Top Five Wednesday | Books with Multiple POVs

This week's Top Five Wednesday is Top Five Books with Multiple POVs. Just in case anyone is new to this. Top Five Wednesday is an idea created by Lainey, or Gingerreadslainey on youtube. She creates weekly topics so that bloggers and youtubers can talk more about different aspects of their favourite, or least favourite, books. The group, which lists the monthly topics, can be found here! If you want to see any of my previous Top Five Wednesday blog posts you can click here!

I love this topic although I found it quite hard because there are so many books I'd love to put in this list, and I feel guilty for not including some other favourites of mine. Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas was so unbelievably close to making this list but I wanted to talk about some different books that others may not have read. The first three books I talked about are extremely popular and well-known so I wanted to add and recommend some different books.

1) Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Tolkien

I am certain this book will be on most people's lists so I won't go on about it too much, but it is one of my favourite fantasy series of all time. Tolkien goes between characters so easily yet the story is so complex. I love his characters and writing, and if you haven't picked this up yet then I suggest you do! (If you're not happy reading lengthy descriptions though then this might not be for you!)







2) Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

I'm sure everyone already knows what this book is about already so, again, this is another book which  is probably on a lot of people's lists but I just couldn't leave it out. Never have I read such an epic fantasy that is so easy to read yet complicated and fascinating all at once. Martin's characters are so three-dimensional and realistic and he gets you invested in absolutely every one of them (even if you hate them) and is constantly making you fear for their safety. This epic fantasy series does multiple points of view so, so well.



3) Dracula by Bram Stoker

This book is probably my favourite classic and one of my favourite things about it is the multiple points of view. The book is a combination of diary entries, Dictaphone transcriptions and letters. It makes the book quick to read and also introduces so many elements of mystery as you explore the views of different characters before seeing them all come together. If you've not picked up this book yet I highly recommend it. Don't feel intimidated or put off by it just because it's a classic.




4) The Hours by Michael Cunningham

I've not really heard many people talk about this book before and I think it's brilliant. If you're a fan of Virginia Woolf then I highly recommend this. The Hours follows three characters, across different time periods, whose lives interconnect and all parallel either Virginia Woolf or her book Mrs Dalloway. It's an adult fiction novel and I recommend people to look at the synopsis at least because it's a very moving book and definitely one of my favourites that I studied at university. It's also a very good film starring Meryl Streep!



5) Battle Royale by Koushun Takami

This book has one of the best written multiple points of view I have ever read. Although it does start off a bit complicated (mostly due to a lot of Japanese names which appear in quick succession), it becomes surprisingly easy to distinguish the 42 characters from one another. I'm sure a lot of people will have heard of this but if not, it's about 42 school students who get sent to an island to compete in Battle Royale, a fight to the death until their is one winner. If there isn't a winner in time then they will all die. If you enjoyed The Hunger Games then you will love this book (it is a bit more gory though, so be warned!). This book had such a brilliant ending and it's quite different to the film that was made of it too.


These were my Top Five Books with Multiple Points of View! As I said, there were so many more I wish I could've included but I could only pick five. Let me know what you think and what your lists are! If you leave your link below I'll go check out your Top Five Wednesday as well! To see my other Top Five Wednesday's you can click here!

BOOK REVIEW: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Genre: Young Adult/Contemporary

My Rating: ★★

Goodreads Page

Spoiler Free Summary:

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.

Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

**Spoiler Free Review**

Publication Date: 1st September 2015

I was sent a copy of this book from Penguin Random House UK Children’s, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. I thought the premise of this book was pretty unique storyline for a YA contemporary and I was very excited about reading it.

The main character, Madeline was interesting and quite funny. I enjoyed the way the character's point of view was portrayed and I adored the handwritten notes, pictures and extracts within the text. I wouldn't suggest reading this book on an e-reader/kindle/kobo as these are fantastic additions would definitely work much better in a physical book than on a screen where you have to zoom in. I still loved them and they added a depth to the story that I don't think would've been there otherwise. They always pull me in and I feel they were used extremely well by the author to add more to the story.

I really loved Madeline's nurse, I felt she was quite stereotypical in a way, but she was still an incredibly likeable and witty character. Olly was one of the more interesting love interests I've read about it a long time. He was very different to the usual stereotypical boy which you find in YA fiction. His character was interesting and I did laugh out loud at some of the things he did, especially with the bunting. I did particularly like that the book explored more of family dynamics and that this book was more about different family situations than about romance. (Just like real life!)

It was shorter than I expected it to be but the length seemed about right for the story of this book, although I do wish some different things had been explored in more detail. I also found the latter part of the book, albeit quite romantic, very strange and quite unrealistic which pulled me out of the story a bit. Sadly, something about this book didn't quite grab me. I did feel the ending and the latter half of the relationship was a little bit rushed and I also guessed part of the ending. I was left feeling a little disappointed at part of the ending which I felt was a bit unresolved in a way. I would've liked to hear more about Madeline's mother and what happened between them both, but maybe that's just me!

I think any lover of contemporary fiction would enjoy this book so I do recommend it; sadly it just didn't appeal to me the way I thought it would which is why it came down from a five star rating. I think it was beautifully written and an excellently executed idea but it just wasn't for me for some of the reasons I said above. I'd highly recommend you pick this up for yourself to see if you enjoy it though!

Top Five Wednesday | Favourite Books of the Year So Far!

This week's Top Five Wednesday is Top Five Favourite Books of the Year So. Just in case anyone is new to this. Top Five Wednesday is an idea created by Lainey, or Gingerreadslainey on youtube. She creates weekly topics so that bloggers and youtubers can talk more about different aspects of their favourite, or least favourite, books. The group, which lists the monthly topics, can be found here! If you want to see any of my previous Top Five Wednesday blog posts you can click here!

I've read some really good books this year already and I love that Lainey made this topic so we can tell people our favourite books of the year so far.

1) Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson


Goodreads Link

I finally decided to pick up my first ever Brandon Sanderson book and I definitely do not regret it. If you love Superheroes/ Comics/ Action/ Futuristic novels then this is definitely for you. I had my expectations high when I went into reading this and I wasn't let down, in fact my expectations were easily surpassed by how well written this book is. The storyline is fantastic, the characters are incredibly three-dimensional and believable, the superheroes/Epics and their powers were incredible to explore and the ending... the ending was amazing. To be honest, I thought I had guessed the twist in this book but I was left utterly stunned when Sanderson revealed the main twist. I didn't see it coming and I was left amazed. I am desperate to get my hands on the second book Firefight and to read more of Sanderson in The Mistborn Trilogy which I bought a while ago. It's easily my favourite book of the year and I would recommend this book to anyone.

2) Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi

Goodreads Link

This definitely won't be a book for everyone, especially younger readers or those who don't enjoy True Crime, but I found it so fascinating (which may sound morbid) and interesting to find out about. The book is about the infamous Manson Murders which occurred in the 1960s. It is written by one of the lawyers involved in the case and it gives a terrifying view of how Charles Manson manipulated and brainwashed people into committing murder, and how he very nearly got away with it. This book affected me so much and has stayed with me since I read it in January. If you're interested in reading about Charles Manson and the murders that were committed or a person who enjoys True Crime then I recommend this to you. As I said earlier this book is probably better for mature readers as the violence is very graphic Bugliosi's account.

3) Sentinel by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Goodreads Link

This is the fifth and final book in Armentrout's Covenant Series. I won't give anything away about the plot of this book as it is the final book in a series. The first book in the series is titled Half-Blood and if you've got to that point and haven't read on then I highly recommend that you do. I found the first book well-written but very similar to Vampire Academy and that put me off a bit. However, I decided to keep reading and I am so, so glad I did. The series becomes so unique and brilliant. Armetrout's writing is absolutely fantastic. She writes characters very well and her action scenes are pretty much unparalleled in YA fiction. I loved the ending of the series and I always admire authors who manage to finish a series with a nail-biting, thrilling yet satisfying ending.

4) Looking for JJ by Anne Cassidy

Goodreads Link

This was a re-read for me but it was so much better than the first time I read it. This is a book about a young teenage girl called Jennifer Jones who has a mysterious and dark past that she can't tell anyone about. It alternates between the past and the present day exploring what actually happened to JJ and her friends at that fateful day near the lake. This book is so mysterious, dark and intriguing. I first read it when I was 11 (which was maybe a bit too young) and I missed a lot of the things that young JJ also looked over. Having read it again as an adult I appreciate so much how well this was written and how interesting the story is. If you're looking for YA contemporary that deals with some more serious and dark issues such as crime and prostitution, as well as family and friendship then I would highly recommend this book.

5) It's Not Me, It's You by Mhairi McFarlane

Goodreads Link

I received this book in a Goodreads giveaway and I could not be happier that I did. This is an adult contemporary novel about a woman called Delia Moss who thinks she has her entire future planned until she finds out some devastating news about her boyfriend. Delia was such a likeable, intelligent, strong character that I couldn't help but empathise with her situations and support her decisions. I loved her and Emma and their relationship together. There was just so much of this book that I felt I could relate too. It also has the most gorgeously drawn comic strips throughout the book which I loved. I could gush about how much I enjoyed this book for a page so I'll stop now but I have a full spoiler-free review of this book, if you're interested to here more of my thoughts, which can be found here!

These are my favourite books so far this year, let me know what yours are in the comments below! If you did a Top Five Wednesday this week then link it below and I'll check it out.

Top Five Wednesday | Books You Won't Read. Ever.

