Tuesday 20 January 2015

Top Ten Tuesday Ten

Top ten books I'd relate a song to

Top ten tuesday is a weekly meme/feature hosted by The Broke and Bookish.  If you've ever read my reviews, then you will know that I almost always add three songs to the end of each, so it's quite clear that I am a massive fan of both books and music, and even more so when it comes to combining them.  So, I figured that, seeing as this top ten tuesday was a freebie, I would use this opportunity to list both my favourites out of the books I have already reviewed on here, as well as to share songs that I relate to books that I have never reviewed.  So here are my top ten books I would relate a song to:

1) Gone by Micheal Grant - Laura Palmer by Bastille - I think that both the song and the books are fairly dark at times, as well as both dramatic, so I personally think these two work well together; plus, whether I hear this, I can just see fast-paced, dramatic scenes, exactly like some of the events in the Gone books. - "All the people of the town, cast their eyes right to the ground."

2) Looking For Alaska by John Green - Come Together by Echosmith - Personally, I think this perfectly dictates the first half of the book, when they first all meet and begin playing pranks and stuff.  Also, the bridge relates well to the second half. - "With the smoke in the mirror I can see your face, so lets run to the fire escape"

3) The Book Thief by Markus Zusak - The People by Nina Nesbitt - This is such a intense and emotional song, and this book is full of events like this, and so as soon as I heard this I knew that it fitted perfectly with this book, especially how it builds from being very soft and delicate to loud and dramatic. - "We are the people, we watch as things go."

4) The Originals by Cat Patrick - Safest Place by Echosmith - This song perfectly sums up the deception and hidden secrets that are a constant in this book, and honestly the lyrics relate so well to the story as well. - "If you're looking for truth, don't come looking for me." 

5) Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn - Everybody by Ingird Michelson - Both the song and the book are just so quirky and cute, and the lyrics fit so well to the story.  I can even imagine Lily walking along the street to this! - "Trying to make your heart fit like a glove."

6) The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - Centuries by Fall Out Boy - I love this song, and think it fits quite well as they are both very dramatic and some of the lyrics just fit very well with the whole idea of the games - "You will remember me, remember me for centuries"

7) The Trylle Trilogy by Amanda Hocking - Kings and Queens by Thirty Seconds To Mars - Personally this song fits so well with the entire series, and some of the lyrics are just so perfect for this book; even the title fits well! - "The sound of a fight, father has spoken."

8) We Were Liars by E. Lockhart - This Love by Taylor Swift - I think that this song perfectly sums up the book, and I'm sure any who has read it will understand why, as it not only sounds very magically and mysterious, both of which I believe this book definitely is, but some of the lyrics really relate to aspects of it as well, some of which you may only encounter further into it... - "Clear blue water, high tide came and brought you in."

9) The Mortal Instruments: City of Glass by Cassandra Clare - When The Darkness Comes by Colbie Caillat - This is from the City of Bones soundtrack, and it's such a good song that I feel it can also relate to the softer and sadder parts of the book so well - "Now the door is open, the world I knew is broken."

10) Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell - While The World Let Go by A Rocket To The Moon - Again, I think that this just captures their whole relationship pretty well, particularly the first verse and bridge, during which the lyrics relate so well to later events... - "I swore I'd never let you end up on your own, I'll always be around to let you know." 

Friday 16 January 2015

The Originals by Cat Patrick

Review:

I first read this book probably around 2 years ago, and if I'm truly honest I don't remember enjoying as much as I loved both Revived and Forgotten.  However, I was keen to reread this as - likely down to the fact that I didn't love it - I remembered only the very basics of the plot, as well as the fact that I really wanted to be able to say that I like this as much as the other two.  Now, after reading this, I believe for only the second time, I have to admit that, although i did enjoy it, I am afraid that I did not love it.

To begin, I found the writing style very simple compared to some authors, and this both helped and hindered the book in different ways.  It meant that the characters and story-line were the main focus in the book, and stopped any points being over-complicated due to more complex and detailed writing.  However, it did sometimes cause the story to come across as quite blunt, with sections not being well described at all.  

Secondly, I found this to be very fast-paced, not so much with action and drama, but more with the fact that it moved over subjects very quickly, allowing for many different events to take place within only a couple of chapters.  It didn't seem to even skim over any pointless pieces of information, which sometimes made this hard to follow and ultimately made this a very quick read.  

Despite the main focus of the book being the three sisters/clones, romance is another theme played on a lot, something, which I have to admit, I quite liked.  I feel like it not only gave the story another dynamic, but also helped to lighten the overall mood of the book.  The romance was so cute and heartfelt, and I liked how it affect the main story-line.

One thing that I wasn't to keen on, however, was how underdeveloped the story and plot felt to me.  I don't think that it was at all complex and, although there is a major plot twist in this, I really felt the lack of twists and turns.  Personally, for a book with this unique and original concept, I would have liked to see more plot twists and just a more complicated story-line.

Overall, I think I am quite conflicted about this particular book.  I liked how quick a read it was, and how gripped I became, but I did feel very underwhelmed by the ending and lack of complexity.  I definitely think that, despite the deep underlying aspects, this is a fairly lighthearted read, but I would still say to give it go if you have read any of Cat Patrick's books, or if you are looking for a fast, light read.  

