Blog Tour + Review: Far From Perfect (#2) by Holly Smale

On August 12, 2020August 14, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Blog Tour, Book Review1 Comment

Faith Valentine has it all – fame, money and extraordinary beauty. But what she wants more than anything is a quiet life away from the cameras. Except nobody ever asks Faith what she wants, and her family’s expectations are crushing her.
The world thinks she’s perfect, but is there is more to perfection than meets the eye?

Thank you to Harper Collins and Kaleidoscopic Tours for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I actually enjoyed this book a lot more than expected, it was such a pleasant surprise. Having not read any of Smale’s books, not even the first book in this series, I had no idea how I would feel about this one. However, as this book follows Faith, the sister of the protagonist in the first book, I understood the story perfectly and didn’t feel like I was missing anything.

As soon as I picked this up I knew it would be a quick and easy one to get through. I thought I’d just read 50 pages at most, but ended up reading 100 in one go and finishing it in just over 24 hours! I couldn’t tell you the last time I read a 400+ page book in that short amount of time, but this was pretty addictive.

I found the story really interesting as it’s something I wouldn’t usually pick up. Faith’s life is controlled by the media, social media and her fame, which seemed like an important topic to portray to what will likely be a younger audience. The plot was highly entertaining (which is why I couldn’t put the book down!) but also felt unrealistic to me, which I couldn’t help but feel irritated by.

I liked the cast of characters for the most part, especially Faith’s dysfunctional family. However, there were points in which I felt topics could have been handled better (for example, her mother had a problem in which help was never seen as an option, whereas she seemingly needed professional help). Scarlett was a fun character but I just found something off about her that I couldn’t click with.

This book is definitely aimed at a younger audience than me, and I can see a younger me really enjoying it. It was incredibly entertaining and fun, with a fast paced plot which kept me on my toes. Although I found it frustrating at times, a younger me would have likely looked past the few problems I saw and enjoyed it even more!

★★★★
3.5 out of 5 stars

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

www.etsy.com/uk/shop/thebooksareverywhere

Review: Loveless by Alice Oseman

On August 10, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Book Review6 Comments

Goodreads | Waterstones

Georgia has never been in love, never kissed anyone, never even had a crush – but as a fanfic-obsessed romantic she’s sure she’ll find her person one day.
As she starts university with her best friends, Pip and Jason, in a whole new town far from home, Georgia’s ready to find romance, and with her outgoing roommate on her side and a place in the Shakespeare Society, her ‘teenage dream’ is in sight.
But when her romance plan wreaks havoc amongst her friends, Georgia ends up in her own comedy of errors, and she starts to question why love seems so easy for other people but not for her. With new terms thrown at her – asexual, aromantic – Georgia is more uncertain about her feelings than ever.
Is she destined to remain loveless? Or has she been looking for the wrong thing all along?

Oh my gosh. We don’t need to talk about how much I love Alice Oseman, but it has to be said that this is her best writing yet. I just clicked with it immediately in a way I haven’t with her other books – it captured me from the off and I didn’t want to stop reading. Georgia was such a relatable character who was struggling with finding out who she is, which I think is something we have all found in life, whatever sexuality.

Although I’m not asexual myself, I found Loveless made me reflect a lot on my own sexuality. Almost a year ago, I realised I am demisexual/demiromantic, which means I am only sexually and romantically attracted to people I have an emotional connection with. Some of the stark and raw conversations Georgia and her friends have about sex were so bold and relatable and we simply need more of this in YA. These conversations not only made me chuckle, but it taught me a lot about why I am the way I am with relationships and my sex life.

Give your friendships the magic you would give a romance.

I (mostly) loved the cast of characters. Although they could be annoying at times, I think it was only because they were all learning and discovering things about themselves, which only prompted the story to be more realistic and relatable. The discussions the characters had were not only heartfelt, but incredibly sex-positive and funny. Hardly any books make me actually laugh out loud, but I couldn’t stop chuckling!