This week's Top Five Wednesday is Top Five Books You Won't Read. Ever. Just in case anyone is new to this. Top Five Wednesday is an idea created by Lainey, or Gingerreadslainey on youtube. She creates weekly topics for bloggers and youtubers to talk more about different aspects of their favourite books. The group, which lists the monthly topics, can be found here!

I have to say that this was a really difficult topic for me. There are very few books that I just refuse to read. I always try to give any book a chance as you never know if you're going to enjoy it despite what other people think. Most of these books are sequels to books I read and really didn't enjoy for one reason or another but there are a couple which I just don't think I'll be picking up.

1) Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

I know lots of people really love this book but when I first heard the synopsis it just didn't really appeal to me. Later on I watched a youtube review of this book about the unhealthy relationship which is presented and it sickened me a little bit. I went on to read several reviews and the sound of the abusive relationship in the book just really put me off ever reading it. Sorry if you love this series but I find it difficult in my twenties to read about these teenage relationships that are just unrealistic and slightly creepy sounding!

2) The Frey Saga by Melissa Wright

This trilogy is on my list for an entirely different reason. I read Melissa Wright's other trilogy, The Descendants, earlier this year and I really disliked it. This was the most vague trilogies I think I have ever read. I was just left with a ridiculous amount of questions. From the first book I couldn't tell you where the book was set, what the world is like, why things are happening, or even what the main character's motives were and it's in a first person narrative. I understand when a book likes to slowly build up the world around it, but in this there was no world building, just a plot which lacked a lot of sense because of it. It also stopped me from connecting to the characters because I didn't understand them or why they were doing things.To see my review of the first book you can click here. In my opinion the series barely got much better so I won't be picking up her next trilogy. I only finished her first trilogy because I bought all three books at once for £2.99.

3) Bridget Jones: Mad About a Boy by Helen Fielding

The final Bridget Jones book was spoiled to me the year it came out and, sadly, I've had absolutely no desire to finish the series because of this. Don't get me wrong I did enjoy the first book and I liked the second book even more but after being spoiled I just don't feel like reading this book. Also I've read some pretty terrible reviews about it and I just don't think it would really appeal to me like the other books did!

4) The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson

 I really hate to say this because I love what I've seen of Maureen Johnson as a person in Vlogbrothers videos and everything but I really didn't like 13 Little Blue Envelopes. I was on a contemporary kick about four years ago and decided to pick up this book but I had to force my way through it to be perfectly honest. I remember it falling flat for me and I found the characters quite annoying. I don't remember a lot of the book but I remember it ending on a cliffhanger that I didn't really care about. For those reasons I won't be picking up the sequel I'm afraid.

5) Lord Loss by Darren Shan

Now this is an author that I know many people love but I'm just not one of them. I haven't tried to read much else of Darren Shan's except this so I'm not really judging his writing or his storytelling here. I tried to read this book about ten years ago and I really disliked how gory the first part of the story is. Now I generally don't mind gore in books, I can deal with it. But I think the combination of the age I was and the way it was described in this book really put me off. And now I feel like I probably wouldn't be able to read this series because I'm a bit too old for the characters to be relatable any more. It's become one of those series that I'm just not interested in ever picking up.

So these were my Top Five Books I Won't Read. Ever! What were yours? Leave me a link to your Top Five and I'll check it out. Also please don't be offended if I've trashed your favourite book/series here. It's just my opinion!

Bout of Books Wrap-up

So it's time for my Bout of Books 13.0 Wrap-up! Although I didn't read everything I said I would I still managed to read a lot this week despite working every day so I'm quite proud of that.

For those that don't know what Bout of Books is and didn't see my TBR post here's some more information:

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 11th and runs through Sunday, May 17th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 13 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog! 

So I managed to read 6 things overall. Four books and two novellas which I think is pretty good. I won't do a full review of each book I read here but I'll tell you what I read and what I rated it.

Pure by Jennifer L. Armentrout ★★★★1/2
Deity by Jennifer L. Armentrout ★★★★★
Half Bad by Sally Green ★★★★
Half Lies by Sally Green ★★★★★
Elixir by Jennifer L. Armentrout ★★★1/2
Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon ★★★1/2-★★★★
100 pages of Half Wild by Sally Green (Now finished) ★★★★★
54 pages of Apollyon by Jennifer L. Armentrout (Now finished) ★★★★★

I'm happy to say it was a successful read-a-thon! I hope yours was too and I apologise for the lateness of my wrap-up but I had a very busy week/weekend!

BOOK REVIEW: Rogue by Julie Kagawa

Rogue (#2) by Julie Kagawa

Genre: Young Adult/Modern Fantasy

My Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Page

Spoiler Free Summary:

Long ago, dragons were hunted to near extinction by the Order of St. George, a legendary society of dragon slayers. Hiding in human form and growing their numbers in secret, the dragons of Talon have become strong and cunning, and they're positioned to take over the world with humans none the wiser.

