Wednesday 29 August 2012

Going Under by Georgia Cates

Jessie Boone is a self proclaimed bad boy and doesn’t march to the beat of anyone’s drum, but his own. Growing up in less than desirable circumstances has made him no stranger to the hard knock life and his determination to leave it behind is fierce. When he finds himself transferred to East Franklin High School, he sees his opportunity to use his athletic ability to snag a college football scholarship, but Forbes Henderson, the player Jessie means to replace isn’t giving up his spot willingly. In fact, Forbes is willing to go to extreme measures to retain his place as first string quarterback. When Forbes’ malicious plan to injure his replacement fails, Jessie is furious and determined to show him he messed with the wrong person; not only is he going to take the position of first string quarterback, he’s going to take his girl, too.
Claire Deveraux is perfection at it’s best. She is beautiful, intelligent and unaware she just became Jessie Boone’s conquest as revenge against her boyfriend, Forbes Henderson. Like her flawless performance as the perfect daughter and student, Claire’s production of being the perfect girlfriend has everyone fooled, except Jessie Boone, and she fears this tattooed bad boy will see her secret desire to explore his crude threats and promises to rock her perfect world. If she decides to give in to one uninhibited moment with Jessie, will she learn too late that it was all an act of vengeance or will Jessie learn the taste of first love is sweeter than that of revenge?


This was a random download from months ago that I finally read and really enjoyed!

What I loved:
  • Jessie- He reminded me of Noah from Pushing The Limits , he was a supposed 'bad boy' who is actually a good guy with a bad family situation although Jessie's life had arguably been harder than Noah's. I liked how he focussed on sports as a way out of his situation. I just really loved him-  I will even forgive him being called Jessie!
  • Claire's parents- Despite a major/minor blip with Claire's mum they were awesome parents! Her dad willingly overlooked Jessie's supposed bad reputation in favour of Claire's happiness. They even made a huge sacrifice for Jessie's safety. Good grounded parents- a rarity in YA fiction!
  • Claire and Payton- Great best friends. I loved how no nonsense Payton was especially how forward she was with Jessie to make sure he had Claire's best interest in minds. She knew Claire so well, she clearly didn't believe her whole I'm not even in Jessie thing.
  • Dale- Another good friend. I liked how he befriended Jessie irregardless of the team's opinion and looked out for him.
What I didn't love as much:
  • Forbes- I am starting to dislike how many awful ex boyfriends I have to read! Forbes was really vengeful, forceful and aggressive- not a good combination! I get that being dropped from the starting line up in favour of a 'poor' guy is a little humiliating but he was prepared to seriously injure Jessie and ruin his sports career- too far! I don't even want to get into how creepy and inappropriate he was to let himself into Claire's house...
  • Rita and Wayne- Two stellar examples of how to ruin and potentially ruin two lives. I can't even imagine how a Grandma could be so cold and criminal...
  • Drug dealing- Never a fan obviously but seeing as it was an important condition of Jessie's living with his Grandma it didn't actively get mentioned that much. As in he didn't seem to do much of it!
I really enjoyed this it avoided being completely cliche but was suitably fluffy!


Let me know if you liked this one!
Much Love
Lettie
xxxx

Tuesday 28 August 2012

Top Ten Tuesday: Update!

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by: The Broke and the Bookish.
Next week's topic is Autumn TBRs so I thought I would  go back and see how many of my Anticipated Summer Reads I actually got round to reading :)

My Summer TBR was my very first Top Ten Tuesday here. I managed seven out of ten which isn't too bad!

Read

I Heart London by Lindsey Kelk- Such a good end to the series although I hope it's not the permanent end!
Matched by Ally Condie- A great read! I loved the society set up and the characters, looking forward to reading Crossed and Reached.
If I Stay by Gayle Forman and Where She Went by Gayle Forman- These books will stay with me forever- they were so emotional!
Love of The Party by Lauren Barnholdt- I loved the fact this was a combination of different yet related stories, good quick read!
Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry-Better than Perfect Chemistry, it had such an intriguing plot and characters
Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson- Lived up to my expectations of Morgan Matson, I'm already looking forward to her next book!

