The Goodness of books!

Now it's starting to become very challenging. I have so many favourite series and to list only one would be impossible. Therefore I have chosen my top 5 favourite series.

The first is of course the Harry Potter series by J.K Rowling. This was the first series I read which was very different to what I usually read. It strengthened my literacy skills and widened my vocabulary since before Harry Potter I generally read children's books such as Roald Dahl etc.

The second is The Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare. I have been with this series since the first book was released. I love everything about it, the characters, the setting and the plot. If I had to pick out anything negative I wouldn't be able to do it. This was the first series in which i developed my first fictional crush Will Herondale! :) :D 

The third is the Skulduggery Pleasant series by Derek Landy. There are 9 books in this series and I have been on this bandwagon since 2009. That is how dedicated I am. I just LOVE this series, I ADORE the author and this is one of the few series that fills me with laughter because Derek Landy is like the KING of humour. It is very unique and the series grows on you through and through just like Vampire Academy. You see the development of Derek Landy as an author throughout this series. 

My fourth is Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan. This series is perfect for any age, whether you are an adult or child. It has the most unique writing style. It's funny yet serious and the characters are awesome! It's very light but dark at the same time. And it is just AMAZING!

The fifth is the Archers of Avalon trilogy by Chelsea Fine. I read this trilogy last year and I pretty much marathoned it. It was AMAZING!! In just three books in three days you fall in love with everything about this series and you develop fictional crushes. You are constantly trying to figure out what will happen next but are always misleaded. This trilogy was/is AWESOME! 

Anaïs Nin

I'm going to go with 'The Fault in Our Stars' by John Green. I own a paperback copy of the book and I have read it so many times that I know whole passages off by heart. It never ceases to amaze me. Whenever I feel like I've read it too much I leave it for a good few months and then open it again to re-read. Every single time I feel all the emotions and I just find it very, very beautiful! :) :D 

Challenge accepted! :) This will be fun to do! :) 

It's a good thing I have my Goodreads 2012 challenge because I am flipping through the pages to remember what I read last year and now I am officially stumped. I honestly am not sure what was my favourite. Out of what I read last year these were my 2012 favourites. 

Sons of Destiny (Book 12 of the Saga of Darren Shan) by Darren Shan

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Awry by Chelsea Fine

The Warlock by Michael Scott

Looking at these picks it is a very tough decision but I think I'll go with Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare because I just LOVED that book. SO VERY MUCH!!!

(Source: Overdrive)

So true.  <3</p>

Lori

This book is all about the questioning. It's a sci-fi novel about an alien invasion. It's all about these aliens who are trying to wipe out humanity, to then take Earth for themselves. They do this through different stages called 'waves'. The first wave was an electro-magnetic pulse that shut down everything. TV, computer, cars, none of it worked anymore. Then throughout the next 3 waves, 97% of the world's population is decimated. 

This novel is mainly centered around 17yr old kick-ass Cassie short for Cassiopeia who survived the first 3/4 waves and is still surviving. This novel is told from various POV's and then all these different perspectives mold together perfectly to create a well-written and executed novel that keeps you on your toes wondering if what you know is right or not. 

Throughout this entire book, all these hints are dropped about the plot twist and you notice them, you second-guess it. You keep on thinking "There's something more to this, this is too obvious." But Rick Yancey puts a sort of block on that second-guessing. You only second-guess to an extent before it kind of falls to the back of your head as another fact. The whole way through, you're filled with paranoia, alongside Cassie wondering "Who can we trust, who can't we trust? Who's human, who isn't?" 

This goes perfectly with one of the major concepts of this novel which is 'trust'. Knowing who to trust and who not to, and sometimes you have no choice but to trust. 

Overall, this book was fantastic! The writing style was a bit off-putting for me, so I don't feel like it deserves 5 stars. But it was REALLY REALLY good!! I definitely recommend you pick this up! 

:'( :( :'( :(

I. Loved. This.

First of all, I want to give a round of applause to Marie Lu. Her writing style is so captivating. The way she writes action scenes is SO EPIC!!!

Second of all, her characters!!! I. Love. Day. I really liked him as a character in the first book, but in this book my love for him just grows immensely. He's so .. legendary. ;) June Iparis is amazing! She, just like the other characters is so well-developed and kick-ass. I love her personality!

Generally, in Dystopian trilogies there isn't enough world-building in the first two books and then the last book sort of tries to fix this mistake but then doesn't do very well which can leave for a sloppy conclusion because you feel as if there was still more to see of that world.

However, Marie Lu did a fantastic job at World-building. We didn't get too much world-building in the first book, it was mostly our view of the Republic that was built upon, but in this book we were introduced to so many new concepts and ideas and places. For example, we finally got to see the Colonies of America, and we got a good grasp on the history of how this Dystopian world came to be. Our understanding of the Government grew in this novel as we came to terms of what is good, what is evil?

The chemistry between June and Day had so much tension. Marie Lu sort of picked apart their relationship in a way Colleen Hoover did in 'Point of Retreat'. She started to make the characters question their relationship and the reason why they're together. It wasn't that they didn't love each other. That was obvious, it was more are we together for the right reasons?

You come to grow so attached to these characters that you want to scream so loud when a character comes to be in danger and makes a self-sacrificial move. When Day was told he was dying and he sort of broke-up with June. I was so devastated. :( :( :( 

Overall, I LOVED this book. I finished it in one day because it was too good and fast-paced to put down. I loved the action scenes, especially the scene at the end with Kaede and the Jet. That was fantastic!!! :) :D

LOVE! LOVE! LOVE! If you're looking for a book that keeps you hooked until the last page, read this series!!! It's perfect! Especially if you love books like 'The Hunger Games' and 'Divergent'