tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91657176774876277332024-03-13T03:57:09.428+00:00Charlotte the Book SnifferSniffing books so you don't have to!Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.comBlogger63125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-86290563199660117372017-08-03T13:15:00.000+01:002017-08-03T13:58:58.137+01:00StarPassage: Heroes and Martyrs | Blog Tour & Book Review<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35201116-starpassage?ac=1&from_search=true" target="_blank"><b>Star Passage: Heroes and Martyrs</b></a>, by Clark Rich Burbidge<br />
<b>Published:</b> July 2017, by Deep River Books<br />
<b>Length:</b> 304 pages<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kIFuyFu0CDQ/WYL5059x66I/AAAAAAAAAu4/iHNaFtBRASIFF8BGVg0y9TV5U2DBRReWACEwYBhgL/s1600/StarPassage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1071" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kIFuyFu0CDQ/WYL5059x66I/AAAAAAAAAu4/iHNaFtBRASIFF8BGVg0y9TV5U2DBRReWACEwYBhgL/s320/StarPassage.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="214" /></a><b>Genre:</b> Middle Grade, Sci-Fi, Time-Travel<br />
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<b>My Rating:</b> 4 Stars!<br />
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<b>Synopsis:</b><br />
<span id="freeText6914721038896570964">The award-winning StarPassage saga continues with the relic guiding the Carsons to a new and desperate family. Two brothers, Bobby and Mike, are struggling after a tragic accident turns their world upside down.<br /><br />Join our heroes on a series of dangerous adventures to solve the relic's riddles, save lives, escape the ever-increasing Tracker threat, and experience some of the most dreadful and exciting moments in history.<br /><br />Will they learn from the past--should they change it if they can? Is there any hope for survival?</span><br />
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I received a copy of this book from <a href="http://www.prbythebook.com/" target="_blank">PR by the Book</a> (thank you!) in exchange for an honest review.</div>
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This in no way influences my opinions. </div>
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<b>My Review:</b></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kIFuyFu0CDQ/WYL5059x66I/AAAAAAAAAu4/iHNaFtBRASIFF8BGVg0y9TV5U2DBRReWACEwYBhgL/s1600/StarPassage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>This book surprised me in the best way. I read the first book of this series (<i>StarPassage: The Relic</i>) last year (you can read my review of which by clicking <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/starpassage-relic-book-review.html" target="_blank">here</a>), and while I did really enjoy the story, I don't remember the book as a whole as being especially outstanding. Consequently, while I was interested in the fates of Tim, Martie and the rest of the characters, I was slightly dubious of the execution of this novel. </div>
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I felt that every single aspect of the book had been improved upon through the transition from the first book to <i>Heroes and Martyrs</i>, and the majority of the slight issues I'd had with <i>The Relic</i> had been removed from this instalment to the series. As a result, I really enjoyed reading this book and would recommend it highly.</div>
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<i>StarPassage: Heroes and Martyrs</i> begins with the characters Bobby and Mike finding themselves in a life-changing accident, which has devastating impacts on them both. However, it is through this accident that they end up becoming close with Tim and Martie, and their family, and must face the prospects of embarking on their own StarPassages. This initial premise for the story was a really interesting and engaging way of beginning it, and unlike with so many other sequels, I was so glad to find that Burbidge had launched straight into the action as opposed to spending tedious chapters discussing the events of the previous novel. This was much appreciated from a reader's point of view!</div>
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The character development in this story was something I also really appreciated. In the first book, I remember thinking that Tim and Martie could've been explored in greater detail, and this novel allowed this to happen. We learnt more about each of them, and were introduced to many more characters who were equally as interesting to read about. I particularly enjoyed reading about Bobby and Mike, and how their fraternal relationship evolved over the course of the novel. I found the new characters of Donna and Kathy really interesting to read about, too, and I was very excited to read about them later in the novel. </div>
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I loved the time travel aspect of <i>Heroes and Martyrs</i>. This was something I'd liked in the previous novel, but I definitely found these historical events more engaging to read about. As devastating as those parts were, I thought the scenes from the war and from 9/11 made a great impact on the story, particularly since they were both more recent events. They were written in an appropriate way too, since they weren't overly graphic (considering that it's a children's book) yet they dealt with the seriousness of the event and didn't glamourize anything. It also added many interesting characters and plot-twists to the story, which were quite fun to read about.</div>
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In my opinion, Burbidge's writing style has definitely improved in this book. When I was reading <i>The Relic, </i>I remember thinking that it was the writing that didn't exactly do the book justice, considering how much of a great story the book had. In <i>Heroes and Martyrs</i>, I found the writing to be more sophisticated, which actually made the story easier to read and more enjoyable. </div>
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There were times when I still thought that the dialogue within the book slightly let it down; the way in which family members and friends spoke to each other still felt too formal for me, and I would have personally preferred a more realistic sense within the dialogue. </div>
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The thing I think I love the most about the <i>StarPassage</i> books is that not only are they really entertaining stories with great characters and plot-lines, they also act as great teachers for their readers. Dealing with mental health issues, such as PTSD, these novels provide such a great resource for children to relate to with their feelings. Not only do they get an interesting and completely captivating story, they're also inexplicitly shown how to deal with their feelings and are opened to health issues in a way that makes them less scary and confusing. Therefore, I think these books would be absolutely perfect for children who know somebody who has been affected, or have been affected themselves by a health issue, since the <i>StarPassage </i>books explain these issues in a great way for children to understand, all the while providing an amazing story for them to enjoy.</div>
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For this reason, I have given <i>StarPassage: Heroes and Martyrs</i> 4 stars. I really enjoyed it and I'd love to know what's going to happen next in the series, especially after that cliff-hanger of an ending. There were still a few slight niggles I had with certain aspects of the story, but as a children's book, it was great. I would recommend it to all kids between the ages of 9-14, especially those who have been struggling with some of the issues dealt with in this book. </div>
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You can purchase your own copy of this book through the following links:</div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/StarPassage-Book-Two-Heroes-Martyrs/dp/1632694433" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/starpassage-clark-rich-burbidge/1126443677?ean=9781632694430" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a></div>
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Thank you for reading this review! I hope to be back with another very soon.</div>
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If you've read the StarPassage books, I'd love to know your thoughts!</div>
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Charlotte xxx</div>
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-22181928644721762572017-07-26T10:30:00.000+01:002017-07-26T10:30:19.981+01:00Heavenwood | Book Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HXnTbOJJKD4/WXcP6tvxiQI/AAAAAAAAAug/cOXyrONRwtkGxS6GpuEvsA_zbc220543gCEwYBhgL/s1600/Heavenwood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="424" data-original-width="318" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HXnTbOJJKD4/WXcP6tvxiQI/AAAAAAAAAug/cOXyrONRwtkGxS6GpuEvsA_zbc220543gCEwYBhgL/s320/Heavenwood.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26884554-heavenwood?from_search=true" target="_blank"><b>Heavenwood,</b></a> by Ernest Yungsi<br />
<b>Published:</b> November 2016, by Smashwords<br />
<b>Length:</b> 276 pages<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Urban fantasy<br />
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<b>My Rating: 3.5 Stars</b><br />
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<b>Synopsis:</b><br />
<span id="freeText11671342203445212668">Married to the prettiest wife in the world, having many loyal friends and his own law firm, Jack Mann is about to receive the Lawyer of the Year Award, when he finds himself outside a movie theatre, face-to-face with a male giant, wearing a skirt who offers Jack videos of his wife and friends' darkest secrets. Jack enters the movie theatre and finds out that he too has done terrible things, some which he forgot to remember. What can Jack do, now that he is dead?</span><br />
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I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.</div>
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This in no way influences my opinions. </div>
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<b>My Review:</b></div>
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<i>Heavenwood</i> isn't really the type of book I'm used to, or one that I might normally read. Most aspects of this novel were completely different to what I'm used to reading, however, this was in no way a bad thing and I really enjoyed this book, particularly for its themes and the twists and turns in the plot line. This was something that pleased me for the entirety of the novel, and also one of my favourite things about the novel as a whole. </div>
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I'll admit, initially I was slightly confused with everything that occurred in the outset of the novel - we see a few different points of view, some of which appear to be told as flashbacks, and straightaway they seem to be completely separate storylines to each other. It was only when I continued reading for a little longer that I realised this was not at all the case. The plot lines interwove really well, and a lot faster than I had anticipated, which I believe the story benefited from. This meant that it didn't take too long for the story to 'introduce' itself and set out the main plot line. </div>
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The characters in <i>Heavenwood</i> were initially slightly confusing people for me, before the plot lines had straightened themselves out. Jack is our main character, who has just died and gone to 'Heavenwood', and Nikka is his wife, now widow. We see Jack's friend Dickson in a few of the scenes, too, who appears to be attempting to get with Nikka following Jack's death, which I think is the part I found to be the most confusing. However, I was happy by the end of the novel when everything was revealed regarding these characters - it was a satisfying reveal and ending and I was content with the character progression, particularly that of Jack, throughout the course of the novel - I definitely found that I liked him as a person more towards the end. </div>
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In terms of the writing in <i>Heavenwood</i>, I have no faults to pick up on. Perhaps the style of writing isn't what I'm used to reading and what I'd necessarily pick when I look for a novel, but in terms of how it told the story, it was pretty fast-paced yet also descriptive. The length of this novel was something that I thought benefited the story as a whole, and since it is a fairly short book it was able to get to the point quite quickly - I liked this. Overall, though, I had no problems with the writing in this book - it definitely did what it needed to and conveyed the story well. </div>
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In the least negative way possible, the story of <i>Heavenwood</i> was slightly confusing from time to time. I did feel that parts of it were difficult to follow, and while the concept behind the story was definitely interesting, it was also strange until I managed to get my head around it. I liked the themes behind the story, particularly the ideas of forgiveness and learning more about yourself, and I also really liked the idea this story proposed about what happens to you when you die, and it was definitely an interesting touch for all of the characters in the story to be dead. </div>
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Some parts of the story did seem slightly far-fetched to me, even for a novel set in an after-world of sorts. I'm not quite sure how I felt about all the murders that everybody had committed. Obviously, murders do happen, and there are murderers who go undiscovered, but for a great deal of the principal characters to have killed someone at some point seemed slightly too far for me, but it definitely was an interesting touch. </div>
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Overall, I liked this book. I liked how deep it was, and how it left me as the reader with so many moral questions and thoughts. This story did touch me a lot, and made me consider things about my life and my choices that I definitely wouldn't have thought of before reading <i>Heavenwood</i>. For that reason, I think it's quite an important book for a wide audience to read, and therefore I would recommend it to (young) adults who are a fan of urban fantasy books, particularly those which deal with death or life after death. I gave <i>Heavenwood</i> 3.5 stars overall, because I did really enjoy it, but like most other books, it had a few minor faults that just prevented it from being amazing, in my opinion. It was still a really good read though, and I'd be interested in keeping an eye on this author for any future work. </div>
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If you're interested in reading <i>Heavenwood</i> (and I really suggest that you give it a go!) you can purchase it from the following sites:</div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Heavenwood-Ernest-Yungsi/dp/154082193" target="_blank">Amazon</a> | <a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/heavenwood-ernest-yungsi/1125098795" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble </a> | <span id="goog_1149114691"></span><a href="https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/heavenwood/9781310676604" target="_blank">Kobo</a><span id="goog_1149114692"></span></div>
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I hope you have enjoyed reading this review, and I'll be back with more very soon!</div>
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If you've read Heavenwood then I'd love to know what you thought!</div>
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Charlotte xxx</div>
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-65940410394445775402017-01-15T16:00:00.000+00:002017-01-15T16:00:07.896+00:00Harry Potter and the Cursed Child | Review!This post has been a long time coming, and, due to a massively busy schedule, I had to take a little break from reviewing for the last two months or so, so huge apologies for that. I'm hoping to be able to post a little more regularly now! <br />
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ajDNtr-5KLY/WHfMYFHYANI/AAAAAAAAAsI/wgZX-6J1lc8x0z55puCvNYVsW0-p586RgCLcB/s1600/DSCN0361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ajDNtr-5KLY/WHfMYFHYANI/AAAAAAAAAsI/wgZX-6J1lc8x0z55puCvNYVsW0-p586RgCLcB/s320/DSCN0361.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29056083-harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child---parts-one-and-two?from_search=true" target="_blank">Harry Potter and the Cursed Child</a></b>, by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany<br />
<b>Published:</b> July 2016, by Little, Brown<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Fantasy, Play<br />
<b>Length:</b> 343 pages<br />
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<b>My Rating:</b> 5 Stars!!<br />
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Unless you've been living under a sizable rock for the last year or so, you'll be aware of the brand new addition to the Potterverse that has had ever kind of Harry Potter fan impatiently awaiting its release. In July this year, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was finally released as a play, both in the theatres and in bookshops. However, since I had booked tickets for the play in October (you can read about that hellish experience by clicking <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2016/08/the-struggle-of-harry-potter-and-cursed.html" target="_blank">here</a>) I had vowed to leave the book firmly closed until after I had been to see the play - and yes, I really did have to padlock the book shut in order to do this!<br />
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Just under 4 months of waiting did pay off in the end, though, and I am so glad I managed to last without reading the script beforehand as I can honestly say it maximised the experience of the play to an even more incredible level!<br />
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*****</div>
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"It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children.<br />
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While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places."<br />
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Words cannot explain how amazing watching The Cursed Child was. If I could watch it again every single remaining day of my life, I would do so without hesitation. <br />
In fact, the whole experience of going to London to see the play was a magical one, and one that I will never forget. <br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iipQ1IZ9wnE/WHuDdotU1MI/AAAAAAAAAsg/hyPQOgAoP8M47bkZJ6Mc5uQ6rNlrmMTewCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TOCxjDYVAKg/WHuDcZJJcmI/AAAAAAAAAsY/fm3JQYYOMRghL_DrIBw-CqVdYODLEMccgCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>I had decided to properly get into the spirit of the event (because why<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ajDNtr-5KLY/WHfMYFHYANI/AAAAAAAAAsI/wgZX-6J1lc8x0z55puCvNYVsW0-p586RgCLcB/s1600/DSCN0361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ajDNtr-5KLY/WHfMYFHYANI/AAAAAAAAAsI/wgZX-6J1lc8x0z55puCvNYVsW0-p586RgCLcB/s1600/DSCN0361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a> not?!) and donned my full set of robes, complete with Gryffindor tie, wand, and time-turner! Accompanying me was a fully-costumed Bellatrix Lestrange, and the pair of us definitely turned a few heads when we travelled on the extremely-busy Underground and walked through the streets of London on the way to the theatre! And even more people gave us some rather strange looks when we sat ordering pizza in a restaurant between the two parts of the play! <br />
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I know that many people actually felt quite let down with The Cursed Child, and I have a few friends who have completely disregarded the story as an addition to the series, which I why I believe I made the right choice in waiting until I had seen the play on stage. <br />
There are parts of the criticism that, I must say, I do agree with, despite the unmeasurable amount of love I have for everything Harry Potter. However, I will stand by what I said before the play was released as a script - The Cursed Child was always intended to be a play. It was intended to be seen on the stage, performed by actors, with special effects, music, and going alongside the full theatre experience. It was not intended to be read as a book, as a simple collection of dialogue and stage directions. <br />
Therefore, I cannot understand how people are criticising this as a book when they have not experienced the play as it was intended. It very much frustrates me. <br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wmAj1tDAEPA/WHuDchREUeI/AAAAAAAAAsc/3AK50hZ__fkqqxQLUNpV2cO7C1w_KebCgCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild%2BCover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wmAj1tDAEPA/WHuDchREUeI/AAAAAAAAAsc/3AK50hZ__fkqqxQLUNpV2cO7C1w_KebCgCLcB/s320/Cursed%2BChild%2BCover.jpg" width="208" /></a>Practically the minute I left The Palace Theatre following the end of Part Two (after I'd composed myself from being an emotional wreck) I unlocked my copy of The Cursed Child script and began to read it for myself, and, as much as I loved being able to relive it, it did not nearly live up to what I had just witnessed. <br />
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I couldn't help but feel a l<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wmAj1tDAEPA/WHuDchREUeI/AAAAAAAAAsc/3AK50hZ__fkqqxQLUNpV2cO7C1w_KebCgCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild%2BCover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wmAj1tDAEPA/WHuDchREUeI/AAAAAAAAAsc/3AK50hZ__fkqqxQLUNpV2cO7C1w_KebCgCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild%2BCover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>ittle bit disappointed that what was written on the page wasn't even able to nearly describe what I had seen on the stage, so I can understand how people had felt let down by what they had read. <br />
In this respect, I feel so privileged that I was able to get tickets as early as I did and that I was able to attend the play fairly early on in its life. <br />
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Absolutely nothing will ever me able to capture the absolute magic that The Cursed Child was. It was beautiful to watch and I really felt honoured to be there. I had expected magic, obviously, with it being Harry Potter, but I never expected it in the full extent that it was - I was just blown away. Wands seemed completely magic, producing sparks, fire and smoke at command, fingers grew to the length of broomsticks (yes, really!), and I honestly can't comprehend how they managed to use Polyjuice Potion onstage and transform into other actors. It was incredible!<br />
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*****</div>
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The actors who managed to pull off this spectacular performance were completely stunning. They obviously had to have a few different characteristics in comparison to the character we have loved for so long in the Harry Potter films, but this is understandable since they were necessary for the performance. I thought Harry and Ron, in particular, were very realistic and were fairly close to how I imagined them to be in the future. <br />
Hermione, on the other hand, wasn't quite as how imagined her in terms of characteristics. This was quite disappointing for me since Hermione is a character I have aspired to be like since the age of six, and I just didn't feel like I connected with her as much. This could be just due to the larger age gap between us now, but I just didn't feel as if she was likable, and she definitely seemed out of character in my opinion. <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TOCxjDYVAKg/WHuDcZJJcmI/AAAAAAAAAsY/fm3JQYYOMRghL_DrIBw-CqVdYODLEMccgCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
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This brings me to the issue of the story itself. I'm not going to pretend that I loved every aspect of it, even though I really, really loved the play itself. I thought that the story itself gave off the feeling of fanfiction. And don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with fanfiction; I am a proud reader and writer of fanfiction, so I don't have issues with it. I could tell that this story didn't completely come straight from the mind of J.K. Rowling. It just didn't feel like her story, and there were aspects of the play that I didn't think were all that believable. <br />
Like I've said before, I feel very close to Hermione as a character, and I really can't see that she would've become the Minister of Magic. It doesn't feel like a Hermione-ish job and I can't see that she would've enjoyed it. Obviously people change from when they're a teenager, but it just didn't seem right to me. <br />
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TOCxjDYVAKg/WHuDcZJJcmI/AAAAAAAAAsY/fm3JQYYOMRghL_DrIBw-CqVdYODLEMccgCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TOCxjDYVAKg/WHuDcZJJcmI/AAAAAAAAAsY/fm3JQYYOMRghL_DrIBw-CqVdYODLEMccgCLcB/s320/Cursed%2BChild.jpg" width="320" /></a>That being said, I loved the new characters. Scorpius Malfoy is my new literary love. He was an amazing character and I loved every single part of him. Like I've said before, though, he was captured in the script in an entirely different way to how the amazingly talented Anthony Boyle portrayed him on the stage (which was as an awkwardly hilarious, jittery, caring and loyal wizard, as opposed to the shy and nervous way I had interpreted him from the script). <br />
I also really loved Albus and Rose (of course!) but it was Scorpius who stole the show for me, I think. He was just amazing.<br />
I was a little disappointed at the lack of other characters, like Hugo, Lily Jr. and James Jr., as I would've liked to see a lot more of them, but I suppose this would've been difficult given it being a stage show with limited time to tell the story it wanted to tell. <br />
I really, really, don't want to spoil anything in this post, but I also feel the need to mention the absence of a certain Professor of Herbology, who I was desperate to see grown up! <br />
And also, I would've absolutely <u>loved</u> to see Mr and Mrs Weasley in this addition to the story; it just didn't feel like Harry Potter without them! <br />
But, I suppose, this is something that made The Cursed Child unique, in that it wasn't a continuation of Potter, simply there to tell new stories about all of the old characters; it was definitely its own story, about new characters, or old characters with new personalities. Whether this is a good thing or not, I can't quite tell, but it certainly made the play unique.<br />
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Back to my point about the slightly 'unbelievable' storyline, I can't quite describe my feelings towards the basis for the storyline. Without trying to spoil the play too much for anyone who has not yet read or seen The Cursed Child (seriously, guys! Get yourselves to London ASAP!), the play itself was a little confusing, as is anything that messes with time travel and changes history! This is why I thought the storyline was a little far-fetched, since it didn't seem all that original or realistic. I was in a rather torn situation as to whether or not I liked the addition of the character Delphine, either. I mean, she definitely added a lot to the story, but whether I liked what she added or not is another question. <br />
It was just a little bit odd, in my opinion. Don't get me wrong, I did absolutely love it, it was just a little odd.<br />
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*****</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iipQ1IZ9wnE/WHuDdotU1MI/AAAAAAAAAsg/hyPQOgAoP8M47bkZJ6Mc5uQ6rNlrmMTewCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>I was massively impressed by the length of the play as a whole! I was so surprised to find that the entirety of the show would last over five hours! Every single part was as magical and spellbinding as the last and I got goose-bumps just watching!<br />
The ending of the play was honestly one of the most emotional things I have ever witnessed, and even though I managed to control the sobbing so that the never-ending flow of tears was as silent as possible (unlike in many other situations!) the emotions that overcame me were like no other. A lot of it was probably from the build-up and knowledge that this really was the end of Harry's journey, then the rest was made-up of the sadness of the story that I was witnessing, because that last part, where they had to go back to Godric's Hollow and relive a particular event, was sad. Really sad. Heart-breakingly sad. <br />
Unfortunately, (or fortunately, depending on your opinion of my sobbing!), I didn't get the same level emotion from reading the play again after watching it, but it was still rather devastating. <br />
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*****</div>
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I really don't think there's a lot else I can say about The Cursed Child. It marked the end of an era for me, as it really gave me the impression that our journey with Harry was over, and over for good this time. </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iipQ1IZ9wnE/WHuDdotU1MI/AAAAAAAAAsg/hyPQOgAoP8M47bkZJ6Mc5uQ6rNlrmMTewCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iipQ1IZ9wnE/WHuDdotU1MI/AAAAAAAAAsg/hyPQOgAoP8M47bkZJ6Mc5uQ6rNlrmMTewCLcB/s320/Cursed%2BChild%2B2.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a>I am in love with the play, both for what it represented for me, and for the experience it gave me. </div>
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I cannot fault the way in which it was pulled off; it was absolutely spectacular, and like I said, I feel honoured to have been able to see it. The script and storyline itself I was less of a fan of. That doesn't mean at all that I didn't like it, it just felt to me like it wasn't completely genuine and I don't believe it's the way in which J.K. Rowling intended the story to go. I personally feel that my own made-up continuation for the Potter books could be better for the story as a whole than this was (although I'm probably quite biased) so in this respect, I wasn't overly ecstatic. I prefer to think of The Cursed Child as amazing fan-fiction that just so happened to be turned into a stage-show, as opposed to it being canon, since it's easier for me to accept that way.</div>
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*****</div>
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Harry Potter is the series of books that is the closest to my heart. In fact, it's probably one of the closest things to my heart in general. For that reason, I'm fairly protective over it and was worried when I'd heard the massively critical response to The Cursed Child. However, I can assure you that seeing this play was honestly one of the best experiences of my life. It was magical and I think that's the best word I can use to describe it. I will continue to judge The Cursed Child as a play, not as a script, because, like I've said, that's how I believe it was intended to be judged. So, if you read the script and were not impressed, I urge that you don't take it to heart, and instead, just go and see the play! You will not regret it, I promise! <br />
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I am desperate to go back to London and watch it numerous times again, and I'm sure that I will end up going again in the relatively near future! It was far too good to only see once!<br />
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*****</div>
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If you've read or seen The Cursed Child, I'd love to know what you thought so please let me know!<br />
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I hope to be back with another post very soon, but until then, au revoir!<br />
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Charlotte xxx</div>
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-47004926968784077992016-10-10T20:35:00.001+01:002016-10-10T20:35:16.216+01:00Midnight Angel | Book Review<div>