The plot was entertaining, and even if a little predictable at times, I still loved it. The diversity was amazing. The casual way Oseman would drop in white privilege and racial issues had me reeling. If she can do it, anybody can do it. It’s just not that hard. The diversity felt natural, added to the story, avoided stereotypes and tokenism. It was executed with grace and thought.

The friendships were also so great and well written. The way this book showed how friendships are just as important as relationship is perfect. I have felt this so many times in my life, and I definitely agree that friendships are just as important and meaningful as romantic relationships are. There is still love and adoration and fear and intimacy. I cannot express how grateful I am for Alice to writing this and these characters and this book.

Because they’re just as important.

I think the underlying most important thing about this book is we need it so badly. We need more books discussing sexuality. Exploring how identifying as a certain sexuality might mean a different life and that this is not weird or bad. We need more sex-positive books that talk openly about sex lives and masturbation and how it varies for different people. We need for teenagers, children and adults to be able to see themselves in books. Loveless taught me so much about asexuality. If all books did what Alice Oseman has done, how much could we learn?

★★★★★
5 out of 5 stars

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

Let’s Discuss! August Releases I’m Excited For

On August 7, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Let's Discuss!Leave a comment

Hi all! I know we’re a week into the month already but I thought today I’d talk a little about August releases I’m excited for! There are just too many I have on my shelf or I want to read to avoid shouting about them.

Goodreads | Waterstones

Everyone knows that Nick and Charlie are the perfect couple – that they’re inseparable. But now Nick is leaving for university, and Charlie will be left behind at Sixth Form. Everyone’s asking if they’re staying together, which is a stupid question – they’re ‘Nick and Charlie’ for God’s sake!
But as the time to say goodbye gets inevitably closer, both Nick and Charlie question whether their love is strong enough to survive being apart. Or are they delaying the inevitable? Because everyone knows that first loves rarely last forever…

My copy of Nick and Charlie arrived yesterday and I’m so excited to read it. It looks so pretty alongside Alice’s other books!

Goodreads | Waterstones

Robin Cooper’s life is falling apart.
While his friends prepare to head off to university, Robin is looking at a pile of rejection letters from drama schools up and down the country, and facing a future without the people he loves the most. Everything seems like it’s ending, and Robin is scrabbling to find his feet.
Unsure about what to do next and whether he has the talent to follow his dreams, he and his best friends go and drown their sorrows at a local drag show, where Robin realises there might be a different, more sequinned path for him . . .
With a mother who won’t stop talking, a boyfriend who won’t acknowledge him and a best friend who is dying to cover him in glitter make up, there’s only one thing for Robin to do: bring it to the runway.

I haven’t picked up my copy of Boy Queen yet, but I’m really looking forward to it because it sounds amazing.

Goodreads | Waterstones

It’s 200 years since Cinderella found her prince, but the fairytale is over.
Sophia knows the story though, off by heart. Because every girl has to recite it daily, from when she’s tiny until the night she’s sent to the royal ball for choosing. And every girl knows that she has only one chance. For the lives of those not chosen by a man at the ball . are forfeit.
But Sophia doesn’t want to be chosen – she’s in love with her best friend, Erin, and hates the idea of being traded like cattle. And when Sophia’s night at the ball goes horribly wrong, she must run for her life. Alone and terrified, she finds herself hiding in Cinderella’s tomb. And there she meets someone who will show her that she has the power to remake her world.

I’ve heard so many good things about Cinderella is Dead and I really want to pick up a copy myself!

Goodreads | Waterstones

Ashley Bennett and her friends are living the charmed life. It’s the end of senior year and they’re spending more time at the beach than in the classroom. They can already feel the sunny days and endless possibilities of summer.
Everything changes one afternoon in April, when four LAPD officers are acquitted after beating a black man named Rodney King half to death. Suddenly, Ashley’s not just one of the girls. She’s one of the black kids.
As violent protests engulf LA and the city burns, Ashley tries to continue on as if life were normal. Even as her self-destructive sister gets dangerously involved in the riots. Even as the model black family façade her wealthy and prominent parents have built starts to crumble. Even as her best friends help spread a rumor that could completely derail the future of her classmate and fellow black kid, LaShawn Johnson.
With her world splintering around her, Ashley, along with the rest of LA, is left to question who is the us? And who is the them?

