Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Heroines!

Evening folks, hope you are all enjoying your week so far, whether it happens to be mid summer or the deep of winter in your town/city! This weeks TTT is about my favourite heroines, yet another post which I've been wanting to do for ages!

> HERMIONE GRAINGER (ultimate favourite heroine hands down, I could have hour long debates about the wonder that is Hermione Grainger)

> Violet Baudelaire (I always thought I was a little bit like her as a kid, however I couldn't have my hair tied up in a ribbon like hers so that swiftly burst that bubble!)

> Bridget Jones (I am inherently terrified of ending up like her, ESPECIALLY after the latest book, but hey, Colin Firth and Hugh Laurie, yes please!)

> Clary Fray (loyal to her family, total modern heroine, actual bamf)

> Lena Holloway (Rebelled against society for a hot boy? My kind of girl.)

> Viola Eade (she's from a different planet and her parents have died, and she's coping better than the boy she's with, clearly the kind of girl you want in a crisis)

> Matilda (survived abusive parents and Miss freaking Truchabull. Case and point)

> Tris Prior (Fought her way into the Dauntless camp and proceeding to save the world a couple of times, not too shabby)

> Jane Eyre (in terms of classics, amongst all of the Bronte, Austen etc heroines, Jane takes my personal number one spot)

> Rose Hathaway (kicks ass for a living. She is brilliant, and I definitely wouldn't mess with her!)

I'd love to hear which of these you guys would have on your list, or any that you feel I should definitely have included! Links to your own blogs in the comments are great too as I love reading new blogs! Until next time, have a great evening- and don't forget to +1 or tweet about this post if you liked it!

Mad About the Boy (Bridget Jones #3) Review!

Hey guys! It is once again time for this weeks' book review. As many of you will know, Helen Fielding has recently released the long awaited latest edition to the Bridget Jones series. In this new book, Bridget is 49/50 and an awful lot has happened since the end of the last book. This review contains spoilers simply because there is too much important content that needs discussed that I can't generalize.

As I mentioned, Bridget is now in her late 40's and has had 2 children, Billy and Mabel, with Mark Darcy. However, tragically, Mark was killed 4 years prior to the start of the book by an IED abroad while fighting a case for rights campaigners (or something.) Now, this is a pretty contentious plot twist and I know that Helen Fielding has got a lot of stick for killing off Darcy, but- as much as it pains me that Mark died, it does instantly bring in a very personal level of sorrow as you see just how awful 'bumbling Bridget's' life has become. The book begins in April of 2013 but shortly rewinds back to April 2012 in a sort of 'here's how I got to this stage of my life' flashback. Obviously it's all done through diary form and despite the obviously traumatic themes of the book, it still captures the original humour and I was laughing out loud regularly.

I quite liked the way the time jump worked as once Bridget had caught you up to April 2013 again, the book continues to December 2013. The main theme running through is showing how Bridget moves on from the trauma of losing Mark and shows her various disastrous dating attempts. She is still aided by Jude, Tom, and Talitha from Sit Up Britain and Daniel makes several appearances which I'm so glad of because he is a wonderful character and his attempts of taking care of Mabel and Billy on several babysitting ventures were very, very amusing.

I'm not actually going to spoil the ending, but I do want to say that I totally 'called' who she ends up with from about page 50, but it doesn't detract from the novel at all. I genuinely think Fielding deals extremely well with the book, considering there are obviously themes of death, as well as depression, addiction and adultery and none of the themes are used for comic affect, they simply make the humour more of a rest from the sadness that Bridget is understandably feeling.

As a side note, Mabel and Billy are genuinely hilarious, and the portrayal of Bridget's mothering skills and their family life is general is so so relatable. The book is laugh out loud funny but I also found myself tearing up on more than one occasion, and I might actually prefer this version to the original! There is a danger of this book being categorised as a 'holiday read' but it is so so much more than that, and I cannot recommend it enough!

Plot: 9/10

Characters: 10/10

Overall: 10/10

I was incredibly lucky with the books I picked to read on holiday, so a lot of the reviews coming up will be incredibly complimentary, and rightly so! I once again appear to be on track to have all the promised blogposts up this week, so I should be back on Tuesday with another Top Ten Tuesday!

Film Friday: Top Ten Actresses

Hey guys! This weeks Film Friday is a list of some of my favourite actresses! I've included their best works (in my opinion!) too so you can check them out if you haven't heard of them!

> Emma Watson

Best role: Hermione Grainger obviously. Although she was great in Perks and the Bling Ring too!

