The Halloween Book Tag 🎃

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here, and in honour of Halloween today, I thought I would do this short little tag called The Halloween Book Tag. This tag was created by book-tuber, Naomi TheBooklover. I've seen other book tubers do this, so I thought it would be fun to do this quick tag. So, without any further ado, lets get into the tag. 

1. Carving pumpkins--What book would you carve up and light on fire? 

I haven't read too many books that have made me want to burn books on fire. But there is one that I can think of in particular and that book is The Best Night of Your (Pathetic) Life by Tara Altebrando. I read this book recently, and I despised it. I hated the main characters so much that I grew frustrated with them halfway threw the book. I couldn't wait for this book to be finished because I just wanted to be done with it. So yes, I would actually burn this book. 

2. Trick or Treat--What character is a trick, what character is a treat? 

The character who is a treat is Paige from The Start of Me of You by Emery Lord. Paige is just a sweet, and wonderful character to read about. And I felt such a deep connection with her, which I haven't truly felt with any other character in a long time. The character who is a trick would be Theo from the Firebird trilogy by Claudia Gray. Now, Theo is not a bad person, but there are qualities to him that I didn't like so because of that, he is a trick. 

3. Candy Corn--What book is always sweet? 

Pretty much any book by Morgan Matson. All of her books are so sweet and entertaining. I highly recommend her books to read. 

4. Ghosts--What character would you love to visit you as a ghost? 

Probably Brandon from As I Descended by Robin Talley. Brandon is such an awesome character, and I really liked reading about him. *spoiler alert* Brandon does die halfway through the book, and Brandon is based off of Banquo from Macbeth, so it makes sense that he would be a ghost. Anyways, I just thought that he would a great ghost to pick. 

5. Dressing up in costume--What character would you want to be for a day? 

This one was kind of hard to decide. But if I were to ever dress up as any character for a day it would probably be Arsinoe from Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake. She is such a bad ass character, who wasn't afraid to speak her mind, and be a little rebellious at times. She was my favourite character in the book, and I can't wait to read more about her in the next one. 

6. Wizards and Witches--What is your favourite Harry Potter moment? 

I haven't actually read Harry Potter so I don't have a favourite moment. 

7. Blood and Gore--What book was so creepy that you had to take a break from it for awhile? 

The one book I would choose for this one would have to be The Accident Season by Moria Fowley-Doyle. This book got really creepy at times that I had to take a second to put the book down, and take a small break from it. I really liked this book for its gripping and suspenseful qualities, but the characters were what turned me off slightly from giving it a five stars. 

So that is it for The Halloween Book Tag I hope you all enjoyed. If you want to do this tag, then I tag you to do it in the comments below. Happy reading and until my next post goodbye for now. And Happy Halloween everyone! 👻🎃

Currently Reading Thoughts

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here and I'm currently reading Ten Thousand Skies Above You by Claudia Gray. I just want to write about my thoughts with all of you, because I have a lot that I feel needs to be expressed. 

First of all, can we just talk about the cover and how beautiful it is?! Her covers for this trilogy are so gorgeous and they match my aesthetics in life. They are just so artistic and they really present all the dimensions the characters go to very well. And watercolour is one of my favourite kinds of art, so that's a plus. 

My thoughts on the book however, are just the same. I personally think this book is better than the first one by far. There is more that happens, if not, a lot more happens. Tons more drama, romance, and action-packed. It is the perfect combination of all of the things previously mentioned. I am actually starting to like Theo a lot more, because I really get to see his vulnerability deep down his cocky, and sometimes arrogant exterior. So, I really understand that he is in fact a great person. I got to see different sides to all the characters, especially with Paul (but I can't admit why because of spoilers). But I feel like I have gotten to know a lot more of the characters in this book, and I will continue to get to know them for one last time in the final book when it comes out in November, which I am so ready for BTW. 

In terms of a synopsis, I don't want to write too much about it because of spoilers. But I will write that instead of trying to murder Paul, Marguerite is trying to save him. Paul's soul get splintered into 4 different dimensions and it's up to Marguerite (with the help of Theo) to save him. 

