Review: Cress

Cress by Marissa Meyer
The Lunar Chronicles #3
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Release Date: February 4th, 2014
Source: Owned
Date Read: 10/14/14 to 10/29/14
550 Pages
Rating: ✰✰✰✰✰

In this third book in the Lunar Chronicles, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, now with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.

Their best hope lies with Cress, a girl imprisoned on a satellite since childhood who's only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker. Unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue of Cress goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing prevent her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only hope the world has.

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Where is the next book when you need it?
Seriously. When is it coming out?
Ok, Fairest is coming out in January, but where is Winter! I want Winter! gah

If you've read both my reviews for Cinder and Scarlet, and still haven't picked up the series yet, what are you doing with your life? 

I'm just kidding. But seriously, The Lunar Chronicles just gets better and better. At first I thought Cinder was amazing, and then I read Scarlet and thought it was even better. And then Cress, just take the amazingness of Cinder and Scarlet, but them together, and multiply that by ten. That's how good Cress was.

It is also such a beautiful book on it's own. Just look at it.

Since this is the third book in the series, and I can't exactly do a full review without spoiling anything, but, I can say that this is one of the best books I've read so far this year. (You know, if you haven't gotten that from my previous statements)

The best part of Cress isn't just the storyline, or the fact that it's another fairy-tale retelling. No. Cress is all about the characters. Meyer weaves together a story that fleshes out every single character she creates, making us, the readers, fall in love with them completely. 

I loved our new addition to the gang, Cress. Although around half of the book centered around her, Meyer was able to somehow develop the other main characters, Captain Thorne and Cinder, even when she was limited to 550 pages. Oh, and don't forget her amazing writing, her ability to create an amazing side story out of nowhere, while weaving it perfectly into the main plotline.

It's official. Marissa Meyer is now on my list of favorite authors.

I'm really at a loss for words, because Cress is the epitome of amazing. All I can do is wait until 2015 for the next two books. 

Seriously, this review does no justice (I know), so I'll leave you with this beautiful photo of the pumpkins my friends and I carved earlier today.

I carved the cat by the way.

I hope that from this review, anyone who hasn't started the Lunar Chronicles, will start it right now.

That is all I have to say. Also, Happy Halloween everyone! I would've made it two different posts, but I'm lazy, and I also haven't gotten a book review up in a while. I don't read spooky books though, so the two are kind of unrelated (lol Cress is not spooky)

Get To Know The Awesome That Is Me

I have been tagged by Ely and Chami over @ A Book So Fathomless to complete the Get to Know Me Tag. Although I have been swamped with work and studying (the reason why there is a lack of reviews at the moment), this will be my study break.

So yup! I hope you enjoy this "modest" post about myself. I had a lot of fun filling it out (the only fun I'm allowed to have until Thursday). And of course, you'll get to know more about me! Or will you? Maybe everything here is a lie....

How tall are you?

I am currently 5 feet and 2 inches and still growing. Yes, even though I am already 20 years old. (Hey I can dream, right?) Or, um, if I convert it, I should be 62 centimeters? This might be completely wrong but I'm too lazy to Google the conversion.


Do you have a hidden talent? If so, what?

YES. WELL YES I DO.

In fact, my hidden talent happens to be the ability to fold my tongue, once over. 

Seriously, you could make a book out of this. Valerie, the folding tongue-girl, making her way around the world stunning people with her wondrous talent. 



What's your biggest blog related pet peeve? 

Do I even have one? Hmm. I'm not a fan of those comments that simply advertise their blog, but I deal with it. I guess not being able to update the blog frequently is another, but that's all on me.


What's your biggest non blog related pet peeve?

If you give me a minute, I will think of one. 

I guess I don't like stupid people? Actually, I don't like people who specifically ask for advice, and then say they don't want your advice. And then they constantly complain about their life, and not change anything about it. 

Am I being too harsh? 


What's your favourite song?

No Light, No Light by Florence and the Machine. Also, did I mention that I saw Bastille live Friday night? My favorite song by them is Icarus, and also What Would You Do.

