July Music Favourites!

Hello everybody! Hope you’re all having a great day, I think the English holidays have started so I hope you’re all enjoying your summer holidays so far. Sadly, as I’m from Scotland, I have already had over a month off so I’m back on August 13^th. That, coupled with the fact that I get my exam results next Tuesday, has made for a rather depressing last two weeks to my holidays. Sad times. This week’s post is the second of my ‘monthly music favourites’ thingies, so, without further ado- here are my July music faves!

1. Let Your Heart Hold Fast by Fort Atlantic

2. I Want Crazy by Hunter Hayes

3.Keep Up Lady by Mike Dignam

4. L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N by Noah and the Whale

5.Babel by Mumford and Sons

6.Tell Me I’m a Wreck by Every Avenue

7.Holes by Passenger

8.Sirens by Tom Odell

9.I Almost Do by Taylor Swift

10.Six String Solider by Joe Brooks

11.The Same Things by Jamie Cullum

12.Cope by We Came From Wolves

13.Catch Me If You Can by Walking on Cars

14.Panic Cord by Gabrielle Aplin

15.Broken by Jake Bugg

There we go, not quite as eclectic a mix as last month as quite a few older favourites but that’s my attempt at a summer favourites. As per, every song is linked to a YouTube video so feel free to go listen to any of them. Special recommendations to ‘Let Your Heart Hold Fast,’ ‘Panic Cord’ and ‘Holes.’ I’ll link my blog post on Mike Dignam here too! I plan on posting another book review post on Thursday/Friday (I hope!) so until then, have a wonderful week! 

'The Fault in Our Stars' and 'The Hobbit' Review!

Hello everybody! This week has been completely manic for me, I seem to have managed to squeeze six weeks worth of plans into 5 days, needless to say, I'm exhausted, and frustrated that I've only read another 100 pages or so of 'Dreams and Shadows' but I'm getting there. However I did have another couple of books on the go that I've managed to finish this week, 'The Hobbit' and 'The Fault in Our Stars.' Admittedly, I have read TFIOS before, but despite having read the Lord of the Rings series before (about seven times) I had never read The Hobbit.

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

'In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.'

I loved this book, it did take a little while to get into but 'The Hobbit' totally confirmed my theory that Tolkien's writing style was decades ahead of it's time. Part of me still expected it to contain stuffy, old fashioned language, but instead, it's genuinely laugh out loud funny. I feel a very personal connection to Bilbo's desire to spend his life in the comfort of his own home, drinking tea. And I certainly will never turn down the offer of 'second' breakfast. I can't fault Tolkien's writing, so I'm just going to say that if you start this, and feel like the plot is taking a while to develop, then persevere  because you'll have a much, much better view of the book and of the LOTRs series once you finish it. 

Characters: 9/10

Plot: 8/10

Overall: 9/10

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

'Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.'

The highest praise I can give this book is that I genuinely set out prepared to hate it, I had read both Looking for Alaska and An Abundance of Katherines, and I loved both- so the idea of a book so much better than the others, by the very same author, made me irrationally angry. How dare this book have such a good reputation? Frustratingly, TFIOS is undeniably brilliant, wonderful, heartbreaking, horrendously sad and ridiculously funny. It's the closest I've come to crying at a book in recent years, you will laugh and most probably cry. Not to be read if you enjoy extremely happy endings however. Augustus and Hazel are the perfect couple, in that- they aren't perfect, they're both a little messed up, but they make it work. I can't praise this enough and I'm SO excited for the movie. 

Plot:10/10

Characters:9/10
Overall: 10/10

I will definitely try to get another couple of books read and reviewed this week, as I already have a lifestyle post written and ready to post (which is a huge deal since I'm normally stuck writing at 5 to midnight just to make my 'set day' posts.) Yay for organisation eh? Have a wonderful week! 

5 Things to do on a rainy day!

Evening everybody, hope you're enjoying the week so far and, especially for the British readers, the birth of Prince George, he's a very cute baby! I've left it very late in the day to write this and at the moment I'll be pushed for time to get this posted before midnight so I'm going to launch right in. The idea for this post comes from a mixture of my extreme boredom (and lack of money) lately, and the horrendous turn the weather took yesterday to make way for one of the biggest thunderstorms I can remember. 

1. Tidy your room. 

Look familiar??

Now, I really really don't mean to sound like a Mother when I give this advice, but a day spent properly sorting out either your bedroom, or a play room, can make a massive difference. If you have nothing else to do then you'll have time to clean under, behind and between everything, you'll discover things you thought you had lost and probably make a fiver from spare change lost down the back of the sofa. Plus once the room is tidy you will be in the good books with your parents or roommate and you can bask in the glory of a job well done. Finish by treating yourself to a cup of tea and a good book and that sounds like a good day to me. 

2. Have a movie marathon. 

Call some friends, select the weirdest or wildest variety of your favourite movies, grab some munch and cozy down. There is nothing better than sitting with people you love, doing something you love, while it is absolutely chucking it down outside. Another positive is that, other than the cost of food, the movie day should be relatively cheap, if not free!

3. Plan something. 

Just because you're spending one day doing nothing, it doesn't mean you shouldn't have plans for the rest of eternity. Make plans with friends, family, even those people you say 'we should get together sometime' too every time you bump into each other, even though you both know it won't happen. Organise a picnic, a trip to the cinema, the museum, a walk, a coffee morning, a holiday. Whatever you want. There is nothing more satisfying than having something planned, and your boredom will be replaced by the excitement for what is to come. 

4. Contact an old friend (or a current friend) 

Write a letter, make a phone call, send that email. Sit down and take time out of your life while you know you have it, to reach out to the people you are most at risk of losing to neglect, call your grandparents, your aunts and uncles and cousins, your bestfriend from primary school or that guy you've had a thing for since you were 15. Anyone. Plus, once you reach out to a few people, your social web will expand ten-fold as they all reach back out to you. 

5. Embrace the weather

Warning: You may not look as fabulous as her!

Also known as saying 'f*** it, let's go jump in some puddles.' Put on your wellies and your oldest clothes and a jacket and go for a walk, probably a brisk walk. I also find the rain helps clear my mind and as long as you're dressed appropriately, there is no reason why you can't carry on as normal. Worst case scenario you end up having an excuse to change into your PJ's and cozying up on the sofa. Score. 

There are a million and one other things you could do on a rainy day, and if you have any genius ideas then do comment them down below. I certainly hope this list isn't used too much this summer but at least we're prepared if it is! Until then, enjoy the sun! 

'Happily Ever After' and 'for one more day' Review

Hello everyone, I had originally planned to have 3 books (at least) read and reviewed by the weekend. However, I realised once I'd started the book I'm currently reading (Dreams and Shadows by C. Robert Cargill) that I wouldn't be finished in time for Sunday. So instead of further postponing the review, I will do 2 books today, 2 more on Thursday, including 'Dreams and Shadows' and then hopefully two more on Sunday. 

'for one more day' by Mitch Albom

I picked this up from my local library because I want to read Albom's other book, 'The 5 People You Meet in Heaven' but they didn't have it in stock.

'for one more day' centres around Charley Benetto and the story of his attempted suicide, and how in the aftermath, as he staggers back to his old house, he is greeted by his mother, who has been dead for 8 years. Charley then gets to spend a whole day watching her, and he gets the chance to reconcile with her, to explain what has happened and to seek forgiveness. 

The book isn't particuarly long but it does cover the story arc well, and you quickly get to see Charley's reasons for his suicide. The book is narrated by a third party, whose identity isn't revealed until the very last page. The book definitely made me consider how you act around people and how you would feel if one of the people close to you did pass away. You have to take the storyline with a pinch of salt because it does basically describe him being visited by the ghost of his mother, but the morals and themes are solid and work really well. 

Characters: 5/10 (there's not a massive focus of characterization and the book isn't long enough to go into great detail)
Plot: 7/10

Overall: 7/10

'Happily Ever After' by Harriet Evans

'Happily Ever After' follows Eleanor Bee, a book loving daughter of two divorcees who wants to work in publishing, as she grows up. By my estimation, you follow her through from 1988 to 2008. However the book isn't written in the same way as 'One Day' by David Nicholls, in that it doesn't jump from year to year, there are sometimes gaps of several years before 100 pages on a 4 month part of Eleanor's life. 

'Happily Ever After' is an easy read, aimed at women and is what I would describe as a good 'holiday book.' However it is good, and I finished it quickly so Eleanor's story was obviously entertaining. Despite the vast array of characters that were introduced, you were able to keep track easily and I definitely approved of the ending. Plus the references to other books throughout 'Happily Ever After' were brilliant!

Characters:8/10

Plot:6/10

Overall:6/10

I will update with a review of 'Dreams and Shadows' plus another book on Thursday, and there will be a regular lifestyle post on Wednesday. Hope you all have a good week, so I will see you then! 

Summer Products!

Hello everybody! For this week's non-book related post, I've decided to outline some of my favourite summer products. It goes without saying that 'a good book' would be on this list, so I've decided not to include books in general. I'll post a review of some more that I've read this week on Saturday. 

1. Skincare: Natural Tan

Garnier's Summer Body Sun-Kissed Look. You can get this from Superdrug.

My natural skin colour is far from tanned and although, once in the sun, I do tan quite easily, I tend to not get enough sun to be brown without any help. To help with this particular issue I've been using a gradual moisturizing tan. The one I have (pictured above) is one of my favourite all time 'fake' tan products. You get a natural colour after only a couple of days and because it's a moisturizer you don't get streaky. It leaves your skin smelling of apricots too! I have seen a few people reporting that they had a bad reaction to this, I have been fine but if you have a history of sensitive skin then test it out first!

2. Drink: Peach Sparkling Water

I really really don't like drinking normal water unless I'm really thirsty or during a workout or gym session, but I equally don't like the taste of plain sparkling water. Despite this, I am completely addicted to most kinds of flavoured sparkling water, especially peach. It's a great alternative to a soda or 'fizzy drink' and it's way healthier too! 

3. Food: Ice-cream 

I was momentarily considering picking some form of fruit or other health food to talk about but, I don't eat particularly healthily so why lie? In the heat, there is nothing better than ice-cream. There's a local shop called Janetta's in my town which does amazing ice-cream but Ben and Jerry's is my favourite. Who doesn't love cookie dough? Just a shame it's so expensive! (Probably a good thing for my dress size however!) 

4. Leisure: iPhone 

Really, all year round, there is nothing I use more than my phone. Only my laptop comes close. I write the text parts of my blogs on the go as a note, all my music is on my phone, as well as the few apps I use regularly. I update Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram and Blogger from it and I almost always have it with me. No contest. 

5. Clothing: Playsuits

One of the (many) playsuits I want to buy. Get it here.

My main problem with summer clothes (other than the whole 'only looks good on size 6's' thing) is that I'm really really short. I'm barely pushing 5 foot at the moment so things like shorts and dresses either come down past my knees or are only half way down my ass. So I've been wearing a couple of playsuits this summer, they were very 'on trend' a couple of years ago but they're comfy and cover you up enough to be flattering. I just hope the weather stays nice for long enough so that I can wear them some more! 

As I said earlier, I plan to post a review of another 3, or maybe 4 books by Sunday so I'll see you guys then! Enjoy your week! 

Multi-Book Review Part 1

Hello everybody! The weather this week in Scotland has been amazing and I've finally managed to kick start my summer 'tan'. The change in weather has also coincided with my urge to read more books. It's definitely a cliche but I do tend to either read 5 books in 1 week or 1 book in 5 weeks. I've decided to review 3 or 4 books each weekend until the end of the summer. This weeks choices are 'City of Fallen Angels,' 'One Day' and 'Insurgent.' 

City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare 

Blurb: "The Mortal War is over, and sixteen-year-old Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her. She's training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power. Her mother is getting married to the love of her life. Downworlders and Shadowhunters are at peace at last. And - most importantly of all - she can finally call Jace her boyfriend.

