May 2016 Wrap Up

This was a very bad reading month for me and I don't forsee my summer being much better. This month was crammed packed with events that I had to attend and lots of school work. As summer approaches, I will be working three jobs; hence, the summer not being great either, but nevertheless, I did read some great books.

The Secret Circle book 1

Emancipated book 1

Both of these books were great and I am looking forward to continuing both series

Someone Like You ~ Sarah Dessen

The world is a terrible place not to have a best friend.
 
Scarlett was always the strong one.
 
Halley was always content to follow in her wake.
 
Then Scarlett’s boyfriend died, and Scarlett learned that she was pregnant.
 
Now Halley has to find the strength to take the lead and help Scarlett get through it.
 
Because true friendship is a promise you keep forever

Book Review:

This is one of the oldest books that I have ever read by Sarah Dessen. It was published the year that I was born, so in all honesty, I wasn't expecting it to be her best work. Now, although it wasn't her best, it wasn't terrible either. I actually quite liked it. Now, many of you wouldn't know, but I am obsessed with youtube and lately with teenage parents or young parents who daily vlog, I was hoping for this to be an interesting spin on teenage pregnancy but it wasn't. The story mainly revolved around Halley finding herself, like most Sarah Dessen novels, and around the relationships that aspired. Nevertheless, it was a great read. 

The character development was a bit lacking in description, in my opinion. You knew that it was there, you understood how it was coming about, but you never really received any further information. The family dynamics were intriguing and a bit cliche but that is exactly why I loved those scenes. I really loved the friendship between Halley and Scarlett and I also really loved how the grief process was portrayed through Scarlett's character. The book portrayed so much pure honesty that I couldn't have disliked it in any way. It really was beautifully written. 

Pages:  281                                                                                                                                Rate: 3/5

Favorite Quote:

“You can't just plan a moment when things get back on track, just as you can't plan the moment you lose your way in the first place.” 

Glass Sword ~ Victoria Aveyard

The electrifying next instalment in the Red Queen series escalates the struggle between the growing rebel army and the blood-segregated world they've always known—and pits Mare against the darkness that has grown in her soul.

Mare Barrow's blood is red—the color of common folk—but her Silver ability, the power to control lightning, has turned her into a weapon that the royal court tries to control. The crown calls her an impossibility, a fake, but as she makes her escape from Maven, the prince—the friend—who betrayed her, Mare uncovers something startling: she is not the only one of her kind.

Pursued by Maven, now a vindictive king, Mare sets out to find and recruit other Red-and-Silver fighters to join in the struggle against her oppressors. But Mare finds herself on a deadly path, at risk of becoming exactly the kind of monster she is trying to defeat.Will she shatter under the weight of the lives that are the cost of rebellion? Or have treachery and betrayal hardened her forever?

Book Review:

I was looking forward to this book for over a year. I had the biggest book hangover after reading Red Queen and could not wait for this instalment. I needed this book!!! And after all of my waiting and all of the hype surrounding the book, it did not let me down; but now I have to wait for the next book, and there isn't even a release date for it yet!!

The storyline grew to be something so much more than I could have anticipated. The character development was incredible. I grew even closer to Mare than I thought possible after the first novel, where I identified with her so much. My "shipper" heart has also expanded with Mare and Cal.I just want a happy ending for the two of them, but I don't see that happening in the near future or the distant future for that matter, and it is so aggravating!!! Especially since he is so good with the little New Blood kids!

The action in this instalment was something that I haven't seen in many books recently. The tactical information was very intriguing as well as Aveyard's descriptions of the actual fighting. I really enjoyed the experimentation with the powers of the New Bloods, like Mare. Oh, and Shade? Yeah, he is pretty much my big brother. He reminds me so much of my brothers that I just loved him so much.

Pages: 464                                                                                                                    Rate: 5/5

Favorite Quote:

“No matter how much I might want to feel him, I cannot. I must keep my eyes ahead, and away from the fire of a fallen prince. I must freeze my heart to the one person who insists on setting it ablaze.”  This quote killed me!! As soon as my eyes crossed these words I felt my heart break a little for both Mare and Cal. 

Don’t cry in front of Mom, apologize to Farley, figure out how to save five thousand children, nanny a bunch of Silvers, put my head through a wall. Seems doable." Basically the entire novel summed up in one quote. 

May 2016 TBR

Hello my lovelies,

I have to admit, I won't have much time to read this month. I have my Senior Prom this weekend, my Senior Trip next weekend, and a bunch of school projects but I will try my best; therefore, this is a small TBR. 

I became obsessed with the CW TV show on Netflix to find out that it only had one season and I didn't like who ended up with who nor how anything else ended; so I have moved onto the books in hopes that they develop in the way that I want. This is the first bind up of novel one and the first half of novel two in the series. 

     

This is the second bind up in the series.

I have been meaning to read this memoir for a very long time. Malala is a huge inspiration to me and I am really looking forward to some eye-opening passages.

Until next month,

Angel

P.S. Tell me what you think of these books if you have read them. 

April 2016 Wrap Up

Hello my lovelies,

First off, I just want to say that this was a great reading month for me because I had Spring Break, which I was able to read 3 1/2 books in just that week so everything has been very wonderful!!! 

I will be posting reviews for all of the following books in the coming weeks if thy are not up already. 

Cece Bell's graphic novel about adapting as a deaf child. It was really good. 

The sequel to the amazing Red Queen. I was so angry when I finished this and realized that the next book won't be out for a year to a year and a half!! I need to know!! What is up with the cliff hangers, Victoria!?

A fabulous way to end the trilogy, Ransom Riggs's talent baffles me completely!

Basically every YA Contemporary novel ever but that doesn't mean that I didn't love it. The romance is similar to the one in Girl Online by Zoe Sugg. 

A very interesting dystopian novel. New Orleans is a city that I have never personally visited but have been obsessed with for years, one of the reasons that I picked up this book, but this novel is set in the distant future and is gripping from the first page. I also liked the two different perspectives. 

I had thought that I had read everything by Sarah Dessen but apparently I hadn't read this one, her second novel, published the year that I was born. It was perfect just like every other one. 

El Deafo ~ Cece Bell

Going to school and making new friends can be tough. But going to school and making new friends while wearing a bulky hearing aid strapped to your chest? That requires superpowers! In this funny, poignant graphic novel memoir, author/illustrator Cece Bell chronicles her hearing loss at a young age and her subsequent experiences with the Phonic Ear, a very powerful—and very awkward—hearing aid. The Phonic Ear gives Cece the ability to hear—sometimes things she shouldn’t—but also isolates her from her classmates. She really just wants to fit in and find a true friend, someone who appreciates her as she is. After some trouble, she is finally able to harness the power of the Phonic Ear and become “El Deafo, Listener for All.” And more importantly, declare a place for herself in the world and find the friend she’s longed for.

Book Review:

I have been really into memoirs lately and I have also been trying to expand my horizons a little bit. Therefore, when I happened across this graphic memoir, a memoir in the style of a graphic novel, I was very intrigued,  but when I learned that it was the life of a deaf girl, I was definitely going to read it. I have been trying to teach myself ASL (American Sign Language) for years now and from that I have grown an immense connection to the Deaf Culture. 

Cece's character is trying to deal with growing up with a hearing aid since she lost the majority of her hearing due to illness as a small child. For her, this hearing aid is huge, bulky, and extremely conspicuous. She is trying to deal with making friends and feeling so different from everyone else at the same time. Now, I think that every kid goes through that, I know that I did, but due to Cece's deafness, she feels even more introverted than many other kids who experience that feeling. 

I also really loved how adorable the graphics were.