No Favourite Author?!?

Yes, it is true.

I, Eve Burch, do not have a favourite author.

I know, I'm an abomination.

I mean, I have favourite series, and a couple of favourite stand alone books, but I do not have a favourite author, why you ask? Because I do not like to limit myself to one style of writing, to one author. I like to explore, I want to read a mixture of books, I want to experience different styles and stories and characters.

I feel like if I pick a favourite author I will only stick to that person, or read books that are written in a similar styles to their's. I would feel limited and trapped, and I don't want that - I want the freedom to choose.

The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness

Yes, I may love certain works, eg. The Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness (which is phenomenal by the way), but he is not my favourite author even though this may be my favourite trilogy (by far, if you haven't read it, what the hell have you been reading?). Also, I love The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (who doesn't?) and I've read Paper Towns, but that doesn't make him my favourite author.

The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

 
And then there are other authors who played a significant role in my upbringing like J.K.Rowling, Cornelia Funke and Michelle Paver but none of them could be called my favourite, even though I loved their works as a child and still do to this day, and probably will for the rest of my life.

Ghost Hunter (#6 Chronicles of Ancient Darkness) by Michelle Paver 

After reading certain blogs and watching certain booktubers I feel pressured into acquiring a favourite author, why? Why must I have a favourite author? I don't understand. It's like limiting myself to one type of candy or cookie, I just can't do it, how can I pick a favourite when there's so many amazing ones left to taste; I've really got to stop comparing books to food...

I am quite happy staying unattached, thank you very much. I like not feeling pressurised into loving all of an author's work, buying every single book they're involved in, or loving what they love. It's too much of a hassle to do all of that. I like to be independent in my book buying.

So, do any of you have a favourite author? Or are you like me, unattached and alone? Let me know!

P.S I have entered a slight reading slump if you haven't already guessed, so if you don't hear from me for a while, that's why.

Eragon by Christopher Paolini (Inheritance Cycle #1)

Gah, this took me so long to finish.

It's so big.
And the next one is bigger.... *distant sobbing*

Now, this book has kinda been criticised because it's too similar to the Lord Of The Rings and other fantasy novels that set in an era like this; but, I don't feel this way, of course it's going to be similar! Besides, I actually quite like fantasy novels like this and I'm aiming to read more.

The concept of the main premise in this book is about dragon riders and their dragons (obviously), which I really enjoyed reading about as it's something I haven't really seen before. I like the idea of how the dragon and rider are sorta one, they're completely compatible (reminds me of best friends, who know way too much about each other.) I also quite like to read about a revolution (is it just me who enjoys reading about people who have had enough?) And holy hell is there a big one going on here.

But the main thing that made me enjoy this novel was Saphira who is about the sassiest dragon I've ever met, she just keeps coming up with all these small lines that make me giggle. She also puts Eragon in his place quite a lot, and lets face it, he does need it sometimes, being a Dragon Rider is getting to his head a bit.

I've also found an new ship which is always exciting: Arya and Eragon, because it's quite cute to watch him fumble around to please her and her not really caring about anything. I also quite like Arya because she's so kickass, I mean she sent a dragon egg across leagues which apparently is a very big deal and she fights better than most men (you go girl).

So yeah, this has been a very confusing review I think, I just sorta rambled on about different aspects of the book. Well, I did actually quite enjoy this book even though it took me a while to read and the first few chapters were a little slow, but once you get into it you're fine.

I'd love to hear your thoughts if you've read it.

Age: YA/A
Rating: 3.5/5

Noah - Movie Review (Spoiler Free)

I suggest you don't drink during this movie

You will need the loo.

There's no avoiding it.

So this movie started out okay and I thought I could go with it and enjoy it, due to the amazing imagery and interesting start to the plot, but then the actual movie happened... It felt like the movie was trying to be a part of too many genres at once, one minute it was a thriller, then an adventure, a romance, a religious/biblical film, then a family one; it was just too much (it also felt like it was none of those... a sort of nothing film.)

And then there was no plot, the start was good but then after that it fell apart... I didn't feel like there was a middle and an end to be honest, no good climaxes or anti-climaxes, it felt like they were just filling up empty space in the film. It felt like ordering a burger and only getting the bun (there I go again...) know what I mean? I'm sorry, but I was bored, even when everyone started dying from the giant waves. I didn't laugh, I didn't cry, my heart didn't bang wildly in my chest when it was supposed to, it was just awful as a plot; the only thing that sorta saved it was the scenery which was just so beautiful.

Despite the actual premise of the film being awful, I found that both Emma Watson and Logan Lerman carried their roles well, and I did enjoy watching both of them. Although, I really do have to congratulate Emma because it couldn't have been easy to cry the much, and still make it look believable; also, Logan fitted into his character really well and could see from their point of view easily (which was an interesting one). Although, I found Russell Crowe and Jennifer Connelly's performances really disappointing, it was kinda of a drag watching them and they didn't sound or feel realistic (sorry guys).

Despite saying all of this, it was still interesting to see their spin on the classic Bible Story, and how a different artist could interpret it. The way it was interpreted wasn't bad as a whole, it was quiet interesting to see the emotional and inner turmoil that everyone experienced on The Ark in the film, but at the same time it was presented in the wrong way and some of it really wasn't necessary and was over the top... really over the top (you'll know what I mean if you've seen it.)

So overall I didn't really get anything from this movie, I may have felt something towards Emma and Logans' performances, but, they were ruined by the lack of plot and over the top suspense. Don't watch it unless you really want to see it, it's not worth the money.

Rating: 2/5 cookies

Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison (The Confessions of Georgia Nicolson #1)

Oh how I love you Georgia.

You big, stupid fool.

But how I wish my sister never grows up to think like you.

