JULY AND AUGUST READING WRAP UP 2016

In about mid-July, I wrote a mini post saying that my July reading wrap up was going to be a bit late as I was away at the end of the month. After looking at my Goodreads, I realised that I'd only actually completed 2 books in July, which didn't seem enough to make a whole wrap up about. So, in short, that's why my July and August wrap ups are combined this time, with a (not so) grand total of 8 books over the two months. I'm also currently reading 'Sense and Sensibility', but Jane Austen books take me so long to read that it's putting me in a bit of a reading slump.

Books Read:

1. 'Magnus Chace and the Sword of Summer'- Rick Riordan
Reading Magnus Chase was interesting for me, as I am completely lost when it comes to Norse mythology (apart from Thor, Loki and Odin because of the Thor films). When reading Percy Jackson, I was already familiar with the basics, Gods and some stories in Greek mythology, but here I had no clue what was going on and spent quite a lot of time fairly confused. This book was nothing like I thought it was going to be, there was much less emphasis on Godly parents than there usually is in Rick Riordan's writing, and I expected it to be more similar to his other books that it turned out to be. I thought it was a good book and I'll be continuing on with the series, but it was no where near as strong as the Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus series, and at times I found it much too slow for my liking.

2. 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'- Stieg Larsson
I've mentioned before how my parents wouldn't let me read this book until I was over 18, and now I can see why. This book is not for the faint hearted and it is DEFINITELY not for people aged under 18. This is quite a horrible book at times, but it makes up for it with just how clever it is and how it keeps you gripped from the start. I didn't realise that this was a mystery as well as a crime thriller and I really enjoyed that aspect of it, I love mysteries that keep you guessing constantly. It's such a genius book, but be warned that it does get quite graphic and violent. I'm told this is the most horrible book of the trilogy, and I'm looking forward to seeing where it goes next.

3. 'A Court of Mist and Fury'- Sarah J. Maas
Again, this is not a book for the under 18s. I really enjoyed this book, but judging from everyone's reactions on social media, I expected to love it a lot more than I did; I don't think it helped that I read this really slowly while on holiday and I was in a bit of a reading slump at the time. But then the ending happened and ohmygosh I need the next book urgently, the fact that we have to wait another year will kill me. What I really appreciated about this book was that so many books ignore the traumatic events of the book before once it's over, but Sarah J. Maas actually addressed it and addressed the impact it had on Feyre and the other characters. It made the story seem so much more realistic and honest. I liked Feyre's character development, I absolutely hated Tamlin's character development, and I really enjoyed seeing more of Rhys and the Night Court- I've been excited to see more of Rhys since the first book. A really great continuation, this trilogy keeps getting better and better.

4. 'Since You've Been Gone'- Morgan Matson (audio book)
This is the one Morgan Matson book that I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy and wasn't actually sure if I'd ever read, but I get really in the mood for contemporaries in the summer and this seemed like the perfect summer read, so I downloaded it as a audio book. I was kind of surprised but I ended up really enjoying it, I liked (nearly) all the characters, I liked the list and I liked watching Emily's character development. I also really liked the fact that I could related to Emily quite a lot. One thing I want to add though is that I really hated Sloane, I hated every scene with her in, and I found her was so annoying and manipulative. It wasn't my favourite Morgan Matson book, but it definitely wasn't my least favourite.

5. 'The Unexpected Everything'- Morgan Matson
This is by far my most favourite Morgan Matson book, I absolutely loved it and I want to read more about this story and these characters. I found it really refreshing, I'm so tired of romance only happening at the end of books and not getting to see any of it, and it was nice to have romance all the way through this one. One thing I'd liked to add is that I love all the subtle links between all of Morgan Matson's books. I loved this book so much, highly, highly recommend.

6. 'The Fey Man'- James T. Kelly
This book was the absolute definition of a cover buy (the cover also reminded me of Shrek haha). I got this super cheap on Kindle over a year ago and it had really been weighing on my mind that I needed to read it. I started this book before my holiday, but didn't finish it before I left, I then took a three week break from reading it and forgot everything I'd read. But I finished it off after 'The Unexpected Everything', which was a pleasingly relevant thing to read before (you'll know what I mean if you've read 'The Unexpected Everything', no spoilers). I'm glad I finally read it, but I'm not bothered enough to continue with the series, neither the story nor the characters did anything for me, and overall it was only okay.

