Let's Talk | Rereading Books

I've recently been really in the mood for rereading and even though I want to focus on reading books that meet my challenges and goals for the year, I do want to get to some rereads throughout the second half of the year. I don't reread a lot of books, maybe a couple a year, but I have a list of those I want to get to.

I have a few different reasons for wanting to reread books and I thought it would be interesting to see other people's reasons. I thought I would share some of the books I want to reread and discuss my reasons why I want to.

1. Love of the book
This one is the obvious reason for rereading a book. If you love a book you want to experience it over and over again, or at least I do. There are so many books I wish I could read for the first time again but since that isn't possible, rereading will have to do. A lot of the books I want to reread fall into this category but right now I'm desperate to reread Where Rainbows End (Love, Rosie) by Cecelia Ahern, which you may have seen me mention as my all time favourite book, and The Selection by Kiera Cass.

2. Continuing a series
I am awful for leaving it years between books in a series. I have just read the second book in the Vampire Academy series two years after reading the first book and, as you can probably imagine, I remembered very little. On this occasion I made use of Recaptains rather than rereading the first book but I often choose to reread a book in a series to refresh my memory. I really need to do this with UnWind and UnWholly by Neal Shusterman before continuing with that series.

3. Rediscovering childhood favourites
A couple of years ago I finished the Confessions of Georgie Nicholson series by Louise Rennison that I had started to read when I was quite young. I had wanted to reread and then continue with the books in this series to see if I enjoyed it as much now as I had when I was younger. This then reminded me of a few other books that I loved in my childhood and early teenage years that I would love to pick up again. One of these is a book I fell in love with as a 12 year old, Deeper Than Blue by Jill Hucklesby.

4. Change of opinion
Kind of following on from the last reason, I like to reread books to see if my opinion has changed a few years later. The first book I did this with was Twilight by Stephenie Meyer as I expected my opinion on this book to change now that I was older and has read a lot more. My opinion actually didn't change in that case and I loved it just as much, though much of that was nostalgia I think, but I think it would be different with other books. I want to reread the rest of the Twilight books as well as the Divergent series to see if my opinion on those books change.

5. Assigned reading
I don't know about you but as much as I loved to read while I was in school, I did not love to read anything that was assigned. I hated everything I read for school but I think that was really only because I wasn't choosing to read those things or reading them for pleasure. Some of those books now sound quite interesting to me and I would like to give them another go. Two I know I want to reread soon are Goodnight Mr Tom by Michelle Magorian, which will definitely happen really soon,  and Of Mice And Men by John Steinbeck.

Do you like to reread books? If you do, why do you choose to reread? I would love to know if you reread books for other reasons, they might give me ideas of other books I want to pick up again.

Sophie :)

Top Ten Tuesday | Top Ten Books I've Read So Far In 2017

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

This week's topic is the top ten best books of 2017 so far. This kind of carries on from the theme of a lot of my posts over the past couple of weeks as I have been talking a lot about my reading over the first half of the year. I think I've had a pretty good reading year so far, reading some books I've really enjoyed, and I've even given out a 5 star rating which is pretty rare for me.

1. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by JK Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne
I mentioned this in my Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag as my best book of the year so far. I know that's a pretty unpopular opinion as a lot of people disliked this book but I really loved it. I go into more detail in that tag and in my review but I found it to be a very fun read.

2. Flawed and Perfect by Cecelia Ahern
I'm counting these together since Flawed was a reread (and partly because I couldn't narrow it down to just ten books). Flawed was my favourite book of 2016 and I loved it just as much the second time around. Perfect is the conclusion to the duology and while I didn't love it as much I did really enjoy it.

3. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
It took me forever to finally jump on this bandwagon but I finally read what seems to be everyone's favourite book. This was the first book I read this year and a great way to start it off. I really loved it and definitely understand the hype.

4. Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
This is another one that I had been putting off but finally read this year. I was worried about reading this book considering the very mixed reviews but ended up loving it. I've never laughed so much at a book with such a serious topic. It broke my heart but it was great.

5. Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry
Yet again another book that I had put off reading. Maybe this will teach me to just read things instead of putting them off! I loved this way more than I was expecting to and it made me ugly cry in public, which is obviously the sign of a good book.

6. PS I Like You by Kasie West
Kasie West is one of my favourite authors so of course she would appear on this list. PS I Like You wasn't my favourite of her books and it took me a while to get into but once things started to pick up I was hooked. I fell in love with the characters, especially the love interest, and thoroughly enjoyed the story.

7. Windfall by Jennifer E Smith
I seem to be very hit or miss with Jennifer E Smith but her 2017 release was a hit. This was such a fun story involving a lottery win, which I hadn't read about before, but also about family. It took a much deeper turn that I was expecting but was still great fun and I really enjoyed it.

8. The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West
Another Kasie West book and probably my least favourite of hers. I liked this book but it didn't quite live up to what I have come to expect from her. It was a very cute story with an adorable couple and a great message about friendship.

9. The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson
This was the only Morgan Matson book I had left to read and, despite the fact it took me forever to read, I really loved it. It's not my favourite of hers but it was a lot of fun. It was very character driven, which I liked, and while not a whole lot happened plot-wise, there was still a lot to the story. And, of course, the dogs were great addition.

10. A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
While I really loved this book and it has made it onto this list, this was a bit of a disappointment for me. It was a great story with a message that I think everyone needs to hear, but I didn't fall in love with it like everyone else seems to have. Don't get me wrong though, I did love it and I will push this book on everyone.

I don't even want to count how many times the words 'really enjoyed' appear in this post! What has been the best book you've read so far this year?

Sophie :)

Review | When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon
Published On: July 13, 2017/May 30, 2017
Published By: Hodder & Staughton
Genre: Contemporary
Pages: 384
Format: eBook
Source: Netgalley
Rating: ★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

Dimple Shah has it all figured out. With graduation behind her, she’s more than ready for a break from her family, from Mamma’s inexplicable obsession with her finding the “Ideal Indian Husband.” Ugh. Dimple knows they must respect her principles on some level, though. If they truly believed she needed a husband right now, they wouldn’t have paid for her to attend a summer program for aspiring web developers…right?
Rishi Patel is a hopeless romantic. So when his parents tell him that his future wife will be attending the same summer program as him—wherein he’ll have to woo her—he’s totally on board. Because as silly as it sounds to most people in his life, Rishi wants to be arranged, believes in the power of tradition, stability, and being a part of something much bigger than himself. 
The Shahs and Patels didn’t mean to start turning the wheels on this “suggested arrangement” so early in their children’s lives, but when they noticed them both gravitate toward the same summer program, they figured, Why not? 
Dimple and Rishi may think they have each other figured out. But when opposites clash, love works hard to prove itself in the most unexpected ways.

*A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

This book sounded like the perfect summer read. Two teens brought together by an arranged marriage of sorts, trying to dislike each other to spite their parents but that ultimately proving difficult. Everyone has been looking forward to reading the story of Dimple and Rishi, there was so much hype and very high expectations, myself included. Unfortunately this didn't meet my expectations and I was left a little disappointed. It was cute and fun as I had expected but just not enough, it fell flat for me.

With such a spotlight on diversity in books this year especially, I think much of the hype surrounding this book was due to the Indian American main characters and the fact that this story very much involved their culture. This was a large part of my attraction to this book and for me this was covered so well. I really loved all the discussions about their culture. I loved the little cultural references, the discussions about their parents and family members lives in India, I found it all so interesting. This was my favourite part of the book but more so because of how it was done. This book was diverse, but not in the way that focused on the difficulties of being, in this case, an Indian-American teen, it was just a cute story about two teens falling in love. I think we need more diverse books like this, that don't focus on how a person is "different" or the difficulties of being part of a minority, which of course are important topics too, but just deal with universal topics like first love or a fun summer with someone other than a white, heterosexual, cisgender protagonist.

The main characters, Dimple and Rishi, as can be seen from the title, were very much the main focus of this book. There was no crazy plot just some pretty great characters. Or at least great sounding characters. I think I liked the idea of Dimple more than the character herself. I was so excited to be reading about a female main character with a passion for something other than the typical singing, dancing, art, etc., but rather coding and app development. However, I ended up finding her a bit irritating and frustrating. I found myself wanting to scream at her through the pages (or rather through my kindle) because of the things she was doing and choices she was making.

While I may not have been the biggest fan of Dimple, I liked her relationship with Rishi. I thought the arranged marriage kind of scenario was really interesting but wish it had been more of a plot point instead of just being used to introduce the characters. I think I would have enjoyed just more of that storyline. I really liked Dimple and Rishi together, I thought they were an adorable couple and I loved how they supported each other. They had a very healthy relationship, which is great to portray in young adult books, but I did feel the relationship moved a bit too fast for my liking and it started to feel a little like insta-love.

Obviously from the title you can gather that this is Dimple and Rishi's love story and that is obviously the main focus. However, family also plays a big part in this story. I loved the importance of family within the story and to our main characters. Though they didn't always have the best relationships with their family members, I think it was very important that they were still talking on the phone with parents despite being away from home. This makes a difference from the usual perpetually absent parents in a lot of YA novels.

There are some really good aspects to this book but the biggest let down for me was the lack of talk about the actual camp they were attending. This coding summer program seemed like such a great setting but it was hardly mentioned, they could have been anywhere. I was waiting for great scenes of them creating their app together or at least something related to the whole reason they were together in the first place. However, for some reason this incredibly random talent show became a major plot point. I did not understand how a talent show was in any way related to creating an app or how winning said talent show would make you more likely to win the overall program. I liked that Bollywood dancing was featured and I liked that it allowed for Rishi's brother to become more involved in the story, but I saw absolutely no relevance in relation to the rest of the story and it did take up a large chunk of the book. I just didn't understand it.

Overall, I enjoyed the cute summer love story aspect of the book but it didn't meet my expectations. All of the aspects I was excited about, such as the arrange marriage plotline, the main character with a passion for coding, or them creating an app, just fell flat and I was left a little disappointed. I would definitely read more from Sandhya Menon in the future but I didn't fall in love with this book like I hoped I would.

Tag | Mid-Year Book Freakout 2017

This tag has been everywhere lately and having done it for the past two years, it seemed only right to carry on the tradition this year. I have had a really great reading year so far, much better than last year, having read some great books and staying ahead of my Goodreads goal for the most part. I don't actually know who created this tag as there seem to be a few different versions of it, but I will be doing the same version I have done in both 2016 and 2015.

1. Best Book You've Read So Far In 2017

I have only given one book 5 stars so far this year, other than one that was a reread, so this is a pretty easy question. It takes a lot for me to give out 5 stars but I absolutely loved Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by JK Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne. I know a lot of people really didn't like this but I found it so much fun to read and really enjoyed it.

2. Best Sequel You've Read So Far In 2017

I haven't read a lot of sequels so far this year but of the few I have read Perfect by Cecelia Ahern has been my favourite. This is the second and final book in the Flawed duology, Cecelia Ahern's first YA series. I didn't love it as much as the first book but I did really enjoy it and thought it was a good conclusion to the duology.

3. New Release You Haven't Read Yet But Want To

There are a few but one of my most anticipated books of the year was By Your Side by Kasie West. I bought this as soon as it was available but it is still sitting on my bookshelves yet to be picked up.

4. Most Anticipated Release For The Second Half Of The Year

This is so easy! There's Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins is probably my most anticipated book of the year. I adore Stephanie Perkins and can't wait to read something a bit different from her. I have this one on pre-order already.

5. Biggest Disappointment

I hate to say this because I so badly wanted to love it but this is definitely Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. I have really liked everything else I have read from Rainbow Rowell and had heard so many people claim this as their favourite of her books, but I really did not like it. I didn't understand the hype at all.

6. Biggest Surprise

I would probably have to say Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry for this. I did expect to like this series until I read some not-so-great reviews from people whose opinions I trust. I ended up going into this book not really sure what to expect and I really loved it.

7. Favourite New Author

In terms of new-to-me author I would probably say Jojo Moyes as I read Me Before You and liked it much more than I was expecting to. I have only read this one book from her but I would like to read more in the future.

As for a 'new author' in terms of a debut author, I read Karen McManus' debut One Of Us Is Lying and was very impressed. I have quite often been disappointed by the debut novels I have read and though I didn't love this book, it was very well written and made me want to read more from her.

8. Newest Fictional Crush

To name names would be a bit of a spoiler but I have completely fallen in love with the love interest in PS I Like You by Kasie West. He was adorable and made my heart do all sorts of fluttery things.

9. Newest Favourite Character

This is easily Scorpius Malfoy from Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by JK Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne. I want him to be my best friend and have him be his happy, cheerful self to brighten my days.

10. Book That Made You Cry

A lot of the books I have read have made me tear up, especially those with very emotional plots. The book that made me ugly cry in public is not the most emotional book I have read this year but obviously something hit me right in the feels. Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry had me hiding behind my sunglasses as I was sobbing away by the pool.

11. Book That Made You Happy

This is a hard one, I've read a lot of books that made me happy. The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West definitely made me happy since it's an adorable story by one of my favourite authors.

12. Favourite Book To Movie Adaptation You Saw This Year

I haven't read the book yet but I watched the adaptation of Nerve, adapted from the book by Jeanne Ryan, without knowing it was adaptation. I really loved this movie, even know I'm not usually a fan of Emma Roberts. 

13. Favourite Review/Post You've Done This Year

I have started doing more discussion posts this year, though not so many recently, and have really enjoyed them. I think my favourite post so far was my discussion about the negative reviews of Me Before You, not because of what I said specifically, but because I shared my thoughts despite worrying what people would think or say about it.

14. Most Beautiful Book You've Bought So Far This Year

I really love the cover of The Sun Is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon. I didn't love the book but Nicola Yoon has such beautiful book covers.

15. Books You NEED To Read By The End Of 2017

All my Around The Year In 52 Books challenge books? Ideally I would like to read all of the books mentioned in my Around The Year plans post but if not I would like to make progress with the series mentioned at least.

I've had some hits and misses to far this year but it definitely seems to be more hits. I'm really hoping I can keep reading as much as I have been even though I know things are going to get crazy busy in the next half of the year. I guess we'll just have to see how the year goes.

What is the best book you've read so far this year?

Sophie :)

Mini Review | Harry Potter And The Cursed Child by JK Rowling, John Tiffany & Jack Thorne

Harry Potter And The Cursed Child by JK Rowling, John Tiffany & Jack Thorne
Series: Harry Potter #8 (kind of..debatable)
Published On: July 31, 2016
Published By: Little Brown
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 343
Format: Hardcover
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children. 
While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places.

Prepare for unpopular opinions.
I loved this book so much. According to pretty much everyone I follow on Goodreads, however, I am in the minority. I'm would go as far as to say I loved this book more than the original series. I have never been a hardcore Harry Potter fan, having only finished reading the series for the first time last year, but I adored this. I always felt that I enjoyed the Harry Potter books slightly less because I knew what happened in all of them, so perhaps my complete lack of knowledge of this story added to my enjoyment.

I didn't notice the things everyone had issues with.
I heard many people talk about the inaccuracies of this book and things that didn't make sense from the original series but I didn't notice anything. Like I said, I'm not a hardcore fan, I haven't read all of the books multiple times and maybe that is why. I could enjoy it for what it was in itself, rather than as a continuation of a favourite series.

It was fabulously ridiculous.
To all of the people who complain that this story is utterly ridiculous, I will happily agree. The story in itself was a bit ridiculous but in the most fun way. Everything about it was just so much fun and I wanted to be a part of it all.

Albus and Scorpius are my new faves.
I honestly adored these two as main characters. I want to be friends with them! I quite enjoyed the fact that there wasn't really a 'hermione' type character in the friendship group and that they were just a fun little duo. I also loved the fact they were in Slytherin. It's quite a common misconception that all Slytherins are evil and we needed characters like these two to prove that you can possess Slytherin qualities without going all Dark Arts and bad guy on us.

Really enjoyed reading it as a script.
I was unsure about whether I would enjoy reading it in this format but as I usually love books written in different ways, like in letters for example, I loved this. I can read books so much quicker when I'm not just reading chunks of text so the script format was perfect for me and I flew through it.

Overall, unlike the many people who seem to have a lot of problems with this book, I absolutely loved it. I have been wanting to reread it from the minute I put it down and haven't stopped thinking about it. The more I think about it the more I love it. As I said, I think the fact that I am not a huge Harry Potter fan did let me enjoy it more, as well as not knowing the main points of the plot, unlike with the original series.

Top Ten Tuesday | Top Ten Series I've Been Meaning To Start

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

This week's theme is one that I have no difficulty creating a list for, top ten series I've been meaning to start but haven't yet. I made a list of the ten series I wanted to read this year, including some that I want to start, at the beginning of the year, but there are so many series I need to pick up that I definitely have enough for another list.

1. The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer

This is like my number 1 series I need to start right this minute. I have owned the first book, Cinder, for a good 2/3 years now but just haven't picked it up. I have no excuse, it needs to happen!

2. Cruel Beauty series by Rosamund Hodge

As soon as I heard about Cruel Beauty, before it was even published, it went straight to the top of my Goodreads TBR, where it has remained for 3 years. I now own the first book so I have even less of an excuse for not having picked it up yet.

3. The Remnant Chronicles by Mary E Pearson

This is another one that went straight to the top of my Goodreads TBR when I heard about the first book but as this series has gone on it has become more and more intimidating. Have you seen the size of the third book? You could kill someone with that thing!

4. To All The Boys I've Loved Before trilogy by Jenny Han

My excuse for not reading a lot of series is that there are not many contemporary series, or at least ones I am interested in. Apparently that excuse is irrelevant as I have had the first book in this series sitting on my shelves for a good 2 years and haven't picked it up yet.

5. The Sisterhood Of The Travelling Pants series by Ann Brashares

I'm actually extremely ashamed of the fact I haven't read this series. The movie based on these books was one of my favourites when I first watched it, before I even knew this series existed. I feel like this is the perfect series to read in the summer so I may have to start it soon.

6. The Illuminae Files series by Aimee Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

I initially wasn't interested in this series but the fact that everyone seems to absolutely love this series was the thing that intrigued me. I think the way these books are written is something I would really enjoy, I'm not sure Sci-Fi is my thing though, which is why I haven't picked Illuminae up yet. I need to give it a go.

7. Pivot Point duology by Kasie West

Kasie West is one of my favourite authors but I have only ever read her contemporary books. This series is fantasy/paranormal I believe and the synopsis sounds really interesting so I definitely want to check it out soon and see if I love it just as much as her contemporaries.

8. The Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare

Technically I can't read this trilogy until I have read City Of Glass and City Of Ashes so I have an excuse for this one. I have no excuse for not having read books 2 and 3 in The Mortal Instruments series though. I'm trying to work my way through all of these interrelated series but there are just so many books.

9. Shatter Me trilogy by Tahereh Mafi

This is another series I has no interest in initially but for some reason have become interested quite recently. I own the first book but obviously I'm not interested enough as I haven't picked it up yet. I know very little about this series but I know I need to read it soon.

10. Legend trilogy by Marie Lu

Unlike all the other series in this list, I have actually picked up the first book in this series once before. I read about 50 pages but just wasn't in the mood for it so put it down and haven't picked it up again yet. I own the whole trilogy and I know I could easily marathon them if I was in the mood.

I have so many series that I really want to start and listing them like this is a little overwhelming. I just want to read all of the books! Hopefully I can check a couple off this list by the end of the year, fingers crossed. What series do you really need to pick up soon?

Sophie :)

Mini Review | The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West

The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West
Published On: May 5, 2015
Published By: Harper Teen
Genre: Contemporary
Pages: 346
Format: Paperback
Source: Gift
Rating: ★★★★

Amazon | Goodreads

When Gia Montgomery's boyfriend, Bradley, dumps her in the parking lot of her high school prom, she has to think fast. After all, she'd been telling her friends about him for months now. This was supposed to be the night she proved he existed. So when she sees a cute guy waiting to pick up his sister, she enlists his help. The task is simple: be her fill-in boyfriend—two hours, zero commitment, a few white lies. After that, she can win back the real Bradley. 
The problem is that days after prom, it's not the real Bradley she's thinking about, but the stand-in. The one whose name she doesn't even know. But tracking him down doesn't mean they're done faking a relationship. Gia owes him a favor and his sister intends to see that he collects: his ex-girlfriend's graduation party—three hours, zero commitment, a few white lies. 
Just when Gia begins to wonder if she could turn her fake boyfriend into a real one, Bradley comes waltzing back into her life, exposing her lie, and threatening to destroy her friendships and her new-found relationship.

Kasie West has done it again.
I'm still waiting on one of Kasie West's books to disappoint me. I have absolutely loved everything I have read from her but had my doubts with this one having seen a lot of people say it is their least favourite of her books. I do have to agree with those people, this was my least favourite of her books that I have read, but I did still love it. It was an adorable, fun summer read that I really enjoyed.

It was everything I would expect.
I always go into Kasie West's books expecting great characters, a great story and good underlying message and I definitely got all three of those from this book. We also had some fun summer antics thrown into this book, which really added to the fun.

I wanted more from the characters.
I think this could be part of the reason I would consider this my least favourite of her books. Kasie West has written some of my favourite characters, with unique, quirky personalities. While I really liked the fact that Gia, our main character, is just an ordinary girl with nothing particularly special about her, she seemed a little less developed than I would have liked, or have come to expect.

Such an adorable couple.
Though Gia isn't my favourite main character, her and Hayden are definitely one of my favourite couples. They are so completely adorable together but it was their friendship that made me love them so much.

A really great message about friendship.
Like I said, there was a really great underlying message to this story and it was a rather unique message about friendship. I think very often teenage girls stick with a friendship group as they feel loyalty to those they have been friends with for a long time. To me this book encourages you to think about whether those friends are the right for you and consider whether your friendships are healthy. I think that is a really great message, especially for the age group this book is targeted towards.

The perfect ending.
The ending of this book was so perfectly non-perfect. I absolutely loved this ending and the fact that everything didn't just wrap up nicely and everything worked out perfectly because that isn't how life works. I think it shows that life doesn't always work out how you expect it to but that may be for the best.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and though it is my least favourite Kasie West book I have read so far, I would still absolutely recommend it. It is fun and sweet with an adorable romance and good plot, perfect for a summer read.