What's your favourite Etsy shop that isn't yours?

I've never shopped on Etsy before. So I can't answer this question.



What's your favourite way to spend your free time when you're alone?

VIDEO GAMES VIDEO GAMES VIDEO GAMESSSS.

This has been an obsession for a very long time, and it's been pretty continuous, and I've been able to keep up with the latest games. Except for The Sims 4, because apparently they haven't made that for Mac yet (I am still pissed). Oh, and I don't have a PS4 soon, but one day. 

To be honest, if I had to pick between reading and playing video games, I would definitely...um maybe I shouldn't finish this sentence? OKAY MOVING ON. 



What's your favourite junk food?

This is very specific, but the popcorn from the movie theaters, specifically either AMC or Regal Cinemas. I don't even care what movie I see, I live for that popcorn. 

It's overpriced, but I can't recreate it perfectly using the microwave. 



Do you have a pet or pets? If so, what kind and what are their names?

I'm sharing a doggie with my housemates if that counts! His name is Ollie, and I've already shown you guys him, but here he is again!

What are your number one favourite nonfiction and fiction books?

Well I can definitely say that Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking, is my favorite non-fiction book of all time, just because I am an introvert, and it is also very easy to read.

When it comes to my favorite fiction book? Ugh. Can I just go with my all-time favorite when I was a teen, which was The Mediator: Shadowland by Meg Cabot. I was (and still am) obsessed with that series.

What's your favourite beauty product?

Cucumbers. They are fun to eat.

Also, Grapefruit body butter from The Body Shop. The smell is so deliciously amazing, I could eat it.

When were you last embarrassed? What happened?

I do a lot of stupid things, but nothing major has happened yet. I also have poor memory. 

If you could only drink one beverage (besides water) for the rest of your life, what would it be?

MINUTE MAID FRUIT PUNCH. Screw tea (no offense tea-lovers, I actually haven't gotten into tea yet sadly) and coffee (though I am addicted at this point), but I love juice. 

I'm not sure if this makes me a kid, but juice is good guys. 

What’s your favourite movie?

I don't know. It used to be 500 Days of Summer, but then I also like Moulin Rouge. And the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy were also amazing. And of course there's Wall-E, Kung Fu Panda (I can quote this entire movie), and the ones I watch on repeat.

I have a whole list of movies I love. I can't just pick one. Why is this a question.

What were you in high school: Prom queen, nerd, cheerleader, jock, valedictorian, band geek, loner, artist?

I was a nerd (still am), jock (I swam my life away), band geek for one year (yay flutes), artist (I drew bunnies everywhere so that counts), and really smart academically.

So yeah. I think this just proves that labels are useless because people are individuals and can't be lumped in a single category.

Though, I can say for certain that I've been labeled as an evil demon child. This isn't true though. 

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?

Is this even a question? Most definitely Paris. I'm currently taking French, so might as well put that to good use.   

PC or Mac?

Both. I could list out all the pros and cons right here right now, but I won't, ok ok maybe just a couple.

I love PCs because I can play MMORPGs on them, and also Sims 4. I hate them because they last for 2 years (laptops), and then they die on me.

I love Macs because they last a very long time, and they are generally pretty fast. I hate them because they are expensive and most software isn't available for it.

Last romantic gesture from a boyfriend?

Do not want to talk about this.

Favourite celebrity?

JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT. And also Jennifer Lawrence, Emma Watson. Every single celebrity with the first name Chris. 

What blogger do you secretly want to be best friends with?  

I secretly want to be friends with Emily @ The Loony Teen Writer (She said we were, but I still comment on all her posts because senpai please notice me. Just ignore that if you have no idea what that means hahahah. Laughing at my own jokes), and also, hmm I think that's it? 

I managed to convince everyone on my feed to be buddies with me. MUHAHAHA---wait. I mean, yay best friends forever!

Tagging these amazing bloggers, along with anyone else who wants to do this!

Amir @ The Not-So-Literary Heiresses

Zoe @ The Infinite To-Read Shelf

Emily @ Follow the Yellow Book Road

Top Ten Tuesday #29

Hosted by the Broke and the Bookish!

