Currently reading and exam week

To begin with the not book-related stuff. I'm having an exam week at high school right now and I'm so stressed about it. Okay it's just one exam per day and some days not at all, but still. I don't have time to read so much, mainly because I haven't returned my philosophy essays and they're due to Friday, but... Maybe I'll do them tomorrow (like I said yesterday and day before that).

Aaaaand I'm going to see Take That at Berlin Velodrom arena October 8th!! Super excited!!!

What I'm currently reading:

Review: The Last Light Falling: The Covenant

The Last Light Falling: The Covenant by J.E. Plemons was the first religious book I've ever read because I don't belong in any religion. Still I thought to give it a chance. I have to say that I actually liked the book aside from its faults.

First irritating fault it had was the narrating. I didn't like it at most parts and some parts it made me despise the whole book. The usage of the word 'we' and the repeatance in sentences really annoyed me. Also the descrptive parts were too muted for my liking, but I don't say it as a definite bad quality.
Also the muting in battle scenes was really frustrating! The scenes were so good, so why were muted? A bit more feeling and actual describing of  what happens because now the author has them cut short and suddenly you're reading the aftermath of the situation.

 The thing I relly liked in the book, was its speed. It was really fast spaced and you didn't have to wait for long for something to happen!

The characters were really good suited for the subject but they weren't properly introduced to the reader. The info given at the beginning was scarce and kind of useless. The reader has to make up a lot to even get proper looks for the characters. But still they were likable.

I would recommend this book, if you are even a bit religious person and like Young Adult Dystopian novels.

Summary:
★★★☆☆
Positive: Plot, speed
Negative: Narrating

Review: The Grave of Lainey Grace

★★★★★
Had to put these stars up here, so you know how amazing The Grave of Lainey Grace is, before even reading my review.

Briar Ann, ten years, waits for the roses to appear to the grave of Lainey Grace. No one knows who delivers the roses, who they are, and most importantly: Who is the mysterious Lainey Grace?
The cemetery workers have tried to prevent the rose-givers from coming, but each year after the last fall leaf has fallen from the trees, the roses appear on the grave.

I really loved the story of Lainey Grace. Though you only get bits and pieces of it and you have to fill the blanks yourself, the story is beautiful. And I have to admit that it made me cry, just because of the amount of love and belief in the end.

The start of The Grave of Lainey Grace was maybe a bit slow, but in the end, it didn't matter at all. Maybe slowness of the beginning maybe more meaningful in the end, like sometimes the most uneventful times might just be the most important.

The things I learnt during the book were so basic, that many people choose to ignore them. It taught me what it is to be sad and disappointed. What it is to forgive and apologise. What it is to wonder and believe in things, even when everyone else don't believe in it. What it is to be happy and what is love. And most importantly: what is the beauty of living.

Aaron Galvin has done such an amazing work with this book, and I am so thankful of getting to read it. It really deserves its stars.

Review: Poison

You know that hysterical laugh that escapes you after finishing an amazing book? I have to plead guilty with this book.

I found Poison by Lan Chan by accident whilst browsing Netgalley.com, I decided to request it and the next morning I had an e-mail waiting for me saying that I had gotten it. So started it that morning, read it at any given moment I could and finished it just few hours ago. I have read many books, but the thing with this one is that it has some magnetising powers or something. I was immobilised every time I read, and had to tear my self away every time I had to do something else. And that alone speaks for the greatness of the book!

I started reading Poison without any knowledge of the book or its author, beyond the short description given at netgalley, and I have to say, it is the best way ever to start a book.

The story is based in Australia, in the time where there is no seeds left for the farmers. All the seeds are controlled by the government called the Seeders. The Seeders have modified the seeds given for the farmers so that the plants can't reproduce, also every single seed is boosted up to produce more and better food than it would've originally. Sounds nice, right. Well here's the fun part: If you're not nice to the Seeders you get less seeds than others, who are already given too little. So basically everybody is hungry.
The land has been separated to Landings, which are named after the leader of the landing. For example, our main-character lives in landing called Gideon's Landing, after their leader Gideon, who later we find out is the enemy of the nation.
The Seeders try to find a seed bank, which is hidden by the rebels, who call themselves Wanderers. Also the Seeders hunt and kill the Wanderers, but still the rebels have accomplished to stay alive and continue their work.
The Seeders have also modified every living thing in Australia, starting from a cross-breed between a wolf and something like sabre-toothed tiger to the nature, which they poisoned so no one can use it for anything.

