September Wrap Up

Hey guys! It is time to wrap up the month of September! I managed to read a total of 9 books this month! Which is more than I thought I had read. One of those books did not get reviewed on my blog because I was so angry with it. It was insulting. Anyway, lets do this!

Read:

• Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cordova – I received an ARC of this via Sourcebooks Fire, 4/5 stars
• Dear Charlie by N. D. Gomes – I received an ARC of this via Netgalley, 5/5 Stars
• With Malice by Eileen Cook – 2.5/5 stars
• Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi, 4/5 stars
• The Lost Knight by Candy Atkins – I received a review copy of this book via Xpresso Book Tours, 4/5 stars.
• Pretty Wicked by Kelly Charron – I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley, 5/5 stars
• Winning by Lara Deloza, 3/5 stars.
• The Girl With All the Gifts by M. R. Carey, 4/5 stars, review to come!
• Jenna’s Truth by Nadia L. King, 1/5 stars (If I could give it 0, I would!). I feel like I need to explain this book. This book was never reviewed on my blog – I received an ARC of this via Netgalley. However, it was 34 pages long, and it was insulting to anyone who had ever been the victim of bullying, cyber bullying and sexual assault. If you really want to read the review I wrote for Goodreads’ sake, you can find it here.

Books I acquired in the month of September:

Physical:

• Only Ever Yours by Louise O’Neill
• Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi
• Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas
• Spelled by Betsy Schow
• Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
• Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
• Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare
• Winning by Lara Deloza
• The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee
• The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich
• Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas
• The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas
• The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

Kindle:

• Pretty Wicked by Kelly Charron – ARC
• A Mortal Song by Megan Crewe – I won this at her release day party on Facebook
• These Great Affects by Andrew Toy – This book doesn’t actually have a Goodreads Page. It is also an ARC.
• Consurge by D. T. Dylan – ARC Provided from the author.
• Jenna’s Truth by Nadia. L. King
• Escape from Witchwood Hollow by Jordan Elizabeth Mierek – Review copy provided by the author.
• Everlasting Flame by Katelyn Anderson – Review copy provided by the author
• Oak and Mistletoe by J. Z. N. McCauley – ARC provided by the author

Special posts:

Spotlight: Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cordova

Cover Reveal: Emerge: The Judgement by Melissa A. Craven

That’s it for me this month!! *Phew* I thought this post was never going to end!

How was September for you guys?

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Winning by Lara Deloza

Winning by Lara Deloza

Published June 28th 2016 by Harper Teen

Whoever said being nice would get you to the top?

Certainly not Alexandra Miles. She isn’t nice, but she’s more than skilled at playing the part. She floats through the halls of Spencer High, effortlessly orchestrating the actions of everyone around her, making people bend to her whim without even noticing they’re doing it. She is the queen of Spencer High—and it’s time to make it official.

Alexandra has a goal, you see—Homecoming Queen. Her ambitions are far grander than her small town will allow, but homecoming is just the first step to achieving total domination. So when peppy, popular Erin Hewett moves to town and seems to have a real shot at the crown, Alexandra has to take action.

With the help of her trusted friend Sam, she devises her most devious plot yet. She’ll introduce an unexpected third competitor in the mix, one whose meteoric rise—and devastating fall—will destroy Erin’s chances once and for all. Alexandra can run a scheme like this in her sleep. What could possibly go wrong?

I’m not actually sure I know where to start with this book. It was good in a I’m – scared – of – overachieving – girls kinda way. I felt like I was reading Mean Girls, but about Homecoming…. Anyone who lives in America, can you please enlighten me as to whether your schools are really like they are portrayed? If they are, I’m so glad I grew up in England!!

Alexandra Miles is our Grade A Psycho Girl who uses and abuses people to stay at the top. She tries to hide her horrible ways behind a sickly sweet demeanour of being nice to people … but obviously no one buys it! Everyone knows exactly who and what she is! Girls like this actually genuinely scare me! AS a reader, I was hoping that she would see the error of her ways and actually change by the end of the book… however, it was not meant to be!

I felt really sorry for her best friend Sam! I mean, she is her own worst enemy because she was best friends with such a psycho, but the way she was treated was horrible!! I was happy that, by the end of the book, she really does change and we see someone who is liable in general rather than the best friend of the schools queen bee! I really liked her as a character and I felt sorry for her throughout most of the book! I’m glad she found her ending the way that she did!!

I think the character that went through the most change was Ivy! Sure, Alexandra helped to make her the person that she was, but she still remained true to herself! she didn’t turn into queen wannabe and she became a stronger person because of that! She got a push in the right direction from Alexandra and then she stood on her own two feet and defended herself when she needed to! Which is something she would never have done at the beginning of the book! Way to go Ivy! I felt like a proud mother with her!

The ending of the book definitely left it open for a sequel – however, whether one has been planned or not, I don’t know. We could easily revisit this high school where it left off and watch the girls go for another round. I think it would be interesting to see where the author takes these characters if she does decide to do a sequel!

There were times when I had to push myself through this book a little bit because I thought the pacing was a little iffy. For me, the high school drama – whilst fun to read ever now and then – it can get a little same old same old, especially because every one of us lives through some sort of school drama at some point in our lives!! I did enjoy this book, but sometimes it felt like a little too much and I just kinda wanted to roll my eyes and put the book back down again!

All in all, I mostly enjoyed this book and the characters within it! I would definitely read a sequel to this book because I would be interested to know where the author takes these characters and just how far some of them are willing to go to remain on top! I gave this book 3/5 stars!

Have you read this book? Did you enjoy it? Would you read this book, if you haven’t already? 

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Goodreads Monday

Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme hosted here. To participate, all you need to do is choose a random book from your TBR and show it off! don’t forget to link back here!

Hey guys! Time for another Goodreads Monday. This weeks pick is a book that I recently added to my shelf! I have heard some amazing things, so I am definitely looking forward to getting to it!

Winning by Lara Deloza

Published: June 28th 2016 by HarperTeen

Whoever said being nice would get you to the top?

Certainly not Alexandra Miles. She isn’t nice, but she’s more than skilled at playing the part. She floats through the halls of Spencer High, effortlessly orchestrating the actions of everyone around her, making people bend to her whim without even noticing they’re doing it. She is the queen of Spencer High—and it’s time to make it official.

Alexandra has a goal, you see—Homecoming Queen. Her ambitions are far grander than her small town will allow, but homecoming is just the first step to achieving total domination. So when peppy, popular Erin Hewett moves to town and seems to have a real shot at the crown, Alexandra has to take action.

With the help of her trusted friend Sam, she devises her most devious plot yet. She’ll introduce an unexpected third competitor in the mix, one whose meteoric rise—and devastating fall—will destroy Erin’s chances once and for all. Alexandra can run a scheme like this in her sleep. What could possibly go wrong?

Doesn’t this sound so exciting!! I love books like these when they are done well, so I am definitely looking forward to getting to it!

What books are on you TBR’s?

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the Broke and Bookish

Hey guys! This weeks theme for TTT is top ten most anticipated releases for the second half of 2016. Can you actually believe we are halfway through June already?!? Where is this year going?? Without further ado, and in nor particular order:

10.  Heartless by Marissa Meyer. Despite the fact that I still need to read Winter (I know, I am so behind!) I absolutely love the Lunar Chronicles!! So, I obviously cannot wait to see what this author is going to do with Alice in Wonderland! Publication Date: 8th November 2016.

9.  Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas. I am currently reading Queen of Shadows and, whilst I am not that far into it, I am still loving it! Sarah J. Maas is an automatic buy for me! Besides, who can resist a cover like that??? Publication Date: 6th September 2016

8.  One was Lost by Natalie D. Richards. I have never actually read a book by this author, although I have at least one more on my TBR! This book likes the perfect mystery thriller to keep me turning the pages at night! Publication Date: 4th October 2016

7.  Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi. I adored the Shatter Me series by this author and I have been waiting for something new from her ever since!! I literally cannot wait to get my hands on this book! Plus, the cover is gorgeous! Publication Date: 30th August 2016

6.  Last Stand by Rachel E. Carter. This book sadly has no cover yet and also no definitive release date. I do, however, love this series and I cannot wait to see what Carter does with our characters in this final instalment! Publication Date: 2016 (May be a hit or miss…)

5.  A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir. Whilst I was a tad bit disappointed with An Ember in the Ashes, I am still intrigued to see what comes next for our characters!! Publication Date: 30th August 2016

4.  Winning by Lara Deloza. I saw a review of this by Khanh (The Grinch) on Goodreads and for anyone who has ever seen one of her reviews, she is difficult to please. She seemed to enjoy this book, though, plus it looks like such  fun read! Publication Date: 28th June 2016

3.  Shiny Broken Pieces by Sona Charapoitra and Dhonielle Clayton. I was addicted to Tiny Pretty Things and couldn’t put the book down! I literally cannot wait for this book because I need to carry on my addiction! Publication Date: 12th July 2016

2.  Nice Girls Endure by Chris Struyk – Bonn. This book tackles a really difficult subject and I am interested to see what the author has done with it. I have never seen this author before, so there is a first time for everything! Publication Date: 1st August 2016

1.  Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst. I think this book is pretty self explanatory because I do not know a single blogger or reader who doesn’t want to read this book! Publication Date: 22nd November 2016

So, thats it! I cannot wait for all of these books! #Problemsofabooknerd! What books are you guys all anticipating? Are you waiting for the same books, or are there others you are waiting for? Feel free to let me know and leave links!