Thursday, December 31, 2015

Books Read 2015

Here are the books I read in 2015!



         The reviews to each book are linked into the title of that book, so if you wish to read that review feel free to click on the title and enjoy! The books without links in them are the books that I didn't write a review for. If you wish to see what I thought of the book, feel free to comment down below or check out my wrap up for that month! The links to my wrap ups can be found in the archive section of my blog which can be found to your right, or if you're in the mobile format scroll down below my profile info and click/tap on "View in Web version". 

*The asterisk by the titles of certain books show that those books are graphic novels & are in the "Graphic Novel Wrap Up Post"!*
~The little squiggley line represents the books that I re-read this year~
Green represents the books that I put links on for the reviews that I wrote this year(:

January

February 


  1. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
  2. To All The Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han
  3. The Phantom Of The Opera by Gaston Leroux
  4. Frost Bite by Richelle Mead
  5. Page by Paige by Laura Lee Gulledge*
  6. Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead
  7. Ignite by Sara B. Larson
  8. Wicked by Jennifer L. Armentrout
  9. Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson
  10. Alienated by Melissa Landers
  11. Until Midnight by Melissa Landers

March

May

July

  1. Just One Day by Gayle Forman
  2. This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki & Jillian Tamaki*
  3. Plain Janes by Cecil Castellucci & Jim Rugg*
  4. Destined For Doon by Carey Corp & Lorie Langdon
  5. Beautiful Darkness by Fabien Vehlmann & Kerascoët (Illustrator)*
  6. Chivalrous by Dina L. Sleiman
  7. Spera by 
  8. The Sculptor by Scott McCloud*
  9. The Mother-Daughter Book Club by Heather V. Frederick
  10. Irish Meadows by Susan Anne Mason
  11. The Time Traveling Fashionista by Bianca Turetsky 

October

  1. The 5th Wave by Rick Yancy
  2. The Rest Of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness
  3. Burn Baby Burn Baby by Kevin Craig
  4. Girl Online On Tour by Zoe Sugg
  5. Grounded: The Adventures of Rapunzel by Megan Morrison
  6. ~The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
  7. ~Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

December

Number of Books Read: 135
Number of Pages Read: 41,487
Best Reading Month: July
Worst Reading Month: October
Top 3 Favorite Books:

  1. The Selection trilogy + novellas + The Heir by Kiera Cass
  2. The Wrath & the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
  3. A Court of Thorns & Roses by Sarah J. Maas
*It's really hard to pick my top 3, so I will have my top 15 of 2015 up really soon!
Number Of Books Re-read: 10 books, 1 graphic novel, and 2 novellas

 Number of Series Finished: 8

  1. The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins
  2. The School For Good & Evil trilogy by Soman Chainani
  3. The Shatter Me Trilogy by Tehereh Mafi
  4. The Selection trilogy + novellas by Kiera Cass
  5. To All the Boys duology by Jenny Han
  6. The Alienated duology by Melissa Landers
  7. The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black & Tony DiTerlizzi
  8. The Girl Online duology by Zoe Sugg

Keep an eye out for my Top 15 Favorite Books of 2015 post! It will be up soon!

Enjoy!
Happy reading!
Olivia
~livthebooknerd~
My Links: Twitter // Instagram // Tumblr // Goodreads // Bloglovin



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Wednesday, December 30, 2015

December 2015 Wrap-Up


Hey guys!

       I'm posting this early because I've got some New Years plans, so if I do manage to read another book in the next couple of days, then I will include it in my January Wrap Up. I've read 10 books so far this month, and I'd say I've read some pretty great books this month. This month has been so busy with finals, Christmas festivities, and family. I hope that your Christmas and holiday season has been lovely and full of joy and love and fun. I hope that you've had a great December over all.

 Here are the books that I've read this December!

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Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Page Count: 392
My Rating: 5 stars
My Review: {click here}
To start out my month, I finished up the Hunger Games trilogy. Even though Mockingjay is not my favorite in the trilogy, Suzanne really does know how to finish off with a bang. This not only gave me all of the feels, and made me depressed at the end. It has been discussed on book blogs and BookTube about how Mockingjay was a bit of a let down compared to the previous books in the trilogy. I actually agree. I found the middle of Mockingjay to lack the constant action that the other two did. It was a little boring compared to The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, but it was still extremely good, and a good conclusion to the trilogy.
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Waiting by Carol Lynch Williams


Page Count: 
My Rating: 3 stars
My Review: {click here}

 My best friend Courtney recommended this book to me when I needed a sad and depressing book to read. This book was really depressing, but I didn't enjoy it as much as she or some of my friends said I would. I felt it to be lacking the quality that made it something really amazing. This book was OK, but it wasn't anything special to me.