<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=1560abf6bf60d96b&attid=0.3&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ-EqCfYHlIXZghXckvBnZ5J41Yeni88jY3R28taYB3xIQ4SxfK-okjhdX1f3B5P-xVNc5CzGfnlqmaKVjtHNwluEZo_PF20iMnkhlr6s_Z25nl-GFTqLp0hmwg&ats=1476123943186&rm=1560abf6bf60d96b&zw&sz=w1034-h619" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Displaying MA.jpg" border="0" height="320" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=1560abf6bf60d96b&attid=0.3&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ-EqCfYHlIXZghXckvBnZ5J41Yeni88jY3R28taYB3xIQ4SxfK-okjhdX1f3B5P-xVNc5CzGfnlqmaKVjtHNwluEZo_PF20iMnkhlr6s_Z25nl-GFTqLp0hmwg&ats=1476123943186&rm=1560abf6bf60d96b&zw&sz=w1034-h619" width="212" /></a></div>
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30725686-midnight-angel?ac=1&from_search=true" target="_blank">Midnight Angel</a>, </b>by Tracey A. Wood<div>
<b>Published:</b> June 2016, by Soul Mate Publishing</div>
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<b>Length: </b>292 pages</div>
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<b>Genre: </b>Adult, Paranormal Romance</div>
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<b>My Rating: </b>3 Stars!</div>
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<b>Synopsis:</b></div>
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After almost losing her life in a vicious, bloody attack, Kat Shaw, a thirty-something divorcee, discovers that there are such things as monsters. And the predator who attacked her is not human. </div>
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She starts to develop unusual skills that have murderous consequences. And she becomes an unwilling witness to multiple, brutal murders, seen through the eyes of a killer.</div>
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Thrown into a battle of Good Vs. Evil, she falls in love with two men who are not what they seem.</div>
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While her attacker stalks her and continues to murder the innocent, she has to find the inner strength to take on and fight the demons from hell - to protect her family and friends while also trying to save her own life.</div>
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I received an advanced reader copy of this book from Xpresso Tours in exchange for an honest review.</div>
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This in no way influences my opinions. </div>
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<u>My Review</u></div>
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I must admit, <i>Midnight Angel</i> is probably not the sort of book I'm used to reading. I'm a massive fan of paranormal romance books, however, I do believe this is the first I've read in the 'Adult' genre since I generally prefer to stick to 'Young Adult' when it comes to romance and all things paranormal. However, the synopsis of<i> Midnight Angel</i> really appealed to me, so I thought it was definitely worth a go!</div>
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The first thing I noticed when reading <i>Midnight Angel</i>, and apologies for starting with a slight negative, was that it was a little difficult to follow. There wasn't really much of an 'introduction' of sorts to the story, which I did enjoy since it just jumped straight into the action without having to set out who the characters were and how everybody felt about each other. So, I thought that the fast-paced action and quickly-developing plot really worked in the favour of the story to begin with. </div>
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However, I soon began to notice that the rest of the book was just as equally fast-paced, which I didn't appreciate quite as much. It just made it a little hard to grasp at times, since it felt like it was jumping straight from one action sequence to the next. </div>
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I actually thought the characters in the book were great. They had definite dimensions to them and were not just 'empty' characters, with no back-stories or past-experiences. Kat was certainly quite a strong main character, even if there were times where I questioned her motives and choices, which didn't always seem too genuine or smart. I liked the fact that, deep down, she was pretty much a normal person who was simply attempting to deal with the changes that went on around her. </div>
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The other characters within the story were also fairly strong and relatable, and select few were fairly cute, too, which is always wins them points in my books! I'm not sure I liked the idea of the love triangle in the book - if I'm honest, I'm getting a little fed up of love triangles in general as I'm not entirely sure what they add to a story, but this one was certainly interesting. </div>
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Tracey A. Wood's writing in <i>Midnight Angel </i>was another positive within the book. I haven't read anything else by this author before, but I enjoyed how relatable the writing and story-telling was. It was fairly easy to read, and was almost like just reading thoughts in your head, the way it was pulled off. I wouldn't say that it had anything completely special or unique about it, but it did suit the story and gave the book a completely different feel to other paranormal fantasy books, due to this.</div>
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Overall, I did enjoy the plot of the novel, even if it did seem slightly confusing and overly fast-paced at times. I really liked the 'mystery' aspect of the story, what with the murders and attacks; I definitely thought this improved the story and for this reason, I gave<i> Midnight Angel</i> 3 stars out of a possible 5.</div>
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I would recommend <i>Midnight Angel</i> to fans of a paranormal romance or anyone partial to a modern 'murder mystery' type of novel. The book did contain a great deal of mature content including quite a lot of bad language and sex, therefore, I would only suggest this book to a mature audience (roughly 16-18 plus, depending on maturity) and I would also suggest that the book probably shouldn't be read in public places!</div>
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So, despite its faults, I did enjoy the story and hope other people do too!</div>
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You can buy your own copy of <i>Midnight Angel</i> on Amazon through this <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Angel-Council-Book-1-ebook/dp/B01GQIZJG4" target="_blank">link</a>!</div>
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I hope you have enjoyed this review and I hope to be back for more soon! </div>
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If you have read <i>Midnight Angel</i>, I'd love to hear your thoughts!</div>
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Charlotte xxx</div>
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-26105723267038059142016-09-30T23:12:00.000+01:002016-09-30T23:12:50.962+01:00Sun and Moon | Book Review<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=1567f6c19d85d99a&attid=0.3&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ_KMNE_3_d7OSylA6gF0giGM8ENQyLEXCPN9GLuMT1VTRSCTxiFBXhA9Yz5bwdZEog5xbOH99VCjzjA54nIhm0QPhOFPzuMKtz94LwgUArn7hdUXl6cjHhX7Lo&ats=1475268116754&rm=1567f6c19d85d99a&zw&sz=w1366-h650" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Displaying SunMoon.jpg" aria-hidden="true" border="0" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3 aLF-aPX-aLK-ayr-auR" height="320" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=1567f6c19d85d99a&attid=0.3&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ_KMNE_3_d7OSylA6gF0giGM8ENQyLEXCPN9GLuMT1VTRSCTxiFBXhA9Yz5bwdZEog5xbOH99VCjzjA54nIhm0QPhOFPzuMKtz94LwgUArn7hdUXl6cjHhX7Lo&ats=1475268116754&rm=1567f6c19d85d99a&zw&sz=w1366-h650" width="208" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30047544-sun-and-moon" target="_blank"><strong>Sun and Moon</strong></a><strong>,</strong> by Desiree Williams<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> April 2016, by Createspace<br />
<strong>Length:</strong> 255 pages<br />
<strong>Genres:</strong> Fantasy, YA<br />
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<strong>My Rating:</strong> 4 Stars!<br />
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<strong>Synopsis:</strong><br />
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There is nothing in life that eighteen year old Zara craves more than her freedom. Stolen from her home in Cadrebia at the age of eight, Zara has spent more years than she cared to admit as a slave to the Tankadesh courts. Her days are filled with protecting the princess, while she spends nights entertaining the king and his officials with her mastery of weapons. Any spare moment in between, she plots escape.<br /><br />Yet her hopes for freedom come to a crashing halt when a stranger arrives bearing the mark of her assigned lifemate, and he threatens war if she isn’t turned over into his care. But a lifemate is not part of the plan. Her dreams, of choosing her own path and being the master of her own will, weaken as her Moon seeks to claim his Sun.<br /><br />Is it possible that this stranger, with gentle blue eyes and a ready smile, didn’t come to be her new master? That there could be more to his tale?<br /><br />Zara soon finds that neither her captivity nor her parents’ deaths were mere random attacks. And by returning to Cadrebia, she may have put the future of the royal line—and her Moon—in jeopardy. While Zara breathes in her first taste of freedom, her enemies move in, seeking to rob Cadrebia of its blessed prophecy.<br /><br />To keep what she holds dear, Zara must rise above the pain and uncertainty to claim the lifemate assigned to her, or more than her freedom will be stolen this time.<br />
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I received an advanced reader copy of this book from Xpresso Tours in exchange for an honest review. </div>
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This in no way influences my opinions.</div>
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<u>My Review</u></div>
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I honestly wasn't really sure what to expect when I began to read<em> Sun and Moon</em>. I was a little confused by the synopsis of the book and wasn't too sure that I'd enjoy reading the story...</div>
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Oh, but I was wrong!</div>
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I <u>loved</u> the ideas and plot of this story. It was a fantastic idea and it lead to me being really captivated in the story. I really loved the idea of two people being completely destined to be together, no matter what their age or personality. I also loved the way that this idea was pulled off within the story; it's not a completely original idea for a story, but the way it was written made it feel completely new, which I completely loved! I really liked the idea of each person getting a 'mark' when they and their destined partner came of age, and the idea that they're just drawn towards each other in an incontrollable way. </div>
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Needless to say, I loved the way Zara was matched up within the story!</div>
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Actually, I thought Zara herself was a great character. I appreciated how strong she seemed, particularly considering her past as a prisoner to the royal family with a deceased family. She was a really good and solid main character, and I also really enjoyed how much she developed over the course of the story, it was great to see!</div>
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In fact, I liked most of the characters in the story. From what I can recollect, there were no particular characters that irritated me throughout the book. I loved Jaedon as a love-interest and character of his own - he really was just perfect! There was no fault to him whatsoever!</div>
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The romance in <em>Sun and Moon</em> was swoon-worthy to say the least! It was the kind of romance that just leaves you feeling mushy inside; the kind that really just makes you feel happy with your life. So this book definitely delivered on the romance side of things! I guess you could say it had some issues, but the only issue I found with it was that it seemed too perfect to be real - but in a fiction book, does this really matter? I love a good romance one in a while!!</div>
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I really enjoyed Desiree Williams' writing over the course of this novel. It made the book really easy to read, and also meant for quite a quick read; great for getting out of a reading slump! If I'm completely honest, I didn't think the writing was particularly anything too special, but it certainly wasn't bad! I quite enjoyed it!</div>
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I guess the only issue I really had with <em>Sun and Moon</em> was that it just seemed too perfect. There was a perfect, strong, female lead, a perfectly gorgeous love interest who just did <u>everything</u> right, and a perfectly happy ending. Every now and then, I do quite enjoy a book with a 'perfect' romance, like I've already said, but when absolutely everything ends this way, it can just seem a little sickly and false.</div>
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I do believe <em>Sun and Moon </em>would have benefited from a little more 'grit' and struggle. I mean, there were definitely aspects of this in the story, but I don't think it was quite prominent enough to balance out the happiness.</div>
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It was refreshing to read a happier book in the fantasy genre for a chance, but I just think this story verged on being just too happy. This, however, could just be a fault in my taste of stories rather than within the book itself. </div>
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I would recommend <em>Sun and Moon </em>to fans of YA Fantasy. The content in this book was probably a little too 'happy' for fans of really raw and gritty fantasy novels, however, if you're in the mood for a lighter read, this is definitely the book for you! Despite it being classed as a book for Young Adults, I do also think that people older than the recommended age could enjoy this story too. </div>
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I ended up giving <em>Sun and Moon </em>4 stars in total, since I really, really enjoyed the idea of the book and the characters, but I do think it could have benefitted from being just a little more gritty with maybe a little more action. Except for that, I did really enjoy the book and would definitely be interested in reading more from this author!</div>
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You can purchase <em>Sun and Moon </em>through this <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Sun-Moon-Desiree-Williams-ebook/dp/B01D0UXZVC" target="_blank">link</a>!</div>
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I hope you've enjoyed this review! If you've read or want to read <em>Sun and Moon</em>, I'd love to know your thoughts!</div>
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Until my next review,</div>
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Charlotte xxx</div>
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-82351934234557404032016-09-25T21:21:00.000+01:002016-10-10T20:54:47.945+01:00Somniare | Book Review<div style="clear: left; float: left; height: 2122px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; width: 659px;">
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Hzld-SBm0oc/V-e1Vzd5v9I/AAAAAAAAAqQ/erm-Zdbpb6QiFdBzcsW9n1XQBG7vCCeeACLcB/s1600/Somnaire.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Hzld-SBm0oc/V-e1Vzd5v9I/AAAAAAAAAqQ/erm-Zdbpb6QiFdBzcsW9n1XQBG7vCCeeACLcB/s320/Somnaire.png" width="210" /></a></div>
<strong><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29218015-somniare?from_search=true" target="_blank">Somniare</a></strong>, by D.T. Dyllin<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> July 2016, by Tik Tok Press<br />
<strong>Length:</strong> 270 Pages<br />
<strong>Genre:</strong> YA, Fantasy, Romance<br />
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<strong>My Rating:</strong> 3 Stars<br />
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<strong>Synopsis:</strong><br />
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<span id="freeText10775820476149005394"><strong><em>Remy Novem was
murdered…<br /><br />But she didn’t die.</em> </strong><br /><br />Forced to escape to
Somniare, a dream landscape, Remy must somehow survive living nightmares, and
endless torment without using her magic. Her only hope for freedom is to hitch a
ride with a human back into reality, tricking the poor creature into believing
no harm will befall them.<br /><br />Remy isn’t troubled by the fact that she must
kill to live…<br /><br />Until love changes everything.</span><br />
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I received an advanced reader copy of this book from Xpresso Tours in exchange for an honest review. </div>
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This in no way influences my opinions.</div>
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<u>My Review</u></div>
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First of all, I would like to begin by saying how amazing I thought the synopsis of <em>Somniare</em> was!</div>
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I was immediately entranced by the idea of this book. I can't really think of many books that start out with the main character being murdered and then proceeding to tell the rest of the story, so to me, this aspect was really interesting and appealing! </div>
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When I actually began to read <em>Somniare</em>, I must say, the whole plot did suddenly seem a little confusing. I loved the whole idea of Remy, our main character, going to a type of dream-world. It was really interesting and strange as it was almost unpredictable!</div>
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I also really liked the murder-mystery feel to the story, as Remy had to work out who had murdered her and why. I'm a massive fan of a good murder-mystery and have been unsuccessful in finding many good ones within the YA genre, so it was nice for this one to come along!</div>
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If I'm being honest, I didn't completely bond with Remy as a main character in the same way I usually like to. I mean, she was interesting enough and really fun to read about, but I can't say I really got chance to relate to her which was quite disappointing. </div>
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I liked all of the other characters within the novel, but I must say, I was really confused by the gender-changing love interest guardian character, Makoto. S/he really confused me and it just found it to be a little over-the-top strange! I just never really understood the necessity. </div>
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I thought the writing in the book was of a fairly good quality. I can't really say that D.T. Dyllin's writing was any more special than that in other books of a similar genre, but it was still good and told the story in a way that did it justice, which is great to find! </div>
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In a nutshell, I would describe <em>Somniare </em>as being quite relatable to a <em>Tim</em> <em>Burton</em> film, in the way that it was a little strange and confusing with odd twists and turns that mess with you mind and leave you feeling slightly lost. However, it did have an overall strange sense of intrigue throughout the whole novel that really left me wondering what would happen next<em>, </em>and I really felt for the characters, however strange they were! </div>
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I liked the aspect that you really couldn't predict what was going to happen next throughout the book. It's quite refreshing to read a book in which you really have no idea what's going to happen, and with <em>Somniare, </em>this was definitely the case! Pretty much anything could happen within this world and in this book, so it made for a strange but quirky plot!</div>
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My main issue with the book was that it was maybe just a little too confusing and strange for me to be able to keep up with. There were many, many twists and turns in the plot of <em>Somniare, </em>which I usually love, however it just seemed too much in this book. For this reason, I found it a little too hard to follow and it just confused me at times!</div>
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But other than that I thought it was a good, solid book and I did enjoy it, which is why I gave it 3 stars overall. </div>
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I would recommend <em>Somniare</em> to fans of fantasy and possibly paranormal books. there aren't really an specific age groups for this book in terms of suitability; it's a YA book so it's not for younger readers, but I do feel that older readers could still enjoy it. I would say that <em>Somniare </em>requires a keen mind and ability to keep up with a very fast-paced plot (which apparently I do not have!) but other than that I think it would be suitable for most people!</div>
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You can purchase <em>Somniare </em>on Amazon through this <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Somniare-1-D-T-Dyllin-ebook/dp/B01F2PV8RG" target="_blank">link</a>.</div>
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I hope you have enjoyed this review! Have you read <em>Somniare</em>? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below!</div>
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That's all for now but I'll be back with another review soon!</div>
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Charlotte xxx</div>
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-59398341633178830242016-09-15T09:00:00.000+01:002016-09-15T09:00:33.820+01:00A Mortal Song | Blog Tour & Giveaway!<img alt="Displaying AMortalSongTourBanner.png" aria-hidden="true" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3 aLF-aPX-aLK-ayr-auR" height="236" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=15700f7b6704fa9f&attid=0.3&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ9Ks0La_C7yMtdEzCwb1YQdu2QpJc2Lm1iQYTdhpBtTN-C3c0_3oGN8oiqcaRRAQxlJUf00cmnPCjbwCFETxmQ7GnpBwTOXfimzO_Fg7xWgv-DaNlu8MIji5ts&ats=1473876532950&rm=15700f7b6704fa9f&zw&sz=w1366-h641" width="640" /><br />
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Hello!!<br />
Welcome to my stage of the Blog Tour for Megan Crewe's new book, <em>A Mortal Song</em>! I received an advanced review copy of <em>A Mortal Song</em> though Xpresso Book Tours, who are running this tour. You can click on the link <a href="http://xpressobooktours.com/2016/06/28/blog-tour-sign-up-secret-project-by-megan-crewe/" target="_blank">here</a> to see the whole tour and follow it day by day!<br />
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<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=15700f7b6704fa9f&attid=0.1&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ94iRCbURiaIGVAOD1OCQk-HuVLSaL8k-EQEbbOocAzRgGDormoR-13R5quq57CdAIU377sgZHJehevZsQx6genz3YQbF_ytLR1JbL_sUpp-YKhFQfGBpsVS6k&ats=1473876532950&rm=15700f7b6704fa9f&zw&sz=w1366-h641" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Displaying MortalSong.jpg" aria-hidden="true" border="0" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3 aLF-aPX-aLK-ayr-auR" height="320" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=15700f7b6704fa9f&attid=0.1&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ94iRCbURiaIGVAOD1OCQk-HuVLSaL8k-EQEbbOocAzRgGDormoR-13R5quq57CdAIU377sgZHJehevZsQx6genz3YQbF_ytLR1JbL_sUpp-YKhFQfGBpsVS6k&ats=1473876532950&rm=15700f7b6704fa9f&zw&sz=w1366-h641" width="211" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30376044-a-mortal-song" target="_blank"><strong>A Mortal Song</strong></a>, by Megan Crewe<br />
<strong>Published:</strong> September 2016, by Another World Press<br />
<strong>Length:</strong> 382 pages<br />
<strong>Genres:</strong> YA, Fantasy<br />
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<strong>My Rating:</strong> 3 Stars<br />
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<strong>Synopsis: </strong><br />
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<strong>Sora’s life was full of magic—until she discovered it was all a lie.</strong><br />
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Heir to Mt. Fuji’s spirit kingdom, Sora yearns to finally take on the sacred kami duties. But just as she confronts her parents to make a plea, a ghostly army invades the mountain. Barely escaping with her life, Sora follows her mother’s last instructions to a heart-wrenching discovery: she is a human changeling, raised as a decoy while her parents’ true daughter remained safe but unaware in modern-day Tokyo. Her powers were only borrowed, never her own. Now, with the world’s natural cycles falling into chaos and the ghosts plotting an even more deadly assault, it falls on her to train the unprepared kami princess.<br />
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As Sora struggles with her emerging human weaknesses and the draw of an unanticipated ally with secrets of his own, she vows to keep fighting for her loved ones and the world they once protected. But for one mortal girl to make a difference in this desperate war between the spirits, she may have to give up the only home she’s ever known.<br />
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“Megan Crewe’s <em>A Mortal Song</em> is engrossing from the first chapter. The world of the kami is beautifully fantastic and delicately drawn, and the switched-at-birth scenario made me instantly feel for both of these resilient, brave girls. <em>A Mortal Song</em> has lots of magic, lots of heart, and lots to love.” -Kendare Blake, author of <em>Three Dark Crowns</em><br />
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First of all, I absolutely loved the whole idea of <em>A Mortal Song</em>. The synopsis really set the story out well and it sounded like the type of book that would be perfect for me! Needless to say, I was really excited when I began this story.</div>
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I loved the idea that the hero in this story wasn't actually the hero she thought she was, and every power she thought she'd had wasn't her own. I thought this was quite a refreshing plot line for the story to follow, since you really don't get to see many of this type of book within the YA or Fantasy genre. <br />
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So, leading on from that, I loved Sora as a character and narrator of the novel. It was an interesting point of view to read from, to say the least! Moreover, not only did we have to deal with ghosts, battles and saving her kingdom, we had to undergo the turmoil that went along with realising that your whole life had been a lie. It was this element of the book that I absolutely loved and found really interesting. <br />
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I really loved the setting of the book. This was possibly the first book I've ever read that has been set in Japan, so it was really interesting to read about this different location. It has made me want to read more novels set in this area as the back-drops are gorgeous places to hold stories. The fact that <em>A Mortal Song</em> was set in Japan also set it out from the ever-expanding crowd of Young Adult fantasy novels, which I really appreciated. <br />
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If I'm honest, I didn't actually think the overall execution of this book lived up to my expectations. I ended up finding myself fairly detached from the majority of the characters and didn't feel much of a connection with them, including Sora, the main character. <br />
To me, this is probably the most disappointing thing in a novel. Don't get me wrong, I did like most of the characters; it wasn't that they weren't pleasant or well-developed characters to read <em>about</em>, however I didn't feel like they were genuine enough for me to be able to connect with in a way that would allow me to really get to know them. <br />
For this reason, I felt slightly disengaged with the story as a whole. As much as I wanted to really enjoy the story and feel completely hooked to each page, this never actually happened. <br />
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Also, I wasn't actually a massive fan of the romance in this book for the most part, either. I'm not completely sure of what put me off of it, but it never really approached a stage where I felt that it was genuine. Even though I thought both of the characters were compatible with each other and I was a fan of them being together, I just didn't think they were presented in a well enough light to make their romance seem genuine. <br />
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I was in two minds about the writing in <em>A Mortal Song.</em> On one had, I really enjoyed it because it was simple and so easy to read and understand (which is great when you just want to relax with a book and not have to look into it too deeply) so in that respect it was great and really appropriate to the nature and main audience of the book. However, on the other hand, I thought it was a little too straight to the point. Fantasy books like <em>A Mortal Song</em> can often really benefit from overly descriptive writing that meanders onto tangents from time to time. As odd as it sounds, they can be quite beneficial to the overall story-telling. So even though it was nice that the writing was fairly straight to the point as it made the book easier to read, this may not have been the best style of writing for the story being told. <br />
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I actually thought there was a lot more potential story to be told and elaborated on than was written throughout the course of the book. For example, there were many places and sites visited where something else could have happened - the more of the story could have been discovered or there could have been an additional problem to solve - but generally, it suck to the same plot the whole way through and was slightly predictable.<br />
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Nevertheless, I did really enjoy <em>A Mortal Song</em> for the most part! Yes, there were a few faults in the book, but every story has its flaws. I really enjoyed the idea and main story of the book and even though I wasn't a massive fan of the style of writing, it still delivered the story well, which was its main purpose anyway. <br />
For these reasons, I gave <em>A Mortal Song</em> 3 out of a possible 5 stars. It wasn't the best book I've ever read, but in no way was it bad either.<br />
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I would definitely recommend this book to people who are interested in fantasy, but who possibly haven't read many of them before. A Mortal Song would be a great 'Fantasy for Beginners' book, and I would say it was probably most appropriate for readers within the ages of 12 to 16, although I definitely think older readers would enjoy it too!</div>
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You can purchase<em> A Mortal Song</em> from the following links:<br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Mortal-Song-Megan-Crewe-ebook/dp/B01K352W9I#nav-subnav" target="_blank">Amazon</a><br />
<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-mortal-song-megan-crewe/1124297644?ean=9780993980695" target="_blank">B&N</a><br />
<a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780993980695" target="_blank">IndieBound</a><br />
<a href="https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/a-mortal-song/9780993980695-item.html" target="_blank">Indigo</a><br />
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<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=15700f7b6704fa9f&attid=0.2&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ8eTfb-q9z5EM_B3xGSKyJrQyOs0Sw62zS9-jSI7oniJRkBKZqi_ZsicmAC1V01cySANcK7I9ilNSQsDjJHg88hTLk3aMvoYZZrE71Y7MpMR4tCAptBhKn1SYY&ats=1473876532950&rm=15700f7b6704fa9f&zw&sz=w1366-h641" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Displaying Megan.jpg" aria-hidden="true" border="0" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3 aLF-aPX-aLK-ayr-auR" height="200" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=15700f7b6704fa9f&attid=0.2&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ8eTfb-q9z5EM_B3xGSKyJrQyOs0Sw62zS9-jSI7oniJRkBKZqi_ZsicmAC1V01cySANcK7I9ilNSQsDjJHg88hTLk3aMvoYZZrE71Y7MpMR4tCAptBhKn1SYY&ats=1473876532950&rm=15700f7b6704fa9f&zw&sz=w1366-h641" width="133" /></a> </div>
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<u>About the Author</u></div>
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Like many authors, Megan Crewe finds writing about herself much more difficult than making things up. A few definite facts: she lives with her husband, son, and three cats in Toronto, Canada (and does on occasion say “eh”), she tutors children and teens with special needs, and she can’t look at the night sky without speculating about who else might be out there.<br />
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Join her newsletter for book news, recommended reads, and exclusive giveaways: <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&q=http://eepurl.com/btE8mH&source=gmail&ust=1473962932947000&usg=AFQjCNHu9puhvdUbEteNtsKm7fFnIqdeag" href="http://eepurl.com/btE8mH" target="_blank"><span style="color: #1155cc;">http://eepurl.com/btE8mH</span></a> </div>
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I have also been given the pleasure of hosting a fantastic giveaway, thanks to Megan Crewe, the author. Enter this giveaway to be in with a chance of winning the Japan Media and Treats Prize Pack!</div>
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It is open internationally and will close on 12th October. Good luck!</div>
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I hope you have enjoyed this blog tour and book review! <br />
I will be back with more soon!<br />
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<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-87384404940457932392016-09-06T12:05:00.000+01:002016-09-06T18:39:19.514+01:00The Rhodi Saga | Blog Tour & Giveaway!Welcome to my part of the Blog Tour for Megan Linski's new dystopian YA series, <i>The Rhodi Saga</i>!<br />
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<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=156e3f201b0baa2c&attid=0.1&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ9cM-RfW-CUo6LJr9zoYM4wY5YN2PPOkB6bvrKco0zLvq65VIQkcWMExT3XJZrcomSNvG7L1xDwT0EXg8_1udV0gAGkp0okeaEyeerGwabfUXEU5qkHvuKyGwo&ats=1473112248094&rm=156e3f201b0baa2c&zw&sz=w1366-h657" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Displaying RhodisLightTourBanner.png" border="0" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3 aLF-aPX-aLK-ayr-auR" height="236" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=156e3f201b0baa2c&attid=0.1&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ9cM-RfW-CUo6LJr9zoYM4wY5YN2PPOkB6bvrKco0zLvq65VIQkcWMExT3XJZrcomSNvG7L1xDwT0EXg8_1udV0gAGkp0okeaEyeerGwabfUXEU5qkHvuKyGwo&ats=1473112248094&rm=156e3f201b0baa2c&zw&sz=w1366-h657" width="640" /></a></div>
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I was given the pleasure of joining this blog tour through Xpresso Book Tours, and received a copy of the book from Gryfyn Publishing for reviewing purposes. You can follow the whole tour by clicking this<a href="http://xpressobooktours.com/2016/06/08/tour-sign-up-the-rhodi-saga-by-megan-linski/" target="_blank"> link</a>!<br />
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<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=156e3f201b0baa2c&attid=0.3&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ-RKH79XtMfYgLEVN3848vQFLV-memh6RGQG4rbm6t9WSxyl3KcH6LwcxMRAAYG8eNQMLr0l4gTN3nYGCe0ugKPZQfCLGorjZHJnOajp3InXQShughxI12yMQc&ats=1473112248094&rm=156e3f201b0baa2c&zw&sz=w1366-h657" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Displaying R1.jpg" border="0" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3 aLF-aPX-aLK-ayr-auR" height="320" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=156e3f201b0baa2c&attid=0.3&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ-RKH79XtMfYgLEVN3848vQFLV-memh6RGQG4rbm6t9WSxyl3KcH6LwcxMRAAYG8eNQMLr0l4gTN3nYGCe0ugKPZQfCLGorjZHJnOajp3InXQShughxI12yMQc&ats=1473112248094&rm=156e3f201b0baa2c&zw&sz=w1366-h657" width="213" /></a> <b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31835951-rhodi-s-light" target="_blank">Rhodi's Light</a> (The Rhodi Saga, #1)</b>, by Megan Linski<br />
<b>Published: </b>September 2016 by Gryfyn Publishing<br />
<b>Length:</b> 204 pages<b> </b><br />
<b>Genres: </b>YA, Dystopian<br />
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<b>My Rating:</b> 4 Stars!<br />
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<b>Synopsis:</b><br />
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<i><b>Flight. Hyperspeed. Clairvoyance.</b></i><br />
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These are some of the powers gifted to the Rhodi, an ancient sect of assassins who defend Crescentia, a dystopian world with a dying hope.<br />
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Dyliana Fairsson is one of them. After losing her parents to a suspicious accident, she and her twin brother, Devin, join the Rhodi to avoid starvation. Under the direction of her master, Dylan struggles to learn the strength of her magic …as well as hide the growing scars on her wrists. Can Dylan become the warrior, the hero, she’s destined to be? Or is she fated to fall from the light into the darkness?<br />
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The first instalment in the epic fantasy series by bestselling author Megan Linski, <i>Rhodi’s Light</i> is an action-packed thrill ride that will leave readers begging for more.<br />
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On reading the synopsis of <i>Rhodi's Light</i>, I had high expectations of this book. It sounded like the sort of book that I would love to read and, luckily, it did not disappoint me.<br />
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From the first few pages of the novel, I had latched myself onto this story and could not wait to devour the whole of the book.<br />
I loved the whole idea of <i>Rhodi's Light</i>. While parts of it were fairly similar to other books within this genre, I thought the story took a fresh perspective on the average literary hero. This book combined the action and adventure of a fantasy book with a sensitive nature usually only found in contemporary fiction and I think this was my favourite aspect of the story as a whole. <br />
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I also found myself connect a fair amount with the characters, Dylan in particular. I found it easy to read from her perception of this and understand what she was feeling at particular times, which I did enjoy. I also loved reading about the other characters such as Tavana and Talidin. I thought all their back-stories were really interesting and they gave the story a good level of tension and danger through their exposition.<br />
I really appreciated the wide range of characters within the novel and how different they all were due to what each of them had been through. But I also appreciated how this drew many of them together. <br />
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As a novel, I enjoyed Rhodi's Light more than I expected to, and was easily captivated by the characters and their stories. The storyline was a little predictable from time to time, but overall I really enjoyed reading it and uncovering the mysteries held within the plot.<br />
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Being completely honest, I don't actually think the execution of this story was the best it could have been. The writing was good and made the book quick and easy to read, but there were times that I thought the dialogue seemed slightly too forced between the characters. There were some parts that felt a little too formal to be appropriate for the situation.<br />
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If there was any other slight complaint I would have about the book, it would be that it all progressed a little too quickly for my liking. The first book took place over the course of just under a year, yet it was squeezed into around 200 pages, which is fairly short for a book of this genre. I would have actually appreciated it to have been slightly longer with maybe a little more 'padding' and perhaps a slower progression of the story. I did feel that the story jumped mostly straight from one action sequence to another, and even though these were really enjoyable action scenes, I would have preferred a few other things to occur alongside them.<br />
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There were loads of aspects of the story that I really loved, however I felt that they weren't built up to enough, so when they were revealed it all just seemed slightly confusing and made me question the necessity of them. However, this scenario didn't really occur many times so it wasn't that big of a deal and overall, I really enjoyed the book. <br />
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<i>Rhodi's Light </i>was not only a great fantasy novel, it also dealt with really delicate topics, and dealt with them well. The book deals with things like depression and self-harm, which I think is one of its best qualities. I think it's really important for books these days to be addressing these situations as there are so many people suffering from mental health issues. I thought that <i>Rhodi's Light </i>dealt with these situations in a sensitive yet constructive way, showing positive help for the victims. So I thought this aspect of the book was important and was dealt with well.<br />
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I really, really enjoyed reading <i>Rhodi's Light</i> and ended up giving it 4 out of a possible 5 stars, and I'm looking forward to reading the sequels, <i>Rhodi Rising</i> and <i>Rhodi's Lullaby. </i>I would recommend the saga to anyone over the age of 13 (depending on maturity) who likes fantasy and dystopian books. I thought it was a great read for many ages to enjoy. There was a small warning at the start of the book regarding the aspect of mental illnesses and self-harm, so if you really feel uncomfortable reading about this, <i>The Rhodi Saga </i>probably won't be for you. However, even if you're unsure about how you'll deal with this in a story, I would recommend just giving it a go as I think it's a really important thing to be aware of. <br />
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You can purchase Rhodi's Light through:</div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Megan+Linski+rhodi&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3AMegan+Linski+rhodi" target="_blank">Amazon US</a></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rhodis-Light-Rhodi-Saga-Book-ebook/dp/B01GSHVCRS" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a></div>
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<u>About the Author</u><br />
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<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=156e3f201b0baa2c&attid=0.2&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ_zFkOPq5MgkrT96qp5Fr9TuodvSJTtATBPwlZWd0X5o6CJnQX3fkBxbw0SViEFLiCLvjUGaCdw4VfDoQhHzfw1AweMhQItRDwhSizjFrB4ipKHQsKMAOxoxz0&ats=1473156968782&rm=156e3f201b0baa2c&zw&sz=w1366-h657" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Displaying Megan-Linski.jpg" border="0" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3 aLF-aPX-aLK-ayr-auR" height="200" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=156e3f201b0baa2c&attid=0.2&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ_zFkOPq5MgkrT96qp5Fr9TuodvSJTtATBPwlZWd0X5o6CJnQX3fkBxbw0SViEFLiCLvjUGaCdw4VfDoQhHzfw1AweMhQItRDwhSizjFrB4ipKHQsKMAOxoxz0&ats=1473156968782&rm=156e3f201b0baa2c&zw&sz=w1366-h657" width="160" /></a></div>
Megan Linski is the owner of Gryfyn Publishing and has had a passion for writing ever since she completed her first (short) novel at the age of 6. Her specialisations are romance, fantasy, and contemporary fiction for people aged 14-24. When not writing she enjoys ice skating, horse riding, theatre, archery, fishing, and being outdoors. She is a passionate advocate for mental health awareness and suicide prevention, and is an active fighter against common variable immune deficiency disorder. She lives in Michigan.<br />
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Megan Linski also writes under the pen name of Natalie Erin for the Creatures of the Lands Series, co-authored with Krisen Lison.<u> </u><br />
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</u> I've also been given the opportunity to host the international giveaway for The Rhodi Saga Blog Tour, which includes the following amazing prizes from Gryfyn Publishing:<br />
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<li>$100 Amazon Gift Card (Grand Prize)</li>
<li>Rhodi’s Light by Megan Linski PAPERBACK </li>
<li>Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas PAPERBACK</li>
<li>A Shade of Vampire by Bella Forrest PAPERBACK NEW AND LENGTHENED EDITION</li>
<li>The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson PAPERBACK</li>
<li>A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas PAPERBACK </li>
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You can enter the giveaway, which will close on 10th September, using the link below! Good luck!!<br />
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<a class="rcptr" data-raflid="079488f26" data-template="" data-theme="classic" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/079488f26/" id="rcwidget_x04ldy8s" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a><br />
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I hope you have enjoyed this post! I hope to be back with more soon!<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-54275465299408235262016-08-15T09:00:00.000+01:002016-08-15T09:00:03.810+01:00Under A Million Stars | Book Blitz - Giveaway, Excerpt and Playlist!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=1566a2ccfd8554b0&attid=0.3&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ8d_HPC4cHMT6KmGKSC8VrGP6HCMzLSWM4vZ9m2mw9df_m24zuot-95-8WSp1NblbFCpaHGnEaqFPQZ6kzRUhQXMlkN1p0SMHMqM367bCKzgONyzw4mJyjq74o&ats=1471164136817&rm=1566a2ccfd8554b0&zw&sz=w1366-h631" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Displaying UnderAMillionStarsBlitzBanner.png" border="0" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3 aLF-aPX-aLK-ayr-auR" height="236" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=1566a2ccfd8554b0&attid=0.3&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ8d_HPC4cHMT6KmGKSC8VrGP6HCMzLSWM4vZ9m2mw9df_m24zuot-95-8WSp1NblbFCpaHGnEaqFPQZ6kzRUhQXMlkN1p0SMHMqM367bCKzgONyzw4mJyjq74o&ats=1471164136817&rm=1566a2ccfd8554b0&zw&sz=w1366-h631" width="640" /> </a></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30049032-under-a-million-stars?ac=1&from_search=true" target="_blank">Under A Million Stars</a>,</b> by Rita Branches<br />
<b>Publication date:</b> August 8th 2016<br />
<b>Genres:</b> Contemporary, Young Adult</div>
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<b>Synopsis:</b></div>
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<i>Can a beating heart bleed from the shattered pieces?</i><br />
<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=1566a2ccfd8554b0&attid=0.1&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ-E6YK5gptjmXPBpSQaodkq_QxEJc4aHGKxyMuNfLJayhHPGlacNDesRaqPd6tTdgt7DVQb8B1Vqc3rxVy8jcDmTEr3O3doS8wsz7BtxYUT1nmDv40_o3xXedI&ats=1471164136817&rm=1566a2ccfd8554b0&zw&sz=w1366-h631" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Displaying EBOOKLOW.jpg" border="0" class="aLF-aPX-J1-J3 aLF-aPX-aLK-ayr-auR" height="320" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1/?ui=2&ik=9d9c1bbc92&view=fimg&th=1566a2ccfd8554b0&attid=0.1&disp=inline&safe=1&attbid=ANGjdJ-E6YK5gptjmXPBpSQaodkq_QxEJc4aHGKxyMuNfLJayhHPGlacNDesRaqPd6tTdgt7DVQb8B1Vqc3rxVy8jcDmTEr3O3doS8wsz7BtxYUT1nmDv40_o3xXedI&ats=1471164136817&rm=1566a2ccfd8554b0&zw&sz=w1366-h631" width="213" /></a>Her heart cracked when her best friend walked away; it completely shattered when she lost her family in a tragic accident.<br />
Now orphaned at seventeen, Charlotte Peterson is forced to live with her former best friend, Jacob Parker. Charlie, a talented pianist, desperately wants their loving friendship back, but something is holding Jake back. The more she spirals into the darkness of depression, the more she needs him.<br />
Jacob vowed to stay away from her—no matter how much he still loved her. Armed with secrets that would have destroyed both of their families, he chose to end their friendship and walk away, which nearly killed him. As he watches the girl he once knew begin to fade away, however, he realises that their relationship is more important than the truth he’s hiding.<br />
Now it’s up to Jacob to put the pieces of Charlie’s broken heart back together—even if it means revealing the secrets he so desperately wants to protect her from.<br />
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Will Jacob find a way to bring back the carefree, talented girl he once knew, or is it too late for both of them?</div>
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You can buy <i>Under A Million Stars</i> on:</div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01IKSXQ0E" target="_blank">Amazon</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/under-a-million-stars-rita-branches/1124157574?ean=9789899956230" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble </a></div>
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<b>An Excerpt from <i>Under A Million Stars</i>...</b></div>
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<u>Jacob </u></div>
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These two weeks had been hell for me.</div>
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I didn’t know how I was going to pull this off for the eight months I still had left in this hell of a town. My parents didn’t get me, and she was around all the time, suffocating me. My heart skipped a beat every time I heard her voice, and it doubled in speed when she was near me. I wouldn’t be able to stay away, I knew it. She was breaking my heart all over again.</div>
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I heard her at night, when she thought everyone was sleeping. I just sat on the floor, resting my head against the wall, and listen to her cry and throw up every other night. </div>
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I stayed there like a jerk, as if I didn’t give a crap about her or her feelings, but I cried. I missed her. I wanted to hold her at night and tell her that everything would be alright, but I couldn’t. I promised I would stay away—I couldn’t hurt her, anymore. I pushed my knees to my chest to hold myself together and to keep me from crumbling. Sometimes, I had to place my closed fist against my mouth, so she wouldn’t hear me sob. I wished she would have, though. I wished she would have opened the door and saw me sitting there, caring about her, suffering like she did. </div>
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My mom was getting suspicious about me. She knew about her, or at least that something wasn’t right. My face, the permanent dark circles under my eyes, and my lack of appetite wasn’t normal, though. I was okay, before her parents’ accident—I had started to pull myself together. </div>
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This night was especially bad. She stayed in the bathroom for hours. I had been on the other side, hearing her cry and wishing I could take it all away. </div>
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I was starting to get really scared for her. I left before my parents woke up, unable to face them and those disapproving looks, anymore, like I wasn’t doing anything right with my life. They wanted a perfect son and they didn’t have one. </div>
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I was in no condition to go to college—I couldn’t even imagine myself being closed behind four walls for another four or five years. I needed something to take my thoughts away—something that would fuel me with adrenaline. They wouldn’t approve of the plans I’d been making. They’d hate them, in fact, but I didn’t care, anymore, I just needed to get away.</div>
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<b>A Playlist for <i>Under A Million Stars...</i></b></div>
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I was so excited to receive this playlist that goes along with Under A Million Stars as I love reading to music; it's the best way to read!!</div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWy4Pf8SiNc" target="_blank"><br /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWy4Pf8SiNc" target="_blank">Twentytwofourteen - The Album Leaf</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YxaaGgTQYM" target="_blank">Bring Me to Life - Evanescence</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQ7oqmikZDQ" target="_blank">Untitled - Simple Plan</a></div>
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<br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIJu0J9u-1Q" target="_blank">Fire and Rain - Birdy</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Y8g8PMtKP0" target="_blank">Shelter - The XX</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJTXDCh2YiA" target="_blank">Wings - Birdy</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rgHYP0dD_4" target="_blank">Grow Old with Me - Tom Odell</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNpeK7sDLzE" target="_blank">The Power of Love - Gabrielle Aplin</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mVbdjec0pA" target="_blank">Home - Gabrielle Aplin</a></div>
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I'm also really excited to share this $15 Amazon gift card Giveaway with you!! </div>
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It will end on 18th August, and you can enter it below!</div>
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I hope you've enjoyed this post and be sure to check out Under A Million Stars!</div>
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I'll be back with another post soon!!</div>
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Charlotte xxx</div>
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-55062103433458501442016-08-14T11:10:00.000+01:002016-08-14T11:10:53.865+01:00StarPassage: The Relic | Book Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lk--sKD2WV0/V7At2LqhJEI/AAAAAAAAApo/zOGj8ikTaK8GLihPFkSxUVBPIBtEeH1ogCLcB/s1600/StarPassage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lk--sKD2WV0/V7At2LqhJEI/AAAAAAAAApo/zOGj8ikTaK8GLihPFkSxUVBPIBtEeH1ogCLcB/s320/StarPassage.jpg" width="207" /></a></div>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31177456-starpassage" target="_blank"><b>StarPassage: The Relic</b></a>, by Clark Rich Burbidge<br />
<b>Published:</b> June 2016<br />
<b>Length:</b> 254 pages<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Middle Grade, Sci-Fi, Time-Travel<br />
<b>Source:</b> Review copy sent by <a href="http://www.prbythebook.com/" target="_blank">PR by the Book</a> (Thank you!!)<br />
<br />
<b>My Rating:</b> 3.5 Stars!<br />
<br />
Tim and Martie are teenagers going through a tough time. Their father is suffering from PTSD, which has evoked their mother's depression, and slowly, their lives are heading in a downward spiral with the family at breaking point.<br />
But, when Tim and Martie come across an ancient Christmas ornament with a spellbinding secret, they find themselves sent centuries into the past in search of a new hope for their family.<br />
They're not the only ones who can hunt through time though; with every movement watched by the fearsome Trackers, there's only so much travelling Tim and Martie can do without evoking a response.<br />
Soon, Tim and Martie find themselves in a deadly race to get back home, but can they save their family in the process?<br />
<br />
<br />
I think that I should start with a little disclaimer that while this
book seems to be targeted towards teens, and in the YA genre, I actually
think it would be more appropriate for it to be read by Middle-Grade
students. For that reason, I will be writing this review of <i>StarPassage</i> as if it is a Middle-Grade book.<br />
<br />I'm no expert, but in my opinion, this book would be fantastic for children who know someone suffering from a mental illness such as PTSD or depression. I loved the way these illnesses were portrayed throughout the course of the book, and I actually think reading this would be a great alternative to factual books for children as it would allow the readers to have the ability to relate themselves to the characters within <i>StarPassage</i> so they can understand what is normal to feel and can begin to grasp why feelings like this may occur. <br />
<br />
<br />I honestly thought the plot of <i>StarPassage</i> was brilliant. I'll admit, the whole idea did seem a little confusing for me to begin with, what with the time travel aspect, but I soon grasped the storyline and I thought it was a really fun and quirky way to tell the story.<br />
The storyline itself was engaging and entertaining and kept me wanting to read the book, which, of course, is a great quality! I do think a younger audience would probably respond better to the story than I did, mainly because I would view this story as one that might engage younger readers more than older ones. Nevertheless, I did truly enjoy the story, and I thought the ending was appropriate, while leaving a good cliff-hanger for the following book in the <i>StarPassage</i> series.<br />
<br />
<br />
For me, the writing was the part of the book that didn't quite do the story justice. I enjoyed it, don't get me wrong, but at times, it seemed that the author was 'reporting' the story rather than 'telling' the story. I thought that some of the dialogue seemed a tiny bit forced at times, and parts didn't feel appropriate for the characters; personally, I would say that the family spoke to each other in dialogue that just seemed too formal. I felt that this did improve over the course of the book, but this was what stopped me from awarding the book 4 stars.<br />
However, I did enjoy how much factual information was slipped into the story, which often went into a good amount of depth. Particularly in children's books, I enjoy reading factual pieces of history mixed into the fiction, as it gives the readers an opportunity to learn the history, sometimes subconsciously, while reading the main story too. <br />
<br />
<br />
In terms of the characters, I thought that Tim and Martie were engaging protagonists who nicely balanced each other out. They were good heroes for a novel of this type and I think children would easily be able to relate to one or the other of them. Personally, I would have preferred for Tim and Martie to have been explored in a depth that didn't revolve around their parents' mental illnesses, as most of the back story for them was centred on their reaction to their father's PTSD. It would have been nice to read about another side of them too. However, since I feel that this book was written with a main purpose of addressing PTSD and other mental illnesses, the depth of the characters was probably still an appropriate amount. <br />
<br />
<br />
Overall, I did thoroughly enjoy reading <i>StarPassage: The Relic</i>, but I would recommend it more for ages 9-14 as I feel that children in that age group would respond in a better way to the story. So, while I did enjoy it, I would only give this novel 3.5 stars as I thought the writing slightly let the book down and there possibly could have also been a little more depth within the characters. However, I still think this book would be a great read for someone in the same situation as Tim and Martie as I think <i>StarPassage</i> would be a really helpful book!<br />
<br />
<br />
Thanks again to PR by the Book for providing a review copy of this book!<br />
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That's all for this post but I hope to be back for more soon,<br />
<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-79845848899839182242016-08-02T11:31:00.000+01:002016-08-02T11:31:45.353+01:00The Struggle of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2gdFvNDnhxA/V6Bs17CbuHI/AAAAAAAAApY/8b2vSYjlasAC8S7Gj3V6dCoB_UjAE2f_ACLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild%2BLocked.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2gdFvNDnhxA/V6Bs17CbuHI/AAAAAAAAApY/8b2vSYjlasAC8S7Gj3V6dCoB_UjAE2f_ACLcB/s320/Cursed%2BChild%2BLocked.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
I firmly believe that nobody can or will ever love anything as much as I love Harry Potter. I simply cannot comprehend the thought that anybody else could contain that amount of love for anything at all!<br />
I would go as far as to say that my life revolves around Harry Potter; I live and breathe everything Potter-ish!<br />
So, with the release of <i>Harry Potter and the Cursed Child</i>, you'd probably think I'd be more excited.<br />
I mean, don't get me wrong, it's not like I haven't been excited at all - I've still counted down the days until its release, from ever since its announcement, I've still followed every piece of information going for it, and I still shed a (few) tear(s) when it arrived through my door - but there's just been one tiny problem...<br />
<br />
I am unable to actually read it.<br />
<br />
I know. The horror!<br />
<br />
I was lucky enough to buy tickets to see <i>The Cursed Child</i> as soon as the tickets went on sale. That day still lives on as the most stressful day of my life...<br />
After sitting patiently at my laptop two hours before the ticket release, just so I could get in the queue as soon as it opened, I finally joined the queue at 10am and then waited for the tickets to go on sale at 11am.<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jzYJJQh90Ns/V6A8Sc9oS-I/AAAAAAAAAok/W26EC8v7Rpk2e1eEPzg4K0c855I_CptxwCLcB/s1600/Cursed%2BChild%2BQueue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jzYJJQh90Ns/V6A8Sc9oS-I/AAAAAAAAAok/W26EC8v7Rpk2e1eEPzg4K0c855I_CptxwCLcB/s320/Cursed%2BChild%2BQueue.jpg" width="264" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When the queue began...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I waited for the 14,912 people ahead of me in the queue to buy their tickets and leave, unable to leave my laptop for even a few seconds, through fear of it being my turn to buy the tickets and me not being there to see it.<br />
Finally, I reached the front of the queue and put the tickets into my basket at 1:30pm, just before my laptop decided to crash and go into shutdown, causing me to lose both my tickets and my sanity.<br />
I was sent straight back to the end of the queue after managing to restart my laptop, and, with a tear streaked face, hoped and hoped that it wouldn't crash again.<br />
I proceeded to wait for another few hours while around 20,000 people happily sat and bought their tickets, all the while still unable to leave my laptop.<br />
Then, without warning, the queue froze, displaying an announcement that the tickets had sold out and that we would have to wait for another set of tickets to be released for a later date - which really broke my heart as I had been dying to go on 1st September!<br />
Finally, the queue reopened and after an hour or so, I was at the front of it once more. I was then given exactly 14 minutes to select and purchase my tickets before the system would send me straight back to the end of the queue.<br />
After 13 minutes and 30 seconds of selecting my tickets and my card being declined for no apparent reason, I finally got it to work and received a confirmation email a few minutes later with my tickets for late October, which is later than I would have liked, but even so, I was beyond ecstatic - well, and also a little tired and hungry from sitting and staring at a laptop screen non-stop for eight hours, but mainly ecstatic!!<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wT4crZIEph8/V6BYwOVqjAI/AAAAAAAAApA/TyoOni1R9UU/s640/blogger-image-788671331.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wT4crZIEph8/V6BYwOVqjAI/AAAAAAAAApA/TyoOni1R9UU/s200/blogger-image-788671331.jpg" width="200" /></a>But, as if that whole day wasn't stressful enough, I made myself a promise when it was announced that the script would be released. I promised myself that I would not even look at the script until after I had seen the production. After all, it has been designed by the God that is J. K. Rowling to be seen as a play, so I really don't want to spoil it for myself as I feel that it would be better to walk into the theatre knowing virtually nothing about the play.<br />
I still let myself preorder the script, mainly just so the book could be in my arms as soon as possible, but I did this with the vow to not open the book at all.<br />
<br />
But this is already proving more difficult than I had imagined.<br />
<br />
I've always been so confused as to how people are able to live in this day and age without having read Harry Potter - the whole world has read these books! And now that I myself am deliberately avoiding Harry Potter, I can see how hard it must be for them!<br />
