#SixforSunday: STRANDED!

Hello my booksicles!

#SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot. This week’s theme is, ‘characters I’d like to be stranded with’– I’m going to assume it means stranded on a desert island!

If I had to be stranded with a character of my choice, I’d choose a character who firstly, has the right skills for survival/ escape and secondly, would be interesting to talk to so the whole experience isn’t too boring. So here are the characters I’d choose:

1) Silas from Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson

I think Silas is awesome- he definitely ticks the ‘interesting to talk to’ box and I’m sure he’d have lots of exciting tales to tell. Also, as a demon he has many supernatural abilities that would aid our survival and he wouldn’t even have to eat so there’d be less strain on resources!

2) Nina Zenik from Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Nina is amazing and I wouldn’t mind being stranded if it was with her. And we’d definitely survive- I have no doubt about that!

3) Lazlo Strange from Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

I’d want to be stranded with Lazlo because he’d be able to tell a lot of interesting, whimsical stories but he also seems practical enough for survival.

4) Csorwe from The Unspoken Name by A. K. Larkwood

Csorwe would probably come up with a reckless, seemingly impossible plan to get off the island and we’d probably come near to death many times but ultimately survive.

5) Lia Mara from A Heart so Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer

Lia Mara is smart and she doesn’t mind doing what needs to be done so together we’d make a detailed survival plan and once that’s in place we’d just chat about books.

6) Kell Maresh from A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab

Kell is an Antari and all his blood commands would be very useful for survival. And he could even teleport us to that same island in a parallel universe and it might not be a desert island there and we could escape!

Which characters would you want to be stranded with on a desert island? Which characters would you hate being stranded with? Let me know in the comments!

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#SixforSunday: Bookish Habits

Hello my booksicles!

It’s been so long since I’ve done a #SixforSunday but I’ve decided to bring them back! For those who are unfamiliar, #SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot and this week’s theme is, ‘six bookish habits’.

I think some of my habits in relation to books have changed over time. For example, I used to always fold over the corner of my page to mark my place in a book but now I use a bookmark because I don’t like creasing the pages anymore. Today however, I’ll be listing six of my bookish habits that have never changed:

1) Reading the last page/ line of a book before I’ve finished it:

Sometimes I just need to know how a book will end or an indication that everything will be alright so I skim the last page or glance at the last line. Normally I don’t spoil too much for myself because I have no idea what’s happening on the last page anyway. Another thing I do, especially in books with multiple points of view, is skip forward a few chapters to check if a certain character is alright because I don’t have the patience to wait several chapters before finding out.

2) Taking the jackets off hardcovers whilst I’m reading them:

The jacket really irritates me when I read a hardcover because it keeps getting in the way and slipping around so normally I just take it off to save me the trouble of constantly adjusting it. Once I’m finished reading the book, I put the jacket back on.

3) Reading before going to sleep:

I like reading before I go to sleep but unlike some people it doesn’t help me to relax, it’s just one of the only times I find time to read so I take advantage of it.

4) Constantly adding books to a never-ending tbr (to be read) list:

I think most people take the idea of a tbr as a list of books they will definitely read at some point or at least try to. However I take it more as a list of books that seem interesting and that I think I will like but if I never get around to reading them, it’s alright. And I know I probably won’t get around to reading most of them because I keep adding more and more intriguing books all the time but I don’t mind and the fact that my tbr is ridiculously long doesn’t stress me out in the slightest. I enjoy finding out about different books regardless if I’ll ever read them.

5) Taking every opportunity to go to a bookshop:

No matter where I go or what I’m doing I can’t resist going into every bookshop I see. Bookshops are my happy place.

6) Reading by mood:

I can’t stick to a rigid tbr because I like to read whatever I feel like reading in that moment. If I’m not in the mood to read a book, I won’t feel motivated to pick it up and will probably spend much longer than usual reading it.

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What are your bookish habits? Let me know in the comments!

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#SixforSunday: Characters I’d Go on Holiday With

#SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot. This week’s theme is, ‘characters you’d go on holiday with‘.

Here are my top six!

(1) The entire Six of Crows gang (Kaz, Inej, Nina, Matthias, Jesper and Wylan)

Yes, I know it would be the wildest, most chaotic holiday ever, but it would still be pretty cool! We could go on a snowy skiing holiday and I could eat waffles with Nina and Inej.

(2) Lila Bard from A Darker Shade of Magic

Lila is the perfect person to go on a seafaring, swashbuckling holiday. Although I’m certain she’d insist on doing something dangerous and I’d just have to hide in a corner.

(3) Elide Lochan and Yrene Towers from Throne of Glass

I’d probably go on a relaxing beach holiday with these two. Sun, sand and sunshine!

(4) Haidee from The Never Tilting World

Haidee is so cute and cares so much about animals (like me) so we could go on an adventure holiday to the Amazon rainforest or something and embrace nature. She’d probably name every animal she’d see.

(5) Veronyka from Crown of Feathers (and her phoenix)

We’d fly to interesting places on her phoenix and explore different cities all over the world to discover new things.

(6) Sarai and Lazlo from Strange the Dreamer

I’d go on holiday in a dream of their making and go on lots of whimsical adventures!

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Which characters would you go on holiday with? Let me know in the comments!

#SixforSunday: Couples Who Need a Sequel

#SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot.

This week’s theme is, ‘couples who need a sequel’ so here are six bookish couples that, in my opinion, need a sequel right now!

(1) Cress and Thorne from The Lunar Chronicles

Cress and Thorne are extremely cute together and a sequel where they go soaring through the skies in the Rampion, saving the world and other extraordinary things would be amazing!

(2) Agnieszka and Sarkan from Uprooted

Uprooted ends with many unanswered questions and I’d love a sequel detailing what happens to Agnieszka and Sarkan. I can just imagine them living in the valley and practising magic and spells every second of every day.

(3) Elisabeth and Mr Darcy from Pride and Prejudice

I love these two so much. They don’t just deserve a sequel but an entire book series about their lives.

(4) Inej and Kaz from Six of Crows

Kaz and Inej just deserve to be happy and writing about them really makes me want to reread Six of Crows!

(5) Thyon and Ruza from Strange the Dreamer

They’re perfect together and I think a sequel about them would be hilarious.

(6) Manon and Dorian from Throne of Glass

Personally, I would have preferred Manon and Dorian to be very good friends and allies instead of being in a romantic relationship but I would still read a sequel about them. After the events that unfold in Kingdom of Ash, they are both in very dark places (especially Manon) and a book where they come to terms with these things and start to heal would be wonderful.

Which bookish couples do you think deserve a sequel? Do you agree with any of mine? Let me know in the comments!

#SixforSunday- Baddies Who Deserve their own Story

#SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot. This week’s theme is, ‘baddies who deserve their own story’.

The funny thing about villains is that everyone tends to hate them but at the same time they are very intriguing and I always find myself wondering what happened to them to make them the way they are.

So here are some baddies I think deserve their own story:

(1) The Darkling from The Grishaverse by Leigh Bardugo:

According to the books he is supposedly hundreds of years old so I suppose he’s been on lots of adventures and done lots of terrible things. I think he’d have some very interesting but probably terrifying stories to tell.

(2) Arobynn Hamel from the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas:

We never find out much about Arobynn like how and why he became an assassin, what he had to do to become the King of Assassins and why he decided to take in Celaena. I think he deserves his own background story because he’s so horrible and we never know why.

(3) Smaug from The Hobbit by JRR Tolkein:

Smaug is the gold-hoarding dragon from The Hobbit and I think a story about him would be fascinating for the same reason I think a story about the Darkling would be fascinating. He’s been alive for hundreds of years and has seen so many things that lots of weird and wonderful things must have happened to him.

(4) Legend from Caraval:

He is such a mysterious figure it would be cool to have a story from his perspective and find out what motivates his actions.

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Which baddies do you think deserve their own story? Let me know in the comments!

#SixforSunday – Books from my Childhood

#SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot. This week’s theme is, ‘books from my childhood’. I have so many happy memories related to books in my childhood and it was a pleasure taking a stroll down memory lane to write this post.

(1) The Mr Men books by Roger Hargreaves

These books were my childhood and I loved them so much. My favourite was always Mr Clever and how he wasn’t actually as clever as he thought. I also liked Mr Strong who ate loads of eggs every day, Mr Cheerful who only had three hairs on his head and Little Miss Sunshine who turned Miseryland into Laughterland.

(2) Blue Moon Mountain by Geraldine McCaughrean

This book was probably what started my love of mythological creatures. It was about a girl called Joy who, on a blue moon, goes searching for a unicorn and meets lots of fantastical creatures along the way. My favourite part was the glossary at the back with the pictures, names and stories of loads of different creatures from myth and legend. Also, the illustrations were gorgeous!

(3) The Rainbow Magic books by Daisy Meadows

I was obsessed with these books at one point and I wanted to collect all of the different books about all of the different fairies. I loved all the imaginative stories and I always hated that pesky Jack Frost!

(4) The Animal Ark series by Lucy Daniels

These books were about a girl whose parents were vets and who was always finding and looking after different animals. They were so cute and I really enjoyed reading about each animal’s story.

(5) The Magic Key series by Roderick Hunt

These books were so cool! They were about a group of kids who time travelled with a magic key and I was also completely obsessed at one point.

(6) The Molly Moon series by Georgia Byng

Molly Moon was an orphan who learnt how to hypnotise people from a book and went on all sorts of amazing adventures. These books were so fun to read!

Bonus: Anything by Enid Blyton

Enid Blyton was my favourite author as a child and I read so many of her books: The Famous Five, The Faraway Tree, The Naughtiest Girl, The Secret Seven and The Wishing Chair. I loved her characters and the adventures they went on.

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What are your childhood favourites? Let me know in the comments!

#SixforSunday – Favourite Authors

#SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot. This week’s theme is about ‘Favourite Authors’. Here we go:

(1) JRR Tolkein

I’ve read The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and even The Silmarillion and they were all amazing! I love the world building, the characters and the stores. Tolkien is just amazing.

(2) JK Rowling

The Harry Potter series is iconic, one of the best series of all time. Rowling is so imaginative and creative is astounding.

(3) Sarah J Maas

I love the Throne of Glass series because I just love the characters so much and I don’t think I’ve ever gotten so attached to characters like I did when I read this series. Although I’m not too keen on her other series, Sarah J Maas still is one of my favourite authors.

(4) Leigh Bardugo

The Grisha books by Leigh Bardugo have a special place in my heart. I loved Six of Crows more than Shadow of Bone and King of Scars was heart-rending. Also, the Language of Thorns is one of the most magical books I’ve ever read!

(5) NK Jemisin

Jemisin’s Broken Earth series is incredible and I’ve never come across anything like it before. Her ideas and writing style are unique, fresh and original in the best possible way.

(6) Jay Kristoff

I adore The Nevernight series and all other books that I’ve read by Kristoff have been brilliant. I love his witty yet beautiful writing style and his loveable characters.

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Who are your favourite authors? Let me know in the comments!

#SixforSunday- Bookish Hates

#SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot. This week’s theme is, ‘bookish hates’, so this post will be about the six book characters I hate the most. There are some spoilers for the books mentioned so read with caution!

(1) Maeve from the Throne of Glass series:

I despise Maeve. She ruined everything in Empire of Storms. I do not take kindly to one of my favourite characters being whipped and put in an iron coffin. Not at all. In Kingdom of Ash, what she did to Aelin was so horrible and really hard to read about and I think we were supposed to feel a bit sorry for Maeve by the end of the book, but I didn’t because I couldn’t get over all the harm she had caused.

(2) Professor Umbridge from the Harry Potter series:

Professor Umbridge was such a terrible person. She was really creepy and had a weird obsession with cats. Not to mention the fact that she found hurting young children fun. “I must not tell lies…”

(3) Rhysand from the A Court of Thorns and Roses series:

This is probably going to be really unpopular with loads of people but I just don’t understand the fuss about Rhys. In ACOTAR, he hurts and abuses Feyre and then suddenly in the next book we’re supposed to forget about all of that and start fawning over him just becayse they’re mates and he says some nice stuff to Feyre. I just don’t understand it and I don’t think he’s that much of a likeable character anyway.

(4) Alina from the Shadow and Bone series:

I guess I don’t hate Alina, per se, I just strongly dislike her and I find her really bland. She’s a very annoying and whiny main character to read about.

(5) Cal from the Red Queen series:

I don’t hate Cal either but he is so frustrating and boring. Also, for some reason he can never make up his mind! One minute he says, “I love you Mare! You are my everything! I can’t live without you!” and the next minute he goes, “actually… on second thoughts…. I’d rather be king. I must be loyal to my people because they need me!” and then the next day he’s back apologising to Mare. I just don’t understand him. What’s more incomprehensible is why Mare, or anyone else for that matter, were able to put up with him.

(6) Taryn from The Cruel Prince:

I haven’t read The Wicked King yet so maybe she gets some sort of redemption arc, however, in The Cruel Prince, I didn’t like Taryn because she kept so many secrets from Jude and betrayed her.

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Which characters do you strongly dislike? Do you agree with the ones I’ve chosen? I’d love to hear your opinions in the comments!

#SixforSunday: New year, new books

Hello everyone! #SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by A Little But A Lot. This week’s theme is, ‘New year, New books’ and because there are so many books I’m looking forward to in 2019, I’ve decided to focus on the top six debuts I think will be really good this year.

(1) Descendant of the Crane by Joan He

This is a Chinese-inspired fantasy for fans of Game of Thrones. I already know I’m going to love it. Also, I know we’re not to judge books by their covers but this one is gorgeous (the artist is Feifei Ruan and his other artwork is amazing too). Release date: 2 April 2019.

(2) We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal

It’s a fantasy inspired by ancient Arabia full of magic and romance. It sounds amazing. Release date: 14 May 2019.

(3) The Tiger at Midnight by Swati Teerdhala

The Tiger at Midnight is inspired by ancient Indian history and Hindu mythology. An excerpt has been released and I’m already hooked, it sounds as if it’s going to be captivating. Release date: 23 April 2019.

(4) Blood Heir by Amélie Wen Zhao

This is an Anastasia retelling about self-acceptance and loss. After I read Amélie Zhao’s, ‘Dear Reader Letter’ I knew I had to read Blood Heir. Release date: 4 June 2019.

(5) The Storm Crow by Kalyn Josephson

The cover for this book is also stunning. It’s described as, ‘Eragon meets And I Darken’ and it’s about elemental crows. What else do I need to say? Release date: 9 July 2019.

(6) House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig

This is inspired by the fairy tale, ‘ The Twelve Dancing Princesses’ which happens to be one that I adore and one that I don’t see very often so I’m interested to see how this book will turn out. Release date: 6 August 2019.

I think this year will be full of diverse, imaginative debuts. What do you think?

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