Top Ten Series I Want To Start!

It's a miracle that I've been able to get this out, seeing that I have a super busy schedule for this week! Anyways, I'm always on the lookout for new series to start, even though I clearly never have the time for them. I'll just stick to series I've newly discovered, because if I put Throne of Glass here, or even Anna and the French Kiss, I just know I'm going to get a slew of comments pressuring me to read them now.

Guys, it's ok. I'll get to them soon. One day. Shhhhh. Don't worry about it.

MOVING ON. So here's my list. Like my graphics? Good I spent my studying time doing these (Procrastinators unite! Tomorrow!)

Pivot Point by Kasie West -  THIS IS SUCH A COOL CONCEPT. Like the MC can see into the future depending on the decisions that she makes! I love these kinds of books! It reminds me of the 1-800-WHERE-R-U series by Meg Cabot.

Lumatere Chronicles by Melina Marchetta - Another high fantasy! I actually haven't read or seen that many reviews, but maybe that's just because it's kind of an old series, yep, published in 2008. Nevertheless, I still would love to read it. It has also been on my TBR for a while!

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken - Also another one of those books with special abilities! Yes! I'm a fan! I've seen many positive reviews for this series, and I just love the plot of it! 

Paper Gods by Amanda Sun - Honestly, I don't know why I want to read this series. I think it's mainly due to the pretty covers. And that it takes place in Japan. Oh, and it looks like it connects to Japanese mythology, so yes, will give this one a go.

The Winner's Trilogy by Marie Rutkoski - WOW now that people have been reading The Winner's Crime, this is on my must-read-now list! 

The Archived by Victoria Schwab - THE DEAD. LIBRARIANS. WOW everything I could've ever asked for! Ha, no but this is very original, and the cover just looks so mysterious and scary. It gives me the creeps, but in a good way.

The Maze Runner by James Dashner - JUST BECAUSE THE MOVIE IS OUT. And also because MAZES. So yep put this on my list. I may not get to it for awhile, but I'll definitely make sure to read it before I watch the movie!

Partials Sequence by Dan Wells - Hahaha I totally messed up on this, because the third book is shown twice instead of the first. Oops. You guys wouldn't have caught on anyways. So I have this on my TBR list on Goodreads, but I don't exactly remember what it's about. Let me check, OH RIGHT! Engineered organic beings! Sounds like fun! I saw this at the library last time, so it's available to me.

Chaos Walking by Patrick Ness - This is actually on the digital library, so I'll be borrowing that after the chaos that is October. The paperback covers for these are beautiful though. I also don't remember what this series was about, except that it's awesome, crazy, and by Patrick Ness. 

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson - YES FOR SANDERSON. I will read anything by him! I'm currently reading Warbreaker (which is available on his website for free in his library), and I cannot stop reading. This is a bad thing because I have four exams next week.

Are any of these something you might want to try? Have you read any of them? Link up TTT's, please!

Review: I Am The Messenger

I Am The Messenger by Markus Zusak
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Release Date: February 8th, 2005
Source: Library 
Date Read: 10/13/14 to 10/14/14
357 Pages
Rating: ✰✰✰✰✰

Ed Kennedy is an underage cabdriver without much of a future. He's pathetic at playing cards, hopelessly in love with his best friend, Audrey, and utterly devoted to his coffee-drinking dog, the Doorman. His life is one of peaceful routine and incompetence until he inadvertently stops a bank robbery.

That's when the first ace arrives in the mail. That's when Ed becomes the messenger. Chosen to care, he makes his way through town helping and hurting (when necessary) until only one question remains: Who's behind Ed's mission?

This book is a 2005 Michael L. Printz Honor Book and recipient of five starred reviews.

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

One of the most unique books I've read. It's pretty much up to par with The Book Thief, it's just that this isn't something I would pick up, but in the end I loved it.

No, but seriously, I had to talk through the brilliance that was the ending with my book club, and I completely understand it now. The ending itself deserves a couple of rereads, because Zusak is incredibly brilliant with how he wrote this book (have I used that word enough? "brilliant")

Anyways, let's start with the basics. (Even with recapping the summary, I'm remembering all the little hints here and there throughout the book).

