I have had a few messages about the new blogger format being far too hard for people to follow, therefore their is now a Facebook Page available which will be automatically updated with new posts and giveaways. Book blogs I like and book news. Just a whole lot of extra content, so feel free to like and share and I hope you enjoy it!

Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

This week marks the release of the final book in the second trilogy of The Mortal Instruments series. (Is that a mouthful or what?)

City of Heavenly Fire is highly anticipated and fan girls everywhere are peeing their pants over a Jace and Clary sex scene. (I still feel weird about the whole incest thing) and it's not to say when I read the original trilogy I didn't enjoy it, I did, I really did. However I will not be reading City of Heavenly Fire and here's why.

The Mortal Instruments follows Bella Swan-esque protagonist Clary who learns she is a Shadowhunter (i.e Demon Killer) her mother keeps it a secret from her in order to protect her from Valentine (A cliche' evil dude who is also her father) Voldemort meets Darth Vader anyone?! Then we have "hearthrob" Jace , who is actually a total arse and generally treats Clary like crap. We are also led to believe that for the first three books they are siblings, which makes some of the "romantic" moments, creepy as hell. They are no Jaime and Cersei afterall. In the original series Clary defeats Valentine just by being nicer than him, gets a magic angel wish and saves Jace's life. But fuck all the people who died in the big battle leading up to that. Max! Anyone! And the villians are so bland, they are evil because they used demon blood, that's it?! So there is no moral choice between good or bad then, just demon blood and angel blood. Great!

Of course the series isn't all bad, Isabelle is delightful and awesome and badass and I loved her. Alec is primadonna bitch and it's very entertaining and generally the dialogue is amusing and well written.

But none of these are the reason I won't be reading City of Heavenly Fire. I enjoyed the first trilogy and began to read the new trilogy with City of Fallen Angels. The only problem was...Simon.

I hate Simon. I can't stand him or reading about him and I know from my friends who read the books
that the second trilogy is heavy on Simon. I was so excited when he died but then he had to come back as a vampire and make himself extraordinarily annoying. He's stupid, irrational, possessive but it all comes across as cute because he's "FRIENDZONED". I think he's self righteous and likes the play the victim, he barrels into situations and drag Clary (who gets less annoying as the series goes on) in them with him. He's a vampire for god sake, that can walk in the sunlight and has that mark on his head so can't be hurt. I'd love that, I'd be so badass and become like a crime fighting vigilante, but no Simon uses it to cheat on the only other two girls in the "group" good job Simon!

So that is why I won't be finishing The Mortal Instruments. Although admittedly I have heard excellent things about The Infernal Devices! What's the worst that could happen?

Every Word Nerd knows that feeling when you finish a book in a series and then realise you have to wait for the next one. I mean, its enough to drive anyone to fictitious insanity and the GIF's born from that are well...

So in no particular order.

The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey

Surviving the first four waves was nearly impossible. Now Cassie Sullivan finds herself in a new world, a world in which the fundamental trust that binds us together is gone. As the 5th Wave rolls across the landscape, Cassie, Ben, and Ringer are forced to confront the Others’ ultimate goal: the extermination of the human race.

I adored The 5th Wave, it was like Falling Skies but more awesome. Cassie was awesome and the cliffhanger was legendary, I feel like I have been waiting forever for this book and I can't take any more. Come on Yancey, hand over the book and everything will be fine. 





Heir of Fire by Sarah J Maas

 While Celaena learns of her true destiny, and the eyes of Erilea are on Wendlyn, a brutal and beastly force is preparing to take to the skies. Will Celaena find the strength not only to win her own battles, but to fight a war that could pit her loyalties to her own people against those she has grown to love

I have already expressed my adoration for this series, it is by far my favourite and I am jump up and down, squeal at strangers and pee my pants excited for this book. Also Maas is releasing another series and I have complete faith it will be just as awesome. We aren't even halfway through the Throne of Glass series and I am deeply in love with everybody.





Winter by Marissa Meyer
 This book will feature Cinder and Snow White and will take place on the moon. 

This is literally all we know currently about the final book in the Lunar Chronicles series. From what we've seen of Winter it's going to be awesome.  I adore Cinder and now the Prince has joined the crew. What could go wrong?!










Landlines by Rainbow Rowell

Georgie McCool knows her marriage is in trouble. Two days before her and her husband are supposed to visit his family in Omaha for Christmas, Georgie tells Neal that she can’t go. She’s a TV writer, and something’s come up on her show; she has to stay in Los Angeles. She knows that Neal will be upset with her — Neal is always a little upset with Georgie — but she doesn’t expect to him to pack up the kids and go home without her. That night, Georgie discovers a way to communicate with Neal in the past. It’s not time travel, not exactly, but she feels like she’s been given an opportunity to fix her marriage before it starts . . .