7. 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'- J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany
I wasn't sure about either the Cursed Child or Fantastic Beasts, to me it honestly seemed like a bit of a money grab (especially the play being in an unnecessary two parts), I don't think either of them were needed and I think the Harry Potter story was finished and over (this is why I've also never bothered to read the little add extra bits about the Harry Potter world and wizarding all over the world that are released). Unlike a lot of people, I wasn't excited about either the Cursed Child or Fantastic Beasts when they were first announced, but it's Harry Potter so I can't not read them. Also unlike a lot of people, the fact that this was a play and not a novel didn't bother me so much; I've been comparing it to Shakespeare in the way that Shakespeare is very 'tell' rather than 'see', but the Cursed Child is very visual, and I think it would be more enjoyable if seen rather than read, especially if you consider that dialogue in plays is very stiff and stunted, but it always works well when you watch rather than read it. I appreciate that it wasn't actually written by J.K. Rowling, but I really hated the characterisation of Harry, Ron and McGonagall, I don't think any of them would act the way they do in the book, and I wasn't a big fan of Rose either. (Scorpius would not have been in Slytherin, big plot hole, doesn't work with his character). I did quite enjoy it, but only if I completely disassociated it with Harry Potter and thought of it as something else. I completely agree with everyone who says it's more like fan faction, and it's definitely easier to enjoy if you pretend it is.

8. 'Much Ado About Nothing'- William Shakespeare
I saw a production of this play a few weeks ago, and I always like to read Shakespeare plays after I've watched them, as it helps me to get a better understanding of the story. 'Much Ado About Nothing' is a lot of fun, a typical nonsense Shakespeare romantic comedy, but it has a great cast of characters and I'd say it's one of my favourite Shakespeare plays that isn't a history.

Rosie 

TOP 5 WEDNESDAY | BOOKS I WILL NEVER READ

Firstly, just remember that everyone is entitled to their opinion here, ta. I really like hearing about books that people really didn't enjoy or that they'll never read, I secretly do quite enjoy a bit of book bashing (unless someones opinion is different from my own, then I'm just like everyone else and get really defensive over my favourite books). I made a post a bit like this at the end of last year titled 'five series I have no interest in' where I said that I had no interest in ever reading the Lunar Chronicles and then I read it and loved it, so these opinions may change over time, and I'm going to try and not have any repeats from that list here. I'm going to enjoy this one. (I'm also going to cheat a bit here and include authors I will never read, because I cheat at every book-blog-post-related task). I'm very annoyed, I'd written this whole post in advance and then half of it disappeared, ugh. 

1. 'Four'- Veronica Roth
I've never spoken about my feelings for the 'Divergent' series on my blog before, but I'll go into a little bit of detail now. I loved the first two books, they were fantastic, I was so excited for Allegiant that I pre-ordered it in hardback. And then it happened. Allegiant was one of the worst things I've ever read, not only did I just not enjoy the story, it was really poorly written. Tris and Four's chapters sounded so similar that 90% of the time I couldn't remember who's point of view I was reading from. I hated Allegiant so much that it's put me off the entire Divergent trilogy and I still haven't (and probably won't) watch the films- not to mention that I also hate three of the main actors. I will never read 'Four'. This may be the only one on the list that I know 100% I will never, ever read. I'm willing to give Veronica Roth another chance, as part of me still remembers how much I enjoyed the first two books, but I'm reluctant.

2. Anything by Khaled Hosseini
'The Kite Runner' is my most hated book of all time and I refuse to read anything else by Khaled Hosseini, regardless of how many people tell me how amazing these other books may be. Never.

3. Anything by Colleen Hoover
Absolutely none of her books appeal to me, simple as. It also annoys me that all of her characters have weird names, not every character needs to be named something original and quirky.

4. 'Girl Online'- Zoe Sugg (aka Zoella)
I used to really like Zoella, I read her blog, I watched all her videos and, like everyone else, I just really wanted her life. That was until 2014, when 'Girl Online' came out. Once it was revealed that the book was actually ghostwritten, I went completely off Zoella, so much so that even now I greatly dislike her. I have no problem with ghostwriting in the way that some celebrities do it, which is putting their name on the front but openly acknowledging in the book that it was written by someone else, but what really annoyed me with Zoella was that she claimed that she'd written the book herself, giving no acknowledgement to who actually wrote it, and would've continued to have claimed it as her own if Penguin hadn't revealed that it actually had been ghostwritten. After the backlash from that, I do believe that Zoella has written the other books in the series herself, but it now feels like she's milking the story and I've heard that the books are not very well written. This whole thing has put me completely off Zoella as a person and I will never read anything she writes.

5. 'Half Bad'- Sally Green
I couldn't really think of a last book for this list that wasn't a repetition from other, similar lists that I've made, and then I rediscovered this one. I have absolutely no interest in paranormal books, especially ones about witches, and I am confident that I will never, ever read this book.

Rosie

TOP TEN TUESDAY, BOOK DEBATE #6 - DESERVING OF THE HYPE

This title is a mouthful and a half, but I'm combining my 'top ten tuesday' and 'book debate' series to bring you my top ten overhyped books/series/authors that I believe deserve all the hype they get. (I'm excluding Harry Potter from this list because that one is a given). There are certain books and book series that everyone seems to have read and nearly everyone seems to have enjoyed. Recently, I have found myself not enjoying some of the books that people seem to love the most. The following list are some of the most overhyped books that I've read and agreed with the general consensus on; these are the overhyped books that I really enjoyed and I think are worthy of the vast amounts of praise they get.

1. 'The Book Thief'- Markus Zusak
Like everyone else, this is one of my favourite books. It was so clever and well written and I cried so hard during it. I do love a book that makes me cry.

2. 'The Hunger Games'- Suzanne Collins
I didn't read this when the film first came out and everyone else was reading it, because I was snobby and didn't want to be like the crowd. I am so original, I know. I then watched the film, fell in love with it, watched it three times in a row, and binge read the whole trilogy super quickly. Such a fantastic, classic dystopian trilogy.

3. The Raven Cycle- Maggie Stiefvater
Everyone loves this series, I love this series, and it's so, so, so deserving of all the praise it gets; one of my absolutely favourites and I am a tiny bit obsessed.

4. The Lunar Chronicles- Marissa Meyer
I had little interest in this series, and I hypocritically said I was never going to read it. I picked it up when 'Winter', the final book came out, purely because of how obsessed everyone was with it, and I was just suddenly really tempted to try it out. Ended up loving it, definitely worth all the praise.

5. 'Anna and the French Kiss'- Stephanie Perkins
Everyone loves Stephanie Perkis' 'Anna and the French Kiss' companion trilogy, and for good reason. The stories are so much fun, the characters are great and the romance is to die for. I was hesitant to read these books at first, as I wasn't sure I'd enjoy the plot, but I ended up absolutely loving them (especially 'Anna and the French Kiss') and now I kind of want to go to boarding school in Paris.

6. Morgan Matson
Morgan Matson is a well-loved, contemporary author and I've really enjoyed every single one of her books. They're the definition of a perfect summer read, and she deserves all the praise and hype she gets.

7. Sarah J. Maas
As with Morgan Matson, Sarah J. Maas is an incredibly popular author, and I've absolutely loved every single one of her books. She's such a strong writer and storyteller and her books leave you dying for the next one. I know she can only get better.

8. 'A Darker Shade a Magic'- V.E. Schwab
I started this when it first came out, but I found it a really slow read and I gave up at about 100 pages through. Fast forward a year to when the second book was coming out and, like with the Lunar Chronicles, everyone was obsessed and, again, I was suddenly tempted to give it another go. At the time, it was really cheap on Kindle, so I downloaded it and read it super quickly and fell in love. So deserving of the hype, I'm so excited for the next book.

9. Rick Riordan
Rick Riordan is a genius. He deserves all the praise he gets, not just for his great stories and fantastic characters, but also for the fact that his work is so accurate to the mythology and he's just so damn clever in the way he can seamlessly link it all into modern culture.

10. 'Fangirl'- Rainbow Rowell
'Fangirl' is the most popular book of a well-loved author for good reason. It's so relatable to so many people and it doesn't shy away from the honest fact that university can be really hard, and isn't all perfect and easy and fun. Very often, it's the books with the most relatable characters that are the most popular.

Rosie

ROSIE'S GUIDE TO GETTING INTO COUNTRY MUSIC - FILMS

Last month I started a new blog series with a post on my favourite country music songs, which is my favourite music genre. Today's post is a continuation of that series, talking about my favourite films that either include country music or have some link to country music culture. There aren't many of them, but I've collected the few that I love the most.

The Thing Called Love
Arguably the ultimate country music film, the lead character moves to Nashville to begin her country music career, playing at the iconic Bluebird Cafe, visiting Graceland and socialising with other country musicians doing the exact same thing. It also features cameos from country musicians such as Pam Tillis and Trisha Yearwood.

Walk the Line
The biographical film of (my favourite) Johnny Cash, covering his life and music career, and featuring iconic places and people, including the Grand Old Opry, the Carter family, Elvis and other well-loved musicians who, like Johnny Cash, first recorded at the Sun Studio in Memphis.

Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?
A classic, southern film (starring George Clooney) with the most incredible, country music, film soundtrack ever. Though not looking at country music itself, this is possibly the most country film on this list, purely because of the setting, soundtrack and culture. An absolute underrated classic.

I'm Not There
This one is a biography of Bob Dylan, and has links more to country and southern culture, rather than actual, stereotypical country music. Bob Dylan was very interested in country music, and his album 'Nashville Skyline' was his transition into the country genre, created in part whilst working with Johnny Cash.

Rosie

TOP 5 WEDNESDAY | BEFORE THE END OF THE YEAR

I've shortened the name of this one slightly in the title of this post, but the full topic is the 'top 5 books I want to read by the end of this year'. I wrote a post in January called '16 things I want to read in 2016' so I'm taking some inspiration from there of some of the books on that list I have yet to read. I am determined to completed that list.

1. 'Poldark'- Winston Graham
I read the first book in this series, 'Poldark', over a year ago and I really enjoyed it, but never got round to reading the rest of the (super long) series. Since the TV show (which I am obsessed with) is coming back in September, I need to get on with reading them. I need to reread the first book, though, as I can't remember anything that happened.

2. 'Illuminae'- Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
This has been on my TBR on Goodreads since long before it came out, I've been dying to read it but for some ridiculous reason, I just haven't got round to it yet. The format of the book looks so cool and I know it won't take me long to read, I really need to get to it before the second book comes out.

3. 'Mrs Dalloway'- Virginia Woolf
This was on my TBR months ago, the story really intrigues me and I need to finally get round to reading it.

4. 'To Kill a Mockingbird'- Harper Lee
I STILL HAVEN'T READ IT, OKAY.

5. 'A Dance with Dragons; Dreams and Dust'- George R.R. Martin
So this is the penultimate currently published book in the Game of Thrones series and I really need to get down to it and finish the last two books. This was on my TBR in January/February, but I'm feeling reluctant as there's a storyline which I really hate (you know which one it is). I really need to finish this series, I've been reading it for years, and then I can finally let myself watch the TV show.

Rosie

TOP 5 WEDNESDAY | FAVOURITE FIRST SENTENCES

I did my first 'Top 5 Wednesday' post a couple of months ago, but for the first time I am actually going to be doing more than one. I really liked the topics of the next three weeks, they're ones I really like hearing other people talk about, and this first one in particular is one that I've never really thought about properly myself. So, as the title of the post says, these are my top 5 favourite first sentences of books (in a kind of order of favourites).

'Mr and Mrs Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.'

('Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'- J.K. Rowling)

It's the start of it all and I get chills but at the same time feel all warm and comforted when I read it.

'Marriage is a word that tastes like metal-'

('Brazen'- Katerine Longshore)

I mean, come on, it's incredible. I knew I needed to read this book the minute I saw that first sentence, and it's a sentence that has stuck with me in the year and a half since I finished the book. Astounding opening line.

'I write this sitting in the kitchen sink.'

('I Capture the Castle'- Dodie Smith)

Like with 'Brazen', I knew I wanted to read this book the minute I saw that sentence. It's incredible and weird and so engaging. One of the very best.

'It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.'

('Pride and Prejudice'- Jane Austen)

It's a classic. 

'Blue Sargent had forgotten how many times she'd been told that she would kill her true love.'

('The Raven Boys'- Maggie Stiefvater)

It's the entire series summarised in one opening sentence, but it hooks you immediately and practically forces you to read on.

Rosie

This was hard

NUTELLA MUFFINS

As with all the recipes I post, this is not my own recipe, it's one I've adapted from another recipe. Today's post is one of my new favourites, and one I think I may even prefer to regular chocolate cake at the moment, Nutella muffins.

Makes 15

You Will Need:
175g butter
115g light soft brown sugar
2 eggs
2tbsp Nutella
175g self raising flour
Extra Nutella to spread on top

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. Beat butter and sugar together, then beat in the eggs.
3. Stir in the Nutella, then fold in the flour.
4. Bake for 20 minutes,
5. Once cooled, you can spread Nutella on the top instead of icing.

Rosie

Hella delicious

TOP TEN TUESDAY - ALL TIME FAVOURITE BOOKS (2016 ED.)

Today's Top Ten Teusday post is one which I personally love hearing about when other people talk about it, my all time favourite books. I've called this one the '2016 edition', as my favourites will almost definitely change over time as I read more things. (In no particular order, except the first three).

1. 'Anne of Green Gables'- L.M. Montgomery
I've spoken about this book so many times but it's my favourite book of all time. It's the definition of all feel-good book and it makes me feel warm and happy and desperate to live on P.E.I.

2. 'Ballet Shoes'- Noel Streatfeild
I don't think I've mentioned this before? But this book comes in very close behind Anne with just how much I love it. There's no particular reason, I loved it from the moment I read it and it's high time I gave it a re-read.

3. 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'- J.K. Rowling
I couldn't choose a favourite Harry Potter book, so I've gone with the first one as it's the start of it all and it's so wonderful and magical and warm and I really don't think I need to say any more about it.

4. 'The Importance of Being Earnest'- Oscar Wilde
This is my most favourite play of all time, occassionally I'll forget about it and then I'll rediscover it and remember how hilarious it is and how much I adore the characters and I'll fall in love with it all over again.

5. 'The Luxe'- Anna Godbersen
Part one of my favourite books/authors that no one else has ever heard of. This is a guilty pleasure, historical romance fiction set at the end of the 1800s and it's so much fun and so swoony and I love it.

6. 'The Looking Glass Wars'- Frank Beddor
Part two of my favourite books/authors that no one else has ever heard of. I don't really want to share either of them. This is a retelling of Alice in Wonderland and it's such a fantastic take on the story.

7. 'The Book Thief'- Markus Zusak
It's everyone's favourite.

8. 'The Dream Thieves'- Maggie Stiefvater
Everyone knows how much I love the Raven Cycle quartet, but I think this one is definitely my favourite of the series. If you haven't read it yet, what are you doing?

9. 'How to Be a Woman'- Caitlin Moran
Caitlin Moran is one of my favourite writers, she's hilarious but also so relatable and clever and she has a way of writing about serious topics in a way that's funny without undermining the topic. I'd go as far as to say that this book changed my life.

10. 'A Christmas Carol'- Charles Dickens
It's just a really enjoyable read (plus Muppet's Christmas Carol is my favourite film and it's really accurate to the book).

Plus an honourable mention to 'The Year of Reading Dangerously' by Andy Miller, I wanted to include it but couldn't fit it on the list but HA I've snuck it into the post anyway.

Rosie

This was hard