January 2017 Wrap Up

Welcome

 back to my blog and my first Wrap Up of 2017. 

- Breaking Dawn : DNF
I tried I really did with breaking dawn to read it but I couldn't. I would skip pages. Though I haven't technically read every word in the book I just can't but it's going as read.
HERE is my review

- Just Listen DNF
Just like breaking dawn I couldn't read Just Listen. I have tried on multiple occasions but I just wasn't a fan and so I am marking it as read even though I haven't finished it.
HERE is my review

- The Ice Cream Girls. Dorothy Koomson
The first book this year that I read every word of. Dorky Koomson is my all time favourite author as an adult. Her books just draw me in.  The Ice Cream Girls is just perfect.
HERE is my review
HERE is part one of the Q&A
HERE is part two of the Q&A
HERE is part three of the Q&A

- Harry Potter and The Cursed Child
I was set to be disappointed with the book. But I wasn't. I really enjoyed it. I never normally read books that are set out as script and at the beginning I did struggle with it but I really liked it.
HERE is my Review

- Just One Day
Ok with Just One Day I read it last year but it didn't show up on my Goodreads for 2016 because I don't know why it just didn't, and i know I read it because I started reading Just One Year and didn't finish it. So I am cheating and read a review to refresh my mind on what happened and putting in my January read.
HERE is my review

- Just One Year DNR
As much as I loved If I Stay duology, and loved Just One Day, I didn't like Just One Year that I decided to DNR, it and put it as read because I just can't finish it
HERE is my review

- My Best Friends Girl
My best friends girl is honestly my favourite stand alone book ever. I have done a book recommendation on it. A few years ago I did lend it to someone I know and never got it back, and then got a copy for Christmas. I freaked out.  The feelings you go through in the book are intense. Basically Kamryn gets a card from her former best friend saying she's dying and wants her to adopt her five year old daughter. She hasn't seen her former friend in over two years after finding out that the father of the child is her fiancé. She breaks up with him and she moves away. She deals with looking after a child, a new boss who becomes her boyfriend, the loss of her best friend, the return of her former fiancé, a meeting with social services, being a black woman looking after a white child and everything comes along with it.
HERE is my review

I do have one book that I am almost done with but won't finish by the end of the month. I am almost done but it won't make it

One thing I said in a recent post is that I didn't want to put any pressure on myself to read x amount of books throughout the year and even though this month it seems like I did, I had books that I DNF'd and one that even though I read last year and didn't put into my  2016 Wrap Up. I am happy with the amount of books that I did read and tried to read.

Lauren
xoxo

My Year In Books: 2016

Welcome 

to my year in books for 2016, I know this is really late

31 books read

10,737 Pages

Average Length: 358 pages

Average Rating. 3.9

Shortest Book v Longest Book

The Stripper Diaries & Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire

Most Popular: Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone 4,607,902 other people also read

Least Popular: David Beckham My Son. 51

Highest rated on Goodreads: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. 4.59

Lauren

xoxo

DNF Book Review. Just One Year

Welcome

To another DNF book review. The last DNF book was breaking dawn.

Book: Just One Year
Author: Gayle Forman
Pages
Publisher: Speak
Started: January 7th 2017
Finished: January 13th 2017
Goodreads Rating: 2/5

About the book
Just One Year follows Willem and his journey to find Allyson or 'Lulu' as he calls her. He goes back to the club that they had left Allyson's belongings, before he returns to Holland and catches up with his friends - and that's how far I got.



My review
I like Gayle Forman's books and this maybe controversial but I prefer the first books in her duologys. The book in the female perspective.

I struggled with reading Just One Year that I didn't finish it when I first read it. I preferred Just One Day.

For companion books I prefers where she went (if I stay companion) a lot more then this one.

What I did like about this book was the fact that something that seemed so unimportant in Allyson's story and just a part of the experience she goes through is a big factor in the end of her story and  beginning of Willem's story.

I struggled to get into the book, it didn't flow as well as Just One Day did and I felt even more disconnected with Willem in the short amount of pages that I read. I have on many occasions tried to read the book and couldn't.


Lauren
xoxo

Top 5 Wednesday || Underrated Books || A Day Late

Welcome

To another Top 5 Wednesday. This is 5 books that are underrated. I did kinda put a spin on it because I couldn't think of five books so I did four books and an author

- Hate list. Jennifer Brown
I have never heard or seen anyone give this book even a mention. I found it really really good.

