September Book Haul

September has been a busy month for me with being back at school but I still managed to buy a few books. There is no where near the amount I had last month but that's okay because I really don't want my TBR pile to get any bigger! Anyway these are the books I bought this month...

Opposition by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I finished Origin at the beginning of September and I immediately bought Opposition and finished it within a few days. I LOVE the Lux series, its a great mixture of action and romance and the dialogue is brilliant and makes the books so much fun to read. What I want to know now though is where can you find a Daemon Black?!

Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

Talk about patience I waited an extra week for my copy of Heir of Fire to come as I ordered a signed edition which was worth the wait and is now probably my prized possession. I read Throne of Glass and Crown of Midnight at the beginning of the summer and I've been so excited to get my hands on this book, I'm currently reading it right now and it feels so good to back in the world.

The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey

This is another book that I was so excited to get my hands on. I read The 5th Wave when it came out last year and have been eagerly anticipating the release of the sequel. I haven't got around to reading it yet but I am super excited for it, even if it is only half the size of the first book! I loved The 5th Wave a lot so hopefully The Infinite Sea will be just as good.

The Iron Trial by Cassandra Clare and Holly Black

I love Cassandra Clare and even though I haven't read anything by Holly Black I've heard she's an amazing author, so of course I had to get this book. Even though I don't know too much about this book I think I'm going to really enjoy it as it includes magic which I love. I can't wait to read it to find out more of what this book series is going to be about.

After last month I said I wasn't going to buy any books in September and that obviously failed, I just can't help myself! I'm not going to even say the same for next month because I know I'll end up buying a book even if it is just one. Thankyou for reading!

Silver Shadows by Richelle Mead

Review may contain small spoilers for the Bloodlines series
If you haven't read the Bloodlines series (or Vampire Academy) I highly recommend them!

Silver Shadows by Richelle Mead
Synopsis:
Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.
In The Fiery Heart, Sydney risked everything to follow her gut, walking a dangerous line to keep her feelings hidden from the Alchemists.
Now in the aftermath of an event that ripped their world apart, Sydney and Adrian struggle to pick up the pieces and find their way back to each other. But first, they have to survive. 
For Sydney, trapped and surrounded by adversaries, life becomes a daily struggle to hold on to her identity and the memories of those she loves. Meanwhile, Adrian clings to hope in the face of those who tell him Sydney is a lost cause, but the battle proves daunting as old demons and new temptations begin to seize hold of him. . . .
Their worst fears now a chilling reality, Sydney and Adrian face their darkest hour in this heart-pounding fifth instalment in the New York Times best-selling Bloodlines series, where all bets are off.

Silver Shadows is the 5th instalment in the Bloodlines series and it is by far the most intense, heart wrenching book out of the five. I was expecting some heart stopping moments after the cliff hanger at the end of The Fiery Heart but I wasn’t quite fully prepared to feel so terrified for both Sydney and Adrian. Silver Shadows is very different from the other four books, mainly because of the different settings and the interactions with different characters. Even though I love reading about the little group in Palm Springs, it was nice to move away from that setting. I found it interesting seeing Court through Adrian’s eyes as Lord Ivashkov but also seeing Sydney’s experiences in the completely different world of re-education.

Speaking of re-education, I never imagined it to be that bad! It was completely horrific and I couldn't believe the methods that the Alchemists used on "corrupted" souls. You have to hand it to Sydney though, she was amazing throughout this book and I was constantly in awe at her strength. Even though she was going through a lot in re-education, she still wanted to help her fellow prisoners which made me admire her even more. I love how far Sydney has come throughout these books, from the time we first met her in Blood Promise when she was petrified of Rose to now when she's in a relationship with a vampire, the development she’s gone through as a character is remarkable.

Just like Sydney, Adrian has also grown so much as a character. I was expecting him to fall apart in this book and even though I love him a lot he did frustrate me slightly a little and in the first half of the book I just wanted to shake some sense into him. But to give him credit he does pick himself back up which shows how far he has come, and his use of spirit in this book, as worrying as it is, was pretty cool and heroic.

Even though Adrian and Sydney aren’t together for a majority of this book, Silver Shadows definitely focuses more on them and their relationship than the other characters in the story. They both have to deal with a lot in this book and they are tested both as individuals and as a couple, which shows in the end how strong they are.

Overall Silver Shadows was a captivating and pulse pounding read. Richelle Mead manages to balance the dark and the light moments perfectly and the character development that happens throughout these books is phenomenal. I am very excited to read the last book, The Ruby Circle, which comes out next year as the ending to Silver Shadows has left me wondering what will go down in the last book and how the series will conclude.

Top 5 Most Owned Authors

Hello! I started my second and final year of college a couple of weeks ago so my time has been spent doing homework, getting started in lessons and sorting out university applications. It's been a bit hectic but hopefully now I have my routine sorted out so that I can blog more! Even though I've had a lot of work to do for college I still managed to squeeze in time for reading so hopefully a lot more reviews will be coming soon.

When I was admiring my bookcase the other day (which is something I usually do everyday) I noticed that I had a lot of books by the same authors, so I'm going to tell you my top 5 most owned authors...

5. My fifth most owned author is Jennifer L. Armentrout. I had a lot of authors with 5 books on my shelf but I have 6 of Jennifer L. Armentrout's books and I hope to get a lot more soon. I have recently finished the Lux series and I loved it so much, it was so good and I can't wait to read more of her books. I love her writing style as it is so fun to read and I laughed a lot whilst reading the Lux series.
Books I own - The Lux series, Don't Look Back


4. Number four is Cassandra Clare. I have 9 of her books and I love them a lot, the world she created is amazing and her writing is wonderful and funny. I'm so excited for the next two series that will be based in the shadow hunter world as I just love it so much!
Books I own - The Mortal Instruments series, The Infernal Devices Series

3. At number 3 is J.K Rowling. I own 10 of her books, all of them to do with Harry Potter. The Harry Potter series is by far my favourite series ever and I admire J.K Rowling a lot for writing them and for creating a truly amazing world and characters.
Books I own - The Harry Potter Series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in Spanish, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, The Tales of Beedle the Bard

2. My second most owned author is Richelle Mead. Her books are so fun to read and her characters are fantastic, I often find myself laughing at some of the dialogue the characters say. I have just finished Silver Shadows the fifth book in the Bloodlines series and now I cannot wait for The Ruby Circle which is being released next year!
Books I own - The Vampire Academy Series, Bloodlines, The Golden Lily, The Indigo Spell, The Fiery Heart, Silver Shadows

1. My most owned author is Lemony Snicket. I own 13 of his books which are all part of The Series of Unfortunate events. I've mentioned in a previous blog post that I have the hardback box set of this series which was my pride and joy as a child and I remember thoroughly enjoying reading them when I was younger.
Books I own - The Series of Unfortunate Events

Just because these are my top 5 most owned authors it doesn't necessarily make them my favourite, I'll definitely do a blog post on my favourite authors in the future though!

Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott

Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott
Synopsis:
Time is slipping away.... 
Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.
Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.
The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?

When I first picked up this book I thought it would be a copy of The Hunger Games, and in some ways it was similar but in others it was totally original and creative. Before Fire & Flood I had never read a book by Victoria Scott so I wasn’t really sure what to expect, and boy was I in for a surprise. I really loved this book and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, as its such an exciting, compelling story with an interesting plot and fantastic characters.

Tella, the main character, enters a race called the Brimstone Bleed, where the winner receives a cure for any illness which could save her dying brother. All the contestants in the race have a ‘Pandora’ which is some sort of animal with cool super powers that aids them throughout the different ecosystems they have to race through. In Fire & Flood the characters battle through two of the four environments that make up the race, the jungle and the desert. Both of these settings were brought to life and were incredibly vivid, making it so easy to envision and feel like a part of.

Tella is a typical teenage girl to start out with, she isn't much of an outdoors women but she’ll do anything to help her brother and that’s why she enters the Brimstone Bleed. Throughout the book you get to see her grow and become tough but at the same time she stays relatable. We meet a lot of other characters in this book as loads of people are given the opportunity to participate in the race. All the supporting characters were well developed and real, I enjoyed reading the interactions the characters had and reading about those that Tella befriended or fought along the way. I especially liked watching Tella's relationship with Guy, the love interest in the story, change and grow.

Whilst reading this book I was completely immersed in the world, constantly turning the page to find out what happens as it keeps you in suspense from the beginning to the end. I'm super excited to read the next book in the series ‘Salt & Stone’ which comes out next year as a lot of questions still need to be answered.

Overall though Fire & Flood was a fast paced action packed read with just the right amount of humour and romance that I highly recommend!