All the Bookish Things

Hi everyone!

It's been a while. The other day I remembered I once kept this little blog as a small way to share my passion for reading and books. When I decided to revisit, I was surprised that people are still viewing this old thing. It's fun to go back and look at my initial thoughts of books I've read a few years ago (despite gritting my teeth through the grammar and being too excited over books of which I have different views now). Life has been busy, and I don't think I'll make this blog as active again. Maybe an occasional post here and there, but it's safe to say that this blog can rest in peace. The last post I made was in the spring of 2014. It's now 2016. I've still been reading and thought that I would share some memorable books I've read since then (4/5 or 5/5 stars). To see all the books I've read, I have remained active on my Goodreads; you can also find these books listed in order as I will be sharing only small thoughts on each one. (The list is ordered chronologically).

Book Review Mashup! City of Heavenly Fire, Vicious, Throne of Glass

Hey everyone!
Sorry again that it's been so long. But in that time span I've read quite a bit! I'm not going to talk about every book that I have read in the past month; however, I will talk about some of them with short, spoiler-free reviews. I'm not going to give a synopsis for every book, though I will link the Goodreads at the end so you can read them yourselves! Enjoy!

City of Heavenly Fire | Cassandra Clare | 6th book in The Mortal Instruments |  Rating: 5/5 | Fantasy
Of course, we have the finale to TMI. Some of you may know that I liked TMI at first, but didn't love them. Then I read The Infernal Devices, and loved those, then I reread COFA and COLS and enjoyed it more the second time around. So I was more excited to read COHF and thought that it was a fantastic conclusion. Cassandra Clare is amazing at wrapping up series. My favorite scenes involved Zachariah (hehe), but there are so many more awesome scenes. The characters themselves really grew and I liked them more and more. And that thing at the end with our favorite vampire... WHAT. Goodreads

Throne of Glass | Sarah J. Maas | 1st book in series | Rating: 5/5 | Fantasy
This book was so great! I loved the characters and plot line. This story involves magic, romance, assassins, secrecy, and so many amazing things. I read the second book, Crown of Midnight, which I didn't like as much (just because I ship Celaena with Dorian), nonetheless it was still incredibly exciting and action packed. Great start to another great series! Goodreads

Vicious | V.E. Schwab | Stand Alone (I think...) | Rating: 5/5 | Adult Science Fiction
I loved this book. It was so action packed and suspenseful and I was anticipating every second of this book. The whole concept is extremely interesting; I also found how Eli and Victor were best friends but then we see them ten years later as foes. Vicious would make a great movie (as well as Throne of Glass). The character's and their backstories contained such intriguing things. I highly recommend this book! It's a great adult book to read if you like young adult. Goodreads

Thanks so much for reading! -Kait

Getting Ready for City of Heavenly Fire

Hey everyone!
City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare, the sixth and final book in The Mortal Instruments, is due to come out a week from this Tuesday (May 27). If you asked me a year or so ago on how excited I was for this book, when I just read TMI one time through, I would've maybe said a 5 or 6 (1 being didn't care, 10 being like Blood of Olympus). However, if you asked me 2-3 months ago,, I would've said like a 7-7.5. And now, if you ask me, it's more like an 8-8.25 (quite specific, I know). So, if you're personally not super excited for COHF, though you are planning on reading it, I'll share with you the two things I did to get me more excited. Of course, mine was over a year or so, and it might be cutting it close with a week and half, but if you set your mind to it, you might actually be able to get this two things done.
When I first read TMI, I liked them but definitely didn't love them. My average rating for the whole series was about a 3.6/5 (I did math go me). I liked some aspects, but didn't love others.
In late January and early February of this year, I finally came around to reading The Infernal Devices, Cassandra Clare's prequel trilogy in the Shadowhunter world. I enjoyed the first book, but I loved the last two. And no spoilers for the trilogy, though if you read it, you may understand when I say this: I'm excited to see some characters (particularly one jem) in the last book, ones I loved more than some TMI characters. So for that reason, I was excited to read COHF.
Then last week, I reread COFA and COLS numbers 4 and 5 in the series to refresh my memory. Normally I can remember books pretty well, but because I didn't love TMI, some details went askew. Nonetheless, I reread them and really enjoyed them the second time around. And now I really want to know what happens to the characters and the world in which they live.
I can officially say that I am really excited to read this last book.
Thanks for reading, Kait

Book Review: Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins

Hey everyone!I recently picked up and read Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins. I heard really great things about it from BookTube, and thought I would give it a try. And I absolutely loved it! There were many aspects to enjoy about this book: the wit, the characters, the action, and the (small amount of) romance. I gave it 5/5 stars and I cannot wait for the next one! You can find it on Goodreads. This will be a spoiler-free review! (Synopsis and review below cut.)

Bookspiration: Colorful Bookshelf Tour

Hey everyone!
I recently rearranged my bookshelf based on color, and I really like the way it turned out. It's a great way to get in the mood for spring, so I thought I would share it with you all. I feel like a bookshelf tour would be quite lengthy since I have more books now, and I can't tell you all the titles, series, and authors, so I thought making a "Bookspiration" post might be better. Hopefully, this could inspire some of you to rearrange your bookshelf in  a new way, whether it be color, or height, or something random.


Pink-White-Black

The first shelf originally was white to black, but now it's light pink to white to black, because Rebel Belle didn't look good with the reds, and I already had Delirium up there. This shelf has some series like Hush, Hush and The Infernal Devices, as well as some adult books like 1984by George Orwell.


Black-Brown

The next shelf continues with black to brown. This was a bit harder to do, but I think I pulled it off. I have my LOTR bind up (from Amazon), as well as THG, and The Book Theif on this shelf, as well as Riordan.

Red-Yellow

The third shelf starts the color, from red to yellow. It starts with the fourth PJO book and Catching Fire, and ends with Beautful Chaos. This shelf also has some great books, from Harry Potter, to some Riordan, and the first and third book in the Chaos Walking trilogy.


Green-Blue

After that shelf, we have the green to blue shelf, probably my favorite one. It starts with City of Bones and end with The Fault in Our Stars, with some Harry Potter, Riordan (again) and the last two Shatter Me books by Taherah Mafi.

Blue-Purple

 
The last shelf with books goes from medium blue to purple. This has more Riordan (of course), Divergent, and Cress.

Thanks for reading! Let me know if you do this! -Kait

Spring Collective Book Haul (and Mini Reviews)

Hey everyone!
Long time, no talk! (SORRY!) Ever since the middle of March, I have collected quite a few books, three being ARCs (Advanced Reading Copies). It was also my birthday recently, so I'm planning on ordering a few more, which I'll list at the end, though I do not own them yet or have even bought them. Click on the links to visit Goodreads for a synopsis (not affiliated).
The first book I got was 172 Hours on the Moon by Johan Harstad. I gave this book a 5/5, it was quite scary (which I usually hate) and scientific, the pace was extremely fast, and not to say the aura of mystery kept  me intrigued. And that ending!! No spoilers, but man, that was insane, and definitely not what I expected. At all.
Then I picked out an ARC (my local bookstore has this event and talks about upcoming YA releases and we get to pick an ARC-ended up with three!), my first one ever (however, it was not my first choice, the three copies were taken). It is A Creature of Moonlight by Rebecca Hahn. I gave it 3.5/5; I thought the writing was really lyrical which matched the tone of the book, and the book just had this mystical feeling towards it. Personally, the plot was a bit slow and I didn't love the characters, but I did like them. I do recommend it for a short read if you like medieval, dragon stories. This comes out May 6th.
The next ARC I picked out was Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige, which I gave a 4/5. I really liked the characters and plot, though I felt like this book could've been a stand-alone. It's a Wizard of Oz retelling, and I do really recommend it if you like the Lunar Chronicles (though, personally, it's not as good!). This came out April 1st.
The last ARC I picked out is Deception's Princess by Esther Friesner. I'm currently reading this (only 5% through, wooh!), it's pretty interesting and I'm really excited to get into it more! This came out April 22nd.
The next book I bought is Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge. I gave this a 4/5 (maybe like 4.25), it's a Beauty and the Beast retelling, and the way she did it was really interesting! I really enjoyed finding out the secrets behind the story we're all told. I didn't love the main characters, but the plot was really intriguing.
After that, I bought Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins. I am very excited to read this! I've heard nothing but great reviews saying that it's funny and filled with a bunch of action.