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The One-Of-A-Kind Cat Book by Ciye Cho

Page Count: 127
My Rating: 2 stars
My Review: {coming soon}

 This book has the potential to be something really awesome, but I didn't like it much at all. I mean it's a picture book or a graphic novel, but it didn't have any plot, and the little stories in it weren't very compelling.





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Love and Other Unknown Variables by Shannon Lee Alexander

Page Count: 336
My Rating: 4.95 stars
My Review: {click here}

 This is one of my favorite December reads, and when I was reading it it gave me all of the feels. This is one of those illness books, but I wouldn't consider it to be cliche or anything. I really liked how Shannon writes and I like how she developed her characters throughout the story. If you like 
, or John Green's writing you will probably like this.


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Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison

Page Count: 247
My Rating: 3 stars
My Review: {click here}

I had my problems with this book. I found it to be entertaining, but the characters lacked any kind of character. The main character didn't have any self respect, and she was so self absorbed and petty. I couldn't stand her. This book was OK, but not anything to get worked up over.






Sandry's Book by Tamora Pierce

Page Count: 252
My Rating: 4.75 stars
My Review: {click here}

I really love Tamora Pierce's writing. Her writing is so magical and fun. Her characters are so diverse, and you love them right off the bat. The magic system that she's created is so interesting and cool. I really love the characters of this quartet, but I really love Tamora Pierce's Song of the Lioness quartet more. Compared to the Alanna quartet, The Circle of Magic quartet isn't as good, but it's still really great.




Obsidian & Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Page Count: 335 & 366
My Rating: 5 stars & 4.25 stars
My Reviews: #1 {click here} & #2 {click here}

I read this in December of 2014, and I decided to reread it this month so that I could continue on with the series. I really enjoyed Obsidian the second time, but I didn't enjoy Onyx as much as I did the first time. I kind of got slump-y half way through, and lost interest a little bit. Maybe it was just because I was busy with Christmas. I don't know.




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Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Page Count: 382
My Rating: 4.25
My Reviews: {review coming soon!}

I felt the same way with Opal as I did with Onyx. I felt like the story got kind of predictable and the characters didn't really show any kind of growth. I do want to know what happens next, but I can't bring myself to read the fourth and fifth book right away. I do want to finish the series and figure out what's going to happen, but it's not my top priority.







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A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston

Page Count: 325
My Rating: 4.95
My Reviews: {review coming soon!}

This is probably my favorite read of December. I got this book from my mom and her boyfriend for Christmas, and I started it right away. I really loved it. It's a retelling of A Thousand & One Nights, but it's not a normal retelling of the story. E.K. Johnston is such a good writer. Her writer is really poetic and beautiful. I cannot wait to read her next YA book. 






Total Pages Read This Month: 3,114
Favorite Book: A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston
Genres Read: Paranormal, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Graphic Novel, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction

I hope you enjoy your New Year celebrations! Happy New Year!

Enjoy!
Happy reading!
Olivia
~livthebooknerd~
Twitter // Instagram // Tumblr // Goodreads // Bloglovin  


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Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Sandry's Book (Circle of Magic #1) by Tamora Pierce




Page Count: 252
Published on: June 24, 2006
Published by: Scholastic
Genre(s):  YA, Fantasy, Middle Grade, High Fantasy
Source: Print: Paperback
Age Rating: PG-10

Where To Find It: Goodreads // Amazon

Twitter: @TamoraPierce

My Rating: 4.5 stars








Goodreads synopsis:

 With her gift of weaving silk thread and creating light, Sandry is brought to the Winding Circle community. There she meets Briar, a former thief who has a way with plants; Daja, an outcast gifted at metalcraft; and Tris, whose connection with the weather unsettles everyone, including herself. At Winding Circle, the four misfits are taught how to use their magic - and to trust one another. But then disaster strikes their new home. Can Sandry weave together four kinds of magical power and save herself, her friends, and the one place where they've ever been accepted?

~~~


Hey guys!

      I have love Tamora Pierce's work for maybe 3 years now, and every book that I read of hers is just beautiful and addicting and just overall amazing. Tamora Pierce writes these amazing high fantasy series that have such strong and kick-ass female protagonists that you can't help but love. Her characters are so strong, fun, and diverse. Her setting is so magical, new, and fantastical. It's hard for me to describe my love for her in a way that doesn't make me totally geek out.

      In Sandry's Book, I wouldn't say that it focuses on Sandry as much as you would think. This book tastefully switches perspective between the four main characters; Sandry, Daja, Briar, and Tris. Sandry's potential, I would say, is kind of explored and the other three kids' magical potential is just a ripple in the puddle of their potential...if that makes sense. Sandry's story is fleshed out a tad more than Briar, Daja, and Tris's, I guess. 

Sandry: Thread Magic, of noble birth, orphan

Briar: Thief, used to be called "Roach", plant magic, loves plants

Daja: Trader, specializes in metalcraft magic, rejected, orphan

Tris: bookworm, bitter, specializes in weather magic, kind of reckless, sent away from her family

Supporting characters: Niko, Rosethorn, Lark, Moonstream, Dedicate Gorse, Frostpine

      I overall loved this book. I feel like if I hadn't been so busy with my finals that I probably would have liked it a lot more...probably so much that I would rate it 5 stars. That's the first reason why I didn't rate it 5 stars, but the second reason is that I was hoping for something equally spectacular to the Song of the Lioness quartet. I adore that series, and I was hoping for something more I guess. 

     This could be considered a middle grade quartet, but I also think it could be considered YA, just because the characters have experienced some heavy stuff. The spin-off series, The Circle Opens, and the stand-alone that ties both of those series together, The Circle Reforged, it could be considered a YA series. 

My Favorite Character: Daja or Briar
My Favorite Kind of Magic: Plant Magic
My Favorite Teacher: Frostpine or Rosethorn

I hope your holiday season is filled with joy and love. I appreciate and love my readers so much, so thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to read my reviews! I love you guys!

Enjoy!
Happy reading!
Olivia
~livthebooknerd~
Twitter // Instagram // Tumblr // Goodreads // Bloglovin  



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Monday, December 28, 2015

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison

Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging (Confessions of Georgia Nicolson, #1)
Page Count: 247
Published on: June 15, 2008
Published by: HarperCollins 
Genre(s): Coming of Age, YA, Contemporary, Romance, Chick Lit, Realistic Fiction 
Source: Print: Hardback
Age Rating: PG-12

Where To Find It: Goodreads // Amazon

Twitter: @Louise_Rennison

My Rating: 3 stars




 Goodreads synopsis:

Angus: My mixed-breed cat, half domestic tabby, half Scottish wildcat. The size of a small Labrador, only mad. Likes to stalk Mr. and Mrs. Next Door's poodle. I used to drag him around on a lead, but, as I explained to Mrs. Next Door, he ate it.

Thongs: Stupid underwear worn by old Swotty Knickers, Lindsay. What's the point of them, anyway? They just go up your bum, as far as I can tell.

Full-Frontal Snogging: Kissing with the trimmings, lip to lip, open mouth, tongues...everything (apart from dribble, which is never acceptable). As taught to me by a professional snogger.

In this wildly funny journal of a year in the life of Georgia Nicolson, British author Louise Rennison has perfectly captured the soaring joys and bottomless angst if being a teenager. In the spirit of "Bridget Jones' Diary," this fresh, irreverent, and simply hilarious book will leave you laughing out loud. As Georgia would say, it's "fabbity fab fab!"

~~~

Hey guys!

        Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging follows fourteen year old Georgia Nicolson. Georgia Nicolson is just like any other girl. She's obsessed with boys, teen magazines, make-up, and being with friends. This novel is the diary of what she experiences with boys, make-up, and anything in between.

         I picked up this book about a week ago, from my school's library because one of my favorite YouTubers, ReadByZoe, had recommended The Confessions of Georgia Nicolson series in one of her videos. I've heard about this series for a long time, but I never really knew what exactly this series was literally about. I kind of went into this book blindly and hoping for the best...

       I was hoping for the best when reading this book, but unfortunately I was kind of disappointed with this book. I found Georgia to be really immature as a fourteen year old, and I feel like her parents aren't really a huge part of her life, as real parents should be. I was actually kind of hoping for more when it came to the parents contributing to her life. Georgia was really annoying, frivolous, self-centered, and immature. It's as if she didn't have any common sense, and as if she didn't respect herself at all. Her friends were so...stupid. They are insipid little girls, and I couldn't stand their personalities at all. They were so focused on kissing, getting a boyfriend, and being popular and I couldn't stand it. The characters were not likeable at all...especially to an older audience. I could see a younger audience really liking this book, but I didn't enjoy the characters. 

         This book was overall entertaining, but the characters were really annoying. I think I'll read the rest of the books to see if Georgia grows up some, but I'm quite wary of continuing on. Comment down below if you've read this series, and tell me if it gets any better.