So I originally read this book when I was in year 7 -  I was about 12... maybe? (I want to stab 12 year old me, I was so embarrassing...) So yeah I found this series again and figured why not, it's been a long time since I read something targeted at a younger audience.

So for those of you who don't know, this book series is written in diary form by none other than teenage Georgia Nicolson. We get to explore her deepest thoughts (which are stupidly ridiculous) and join her in the adventure that is growing up and 'maturing', and watch her peruse what she believes to be love and is important to her friends and her.

Despite Georgia being selfish, arrogant, immature and sometimes very needy she is quite fun to read about, because you can tell the author is simply poking fun at us teenage girls. It's not done in a cruel way, but it's light-hearted and amusing; and makes you want to go back and change who you were when you thought like her, or were her age

Georgia carries all the traits that quite often people hate reading about, but she is different. You can also see the good things about her: her humour (which is great by the way) and the love and care she has for Angus and Libby, which if you look at closely is really quite cute. I understand that not everyone is going to enjoy reading from her perspective and hearing her thoughts, but it is worth trying, you don't have to carry on with the series if you don't like it.

I found there wasn't much of a plot when it came to this book, but I suppose that's what you get when reading it from a diary point of view. Even so, it just felt like stuff happened (like in real life... god forbid...), it just felt like there wasn't enough; it's like when you bite into a burger and you can't wait for the whole taste, and experience, even the bit where grease runs down your chin, but that's didn't happen... It just felt satisfactory as a burger, there was no taste explosion in your mouth, no grease ruining your new top, get what I mean? Did I just compare a plot to a burger...?

So overall, I enjoyed this book even though it was aimed at a younger audience, but I felt like it needed more (which I may get from the next nine books, who knows?) It was a great light read, perfect for spring and summer and amusing at times. I will be carrying on with this series.

Rating: 3.5/cookies

Age: -13/13+

IMAX Review

Why do these things exist?

I mean honestly, what is the point?

It is just a giant ass screen that makes your eyes hurt.
And deafens you with over the top music.



So yeah, this review is going to be different. This weekend I was up in London with my family and we decided to go to an IMAX (never again) to see Noah, I personally thought it was absolutely pointless and a waste of money.

So an IMAX is supposed to give the viewer the ultimate experience (it only gave me a headache), it's supposed to do this through a screen that is bigger than the side of your average house and surround sound or something. Firstly, the big screen is stupid, why the hell do you need a screen that big? I personally really struggled watching a screen that big because it's hard to concentrate on the whole picture, I had to keep looking away or at it indirectly because IT HURT AS IT WAS SO BIG.

And then the sound was ugh, I was deaf for half the film... not even kidding. You know these really tense moments when there's a really big build up in music? Yeah, well those were the moments when you had to curl up into the fetus position and cover your ears, what was the point? None. There was none.

So yep basically IMAX's are the most stupid concept ever, there is no need to replace cinemas with these. All in all, it was too much for my senses (although mine are quite sensitive due to a couple of personal reasons), so I'm not sure if it will have the same effect on everyone else, but if you're like me then just don't go. They're just a giant overwhelming cinema that cost more (I think?)

This has just been a long winded way of saying don't go, just don't... So yeah I'm done for today, let me know if you thought differently or if you have any expierences with an IMAX! I will be back soon with two reviews, one a book and on a movie (oooh exciting....)

March Book Haul

Here we are again...

With me trying to figure out how I managed to get so many books.

I really don't know how I do it.

I hate this part... when I have type out all the names... SO MUCH WORK UGH. Well, we have: Sherlock Holmes The Compete Illustrated Novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Urban Dog: The Adventures of Parker by Will Chou; Missing Me and Sister, Missing both by Sophie McKenzie; Gone by Michael Grant; The Luxe by Anna Godbersen; The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold; The Tent, The Bucket and Me by Emma Kennedy; A Gathering Light by Jennifer Donnelly; Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? By Jeanette Winterson; A Visit From The Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan; Holes By Louis Sachar; Mansfield Park and Persuasion by Jane Austen; and finally (thank god) And Then There Were None by Agathe Christie. 

Sherlock Holmes The Compete Illustrated Novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Mansfield Park and Persuasion by Jane Austen, And Then There Were None by Agathe Christie. 

Now I don't read many classics and I should start to really (I've always been put off them because of school, they do ruin classics and Shakespeare.. I can't pick up a Shakespeare sonnet or play now). So naturally, I picked up The Sherlock Holmes book thing from the book swap along with two little Jane Austen novels, and my brother threw out his brand new Agathe Christie novel so I saved it... just.

The Tent, The Bucket and Me by Emma Kennedy, Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? By Jeanette Winterson, A Visit From The Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

I also picked these three up from the book swap and they all looked like cute, fluffy, quick reads so I managed to struggle these home with my other books. And one of them is an old World Book Night Book for 2013 so I'm quite excited about that (I've heard these are usually great reads). I'm afraid I have no idea what any of these are about because I can't remember and I'm too lazy to check for you (sorry).

 Missing Me and Sister, Missing both by Sophie McKenzie, Gone by Michael Grant,  Holes By Louis Sachar.

These are the books I got from Amazon this month, and I probably won't be buying from there again this month due to shipping costs (it's getting ridiculous Amazon, pull yourself together.) I read the Sister, Missing and Missing Me so you can find the reviews there and here (they were okay). I decideD to pick Gone up due to the talk I've heard about it, and because I really wanted to try something new; I then picked up Holes because I remembering covering it at school once and loving it, so here we are I guess.

A Gathering Light by Jennifer Donnelly, Urban Dog: The Adventures of Parker by Will Chou, The Luxe by Anna Godbersen, The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. 

