Favourite Books of 2014

As the year draws to a close, it's good to look back on the year you had. Book blogging is no exception. Here is our, brief, look back. 

Let's stick to a single question, shall we.

What were our favourite new books of 2014?

(As if the other 18 million lists didn't give it away enough...)

Kelsey:

1. Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover

2. The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare

3. Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover

4. Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass #3) by Sarah J. Maas

5. Don't Look Back by Jennifer Armentrout

Kristen:

1. Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover (Kelsey stole my answer)

2. Heir of Fire by Sarah J Maas (okay even though I only read Throne of Glass this year and absolutely lalalalaloved it, this counts) 

3. Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo 

4. Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover

5. Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson

We're looking forward to another great year of new books and sharing them with all of our wonderful followers. 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

See you in 2015.

TWITTER

Hey, everyone, listen up!
Kristen and Kelsey have a twitter.
Wow, it's weird to talk about yourself in the third person. I don't like it. It shouldn't be done. Stop.

Anyway, we have twitter. So, if you love reading our most strange reviews than maybe you will enjoy listening to our ramblings all the time. Perhaps you would like more frequent updates about our reviews, what book problems we are having, what books we are looking forward to, what weird jokes we have going on between us, or just about our lives in general. Twitter is the best way to get all of that and more.

Follow us!
Kelsey: https://twitter.com/ocakelsey
Kristen: https://twitter.com/ocakristen

Look how easy that is!

FooooOOoOoooOllOoooOooOOOooow!?

- Kelsey
...and Kristen, I guess.

Top Ten Tuesday [16]

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by the lovely folks at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list and everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

December 30: Top Ten Goals/Resolutions For 2015 -- bookish, blogging or otherwise!

Kelsey:
1. Save enough money for my teaching course this summer
2. Get an internship for the summer
3. Keep up with the gym
4. Finish writing a book
5. Get at least an 80% average in school
6. Start paying my parents back
7. Keep better contact with my brother
8. Try more new things
9. Keep up with my book reviews for once
10. Eat better (who doesn't say this?)

Review: Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #2)

Reviewer: Kelsey
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 420
Rating: 8 out of 10

**Spoiler Alert: This is part of a series. You can read the review for Throne of Glass here**

Summary (Goodreads was crowned King): From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena's world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie...and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.

My Thoughts: If I was Celaena, I would have totally gone crazy by now. I don't understand how she has managed to hold it all together...at least, she has managed to mostly keep herself together. I'm incredible impressed with her ability to do so. 

This is apparently going to be a very short review because the only thing I really want to talk about is the plot twists and sudden action that this novel is so good at producing. I knew that eventually something bad would have to happen but I never really saw the things coming. It was a good thing. Too often I see what's coming before it happens. In this novel, it was hard to see everyone's motivations before the moment they became important. On top of that, magic is so unpredictable that you could do nothing more than guess when it would cause something to happen. It was exciting.

Conclusion: This series is only getting better. I'm so excited for the next novel. Keep reading, folks!

Top Ten Tuesday [15]

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by the lovely folks at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list and everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

December 23: Top Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Bringing This Year

Kelsey: (So excited for my new books but I'm going to assume that they need to be released already and that this isn't a perfect world scenario...)
1. Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover (I already read it)
2. Exposure by Kathy Reichs
3. Bones Never Lie by Kathy Reichs
4. Becoming Calder by Mia Sheridan 
5. The Raven Boy by Maggie Steifvater (I know, I'm behind on the times...)
6. A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray
7. Dark Triumph and 
8. Mortal Heart by Robin LaFevers
9. Atlantia by Ally Condie

10. Wicked by Jennifer Armentrout

Review: Throne of Glass

Reviewer: Kelsey
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 404
Rating: 8 out of 10

You can read Kristen's review: HERE

Summary (Goodreads rocks): After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin. Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom. 

Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilarating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best. 

Then one of the other contestants turns up dead... quickly followed by another. 

Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.
My Thoughts: Let's jump right into it then...
The original cover for this book was awful. I would never have picked it off the shelf. It looked far too much like a middle school aged book. I can hardly read high school aged books anymore without changing plot points in my mind. If Kristen had not forced me to read this series, I probably would never have read it. That thought makes me sad. The new cover is about a million times better. Kristen's review (above) features the old cover if you are dying to see it.

