Quarterly Wrap-Up // October-December 2018

Happy holidays everyone! These past three months have been rather stressful. I'm in my final year of university and have a dissertation to write alongside other essays and assessments, and I don't feel ready. I know I will get it all done and that I will do well, but the difficult part is always the journey of getting there.

Mini Reviews // City of Ghosts + Vengeful + Stardust

I have been enjoying lots of lovely and slightly dark sci-fi/fantasy novels in these dreary Autumn/Winter months. I find myself missing the brightness of Summer, but genre books always feel warming on cloudy days. Here are three magical and paranormal books I have read recently.

2018 Book Haul

Last year I made the decision to track my own bookish spendings, and discovered I bought far more books than I thought I did. This year I decided to do the same, and have it all wrapped up in a single post. My goal for 2018 was to buy fewer books than in 2017, buuuut it didn't exactly go to plan. In fact, I was much, much worse.

Latest Love // Favourite Films of 2018

Latest Love is a series of posts where I talk about a recent obsession. This could be a bookish obsession or otherwise - anything that has been making me happy recently that I feel like sharing. The important thing about this feature is that it isn't a review. This is just a way of me expressing a few reasons why I like something, and maybe find some more people to talk about it with. 😊

Favourite Fictional Siblings

One of my favourite things about stories is when there are strong relationships between characters. I love character dynamics that messy and flawed, and for some reason even more so if it involves siblings. I have no idea why this is, but there is something with books and shows that feature sibling dynamics at their core that I really love.

Not Your Villain // a fun sequel with more lovable characters

As soon as I finished reading Not Your Sidekick, I knew I had to jump into the sequel as soon as possible. I needed more of these precious characters, and Not Your Villain did not disappoint.

Books I'm Voting for in the Goodreads Choice Awards 2018

It's rare for me to have read many books that get nominated for the Goodreads Choice Awards. In previous years I've felt a bit behind when it came to new releases, but somehow in 2018 I read a whole load of them, and from more than just the YA Fantasy and Science Ficiton category! Even more surprising is that many of the nominees are actually some of my favourite books of this year - so I guess the hype doesn't always lie! Here are the 6 books I've voted for in the semifinal round ✨

Not Your Sidekick // refreshing and full of heart

Not Your Sidekick was a wonderful and adorable take on the superhero genre, and one that I enjoyed immensely.

Creepy Books That Aren't Too Scary

The horror genre is one I stay far away from. From a yonug age, I worked out that I have the insides of a soft marshmallow, and that scary things were not for me. But lately, I've realised I kind of like it when books get a little creepy. Not too creepy that I feel ill and can't sleep, but just the right level of unsettling to increase the stakes of a story. So, if you're like me and want some mildly creepy books that aren't too horrifying, here are 10 of my favourites.

Broken Things // brilliantly plotted and a mesmerizing read

Broken Things is a gorgeously dark tale of friendship and mystery. It's beautiful writing and magnificent structure causes the boundaries between reality and fiction to blur, creating a charmingly haunted atmosphere that had me hanging on to every word.

Big Books That You Can Speed Through Effortlessly

Big books can be incredibly intimidating. They demand a little more time and dedication, and it doesn't always pay off. I have read a lot of books over the past few years that I've had to spend a little while to get through - The Book Thief, Cloud Atlas, Jane Eyre, and Middlesex to name a few. And while I ended up adoring those books and found the extra dedication worth it, sometimes I just want to speed through a big book effortlessly.

Quarterly Wrap-Up // July-September 2018

This has been a great summer for me, filled with spending time with friends, binge-watching Voltron (as per usual), family holidays, and going to lots of bookish events. But I'm excited to be getting back to my final year of university in October.

A Very Large Expanse of Sea // painful, hopeful, and beautiful

This book was powerful. So powerful that it has taken me almost a week to collect my thoughts properly. I just loved it that much, and scared, too, that I wouldn't do it justice. But anyone who reads it will see how personal a story this is, and will be struck by the raw emotion in every page.

What If It's Us // too adorable for words

I don't think I've read anything so freaking adorable in my life. This was honestly more cuteness that my heart was prepared to handle. I knew I was right to be excited by an Albertalli-Silvera collaboration, but What If It's Us was everything I could have wanted and more.

Sawkill Girls // the stabby queer feminist book of my dreams

Sawkill Girls is a wonderfully creepy tale that is equal parts eerie and fierce. It's a story about disappearing girls and dark evils, all cloaked in a glorious atmosphere of looming forests and otherworldly magic.

The Miseducation of Cameron Post // simply powerful

This book was simply gorgeous. Everything about The Miseducation of Cameron Post is breathtaking and beautifully written, and I honestly believe this has the makings of a modern classic.

The Lady's Guide to Petticoats and Piracy // a fun new historical adventure

The Lady's Guide to Petticoats and Piracy is another super entertaining installment in the lives of the Montague siblings.