 Having read all of Rowell's current books, I  am so excited for this new book. I have even been posting questions on the Goodreads interview with Rowell out of my excitement.



Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater






No blurb yet for this book but this series is excellent. And that cover, that's enough to get anyone giddy.











Young Elites by Marie Lu
Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina’s black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a malfetto, an abomination, ruining their family’s good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever’s survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars—they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites.

Even despite the disappointing ending to the Legend series I am so excited for Marie Lu's new series, the plot sounds awesome and she has such a wonderful visual style.

Warning: Spoilers (duh.)

Big thanks to Fiona of  http://caterfeereviews.blogspot.co.uk/ for the recommendation.


Lincoln O'Neill can't believe this is his job now- reading other people's e-mail. When he applied to be "internet security officer," he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers- not writing up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke.

When Lincoln comes across Beth's and Jennifer's messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can't help being entertained-and captivated-by their stories.

By the time Lincoln realizes he's falling for Beth, it's way too late to introduce himself.


Having already experienced Rowell's other books, I had high hopes for her debut novel. 

 Up until around 100 pages I was very disappointed, it was very tedious and I hated Lincoln. He was boring and maybe that was the point, because the turn around was incredible. I continued with the book firstly out of entertainment from Beth and Jennifer's emails. They were so funny.
 Beth and Jennifer have this wonderful banter, they are both classy and smart and fun and I immediately fell in love with them.  Even though I didn't "see" them until later in the book I still followed there plot line aggressively. Jennifer and Mick's baby trouble was hilarious, then tragic then joyful and that was all before I actually met them.

That's the great thing about this novel is that I felt physically in Lincolns point of view. (Sidenote: FUCK SAM! bitch.)  Then once  Lincoln fell for Beth, it was like I forgot I was reading and I fell into it's pages. The romance was enchanting and made me feel fuzzy on the inside. Lincoln handled the situation with grace and elegance and really grew into himself and that was so wonderful to read, that even before they got together she had an effect. It was a really beautiful journey to read. 

Mostly I loved Beth. she was enchanting. Definitley a force of nature, but not a tornado like Chris suggested. I saw her like a ray of sunshine, breaking through the clouds on a particularly stormy day. I love that girl and I can see why Lincoln did. 

Honestly this is the kind of book that makes you believe in love again. When your feeling lost or your not exactly where you want to be in life, this book pulls you from the abyss, pats you down and sends you onward with renewed hope. This book was exactly what I needed and it will stay with me long after I read that final line 'there's no air in space.'

Various thoughts:
Honestly a must read. 
Blew my mind.
I haven't been this happy after a book in a longtime.
Can Lincoln be real?


 

Series are an important member of the YA family. We love a long story that keeps going and gives us as much as possible. When you love a story there is nothing better than finding out there are more books, although that being said, some series are better than others. This is the countdown of my CURRENT favourite top ten

10. Dust Lands Series by Moira Young

Amidst the wreckage of a ruined civilization, Saba must fight to save herself, her family, and maybe her whole world.

The Dust Lands Series by Moira Young makes my top ten because of the first and second books in the trilogy. The final book was admittedly a disappointment but Saba is a strong protagonist and it's hard not to fall in love with her and her journey. The relationship development between her and her siblings is beautiful and the final chapter of Raging Star is really quite lovely.

9. Delirium Series by Lauren Oliver
Lena and Alex, two teens battling against the controlling government that believes that love is a disease and forbids it from their community.

Delirium is one of those trilogies that people were let down by the ending but Pandemonium is one of the greatest books I have ever read, the structure is just genius. And much like Veronica Roth's Allegiant, the ending becomes better and more able to cope with in time and after a re-reading. 


8. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Enter a future world where every year two tributes from each district are thrown into an arena expected to fight to the death or get knocked out by other means. Only one can survive.

A classic YA fave, The Hunger Games needs no explanation as to why it deserves to be in my top ten. Although I will say that despite how controversial. I loved Mockingjay. 



7. The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
The mysterious "Kid-Killer" affliction has left most American children dead, but Ruby is not one of them-she's one of the dangerous ones, the ones who lived. 

The Darkest Minds is by far one of the most interesting concepts I have ever read. I adored the first book and the second one was just as good. Ruby is delightful as is Liam and the characters development throughout this series is phenomenal. The final book in the trilogy In the Afterlight is out this year. I highly, highly recommend.
6.  Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth
 Veronica Roth's #1 New York Times bestselling debut is a gripping dystopian tale of electrifying choices, powerful consequences, unexpected romance, and a deeply flawed "perfect society."

Another YA classic, Divergent is a wonderful trilogy with a shock conclusion. If you haven't quite got over Allegiant,I recommend reading Veronica Roth's blog. Her post about her plot decisions is beautiful and really helps to understand the authors point of view. 


 5. Harry Potter by J. K Rowling






Need I say more.  






4. Demon Trappers by Jana Oliver

Riley Blackthorne is a 17-year-old trying to make her way in an Atlanta plagued by marauding demons and scheming necromancers. With each passing day, Atlanta is becoming the latest battlefield between Heaven and Hell.

This is one of the most consistent series I have ever read. Each book is as good and as satisfying as its predecessor. Riley is badass, Beck is just...great! And the narrative is full of twists and turns. You will fall in love with this series. 


3.Darkest Powers Trilogy by Kelley Armstrong
The series revolves around The Edison Group, a team of supernatural scientists, and the subjects they have experimented on. 

An incredibly absorbing trilogy that follows Chloe Saunders. Her inner struggle to control her powers and find out who she is will surprise and enthrall you. Armstrong is a well known horror writer and brings aspects of this into these novels to give it a great, scary edge.




2. Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer   
Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. 

Follow Cinder as she tried to take down the evil Lunars in these wonderful novels based loosely (incredibly so) on fairytales. The final book Winter is scheduled for release and I am so excited for it, I am going to pee my pants. 


1. Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas

   
After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin. 

 I initially read these books last year on a random whim after grabbing it at Waterstones and I never just buy books without researching first. But I was really glad I did. A year later I have just reread them after the release of The Assassins Blade (Throne of Glass Prequel Novella Bind Up) and it occurs to me that this may be my favourite fantasy series EVER!

I love Celaena so much, in a way that I've never connected to a protagonist before, she isn't simply kick-ass and hard and cold, shes also soft and sweet and goofy and she's real person in the greatest way that a collection of words can be a person, she is so incredibly complex that it doesn't seem possible for her not to be a person. Then there's Chaol who is the weirdest love interest but also seems so incredibly right, Dorian isn't just the typical kind of 'here he is, prince charming' fantasy that people love to read in books. But Chaol gives off the idea of what it's really like to be in love, he is the reality of love rather than the fantasy and I adore that. Sarah J Maas has created real life on the page. I often forget it's constructed and that none of this has actually happened.

The world is beautiful it's like Game of Thrones meets modern day and the way it feels natural to move through. And I normally hate books about Fae, I avoid them because I can't stand them and after I first read this book, the Fae part seemed not that important, it was more to do with how great the story was. The percentages of the book focusing on each narrative felt really good, really natural, it wasn't all about the competition or Elena or the love story or even this kind self acceptance and misery Celaena goes through story, they all flowed naturally and felt like that was how much time should have been spent on each part. I love this book in the weird way that I can love something that isn't real, something that was made up. 

The third book Heir of Fire is out September and luckily there are to be six novels within this series. 


 It's beautiful right! 

I honestly implore you, if you haven't read this series, pick it up. You will not be disappointed, it makes me all ...
 on the inside.

If you love books as much as I do, you find yourself buying accessories that remind you of your favourite books. Just today I bought a lion head door knocker necklace because there is a lion head door knocker on the cover of Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor.

 
 This then got me thinking. I wonder what other accessories I've bought because they were about books. Now I'm not a big jewellery person. I have a few necklaces here and there and I was honestly surprised at the amount of book references were found in my jewellery box (its actually more a tub)







I have a few classic book accessories as in the official ones that come when books are adapted to movies, such as these Divergent bands which I got at PULP in the Manchester Arndale for £5.99 (They're were more but I lost them)




Then there's the more symbolic ones with symbols from the book all coming together to hint at the story line. The yellow dandelion to symbolise Peeta, the pearl that he gave Katniss in the arena. Hazel Grace's infinity references. The possibilities are endless.























Then I have the aggressive Book Nerd badges. These were 99p each from Waterstones and they are so good for declaring your undying love for books. Also nothing better than seeing someone else with a similar badge.

Generally I find that your outfit is kind of your identity. It could be the show the real you or to hide it, but either way what you wear out in the world is saying something about you.

I don't know what the way I dress says about me but I do hope that it says that I am someone who cares about books. I care about words and I am proud of that. I hope it isn't obnoxiously but more passionately. And I hope that maybe as  I'm wearing my weird little accessories that people recognise them and start a book related conversation, because That would be awesome.