First off, we have Ed Kennedy. He's normal, average, ordinary guy that really doesn't do anything with his life. Until he gets a playing card in the mail. The Ace of Diamonds. And on this card, there's a list of addresses. And of course someone is watching him. To sum up, Ed is acting as a messenger, where he goes and stalks visits each of the addresses, and sends the people living there a message.

“My full name's Ed Kennedy. I'm nineteen. I'm an underage cab driver. I'm typical of many of the young men you see in this suburban outpost of the city -- not a whole lot of prospects or possibility. That aside, I read more books than I should, and I'm decidedly crap at sex and doing my taxes. Nice to meet you. ”

First, it's a rapist, constantly abusing his wife every night after coming back from the pub. But then, there's also the sweet lonely old lady, waiting for her husband to come back from the war. There's the priest as well, who just can't seem to get enough people to come to his sermon.

Four aces. Four clues on each card. Sixteen messages.

I have to admit, although Ed seemed like an ordinary guy, but he changed slowly every time he helped someone else. And before I completely spoil the book by accident, let's talk about the characters! Literally every one of these characters Ed meets connected with me in one way or another. And if you think that this is just a book about some guy helping out random people and his friends with their lives, you are wrong. Sure, that's part of the book, but there's more to it than that. Seriously. I Am The Messenger made me revaulate my own life.

“Maybe everyone can live beyond what they're capable of.”

These characters only took like wut, maybe 1/16 of the book each? And yet I still fell in love with all of them and they left LASTING IMPRESSIONS. Only you, Markus Zusak, can write this way, gah. I want to go visit random people now and perform random acts of kindness.

It's just nice to read about all the little things that matter. And not only that either. IT'S JUST THIS BOOK. If I didn't know Markus Zusak wrote the Book Thief, I would have not connected the two books together. Both of them are completely different, but in a good way.

THE ENDING. It's why I gave it five stars.

And that's all I'm telling you, because the ending is worth it.

Read Play Blog #3: What I Would Be For Halloween

Read Play Blog is a meme about video games and books, posted every 16th of the month. Bloggers are encouraged to answer a discussion question, and recommend a video game that is similar to a book they liked. Hosted by Happy Indulgence Books & Read Me Away.

What game character would you like to be for Halloween? 

I love Halloween, except I'm always late on the whole decoration thing, so in the end I have to come up with a last minute costume. It doesn't help that I haven't participating in the past 5 years? And my mom was not good with making creative costumes.

Nevertheless, if I could be a game character for Halloween (or for some kind of convention), it would definitely have to be... dun dun dun.

Trucy Wright from Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney!

I've always wanted to dress up as her, because 1) she is awesome, and 2) I have brownish hair, and it could work out! Fun fact: AJ Ace Attorney was the first game I played in the series, because I had no idea that it was part of a series. (This is almost as bad as the time I played Kingdom Hearts 2 before Kingdom Hearts 1. Apparently I'm not good with numbers)

Monthly Recommendation

So I haven't been playing anything. I've had a very busy month with everything, but let me think of something scary. Something relating to Halloween. Hmmmm. I can't recommend Bioshock since I already did that the last two months so...

Recommendation: The Last of Us

The Last of Us is a post-apocalyptic world filled with zombie-like creatures, that were infected by by a mutated strain of fungus. Basically, Joel and Ellie travel through the U.S. looking for a doctor that can extract the immunity antibody out of Ellie, since she's somehow immune to the virus.

The graphics are amazing, but it's also only on the PS3. Since I live in Boston, I loved being able to go through the city. The scenery was beautiful, especially with all the overgrown trees and the rotting cars. I even saw some swan boats just tossed aside, but there wasn't a pond anymore.

Anyways, there are a lot of scary zombies in this game, so this makes a great Halloweenie recommendation! 

Again, thanks to Jeann and Ana for creating this awesome meme!

Review: The Falconer

The Falconer by Elizabeth May
The Falconer #1
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Release Date: May 6th, 2014
Source: Library
Date Read: 10/6/14 to 10/12/14
288 Pages
Rating: ✰✰✰✰

One girl's nightmare is this girl's faery tale.

She's a stunner.
Edinburgh, 1844. Eighteen-year-old Lady Aileana Kameron, the only daughter of the Marquess of Douglas, has everything a girl could dream of: brains, charm, wealth, a title — and drop-dead beauty.

She's a liar.
But Aileana only looks the part of an aristocratic young lady. She's leading a double life: She has the rare ability to sense the sìthichean — the faery race obsessed with slaughtering humans — and, with the aid of a mysterious mentor, has spent the year since her mother died learning how to kill them.

She's a murderer.
Now Aileana is dedicated to slaying the fae before they take innocent lives. With her abilities and her knack for inventing ingenious tools and weapons — from flying machines to detonators to lightning pistols — ruthless Aileana has one goal: Destroy the faery who destroyed her mother.

She's a Falconer.
The last in a line of female warriors born with the gift for hunting and killing the fae, Aileana is the sole hope of preventing a powerful faery population from massacring all of humanity. Suddenly, her quest is a lot more complicated. She still longs to avenge her mother's murder — but she'll have to save the world first

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

Featuring Merida from Brave, because honestly, who else would you think of?

The Falconer was exactly what I expected it to be, since I read so many different reviews and reactions about it when it first came out. So when I saw it at the library (digital library of course), I immediately went for it, even though I had other books waiting for me on my shelves. Luckily for me, I did enjoy it a lot. And even more surprisingly, I think I've discovered what I want in a book boyfriend (muhahaha).

In my opinion, the best aspects of this book are by far the characters. Merida I mean Aileana is your average red-headed Scottish kickass girl that has been training and killing the fae for over a year now. Her mentor, the ever mysterious, swoon-worthy, Kiaran is fae himself, but he's the good kind, or one that doesn't feed on human energy. *cough* I like him a lot, and I love how different he is from some other love interests I've read recently. I could clearly distinguish him from Derrick, the little pixie, and also Gavin, Aileana's childhood friend.

I cannot help myself. I can only think of Merida.

There isn't a love triangle. At least I'm pretty sure there wasn't a love triangle.

The world itself was very creative, and it involved steampunk and machines (like the ornithopter) and unique devices that explode. And then you add in the Scottish nobility and whole historical fiction going on, and BANG, it's awesome. I'm a sucker for historical fantasy, so this was a big hit for me. (And also it's set in Edinburgh!)

However, I did have some confusing moments with the fae words, which I guess isn't a surprise. I either don't pay attention to these things, or 50% of it goes over my head.

And then there's the main problem. Yes, everyone who has read this knows what I'm talking about.

DUN DUN DUN. The ending.

First off. Is there a planned sequel?? Because I don't know what I'm going to do if there isn't. Also, are you allowed to end a book this way if it's the first in its series? LIKE HOW DID THIS GET THROUGH? Well, I guess their marketing technique worked, because it worked on me, and I now need the second book ASAP.

Here was my initial reaction after finishing:

• Why did the book just end?
• WHY
• Can't books even END IN THAT WAY?
• Kiaran is super hot. I want
• BUT THAT ENDING!!!! Is that EVEN ALLOWED??

I was also expecting this cliffhanger, since I read so many reviews on it last year. So I was actually turning the pages, expecting it to end at one chapter or another. And then when it did finally end, I could definitely see why everyone was upset.

Overall, I loved the Falconer. It was full of intense action, and romance (because Kiaran), and amazing characters. It was a great start to a series, and I honestly need the second book now because WHY WOULD YOU END IT LIKE THAT? gah.

Top Ten Tuesday #28

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish!

Top Ten Places Books Have Made Me Want to Visit

Oh this is a really original topic! I like it! Anyways, there are so many fantasy worlds I would love to visit, just because, well duh, they're awesome! And of course, some are better than others. But then there are also real life places I would love to visit because of books. Though I might not have a lot of them on my list, at least I tried! 

