark' wears off, she must keep close to Daemon so he can protect her from the enemies of his kind. Turns out Daemon is hiding a secret of his own

The Pros: I really enjoyed the humor and pop culture references in this book. This made the story very relatable and I felt as though I really knew Katy. She was just like me. Although Daemon can be arrogant, he was hilarious due to his continuous sarcastic comments. There were times when I had to put the book down because I was laughing so much. One example in the first book was when he told Ashley to go buy a happy meal at McDonalds so that she will no longer be angry. I just couldn't stop laughing. There were lots of references to pop culture as well. For example, in the last book, there were so many Harry Potter references and there was even an Avengers reference. This helped the make the series so relatable 

I really loved the character of Katy. I loved how she wasn't one of those characters who let others walk all over her. Katy is very comfortable in her own skin and won't take crap from anyone. She puts Daemon in his place so many times that it was so funny. She was a very enjoyable character to read about. And the best thing was that she loved books as much as I do and even ran her own book blog. That was a pleasant surprise. You don't come across too many books where the main character has their own book blog and it was because of this that I found her so relatable. I loved how every Wednesday she would write a Waiting on Wednesday post. It reminded me of my blog so much and when I participate in Top Ten Tuesday

The Cons:  The beginning of the first book I found quite difficult to read and this was because of Daemon and his arrogant nature. I was so tempted at times to put the book down as he would became very annoying. I just wanted to jump in the book and slap him. He just thought he was the best person ever. However I did power through it and It was about 3/4 into the first book that I actually started to like him. We learnt more about Daemon and why he acts the way he does. I mean I love him so much now. He is now one of my favourite fictional characters 

Although I didn't particularly hate this, I know that many people will. This book as a lot of Twilight parallels to it. Although the characters are very different and how everything happens is different too, it can annoy some people. There were a few times when I thought, didn't something like this happen in Twilight? But honestly, it didn't really annoy me. Armontrout took an idea from Twilight, changed it and made it way more enjoyable. I found this happened more in the first book. But It paralleled Twilight in a good way

Would I recommend this book?  I'm not sure if this series is for everyone. But it is a very easy and fun series to read. I laughed so many times in this series and always had a smile on my face (except in the beginning when Daemon was being an asshole). If you don't mind the Twilight parallels (and as I said before it's not bad. It parallels it in a good way) then you will enjoy it. I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would.