Review for Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love -the deliria- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the governments’ demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holoway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy. But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love. I’m a huge fan of Lauren Oliver’s debut novel Before I Fall and so was excited when my blogger friend gave me her ARC to read and review early. Having loved Lauren’s first book along with the amazing sounding synopsis I started Delirium with only the highest expectations and overall, I loved it, although I did have a few problems with it. I noticed a few- not plot holes as such- but a few things that didn’t add up whilst reading that I won’t go into as I don’t want to spoil this book at all. Not huge things, but just little things that niggled at me and didn’t ring true. I’m sure a lot of people wouldn’t even notice them they were that small but I did and I couldn’t help but being irritated by them. On top of that when I picked this book up I expected it to be very faced past, with none stop action, end of the world type stuff like other books that I’ve read in the dystopian genre but this book wasn’t like that at all. It isn’t slow exactly it just wasn’t action packed and because I’ve come to expect that from dystopian themed books I couldn’t help but be disappointed. This is in no way the book or authors fault, I just built it up in my head to be something very different. When I got past all of that and was half way into it I started to see the book for what it was – an epic love story. It was then that I fell in love with Delirium. Although I found main character Lena slightly annoying at the beginning I really began to like her when she met Alex and her opinions on Amor Deliria Nervosa started to change. And what can I say about Alex? I ADORED him. But which girl wouldn’t? He’s such a lovely guy and he recites poetry for gosh sakes! He’s definitely a new book boy crush of mine and I’m sure other female readers will fall in love with him too. One character who I loved throughout was Lena’s best friend Hana. I loved Hana so much she’s such a brilliant friend to Lena and I really hope that we get to see more from her in the rest of the books. Lauren Oliver sure knows how to writer her romance, when Lena and Alex were together they positively shone and the forbidden love aspect to it made their love feel even more convincing and tragic. I loved them as a couple and was desperate for them to find a way to be together. Lauren’s writing is hugely powerful throughout. She has such a beautiful way with words that really makes you feel what the characters are going through- resulting in lots of crying from me from start to finish! I also loved the little quotes at the beginning of each chapter it gave the book a really nice touch with a little bit of an idea of what our characters will be going through in this chapter. What really made this book for me though was the ending, oh the ending! Delirium has one of the most intense, heart wrenching endings I have ever read. I wouldn’t have put it down if you paid me. I simply could not stop reading (other than when I had to quickly run and grab another tissue to wipe away my tears!) and when I closed this book I’m not ashamed to say I broke down into huge baby, red faced, puffy eyed, snotty tears and stayed that way for half hour re-reading certain parts and taking the book in. I loved this book so much that it actually pains me not to be able to give it the full 5 stars but because of the reasons I gave at the beginning of this review I just can’t. It’s not that I built it up in my head to be better not at all just different so of course I was disappointed when it wasn’t what I thought it would be which is why I wanted to make my reasons clear in this review so you guys now hopefully won’t feel the same way as me when you come to read it. Please don’t let these reasons put you off reading this book because it truly is brilliant. Pick it up expecting an epic love story instead of action packed, end of the world stuff and you will not be disappointed –promise. I cannot wait for the next instalment in this fantastic new trilogy Pandemonium. Highly recommend even with the problems I had with it. I could over look them, I hope you will too. 4.5 stars. My Rating 4.5/5 stars ****1/2 Synopsis taken from goodreads

In My Mailbox!

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren Hey guys, well I broke my book buying ban this week BUT I was still really good and only bought books on special offer that were too good to pass up on! I also got some books for review and an early Christmas present! So let’s get to the good stuff and bring out the books! Stefan's Diaries by L J Smith (bought in a buy one get one free on children’s books offer, the book I got free was a Christmas present for my cousin) Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn (Christmas present from my brother, yes he is awesome!) Black Swan Rising by Lee Carroll (for review from Random House) Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen (for review from penguin) Welcome to My World by Miranda Dickinson (bought in a 2 for £8 offer) I Heart New York by Lindsey Kelk (bought for £2 from Tesco! What a bargain!) Twelve Days of Christmas by Trisha Ashley (bought as the second book in the 2 for £8 offer) So that’s what I got this week! Lots of lovely Christmassy books to get me in the festive spirit and a lot of good bargains! I was so excited when I received a review copy of Bright Young Things through the post this week. I’m a big fan of Anna Godbersens Luxe series so I can’t wait to start this one! Hope your all having a great weekend. If you’ve read any of the books I got this week and want to leave me a comment letting me know what you thought please do and make sure you leave me a link to what you got in your mailbox this week. Here’s to another great week of reading ahead!

Book Bloggers Hop & Follow My Book Blog Friday!

Hello to all my wonderful followers and to hopefully some potential new ones! This Friday I’m participating in The Book Bloggers hop which is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books and Follow my Book Blog Friday that’s hosted over at Parajunkee's View if you wish to take part please stop by there and sign the Mr Linky. This week’s question from the hop is… "If you find a book that looks interesting but is part of a series, do you always start with the first title?" My answer: Always, always, always! I’m very particular about reading books in order. Even if it’s a spin off series that catches my eye I will always read the first series first- just because I don’t want to feel like I’m missing out on something and if the books are great then I’d want to read them in their proper order. Before I buy a book I always check up on the author and see if they’ve released anything else before it because sometimes I even like to read an author whose books aren’t necessarily part of a series in order of the release date especially if old characters make a brief re-appearance. Like Sarah Dessen’s books for example she’s famous for doing that. So I guess to cut this answer short I would never EVER read a series out of order I can’t think of anything worse! Well I hope your all enjoying my blog and I hope some of you decide to follow! Feel free to leave me a link to your blog and let me know your answer to this week’s question. It’s great to have you all here!

Covers So Lovely We'd Lick Them! (3)

Hey folks! It’s Thursday so that means it’s time to get those tongues at the ready! Covers So Lovely We’d Lick Them is a new feature co-created and co-hosted by LadyViolet and Jess Hearts Books where we show off a book cover which we find so damn scrumptious that we'd actually be willing to lick it! Every Thursday we each pick a different cover to gush about so check both blogs!

My Pick for this Week

The Twin's Daughter by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

Like last week’s pick what I love about The Twins Daughter is the bold colour used for the background and then the shadows of the people. I think it gives a really mysterious feel to the book which really sucks me in and makes me want to discover more about it. In fact many months ago now I added this one to my wish list without knowing that much about it – the pretty cover lured me in! I now own this book and although I haven’t read it yet it sounds fantastic and I can’t wait to get around to it. I’m quite a girly girl so I’m very attracted to the bright pink used for this book- it definitely makes it stand out! The font’s gorgeous, and I love how the apostrophe looks almost like a tear – very intriguing! I pronounce this book lickable! P.S Is it just me or does in between the girls look like a dagger with a drop of blood dripping off it? I’ve only just noticed this! Spooky! So that’s my cover for this week. Feel free to leave me comments letting me know what you think of this feature and if you ever get insane lust over a book cover, does a lovely cover influence you buying the book? Let me know and don’t forget to stop by Rachel’s blog to find out what cover she’d like to Lick this week!

Review for Jemima J by Jane Green

Jemima Jones is overweight. Very overweight and she can’t help but feel that her life needs a drastic change because when the going gets tough Jemima eats for comfort whether that’s because she’s yet again being treated like a slave by her bitchy gorgeous flatmates or because she’s stuck working on the Top Tips column at the Kilburn Herald when what Jemima really wants to do is write for a glossy fashion magazine or because Ben - office hunk, and good friend - will never see her as more than just that, a friend. Jemima begins to wonder if people would treat her differently if she were to lose the weight but can Jemima reinvent herself and land the life of her dreams? And more importantly should she have to change the way she looks to get the life she wants? Jemima J is the ultimate makeover novel that will appeal to women everywhere. The reader is put in Jemima’s shoes, the shoes of a larger than life lady trying to make a career for herself in fashion capitol London. Jemima shows us the prejudice and assumptions that come along with her size. Although Jemima’s story is ultimately funny and light it also packs a punch about image and body confidence. Jemima J is an honest, touching, hilarious story that every girl who has ever been body conscious will relate to, nodding along with Jemima thinking “she’s just like me!” Jemima is one of the loveliest, funniest heroines I’ve ever had the pleasure to read about. This girl has a heart of gold and I so badly wanted things to work out for her. You also can’t help but fall in love with Ben just as deeply as Jemima has. He’s intelligent, sweet, sexy and charming the perfect romantic hero. I also found myself really liking Geraldine Jemima’s friend from work who grows on you more and more as you read the book. She really proves herself to be a brilliant friend to Jemima when she needs her most. The characters are very warm and likeable making them an absolute joy to read about. I’ve read a few of Jane Green’s books and seem to prefer her earlier books to her newer ones. They have a much younger, funnier feel to them and this is probably my favourite of hers to date. Jemima J is chick-lit gold and is now a firm favourite of mine in the genre. This is a totally feel good book which mixes low self-esteem, addiction, wit, fate, love and friendship together creating a comforting compulsively readable book. Perfect to snuggle up with on one of those ugly duckling days it will boost your mood and your confidence. I’d recommend this book to anyone who’s ever looked in the mirror and has been less than happy with what they see. 4.5 stars. My Rating 4.5/5 stars ****1/2

In My Mailbox!

