Tuesday 23 April 2013

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Jellicoe Road
Add to Goodreads
At age eleven, Taylor Markham was abandoned by her mother. At fourteen, she ran away from boarding school, only to be tracked down and brought back by a mysterious stranger. Now seventeen, Taylor's the reluctant leader of her school's underground community, whose annual territory war with the Townies and visiting Cadets has just begun. This year, though, the Cadets are led by Jonah Griggs, and Taylor can't avoid his intense gaze for long. To make matters worse, Hannah, the one adult Taylor trusts, has disappeared. But if Taylor can piece together the clues Hannah left behind, the truth she uncovers might not just settle her past, but also change her future.

My thoughts

My first word upon finishing this book was "wow!" and then I sat a bit in stunned silence. This book.. I don't even think I have words to describe it. I think amazing might do, though it doesn't really seem to cover it proberly. No wonder this book won the Printz Award for excellence. 

When I started reading Jellicoe Road I was so confused, and that made it pretty hard to get into it. But I thought I'd give it a few more chapters, before I gave up. And I'm so glad I did! While I was still somewhat confused after a couple more chapters, I was so intrigued by the story and the writing that I couldn't stop reading. Then suddenly everything started to make sense, and the book became this big puzzle where you need all the pieces to understand the full picture. And when you've collected them all you can just sit back and admire this masterpiece. 

Marchetta brilliantly weaves together past, present and dreams, and I loved how everything was slowly revealed and put together. There were some minor plots that seemed random at the time, but in the end turns out to be essential or profound to the story - and I was totally taken aback. Most impressive was how all the threads were tied and connected in the end, and how all questions were eventually answered. 

All the characters in the book were equally amazing. None of them were perfect, and they were so real. They all had their part to play and had importance to the story. I was kind of surprised by many of them; and how some of them were actually so very differently than how they first appear. There were also some major growth to some of the characters, like Taylor, she really grew into an awesome person, and I liked how she eventually figured out what exactly was important to her, and how she looked past the things she was missing and valued the things she already had. 

Jellicoe Road is a truly amazingly perfect book that I don't think I can recommend enough.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

Wednesday 17 April 2013

Waiting on Wednesday (18)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.
This week I'm waiting on:
This Girl: A Novel
This Girl by Colleen Hoover
Release date (ebook): April 30.
Release date (paperback): August 13.

There are two sides to every love story. Now hear Will’s.

Colleen Hoover’s New York Times bestselling Slammed series has brought countless readers to their knees with a whirlwind of love, passion, and heartache. Layken and Will’s love has managed to withstand the toughest of circumstances and the young lovers, now married, are beginning to feel safe and secure in their union. As much as Layken relishes their new life together, she finds herself wanting to know everything there is to know about her husband, even though Will makes it clear he prefers to keep the painful memories of the past where they belong. Still, he can’t resist his wife’s pleas and so he begins to untangle his side of the story, revealing for the first time his most intimate feelings and thoughts, retelling both the good and bad moments, and sharing a few shocking confessions of his own from the time when they first met.

In This Girl, Will tells the story of their complicated relationship from hispoint of view. Their future rests on how well they deal with the past in this final installment of the beloved Slammed series.




I only just read Slammed and Point of Retreat this past weekend, but I butterflying love them! Now I can't wait to read Will's side of the story and maybe get a glimpse of what happens after Point of Retreat. Also, I love the cover, and how it's a mix of the two previous books, but still very much it's own. The only thing I don't like about it is that the paperback (which I'll be buying) won't be released until August 13. Whaaat is that?? Why is it released so long after the ebook? 
Once again, I'll have to go find some patience.

What are you waiting on this week?

Tuesday 16 April 2013

Top Ten Tuesday Rewind - Favorite Book Quotes


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

There are so many great past topics, that it was very, very difficult to choose! But at last I chose Top Ten Favorite Book Quotes because I looove quotes. Though choosing only ten was way hard. 


“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” 
- The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien
This is probably one of my all-time favorite quotes. Life really only has the meaning you give to it, so it's your decision what you want to do with ot.

“One must always be careful of books," said Tessa, "and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us.” 
- Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
This is so true. I love books that somehow, in some small, significant way, changes something in me.

“Find a balance between head and heart.” 
- Slammed by Colleen Hoover
I read Slammed a few days ago and was totally mesmerized by it. It so butterflying amazing. If I could I'd put the whole book on this list as a favorite quote, buuut I can't really do that, so I'll just go with my absolute favorite. Finding a balance between head and heart is exactly what I need to do.

“Don't take life too seriously. Punch it in the face when it needs a good hit. Laugh at it.” 
- Slammed by Colleen Hoover
Yeah, so I just had to have another great quote from this book. 

“I wish for the thing that is best for me.”
- Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Well, if you don't know exaclty what to wish for, you can always go with this - can't seem to go wrong.

“I've always found that the most beautiful people, truly beautiful inside and out, are the ones who are quietly unaware of their effect." His eyes searched mine intently, and for a moment we stood there toe to toe. "The ones who throw their beauty around, waste what they have? Their beauty is only passing. It's just a shell hiding nothing but shadows and emptiness.” 
- Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout
I love this quote, because it speaks of inner beauty, but also because I think this is the first time in Obsidian where we find out there's much more to Daemon than he has let on.

“My thoughts are stars I cannot fathom into constellations.”
- The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
There's actually a lot of quotes from this book that I love, but this one stands out for me, because I always seem to have a hard time collecting my thoughts and draw them into constellations.

“Everyone makes mistakes. The important thing is to not make the same mistake twice.” 
- Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins
We all make mistakes, it's how we learn from life.

“You’ll have a piece of my heart – all of it, really. Forever.” 
- Deity by Jennifer L. Armentrout
If you spend just a little time on my blog you may know that I luuuv Aiden St. Delphi from the Covenant series. And this quote, at that very moment, always makes me swoon. *sigh*

“Day 24. Situation is growing worse. My captors continue to find new and horrific ways to torture me. When not working, Agent Scarlet spends her days examining fabric swatches for bridesmaid dresses and going on about how in love she is. This usually causes Agent Boring Borscht to regale us with stories of Russian weddings that are even more boring than his usual ones. My attempts at escape have been thwarted thus far. Also, I am out of cigarettes. Any assistance or tobacco products you can send will be greatly appreciated.
-Prisoner 24601”  
- The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead
Okay, there's nothing really life changing about this quote, but it always makes me laugh, so it definitely had to be on the list.


What topic did you choose this week? Leave a link below and let me know!

Friday 12 April 2013

Apollyon by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Apollyon (Covenant, #4)
Add to Goodreads
Fate isn’t something to mess with… and now, neither is Alex.Alex has always feared two things: losing herself in the Awakening and being placed on the Elixir. But love has always been stronger than Fate, and Aiden St. Delphi is willing to make war on the gods—and Alex herself—to bring her back.
The gods have killed thousands and could destroy entire cities in their quest to stop Seth from taking Alex’s power and becoming the all-powerful God Killer. But breaking Alex’s connection to Seth isn’t the only problem. There are a few pesky little loopholes in the whole “an Apollyon can’t be killed” theory, and the only person who might know how to stop the destruction has been dead for centuries.
Finding their way past the barriers that guard the Underworld, searching for one soul among countless millions, and then somehow returning will be hard enough. Alex might be able to keep Seth from becoming the God Killer… or she might become the God Killer herself.

My thoughts

Wow, this book..! I have no words, so I'll have to go with something like: A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. I'm surprised to say that Apollyon is even better than Deity. Yeah, I didn't think that was possible, because I was in awe of Deity. But Apollyon just blew right past it. Several times during the book I was like: asdfghjkl. And then I went through all the emotions, and I think my internal monlogue jumped between whaaat and noooo and  yeah, go Alex and awww
The book started just a bit after Elixir ended - and I think it would be best, okay, necessary - to read it before reading Apollyon, even though it's novella and set between books. So, Alex is still in this freaky bond with Seth and being all Evil Alex, with Aiden on the outside trying to bring out the real Alex. The question is, can Alex break the bond? What happens if she does? And how can Alex keep Seth from becoming the God Killer before it's too late? 

There was a lot of action in this book, much more than any of the other books, but I think JLA balanced it well with some quiet moments inbetween, where everyone could get some peace before everything spazzed out again. And I seriously couldn't stop reading this book. When I reached the last pages, I hoped more would magically appear, so I could just keep reading. Alas, none did. But I thoroughly enjoyed and devoured every one of those that were.
We get to meet many new gods in this book, which I think was awesome, and Apollo is also still around, with that excellent timing of his. On a side note, I love Greek mythology, and I think JLA use it extraordinary in this series, and I absolutely love how many parts of said mythology is incorporated in the story. From Olympus to the Underworld to all the different gods and creatures.

My favorite part in JLA's books is and always will be the characters - I simply love the characters she creates. They feel so real to me.
Alex has matured a lot during all the books. After becoming the Apollyon everything has changed for her, and with it she has changed. She is more in control of herself, thinking a lot more before she acts and says anything. But even though she has changed a lot, she is still very much herself. She always has a snarky or sarcastic comment at hand, she's fierce and unyielding, stubborn, protecting of those she love - and still very much in love with Aiden St. Delphi.

Aiden.. oh my.. Can I just say I love him? For each book I love him a little more, and in Apollyon he opened more up, was less in the rigid, constant control of himself and was very caring of Alex. He is still this strong character we met in Half-Blood who will stop at nothing to protect those he love.
There was a lot more moments between Alex and Aiden than I had even dared to hope for. And boy, did I LOVE that. I cannot get enough of them. They were so cute around each other that I couldn't help smiling stupidly all the time. It was also funny seeing them together around others, no longer keeping their relationship a secret.  

I very much liked all the secondary characters too. I liked seeing the new sides to Marcus as well as Lea, laugh with Deacon and Luke and just generally see the crowd - and I was constantly afraid that something would happen to any of them. I was kind of on the edge of my seat all the time.
And then there's Seth. After Deity I pretty much hated Seth. Like really hated him, but after Apollyon.. well, he didn't redeem himself (yet), but I think there's hope for him. And I liked that. 

Now I can't wait to read Sentinel, but fortunately (thank gods), Apollyon didn't end on a big a cliffhanger as Deity (which just sucked daimon butt), so I think can impatiently wait for the last book. Wow, the last book. It's going to be sad leaving all these awesome characters... But we've still got an adventure ahead of us, and after reading Apollyon I have no doubt that it'll be absolutely amazing.

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ 

Tuesday 2 April 2013

Top Ten Characters I Would Crush On If I Were Also A Fictional Character


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week topic is: Top Ten Characters I Would Crush On If I Were Also A Fictional Character

What a lovely topic this week. How many times haven't I wished that I were a fictional character, so I could jump into the book and get the guy. Well, it has yet to happen, so I think I'll have to just have crush on them from this side of the book. For fear of gushing too much (and not writing coherently), I think I'll just list all my wonderful book boyfriends:

1. Aiden St. Delphi from the Covenant series

2. Jem Carstairs from The Infernal Devices

3. Étienne St. Clair from Anna and the French Kiss

4. Adrian Ivashkov from Bloodlines

5. Ash from The Iron Fey

6. Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice

7. Jase from My Life Next Door

8. Lucas from Easy

9. Caleb from Significance

10. Adam from If I Stay/Where She Went