March Wrap-up

MARCH WRAP-UP

This month was a great reading month for me! I read a grand total of 10 books! I am really proud of myself because I was feeling rather lazy while reading, but I pushed through because all of these were pretty great. 

1) Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan: ★★★★

2) The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan: ★★★★★

3) The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan: ★★★★★

4) The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan: ★★★★★

5) The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan: ★★★★★ 

6) Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard: ★★★★★
7) Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover: ★★★★★
8) Dreams of Gods & Monsters by Laini Taylor: ★★★★★
9) Steadfast by Claudia Gray: ★★★★
10) The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks: ★★★★★

{REVIEW} Love, Rosie by Cecelia Ahern

Title: Love, Rosie
Author: Cecelia Ahern
Rating: ★★★

Blurb from Goodreads:

The basis for the forthcoming motion picture starring Lily Collins and Sam Claflin!

What happens when two people who are meant to be together can't seem to get it right?

Rosie and Alex are destined for each other, and everyone seems to know it but them. Best friends since childhood, they are separated as teenagers when Alex and his family relocate from Dublin to Boston.


Like two ships always passing in the night, Rosie and Alex stay friends, and though years pass, the two remain firmly attached via emails and letters. Heartbroken, they learn to live without each other. But destiny is a funny thing, and in this novel o f several missed opportunities, Rosie and Alex learn that fate isn't quite done with them yet

My Rating/Thoughts:

“There aren’t many sure things in life, but one thing I know for sure is that you have to deal with the consequences of your actions. You have to follow through on some things.”

This book was kind of hard for me to rate because I didn't hate it, but I didn't particularly love it either. I just wanted a little bit more of an ending I guess and that effected my overall reaction. I read 400+ of this book and wanted a huge FINALLY-IT-TOOK-LONG-ENOUGH moment and I just didn't get that. It ended too abruptly for me to even SEE that moment ):

“You can run and run as fast and as far as you like, but the truth is, wherever you run, there you are.” 

Now put the ending aside, I actually think I did love this book. I love Rosie and Alex's relationship so much and shipped them so hard! We all knew they were going to get together in the end, but it was just a long and bumpy road to get them to finally admit it to not only each other but themselves! And boy did it take foreverrrrr! But their relationship was so great. I loved that it overcame years and distance and they were still the best of friends. That was truly inspiring in and of itself. Not to mention how adorable it was that Katie (Rosie's daughter) and Toby had a relationship parallel to Rosie and Alex.

“Twice we stood beside each other at the altar, Rosie. Twice. And twice we got it wrong. I needed you to be there for my wedding day but I was too stupid to see that I needed you to be the reason for my wedding day. But we got it all wrong.” 

I think the only major complaint and I know this was the whole point, but I didn't like how it was written all in email format or IMs. I enjoyed it at first, but then it started to get on my nerves because I wanted to see more scenes and we don't get to see any of them at all until Rosie or Alex talk about them with other people. Even then we don't get the full story. And way too much time passes. For example, one page Alex is emailing Rosie wishing her a happy 38th birthday, then two pages later he is emailing Katie about her mom's 40th birthday. What? Two pages and two years have already passed?! Other than that I liked it. I liked the themes about family, love, friendship, selflessness, and sacrifice. It was actually pretty touching.

*REVIEW* Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Title: Gone Girl
Author: Gillian Flynn
Rating: ★★★★

Blurb from Goodreads:

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

My Rating/Thoughts: 

I picked up this book simply because the movie comes out this Friday and the needy "I have to read the book before the movie!" type booknerd that I am decided to give this a try. I didn't know what to expect because let's fact it, adult novels are just not my thing. I don't think they are terrible at all, I just don't feel as drawn to them. But I did, however, really enjoy this novel. I devoured it. I thought about it constantly every second I wasn't reading it because I JUST HAVE TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS! That being said, that ending left me with a million different types of disappointment. The whole book had this fast paced, mystery thriller thing going on that you couldn't put down so by the time I reached Part 3 "Boy Gets Girl Back (Or Vice Versa)" I just wanted to walk away. Now I still powered through it because I had hopes that I'd get the satisfying ending that I craved...but no dice. I am a little bummed. Okay, a lot bummed. I wanted a big YES! YES! YES! YOU GOT WHAT YOU DESERVED! moment and it just never came. But it was still a great read. I had fun reading it. I was completely engrossed with the story and I'd totally recommend it to anyone who hasn't already read the book. But I just wanted more. Can we have a sequel? *hopefully smiles* 

That being said, I enjoyed the characters in this book a lot. Flynn totally knows how to make you question everything and everyone and I found myself in a ping-pong match wondering who to trust. "Nick. No Amy. No Nick. What the heck is going on?!" and for that I really enjoyed it. It kept me on my toes. I just hated how the "I need everyone to love me" personality they both had. With Amy, it was to be expected because this chick was truly a sociopath and needed some major help! But with Nick? I don't know. I just needed him to get it together and do something! He wanted to please too many people to make sure he was the good guy. Come on, dude. You cheated. Your wife is missing and you have a creepy "I'm guilty" smile on your face. No one likes you right now. And let's talk about how many mistakes he made! Oh my God! The cell phone picture with Shawna? What are you thinking, Nick?! The drunken video interview in the bar? What?! Idiot move after idiot move. 

But like I said, it was a good read filled with many twists, turns, jaw dropping moments and confusion. Every time you think you figure out what's going to happen next *BAM* new twist. I loved it and for that I give it a solid four start rating. I can't give it anything higher because that ending has left me too disappointed. But alas, highly recommended! 

Now let's see how this movie is ☺