So yes, those are all my thoughts for my current read I hope you all enjoyed. If you have read this book then let me know your thoughts in the comments so we could discuss it. I hope to have a full review on this in a few days. Happy reading and until next post, goodbye for now. 

Suicide Notes from Beautiful Girls by Lynn Weingarten

Genre: young-adult, mystery, contemporary, thriller 

Published: July 5th 2016 (first published: July 7th 2015)

Pages: 336 

Publisher: Simon Pulse 

Synopsis 

They say Delia burned herself to death in her stepfather’s shed. They say it was suicide.

But June doesn’t believe it.

June and Delia used to be closer than anything. Best friends in that way that comes before everyone else—before guys, before family. It was like being in love, but more. They had a billion secrets, binding them together like thin silk cords.

But one night a year ago, everything changed. June, Delia, and June’s boyfriend Ryan were just having a little fun. Their good time got out of hand. And in the cold blue light of morning, June knew only this—things would never be the same again.

And now, a year later, Delia is dead. June is certain she was murdered. And she owes it to her to find out the truth…which is far more complicated than she ever could have imagined. (source) 

Thoughts 

I bought this book in the summer because I was very intrigued by the premise and I needed new books in the thriller/mystery genre for fall and Halloween. And it was in fact the perfect book for this time. I really enjoyed this book because of its fast pacing and flowing writing style. What I didn't like about it was how it changed perspectives once I found out about the plot twist (which I didn't see coming). I also didn't enjoy the direction the book took towards the end. I didn't think it was completely necessary for a story like this. And it got strangely dark at times and I was just like: What. Is. Happening!? Other than those issues, I really liked the story for what it was (in the beginning) and I would still recommend it to you guys. 

Another thought that I wanted to discuss was the characters. First off, I really liked June as character and I personally believe that her thoughts and reactions to the situation were realistic. I didn't connect with her and relate to her emotionally, but I still enjoyed reading her perspective. And I didn't like the rest of the characters to much. There was just something about them that I couldn't trust (which is what I think the author was trying to go for). But still to me, they were just odd characters and some had really f***ed up backgrounds. I tried to like some of the characters (I don't want to say their names because it might be a spoiler from the plot twist), but I couldn't. 

The last thing I wanted to write about was the plot twist. That plot twist though!? I didn't see it coming at all. I was extremely shocked to find out what really happened, but I didn't love the rest of the overall story after that as much as I did in the beginning. I really enjoyed the start of the book when June is trying to find out answers to what went on. It was really a  mystery to me. But then the plot twist came and I unfortunately didn't enjoy the second half of the book. I was disappointed with the outcome, and because of that I have to give a lower rating. 

Despite my issues with the story, I still enjoyed the pacing and I really like the authors writing style. I definitely want to check out more of her books, to see what there like. And hopefully there good. I still recommend this book if you're still interested in reading it, and it is a great book for this time of year. 

Rate 

3/5 

Currently Reading

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here. I know that there is a currently reading section on this blog (to your right), but I wanted to make these because I still want to share my thoughts with all of you about what I'm currently reading. So yes, this is the book I'm reading right now. I'm almost done with it and I'm surprised by how intense it is. To me, it's more than just mystery   book, but it's also about the value of friendship as well. I honestly didn't expect the book to go the way it did, and right now, I'm not really sure I like the direction that the author went with it. I am surprised with the plot twist towards the middle, but it somehow works with the story, but I'm still questioning the motive for it. My point is, is that I expected the book to go one way, but it ended up being completely different. I feel similarly with Away We Go (review on my blog, go check it out). 

I still am enjoying the book, it's gripping, thrilling, intense, dark, and entertaining. It is one book that I would recommend you guys to read during this time of year. This book is also something that you can sink your teeth into in one sitting if you wanted. It is such a great book, I recommend it. 

The main synopsis is about best friends Delia and June. They've been friends forever, and practically inseparable. But a year before the book starts, Delia commits suicide in her step father's shed, June is grieving about the loss and isn't sure how she can live without her. However, June doesn't believe that Delia committed suicide, but that she was murdered. So, June goes to the extents of finding out the truth of what really happened that night. 

So yeah, I hope that makes sense. That is it for this blog I hope you all enjoyed. I will have a review posted maybe tomorrow or the day after. I hope to get this book done later tonight. Anyways, happy reading and until my next post. Goodbye for now. 

Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

Genre: fantasy, young-adult, fiction

Published: September 20th 2016

Pages: 398

Publisher: HarperTeen 

Synopsis 

When kingdom come, there will be one.

In every generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born—three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions.

But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or lose…it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins.

The last queen standing gets the crown. (source)

Thoughts 

I have been anticipating this book for so long, that I literally couldn't wait to pick it up. So, when I saw it a week early at the bookstore, I obviously had to get it. I was very intrigued by the concept of the story and the fact that it was a fantasy really surprised me because I'm not to drawn to that genre. So, I knew I had to give this book and genre a chance. Now, I will for sure be reading more books in fantasy, because this book was just incredible and beautiful from start to finish. But I will say that the pacing in the beginning was rather slow, but by 100 pages, the book really flew by and I couldn't put it down. Everything about this book was fantastic from the world building, to the character development, and the plot. It was such a perfect read I highly recommend it, if you want to start reading fantasy. 

My biggest issue with this book was the pacing. I found it to be rather slow during the first 100 pages, but by that point, the story just really flowed and went by very quickly. This is why I'm taking a half off of a rating. But I do think the pacing was slow because there was a lot of world building and we had different characters that we needed to be introduced to. I actually did find the characters to be confusing at first because there were so many of them. But I eventually got used to them and for me, that's when the story really picked up. 

Even though this is a fantasy and so you don't necessarily relate to the characters a whole lot, I still found myself having a connection with each of the sisters individually. I loved the three sisters equally because they are all such bad asses in their own way, and I could really relate to that. They weren't afraid to say what they wanted, and be rebellious a little bit. I loved how courageous they all were and I can't wait to read more about them in the next book. 

This book was so dark, creepy (on some level) and intense. I believe this is the perfect book to read during this time of year, where you can cuddle up in a blanket with a nice drink with a good book on a cold, rainy day. I absolutely loved this book, and I would consider this to be one of my favourite books this year. I highly, highly recommend this book if you want a good original fantasy. 

Rate 

4.5/5 

Currently Reading

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here, and I am back with another book to share with you guys. I am currently reading Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake. She is the author of the paranormal duology Anna Dressed in Blood and Girl of Nightmares, but she has also written other books. 
Anyways, I only started reading this yesterday and I am only halfway done. It just goes by so quickly, and I'm enjoying every minute of it. I will say that the pacing in the beginning is very slow, but it does pick up about 100 pages in. It is for sure worth the read, I can't wait for the next book. 

The book is about three girls who are sisters and they are the next generation of triplets on this island called Fennebirn. The three sisters have magical powers. Mirabella is an elementalist, while Arsinoe is a naturalist, and Katherine is an poisoner. The twist is that two of the sisters are faking their gifts, which means  they almost have no chance of being queen, unless they can hide it. While the other has her true gift, but she's not sure if can kill her sisters for the throne. So yes, all are in line for the throne but only one of them can get it, which means, they have to fight for it. 

This book is dark, intense, and creepy on so many levels. This is the perfect book to read during fall and winter and it is definitely one that you can devour on a cozy cold, rainy, cloudy day/night. However, I was confused at first because there were so many characters to follow, but I eventually got the hang of all of them and that was when the pacing picked up. After you get used to the characters, the book is amazing. The world building was well done and I was able to envision what everything looked liked and what was going on as well. 

I will be finishing this soon and I will have a full review up in a little bit. That is it for this post, happy reading and until my next one goodbye for now. 

As I Descended by Robin Talley

Genre: young-adult, GLBT, retellings, fantasy

Published: September 6th 2016 

Pages: 384

Publisher: HarperTeen 

Synopsis 

Maria Lyon and Lily Boiten are their school’s ultimate power couple—even if no one knows it but them.

Only one thing stands between them and their perfect future: campus superstar Delilah Dufrey.

Golden child Delilah is a legend at the exclusive Acheron Academy, and the presumptive winner of the distinguished Cawdor Kingsley Prize. She runs the school, and if she chose, she could blow up Maria and Lily’s whole world with a pointed look, or a carefully placed word.

But what Delilah doesn’t know is that Lily and Maria are willing to do anything—absolutely anything—to make their dreams come true. And the first step is unseating Delilah for the Kingsley Prize. The full scholarship, awarded to Maria, will lock in her attendance at Stanford―and four more years in a shared dorm room with Lily.

Maria and Lily will stop at nothing to ensure their victory—including harnessing the dark power long rumored to be present on the former plantation that houses their school.

But when feuds turn to fatalities, and madness begins to blur the distinction between what’s real and what is imagined, the girls must decide where they draw the line. (source)

Thoughts 

I first saw this book on Goodreads while I was in one of my classes, really bored out of mind. And I was very intrigued by the synopsis so I knew I had to read this ASAP. I just finished this today, and man was it ever amazing?! I loved everything about this book from the retelling, to the LGBT twist, and the diversity. I think that the author did an amazing job at turning Macbeth into her own story. Even though I could tell that it was in fact a retelling of Macbeth, she still truly made it unique. I also enjoyed the characters for what they were.and this book really got me in the mood for fall and Halloween, because of its dark content (which I loved). It was such a great read that I consider reading again in the future. I loved the book as a whole and I highly recommend it. 

The first thing I wanna talk about is the LGBT and diversity that was in this novel. There was plenty of diversity in this book, with disability, Hispanic characters and of course, the female to female and male to male romances. There was a lot of it to go around, and I loved every moment of it. I believe it just made the story so unique and it got me to give this book a high rating. I say this because I find that there isn't a lot of diversity in young-adult books when it comes to disabled and international characters. I personally think there should be more of disabled and non-white characters in young-adult. With the LGBT romances, I loved both of them. Everything was going okay with Maria and Lily until things took a huge negative turn and it grew dysfunctional. While Brandon and Mateo had the potential for their relationship to grow and become something beautiful, it also ended on a tragic note. I was so upset by these circumstances, but since Macbeth is a tragedy, I had the expectation that it would end badly.  

Speaking of the characters, all of them were so unique and wonderful. I wouldn't necessarily want to be their friends, but they were still great characters with their own issues. Just like in the actual play, each character has a different way of dealing with guilt and grief and you can definitely see that in this book. Unfortunately their guilt takes a dark turn, and there were other ways that they could of handled the main situation; like, I don't know, maybe actually telling somebody about it. 😐😐😐 

But despite that, the characters were well-liked and I didn't have any issues with them, mainly because they are based off of the people in Macbeth. So I understood what the circumstances were and why they acted the way they did. I didn't actually connect with them, but I don't think you're supposed to actually connect with the characters, so that wasn't an issue with me while reading this book. 

I swear this book is a dark and creepy book that really got me in the mood to read more of this type of genre. I tend to read more books like this towards the fall and winter months. And this was the perfect book to get me motivated to read more of the genre (like I just said). I really enjoyed this book, and I'm considering this to be one of my favourite books of the year so far. I highly recommend this book, if you want a good retelling with a creepy and dark vibe, with LGBT elements.  

Rate 

5/5

Gathering Blue and Messenger by Lois Lowry

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here and I thought I would do something different and combine two book reviews into two separate mini reviews for each book. The books I will be reviewing are Gathering Blue and Messenger both by Lois Lowry. So without further ado, let's get into the reviews. Happy reading and until my next post, goodbye for now. 

Genre: young-adult, science-fiction, fantasy

Published: March 5th 2013 (first published, September 2000) 

Pages: 256

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers 

Synopsis 

Six years later, she ushered readers back into its mysterious but plausible future world in Gathering Blue to tell the story of Kira, orphaned, physically flawed, and left with an uncertain future. (source)

Thoughts 

My thoughts on this book are going to be very brief, because I don't have to much thoughts on it. But I do have enough to write up a decent review. So, this is the second book to the Giver's quartet but it is a companion to the first book. It has absolutely no connection to The Giver, but it does take place in a similar world. So because of that, we get to meet a whole bunch of new characters, which I thought was a cool aspect. However, that doesn't mean I enjoyed it. 

It was fast paced, but a dull read. There was a lack of character development between the supporting characters. And the main character herself was not that interesting to read about. This would have to be my least favourite out of the quartet so far because I wasn't entirely into the whole story itself. However, the world building in this story is incredible so I will give this book a slightly higher rating based on that alone. 

If you have finished The Giver and want to continue on with series, I suggest you do as each story gets better. Personally for me, it would be best to go into this book not knowing a whole lot about it.  

Rate 

2/5

Genre: young-adult, science-fiction, fantasy

Published: April 26th 2004 

Pages: 169

Publisher: HMH Books for Younger Readers 

Synopsis

Matty has lived in Village and flourished under the guidance of Seer, a blind man known for his special sight. Village once welcomed newcomers, but something sinister has seeped into Village and the people have voted to close it to outsiders. Matty has been invaluable as a messenger. Now he must risk everything to make one last journey through the treacherous forest with his only weapon, a power he unexpectedly discovers within himself. (source) 

Thoughts

I just finished this today, and I have to say it's a pretty good book. I enjoyed it far more than I did with the Gathering Blue. It wasn't as good as The Giver, but I still enjoyed the book as a whole. The world building was wonderful as usual, but there were a lot of plot holes that kind of made me question a few things. For example, with the Trade Mart section of the story, we get all this information on it. But then it just mysteriously disappears and nothing is ever resolved from that. Like what ever happened with it afterwards? I just wish I knew more information on that portion of the book. The pacing of the book was kind of slow at times, but I managed to get through it. Other then that, it was a pretty entertaining book and I recommend it. 

The main character Matty, is the same character as the little "tyke" in Gathering Blue. So it was interesting to see his perspective and what ended up happening to him after the ending of the second book. I enjoyed reading more about his life than I did with Kira's (as you know). And It was also nice to see what ended up happening with the different characters like Jonas and Gabe, and Kira in this book. I liked knowing that things ended on a positive note with each of them. 

Rate 

3/5

Currently Reading

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here and I'm back with two books that I'm currently reading at the moment. I started reading both this weekend and I am happy with how these books are turning out so far. I will finish both books soon and have reviews up in a little while. So without any further ado, let's get into the books. 

The first book I started reading was Messenger by Lois Lowry. This is the third book in The Giver's quartet. This book has connections with the first and second book as it brings back characters from each story. I really liked seeing what ended up happening with Jonas and Gabe and also with Kira as well. This book is definitely more interesting than Gathering Blue, as I enjoyed reading about Matty's life slightly more than Kira's or even Jonas'. This isn't as good as The Giver, but it was better than Gathering Blue. I am almost done this book (I just have to read couple more chapters), but I think I'll be done by tomorrow and I will have a review up soon. 






The second book I'm currently reading is As I Descended by Robin Talley. What intrigued me about this book was that it is a modern retelling of the Shakespearean play Macbeth. And to top it all off, it is LGBTQ+ oriented. Also, can we just talk about how beautiful this cover is?! Anyways, I started reading it just today, and it is so amazing. It is similar to Macbeth but I really enjoyed how she put her own twist into the story and really made it her own. I will be finishing this book soon as well, and there will be a review up in a bit. 








That is it for this post, I hoped you all enjoyed. Let me know what books you're currently reading at the moment in the comments below. I apologize that this blog is short, and not how I usually do it. But I promise it will be the way it normally is soon. Happy reading and until my next post, goodbye for now.