- Anything by Dorothy Koomson
I couldn't choose a book that is more underrated because the books that I have read I haven't seen any other person talk about her books. I think more people should read them.



- Safe Haven
I very rarely find a book that I love both the book and the movie but this is one of those books where I like both. I haven't found anyone else review the book.

- Looking for Alaska
I think that looking for Alaska is one of those books that people either love or don't. I think it's such an underrated John Green book.

- The Glass Wives
Though not one of my favorite books I did like it and it's definitely one that is so underrated. I like how it dealt with different topics

The Ice Cream Girls Q&A Part Three

Welcome
To the third and final part of the Q&A of The Ice Cream Girls.

You can find my review of the book HERE
Part one of the Q&A HERE
Part two of the Q&A HERE

Question 10
What is the relationship between Serena and Poppy? Could they have been friends if not for Marcus

I don't think they could after reading the first part. Their relationship with each other started because of Marcus. You see how jealous of Poppy Serena is. The fact that Marcus had two of them at once I don't think they could have been friends.

I think they aren't really friends. Serena though jealous of poppy would cover for her. Poppy was also not as strong as Serena was. Poppy was jealous of Serena for the fact that she hardly showed any emotions when she was with Marcus and I think Poppy wanted some of that so when what happened, happened Poppy finally got that strength

I don't think they would have been friends as teenagers. They are far to different. The person that brought them together is the only reason why they seemed to have any kind of relationship. They looked out for each other only because they knew what the other was going through.

Question 11
How did prison change Poppy
Poppy was so naive when she was younger and prison hardened her up a little bit. She seems intent on not having a relationship with anyone even though Alain is trying to get to know her. It changed her in the fact that she found it hard to try and have a relationship. I think she also got a real friend with the girl inside and was generally distraught when she died.

Question 12
How does being found not guilty change Serena
She feels guilty. She feels that because Marcus was the one person in the world she trusted was dead and she didn't go back and help him right away. She had lost a part of her childhood. She feels that she can't trust people and even though she is acting as if she trust her husband I don't think she truly can, or did, until she told him the truth. And because of what had happened to her during the time she was with Marcus she felt that her life had to be a lie and she felt guilty because she couldn't tell the one person she loved the most what had happened. She also feels guilty because she is the one that started the chain effects that lead to Marcus being killed that night.

Question 13
How do Poppy and Serena change as people during the corse of the book

I feel as if they have come into there own a lot more. Poppy has become more out spoken to others. She feels that she had lost so much of her life because of being in prison that she had time to reflect on what happened. She became more determined to get to the truth about that night. For Serena I think she had her moments. She seemed so strong and in a loving relationship that she almost forgot what had happened to her as teenager, but when she finds out what her family really think about that night she feels scared. And then when her husband finds out she feels alone. She goes through more of a rollercoaster of a time since Poppy had been released from prison where Poppy went through it when she was younger. By the end of the book I think they both finally found peace in the situation

Question 14
Do you think the killer was justified in what she did

- part one
In a way I can understand why who ever killed him, killed him. He used and abused both of them for so long that it would be so understandable why they did.

- part two
At the moment I don't know who the killer is. But if it is either poppy or Serena then I can understand why they may have killed Marcus. They may have snapped. After finishing the book I can understand why the killer did what they did. She was unhappy with it all. She was so angry with everything that the only way out was to do what she did.

Question 15
What are the main themes of The Ice cream girls

- murder
It shows the effects that one person has on other people. While murder is never the answer you can understand why the murder did what they did.


- Lies
    - Marcus has lied to the both of them about each other. He played them off each other and when it was to late he ends up dead.
    - Serena lied to her husband about what happened. She had so many opportunities to tell him.
    - Alain. Oh Alain, Alain, Alain, why did you have to lie to Poppy like that. My heart broke for her.
    - Serena's family made her believe for so long that they believed her but had doubts.


- Love
    - Marcus is loved by two teenagers that had never experienced what real love is about and he manipulated them into love.
    - Serena falls in love with her husband


- Trust
    - Both poppy and Serena have a lot of trust in Marcus. And can't see that their trust is being manipulated
    - Evan felt that his trust in Serena wasn't reciprocated by her as she didn't trust him with the truth about Marcus or Poppy

-  Betrayal
    - Both Poppy and Serena feel betrayed by Marcus. He led them both on, played each other off each other
    - Evan, Serena's husband feels betrayed by Serena because she didn't tell him about Marcus
    - Poppy's parents because Poppy didn't tell them about Marcus
    - Poppy because her parents didn't believe her
    - Serena started to feel betrayed by her sisters and parents and brother in law after it came out that they have some doubts about her story
    - Alain betrayed Poppy by not revealing who he was right away.
    - Marcus and his ex wife both felt betrayed by each other


- Heartbreak
    - Serena and Poppy are both heartbroken that someone they love is with another person
    - Poppy's parents are heartbroken that she could have done something like that
    - Poppy was falling in love with Alain only for him to tell her the real reason why he was interested.

- Domestic violence
Marcus beats and and verbally abuses both Poppy and Serena.


- Secrets
It seemed that everyone was keeping secrets from their loved ones.

Just One Day Book Review

Welcome
to my blog, this is one that I should have done forever ago


Book: Just One Day
Author: Gayle Forman
Pages: 369
Publisher: Speak
Started: Unknown
Finished: unknown
Goodreads Rating: 4/5

Allyson and her friend have graduated high school and are on a trip around Europe. While in England they skip out a  Shakespeare tour for a play outside. There Allyson meets Willem an actor in the play, and she talks about how she missed out on Paris and really wanted to go. Willem takes her to Paris and shows her around. While she is sleeping Willem disappears and Allyson believes he has left her to find her way back to England. Which she dose. The summer ends and Allyson goes back to the US and starts at college. In one class she has to do a project on Shakespeare's but doesn't want to do it on the play she saw while in London as it reminds her of Willem. That one day changed Allyson's life.


I liked the book.  It was cheesy, yet fun and romantic at the same time. Allyson was a bit stupid to go off to another contrary with someone she only just met, and it backfired in her face a little. I found her naive.

I wasn't  a massive fan of Willem's.  I found he was far to cocky.

I liked how one day changed Allyson's life. It made her more open minded.

I did find her a bit selfish when she didn't want to do the Shakespeare play. I mean get over it.


When i first read the book and they were in England, and they referred to anything English -  that American people tend to get wrong - I could totally hear an American saying it wrong and me correcting them in my head. Maybe because I hear it so often living in Canada that I am used to it.

Side note: I read this book in 2015 and in 2016. In 2016 when I read it I planed on reading Just One Year right after and only got 100 pages in, and I didn't mark this book down.  So it's a cheat book that's going into my 2017 books


Lauren
xoxo

Just Listen || DNR Book Review

Book: Just Listen
Author: Sarah Dessen
Publisher: Speak
Pages: 371
Started December 29th 2016
Finished: DNF (Did Not Finish)

I don't remember when I got this book, how long I've had it sitting on my shelf, or how many times I have tried to read it. It's always seemed to be there. I think I have tried to read it multiple times as there are some pages early on that have creases in the corners. By me who knows.

Just Listen follows Annabel a high school student who is the youngest of three daughters who are all models. Annabel's sisters moved to New York, where the oldest sister decides she doesn't want to be a model anymore and takes classes at college and the middle sister becomes seriously ill.

It also explores the friendship and beaksown of the friendship between Annabel and Sophie from how they met to Sophie not talking to Annabel. Also in the mix is Annabels childhood friend Clarke.

Also it tells the backstory of how Annabel and her sisters get into modelling.

At first I found the book super hard to get into. There were so much going on. From the end of the friendships, modelling, the middle sisters weight loss, it was all over the place and was dipping in and out of each story. I loved the dipping in and out of another book but that worked well

Even though the story goes in and out I like how it covers hard topics such as an eating disorder, how one person getting an opportunity in something has a knock on effect and how people can be influenced by others.

 I couldn't finish it. It's that bad that it's just gonna sit there on my self until I think it's the right time to read it.  I don't know if it's a totally bad book it could get better but I don't want to give it that opportunity.

I'm doing a review on it now because I can't actually see myself finishing it in a long time. Even though I don't like to leave a book unread when I started reading it, (I have done that a lot with other books but have always finished the book at some point) I really didn't like Just Listen enough to justify reading it again.

The Ice Cream Girls Q&A Part Two

Welcome

Back to my blog. Today's post is part two of the Ice Cream Girls Q&A.

I loved the book, you can find my review HERE, and Part One of the Q&A HERE

Question 6: Do you think Evan was right to react the way he did after finding out about Serena's past?

Yes. Totally yes. You don't know how someone will react to finding out the truth about the person they love. But when it comes from someone else and not the person you love then it hurts a million timese more. He felt hurt that Serena couldn't tell him herself.

It must be hard when the person who told you then shows the article about your wife to the whole doctors office you work at. It was hard for him to take in. How do you deal with something like that.




Question 7: How do the choices Serena made as a teenager influence the life's of her sisters and parents. Do you think she was right to feel guilty


I think she has a right to feel guilty. Even though she was found not guilty in court it still has an effect on her. The choices she made still have an effect on her sisters. They are brought back to that time just by a simple comment made. It has effected everyone life's.
I also think deep down it's effected them a lot. I think her sisters are scared that something like that could have happened to them and even there children.


Its effected them because they don't know how to fell about what happened. Even 20 years after the fact. They feel betrayed by Serena.


Question 8: Why do you think Poppy's parents did the things they did

I think it's because they wanted what was best for Poppy before she was sent to jail.

Even though Poppy's dad  don't talk to her I think deep down they still love her otherwise he wouldn't have  kept going to the beach hut

They seemed to be feeling guilty in how they raised Poppy. They seem very much as people who care about what other people think of them and how they are looked upon by those people

I think keeping her brother and sister away from poppy when she was fist sent to prison was a good idea, but as they grew up I think her parents influenced them way to much. It a catch 20/20. How much do they actually remember of that time being so young. Was it really their choice to stay away or have no contact as they grew older. But why couldn't they choose when they were older and how much were they influenced by their parents.


Question 9: What are the differences between how Poppy's  family and Serena's family reacted to their being arrested and tried for Marcus murder

Poppy's parents haven't  taken it very well. They were worried about how other people saw them after what Poppy had done. It became hard for them to stay where they had been living because of what happened, and because of it they were guarded when it came to their other children.

Serena's family seem to have taken it in their stride. They don't tend to talk about it and when it dose come up it's a difficult situation to talk about. Serena's family hadn't taken it as well as she thourght they had.


Lauren
xoxo

Top 5 Wednesday || Polarizing Books || Wednesday 18th 2017

Welcome
back to my blog. This weeks T5W is on Polarizing Books. I didn't understand what was meant by Polarizing books, and the Goodreads group just confused me even more. So after seeing some T5W YouTube videos I understood it a bit better. It's basically books that people either love or hate without any inbetween.

- Fan Girl. Rainbow Rowell
A lot of people love the book. For me it was so disappointing. I think it's because a fan girl in the sense Cath is was around when I was younger but it never really had a name and isn't as big as it is now.

- To All The Boys I've Loved Before
Again another book that was hugely popular that everyone raved about and that I found disappointing. I did a whole review on it, about how disappointing the  book was for me.

- Twilight saga
I think Twilight is the biggest series that people either love or hate, if you have read any of my reviews on the series, you know that I am on the side that hates the books. While there is parts that are good, they are few and far between. When the first book got popular in late 2008 early 2009 (yes I remember when it was first popular because I was working at a coffee shop and my mum got me the third and fourth book online) that I enjoyed the first book but now that I have read and re read them I really didn't like it.

- Just One Year. Gayle Forman
I have a DNR book review coming up for this book, I was on Goodreads looking at the reviews and there are very little three stars. It's either people love the book or they don't. And the fact that I have done a DNR review of the book you can say I didn't like the book

- Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Like I said in my review on the book I was set to be disappointed by it but I really liked it. Everyone seemed to be disappointed by the story leine and that it was set out in a script story line rather then a book but I like how the book was set out.

Lauren

xoxo

Breaking Dawn || Did Not Finish || Book Review

Welcome 

to the last installment of my review of the twilight saga books. This one as the title says is on Breaking Dawn.

There was so much hype years and years ago about the books and I got into the hype and got all the books and it took me years yo actually read them.

In Breaking Dawn Bella and Edward get married while Bella is still a human and while on honeymoon she becomes pregnant with Rennesmé. Soon after their daughter is born Bella becomes a vampire. Her daughter has some kind of special powers. During her first hunt Bella controls herself and doesn't go and bite a human. Jacob imprints on Bella's daughter. Other vampires come and see Bella and Edward's daughter then there is a massive fight which is actually only a figure of Alice's imagination. Most of the warewolfs are getting used to being around the vampires.