So yes again, I picked up three of these from my local book swap (I am naughty... I may have to ban myself); I will admit, I purely picked up The Lovely Bones due to all the hype, but can you really blame me? And then I found The Luxe in a charity shop, because honestly they are probably the best place for good quality but cheap books, and I picked that up because I wanted to pay for something (I feel guilty if I leave empty handed). 

So yeah, that was my not so big (maybe) book haul. I hope you like seeing what I got and I will try reading some of these soon, and I hope you may have some good book recommendations for me? 

Till next time!

A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen

The inner stereotypical girl in me is awing constantly...

This was honestly so cute.

But at the same time strangely insightful?

So, this is the first Non-Fiction book I've read in a long time and now I'm kinda regretting I don't do it that very often... Because I think some can be really underrated (especially this and Marley and Me... don't cry, don't cry). This was about the story of James Bowen, a recovering drug addict and his companionship with a past and what seems to be abandoned street cat he calls Bob. We get to explore their ups and downs, and their relationship over a two year period, which is beautifully told by James himself.

Now this book was so cute and sweet and ughhhh... I just want to cuddle Bob and knit James a hat to wear on the London Streets when it gets cold. Their relationship will make your teeth fall out from all the sweetness, it's just something that makes you want to put the book down and go cuddle all your pets (even your Goldfish, uh huh, that's how good it is). Even though the book just briefly told their story over their first two years together, I actually have started to care about what's happened to them and what they were like on the streets.

I even looked up two yotube videos James mentioned, here and there.

Despite being mind-numbingly sweet, this book was massively insightful about buskers trying to make their way off the streets and the destructive lives of Street Cats. This book changed my whole perspective with: beggars, magazine sellers, street cats/dogs, and buskers. I am ashamed to admit that before I never gave them a second glance or look, I never really cared where they ended up and never considered it my problem, and I was wrong; this book helped to show me how I need to help sometimes, obviously I can't give money to everyone, but the next time I see a busker I need to toss in a couple of quid for them, or tip a Big Issue or other magazine sellers. I need to do my bit to help get them off the street, because even though a lot of the time it may be their fault they got there, they can recognise that and want to get out of their situation, but they can't do it alone.

Overall, I really liked reading this book not because of the story (don't get me wrong I loved the story), but as I just mentioned, the insight it gave me, which can be so hard to find in a book some time. Thank you James Bowen, you've shown me a completely different side to the capitol of this country and I won't look at people trying to get off the streets in the same way again. I recommend that people go out and find this book, you won't regret it.

See you all soon!

Rating: 4/5 cookies

Age: YA/A

Missing Me by Sophie Mckenzie (Girl, Missing #3)

Okay, that was better Sophie.

Much better.

Well done.

So yep, the final instalment in this trilogy was so much better, well done Sophie - you kinda saved it to be honest. I mean, it wasn't as great as the first one, but it was far better than the second one.

The thing that saved this book for me that it was totally flipped on it's head, we no longer follow around Lauren (whose still whiny by the way) but her sister, Madison who I adored to pieces as a small, cute, innocent little girl. This really improved this whole book as it gave us a chance to look at the family/situations in a different way, and it gave us a break from Lauren who was kinda old news in the last one.

So Madison was actually okay, I was really scared when I started off she would be too much like teenager Lauren - but she's not. Even though they share some traits, they are a lot of little things about Madison that are more relatable: self confidence and self esteem being low, and the anxiety of social situations - which a lot of teenagers go through, trust me. Also, it was kinda nice to see an new introduction of characters in this series, it kinda refreshed the whole thing. I actually quite like having Wolf and Esme around a looking at their relationship and different personalties in detail (no matter how small or minor); and I know I should hate Esme for what she did, but... I don't blame her. As much as I like Madison, I would have done the same thing after learning she had used me.

Also, the plot kinda made more sense in this book again, it wasn't as stupid or as silly and what happened after each event was understandable and not a completely daft move or jump in conclusion. It was quite smart really, and I like the way Allan played into the whole of it (still not sure about him to be honest). It was a interesting mystery guys (although I'm still unsure whether it was illegal or not, do you know if it was?)

The thing that let this down was... guess what? Yep. Lauren. In this book Lauren is pregnant and 23 and she's still as whiny and awful as she was in the second book. What happened to impulsive, cool Lauren we saw in Girl Missing? And I mean, she was awful to Madison about Allan... Out of all people she should have understood! Ugh Lauren! I don't like the way you matured... Oh! And one other thing, the thing with Madison and Wolf happened far too quickly for me, it doesn't work like that! You don't fall in love that quickly. I hate it when authors do that...

So overall, this book was okay again, I'm still mad over the last book in the series so this was slightly tinted by that; but it was so much better. I still recommend this series, but only as a filler and to young readers (may be okay to some YA readers - can be slightly childish at times).

Age: 13+

Rating: 3/5 cookies

Sister, Missing by Sophie McKenzie (Girl, Missing #2)

Hmmm...

I don't know.

This book has confused my feelings. 

I don't like that.

So, to start off with this book started with a sudden plot twist... You know how sometimes there's a sudden death and you throw the book away from you, because where the hell did that come from? Yeah, the first page had one of those. THE FIRST FREAKIN' PAGE. NO SOPHIE. NO. Yeah, so that didn't start off well for me, it took me ten minutes to read the first page because I kept re-reading it in denial. So yep, I was really conflicted when started this book, it felt like I had been punched...

I can't be the only one, but, I always feel like the second book in a trilogy/series is the worst (don't lie, you know you feel the same way), and this one was no exception. There was no way I like this as much as the first one, it wasn't terrible and it was still fast paced and exciting, but boy did it drag on sometimes and bore me in some scenes.

