Upcoming in december [update]

This december I plan on slowly but steadily getting back into the groove of blogging.

This month, you can expect a christmas/birthday book haul and possibly a new bookshelf tour from me. Since the embarrasing one I did in 2014 (don't look at it unless you're yearning to cringe!) I've accumulated quite a lot of books  and gotten new shelves that are worthy of them.
   
That's all, I hope you're all in a yuletide mood and feeling well ♥


xoxo, Maria

Countdown Survey

Note: hello, I thought I'd start my return from my hiatus with a tag, so there

10 - Books already released on your wishlist
- Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff
- A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
- Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
- The Martian by Andy Weir
- The Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare
- The Raven Boys by Maggie Stievater
- The Assasin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas
- Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews
- The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen
- The Diviners by Libba Bray

9 - Favorite Covers 
(God, it was hard to choose)

 

8 - Not yet released books that you can't wait for
- Frozen Tides by Morgan Rhodes
- Untitled Throne of Glass book 5 by Sarah J. Maas
- Heartless by Marissa Meyer 
- A Torch Against The Night by Sabaa Tahir 
- Stars Above by Marissa Meyer (a lunar chronicles novella bind-up? hell yes!)
- Summer Days & Summer Nights: Twelve Love Stories by Stephanie Perkins (this is the summer equivalant to My True Love Gave To Me, which I loved, so of course I need this)
- Passenger by Alexandra Bracken
- The Last Star by Rick Yancey (I love this series so much and can't wait for the answers)

7 - Auto-buy Authors
- Jennifer Lynn Barnes
- Merissa Meyer
- Laini Taylor
- J.K. Rowling,
- Anders Björkelid
- Sarah J. Maas
- Leslye Walton

6 - Book Boyfriends
- Archer Cross (Hex Hall)
- Chaol Westfall (Throne of Glass) - I would say Rowan, but his heart belongs somewhere else
- Damon Salvatore (The Vampire Diaries)
- Warner (Shatter Me)
- Magnus Damora (Falling Kingdoms)
- Ziri (Daughter of Smoke & Bone)

5 - Books you recommend the most
- Harry Potter (obligatory answer haha)
- The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (this series just gets better and better and I rarely see anybody talking about it - but it's one of my top favorite book series of all time. The plot and characters are so cleverly written, always keeping you on the edge of the seat and making you think and theorize without having to pause the ride, and they are impossible to put down!)
- I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
- Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas (don't worry if you don't like the first book - just please keep reading or you will miss out)
- Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes (I need more people to read these books and obsess with me)


4 - Books you thought you'd like but didn't
- Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead (I read the entire series though, and while I didn't dislike it I didn't love it either)
- Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson (it's all because of the "love triangle" and I am not ashamed)
- World's End by Susan Ee (idk it just wasn't the ending I was hoping for I guess. I can't pinpoint it)
- Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier (I loved the first book and the sequels were great, but I just lost interest and felt like I had to drag my way through them)


3 - Books that made you cry
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (duh)
- The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson (don't touch me)
- Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor (damn you Ziri)

2 - Books you never plan on reading
- Divergent (sorry, I couldn't power through the first book, plus I've been spoiled, so I'm just gonna watch the movies *shrugs*)
- Fifty Shades of Grey (I have actually heard good things from my friends, but the whole smut thing just isn't me)

1 - Favorite genre at the moment
- Fantasy! I always fall into the beautiful abyss that is fantasy when it's fall/winter.

October wrap-up + TBR!

I'm relatively proud of my own reading this month. I finished a trilogy and started two others...so yea!

Books I read this month:

- Shatter Me by Tahareh Mafi

- Destroy Me by Tahareh Mafi
- Unravel Me by Tahareh Mafi
- Fracture Me by Tahareh Mafi
- Ignite Me by Tahareh Mafi
- Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood
- The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

I did a series review for the Shatter Me trilogy, if ya want to check it out: *le click here*

November TBR:

- The Crown of Embers by Rae Carson

- The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson
- Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier
- Sapphire Blue by Kerstin Gier


I try not to be too ambitious since school is kicking me in the groin at the moment, but...it won't keep me from reading :)


xoxo, Maria

Shatter Me by Tahareh Mafi [SERIES REVIEW+BOOKTALK]

The Shatter Me series by Tahareh Mafi
Published by HarperCollinsPublishers
Genres: Fantasy, Dystopian, Adventure, Science Fiction, Romance,Young Adult
Goodreads • Book Depository • Amazon

Overall rating:

Shatter Me (paperback)  -Book 1, Published on November 15, 2011
Destroy Me (paperback bind-up ) -Book 1.5, Published on October 2, 2012
Unravel Me (hardcover) - Book 2, Published on February 5, 2013
Fracture Me (paperback bind-up) - Book 2.5, Published on December 17, 2013
Ignite Me (hardcover) - Book 3, Published on February 4, 2014

SYNOPSIS:

I have a curse
I have a gift

I am a monster
I'm more than human

My touch is lethal
My touch is power

I am their weapon
I will fight back

Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war – and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

_____________________________________________

REVIEW [spoiler-free]:

I'm speechless. I'm dying. I don't know what todotodotodo. 

