September Wrap-Up & October TBR

September Wrap-Up

I definitely meant to upload this blog post like, three days ago… but I have been deathly ill with a disgusting cold and I went to the Taylor Swift 1989 World Tour on Friday (which absolutely did not help my cold) so I completely forgot! I also have two upcoming midterms this week so I have been dedicating all my time to studying. Better late than never though, right?

September wasn’t the best reading month. Between going back to school, working, and attempting to do homework I haven’t had much time to read. However, I did finish a series I have been working on for a while, so I wasn’t completely useless!

Ms. Marvel, Vol. 2: Generation Why by G. Willow Wilson

I honestly have a pile of like 20 graphic novels that I have accumulated in the last few months, so naturally I was like “I’m going to read all of these in a week!” and then clearly did not. However, I am so glad I read this one before I failed at the rest! This was a fantastic continuation to the story. I was so much more invested in this volume and I have the third volume sitting on my desk already so I honestly don’t know why I haven’t picked it up yet! 5 out of 5 stars!

The Fiery Heart (Bloodlines, #4) by Richelle Mead

Probably the most stressful book in these series. So many things were going on, it was bound to go to shit at some point! I enjoyed this one, but definitely not my fave. 4 out of 5 stars, find out more in my series review.

Silver Shadows (Bloodlines, #5) by Richelle Mead

Definitely my favourite book in the series! I felt like this book was really reminiscent of Vampire Academy for me in that I could not put it down. I didn’t really feel that way with a lot of the other Bloodlines books. 5 out of 5 stars, again check out my series review for more thoughts!

The Ruby Circle (Bloodlines, #6) by Richelle Mead

I finally finished the series! I also felt like I could not put this one down, but more because I just wanted to find out what happened in the finale. I definitely think it was a good concluding novel, but I refuse to believe Richelle Mead is done with this world. 5 out of 5 stars. Do I need to mention the series review again?

Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass, #3) by Sarah J. Maas

Oh my heart, this book. I honestly can’t even wrap my head around the events that occurred in this book. It was so upsetting and so dark, but simultaneously so heartwarming and beautiful. I literally cannot even form coherent thoughts. I just can’t. I’m not emotionally ready for Queen of Shadows, I’m just not. 5 out of 5 stars, can I even give her any less?

I guess I did okay this month considering how much I’ve got going on! I’m just ready to get these midterms over so I can read all my October TBR books!! Which brings us to…

October TBR

Okay, so I was at home sick last week and wanted to get some fresh air…? Yeah, sure we’ll go with that… So I decided to take pictures of my October TBR instead. Except for you literally cannot bring a camera out without attracting my puggle. She is the definition of a princess and thinks you just want to take pictures of her. Whereas my other dog is so camera shy you will never see him on camera, ever. So my little puggle princess Bella decided she also wanted to be part of the TBR.

Here’s my Halloween themed October TBR.

Here’s my Halloween themed October TBR featuring Bella and her “can I eat the Voldey now?” face.

I’m currently 222 pages into Dreams of Gods & Monsters by Laini Taylor so hopefully I can finish it this week!

What are you reading in October? Do you also have a Halloween themed TBR or are you just reading regular books this month? 

I’m off to watch Once Upon A Time! Who else is excited to see what’s in store for Dark Swan??

xx

Jacqueline

Bloodlines: Series Review

Warning: will contain spoilers seeing as I will be briefly talking about all the books in the series!!

Bloodlines (Bloodlines, #1) by Richelle Mead
Publisher: Penguin Group
Published: August 23rd, 2011
Genre: YA Fantasy/Paranormal
Source: Bought
Finished: January 29th, 2015
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

My Thoughts: 

If I’m being completely honest, I don’t remember what happens in this book at all. All I remember is that Sydney Sage is back and gets sent to Palm Springs, CA to protect Jill Dragomir (Lissa’s half sister) from anyone who decides they want to remove Lissa from the throne, as you need at least one other family member in order to be King/Queen. Honestly, I was just super excited to be back in this world and I was so happy the first book started out with the same characters we know and love from Vampire Academy *cough* rose and dimitri *cough*. This was definitely a great introduction to the new series and it set the stage really well for what was to come.

***

The Golden Lily (Bloodlines, #2) by Richelle Mead
Publisher: Penguin Group
Published: June 12th, 2012
Genre: YA Fantasy/Paranormal
Source: Borrowed
Finished: July 14th, 2015
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

My Thoughts: 

The second book to the series was definitely one of the most important ones. This is when we finally see Sydney start to question her Alchemist beliefs, which is such a relief. We also get more of an introduction into her as a human magic user and it’s really interesting stuff! Her teacher, Ms. Twillinger, is hilarious! I just loved that this book covered so many different dynamics. The magic, the group really becoming a family, the brewing love interests, and of course the weirdo vampire hunters.

***

The Indigo Spell (Bloodlines, #3) by Richelle Mead
Publisher: Penguin Group
Published: February 12th, 2013
Genre: YA Fantasy/Paranormal
Source: Borrowed
Finished: July 26th, 2015
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

My Thoughts: 

This book was definitely my least favourite in the series. I felt like too much was going on and I was getting confused and annoyed at some of the decisions that were being made. Sydney finds herself tracking down Marcus Finch, an ex-alchemist who has been on the run for years, while simultaneously tracking down a rogue witch who is using her powers to suck the life out of other young, gifted magic-users. She finds out a lot of important things about herself and is able to accomplish a lot in this book, but of course this is not without it’s consequences. At the end of the book we learn that Zoe Sage, Sydney’s younger sister, is to join the ‘family’ in Palm Springs to help Sydney ‘cope’ with the vampires she deals with daily. Also, I can’t remember if Angeline was introduced in this book or the last one, but she quickly sky rocketed to one of my favourites… She’s so hilarious and unpredictable!

***

The Fiery Heart (Bloodlines, #4) by Richelle Mead
Publisher: Penguin Group
Published: November 19th, 2013
Genre: YA Fantasy/Paranormal
Source: Borrowed
Finished: September 8th, 2015
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

My Thoughts: 

This book was so stressful!! OMG. Zoe’s presence definitely threw everyone off. Neil, the new damphir assigned to them, stirs up some ‘romantic’ feelings in Jill and Angeline. Sydney struggles to balance her sister’s presence as well as all the problems she usually takes care of for the crew, all the while trying to keep her secret relationship with Adrian under wrap and at the same time create two tattoo formulas that could one, break the alchemists hold and two, prevent damphirs/moroi from becoming strigoi if attacked by one. Sydney has many amazing traits, but the fact that she is so stubborn and self-sufficient isn’t helpful when she has so many priorities. Of course she starts raising suspicion and of course it doesn’t end well.

***

Silver Shadows (Bloodlines, #5) by Richelle Mead
Publisher: Penguin Group
Published: July 29th, 2014
Genre: YA Fantasy/Paranormal
Source: Borrowed
Finished: September 11th, 2015
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

My Thoughts: 

This was by far my favourite book in the series, which is strange because I for sure thought I would hate reading an entire book of her being stuck in re-education. It was so good! I love that Sydney was risking everything to help the people in re-education even though they really didn’t deserve her help. I love that Adrian was struggling back at court without her. I love that regardless of the hell she was going through, she knew she had to find a way out so that she could be with Adrian again. I love that Adrian finally snapped out of it and enlisted Marcus and the rest of their friends to help break her out of re-education, and I love that they saved everyone else in the process. The end of this book was absolutely fantastic. The running from the alchemists, the shotgun wedding, the hope that being at the moroi court would save them, the fact that they didn’t care at all what anyone thought of their relationship… It was all fantastic!

***

The Ruby Circle (Bloodlines, #6) by Richelle Mead
Publisher: Penguin Group
Published: February 10th, 2015
Genre: YA Fantasy/Paranormal
Source: Borrowed
Finished: September 17th, 2015
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

My Thoughts: 

A really good ending to the series. The fact that Jill was kidnapped was terrifying, but also the best way to end the series seeing as they were sent to Palm Springs to hide her away in the first place. There was just so much that still needed to be resolved and this book was certainly successful in resolving all of it. Adrian had to deal with his spirit demons. Sydney had to accept that her life would certainly not be easy as a full-fledged witch and wife to a vampire. They found Olive and although they couldn’t save her, they made and kept an important promise. Jill and Eddie finally accepted their love for each other in the end <3. Adrian’s mom accepted both Adrian and Sydney, while accepting herself as a divorced woman. THE BABY. OLIVE’S FRIGGIN BABY ❤ ❤ ❤ The end of the book was probably my favourite. Adrian and Sydney and their new little family. The fact that she speaks to the baby in Spanish… The fact that Rose and Dimitri got engaged… Ugh. Just so good. How can these books be over?

***

I refuse to believe that Richelle Mead is done with this world. Even if she doesn’t write about the Moroi and Damphirs for years, I will be right here when she does. I will never be able to get over the characters she has created, she is so gifted. The series was so kick ass and emotional and hilarious and heart-warming… and just UGH.

For those of you who have read the Bloodlines series, which book is your favourite? Which character? Tell me your feelings! 

Until next time,

Jacqueline

xx

Most Anticipated Fall Releases!

Ever since Queen of Shadows came out I’ve been thinking about all the amazing books coming out this fall (September, October, November) that I can’t wait to get my hands on! Some of them I actually didn’t even realize existed until I went on Goodreads and Chapters/Indigo to make this list… I’m not going to include synopses because I don’t want this post to be ridiculously long (also a lot of them are sequels and spoilers!), but I’ll include the link to the Goodreads page in case any of you are interested.

 

Saga Volume 5 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
Release Date: September 9th
Goodreads
I have never been more excited for a trade in my entire life. Honestly after reading volume 4 I just wanted to keep following the single issues, but I knew I would be irritated only getting one issue at a time. I will be picking this up tomorrow (assuming my comic book store has some)!

Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling
Release Date: September 15th
Goodreads
I am obsessed with Mindy Kaling and cannot even begin to express how excited I am for this book and for the new season of The Mindy Project. Her first book was so hilarious and authentic and I’m anticipating this one will be just as good.

Library of Souls by Ransom Riggs
Release Date: September 22nd
Goodreads
Okay, so, I might be jumping ahead of things here. I haven’t actually read Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children or Hollow City yet… But I want to marathon them in October because that’s in the Halloween spirit, right? They look creepy and so awesome!

    

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
Release Date: October 6th
Goodreads
This might actually be my most anticipated release of the year. Rainbow Rowell is fantastic. Fangirl is probably one of my favourite books of all time and I found myself just as invested in the Carry On story as I was for Cath’s story. This is going to be fantastic *cue 9th doctor’s voice*.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms by George R.R. Martin
Release Date: October 6th
Goodreads
Honestly I’m just hoping that these short stories can hold me off until The Winds of Winter comes out… whenever that is… Anything happening in Westeros past, present, or future is good enough for me! Bring it on George!

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone: Illustrated Edition by J.K. Rowling and illustrated by Jim Kay
Release Date: October 6th
Goodreads
I didn’t even know this was a thing until a week ago when I clicked on Chapter’s “Most Anticipated Books of 2015” list. Another set of Harry Potter books will soon be on my shelves… I’ll probably ask for this for Christmas since I can’t justify spending money on yet another set of the same books, but better believe I’m getting my hands on this one way or another.

After Alice by Gregory Macguire
Release Date: October 27th
Goodreads
I read Wicked by Gregory Macguire because I have been obsessed with the musical Wicked since grade 8. I have yet to continue on with Wicked’s sequels or any of his other books, but Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is one of my favourite stories of all time. I’m really interested to see what kind of spin he puts on this classic story.

  

Winter by Marissa Meyer
Release Date: November 10th
Goodreads
This books is fighting Carry On for my most anticipated book of this year. Despite the fact that I questioned how cyborgs and fairy tale retellings would mesh, I found Cinder amazing, Scarlet was even better, and Cress literally blew me away. I even enjoyed Fairest, which is strange because I usually don’t like reading about the enemy. I hope Marissa Meyer never stops writing unique and charming books like these.

November 9 by Colleen Hoover
Release Date: November 10th
Goodreads
I just started reading new adult books recently and I’ve completely devoured all of Colleen Hoover’s books in such a short span of time. This woman has a serious gift. As tragic as the underlying themes may be, they are hilarious, the characters are so real and the emotions can be felt on so many different levels. I doubt this book will let me down.

Soundless by Richelle Mead
Release Date: November 10th
Goodreads
Honestly, I’m not even sure if I’m interested in this books because it’s unlike anything I have ever read or solely because Richelle Mead wrote it. She is literally a goddess and I’m going to be sad leaving her vampire world behind, but I’m sure this book will blow me away just the same. I’m pretty sure it’s also suppose to be a standalone, which is a blessing for my bank and my tbr pile.

What’s your most anticipated book coming out in the next few months? Is anyone else as excited as I am for these ones? Let me know!

Happy Reading!

xx
Jacqueline

MAY WRAP-UP & JUNE TBR!

I feel like I’m starting a trend here… *falls off face of the earth* *comes back with wrap-up/tbr* *falls again*. Honestly, when I finished exams I thought I would be free to do whatever I pleased for 4 months. Boy was I wrong. I’ve been working 8 hour days, 5 days a week and the days I do get off I spend doing my readings and homework for the online summer school class I’m taking. It’s history, btw, so LOTS of reading… sometimes it’s very boring. However, I have still been managing to squeeze in reading for fun (of course). So without further ado…

MAY WRAP-UP

So let us reflect on my “May TBR”… My goal was to continue/finish series and companion novels. Did I do this? No, of course not. I kind of did, but then strayed a little..