And what happened to Lauren? Smart, brave, resourceful and independent Lauren, who kept getting distracted at the thought of James no longer liking her when she was trying to save her younger sister; SNAP OUT OF IT GIRL. Oh, and since when was she such a bitch anyway? All she did was snap at Shelby, and then hate her for defending herself, and put everyone she 'loved' around her in danger; yeah, smart move girl. UGH. NO. And don't even get me started on James, he was no better in this book with his lack of character.

Yet, Madison was still a cutie pie, and I still adore her to bits; and let me tell you, she is one heck of a brave and smart eight year old, jesus christ, I probably would have died if I was her by now. And then there's Shelby, who I actually started to sympathise with in this books since Lauren is such a moody cow, who was actually smart and right from the start.

The plot was okay - not as smart as the first book, but not bad. It did drag on a bit at the end and it got a bit ridiculous, but at the same time it kept you interested with all these small little plot twists (thank the lord.) It was also slightly darker than the last one, with a lot of characters deaths, which was fine, because I actually like character deaths sometimes... Is that bad?

Overall, I didn't mind this book and didn't think the plot was terrible, even though I wanted to punch Lauren throughout the whole of it. It was a disappointment, but I will read the next book in hope it picks up.

Have any of you read it? And what were your thoughts?

Age: 13+
Rating: 2.5/5

Gravity (Movie Review)

Oh wow look!

I'm doing a review that isn't about books.

That's kind of a surprise.

Now, this film is phenomenal. You would think it was boring, but oh no, I was on the edge of having a heart attack over half the time... not kidding.

Yet again, Sandra Bullock has out done herself (seriously though she is a perfect actress), why don't we talk about Sandra Bullock more? We should talk about her more. For about half the film (maybe less? I don't know, I didn't count the hours...) she was on her own on the screen, only with voices but no other visual people, and yet... it wasn't boring. What? How did she do that you ask? By being a kick-ass actress, yep, that's how she did it. 

She was just fabulous, she was so realistic and made me want to cry half the time when she was talking about Earth and her past life down here. Also, the way she played off with the limited characters we saw was great, like George Clooney's character, Matt Kowalski, it was so witty, genuine, light-hearted and gave some of the film a nice feel to it - when you didn't want to rip out your hair in tension.

Besides George and Sandra making me want to cry and yell my swears in frustrations at the screen, there was no plot for this film (which was kinda weird but good). But even though there was no plot this film was so intersting, it kept you on the edge of your seat, and kinda made you want to strangle the director (Alfonso Cuaron), but at the sound time just feed him lots of cakes in reward for being so brilliant. 

Overall, this movie is amazing, and you never get bored - it keeps you on the edge of your seat constantly. I probably won't watch it again in the near future, but that doesn't mean never.

Rating: 4.5/5 cookies

Girl, Missing by Sophie Mckenzie (Girl, Missing #1)

Whoa, long time no see, right?
Yeah, sorry about that...
I had loads of tests, I would have preferred reading, trust me...
But I'm here now!

So again, I'm not going to lie, I picked this up for it's cover... again... I think I may have a problem by judging a book by it's cover, but this one is so clever! So admittedly, I wasn't sure when I started off with this book, I mean, it had an interesting concept and plot; but, the first interaction the main character (Lauren) had with anyone else was texting her best friend this: 'I texted my friend Jam. hw u dng w/ stpd 'who i am thng?'. On the first page. THE FIRST PAGE. That is not how us teenagers text, thank you very much; but it did make me laugh for all the wrong reasons.

Despite the cringey texting, I actually quite like the main character, sure Lauren was whiny and moaned a lot but it was understandable and she was quite smart and resourceful. You could say she depended on James a lot, but at the same time you depend on you best friend/boyfriend in everyday life (sometimes I feel like we're too harsh on female characters being weak and strong and stuff); and besides, she did a lot on the boat before he arrived. In a way, they both rely on each other, but can be independent. So yeah, I really like Lauren and James, they were both kinda relatable and funny, AND THEY WERE SO CUTE TOGETHER.

And I have to mention another cutie: Madison, she is just adorable and so smart and gah... I want one, where can I buy one? Obviously, I hold a bit of resentment to Shelby like Lauren does, but then again, we only see one side of the story like that. I didn't really feel anything else for the other characters (didn't meet them often enough) apart from Glane, who was a nice little shock and quite a sweet, wise man.

Even though the characters helped me to like this, the main thing that did it for me was the plot. It was very fast-paced and a quick read, which I really like in a book because it means I can move onto the sequel or a new book quickly. It was also quite interesting too, to see the mystery of where Lauren comes from and how she was taken away as a toddler; I love a good old mystery.

So overall, I enjoyed the book. It wasn't brilliant, but it was a lovely, quick, relaxing read and I'll definitely be carrying on with the series.

Rating: 3.5/5 cookies
Age: 13+/YA

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

The one liners in this book.

Like, seriously...
Beth is a genius.

I really like the idea of this book, that you can fall in love with someone by just reading their personal emails; which sounds creepy, but honestly, Lincoln is such a sweetheart, he's not like that....

The whole plot of this book is really interesting because: there's no love triangles, the girl isn't totally obsessed over the guy, there's actually proper friendship, couple struggles, and all the drama about moving on and out. I know that sounds weird, but it's actually really good, it's realistic instead of something that sounds all silly and you really have to stretch the imagination to understand. With this, you don't have to imagine, you can see exactly how the characters end up in their predicaments. 

Also, I really liked the characters, each of them had their own little cute quirks and I really loved that, instead of seeing the same old characters repeated over and over again in some novels. There was a real mix, I mean Beth and Jennifer were almost complete opposites but that was nice to see, because a lot of best friends are like that; and then there's Lincoln who I kinda just want to protect from the world (despite the fact he's a massive hunk).

