Monday 9 January 2012

Review for Divergent by Veronica Roth

I’d like to give a special mention to Cait and Lyndsey for the push I needed to finally pick this book up!

Divergent by Veronica Roth
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release Date: 3rd May 2011
Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian
Rating: 5/5 stars
Source: Received from the publisher for review

Goodreads Summary:
"In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves… or it might destroy her."

Review
It took me such a long time to get round to reading Divergent. I have no idea why considering dystopians are my favourite type of book to read. Maybe because I was worried it wouldn’t live up to the hype or because I was waiting for a time when I wasn’t busy and could give it my full attention, or maybe I was just saving it for when I wanted to read a really good book, I don’t know. I think they all had a little something to do with it. But as I am surely the last person on earth to read it this review is to simply concur with all of the wonderful things said about this book, because this is a book that deserves it’s hype.

Divergent is the type of dystopian that I love best. It’s fast paced, I mean REALLY fast paced, not giving you a moment to even catch your breath and gather your thoughts. Considering it’s such a big book there is never a moment where the story drags on or the pacing drops. It was consistently exciting and action packed in a way that’s similar to dystopians like The Hunger Games and The Maze Runner. But at the same time it’s not a copycat and has a completely new story to anything else out there. Despite this book being just shy of 500 pages I devoured it in less than two days which is pretty speedy for me and a book of this size.

Our protagonist Tris is probably the most badass heroine I’ve ever encountered. Seriously, this girl is tough as nails, and I loved following her journey. Then there is Four, Tris’s instructor and love interest. I loved Four right from the start, he’s this really strong, tough guy with a heart of gold. I loved Four and Tris’s relationship as unlike in so many young adult books they were partners and equals who supported each other but didn’t need the other to babysit them. I loved how naturally their relationship developed and how despite the romance it didn’t take away from or slow down the action element of the story.

The plot is so well imagined and executed. If I’m nit picking the only thing that let this book down for me was that I figured out many of the twists before they happened. I would have liked to have been kept on my toes a little more regarding that but overall it didn’t take away from my love for this book.

Divergent is the best dystopian I’ve read in a long time and is perfect for readers who love their stories dangerous and their heroine’s bad ass. This was a mind blowing debut and a fantastic start to what promises to be a hugely popular series. I can barely wait for book two!

Sunday 8 January 2012

In My Mailbox!

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren


Review Books


Advent by James Treadwell
Touch of Power by Maria V Snyder
Supernaturally by Kiersten White
The Book of Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman
Slide by Jill Hathaway
Desert Angel by Charlie Price


Bought


The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder
Smoulder by Brenna Yovanoff


Gifts!


The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien and illustrated by Alan Lee ( HUGE thank you's to Ellie at Musings of a Bookshop Girl for this gorgeous early birthday present!)
Heist Society by Ally Carter ( Big thank you's also to my bestie Rachel at In the Library of LadyViolet for this Christmas present! I've wanted to read this one for ages!)


So that's what I got over the past week and the week's in which I was taking my holiday blogging break! As always big thank you's to everybody who sent me books I'm so excited to read them! 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. Here’s to another week of fantastic reading ahead!

Thursday 5 January 2012

So how did I do with my 2011 challenges?

In 2011 I participated in The Story Siren’s Debut Author Challenge, The Bookette’s British Book’s Challenge (now hosted over at The Overflowing Library) and set myself the goal of reading at least 75 books on goodreads so let’s see how I done…

Debut Author Challenge


Goal: To read 12 2011 debut’s
Read
1.) Entangled by Cat Clarke
2.) Across the Universe by Beth Revis
3.) Other Words for Love by Lorraine Zago Rosenthal
4.) The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney
5.) Chocker by Elizabeth Woods
6.) Low Red Moon by Ivy Devlin
7.) Paranormalcy by Kiersten White
8.) Amy and Rogers Epic Detour by Morgan Matson
9.) Clarity by Kim Harrington
10.) Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon
11.) Flawless by Lara Chapman
12.) Wither by Lauren DeStefano
13.) Swim the Fly by Don Calame
14.) Forgotten by Cat Patrick
15.) Die for Me by Amy Plum
16.) Birthmarked by Caragh M. O’Brien
17.) Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton
18.) Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
19.) Soul Beach by Kate Harrison
20.) Frost by Marianna Baer
21.) Saving June by Hannah Harrington
22.) Fury by Elizabeth Miles
23.) Divergent by Veronica Roth
24.) Sean Griswold’s Head by Lindsey Leavitt
25.) Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

25 debuts! Not too shabby! I’m so glad I took part in this challenge as it really pushed me to try out some new authors I may not have tried and by doing so I’ve discovered lots of new favourite authors who I can’t wait to read more from.

