Review: Paper Towns by John Green

I am having the worst luck with books by John Green. This is my fourth book by him now, and the third one that is a two star for me. What. I'm unsure how this is happening, because I really truly loved The Fault in Our Stars. But these other three books, oh, I have not loved them even one bit. Which is disappointing.

But will say, though, that Paper Towns was my favorite of these three bad books. I had more fun reading this one. But I also had more feelings about it, which means that I got a whole lot more angry about certain things. Will share all my thoughts about this book. Sigh. But even so, I'm still glad that I gave reading it a try.

I'm unsure where to begin. Because I did enjoy reading parts of this book. At first I liked Q a whole bunch. And I liked Margo in the beginning as well. The first part of the story, where Q and Margo has a big adventure in one night was all kinds of fun. And I really liked reading about the revenge they did, because most of the people deserved it. And it wasn't that brutal, lol. And I just liked reading about Q and Margo together. But then that night ended. And the real story began. And oh, I'm so sad to say that the real story bothered me a lot. Anyway. This book is told from the point of view of Q. He's almost done with high school. And he has loved Margo, his neighbor, all his life. They were friends when they were younger, but that stopped when they grew up.

The plot in this book is about the night Q and Margo spent driving around town messing with the people who had hurt Margo. And in the beginning of this book I really enjoyed that. I liked reading about their night together, and I liked getting to know Margo a little. And I liked Q a lot in the beginning too. But then that night ended, and Margo ended up missing aka having run away. And then Q starts obsessing about finding her. He finds clues she has left behind for him, clues that had too little information, to be honest.

Q has a few friends, like Ben and Radar. I'm unsure what I really felt about these boys. For most of the book I did not like Ben at all. I hated the way he talked about girls sometimes. It was not fun. And he had some really weird jokes that I also did not like. I did enjoy reading about Radar, though. He was a pretty awesome friend. Ben was too, sometimes. But, well. Q was not a good friend. Like Colin in the Katherine book, Q was fully selfish. Claiming his friends didn't care for him, when he was the one who did not care.

His friends helped him search for Margo. Despite how Q was being a terrible friend back. And I guess that is the biggest reason for why I did not like this book. His friends were awesome. He was not. Q was simply obsessed with finding Margo. And I did not get why at all. I was curious about her at first, and I liked her in the beginning, but as the book went on I did not like her at all anymore. Learning new things about her was not fun. The way Q was acting all the time was not fun. This was not a fun book to read.

But I did like some parts of this story even so. Like the road trip that happens at the end of the book, with Q and Ben and Radar and Lacey. I liked that a lot, for the most part. A few things were a bit too silly, but the road trip was still fun. It just lasted too short. And what happened when the road trip was over just bothered me oh so much. I didn't like this ending, to be honest. What is most surprising is that I did not want a happy ending in this book. So depressing. I kind of wanted Margo to be dead, like they feared.

But anyway. Another big reason for why I really disliked this book was because of how very obsessed Q was with finding Margo. This book takes place in around a month. And he is a bit crazy. He spends so little time with his friends. He didn't go to prom with his friends. Then at the end he even skips graduation because of trying to find Margo. All of that was simply not okay. She was not worth it. That bothered me so much. And I ended up not liking Q or Margo. But yeah. Book wasn't all bad. But it was not good either.

Big thank you to Penguin Random House International for letting me take part in this very awesome John Green read along. And for sending me this stunning paperback box set of his books. Despite not really liking this book, sniffs, I'm still glad that I gave it a try. It's not my genre at all, but I have loved a bunch of books from this genre even so. But yeah, Paper Towns was not one of these books. I guess others might love it. But I did not. And I'm okay with that. If you do read this book, though, let me know your thoughts.

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Waiting on Wednesday #310

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

DREADFUL YOUNG LADIES AND OTHER STORIES
BY KELLY BARNHILL

Goodreads Description:

A stunning new collection of short stories from the World Fantasy Award– and Newbery Medal–winning author of The Girl Who Drank the Moon.

From award-winning, New York Times bestselling author Kelly Barnhill comes a stunning collection of stories, teeming with uncanny characters whose lives unfold in worlds at once strikingly human and eerily original.

 When Mrs. Sorensen’s husband dies, she rekindles a long-dormant love with an unsuitable mate in “Mrs. Sorensen and the Sasquatch.” In “Open the Door and the Light Pours Through,” a young man wrestles with grief and his sexuality in an exchange of letters with his faraway beloved. “Dreadful Young Ladies” demonstrates the strength and power—known and unknown—of the imagination.  In “Notes on the Untimely Death of Ronia Drake,” a witch is haunted by the deadly repercussions of a spell. “The Insect and the Astronomer” upends expectations about good and bad, knowledge and ignorance, love and longing. The World Fantasy Award–winning novella The Unlicensed Magician introduces the secret magical life of an invisible girl once left for dead—with thematic echoes of Barnhill’s Newbery Medal–winning novel, The Girl Who Drank the Moon.

By an author hailed as “a fantasist on the order of Neil Gaiman” (Minneapolis Star Tribune), the stories in Dreadful Young Ladies feature bold, reality-bending invention underscored by richly illuminated universal themes of love, death, jealousy, hope, and more.

Hardcover, 304 pages

Expected publication: February 20th 2018 by Algonquin Books

Pre-Order here and here

I don't usually read that many adult books, but I simply adore Kelly and I have loved two of her middle grade books so far. Reading her other two older ones soon too, and I think that I will love those as well. Because of this, I am very excited about reading these stories by her. They seem pretty heartbreaking and exciting and I simply cannot wait to read them all. Eee. And also, gosh, look at that awesome cover.
What are you waiting for on this dreadful Wednesday?

Review: Invictus by Ryan Graudin

This book just about killed me. I enjoyed it oh so very much. The writing was so gorgeous, which I loved the most. I haven't read every book by Ryan just yet, but I have read and loved her latest duology. I will read more by her soon. I think I loved this book so much because of how amazing the characters were.

I just loved them all the very most. And this story was pretty amazing too. I'm giving the book a four star, as there were a few very small things that bothered me a little. For the most part, though, I loved everything about this book. I even liked that horribly evil ending. What. Did not think I would. But I did.

I don't know where to begin with describing this precious book. Because I enjoyed every moment of it oh so much. I think one of the reasons for why I loved these characters so much was because they were all good, lol. I usually love bad characters a lot, but these weren't bad at all. And they were so interesting and lovable and I just adored them all to pieces. I loved getting to know them. I loved reading about the things they had done together and how they were all awesome friends. This book isn't told from only one point of view, but is instead a little bit from each of the five main characters. While I don't usually like so many point of views, I didn't mind at all in this book. Because I adored them all. And I was so curious to know about everything.

I would say that I loved Far and Priya the very most. But Imogen and Gram and Eliot were all awesome to read about too. At first I was unsure about Eliot, because she was a bit rude and evil and clever, but she ended up being all kinds of interesting and I couldn't help but love her too. But yes. Far. Oh, how I adored that boy. The book begins with him, and describes how he's taking his final test, about to become a time traveler in this world he lives in. And it was all so interesting to read about. The test thingy was exciting.

And this boy was simply the best. I loved getting to know him. He was awesome in the beginning of this book. It broke my heart when he failed his final test. This boy was simply the cutest and kindest and he deserved the very best. He failed, but he got an offer from a different person, an offer to steal important things from the past and bring them to the present. He would also get to be captain of the ship and decide his own crew. I liked all of that a whole lot. And then suddenly there is a time jump of eleven months. Ack.

At first that bothered me a little bit. But then I didn't mind at all, because I very much loved that all the characters had moved forward so much, because they had to, to make the plot work. And what I loved the very most was that Far and Priya was already a couple after these eleven months. And just oh. This romance was all kinds of cute and oh god how I loved these two characters together. I only feel a bit sad, as I wanted more sweet and awesome and hot moments between them. Hmph. Still, they were the best.

The crew of this time traveling ship named Invictus is only four people. Far and Priya. And Imogen and Gram. And oh gosh, how I adored Imogen. She was beyond adorable and I simply loved her so much. Getting to know her was awesome. And eee, I shipped her and Gram so much. Felt like I didn't get to know him too much, aw, but still adored him too. He was awesome. And oh, I wanted these two together. Hmph. There is also a pet red panda, which was all kinds of cute. This crew was the very best to know.

This book is about time travel. And it takes place in the far future. And everything about this whole plot was exciting. And interesting. And oh so evil at times. Like that huge plot twist around the middle of the book. And then there was Eliot. A girl who suddenly showed up while they were stealing something. A girl who messes things up for them. But also a girl they slowly start to like, after a bit of time. Eliot was a lot of complicated. But I couldn't help starting to care for her too. I did like her a lot. And felt sorry for her too.

Not going to say much more about this book. Just that there is time travel. And a mystery about Far's mother. And a mystery about who Eliot is. Which ended up breaking my heart a bit. Sniffs. That ending was so rude and evil yet so perfect too. I couldn't help but enjoy it. But, well. I do want a sequel to this book. Like a lot. I want more of these characters and their life. Don't want to say goodbye just yet. Aw. And also, this book made me almost-cry a whole bunch of times, which was just the very rudest. Hmph.

I'm so glad that I read Invictus just now. I mean, it's out in a week, and I'm getting finished copies of it, but I couldn't not read the eARC that I got from Netgalley, when it was a read now option. I wish I had read it when I got it, many weeks ago. But I worried that I wouldn't enjoy it. I was wrong, though. Because I loved this book. Invictus was simply amazing. It's full of adventure and action and oh so lovely characters. The space and time travel and everything was so exciting. You should all read this lovely book. It is worth it.

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Review: Beyond a Darkened Shore by Jessica Leake

I enjoyed this book a whole lot. The story was so exciting and I simply adored the characters. The writing was pretty great too. At first I thought it might be a five star, but I ended up having a few smaller issues, so four stars it is. But gosh, I really liked this book. And I cannot wait to own a finished copy of this gorgeous.

This book tells the story of seventeen year old Ciara. It's set way back in time, and I loved that lots. And oh, how I adored this girl. I loved that the whole book is from her point of view. And I loved getting to know her. She was awesome. I loved how much she cared for her sisters. I hated how her parents didn't care for her.

The plot in this book was so exciting. It takes place ages ago, in a place with magic. The magic isn't a big part of this world, just small things. Ciara has magic in her. She has the ability to enter the mind of a person, and change it. This was pretty interesting to read about. I did like how her ability changed later on, though that new part was a bit too much, maybe. But it was interesting to read, and I liked that. Ciara was pretty awesome. She both loved and hated her ability, and I liked that about her a lot. Her world has been at war for ages now, with the dangerous Northmen coming often to raid their village, stealing and murdering. Her older sister got murdered because of this years ago, and Ciara has sworn revenge. It was heartbreaking yet amazing.

This book begins with a raid on Ciara's village. And it was pretty interesting to read about, yet a bit brutal too. Lots of death. It ends with Ciara taking a boy prisoner. This boy is Leif. So begins this story. These two enemies are meant to become allies, to help defeat something evil that is coming for everyone. Ciara has been told this by a crow person. Which sounds weird, yet was pretty awesome. But yeah. Ciara and Leif pretty much hate each other, but they also seem amused by each other right away; and I loved that.

There is so much happening in this book. I'm not going to describe all of it. Just that this book is long yet not long enough. And the villains were all kinds of evil and I hated them. Yet sort of didn't truly understand the reason for why they were so evil. But they were and they were awful. And their way of killing was the worst. Aw. Yet so fascinating to read about too. But also the worst. Yet so good. How rude. But anyway. The story in this book was all kinds of awesome. There is even a kelpie. Which was so creepy and great.