Not Read


Divergent by Veronica Roth
This one is sat patiently on my library pile! I will be taking it away with me next month so it just misses out on being a summer read :)
In Honor by Jessi Kirby/The Thing about the Truth by Lauren Barnholdt
These two haven't been read for the same reason. I don't like buying contemporary books as hardbacks and unfortunately these two are only available in hardback!
I don't want them as ebooks as I'm still not a fan of ebooks... These two will get read as soon as they are paperbacks!

All seven were great picks and really good reads so I'm glad I stuck to the majority of this list!
I'm excited to pick out my Autumn TBR next Tuesday!

How did you do with your summer TBR?

Much Love
Lettie
xxx

Monday 27 August 2012

Monday Round Up!

One of my favourite memes hosted by the lovely Shelia over at Book Journey!

This is my first non wrap up Monday post all month! Not as much reading last week but my week was eventful!
I got stuck at the train station for two hours until my Grandpa graciously came to my rescue- we then took over an hour to drive a fifteen minute journey due to traffic! A nightmare made worse by the fact I had nothing to read as my phone (kindle app) had died on the train!
I went to see Wedding Video- funny film but I wasn't keen on the ending.

Other posts!
Discussion post- Stand Alones Vs Series- New kind of post which I finally got round to posting. Go check it out and let me know your thoughts!
Top Ten Books I've read- This one is pretty interesting as it really made me think about the books I've read during this blog and which ones will stand the test of time.

Read!

I got so many comment on this beautiful cover last week- the book inside definitely lives up it! I probably should of read Callum and Harper first as I did get a little confused but I loved it all the same!

Reading



So far so good- this is the only dystopia book I picked up myself without hearing anything about it so I'm glad it's proving a good read!

To Be Read


 I did start this one last week but I think it was a bit too heavy after my contemporary readathon so I'm hoping to pick it up again soon!

Upcoming Reviews

You may have noticed a lack of reviews- I have been invited on a last minute long holiday in September so I am stockpiling reviews so this blog can be updated regularly while I'm gone!
I will post at least one review this week tho.

Upcoming Posts

Goodreads- I've been trying to get more involved in the social side of blogging so I might do a post on that!
I've also been thinking about doing a post clarifying my position on reviews and books in general- maybe a what I do if I don't like a book/why my reviews always seem positive?

Any opinions/feedback on my upcoming posts is always welcomed- how else will I know what people want to see!
Let me know what you've been up to blog or life wise!

Much Love
Lettie
Xxxx


Saturday 25 August 2012

Discussion Post: Stand Alones Vs Series

Stand Alones Vs Series

First ever discussion style post!
New kind of post today and it has been a while in the making! I couldn't decide on a layout so I'm laying out Rory Gilmore style with what I see as the pros and cons of each!

Why- Is it me or are the majority of books now part of a series?
Out of the last 20 books I've read, only three were stand alones- admittedly other three were just sequels. But that is still an overwhelming majority of series books.

Stand Alones
Pros
  • With stand alones you get the whole story in one shot, no waiting or rushing around for the next one. The story usually has a clear decisive ending which ties up all loose ends and leaves  you satisfied.
  • Stand alones can give you a nice introduction to an author and their writing style, for example with Lauren Kate I decided to read The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove prior to the Fallen Series to see if I liked her style before getting sucked into a series!
  • They are obviously quicker to read than a series and my personal favourite is when an author ties all their stand alones together so you get a glimpse of the previous characters but a brand new story!
Cons
  • Certain genres such as fantasy and dystopia it can be hard to world build and set up sufficient background in just one book. Since starting to read the dystopia genre I haven't actually read or even come across a single stand alone!
  • Once it's over it's over it's unlikely you'll read another book centred on the exact same characters and viewpoint that you've just fallen for again!

Series

Pros
  • With a series you really get  to follow the characters and plot to their full extent and explore a lot more of the world which in turn makes them more memorable.
  • Series create more hype! I think it's easier to capitalise on a great series as they have a publishing schedule which allows suspension and an eager fanbase to build. I'm sure there are stand alones I love as much as Harry Potter or The Hunger Games but I never queued at up for their midnight release or drove in to town solely to pick up the next one as once I was finished that was it!
  • Aesthetically they look beautifully put together all lined up unless the publisher does that annoying thing where their change the cover design mid series- who does that?
Cons.
  • Series are much more time consuming than stand alones- I put off the Hunger Games during University as I knew I didn't have time to sit and read three books in quick succession.
  • They can be expensive. If I had paid full price for the Hunger Games series it would have cost me £23 in less than week whereas as one standalone would cost a maximum of £7!
  • It can take years for the plot line to be tied up. For example it was clear decade from the publication of Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallow. I started the series as a primary school girl and ended it as a seventeen old A level student, usually to different audiences.
  • Sometimes series can be unnecessary or far too long. Some series can seem drag on even when the primary plot line is wrapped up.

Obviously everyone loves both but are you frustrated with the amount of series around at the moment? Or is it just the books I'm picking?
Do you love series' and enjoy the anticipation or do you enjoy the quick satisfying resolution of a stand alone?
Also do you like this style of post?

Much Love
Lettie
xxxx

Tuesday 21 August 2012

Top Ten Tuesday- Favourite Books!


Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by: The Broke and the Bookish.
This week's topic is Favourite Books You've Read During The Lifespan Of Your Blog!
 
 
 
This topic was difficult as  I usually define a book as one of my favourites if I still love it months later- seeing as I've only been blogging since June, I really had to think which books I had read since starting my blog and go from there.
In no particular order!


The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

 

This book definitely convinced me that dystopia was a genre I would enjoy. It was my favourite of the trilogy! Full review.

Because of Low by Abbi Glines

Loved the relationships and revelations in this book- introduced me to what an amazing author Abbi is!

While It Lasts by Abbi Glines

Loved this even more than Because of Low- it was fun, the characters were realistic and the plot was something I hadn't read before!

If I Stay by Gayle Forman
This book will stay with me forever- it was breathtaking! Full review.

Where She Went by Gayle Forman

If I Stay was a hard act to follow but Where She Went managed to follow it beautifully. Full review.

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson

I love how this book covers so much emotionally in such a short summer. Full review.

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry


Really lived up to the hype surrounding it and had such an intriguing plot and characters. Full review 
The Selection by Kiera Cass

I loved this as it was a more light hearted dystopia book! Full review.

I Heart London by Lindsey Kelk

 Such a good end to the series and I loved finally seeing Angela 'at home'!  

Going Under by Georgia Cates

This one surprised me as I never would of thought it would end up as one of my favourites but it was such a good read it deserves to be on this list!

Honourable mentions
Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan which was just too disturbing to make it onto this list and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins which got left off due to The Hunger Games!


Wow! I read a lot more books than I'd thought since June!
Let me know what your favourites are!
Much Love!
Lettie
xxx


Monday 20 August 2012

Monday Round Up/Wrap Up

One of my favourite memes hosted by the lovely Shelia over at Book Journey! This week my Weekly Round Up has been hijacked (again!) as a Readathon wrap up! The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organised by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal .


Read!

Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire
Just as good as I'd hoped!
Going Under by Georgia Cates
Great read- cover was misleading but it was so easy to read and the characters were great :)
The Boy Who Sneaks In My Bedroom Window by Kirsty Moseley.
Started strong but really weakened- not a fan! I really wanted to like it!
While It Lasts by Abbi Glines.
This one was all over my twitter so I just had to read it! Replaced Beautiful Disaster at the last minute as my favourite book of the week!

Goals Met?
Prediction= 6 Result= 4. Total Page count- 1,356
Same as last week! But this week I seemed to have an impromptu YA contemporary week which I really enjoyed! I also read more pages than last week so slight improvement.
I did have to cover two extra days at work which is why I read ebooks- easier to read during lunch and breaks!
I learnt the pitfalls of being taken in by Kindle samplers and cheap ebooks!
I really enjoyed Bout of Books- Unfortunately I missed all the Twitter chats which I was looking forward to.
I will definitely be taking part again :)

Readathon posts!
Goals Post!
Update post.

Reviews Posted!
Better blogging week!
Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire- How quick was this one reviewed!
The Selection by Kiera Cass- Finally finished up this review.

Reading 

This one was just missed out on the Bout of Books! So far it's living up to my expectations!

To Be Read

 So excited for this one- hopefully it won't disappoint!

I really enjoyed the Bout of Books readathon- definitely going to be taking part in it again!

Let me know what you've been reading and loving!
Much Love!
Lettie
xxxx

Sunday 19 August 2012

Bout of Books Update!

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organised by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal .

Slow start as I had a lot of work this week but I've got this weekend to make it to six! Fingers crossed!

Progress So Far!

Beautiful Disaster courtesy of NetGallery! Already reviewed here
Going Under- Loved it!!


Started

I seem to be on a YA contemporary spree atm!
So far so good :)

Let me know how you've doing with the readathon!  
Much Love!
Lettie
xxx

Friday 17 August 2012

The Selection by Kiera Cass


Thirty-five beautiful girls. Thirty-five beautiful rivals…
It’s the chance of a lifetime and 17-year-old America Singer should feel lucky. She has been chosen for The Selection, a reality TV lottery in which the special few compete for gorgeous Prince Maxon’s love.
Swept up in a world of elaborate gowns, glittering jewels and decadent feasts, America is living a new and glamorous life. And the prince takes a special interest in her, much to the outrage of the others.
Rivalry within The Selection is fierce and not all of the girls are prepared to play by the rules. But what they don’t know is that America has a secret – one which could throw the whole competition… and change her life forever.

If I had to describe this book I'd say it's a dystopia fairy tale with a twist! Gorgeous cover and enchanting story!

Don't let all the comparisons put you off. I've never watched the Bachelor and I'm not a Britain's Next Top Model fan but I liked the Selection.
I think the basic concepts of those shows show up in The Selection, the lottery of 35 girls who go and stay with one guy who will select one and the makeovers. However these devices are pretty neutral aspects and comparisons are just there to entice people.

What I loved:
  • America- She grew on me! I admired her initial disinterest in The Selection and how she wasn't too bothered by class. I liked her honesty and I could see why the public liked her- she was much more down to earth than the other girls!
  • Marlee- I liked how warm and friendly she was but for some reason I don't trust her....Which I like as it lets me come up with conspiracy theories!
  • Maxon- What a lovely if sheltered guy! It was interesting to see his view of the Selection and how odd and confusing he found it. He was very considerate of the girls trying to be honest and open although like most boys he is easily fooled by a pretty face and a fake personality! He took his future role of King very seriously and tried his best to think for his people before himself- fictional princes can sometimes be selfish and stupid so it made a nice change. I'm looking forward to seeing him develop in the next book.
  • Royal Family- Loved the genuine affection between them all. Queen Amberly's sister, Adele brought a lot of 'outsideness' to the palace and humanised the royal family. I think Adele had a good idea on the Queen and the effect of Selection on the family.
  • World and Premise- Really liked this world, it is like a medieval style futuristic world! I loved the way the classes were sectioned out and how America wasn't in the worst class. The selection idea was clever and more of a fairy tale or fantasy style cliche which felt completely fresh combined with dystopia.

What I didn't love as much:
  • Aspen- I initially liked him but that dwindled after about one chapter! I don't think he'd thought as much about their future as Americahad , he may have thought he was noble but he just seemed kinda dismissive and rude!
  • Celeste- I've never read a nice Celeste so I wasn't expecting much! She was mean, stuck up and manipulative- as anticipated!
It was a quick read and left me desperate for the next instalment! It is a relatively lighter dystopia with the feel of a YA contemporary that I would recommend :)

What do you think of this book?
Much Love!
Lettie
xxxx

Thursday 16 August 2012

Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire



Good Girl. Abby Abernathy doesn't drink or swear and she works hard. Abby believes she has created enough distance between her and the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college, her dreams of a new beginning are quickly challenged by the university's walking one-night stand. Bad Boy. Travis Maddox, handsome, built, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby needs - and wants - to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight club, and his days as the notorious college Lothario. A disaster waiting to happen...Intrigued by Abby's resistance to his charms, Travis tricks her into his life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain celibate for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis' apartment for the same amount of time. Or the start of something beautiful? Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match. Or that this is the start of an obsessive, intense relationship that will lead them both into unimaginable territory...

This one has been doing the blog rounds! I requested it on NetGalley and got lucky again!
It's been described as like Fifty Shades of Grey which put me off a little but it was nothing like it. It was fun easy to read and hot!