1. We’ll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

All I have to say is that this book was a fan-freaking-tastic concluded novel. I honestly don’t even understand how I read all three of these books back to back because the EMOTIONS. Holy cow. I literally don’t think I have cried so much while reading in so long. To top it off I have terrible seasonal allergies that make my eyes really red and itchy so just imagine how swollen my eyes were from crying… 5 stars for Jenny Han.

2. Cress by Marissa Meyer

Listening to this on audiobook was the best decision I have ever made. I have never been so engrossed in something in my life. I cannot wait to read Winter. I actually have to stop thinking about this book right now or I’ll go crazy with longing. 5 stars for Marissa Meyer.

3. Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

Okay, first mistake, I was so into Cress that I really should have continued with fantasy/dystopian. However, I just really wanted a cutesy romance so I started this instead… Second mistake, I kept forcing myself to read even when I wasn’t feeling it. But once I got into it I actually enjoyed it quite a bit. It was a good story, a nice romance, and there were really great characters! 4 stars only because the mood wasn’t right when I read it.

4. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

I should have learned after reading one contemporary that I shouldn’t continue onto my contemporary streak… but no, I continued. This book was just really random… I should have known the insta love would bother me since that’s exactly what the book is about, but the family aspect of it was really nice and unexpected so it gets a 3 star rating.

5. Fairest by Marissa Meyer

Holy moly. The mixed reviews of this book made me hesitant, but DAMN. I am so glad I read this when I did, I definitely think I prevented a serious reading slump. Levana’s story was so interesting and I’m glad I now know why she never shows her face. However, some other things I wanted to know and felt were important were just brushed off. 4 stars for Marissa Meyer this time.

6. Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Okay, what even was this book. I started off reading it and taking my time like tralalalala… Honestly, it was like I was taking a stroll through the park. Then, BAM. Love, happiness, betrayal, death, hatred, surprise, badassery, more surprise… Then the very last chapter…. MIND = BLOWN. I honestly think I am the world’s most naive reader.. I NEVER see things coming. Literally. Everyone else: oh yeah I totally saw that coming, I definitely had a feeling, I guessed from the beginning…
Me: WHAT THE ACTUAL F*CK JUST HAPPENED? LITERALLY. WHAT IS LIFE.
Also, Chaolena forever. Dorian is cute, but not for Celaena. 5 glorious stars for the Queen herself, Sarah J. Maas. Like girl, where did you even come from because you’re actually unreal.

JUNE TBR

So because I’m so extremely terrible at following TBRs, I’m not really going to make one. I would like to continue on with series… I’m currently reading The Assassin’s Blade and I’m about to order Heir of Fire online.. So we’ll see how that goes. I’m going to Cuba for a week on June 11th and I plan on taking and finishing as many books as I can, so for that week I’m probably just going to try to read only books under 350-400 pages. I want to try to knock as many books off my TBR as possible and I think that will be an excellent way to do it.

What was your favourite book you read this month? What’s your most anticipated book on your June TBR? Let me know!

Happy Reading!

xx

Jacqueline

APRIL WRAP-UP & MAY TBR!

April Wrap-Up!

I’m seriously so confused as to how it is already May. I finished all 5 of my final exams and by the end I was seriously ready to just lay down and give up. I finished my last exam on April 24th and since then I have been working and sleeping. Yesterday and today I marathoned all of the episodes of season 10 of Criminal Minds that I had recorded on my TV and unfortunately on Monday I have to start an online class that I’m taking in the summer. On the bright side, I’m planning a trip to Cuba with two of my girlfriends and I can’t wait to just lay on the beach and read! So without further ado… here are the measly 5 books I read this month!

1. Hopeless by Colleen Hoover

I finished this one about two days into the month. After reading Maybe Someday I needed to devour more Colleen Hoover as soon as humanly possible. I had Hopeless and Losing Hope from the last time I did a bookoutlet order, so I immediately started it. I honestly was so emotionally invested in this book. I still had class that week, and let me tell you, I cherished those moments on the subway when I could read. However, I’m extremely thankful I was at home reading when I got near the end because I cried like an absolute baby. I did not see such a tragic story coming… but I enjoyed it nevertheless. I’m giving myself a cooling off period before I pick up Losing Hope. 4 out of 5 stars for this one.

2. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

I bought these book last year and after reading a ton of mixed reviews on goodreads I honestly did not know if I was even going to try to read it. However, the good seemed to outweigh the bad and I was really intrigued with the idea of a female, teenaged assassin. I’m so glad I decided to start… this book is fantastic. A lot of the reviews seemed to have a problem with how childish and annoying Celaena is, but I hardly noticed. I mean yeah she’s cocky, but if I was a teenage girl known as Adarlan’s gratest assassin, I would probably be a little cocky too. Such a wild ride, 5 out of 5 stars!