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren Hi guys, well it’s been 2 weeks now since I last bought a book. How good am I being?! But like last week I did still get some books in the post for review so let’s bring out the books! For Review The Long Weekend by Savita Kalhan (signed) Split by a Kiss by Luisa Plaja (signed) Swapped By a Kiss by Luisa Plaja (signed) Delirium by Lauren Oliver (arc) Immortal Beloved by Cate Tiernan (arc) So that’s what I got this week! BIG, HUGE , thank yous to my book fairy Luisa for sending me a brilliant little bundle of awesome and to Savita for sending me her book to review! So excited to read all of the books I got this week they all sound amazing! And hello? Delirium? OMG! Hope your all having a great weekend. If you’ve read any of the books I got this week and want to leave me a comment letting me know what you thought please do and make sure you leave me a link to what you got in your mailbox this week. Here’s to another great week of reading ahead!

October Round Up & Book of the Month!

Hi guys well this post is coming a little later than I would have liked due to no blogging from me at the start of this week because I was really poorly, but it’s here now! And I love doing these posts so let’s get on to it! This is a post in which I’m going to share with you my highs and lows reading wise of the month and my favourite books for different categories depending on what you’re looking for. First of all though I’m going to start off by announcing the overall book of the month which means that it was my very favourite read and one that I would absolutely recommend to everybody so without further delay… October’s book of the month is… Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly! Not only is Revolution Octobers book of the month, but this is also my favourite book of the year so far. I just absolutely adored everything about it and would recommend it to absolutely anyone and everyone. To find out more about Revolution stop by my review for it here. Best Plot: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly Best Writing: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly Best Cover: Torment by Lauren Kate Best Characters: The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting Best Ending: Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick Best Romance: The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting Most un-put-down-able: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly Most Memorable: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly Best Moral: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly Top 3 Most Recommended Books: Revolution, The Body Finder and gah I can’t choose! Torment and Crescendo tied. Bookish Highlights of the month Getting some truly amazing arcs to read through the post. Launching mine and Rachel’s new feature, discovering my favourite book of the year, Rachel buying me some books just for the hell of it! And hosting my very first contest :) lots this month! Bookish Lows of the month I don’t think there have been any to be honest. Losing a follower but I guess that’s been it! Oh and going on a book buying ban that’s never fun but it has got to be done! Book’s I’m looking forward to in November Being on a book buying ban this doesn’t really apply to me this month. Although I would love to get my own copy of The Body Finder because I really loved that book! And I have a very special arc that will be making its way to me in November that I am HUGELY excited about! Don’t want to say too much about it yet but stay tuned to find out what it is! So there you have it my October reading! Very Revolution filled! I really hope you’ll check out my book of the month Revolution it really is wonderful. All links lead to reviews and other goings on on the blog. Feel free to leave me a comment, I would appreciate them! Here’s to another month of great reading ahead! :)

Book Bloggers Hop & Follow My Book Blog Friday!

Hello to all my wonderful followers and to hopefully some potential new ones! This Friday I’m participating in The Book Bloggers hop which is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy for Books and Follow my Book Blog Friday that’s hosted over at Parajunkee's View if you wish to take part please stop by there and sign the Mr Linky. This week’s question from the hop is… "What are your feelings on losing followers? Have you ever stopped following a blog?" My answer: Luckily I’ve only ever lost 2 followers before and I honestly don’t mind. I mean you win some you lose some. You can’t please everybody and I usually gain a new follower within the week to make up for that one I’ve lost. If I lost a regular for whatever reason I think I’d be more upset. The thing is there are so many brilliant blogs out there and you can’t keep up with and follow all of them so for me it’s about selecting those special few that you really enjoy. For that reason I really appreciate those followers that come back week after week and leave me a comment. It shows that they enjoy my blog and care about what I have to say. So I guess to sum up if it’s someone whose just clicked follow and never looked at my blog again no I don’t mind but if it were a regular follower it would hurt a lot. I myself haven’t yet stopped following a blog. When I started blogging I would follow everyone and anyone but these days I’m pickier about who I follow because I follow so many cool people already. I do have a soft spot for newbie bloggers though it’s always interesting to follow somebody from scratch and watch how their blog develops, I think seeing your followers go up is always so exciting at the beginning and I would love to give somebody that feel good “what I say really matters, this blog is going to work!” feeling so it encourages them to keep blogging :) Well I hope your all enjoying my blog and I hope some of you decide to follow! Feel free to leave me a link to your blog and let me know your answer to this week’s question. It’s great to have you all here!

