Book, movie, TV goals: 2014

Book Goals 2014        

• Read 40 books
• Read 5 Classics
• Read The Infernal Devices Trilogy
• Read the Harry Potter Series (again)
• Read The Heroes of Olympus Series
• Read different genres
• Read 5 books over 500 pages

Movie Goals 2014      

• Watch 200 movies
• Watch Different movie genres
• Watch at least 150 movies I have never seen
• Watch the Star wars Saga
• Watch at least 4 movies by Spielberg
• Watch 5 or more movies by Hitchcock
• Watch 5 movies over 3 hours long

Television Goals 2014

• Watch 15 new shows
• Watch 5 or more British Shows
• Watch 10 or more American shows
• Watch Doctor who series 1- Christmas special 2013 (again)
• Watch Firefly
• Watch Elementary
• Watch 2 shows with 4 or more seasons

Top 5 favourite TV shows

Hello! So as I said before in my last blog, I will be doing a post of my top 5 favourite TV shows, I have not chosen ten because probably at the end of January my list will probably change a lot due to my busy schedule of watching 6 new shows in January!

SO in descending order.

5.

Doctor Who is an amazing show, and even if I prefer Tennant's era, I still love this show so much and it still remains in a special place in my heart, and the 2013 christmas special, enough said.

4. 

Parks and Recreation is probably the funniest show on tv, it is just hilarious and the actors (especially Aubrey Plaza) are just the funniest people ever. The first season is just terrible and tries to be 'The Office 2.0' but the second season is when the show finds it's own way and becomes one of the best sitcoms ever.

3. 

Now Community may not be as funny as Parks and Recreation, but the characters in Community stay with you for longer, the characters (well most characters) are likeable and the greendale 7 (watch the show and you will get this joke) feels like a family that you are part of. The best characters are Troy, Abed and Annie and even if Troy is going to leave in the next season, hopefully this show will still be top notch.

2. 

The Walking Dead used to be my favourite show ever, Season 1 was just spectacular and was probably the best season of them all (even if it only had 6 episodes), I loved Season 2 even more, but lots of people didn't like that season. Season 3 was really good as well, Now season 4 is where i'm a bit annoyed with this show, the first episode of season 4 promised a new start and was incredible, however the episodes after that were just boring and un-rememberable. But this being said, the mid-season finale was just wonderful and very gory! Hopefully the next 8 episodes of Season 4 are much better!

1.

So I just Binge-watched the 6 90 minute episodes of Sherlock, So all together I watched 9 hours of Sherlock, and it still wasn't enough, Now a would I thought that a show with only 6 episodes (however they were movie length) would be my favourite show ever, well I was wrong. Sherlock Holmes and John Watson are some of the best characters in fiction, and never was I bored with this show, every episode was perfect in it's own way, and Series 3 is coming soon, well it is only 3 episodes again (NO!!!) My favourite episode has to be The Reichenbach Fall, the ending cliffhanger though left me distraught for hours! Imagine the people that watched it when it first came out (2 years ago!), hopefully though, there wont be a massive gap between series 3 and series 4!

SO that is my top 5 favourite TV shows, in the next few days, I will post my top 5 favourite movies of 2013!                                                                    Bye for now!

Updates: Goals for 2014

Hello! It has been a long, very long while since I have last written a blog! December was a very busy month and so I didn't get any reading done. I have noticed for the past couple of months, I have not been reading much and have been doing other things such as binge-watching tv shows, consistently watching movies and just eating a huge amount of popcorn. This made me realise that I don't just want to talk about books all the time, I want to share my love for movies and tv shows. This is why in 2014, The Dauntless Community is not just going to be about books anymore, there will be reviews about movies, lists of the best new shows, recommendations for people who love [insert tv show here] and a variety of different blogs. Obviously I am still going to review books and tell you about some interesting novels coming out soon (look forward to my Most anticipated reads for 2014) but I just want switch things up a bit for the better, and things are going to be changed (for the better!)

Here are my goals for 2014 to make 'The Dauntless Community' a much better blog!

1. At least one post every week.
2. Talk about books, tv shows, and movies.
3. Review 1 book, 1 tv show and 2 movies a month
4. Try to read more so I can discuss more books on this blog!
5. Keep my viewers (you) entertained!

So here are my goals, most likely the 1st and the 3rd won't happen often, but I hope these goals will help this blog to be better and so more people can view it!

Look forward to my top 5 favourite Tv shows which will be posted today!

December Book of the Month!

Hello!
So there are 3 books we are going to be reading in December, all 3 of them are different but all interesting and exciting! So behold the books chosen for December BOTM!


172 hours on the moon by Johan Harstad


Format: Hardback
Publisher: Little, Brown books
First Published: September 15th 2008 
Goodreads Rating: 3.58 stars
My excitement to read: 7.8
Pages: 355

It's been decades since anyone set foot on the moon. Now three ordinary teenagers, the winners of NASA's unprecedented, worldwide lottery, are about to become the first young people in space--and change their lives forever.
Mia, from Norway, hopes this will be her punk band's ticket to fame and fortune.
Midori believes it's her way out of her restrained life in Japan.
Antoine, from France, just wants to get as far away from his ex-girlfriend as possible.
It's the opportunity of a lifetime, but little do the teenagers know that something sinister is waiting for them on the desolate surface of the moon. And in the black vacuum of space... no one is coming to save them.
In this chilling adventure set in the most brutal landscape known to man, highly acclaimed Norwegian novelist Johan Harstad creates a vivid and frightening world of possibilities we can only hope never come true.

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

One of the best-loved and most quoted stories of “the man who invented Christmas”—English writer Charles Dickens—A Christmas Carol debuted in 1843 and has touched millions of hearts since. 

Cruel miser Ebeneezer Scrooge has never met a shilling he doesn’t like...and hardly a man he does. And he hates Christmas most of all. When Scrooge is visited by his old partner, Jacob Marley, and the ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present, and Christmas Yet to Come, he learns eternal lessons of charity, kindness, and goodwill. Experience a true Victorian Christmas!









The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

Format: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin
First Published: April 17th 2013
Goodreads rating: 4.08 stars
My excitement to read: 10/10
Pages: 457

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.
Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.

November TBR!

Hello!
so here is my November TBR, I am not doing NaNoWriMo this year so I am going to be reading more! I am aiming to read 7 books this month, which I know is quite a lot, but I am 5 books behind on my goodreads challenge, so I am trying to read as many books as I can!



Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Re-reading for the release of the movie!

Against all odds, Katniss has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark are miraculously still alive. Katniss should be relieved, happy even. After all, she has returned to her family and her longtime friend, Gale. Yet nothing is the way Katniss wishes it to be. Gale holds her at an icy distance. Peeta has turned his back on her completely. And there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol - a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped create.

Much to her shock, Katniss has fueled an unrest she's afraid she cannot stop. And what scares her even more is that she's not entirely convinced she should try. As time draws near for Katniss and Peeta to visit the districts on the Capitol's cruel Victory Tour, the stakes are higher than ever. If they can't prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are lost in their love for each other, the consequences will be horrifying.

In Catching Fire, the second novel in the Hunger Games trilogy, Suzanne Collins continues the story of Katniss Everdeen, testing her more than ever before...and surprising readers at every turn.



Allegiant by Veronica Roth
One choice will define you.

What if your whole world was a lie?
What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything?
What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected?

The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.

But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love.

Told from a riveting dual perspective, Allegiant, by #1 New York Times best-selling author Veronica Roth, brings the Divergent series to a powerful conclusion while revealing the secrets of the dystopian world that has captivated millions of readers in Divergent and Insurgent.


Paper Towns by John Green

Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life—dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge—he follows.


After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues—and they’re for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew.







The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

The extraordinary #1 New York Times bestseller that will be in movie theaters on November 15, 2013, Markus Zusak's unforgettable story is about the ability of books to feed the soul.

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.
Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. 
In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.






The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken


When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious disease that’s killed most of America’s children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control.

Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones.

When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she’s on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her—East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can’t risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents.

When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living.



World After by Susan Ee

In this sequel to the bestselling fantasy thriller, Angelfall, the survivors of the angel apocalypse begin to scrape back together what's left of the modern world.

When a group of people capture Penryn's sister Paige, thinking she's a monster, the situation ends in a massacre. Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.

Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels' secret plans where she catches a glimpse of their motivations, and learns the horrifying extent to which the angels are willing to go.

Meanwhile, Raffe hunts for his wings. Without them, he can't rejoin the angels, can't take his rightful place as one of their leaders. When faced with recapturing his wings or helping Penryn survive, which will he choose?



Enders Game by Orson Scott Card

In order to develop a secure defense against a hostile alien race's next attack, government agencies breed child geniuses and train them as soldiers. A brilliant young boy, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin lives with his kind but distant parents, his sadistic brother Peter, and the person he loves more than anyone else, his sister Valentine. Peter and Valentine were candidates for the soldier-training program but didn't make the cut—young Ender is the Wiggin drafted to the orbiting Battle School for rigorous military training.

Ender's skills make him a leader in school and respected in the Battle Room, where children play at mock battles in zero gravity. Yet growing up in an artificial community of young soldiers Ender suffers greatly from isolation, rivalry from his peers, pressure from the adult teachers, and an unsettling fear of the alien invaders. His psychological battles include loneliness, fear that he is becoming like the cruel brother he remembers, and fanning the flames of devotion to his beloved sister. 

Is Ender the general Earth needs? But Ender is not the only result of the genetic experiments. The war with the Buggers has been raging for a hundred years, and the quest for the perfect general has been underway for almost as long. Ender's two older siblings are every bit as unusual as he is, but in very different ways. Between the three of them lie the abilities to remake a world. If, that is, the world survives.




So that's what I will be doing in November, I have lots and lots of books to read so I will be very entertained! I am very excited for the release of World After and the day after is the release of the Catching Fire movie! If I do finish those books, I will be reading Legend by Marie Lu and Prodigy, the sequel to Legend.

BYE!

October Wrap up!

HI!

so....I actually read quite a few books in October, I read 3 novels and 3 graphic novels which sums up to 6 books! Even though the graphic novels took me like 3 hours to read, they were still fun and just as amazing as real books! So here we go



The first book I read was...


Angelfall by Susan Ee


Format: Kindle Edition
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
First Published: May 21st 2011
Goodreads Rating: 4.29 stars
Pages: 283

It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.

Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.

Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.

Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels' stronghold in San Francisco where she'll risk everything to rescue her sister and he'll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again.


This book was really intriguing and witty, Very fun and a great quick read! if you are in a Allegiant mourning period/book hangover, this book is a good cure for it. I have a review for this up already, just scroll down and the review will be there. This book is definitely  5/5 stars 

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

One choice can transform you, or destroy you.

Every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves, and herself, while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris has survived a brutal attack on her former home and family. But she has paid a terrible price. Wracked by grief and guilt, she becomes ever more reckless as she struggles to accept her new future.

Yet if Tris wants to uncover the truth about her world, she must be stronger than ever... because more shocking choices and sacrifices lie ahead.

I re-read this for the anticipation of Allegiant, and I love this book as much as the first. Whilst it is slower paced than the first, we find out many things and that cliffhanger ending! I give this book a 5/5 stars


Holes by Louis Sachar

I re-read this novel as well because we are studying it for school. It is a childrens modern classic and should be read by everyone, The themes of this novel include racism, power and control, it has a very interesting plot and I definitely recommend it. 4/5 stars



The Graphic novels I read were

- The Walking Dead 5/5 stars
-Scott Pilgrim's precious little life 5/5 stars
-Scott Pilgrim vs the world 4/5 stars

Announcements: Veronica Roth in London

Hi there!

So guess what?

I'M GOING TO BE MEETING VERONICA ROTH IN LONDON!!!!!

Yes, it is true! On the 6th November, Veronica Roth is going to be in Prince Charles Cinema doing a Q&A on her Divergent Trilogy and is going to be signing Allegiant copies!

I seriously cannot wait, I am about halfway through Allegiant and trying to slowly read it so I don't consume it all a once. It is very hard, but it is really amazing so far! This is just going to be a short announcement but I will be doing a blog about the experience and how wonderful it will be! This event is being held by Waterstones, check their websites if you want tickets for Allegiant!

BYE!