I have an ecopy of this book through NetGalley and I’m really desperate to read it – in fact it’s next on my list after Loveless!

Which books are you excited for this month?

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

Blog Tour + Review: Lot by Bryan Washington

On August 5, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Blog Tour, Book Review1 Comment

Goodreads | Waterstones

In the city of Houston – a sprawling, diverse microcosm of America – the son of a black mother and a Latino father is coming of age. He’s working at his family’s restaurant, weathering his brother’s blows, resenting his older sister’s absence. And discovering he likes boys.
This boy and his family experience the tumult of living in the margins, the heartbreak of ghosts, and the braveries of the human heart. The stories of others living and thriving and dying across Houston’s myriad neighborhoods are woven throughout to reveal a young woman’s affair detonating across an apartment complex, a rag-tag baseball team, a group of young hustlers, the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, a local drug dealer who takes a Guatemalan teen under his wing, and a reluctant chupacabra.

Thank you to Darkroom Tours and the publisher, Atlantic Books for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

What a poignant and raw, emotional collection of voices. Lot is a short story assembly championing Black and Latinx working class voices, discussing racism, poverty, family, friendship and relationships. The stories felt strong, powerful and honest, really packing a punch.

All of the narrators were men, which I found really interesting but I actually really enjoyed. I thought this was a great way to highlight toxic masculinity and the spotlight men can be put under in certain situations, and how harmful this can be. I felt really grateful for how this was portrayed in the narration.

Your eyes will show you what they want to

This book felt alive, the narrators were brutal and had me gasping at times, and I felt like I was breathing alongside the men I was reading about, living their stories alongside them. It really captured me. I liked the short story aspect, and the narrators changing occasionally kept me on my toes, however I did enjoy coming back to the same narrator. I thought it was really inventive to read about the same stories of people in the same neighbourhood.

My biggest problem with this book was the lack of connection to the narrators. I’m unsure whether this was due to the short stories meaning we spent a fairly short amount of time with them, or something to do with not knowing their names or a lot about their lives, only seeing rough snippets and not much more. But the lack of connection ended up meaning a lot to me and changed my viewpoint of the book a lot.

or whatever they think you should see.

Overall, I quite enjoyed this book despite feeling distant from the characters themselves. It felt hard hitting and important, and it was unfortunate I felt like I was almost listening to these stories underwater – I just wish I could have felt more connected to them.

★★★
3 out of 5 stars

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

Review: Kingdom of Ash (#7) by Sarah J Maas

On August 4, 2020August 2, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Book Review1 Comment

Goodreads | Waterstones

Aelin Galathynius’s journey from slave to assassin to queen reaches its heart-rending finale as war erupts across her world…
She has risked everything to save her people – but at a tremendous cost. Locked in an iron coffin by the Queen of the Fae, Aelin must draw upon her fiery will to endure the months of torture inflicted upon her. The knowledge that yielding to Maeve will doom those she loves keeps her from breaking, but her resolve is unravelling with each passing day…
With Aelin imprisoned, Aedion and Lysandra are the last line of defence keeping Terrasen from utter destruction. But even the many allies they’ve gathered to battle Erawan’s hordes might not be enough to save the kingdom.
Scattered throughout the continent and racing against time, Chaol, Manon, and Dorian must forge their own paths to meet their destinies. And across the sea Rowan hunts to find his captured wife and queen – before she is lost to him. Some bonds will deepen and others be severed forever, but as the threads of fate weave together at last, all must fight if they are to find salvation – and a better world.

Wow. Leaving this series behind after 8 books following this glorious cast of characters is going to be hard and leave a hole in my heart for a while. I can’t imagine not reading about them anymore!

