Riot Grrrl Reads

2014 has been a big year for me reading-wise: it's the year I became fully obsessed! In total, I have read 45 books this year, which isn't that many for some people, but I don't always have the opportunity to get books, so this is a good achievement for me! These are all (if I remember correctly) the books I have read in 2014:

• Blood Red Road by Moira Young 
• Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
• Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick
• I am Number Four by Pittacus Lore
• City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
• City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
• City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
• City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare
• City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare
• City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare
• The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare
• The Iron Trial by Cassandra Clare and Holly Black
• Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
• Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
• Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare
• Divergent by Veronica Roth
• Insurgent by Veronica Roth
• Allegiant by Veronica Roth
• Four: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
• Love, Rosie (AKA Where Rainbows End) by Cecelia Ahern
• Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
• Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
• The Fault in our Stars by John Green
• Looking for Alaska by John Green
• Let it Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle
• Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green
• How They Met by David Levithan
• Matched by Ally Condie
• Crossed by Ally Condie
• Reached by Ally Condie
• A Street Cat Named Bob by James Bowen
• Pusheen the Cat by Claire Belton
• Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
• Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick
• Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick
• Finale by Becca Fitzpatrick
• The Giver by Lois Lowry
• The Maze Runner by James Dashner
• The 100 by Kass Morgan
• If I Stay by Gayle Foreman
• Where She Went by Gayle Foreman
• Solitaire by Alice Oseman
• How to Tell if your Cat is Plotting to Kill You by The Oatmeal

As a female (that sounds weird saying / typing), I much prefer a female main character to a male one. But, many authors write girls awfully, making them sound weak and pathetic. Here are my top 5 favourite female protagonists:

5. Hazel from The Fault in our Stars by John Green

I have chosen Hazel because she is so witty and funny. Don't get me wrong, I hated The Fault in Our Stars, but I loved Hazel because, although she is in love with Augustus, she doesn't let her love change her personality, or make her 'dumb', like what has happened in many YA romance books I've read. She is also very determined, as she won't let the cancer get in the way with her life. This brings her at #5!






4. Britt from Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick

I have chosen Britt because she becomes very independent, and stands for what she believes. I did absolutely despise her at the beginning of the book, because she was weak, pathetic, and too dependent on other people. I also hated her in the middle of the book - actually, I hated her almost all the way through the book - because she fell in love with her kidnapper. This is utterly ridiculous. She says "His eyes flashed, but behind the quick anger, I saw deep sadness" - this is utterly ridiculous. He has kidnapped her, threatened her, and held her hostage, yet she makes excuses for him. This is the way sexism is promoted against women, and I very strongly disagree with it.

But the reason Britt is on my list, is because she changes. At the end of the book, she says how she has changed, and how she is now all for rights for women "I could talk all I wanted about insecurities and female independence". I know that one measly statement does not - at all - shows that the character has changed. But, the reason I actually like Britt is because she keeps on going. She is put through very tough conditions, and is really pushed to her maximum, but she barely ever has a melt-down, and cries. There is plenty I don't like about her, but the reason she is #4 is because of her perseverance, and how she keeps her self together.

3. Cath from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

I have chosen Cath because I can relate to her so much. She would much rather stay inside and get lost in a good book, than go out and socialise with other people. That is something I can definitely relate to. Another reason I have chosen Cath is because she changes throughout the book. At the start, she just starts college, and is extremely reliant on her twin sister. As the book develops, she pushes herself more to go out and meet new people, to go to social events, and eventually, to get a boyfriend. I like this because, although those are things that some people would find very easy, it is hard for Cath. She pushes herself in her own personal way, which means social people would discount that as an issue.

The main reason I have chosen Cath to be #3 is because I can relate to her so much at the start of the book, and - I must say - has inspired me to go out more with friends and to be more social.

2. Rosie from Love, Rosie by Cecelia Ahern

I have chosen Rosie because she is so mentally strong. I think she is a good role-model, as not everything (when I say not everything, I mean barely anything) goes her way, yet she carries on, and consistently gives her everything into making things good for her family. You can tell by her actions that her daughter is the most important thing in her life - by a mile - and you can tell that she loves her daughter more than anything. I like this because I think it is an amazing quality to have - to be devoted to somebody so completely that even when your own life is a complete mess, you do everything in your power to make it good for them.

I also like Rosie - and the book in general - because all of the men in her life mess up badly. They all treat her really badly, and they all take advantage of her massive heart, yet she continues to carry on. I really like the fact that the men are the idiots, and the women keep calm. The main reason Rosie is my #2 is because the fact that she is so strong, and rises above all the idiot men in her life, who mess up all the time.

1. Tessa from The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

I have chosen Tessa for many reasons. Firstly, *POSSIBLE SPOILERS* she saves the day - maybe the whole group would have died without her. They all come to save her, but in actual fact, she saved all of them.

Secondly, she is in love with 2 people, each of them she loves equally. This is not a reason to like a character, but the reason I do like her is because she doesn't fuss and make a massive deal about who she's going to pick. She is confident, and chooses one of them, and while they are both alive, she is unhappy if she was with just one of them. She does not bear that burden, by telling them both that she is in love with their best friend, instead - selflessly - keeps it to herself. I admire that because she is so considerate - she knows that the 2 men she is in love with would not want to know that she loves someone else at the same time as loving them, so bottles it up, at the expensive of herself.

My final reason for putting Tessa as my #1 female protagonist is because she loves reading. This may seem like a bit of a stupid reason to like a character, but it just seemed like the icing on the cake to an amazing character!

So there's my top 5 female protagonists, but what are yours?

• Gone by Micheal Grant
• Teardrop by Lauren Kate
• How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff
• We Were Liars by E . Lockhart
• The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
• The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey
• Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
• Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas
• The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
• A Visual Journey by Ed Sheeran (Yay!)

Attachments
By Rainbow Rowell

Source: Personal purchase, paperback
Genres: Adult, Romance, Contemporary, 

Goodreads Synopsis:

By day, two young women spend their hours emailing each other, discussing every aspect of their lives. By night, Lincoln, a lonely IT guy, spends his hours reading every exchange. Soon Lincoln is drawn into their lives, and finds himself falling for one of them. Lincoln decides it's time to muster the courage to follow his heart.

My Review:

This book was very good. I thought that the characters were very believable, and that made me really care about them. I was involved in the story, and it made me want to read more.

The only problem I had with the book was that it dragged. There were points in the middle where I really couldn't care less, and where things hadn't happened for a long time. Although, it was nice to see how the characters developed and how they changed their life (especially Lincoln), but - to be honest - I felt that the majority of the book was just setting the scene. Also, the book didn't really give closure: the whole book we were building up to this one point, and then there was only about 10 pages of it. Though, I did still enjoy the bits where nothing happened, but I would have preferred if the pacing was faster. 

I have mixed opinions on this book. On the one hand, I really did enjoy it and wanted to read it again, but on the other hand, it was a bit of a pointless read. Though, to contradict that, it did teach me some lessons, like you can really love somebody for just their personality and to love someone for how they are when they are at their most relaxed. Also, it taught me that you can be fully loved, and not just to settle for love.

Overall, it was a good book, and I enjoyed it, but it dragged a bit, and definitely could be a lot shorter. It was super cute, and the banter between Jennifer and Beth had me laughing out loud! I would recommend if you're looking for a laugh.

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