Review - Half Lost by Sally Green

First off, I know, It's been a while. BUT I'M HERE NOW AND THAT'S ALL THAT MATTERS.

Okay. cool.

So, my second book of my August tbr was Half Lost by Sally Green.

This book is the third and final book in the Half Bad series. And it was an exciting conclusion to such a great series. So the series is about a witch called Nathan who is half white and half black. This trilogy is his journey to getting his three gifts and how he uses them.

 I loved the balance of action and romance throughout and how they intertwined at the end. I also liked how both halfs of his being (the black and white) are used to both conflict his thoughts and help his judgement.

Overall, this book was great, I loved how his gifts worked with the ending and how his thoughts had changed throughtout and how they differ from start to finish.

I'd recommend this book for fans of The Hunger Games as they have similar themes and worlds. I give this book 4 stars!

**** NOW IT'S TIME FOR THE SPOILER SECTION, PROCEED WITH CAUTION****

Okay, I liked the story in this with its unexpected twists

BIGGEST TWIST EVER IS THE CHIILD, DROP THAT BOMBSHELL WHEN I'M ABOUT TO FINISH THE BOOK.

Carrie Hope Fletcher signing

On Monday 8th August Ren and I went to Carrie Fletcher's book signing for On The Other Side at Cardiff Waterstones.

It's fair to say that, for me, the day started off poorly. I got up at what I thought was the correct time to get up. Turns out, I thought the train was at 10:25.... It was at 9:25.... And I only realised this when Ren had texted me saying that she was on the platform. So it was lucky I had a neighbour who was on hand to take me to the station.

When we got to Cardiff, we went straight to Waterstones to be met by a small queue already. So, we got our wristbands (that we weren't allowed to keep in the end) and went to go and get some food. We also had this really good idea to get Carrie some orange sweets (which if you've read OTOS you'd know why that's significant) however, Sainsburys let us down and didn't have any (shame on you Sainsbury's).

About, 10 minutes before the signing started we had a security guard come round and tell us what she would sign and what she wouldn't. She was really lovely and was willing to sign anything that she had written (I had 3 books so that was good news).

When I met Carrie, she was the loveliest person. I've met her once before and I swear she gets kinder everytime I meet her. I told her about my theatrical ambitions and how they originated with me watching her vlogs and realising that theatre was an actual career. And her reply was 'you don't need to thank me, you've got yourself there' and that was the nicest thing ever.

I couldn't have asked for a better experience. The booksellers at Cardiff Waterstones we so lovely and so welcoming. Carrie is one of the nicest people I could ever meet so nice to meet her again despite forgetting to give her my letter.

Review - On the Other Side - Carrie Fletcher

Review  time!

So the first book of my August TBR was On the Other Side by Carrie Fletcher which I managed to finish in three days because I can honestly say, I absolutely loved this book! Carrie is one of my idols in life and I love her writing style. The magical  realism that she used throughout was believable (although that sounds weird) and it was so enjoyable. 

The book is about a Woman called Evie Snow who comes a rich family. She has passed away and is stuck in 'Heavens waiting room' and has to get rid of her secrets in order to be light enough to pass through to heaven. The book is her reliving her life and telling members of her family her secrets. 

This book also features LGBT+ characters and I love that. It was also written so that it wasn't all about their sexuality, it was just an extension of who they were.

I loved the characters and how they developed throughout. I got a strong sense of Carrie and her personality through Evie Snow.  I loved that her family members reacted to the secrets differently and how they coped was them was also very believable.

Overall I give, this book 5 stars. I'm so in love with the story line, the characters and their relationships. Amazing. (If you follow me on instagram you would've seen my initial reaction to the ending). You would love it if you're a fan of Cecelia Ahern or Rainbow Rowell.

I'm also off to her singing tomorrow, so if you're in Cardiff come and see me and Ren!

*** SPOILER SECTION ***

So it's going to sound strange but I liked the coldness that Evie's mum had, it showed me  why she had to prove herself.

Evie's character was amazing. I love her warmth as a character and her open mindedness to every situation. I love that she's such a considerable person. 

To be honest, I don't know which pairing I loved the most because they were amazing in all ways. Vincent and Evie was amazing because of what he did for her like the dinner date, sitting with her on the balcony and understanding her situation so well. But then again, her and Jim are such an amazing pair and they work well together because they kinda have to? That's what make them work so well. 

Sonny is also a really good character and I loved the drunken gig, it was absolutely hilarious.

The best part for me was the ending and how it ended. I love that it was her own heart that made her lighter and when she went in to her heaven, Vincent was there. It just made me eternally happy. 

August TBR

So, I've never done one of these before because I've not wanted to be too ambitious with what I say I'm going to read but.... here goes. 

I've set myself a goal of four books this month because I think that would be good amount. So! The first book I am going to read is On The Other Side by Carrie Fletcher (which I'm already reading but thats irrelevant... It's August I'm allowed). This book is by one of my idols Carrie Fletcher who's book signing I'll be going to on 8th August in Cardiff with my friend Ren! (she has youtube and stuff under renontheroad and she's a cool bookish person too so check her out). This book is about a woman called Evie Snow who has died and is trying to pass on to heaven. However, she is stuck in 'heavens waiting room' and must let go of her secrets before she can pass on. I'm really excited to see how these secrets affect her living relatives and I'm loving the stories from her past at the moment.

Next I'm going to read Half Lost by Sally Green which is the last book in the Half Bad trilogy. So far in the trilogy I've loved how fast paced and action packed they have been and I'm so excited to read the last one! I don't really want to say what happens because obviously this is the conclusion and I don't want to spoil it for anyone but, all I'll say is that I'm looking forward to how Nathan is going to develop with the events of the last book.

Then, I plan on reading The Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman. This is the first in the 'His Dark Materials' trilogy and is the book that 'The Golden Compass' is based on. I've also recently found out that this trilogy has also been turned into a play (which has been ordered and is on it's way to me). So Lyra lives in a world where a person's soul is carried in an animal (a literal spirit animal) which follows them around everywhere. Little does she know that she is a child of a prophecy and this takes her on some amazing adventures. I got given the trilogy for Christmas ages ago so I have no idea why I haven't read them yet!

And finally, my book club book of the month! This month it's Casual Vacancy by J.K Rowling. We thought it would be fitting as most of us haven't read it and considering all of the J.K stuff going on at the moment we though it suited the month (and before you ask no, I haven't got cursed child yet (I'm a shameful human being I know)). In this book, Barry Fairbrother has died in a town that is not all as it seems. There's a lot of political war in the town as well as an upcoming election. This is all I know about this book but I like that I don't know much because that leaves so much more to find out! 

If you've read any of these books do let me know what you thought of them and I'll be posting reviews of each one as well as how the Carrie Fletcher signing goes!

Review - Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Book club review!

So, a bunch of my blogger freinds and I have started a book club and this was our book of the month.

This book is about a man called Will who had been in an accident which had caused him to be quadraplegic and wheelchair bound. Will's quadraplegia is C5/6 which meant he had use of his head and his hands but couldn't use the rest of his body. He then met a woman called Louisa has lost her job and, in turn, became his carer.

Overall, I loved this book. The character development was realistic, specifically Will's development as a character. I'm glad that he developed as opposed to other books where the other characters would develop around him. I also liked that the book raised issues around the subject of disability such as alienation and how people normally react to people within these circumstances.

The ending didn't dissapoint either. I liked the way that it left things but I'm not sure how it would lead into the sequal - I guess that I'll just have to find out!

It is a lovely contemporary book that will send you on a rollercoaster of emotions. I'd reccomend if you're a fan of Rainbow Rowell and Cecelia Ahern and I give this book a 4.5 stars! It was a fab book and had so many surprising turns that I can't wait to read the sequal.




**SPOILER SECTION Y'ALL**

I like that Will started off arrogant. I felt like he needed to start like that in order to develop and I liked his witty personality. Also, in the end, I liked that he stayed with the decision. It avoided all the cliche's that could've happened in the book and I'm glad it didn't turn into 'I'm in love with you, I wont do it' because that wouldn't have been realistic.

Louisa was also a fab protagonist who was relatable. That sounds like a strange thing to say as I've never been put in her situation but, she dealt with all of  the hurdles in a way that I would. I like that she stayed true to her thoughts and feelings throughout, that she didnt let Patrick and his 'I'm going to run and not care about you' attitude influence her in any way.

Patrick was a character that I knew I would hate from the moment I met him. He started with 'oh he's a quadraplegic, don't have to worry about him' to 'why are you sleeping there?' to 'You've opened up to me about the situation so I'M GONNA SELL THE STORY LOLOLOL'. In my opinion - he's a snake in the grass and always was.

Lousia's mum surprised me at the end when she told Louisa that she shouldn't come home if she's assisting Will with his suicide as I'd gotten comfortable with her slightly unnerved personality.

Reading the book I didn't expect that he was going to go to dignitas when it was first mentioned but I feel like it needed to have that in the book to give it some substance.

Review - Missing Dad by J Ryan

I'm back with another review! 

Missing Dad by J Ryan is a spy, teen book about a boy called Joe who has a had trouble with the police in the past and a new job leads him closer to his dad. 

Overall the writing was good and got better throughout. There was a good amount of action in the book, not too much that I couldn't keep up (as many other spy novels have the tendency to do this). The storyline was easy to follow and, despite not being the biggest fan of the genre, I did enjoy it. 

This was a great book to read, especially because I know the author herself and the amount of hard work she had put into it. 

If your a fan of spy books or James Bond in any way I'd recommend it. I give this book 3.5 stars, I did enjoy the book I just didn't feel like I suited the target audience as it is quite a young YA book.   

Because this book is quite small, I didn't want to do a spoiler section, even though it is quite action packed. However, my favourite thing about the book is that a couple of chapters before the end, you think it's coming to a natural end but then more action happens and I like that J Ryan has done that. 

I'm really excited to see how Joe develops in the next book if he finds his dad and what effect that would have on him. 

Review - Delirium by Lauren Oliver

I'm alive! Thank you all for being so patient with me during exam season, I really appreciate it. But I'm back now with another review.

Delirium, is about Portland in America. Portland had been bordered off from the rest of America and everyone in Portland is 'cured' from Deliria Amour Nervosa - more commonly known as 'love'. In this fantastic world that Lauren Oliver has created, Love is a disease, something to be feared, something to be caught.

This story is not predictable at all. When you hear the storyline you automatically think 'oh she's going to find love, and then they're going to run away together' but I assure you, things aren't all as they would seem. For me, that is what made this an amazing story.

It was just what I needed, it was contemporary yet dystopian and it was an ideal mix of the two. The description of the town and the people was so beautifully written, it allowed me to picture it so vividly in my head.

I would really reccomend this to anyone looking for a new series to get into, or if you want a romance book that not 'full on romance'.

Overall, I give this book 5 stars, I absolutley loved it.

***SPOILERS***

I am in love with Alex and Lena, honestly.

When Hana started going to the parties and listening to the banned music I thought that she would be the one to turn rogue and run off to the wilds.

The first twist, with finding out Alex wasn't cured. Oh. My. God.  That's the moment when I realised that things weren't what they seemed. Then I realised that slowly, Lena was falling in love.

I could also just feel the love that Lena's mum had for her.

The raid was also shocking for two reasons. The kiss and the dog bite. When the dog had bitten her I was so certain that she ws going to the Crypts and stying there, but the way Alex saved her made me want to just have them together, forever.

Also, at the end, when Alex and Lena discovered the cell that Lena's mum had been in (BECAUSE SHE WAS ALIVE THE WHOLE TIME) that was great. It gave me hope that she's out there and that Lena would find her.

I'm so excited to read the next one

Review - The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan and Maureen Johnson

Hello! Currently posting from within a pile of revision but all is well (I'm lying, someone save me).

Anyhow, I've just finished The Bane Chronicles and I just want to tell you all about how amazing and wonderful it is (you'd expect it to be because well 1) It's written by Cassandra Clare 2) IT's MAGNUS BANE)

So  basically, this book is all stories about Magnus. Stories from before The Infernal Devices, during and then during The Mortal Instruments. I has all the characters that we love the most in it and genuinely made me laugh (especially the last chapter).

If you are thinking of reading this I would advise reading both TID and TMI before you do as it could spoil some things for you.

It is in both physical copy and ebook, but the ebooks are separate stories whereas the physical book has the stories all together. All three writers did an amazing job on this, the writing was beautiful.

I would give this book 5 stars! It's so so cute and ideal for any 'book hangovers' as it's a standalone and quite lighthearted. (It also got me out of a slight slump).

*** SPOILER SECTION***

So the first chapter is about Peru and what happened (we never really find out) but the best moment for me is when we find out that Magnus was a pirate because that's what Max wants to be and it just made me want to burst into tears.

The stories about the Hotel Dumort was really interesting for me because I was really intrigued by Magnus' relationship with Camille and how the Hotel Dumort came to be.

MY FAVOURITE PART HAD TO BE ALL OF THE MALEC. The awkward date, the present buying, the voicemails. I just loved it. And when Magnus rings Catarina and asks her what to get Alec and she just replies 'Magnus I have lives to save' and hangs up . I loved how we see Magnus and Catarinas friendship too because that not really in any details in the other series.

Overall I loved this book and i would really recommend it if you're a Magnus lover, like myself.

Exam season

Just a short update for you all! 

I am currently preparing for my exams so haven't been reading as often as I'd like to and as a result, there may not be any reviews (or few reviews) for a while. I'm so sorry but unfortunately exams have to come first! I will still be posting photos on my Instagram though which is theperksofalisha. 

To all those with exams, I wish you so much luck and I'm sure that you'll all do great! 'May the odds be ever in your favour'. 

Cassandra Clare Signing

So, today I went to the Birmingham Waterstones signing for the one, the only.... CASSANDRA CLARE!!

It was absolutley amazing and I felt a desperate need to do a post about the events of the day. So if you're expecting a book review, I'm afraid that this isn't going to be one, sorry!

So I started the day by having my friend Hollie arrive at my house at 8 so that we could get the bus to Birmingham and get there reasonably early (because we knew that it would be popular I mean... It's Cassie).

We then got there at around 11:30 and went to see that there was a queue that had alrady started (that wasn't actually allowed until 3pm but oh well) so we joined the queue and met some new friends, one of whom had written malec fanfic during the wait. (And I met Ren who is just as obsessed with Malec and their offspring as I am and it makes me so, so happy, if you want to look her up, her youtube is renontheroad).

BUT YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THAT, YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT CASSANDRA CLARE DON'T YOU?!

She was so lovely. She had about 800 people queued around all of the way to Moor Street station and wanted to get through them all and that was so nice of her to think about all 800 of us. They also gave us water in the line which was so consderate, thank you Waterstones. When we got there, we were told that she was signing Lady Midnight and then stamping two others, which we were all perfectly fine with because after all, it's cassie and she's queen. So I brought City of Bones and The Bane Chronicles.

When I met her, I told her about my love for her books and how they got me into reading and she said 'ahh I'm so happy that you've read them, thank you for reading them' and it's just made me so happy. Then she was like 'also I love your runes' because my friends and I had all dressed as shadowhunters and had runes everywhere. On the way out we then got an exclusive poster just for the tour atendees and it's so beautiful!

If you get the chance to go to one of  her signings I would really recommend it and for anyone that is going to one...... GET. THERE. EARLY.

Review - Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

Oh. My. God. 

What a book. I'm actually speechless... That ending... Wow...

Anyway, this book has just... I just can't describe how happy it has made me. There are more stories from the shadow world and I'm just so happy that Cassie has continued writing in this brilliant world that's she's created. 

The amount of twists in this book was just, wow. I expected none of what happened, especially towards the end! 

One of the best things about this book is that it featured the TMI characters and you get to see how they've progressed in life and their relationship developments and we get to also see a new family that has been mentioned before but not loads - the Blackthorns. In this world we haven't yet this family but in this book were introduced to so many of them and they all have such wonderful personalities. 

I love the depth of the parabatai bond that Julian and Emma have and it was explained in such detail that I have a better understanding of the shadow world from it. 

This might be slightly biased, based on the fact that I love Cassandra Clare and her books (because they're so fab) and even have a whole shelf of them but this book is worth the Five stars that I want to give it. If you haven't read any of Cassie's books then WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?! UNDER A ROCK?! READ THEM NOW! 

In all seriousness, if you love dystopian reads such as The hunger games, Divergent, etc, then you are bound to love this and The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices and literally anything by Cassandra Clare (because she's a genius) 

*** NOW ONTO THE SPOILER SECTION SO DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ BECAUSE YOU WILL WANT TO FIND HIS ALL OUT FOR YOURSELF***

MARK BLACKTHORN YOU CHEEKY BUGGER. The ending 'why lie' I was just like... WAIT WHAT! Does that mean he has feelings for her? Is he getting back at Christina? Is he just doing it to save his brother? WHO KNOWS?! Also on the subject of Mark, I like the whole 'surprise, I kinda have a boyfriend' twist that happened. I love the memories that those two had shared and how, Kieran was all that he had. 

JEM AND TESSA HI. Thank you for putting us out of our misery as to why parabatai can't love each other, it was killing me. 

Malcom, why? Love drives you to do crazy things but this guy, going to extreme lengths and although everyone was like 'it's cool, were safe now'at the end of the book.  HOW WRONG YOU WERE. SURPRISE: EPILOGUE

Malec also have a child! A little blue warlock child named Max, Max! That actually made me smile that they actually called him Max. Jace and Clary are also still together and quite close with Emma, surprisingly. And then throughout I was like 'But what about Simon and Izzy' because we learn about Simon and Clary being parabatai but nothing else about Simon really. Then, engagement party! Simon and Izzy! GAH!  

Kit! Christopher Herondale, Herondales everywhere honestly (I knew he was too sassy to function, hence the Herondale blood) that was the best twist because he had just lost his dad, but gained a whole new family and found out that he's a shadowhunter! I can't wait to see how he progresses in the next book. 

I could honestly write pages and pages about this book because, it was just so brilliant and Cassie (if you actually read this) thank you so much. 

Reading update

Hello!

Sorry I've been a bit quiet, that's what loads of reading and work does to you. I have changed my current read and thought that I should let you guys know what's going on. 

I've recently received my copy of LADY MIDNIGHT and I've mentioned that I was getting it in previous posts so... You'll already know that I am pretty excited. 

Due to the fact that I'm meeting Cassandra Clare (I know I'm literally bouncing off of the walls) in about 2 weeks, I wanted to read it before hand and I'm doing a read along with my friend Hollie. 

Meaning, I have put The Curious Incident of The Dog in the Night Time on pause for a bit. I'm so sorry to all that wanted that review so that they can read it but it will be up soon after I've finished Lady Midnight. 

If you have Instagram I now have an account for my blog so that you don't need to subscribe by email if you don't want to, as I tell you when I post on there too! It's theperksofalisha. 

I hope you've all had a nice Easter and if you're meeting Cassandra Clare at any point let me know! I'd love to talk about it. 

 

Review - If I Stay by Gayle Forman

So this book... wow. It took me a a while to read because I've literally had no time lately and that's why I haven't posted in a while so, sorry about that. 

 The storyline of this book (if you didn't already know) is about a girl (Mia) who gets into a car crash and as a results goes into a coma. But, she is able to see things going on around her. I loved that you could still see her perspective on things even though she's not there. 

The writing was so great and it felt like I was actually Mia and living (well, not living exactly but...)  her life. 

The flashback sections were amazing and I loved how you got to see her life before the accident so that it explained what happened after and what people had said to her whilst she was in the coma.

The only downside to this book is that not much happened. there weren't any massive events apart from the crash so if  you're looking for something action packed, this isn't for you. If you're only just starting reading again or have a book hangover, this is perfect as it's not too long either. 

It was so cute and yes, I will admit, I did cry at one part. I give this book 3.5 stars.

*** SPOILER SECTION **

Okay so Kim is the sweetest person in this book and I feel like I could relate to her the most with her rambling. And I also just want her as a friend.

Adam kinda annoyed me with the whole 'don't go to Julliard' vibe that he was giving off and I just wanted her to wake up and be like 'I'm going', get up off of that bed and go straight there. But of course that didn't happen....

I did like the fact that the her relatives made her feel at ease and thought it was quite realistic in that sense (not that I know what a coma's like). But I am glad that she chose to stay, although it was quite a predictable ending. 

Overall a really cute and interesting read