BookTube-A-Thon Wrap-Up

BookTube-A-Thon Wrap-Up

Hey ya'll!! Here is my completel wrap-up of BookTube-A-Thon whic occured all of last week. 

There were 7 challenges to complete and I completed 3 and a half of them!

The challenges I completed were:

- Read a book with blue of the cover

- Read a book you really wanted to read

- Read a book without letting go of it

And half of - Read a book by an author who shares the same first letter of your last name.

And so, below I am going to show my day to day progress and just my little comments for each day.

Day 1:

Book Being Read - The One by Kiera Cass - 263 pages

Total Pages Read Today - 263 pages

Total Books Finished - None!

Comment: It would have to be said that today was an extremely good reading day for me. I've only 60 pages left of The One which is going to be read tomorrow morning :)

Day 2:

Books Being Read - The One by Kiera Cass - 60 pages, Conversion by Katherine Howe - 19 pages, Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider - 58 pages.

Total Pages Read Today - 137 pages

Total Books Finished - (1) The One by Kiera Cass

Comment: Today was another good day! It wasn't as good as yesterday though. But I finished my first book, The One, which I absolutely loved and I got a start on two other books, Conversion and Extraordinary Means. 

Day 3:

Books Being Read - Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider - 161 pages.

Total Pages Read Today - 161 pages

Total Books Finished - (1) The One by Kiera Cass

Comment: I made another big dent in my second book of the read-a-thon and hope to get it finished tomorrow!

Day 4:

Books Being Read - Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider - 117 pages, Conversion - 5 pages.

Total Pages Read Today - 122 pages

Total Books Finished - (2) The One by Kiera Cass, Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider.

Comment: I finished my second book!!! :D That is all...

Day 5:

Books Being Read - Conversion - 22 pages, The Gates by John Connolly - 47 pages.

Total Pages Read Today - 69 pages

Total Books Finished - (3) The One by Kiera Cass, Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider, The Gates by John Connolly

Comment: Today was a disastrous reading day for me. I got really busy today that I could read that much. But I did finish a book, sort of, I ended up DNFing the book because I actually couldn't take the book, it still counts though right?? :p

Day 6:

Books Being Read - Conversion - 46 pages.

Total Pages Read Today - 46 pages

Total Books Finished - (3) The One by Kiera Cass, Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider, The Gates by John Connolly

Comment: Okay, today was worse than yesterday...

Day 7:

Books Being Read - Conversion - 122 pages.

Total Pages Read Today - 122 pages

Total Books Finished - (3) The One by Kiera Cass, Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider, The Gates by John Connolly

Comment: And today's the last day! I didn't get to finish the book I was currently reading but oh well I can finish it now that the read-a-thon is over.

Complete Total of Pages Read - 920 pages (I bet last year by just 10 pages! Wow what a close call...)

Top Ten Tuesday #15

Top Ten Tuesday #15

Top Ten Authors I've Read The Most Books From.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and The Bookish and consists of them picking a topic each week for us bloggers to list our Top Ten.

Thank you Goodreads for providing me with this information!!

1. Cassandra Clare - 19 Books
I'm sure this really ain't a surprise... and I've read 19 books written by Cassandra Clare. That includes The Mortal Instruments series, The Infernal Devices series, The Bane Chronicles and The Sshadowhunter's Codex. I still need to read 1 more Bane novella, but I'm going to get the book to do that and I'm waiting/hoping that the Simon novellas are published in print form too, because I haven't read those yet either...

2. Richelle Mead - 12 Books
This amazing author comes in second with 12 books!.. I've read all of The Vampire Academy series as well as all of Bloodlines and cannot wait for Soundless to come out!

3. Sarah J. Maas - 8 Books
Sarah J. Maas comes third with 8 books. I've read Throne of Glass, A Court of Thorns and Roses and all the novellas in The Assassin's Blade.

4. Michael Grant - 7 Books
I have read 7 books written by Michael Grant which includes the full Gone series and the first book in his new series The Messenger of Fear.

5. Malorie Blackman - 6 Books
Malorie Blackman comes in 5th as I've read 6 of her books, all which are parts of the Noughts and Crosses series - all four books and two novellas!!

6. Marie Lu - 5 Books
I have read 5 books that Marie Lu has written which includes her full Legend trilogy and novella and then the first book in her new series The Young Elites.

7. Kelley Armstrong - 5 Books
Kelley Armstrong is tied with Marie Lu at me having read 5 of their books. I have read the first two books and two novellas in The Darkest Powers trilogy and also the first book in the Age of Legends trilogy - Sea of Shadows.