But nothing comes without a price.

Someone is murdering Shadowhunters who used to be in Valentine's Circle, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second bloody war. Clary's best friend, Simon, can't help her. His mother just found out that he's a vampire and now he's homeless. Everywhere he turns, someone wants him on their side - along with the power of the curse that's wrecking his life. And they're willing to do anything to get what they want. At the same time he's dating two beautiful, dangerous girls - neither of whom knows about the other one.

When Jace begins to pull away from Clary without explaining why, she is forced to delve into the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare: She herself has set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves. Even Jace.

Love. Blood. Betrayal. Revenge. The stakes are higher than ever in City of Fallen Angels."

(That's one heck of a blurb!)

Characters: 7/10

Plot: 7.5/10

Overall: 8/10 

Conclusion: The character development was excellent, particularly of Simon. I feel like this series is getting darker with each book, which is a little bit worrying as C.O.L.S was heartbreaking enough for me. Jace and Clary's relationship hits the proverbial rocks and it's very very interesting to see how the two act when they're arguing. The introduction of yet more enemies and the lack of Valentine mean we see other parts of the Downworlds and the creepy Steelie Fairy keeps popping up with her unwanted predictions. Can't wait to read the 5th book so I'm finally caught up to date before the movie in August. 

One Day by David Nicholls

Blurb: "Emma and Dexter meet for the first time on the night of their graduation. Tomorrow they must go their separate ways. So where will they be on this one day next year? And the year after that? And every year that follows? 

Twenty years, two people, ONE DAY."

Characters: 7/10

Plot: 8/10

Overall: 7/10 

My Opinion: Up until the last few chapters I felt like this book was kind of bland. However with the ending being so heart wrenchingly brilliant I realised that 'One Day' is actually an incredibly clever view on life as a whole. I put it down and had to sit there for a minute reflecting on how unfair life can be at times, which can only be the sign of a good book. There's a quote on the back of the book from someone whose name I can't remember that says something like 'You leave the book feeling like you've gained two friends' which is really true, you certainly get to know 'Dex and Em' very well. 

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Blurb: "One choice can transform you, or destroy you. Every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves, and herself, while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love."

Characters: 9/10

Plot: 7/10

Overall: 8/10

Conclusion: I adored Divergent but Insurgent doesn't quite live up to it, I still enjoyed Insurgent so so much and I especially loved that Tris was totally broken up after the (horrific) events at the end of the first book. Too often we see heroes and heroines in books that brush off near death experiences and the deaths of loved ones with a single 'heart to heart' and then swiftly lead the army into another battle. Props to Veronica Roth for this realistic view. The character development for people like Peter and Tobias was good too, and Christina is swiftly becoming one of my favourite characters. The ending is excellent, and brings a little bit of light back into what otherwise would have been a very very dark book. The exploration of the other Factions was really interesting too. 

Phew. That's enough book reviewing to last me for at least a week. I'll post something on Wednesday, I'm thinking maybe a film related post, just something that's not music related. If any of you have suggestions then leave a comment and I'll try to do that. Hope the weather continues and you all have a good few days. 

New Find!

Evening everybody, I'm sure you've all had a great week so far! Can I take a second to just say how unbelievably happy I was to see Andy Murray win Wimbledon on Sunday. Being Scottish, we do tend to be quite emotionally invested in any sportsman or woman who does well and Andy is a bit of a national treasure. Anyway, this weeks life-y post is going to be about an artist I've been particularly enjoying this week/month. Now, up until last week this post would definitely have been on Kodaline, but as wonderful (really- amazing) they are, I have since discovered Mike Dignam. And boy, has he taken over as number 1 quickly.

I actually discovered Mike on one of my frequent YouTube sessions where I just click from 'related video' to 'related video' until I eventually get bored. Around 90% of the time this just takes me into the darker, cat filled areas of YouTube, however, on this particular occasion it led me to Mike's song 'Great Escape' which had me completely hooked. 

