It's My Second Blogoversary!

On March 14, 2013, I began an experience of a lifetime that I would never take back. It started off with "That Girl With Her Nose in a Book," and then finally moved onto its real name, "A Thousand Lives Lived."

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TWO AMAZING YEARS, AND CHEERS TO MANY MORE!

As I'll probably tell this story many times over many years, here's the point during the year where I'll take the time to tell it again, hah. I guess it's pretty remarkable to say that I began blogging when I was 12. Most people don't do that, but I was probably a weird child who was bored and only liked reading.

Why did I want to make a blog?

I've always loved reading and writing, and to put them together to share to other readers is truly something special. I used to think of blogging as a hobby, but now it's seriously just a routine and one of the things that I love to do everyday and makes up my life. Blogging is part of me, hah.

Was it tough for me in the beginning to do this?

I guess I can say that it's STILL DIFFICULT for me to handle some things now. I've had moments and times where I felt that I should just forget about it all, though I never came to that moment where I just quitted. Sure, high school involves tons of stress and homework, but I can't just put the rest of my life away and forget about it as I need to have some fun. It was also difficult as I looked at the influence of other bloggers who were amazing at it, but my writing then improved and I learned the basics and made lots of friends.

Who would I like to thank for everything they've done for me?

There are tons of people, and I guess I'll be forgetting about some, but you're all included, and I love you guys!

Nikki Godwin, Eileen @ BookCatPin, Marta Szemik, Rachel @ YA Perfectionist, Amber @ YA Indulgences, Michelle @ Michelle's Minions, Sarah @ Smitten Over Books, Lilana @ Lili Lost in a Book, Michelle Madow, Cheyanne Young, Jess @ My Reading Dress, Pili @ Pili in Love With Handmade, Aimee and Faye @ The Social Potato, Ebony @ Daring Damsels, Zoe @ Zoe Reads, and all of you other wonderful people.

Without you, this would've never happened and I wouldn't be here!

It all started with a single noob-post where I was completely strange and uneasy...

And now we're stuck onto raving and ranting reviews where I truly let my real side out onto all of you with all of the passion that I can possibly provide, haha. I've made so many friends through this blog and I can't wait to make more and become a better blogger. 

Of course, there are things that we can all improve on, and I certainly need that push, but I will eventually catch onto it as things slow down around me. 

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU ALL OF YOU WONDERFUL BLOGGERS OF MINE! LET'S HAVE A TOAST TO MORE REVIEWS AND CRAZY RAVING DISCUSSIONS!

What More We Need in YA...

This week's topic...

What More We Need In YA!

During often times, we usually find ourselves choosing or randomly reading books about the same things. Sometimes, authors choose to write about the same topic book after book, or there are those times when we are so engaged in a subject that we end up getting books that are part of that genre or topic over and over again. Either way, we all get sick and tired of the same story twice eventually, so why not think about what else we need in YA?

1. NO INSTALOVE.

NO. NO NO NO NO NO! Fudge, I wish I can just cross this out instantly. Who the heck wants love at first sight when it's too gooey, too cheesy, and too unreal? Of course, books are all about being in a different world that's unlike ours. It doesn't have to be real, but at least romance, something that BOOKS and HUMANS have in common is real. 

I find that characters in books are becoming too interested in the insights and different POVs of love. They think about the story, not about the feelings. And that's how desperation occurs, and how insta-love is formed.

I even made a graph showing how it is performed: (sorry for the small size)

2. Stories that seem so real and moving that you're blown out of your mind.

We need stories that are about more real things! Contemporary, yes, but about something different! We find that contemporaries are often copied and repeated about over and over again. 

How about something like... a futuristic war between two races? (Magical?) There's so many things I can possibly think of that rarely have been done before. Usual cheesy romance stories can be cute, but we've got enough of them!

3. Contemporary stories about stressful subjects—racism, war, etc.

Who doesn't love a story that is so real, touching and moving that their feels explode and go all over the place? (Okay, some people don't like to cry in books, but I love being emotional.) Stories with subjects like these are craving to me. What about some more contemporaries about being in the mind of a murderer or something?