> Felicia Day

Best role: loads of her YouTube and video game stuff is amazing but I fell in love with her as Charlie in Supernatural

> Emma Stone

Best role: Olive Pendergast in Easy A

> Jennifer Lawrence

Best role: Katniss in The Hunger Games, there's a reason it catapulted her to fame

> Crystal Reed

Best role: Allison Argent in Teen Wolf

> Karen Gillan

Best role: Amy Pond in Doctor Who

> Lily Collins

Best role: Clary Fray in The Mortal Instruments, also her eyebrows get a special place on this list for greatness

> Jennifer Aniston

Best role: she's done some really really funny rom-coms but let's not forget Rachel Green, even if we accept the no-bra era.

> Sarah Hyland

Best role: Haley in Modern Family, but I can't wait to see her in the Vampire Academy movie!

> Rebel Wilson

Best role: she was really funny in Bridesmaids even though it was a tiny role, but she stands out a mile as the best part of Pitch Perfect, and I love that film.

Feel free to comment down below if you agree or disagree with any of my choices, or link back to your own list of favourites as I love discovering new actors/actresses!

October Music of the Month!

Evening guys! I hope you've had a good week so far, I have a very, very, very inexcusably late 'music of the month' post. Still, better late than never, so without further ado, here we go!

> For Baltimore Acoustic by All Time Low

> Beautiful War by Kings of Leon

> Plain Sailing Weather by Frank Turner

> Let Your Heart Hold Fast by Fort Atlantic

> Disloyal Order of the Water Buffaloes by Fall Out Boy

> Boston Square by Deaf Havana

> Haunted by Taylor Swift

> Tell Me I'm a Wreck by Every Avenue

> Better Together by Jack Johnson

> Arabella by Arctic Monkeys

> Old Pine by Ben Howard

> The Phoenix by Fall Out Boy

> Goodnight Moon by Go Radio

> Bleeding Out by Imagine Dragons

> Somewhere Only We Know by Keane

I already have most of November's music of the month so that can be expected in a couple of weeks. I will be back on Friday with a film review! Until then, have a good week!

 

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Series

Hello everyone! Hope you are having a wonderful week, my TTT post of this week is my updated Top Ten Book series. This actually took a lot of debating but I think I'm sure about all my choices!

> Mercy Falls
An old favourite but the only book series where the main couple genuinely seem relatively normal (except ones a wolf and all that but y'know..) and the plot lines are top notch. But yes, mainly for Sam and Grace being a normal teenage couple!

> Divergent

You guys already know how much I love this series, I'm not even discussing Allegiant right now due to emotional trauma but I will do a review once I've stopped sobbing inside. 

> Chaos Walking

I finished the final book in this series over the holidays and it has completely cemented these books being in my top 5 favourite series, a really incredibly clever plot line. Unlike anything else I've ever read.

> Delirium

This is kind of cheating because I've only read the first two books but another great YA series overall. Really like Lauren Oliver's take on the dystopian future as well.

> Hunger Games

An obvious choice, the HG has shot straight to the top of the YA market and is fast becomming the new Harry Potter in terms of public popularity. Cannot wait for Catching Fire!

> Twilight

I find it hard to admit this, I loved the books at the time but the films, and more importantly the fans, have kind of ruined this franchise for me. The plotline themselves isn't bad though and I cannot deny being obsessed with the books as a younger child. 

> Harry Potter

The be all and end all of books in my humble opinion. No more needs to be said.

> Vampire Academy

A new favourite, recommended by my best friend, need to read more to be sure but so far they've been great. Rose is pretty damn kickass, and I can't wait for the film to be released!

> The Mortal Instruments

My (not including Potter) favourite book series. The film was a bit of a let down despite the wonderful casting, but the books remain amazing. Cassandra Clare is yet to disappoint me!

> The Maximum Ride Series
Maximum Ride, the heroine of the series, is possibly my favourite female character of all time, tied with Hermione Grainger, James Patterson has written a really clever series that actually have morals about animal testing, human nature and the way we treat the environment along with a completely wonderful group of teenage mutant birds. It's honestly not as crazy at it sounds..

Please do comment below with your opinions or suggestions as well as any blog post ideas for me! I have to admit that the Stormbreaker/Alex Rider series, as well as the Artemis Fowl books, were very very close to making the revised list but I am happy with my eventual choices.  Don't forget to +1 and tweet this post if you enjoyed it too! Until next time, have a good week!

City Of Lost Souls Review!

Evening everybody! I'm a little embarrassed at how long it has taken me to put this review up as I promised you normal service over the past couple of weeks and still didn't manage it, but over October I finally had a chance to properly read 'City of Lost Souls,' the fifth book in Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments' series. As you will know if you've read more than 2 blog posts on here, I am a massive fan of the MI series, it is second only to the Potter books in my favourites list.

