All posts tagged: a darker shade of magic

Best Books of 2015 (if I do say so myself)

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Welcome everyone to 2016! It’s time to set a new TBR and a new Goodreads challenge to fail! Yay! But first, I’m going to share with you my favourite books I read in 2015. I’ve raved about pretty much all of these books before, so I’m not going to make a big speech about why each book is awesome and why you should read it. I will just link my review for each. How’s that? They are in no particular order (except 1 and 2 which were my favourites of the year!). 1 – The Lesser Dead by Christopher Buehlman – Review 2 – The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins – Review 3 – Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas – Review 4 – A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas – Review 5 – Sabriel by Garth Nix – Review 6 – The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes – Review 7 – The Invasion of the Tearling by Erika Johansen – Review 8 – Golden Son …

12 Days of Bookmas – What to buy – The Witch/Wizard

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Hello, and welcome to my second day of the 12 Days of Bookmas where I will be recommending books to buy for yourself, or for others whom you deem worthy of presents. Today I will be giving you ideas of amazing presents for the Witch of Wizard in your life. 1 – The Illustrated Harry Potter This edition of Harry Potter is an absolute must have for anyone who enjoys Harry Potter. It is one of the most gorgeous books I own. I was expecting it to be beautiful when I bought it, but I wasn’t expecting it to be as beautiful as it is. I don’t think anyone could be disappointed to find this in their stocking. You can get it here: The Book Depository, Amazon. 2 – Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Mass This series is one that’s been around for years, and I only got into it this year. This book would be a fantastic buy for someone who you want to (subtly) turn into a complete bookworm. I’ve already forced this upon …

My top books of 2015 (so far)

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So we’ve reached the half-way point in the year. That wonderful time when we think “thank the stars that it’s half over” concomitant with “holy crap! how is it halfway through the year already!” I have to say I’m not particularly impressed with my progress with reading this year. I haven’t read anywhere near as many books as I wanted to by this point, but as I am in the final year of my PhD I will have to cut myself some slack. But here are my top five books of 2015 so far (in no particular order). 1. Golden Son by Pierce Brown I absolutely LOVED Red Rising and pre-ordered this one as soon as I could. Now while I know that I loved this book, I can’t really put my thoughts into any kind of logical thread. While I was reading it I was suffering from appendicitis/in hospital/recovering from surgery so I’m a wee bit scattered on it, but I know that I absolutely loved it! You can see my review of Red …

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“At last, she lifted up the waiting mask. So many of the faces that hung around the stall were lovely, delicate things made of feather and lace and garnished with glass. But this one was beautiful in a different way, an opposite way. It reminded Lila less of dresses and finery, and more of sharpened knives and ships on the seas at night. It looked dangerous. She brought it to rest against her face and smile.” — V. E. Schwab, A Darker Shade of Magic

Book Review: A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab

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“I’d rather die on an adventure than live standing still” I was initially sent a preview of this book by the publisher and after about two chapters I had already pre-ordered it. I knew I would love it right from the start. Unfortunately, my pre-order took a very, very long time to come and it was a terrible, terrible wait. I wanted to finish it so badly that I ended up buying another copy in the interim. It’s that good. Seriously. “Magic is a truly beautiful disease” What’s it about: This is the story of four alternate Londons, three magical, one not, and the man who can travel between them. Kell belongs to the royal family of Red London (the nice magic London), and must travel between his London, Grey London (non-magic London), and White London (creepy magic London) carrying messages between the royal families which rule each London. Although forbidden, Kell ocassionally brings objects from one London to another for the right price, and when he unknowingly he accepts to carry a piece of …