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente - I actually would love to be in Fairyland! I mean, it seems that September was able to get through without hurting herself. 

Elantris by Brandon Sanderson - I actually prefer the world of Elantris over the Stormlight Archives, even though I know they are in the same universe. Well, at least Elantris itself in the earlier days, where Aons still work and Elantris is a land of "gods", not the part where everyone is half dead. Nope.

Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling - I would be super surprised if everyone doesn't have this on their lists! Although I've been to the Harry Potter World in Universal, I really want the real world to exist! To be sorted, take classes, practice magic! I'm Gryffindor by the way, haha.

Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor - Actually, I'm not talking about the Eretz, but just Prague itself! Having the story take place in Prague in Europe actually made me want to go visit it, rather than the fantasy world counterpart. I mean, who wouldn't want to eat at the Poison Kitchen!

Earth Girl by Janet Edwards - I'm going to cheat here and say that I'm gonna be able to use the portals they have all over the galaxy (some Earthens can't get off Earth). So yeah. BUT TELEPORTATION. Basically. Though to other galaxies and planets too (even though everyone is human). This world skipped the whole warp speed phase haha. And then all the landmarks on Earth were wiped off, but that's okay, right?

Cinder by Marissa Meyer - NEW BEIJING LETS GO. Wait. I don't want to get letumosis. BUT SHIPS! ANDROIDS! YES! Oh I'm also not a huge fan of Lunars destroying Earth, but you know, the idea of visiting sounds cool!

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner - Okay, so we don't actually get to know about the rest of the world, since This Shattered World hasn't been released yet, BUT SPACE. And huge ships! I'm a sucker for sci-fi space travel worlds.

The Art of Lainey by Paula Stokes - So I'm not sure if the town itself is real, but Hazelton is seriously everything I've wanted in my own town, with a torture pancake house, and a teen dance club. So I guess it isn't really a place I would want to visit, but a cool place to live! 

Splintered by A. G. Howard - So there's no way I would survive this trip, but I would love to visit Wonderland. Sure it'll be super creepy, but there has to be one world on this list that will kill me.

The Mediator by Meg Cabot - MY FAVORITE SERIES. And also I've always wanted to sunny L.A. (or was it L.A.? I don't even remember, all I know is that it was in California) because of where Suze goes to school. Like seriously, they mention the beach all the time, and I'm here sitting in the cold. I've never been to California, and I want to go.

I've changed my mind, this was a really hard topic. There are so many awesome places that authors have come up with, but then there's the whole dystopian thing going on (like the Hunger Games), or war (The Book Thief), that I just don't want to deal with that, and it hasn't made me want to visit the place at all. 

Oh. And Dangerous Girls. I would've loved to go to Aruba. But nope. Not anymore. Nopity nope. I do not want to get stuck outside of the US. Or get involved with the law regarding homicide. Nope.

Though I've been to Germany twice, and loved it! But it wasn't The Book Thief that inspired me haha!

Anyways. I can't wait to check out your TTTs, because this was pretty hard!

Review: Scarlet

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
The Lunar Chronicles #2
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Release Date: February 5th, 2013
Source: 
Date Read: 9/12/14 to 10/10/14
452 Pages
Rating: ✰✰✰✰✰

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison--even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

Marissa Meyer, I will honestly read anything by you. I don't care the topic.

Seriously, I cannot believe I waited THIS long to continue on with the series. What was I thinking??!  I even spent a month on it because I wanted to savor the writing. I didn't skim or skip ahead, and instead I read every single word on each page.

For the readers that have not even touched Cinder yet (my review here), here are a couple reasons on why you must pick up the book now.

• The author is a genius, no joke. Her writing is perfection. The futuristic world is portrayed through show, and not tell.  
• And speaking of the world of The Lunar Chronicles, it is everything I ever wanted in a series. Nothing is underdeveloped, I can envision everything in my head, and I'm never left asking for more. Because it's already there, even in the first book.
• The characters, do I even need to explain this? Cinder is awesome, and original. A cyborg, genius mechanic, what more could you ask for?

