Top Ten Tuesday Eight

Top ten goals/ resolutions

Top ten Tuesday is a weekly feature/meme by The Broke and Bookish.  For this weeks topic, I could only come up with six main book and blog related resolutions for 2015, but I thought I'd share them with you anyway, so here they are:

1) Read 50 books/ 50 book challenge - This whole year I have had a massive reading lapse, so i figured that if I have an aim to read 50 books, then I might start reading more frequently and hopefully next year will be a better one for reading!

2) Keep up with my blogging - Since I started this blog in August, I have not been the best at uploading regular posts, particularly in the very beginning.  I'm also scared that I will completely forgot about this in the months to come, so my big aim is to keep this up and to post more regularly.

3) Read more books on my TBR list - This is definitely one which I desperately need to do next year, as I currently have so many books on my shelf that I have yet to read, some which have been up there for far too long, so next year I plan to drastically decrease the list of books I need to read.  

4) Read more classics - I feel so bad for having to admit this, but I have never actually read any classics outside of the ones we read in school, so this is a definite goal for next year in terms of reading.

5) Read more bookish blogs - Despite having a blog dedicated to books and all things related to them, I am so bad at actually reading other blogs, and I'm starting to feel like I need to begin doing this, to support other bloggers like me, so next year I aim to start reading many more bookish blogs.

6) Finish all the series I started this year - Over the last year, I have started so many different series, such as the Percy Jackson and The Mortal Instruments books, but I have yet to finish a lot of them, so I would definitely like to read the rest of the books in these series before the end of 2015.

7) Discover and read new authors - This isn't really something that I haven't done this year, but more something that I would like to continue to do next year, as I love it when I discover a new author that I love and can dive into their treasure cove of books! 

My True Love Gave To Me by Various Authors

Just a short review today as this is a Christmassy book, so that means there also won't be any songs, as these would be festive, but I will still add in books as some of them may work all year round.

Review: 

As you may have guessed, I recently read this in the run up to Christmas, to get me in more of a festive mood.  This added to the fact that it contained 12 short stories, it was almost a given that I would enjoy this - which I did.

I loved pretty much all of these short stories, with myself only truly disliking one, and they really filled me with even more Christmas spirit! I loved the style of writing of most of the stories again, and I have definitely discovered some new authors who I will make sure to check out soon. My personal favourites were The Lady and The Fox by Kelly Link, Its a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown by Stephanie Perkins, and Welcome to Christmas, CA by Kiersten White, although it was a very close call!

I actually haven't read all of the stories in here yet, as two of them centered around New Years Eve but I have no problem with this  as it will give me something extra to read to get me in the spirit for that.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book for next year, as it's great for busy festive seasons and will keep you entertained on cold winter nights! 

Quotes:

"There are two types of children.  The kind who believe and the kind who don't.  Every year, it seems there are fewer in the world who do.  Papa says it's not an easy thing to ask a child to believe in what they can't see; he says it's its own magic.  He says that if you have that magic inside you, you should protect it all your life and never let it go, because once it's gone, it's gone forever.""Tomorrow would be different, Sophie understood this.

There really was no such thing as a minor miracle.""Rules make people feel safe.  But they can turn into judgments.  Condemnation is easy, Vaughn.  The harder choice is love..." "I'm of the opinion that," she said, tucking her arm around mine, "that if you let a single life event define you, then all you need to change things - if you want them to change - is another." "But people don't need to remember how it felt to be happy and safe in the past. They need to have hope that they can get there again in the future."

Other Books: 

Let It Snow by Various Authors - These three interconnected Christmas short stories will make you believe that Christmas Eve is truly magical!How They Met and Other Short Stories  by David Levithan - These short stories are ones that can be read at any point in the year when you need a little reading push or are simply a little short of time for a full book. Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn - (review here)  Another Christmas read, this tale is about two teenagers who spend their Christmas completing tasks set by the other, all whilst they only communicate through family, friends and a small red notebook... 

Top Ten Tuesday Seven

Top Ten Books I wouldn't mind Santa bringing me this year

Top ten tuesday is a weekly feature/meme by The Broke and Bookish.  This topic was definitely not one that I found at all difficult, seeing as most of these have been on my wishlist on my phone for a while now.  So here are my top ten books that I wouldn't mind Santa bringing me this year: 

1) Cinder by Marissa Meyer - This book is one I have only heard of through book tubers, but the concept has now grown on me so much that I am quite happy with Santa bringing me this.

2) Just Like Fate by Cat Patrick - I love Cat Patrick, but for some unknown reason I have yet to pick up this, so, particularly after not reading her for a long time, this book is certainly one high up on my wish list!

3) The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater- I have attempted to read this book once before, but gave up after a mere 40 pages.  But after hearing that this is just a book that takes a while to get into, I would be quite pleased if I discovered this in my stocking on Christmas morning.

4) Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell - I have heard so many good things about this book and after reading Eleanor and Park earlier this year, I would be more than happy to receive this this year.

5) Numbers 3: Infinity by Rachel Ward - After reading the first two books, I only discovered there was a third recently, so for me this would finally complete a trilogy I have grown to love.

6) Girl of Nightmares by Kendrae Blake - I  read Anna Dressed in Blood only about a month ago and so this has been on my wish list ever since!