Quotes - (only found two - sorry!) 

"In life we make choices, and then we live with them... Live with the choice you made." 
"I guess it's hard to know where you going when you don't know where you've come from." 

Songs - 

I Know Places - Taylor Swift -I feel as though the lyrics of this relate quite well to the main relationship in this.
Safest Place - Echosmith - This song perfectly sums up the deception and hidden secrets that are a constant in this book, and honestly the lyrics relate so well to the story.
Home - Gabrielle Aplin- I think that some of the lyrics and overall meaning behind this song really relate well to Lizzie's life and her views, particularly as you get further into the book.

Other Books - 

Forgotten and Revived (review here) by Cat Patrick - I doubt these need explanations, but I will say that please don't let this review put you off Cat Patrick, as I have to admit that this is unfortunately my least favourite out of the three, and I love both of these so much, so definitely pick these up. 
Numbers by Rachel Ward - This is another book about a teenager girl's life with a twist, but this is a lot more action packed, and focuses less on romance and other aspects that this book centers on more.  
The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp - This is a contemporary that I'm sure most people have heard of, but I think relates to the relationships that form in The Originals, even if they are not clearly similar.  

Sunday 11 January 2015

The Mortal Instruments: City Of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Review:

So, despite my first review of the year being Where She Went, this was actually the first book I read this year.  I read both City of Bones and City of Ashes last summer, so this was a long overdue read of mine; however, despite picking it up as more of a need-to-read rather than a want-to-read book, I really enjoyed this.  I liked both of the first two books, preferring City of Ashes, and this was no exception; in fact, this is probably my favourite out of the series so far!

Firstly, I loved the characters, both new and returning.  I am already fan of many of the characters, so I liked learning more about each of them in this book.  I particularly liked seeing more of Simon and Alec (or more Alec and Magnus..), with Simon being one of my favourites out of the entire series.  I also enjoyed the introduction of new characters such as Armatis and Sebastion and loved how much more they added to the story.

Another factor that really drew me in was the setting, or more change of it.  I didn't realize at first that the entire book would take place in Idris, but I loved the fact that it did.  I think it brought something new to the book, as well as allowing us to delve so much deeper into the world of the Shadowhunters, something which I loved doing.

Something which I have loved in all books, and again with this one, was the writing and the quick-paced change of character perspective.  The fact that the books are written in third person allows Cassandra Clare to show so many different events that happen to so many different characters in a short space of time, and this technique was so prominent but used so well in this.  Often key moments would be split, to allow all characters perspectives to be shown at the same time, but instead of leading to confusion this only added to the writing and story more.  It kept me, and I'm sure others gripped and on the edge of my seat; it kept the plot even more gripping than it already was, and prevented me from even thinking about putting it down, myself keen to go back to characters whose sections had been left on cliffhangers.

As you may have guessed from my extremely positive review so far, I found very little wrong with this.  However, I did find a few small points which really didn't appeal to me, such as how long it took for the story to get going.  Despite most of this book being fast-paced and exciting, the start I found quite slow and unexciting, with nothing really drawing me in or causing me to want to keep reading.  I also didn't like how much of a final book this felt like.  The were so many questions that were answered and so many problems were solved in this book, that I kind of don't know what there is left to make three more books out of.  Although I obviously wanted things to be sorted out, a few loose ends would have perhaps given a bit more mystery to the next book.

Finally, I really enjoyed this book.  I loved how fast paced the plot was, and the characters and setting was were amazingly written, with Idris being such a magical place to set this third book.  The entire book was so well written, with lines that made me laugh out loud complemented by plot twists that I never saw coming.  Overall I adored this book and can't wait to pick up City of Fallen Angels.


Quotes -

"Normal isn't all it's cracked up to be." 
"People aren't born good or bad.  Maybe they're born with tendencies either way, but it's the way you live your live that matters."
"I asked you if I had a choice once.. And you said, 'we always have choices.'.. In the end that was the choice you made, and it doesn't matter how hard it was to make.  It matters that you did."

Songs -

God Put A Smile Upon Your Face - Coldplay - This is quite a strange one, and it certainly wasn't one I thought I would be putting on here, but I think the lyrics and overall feel of the song connects so well to so many different points of the book that it just fits to well not to put on here.
When The Darkness Comes - Colbie Caillat - This is from the City of Bones soundtrack, and it's such a good song that I feel it can also relate to the softer and sadder parts of the book so well.
Everybody Wants To Rule the World - Lorde - I feel this sums up the darker side of the book really well, despite it being from the Catching Fire soundtrack.

Other Books -

Switched by Amanda Hocking - This book is another one with a supernatural element, with trolls being the main focus.  I adore this entire series, and so definitely recommend it, and other Amanda Hocking series, if you want to delve more into other supernatural creatures.  
Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendrae Blake - This book tells the story of a ghost hunter who falls in love with a ghost he is sent to kill, and so I figured that the whole Shadowhunter/ghost hunter thing connected these two, and after loving Anna, I had to suggest it just because of this connection.
Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman - As a lot of people may know, I love this series, and this is definitely a book/series to pick up if you liked forbidden love element of the book, but even if it wasn't your cup of tea, I would still pick this up as I find both of these quite similar, even if at first they don't seem it... 

Tuesday 6 January 2015

Top Ten Tuesday Nine

Top ten most anticipated novels for 2015 

Top ten tuesday is a weekly feature/meme by The Broke and Bookish.  This weeks topic was actually quite a hard one for me, as I have only recently started paying any attention to new releases, so I had to quite a bit of research and searching on Goodreads to find this, given why there are only seven here.  But nonetheless, I found some which genuinely interested me, so here is my list: 


1) Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard - This is personally not something I would usually go for, but I actually loved the sound of this, particularly the divided world, so I am definitely planning on reading this when it gets released.


2) Mosquitioland by David Arnold - I love the sound of this book so much, especially considering it is meant to be both funny and heartbreaking.  It looks like a book that I can imagine myself loving, so I can't wait for the release date of this to come around. 

3) We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach - I read (and loved) so many contemporaries last year, and the aspect of this one drew me in straight away, so I am definitely excited to hopefully pick this one up later on in the year.  

4) The Witch Hunter by Virginia Boecker - I am not usually a fan of fantasy, or historical (this is set in the 16th century) books, but this one really caught my attention, so despite my initial doubt, I am quite excited about the release of this one later on in the year. 

5) The Creeping by Alexandra Sirowy - Straight after reading the synopsis for this, I knew I wanted to read it; I love the supernatural aspect, as well as the mystery, so this is another that I will be waiting for.  

6) Playlist for the Dead by Michelle Falkoff - Another contemporary that I am looking forward to, but this time I loved the sound of the deeper side of things, as well the (even slight) link to music, so this is one that I am hoping to pick up when it gets released later this year.  

7) Bookishly Ever After by Isabel Bandeira  - I love the sound of this contemporary, the book links being the main reason for this, and honestly the only downside is that it isn't predicted to be out until December!

Friday 2 January 2015

Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Review:

First post of the new year! So this was the very last book I read in 2014 (not counting the two New Yearsy short stories I read), and overall I had very mixed reviews on it.  I read this, as most people would have, because I read If I Stay in the summer, and so picked this 
up as soon as I found out about it.  

As I have already said, personally I didn't enjoy this book anywhere near as much as the first book.  However, as I got through the book, I did get a lot more gripped, but I still feel as though I should have been hooked from the first chapter, not from halfway through.  

Firstly, the plot line took a while to really get going.  A lot of the beginning focused on stuff that I wasn't actually interested, and even once Adam was reunited with Mia, the event that the entire book is meant to be based around, it still didn't become interesting until a little way further in.  This was my main problem with the book, although eventually it did begin to pick up, but like I've said before, this only happened around halfway through.  

My other problem with this was the constant and in my opinion pointless flashbacks.  In the beginning they worked and helped to shape the last 3 years of both their lives, but as the story progressed they began to get repetitive and just went back over information that you could easily guess at.  I think that a few would have worked well, but the amount that were put in was just too many for me. 

Despite my mainly negative comment so far, there were some aspects of the book. that I did like.  As I have said before, I much preferred the end of the book to the beginning, and this may be to do with the plot twist that comes at around three-quarters of the way through.  I think this definitely added a touch of surprise as this was one thing which I didn't see coming and I liked how this ended the book. 

Another aspect I enjoyed but would have liked to have been played on more would have to be the trips around New York.  I adore the idea of exploring and so this feature made me extremely excited to read on about various places, but, I still would have loved to have seen more of this make it's way into the story line.

So overall I wasn't amazed by this book, but did like the closure it gave me on both Adam and Mia's lives.  I would say that if you are looking for a slower contemporary, then pick this up, but personally I don't think I was particularly wanting such a book, so please tell me if I did just read this at the wrong time.


Quotes:

"I've come to realize there's a world of difference between knowing something happened, even knowing why it happened, and believing it."
“Letting go. Everyone talks about it like it's the easiest thing. Unfurl your fingers one by one until your hand is open.”“In the calculus of feelings, you never really know how one person's absence will affect you more than another's.” 

Songs:

Cello Suite no.1 (Prelude) - Bach - Despite stealing this one from the playlist at the end of the book, this piece truly is one that reminds of both of the books.
Wild Horses - The Rolling Stones - This was another listed at the end, but I liked the involvement of this in the book and so wanted to add it in as well. 
Boulevard of Broken Dreams - Green Day - In my opinion this truly summaries Adam's feelings, particularly his at the very beginning of the book. 

Other books:

If I Stay by Gayle Forman - I know that most people who want to read Where She Went or already have, have almost certainly read this, but I really enjoyed this first book and so felt it only fitting to recommend.  
Forgotten by Cat Patrick - A contemporary with a twist, I love this book but can't really share why I particularly think these two are alike as it gives away major plot twists - Sorry!
Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson - (review here)Another contemporary here, and one that some people may not think relate in any other way, but they do both share the link of music, even if the added use of it is different.