March Releases and TBR 2018

RELEASES

Books
The Prophecy (Titan #4)- Jennifer L. Armentrout 
Restore Me (Shatter Me #4)- Tahereh Mafi
Obsidio (The Illuminae Files #3)- Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
I Have Lost My Way- Gayle Forman 
Not If I Save You First- Ally Carter
Season's End- C.L Norton  
(Claire runs the writing class I go to and she's super nice so definitely check out her book!)

Movies
Ready Player One
Love, Simon
Tomb Raider 
Red Sparrow
Midnight Sun


TBR
Simon vs the Homo-sapiens Agenda- Becky Albertalli (Book of the Month)
This month, me and Kaitlin have chosen Simon vs the Homo-sapiens Agenda to read for our Book of the Month! I've always wanted to read this and have heard only great reviews. Also, the movie adaptation Love, Simon comes out this month so it's an extra reason to get me motivated.

Control Freakz- Michael Evans (ARC Review) 
Michael Evans contacted me last month, asking whether I wanted to read and review his book and, admittedly, I don't tend to usually do this because it takes up a lot of my time and I have many others books I have to read. But Michael's book looked super interesting and I couldn't pass up reading it. I will also say that he's 15 years old (!!!!) so immediately, I was really impressed (and super jealous) because I'm an aspiring author at the age of 17. I know that young authors need all the support they can get and I'm very excited to be able to do that for Michael. (Also, his book sounds great).

February Wrap Up 2018

I feel like I did pretty well with reading and watching fiction this month- especially as it's the shortest month of the year! I feel like I read more than I watched which is another unusual trend but a great one because I really wanted to get back into reading lots.


BOOKS
Falling Kingdoms- Morgan Rhodes
* * * * *
I got this book for my birthday last month and I really want to delve into it because I've wanted it for a really long time and I was also in a fantasy mood. It took a bit of concentration when going into it because there's a lot of characters and different things to remember about this world but, once you've got that down, this book is amazing! To me, Falling Kingdoms is a blend of Throne of Glass, Game of Thrones and Poison Study so it's definitely a fantasy read to pick up.
Falling Kingdoms Book Talk


Ready Player One- Ernest Cline (Book of the Month)
* * *
This was mine and Kaitlin's Book of the Month for February because neither of us had read it and there's a movie adaptation coming out next month- so we really needed to get a move on. I've had this book for years and have just never had the motivation to pick it and.... I have no idea why because it was amazing! Sure, a lot of the video game references went over my head but it was still a fun and gripping book. But I'll also admit that I did skim read most of the exposition because... there was a lot of exposition.
Book Talk to come!!

February Book Haul 2018

I'll admit, I went a little crazy with buying books this month but, in my defence, I have lots of birthday money and gift cards form last month so it's a totally justifiable haul. I promise.

Rebel Spring (Falling Kingdoms #2)- Morgan Rhodes
Gathering Darkness (Falling Kingdoms #3)- Morgan Rhodes
Frozen Tides (Falling Kingdoms #4)- Morgan Rhodes 
It may be a little obvious that I became obsessed with this series this month (as you'll also see in my Wrap Up). But, as I stormed through the first book, I soon realised that I needed to marathon this series and went to work in acquiring all the books. These books are super hard to find in the UK, so I decided to order them from Amazon and they came just in time!!

Scythe- Neal Shusterman 
This is another book that I've wanted to for so long!! I have heard endless hype for this series and the premise looks irresistible to me! I've heard only great things and I'm so excited to pick this up soon. Plus, the cover is beautifully captivating to me and looks gorgeous on my shelf.

Agent Carter 1x02 'Bridge and Tunnel' TV TALK

I'm enjoying this series, but this episode wasn't as good as the pilot in my opinion. There were a lot of things that just went straight over my head. However, there was nice moments of humour that made it all the more enjoyable and I do love these characters that we've been introduced to. I think the series has a lot of potential and will get better as it goes along- every show needs time to find its footing.