3. The 5th Horseman by James Patterson 

I’ve been reading the Women’s Murder Club for years and I’m only on the fifth book… I tend to read like one a year because I can’t really take too much murder mystery at once. This one was kind of disappointing because it started off slow, got really good, and then ended kind of bizarrely. It was still really interesting though so it was a 3 out of 5 stars for me.

4. The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

I wanted to start this series in the spring because I figured it would be the perfect way to get ready for summer. I really wish I had of read these books when I was a bit younger so I could identify with Belly more. Regardless, I really enjoyed this book and I loved the family aspect as well as the romance. 4 out of 5 for this one!

5. It’s Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han

As soon as I finished the first book, I immediately had to pick up the second. I became so invested in the characters and I couldn’t sit around without knowing what happened next! I actually stayed up until 2am last night starting/finishing this one… But I’m counting it in my April wrap-up because I read it before I went to sleep! I enjoyed this one so much and it was such an emotional ride. I cried for a good chunk of the book. 5 out of 5 stars!

6. Cress by Marissa Meyer (37% finished)

I’ve been listening to this on audiobook for the last few days and I’m loving it so far! I can’t wait to find out what happens! This is my first audiobook and I’m really loving listening to it whenever I’m doing stuff around the house or on the go!

May TBR!

This month I’m planning on finishing up/continuing on with some series I have started. First, I want to finish up listening to Cress. Then I’m going to move into finishing We’ll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han. Followed by as many of the following as I can:

1. Allegiant by Veronica Roth

2. Dreams of Gods & Monsters by Laini Taylor

3. Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

4. Four by Veronica Roth

5. The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare

6. Fairest by Marissa Meyer

Hopefully I can read more than that in the month of May, but we’ll have to see! Well, that’s it for now!

What did you guys read this month? Link your wrap-ups below! Have any of you read any of the books on my TBR? Which ones should I prioritize? 

xx

Jacqueline

My True Love Gave to Me Book Review

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories edited by Stephanie Perkins
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Published: October 14th, 2014
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Short Stories
Source: Bought
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Goodreads Synopsis 

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

Okay I’m not going to give a synopsis. If you haven’t heard of this book you must be living under a rock, because it has been all over everything since it came out. 12 holiday stories by 12 fantastic young adult authors. What more do you need to know? Seriously. This book is funny, charming, swoon worthy and just an all around great holiday read. I finished it last week just before Christmas Eve and ugh, it was just perfect. All together I rated it a 5 out of 5 stars as a whole because the whole anthology was marvellous. Now I’m going to go through each story and talk about what I liked/didn’t like and give an individual rating. I am not going to summarize them because I seriously suck at summarizing and the short stories are too small I might ruin it for you.

“Midnights” by Rainbow Rowell 

I loved this one. It was a great way to start off the book and it really set my standards high for the rest of the stories. I liked how it was told over a few years in a row and you got to see some changes in characters. 5 out of 5 stars.

“The Lady and the Fox” by Kelly Link 

Honestly, I’m still not sure how I feel about this one. I didn’t really feel connected to any of the characters and a lot of the time I was just confused. I liked the supernatural element (if you can call it that) and thought it was a neat story but definitely not my favourite. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

“Angels in the Snow” by Matt De La Peña

I was pleasantly surprised by this one. For one thing it made me cry… but that’s really not a surprise since a lot can make me cry. I didn’t really like the idea of cheating but I loved both of the characters and their stories. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

“Polaris is Where You’ll Find Me” by Jenny Han

I was disappointed in this one. I’ve only read To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han, but I just had higher hopes for this story. It was cute-ish, but also kind of boring. I didn’t connect to the main character, she was annoying, and the love interest was irritating. 3 out of 5 stars.

“It’s a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown” by Stephanie Perkins 

Now I know why everyone raves about Stephanie Perkins. I cried, I laughed, my stomach flipped, and I didn’t want it to end. This story was seriously perfect. Give me all of her books now… 5 out of 5 stars!

“Your Temporary Santa” by David Levithan 

I didn’t like this story as much as I thought I would. David Levithan is usually on point but this one kind of let me down. I couldn’t connect to the characters, the story was weird and the conflict with the sister/mother/father who left just made me uncomfortable. I don’t know why, I just wasn’t a fan. 3 out of 5 stars.

“Krampuslauf” by Holly Black

I really liked how this story was about Krampus! It made me laugh a bit and I felt like I could connect with the main character. However, I feel like it needed more time to blossom if you will. The story just felt a bit too rushed. Overall, 4 out of 5 stars.

“What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth?” by Gayle Forman 

Love, love, love! This story was cute, funny, charming, witty. I thoroughly enjoyed it (and I’m pretty sure this one made me cry too). Definitely one of my favourites. Sign me up for more Gayle Forman. 5 out of 5 stars.

“Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus” by Myra McEntire

Not my most favourite, not my least favourite. I wasn’t captivated by it, but I also didn’t hate it. It was funny at times, kind of cute, but also kind of boring at other times. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

“Welcome to Christmas, CA” by Kiersten White

I seriously think this one might be my favourite. I loved it. When I say I cried in some of the others one, I sobbed in this one. The way her family situation played out in the end just had me floored. I could not contain my emotions. Also, as a plus, cute boy who cooks AND bakes. Needless to say, 5 out of 5 stars!

“Star of Bethlehem” by Ally Carter 

I really enjoyed this one. It was kind of bizarre and confusing to me at first just because I was like “who the hell is this weird girl who gave up her plane ticket to New York and WHO IS SHE RUNNING FROM”. However, the small town family was so sweet and the boy was adorable. 4 out of 5 stars.

“The Girl Who Woke the Dreamer” by Laini Taylor 

Really great ending to the book. I think I was expecting something different so I wasn’t blown away, but I really did enjoy this. Laini Taylor writes so beautifully and I just cannot wait to read more from her in the future. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Overall this anthology was just so great for the holiday season and if you haven’t picked it up yet, I strongly suggest you do. It will most definitely be a staple of mine every December.

xx

Jacqueline

TOP TEN TUESDAY: DEAR SANTA!

Firstly, how is TOMORROW Christmas Eve?! Like WHAT?! Where does the time even go… I could have sworn I just started this semester like, yesterday. I’m so excited for Christmas morning! Although I would love every item on my Christmas list, I’m way more excited for all of my siblings to open their gifts. Everyone in my family gives me all of their presents to wrap so I always know what everyone is getting… which kind of sucks, but is also really exciting. I know everyone is going to love everything they get which makes me so happy. Secondly, when my sister asked me to make a Christmas list this year I went directly to the Chapters Indigo website and made a 5 page Wish List… apparently that wasn’t what she meant. So because I actually did need and want some other things I cut my list of books down to, weirdly enough, ten books! Without further ado, here are the ten books I asked for for Christmas!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

TOP TEN BOOKS I WOULDN’T MIND SANTA BRINGING

1. The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare

2. Cress by Marissa Meyer

3. Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor

4. Four: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth

5. Fables Volume 1 by Bill Willingham

6. Saga Volume 3 by Brian K. Vaughan

7. Saga Volume 4 by Brian K. Vaughan

8. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling

9. The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

10. Ms. Marvel Volume 1 by G. Willow Wilson

Well that’s my short and sweet Christmas wish list and I hope Santa brings me at least a few of the books I want this year! I guess I will find out in two more sleeps 🙂 Has anyone read any of these titles? What’s on your Christmas wish list this year?

xx

Jacqueline

Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award!

First of all, thank you so much Ellen B. @ The Wanderlust Reader for nominating me!

The Rules:
1. Thank the blogger who nominated you, linking back to their site.
2. Put the award logo on your blog.
3. Answer the ten questions they’ve set you.
4. Make up ten new questions for your nominees to answer.
5. Nominate ten people.

I was nominated for this award about 2 weeks ago, but because I was still doing exams and Christmas shopping and wrapping and all of the things that December entails, I haven’t had time to do this! Which also means, most of the bloggers I follow have already done it… So I’m not going to tag anyone or make any other questions, but if you haven’t yet done this feel free!!

Now for the 10 questions:

1. Favourite reading snack?

   I tend not to snack when I’m reading! If anything I will sip on a tea, but even then I usually get too into the story and forget about the drink until it gets cold… So yeah, no snacks for me!

2. Would you rather read first, or movie first?

   I would definitely rather read the book first. However, there have been a few exceptions. I did not read The Maze Runner before I saw that in theatres, but that is also because I didn’t really hear great things about the book series. I saw Dear John in theatres when I was half way through reading the book, but I did finish it even after I saw it. Most of the time I end up running out and buying books to power through the week before a movie comes out, for example Divergent, The Last Song, & Safe Haven. OR, I’ll put off seeing a movie until sometimes years later because I am so intent on reading the book first, for example The Book Thief & The Great Gatsby

3. Thoughts on The Fault in Our Stars?

   Oh goodness! I read the book years ago when I was still in high school and all I remember really is that I cried so hard I had to PUT THE BOOK DOWN to accommodate my tears. “That’s the thing about pain, it demands to be felt.”
   
   All I can say about the book and movie is … the feels.
   
   

4. TBR this holiday season?

   I have a December/Holiday TBR here. However, I have been failing miserably and haven’t accomplished much reading yet. I had a bunch of really long books on my TBR and I think that’s the problem. I’m just gonna start picking up smaller books and some graphic novels so that I can at least make a significant dent in my overall TBR piles.

