The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 1: Movie Review

Beware: Spoilers for the First two movies, NONE for Mockingjay Part 1.


Hello blogosphere!
It has been a long time since I have posted something! Today I want to talk about 'The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 1' which is the third film in the hugely successful 'The Hunger Games' franchise. I am a massive fan of The Hunger Games, I read the books in late 2011, a couple of months before the first movie came out. This film is based on the third book 'Mockingjay', however, just like many other popular movie franchises, the last book has been split into two parts. Mockingjay Part 1 is obviously the first part, and unlike the predecessors, this film is more slower paced but that doesn't mean it is any less interesting.

In this sequel, the movie starts just after what happened in the previous film (which finished with a cliffhanger). The film follows the main character Katniss Everdeen (portrayed by Oscar Winning actress Jennifer Lawrence) as she and the rest of the rebellion start to fight and rebel against the Capitol, controlled by President Snow (Donald Sutherland). 

Pros:

1. The Acting- There was not a single bad actor/actress in this film, Jennifer Lawrence as always, stands out as her performance of Katniss is so raw and believable. However I thought that Josh Hutcherson who plays Peeta Mellark was outstanding in this movie, in the previous movies he was good, but not great, However in 'Mockingjay Part 1', he pulls all the emotions out of the audience. Also, out of all the performances, I think that Effie Trinket, played by the talented Elizabeth Banks, is most true to her role and has the biggest  character development out of everyone.
2. The Cinematography- The movie was shot absolutely fantastically, every shot was groundbreaking and was placed perfectly. The shot of the remains of District 12 was breath-taking and I can definitely see how the budget cost $250 million.
3. The details-Now this is a thing that most book-to-movie adaptations don't include, Throughout 'The Hunger Games' books, we are in Katniss' Point of view and we don't see every small details about the other characters, in the film's we see so many little intricate details that make the book lovers notice things that they wouldn't before. For example, in this film, President Snow announces on live television, that any traces and signs of the Mockingjay symbol is banned, as he says this, Snow's grand-daughter slowly unties her 'Katniss' braid' in fear of her Grand-father. 
4. The Soundtrack- Now before I even saw this movie, I knew that Lorde (one of my favourite singers) would do the main song for this movie (Yellow Flicker Beat) and ever since the song has been released (late September) I loved it but wasn't sure how it would fit into 'Mockingjay', however it fit perfectly and the lyrics make much more sense now. Also Jennifer Lawrence sings 'The Hanging Tree', a song that Katniss heard when she was a child; Jennifer has such an amazing voice and it was breathtaking how they included it and it made me shed a tear or two. 

Cons:

In my opinion, I don't think that there were any flaws in this movie, I think that the director Francis Lawrence did a terrific job at making this movie and even though I know some critics have complained at it's much slower pace, I think that it was a good idea slowing it down because the next movie is going to blow everything out of the park. 'Mockingjay Part 2' will be a certain tear-jerker and boy, am I scared.

Grade: 5/5 stars 

Book Review: Gone Girl

Title: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Genre: Suspense, thriller, mystery
Publication date: May 24th 2012
Format: Paperback
Pages: 422
My Rating: 5/5 Stars
    
    

Synopsis:

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?



My thoughts:

 Being on the top of the New York Times bestseller list and at the top of the Amazon book chart, this book had a lot to deliver. This book not only has been turned into a major film starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike, but has gotten the the whole world discussing about the themes and the plot of this book. I was intrigued by this book not only because of word of mouth, but because it sounded very interesting. I would truly say that this book deserves all the hype, not only is it deliciously dark and filled with rich and entertaining twists and turns, but the prose is very neat and calming which is the complete opposite of this book. Whenever you have one theory or you think you might be 'that person'  who knows what is going to happen next, Flynn completely throws your theory in the window leaving you to think of another one. I am going to keep this review short because I do not want to spoil this book, but this book surprised me a lot, even with the hype surrounding it. Also what I really enjoyed about 'Gone Girl' was how 'Gillian Flynn' incorporated themes such as 'The media' and 'marriage' into a thriller, and this is why it has gotten so much praise. I definitely urge anyone who hasn't read this book to do so now, and please don't spoil it for yourself because I think it will have the same effect  if you know what happens. 