What can I say about the breaking dawn other then good god I couldn't wait for it to be over.

The Jacob part of the book was god damn awful that I skimmed over it. It was so bad.

The Bella parts of the book were boarder line cruel to read.

It wasn't all bad. I did enjoy some parts. Like the first few chapters up to Jacobs part of the book. How the book is over 700 pages I don't know.

At times I felt so disconnected from the characters. It felt that they were there just to be there and that the book shouldn't have even been written.

I was about 500 pages in before hitting the brick wall that I am so familiar with while reading the twilight books  so much so that I have picked up another book to read.

Breaking dawn part one is on Netflix and I have tried to watch but again just like the book I have hit a brick wall watching it.

My over all thourght of the whole series is I wish I hadn't bothered. It isn't the best book series out there and has put me in a slump about reading books where vampires are the main kind of characters. (The Coldest girl in Coldtown).

I think that the werewolf in the book are not what I see werewolf's to actually be. I think the Harry Potter books portray them better.

I think that the overall plot of two people falling in love with each other is weak.  For the most lady the plot lines for the others is bland and I was so over joyed that I finished the series.

Honestly this book I was skipping over pages so I haven't actually read the whole book as a complete but I don't think I could. So for now I am saying that I have read it. I am marking it as read though

Lauren
xoxo

Most Intimidating Books

Welcome

Back to my blog. Today is on books that I have found intimidating. I chose books that are either a series, or stand alone books.

The Lincoln Lawyer

- I borrowed the book off my dad forever ago. And never got around to reading it. So as a joke I wrapped it up and gave it back to my dad as a Christmas present because I knew I wouldn't read it

The Host || Stephanie Meyer

- I got the book forever ago. So long ago in fact my mum had picked it up at Costco for me.  I remember her getting it and saying that it's by the same author as twilight.

Pretty Little Liars

- For the shear fact of how many books there are in the whole series. I have two of the series.

The Year I Turned 16

- I'm bot sure if it's the size of the book or the fact the font is really weird but I've been put of reading it.

The Last Song || Nicholas Sparks

- I like Nicholas Sparks books, but I am not a massive fan of Miley Cyrus. And I know I shouldn't judge a book by it cover, or by the movie, but I can't help it with this book

Lauren

xoxo

The Ice Cream Girls Q&A Part One

Welcome
To my blog. Today's post is the first of three parts.

At the end of The Ice Cream Girls by Dorothy Koomson there were some questions. And I decided to answer them.

Question 1: Who was your favorite character?
Poppy. She was so likeable.  She just wanted the truth to come out.  She lost so much of her life because of Marcus


Question 2: Who was your least favorite character
- Poppy's parents
I didn't like Poppy's parents. They cared to much about what other people thought of them, then the actual truth. They felt betrayed by Poppy.

- Serena's siblings
Serena seemed close to her siblings but they couldn't fully trust her.

- Serena
I felt that Serena was hurt by what her siblings thought about her that she didn't see the bigger picture for a while that by them not telling her what they actually were really thinking she couldn't see that she was doing the same to Evan

I didn't put Marcus in as a character I don't like, because that's the whole appeal of him I think. He is one of those people your not going to like

Question 3: Why do you think Serena stayed with Marcus after he hit her the first time?

Because she loves him, and she thinks that he loves her and when she feels threatened by someone new coming into the picture she can't break away so let's him hit her because she thinks it's right.  She was head over heels in love with him. She is very naive 

Question 4: Why do you think poppy stayed with Marcus when he was so abusive to her 

Just like Serena, Poppy is in love with him, she hasn't ever had a relationship with another boy before Marcus so she thinks it's normal what he is doing to her, and rather then seeing what he is doing as wrong, she blames herself, she feels as if what Marcus is saying to her is the truth. 

After poppy told Alain about the story of the ice cream I felt so bad for her. But Marcus was so controlling that she thought it was right what he had said

Question 5: Why do you think Serena chose to keep her past a secret form Evan? Do you think she did the right thing? 

I don't think she did the right thing by not telling him. Because there is always a chance that someone else would. While it might be hard to tell someone what you were involved in when you were younger, after a while you get used to someone especially after you married and had children with them. It's effecting her. And I think she had lied to him for so long that she is finding it hard to tell him. I think she didn't want to hurt him, I don't think it was the right thing to keep from him but I understand why she did 




Lauren
xoxo