May Wrap Up 2014

A look back at the books I read in the month of May. With the star rating and a short explanation of my thoughts.

1.If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin
This is a dark Young Adult contemporary. Was heartbreaking and beautiful.
Gave it 4/5 stars
2. Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira
I really loved the letters Laurel wrote throughout the story. Also enjoyed the celebrities she choose to address them to. This is a debut novel for 2014.
Gave it 4/5 stars
3. Fifty Shades Freed by E.L. James
I needed a break from the two dark heavily emotional books. So I chose to finish up the Fifty Shades series. I loved how much Ana and Christian's relationship grew in this installment of the series. I don't know if this is really the last book or not. Heard talk of maybe a fourth novel. Gave it 5/5 stars *Note this series as adult content and is not for younger readers*
4. The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa
I do have a review posted on this. Which you can find here:http://www.booksarediamonds.blogspot.com/2012/05/immortal-rules-by-julie-kagawa.html
But I needed to reread it. In order to refresh my mind. Still give it 5/5 stars.
5. The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa Also reread this as well. Another 5/5 stars
6. The Forever Song by Julie Kagawa
A great ending to another amazing series by Julie Kagawa. I love her Iron Fey series. I never thought she could write something that would be as addicting. I was wrong, love her take on vampires. Gave it 5/5 stars

I was in a bit of a slump in the beginning of the month. I got addicted to Doctor Who. Which led me not to read as much. I am happy with have gotten six books in. I'm not sure if I'll post a June TBR, only because once I say this what I'm going to read. I never want to read them then. I'm just going to read whatever calls my name. Although I'd love to finish up some series. Mainly Harry Potter and the Percy Jackson series.

Let me know what you read in May. What you plan to read in June. If you read any of the books I mentioned. Or if you plan to.
That's all for me.
Happy Reading, Ashley

February/March/April Wrap Ups 2014

Here is a look back at the books I've read in February,March and April. Since its been a while that I read these books. I'm just going to put the star rating beside the title. However if there is a book you would like a review for please let me know.

February Reads:
1. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling 5/5 stars (reread)
2. Divergent by Veronica Roth 5/5 stars (reread)
3. Angelfall by Susan Ee 5/5 stars (reread)
4. Hopeless by Colleen Hoover 5/5 stars
5. World After by Susan Ee 5/5 stars
6. Making Faces by Amy Harmon 5/5 stars
7. Two Tales Dark and Grim:The Key/Brothers Piggett by Rachel Hawkins and Julie Kagawa 5/5 stars.

March Reads:
1. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer 5/5 stars (reread)
2. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi 5/5 stars
3. Anna Dressed In Blood by Kendare Blake 5/5 stars
4. The Eclective Collection by Heather Marie Adkins 5/5 stars
5. Champion by Marie Lu 5/5 stars
6. Don't Even Think About It by Sarah Mlynowski 5/5 stars
7. Book Lovers by Linda M. Priestley
8. Unite Me by Tahereh Mafi 5/5 stars
9. Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi 5/5 stars
10. Born Lucky:A YA St. Patrick's Day Story by Rusty Fischer 5/5 stars
11. Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi 5/5 stars

April Reads:
1.Insurgent by Veronica Roth 5/5 stars (reread)
2.Allegiant by Veronica Roth 5/5 stars
3. Fifty Shades Darker by E.L. James 5/5 stars
4. Crushing On the Enemy by Sarah Adams 3/5 stars
5. Flight of Life by E.L. Todd 3/5 stars
6. Kiss of Midnight by Lara Adrian 4/5 stars
7. Cinder by Marissa Meyer 4/5 stars
8. Wait For You by J. Lynn 4/5 stars

That's all the wonderful books I've read in the past three months. I'll be posting my May Wrap Up and June TBR soon.
Until then please let me know what you've read in the last three months or if you have read any of the books mentioned and what you thought of them.

Happy Reading, Ashley!!

January Wrap 2014

January was a slow reading month for me. Only managed to read five books towards my now 80 book challenge for 2014. Changed my goal because according to Goodreads I was four behind when my goal was set to 100.

Hopefully I can keep on track. But let's take a look back at my books for January.
1. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Hearing so much love for this,I was scared to read it but I loved every minute. 5/5 stars
2. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Mass
Again heard amazing reviews. 5/5 stars
3. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak 5/5 stars
4. Abigail and Her Pet Zombie by Marie F. Crow 5/5 stars
5. The Ugly Duckling by Christian Hans Anderson 4/5 stars

That's all for January
Let me know what books you read in January or if you read any of the ones I read.

Happy Reading, Ashley

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
Released:August 2nd,2012
Publisher:Bloomsbury
Series:Throne of Glass,Book One
Page Amount:404,Kindle Edition
Source:Overdrive media

"Meet Celaena Sardothien.
Beautiful. Deadly. Destined for greatness.

In the dark, filthy salt mines of Endovier, an eighteen-year-old girl is serving a life sentence. She is a trained assassin, the best of her kind, but she made a fatal mistake: she got caught.

Young Captain Westfall offers her a deal: her freedom in return for one huge sacrifice. Celaena must represent the prince in a to-the-death tournament—fighting the most gifted thieves and assassins in the land. Live or die, Celaena will be free. Win or lose, she is about to discover her true destiny. But will her assassin’s heart be melted?"
-Information from Goodreads.com





My Thoughts:

This book is amazing!!! How do I get all my thoughts out? I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Calaena is a kickass female lead. I loved her point of view. I look forward to reading the rest of the series. I really loved Throne of Glass because it reminded me of Alanna by Tamora Pierce. Alanna and Celaena are both women fighting to do the same heroic acts of men. 5/5 stars, Happy Reading, Ashley

World After by Susan Ee

World After by Susan Ee
Released:November 18th,2013
Publisher:Skyscape
Series:Penryn and the End of Days,Book Two
Page Amount:314,US Paperback Edition
Source:Own



"In this sequel to the bestselling fantasy thriller, Angelfall, the survivors of the angel apocalypse begin to scrape back together what's left of the modern world.

When a group of people capture Penryn's sister Paige, thinking she's a monster, the situation ends in a massacre. Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.

Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels' secret plans where she catches a glimpse of their motivations, and learns the horrifying extent to which the angels are willing to go.

Meanwhile, Raffe hunts for his wings. Without them, he can't rejoin the angels, can't take his rightful place as one of their leaders. When faced with recapturing his wings or helping Penryn survive, which will he choose?"
-Information from Goodreads.com


My Thoughts:

Wow, World After was mind blowing. I loved the twist and turns. Didn't see anything coming. Super excited for the next three novels in this series. Can I just say I love Raffe. Because I do. 5/5 stars!!! Happy Reading, Ashley

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Released:August 16th,2011(first August 6th,2011)
Publisher:Crown Publishers
Page Amount:386, Kindle Edition
Source:Kindle


"It's the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.

Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets. 

And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune--and remarkable power--to whoever can unlock them. 

For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday's riddles are based in the pop culture he loved--that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday's icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes's oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig. 

And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle. 

Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt--among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life--and love--in the real world he's always been so desperate to escape. 

A world at stake. 
A quest for the ultimate prize. 
Are you ready?"
-Information from Goodreads.com




My Thoughts:

Having heard so much hyper from Booktubers on Ready Player One. I wasn't sure how I would take to it. Ernest Clone wrote one neck of a fast paced action story. I could understand most of the 80s references, even though I was born in the late 80s. This story has me wanting to find an old Nintendo game console and play again like when I was a kid. If you've been on the fence about this one. Take my advice and pick it up. Give to the videogamer in your life. 5/5 stars!!!!!

Making Faces by Amy Harmon

Making Faces by Amy Harmon
Released:October 20th,2013
Publisher:CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Page Amount:405,Kindle Edition
Source:Kindle


"Ambrose Young was beautiful. He was tall and muscular, with hair that touched his shoulders and eyes that burned right through you. The kind of beautiful that graced the covers of romance novels, and Fern Taylor would know. She'd been reading them since she was thirteen. But maybe because he was so beautiful he was never someone Fern thought she could have...until he wasn't beautiful anymore.

Making Faces is the story of a small town where five young men go off to war, and only one comes back. It is the story of loss. Collective loss, individual loss, loss of beauty, loss of life, loss of identity. It is the tale of one girl's love for a broken boy, and a wounded warrior's love for an unremarkable girl. This is a story of friendship that overcomes heartache, heroism that defies the common definitions, and a modern tale of Beauty and the Beast, where we discover that there is a little beauty and a little beast in all of us."
-Information from Goodreads.com

My Thoughts: Making Faces is a roller coaster of emotions. Happy, sad, angry, love, joy, and death. Never have I had a book make me cry and laugh on the same page. I loved that Making Faces was set in Pennsylvania. I loved Fern and Ambrose. Their story is something that could be realistic. I will definitely reading more from Amy Harmon. Making Faces is one of those stories that will stay with you after reading. 5/5 stars, for Hercules!! Happy Reading, Ashley