December Wrap Up 📚

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here and it is that time of the month were I talk about the books I read in December. I only read six books this month which is great considering I had my final exams and it was Christmas and all. I still somehow managed to read all the books I planned to read, including an additional book I wasn't planning to read. 
Anyways, I know I said that I would be blogging a lot more this Christmas season but life got in the way and I wasn't able to blog as much. But it was also Christmas and I really wanted to spend time with my family and friends before I go back to school. So, without any further ado let's get into the wrap up. 

The first book I read this month was Lies My Girlfriend Told Me by Julie Anne Peters. I planned on reading this in November but I didn't get around to it then. So I managed to read it now. This is an LGBT contemporary about a girl who loses her girlfriend very suddenly and Alix has to come to terms with her girlfriends death. However, she finds out some shocking news about her former girlfriend and another girl is involved. Alix and Liana (the other women) develop a bond which leads into a romance. Anyways, I really enjoyed this book. It was relatable and realistic. However, there were a few frustrating parts about the book (I can't remember right now). But if you want to know my full thoughts on this book, I have a combined review (along with You Know Me Well) that is up on this blog now. So, go check it out. I rated this a 4/5 stars. 

The next book I read was You Know Me Well by Nina Lacour and David Levithan. I really enjoyed this book as well. This was another LGBT contemporary that I just impulsively picked up. This story gave me all of the feels (especially towards the end). The characters were slightly over the top at times, but the two main characters were extremely realistic so it worked out well. David Levithan is one of my favourite authors so I love getting the opportunity to read anything by him. And Nina Lacour is a great author as well. I read her previous book and it was very enjoyable. Anyways back to this book, it is such a wonderful read and I highly recommend it. I have a combined review with another book (previous one mentioned), and all of my complete thoughts on this book (and the other) are in my previous post. I also rated this a 4/5 stars. 

The third book I read this month was This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab. This book just got more intense as the book progressed. It was so dark, edgy and creepy and I loved every minute of it. I read this in the course of three days and it was such a great book. I'm so looking forward the second and final book to this duology and I just want to see how this story ends. The most refreshing part about this story was that there was no romance. It was so unique and different from anything I've ever read before. And the friendship between Kate and August was amazing. I will have a review up on this book very soon. I rated this book a 5/5 stars. 

The fourth book I read was What Light by Jay Asher. Now, since  it's the Christmas season, I was very much in the mood to read a holiday book. This was seriously one of the best Christmas books I've read in all the years I've been reading holiday themed books. This had all the romance, family and friendship. Reading this book was liking watching a Christmas movie on the Hallmark channel. It was such a cute, fluffy and lighthearted read that was perfect for the holiday season. If you want to know more of my thoughts of this book, then I'm doing a combined review with The Twelve Days of Dash and Lily by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan. I rated this a 5/5 stars. 

The fifth book I read was The Twelve Days of Dash and Lily by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan. I have been anticipating this release ever since I first heard about it. This is the sequel to Dash and Lily's Book of Dares, which I really enjoyed. This one however, I didn't love as much. I felt like it had the potential to be this great lighthearted story, but it was executed poorly. It lacked the excitement and adventure that was in the previous book. Lots of things between the characters were changing and Lily was depressing to read about. This story was not as enjoyable as the first one was, but I still liked it. I just didn't love it as much and overall it's not one of my favourite stories. I'm disappointed because I really wanted to love it, but that just didn't happen. Anyways, I will have a combined review up soon explaining more of my thoughts. I rated this a 3/5 stars. 

The last book I read this month (and for 2016) was My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodie Ashton and Jodie Meadows. This was such a fantastic book. It's a historical fiction that is based off of the nine day queen Lady Jane Grey. But the history is not the most accurate but it's a story that's meant to entertain you, not educate you. But it was still interesting to get a little bit of background on the actual history, and I'm glad that's not all the story focused on. Going into this book, I thought it was going to be a very boring and bland book. But it turned out to be the complete opposite as it was full of wit and satire (which I love). It was hilarious and I even found myself laughing at some of the parts. I loved all three of the main characters, especially Jane. I felt that I could relate and identify with her thoughts, and I also loved her love for reading. She wasn't afraid to speak her mind and to say what she wanted. I really admire Jane for that considering the time period she lived in. I will have a full review on my thoughts very soon. Definitely one of my favourite books this year. I rated this a 5/5 stars. 