Ember and Dante Hill are the only sister and brother known to dragonkind. Trained to infiltrate society, Ember wants to live the teen experience and enjoy a summer of freedom before taking her destined place in Talon. But destiny is a matter of perspective, and a rogue dragon will soon challenge everything Ember has been taught. As Ember struggles to accept her future, she and her brother are hunted by the Order of St. George.

With assassins after them, the rogues find an unexpected ally and a new perspective on the underground battle between Talon and St. George. 

A reckoning is brewing and the secrets hidden by both sides are shocking and deadly. Soon Ember must decide: Should she retreat to fight another day…or start an all-out war?

**Spoiler Free Review**

Publication Date: 15th April 2015

I was sent a copy of this book from Harlequin (UK) Limited, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. Rogue is the second book in Julie Kagawa’s series. I had high expectations for the first book, Talon, when I first saw just the cover. I love dragon books and the concept of this one sounded interesting and unique. I’d also heard a lot of good things about Julie Kagawa’s writing (which is, as I found out, completely justified).

The first book I found quite exciting and fast-paced, albeit a little underdeveloped in world-building. However, this second book certainly delved into the world of Talon itself a bit more. I also really enjoyed the exploration into different character’s back stories and points of view. Diving into more of Dante's point of view was especially interesting with his experiences on the other side; it was so fascinating to see more of the dragons and their organisation. Garrett and Riley were equally made so much more three-dimensional in this book as you learnt more about their pasts and what led them to this moment.

Sadly, I did find Ember rather irritating in this book (and a bit in the last book). I think it was just her reckless behaviour which a lot of female characters in YA seem to have these days. I can only hope that character development will continue in the next book and that she will change for the better. However, I do think the main reason for this sudden onslaught of reckless characters in YA is the result of something else... the love triangle.

There is a love triangle in this book and, although I can see how this developed (and I suppose it makes more sense than many love triangles), I really dislike them as a trope in Young Adult fiction. They are everywhere. It just frustrates me when reading a book as I feel it takes away from the storyline and it always seems to force the main character to make stupid/reckless decisions for absolutely no reason. Having said that, I am interested in seeing how this one actually plays out and what will become of the characters; which I think just shows how well Julie Kagawa writes mores than anything else.

And I do think the main thing I love about these books is Julie Kagawa’s writing. She writes dialogue between characters fantastically well. She brings the characters to life through their speech and I really feel as though I know them. Her beautiful writing makes them as vivid and three-dimensional as any person. Although he’s not the main character of this book I think Wes is definitely one of my favourites. He is witty, clever and downright brave when it comes to facing dragons, especially those on his own side. Everyone needs a good hacker on their team and he is the perfect character in the team to stop the main focus being on romance.

Although I did see the twist coming, I still got a shock at a couple of things in the ending, and I thought it suited the book perfectly. It’s an exciting instalment in this series and I am looking forward to continuing on because I’m very interested to see where this story goes and how the characters will develop. I really want to see more of the world of Talon explored, as well as the history of St George. If you're a lover of modern/urban fantasy and dragons then I highly recommend picking up the first book in this series and giving it a read because it gets even more action-packed in the second book!

Bout of Books 13.0 Information and TBR

So I've decided to take part in the Bout of Books 13.0 Read-a-thon hopefully in order to read a bit more and to blog some more too! For those that don't know what Bout of Books is... here you go:

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 11th and runs through Sunday, May 17th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 13 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog!

I haven't had too much chance to read so far this month because of starting a new job, but I do have a two hour commute to work now which means lots of reading on the train (although I'm often a bit too exhausted to read when I get home!). So I hope this can push me to read some more this month! Without further ado, here is my TBR for this read-a-thon!

1) Finish Half Bad by Sally Green - I'm really enjoying this so far and although I've been reading it a while I'm finding it very fast paced and quick to get through, I just having picked it up as often as I could have. So this is definitely one to finish this week!

2) Finish Pure by Jennifer L. Armentrout - I only started this a few days ago and I'm speeding through it. Armentrout's writing is so fast-paced and brilliant to read that it's a great book for a read-a-thon. Plus I really want to continue this series!

3) Half Wild by Sally Green - not much explanation needed here!

4) Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon - I received an ARC of this book which I would really like to get to as soon as possible because I've heard wonderful things about this book and I'm hoping to review it this month.

5) Maus by Art Spiegelman - I've been desperate to read this for ages and I finally bought myself it last week. Plus, it's always good to have a graphic novel in a read-a-thon TBR!

So that's my Bout of Books Read-a-thon TBR! I'll update at the end of this week to talk about how I did but in the meantime let me know what your TBR's are for this read-a-thon! Good luck everyone!