July 2015 Book Haul

 

Hey my fellow book lovers! :) How are you all doing today? I'm doing well myself, I'm finally in the third trimester of my pregnancy, and I'm due in just 11 weeks. How crazy is that?! As for the bookish part of my life, I'm on a bit of a roll reading wise this month, as I've already read two books. :D I don't know whether I'll be able to keep this pace up, but I can try. ;) I really need to get down and read some of my review copies as they've built up a bit! The only problem with this is, I have absolutely not idea what kind of book I'm in the mood for. xD Oh well, I'm sure I'll find something! Anyways, enjoy my July 2015 book haul, I got some amazing looking books. :D

 

Video

 

Photos And Book Information

The Love Game & Playing for Keeps (The Game, #1-2) by Emma Hart.
Lips Touch by Laini Taylor.

A BIG thanks to Hodder who sent me copies of The Love Game bind-up and Lips Touch for review! They both look brilliant and I can't wait to read them. :)

A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston.
Monster by C.J. Skuse.

A HUGE thanks to Macmillan who sent a Proof Copy of A Thousand Nights for review, it looks amazing and I can't wait to start it. ^.^ Also a BIG thanks to Mira Ink who sent me a Proof Copy of Monster for review, it also looks really brilliant! :D

The Lost and the Found by Cat Clarke.
The Imaginary by A.F. Harrold & Emily Gravett.

A BIG thanks to Quercus who sent me a copy of The Lost and the Found for review. I LOVE Cat Clarke's writing, and I have a review posted here. ^.^ Also a big thank you to Bloomsbury who sent me a copy of The Imaginary for review, it looks really cute and I can't wait to read it. :)

The Heir (The Selection, #4) by Kiera Cass.
Sever (The Chemical Garden, #3) by Lauren DeStefano.

The Vanishing Game by Kate Kae Myers.
Breaking Glass by Lisa Amowitz.

Sea of Shadows (Age of Legends, #1) by Kelley Armstrong.
Recalled (Death Escorts, #1) by Cambria Hebert.

Elusion (Elusion, #1) by Claudia Gabel & Cheryl Klam.
17 & Gone by Nova Ren Suma.

Kiss Crush Collide by Christina Meredith.
Leap of Faith by Jamie Blair.

Blind Spot by Laura Ellen.
One Past Midnight by Jessica Shirvington.

The Raft by S.A. Bodeen.
Raven by Allison van Diepen.

The Lost Code (The Atlanteans, #1) by Kevin Emerson.
Legacy (Legacy, #1) by Molly Cochran.

 

Thoughts

EE! :D *does a little dance* I LOVE getting new books and sharing them with you all. They're just so pretty to look at, and they all look brilliant and I don't know which one I want to start first! I have to say, I also love taking pictures of my books, I've got photo proof of every single book I've brought since I started YouTube and Blogging. So if you don't include the ones I had beforehand, that's still probably about 950 books! :D Problem is, now I've officially run out of room. I have ones for next months haul, and then I'm completely out of space - I'm heartbroken! :( I can't wait to have my own place so I can display all of my beauties on gorgeous shelves, and just stare at them all day. :) Have you read any of these books? Let me know! ^.^

 

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What books have you brought or received lately? Leave me a comment or a link to your blog post and I'll be sure to check it out. ^.^ Happy reading! (:

July 2015 Wrap-Up

 

Hey bookish people! :D I'm back again for another Monthly Wrap-Up video and post. :) I only managed to read two books last month, which was a bit disappointing, but oh well! I did really enjoy both of them, so I'm happy about that. ^.^ On a side note, I've had no end of of trouble with my site the last few days, you wouldn't believe! My domain and hosting were set to run out/expire on the 6th August, so I was going to renew them both, but it ended up being much more expensive than I thought! I couldn't afford to pay this new price, so I figured I'd shop around and find another host that was cheaper. I finally settled on GoDaddy, and transferred everything over, but things have been all over the place. Files weren't transferring, my domain was still pointing at my old host and a hell of a lot of other issues. Luckily the support system for GoDaddy is brilliant and I think I've got everything sorted out now. But if there's any glitches or errors on my blog, I apologise! I'm working to make sure it's all sorted ASAP. Anyway, that's it for today, talk to you all again soon! :D

 

Video

 

Books Read In July 2015

• Pivot Point by Kasie West.



• The Lost and the Found by Cat Clarke.

 

Total: 2 books read.
Click on the link to be taken to the review.