In Citadel, there is an Earth and Sky circus. The circus has many performers, but Poison focuses on the Wind Dancers, who are aerialists. They are made to train and perform in the circus against their wills, but there is one who defies them. Our main-character, but I won't tell you how!

I liked the characters a lot! In some books you have great characters, but then they might not match with the plot. But with this one... Whoa.
Starting from our main character, Aurora (Rory) Gray, the Wind Dancer. She had a fair amount of stubbornness and some spirit in her, so following her through the book never got boring. She has a way to see some things, and when she has to do something that will affect many people, she does it, even if the decision is painful. She is a very strong, but not afraid to show her feelings. But what I liked the most, was the description given every time she was doing any acrobatics. It made me feel that I, too, was flying.
Then Aiden. I don't know what to think of Aiden. I know that he was amazingly written and he is perfect for the book's plot, but still all the way during the book my thoughts went somehow like this: ''Bad Aiden, don't do that! Awws, Aiden that is so sweet. Bad Aiden, stop that nonsense immediately! Aiden, you are the perfect man alive! Aiden, just stop, you're the worse man in this universe!'' You can make your own conclusions of that.... or you can just read the book! :p
Also there were some minor characters, like the people on the journey to Citadel, but I can't mention any character who was written even a bit lazily. None. Every single character was so well written that almost mistook them for real life people!

And I really loved the book. It has deserved every star I gave to it! (I hope I could have given more)

Summary:
★★★★★
Positive: The whole book! (And just look at the cover, I love it!)

Everybody go buy yourselves a copy, and just read it!

New books!

I got two new e-Books today from two different publishers.

The first one is Poison by Lan Chan. I started it the minute I got it (which is few hours ago, but school made me to take a break) and now I'm 28% through it! Can't wait to see what happens next, it is just so amazingly written and I almost forgot to go to school this morning, because I was enchanted by the book. :)

And the second one I got is The Grave of Lainey Grace by Aaron Galvin, which was sent to me from Aames & Abernathy publishing company. It's going to be published day over tomorrow, which is September 20th, and I plan on to read it before the publishing of it! So excited to start it tomorrow!

And they both have such beautiful covers! I'm definetly going to buy physical copies of both of them just because of the covers! :p

Today is a massive strike here in Finland, so no public transportation, food at school or anything else really useful things doesn't work. I have to walk to work since I can't take the bus... And also the fall wind-storms just began today and I think that the tree just outside my kitchen window is going to fall down any minute now.
But luckily these bad weathers gives us readers a wonderful excuse to curl on the sofa with tea and a good book!

Currently reading! (and new apartment!)

I've been a bit busy lately, because I got my very own apartment and I have been packing and moving my stuff for a few days now. It's really stressing and hard to move, especially when you have a van full of books in boxes, and you know you can't place them on a shelf, because the shelf hasn't been bought yet. But in the end, all is well. I got my books on my self and the apartment is still a huge mess, but who cares! :) (Also I love my kitchen table, it's high with two bar stools. I've been sitting here all day after school, first Skyping with my sister and now reading and writing.) Unfortunately I don't have pictures, because it's so dark outside so I don't have good lightning with just lamps... It makes the pictures too yellowy.

The headline says ''currently reading'' so lets get to that!

I'm currently reading Melissa Walker's Ashes to Ashes and Ally Carter's I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have To Kill You.

 I bought Ashes to Ashes last spring spontaneously. I had never heard of it before, but I just picked it from the shelf, added to my pile and bought it. Without reading the back cover first. It's about a girl who dies in a car crash and enters to Prism, which is place where you get used to being dead. Also you learn to haunt. (And meet an awesomely cute guy). So far I've been enjoying the book very much! And that boy, Thatcher, I'm looking forward to read some more about him... :p
The Ally Carter's book I am reading out of curiosity. I kept popping on my Goodreads account for a while, and I've read great and really bad reviews about it, so I wanted to really know what made people to think so differently, either loving or hating it. I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have To Kill You is about a school of exceptional young women, who basically study to be spies, and also other subjects, including fourteen different languages. I've liked it this far and a lot has happened already, the story goes on a bit slowly, but not too slow fortunately! Next is chapter 13, and I'll probably finish it tomorrow, if I have time from all my homework.


I'd love to know what you guys are reading (and thinking about the book)!

Review: Love Letters to the Dead

 Many of you who have also read Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower, find that Ava Dellaira's Love Letters to the Dead quite similiar. It's true that both of them are in the form of letters. In Chbosky's they are to an unknown person and in Dellaira's they are for famous dead people. Yeah, it sounds that they are copies of each other, but that's not true.

★★★★★

In Dellaira's book we follow the main character Laurel, at her first year in college. At her English class, they are given an assingment to write a letter for a dead person. Laurel starts it, but inevidently they turn to something more personal, something she doesn't want to share with her English teacher, but still feels that she needs to write more. So from one assingment grows a notebook full of letters to dead person like Kurt Cobain, Amelia Earhart, Amy Winhouse and many others. Laurel feels a great need to share what's going on in her life to somebody though the recievers are not even alive.

Laurel had a elder sister, May, who died few years earlier. Laurel feels responsible about May's death and through the book she blames herself, though no one is sure wether May's death was a suicide or an accident. Laurel goes through strong emotions and sometimes dissappears in her head, where she lives her memories again revealing the ghosts of the past.

Laurel meets Sky. A very cute boy at her college. Firts Laurel and Sky's journey together is a bit awkward and it feels forced, but then it grows towards something more natural. During the book their relationship feels too rushed, which leads to certain events in the book.

Emotions are visble in every part of the book. You can feel them as if they were your very own. Sometimes they get overbearing and sometimes you just have to close the book, put it down and breathe, because the events Laurel goes through would be very traumatic to any person, real or fictional.

Most parts of the book are things that happens, then also a big part of it is the throwbacks to Laurels past. But sometimes, mostly when something big is happening, we get the most beautiful sentences to quote after. If I wouldn't be so against underlining books, or if I had a e-Book of this one, I would have these colourful pages with the most beautiful words. Now I juts have to trust the good old Post-it notes and Goodreads.

This book definetly made my all-time favourite list!

Review: Hopeless

I had high hopes for Hopeless and didn't have to be disappointed! I loved Hopeless from first letter, first word, first sentence, first paragraph, to the last.

Starting from the characters. We get to know a lot, but still get new information all the time. It feels like you know who the characters are, but in reality you only know a small part of them. And it's okay that you don't know them completely. It would be abnormal to know everything about some person you've juts met.
Six is present on the beginning but then she fades tot he background. Though she is a minor character and at first it doesn't feel like she has a significant role to the story, but after turning the last page, you just feel that without Six, the book wouldn't have had a beginning.
Karen, our vegan - no-technology - herb-mixing - mom. Karen was really confusing character from the start. I couldn't make up my mind if I liked her or not. She was written out really well, and then the revelation... But don't worry I won't spoil you! :)
Dean Holder, our other main character. From the start I actually thought that he is the stalker Sky thinks he is. But luckily he turns out to be something else, something sweet and caring. Holder is moody and has many sides to him, still in the end he is the one who keeps you together through the book.
Sky. Sky is the main character that feels. The one that let's herself drown in emotion, feel it all without any barriers. And that is the thing I love most about her. Some authors try to soften the effects of some emotional scenes, but Hoover has not muted it. She wrote it on full force. And that force will hit you, and hard.

The main reason for loving this book was the emotions. It was hard to read because of the emotions. Sometimes you just wanted to burst from happiness, sometimes the pain Sky felt, felt like my own. I might sound like a masochist, but it's the truth.

I loved the wrecked emotional roller coaster of  Hopeless.

Summary:
★★★★★
Positive: truthfulness, emotions, characters
Negative: couldn't get anything to this

Recommend to Everybody out there!

September TBR

What should I read this month? Books? Maybe.

This month I am going to finish the Mark of Athena. Maybe start the House of Hades. I'm taking fiction-writing next month in Finnish so I think I should read something in Finnish.

Also the Trylle trilogy. Many talk about that if you don't read the Trylles before reading the Crystal Kingdom, it might spoil you something, so I'll read them.

And if I can get my hands on Queen of Shadows, I'll read it immediatly, like hands down, nothing matters before I've turned the last page.

Then finishing the Vampire Academy series, which is only book and a half away!

Hopefully this month is more successful than August, or so I hope!

August Wrap-Up!

My August TBR didn't exactly turn out successful...

From my original idea to read Outlander, Mark of Athena, House of Hades, Blood of Olympus, Torn, Switched and Ascend, so seven books.

In the end I only completed Outlander from that list. But still read many books! I was deeply affected by my reading slump that happenend during August, but luckily Fangirl saved me.

I also started the Vampire Academy series and got almost through it. I found time to read the first 4 of them and started the 5th one.

Faerie Guardian and Never Never part two, which I bought for my Kindle app, I read faster than I have ever read. Okay, both are not long books, but still really good!

If you are a Finn or if you want to know a bit more about the cryptic people from the land of Santa, Xenophobe's Guide to the Finns is the book for you. It describes honestly and hilariously who the Finns are, their ways and weird manners. As a Finn, I can confirm that the book doesn't lie, it's all true.

I read the Fifty Shades -trilogy few years ago and I was really curiuos about Grey. Always when an author publishes the same book from a different POV is really interesting. And though many people have said that Grey is the same as Fifty Shades of Grey but I think it's not entirely true. Grey really gives us an insight to Christian's head. Though in some parts the books is a bit messy and confusing, I actually liked it.

While tyring to get out of my reading slump, I decided to read Passion, but it didn't work. Not. At. All. I don't know why I thought it would, I didn't even like the first two in the series, so why would the third one lift me up from the history's worst condition? Silly me...


Wrap-up:

Fangirl  ★★★★★
Outlander  ★★★★★
Grey  ★★★★
Never Never part two ★★★★★
Faerie Guardian ★★★
Xenophobe's Guide to the Finns  ★★★★★
Passion  ★
Vampire Academy  ★★★
Frostbite  ★★★
Shadow Kiss ★★★★
Blood Promise  ★★★★

Stars are from my Goodreads ratings.

Review: Fangirl (and fangirling Fangirl)

First there were the shaking hands. Then the difficulty of breathing. Then denial. Then shock. Then the inability to write a review.

So here I am, forcing myself to think even a bit rationally, so I can get back to cleaning my room (which is Filthy).

Fangirl was...
Amazing, beautiful, purely genious, sweet, surprising, loving, emotional, fun, sad, honest.

Fangirl wasn't...
Boring, stupid, anything idiotic.

Fangirl could've been...
If it had been anything else than it was, I would have either not liked it or had died whilst reading it.

After turning the last page, my heartbeat was irregular, my breathing almost non-existent. I felt like I had died. I felt like the world had ended. I felt like this is it.

I can't describe Fangirl as well as it deserves to, but I will say that it is on the top 5 of my all-time favourites. No, I don't know in which order my all-time favourites are, but Fangirl definetly deserves a spot on it.

To Rainbow Rowell: You changed me. Your book made me understand myself better, you inspired me to write again. Thank you.

Writing not reading! (word vomit)

Recently I haven't read so much, but done some creative writing. I don't have a working title for it yet, so it's kind of hard to talk about it, but I'll just refer it as 'Dream Walker', which does absolutely nothing with the book. It's not about dream walking, but it's still related to dreams and walking. Okay, maybe I should change the working title from 'I haven't figured it out yet' to 'Dream Walker'.

Right now I'm just vomiting words to this post. I'm tired from all the commotion from today, and the writing, which I've done for about 1800 words. And right now, I don't have any powers left to use for sensible writing, or even writing with words that I'm meant to write. Yeah, if you haven't read my first post on this site, a quick info: English is not my mother tongue. Spelling mistakes, wrong words, weird sentence structures might be spotted on this site! :) But don't worry, I haven't met a day (yet) when I can't do anything in English, and if I ever do, I won't post anything on that day!

And I was thinking about posting my work here, if it ever develops to something readable. If not, then you won't see it.

Also I'm most recent currently reading is Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, and I love that book! I'm not even halfway through and I'm quite sure it will be one of my all time favourites. And I'll be definitely will be reading it again in the future!

And also Fangirl has made me interest in fanfiction spark again! Maybe I'll write some of that too, and if it turns out to be even the slightest bit good, you'll be able to read it here. :)

Now good night, I'm over-tired and haven't done any of my home work... :P

Review: Outlander

It's been some time since I finished Outlander, and with my reading slump I have time to review it!

If I had to describe the book with one word, I would say 'impossible'. Not the book, but the task. Describing Outlander is like writing an essay of the meaning of life.

I read the paperback edition of it, so it's 850 pages of the thinnest paper ever, with the smallest kind of font you can read without getting a headache. Still the pages flew and it never made me feel exhausted in a bad way. But exhaustion in a good way was common whilst reading. Outlander makes you exhausted, it's so carefully weaved with complex characters and Beautiful landscapes. While reading I travelled to Scotland, read the lines with a weird Scottish accent (I've got no idea, how the words are pronounced, so you can imagine) and experienced the whole book like I really had been there. Outlander is amongst the rare books that had me living inside the book. Some books have captured me, but none of them not so intensely.

About the plot. Those who have read it, know that a lot happens during the book, but then there is also times when nothing happens, which is a good balance for all the emotional and rough stuff. For example the battle scenes, interaction and just normal day things were described so lively, that sometimes you're confused if you're really watching someone else's life or just someone fictional's. The plot also had a few twists, which I won't reveal, and some of them were a bit heart-breaking.

About the characters. I loved them. They were so alive. You know the feeling when you just know someone. You know their favourite colour or how they like their sandwiches (<= What?), how they react to certain things or any little detail of them. Outlander also made this possible. For me, characters are the main thing in books, and if the book doesn't have characters fit for the plot, then I usually don't like it. But strong Claire, just, was born for this book (okay, Gabaldon wrote her for the book...) Gabaldon was able to capture her so perfectly and make her alive. Make her breathe.
As for Jamie... *Googly eyes* He's just something. Though I knew next to nothing about Scots before Outlander, I think he's the stereotypical Scot being atypical Scot at the same time. I don't know if that makes any sense to you, but Jamie is a character that's hard to explain. He's got so many sides to him, so many things that are worth mentioning. But above all, the thing that made me love Jamie was his ability of sacrefice. He put himself at risk for everyone he cared or didn't think deserved something. Like when he took the beating or freed the young lad from the post, or the countless times he saved Claire. His compassion, charms, good looks, Scottish accent...
Also the minor characters were so carefully planned and told, that they really felt like real people, not just the usual, 'you're just a side-character I won't use my time in developing you' -thing. Thankfully, because even the smallest charcters matter in a book.

And finally, about the surroundings. Imagine the most beautiful Scottish landscape, then make it ten times more beautiful and add one Jamie to it. That's about it.

Summary:
★★★★★

Positive: Everything, so beautifully written. Loved every part of it. Most the complex characters.
Negative: Nothing, but if you read it in a form of a physical book, try to get as big book (hardback) as possible because reading from a teeny tiny edition just stresses you out.

Recommeding this to everybody. Even if it's not your usual genre, just read it! It's definetly worth it!

Slumping

It seems that I acn't get rid of thus reading slump. Nothing seems to be working. I just started Passion by Lauren Kate, because her books are easy and fast reads. I didn't even like the first two books in the series, but still somehow ended up to pick the third part of it. Maybe it'll help!

Liebster Award - Challenge

I got challenged by my ever-lovely sister Jenni from the Rhythm of the Rush, thank you!
Check out her blog here, she writes in Finnish, so every Finn out there go: check it out!

The goal of Liebster Award is to make blogs with less than 200 followers more visible by introducing themselves with 11 questions from the challenger.

If you are challenged, thank and link the blog of your challenger to your post, then answer the 11 questions that the challenger has asked, compose 11 of your own questions and challenge other blogs with less than 200 followers! Remember to link the blog(s) you have challenged to your post!

Questions I got to answer:

1. What made you start blogging?

I've always liked to write, and I'm very talkative person to strangers who like the same things as I, so why not. Even if no-one reads what I write, I've had the chance to share my thoughts with the world.

2. If you could choose one super-power to yourself, what would it be and why?

I don't know if this is a super-power, but I would love to be speed-reader. Though I am a quite fast already, I'd like to be faster, like if I read 300 words in a minute now, then as a speed-reader I could read double amount in the same time. :) Or just something like flying or psychokinesis or, I know, I'd love to be Juliette from the Shatter Me -series. Can't say the main reason though, it might spoil the experience of Ignite Me from you...

3. What is your favourite TV-show?

My favourite TV-show is currently Outlander. I watched the first 4 (or was it 5?) episodes today and I AM IN LOVE !

4. Which five coutnries you want to travel the most?

I've always wanted to go to the United-Kingdoms, because of the Infernal Devices and then the States because of almost every book I've read is based on some era of that country. Also Scotland (Outlander *swoons*), Holland (mostly just Amsterdam) and Germany (I've been there two times already, but there's something about that country that draws me back).

5. Holiday at beach or at the city, which one and why?

At beach I could just lie and read, but... At the city definetly. I get sun-burns easily and hate when the sand is everywhere, and you can read in the city too! Best thing of holidays in the city ist the touring, coffee shops and bookstores! :)

6. Name your favourite bands or artists!

Hans Zimmer, Michael Giacchino, Jóhan Jóhansson, Alexandre Desplat, Nicholas Hooper, James Horner... Many other movie or TV-series composers that there are. Then Take That, and also Gary Barlow and Robbie Williams' own production. And then Starkids musicals. If you haven't checked them out already, try watching A Very Potter Musical or Holy Musical B@man (o anythinof their productions) from Youtube. They're hilarious! :P

7. Dream Job?

Publishing at Harper Collins Publishers. Anything, even just the coffee-girl would be fine. Just the idea of being in the middle of Harper Collins office gives me goose-bumps.

8. Do you like reading, why/why not?

Hey, sis, um do you know me at all?!? I LOVE READING. I LOVE EVERYTHING RELATED TO READING! I LIVE WITH BOOKS. I'M POOR BECAUSE OF BOOKS! I BREATHE BOOKS! BOOKSBOOKSBOOKSBOOKSBOOKSBOOKSBOOKSBOOKSBOOKSBOOKSBOOKSBOOKS!
Am I sounding mad...?

9. Some thing you can't ever get bored to?

READING, BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS!

10. What will always get you into good mood?

READING AND BOOKS
Yes, I do have a life outside my books, it's a small one but it exists. I think.

11. In the whole world, which place is your absolute favourite?

Iäd have to say it's my couch. It's a small cream-white two-persons - couch, and I've spilled many drinks and dirtied it with food many times and even broke the other armrest, but it still is my favourite place. I can read in almost any possible position, sleep and live on it. And the cushions can be washed in a washing-machine, so I can eat on it without being afraid of distroying it for good.

I challenge thee:

http://lauraslittlebookblog.blogspot.fi/

And here are your questions:

1. What got you into reading?
2. Could you imagine yourself as a publishing author?
3. Cats or Dogs?
4. Have you ever commented the book some stranger is reading, like when you're in bus?
5. Where would you like to travel and why?
6. If you could pick any author to meet, who would it be?
7. Last read, currently-reading and next to-read?
8. Do you brush your teeth before or after breakfast?
9. reading wih or without music?
10. Super-cleaner or a bit messy is fine?
11. You have to read only one genre for the rest of the year, which one will it be?