Book Review | Girl At Sea by Maureen Johnson

Title: Girl At Sea

Author: Maureen Johnson

Series: Standalone
Publisher: Harper Teen
Format: Hardcover
Source: Bought
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
Goodreads

Blurb:

Sometimes you have to get lost . . .

The Girl: Clio Ford, seventeen, wants to spend the summer smooching her art-store crush, not stuck on a boat in the Mediterranean. At least she'll get a killer tan.

The Mission: Survive her father's crazy antics. Oh, and also find some missing underwater treasure that could unlock the secrets of civilization.

The Crew: Dad's wacky best friend Martin, his bizarre research partner Julia, her voluptuous daughter Elsa . . . and then there's Aidan, Julia's incredibly attractive, incredibly arrogant assistant.

What's going on behind Aidan's intellectual, intensely green eyes, anyway?

As Clio sails into uncharted territory she unveils secrets that have the power to change history. But her most surprising discovery is that there's something deeper and more cryptic than the sea-her own heart.

. . . to find what you're looking for

Plot: ★★★★★

Going into this story, I was expecting a lame cruise story. I WAS SO WRONG. Clio’s parents are split up and her father makes her fly to Italy so that she can ride on his boat with his ‘crew’. There’s something he’s not telling her though that she has to piece together with the help of 2 new friends. His father and his new girlfriend are actually searching for the secrets of an ancient civilisation and little does Clio know, she has a role to play.

IT WAS SO EXCITING. It had this whole other element to it that I totally didn’t expect at all! Sure, it was cute and fluffy sometimes but it was also intense and mysterious as well! I thought that plot-wise, this book definitely had it all. It had a romance, it had a mystery element, it had a contemporary feel at times and it also had some survival moments as well. I loved it so much!

Characters: ★★★★★

All of the characters were so unique as they were from all over the place! They were all so interesting to read about!

Writing: ★★★★.5

The writing wasn’t bad either! Sure it didn’t have stunningly flowing script with metaphors in every sentence, but it was fun and entertaining!

Romance/Feels: ★★★★
I definitely had a few feels while reading this book, but not an overly dramatic amount. I definitely grew an attachment to the characters and was feeling all of their feels!

Ending: ★★★★★
Absolutely perfect. It was such an exciting ending with a huge climax that got resolved just in time! It was truly awesome!

Overall Enjoyment: ★★★★★
I loved every minute of this! I definitely recommend it to those of you needing an awesome summer read with a really interesting storyline!

Rereadability: For sure!

Final Rating: 4.75 stars!

BOOK REVIEW | ANNE OF GREEN GABLES

Title: Anne of Green Gables
Author: L. M. Montgomery

Series: First in an 8 book series
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Genre: Childrens Classic
Goodreads

Blurb:

Redheaded orphan Anne Shirley longs for a real home, somewhere she can truly belong. When she first arrives at the Green Gables house on Prince Edward Island, it's everything she ever imagined. But to stay, she'll first have to convince Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert to adopt her. And that means controlling her temper (even when Gilbert Blythe calls her "Carrots"), staying out of trouble (and away from hair dye), and not getting too carried away with her daydreams (though she would make the perfect Lady of Shallot floating down the river). Anne might not always get it quite right, but she does keep things interesting...
Through Anne's eyes, the ordinary world becomes magical and every day is an adventure. She inspires the dreamer in all of us, never hesitates to say the things we wish we could get away with, and makes us cherish every kindred spirit we meet. It's no surprise Anne is loved around the world by generations of readers.

Plot: ★★★★.5

Anne of Green Gables follows a young orphan named Anne Shirley who finds herself being taken to what she thought was going to be a home for her, but it turns out that the characters who sent for her actually wanted a boy. She spends her time trying to win them over so they will adopt her and in the process, she makes lifelong friends and finds a family.

This is such a beautiful story. It definitely isn’t plot-driven, which normally wouldn’t appeal to me, but I couldn’t resist Anne’s charm. I found that the plotline of Anne growing up was enough for me. It was the simplicity of the story that makes the characters really shine through, so I honestly didn’t care that it wasn’t overly plot-driven!

Characters: ★★★★★

All of the characters were exceptionally written, especially Anne. You can’t help but fall in love with her innocent, imaginative personality. Every single one of these characters is full of depth and personality.

Writing: ★★★★★

SO BEAUTIFUL. I can see why some people don’t like it because it’s extremely descriptive (particularly what Anne says – she never shuts up!) but to me it brought Anne and Prince Edward Island to life and I thought the writing was stunning.

Romance/Feels: ★★★★.5
Obviously Anne is quite young for the majority of this book so there isn’t really any romance, but there definitely were some feels! You find you attach yourself to these characters and feel every heartbreak and every sorrow that they do!

Ending: ★★★★★
It definitely had a perfect ending that left me wanting to pick up the next book straight away! I couldn’t wait to see how Anne was going to grow up!

Overall Enjoyment: ★★★★★
I honestly recommend this to anyone, young and old and in between!

Rereadability: Definitely!

Final Rating:  4.83 stars to be exact!

BOOK REVIEW | MAYBE SOMEDAY BY COLLEEN HOOVER

Title: Maybe Someday
Author: Colleen Hoover

Series: Standalone
Publisher: Atria Books
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Genre: New Adult Romance
Goodreads

Blurb:
At twenty-two years old, aspiring musician Sydney Blake has a great life: She’s in college, working a steady job, in love with her wonderful boyfriend, Hunter, and rooming with her good friend, Tori. But everything changes when she discovers Hunter cheating on her with Tori—and she is left trying to decide what to do next.

Sydney becomes captivated by her mysterious neighbor, Ridge Lawson. She can’t take her eyes off him or stop listening to the daily guitar playing he does out on his balcony. She can feel the harmony and vibrations in his music. And there’s something about Sydney that Ridge can’t ignore, either: He seems to have finally found his muse. When their inevitable encounter happens, they soon find themselves needing each other in more ways than one…

Plot: ★★★★★
What a fantastic storyline! It follows a girl called Sydney who catches her boyfriend cheating on her…with her best friend. She likes to study outside on her balcony but funnily enough, there’s a guy who plays the guitar on the balcony across from her and she finds herself making up lyrics and singing along to the songs. He notices and asks her if she can help him write lyrics and they form a bond through music because it turns out that he’s actually deaf and needs help songwriting for his band. ISN’T THAT AWESOME. He’s already taken though but she can’t deny the feelings she’s developing for him. IT’S JUST BEAUTIFUL. It may sound kind of generic when I write it but it’s honestly probably the best romance book I’ve ever read. 

Characters: ★★★★★
I loved the characters so much and over the short period that I sat down to read this (because I read it so quickly) and I thought that they were all so realistic and down to earth. I loved that Colleen Hoover incorporated a character that has a hearing impairment. It brought so much more to the story and I feel as though disabilities need to be more present in literature because it’s so important for people to be educated and informed about disabilities. 

Writing: ★★★★★
Colleen Hoover always writes her books in such a realistic and beautiful way that is never corny or insta-lovey, which is hard to achieve in a romance novel, let’s be honest. I also loved how sex wasn’t the main focus of the story, as it seems to be that way for a lot of new adult books these days. This book was so much deeper than that and the story was so meaningful and stunning that I still can’t get over it. 

Romance/Feels: ★★★★★
I can’t even answer this. Is that even a question? DEAD.

Ending: ★★★★★
So beautifully wrapped up in a way that wasn’t corny or overly dramatic in any way. Such a realistic story that just happens to have a beautiful and satisfying ending. 

Overall Enjoyment: ★★★★★
I love this book with all my heart and I want everyone to read it because it’s just that good! So much love. One thing I just have to say is that this book has a soundtrack of all of the songs that the main characters wrote together! It was written by Colleen and Griffin Peterson, who is the artist. GO AND BUY IT AND LISTEN TO IT WHEN THE SONGS COME UP IN THE BOOK IT MAKES THE EXPERIENCE SO AMAZING. It's available on iTunes or you can listen online here.

Rereadability: I will keep rereading this book until the day I die!

Final Rating: 5 stars!

BOOK REVIEW | THE UNBECOMING OF MARA DYER BY MICHELLE HODKIN

Title: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
Author: Michelle Hodkin

Series: First in a trilogy
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Genre: Young Adult Mystery/Paranormal
Goodreads

Blurb: Mara Dyer doesn’t think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can’t remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.
There is.

She doesn’t believe that after everything she’s been through, she can fall in love.
She’s wrong.

Plot: ★★★★★

This story gripped me from the very first page and not just plot wise, but in every single aspect of the story. It follows a girl called Mara Dyer who is the sole survivor in the collapse of an abandoned asylum. Her best friend, her boyfriend and her boyfriends sister weren’t so lucky. This leaves Mara with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder which makes Mara have hallucintions that are not only creepy, but also extremely intriguing. Basically, we’re left with an unreliable narrator and that just gets me so excited. Is what she’s seeing real? I DON’T KNOW. SO EXCITING.

The plot is so intriguing and mysterious and you can’t help but flip those pages and keep reading until you’re provided with answers.

Characters: ★★★★★

I loved the diversity of the characters and you could really feel that they were all deeply realistic and individual. I absolutely adored Mara and her family and each character was so real and I found myself becoming so attached to them! Also, Noah Shaw. Just chucking that one in there.

Writing: ★★★★

Absolutely beautiful, captivating and gripping throughout the entire book. I honestly haven’t felt this captivated in a book since I read Twilight the first time. I just couldn’t put. it. down. You can tell that this story has so much depth and that the author has thought of so much that you just don’t know yet. It left me reeling!

Romance/Feels: ★★★★★
ALL OF THE FEELINGS ALL OVER THE PLACE. The romance doesn’t move too fast and it’s reassuring. I just fell in love with Noah Shaw. FELL SO HARD.

Ending: ★★★★.5
This is the only slight problem I had! The ending got a little confusing and I had to reread parts of it, but I think that’s kind of what Michelle Hodkin meant to do because Mara would have been so confused and we’re left reeling along with her and this made us sucked into the story even more. So clever.

Overall Enjoyment: ★★★★★
I love everything about this book. Absolutely everything. Please read it

Rereadability: YES YES A THOUSAND TIMES YES.

Final Rating: 4.92 stars!

The Twilight Debate

Just wanted to post a quick little post about how I feel about the whole Twilight debate.

Regardless of what many people think, I believe that this is truly a great story that brings back so much nostalgia. I'll say one thing, the movies ruined everything. The Bella that Kristin Stewart portrays is NOT the Bella from the book. She is sarcastic, feisty and funny! She isn't in any way bland or monotonous like Kristin Stewart is and this is what really bothers me. Edward is also completely different. In my opinion, Robert Pattinson is not nearly good looking enough and he's just too awkward to play the role of Edward. I think the movies just changed everyones opinions on the books and this makes me really sad because people are forgetting what the characters were REALLY like in the books. 

The story itself may not be original, but when it was released, a lot of people seemed to think it was, because it did take the world by storm. There's also absolutely nothing wrong with the writing! It's not in any way juvenile or badly written. I have no idea what most people are talking about. To be honest, I just think most people think it's embarrassing to like Twilight and this makes me really mad because there's absolutely nothing wrong with it (except the movie of course).

I just can't rant about this enough so I'll stop there but I plan on making a video about the whole Twilight debate really soon so when I do, I will link it below ------>