April 2015 TBR Books

Jen's List 

Unread Books

The Matched trilogy by Ally Condie
Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson
Landline by Rainbow Rowell
Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult
City of Glass by Cassandra Clare 

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson 

Re-read Books

The Divergent series by Veronica Roth (I didn't get to these in March so I'll be trying again in April)  


Mel 

I have Easter break! So I really hope to finish the following:

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
Geek Girl by Holly Smale
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
Burial Rites by Hannah Kent

And of course, my uni texts:
The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon
The Human Stain by Philip Roth
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson

March 2015 Wrap Up

Jen
I initially thought that I wouldn't get a lot of reading done in March, however it turned out to be the month where I read quite a few graphic novels and short books that were great quick reads that helped me get my reading count up for the month. 

Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol 1 by Stephenie Meyer → 4/5

Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol 2 by Stephenie Meyer → 4/5

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones - Shadowhunter’s Guide by Mimi O’Connor → 5/5  

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling (audiobook narrated by Jim Dale) → 4/5
Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson → 5/5  
Anna Flowers by Eloise Southby-Halbish & David Lawrence → 4/5  

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier → 5/5  

Sapphire Blue by Kerstin Gier → 5/5  

Emerald Green by Kerstin Gier → 4/5  

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling (audiobook narrated by Jim Dale) → 5/5  

The Ice Dragon by George R.R. Martin → 5/5  

City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare → 4/5  

The Bookshop Book by Jen Campbell → 3/5  

The Hunger Games Tribute Guide by Emily Seife → 5/5  

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang → 4/5  

Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brosgol → 4/5  

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher → 5/5  

Second Glance by Jodi Picoult → 3/5  

You Belong To Me by Samantha Hayes → 4.5/5  

Mel 

Despite getting halfway through two books on my TBR, sometimes study just gets in the way! So the books I finished in March were novels on my university prescribed texts list:

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald→ 3.5/5
Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut → 4/5

Jen's 2015 Reading & Bookish Resolutions MARCH update

It has been almost 2 months since I created my 2015 reading and bookish resolutions list (click here for my list with in-depth explanations) and I have made excellent progress on a fair few of them so I thought it was about time for an update! 

Goodreads 2015 reading challenge: 50 books 
I definitely achieved this one in March. My count was actually over 50 at the end of March so I decided to increase my challenge to 100 books.  

Read 50 books that are at least 200 pages in length  
I have almost reached my goal of 50 (currently at 46/50 at the end of March) but I don’t really feel the need to increase this goal. I’ll just be very happy knowing I achieved it and it’s one I can cross off the list! 

Read all TBR Jodi Picoult books 
I had planned to tackle this goal by reading one Jodi Picoult novel each month and I have managed to stay on track with this goal so far. If all goes according to plan then I should finish this goal in July (or August if I take into account the new book that she has coming out in May this year).  

Complete at least 10 series/trilogies  
I am at 5/10 series read at the end of March so I am definitely making good progress on this one. I should be able to achieve this goal no problem. 

Read at least 1 classic 
Other than add a few titles to my Book Depository wishlist, I still haven’t done anything regarding this goal as yet, but there is still plenty of time left in the year to get this one done! 

Start and finish all Cassandra Clare books  
Like with my Jodi Picoult goal, I had planned to tackle this goal by reading one book a month, starting in February. If my calculations are correct, that means I would have finished all 10 books I own in the month of November. The timing couldn’t be more perfect as all 10 novellas in the Tales From Shadowhunter Academy should have been released by then and I won’t have long to wait for the bind-up of all the novellas to be released!  

Get TBR pile down to at least 50 books  
I am not doing very well with this challenge so far. I am managing to get a decent amount of books read, but I am still buying new books at an alarming rate.TBR count at end of March: 80 (This has actually increased from 75 at the end of January so I really need to slow my book buying!) 

Read more unread books than I buy each month  
I have been struggling a lot with this goal, particularly at the end of each month but I haven’t failed yet! Although March was cutting it close, as I made a few book purchases toward the end of the month. But I still managed it with the help of a few graphic novels and shorter books. 

