MAY '17 WRAP-UP

So, it's the end of the month and that means another wrap-up!

I had an alright reading month especially since I had a ton of work between actual schoolwork and AP exams. Unfortunately, I had to take a break from blogging because I was really stressed and busy.

I did go see two movies in the theater this month and watched a little TV. I saw Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2 which was amazing and baby Groot was the cutest. I also saw Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Men Tell No Tales which was amazing as well though not as good as the original three. I started season 2 of The Vampire Diaries and season 2 of The 100. I recommend both TV shows.

The layout of this wrap-up looks a little different from my past wrap-ups as I added books that I want to read in June. This past month I started a new feature called Bookish News and Stuff which should be a monthly feature.

Join my book club: here.

 Anyways...

Time to talk about the books I read this month.

PHYSICAL BOOKS

The first physical book I read was The 100 by Kass Morgan. It is very interesting to compare such a badass TV show to its book counterpart. The TV show is so much better than the book, that I will say. The character development is so much better in the TV show as well. There is hardly any development in the book for the characters. Unfortunately, Raven does not exist in the book which is upsetting because I love her. She is such a strong character whose loss really shows through the book. That all being said, I still enjoyed the book and ended up rating it 3 Crowns.

The first physical book I read was Lockwood & Co. The Whispering Skull by Jonathan Stroud.  I love this series so much and this was another great installment in the series. It reminds me a lot of Rick Riordan's books with the humor and intriguing characters. I really enjoy these books and I promise that some reviews shall come when I get the time. 

The third physical book I read was Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany & Jack Thorne. I have heard both terrible things about this book and very good things about this book so I was very hesitant to pick this one up. I ended up actually enjoying it because I loved seeing my favorite characters again. [though, where was Luna??]  I did have some minor quips with this though and I will discuss them in a discussion post later this summer. I rated this 3.5 out of 5 Crowns.

The fourth physical book I read was Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman. YA Westerns are now my new favorite thing. Why aren't there more of these?? [Que me trying to write one in the near future] The main character was very badass and I enjoyed reading about her. I ended up rating this 4 Crowns.

The fifth physical book I read was Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. I have put this off for so long because I didn't understand the awkward format of the book. And now I am wondering why it took me so long to read this because it was freaking amazing. The characters and the setting and the dialogue and the villain... I can't even form accurate sentences because this book was fantastic. I can not recommend this book enough. I rated it 5 Crowns.

AUDIOBOOKS READ

I really got into audiobooks this month and I started checking them out online from my library. Anyone who hasn't tried out an audiobook before needs to. They are amazing.

The first audiobook I listened to was By Your Side by Kasie West. I had heard really bad things about this book from many people on Goodreads and I was a little confused because Kasie West writes amazing contemporaries. When I saw this audiobook online, I decided to listen to it because I had never listened to a full audiobook before. This book was amazing. I rated this 5 Crowns. I adored the main characters, the issues the book dealt with and the cute adorable romance. I highly, highly recommend this.

The second audiobook book I listened to was Joyride by Anna Banks. I am in love with this book and the characters. The person who read the part of Carla was amazing at the Spanish accent and the person who read Arden's was great as well. I loved how it dealt with some major issues such as racism and immigration and I highly recommend that you listen to this one to get the full experience. I rated this one 5 Crowns as well.

The last audiobook that I listened to was Caraval by Stephanie Garber. This book was something that has been hyped up since last year, before its' release date. I am very happy to say that it lived up to the hype. I do admit that the beginning of this book did not intrigue me. But once we reached the third or so chapter, I was so on board. The audiobook made everything more intense and stressful and made the book so much better and more immersive. I rated this one 5 Crowns as well.

I have learned to really enjoy audiobooks so I will be listening to more. 