5. Favourite holiday reads?

   I have never specifically read anything during the holiday before. I am currently reading My True Love Gave to Me and I am really loving it. This might become a staple in my future holiday reading. I usually just read whatever books I have on hand that I haven’t read yet! I don’t tend to read specific books at specific times of the year.

6. Thoughts on film adaptions?

   I feel like I’m one of the only people in the world that doesn’t make a stink about film adaptations. I mean, if something is completely wrong then yes of course that is annoying and I will definitely get irritated. That being said, I really don’t hold my standards high enough to be disappointed, in fact, I’m usually pleasantly surprised. I understand how extremely difficult it must be to turn books that can be between 200-1,000 pages into a movie that is maybe 2 hours (or if you make a part two then 4 hours total). Realistically there are A LOT of details that they physically cannot incorporate into films and for the most part I’m okay with that. I’m just happy they get made into movies in the first place. The thing I’m usually the most critical of is the choice in actors, not because of the actors themselves being poor, but because everyone of course comes up with their own idea of what they should look it.

7. Top 3 favourite series?

   Oh dear… Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling, of course. The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare (every book she ever writes will be my favourite and it will be mashed into one because it is technically all the same world). A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket, because childhood. There are a ton of different series I could choose, but these will always hold a special place in my heart.

8. Contemporary young adult; yay or nay?

   I typically prefer Fantasy just because I love magic and made up creatures, but lately I have been LOVING contemporary. It just makes me so happy and squeal-y and excited. It’s cute and fun and YAY!

9. How is your 2014 Goodreads Reading Challenge going?

   I didn’t have one! I mean I guess I could have started one half way through the year when I really started using Goodreads and blogging… but that would have bothered me. I need things to go full circle so once I miss something starting I just automatically thing “oh I’ll start it next time” or “I’ll do this next year”!

10. Which fictional character would you be for a day?

    I am not going to say anyone from Harry Potter because that’s definitely a given and everyone probably answers with that. I would LOVE to be either Isabelle Lightwood or Rose Hathaway for a day. One, because they are both kick ass female characters. Two, because the fantasy aspects. Three, because being surrounded by attractive boys is always fun. 

Thanks again to Ellen for the nomination! This was so much fun, but her questions were definitely very tricky…

xx

Jacqueline

SNOW DAY!

The first thing I said to my brother this morning was “I’m gonna see how many books I can finish today”.

Okay, it wasn’t actually a real snow day. I’m already done exams so even if it was it wouldn’t matter, and my brother who is in highschool didn’t get a snow day either… BUT, it snowed like 15cm so I’m dubbing it a snow-y day.

Anyways, yes, so my brother who clearly has a lot of faith in me said, “I bet you can finish 4 books”.

HOW MANY BOOKS DID I FINISH?

*drum roll please*

ZERO! I finished no books today. He is going to be very disappointed in me. I did, however, get a nice chunk into Insurgent. I could have stayed in bed and read it all day, I mean I wanted to, but if my mom came home and saw that I hadn’t shovelled she would have shanked me. So I shovelled twice, took my dog on an adventure with our neighbour and her dog (they are best dog frenemies), watched some anime, perused the YouTube, went to the mall briefly, watched Grimm… and here I am.

I really had no intention of going outside, but the ravine by my house where we walk our dogs looked like Narnia… so why wouldn’t I go? The walk kind of went like this (fyi Bella is my dog and Cassie is my neighbour’s dog):

*cue squealy voices we use when we talk to our dogs slash pretend to be them talking back*

“Bella, STOP RUNNING! I CAN’T KEEP UP!”

“HOLY SH*T CASSIE LOOK IT’S NARNIA”

“Bella, where’s Aslan? Do you wanna find Aslan?”

“F*ck Aslan, DO YOU WANNA BUILD A SNOWMAN?”

“Do you wanna go AND PLAAAY?”

*Cassie starts barking at Bella*

“HAHA, look Cassie is Anna and Bella is Elsa”

“Yeah, look Bella is like ‘go away Anna‘”

“YES, and Cassie is like ‘okay byeee’”

*Cassie starts barking more and chasing Bella*

“Nevermind, Cassie-Anna doesn’t give up so easily”

…..

This is literally how most of our walks go, so I’m actually not too disappointed I didn’t get much reading done. So yeah, that was my day… Sorry this wasn’t very book related! I’m gonna get ready for bed and fly through some more of Insurgent before my eyes close from exhaustion!

Did you guys do any reading today? What do you plan on reading this weekend? For those of you who have pets do you have a voice for them?? I want to know!

xx

Jacqueline

TOP TEN TUESDAY: NEW-TO-ME AUTHORS

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. 