So that is it for my wrap up I hope you all enjoyed. If you've read any of these books then let me know your thoughts in the comments below. I can't believe this year went by so fast. Lots of negative things happened in the world (politically, socially, and even celebrity legends dying before our eyes). So even though I'm sad to see this year go, I'm still excited for this year to come and see what 2017 has to offer. Happy reading and until my next post, goodbye for now. 

Currently Reading Thoughts

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here and I thought I would discuss with you guys my thoughts on my current read. I'm currently reading My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodie Ashton and Jodie Meadows. This is a historical-fiction retelling on Lady Jane Grey (you know the one who was executed nine days after being queen?). Well anyways, this is based off the real history behind Lady Jane Grey, but there are a few twists, like people turning into animals kind of twist. 

Now, I won't go into too much detail on the plot other then what is already on the desk jacket. All of the following is paraphrased: Edward is a sixteen year old king who is dying and he rather be planning for his first kiss than considering who will inherit the throne next...While Jane, who loves books, is Edwards sixteen year old cousin who never would of thought she'd have (said cousin) marry her off to a man who is to secure her that line of being king/queen. However, something is rather odd about her intended....Gifford is a horse! He's a Ediun. Which means he's a horse by day, and a human at night. And he has no control of this change. The plot thickens as Edward, Jane and Gifford are drawn into this dangerous conspiracy. With the fate of the kingdom at stake, they will have to delve into some planning of their own. "Can they pull off their plan before it's off with their heads?" (desk jacket words, not mine)

Now onto my thoughts. I love this book so much. Honestly, I didn't expect to love it originally going into this book. However, the more I read it, the more I fell in love with every page I turned. I initially thought this was going to be a serious historical fiction that was going to bore me to tears. But it actually turned out to be a very witty and satirical read that is very entertaining. This book is actually quite hilarious and sarcastic and I'm personally into that kind of humour in books. I'm almost halfway through this book and I'm enjoying every minute of it. 

Anyways, those are all my thoughts on this book so far. If you have read My Lady Jane then let me know your thoughts in the comments below (but no spoilers please). There will be a review for this book once I'm finished. Happy reading and until my next post, goodbye for now. 

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me by Julie Anne Peters and You Know Me Well by Nina LaCour and David Levithan

Genre: young-adult, contemporary, LGBT, romance

Published: June 10th 2014

Pages: 256

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers 

Synopsis

When Alix's charismatic girlfriend, Swanee, dies from sudden cardiac arrest, Alix is overcome with despair. As she searches Swanee's room for mementos of their relationship, she finds Swanee's cell phone, pinging with dozens of texts sent from a mysterious contact, L.T. The most recent text reads: "Please tell me what I did. Please, Swan. Te amo. I love you."

Shocked and betrayed, Alix learns that Swanee has been leading a double life--secretly dating a girl named Liana the entire time she's been with Alix. Alix texts Liana from Swanee's phone, pretending to be Swanee in order to gather information before finally meeting face-to-face to break the news.

Brought together by Swanee's lies, Alix and Liana become closer than they'd thought possible. But Alix is still hiding the truth from Liana. Alix knows what it feels like to be lied to--but will coming clean to Liana mean losing her, too? (source)

Thoughts

I have read books by Julie Anne Peters before so I'm familiar with what she writes (which are LGBT related books) however, I liked her previous novels but I didn't love them. This book on the hand definitely took me by surprise. It was a lot better than her previous books (minus a few complaints I had about this particular book), but I really enjoyed this one better than I thought I would. This is a fast paced read, and it had a really cute and unexpected romance. So, if you guys are looking for a quick LGBT related read, then I suggest you pick this one up. 

I did have a few issues with this book, which is why I didn't give it a full 5 star rating. My first issue, was the dialogue. I thought that the dialogue was very forced throughout the novel, especially in the beginning. It didn't feel natural to me and the dialogue was slightly off at times. My next problem was the unrealistic emotions through the main character (again towards the beginning). Alix and Swanee have only been dating for six weeks, and Alix pretty much mourns Swanee's death throughout the entirety of the novel. Now, I understand the sad, depressed emotions. I do.But lets say, if she were dating Swanee for 6 months to a year, then I could understand a little more as to why she reacted the way she did. But it was only six weeks. So, because of that, the emotions that Alix felt for the first few chapters of the novel felt very overdramatic for me. Joss on the other hand, was Swanee's sister. So, I could truly understand how Joss was feeling throughout this book. They were sisters, they practically spent their whole lives together and now their other half is gone. Joss had every right to react the way she did towards Swanee's death. 

I loved the romance that developed between Alix and Liana. I thought they were so cute and some of things they did (like when they spent the day together at an art event), were so awesome. I felt that Alix and Liana were good to each other. However, I kind of thought that it was lacklustre a little bit. Now, I completely understand as to why this was the case (Swanee's death) but I still expected something more to come out of it. 
                             💖                                  💖                                       💖

Genre: young-adult, LGBT, contemporary

Published: June 7th 2016

Pages: 248

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Synopsis 

Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed.

That is, until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way.

When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other—and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more. (source)

Thoughts 

I didn't have any intentions on reading this book for quite awhile. I most likely would've read this in the summer. But something just told me to read this book now. And I'm so glad I did. I can't believe I came across such a fantastic book at such a great time during the year. This book gave me all the feels and this was another book that I enjoyed a lot more than I thought I would. I have read books by both of these authors before and they're great writers. However, I never thought that they would actually collaborate. But I am happy that they did because now I have this book to enjoy. I loved all the characters as they were very relatable.  The pacing was great and it never got boring. This book is very heartfelt but it is also a light read. I would highly recommend this book to all of you. 

I thought that Mark and Kate were very relatable characters and I felt like I could connect with them. They both had their own issues and they dealt with them in a realistic way. Mark had his issues of being in love with his best friend Ryan for years. While Kate has ran away from the potential girl of her dreams. Both Mark and Kate learn how to cope and learn from them as they ultimately makes things right with themselves and with their love lives. I also enjoyed the friendship aspect in this book. Not only is the romance important, but also the friendship is very significant as well. It made me realize that it's always good to have relationships that are just strictly platonic. 

While reading this book, especially at the end, it gave me all the feels. I felt really happy for them as everything worked out well for all the characters in the end. And I can't even begin to describe to you all my feelings on this book. 

Overall Rate 

Both books: 4/5  

Festive Christmas Book Tag ❤️🎄❄️

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here and I thought it would be festive and fun to do the Festive Christmas Book Tag. This tag was created by GirlReading on YouTube. There is a total of eight questions so without any further ado, lets get into it. 

1. A fictional family you would like to spend Christmas dinner with? 

If I had to choose any family it would probably it would be the family from the Firebird trilogy by Claudia Gray. They are such a loving but scientific family, and I think it would be cool to learn a lot about science from them while having Christmas dinner. 

2. A bookish item you would like to receive as a gift? 

I think a reading journal would be really cool to receive as a gift. And also a bookish mug would be awesome to get as a gift as well. 

3. A fictional character you think would make a perfect Christmas elf? 

I had a really hard time with this one, but I would choose Penny from Girl Online by Zoe Sugg. She is so innocent and childish just like an elf. But she is also successful with her blogging and works hard on it like an elf would on Santa's Christmas presents. 

4. Match a book to its perfect Christmas song.

I would go with All I Want for Christmas by Mariah Carey and Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan. Their romance is literally goals and it's all I could ever want during the Christmas season. Okay, I know that putting a notebook in a bookstore and have someone else do the dares and not meet in person seems kind of strange. But it puts such a unique spin on a typical romance, I love it so much. 

5. Bah Humbug. A book or fictional character you've been disappointed in and should be put on the naughty list? 

I would say Away We Go by Emil Ostrovski. I had such high expectations going into this book. Unfortunately, it did not meet any of those expectations and I felt very disappointed with the book's outcome. I thought it had potential to be such a great novel but it just wasn't executed well. So yes, this book would have to go on the naughty list for sure. 

6. A book or fictional character you think deserves more love and appreciation and deserves to be put on the nice list? 

I think that the Summer series by Michelle Dalton deserves more love and appreciation from readers. They are such great summer reads and I highly recommend you check them out. 

7. Red Gold and Green. A book cover that has a wonderful Christmas feel to it? 

Besides the Dash and Lily books, I'm gonna have to choose Bittersweet by Sarah Ockler. Even though this cover has no red, gold, or green on it, it still expresses such Christmas feels and the cover makes me so happy. It has the cookie and the powered sugar to look like snow. It is such a perfect Christmas cover. 

8. A book or series you love so much, you want everyone to find under their Christmas tree this year so they can read it and love it too? 

The series/trilogy I would choose is the Asylum trilogy by Madeline Roux. This is one of my favourite paranormal trilogies of all time and I would want everyone to read this because it is so good. I was captivated by the first book to read the second and third book plus, they are so addicting and gripping. This is the perfect trilogy to read during the month of October or anytime of the year really. 

So, that is it for the Festive Christmas Book Tag I hope you all enjoyed. I tag all of you to do this if you haven't done it already. And comment below your answers. Happy reading and until my next post, goodbye for now. 

Currently Reading Thoughts

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here and I'm currently reading You Know Me Well by Nina LaCour and David Levithan. 
I didn't really intend on reading this book, but for some reason, something sparked my interest and I thought I would pick it up now. I'm about halfway done this book and so far it's pretty good. The characters can come off as being a little over dramatic sometimes but not in an annoying type of way. (*side note: When it comes to books, I'm slightly drawn more towards characters in a book than its plot, that's why I tend to write more about the characters*). Anyways, this book is extremely entertaining. 

This book is about two people Mark and Kate, who go to the same high school and have never spoken to each other. Until one night, Mark and Kate finally cross paths. Kate has ran away from the one person she's in love with, while Mark is in love with his best friend (who may or may not like him back), but he still hasn't told him. As a result, they develop this beautiful friendship and they grow to learn from one another. As they go through their own separate journeys, they still remain friends and share a bond to last a life time. 

Okay I know that last part sounded a little cheesy and slightly dramatic but its true. I really love the two characters, even though they appear to be overly dramatic (especially the supporting characters). I'm sort of annoyed that Kate's friends are not being very kind/supportive towards her at all. I don't know they just seem to brush her off when Kate really needs them. And Ryan (Mark's best friend) is kind of an asshole. Like why is Mark in love with this douche?! Anyways, this book is so entertaining and fast paced, I am enjoying every minute of it. I hope to finish this by tomorrow or even the day after. 

 *side note: I just finished Lies My Girlfriend Told Me by Julie Anne Peters and I'm thinking of doing a review of that book and You Know Me Well together in one post. So that will definitely be up soon.* 

Happy reading and until my next post, goodbye for now. 😊

Winter Wonderland Book Tag ❄️❄️

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here. I am back again but this time, I'm doing a tag. This was apparently popular a few years ago, and I saw someone do this tag recently. So, I thought it would be fun to do this short and quick little tag. This tag was created by JackEatsBooks. Now, let's get into it.

1. What book is so happy and sweet that it warms your heart? 

The first book that comes to mind is A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall. This is just the perfect light hearted, cute read and every time I think about it, it warms my heart. It's a very cheesy and fluffy romance, but I think its good to read those kinds of books every once in a while. 

2. What is your favourite book with a white cover? 

One of my favourite books with a white cover has to be The Vincent Boys by Abbi Glines. This is one is quite the steamy yet cheesy romance which I love. I read this in an entire sitting (that's very rare for me), but it was fantastic. It's not really a winter read, but it is the perfect book to devour in the winter time. 

3. You're sitting in a nice comfy cozy chair, wearing a onesie, with a lovely hot chocolate but what MONSTER read are you reading? 

Probably a book like Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff or Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake. I have yet to read Illuminae but I've heard amazing things about it and I can't wait to dive into it soon. And Three Dark Crowns was just incredible. I read it in October and it was the perfect cozy read for fall. 

4. It started snowing so you decided to have a snowball fight! What fictional character(s)  would you love to have a snowball fight with? 

Probably Marguerite, Paul and Theo from the Firebird trilogy. They are honestly such an amazing group of characters that I loved all throughout the series. It would be so much fun to have a snowball fight with all of them. 

5. Sadly, your fire is beginning to go out. So what book would you tear the last few chapters to throw into the fire? 

I know I have said this book for numerous tags as an answer similar to this question. But I am going to have to say The Best Night of Your (Pathetic) Life by Tara Altebrando. I hated this book so much, I would be more then happy then to throw the entire book into the fire. 

6. What book is so close to your heart that you would gift to someone this Christmas who hasn't read it before but wants to get into reading? 

I had a really hard time thinking about this one, but I would have to say Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan. I loved everything about this book and it made me feel so happy while reading it. And I want everyone else to read this and feel the same way. I also think it would be great for someone who wants to get into reading, because it's not so complex with its plot and it's also very relatable. 

Well, that is it for my Winter Wonderland Book Tag I hope you all enjoyed it. I tag you guys to do this as well if you haven't done so already. Happy reading and until my next post, goodbye for now. 

December TBR ❄️❄️

Hello everyone it's Nicole Henderson here and I thought I would do something a little different and share with you guys my TBR for the month of December. I have 5 books that I plan on getting to this month, but if I don't complete all of them then that's okay. I've already begun reading 2 books so I will mention those first (and finish first), as for the rest of the books, I don't plan on reading them in any particular order. So without any further ado, let's get into my TBR. 

The first book I plan to finish this month is Lies My Girlfriend Told Me by Julie Anne Peters. I started this last month but I didn't get a chance to finish it. I'm actually almost done this book and I plan on finishing it very soon. I've read books by this author before and I actually like some of her books. They aren't my absolute favourites ever, but I still recommend them. With this particular book, I do find that the dialogue between all the characters seems really forced. And I don't really have a connection towards any of the characters either, so the book is sort of lacking in that department. I do like this book, but I don't love it. And I don't think I will have a full review for this one just because I don't have a ton of thoughts on it. Maybe I'll combine this book and another book and do two reviews in one post. Anyways, this book is pretty short so it is a bit of a fast read for me, and like I previously mentioned, I will finish this very soon. 

The next book I plan on finishing this month is You Know Me Well by Nina Lacour and David Levithan. I literally just started reading this tonight so I don't have an actual opinion on this book yet. But I do hope I enjoy it because I've heard great things about this one. I've also been wanting to read this for quite sometime now and I'm so glad I'm finally getting around to reading it. Also, I've loved both of their individual books so I'm excited to see how this turns out with them working together. 

The third book I plan on reading in December is The Twelve Days of Dash and Lily by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan. This book was just released in October and I swear this is my most anticipated read for this entire month. This is the long-time-coming sequel for Dash and Lily's Book of Dares. I read the previous book a few years ago and I absolutely loved it. I don't believe I read it during the Christmas season, but it is still perfect to read all year round (especially during Christmas time). This will for sure get me in the Christmas mood, and like I mentioned, I'm so excited to read this! This book takes place a year after the first book and Dash and Lily are a happy couple. But things go weary and it all has to be solved. Anyways, I'm intrigued to see how I like this one. 

The fourth book I want to get into this month is This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab. Now, I've heard incredible things about this book, and the author. And I'm so excited to finally be reading this. I was really intrigued by its plot to pick it up for myself. Apparently, this is the first book in a duology and I love the idea about there being no romance involved between the two main characters. It's refreshing to read a book that is like this. Hopefully, I enjoy it enough to pick up the second book. 




The last book I want to try to get to this month is My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodie Ashton, and Jodie Meadows. Now this is a historical fiction retelling of Queen Jane who ruled for only 9 days. Except there's a twist. I don't really read a lot of historical fiction so I figured now would be the time to finally get my hands on this book and read it. I've heard some amazing things about this book, and like I said I thought I would read it now. Hopefully I will get to this in December. 





That is it for my December TBR I hope you all enjoyed. Let me know what books you plan to read this month in the comments below. Like I mentioned in my last post, I will be blogging a lot more this month as I lacked the previous month. So expect to see a lot more blogs coming soon. Happy reading and until my next post, goodbye for now.