And the humour in this was brilliant, it would just kinda sneak up on you in these brilliant one-liners and would leave you smiling and laughing, and a lot of it was in the form of teasing which was great; not many characters do teasing that well these days, but Beth and Jennifer do.

Overall, I actually loved this book, it was so much fun to read and invest myself in all the characters (including Justin and Dena who are adorable together, and it was nice to see them not meet in the stereotypical way). Attachments was a nice change from the kind of books I read and I just loved it so much.

Rating: 4/5 cookies
Age: YA

That seemed like a really short review (sorry), any recommendations on what to buy and read next? 

Thirteen by Tom Hoyle

This is scary.

Like really scary.

Don't get me wrong, I liked it.

But it was scary.

Thirteen by Tom Hoyle is a new release for this year, and I've committed a huge book reading sin: I picked it up for it's cover, but the spine is soooo cool guys. 

This book is about a cult called 'The People' and how they believe they need to kill thirteen boys born on the new millennium before they turn fourteen, to bring around the new reign of The Master in Heaven; they've already killed twelve, and guess whose next? Adam. 

Admittedly, when I first started reading this I had my doubts - I knew nothing of the story line so I was going in blind, and I found the plot and writing a little... silly? Bit then, after that I've had a hard time putting it down and neglected Eragon for it (sorry, I WILL read it, promise.) 

It wasn't like I cried or laughed a lot with this book, but the plot was just so interesting and there were all these little twists that kept me hanging on and biting my nails. I mean, there was the PC and Simon, then everything at the end with Megan and Adam, and not to mention the damn epilogue; honestly, I really want to know where he's going with that because the author gives you no clues. God dammit.

The characters were likeable, but that might just be because I'm a couple of years older than them.... That's a bit weird actually, I'm usually younger than book characters... Both Megan and Adam are great because they're smart teenagers (and so obviously meant for each other), they rely on each other, but it's two-sided.  *SPOLIER ALERT* Parts of London would have been blown up and Adam scarificed if it wasn't for Megan, and Megan would be dead weeks before that without Adam. It was nice to see two strong characters, who both succeeded and failed at times.

The only character that was a disappointment to me was Simon; I really liked him at first. But what he did at Dorm 13 was plain stupid, honestly, he's spent maybe years on the run from them and he's tricked that easily? Get it together Simon. God.

 Told you the spine was cool....

Overall, I really like the book even though the plot and idea of it is really scary. That there are people out there killing innocent boys younger than thirteen for 'The Master', and I haven't even mentioned Dorm 13... I can't wait for the sequel to this and will be caring it on because it's actually a really short, fast-paced, and exciting book to read.

Age: 13+

 Rating: 3.5/5 cookies

February Book Haul!

So you know how I thought collecting 11 books in January was bad?

Well...

This time I have 17 books.

I was able to get 17 books in the space of 28 days.

How did I even manage that?

So I guess I should name everything now *distant sobbing*: A Study in Scarlet; The Return of Sherlock Holmes, The Sign of Four, His Last Bow, and The Hounds of The Baskervilles all by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern; Girl, Missing by Sophie McKenzie; One Day by David Nicholls; A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen; My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece by Annabel Pitcher; Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews; Attatchements by Rainbow Rowell; Thirteen by Tom Hoyle; Double Cross by Malorie Blackman; You Had Me at Hello by Mhairi Mcfarlane; Stravaganze: City of Masks by Mary Hoffman; and finally, Switched by Amanda Hocking *phew*

A Study in Scarlet, The Return of Sherlock Holmes, The Sign of Four, His Last Bow, and The Hounds of the Baskervilles all by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

So being the Sherlockian I am I figured it was time to start buying these: I found two of my lovely novels at HMV for £2.99 and couldn't resist (especially with their gorgeous faces on it); and then the others I received from The Radio Times, I ordered these back in January for free when Sherlock returned to our screens (and they finally arrived, I can not possibly tell you how excited I was).

The Book of Tomorrow by Cecelia Ahern, Girl, Missing by Sophie McKenzie, One Day by David Nicholls, and Stravaganze: City of Masks by Mary Hoffman.

I actually received these for free from our village book swap when I took up a few old books, I think I may have taken more than appropriate, but it was becoming crowded in that Telephone Box so I can justify it (just). I have actually read my mother's copy of One Day but I wanted my own so I got the free one, but I haven't read the others so I'm extremely excited to.

Thirteen by Tom Hoyle, Double Cross by Malorie Blackman, You Had Me at Hello by Mhairi Mcfarlane, and lastly, Switched by Amanda Hocking.

I recieved Switched and You had Me at Hello as gifts as the previous owners didn't want them anymore, I really want to read You Had Me at Hello because I have heard good things, and you can read my review on Switched here. I bought both Double Cross (which completes my Noughts and Crosses series - which I haven't read yet but will soon) and Thirteen at a standard book store at their standard price.

 A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen, My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece by Annabel Pitcher, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews, Attatchements by Rainbow Rowell.

I bought all these on offer on Amazon and was very frustrated when I waited for them because I honestly really love Contemporary Novels like these at the moment. I have already read My Sister Lives on the Mantlepiece and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl; that was a lot of 'and's wasn't it? You can read my reviews here and here please. I have started Attatchements and I'm a few chapters in and laughing already, I can tell this is going to be a good book, and my sister is reading A Street Cat Named Bob at the moment so I'll have to wait a while for that.

So, that's everything I got, too much right? I thought so. Well I hope you enjoy seeing what I got, and let me know what you think I should buy and review next!

I need to go rest my typing hands now, before they fall off (they really hurt from that).

Switched by Amanda Hocking (Trylle Trilogy #1)

This goddamn book is so stupid.

It has an interesting idea... BUT the charcaters.

THE FILLPIN' CHARACTERS HAVE NO PERSONALITY OR ARE REALLY UNLIKEABLE.

