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!

Make-up Routine!

Hey guys! I hope you're having a good week so far, and if not, at least we're half way through already! This weeks life-y post is focussing on my makeup routine/the products I use. Now, I'm not a makeup artist or even a beauty blogger but 90% of my non-tumblr related online activity is watching YouTube beauty gurus or reading so many of your fabulous makeup and fashion blogs, so I thought I'd at least show you guys what I do to stop looking quite so much like Gollum in the morning!

Benefit's Porefessional- £24.50

First of all, this is my kind of basic day to day beauty regime, that I wear to school everyday. However this is easily adapted to suit a night out or incorporate strict school rules. I moisturize and then use Benefit's 'Porefessional' to smooth out some of my larger pores.

 

Lumi Magique- £10.99 and Lasting Perfection- £4.19

 

I then take Loreal's 'Lumi-Magique' and apply that over my whole face, I prefer to use my fingers but it's a light foundation so it works well with any kind of brush too! After I'm happy with my foundation I apply Collections' Concealer under my eyes and on any blemishes/discoloration that I have!

 

Lumi Magique (left) and Lasting Perfection swatches

This is all then set using Loreal's true match powder, which I apply with a fluffy powder brush! If I want to add contouring/more colour then I move on to adding Benefit's 'Coralista' blusher (£23.50) and NYC bronzer (£3.99) using two separate brushes.

 

True Match Powder- £8.19

For eyes, I use an Estée Lauder palette from their Christmas beauty box which contains around 20 of their Pure Color Eye Shadows (£15.50-£17.00 full size), and use the shade 'Cinnamon' all over my lids for a neutral base and then take the shade Mink, which I also use for my eyes brows, into the outer corner and the crease. A dot of Sugarcube in the inner corner and my eye shadow is done. For a long time, I used Collections' Fast Stroke eyeliner (£2.99) but I've recently been preferring using Loreal's Gel Liner in Golden Black, as it gives a softer and smokier look. My eyes are finished by adding a coat or two of Maybelline's The Rocket mascara (£7.99!)

 

Gel Liner in Golden Black- (£9.99)

A lot of the time, I will just leave my makeup like that and go out but I also have a ridiculous amount of lip products (they seem to be an obsession of mine.) I've been loving Loreal's Glam Shine Stain Splash lipgloss in 'Princess' and Rimmel's 1000 Kisses Lipstain in 'Don't Stop Blushing' and their Apocalips in 'Apocaliptic.'

 

Princess (£7.99) Don't Stop.. (£5.99) and Apocaliptic (£6.49)

I hope you guys have a better idea of how I do my makeup now, and the kind of products you can use, I'm really not able to afford more than one or two new makeup products a month so all of this had been purchased on a budget! If you want to see any more makeup related posts then comment below and I will be back tomorrow with another review. Be sure to +1 this post and share it on Twitter and where ever else, until tomorrow, have a wonderful day!

 

 

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Ten Last Lines

Hey guys! This weeks ‘Top Ten Tuesday’s’ is ‘Top Ten Last Lines.’ 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. "A LAST NOTE FROM YOUR NARRATOR. I am haunted by humans." The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

2. "The scar had not pained Harry for nineteen years. All was well." Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J K Rowling

3. "And then we continued blissfully into this small but perfect piece of our forever." Breaking Dawn by Stephanie Meyer

4. "An excellent year's progress." Bridget Jones’ Diary by Helen Fielding

5. “Thomas Edison's last words were 'It's very beautiful over there'. I don't know where there is, but I believe it's somewhere, and I hope it's beautiful.” Looking For Alaska by John Green

6. “You don’t get to choose if you get hurt in this world, old man, but you do have some say in who hurts you. I like my choices. I hope she likes hers.” I do, Augustus, I do.” The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

7. “I’m so sorry that I wasted your time because you really do mean a lot to me and I hope you have a very nice life because I really think you deserve it. I really do. I hope you do, too. Okay, then. Goodbye. Love always, Charlie.” The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chobsky 

8. “Oh, my girls, however long you may live, I never can wish you a greater happiness than this!” Little Women by Louisa May Allcot 

9. “So after, when he whispers “You love me. Real or not real?” I tell him “Real.” Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

10. “The knife came down, missing him by inches, and he took off.” Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

I really enjoyed making up this little list although it was even harder than my post last week on Top Ten First Lines, which I'll link here. I have a make-up related post that will go up tomorrow and then a multi-book review for Thursday, so the blog will be extra full this week! I seem to have got the hang of this whole blog/school thing! Have a great evening! 

Updated: My 'To Read' Pile

Hey guys! This week has been totally crazy, I started back at school and the first week has completely knocked it out of me. I’ve had a lot of homework and schoolwork to do as well as feeling 100% exhausted, like all the time, so the blog has taken the back seat for a while. I’m sorry for that, but I hope you understand that I am trying. To prove this, as well as Top Ten Tuesdays and the new feature I have planned for Friday, I am going to show you the list of books I plan to read this term/semester. Fingers crossed I can find the time to do so!

1. Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

2. We Are Here by Michael Marshall

3. Love and Other Near Death Experiences by Mil Millington

4. City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare

5. Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness

6. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

7. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

8. The Maze Runner by James Dashner

9. Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver

10. Sunset Song by Lewis Grassic Gibbon

1, 2, 3 and 5 are all books I picked up from the library last week, unfortunately I’ve not been able to start any of them yet but I will link my post of them all here so that you can go and check them all out! Cloud Atlas looks brilliant and as far as I can tell the movie got relatively good reviews! My bestfriend adores the Vampire Academy books and since she also introduced me to The Mortal Instruments series, I feel like I HAVE to read them! City of Lost Souls is the fifth book in the TMI series, and I have actually been restraining myself from reading it because the sixth book isn’t released until early next year! However the first book, City of Bones is being released as a film, which I’m seeing this Wednesday and I cannot wait! The Maze Runner is the book I currently have downloaded on Audible but I’ve only listened to the first 2 chapters, I will definitely get a lot more of that listening too this week as I want to see the film when it’s released (because it has Dylan O’Brien in it!) Pandemonium is the second book in the Delirium series and Delirium was the first book I listened to on Audible while I was down in London, so perhaps I will get Pandemonium next month with my free book credit! Sunset Song is the book I’m currently reading in school, it’s set in Northern Scotland and is written in a mix of old Scots and Doric, which is an Aberdeenshire dialect. It’s a popular book with Higher English teachers and I’m actually really enjoying it! 

I’ll review all of these books as and when they are finished which means that reviews won’t necessarily be posted on a weekend/Thursday basis anymore, however I will do my absolute best to ensure a level of continuity throughout the term. I’m also in Spain over the October holidays so I may have to queue some posts for over that period as well! On the bright side I always read about 10 books when I’m on holiday so I should have enough review material to last me for another few weeks after that! Until my next post, have a wonderful week!

Bizarre National Holidays!

Hey guys! Another of my recent internet trawling evenings led me to discover that there are a hell of a lot of national holidays that really don’t get the recognition they deserve. For example, how many of you knew that today (August 14^th) is in fact National Creamsicle Day. Now there’s a holiday that deserves presents and a party. There are so many more hilarious holidays that I decided to make a post about some of them here.

January 10^th- Peculiar People Day

January 22^nd- National Answer Your Cat’s QuestionDay

February 23^rd- International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day

March 8^th- Be Nasty Day

March 24^th- National Chocolate Covered Raisins Day

April 26^th- Richter Scale Day

May 3^rd- Lumpy Rug Day

May 30^th-My Bucket's Got A Hole In It Day

June 8^th- Name Your Poison Day

June 18^th- International Panic Day

July 3^rd- Stay Out Of The Sun Day

July 29^th- Cheese Sacrifice Purchase Day

August 8^th- National Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbor's Porch Night

September 19^th- Talk Like a Pirate Day

September 28^th- Ask A Stupid Question Day

October 9^th- Moldy Cheese Day

October 25- Punk For A Day Day

December 21- Look At The Bright Side Day

There’s certainly some crackers in there, they are all linked to a description of how/why the holiday is separated and these all came from a big list compiled by http://www.oshel.com/everyday.htm! I had a laugh looking at these and I hope you did too! Now I’m off to eat a creamsicle and do some reading! There will (major fingers crossed) be a review up tomorrow and my new feature will be up on Friday. Until then, have a wonderful day!

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Top Ten Opening Lines

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 really are brilliant, and are also in this months ‘blogs of the month!’ Without further ado, here is my list. 

1. "I will not drink more than fourteen alcohol units a week." Bridget Jones’ Diary by Helen Fielding

2. "It was a bright cold day in April and the clock was striking thirteen" 1984 by George Orwell

3. 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.” The Hobbit by J R R Tolkien

4. “***HERE IS A SMALL FACT ***

You are going to die.” The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

5. “I write this sitting in the kitchen sink.” I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

6. “The first thing you find out when yer dog learns to talk is that dogs don’t got nothing much to say. About anything.” The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

7. “When the doorbell rings at three in the morning, it’s never good news.” Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz

8. “Let me guess. You want to know why I tried to kill myself.” For One More Day by Mitch Albom

9. “The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.” The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

10. “Mr and Mrs Dursley, of number four Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.” Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J K Rowling

Okay, so a couple of dislaimers first of all, the quote from ‘The Book Thief’ isn’t actually the very first line, but I’m making a personal exception. I found this really, really hard to pick after I had about eight quotes, but I enjoyed doing it. It’s funny how a lot of these books are some of my favourites/are known as being great books. Perhaps, even if you can’t judge a book by its cover, you can judge it by its first line. I will be back tomorrow with another lifestyle post, have a wonderful day!

'the forbidden room' review!

Hey guys! Apologies for this review being a day late but I go back to school after my summer holidays tomorrow so I have been making the most of my final few days! I also promised a new feature last Friday, however I now plan on revealing that this Friday! 

I was given 'The Forbidden Room' by my younger sister and I feel like it's definitely aimed at the 8-12 year old market. The book is roughly 250 pages long and is a very very quick read. It details Jenny's move from a care home to her new foster family.

I'm going to be honest, this book isn't great, it's very simple storytelling and at times it feels very much like there is a lot of 'he said' 'she said' 'they thought' kind of dialogue, which gets boring. The plot is okay, it's very far fetched but all the loose ends are tied off and you do eventually discover why the Holland family seem so strange. 

Overall I wouldn't recommend it to anyone older than maybe 13 unless you prefer shorter books or aren't as advanced a reader. It did win the 'WOW Factor' award which is kind of understandable considering the explanation for the Holland's (Jenny's foster family) strange behaviour, it's all very sci-fi. 

Plot: 3/10

Characters: 2/10

Overall: 3/10 

I'll hopefully get another review in this week too, as well as Top Ten Tuesday tomorrow and a lifestyle post on Wednesday, plus my new Friday feature. However, as I am starting my Highers this year (equivalent of A Levels) I may be struggling to fit in enough time to write and read so much as school work has to take priority. Until tomorrow, have a good day! 

Favourite Films!

Evening everyone! Two posts in one day, aren't you all lucky? My life-y post this week is about my favourite films. Now, while some of these are genuine favourites, my favourite films and books seem to change on an almost daily basis, so don't quote me on these is a couple of months time. However they are all wonderful films, and you should definitely watch them all!

The Hangover

 Genuinely one of the funniest films ever, if you’ve never seen it and claim to have any kind of interest in comedy films then you have to watch it. It’s completely ridiculous and far fetched but equally amusing despite that. Alan is the funniest character I think I’ve ever come across. Also, Bradley Cooper, HELLO.

Tangled

My absolute favourite movie of all time,* I’ve always liked Disney but I never had a specific favourite until Tangled. The songs are brilliant, ‘I See The Light’ is  beautiful, it’s a really wonderful adaption of Rapunzel that feels very modern even though it could easily take place in the 1600’s. I also have a bit of a thing for Eugene Fitzherbert/Flynn Rider, who has to be the most attractive animated character, ever.

*Apart from number 3

Harry Potter 

I’m not even going to bother going into any detail here, it seems that this goddamn series comes up in every list I do these days. Favourite series ever.

Die Hard

This was the film that spurred my love for action movies, Bruce Willis just about single handedly introduced me to the genre when I was about 10. Dislaimer: Die Hard really isn’t suitable for 10 year olds I had a very lenient father in that respect so I had a healthy understanding of when and when not it was suitable to use bad language etc. I then went on to love all the Bond, Mission Impossible, Bourne and Oceans’ films plus so many more. Yippee Ki-yay Motherf*****.

Easy A

 I’d like to start by saying that Emma Stone is perfect, like genuinely one of my favourite actresses, and she’s brilliant in this. I love how the movie, while being hilarious, does delve into the whole culture of slut shaming. Plus there’s a lot of eighties movies references and the actor who plays Olive’s (Emma’s) eventual love is pretty darn hot too.

Pitch Perfect

 This was one of those films I watched (not very legally) online, without realising that it wasn’t even out of the cinemas yet. I loved it, and have since watched it around 9 times, seriously. The humour and the music is right up my street, I’d love to be like Becca is in the film and the remix’s for the music are unbelievable, plus more eighties music references and yet another attractive and really sweet male. Also, if none of that wins you over, the absolutely genius Rebel Wilson co-stars.

It’s Kind of a Funny Story

 Another one of my late night/early morning films that I found on my laptop, I’d read the book, which details Craig’s depression and his admittance to a psychiatric ward in a mental hospital after becoming so stressed while attempting to get into a prestigious school. I seeing how the book was brought to life, Zack Galifianakis is the perfect Bobby and his story always makes me want to cry. The movie’s funny but the mental health theme is extremely well covered. Plus Craig and Noelle are the cutest couple.

The Avengers

 I managed to safely avoid this fandom for over a year, as I’ve never really been a massive Marvel fan but I eventually caved a few weeks ago and I have no idea why I put it off so long. The casting is fabulous, it’s often quoted as to how similar the actors are to their characters (see: Robert Downey Jr or Tony Stark, who knows???) Scarlett Johanson’s The Black Widow is one of my favourite female characters, completely kickass and she’s stunning.

A Series of Unfortunate Events

 One of my favourite book to film adaptions, Jim Carey is a genius and the perfect choice to play Count Olaf, I loved Violet and Klaus’s characters too. The actual cinematography in this film is the best possible style for the books which was amazing. I wish they had made more films out of this series, they only covered the first 3 books in the first film so there’s another 10 books worth of wonderful content to cover!

Princess Diaries 2: A Royal Engagement

This would have made it onto my list purely for the scene where Mia’s wardrobe is revealed. I challenge anybody to watch that and not dream of having a wardrobe like that. Plus I adore Anne Hathaway and Julie Andrews and Chris Pine and the casting in general is brilliant. I rewatched this recently and discovered that my desire to be a princess has not faded.

Phew, that took a fair while, and all I want to do now is grab a box of popcorn and have a movie marathon. Feel free to tell me if any of your favourite films are on here or leave your faves down below. Have a good day!