 Happy Christmas and happy holidays everyone!


Happy reading!
Olivia
~livthebooknerd~
Twitter // Instagram // Tumblr // Goodreads // Bloglovin    
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Sunday, December 27, 2015

Bookmas/Cram-A-Thon Wrap Up & End of December & Beginning of January TBR


Hey guys!

 This past week I've participated in Whittney's Winter Cram-a-thon and Hailey's Bookmas event. Let me say...I totally failed. I've been so busy this past week, and I barely got anyting read. I set up my huge TBR with like 10 books on it, and I only managed to read two books for the CRAMATHON, and but I've managed to read 4 books. I'm pretty proud that I have read that amount, but I think if I hadn't been so busy I would have completed at least half of my TBR. I think the problem was that I started with my 800 page hefty books when I was feeling slumpy. Hopefully next year I will be smart and read my short books first. :)

 I managed to read the whole first bind up in the Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. The bind up includes the first two books in the series, Obsidian and Onyx. I was pretty much done with Obsidian when I had started my RAMATHON reading. I finished Onyx on the last day of the CRAMATHON, and the only reason I can think up to explain my lack of reading would have to be... Yah know, I don't know. I was probably distracted by Netflix and being lazy, I guess. I really loved Obsidian. Obsidian was exactly what I needed at the moment. I love Jennifer's characters, Daemon and Katy. There sarcastic banter cracked me up, and I think their perfect for each other. Onyx, for some reason, wasn't as good the second time. I think I was becoming a little bit slumpy, and tired of it.

 I'm currently reading the second bind up in the Lux series, which has the third and fourth books in Jennifer's series. I kind of feel slump-y still, but I'm powering through the series because I have all of the books in the series on my shelf. I'm about to start the fourth book in the series, and I look forward to finishing the series.

~~~

 From the 12th of December until the 24th I took apart in Hailey's Bookmas read-a-thon. During those 12 days I read 4 books, and I'm pretty proud of that. As I had said before, I've been really lazy and really busy lately with Christmas festivities and spending time with family, and planning stuff for this blog. 

 The first book that I read during the 12 days before Christmas was Sandry's Book by Tamora Pierce. Sandry's Book is the first installment of the Circle of Magic quartet. This book follows Sandry, Briar, Daja, and Tris as they meet and figure out their-selves and their magic. This book was really good! I really love Tamora Pierce's work, and the worlds that she creates in her books are so beautifully written and so wonderfully made. I can't wait to read the rest of the books in the quartet. I'm totally in love with the whole concept of it.

 My Rating: 4.25 stars
Favorite Character: Briar (Roach)
Review coming on the 29th of December!



The next two books that I read during the 12 days of Bookmas were the first 2 books in the Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout. Obsidian and Onyx were rereads from December of 2014. I really really enjoyed Obsidian the second time 'round, but I found that I didn't enjoy Onyx as much as I had enjoyed it the first time. Maybe I was feeling slump-y I'm not sure. I just got a bit bored with it.

My Rating of Obsidian: 5 stars
My Rating of Onyx: 4.25
Favorite Character: Daemon
My Ship: Daemon x Katy


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The fourth and last book that I read during the 12 Days of Bookmas was the third book in the Lux series, Opal. Jennifer L. Armentrout is such a great writer, but while reading this I got so annoyed and bored with it. I think I lost interest and I wasn't in the mood for science-fiction/paranormal romance. 

 My Rating: 4.25
Favorite Character: Daemon
My Ship(s): Daemon x Katy 
                   Dee x Adam
                   Dawson x Bethany




~~~
      I'm actually going to take a break from this series, and maybe read a couple of the books that I received for Christmas, and get back into the mood for The Lux series. I really want to love these books, but I cannot force myself to read them when I'm not in the mood. 
   
      During the next few days and during the first couple weeks of January, I plan on reading quite a few books, so keep an eye out on the Instagram page to see those books!
I kind of want to read: 

  1. A Thousand Nights by EK Johnson
  2. Alanna: The First Adventure
  3. Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer
  4. The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johanson
  5. Origin by Jennifer L. Armentrout
  6. Opposition by Jennifer L. Armentrout
and I want to read some of the fairy tales from my copy of The Complete Works of the Brothers Grimm.

Did you participate in the Cram-A-Thon or Bookmas read-a-thon? What books did you read? What do you want to read during the next couple weeks?

Thank you for reading & happy holidays!
Enjoy!
Happy reading!
Olivia

~livthebooknerd~
Twitter // Instagram // Tumblr // Goodreads // Bloglovin    


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