I just realized that I can be giving out book ideas to future authors. Haha, good luck with that! (I'll be first in line to the bookstore on publishing day.)

4. UNIQUE FANTASY STORIES

TOO MANY FANTASY BOOKS ARE COPYING EACH OTHER WITH THE SAME OLD STORY OVER AND OVER AGAIN EXCEPT WITH DIFFERENT NAMES FOR PEOPLE AND COUNTRIES AND WORLDS AND POWERS. 

One of the only fantasy series that is 100000000% acceptable to me is the one and only Throne of Glass, of course. Who can hate Celaena and her amazing kick-assness and the hot guys? Haters, go to the left and get out of here. xD

5. Powerful sequels

I cannot even count and remember how many times a sequel was horrible. I have gone through the symptoms of Second Book Syndrome more times than you can count on your fingers and toes, each doubled. It's hideous, and it ruins me every time. Now, I can count on my fingers on how many times a sequel did greatly impress me, like Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas, or Where She Went by Gayle Forman.

Repeat (OUT LOUD) after me: We, people of YA, young adult literature, wish to receive powerful sequels that will blow our minds and eyeballs out of their sockets. We want to be in a book-hangover that will gladly ruin our moods for days, but it'll be worth it anyway. SING TO THE BOOKGODS AND CHEERS TO FINE LITERATURE.