This book could have been amazing, but instead it was almost worse than Twilight (almost.)

I suppose I should start off with the plot and the whole idea of this story. This story could have been so interesting if the pot was written better, instead it was all about 'how to be princess' and guess what? That's right you guessed it! We have another love triangle going on people *groan*. The reason I did not immediately cast the book to the side was because this book is about trolls, there are no books about trolls, so I picked it up and started to read... Big mistake.

Even if learning about the trolls and how they live was interesting, and it did capture my imagination; the whole plot just didn't make sense. Nothing exciting happened, we just read about the Wendy whining how she didn't want to be a princess, how she wanted to keep her name at the christening, how she didn't want to be a Changeling (which is sort of a nice idea) and wanted to go back to her family who she never treated right in the first place (I can carry on if you would like?)

And that's another point, her and one of her love interests (Finn) are probably two of the most boring and dislikeable characters I have ever read about. Wendy just whines and acts like a spoil brat all the time, she even admits this but does nothing to change it or treat others better, and she even admits she treats her Auntie and brother (who she lives with since her mother tried to kill her knowing Wendy wasn't her child, shame she didn't do a better job...) unfairly but does nothing to try and treat them better. Then we have Finn he's supposed to be mysterious and sexy - he's actually bland, creepy and boring, he literally had no personality. NONE. I could go on and on about all those bloody characters, but I'm going to try and keep it reasonably short.

And then there's the stupid love triangle, firstly who the hell would fall in love with Wendy? She's a whiny brat. Secondly, we don't need another love triangle thank you very much. Thirdly, there is no connection between any of the characters. Even though we're made to believe Wendy likes Finn and Rhys, but honestly, none of them have any solid connection with each other - it's so stupid.

So, did I finish this book? Yes. Yes I did. Even though this book is unbearably stupid, it is also very hard to put down and is a quick read; plus, you can't no hope that it will get better because of the interesting idea of the whole plot with trolls... But it doesn't. I can't imagine I'll carry on with this series, but I may give it another go with the sequel - I'm not sure.

Have you guys read it? If so what did you think?

Rating: 1.5/5 cookies

My Sister Lives On The Mantelpiece (by Annabel Pitcher)

I feel like my heart has been stomped on.

And then cut into lots of little pieces.

And then burnt in the pit of emotions forever.

I think Annabel Pitcher is secretly John Green...

This book is beautiful in so many ways I will never be able to describe, it deals with: terrorism, racism, how losing a loved one can affect a family, death, courage and bravery, and crying.

It tells the story of James and how broke and destroyed his family is over his sister's death (Rose), and how they all must come to terms with death and what is morally right and wrong throughout the story. At times it can be hard to read, this is not helped by little James' innocence (who is a major cutie by the way).

As well as James' innocence, it's hard to read as how sad it can be a times - the neglect and the battle within himself for James is hard to sit back and take, all you want to do is hug him; and you even start feeling sympathetic for his other sister who has to deal with the broken home and James, whilst dealing with her own teenage problems - love (which I'm sure most of you can relate to - even if I can't...)

There are happy times though, and I do love Girl M who I'm sure you will all think is pretty badass and amazing too - a true icon to all little girls everywhere; and she's so cute with James! Honestly guys, they may be ten but you can tell they're so going to end up together. Girl M is probably the funniest ten year old I've ever met (besides my ten year old self).

However, I started balling like a baby at the end, and I had to stop reading because I couldn't see the pages through my tears (this is why I think she's secretly John Green...). Was there really any need for that? Was there really any need to make James cry for the first time in five years? What happened broke my heart, because it's so god damn relatable.

Honestly, I read this book in about twenty four hours - I could not put it down. It was a true masterpiece and those of a 13+ age should definitely read it.

Rating: 4/5 cookies 

Me Earl and The Dying Girl (by Jesse Andrews)

Holy brownies.

That was different.

I was smiling and laughing for 90% of this book.
Even though, this is the cringiest thing I have ever read.

Where do I even begin with this book?

I suppose I should start with: 1. You will punch yourself repeatedly in the face over this book (my face hurts and is very bruised); 2. Do not read in front of your parents (unless you want them to see masturbation with pillows jokes); 3. If you are kinda getting fed up of deep meaningful books (still love John Green and everything - just there are too many books like that at the moment) READ THIS BOOK.

Jesse Andrews is a genius. End of. This book makes you feel so many things but at the same time makes you giggle every couple of pages (at least); and it's flippin' relatable (not in the crumbling family with Earl and weird eating habits of Greg's father sort of way), but it in the way of: embarrassing mums, high school sucking ass, not knowing what you're doing with friends, college life looming and screwing up life in general.

All the characters are brilliant, they just play off each other so well and it adds this kinda bizarre humour with Greg's inner monologue, who doesn't love a good inner monologue? And the author, looking back and writing the scenes cursing and threatening to punch himself (which is what I was tempted to do to him - but did to me when it got really cringy), just adds to the wit of the whole book.

Another thing I loved about Jesse Andrews, is that he is so lazy/bored sometimes he just changes the style of reading, sometimes you reading paragraphs of speech, sometimes bullet points, and sometimes you read it like a script. This was really quite brave actually and I must congratulate them - they pulled it off really well.

As well as this, it kinda just shows us the whole media bullshit with books now, they're always romanticizing them - this book takes the mick out of that. This book just kinda goes: 'oh jesus no feelings, ew, I'm not going to fall for the girl with cancer cliche' (which is very refreshing to see). It was kinda great to see two characters so unaffected by a cancer girls' death and for them both to kinda go: 'we barely knew her' instead of crying about how 'beautiful' she was of a person, and for Earl 'you can't let her death guilt you into doing shit you don't wanna' do.' (does this make me a bad person? Lets not look into that...)

