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2/08/2015

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins - REVIEW

Hey guys!

I'm back again with a new review. This time I'm going to discuss Anna and the French Kiss, by the lovely Stephanie Perkins, which is a YA contemporary published in 2011. I hesitated for a long time to buy it but I'm so glad I finally did 'cause it turned out to be one of my favourite contemporaries. So let's get started!

http://www.stephanieperkins.com/images/AnnaFrenchKissSmall.jpg

Short summary:

Anna is sent to a boarding school in Paris by her father for her senior year. And she's not excited at all because she loves living in Atlanta. But when she arrives in Paris it doesn't seem that bad after all. She meets new people and already finds a new friend on her first night. And then she comes across the handsome Étienne St. Clair. In spite of him being in a serious relationship Anna can't help but fall for him. Will she get her French Kiss? [More Informaton]

Ok, so where do I start? BECAUSE THERE IS SO MUCH I WANNA TALK ABOUT! First of all a round of applause for Stephanie Perkins' writing style! It's very simple and funny and I fell in love with it immediately. Second of all I gotta say that this story is so freaking cute like I can't even handle it. I haven't read such a heart-warming and funny novel in a while and picking up this book was the best decision ever!
I always say that what makes a good story are the characters. If the characters aren't relatable the story isn't as good as it could be. Perkins created the loveliest and most delightful characters you could imagine. 
We have Anna who is this 17 year old girl who isn't necessarily shy but she's not very confident either. At first she's scared because she has no idea what to expect and she even refuses go outside by herself. But as the story goes on she grows more confident.
Then we have St. Clair. Besides the fact that he is described devastatingly handsome, he has a british accent. I repeat: ST.CLAIR HAS A BRITISH ACCENT! And just when you think it can't get any better you can't stop yourself from falling in love with his personality. He's super polite to everyone and very caring. Especially when it comes to Anna. Throughout the story both develop a very close friendship. Anna obviously falls for him but then there's St.Clair's girlfriend Ellie. In addition to that Anna is constantly torn between St.Clair and her almost-boyfriend Toph who lives in Atlanta. 
Another character that plays a big role in Anna and St.Clair's confusing friendship/relationship is Meredith. She is the first person to befriend Anna in Paris. It turns out that Mer also has a thing for St.Clair which makes everything even worse. As hard as Anna tries to shake off her feelings for him she ends up accepting the fact that she loves him.
Lastly we have Josh and Rashmi who're a couple you think will never break up. But their relationship does involve problems and in the end they end up going seperate ways. 
Meredith, Josh and Rashmi turn out be wonderful friends to Anna. In spite of all the trouble she causes unintentionally they stick to her just as friends are supposed to do. 
After all St.Clair is Anna's best friend. He's there for there when she needs him and she's also there for him when he needs her. He goes through a hard time because his mother suffers from cancer and his dad won't let him see her. At the end of the day Anna and St.Clair help each other out and prove true friendship. Eventually they confess their love for each other and St.Clair breaks up with Ellie.

Anna and the French Kiss isn't just another love story. I mean IT IS a love story and some parts may be predictable but a very important topic in this book is friendship and family. It's about wanting to please everyone but to learn that it's not possible. In life you will dissapoint your loved ones and your loved ones will dissapoint but you will learn to accept that and to forgive. And most importantly you will learn that home doesn't always have to be a place but a person.

I give this novel 5/5 stars. It was very easy to read and the story made me extremely happy. I'm looking forward to reading Lola And The Boy Next Door and Isla And The Happily Ever After very soon! I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good contemporary.

I hope you guys enjoyed my review! - V

1/25/2015

Throne Of Glass by Sarah J. Maas - REVIEW

Hey guys,      

I started the Throne Of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas, which is a YA fantasy series, two weeks ago (I know I'm late) and I'm going to review the first book of the series for you!
First of all I have to say that I have ONLY heard great things about it and I actually planned on starting the series last year but I never got around to buying it so I was super pumped when I finally ordered it. And second of all it usually takes me about two to three days to finish a book like this but since the holidays ended I had like no time to read and I ended up finishing it a week later. So here we go!

http://sarahjmaas.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Full-TOG.jpg 

Short Summary:

After having spent a year in death camp,18-year-old Celaena Sardothien is sent to the Crown Prince of Adarlan. Prince Dorian promises her freedom if she serves the King as his very own champion. Since Celeana is the most feared assassin of Adarlan Dorian believes that she's able to beat the other contestants who are also fighting for the title of the champion. Chaol Westfall, who is the Captain of the Guard, trains Celaena for the competition. Dorian and Chaol end up showing interest in the assassin but does she feel the same?
As the competition goes on one contestant after another dies... (more info) 

I wanna start of with the characters of the story. Celaena Sardothien is one of the coolest main characters ever. Why? Because she is a freaking assassin and she's only 18! HOW BADASS IS THAT?! I immediately fell in love with her personality because she seems so confident on the surface but in reality there's also another side to her. A sad and thoughtful side. Throughout the story we only get a few details on her past which makes me wanna pick up the second book in the series!
Then we have Prince Dorian and Chaol. I don't even know where to start. I swear, Dorian makes my heart melt. He's so polite and charming and just perfect in every single way. He knows that he shouldn't be getting close to Celaena but he just can't stop himself. He starts visiting her at night and both begin to have feelings for each other. 
Chaol on the other hand is trying to keep Dorian away from the assassin. But at the same time he also starts having feelings for her. Unlike the Prince, Chaol doesn't show Celaena that he likes her. He does the exact opposite which made me keep switching teams but now I can surely say that I'm on Team Dorian!
Thirdly we have Princess Nehemia Ytger, Princess of Eyllwe. Nehemia is a very sweet and lovable character who turns out to be a great friend to Celaena. But as the plot continues, the assassin starts unwillingly questioning their friendship. Is Nehemia the killer?
Last but not least we have Duke Perrington, Kaltain Rompier and the King Of Adarlan. Without wanting to give away too much I can assure you that you will immediately dislike these three characters. Kaltain would probably have to be the most annyoing character of the whole story. All she wants is to have Prince Dorian for herself and she's one of those people who would stop at nothing to reach their goal. Not very ladylike, Kaltain!

There were quite a few plot twists that surprised me and I would have probably read the book in a few days if I'd had the time. You don't really wanna put the book down because Sarah J. Maas has such a great writing style! What I really loved about the whole book was the fact that the story isn't just told from Celaena's point of view. We also get to know what some of the other characters think of the stuff that's going on. Especially Dorian and Chaol. The switching perspectives make everything even more interesting and overall I enjoyed the way the story was told. 

The second book in this series is called Crown Of Midnight, the third one Heir Of Fire and the title of the fourth book was released only a few days ago! It will be called Queen Of Shadows. I haven't picked up the second book yet but I will definitely pick it up soon! 

Throne of Glass is well written, super interesting and definitely a page turner. I really enjoyed reading it and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series! I recommend this book to fantasy lovers and people who are new to this genre. I give it 4 out of 5 stars!

I hope you liked my review and let me know in the comments what you think of Throne Of Glass and what book you want me to review next! :) - V

1/10/2015

FAVORITE BOOKS OF 2014

Hey guys, 
I might be a little late but since a new year started I also wanted to share with you the books I most enjoyed these past 12 months! 
I've joined this whole booktube thing in 2014.. so these books might not be new to you but that doesn't make them less amazing! :) So let's get started! 

And sorry for the weird background.. Blogger and its formatting seems to hate me :( 

1.) LUX - Jennifer L. Armentrout 




There’s an alien next door. And with his looming height and eerie green eyes, he’s hot…until he opens his mouth. He’s infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, he marks me. Turns out he has a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal his abilities and the only way I’m getting out of this alive is by sticking close to him until my alien mojo fades. If I don’t kill him first, that is.

This is only the jacket blurb of the first book called "Obsidian" 'cause I don't wanna give away too much. The series used to have 5 individual books. But the new edition contains only three because the first two books (Obsidian & Onyx) are combined in one just as the third and fourth (Opal & Origin). Only the fifth and final is a stand alone (Opposition).
I personally ADORE these books! They are super funny and Katy Swartz, the main character, is so relatable. The whole alien thing being set in this contemporary world is such a great concept. And Deamon..  I don't even know what to say. He's perfection. 
I marathoned the series and couldn't put it down. I recommend this to everyone who loves a good laugh, hot guys and some crazy alien action.




2.) The Infinite Sea - Rick Yancey



Surviving the first four waves was nearly impossible. Now Cassie Sullivan finds herself in a new world, a world in which the fundamental trust that binds us together is gone. As the 5th Wave rolls across the landscape, Cassie, Ben, and Ringer are forced to confront the Others’ ultimate goal: the extermination of the human race.
Cassie and her friends haven’t seen the depths to which the Others will sink, nor have the Others seen the heights to which humanity will rise, in the ultimate battle between life and death, hope and despair, love and hate.

This is a sequel to The 5th Wave and is definitely not the final one! I feel like a lot of people liked the first book way better but I thought the second was even cooler. The first one was more action packed and a lot happened but I believe The Infinite Sea was more intense. Some also say the various perspective thingy is confusing BUT I LOVED IT. It makes the book kinda tricky because new point of views are added. But for me it was fun to find out who was talking and very interesting. The whole book was frickin paranormal and mind blowing. One minute you think someone died and just as you start sobbing you find out it isn't even true!  
I reread The 5th Wave before I got to the new book and it was totally worth it. I wouldn't have recognized any of the characters actually.. so it's the best to marathon the series. 
I love Yancey's writing style and I'm super excited for the movie adaption with the beautiful Chloë Grace Moretz and the mysterious Alex Roe! It's going to be epic! 



3.) Slammed - Colleen Hoover 




Following the unexpected death of her father, 18-year-old Layken is forced to be the rock for both her mother and younger brother. Outwardly, she appears resilient and tenacious, but inwardly, she's losing hope.
Enter Will Cooper: The attractive, 21-year-old new neighbor with an intriguing passion for slam poetry and a unique sense of humor. Within days of their introduction, Will and Layken form an intense emotional connection, leaving Layken with a renewed sense of hope.
Not long after an intense, heart-stopping first date, they are slammed to the core when a shocking revelation forces their new relationship to a sudden halt. Daily interactions become impossibly painful as they struggle to find a balance between the feelings that pull them together, and the secret that keeps them apart.


This book made me cry even more than Allegiant did. And actually that's a pretty good sign. I read the German version of it and usually the translation makes a book less authentic for me. I have no clue why but I personally love the expression of emotions in English more. But this book touched me so badly that I feel like the English version must have an even bigger impact on the reader. So my first Colleen Hoover pick was incredible! The plot twist came so unexpectedly and the poetry throughout the whole book is very beautiful. The mix of family/love struggles and growing up is very relatable for all of us YA readers and the book is also very sexy and funny, just as we know Colleen Hoover. 
Don't be afraid of a bookhangover... there's a sequel called Point Of Retreat :)



4.) City Of Heavenly Fire - Cassandra Clare 




Sebastian Morgenstern is on the move, systematically turning Shadowhunter against Shadowhunter. Bearing the Infernal Cup, he transforms Shadowhunters into creatures out of nightmare, tearing apart families and lovers as the ranks of his Endarkened army swell.
The embattled Shadowhunters withdraw to Idris - but not even the famed demon towers of Alicante can keep Sebastian at bay. And with the Nephilim trapped in Idris, who will guard the world against demons?
When one of the greatest betrayals the Nephilim have ever known is revealed, Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, and Alec must flee - even if their journey takes them deep into the demon realms, where no Shadowhunter has set foot before, and from which no human being has ever returned...


DO I REALLY NEED TO TALK ABOUT THIS?!?!? If you haven't got all 6 books of the The Mortal Instruments series yet.. GET STARTED WITH THE MARATHON!!!! 
These books are simply amazing. Original, funny, sexy, dark, mysterious, action packed.. FLAWLESS. City Of Heavenly Fire is the final book of Cassandra Clare's (aka goddess) series. It rounds everything perfectly up and just makes SENSE. I don't really wanna give away anything so all I can say is that if you enjoy fantasy, romance and action you should be reading right now. Go! GO! 


I hope you enjoyed the spoiler free Part 1 of my Top 2014 booklist. Stay tuned for Part 2! 
Lots of looooove 
- R 


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!! All synopsis are from goodreads.com !! 

1/07/2015

2015 BOOK RELEASES

Hey guys,
this is our very first blog post in which we are going to show you a few books that are coming out this year. We hope you like it and feel free to let us know what your most anticipated books are!

1.) I Was Here - Gayle Forman (Jan 27th)




 After her best friend commits suicide, Cody visits Meg's college to pick up the stuff that belonged to her. There she finds out that there were so many things that Meg never told her about. She meets her old roommates who obviously weren't the type of people Meg would normally hang out with. She also meets Ben McAllister, the boy who broke her best friend's heart, and found a computer file she can't open. But when she does, she starts questioning everything she ever thought she knew about Meg's death. (More information)

I Was Here is a new contemporary novel by Gayle Forman which comes out on the 27th of January. This novel is about finding a way to deal with the loss of a loved one. 
Forman's previous books If I Stay and Where She Went received tons of good reviews which means that her new novel is very likely to be succesful. People who already got to read the book were very positive about it.
I would recommend I Was Here to contemporary lovers and fans of Forman's former books.

2.) Golden Son - Pierce Brown (Jan 6th)

 

Golden Son by Pierce Brown is the second book in the Red Rising Trilogy. The first book tells the story of the miner Darrow who is involved in a mission on Mars. He has to extract precious elements with other Reds so that one day it is possible for humans to live on the surface of the planet. But then Darrow finds out that Mars has been habitable and inhabited for generations by people who call themselves Golds. Those people only use Reds for their advantages and let them work to death. 
(More info: Red Rising)
(More info: Golden Son)


Since I've just ordered Red Rising and I've only heard great things about it I'm also looking forward to reading the sequel which came out yesterday! People have been comparing Red Rising to The Hunger Games which makes me even more excited. I mean come on... who doesn't love The Hunger Games?
I would recommend Golden Son to everyone who loved the first book and also to everyone who enjoys Sci-Fi/Dystopian novels.


3. + 4.) Fairest & Winter - Marissa Meyer (Jan 27th)



Fans of The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer, which includes the books Cinder, Scarlet and Cress, are patiently waiting for the next book in the series called Winter. The release date of Winter got pushed back because of the release of Fairest. This book takes place before Cinder and tells the story of Queen Levana. (More information)

Fairest comes out on the 27th of January. As I already said Winter is going to be the fourth and final book in this series. It's supposed to come out in November. This series has been getting a lot of hype and it will definitely continue to be even more succesful. If you're a fan of The Lunar Chronicles you will HAVE to read Fairest and Winter!
 
5.) The Fill-In Boyfriend - Kasie West (May)





When Gia Montgomery's boyfriend, Bradley, dumps her right before prom, she finds herself a fill-in date just so she can convince her friends that her boyfriend is real. But after prom it's not Bradley she's been thinking about - it's her fill-in boyfriend whose name she doesn't even know. (More information)

The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West is supposed to come out in May. Having read two of her previous novels, The Distance Between Us (which is my one of my favourite contemporaries) and On The Fence, I am really looking forward to her new book! West has a great writing-style and her characters are relatable and have stunning personalities.
So if you want to read a cute and heart-warming contemporary you gotta pick up a Kasie West book!

These were just a few book releases of 2015 and you guys will definitely get a part 2 very soon!

xx V