• Books

    Annotating Books…

    October 12, 2017

    Annotating books? Have you ever tried it? Give it a go!

    Annotating to me is when you get a highlighter in a fancy colour and is used to capture the attention of the book reader. Other ways of annotating books include; dog-earing, tabbing (small sticky notes), writing in the margins & underlining key words or phrases.

    It is a very common practice used by students to aid with revision but also it is also used by people who like to have notes on books such as book bloggers and reviewers.

    As you all know I am currently taking an A Level (in English Literature) and have recently discovered the joys of annotating books. Many people on blogs and bookTube have done lots of talks on the pros and cons.

    I personally today decided to start to do it myself because I want good notes and need quotes for my assignments and revision. My one tip is to have two copies so you can still read for fun if you want to or if you need to have a clean copy for an exam like I do.

    If you’re worried about ruining a book, I would not recommend this… but if you are looking to advance your reading or want to create good notes, for example, study this is the perfect thing to do, plus it doesn’t take too much of your time either.

     

    DO YOU ANNOTATE BOOKS – OR DISAGREE WITH ANNOTATING – WHY?

    Please let me know in the comments below!

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  • Books,  REVIEWS

    [REVIEW] #ad Murder in Little Shendon – A.H. Richardson

    September 25, 2017

    A quick murder mystery that keeps you engaged

    This story starts with a murder of a village person, who is well known but not liked, set not long after WW2. The story progresses well and it is a cosy mystery which is easy to read. A. H Richardson is a good author who creates suspense well and some soft humour added to the story too.

    At under 300 pages, this book is nice and small and should be quick to read. Mr Hazlitt and Mr Brandon fill the storyline well by being amateur detectives. It is fun and light-hearted, plus their investigations into various character throughout the story are easy to read.

    The story progresses well because it is separated into small easy-to-read chapters and in 3rd person except in speech. The murderer was found at the end of the book and summed up well and professionally. I didn’t guess who the murderer was until it was revealed on the last 5 pages. I liked the ending and thought it was handled nicely with an Epilogue

    Would I recommend this book? Yes, to people who like short, easy, enjoyable mysteries.

    DISCLAIMER: I got this book from the author and publisher for an honest review.
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  • Books,  REVIEWS

    [REVIEW] #ad Vendetta – Jack McSparron

    August 28, 2017

    Image result for jack mcsporran vendetta

    GIFTED*

    Mafia, Murder and drugs; all in one book?

    This book caught my eye when it came up on my bulk emails (linked to up and coming authors & review ebook copies) as an advertisement. So I grabbed it before it disappeared. This book is a quick read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It took me just under 24 hours to completely finish this as it was so entertaining.

    The man character is a kick-ass woman called Maggie Black, who is incredible. Her partner in this book and part-time lover is Leon. I feel both have an interesting backstory which propelled the story on well.

    The story takes place mainly in Venice, Italy and I loved the casual references to places within the city. The story powers on easily and quickly as we are introduced to various characters, each with their own agenda.

    This book basically is about a spy who is trying to stop a meeting and two groups becoming partners across Europe. The mafia is involved via the character Carlo Rossi and his family vs the other Italian family and mafia enemy the Martinis.

    The killer in the murders through the story is revealed just as I figured out who it could be. The suspense was high and clever to read. I enjoyed hearing the ending of this book.

    I would recommend this book, as it is an enjoyable quick read. I will go on to read more about the main character in new books, as this was the first in the series which I highly recommend reading.

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  • REVIEWS

    [DNF] A Court of Thorns and Roses

    August 26, 2017

    I have bad news for you reading. I tried “A Court of Thorns and Roses” and didn’t like it.

    I heard a lot of hype of this book series on BookTube and Bookstagram and I thought I’d give it a go and could not get into it.

    I found the storyline strange and didn’t like it and at the half way mark, I decided that’s enough and I gave the book back to the library.

    The reason I didn’t enjoy the book is mainly because of these reasons and more…

    • The main character Feyre is boring after the leaving her family
    • I don’t think Tamlin is a nice person he’s guilt tripping her because he didn’t kill her straight away
    • I don’t understand the fae world

    Sorry, this post was so brief and I hope this was interesting to read why I didn’t enjoy this book. Luckily it was not a review copy so it didn’t upset anyone, except maybe you guys who are reading my blog.

    HERE IS MY QUICK REVIEW:

    I went in to this book with extremely high expectations of enjoyment. This made me sad when i started reading and did not enjoy or get into the book as i was told by other bloggers around the world.

    I just didnt seem to get the whole damsel in distress idea, i mean shes a hunter after all so why couldnt she defeat the beast that came to her door after killing the wolf.

    The other thing that bugged me is i have never read a faery tale before so it took me a goood few chapters to understand what it is all about and start to like this mystical world i was reading.

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  • Books,  Lifestyle

    [book tag] HARRY POTTER: Q&A

    August 23, 2017

    Following on from last weeks Harry Potter theme this week – So Never Not Reading tagged me in this Q&A. Please go ahead and view her blog…

    HERE ARE THE QUESTIONS!

    What Hogwarts House are you in?
    Hufflepuff
    “Did you know that Hufflepuff has produced the fewest Dark wizards of any house..?“

    What is your Patronus?
    Blackbird

    What is your wand?
    Aspen wood // Unicorn hair // 11 ¼” inches // Unbending

    What would your boggart be?
    Honestly, a few things come to mind?

    What position would you play in Quidditch?
    I can safely say I would be a spectator – I don’t do sports!

    Would you be a pure blood, half blood or muggle born?
    I think I’d be Muggle Born but have knowledge of Hogwarts!

    What job would you want after to have after Hogwarts?
    I want to work in the ministry of Magic – with books and unusual happenings

    Which of the deathly Hallows would you choose?
    Hard choice but I would go with – The Wand. As I would like to have a reliable and powerful wand if I needed to use magic – for good causes obvs!

    Favourite book?
    I haven’t read them in soo long so I can’t remember but I would go with “The Philosopher’s Stone” as it introduces everyone to the wizarding world and also “The Deathly Hallows” because it finishes the story well which I like.

    Least favourite book?
    My least favourite book must be The Order of the Phoenix” which is too long and I don’t like the storyline or main characters in it this book.

    Favourite film?
    My favourite film is definitely “The Prisoner of Azkaban” because it introduces my favourite Character, Sirius Black. This is closely followed by “The half blood prince” as it has a lot of backstories in it and is quite a dark film.

    Least favourite film?
    This is a difficult one again but probably I would go for same as the movie choice for the same reason. I just didn’t enjoy that book or film at all.

    Favourite character?
    I could go on and on about Sirius Black for hours but to sum up he gives Harry hope that someone cares about him, he has a wizard relative that’s alive to meet him and he also has the best storyline I think (Although I didn’t like the rest of the film  that he was a big part in!)

    Least favourite/most hated character?
    This is again a hard one but I’m going with Dolores Umbridge as I can not stand her in the film she is in. she ruins the film and I don’t think she should have been a professor, surely she wouldn’t have been able to get into Hogwarts.

    Favourite teacher at Hogwarts?
    My favourite Teacher is obviously Severus Snape. Not only does he have a brilliant backstory, he keeps you guessing which side he is on (good or bad) all the way through the series and the actor is one of the best in the whole series.

    Least favourite teacher at Hogwarts?
    Dolores Umberbridge – READ ABOVE.

    Do you have any unpopular opinions about the series?
    Not particularly; other than I enjoy the films more than the books!

    If you could save one character from the final battle who would you save?
    I would save Snape as I think he deserves saving. I think he could have gone on to release another set of books just dedicated just to his back story as he is quite a hidden character and he’s my favourite throughout the whole series!

    Basically I’m not tagging anyone in this – so if you want to do it, please comment below and I’ll get round to reading your answers! Thanks, guys.

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  • Books,  REVIEWS

    [REVIEW] Harry Potter 1 (atPS) – J.K. Rowling

    August 15, 2017

    A boy a cupboard …who becomes a wizard.

    Harry Potter is a book close to my heart. I remember reading this book while still in Primary school for the reading hour. It is still as exciting as it was all those years ago.

    We start at the beginning with a young boy being ignored and basically feeling unwanted by his adopted parents after his real ones perish.

    we are given a brief idea about how important this boy is to the world he was not able to be brought up in.

    It follows average peoples lives via his aunt and uncle with their son Dudley. The drama doesn’t really pick up until we get t the part where a parcel is delivered to Harry (Potter) and his aunt and uncle will not allow him to read it. This uncle and Aunt decide to run away from their house to a remote area and hide from these parcels.

    Hagrid turns up and he is a welcome surprise that makes everyone feel much better and happier. This is because he has rescued Harry Potter from the wretched family who didn’t really want him or care about him.

    The action picks after Harry was introduced to the wizarding world. As this is a re-read for me and since watching the film I had a good idea what was going to happen throughout the book.  I would say to all new readers to this book to stick by the mundane storyline until you get to Hogwarts (the magical school) and enjoy it.

    As many people before have said before I think that Peeves really should have been added to the film adaption. For all that don’t know he is a cheeky ghost that haunt Hogwarts castle.

    Towards the end, it becomes apparent that Harry and his house/class mates who he has befriended are intent on a journey and solving the mystery of what is on the third floor of Hogwarts that came from Gringotts – the wizarding bank.

    Personally, it was very interesting plot over all and I would say read this book – if not the whole series. I would recommend not watching the films before reading as it does ruin the story. Although the films  miss a lot, they have enough in for you to know what’s going on and you don’t want to know the storyline before reading the book.

    Harry Potter is a book for kids that adults can read and should. Enjoy!

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