Friday 27 November 2015

Mini Book Haul // Wherein I camp outside my house





I ordered a package a week ago. From the day I ordered it to the day it arrived, I camped outside my house near the postbox so the delivery truck wouldn't miss seeing a bedraggled teenager waiting to sign for her package of 3 books.
I'm kidding of course.
Maybe.

I've never done a book haul before. Although I'm pretty new to the book blogging community, I haven't seen too many posts on the subject either. BUT I am unbelievably excited and contained excitement is dangerous so I will force my excitement upon all of you. WE SHALL FANGIRL IN THE COMMENTS TOGETHER MY FRIENDS. OKAY LET'S GO.





Illuminae  by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

I am hopelessly late with this one guys. I originally wanted to read it because it's the Book Dragons book of the month for November. (Book Dragons is a wonderful book club on Goodreads and Instagram and if you haven't checked them out, GO DO SO OMG.) But time baffles me and it's already the 28th of November. So unfortunately I can't join in the discussion for this book, NO MATTER I will still read it and enjoy it (hopefully) and share my opinions with you guys. I have to admit I was pretty skeptical about it being a sci-fi because it's not a genre that I read very often. (in fact close to never) *runs and hides* Hopefully I'll be pleasantly surprised with this one.




All I Know Now  by Carrie Hope Fletcher

HOLD YOUR HORSES PEOPLE. STOP THE CARRIAGE. I HAVE A DECLARATION TO MAKE.
I... AM A HOPEFUL.
*whispers dramatically*: Are you one too?

I absolutely love Carrie Hope Fletcher. I think she's a wonderful Youtuber and overall human being. She's practically sunshine if sunshine was a person. And this is her book! I'm so excited to read this.
Plus she's writing a fiction book that's being released next year omg guys do you feel my excitement ahhhh <3 <3






Winter  by Marissa Meyer
This needs literally no explanation. I read the Lunar Chronicles this year and OH MY GOSH. Marissa Meyer does such a great job when incorporating the original fairytale with her story. When I got this book I held it to my heart and wept in utter ecstasy  I started to read then and there because I needed the conclusion immediately. Instantly. I'm actually currently reading this and plan to review it soon provided I don't collapse from an overload of emotions. I'm just saying. There's a lot of them in there.



______________________________________________________________________________

Have you read any of the books above? If you have, what are your thoughts on them? Also, what are you thoughts on book hauls? LET ME KNOW! (I always reply, so do check back!)



Tuesday 24 November 2015

Six of Crows // Gangs, Heists and Kaz.








Author: Leigh Bardugo
Publisher: Henry Holt and Company, LLC
Year published: 2015 


OH WHERE DO I EVEN BEGIN WITH THIS REVIEW. 
This is my first time reading Leigh Bardugo's work, having never even heard of the Grisha trilogy until shortly before this book was released. (runs and hides) Right off the bat, I wasn't that intrigued because of how hyped up it became in the bookish community and in fandoms in general.
 BUT THEN I READ THE SYNOPSIS. AND WHOAAAAA. 
WHOAAAAAAA.

Let's leave it at that.




1. Grubby setting, check.
I have a weird obsession with dark alleys and secret gangs and heists. Not to mention theives, the underground trade and the slums. This book, has all of it. ALL MY CRAVINGS WERE MET IN THIS SINGLE NOVEL. A good portion of the novel is set in the 'Barrel' which is basically the slums of Ketterdam where the gangs, gamblers, and gangsters reside. It's dank and dirty with awful people harboring awful intentions and oh my god it was so. good.

I loved the Barrel so much that I was practically dragged kicking and screaming to other locations as the plot developed.

2. The badass characters
The setting was one thing but the characters were the real treat. I loved all the characters in this book, which almost never happens. Particularly Kaz and Inej. I mean, come on guys, a broken boy turned bad in the cold hands of the slums and the spy with a tortured past? Please. I eat that stuff right up. I love the consistency in these characters' personalities too. One of my biggest bookish peeves is when a character abandons all sense of self when they fall in love. *cough Mortal Instruments cough* So despite my heartbreak at the outcome of the romantic elements in the story, I licked my wounds and ploughed on, simply because it was more realistic.


3. The schemes and plans (who thinks of this stuff?)
Leigh Bardugo thought this one through. No really. From the dealings in the Barrel to the complex plan of the heist in the Ice Court, all are explained in detail with most questions answered. No plot holes, guys. This is a solid promise. I found no reason to distrust the writing and found that it made perfect sense. ALSO THE PLANS AND SCHEMES ARE SO COOL so if you one reason to read this book, read it because of Kaz the scheming in the story.

4. Kaz

5. Kaz

6. Kaz

7. Character backstory. Yes please.
I loveee a good backstory. Tortured pasts and broken hearts are basically all I live on. (with a side of tea and two sugars) I'm an awful person, we've established that already. But really, this book does this so well! All the characters have completely different and unique backstories, and we read about all of them in this book, which was incredibly satisfying. It's basically backstory heaven going on in there. Plenty of tortured pasts and broken hearts to go around my friends. I loved it. Added bonus, everything is so unique! Nothing overlaps, nothing gets old. Freshness everywhere guys! FRESH STUFF EVERYWHERE.

_____________________________________________________________________________

So have you read Six of Crows? Do you plan to? Also, do you guys have any recommendations of books that have a similar setting to Six of Crows? LET ME KNOW! 



Monday 9 November 2015

Comics #1: CHEW // To read or not to read?

 

Written and lettered by: John Layman
Drawn and coloured by: Rob Guillory
Publisher: Image Comics
Publication year: 2009
Number of issues: 60

In the United States of America, the death of 23 million due to what the government claimed as a 'avian flu' caused chicken and all other bird meats to be outlawed. Tony Chu, a newly-hired FDA agent is in the centre of it all. 
Now Tony Chu isn't just any agent. He was brought in by the Special Crimes Division of the FDA for one specific reason. Tony Chu is a cibopath. What is a cibopath I hear you ask? It means that Chu gets psychic impressions form whatever he eats. Be it apple, (where he can visualise the tree it grew on, the pesticides used on the crop and when it harvested) a hamburger (well...) or the decomposing body of a murder victim. (have you lost your mind yet?)
This is his story, amongst many others.

EXCUSE ME BUT WHAT DID I JUST READ.


PROS:


ART
The art in CHEW is perfect. Absolutely perfect.  Now, CHEW is a comic in which it's main character ingests the decomposing body parts of  murder victims and the like in the name of justice. Needless to say, it's a pretty gross comic. The settings in this book all look pretty dingy and the characters are drawn just shy of disgusting to prance hand in hand with the premise of the entire comic. Nothing is polished and shiny. It's grubby and unsavoury and dare I say nauseating BUT I LOVE IT. IT'S FANTABULOUS I SAY. Is that a word? It is now. 




SETTING
The setting. OH MY GOD THE SETTING IS SO CLEVER YOU GUYS. I've read some pretty unique stuff in the past but the setting in CHEW is definitely up there. I mean, it's only set in a time when the US government has just OUTLAWED CHICKEN. The black market stocks up in chicken now folks, and there's a protesting party called the E.G.G. BUT WAIT! John Layman has also created tons of different food-related 'talents' and slowly introduces characters that possess them. For example, Tony Chu who's a cibopath, Amelia Mintz who's a saboscrivner, and SO MANY MORE GUYS OH MY GOSH. In terms of setting, the creativity of this comic is incredible. Originality wins! 

CHARACTERS
(main character and favs)

Tony Chu: Unlikable at first but is ultimately the bomb.
Tony Chu is pretty damn bitter about having to eat his way to justice, and to be honest, who wouldn't? That makes him pretty snappy throughout the comic, which is something you quickly get used to. Also, his romantic tendencies contributed to quite a few eye rolls. BUT! He's awesome guys. I mean seriously. The way he closes case after case (albeit gruesomely, don't get me wrong) is pretty darn cool. 



John Colby: A bionic badass (yes please)
I'm just gonna come right out and say it: I love John Colby's character. He's one of those bad ass cops that demands everything and somehow gets away with being an asshole to absolutely everyone but still has a soft spot for his friends. Yep. Also (spoiler guys) is it me or did something happen between him and Applebee? Whoever read the series, PLEASE JUST LET ME KNOW IT'S KILLING ME. 


CONS:

DEVELOPMENT
The story is a little slow in volume 1, just a little. It's pretty confusing too. I felt like so many cases were being introduced that I was being pulled in a million different directions and was wondering where the main storyline ran off to. I felt like the individual cases didn't get much attention, and each were closed before they properly began. But, it gets way better from volume 2 onwards, the cases condense into one main storyline and it makes a lot more sense. so this is just a teensy problem!



SO, TO READ OR NOT TO READ?
Uh, excuse me? GO. BOOKSTORE. NOW.
(get through the first volume and you'll be hooked, trust me.)


_______________________________________________________

Have any of you guys read CHEW? What did you think of it? And if you haven't read it, do you plan to? (pfft, of course you plan to, why wouldn't you?) 
TALK TO ME IN THE COMMENTS!
I do reply! (with far too much blubbering and overdone enthusiasm mind you)




Sunday 1 November 2015

Where I'm Introduced!


Hey there!
Welcome to my blog in its baby phase. I always find it strange when people say 'welcome' because it feels like what a mom would say on a play date. BUT THIS IS NO SUCH THING! This is an empowering segment of the Internet where you will learn (in due course) that pigs do fly, butterbeer is an actual thing, and exactly how much sprinkles you need to survive the zombie apocalypse. (far too much.)  It's going to be fabulous, my friends.

My name is Ashwinie but you can call me Ash because then it'll seem like we're friends and this entire process will be far less awkward. I'm sixteen years, 2 months, and 25 days old and sometime between the day I was born and this moment, I figured out that I loved reading. I have been blogging on and off for 8 years now, which is a hell of a long time if you think about it but I still consider myself a newbie or one of them 'baby bloggers' because to be honest, I have no idea what I did with my so-called blogging life for the past 8 years. My blogs-of-the-past had absolutely no point and no direction because seriously, what exactly can an  uninteresting 9 year old blog about?
But those days are over my friends. I am now sixteen years, 2 months and 25 days old and I have discovered... the book blogging community. If you haven't heard of the book-blogging community goodness me which rock have you been residing under all these years it's basically this faerie-filled, chocolate-dipped realm of possibilities. I have officially found my people.


So welcome to the awesome side where we have cookies and warm fuzzy blankets and buckets of hot chocolate that refill themselves (no we don't) But fear not! We have books and opinions and hopefully actual human beings...soon. It will be awesome nonetheless simply because I say so.


Comment if you want to and I'll try my best not to hyperventilate at the fact that OH MY GOD YOU ARE AN ACTUAL HUMAN BEING THAT'S ACTUALLY COMMENTING ON MY POST and reply like a perfectly normal person <3 <3