8. Kiera Cass - 3 Books
I have read 3 books writen by Kiera Cass which is her The Selection series, icluding The Selection, The Elite and The One.

9. Maggie Stiefvater - 3 Books
Is tied with Kiera Cass at 3 books. I've read her The Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy, Shiver, Linger and Forever and am dying to get my hands on Sinner!!

10. Jandy Nelson - 2 Books
Jandy Nelson is next because I have read her 2 novels. One I disliked and one I loved!! But yup :P



Who are your most read authors??

Book Review - The Young Elites by Marie Lu

The Young Elites

(The Young Elites #1)

Author: Marie Lu

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dystopia, Magic. 

Published: February 5 2015

Pages: 368 pages (Paperback Edition) (Penguin)

Read: July 2015

Rating: 5 Stars

I am tired of being used, hurt, and cast aside.

Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina’s black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a malfetto, an abomination, ruining their family’s good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever’s survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars—they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites.

Teren Santoro works for the king. As Leader of the Inquisition Axis, it is his job to seek out the Young Elites, to destroy them before they destroy the nation. He believes the Young Elites to be dangerous and vengeful, but it’s Teren who may possess the darkest secret of all. 

Enzo Valenciano is a member of the Dagger Society. This secret sect of Young Elites seeks out others like them before the Inquisition Axis can. But when the Daggers find Adelina, they discover someone with powers like they’ve never seen. 

Adelina wants to believe Enzo is on her side, and that Teren is the true enemy. But the lives of these three will collide in unexpected ways, as each fights a very different and personal battle. But of one thing they are all certain: Adelina has abilities that shouldn’t belong in this world. A vengeful blackness in her heart. And a desire to destroy all who dare to cross her.

It is my turn to use. My turn to hurt.

Book 25/60 - 2015 Goodreads Reading Challenge

The Young Elites is the first book in Marie Lu's new series 'The Young Elites'.  It is a fantasy series revolving around a world where a plague has turned children into malfettos, with some malfettos having magical abilities, just like our main protagonist Adelina, and a world that is rife with revolution and with dark depths at every corner. 

I was apprehensive to pick up The Young Eiltes, simply for two reasons:
1. I disliked the cover, I know did no-one ever tell me not to judge a book by it's cover!! (But it has grown on me now)
2. I was afraid after completely falling head over heels for the Legend trilogy that if I didn't like this book it would taint my experience of reading that trilogy and the author. 
Alas, I needn't have been afraid because I absolutely adored this book!

The plot of The Young Elites is rather entertaining. Marie Lu writes action packed to a whole new level and not only was this book action packed but it was mysterious, it was twisting, it was dark. So, so dark! And that is why I found this book to be such a refresher in the YA genre. It doesn't follow your usual set out plan. Really can you honestly expect that with Marie Lu anyway? Just look how the Legend series ended??? Not expected! It didn't follow the usual rules of YA fiction! And neither did The Young Elites and I loved it for that.

And to just point out the most obvious difference - our main 'heroine' was a villain and boy, was she bad?! Adelina was the most dark, twisted character I've ever read a perspective from and I was really surprised to see this as she is the main protagonist in the book. But, by damn I can see her getting a lot more evil come the next books in the series as I'm sure everyone else who as read this book can see too...
But Adelina was not the only twisted around character, personality wise, there was also Enzo who was portrayed as the saviour of all malfettos, but was he really? And then is Teren the bad guy?? You're just going to have to read it to find out..

But this book led to an awful set of questions stirring in my mind. Are the good guys really good?? When our main protagonist is anti-hero, can the group she admires really be good? Are the bad guys really bad? Or do they have a point with what there doing?? Is anyone in this book good? These are just some of those mind boggling questions that you get when reading this book because literally Marie Lu has placed a very thin line between good and evil in this book and it is really hard to place who is on which side.

And let's not forget the twists and turn of events in this book as per-se the Marie Lu fashion!! I was left HEARTBROKEN and BETRAYED!! Come on, Marie, why do you do this to me?? And I have been left completely terrified to read the next book 'The Rose Society' because I'm holding onto this semblance of hope and I really don't want it to be squashed. Please, don't... don't scar me forever....

But I will be reading the next book, you can expect it to be in my hands on the day of it's release in October, if I'm a very good girl and on track with my goals for my TBR for 2016 that is..

I recommend this book to you, you, you, you and you! So why aren't you reading it yet???

Book Review - Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

Second Chance Summer

Author: Morgan Matson

Genres: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Family. 

Published: May 7 2015

Pages: 480 pages (Paperback Edition) (Simon & Schuster)

Read: June 2015

Rating: 4 Stars

Taylor Edwards’ family might not be the closest-knit—everyone is a little too busy and overscheduled—but for the most part, they get along just fine. Then Taylor’s dad gets devastating news, and her parents decide that the family will spend one last summer all together at their old lake house in the Pocono Mountains.

Crammed into a place much smaller and more rustic than they are used to, they begin to get to know each other again. And Taylor discovers that the people she thought she had left behind haven’t actually gone anywhere. Her former best friend is still around, as is her first boyfriend…and he’s much cuter at seventeen than he was at twelve.

As the summer progresses and the Edwards become more of a family, they’re more aware than ever that they’re battling a ticking clock. Sometimes, though, there is just enough time to get a second chance—with family, with friends, and with love.

Book 24/60 - 2015 Goodreads Reading Challenge

Second Chance Summer is the second book written by the author Morgan Matson. It's set in a summery atmosphere at a beach house and follows a teenage girl Taylor as she learns to comes to grip with her father's condition, making amends with all the mistakes she made and with loving a boy and ultimately getting second chances in life.

This book was re-released by Simon & Schuster earlier this year in May to compliment Morgan Matson's third novel Since You've Been Gone (the sole reason I picked up this book). I read Morgan Matson's Since You've Been Gone and it was a life changer for me and opened up me world to contemporaries. You can find my review here! 

I enjoyed this book, but I didn't find it that amazing, like I did with Since You've Been Gone and that was because of the plot. I was quite disappointed to find myself becoming bored while reading the first half of this book. But by the end, I was extremely hooked as more and more situations occured and events unfurled and I was in complete heartbreak by the end bawling my eyes out! Yes, this book made me cry and made me happy too, we can't forget that..

I found the characters to be likeable. I wasn't really overly attached to them, again not like I was to the characters of Since You've Been Gone, but I still enjoyed the characters and I cared about them towards the end. And there was a dog!!! The dog was a great addition and an amazing character too in his own right. 

I still gave this book 4 stars because I did really enjoy most of the book and Morgan Matson is on my auto-buy authors list. I'm hoping they now re-release Amy & Roger's Epic Detour and cannot wait for Morgan Matson's new book The Unexpected Everything which is being released next year.

Book Review - A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses

(A Court of Thorns and Roses #1)

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Faeries. 

Published: May 5 2015

Pages: 416 pages (Paperback Edition) (Bloomsbury Children's)

Read: June 2015

Rating: 5 Stars

Feyre’s survival rests upon her ability to hunt and kill – the forest where she lives is a cold, bleak place in the long winter months. So when she spots a deer in the forest being pursued by a wolf, she cannot resist fighting it for the flesh. But to do so, she must kill the predator and killing something so precious comes at a price.

Dragged to a magical kingdom for the murder of a faerie, Feyre discovers that her captor, his face obscured by a jewelled mask, is hiding far more than his piercing green eyes would suggest. Feyre’s presence at the court is closely guarded, and as she begins to learn why, her feelings for him turn from hostility to passion and the faerie lands become an even more dangerous place. Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse, or she will lose him forever.

Book 23/60 - 2015 Goodreads Reading Challenge

A Court of Thorns and Roses is the first book in the new series 'A Court of Thorns and Roses' by Sarah J. Maas. This book is a retelling of the classic story a 'Beauty and the Beast' with a catch. There are faeries! 

I picked up this book because I thoroughly enjoyed Sarah J. Maas's Throne of Glass and The Assassin's Blade (I have yet to read the other books in the series) and because of the concept of faeries. I love faery stories from Wicked Lovely to now A Court of Thorns and Roses. Faeries are just awesome when they are written right of course. And to put the topper on, the cover is just delicious! Seriously a high five has to be given to Sarah J. Maas's cover designers!! Splendid job!

But anyway returning to the actual contents within that beautiful cover. I enjoyed the plot within this book. I could see the basis of the fairytale. But it took me so long to read this book. It literally took me around two to three weeks to read the first half of the book. I kept putting it down to read something else. Why?? I don't know, because I was enjoying it and I was hanging on every word and I needed to know what was happening but still.... I read the last half of the book in two days so maybe it had something to do with me and my mood rather than the book. I'm not certain. 

The characters were amazing! I loved Feyre, she followed the steps of Celaena by which she was a very badass character especially at the beginning. But that did change quite a bit towards the middle and I was kind of left thinking that there were a lot of similarities between Celaena and Feyre. Maybe that was just me..
Tamlin was another of the  main characters here in this book and I loved him!! He was such a great faery. I loved his personality and the changes that happened throughout the book and seeing his whole personality was enlightening too. 
There were also many side characters which I fell for so hard!! Lucien anyone??? Rhysand?? *dreamy sigh* So many feels!! 

What else can I say? I enjoyed this book, even though it took me a long time to read, and I cannot wait for the sequel. I also cannot wait to see the cover and the title for the sequel. Ahhh. 

I know there are a lot of mixed reviews for this book, but I'd still recommend to give this one a shot and see for yourself if you haven't done so already. 

Wishlist Wednesday #2

Wishlist Wednesday #2

Wishlist Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted over at Pen to Paper. This meme is where you showcase one book that is on your wishlist and that you can't wait to get off your wishlist and into your hands.

On my Wishlist Wednesday today is....

Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys

In 1945, World War II is drawing to a close in East Prussia, and thousands of refugees are on a desperate trek toward freedom, almost all of them with something to hide. Among them are Joana, Emilia, and Florian, whose paths converge en route to the ship that promises salvation, the Wilhelm Gustloff. Forced by circumstance to unite, the three find their strength, courage, and trust in each other tested with each step closer toward safety.

Just when it seems freedom is within their grasp, tragedy strikes. Not country, nor culture, nor status matter as all ten thousand people aboard must fight for the same thing: survival.
Told in alternating points of view, this masterful work of historical fiction is inspired by the real-life tragedy that was the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff—the greatest maritime disaster in history. As she did in Between Shades of Gray, Ruta Sepetys unearths a shockingly little-known casualty of a gruesome war, and proves that humanity can prevail, even in the darkest of hours.

This is a book that I saw when I looked up Ruta Sepetys author page on Goodreads. I was flicking along and was shocked to discover this book, which I had not heard anything about??  Of course it is not to be released until February 2016 in hardcover which means I have to wait an even further amount of time for the Penguin paperback to come out!!

Anyhoo, this is another historical fiction novel set in the World War II era and is about the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff ship which I have never heard of either and I really, really want to learn more about it because I do have a soft spot for history!

Have you heard of this book?? 

Is it on your wishlist??

What have you on your wishlist??

Top Ten Tuesday #14

Top Ten Tuesday #14

Top Ten Fairytale Retellings I've Read / I Want To Read.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and The Bookish and consists of them picking a topic each week for us bloggers to list our Top Ten.

This list is going to be split into two, one for the best retellings I've read and one for the retellings that I really want to read... So without delay here is my Top Ten Tuesday:

Books I've Read:

1. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
This is the first in The Lunar Chronicles series and is a retelling of the classic Cinderella. And boy, is it original. I had such fun and such feels reading this book. It was simply spectacular.

2. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
The sequel to the book above, Cinder, and I just loved this book. It is a retelling of the fairy tale 'Little Red Riding Hood' but the Wolf is damn hell sexier!! ;p

3. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
A beautiful retelling of 'Beauty and the Beast' with faeries!!! I just loved this book!!





Books I Want To Read:

4. Cress by Marissa Meyer
After loving both Cinder and Scarlet, Cress is a shoe-in and also a retelling of 'Rapunzel'.

5. Winter by Marissa Meyer
The final book in The Lunar Chronicles which is due to be released later this year. Winter is a retelling of the fairy tale 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' and a book I cannot wait for to be released!!

6. Heartless by Marissa Meyer
A prequel to 'Alice In Wonderland' focusing on The Queen of Hearts with a publication date in 2016. Can I just say I want it now???






7. The Wrath and The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
A retelling of 'A Thousand and One Nights' I really can't wait to read this book!!







I think you can all see a recurring theme in this Top Ten Tuesday, yup it's basically all Marissa Meyer's books. I just love them and honestly she is the queen of fairy tale retellings!!
What books made it on your list??

BookTube-A-Thon 2015

BookTube-A-Thon 2015

Here we go again!!! It's BookTube-A-Thon time :D BookTube-A-Thon is hosted by Ariel Bissett. I participated in this read-a-thon last year so this is going to be my second year and I hope to do a whole lot better this time round :P Oh and also BookTube-A-Thon starts tomorrow (3rd August ) and runs till the 9th August!! 7 Days peeps!!

And as always there are 7 challenges for BookTube-A-Thon!!

The Challenges:

1. Read a book with blue on the cover

2. Read an author who shares the same first letter of your last name

3. Read someone else's favourite book

4. Read a book that you most recently acquired

5. Read a book without letting go of it

6. Read a book you really want to read

7. Read 7 books

My Choices:

1. The One by Kiera Cass

2. Conversion by Catherine Howe

3. Allegiant by Veronica Roth 

4. Shadow of the Wolf by Tim Hall

5. The Gates by John Connolly

6. Empire of Night by Kelley Armstrong

7. Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider

For last year I got 3 books finished and read a total of 910 pages, so here's to beating that, maybe I'll get four challenges finished :P I know it is going to be extremely tough to pull off 7 :P 

Are you joining BookTube-A-Thon??

July 2015

July 2015 Book Haul / Wrap Up 

Dun, dun, dun....the end of July has come....

July 2015 Book Haul

I got 3 books this month. They are as follows:

• Allegiant by Veronica Roth
• Shadow of the Wolf by Tim Hall
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling 

I got Allegiant just now, because I had to wait for the traditional sized paperback to be released so that all of my books would match. Now they do, see!!

Shadow of the Wolf was featured on my blog during the month to as a Wishlist Wednesday. As stated there, it's a Robin Hood retelling that I really really want to read.

And finally Harry Potter.. Bout time I joined this bandwagon and well the new Bloomsbury covers at just gorgeous, that I couldn't hold back any longer!

July 2015 Wrap Up

Here is my recap for July!! :)

What Was Read:

• The Young Elites by Marie Lu (5 Stars)
• Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes (4 Stars)
• Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr (4 Stars)
• Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick (5 Stars)

Defeating My TBR Progress!!

You may remember my post just a few months ago where I am trying to do this personal challenge of defeating my tbr. As stated in that post, I want a small tbr - 10 to 20 books, not a tbr in the hundreds which I currently have.

As of the end of July I have 124 (It was 129 the last time I wrote about this in May so 5 down!!), how I can't wait to be under 120!! Which it hasn't been for such a long time!!

Anyway, keep an eye on this section here if you want to continue to know about my struggle and tell me about your own if you have one :)

Other News:

Book Reviews which were written this month area all linked below:
Parasite by Mira Grant
The Ruby Circle by Richelle Mead
The Poison Diaries by Maryrose Wood
Blood Red Road by Moira Young
I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson

I also had some discussion / tag posts, linked below:
- Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag!!
- Interview With A BookTuber!!
- Blogger Recognition Award

And lastly, I participated in some memes. You can find those linked below too:
- Top Ten Tuesday #12
- Top Ten Tuesday #13
- Wishlist Wednesday #1
- Best of the Bunch #2

And that is it for my wrap up and book haul!!
How was your July??

Best of the Bunch #2 - July 2015

Best of the Bunch #2 - July 2015

Best of the Bunch is a monthly meme hosted over at A Cocoon of Books. What it is is that you give the Best of the Bunch award to one book which you have read in that month.

For July I read 4 books, 2 of those were re-reads and 2 weren't :P From those books there are 2 going up for this award. One which was a re-read, which isn't going to get the award cause well I have read it before so the book getting the Best of the Bunch Award for July 2015 is .......

The Young Elites by Marie Lu

I am tired of being used, hurt, and cast aside.

Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina’s black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a malfetto, an abomination, ruining their family’s good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever’s survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars—they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites.

Teren Santoro works for the king. As Leader of the Inquisition Axis, it is his job to seek out the Young Elites, to destroy them before they destroy the nation. He believes the Young Elites to be dangerous and vengeful, but it’s Teren who may possess the darkest secret of all. 

Enzo Valenciano is a member of the Dagger Society. This secret sect of Young Elites seeks out others like them before the Inquisition Axis can. But when the Daggers find Adelina, they discover someone with powers like they’ve never seen. 

Adelina wants to believe Enzo is on her side, and that Teren is the true enemy. But the lives of these three will collide in unexpected ways, as each fights a very different and personal battle. But of one thing they are all certain: Adelina has abilities that shouldn’t belong in this world. A vengeful blackness in her heart. And a desire to destroy all who dare to cross her.

It is my turn to use. My turn to hurt.

Ahhh I loved Marie Lu's Legend Trilogy and then I heard she was writing a new first book in a series and at the start I didn't want to read it.... Why??? I was afraid of how this book would turn out.. I loved Legend so much that I thought if I didn't like this one it would taint my experience with this author. But anyhoo, I saw the book in a book shop and jumped on it and got it and I read it this month and it got the Best f the Bunch Award. It was such such such an amazing book. I literally cannot wait for the release of The Rose Society!! Read this book people!! Read it!!

PS, I feel my reread should get a shoutout too and that book is Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick. A brilliant horror, dystopian, zombie book. Read it guys!! :P 

What was your Best of The Bunch for the month of July?? :)