August Book Haul : 2015

This is the first ever book haul I have posted on here! - despite acquiring many books in some months. So i'll be counting any books I have bought/ received since...August 15th. (not including ebooks) 

There are no spoilers included! because I believe that going into a book should be done without knowing much about the book so that you can be surprised. But if you like knowing stuff, I have linked the goodreads and amazon pages for each book.

Let's get started shall we!

Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith

I got Grasshopper Jungle the day of Results Day to cheer me up. I haven't heard any positives or negatives about this book so i'll be going in blind! I hear it's LGBTQ themed in some parts? maybe I heard wrong.

Good Reads | Amazon 

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

I have heard many many great things about this book which is why I bought it, also as a pick me up after results day!

Good Reads | Amazon

There Will Be Lies by Nick Lake

I have never heard of this book in my life - I didn't buy it, it was sent to me, so as always I look forward to reading books that I haven't heard much about because then I can be surprised!

Good Reads | Amazon

 The Rogue by Trudi Canavan

This is the second book in the Traitor Spy Trilogy which I picked up randomly, unaware of the plot and the authors previous work. I also found out that I accidentally picked up the second book...which means that I cannot read it yet. *sighs* 

Good Reads | Amazon

Paper Towns by John Green

This is the movie cover edition of paper towns, I already own the normal covers but I was sent this and look forward to reading it - as I have been on a John Green ban for a year now.

Good Reads | Amazon

Rock War by Robert Muchamore

I picked this up because I like picking up these book token novels, they are £1, and give me something to read during the read-a-thons with 'novella' based challenges.

Good Reads | Amazon

Weightless by Sarah Bannan

I have also never heard of this book before as it was sent to me, but it looks really interesting and I look forward to reading this very soon!

Good Reads | Amazon

The Sin Eaters Daughter by Melinda Sailsbury

I bought this as another pick me up after the tears that results day brought, as I have heard this book in passing but never thought to buy it...so this is basically a blind read. Exciting!! 

Good Reads | Amazon

When MR Dog bites by Brian Conaghan

Never heard of this book beforehand - this was sent, and from the blurb I can tell that i'll like this...maybe even love this!

Good Reads | Amazon

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

I have heard so so so many good things about this book so when I received this in the mail I jumped for joy! I have heard good things so we'll see.

Good Reads | Amazon

Flirty Dancing by Jenny McLachlan

 Never read anything by this author or heard of her before, so I am excited to have another blind read.

Good Reads | Amazon

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas

 So here's the deal. I bought a signed edition of A Court of Thorns and Roses, then received another edition...2 is better than 1!

Good Reads | Amazon

Copper Gauntlet by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

 I bought this as soon as it came out, and read it this week - I loved it!. I got this because I love Cassandra Clare, and I loved the first book, and needed to know what happens!

Good Reads | Amazon

More Than This by Patrick Ness

 I ordered this also on the dreaded results day - in hardback because it has a secret door *giggles*. I have never read a Patrick Ness book so I am so excited because he gets so many great reviews, and I follow him on twitter and he's pretty freaking hilarious.

Good Reads | Amazon

The Winners Curse by Marie Rutkoski

Never heard of this series before, and I look forward to reading this - was also sent.

Good Reads | Amazon

The Winners Crime by Marie Rutkoski

Ditto.

Good Reads | Amazon

Apple and Rain by Sarah Crossan

I have never heard of this book, but the authors name rings a bell...Blind reading, much fun!!

Good Reads | Amazon

Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas

I planned on buying this, this month because Nazima over at Snazzy Reads and I were planning to read the whole series side by side. So when it got sent to me, I was so happy because I didn't have to go and search for it in watersones. Thanks to all those in support of my lazy lifestyle!

Good Reads | Amazon

Love Bomb by Jenny McLachlan

Annndd lastly, Love bomb...another blind read! much excite :-D.

Good Reads | Amazon

***

I'll be doing another Haul hopefully every 2 months or maybe every month if I feel ambitious enough!

I want to say thank you for the books that were sent over, I am really grateful, and also thanks to Waterstones who literally reserved the Copper Gauntlet for me without me asking, you guys rock!

