Review: Goddess by Josephine Angelini

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goddessGoddess by Josephine Angelini
Genre: Romance, Mythological, Adventure
Published by: Pan Macmillan
Pages: 450
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★.5
Series: Starcrossed (#1) | Dreamless (#2) 
Where to Find: GoodReads | Amazon

The final instalment to the ‘Starcrossed’ trilogy – Josephine Angelini came at this book with all guns blazing. Her protagonist has transformed from ditzy school girl to deity superhero. Who saw that one coming? Being honest, I found this finale to be borderline ridiculous, as in, Helen’s powers went to new heights, almost literally, that it was hard to read without laughing at the outcome. How can one girl bring down all of Olympus? Percy Jackson didn’t manage it and he’s the best man for the job, by far. So, what are my true thoughts on ‘Goddess’…

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Review: The Maze Runner by James Dashner

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the maze runnerThe Maze Runner by James Dasher
Genre: Action/Adventure, Dystopian
Published by: Chicken House
Pages: 384
Format: E-Book
Rating: ★★★
Series: The Scorch Trials (#2) | The Death Cure (#3)
Where to Find: GoodReads | Amazon

I have a confession to make. It’s terrible, I know, but….I saw the movie first. But after I saw the movie, I was filled with the best feeling ever. MOTIVATION! I could not leave ‘The Maze Runner’ where the movie did – that epilogue section was too much. I needed to know what happened next. So, I decided I would read the book, experience everything as the author intended and then continue the series. So, now that I’ve witnessed both the book and the movie, I can say: the movie was better. (Book-to-movie review coming soon.)

Plot and Pacing
The Maze Runner is your classic dystopian. Some kids are chucked in an arena and have to try and survive. Unlike ‘The Hunger Games’, all the kids co-operate. Order is everything. The aim of the game is simple: escape the maze. Well, we weren’t really excepting them to stay in the maze, right? Wrong. Over fifty kids have been stuck in this maze for two whole years. UNTIL our protagonist Thomas arrives.  Continue reading “Review: The Maze Runner by James Dashner” →

Review: The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead

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12396528The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead
Genre: Paranormal (Vampires), Romance
Published by: Razorbill
Pages: 421
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★★
Series: Bloodlines (#1) | The Golden Lily (#2) | The Fiery Heart (#4) | Silver Shadows (#5) | The Ruby Circle (#6)
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

Just when you think there is no possible way that this series could get any better, it does! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Richelle Mead really does know how to build a series. I’ve grown to love Sydney, but of course I love Adrian ever more! The witchy-magic element is so interesting, and the cliffhanger has got be begging for The Fiery Heart!

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Review: Dreamless by Josephine Angelini

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dreamlessDreamless by Josephine Angelini
Genre: Romance, Mythological, Adventure
Published by: Pan Macmillan
Pages: 504
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★
Series: Starcrossed (#1) | Goddess (#3)
Where to Find: GoodReads | Amazon

In the sequel to ‘Starcrossed’, Helen must venture to the Underworld in order to complete her quest of freeing the furies from the cycle of vengeance. A more apt title for this book would be ‘Sleepless’, as Helen battles on the brink of death to find the haggard sisters, whilst still having to deal with the wakened world of Nantucket and a boyfriend who’s forbidden to her by the laws of nature.

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Review: Split Second by Kasie West

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15792316Split Second by Kasie West
Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance
Published by: HarperTeen
Pages: 360
Format: e-Book
Rating: ★★★
Series: Pivot Point (#1)
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

Contrary to the majority, I actually enjoyed Pivot Point more, although this book really did tie up all the loose ends of the series I felt that it was kind of tedious, and certainly not as gripping as the first book. I think the addition of Laila’s voice added to the story, but the differing perspectives weren’t as enjoyable, for me anyway, as the two different voices of Addie that made Pivot Point so original.

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Versatile Blogger Award!

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We were nominated for a ‘Versatile Blogger Award’ by both Sarah, from Stacks Of Sarah, and Olivia, from Liv The Book Nerd! Thank you so much girls, you’re too kind 🙂
versatile-blogger-award
The rules are as follows:
To show the award on your blog.
To thank the person who nominated you.
To share seven facts about yourself.
To nominate a number of blogs.
And to link your nominees’ blogs, and let them know.

Maddie’s facts:
1. Cinderella is my favourite Disney princess, while Honey Lemon is my favourite civilian.
2. Over 20 dolls decorate the shelves of my room – star of my collection is ‘Cedar Wood’ from Ever After High
3. I have four copies of Cornelia Funke’s ‘Inkheart’, one in the original German
4. Dominic Sherwood is my celebrity crush
5. I named my fish ‘Gloria’ because of a health insurance advert
6. Blushing is my default response to anything
7. My most current obsession is the ‘Nothing Much To Do’ webseries based on ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ by Shakespeare!

Bee’s facts:
1. I name all of my appliances after my fictional boyfriends. Laptop = Jace, Kindle = Roger, USB = Dimitri. My phone is Esteban, but that’s because of The Suite Life of Zack and Cody
2. My OTPs are Pam and Jim from The Office and Pedro and Balthazar from Nothing Much To Do
3. I’ve never managed to finish a notebook, but I have a HUGE collection.
4. I’m a Hufflepuff, which is pretty apt because my super power is savoir-faire.
5. Rosie is my favourite Animal Crossing villager
6. I think that the side-ponytail is a seriously underrated hairstyle and I will endeavour to bring it back.
7. Mint is my favourite colour!

Nominations:
1. Queen of Contemporary
2. Read and Reviewed
3. My Life In Books (And Other Things)
4. YA? Why Not?

Review: The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead

Published on by Heart Full Of Books5 Comments

8709523The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead
Genre: Paranormal (Vampires), Romance
Published by: Razorbill
Pages: 418
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★.5
Series: Bloodlines (#1) | The Indigo Spell (#3) | The Fiery Heart (#4) | Silver Shadows (#5) | The Ruby Circle (#6)
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

I’m really beginning to get into this series, I somehow manages to read The Golden Lily in two sittings and I’m desperate to know what’s going to happen next. Sydney is a really interesting narrator, and luckily I got just what I thought was missing for Bloodlines -more humour!

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T5W: Books I’d Save In A Fire

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For any book-lover, this is the worst case scenario! It’s like asking a mother to chose between the children: its impossible to pick the ones you love the most. I think it would almost be easier to answer the opposite question, as I definitely know which books I’d leave for kindling. But, there are definitely some books on my shelves that I couldn’t imagine leaving behind:

cresslove lies and lemon piesmark of athena
1. The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan

This is by far my favourite of ‘The Heroes of Olympus’ series – where the gang are all together for the first time! (And who wouldn’t love the moment when Annabeth and Percy are reunited? They’re just precious.) Although ‘The House of Hades’ is beautiful, I don’t think I could live through the cliffhanger a second time. That’s why Annabeth’s solo quest is my first save!

2. Love, Lies and Lemon Pies by Katy Cannon

This is my favourite contemporary – I could re-read it multiple times and never get bored. There’s something about this book that takes me back to my days of reading solely Cathy Cassidy books, whilst equally giving me the same feeling that ‘Anna and the French Kiss’ left me with. I hadn’t read a book that dealt with family orientated issues in a long time, so this one was a real stand out for me.

3. Cress by Marissa Meyer

I’d save cutie ‘Cress’ for the same reason as ‘The Mark of Athena’. I love when teams come together, but I also love a good fake-boyfriend plot. I really think that the ‘Lunar Chronicles’ has everything you could possibly want from a series: romance, adventure, threat and more romance.

paper townsAnnaFrenchKiss
4. Paper Towns by John Green

My favourite of his works. It’s been a while since I read ‘Paper Towns’ and I definitely think a re-read is necessary before the movie is released. This book really sparked my love of road-trips and fuelled my love of a good mystery.

5. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

No doubt the best of the companion series, Miss Perkins knows how to put a good romance together. I wish there was less confusion between Anna and Etienne and Etienne’s insignificant girlfriend (I didn’t like her so much I’ve forgotten her name.) However, Anna really sparked my interest in contemporary books, so it would be a crime to leave her behind.

It might be surprising that ‘Inkheart’ didn’t make this list, but I do have four copies. One of them is bound to escape the flames. (I only hope it’s one of the English editions!) Plus, Bee’s got a copy of ‘Fangirl’, so we’d be set on that front.

Review: Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

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starcrossedStarcrossed by Josephine Angelini
Genre: Romance, Mythology, Action
Published by: Pan Macmillan
Pages: 514
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★★
Series:  Dreamless (#2) | Goddess (#3)
Where to Find: GoodReads | Amazon

After looking at the cover, I didn’t know what to expect from ‘Starcrossed’. You can’t help but read the title and think about Romeo and Juliet. I was worried that this book was going to be consumed with a forbidden romance that would end in disaster. Safe to say, I was surprised ‘Starcrossed’ was more than just another angsty YA romance novel!

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Review: Amy and Matthew by Cammie McGovern

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amy and matthewAmy and Matthew by Cammie McGovern
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Published by: Macmillan
Pages: 320
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★.5
Where to Find: Goodreads | Amazon

This book was like a breath of fresh air. Dealing with disability and mental illness, ‘Amy and Matthew’ ticks a lot of diversity boxes, and gains some originality points, as I’ve never read something that covers these issues. So, ‘Amy and Matthew’, I didn’t have a problem with. However, the fact it’s subtitled as ‘A Love Story’ is where things started to get a little tricky.

Characters
The first twenty percent of the book, we are introduced to the lives of our protagonists, written in 3rd person so we can experience their lives separately, as well as together. Amy has cerebral palsy and Matthew has (to begin with) undiagnosed OCD. They have to deal with the stresses of over-active and absent parents, along with trying to survive senior year. Amy wants to make some friends, which includes Matthew. They hang out and slowly, they fall in love. Except, neither character can overtly say they’re in love and if they do, each character seems to be in a different place in the relationship.
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