This is a wonderful selection of very short but meaningful poems. I could relate with this in so many ways and I absolutely adored the 'You' section at the end. I also loved how the poems all weaved together and could be followed as a story. Such empowering messages in such a short space.

For such a short book Of Mice and Men certainly covers a lot and that ending left me beside myself! No words I could write will do this book the justice it deserves but I am glad that I finally read it. Great.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5!

This book unexpectedly blew me away. I went into this completely unaware of what it would be about. A group of us decided to read it together via Twitter and so my journey with Fliss and Margot began. Little did I know just how emotionally attached I would become to this wonderful story.

Margot & Me tells the story of Fliss, a teenage girl who is relocating to a farm in Wales with her sick mother to live with her grandmother, Margot. Margot is not your average grandmother: she is not the cuddling type, but is a cold and stern older woman. As Fliss struggles to adapt to a very different lifestyle in Wales she comes across Margot’s diary from her time in the war. This sparks the beginning of an extraordinary journey for Fliss as she discovers a very different side to her grandmother: a side of Margot that Fliss never expected to find.

When I initially started reading this I was not immediately swept off my feet. I didn’t particularly like Fliss at the beginning and wasn’t sure what I would make of this book. A few chapters in those feelings started to change and as I learned more about Fliss, Margot and the other characters I all of a sudden became lost in their world. For me, this story really picked up once Fliss found Margot’s diary.

My absolute favourite parts of this book were Margot’s diary entries. Set during World War II, I found them so interesting and loved reading about her early life as an evacuee in Wales. There was something very special about those glimpses into Margot’s early life and it is so easy to understand by the end of the book why Margot is the way she is. So much happened to her and at times I was completely and utterly devastated by what I was reading, but it really cemented my love for her as a character.

I also loved seeing Fliss’ journey in her new high school. We start off with her initial anxiety about being the new girl and worrying what the others will make of her. This book touches upon the stereotypical high school bully, those teenage crushes on teachers and more importantly the value of a good friendship. I knew immediately that I would love Danny and could vividly imagine him in my head.

I think it is 100% safe to say that the last 4-5 chapters of this book just repeatedly hurt my heart. Every time I thought to myself, ‘Ok the pain must stop soon’ I found myself taking another hit. I definitely recommend tissues to people reading this book because there were so many different points throughout it where I really felt overwhelmed with raw and pure emotion which is a true testament to Juno Dawson’s incredible writing.

Although initially I wasn’t hugely fond of Fliss, I did grow to really like her as a character. To begin with she seemed a little too stuck up for me and I wasn’t sure I would be able to connect with her. However as she learnt more about her grandmother she changed as a person, or at least came more into contact with her emotions, and I ended up really liking her. She was much more selfless than I initially thought and actually really inspiring.

I thought Margot was a fantastic character and she was by far my favourite. Learning everything we did about her through her diary entries I can do nothing but empathise with Margot and completely understand why she is the way she is. But what lies underneath that cold hard surface is a strong-willed, fiercely passionate and inspiring lady. I would love nothing more than a book all about Margot!

Before I leave this review, I have to mention two things. The first is that as a Welsh person I LOVED that this book was mainly set in Wales. I also quite enjoyed the way in which Juno Dawson crammed in just about every Welsh stereotype you could think of. From a whole plethora of Welsh names (Megan, Bronwyn, Dewi, Rhiannon), the use of Welsh language (‘Bore da’, cwtch, tampin’) and the typical Welsh stereotypes of sheep and male voice choirs, the whole thing just kept me thoroughly entertained and I couldn’t help but read along with a smile on my face and the occasional laugh out loud moment.

My final point is that this book is INCREDIBLE at how much it deals with. Under no circumstance do I want to spoil anything in this book because I knew very little going in and I think that is one of the reasons I loved it, but I want to say a huge thank you to Juno for doing what she has done here. Highlighting sexuality, racism, grief, love, heartbreak, pregnancy and so many more issues in such a sensitive and suitable manner that were all relevant to the story being told but also gave reason to pause and think. Exceptional writing.

Margot & Me is not a book I was expecting to fall head over heels in love with. I thought I would enjoy it but I had no idea of the profound effect it would have on me. All I can say is that this book certainly makes me realise just how much we have to learn from our elders and I know I certainly would love to know more about my own grandmother during her time in the war. Fabulous.

First of all a big thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and Victoria Aveyard for my advanced copy of the book. What a treat!

If you enjoyed Red Queen then I think it's safe to say you will enjoy this sequel. It is full of action as Mare, Farley, Shade, Cal and Kilorn go in search for newbloods. In their adventure, we get to learn about the numerous skills the newbloods are blessed (or cursed?) with and meet more friends along the way. We learn more about the world of the Silvers, Reds and Newbloods. Maven is as cruel as ever, Elara is still a manipulative and loathsome character and Cal struggles with his feelings for the Silvers and helping Mare. Our lightning girl finds herself a source of inspiration and hope to some, whilst others despise and oppose her very existence in their world.