(Disclaimer: The images were mostly mine apart from that awesome tea gif...that was someone else's beautiful creation)

Yours Faithfully, 

~ She Who Writes

Sixth Form & Stationary

I started sixth form this week in my previous secondary school, and I am loving it so far. Despite the comforting factor that I know the teachers and a majority of the students, I am feeling pretty nervous because of the fact that the timetables are strange and the teachers like to constantly emphasise the stress that A levels can cause every lesson. 

If you saw my 25 Facts About Me post, you would have noticed that my original A level subjects were English, Maths, Chemistry and Biology. There has been a slight change in plan, I now know that I want to go down an English related route, which is why my final A level subjects are...

Mathamatics

English 

Psychology 

Chemistry 

I have developed a strong love for Maths, and went from barely scraping a C grade to getting the highest grades in the year - crazy right? 

English has always been my strongest subject, and I love reading and discussing all things Literature based. 

Psychology was a subject I adored during GCSE, so I am so psyched to do this!

Chemistry is my favourite science, and I am aware that it extremely difficult but I love challenges.

I will be doing another update on sixth form maybe in a months time when I have developed more of an opinion. 

Now on to stationary!

Sixth Form is a place where a lot of stationary is needed, so here are the things I got for the upcoming year.

2 Folders, Black for Maths and flowery for English Lit.

Rubbers and Pens.

 Neon Pencils, High lighters and Sticky labels.

 My English Lit notebook.

Folder subject dividers.

 Note Pad with easily removable paper for all subjects.

Page dividers for Maths.

Organiser - Planner.

2 more folders, Chemistry and Psychology.

So that is what I got! I also bought plastic wallets, a calculator, maths set and probably something else I have forgotten to include. 

Stay tuned for more!

Yours Faithfully, 

~ She Who Writes

August Wrap Up & September TBR

In August I read a total of 12 books! This was disappointing because I thought i'd read more...despite the fact that I met my  August TBR goal. I think it was mostly because I was in a serious reading slump after results day, but I am now feeling better, and will hopefully read a good amount in September!

So let's get to it shall we?

Noughts and Crosses By Malorie Blackman

I read this book during the Book-Tube-A-Thon earlier this month and gave it a 4.3 star rating out of 5, and you can find out why by clicking here!

Somebody Nice! By Raine O' Tierny

I read this book during the Book-Tube-A-Thon earlier this month and gave it a 4.5 star rating out of 5, and you can find out why by clicking here!

Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief By Rick Riordan

I read this book during the Book-Tube-A-Thon earlier this month and gave it a 3.7 star rating out of 5, and you can find out why by clicking here!

Welcome to The Shadowhunter Academy By Cassandra Clare and Sarah Rees Brennan 

I read this book during the Book-Tube-A-Thon earlier this month and gave it a 5.0 star rating out of 5, and you can find out why by clicking here!

I read the first 7 books in the Tales From the Shadowhunter Academy series on ebook, which I will review once I have finished the whole series. But all in all it is amazing! and I gave all the books I have read so far 5 out of 5 stars!

The Lost Herondale By Cassandra Clare and Robin Wasserman 

The Whitechapel Fiend By Cassandra Clare and Maureen Johnson 

Nothing But Shadows By Cassandra Clare and Sarah Rees Brennan

The Evil We Love By Cassandra Clare and Robin Wasserman 

Pale Kings and Princes By Cassandra Clare and Robin Wasserman 

Bitter of Tongue By Cassandra Clare and Sarah Rees Brennan

65 Hours By Walker N.R.

This is a Adult novel on the lives of two co-workers that hate each other. It's LGBTQIA themed and really sweet! I would recommend that you don't read it if you are a) homophobic or b) under 15. I gave this a rating of 4 stars out of 5.

The Awakening By Kate Chopin

This is a classic written in the Victorian era, and was negatively criticised during it's publication due to her writing going against the conventions in a Victorian society. I read this book as part of my english literature A level wider reading, and loved it! I think that it's awesome when a writer defies what is common, and does something risky, which is why I gave it a rating of 4.7 stars out of 5.

So those are all of the books I read in August...now for my September TBR.

In September I plan on reading: 

Copper Gauntlet By Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

Dead Romantic By CJ Skuse 

Aristotle and Dante Discover The Secrets of the Universe By Benjamin Alire Saenz 

Throne Of Glass By Sarah J Maas

A Court Of Thornes and Roses By Sarah J Maas

So that's my TBR!! I look forward to reading all of these books! Septembers gunna be good.