Latest Love // The Bright Sessions

Latest Love is a series of posts where I talk about a recent obsession. This could be a bookish obsession or otherwise - anything that has been making me happy recently that I feel like sharing. The important thing about this feature is that it isn't a review. This is just a way of me expressing a few reasons why I like something, and maybe find some more people to talk about it with. 😊

YALC 2018 (and other bookish events)

I have attended many bookish events this year, but I realised I haven't properly talked about them here yet! I am obsessed with bookish events and I have been trying to pack as many of them in 2018 as I can. I love that I never feel much pressure to talk to people, but that knowing I have something in common with those around me makes me feel more confident in talking to them and making new friends. I hope that I get to attend many more in the future.

Apps and Websites to Help You Live Your Best Bookish Lifestyle

In the era of technology, there are now so many ways to love a good book. Online spaces have become a huge influence on my reading lifestyle. This blog alone has encouraged me to read more widely, discovering new authors as well as new friends through this one shared passion. However, blogging is not the only way to find more books and connect with other readers. Over the past few years, the internet has provided us with a wealth of websites and apps that have made the lives of readers better. Not only does the internet help us to meet new readers with shared interests, but it has also given us new ways to enjoy the literature that we love.

Mini Reviews // Wink Poppy Midnight + American Panda + Only Love Can Break Your Heart + Leah on the Offbeat

Summer is the time for contemporaries. The other four seasons are mostly filled with fantasy reads for me, but in summer I find contemporary YA is a must. For some reason, regardless of when the story is set, books of this genre always feel like ones that can be read in the sun. Here are some of the great books I've been reading in this good weather.

Latest Love // Steven Universe

Latest Love is a series of posts where I talk about a recent obsession. This could be a bookish obsession or otherwise - anything that has been making me happy recently that I feel like sharing. The important thing about this feature is that it isn't a review. This is just a way of me expressing a few reasons why I like something, and maybe find some more people to talk about it with. 😊

Restore Me // an explosive sequel

I have missed this series so much! Even though I only finished the first three books three months ago, it feels like it has been far too long.

June Wrap Up

Sorry for the inactivity in the first half of the month! I had an exam in mid-June and it has taken me a while to get back into the swing of things and schedule some posts.

Magical Mini Reviews

It's time for a little selection of magical mini reviews! These three books are all strangely magical, and I enjoyed them a lot. Reading them felt like going back and reading old fairytales, but in a way that feels vibrant and new. Also not fitting with the theme, I reviewed a graphic novel in addition to these three books. Just consider it as a bonus review of a book you should also read!

Book Series' I Need to Catch Up On

I'm generally quite on top of book series'. I avoid starting too many at once otherwise I know I'll never finish them. But there are always some that slip through the gaps and I end up falling behind. Surprisingly, the list of series' I'm behind on is 10 exactly, making it a perfect Top Ten Tuesday list!

Latest Love // More Comedies

Latest Love is a series of posts where I talk about a recent obsession. This could be a bookish obsession or otherwise - anything that has been making me happy recently that I feel like sharing. The important thing about this feature is that it isn't a review. This is just a way of me expressing a few reasons why I like something, and maybe find some more people to talk about it with. 😊

Summer TBR

Summer is starting, so it is the perfect time for me to share the books I plan to read this season! Just from looking at my TBR, I noticed that there aren't a lot of books I'd consider 'summery'. Even when the sun is out, it seems I just want to read dark books. But I never seem to stick to my reading plans, so I'm sure some fluffy contemporaries will sneak their way in somehow.

May Wrap Up // two new contemporary favourites

Sorry for the inactivity, friends! It's exam season and I've been a little preoccupied lately with applying for jobs, so I'm afraid I haven't been able to blog or read very much. I will respond to comments as soon as I can, but for now, the priority has to be essays. My last exam is June 12th, so hopefully a little after then I will be back to normal!

A Thousand Perfect Notes // beautiful and emotional

A Thousand Perfect Notes was stunning. It made me cry and broke my heart. Even when it pieced it back together again my chest still ached.  It is an emotionally driven, masterfully written debut that exceeded all of my expectations.

Latest Love // Avatar and The Legend of Korra

Latest Love is a series of posts where I talk about a recent obsession. This could be a bookish obsession or otherwise - anything that has been making me happy recently that I feel like sharing. The important thing about this feature is that it isn't a review. This is just a way of me expressing a few reasons why I like something, and maybe find some more people to talk about it with. 😊

I Was Born For This // finding something to believe in

I Was Born For This is another Alice Oseman book that I totally adored. Like Radio Silence, it took me a little while to get into the writing and the story, but once I did I completely fell in love with these characters and their chaotic lives.

Books I'd Slay a Lion to get Early

It's been a little while since I've done a Top 10 Tuesday post, but when I saw this topic I knew I couldn't skip it. There are so many books that haven't been published yet but that I need ASAP. Almost all of them are sequels to books I'm already obsessed with, and if they aren't then they are by authors I am obsessed with.