I really enjoyed the romance in this book. Ciara and Leif are so different yet so the same too. They both had a loss in their life. They have lots of other things in common too. And oh, reading about them slowly learning to trust each other and become friends was the best. Eee. Nothing happen for at least half the book, and I was okay with that. Because just reading about them being together was all kinds of fun. And when the romance did happen, I loved it so. They fit together so well and I shipped them the very most.

The reason for why this book was a four star and not a five, was because of the magic. Sort of. I felt like some parts of it were a bit too much. It was always exciting, but maybe a bit too much. But despite that, I enjoyed this book so very much. The story was so interesting and so evil. There is a lot of death in this book. Some heartbreaking. Some awesome. The ending was pretty good, though. First totally evil. Hmph. But then good. Pretty sure this is a standalone, and it doesn't need more, but I would not say no to more.

I'm not going to say much more about this book. I find that I simply have no more words to describe why I liked it and how much I liked it. Which was a whole bunch. I loved most of this book. And it was all just so exciting and I adored the characters so much. Sigh. I would love to read more about them all. This book is mostly about Ciara and Leif, though. And I adored that. There is a lot of fighting. And a bit of awesome backstory. And lots of great flirting. Yess. This whole book was amazing. Sigh. I'm so happy that I read it.

Huge thank you to the publisher for the auto-approval on Edelweiss, eee. I'm so thrilled that I was able to read and review this book early. Now I just have to hunt down that print ARC, because I need it like crazy. This book was so so good. And it's gorgeous. I love that cover so much. Beyond a Darkened Shore was everything I was hoping it would be and more. Fierce characters and a stunning slow romance. Exciting plot and evil villains. I'm so glad I read this book. And I think you'll all love it too. And so go order it. Now.

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In My Mailbox #306

This week has been slightly better, I think. My health still sucks, but no new big bump at the moment, only small regular ones, so yay for that at least. Sigh. But yes. Medicine not working at all, which is highly annoying, especially when doctors are no help. Rude. But yeah. I have read two books this week, and finishing my third later today :D Yay. I have gotten some gorgeous mail. But have SO LITTLE room left :( Dying. Dying. Dying. Sigh. And have also spent way too much money lately. Gosh. But yeah, I'm happy with everything that I have bought, lol. Also at least halfway done buying christmas presents, so I'm good with that too. Anyway. A few new blog posts this week. I shared my book recommendation of The Year of Shadows. <3 Love this book so. This week I'm waiting on La Belle Sauvage :D Then I shared my review of An Abundance of Katherines :) Which I did not like at all. How rude. But yeah. I had a good week, even with my health being always shitty. But ugh, autumn is arriving so fast here. So cold, all the time. Hate it.

Godsgrave. The Waterstones special edition and the regular UK hardcover edition :D Both gorgeous.
Wonder Woman. That is the same as W, but from BookDepo, and had signed bookplate too. What. Rude.
Wonder Woman. More WW, hih :D The UK paperback edition and the audiobook. They are both perfect.
Before She Ignites. This hardcover is all kinds of pretty. Didn't love the book, but I liked it. Plus, gorgeous.
Warcross. Oh, this is a stunning finished copy. Yesss. US hardcover and UK paperback versions. Love.
Blood For Blood. The new gorgeous US paperback version. Loved this evil book. + Short story included.
Like a River Glorious. Eeee. I love this series so so much. And US paperback is so tiny and so so pretty.
The Midnight Heir. I still haven't read the Magnus Bane stories, aaack. But soon. This tiny thing is lovely.
Odd & True. One of two copies arrived. Loved this book. And the hardcover is so so gorgeous. Love it.
Rapunzel and the Lost Lagoon. Couldn't resist buying these new Tangled books, eee. Looks adorable.
Here Lies Daniel Tate + The Glass Spare. Eee! Thank you for trading with me Becca :D I love these so.
Lyra's Oxford. Eee. New paperback version :D SO pretty. But damaged too, so hope I can get a new one.
Harry Potter. Eee. I bought presents, and couldn't resist getting another letter opener. Ahh. It's so pretty.

More Instagram photos here. <3