:') 

~~~

I must admit that YA is surely perfect the way it is, but everything needs its improvements, of course. Subjects and genres should be brought to whole different levels, and our knowledge of books's subjects should be improved. YA is my life, basically, and I'd seriously don't know what I'd do without it. 

CHEERS TO YA!

What do you think we need more in YA? Or, what do we see too much of?

U is for Unearthly

     Rise and shine, or should I say, bring those haloes up! Because today, is a tribute to another awesome author, Cynthia Hand, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller, Unearthly. 

      Title: Unearthly
      Author: Cynthia Hand
      Rating: 5/5 stars
      Release Date: January 4, 2011
      Publisher: HarperTeen
      Age Group: Anyone!


   Okay, so you may ask in your head, what is "Unearthly" about? Well in one word, angels. But, since I'm this obsessed and that nice, I'll give you a brief summary, since I love you all, and blogging is my passion.

      Clara Gardner's life isn't what she'd like it to be. Her single mother brings her and her brother all the way across the country to live, and not only that, she discovers that she's part angel, and she has a purpose to live by, a reason that she's put on this earth for. 

    As Clara's fitting into her new town, she starts to have vivid nightmares, of a deep fire blazing in a nearby forest. And, a guy she met, Christian, seems to be sneaky and into her.

    Love, revenge, thrill, and action, Unearthly brings its readers to their full attention, wanting more. 

   Ahh... Unearthly was just... a piece of perfection for all, and I mean that sincerely!

   The characters, romance, and thrill was just amazing, including the plot!

   TEAM CHRISTIAN ALL THE WAY!

QOTD: If you found out that you were were a supernatural creature, or had superpowers, how would you react, and what would you wish to be?

*I'd be a Shadowhunter!*

Q is for Questions (Book statistics from my personal life)

 

   It's hard to find a book or an author's name that begins with the letter "Q," so for me, today's post will be about book statistics from my personal life.

   Lemme tell you this, not many people in my school like to read. They rather spend their Saturday afternoons at the mall or texting their friends. This is not me, your 12 year old girl. I much rather spend everyday reading, and reading, and reading. 

   But, there are a few bookworms at school, who I know, that enjoy reading, as a pastime. For me, reading is my life, and NOT a hobby. 

   Most people who I know enjoy reading dystopian, romance, or fantasy novels such as; Divergent, The Selection, City of Bones, Eve, Fallen, The Hunger Games, The Host and a few more. 

  Now, don't forget, there are those who are still reading the middle-grade novels, which were good, for when I was 9. The Harry Potter series is still a big thing for a few people, but I find myself never enjoying those type of books.

  As a bookworm myself, I love to see other people reading, so I could recommend some novels, or talk about the books. Sometimes, my friends think I think too much about books. They are my life, huh?

  So, these weren't statisitics, this was more of a joy I have to see other readers read.

  QOTD: Do you know a lot of other bookworms? Do they like to read as much as you?

L is for April Lindner

   Bonjour! L is for an awesome author, April Linder, author of Jane and Catherine, two books that are based on classic stories, Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, but with a twist!

   Okay, so lets start off with the first book she wrote, that was the best one, Jane. Jane takes place in a world, similar to ours, where Jane Moore is forced to drop out of an East Coast Collage after her parents' sudden death. 

    Uh huh, so you are listening! Anywho, Jane takes a nanny job at the estate of famous rock star, Nico Rathburn. Independant and confident, Jane soon begins to enroll a romance with the hunky star, and begins to discover a mystery about the estate. Torn between love and mysteries, Jane has to decide whether love should be taken a chance with, if a secret unfolds in between.

      

    This is how I felt after I finished this book. Jane was the perfect book for me, because I adore romance, and a little mystery in-between. Nico might've sounded stubborn, but he turned into a great male character. So, the lesson of this book is to take a chance with love, because you may have found the "one."

    Next, Catherine. Catherine was released this year, prior to Jane, kind of as a spinoff to Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte. Catherine takes place with two points of view, Catherine's, and Chelsea's, in two different time periods, the 80's and I guess, modern day? 

     Catherine is your average teenager, with a not-so-average life. Her father owns an underground nightclub, The Underground, in Manhattan. When she meets the mysterious Hence, she falls in love immediately with the talented musician.  But when their love is tested by a true amount of fate, can the two still be together by the end?

     Chelsea always had believed that her mom died of an illness years ago, but when she discovers a letter her dad's been hiding from her for years, a letter stating that she went missing, Chelsea has to go seek for her, and the first place she goes to, the place where it all began, The Underground. Taken in two points of views, two different lives, April Lindner truly showed her side of things in this novel.

     Catherine surprised me. I truly thought that it'd be five stars, but I gave it four, because it wasn't as strong as Jane. Although Jane was better, I still enjoyed Catherine very much, with the romance, mystery, and time periods. A great story for any teens seeking a good mystery-romance novel.

