Review: From Bad to Cursed by Katie Alender

Name: From Bad to Cursed
Author: Katie Alender
Publisher: Hyperion
Date published: 2011
Rating: 3/5
Spoiler warning: Minor

Although I did think that it was a good book, I did have a couple of issues with From Bad to Cursed. I thought that perhaps Alexis' change from trying to destroy Aralt to worshipping him could have been slightly more subtle and gradual. I found it quite noticeable and pronounced. If it had been done more discreetly, with the realisation of what was happening only eventually creeping up on the reader, that could have made it a little more intriguing.
And then there were other parts that were slightly hard to follow and sometimes I found it hard to remember whether Alexis was completely loyal to Aralt or not. I know this sounds contradictory to my last point but what I mean is that because Alexis' transformation from enemy to worshipper of Aralt was so sudden, because it was not slow enough, it was a bit difficult to understand, I was confused rather than intrigued. There were also moments when I almost could not keep up with what the other girls involved were up to.
Despite these issues, I did actually very much enjoy this book. I thought it was an interesting story with action, suspense, and even some humour mixed into it.

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Review: Fearless by Tim Lott

Name: Fearless
Author: Tim Lott
Publisher: Walker Books
Date published: 2007
Rating: 5/5
Spoiler warning: Minor

With Fearless, I really liked how the story was mostly told from the perspective of Little Fearless and the other children. They were quite innocent and naive, not exactly knowing or understanding what was going on outside the institute, or inside it, for that matter. But they were still intelligent, and definitely brave, in their own ways, and I think this all added to the inspirational nature of the story.
The book also had a very emotional nature, and I found the Controller's part especially sad. I did guess who he was (in relation to Little Fearless) quite close to the beginning of the book, but that did not make it any less heartbreaking when the truth was revealed.
Fearless had a very strong and important message about control and freedom, and I thought that the fact that it almost seemed to be written as if it was a young children's story while it had such a sinister truth to it gave the story's message a lot of impact.

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Review: Someone Else's Life by Katie Dale

Name: Someone Else's Life
Author: Katie Dale
Publisher: Simon and Schuster UK
Date published: 2012
Number of pages: 478
Rating: 3/5

Someone Else's Life was incredibly dramatic, with many, many plot twists. Although I understood why it was so dramatic, as it dealt with a couple of very serious topics, I'm not sure if I liked how some parts were done and how there were a couple of questions that were still unanswered by the end. Seeing as the main point of the story was for Rosie to go on this journey to find out the truth about her life and the lives of the people around her, I felt it strange that I still had questions when it was over. Surely all my questions should have been answered?
At some points I did enjoy reading the book, it wasn't all bad, far from it, but there were some points when I really did not enjoy it. I especially didn't enjoy it between the middle and end of the book, when some of the characters' actions frustrated me and annoyed me slightly, so I couldn't relate to them because I didn't understand them.
Overall, I'd say that this was a good book, but it could have been better with some more realistic actions and reactions from the characters and with an ending that didn't feel as unsettling as it did.

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Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Name: Fangirl
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Author's website: rainbowrowell.com
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Date published: 2014
Number of pages: 459
Rating: 5/5
Spoiler warning: Moderate

The ending of this book crept up on me (that seems to be happening to me more and more often, maybe I just need to pay more attention) and I didn't realise it was almost over until I turned a page and realised the next page was the last one. Obviously I knew it was going to end eventually, just not right at that point. I think I just became really attached and didn't want it to end. I really related to Cath and loved reading her journey. I recently started university so I really understood her nerves about it. The story felt very real with mistakes and confusion and mess and things not being straight-forward but getting sorted out eventually with a lot of effort and really good happy moments and happy tears that made the hard work definitely worth it...and I'm rambling...
I really liked the fan fiction element. I have to admit I read (and sometimes attempt to write...but just forget I mentioned that because my attempts are pretty bad...) fan fiction myself and I liked how this book showed that it isn't some weird freaky thing and that it can be really important and significant and brilliant.
I found it interesting that Cath never reconciled with her mother, and I that was good because doing that wasn't the right thing to do for Cath and it would have felt forced. I think it showed that the end of the book isn't the end of the story because maybe one day Cath would go on to talk to her mum, Maybe. The fact that the book leaves a few things in the air leaves you to imagine what Cath and her family and friends did next, in a good way, not in a oh-my-God-you-can't-just-leave-it-there-I-hate-you way, of course. As Wren said, "It's never over." (excuse me while I go and repeat that to myself while crying about Harry Potter).

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Review: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

Name: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares
Authors: Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
Authors' websites: www.rachelcohn.com & www.davidlevithan.com
Publisher: MIRA Ink Books
Date published: 2012
Number of pages: 260
Rating: 5/5

Dash & Lily's Book of Dares was funny, adorable and cute and it really made me smile. I think it had some really unique ideas and I loved the way words were used; it was made up of thought-provoking, intelligent and wonderful sentences. I liked the way the red notebook led Dash and Lily to learn more about themselves, the people around them, and about life in general. And since I liked the book so much, I was not ready for the ending. I didn't realise I was so close to the end of the book and when I turned over the page and saw that it was the end I was a little sad because I didn't want it to end yet. This is definitely a new favourite of mine and I would recommend it for something to read over the winter. It's a perfect book to read while drinking hot chocolate and sitting by the fire (and I don't care if that sounds cheesy because it's one of my favourite winter activities).

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Review: Runaway by Marie-Louise Jensen

Name: Runaway
Author: Marie-Louise Jensen
Author's website: www.marie-louisejensen.com/wordpress/
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Date published: 2014
Number of pages: 311
Rating: 4/5
Available: Now

Runaway is dramatic from the very beginning, when it starts with events that utterly change Charlotte's life. The story, which follows Charlotte's new life on the run and her journey to discovering her family's secrets, is very exciting, full of action, mystery and suspense. This almost non-stop drama is balanced well by occasional moments of calmness or humour, and the romance (Mr. John Lawrence is a wonderful character) is also well mixed into the story.
It took me a while to get into this book, to be really interested in it and to really want to keep reading, but eventually I did and after that I didn't want to stop reading. About midway through, I found that all I wanted to do was find out what happened next, and then what happened after that, and after that... I think Runaway is definitely worth persevering through.

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Review: The Worst Girlfriend in the World by Sarra Manning

Name: The Worst Girlfriend in the World
Author: Sarra Manning
Author's website: www.sarramanning.co.uk
Publisher: Atom
Date published: 2014
Number of pages: 344
Rating: 5/5
Available: Now
Spoiler warning: Minor

I liked this book because, though it had some very serious moments, these were contrasted well with its funny moments. The narration itself was also quite funny and I liked how Franny's voice was relatable and occasionally reminded me of myself.
I would definitely recommend reading this book if you love fashion, Franny has a clear passion for it and it's really interesting to see her learn has she goes through her fashion BTEC at college. I completely understood her love for Vogue, although my own collection of issues (consisting of one issue of French Vogue) is nothing compared to Franny's, I'm planning to try and collect issues from as many different countries as possible (perhaps buying one from England, the place where I actually live, would be a good idea).
The plot of The Worst Girlfriend in the World was really enjoyable. I actually ended up reading the whole book in one day (something which I seem to be doing more and more often for some reason) as I was excited to find out how it ended. And I'm glad it ended the way it did, with Franny and Alice forgiving each other while understanding that their friendship would never quite be the same and knowing that they would both have to put in effort to make it work. I think that showed really good character development.