Riot Grrrl Reads

A Thousand Pieces of You
By Claudia Gray

Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Romance, Mystery, 
Page count: 368

Goodreads Synopsis:

Marguerite Caine’s physicist parents are known for their radical scientific achievements. Their most astonishing invention: the Firebird, which allows users to jump into parallel universes, some vastly altered from our own. But when Marguerite’s father is murdered, the killer—her parent’s handsome and enigmatic assistant Paul—escapes into another dimension before the law can touch him.

Marguerite can’t let the man who destroyed her family go free, and she races after Paul through different universes, where their lives entangle in increasingly familiar ways. With each encounter she begins to question Paul’s guilt—and her own heart. Soon she discovers the truth behind her father’s death is more sinister than she ever could have imagined.

A Thousand Pieces of You explores a reality where we witness the countless other lives we might lead in an amazingly intricate multiverse, and ask whether, amid infinite possibilities, one love can endure.

My Review:









Overall, I enjoyed this book because it was so original, but I would have enjoyed the book much more if there was less romance.

My reaction:

The Sky is Everywhere
By Jandy Nelson

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Lennie Walker, bookworm and band geek, plays second clarinet and spends her time tucked safely and happily in the shadow of her fiery older sister, Bailey. But when Bailey dies abruptly, Lennie is catapulted to center stage of her own life - and, despite her nonexistent history with boys, suddenly finds herself struggling to balance two. Toby was Bailey's boyfriend; his grief mirrors Lennie's own. Joe is the new boy in town, a transplant from Paris whose nearly magical grin is matched only by his musical talent. For Lennie, they're the sun and the moon; one boy takes her out of her sorrow, the other comforts her in it. But just like their celestial counterparts, they can't collide without the whole wide world exploding.

This remarkable debut is perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen, Deb Caletti, and Francesca Lia Block. Just as much a celebration of love as it is a portrait of loss, Lennie's struggle to sort her own melody out of the noise around her is always honest, often hilarious, and ultimately unforgettable.

My Review:

This book was such a cute contemporary! Once it got going, I really enjoyed the book. Although the beginning was a little slow, I thoroughly enjoyed the majority of it. I came in with really high expectations (because I'll Give You the Sun was just amazing! Review here ), so this book had to be pretty great to satisfy my Jandy Nelson love. Sadly, it wasn't as good as I hoped, but I still really liked it. 

At the start, I absolutely hated Lennie. She made so many stupid decisions, and moaned so much! She was just so irritating to read about, and because it was told entirely through her perspective, I was stuck with her for the whole book. Her insta-love was just so stupid, especially when it was her dead sister's boyfriend! This really made me hate Lennie even more.

But, thankfully, she does get better. She did still make a few silly decisions, but she definitely improved as the story progressed. By the end, she knew how to deal with her grief over her sister better (as we can only put the rash decisions down to grief), and was generally a better character to read about. 

The plot for this story was a bit non-existent - nothing really happened, but that didn't really matter, I enjoyed it nonetheless. Some of the 'problems' felt petty at times, and to me it felt that they weren't really worth writing a book about, and therefore bored me.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It took a while to get into, but I thought it was a really cute contemporary.

My reaction:

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
By Michelle Hodkin

Source: Personal purchase, paperback,
Genres: Young Adult, Paranormal, Mystery, Horror, Supernatural, Romance, 

Goodreads Synopsis:

Mara Dyer believes life can't get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.
It can. 

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her strangely unharmed. 
There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love. 
She's wrong.

My Review:

I loved this book so much. The beginning, middle, and end were all fantastic - I enjoyed all parts of the story, and was truly hooked throughout. 

The beginning captured school life really well. Being a school student, I can safely say that this is really similar to real life! If only we all had a friend as funny as Jamie... The awkwardness was spot on too. I am really clumsy, just like Mara, so I could really relate to when she tripped!

I was disappointed in the ending because I guessed the plot. To me, it was really obvious from the start of the book, but I didn't mind - the story was still really enjoyable. The only problem was that when it was the build up to the ending, I didn't feel at all excited because I knew what was coming. I think in this sense we should have been kept in the dark a little to make it feel like a more dramatic plot twist.

The book was perfectly paced, keeping me gripped during the whole book. Although the plot didn't progress much, I didn't mind (there is slow burning romance!). Michelle Hodkin definitely knows which scenes to perfectly describe, and which to leave out so we don't get bored. I was interested because I cared about the characters, and I was genuinely concerned for them (which doesn't normally happen in books like this!). 

Mara Dyer was a great lead. Although she wasn't very strong-minded, which I usually look for in characters, she was witty and sharp, and more like a real person. Because this story is set in the current world, she fitted perfectly, and was a surprisingly accurate portrayal of teenages today. 

Noah was a bit too boring for me. Although his character alone wasn't dull, he has been done so many times before in YA books, I just knew what was coming with him. I felt that the author should have made him more original here, by maybe making have a weaker side, or being considerably different around Mara. I did like him, I just didn't feel like he was different, which he was intended to be. 

Overall, this book was beautiful. I know it will linger in my mind for a while yet (or until the next book arrives, which I have ordered!), and the characters will stay with me forever. I know this is going to be one of my new favourite series: I would have read it in one sitting if I could. Hopefully the rest of the trilogy lives up to the greatness of the first book!

My reaction:

Enclave
By Ann Aguirre

Source: Personal purchase, paperback,
Genres: Young Adult, Dystopian, Science Fiction, Post Apocalyptic, 

Goodreads Synopsis:

New York City has been decimated by war and plague, and most of civilization has migrated to underground enclaves, where life expectancy is no more than the early 20's. When Deuce turns 15, she takes on her role as a Huntress, and is paired with Fade, a teenage Hunter who lived Topside as a young boy. When she and Fade discover that the neighboring enclave has been decimated by the tunnel monsters--or Freaks--who seem to be growing more organized, the elders refuse to listen to warnings. And when Deuce and Fade are exiled from the enclave, the girl born in darkness must survive in daylight--guided by Fade's long-ago memories--in the ruins of a city whose population has dwindled to a few dangerous gangs.

Ann Aguirre's thrilling young adult novel is the story of two young people in an apocalyptic world--facing dangers, and feelings, unlike any they've ever known.


My review:

This book was everything I've been looking for. It's been so long since I've read a dystopian as good as this. Enclave had literally every aspect I like in books: action and fight scenes, really gory descriptions, disease (my one true love), slow-burning romance, a well-thoughtout world, originality, and light-hearted moments too. I really didn't expect to enjoy this book as much as I did - although I knew I was going to like it, I never knew how great it was. 

It had a great beginning. It jumped straight in on the action (not some annoying build up like in some other books). The world building was really clever - I found out about the world pretty quickly, though it didn't bore me at all. The writing was really clever, and it kept this standard throughout the whole book.

The messages this book sent pleased me. For once, a book says sexism is not okay (!!!), not naming any names *cough* The Selection *cough*. Also, it teaches to never give up, which I think is really important in a book. Another thing I thought was a great aspect was that small children were called brats. This made me smile - I am not the biggest fan of little kids (they just smell and are dirty and ew), and calling them brats just seemed perfect. 

Deuce, the protagonist, was amazing. She was so strong, yet flawed so she was more real. At times, she was a little bit stupid, but that's just to be expected - nobodies perfect! She was really tough, and protected everyone, which I loved. She really showed the men up!

All the other characters were good too - they had depth, so seemed really real. I especially liked Fade (him and Deuce just need to be together!) because he was really tough, yet had another side which was interesting to find more about as the story progressed.

I would recommend this book to dystopian fans - it has all aspects of a great dystopian, yet is still really original too. I am definitely going to pick up the rest of the series soon! My reaction to this book:

Throne of Glass
By Sarah J. Maas

Source: Personal purchase, paperback
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Adventure, 

Goodreads Synopsis:

Consumed by guilt and rage, Celaena can't bring herself to spill blood for the King of Adarlan. She must fight back...

The Immortal Queen will help her destroy the king - for a price. But as Celaena battles with her darkest memories and her heart breaks for a love that could never last, can she fulfil the bargain and head the almighty court of Terrasen? And who will stand with her?


My Review:

Holy cow this book was awesome! I really enjoyed it, and in my opinion, was definitely the best in the series. Actually, this series just gets better and better, which makes me super excited for Queen of Shadows (hurry up September...!). 

The plot in this book was so good. It had so many twists and turns, and it's so original - I have never read anything like it before, and it really blew me away. I know the words of this book are going to stick with me forever. 

Like most books, this was slow to start with. I think I was just in the wrong mood (I was really tired when I first came to read this), but it still made me a bit bored at the start. Though that soon went away - Sarah J. Maas' writing is so beautiful - it really captivates me, and the description makes the world seem to real. 

The climax of the book was built up to well (there is a battle at the end), and everything linked together well. I was really hooked at the end (like always with Sarah J. Maas' books), and I actually got up really early to finish this (I do not regret my decision. Although I was exhausted at school all day, I just had to find out what happened. The only downside was that all my friends got annoyed at me for being to emotional after this book...). You know an author is good when you miss sleep to read their books!

Celaena was still as amazing as in the previous books. This book, she did have a little bit too much self-pity, but she was still grieving, so that was to be expected, and just made her seem more real and human. She again saved the day and everyone else, yet still juggled all these emotions and events occurring in her life too. Why can't everyone just be as bad-ass as Celaena?

In this book the series significantly developed a lot, so new characters were to be expected. I didn't really like reading about Manon Blackbeak because I didn't really know her - at the start it just seemed pointless, and bored me, but as I got nearer the end of the book I cared about her a bit more. In my view, some of her POVs were unnecessary and could have been cut down on a bit, but she did develop into a much better character. And you know how I feel about character development...

So, I was thinking about post ideas for this blog, and I thought why not do a meme? Top 5 Friday is a really good one for me because I have much more time to post on Friday, so check back every Friday for another Top Five Friday meme!

This week I'm going to do Book Covers: I seriously want to own all of these books, and their contents (which hopefully lives up to the stunning covers!). Also please note: There are many other covers I love just as much, and it was really hard to decide. And these are in no particular order because come on... that is just an impossible task!


The Selection Series by Kiera Cass

I don't actually own these, but my sister does, and they look so amazing on her shelf! I haven't read them yet (but desperately want to), but she has, and she was said they're amazing, so I'm really looking forward to reading them.


The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

It was pretty much impossible to choose between this series, and The Mortal Instruments (because they're the same style and both really stunning) but I chose this because I enjoyed them a tiny bit more than TMI. It's one of my all-time favourite series, and the covers are amazing too, so I just love everything about this trilogy!

Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi

I have only read Shatter Me (read my review here) out of this series so far, but I really plan to buy the rest soon! The covers are just so amazing, I love all the detail too. Shatter Me was a really good book, so I am absolutely desperate to buy the rest.







Firebird Trilogy (last cover not released yet) by Claudia Gray

I need these right now! The covers are SO beautiful, and the story seems great too. I really need these so much - my birthday is coming up, so hopefully I will get some money to buy these with!



I'll Give You the Sun and The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

Okay, so I kind-of cheated with this once, but how am I meant to choose between these two? Also, these covers look like a series together so... that's OK, right? I have them both, but my cover of TSiE is different - still pretty, but not as stunning as the one in the picture. I have read I'll Give you the Sun (review here), and it has been my only 5 star review on this blog so far. I loved it so much, and I expect to love The Sky is Everywhere just as much - Jandy Nelson's style of writing is so good.

So that's it for this week's Top Five Friday! What did you think of it? Are you looking forward to my next meme? Let me know in the comments!

I have been nominated for the Liebster Blog Award! Thanks so much to Diaries of a Book Lover for nominating me!


11 questions I have to answer:

1. What is your favourite TV show?
Doctor Who or Pretty Little Liars

2. If you could meet any fictional character in real life who would it be?
Magnus Bane from TMI

3. Tea or Coffee?
None - I hate all hot drinks

4. Author you've read a lot from?
Cassandra Clare (10 books)

5. A book that made you think?
I'll Give you the Sun by Jandy Nelson

6. Favourite snack food?
This is a really hard one, I love snacks... crisps?

7. Someone who has influenced you?
Many people, but my bestfriend who's blog is Reviewing Dreamer (who I also tag to do this!)

8. Favourite animal?
Cow, cat, or donkey

9. Prettiest book cover?
Although I haven't read it, A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Grey (I really want to read this!)

10. Most frequented social media site?
Instagram (my Instagram name is @dauntless.rune)

11. Favourite book quote?
This is a hard one, can I pick 2? OK: 1) "My heart's bigger than a blue whale's, which needs its own parking spot" - I'll Give you the Sun 2) "You endure what is unbearable, and you bear it. That is all" - Clockwork Princess

11 Random Facts about myself:

1. I am a really competitive person
2. I can really easily hide my emotions, which I do all the time (deep...)
3. People say I'm really fun to be around
4. I hate most female protagonists in books (people have told me this often) because they always seem to be weak
5. I have a list (handwritten!) of over 100 books that I want to read
6. My birthday is 27th March
7. I started my blog at the end of December 2014
8. When I got nominated for this I was super happy, and I smiled loads :)
9. Today I went on a walk
10. People often describe me as outdoorsy, but I would disagree, although I go camping a lot, go on lots of walks, have bonfires in my garden and go wild-lake swimming...
11. I am a super-mega-huge fan of Ed Sheeran, and I have seen him live before.

People I nominate:

In my eyes, everyone deserves this award, so I nominate everyone with under 200 followers!

My 11 questions:

1. If you could swap lives with one character from a book forever, who would it be?
2. When is your birthday?
3. Pancakes or waffles?
4. Why did you originally start a blog?
5. Favourite genre of book?
6. Favourite band / artist?
7. If it could only ever be one weather, what would you chose?
8. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
9. What fictional world do you most want to visit?
10. What's your OTP?
11. What's your most prized possession?

Thanks again for nominating me!

Crown of Midnight
By Sarah J. Maas

Source: Physical copy, paperback
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, 

Goodreads Synopsis:

"A line that should never be crossed is about to be breached.

It puts this entire castle in jeopardy—and the life of your friend."

From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena's world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie...and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.

My Review:

Gosh this book was amazing! It was really fast-paced, the plot was consistently amazing, and everything linked together so cleverly at the end. I enjoyed it so much - Sarah J. Maas is such an amazing author, I don't think she's actually capable of writing a bad book.

Celaena is such an amazing heroine - she is so strong minded and tough, seemingly perfect, but she is flawed, making me care about her even more. She's the perfect example of a female protagonist - pushes around all the idiot men, and saves the day! She manages to save everyone, herself, and even her dog (which is just a great addition to the book - who doesn't love a cute dog?), yet is still really powerful and badass.

My only complaint about this book (yeah, I know, I can't write an entirely good review for a book...) is that in some places it dragged. Most of the time, I was completely hooked, but sometimes I got a bit bored, and the story seemed to be taking too long. Was that just me? It might have been because people were interrupting me, but at times it felt too heavy, and I just had to put the book down. It took me a while to read because of this, but that didn't really matter because it meant I could savour it. 

The ending to this book was just... it really blew me away! I literally finished this book with my mouth open, it left me on such a cliff-hanger, and I really needed to know what happened next. I can't believe Sarah J. Maas ending it like that! But, luckily, I bought the book the next day (today as I'm writing this), so I can't wait to start it. The general ending was fantastic - everything linked together, and most of my questions were answered (though not enough to stop me from buying the next book even though I have around 10 books to read!), so it was rounded off well.

Rating: