T5W: Books I Felt Betrayed By

Hi guys! Back again with another Top 5 Wednesday! If you don't know what Top 5 Wednesday is, here's a handy dandy link that gives you all the the info :) This week's topic was book's you felt betrayed. I originally didn't think I'd want to do this topic, but as I thought about it, I realised I had quite a few gripes I could get out there. Not all of these books are one I didn't enjoy, some just have things that I felt wronged by even if I enjoyed the rest. But let's get to business:

TOP 5 WEDNESDAY: Characters I Defend

Hey guys! It's been awhile since I did a T5W but I really liked this week's topic - top 5 characters you defend. I took this to mean characters which are popularly hated upon by people for things that I believe are dumb, or they were treated poorly by writers. I also included two TV characters bc Why not? If you don't know what Top 5 Wednesdays are, it was created by gingerreadslainey but currently hosted by ThoughsonTomes and here's the Goodreads group for any more info :)

#5: Bellamy Blake from The 100 (TV show)

I guess this is a book as well but I've only watched the show. Also, this is a two parter defense. Bellamy is one of my absolute favs from this show but the writers honestly made so mistakes with his character in the latest season, which also caused a lot of hatred from the fans towards him. But I still think he is genuinely a good person at heart but the world of The 100 would mess with anyone's moral compass, so I will continue to defend him forever.

#4: Martha Jones from Doctor Who (TV show)

I don't see much of this nowadays (probs bc Martha's season was so long ago now), but back in the day, people really hated Martha. I think the main reason was she was the companion that followed Rose, whom so many people loved. But honestly, I never got it. Martha is one of my all-time favourite characters. She was so strong, complex and intelligent, and also put up with all of the Doctor's shit. Honestly, I will fight anyone who thinks little of Martha Jones.

#3: Harry Potter from the Harry Potter series

Now I used to be this person but then I changed my mind. Harry gets so much hate for being angst-y and impulsive and just in general people crap on his decisions, particularly from OotP onwards. But what people forget to consider is the PTSD Harry is probably suffering, the emotional and physical abuse he endured growing up and the basic shitshow that his life is. So yeah, I don't think he deserves the hate he gets.

#2: Susan Pevensie from The Chronicles of Narnia

OKAY SO LEMME TELL YOU ABOUT HOW MAD I STILL AM ABOUT SUSAN PEVENSIE. I will honestly never forgive C.S. Lewis for what he did at the end of The Chronicles of Narnia. If you haven't read The Last Battle and care to not know how it ends, I would suggest skipping this. So anyway, it makes me so mad that Susan wasn't allowed back into Narnia (and also assumedly Heaven) basically because she grew up a little and enjoyed girly things. As if it was the greatest sin that she should do so. And on top of that, she loses her entire family because they all die at the end but she's still demonized by the narrative. Honestly, I'll never be over that shit. #SusanPevensieDeservedBetter

#1: Sansa Stark from the A Song of Ice and Fire series

If you know me at all (or have followed my posts for a bit), you should have guessed this was coming. I love and will defend Sansa Stark to my dying breath. I absolutely cannot stand the amount of hate and dismissal she gets from the fandom for being just a "naive little girl". Well, I hate to break it to you but she was, what, 13? When the series began, and it's sadly ironic how the is called naive for dreaming of gallant knights and great tsles by the same people who are literally reading a fantasy story about just that. I also think people don't understand her in that they don't see that she doesn't fight with swords but with her wits and inner strength. She's such a complicated and interesting character but the fandom often disregards her in favour of Arya who's more conventionally badass. Why can't people appreciate how great both of them are? 

Okay, I went off on some tangents there but I just have a lot of feelings, haha. Let me know in the comments your thoughts on the characters I chose or even which characters you always defend.

Until next time!

- J, xxx

A Clean Slate + T5W: Fandoms!

Hi all! Happy new year!

I thought I'd start this by talking about my lack of activity on this blog (feel free to skip right to the T5W though). My last post was almost 2 months ago! What! And before that, my posts were sporadic at best. I had a very, very busy last semester and honestly, I just wasn't reading so I didn't have much to talk about on here. As soon as I was done with that, I went right into doing NaNoWriMo and once again, didn't read much. I think in October and November, I read a combined total of 5 books. So yeah, it wasn't great. You shouldn't be surprised to know I also failed my 2015 reading challenge, as well. After that I was working a lot and Christmas was hectic and yeah, basically just life happened. 

But now it's 2016 and time for a clean slate. I'm starting fresh and not concerning myself with what happened in 2015. I'm focusing on maintaining my reading (and hopefully reaching my 100 book goal I failed last year) and being more active on this blog. I'm going to try and work out a schedule. I figure it's better to do this now while I'm still on holidays from uni and can try and find a rhythm before having to add studies on top of that. Let's hope this all works out!

Anyway, now onto the Top 5 Wednesday portion of this post. I'm a little late on this week's but better late than never. T5W is always a good way - for me, anyway - get back into the swing of blogging. And this week's is focused on top 5 fandoms and that's basically perfect for me! I will add that I am taking this as top fandoms I've been active/very invested in, rather than which fandoms I think are the best. As always, Top 5 Wednesdays was created by gingerreadslainey and for more info, here's the Goodreads group! So, without further ado:

#5: Vampire Academy

I can't not include this series. I mean, I have a tattoo dedicated to it and I have literally read most of the books more times than I can count (I tend to re-read them at least once a year). I can't even explain how much I love this series. It was also one of the first ones I ever read fanfic of so that's an interesting fact. It's also one of the series I read in my early teens that I still love dearly now. 

#4: Star Wars

The release of The Force Awakens has just re-awakened my love of Star Wars and reminded me how much I love this series/franchise. I can't remember a time before Star Wars for me. My Mum is a big sci-fi fan so I grew up watching the movies. The prequels were being released when I was quite young and they were what made me fall in love with the series, so say what you will about them but they are very special to me. But yeah, the whole franchise holds a special place in my heart and I'm pretty sure they are why I love sci-fi so much.

#3: Harry Potter

I don't feel like this one needs explaining but I will. Harry Potter was the first series I ever got really, really invested in. I literally grew up watching the films and reading the books and they're just so tied to my childhood that I will love it to pieces no matter what. From a fandom stand point, though, my first fanvideo I ever made (oh yeah, I made a lot of those fyi) was of HP. The fic in this fandom is endless and amazing. I went to the midnight screenings of the last two movies and there was a really wonderful atmosphere created amongst the fandom there and I loved it.

#2: Lord of the Rings

While I do absolutely love the books, I was introduced to LOTR via the movies. I mean, I was about 6 when Fellowship of the Ring came out so can you really blame me? But like Star Wars got me into sci-fi, LOTR is probably the reason I love fantasy so much. Despite being so young, for some reason I was allowed to watch the movies when they first came out and I was absolutely obsessed. I adored everything about them. I read the series when I was about 8. Of course, things went over my head but for an 8 year old to stick through those dense books, I think you can see how in love with the story I was. The movies are literally my favourite movie series ever. I've seen them multiple times and I never get bored. Also, I have a tattoo in Elvish, aw yis.

#1: BBC's Merlin

This show, guys. THIS SHOW. Look, I can talk at length about how I think this show missed it's potential and how the writing quality dwindled over the course of it's five seasons but that doesn't take away from the fact that I was OBSESSED with this show. Like I have never been obsessed with anything before. I started watching when it was in its second season and it hooked me in from then until it finished. It finished over 3 years ago now and I still can't get away from it. I made and watched so many fanvids. I read SO much fanfic. I even wrote ones too. To this day, the only fanfic I've ever published online was a Merlin fanfic (no, I will not link it, haha). I was also very active within the fandom on Tumblr. I have fanart from it on my wall. This show and the fandom that came with it are so, so special to me so that's why it got #1 place.

So, there you go, guys! I could really mention so many more fandoms (*cough* Star Trek, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Teen Wolf, The 100 *cough*) but we will be here for awhile. I've been in the fandom game for a long time now. But what are some of your favourite fandoms? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time!

- J, xxx

Top 5 Wednesday: Favourite Required Reading

Hey guys! It's been awhile since I've done one of these, oops. But this week, we're discussing our top 5 books we've been required to read. While I've had to read a lot of things I've hated because of this, I've also had the pleasure to read a lot of really interesting stuff for school. And ironically, even though I'm a literature studies major at university, none of the things I've read there made it onto this list. But before I get to it, if you don't know what Top 5 Wednesdays are, it was created by gingerreadslainey and for more information, click here :)

#5: Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck [Goodreads Link]

While this isn't one of my favourite novels of all time, I did like it. I first read it when I was in my last year of high school (or second last, I can't really remember because I had the same teacher for both years) and, while I'd seen the movie before (not realising it was a book), it was still just as heartbreaking. The story revolves around the idea of the American dream and crafts a tale of an incredible friendship. It really is a beautiful novel if you give it the time and I'm really glad I got to read it through school.

#4: 

Holes by Louis Sachar [Goodreads Link]

Now, this is going way back. I read this when I was in primary school when I was about...8? 9? I can't exactly which year but I remember loving it. I think we actually read it more than once so that might be why there's the age confusion. But this is such a good children's novel! It's fun and effortlessly weaves a surprisingly complex story into really simple prose that makes it easy for young readers to comprehend. I couldn't recommend this enough for younger readers!

#3: Macbeth by William Shakespeare [Goodreads Link]

This is another one I read in my last year of high school (English that year was AWESOME) and it remains to be my favourite Shakespeare play I've read (note: I've only read 3 but still). If you want to check out Shakespeare, I would highly recommend you try this first!

#2: The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien 

[Goodreads Link]

So, this goes back to when I was 13 and in my first year of high school and boy, oh boy, was I excited to be reading Tolkien in school! I had already read the Lord of the Rings but I still had yet to check out the Hobbit so it helped that it became school work. While I enjoyed LOTR far more than the Hobbit, I just love all the stories of Middle Earth so much that I can't help but love this one too.

#1: 1984 by George Orwell

 [Goodreads Link]

I think this is a pretty common high school read for a lot of people and, once again, it's one that I read in my final year. Never has a book made me question the world as much as this one has. Contrary to popular opinion, I actually enjoy this one more than Animal Farm but both are just so good. I'm really grateful to my year 12 English teacher for introducing me to George Orwell and making me forever paranoid (but in a good way?).

So, there we have it! That last year of high school showed me some pretty great books ;) Let me know in the comments some of your favourite books you've been required to read!

Until next time!

- Jess, xxx

Top 5 Wednesday: Books Read In One Sitting

Hey all! I'm just a tad late on this week's T5W but I've had a bit of a hectic week.As always, T5W was created by gingerreadslainey and for more information, click here :) This week it's about book we read in one sitting, and I'm also going to include books that were really addictive/I couldn't put down but didn't necessarily read in one sitting. No particular order!

#5: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell [Goodreads Link]

In general, this is one of my favourite books! It was also a really addictive read. It was super easy to get into and such a quick read. It's not too long either, so this was one I actually did read in one sitting. I remember seeing the sun peak up when I was finishing the last few pages of this novel!

#4: Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness [Goodreads Link]

Actually, this really goes for the entire Chaos Walking trilogy. It's a really addictive series but I feel like this one was the most, despite being the longest. At first, I think the writing style seems a bit odd to most but it is also really easy to digest so I just flew through this series. I actually read the whole thing in two days.

#3: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead [Goodreads Link]

I actually can't remember how fast I read this initially, but I know it was addictive as heck. And the multiple times I have re-read it (and the rest of the books) since have all been in single sitting. One time I was re-reading the series and I read the first four books in one sitting. I was a reading machine that night apparently, haha. But these books are so fun and thrilling! I feel like I mention them a lot but they're just so good. Don't be fooled by how awful the covers are!

#2: Winter Be My Shield by Jo Spurrier [Goodreads Link]

I constantly feel the need to keep mentioning this book in hopes of either finding someone else who has read it or urging someone to pick it up! But I remember starting this book multiple times and just not getting into it but then one time I just sat down and really tried to get through the first few chapters and I just got absorbed by it. I don't know what the hook was but something just grabbed me at a point and I couldn't stop reading. I know I didn't read it in one sitting because I actually started reading it while I was overseas but I remember taking every spare moment I had to finish it ASAP. So good!

#1: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare [Goodreads Link]

While I feel like after City of Glass this series seriously went downhill (I haven't read CoHF yet though), I still remember how much I absolutely adored the first three books. And I remember when I first picked up City of Bones and I remember it being one of the very first books (if not the first?) that I actually read in one sitting. The story and the writing is just really addictive and I remember staying up all night reading it and then making someone take me to the bookstore the next day to get City of Ashes. It was awesome.

What are some books that have really hooked you in and you've read in one sitting (or almost one sitting)? These are just a few of mine but let me know yours in the comments!

Until next time!

- Jess, xxx

Top 5 Wednesday: Best Series Endings

Hey guys! Back here with another Top 5 Wednesday! As always, T5W was created by gingerreadslainey and for more information, click here :) Last month I talked about what I thought to be the worth series endings but this time around I'm going to talk about the ones I thought the best. So, without further ado, let's go!

#5: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling
I mean, how could I not include it? Ignoring the epilogue (which I have MANY issues with), I really loved how this story was brought to a close. While it was heartbreaking to see so much death at the end, I don't think it could have been done another way. The series was always heading in that direction. It was a very bitter sweet ending but really wonderful in its own way. I think the only part I didn't like is that when I finished the last page, I felt like saying goodbye to old friends.

#4: Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien
I know technically LOTR is one book but I can't help but think of it as a series, I'm sorry. It's just how I saw when I first read it as a kid and I can't seem to change that. But anyway, I hold the ending of this series to such high esteem. I loved how bitter sweet it was and that there was an emotional consequence to what Frodo went through. It was just a really fitting ending and it makes me cry like a baby every damn time.

#3: The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman
It has been so long since I read this gem but I still love it oh, so much. I know people have their issues with this series and I understand them but for me, it's undeniably one of my favourites. It had so much more depth than I had expected from a supposed "children's" series and was concluded in such a satisfying but heartbreaking way. The final book had so many gorgeous scenes and I really commend Pullman on the ending - it was a pretty bold move to pull for children's/middle grade literature but it worked really well and made me love it even more.

#2: Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness
I think the short stories that Ness released that is set after this novel makes the last few pages a little less heart-wrenching but it still hurts. Even still, this book is beautiful. I cannot recommend this whole series enough but this last one was really my favourite. It's such a rich story that had compelling characters and wonderful relationship while also being filled with engaging action scenes. This book also includes one of my all-time favourite book scenes ever and it always makes me cry because it is just so gorgeous. I just love this one a lot.

#1: Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

Every time I think of satisfying endings to a series, I think of this novel first. While I have varied opinions on the Mortal Instruments series by Clare, I absolutely adore the Infernal Devices series and think it far surpasses TMI in quality. It's also one of those rare cases where I think the love triangle was actually done really well. And the ending was just so well done and wonderful to read.





What are some of your favourite endings? Agree or disagree with some of my picks? Let me know in the comments below!

Until next time!
- J, xxx

T5W: Books I Wanted To Start Yesterday

Hey guys! Something happened with the scheduling of this post and I just realised that it never went up last week as it was meant to, so that's why this is weirdly late. But better late than never, as they say. 

This week's topic was books you wanted to start yesterday and wow, do I have a lot, if my massive 'to-read' shelf on Goodreads wasn't a big enough indicator. So, it's hard to put this down to just 5 books but I'm going to try, although not in any particular order. As always, T5W was created by gingerreadslainey and for more information, click here! :)

#5: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern [Goodreads link]

I feel like I never hear bad things about this book so I don't know why I haven't read it yet. I even received a copy in a Book Secret Santa over Christmas and I still haven't got to it yet. It's definitely a book I need to get to ASAP and see what all the fuss is about.

#4: Graceling by Kristin Cashore [Goodreads link]

This is another book I wonder why I haven't got to yet. I have heard SO many good things about it and I've owned it for a year or two now but alas, it still sits on my shelf collecting dust as I keep saying 'I've got to get to that one soon!'. This one is actually bothering me by how long it has been sitting on my shelf unread so hopefully I can get to it really soon.

#3: Black Sun Light My Way by Jo Spurrier [Goodreads link]

This book is from a series I have literally never heard anyone talk about - the Children of the Black Sun series/trilogy. I read the first book about two years ago and it was amazing. For some reason I didn't pick up the second (Black Sun Light My Way) for another year and I still haven't read it. I need to get back into this series ASAP because the first was one of my favourite fantasy books I've read. The author is Australian and I'm not sure if these books have been published internationally but I urge people to check them out!

#2: Vicious by V. E. Schwab [Goodreads link]

So, this is the only book on this list that I don't actually own so it's a bit harder for me to get to quickly but I need this book yesterday. It seems that everyone in the online book community can't stop talking about V. E. Schwab and I need to know what the hype is about. She's also just come out with her latest book - A Darker Shade of Magic - which is getting a lot of praise too, but I've decided I need to read Vicious first. I don't think I'll get to this one too quickly though, as I'm on a strict book buying ban until I get my TBR down a bit

#1: Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson [Goodreads link]

And now we come to the last of the books and you shouldn't be really surprised by this considering it was also on my April TBR. Brandon Sanderson is another author that I just can't stop hearing good things about at the moment (particularly the Mistborn trilogy, which is why I'm starting there) and it's just made me really excited to pick up his books. I've wanted to read his books for a long time but all the recent hype has really pushed me to get to them. As I mentioned in my TBR post, I was going to wait until I finished the Wheel of Time series to start Brandon Sanderson's works but I'm just too impatient. Fingers crossed I get this down this month as planned! 

What books did you want to start yesterday? Any books you've had sitting on your shelves for what seems like forever that you just really need to get to? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time!

- J, xxx

T5W: Worst Series Endings

Hi guys! Another T5W for you today. As always, Top 5 Wednesdays was created by Lainey and if you want more information click here.

This week, the topic is about the the worst endings to series we have read and oh boy, have I been disappointed by some series’ conclusions. So I’m just gonna get right into! There’s no particular order and no spoilers unless I specifically say there is.

#5: Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

You know, I really debated whether or not to add this to the list because I couldn’t care less about this series nowadays but I am still bitter about how dumb this ending was, to be honest. For those who have somehow stay away from Twilight and/or don’t want to be spoiled for this one, please skip to my next answer because of spoilers.

So, firstly, Renesmee (is that spelt correctly? Who knows?). I’m just leaving that without comment because the name is ridiculous enough. Also, that confrontation with the Volturi was the most anti-climactic piece of crap I have ever read. Even when I was at the peak of my Twilight phase and adored everything that happened in the series, I was still frustrated at how lame that thing was. I mean, all that lead up made it feel like a big fight was coming and then nothing? Not even one death? Come on! The coolest part of the whole novel was all the other vampires with awesome powers, even though they still didn’t use them for the big ‘fight’. Oh and I’m still bitter Jacob and Leah didn’t end up together. Okay, rant over, onto the next one!

#4: Shades of Earth by Beth Revis

Okay, before I begin, I will say that I did actually love this book and the series it’s a part of. My big issue with it (and the reason it’s on this list) is to do with what happens at the very, very end. I don’t want to say it because it’s a huge spoiler but if you’ve read it, you know what I’m talking about (think very last chapter if you're confused). Now some people may have loved it, but to me it felt like a huge cop-out and I’m still bitter about it. I just wish that Revis had decided to change just that one bit. Otherwise, this was a mostly satisfying conclusion to the Across the Universe series.

#3: Inheritance by Christopher Paolini

I read the Inheritance cycle quite awhile ago now and I loved for a lot of things but I felt like the ending fell a bit flat. In general, I thought the first half of this series stood a lot stronger than the second half but I still hoped for a more satisfying ending than we were given. It’s hard for me to go into without spoiling anything but I just didn’t like the direction the story took at the end. On a positive note, Paolini has said he isn’t done writing in that world so here’s hoping he comes out with a new book that makes up for the disappointment of Inheritance.

#2: The Ruby Circle by Richelle Mead

So I only just finished this book in the past few weeks and you can find my full review here. But in short, this series felt like it was going downhill from book 4. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoyed it, but I thought it just wasn’t as good and the more I think about TRC, the less I like it. It felt like everything was resolved a bit too quickly and neatly and just left me wanting more from it.

#1: Mockingjay by Susanne Collins

This might actually be the one that disappointed me the most? I was so SO excited for this novel and eagerly anticipating it’s release and then I got it and it just fell so flat. The first half of the novel was alright but the second was just all over the place and felt really rushed. Also, the absolute ending and epilogue felt really…off. I can’t quickly sum up why the end felt so odd to me (it would require a separate post tbh) but it was just all-round really disappointing to what was an otherwise really good YA series. And in regards to the movie, I didn’t want it to be split into two parts because I felt like, although the novel was rushed, there still wasn’t enough story to draw out two full-length feature films. Which I still think is the case, as I didn’t think Mockingjay Part 1 was all that good.

So, there’s my top 5 worst endings to series. What are some of yours? Do you agree/disagree with some of my choices? Let me know in the comments below!

Until next time!

J, xxx

T5W: Character Arcs/Development

What better way to bring in the new blog than with a personal favourite thing to do - Top 5 Wednesday? I'm definitely going to be continuing to do this on this blog and I can't think of a better subject favourite character arcs because let me tell you, there's not much I love more than some good character development. So, let's get to this! As always, there's no prioritisation with this, it's just the order of when I remembered them.

#5: Todd - Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness

Oh man, the development that Todd goes through within this series is amazing. He transforms so much (and not always for the better at parts) and it truly was beautiful to read. At the beginning of the series I didn't find him that great but he grew into a character I really adored and empathised with. It's some of the best development I have ever read.

#4: Sydney Sage - Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead

 I need to extend this to the Vampire Academy series as well because Sydney does appear in both, but anyway. Now I have to exclude the last in the Bloodlines series in this discussion because I have yet to read it but from the moment we first met Sydney to the character she becomes by the end of Silver Shadows, she goes through amazing development. She comes to accept parts of herself and the world around her so much and she becomes so much the better for it. I particularly enjoyed (spoilers for later parts of the series!) reading her learning to accept her magic. Not only was it cool because magic, but it was a huge step for Sydney to see the good in the world of the supernatural, something she's been conditioned to be wary of her entire life.

#3: Percy Jackson - Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan

I think there's a lot of amazing character development in general in this series but the stand out is (probably obviously) Percy Jackson. Of course. We get to see the story unfold through his eyes so of course the growth he experiences will have more of an affect on me than the others but there truly was something special about watching Percy develop throughout these books. I can't pinpoint certain arcs or moments where I noticed it but it was beautiful to watch either way.

#2: Rose Hathaway - Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead

Ah, Rose. I love her so, so much. Even just the development she goes through in the first book is amazing but how she develops throughout the entire six books...brilliant. I'm actually re-reading this series at the moment and forgotten how much I love Rose's character. She goes through so much and only grew stronger and more compassionate. A particular part of her story I enjoyed reading was her dealing with the different facets of being shadow-kissed and her struggles with being able to control them.

#1: Celaena Sardothien - Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas

Mostly, this has to do with her development in Heir of Fire. Celaena has quickly become one of my favourite literary characters ever, but the progression she went through in the third book was a beautiful thing to watch. She began to accept who and what she is and started to learn that she doesn't have to always face things alone. The character she has grown into continues to amaze me and I am very excited for what we have yet to read of her ( we are only half way through this series!). 

What are your favourite character arcs/developments? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time,

J, xxx