I loved Celaena because she was strong but also weak in her own way. She had to fight so hard to survive that she had to be strong. Her moments of weakness damn near ripped my heart out of my chest. I'm glad that the author kept so much about her a mystery because it means that there will be so many interesting things to learn about her in the rest of the series. 

However, love triangle. I hate those things if they aren't done right. I think it's unnecessary that someone always gets hurt. Like for real? Every single girl in the world does not have multiple guys tripping over her. That just isn't how the world works. But I digress... In this case, the love triangle thing we had going wasn't too wretched. I managed to finish the book despite it. We will see what the rest of the series brings.

I like magic. I like assassins. I like mysteries. This novel has all of those things with a bit of love thrown in on the side with a lot of great action. 

To wrap this up, I just want to mention the third person perspective. I don't read a lot of novels using this writing style. I liked it. It allowed the readers to get inside the heads of many characters all at the same time. You got so much more that way. Of course, I have read novels like this in the past but it's not very common especially in young adult novels lately. It was a nice change that helped to set this novel apart from the others that I'd been reading lately.

Conclusion: I wasn't expecting too much from this series but they turned out to be super great. I would recommend this to everybody. Okay, maybe not everybody but most people. Who doesn't want a kick-ass character? Read it.

Review: The Deep

Reviewer: Kristen
Author: Nick Cutter
Pages: 400
Format: Paperback (provided by Simon & Schuster for a fair and honest review)
My Rating: 8 out of 10

Expected Publication: January 13th, 2015

Summary (thanks Goodreads): A strange plague called the ’Gets is decimating humanity on a global scale. It causes people to forget—small things at first, like where they left their keys…then the not-so-small things like how to drive, or the letters of the alphabet. Then their bodies forget how to function involuntarily…and there is no cure. But now, far below the surface of the Pacific Ocean, deep in the Marianas Trench, an heretofore unknown substance hailed as “ambrosia” has been discovered—a universal healer, from initial reports. It may just be the key to a universal cure. In order to study this phenomenon, a special research lab, the Trieste, has been built eight miles under the sea’s surface. But now the station is incommunicado, and it’s up to a brave few to descend through the lightless fathoms in hopes of unraveling the mysteries lurking at those crushing depths…and perhaps to encounter an evil blacker than anything one could possibly imagine.

My Thoughts: So, have you ever read anything that's so horrifying that you actually just cannot for the LIFE of you put down? Because, yeah, this is totally one of those books. This is a classic horror novel; a straight up keep-you-awake-all-hours-of-the-night, looking in dark corners, genius of a horror novel. Because seriously, the last, oh, quarter of this novel, I stayed up reading because I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN. It was crazy; my heart was pounding and I was straight up nervous about how things would end.   After having read both The Troop and now The Deep, I think it suffices to say that Nick Cutter knows just what fears to play on - fears the plague almost every body - and, almost subtly, reminds you  how scared of the dark you actually are. At least, that's what this did for me. The story follows Luke, whose crazy smart brother has asked him to join him in the search for a cure for the 'Gets. And, because the thought of a crazy plague like illness isn't horrifying enough, 'Gets attacks people's memories. The disease literally attacks what makes us fundamental humans, and from there, we see the often grotesque - but not too grotesque... it's done with... class? It's not unnecessary, I guess is what I'm trying and failing to say - side effects, and the descent into madness. Nick Cutter does a phenomenal job at twisting reality into something straight from a childhood nightmare - that one nightmare that stuck with you, and that you still constantly think about. If you're a fan of horror, you're going to love it. Even if you're not a fan of horror, pick this up and try it out. The writing is something spectacular and you should not miss out on it. 

Final Thoughts: If you read The Troop, you know that Nick Cutter has a special kind of writing magic that manages to terrify you and make you crave more at the same time. The Deep exceeded every expectation that I had, and you'll definitely want to make sure this is on your 2015 to-read list!

