That Time I Won 21 Books

Truthfully, I've never had much luck when it comes to giveaways and competitions. I can count on one hand the amount of times I have ever won something, yet I still continue to enter them in the hopes that maybe this time will be my time.
So, when I saw that Walker Books were holding a competition to win a load of books on Instagram, I knew I just had to enter it even if my chances were slim.
I entered the giveaway, then went on with my life as normal.
A couple of weeks later, I received a notification and message from Walker Books stating that I was the lucky individual who had won the wreath of books. It was safe to say that I was Happy. Ecstatic. Over the moon.

Since that day I have been anxiously waiting for the postman to knock on my door and deliver me my goodies.
And today it finally happened.
I came home from a tiring day at college and found a package waiting for me.

I dropped everything. My bag. My books. My coat. And I ran to open up the package.

At this point my mind is going crazy. As a lover of books, I can honestly say that getting book mail is one of the best feelings in the world. So, receiving a box filled to the brim with books is one hell of an amazing feeling.

I proceeded to remove each book from the box, admiring the range of stunning covers. After laying them all out, I called my family into the room to show them all the books I had won. Honestly, I just wanted to gloat.

I sat there admiring each book for quite some time, reading the titles and blurbs and just getting a feel of what each book is about. There is such a diverse range that I know that for whatever mood I am in, there will be a book to fit that mood.

After appreciating the beauty of the books, I decided to give them a new home on my second bookshelf. Personally, I believe they fit right in.

Some of the books received have been on my TBR for quite some time, such as Patrick Ness - A Monster Calls, but I never got round to buying or reading them. Now I have no excuse and I cannot wait to dive in and read these amazing books.

So here's a HUGE thank you to Walker Books for my brilliant prize!

Six Of Crows - Review

Book Review:
Title: Six of Crows
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Publisher: Orion Children's Book

“The easiest way to steal a man’s wallet is to tell him you’re going to steal his watch. You take his attention and direct it where you want it to go.”

Six Of Crows in a nutshell is about a group of individuals going on a heist together to earn a hell of a lot of money. Within this group we have Kaz (a thief), Inej (a spy), Nina (a heartrender), Wylan (a runaway), Matthias (a convict) and Jesper (a sharpshooter.) To earn the money, they have to complete said heist without getting themselves killed by the enemy...or even by each other.

This book was so freaking awesome! I put off reading it for a couple of months because I was scared that it wasn't going to live up to the hype surrounding it; oh, how I was wrong! This book deserves all of hype received and then some. Everything about this book was brilliant. Everything! The plot was brilliant. The writing flowed right from start to finish. And the Characters were the icing on top of the cake.

The characters definitely were my favourite thing about this book. I thought it would be quite hard to read from so many POVs but once again I was proven wrong. I loved each character and getting to read things from their own perspective. If I had to choose a favourite, I would probably say Inej. I loved how she was given all of the difficult tasks, but she never once complained and she was always up for doing them. After Inej, it would have be Kaz, followed by Nina and then Jesper, Matthias and Wylan all together.

During my read of Six of Crows, I established three core ships which I hope to see more of in Crooked Kingdom. Those three ships were Kaz&Inej, Nina&Matthias and Jesper&Wylan. You could clearly see that both Kaz&Inej and Nina&Matthias had a connection with each other, and Jesper&Wylan were having so much flirty banter that you can't not ship them.

Honestly, this was a great read and if you haven't read it yet or are weary to read it, I really recommend you do pick it up. You will not be disappointed. The only part that disappointed me was the end because I realised that I would have to wait about a year before I could get my hands on the sequel.

5 Stars
Goodreads

Everything, Everything - Review

 

Book Review:
Title: Everything, Everything
Author: Nicola Yoon
Publisher:Corgi Children's

“Just because you can’t experience everything doesn’t mean you shouldn’t experience anything.”

Everything, Everything follows a girl called Maddy who is essentially allergic to the whole world. She has a really rare disease which can cause the littlest of things like a piece of dust to kill her. Due to this, she has to stay inside her sterile house, which is air locked, 24/7. She hasn't left her house since she was a young girl and hasn't ever really been tempted to leave until a boy called Olly and his family move next door.

This book was such a quick read. I picked it up at about 3pm and then by 6/7pm, I was finished. I didn't realise that I had been reading non-stop for 3/4 hours. Time literally just flew past. From the very first page I was hooked and I wanted to know more. More about Maddy's rare disease. More about her new friendship with Olly. More about everything.

Her relationship with Olly is what really made this book for me. Their relationship did seem to move quite fast but I didn't really care because I thought they were extremely cute together. I loved their late night conversations and how they were constantly joking and flirting with each other.

(M):What colour are your eyes?
(O): blue 
(M): Be more specific please
(O): Jesus. girls. ocean blue
(M): Atlantic or Pacific
(O): atlantic. What colour are yours?
(M): Chocolate brown.
(O): More specific please
(M): 75% cacao butter, dark chocolate brown
(O): hehe. nice”

How can you not smile at that?