Now here's my review of the next book, Scarlet. Feel free to skim, but just letting you know there aren't any spoilers! 

Scarlet blew me away, and it was honestly just as amazing as the first book, though probably even better. There were a decent amount of new characters introduced, such as Scarlet (well, duh) and the ever mysterious Wolf.

The main reason I loved Scarlet, was not only did it expand on the world-building (and also Paris!), but Meyer did that one thing that I love the most. She took both pairs of characters, developed them separately, and then forced them to meet in the end. I'm such a sucker for those things.

And then there was the lies and and the deception! Wooo! Even though it made me sad when it happened, it was a good kind of sad. Even I was sometimes fooled. I kept on changing my mind on whether I should trust certain characters or not.

ALSO. FAIRY TALE RETELLINGS. Red Riding Hood isn't even that popular, but Meyer still made it more awesome. She wove the characters and subplot into the main plot so neatly, with absolutely no plot holes or "what just happened" moments. Basically, this awesome sci-fi world with comms and ships and reimaginings of cities, but in the future, just grew larger and more amazing. I really just want to immerse myself in this world, and learn more and more and more and more.

I think the one thing that bothered me a little was that there was less Cinder, and more Scarlet. I mean, I still loved Scarlet and Wolf, but you know, I wanted to more about Captain Thorne. ALSO PRINCE KAI. I still think he's "eh" but whatever. I do want him to be part of the action in Cress, or I guess Winter.

But anyways, I'm already reading Cress with Holly @ Part of Your World, which may be a bad thing since I'll be finished with it before Fairest and Winter come out. But I'm going to read it anyways. I'll just have to find something to distract me in the mean time.

Stacking the Shelves #12

Stacking The Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews and is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

This week, I got a huge pile of books ready to be read, and I have no idea if I'll be able to get to all of them. BUT STILL. I have them and they are mine, except for the library books.

I actually finally, finally, FINALLY bought Throne of Glass from Amazon like I said I was going to, a month ago. 

And then the next book on my must-buy list was Anna and the French Kiss, which is why I also bought a copy of that as well. SO YES.

Then there's this beautiful hardcover, Cress, which I will be buddy reading with Holly @ Part of Your World, because we are both awesome. And also I finished Scarlet, so good thing I have this!

And with the release of the paperback of The Dream Thieves, I bought that as well!

My book club book for the month is I Am The Messenger, who is by the same author that wrote The Book Thief! So I'm expecting awesomeness.

And I could not help myself in the library, and also picked up Parallel as well. This has been on my TBR for so long and I can finally read it now! 

I also discovered the beautiful-ness of the online, digital library, which apparently is also linked to Amazon. Basically, the library I'm with now not only has a huge YA collection in print, but also online as well! And I can send them to my Kindle, which I didn't know I could do!

So because of that, I borrowed The Falconer from the library. 

Also, apparently there are books on hold online as well, which doesn't make sense because it's an ebook? I just don't understand why it's like that, but I'll request something and see what happens. 

GUYS GUYS GUYS GUYS I GOT APPROVED FOR BLUE LILY, LILY BLUE!

I honestly don't know how this happened, but good thing I bought The Dream Thieves off Amazon, because I had no idea this was going to happen? In any case, thank you Scholastic for sending me Blue Lily, Lily Blue!

I have a dog.

I've never had a dog before.

Well, it's not my dog personally, but me and my roommates somehow scored a doggy! Here's the story. The dog we are getting was found by one of my roommate’s mother’s co-workers. It was just sitting there in front of a store, with no lease or tag or anything. When she asked inside the store, a worker said that the dog had been sitting there for hours. In the end, she took the dog home and reported it as lost.

Basically, no one claimed the dog, no one picked up the phone that was left by the tracking chip inside the dog. And although there’s a senile lady saying she knows the dog, she’s also telling two different stories, one in that she gave the dog to her daughter, and the other in that she put the dog down. Even so, she has not claimed it.


So now he's ours! And his name is Ollie! And he is old, but adorable! 

So yeah. AMAZING WEEK. Busy, but it's now Fall Break and I have Monday and Tuesday off! Yay!