Book-Chat-Angelfall by Susan Ee

Hello and welcome to Book Chat. 
Today's review is about Angelfall by Susan Ee


Format: Kindle Edition
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
First Published: May 21st 2011
Goodreads Rating: 4.29 stars
Pages: 283

So I was a bit hesitant to start reading this since I had never read any books about angels, and I thought it would be a quick forgettable read that had soppy romance and not that much action, Oh how looks can be deceiving. This book is amazing, a must read and so action packed. There is hardly any romance, lots of fighting scenes, and the characters are kick-ass. This book is really gory, intense and very quick to read. I can not believe that this book was firstly self-published, it has such an amazing story and the characters are so awesome. I seriously can't wait for the sequel 'World After' to come out next month on the 19th November I believe. 


Characters

• Penryn was so likable and unintentionally funny, She was very determined to find her sister Paige.
• Mom was so cool and awesome, I loved the bit where the thugs came to attack Penryn and the mom just same up to Penryn with a shopping cart and randomly started talking to her. 
• Raffe was really witty and likeable, You got to see his and Penryn's chemistry and relationship grow. Susan Ee did a really good job on this. 
• At the end Paige was so different...Never would've seen that coming
• Obi was a really cool character, I definitely want to see more of him in the sequel. 
• How could I forget Tweedledee and Tweedledum, they were so cheeky and had the Fred and George vibe.

Plot

• The direction of the novel was so interesting, the ending was so shocking, I loved how Susan Ee wasn't afraid of putting lots of gore in the book.
• This book was full of twists and turns, I loved when Raffe and Penryn had nothing to eat so they just ate dry cat food, talk about disgusting!
• Susan Ee has a wonderful way of writing, when I read this, it felt like a movie, very fast paced and never boring,
• The book goes so fast, it is only 283 pages so it is very quick to read and a nice weekend read.
• The ending makes you want to read on and I didn't want to leave this world.

Overall Impressions

• This book is great and very quickly paced, perfect for a holiday read
• I loved the aspects of this novel
• Not once was I bored or did I feel like not wanting to read this book.
• The depiction of angels in this book was very unique, I liked that they were used to be evil and the cause of the apocalypse.
• This book was so imaginative and  unique, nothing like I have read before.

5/5 stars for this wonderful book, If you have not read it, please do, don't judge the book by it's cover, this book is awesome. 

Perfect for fans of Supernatural, The Walking Dead, Sleepy Hollow, Harry Potter and the Hunger Games. 

See you next time! BYE.

October TBR

Hello!
So October is here! and this is quite a spooky month since it is halloween!
My choices of books this month are quite spooky and supernatural, I am very excited for these choices so lets get started!



Angelfall by Susan Ee


Format: Kindle Edition
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
First Published: May 21st 2011
Goodreads Rating: 4.29 stars
My excitement to read: 8/10
Pages: 283

It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.

Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.

Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.

Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels' stronghold in San Francisco where she'll risk everything to rescue her sister and he'll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again.


The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

Format: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin
First Published: April 17th 2013
Goodreads rating: 4.08 stars
My excitement to read: 10/10
Pages: 457

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.
Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.



The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken




Format: Hardback
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
First Published: December 18th 2012
Goodreads Rating: 4.30 stars
my excitement to read: 10/10
Pages: 488

When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious disease that’s killed most of America’s children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control.

Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones.

When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she’s on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her—East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can’t risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents.

When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living.



Insurgent by Veronica Roth




Re-reading this for the preparation of Allegiant

One choice can transform you, or destroy you.

Every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves, and herself, while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris has survived a brutal attack on her former home and family. But she has paid a terrible price. Wracked by grief and guilt, she becomes ever more reckless as she struggles to accept her new future.

Yet if Tris wants to uncover the truth about her world, she must be stronger than ever... because more shocking choices and sacrifices lie ahead.




Allegiant by Veronica Roth




One choice will define you.

What if your whole world was a lie?
What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything?
What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected?

The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.

But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love.

Told from a riveting dual perspective, Allegiant, by #1 New York Times best-selling author Veronica Roth, brings the Divergent series to a powerful conclusion while revealing the secrets of the dystopian world that has captivated millions of readers in Divergent and Insurgent.