Author Spotlight #1 | Rainbow Rowell.

I first discovered Rainbow Rowell after joining the Bookstagram community in July 2015 (@Bookish_Grl) and seeing her name and pictures of her books all over social media, Eleanor & Park and Fangirl being the most talked about and loved. So of course I placed an Amazon order full of all her books, hoping I would love them too.

 Since I read those first two, particularly Eleanor & Park (my absolute favourite R.R book) I have bought all of her books so far and I love them. As soon as I hear she is releasing new writing, I instantly go onto Amazon and pre-order. The only book of hers that I haven't read yet is Landline, which I will definitely be getting to in the New Year. I thought I would give you a little rundown on all her books, the star rating I gave them and a little synopsis. 

Favourite Reads of 2016.

   

2016 has been an amazing year for books and my reading. Every year I set myself a Goodreads challenge *find me on Goodreads here* and in 2016 I decided to aim big and challenge myself to read 70 books! Although it sometimes felt like a chore and I really slumped & didn't read anything for weeks at a time..I managed it! 

Yay Me!

I read some amazing books in 2016 by some fabulous authors. I decided to compile a list of all my favourite books of this year, that you must all read if you haven't already! I have whittled my book stash down into my top three, and then honourable mentions to a further four. 

Honourable Mentions

It Ends With Us//Colleen Hoover: The Queen that is Colleen Hoover completely blew me away with her 2016 novel. I have a love for Collen's writing that I will never be able to describe. This book was completely different to anything else she has written, but equally as amazing. The characters were so amazingly written, they were completely stripped back and raw, which so many other authors try to do and fail. She made you understand a situation which for a lot of people don't make sense. I went into this book completely blind which I think is the best thing to do. It's a story about true, ugly, love and finding the strength to make the right choice in the hardest situation. 

Sophie Kinsella//I've Got Your Number: Sophie Kinsella has been one of my favourite authors for years, ever since I bought Shopaholic and Baby in a second hand book shop. I delved further into the Shopaholic series but never really tried any of her stand-alone novels until I stumbled across 'I've Got Your Number' whilst perusing Amazon at 2a.m. I absolutely LOVED Poppy and her relationship with Sam, I laughed out loud so many times! The thing I loved most about Poppy was how her character developed the further into the story we went, she became more independent, learning to stand up for herself. Sophie's books are like catching up with long-lost friends that you haven't seen for years but love like you saw them yesterday. 

Holding Up The Universe//Jennifer Niven: Jennifer Niven. Need I say more?! All The Bright Places holds a special place in my heart and always will, so as soon as I found out that Jennifer was releasing a new book, I could hardly contain my excitement. Whereas ATBP was beautiful and heartbreaking, Holding Up The Universe was powerful and real. It teaches you to not follow the crowd and just give everyone a chance! Libby and Jack's relationship was so sweet and I just loved them as characters..not QUITE as much as I loved Finch & Violet, but they were still amazing.

Even If The Sky Falls//Mia Garcia: I can't believe this was Mia's debut novel! I fell in love with the story, the characters and New Orleans within the first couple of pages. I've never visited America, or New Orleans but Mia has this incredible talent for making you think you are in the crowd with your hair covered in glitter and your fairy wings. Miles...I love him. He was warm, witty and charismatic, you couldn't help but get sucked into his personality and instantly want to be his friend. You can see why Julia was drawn to him and wanted to go on an adventure with him across Orleans, even if it was only for one night. 

Top Three

3. Paper Princess//Erin Watts: Holy shit balls, this book! I discovered this randomly one night whilst browsing Instagram *@Bookish_Grl* and after reading so many rave reviews, I decided to give it a go myself, boy am I glad I did!!! Ella is one of my favourite female characters, I feel she is possibly my spirit animal, we both enjoy attitude and sarcasm. Reed..where do I start with Reed?! He is the perfect bad-boy romantic interest that we all wish existed in real life! While their relationship may not have started in the most conventional way, it turned into something beautiful and special. There are three books in the Royal Series and they were all amazing although Paper Princess is definitely my favourite.