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What books did you read in July 2015? Don't forget to leave me a comment or a link to your blog post and I'll be sure to check it out! ^.^ Happy Reading! (:

Review: The Lost and the Found by Cat Clarke

Title: The Lost and the Found.
Author: Cat Clarke.
Publication Date: July 2nd, 2015.
Publisher: Quercus.
Genres: Mystery, Contemporary, Young Adult.
Format: Paperback, 441 pages.
Source: Provided By Publisher.
My Rating:

Can you imagine?
A child - taken.
A whole family - torn apart.

Slowly, over the years, the family put themselves back together. A little broken, but still strong.

But then the child (now all grown up) comes home.

This is the story of what happens next.

 
 

Review

Whilst reading The Lost and the Found, I constantly had a heavy and foreboding feeling in my chest- kind of like the feeling you get when you know something bad is going to happen in a movie because you’ve seen it a million times before. I knew from the off that this book wasn’t going to be sunshine and butterflies, and there was going to be some big twist/and or reveal, because hey – this is Cat Clarke we’re talking about! Cat Clarke’s books aren’t for the faint hearted, they’re gritty and realistic with the ability to really make you question life. I’ve now read three books by Cat Clarke, and I must say she’s an absolutely brilliant author that I can’t wait to read even more from in the future – keep on writing, Cat, you’re incredible!

Faith is our main protagonist in The Lost and the Found and I loved her right from the start. I felt like I could really connect with her character in a way that made reading The Lost and the Found even more exciting! Faith is a really realistic character, with quirks and faults that make her even more loveable. She’s an incredibly strong person, and I don’t know how she’s dealt with being in the shadow of her missing sister all her life. She’s grown up with a mother who’s a shell of her former self, and who’s not been emotionally there for her at all, yet she still manages to be selfless and is always thinking of other people. She’s truly an inspirational character. Faith is torn between being delighted that her sister has come home, and feeling there’s something just not right – I personally think she handled the whole situation a whole lot better than I would have!

The secondary characters in The Lost and the Found were also brilliant and really well developed. They all had different and separate personalities and traits and although I didn’t love them all, they were still all brilliant to read about. Laurel is Faith’s missing sister, and at first, I was sure I was going to like her character, but as the book went on – I really started to despise her. She seemed too sweet and kind, almost to the point where it was sickly, and although she had been through a lot, she really irritated me with her behaviour. I have to say I wasn’t that keen on Faith’s mum either, I thought she was way too interested in the publicity of the whole situation. She seemed to love it and was revelling in it, and I often thought that it was strange, and definitely not right for her to be taking such a shine to the spotlight in the light of things. The last character I would like to mention is Michel, I won’t go into too much detail about him as I don’t want to spoil anything, but I have to say he was one of my favourite characters! I thought he was a brilliant little extra in the book, with his quirky personality and caring and loving nature. He’s definitely a character that I won’t be forgetting any time soon!

Overall, I thought The Lost and the Found was absolutely superb, and I loved every second of reading it. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but then again, very few books are, and I thought the ending seemed a little too rushed for my liking which was quite disappointing. However the characters were brilliant, and the plot, although a little predictable at times, was remarkable as well. I believe The Lost and the Found well and truly deserves the 4.5/5 star rating I’ve given it, and if any of you are fans of Mystery novels, then I’d really recommend you giving this book a go! I’d also recommend Cat Clarke’s writing to as many people that’ll listen as she’s a fantastic author who manages to put a twist into any average novel idea and make it shine beyond measure.

Quotes

I didn't even notice at first; Thomas is very good a skulking. But then I realized that I was seeing him all the time - in the corridors, in the library, in the courtyard. I mentioned it to Martha one day and she rolled her eyes at me. 'Finally. I was wondering when you were going to notice.' She was the one who encouraged me to talk to him, although 'Why the hell are you stalking me?' probably wasn't quite what she had in mind. - Page 98.

The sound of the balloon popping makes everyone in the common room jump and turn around to see where the noise came from. Laney Finch clutches her hand to her chest and leans on one of her friends to steady herself. One of the boys standing next to the coffee machine shouts the word 'DICK!' in our direction, probably embarrassed because he jumped so high his head almost hit the ceiling. - Page 315.

I thank her again, then rush out of the door, leaving a half-drunk cup of tea, a whole slice of carrot cake, and a slightly baffled Australian girl. - Page 382.

June 2015 Book Haul

 

Hey Book Nerds! :D How are you all doing today? I'm finally back to do my June book haul, and I'm really sorry it's a little late this month. Things have been crazy, and I've had lots of appointments, and the heat in the UK the past few weeks has been really awful. It's definitely been getting to me, it just makes me really uncomfortable so I haven't been up to filming. :/ Oh well! It's cooling off again now, which is a relief and I'm really pleased to have gotten this post done. :) I bought and received some awesome books last month, so I'm really excited to be sharing them all with you guys. I hope you enjoy this book haul, enjoy the gorgeous book porn! :D

 

Video

 

Photos And Book Information

Prisoner of Night and Fog (Prisoner of Night and Fog, #1) by Anne Blankman.
Not in the Script (If Only..., #3) by Amy Finnegan.

A BIG thank you to Headline publishing who sent me a copy of The Prisoner of Night and Fog for review. It looks really good and I hope to get around to reading it soon. :) Also a HUGE thank you to Bloomsbury who sent me a copy of Not In The Script for review, I'm really looking forward to reading it as soon as I can! :D

The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge.
Siena (Stella, #0.5) by Helen Eve.

A HUGE thanks to Macmillan who sent an ARC of The Lie Tree and a finished copy of Siena for review. ^.^ They both look really good and I can't wait to read them! :D

Messenger of Fear (Messenger of Fear, #1) by Michael Grant.
Rogue (Talon, #2) by Julie Kagawa.

A BIG thanks to Electric Monkey who sent me a copy of Messenger of Fear for review! I've heard some really good things about it and I can't wait to start it! :) Also a HUGE thanks to Mira Ink who sent me a copy of Rogue for review, I hope to get around to reading the first book in this series soon so I can read and review this one too!

Never Always Sometimes by Adi Alsaid.
Nowhere But Here (Thunder Road, #1) by Katie McGarry.

Another HUGE thanks to Mira Ink who sent me ARCS of Never Always Sometimes and Nowhere But Here for review. They both look really brilliant, and I can't wait to read them! :D

Talon (Talon, #1) by Julie Kagawa.
To All the Boys I've Loved Before (To All the Boys I've Loved Before, #1) by Jenny Han.

The Winner's Crime (The Winner's Trilogy, #2) by Marie Rutkoski.
The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle, #2) by Maggie Stiefvater.

After (After, #1) by Anna Todd.
Grey (Fifty Shades, #4) by E.L. James.

Divergent (Divergent, #1) by Veronica Roth.
Insurgent (Divergent, #2) by Veronica Roth.

Allegiant (Divergent, #3) by Veronica Roth.
Ignite Me (Shatter Me, #3) by Tahereh Mafi.

Embers and Echoes (Wildefire, #2) by Karsten Knight.
Star Cursed (The Cahill Witch Chronicles, #2) by Jessica Spotswood.

Defector (Variants, #2) by Susanne Winnacker.
The Burning Sky (The Elemental Trilogy #1) by Sherry Thomas.

Live Through This by Mindi Scott.
Alienated (Alienated, #1) by Melissa Landers.

Belladonna (Secrets of the Eternal Rose, #2) by Fiona Paul.

 

Thoughts

I'm pretty sure I say this every time I haul books, but oh well! The EXCITEMENT I have for these books is unbelievable! :P Plus, look at all of their gorgeous covers, how can you not be in love with them? The one I'm probably the most excited about though is Alienated by Melissa Landers. I paid £10 for a copy off the book depository because I've been wanting to get my hands on a copy for AGES. I don't normally do this, but I just had to for this particular one. It looks so fun! Have you read any of these books? Let me know! ^.^

 

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What books have you brought or received lately? Leave me a comment or a link to your blog post and I'll be sure to check it out. ^.^ Happy reading! (:

June 2015 Wrap-Up

 

Hey book nerds! :) I can't believe how quickly June has gone, it just seems to have flown by! I've been trying to read as much as I can, and I'm finally getting back into reading once more. And more importantly, I'm enjoying it again! The weather in the UK has been ridiculously hot, and I've been suffering quite badly due to this - I don't think being pregnant helps one bit. :P Normally I would be posting my June 2015 Book Haul before my wrap-up, but things have been all over the place this month, and this is the first video and post I've gotten round to making. :) I hope you all enjoy, and I'll chat to you all again soon. ^.^

 

Video

 

Books Read In June 2015

• Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge.



• Ten by Gretchen McNeil.



• Burning Blue by Paul Griffin.



• Better Than Perfect by Simone Elkeles.



• Burn For Burn by Jenny Han & Siobhan Vivian.

 

Total: 5 books read.
Click on the link to be taken to the review.

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What books did you read in June 2015? Don't forget to leave me a comment or a link to your blog post and I'll be sure to check it out! ^.^ Happy Reading! (:

Review: Better Than Perfect by Simone Elkeles

Title: Better Than Perfect.
Series: Wild Cards, #1.
Author: Simone Elkeles.
Publication Date: August 14th, 2014.
Publisher: Bloomsbury.
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult.
Format: Paperback, 344 pages.
Source: Provided By Publisher.
My Rating:

A lot can happen when you're not looking for love...

Ashtyn's life just got complicated. Her boyfriend is being distant and her sister's back at home after ten years - with a stepson in tow!