If I Stay by Gayle Forman: Book Review

   In the blink of an eye everything changes. Seventeen-year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall what happened afterwards, watching her own damaged body being taken from the wreck. Little by little she struggles to put together the pieces- to figure out what she has lost, what she has left, and the very difficult choice she must make. Heartwrenchingly beautiful, this will change the way you look at life, love, and family. '



'If I stay' ,by Gayle Forman, is a contemporary novel  about a 17 year old girl named Mia. on a cold February morning, Mia and her family get in a horrific car accident. Whilst in a coma, Mia has an outer body experience where she can see everything that is happening to her and how the people she loves, act about the accident. This book alternates between present day and flashbacks. 

I really enjoyed this book, it was realistic and quite a quick read. the hype surrounding this book made me want to pick this up and I'm really glad I did. The book is really short so the accident happens really quickly in the story. Everyone kept saying this book was really upsetting and heartbreaking, whilst I thought it was quite emotional, I never actually cried or had to stop because it was too upsetting. I think the hype for the book led me wanting it to be a bit more upsetting, however I really loved how the story changed between present day and flashbacks. 


Characters:

+ I really liked how different Mia's personality is when she is in a flashback and in the present day, it was realistic and showed how a certain even can change someone's life. In the present day, it was like there was only a shell of Mia's personality.
+ I really liked Mia's parents, usually in YA, the parents are always there but never really shown, or the main character hates his'/her's parents. In 'If I Stay' the parents are very important characters and are really realistic.
-I think I would of really liked the characters more if the novel was longer, I think that's the real reason why I wasn't so upset, I didn't feel like I knew the characters enough.


Writing:

+ As I have already said, Gayle Forman writes the story very realistically and you can almost imagine the events happening in your life.
+ The writing was very simple but effective, it fit the mood of the story completely, also the writing progressed like a song, if that makes sense..(it probably doesn't).
- The main issue I had with this novel was the length, I really wanted it to be longer, I think Gayle Forman could of added maybe 30 more pages. 
- I know there is a sequel, but I still wanted the book to be longer!

Plot:

I am not going to write much for the plot since it is a very short book and I don't want to spoil it.

+ I loved the flashback scenes, they were done really well and were really interesting.
+ My favourite flashback was the labour day scene, it was very happy and such a wonderful memory.
+ Gramp's speech, enough said.
- I wasn't a fan of the end, I wanted it to resolve without it being ambiguous.


Overall I really liked this book and I really want to see the movie now! Even though I had a few problems I definitely recommend this book! I will give this book a four out of five stars, but if I am being more specific, I would say 85%.

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer: Book Review

After countless recommendations by some of my favourite authors and Goodreads, I finally gave in to read this book, it was really cheap on the kindle so I decided to read it. Initially, before reading it,this book never appealed to me and it looked quite boring, however I was gladly wrong. This book exceeded my expectations, it was a creepy, disturbing psychological thriller and it made me feel like I was going insane just like the main character. I had quite a few problems with this book, hence why I gave it four stars, but I will explain that later on. I really need the sequel now after that ending! I recommend this book if you like creepy thrillers or books with unreliable narrators, but do beware that the book does leave you confused for the majority of the time.

Characters:

+ I really enjoyed the whole Dyer family, they were a really close family and I liked how each person had a role in the book, I also liked how the author didn't ignore their indian ethics and incorporated quite a few indian things in the book.

+ I didn't really like Noah at the beginning but as things started to unfold you saw more of his character. By the end, his role in the book was vital <spoiler> and I am quite interested to see how he is going to use his 'powers' in the next book. </spoiler>

+ One of my favourite things about this book was the unreliable narration by Mara Dyer, you never knew what was true and what was fake, because of her PTSD, you never know what really is happening.

- One issue I had with this book was the forced romance, I thought that sometimes the romance was fine, but other times it just felt really forced and unrealistic, and I thought that it could of been much more better. But I have heard that this issue doesn't come up in the sequel as much.


Plot:

+ I really liked the start of the book, it was really creepy and had a choking atmosphere to it. I really liked the opening chapter with the ouija board, it was frightful and very confusing.

+ My favourite thing about this novel were the death scenes, I know it sounds morbid but they were very well written and really shocking, they left me asking so many questions. The whole Ms Morales section was beyond creepy.

- I wish we had a bit more answers, <spoiler> I wanted to know more about Mara's Death Powers and how they happen, and I wanted to see how her mind worked when she did those things accidently </spoiler>

- The middle section of the book dragged on a bit, and I thought there could of been a bit more paranormal elements there.

+ The ending was amazing, it ended a bit too quick though! I really need to read the second book now!


Overall:

I really enjoyed this book and it was much better than I expected, even though there was room for improvement, I definitely think this book is worth picking up if you like YA or thrillers. Also was it just me, or did anyone notice little Harry Potter references? I thought that was a nice touch! I am definitely looking forward to reading the sequel. My final rating is 4 stars, but if you want a more accurate rating I would say 82%.      

Booktube-a-thon TBR!

Hello!
It is that time of the year again, where the booktube-a-thon happens! If you don't know what the booktube-a-thon is, it is a week long read-a-thon that is created and hosted by Book Vloggers on Youtube, mainly 'Ariel Bisset'. This is the second year that it is happening, and I hope it is just as fun as last year! There are 7 challenges this year, and I aiming to complete at least 4 of them, so without further ado, lets get started. The booktube-a-thon is taking place from midnight 14th of July until The end of 20th July. (A week long).

Click here for more info: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JauBxxVGa24

The Challenges:

A book with pictures.
Start and finish a series.
A book with red on the cover.
A book someone else picks out for you.
A book from the genre you've read the least this year.
A book to movie adaptation
Read seven books.

A book with pictures: Hollow City

For this challenge, I am going to be reading Hollow City by Ransom Riggs, the sequel to 'Miss Peregrine's home for peculiar children'. I read the first book back in May this year and absolutely fell in love with the world, it was fun, mysterious and very hauntingly magical. I am very excited to continue on with this series and hopefully 'Hollow City' is as good as the first one! 

 

Start and Finish a series: Throne of Glass Series

Throne of Glass is a YA fantasy series that is going to consist 

of 6 books, currently only two are out and the third one is coming out on the 11th of September 2014. I am technically cheating on this challenge since you are supposed to start and finish a complete series, but all the complete series on my shelves, I have either read the first book already or I only own some of the books. I am very eager to read this series since it sounds really awesome and I have heard that the main character is kick-ass.

A book with red on it: Crown of Midnight

I am also going to be doubling up the challenges, Crown of 

Midnight, the second book in the Throne of Glass series has a red on the cover and It is part of a series, So this is going to tick off two challenges.

A Book someone else picked out for you: Love letters to the dead

Love letters to the dead is the Ava Dellaira's debut novel that is written completely in letters, similarly in the style of 'The perks of being a wallflower' by Stephen Chbosky, which also happens to be my favourite novel of all time. Ever since I heard that Stephen Chbosky mentored the author of this book, I immediately went to the bookstore and picked this up. I have been waiting to read this so I could savour it! I gave my sister a pile of 5 books to choose from for this challenge, she chose this book since we both love 'Perks' and she wanted to see my opinion on it. Even though this book might make me cry a river, I am very excited to read this since I love books that are written in a different way, and I want to see why this is compared quite a lot to 'Perks'.

 

A book from the genre you have read the least this year: The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby is a hugely famous modern classic novel written by F. Scott. Fitzgerald. Widely known all around the world, this novel is described as 'a portrait of the jazz age'. Having not read any classics thus far this year, I am hoping that I can get through 'The Great Gatsby' during this read-a-thon. This novel is very short, coming in at 122 pages, so hopefully I can get through it at no time, I was contemplating either to read this, 'Animal farm', or 'Of mice and men', but this one sounded the most exciting. I have very high expectations since this is my sister's favourite book of all time, and we both have very similar tastes.  

A book to movie adaptation: The Great Gatsby

Yes I am also doubling two other challenges, The Great Gatsby has been turned into two theatrical movies, and I own both of them, so hopefully when I finish this novel, I can watch them both back to back!

Read 7 Books: Vicious 

So the last challenge is to read 7 books, and so far on my list I have five books, Hollow City, Love Letters to the Dead, Throne of Glass, Crown of Midnight and The Great Gatsby. I have to add two more books to complete this challenge. Most likely I won't 7 books, but I am going to try my best!

The First book I am going to be picking randomly is Vicious by V.E Schwab, also known as Victoria Schwab, this novel is describes as 'A cross between X-Men and The Count of Monte Cristo'. How can this book not seem exciting? This book has been receiving tremendous amount of hype so I am excited to dive right into it!  

Read 7 books: Never Fade

The last book I am hoping to read is 'Never Fade' by Alexandra Bracken, the sequel to 'The Darkest Minds'. I am currently reading 'The Darkest Minds' and am loving it, so I know as soon as I finish it, I will want to dive right into this book. This series has been getting a lot of hype around booktube and I can definitely see why, it is fast paced, action packed and the characters are amazing!  The last book in this trilogy is called 'In the Afterlight' and it is coming out on October 28th!

Fun Fact: All the three book titles combine make a sentence!

"The darkest minds never fade in the afterlight."

So that is my TBR for the 'Booktube-a-thon', I am very excited for this event and I am hoping to get as much reading done as possible. 

My social networking thingy stuff:

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/9990480-haroon

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RainingKnight18 

Email Account: Communityfan18@Gmail.com

Instagram: @Haroon18

June Favourites.

Hello,

So today I am going to be writing about my favourite things I watched/listened to in June! june was a very good month for movies and television, however not a very good month for books...I started loads of books but didn't finish any. Anyway, lets get started with my June Favourites.

Movies: Howl's Moving Castle

Howl's Moving Castle is a 2004 Japanese Studio Ghibli anime movie, directed and written by the so called 'Japanese Walt Disney' Hayao Miyazaki. Recently I have been watching quite a lot of Studio Ghibli movies, so far I have seen My Neighbour Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Nausicaa of the valley of the wind, and Howl's Moving Castle. My favourite so far has to be either Howl's Moving Castle or My Neighbor Totoro. Howl's is such a magnificent film, it has an amazing storyline, wonderful characters and some of the most splendid scenery, It was such a fun film and I definitely recommend it to all ages, I can definitely see why Studio Ghibli is called the Japanese 'Pixar'. 

Movies: 50/50

50/50 is one of those rare movies that has such a thought-provoking message. Rarely nowadays you get comedies that have an actual deep theme in them, this is why I loved 50/50. With a big cast with the likes of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen and Anna Kendrick, this film follows Adam Lerner who is an ordinary guy, he finds out that he has cancer and his chances are 50/50. I don't want to say much in case I spoil it but all I want to say is that this movie is amazing, it shows the ups and downs of life and how life takes a 180 degrees spin when cancer gets involved with your life. The acting in this movie was amazing as well, Joseph Gordon-Levitt deserves an oscar.   

Movies: The Fault in Our Stars 

The Fault in Our Stars is the movie adaptation of the hugely-successful novel by John Green. I'm sure everyone who reads regularly has heard of this novel or movie so I'm not going to go into detail, but the basic summary of this novel/book is about a teenage girl named Hazel Grace Lancaster who has lung cancer, her mother urges her to go to Cancer Support Group to make friends, she reluctantly goes, however there she meets the mysterious Augustus Waters, a previous victim of Cancer. This story is about their friendship and later relationship. I read the book about two years ago, and I was so excited about this adaptation ever since it was announced, needless to say this movie was perfect, I don't think anything important was left out, everything was how I imagined. I strongly suggest watching this whilst it is still in Cinemas.

TV: The Office US. 

 

Can I just say THANK YOU NETFLIX! for the last few weeks, I have just binge-watched the first 3 seasons of the office, I would watch more, but I want this show to end! With one of the biggest ensemble casts I have ever seen on tv, you would think that this show would be a mess, nope, this has to be one of the funniest shows on tv. The Office is a sitcom about the office life of a paper company, Dunder Mifflin, This show started the career of many comedy stars, most famously Steve Carell. This show just makes me so happy, it is a perfect blend of funny and sarcasm. My favourite characters have to be Michael Scott, Jim Halpert, Pam Beesly and Dwight Schrute. This show was part of the four cult NBC comedies which include of The Office, 30 Rock, Community and Parks and Recreation. I watch all four of these comedies and they all are amazing, my favourite has to be Parks and Recreation but The Office is a close second, however I also absolutely love Community and 30 Rock. 

Music: Ultraviolence     

Ultraviolence is the new album by american singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. If you know me well, you would know that Lana Del Rey is my favourite singer of all time, her songs not just have an amazing score, but have a powerful message. I thought nothing could beat her 'Born to Die' album but I think 'Ultraviolence' might of done it! This new album has a sense of noir which fits perfectly with the 1960/1970's theme I think she is going for. My favourite songs on this album are Cruel World, Ultraviolence, Fuc*ed my way up to the top and Brooklyn Baby being my favourite. Lana Del Rey is such a powerful singer and 'Ultraviolence' proves that. 

Movie Reviews: The Lego Movie

The Lego Movie Review  

Everything is awesome! That's right, I just saw 'The Lego Movie' and yes indeed, everything was awesome!

The Lego Movie is about An ordinary Lego construction worker named Emmet, who is thought to be the prophesied 'Special'. He is recruited to join a quest to stop an evil tyrant from gluing the Lego universe into eternal stasis. With an exceptional voice cast including Chris Pratt, Will Ferrell, Morgan Freeman and Elizabeth Banks.  

The Lego Movie really surprised me, I had heard excellent things and it's really highly rated on Rotten Tomatoes at 96%, however I still didn't think it would be amazing. With excellent dialogue, astounding cameos and an awesome portrayal of Batman, I have to say this is one of the best animations I have seen in a while, It was fresh, new, funny and a movie that is not just for kids, but teenagers and adults. 

The premise for this movie is very simple and it could've been done awfully, but it wasn't, the voices were top-notch, the writing was hilarious and the CGI was breathtaking, the action scenes were so cool and seeing all the lego pieces used as something almost made me hyperventilate! I just loved how everything looked so real. This movie also has so many Pop Culture references, which will make you have a smile on your face the whole entire time, and I loved all of the lego cameos, my favourites being Green Lantern, Millhouse and Gandalf! also this movie was really quotable, there were so many quotes I bursted out laughing at, most of them coming from Batman. Will Ferrell was as always over the top, but it really worked for this movie because of his character and he had some of the funniest dialogue in the movie. with his inaccurate pronunciation being my favourite, eg. 'Bring me the Poe-lish remover of Naheel' (which translates to Nail polish Remover). 

I didn't really have any negative thoughts about this movie, it was so fun and enjoyable, however if I had a tiny criticism, I would say that it was maybe 10 minutes too long, they could of condensed a few scenes such as the wild west. 

Favourite Quotes:

The Walls are crying! - UniKitty (Voiced by Alison Brie) 

I only use black, or sometimes I use very dark grey - Batman (Voiced by Will Arnett)  

Bring me the poe-lish remover of Naheel! - Lord Business (Voiced by Will Ferrell)

Overall, this movie is really worth checking out and it is probably the best animation I have seen since Tangled, bear in mind I still haven't seen Frozen...

And can't we just all sing 'Everything is awesome!!!'

Grade: F, D, C-, C, C+, B-, B, B+, A-, A, A+ 

  

Book Reviews: Paper Towns

Paper Towns by John Green

 “The town was paper, but the memories were not.” 
- John Green, Paper Towns.

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 Q gets, the less Q sees the girl he thought he knew.


Now let me just start this review by saying this book is very similar to Looking For Alaska and I can see why some people got annoyed, but I didn't really mind, I thought it had it's own originality even if the main characters were basically a carbon cutout of Miles and Alaska. 

Paper Towns is the story of a boy named Quentin who is in his Senior Year in school, Ever since he was a child, he has been in love with the quirky, eccentric Margo. One night Margo enters Quentin's bedroom window and takes him on an adventurous night full of pranks, breaking into SeaWorld and scenting cars with the smell of fish, however the next day, Quentin finds that Margo has disappeared, que a book full of mystery, humor and many pretentious characters. 

I really enjoyed this book, much more than I thought I would. It wasn't my favourite John Green book but it was really fun and quick. I had my problems with it, but overall I thought it was a good novel, not outstanding though.

Characters:

I really enjoyed Quentin's character at the start of the book, but towards the middle he got quite annoying with his obsession with Margo, even missing his Prom and Graduation just for her. It was quite unrealistic since he had only talked to her about 3 times in his life. Also he was in his Senior year in school and he didn't even care about his future education.
I really liked Radar, Lacey and Ben, they were really funny and made the book much more interesting. The minivan scenes were really funny to read about.
Margo was a 50/50 character, I really liked her at the start, but she was really annoying at the end, and I found her to be quite attention-seeking.

Plot:

I loved the start of the book, it was really fun and I loved all the pranks Margo and Q pulled, however when Margo disappeared the book started to get quite slow and boring.
My favourite scene was probably the shopping/minivan scene, it was hilarious.
I felt the ending was a bit anti climatic and I thought it should've been a bit longer so we could see what would happen after (SPOILER) Quentin leaves Margo, I would of loved an epilogue happening after Q started College and finding out what happens to Margo.

Overall I thought this was a good novel and I really enjoyed it, not one of my favourites but it was a nice summer read. I have read every John Green book now except An Abundance of Katherines, which I plan to read quite soon. I'm giving this book 4 stars out of 5.

Bout of Books 10 Update: Days 1-4

Hello guys!
Well Bout of Books 10 started on Monday 12th May, and it has been one helluva week so far! I have has some high reading moments and some very bad ones....
Here is my progress so far and what I am planning to read for the remainder of the week.

So I started off the week with Reading Paper Towns, and I was already 141 pages in before the read-a-thon. Monday was the worst reading day so far, I only read 6 pages! I actually have no excuse other than I was too lazy and I couldn't stop watching The Office US. On Tuesday I did slightly better, I read 87 pages bringing my total of the read-a-thon to 93 pages. On Wednesday I read quite a lot and ended up finishing Paper Towns, I also started Miss Peregrines home for Peculiar Children and read 30 pages of that.
Overall Mon-Wed statistics:

Monday: 6 Pages of Paper Towns (On Page 147)
Tuesday: 87 Pages of Paper Towns (On Page 234)
Wednesday: 104 Pages altogether, 71 pages of Paper Towns (Finished on Page 305) and 33 Pages of Miss Peregrines home for Peculiar Children.

So far today, I have read 110 pages of Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children, meaning I am on page 143. I plan on reading about 40 pages more today. So far my page count is 307, and I am very happy with that, My goal is to read 500 pages altogether for the read-a-thon, and I think that I am on track.

So I am planning to finish Miss Peregrines Home For Peculiar Children by early Saturday, and then starting The Darkest Minds as said in my TBR post last week, however I am thinking of changing that and reading Hollow City, the sequel to Miss Peregrine's instead, I just bought it today and because I am in love with the first one so far, I might want to continue on with the world. So that is it for now, You can keep up with my progress on Goodreads or Twitter, I will leave the links down below.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RainingKnight18
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/9990480-haroon

Don't forget I am going to be doing a full wrap up when the read-a-thon is finished. Bye For Now!

Bout of Books 10 Reads!

Hello!
In my last post, I announced that I would be participating in the Bout of Books 10 read-a-thon happening during the week of 12th-18th of May. I have picked out three books which I am planning to read during the week. I am very excited about all these choices.



Miss Peregrine's home for 
Peculiar Children

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of very curious photographs.

It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

I recently bought this books and I am extremely excited to dive into this story, it sounds amazing and the pictures are truly creepy. I may even read this before the read-a-thon...



Paper Towns 


Two-time Printz Medalist John Green’s New York Times bestseller, now in paperback!

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.

I am really interested to see how this book turns out, since I have heard mixed things about it, but I think the plot sounds really interesting and mysterious. Also I am a massive John Green fan and I have really liked all the books I have read by him so far, With Looking For Alaska being my favourite.



The Darkest Minds 


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.

I have been hearing non-stop hype surrounding this book and I am so excited to read this book because it just sounds so amazing and unique, Also it involves road-trips which is like the coolest thing ever. Nuff' said.


   

Bout Of Books 10

Hello!
It is that time again, Bout of Books is back! I participated in the last 'Bout Of Books' Read-a-thon and it was so much fun, so I am participating again and I am super excited, lets hope I read more this time!

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 12th and runs through Sunday, May 18th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 10 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

Panic by Lauren Oliver: Review

Panic by Lauren Oliver: Book Review

Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of 12,000 people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.

