Booktalk: The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Hey everyone!

So I actually finished this book the week before last  but didn't get a chance to write a booktalk until now. That and the fact I started reading Shadow Kiss as soon as I could and wanted to get that one up first.

" Charlie is a freshman.

And while he's not the biggest geek in the school, he is by no means popular. Shy, introspective, intelligent beyond his years get socially awkward, he is a wallflower, caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it.

Charlie is attempting to to navigate his way through uncharted territory; the world of first dates, mix tapes and family dramas; the world of new friends, drugs and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite. But he can't stay on the sideline forever. Standing on the fringes of life offers a unique perspective. But there comes a time to see what it looks like from the dance floor"

The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky

So I had heard good things about this book and knew that it had been turned into a movie so it had to be good. And I hate to be a downer but I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped I would, so I'm only going to give it a 60% because I feel bad giving it any lower but really can't give it any higher.

I went into the book thinking it was gonna be a cutesy, light, fluffy awkward moments type of book but definitely isn't what it is. Some pretty dark and serious issues are  discussed and it's a pretty major part of the book.

Also at the start the writing is quite stilted and doesn't flow very well as is really different to what I'm used to reading. But it does get better, probably because Charlie gets into the flow of it and gets less introverted. The way the whole thing is written as a diary entry/ letter also was a little difficult at first but I got into it after a while.

It actually pains me to say it, but I almost wasn't gonna finish teh book. I was about two thirds of the way through and had to watch the movie up to where I was up to in teh book to inspire me to read teh rest of it. And lets just say that's never happened before since I almost always think the book was better.

There wasn't really much of a plot as such, more of just the characters interacting with each other. I get that that's an element of every book but there didn't seem to be any driving goal that the characters wanted to achieve which made for a less interesting read. I get that it was supposed to be Charlie's journey but it didn't feel like much of one.

To be fair I did finish the book but it was mainly because I kept hoping it would get better and because I'm stubborn and wouldn't let it get the better of me (which it would've if I gave up).


Sorry about the the pretty negative booktalk today- hope you don't mind. I'd rather put up something honest and negative than nothing at all, especially when I said I would do it

Comment your thoughts on The Perks of Being a Wallflower below.


Also I'm just gonna point out that some of these booktalks are gonna be pre-written so that if I read lots of books one week, you're not gonna be overloaded with posts and then  none the next week. Bye for now,

Amber xxx

Booktalk: Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead

Hey everyone!


So I finished Shadow Kiss, the third book in the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead, yesterday and oh my gosh just let me tell you how AMAZING this book was! It was so good that I needed to just let it sit for a day before I even attempted to write this.

IT HAS SAT.

Needless to say I just loved this book so much! And on top of that I also ended up buying the entire series so expect booktalks on the next few books soon. :)

- A/N: ^Yes! Finally my own copy of the series ^ ;) -

*Spoilers for the first two books onwards*


" What  if following your heart means losing your best friend-forever?

Rose Hathaway knows it is forbidden to love another Guardian. Her best friend, Lissa, must always come first. Unfortunately, when it comes to the gorgeous Dimitri Belikov, some rules are meant to me broken.

Lying to Lissa about Dimitri is one thing, but suddenly there's more than friendship at stake. The immortal dead are on the prowl and in a heart-stopping battle Rose will have to choose between life, love and the two people who matter most.

But will her choice mean that only one survives?"


So this book picks up about three weeks from where the last one (Frostbite) left off. The senior novices are to start their six weeks of field experince where they get paired up with a Moroi. They then have to guard that person for six days a week during waking hours while the adult Guardians launch surprise attacks on them, pretending to be Strigoi. During this time Rose is also seeing Mason but obviously as we know from the last book that he's dead :( So Rose has to figure out if he's some sort of ghost or hallucination and why she is all of a sudden seeing him.

I don't really want to say all that much more about that ;)

Okay so for this book I'm definitely gonna give this a 92%. I loved the plot, the character development and even just the way it was written (especially near the end) left you on the edge of your seat. I would definitely recommend reading this book if you've read the first two.

So that's it for the non-spoiler section. Be sure to come back once you've read the book if you haven't already so we can discuss it!

Bye non-spoiler people! Byeeeee!

*Warning, spoilers for Shadow Kiss from this point onwards*

Okay!

So Shadow Kiss! I've been waiting to read this book for a bit and had to MAKE myself read a few in between otherwise I'd have a crazy bad book-hangover and book withdrawal- and we all know how bad they  are. It was great to be back in this world again.

So lets start from the beginning. I think we all knew that Rose wasn't going to get Lissa as er partner for the field experience. We all just knew it. It just wouldn't been way to easy otherwise. So Rose gets Christian and Eddie gets Lissa. I actually kinda forgot about how Eddie had been in Spokane too and it was great to see how his character developed from that experience and to see him really grow up.

Mason: I actually really liked this new development about how Rose is tied to the "other side" or the dead or whatever you want to call it. Especially when we find out that she'll only get closer to it as she kills more- it'll be interesting to see how this plays out as the series continues.

We also "learn" that Rose has been taking on the darker emotions that Lissa gets from using Spirit through their bond. the reason why I say "learn" is because it was sort of touched on in the last book and I had figured it out way back when in the beginning of Frostbite.

And Dimitri and Rose get together! FINALLY! I actually wasn't expecting them to go all the way at that point but I guess it needed to happen before the end....

Ugh the ending! I was so scared at first that Dimitri was gonna get killed after he told Rose to run but luckily he didn't. Nope he's okay. THEN I was scared Christian was gonna die before Rose got to him. Nah he's okay too. Scared Rose is gonna lose her mum- nope! Then I'm scared Eddie's dead...gets rescued. Has to hold in a scream when Dimitri is bitten. Hopes there's that small chance that he's ok... Is still in denial.

Yup that's basically how it went. Literally for the last few chapters I was there in denial and in my head kept saying "no no no no no...". I really can't believe that Dimitri is now a Strigoi. I just hope that in the next few books they find a way to cure him- maybe with the help of Lissa?


What were your thoughts on Shadow Kiss and were you as in denial as I was? Tell me what you think in the comments below.

Bye for now,

Amber xxx

Booktalk: The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Hey everyone!

So I recently finished The Maze Runner by James Dashner, the first book in The Maze Runner trilogy and  another YA dystopian novel. Similar to The Hunger Games  but yet completely different so don't go hating on me for comparing them.

" When the doors of the lift crank open, the only thing Thomas can remember is his first name. But he's not alone. He's surrounded by boys who welcome him to the Glade, an encampment at the centre of a bizarre and terrible maze.

Like Thomas, the Gladers don't know why or how they came to be there , or what's happened to the world outside. All they know is that every morning when the walls slide back, they will risk everything to find out- even the Grievers, half-machine, half-animal horrors that hunt the Maze's walled corridors."

-A/N: Please excuse my battered copy from the library ;)  -

I just want to start off and say that I did like  this book but feel like I could've enjoyed it more. After I finished Frostbite (see my last booktalk) I just wanted to carry on that series so maybe that's why.

So I'm giving it an 85% becuase I did still enjoy it and will read the next book ,  The Scorch Trials,  so that does say something.

The Maze Runner is about a boy called Thomas. He wakes up in a lift with no memories, except for his name. Technically, he can  remember some things but not specifics, so he remembers what a school is but can't remember being in one or any of the people he used to know.

After the lift stops, he is brought to the Glade, a sort of field, surrounded by stone walls that close every night. These keep out these monsters called Grievers. The walls lead to a maze that surrounds the Glade and people called Runners have been trying to find an exit for 2 years.

When Thomas arrives, things start changing and odd and sometimes disturbing things happen in what was once a very structured and repetitive routine.


If you haven't read this book, I would  recommend that you read it since I actually did enjoy it but it was a little hard to get into at first but once you've got to that point it just gets better.

The boys have their own sort of dialect- words that have no actual meaning for us but they use fairly regularly but once you get a few chapters in, you're pretty much a pro at.

There's also some pretty interesting twists....

Okay that's it for the non-spoiler section. Go out and read it if you haven't.

Byeeeeee!


*Warning, spoilers for The Maze Runner from this point onwards*


Okay everyone else gone?

So I went into this book having kinda mixed expectations, I'd heard a fair bit about it being really good and as amazing as The Hunger Games, but I'd also heard that some people didn't like it at all. But I guess some people have to hate it for others to love it.

I remember the whole mystery thing was a little off putting at first. I get that we were in Thomas' head and since he had no clue, neither did we. But at the same time I was kinda like "just tell us already!!" and not in the, "OMG I love this book!" way since it was the very beginning of the book. So as much as it  does  add suspense, I wish that we had maybe been told a little at first or even a cryptic flashback. But maybe that was just the mood I was in when I read it .

I really liked the whole couple of chapters when he was in the Maze- it really gave us a sense of why they have those rules in place and what really lies beyond the Glade- it finally gave me SOME info.Personally, I think that it was that scene that made me start enjoying the book more instead of being annoyed at the lack of information- it really started to progress for me then.

