Oops...

So today I may have gotten a little carried away in WH Smiths and also on Amazon, but I think I probably speak for a lot of people when I say there is really nothing better than a new book day. Most people probably get like this over clothes (I kinda do as well, and don't get me started on buying new makeup) but nothing makes me happier than a massive stack of new books. To go with my other growing stack of new books. I'm pretty sure I could now open a library. 

1. Delirium - I will admit to being heavily influenced by other fiction enthusiasts when it comes to books. Don't get me wrong, I'm perfectly capable of finding new books by myself, but if I find someone obsessing over something on Tumblr, it definitely makes me very curious to try it myself, especially if there is a strong fanbase behind it. Delirium is one of these occasions, I was going to order it off Amazon last week but for some reason didn't, then I stumbled across it today and it was the last copy and of course I made some excuse involving fate just to justify spending more money. I am SO excited to read it. 

2. Vampire Academy series - I have a friend who I used to work with, with an almost identical taste in books to me. She has spent most of the last couple of weeks going crazy for these books, so when I saw the box set on sale I figured I'd be stupid to not buy them. I'm a little apprehensive that they may turn out a little 'Twilight-y' as they're centered around vampires but even if this is the case I will definitely give them a go. I cannot possibly leave a book unread, no matter how much it may or may not appeal to me once it's sat on my bookshelf. 

3. Fallen & Torment - These were two books that I picked up on a whim when I was in WH Smiths this afternoon. I almost bought the entire series but I had just spent £100 on makeup about 10 minutes earlier and figured I should probably try and restrain myself a little, so I settled for two instead. I thought that was a personal achievement for me as I was in the mood to buy the entire bookshop. From what I could gather from the blurb, these books focus around angels, a supernatural theme which I find hasn't been represented much in fiction in comparison to the vampires and werewolves that have taken over since the birth of Twilight. I have a feeling that I will have two new fictional characters to fall in love with and cry over now, and I am sure we will all bear the brunt of my emotional trauma over the next few weeks. 

I now have to make sure I don't buy any new books for a while. I literally have an entire desk and a whole shelf of my bookshelf full of unread books from as far back as 2012 to get through. I have an awful habit of just buying and buying books and not getting round to reading all the ones I already have, so the next few months will be a bit of a test for me.

I also need about 8 more bookshelves to store them. Or a whole room dedicated to them-the sooner I get my own place the better!

Divergent - Veronica Roth

Divergent has been all over my Twitter and Tumblr feeds for a long time. So much so, that I was debating avoiding everything to do with it as I really did not need to become emotionally invested in more fictional characters, however, with a much anticipated movie adaptation taking to the big screen this year, I thought it would do me no harm to see what all the fuss was about. 

I was wrong. It was a bad idea, because now not only do I have to worry about the impending final installment of The Mortal Instruments hitting shelves this spring, I also have to worry about how they will portray my new favourites Tris and Four, and whether or not I will hate

the actor doomed to play Peter as much as I hate the poor guy who plays Joffery in Game of Thrones (I'm sure in reality he's a lovely guy but seriously, Joffery is the worst). 

Anyway, I digress. Divergent was always for me going to be one of those books which either lives up to the hype and possibly even exceeds it, leaving me in a weeping mess in the corner of my room after the final page has been turned and possibly screaming to the sky whilst mascara runs dramatically down my face, OR I could be incredibly disappointed, wondering why on earth the money has been spent adapting this movie when we still haven't had City of Angels news yet. Luckily (or unluckily where my social life is concerned) it was very much the former for me. 

I spent perhaps the first chapter feeling slightly confused and wondering what all the fuss was about.  If I'm honest, I think this was more to do with beginning the book during my lunch hour at work than the actual novel itself, as once I got home, got comfy and actually settled to read it, I was completely hooked. 

Veronica Roth has achieved something quite remarkable here, with a very believable take on a Dystopian future along with characters who are both charming and relatable. I am a big advocate for alternate universes, supernatural characters, magic and all the rest of it, but I am always left with a sense of disappointment when I've read the books, knowing that no matter how much I've enjoyed the story, it is physically impossible for a world like that to ever exist (I'm 22 and I'm still waiting for my Hogwarts letter). Although I wouldn't want to live in a society so divided as in Divergent, it is refreshing to read something that is plausible to an extent, and it's intriguing to get a new take on the possible future our society could face. 