What I loved:
  • The relationships- the bond between America and Abby, America may have been a bad conscience but she was such a good friend. I liked Shep's loyalty to Travis and their easy going relationship. I loved Shep and America they were so cute. Travis and Abby just simmered with passion!
  • College Setting- I loved the fact it was set in a college and the characters were older- made a great change from all the high school settings :)
  • Plot- I would never have guessed Abby's 'past' as it wasn't cliched which made a nice change. I loved how Travis's family was explored instead of just left in the background.
  • Finch- loved this character! Quintessential gay best friend and so much more. I loved how he crawled under the toiler door to comfort Abby!
  • Travis' evolution- Travis did change and evolve as a person throughout the book although realistically he could evolve a little bit more and I think he probably will! I loved how he seemed to changed because of Abby not for her, showing the positive effect their relationship had on Abby.
  • Nickname- Travis randomly nicknamed Abby Pigeon which I found weird but it really grew on me! It ended up sounding cute.
 
What I didn't love as much:
  • Abby- She got on my nerves at times. She was so blind to Travis' affections- which is something I find annoying in real life! I also found her a  inconsistent at times which bugged me!
  • Violence- As Travis is in a fight club there was a lot of fighting and I have a thing about blood. It didn't bother me too much but every now and then I'd read a reference to blood and feel a bit queasy!
  • Past- I want to know more about Abby's past and Travis' family. While reading I felt it could of been explored but now I see it would have made it so much longer!
  • The Ending- not a fan! If you've read it I'm just not a fan of that style of ending, it felt a bit rushed to me. But I was happy that it was at least a positive ending- for awhile I thought it was going to turn tragic on me!
I really enjoyed this book, once I picked it up I could not put it down! The chemistry was so good I had to finish their story.
It left me wanting more and I was hoping for a Shep/America companion book however I will have to settle for Walking Disaster- Travis' point of view! Think I'll manage :)
If you want a quick engaging chemistry filled read, I would recommend Beautiful Disaster!

Let me know your opinion!
Much Love!
Lettie
xxx


Wednesday 15 August 2012

Bout of Books- 13th August to 19th August




Details
The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organised by  Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal . It is a week long read-a-thon that begins Monday, August 13th and runs through Sunday, August 19th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. 


Aim
I'm aiming for six again as I shouldn't be going anywhere this week!
I think this is a more realistic goal especially as I've got work until Wednesday so limited reading time.
Books
As I proved last time these lists seem to curse the books on them!
So I'll just list a couple :)
  1. Divergent by Veronica Roth
  2. Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire
  3. Across the Universe by Beth Revis
  4. Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Let me know if you're taking part and what you plan on reading!
Much Love!
Lettie
xxx

Tuesday 14 August 2012

Weekly Round/Wrap Up



 Summer Wrap-Up Read-a-Thon


One of my favourite memes hosted by the lovely Shelia over at Book Journey! This week my Weekly Round Up has been hijacked as a Readathon wrap up! The Readathon was hosted by Jennifer at Some Like It Paranormal and Jude at In Between!

Side Note- Bad Blogging week! I was unexpectedly needed in the country due to personal reasons. I attempted to schedule some posts- as usual it didn't work!

Read!


*Plus* The Future of Us by Kahlen Aymes!

Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan.
Just as good as I'd hoped! Spark is firmly on my TBR list, hoping my local library will get a copy in!
Sam Cruz's Infallible Guide To Getting Girls by Tellulah Darling.
NetGallery request- realistic, funny and witty! Great quick read.
Because of Low by Abbi Glines.
Random Kindle book (downloaded the kindle app due to NetGallery!). Really loved it, very character driven which is always a winner when the characters are written well!
The Future of Us by Kahlen Aymes.
Free kindle download- easy enjoyable read, not my favourite of the week!

Goals Met?
Prediction= 6 Result= 4
I have to take responsibility for poor packing of reading material on my unexpected trip.
But I was already behind due to Olympic Fever!! I soaked up Team GB's massive success and the impressive London 2012 games so much I had little time for anything- whoops!
Once again the curse of the TBR list attacked!
I only manged to read one book of my list- I saved so many books  for this readathon and then got distracted.
I still enjoyed readathon and four  books isn't too bad!

Readathon posts!

Launch post complete with aims and list of books I didn't end up reading! Here
Update and challenge post here

What's next?
Book wise-

 

I'm tempted by the Bout of Books Readathon as I don't feel I really got the chance to get involved with this one- plus my TBR list has grown too much!

Reviews
I made review notes on my Readathon books so those reviews should be up soon!

Let me know what you've been reading!
Much Love
Lettie
xxx