As for Tessa,  I feel that she should've been awake sooner so that we could've got more character development there but what we did get was good. I am  interested though, to see how they knew each other before their memories were removed. My theory is that he had a crush on her and was gonna ask her out right before the flare or that they were both taken and grew close but then had the memory wipe.

WICKED IS GOOD : I'm not too sure about who's the good group in this "WICKED" or the people that killed the woman and "rescued" them. I have a sneaky feeling that they're both technically "WICKED" but have slightly different views or that they are both the exact same thing and were just luring the boys ( and Tessa).


So what were your thoughts on The Maze Runner? Leave your comments below.


Bye for now,
Amber

Update: Goodreads

Hey Everyone!

So I meant to mention this in my last post but I have a Goodreads account that you can follow me on! 

Since all of my actual reviews and booktalks on here on my blog, it's more to see what books are on my TBR (to be read) list, my favourite books and my progress on books. 

There might also be other bits and bobs on there ... ;)

My Goodreads profile 

Sorry about this random update,

Bye for now,

Amber xxx

Booktalk: Frostbite by Richelle Mead

Hey everyone!

So today's gonna be a booktalk on Frostbite by Richelle, the second book in the Vampire Academy series, so if you haven't read the first book, leave now because I really don't want to spoil it for you.

*Warning, spoiler for the first Vampire Academy book ahead*

"...Winter break turns deadly

A massive vampire attack had put St. Vladimir's Academy on high alert. With the deadly creatures closing in. this year's trip to the wintry peaks of Idaho has just become mandatory.

But Rose Hathaway can't escape her (guy) troubles. Her relationship with gorgeous tutor Dimitri can never be and her closest friend has just confessed to his huge crush on her...

The glittering winter landscape may seem like the perfect hideaway- but Rose, and her heart, are in more danger than she ever imagined.

Forbidden temptation lies behind the iron gates..."

-From the blurb of Frostbite

Okay so first thoughts. Overall I think this was about the same level as Vampire Academy, which as you probably already know, I thought was amazing, so about an 90% again.

The story picks up with Rose going off to her Qualifier, an incredibly important test that she missed while off hiding Lissa in the human world. Rose's test was to be taken by Arthur Schoenburg, legendary Guardian, who was busy protecting a royal family, so herself and Dimitri travel to their home. On arrival they find the whole family (plus Guardians) massacred, most likely by Stigoi. The wards had been broken by a stake due to the conflicting magic which meant that humans had to be helping the Strigoi- news that causes uproar for both dhampir and Moroi. So they come up with a plan to bring all students St. Vladimir's to a ski lodge to collect lots of guardians in one place to make safety easier.

Rose also has to deal with a fair bit of boy trouble- the temptation to be with Dimitri, the confusing feelings she has for Mason as well as a whole lot more. But to be fair I feel like the blurb is a little misleading for this one though, because it really isn't ALL about the relationships (between the guys that is) and more about the growing unease in the vampire community. I'm not sure if I should say much more on that front.

There's also a surprise visitor from her past that causes lots of tension and a black eye...

So if you've read the first Vampire Academy book I would definitely recommend reading Frostbite and then come back to read the rest of this booktalk.

Goodbye non-spoiler people- Byeeeee!

*Warning, spoilers for  Frostbite ahead*

(A/N: So this next section was actually written like a week after what's written above so forgive me if I forget to mention things)

Okay- Non spoiler people gone? Good.

So I actually really enjoyed reading this book- full of funny one liners and it was nice to have Lissa be fairly normal in this one as opposed to her being half crazy.

But there were a few bits and bobs that annoyed me....


First off- the way no-one even THOUGHT of using magic while they were locked up, until like a week into being captured! Okay fine if they had thought of it but there never seemed to be a good way of pulling it off or they would be seen or whatever but not at any point did they even think about trying earlier on. It pretty frustrating that Rose -who watched while Tasha and Christian were practising magic, who was there when her best friend was giving her speech on using magic offensively - who  we already know is supposed to be smart and yet at no point did it cross her mind! And the same for Christian who was all for using it in the last book. I mean don't get me wrong, I get that it was supposed to be "ingrained" in them not to use it - but still - if it was a life or death situation,that'd be one of the first things I'd try, so that seemed a bit of a weak excuse.

Okay so that's the main rant over- I mean it bothered me more I after I finished the book than at the time...