I'll leave links to my reviews of the first book in the series, City of Bones, so you can see how this book compares to the first book, I actually thought I had reviewed the other 3 but apparently not.

Unsurprisingly, I adored it, Cassandra Clare is becoming more and more well known for being the 'queen of YA fantasy' and it's not hard to see why. I don't think I've ever read a book series where the real world and the 'fantasy' world are so well connected. Normally you can read YA books about 'hidden fantasy worlds' and easily pick loopholes in the plot but I find it really hard to see major loopholes in this series. I do also think that's where the movie fell a little flat for me, other than missing out some of the best scenes (Simon becoming a rat.)

The book picks up two weeks after 'City of Heavenly Fire' concludes, and we see the aftermath of Sebastian/Jonathan being reborn and linked to Jace. It becomes apparent that they have disappeared off the radar and with the Clave being distracted by other demonic events that are occurring more and more frequently around the world, Jace's disappearance has lost priority. However Clary, along with Alec, Isabelle, Simon and Magnus, as well as help from the werewolves Maia and Jordan, has of course decided that they must continue to hunt for the two missing boys and find a way to sever the link between them that means Jace now agrees with everything Sebastian says.

As is becoming a theme in these books, Clary soon comes up with a plan which risks her life and breaks the law in order to find Jace. The underlying theme of the book creates the plot line for the next book, throughout their hunt for Jace, the small group of friends are earned time and time again of an 'oncoming storm' and of a giant war which will leave the streets running red with blood etc etc etc.

I'm not revealing anything because this is very far on in the series and that means that the vast vast majority of those reading this blog post won't have read the book. However if you haven't started this series or have read the first few books/first book, then I cannot recommend this enough. I know that a lot of series are said to go in a U shape for quality, with the first and last books being brilliant but with the middle of the series being poorer but in this case book number 5 is solidly up there with book number 1. I cannot wait for the sixth book to come out but I'm also upset that the series will be ending.

Plot: 10/10

Characters: 10/10

Overall: 10/10

I'll be back with the usual posts this week, until next time- have a great week!

An Unexplained Absence

Ladies and gentlemen, I am back. After almost a whole month of a completely inexcusable lack of blogging, I bring you the autumn/winter programme. I went to Spain for two weeks during my October holidays, so I got all the blog posts done that I'll need to keep this blog busy until Christmas.

The new schedule is going to run like this; 

Tuesday: Top Ten Tuesday

Wednesday: Lifestyle

Friday: Film Friday

Sunday: Book Review

You now have my word that I will stick to this schedule, beginning tomorrow. I'm so glad to be back blogging again and I can't wait to here from more of you guys as the year ends. 

Have a wonderful day! 

FILM FRIDAY: Insidious 2 Review

Hey guys! I'm almost too late to call this Film Friday but if all goes to plan then I should get this posted before the clock strikes midnight, tonight I went with a group of friends to see Insidious 2. Now, I had seen Insidious 1 but I wouldn't say it was necessary for you to have seen it to understand the plot.

Insidious 2 starts as a continuation from the end of Insidious, we see a flashback to Lorraine Lambert trying to help her son Josh, who is suffering from 'bad dreams' by enlisting the help of Carl, a medium and Elise, who is an expert in the supernatural. Elise uses Josh to 'find' the spirit she believes to be tormenting him, and is scrathed in the arm by this spirit. A series of frightening event occur before Lorraine insists that Elise and Carl make Josh forget his ability to see the supernatural world. Flash forward 25 years and Josh Lambert is now a father, and it is his son Dalton who was the main protagonist of the first film, after he falls into a coma from an incident with a spirit, Josh goes into the spirit world to get Dalton at the end of Insidious, and Insidious 2 tells the story of the effects of that, and Josh's possession by another spirit. 

Basically this film is scary, I'm not wonderful with horror but I can handle it and I was scared by this film, however I don't want that to put anybody off because it's not one of those films that you walk away from feeling scared of the shadows because it took such a specific gift/situation for the Lambert's to be possessed. 

The plot gets really complex but I did understand it and it's easy enough to follow as long as you don't spend the entire film with your face behind your hands! I would go and see it again, although I probably won't because I've jumped enough tonight to be quite satisfied for a while! Would definitely recommend it for anybody who wants to go see a horror film scarier than your average Tim Burton but not quite as scary as Grave Encounters, Saw, The Exorcist etc, although I recommend Saw.  Grave Encounters though *shudders.* 

If you guys loved/hated this film or have any questions then feel free to comment below, until next time, have a wonderful weekend!  

A/W Wishlist!

Evening folks, I had absolutely no idea what to write for this weeks life-y post, until I realised that I'd been spending a lot of time over the past few weeks going 'OOOH I WANT THAT' at multiple things that I've seen both in real life and online, I love looking at other peoples wishlists for inspiration for birthday/gift ideas so I decided to compile the stuff I'd like here for you all to see! 