Another thing I loved about this book was the diversity of it. Our main protagonist is Afro-Asian, which I was extremely happy to see. It's 2016, I think it's time we start seeing more diversity in our characters whether it be race, weight or even disability. So I praise Nicola Yoon for not sticking to the norm and branching out.

I'm not going to lie, it was hard to wrap my head around some things, especially near the end. I'm not going elaborate and say what those things were because I don't want to spoil anyone, but if you've read the book you'll probably know what I'm talking about. I also would have liked about 20 more pages at the end with Olly, I feel like it would have tied everything up more nicely for me. But, other than that, I found myself really enjoying this book and really connecting with Maddy and Olly.

Three words to sum up; Funny, Adorable, Heartfelt

4 Stars
Goodreads 
 

Top 10 Reads of 2015

I have managed to read a total of 100 Books in 2015, so it's safe to say that it was very difficult to narrow those 100 books down to my Top 10. I've decided to only include YA novels into my Top 10, but I may add some NA honourable mentions at the end. Also, these are books I've read in 2015, so some may not have been released in 2015.

LETS BEGIN!

Six of Crows - Leigh Bardugo

This book was so EPIC! It honestly blew me away. I was quite nervous to read it at first because of how hyped up it was, but let me tell you, there is a reason why it is so hyped. Honestly this is one of my favourite books ever!

Goodreads
Amazon UK
Amazon US

  

An Ember in the Ashes - Sabaa Tahir

One of the best debut novels I have ever read. It was raw, gritty and I loved it! I admire how Sabaa Tahir displayed and tackled some serious issues in her book, such as rape and sexism, it was evocative.
This book was also my 100th and last read of the year, so it was nice to end the year with such a brilliant book.


Goodreads 
Amazon UK
Amazon US 

 

 

 

 

Carry On - Rainbow Rowell

Thinking about this book is bringing back all of the feels. I didn't think I was going to love this book as much as I did. I remember reading it for the first time and getting sucked in immediately. After finishing it, I went back and read it a second time...and then a third time. 

Goodreads 
Amazon UK 
Amazon US 

 

 

 

 

Winter - Marissa Meyer

This is how you conclude a series! Winter was everything I wanted and more! It was a glorious 800 pages, which I loved since everything was really fleshed out. I don't think I've ever read such a satisfying conclusion before.

Goodreads 
Amazon UK 
Amazon US 

 

 

 

 

Queen of Shadows - Sarah J. Maas

Once again, Sarah J Maas outdid herself. The Throne of Glass series gets so much more bad-ass as we delve further and further into the series. Another must read series. The love of my life Dorian Havilliard is also a part of this series, so there's one reason for you to pick this up.

Goodreads 
Amazon UK
Amazon US 

  

 

 

Since You've Been Gone - Morgan Matson

So this book wasn't actually released in 2015, it was published in 2014 but I read it this year, so that's why it's on my list. This is the perfect book to read when it's summer or when you just want to get into a feel-good mood. Any Morgan Matson can put a smile on your face, I guarantee it.

Goodreads 
Amazon UK 
Amazon US 

 

 

 

 I'll Give You The Sun - Jandy Nelson

Another book that was released in 2014 and is perfect for putting a smile on your face. One of the main things I loved about this book was that although there was romance involved, the main message was about the importance of family. Truly beautiful.

Goodreads 
Amazon UK 
Amazon US 

 

 

 

 

Inferno - Catherine Doyle

This book is being published in 2016 (January 7th) but I was lucky enough to receive an early finished copy this year. This is the second book in the trilogy and it is a masterpiece! So much more bad-ass and fast-paced than the first book. If you haven't already, pick up this trilogy!

Goodreads
Amazon UK 
Amazon US 

 

 

 

 

 All The Bright Places - Jennifer Niven

 
This book was beautiful and heart wrenching at the same time. I remember finishing this book late at night and tears were pouring down my face and I honestly just sat there and thought about life. This book really touched me.

Goodreads 
Amazon UK 
Amazon US 

 

 

 

Night Owls - Jenn Bennett

If you're from the US, you will probably know this book as 'The Anatomical Shape of a Heart.' Night Owls drew me in from the very first page. The writing was beautiful and flowed throughout the novel. I could really connect with the main characters Beatrix and Jack, and I loved how the whole story was sex-positive. A quick, unforgettable read.

Goodreads 
Amazon UK 
Amazon US 









So there we have it, my Top 10 Reads of 2015. 
Now onto some honourable mentions; books that I loved but unfortunately did not manage to get into the Top 10.

• End Of Days - Susan Ee
• Confess - Colleen Hoover (New Adult)
• P.S I Still Love You - Jenny Han
• A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J. Maas
• Addicted/Calloway Sisters - Becca & Krista Ritchie (New Adult)
• November 9 - Colleen Hoover (New Adult)
• The Deal - Elle Kennedy (New Adult)
• The Wrath and the Dawn - Renee Ahdieh