#MoreHappyThanNot

I was tagged by my super amazing friend Dani of Dani Reviews Things to do the More Happy Than Not tag. The tag was created by Shelumiel @ Bookish and Awesome in response to the “What makes you #MoreHappyThanNot?” question inspired by Adam Silvera’s debut More Happy Than Not.  For the tag, you basically just list things in your live, whether they be big or small, that make you happy.

I AM MORE HAPPY THAN NOT…

Cuddling/playing/talking to dogs, no matter what breed or who they belong to.

Drinking that first cup of tea in the morning.

In that moment when your plane drips over the city you’re going to land in.

Saving Michelle from her late night book almost-buying sprees.

Talking to my dad on the phone. I miss him very, very much.

Seeing the new Terminator posters everywhere. Back home, my dad and I would rewatch the first three movies every month.

Receiving mail. It doesn’t even have to be bookmail, I really love receiving letters and postcards from people. I just love opening things.

Spending time with my great aunt and uncle. They know me so well already. Every morning there’s a bacon sandwich and a cup of tea waiting for me and there’s a stack of Daphne du Maurier books that my great aunt bought into my room yesterday.

Seeing my blogger friends tag each other in things and comment on each other’s blogs. Dani tagged my friend Lori, which just made me infinitely happy. I just want a little blogger squad, okay?

Books, obviously. Everything about books makes me happy. The smell, the texture, the words (most of the time), the covers, even just the idea of books—they just make me so happy.

I don't know who might have already done this, so if you have then I'm sorry! But, I'm tagging these gorgeous people: Val of The Innocent Smiley, Inge of Bookshelf Reflections, Sierra of the Nerdgirl Review and of course, my little wino—Michelle of Lovely Girl Reads.

The Summer Reader Tag

A few days ago, I was tagged by the wonderful Lori of Books o’ the Wisp to do the Summer Reader Tag. This tag originated from jessethereader’s video which is called the Summer Reader Book Tag. When Lori tagged me, she asked that I used different books than I would usually pick, so that’s what I’ve tried to do.

Lemonade: pick a book that started off bitter but got better.

I don’t know what I’ve done this right, but I picked a book that’s a little heavy to start off with but gets sweeter. For that I chose, The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney. This book is about a girl who gets date raped, but her prestigious boarding school has a secret society that helps wronged students. This is pretty full on, but there are definitely some sweet moments in there too…from what I remember.

Golden Sun: pick a book that made you smile beyond compare.

I had to go with my Queen of Contemporary here—Maureen Johnson. All of her books make me smile like mad, but I thought I’d talk about Girl at Sea today because that one isn’t discussed as much. This set on a boat in the Mediterranean and it has a super super hot guy and some really crazy moments. 

Tropical Flowers: pick a book set in a foreign country.

This is where being Australian is like the best thing ever because pretty much every book is set in a foreign country. I went for Last Train from Kummersdorf by Leslie Wilson, which is set in Nazi Germany, one of my favourite things to read about. It’s the story of two children, Hanno who has recently deserted from the army and a streetgirl, Effi, who is on the way to find her father.

Tree Shade: pick a book in which a mysterious or shady character was first introduced.

I had to go for Dr Hortense Gray from The Purgatorium by Eva Pohler. Gray is super shady, and I haven’t gotten around to the rest of the series yet but I have a feeling she’s only going to get more messed up.

Beach Sand: pick a book that was grainy, and the plot barely developed.

The Time Traveller’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. Was there a plot to this other than a guy who can time travel and makes out with sixteen year old girls?

Green Grass: pick a character(s) that were full of life, making you smile.

I’m going to be a little different here and pick a graphic novel. Nimona by Noelle Stevenson has some of the best characters ever, in my opinion. Nimona herself was hilarious and she’s kind of my spirit animal. Blackheart was just the best and I love him. Goldenloin…what do I say about Goldenloin? Just read this.

Watermelon: pick a book that had some juicy secrets.

I think I’m being a little bit obvious here, but And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie. If you haven’t read this, I don’t even know why you’re here. This is the story of ten people stuck on an luxury island, slowly their secrets come out as they are killed off one by one.

Sun Hat: pick a book that had a vast, big universe/setting.

Even though it’s only a novella, The Emperor’s Soul by Brandon Sanderson. There is so much packed into this little book. The world is incredibly complex and interesting and the characters are amazingly written.

BBQ: pick a book in which a character was portrayed as a hunk.