List of items

AM by Arctic Monkeys 

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

Borg Lined Parka Jacket from Topshop

Women's Timberland Authentics Waterproof Fold-Down Boot from Timberland

Supernatural Season Eight 

The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook

Rockateur Blush from Benefit 

Grand Theft Auto V 

Hope you guys enjoyed reading about all the things I want, feel free to link any of your wishlists below and please do +1 this post and tweet it! Until Friday, have a wonderful week! 

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Top 10 YA Books/Series'

Hey guys, I hope you're all having a wonderful week, for the first time in a fortnight I have actually got an on-time 'Top Ten Tuesday' post for you, as per, this particular idea is courtesy of thebrokeandthebookish! I adore YA books and, being 15, they made up the vast majority of the books I've read. There are a million and one other books which could have made this list and I've already had to jam my two favourite John Green books together to make room for just 10. 

1. 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher

2. The Mortal Instuments Series by Cassandra Clare

3. Divergent by Veronica Roth

4. The Fault in Our Stars/An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

5. It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini 

6. Harry Potter by J K Rowling

7. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

8. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chobsky

9. The Wolves of Mercy Falls by Maggie Stiefvater

10. As many classics as possible. ((including: Shakespeare, Austen, Bronte, Dickens and modern classics like Catch 22, The Great Gasby, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, To Kill a Mockingbird etc.)

If you agree with any of these books/have any suggestions of your own then please do comment down below, I should have a lifestyley post for you for tomorrow and a Film Friday post, however I realise that this book is becoming less and less book-related so I plan to bringing it back to my original aim soon! Until next time! 

NEW POTTER, I REPEAT, NEW POTTER

Ladies and Gentlemen, if I am being perfectly honest, I never thought a day would come where I would be able to sit at my laptop and write a post about 'new' Harry Potter related content. Sure, I hoped (dreamed) and maybe mentioned it a couple of times (talked endlessly about it) but I never believed that there would come a time where I could talk about new J K Rowling written Potter content, let alone a whole new movie franchise. Let Thursday the 12th of September forever be known as the day the Potter fandom came out of the cupboard under the stairs and found their voices again. However for those of you who haven't heard enough yet, I've compiled a little factfile about the movie, which is going to feature Newt Scamander, the author of the book "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them." which is mentioned multiple times in the Potter series and was released as part of a Comic Relief series by J K in the 2000's, which I talk about in this blog post. Here's all you need to know so far; 

• "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" will be set in New York in the 1920's. 
  
  
• The film will be set in New York, so it will be the first Potter related film set in the States. 
  
  
• Main character Newt Scamander (author of Fantastical Beasts) went to Hogwarts.
  
  
• "Fantastic Beasts" has a companion book called Quidditch Through the Ages 
  
  
• The proceeds from the original book, written by J K Rowling, went to Comic Relief.
  
  
• The published "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" book is actually more of an encyclopedia, however the copy that was released for Comic Relief also includes doodles and drawings by some of the Potter characters.
  
  
• "Fantastic Beasts" is the start of a new "Harry Potter" film franchise, and also possibly a series, does this mean a movie for Quidditch Through the Ages or possibly even a film about Bathilda Bagshot, author of Hogwarts, A History.
  
  
• J.K. Rowling is writing the film's screenplay, yes please, THIS IS DIRECT POTTER STRAIGHT TO YOUR SCREENS. 
  
  
• Newt is grandfather-in-law to Luna Lovegood, Newt's grandson Rolf marries Luna, do I see a possible Lovegood appearance in this film or one of it's sequels?

Are you excited yet? I certainly am, no doubt this will be the first of dozens of posts I make about these movies, but until we have more information, I will be re-reading my copy of Fantastical Beasts in my own little corner of paradise. Rejoice my friends, there is new Potter once more. 

FILM FRIDAY: TOP 5 DISNEY FILMS

Evening guys, I have to apologise for my complete lack of blogging this week. An inordinate amount of homework, coupled with a trip to see The Rocky Horror Show in Aberdeen, and an evening spent in school helping out, have rendered my social life obsolete. Luckily, it's now Friday, I am bathed and pj-ed and happy. Plus I have a little time to write a few long over-due blog posts for you guys, including this one- my Film Friday post for this week, of my top 5 favourite Disney films. Disney was a large part of my childhood and I still adore all of these films, I debated whether or not to include Pixar films and make this a Top 10, but then I'd be robbing myself of a possible future easy blog post, so this week is purely Disney. 