The rest of the books I haven't bought, ordered, but just considered getting with my giftcards. The first three are preorders, but the rest are otherwise possible purchases for me.

• The Retribution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin (Mara Dyer #3)
• City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare (TMI #6)
• Dangerous Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl (#1)
• The Daughter of Smoke and Bone Box Set by Laini Taylor (#1-3)
• Vicious by V.E. Schwab
• Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Thanks so much for reading! -Kait

February Wrap Up and March TBR

Hey everyone!
This past month was a great reading month for me. I read seven books and I really enjoyed all of them! Since I didn't get to do book reviews on all of these books, I thought it would be a good idea to just generalize my thoughts on each of these books.

Book Review: The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare (Spoiler-Free)

Hey everyone!
Sorry for not posting in a while! But since I've last talked to you guys, I read the Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare which includes Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince, and Clockwork Princess. This is a spoiler-free review of the trilogy.

Book Reviews: Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness (Spoiler Free)

Hey everyone!
Sorry I haven't postede in a bit, I've been quite busy with school. However, I also managed to read the Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness. In a week. And these are not small books (479, 519, 603 pages)! Anyways, I loved this series so much, definitely one of my new favorites. This will be a spoiler free review!

Book Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Hey everyone!
Happy New Year! I recently read Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell and thought it would be appropriate to do a review on. This will be spoiler-free. Goodreads.


"Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan . . .
But for Cath, being a fan is her life — and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.
Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.
Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.
Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.
For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?
Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?
And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?"

I really enjoyed this book! I don't read much contemporary, just because it's not my absolute favorite genre, but I still really liked this book. The characters were all really great. I found the main character, Cath, to be very relatable. Levi was really cool and weirdly adorable. Reagan was just what this story needed-she added good humor and a bit of a different tone to the book. I liked the Wren who would help Cath write her fanfiction, not the one who would go out crazy partying. But by the end of the story, I did like her, too! The writing was also nice. It wasn't poetic nor choppy, but just a really nice in between. The Simon Snow excerpts were really fun to read and compare them to Harry Potter. So this was a great first Rainbow Rowell book and I look forward to reading more!

Thanks for reading, Kait

Christmas Book Haul

Hey everyone!
I hope you enjoyed the holidays! For actual Christmas,  I received two books (kind of... you'll see!) and I also got some gift cards that, yes, I've already used. So I have eight books to share with you all!
First, I got the 50th Anniversary Edition of Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. It's absolutely beautiful and long, so hopefully I'll get around to reading this soon! Since the picture won't work, you can see and buy it from Amazon.
 
Next, I am so excited because I finally got my own Harry Potter series. My brother owns 2-6, I own the 7th, and we lost the first. I've been wanting to reread them for a while, and now I can that I finally have the first book!
 
With my gift card, I got six books. The first one I already started reading, and I'm enjoying it a lot! It's Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (perfect for me). It's a coming-of-age contemporary story about a fangirl of the "Simon Snow" series, similar to Harry Potter. Goodreads.
I also got another book I've heard about called Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs. A boy is sent off to an island off of Wales and finds these photographs from Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. It sounds a tad creepy, but really interesting. Goodreads.
The next book I got is one that I've been wanting to read. I thought about getting the box set, but I just saw it there, sitting alone. I bought the first in the Infernal Devices trilogy, Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare. I'm looking forward to reading the prequel to the Mortal Instruments. Goodreads.
Finally, I decided to buy this trilogy I've been really wanting to read. I got all three of the Chaos Walking books: The Knife of Never Letting Go, The Ask and the Answer, and Monsters and Men by Patrick Ness. It's a dystopian society set in a town where you can hear everyone's thoughts. I've heard nothing but great things, and I can't wait to start it!
 

      

Thanks for reading! -Kait

Winter Wonderland Book Tag

Hey everyone!
Today I am doing the Winter Wonderland book tag and thought this would be great to do since it is currently snowing outside!

1. What book is so happy and sweet that it warms your heart?
The book I'm picking is definitely not a happy book, but I have a lot of happy memories while reading this book and it was the first book I read  and just loved (long story why it isn't Harry Potter... which I love!). And that is, of course, The Hunger Games.
2. What is your favorite book with a white cover?
Champion by Marie Lu. I still have to do a review for it!
3. You're sitting in a nice comfy chair, wearing a onesie, with a lovely warm hot chocolate but what MONSTER read are you reading?
Last year I was doing that exact thing without the onesie, and I was reading PJO: The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan.
4. It started snowing so you decided to have a snowball fight! What fictional character would you love to have the snowball fight with?
Leo Valdez! Plus he'd be easier to beat.
5. Sadly, your fire is beginning to go out. So what book would you tear the last few chapters out to throw into the fire?
Honestly, Allegiant by Veronica Roth. Not because I don't like the ending, it's just that it was really sad!
6. What book is so close to your heart that you would gift to someone this Christmas who hasn't read before but wants to get into reading?
I'm going to go with a bit of a different answer and say The Book Thief by Markus Zusak since you were probably expecting Harry Potter, THG, or PJO or something. I think this is a book that everyone could get something out of and enjoy!

Thanks for reading, Kait

Christmas Wishlist (Books)

Hey everyone!
Today I am sharing with you what I asked for books for Christmas. Keep in mind that I won't be receiving all of these books, but I like to give options. Hopefully, you might find something you like, too.

**The Lord of the Rings 50th Edition

**Harry Potter Box Set

**The Knife of Never Letting Go

• **The Ask and the Answer (Book #2)
• **Monsters and Men (Book #3)

The Maze Runner Trilogy Box Set

Vicious

Fangirl

Eleanor & Park

The Infernal Devices Trilogy Box Set

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

The Raven Boys 

• The Dream Thieves (Book #2)

172 Hours on the Moon

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown

Ruby Red

• Sapphire Blue (#2)
• Emerald Green (#3)

Ender's Game

 

Thanks for reading! -Kait

Bump in the Night Book Tag

Hey everyone!
Today I decided to do a tag which as you can tell is the "How I Read Tag." I found this on YouTube, but I really needed to post, so I decided to do a tag. More posts soon, again, sorry for the horrible posting! Let's get started!
 
1) How do you find out about new books to read?
I find out mostly from the BookTube community on YouTube. Also a few I've found out from Goodreads.
2) How did you get into reading?
I always read when I wad younger, but I went through a phase were I only read Harry Potter for two years (5th and 6th grade). In the beginning of 7th grade, I read The Hunger Games which got me reading again and how I found YA.
3) How has your taste in books changed as you've gotten older?
I read a lot more science fiction than I thought I would've. I've always liked fantasy, too, but I mostly read realistic fiction when I was younger. I've also discovered YA which broadened my taste as well.
4) How often do you buy books?
It depends on how much I can spend! When I was reading PJO and HOO, I went to the bookstore every week (long story as to why I didn't buy them at once). But sometimes I go for a month or two without new books.
5) How did you get into BookTubing?
Since this is from YouTube, I am changing it to book blogging. Originally, I had a beauty blog (and THG) because I wanted to share my own thoughts on the series as well as some products. However, I realized I liked talking about books more and I also personally think books are more special to me. So I decided to start this blog!
6) How do you react when you don't like the end of a book?
I feel a little disappointed, but you can't let just the end ruin a book!
7) How often have you taken a sneaky look at the back page of a book to see if it's a happy ending?
Too much. I learned my lesson with Catching Fire, but I did it for Allegiant and Champion (review coming soon!)
8) How many people are you going to tag, and who are they?
ALL OF YOU! Yes my typical answer.

Thanks for reading, Kait

Book Review: Allegiant by Veronica Roth

Hey everyone!
Today I am doing the long-awaited book review for Allegiant by Veronica Roth, book three in the Divergent trilogy. Overall, I really liked this book. It probably wasn't my favorite of the three, but I still am giving it 5/5 stars! There was a lot of new information and crazy actions. And let me just say: Veronica Roth is definitely a Dauntless when it comes to that ending; which of course I'll talk about in the Spoiler section. That being said, since it is the last book in a trilogy, as of right now it will contain spoilers for the first two, but not yet Allegiant.

