The Mid Year Book Freak Out Tag

Hey guys! So, I was tagged by Beth @ Reading Every Night for this tag – so thanks for that! So, I guess without further ado, let’s start!

Best Book you’ve Read So Far in 2016:

 Unnatural Deeds by Cyn Balog

 A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

Ok, I couldn’t pick one, so it’s a tie! I loved Unnatural Deeds by Cyn Balog (which is being released later this year), and ACOMAF… well, I don’t think there is any explanation necessary!

Best sequel you have read so far in 2016:

 ACOMAF

Yes, this book again! But it truly was beautiful!!

New release you haven’t read yet but want to:

 Shiny Broken Pieces by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton.

Ok, so, technically this only came out today, but I still need this book in my life!

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year:

 Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas.

I know, Maas again! But seriously, I love this series and I cannot wait to find out what happens next!

Biggest Disappointment:

 Never Never: Part Three by Colleen Hoover and Tarryn Fisher

Ok, this series had an amazing strong start and I was loving everything about it! However, the ending and the explanation given were weak and it ruined everything for me!

Biggest Surprise:

 Only Ever Yours by Louise O’Neill

I was surprised at how things went down in this book! I was not expecting to feel the emotions I did and so strongly! I think everyone who has read this book will agree, there are literally no words to describe how you feel when reading this book and how you feel when you finish this book! I finished it and I was gob smacked it took me forever to actually write a review because I no idea how to formulate what I was feeling into words! It is that good! If you haven’t read this book… then why the heck not?!?

Favourite New Author (Debut or New to you):

 This is Betsy Schow! She was a new to me author when I read her book Spelled and I loved it! I was snorting and earning weird looks from my dad, but it was all so worth it! i look forward to more of her writing! She is currently writing the sequel (I Believe) to Spelled and I cannot wait!!

Newest Fictional Crush:

 Rhysand from ACOMAF.

Ummm… hello!! Rhys! Do I seriously need to explain this amazing specimen of a character???

Newest Favourite Character:

 Lada from And I Darken by Kierstin White

Well, she scares me and she is not a character that I would want to cross… but, she isn’t your everyday, wishy washy damsel in distress turned amazing hero. She was strong and stubborn and strong willed from the very beginning and I feel like she is a step above every other strong female character that I love because of this fact. She has never needed saving and I love the about her!

Book that made you cry:

 If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin.

Quite a few books have made me cry recently, but I think this book hit me the strongest! There you sit, watching these two characters fall in love and it is cutesy and feels full and bam! That ending… Box of tissues needed if you are going to brave this book! The worst thing is, you know from the very beginning what is going to happen, but that does not stop you hoping that it doesn’t!

Book that made you happy:

 Wrecked by Maria Padian

So, if you clicked the link, you’re probably thinking that I some kind of really weird psycho for thinking that this kind of book could ever make me happy… BUT… the outcome made me happy! I was rooting and I rooted right! Again, this book is being released later this year!

Favourite book to film adaptation:

Technically, tv show… but they are so epic!! I haven’t actually read all of the GoT books, but I am getting there! I love this show!

Favourite post you have done this year:

I don’t actually have a favourite post that I have done this year, but I did like sharing random facts about myself in TTT this week!

Most beautiful book you’ve bought this year:

 Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi.

I bought a physical copy of this book not too long ago with this cover and it still makes me drool every time I clap eyes on it!

What book do you need to read by the end of the year:

 Winter by Marissa Meyer

There are so many books, but I would have to say the ultimate goal is this one! I have had it on my nightstand for ages now, but for some reason I keep procrastinating!

My tags:

Jamie @ Watch Game Read

Jesse @ Books at Dawn

Olivia @ Heir of Glitter

Kat @ Kat Impossible

Marie @ Drizzle and Hurricane Books

and you! If you want to do this tag feel free! Link me up so that I can see your answers!

June Wrap Up

Hey guys! So, this is going to be the first ever wrap up that I have done, so you’re going to have to hang in there! I am doing this post on a whim, and if I like doing it, then it will become a regular feature here – hooray!! 😀

Read:

Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas. June 12th, 5 stars

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas. June 18th, 5 stars

One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards. ARC provided by the publisher – June 19th, 4 stars

Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig. ARC provided through Netgalley, June 23rd, 4 stars.

Schism by Britt Holewinski, June 24th, DNFed

Valley of the Moon by Bronwyn Archer, Review copy provided by the author, DNFed, June 24th

Unnatural Deeds by Cyn Balog, ARC provided by the publisher, June 25th, 5 stars

If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin, June 28th, 4 stars

Never Never by Colleen Hoover and Tarry Fisher, June 30th, 5 stars

Started Reading:

Air Awakens by Elise Kova, I started reading this today, but since I won’t finish it today, I am going to include it in my July wrap up!

I am a mood reader, so there is really no point in putting down what I hope to read in July, because it will most likely change!

So thats me! What did you guys get up to this month?

 

If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin

Published: April 1st 2013 by Sourcebooks Fire

If he had been with me everything would have been different…

I wasn’t with Finn on that August night. But I should’ve been. It was raining, of course. And he and Sylvie were arguing as he drove down the slick road. No one ever says what they were arguing about. Other people think it’s not important. They do not know there is another story. The story that lurks between the facts. What they do not know—the cause of the argument—is crucial.

So let me tell you… (Goodreads)

I bought this book on a whim from Amazon. I actually bought a physical copy of the book because the difference in price for a physical copy in comparison to a kindle copy was something like .50 cents. At first I really struggled to get into it and I was worried that I was going to have to DNF it, but by the end, I was bawling like a baby. It wasn’t a pretty site…

I really struggled to empathise with Autumn. It took a while for her to become fleshed out enough that I could sit with her on the same level and actually understand where she was coming from with some things. I don’t know if this was done on purpose to try and convey out MC growing up, or whether it was accidental – but either way, I think it deterred from the story a bit because I was constantly questioning the motives behind her actions.

I really liked Finny. I mean, I know he was guarded and everything up until the end, but he came across from the first moment as someone who could be relied on and as someone who I could easily be friends with. I know that the reader already has an insight as to what is going to happen to him later in the book, but I was still hoping beyond hope that it wouldn’t and that things would change. So, eventually, when the end came, I struggled to deal with it. I bawled like a baby and my 8 month old baby was looking at me like I was gone out! That’s how bad it was! I just… Why Nowlin???

The book was a little bit slow. It took a while for me to get into the book because it seemed like nothing was happening. It spanned out over 4 years (which the time frame actually confused me a little bit), but it didn’t feel like four years because not a lot happened. It would be like watching a couple of teens going through their everyday life and nothing more. There may be some entertaining arguments every now and then because you think that they are still children, but other than that, the plot was pretty dry up until toward the end.

The redeeming factor was that the love between Finn and Autumn was a slow burn. It took them forever to actually realise it and come together, but when they did, I had all the feels and I loved it – which basically made the ending 1 million times worse!! It’s still killing me, even hours after finishing it!

I was going to give this book 3 stars because of the drag in the plot line, but I decided to up it to four after my emotions went wild at the end! I struggled to deal with the ending because it is bittersweet and not at all how I wanted things to go. This book basically broke my heart, broke it again, and then broke it again and I am just sat here trying to pick up all the pieces! Way to go Nowlin! I gave this book 4/5 stars.

Have you read this book? What did you think?