<br />
It honestly feels like I am on a battlefield surrounded by people who have already read the script, and who are ready to shoot spoilers at me.<br />
The script has barely been released for two days now and yet the temptation to break my promise and just read the first few pages is unbearable.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yRoxxit4YtQ/V6A8fnay6hI/AAAAAAAAAoo/2zvBzXiAcsQBGYAAVx0dAlPpSOCVEtLCgCLcB/s1600/DSCN0361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yRoxxit4YtQ/V6A8fnay6hI/AAAAAAAAAoo/2zvBzXiAcsQBGYAAVx0dAlPpSOCVEtLCgCLcB/s200/DSCN0361.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">While walking through London...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Every time I pass my bookshelves, it seems that the books are just whispering to me to tell me to pick it up. Every time I'm on the Internet, I'm constantly on the lookout for spoilers so that I can avoid them at a moment's glance. Even walking through the streets of London proved too much to handle as I was preparing myself to break into the Palace Theatre and see what secrets were hiding from me!<br />
<br />
It probably doesn't help that the physical book of the script is large than practically all of the other books on my shelf, which means it sticks out way too far and also give the impression that it's floating towards me whenever I catch a glance bookshelves, which does not help my self restraint in the slightest!<br />
<br />
I have literally had to tie the book up and padlock it shut! <br />
<br />
So, I'm at a loose end.<br />
While I'm dying to just pick up the book and start reading, I still want to put it off until after I have seen the production. After all, we've waited 9 years for this to be released, surely another 2 and a half months won't make much difference?!<br />
(Hahaha - yes it will!)<br />
<br />
Now all I have to do is avoid the spoilers until the end of October!<br />
<br />
<br />
Is there anyone else in the same position as me? If there is, please let me know how you're managing to cope!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-33518462894149452112016-07-07T17:00:00.000+01:002016-07-07T17:00:00.158+01:00Second Chance Summer | Book Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MCRy-oUuDpI/V31N3qtZ2wI/AAAAAAAAAoQ/WJFrUHI30W8wYj0gCvLrmaNb07DQJeiSACLcB/s1600/Second%2BChance%2BSummer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MCRy-oUuDpI/V31N3qtZ2wI/AAAAAAAAAoQ/WJFrUHI30W8wYj0gCvLrmaNb07DQJeiSACLcB/s320/Second%2BChance%2BSummer.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25484508-second-chance-summer" target="_blank">Second Chance Summer</a></b>, by Morgan Matson<br />
<b>Published:</b> May 2012, by Simon and Schuster<br />
<b>Length:</b> 480 pages<br />
<b>Genre: </b>YA, Contemporary<br />
<br />
<b>My Rating:</b> 5 Stars!<br />
<br />
Now that it's officially summer, and the weather in Britain is, well, a little less damp than winter, I thought a summery romance was in order! And it was very much appreciated to warm up the miserable summer we've currently been having!!<br />
<br />
Taylor Edwards' family isn't the most close-knit family to say the least. With everyone busy with their own schedules, there is little time left to spend as a family, but when Taylor's dad gets some devastating news from which he may not recover, the family decide to spend their last summer together in their old lake-house, where they used to share happy memories. However, it's not just family-time they end up with from their getaway, as the old-lake house uncovers and disrupts memories of love and friendship that had long been avoided, and Taylor is forced to recognise what she once left behind at the Lake House. <br />
But with the progression of the summer, the Edwards family become both more of a family, and even more aware of the ticking clock amongst them.<br />
<br />
<br />
I read Morgan Matson's<i> Since You've Been Gone </i>last summer, and I actually wasn't as impressed as I had hoped to be; I didn't think it quite lived up to the hype surrounding it. This made me a little reluctant to go into <i>Second Chance Summer</i> as I didn't really want it to do the same.<br />
Ahh but I was wrong!<br />
I absolutely loved every single page of this book. I couldn't have been more impressed and surprised, as despite my initially low expectations, I grew to love each and every one of the characters.<br />
<br />
<br />
The 'back-stories' revealed in <i>Second Chance Summer</i> were touching and heart-breaking in the best ways possible. Finding out about Taylor's life before the 'present-day' was really interesting and I <u>loved</u> finding out how much she had changed since then. I completely adore books that show a great deal of character development, but these are generally spread over a longer series, so it was enlightening to discover a standalone novel with as much character development as some series. It was really heart-warming!<br />
I also loved the character development in the other characters, such as Henry and Lucy, since everyone really came a long way from how they acted at the start of the novel, which was touching to see.<br />
I especially loved reading about Taylor's brother, Warren, and his difficulties and awkwardness with his girlfriend - he was hilarious!<br />
<i><br /></i>
There has actually been quite a bit of criticism around Matson's books saying that her characters are "boringly ordinary" and "unimaginative", but if I'm completely honest, that's why I love them. I'll admit, I adore reading about fierce, strong-willed, adventurous characters in novels as it inspires me to have their traits, however, I enjoy reading about "ordinary" characters in books as it shows the reader that they don't have to be supernatural to be the hero or heroine of their own story. All of Matson's characters do have their quirks and flaws, but so does everybody and this is why they're all so relatable. You can't help but relate yourself to those characters and put yourself in their positions, which is why they are just so lovable. <br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><br /></i>
Despite me giving <i>Second Chance Summer </i>a full 5 stars, that does not mean that I thought it was completely perfect. For me, this book wasn't flawed in many ways at all, but one thing that I did notice, which I had also noticed while reading <i>Since You've Been Gone</i>, was the character descriptions, or lack of thereof. Of course, there were character descriptions in there, but I didn't really notice many of them, which made it quite difficult for me to visualise each character. I feel that the character descriptions were only at the start of the novel, but these were not reinforced throughout the novel. So, while the mental states of the characters were described really well, I thought there was a slight lack of the physical descriptions.<br />
<br />
However, I do feel that this was the only issue I had with <i>Second Chance Summer</i>. I absolutely loved Matson's style of writing throughout the course of the novel. It made for quite an easy and really enjoyable read, which I loved! There were a few surprises and twists and turns in the plot of the novel, some of which I found to be a little predictable, but I loved the direction this book took; it was a really rewarding read and gave off so many cute and summery vibes! <br />
<i><br /></i>
<i><br /></i>
<i>Second Chance Summer</i> surprised me in many, many ways, but the most surprising aspect to me was how sad it was. When I went into this book, I was expecting a cute, summer romancey book that would make me happy for the time I was reading it but that wouldn't particularly leave a lasting impression on me. I was not expecting to be sobbing my heart out as quietly as possible in the middle of the night.<br />
Hundreds have books have made me cry - it doesn't really take much to get the tears flowing - but there aren't all that many books that have had me properly sobbing, and by sobbing, I mean the disgusting type where there are millions of tears and your nose starts running and you're hiccoughing and you can't breathe or even tell the difference between your tears and your, erm, 'nose fluids'. But that was the reaction I had to <i>Second Chance Summer</i>! It was not my most glamorous moment, I must say!<br />
I would honestly be amazed if anyone was able to read this book and not cry. If you have read this book and did not cry, I can only assume that you are a robot!!<br />
So if you haven't yet read this book and are thinking about giving it a go, I do warn you, be prepared for many emotions!! <br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Second Chance Summer</i> was a novel that left me satisfied in so many ways.<br />
I loved the progression of the story and how it evolved from cute and summery to deep, meaningful and moving. I loved each and every one of the characters and how they helped the story itself to progress, and I loved how realistic and relatable everything was.<br />
<br />
It was just a lovely, refreshing novel and I would highly recommend it! In terms of suitability, <i>Second Chance Summer</i> would probably be an appropriate read for anyone over the age of 13, since it is a young adult novel, but still does deal with some more mature themes that require a slightly older audience. Nevertheless, I think pretty much everybody would be able to read this book and relate or be able to take something away from it, so I don't think the Young Adult genre should prevent it from being enjoyed by an older audience too.<br />
<br />
<br />
As for me, <i>Second Chance Summer</i> restored my faith in both original and heart-warming romances, and Morgan Matson's story-telling! After this book, I went on to read and adore Matson's new book, <i>The Unexpected Everything</i>, and I can say that I will definitely be reading any future books that are published. I also think I need to read Matson's debut novel, <i>Amy and Roger's Epic Detour</i>, as if it's anything similar to <i>Second Chance Summer</i> I'm sure that I will love it!<br />
<br />
<br />
I hope you have enjoyed this review and I will be back with another one soon!<br />
<br />
Have you read <i>Second Chance Summer</i>? I'd love to know your thoughts on it!<br />
<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
<br />
<br />
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-52335915070139259832016-07-06T17:30:00.000+01:002016-07-06T17:30:19.721+01:00The Hidden Oracle | Book Review <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mukQn7V8cyw/V30JHrZL6NI/AAAAAAAAAoA/A_vdC8oobC8In0n4bw5nVuCktvb3qC1VACLcB/s1600/Hidden%2BOracle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mukQn7V8cyw/V30JHrZL6NI/AAAAAAAAAoA/A_vdC8oobC8In0n4bw5nVuCktvb3qC1VACLcB/s320/Hidden%2BOracle.jpg" width="209" /></a></div>
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26881479-the-hidden-oracle" target="_blank">The Hidden Oracle</a> (The Trials of Apollo #1</b>), by Rick Riordan<br />
<b>Published:</b> May 2016, by Puffin<br />
<b>Length:</b> 374 pages<br />
<b>Genre:</b> Middle-Grade, Fantasy, Mythology<br />
<br />
<b>My Rating: </b>4 Stars<br />
<br />
It's been a while since Riordan published a book in the <i>Percy Jackson </i>universe. Well - by a 'while', I mean a year and a half, but that was long enough!<br />
<br />
I would like to start out by saying that I am a HUGE fan of <i>Percy Jackson</i>. I was a little late on jumping on the Percy-Band waggon, only picking up the series in 2012, but once I began, I was completely hooked.<br />
Then, along came <i>The Heroes of Olympus</i>, which I didn't love quite as much as <i>Percy Jackson</i>, but still filled the Percy-shaped hole in my heart that had been there since <i>The Last Olympian</i>. You can actually read my review for <i>The Heroes of Olympus</i> by clicking the link <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/the-heroes-of-olympus-series-review.html" target="_blank">here</a>!!<br />
<br />
When I heard that Rick Riordan was bringing out a new series with the same characters from <i>Percy Jackson</i> and <i>The Heroes of Olympus</i>, I was excited to say the least! I was sooooo looking forward to hearing from Percy and Annabeth and everybody else. I loved Apollo from the other series, so I was immensely excited to be able to read more about him; he was such a fun character!<br />
But when <i>The Trials of Apollo</i> was actually released back in May, I'd kind-of-accidentally forgotten about it... Oops. Needless to say, I was so surprised to see it in a shop in June, having not realised it had been released! So, obviously, I had to buy it!!<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>The Hidden Oracle </i>picks up a short time after <i>The Blood of Olympus</i> left off:<br />
<br />
After angering his father, Zeus, Apollo is punished by being sent to Earth to live life as a mortal. After falling from the skies and landing in a pile of garbage in the middle of New York City, in the form of a weak, acne-covered teenage boy. Apollo must learn how to survive without his godly powers and find refuge in the only place he knows - Camp Half-Blood.<br />
If Apollo intends on surviving as a mortal, he must embrace the help of his children and other demi-gods in order to fight the monsters and other gods who have sworn to wipe out Apollo at the earliest opportunity...<br />
<br />
<br />
I went into this book quite optimistic and excited...<br />
I came out of it in two minds...<br />
<br />
On one hand, <i>The Hidden Oracle</i> was hilarious book with scenes that had me chuckling to myself thanks to the vibrant characters and gripping storyline.<br />
On the other hand, I just feel like Riordan is selling himself out a little.<br />
<br />
But let's not get onto that quite yet...<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>The Hidden Oracle</i> was in no way a bad book. I really enjoyed it.<br />
I love all of Rick Riordan's characters and Apollo was no exception. Okay, he was a bit of an idiot, but that's also why he was so likable. He was so self-righteous and unaware of everybody else that his narration was just funny, mainly down to his stupidity. But at the end of the day, he still had some good traits, which made him quite well-rounded overall. I found his narration fun and quirky to read.<br />
<br />
I loved the newer characters we were introduced to, like Meg, who also happened to be a well-rounded and, might I say, surprising character.<br />
Possibly my favourite thing about this book, though, was the fact that Percy was in it. I loved hearing from the older characters, like Chiron, Nico, Rachel, and everyone else from Camp Half-Blood. It was so lovely to have familiar characters in, so I didn't have to struggle to get to know everybody and have to learn names and back-stories.<br />
<br />
<br />
The writing in <i>The Hidden Oracle</i> is standard Riordan. And by that I mean practically flawless. It was easy to read (which I do actually appreciate sometimes in a book!), it was gripping and entertaining, and it was utterly hilarious, as always.<br />
<br />
So in that respect, <i>The Hidden Oracle</i> was a fabulous book and everyone should read it. And if that was all I was judging the book on, that it what I would say and I would leave it at that. However that is not quite the case...<br />
<br />
<br />
My main issue with the novel was its story. I honestly just didn't find it all that entertaining.<br />
I wouldn't particularly say that the storyline was anything special or original, and honestly, it's not dissimilar to Riordan's other books in the respect of a recurring storyline.<br />
Yes, there were some twists and turns in this book that were not in any of the others, but I don't think it particularly had a different feeling to it in comparison to all of Riordan's others.<br />
<br />
In a similar way to this, I was quite frustrated over the 'fit' of this novel in terms of other Rick Riordan books. To me, it seemed that it was written so that if you hadn't already read all of the books with the Greek and Roman gods in, they would be spoiled from this book, and you couldn't enjoy <i>The Hidden Oracle</i> without already reading the rest of the books due to lack of knowledge.<br />
I am fully aware of the fact that other authors do this too and it is not only Riordan, but I do feel that this way takes advantage of the reader a little bit.<br />
<br />
Also, I felt that I couldn't fully enjoy and appreciate this book simply because of the fact that it just seemed to be setting up the story line for the rest of the series - and of course this was going to be a series.<br />
<i>The Trials of Apollo</i> is set out to be a series of 5 books, the same as <i>Percy Jackson and the Olympians</i>, and <i>The Heroes of Olympus</i>. But I'm honestly not sure whether or not this is necessary... I've just felt that, to say how much of an amazing writer Rick Riordan is, he's starting to sell himself out a little.<br />
<br />
That doesn't mean to say I'm not going to read the rest of his books. As long as he keeps up his great writing, he will keep me as an avid reader. But will I read his books as soon as physically possible and fangirl for hours over them? Probably not, no. Which is sad, because I would love to be as excited towards this series as I was for the previous ones.<br />
I suppose we'll just have to wait and see what the next book brings!<br />
<br />
<br />
Despite what may seem like quite a negative review, I honestly still did enjoy <i>The Hidden Oracle</i> immensely and I still have high hopes for the rest of the series. I gave <i>The Hidden Oracle</i> 4 out of 5 stars because I loved the characters and storytelling, but I did think that it lacked a little in terms of originality.<br />
I probably have to recommend this book only to people who have read both the <i>Percy Jackson and the Olympians</i> series and <i>The Heroes of Olympus</i> series, as if you have not yet read those books, <i>The Trials of Apollo</i> will spoil them.<br />
Rick Riordan books are classed as 'Middle-Grade', so are 'intended' for children around the ages of 9 to 12, but I honestly feel that anyone could read them and still enjoy them, no matter how old they are. I feel like Rick Riordan books are a lot like Harry Potter in terms of audience appeal; no matter what the age of the reader, everyone can enjoy them!<br />
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<br />
<br />
That's all for this review but I hope to be back for more very soon!<br />
<br />
Have you read <i>The Hidden Oracle</i>? I'd love to know what you thought about it!<br />
<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
<br />
<br />
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-49691877074662266252016-06-30T17:00:00.000+01:002016-06-30T17:00:21.112+01:00LADY MIDNIGHT REVIEW & MEETING CASSANDRA CLARE!!!So, <i>Lady Midnight</i> by Cassandra Clare was probably my most highly anticipated book of 2016. <br />And how could it not be?<br />
A few years ago, I completely immersed myself into the world of the Shadowhunters, reading and rereading (and rereading again!) both the <i>Mortal Instruments</i> series and the <i>Infernal Devices</i> series.<br />
I waited (not so) patiently for <i>City of Heavenly Fire</i> to wrap up the series in 2014, but since then, I've felt like I've just been waiting for the new <i>Dark Artifices</i> series.<br />
Of course, we had the <i>Bane Chronicles</i> and <i>Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy</i>, and who could forget the new Shadowhunters TV show?! But none of those things really brought me completely back into the Shadowhunter world...<br />
Until now!<br />
<br />
March finally arrived (oops - this post has been quite a while in the making!) and <i>Lady Midnight</i> was in my arms, just where it belonged!<br />
And here it is now..!<br />
<br />
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qFYPBoGE89Y/VxpooHpQCGI/AAAAAAAAAm4/8EIUNTvbNC8xopC4vsjT1i5xNXt-C_iJwCLcB/s1600/Lady%2BMidnight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qFYPBoGE89Y/VxpooHpQCGI/AAAAAAAAAm4/8EIUNTvbNC8xopC4vsjT1i5xNXt-C_iJwCLcB/s320/Lady%2BMidnight.jpg" width="212" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24851136-lady-midnight" target="_blank"><b>Lady Midnight</b></a>, by Cassandra Clare<br />
<b>Published: </b>March 2016, by Simon & Schuster<br />
<b>Length:</b> 698 pages<br />
<b>Genre:</b> YA, Urban-Fantasy<br />
<br />
<b>My Rating:</b> 5 STARS!!<br />
<br />
<i>Lady Midnight</i> is set 5 years after the events of the Mortal Instruments Series, in Los Angeles. Emma Carstairs, is no longer the child in mourning you may remember from City of Heavenly Fire. She is now a fierce young woman who has sworn vengeance on the deaths of her parents. But first, she must discover what really happened to them that night. Why were they targets and what did the strange markings in an old faerie language on their bodies really mean? Along with her <i>parabatai </i>Julian Blackthorn, Emma is intent on finding out. But first, they must encounter a series of strange, demonic killings in Los Angeles, some of which may link closer to her than she realises...<br />
<br />
<br />
What can be said about this book without spoiling it in so many ways..?<br />
Well, first of all, it was fantastic. It was the kind of fantastic that leaves you sitting in a pile of awe after closing the final page. The kind of fantastic that makes you want to cry of happiness (which I may or may not have actually done). The kind of fantastic that makes you feel so jealous because you know you will never be able to write something as phenomenal as this book was.<br />
Need I really say more?!<br />
<br />
To be perfectly honest, I don't want to go into a lot of detail about <i>Lady Midnight </i>because I do not want to spoil the book for anybody. But what I will say is that it was not what I expected.<br />
<i>Lady Midnight</i> definitely had a different feeling to it in comparison to <i>The Mortal Instruments</i> an<i>d The Infernal Device</i>s, which I'm glad about. Cassandra Clare has received a lot of criticism about the sheer number of books she has managed to write in the same universe as each other, with the same creatures and some of the same characters. I do not agree with the criticism in this respect; frankly, Cassie could bring out a thousand books with Shadowhunters in and I would read each and every one of them. And then I'd probably reread them a few times too.<br />
Since <i>City of Bones</i> was published in 2007, Cassie's writing and story-telling has evolved so much and has transformed from the 'slightly-above-average' level to the 'supreme-writing-queen' level it is today. I can't complain about her writing one bit; I am completely in awe of it!<br />
<br />
<br />
In <i>Lady Midnight</i>, we're introduced to a bucket-load of new characters, which, I will admit, I was initially a little apprehensive about. Of course, we do meet the majority of these characters in City of Heavenly Fire, but they've grown up a lot since then. Since we had been with Clary and Jace for six books before these, I was a little concerned about how I would react to our new main characters, Emma Carstairs, Jules, and the rest of the Blackthorns. But I needn't have worried. We were introduced to these characters in a way that make it feel like we'd known them forever. I 'bonded' with all of the characters right from the start, and yes, I did miss not having Clary and Jace around so much, but I really enjoyed the fact that they were still mentioned and made a couple of appearances!<br />
I loved Emma so much as a main character. She was bright and vibrant but also fierce and protective. In fact, I loved all of the characters in this book. They were perfectly well-rounded characters - what more can be said?<br />
<br />
<br />
Like I have already said, the writing in these books has evolved so much over time, as have the complexity of the storylines. Whereas I would class <i>The Mortal Instruments</i> and <i>The Infernal Devices</i> as more 'Action Fantasy', <i>Lady Midnight</i> definitely seemed to be a Fantasy thrown in with a Murder Mystery type story, which I really loved. It was so well done, and every page left me wanting more and more and more! This in particular was complimented well by the mystery side of the novel, which was a little different but still completely and utterly enjoyable!<br />
<br />
I found the aspect of the evolving relationship between Emma and Jules really interesting; we've already been told that <i>parabatai</i> cannot fall in love, so I'm really looking forward to seeing how Cassie pulls it all off. I do suspect though, that like with all Cassandra Clare books, hearts will be broken! <br />
<br />
<br />
I absolutely cannot wait until <i>Lord of Shadows</i> is set to release because this book has left so many cliff-hangers and there are so many questions I need answers to! Next April needs to come around faster so that I can get my hands on the beautiful book.<br />
<br />
I would recommend <i>Lady Midnight</i> to anyone. Really, ANYONE!! You probably could go into <i>Lady Midnight</i> without reading the other two series, but I wouldn't recommend it as it spoils the ending of <i>City of Heavenly Fire</i>, and there are things that could be a little hard to understand for someone who has not yet read any other Shadowhunter books. In terms of a reading order for all of the Shadowhunter books, everyone seems to have their own opinion but my preference would be reading them in publication order; so reading <i>The Infernal Devices</i> between the later books in <i>The Mortal Instruments</i>. This is the order in which they were intended to be read, and if you've read both the series you'll know why that is.<br />
But whichever order you read them, I just recommend that you do read them!! These books are beyond worth the hype surrounding them, and I don't understand how people still haven't heard of them!!!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
*****</div>
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Back in April, I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to meet Cassandra Clare while she was visiting the UK on her <i>Lady Midnight </i>tour. Cassandra Clare is one of the authors I have always wanted to have the chance to meet, since her books were some of the first to really get me into reading. So when the chance arose for me to join a few hundred other fans in a bookshop, I definitely wasn't going to say no!<br />
I must say, this was the most hectic book signing I have ever been to. After driving 2 hours to get to the bookshop, we noticed that the queue for the signing had already started... 7 hours before the event!<br />
We then proceeded to make the biggest mistake, by deciding that they queue probably wouldn't grow much in an hour and we would have plenty of time to go and grab some lunch and maybe do a bit of shopping...<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wCL4ZcYcC5I/VxpoxQYCIqI/AAAAAAAAAm8/VAyAdCxSg30rm-3zWaaTy53SxAnuYGYigCLcB/s1600/photo%252810%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wCL4ZcYcC5I/VxpoxQYCIqI/AAAAAAAAAm8/VAyAdCxSg30rm-3zWaaTy53SxAnuYGYigCLcB/s200/photo%252810%2529.JPG" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My gorgeous signed copy!!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
On arriving back to Waterstones, we realised how much of a mistake that had been since over 200 people had joined the queue since we saw it before. So, we joined the queue, and then came the waiting... The cold, miserable waiting on the streets of the city centre, surrounded by damp cigarettes and wet chewing gum on the pavements. We waited like this for 5 hours. <br />
Finally, Cassandra Clare arrived and we started moving closer to the shop in which the signing would be held. After a further 2 hours of waiting inside the shop, it was finally our turn and we could go and meet her... We probably all looked bedraggled and homeless by the time she actually saw us, but I don't think anyone cared! We got our books signed and in a moment of dazed star-struck-ness, we forgot the questions we had planned to ask her. But it was all okay... We had got our books signed!!!<br />
<br />
I must say, this signing was a lot more hectic and tiring in comparison to the others I have been to, and due to the huge numbers of people there (I think there were around 600!!), there was not time to stay and chat with the author or have our photos taken with her, but I still did enjoy it all, and I have so much admiration for Cassandra Clare being able to sit for so long without a single break and sign for us!! So thank you Cassie!!<br />
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<br />
That's all I have for this post but I'll be back with another very soon!<br />
Did you get to meet Cassandra Clare on her tour? I'd love to hear your meet-up stories!!<br />
<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
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<br />
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-78037648665696137452016-06-29T17:00:00.000+01:002016-06-29T17:00:08.828+01:00The Girl on the Train | Book Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Iox6zXwF5tU/V3J-O8oymHI/AAAAAAAAAnw/mHFknjdGuhMep4Bt9oEOcmk-8k-zorhFwCLcB/s1600/Girl%2Bon%2Bthe%2BTrain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Iox6zXwF5tU/V3J-O8oymHI/AAAAAAAAAnw/mHFknjdGuhMep4Bt9oEOcmk-8k-zorhFwCLcB/s320/Girl%2Bon%2Bthe%2BTrain.jpg" width="204" /></a></div>
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23664702-the-girl-on-the-train" target="_blank">The Girl on the Train</a></b>, by Paula Hawkins<br />
<b>Published: </b>Jan 2015, by Black Swan<br />
<b>Length:</b> 409 pages <br />
<b>Genre:</b> Crime Thriller<br />
<br />
<b>My Rating:</b> 4 Stars<br />
<br />
I want to start out by saying that I don't usually read many crime fiction novels at all. I generally find myself slightly bored by the arguable 'repetitive' nature of books in this genre, but then find myself unable to sleep afterwards through sheer terror of being murdered in the middle of the night... So over the years, I've learnt to avoid these kinds of books!<br />
However, every now and then, a crime thriller comes along and really appeals to me, so they make quite a nice change to my usual romance or fantasy books.<br />
<i>The Girl on the Train</i> did just that. I had been drawn in to the story through the huge amount of hype surrounding it, so my expectations were actually quite high before I read it. I was expecting great things from this book!<br />
<br />
<i>The Girl on the Train</i> centres around a young alcoholic named Rachel. Recently divorced and looking for a new purpose in the world, Rachel catches a train- the same train each day. Over time, she begins to notice the people living in the houses through which the train passes. She looks in on their seemingly perfect lives with envy, wishing her life could be like those she sees from the train. She even beings to feel like she knows the people living in the houses by the train. But then, one day, she sees something shocking. She's a witness for a mere few seconds while the train stops, but that was all it took...<br />
Now everything has changed and Rachel is finally given the chance to become part of their lives, just like she had wanted. They will soon see that she is not just the girl on the train...<br />
<br />
<br />
This book really surprised me. I was not expecting to enjoy it as much as did. It did everything I would expect a book of this nature to do; it was clever and entertaining, the writing was gripping, and the storyline creeped me!<br />
<br />
Due to its length, it was quite a quick read and I felt that the writing of the novel really did it justice; it did not drag on and maintained quite a high level of creepiness throughout, which I enjoyed.<br />
I had not read any of Paula Hawkins' other books before <i>The Girl on the Train</i>, so I wasn't sure what to expect in terms of writing style and complexity, but I was pleasantly surprised! The style of writing was intense and really fit with the theme of the story.<br />
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I also really liked the characters shown in this novel. They were realistic, which is always good for a book like this. At the same time, they were all slightly creepy and seemed dangerous in their own unique ways, which I enjoyed. I really liked the aspect of Rachel being an alcoholic- this made for a really interesting narrator as you were never really able to trust what she was saying as she didn't trust herself some of the times. I thought that all the other characters were vivid and had a 'more-than-what-they-seem' sense to them. One issue I did have regarding the characters was the fact that I personally didn't feel that they were described enough in a physical sense. Descriptions were there, however, they just weren't there enough for me to feel like I know the characters and know exactly what they look like. This wasn't a huge issue as I still really enjoyed the book, but it just would have been nice to have more descriptions.<br />
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<br />
The overall storyline of <i>The Girl on the Train</i> was an enjoyable one. It was twisted, it was complicated, and it was dark, which is great for a thriller like this. It did take a little while for the 'main' story to actually kick in; there was a lot of back story and explaining to be done, but once the thriller-ey part of the book began, it was good. There was a stage in this book where I suspected everyone for the crime carried out; I even suspected the victim herself! This is one of the downsides to having <i>so many </i>unreliable characters, all of which may have a reason to commit the crime, whether that's through jealousy, intentional harm, psychopathic nature, or drunkenness. I enjoyed the fact that it was hard to decipher what was really going on and that there was no clear suspect until the resolution of the novel, but at the same time, this was something that annoyed me a bit too, and was probably the reason I didn't award this book the full 5 stars.<br />
<br />
When I had reached the end of the book, I wanted it to reach a point where the 'assaulter' was revealed and I would be able to say "Of course! I should have known!"<br />
But it never really did. Obviously the book came to a resolution and all was revealed, but there had been no hints throughout the book that it was that particular character. I would have had exactly the same reaction if another character turned out to be the assaulter in the end. The ending was just a little bit of a flop in the way that the reader could have had suspicions, but I don't think there was enough information on anybody for them to be able to work it out or even guess properly themselves. Some of the motives didn't make sense in my head and I didn't think the reasons were explained as well as they could have been.<br />
<br />
And even by the end of the novel, there were aspects that didn't make sense to me. There were parts that seemed completely irrelevant to the story, and others that left me thinking, "Why on earth did that character do that if they were completely innocent all along?"<br />
<br />
I suppose that aspect of it made it more realistic and closer to what a real crime would be like, but it just left for a bit of a confusing finish to what would have been a fantastic book. At the end of the day, I did still really enjoy it, but it just wasn't quite as polished as it could have been.<br />
<br />
<br />
I would recommend<i> The Girl on the Train</i> to fans of <i>Before I Go to Sleep </i>and <i>Gone Girl </i>and to anyone who is just starting to get into crime thrillers, as it was a great story and I did really enjoy it, but I also feel that if you read a lot of crime thrillers anyway, this wasn't really anything completely new or original, so it may not be enjoyed quite as much.<br />
I would be interested to have a look at some of Paula Hawkins' other books too, to see how they compare to this one.<br />
<br />
So, have you read <i>The Girl on the Train</i>? If so, I'd love to hear your thoughts!!<br />
<br />
Thank you for reading and I hope to be back soon with another review!<br />
Until then,<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-78439473545514469812016-06-28T17:00:00.000+01:002016-06-28T17:00:08.618+01:00A Court of Mist and Fury | Book Review<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--w78lywIHVg/V3JXMWu_FEI/AAAAAAAAAng/PmwUmZhOORcRVLzn7CE03CyBgyyvqj6qgCLcB/s1600/ACOMAF.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/--w78lywIHVg/V3JXMWu_FEI/AAAAAAAAAng/PmwUmZhOORcRVLzn7CE03CyBgyyvqj6qgCLcB/s320/ACOMAF.jpg" width="208" /></a></div>
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Even though we're not even half-way into the year, I have a very good feeling that <i>A Court of Mist and Fury</i> may well end up being my favourite book of the year...</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23766623-a-court-of-mist-and-fury" target="_blank">A Court of Mist and Fury</a></b>, by Sarah J. Maas</div>
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<b>Published:</b> May 2016, by Bloomsbury</div>
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<b>Length:</b> 624 pages</div>
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<b>Genre:</b> Fantasy, YA</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>My Rating:</b> 5 STARS!!!</div>
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<br /></div>
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After the
stunning events of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Court of Thorns and
Roses</i>, the highest rated young-adult fantasy novel of 2015, Feyre, our
fearless heroine, is coming to terms with her sudden and unwanted
transformation from a young human who just wanted to protect her family, into
an immortal Fae. After rescuing Tamlin, her lover and the ruler of the Spring
Court, from the rasp of the wicked Fae Queen, Amarantha, Feyre finds herself
haunted by the ghosts and memories of the deeds she was forced to carry out in
order to save Tamlin’s people.</div>
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At the same
time, Feyre is also forced to accept the consequences of the deed she made with
Rhysand, the feared ruler of the Night Court. But in the midst of everything,
war is looming and an evil greater than any wicked queen threatens to destroy
everything Feyre holds dear to her. She must learn to confront her past, embrace
her gifts and decide her fate…</div>
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But what
other secrets are being kept from her?</div>
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After reading the first book in this series last year, I had been waiting for what seemed to be a <u>massive </u>amount of time for this highly anticipated sequel. But I can
assure you that it was definitely worth the wait and lived up to (and even
surpassed) every expectation I had held for this book. </div>
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There aren’t
many books from which I re-emerge completely satisfied with all of the events
that occurred in the story, but this book will go down in history as being one
of the few that left me feeling ecstatic. </div>
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Words cannot describe how excited I felt before, during, and after reading this book. I cannot recommend it highly enough. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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The level of
character development within this novel was phenomenal. Nobody could have
foresaw the twists and turns each different character took and I found it
particularly interesting to finally discover what motives each character had
for doing what they did in the previous book. </div>
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I absolutely
loved how much character development Feyre went through over the course of this
novel. She seemed to grow stronger with every page, which was both enjoyable and
motivating to read, especially considering how much trauma she was put through
and how she previously reacted to this. </div>
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I also loved
the character development for Tamlin and Rhysand. I can’t truly say I was ever a
massive fan of Tamlin in regard to him being a partner for Feyre, which caused
me to enjoy <i>A Court of Thorns and Roses</i> slightly less than I would have liked
to, however, all was revealed in<i> A Court of Mist and Fury</i> which was why I
adored this instalment to the series far more than the last. Moreover, I liked
Tamlin more as a character after his true identity is revealed, which also made
<i>A Court of Mist and Fury</i> a lot more entertaining. </div>
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A great deal of information was revealed about our other main character,
Rhysand, allowing the reader to relate more to him and sympathise with his
situation more. For these reasons, Rhys slowly became one of my favourite characters in the whole series. </div>
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I also loved revisiting the minor characters from the previous book, like Elain and Nesta and Lucien (am I the only one who absolutely adores Lucien?!) as well as meeting so many new characters with their own interesting back-stories!</div>
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If you've read any one of Sarah J. Maas' books, you'll understand just how gripping and exciting her writing is, and there was no exception in this book. I'm constantly amazed at how she manages to go from writing gory battle scenes straight into steamy romantic scenes, and then add in a comedic reunion just to top it off, all the while maintaining her incredibly gripping quality of writing. The way Sarah J. Maas builds worlds and creates characters is just incredible. </div>
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I would
easily recommend <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Court of Mist and Fury</i>,
and its predecessor, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Court of Thorns
and Roses</i>, to everyone. While its strong, gory violence, bad language and
themes of a sexual nature would not be suitable for younger readers, I would
recommend anyone over the age of 15 to pick these books up.</div>
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Personally, I wouldn't define this as a Young Adult series, like Throne of Glass, just because of how much 'mature' content is in the series; I think I would view this series in the 'New Adult' genre. </div>
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But apart from that, I think everybody should give these books a go, particularly if you're a fan of fantasy, since <i>A Court of Mist and Fury</i> was absolutely exceptional. </div>
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I cannot wait until the finale of this trilogy is released. Sarah has not yet published a series conclusion before, so I'm really excited to see how she'll pull it off. However, if it turns out anything like <i>A Court of Mist and Fury</i> did, we're in for one hell of a book! May 2017 can't come soon enough; I need this book in my hands NOW! Oh, and if it's not too much to ask, I would really, really, really like everybody to come out of this series alive!! Please...?</div>
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So, who else is excited for the next instalment to this series? I'd love to hear your thoughts!!</div>
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That's all for now but I hope to be back very soon!</div>
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Until then,</div>
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<br /></div>
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Charlotte xxx</div>
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-36429987134757194312016-06-28T11:47:00.000+01:002016-06-28T11:47:07.362+01:00Apologies...Hello Everybody...<br />
<br />
I just wanted to say a huge sorry for not posting in so long! I've had a rather hectic schedule since I last posted and I just have not been able to find the time to write any reviews, so massive apologies for that. <br />
<br />
Thank you to everybody who has stuck around and waited for me, it really means a lot!! I hope to be back and blogging <u>very</u> soon as I have lots of reviews to share with you!<br />
<br />
Until then,<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-53153874838184530042016-02-18T21:27:00.000+00:002016-02-18T21:27:08.165+00:00January Reading Wrap UpThe first month of 2016 drew to a close a while ago, and as always, I feel the need to reflect on how much I have read compared to intended, and whether or not I am sticking to schedule, etc, etc.!<br />
So I guess we should probably get started with it then!<br />
<br />
I managed to read a total of 10 books in January. I know... Sound like a lot right? Wrong. It seems that I read a lot of short books this month and really struggled to keep up with my monthly page goals. Due to the short length of a lot of these books, I ended up having to read a lot more than usual, but I also had run out of days to read the longer books and had to read a couple of short stories at the end of the month to ensure I would be at my target!<br />
<br />
Here are my January 2016 books...<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17886733-the-5th-wave" target="_blank">The 5th Wave</a> (The 5th Wave #1), by Rick Yancey</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16131526-the-infinite-sea" target="_blank">The Infinite Sea</a> (The 5th Wave #2), by Rick Yancey</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23664731-everything-everything" target="_blank">Everything, Everything</a>, by Nicola Yoon</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21016316-blame-my-brain" target="_blank">Blame My Brain</a>, by Nicola Morgan</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27750677-a-north-shore-story" target="_blank">A North Shore Story</a>, by Dean Economos and Alyssa Machinis</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13581049-uglies" target="_blank">Uglies</a> (Uglies #1), by Scott Westerfeld</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15058657-pretties" target="_blank">Pretties</a> (Uglies #2), by Scott Westerfeld</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15058687-specials" target="_blank">Specials</a> (Uglies #3), by Scott Westerfeld</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16614760-extras" target="_blank">Extras</a> (Uglies #4), by Scott Westerfeld</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20813789-carswell-s-guide-to-being-lucky" target="_blank">Carswell's Guide to Being Lucky</a> (The Lunar Chronicles #3.1), by Marissa Meyer </li>
</ul>
<br />
These 10 books came to a total of 3101 pages, which was only one more page than my minimum target for this month, leading to an average of almost exactly 100 pages per day! This is still my target so it's not exactly a bad result, but I would definitely like to do better in the months to come, since I know I have read a lot more than this in previous months!!<br />
<br />
If you haven't already seen, I was lucky enough to participate in the blog tour for A North Shore Story earlier this month. You can see my part of the blog tour, including my review, by clicking <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/a-north-shore-story-blog-tour.html" target="_blank">here</a>, and to see my Q&A with the authors of the book, you can click <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/q-with-authors-of-north-shore-story_10.html" target="_blank">here</a>!<br />
<br />
Anyway, let's talk about some books..!<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tlmox3rDYhQ/VrZyGbPyC1I/AAAAAAAAAl0/ih9OH5rrY9w/s1600/Blame%2Bmy%2BBrain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tlmox3rDYhQ/VrZyGbPyC1I/AAAAAAAAAl0/ih9OH5rrY9w/s320/Blame%2Bmy%2BBrain.jpg" width="204" /></a></div>
I would like to begin by saying that, as a rule, I do not read non-fiction books. Honestly, I don't see the point in reading them for fun; they're facts, not stories! However, I made an exception for a book called <i>Blame My Brain</i>, by Nicola Morgan, mainly because I received it as a gift!<br />
This was one of the books that almost made me regret avoiding non-fiction! I was really surprised to find myself completely immersed in this book, and even though it didn't have a story, it was honestly more capturing than a lot of fiction books I have read!!<br />
I will admit that <i>Blame My Brain</i> didn't make incredible bed-time reading (which is my favourite kind of reading!), but it was entertaining and surprisingly funny and captivating! I didn't expect to find this at all!<br />
If you aren't familiar with <i>Blame My Brain</i>, it is a collection of research centred around what really goes off inside the brain between the time of childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. It also shows how much control you actually have over your actions and responses, and how to deal with this.<br />
I found this book to be informative and really quite useful. It was very relatable, and I feel that it is suitable for a wider audience than just teenagers (to whom the book is aimed) since it contains feelings, emotions and stimulus that everybody eventually deals with. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it mainly to teenagers, but also to their parents!<br />
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*****<br />
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Okay... Onto the topic of <i>Uglies</i>, by Scott Westerfeld...</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-G8lLMsArDG8/VsYwDZAT57I/AAAAAAAAAmE/obfueoy6l68/s1600/Uglies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-G8lLMsArDG8/VsYwDZAT57I/AAAAAAAAAmE/obfueoy6l68/s320/Uglies.jpg" width="210" /></a>I'm honestly not too sure on what I should say about these books. I had been so excited to read them, as I remembered how friends had raved about them and recommended them to me a few years ago. I was expecting great things!<br />
Maybe I had anticipated too much of them in my years of making time to read them?<br />
Maybe I was just too old to enjoy them?<br />
I don't really know what did it, but I was really not a fan of these. I could very well be in the minority about <i>Uglies</i>, but had I not already purchased the rest of the series, including the additional book, I probably would have stopped reading this series, which is <u>really</u> rare for me!<br />
I battled the way through the whole of this series, in the hope that it would eventually pick up and really captivate me as a reader, but unfortunately this did not happen. It makes me really sad to have not enjoyed a book or a series, particularly when I have devoted so much time and attention to it.<br />
What I have said so far gives a really negative impression on this series overall, which I guess is how I currently view it, however, looking back at my notes from this book, I did enjoy it. I thought that the story took a while to get going, but when I got into it properly I enjoyed it. I actually ended up giving the first book 4 stars, however, my ratings seemed to drop by one star for each book in the series. <br />
One of the biggest problems I had with <i>Uglies</i> and its sequels was that I personally didn't find it enjoyable to read. The plot didn't grip me and I wasn't interested in reading it, so it took way too long for me to finish it! The writing wasn't really anything special, and I didn't feel connected to any of the characters the way I usually am. Also, was Scott Westerfeld in a competition to see how many times he could fit the word 'bubbley' into one book??! That annoyed me so much! And how irritating were the nicknames too??!<br />
So, to conclude on this, I didn't really enjoy this series, which was a shame because I really wanted t<br />
o. I honestly think that if I had read this book at the age of 12 or 13, I would have really enjoyed it, as the writing style seemed to be aimed more towards that age group.<br />
However, if you're in this age group or enjoy books aimed at this group, then I would recommend it! I just hope that other people got some enjoyment out of the series!<br />
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*****</div>
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<br />
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mTu66kc2mjM/VsY0lOO6xsI/AAAAAAAAAmQ/IMwj8d7cCuE/s1600/Carswell%2527s%2BGuide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mTu66kc2mjM/VsY0lOO6xsI/AAAAAAAAAmQ/IMwj8d7cCuE/s200/Carswell%2527s%2BGuide.jpg" width="131" /></a>At the end of the month, I was a few pages short of my target, so I took the cheater's way out, and read a book that would make up pretty much exactly how many pages I needed! I received a version of <i>Carwell's Guide to Being Lucky</i> for free when I signed up for Marissa Meyer's newsletter (which I would definitely recommend signing up for!). It seemed so long since the release of<i> Winter</i>, so I felt that I needed some more Thorne in my life before <i>Stars Above</i>, so what a better way to get that than with this novella?!<br />
Ahhh! I just loved this so much! I can't really go into too much detail about what this novella consisted of, because I don't want to spoil it, but this book actually made my day! I love Thorne so much, and the child version of him was just hilarious! It was interesting to see how he grew up, since we've only been used to the adult version of him. I was so glad I read this though. I would definitely recommend it to fans of the <i>Lunar Chronicles</i>, and if you haven't even read those, then you're really behind on this bandwagon!!<br />
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<br />Right, well that's all I have for this post! Apologies for going so long without publishing, but I hope to be able to post some more reviews soon!<br />
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I'll see you then!!<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-18153535371546858182016-01-23T17:30:00.000+00:002016-01-23T17:30:20.156+00:00Q&A with the Authors of A North Shore Story<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SlghID77RbQ/Vpv-MEbtg5I/AAAAAAAAAlM/8Ql3pZdgCeA/s1600/North%2BShore%2BStory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SlghID77RbQ/Vpv-MEbtg5I/AAAAAAAAAlM/8Ql3pZdgCeA/s200/North%2BShore%2BStory.jpg" width="127" /></a>If you haven't already seen my part of the blog tour for <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27750677-a-north-shore-story" target="_blank">A North Shore Story</a>, the debut novel of Dean Economos and Alyssa Machinis, you can click <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/a-north-shore-story-blog-tour.html" target="_blank">here</a> for the details and my review of the book.<br />
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I only published my review of A North Shore Story for my part of the blog tour, but I also have a great Q&A with the wonderful authors of this book, which I was dying to share with you, so here goes..!<br />
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Questions for Dean Economos</div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PMsGsKVA2J0/VqOztfrqKDI/AAAAAAAAAlc/eZ03Np-Dmr8/s1600/Dean.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PMsGsKVA2J0/VqOztfrqKDI/AAAAAAAAAlc/eZ03Np-Dmr8/s200/Dean.png" width="195" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dean Economos</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Give us some background information, what did you do before writing this book?</b><br />
I went to college at Loyola University Chicago and received my undergrad in Biology and a minor in Biostatistics. I then went on to receive my M.B.A from Loyola's Quinlan School of Business with a concentration in Entrepreneurship.<br />
<b></b><br /><b></b>
<b>What were the events that inspired this book?</b><br />
The book was inspired by different experiences growing up. Those key events and experiences were then intertwined with the more current events of our church's media coverage.<br />
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<b>Some parts of your book are things you actually experienced, they must have stuck with you for you to want to write about them later. Did you always know you wanted to tell these stories?</b><br />
I kind of had a premonition growing up that these events would be shared. My friends and I would always say we should've had a show like Laguna Beach, or something of that nature. So, in a way, I did think these stories would be told in one way or another, I just didn't think I'd be the one to tell them.<br />
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<b>Like other stories of turmoil, we are drawn to A North Shore Story because we can relate to the characters. Can you elaborate on what is relatable about the internal struggles of the characters?</b><br />
What makes these characters extremely relatable to the readers are the confidence and relationship problems each one of them goes through, whether it be friendship or romantic. Some characters go through other internal struggles such as underage drinking, drug use and sexual peer pressure. I think that everyone at one time or another has been in one of these circumstances.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b> What was your favourite part of writing this book?</b><br />
Since this was my first book, I didn't know what to expect. I thought I was supposed to have a template or well-thought out plan before writing anything. Instead, I jumped into it head-first and developed the story as I wrote. I feel that doing it that way allowed myself to be more creative and not stick to a "script" per say. I was even surprised at what I was able to create.<br />
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<b> What inspired you to write this story so many years later?</b><br />
What originally got my gears turning was the media's coverage of our former priest and his embezzlement of the church funds. I then started to think about our time growing up at our church and the events that our friends and I experienced. After pinpointing key events, I began formulating the plotline which now makes up a North Shore Story.<br />
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<b>You know some of these characters in your waking life. Who was the most exciting to write? How have they changed because of what happened?</b><br />
The most exciting character to write about was definitely Kate. Kate, and the girl who she's based off of, has a very exciting personality and a distinct attitude. When our friend read the story, she loved how she was portrayed in the storyline. I think that she, along with the rest of our friends, have changed in that we've learned how to tackle the problems that Kate and the rest of the group are dealing with right now.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>Tell us more about your personal part in the stories. Are you in the book? How did you change your story for the fiction rendition?</b><br />
I am in the book. With my character, and with all the characters, I left elements of real life in the story, but overall the fundamental qualities of each character are unique from their real life counterparts.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>What strengths did you and Alyssa bring to the table to help one another write the book?</b><br />
I felt more connected to writing the actual story. I was able to figure out and connect the different sub-plots of the book, while Alyssa is very familiar with novels and creative writing. With those skills, she helped make the book come alive.<br />
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<b>Do you anticipate a sequel?</b><br />
I've thrown ideas around in my head, and I've talked about it with Alyssa. We're open to it, but haven't started writing anything yet.<br />
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Questions for Alyssa Machinis<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J2w5vYBiDDY/VqOzwE1AsGI/AAAAAAAAAlk/7g61kKAZq2o/s1600/Alyssa.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J2w5vYBiDDY/VqOzwE1AsGI/AAAAAAAAAlk/7g61kKAZq2o/s200/Alyssa.png" width="165" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alyssa Machinis</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Tell us about your background, what have you done since the events that occurred that inspired A North Shore Story?</b><br />
Well, I went to college at University of Illinois and graduated with a degree in Advertising and minors in both Business and Communications. Now I work at an advertising-technology company as a Digital Strategist.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>What is your side of the story depicted in the book? Did you change the reality for the fiction version?</b><br />
My side of the story is depicted in the book, but it's pretty separate from reality. The biggest and only consistence between my character and I are our driven personalities.<br />
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<b>What was the most difficult part about writing this book?</b><br />
The most difficult part of this book was helping it come alive. The content was there, and the story was strong, but fostering the story from a passive standpoint into an active point of view was a challenge.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>What do you think the most important lesson from the book is?</b><br />
The most important lesson from the book is to be confident in who you are. Don't worry about what other people think because the fear of judgement can turn you into a person you don't want to be.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>What part of this story do you think appeals to young adult readers most?</b><br />
I think what appeals to young adults about A North Shore Story are the pop culture references mixed with the struggles that I think a majority of teens have experienced or encountered at some point in their lives.<br />
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<b>What cliche were you in high school? Can you tell us an event that happened to you and your friends that almost made it into A North Shore Story but isn't included?</b><br />
<b> </b>I was definitely in the choir group throughout high school. There weren't many events that didn't make it into A North Shore Story, but we almost wrote in a choir sub-plot. However, we switched it to fashion as the story developed.<br />
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<b>What were your favourite books in high school, when the story places place?</b><br />
I loved the Harry Potter series and the Myron Bolitar series by Harlan Coben. He writes excellent mystery novels, and J.K. Rowling is a genius.<br />
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<b>Who is your favourite author? What were a few books that inspired your writing?</b><br />
I don't necessarily have a favourite author (I read a lot). However, I do think that J.K. Rowling's writing style was very influential on my own. It's also comporting to know what she had humble beginnings just like Dean and I have now.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<b>Do you think you'll write another book?</b><br />
Like Dean mentioned, we've talked about it a little bit. However, as of now we have not made and strides toward writing another book. <b> </b><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span>Thanks to <a href="http://prbythebook.com/a-north-shore-story" target="_blank">PR by the Book</a> for this Q&A!</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span>That's all for now but I hope to be back with more bookish posts soon!</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span>Charlotte xxx </span></span><b><span style="background-color: white;"><span></span></span><br /> </b><br />
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-51178825634677270712016-01-21T12:00:00.000+00:002016-01-24T19:09:10.204+00:00A North Shore Story | Blog TourHello and welcome to my part of <i>A North Shore Story</i>'s Blog Tour! <br />
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So, if you haven't already guessed, I was given the pleasure of joining the blog tour for <i>A North Shore Story</i>, the debut novel of Dean Economos and Alyssa Machinis! I received a free copy of <i>A North Shore Story</i> from <a href="http://prbythebook.com/a-north-shore-story" target="_blank">PR by the Book</a> for reading before its release day, so thank you very much to PR by the Book for sending me that!<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SlghID77RbQ/Vpv-MEbtg5I/AAAAAAAAAlI/zFJFbgr9jTw/s1600/North%2BShore%2BStory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SlghID77RbQ/Vpv-MEbtg5I/AAAAAAAAAlI/zFJFbgr9jTw/s320/North%2BShore%2BStory.jpg" width="204" /></a><b> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27750677-a-north-shore-story" target="_blank">A North Shore Story</a></b>, by Dean Economos and Alyssa Machinis<br />
<b>Publish Date:</b> 19th Jan 2016<br />
<b>Length:</b> 122 pages (e-book version)<br />
<b>Genre: </b>YA, Fiction, Coming of Age<br />
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<b>My Rating: </b>3.5 Stars<br />
<b><br />
</b> <b><span id="freeText766531668682595696">For the teenagers of Chicago’s North Shore, everyone has something to hide.<br />
In a daring attempt to impress the elusive Sophia, Michael makes the biggest decision of his life, stealing over a hundred thousand dollars from St. Theodore Community Church.<br />
That same night, Nichole’s insecurities are finally forgotten with a drug she soon won’t be able to control.<br />
When Michael makes his getaway, he sees his friend Joseph cheat on his girlfriend with the priest’s daughter and knock over a candle that sets the church ablaze.<br />
As the consequences of that night unfold, Joseph is blamed for the fire and the missing money. Can the teenagers of the North Shore confess their vices to help their friend? Or will their greed, infidelity and jealousy change all their lives forever? </span></b><span id="freeText766531668682595696"> </span><br />
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<span id="freeText766531668682595696">So, without further ado, here is my (spoiler free) review for <i>A North Shore Story</i>!</span><br />
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<span id="freeText766531668682595696">To begin with, I must say that I wasn't actually a big fan of this book. I wasn't too sure why I disliked it to begin with, but I felt an initial lack of connection with the majority of the characters and I didn't find myself gripped by the writing.</span><br />
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I am pleased to say that all of this improved through the course of the novel!<br />
While I'll admit that the start was quite slow, once I had gotten my head around whom each of the characters were, who their friends and partners were, and who they didn't get along with, I found this book so much easier to understand! At about 40 pages into the story, I found myself completely entranced by everything and wouldn't have put it down for anybody! I still wasn't the biggest fan of the writing in this book, but I was really interested in the plot and was really gripped in by what was happening and about to happen.<br />
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The main idea for the story centres around a group of teenagers living on the North Shore of Chicago. As the story unfolds, a set of events occur that could change their lives forever. Some are by no fault of anybody, while others are a direct cause of something else. But will anybody own up to what really happened on the North Shore? Or will the consequences of somebody's actions lead to another chain of unspeakable events?<br />
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This was definitely a very dramatic book, however I was really interested in discovering, thanks to a Q&A with the authors (provided by PR by the Book), that the events that occurred in this work of fiction did in fact happen in reality. Obviously names were changed and the story was adapted to be put into the form of a novel, however the whole 'scandal' regarding the church did indeed happen, and both authors were actually characters in their own novel.<br />
I personally think that's quite amazing! I would really love to find out more about that to discover what really happened on the North Shore, as opposed to what was changed to fit in the book.<br />
But back on the point of it being a dramatic story, I can actually see this story being adapted to be a performance of some sort. I think it would be even more entertaining in the form of a play so I would love to keep an eye on this story to see where it goes, especially if a sequel is released, which the authors have stated that they're open to!<br />
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I did think that some parts of this story were possibly a little predictable and the ending did seem a little obvious to me, yet, nevertheless, I was still shocked by what happened and my mouth was actually left hanging open as the story drew to a close! By the end of the whole thing, I was really impressed and overwhelmed by what had occurred, so much so that I very nearly gave the story 4 stars, but decided to settle on 3.5 (officially 3 stars on Goodreads) simply because I didn't think the story had a very good start.<br />
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But, overall, I was really impressed by this book and do feel the need to go back to read it all over again to get a different perspective and view on the whole thing, which I think will lead me to enjoy the story even more as I will be familiar with and understand the characters right from the start, which was the main thing I felt that <i>A North Shore Story</i> lacked in.<br />
That, however, does not mean to say by any means that it was a bad book! I thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing when the story got going properly. While this didn't initially seem like the type of book that would appeal to me, I found myself falling for it in the end!<br />
Due to its short length, this would be a great read for taking to a lazy day at the beach, or for reading when you're fairly busy, as it was one of those books that could be read in one sitting, only taking an hour or so, depending on how quickly you read. On the whole, I generally prefer longer books that can be read over several days; however this made a nice change and was really easy to read in the short time I had to spare! <br />
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I would recommend <i>A North Shore Story</i> to fans of YA fiction, mystery, and suspense and drama. I don't think this book would be suitable for young readers due to it containing more mature themes such as drug use, drinking, bad language and sex, but depending on maturity, I wouldn't see this being an issue for any reader older than 13 - it is teen-fiction after all!<br />
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So, overall, I enjoyed <i>A North Shore Story</i> and I will be recommending it to my bookish friends - just go in with an open mind and let the story do the talking before you come to any conclusions!<br />
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That's all for now but I'll be back for more reviews soon!<br />
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<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
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<br />
Want to buy <i>A North Shore Story</i>?<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/North-Shore-Story-Dean-Economos-ebook/dp/B017N3U6UK/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1451493454&sr=1-1&keywords=a+north+shore+story" target="_blank">Amazon US</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B017N3U6UK?keywords=A%20North%20Shore%20Story&qid=1453236332&ref_=sr_1_1&s=digital-text&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Amazon UK</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-north-shore-story-dean-economos/1122571527?ean=2940151122788" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble </a><br />
<br />
<a href="https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/a-north-shore-story-1" target="_blank">Kobo</a>Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-66268848386454610842016-01-10T19:39:00.001+00:002016-01-10T19:39:59.320+00:00Favourite Books of 2015!<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]-->*I know this is super late - sorry guys - but it took me so long to put together, so better late than never!!* <br />
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Wow! I can't believe 2015 is over already!! It only seems a few days ago when I was debating over how many books to set for my Goodreads 2015 Reading Challenge, and sorting out my TBR pile for the year, and now, here I am doing it all again!<br />
At the start of 2015, I promised myself that this would be the year I would read 100 books. I'd been wanting to be able to achieve this for a while, but as of 2014, the highest number of books I'd read in a year was 71. I also decided that I was going to read at least 36,500 pages - 100 pages for each day.<br />
So, I sat and planned out exactly how many books I needed to be reading each month and how long each book needed to be. And I did it!! I actually read 100 books!! - Well, 102 to be exact!!<br />
And I got to a total of 40,340 pages for the whole year, which I'm absolutely thrilled with!!<br />
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Looking back on it all, 2015 really was a fantastic year, especially in terms of books. Not only did I go above and beyond my goals, but some amazing books were released; A Court of Thorns and Roses, Queen of Shadows, <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/winter-book-review.html" target="_blank">Winter</a>, P.S. I Still Love You, and a whole bunch more! After years of waiting, Mockingjay Part 2 finally hit cinemas and wasn't it just incredible?! The Cursed Child tickets were released and after 6 hours of online queueing I finally got my tickets! The trailer for Fantastic Beasts dropped so now we have a first look at the next line of Harry Potter films! Oh, and I got the chance to meet Sarah J. Maas, one of my all-time favourite authors, and talk to her about books (see that post<a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/meeting-sarah-j-maas.html" target="_blank"> here</a>!)<br />
It really was an amazing year!!<br />
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But we're here for the books, so without further ado, here are all my books of 2015..!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gqi6oiREs2I/VpKwOkSZYdI/AAAAAAAAAk4/b8PzvUdI0V4/s1600/2015%2BBooks.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gqi6oiREs2I/VpKwOkSZYdI/AAAAAAAAAk4/b8PzvUdI0V4/s400/2015%2BBooks.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My glorious pile of 2015 books!!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>(Books in bold are ones I've read for the first time in 2015 - the ones not in bold are ones I have reread this year!)</i></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17188744-an-abundance-of-katherines" target="_blank">An Abundance of Katherines</a> - John Green<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13455782-shatter-me" target="_blank">Shatter Me</a> - Tahereh Mafi<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13104080-unravel-me" target="_blank">Unravel Me</a> - Tahereh Mafi<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18735912-ignite-me" target="_blank">Ignite Me</a> - Tahereh Mafi<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18481271-unite-me" target="_blank">Unite Me</a> - Tahereh Mafi<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23202393-before-i-go-to-sleep" target="_blank">Before I Go To Sleep</a> - S.J. Watson<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11841579-the-unbecoming-of-mara-dyer" target="_blank">The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer</a> - Michelle Hodkin<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16108212-the-evolution-of-mara-dyer" target="_blank">The Evolution of Mara Dyer</a> - Michelle Hodkin<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21186045-the-retribution-of-mara-dyer" target="_blank">The Retribution of Mara Dyer</a> - Michelle Hodkin</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10785687-harry-potter-page-to-screen" target="_blank">Harry Potter: Page to Screen</a> - Bob McCabe</b><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/72193.Harry_Potter_and_the_Philosopher_s_Stone" target="_blank">Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone</a> - J.K. Rowling<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/224912.Harry_Potter_and_the_Chamber_of_Secrets" target="_blank">Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets</a> - J.K. Rowling<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/464164.Harry_Potter_and_the_Prisoner_of_Azkaban" target="_blank">Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban</a> - J.K. Rowling<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/864890.Harry_Potter_and_the_Goblet_of_Fire" target="_blank">Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire</a> - J.K. Rowling<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/444327.Harry_Potter_and_the_Order_of_the_Phoenix" target="_blank">Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix</a> - J.K. Rowling<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/93124.Harry_Potter_and_the_Half_Blood_Prince" target="_blank">Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince</a> - J.K. Rowling<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/820344.Harry_Potter_and_the_Deathly_Hallows" target="_blank">Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows</a> - J.K. Rowling<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16122215-quidditch-through-the-ages" target="_blank">Quidditch Through the Ages</a> - J.K. Rowling<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16122237-fantastic-beasts-and-where-to-find-them" target="_blank">Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them</a> - J.K. Rowling<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16122245-the-tales-of-beedle-the-bard" target="_blank">The Tales of Beedle the Bard</a> - J.K. Rowling</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23357458-all-the-bright-places?from_choice=false&from_home_module=false" target="_blank">All the Bright Places -</a> Jennifer Niven<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20935171-we-were-liars" target="_blank">We Were Liars</a> - E. Lockhart</b><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13335038-divergent" target="_blank">Divergent</a> - Veronica Roth<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13480671-insurgent" target="_blank">Insurgent</a> - Veronica Roth<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10616322-allegiant" target="_blank">Allegiant</a> - Veronica Roth<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12139510-cinder" target="_blank">Cinder</a> - Marissa Meyer<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13602234-scarlet" target="_blank">Scarlet</a> - Marissa Meyer<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18716399-cress" target="_blank">Cress</a> - Marissa Meyer </b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17190209-faerie-tale" target="_blank">Faerie Tale</a> - Raymond E. Feist<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15704174-gone-girl" target="_blank">Gone Girl</a> - Gillian Flynn<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13611052-the-night-circus" target="_blank">The Night Circus</a> - Erin Morgenstern<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13519397-throne-of-glass" target="_blank">Throne of Glass</a> - Sarah J. Maas<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17670709-crown-of-midnight" target="_blank">Crown of Midnight</a> - Sarah J. Maas<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20617636-heir-of-fire" target="_blank">Heir of Fire</a> - Sarah J. Maas<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18315788-the-assassin-s-blade" target="_blank">The Assassin's Blade</a> - Sarah J. Maas <br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13605493-a-moment-like-this" target="_blank">A Moment Like This</a> - Anita Notaro </b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15946117-a-street-cat-named-bob" target="_blank">A Street Cat Named Bob</a> - James Bowen<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16163060-just-one-day" target="_blank">Just One Day</a> - Gayle Forman<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20631136-just-one-year" target="_blank">Just One Year</a> - Gayle Forman<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22379239-just-one-night" target="_blank">Just One Night</a> - Gayle Forman<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22839894-a-court-of-thorns-and-roses" target="_blank">A Court of Thorns and Roses</a> - by Sarah J. Maas <br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18741152-anna-and-the-french-kiss?from_choice=false&from_home_module=false" target="_blank">Anna and the French Kiss</a> - Stephenie Perkins<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22247695-lola-and-the-boy-next-door" target="_blank">Lola and the Boy Next Door</a> - Stephenie Perkins<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21850308-isla-and-the-happily-ever-after" target="_blank">Isla and the Happily Ever After</a> - Stephenie Perkins<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13272661-the-statistical-probability-of-love-at-first-sight" target="_blank">The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight</a> - Jennifer E. Smith<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23276117-vampire-academy" target="_blank">Vampire Academy</a> - Richelle Mead</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20522861-frostbite" target="_blank">Frostbite</a> - Richelle Mead </b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23276134-shadow-kiss" target="_blank">Shadow Kiss</a> - Richelle Mead</b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23164453-blood-promise" target="_blank">Blood Promise</a> - Richelle Mead</b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21866610-spirit-bound" target="_blank">Spirit Bound</a> - Richelle Mead</b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20762706-last-sacrifice" target="_blank">Last Sacrifice</a> - Richelle Mead</b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8582039-before-i-die" target="_blank">Before I Die</a> - Jenny Downham</b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23507628-i-was-here" target="_blank">I Was Here</a> - Gayle Forman </b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4327066-the-perks-of-being-a-wallflower" target="_blank">The Perks of Being a Wallflower</a> - Stephen Chbosky<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21848392-charlotte-s-web" target="_blank">Charlotte's Web</a> - E.B. White<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/833420.The_Wee_Free_Men" target="_blank">The Wee Free Men</a> - Terry Pratchett<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/833420.The_Wee_Free_Men" target="_blank">Beautiful Creatures</a> - Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11201534-beautiful-darkness" target="_blank">Beautiful Darkness</a> - Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13526144-beautiful-chaos" target="_blank">Beautiful Chaos</a> - Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17333239-beautiful-redemption" target="_blank">Beautiful Redemption</a> - Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11568316-dream-dark" target="_blank">Dream Dark</a> - Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl <br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18690890-paper-towns" target="_blank">Paper Towns</a> -John Green<b></b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21061684-dangerous-creatures" target="_blank">Dangerous Creatures</a> - Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl</b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23197327-dangerous-deception" target="_blank">Dangerous Deception</a> - Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl</b><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17118893-the-fault-in-our-stars" target="_blank">The Fault in Our Stars</a> - John Green<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21936986-to-all-the-boys-i-ve-loved-before" target="_blank">To All the Boys I've Loved Before </a>- Jenny Han</b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24261890-p-s-i-still-love-you" target="_blank">P.S. I Still Love You</a> - Jenny Han</b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7956260-the-summer-i-turned-pretty" target="_blank">The Summer I Turned Pretty</a> - Jenny Han </b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9735120-it-s-not-summer-without-you" target="_blank">It's Not Summer Without You </a>- Jenny Han </b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13625448-we-ll-always-have-summer" target="_blank">We'll Always Have Summer</a> - Jenny Han </b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23573418-i-ll-give-you-the-sun" target="_blank">I'll Give You the Sun</a> - Jandy Nelson</b><br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21551545-since-you-ve-been-gone" target="_blank">Since You've Been Gone</a> - Morgan Matson</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15842637-me-and-earl-and-the-dying-girl" target="_blank">Me and Earl and the Dying Girl</a> -Jesse Andrews<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23482780-the-queen-of-the-tearling" target="_blank">The Queen of the Tearling</a> - Erika Johansen </b><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22560044-the-maze-runner" target="_blank">The Maze Runner</a> - James Dashner<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22291294-the-scorch-trials" target="_blank">The Scorch Trials </a>- James Dashner<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22311017-the-death-cure" target="_blank">The Death Cure </a>- James Dashner<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17728005-p-s-i-love-you" target="_blank">P.S. I Love You</a> - Cecilia Ahern<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18606526-four" target="_blank">Four: A Divergent Collection</a> - Veronica Roth<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25443389-extraordinary-means" target="_blank">Extraordinary Means</a> - Robyn Schneider</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7863658-clockwork-angel" target="_blank">Clockwork Angel</a> - Cassandra Clare<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13223132-clockwork-prince" target="_blank">Clockwork Prince</a> -Cassandra Clare<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21972742-clockwork-princess" target="_blank">Clockwork Princess</a> - Cassandra Clare<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23598679-the-bane-chronicles" target="_blank">The Bane Chronicles </a>- Cassandra Clare<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24926017-the-game-of-love-and-death" target="_blank">The Game of Love and Death</a> - Martha Brockenbrough<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20703051-love-letters-to-the-dead" target="_blank">Love Letters to the Dead -</a> Ava Dellaira</b><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19174917-fangirl" target="_blank">Fangirl</a> - Rainbow Rowell<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25669271-landline" target="_blank">Landline</a> - Rainbow Rowell</b><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12250584-eleanor-park" target="_blank">Eleanor & Park</a> - Rainbow Rowell<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22369406-red-queen" target="_blank">Red Queen</a> - Victoria Aveyard</b><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12187803-the-hunger-games" target="_blank">The Hunger Games</a> - Suzanne Collins<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12187797-catching-fire" target="_blank">Catching Fire</a> - Suzanne Collins<br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12187799-mockingjay" target="_blank">Mockingjay </a>- Suzanne Collins<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25774272-winter" target="_blank">Winter</a> - Marissa Meyer</b></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23848145-queen-of-shadows" target="_blank">Queen of Shadows</a> - Sarah J. Maas</b></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7788360-before-i-fall" target="_blank">Before I Fall </a>- Lauren Oliver</b></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21081556-panic" target="_blank">Panic</a> - Lauren Oliver</b></div>
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<b><span lang="FR" style="mso-ansi-language: FR;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17258061-legend" target="_blank">Legend</a> - Marie Lu</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<b><span lang="FR" style="mso-ansi-language: FR;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16003119-prodigy" target="_blank">Prodigy</a> - Marie Lu</span></b></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17931425-champion" target="_blank">Champion</a> - Marie Lu</b></div>
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<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26328452-my-true-love-gave-to-me" target="_blank">My True Love Gave to Me</a> – Stephanie Perkins</b><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18272314-let-it-snow" target="_blank">Let it Snow </a>- John Green, Maureen Johnson, Lauren Myracle </div>
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<br />
<br />
Well, that's all of them! But now I think it's time for some 'Favourite Awards' don't you think?<br />
Here, I have 10 categories of 'awards', if you will, and have named my personal favourite from each of the categories. The only books able to fit into these categories are ones that I've read for the first time in 2015 (see books in bold). No rereads will be included in this!! And these books aren't necessarily the books released this year; they're just the ones that I've read!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">My Favourite Heroine / Female Protagonist Award</span> </b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Over the last year I have been introduced to a great number of new amazing female characters, all having different voices, opinions, lifestyles and stories. A huge amount of them made me feel honoured and privileged to be able to stare their stories with them; a few of them, not so much! But they each gave me something different and I loved each female character in a completely different way. The female main characters in the running for this award are...</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b> </b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Rose Hathaway - <i>Vampire Academy</i>, June - <i>Legend</i>, Mara Dyer - <i>Mara Dyer </i>, Lara Jean - <i>To All the Boys I've Loved Before</i>, Anna / Isla -<i> Anna and the French Kiss</i>, Cinder / Cress - <i>The Lunar Chronicles</i>, Sadie - <i>Extraordinary Means</i>, Feyre - <i>A Court of Thorns and Roses</i>, and Juliette - <i>Shatter Me</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
But I think my favourite main female character from 2015 has got to be...</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Celaena Sardothian - Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SE21GTi7xhs/VocSG4FT1gI/AAAAAAAAAjI/ZNUCuqm4Vq4/s1600/Throne%2Bof%2BGlass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SE21GTi7xhs/VocSG4FT1gI/AAAAAAAAAjI/ZNUCuqm4Vq4/s200/Throne%2Bof%2BGlass.jpg" width="131" /></a></div>
The thing I love the most about Celaena is that she's not really a heroine. She's a ruthless assassin just trying to make her way and stay alive. She doesn't want to save the world, she almost wants to destroy it. And if somebody gets in her way, well, they'd better watch their back!<br />
But above all of that, Celaena is a really caring person. She won't let anybody touch the people close to her, and she doesn't kill for nothing. She does what she has to do to stay alive, and, well, also kill anyone who tries to kill her first!<br />
She's not your everyday heroine, but throughout this series, Celaena develops from a badass assassin to a badass ruler, and I love every part of her!<br />
She's not exactly a character you would aspire to be, but that doesn't stop her from being incredible!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;">My Favourite Hero / Male Protagonist Award</span></b><br />
I think it's got to be said that there aren't as many male leads as there are female leads - in the books I read especially. However, that's not to say male lead characters are to be looked down upon! I have read about some amazing (and hot!) male characters who either end up saving the day, ruin the day in an attempt to save it, or just have an amazing character, voice and personality. These are my favourites...<br />
Adam - <i>Shatter Me</i>, Noah - <i>Mara Dyer, </i>Kai - <i>Cinder</i>, Thorne - <i>Scarlet</i>, Dorian - <i>Throne of Glass</i>, Dimitri - <i>Vampire Academy</i>, Peter - <i>To All the Boys I've Loved Before</i>, Greg - <i>Me and Earl and the Dying Girl</i>, Day - <i>Legend</i>, and Lane - <i>Extraordinary Means</i><br />
<br />
But my favourite male character I was introduced to in 2015 was...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Josh Wasserstein - Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins</b></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5w4jPdoL8ZM/VpAxInBzkCI/AAAAAAAAAjY/-pfKMDykHVo/s1600/Isla.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5w4jPdoL8ZM/VpAxInBzkCI/AAAAAAAAAjY/-pfKMDykHVo/s200/Isla.jpg" width="130" /></a>Ahhhhh. I just loved Josh. <br />
Out of all of the gorgeous boys we were introduced to in this series, he's got to be my favourite. Isla and Josh's relationship was also my favourite out of all them in the trilogy. I don't quite know what it was about him that I fell in love with, but I'm pretty sure every single part of him contributed.<br />
Not only did Josh seem to be the most romantic, but he also seemed to be the most real to me, and I think that's out of all the fictional boys as a whole. He wasn't stuck in some fantasy dystopian that was forcing him to fall in love, he was simply just an amazing guy. I really can see why Isla loved him so much! I'm going to try not to spoil, but if someone did for me what Josh did for Isla at the end of this book, I'd probably just be dead on the flood cause my heart would have exploded.<br />
This does sound really petty and swoony, but I honestly feel like Josh would just be perfect in any situation. He was just the perfect character! I feel like, even if you took his character out of this book and dumped him in a fantasy, dystopian, vampire or horror book, he would still be just as epic and amazing!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>My Favourite Ship Award</b></span><br />
For those of you who have been living back in the stone ages, let me explain... A ship is not what you think. It is no longer a boat or any other vehicle. It is, in fact, the term used when you pair characters (or people) together in a relation<i>ship. </i>For example, if I thought that Magnus and Alec, from The Mortal Instruments, would make a good pair, (which I do!!), I would 'ship' them, and their ship name would be Malec. Are you with me? I'm glad everybody has caught up!<br />
So, some of my favourite ships from 2015 have been...<br />
Mara and Noah - <i>Mara Dyer</i>, Cress and Thorne - <i>Cress</i>, Celaena and Dorian - <i>Throne of Glass</i>, June and Day - <i>Legend</i>, Sadie and Lane - <i>Extraordinary Means</i>, Rose and Dimitri - <i>Vampire Academy</i>, Anna and St Clair - <i>Anna and the French Kiss</i>, and Isla and Josh - <i>Isla and the Happily Ever After </i></div>
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But I think that my favourite ship of 2015, or 2015 OTP, if you will, is...<br />
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<b>Cinder and Kai - Cinder, by Marissa Meyer</b></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PwfhU3RMvAU/VpA-31YWwzI/AAAAAAAAAj4/nm8gIEjAZQM/s1600/Cinder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PwfhU3RMvAU/VpA-31YWwzI/AAAAAAAAAj4/nm8gIEjAZQM/s200/Cinder.jpg" width="130" /></a>What can I say about Cinder and Kai? Where do I even start? For the couple of blissful weeks I spent reading this series, this couple were my everything. In most books, the pairings aren't perfect, which tends to be a good thing because real relationships aren't perfect. However, one of the things I loved about this series was that it was a fairytale retelling, so things could be perfect! And Cinder and Kai's relationship was one of those things!! I can't say for sure that it was my all time favourite ship from the series- it was a complete draw with Cress and Thorne, but Cinder and Kai have been with us from the very beginning, which is why they won me over. If you haven't yet read this series, you really, really, really need to think about starting it soon! It is just perfection. Nothing else can describe it. Needless to say that I was head-over-heels in love with the relationships here. I can't say much more without spoiling the series, but this relationship was a perfect fairy-tale one! </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Favourite Not-a-Main-Character Award</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">I honestly believe the 'sidekicks' should get more recognition than they do. So here is my recognition for the amazing 'sidekicks' and secondary characters that do just as much as the main protagonists and accept the little recognition they're received with their heads held high. These are the characters that everybody seems to forget after the story ends, but the characters that make the story what it is. These characters could be sidekicks or just characters that happened to be there! </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here they are..</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Lysandra - <i>Throne of Glass</i>, Fleetfoot -<i> Throne of Glass</i>, Kitty - <i>To All the Boys I've Loved Before</i>, Lissa -<i> Vampire Academy</i>, Kenji - <i>Shatter Me</i>, Earl - <i>Me and Earl and the Dying Girl</i>, Charlie- <i>Extraordinary Means</i>, and Eden - Legend</span></span><br />
