Book Review Monday- Caraval by Stephanie Garber| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

Today I am going to be reviewing the January Fairyloot book, Caraval by Stephanie Garber. If you are a part of the book community, then you will have probably heard of this book as it has been very hyped. Like all my other reviews, this review will contain spoilers, so if you have not read Caraval, you will not be able to read this review.

Caraval by Stephanie Garber- Contains Spoilers

Non-Spoiler Thoughts

When I first heard about Caraval, I knew that I would love it. It was more mystery fantasy, than epic fantasy, which is the type of fantasy books I enjoy reading. Recently, I had fallen out of love with fantasy, but this book helped me fall back in love with fantasy. I gave 5/5 stars and I cannot wait for the sequel to come out.

Cover Chat

I absolutely love the UK edition of Caraval. The dust jacket has a line down the middle where it changes from black to white. The UK edition also has five secret covers under the dust jacket and I got the clock, which I think is my favourite.

Plot

Whatever you've heard about Caraval, it doesn't compare to the reality. It's more than just a game or a performance. It's the closest you'll ever find to magic in this world . . . 

Welcome, welcome to Caraval―Stephanie Garber’s sweeping tale of two sisters who escape their ruthless father when they enter the dangerous intrigue of a legendary game.

Scarlett has never left the tiny island where she and her beloved sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval, the far-away, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show, are over.

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. But she nevertheless becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic with the other players in the game. And whether Caraval is real or not, she must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over, a dangerous domino effect of consequences is set off, and her sister disappears forever. 

As always, this summary is taken Goodreads and the average rating is 4.12/5 stars.

Opinions

Like I said at the beginning of my review, I loved this book. It's something new and fresh in YA fantasy and as a huge fantasy lover, this was amazing. Sometimes in books, stories can get told over and over again, and as a reader, we need new things to read. This was the book I had been looking for to help me fall back in love with fantasy.

The world was intoxicating and I felt as though I was apart of the story. The characters were very realistic and dealt with real issues such as parental abuse and arranged marriages. It was refreshing to read of a relationship in a book that was family, specifically sisterly love, rather than romantic. While I enjoy reading about romantic relationships, I prefer reading about family and friend love.  

My only issue with this book is that some of the plot twists felt unnecessary. I understand that books need plot twists, but these twists felt too much. I am not a huge fan of authors killing off characters and then bringing them back, so this may just how I feel.

I am very excited to read the sequel and am very interested to see where she takes the story. Let me know what you thought of Caraval and if you had some of the similar opinions to me.

Love,

Carenza x 

January Fairyloot Review| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

Today I am going to be reviewing the January Mystery and Mischief Fairyloot box. I'm sure it is safe to post this as the February boxes have been shipped. I am going to bringing you guys a review every month from now on as I have a monthly subscription.

So this is an overview of what was in this months box. As you can see there was a lot in this box. There is actually one thing missing from this photo and that is a second book!

As part of the Mystery and Mischief theme, Fairyloot included either a Game of Thrones or Harry Potter mystery mini Pop Funko. I got Nagini from Harry Potter, which I already have, so I gave it to my mum.

Fairyloot have started to include candles regularly in their boxes and this month's candle was made by Meraki Candles. The candle was named by the author of the month and it smells of cocoa, berries and musk. Like most things in this box, this is exclusive to Fairyloot.

Inside it is this gorgeous pink colour which fits really well with the book.

This cushion cover was a first for Fairyloot. It was designed exclusively by Risa Rodil. It is themed around the Night Circus (which I have been dying to read) and fits an 18 by 18 inch cushion filler. This was probably my favourite item as I love putting cushions on my bed.

The other book in the box was How to Think Like Sherlock by Daniel Smith. A fun little book to help you improve your deduction skills and become more like Sherlock.

The final item was this double sided Alice in Wonderland designed exclusively by Read at Midnight. This is a really sturdy bookmark and the design is super pretty.

The other side of the bookmark.

This exclusive rose necklace was designed by Oh Panda Eyes. Each necklace was handmade and had a little cinema style ticket attached.

The book included in Fairyloot's January box was Caraval by Stephanie Garber. I have read this and gave it 5/5 stars, my review is coming on Monday. I love this UK edition as it has 5 secret covers to collect and the secret cover I got was...

The clock! I think that this is my favourite of the secret covers.

As always, Fairyloot included a signed bookplate to stick in your book.

Once again, Fairyloot included Fairyscoop.

Inside is an interview with the author as well as some book recommendations. I'm definitely going to have to pick up the US edition of Heartless by Marissa Myer.

On the back is an interview with my favourite BookTuber, Emma from Emmmabooks. I love these little shout outs to people in the book community.

Every month Fairyloot includes a unique hashtag to find your reading buddy and I found my reading buddy for this month!

I love these letters that Fairyloot includes in every box, I have stuck mine in the front cover of my copy of Caraval.

This was the graphic info card for the January box.

As a bonus, Fairyloot included this cute Caraval themed print.

There was also a matching bookmark!

Fairyloot is really good at including promo for other books and these were the promo items included in this months box.












So that concludes my January Fairyloot review. Would you guys prefer it if I posted these in the middle of the month rather than the end of the month?
Love,
Carenza x

Random Recommendations- Contemporary Books| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

So recently I've been thinking about books I don't talk enough about and genres I don't read enough of. I am a die-hard Fantasy fan and will read mostly fantasy all year round, but recently I have fallen out of love with fantasy and have been picking up contemporaries. So I thought I would recommend 4 of my favourite contemporaries, but these are books that I consider to be underrated and deserve more love from the book community. This post will be completely spoiler free.

My first two recommendations have been turned into movies, hence the movie tie-in editions I have. The first is Love Rosie by Cecelia Ahern. Originally published as Where the Rainbow Ends, it follows Rosie and Alex as they struggle through life. Starting as 5 year olds and ending as 50 year olds, this book covers a very large time frame. Told through letters, emails and DMs, at times it can be hard to follow the plot. If you are looking for a cute contemporary which focuses on love, this is the book for you. The movie is also excellent.


My other recommendation is Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. I read this pretty recently and it was one of the most heart breaking books I have ever read. Had I not been on public transport, I would have cried my eyes out. Me Before You follows the story of Louisa Clark (Lou for short) who suddenly loses her job and still lives with her parents aged 26. She tries various jobs, but ends up becoming a career for Will Traynor, a quadriplegic man. I will be reviewing this book in a couple of weeks. This is definitely not your classic love story and does deal with issues around being disabled. I will be going into detail about this in my review. But if you are looking for a slightly more serious contemporary, then this might be for you. I can't wait to watch the movie as I have heard nothing but great things about it.
 

My other two recommendations are seriously underrated, in my opinion. My first recommendation is the Noughts and Crosses series by Malorie Blackman. I read this book almost 6 years ago and I loved it. It deals with racial issues in an unusual way. In books that usually deal with racism, black people are seen as inferior to white people. However in this book, white people are seen as lower than black people. As Malorie Blackman is a author of colour, this book is really accurate to her own experiences with racism. I would say that this book is for more mature readers due to the subject matter, but don't let that hold you back. I read this book when I was 11 years old. It is part of a 4 book series, with a World Book Day book released back in 2003 you can get cheap on Amazon.

My other recommendation is The Truth About Alice by Jenifer Mathieu. I picked this book on a whim and have read a few times since. The Truth About Alice is a story about a girl called Alice, who everyone believes caused the deaths of a high school hero while texting while he was driving. The story is told from 4 different perspectives, all of whom have a reason to twist the truth and only in the final chapter do you hear Alice's perspective on the story. It's a very short and quick read. This book deserves so much more hype than it has.

So that concludes it for my random recommendations, let me know if you want more recommendation posts like this. I also want to say that this is my 100th post! I can't believe I have written 100 posts on this blog, I never thought I'd write that many.
Love,
Carenza x

Book Review Monday- Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

Today I am going to be reviewing Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken, the final book in the Passenger Duology. To read my review of Passenger, click here. Like all my other reviews, it will follow my usual structure which I'm sure you guys are tired of reading at the start of my reviews. This review will contain spoilers for Passenger and Wayfarer, so if you haven't read this series, you won't be able to read this review.

Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken- Contains Spoilers

Non-Spoiler Thoughts

I definitely preferred Wayfarer to Passenger. I gave Passenger a 3.5-4/5 stars and I gave Wayfarer 4.5/5 stars. I found the story more engaging from the beginning, which was something that I hadn't in Passenger. I am sad that this is a duology as I would have liked more from this world. I will be checking Alexandra's other series, The Darkest Minds.

Cover Chat

I really love the covers for the Passenger series. They are really striking. If I hadn't seen so many people talking about the duology, I would have still picked them up because the covers are amazing.

Plot

All Etta Spencer wanted was to make her violin debut when she was thrust into a treacherous world where the struggle for power could alter history. After losing the one thing that would have allowed her to protect the Timeline, and the one person worth fighting for, Etta awakens alone in an unknown place and time, exposed to the threat of the two groups who would rather see her dead than succeed. When help arrives, it comes from the last person Etta ever expected—Julian Ironwood, the Grand Master’s heir who has long been presumed dead, and whose dangerous alliance with a man from Etta’s past could put them both at risk.

Meanwhile, Nicholas and Sophia are racing through time in order to locate Etta and the missing astrolabe with Ironwood travellers hot on their trail. They cross paths with a mercenary-for-hire, a cheeky girl named Li Min who quickly develops a flirtation with Sophia. But as the three of them attempt to evade their pursuers, Nicholas soon realizes that one of his companions may have ulterior motives.  

As Etta and Nicholas fight to make their way back to one another, from Imperial Russia to the Vatican catacombs, time is rapidly shifting and changing into something unrecognizable… and might just run out on both of them.

As always, this plot is taken from Goodreads. The average rating is 4.09/5 stars and that is from 2211 ratings.

Opinions

Like I said at the beginning, I preferred this to Passenger. My attention was grabbed straight away from the first page. As Passenger left on such a great cliff hanger, it was vital that Wayfarer had a strong start. It's very rare that I'm hooked to a book from page one.

Again, like Passenger, the pacing in this book wasn't brilliant. There were times were my interest lapsed. I understand that authors can't just have action scenes, but there has to be a balance between action and development scenes.

While I really enjoyed it, there were times were I found the plot a bit confusing. Maybe it was because I was trying to finish it really quickly, but I struggled with the plot. It was a lot harder to keep up with the plot with Nicholas and Etta being separated.

Whilst reading Wayfarer, I was thinking the rating was going to be the same as Passenger, but the ending saved it. It was the ending I needed and made me so happy. It didn't leave any questions and I felt satisfied with it.

So that concludes my review of Wayfarer, let me know what you thought of Wayfarer and the Passenger duology.

Love,

Carenza x     

    

UK vs US- Book Covers and Exclusive Content| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

Recently I have been thinking about the book community and how it is very different in the US compared to the UK. It's on a much larger scale and they have so much more events to attend. But I've been thinking about how covers vary between the UK and the US and I am going to be discussing my opinions on it.

Personally, I feel that the US gets the better cover. While I will often get the UK edition, I will prefer the US edition. For example, the US covers for a Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab are gorgeous! The UK ones are still pretty good, but I would love to get my hands on those versions. More often than not, trying to get a hold of a US edition can be quite expensive as they tend not to sell them in most UK book retailers. However, a series where I think the UK has better covers is the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J Maas. We have these amazing white editions with the main character on the cover which I love.

Another thing that I find annoying about the difference between the UK and the US is most of the pre-order competitions are for the US only. These pre-order competitions should be open to everyone, not just one country. It feels as though you are losing out as a reader on something really cool to do with one of your favourite authors.

My main pet peeve in this discussion is exclusive content. I am really against exclusive content as most exclusive content is only available in certain countries. For example, when Empire of Storms came out, there was so many different versions of the exclusive content and you could only get that version in that specific shop. Like with the pre-order competitions, it feels as though your reading experience will be less than someone who has the exclusive content because they can get to that shop.

My main point with this argument is that there shouldn't be such a big divide between the countries. Everyone's reading experience should be the same and shouldn't have to be different because they don't live in a certain country. Like in everyday life, reading should have equal opportunities for everyone and no group of people should feel excluded.

So that concludes my discussion on the difference between the UK and the US book community, let me know what you think about the various issues I have discussed in this post.
Love,
Carenza x  

How to Bookworm #5- Bookstagram| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

Welcome to the fifth part of my How to Bookworm series. In this post I am going to be talking about Bookstagram. I joined the Bookstagram community back in January 2016 and I've been having loads of fun ever since. I'm going to be sharing some of my tips in this post.

Photography Tips

My main photography tip is use a good editing software. You don't need a really expensive camera to take good quality photos. Most smart phones come with really decent cameras built in. On my instagram photos I use VSCO cam. If I am honest, I don't know what half the things do, but I know it makes my photos look pretty. 

Another tip for good quality photos is lighting. Make sure the lighting is bright! You don't need to go out and buy expensive studio lights, natural lighting will become your best friend. Admittedly, taking photos in Winter is very hard as there is hardly any natural light.

Keep a Theme

Another useful tip for Bookstagram is maintaining a theme. If your photos all go together, more people are likely to follow you and like your photos. Since I started sticking to a theme, I noticed my follower count grow. My theme at the moment is using a white background with my copper lamp which I mentioned my favourites video and some pine cones.

Frequent Posting

Like blogging, to maintain your audience, you need to post regularly. I tend to post once a day or twice a day if I haven't posted the previous day. Regular posting means that you have a good relationship with your audience and that you can talk to them every day. Also on Instagram, there are stories. I like to post on mine once every week, but it really depends on what I'm feeling like.

See What's Popular

A really useful tip is to follow lots of other Bookstagram accounts to see whats popular. By seeing whats popular, you're up-to-date and more people are likely to click on your profile. Another useful tip is using hashtags at the end of your posts as it allows people to search for similar things and then they'll find you.

So that concludes my How to Bookworm on Bookstagram, let me know if you have any tips for Bookstagram.

Love,

Carenza x

Book Review Monday- Passenger by Alexandra Bracken| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

In this Book Review Monday, I am going to be reviewing Passenger by Alexandra Bracken. I picked Passenger up for my birthday book shopping and only just got round to reading it, however, I am glad I got to it now as the sequel Wayfarer had just been released when I read it. My review will be in the usual style: Non-Spoiler section, cover, plot and opinions.

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken- Contains Spoilers

Non-Spoiler Thoughts

I gave Passenger 3.5 or 4/5 stars. I couldn't decided which it was so it sits in the middle. I really enjoyed it, but I found some problems with it. I am definitely going to pick up Alexandra Bracken's other series soon.

Cover Chat

I really love the covers for the Passenger duology! They are so pretty! It's so cool how the bottle has a city in it and then the reflection has a boat!!

Plot

Passage, n.
i. A brief section of music composed of a series of notes and flourishes.
ii. A journey by water; a voyage.
iii. The transition from one place to another, across space and time.

In one devastating night, violin prodigy Etta Spencer loses everything she knows and loves. Thrust into an unfamiliar world by a stranger with a dangerous agenda, Etta is certain of only one thing: she has traveled not just miles but years from home. And she’s inherited a legacy she knows nothing about from a family whose existence she’s never heard of. Until now.

Nicholas Carter is content with his life at sea, free from the Ironwoods—a powerful family in the colonies—and the servitude he’s known at their hands. But with the arrival of an unusual passenger on his ship comes the insistent pull of the past that he can’t escape and the family that won’t let him go so easily. Now the Ironwoods are searching for a stolen object of untold value, one they believe only Etta, Nicholas’ passenger, can find. In order to protect her, he must ensure she brings it back to them—whether she wants to or not.

Together, Etta and Nicholas embark on a perilous journey across centuries and continents, piecing together clues left behind by the traveler who will do anything to keep the object out of the Ironwoods’ grasp. But as they get closer to the truth of their search, and the deadly game the Ironwoods are playing, treacherous forces threaten to separate Etta not only from Nicholas but from her path home... forever.

As always, this synopsis is taken from Goodreads and the rating on Goodreads is 3.88/5 stars.

Opinions

As I said in my non-spoiler section, I had mixed feelings about Passenger. My main problem with the book is that the pacing felt really off. At certain points, I would feel my interest in this book dipping and then something really exciting would happen. I understand that authors can't keep the pace the same all the time, but the pacing in this book wasn't the best.

One of my favourite things about this book was how Alexandra Bracken addressed racism. Nicholas is a black character living in a time when slavery was still a thing. She talked about how even in the 21st century, we still live with lots of racism. I was so glad that she addressed this as we never get to discuss racism and how it shouldn't exist. 

The ending was a really good and I didn't see it coming. I really like it when the plot shocks me. I also really enjoyed how complex Sophia was. Alexandra Bracken did a really good job of showing how people are neither good nor bad. It was nice reading about complex characters that aren't just 2D.

So that concludes my review of Passenger by Alexandra Bracken, my review of Wayfarer will be coming next Monday. Let me know what you thought of Passenger.

Love,

Carenza x

January 2017 Favourites| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

It's time to discuss all the bookish, cultural and random things I loved in January. There were loads of things I loved last month and I can't wait to discuss them.

Books

My favourite book that I read in January was We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver. You can read my review here. This was really different from anything I've read before and raises some really important issues.








 

My favourite purchase in January was this gorgeous edition of the Complete Sherlock Holmes. I got this from the National Portrait Gallery in London. This is my second Barnes and Nobles classics and I will definitely be purchasing more of them. 

Culture

My first cultural favourite is La La Land. I'm sure you guys will have heard loads about La La Land as everyone seems to be talking about it. It was a really different take on a musical. The songs were really catchy, I still have City of Stars stuck in my head. 

My next favourite is Sherlock series 4. While series 4 wasn't my favourite, it was still amazing.The story line was very different from the previous series. The characters were also really well developed. I really hope that it isn't the final series as I love Sherlock.

Another film I saw in January was A Monster Calls, to read my review click here. I genuinely sat in the cinema and cried. The animation and cinematography was beautiful. It was one of the most accurate book-to-film adaptations I have seen.

I have a theater favourite and that is Lazarus. Lazarus was the musical David Bowie produced before his death. The soundtrack is amazing, I highly recommend. While I really enjoyed it, the seating arrangement was awful. At certain times I couldn't see the far corners of the stage. I also  struggled to see over the people in front of me as the seats weren't steep enough. 

My travel related favourite was visiting the Harry Potter Tour near London for the first time. It was like the inner 5 year old was going crazy. While it is expensive. it is totally worth the money. I went with my college so I won't be talking about my experience in too much detail, but I am hoping to go again this year. I did buy a lot of things and I got to ride a broomstick!

My first musical favourite is Hamilton. I finally listened to the soundtrack and it is as amazing as everyone says. My favourite song is You'll Be Back. I can't wait to see it next January (2018).

My final cultural favourite is the Poldark soundtrack. My parents got me this for Christmas and I have been listening to it loads. It has a lot of calming piano pieces.

Bits'n'Bobs

My first Bits'n'Bobs favourite is this notebook in the shape of a C. As you guys know, my name starts with a C and I can never find anything with a C on it. I thought that this was really cool and a bit different, plus it has cats on it. Do I need to say anymore? This is from a company called Alphabooks. I bought mine in the National Portrait Gallery.

My next favourite is this cool copper lamp that I got from my parents for Christmas. I have been using this a lot on my Instagram and I love how cool and unique it is.

My final favourite is all the stuff I bought from the Harry Potter studio tour. While it was expensive, I loved every single thing I bought. If you are wondering what card I got, it was Rowena Ravenclaw.










So that concludes my very large January favourites, let me know what some of your favourites were.
Love,
Carenza x

     

How I Bullet Journal| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

So I am finally doing a blog post about bullet journaling. I have been planning this for ages but I have never been able to fit it into my upload schedule. So in this post I am going to be talking about how I do my bullet journal, if you would like a post about the equipment I use, let me know.

So this is what my bullet journal looks like from the outside. I use a small-ish Moleskin notebook. I bought it a few years ago and forgot I had it. I started it in April 2016 and should finish it around May-June. 