Currently Reading and Writing Update

Hey everyone!
I've never done a post like this before because I do not like to read more than one book at a time. However, I'm currently reading three!
For school, I'm reading Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. It's a short book and we're only two chapters in.
I also started reading Unsouled by Neal Shusterman a little while ago, but I barely have time to read. So I was about 120 pages in when Allegiant by Veronica Roth came out.
I decided to put down Unsouled a day after Allegiant came out and started to read that. I'm currently at 88 pages.

As for writing, I wrote a short story called Cerebrum Lavacrum which is (of course) science fiction and takes place in the future. If you would like to read it, click here! It's five pages, so I would love if you could take a few minutes and check it out.

Thanks for reading, Kait

Halloween Reads

Hey everyone!
Today I'll be sharing some Halloween reads. Personally, I am not a fan of horror movies and am hesitant about books. I'm also very sorry about the lack of posts. Everything has just been crazy! But I still hope you enjoy this one! I didn't forget about you guys! These books are mostly supernatural or paranormal. They contain varying degrees of creepy or spooky, and like I said, I hate horror stuff so some of these books may not be that bad at all. Some of them aren't really scary, but they fit into the supernatural theme (i.e. The Mortal Instruments with vampires and werewolves, etc.)  If you want to hear what I personally thought about them, you can search them on my blog (Top left or on the right) or click on one of the labels below of the book's title!

• The Diviners by Libba Bray
• The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin'
• The Mortal Instruments (series) by Cassandra Clare
• Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
• Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Thanks for reading, Kait

Book Review: THE HOUSE OF HADES BY RICK RIORDAN

Hi everyone!

I'm finally able to do this post! After a long await, House of Hades by Rick Riordan is available (and read by me)! This post could be very long, so I'm going to try to shorten and word all the feelings. If you haven't read any of Rick Riordan's books, I have no idea what you're waiting for, but this will contain spoilers. I STRONGLY suggest that if you haven't read this book, you won't continue reading! (WARNING: FANGIRLNESS AHEAD.)

September Wrap Up and October TBR

Hey everyone!
Today I'm doing my September Wrap Up and my October TBR. To be honest, September wasn't a great reading month. I read 1 and about 3/4 of a book. But in October, there are many new releases that I'll be reading!

WRAP UP
So I randomly decided to reread The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan this month. Oops?
I also started reading Insight by Jamie Magee (it was free) but I haven't finished it yet!

TBR
This is a bit more exciting. I might reread Insurgent by Veronica Roth to refresh myself.
I will also be reading these new releases:

• The House of Hades by Rick Riordan (4/5 Heroes of Olympus)
• Allegiant by Veronica Roth (3/3 Divergent)
• Unsouled by Neal Shusterman (3/3 Unwind)
• Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken (2/3 The Darkest Minds)
• Altered by Gennifer Albin (2/3 Crewel)

I'm looking forward to this month's reading! Thanks for reading, Kait

Autumn Book Tag

Hey everyone!
Today I am doing a tag that I found on YouTube. It's the Autumn Book Tag which I thought was pretty convenient since, you know, it's fall now. Anyways, let's get started! Let me know if you do this tag. I tag all of you!

1) What is your favorite thing about Autumn?
I love the weather and fashion. It's also so pretty outside since the leaves are changing.
2) What book on your shelves reminds you of going back to school/your school days?
I have some books that I read for school on my shelves. Otherwise, I can't think of one!
3) Find a book on your shelf which has something Autumn related on the cover.
Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
4) What is your favorite horror/Halloween story?
Maybe The Diviners by Libba Bray because it is kinda creepy and scary.
5) What is your favorite horror film?
I hate horror films, but for Halloween I like to watch the Disney movies!
6) Which book release are you most looking forward to this Autumn?
HOUSE OF HADES BY RICK RIORDAN.
7) Which film release are you most looking forward to this Autumn?
CATCHING FIRE.
8) Three books that you are hoping to read this season?

1. House of Hades by Rick Riordan
2. Allegiant by Veronica Roth
3. Champion by Marie Lu

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this tag! What book are you most anticipating? Thanks for reading, Kait