Tuesday 31 January 2017

Review | No-One Ever Has Sex In The Suburbs by Tracy Bloom

Image and video hosting by TinyPicNo-One Ever Has Sex In The Suburbs by Tracy Bloom
Series: No-One Ever Has Sex On A Tuesday #2
Published On: June 23, 2015
Published By: Lawsome Books
Genre: Chick Lit
Pages: 337
Format: eBook
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★½

Amazon | Goodreads

Ben and Katy haven't had sex since Ben found out about her one-night stand with her childhood sweetheart, Matthew. 
Not only that but the arrival of a new-born baby has blown their relationship apart like a hand grenade. 
Drastic measures are required, so they swap roles hoping that everyone will be happier... Only it’s not as easy as they thought. When a desperate Ben starts secretly accepting help to solve his childcare disasters – from Matthew’s wife – it could mean the end of everything. Can their relationship survive the lies and suspicions and will they ever have sex again?

No-One Ever Has Sex In The Suburbs is the sequel to a book I really enjoyed back in 2015, No-One Ever Has Sex On A Tuesday. I thought the first book was a lot of fun so when I discovered that there was a sequel I was excited to dive back into the lives of Katy, Ben, Matthew, Alison and all of their friends. I really hate to say it but this was such a disappointment for me. I was expecting it to be just as good as the first book and it really didn't live up to that standard at all.

After reading my review of the first book, this second book just seemed to be the complete opposite from everything I love in the first book. The only thing I did like in both books was that they were both fast-paced and the humour was still there in the second book. The plot did keep moving along quickly so although I wasn't necessarily enjoying it, I wasn't getting bored as things kept happening. The plot was a bit predictable though, nothing that happened surprised me at all. As I mentioned, this book did have the same humour as the first and I found myself trying not to laugh out loud in public a few times, though not as much as I had expected.

My favourite thing about the first book was the characters and I couldn't wait to be re-introduced to them. However, having children seemed to drastically change these people as I ended up hating almost all of the characters. I just couldn't stand they way they were behaving for the majority of the book. I thought Ben, who was one of my favourite characters, was incredibly immature. Alison annoyed me more than I can even put into words, I wanted to hit her at various points, and I'm not a violent person. And then we had Katy and Matthew, who were just boring and didn't really do much or bring a lot to the book at all. I still loved Daniel though, he had me cracking up and kept me sane while the other characters made me want to tear my hair out.

It really annoyed me while reading this that all of the big problems or issues seemed so trivial. I'm getting to tired of reading about characters that could solve all of their issues by having a decent conversation with their partner, and that was a major theme of this story. I'm not sure if I just don't fully understand the position these characters are in, having not yet had a baby or had to learn how to parent my child. Maybe I'm just not the right person to be reading this. As well as easily solved problems, a lot of the problems seemed very unrealistic to me. The main focus of the story is Ben struggling with being a first time father and being pretty clueless. As far as I am aware, every first time parent has those times where they feel like they don't know what they're doing and that's a pretty common knowledge thing. However, it was as though Ben was the only parent in the world to ever feel clueless. It just seemed stupid.

My other main problems with this book was that the relationships seemed unhealthy to me. I'm no expert on relationships but I often found myself thinking 'surely this isn't healthy in a relationship' multiple times while reading this. Surely it's not normal to just not talk to your partner about problems you have or how you're feeling? That was portrayed as completely normal in this book. I also couldn't understand why Ben felt the need to prove his ability as a father to such an extent. I can appreciate that he wanted to show Katy he could do it, but surely the first person you would go to with a parenting problem would be the other parent of the child? Again, this could be just because I don't have children yet and don't fully understand. Also Alison not letting Matthew parent his own children in any way seemed very odd to me! I couldn't get past that at all.

Overall, this book was sadly just a disappointment. Like I said, I'm not sure if I just didn't fully grasp the story due to having not yet had the experience of being a first time parent. I'm possibly not the right person to be reading this book, but from my inexperienced point of view I just found it to be quite problematic. To me, this was a case of a really good book that did not need to be ruined by an unnecessary sequel. I do still enjoy Tracy Bloom's writing and her humour so I will be picking up her other books at some point.

Friday 27 January 2017

Tag | The A-Z Book Survey

I saw the A-Z of books tag going around Booktube a while ago and became a little bit obsessed with watching it. I only recently discovered that the tag is actually a survey created by Jamie at The Perpetual Page Turner, whose blog I absolutely love, which made me want to do this even more.

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Author You've Read The Most Books From:
Louise Rennison - All 10 of the Confessions Of Georgia Nicholson books.

Best Sequel Ever:

Currently Reading:
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Drink Of Choice While Reading:
Irn-Bru - I'm so Scottish!

E-reader of Physical Book?:
I really love them both but I would probably have to say physical.

Fictional Character You Probably Would Have Dated In High School:
Josh from Isla And The Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins - he actually remind me of my high school boyfriend.

Glad You Gave This Book A Chance:
Where She Went by Gayle Forman - I didn't love If I Stay and a lot of people didn't like Where She Went as much but I gave it a chance and ended up loving it.

Hidden Gem Book:
Ignite by Lily Paradis - one of my all time favourite books that no-one seems to know about.

Important Moment Of Your Reading Life:
Discovering book blogs and booktube - they made me rediscover my love of reading.

Just Finished:
PS I Like You by Kasie West

Kinds Of Books You Won't Read:
I wouldn't completely rule out anything but I don't love high fantasy or super confusing sci-fi.

Longest Book You've Read:
Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix by JK Rowling at 870 pages.

Major Book Hangover Because Of:
Isla And The Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins - this is just a guess, I honestly don't remember.

Number Of Bookcases You Own:
Three - two are full and one is room for growth. I have another small one for uni textbooks as well.

One Book You Have Read Multiple Times:
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer - it's my guilty pleasure.

Preferred Place To Read:
On the sofa in front of my two bookcases. Or by the pool in some hot, sunny place but that doesn't happen too often.

Quote That Inspires You/Gives You All The Feels:
I'm not really a quote person but the one 'quote' from a book that really inspires me isn't even a book quote, it's one of the state mottos mentioned in Amy & Rodger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson - the Kansas state motto "to the stars through adversity". There are lots of quotes in books that inspire me, I just don't make a note of them like a lot of other people do.

Reading Regret: 
Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult - I regret that I spent so much time trying to get through this when I should have just DNFed.

Series You Started And Need To Finish (all the books are out):
Way too may, I've just done a post on it! If I had to choose one, The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare.

Three Of You're All Time Favourite Books:
3. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer (the nostalgia!)

Unapologetic Fangirl For:
Isla? Cecelia Ahern? I don't know.

Very Excited For This Release More Than All Others:
Perfect by Cecelia Ahern

Worst Bookish Habit:
Buying books that end up sitting on my shelf for years before I finally pick them up.

X Marks The Spot: Start at the top left of your shelf and pick the 27th book:

Your Latest Book Purchase:
The Sun Is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon & A Quiet Kind Of Thunder by Sara Barnard

ZZZ-Snatcher Book (the last book that kept you up WAY late):
I can't really remember but I think it was What Light by Jay Asher.

This was actually a lot of fun to do, I love these kinds of surveys/tags. Consider yourself tagged if you haven't done this yet.

Sophie :)

Wednesday 25 January 2017

Review | Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry

Image and video hosting by TinyPicPushing The Limits by Katie McGarry
Series: Pushing The Limits #1
Published On: June 1, 2012
Published By: Harelquin Teen
Genre: Contemporary
Pages: 392
Format: eBook
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with "freaky" scars on her arms. Even Echo can't remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal. But when Noah Hutchins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo's world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible. Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she'll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again..

The Pushing The Limits series has been getting some serious hype for as long as I can remember reading book blogs and watching booktube. For a while, everyone was talking about these books and I knew I was going to have to get around to reading them some time. Man am I glad I did!

This book is almost 400 pages and it honestly felt like it was only 100. I completely flew through it, and enjoyed every minute of it. I found myself needing to know what happened constantly and I just couldn't put it down. I often find with longer contemporary books that some parts drag or that it didn't need to be so long but definitely not with this book. There was something happening on every page and I didn't feel like it dragged at all, it was very fast paced.

Going into this I was just expecting, as I find to be quite normal in contemporary books, to only get one character's side of the story. It was a nice surprise to have the story from both Noah and Echo's points of view, I really loved that. I found it easier to get to know and connect with both characters when we got to experience situations from both perspectives, and really understand what was going on in the other person's head when a certain event happened. I really enjoyed getting to see both their lives outside of the developing relationship and experience both character's home lives and friendships.

Speaking of Noah and Echo, they were both really great characters. I enjoyed reading about both of them and, as I mentioned, from both points of view. I found it interesting, I don't really think enjoyed is the right word, to read about their personal struggles and see them overcome these throughout the book. I also found their relationship with Miss Collins, the guidance counsellor, very interesting, especially as she discovered how to get them to open up and the way she helped them through their personal issues.

One thing I really appreciated in this book is that the relationship problems weren't trivial. I'm so fed up of reading about couples who could solve all their problems if they just spoke to each other! With Noah and Echo, any problems they had within their relationship were important things that needed to be worked through, and they made an effort to talk to each other about them. That made a nice change.

I really loved the family aspect of this book, and the focus on different types of families. I have mentioned before that I love kids in books so Noah's brothers were absolutely my favourite characters in the whole book and I loved seeing him interact with them and the unusual relationship they had. I also really liked seeing how Echo's relationship with her father and Ashley evolved throughout the story. And then we had the emphasis on the fact that family is not always about blood when we got to see that Noah's family is essentially Beth and Isaiah, I found their relationship interesting as well.

Something a little different about this, that I totally wasn't expecting, was the added mystery element to the story. I really enjoyed trying to work out what happened to Echo and the mystery of how she ended up with the scars. Although I did work out a lot of what happened for myself while reading, I couldn't have worked out the whole story so it was a bit of an added shock factor that I wasn't expecting going into this book. I also liked how we got to see Echo working out what had happened seeing the memories coming back to her.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and loved the romance between Echo and Noah. As much as I loved all of the different dimensions to this story and seeing the many layers of the great characters, there was just something that made this not quite a 5 star read for me. I honestly can't pinpoint why. it just wasn't up there with my other 5 star reads. However, I'm definitely looking forward to continuing in this series.

Tuesday 24 January 2017

Top Ten Tuesday | Top Ten Series I Want To Read In 2017

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Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke And The Bookish. Lists galore, I can think of nothing better!

It has been way too long since I have done a Top Ten Tuesday but I'm excited to get back into it. This week's theme was a freebie and since I have been talking a lot about my 2017 goals recently, I thought I would continue the trend and talk about the series I want to start/finish/continue with this year.

To Finish:

1. The Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan
I own all of these books and have read, and enjoyed, the first two but have yet to get around to the next three. These are pretty short and very fast-paced so I know I can fly through them all and get them done this year if I make the effort.

2. Flawed duology by Cecelia Ahern
I read and absolutely adored the first book in this series last year and the conclusion Perfect is my most anticipated release of the year. I have no doubt I will finish this series this year, unless of course Cecelia Ahern decides to continue with the series but I think that's unlikely

3. Unwind dystology by Neal Shusterman
I read the first two books in this series a few years ago and have been saying I'll finish the series for the past couple of years. I now own book 3 so I feel like I at least need to read that this year, but hopefully I can finish it as I really loved the first two.

4. Summer trilogy by Jenny Han
This is a bit different as this series I just want to finish to get it off my shelf. I have read the first one and didn't love it, it was pretty average. Maybe this series will get better but I just want to get it finished as I have had the three book bind-up on my bookshelf for so long I'm fed up looking at it.

To Continue:

5. The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
I finally read the first book in this series last year and loved it so I want to continue this year. I would love to be able to finish it this year but I don't think that'll happen. I would like to at least read books 2 & 3.

6. Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead
I read book one a couple of years ago and really need to continue. I really enjoyed book one and I know that these books are really quick to read so I don't know why I haven't continued yet. Again, I would like to read at least books 2 & 3.

To Start:

7. The Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare
This is probably the only series that I'm justified in not having yet started. Obviously there is a specific order that it is best to read all of the Shadowhunters books in and, according to Goodreads, it is best to read book 1 of TID after reading the first 3 TMI books. So that is the plan for this year.

8. The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer
I know, I've been saying I plan to read this every year for the past three years but I definitely have great plans to read at least the first book in the series this year. I don't know why I haven't gotten around to it yet!

9. The Lux series by Jennifer L Armentrout
This is another series I have been wanting to read for a good while and just haven't yet. The bind-up of the first two books is the only book I own that fits one of my Around The Year In 52 Books categories so I'm hoping that will mean I have to read the first two books this year.

10. Pushing The Limits series by Katie McGarry
I am slightly cheating with this one because I have actually already started this series as I read the first book at the very start of the year. Since I planned to start it in 2017 and did, I'm still counting it for this list. This is a series that has been on my TBR for years.

Those are my series reading plans for 2017, although there is a good chance I won't get to about half of these. I am going to try and make a conscious effort to get through these but we will see how I get on. What series are you really wanting to read this year?

Sophie :)

Friday 20 January 2017

Review | The Book Thief by Marcus Zucak

Image and video hosting by TinyPicThe Book Thief by Marcus Zusak
Published On: March 14, 2006
Published By: Black Swan
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 554
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★★½

Amazon | Goodreads

It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . . 
Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.

This book is so well-loved around the world and to be honest that is why it has taken me until 2017 to pick it up. Hype scares me. I always put off reading the most hyped books for fear of being disappointed, and the majority of the time I'm left wondering why on earth I didn't pick the book up sooner. That was the case for The Book Thief. This was such a powerful, important read, especially for younger people to understand the impact of the Second World War.

This was my first foray into historical fiction, and what a great book to choose. I have always been a little scared of historical fiction, if I'm honest. It's a genre I have always considered out of my comfort zone, which is probably another reason why it has taken me so long to get to this book. Although I haven't read any others to compare, I would definitely suggest this book as one to get you into historical fiction if you're not sure where to start.

One of my main worries with historical fiction was that it wouldn't be as fast paced as I like, and the story wouldn't hold my attention because of this. However, in this book at least, I thought the pacing was great. It was a bit slower paced than I tend to like but the story didn't drag and it still kept my attention. I actually really appreciated the slower pace as it gave me time to properly take in what was going on.

A quality this book is well-known for is it's very unique narration. I know a lot of people, including myself, are initially drawn to this book after discovering the book is narrated by Death. I was so intrigued by that aspect as it is definitely not something I have ever read before. I actually very much enjoyed Death as a narrator, which I wasn't sure I would, and thought it added much to the story to see it told through his eyes. As well as the unique narrator, the way the book was written was very unique. The notes from Death throughout the story were an interesting addition, though I didn't always like them.

The one thing that did hinder my enjoyment slightly was the way in which Death basically spoils the whole plot for the reader. As I mentioned, I didn't always like the notes from Death, in particular when they just explained what was about to happen in the story, or how the whole story ends. I felt as though the major events could have been much more impactful had I not already known what was to come. I often found myself waiting for a specific event to happen and then when it did I often felt a bit underwhelmed. However, I will admit I did still get emotional over many of the events, despite knowing they were coming.

My only other issue with this book, though it didn't bother me too much, was that I felt a little bit disconnected from the characters. I think this was due to the book being narrated by Death. Like I said, it didn't bother me hugely I just didn't feel the connection I would like to have had with the characters and that would likely have been different with a different narrator, although I'm not sure the book would be just as great without that unique aspect.

Overall, this book was most definitely worth the hype. I wish I had read it sooner, I think I may have enjoyed it even more when I was younger, but I am glad to have gotten to it eventually. As I mentioned, I would definitely recommend this book if you are just getting into the historical fiction genre, as I found it to be a great introduction.

Thursday 19 January 2017

Tag | The New Year's Resolutions Book Tag

I recently saw one of my favourite booktubers BooksAndLala do this tag and it looked like a great way to discover specific books to put to the top of my TBR list for 2017. I'm not sure who created the tag originally but I think it has been going around for a few years now. I haven't been tagged but i'm going to join in anyway.

1. An author you'd like to read that you've never read before
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There are so many authors I could say for this question as the majority of the books on my shelves (I think) are by authors I haven't read yet. However, I have four of Giovanna's books and have yet to pick one up. I love her as a person so I'm a little worried that I won't love her books as much as I love her. This is the year I pick one up though.






2. A book you'd like to read
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The honest answer to this question is really all of the books! However, I don't think that is in any way physically possible. I have been hearing loads about With Malice by Eileen Cook since it was published last year and have been desperate to get to it. This one is very near the top of my TBR this year.








3. A classic you'd like to read
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I'm really not a huge classics reader, even though I probably should at least make some kind of attempt to be. The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald is the only classic I currently own, and this is only because I got it for free on iBooks. I've been meaning to get to it for a couple of years now but hopefully this is the year it happens.







4. A book you'd like to re-read
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Every year there are loads of books I decide I want to reread and I usually get to one of two. Last year one of those I wanted to get to was The Selection by Kiera Cass. I didn't manage it in 2016 but I'm hoping I can pick it back up in 2017. I would also really like to reread Flawed by Cecelia Ahern before I get to Perfect.






5. A book you've had for ages and want to read
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I don't even want to think about how long Heart Of The Matter by Emily Giffin has been sitting on my bookshelves. I picked this up a good 4/5 years ago after reading and loving Something Borrowed and Something Blue, Emily Giffin's Darcy & Rachel series, but have somehow never picked this up. I'm going to make a real effort to read it this year.






6. A big book you'd like to read
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Lux: Beginnings by Jennifer L Armentrout is currently the biggest book I have on my shelf, which may be something to do with it actually being two books in one. I've been wanting to start the Lux series for a while and again I just haven't gotten to it. This is the only book that fits for one of my Around The Year In 52 Books challenges, so hopefully that'll be the push I need to get this one read.






7. An author you've previously read and want to read more of
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I definitely want to read more Kasie West in 2017. I have read two of her books and loved them both, and have two more of her books that I got for Christmas and can't wait to get to soon.








8. A book you got for Christmas and would like to read
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As well as the Kasie West books I just mentioned, The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken is another book I received as a Christmas gift and would really like to read in 2017.









9. A series you want to read (start and finish)
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I'm cheating a little bit on this question since I have technically already started the Pushing The Limits series by Katie McGarry. I did only just start it this month though, so I say it still counts. I loved the first book and would really like to read as much as I can of this series this year.







10. A series you want to finish that you've already started
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I started the Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy in 2016 and while I didn't love it, I would like to finish the series this year, mainly just to get it off my shelves. The first book was a pretty quick read and I'm hoping the others are the same.








11. Do you set any reading goals? If so, how many books do you want to read in 2017?
My goodreads goal for this year is 50 books.

12. Any other reading goals?
You can check out my 2017 Reading Goals post if you want to find out about this years goals.

Anyone who hasn't done this tag, consider yourself tagged!

Sophie :)

Tuesday 17 January 2017

2017 | Most Anticipated Releases

As always there are so many amazing books being published in 2017, making it ever harder to actually read the books I already own! Though I haven't really looked into many of the books being released in 2017, in an attempt to prevent too much book buying, there are some that I am really looking forward to. These are my top 5.

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Perfect by Cecelia Ahern - Flawed by Cecelia Ahern was my favourite book of 2016 so obviously I cannot wait for the second book in the series, which I'm 90% sure is the last, Perfect. Flawed is a dystopian series about a world in which those who are not considered perfect, the Flawed, are treated very poorly in society. Like I said, I loved the first book so much that I'm desperate to get my hands on the second book, so the fact it has already been released in Germany makes me kind of mad, I need to learn German!

By Your Side by Kasie West - I've loved everything I have read by Kasie West so far and have got to the point where I will pick up anything she writes. This one sounds great as it follows a girl and boy locked in a library for a weekend. That's pretty much a book-lovers dream, right? I expect this to be just as cute as all of her other books.

The Names They Gave Us by Emery Lord - I seem to have a habit of picking up Emery Lord's books and not getting around to reading them. I have read one and loved it which makes me excited for more of her books. This one is about a girl who is working with her boyfriend at a Bible camp over summer and as someone who has worked at several Bible camps over the past few years, I don't care what else happens I already think that sounds amazing. Also, the UK cover for this is just beautiful.

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon - From what I know about this book it is essentially about a modern day arranged marriage with a difference. I really don't know much but that had me pretty much sold. It seems to be a cute, funny read that everyone who got there hands on an ARC has loved.

There's Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins - It's Stephanie Perkins. The woman could write a takeaway menu and I would read it! This book couldn't be further from the Anna trilogy but it still sounds incredible. It is essentially a slasher horror about students at a high school being murdered one-by-one. If that doesn't interest you, it's described as 'Scream meets YA', which sounds epic to me.

There really are some amazing sounding books heading our way in 2017, it looks like it'll be a really great year. What are you most looking forward to this year? Are you excited for an of the books I mentioned?

Sophie :)

Saturday 14 January 2017

Reading Plans | Around The Year In 52 Books

As I mentioned in my 2017 reading goals post, I am taking part in the Around The Year In 52 Books challenge this year. I decided it would be a good idea to share my rough plan for this challenge. I can't guarantee these are the books I'll actually read for each challenge but this gives me an idea of what to pick up, and I would love any suggestions for the categories as there are a few I struggled to find books for.

1. A book from the Goodreads Choice Awards 2016 - PS I Like You by Kasie West
2. A book with at least 2 perspectives (multiple points of view) - Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
3. A book you meant to read in 2016 - Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
4. A title that doesn't contain the letter "E" - How I Lost You by Jenny Blackhurst
5. A historical fiction - The Book Thief by Marcus Zusack
6. A book being released as a movie in 2017 - Wonder by RJ Palacio/Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson & Lauren Myracle
7. A book with an animal on the cover or in the title - The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson
8. A book written by a person of color - The Sun Is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon
9. A book in the middle of your To Be Read list - Heart Of The Matter by Emily Giffin
10. A dual-timeline novel - I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson
11. A category from another challenge - 'A book with a title that's a character's name' - Billy And Me by Giovanna Fletcher
12. A book based on a myth - The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan
13. A book recommended by one of your favorite authors - Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (rec by Kiera Cass)
14. A book with a strong female character - Cinder by Marissa Meyer
15. A book written or set in Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Iceland) - The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
16. A mystery - Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
17. A book with illustrations - F In Exams: The Big Book Of Test Paper Blunders by Richard Benson
18. A really long book (600+ pages) - Lux: Beginnings (Obsidian & Onyx) by Jennifer L Armentrout
19. A New York Times best-seller - All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
20. A book that you've owned for a while but haven't gotten around to reading - Dear John by Nicholas Sparks
21. A book that is a continuation of a book you've already read - Frostbite by Richelle Mead
22. A book by an author you haven't read before - With Malice by Eileen Cook
23. A book from the BBC "The Big Read" list - Goodnight Mr Tom by Michelle Magorian
24. A book written by at least two authors - How To Be Bad by E Lockhart, Lauren Myracle & Sarah Mlynowski
25. A book about a famous historical figure - My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton & Jodi Meadows
26. An adventure book - The Battle Of The Labyrinth by Rick Riordan
27. A book by one of your favorite authors - The Year I Met You by Cecelia Ahern
28. A non-fiction - The New Arrival by Sarah Beeson
29. A book published outside the 4 major publishing houses (Simon & Schuster; HarperCollins; Penguin Random House; Hachette Livre) - check all the editions - Engaged In Trouble by Jenny B Jones
30. A book from Goodreads Top 100 YA Books - Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry
31. A book from a sub-genre of your favorite genre - The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West (YA Contemporary Romance)
32. A book with a long title (5+ words, excluding subtitle) - Just A Girl Standing In Front Of A Boy by Lucy-Anne Holmes
33. A magical realism novel - A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
34. A book set in or by an author from the Southern Hemisphere - The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty
35. A book where one of the main characters is royalty - The Kiss Of Deception by Mary E Pearson
36. A Hugo Award winner or nominee - Saga Volume 1 by Brian K Vaughan
37. A book you choose randomly - 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
38. A novel inspired by a work of classic literature - Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge
39. An epistolary fiction - Bridget Jones' Baby by Helen Fielding
40. A book published in 2017 - Perfect by Cecelia Ahern
41. A book with an unreliable narrator - You by Caroline Kepnes
42. A best book of the 21st century (so far) - City Of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
43. A book with a chilling atmosphere (scary, unsettling, cold) - Room by Emma Donoghue
44. A recommendation from "What Should I Read Next" - What I Thought Was True by Huntley Fitzpatrick
45. A book with a one-word title - Panic by Lauren Oliver
46. A time travel novel - The Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone
47. A past suggestion that didn't win - 'A Script' - Harry Potter And The Cursed Child by John Tiffany, Jack Thorne & JK Rowling
48. A banned book - 1984 by George Orwell
49. A book from someone else's bookshelf - Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma
50. A Penguin Modern Classic - any edition - The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald
51. A collection (e.g. essays, short stories, poetry, plays) - Summer Days And Summer Nights anthology
52. A book set in a fictional location - Throne Of Glass by Sarah J Maas

Let me know if you can think of a better suggestion for any of these categories, I could definitely use the help.