7) The Midnight Palace by Carlos Ruiz Zafon - As you may know, The Prince of Mist is likely one of my favourite books of all time, so I am more than eager to read another book by this author, something I can't believe I haven't done already!

8) Across the Universe by Beth Revis - I have heard so much about this book that I feel the need to read it and see what all the fuss is about.  Plus, it's sci-fi, a genre I am keen to read more off...

9) Long Lankin by Lindsey Barraclough - I honestly found about this book only this morning, but it drew me in so much, (being horror and ghostly and all) that this has become a late addition to my list!

10) I ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson - Finally, this is another book I only very recently heard about, but soon found myself really intrigued to know more, so this contemporary would be one that would be very welcome underneath my tree!

Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn

Review:

This is the first Christmassy book I have read, despite only realizing it was set over  Christmas last week, and I honestly loved it! I know I say this about sooo many books, but this time I truly mean it.  This quirky book made me laugh out loud whilst still causing me to think, all the while getting me even more festive than I was before!

Firstly, the concept: it is so unique and nothing like I've read before, but it works so well! It takes the cliche way of falling in love through letters and completely turns it on its head, making it funnier and more realistic than you ever could have guessed.  The storyline also allows you not only to know them through words, but as people, something even the main characters are behind you on.  It lets you peek into both of their lives and watch as they intertwine throughout the book.

Now, no book is complete without good characters; and, personally, I loved all of these! I liked how different all the characters were, particularly Dash and Lily, who weren't the classic 'meant to be' type.  They all seemed so real that I often found myself relating to Lily, a girl who was nothing like I expected her to be, and sometimes even Dash, whose love of words really connects to a reader.  

Another element that unusually drew me in was the setting.  I loved the references to book shops and overall just the entire location of New York over Christmas and New Year.  The many everyday places that creep up through the story also keep it close to normality, just with a few magical touches! 

So, if you haven't already guessed, I adore this book!  It's just so quirky and unique that I couldn't help but love it.  If your looking for a book to read, then definitely pick it up, before Christmas passes, because this is certainly worth a read! 

Quotes (Again, way too in this book for me to just write down three):

It's that leap, that understanding that leads to meaning.  A lot of the time in life we're still just sounding things out.  We know the sentences and how to say them.  we know the ideas and how to present them.  We know the prayers and which words to say in what order.  But that's only spelling.  
 The notebook is a strange instrument - the player doesn't know the music until it's being played.
Yes, girls want their princes, but boys want their princesses just as much... Be careful what you're doing, because no one is ever who you want them to be.  And the less you really know them, you more likely you are to confuse them with the girl or boy in your head.
We all just took the bookshop at its word, because if you couldn't trust a bookshop, what could you trust?
Fate has a strange way of making plans.

Songs:

Somebody Out There - A Rocket to the Moon - I feel as though a lot of this book is about the person in your head, and finding them, and so this song fits quite well with this.

Happily Ever After - He is We - I think this relates mostly to the end, but also kind of the beginning, as it talks about going for something out of your comfort zone, plus the bridge fits perfectly with the book.

Everybody - Ingrid Michaelson - This is just so quirky and fits sooo well to the story.

Other books:

Let it Snow by Various Authors - Another Christmassy book containing three short stories that all intertwine...

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith - Another short romantic story about two people who meet in an unexpected way. 

How They Met by David Levithan - A collection of romantic short stories, some which are quite quirky.  

Top Ten Tuesday Six

Top Ten Books I Read in 2014

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature/meme by The Broke and Bookish and this weeks topic is top ten books I have read in the last year.  I'll admit - I haven't been the best at reading this year... I don't know why, but looking back, I seem to not have read as much as I thought I have.  Despite this though, I did still read quite a few good books, so here are my top ten from the last 12 months:

1) Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins - I only recently read this, but I really enjoyed it, as it gave me a lighter romantic read, but whilst still being a good one!

2) Insurgent by Veronica Roth - I read all three books in the Divergent trilogy before the first movie came out in April, and, despite a lot of people disagreeing, Insurgent was my favourite book out of all of them.

3) Numbers 2: The Chaos by Rachel Ward - I read Numbers last year, and loved it, but somehow this, the sequel, was better.  I loved the storylines of both the characters and liked how they intertwined at major moments, so this was a must for the list.

4) Looking For Alaska by John Green - This is my favourite John Green book that I have read so far (I have yet to read both Will Grayson, Will Grayson and An Abundance of Katherines).

5) Light By Michael Grant - I finally finished the Gone series very early this year, this being the first book I read in 2014, and, seeing as this is one of, if not my all time favourite series, so I had to put this one in.

6) We Were Liars by E. Lockhart - I picked this up as a 'light summer read' and soon found out that there was a lot more to this book than I first thought.  I loved the style of writing and deep storyline, and this was definitely my favourite read from the summer.

7) City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare - I know I'm a bit late to this series (I've still only read the first two!) but I'm loving the series so far, and this, the second book in the series, was my favourite out of the first two.

8) How They Met by David Levithan - This collection of short stories is one book which I keep coming back to whenever I want a short read, and I know it has and will keep me entertained, so I felt as though it deserved a place.

9) Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendrae Blake - I only finished this around a week ago, but I really enjoyed it, particularly the slight horror element, so I wanted to add in this one.

10) The Book Thief by Markus Zusak - This is likely my favourite book that i have ever read, so I didn't really have a choice in putting this one in.