British Books Challenge


Goal: To read 12 British books in 2011
Read
1.) Entangled by Cat Clarke
2.) The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney
3.) The Long Weekend by Savita Kalhan
4.) To The Moon and Back by Jill Mansell
5.) Rockoholic by C.J Skuse
6.) A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
7.) It Happened One Summer by Polly Williams
8.) Stolen by Lucy Christopher
9.) The Truth About You by Melissa Hill
10.) Jessie Hearts NYC by Keris Stainton
11.) Lucy in the Sky by Paige Toon
12.) Katy Carter Wants a Hero by Ruth Saberton
13.) Bad Sisters by Rebecca Chance
14.) Velvet by Mary Hooper
15.) One Day by David Nicholls
16.) Soul Beach by Kate Harrison
17.) Angel Fire by L.A Weatherly
18.) An Autumn Crush by Milly Johnson
19.) There is No Dog by Meg Rosoff
20.) Last Chirstmas by Julia Williams
21.) One Minute to Midnight by Amy Silver
22.) The Night Before Christmas by Scarlett Bailey

So my planned 12 turned into 22! Taking part in this challenge was another great experience. I love me some American authors and the majority of books I read do tend to come from the US so it was really nice to read some books by authors with home grown British talent and some of these made it into my favourites of the year!

75 Book Challenge

Goal: To read 75 books
Read: 82 (see the full list here!)

Yay! I’m quite a slow reader as I really like to take things in so was really chuffed to not only reach 75 but also to surpass it!

Overall I’m really proud of myself for not only meeting but surpassing all of my challenges this year. So what’s next for 2012? Well nothing actually… That’s right I’ve taken part in some sort of challenge for the past 3 years now and so I’ve decided to take a break from them this year and just read what I want to read.

Even though I managed to meet my challenges I’m quite a rebel and don’t like being told what to do so I’m doing a little self-experiment this year to see if I actually do better without the pressure of any challenges. Even though the last year’s been great and I’ve loved taking part I’m excited to be doing my own thing this year without feeling like I should be reading something else.

So that’s all from me challenge wise this year. Best of luck to those of you who are taking part in challenges in 2012 and well done to those who completed theirs last year!

Wednesday 4 January 2012

Divergent gets a make-over! And INSURGENT UK cover reveal!

Some of you may know the Divergent and Insurgent cover’s as this…


and this...


However here in the UK the publishers are giving this series a make-over with completely new covers and here they are!

Divergent


Insurgent


I think the new covers are absolutely gorgeous and will definitely appeal to UK YA fans, but for me personally there’s just something so striking and unique about the US and original UK covers that really made them stand out to me. I do however LOVE the burning leaves on Insurgent and I’m a sucker for a purple cover!

What do you guys think of the cover change and which set do you prefer? Insurgent is out in the UK on the 1st May of this year and I for one can’t wait!

Tuesday 3 January 2012

December's Book of the Month, 2011's Book of the Year and Yearly Round Up!

Hi guys! I’m back from my holiday blogging break now and in that time managed to read SO many good books to finish the year off in style. I caught up on some of those must reads for 2011 and so choosing my December book of the month has been very difficult! First of all I’d like to give an honourable mention to Clockwork Prince, Divergent, and Starcrossed they were all amazing books and if read on separate months could of stood as book of the month’s themselves. But there was one book in particular that I read during my break that just surpassed all of the above. In fact it’s got to be at the top of my very favourite books of the year but we’ll get on to that later…without further ado I announce that…

December’s BotM is The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern!


The Night Circus was such a magic, whimsical story that reads very much like an adult fairytale. I defy anyone to read the first couple of pages of this book and NOT carry on with it. This was such an amazing book and was the perfect magical read.

Now moving on to my absolute favourite book of 2011! I read so many amazing books with plenty of 5 star ratings this year but this book for me is like nothing else out there. It’s romantic, heart stopping, tragic and just an all-round wonderfully imagined, fantastically written book with a stunning cover to boot. I’ve raved about this book to pretty much anyone who’ll listen and have already persuaded so many people to give it a go but in case you missed out on any of my raving’s then know that 2011’s book of the year comes with the highest of recommendations from me.

2011’s Book of the Year is Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor!



In case you missed my review for this book and want to find out more you can check out my thoughts here!

Here’s my list of each book of the month in order of awesomeness!

