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  1. I am an avid writer. If it appeals to me, I will be sucked into the pages for hours on end, perhaps only pausing to take a tea break. So to honour my bookishness, I have compiled a list of all the books that I want to get round to reading this year.

    #1 Half Bad by Sally Green


    Bought purely on impulse and an ardent desire to devour good literature, I snapped up this book the moment I saw it. I fell in love with its beautiful cover and a quick look at the summary on Goodreads only reaffirmed my desire to read this beautiful novel. I can't wait to read it! Review to be posted soon.


    In modern-day England, witches live alongside humans: White witches, who are good; Black witches, who are evil; and fifteen-year-old Nathan, who is both. Nathan’s father is the world’s most powerful and cruel Black witch, and his mother is dead. He is hunted from all sides. Trapped in a cage, beaten and handcuffed, Nathan must escape before his sixteenth birthday, at which point he will receive three gifts from his father and come into his own as a witch—or else he will die. But how can Nathan find his father when his every action is tracked, when there is no one safe to trust—not even family, not even the girl he loves?

    In the tradition of Patrick Ness and Markus Zusak, Half Bad is a gripping tale of alienation and the indomitable will to survive, a story that will grab hold of you and not let go until the very last page

    # 2 Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith 

    Another impulse buy, bought together with Half Bad. (Darn those deals!), the bright cover and good reviews spurred me to buy this highly original and strange plot. Working along the lines of Michael Grant, this novel is bound to be as addictive as it is weird.



    Sixteen-year-old Austin Szerba interweaves the story of his Polish legacy with the storyof how he and his best friend , Robby, brought about the end of humanity and the rise of an army of unstoppable, six-foot tall praying mantises in small-town Iowa.

    To make matters worse, Austin's hormones are totally oblivious; they don't care that the world is in utter chaos: Austin is in love with his girlfriend, Shann, but remains confused about his sexual orientation. He's stewing in a self-professed constant state of maximum horniness, directed at both Robby and Shann. Ultimately, it's up to Austin to save the world and propagate the species in this sci-fright journey of survival, sex, and the complex realities of the human condition.

                                             #3 The Mortal Instruments 

    Everyone in the entire Western world knows about these books. they are insanely popular, and from the quick glances I have peeked, and the sample I have downloaded onto my Kindle, I can understand why. I can't wait to sink my teeth into this novel.




    When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing―not even a smear of blood―to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?


    This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know... 



    Exotic and gritty, exhilarating and utterly gripping, Cassandra Clare's ferociously entertaining fantasy takes readers on a wild ride that they will never want to end.

    #4 Divergent by Veronica Roth

    Another hugely popular book by an insanely talented author. This book, which I think centers around a dystopian future, has actually just been made into a major motion picture. Something I am highly excited to read; along with its two sequels and the shorts that accompany it.


    In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.


    During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

    # 5 My Soul to Take by Rachel Vincent

    As I was leisurely strolling through Waterstones, idly noting down books that I wanted to read, I came across a book with a beautiful cover and a stellar plot. In a world dominated by angels, vampires, werewolves and demons, when I saw a book that centered around banshees, I was hooked and thirsty to read it. Here's to reading it in 2014.

    Something is wrong with Kaylee Cavanaugh...

    She can sense when someone near her is about to die. And when that happens, a force beyond her control compels her to scream bloody murder. Literally.


    Kaylee just wants to enjoy having caught the attention of the hottest boy in school. But a normal date is hard to come by when Nash seems to know more about the dark forces behind Kaylee's power than she does.


    And when classmates start dropping dead for no apparent reason and only Kaylee knows who'll be next, she realises that finding a boyfriend is the least of her worries!


    #6 Hush Hush Becca Fitzpatrick

    So I feel like I am posting a lot of fantasy/dystopian books in this list, but I couldn't NOT include it in this list. This book has been hyped up massively since its release in 2009. Besides, the plot intrigued me from the summary and I am keen to read more to see if it lives up to the hype that surrounds it.


    Romance was not part of Nora Grey's plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how hard her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch comes along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Patch draws Nora to him against her better judgment.


    But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure whom to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is and seems to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.


    For she is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost Nora her life.

    # 7 The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp 
    In a fiction world so dominated by the fantasy genre, it's always refreshing when something outside of it comes along. So this is why I want to read this book. That and the beautiful, original and slightly bittersweet sounding plot.



    SUTTER KEELY. HE’S the guy you want at your party. He’ll get everyone dancing. He’ ll get everyone in your parents’ pool. Okay, so he’s not exactly a shining academic star. He has no plans for college and will probably end up folding men’s shirts for a living. But there are plenty of ladies in town, and with the help of Dean Martin and Seagram’s V.O., life’s pretty fabuloso, actually.

    Until the morning he wakes up on a random front lawn, and he meets Aimee. Aimee’s clueless. Aimee is a social disaster. Aimee needs help, and it’s up to the Sutterman to show Aimee a splendiferous time and then let her go forth and prosper. But Aimee’s not like other girls, and before long he’s in way over his head. For the first time in his life, he has the power to make a difference in someone else’s life—or ruin it forever.

    # 8 How to Fall by Jane Casey 

    Being quite interested in the whole mystery genre of young adult, this book appealed greatly to me. Can't wait to read it! 

    The first unputdownable YA crime thriller from bestselling author Jane Casey


    Freya is found drowned - but was it suicide or murder? Her cousin, Jess Tennant, is determined to uncover the truth. But asking questions may prove deadly - anyone could be a suspect and everyone is hiding something...


    Can Jess unravel a mystery involving secret love, seething jealousy and a cliff-top in the pitch black of night?







    #9 Just Listen Sarah Dessen

    I know a lot of people who loved this novel, or just Sarah's work in general. So I decided to have a quick gander at it in Waterstones. The plot seemed quite interesting and appealed to my preferences, so that is why it sits on this list now.

    Last year, Annabel was "the girl who has everything" — at least that's the part she played in the television commercial for Kopf's Department Store.


    This year, she's the girl who has nothing: no best friend because mean-but-exciting Sophie dropped her, no peace at home since her older sister became anorexic, and no one to sit with at lunch. Until she meets Owen Armstrong.


    Tall, dark, and music-obsessed, Owen is a reformed bad boy with a commitment to truth-telling. With Owen's help, maybe Annabel can face what happened the night she and Sophie stopped being friends.





    #10 Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

    Another massive book franchise, with legions of faithful fans all over the world, who will gladly recommend this book. From the sneaky glances at the first chapters that I have taken in Waterstones, this book will be quite enjoyable.

    St. Vladimir’s Academy isn't just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger...


    Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever.




    So that's it. My (not so) extensive list of my must reads of 2014. This is not a complete list, moreso a shortened version of the hundreds books that I am desperate to get my hands on. Links for the books will be found below.

    Posted by Miranda Smith at 16:20 | Labels: , , , , , , , , , , | 0 comments | |

  2. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

    Tuesday, 4 March 2014

    The Fault in Our Stars by John Green


    Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 12, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs... for now. Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means) Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault. Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly, to her interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.

    Words cannot even begin to describe how this novel made me feel. Never has the written word imbibed such deep emotions within me. Indeed, never has a novel made me think so much. About the sanctity life, of my own morality, and on other notes, of how unjustifiably unfair life really is.

    The Fault in Our Stars follows the prose of Hazel Grace Lancaster, the protagonist, who is suffering from late stage thyroid cancer, and has to walk around with an oxygen tank in order to breathe properly. She meets Augustus, sufferer of Osteosarcoma, who fears oblivion, and Isaac, who has eye cancer, at a support group for cancer sufferers.  Aptly nicknamed the Literal Heart of Jesus. Augustus, we find out from the start, is highly intelligent and passionate and just a generally beautiful human being. He holds an unlit cigarette in his mouth as a symbol of defiance, a way of winning against the cancer. He says it's holding the cancer causing object in his mouth, without giving it the power to give him, by lighting it. (Please excuse my inadequate response of a beautiful, beautiful character). What makes Gus so loveable, so amazing is that he is human. he's brave and intelligent and beautiful, yes, but he's also scared, scared of Oblivion, as he tells Hazel Grace. As most stories go, they fall in love. But their love is so pure, so untainted.


    Death surprisingly, was not the main objective of this book. As one would think when reading novels that deal so heavily with sickness and morality. The book centers around the romance between Hazel Grace and Augustus Waters, a character to whom many have fallen in love with. John Greens flawless prose and philosophical speech help you to really get a feel for the characters, to fall in love with them, cry for them. I root for them, and just want them to get better, to fight the disease that slowly kills them. But John is pretty clear from the start, their fate is sealed from the first turn of the page.

    Although this is aimed at teenagers/young adults. The strong writing and delicate prose, is ideal for an older audience too. Anyone can enjoy the beauty of Johns writing and fall in love with his characters. This is a piece of literary masterpiece that will stay with you forever. Whether you like it or not. So many times I cried, I laughed and I turned the pages feverishly, inspired to get to the last page. To find out the fates of his characters. And yet as the fate became grimmer, more darker, I was spurred to read on. I could say so many things, so many empty words. But they all pale into significance, along with that blinking cursor as I try to form an appropriate diatribe. Because, never, in such a long time have I cared so deeply for characters. or a book in my life. And this is one novel that I will carry with me forever.

    Posted by Miranda Smith at 12:00 | 0 comments | |

  3. The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filer

    Friday, 28 February 2014


    Winner of the Costa First Novel Award (2013), Winner of the Costa Book of the Year (2013)

    ‘I’ll tell you what happened because it will be a good way to introduce my brother. His name’s Simon. I think you’re going to like him. I really do. But in a couple of pages he’ll be dead. And he was never the same after that.’


    Where you can buy: 

    Publication date: April 25th 2013
    Published by: Harper Collins
    Pages: 314 (UK Edition)


     It's so hard for me to form an accurate response to this book. To how it made me feel, and how it made me think. I can't even begin to describe the importance of this book to me, and his wonderful characters. Nathan Filer has done a superb job of getting into the mind of a mentally ill person. Words just aren't enough to tell you how much I loved this book.

    At first, it can be a little confusing. But the flawless prose and real characters make you grip onto the pages of the book, desperate to read on. And the whole time, your brain is ticking over, making your own conclusions and then doing an inward happy dance when you discover that you were indeed correct in your assumptions.

    It is one of those books that you have to read for yourself to believe how amazing it actually really is. I fear that if I tell you the basic outline, it will give everything away. And trust me, with this book, the best feeling is to guess and to anxiously read on to see if you are correct.

    Nathan Filer really gets into his characters mindset and all of the idiosyncrasies of mental illness. He does so without being judgemental, or for one minute harsh. The books is well researched and woven expertly within the pages, in such a way that you really care about the character. You cry, gasp and laugh with them. You just want them to get better, to have the normal life that you think they deserve.

    Please, I implore you. Read this book. In a lot of ways, it might change your life, or at least change your opinion on mental illness.


    Posted by Miranda Smith at 13:15 | 0 comments | |

  4. 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, 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 fanfiction, 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 fanfiction 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? And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?
    Where you can buy:

    Publication date:  September 10th 2013
    Published by: St Martins Griffin (Macmillan)
    Pages: 459 (UK Edition)
    I have a lot to say about this book, really I do.

    From start to finish, the author managed to weave her characters, world and emotions into the pages perfectly, in a way that had me wanting to read on and on and on. Fangirl follows the life of Cath, an 18(?) year old girl, and her twin sister Wren, as well as the love interest (Levi), the roommate (Reagan) among other people.

    Cath writes fanfiction. Like many fangirls do. But in Fangirl, Caths fanfiction is probably one of the most popular fanfictions out there, said to be the real eighth book, in the Simon Snow series, a fictional book series, similar to Harry Potter, by the made up author Gemma T. Leslie.

    Throughout the book, Rainbow Rowell manages to paint a vivid picture of what it's like to be socially awkward and in college, a scary first life experience for many. She really manages to portray the characters feelings and emotions in an unique way, purely original to the authors beautiful voice.

    With its simple, but effective prose and quick, almost no nonsense happenings, Rainbow has really painted a beautiful definition of what it means to be a true fangirl, and also to the worries of being a young girl in modern times. She also manages to crop up real issues such as problems with her sister, her dads mental health, an AWOL mother who suddenly decides to pop back into their lives, and her confusion surrounding the two boys in her life.

    And while Cath seems quite vulnerable, painfully shy and almost pedantic in some senses, the character development is sublime, a real indicator of Rainbow Rowells immense talent.

    Not being an avid reader of Contemporary fiction, I was not expecting to enjoy this book. But I was pleasantly surprised, and as I closed the last chapter, I felt a great sense of loss, as one often does after finishing a great book.

    Posted by Miranda Smith at 12:54 | 0 comments | |

  5. Looking For Alaska by John Green

    Tuesday, 28 January 2014

    Looking For Alaska by John Green


    Before. Miles "Pudge" Halter's whole existence has been one big nonevent, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave the "Great Perhaps" (François Rabelais, poet) even more. Then he heads off to the sometimes crazy, possibly unstable, and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed-up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young, who is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart.

    After. Nothing is ever the same.

    Where you can buy 
    Amazon / Kobo / Nook

    Title: Looking For Alaska
    Publication Date: December 28th 2006
    Published by: Speak

    Review
    I will be honest here, and say at first, I struggled to get into it. John Green has a unique voice when it comes to writing, and I guess, it takes some getting used to. I persevered, and after the first few pages, I was hooked!

    Looking for Alaska is focused on the POV of the protagonist, Miles Halter, who has an obsession with finding the Great Perhaps, and famous last words. The story starts, when Miles is about to head off to a boarding school, Culver Creek and then he meets Alaska Young, and quite predictably, he falls head over heels for her.

    Now, as far as plot goes, there isn't a lot. But to be honest, you can push past that, because this book was probably the most emotional two days of my life. I laughed and I cried many times throughout. I found myself highly identifying with the characters. I always hear people say The Fault in Our Stars made them cry, more than this one, but if I'm totally honest, this book made me cry a lot more!

    I could not recommend this book highly enough! Just grab the tissues.


    Posted by Miranda Smith at 12:39 | 0 comments | |

  6. Butter by Erin Jade Lange

    Monday, 27 January 2014

    Butter by Erin Jade Lange


    A lonely obese boy everyone calls "Butter" is about to make history. He is going to eat himself to death-live on the Internet-and everyone is invited to watch. When he first makes the announcement online to his classmates, Butter expects pity, insults, and possibly sheer indifference. What he gets are morbid cheerleaders rallying around his deadly plan. Yet as their dark encouragement grows, it begins to feel a lot like popularity. And that feels good. But what happens when Butter reaches his suicide deadline? Can he live with the fallout if he doesn't go through with his plans? 

    With a deft hand, E.J. Lange allows readers to identify with both the bullies and the bullied in this all-consuming look at one teen's battle with himself.

    Review

    I will start off by saying that I had mixed feelings about this book. Butter, the overweight and ostracised protagonist really managed to pull at my heartstrings. The first paragraph, in which we find out that he will eat himself to death live on camera drew me in straight away and made me want to breeze through the book in order to see the end result as quickly as possible.

    Butter is overweight and he knows it. He doesn't seem to care about what people think, more rather continues to indulge in his dangerous lifestyle. Perhaps the most interesting thing about Butter is his talent with the Saxophone and the pure passion the writer manages to convey in him every time he plays. Lonely and desperate, perhaps sick of being an outcast, Butter posts to the Internet that he is to kill himself live on air, by eating himself to death. now this alone, is enough to cause shock and slight revulsion that a 16 year old boy would hold such low regard over his own life and do something to this magnitude, purely to get the attention he so desires.