With the move coming out soon, I'm not going to go too in depth as I don't want to reveal any spoilers! I will say however, that the film will definitely be worth checking out, especially if you're a fan of The Hunger Games or Battle Royale. If you are like me, and prefer to read the book before the adaptation arrives in cinemas, I would again recommend this without hesitation. 

Confessions of a Chelsea Boy - Spencer Matthews

 Ok so, I have a (not so) secret obsession with Made in Chelsea, which for all of you who haven't had the pleasure of viewing it, is a scripted reality show following a group of young, wealthy individuals and their experiences living in our vibrant capital city.

Spencer Matthews is often portrayed as a Lothario, leaving a trail of heat break and chaos wherever he goes. He is ultimately one of my favourite characters on the show, and not only because of his dashing good looks, therefore I was quite keen to give this a read as I suspected that a lot of his character is wrongly represented on the programme.

I will take a minute to say that if you're wanting perfectly constructed sentences, spot on grammar and an engaging narrative then this really isn't the book for you, and you are definitely going to be disappointed! Equally, if you're not a
fan of the show or Spencer himself I can't imagine you wanting to purchase the autobiography, but for those who are, it is definitely worth the read. 

I think it goes a long way into helping you understand what actually goes on in Spencer's head to make him act the way he appears to with regards to relationships, and it certainly reveals more about his past than I expected, leaving me to wonder how much of his personality is just bravado to cover up experiences he hasn't dealt with. 

I was curious to find out why exactly somebody of his age and life experiences would feel the need to write an autobiography, being as he's only a few years older than myself and I definitely would not have anything of worth to write about. I did however, find myself thoroughly enjoying the read, which I'm not exactly sure is something I should be enthusiastic about as I supposedly somewhat of a literary enthusiast and I would not describe this as fine literature!

To summarise, Confessions of a Chelsea Boy was a quick and easy read, no literary genius and not particularly well written; however, as a fan of Spencer Matthews and Made in Chelsea as a whole, I enjoyed it and would recommend it to like minded readers
 

The Hit - David Baldacci

The Hit - David Baldacci

One thing that you will come to realise over the course of reading this blog (if you make reading this blog a habit, which of course I hope that you do) is that my taste in books s nothing if not eclectic. Who wants to be predictable, however?

Crime/thriller fiction is definitely one of my favourite genres, I get so tied into the story and the characters and become obsessed with trying to solve the crime, which probably says more about my personality than I'd like to admit. Due to this, it is not uncommon to find me grabbing any crime thriller that catches my eye in the local bookshop/supermarket. This was one such time.

From reading the blurb, I have to say I had high expectations for this book, and whilst it did not disappoint completely, I definitely did not have the reading experience that I had anticipated, which greatly saddened me. I'm still looking for the book that can top 'I am Pilgrim' which I can safely say is the best thriller I have ever read, and is definitely up there in my top 20 of all time.

I found that I didn't get sucked into the story quick enough for my liking. I will admit here that I have never read any of David Baldacci's other novels, and didn't realise at the time of purchase that this was part of a series, and therefore when I began reading the characters and their relationships with one another had already been long established-this of course was something I then had to figure out for myself, which while not un-enjoyable, was certainly not ideal.

The writing itself was certainly good, I am one of those readers who will get driven to near insanity whilst reading a book written by an author whose grasp of the English language is lesser than my own, and despite the slow start I did find myself enjoying the narrative towards the end, however this was my main disappointment. The real 'nitty-gritty' action didn't start to hot up until the book came to a close, and I think this is really what let it down. I think this is also reflected in the time it took me to read the novel itself-a surprising 7 days, which is unheard of for me-the girl who can read several books a week on a regular basis.

To summarise, I did enjoy the book in my own way, however it took too long to ensnare me in the story and even towards the end I didn't care much for the characters. There were no essential plot twists that I didn't see coming a mile off, and although I did enjoy it I don't think I would read more of this series.

6/10.