This book was so thrilling! Unfortunately life got in my way so I didn’t start this book as soon as I wanted to. Not being able to instantly dive into this book upset me so I ended up reading the ending first (and then spoiled the entire book for myself). Aside from that very stupid mistake on my behalf, I absolutely loved this book. I was so thrilled to see Jinx and Quinn again. There is so much of character development in this book. I started off hating characters and wishing them dead (I can’t help it. Some of the characters were really hateful) but by the end of the book I really liked them. This was a super-fast read that was difficult to put down. Fans of dystopian fiction will love this book! The characters are incredible and so very clever! The writing is great and the plot is unique. This book blew my mind.
I had really high hopes for this book since I absolutely loved “Everything Everything”. Nicola Yoon has incredible writing and I love that she writes in such a unique manner. In order to allow me to properly fangirl over this book, I’m going to state everything I disliked now and discuss the positives later. Firstly reading on the Kindle app was incredibly difficult as the characters’ viewpoints were all mixed up. Something was wrong with the formatting which made for several very confusing moments. I also don’t understand why the book is called “The Sun is Also a Star” since that’s a line only used once in the novel. Lastly I wished the ending was more complete. Like “Everything Everything”, the ending feels more like a beginning and I WANT TO KNOW MORE!
Now for the positives: I love love love LOVE this cover. It’s so pretty and colourful and honestly it’s the first thing that drew me to this book (the author was second).
“The Sun is Also a Star” tells the story of Natasha and Daniel who meet and fall in love on Natasha’s last day in America. Natasha and her family are being deported, a fact she doesn’t share with Daniel. Daniel is supposed to be on his way to an interview for Yale when he decides that Natasha is his future. Daniel and Natasha are complete opposites. He’s a dreamer while she’s practical and certainly doesn’t believe in love. And if their totally different personalities and Natasha leaving weren’t enough obstacles for their budding relationship, Natasha is Jamaican while Daniel is Korean. While this isn’t a problem for them, this might be a problem for their families.
What I really enjoyed about this book was the many different viewpoints. Usually I struggle to keep track of more than four characters but it was easy to follow everyone in this book. While this is a story primarily about Natasha and Daniel, there are scenes that show the lives that Natasha and Daniel impact on without even trying.
This book had a ending that I felt was really natural and I was like “aww this is beautiful”. The epilogue was what kicked me in the gut and left me speechless. This book was beautiful and really made an impact on me (so much so that when I went to sleep, it was all I could I think of even while asleep). I love Natasha’s character and I really enjoyed seeing everyone’s backstory. I wish the ending was a bit more complete though as I wasn’t ready to let go of these characters.
I got fewer books from the SPCA booksale than I usually do:
So I decided to just check out what Bargain Books had since they had really great books when I visited last month. They didn’t have any of their “3 for R99” books but I did find great bestsellers for R69. It took some time for me to choose (their selection was amazing!) but I finally picked six. I chose “Winter” and “Scarlet” by Marissa Meyer, “Last Sacrifice” by Richelle Mead, “The Duff” by Kody Keplinger, “The Originals: The Resurrection” (this was actually a mistake. I thought I was choosing “The Originals: Rise” but I ended up picking “Resurrection” instead which really hurt my heart) and finally “Let It Snow” which is an anthology I’ve been eyeing for a while. While these books were alot, they were books I really wanted so I was thrilled. I did however have some regret about the books I left behind. Thankfully my mother lent me some money and I was able to buy a few more. This is where things get interesting.
My mother lent me R140, enough for two books. I decided to put some of my own money so I could buy two more. So I chose “Soundless” and “Bloodlines” by Richelle Mead as well as the second and third books in the Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare. During my previous trip to the bookstore I saw that my card wasn’t working but I hoped that this time would be different. I knew for a fact I had money so I had no idea what could possibly cause my card to fail. Anyway, I made my way to the till where the manager greeted me with “Back again for more books?”and I responded with a bright and bubbly “yes.” The lady paying next to me declared “You can never have too many books”. This is a sentiment I usually agree with but as an unemployed person, my book-buying was getting to be a bit problematic. So I told the woman with a laugh, “There is such a thing as too many books when you’re unemployed.”
I paid for my books and hoped for the best as I handed my card over. It failed. Sighing, I asked the cashier to please take out two of the books. “How much are they?” asked the woman who was paying next to me.
Still cheerful on a book-high, I answered “R69 each.” In the back of my mind, I could picture her buying the books for her kids and how happy they would be to get such great books at such low prices. But then she did something I never would have expected anyone to do- she took out a R100 note and placed it on the counter. “No, you don’t have to” came my automatic response to anyone giving me money. My mind still hadn’t processed what was happening.
“Take it,” she insisted firmly. “From one book-lover to another.” She sounded so certain of herself that all I could do was mentally calculate how much more I needed to pay. I handed the remaining amount to the cashier, my mind still reeling. I tried to find the woman to thank her. Did I thank her? I didn’t know. I didn’t remember. It all happened so fast that it seemed like a blur. I looked around me in confusion, trying to find the woman or a camera crew. Who pays for other people’s books? I’ve heard about “paying it forward” but that’s not a book-thing or a South African thing. Was I on TV? Was someone filming me? But no matter how hard I looked I couldn’t find the kind lady or the camera crew. Eventually I decided I must have been having some really odd dream. I dreamt of buying books all the time. Why shouldn’t this be any different? But once I got my change back and got ready to leave the store, the manager remarked “lucky you”. So maybe it wasn’t a dream. “I can’t believe that just happened,” I replied. I spent the rest of the morning trying to figure out exactly how everything happened because it was so mind-blowing. I’ve heard of stories about “paying it forward” but I never ever thought something like this would happen to me.

My Complete Haul
Have you read any of these books yet? What did you think of them?
I reviewed an advance review copy of this book in return for my honest review.
I was so thrilled to finally read this book. I’ve been waiting for this book to release since last December and it certainly didn’t disappoint.
Sophie has sworn off love after her last relationship went bad. She has feelings for her online friend, Lex but it doesn’t matter since she and him will never meet. Or will they? As Sophie and Lex grow closer, Sophie meets Caleb. Caleb is the best man for her sister’s wedding and he is annoyingly happy all the time. Caleb’s bright friendly personality is the exact opposite of Sophie’s sarcastic, not-always-polite nature. As they’re forced to spend time together Sophie starts to develop feelings for Caleb while Lex suggests that he and Sophie meet.
My favourite part of this book was that I knew how it would end. Rachel Morgan’s books always have a twist and it delighted me to no end that I managed to figure it out. The actual ending was a bit predictable to me but I loved it nonetheless. I found the character of Sophie easy to relate to. Unfortunately since I saw so much of myself in Sophie I ended up hating Caleb’s happy nature. (Seriously dude, why are you always happy? Are you eating Happy Pills for breakfast?) I thought Caleb made a great love interest for Sophie especially since they were so different. I loved how Lex’s character was pretty well-developed even when he was a million miles away and all the you could see of him was his messages to Sophie.
This book captures perfectly the delights and chaos that occurs when family come together especially during the magical time of a wedding (am I the only one who finds weddings magical? Coz I really liked the way the wedding festivities were done in this book). This book was well-written and I loved seeing characters from previous books. However I wish I had seen more of Adam from The Trouble With Flirting. I don’t know if this is the last book in the series or not but I really want to see more of these characters. This book was sweet but left a hole in my heart when it ended. I think all fans of contemporary romance fiction should try reading this series.
I already saw sparks flying between Charles and his nanny in the previous Harrison book (Someone Like You) so I was really looking forward to reading this book. Charles and Lisette have an explosive (and accidental) night of passion. They both swear it would never happen again but neither of them can move past it. I really enjoying the way the relationship between Charles and Lisette developed as well as seeing the other Harrisons again. I thought Charles and Lisette’s attempt to return to normalcy after their “mistaken night” was a colossal waste of both their time and mine. Um, hello. You have seriously hot chemistry. Do something about it. I absolutely adored both these characters and this book. I really hope that there’s going to be another Harrison novel. I can’t get enough of this family. This book was incredibly well-written. The plot was a bit predictable but I enjoyed every second of it. My only issue was that I found the character of Charles’ ex-wife to be rather flat and uninteresting. I also wish there was more of a resolution with Charles Harrison Senior. The guy is a dick who desperately needs to be put in his place. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys romance. This book can be read alone but it would be great to binge-read the entire series all at once.
Every bookworm knows how difficult it is to find space for books. Here are my tips to save space on your bookshelf so that you can buy books without worrying about where you’re going to keep them:
1) Store your books horizontally- I don’t know the science or logic behind this but somehow I can store more books horizontally than vertically. If you don’t mind not having access to some books (ie, the ones at the bottom of the pile), stack your books horizontally.
2) Utilise the space near your ceiling- if you have space near your ceiling you should be able to store books there as well.
3) Mix and match genres- I would love to have a shelf dedicated solely to one author or genre. Unfortunately I cannot afford that space or cost. Instead my shelves consist of “read” and “unread” books which are then divided into sections depending on genre. This makes it easier for me to find the book I need while still using as little space as possible.
4) Get rid of books you don’t need/read- yes this option hurts me as well but think of how much joy your books could bring to someone else. I usually donate my books to a charity where they sell it. It’s a win-win. Someone buys your books and you’re supporting a good cause.
5) Play book tetris- books come in different sizes so you sometimes an unusual gap in your shelf can be used to store a book (or three).
What tips do you use to save space on your shelves? I’d love to know.
The first Saturday of the month is the day that the SPCA hosts their monthly booksale. It is also today! Here are the books I bought:
Lots and lots of Nora Roberts and J.D Robbs (I’m a bit disappointed that the books aren’t in such good condition like last month but I was really ecstatic to have Nora Roberts books. I love her work!)
I also made a quick stop to Bargain Books and got these gems on special:
I read the first 3 books in the series so I’m really excited to see how this ends.
I’ve yet to read a Colleen Hoover novel that doesn’t leave an impact and this one is no different. In fact I was having a pretty great time with this book and was sucked in until I realised “Wait! This is a Colleen Hoover book. Something has to go wrong and it’s going to hurt when it does.”So I read. And I read. And then the bad thing happened and I cried. I cried because it was nothing that I had expected. Nothing on the internet, the book’s synopsis or even Colleen Hoover’s social media alerted at precisely what the conflict in this book would be. Believe me, the conflict is MAJOR! I understand the importance of not revealing spoilers so I’ll try my best not to (it’s so damn hard not to!). I will however say that this is a book that every woman needs to read. The significance of the words “It Ends With Us” is beautiful.Lily and Ryle have an instant connection when they meet. Despite Ryle’s aversion to relationships the two of them are blissfully happy. Then they’re not. Lily’s first love returns to town and her relationship with Ryle is threatened. Except Lily’s ex isn’t the only risk to both her relationship and happiness.I couldn’t put this book down (except for when Colleen Hoover’s words moved me and then I needed to share them on social media). I cried throughout the last few chapters but I enjoyed them nonetheless. Lastly (and this might be considered a SPOILER SO PROCEED WITH CAUTION), I especially loved that I was able to fall for the villain in this novel. He was flawed but he was an amazing person. I loved that I was able to hate him and love him at the same time. I pitied him but I desperately wanted him gone. I’ve never felt such complex emotions for a fictional character before. I’ve always enjoyed Colleen Hoover’s work but this is a work of art.
I was so eager to read this book that I bought it as soon as I saw it without even bothering to look at the price. I am a huge fan of Melissa Delport’s writing but “Rainfall” had me sobbing like a baby so I never reviewed it. Reading “My Name is Simon” however is such a comfort after “Rainfall”. This isn’t a full novel but Simon’s character and his motivations are shown so well. As much as I hated him it was impossible not to feel for this guy who has had most of his life ripped from him. I desperately wanted to hate this book (to match my initial hatred of Simon) but I couldn’t. “My Name is Simon” is incredibly well-written and the book finishes beautifully.
“Refuse” picks up instantly after the thrilling cliffhanger in “Recoil”. Jinxy is captured and taken in for questioning. The great thing about this book is that it does eventually provide a recap of the previous book. This is really helpful since I couldn’t really remember precisely what the government’s real agenda was.
Jinxy finds out that her ex-boyfriend’s brother is being held in the same facility that she is and she’s desperate to get him out (she was the one who put him in there in the first place).
To do this she has to get back into the organisation that captured and tortured her. Cam Jinxy stand to go back to the people who think nothing of torturing a child? Will she even be accepted back into an organisation that thinks of her as a traitor to their cause?
This book was such a rollercoaster ride of emotions. I hated some characters with such intensity and I loved other characters with the same intensity. My favourite part of Joanne Macgregor’s writing is that she always creates characters that are well-fleshed out and real. (Honestly I started this series to see more of Macgregor’s great characterisation but stayed for the intriguing plot). The characters in “Refuse” certainly do not disappoint. I especially enjoyed seeing how characters have developed since the first book.
I loved that this book had the same fast-paced action as the first one. Jinxy has so many unique skills that help her throughout the novel. At several points I literally had to put the book down to absorb all the clever things she found or did.
“Refuse” was a wonderful read but again, I strongly believe this is a series that should be binge-read. The book was 50 chapters which I found intimidating at first but at the end I really wanted more.
I think this series is one of the most unique and believable dystopian books around. The issues with the government in this series is something we see everyday.
I strongly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys YA fiction or dystopian novels. Hell, read it even if you don’t like dystopian novels. This is just that great of a read. I found this book impossible to step away from.
Rebel by Joanne Macgregor