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But my favourite not-a-main-character of all my 2015 books was...<br />
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<b>Iko - The Lunar Chronicles, by Marissa Meyer</b></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RbPlSnNrH5Y/VpBGXzhueOI/AAAAAAAAAkI/1_Tv7SqIItQ/s1600/Winter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RbPlSnNrH5Y/VpBGXzhueOI/AAAAAAAAAkI/1_Tv7SqIItQ/s200/Winter.jpg" width="130" /></a>I feel unable to explain all of my feelings towards Cinder's little android friend. Iko is just the best, and I'm pretty sure I've said that about all of Marissa Meyer's characters, but Iko is just something else! She is one of the funniest 'people', if you can class her as that, I have ever read about, and she never ceases to make me laugh. I need a whole book just about Iko because that would be hilarious - see what I mean about these characters being left out? Cinder, Scarlet, Cress and Winter all got a book! Why not Iko?<br />
To say she's a walking and talking and thinking android, she's still such a vivid and real character and I personally think that she's the most relatable too!<br />
These stories wouldn't be what they are without that little android. She's the real hero of the series!!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Stand Out of the Crowd Award </b></span></div>
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I love finding books that are just a little bit different to what you normally get to read. When you read so many books in a similar genre, it can sometimes feel a little boring to read so many books written in the same way, with the same kind of characters and the same kind of plot line. So, this is my award for those books that were a little bit different and stepped out of the ordinary way of writing, whether it's with different characters, plotline or just a unique writing style!<br />
Here were the contenders...<br />
<i>The Game of Love and Death</i> - Martha Brockenbrough, <i>Shatter Me</i> - Tahereh Mafi, <i>We Were Liars</i> - E. Lockhart, <i>Love Letters to the Dead</i> - Ava Dellaira, <i>Gone Girl</i> - Gillian Flynn, and <i>I'll Give You the Sun</i> - Jandy Nelson<br />
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But the book I found to stand out from the rest of them was...<br />
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<b>Me and Earl and the Dying Girl - Jesse Andrews </b></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8IdLnNlMb9s/VpKHmYCgMmI/AAAAAAAAAkY/JPAaRyvJuWI/s1600/Me%2Band%2BEarl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8IdLnNlMb9s/VpKHmYCgMmI/AAAAAAAAAkY/JPAaRyvJuWI/s200/Me%2Band%2BEarl.jpg" width="130" /></a>This book really took me by surprise. Was I expecting a book that would touch my heart and make me feel so many things and would make me end up crying in a little ball on the floor by the time it was over? Yes! But that wasn't what I got.<br />
The way this was written was absolutely stupendous and so, so clever. I didn't expect to love it when I read the opening, but as the story progressed further on, I found myself loving it more and more and more!<br />
The thing that I found to be so unique about this book was that Jesse Andrews didn't make you feel empathy towards the characters. Greg, the main character was a self-centred idiot really, but he wasn't unlikeable. He was just human.<br />
As I've already said, this book made me think I would be crying hysterically by the end, but that was another thing that shocked me about this book... It wasn't really sad! Obviously the whole theme of cancer is sad, and sad things do happen, but the story was told in a way that made you laugh far more than you cried, and that's a fairly unique thing for me to find!!<br />
Also, the story was told in such an amazing way! It was a mix between film-scripts, stage directions, lists, bullet points, and 'normal' narrative. But even then it just felt different to your average book. <i>Me and Earl</i> really impressed me!<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Exceeds Expectations Award</span></b><br />
This award is for the book that surprised me the most. Perhaps a book with an absolutely awful cover (because we all judge books by covers really!) but still absolutely blew my mind, or a book that sounded terrible or too cheesy to be good, but was actually pretty decent, or one with a stupid title that made it sound far worse than it actually was.<br />
So, these are the books that surprised me the most this year...<br />
<i>The Lunar Chronicles</i> - Marissa Meyer, <i>We Were Liars</i> - E. Lockhart, <i>To All the Boys I've Loved Before</i> - Jenny Han, <i>The Summer I Turned Pretty</i> - Jenny Han, <i>Legend</i> - Marie Lu, <i>Me and Earl and the Dying Girl</i> - Jesse Andrews, <i>Anna and the French Kiss</i> - Stephanie Perkins, and <i>Gone Girl</i> - Gillian Flynn<br />
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The book that surprised me the most though, was in fact...<br />
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<b>Vampire Academy, by Richelle Mead</b></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mdtEnzpjMnc/VpA3qKgvaeI/AAAAAAAAAjo/jQUxwrdXn4k/s1600/Vampire%2BAcademy.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mdtEnzpjMnc/VpA3qKgvaeI/AAAAAAAAAjo/jQUxwrdXn4k/s200/Vampire%2BAcademy.jpg" width="129" /></a>I wasn't the first to notice how terrible the titles of these books made the series sound, and I won't be the last. I mean, <i>Frostbite</i>, <i>Shadow Kiss</i>, <i>Blood Promise</i>?? They sound absolutely awful! And the synopsis didn't really do much for them either!<br />
But while I will admit that the first book didn't really do much for me, the rest of this series was absolutely fantastic. It captivated me so much and I was hanging on to Richelle Mead's every word by the end of Shadow Kiss. I stand by my previous thought, in that the titles are terrible and put more people off the books than attract them, but these books really were worth than their titles made them out to seem. The whole concept does actually seem quite rubbish; fancy trouble-making girls end up in a boarding school for 'vampires' and vampire guards. It just sounds really cheesy. But these books were so much more than that! I would suggest that people give them a proper chance, and by that, I mean that they read the first three books and then form an opinion instead of turning their noses up after the first few chapters! Just try them!!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Book That Made Me Cry The Most Award</b></span><br />
So, if you didn't already know, I'm a book-crier. I know a lot of people just don't cry from reading, but I don't fit into that category. I cry at everything - sad books, happy books, cute books, horror books! All the tears are for different reasons, but nevertheless, the majority of books end up with me on the floor in a puddle of my own tears. Needless to say, a lot of books fit into this category!<b> </b><br />
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In no particular order, the runners up in this category include...<br />
<i>Extraordinary Means</i>,<i> The Retribution of Mara Dyer, All the Bright Places, The Assassin's Blade, Cress, Queen of Shadows, Champion, Isla and the Happily Ever After, Before I Die, </i>and<i> P.S. I Still Love You.</i><br />
All of these were great books and all definitely brought a fair few tears to my eyes...<br />
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But the Book That Made Me Cry the Most in 2015 was...<br />
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<b>We Were Liars, by E. Lockhart!</b></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xj6D8LW38Ks/VocNNRBnH4I/AAAAAAAAAi4/yIvObvw_nT0/s1600/We%2BWere%2BLiars.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-xj6D8LW38Ks/VocNNRBnH4I/AAAAAAAAAi4/yIvObvw_nT0/s200/We%2BWere%2BLiars.jpg" width="130" /></a><b> </b>This book got messy! I'm not kidding... Not only did I break down into a sobbing fit during and for a good hour or two after reading this book, but it got so bad that I literally just had to look at or thing about the book and it would bring tears to my eyes. </div>
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It was bad!</div>
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Well, I mean, it was an amazing book, but it killed me in multiple ways.</div>
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If you're planning to read this (and I recommend that you do!) be sure to mentally prepare yourself beforehand, otherwise you risk losing your dignity, sanity and respectability. </div>
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I cried over this in public. It was not good!!!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The At-the-Edge-of-Your-Seat Award </b></span><br />
So, these are all the books that creeped me out. <i>Really</i> creeped me out. If you don't already know, I can get creeped out really easily. The slightest creak of a door in the breeze can send me running straight upstairs and under the covers of my bed. And let's not even talk about the time I thought I heard a noise and spent an hour searching through the house with a bottle of disinfectant, ready to attack the 'intruder'!<br />
But there are some books that really, unnerve me, and while this list is shorter than the others (probably because I avoid horror books!), these were definitely some powerful books...<br />
<i>Before I Go To Slee</i>p - S.J. Watson, <i>Before I Fall</i> - Lauren Oliver, <i>Gone Girl </i>- Gillian Flynn, <i>We Were Liars</i> - E. Lockhart, <i>Faerie Tale</i> - Raymond E. Feist, and <i>Love Letters to the Dead</i> - Ava Dellaira<br />
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But the book that I found to be the creepiest was...<br />
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<b>The Retribution of Mara Dyer - Michelle Hodkin</b></div>
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If you've read this book, I think you'll know what I mean!<br />
It wasn't just the final book in this trilogy that creeped me out. It was the whole series, but this book in particular had me sitting up on the edge of my seat (well... bed!) and gripping onto the book in part horror, part fright! Now, it wasn't necessarily a scary book and certainly wasn't in the horror genre, but I found myself thinking about these books way more than I should have been, which then made me over think the whole concept and ended up scaring the crap out of me!<br />
So the basic outline of this series is that Mara, the main narrator, is in a mental hospital following an accident that killed all of her friends but left her alive. After moving away from the place of her nightmares, Mara realises that she's never actually far from what has happened, especially when she starts to see the faces of her dead friends, and spookier still, the deaths of people who are still alive, all of which end up occurring.<br />
I can't really explain how much this book freaked me out without spoiling it for anyone who wishes to read it, but what I will say, and what I found to be the scariest part of the book, is that it's all told in a way that it could possibly be true. Nothing is too paranormal that it would be completely out of the ordinary, and everything is left covered up, so you have to ask yourself the question of whether this really could be a true story or not. On top of that, after reading an interview with Michelle Hodkin about how Mara Dyer came to be, it has been revealed that maybe this story isn't too far from the truth at all. Which is an even scarier idea!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Favourite Series Award</b></span><br />
As can be expected of a person who has read 102 books in a year, I got through a lot of series in 2015 too! I think I finished a total of 17 series this year (including the ones I have read in previous years), but here were my contenders for my favourite series of the year...<br />
<i>Legend</i> - Marie Lu, <i>Shatter Me</i> - Tahereh Mafi, <i>Throne of Glass </i>- Sarah J. Maas, <i>Vampire Academy</i> - <i>Just One Day</i> - Gayle Forman, <i>Anna and the French Kiss </i>- Stephanie Perkins, <i>To All the Boys I've Loved Before</i> - Jenny Han, <i>The Summer I Turned Pretty</i> - Jenny Han, and <i>Mara Dyer</i> - Michelle Hodkin<br />
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But my favourite series of 2015 was...<br />
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<b>The Lunar Chrnoicles - Marissa Meyer</b></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PwfhU3RMvAU/VpA-31YWwzI/AAAAAAAAAj8/UokU4oHzRSE/s1600/Cinder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PwfhU3RMvAU/VpA-31YWwzI/AAAAAAAAAj8/UokU4oHzRSE/s200/Cinder.jpg" width="130" /></a>Ahh, I really wanted to be original here and have a series that I hadn't already mentioned! Sorry guys, for my lack of originality. I know I have already given The Lunar Chronicles two awards, but I just couldn't resist! Hands down, this was my favourite new thing of the year 2015! I'm just annoyed that I didn't start it sooner so that I could have dragged this magical experience out so that it lasted longer! </div>
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But seriously guys, this whole series was just incredible! If you haven't already read or started The Lunar Chronicles then START NOW!! I cannot put it plainer! I promise that you will not regret it! This series just has everything - action, adventure, amazing villains, a dark, twisted hidden side, androids, cyborgs, princes, princesses, spaceships, and don't forget all the romantic hot guys! </div>
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I simply cannot recommend it higher. Please just read it!</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Favourite Author of the Year Award</span></b></div>
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Last award now! Don't worry, we're nearly done!</div>
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This award is for the author I have discovered this past year, and I have definitely found some amazing new ones! So let's have a look at them shall we..?</div>
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Michelle Hodkin, Marissa Meyer, Richelle Mead, Jandy Nelson, Jesse Andrews, E. Lockhart, Jennifer Niven, Stephanie Perkins, Jennifer E. Smith, Morgan Matson, Robyn Shnieder, Jenny Han, Marie Lu, Gillian Flynn, Jenny Downham, Ava Dellaira, and Erika Johansen</div>
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But my new favourite author of 2015 was...</div>
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<b>Sarah J. Maas</b></div>
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So, maybe I'm being a little biased about this one! But Sarah J. Maas has proven to me over the course of the year that she deserves to be the winner of this award, so who am I to argue with the queen of fantasy?!</div>
I mean, it probably helped that she went to a bookshop in the middle of nowhere (well, kind of!) and gave me the chance to meet her, talk about hot guys and about her books, and signed all 5 of them! But on top of all that, all of Sarah's books are things of beauty and her writing is just incredible. I cannot wait to read the next books in the Throne of Glass series, and the last two books in the A Court of Thorns and Roses trilogy. If they're anything like her previous novels, they're going to be epic and make me want the next ones even more! Thank you Sarah for enhancing 2015 with your incredible books!<br />
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So, that's all of them now, and I guess that wraps up this post! </div>
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Sorry again for it being so late out, but I hope all my readers have had an amazing 2015, and I wish everyone and even better 2016!!</div>
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See you soon,</div>
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Charlotte xxx</div>
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Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-43578728471776474992015-12-30T16:30:00.000+00:002015-12-30T16:30:14.472+00:00My True Love Gave to Me - Book Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UPNS4aAjsSU/VoPQWhHKdgI/AAAAAAAAAic/T7alPb-4HMA/s1600/My%2BTrue%2BLove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UPNS4aAjsSU/VoPQWhHKdgI/AAAAAAAAAic/T7alPb-4HMA/s400/My%2BTrue%2BLove.jpg" width="262" /></a></div>
<i>My True Love Gave to Me</i> is a collection of twelve short romance stories set in the winter season and around Christmas time. The collection was put together and edited by Stephanie Perkins, the amazing author of the <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/anna-and-french-kiss-series-review.html" target="_blank">Anna and the French Kiss</a> series, and featured writing from eleven other incredible authors, including Rainbow Rowell, Gayle Forman, Jenny Han, Laini Taylor, David Levithan and a whole bunch of other amazing people!!<br />
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I actually really enjoyed this collection. Although I started this book after Christmas, each of the stories gave me that warm, fuzzy feeling you get at this time of year! They were all really fun and quirky and gave me a great excuse to stay snuggled in bed in my pyjamas, reading for half the day!!<br />
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I gave this book 4 stars altogether but some of the stories individually were rated differently. There were some I absolutely loved and then others that I thought a little differently of...<br />
But as a story collection, this has been one of my favourites and I loved pretty much every page!<br />
Right, let's discuss some of the stories!<br />
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</b> <b>Midnights - Rainbow Rowell</b><br />
<b>5 Stars!</b><br />
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<i>Midnights</i> was the very first story we were given in this collection and I thought it opened the book up perfectly.<br />
This story was told in separate parts, each of them told from a different year, a few minutes before midnight, and gave us the cute and heart-warming details of what happened at the beginning of each New Year. Like all of Rainbow Rowell's writing, this was just a really cute story with such beautiful writing! Before reading this book I didn't think it would be possible to tell a complete story in under 30 pages, but Rainbow somehow managed it! In just 24 pages, I had fallen in love with all of the characters - even though we'd only known them for a few pages, they gave me the familiar feeling that I'd known them all of my life. It was just lovely. This was also one of the only books for which I felt happy with how it ended, and didn't feel cheated out of a proper ending due to the short length of the story. Loved this one so much!! Definitely a must read!<br />
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<b>The Lady and the Fox - Kelly Link</b><br />
<b>2 Stars</b><br />
<br />
I wasn't actually a huge fan of this one. Throughout the whole of it, I never really understood what was going on, who anybody was or what the significance of it all was. The writing was alright but not fantastic and I found the plot to be quite misleading and confusing. It's not the worst story I've ever read but it certainly wasn't the best! I hadn't actually read anything by the author, Kelly Link, before this, but to be honest, from this, I'm not in a hurry to do so! <b> </b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Angels in the Snow - Matt de la <span class="readable" id="reviewTextContainer1139791153"><span id="freeText10660604518773720241">Peña</span></span></b><br />
<b>4.5 Stars!</b><br />
<br />
This one surprised me. I wasn't expecting a lot from it, after the disappointment of the previous story, but I actually really enjoyed it. It was certainly a different kind of story, but I found it to be really well written and a pleasure to read. The story was just warm and cute and fuzzy and was just everything I wanted! I haven't read anything else by this author but this story has definitely made me want to read more from him. I will be looking out for his other books in the future! Highly recommend reading this one!<b> </b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Polaris is Where You'll Find Me - Jenny Han</b><br />
<b>4 Stars!</b><br />
<br />
I found this story really quirky and brilliant, however I just couldn't justify giving it a full 5 stars because it was just too short! I mean, I know that these are supposed to be short stories, but this one was about 10 pages shorter than the others, and I thought at least another 10 pages should have been used!<br />
As always, Jenny Han's writing was just fab and every line of it was beautiful. I loved the plot, too! It was a bit of a strange plot, but I did think it was the most Christmassy story of them all (probably because it included Santa and his elves!). So overall, I thought the story was fantastic but I could have done with a lot more of it, and I thought it cut off in a strange place. I would highly recommend this one, still, though!<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>It's a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown - Stephanie Perkins</b><br />
<b>5 Stars!</b><br />
<br />
<span class="readable" id="reviewTextContainer1139791153"><span id="freeText10660604518773720241">Awwhhh! Now wasn't this one just charming? *swoons*</span></span><br />
<span class="readable" id="reviewTextContainer1139791153"><span id="freeText10660604518773720241">Stephanie Perkins could write the most gruesome horror story and it would still be cute and fluffy. She's just a wonderful writer! And this story was fantabulous! It wasn't what I was expecting but I loved it all the while. It gave me the fuzzy, warm,</span></span><span class="readable" id="reviewTextContainer1139791153"><span id="freeText10660604518773720241"> wintery feelings that I was hoping for from this book. The characters were great, the writing was super, so overall it was an amazing story! I'd recommend it to anyone!</span></span><br />
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<b>Your Temporary Santa - David Levithan</b><br />
<b>3.5 Stars</b><br />
<br />
This story was another one that I found to be quite short, however I don't think it really needed to be much longer. While I loved the concept and the story in this piece of writing, I don't actually think it was pulled off very well. I mean, the writing was great and the whole thing seemed to be well thought out, but I still thought that more detail needed to be put into some areas. There were parts that felt brushed over and rushed, and I don't know, maybe I was just reading this way too late and was falling asleep while reading it, but I felt that there seemed to be a further hidden message in this story that wasn't properly revealed. A lot of it was left for the reader to interpret for themselves, which is alright to a point, but I found it to be a little frustrating in this story. However, despite this, I still thought it was a cosy and heart-warming story and I liked it a lot!<b> </b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Krampuslauf - Holly Black</b><br />
<b>2 Stars</b><br />
<br />
Hmmm... I wasn't too sure what to make of this story. I hadn't read anything by Holly Black before but I had heard that she was a great writer so I got my hopes up a little. I mean, the writing itself wasn't bad, I will say that! However, this story was just weird! I don't have much else to say! I don't know how that was thought up and to be honest, I'm not sure that I want to know. I just didn't really see the point in this story at all. I wasn't a huge fan of the characters; they seemed quite weak and stupid, and the story just took a mental turn! This one definitely wasn't my favourite!<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth? - Gayle Forman</b><br />
<b>5 Stars!</b><br />
<br />
CUTE! CUTE! CUTE! CUTE! CUTE!<br />
Ahh, I just love Gayle Forman's writing and stories! I loved her characters and her writing and her story here as a whole. Actually, this one kind of reminded me of <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/just-one-day-duology-review.html" target="_blank">Just One Day</a>, when Allyson is in college.<br />
This story was just really funny, as all of Gayle's books are at times, and it made me feel warm and cosy. There's not really a lot more to say! I just really loved it and would highly recommend it!!<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus - Mara McEntire</b><br />
<b>3 Stars</b><br />
<br />
This was another story that I can't say I was too impressed with. I just didn't really see the point in it, which sounds really horrible, but I kind of don't feel like it belonged in this collection. I actually liked the whole thing though. The writing was alright and the characters were interesting. My main problem was that it just felt far too short. I mean, it didn't feel rushed and I don't feel that parts were just brushed over. The story just felt like the beginning. As if the middle and the end just didn't exist yet, but I felt that they needed to be written. The story felt like it needed to end up somewhere, and it didn't, really. I did like this one, but I think it would have benefited being a story of its own as opposed to a story in this collection.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Welcome to Christmas, CA - Kiersten White</b><br />
<b>4 Stars</b><br />
<br />
I actually enjoyed this story far more than I expected to. It was just so cute and fluffy! It was one of those stories that you just want to hug and squeeze by the end. I was really pleased and satisfied with it. It did take a little while for me to be able to get into it, but when I did, I absolutely loved it! I will admit that some of the parts were a little strange, the psychic cooking powers, for example! But I loved the characters and found this story to be really quite enjoyable! It has definitely made me want to read more of Kiersten White's books!<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Star of Bethlehem - Ally Carter</b><br />
<b>3 Stars</b><br />
<br />
Well, this was a bit of a weird story! I'm not sure I was a huge fan of this novella simply down to its story. It just didn't feel very believable or realistic to me. And I know what you're thinking - this is a fiction book! Get over yourself! - But it was supposed to be a realistic fiction book. I mean, in stories like this, you're supposed to write about things that haven't happened, but could realistically occur. This one just seemed quite silly! The writing was decent and the characters were okay, but I just didn't really understand where it was going and it just seemed to end up in an unrealistic place. It probably only seemed unrealistic due to it being so short. It might have been okay if it were longer. I don't know. I just wasn't a huge fan. <br />
<br />
<br />
<b>The Girl Who Woke the Dreamer - Laini Taylor</b><br />
<b>4 Stars </b><br />
<br />
I think this book felt like it took the longest to read, but I'm not complaining about that! It took me a while to get into it, but it was definitely worth it when I did! I actually really enjoyed this story. It was so magical in a really unique way, and was different to everything else in this collection. The writing was entrancing in a magical way and I just really loved it! It would have been nice to find out a little more about the characters, but I suppose Laini Taylor got a lot into the small number of pages she wrote! A really lovely and wondrous story!<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
So, that's all of the stories!<br />
Overall, I'm so glad I got around to finally reading this book as I really enjoyed it as a whole. I would recommend it to any fan of romance novels, but suggest that you go into it with an open mind and expecting the unexpected, since I think that's the way you'd get the most out of this book!<br />
I gave<i> My True Love Gave to Me </i>four stars in total, simply because that was the closed to what the individual ratings averaged out to, however I enjoyed this more than a lot of 4 star books!<br />
It's definitely worth reading!!<br />
<br />
<br />
Well, that's all for now but I'll be back soon for more reviews and other fun things!<br />
Hope to see you then!<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-670386821058692632015-12-29T22:00:00.000+00:002015-12-29T22:00:03.876+00:00WINTER - Book Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lPoDRCKR6Fs/Vnl-U-r4LhI/AAAAAAAAAh8/PUcNdBD-MW8/s1600/Winter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lPoDRCKR6Fs/Vnl-U-r4LhI/AAAAAAAAAh8/PUcNdBD-MW8/s400/Winter.jpg" width="260" /></a></div>
Can we just take a moment to marvel at this gorgeous book?<br />
Here is the majestic <i>Winter</i>, the fourth and final book in <i>The Lunar Chronicles</i>.<br />
<br />
<b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25774272-winter" target="_blank">Winter</a></b>, by Marissa Meyer<br />
<b>Published:</b> November 2015 by Puffin<br />
<b>Length: </b>823 pages (Yep! That's right!!)<br />
<b>Genre: </b>YA, Retellings, Sci-Fi, Fantasy<br />
<br />
<b>Rating: </b>5 STARS!!!<br />
<br />
Where do I even begin? This book was just incredible. Honestly, I don't even know how to talk about it without jumping up and down in excited circles and squeaking and crying. The feels are real.<br />
<br />
So, this is the last book to this series and it was such a bittersweet ending. I had been looking forward to this book ever since I finished <i>Cress</i>, and, no joke, I very nearly hugged the postman when he handed me the parcel containing this book. However, now that it has come to an end I've had to face the fact that I'm not going to get another one of these books which is devastating!! But I think we can definitely say that <i>The Lunar Chronicles</i> went out with a bang!!<br />
<br />
<i>The Lunar Chronicles</i>, with <i>Cinder</i> as its first book, is a series of fairy-tale retellings set in a futuristic world where Earth, and its Earthens, are at war with the planet Luna and its Lunar citizens. Queen Levana has released a deadly plague called letumosis onto Earth that is killing Earthens at an incredible rate. There is no cure. The only way to stop the plague from spreading is to form an alliance between the two planets, by means of a royal marriage between Queen Levana and Emperor Kai, the new ruler of Earth. Soon, Cinder, a cyborg mechanic, and her trusty robotic friend, Iko, are roped in and are forced to take part in a battle between the planets. But they're not the only people dragged into the war. Soon they're joined by Scarlet, a tomato farmer, Wolf, a cage-fighter, Thorne, a pilot, Cress, a hacker locked away in a satellite, and finally Winter, a mad Princess and her guard, Jacin.<br />
This series is an epic retelling of our favourite stories. It's incredible and completely unforgettable. Nobody will ever regret reading these books!!<br />
<br />
If you are unfamiliar with this series, you might want to have a look at my review for the first three books in the series, Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, which you can have a look at by clicking <a href="http://charlottethebooksniffer.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/the-lunar-chronicles-review.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
<br />
So, when we left our characters at the end of Cress, they were in a fair amount of trouble. Scarlet had been captured and was in Luna with Winter as her only company. Wolf was a wreck, Thorne was blind, Kai had kind-of-been kidnapped by the rebels and everyone was in a bit of a sticky situation.<br />
<br />
I have almost always re-read the rest of the series before reading a sequel to it, but I didn't have time to do that with these books, so there were certain parts that I had forgotten about and I wasn't quite sure where the story was going to take us. However, I thought the first few chapters recapped it perfectly and by this point I was well aware with what had happened and what was going on, which is always useful!!<br />
<br />
So much happened in this book. I never knew it was possible for so much to go on in one book, but Marissa Meyer managed to exceed my expectations by so much. I mean, it was over 800 pages long, so I had expected quite a lot to crack off, but even then there was still so much story and each page of it was as captivating and mesmerising as the others. The funny thing is though, is that Winter didn't feel like a long book. I mean, I was reading it for quite a while (although this could be primarily down to the fact that I read most of it in my post Mockingjay Part 2 week of sobbing!!) and my hand was fairly sore afterwards from having to support all the weight of this massive book. But, it never dragged on or got boring, as many long books do, and I seemed to get through it fairly quickly.<br />