Buy all 7 Harry Potter books in the original adult hardcover edition  

I cannot believe I actually managed to accomplish this! I had scoured eBay for months and had actually started buying these books in softcover because I just did not think I would be able to find the hardcovers without paying exorbitant prices for them. But one night, for some unknown reason, I decided I would try eBay again and there they were! The complete set of 7 hardcover books, in decent condition and at a reasonable price. Needless to say, I pounced and they are now sitting on my shelf looking very pretty. :D  

Buy The Shadowhunter’s Codex by Cassandra Clare in hardcover  
I also managed to accomplish this goal as well! Several of the online book stores I frequent had not had the hardcover in stock for months. (They did have the special hardcover collector’s edition available, but not the regular hardcover edition, which was the one I wanted.) I eventually went to eBay, found exactly what I was looking for and bought it. Then, several days later (because this is just what happens in my life) I receive an email from The Book Depository informing me that the hardcover edition I wanted is back in stock, and at an annoyingly cheaper price than what I had paid for it on eBay. *sigh* Oh well, I refuse to let that bother me too much. This pretty pretty book is mine now and that’s all that really matters. 

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell Review

Set in 1999, a time when people were concerned about Y2K and technology was not as advanced as it is today, this book introduces us to Lincoln O’Neill, the new “Internet Security Officer” for a newspaper. Little does he know that the actual job doesn't require him to ward off hackers, but to read staff emails that are flagged and forwarded to him. When email conversations between Beth and Jennifer catch his attention, instead of reporting them like he should, Lincoln finds himself drawn into their world, and looks forward to reading more of their conversations. Over time, Lincoln finds that he has fallen in love with Beth, only to realise that he would never be able to let her know who he is without it being extremely awkward or him coming across as a stalker. 

I loved the characters of Beth and Jennifer and I loved reading the email conversations between them. I also loved the character of Lincoln. He was shy and just the right amount of nerd to be adorable. The fact that he didn't know this about himself only made him more lovable. I also liked the build up between Lincoln and Beth and how they both sort of knew each other without actually knowing who the other one really was. The one character that I did not like was Lincoln’s mother. I found her to be very controlling and it just annoyed me.

I did get a little impatient towards the end as I felt like it was dragging slightly and taking just a little too long to get to the romance between Lincoln and Beth. Then when they were finally together, the ending came much too quickly for me. But all that said, I still really, really liked this book. If it ever were to be made into a movie, it’s one I would definitely watch. This is an adult contemporary book, but it will still appeal to a YA audience, particularly those who are already a fan of Rowell’s other books. 4.5/5 rating.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas Review

Celaena Sardothien is an assassin. After being imprisoned at a death camp, she is downtrodden and has little future to look forward to. That is until she finds herself removed from the camp on the condition that she competes against other assassins and rogues for the position of the King’s Champion. If Celaena wins, she must do the King’s bidding for a few years, but after that, her freedom will belong to her once again.

I love this book. If I were to make a list of my favourite characters, it would be full of those who are independent and have multitudes of strength. Celaena would be right near the top. Right from the start, her character is absolute and stays consistent throughout the entire novel. Despite her headstrong nature, she still has a quieter, feminine side – she loves dresses, candy and books.

The story is full on, right from the beginning and I could not stop reading. I love the world that Maas has created and I was constantly wondering what was going to happen next. There’s mystery, humour and plenty of kickass fight scenes. And then there’s romance. Is it a love triangle, or a square? Celaena seems to have her pick of the most eligible bachelors in the kingdom. There’s Chaol – the Captain of the Guard, Nox – a fellow competitor that becomes her ally, or Dorian – the Prince, who comes with all of his other suitors that really don’t have a chance, especially Kaltain Rompier, who sees Celaena as her biggest threat and thrives for Celaena’s demise. She is also very annoying.

I’m very much looking forward to reading the rest of the series. Rating 5/5.

The Wake Trilogy by Lisa McMann Review

 
#1 Wake

This book is about a seventeen year old girl who has the ability to get sucked into other people’s dreams. Unfortunately, she has no control over when and where this happens.