Basically, Mike has released 2 EP's so far 'Paint' and 'Young' and is releasing a new EP 'Live, Love, Sing' in early August. After listening to a few more of his songs I downloaded his first two EP's for the princely sum of £6.32 for 8 songs. Bargain. 

Paint

'Paint' features 'Great Escape,' 'Keep Up Lady,' 'Lungs,' and 'Relentless.' I'm going to start by saying that I genuinely love all eight of his songs but I'm going to focus on just one from each EP. So, to begin with 'Keep Up Lady' is probably my favourite song of his, the song is both upbeat and.. For lack of a better word, totally kickass. He is basically addressing this girl and telling her that anything that was once between them is totally over. The perfect 'fuck you' track with lines like 'What we had got damaged now it's nothing like before' 'Don't try tempt me, I know just what you are' and 'Come on Darling, don't be so alarmed- this all went wrong.' You'll soon be stomping all over your ex's/past loves. Hell yes. 

Young

'Young' features 'Young,' 'I'll Lie Here,' 'You Got Me,' and 'When You Coming Home.' By complete contrast, by far my favourite song from this EP is 'When You Coming Home' which is a completely beautiful and melodic song about a guy who misses his 'love' who has left him. I'm a total sap for a decent love song and this is genuinely one of the best I've heard. Dignam's voice is reminiscent of James Morrison and Joe Brook's (both of whom I love) in all of his songs, but at some of the more desperate sounding bits you can really here James Morrison esque twangs in his voice. The song lasts almost 6 minutes and has some truly beautiful lyrics which aren't really done justice by being quoted here however phrases such as 'do you need me, or are you fine alone?' 'I know your out there, somewhere without me' and 'If I mended whats damaged would you come back again, if the old me was selfish would anything change?' are just a few of the phrases. 

My favourite lyric of his also comes from this song, 'I've not been sleeping, I've missed your breathing next to me and if I drift off then I must be dreaming that you are here.' Beautiful.  

'Great Escape' is also obviously brilliant and 'Lungs' and 'I'll Lie Here' get honourable mentions for also being excellent sappy love songs. 

Clearly, I'm totally hooked on this guy, and as many of you as possible should be too as I genuinely think he could be massive one day. If you've stuck it out till here then you obviously want to listen to him so I'll link his YouTube and website below. See you on Saturday! 

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/Mikedignammusic

Website: http://www.mikedignam.com/

Delirium Review!

Hello everybody! Hope you've had a good weekend so far and enjoyed the weather today, if you live in the UK chances are you had a glorious day today. Hooray for summer weather eh? As promised, here is my review of Delirium by Lauren Oliver, which I listened too on Audible during my trip to London. When I first purchased this book I genuinely wasn't sure whether or not I'd like it. I'd heard a lot of good reviews about Lauren Oliver in general but I hadn't read into what the actual plot of the series (Delirium is the first in a trilogy) so I went into the book feeling a little blind. 

I listened to Delirium on Audible!

Within the first chapter Lena, the main character, had already allowed me to understand that the book is set in the future, it's never specified, but judging by the time span spoken about, I'd guess around 100 years in the future tops. In this future version of America, and specially Portland, where Lena lives, love has been defined as the disease Amor Delirium Nervosa and a 'cure' has been perfected. Basically everyone gets administered the cure on their 18th birthday, and from then onwards are unable to feel love. They are then paired with someone, given a job and told how many children to have. 

The trilogy

The story follows Lena in the 90+ days leading up to procedure. As the novel begins you can tell that Lena is looking forward to it and cannot wait to be cured so she doesn't end up like her mother, who remained able to feel love despite having the cure and, as Lena explains, eventually committed suicide. Obviously as the book progresses Lena meets people and discovers things that mean she becomes less than happy about the prospects of the cure as her procedure date looms. However I won't give too much away. 

Firstly, my main appraisal of this book is how unbelievably original the plot idea is, the whole idea of the cure and how brainwashed the citizens become once they receive it totally terrified me. More so than the violent worlds in books like The Hunger Games and Divergent, the people in this world genuinely believe they are being protected rather than oppressed. 

Secondly, Lena is successfully.. Normal. She worries about how short she is and complains about how hot it is and gets angry at her aunt for asking her to do the washing up. This all means that she is genuinely shocked when unusual things start happening to her, which is both amusing and relatable as she is probably the most normally written character I've read about.. Maybe ever. She doesn't have a secret love of poetry and she's doesn't spend her life questioning and challenging the system which is all very refreshing. 

The cast at read throughs for Fox's Delirium

I loved Delirium, it's easily one of my favourite books ever and I plan on purchasing the hard copy as well as buying Pandemonium and Requim when it's released. The ending was rather surprising and I wasn't overly pleased at the time, but the plot blurb for Pandemonium has slightly reassured me. Plus it's not really Lauren Oliver's fault that I'm a sucker for a happy ever after. As I mentioned in the picture, it's also being turned into a TV show by Fox, and (I think) the pilot has already aired.

Characters: 4.5/5

Plot:5/5 

Overall 5/5 (yes seriously, I loved it that much)

Phew! I also managed to make my Dad buy me a copy of the 4th Mortal Instruments book, which I cannot WAIT to read, and I'm still reading One Day, which is taking me a while to properly get in too. However I think I'm going to start doing multiple books in one review so that they're less detailed but also cover all of the 25 books I aim to read this summer. That's the plan anyway, hope you guys have a good week and I'll see you on Wednesday or Thursday! 

Summer Plans!

Hello everybody! Hope you've had a good week, and if you haven't then at least it's Friday tomorrow. This post is a little late as I have spent the past few day in London and couldn't find the motivation to write. However the train back is proving to be an excellent writing ground so here we go. This weeks lifestyle post is going to be about how I plan on spending my summer, every single year I plan to do 101 different things during the six weeks I have off, but by the time first week of school rolls around I have only succeeded in gaining a stone in junk food weight and having watching 40 seasons of TV shows. Oops. 

This year however, I am determined to be different and complete at least a few (little) summers 'resolutions.' The weather in Scotland isn't exactly balmy and I don't have access to hundreds of pounds of 'rainy day' money so these will hopefully be things that you can all do/attempt to do. 

The first thing I aim to do is to start walking more, I don't mean like walking into town or to a friends house, I mean walking for the sheer pleasure of walking. I am lucky enough to live near miles of countryside and unexplored fields, back roads and woodland. I really don't have any excuse as to why I haven't started going for walks, as I quite enjoy the pleasure of my own company from time to time and I have a well stocked iPhone full of music for me to listen to as I stroll. 

Kinnoull Hill, a short walk from my home!

Secondly, I want to write something, as I run a book blog you've probably (hopefully) all grasped that I enjoy reading. There is nothing I'd love more than to be a published writer and while I'm no J K Rowling, I at least want to start writing/typing some concept ideas for short stories. Who knows, maybe one day I'll be sitting in a vast mansion bought with the profits from my best selling series of books. Or maybe not... 

One of my lifelong dreams (seriously, I've wanted to learn since I was about 3) is to learn to play guitar. Now, both my horrendous singing voice and my failed attempt to learn violin as a pre-teen may not scream 'future Jimmy Hendrix' but I love music more than anything else, even books, and to be able to pluck out something that vaguely sounds like music would make me extremely extremely happy. So perhaps this is the year I finally get my act together and start learning. 

Finally, and fittingly considering this is, first and foremost, a book blog, I aim to read 25 books over the next 6 weeks. They might not all be classic literacy novels but 25 books is the number I'm aiming for by August 13th before I go back to school. I have already read (okay, listened too, but audiobooks count) Delirium by Lauren Oliver and have started One Day by David Nicholls so that's potentially 2. I know I need to start reading more if I want to get 24 more in in the next 5 weeks. I suppose there are worse ways to spend my time! 

If any of you guys have 'summer resolutions' then feel free to leave them the comments, or even if you have any tips for motivating me with MY resolutions (especially guitar playing!!) then leave a comment too! I hope you all have a good few days and I plan on updating with a review of Delirium on Saturday or Sunday, so I'll see you then!