Top Ten Tuesday [14]

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by the lovely folks at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list and everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

December 16: Top Ten Books I Read In 2014 (Overall, By A Particular Genre, 2014 Releases)

Kelsey: (read during 2014 and in no order whatsoever.)
1. If I Stay and Where She Went by Gayle Forman
2. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
3. The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare
4. Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover
5. Be With Me by J. Lynn
6. Lux Series by Jennifer Armentrout
7. Breathing Series by Rebecca Donovan
8. Finding Cinderella by Colleen Hoover
9. The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare and I don't even know.

10. The Grisha Series by Leigh Bardugo

Life of a Blogger [13]

Life of a Blogger is a weekly feature that I found through the amazing Rebecca at Vicariously! ,  hosted by the lovely Novel Heartbeat. Each week a subject will be chosen and we get to talk about it. The topics will be non-bookish so that you can get to know each other on a more personal level! Make sure to add your link on the linky list! 

This week's topic is: FREEBIE (aka Kelsey trying to use the word coffee in every sentence cause coffee)

I really like coffee. It's becoming unfortunate, this coffee obsession. I have spent so much money on coffee this semester. I can't imagine what my coffee budget will be next semester but it worries me greatly. I'm a Canadian coffee girl with my double double. I cannot get through a day at school without my coffee. I need a coffee IV drip. Coffee will be what gets me through finals. Coffee will also get me to school and work. Coffee is fantastic. I haven't had my coffee today and I keep thinking about it. Can you tell that I have coffee on the brain? 

-- Kelsey
(disclaimer: I actually am not this obsessive about my coffee.)

Top Ten Tuesday [13]

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by the lovely folks at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list and everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

December 9: Top Ten New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2014

Kelsey:

1. Gayle Forman 

2. Nora Roberts (no like)

3. George Orwell

4. Jamie McGuire

5. Rebecca Donovan

6. Carol Lynch Williams

7. Kristen Simmons

8. Seth Grahame-Smith

9. Liesel K. Hill

10. James Lee Burke

Life of a Blogger [12]

Life of a Blogger is a weekly feature that I found through the amazing Rebecca at Vicariously! ,  hosted by the lovely Novel Heartbeat. Each week a subject will be chosen and we get to talk about it. The topics will be non-bookish so that you can get to know each other on a more personal level! Make sure to add your link on the linky list! 

This week's topic is: Where you live (state/house/whatever)

Well, I live in the sometimes cool, usually boring, rectum of Canada! (Just kidding, that's not actually what it's called,  but you know, super "important" officials and politicians refer to it that way, so why can't I?) Anyway, it's kind of a cool city. We have some nice views, and a lot of construction. I've lived here all my life, but I hope to venture out of this city and live all over the place. I'm crossing my fingers that for the next two summers I'll be living in Toronto, and that the year after that I'll be living in France and teaching English. After France, I'd like to explore a little more before I come home. I mean, you're only young once, right? 
- Kristen

I have lived in the same house my entire life, all twenty years of it. Ontario, Canada, for the win. I love Canada. I'm hoping to be in Toronto this summer and next and France the year after that and Spain after that and Italy after that...but right now, I go home to sleep in the same bedroom I've always slept in. I'm super excited for when I come back from my world adventures and have my own space. My house will be super cool.

-- Kelsey

Top Ten Tuesday [12]

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by the lovely folks at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list and everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

December 2: Top Ten Books I'm Looking Forward To In 2015 (if it helps... in January we will be talking about 2015 debuts)

Kelsey:
1. Burning Kingdoms by Lauren DeStefano
2. Ensnared by A.G. Howard
3. Kalahari by Jessica Khoury
4. Pram by Lauren DeStefano...if there is ever a release date...
5. Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare
6. P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han
7. The Dead List by Jennifer L. Armentrout
8. The Glass Arrow by Kristen Simmons
9. Liar of Dreams by Libba Bray

10. Frostfire by Amanda Hocking.
I wish I could lie to you and tell you that I knew all of these were coming out but I did my research and some of these I had no idea about. I can't explain how excited and worked up I just made myself. Thanks Goodreads!!

Life of a Blogger [11]

Life of a Blogger is a weekly feature that I found through the amazing Rebecca at Vicariously! ,  hosted by the lovely Novel Heartbeat. Each week a subject will be chosen and we get to talk about it. The topics will be non-bookish so that you can get to know each other on a more personal level! Make sure to add your link on the linky list! 