This book has daunted me since it came out. In fact, I think it trumps Queen of Air and Darkness in being the longest book I’ve ever read. But it’s saying something that I really didn’t feel the length of this book at all, I never got bored and I left the book feeling like everything I needed answering had been answered. The pacing was just perfect for me. Reading this series with Alex has really helped me keep on top of reading them, but even when I fell behind in our schedule towards the end after a busy few days, I had no problem reading around 200 pages in a day to catch up with the schedule!

‘There are no gods left to watch, I’m afraid. And there are no gods left to help you now, Aelin Galathynius.’

I love the cast of characters we have followed over this series, and it was so satisfying to see them all reach different ends to their stories. Even though in some of the books I was more fixated on some characters than others, by the time we got to Kingdom of Ash, I just wanted to know about all of them. I never got bored or wanted to skip certain characters chapters, I wanted to know it all. I fell in love with all of them for their own reasons, and I truly felt like I was part of Aelin’s court myself and I never wanted to leave.

Despite this book being so long, I could definitely read more about these lovely characters if it was available to me, and I would totally lap up a novella like A Court of Frost and Starlight but for these characters. The only slight complaint I have that tainted the story for me was that everything felt a little too perfect. I just wish one or more of the characters could have been happy and badass on their own, and didn’t need to get married or have children in their future to be happy. Not that I didn’t ship everyone of course, it just made me almost roll my eyes sometimes!

Aelin smiled, and Goldryn burned brighter. ‘I am a god.’

I always said A Court of Thorns and Roses was my Sarah J Maas series, but you know, this one is up there. I can’t believe how much I adored this series and these characters and this world, and the battle scenes were immense. Thank you for another wonderful fantasy series, Sarah J Maas. Now I can’t wait for the next one!

★★★★★
4.5 out of 5 stars

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

July Wrap Up + August TBR

On August 3, 2020August 5, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Wrap-Ups + TBRs4 Comments

Hi everyone! I’m here today with my July wrap up and August TBR. I read 5 books in July, which isn’t my best amount I’ve read in a month, but does include some super long one’s like Kingdom of Ash so I’m trying not to be too disappointed!

Books I Read in July

Goodreads | Waterstones

They never should have met…The comet’s arrival is imminent, and Taki puts his plan into action to save Mitsuha and the people he has come to care for during his time in her body. Convincing a whole town of skeptics that the sky is falling will take some doing – and a little delinquency – but if Taki wants any hope of a future with Mitsuha, they will have to save the town in the here and now…!

I finally decided to pick up the third manga in this series, and I loved it of course. It was so lovely and felt like a re-read as I have read the light novel and seen the movie a number of times!

Review | Goodreads | Waterstones

Twenty-nine year old Roberta has spent her whole life hungry – until the day she invents Supper Club.
Supper Club is a secret society for hungry women. Women who are sick of bad men and bad sex, of hinted expectations to talk less, take less, be less. So they gather after dark and feast until they are sick. They drink and dance and roar. And, month by month, their bodies expand.
At the centre of the Supper Club stands Roberta – cynical yet anxious, precocious and lost. She is seeking the answer to a simple question: if you feed a starving woman, what will she grow into?

I was on the blog tour for this book and it turned out to be super interesting!

Review | Goodreads | Waterstones

Chaol Westfall and Nesryn Faliq have arrived in the shining city of Antica to forge an alliance with the Khagan of the Southern Continent, whose vast armies are Erilea’s last hope. But they have also come to Antica for another purpose: to seek healing at the famed Torre Cesme for the wounds Chaol received in Rifthold.
After enduring unspeakable horrors as a child, Yrene Towers has no desire to help the young lord from Adarlan, let alone heal him. Yet she has sworn an oath to assist those in need—and will honor it. But Lord Westfall carries shadows from his own past, and Yrene soon comes to realize they could engulf them both.

Tower of Dawn ended up being my favourite book in the Throne of Glass series, I adored it.

Review | Goodreads | Waterstones

Eighteen-year-old Amir Azadi always knew coming out to his Muslim family would be messy–he just didn’t think it would end in an airport interrogation room. But when faced with a failed relationship, bullies, and blackmail, running away to Rome is his only option. Right?
Soon, late nights with new friends and dates in the Sistine Chapel start to feel like second nature… until his old life comes knocking on his door. Now, Amir has to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth to a US Customs officer, or risk losing his hard-won freedom.