The second thing was Masen's death. I sort of understand how it was supposed to show the dangers and the harsh brutality of being a Guardian as well as a wake up call for her (since she always seemed to idolise being a  Guardian). But at the same time I feel like the way he died could've been done better- it seemed really dumb of him to just walk out of the protection of the sunlight, unarmed and with no experience of actually fighting Strigoi... then to die pretty much two seconds later. But maybe that was to show how easy it is for Dhampirs to die. *shrugs shoulders* 

But luckily those points were pretty minor things (but the first one annoyed me more) so they don't really make me hate the book or anything.

Ok so about the whole thing with Rose having these darker moments (supposedly from Lissa). I actually guessed really early on that it was something where Rose was taking Lissa's pain (unintentionally I might add) through their bond. And this seemed right, especially when Rose has that weird moment after the first Strigoi attack.

And Lissa maybe having a chance  to use her powers without teh craziness? Well we'll have to see what happens for her there.

I really liked Mia's character development on this one and you really see how the loss of her mother is affecting her and the effects of the many people have have left her- Andre, Aaron, her mum ( even if her mum couldn't exactly help it). AND, it was great to see her kick some ass with her water magic and be less bitchy in this one.

Also, it was cool to see her mum come into play in this book. All we've got description-wise on Janine Hathaway before now, is through the telegrams she sends Rose- which we immediately know how cold and condescending she is to Rose. But as the book goes on we really get to see what her story was. I almost even felt sorry for her on page 231 when she talks about Rose not having enough life experience for a baby and we realise that she's probably talking about herself rather than Rose. It's kinda sad to think that she didn't get to where she wanted in life because she had Rose so young.At the end I really liked the conversation they shared about Rose's dad and the hints dropped that their love was the real thing rather than what Rose had been guessing at- Janine just carrying out her duty to have dhampir children. It seemed to help patch up their damaged relationship.

And Adrian? Well I was pretty wary of him at first but I feel he's gonna be a pretty funny and important character to have around in the rest of the series. Don't really have all that many thoughts about him :)

As for the main relationship in the story -Rose and Dimitri- I really liked the way they interacted in this one- especially on page 233-237 where it wasn't tense and Dimitri didn't have his guard up around her as much- such a sweet scene. And then again at the very end of the book when Dimitri tells Rose about declining the offer with Tasha- I really think they came to an understanding. It really wrapped things us for this book but left me yearning  to read more about these characters.  I've really come to care about the characters, even more than at the end of Vampire Academy.

So that's it for booktalk today- hope you enjoyed it! What did you think about Frostbite? Leave your thoughts below. I'm just waiting now for the next book , Shadow Kiss to arrive at my library but I'm also trying to get a chance to buy the whole series since I've seen them in a shop near me.

I'm off to write my next booktalk ,spoiler, its on the Maze Runner ;)

Bye for now,

Amber xxx

Booktalk: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Hey everyone!

So as I'm writing this I've finished the second book in this series, Frosbite by Richelle Mead and will have a review up soon. Sorry about not updating when I started it but that was only on Thursday so I was (and still am) chocked down on exams and revision... :(


Okay so onto the booktalk! 

'Only a true best friend can protect you from immortal enemies...

Lissa Dragomir is a mortal vampire. She must be protected at all times from the fiercest and most dangerous vampires of all- the ones who will never die.

Rose Hathaway is Lissa's best friend- and her bodyguard.

Now after two years of illicit freedom, they've been dragged back inside the iron gates of St. Vladimir's Academy. The girls must survive a world of forbidden romances, a ruthless social scene and terrifying night-time rituals.

But above all, they must never let their guard down. let the immortal vampires take Lissa-forever... '

-From the blurb of Vampire Academy

So I'm gonna go with the non-spoilery bits to start with .

So for those of you who haven't read by last post, I reserved this book at the library after waiting ages to get my pin and whatnot and was super exited to read this book the day I got it. But since this IS from the library so no judging the movie cover ;)

Overall I think this was a really good book so a solid 90% rating from me- which is pretty good given that it's only the first in a series. I honestly couldn't put it down and kept sneaking away to my room to read it- I was just so hooked. So no-matter what I say here, remember that I did enjoy the book a lot but I am gonna be nit picking because lets face it...that's what we do

The book  is an  urban fantasy and follows Rose Hathaway and Lissa Dragomir. In this world there are three types of vampires : Moroi, Strigoi and Dhampir

Moroi: "Good" vampires that are mortal, live off blood and can wield elemental magic. Some are royals (more on that later). 

Strigoi: Bad vampires that want to kill the Moroi, have super strength and speed, are immortal and can only be killed by a silver stake through the heart 

Dhampir: Half vampires with strengthened senses and abilities, lie off human food and most train to be Guardians for the Moroi

Rose is Lissa's best-friend and even more importantly, her Guardian. Lissa is also the last member of the Dragomir line (which one of the twelve royal vampire families) which makes her an even bigger target for threats.

