Review: Just One Day by Gayle Forman

Author: Gayle Forman
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Page Count: 368 pages, Hardcover
Date Published: January 8th 2013
Find it on Goodreads: Just One Day
Source: Gifted (Birthday present from Kaitlyn!- THANK YOU!!!)

A breathtaking journey toward self-discovery and true love, from the author of If I Stay
When sheltered American good girl Allyson "LuLu" Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there’s an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines. Just One Day is the first in a sweepingly romantic duet of novels. Willem’s story—Just One Year—is coming soon!

Just One Day is a breathtaking novel about travel, love and finding yourself. It is a novel that clutched on to my heart and it will stay for a very long time. An unforgettable story that I connected deeply to... Quite the beautiful book.

I never read Forman's If I Stay series. I wanted to, but never got the chance. However, when I read the synopsis for Just One Day, I was immediately drawn to it and knew I had to read it right away. This book.... I feel almost as if it was meant for me... You know? There are some books you like, some you love, and some you adore. And then there are those books that you connect to on such a personal level that it's almost like the author took a peek into your brain and wrote the book using that as inspiration. Does that make any sense? If yes, good. If no, I apologise, but just... go with it! Anywho, Just One Day was one of those books for me, obviously. Written with an undeniably gorgeous style, Forman crafted this book into something of a guidebook for me. Well, not so much a guidebook, but it was a book that helped me see some personal things in a new perspective and it also made me fall back in love with travel stories. I crave travel and so stories where the protagonist is travelling are perfect books for me while I'm stuck at home, doing school work.

One thing I really liked about this book was that the love interest, Willem, wasn't actually present for the majority of the book, as that's what the story is. Allyson and Willem basically have a super romantic one night stand (eh, like I said, just go with it..) and then when she wakes up in the morning, he's gone. She then spends the next year in conflict with herself as she moves to uni, meets new people and tries to re-find the person she was that one night in Paris as well as forget the boy that broke her heart. And then when that doesn't work... Find him. It was really unique, not having him right there the entire book, with most of his appearances in her mind. I really loved Willem's character and cannot wait for Just One Year to read his story. Allyson was a very real character. Yes, she annoyed me at times, but I liked that actually. She wasn't just some non-feeling, super strong protagonist. Yes she was strong but she was also kind of a pushover. She let herself be told what to do by her friend, her mother and more, but this book was about Allyson's growth as a person and we see a gradual change as time goes by. It wasn't an instant click! but a realistic slow and kind of bumpy process. One thing I really liked about Allyson was that while she had the brief thought that she could be in love with Willem after a day, she kind of... corrected herself and rethought. She didn't overexaggerate very often and when she did, she usually realised it and stopped. I don't really know how to describe it, but I just really enjoyed Allyson's character.

I could on for days about this book, but I think I'm just going to leave it at that and let you do the reading and thinking. I know this isn't the book for everyone, but it was definitely the book for me. I loved it and I'm looking forward to rereading it this summer. It was beautifully written with a heart-wrenching story about the journey towards self-discovery. Beautiful.

Happy reading!
~Kristy

Top Ten Tuesday: Summer TBR

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.This week's topic  is : Top Ten Books on my Summer TBR! I am so excited to start summer vacation! TODAY is my last day of regular classes and then I have one exam on Thursday and then I'm FREE! I plan on doing a lot of reading this summer to schedule a ton of posts for the fall, so here are ten of the books I'm most looking forward to reading!

It's going to be a great summer of reading! I have some review/tour books in there, a few that I've bought, etc. I'm so excited!!!

Also, I wanted to apologize for my absence on the blogosphere lately. I've been super stressed out with school and was needing a little break, but not so official that I would make a post about it, if that makes sense.... Anywho, school is almost over and then I'm taking a few days to just SCHEDULE!! WHOO!

Don't forget to leave me a link to your TTT!

Happy Tuesday!
~Kristy

Stacking the Shelves (41)

Stacking the Shelves is a book haul meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews -This is a great way for us to share what books we added to our shelves each week

Purchased: 

So... I found this in Coles the other day... In an international paperback...

This is one of my most anticipated books of 2013 and the fact that I got it for $10 instead of $20?? BONUS!!

Leave me a link to your haul this week and I'll check it out!

Happy reading!
~Kristy

TGIF: BookTube + Interview with BookYAReview!

Hey guys! Today I wanted to discuss BOOKTUBING! Aaaand I have a special guest as well! Okay, so basically, since I was 12ish I have been fascinated by YouTube and the people who make videos. When I was young, my mum convinced me that YouTube was a scary 'adult' website that I wasn't allowed onto. And then I discovered beauty videos. I LOVED watching makeup tutorials and fashion videos and stuff like that. I was a total girly girl during my pre-teen years and wanted to be able to do all the kind of things that they were doing. AND then Elle Fowler, one of my favourite Beauty Gurus at the time, began doing occasional book reviews on her channel...WHOO! I was fascinated. So I started looking up more bookish videos and came across a ton of awesome channels. THIS was right up my alley. There was a whole community of people talking to a camera about BOOKS.

So, I was all 'WHOO LET'S GO FOR IT!' and then I realized that I'm super shy and awkward (aren't we all?). Anywho, I decided one day, enough was enough. It was time to do what any good writer does: research for information. What better way to get information that go straight to a primary source? So I contacted one of my FAVOURITE BookTubers and (at the time) somewhat bloggy friend (now I consider us actual bloggy friends...  I just hope he does too ;D). So, without further ado, I introduce to you... BRAD, AKA the mastermind behind BookYaReview!

why yes, yes I did steal this from twitter. 

Okay, so this is Brad. He's a totally awesome and amazingly sweet book blogger and book tuber from Tennessee. He has one of the most epic book collections I've ever seen and is one of the nicest people I virtually know. Brad also has an amazing personality that shines through his writing as well as his videos! PLUS he has an adorable accent and huge smile that I can't resist smiling back to, even though he can't see me. Brad is one of the first bloggers that I started interacting with on twitter and I am so go honoured to host him here on A Little Shelf of Heaven! If you have not checked out Brad's blog or YouTube channel, GO DO IT NOW!!!! (links at the bottom of this post) Now, here's what he had to say about BookTubing!

So I've been pondering the idea of starting weekly vlogs, as well as filming some book hauls and monthly wrap ups. Do you have any advice for an aspiring vlogger/book tuber?

Two words: Have fun. I know everybody says that, but it really is true. Once you enter the Booktubing community, you will besurrounded by thousands of other book lovers! Make friends - comment on other people's videos and make connections! The friends that I have made through Booktube are the best bookish friends I have. It's so much fun to make videos about books! And finally, don't worry about the trolls! If you get a dislike or a negative comment, just ignore it; that's what I always do. Think about the friends you've made and how much you love to talk about books! We're readers; it's what we do!

What made you want to start filming bookish stuff? Did you start vlogging or blogging first?

I actually started blogging first! I was very new to everything, so the content wasn't great. Then I discovered videos about books on YouTube and fell in love with it. I made my first video in August 2011 (an introduction and unboxing video!), and I have to say that looking back, I'm not a fan of it (haha!). Then I took, for whatever reason, a break, but then came back in January 2012, and since then, I've never looked back! I had loads of inspiration for starting my YouTube channel; one was ILoveReading65. I ADORED (and still do!) her videos! She was the first Booktuber I ever watched, and she definitely inspired me to make my own content!

You write your reviews on your blog, instead of talking about them in videos. What made you decide to do that?

I felt that they were a lot easier to write reviews instead of film. I would love to film reviews, but I feel like Monthly Wrap-Ups are so much easier! And plus, my poor computer probably couldn't handle the memory I would put on it with review videos!

If you could only have your YouTube channel or your blog, which would you choose?

HARDEST. QUESTION. EVER. With my YouTube channel, I get to interact with people and have a face-to-face connection; plus, I have some amazing and talented friends who I love talking to! But with my blog, I love to post reviews, do memes, and comment on other blogs! I can't choose!

Has BookTubing helped your confidence grow?

Absolutely! I think I was confident back before I started Booktubing, but now, thanks to Booktube, whenever I meet a reader and bookish person, I'm a chatterbox! I absolutely love getting to meet readers and share what books have been good that we've read recently! Fun story: I met a girl in line for a Marissa Meyer who also loved Incarnate by Jodi Meadows, which is my favorite book of all-time. I may or may not have freaked out. But in short, yes. Booktubing has helped me in so many ways. Not in just learning about new books and bookish people, but helping me in my day to day life!