ARC'S READ

NONE

REVIEWS IN MARCH: 

OTHER POSTS: 

MUSIC MONDAY:

NONE

TOP TEN TUESDAY: 

NONE

TOP FIVE WEDNESDAY: 

NONE

WEEKLY WRAP-UP:

DISCUSSIONS/OTHER:

Bookish News and Stuff #1

April '17 Wrap-Up

May '17 TBR

FAVORITE COVER OF THE MONTH:

NEW FICTIONAL BAE'S: 

Bellamy Blake from The 100 by Kass Morgan [He's bae in both the TV show and the book]

Dax from By Your Side by Kasie West

Lockwood from The Whispering Skull by Jonathan Stroud

Arden Moss from Joyride by Anna Banks

Julian from Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Jesse from Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman

Ezra from Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

TV SHOWS I WATCHED THIS MONTH:

MOVIES I WATCHED THIS MONTH:

CHALLENGE UPDATES:

2017 New Release Challenge: 

1. FrostBlood by Elly Blake

2. Wanted by Betsy Schow

3. These Ruthless Deeds

4. It Started with Goodbye

4. 10 Things I Can See From Here by Carrie Mac

5. Freeks by Amanda Hocking

6. Hunted by Meagan Spooner

7. Ronit & Jamil by Pamela L. Laskin

8. Empress of a Thousand Skies by Rhoda Belleza

9. The Valiant by Lesley Livingston

10. By Your Side by Kasie West

11. Caraval by Stephanie Garber

NetGalley Challenge: 

1. FrostBlood by Elly Blake

2. Wanted by Betsy Schow

3. These Ruthless Deeds

4. It Started with Goodbye

4. 10 Things I Can See From Here by Carrie Mac

Series Ender: 

None

Debut Challenge: 

1. FrostBlood by Elly Blake

2. It Started with Goodbye 

3. Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Retellings Reading Challenge: 

1. Ash by Malinda Lo

2. Wanted by Betsy Schow

3. Heartless by Melissa Meyer

4. Kingdom of Ash and Briars by Hannah West

5. Hunted by Meagan Spooner

Beat the Backlist Challenge:

1. Ahsoka by E.K. Johnston 

2. Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst

3. Black Widow Forever Red by Margaret Stohl

4. Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

5. These Vicious Masks by Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas

6. Glitter by Aprilynne Pike

7. Ash by Malinda Lo

8. Ever the Hunted by Erin Summerill

9. Heartless by Marissa Meyer

10. A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

11. The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud

12. The Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows

13. City of Ashes by Cassandra Claire

14. The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee

15. Scythe by Neal Shusterman

16. Kingdom of Ash and Briars by Hannah West

17. City of Glass by Cassandra Claire

18. Little Black Dresses, Little Black Lies by Laura Stampler

19. Nemesis by Anna Banks

20. The 100 by Kass Morgan

21. The Whispering Skull by Jonathan Stroud

22. HP and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling

23. Joyride by Anna Banks

24. Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman

25. Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Flights of Fantasy Challenge: 

1. FrostBlood by Elly Blake

2. Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst

3. Ash by Malinda Lo

4. Ever the Hunted by Erin Summerill

5. Wanted by Betsy Schow

6. Heartless by Marissa Meyer

7. The Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows

8. City of Ashes by Cassandra Claire

9. Freeks by Amanda Hocking

10. Kingdom of Ash and Briars by Hannah West

11. Hunted by Meagan Spooner

12. Nemesis by Anna Banks

13. Empress of a Thousand Skies by Rhoda Belleza

14. The Whispering Skull by Jonathan Stroud

15. Caraval by Stephanie Garber

16. HP and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling

Diverse Reads 2017:

1. Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst

2. Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon

3. Ash by Malinda Lo

4. 10 Things I Can See From Here by Carrie Mac

5. Ronit & Jamil by Pamela L. Laskin

6. Joyride by Anna Banks

WHAT BOOKS I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT MONTH:

NEW BLOG FINDS

NONE

SONGS ON REPEAT

Kids in America - Riverdale Cast

Into the Black - Chromatics

Bad Liar - Selena Gomez

Ways to be Wicked - Descendants Cast

Believer - Imagine Dragons [This is my jam!]

Prom Queen - Mary Kate Kestner

Crying in the Club - Camila Cabello

High Enough - K. Flay

Strip it Down - Liam Payne

I Walk the Line - Halsey

Strangers - Halsey

 BOOKS I WANT TO READ NEXT MONTH

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