This book was definitely my most disappointing of the month, and I didn’t enjoy it much unfortunately!

Review | Goodreads | Waterstones

Aelin has risked everything to save her people―but at a tremendous cost. Locked within an iron coffin by the Queen of the Fae, Aelin must draw upon her fiery will as she endures months of torture. Aware that yielding to Maeve will doom those she loves keeps her from breaking, though her resolve begins to unravel with each passing day…
With Aelin captured, Aedion and Lysandra remain the last line of defense to protect Terrasen from utter destruction. Yet they soon realize that the many allies they’ve gathered to battle Erawan’s hordes might not be enough to save them. Scattered across the continent and racing against time, Chaol, Manon, and Dorian are forced to forge their own paths to meet their fates. Hanging in the balance is any hope of salvation―and a better world.
And across the sea, his companions unwavering beside him, Rowan hunts to find his captured wife and queen―before she is lost to him forever.

I just finished Kingdom of Ash, but as I read it mostly in July I’m counting it in my July wrap up! It’s also the longest book I’ve ever read, clocking in at 980 pages.

My favourite book of the month was Tower of Dawn, and my least favourite was unsurprisingly How It All Blew Up.

Books I Want to Read in August

Lot – Bryan Washington
Far From Perfect – Holly Smale
The Black Kids – Christina Hammonds Reed
Shadow and Bone – Leigh Bardugo
Siege and Storm – Leigh Bardugo
Ruin and Rising – Leigh Bardugo

I have a few ARC books I need to read this month and I definitely want to finally read the Grisha trilogy which I’ve promised to read now I’m done with Throne of Glass!

What did you read in July and what do you want to read in August?

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

Stacking the Shelves #22

On August 2, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Stacking the Shelves4 Comments

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga where we share books we’ve bought or received this week. Find out more and join in here!

Hi all! This week I received a few books for bookstagram tours I am taking part in with Kaleidoscopic Bookstagram Tours, and I thought I’d share them with you.

Goodreads | Waterstones

The first book is Lot by Bryan Washington! This sounds really interesting and hard hitting and I can’t wait to read it.

Goodreads | Waterstones

I’ve never read any Holly Smale books, but this one sounds like it will be hard to put down.

What did you buy this week?

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

The Animal Crossing Book Tag

On July 28, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Book Tag7 Comments

I’ve recently been tagged by Alex to do the Animal Crossing book tag! I’ve been playing Animal Crossing since 2005/2006 (I was 6 years old) so of course I’ve been loving New Horizons and I’ve wanted to do this tag for a while. I’ll also be doing a video version of it on Wednesday for you to look out for!

Past Villager – Who is a character you found when you were younger that still has a place in your heart?

Goodreads | Waterstones

Growing up, I adored Cathy Cassidy books. I think the one I loved just a little more than the others was Angel Cake, I read it so many times and the main character still has a place in my heart!

Blather’s Blatherings – Recommend a historical fiction book that you think everybody should read

Goodreads | Waterstones

I really don’t usually enjoy historical fiction, so reading this was a shock. But it is also fantasy, which is maybe why I enjoyed it!

Celeste’s Wish – What is a future book release you wish you could read now?

Goodreads | Waterstones

I’m so, so excited for this book! I adored The Language of Thorns and this sounds similar.

Timmy & Tommy – What is your favourite sibling relationship in a book?

Goodreads | Waterstones

I adore the Song-Covey sisters! They have such a cute relationship and I love them all for different reasons and their different personalities.

The Easter Bunny – A popular book character that you’re not a big fan of

Goodreads | Waterstones

It took me a while to decide this, but I’m going to have to say Peeta! I just didn’t click with him like everybody else seemed to.

Nook’s Loans – An author you’d give all your money to

Goodreads

I love Nina LaCour’s work and I would give all my money to her for new work!