TOP TEN NEW-TO-ME AUTHORS I READ IN 2014

George R.R. Martin

I can’t believe it has been less than a year since I started the Song of Ice and Fire series… I had tried a few times before this but was very intimidated by the size of the books and also still wasn’t sure how I felt about the content itself, but OH MAN. Am I happy I started or what?! I still have to read A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons I’m just trying to savour it.

Books Read This Year: A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords 

Veronica Roth 

I asked for the Divergent boxed set for my birthday in February, but didn’t actually read Divergent until the week before the movie came out and just devoured it. I ended up getting caught up in a ton of other books so I have only just started Insurgent and I’m loving it so far! However…. I have been spoiled for Allegiant so I’m worried it’ll ruin the experience.

Books Read This Year: Divergent, currently reading Insurgent

Tahereh Mafi 

I’m ashamed to say I have actually only read Shatter Me. There are far too many books for me to catch up on and far too little time. I read this book in one sitting on the beach in Peurto Vallarta, Mexico so it was a very pleasant experience… Thankfully I was smart enough to take 4 books on the trip since I whizzed through this one.

Books Read This Year: Shatter Me

Jenny Han

This is another situation where I keep acquiring books from the author and I do want to read them all but I just don’t have enough time in a day. I have the whole Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy and I intended on reading it in the summer, but I held onto it so I could read it in the winter and wish for hot weather. I picked up To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before in September and absolutely adored it. I will definitely continue to read Jenny Han’s books.

Books Read This Year: To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before 

Marissa Meyer 

Holy moly… Of all the hyped up series I am so extremely glad I picked up Cinder when I did. I was in a horrible reading slump in October and had so much school work to do but of course I laid down and started reading and this was just PERFECT.

Books Read This Year: Cinder, Scarlet 

Laini Taylor 

Okay the reason I was in a reading slump in the first place was because of Laini Taylor. I read Daughter of Smoke and Bone and was just like staaaaaahp the feels and wanted to cry. I actually had the second one on hand but wasn’t sure how much torture I wanted to inflict on myself so I picked up Cinder and BAM two amazing authors in one month.

Books Read This Year: Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Days of Blood and Starlight 

Rachel Hawkins 

When Rebel Belle came out I swear that’s all I heard/saw on BookTube and everywhere for like a month. So obviously I bought it. This was the first book I read on my trip to Mexico and I actually finished it on the plane ride there… So that was awkward. BUT it was so awesome! I didn’t think I would like it but it was so funny and kick butt and ugh. *high five* Rachel Hawkins.

Books Read This Year: Rebel Belle

Richelle Mead 

Let me just make it clear that I never marathon books. I literally just can’t. I have to take breaks when characters get annoying, or when things get to heated, or when something major happens… and you can’t do that when you marathon a series. That being said… on a whim I bought the Vampire Academy boxed set and marathoned the entire thing in a week, then proceeded to take the first one to work and force my coworker to read them so I had someone to cry with. I can’t help but attribute all of these feels to Richelle Mead. I currently have Bloodlines sitting on my shelf just waiting for the right moment.

Books Read This Year: Vampire Academy, Frost Bite, Shadow Kiss, Spirit Bound, Blood Promise, Last Sacrifice 

Rainbow Rowell 

And yet another author I first read in Mexico… I took Eleanor and Park on my trip and boy was that a mistake. Do you know how hard it is to be laying on the beach next to your sister and trying not to SOB because of the book you’re reading? I literally had to be like “I’ll be back in a bit guys I’m going to the room to reapply sunscreen” and as soon as I got there I burst into tears. THE FEEEEEEEELS. I eventually read Fangirl in September and actually can’t decide which made me cry more.

Books Read This Year: Eleanor & Park, Fangirl 

Jennifer L. Armentrout 

Last but certainly not least, I picked up Obsidian, the first book in the Lux series, on a whim. I downloaded it on iBooks sometime in the summer when it was free and started reading it at school when I was bored on break. I probably finished it the next day… and immediately bought Onyx on iBooks as well (even though I hate reading books on electronics) because I thought it would make me feel less guilty for adding to be TBR. I finished that one two days later… Honestly, these books are such guilty pleasures, I haven’t continued the series yet because I am trying to cut down my TBR but I’ll probably pick the next one up when I’m in a slump.

Books Read This Year: Obsidian, Onyx 

I didn’t intend to write so much about each author considering I am suppose to be studying… but shit happens. I just started getting so excited and now all I want to do is read Insurgent. I’ll probably do that right now before I go to bed.

See ya!

xx

Jacqueline

p.s. I’M DONE EXAMS TOMORROW!!!!!!