A new favourite of mine—Roth from White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout. *fans self* In the blurb, Roth is described as ‘a tattooed, sinfully hot demon’. CAN WE JUST? There is actually another side to Roth in the book which is really what made me like him so much, so I definitely recommend you check it out.

Summer Fun: pass the tag on.

Now for the best part! I’m tagging Dani of Dani Reviews Things, Val of The Innocent Smiley and Krystianna of Downright Dystopian. Good luck girls!

Day and Night Book Tag

The other day, the very lovely Dani of Dani Reviews Things tagged me to do the Day and Night Book Tag so that's what we're doing today. The tag was originally created by Readigans and it's just a bunch of questions about books!

D: Do you read more in the morning or at night?

I usually read the most at night, around 6pm until 10/11pm. I try to always read something before I go to bed at night.

A: Are there any books that changed the way you thought about things?

Yes, lots. The one that stands out the most, which I know I talk about a lot, is The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. This book honestly changed my life and just completely ripped out my soul. I respect Anne Frank so much, and she’s definitely someone I look up to—both as a writer and as a human being.

Y: YA or not?

YA, definitely. I love reading other genres and books too, especially classics, but YA is definitely my number one love at the moment.

A: Are there any characters you honestly believe to be real?

Sirius Black is my boyfriend. True story.

N: Nobody borrows my books or I don’t mind lending them out?

I’m very fussy with who I lend my books out to. At the moment, the only person I trust is Michelle because I know she’ll look after them.

D: Do you ever smell your books?

More often that I probably should.

N: Not everyone likes books, is this a positive or a negative?

I think it’s a negative thing. Books are such a central point of my life that I actually find it difficult to talk to people who don’t like to read. What bothers me the most are the people who don’t even try to read. My dad is not a big reader, but he will try and make it through at least one sports biography a year. It’s not the best, but he tries!

I: I keep my books in the best condition or maybe not? Which are you?

Best condition. Oh my god, best condition, you have no idea. I actually cover all of my books with contact because I can’t read anything that isn’t. Okay, I can read other people’s uncovered books but I like my own to be covered and in perfect condition (unless it’s second-hand).

G: Gosh I have too many books! True or False?

Is there such thing as too many books.

H: Have you ever spilled or stained your books before with something, and if so how?

No. Nope. Nopity. They need to be perfect.

T: Toned or untoned while reading? . . or in other words. . .Do you read and workout at the same time?

Haha NO. I don’t workout. I read, I eat and sometimes, I walk. Exercise and I aren’t friends.

There you go, those are my answers! Thank you so much to Dani for tagging me, and I'm going to tag... Rachel of The Very Hungry Bookworm, Lori of Books o' the Wisp, Michelle of LovelyGirlReads and Olivia of Olivia's Catastrophe. Sorry if any of you have already done this, but otherwise I'm looking forward to your answers!

Young Adult Series That I Will Never Finish

Wicked Lovely by Melissar Marr

I can’t say I hated Wicked Lovely, but I really did not love it. An even bigger turn off was the fact that the sequels were from a different point of view. If you know me, you’ll know that I hate when a series changes point of view. Especially when you’ve finally stuck with one character for a whole book and felt like you really connected with them only to discover that they won’t be in the next book. And I know that it’s the authors plan and it must work in the whole grand scheme of things, but give me a break, you just made me love a character and you are ripping them right out from underneath me.

Books Read in the series: 1

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

One of the things that turned me off from this series is the fact that the story is told from a character’s point of view who felt more like an observer to the main plot line, than actually being in it. I felt like he was always looking in to Lena’s life and the craziness that came with it. I mean there is nothing wrong with that. I guess I’m just used to having the main character be the one that things are happening to. It felt like I was looking through too many windows to see what was on the other side. The other side being the actual plot line and driving nature of the book. Ethan, if that is his name by memory, shouldn’t have been the main character. I felt helpless reading through his point of view. It made sense why I stopped reading this series. I didn’t want to be an observer.

Books Read in the series: 2

Matched by Allie Condie

Honestly,  I have never really understood the hype that went around this series. I thought the first book was okay but the majority of people said they really loved it. Then came the second book, which was horribly slow, and I think consisted of the characters walking across a desert for the majority of the book. Blah. Gah. Why? It wasn’t the worst, but it really wasn’t the best either. I got the last book the day it came out in hardback and then I just never ended up reading it. Will I ever read it? I want to say that I will because I am so close to finishing the series but I really don’t know if I will.

Books Read in the series: 2

House of Night by P.C. CAST and Kristin Cast

Ugh. I have so much bookish disappointment for this series. It was pretty much a waste of my life. That’s pretty harsh, I know. The series got to a point in which they were just milking the cow too long and I don’t know if it was for money or if the authors really just loved the story that much, but it exhausted me. I was so done with it. I am still done with it. I definitely know that I will never ever go back to this series. The first couple of books were bearable and then they started introducing new point of views with characters I couldn’t care less about. I heard a rumor somewhere that there will be 12 books in the series. I don’t know if it is true but that is ridiculous. Extremely ridiculous.

Books Read in the series: 8

TAG: Get To Know Us

We were tagged by the absolutely lovely, Chiara of Books for a Delicate Eternity to do the 'Get to Know Me' tag so that's what we're doing today. And by 'we', I mean I'm answering the questions for both us while Chami is off studying...or something. Without further ado, let's go.

How tall are you?
We're both pretty short, though Chami is practically a dwarf. (She wears heels to distract me from this sometimes).

Do you have a hidden talent? If so, what?
Chami can actually sing and draw really well (though she will try and tell you otherwise). I, on the other hand, don't really have a 'hidden' talent though I will say, I'm quite a beast at making Stir-frys.

What's your biggest blog related pet peeve? 
I have no idea about Chami (probably nothing), but I get annoyed at people who write really horrible reviews. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but some people can take it too far.

What's your biggest non blog related pet peeve?
Oh God, I'm so bad at answering these for Chami. The only thing I can think of is bitches- Chami does not like bitches. It's the same for me, but I also hate people who walk really, really slowly.

What's your favourite song?
Chami lives for Florence and the Machine and Daughter. I think mine is Daniel in the Den by Bastille, at the present time.

What's your favourite Etsy shop that isn't yours?
Neither of us have a shop, so that's not a problem but we also don't buy things off Etsy. It's kind of expensive to have things shipped out here usually and we don't have money for that.

What's your favourite way to spend your free time when you're alone?
Skyping each other, or sending each other pictures of goats. Oh, and you know, this little thing called READING.

What's your favourite junk food?
ALL THE FOOD. Literally, all the food.

Do you have a pet or pets? If so, what kind and what are their names?
I think Chami had fish at some point but I'm pretty sure she killed them (by accident, possibly). I have a budgie named Tweety and a dog (a Spoodle, a cross between a poodle and a cocker spaniel) named Tara (or Mara, as Chami calls her).

(Isn't she just gorgeous?)

What are your number one favourite nonfiction and fiction books?

Neither of us read nonfiction, but fiction-wise. Chami is, of course, the Shatter Me trilogy (Didn't see that one coming, did you?) and mine is the Throne of Glass series.

What's your favourite beauty product?

Chami loves her red lipstick, and I...don't ever wear make up.

When were you last embarrassed? What happened?

Since Chami is this super gorgeous, confident, glorious human being, I don't think she ever gets embarrassed ever. I'm sure mine was at something my dad said - he likes to embarrass me.

If you could only drink one beverage (besides water) for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Mine would be tea, no question about it. As for a specific type, either Earl Grey or Pomegranate. Chami has informed me that hers would be Lemon, Lime and Bitters or Chocolate Mountain Malt Milkshake from the Pancake Parlour...which I never would have guessed. #besties

What’s your favourite movie?

This changes all the time for me, but currently it's the first three Terminator films. My dad and I rewatch them every two months or so and they never get old. Also, we just watched the second one last night so it's still fresh in my brain. Chami's is Transformers and she warns you all not to judge her. We both picked action movies so you can tell we're badasses, right?

What were you in high school: Prom queen, nerd, cheerleader, jock, valedictorian, band geek, loner, artist?

We were both cheerleaders, obviously. I'm kidding, we don't exercise. I suppose we're both nerds.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?

London, for both of us. We're going to live in a house there together filled with books.    

PC or Mac?

A few months ago I would have said PC but my laptop is shit so Mac now, and Mac for Chami. She says Mac 4everbaby...Yeah, I don't know either.

Last romantic gesture from a boyfriend?

LOL.

Favourite celebrity?

SO MANY. If I just have to choose one, then I'm going to have to go with Benedict Cumberbatch - I'm sure I don't have to explain myself here. Chami's is Nick Bateman. I mean, who's the hotter one there really? Spoiler alert, it's Benedict.

What blogger do you secretly want to be best friends with?  

I always wanted to be friends with Ebony, Chiara and Cait and now I think I am...so yay! Chami's answer for this was me. Isn't she sweet?

We are tagging... (sorry if you've already done this!)

Val @ The Innocent Smiley

Kate @ Fictional Thoughts

Inge and Karolina @ Bookshelf Reflections