To be fair, I had already been told about the different types of vampires so I wasn't too confused on that front but I feel that a completely brand new reader might find it a little confusing at first but you catch on pretty quickly. And for a first book I think it does a pretty good job on explaining all the new terms and mythology as well as world building. Because, as much as it is set in the present day, we're dealing with supernatural creatures here.

So that's a brief overview of the world so I hope that makes sense and trust me- its really cool and super interesting to read about.

Rose and Lissa had escaped from their school, St. Vladamir's for reasons that are not explained (well early on at least- you learn by the end) so are living in regular human society for two years. That is, until guardians from the school finally track them down and are able to bring them back ( Don't worry this isn't a spoiler, it literally happens in the first chapter).

We learn that Rose and Lissa have this bond- a sort of telepathic bond but it's only one way; Rose can "feel" Lissa's feeling and thoughts but not vise versa. Sometimes she even gets sucked into Lissa's mind and feels as if she is actually inside her friend's body. It sounds way more creepy than actually it is ;)

There are also some strange goings on at the school and both Lissa and Rose have to figure it out, before it's too late. 

So if  you haven't read it and this sounds interesting to you  - I would definitely recommend that you go read this book  and come back to read the rest of this post because I don't want to spoil it for you

Okay bye non-spoiler people!! Byyyyeeeee!

*WARNING MAJOR SPOILERS FROM THIS POINT ONWARDS*

Okay so this book really could've not worked out or could've been really dull and too depressing if it wasn't told from Rose's perspective. She's hilariously snarky and sort of reminds me of a female version of Jace (The Mortal Instruments) comedic timing and sarcasm-wise. I love all her constant bickering and comments at Mia looking like a child. OH and the punch at the party... Go Rose!

And lets just face it Rose is just a bad*ss. She's totally up for all the combat and rebellious stuff while being pretty smart and a great friend to Lissa. That's another thing that's brilliant about Rose- she's just so selfless and puts Lissa's needs and problems before her and is willing to do anything to protect her. And it isn't just a way like any Guardian and their Moroi, it's true friendship. I mean Lissa unconsciously brought Rose back from the dead because she couldn't bare the thought of Rose not being there. She didn't even heal her family! I know obviously she didn't know how or why at the time, but the fact that Rose was the one accidentally healed is saying something pretty big.

As for Chrsitian, I kinda guessed he and Lissa would get together but was a little wary at first...But you know things worked out all fun and dandy with them

Did anyone else expect Victor Dashkov being behind it all?!?! It took a second to register the name when I read it but yeah... And there I was thinking that at least they have one adult they can trust...
But Natalie- well that was definitely a shock- either she didn't realise what she was doing or REALLY had some issues... And it was surprising that she got away with it for so long;I mean wouldn't Rose have realised .Maybe Natalie was smarter than we thought.


Oh and Dimitri! I actually didn't think of him and too much a love interest at first but their little banter lines here and there were cute and especially the one where she tried to jump on his back and then when she was talking about her hair-both super sweet scenes. 


What are your thoughts on The Vampire Academy? Share them below so I don't feel like I'm just talking to myself ;)

Oh and I almost forgot! Be sure to check back for the Frostbite booktalk and possibly one on The Maze Runner by James Dashner since that's the next book on my to-be-read list.

Okay, bye for now,

Amber xxx

Currently Reading Update- Vampire Academy

Guess what arrived for me to pick up today?!?!?!?!


THE VAMPIRE ACADEMY BY RICHELLE MEAD!!!!


So I reserved it at the library last week and it came in to be collected a few days ago and I've been dying to get my hands on it! Honestly it's the only thing that's been getting me through this week of exams, trips and homework.

Last night I had to restrain myself from watching the full movie so that I wouldn't spoil myself. It semi worked- half an hour can't do too much harm can it? ;)

Anyways, I'm currently on page 210 ( as of me writing this at *checks time* just after ten at night - so I'm having to stop myself reading it to write this post) which is over half the book already so I'm having to savour it while I can. Frostbite (the second Vampire Academy book) has already been reserved by yours truly so should come in for collection sometimes next week.

I'll probably have finished it by Monday but with more exams and trips coming up this week, it might be next weekend before the review gets posted.

It's just sitting there in my peripheral vision, calling to be read- I seriously CAN'T stop. 

So this post was a bit last minute but I really didn't want to leave you guys hanging for another week with no update because of my exams.

Wish me luck with the mountain of revision and homework I have to do....

Bye for now,

Amber xxx