Cap mentions: 13
(I decided to add this Captain America counter for each episode because I find it interesting how much Cap influences this plot despite him not even starring!!)

TV TALKS

Season 1:  1x01  |

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The first thing I wanted to mention was the Captain America radio show threaded throughout the episode. I really liked it! I loved how Peggy would roll her eyes at hearing it and the show parallelled nicely when it came to the fight scene nearer the end.

Black Panther MOVIE TALK

82%
Me and my brother went to go and see Black Panther the day it came out and I was so impressed (not that that's a surprise because it's Marvel we're talking to about here).
Black Panther takes place after Captain America; Civil War and follows T'Challa on his journey to becoming King of Wakanda now that his father is dead.
I'll be honest, Black Panther will never be my favourite Avenger but he's stands tall on his own and I liked learning more about him as a character and the hidden country of Wakanda. This movie poses great things for Infinity War and I can't wait to see how he helps the fight against Thanos that is looming over all of us.
My favourite part of this film had to be how awesome the ladies were. While T'Challa is the main star, there were so many bad-ass women in this film and I loved this aspect! I would obviously highly recommend this movie!

TRAILER

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I have to start with how beautiful Wakanda was. They created an entire culture and civilisation and being presented with all those minor details that built up this country was stunning! The first shots we got of Wakanda were visually flawless and worked so well to capture the beauty of this hidden country.
My favourite character had to be T'Challa's sister, Shuri. She was so smart, beautiful and hilarious as well. I loved seeing a more human side of T'Challa when he was with her- that sibling bond that shined when they were in the same scene.

Falling Kingdoms- Morgan Rhodes BOOK TALK

* * * * *
I loved this book. So blimmin' much. This book was such a great testament as to why fantasy is my favourite genre. It was complex, intriguing, surprising and exciting. I would describe it as a mix of Game of Thrones, Throne of Glass and Poison Study... meaning it was a whole lot of awesome.
Yes, it took some concentration to begin with because it takes time to learn all the names, rules and histories of the world but once you've got that down... it's so rewarding. There was a small character guide at the beginning of the book which was very handy to help me remember the names. It's true that fantasy books take longer to get into but that's just because you need to completely learn an entire world... and that takes time. But once you have, fantasy plots are the most intricate, rewarding and satisfying reads.
And that's why I'm so pumped to dive into the rest of this series.

AMAZON

GOODREADS

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When you have books with multiple narratives, there's always the ones you like more than others. My favourites at the moment has to be Cleo and Magnus! They're the most interesting and deep characters. Jonas is next on my list of favourites (sometimes he was a tad annoying) and Lucia comes in at last place. She was okay but I found her a little too pathetic for my taste. Who knows? Her character may grow a lot over the span of the series but, for now, the Cleo and Magnus chapters are the ones that have me grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

Westworld 1x10 'The Bicameral Mind' TV TALK

This was 90 minutes of epic perfection! It was basically a movie that resolved the previous nine hours of the show.... and I devoured it whole. There was no slow moments in this episode- it was all action-packed, intense and totally shocking. The reveals and discoveries in this episode blew my mind even if a few of them were just confirmations of well-predicted theories. So many puzzle pieces were fitted together and my emotions were all over the place when watching this.
It's going to be a difficult episode to review because the plot lines and character are so complex and carefully interlinked but... I'll try my best.
I'll also be writing a separate post for season 2 theories so stay in tune for that- and feel free to comment yours!

TV TALKS

Season 1: 1x01  |  1x02  |  1x03  |  1x04  |  1x05  |  1x06  |  1x07  |  1x08  |  1x09

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Warning: This review will be all over the place because so much happened and I don't know where to start.
Beginning with Maeve, she wakes Hector and Armistice (Snake Lady) and they have a great break-out scene. It was the perfect mix if bad-ass and hilarious. They go to find Bernard, and Felix and Asshat (Sylvester) heals him so they can talk. Bernard reveals that Maeve's entire escape plan has been controlled from the start- someone has ordered her to recruit an army and escape- that none of her decisions have still been hers. After this revelation, the group runs and has a difficult time escaping when security locks everything down. Armistice gets left behind as her arm gets caught but she totally goes down fighting. Maeve also ditches Hector because she wants to go it alone and... he doesn't seem too bothered. Maeve says goodbye to Felix, gets onto the train and.... gets off again. She makes her first true sentient decision that she's going to find her daughter.

Irresistible Fictional Romances

And here's the obligatory Valentine's content for the year! I've decided to skip over some of the obvious ones that I always say (aka, ACOMAF) but here's a list of a few fictional romances that are perfect to read on Valentine's Day (or anytime of the year, to be honest).
I tried to keep these all contemporary romances but a supernatural genre slipped through anyway (and I'm not even sorry)- they still have great relationships though.


Fallon and Ben (November 9- Colleen Hoover)
November 9 was the first Colleen Hoover book I'd ever read and I hadn't expected such emotions!! This story had such a great premise and an all-consuming romance! You ship these two from the very start and, while there are a few obstacles that get in the way, they are absolutely perfect for each other. Even thinking of this pair makes me melt into a puddle of goo.
November 9 Book Talk




Lara Jean and Peter (To All the Boys I've Loved Before- Jenny Han)
Another of my favourite contemporaries had to make this list. The first book in this trilogy is easily my favourite and I absolutely adore Lara Jean and Peter Kavinsky together. They're a couple that wouldn't usually work but turns out adorably in this case. Both of the characters are super different (quirky vs cocky) and it's so entertaining to read. I promise, you'll have a large grin through the majority of this book.

Agent Carter 1x01 'Now is Not the End' TV TALK

I was sceptical when starting this series because... there are a lot of mixed opinions on it. There are only two series because it got cancelled pretty quickly and all this made me worry that it'd be completely rubbish but (surprise, surprise) I really enjoyed it. Honestly, I'm not that hard to please and, while I could blatantly see the flaws in this pilot episode, it didn't affect my enjoyment and the fact that I had fun watching this.
Agent Carter follows Peggy Carter who is (for lack of a better word), Captain America's 'sidekick' in the movie, Captain America: the First Avenger. It's obviously set in the 1940s and follows Peggy Carter after Cap's 'death' and the end of the war. We also see a bit of Howard Stark which is always fun.
I loved the small nods and references to the original Captain America movie and I love the focus on Peggy's character because she is pretty bad-ass and Hayley Atwell plays her brilliantly.

Captain America: The First Avenger Movie Talk

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The whole disruption this series is following is Stark's weapons being sold on the black market. I was a little disappointed with how much Howard Stark appeared because it was much less than I thought it'd be... maybe five minutes screen time? But, that's not too bad, because I like that show really focuses on Peggy's story line and how awesome she is.

Westworld 1x09 'The Well-Tempered Clavier' TV TALK

This show is infuriating and yet addictive. Every answer we gets leads to double the amount of questions and there are so many timelines, it boggles your mind to keep up. Nevertheless, I love this show to the point of an unhealthy obsession. Like in Game of Thrones, the ninth episode seems to be the most epic and we had some major theories confirmed in this episode- some I like, some I see major plot holes in. Hopefully, the finale will provide us with some more solid explanations.... but that's unlikely.

TV TALKS

Season 1: 1x01  |  1x02  |  1x03  |  1x04  |  1x05  |  1x06  |  1x07  |  1x08

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Starting with Maeve, she seems like the only character who knows what she's doing... and I love it. She stops Bernard from re-coding her as she quickly realises that he's also a host and that she can control him. Obviously, this is big news to Bernard because his memory from last episode has been wiped- he's finding out he's a host all over again!

Strings- Original Poetry

Sorry for yet another depressing poem... I can't seem to channel any positive emotions in my writing...

strings

we tied a knot
a piece of string
and wrapped it round out wrists

a friendship bracelet, we said
to keep each other close
and wear our memories proud

but our wrists have changed
grown bigger with the weight of the world
swollen with plans that aren't our own

February Releases and TBR 2018

Releases 
Immortal Reign (Falling Kingdoms #6)- Morgan Rhodes
The Belles- Dhonielle Clayton
Tempests and Slaughter- Tamora Pierce
Shadowsong- S. Jae-Jones
Heart of Iron- Ashley Poston
Everlife- Gena Showalter
The Traitor Prince- C.J. Redwine


Black Panther Movie



TBR
Ready Player One- Ernest Cline (Book of the Month)
This month, me and Kaitlin (Liber Amoris) are reading Ready Player One in anticipation for the movie coming out next month. I am a bit sceptical over whether I'll like this book because it seems a little too sci-fi for my taste but, regardless, I'll give it a chance.

The Death Cure MOVIE TALK

67%
I was pleasantly surprised by this movie! The Scorch Trials wasn't an amazing film and they'd seemed to stray pretty far from what happened in the books but they've pulled it back with this final instalment. I can't completely remember what happened in the books but The Death Cure was fairly faithful and I really enjoyed it.
There was plenty of action and it was a generally fast-paced movie. I will say that there were some things that went unexplained but it didn't spoil my overall enjoyment.

TRAILER

AMAZON

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This movie started really well. The beginning train sequence was brilliant and impressed me straight away. It added a nice disappointment when they didn't get the right train car with Minho inside and really caught us up on what happened in the last movie (it's been a while). As expected, Thomas, Newt and Frypan immediately go of to find Minho and we're set off on our adventure to take down WCKD. This all happened really fast and it started the momentum of the film nicely.

January Wrap Up 2018

I didn't read as much as I was hoping to this month but I have lowered my yearly reading challenge because I anticipated I wouldn't have as much time (I'm focusing a lot on my writing and other things...). But, nevertheless, I did get through a few and very good reads, as well!

BOOKS
What's A Girl Gotta Do?- Holly Bourne 
* * * *
I got this book for Christmas and jumped straight into it because Holly Bourne is one of my favourite contemporary authors. This is the third book in the Spinster Club trilogy and it focused completely around Feminism which was so empowering to read. I'd definitely recommend this series.
What's A Girl Gotta Do? Book Talk

How Hard Can Love Be?- Holly Bourne
* * * * 
This is the second book in the Spinster Club series and I kinda knew how it'd finish because I read What's a Girl Gotta Do? first but it didn't effect my enjoyment at all. This book is maybe my favourite of the trilogy because it was such an easy and fun romance along with a lot of humour and serious issues too. Holly Bourne is such a talented author.
Book Talk to come soon!!!

January Birthday Haul 2018

I got a lot of amazing things this month as it was my birthday and my family and friends are amazing to get me so many lovely gifts. Without further adieu...

PRE-BIRTHDAY
Groot t-shirt
I watched Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2 in December and I loved it!! Baby Groot is the cutest thing in all existence and, when I saw this shirt on Amazon, I had to get it.

Iron Man ARC Reactor T-shirt
I also wanted to get an Amazon shirt dedicated to my favourite Marvel character because Iron Man is the reason I became obsessed with the MCU and Tony Stark is a brilliantly complex character who I adore.


POST-BIRTHDAY
If There's No Tomorrow- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Jennifer L. Armentrout is one of my favourite authors and she also happens to release at least four books a year... the woman pops out books like nobodies business. And I will forever be grateful for it.

Captain America: The First Avenger MOVIE TALK

75%
I liked this movie. Cap will never be my favourite Avenger but this movie was still enjoyable even if it the worst of all the Captain America movies (let's face it.. Winter soldier and Civil War blew this one out of the park). But, I did love the time period (World War 2) and the idea behind the villain. I also love how epic the love interest was because we need more fight in our women and Peggy showcases this perfectly.
This was a good origin story for Cap and it led on nicely for the Avengers movie to take place.

TRAILER

AMAZON

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This movie had a nice set of characters. Steve was good and you wanted to root for him from the start because he was so weak and pathetic. However, I will say that Cap is one of my least favourite Avengers because there isn't much depth to him- being a 'good guy' is all they've put into his character.