FAVOURITES

Colour - Blue! (Which is the reason why my blog is blue!)
Food - Steak/chocolate chip cookies!
Book - Incarnate by Jodi Meadows!
Author - Amanda Hocking!

School subject - English!

Thanks so much for having me on your blog today, Kristy! It was so much fun!

Blog   YouTube   Twitter    Goodreads  

You know, BookTubing sounds really cool! I've been so nervous about starting, but I think I will this summer. Probably a mixture of bookish videos and random vlogs....I'm not sure!

Thank you so much for coming onto the blog today, Brad! 

MAKE SURE YOU GO CHECK BRAD'S BLOG/CHANNEL OUT!!!

Happy Friday!

~Kristy

Review: Sever by Lauren DeStefano

Author: Lauren DeStefano
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Page Count: 371 pages, Hardcover
Date Published: February 12th 2013
Find it on Goodreads: Sever
Source: Purchased

Time is running out for Rhine in this conclusion to the New York Times bestselling Chemical Garden Trilogy.
With the clock ticking until the virus takes its toll, Rhine is desperate for answers. After enduring Vaughn’s worst, Rhine finds an unlikely ally in his brother, an eccentric inventor named Reed. She takes refuge in his dilapidated house, though the people she left behind refuse to stay in the past. While Gabriel haunts Rhine’s memories, Cecily is determined to be at Rhine’s side, even if Linden’s feelings are still caught between them.
Meanwhile, Rowan’s growing involvement in an underground resistance compels Rhine to reach him before he does something that cannot be undone. But what she discovers along the way has alarming implications for her future—and about the past her parents never had the chance to explain.
In this breathtaking conclusion to Lauren DeStefano’s Chemical Garden trilogy, everything Rhine knows to be true will be irrevocably shattered.

Ughhh guys.... I'm having such a difficult time trying to figure out what I'm feeling towards this book. I had SUCH a hard time getting into it. The first 100 pages, I was so bored and couldn't care less and ughh it was just so frustrating. And then, it started picking up but it was still so FRUSTRATING.

Okay, okay, Kristy, focus.

Let's start off with the good, shall we? The main thing that kept me reading this series is the writing. DeStefano's style is haunting and beautiful and I can't get enough. She weaves her sentences together into this amazing piece with captivating words and while there were some issues that I had with the pacing in the beginning, as well as the characters, overall, Sever was written very well.

It took me quite a long time to get through Sever. Probably because I hadn't been the biggest fan of Fever and Sever picks up right where Fever left off. I just couldn't get into it... It wasn't the right book for me at the time and so eventually I had to just tell myself "you need to finish this" and I sucked it up and read it.

While the book eventually picks up, there were lots of things that kind of bothered me, a lot, but it's hard to say what any of them are without spoiling the whole book. At one point I wanted to throttle Rhine because she basically just submitted herself and didn't try and fight but I can't go into specifics because SPOILERS!

UGH AND DON'T EVEN ASK ME ABOUT THE LOVE TRIANGLE.

 ...

I am actually heart broken. DeStefano basically ruined my heart with this conclusion... AND YET I LOVED IT EVEN THOUGH I MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE CRIED.

Ahhh okay so basically the author pulled something that I've been craving to happen in a book for so long, not because I'm evil or anything but just because it's not done very often BUT I'D RATHER IT NOT HAVE BEEN THIS BOOK AND THIS CHARACTER.

ahh and I can't even say what it is because it's like.. THE MOST MAJOR SPOILER!

Alright, I realise that this review is mainly GIFs but they're the only way I can get my feelings out towards this book. For a conclusion, I did enjoy Sever. It was slow at the beginning and then began to speed up. Loose ends were tied up, surprises were revealed, we learned more about the world and there was a bittersweet ending. There were quite a few sad moments and others that were annoying and so many other things went on while I read this book. But all in all, I wasn't disappointed. It was a good conclusion to a unique and beautifully written trilogy.

Happy reading!
~Kristy