BookTubeAThon Reads - Quick Reviews!

**A note on my notes: these reviews are spoiler free.**

BookTubeAThon is finally over, which is both a relief and a little sad. If you're interested in how I did, you can read my wrap up post here. Because I did read a lot more than I usually would during the week, I've decided to do one post that does a brief review of all the books I finished rather than full, individual reviews.

Through the Looking Glass - Lewis Carol
I enjoyed this book, but I didn't love it. If you know anything about Alice in Wonderland then you'll know that the story isn't supposed to make sense and is complete nonsense most of the time. While this means that the story ultimately lacks plot (intentionally, though), it is still a fun read. This book was quite short and had some really interesting illustrations which made it perfect for BookTubeAThon. I would recommend that you read this book regardless of who you are - it's a classic that can be read across several sittings or all at once, depending on how you feel.

Unwind - Neil Shusterman
I flew through this book because the plot was so intriguing. I thought the entire concept and idea of the story was really interesting and unique, which really added to the books appeal. I thin k the characters were pretty well developed; however, the book really lacked in terms of word building. There was hardly any background information about the wars that are constantly referenced in the book, and the concept of Unwinding - like how it first came about and the original reactions - weren't explained in much depth. Overall, I did enjoy this book, but I just really wish there was more world building.

The Romeo and Juliet Code - Phoebe Stone
This book was definitely not what I expected. I went into this book knowing nothing about it, and from the picture on the cover I assumed it was a cutesy romance, which it wasn't at all. I did like this book, but it took me longer to read because I didn't really care that much for the story. It's narrated by an eleven year old girl, so I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I was a few years younger than what I am. The plot was kind of slow paced as well, so there wasn't really anything that made me want to constantly keep reading.

Pathfinder - Orson Scott Card
I loved this book! I thought the overall concept and ideas were super cool, which I why I picked up the book in the first place. Not only that, but these ideas and concepts were explained really well. However, this book is science fiction, and there were some sciency bits that flew right over my head, but I was able to understand the general gist of things, which is enough to follow the story. I think the characters were developed nicely and the plot is a good pace. I would definitely recommend this book to any science fiction reader.

Those are my quick reviews for the four books I finished during the week of the BookTubeAThon. Let me know what you thought about any of the books I read! Happy Reading!

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BookTubeAThon Wrap Up!!!!!!!

Where did the past week go?! BookTubeAThon was such a blast and the week just flew right by. I had such a fun time and I read a lot more than I usually would in a week, which I'm incredibly proud of. So here it is, my 2014 BookTubeAThon wrap up post!

I total, I read four books in the week. Four! I normally average a little less than a book per week, so to read four in one week is a huge achievement for me. So the books that I completed this week were:
1. Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carol
2. Unwind by Neil Shusterman
3. The Romeo and Juliet Code by Phoebe Stone
4. Pathfinder by Orson Scott Card

I'll be post a quick review of all four books on Friday, so if you're interested in finding out how I felt about them keep your eyes peeled for that post.

In total, I read 1,460 pages!! That averages to be around 209 pages each day, which is insane. I'm so happy with how well I did!!

The challenges I completed were:
1. Read something with red of the cover - Unwind
2. Read a book of the genre you've red least this year - The Romeo and Juliet Code (not the book I planned for this challenge on my TBR, but it was still a historical mystery)
3. Read a book and watch its adaptation - Through the Looking Glass (only half completed because I didn't end up watching the movie)

Three out of seven is actually pretty good. My goal was four, but because I went rogue and didn't follow my TBR I didn't read a book that someone else had picked for me, which is a bummer. But I'm happy with the books I read and the challenges I completed.

I hope that everyone else's BookTubeAThon went swimmingly and that you all achieved your goals! Let me know how you went in the comments or on the links below. Happy Reading!

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BookTubeAThon Day Five!!!!!

It's 12:32am at the time that I'm starting this update, so day five has just finished for me.

Today was another pretty slow reading day, so this update will be a quick one. My weekend is going to be extremely busy as well, so my reading will probably slow down a lot for the rest of BookTubeAThon.