Westworld 1x08 'Trace Decay' TV TALK

This show is beautifully addictive, compellingly genius and utterly brilliant (was that enough adjectives for you?). This show never ceases to amaze me and there is so much to think about and theorise! Every single detail is part of a bigger game and it's captivating to watch every episode. As we get nearer to the season finale, the reveals are getting bigger and better and the plot thickens so much more!

TV TALKS

Season 1: 1x01  |  1x02  |  1x03  |  1x04  |  1x05  |  1x06  |  1x07

SPOILERS AHEAD- SPOILERS AHEAD- SPOILERS AHEAD- SPOILERS AHEAD- SPOILERS AHEAD
Starting with dear Dolores, her and William finally find the church town that Dolores has been dreaming about. One issue that I have with their storyline is that... they're not really doing anything. They've gone off to find 'home' and now that they've found where Dolores meant, they're turning back? They don't seem to know what they're doing or why.

Taylor Swift BOOK TAG

I'm in a major Taylor Swift kick at the moment and, as always, I'll jump on it and get some decent blog content out there. There's a lot of controversy over Taylor's new music but, generally, I quite like it though I do prefer her older songs.

1. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together- pick a book or series that you were pretty sure you were in love with, but then wanted to break up with.
Shiver trilogy- Maggie Stiefvater 
When I first read this trilogy, I really liked it. But now, Maggie Stiefvater is far from my favourite author and all her books drag for me. It's just my opinion but I find her books a little dull and slow. Sorry but we are never ever ever getting back together.

2. Red- pick a book with a red cover.
Heartless- Marissa Meyer
Paired with a little black, the red in this cover is gorgeous and it it such a beautiful cover for a beautiful book. Heartless is an origin story for the notorious Queen of Hearts and it's a genius twist on fairytales- Marissa Meyer's speciality.

The Incredible Hulk MOVIE TALK

76%
I was surprised with how much I liked this movie. I went in with low expectations because I don't know anyone who's favourite superhero/Avenger is the Hulk and he's seemed like the blandest of all Marvel superheros (I obviously hadn't encountered Captain America at that point- kidding, kidding, I like Cap...).
I was a bit of a dunce and thought this was the first movie instead of a sequel so a few things kinda went straight over my head but I don't think that affected my enjoyment of the film. Unfortunately, it didn't star Mark Ruffalo who's the Hulk in the more up to date Avenger franchise but I still feel like Edward Norton did a stellar job with the character.

TRAILER

AMAZON

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I really appreciated the opening sequence of the Hulk's origin because, stupid me, made a mistake and thought this was the first movie. So it was super useful to get me up to speed on what had previously happened to the Hulk and how he was made- it helped incredibly when going into this movie.

Westworld 1x07 'Trompe L'Oeil' TV TALK

Again, this is my favourite episode to date. Every episode sets a new bar and each following episode smashes that expectation out of the park (no pun intended).

This episode was particularly exciting as we had a big reveal that confirmed a theory that I and many other people had. I'm so excited for how we're going to progress from here and what the consequences of this episode will be.
I also think the title for this episode, Trompe L'Oeil, is really clever (along with everything else in this show) because it actually means 'deceives the eye' in French which describes this episode perfectly. Honestly, the writers for this show are genius.

TV TALKS

Season 1: 1x01  |  1x02  |  1x03  |  1x04  |  1x05  |  1x06

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Starting with Maeve, I'm falling in love with her more and more every week. She ensures that she's killed once more and wakes herself up again so she's back with Felix. This time, she sees that the tech team are decommissioning Clementine and Maeve decides she wants out. With a quick threat to Felix and asshat, she begins her plans to get the hell out of Westworld once and for all and I'm so pumped! It's amazing how her and Dolores have similar storylines (trying to learn about the world and what they really are) but they have completely different ways of going about that.... and Maeve's method is much better. And more effective.