1. Tangled

My favourite film, ever. I'm not even slightly joking, with the obvious exception of the Potter films, Tangled beats every single other cinematic masterpiece, side splitting comedy, gritty thriller and general fab film to first place in my list. If you watch this film and don't fall in love with Flynn Rider just a little bit, then you're no friend of mine. The musical pieces are beautiful, with 'I See the Light' being my personal favourite. The storyline itself is an incredibly clever re-telling of the classic Rapunzel and the humour is 10/10. I have converted many to the beauty of this film and I will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

2. Beauty and the Beast

Musically, this is my favourite film here, not only did I totally empathise with Beauty's love for books, but the songs are amazing. 'Something There,' 'Tale as Old as Time' and 'Be Our Guest' as the best little songs, and the whole moral of the story is really beautiful. I think that in terms of my favourite animation, this will probably win, the scene where Beauty and Beast dance to 'Tale as Old as Time' is one of the most beautifully drawn scenes' ever. 

3. The Jungle Book

Picture the scene, a week before my maths Standard Grade exam, I am sitting in a room alone, feverishly trying to make up for the 2 years I have spent focusing on boys and friendship rather than whatever was being written on the board, when the radio starts playing 'The Bare Necessities.' Cue me dancing and singing myself into a kink of laughter and consequently ruining a day studying. I've watched the movie twice since and Mowgli's story is the cutest little thing ever, I'd like Baloo as a friend too please. 

4. The Princess and the Frog

TPATF and Tangled are the two newer films on this list, since the rest are all at least 20 years old. This film is set in Jazz-Era Lousiana so you can imagine the style of music, it's different but still undeniably brilliant. I adore this film because Tatiana is not a Princess, but she is the queen of man-management. She takes none of Prince Naveen's nonsense throughout the film and in the end, completely achieves her dream. This film actually keeps the bare bones of the original story too, which is brilliant because the frog dilemma is absolutely hilarious. I loved the other animal friends Tatiana and Naveen meet along the way too! 

5. One Hundred and One Dalmatians

OHAOD is the oldest film on this list, released in 1961, but the film style of this movie is absolutely beautiful, the scenes where they show London are brilliant but my favourite part is where Roger is looking out the window and examining the different women with their dogs. Cruella De Vil gets a special award for most manical villain, and Pongo and Perdita as just the cutest little dogs, and all of their puppies, adopted or otherwise, are possibly my favourite animated animals. Bonus points to this movie for the double love story with both Pongo and Perdita and their owners Anita and Roger. 

I really hope you enjoyed reading this, please do comment your favourite Disney films in the comment box below, and suggest any film, book or lifestyle posts you'd like me to do. I aim to have a post ready for tomorrow discussing the NEW HARRY POTTER FILMS. Because that is a cause I will be able to get very, very, VERY excited about. Until then, have a wonderful weekend! 

FILM FRIDAY: Underrated Films

Evening guys, this weeks Film post is about my favourite underrated films, so without further ado (cause' this could be long) here are my picks!

Stardust (2007)

Starring: Claire Danes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Charlie Cox, Sienna Miller, Ricky Gervais and Robert De Niro.

 

For me, Stardust will always remind me of those days near the end of the school year where you were allowed to pick a DVD to watch as a class, it is one of those particular days that I have to thank for the discovery of one of my favourite films ever. The movie centres around Tristan’s journey into the world of Stormhold, the magical town across the border of the English town of Wall, to retrieve a fallen star for his ‘true love’ Victoria. What Tristan doesn’t count on is becoming embroiled in a family feud over the next King of Stormhold, or becoming attached to the star, Yvaine.  He is also being pursued by 3 witches who aim to kill Yvaine and use her heart to grant them eternal youth. The cast in UNBELIEVABLE and in terms of the love story, this is my favourite in existence, Michelle Phiefer is brilliant as the main witch, Lamia, and so is Claire Danes as Yvaine. If none of this has encouraged you to watch the film, it’s narrated by Sir Ian McKellen and there’s Robert De Niro as a cross dressing pirate Captain. Seriously.

Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

Starring: Jared Gilman, Kara Hayward, Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton

Moonrise Kingdom is one of those films where everyone who has seen it absolutely adores it. Wes Anderson’s film is stunning, it follows Sam and Suzy, two introverted young teens, who fall in love as they write letters to each other. They arrange to run away together and the movie follows both the scout group that Sam ran away from, Suzy’s parents and the local police force as they attempt to find the pair. The cinematography (ooh long words) is absolutely beautiful as anyone who has seen a film by Wes Anderson will understand. Such a good film considering how it is relatively unheard of, I cannot recommend it enough!

10 Things I Hate About You (1999)

Starring: Heath Ledger, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Julia Stiles, Larisa Oleynik

A modern adaption of Taming of the Shrew, the film sees Cameron, a new kid in school, try to find an older guy to date the older sister of the girl he likes. Sounds complicated? Not really. Basically, Cameron has a crush on Bianca Stratford, however she is not allowed to date until her older sister Kat Stratford does. Therefore, Cameron enlists the help of older guy Patrick Verona to pretend to date Kat so that Bianca can go out with Cameron. In true rom-com fashion, Patrick doesn’t anticipate developing feelings for Kat. But this film is so, so much more than just a rom-com, released in 1999, I feel like this film is eclipsed by Clueless, Mean Girls, and She’s the Man in terms of early 2000’s teen comedies which is why it’s on this list. Heath Ledger is unbelievable as Patrick, seriously, I fell in love with his within the first few scenes, and Kat Stratford is everything I aim to be over the next few years, utterly unamused by the male race, and the kind of girl who stands up and fights for herself. The ending is fabulous and there are some of my favourite movie quotes ever in this film!

Zathura (2005)

Starring: Josh Hutcherson, Kirstin Stewart, Dax Shepard, Jonah Bobo 

Zathura is like a semi-sequel to the cult classic Jumanji, it also feature around a ‘magical’ boardgame, which once Walter and Danny, two squabbling brothers, start playing, begins to effect reality. The cards that the boys receive with each turn tell them what they are going to face next. The boys’ house is launched into space and their sister Lisa is frozen in cyronic sleep. They realised the only way to win is to continue to play, despite being attacked by an alien race of Zorgons. The boys continue playing, avoiding the dangers with the help of an astronaut, who Lisa falls in love with, and eventually return home. The boys (obviously) overcome their differences and become close again. This movie really needs to be seen to be appreciated, it’s one of my favourites and the special effects are seriously cool, especially the Zorgons. However the film is relatively unknown so if you loved Jumanji or consider yourself a sci-fi fan then you HAVE to see this film!

A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)

Starring: Jim Carrey, Liam Aiken, Emily Browning, Meryl Streep, John Connelly

I will never, ever, ever understand why ‘A Series..’ didn’t get a sequel, or heck, why it didn’t get 10 sequels to complete the book series? The first movie, which encompasses the first 3 books, The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room and The Wide Window, is wonderful. I don’t have the patience to explain the plot but the movie follows the Baudelaire orphans, Violet, Klause and Sunny, as they are moved from guardian to guardian following the death of their parents. After a spell with their evil ‘cousin’ Count Olaf, they soon discover that Olaf plans to steal their large inheritance fortune and that they are embroiled in far more than just an inheritance argument. The books are incredible, the films match up to them and Jim Carrey is the best Count Olaf that could possibly have been cast. Despite my unhappiness at the movie encompassing three books in one, I don’t think there were massive chunks of plot missed out considering they had no plans to make a sequel. This film did well at the time but for a series of books which had the potential to reach Harry Potter levels of popularity, the film just doesn’t have the same level of fame. This needs to change and if you only watch one film this month, please make it this one as it deserves so much recognition, and the books *which are some of my favourites ever* do too! 

Phew! I hope you guys enjoyed this, do you have any films to recommend to me or request a review? If so, comment below! Please do +1 this and tweet/like it! Until next time, have a wonderful weekend!

August Music Favourites!

1. Love Like This by Kodaline
2. Talk by Kodaline
3. Don't Stop by Nina Nesbitt
4. Keep On Walking by Gabrielle Aplin
5. Waste by George Ogilvie 
6. You Wanna Know by Don Broco 
7. Wildfire by John Mayer
8. Chocolate by The 1975
9. Wings by Birdy
10. The Way I Tend To Be by Frank Turner
11. Plain Sailing Days by Frank Turner
12. Lived a Lie by You Me At Six
13. Love Like War by All Time Low ft Vic Fuentes
14. When I Go by Slow Club
15. Yes, Yes We're Magicians by The Crookes
    
    A lot of the music from this month is relatively new, which I'm pleased about. Frank Turner is a wonderful new find, I've been waiting to include George Ogilvie in a blog post for months, you need to check out his YouTube channel. I have talked about my love for Kodaline already and they continue to impress. The 1975 are my tip for band of the A/W 2013 and Don Broco, All Time Low and You Me At Six's new songs appeal to the punk side of me, although that's a little unfair on YMAS and Don Broco as they are so so so much more than that, completely cannot wait for their new album! Birdy's new song (ish) is the prettiest thing I've ever seen and the video is SO GOOD and John Mayer is killing it again in his latest hit. Slow Club and The Crookes and much lesser known bands but both are wonderful and have been on repeat this month! Plus Nina Nesbitt's cover of 'Don't Stop' by Fleetwood Mac for the new John Lewis ad is the most feelgood song I've heard this month! 

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Top Ten Heroines

Hey everybody! This post is, as you can see, a day late, I actually thought I had posted it yesterday but apparently I'm more exhausted than I thought because I seem to have forgotten to do that. As per usual, I’m picking and choosing from a list by brokeandbookish.blogspot.com who are brilliant, and are also in this months ‘blogs of the month!’ Without further ado, here is my list.

Hermione Granger from 'Harry Potter' by J K Rowling

Clary Fray from 'The Mortal Instuments' by Cassandra Clare

Beatrice Prior from 'Divergent' by Veronica Roth 

Violet from 'The Chaos Walking Trilogy' by Phillip Ness

Violet Baudelaire from 'A Series of Unfortunate Events' by Lemony Snicket

Liesel Meminger from 'The Book Thief' by Marcus Zusak

Zoey Redbird from 'The House of Night' series by PC and Kristin Cast

Hazel Grace Lancaster from 'The Fault in Our Stars' by John Green

Katniss Everdeen from 'The Hunger Games' by Suzanne Collins

Lena Holoway Tiddle from 'The Delirium Trilogy' by Lauren Oliver 

I love my female heroines and I'm so glad that they are beginning to feature more and more frequently in novels, particuarly in the Young Adult genre. This is a short post as I'm pushed for time these days with school, the level of homework I'm getting this year has ballooned so I shall have to get my act together quickly. Till tomorrow, when I WILL have a music of the month update for you, have a wonderful day! 

FILM FRIDAY: Most Anticipated Book to Movie Adaptions 2013/14

Hey guys! I've been so so crappy at uploading this week but I plan on spending this weekend getting a few more posts ready so I can use them when I'm too busy to type up new ones! Hopefully that will help the ridiculously infrequent uploading! As you know, it's Friday, so I have a Film Friday post for you all! This weeks is a new edition of my 'Most Anticipated Book to Movie Adaptations' I will link my last one here and there will be a few overlaps but there are some new films, plus new information too! 

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Starring: Dylan O'Brien, Kaya Scodelario, Thomas Brodie-Sangster

Release Date: 14th February 2014

Link to Goodreads book: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6186357-the-maze-runner

The Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Starring: Zoey Deutch, Sarah Hyland, Danila Kozlovsky

Release Date: 14th February 2014

Link to Goodreads book: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/345627.Vampire_Academy?from_search=true

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Starring: Harrison Ford, Abigail Breslin, Asa Butterfield
Release Date: 1st November 2013
Link to Goodreads book: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/375802.Ender_s_Game

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Starring: Ansel Elgort and Shailene Woodley
Release Date: Mid/late 2014
Link to Goodreads book: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11870085-the-fault-in-our-stars?from_search=true

Divergent by Veronica Roth 

Starring: Theo James, Shailene Woodley, Kate Winslet, Ansel Elgort

Release Date: 21st March 2014
Link to Goodreads book: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13335037-divergent?from_search=true

These books are all amazing and I cannot wait to see if the producers/screenwriters have managed to translate the brilliance of the books onto the screen. Casting wise, I think they're great, the new Divergent trailer came out last weekend and it looks unbelievable. Seems like I'm going to be spending a lot of money over the next year in my local cinema!

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Top 10 Fictional Crushes!

This weeks ‘Top Ten Tuesday’s’ is ‘Top Ten Fictional Crushes.’ Again, I’m picking and choosing from a list by brokeandbookish.blogspot.com who are brilliant, and are also in this months ‘blogs of the month!’ Without further ado, here is my list. 

1. Augustus Waters from The Fault in our Stars by John Green

2. Simon Lewis from The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare

3. Sam from The Wolves of Mercy Falls series by Maggie Stiefvater

4. Alex from Delirium by Lauren Oliver

5. Ryan from Skin Deep

6. Craig from ‘It’s Kind of a Funny Story’ 

7. Peeta from The Hunger Games

8. Jace Wayland from The Mortal Instruments

9. Noah from The Notebook

10. Marco from The Night Circus

This got pretty hard towards the end; I simply HAD to include both the boys from The Mortal Instruments, as I adore both characters. It would be a close run battle between Simon, Alex and Augustus for top spot but I really cannot choose. I had great fun making this up. I’ll be back with another lifestyle post tomorrow but until then, have a wonderful day!

FILM FRIDAY: City of Bones Review!

Evening everybody, as promised I have a new feature for Friday's. Film Friday is going to feature posts from all areas of film, whether I want to do an in-depth analysis of a cultural drama, or freak out about the attractiveness of an actor (can we talk about Dylan O'Brien please.) I've procrastinated starting this, surprise surprise, for so long that I've actually now seen the film that my first post was going to be about. City of Bones is the film adaption of the book of the same name by Cassandra Clare. COB is the first book in the Mortal Instruments series which as many of you will now know, are second only to the Potter books in my 'all time list of best series.' 