This week's topic is: Thanksgiving Traditions (boo, we're Canadian!) 

Well, even though Thanksgiving was last month for us, I'll tell all you cuties about what we do. My grandma and my uncles come to my house. Yeah, it's super exciting
- Kristen 

We go to my grandma's house. She lives across the street and likes to feed the whole big family. She's crazy. She worries and complains but refuses to have it any other way. My family is weird and very tame apparently. That's all we do.

-- Kelsey

Top Ten Tuesday [11]

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by the lovely folks at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list and everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

November 25:  Top Ten Books On My Winter TBR (sorry this is like a month early from when Winter OFFICIALLY starts but December is too busy with end of year stuff)

Kelsey:
1. A Bend in the Road  by Nickolas Sparks
2. Map of Time by Felix J. Palma
3. The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens
4. Bones Never Lie by Kathy Riechs
5. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (take two...possibly to turn into an audio book deal)
6. Screwdrivered by Alice Clayton
7. Elegy by Amanda Hocking
8. Dark Inside by Jeyn Roberts
9. Exposure by Kathy Reichs

10. Maybe Vanity Fair if I feel up to it...
**I don't have all of these books yet, I'm hoping many are under my Christmas tree

Review: Ruin and Rising (The Grisha #3)

Reviewer: Kelsey
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 417
Rating: 7 out of 10

**Spoiler Alert: This is the third in this series. Check out the review for the first book, Shadow and Bone HERE**

Summary (Goodreads version): The capital has fallen.

The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne.

Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.

Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives.

Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova's amplifiers. But as she begins to unravel the Darkling's secrets, she reveals a past that will forever alter her understanding of the bond they share and the power she wields. The firebird is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction—and claiming it could cost Alina the very future she’s fighting for.

Thoughts for this novel: I have never wanted to punch a character in the face quite like I wanted to punch the Apparat in the nose. He was deserve it. Hardcore. However, I did love the adventure of the escape despite having to wait a little while in the beginning on the novel. It was a bit slow to start but necessary. It picked up speed.

I was glad for the change in locations. The map at the front of this novel showed me the extent of the world the author created it. I wanted to get into the world and see where we could go with it. I got that wish fulfilled.

I'm not sure how I feel about the end of this novel. On one hand, it made me happy but it also kind of didn't. I think I expected more even though everything was wrapped up well. I loved that everything was tied up. It continued to look into the future and how their lives will turn out. Novels that do that are perfect.

Thoughts about this series: Overall, I thought that this series turned out well enough. I liked that the death of characters wasn't avoided. I like that, even though it was only for a short period of time, we were encouraged by the author to play with fire. Not literal fire, mind you, but we were allowed to imagine multiple outcomes based on the love interests in this novel. I like that we were allowed to fall in love with the bad guy for once. We were also welcome to imagine what a world with magic and its creatures would be like. I enjoyed the series a lot, as did Kristen.

Basically: I cannot put my finger on the exact thing about this series that I enjoyed. There were simple yet opened up another world for me to explore. I loved that there was almost every genre in the books at some point or another. These novels truly have something for everyone, all tucked nicely behind beautiful colours. What could taking a look hurt?

P.S. I'm so sorry this review was useless, I waited to long to write the review. I promise that I'll do better in the future, as soon as I catch up on all my reviews that is...I'm so behind!

Life of a Blogger [10]

Life of a Blogger is a weekly feature that I found through the amazing Rebecca at Vicariously! ,  hosted by the lovely Novel Heartbeat. Each week a subject will be chosen and we get to talk about it. The topics will be non-bookish so that you can get to know each other on a more personal level! Make sure to add your link on the linky list! 

This week's topic is: Ten Things You'll Never Do
So, I'm in a very lame-spiring mood and I don't want to say I'll never do anything, but I mean these are the things that are probably pretty unlikely in my life

1. Eat a spider. Or any gross insect for that matter. Those bug lollipop things, ew. God, need I say more? Nope, nah, never. 
2. Tightrope walk. That just seems needlessly dangerous and I have bad knees. 
3. Forget sunscreen. (This isn't true; it'll happen.)
4. Camp by myself in the middle of nowhere. I watch Criminal Minds, okay. 
5. I will never allow anyone ever to touch my neck. Seriously. Plz don't.
6. Go to space. I mean, I'd like too. I just don't have like 20 million laying around. 
7. Mess with a ouija board
8. Go to a cemetery at  night. I'm not about that ghost life, man. 
9. Go to a World Cup. Way too many people and way too little interest in soccer. 
10. I will not eat Rooster testicles in Taiwan. (I looked up a list of 100 things to do before you die for some inspiration... it worked) 

What about you guys?