1.) Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor (August)
2.) The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (December)
3.) One Day by David Nicholls and Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins (tied in September)
4.) Where She Went by Gayle Forman (March)
5.) A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (May)
6.) Wonder by R.J Palacio (November)
7.) Other Words for Love by Lorraine Zago Rosenthal (January)
8.) We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han (April)
9.) Angel Fire by L.A Weatherly (October)
10.) Ultraviolet by R.J Anderson (July)
11.) Paranormalcy by Kiersten White (February)
12.) The Truth About You by Melissa Hill (June)

Awards
Best Plot: Daughter of Smoke and Bone
Best Writing: The Night Circus
Best Cover: The Night Circus
Best Characters: Lola and the Boy Next Door
Best Ending: A Monster Calls
Best Romance: One Day
Most un-put-down-able: Ultraviolet
Most Memorable: Daughter of Smoke and Bone
Best Moral: Wonder

If you missed out on any of the books mentioned in this post in 2011 I would whole heartedly recommend you checking them out in 2012! This past year’s reading has been fantastic and I’m looking forward to seeing what books 2012 brings my way!

What were some of your favourite books of 2011? I would love some recommendations!

Monday 2 January 2012

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight Blog Tour! Character Interview with Oliver!

To kick things off for 2012 I’m very excited to be bringing to you today the first stop in The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight Blog Tour! I was lucky enough to be able to read this 2012 debut early last year and I absolutely loved it here’s a little bit about what it’s all about…

Synopsis
"Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Imagine if she hadn't forgotten the book. Or if there hadn't been traffic on the expressway. Or if she hadn't fumbled the coins for the toll. What if she'd run just that little bit faster and caught the flight she was supposed to be on. Would it have been something else - the weather over the Atlantic or a fault with the plane?

Hadley isn't sure if she believes in destiny or fate but, on what is potentially the worst day of each of their lives, it's the quirks of timing and chance events that mean Hadley meets Oliver...

Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver's story will make you believe that true love finds you when you're least expecting it."

Character Interview with Oliver!

1.) What made you approach Hadley at that first meeting in the airport?
She just looked so flustered and out of sorts, and I was feeling a bit like that myself. Her bag had spilled all over the floor, and the woman sitting next to her was giving her a hard time, and besides all that, she was cute too. I couldn’t resist coming to her rescue.

2.) When you first met Hadley you quickly learnt that she has a lot of fears besides claustrophobia. What are your biggest fears?
Well, there are the usual things. Snakes. Certain kinds of bugs – especially the ones with those little pinchers. I don’t love the ocean either, to be honest. And I used to be afraid of the dark when I was younger. But I guess the biggest one is just saying how I feel. I’m working on that though. And Hadley – she helps.

3.) You and Hadley are both fans of Dickens what are some of your other favourite books?
There’s nothing like Dickens, it’s true. And I’ve managed to fall in love with his books despite a lifetime of being called Oliver Twist. I also love The Great Gatsby and The Catcher in the Rye. And anything by Hemingway. (I’m sure I’d never have been teased if my name was Nick Adams).

4.) Do you always make a habit of kissing people you've just met?
Why, yes. Yes, I do.

No, I’m only joking. I’m not nearly charming enough for that sort of thing. But with Hadley, it felt different. I couldn’t help myself.

5.) How about stealing on a first date?
That was definitely a first. But can you blame me? I needed a little bit of Dutch courage to help with that last phobia of mine…

6.) Okay so tell us what are you *really* studying?
If I told you that I’m studying the feeding habits of a rare species of Amazonian tree frog, would you believe me?

7.) Do you believe in fate after the way you and Hadley met?
You could chalk it up to fate, or you could chalk it up to the fact that Hadley was somehow disorganized enough to miss her flight by four minutes. But whether it was something as big as destiny or as small as timing, I feel very lucky that she ended up in my path. Girls like Hadley don’t come along very often.

8.) How about love at first sight?
I do now.

9.) What's next for you and Hadley?
We’re taking it twenty-four hours at a time.

For my US Counterpart head on over to http://mundiemoms.blogspot.com/  today where they will be running an interview with Hadley!

Next stop tomorrow is with http://www.wondrousreads.com/ for the UK post and http://www.thestorysiren.com/ for the US post. For the names and dates of everyone else on the tour check out the tour button here!


The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E.Smith is published by Headline on 5th January 2012. Check out the trailers here  and here and for my thoughts you can check out my review here. Big thank you’s to the publishers and Jen for putting this wonderful tour together!
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