February Books

Here are the books that I have read so far this month:

• Toxic by Rachel van Dyken; my rating: ★★★★★

• The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky; my rating: ★★★★★

• Obsidian (Lux #1)  by Jennifer L. Armentrout; my rating: ★★★★☆

* More books are to be listed throughout the month.

Good News!

     Hello, everyone. This is now my official favorite part of the winter season (after the holidays, of course). Why, you ask? Well, because it is that time when we can finally say "FINALS ARE OVER!" and just sit back and relax.By now, I'm pretty sure that everyone is finished with their final exams, which means that we can all just take a break and do all those things that we love but had no time for during these past few weeks. So, yes, my finals are officially over and I now have a one week break from college, which means that I will finally be able to get right back to blogging.

     I have a few surprises coming your way in terms of my blog. I have them all planned out, but what is next is for me to take my plans and turn them into something practical. I will not tell you what I'm thinking just yet, but be assured that something's coming - and it's coming soon! So stay tuned and check the blog during the following week if you want to be the first to see what I'm talking about! 

MFB: Vain

“The truth is, I'm so deep in love with you, I can't see straight. The truth is, I've been afraid to admit it to myself, let alone you. The truth is, I'm terrified.”  

I can't even begin to say how much I loved this book. I really think that it was excellent. I think that it's great when, in a sea of books that go by the good girl-bad boy cliche, you can still find books that actually have a bad girl and they turn out to be great. This book is sweet, emotional and it really makes you think about life.

Here is the official description of the book:

"If you’re looking for a story about a good, humble girl, who’s been hurt by someone she thought she could trust, only to find out she’s not as vulnerable as she thought she was and discovers an empowering side of herself that falls in love with the guy who helps her find that self, blah, blah, blah...then you’re gonna’ hate my story.
Because mine is not the story you read every time you bend back the cover of the latest trend novel. It’s not the “I can do anything, now that I’ve found you/I’m misunderstood but one day you’ll find me irresistible because of it” tale. Why? Because, if I was being honest with you, I’m a complete witch. There’s nothing redeeming about me. I’m a friend using, drug abusing, sex addict from Los Angeles. I’m every girlfriend’s worst nightmare and every boy’s fantasy.
I’m Sophie Price...And this is the story about how I went from the world’s most envied girl to the girl no one wanted around and why I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world."

     Sophie is a bad girl by the book. Alcohol, drugs, sex, you name it, she's done it all. She manipulates people into being her friends, treats everyone like they're not worthy of her precious time and treats boys like they are nothing. She's the queen bee of her friends and no one dares cross her.

     Except her family life sucks. Sophie's parents could care less about her and her life, as long as she doesn't ruin their perfect reputation. If there's one thing that the great Sophie is scared of, that is her father. And when she gets in trouble, he doesn't let it go. Sophie is arrested for doing drugs at a party and her father gives her an ultimatum - behave and keep up appearances or face the consequences.

     But trouble finds her and things take a turn for the worst, as Sophie believes. She is sentenced to six months in Africa, to take care for the children in an orphanage. Sophie thinks her life is over, because Africa is a shameful place. However, there's nothing that she can do but go.

     There, her entire life changes. When faced with the horrible reality of Masego, the place where she has to spend the next six months, Sophie begins to question her lifestyle and everything about herself. It doesn't help that she meets an amazing boy who doesn't seem to fall at her feet like all the guys back home.

     Before she knows it, Sophie gets attached to the children at the orphanage, wants to do everything she can to help them and, thus, gets into dangerous situations. But she won't stop until the children are safe, especially because their rescue lies on her shoulders and on the shoulders of the hot boy, Dingane. Together they help make Masego a safe environment for the children, but they also share an incredible relationship through which Sophie learns the values of life and also her true nature.

     Vain is the first book that I read in 2015 and I can honestly say that it was an excellent read to my reading challenge. This book made me laugh and cry, but I don't have one bad thing to say about it. I'm really glad that I read it and I give it five stars, also recommending it to everyone who's looking for a nice love story and for a valuable life lesson.

Review: Breaking the Rules

My Rating: ★★★★☆

     I've been a huge fan of all Katie McGarry's books, they have a special place in my heart. I read all of them and fell in love with the characters. I lived with them, cried and laughed with them, but mostly of all, I loved with them. So naturally, I was extremely excited when I heard that Echo and Noah will have a second book.

     Breaking the Rules is really sweet. Echo and Noah are back, and they're stronger and more mature. I think it is important to note that their evolution was notable from the beginning, given the fact that at times I felt like I was reading about two whole different characters. Sometimes I barely recognized them, but most often than not I was still reading about Echo and Noah.

     I think that this book is emotionally a bigger and heavier experience thanPushing the Limits. I also think that I preferred the first book over this, but still, I loved this one nonetheless. It was a bit frustrating at times, I have to admit. 

     Sometimes, Echo and Noah would just start fighting over such small, unimportant things that it made me realize how emotionally charged they both were. Noah, I think, was practically just waiting for Echo to realize that he was scum, making bad choices every now and then just to give her reasons to leave him.

     Echo, however, was an amazing character all the way. She stood up for herself, but she also tolerated Noah's little outbursts like a pro, like few girlfriends could probably tolerate from their boyfriends. She proved that she has grown immensely as a character and I thought that the author wrote her character with extreme care.

      Surely enough, there were ups and downs throughout the whole book, which took place entirely on a road trip. I also really liked the little part where Isaiah and Beth joined the story and the whole crew was back together. However, unlike previous books, this book was entirely Echo and Noah's. I thought that it was really nice. A sweet and romantic read, I recommend this book to all of those who have read the previous books!

Review: The Fall

My Rating: ★☆☆☆☆

     I was extremely excited to read The Fall, especially because lately I kept seeing and reading about it everywhere. The synopsis seemed interesting, the cover is nice and it is labeled a horror book. I don't usually read horror books but I absolutely love horror movies, therefore I was excited to read such a book.

     However, my enthusiasm was cut short. This book was awful. I didn't like it one bit. I think that it was the worst book that I have ever read. It was way too long and much too boring. To make myself absolutely clear, nothing happens in this book. Absolutely nothing.

      Meet Madeline Usher, who lives in a haunted house. A house that lives under a curse which practically forces her to live there, without ever being able to leave. And that's about it with this book. Basically, everything that happens in it is Madeline saying "this house is haunted", "this house is cursed", "I cannot leave this house", "I should not upset the house."

     I can't even begin to say how frustrating it is. I don't even know why I read it all. I guess that I kept expecting and hoping that something would actually happen, but nothing did. Madeline also has a brother, Roderick. They are twins, but he doesn't seem to believe or be affected by the house too much. Can you believe that the most interesting thing about this book is that there's an almost incest idea in it?

      I am extremely disappointed. I must say that when I started reading it, I was pretty pumped up, thinking that this book will be awesome and that it will make the hairs on my arms rise. It did not. I don't even know why this book is categorized as horror, because I think that even the story about the big bad wolf that stalks a little girl is scarier than this.

     I am stunned that I actually managed to finish reading it. I really regret wasting my time on it, but I guess not all the books that you read are good. I honestly don't recommend reading this book to anyone. I think it's best that you stay away from it. It's, unfortunately, a waste of time.

January Books

Here are the books that I have read this month:

• Vain by Amelie Fisher; my rating: ★★★★★

• Ruin by Rachel van Dyken; my rating: ★★★★★

A New Year

     Hello, everyone! I know that it's been almost a month since I've last posted anything on my blog but the holidays were a time for being with friends & family, less for blogging. Now, you might say that the holidays are long gone - and right you are! But I think that I speak for everyone when I say that after the most magical time of the year, which is the holidays, comes the most tragic time of the year, which is...finals. So I only now have a little bit of free time and I decided to write here to let you, my readers, know that I have been absent from my blog because I'm extremely busy with finals.

     I know that I've said that I have many plans for the blog in my last post, and those plans are not forgotten. In fact, I think they grow a little bit bigger and crazier everyday, but unfortunately I just didn't have time to think any of them through. I still don't and won't - for about two more weeks. But I promise that, when I finally finish all my finals and have some time for myself, that I will get right back to the blog because there's so much to do!

     I barely even had time to read at all this month. I started reading Matched at the beginning of January and I think I literally didn't make it past page 60, which is extremely annoying and sad because I usually read 3-4 books per month. But with January almost gone, I'm looking forward to February, which I hope will be a much better month. I am also "reading" another book, which is Vain, although I doubt that I will finish any of these in January. I believe I also have some books that I have yet to review, but I promise it will all come as soon as I have the time.

     Until then, thank you for being with me in the past year and I really hope that you'll stay with me for another year, because I have great ideas for the blog, which is all very exciting! I'll see you as soon as possible and for those of you who are confronted by the same situation as mine, good luck in your finals and may the odds be ever in your favor!