My posts may start to get infrequent during the month, because I just started sixth form, But we'll see how much time A levels allows me :)

(Disclaimer: The images used in this post are not mine)

Yours Faithfully, 

~ She Who Writes

----------------------------

My motto when reading is 'always read the book before the movie' and this is generally because the book happens to be better than the movie...but in some strange cases, the book drifts off to second place.

1. If I stay

 If I stay is a book about a 17 year old girl called Mia who - during a snow storm, loses her parents. She and her brother are in the car when the accident happens but aren't at first fatally injured. They are both taken to hospital but the twist to the story is that she - despite the fact that she is in a coma, is aware of everything and can see her surroundings. 

Throughout the book we see flashbacks to events leading up to where she is now, so that we get a better understanding of characters that come to visit her in hospital. 

This is a book I did not enjoy. I found the writing style hard to adjust to and couldn't connect with any of the characters. Worst of all, they compared this book to 'The Fault In Our Stars', which was highly inaccurate. 

The Movie however was amazing, probably in my top 20 movies of all time. It may just be that I am bias because of my love for Chloe Grace Moretz and her acting, or the fact that the cast as a whole were perfect, or maybe it was the fact that the cinematography was beautiful...it was many factors I think that made this movie much much better than the book. 

2. The Duff

The Duff is a book about a girl called Bianca who finds out at a party that she attends with 2 of her friends, that she is sadly 'the duff' of the group. Her informant is popular high school rich kid Wesley Rush, who tells her this whilst explaining to her his interest in her friends. She is bothered by this greatly - as any other teenaged girl would be, and proceeds to do some things she is not proud of...

I did not enjoy this book either. The writing style was also hard to get into, as well as the fact that the characters were not believable enough to me. I also felt like a lot of things were left unfinished. 

The movie was based on the book but didn't follow the plot of the story at all. For starters, the mum was the one that left the dad, not the other way round. But this isn't a post on the many things they changed.

 I liked the movie a lot because it reminded me of traditional teen movies that I used to watch, and it was nice to feel nostalgic.  

3. Insurgent

Insurgent is the second book in the divergent series which is a dystopian trilogy set in Chicago, and based on the life of the character Tris who is divergent - meaning that she fits into more than one faction. 

I loved this book, but I loved the movie more and I am not entirely sure why. It could be because the characters were portrayed accurately, but in a way that made me love them more than the original book characters, as well as the fact that I preferred the changes made to certain aspects of the characters - for example Tobias' age. 

4. Gone Girl 

Gone Girl is a thriller based on the lives of a married couple Nick and Amy. They are currently in a difficult marriage - as most are, that seems to be getting worse as shown through the eyes of the two main characters. Amy paints a picture of this perfect relationship eventually turning stale due to Nick and his selfish actions as well as the physical abuse he inflicts upon her - all presented in her diary. Nick tells us of his view on their marriage through memories and thoughts he has of her as a person. 

And then one day on their 5th wedding anniversary, Amy goes missing...

Anyone who was around me whilst I read this whole book during Christmas, will know that I did not like it. At all. I'm not sure if its the genre, or the actually story but I couldn't get into it and I found Nick absolutely irritating. 

Despite my dislike of the book, I loved the movie. I loved the acting, the cinematography and the way it kept true to the original storyline but some how still managed to improve it. 

5. Twilight

Twilight is a story about a girl called Bella who is in love with a vampire named Edward. The end. 

I'm joking...but the assumption is that everyone knows the storyline, due to it's popularity? If not the story line follows the life of a girl named Bella who moves Washington in order to live with her dad, which means having to start fresh in a different school. She meets a boy called Edward who - when sitting next to her in a class they share, seems disgusted by her. But we soon find out why...because he's a VAMPIRE, Ooooh. 

If I am being totally honest about a few things, I haven't read twilight in years but from memory... I didn't like it. I also may or may not be bias because of a few actors...*cough Robert Pattinson and Jackson Rathbone cough* I loved the movies...even though they were cheesy, and watched them every year with my friend Sarah - over at the blog miss sarah spy , as well as my friend Drew. 

Those are 5 movies that I preferred in comparison to their original forms! 

Stay tuned for more posts...

(Disclaimer: The images used in this post are not mine.)

Yours Faithfully, 

~ She Who Writes