Books I've Read Recently

| Books I've Read Recently! |

The cosy season is upon us once again and my favourite cosy Autumnal activity is reading a magical book curled up on the couch. Fantasy reads are my guilty pleasure so expect to see them heavily featured in this roundup, but you'll also find an enthralling thriller, as well as a cute YA tale. Without further ado let's find out what I've been reading recently...

My Goodreads 2017 challenge: 24/35

1) Six Of Crows & Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo:
My Rating: 5 Stars
I love being transported into fantasy worlds and this duology was one of my favourite fantasy reads ever! Kaz Brekker is a part of a criminal gang and has been offered a wealthy sum to pull off an impossible, deadly heist to retrieve a hostage in the impenetrable Ice Court. Kaz enlists the help of five other criminals to pull the stunt off. It's a fun, thrilling tale that was impossible to put down!

2) Flawed & Perfect by Cecelia Ahern:
My Rating: 4 Stars & 3 Stars
I read Flawed last year but with the release of the second book this year, I decided to reread it as I had forgotten a lot of the things that took place in the book. This was Cecelia Ahern's first time releasing a YA novel so I was very intrigued to see how she would approach it. She went down the dystopian route by creating a society that punishes people who are morally and ethically flawed in a court called the Guild. Both books in the duology are fast-paced and easy to read, but yet they have the ability to evoke much deeper thoughts about human suffering and how we treat people in our own society today. 

3) Into The Water by Paula Hawkins:
My Rating: 4 Stars
This book has probably been the most anticipated thriller release of the year as fans of The Girl On The Train {review} eagerly waited for Hawkins' latest launch to see if it would live up to its predecessor. I'm happy to report that it was an excellent read although I did give it one less star than TGOTT as it wasn't quite as good. 
The plot is revolved around multiple deaths that have occurred in the same place, 'the drowning pool', in a small town. The latest death to transpire is that of Nel Abbott and they say she jumped but all is not what it seems. The story is told from multiple perspectives so it can be tricky at first to get used to flitting back and forth between the vast amount of character's viewpoints. But once I got used to it I was hooked and it was interesting to see how each of the character's stories intertwined with each other.

4) City Of Bones by Cassandra Clare:
My Rating: 2 Stars
This series seems to be the most popular YA fantasy series besides Harry Potter but unfortunately, I hated every minute of reading this book. Ok, that's a slight exaggeration but it's not far off! To be fair, parts of the book were written beautifully but the problem I have is with the plot and the characters. City Of Bones follows Clary Fray who discovers a secret association, known as the Shadowhunters, who are devoted to eradicating demons from the human world. The plot had the basis to be interesting but it just wasn't executed well and I thought the dialogue and the personality of the characters were just atrocious. The idea of this story was better in theory than in practice as one would say! And don't even get me started on that weird revelation at the end.... if you know, you know!

5) Dare To Fall:
My Rating: 2 Stars
This was a quick, light-hearted easy read but the plot and the writing were basic so it's safe to say that this wasn't one of the best books I've ever read. If you're looking for a cute love story to read on holiday or on a lazy Sunday afternoon then it's nice but there are definitely better books in the genre. The book tells the tale of a teenage girl and a teenage boy who have both had to endure a tragic loss. They get in touch again after a year of not speaking and they end up falling in love. The book does deal with grief pretty well and the plot twist towards the end was kinda exciting but overall I wasn't blown away by the novel!

What books have you read recently?

Love,

Cliona xx

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