So overall, I don't really feel like I've given this book the sort of review it deserves... But please, just don't take it from me and research it, because it is amazing - you will all love it, trust me. Why will you love it? Because it's so cringy and bad that it's actually funny, I mean, if I met High School Greg and Earl now I would probably avoid them and think Greg was a total dick, and Earl was a freakin' physcopath - but you know what? They doesn't exist and they're hilarious to read about. 

This book doesn't get half the praise and talk that it deserves.

Rating: 4.3/5 cookies (woo! That's high!)

Clockwork Princess (The Infernal Devices #3)

Oh wow, I am so excited to write this.

I love this trilogy and this book... And this was probably my favourite out of the trilogy.

And guess what? Guess who owns a Collector's Edition? Uh huh. This girly does.

This book. This freaking book. It made me: angry, happy, sad, want to curl up in a ball and scream, coo constantly at all the characters, and go kick some ass with Charlotte.

But seriously though, Charlotte is kick ass and she's just my favorite character.

I like really like the plot to this book and how the Lightwood family were incorporated into it - it was just beautiful guys (so are Gideon and Gabriel actually); and the demise of Benedict Lightwood made me laugh, honestly, what a brilliant way to kill off a character people hate (you just have to WORMIFY them.)

And let's not forget Tessa's story line and history, am I the only one who wasn't expecting it? And found it really quite clever? I probably was probably the only one who didn't see it coming. BUT STILL, I wasn't expecting it and found myself smiling for her when Aloysius offered up his home.

Also, the new Infernal Devices are so clever, birlliant and deadly that I wanted one - is that bad? But I mean, they are pretty cool , even if they are demons - ITS JUST SO CLEVER. Let's not forget, Tessa's clockwork angel, which was just a beautiful way to explain it all - even though I had guessed this one (FINALLY).

The only things that may have tinted the greatness of this book are the fact there are too many romances and how quickly Mortmian was deafeated, I mean all Tessa had to do was change and pick him up, thus killing him and all his clockwork creatures; it sound's like Cassandra Clare was running out of ideas. Even though the romances were adorable (especially Gideon and Sohpie - my heart sings at the thought of the two of them), there were far too many and I felt it became too much like a romance novel at the end of it.

I'm a also a bit disappointed with the Collector's Edition - all I can find that is different is the size (slightly annoying), and the fact it has a family tree at the back - did I miss anything?

Overall, I did love this book and series. Even though I find this hard to believe, if you haven't read the trilogy, do it now - it is phenomenal (and maybe slightly better than the Mortal Instruments?)

Until next time lovely readers.

Rating: 4/5 cookies

January Book Haul

Hello wonderful people!

So... I was a little naughty lost month.... I bought 11 books *gasp*

I know... It was really bad of me, but hey ho, on with life.

So I thought I would show you what I bought

Here we go! 

So these are the eleven books I bought: The Divergent Trilogy, The Inheritance Cycle Series, The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency, The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole 13 3/4, Of Mice of Men and The Sherlock Holmes Handbook.

The No.1 Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and Adrian Mole 13 3/4 by Sue Townsend.

Admittedly, I have not had time to read the first book so I can not comment on that; but I have read the other two before. We read Of Mice and Men recently in English and I enjoyed it so much I just bought a copy, I know what you're thinking... That was really bad of me, but this is the first time I've ever liked a classic! I read Adrian Mole when I was eleven and haven't read any of the series since (really funny by the way, because Adrian is a douchebag who you want to punch), so I'm looking forward to possibly starting that up again. 

The Sherlock Holmes Handbook by Ransom Riggs (hardcover - and what a cool name guys)

I've flicked through the pages of this is Waterstones in the clearance section and and... *sigh* fangirled in front of everyone there, this is honestly the coolest book though. It tells you how to: fight like Holmes, analyse finger prints, deduce who Moriarty is and fake your own death. I recommend that all sherlockians buy and read this, you can find it here.

The Inheritance Cycle Series by Christopher Paolini (all are paperback apart from Inheritance)

I have been wanting to read this series for a long time, and finally find a hardcover Inheritance in the clearance section of Waterstones, I immediately picked it up for £8 (can you believe that???!!!) I got the rest of the series online, unfortunately in paperback so they don't match. I really can't wait to read this series, but it may take me a while to get around to it. 

 The Divergent Trilogy and The World of Divergent Booklet (all hardback apart from the booklet)

So this is something I've been dying to buy since I bought the first two books on my Kindle Fire, and had a nice little surprise when it was delivered and found that it had an exclusive booklet in it to (which has quizzes about what sector you would be in and other cool stuff). I'm really pleased with these because they're so pretty (mum voice: don't judge a book by it's cover!), and you can read my review on Allegiant here.

Well, that's all I got really, and I can't wait to read and review them! Bye bye for now!

Allegiant (Divergent #3)

Hello Everyone!
Yes, I am sorry for not posting for so long.
I know it's been a month, and I'm trying not to cringe at my lateness of this now... I am failing...

So yes! I finally read this big beautiful book of mine; after having it sit on my beside table for three weeks... oops?

First off, LOOK AT HOW PRETTY THIS IS

*Cough* he hem...

Sorry.

So this book was a mix of feelings for me, I'm not really sure if I enjoyed it or not.

In a way I felt kinda disappointed with what was outside of the fence because there wasn't really any action, and it was the same old Nazi point of view that I've seen revisited a few times by different authors before. Plus, lets not mention the plot holes in this - it was just a little too convenient for me for Bureau not to have any any mics with their cameras, if they had it would have caused Tris and Tobias a whole lot more problems when they were scheming with the others.

