Wednesday 29 April 2015

Top 5 Wednesday! Top 5 Favorite Harry Potter Characters!

Ello Lovelies!

So here as my first Top 5 Wednesday and as you can see in the title it is Favorite Harry Potter Characters!

Here we go!!!

1) Hermione Granger
2) Bellatrix Lestrange!
3) Hagrid
4) Ron Weasley
5) Draco Malfoy!

I know Bellatrix is not a favorite of many but I love reading about her! She's crazy and so loyal she's just awesome!!

Keep Reading!
Crystalsbooknook!

Monday 27 April 2015

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green Review

The Fault in Our Stars
Book Summary:
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.

Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning author John Green's most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love.


Review:
General:
I have never been one to pick up a book like this, stories that make you cry, stories that can happen to anyone around you, even to yourself... true stories are really not my thing. For this I seemed to change my mind... maybe it was the fact that there was a movie coming out, or how excited and in love everyone was with this book, whatever it was that made me pick up this book... THANK YOU!

Plot:
I loved the story, from the first moment I was captivated I had no idea what I was in for and I was pleasently surprised, the plot did talk about the cancer, it touched on the difficult moments living with cancer or having a child, friend, significant other that is living with cancer, but it also surrounds life, life of a teenage girl, falling in love with a guy and a book, and then falling out of love.... 

Characters:
I really did develop great feelings for these characters, not only Hazel and Gus but the secondary characters as well, Issac was a wonderful addition as he brought the sad realization to the book in a much different way then the story of Hazel has brought to us readers. He not only had to deal with cancer himself but with relationship problems.... Hazel and Gus' parents are all great additions to the story, of course we see a lot more about Hazels mom and dad but I love that you also get to feel the pain that they have trying to take care of a daughter who is terminally ill.

Ending:
Without telling you any spoilers if you have yet to read this book... it is NOT what I expected at all, I was shocked and sad, cried for days. DO NOT read this book in public you will regret it trust me! As much as I cried I loved the ending, sure I wanted to know what happened after but I feel John Green did a really god job at wraping it up nicely.

Writing:
Not much I can say about it... we all know John Green's writing is AMAZING! its a book geared and written in a language for teens and adults a like. He really knows how to make the story jump from the page and into our hearts!

Notes:
LOVE LOVE LOVE I really can't say anymore about it!

Rating




Sunday 26 April 2015

Rating Books! (My Star System!)

This is just a quick post about how I rate my books so that you all know what I mean when I give each review a certain Star rating!!
One Star: I couldnt even finish the book, or I hated it so much I only finished it to see if it happened to get any better!
Two Stars: I didnt like the book, It was far from the worst thing I have read but it needs a lot of work to make it a book that is worth me recommending to people!
Three Stars: Was a really good book but there were some elements that I felt needed to be included or excluded. Certain parts I loved while other parts... not so much
Four Stars: I enjoying this book a lot! Only very minimal annoyances that really do not bother me. I would 100% recommend this book to my fellow readers (Most books that I love would get this)
Five Stars: LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! This is a book that I find zero issues with (rare to give this to a book Harry Potter, Hunger Games and Divergent are the only ones I have given 5 to...so far) Five means I love this book so much that I probably have spent  more money then I have on extra little things related to the book -Hello Wizarding World of Harry Potter!-

Keep Reading!
Crystalsbooknook

Harry Potter Cover Love!


Hello my Loves!
How is everyone on this fine day??
Today I really just want to talk about the many different covers that have been released for the Harry Potter series!
I grew up with this story my cousin stayed up all night reading the second book out loud for us both to hear at one of our sleep overs. 
We have bonded over Harry Potter and so many others books for at least 15 years of our lives and its not something I see coming to an end any time soon. We have officially planned a visit to Universal Studios together so we can go and see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter together!! So excited!!

I have a mixture of the covers on my own shelves with the first book in the USA edition and the entire series in the... UK/Canada edition (actually 2 copies of chamber of secrets in that edition) so 9 all together and all the companion novels.

As I have been doing research for this blog I have found a variety of different covers that are out or coming out and every time we hear something -my cousin or myself- we will immediately contact the other and fill her in with our new found knowledge. The other day I did just that! When I found an article (http://io9.com/these-interactive-illustrations-make-harry-potter-even-1666263462 ) that talks about a set of books made by a girl for a school project - take a look they are amazing- when I texted my cousin she sent me a link to some scholastic covers that are being released and they changed my life! (http://www.buzzfeed.com/jarrylee/heres-the-cover-of-the-fully-illustrated-edition-of-hp) I am so excited for these new and improved books!

Now to change to some already released book cover changes! This first picture shows the glorious box set and just take in how amazingly beautiful the spines are... No words!!!

Weirdly enough these next books are actually my favorite of these two sets! I know I know a lot of you are probably calling my crazy... These are plain and boring and just weird colours that don't match the stories... 
I DONT CARE IF THATS ALL TRUE!! I'm in love!
These books are just my cup of tea, I love all the others but to have these simple and gorgeous covers on my shelf would be  something that would make me sooo happy! 

Tell me your favorite Harry Potter book covers!

Much Love & Keep Reading!
Crystalsbooknook xxoo

Saturday 25 April 2015

Crystalsbooknook-a-thon 1.0

Hello my lovlies!

Today I would like to present to you my very own read-a-thon! This isn't new for me, I have been doing my own read-a-thones when ever possible and because the many read-a-thons that are online don't always occur when its possible for me to participate.

I am however participating in todays "Deweys 24hr Read-a-thon" but I had to work which makes this rather difficult!

Quick TBR
1) Finish Red Queen
2) Start Darkest Minds

I'll post a wrap up tomorrow to see how well I did!

BUT... the point of this post is for my own read a thons!

I want to make it official so it isnt only me doing it alone, its always more fun to read together!

Some Facts for you! 
1) Anyways its going to be called Crystalsbooknook-a-thon! (so original... i know)
2) Anyways this is going to be taking place twice a month!
3) The full ones will be 4 days long!
4) and the half read-a-thons will be 1 or 2 days each!
5) There will be one short and one long each month!

Fun Stuff:
1) Four Day = Goal to read three books!
             - Read somewhere different
             - Do not rush your book, take your time, enjoy it, love it!
2) One Day = Read as much as possible!
             - Read more then normal
             - Take time to relax and do what you love!

Here is a schedule for May and June 2015
May
1) May 4th - May 7th (1.0)
2) May 17th (1.5)

June
1) June 14th - June 17th (2.5)
2) June 28th (3.0)

I hope you are participate and enjoy it!

Keep reading,
Crystalsbooknook xxoo

Friday 24 April 2015

Book Haul #1

Hey lovelies!
Today I bring you... The first book haul of the blog.
And the last...
Nah Im just messing with you but I do not have the money to continue this addiction at full force so I will have a book buying ban post soon!
Now... To the books!
This haul has been both March and April! 

1) Storm of Swords by George R.R Martin
Deal:
I only paid $3 for this copy! It is in perfect condition and it is the large print book which made me happy!
Summary:
 Here is the third volume in George R.R. Martin's magnificent cycle of novels that includes A Game of Thrones and A Clash of Kings. Together, this series comprises a genuine masterpiece of modern fantasy, destined to stand as one of the great achievements of imaginative fiction.

Of the five contenders for power, one is dead, another in disfavor, and still the wars rage as alliances are made and broken. Joffrey sits on the Iron Throne, the uneasy ruler of of the Seven Kingdoms. His most bitter rival, Lord Stannis, stands defeated and disgraced, victim of the sorceress who holds him in her thrall. Young Robb still rules the North from the fortress of Riverrun. Meanwhile, making her way across a blood-drenched continent is the exiled queen, Daenerys, mistress of the only three dragons still left in the world. And as opposing forces manoeuver for the final showdown, an army of barbaric wildlings arrives from the outermost limits of civilization, accompanied by a horde of mythical Others—a supernatural army of the living dead whose animated corpses are unstoppable. As the future of the land hangs in the balance, no one will rest until the Seven Kingdoms have exploded in a veritable storm of swords.

2) Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
Deal:
No deal it was a birthday gift from my amazing cousin! Thanks Dani! xxoo
Summary:
The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers.

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the centre of
those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control.

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win?

3) The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
Deal: 
Chapters had a buy 2 get 1 free!
Summary:
After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.

Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker.

Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.

4) Paper Towns by John Green
Deal:
Chapters had a buy 2 get 1 free!
Summary: 
Who is the real Margo?
Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs into his life—dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge—he follows. After their all-nighter ends, and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues—and they're for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees the girl he thought he knew.


5) The Duff by Kody Keplinger
Deal:
Chapters had a buy 2 get 1 free!
Summary:  (Not a fan of this summary...)

Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn’t think she’s the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She’s also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her “the Duff,” she throws her Coke in his face.

But things aren’t so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.
Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn’t such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she’s falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone.

6) Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor
Deal:
Birthday gift from the lovely Veronica xxoo
Summary: 
Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?


7) Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige
Deal:
Another birthday gift from the lovely Veronica  xxoo
Summary: 
I didn't ask for any of this. I didn't ask to be some kind of hero.

But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado - taking you with it - you have no choice but to go along, you know?

Sure, I've read the books. I've seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little bluebirds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can't be trusted, Wicked Witches may just be the good guys, and winged monkeys can be executed for acts of rebellion. There's still a yellow brick road - but even that's crumbling.

What happened? Dorothy.

They say she found a way to come back to Oz. They say she seized power and the power went to her head. And now no one is safe.

My name is Amy Gumm - and I'm the other girl from Kansas.
I've been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked.
I've been trained to fight.
And I have a mission.