Covers So Lovely We'd Lick Them! (2)

Hey folks! It’s Thursday so that means it’s time to get those tongues at the ready! Covers So Lovely We’d Lick Them is a new feature co-created and co-hosted by LadyViolet and Jess Hearts Books where we show off a book cover which we find so damn scrumptious that we'd actually be willing to lick it! Every Thursday we each pick a different cover to gush about so check both blogs! My Pick for this Week Halo by Alexandra Adornetto (US edition) Do I really have to explain this week’s pick? I mean just LOOK at it! I think the cover for Halo is my all-time favourite cover ever. I love how unlike a lot of paranormal romance it’s a bright golden yellow making it positively glow and stand out from the rest on the shelf. I have my own copy of this book and the detail to it in person is simply gorgeous. Taking off the dust cover the actual book is a deep rich chocolate brown with gold lettering. I just want to eat this book up! Everything about it is stunning from the sunrise/set to the shadows of the angel and the boy. Our UK edition is slightly different the covers darker giving it a more sunset effect and the characters are on the other side of the book. I like our UK one but I’m not as in love with it as the US cover I personally don’t think they should have changed it at all. This is probably because I lusted after Halo and its cover months before it came out so seeing it differently just looks a little odd to me. This book just screams romance and with it being about angels just adds the cherry on top of the cake for me. I’m in huge cover lust with this one and can’t wait to read it! So that’s my cover for this week. Feel free to leave me comments letting me know what you think of this feature and if you ever get insane lust over a book cover, does a lovely cover influence you buying the book? Let me know and don’t forget to stop by Rachel’s blog to find out what cover she’d like to Lick this week!

Review for Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick

So let me start off by saying I was a little reluctant about picking up Crescendo when my blog followers voted for this to be my Halloween read. Firstly because although I loved the plot for the first book in this series Hush Hush I really didn’t like the characters very much. Secondly a lot of people reviewing Crescendo were saying that they found Patch and Nora very annoying in this book and this was coming from people who loved them in Hush Hush so needless to say that really put me off reading it. I was convinced I’d hate it. But my followers wanted me to read and review it for them so not wanting to let them down I settled down with it on Saturday night and overall I loved it. However the same things that I didn’t like about Hush, Hush annoyed me in Crescendo. That being Patch and Nora’s characters. In Crescendo the couple have a lot of ups and downs. Sometimes I liked them and could understand their decisions, other times they infuriated me so much and I hate to say it but I’m still not a Patch fan. I know that a lot of girls love Patch but I just don’t. He’s a very closed off, secretive character and for that reason I don’t feel like I really know him, giving me nothing to like, and because he’s so guarded I don’t trust him one hundred per cent and I don’t feel his love for Nora. As for Nora she’s just one of those characters that lets us girls down. She’s very needy and risks her life by putting herself in stupid situations to see if Patch still cares enough to save her. I like my lead female characters strong and Nora’s just not my kind of heroine at all. I do however LOVE Nora’s best friend Vee, she’s such a good friend to Nora and I love her wit. The characters are for me the only thing that lets this series down. If they were a bit more likeable I would be in book heaven because the plot is just brilliant. Anyone who knows me knows how much I love books on Angels their my very favourite paranormal creatures and the plot for this series is fantastic. In Crescendo the plot definitely thickens and I’m so excited to see where Becca is taking this series. A lot gets revealed in the duration of Crescendo there’s so much suspense and so many twists and turns that make this book un-put-down-able. I was surprised and riveted and found myself on a few occasions thinking “oh, just one more chapter!” that one chapter turning into two or three. Becca Fitzpatrick is a brilliant story teller. Her books are action packed and I love her style of writing. As I said at the beginning of this review I had my reservations about picking this one up but overall I’m very glad that I did. It’s not perfect but the plot more than makes up for it, making it a must read to find out more about this world. The twists are just amazing, well thought out and shocking. If you - like myself - are having problems with Patch and Nora whether you’re reading Crescendo or didn’t like them in Hush Hush it’s definitely worth getting past that because everything else about this book is brilliant. Be warned if you’re not a fan off cliff-hanger endings though because this book ends on a HUGE one! How could you do this to us Becca? It does the trick though, because I simply can’t wait to get my hands on the next book in this series. Recommended if you’re looking for a fast paced, paranormal read. 4.5 stars. My Rating 4.5/5 stars ****1/2