Heather never thought she would compete in Panic, a legendary game played by graduating seniors, where the stakes are high and the payoff is even higher. She’d never thought of herself as fearless, the kind of person who would fight to stand out. But when she finds something, and someone, to fight for, she will discover that she is braver than she ever thought.

Dodge has never been afraid of Panic. His secret will fuel him, and get him all the way through the game, he’s sure of it. But what he doesn't know is that he’s not the only one with a secret. Everyone has something to play for.

Panic is a new Young-adult book written by Lauren Oliver, the author of the very famous 'Delirium' trilogy. Panic was my first Lauren Oliver book and I had high expectations going in, not only did the premise sound cool but it was one of my most anticipated reads of this year, Needless to say I really enjoyed this book. It wasn't perfect, I did have a few problems but for the most part it was very thrilling and extremely hard to put down. This book was a very fast-read, which is really good if you want a quick, heart racing book, however it wasn't as deep as I was expecting. 

Characters:

The main issue I had with this novel was the characters, I didn't really like any of them and they were very flat and quite frankly boring. I thought Heather got quite interesting towards the end, but for the most part she was very mary-sue (ish). Dodge was [probably my favourite character because of how twisted he was, but I still didn't like him, I just thought he was an interesting character to read about. I hated Natalie so much, I don;t even want to get into that, she was so annoying and was too melodramatic. If I had to choose a favourite character it would probably be Tiger #2, but I did think Tiger #1 had more depth to it. (sarcastic tone)

Plot:

The plot was my favourite part of the book, it was very fast paced and was really exciting, however I did have one major issue, the end. The ending was very rushed and I thought it could of been longer, it just felt very 'meh' and bland. The last challenge was supposed to be dramatic and shocking, but it just wasn't. If I had to do one challenge, it would probably be the tiger one, because it was only for ten seconds and I like tigers! 

Overall this book was really good, nut I feel it could of been better by having a more shocking end and more interesting characters. It was a fun read and I would recommend it to people who want a exciting, thrilling book that doesn't take much effort to read. I would rate this 4/5 stars.

     

March Wrap Up!

Hello!
So I had quite a good month and read 4 books! All of them were contemporaries so they were quick, fun, and enjoyable. All the books I read this month, I liked! So without further ado lets get going!

Will Grayson, Will Grayson
by John Green and David Levitan

One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two teens—both named Will Grayson—are about to cross paths. As their worlds collide and intertwine, the Will Graysons find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, building toward romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history’s most fabulous high school musical.

Hilarious, poignant, and deeply insightful, John Green and David Levithan’s collaborative novel is brimming with a double helping of the heart and humor that have won both of them legions of faithful fans.

Panic by Lauren Oliver

Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of 12,000 people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.

Heather never thought she would compete in Panic, a legendary game played by graduating seniors, where the stakes are high and the payoff is even higher. She’d never thought of herself as fearless, the kind of person who would fight to stand out. But when she finds something, and someone, to fight for, she will discover that she is braver than she ever thought.

Dodge has never been afraid of Panic. His secret will fuel him, and get him all the way through the game, he’s sure of it. But what he doesn't know is that he’s not the only one with a secret. Everyone has something to play for.

For Heather and Dodge, the game will bring new alliances, unexpected revelations, and the possibility of first love for each of them—and the knowledge that sometimes the very things we fear are those we need the most.

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called the "Great Perhaps." Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young. Clever, funny, screwed-up, and dead sexy, Alaska will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.

Looking for Alaska brilliantly chronicles the indelible impact one life can have on another. A stunning debut, it marks John Green's arrival as an important new voice in contemporary fiction.

Me and Earl and The Dying Girl

Greg Gaines is the last master of high school espionage, able to disappear at will into any social environment. He has only one friend, Earl, and together they spend their time making movies, their own incomprehensible versions of Coppola and Herzog cult classics.

Until Greg’s mother forces him to rekindle his childhood friendship with Rachel.

Rachel has been diagnosed with leukemia—-cue extreme adolescent awkwardness—-but a parental mandate has been issued and must be obeyed. When Rachel stops treatment, Greg and Earl decide the thing to do is to make a film for her, which turns into the Worst Film Ever Made and becomes a turning point in each of their lives.
And all at once Greg must abandon invisibility and stand in the spotlight.