1. Juggle...I just can't do it.
2. Ride a unicycle...I can hardly ride a normal bike.
3. finish this list.   Apparently I did that...work in a McDonalds. I'd fail miserably.
4. Walk on water...I'm not Jesus.
5. Let a boy hit me without getting hit back, twice as hard.
6. Practice sword swallowing...who ever thought it was a good idea?
7. Wear heels voluntarily.
8. Own a cat...I have allergies.
9. Swim in the Detroit river...again.
10. Have a pet unicorn...but I wish.

-- Kelsey 
EDIT: (I just want the world to know Kelsey called herself a writing genius for this list)

Top Ten Tuesdays [10]

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by the lovely folks at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list and everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

November 18: Top Ten Sequels I Can't Wait To Get

Kristen's List 
1. ANY 
2. AND 
3. ALL 
4. THINGS 
5. PUBLISHED 
6. BY 
7. CASSANDRA 

8. MOTHER 

9. TRUCKIN 

10. CLARE 

Kelsey:
1. Ensnared by A.G. Howard
2. ENSARED BY A.G. HOWARD!!! *** (FOR REAL) (Two times as bad as anything else)
3. The Descent by Alma Katsu
4. Burning Kingdoms by Lauren DeStefano
5. Exposure by Kathy Reichs
6. Vitro by Jessica Khoury
7. I really want another Sarah Dessen book
8. and Jackson Pearce who seemed to move on to middle school aged books to my great dismay
Those last two might have been cheating but whatever...
9. Breaking Point by Kristen Simmons

10. Stay With Me by J. Lyn 
I don't have too many series working right now. This is why this list sucks. I'm so, so sorry.

Review: Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood

Reviewer: Kelsey
Author: Eileen Cook
Format: Paperback
Pages: 261
Rating: 5 out of 10

Summary (Thanks for existing Goodreads.com): 
Popularity is the best revenge.

In the final weeks of eighth grade, Lauren Wood made a choice. She betrayed her best friend, Helen, in a manner so publicly humiliating that Helen had to move to a new town just to save face. Ditching Helen was worth it, though, because Lauren started high school as one of the It Girls--and now, at the start of her senior year, she's the cheerleading captain, the quarterback's girlfriend, and the undisputed queen bee. Lauren has everything she's ever wanted, and she has forgotten all about her ex-best friend.

But Helen could never forget Lauren. After three years of obsessing, she's moving back to her old town. She has a new name and a new look, but she hasn’t dropped her old grudges. She has a detailed plan to bring down her former BFF by taking away everything that's ever been important to Lauren—starting with her boyfriend.

Watch out, Lauren Wood. Things are about to get bitchy.

My Thoughtless Ramblings: This cover is ugly. It is so important for me to say this that I'm going to say it first thing. The cover of the copy I have is beautiful. I had a two-for-one type deal called Used To Be which had two novels by Eileen Cook in it. I liked it much more. I would never have picked a book up off the shelf that had this cover on it. Yes, I judge books by their covers, deal with it.

So, anyway, getting revenge...I understand wanting to get back at people but I don't think I will ever understand wanting to destroy a person's life especially over what the slight was in this novel. It sucks yes, but JUST MOVE ON. I thought the whole plot of this novel was a huge waste of time. It was an interesting concept. It might have been okay if the thing that caused it wasn't so stupid. To Helen, it may have been big, in the moment. It was hardly something to let consume your life. It just didn't seem like a big enough thing to cause all that followed. That's my opinion.

Also, this chick is crazy! Who would do all of this to a person? She couldn't killed Lauren a few times over. I kept thinking, "oh my gosh, Helen is a sociopath!" She didn't seem to be worried about any consequences for what she was doing and I can think of so many right now. The top two would be homicide or suicide or jail time. Those are just the big ones. Having your life messed up is hardly worth ruining someones over. Helen had the opportunity to do just fine with her life but she lost a lot of credibility when she became the cruel person. It's hard to relate to someone who would stoop so low. 

The love interest in this was good. I liked him. I liked him and I liked a couple of the other friends Helen makes at the school. I thought they were way more thought out than the revenge plan. They were honestly my favourite part of the novel, no matter how poorly Helen treated them or the fact that they let her treat them so badly and remained her friends. I wouldn't have been so nice to her, I think.

So: This novel was a quick read and light enough. I didn't appreciate the plot all that much but other than the main character, I liked the people that were found on these pages. I find myself not blaming the author for my dislike of this novel. It's just what it was. I won't be reading it again but I would read more from this author in the future.

Review: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass

►Well, isn't that photo nice and blurry for all of you.

I asked my cousin to do an honest review of this book so that our followers could get another perspective than the usual views of Kristen and myself. Just a little background. My cousin is a girl and is 13 years old. This might be important knowledge when reading the following review. Please enjoy!
     - Kelsey

Kelsey's review for this same novel is right HERE

Reviewer: A secret grade 8 student who shall remain nameless
Author: Lewis Carroll
Pages: 327
Format: Paperback

Summary (borrowed from Goodreads but hardly a full description as the novel reviewed was comprised of both the first and the second in this series): Bored on a hot afternoon, Alice, a bright and inquisitive child, follows a white rabbit down a rabbit-hole, and finds herself in Wonderland, a very odd place indeed. This unique story mixes satire and puzzles, comedy and anxiety, Mock Turtles and Gryphos to provide an astute description of the experience of childhood.

Cousin's Thoughts on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: [some editing]

I specifically asked Kelsey for this book because of its weirdness and original story line. Though sometimes I had to read over some things just because of the way things were described or told. At one point I had my mom read a chapter to me just so I would understand what was happening.

Overall I think the writing and describing was very well done seeing that what he was writing was so original and unique. The book really caught my interest because the book itself is described so well and it’s a classic. That just cant be beat!

I do have to say that like any book it did have its ups and downs. My least favorite part was when Alice grew too big in the White Rabbits house because it was kind of confusing when all the creatures were talking. Enough of what I didn’t like in this book! My favorite part was when the three cards where trying to paint all the roses red because they accidentally planted white roses instead. This totally reminded me of all the things that I have done on accident and had to fix before anyone saw. Like the time I spilled something on the carpet and had to race around the house trying to find the carpet cleaner to get the stain out before my parents got home.

For the record, I loved all the characters in this book, but there are two that really stood out to me. The crazy and confused Mad Hatter was one, for always ending up in places he shouldn’t be and for his historically acclaimed question, “Why is a raven like a writing desk?” And the snippy March Hair for all his remarks to Alice when she came to the tea party.

I think anyone who wants to read this novel needs to be a good reader and need to be able to think while they're reading. Keep in mind that if you over think this, you’ll give your self the biggest headache ever!! Plus, you can’t find any other book like this great original.

Cousin's Thoughts on Through the Looking Glass: [some editing]

Since I liked Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, I was compelled to read the second story of her travels. To me, this one was easier to understand than the first. I’m not sure if it was because I was so used to reading the first book and the way it was written or if this book was generally easier to understand. The writing was just as good in this book as it was in the first one. I liked the story line in this one better because it was all planed out [via a chess board] in the beginning so you sort of know what to expect (depending on if you could remember).

Just like the first book, this one did have its ups and downs. My least favorite part was when Alice arrived at the store where the sheep handed her oars and they were gliding along between banks because during that time I found it very boring and a little confusing because they where in the store, but not in the store at the same time. My favorite part was when Alice was walking with the White Night, because the way the book described him was weird and original with all his inventions.

My favorite character in this book was the White Night because of all of his silly and unique ideas and just the way he acts. Plus, the way he rides a horse is just hilarious!

My overall impression of the book was very good. Therefore I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed the first one.

So there you have it folks.

Life of a Blogger [9]

Life of a Blogger is a weekly feature that I found through the amazing Rebecca at Vicariously! ,  hosted by the lovely Novel Heartbeat. Each week a subject will be chosen and we get to talk about it. The topics will be non-bookish so that you can get to know each other on a more personal level! Make sure to add your link on the linky list! 

This week's topic is: Unpopular Opinions 
I freaking hate it when authors add more books to a series. Nope. If you say it's a trilogy, write it as a trilogy, and then add more books you're gonna make me mucho angry. (I'm looking at you Kiera Cass) But I mean, I'll still buy and read them so who is the real loser here?
- Kristen

I firmly believe that being in a relationship requires a reason and that you actually, really like the person. Being lonely is not a good reason, neither is wanting sex. He should never hit you or yell at you. You should never hit or yell at him. You should support each other. Also, most importantly, you are worth something without a guy. You don't need a guy. Travel. Spend time alone. Get to know yourself before you get to know somebody else. Do amazing, cool, and exciting things. Don't rush into a relationship because you're scared. This annoys me to no end.
Also, the NDP should have won the last Canadian election, I don't care what anybody says.
Also, texting is a wonderful tool for this generation.
ALSO, it's favoUrite, coloUr, and favoUr...deal with it Americans.

-- Kelsey

Review: The Bane Chronicles

Reviewer: Kelsey
Author: Cassandra Clare, Maureen Johnson, Sarah Rees Brennan, and Cassandra Jean
Format: Paperback ARC
**This book was given to us in exchange for an honest review.**
Pages: 528
Rating: 9 out of 10

Summary (via Goodreads): Ever wondered about the enigmatic, mysterious warlock Magnus Bane? The only character to appear in every Shadowhunter book, Magnus has a past even more shrouded in mystery than his present. I’ve teamed up with acclaimed YA writers Maureen Johnson and Sarah Rees Brennan to create the Bane Chronicles, the back (and front) story of Magnus told in ten linked tales.

Look for short stories like Vampires, Scones and Edmund Herondale; The Rise and Fall of the Hotel Dumort; Saving Raphael Santiago and What To Buy The Shadowhunter Who Has Everything (And Who You’re Not Officially Dating Anyway). Each story will be available as an ebook on a monthly basis starting April 16 with the tale of What Happened In Peru.

Each story will be released monthly online for the next ten months — and then for those who don’t read e-books, the full print collection will be available in bookstores and wherever else books are sold after the Chronicles have been finished. 

My Ponderings: Magnus was my favourite character in the Mortal Instruments series from Cassandra Clare. He was funny and sassy and never said quite what you expected him to say. That was what made him great. There was also an air of mystery about him that was terribly intriguing. I constantly found myself wondering at things he was saying or making reference too. I wanted to know what he'd lived through. I wanted to hear all about his wild adventures. What led him to where he was when we first met him? Apparently it was a great many things. As it well should be since he was so old. He had multiple lifetimes full of experiences to draw on. Each story was unique, fascinating. 

I read this novel so quickly. Kristen and I spent too much time fighting over it. It was well worth the fight. We had both been highly anticipating this novel once we found out that it was coming out. The wait was almost too much until this novel showed up at our doorstep...literally. It was a super easy and interesting read. I got into the story right away. Don't have a lot of time to sit and read? That's fine, this novel is a series of short stories that jump around in time. After all, nobody has the time to read the entire length of Magnus' life, although I'd love to give it a try. I thought that short story form was perfect for this novel. Actually, I can't think of a better way for us to receive this. I wouldn't change that.

The comics were pretty great too. I thought they were funny and beautiful and a perfect way to break up the novel. I usually don't like this kind of thing because I'm 20 years old and 20 year olds probably shouldn't be reading picture books. In this case (which didn't make the novel a picture book but only added a much needed division between stories), I loved it.

Don't like one of the story lines? Don't worry. They're short stories and will be over soon enough. It should be noted that I didn't have this problem and Kristen didn't seem to either.

Miss another favourite character? Maybe they will make an appearance...

Basically: I loved this novel. I would read it again and again in a heart beat. I loved that it was funny and serious and you get to see many sides of Magnus. It was wonderful that you see him help so many people. It also provides wonderful back story for the other series by Cassandra Clare. It's like a bunch of well-written fanfictions that know the characters perfectly. I would recommend buying this novel. Today. Because it came out this morning. Do it. Some history with Cassandra Clare's novel necessary.