Derek has a perfect body, the sexiest smile and a car - Ashtyn's only way to escape from her crazy life. But Derek likes to play by his own rules and is keen to take Ashtyn on a ride she'll never forget. As they spend more and more time alone together, will Derek's flirty games drive Ashtyn wild?

 

Review

Better Than Perfect was an interesting book, but I’m in two minds on how I really feel about it. On one hand Simone Elkeles’ writing is funny and interesting and wonderfully scripted, and on the other I really wasn’t sure how I felt about the romance and I definitely didn’t like one of the characters. I also didn’t realise that there would be so much football talk/football related content involved – or any at all for that matter. Too much sport mentioned in novels is a big turn off for me, as I’m really not a fan of it, so it usually just soars clean over my head and starts to irritate me. I usually tend to avoid these types of books because of this, but oh well! Better Than Perfect is told in the dual perspective of our male and female main characters, which I always love as you get to see both sides of the story and get to know both characters on different levels.

Derek is our main male protagonist in Better Than Perfect and I loved his character! He’s cocky, funny and sarcastic and doesn’t pretend to be anything but himself even when he’s being an ass. Even though his character is supposed to be a bad boy, I didn’t see him that way at all. Derek is a sweetie, he may be a bit hot headed, but he cares a lot and isn’t afraid to show it at times - through actions or words. The only thing about Derek that irritated me was his constant use of the phrase ‘Sweetie Pie, It drove me absolutely nuts! It was so degrading and cringe-worthy, and irked the hell out of me. Other than that small issue though, I really did love his character.

Ashtyn is our female protagonist in the novel, and to be perfectly honest, I didn’t like her one bit! Ashtyn is a tomboy who loves to play football, but also has a girly and sexy side to her; the fact that her personality was so different from everyone else was her only redeeming quality. But she was also bitchy, immature, selfish, cruel, rude, needy and clingy – everything she claimed she’d never be! Ashtyn ran so hot and cold throughout Better Than Perfect, one minute she’s saying how much she hates Derek, and in the same paragraph she’s daydreaming about kissing him. Make up your mind, girl! I hated how she thought she could change Derek, and how, even though he’s been nothing but honest with her, she acts like the news of him being a player is a shock.

Overall I enjoyed Better Than Perfect, but it was far from an amazing and flawless book. I wasn’t fond of the romance that occurred and the relationship Derek and Ashtyn had. There just wasn’t any chemistry between them and there was way too much fighting and bickering between the two of them to make it enjoyable. If Simone’s writing wasn’t as great as it was, and if I didn’t like Derek’s character as much as I did, I’m pretty sure I would have put down Better Than Perfect rather than finishing it. It’s hard to say who I’d recommend this book too, but I do know that I will be reading more from Simone Elkeles in the future, as I love her writing style and character development. I’m definitely looking forward to reading more from her; it’s just a shame that I wasn’t that keen on this particular book.

Quotes

"I told you it wasn't her," Vic says. "She doesn't have the balls to do it."
That is so insulting. "I have balls, Vic!"
"I knew it!" Jet wags his eyebrows and reaches for my waistband. "Let me see 'em, Ash."
I roll my eyes and slap his arm away. - Page 77.

"I told you not to play, but no! Your ego got in the way of your brain and those shaved balls of yours."
"I didn't say I shaved them. I trim."
She looks at me as if I'm nuts. "Same difference." - Page 99.

I know this dream won't last forever and a part of me will always want him as a permanent fixture in my life.
"You own a piece of me," He murmurs as he holds me afterwards.
"Good," I tell him. "And just so you know...I'm never giving it back." - Page 316.

May 2015 Wrap-Up

 

Hey book nerds! ^.^ Sorry this post is a little late, but better late than never! ;) I know I haven't posted a wrap-up video or post in MONTHS, but I've decided to just start from scratch from what I read in May and forgo the books I've read since my last wrap-up. This is mostly because I can't be bothered to list them, even though there were only a few! Let me know if you'd like to know what I read between posts, and I'll comment you to tell you. ^.^ I've been trying my best to get back into my reading, as I had a long, long break - so I'm starting off slowly and trying not to push myself too much. So far it seems to be going well. :) I hope you're all doing well and you're having a lovely June so far, and I'll post again as soon as I can. ^.^

 

Video

 

Books Read In May 2015

• Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott.



• Salt & Stone by Victoria Scott.



• The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin.



• Hopeless by Colleen Hoover.



• Famous In Love by Rebecca Serle.

 

Total: 5 books read.
Click on the link to be taken to the review.

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What books did you read in May 2015? Don't forget to leave me a comment or a link to your blog post and I'll be sure to check it out! ^.^ Happy Reading! (: