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Saturday, May 28, 2016

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Hey Readers!

It's Saturday already?! Well I was reading again... I do that a lot don't I? Today's review is about another book I read last week.

Graceling is about Katsa, a spirited and smart teenage girl. In this fictional world, certain people have a grace, a special talent that makes you good at one thing that can be anything. Katsa's is killing. As the king's niece, she is forced to use her...interesting skills as the king's personal assassin. Katsa, who doesn't like this sort of treatment, has to figure out how to escape her uncle and the meaning of her Grace.

This book will give you many feels, start a couple new ships, and satisfy your need for a good fantasy novel. I rate this book 3.5 bookish badges, because the plot could be a bit confusing at times.

~Hanna

P.S. I have not read the sequel, Bitterblue yet, but I have heard it's also really good!

Thursday, May 26, 2016

Guest Post! The Sin-Eater's Daughter by Melinda Salisbury

Hey Readers!
Kate has another review for you all! Thank you Kate for this brilliant review on a book that I have never heard of. ~Hanna
The Sin Eater’s Daughter
By Melinda Salisbury
Twylla is a girl. Or more than a girl. Or not. No one really knows who Twylla is. Most claim she is Daunen, the spirit of the Gods’ child. But she is also the Sin Eater’s Daughter. And she is known as the executioner in the kingdom, for using her powers gifted to her by the gods to kill criminals in the jail. She used to have a friend, somebody who knew her. But she was forced to kill him, as he knew a dark secret. One so big not even she knew. And Twylla has been lonely since that moment.
Until one fateful day.
Twylla is assigned a new guard, Lief. And it is not long before her other guard falls deeply ill, leaving Twylla and Lief alone with nothing but time on their hands. They grow close, as friends or perhaps something more than just friends. 
And then the prince (Merek) who has been away for two years returns.
Because he is almost 20, and that is when he is supposed to marry Twylla. As Daunen, she is deemed fit for a prince. And she always knew she was going to marry Merek. At least until she met Lief anyway. But before Twylla can figure out her love life, many deaths occur. And an old myth resurfaces. The tale of the Sleeping Prince. A prince who, if awoken, would completely destroy the kingdom Merek and Twylla are destined to rule. A prince who would, if anyone would, be awoken by the queen. The hated queen, the despised queen, the loathed queen, the queen who rules by way of fear. 
Can Twylla stop the queen, the sleeping prince, and find the meaning of true love all at once?
All while telling truths from lies?
This fantasy book is action-packed and gripping. Personally, I read it in one night because I could not put it down. I would easily rate this book 5/5 bookish badges.
--Kate

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

The Crown Review *Spoilers*

"It's like they're two halves of the same heart in different bodies"- Eadlyn S The Crown Pg. 44
*Spoilers*
Hello fellow Fangirls and Fanboys,
So I've read the Crown and it's amazing.
Number one- No I'm not telling you who gets chosen to be Eadlyn's 'The One', I'm not that evil, (Er
Number two- Yes there will be spoilers, so beware,
Number three- These are my personal thoughts, not yours
Number four- NOOO it's the last book :(

My Thoughts
Oh wow, Eadlyn has matured so much in the 5th book! Let's just say nobody dies *claps*, but there are new ships! So for example *Spoiler* HALE AND EAN!! But Eadlyn decides to spare their lives by not telling anyone and letting them go. There any plot twists, and before you hate on Josie, Josie actually matures *gasps*.

Basic Summary
Eadlyn Schreave is back at it again with the selection. Narrowing it down to six Elites, Eadlyn is prepared to find her soul mate. But there are still many things to think about. Like what will happen to her if her mother doesn't survive? *Spoiler* Eadlyn becomes queen! *Squee*
Its not much, but I have many exams coming up, but I have another blog, (http://cherriesandcateyes.blogspot.ca) coming, SO BYE
-Jorina

Sunday, May 22, 2016

Guest Author! A Court Of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

Hey Readers! 

Today we have another guest author for you! Here's my friend Kate's review on A Court of Mist and Fury! 〜Hanna 

A COURT OF MIST AND FURY BY SARAH J.MAAS  BOOK REVIEW!
SPOILER ALERT! Do not read this review if you have not read the first book, A Court of Thorns and Roses.
So anyways…
A Court of Mist and Fury is a gripping, action-packed, romantic, fantasy novel about a girl named Feyre. The books starts out with Feyre in her fiancĂ©’s home. At this point, she loves him more than anything and would do anything for him. In fact, she did. During the huge war against Amarantha that happened in the previous book. She sacrificed so much, even her life, for Tamlin. And when she died, she was remade into a Faerie. Part of this remaking was making an agreement with Rhysand, high lord of the Night Court. Their agreement was that every month Feyre would come to stay at his Night Court for one week. Three months pass and Rhysand does not come to take her away. Until one fateful day—her wedding day. Given, she had been silently asking for help because she would have had to say no to Tamlin because she does not love him as much anymore, however she is still very mad when Rhysand takes her away. Fortunately, good things happen when she’s at the Night Court, but this causes many problems when she gets back to Tamlin’s Spring Court. Tamlin is VERY protective of Feyre—even going to the point of locking her inside his house where she cannot escape. Luckily Rhysand is able to feel her fear and her frustration by way of their bond (formed by the agreement she made) and comes to rescue her, taking her back to the Night Court. When she gets there, she realizes that living with Tamlin has been slowly killing her. He would not let Feyre do anything. Not even go for a walk off the grounds. With Rhys, she has freedom. And living with Rhys allows her to unlock new things about herself, powers she never knew she had.
Not to mention what she finds out about herself and Rhys. 
After she starts to live with Rhys, the main plot to the story finally kicks off. They discover the king of Hybern is wanting to start a war with a VERY powerful, up-to-this-point-thought-of-as-mythical weapon – the Cauldron. They also discover there is something that can, in a way, control the Cauldron—a mythical book. The catch is, one part of the Book is with Summer Court and the other part with the six mortal queens of the human realm. And to make things even more difficult, the part with the queens needs to be given willingly! 
And don’t even get me started on the stunts Tamlin pulls trying to get Feyre back, causing problems for everyone involved.
Do you think Feyre can get the book, stop the Cauldron and a war with Hybernevade Tamlin, and still be able to have a happy life afterward? Read the book to find out!
WARNING! Sexual content in the novel.
Personally, I would give this book 5/5 bookish badges. 
Happy Reading!
--Kate

Saturday, May 21, 2016

Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

Hello Readers!


Here is another review for one of the books that I read this week! The cove shown is the new cover (I think...). Personally, I like this cover a lot more. Anyway, here's the review!

Calamity. A bright, red planet that brought power to certain people. These new powerful people are called Epics. Epics are power mad and not even considered people by the government. Steelheart, a epic with the power to turn things into steel and is pretty much invulnerable has taken over what used to be Chicago, and turned it all to steel.

David, the main character of this book, had his father killed by Steelheart when he was little. After that incident he became obsessed with killing Steelheart. He is the only person that has seen Steelheart bleed. To help pursue his goal, he seeks out the Reckoners, a rebel group whose main goal is to get rid of epics once and for all. The Reckoners are the non-epics only hope for survival in this dark, dangerous world.

The plot of this book gets more and more complicated as it moves along, but otherwise this book deserves a read! Elantris (also written by Sanderson) was in my personal opinion a tad better than Steelheart. I rate this book 4/5 bookish badges.

Happy reading!
~Hanna


Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Hey Readers!

Well it has been 9 days since I have last posted. (Seriously, you can check). I was reading.... 5 books to be exact. (Reviews coming soon!) Oh and there was testing too! And our first meeting.....You get the point. A lot of stuff happened this past week. Anyway, here's my review for one of the books I read (just finished!) this week!

Illuminae (NOT ILLUMINATI) is a fast paced sci-fi, fantasy, and kind of romance novel. I started this book not knowing anything whatsoever about this, and I am happy to say that this book pleasantly surprised me. The story is told through many things, IMs, e-mails, conversation recordings, documents, and even through files from the ship's artificial intelligence core.

Illuminae is about Kady and Erza, two teenagers who once lived in Kerenza, an illegal mining colony on a distant planet, somewhere in this universe. When Kerenza gets attacked, on the day of Kady and Erza's breakup, things get a lot more complicated. They work together to escape Kerenza, but get separated and put onto different spaceships leaving Kerenza. It might seem that the major conflict is over now, but their problems are just getting started. They find out that they are in the middle of a corporation rivalry, a deadly plague is mutating, and the artificial intelligence aka AIDAN that is on Erza's ship just might be insane. In this space set story, you'll find many characters that you love, and hate, and some that you just don't know what to think! But in space, all Kady and Erza have just might be each other. I rate this book 5/5 bookish badges.
~Hanna
P.S. The sequel to this novel, Gemina, is coming out on October 18, and the main character in Gemina has my name! (Most of you probably wouldn't care but I care...)

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

~Kiwi's Book List~

Heya! Here is a long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long list of my book reccomendations!
~1-7 Harry Potter
~Percy Jackson And Olympians
~Heros of Olympus
~Trials Of Apollo
~Magestarium (Series)
~House Of Night *Maturity Warning* (Series)
~Hunger Games
~Divergent
~Paper Towns
~The Fault In Out Stars
~Gone (Series)
~Kane Chronicles
~Chronicles Of Narnia
~The Maze Runner Series (It's okay)
~Magnus Chase And The Gods Of Asgard
~Get Well Soon & Have A Nice Day (Julie Halpern) (2 books)
~Savvy, Scumble, and Switch  (Ingrid Law) (3 books)
~Sailor Moon (It's Manga)
~Anything written by Kate Di Camillo
~Wonder
~Inside Out & Back Again (Thanhha Lai)
~Deep Dark And Dangerous (Mary Downing Hahn)
~George (Alex Gino)
~You Me Him (Kris Dinnison)
~A Corner Of The Universe (Ann M. Martin)
~A Dog's Life (Ann M. Martin)
-Artemis Fowl (Eoin Colfer) (Series)
-Dragon Rider (Cornelia Funke)
-Inkheart Series (Cornelia Funke)
That's all I can think of. I will update my list whenever I read or remember a good book so keep checking back!
~Kiwi~

~Why Slytherins Are Absloutely Stunning~

Welcome to my first post. c: I have gotten sucked into the hole of ANIME. Anyways, Slytherins are more than prejuced, rich, and thick-headed. Here are some reasons:
0) I'm in Slytherin. Need I say more? Just Kidding.
1) Merlin, was in Slytherin house. That's pretty awesome.
2) Not just Gryffindors are brave, Snape gave up his life for love, and Sirius Black's brother, Regulus, rejected his role as a Death Eater, and tried to destroy Voldemort's horcrux even if his life was a casualty. Narcissa Malfoy lied about Harry being dead, for the sake of her son.  SLytherins arent alTalk about brave!
3) Even if our commonroom is in the dungeons, they're also below the lake. You might think, ew! But it's quite the sound to fall asleep to, the decor is perfect too. Green is really my color. Click here to see the Common Room art!
4) Snakes are pretty cool. Dangerous, smart, and slick, the snakes of the Earth have a bad reputation. Some snake's venom can cure diseases. Your lions cant do that can they?
5) They won the house cup, so many times. We have talent. c':
6) Not all Slytherin house members learn dark arts. There are many Slytherin students who are mentioned in the book. Most of them are only mentioned during the Sorting, you don't see them creating horcruxes or making foul jokes about Muggle-Borns.
7) Slytherins have advantages; they never get caught. When Snape caught us out in the halls, he blamed the Gryffindors.
8) They are sucessful. Voldemort was sucessful (Although he did some dark stuff, he was still sucessful), so was Merlin, Lucious Malfoy, and more.
9) You have the Bloody Baron as a house ghost. Call on him if Peeves is pestering you. What an advantage.
10) You have a reputation for being in the scariest house. If someone is bothering you, pretend to zap them with a curse. (Just kidding, don't do that. Unless they're really bothering you).
Well, there you have it! Ten reasons why Slyherins are ~Abseuloutly Stuning~ and not what you all presume by the books. I hope you liked my first post an theres more to come. c:
~KIWI~