The Sisters Able – What is your favourite fictional family (found or otherwise)?

I feel strange including this one as I haven’t read the book, but I saw the movie four times in cinema and I adore the relationship in this family!

It’s a C+ – What is a book trope you don’t like that keeps popping up?

Love triangles. Aside from a few rare circumstances, I really don’t like love triangles. I just find them frustrating and annoying!

The Wandering Camel – What is your favourite book set in a land far away from yours?

Goodreads | Waterstones

The first world that came to mind was definitely Caraval! The world in this series is just enchanting.

What Would Dodos Do? – A fictional land you wish you could fly away to at any moment?

Goodreads | Waterstones

I adored this novella for the beautiful world and city that was finally at peace. I wish I could wander it’s streets!

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

Stacking the Shelves #21

On July 25, 2020July 22, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Stacking the Shelves4 Comments

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga where we share books we’ve bought or received this week. Find out more and join in here!

Hi everyone! Today’s stacking the shelves post comes with me realising I haven’t posted about this book yet and it’s been a while since I received it. I came home to a parcel and a gift a while ago and found this inside! I’ve been wanting to read it for a long time now, and found out Faye had gifted it to me! Thank you so much Faye!

Goodreads

I’ve been looking for this for a while and I’m so excited to read it. Thank you again Faye!

What did you buy this week?

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

Review: Tower of Dawn (#6) by Sarah J Maas

On July 23, 2020July 22, 2020 By Beth JonesIn Book Review1 Comment

Goodreads | Waterstones

This book was exactly what I’ve been waiting for throughout this entire series. It was everything I wanted and more. Ever since Crown of Midnight, I’d felt disappointed that every single Throne of Glass book since just didn’t capture my love for the world and characters like that one did. I didn’t expect Tower of Dawn to be that book, but I’m ever so glad it was.

Ever since knowing Tower of Dawn was set on a different continent in a parallel timeline to Empire of Storms, I was unsure what to think. But while reading the fifth book and beginning to guess who it would be following, I knew I was going to like it, I just never guessed how much.

I will cherish it always.
No matter what may befall the world.

Tower of Dawn feels like the calm before the storm. It was much calmer and slower than the previous books, instead becoming much more character based, which I adored. It felt like such a breath of fresh air, a new look at the world with different eyes. Following Chaol, who is struggling with being in a wheelchair following an accident, Maas begins to tackle disability. I really enjoyed reading about Chaol’s inner battle with his new situation, it felt authentic and real, and it didn’t shy away from the embarrassment he felt.

A new setting and new characters also meant new cultures, which I loved. Maas does an absolutely wonderful job at creating lush and beautiful cities, in fact I think it’s one of the things she does best, and Tower of Dawn was no different. I relished the scenes that would give me more views of the city, the torre, the palace and the world around. It was breathtaking.

No matter the oceans, or mountains, or forests in the way.

The characters we come across are vibrant and wonderful. Yrene is a delightful edition, a young woman you may remember from The Assassin’s Blade, with a temper and strength I admire greatly. I loved Nesryn, even though her and Chaol’s relationship was frustrating at points. The side characters, such as the royals, healers and Nesryn’s family, all held their own roles and added to the story.

Overall, I can see why this book isn’t for some readers. But it was definitely for me. The study of characters, the focus on the relationships and inner battles, was exactly what I enjoy reading about. I felt close to the world and characters because of it. It was beautiful, and my favourite so far in the Throne of Glass series!

★★★★★
5 out of 5 stars

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

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The Books are Everywhere

Author: Beth Jones

Blog Tour + Review: Far From Perfect (#2) by Holly Smale

Review: Loveless by Alice Oseman

Let’s Discuss! August Releases I’m Excited For

Blog Tour + Review: Lot by Bryan Washington

Review: Kingdom of Ash (#7) by Sarah J Maas

July Wrap Up + August TBR

Stacking the Shelves #22

The Animal Crossing Book Tag

Stacking the Shelves #21

Review: Tower of Dawn (#6) by Sarah J Maas