Recent Reads #1

Hi Everyone!

MY A LEVELS ARE FINISHED!!

They went okay I think, but that's not what is important on here. I'm just excited that I now finally have time to blog again, and I thought I should talk about the books I've read recently (there's not a lot btw). I've got to be honest, I kinda like the idea of recent reads instead of monthly wrap-ups so I may stick to doing this but I'm not sure yet. Anyway, I hope you're all great and here are the books I've read over the last two months.

1. Scythe by Neil Shusterman

There's so much hype surrounding this books, but boy is it well deserved. Neil Scusterman has created an absolutely amazing world that I love and can't wait to read more of. I really liked our main characters, including the scythes and their apprentices, and the relationships all them had with each other - including Citra and Rowan's. However, whilst this relationship is fine at the moment I am worried it could be mishandled in later books, but I can't judge that yet. I also really like Rowan's progression as a character - and the darker side of him that came out, I thought it was really interesting and I can't wait to see where that goes. Whilst I did really enjoy this a couple of things did keep this from a five star book for me, including unfortunately the big plot twist that felt a bit too obvious to me, I would have enjoyed being surprised but this failed to do that for me. Also, I didn't total love the 'villain' of this story, he felt a bit too predictable and I like when we have villains we can sympathise with or love - so basically, Loki, and this villain was just not that. Regardless of that however, I'm really looking forward to seeing where this series will go and will definitely be picking up the sequel soon.

2. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

I've got to be honest, when I first started this book I was unsure, it just didn't seem like my cup of tea even though I really wanted to like it. But the more I read on the more I understood people's love for this book and character. Eleanor is a fantastic character, who I grew to love - much in the way her companions do, and every chapter seemed to reveal something new and fascinating about her. The books itself takes you on a rollecoaster of emotions, and had me near tears at some points and laughing at other's, and the ending leaves you filled with so much hope for Eleanor and recovery that it's just wonderful. This is possibly one of my favourite protagonists and stories that I've read this year so far.

3. Superior by Jessica Lack

This is what I've always wanted from a superhero story, a 'villain' and a 'hero' falling for each other? Yes please. This is so cute and fun, and such a nice quick read - I think it would be perfect for getting yourself out of a reading slump. The characters in this book are just perfect as well, Jamie and Tad are perfect together and both hold their own really well. I really liked out villain 'Tarantula' as well - he was lots of fun and gave a new perspective to a 'super villain' also. As did Captian Superior - who by the way is kind of a piece of shit, and how his story mixed with Tad's was really well done - like how the Marvel Universe has done some films looking at the consequences of superheros. The only reason I have not put this as a five stars on goodreads, is despite the fact I really enjoyed it, sometimes the character said things I think 12 year old me (a me I would really love to erase) would have found funny; such as Jamie calling his dick a 'horndog' - I can't give a book five stars if they refer to a dick as a horndog.

4. The Unbecoming of Mayra Deyer by Michelle Hodkin

This book is a goddamn mess. BUT before I start bashing it I want to say I don't think Michelle Hodkin is bad author, because I really like her writing style - it was the only redeeming feature of this book; but holy shit has this book not aged well. You can tell this book is a YA written in 2011 because it is one big glaring cliche with nothing in it that is remotely interesting, and the only thing that could have been interesting - the paranormal feature, is completely ignored in favour of a boring, male-dominated romance which honestly made want to smash my kindle because how many times do I need to read about this same twilight-esque relationship? I think I need to write a proper review for this as I have so many feelings about this but jesus christ don't pick this up unless you're 12 because it's just not good.

5. A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Scwab

HOW HAVE I NOT READ A V. E. SCHWAB BOOK BEFORE? Because oh my god was this a fanastic fantasy, and I just want more and more and more. I had heard Scwab was fantastic at world building, and my god is she, the Londons we see - and the one we don't are fantastic, each with their own atmosphere, people and rulers. However, this world building did sacrifice the characters at some point, don't get me wrong I loved Kell and Lila... eventually. I didn't really fall for these characters until nearly halfway through this book, I was unsure of Lila particularly at first but she was fantastic after a while. I also came to love the villains more as we moved through the story - which as you know, I think is key, possibly the most important feature of a fantasy novel. I'm looking forward to finishing this trilogy (which I went out and bought immediately) and diving into more V. E. Scwab books!