August 2015 Wrap Up

Hello Book Lovers!!!

It's Wrap Up time!!! I had an amazing reading month this month mostly so I can't wait to share what I've been reading and what I thought of them all :) Just like all wrap up's I will also be letting you know what my favourite read of the month was this month at the end of this post :)

So lets get started!!!

The first book I read this month was The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

Wow, this book deserves all the hype it gets. I loved it. Following Bilbo's journey with the dwarves to claim the treasure that Smaug the dragon was guarding, and reading about all of their troubles on the way was just incredible. Tolkien is definitely an amazing writer and I will definitely be reading The Lord of the Rings series. I gave The Hobbit 5* on Goodreads.

The next book I read was a graffic novel. It was Fairest: The Hidden Kingdom by Bill Willingham and Lauren Beukes.

This is the 2nd volume in the Fairest Series and I wasn't disappointed :) We follow Rapunzel in her journey to find her children and during her journey, having to reface parts of her life she would rather forget. I wouldn't recommend this to younger readers however as some of the content isn't suitable. I gave this 5* on Goodreads.

The 3rd book I read this month was The Elite by Kiera Cass.

This is the second book in the Selection Series and as I loved the first book I had high expectations for this one. And I wasn't disappointed. I absolutely loved it!!! I loved reading about all the characters and learning more about them all. As well as that, the invasion scenes are fantastically written and kept me intrigued the whole way through :) I gave this 5* on Goodreads :)

And the fourth book I read this month was The One by Kiera Cass

This is the final book in the Selection Series and it was concluded so well!!! With both the invasions on the castle and Prince Maxon still needing to choose his bride, you just wanted to find out more and more constantly. I was so happy with how it ended and the wedding at the end was just perfect :) I also gave this book 5* on Goodreads :)

The next book I read was The Heir by Kiera Cass

This is the first book in the sequel series to the Selection Series. As I enjoyed the Selection Series so much I thought I would give this series as read. The other books to this series aren't out yet but I will be picking them up when they are :) Although I still thoroughly enjoyed this story, I don't think I enjoyed it as much as the previous books and that is because I really didn't like Eadlyn, the princess that was running the Selection. Other than that though I still really enjoyed the story and I'm excited for the next book to be released :) I gave this 4* on Goodreads :)

And the final book I read this month was Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

This book has been so hyped and therefore I went into it with fairly high expectations. Unfortunately it didn't reach my expectations. I liked the book layout, how it changed between Nick and Amy's perspectives, but I felt it was dragged out way to long and that the book could have been half the size. I only gave this book 3* on Goodreads.

So there are all the books I've read this month. I think overall I've had an amazing reading month and because of that, it's making my next decision for my Favourite August Read very difficult. But I think I've decided.

And the award for Favourite August Read goes to.....

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien!!!

You just can't fault Tolkien's work and although I've loved a lot of books this month, this is the one that gave me the biggest book hangover I think I've had all year.

So that's it for August!!! All of my reviews of the above books are also posted on this blog so you can find them down the right hand side :)

Let me know in the comments what you've been reading this month and I'll speak to you all in September!!!

xHannahx

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!! 

It's time to share my thoughts on Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn :) Now, this book has been hugely hyped and so I had quite high expectations going into it. But I can't say I was that impressed.

This book is about a wife called Amy who goes missing and Nick her husband has been getting framed for her murder. 

Each chapter is either from the perspective from Amy or Nick and throughout we learn more and more about each of the characters. At the beginning, it has been written for you to hate Nick but as the story continues, you realise that Amy isn't such an innocent character after all.

Before long you will probably start feeling sorry for Nick and hating Amy.

Like I said above, I didn't like Gone Girl as much as I hoped to and here are some reasons as to why. The story was dragged out way to long and I think the book could have been half the size. I also think that the ending of the book was terrible. You don't expect it which is great but it's just not what I wanted from the story at all.

However, with most books, there are also a few good points so I will also share those with you. I liked how the chapters changed from Amy's perspective to Nick's. I have read a few books like this and enjoyed all of them so I think that kind of layout of a book is something I enjoy. I also liked Margo (Go), Nick's sister. She was probably the only likeable character in the story for me. Even when I started to feel sorry for Nick, I still didn't particularly like him. I understand that you aren't meant to like certain characters but I just felt because it got dragged out so much, I got bored reading about them.

I do really like the idea for the story but for me it just wasn't brought across as well as it could have been.

Rating /5

3

I actually feel like I'm being a little generous on that rating but I didn't hate the book and there were some things I did actually like so that is why I decided to give it a 3/5.

As well as reading the book, I have also watched the film today and although it kept me on the edge of my seat a lot, I also felt like after a while I was getting bored. 

Rating /5

3

Maybe this story just isn't for me and I will obviously love reading about your opinions on both the book and the film so leave those in the comments below :)

That's all for now but be sure to check out my August Wrap Up which will be coming super soon!!!

Speak to you all then :)

xHannahx

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Hello Book Lovers!!!

The next book I'll be reading is Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. I have no idea why I haven't read this before now as it's been super hyped but I'm reading it now so that's fine right? My sister has already read this and she says it's one of her favourite books so I'm hoping to enjoy it as much as she did. 

I don't know much about this book so I'm going into it pretty blind as I've not seen the film either but I'll probably give that a watch after I've read the book so I'll let you know what I think of that as well :)

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Heir by Kiera Cass - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've finished The Heir by Kiera Cass and I really enjoyed it :) Although this book took me longer to get into that the original Selection Series, once I got into it, I loved it!!!

In the first book of this series we see Princess Eadlyn begin her Selection process. Princess Eadlyn is the daughter of America Singer and Prince Maxon from the previous series. 35 boys are chosen to take part in the Selection process and Eadlyn soon finds out that one of them is her mother's friends son, Kile, who already lives in the palace. The 35 boys arrive at the palace and it's safe to say that Eadlyn is not impressed by this process one bit. She has no interested in finding a partner and definitely no interest in getting married.

She tells her parents that she will give it 3 months minimum for the public's entertainment but she is not interested in any of it. Not long into the process she makes a decision to go forward with an elimination. This shocks a lot of people as it has been done so early on but she begins to eliminate anyway.

And in one elimination she manages to get rid of 11 boys!!! Leaving one of them in tears. Eadlyn wants to show the suitors who is the boss and so acts rather stern to them all. The boys start to take it into their own hands organising dates as Eadlyn has no interest in doing so. These dates include cooking, performing, playing musical instruments etc. She also finds her self in trouble on a couple of occasions where the suitors have treat her badly and get them eliminated immediately. 

After some time, Eadlyn begins to relax a bit more and enjoy some of the boy's company, including Kile's which she never thought possible. But just as things begin to look more promising, Eadlyn finds out that her brother has left for France to marry and her mother has suffered a heart attack.

Like I said earlier, this book took me a little longer to get into and I think that was because I felt it was slow at times. I also didn't like Eadlyn as much as I liked America. But as the story progressed I began to like her a lot more and felt she opened up a lot to the suitors.

I have grown to love some of the suitors, including Henri, a Finnish boy that speaks no English and needs Erik, a translator to help communicate with Eadlyn. Some of the boys I find to be too clingy and aren't going the right way in winning Eadlyn's heart, especially as she has little interest in finding love.

The only thing I didn't like so much about this book throughout was the lack of Prince Maxon and America. Although they aren't the main focus in this series, it would have been nicer to hear more about how their relationship has developed throughout the years and I don't feel like we got that.

I can't wait to read the next instalment of this series but unfortunately it's not due to be released until May of next year!!! How am I going to wait that long!!!

Rating /5

4

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Heir by Kiera Cass

Hello Book Lovers!!!

The next book I'm reading is The Heir by Kiera Cass, the first book in the sequel series of The Selection Series, and I'm super excited!!! I loved The Selection Series so I hope to like this series just as much :) So far August has been a fantastic reading month and I hope it will stay that way :)

Now all I know about this book is it's about Prince Maxon and America's daughter I think and that instead of it being 35 girls and 1 prince, it's the opposite way around :) It will be interesting to see how this world has been developed over the years and whether war is still happening between the Northerners, Southerners and the palace, although the Northerners seemed to side more with the palace by the end of The Selection Series.

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The One by Kiera Cass - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!!

Clearly I've got way too into this series as I completely forgot to tell you that I was reading The One by Kiera Cass. Sorry about that!!! But yes, that's what I've been reading and I've finished it meaning I've finished The Selection Series!!! But it doesn't end there as Kiera Cass has written the first book in the sequel series so guess what I'm reading next? ;)

As this is the final book in the Selection Series, then there will be spoilers for those who haven't read The Selection or The Elite but if you want to check out those reviews then click here for The Selection review and here for The Elite review :)

In this book we see America and the final girls competing against each other to win Prince Maxon's heart. As you would expect, there is a lot of conflict between the girls and when they decide to be honest with each other and tell each other what Maxon has done for each of them, some jealousy comes to the surface.

As well as this, the public are voting on who they want to be the Queen and when Celeste finds out America and Kriss are top of the leaderboard, she gets annoyed. America notices Celeste's behaviour and although America really doesn't like her, she goes to see what the matter is, soon finding out about the public polls. During their conversation, America tries to tell Celeste that she doesn't need Maxon to have a fantastic life, she is a Two afterall and soon Celeste opens up about why she behaves in the way she does. Because of this, Celeste and America begin to be nicer to each other and start a friendship.

The war between the Northerners, Southerners, and the palace are still underway causing the girls to have to keep being taken to the safe rooms when they invade. The war is getting worse and more and more people are losing their lives, including guards and families from some of the castes.

And as the girls get narrowed down again to two, can Maxon make up his mind about who he wants as his wife?

I loved this book just liked I loved the previous two. With Celeste opening up about why she behaves like she does, I began to like her a lot more and previously I couldn't stand the girl. I also really enjoyed reading about the invasions as it got even more tense and I felt myself getting emotional at times.

I also really enjoyed the ending although it was heartbreaking to start with as some of the main characters ended up losing their lives. One of which was one of my favourite characters so I'm upset about that.

I think overall the story was concluded amazingly and I couldn't have asked for a better ending. SPOILER ALERT: When Aspen walked America down the aisle for her wedding with Maxon, I nearly cried. It was so beautiful to know that even though they will never be together, they will always have a strong friendship and will always look out for each other.

Rating /5

5

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Elite by Kiera Cass - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've finished The Elite by Kiera Cass and absolutely loved it!!! I enjoyed it just as much as the first book, The Selection and I can't wait to carry on with this series. Because this is the second book in a series, this overview will have spoilers in for those of you who haven't read the first book, so if you haven't and you don't want to be spoilt, then go read the first book then come back here :) If you want to check out my review on the first book then click here :)

This part of the series sees America and 5 other girls try to win Prince Maxon's heart. Prince Maxon narrowed the girls down to six in the previous book and so now the story focusses specifically on these six girls. 

As well as this, America also has the difficulty of choosing whether to stay at the palace for Prince Maxon, or leave for Aspen, a boy who she met at home. 

The wars continue with the Northeners and Southerners but this time, a lot of the palace guards end up dead leaving America panicking for Aspen's safety. Not only that, but they also find out that they have started targeting the families of the Selection. Later on, America thinks she has worked out why they keep invading the palace after she puts together everything she has observed during the attacks.

During this book, America gets herself into a lot of trouble with the King after she tries to change how the country is ran by suggesting eliminating the castes, the categories the public are separated into. Not only does America get into trouble, but Maxon does too when he tries to stand up for her. And Maxon comes off worse, much worse.

The King wants America gone but Maxon won't stand for that as he knows that its America he wants, and eventually the King allows her to stay, but gives her a lot of hatred telling her she's not good enough to help run a country and all of the other girls are prettier and more suitable for Maxon than she is.

This leaves America not only upset, but terribly angry. What will she do next, and how long will it be before the King tries to get rid of her again?

Like I said above, I absolutely loved this book just as much as the first one. I loved how the plot developed and how we got to know a lot more about the other girls in this book because of there only being six of them left.

The war scenes are always so intriguing yet nerve racking as you are constantly thinking of who is getting hurt, or worse killed, and whether one of your favourite characters is going to make it through the invasions.

I definitely feel I've got more attached to some of the characters but I also feel like I'm developing hate for some of them as well. I didn't like Maxon at points in this book at all but once he explained his actions later on in the story, I started to understand his actions a little more, although I still don't agree with some of them. I can't stand Celeste; I think she is the worst character in the whole story but I think her character has been written and developed very well.

I definitely think America isn't being fair on either Aspen or Maxon and I think that she should have decided by now who she wants, as it's not fair letting both of them chase her.

And lastly, I'm loving the maids more and more every time I read a section they are in. They just make me smile and remind me of the fairies from Sleeping Beauty :)

Rating /5

5

If you've read The Selection or The Elite then let me know in the comments below what you thought of them as I would love to hear other people's opinions on this series.

Speak to you all soon!!!

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Elite by Kiera Cass

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've been a bit bad and started reading a book before letting you guys know what I was planning on reading...oops!!! I was just so excited to continue the Selection Series I completely forgot to put up a post or update my Goodreads. 

So the book I've been reading over the last day or so is The Elite by Kiera Kass, the second book in the series, and so far I'm loving it just as much as the first book, The Selection.

I'll let you know my full thoughts on it when I post my review, which at the speed I'm reading at the minute won't be long!!!

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

Fairest: The Hidden Kingdom by Bill Willingham and Lauren Beukes - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've read Fairest: The Hidden Kingdom by Bill Willingham and Lauren Beukes in one sitting as it's a quick read so I thought why not :) And I really enjoyed it. Just like the previous Fairest graffic novels I've read, it was full of action, romance, and drama.

The story begins with Rapunzel receiving a message saying "your children". She completely freaks out as she thought her children didn't make it through birth. She decides to go on the search for her children by backtracking her life, into parts she really wants to just forget.

We see Rapunzel reface stories in her life that not even her partner knows about and she gets herself into a lot of trouble when she bumps into someone from her past that wants her dead.

When she finally finds her children, and realises that although they aren't dead, they also aren't human, she goes on a journey to find out who did this to them. After remembering getting drugged during her birth, she goes looking for the person that drugged her as she thinks that this is the person that also stole her children and changed them.

Although I really enjoyed this volume, I'm not sure I enjoyed the ending so much as I didn't think it was finalised too well. I enjoyed learning about each character and about Raunzel's past and it was nice to see how Rapunzel changed herself for the better and got out of a life that was full of trouble.

It was very clever how her hair was brought into the story and how it effected not only herself but others as well, as it was a really different take on previous Rapunzel stories I've read or seen.

I definitely think Rapunzel was a lot more bad ass than Sleeping Beauty from the previous volume and I really liked that about her. Although she changed for the better and got out of a life that was terrible, she still has that bad ass streak about her and I really like that.

As well as this story, just like volume 1, there was a short story in the back where we see Bo Peep and her friend Princess Alder tell their story of Alder's bad luck with finding true love. Alder you see is not entirely human, she is part tree and because of that her lifestyle is a little different to ours.

This was a fun short read at the end and even though it is so short, I still found I learnt a lot about Princess Alder and I hope to see her again in another one of the Fairest stories :)

Rating /5

4

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

Fairest: The Hidden Kingdom by Bill Willingham and Lauren Beukes

Hello Book Lovers!!!

The next book I'm going to read this month is a graffic novel and it is volume 2 of the Fairest Series by Bill Willingham and Lauren Beukes. I really enjoyed reading the first volume last month and the stand alone I read earlier this year so I'm looking forward to carrying on with these graffic novels.

All I know about this one is it is based around Rapunzel. The first volume was based around Sleeping Beauty and I really enjoyed that and I love Rapunzel anyway so I'm sure I'll like this one :)

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've just finished The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien and oh wow, I'm feeling every emotion under the sun right now. This is going to be hard to write as I can't speak or think or just generally function properly right now.

This book is about a hobbit called Bilbo Baggins. He is a happy, peaceful hobbit and is very content with spending his life in and around his little hobbit-hole. When a wizard named Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive at his house, Bilbo has no idea how crazy his life is about to become.

They embark on a journey to raid the treasure of Smaug the Magnificent, a dragon and on their journey they face elves, trolls, Gollum, spiders, and many more things that make their adventure exciting yet terrifying.

And just when they think they've succeeded, they face a huge battle that could be the end of the road for them.

I can't explain to you how this book made me feel as the list of emotions would go on forever. I didn't realise just how attached I was getting to the characters until a few chapters to the end. And one specific paragraph made me well up. It's the first book this year that's made me cry so that's an achievement and a half Tolkien!!! I obviously won't post the paragraph as it will spoil it for people that haven't read it but if you haven't, you need to!!! If you are interested, it's on page 337 of the edition in the image above. I'll leave you to guess which paragraph!!!

The world in which Tolkien has created and the huge amount of characters and lands within this world are just amazing. It doesn't seem real that a human can have this much imagination. I don't know why it's taken me this long to read this book but I will definitely be reading The Lord of the Rings because I need more of this fantastic world in my life.

I recommend this book to anyone of any age, whether you read 1 book a year or 100 books a year. Give this a read!!! It's one of those books that I think everyone needs to read at some point in their lives. If you want to find a way to get into fantasy, then I definitely recommend this book. I can now say I completely understand why people are so obsessed with this world.

Rating /5

5

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx