Favorite books of 2016

Welcome 

to a post that every bookish person seems to be doing right now. And that's there favorite books that they have read throughout the year.

I am not going to include Harry Potter series in this post because that goes without saying. It's basically my favorite series that i have read ever.

This will include books that I have read for the first time, books that I have re read and books that I had a hard time to read in the first place but finally read

The Devil Wears Prada. Lauren Weisburger
One of my favorite books of all times. No matter how many times I read it, it will always bee on my list of favorite books.

Marshmallows For Breakfast. Dorothy Koomson
Again another of my favourite books. This year I have read some really bad books and this is 100% the book to get me out of a reading slump. Dorothy Koomson by far is my favourite author.

My Life Next Door. Huntley Fitzpatrick
I was really surprised by the book. I think because I read a real bad book before it but I actually really liked the book. It was the first

The Help. Kathryn Stockett
I tried a few times to read the book but didn't get to far with it and when I finally finished it I actually really enjoyed it. It's not a favourite book of all time but if this year definitely.

Since You've Been Gone. Morgan Matson
I was surprised by the book. It's not great but not bad either. I got a little bit of a Paper Towns feel to the book but I preferred it more the Paper Towns

Lauren

xoxo

Books I Have Read In 2016

Welcome
To my 2016 book review. I read 31 books. If I did a review on the book, I have a link to the review with the book

Harry Potter: The Character Vault
It was a Christmas gift from my dad last year (2015) and while I was flicking through the book at Christmas I read the whole thing in January

David Beckham: My side
I can't even explain how many times I have read David Beckham's autobiography but I can say it's a lot.

Paper Towns: John Green
For me john green is one of those authors I have a love hate relationship with. Sometimes I really like his books (looking for Alaska) and sometime I hate them. Paper Towns is one of those books I didn't like

The Great Gatsby: F Scott Fitzgerald
I have never read a classic book before and I should have read this book before watching the movie however I liked the book

Harry Potter Series: JK Rowling
I could read Harry Potter all year long.

The Diamond Girls: Jacqueline Wilson
It has been years since I have read a Jacqueline Wilson book. I can't even remember reading the Diamond Girls but it was really good. I know I am a bit to old now to read Jacqueline Wilson books but I really don't care

To All The Boys I've Loved Before: Jenny Han
If you have read any of my post where I mention this book you know I am not a massive fan of the book. It's one of the worst books that I have read this year Review

My Life Next Door: Huntley Fitzpatrick
After the disappointment of To All The Boys I've Loved Beofre anything that came after it would be a massive improvement and I loved My Life Next Door. If I read it now I am not sure if I loved it as much as I did when I first read it because of how bad TATBILB was. Review

The Help: Kathryn Stockett
The Help was a book that took me for ever to read and when I did I would put it down and forget about it. So when I finally read it this year I really enjoyed it.Review

Totally Jacqueline Wilson
Totally Jacqueline Wilson is a pretty easy and quick read. I remember getting it years ago. In fact I got it Christmas 2007 because I had gotten it my last Christmas in england

Marshmallows for Breakfast: Dorothy Koomson
Marshmallows for Breakfast is possibly my all time favourite stand alone books. It covers so many topics and is one of those books that makes you wish it never ended

Since You've Been Gone: Morgan Matson
SYBG ending is similar to Paper Towns ending. The only difference is I preferred the whole of SYBG than paper Towns. I like the friendships in it and how Emily comes out of her comfort zone

James and the Giant peach: Roald Dahl
- who doesn't love a good Roald Dahl book. While James and the giant peach isn't my all time favourite. (The Witches and Matilda take that spot) it still is a really good and entertaining book

Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse: Stephanie Meyer
I didn't read twilight saga one after the other. I put them together so they wouldn't look so worried out of place. And I haven't finished breaking dawn in 2016 like I wanted to  twilight Review    New Moon Review   Eclipse Review

Animal Farm: George Orwell
I wasn't in love with this book. Heck I didn't even like it. I found it hard to get into. Review

David Jason: My story
David Jason is probably one of my favorite actors out there. His autobiography was just perfect. Review

The Devil Wears Prada: Lauren weisburger
The Devil Wears Prada is so close to being my favourite book ever.  It's 100% up there. It's one of those books that I think other people like more then they are letting on. I don't care how many more times I read it I will always love it Review

The story of Channon Rose: Channon Rose
Its such a quick and easy read. I think I finished it within a few hours. It's definitely one of the YouTube books that I like best. Find my review HERE

The Striper Diaries and The History of My Insanity Trisha Paytas
So bland and ordinary nothing special for either of them.


Stripper Diaries Review







The Mum Minder: Jacqueline Wilson
As a child i remember taking ages to read it but as an adult it's one of the quickest books I have read

The Glass Wives: Amy Sue Nathan
this is a new addition to my 2016 list. I FINALLY read it in December. I was having a block on Breaking Dawn so I needed something to stop that.

David Beckham My Son: Ted Beckham
This is a book that was really quick read. Even for me. It's written by David Beckham's dad.

Lauren

xoxo

Top 5 characters I would invite to my New Year's Eve party || Top 4 Wednesday || 28th December

Welcome 

To the last ever Top 5 Wednesday of 2016. How quick has this year gone. 2017 is within teaching distance. 

This weeks T5W is on the people we would invite to our NYE party. 

Fred and George Weasley || Harry Potter || JK Rowling

Fred and George are my all time favourite characters. They would bring so much fun to a party. I'm counting them as individuals but putting them together as one 

Bella Swan || Twilight || Stephanie Meyer 

Bella needs to relax a lot. She needs a getaway from the drama that surrounds her. 

Andrea || The Devil Wears Prada || Lauren Weisburger

With Miranda not knowing some gifts that she gets think of the amount of alcohol Andrea would being. Plus you would get to ooh and ahh over the great clothes she ends up with. 

Jay Gatsby || The Great Gatsby || Scott F Fitzgerald 

Imagine how insane your party would be if you could have it at the Gatsby house. #insane

Lauren

xoxo

What I Got For Christmas 2016

Welcome

To my post on What I Got For Christmas. I have never been a massive fan of the lead up Christmas for a while and this year was no different. I enjoy Christmas Day a little bit. When I see people open their presents. 

So let's get into it. 

I am a massive fan of celebrity perfumes when they get them right. And Lady Gaga got hers so right

Lady Gaga Fame

My dad's partner got me some make up bags. They are really cute. I put the presents that were in my stocking into to larger one when I brought them home

 

Make  Bags

Me getting anything Harry Potter is kind of a tradition. I'm 27 and still love Harry Potter like I did when I was younger. 

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: Illustrated Edition

My dad's partner's son and his family got me some home made soaps. I will link the Facebook group HERE. They smell AMAZING.

Home Made Soap

My dad got me a iHome speaker. It connects to the Bluetooth of my phone and as the songs play the colours change. It's so cool. And I love it .My phone doesn't fit on my old docking station and what I like about this apart from the changing colours is that you can have your phone on you and the iHome can be anywhere and it will connect to it

iHome

I also got My Best Friends Girl by Dorothy Koomson. Which I was so happy about because I lent my copy out and never got it back so when I got the book I was so exited. It's a book that I think everyone should read. It's quite possibly my favourite stand alone book ever. When I first got it forever ago I cried my eyes out reading it. 

My Best Friends Girl by Dorothy Koomson

I got  a gift card to a clothing store, some pj's among a lot of other things

Now for some of my favourite photos from Christmas Day

I love the snapchat face swap filter.

Lauren

xoxo

The Fall || Netflix Drama Review

Welcome

to another post. I know I have been a bit MIA lately on here. But hey ho I am trying. Today's post is on The Fall

The Fall is a British Irish tv show that follows around serial killer Paul and police officer Stella.


Stella is called in after a spate of murders in Belfast are flung unsolved after 28 days. She puts it all together and realizes that rather then the murders all being separate they are all linked. While Paul (the actual murderer) is attacking professional women in the city. Killing them, on one occasion the victim actually survived and he had killed her brother in a violent rage after he stopped him while the one victim was unconscious.


Paul is a family man. Married with two children. He is also a bereavement Councillor. during the day and most nights he is stalking and killing women in their 30's and manipulating his teenage baby sitter. His wife has no idea that he is killing these woman. He loves his daughter but the relationship with his son isn't really explained. Even when he looses his memory he remembers his daughter but not his son.  After one killing he goes to see a victim of his that didn't die, she doesn't realize that it was him that had tried to kill her

A series of events leads Stella to realize who is the killer and they follow him and finally arrested him.

While in police custody he will not speak to anyone but Stella. Before being arrested he kidnapped an ex girlfriend and was keeping her hostage. While being interviewed he agrees to take them to the place where she is being held and while there he is shot and seriously injured.

Series three starts with doctors trying to safe his life while the police officer that was handcuffed to him was injured.


What I liked about this show was that it shows both sides. The crime and the police work. I liked how they showed that the killer had a normal adult life and did normal adult things. Like looking after his kids and having a job. But also that he is killing and is a bad person. He also has an affair with his children's teenage babysitter who becomes obsessed with him.

I like how you don't know what's going to happen. You know he's killed and you know he is bad but he also seems like a normal person.


I liked how he would go and be in places where his victims where. Like at a bar. I liked how Paul was in a situation where he was counselling one of his victims who had survived (her brother didn't) yet she had no idea who he was.


I also liked that there other story lines within the main story such as his wife's job and the sexual relations between Stella and other members of her team.

Each episode is an hour long and in that hour there is so much drama and action it's brilliant. I must admit though I was binge watching it. So much so it took me two days too watch it. (When I first wrote this paragraph series three had not yet been released. It now has and it took me less then a day to watch it)


It took me a while to get into the first episode. But as soon as they started talking and getting more into the story line(s) I started loving it.


The Hollyokas connection was kinda big in it. Not it the story line but with the actors. 4 actors were in it that were in Hollyoaks.  And at times I did want Paul's wife to yell at one of the detectives because of the hollyoaks connection. At times I found that when those two actors were in a scene together that it worked really well  because of them acting together before.


What I will also say is that I enjoyed it that much that I wanted the third season to be on Netflix. About a week later it was on Netflix which got me really exited.

The chemistry between the actors is fantastic. Each series finale wanted made me want the next series to start. So much so that before the third series was added to Netflix I actually tweeted out that I wanted the third season to be on there.

Lauren
Xoxo

My Christmas Book Wishlist

Welcome

To another post. This post is on the things that I have asked for for Christmas. I am not a massive fan on Christmas and I always ask for the same things every year. Books. And these are the books that I have asked for this year. 

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

I am such a Harry Potter head, but just haven't gotten The Cursed Child yet. 

Fantastic Beast and where to find them

Again I just haven't gotten it yet. 

Lola and the boy next door/Isla and the happily ever after/Anna and the French kiss

The three books are so popular and I have put it off getting them for so long 

Fairest and Stars above

Marissa Meyer

It's basically to finish of the lunar Chronicles book series as I have the first three books

Crossed and Reached
Ally Conde

Again it's to finish of the series. I really enjoyed the first book, I have seen reviews saying the last two books arent great, Its one of those things I want to see for myself

Lauren

xoxo