2. Flawed//Cecelia Ahern: I've been reading Cecelia's books for as long as I can remember, Flawed was her first Young Adult novel and it's by far my favourite thing she has written. It is like nothing else I have ever read! The whole premise isn't like anything else in the YA world, it's about a dystopian society where if you don't follow the rules you are deemed as being 'Flawed'. Anyone who is Flawed is branded with an F on a part of their body which represents the rule they have broken; the tongue, the temple, the soul of the foot, the chest or the palm of the hand. The tongue for those who have lied, the temple for those who have made a bad decision, ect ect. The Guild is in control of the brandings and is the court who decides whether a person has indeed contravened the laws and should be branded a Flawed. Once you are Flawed, you are completely segregated and shunned in the society. How amazing does that sound?!!! I honestly recommend that everyone reads this book!

1. A Court Of Mist And Fury//Sarah.J.Maas: Now number one will come at no surprise to any of you i'm sure! I don't know what I can say about this book that will express just how much I loved it..

I went into this book completely Team Tamlin, Rhysand who?! I was determined that Feyre and Tamlin belonged together and didn't really rate Rhys at the end of ACOTAR..Oh how wrong I was.

Rhys if you exist out there..find me & marry me..please?! I don't think i've ever loved a male fictional character more than I love him. It is borderline obsessive, but we won't get into that. I'm not even going to try and review this book, because no matter how much I gush about this book..it just won't do it justice. All I will say is May 2017..hurry the fuck up!!

I would love to know your favourite books of 2016, and which books you are most excited for in the New Year?! 

10 Questions.

As I am new to the whole book blog thing, I thought I would answer some bookish questions so you can get to know me and all about my love for books & reading.

1. Do you remember how you developed a love for reading?

I remember having a huge bookcase in my family home, downstairs in the front room, just filled with books. A mixture of children's books and collectors editions of Dickens and Shakespeare. The books that always stand out in my memory are 'We're Going On A Bear Hunt' by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury (which my parents got me for my 2nd birthday!) and 'Meet The Jam Pandas' by Caroline Repchuck, which was a series all about a family of pandas, all named after different flavoured jams....I have no idea why they stick out to me but I loved them!

2. Bookmark or fold the page?

Definitely a bookmark. My bookmark is actually a laminated card we got from the funeral home after my Grandma died. I know this may sound a little morbid, but I just love having it with me at all times. It has all her details on the front and then a lovely poem on the back. My Brother also got me a set of metal Harry Potter bookmarks that I have on display on my bookshelf.

3. One book at a time, or several at once?

One at a time! I can't handle two at once. I like dedicating all my reading time to one specific book. I don't know how people read more than one at a time. TELL ME YOUR SECRETS!

4. What is your favourite genre?

I love all genres, well, the majority. I love young adult, new adult (for a lil bit of sauciness *wink wink*) thrillers, mysteries and chick lit are also amazing. Along with dystopian..ARGH there are too many!

5. Where do you usually read?

Literally anywhere I can. My bed, the sofa, at work in the canteen, outside..anywhere. 

6. Do you have a favourite book?

Aside from the Harry Potter series..obviously..Me Before You by JoJo Moyes is just..yes. I absolutely loved it so so much. It gave me a whole new perspective on people's situations and thoughts during those situations. I just..yes. Love. 

7. Books that you didn't think were worth the hype?

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower which I think I ruined myself because I watched the film first. Silly, silly Rachael. I have never watched a film before i've read the book, since! Also, Looking For Alaska. It fell kind of flat for me. I just didn't see what all the fuss was about.

8. What is the last book you bought?

Hmm..erm... I bought a few a couple of weeks ago from Waterstones (a.k.a the mothership!)..What's A Girl Gotta Do? By Holly Bourne, If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo and The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater. 

9. Do you write in your books?

Never, ever, ever. No. Not even in pencil. If I want to take notes, I write in my notebook. 

10. What are you currently reading?

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare. I've been reading the Mortal Instruments and Infernal Devices for what feels like forever, i'm just really struggling to get into them and completely commit to the series. I'll read one, then read a light hearted contemporary or ten, then go back to the series. I will finish them all eventually!

I'd love to hear what your answers would be to some of these questions! What is your favourite childhood book?

You can find me on Instagram at @bookish_grl  , i'd love for you to follow me on there or leave any comments.

Harry Potter And The Cursed Child | Review & SPOILERS.

    

When I found out there was going to be a new Harry Potter based book, I could hardly contain my excitement. I'd have absolutely loved to watch the play, but with tickets selling out in around 3 seconds and the fact that it is London..it didn't look very likely. So when I found out they were releasing the script, I couldn't pre-order quick enough!

Harry Potter is a huge part of my life. I read them when they were originally released and I can remember the excitement of release day for them all, rushing to get home from school where my Mum always had a copy waiting. I would get in my comfiest pyjamas, snuggle up on the sofa and lose myself in the world for hours and hours. I have re-read the books so many times and I love them just as much now at 24 years old as I did back then. That's the thing with Harry Potter, you are never too old. After I had finished reading them I passed them on to my Mum & Dad who loved them just as much.

I'll start by saying that although JK Rowling is listed as one of the writers of the play, it was predominantly written by playwright Jack Thorne and director John Tiffany, and it is blatantly obvious. Although we do experience some HP nostalgia in the sense of flashbacks, the rest is written like a really bad fan-fiction.

Set 19 years after the Battle of Hogwarts, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, follows Harry, now a over-worked Ministry of Magic employee and his son Albus.
The story's main focus is Albus and his best friend Scorpius Malfoy on their struggle with living up to their parents legacy. Albus fails to meet his father's expectations and struggles to meet the same level of greatness.Whilst Scorpius struggles to deal with the rumours that he is Voldermort's son...I know right. WTF. There will be spoilers in this review so please bare that in mind if you continue reading!

Books That Every Young Adult Should Read.

   

My name is Rachael and I am a book addict. I absolutely love reading and would literally read all day, everyday if I could. Apparently that's unsociable. Pfft, bollocks. I have a Bookstagram account (a Instagram account dedicated to books FYI) where I post pictures all about what I am currently reading, my favourites books ect. You can find that @ Bookish_Grl. 

Some of my favourite books are classed as young adult which are aimed at people between the ages of sixteen and mid-twenties. I thought i'd put together a post about my current favourite books, whether you're classed as a 'young adult' or not, these books are brilliant for everyone!

Ways To Love Forever//Sally Nicholls.

"My name is Sam. I am eleven years old. I collect stories and fantastic facts. By the time you read this, I will probably be dead." Sam loves facts. He wants to know about UFOs and horror movies and airships and ghosts and scientists, and how it feels to kiss a girl. And because he has leukaemia he wants to know the facts about dying. Sam needs answers to the questions nobody will answer.

Wonder//R.J.Palacio.

You can't blend in when you were born to stand out. My name is August. I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse. August Pullman wants to be an ordinary ten-year-old. He does ordinary things. He eats ice cream. He plays on his Xbox. He feels ordinary - inside.
But Auggie is far from ordinary. Ordinary kids don't make other ordinary kids run away screaming in playgrounds. Ordinary kids don't get stared at wherever they go.

Born with a terrible facial abnormality, Auggie has been home-schooled by his parents his whole life, in an attempt to protect him from the cruelty of the outside world. Now, for the first time, he's being sent to a real school - and he's dreading it. All he wants is to be accepted - but can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, underneath it all?

Aristotle & Dante Discover The Secrets of The Universe//Benjamin Alire Saenz.

Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

All I Know Now//Carrie Hope Fletcher.

We all know that growing up is hard to do, and sometimes the only thing that makes it better are the reassuring words of someone who has walked that bumpy road just a few steps ahead of you and somehow ended up as a fully-functioning adult. Carrie Hope Fletcher is that person.* Thanks to her phenomenally popular YouTube videos, Carrie has become an 'honorary big sister' to hundreds of thousands of young people who turn to her for advice, friendship and, most of all, the knowledge that things will get better.

Carrie has created a safe and positive space for young people to connect and share their hopes and concerns online, and now she will share her most personal thoughts and experiences in her first book, ALL I KNOW NOW. Part memoir, part advice guide, it will include Carrie's thoughts on some of the topics she's asked about most regularly: bullying, body image, relationships and perhaps the scariest question of all: what does the future hold for me? With warmth, wit and a sprinkling of hard-won wisdom, Carrie will provide the essential tools for growing up gracefully . . . most of the time.

Finding Audrey//Sophie Kinsella.

An anxiety disorder disrupts fourteen-year-old Audrey’s daily life. She has been making slow but steady progress with Dr. Sarah, but when Audrey meets Linus, her brother’s gaming teammate, she is energized. She connects with him. Audrey can talk through her fears with Linus in a way she’s never been able to do with anyone before. As their friendship deepens and her recovery gains momentum, a sweet romantic connection develops, one that helps not just Audrey but also her entire family.

These are just a small selection of the YA books I love, so I may do another segment on this featuring more!

I'd love to know what your favourite books are at the minute?