One of my favourite things about the book is how we see Mare's constant struggle with wanting to do the right thing but also having to do what she feels is necessary. She is far from perfect, in fact, at times I really dislike her, but this only makes me enjoy her character more. Glass Sword has lots of relationships (both romantic and platonic), a fair amount of hope, plenty of battles and some shocking deaths. I was absolutely distraught at the death of one character as I really was not expecting it. I still can't quite believe it now.

BUT THAT ENDING!! I think Victoria Aveyard might be the Queen of cliffhangers. I can't believe I'm going to have to wait so long to find out what happens!

A fast paced and exciting read for fans of Red Queen. I don't think many will be disappointed, although I must admit it was the last 25% of the book which really pulled it out of the bag for me!

The Nightingale is so much more profound and touching than I expected. This is a story of love and loss. This story broke my heart. I think I cried for the last 3-4 chapters whilst I read and by the end of the last chapter I couldn't stop. I have fallen completely in love with this story and with Isabelle and Vianne.

At a first glance, it would be easy to assume that this is your average World War II historical fiction novel. We have a woman who is left to raise her daughter when her husband goes to fight the Germans; we have her sister who falls head over heels in love with a resistance fighter she has just met; the Nazi's are awful; the Jewish people are deported and war threatens to destroy the whole of France. However, this novel is so much more.

It is a beautifully written novel which focuses on the stories of sisters Vianne and Isabelle. These two sisters, who lost their mother and spent years feeling rejected by their war hero father, could not be more different. Vianne is a wife, a mother, a teacher, a believer in hope, somebody who patiently awaits the return of her husband from the war and does not fully understand the impact of the war on France. Isabelle is much younger, but stronger. She seeks the love of her father, she desperately wants to be involved in the war effort against the Germans, she is bold, strong and willing to sacrifice herself for a better France.

We see Vianne struggle to feed herself and her daughter, she struggles to accept the fate of her Jewish best friend and accept the help of a Nazi. Vianne is a fiercely protective mother to her darling Sophie and submits herself to horrific treatment by one of the Nazi's in order to protect her children from harm. Vianne's development throughout the novel is one of my favourite things. She starts out as a young mother who is slightly naive to the world around her, but with the horrors she witnesses we see her become so much more. She is more like Isabelle than even she first thought.

Isabelle's story was my favourite of the two. As much as I adored Vianne, I felt so passionate about Isabelle and her storyline broke my heart. She sacrificed everything to save the fallen pilots, endangering herself and her loved ones along the way. Reading of her experiences

in the concentration camps and at the hands of the Nazi interrogators

at the end of the book totally broke me.

Full of beautiful descriptions and scenery it was easily to visualise the effect the war had on France. Aside from the story of the two sisters, this novel does nothing to hide the devastating impact that the occupation of France by the Nazi's had on the French people, especially the women. Many women were left widowed with children to care for and many of them fell into the arms of Nazi's as a way to protect their children. I can't begin to imagine living in a world where I felt unsafe in my own home because I shared it with the enemy.

I love that this story focused so heavily on the role of women in the war. We all know that historically men claim war to be theirs, but without women so many men wouldn't have survived the war and this is a beautiful nod to those brave, strong women. This is an emotional, moving and beautiful novel about love, loss and hope. This has easily become a favourite and I think it's going to stay with me for quite some time. Wonderful.

My Sister’s Bones tells the story of sisters Kate and Sally. After a childhood full of violence at the hands of their alcoholic father, Kate is now a journalist working all over the world in locations such as Syria and Sally is a stay at home alcoholic. After the death of their mother, Kate returns to Herne Bay but little does she know the mystery that is about to unravel around her…

I liked this book but I did not love it and I don’t think it is a book that I would reread in the future. There are three parts to this book and my feelings shifted only slightly between each part.

Part one is Kate’s story. It shifts back and forth on a timeline and I couldn’t quite get my head around why. What we know at the beginning is that Kate has returned to Herne Bay after the death of her mother and that in the ‘present’ she is being detained and questioned. The whole of part one was quite confusing to me and it felt like not a lot happened. I kept waiting for a huge reveal but I didn’t feel that really arrived here as the bit that was supposed to be her big secret she didn’t want to talk about was easily guessed. That said, I did like Kate as a character and thought she showed a tremendous strength of character.

Part two is all about Sally and it was interesting to see how her memories of childhood varied to the accounts we had already had from Kate. It was during part two that my suspicions about the ending of the book began (I was wrong, however!). Sally was an interesting character but I did prefer Kate to her overall.

The end of part two and then the final part were where things really got interesting and I devoured the last 20 percent(ish) of the book. It was only at the last moment I put the dots together but I did think the ending was slightly random as although we knew there was something weird going on, there wasn’t much of an inclination as to what it would be. I will say that the twist was great though and I loved how much was packed into those parts of the book.

For me this book was about 80% learning about the characters and their backgrounds with 20% of actual thrill and action. There is no denying that Nuala Ellwood is a great writer and there will be plenty of people who adore this book it just wasn’t quite my cup of tea. I liked it enough but just felt that I needed something a bit more from it earlier on in the plot. I like my thrillers to be fast paced but for those who love a slow burn, atmospheric thriller, this will be the book for you.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Books UK for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

I tentatively pre-ordered this book a while ago and once it arrived I decided to jump straight in and read it. I say tentatively because if I’m being real, I didn’t exactly love Glass Sword. It was okay but it certainly didn’t reach my expectations. So understandably I had pretty low expectations for King’s Cage, but my hope was still there. I’m really glad that I continued with this series because I enjoyed King’s Cage way more than Glass Sword.

King’s Cage picks up not long after the end of Glass Sword. Mare is being held captive by Maven and hidden away with the restraint of silent stone placed upon her. With glances back and forth between Mare’s situation and the rest of the Scarlet Guard, the main course of action for this book was whether or not they would be able to rescue Mare. Queue lots of political talk and a fair bit of action and overall this was a great read.

I thought there was a lot more point to this book. I could sense the direction of the plot and was also interested in the political elements. There were certainly some interesting twists in this book and it will be interesting to see where the fourth and final book will take us. This series is a little wordy but Aveyard has certainly built up enough by now for there to be a great conclusion to the series.

I really LOVED that the POVs were from the female characters and it was refreshing to get chapters from the POV of Cameron and Evangeline. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked Evangeline in her chapters too. If I had to pick something that irked me a bit though I just REALLY wanted more from Farley. She is my favourite and although she was there in the book, I just really wanted her to come more to the front.

I need to talk about Mare. I really resented her in the last book, I thought she was cold, selfish and I just could not connect with her. As her circumstances have now changed, we finally see a slightly different side to her. She is much more human and emotional and I was able to start to have some form of connection with her. I’m not sure she will ever be my number one heroine, but she certainly had a lot more integrity in this book and I much prefer the new Mare.

Overall I enjoyed this book and was surprised at how quickly I read it. There are some great characters in this series and I hope we will see more from them (aka Farley) in the final book!

I award this book ALL the stars! What a fantastic end to the trilogy!

This book is absolutely incredible. I don’t know if there is even an adjective that is strong enough to describe how I feel about this book or the entire trilogy to be honest. V. E. Schwab is an absolute genius and my love for her work continues to grow and grow.

A Conjuring of Light picks up where we left off in A Gathering of Shadows, Osaron’s darkness is spreading swiftly across Red London but who or what will stop him?

I really don’t want to describe the plot more than that because I think it is so much better to just jump into this final book. What I will 100% say is that from the very beginning to the very end this book had me on the edge of my seat. There was SO much action and so much happening throughout the book that it was incredibly hard to put down.

My emotions ran INCREDIBLY high during my read of this. V. E. Schwab certainly knows how to toy with her readers’ emotions. One moment I was feeling fierce and channelling my inner Lila Bard, the next I was feeling all swoony and in love, then I was broken hearted and beside myself, mixed in with some anger and a good sprinkling of shock and laughter along the way. The perfect recipe for an emotional rollercoaster.

Schwab completely messed with my head in this book. On so many occasions I was absolutely distraught at what I was reading, only for her to slip in another twist and turn of her knife.

The romance in this book is PERFECTLY written. It does not overwhelm the story in any way whatsoever, but I have waited (not so) patiently for one of my ships to sail and I was fully on board with it in this book. Things certainly got rather saucy at times and I loved every single second of it.

Lila Bard is one of my favourite fictional characters to exist. She is such a flipping badass and I love, love, loved her in this book. She is the true winner of the Shades of Magic trilogy for me. I honestly could read ten thousand books about her and still love her. She terrifies me but also inspires me. I loved seeing her learn more about herself and what she is capable of and that she played such a key role in this whole book.

I also loved being back with Kell, Rhy and Holland – what fabulous beings they are. To be fair, I can’t think of any characters in this book that I don’t feel strongly about, I love every single POV and they are so well woven together.

On the whole I just really loved being back in this world and I’m extremely sad that the trilogy is over. I know for a fact that this trilogy will be a firm favourite of mine and that I will undoubtedly reread it multiple times in years to come. V. E. Schwab, I can only bow down to your brilliance.

Anoshe.