Champion by Marie Lu (Legend #3)

Title: Champion 

Author: Marie Lu

Rating: 8/10

*Sighs* the last wonderful, glorious, perfect book from the series left to review....

oh well.. all good things must come to an end. here we go...

I just realised describing this book will be very difficult if you haven't read the first two. To avoid upsetting anyone with horrible spoilers i'll try to keep everything vague but clear enough so that those who have read the book will know what I'm talking about ;) 

So Champion begins a short while after Prodigy (Legend #2), with Day living peacefully living in his fancy flat and June back at her home working with Anden. The story moves along at a nice pace just like all the other books and (for me atleast) it wasn't too hard to remember what was going on at the end of Prodigy and being able to connect it to the beginning of this book. But that might also just be because i read it maybe a week before this one xp

Something this book definitely improved and fixed up-was Tess. I felt like Marie Lu read my Prodigy review, understood what a silly potato of a character she'd changed Tess into, and then tweaked her back into the innocent, sweet girl she was in Legend. So thank you Marie Lu! I know you proabably didn't read my review..but thank you nevertheless =)

This was  probably my least favourite book from the series- Prodigy being first and Legend second. I felt like there was alot less action in this book than the others, which was probably because alot of the story went on through political discussions and meetings. There was also less surprises and plot twists. Some of the things that happened seemed really obvious where they were heading, which was a bit boring and annoying :P I did enjoy the character development hroughout the books between both main characters. The rare, special, fluffy moments June and Day got were adorable and much appreciated ^_^

“You drive me insane June. You're the scariest, most clever, bravest person I know, and sometimes I can't catch my breath because I'm trying so hard to keep up. There will never be another like you. You realize that, don't you? Billions of people will come and go in this world, but there will never be another like you.” 

gaaaa i love that quote ^_^

And now on to the interesting finale. The way the plot progressed throughout all three books I had uber high hopes for the ending. For some strange reason I had an intuitive feeling that the news we found out at the end of Prodigy  wasn't going to affect the finale. I was soo sure it was gonna be one of those perfect, everything-is-wrapped-up-nice-and-fine-ish endings. But no, ofcourse not. Following the depressing pattern of the last few books I'd read, this one had to go down the lets-surprise-everyone-by-stabbing-their-heart's route. 

Alright I'll confess. It wasn't as bad as some atrocious endings i've read ..*cough, cough..Allegiant..cough* it just..well. I just don't understand why Marie Lu couldn't give us a nice, smooth happy ending. Especially when it would've been sooooo easy. All she had to do was change and remove the last (i think) 2 chapters. 

 My overall impression of the last book (mostly due to the ending) was a bit like this:

 Despite my dislike for the ending, I would say that the trilogy alltogether was brilliant =) The consistency in the characters and their developments was lovely to read throughout all three books and  I'd say one of the
best things about all of them was that no matter how suckish times got, you never wanted to stop reading! It was like Marie Lu cast a spell on all the books to keep you wanting to read on forever 0.o The action, the drama, the tears... all of it ;) If i could rate the entire series overall, i think I'd give it a 8.5/10. It'll definitely stick with me as one of my favourite trilogies I've ever read =) So yes- go read it now! All of them!




“No matter what happens in the future, no matter where our paths take us, this moment will be ours.”
~The potterhead panemaniac pancake lover ~

The Maze Runner by James Dashner (The Maze Runner #1)

Title: The Maze Runner

Author: James Dashner

Rating: 9/10

So I had been avoiding this book for a while.. I can't really explain why but for some reason the plot seemed a little too typical dystopian to me. Add that to the fact that i knew there was only going to be one girl (in the first book) and i thought mehh..don't wanna read a book about annoying, helpless teenage boys stuck in a maze. But The Maze Runner definitely took me by surprise ;)

The Maze Runner starts with a boy waking up in a box confused and unable to remember anything apart from his name- Thomas. He wakes up to find he's been transported into a place full of teenage boys (the Gladers) in an area they all nickname the Glade. The Glade is closed off with walls and around it is a huge maze that basically has no exit and lets just say keeps them terrified from entering it due to the robotic, disgusting, terrifying creatures/ machines called Grievers which move around the maze (mostly at night). Every month a new boy has always appeared in the Glade for the past two years until the day after Thomas arrives a girl comes with a message that will change everything. Oooh what is that message you ask? Read the book and find out ;) 

Ok so first of all maybe the only think that stopped me from giving this book a lovely 10/10 was the beginning. I found it a little hard to actually get into the book or want to continue reading the book because i felt way too confused at first and just wanted some answers (aha just like Thomas :P ). Also it felt a little slow at first and i just wanted things to move forward a little. I was glad that finally after the first..maybe 20 pages the story definitely took off and after that..everything was awesome 0.o

The plot was really interesting and cleverly thought out and written. I loved the fact that even for me, someone that always loves predicting whats going to happen next (and  is usually right ^.^ ) was surprised at times and was able to enjoy the different twists and turns the story took and how Thomas managed to get through all sorts of things. Knowing the series was a trilogy, i also loved the fact that enough was revealed in the first book to not make you frustrated and annoyed and that (it's very hard to explain this without any spoilers) with the way the book ends you can tell all the books won't be the same situations, atmosphere and themes repeated over and over again. It won't (hopefully) be like the show Prison break, where every season their breaking out of a new prison or running from the same people over and over again (No hate on Prison Break! I do love the show but i hope you get what I'm trying to say ;P ).

I also liked the reasoning behind the whole scenario of why the boys were in this place. We still don't know all the details by the end of the first book, but i liked the fact that it wasn't one of those moments where you're dying to know why  and then when you find out your like -.- ARE YOU SERIOUS. I COULD'VE COME UP WITH A BETTER EXCUSE.

The characters are all loveable and grow on you. I didn't actually hate anyone..maybe this is the first time for that xp lol. My favourite is definitely Minho because he's just chilled out and all his reactions to everything the Gladers went through seemed the most mature, relatable and ..epic ;) (Yes i am thinking of that epic Gathering scene where everyone wants to hear his decision..and then he tells them ^.^ ) I also loved Chuck cus' well.. who wouldn't ;) My least favourite, but not disliked, was probably Teresa. She just seemed a little plain and well randomly put in there for the sake of having a girl in the book but without much personality. I mean don't get me wrong she wasn't annoying and she was definitely essential for the story and she did alot of stuff but..I don't know..something about her seemed a little boring to me. Thomas ( the protagonist) seemed like a typical main male lead and in my opinion was a bit too much of a stereotypical hero at times. Some of his reactions for me felt a unrealistic and are-you-serious-wth-no-non-suicidal-normal-person-does-that ish. Don't get me wrong..he wasn't terrible. I mean I guess if I like the book this much the main character must have been ok. He just wasn't my favourite.

All together this book was definitely worth reading and after the first few pages, is a wonderful action packed gripping read. Alot of people say Hunger Games fans would love this, and I'm sure they would.. but I think the closest book it relates to for me is the Gone series by Micheal Grant. So ya.. if you've read the Gone series and you loved it..you'll definitely most positively love this too!

Some quotes:

“Holy crap, I’m scared.”
“Holy crap, you’re human. You should be scared.”

"Can’t take a chance that one day, in one spot, somewhere, an exit might appear. We can’t give up. Ever.”

Also..it's going to be a movie and will apparently ( according to a rumour i read) will be released on September 19th 2014 !!! Here's some cool photos from the movie:





Ooooh fancy shmancy.. something tells me I'll probably love movie Thomas more than book Thomas. hehehe

~The potterhead panemaniac pancake lover~
PS. ooh btw HAPPY PANCAKE DAY EVERYONE!

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Title: The Fault in Our Stars

Author: John Green

Rating: 10/10

OMG this book was just...beautiful :')If any book deserves to be described as beautiful then it's definitely this one. The story..the dialogues..the ..GAAAA EVERYTHING!

The plot revolves around Hazel Grace who has terminal lung cancer. Her parents make her join a cancer support group where she meets the gorgeous, wonderful Augustus Waters. The book was a beautiful, heart warming read and it's unfortunately very difficult to describe without giving any spoilers away xp

Hazel and Gus had a great sense of humour and wit that lifted your mood and kept your hopes up throughout the book despite it being a book about two teenagers with cancer. I was actually really reluctant to read it because i just thought i wasn't ready for a depressing story that will just make me all empty and broken inside.. and i wasn't 0.0 This book will most certainly make you ball your eyes out and cry but it's also definitely a treasure amongst the world of books and for me it was one of those you-have-to-read-this-book-it's-awesomesauce typish ones ^_^ .  Here's some of my favourite moments:

“Oh, I wouldn't mind, Hazel Grace. It would be a privilege to have my heart broken by you.” 

“Books so special and rare and yours that advertising your affection feels like a betrayal.” 

"Augustus Waters talked so much that he'd interupt you at his own funeral. And he was pretentious: Sweet Jesus Christ, that kid never took a piss without pondering the abundant metaphorical resonances of human waste production. And he was vain: I do not believe I have ever met a more physically attractive person who was more acutely aware of his own physical attractiveness."

“That’s part of what I like about the book in some ways. It portrays death truthfully. You die in the middle of your life, in the middle of a sentence

'It's just that most really good-looking people are stupid, so I exceed expectations.'

'Right, it's primarily his hotness,' I said. 'It can be sort of blinding,' he said. 'It actually did blind our friend Isaac,' I said.'Terrible tragedy, that. But can I help my own deadly beauty?''You cannot.''It is my burden, this beautiful face.''Not to mention your body.''Seriously, don't even get me started on my hot body. You don't want to see me naked, Dave. Seeing me naked actually took Hazel Grace's breath away,' he said, nodding toward the oxygen tank.” 

“Whenever you read a cancer booklet or website or whatever, they always list depression among the side effects of cancer. But, in fact, depression is not a side effect of cancer. Depression is a side effect of dying.” 

“You gave me a forever within the numbered days, and I'm grateful.” 

"I didn’t tell him that the diagnosis came three months after I got my first period. Like: Congratulations! You’re a woman. Now die."

“You don't get to choose if you get hurt in this world...but you do have some say in who hurts you. I like my choices.” 

As for the ending..which has to be mentioned..well this perfectly explains my emotional journey while reading this book:

and some more tears..

and then some..

~The potterhead panemaniac pancake lover ~

Quick Update ;)

Hello all you lovely people that read this blog =) Just a quick update from the two admins of Booksessed Girls- we thought to make it easier for you to see who's reviewing each time we upload a review (since there's two of us) we will sign off each of our reviews with our own little geeky fangirlish nicknames that we've invented for ourselves. So the two names we've made up are:

- The Lady of Cheese, and
- The potterhead panemaniac pancake lover
hehe i know i know.. they're both uber geeky and strange..but we like them ^_^ .

Also, we've decided to post a review every week. Some weeks we might have more than one post up, but the minimum we will try our best to maintain is one. Please don't forget to follow us by email so you can know whenever we upload a post right away, and also feel free to comment on our reviews and posts.We'd love to know your thoughts and opinions =)

Lots of love and warm hugs and Olafs,
Booksessed Girls x

Touching Melody by RaShelle Workman

Title : Touching Melody

Author : RaShelle Workman

Rating : 3/10

Before starting let me warn you that this might have a few huge spoilers but just read it anyway because the book isn't worth wasting your time on.

Touching melody is supposed to be a touching, sad story about Maddie Martin, a girl with a traumatic past who one day saw her parents' dead bodies in the kitchen. She was taken to live with her nice aunt and uncle, but lost contact with her best friend, Kyle, who's father just happens to be the murderer of her parents.

 Now Maddie didn't bother trying to talk to Kyle for 7 years because "bad men raise bad kids". But the minute she sees him in college, all sensible thoughts fly out the window and all she wants to do is live a happily ever after with him.

I'm not going to talk about any of the other characters (her best friend, Kyle's cousin and uncle, other people) because mainly I have no idea who they are. What are their stories? What happens to them at the end? Who ends up where? None of this is anywhere in the book. Even the introduction of the characters was incomplete. Let me explain.

At one point in the book she sees Kyle's uncle and thinks "he looks familiar where have I seen him before" and then that's it. You don't find out who he is or what he's doing. Like there's absolutely no mention of the man until the end where it's revealed that he's actually the 'murderer' and Kyle's father was just standing there. And that's where it ends. There's no explanation of whether or not they get caught or if they go to jail or get eaten by cannibalistic monkeys. Nothing.

Another character was Maddie's friend, Gina. I thought she would be a big part of the story but ends up she was just a drug addict who I think liked Maddie because of the way she acted around her. But I'll never know.

Probably the main reason I didn't like most of the book was that the plot of the story wasn't realistic enough.
Everything was incomplete. It didn't have a proper ending or beginning. I didn't feel a connection to any of the characters and by the time the book ends I wanted to throw away the book.

And these. These just made me want to bang my head against a brick wall. Things like these shouldn't be out in public in this century. I'm pretty sure everyone knows what ;) means, yet we get this.

“Then he types a semi-colon with a parenthesis—a winking face”
 REALLY? IS THAT WHAT A SEMI-COLON AND A PARENTHESIS IS?

There were so many more like these but I don't want you to suffer reading them.

The authors attempts at humour might have made me smile just a little bit. But only sometimes.



“My phone vibrates. I hate this class. It’s Toxic. She Drives Me Crazy.”

They have a teacher (who turns out to be a secret agent oh wow plot twist!) called   Ms. Spears so this was a little funny.

In all honesty, if you're looking for a book and see Touching Melody, carefully take 10 steps back and run as fast as you can to another place. This isn't worth reading but if you plan on doing it anyway I salute your powerful brave heart to be able to manage this disgrace to books.

--The Lady Of Cheese

Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover

Title: Maybe Someday

Author: Colleen Hoover

Rating: 10/10 :D

I don't think I've ever given a Colleen Hoover book less than 5 stars. And that never happens because the books she writes are always always ALWAYS amazing and perfect and sweet with just the right amount of sad and happy and confusing and dramatic and...I could go on forever. And the plot twists. OH MY GOD THE PLOT TWIST!!! I won't say anymore or I might ruin the story but let's just say this was a very quiet book.

And if that doesn't make you want to read it then LOOK AT THE CHARACTERS!! Ridge, Sydney, Warren, Bridgette, even Hunter and Tori, they were all realistic and nice and funny and they make you want to keep reading the book. Or maybe it was the story line. Which was also awesome! I didn't think I could love a story as much as I loved this one.

“There will never be a maybe someday.”

“Today is a really bad day, Syd. A really, really bad day. Sometimes in life, we need a few bad days in order to keep the good ones in perspective”

“I don't want to be someone's second choice.”

Please let there be a part 2 of this. A STORY OF BRIDGETTE AND WARREN!! That would be perfect!!!

*update: there is a maybe someday sequel/prequel called maybe not starring bridgette and warren yay!! Review coming soon* 

*THIS IS THE FIRST POST WITH BOTH OF US REVIEWING THE SAME BOOK. I JUST COULDN'T CONTAIN MY FEELINGS AND WANTED TO ADD ON A LITTLE BIT TO THIS REVIEW*

One of the best things i loved in the book (and was really suprised she even managed) is the way Colleen Hoover managed to tie up everything in the end without leaving out any of the characters feelings ignored =) The situation she created made me constantly think of how she would end the book without annoying me to death or breaking my heart :P then again she is the queen of complicated book situations..you shouldn't really expect anything less than PURE PERFECTION AND AWESOMENESS from her.

^•^The lady of cheese^•^

~The potterhead panemaniac pancake lover~

Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta

Title: Saving Francesca

Author: Melina Marchetta

Rating: 9/10

Eeeep the first aussie book i've ever read! :D I guess the way everyone praised the book on goodreads made me think i'd definitely end up giving this book a 10/10 rating.. but for some reason it didn't strike me as a complete work of awesomeness and perfection xp However, it was still interesting and..cute  ^_^.

Although certain aspects of the story did remind me of a few books i'd read before.. I liked how the difference in the setting gave the story a different touch and made it sort of special to read =) The story revolves around Francesca Spinelli, and her struggle as she moves to St. Sebastian’s, "a boys' school that pretends it's coed by giving the girls their own bathroom.."

 

I'm not the only one who thought of Zoey 101 straight away..right? But don't worry..it isn't =)

The characters in the book were awesome and felt soo real =) Thomas Mackee was my favourite for some reason ..i don't have a good explanation why ;) The author had a clever way of changing really depressing..gloomy moments funny which kept you cheerful and hopeful throughout the book.

Saving Francesca was a nice..thought provoking read that also managed to show a glimpse of what it's like for someone who isn't directly facing a serious condition, but has a family member facing it instead..which is a point of view that i found unique in this book and very interesting to explore and imagine. I think it's perfect if you're looking for a good, contemporary stand-alone =) And finally, here's a few lines i loved:

“Do you think people have noticed that I'm around?"
"I notice when you're not. Does that count?”

*sighs*

“The people I'm stuck with in my life now aren't sucking the life out of me, they just suck.”

“So much hate and depression is making me feel sick, although that could also be attributed to the Pringles that I sandwiched between two Oreos.”