To start off with, I cannot speak highly enough of the casting for this film, in terms of looks, the actors are absolutely perfect. Other than possibly the casting of Jemima West as Isabelle Lightwood, the cast have been praised universally, and rightly so. I don't think there's ever been an actor to character description that is as accurate as Robert Sheehan's casting as Simon. 

For the interests of time, I'm going to speak about the film as though you've all read the book, but I've posted multiple reviews for the series/book which I'll link here for anyone who wants to catch up before seeing the film. I've also linked the trailer here too! Now, there were inevitably going to be some changes made from book to film and there is one in particular that I felt would possibly bother the most people. By revealing in the film that Jace and Clary are not actually siblings, you remove a lot of the terror/awkwardness/injustice/denial felt by the fans who've read the book. However, in the long run I totally understand why they felt they had to do it and overall it doesn't distract from the film. The added early Alec/Magnus and Isabelle/Simon moments were VERY appreciated too!  

You know how sometimes you're excited for something and it doesn't live up to your expectations? This film did not do that, and basically, it's AMAZING. While I feel like the cast as a whole will really carry this film franchise by itself, there has to be a special mention to Jemima West for her portrayal as Isabelle, I mentioned earlier that her casting was the most debated among fans but she shone as Isabelle. She completely conveyed both her vulnerability and completely bad-ass-ness. One of my favourite moments of the film is when she challenges Jamie Cambell-Bower's character, Jace, and calls him out on his admittedly suckish behaviour. If I had any lingering doubt before hand, she totally blew them out of the water. Lily Collins was a wonderful Clary and her chemistry with Jamie C-B was just right. Obviously it helps that the two are in fact together in 'real life' too! 

I had a lot of concerns  about whether the film would fairly represent how wonderful Cassandra Clare's book is and I have since been completely reassured in the directors/cast's handling of one of my favourite books. A must read and a definite must watch for all movie fans, particularly in the young adult genre! 

Potter Mania!

Hey guys! Now, I know I promised I'd get one of my books finished this week so I could have a nice, shiny new review for you, but I don't. Instead, I've dredged out an old idea from the dusty corners of my planner and I actually really enjoyed writing this. Now, it should be no surprise to anyone who has been reading my posts for a while that I am a massive fan of Harry Potter, so I obviously own the book series, however I recently realised that I actually own a few other Potter-related books that definitely deserve their own wee review! 

1. The Hogwarts Library Boxed Set

The books included in this set are 'Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them,' 'The Tales of Beedle The Bard' & 'Quidditch Through The Ages.' All of these books were released at one point or another in paperback with the proceeds going to charity, such as Children in Need and Lumos. They're all a little tongue in cheek and they really do make fantastic little additions to my Potter collection, particuarly 'The Tales..' as the book is so central to the Hallows story. There are even diagrams and drawings to accompany the books and a hardback set of short stories is always a beautiful thing, especially when they're Potter related. 

2. Harry: A History

I kept putting off reading this book as I've always been personally offended by biography style books by fans of the Potter series, however this book is written by Melissa Anelli, who was the webmistress of freaking 'The Leaky Cauldron?!' So I feel as though if anyone has the authority to speak for the fans as a whole, it's this woman. Without going into masses of detail, the book tells the story of Melissa's experiences with the books, her life as Webmistress of TLC and meeting J K Rowling herself. I'll be brutally honest and tell you that I cried at this book, the level of relation I felt to the way Anelli speaks about the series made me seriously emotional. A MUST read for any fan. 

3. Harry Potter: Page to Screen

This book is genuinely one of the geekiest and coolest things I own. It was a Christmas present and I sat in the days after Christmas and read it front to back. I've tried to find pictures which really do it justice but it basically is a massive hardback book which details Warner Bros Studio's effort to transfer the book to the screen. Bob McCabe, the author, has managed to get a ridiculous amount of insight into how it was done, along with pictures of the cast, concept art, behind the scenes interviews, exclusive reveals and so, so, so much more. It's easily the book I treasure most out of my collection and urgh, it's just amazing. It's relatively pricey, you can pay anything from £30 to £50 upwards for it but it's totally worth it. 

I love all of these books, clearly, but they really are wonderful little extras to your Potter collection, brilliant for any muggles out there! I had the best time compiling this as I love anything that gives me an excuse to do something Potter related! I have a new feature starting tomorrow and the first post will be a review on The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, which I went to see yesterday. Obviously I'm a HUGE fan of the books and I can't wait to tell you all what I thought! Until then, have a good day!