This book was fast paced and action packed. I loved the character of Janie and the character of Cabel becomes likeable as well, once you discover why he does the things that he does. There were a few surprise twists that I didn’t see coming but I really liked the direction the book went in and how it ended. I would have liked to know a little bit more about how Janie came to have her ability, but maybe this will be answered in the later books.

Overall I loved this book and rated it 5/5. The writing style is aimed at teens and young adults but I would recommend this book to those who like fantasy with a little bit of mystery.

#2 Fade
This book picks up about a month after the conclusion of Wake. Janie has been learning more about her ability and is now able to control it to some extent. She now tries to use her power to help catch a potential sexual predator operating within her school.

This book was more action packed than the first book and an even better read. Warning: this book is definitely darker than the first, as it does deal with some sensitive subjects, including sexual assault and rape.
I love the character of Janie in this book. She is strong and determined, despite the danger to herself. I love the romance between Janie and Cabel in this book. It is cute and sweet and provides some much needed lighter moments in amongst the darker parts of this book. And can I just say how awesome Captain is in this book? I did not like her in the first one, she came across as a tough, uncaring hard-ass but that is totally not who you see in the second book and I really liked that.
Janie also finally learns more about her power and what it will mean for her life as a dreamcatcher. This book was super amazing and a superb follow-up to the first book, though it does end on a bit of a sad note as Janie wonders what the future will hold for her. 5/5 rating. 

 
#3 Gone Warning: SPOILER ALERT

This final book in the Wake trilogy focuses a lot on Janie as someone comes into her life unexpectedly and she finds out a whole lot more about what it means being a dreamcatcher and how it will influence her choice to live with her ability or live in isolation.

I hate to say it, but this was not as good as the first two books in the series. The entire book was about Janie and discovering secrets about her past and her family. While it wasn’t a slow read, the omission of the crime/mystery solving plot meant that this book lacked some of the action and suspense that made the first two books so good. I also did not like how Janie’s and Cabel’s relationship was sort of just left hanging. Janie chose not to live in isolation because of him. She chose to accept her ability and live with it because it meant that she could be with him. And then in the end they decide not to make a commitment and just live day to day? That makes no sense.
Overall this book was still a good read, however I felt that it was a

disappointing end to the series and I was expecting a little more from this book because the first two were so fantastic, so I gave it a 4/5 rating.

Upcoming Reviews for April

April 2015 

Jen 
Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson
You Belong To Me by Samantha Hayes 

Mel
The Ice Dragon by George R. R. Martin
Geek Girl by Holly Smale
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

Combined 
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare 

March TBR Books

Jen's List 

Unread Books

Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol 1 & 2 by Stephenie Meyer & Young Kim 
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones - Shadowhunter's Guide by Mimi O'Connor
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
The Precious Stone (Ruby Red) trilogy by Kerstin Gier 
You Belong to Me by Samantha Hayes (This is on my Top 10 list of most anticipated books of 2015 so I will definitely be reading this one as soon as it comes out) 
Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson
Second Glance by Jodi Picoult

Re-read Books

The Divergent series by Veronica Roth (Will be re-reading all the books in anticipation for the movie release of Insurgent) 


Mel's List 

Unread Books
The Here and Now by Ann Brashares
Talon by Julie Kagawa
Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas
The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

University Reading List (American Literature)
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (Ugh. I tried this in high school. It didn't go well. I read two chapters and gave up. Winged the rest of the topic and still did better than others in my class)
Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut (I've heard good things and I'm looking forward to this one)

Re-read Books
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare (so that it's fresh in my mind for a combined review)

(This is a HUGE list for me!)

Book Cat-astrophe!

First, I must apologise for my terrible pun. Sorry.

The reason for this post is that I've had a little mishap involving my adorable menace of a kitten and one of my nice (and few) hardcover books.

Let me set the scene.

I have a desk sitting in one corner of my tiny bedroom, and on this desk is a top shelf. On this top shelf, I store my favourite series (Harry Potter, The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices) as well as any hardcovers I can fit, since my bookshelf is quite a sad saggy one and I'm afraid it can't take any extra weight than necessary.

