Zombie Apocalypse Book Tag

Happy Monday everyone! It’s the 29th today, which means this is the last post of February. I can’t believe it’s already been two months since we first welcomed 2016. Like always on Mondays, today I bring you another tag. The Zombie Apocalypse Book Tag! I saw this one over at B&C Books Blog and I thought it would be fun to do. I have to admit that every time I read the words Zombie Apocalypse, the first thing that pops into my mind is The Walking Dead. Fitting, because I’m actually typing this while watching The Walking Dead, which happens to be one of my favorite TV shows. What can I say, I’m a horror junky and I don’t even mind the blood and gore, I can stomach pretty much everything I see on TV. Guess you didn’t know that side of me, did you? And of course I had to use a Walking Dead wallpaper for this! But let’s focus on the tag. Here are the rules for this one:

1. Choose 5 books!
2. Randomly set up your books in order.
3. Flip to a random page in the book and write the first two names you see.
4. Put the names in the categories listed below in the order you saw them!
5. Cry at how screwed you are…

That last rule makes me think twice about doing this but oh well! Since I already picked the books. Here’s what my grabby hands pulled out from my shelves:

• Cinder by Marissa Meyer
• City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
• Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
• Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
• Legend by Marie Lu

So here we go! Let’s cry (or laugh) together!

The first person to die: Kai

I’m a bit upset about that to be honest, because I love Kai. But it could have been worse I suppose. Moving on!

The person you trip to escape the zombies: Queen Levana

Haha, yes! I totally would! What can I say? She’s a hateful person. Maybe she’ll be the one to die after Kai. I’m still upset after that one.

Review on “Confess”

Genre: Romance, New Adult, Contemporary

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Atria Books

Published: March 10th, 2015

Pages: 306

 

Goodreads summary: Auburn Reed has her entire life mapped out. Her goals are in sight and there’s no room for mistakes. But when she walks into a Dallas art studio in search of a job, she doesn’t expect to find a deep attraction to the enigmatic artist who works there, Owen Gentry.

For once, Auburn takes a risk and puts her heart in control, only to discover Owen is keeping major secrets from coming out. The magnitude of his past threatens to destroy everything important to Auburn, and the only way to get her life back on track is to cut Owen out of it.

The last thing Owen wants is to lose Auburn, but he can’t seem to convince her that truth is sometimes as subjective as art. All he would have to do to save their relationship is confess. But in this case, the confession could be much more destructive than the actual sin…

 

My thoughts:

“There are people you meet that you get to know, and then there are people you meet that you already know.”

Now, I have to admit that I was a bit out of my comfort zone with this because I don’t usually read romance and much more new adult romance,  but I read this with my bookclub Bookaholic Alliance (check us out on Goodreads and Instagram) and I’m glad we chose it for this month because otherwise I wouldn’t have read it on my own. This was actually my first Colleen Hoover book, so I couldn’t compare it to her other novels, but she did catch my attention as a writer and I will most likely be picking up more of her books.

Book Traveling Thursday #2

It’s Thursday again which means it’s time for my second Book Traveling Thursday Post! This is a weekly meme hosted by Danielle at Danielle’s Book Blog and Catia at The Girl Who Read Too Much, and you should all give it a try because it’s really fun! Here are the rules:

1) Pick a book! At the beginning of every month a list of themes will be posted. All you have to do is choose a book that fits the theme.
2) In your blog post, the first thing you will want to include is an explanation of why your chosen book fits the theme.
2) Look at covers from multiple editions and multiple countries for the book you chose.
3) Finally, include pictures of the original cover, the cover from your country (if there are multiple covers from your country include all of them!), your favorite cover, and your least favorite cover.
4) Be sure to tag your posts with booktravelingthursdays so we can all see each other’s posts!

You can also join the Goodreads group here!

Here is this week’s theme:

“Share the love!! Choose an underhyped book that you think everyone should read.” 

I had to go with Gameboard of the Gods by Richelle Mead for this one. Even though her Vampire Academy series is quite popular not many people have read this and in my opinion it deserves a lot more recognition because it’s truly amazing! As a huge fan or Richelle Mead, I was really excited to read this and I wasn’t disappointed in the least. Sure, this had nothing to do with her Moroi world but it was flawlessly written and it had everything I’m looking for in a good read. A charming, witty, unconventional hero, a badass heroine, plenty of action and strong element of the mystery-thriller genre. And it was also set in an amazing world in the future. So if you’re looking for a clever, fast paced, semi-dystopian and semi-mystery read, this is definitely the book to pick up!

Waiting on Wednesday #2

Time for my second Waiting on Wednesday post! I love this meme! Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine and it spotlights highly anticipated, upcoming releases. This week’s WoW post goes to Lady Midnight! I had to make an Wow post for this, especially now that the release date is so close and I’m getting really impatient to get my hands on it.

Goodreads summary:

Los Angeles. It’s been five years since the events of the Mortal Instruments when Nephilim stood poised on the brink of oblivion and Shadowhunter Emma Carstairs lost her parents. After the blood and violence she witnessed as a child, Emma has dedicated her life to to discovering exactly what it was that killed her parents and getting her revenge.

Raised in the Los Angeles Institute with the Blackthorn family, Emma is paired as a parabatai with her best friend, Julian Blackthorn. A series of murders in the city catch her attention — they seem to have the same characteristics as the deaths of her parents. Could the murderer be the same person? And her attention isn’t the only one caught: someone has been murdering Downworlders as well. The Fair Folk make a deal with the Institute: if the Blackthorns and Emma will investigate the killings, they’ll return Mark Blackthorn to his home. The catch: they have only two weeks to find the killers. Otherwise it’s open war between faeries and Nephilim.

The Shadowhunters of the Institute must race against time to catch the killers, even as they begin to suspect the involvement of those closest to them. At the same time, Emma is falling in love with the one person in the world she’s absolutely forbidden by Shadowhunter Law to love. Set against the glittering backdrop of present-day Los Angeles, Emma must learn to trust her head and her heart as she investigates a demonic plot that stretches from the warlock-run nightclubs of the Sunset Strip to the enchanted sea that pounds the beaches of Santa Monica.

Series: The Dark Artifices #1

Pages: 720 (hardcover)

Release date: March 8th, 2016

My thoughts: I’ve been waiting for this for so long, and it’s probably the most anticipated book of 2016, especially for fans of the shadow world. What else can I say about this? After so many brilliantly written books, so many amazing and beloved characters that will always be in our hearts (yes, I’m fangirling about Will Herondale at the moment :P) and that epic conclusion to the original TMI series, who wouldn’t want to delve into this brilliant but terrifying world once again? Especially with such awesome main characters like Emma and Jules, whom we’ve already met and loved. I’m getting extremely impatient to read this now that March is almost here and I really, really hope Cassandra won’t let us down!

Anyone else anxiously waiting for this book? Are you guys ready to delve into the Shadow World once again? I know I am!

Let’s play! Kiss, Marry, Kill Bookish Edition

Hello fellow bookaholics! I decided it was time to have some fun so why not play a game? You’ve all heard of Kiss, Marry, Kill haven’t you? If you haven’t then allow me to introduce you to it. It’s quite simple, really. Usually a friend of yours has to present you with a set of three people (celebrities, movie characters etc) and all you have to do is decide which one you’d kiss, which one you’d marry and which one you’d kill. I’ve always found this game extremely fun to play and that’s why I decided to turn it into a blog post so I can share it with you guys. And of course I’m going to be doing it with book characters. I asked my best friend to pick some characters from me and I also randomnly picked a few on my own from a jar. You can do that too. So, here we go:

Round 1

Kaz (Six of Crows)

Khalid (The Wrath and the Dawn)

Will (The Infernal Devices)

Starting off super hard because I absolutely adore all three of these characters. My best friend knew what she was doing, I’ll get back at her for that later. Ugh, how ever am I gonna choose? Okay, okay. I know that I’d definitely marry Will (because he’s Will and I couldn’t possibly live without him) and I’d probably kiss Khalid. Shahrzad has established he’s a pretty good kisser and plus he’s the King of Kings. Who wouldn’t want to hit it off with the King of Kings? And yeah, as much as it pains me, I would probably kill Kaz mainly because he’d never let me kiss him (or even touch him) and because I’m pretty sure he would annoy the hell out of me at some point. I love him but he is infuriating.

Round 2

Adrian (Vampire Academy)

Maxon (The Selection

Dorian (Throne of Glass)

Another really hard choice. I already know I’d kiss Adrian but here comes the dreadful decision of whether I would kill Maxon or Dorian. I love them both the same and they are both princes. But I’d probably marry Dorian because he’s also a bookworm and we’d never run out of things to talk about. Sorry, Maxon but I’m gonna have to kill you. Just because I can’t kill neither Dorian nor Adrian.

Crooked Kingdom Cover Reveal

I wasn’t planning on posting today but I saw the cover for Crooked Kingdom this morning and I just had to share it with you! After the brilliance that was Six of Crows I just can’t wait to get my hands on this book and I have no idea how I’m gonna wait until September to finally read the conclusion to Kaz’s story. I get a bit scared every time I think of all the things that might happen in Crooked Kingdom and I can’t wait to find out which ones of my guesses will come true. And I just have one thing to say. Hands off Kaz! If something happens to Kaz I will be seriously upset and I will never forgive Leigh Bardugo about it. I just love him too much and I really want him to have a happy ending. You probably don’t know this unless you’ve visited my blog before, but as I’ve said many times over, I have a thing for bad boys and morally ambiguous characters. And Kaz is definitely on the top of that list. I’m not gonna talk about how much I loved him in Six of Crows (or about how much I loved Six of Crows in general) because I’ve already ranted plenty about it in my review (you can read it here) but I am going to talk about how much I love the cover for Crooked Kingdom. Here’s what we know about the book so far:

Series: Six of Crows #2

Pages: 480 (hardcover)

Expected publication: September 22nd, 2016 (trying not to think about that)

Goodreads summary: Kaz Brekker and his crew have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn’t think they’d survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they’re right back to fighting for their lives. Double-crossed and left crippled by the kidnapping of a valuable team member, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz’s cunning and test the team’s fragile loyalties. A war will be waged on the city’s dark and twisting streets―a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of magic in the Grisha world.

The Harry Potter Spells Tag

I solemnly swear that I’m up to no good.  It’s Monday again which means it’s time for another tag. I love those, don’t you? This week’s tag is going to be quite magical. And what’s the first thing that pops into our minds when we hear the word ‘magic’? Our beloved Harry Potter, of course! So without further ado, I give you the Harry Potter Spells tag. Enjoy!

Expecto Patronum: A childhood book connected to happy memories. 

How fitting that a Harry Potter tag has to start with a Harry Potter answer. But seriously, there is no other answer to this question. Well, actually, I guess I could also go with The Chronicles of Narnia for this. Both these series are special to me and  I spent my entire childhood both pretending to wave wands and explore magical lands through wardrobes. But as much as I adore Narnia, Harry Potter will always be the one. Always. 😉

Bookstore Hunt: Starting Locally

I love bookstores! I mean, who doesn’t? They are places that beckon to every bibliophile out there, because we simply can’t say no to the pleasure of being around so many books all at once. Personally, I always feel at home in a bookstore and I’ve realized that it’s exceptionally hard to walk into one and walk out again without buying at least one book. I’m simply unable to resist, especially if I find a book that’s already on my tbr.

One of the things I love about traveling, is that I get the chance to visit so many different bookstores, look around for my favorite reads and find other books that are not available in my town or country. I’m pretty sure that I looked like a five year old on Christmas when I visited a Waterstones in London last year, and it was quite overwhelming for me because we don’t have bookstores that big in my country. I never miss an opportunity to visit a new bookstore, no matter where I am, and I figured it would be a good to share those bookstores with you. And that’s how Bookstore Hunt came to be. I’m not sure exactly what to call this so I’ll just go ahead and make it a meme. What I’m going to do for this, is take pictures of bookstores I visit in my country or abroad and share them here with you along with mentioning a few things about this specific bookstore and the reasons why I like it. And I would love it if the rest of you shared your favorite bookstores with me as well, so I’m officially creating the Bookstore Hunt Meme. You don’t have to do this every week, only when you have a bookstore to share.

So for my first Bookstore Hunt I decided to start locally. Unfortunately in my city, there are only a handful of bookstores that sell the kind of books I read and especially in English, so I usually have to order from abroad. However, there are a couple of bookstores close to me that have their charm. And there is a specific one that has always been my favorite and  which I visit every time I find myself downtown, even if it is just to look around. It’s called Public.

Book Traveling Thursday #1

Hello everybody! Welcome to my first Book Traveling Thursday! This is a weekly meme hosted by Danielle at Danielle’s Book Blog and Catia at The Girl Who Read Too Much, and I thought it’s an extremely unique and fun idea so I decided to give it a try. Here are the rules, in case you’re interested in joining, too:

1) Pick a book! At the beginning of every month a list of themes will be posted. All you have to do is choose a book that fits the theme.
2) In your blog post, the first thing you will want to include is an explanation of why your chosen book fits the theme.
2) Look at covers from multiple editions and multiple countries for the book you chose.
3) Finally, include pictures of the original cover, the cover from your country (if there are multiple covers from your country include all of them!), your favorite cover, and your least favorite cover.
4) Be sure to tag your posts with booktravelingthursdays so we can all see each other’s posts!

You can also join the Goodreads group here!

This week’s theme is book that made you cry. This was an easy choice for me. I don’t usually cry with books but All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven was definitely an exception. I finished this book at about 2 am in the morning and then cried for about an hour and no, I’m not exaggerating. I just couldn’t stop thinking about it. It was such a brilliant and honest story and it really makes you ponder about life. I’m not a big fan of contemporaries but this book managed to make it on my top 3 reads of 2015 which is a huge accomplishment. And even though it was heartbreaking I don’t regret my decision to read it and I think everyone else should, too. So here we go:

Original cover and cover from my country (Greece):

 

Top 5 Thursday: Books in my TBB

It’s Thursday again! And it’s a particulary good Thursday for me because yesterday was the last day of my college exams, which means I now have a two week break that I can devote to reading. Yay! But let’s get to business. A couple of weeks back I wrote a blog post about the top 5 books in my TBR. So today, I’m going to be listing the top 5 books I want to buy the most. I will only use books that are already out because otherwise the list would be way too long for this year.

Truthwitch

Goodreads summary: In a continent on the edge of war, two witches hold its fate in their hands.

Young witches Safiya and Iseult have a habit of finding trouble. After clashing with a powerful Guildmaster and his ruthless Bloodwitch bodyguard, the friends are forced to flee their home.

Safi must avoid capture at all costs as she’s a rare Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lies. Many would kill for her magic, so Safi must keep it hidden – lest she be used in the struggle between empires. And Iseult’s true powers are hidden even from herself.

In a chance encounter at Court, Safi meets Prince Merik and makes him a reluctant ally. However, his help may not slow down the Bloodwitch now hot on the girls’ heels. All Safi and Iseult want is their freedom, but danger lies ahead. With war coming, treaties breaking and a magical contagion sweeping the land, the friends will have to fight emperors and mercenaries alike. For some will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch.

Shelf it on Goodreads

Buy on Book Depository

My thoughts: This sounds like a very promising start to an exciting new series. I never say no to witches and exploring magical worlds. Especially if these magical worlds go with strong female characters. And I’ve also heard some amazing things about the world building and magic system in this one. So I’m really excited to read it and it’s definitely going to be one of the books I’ll be ordering next month!