Also, I am just sick of the whole troubled relationship with Tris and Tobias, I mean, couples are going to fight and have problems sometimes; but it seems like these two are constantly fighting, bickering and disagreeing and I've had enough of it. AND when they're not bickering they are kissing - there were no real cute couple moments for me shared between the two. I wish they were wrote like they were in Divergent, when their relationship was more fun to read - even when they had their ups and downs.

And then there was the killing of off characters, I mean was Uriah's death really necessary? I felt like it just came out of nowhere and wasn't needed at all, especially with the growing bond between him and Christina (which was really cute and I LOVED IT - more than I loved Tris and Tobias' relationship in this book, sorry, had to be said.) But Tori's death was just a shock for me, I had to go back and read the page a couple of times, I just wasn't expecting it; and to be honest, I still don't know how I feel about it now.

The only thing that redeemed this book for me was the ending and Tris' death. I really wasn't expecting it, and it takes a lot of guts to pull of a main character's death like that. I mean, of course I cried when she died, even though I didn't like the relationship she had with Tobias, I liked here as a person and felt like I could relate to her. Also, the way she died she was great for me, she sacrificed herself for people who may not have even liked and forgave her brother (which by the way was heartwarming - until she dies and then it was HEARTBREAKING)

So overall, if you're hooked on the series then read it, but you know if you were unsure when you finished the second book then don't bother. I found it a bit boring times and repetitive, I didn't really start to enjoy it properly until Tris died... that sounds really cruel, doesn't it? Sorry Tris!

Rating: 3.5/5 cookies

His Last Vow (BBC Sherlock) - Review

Okay, so this episode was both brilliant and probably the worst of the season for me, and I'm trying very hard right now to figure out why, but I suppose it's because there's a couple of things that are really ticking me off with this episode.

So I suppose I should go through what I thought of this episode and blah de blah de blah...

OKAY. So this episode was brilliant and clever for the first half really (up until Christmas day for me). I really enjoyed Mary's story line and how she was a trained assassin, and Amanda played it brilliantly (along with both Benedict and Martin with the reactions). I really have to praise her for that one because it couldn't have been easy to carry off, but she did, and she made it look so effortless.

Also, I was heartbroken (no, really guys, I started sobbing) when we discovered Redbeard was Sherlock's childhood pet, because we can all relate to this as most of us have lost a pet we loved throughout our life, which I'm sure left most of us sobbing for two hours. It also showed us that he is capable of strong compassion and love, enough love in fact to still be effected by the death years later, decades later... Completely erasing any doubts on Sherlock's ability to love, and it proves to us maybe we don't know the consulting detective as well as we think we do; that maybe he is capable of showing and giving more love than any of us will ever be.

As well as all this, we got to see Sherlock's mind palace again, which was probably my favourite thing about the whole episode, it was like we got to explore it. But to top this all of, we saw that Sherlock had excepted that a part of  him was like Moriarty, but, he had locked that part himself away. That's character development  guys. In season 1 and 2 we got to see how similar they are, but this season we got to the see the differences, and how Sherlock is changing BECAUSE OF JOHN.

Now, let's get onto the Johnlock in this episode. Surprisingly, it was very disappointing. I picked up on so many moments where Sherlock displayed affection to John , e.g coming back to life for John (which caused me to cry even more), crying on the plane, and even after he said "Sherlock is a girls name" (or something along those lines) because the look on his face was ugh.... it was no. But John, John I was so disappointed with. I mean, he got bak with his wife who SHOT HIS BEST FRIEND AND LIED TO HIM ABOUT EVERYTHING. There whole relationship was a lie. How can John trust her? How can even put up with her? If my partner shot my best friend, hell, I would have filed for a divorce before Sherlock could finish his deductions on my reactions.

The THING THAT REALLY TICKED ME OFF THOUGH, was that Sherlock shot a man. Sherlock shot a man. No. It's so out of character. I know it was to protect John and Mary, but even so, I mean, come on Sherlock; where's your brilliance now? The whole plot made him seem so naive after Christmas Day and I hated it, because Sherlock's not naive, he's: brilliant, cunning, funny, witty and always a surprise; I never thought he would take the obvious way out. As well as the shooting, Sherlock should have considered that all the files were in his head after the glasses incident, even I guessed after that that Augustus had a mind palace too. To be honest, that just kinda dragged the whole episode down for me, which has landed it in my least favoruite of the series (even though everything up to Christmas day was brilliant and I loved it, and it had the potential to be my favourite.)

NOW we have to talk about Jim Moriarty. I forgot to breathe for a good ten second after the fist "did you miss me?", I then proceede to have a mini heart attack... I think... All in front of my family as well, so thanks BBC, they know think I'm mental, so really, thank you for that. But, what a brilliant plot twist, it was the perfect way to end the series, and will give us fangirls another whole bout of Reichenbach theories to work on (but just hurry up with season 4, please?)

So overall, a great episode up until... yep, you guessed it.... CHRISTMAS DAY (even the dinner was pretty funny though with Mr and Mrs Holmes), and the cliffhanger at the end really did save it in so many ways. I'm just left scared for John now, I have a feeling we can't trust Mary.... (maybe a part of the Moriarty's network that Sherlock missed? Nah, too obvious.)

(not mine by the way, but I reckon it was

 feelsy enough for this post Stolen from:

 http://johanirae.tumblr.com/post/73193445811/louisemortimer-221beemine-hiddlestalker.)

So, season three was brilliant, and probably may favourite by far because of the character development from pretty much EVERYONE. But, mainly because we learned more about Sherlock as a person, and we can now relate to him so easily (which was really hard before); also, I know feel like if I was in the same room as Sherlock that I wouldn't punch him after five minuted, but I would hug him or comfort him or befriend him,a nd try to reassure him that John won't leave him fully, ever.

See you with another one of these reviews in 84 years Sherlockians!