So this slightly blurry photo shows my Table of Contents pages. On the left hand page, I have an overview of what I like to include and my key code for all the different colours I use. Then on the right page I have my contents page (I number each page and this page tells me when each month starts). 

Recently I have seen lots of people who bullet journal do these pretty month style pages and I thought I would put my own spin on it. So in each corner I have specific goals for each of my four important areas: Reading (green), School/Studying (pink), Bookstagram (purple) and Blog (blue). This is an overview of my to do lists which I include at the end of each month. I also have included a specific goal and a word of the month.

So this is my monthly overview. At the top of the page I say what month it is. Then I have the days of the week across the top. Each box is labeled with what day it is. I know that February looks really busy, but this is where I keep track of what blog posts I have planned and then when I'm going to write them. The stuff in red is to do with important college related things.

This is last weeks spread. I separate a double spread into two sections. On the left hand page I have Monday-Thursday as I don't tend to have too much written down for those days as I am often in class. Then on the right I have Friday- Sunday, they're a bit bigger as I usually have more time to revise. I use really skinny washi tape to separate the days, I got it from Amazon ages ago for around 99p and I'm definitely going to need some more soon.

So this is this weeks spread. The reason there are two different colours of washi tape is because I ran out of the pale pink while making it. You can see that it is really empty as I have been doing Work Experience so I didn't know if I would have time to revise. 

This is the first of my two to-do-lists in my journal. I have covered some personal details with sticky notes. But I like to separate it into sections using colour. The left hand page has my social media section and the right hand page is my reading page. The reading page is separated into three sections: the top is my TBR, the middle is my Wrap Up and the bottom is releases.

The final part of my bullet journal is my school to do list and revision tracker. The left hand page is my school to do list. As it gets closer to exam season, my to do list will get larger. I started doing a revision tracker in November and I found it really motivational. I have it split into three sections, one for each of my subjects.

So that is the end of this blog post about bullet journaling. I'm sorry it took me so long to find times to post it. Let me know if you bullet journal and if you do it in a similar style to me.

Love,

Carenza x

Book Review Monday- History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

Today I am going to be reviewing History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera. I already have a spoiler-free review for it, which you can read here. In this review, I am going to be discussing all the spoilers I left out of my spoiler-free review. The UK edition of HIAYLM comes out of February 9th.

History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera- Contains Spoilers

Non-Spoiler Thoughts

 As I already have a non-spoiler review up, I won't be going into too much detail. I gave History 5/5 stars. I was lucky enough to win an ARC (advanced reader copy) of this book from Maximum Pop Books in November and read it straight after it arrived. This book broke me, then fixed me and broke me again.

Cover Chat

So these are both of the covers for History. I have to say that I prefer the UK edition as apparently it is going to have blue foil for the waves. I can't wait to see a finished copy in person!

Plot

When Griffin’s first love and ex-boyfriend, Theo, dies in a drowning accident, his universe implodes. Even though Theo had moved to California for college and started seeing Jackson, Griffin never doubted Theo would come back to him when the time was right. But now, the future he’s been imagining for himself has gone far off course.

To make things worse, the only person who truly understands his heartache is Jackson. But no matter how much they open up to each other, Griffin’s downward spiral continues. He’s losing himself in his obsessive compulsions and destructive choices, and the secrets he’s been keeping are tearing him apart.

If Griffin is ever to rebuild his future, he must first confront his history, every last heartbreaking piece in the puzzle of his life.

Synopsis taken from Goodreads.

Opinions

I bloody loved this book! Liked I said in my non-spoiler section, I gave it 5/5 stars. I had never read a book with a gay main character before and found it really interesting. I would defiantly use this book for diversity bingo!! It talks about gay relationships and sex in a really positive way, and for someone who isn't gay, I did learn things about the LGBT community.

Griffin has OCD and I loved the way Silvera portrayed it in HIAYLM. Within the media and the world, we associate OCD with being tidy and being a germ a-phob. But in HIAYLM, Griffin has to do things a certain way (he has to sit on the left side of people). He also has a thing with counting and this is something I relate to. I don't like doing things in odd numbers or when I'm listening to music it has to be on an even number. I was so happy that we got to see this different side of OCD and because I follow Adam on Twitter, I know that he suffers from a similar from of OCD.

I would say that HIAYLM is mainly about dealing with grief. It deals with grief really well and discusses what it's like to lose someone and then lose them in a different sense. I found myself feeling really sorry for Griffin, especially when things started to get complicated with Jackson and Wade (I believe that it is what Griffin's boyfriend by the end of the book is called). It was nice that Silvera included a happy ending, while showing that grieving is a complicated thing and sometimes you don't get over it completely.

My final point is that I love the way the story is told. It is told through alternating chapters of history (Griffin and Theo's relationship) and present (Theo is dead and Griffin is hurting). I found this really interesting to read as you bounce between two and you know that at some point everything is going to go wrong.

So that is my review of History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera, let me know your thoughts on it.

Love,

Carenza x

January Wrap Up and February TBR 2017| It'sCarenzaB

Hey Guys!
How are you?

It's time for my first wrap up and tbr of the year. My reading year didn't get off to the best start as I only read 5 books. I had hoped to get to more, but I ended up being ill and too busy with college stuff. I am hoping to get more reading done in February.

January Wrap Up

I read two fantasy books in January. The first was The Paper Magician by Charlie N Holmberg, click here to read my review. I gave The Paper Magician 4/5 stars. I really enjoyed it, but I did find some of it really cliche. The other fantasy book I read was Passenger by Alexandra Bracken. I will have review up for this soon. I gave it 3.5 or 4/5 stars because the pacing in places felt a bit off.

 I read the script for Lazarus the Musical by David Bowie and Enda Walsh. I was lucky enough to get to go and see this in London. I gave the script 4/5 stars. I am going to be talking more about Lazarus in my January favourites post next week.

The other two books I read in January were for a college project and they were both about school shootings. The first was We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver, click here to read my review. I gave it 5/5 stars. I absolutely loved it and would highly recommend it. The other book I read was This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp, click here to read my review. I gave This Is Where It Ends 3/5 stars as I found it quite problematic, however I did like the diversity included in this book.

February TBR

The first two books on my TBR are contemporaries. The first is Silence is Goldfish by Annabel Pitcher, I have read her other two books and I really liked them, so I'm hoping that I will enjoy this one. The other one I want to read is Me Before You by Jojo Moyes. I have wanted to read this book ever since the movie came out and I finally picked it up.

The next two books I want to read are fantasy. I've actually all ready finished Wayfarer as I started it in January. I gave it 4.5/5 stars and I will be reviewing it straight after Passenger. The other book I want to read is The Unbound. I read The Archived back in July and kept on forgetting to get the sequel. My parents bought me the sequel for Christmas and I can't wait to read it.

 Two random books I want to read are Demelza by Winston Graham. It's the second book in the Poldark series and I read the first, Ross, back in September. I received books three and four in the series for Christmas and I really want to read them, but I need to read book two first. The other book I want to read is Dark Places by Gillian Flynn. I picked this up in a charity shop as it was only £1. I really enjoyed the Gone Girl movie and I'm hoping to read Gone Girl soon too.

 The final two books I have photos of are 2017 releases. The first is Caraval by Stephanie Garber. I received this in a subscription box (not going to spoil which one in case some people haven't gotten the box). I've started reading it and I am really liking it. I can see why there is so much hype around this book. The other 2017 release is Carve The Mark by Veronica Roth. I've heard lots of controversy surrounding this book, but I am going to go into with an open eye.





The other books I want to read I don't have photos of. The first is The Crowns Game by Evelyn Skye. This is a fantasy book set in Russia and I'm reading this to help me understand a bit about Russia as I'm studying Russian History. What I've read so far has been really good.

The other fantasy book I want to read I don't have yet as it has only just come out and it is Traitor to the Throne by Alwyn Hamilton. I read Rebel of the Sands last year and I loved it. My copy hasn't arrived yet as I ordered it from Forbidden Planet so I got a signed copy.

The final book I'm hoping to read is War of the Worlds by HG Wells. I have to read this one of my classes and I think I'll really enjoy it.

So that concludes my wrap up and tbr. Let me know some of the books you read or want to read.
Love,
Carenza x