<br />
This could have been down to Marissa Meyer's fantastic writing. Honestly, that woman just spews pure magic from her brain. I wouldn't be surprised if her brain was actually made up of sparkles and glitter because that is how amazing she is. I've said before that her writing style reminds me of J.K. Rowling and Cassandra Clare, and I still stand by that. She's definitely up with the greats in my mind!<br />
<br />
I actually thought a lot of this series felt very cinematic in the way it was written. By reading the words, you could almost see the whole story happen in front of you on a screen. It was quite a strange experience really, particularly because it seems that no plans have been made to adapt this novel to the screen. And on that note, I think The Lunar Chronicles would make an amazing film series or TV show! It needs to be done!!<br />
<br />
Okay, if you haven't already read <i>Winter</i> and do not wish to find out what happens, I would suggest you leave now since I will be discussing spoilers. If you haven't already read <i>The Lunar Chronicles</i>, I seriously suggest you consider doing so. I was a bit dubious of the series before I read them but they have grown to be one of my favourite series of all times. I cannot recommend them higher! Please go and read them!!<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Spoilers from now on!</div>
<br />
<br />
Okay, let's talk about our new characters. So, we didn't really find all that much out about Winter in the other books. I think we had one chapter with her in Cress in total, and she really freaked me out. You could tell she was slightly mad and she definitely acted younger than her age, due to not using her Lunar powers. But in this book, she was revealed to be so much more. She wasn't actually as crazy as I had thought she was going to be. She was just a lovely character who happened to be in her own dreamworld at times. Sort of like Luna Lovegood, but with a scarier land of dreams. I wasn't too sure about her at first, but as we got to know her, she just seemed like a really friendly character. I loved her!!<br />
However, I would like to point out that I was so frustrated at Winter when she took the apple sweet! Does she not know you shouldn't take sweets off strangers?! Silly girl!!<br />
But apart from that minor detail, I thought she was great.<br />
<br />
So, we met Jacin back in Cress and I never really warmed to him then. At all. In fact, it did take me quite a long time to actually warm to him in this last book, and I don't think he'll ever have the same effect on me as Kai and Thorne (and Wolf - kind of) had on me, but I did warm to him a lot more by the end and I really do think he and Winter were a great match. <br />
<br />
I actually grew to like Scarlet more in this book than in all of the previous books. I had never liked her as much as Cinder or Cress, but I've never been too sure why. She really seemed to win me over in <i>Winter</i>, though. It was almost as if she wanted to prove herself to her readers, or if Marissa Meyer wanted to prove how amazing she was to us all, because she really stood out and stood up for herself and really had a huge impact on the revolution.<br />
<br />
Wolf seemed to do the same. I've never been too much of a Wolf fan. I mean, he's cool and everything, but doesn't seem too sensitive or human (though I guess he does have a reason for this!). But in <i>Winter</i>, we saw the softer, gentler and more caring side to him. One of my favourite parts of this book was when Scarlet and Wolf were finally reunited, and I think Wolf had almost matured in that scene, after moping around for so long! I just loved it!! He also touched my heart in the scenes with his mother, after returning to his childhood home. It was amazing to see.<br />
<br />
I really, really, hate to say this but I actually wasn't too much of a fan of Cress or Thorne in this book. Wait... Let me rephrase that... I wasn't as much of a fan of them as I had previously been in the other books. That's better!<br />
Cress and Thorne have been my tied favourites (with Cinder and Kai) ever since we were introduced to them, but they kind of annoyed me slightly here. I still loved them. Loved them loads! But I found myself getting rather frustrated with them a lot of the time, particularly at the start. Why could they not just accept that they were perfect for each other?? Why did they both have to go on thinking that the other one deserved better? Could they not see how amazing they would be as a couple?? Clearly not! I just got quite annoyed at them for taking so long to get together. They would have just saved a lot of time, worry and struggles if they had just got together as soon as Thorne could see again. The struggles were real.<br />
But apart from them taking too long to get together, I absolutely loved both of these characters. I loved how shy yet badass Cress was, and how cocky and arrogant yet still caring and loyal Thorne was. They're just a match made in heaven. *swoons*<br />
<br />
And now, our couple of the series... Let's talk about Cinder and Kai.<br />
Ahh. I can't even get into words how much I love these characters. They're just perfect. While I've said that Cress and Thorne are on par with my love for Cinder and Kai, it's probably true that I love these two just a little bit more. Simply for the reason that they've been with us for the longest. We have been through so much with these two characters and I have loved them since their very first pages. And I'm so glad that they're finally together and happy. They really deserve to be! Kai has been so brave all the way through the series, even though he's had to lead the whole world AND then take over Luna, while trying to be diplomatic and stay undercover the whole time! He hasn't had an easy ride!<br />
And Cinder... She's been through the mill a bit, too. She's had to face the death of her only human friend, be targeted by everything she knew, go on the run as a fugitive and fight battles while doing so! She has been such a great character, protagonist, and I'm going to miss reading about her, but I am so glad she got her happily ever after. She definitely deserved it.<br />
<br />
And what about my favourite character of the whole entire series?! Iko has just been the best. We didn't really get a lot of Iko-time in <i>Winter</i>, which would be my only complaint about the book. Then again, I don't think I could ever have enough Iko time!! I just love her so much. She's just so funny and adds a sparkling light to the darkest of pages and times. These books really needed something like her and I'm so glad she was there. I would actually like to know more about her though, like how she came to be and then what happened to her after <i>Winter.</i> I'm really hoping Marissa Meyer writes a new book focused purely on Iko. It would be amazing!<br />
<br />
And lastly, let's talk about the villain of this story. The amazing Queen Levana.<br />
Now, I have read about <u>a lot </u>of villains in all the books I have ever read, but not many have captured my attention the way Levana did. I loved her as a baddie. She was just perfect. She was ruthless, she was cunning, she was slightly mad, but I loved her! And yes, I'm one of those people who have a soft spot for the bad guys. While I was obviously rooting for Cinder and all of her allies to win the revolution and to kill Levana, there was always a part of me that wanted to know more about her. And more we discovered! It was actually quite a sad and touching time when she was killed, just after revealing everything about her sister, Cinder's mother, and why she did everything she did. I loved getting to know her more and would love to find more out about her (why haven't I read <i>Fairest</i>?!). Of course, I am glad that she died in the end (sorry Levana!) because there was no way everyone else would have survived if she too had been kept alive, but I was almost sorry to see her go. She was a great villain!<br />
<br />
<br />
I guess that's it for the characters then! I cannot explain how much I loved this book in actual words. It was <u>soooooo</u> good! I absolutely loved the escape scenes with Scarlet and Winter (and sometimes Jacin) and I loved when they were trying to rally the wolf-people troops. I loved all of the battle scenes with Cinder and Wolf and Thorne and Cress. I loved the reuniting scene between Scarlet and Wolf. I loved all the crazy antics and banter between Cinder and Thorne. I loved the romances between all of our couples (although we all know that Cress and Thorne, and Cinder and Kai are the best!). I just loved the whole thing, really! There was not a dull page in the whole of that 823 page long book - and that's saying something!! Every single sentence was edge-of-the-seat (or in my case, bed!) drama and I just loved every bit of it. <br />
<br />
I know that a lot of people were puzzled at the fact that we didn't lose any of our main characters, but I was so happy and glad when I realised that everyone had made it through alive. These poor characters had really been through a lot. I think they'd all been kidnapped or trapped at one stage or another (some on multiple occasions) and had seen and experiences awful things, so it was lovely to see that they all made it through and had their well deserved happily ever after. Especially Iko! I had a feeling that Iko might have ended up dying or crashing or whatever robots do, but I was so, so, SO glad that she made it out okay because I honestly think I would have died if Iko had been killed off!!<br />
<br />
And I think that's all I have to say! Winter was just an amazingly incredible book and I simply cannot wait to go back to the beginning of the series and read them all over again! I am also really excited for the release of <i>Stars Above</i>, in 2016, which is a collection of short stories set before, during, and after the lunar chronicles! Cannot wait to find out more about what happened after the happily ever after! And I also really need to read <i>Fairest</i>!!<br />
<br />
Right, I think that's all I have for this post but I hope to be back for more reviews very soon!<br />
<br />
See you then,<br />
<br />
<br />
Charlotte xxx<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-19772356916933374452015-12-14T21:35:00.003+00:002015-12-14T21:35:44.851+00:00October / November Reading Wrap UpI feel like I need to start with an apology. I've been MIA for a while now and haven't managed to get much posted to you guys in the last month or so. Sorry about that! I'm going to try to make it up to you now by giving you my two missing wrap-ups for the last couple of months, all tied together in this huge wrap-up post for October AND November!!!<br />
<br />
Here goes...<br />
<br />
Let's start with October. So, I managed to get through a total of 7 books in October, which, while isn't amazing, is still pretty decent.<br />
Here are the October books!!<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7863658-clockwork-angel" target="_blank">Clockwork Angel</a> (The Infernal Devices #1), by Cassandra Clare</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13223132-clockwork-prince" target="_blank">Clockwork Prince</a> (The Infernal Devices #2), by Cassandra Clare</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21972742-clockwork-princess" target="_blank">Clockwork Princess</a> (The Infernal Devices #3), by Cassandra Clare</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23598679-the-bane-chronicles" target="_blank">The Bane Chronicles </a>(The Bane Chronicles #1-11), by Cassandra Clare</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24926017-the-game-of-love-and-death" target="_blank">The Game of Love and Death</a>, by Martha Brockenbrough</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20703051-love-letters-to-the-dead" target="_blank">Love Letters to the Dead</a>, by Ava Dellaira</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19174917-fangirl" target="_blank">Fangirl</a>, by Rainbow Rowell</li>
</ul>
I didn't manage to get through quite as many books as I had initially hoped in October, but it still wasn't too bad! In total, I read 3206, which averages out to 103 pages per day, so it's not terrible and is still over my daily target.<br />
I only actually read three new books this month; I have already read the whole of <i>The Infernal Devices </i>trilogy and I have also already read <i>Fangirl</i> before, but I still really enjoyed rereading them all, and, to be honest, I seemed to enjoy them even more than when I read them before! <br />
<br />
Right, before I get into some mini-reviews, let's go to November.<br />
<br />
As many of you will be aware, November is Mockingjay month. For the past three Novembers, I've always marathoned <i>The Hunger Games</i> trilogy, so this November was no different!! It was tough-and-go to whether I would actually make it all the way through <i>Mockingjay</i> before watching Part 2 on its opening night, however I somehow managed to read the whole of the book in under 3 and a half hours, which I think is definitely some kind of an achievement!!<br />
<br />
Anyway, here are my November books...<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25669271-landline" target="_blank">Landline</a>, by Rainbow Rowell</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12250584-eleanor-park" target="_blank">Eleanor & Park</a>, by Rainbow Rowell</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22369406-red-queen" target="_blank">Red Queen</a> (Red Queen #1), by Victoria Aveyard</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12187803-the-hunger-games" target="_blank">The Hunger Games</a> (The Hunger Games #1), by Suzanne Collins</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12187797-catching-fire" target="_blank">Catching Fire</a> (The Hunger Games #2), by Suzanne Collins</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12187799-mockingjay" target="_blank">Mockingjay </a>(The Hunger Games #3), by Suzanne Collins</li>
<li><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25774272-winter" target="_blank">Winter</a> (The Lunar Chronicles #4), by Marissa Meyer</li>
</ul>
So, that's still only a total of 7 books - not my best, I must say - but it's still an alright number, and the HUGE number of pages in Winter has made it so that my page number count-up for November is 3291, averaging out at 110 pages per day, which is a good number!<br />
Again, I only actually read three new books this month, having read <i>Eleanor & Park</i> before, and having read <i>The Hunger Games</i> trilogy more times than I'd care to admit! So, my new books were <i>Landline</i>, <i>Red Queen</i> and <i>Winter</i>. I will be writing about <i>Winter</i> in a post of its own since it was so incredible, so stick around for that!! <br />
<br />
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Anyway, let's go talk about some books!!!<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eEaPzuBPk-8/Vm7pSBxlbTI/AAAAAAAAAg8/YvktiNl_ewU/s1600/Game%2Bof%2BLove%2Band%2BDeath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eEaPzuBPk-8/Vm7pSBxlbTI/AAAAAAAAAg8/YvktiNl_ewU/s320/Game%2Bof%2BLove%2Band%2BDeath.jpg" width="209" /></a><i>The Game of Love and Death</i> really blew me away as a book. To tell the truth, I didn't actually read the blurb of this book before I bought it; the cover alone sold it for me - isn't it gorgeous? But even after reading the blurb, I went into it having no idea what it would be about, and I don't think I came out of it much-the-wiser! But, it was a completely original story and the writing was just spectacular.<br />
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The basic premise for this story is that Love and Death are people and play their game with humans. They each pick a player, destined to fall in love with each other. The rules are set like this; if love wins the game, they can live. However, if their love is not strong enough, death will win and both players will join her.<br />
There have been many famous players; Antony and Cleopatra, Helen of Troy and Paris, Romeo and Juliette. Clearly, Love has never won the game.<br />
Henry, a wealthy adoptive with a fancy scholarship, and Flora, an African-American who sings for money in jazz clubs, are the new players. Set in the Great Depression in America, they're not the most likely couple, but that doesn't mean that Love won't fight for them.<br />
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Despite this being quite a complicated plotline, I felt that it really was a gorgeous story and wasn't your everyday romance novel. I would recommend this to so many people. Fans of romance and historical fiction would love this book, I think, but I feel that everyone should give it a try! I gave it 4 stars overall and would love to read it again sometime.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AR1RoR-oXzs/Vm7sX7rS1aI/AAAAAAAAAhI/S2aW6icSxM8/s1600/Love%2BLetters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AR1RoR-oXzs/Vm7sX7rS1aI/AAAAAAAAAhI/S2aW6icSxM8/s320/Love%2BLetters.jpg" width="208" /></a>Here's another book that drew me in by its beautiful cover. I'm not really too sure how to describe <i>Love Letters to the Dead </i>without giving too much away, but I did think it was very similar to another of my favourite books, <i>The Perks of Being a Wallflower.</i><br />
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Laurel is our main character in <i>Love Letters</i>. Introverted and still mourning over the death of her sister, she writes a letter for a school assignment. The letter is to Kurt Cobain. Like her sister, he died young, so Laurel thinks he'll understand her. Soon, the letter becomes bigger than just a school assignment and Laurel is writing letters to Heath Ledger, Amelia Earhart, Judy Garland and Janis Joplin. She tells them everything she can't talk about - about her school, her friends, falling in love... and her sister, May. However, as she explores her past with her sister, she begins to remember.<br />
Things are, and never were, all they seem. <br />
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I did actually really enjoy this book. I ended up giving it 4 stars overall, and while it really did strongly remind me of <i>Perks</i>, there were still a lot of differences and I think this book will be able to stand on its own without just being a complete copy of <i>Perks</i>. It was quite an emotional and touching book, with beautiful writing at times. I would recommend this to people with an open mind, who would be willing to read to the end despite a few dull sections near the beginning. I wouldn't recommend this book to younger people or anyone who doesn't like to read about sensitive topics. This was a great and touching book but may be deemed as inappropriate for some people depending on maturity levels.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p6G3GW3Gp0w/Vm76IG91ruI/AAAAAAAAAhY/s_sy0BXwz40/s1600/Landline.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p6G3GW3Gp0w/Vm76IG91ruI/AAAAAAAAAhY/s_sy0BXwz40/s320/Landline.jpg" width="208" /></a><i>Landline</i> was another book with a slightly strange concept. I wasn't too sure whether it would be my kind of book, but I absolutely love Rainbow Rowell's writing and stories so I thought I'd better give it a go.<br />
<br />Georgie McCool knows that her marriage is in trouble. Things with Neal haven't been good for some time. She's been really busy at work and rarely has time for her husband or her children. Yes, of course she loves her husband still, and he loves her just as much, but maybe there's more to a marriage than love.<br />
When Georgie's TV Show has some big and exciting news, it means more work and tighter deadlines, and also means that she'll have to stay in LA for Christmas instead of visiting her in-laws with Neal and the kids. And they're not happy about it. <br />
As she watches the rest of her family drive away to the airport without her, Georgie thinks it's over. But that same night, Georgie finds a way to contact Neal in a way she never thought she could. Over her landline phone, she can talk to Neal, but it's not the Neal she knows. It's the Neal from the past; from her past.<br />
Soon, an opportunity arises for Georgie to fix her marriage before it has even begun. But she faces the question of would Neal have been better off without her in his life. Only she can decide.<br />
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I really did enjoy this book. It took a while for me to get into as it was a little slow to begin with, but overall I found it to be a great read and gave it 4 stars. The writing, as always from Rainbow Rowell, was beautiful and entrancing and the plot, while a little confusing to begin with, was actually a lot of fun and really put me in a Christmassy mood! I would recommend it to fans of Rainbow's other books or anyone who enjoys a light-hearted contemporary read!<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IowyWXmr8qk/Vm8xZye4ENI/AAAAAAAAAho/20yyKNk6ZSM/s1600/Red%2BQueen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IowyWXmr8qk/Vm8xZye4ENI/AAAAAAAAAho/20yyKNk6ZSM/s320/Red%2BQueen.jpg" width="208" /></a><i>Red Queen</i> really appealed to me as a book I would really enjoy reading. I don't read fantasy books often as they tend to take me double the time I would spend on books in other genres. Nevertheless, I was really taken in by the plot line and amazing reviews and talk about this book.<br />
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The world is divided by blood.<br />
Red - the cheap, common and poverty-stricken <br />
Silver - the powerful, elitist warriors with incredible powers<br />
Our leading lady, Mare, is a red, but finds her world is turned upside down when she becomes a servant to the people she despises the most. However, Mare soon realises that even though her blood is not Silver, she has her own power. A power so deadly it threatens to destroy the Silver control...<br />
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I enjoyed the concept of this book, I really did. It was a sort of cross between fantasy and dystopian. However, after reading this book, I came to realise that maybe I don't like the fantasy-writing-style as much as I had initially though. I really enjoyed this book at the start, but it did have the feel of loads of other book incorporated into one. I ended up giving <i>Red Queen </i>3 stars in total, however I'm still including it in this wrap up because I don't believe it to be a bad book. The writing was great and the story line had parts that really captivated me. I just think that maybe fantasy in general isn't really my thing. I would, however, still recommend it to lovers of this genre because, as books go, this was a decent one. <br />
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Well, that's it for now! Hope you guys have had a good couple of months of reading too!!<br />
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I hope to be posting reviews a little more regularly now so I will be back for more as soon as I can!!<br />
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Much love<br />
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Charlotte xxx<br />
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165717677487627733.post-27454690174819669552015-11-18T21:56:00.000+00:002015-11-18T21:56:34.671+00:00How to Survive The End<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KvgVMWoLIXs/Vkzx4SRtfiI/AAAAAAAAAgo/48U8jOZjIB0/s1600/Mockingjay%2BPart%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KvgVMWoLIXs/Vkzx4SRtfiI/AAAAAAAAAgo/48U8jOZjIB0/s320/Mockingjay%2BPart%2B2.jpg" width="210" /></a>So, as many of you will surely know, we're so, so close to the release date of <i>Mockingjay Part 2</i>. So close I can count the number of days leading up to this massive event on ONE HAND!!! This is serious stuff, people! However, as exciting as it may be, there is also a sense of fear and dread looming in the fandom. No, I don't think any of us are concerned that they're going to turn the last film into an epic screw up; Francis Lawrence has proven himself as an incredible director and I have every faith in him, and all of the cast, in that they won't let this film be a let-down.<br />
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The thing we're worried about is the end.<br />
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I'm going to get quite personal here. Are you ready? <br />
So, I found out about <i>The Hunger Games</i> later than a lot of people. I can't have the pride of calling myself one of the original fans and I hadn't even read the books before the first film came out! Tragic, I know!<br />
I did, however, remain in the dark about this series until November 2012, when a friend of a friend lent me the books. At this stage, I had never heard of this series. I still can't believe I had managed to live all the way through the huge hype without hearing something of it - it's a mystery to this day! I hadn't heard of or seen the film and I went into this book without knowing a thing about it. I came out a changed person.<br />
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I know what you're thinking. How on Earth can three fairly small books cause somebody's life to change? I don't actually have an answer to this. I have no idea what occurred in my brain during the week that I read these books back then, except, of course, the tension and drama of the incredible story. All I know is that, once I had finished, I felt that I had been opened up to a completely new world, and this was where my life as a reader truly took off. I had always been quite a big reader, but up until this point I pretty much read the <i>Harry Potter</i> series on repeat (hence the reason I have each book 24 times so far!). It was at this point that a whole world of other books opened up for me. Of course, for a little while, I did what I did best at that time, and I spent a while reading <i>The Hunger Games </i>trilogy on repeat, but soon after, I discovered <i>Divergent</i>, <i>Twilight</i>, <i>The Mortal Instruments</i>, John Green, Rainbow Rowell, Gayle Forman and a whole new spectrum of incredible stories. <br />
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Anyway, we're getting off topic.<br />
In just a few days, this series, the thing that has meant the world to me for the last 3 years will draw to a close and that is a scary thing for many people - especially me!<br />
It hasn't really dawned on me until now that there will never be another anxious 4 hour wait at my laptop for a new trailer to be released, or another 1000 day countdown to the final film, wishing the years away, or even that next November, there won't be another film in this series for me to look forward to.<br />
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So, how can we handle this?<br />
Is there even away to deal with the grief of losing your favourite series?<br />
I don't think so. But we can have a go!<br />
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My amazing friend Sophie, from <a href="http://thebasicfangirl.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Life of a Teenage Fangirl</a>, put together a 'Book Hangover Kit' for me a little while ago, and while it is intended for books, I think it can probably be applied to this situation too.<br />
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<u>Step 1</u> - <b>Cry all the feels away!</b><br />
I know it's not the best method for some people but I'm definitely one for face-planting the bed and drowning it with my tears! As long as you don't cry too loudly in the cinema (as I discovered the hard way...) you'll be fine! But sometimes it's good to have a good cry when something like this happens. I'm sure I will!<br />
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<u>Step 2 </u>- <b>Chocolate Gorge!</b><br />
This probably isn't the best advice, but I have always been one for gorging on chocolate after I finish a particularly painful ending, so while the doctors probably wouldn't prescribe this for post-ending-sadness, I will! Trust me, it helps!<br />
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<u>Step 3</u> - <b>Distractions</b><br />
A stand-alone novel is generally recommended when you come out of a long and heart-breaking trilogy, which I know helps me! In the case of Mockingjay though, I will be distracting myself from the pain by having a weekend of rom-coms, and I'm also planning on starting <i>Winter</i>, the last of the <i>Lunar Chronicles</i>, which is really exciting!!<br />
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<u>Step 4</u> - <b>Reminisce</b><br />
For me, this is probably the most important step. It's overlooked a lot, but I think the only way you're ever going to accept that something has come to an end, is to go back to the start and remember all the amazing times you have had with this series. After the initial pain has gone, thinking about why you love the books and the character and the world can often help you realise that your journey through this wasn't for nothing. Remember how much this has benefited your life and how much you have learnt from it, because I don't care who you are or what you read or see, everything will change and shape you as a person. Even the very worst book can help you learn something. <br />
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I guess that leads me on to my next point. <br />
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We book lovers love books for many reasons, but probably the most important reason as to why I love them so much is that they're dependable. I guess that's why I love rereading books so much. You know exactly what you're going to get and you know that the characters and stories will ALWAYS be there for you. No matter what. The thing I have realised while writing this, is that even when Mockingjay Part 2 ends, and the revolution is over, and Katniss puts down her bow, and the credits roll onto the screen, Katniss will still be there. Her story may have ended but that doesn't mean it's gone forever. We will only have to reach up onto the shelf to bring her and her adventures back and we can relive all this as many times as we want. Yes, of course we're going to miss sitting and waiting for the trailers to drop, for the tickets to be released, for the news on the premieres and the stills and the soundtracks (which we're <u><b>still </b></u>waiting for!). I guess that's something that has finished forever now. We're just going to have to accept that. But it doesn't mean that we have to be any less excited about these books and films and what they mean to us. I feel like Neville Longbottom really captures what I'm trying to say in his speech to Lord Voldemort at the end of <i>Deathly Hallows Part 2</i>.<br />
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"Yeah, we lost <i>spoiler </i>tonight, but he's still with us, in here - <i>points to heart</i>" </div>
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Josh Hutcherson, our stunningly gorgeous leading lad from <i>The Hunger Games</i> films also adds to my point. In a recent interview in response to the question "How do you say goodbye (to the series)?" he answered, "You don't; you hang onto it forever." I think that's a beautiful thought. Even when we're old and looking back on our lives, we'll still have this moment and it will still be just as important to us.<br />
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So, while this may seem like the end, it's not really. Of course it's going to be a horrible time for us tributes, but it should also be a happy one - we can celebrate that our favourite books have been turned into magnificent films for us to enjoy again and again. This doesn't happen to many books so we should be grateful for us being able to relive Katniss' world in a completely new and amazing way.<br />
It'll be terribly sad to see our favourite characters die before our eyes instead of just imagining their deaths in our heads, but we only need to go back to the earlier books / films, and there they'll be, alive and smiling at us through the page or screen.<br />
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And in terms of our survival. Come on, guys! Katniss survived 2 lots of the Hunger Games and a whole entire war. Peeta survived being tortured to insanity. Gale survived his home being burned to the ground. Survival is what tributes do best!<br />
We can survive this! Together, we can conquer anything we want, and isn't that the moral of the story?<br />
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This is not the end.<br />
This is only the beginning.<br />
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Much love,<br />
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Charlotte xxx<br />
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<br />Charlotte Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07953154898386521721noreply@blogger.com1