Along comes kitten.

"Meow!" (Loosely translated means "There's a really, really high shelf, I MUST CLIMB IT!")

So he takes a flying leap.

Cue avalanche of hardcover books.

I don't think I've seen him move so fast since I brought him home in November.

I start reshelving books to discover that the dust jacket of my previously pristine copy of The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory is not so pristine anymore.

Sad face :(

One of the biggest book owner problems for me is damaged books, especially when you're not the one who damaged the book.

It's easy to point a finger at the friend who dog-eared your pages, or bent the cover, or cracked the spine, but it's different when a pet damages a book. You can't point a finger, you just have to mourn and move on.

(Or buy a new copy)

February Wrap Up

Jen

If you’ve seen my February TBR list, you’ll know that I didn’t create it until about a week into the month and it was feeling like a super slow reading month compared to January, so I didn’t have many books listed. However, my reading definitely picked up later on in the month and I ended up reading far more books than I thought I was going to be able to.

• City of Bones by Cassandra Clare → 3.5/5
• Good Girls by Laura Ruby → 5/5
• Wake by Lisa McMann → 5/5
• Fade by Lisa McMann → 5/5
• Gone by Lisa McMann → 4/5  
• Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma → 4/5
• Attachments by Rainbow Rowell → 4.5/5
• Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover → 4/5
• Maybe Not by Colleen Hoover → 5/5
• Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover → 5/5
• The Trap by Beverley Kendall → 4/5
• Trapped by Beverley Kendall → 4/5
• Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult → 4/5

Mel

My TBR was small to begin with, but I ended up substituting one book for another. Here's the books I finished:

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare → 5/5
Insurgent by Veronica Roth → 4/5
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas → 5/5

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare Review

Jen's Review

Clary Fray suddenly finds herself thrown into a whole other world that she never knew existed. One full of demons, shadowhunters and other creatures. As she learns more about this other world, Clary finds out something about herself, a huge secret that everyone has been keeping from her her whole life.

This book is action packed, fast paced and there are definitely no dull moments. The problems I had with this book were the fact that everything seemed to be rushed right from the very start. You were suddenly introduced to this whole other world with all these new characters, new creatures and new terminology with seemingly no time to let it sink in before you were introduced to something else new. I also had issues with the main characters of the book.

While I liked Clary, at times I was annoyed with how impulsive and reckless she was, with no regard to those who would inevitably have to risk their lives to come and save her. Jace also consistently got on my nerves throughout the whole book, with his egotistical and arrogant attitude. As for the other characters, there wasn’t much about them that I did like, however I am hoping that this will change as the series continues. There were also many plot twists that just kept coming, which made the story interesting. However there was one major plot twist towards the end that I just did not like at all. I am curious to see what happens in the next book though!

Overall, despite all my complaints, I did like this book and rated it 3.5/5 stars. However I do feel that I would probably give a higher rating on a re-read. This book would suit those who like YA and fantasy reads.

Mel's Review

Days prior to her 16^th birthday, Clary is thrust into the world of the Shadowhunters. Along with discovering the existence of demons, vampires and werewolves, she uncovers a secret that has been kept from her her whole life. But not all is well in the Shadowhunter world. There is an evil brewing that will change Clary’s life forever.

As a fan of fantasy novels, this book fits my interests perfectly. Set in modern day New York, City of Bones is action packed, with shocking moments and occasional humour, and characters that will stay with you until well after the book ends.

I had few disagreements with this book, but the stand out problem that I picked up on after several rereads, is that Hodge (the tutor at the Institute) didn’t recognise Clary when he met her (especially after naming her mother). This is explained away in the way that he didn’t want to come to the conclusion unless he was sure, but my brain just doesn’t accept that as an excuse. It seems like a plot hole that has been only lightly addressed.

I love most of the characters, but I think the one that entertained me most was Magnus Bane, the sassy, eccentric warlock, who openly flirts with Alec. Isabelle is another stand out – head strong, confident and priority driven, but still shows the occasional vulnerability.

I give City of Bones a 5/5 rating and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy or YA novels.