April Wrap Up // sci-fis and starfish

April was an amazing reading month! I discovered a new series obsession (Shatter Me) and a rare contemporary love (Starfish). Plus I caught up on the two latest volumes in a graphic novel series I've been following (Paper Girls). I probably would have read more had university not started again. I needed to re-read some of the sci-fi books I was assigned to write an essay on them (Dawn and The Gilda Stories). They weren't books I'd want to read more than once, and since I'd read them so recently, picking them up again was a bit of a chore. But they were still good books and my ratings for them stayed the same.

Starfish // a beautiful ray of sunlight

Starfish is a painfully beautiful contemporary about one girl's journey into self confidence and freedom. It captures a full spectrum of emotions with intense colour and detail, and every page is filled with so much raw truth that it still has its fishhooks in my heart.

Ignite Me // an epic story of growth and hope

Ignite Me was an endless roller-coaster of  drama and angst, and I was glued to every page. This series is so addictive, and unashamedly deserves a place on my favourites shelf.

Unravel Me // dark, intense, and addictive

Obsessed might be an understatement when it comes to me and this book. Unravel Me was packed with action and so much character development. I'm blinded by my adoration for this series to even acknowledge any flaws so excuse me if I get rambly and incoherent.

Shatter Me // fantastically twisted characters

I enjoyed Shatter Me way more than I could have ever expected! I had so much fun reading this book that I immediately had to pick up book 2.

Latest Love // Wholesome Comedies

Latest Love is a series of posts where I talk about a recent obsession. This could be a bookish obsession or otherwise - anything that has been making me happy recently that I feel like sharing. The important thing about this feature is that it isn't a review. This is just a way of me expressing a few reasons why I like something, and maybe find some more people to talk about it with. 😊

March Wrap Up // a mix of brilliant and meh books

I hope everyone has had a lovely month! My blog posting in March has been a little more spaced out than usual because I only took part in one Top Ten Tuesday post. I also didn't write a mini review post for the books I read for uni this month like usual because I didn't feel like I had more than a few lines to say about each of them. So to make up for the lack of my traditional mini review post, I'm going to give little summaries of my thoughts on all six books I read this month.

Ms. Marvel, Vol. 7 & 8 // I've missed this!

It's been too long since I'd last caught up with Ms. Marvel, so here are a couple of mini reviews for the last two issues. You can find my reviews for the first 6 issues here: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

Books on my Spring TBR

I am not happy with this recent cold weather. It feels like Spring has been postponed indefinitely. Snow is pretty and all, but I have to get to classes and the trains are not having it, nor am I happy to wait in cold train stations as cancellation after cancellation is announced. Hopefully posting this Spring TBR will show the world that I would quite like some warmer weather now, please and thank you. I was not made for the cold.

Latest Love // The Greatest Showman

Latest Love is a series of posts where I talk about a recent obsession. This could be a bookish obsession or otherwise - anything that has been making me happy recently that I feel like sharing. The important thing about this feature is that it isn't a review. This is just a way of me expressing a few reasons why I like something, and maybe find some more people to talk about it with. 😊

Children of Blood and Bone // a stunning debut

Children of Blood and Bone left me with CHILLS. Normally I don't purchase a book before finishing the eARC, but I was not even half way through the book before I pre-ordered it. I needed to have a physical copy in my hands that I could flip through over and over again. It is the fantasy novel I have always dreamt of, and every aspect of it is simply stunning.

Why I Have 4 TBR Lists

We all know the struggle of an overflowing TBR. Wanting to add all the books to your Goodreads shelf, knowing very well that you will never read them, is something I think we can all relate to. What those of you who follow me on Goodreads will have noticed, however, is that I don't just have one 'Want To Read' shelf. I have four.

To Kill a Kingdom // a great concept that I couldn't get into

To Kill a Kingdom was not a book that grabbed me from the beginning. The concept was great, but for some reason I could not get into it until the final quarter, which I actually really enjoyed.

February Wrap Up

The books I read this month were all fascinating looks into worlds of fantasy and science fiction. I didn't read all the books I had planned to in February, but that was to be expected. But what I did read was really engaging, and I enjoyed considering the boundaries of science fiction with the latter three books I read. Can dystopias, vampire stories, and tales of magic realism all be considered science fiction? Does the genre have limits or can it encompass everything? I'm not sure I have an answer to these questions yet, but they were interesting to consider.

Mini Reviews #5 // Dystopias, Vampires, and Magic Realism

These three stories are all about women who dare to imagine the world differently. Despite having different backgrounds, the characters in these stories are connected by worlds similar to our own, with twists of science fiction and fantasy that give an entirely new perspective to how we see the world.

Books I Could Re-Read Forever

Whenever life feels to busy for me to absorb new stories, I love going back to a book I've read once before. Re-reading allows you to revisit a story you already know and love to live it all over again, without the fear of what happens next. It's a more relaxed reading experience, and often you can find small gems that you missed before in your first read and make you fall in love with the book even more.

Latest Love // Teen Titans

Latest Love is a series of posts where I talk about a recent obsession. This could be a bookish obsession or otherwise - anything that has been making me happy recently that I feel like sharing. The important thing about this feature is that it isn't a review. This is just a way of me expressing a few reasons why I like something, and maybe find some more people to talk about it with. 😊