      Overall, I dedicated this post to April Lindner, because she is a fantastic author. Her storylines actually place you in her stories, filling you with thousands of thoughts keeping you awake for hours. Jane and Catherine fufilled my requirements of a great book, and went beyond. 

Question of The Day: What is your favourite classic book? Do you think that there should be a spinoff book, such as Jane or Catherine?

H is for The Host!

      Hello Wanderers and Souls! Today I am present to blog to you about one of my favourite novels of all-time, The Host, by Stephenie Meyer! Now, we have to give some credit to this amazing author, right? She has written the Twilight Saga, which has sold millions of copies worldwide, and even became into movies!

      The Host, over here, is an adult novel, even though I've read it, and was released on May 6, 2008, by Little Brown and Company.

      The Host takes place in an urban, futuristic world, where it has been invaded by a species that takes over the minds of human hosts, leaving their bodies to themselves. When Wanderer, a soul that has taken over Melanie Stryder's body, starts to hear Melanie's thoughts, she knows that something's wrong. Melanie starts to fill Wanderer's thoughts with memories of her past life, with her boyfriend, Jared, and her brother Jamie, Wanda knows that she has to go find them, and help them survive...

      The Host has a special place in my heart, it's unstoppable. You can't put it down, even though there is some confusion in the beginning, between Melanie's thoughts, and Wanderer's thoughts, but you'll figure it out, and you'll be like, "Ohh, now I get it." This isn't a love triangle, IT'S A LOVE BOX! (Inside joke for the hosters here.) Jeb and the rest of the humans lightened my world, bringing the bright light towards me. Ian and Jared are much better than Edward and Jacob! Move over, Jace and Clary, there's two more IT couples in the fictional world!

       The Host has thrilled so many fans, that a movie has been created, and just came out, on March 29, 2013 at your local theater! Saorirse Ronan, actress of The Lovely Bones, plays as Melanie/Wanda, while Max Irons plays Jared, and Jake Abel plays Ian! I went to watch the movie right on the release date, because I'm obsessed, and it was almost, I said almost, as good as the book! But hey, the book's always better than the movie!

I know it's a HUGE book, 619 pages, but hey, why don't you give it a try?

       

If I Stay, by Gayle Forman

       If I Stay blew me away, because how much I enjoyed it, in a four star rating type of way! It captivated me, shockingly, and gave me a sort of loss that Mia felt in the book.

        Many readers have encouraged each other to read this book, because it's different, and lets you feel different emotions, and sometimes doesn't have a happy ending, which is sometimes surprising, because you think that everything ends in a perfect way. Fiction is almost the same as reality, and you just have to live with it, and move on.

         Gayle Forman is a fantastic author, letting readers feel endearment. I couldn't put it down, my heart just stopped when the tragedy happened, even though I knew something would happen, eventually, and the characters each shone in their own way.

         I'm definitely reading the next book, because I obviously want to know what's going to happen, in three years. This book will inspire you, and trust me, it's worth giving a try.

B is for Books That Start With "B" (My favourites)

    I just realized how much I love doing the A-Z Challenge! I only did it for one day, and I'm already having a blast! Today's the letter B, which means that I will be blogging about my favourite Books that start with B! So, here's a picture from my famous basement-library (yes, I know, obsessive much.) of my favourites! 

     Starting the top of the pile, in no particular order, is Bloom, by Elizabeth Scott!

Bloom is a 237 paged paperback book that was released on April 24, 2007. The cover features a brown-haired girl, with a white flower in her hair. Summary time! Bloom is about a teenage girl, named Lauren whose always had the perfect top-notch life. She's popular, has a hot boyfriend, decent grades and a best friend. When a new guy, Evan Kirkland, arrives to school, she can't stop staying away from him. She skips classes, lies to her friends, and denies many things. Lauren needs to make a choice, before one is chosen for her. I loved this book! I gave it a 5/5 star rating, because it deserved it. I had high expectations of this book, but they were even higher than I thought! Evan was perfection. His words to Lauren were like Romeo's to Juliet. Bloom truly made my heart quiver, and left me thinking about young love.

      Next stop, in Easton, Connecticut, we have The Book of Spells, by Kate Brian! The Book of Spells, is a young adult novel, published by Simon and Schuster, on December 21, 2010. The cover features, a young, black-haired girl, which looks like in a snowy-forest with her wearing a white dress. The book takes place in 1915, when sixteen-year old Eliza Williams is sent to the Billings School for Girls. As she gets used to being away from her rich, strict life, she and her housemates find out that they're witches. After finding an old spell book, they create a coven, searching for more secrets to their pasts. The girls find freedom and power, until when one of the spells have gone wrong. This book introduced me to paranormal-romance books! It was the beginning to them all, and I adored it. Kate Brian's words captivated me, and made me want more. 5/5 star rating. 