Sophie :)

Saturday 7 January 2017

2017 | Reading Goals

I really love setting myself specific reading goals at the beginning of each year to encourage myself to change my reading habits. Like I mentioned in my 2016 challenge wrap up, I went a bit overboard with the reading challenges last year so I decided to change things a bit for 2017. In terms of official reading challenges, I only plan to do one challenge on top of my Goodreads challenge for the year. I also have some more lenient reading goals for myself, to make things more relaxed.


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Goodreads Challenge

2017 Reading Challenge

Sophie has read 0 books toward her goal of 50 books.
hide

Again I am trying for 50 books in 2017. I managed it in 2015 but not last year so I need to push myself to get back on track with my reading. I really want to get this goal to 100 in the not to distant future.

Around The Year In 52 Books Challenge
This is a challenge run through a Goodreads group that I took part in for the second half of last year and really enjoyed. This is my main challenge for 2017 and the challenge list looks great for this year! The idea of this challenge is to read 52 books, one for each week of the year, from a list of 52 challenge prompts. I will be sharing my rough reading plan with you so please share any recommendations for the challenges with me.

Like I said, as well as my challenges I also have some general reading goals for 2107.

- Get my physical TBR under 100 books
I have about 150 physical books on my shelves that are unread, which I think is obscene, and that isn't even counting ebooks or audiobooks! I'm running out of space on my shelves and I've already ran out of space for more shelves so I need to tackle that.

- Read 5 before buying
To help with my space problem I want to cut back on my book buying. I am hoping I can stick to the challenge of reading 5 books before I buy any more. I am still going to allow myself to buy ebooks if I really want to, since that doesn't take up shelf space.

- Read more ebooks
For the past couple of years I have taken part in an ebook reading challenge, however this year that challenge isn't being run (as far as I know). Rather than find another one to join, I decided to just give myself the goal of reading more, rather than a specific number. I read 9 in 2016 so if I top that I'll be happy.

- Read more series
Again this is something I set myself a challenge for last year but decided to be a bit more relaxed with this year. I have so many unfinished series and loads that I want to start but haven't got around to so I would like to make an effort to get to them.

- Get back into audiobooks
I really got into audiobooks in 2015 but didn't listen to a single one in 2016. I have about 14 audiobooks in my audible library and had to cancel my subscription last year because I wasn't taking advantage of it. I would like to get through as many of the 14 as possible but even if I get through 2 I'll be happy.

- Read what I want
I have always been one for making a TBR list for each month and being determined to stick to it as much as possible but I often find I'm forcing myself to read things I don't really feel like reading. This year I want to be more lenient with myself and just read whatever I fancy. Obviously it would be helpful if the book I felt like reading fit into the Around The Year In 52 Books challenges but I'm going to try not to put too much pressure on myself to read specific books.

I also have a few blog related goals for the year.

- Blog more consistently
Things were a bit mad in 2016 and blogging took a back seat, which meant I would be consistent for a few weeks and then disappear again. I would like to try and post once a week at the very least, unless I'm going on holiday like I am next week, but ideally 3 times a week.

- Have more variety
For the entirety of 2016 this blog consisted of pretty much only wrap ups, hauls, TBRs and the odd review. Mostly that was due to the fact I didn't have the time to think about anything else I wanted to post. I would really like to branch out and get some more interesting content on here.

- Keep up to date with reviews
I am so terrible when it comes to reviewing books! As soon as I finish a book I write up notes for my review but it can often be 3/4 months later, or even more sometimes, before I finally write the review. By that point my notes don't give me enough to write a good review, which isn't helpful. I'm going to aim to write my reviews no more than a week after finishing the book.

- Bookstagram
I created an Instagram account for this blog ages ago and did nothing at all with it so I decided at the beginning of the year to finally start using it. I'm not very creative or great with photography but I'm going to give it a go. I really just want to have a been able to photograph every book I read this year to look back on. If you would like to follow my name is DreamingOfHappyEndings.

Those are my slightly more relaxed goals for 2017. What are your reading goals for the year?

Sophie :)


Friday 6 January 2017

2016 | Most Disappointing Of 2016

Unfortunately, throughout your reading life, there are often books you expect more from and are left disappointed. This could be book you expect to like and end up hating, or just a book you wanted to love but it didn't quite reach 5 star level. I didn't want to share my least favourite books of the year and just end up bashing someones hard work, but I thought I would share 5 books that disappointed me in 2016.

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Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding - I absolutely love this movie and heard such great things about the book that I really expected to love it. I thought it would be the perfect summer read, especially as it's on so many summer reading lists. However, I ended up having so many problems with it. I didn't like the informality of the writing - I know it's meant to be a diary but when you start to miss out 'the' and similar words it just becomes too informal for my liking. There was also a lot of unhealthy talk about weight that I just didn't like.

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon - I was so excited to read this because everyone was raving about it for months following its publication. The premise was intriguing and I really loved the unique way it was written but I had some problems I just couldn't ignore. I gave it 3 stars as I did enjoy it, but had it ended differently and the problems I had were resolved, it would have easily been a 4 star read.

Confessions Of A Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella - This was possibly my most disappointing read of the year. Everyone loves Sophie Kinsella and this series in particular but I really did not like this book. I had so many problems with the main character and a lot of the plot points, it just wasn't for me. I have a full review if you want to know more of my thoughts.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell - This was more a case of I really liked it but I wanted to love it. This is a favourite for so many people and I really did want to love it. I definitely loved aspects of it but I couldn't take to a lot of the 'fanfic' aspect. I thought it was a great extra dimension to Cath, the main character, and loved reading the sections of the fanfic, but I think it was taken a bit too far for my liking.

The Crown by Kiera Cass - I really liked this book, don't get me wrong, but it was a slightly disappointing conclusion to the series. I was disappointed as soon as my copy first arrived because of how short it was. The final two books in The Selection series just don't like up to the original trilogy in general, but I think my biggest disappointment was just how it ended. I'm not used to shipping the couple that doesn't work out and, as much as I understand why Eadlyn didn't end up with the boy I wanted, it still made me a little bit mad. I planned to do a full spoiler review discussing my thoughts back in May when I read it but never got around to it, let me know if I should still go ahead and do it.

Like I said, these weren't necessarily books I didn't enjoy from 2016, but in some way I was disappointed. Let me know you're thoughts on these books and what books disappointed you in 2016?

Sophie :)

Thursday 5 January 2017

2016 | Reading Challenge Wrap Up

Considering how well my reading year went in general, I really don't think the final results of any of my 2016 challenges will be a surprise. At least I tried, right? Here's hoping 2017 is the year I finally complete all my reading challenges!

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Goodreads Challenge - 50 Books
I only managed 36 books in 2016, which is the least I've read in a year since I started blogging. There were a lot of factors to my lack of reading in 2016 that hopefully won't be an issue this year.
Failure - 36/50

Ebook Reading Challenge - Level 2: Bytes - 10 Books
This was hosted by Annette at Annette's Book Spot and it's one I love to take part in as it really encourages me to read more ebooks. I was so close with this one, I could easily have completed it but I just ran out of time. 
Failure - 9/10

Books Read: 
1. Ignite by Lily Paradis
2. The Grownup by Gillian Flynn
3. UnStrung by Neal Shusterman
4. I Want It That Way by Ann Aguirre
5. The New Girl by Tracie Puckett
6. The Walking Dead Issue 1 by Robert Kirkman
7. Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding
8. Anna And The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
9. Happy Again by Jennifer E Smith

Audiobook Challenge - Newbie: 1-5 Books
This was hosted by The Book Nympho and Hot Listens. I started getting into audiobook back in 2015 and really enjoyed them so thought this would encourage me to listen to more. It would appear this had the opposite effect as I didn't listen to any audiobooks in 2016.
Failure - 0/5

TBR Pile Reading Challenge - 11-20: A Friendly Hug
This was hosted by Bookish Lifestyle and it's a challenge I really need to give up on. I give myself different criteria for each year and for 2016 I was counting any book in my TBR jar, which is about 90% of the books I own so I don't even know how I managed to fail this - for the third year in a row I must add. I was pretty close to the lower threshold this year, though.
Failure - 10/20

Books Read:
1. The DUFF by Kody Keplinger
2. I Want It That Way by Ann Aguirre
3. The New Girl by Tracie Puckett
4. City Of Bones by Cassandra Clare
5. Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson
7. The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
8. Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding
9. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
10. The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Popsugar Reading Challenge
This one only made it to the middle of the year. I started this but didn't really like the challenge list so changed to one I liked better, the Around The Year in 52 Books challenge.
Gave Up - 14/40

Around The Year In 52 Books Challenge
This is a challenge hosted on Goodreads with a similar idea to the Popsugar challenge. It is a list of 52 challenges, one for each week of the year. I much preferred this list and the Goodreads group is like a little community. I didn't do as well a I hoped in this challenge but considering I only started it around June, I don't think I did too badly.
Acceptable - 30/52

Finish 5 Series
This was a personal challenge to get me to finish some of the series I started then put off. That didn't really go to plan though.
Failure - 2/5

Books Read:
1. Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince by JK Rowling
1. Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling
2. Happily Ever After by Kiera Cass
2. The Crown by Kiera Cass

Start 5 Series
Another personal challenge as I have so many first books in series on my shelves that I really need to get to . I'm pleased to say I made a pretty good dent in that collection of series to start by accomplishing this goal.
Success - 7/5

Books Read:
1. Confessions Of A Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
2. City Of Bones by Cassandra Clare
3. Flawed by Cecelia Ahern
4. I Want It That Way by Ann Aguirre
5. The New Girl by Tracie Puckett
6. The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
7. Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding

I think I probably took on a few too many challenges in 2016, which led to me failing most of my challenges pretty miserably. How did you do with your 2016 goals?

Sophie :)

Wednesday 4 January 2017

2016 | End Of Year Survey

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I have loved taking part in Jamie's (The Perpetual Page Turner) End Of Year Survey for the past couple of years so of course I'm going to be doing it again for 2016. I will be missing some questions out that I don't have decent answers to, specifically the blogging related questions since I have been a terrible blogger this year. Check out Jamie's post for the complete survey.


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Number Of Books You Read: 36
Number Of Re-Reads: 2
Genre You Read The Most From: YA Contemporary

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1. Best book you read in 2016?
Flawed by Cecelia Ahern

2. Book you were excited about & thought you were going to love more but didn't?
Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon - everyone seems to love this book but it was just average for me. I had a lot of problems with aspects of the plot and that did affect my enjoyment.

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?
I Want It That Way by Ann Aguirre - I didn't expect much from this and was pleasantly surprised that I actually really enjoyed it.

4. Book you "pushed" the most people to read (and they did)?
I didn't really do a lot of book pushing in 2016. I made my mum read The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins but she wasn't a fan.

5. Best series you started in 2016? Best sequel of 2016? Best series ender of 2016?
Series started: Flawed by Cecelia Ahern
Sequel: Does Happily Ever After by Kiera Cass count?
Series Ender: Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling

6. Favourite new author you discovered in 2016?
Jay Asher, Sandy Hall, Kody Keplinger, Corrine Jackson, Ann Aguirre, Cassandra Clare - there were so many!

7. Best book from a genre you don't typically read/was out of your comfort zone?
Lying About Last Summer by Sue Wallman - I think this is the first YA mystery/thriller I have read and I really enjoyed it. It was the perfect amount of creepy with a great mystery element.

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?
Other than Lying About Last Summer that I just mentioned, The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins was definitely thrilling and unputdownable.

9. Book you read in 2016 that you are most likely to re-read next year?
Flawed by Cecelia Ahern - hopefully I can get around to re-reading it before the second book comes out.

10. Favourite cover of a book you read in 2016?
What Light by Jay Asher - there is no competition here, that cover is absolutely beautiful and possible one of my favourites of all time.

11. Most memorable character of 2016? 
I'm having a hard time remembering many of the characters I read about in 2016, simply because I have a terrible memory! I really loved Caleb from What Light so probably him.

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2016?
Love Is The Higher Law by David Levithan - 9/11, I can only imagine, is a damn hard topic to write a book about but David Levithan did a great job.

13. Most thought-provoking/life changing book of 2016?
I would have to say Love Is The Higher Law again.

14. Book you can't believe you waited until 2016 to finally read?
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell & City Of Bones by Cassandra Clare - both are books I should have read a long time ago.

15. Favourite passage/quote from a book you read in 2016?
"I think if you were somehow able to measure the weight of human kindness, it would have weighed more on 9/11 than it ever had. On 9/11, all the hatred and murder could not compare with the weight of love, of bravery, and of caring." - I mentioned this quote in my review of Love Is The Higher Law and with all of the terrible things happening in the world in 2016, this really stuck with me.


16. Shortest and longest book you read in 2016?
( I covered this in my stats post so this time I'm not including novellas/graphic novel issues)
Shortest: The Grownup by Gillian Flynn - 64 pages
Longest: Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling - 620 pages

17. Book that shocked you the most?
Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling - I knew about all of the major deaths in this series but there was one very early on in this book that I didn't know about and it completely shocked me.

18. OTP of the year?
Eadlyn & Kile from The Heir/The Crown by Kiera Cass (don't even get me started!) or Clary & Jace from City of Bones by Cassandra Clare.

19. Favourite non-romantic relationship of the year?
Nadia & Sam from I Want It That Way by Ann Aguirre - I love kids in NA books and Nadia's relationship with Ty's son was just adorable.

20. Favourite book you read in 2016 from an author you read previously?
Flawed by Cecilia Ahern or, to mention a book I haven't mentioned yet, On The Fence by Kasie West.

21. Best book you read in 2016 that you read based solely on a recommendation from somebody else/peer pressure?
Harry Potter - I finally finished the series this year and I only picked it up in the first place purely because I was getting pressured constantly.

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2016?
Seriously, I have to choose just one? Here's the top 3:
Caleb - What Light by Jay Asher
Wes - The DUFF by Kody Keplinger
Graham - This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E Smith

23. Best 2016 debut you read?
I think Lying About Last Summer by Sue Wallman was the only one I read.

24. Best worldbuilding/most vivid setting you read this year?
The Sea Of Monsters by Rick Riordan - from what I've read so far it seems Rick Riordan's books always have great settings.

25. Book that put a smile on your face/was the most fun to read?
A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall - the unique way this story is told made it so fun to read. I mean, what isn't fun about reading from the POV of a squirrel or a bench.

26. Book that made you cry or nearly cry in 2016?
I cry at everything! If I Lie by Corinne Jackson had me sobbing for the last chunk of the book.

27. Hidden gem of the year?
Lying About Last Summer by Sue Wallman - I've not heard anyone talk about it but I really liked it.

28. Book that crushed your soul?
Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows - do I need to explain?

29. Most unique book you read in 2016? 
Again, definitely A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall.

30. Book that made you the most mad (doesn't necessarily mean you didn't like it)?
The Crown by Kiera Cass - I really liked this book, don't get me wrong, but I was so angry with how it ended. I still get mad just thinking about it.

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1. One book you didn't get to in 2016 but will be your number 1 priority in 2017?
Cinder by Marissa Meyer - there are so many but I gave The Lunar Chronicles as my answer to this question last year so I think it's definitely about time.

2. Book you are most anticipating for 2017 (non-debut)?
By Your Side by Kasie West - I adore Kasie West and this sounds amazing.

3. 2017 debut you are most anticipating?
When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon - so many people are talking about this and it sounds so interesting.

4. Series ending/a sequel you are most anticipating in 2017?
Perfect by Cecelia Ahern. the sequel/conclusion to Flawed.

5. One thing you hope to accomplish or do in your reading/blogging life in 2017?
I'm hoping to be able to find a good balance between read/blogging and uni life. I really struggled to find the time when I started my new course in September, as it is much more work than the last.

6. A 2017 release you've already read and recommend to everyone?
I haven't read any yet.

Well that took longer than I thought it would! That is my 2016 reading year, I hope you had a great one.

Sophie :)

Tuesday 3 January 2017

2016 | Top 8 Books Of 2016

Every year in January I see so many blog post and youtube videos discussing a varying number of favourite books of the year. I don't think I have ever done this any other year but I decided since I have been so negative about my reading year in 2016 it would be good to be positive. So rather than complain about not reading much in 2016, today I thought I would share my top 8 books I read in 2016 (this started as 5, I just couldn't narrow it down - oops!).

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Flawed by Cecelia Ahern - My favourites of the year are pretty much in no particular order but this is the exception. Flawed is definitely my favourite book I read this year and was the only book, other than one re-read, I gave 5 stars to. I adore Cecelia Ahern and have loved everything I have read by her but I was unsure about her first foray into YA. This is the first book in a dystopian duology about a world in which anyone who is not 'Perfect' is branded as 'Flawed' and treated poorly in society. I loved this concept and thought it was executed perfectly, with some really great characters.

If I Lie by Corrine Jackson - This was one of those books I picked up completely on a whim and was so pleasantly surprised by it. This is about a girl who is caught cheating on her military boyfriend and is basically shunned by her entire community, however it's not all as it seems but to explain she would need to share a secret she is keeping for her boyfriend. This was a really heartbreaking and although I had a few issues with a couple of things, that didn't spoil my overall enjoyment of the book.

On The Fence by Kasie West - I read The Distance Between Us by Kasie West in 2015 and loved it so it was no surprise when I really loved this one as well. This was pretty much your typical tomboy/'one of the guys' girls who want to be noticed as a girl kind of story but had an additional family aspect that really added to the story. Kasie West always seems to write really great characters and this book was no exception.

What Light by Jay Asher - For someone who loves Christmas as much as I do, I rarely read Christmas themed books, so when I heard about this one I was so excited to get my hands on it. This was a perfect book to get me in the Christmas mood and just generally gave me the warm and fuzzy feels. I loved the Christmas tree farm aspect and all the characters holiday traditions but also the story in general was really great. This is one I will definitely try to re-read for many Christmases to come.

