February Haul and the New York Adventure

Happy World Book Day everyone! Hope you’ve all had a good one.

I’m a few days late with this February wrap up, but I’m really excited to share with you all of the awesome books I’ve acquired this month, and also some of the photos I took in New York (because NEW YORK! ❤️)

A colleague from my office gave up ‘buying books’ for Lent this month… I (very half-heartedly) considered doing the same thing (for about a second), but then… I accidentally went out and bought 10 books… and accumulated 24 free ones… FAIL.

My February was pretty damn fantastic because as you probably gathered, I went to New York this month, aka my first ever trip outside of Europe. NYC was AMAZING and lived up to every single one of the expectations I’ve held since I was a tiny child obsessed with Friends (I know it’s filmed in LA, shuddup) and The Princess Diaries. Is fangirling over a place a thing? No? I’m gonna make it one right now…

I MEAN LOOK AT THE VIEW FROM THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING! I CAN’T EVEN! 😍

Our hotel was in Times Square, and our room was on the 46th floor!

Times Square is the craziest place – I have never seen so much advertising in my entire life! And you can’t walk five feet without somebody trying to sell you comedy club tickets (yeah, we ended up buying them, because ‘Jeffrey’ was hilarious and we’re too British to say ‘no’!)

We did lots of awesome stuff in New York, including Central Park (where we hung out with Penguins at the Zoo… a la Mia Thermopolis after finding out she’s a Princess):

(We also met the vainest Sea Lion – he was legit posing for the paparazzi for 20+ mins.)

Spent too much money in Macy’s (a la Becky Bloomwood in Shopaholic Abroad):

Saw the Statue of Liberty through a seriously grimy window on the Staten Island Ferry (this blurry number is the least smeary):

Hunted down the New York Public Library (because… books, yay!)

Went to Ground Zero and the 9/11 memorial museum, which was an extremely emotional experience:

(Some people were actually taking SELFIES at Ground Zero though… I have no words for how weird and offensive I find that.)

Saw two fabulous Broadway shows – Wicked and Something Rotten:

(where apparently the theatre didn’t trust me with my wine so served it to me in a sippy cup 😋)

Ate a whole lot of these:

Like, seriously, I’ve been back in the UK two weeks now, and I’m pretty sure my body is still 99% pancake (the other 1 percent, FYI, is waffle).

Saw some interesting things including THIS important breakfast meeting:

(Fun fact: one of those Minions photobombed us and conned us out of 5 dollars for his presence in said photo.)

THESE little fellas who appeared in Times Square one day and were gone the next…

(I still don’t know WHY…)

THIS sparkly McDonalds:

(No, really, the letters light up and then SPARKLE like the freaking Eiffel Tower at night! I’M NOT KIDDING!)

And also THIS in the bookshop at JFK airport. But what and why and how is this a thing?! I sincerely hope it’s meant to be ironic:

(That’s not part of my book haul, in case you were worrying…)

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So, you’re probably wondering which books actually ARE in my haul… Here’s what I added to my shelves this fine month:

***To have and to hold***

The Forgetting Time – Sharon Guskin

I picked this up at the airport and finished it on the flight to New York! This is a debut novel about a woman whose son has memories from a past life (and keeps asking for his ‘other mummy’ every night before he goes to sleep), and a doctor with aphasia who is trying to finish his research on reincarnation before he loses the ability to understand language altogether. The idea of reincarnation fascinates me, and I found this story so interesting, plus the cover is amazing (there are little holes for the windows and doors of the house, and the light is actually coming from a sheet of yellow paper behind!)

Our Endless Numbered Days – Claire Fuller

Another one I picked up at the airport, although I haven’t had time to read it yet. This novel – about a girl whose father convinces her the world has ended and they’re the only two people left on earth – has been on my radar for a while, and I’m really excited to read it!

Breakfast at Tiffany’s – Truman Capote

I picked up a gorgeous copy of this book at the New York Public Library gift shop. Because, y’know… I HAD to buy something there ❤️

More Than This – Patrick Ness

I lucked out this month and managed to get my hands on this book for free – my lovely friend Kat was having a bookshelf spring-clean and very generously gave this one away to moi.

Collection of Very Short Introductions (plus the writings of Gandhi)

I wangled another 23 free books this month when my boss moved offices and decided he wanted to get rid of virtually all of his books #theperksofworkinginpublishing! In case you’re wondering, the purple creature reclining next to my new mini desk library is Oscar, my desk octopus (knitted by the same lovely Kat as previously mentioned).

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***Digital love***

How Hard Can Love be? – Holly Bourne

I ADORED this book. Reviewed here.

14 – Peter Clines

I discovered this book whilst browsing Goodreads – I have no idea what it’s going to be like BUT it has been compared to LOST! It’s not set on a creepy, mysterious island or anything, so I’m guessing it’s more of a vibe/atmosphere similarity, but I HAVE to read this, because I need something in my life that makes me feel the way LOST did.

Under the Skin – Michel Faber

My friend recommended this book to me with these words: “It’s weird. And creepy. I think you’d like it.” She knows me well…

Beautiful Burn (The Maddox Brothers Series Book 4) – Jamie McGuire

I’ll readily admit that all of Jamie McGuire’s books are basically just the same story, different brother, but they are my (not so) guilty pleasure, and I’m not sorry!

Until Friday Night – Abbi Glines

Romance is my go-to genre when I’m tired, and although this one was emotional (and made me cry in places) it wasn’t too heavy, and the love story was adorable, so it was the perfect thing for me to read whilst recovering from my jet lag. And now I need all of Abbi Glines’ books in my life, thank you please.

No Longer Safe – A. J. Waines

An awesome psychological thriller with SO MANY TWISTS. My reaction upon finishing this book was literally: WOAH! WAIT! WHAT?!!!!

Review coming soon.

Bright Side – Kim Holden

OMG, this book… THIS BOOK! Just for a second, think about the most emotional reaction you’ve ever had in response to a book (I’m talking the ugliest of ugly-crying!) Multiply that by approximately INFINITY, and you will understand what I went through whilst reading this book. Review (and by review, I mean open weeping in a typed format) coming soon.

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So, that’s a wrap for February! Have you read any of these books? Have you had an emotional reaction to a book which rivals my melodramatic breakdown over Bright Side? And have you ever been conned out of 5 dollars by a Minion? I’d love to hear from you.

 

 

 

January Haul and the Bookish Resolutions

January isn’t over yet, but I’ve decided to wrap up (aka brag about my book haul) a few days early this month. This is partly because I’m going away this weekend, but mainly because I’ve spent far too much money on books this month and I’M NOT ALLOWED TO BUY ANY MORE. Seriously, somebody take my debit card away from me before I render myself destitute!

Before I get on with said bragging, I wanted to talk about New Year’s resolutions. It might seem strange doing this at the end of January, but I always think it’s best to give yourself a trial month to see whether all of the things you’ve promised to do are actually doable. Let’s face it, when I decided I’d give up drinking wine apart from on special occasions this year (and when I say special occasions, I’m not referring to Wednesdays…) I was naturally setting myself up to fail. However, it supposedly takes 21 days to make or break a habit, and seeing as I’ve managed to keep this resolution for a month, I’m confident I can stick with it…. for at least another week 😉

This January I set myself some bookish resolutions, and as I’ve succeeded so far, I’m hoping I’ll keep on succeeding in them for the rest of the year. My bookish resolutions for the next 11 months are:

Read what I want to read, not what I feel I should be reading!

The English Lit graduate in me still occasionally tries to make me feel guilty that all I read is YA, and that I still haven’t read Great Expectations or War and Peace. THIS HAS TO STOP. I solemnly pledge to read whatever the hell I want this year, and stop kidding myself that I’m one day going to tackle another Tolstoy tome. Life is too short to read books I don’t enjoy, and I hereby grant myself permission to DNF novels that aren’t floating my boat in 2016.

Write more reviews

Technically I haven’t been all that successful with this resolution, as I only wrote two reviews in January, but I only wrote one in December! My aim this year is to review as many books as I can, even the ones I end up disliking. I have a tendency not to review books I haven’t been wowed by, worrying I’ll offend, but my blog will be more credible if I can talk about these books. Honesty is important, and it can be conveyed without resorting to rudeness!

Read more slowly!

Last year, I read 100 books, and I only managed to read that number because I began treating reading like a race! This year I want to read books more carefully, savouring the words, because I know I’ll get more out of them that way. The number of books you read in a year doesn’t matter at all – what matters is your enjoyment of them.

There are more bookish resolutions I could make, but I’m crap at sticking to resolutions (a fact which will no doubt be illustrated next Wednesday when I succumb to a nice glass of wine to celebrate the ‘special occasion’), so I think that’s plenty to be getting on with.

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As I mentioned earlier in my post, I spent a ridiculous amount of money on books this month, but I have no regrets! Here are the beauties I added to my bookshelf this month:

***To have and to hold***

I bought one physical book this month, and pre-ordered two. The struggle of waiting for them to be released is REAL.

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken

I haven’t read any of Alexandra Bracken’s other books, but I’ve heard great things about this new release. The premise sounds incredible (it had me at ‘time-travel adventure’) and the hardback version I purchased is so, so pretty!

Stars Above by Marissa Meyer (pre-order)

As you may have seen, I recently finished Winter, and I was so sad when I reached the last page, because I wanted to spend more time with the characters. Luckily, I won’t have to wait long at all to do just that, because this new collection of Lunar Chronicles stories will be turning up on my doorstep in 5 days time! I may have squealed a tiny bit when I hit the pre-order button…

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare (pre-order)

Waterstones tweeted this picture of their limited edition of Lady Midnight (only 1000 copies), and the cover was so gorgeous I couldn’t not pre-order it! Why isn’t it March already?! I need to get my hands on this book!

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***Digital love***

I went a bit crazy with my e-book haul this month, and had a massive Kindle spending spree. I have so many books on my TBR already, but I really want to read all of these shiny new books right now! Some of them I already have.. 😉

Scarlet, Cress, Fairest and Winter by Marissa Meyer

After receiving Cinder for Christmas, I spent virtually the whole of January marathon-reading The Lunar Chronicles. I completely fell in love with these books! You can read my review of Winter here.

Widdershins by Jordan L. Hawk

Gay romance AND historical paranormal mystery, you say?! With this frankly fabulous combination of genres, I simply had to download the book! This one was recommended to me by the lovely Annelise. Hope I enjoy it as much as she did! 😀

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

I’ve been meaning to buy this book for ages, and I’ve finally added it to my digital shelf. I’ve been warned this book will rip my heart out, so I’m stocking up on tissues as we speak.

The Cure for Dreaming by Cat Winters

This book has been on my radar for a while, and I’m so intrigued by the premise, which involves suffragettes and hypnotism!

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

I’ve been suffering from the January blues, so I decided to invest in some light summer reading and escape to somewhere the sun is actually shining (even if only fictionally)!

UPDATE: So, I’ve been reliably informed that this book is not as light and fluffy as the cover suggests, and in fact has a pretty good chance of breaking my heart too! If I still have one left in my chest after reading All the Bright Places, that is…

Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen

I bought this one for exactly the same reason, plus I’ve never read any Sarah Dessen, so it’s high time I checked out her books!

The Wrath and the Dawn by Renée Ahdieh

Everyone seems to have loved this book! This is a retelling of A Thousand and One Nights, and I’m so interested to see how the story will play out.

The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen

An unofficial resolution of mine is to read more fantasy this year! This one sounds exciting, plus Emma Watson will be starring in the film adaption, therefore it must be fabulous!

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

This book has received a lot of hype in the blogging community, and from what I’ve read of the opening chapters, it looks promisingly likely to live up to it! I love the idea of this book being set in four alternate versions of London – I haven’t read much fantasy set in the UK, so I’m very excited to start this one!

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Fifteen books! Oops… I did get a little bit carried away!

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them, and which should I read first? Decisions, decisions… 🙂

December Haul and the Book That Won 2015

December is almost over, therefore so is the season of continuously reclining, whilst shovelling chocolates and/or mince pies and/or Baileys into my face-hole every minute of the waking day. I hope those of you who celebrate Christmas had a lovely one indeed. I’m pretty certain I have tripled in size over the last couple of weeks, but the good news is I’m feeling so rotund and lazy that the only thing I’ve had the slightest bit of energy to do over the holidays (besides said chocolate-shovelling) is read! Yay for reading!

I stayed up late last night finishing The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey, which was my 100^th book of the year. I don’t want to ruin the perfection of this number (I mean seriously, I didn’t even do it on purpose!), but on the other hand I really want to start reading all of the amazing books I received for Christmas. Dilemma!

I can’t believe 2015 is coming to an end, and that I’ve been blogging for 6 whole months now! I’m so happy I joined the book blogging community, as I’ve met some wonderful like-minded people here. I’ve had so much fun rambling and ranting and fangirling about books with you all this year. Can’t wait to do the same thing all over again next year!

As I mentioned above, I’ve officially read 100 books in 2015. I was planning on listing my top books of 2015, but I think I’ve squealed about most of them enough over the past few months, so I’d only be repeating myself. What I will tell you, however, is that I’ve chosen my favourite book of 2015. And the winner is…

Wild by Cheryl Strayed! This book wasn’t published in 2015, but it received a lot of hype this year after the DVD release of the movie adaptation starring Reece Witherspoon. Wild is a memoir written by a young woman who made the impulsive decision to hike 1100 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail in America on her own, with no prior training or experience with hiking whatsoever. Who would have thought I could be so utterly gripped by a book which essentially tells the story of a very long walk?

Cheryl Strayed writes with so much emotional honesty, and I cried several times whilst reading her story, particularly in the opening chapters where she describes hitting rock bottom after the death of her mother and the break-up of her marriage (the grief and pain of which led to her decision to take off on her own across America), but also throughout her journey as she slowly begins to heal. As well as being an emotional read, it was also an entertaining one. There are lots of edge-of-seat moments where Cheryl’s journey leads her into danger (and BEARS!), and there’s also plenty of humour: I was particularly amused by Cheryl’s severe case of overpacking for the trek (she couldn’t even lift her rucksack off the ground!)

I picked this book up when I was in a bad place, because I knew it would give me some much-needed perspective, inspiration and hope. I found Wild very empowering, and although I haven’t set off on any solo hikes across America this year (see previous description of myself as ‘rotund and lazy’), this book gave me the strength to set off on a different kind of journey which has led to me ending 2015 in a very happy place, which I never would have believed possible at the beginning of the year.

Wild had a huge emotional impact on me, as well as being an engagingly-written, real-life adventure, and for those reasons, it is my favourite book of 2015!

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I received lots of wonderful books for Christmas this year from my lovely friends and family, and I naturally treated myself to a few Kindle self-gifts too! Here’s my book haul for December:

***To have and to hold***

The Shadowhunter’s Codex by Cassandra Clare and Joshua Lewis

I received this as a Christmas present from Aura, a fellow book blogger who also happens to be one of my best friends in real life! I am obsessed with the world of Shadowhunters and Downworlders Cassie Clare has created, therefore Aura knows me very well indeed. ❤

The Time Chamber: a magical story and colouring book by Daria Song

I received this gorgeous adult colouring book from my parents! I am a little bit in love with the pictures. I’m so happy colouring for grown-ups is now a thing, because it’s not only relaxing, but so much fun. Really hoping adult playgrounds will catch on next year, because slides and roundabouts, yay!

Harry Potter Colouring Book

I squealed when I unwrapped this on Christmas morning! Now all I need is a maroon crayon for Ron’s fave jumper.

Harry Potter Page to Screen by Bob McCabe

My brother bought me this amazing book for Christmas! We did the Harry Potter studio tour earlier in the year for my birthday, and I loved it so much, so I’m really excited to find out more about how JK Rowling’s incredible books were adapted for the screen. This is now officially the most beautiful and most enormous book I own (it weighs about 5 kilos, I’m not even kidding!)

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

I couldn’t ignore the Lunar Chronicles hype any longer, so I added Cinder to my Christmas wishlist, and happily, that wish was granted. I love fairytale retellings, and I’m really excited I finally get to experience what everyone else has been raving about for months!

Don’t Look Now and other stories by Daphne du Maurier

Another Christmas gift! I’m so happy with this book, as Daphne du Maurier is one of my favourite writers. I love Don’t Look Now (it’s seriously atmospheric and creepy), but I haven’t read many of the others in this collection, so I’m really looking forward to getting stuck into these.

The Lottery and other stories by Shirley Jackson

I read Shirley Jackson’s chilling short story, The Lottery, a while ago, and I’ve been wanting to read more of her work ever since. As you probably know by now, I’m a huge fan of strange and creepy writing, so I was very excited to open this one on Christmas day!

Shopaholic to the Rescue by Sophie Kinsella

The Shopaholic books are my favourite comfort reads, and never fail to make me laugh! Looking forward to snuggling up with this one.

The Winter Children by Lulu Taylor

This was another Christmas gift from my mum, and it looks like an intriguing, atmospheric (and potentially creepy!) family mystery. I love me some dark secrets, and this book promises to be full of them. Can’t wait to read this!

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***Digital Love***

I don’t have a very big Kindle haul this month, but I did treat myself to The 5^th Wave (and its sequel The Infinite Sea) by Rick Yancey, as the movie is coming out soon, and I’ve been wanting to read this series for a long time. These books were so pacey and exciting, and I stayed up long into the night finishing the second one. That twist! I’ll be posting a review of this series soon. Can’t believe I now have to wait until May for the final instalment! I can’t!!!

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So, that’s a wrap for December (and 2015!) What books did you add to your shelves this month? And for those who celebrate, did you get any books or bookish goodies for Christmas? I hope you’ve all been as spoiled as I have 😀

I’m away for the next few days, so this will be my last post for 2015. Happy New Year lovely people!

 

November Haul and the Month of Starting Over

November is over which means not only is it Book Haul time again, but it’s also officially Christmas, therefore nobody is allowed to judge me for listening to holiday music (which I definitely have not been doing since October….)

The downside to the arrival of December is that there’s only one more glorious month of my Ian Somerhalder calendar to enjoy….

If anyone fancies buying me the 2016 calendar for Christmas, I certainly won’t object! 😉

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***Starting Over***

November has been a busy month for me because I started a new job!

Anyone who knows me outside of this blog will probably already be aware that, for a large part of this year, I’ve been extremely unhappy (to the extent that it had started to turn me into a different person) and in desperate need of a fresh start.

This job has given me the break I needed (blogging has helped an awful lot too, as it’s given me some purpose), and right now I am a million times happier than I was a few months ago! The best thing ever is that I now get to write as part of my job, which is basically all I’ve ever wanted!

I’m very lucky to have a supportive and lovely boyfriend, family and friends who have helped me so much this year, and definitely deserve some kind of medal for putting up with me and my dark cloud of misery for so long!

I am now working as part of the Marketing team for Oxford Dictionaries, aka the folk who publish the Oxford English Dictionary, and who picked an emoji as Word of the Year 2015… This emoji, to be precise:

For anyone who feels particularly strongly about the fact that an emoji is not a word (as apparently a significant proportion of the internet does…), I joined too late to be involved in this decision (although I personally think it was a fun, if controversial, choice!), so please don’t throw any big, bulky print dictionaries full of actual words at me in protest! 

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This month I’m bringing you the tiniest book haul since I started this blog… I can’t believe I only bought 4 books in November…

 

***To have and to hold***

Frenchman’s Creek – Daphne du Maurier

I took an emergency trip to Waterstones a few days ago when I realised I hadn’t bought any physical books this month (which felt hella sacrilegious), and this is what I came back with.

I love Daphne du Maurier’s writing and really want to read a few more of her novels. Plus, apparently the love interest in this book is a pirate, and I do so have difficulty resisting a pirate…

Image via Giphy

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***Digital Love***

I bought 3 e-books this month, and managed to squeeze in reading all of them! Unfortunately I won’t have time to review these in full, but here’s what I thought of them anyway:

The Cranberry Hush – Ben Monopoli

I finally joined Goodreads this month, and I found this one whilst searching for books similar to Know Not Why (strong contender for my favourite read of the year). I was drawn to this book because of the beautiful title (one of the characters, Griff, has synaesthesia – he sees colours – and ‘cranberry hush’ is how he describes the isolated little bubble of quiet calm his friend Vince seems to live in). This is a story about unrequited love: the main character, Vince, fell in love with his roommate, Griff, in college, but stopped speaking to him abruptly, deciding it was too painful to stay friends with someone who would never feel the same way, and hasn’t seen him in several years. One day, in the middle of a snowstorm, Griff shows up at Vince’s door, and all of the feelings come rushing back. I experienced so many emotions whilst reading this book! It’s beautifully written, sweet, and I really related to Vince and Griff, who are both in a kind of post-college slump, with no clue as to where their lives are headed, and feeling nostalgic for their student days (ugh, I know how this feels so hard!)

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Take My Picture – Giselle Ellis

If you’re willing to ignore the super-cheesy cover, I really recommend this novella! This was another Goodreads find, and I’m so happy I discovered it (yet so disappointed this author hasn’t written any more books for me to devour!) The story follows Jake (a photographer) and Aaron (who has been working as Jake’s assistant for five years), two people who are clearly supposed to be together, but too clueless to realise. Jake is heartbroken every time Aaron starts seeing somebody new, and Aaron doesn’t feel any more comfortable witnessing Jake’s endless string of one-night-stands, yet still they refuse to see it’s because they have feelings for each other. I never would have thought it possible to create such a compelling and slow-burn love story within so few words, but there’s nothing insta-lovey about the romance, and I completely bought into the chemistry between the characters. This is a quick, single-sitting read, but I promise it will make you feel ALL THE THINGS in a very short space of time. I completely fell in love with this book.

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Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe – Benjamin Alire Saenz

Unusually for me, this is the only YA book I bought in November! So many people have recommended this one to me, and I finally understand why! This is a coming-of-age story about a boy named Aristotle (‘Ari’) who has a lot of questions: about life and all its peculiarities, about the secrets his family are keeping, and about growing up and all the weirdness that entails. One day, he meets a boy named Dante (isn’t that just the best coincidence?) who offers to teach him how to swim, and Ari’s first real friendship with someone outside of his family begins to blossom, over the summer of 1987. Ari is an inquisitive character, and rather naive, but that’s one of the things I loved about him – he felt like a genuinely real person, bewildered by life in the most relatable of ways, and his relationship with Dante was adorable. There is a romantic element to the book, but most of the focus is on the friendship which comes first, and it’s very strongly portrayed. Everyone should read this novel – it will make you think about life and all its mysteries in a hundred different ways!

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So, that’s it for November! Have you read any of these books? Which books did you add to your TBR this month? Recommendations for December buys are most welcome 🙂

October Haul and the Belated Hogwarts Acceptance Letter

It’s Book Haul time again! Sorry I’m late with this wrap-up; I had a busy weekend of Halloween gallivanting (and by gallivanting I totally mean attending a wild party and definitely do not mean watching Silence of the Lambs in my pyjamas whilst eating the Haribo Tangfastics that were meant for the trick-or-treaters… ahem….)

This October I turned a-quarter-of-a-century, making me yet another year too old to be a Directioner and YA literature fangirl…

To celebrate, I went on the Harry Potter Studio Tour in London, which was the most spectacularly magical way to spend a birthday. I was genuinely awe-struck by how much thought and creativity went into the making of these films, even the smallest of details that appear on-screen for a fraction of a second!

Here’s me and my boyfriend on Platform 9 ¾. Can’t believe I finally got my Hogwarts acceptance letter aged 25… Better late than never!

As it was almost Halloween, they had a ‘Dark Arts’ feature on, so there were loads of Death Eaters wandering around. They were actually terrifying, because they moved really slowly and creepily, and would come up behind you every now and again to hiss in your ear. I jumped out of my skin a number of times in a totally cool and casual fashion.

Last week I attended YA Shot, a book event held in London, organised by YA author Alexia Casale. It was a fantastic day filled with author panels and workshops, and I went to some really interesting talks on diversity, sensitive topics/trigger warnings, dystopia as a medium for exploring social issues, and the representation of female characters in fantasy. This last panel was probably my favourite, and the best moment was when Melinda Salisbury (author of The Sin Eater’s Daughter) had an awesome rant about the ‘Strong Female Character’ trope, saying we shouldn’t feel we have to give girls ‘masculine’ traits in order to make them strong – a girl who has vulnerabilities, who gets scared sometimes, is not a weaker character than a sassy badass who knows how to fight, and can still be considered a strong female character! Yes Melinda!!!!  I loved this so much, and cannot express enough how much I admire her for saying it!

YA Shot was so much fun, and we even got a goody-bag with these adorable Queen of Shadows badges. I’m kinda loving the Team Calaena one.

I added 18 books to my shelves this month. Here’s my haul for October…

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***To have and to hold***

I got lots of beautiful print books this month…

A Court of Thorns and Roses – Sarah J. Maas

I haven’t exactly been subtle with my recent obsessive hero-worship of Sarah J. Maas… I was very happy to unwrap this book on my birthday!

The Assassin’s Blade – Sarah J. Maas

Another birthday present! So excited to get started on these Throne of Glass prequel novellas. I’ve a horrible feeling I’m going to ugly-cry though, given I know exactly what fate is awaiting a certain character…

Fangirl – Rainbow Rowell

The third and final book in my birthday haul. I already own Fangirl on Kindle but, as one of my favourite books, I absolutely needed it in print. I’m currently re-reading this in preparation for Carry On, and feeling all warm and fuzzy inside!

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Illustrated Edition) – J.K. Rowling

You must buy this book, it’s so beautiful! I was tempted to photograph some of the illustrations, but I don’t want to spoil the magic of opening it up for yourself. I bought this at the gift store when I did the Harry Potter Studio Tour, along with some rather fetching Hufflepuff socks… #housepride

The Manifesto on How to Be Interesting – Holly Bourne

I picked this up at YA Shot, where I met Holly and got my book signed. I already own the Kindle version, but I really wanted to meet Holly and tell her how much I loved ‘Am I Normal Yet?‘

Plus, real books for the win!

Heart-Shaped Bruise – Tanya Byrne

Another YA Shot purchase. Meeting Tanya was great, especially as I’d reviewed For Holly that morning, so she remembered, and we had a little chat about the characters! Hopefully I will love this book just as much. It’s a psychological thriller, so right up my street!

Lies Like Love – Louisa Reid

The final book in my YA Shot Haul! This book has a very mysterious/intriguing blurb, and a beautiful cover. It was lovely chatting to Louisa! I told her about my blog, and promised I’d let her know what I thought of the book. I’m definitely expecting good things!

More Happy than Not – Adam Silvera

I’ve heard so many great things about this book, although I’ve been warned by multiple people that it will break my heart!

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***Digital Love***

This month’s Kindle buys were…

Slasher Girls and Monster Boys – April Genevieve Tucholke

A collection of spooky stories I was supposed to read before Halloween, but didn’t have time! Will creep myself out this November instead.

I’ll Always Miss You – Raine O’Tierney

A sweet, coming-of-age, LGBT love story/ghost mystery. Best genre combination ever! I may not have time to review this one, but I’d recommend it if you’re in the mood for something heart-warming.

We Won’t Feel A Thing – J.C. Lillis

Not-your-average love story, the premise of this book sounded so unusual and original, I had to get myself a copy!

Frozen Charlotte – Alex Bell

Reviewed here.

Life and Death – Stephenie Meyer

Curiosity and nostalgia got the better of me! Review coming soon.

Carry On – Rainbow Rowell

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE 😀 I have nothing further to add. Can’t wait to read this!

The Dreamer – E.J. Mellow

Read a 5* review of this over at Beatricelearnstoread, and added it to my TBR straight away.

Darkness of Light – Stacey Marie Brown

Jenacidebybibliophile wrote a great review of this book, which really made me want to read it, especially with the similarities to Mortal Instruments!

Things We Have in Common – Tasha Kavanagh

An interesting psychological thriller (although I had mixed feelings about the ending). Review coming soon.

The Sin Eater’s Daughter – Melinda Salisbury

I had to buy this after hearing Melinda speak at YA Shot! The premise sounds intriguing too, and I need more fantasy in my life while I’m waiting for the fifth Throne of Glass book!

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So that’s my gigantic October Haul! Have you read any of these books? What have you added to your TBR this month?

August Haul and the Discombobulating World of Book Blogging

Since I started this book blog, approx. 1 month ago, I’ve gained a (modest) number of followers (thank you, beautiful people!), followed some brilliant blogs, had to google who-why-when-where-and-what the terms TBR, book haul, and DNF mean (#shameface), been baffled by the vast number of people talking about Summertime Madness, received a nomination for a Liebster Award, and all in all, had a crazy but lovely introduction into the world of book blogging.

It’s been a while since I last posted because I’ve spent all week prepping for a job interview.

The role (which I really, really want!) is in a different department of the publishing house I currently work for, who, FYI, added the word awesomesauce to the dictionary the other day.

So, to look on the sunny side, even if I don’t get the job, at least I will have had the incomparable experience of getting to use the words ‘Manspreading’, ‘Hangry’ and ‘Wine o’clock’ in a job interview! 🙂

Anyway, back to the book haul (which I’m getting the impression is basically just people bragging about the books they’ve acquired over the past month, and I’m totally game for getting in on!)

Here’s what I’ve added this month to my crazy-long TBR…

***To have and to hold***

I only bought one physical book this month, which was this amazing adult colouring book by Kerby Rosanes:

I guess this one doesn’t really count, as I’m not going to read it, but look how pretty it is! Apparently nowadays it is completely NOT-lame for grown-up people to get squealy and excited over the art of keeping your sparkly gel pen within the lines. I’m loving the adult colouring trend, and I’d really recommend this as a mindful, calming activity if you’re one of those people who can never get their brain to stop buzzing. It’s good for winding down, and much healthier than staring at screens before bedtime (which I’m naughtily doing right now).

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***Digital love***

I went on a bit of an Amazon spending spree this month. My Kindle haul goes a little something like this…

Dead Witch Walking (The Hollows Book 1) – Kim Harrison

Some urban fantasy to fill the Mortal-Instruments-shaped hole in my life while I (im)patiently wait for The Dark Artifices to hurry up and come out already.

Uprooted – Naomi Novik

So, basically, I bought this because it’s about wizards, and it’s set in a creepy forest. Nuff said.

Long Lankin – Lindsey Barraclough

Discovered on another Amazon trawl for creepy-reads. Can’t wait to read this one.

The Death House – Sarah Pinborough

Reviewed earlier in the month.

Cuckoo Song – Frances Hardinge

If a blurb mentions a creepy china doll, I’m pretty much sold.

The Owl Service – Alan Garner

This book gave my mum sleepless nights as a child. It sounds pretty tame to me, but I’m curious enough to give it a go.

Close Your Pretty Eyes – Sally Nicholls

Adding to the creepy-pile. Note to self, Thesaurus the word creepy, stat.

Am I Normal Yet? – Holly Bourne

My most recent review (and probably my favourite book of the month!)

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl – Jesse Andrews

From the reviews I’ve read, I gather this is a bit of a Marmite book. Looking forward to deciding whether I’m a lover or a hater.

Only Ever Yours – Louise O’Neill

I saw Louise speak on a panel at YALC, plus this book sounds incredible. Definitely intrigued by comparisons to The Handmaid’s Tale.

Royal Wedding – Meg Cabot

Review coming soon!

Made You Up – Francesca Zappia

I’ve wanted to read this ever since I discovered the author’s blog. I’m fascinated by blogs about the writing process, and I loved the way she wrote, so when I heard about the book I knew I had to read it!

‘Soulmates’ and ‘The Manifesto on How to be Interesting’ – Holly Bourne

I downloaded both of these after finishing ‘Am I Normal Yet?’, and am so excited to read them.

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before – Jenny Han

I’ve heard a lot of good things about this one, and every person under the sun seems to have reviewed it. I read the opening paragraph and now I’m all-in too.

Know Not Why – Hannah Johnson

I bought this based on the hilarious opening chapter – props and £s to any book that can make me laugh out loud that quickly.

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So, that’s my August haul. Although, the month isn’t over yet… I’ve set myself the challenge of reading all of the Throne of Glass books before Queen of Shadows comes out, and I only own the first one, so it’s a mighty good job pay-day occurred recently. But apart from these two essentials, I’m banning myself from any more book-buying…

…until September. 😉