Finishing this book I'm not done yet there must be more I was left feeling both hollow and full to the brim I want moremoremore and completely satisfied with everything and I don't think there could have been a better way or place to end the trilogy. 

The writing is fantastic and unique in a way that complements the story and the main character, Juliette (who is now officially my new hero), so so well, and I want to  bow down to the queen applaud Tahareh Mafi simply for being brilliant. Her choice of words and Juliette's musings were just so beautiful and inspiring, and made me want to experiment more with my own writing style. 

While there was an external conflict in this series, it is not the main focus. The internal conflicts, character development and the struggle to accept yourself is, I think, the main drive of this story and it was an incredibly interesting and intriguing journey to follow.

The few flaws I noticed in the first installment where are all the girls? where corrected as the series progressed and made more sense. I know I'm not the only one who noticed this and where annoyed by it, but it didn't hinder my enjoying the books - especially because other female characters started to have slightly bigger roles in the 2nd and 3rd book.

All-in-all this is one of my favorite series of all time - despite it's flaws - because the message and the atmosphere of the books just hit me deep in the chest and has taken root. 

Booktalk [WARNING: SPOILERS]:

The Book Blogger Test

The rules:

You must answer all of these questions truthfully and once you’ve completed this tag, tag 5 other book bloggers to answer the questions next.

My answers:

1. Cover changes, stickers on the cover, boring chapters.

2. Someplace quiet, like on a couch with cozy lighting and a cat curled up beside me.

3. My otp's are often doomed but I ship them anyway. I actually enjoyed The Vampire Diaries. My too-read list is 6 times bigger than my list of books I've read.

4. Reading Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor. (I was a mess)

5. 4, but I'm only reading one of them.

6. I don't usually snack while reading..but, sweets or chocolate, I guess.

7. Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, The Shamer's Daughter by Lene Kaaberbøl. (I would add Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor, but I think some people might find it too weird so...)

8. ♥♥♥

9. They are all.

10. I tend to judge books by their covers. Because I'm human and beauty is attractive to me, but an ugly cover won't stop me from reading a book if I've heard good things about it. Though, I usually read the blurb and read a preview before buying.

TAGGING!:

I don't know who to tag so I'm tagging everyone - readers, consider yourself tagged! :)

This tag was created by Laura of Laura's Book Reviews on Wordpress.

Book review - Dreams of Gods & Monsters

Dreams of Gods & Monsters by Laini Taylor
Series: Daughter of Smoke and Bone #3
Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers on November 6th, 2012
Format: Hardcover
Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal Romance,Young Adult
Pages: 513
Goodreads • Good Books • Amazon

When I first held this book in my hands and I saw how friggin' massive is was...I was not scared off by any means: the larger the amount of pages the larger the amount of genius, I thought.

And I was right, of course. Even though some bits were harder to get through than others, Laini's imagination and cleverness and humor just kept knocking my breath away.

Halfway through I was desperate for the book to end - NOT because it was horrible or anything - I just wanted the characters to get the happy endings they deserved and see the bad guys vaporize into eternal evanescence - though a burning hell would be preferred. Because Laini masters this thing called 'villains' so you feel just the right amount of seething hatred towards them, but she also masters another thing called 'lovable characters' so you desperately need want them to succeed and see it happen.

The series is a perfect blend of grief, action, love and hate, all mixed together to concoct a masterpiece.
And this final book in the trilogy wrapped it all up in a perfect, but still loose-ended way - because it ended with a happy middle instead of a happy ending (well, that sentence was confusing).

Overall, I gave this series a 5 out of 5 stars, so it's safe to say that I highly, highly recommend this series!


xoxo, Maria

Surprise unboxing!

So...There's this book that I preordered and...I didn't think it'd be coming out until the 16th but...Then I opened my mailbox this morning and THIS was in it!:

   

*le open box* (how the frick does one unbox on a blog?)

The sequel to the 5th Wave, The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey! (*squeeee*) 

And that cover is just perfect...

This is definitely going on my list of Good Ways to Start Your Day!

xoxo, Maria