A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall - I had my eye on this for a while but it wasn't something I was expecting great things from, I was just intrigued by the concept. I finally picked it up because I wanted something short and I'm so glad I did. This is such an interesting concept as it is told from multiple perspective, none of which being the main characters. It reminded me a lot of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, which I also read this year, but with only my favourite parts. This was so unique and I loved it.

The DUFF by Kody Keplinger - I read this one towards the beginning of the year so, if I'm being honest, the details are a bit hazy. I just remember this being a really fun read. Although there were some more serious aspects, it was just generally fun and I really loved that the relationship was quite true to life and relatable, as I mentioned a bit about in my review.

Happily Ever After by Kiera Cass - It's no secret that The Selection series by Kiera Cass is one of my favourite series, however I was not as much of a fan of the final two books as the original trilogy. Happily Ever After is a collection of the novellas from the original trilogy, so I absolutely loved getting back into the series and revisiting the characters that I fell in love with. You can check out my review for more of my thoughts.

City Of Bones by Cassandra Clare - 2016 was the year I finally started The Mortal Instruments series. I know, I'm so behind with reading this series but I did eventually get around to it. I'm pretty sure everyone knows what this is about by now so all I really need to say is this was great! I don't know why I put it off for so long, and I really don't know why I haven't continued with the series yet.

I didn't think I had read many great books this year but it turns out trying to narrow it down to my top 5 was just impossible, hence why this is my top 8. I guess looking back I had a much better reading year than I thought, even if I didn't read very many books, or a lot of 5 star reads. What was your favourite book you read in 2016?

Sophie :)

2016 | Statistics

Last year I compiled a little reading statistics survey based on a similar one created by some other bloggers mentioned here. I found it very interesting to see my reading for the year broken down into different categories like that so I wanted to do the same for 2016, with some extra statistics I found interesting.

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Number Of Books Read...
- In Total: 36
- Under 250 Pages (not including novellas): 6 (+2 novellas)
- Between 251-399: 20
- Between 400-449: 4
- Between 450-499: 1
- Over 500: 3

Number Of Pages Read...
- In Total: 10,328

Number Of...
- Hardcovers: 3
- Paperbacks: 24
- Ebooks: 9
- Audiobooks: 0
- Re-Reads: 2
- DNFs: 1

Number Of Books Rated...
- 5 Stars: 2
- 4.5 Stars: 3
- 4 Stars: 13
- 3.5 Stars: 6
- 3 Stars: 7
- 2.5 Stars: 0
- 2 Stars: 5
- 1.5 Stars: 0
- 1 Star: 0

Authors Read..
- Male: 7
- Female: 29

Genre...
- Young Adult: 29
- New Adult: 2
- Adult: 5
- Most Read: YA Contemporary

This & That

- Longest By Pages: Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling
- Shortest By Pages: The Walking Dead Issue 1 by Robert Kirkman
- Shortest By Title: Ignite by Lily Paradis / Flawed by Cecelia Ahern
- Longest From Buying To Reading: The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

- Best Series Ender: Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling
- Worst Series Ender: The Crown by Kiera Cass (I only read 2 series enders)

- First Read Of 2016: Ignite by Lily Paradis
- Last Read Of 2016: A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall
- First Book On Your Bookcase: Life And Death: Twilight Reimagined by Stephenie Meyer
- Last Book On Your Bookcase: Room by Emma Donoghue

There you have my 2016 stats. I don't know why I find this so interesting but I really love breaking my reading down at the end of the year and comparing it to previous years. I definitely seem to be a lot harsher with my ratings in 2016 compared to previously, with only two 5 stars and five 2 stars! I also seem to have moved away from listening to audiobooks, which is disappointing. I need to work on that for this year!

Sophie :)

Monday 2 January 2017

Wrap Up | All The Books Of 2016

I can't be the only one who is pretty happy to be seeing the end of 2016. I had some pretty great things happen in 2016 but overall it has definitely been one of the worst. In terms of reading, I had a horrendous year! I read the least number of books I've read in years and only 2 of them were 5 star reads (and one of them was a re-read). I was also been a terrible blogger but we'll get to that in my 2017 resolutions. For now, let's take a look at all the books I read in 2016.

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January
- Ignite by Lily Paradis (reread) - 5/5 - review

February
- Love Is The Higher Law by David Levithan - 4/5 - review

March
- Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince by JK Rowling - 3.5/5 - review
- The DUFF by Kody Keplinger - 4/5 - review
- Confessions Of A Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella - 2/5 - review

April
- The Sea Of Monsters by Rick Riordan - 3/5 - review
- Hello, Goodbye And Everything In Between by Jennifer E Smith - 3.75/5 - review
- The Grownup by Gillian Flynn - 2/5
- Unstrung by Neal Shusterman - 3/5
- The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins - 3.5/5 - review

May
- I Want It That Way by Ann Aguire - 4/5 - review
- Happily Ever After by Kiera Cass - 4.5/5 - review
- Forever by Judy Blume - 2/5 - review
- The New Girl by Tracie Puckett - 2/5
- City Of Bones by Cassandra Clare - 4/5
- The Crown by Kiera Cass - 4/5
- Flawed by Cecelia Ahern - 5/5

June
- This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E Smith - 3.5/5
- Lying About Last Summer by Sue Wallman - 4/5
- Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson - 4/5
- Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon - 3/5
- Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell - 3.5/5

July
- The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han - 3/5
- The Accident Season by Moira Fowley-Doyle - 2/5
- On The Fence by Kasie West - 4.5/5
- The Walking Dead Issue 1 by Robert Kirkman - 3/5
- Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding - 3/5
- Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell - 4/5

August
N/A

September
N/A

October
- The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky - 3/5

November
- Anna And The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (reread) - 4/5
- Happy Again by Jennifer E Smith - 3.5/5
- Our Story: 100% Official by The Vamps - 4/5

December
- Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling - 4/5
- If I Lie by Corrine Jackson - 4.5/5
- What Light by Jay Asher - 4/5
- A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall - 4/5

Those 36 books look even less written down like that! Reviews for some of the books mentioned will be coming soon but I did do a pretty poor job of reviewing the books I read in 2016 as well. At least that gives me plenty of goals to work on in 2017.

Sophie :)