       Before I Fall, by the Delirium writer, Lauren Oliver was released on October 25, 2010 by HarperCollins with 470 pages. This book changed my life forever, but lemme tell you what it's about. Samantha Kingston has everything, just like Lauren in Bloom, popularity, money and the perfect boy. Friday February 12, was her last day to this life. Maybe for it all... The thing is, she wakes up the next morning, and finds out that each day is the same day all over again. February 12, each time she opens her life. Sam needs to figure out what had went wrong and solve the mystery of her life. Another favourite to the list! Before I Fall introduced me to Oliver's amazing books, and made me feel what Sam was feeling. 5/5 star rating.

        I always have loved Jen Calonita's books. This one was just another to add to the list! Belles was released on April 10, 2012 by Poppy, and is the perfect summer-road trip type of story. Isabelle Scott lives beside a boardwalk, where she's having a good life. When tragedy strikes, Isabelle has to move in to a long-lost uncle's home and start a whole new life there. Turns out, her uncle has a daughter, the same age as Issy, named Mirabelle. Mira doesn't want to share her life with an outsider, but soon after, they find a secret that will change their lives forever. The characters, plot, and meaning to this book had me thrilled, laughing, and crying at the same time! We can all tell that Jen added her passion into writing this, with meanings that will have you thinking. 5/5 stars.

        Big girls don't cry...... They make revenge. Burn For Burn, by another of my favourite authors, Jenny Han and her best friend, Siobhan Vivian, was girly, fun, and sassy. Probably a 5/5 star rating, right? Lilia, Mary, and Kat all have someone to get revenge from, someone who ruined their lives. When they all create a master plan, something to get down these people, they realize that consequences may overcome, but they'll have to achieve what's right. As I scrolled through the book, I found myself liking Kat's attitude, but Mary's sweetness, and Lillia's lifestyle. All three gals had something in them that WOW-ED me. I was very happy to hear that Fire To Fire would be released soon, another book to add to my to-read list. 

      Perfection is coming up! Between The Lines, by Jodi Picoult, and her daughter, Samantha Van Leer, stunned me, in a phenomenal way. Delilah always described herself as an outsider, a booknerd. She's always had an obsession with a particular fairy tale story, Between The Lines. It's always felt real to her. One day, it does. One day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. Delilah and Oliver need to figure out how to get Oliver out of the book, and maybe, an attraction between them, will overcome. Romantic, adventrous, thrilling, and perfect, Between The Lines went right to my favourites list. I WANT MORE!

       Last but not least, we have Beautiful Creatures, by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. Beautiful Creatures is taken place in Gaitlin, where Ethan Wate never expects something BIG to happen in his small southern town, but it does. Lena Duchannes, new to town, has been in Ethan's dreams. Falling off a cliff, together. But, Ethan never saw her until that day. She's struggling to conceal a power, to break a curse between them, but no one would realize that they'd fall in love... Beautiful Creatures is one of my all-time favourites. A friend of mine recommended it, and I loved it, more than she did. It was haunting, romantic, and thrilling all through the story. I never wanted it to end, but it did. 5/5 stars.

All of these wonderful books put a meaning to my life, I hope, after this post, they will for you, too.

A is for Alice In Zombieland

    Today is the first post of the A-Z challenge this year, and for today, A is for Alice In Zombieland! What is better than featuring a book, that's beautiful, and has a phonomenon that many people are obsessed with, the walking dead, also known as zombies?    
    Alice In Zombieland, an young adult novel, by Gena Showalter, is the first book in the White Rabbit Chronicles, was released on September 25, 2012, by Harlequin Teen, with a hardcover edition, and 404 pages. 
    Many people enjoy this book, with its Goodreads average rating, 4.07 and 1,238 reviews. Gena Showalter has announced that the sequel, Through The Zombie Glass, will be released on September 24, this year (2013) in a hardcover edition with 304 pages.
     As I said, many people enjoy this book, but I wasn't one of them. Lesson 1. Do not ever, ever I tell you, judge a book by its cover. Sadly, I did for this one. It's so stunning! With its layout, colours and fab, any reader would want to buy it, right? I did too. In my opinion, it wasn't as good as the public says it is. I highly expected it to be "AMAZING" but, it wasn't. Zombies are something that many people are becoming obsessed with, and I guess I thought that I would see the passion of her writing using these characters. First of all, the title. Why would she even call the book, "Alice In Zombieland?" It doesn't make sense, because it has nothing to do with Alice In Wonderland, and her world is normal like ours, she doesn't leave Earth, into another "land." She's a zombie slayer, there's no point in this.    
      Okay. So, I was hooked into this, as well. At first, I loved the beginning. Ali's father never let her or her family go outside at night because he believes that there's monsters out there, as you can probably tell, zombies. But, when Ali's birthday comes, her family forgets about it. When she reminds them, Ali's mother wants to do something for her. Ali wishes that the whole family could go to her sister's dance recital, at that night, but she makes the wrong wish....
      Anyways, I'm not going to summarize this all for you. You get it, at least I hope so. I rate this book a 3/5 stars, because it didn't WOW me. The male character, Cole was very dull, and didn't seem to love Ali as other boys do to their girlfriends in other books. I wanted more zombie, more thrill, and more romance. 

So, this was today's book for the letter A, we'll see what tomorrow brings, right?

REMEMBER, DON'T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER.