Tag: teen reads

Writing Wednesday: The Beginning of the End

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Have you ever felt pain so crippling that it ate at you slowly, piece by piece? Pain that intense can make you crazy. It can make you do things you’d never think of doing before.
I stood on my balcony, looking over at the city of London.
London was beautiful at night and this night was no exception.
I felt a twinge of regret for what I was about to do. I would be spoiling the beauty of London with my act.
But it needed to be done. I could no longer live an existence of pain.
I gripped the railing tightly before climbing over.
I heard a scream from below.
“Somebody is going to jump!”
I was running out of time.
“Mummy’s coming, sweetheart,” I promised my daughter.
And with those words, I pushed myself forward, eager to reunite with my child.
The last thing I felt was the icy air as the ground rose to meet me.

Fiction Friday: Book Review- What Would Emma Do by Eileen Cook

What Would Emma Do?What Would Emma Do? by Eileen Cook
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Emma lives in a small town with a bunch of crazy people who twist the Bible for their own needs.
Okay so maybe I’m exaggerating a little but this novel hit a bit too close to home. I’ve seen people use religion to justify things or do or even worse seen religious people do bad things and be okay with it.
And that’s precisely what happens here. The popular girls at school suddenly start falling ill. The town believes it to be the work of the devil…except Emma has seen the goody-two-shoes Queen Bee and her bestie taking drugs. Does Emma risk speaking out?
Like I said before I loved that I could relate to this book. It felt like Eileen Cook had taken my life and written about it. I was not too happy with the ending but like most Eileen Cook endings it’s realistic

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Fiction Friday: February Book Haul

February was a pretty small book haul month since I’m no longer going to the SPCA book sales. However I did get some really great reads:

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Exclusive Books had a book sale and I found so many books that I had been waiting to read. I also finally have a print copy of Stars Above by Marissa Meyer! Now I’m just missing Cinder and Cress from The Lunar Chronicles.

 

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I also got the Guardians of Summerfeld series by Melissa Delport. And they’re signed!!!

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I’m so obsessed with the vampire from this series, it isn’t even funny. Seriously I might need professional help.

Lastly Pan Macmillan sent me a review copy of The Memory Book by Lara Avery. This book is so pretty and it sounds so intriguing. I can’t wait to start reading it.

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Have you read any of these books? What did you think? What was your February book haul like? Feel free to leave a comment below.

Fiction Friday: Book Review- Glided Cage by Vic James

Gilded Cage (Dark Gifts, #1)Gilded Cage by Vic James
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received a review copy of this book on Netgalley.
Abi and her family go to work as servants for a wealthy and powerful family. But while their job is considered safer and better than working in the slave town, it still has its own horrors. Meanwhile Abi’s brother, Luke is in the brutal slave town where he is subjected to abuse. I spent the first half of the book wondering who got the worse job. Sure Abi’s job was mainly administration but the family she serves, the Jadines, are absolutely terrifying. While Luke has to work under uncomfortable circumstances, he atleast has some sort of solitude at the end of the day.
But then everyone seemed like a friend and then everyone seemed like a foe so I was just confused. Can anyone be trusted? Should no one be trusted? This book had me second-guessing every character and I loved every second of it. The writing is flawless, the plot moves quickly and the twists are unimaginable.
This is one of those books that leave you with a thousand questions. Just give me the rest of the series already. I NEED MORE!!! Go read this book. You won’t regret it.

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Fiction Friday: Book Review- Three Dark Crowns (Three Dark Crowns #1) by Kendare BlakeĀ 

Three Dark CrownsThree Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So many questions. So many twists. So many characters. I have no idea what I’m going to do with my life now that this book is over. I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I’ve been obsessed with this book ever since I’ve heard what it was about and was so glad to finally be able to read it.
However I found the first 50 pages difficult to get into. Each of the three sisters have a separate love interest, friends, foes and family which made it very confusing for me. There was far too much new information all being introduced at once and I hated it. But like I said before, I waited ages for this book and I was determined to see it to the end no matter what. So I pushed through and I was glad that I did.
“Three Dark Crowns” tells the story of three sisters with three different powers. The sisters need to fight to the death in order to win control of the crown. This is a book with betrayal, deception, corruption, politics, lies and secrets. It was amazing!
I loved how different each sister was and even though I tried my hardest not to get attached to them, it broke my heart whenever I thought of any of them dying. This story left me with several questions and I need the sequel ASAP to give me answers. I think that this is a book that anyone who appreciates YA fantasy and strong female characters will enjoy.

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Book Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

FangirlFangirl by Rainbow Rowell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book and was incredibly sad when it ended. This story begins with Cath moving in to her dorm at college. Things are frosty between her and her twin sister, Wren. While Cath is freaking out about leaving her father alone and all of the changes that college may bring along with it. Wren simply moves on with her new life at college. And Cath is not a part of this new life. While Wren parties and makes new friends, Cath refuses to leave her room and buries herself deeper in her fanfiction writing.
I could relate to this story as I also struggled with college at first. I especially enjoyed how much Cath and I were alike. Cath is a fangirl and it is her fanfiction that gets her through life. Atleast that is how it has always been until now. I loved the character of Levi. If I was the kind of girl who swooned, he would definitely make me swoon.
This was a cute light read that I would definitely recommend. I thought the characters were well-written, the writing was funny and I really liked the illustrations displayed on the inside cover of the book.

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Fiction Friday: Book Review- Heartless by Marissa Meyer

HeartlessHeartless by Marissa Meyer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Cath dreams of opening her own bakery. It’s the only thing she wants in life until she meets the mysterious Jest. Soon Cath begins to imagine the possibility of a life with him. However Cath is a lady while Jest is only a fool. There is no way that Cath’s strict and controlling parents would accept him. In fact, Cath’s parents have already found her a husband- the King of Hearts- and they won’t accept no for an answer. While we all know how this book ends, the path to the end was so surprising and heartbreaking. I was in shock once I finished this book and all I could think of was “HOW???”
What I really enjoyed was how nonsensical this book was, much like the original Lewis Caroll work. I strongly suggest that readers brush up on “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Alice Through The Looking Glass” to get the full effect of the book. There are several characters and quotes from the original that appear in “Heartless” and it’s fun to see them again. This book fits in so perfectly with the world of Wonderland that it is almost as if this is a companion novel to “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”.
This book was incredibly well-written and I really enjoyed seeing all of the characters from Wonderland. I also liked how things that made no sense in our world, appeared to be totally normal in this book.
This was an excellent book and I strongly recommend it to anyone who enjoys fairytale retellings.

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Fiction Friday: Book Review- Refuse (Recoil Trilogy #2) by Joanne Macgregor

Refuse (Recoil Trilogy, #2)
Refuse by Joanne Macgregor

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“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.

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Purchase a copy of Refuse from Readers Warehouse

Book Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) by Sarah J Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses, #1)

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A “Beauty and The Beast” retelling that involves fae…How can you not like this book? Feyre accidentally kills a faerie when out hunting for her family’s dinner. Tamlin, another faerie, demands that Feyre returns with him to his home in return for killing his friend. (Yes this makes absolutely no sense but play along coz it will eventually make sense).
Eventually Feyre and Tamlin fall in love. But there’s a dark evil force that could tear them apart.
I don’t think my review can be trusted to be 100% non-biased because I love anything to do with Beauty and The Beast. However this is a far darker and an infinitely more compelling tale. This book is my everything and I am obsessed with it! I really believe that everyone should read this book. It’s compelling, it’s different, it’s very well-written and the evil monsters in here are absolutely terrifying. Read it. Now!!!!

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