In total today, I read 212 pages of Pathfinder. I'm still really enjoying the story and will hopefully be able to get through the last 200 or so pages tomorrow, which I think I can do. I'm hoping to read one more book for the last two days of BookTubeAThon, which I think is plausible if I make sure to set aside some reading time.

I hope everyone else's BookTubeAThon is going well and that you're all achieving the goals you set for yourselves. Happy Reading!

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BookTubeAThon Day Four!!!!

The halfway point has already been crossed, and the forth day of the BookTubeAThon is almost over.

Toady was a lot more successful for me than yesterday. I managed to finish The Romeo and Juliet Code, and then picked up a new book almost straight away. The book I choose to read was not on my original TBR list, but I needed to choose a book I new would be fast paced in order to catch up for the lack of reading I achieved on day three.

The book I choose was Pathfinder by Orson Scott Card. This book is huge, with a total of 657 pages. It's a science fiction novel and I tend to really enjoy that genre, which is one of the reasons I decided to pick it up. So far today, I've read 228 pages of it, and I'm hoping to get about halfway - at least to 330 pages - before I go to sleep tonight/tomorrow morning.

In summary, today I read:
The Romeo and Juliet Code - 158 pages (completing the 296 page book)
Pathfinder - 228/657 pages
Total Pages for Day Four (so far): 386
Total Pages: 1,031

I am absolutely stoked with these totals! I'll be back tomorrow with another update. Happy Reading!

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BookTubeAThon Day Three!!!

Day three is drawing to a close for me here in Australia, so here's my update! 

I ended up finishing Unwind early this morning at about 1 am, and I did really enjoy it. I'm hoping to post a quick review post of all the books I read this week on Monday, so if you're interested in my thoughts on any of these books, keep your eyes peeled for that. 

Like I mentioned in my update for day two, I didn't really feel like picking up anything I'd put on my TBR. Because of this, I chose a completely different book, The Romeo and Juliet Code by Phoebe Stone. This book was a birthday gift several years ago and I just never got around to reading it, so I was keen to finally get into it.

Today has been completely jam packed for me, so so far today I've only read 138 pages. I'm hoping to finish this one tonight, but I'm not sure that I will. When I do finish it I have no idea what book I'll be reading next. 

Here's a summary of what I've read so far:

Through the Looking Glass - 172 pages

Unwind - 335 pages

The Romeo and Juliet Code - 138/296 pages

Which brings my total BookTubeAThon reads so far to 645 pages, which I'm happy with.

I'll be back tomorrow night with an update for day four. Happy Reading!

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BookTubeAThon Day Two!!

Day two of the BookTubeAThon will soon be coming to a close here in Australia, so it's time for another update.

Today was a fairly busy day for me, so I didn't get as much reading done as I would have liked. So far I have read 156 pages of Neil Shusterman's Unwind and I really do like this book so far. I'm excited to see how the story ends and what happens to the characters and all that jazz. The plan is to finish this book tonight, which is definitely plausible because I have less than 100 pages to go.

So the next book that I should be picking up, according to my TBR list, is either Brave New World by Aldous Huxley or The Adventures of Sherlock Homes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. At the moment though, Unwind has put me in the biggest YA mood and I don't really feel like reading either of those. In fact, I'm leaning towards picking up the sequel to Unwind, which is UnWholy, but I don't think I'll be able to do that within the week. So I'm not sure what book I'll be reading tomorrow.

If you're participating in BookTubeAThon, good luck to you! I'll be back tomorrow with another update. Happy Reading!

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BookTubeAThon Day One!

The first day of BookTubeAThon is nearly over! Today has been pretty successful for me and I'm happy to say that I'm on track with my goals and the challenges.

The weekend just past was a huge one for me, so I was way to tired to stay up until midnight for the beginning. Because of this, I started reading today at around 10am and have been reading for the most part of today.

To start off with, I picked up Through the Looking Glass. As most of you probably know, Alice in Wonderland is complete nonsense; the characters are ridiculous and the plot is almost non-existent (or at least not coherent), and that is exactly what the story is supposed to be like. Because of this, I moved through the book pretty slowly because there were no cliffhangers to keep me hooked on the story. I did quite enjoy it though, and I'm glad I've finally read it.

Through the Looking Glass completed two challenges for me: reading a book with pictures and reading a book and watching its associated movie. I haven't gotten around to watching the movie yet, but I will try and get to it later in the week. So far then, I've completed one and a half reading challenges!

I also started to read Unwind by Neil Shusterman tonight and have so far read 90 pages.This book covered the challenge of reading something with red on the cover. Hopefully, I'll get through a bit more of this book tonight and my goal is to finish it by the end of day two, which is definitely plausible because I'm really enjoying the tone and concept of the novel so far.

I hope everyone else has a successful first day of their BookTubeAThon! You can all look forward to another update tomorrow night. Happy Reading!!

BookTubeAThon 2014 TBR!!

If you're unaware, from the 14th to the 20th of July BookTubeAThon is happening!!!!!!!!!!!!!! BookTubeAThon is a readathon that was created for people who make videos about books rather than blog posts. At the moment, I don't make YouTube videos; however, I am an active member of the BookTube community and I absolutely love watching book related videos. Because of this, I am still participating in the 2014 BookTubeAThon and I plan on blogging my progress, rather than vlog it. This is my first year participating and I am 100% excited.

Just a slight disclaimer: I don't read very fast. 

Because of this, I've only chosen four books for my TBR pile, and I'm not even sure that I'll get through those. Hopefully I do though, because that will mean I'll be only one book behind schedule for my 2014 reading challenge of reading 50 books.

As well as trying to read as much as you can, the BookTubeAThon has a list of seven reading challenges and seven video challenges. I obviously won't be completing any of the video challenges (although I will be posting daily updates this week here on my blog as well as on Twitter), but I do aim to complete five of the reading ones. So without further ado, here is my 2014 BookTubeAThon TBR!

1. Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carol (Alice in Wonderland #2)

I read Alice in Wonderland earlier this year, and have been meaning to get through the second instalment for a while. I have the Vintage Classics bind-up edition and I'm excited to finally cross this book off the list and move it off my TBR shelf/section/pile. This book covers two challenges, the first one being read a book with pictures in it - my edition has really intriguing black and white illustrations in it. The second challenge this book completes is to read a book and watch it's associated movie, in which I will probably be watching both the animated version and the more recent version because I love them both.

2. Unwind by Neil Shusterman (Unwind #1)
I bought this book at the end of 2013 because I saw a short film of one of its scenes on YouTube. I loved the video and I found it extremely interesting, so I decided to buy the book, and it's been sitting on my shelf ever since. This book covers challenge number three: read a book with red on the cover. I've heard really good things about this book so I'm excited to finally get around to it.

3. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
I am a huge fan of classic dystopians - The Clockwork Orange, Nineteen Eighty-Four and Animal Farm are some of my all-time favourite novels. I picked up Brave New World last year because I knew that I would love it, but I just haven't gotten around to reading it yet. This one covers the fourth challenge: read a book someone else picked out for you. A few books ago, I asked my boyfriend to picked which book to read next and he chose this one because he really liked it. I didn't feel like reading it at the time though so I'm going to read it now.

4. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
I have never read a Sherlock book, or any of the short stories. I did see one of the recent movies and I loved it, so I recently bought this compilation of short stories and I've been super keen to dive into it. This book completes the challenge of reading a book of the genre that you've read the least this year. I don't think I've read any mystery novels, or any short story bind-ups at all in 2014, so this book is the perfect choice.

There are two more challenges in the list: start and finish a series and read seven books/average 300 pages a day. I don't own any complete series at the moment and I don't think that I'll get seven books read in seven days so I'm not setting any goals to complete these two.

I'm super excited to read these books over the next week! If you're participating in the BookTubeAThon, I'f love to here how you're going, so visit my Contact Me page to get in touch. I would strongly recommend trying to read as much as you can next week, even if you don't want to participate fully. The BookTubeAThon is all about uniting people through literature, which is a fantastic cause and one I'm privileged to be a part of. Good luck!

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