July Book Haul

Hello! This is my first book haul blog post and I am very excited about it. I don't know about you but I love to have a little nosey and see the books other people have bought. Book hauls introduce me to new books that I've never heard of and convince me to go out and buy them all, which I suppose is sort of bad but I don't mind even if it means my TBR pile is about as tall as me. So here are the books that I purchased in the month of July...

The first book I bought this month is Cress by Marissa Meyer which is the third book in The Lunar Chronicles series. Cinder and Scarlet, the first two books, had been sitting on my shelf for a while and I finally got around to reading them this month so after finishing Scarlet I immediately bought Cress. I now love The Lunar Chronicles and I can't believe I didn't read them sooner, they are so good! I finished Cress a few days after I bought it and I've begun the long wait for the last book in the series which isn't coming out until next year.

The next book I bought and already read is The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas. This book is a bind up of the five novellas for The Throne of Glass series, which is now one of my new favourites. I just love everything about this series and I am so excited for Heir of Fire! As you can see on my copy the beautiful gold writing has rubbed of slightly but aside from this the cover for this book and the other books in the series are absolutely amazing. I really enjoyed this book and I loved learning about Celaena's past adventures and how she become who she is in Throne of Glass. 

Another book I bought this month is Shattered by Teri Terry which is the last book in the Slated trilogy. I loved Slated, the first book in the trilogy, and I am currently reading the second book Fractured. What I've read so far of this series is really good and I'm looking forward to continue reading it. I don't think it is that popular and I have no idea why as the story is so cool. Slated is a dystopian novel where the government give people who have committed crimes a second chance by erasing all of their memories, the story follows a girl who has been "slated" however she begins to remember things from her past and its all about her trying to find out the truth. If you haven't read it I recommend you do!

The next books are The Darkest Minds and Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken. I've heard so many good things about The Darkest Minds series and I've had it on my "books to buy" list for ages! I got them both in hard copy which is exciting for me because I never get hardback books as they are always a lot more expensive but I had a discount code so I finally caved and purchased them. All that I know about them is what I've read from the blurb so I'm really looking forward to reading them!

And the last books I bought this month are the two bind ups of the Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. I am very excited to read these books and they were also on my "books to buy" list for ages. All I know is what I've read from the blurb which sounds really cool and I will definitely be reading these soon.

So that wraps up my first book haul, I hope that this may have helped you in what books to buy next and I apologise to your wallets if it has. Thankyou for reading!

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
Synopsis:
The monster showed up after midnight. As they do.
But it isn't the monster Conor's been expecting. He's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming...
This monster is something different, though. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor.
It wants the truth.

I went into A Monster Calls not really knowing what to expect, I knew it was going to be good because of all the positive feedback it has had, but every review I read all said the same thing "just read it". I now understand why so many people struggled to sum this book up, it’s so hard to put down into words as it is so many different things but I'm going to give it a go.

This book was beautiful yet utterly heart-breaking, and I'll admit I did cry. The story follows a young boy, Conor, whose learning to deal with his mums battle with cancer. Conor’s compelling story is interspersed with the old stories that the monster tells, each of these stories have a lesson which definitely made me think differently about things.

This book is full of imagination and wonder but at the same time still very realistic. Each of the characters are well crafted and they all have a part to play in the story, they react just as people would do to the situation they are in making them very real which allows you to become involved in the story.

This book is everything at once and I loved how truthful it was. A Monster Calls is a beautifully written and illustrated novel and even though it is classed as a YA book I highly recommend it to all ages. All that’s left to say now is, just read it.

Favourite Five Friday - Female Characters

Every Friday I am going to try and do my "Favourite Five..." in different categories, whether that be my favourite five contemporary books or my favourite five book covers. (Key word being try in that sentence so no promises but I will certainly make an effort!)
So to kick off my "Favourite Five Friday" I am starting with my top five female characters. Everyone has their favourite heroines and I love finding a good book with a strong, independent female character in it.

5. Number 5 on my top fictional female characters is Tessa Gray from The Infernal Devices series. I think Tessa is an amazing character and is one of the reasons why I love the The Infernal Devices series so much (that and Will Herondale of course). She is intelligent. strong-willed and caring, and definitely isn't someone who will just sit back and wait for answers. Another reason why I love her character is that she's not afraid to stand up for herself, bearing in mind the Infernal Devices is set in the 19th century when women were not so brave and independent. As well as her passion for reading she also has Will and Jem, need I say any more.

4. Tris Prior from Divergent is my fourth favourite female character. Tris is one of the strongest characters I have ever read, she goes through so much in the Divergent series and I love how she always learns from her mistakes. She is also very smart and strong-willed, but one of my favourite things about her character has to be how brave she is. Every time she would do something courageous I would be in awe at her bravery and wish I could be as fearless as her.

3. Number 3 on my list is a new favourite character of mine and that is Celaena Sardothien from the Throne of Glass series. Celaena is a total badass and I find her character so intriguing to read. She is very arrogant and whilst some might not like this about her I really love how she knows how good she is and how she is not afraid to tell people this. As well as being a major badass, she is also smart and funny but even though she is this deadly assassin she still loves to read and get dressed up in pretty clothes which makes me love her even more.

2. My second favourite female character is Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games. Katniss is a fighter there's no doubt about that, she is one of the bravest and strongest characters I have ever read, I mean she survived the hunger games, twice! She is fiercely independent and strong individual, who doesn't allow others to dictate her life and I love this about her. But as well as being brave and strong, she is also very compassionate which makes her character a lot more relatable. 

1. My favourite ever fictional female character is Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series. As well as being incredibly intelligent, she is also a brave, loyal individual and a fierce friend. She can go from quiet and thoughtful to rebellious and flighty in the turn of a page and without Hermione, Harry and Ron probably wouldn't have even made it to the last book. She inspires me to work hard and stand up for what I believe in and I feel that she also made me realise that its okay to a bit nerdy and liking books isn't anything to be ashamed of. Not only is she a daring heroine she is also the perfect role model not just for young girls but for women as a whole.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Synopsis:

After serving out a year of hard labour in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin. Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king's council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she'll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom. 

Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilarating. But she's bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her... but it's the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best. 

Then one of the other contestants turns up dead... quickly followed by another. 

Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.

Before reading Throne of Glass I had never read a book centred around an assassin, so going into this book I wasn't sure what to expect even though I had heard a lot of great things about it. Let me tell you, it didn't disappoint, page after page I was pulled deeper into this incredible story and found myself engrossed by the characters and the world.

Throne of Glass was a truly amazing book that had me hooked from the very beginning. It was beautifully written with the perfect mixture of magic, mystery, romance and suspense that had me turning the pages to see what would happen next. The captivating storyline had numerous different plots all intertwined together and there was a wonderful balance between the light, funny moments and the dark, twisted ones.

The main character, Celaena Sardothien, is smart, funny and a major badass, but even though she is a deadly assassin she has a love for literature and fancy clothes, this definitely surprised me at first however it ended up being one of the reasons I liked her character so much as it made her seem a lot more real. Throughout the story you can almost forget that she is an assassin as you learn that she has a softer, caring side to her which is revealed through her willingness to help others. I love how she wasn't the typical tomboy heroine found in so many YA fantasy books these days, so okay she loves the feel of a weapon in her hand but she also loves the feel of the silk dresses she gets to wear when she's not trying to kill someone.

The potential love interests in this story are the other two main characters, the Prince and the Captain of the Guard. I really loved both of these characters, Dorian the prince is funny and flirtatious whereas Choal the captain is reserved, awkward and honest. I really enjoyed reading both of their interactions with Celaena but by the end of the book my favourite was definitely Chaol as I adored how you see him slowly falling for her throughout the story.

There was quite a lot of world building in this book and there is still a great deal more to learn, but I'm so excited to read the sequel to find out more about this world and the characters in a lot more depth.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves fantasy as it is such a fascinating story with a captivating story line and compelling characters.