    As Butters blog grows in popularity, and so does Butter himself, he finds himself ensconced in a "friendship" circle with the popular crowd, who even go so far as to make suggestions on what he can eat, create a bucket list for the poor guy to follow before his final meal and to actively post a password on the site so that concerned people cannot report him.

    Now there were a few issues that I think needed to be addressed. First being the fact that surely some adult would have come across this site/blog and reported it? Or surely enough, had the blog spread about the school like wildfire, a teacher, counselor or even the Professor to whom Butter holds an affinity would have gotten involved. After all we are talking about a kid killing himself live on air. Surely there are deep psychological issues involved here that needed to be addressed.

    I liked the majority of the characters, though I knew straight away that the popular crowd that Butter had become a part of were see through and fake, only caught up in the excitement of Butters pact. His longtime crush, to whom he also talks to on the Internet under a fake alias, seemed to me, a bit up herself. She wasn't the kind hearted person that Butter made her out to be, in fact, to me she seemed quite selfish and judgemental.

    I think the book itself was an original piece of literature, a masterpiece in its own right. It's background message was the difficulty of being a teenager within todays society and just trying to fit in. I found myself really getting involved in the story, despite the dark theme. As Butter hurtled towards his final deadline, I found myself, crying, laughing and actually gasping out loud at moments. I could really feel Butters pain and just wanted to reach through the page and give him a hug. Other times I wanted to scream at him, to tell him that he was naive to think that these people weren't really his friends, and were just interested in the sick deadline and whether he would actually do it.

    I guess reading this book is much like watching a car crash, you're repulsed by what you see, but you can't help but to slow down and watch the scene unfold. This is how the book felt to me. By the end, I was gripping the book, waiting to see if Butter would really die. The only thing I would say is that towards the end, when Butter is in the hospital, I felt that it ended too quickly.

    He is in hospital after an attempted suicide, which in itself would hold serious psychological consequence. For me, things were tied up too easily, there was no real talk of any help for Butter and I felt loosely, that some ends were left untied.

    All in all, I found this book a greatly enjoyable read. Its originality shone through and the beautiful prose of the author only added to the sheer qualiity of the book as a whole. Couldn't recommend it highly enough!



    Posted by Miranda Smith at 06:02 | 0 comments | |

  7. Gone by Michael Grant

    Thursday, 23 January 2014

    Gone - Michael Grant


    "Suddenly it’s a world without adults and normal has crashed and burned. When life as you know it ends at 15, everything changes.

    In the blink of an eye all the adults disappear in a small town in southern California and no one knows why. Cut off from the outside world, those that are left are trapped, and there’s no help on the way. They must do all they can to survive. Chaos rules the streets. Gangs begin to form. Sides are chosen – strong or weak. Cruel or humane. And then there are those who begin to develop powers . . . It’s Lord of the Flies for the Heroes generation.

    A tour-de-force from global sensation, Michael Grant, Gone is the first book in the series. If there’s one sci-fi/fantasy book for teens you read this year, make it Gone.

     “I love this book” – Stephen King


    Good but not spectacular 

    I actually saw this in my local bookshop a number of times, but it never really caught my fancy. But then I decided to give it a go, and I honestly have mixed opinions. 

    Gone is a sci fi Dystopian Novel in which any adult over the age of fifteen disappears. During the course of the book, the characters have to deal with the rich kids up at Coates, mutated animals, talking coyotes and the mysterious darkness amongst other things such as learning to live in a world without adults.

    I will admit that I found this book to be quite enjoyable, if not a little boring at times. And though it is not great such as other books in it genre, it has its own style that lends itself. To be honest, I didn't really feel like a lot happened. A lot of the book was spent talking about the FAYZ, The Barrier and what the characters were doing. 

    Which brings me onto my next topic - the characters. I didn't really make a connection with any of the characters. They all felt a little underdeveloped and one dimensional to me, but that is not to say that I didn't like them. I just feel that they could have been developed better.

    I wasn't wowed by this book, I didn't get the same sense of excitement for the sequels as I have done for other books, but that is not to say that I will not read the sequels.

    Posted by Miranda Smith at 11:05 | 0 comments | |