Monday, May 9, 2016

Why Hufflepuff is amazing.

Hello everyone! Now, none of us are Hufflepuff, so for the Hufflepuff pride post we had to bring in a expert. Everyone, give a warm welcome to our first guest author, and none other than my amazing friend, Ms. Josie K. - Chloe

While Gryffindors are brave, Ravenclaws are smart, and Slytherins are... cough evil cough, Hufflepuffs are THE BEST!
These are some reasons why I think Hufflepuffs are THE BEST.
1. I mean badgers are cool right....
2. Hufflepuffs never get a bad rap.
3. Nobody blames us for mass destruction.
4. We have mm.. had Diggory, your argument is invalid.
5. The sorting hat goes, " For Hufflepuff hard workers/ most worthy of admission"..... YESS YOU HEARD IT!!
6. All the Hufflepuffs stayed to fight in the Battle Of Hogwarts.
7. Tonks GAVE BIRTH AND FOUGHT AGAINST he-who-must-not-be-named RIGHT AFTER..... like what!
8. Fat Friar is.....jolly, that's how to put it.
9. Ernie saved Harry's life, (they conveniently left that out of the movie)
10. Before the sorting hat, Hufflepuff took anyone who was rejected by the other houses.
11. Who likes yellow!... 10% of America and 30% of Scotland, England, Ireland, and Wales.. STILL AWESOME.
12. The common room is RIGHT NEXT TO THE KITCHEN YASS!
13. Only house that doesn't have a traitor.
14. We won a Quidditch game against Harry and we were cool enough to rematch!
15. The founder of Hogsmeade was a Hufflepuff.
16. Produced least dark wizards.
17. Being nice doesn't mean boring.
18. Its J.K. Rowling's favorite house
19. Some idiots insist Hufflepuffs are just good for nothing losers.... SURE Slytherins are the cuddliest guys on the planet...just really people.
20. ..........WE'RE NICE(pretty self explanatory)

TADAAAAAA.

We're Hufflepuffs, we're loyal, kind, fair, friendly, cool, smart...., forgiving, and most importantly... THE BEST!

Sorry Chloe, I probably spelled a lot of things wrong. You can change somethings if you want, I don't care at all. BYE- BYE
~Josie K

Trials of Apollo: The Hidden Oracle By Rick Riordan

I'm sure if you have been alive since May 3rd, you have heard of the brand new book Rick Riordan has decided to write so that he can kill us... AGAIN. But now that most of us have finished it, prepare yourself for a bunch of reviews.

Trials of Apollo is one of Rick Riordan's best, in my opinion (or is it that I'm just way too happy that it finally came out?). It has a bunch of plot twists, a bunch of cliff hangers (This is Rick Riordan we are talking about what do you expect honestly), and is a nicely illustrated plot, showing us a side of Camp Half Blood we have never seen. If you haven't read any of Rick Riordan's books yet, then I highly recommend reading them first, it will be very confusing if you don't.

So the summary.
Apollo. A used to be God of Olympus. When he angered Zeus, which is not a very good idea, he was cast down, now a mortal. To get back up to Olympus, he believes that he has to complete trials, hence Trials of Apollo. His name is now Lester Papadopoulos, who, has Apollo finds out, is just a mortal, not even a demigod.
He meets a girl named Meg McCaffery who rescues him. Apollo realizes that there is only one place that is safe - Camp Half Blood.
But he has lots of enemies that would love a chance to get him now that he is a mortal, and not to mention those trials he has to complete. But with him learning how to cope with life, he doesn't know who to trust-or who not to. After all, Zeus wouldn't make The Trials of Apollo too easy, would he?

I rate this book 4.5/5 Bookish Badges because it is quite nicely written, and it ties up most of the loose ends of Heroes of Olympus. Happy Reading!

Hope you enjoyed reading this review! - Chloe

Sunday, May 8, 2016

The Trials of Apollo, Book 1: The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan

Hi People!
Here is a review for The Hidden Oracle, the next series starring Greek myths, which came out on May 3rd. Warning, there might be spoilers.

This brand new book that Rick Riordan has published, does not star Percy, or any of the seven. The main character is Apollo. Yes, the god, Apollo. I'm sure you've heard this by now, but Apollo was turned mortal by his father, Zeus. He meets Meg, when he falls down from Olympus, and suspects that she is a demigod. Apollo, aka Lester Papadopoulos (He never uses this name though...) , seeks out the one and only Percy Jackson for advice... and a ride to Camp Half-Blood.

At camp, he finds that demigod are mysteriously disappearing without a trace and that the oracles have lost their power of telling the future. With no way to get a prophecy, there is no quests. With no quests, there is no way for Apollo to become a god again. Will they ever get out of what Apollo calls this as a Catch-88? Will they ever find out what is happening to the disappearing campers? Read The Hidden Oracle to find out!

I rate this book 4/5 bookish badges, because Apollo is a bit to self-centered for my liking. This book certainty got me craving the next book in the series, called the Dark Prophecy, which is coming out on May 2nd! We have 329 days to go!
-Hanna

The Gone Novels: A Series Review

Hello, library lovers!

Or maybe you just like books and not libraries. 

It's your prerogative, not mine. 

Libraries are wonderful, though. 

This week's post is about the Gone novels. I have already posted about this series, but my opinions on the books changed greatly during the time I was reading them. 

The series, beginning with Gone, seems like a classic story of good versus evil where the protagonists fight small tools of the main antagonist. The characters of this novel remain rather flat throughout, seeming to be either purely good or purely evil, and readers mostly see the world through Sam Temple's eyes, as he is the main protagonist. We only feel the pain and conflict of a supporting character toward the end of the book, leaving us wanting more of that small but superb piece of character development. Don't worry, there's more to come. As the series progresses, more character's perspectives are shown, leading the readers to a better understanding of the surprisingly complex plot which emerges. 

As the players in this game are developing, we find that none of them are as one-dimensional as we had originally perceived. Seeing inside of many of the character's minds was what really made the series worth reading. The inner conflicts of the teens in the books may not only be relatable to readers, they also affect the plot in large ways. I enjoyed the final two books, Fear and Lies, far more than I did the beginning of the series. 

With wonderfully developed characters and an action packed (sometimes disturbing) plot, these books are delightfully dark and I loved them. 4/5 Bookish Badges!

Make sure to check out our Instagram page, @our_bookish_blog, for photos of books we've been reading! We might even review a book you suggest...

Phillip

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Hi Readers!
I got a request to review this book, so here it is!

         Cinder is a fantasy sci-fi novel, and sucks you in right from the beginning. This book is a retelling of the famous fairytale, Cinderella, but with a brand new twist.

         Cinder is a cyborg. Half human, half robot, she's treated like a second class citizen in her hometown, New Beijing, where she lives with her stepmother and stepsisters. She is known as the best mechanic in New Beijing, thanks to her cyborg parts. Her life changes when Prince Kai asks her to fix his android, something that the prince tries to pass off as nothing, but is really much bigger than it seems.

         When her favorite stepsister, Pearl, catches the deadly plague with no known cure, letumosis, her stepmother blames her and volunteers her for research, something that no one has ever survived from. She gets tested, and the doctors find something that they had never seen before.

         Cinder is the first book in the Lunar Chronicles. The series has 3 other books, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter, and a novella collection called Stars Above. I rate this book 5/5 bookish badges. I hope you all read this book, and the rest of the series!
-Hanna

Thursday, May 5, 2016

Elantris by Brandon Sanderson

Hi Readers! 
Sorry, I haven't been posting, I was reading. Today's review is on one of my favorite books, one that I actually read a while ago. This is one of my longer book reviews. Hope you like it! 

So this is one of the books you absolutely have to read sometime in your life. Elantris is an amazingly good fantasy novel filled with action, fantasy, romance, and a little bit of political stuff. The story starts in Kae, the not-so-new capital of Arelon.

Kae stands in the shadow of the former capital, and this book’s namesake, Elantris. Ten years from the time in this book, Elantris was a utopia. The land was beautiful, its inhabitants like living gods and goddesses (with magic and all), and the land literally glowed. To get all that magical bliss, you had to randomly get struck by a magical force called the Shaod. It was supposed to be like that for eternity.

When the kingdom crashed down, the Shaod became feared. The inhabitants of Elantris became powerless, sickly beings, and Elantris itself turned dark and crumbling. When Crown Prince Raoden gets struck by the Shaod, his bride-to-be, Sarene, the princess of Teod, finds that Raoden is dead, and she is now considered his widow. Sarene decides to use her new standing in Arelon to prevent a Fjordell priest, Harthen from taking both Arelon and Teod for his religion and god.

Will Sarene succeed in preventing Harthen from taking over her country? Will anyone find out that Raoden is not dead, but exiled in Elantris? And will they ever find out what really happened to Elantris? Read Elantris by Brandon Sanderson to find out! This book is fantasy and has very interesting country names, some of which are hard to pronounce, which might make it hard to read for some readers.a Besides that, I give it 6/5 bookish badges, and I hope you all decide to read this book!
~Hanna

Sunday, May 1, 2016

Chasm

My feet are planted, my stance firm.

Yet suddenly, a chasm has opened neath me.

Now where shall I stand?

Ripped apart

My fickle heart

It pulses uncertainly

Torn by the quake which also split my world in two.

I see signs, telling me where to go

Yet I struggle I float impassively

Yet within a storm rages.

I fill with air, I rise

And I am content

For the moment

Aware that eventually the storm will break

And I shall rain down upon all who cling to me.

That's my poem. I actually wrote it whilst I was texting an acquaintance.


I hope you enjoyed it.

Phillip

Habibi

Hello, Fans of Books!

I hope you're a fan of books. If you aren't, please try to become one. Trust me. It's a worthwhile lifestyle change.

I think. 

Or you might end up with a strange blog, like me.

Still totally worth it.

This week's post is about the book Habibi. Habibi is a Realistic Fiction book set in modern times about Liyana, a quiet, reflective girl, and how her life is irreversibly altered by her father's decision to move to Israel. Liyana unwillingly makes the journey overseas to the land from her father's endless stories and is overwhelmed by the sights, sounds, smells, and her extended family's sudden intrusion into her life. 

It takes some time, but eventually, Liyana's life settles into a routine and she is able to appreciate the beauty of her new world. 

(Oh, and the boys. This isn't a romance novel, but Liyana is a teenage girl, and boys are occasionally mentioned. Liyana is slightly kiss-obsessed.) 

Liyana's family has many philosophies on religion, conflict, and peace, which are mentioned throughout the book and add to its depth. Artfully written and flowing like poetry, this book contains much more meaning than you would expect. I would absolutely recommend it. 4/5 Bookish Badges!

Well, that's all.

Always laugh, because everything is funny.

Phillip