Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Authors That I'd Put On My Auto-Buy List

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week, we'll make a list of our top ten something and this week, it's the Top Ten Authors I'd Put On My Auto-Buy List. Auto-Buy basically means that because we love this author so much, their next book is something we'll just automatically buy, no questions asked. 
1. J.K Rowling
Loved Harry Potter so much that I think I'd buy just about anything else she ever writes...
2. Richelle Mead
Her Vampire Academy series is amazing! She definitely makes this list!
3. Hannah Harrington
Saving June and Speechless were such amazing books, I honestly can't wait to read what comes next from this author.
4. Roald Dahl
Okay, I know he's not alive anymore, but if he was and he wrote another book, I would buy it straight out. I loved his books when I was younger, and I still do! So even if it was aimed at children, I would read it. I have no shame. Seriously.
5. Lauren Kate
Her Fallen series was great and I would read more of her work. A lot more.
6. Becca Fitzpatrick
I love the Hush, Hush series and if I were in a bookshop and saw a cover that had her name on it, it would be on my bookshelf by the end of the day. 
7. Stephanie Meyer
I know we're all a bit drained because of the Twilight series, but I still love Meyer's work. I'd read more of her books.
8. Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games series were incredible books and anything else she writes, I'd buy as soon as it hits the stores.
9. Alexandra Adornetto
In case you haven't heard of her, she's the author of Halo, Hades and Heaven, an amazing trilogy. I am still yet to read Heaven, but I loved the other two books so much and she's an incredible author.
10. Maggie Stiefvater
Shiver, Linger and Forever are published thanks to her and I loved that series. I actually have auto-bought a few of her books in the past after reading that series, so I don't think that's going to change any time soon.
That's all for this week guys, hope you've enjoyed my list! :)   

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Just an update...

Hey guys! How are we all?
So, I know I haven't been reviewing anything for the past few weeks and I really miss writing reviews for you guys. I haven't needed to review any books because I have been reading the entire Hush, Hush series by Becca Fitzpatrick. I thought I would have finished them a lot earlier, but with school and everything, I haven't had as much time to read as I normally would. 
I reviewed Hush, Hush, Crescendo and Silence last year (you can check out those reviews by looking through my blog archive) and after recently purchasing Finale, the last book in the series, I thought it was best for me to re-read the entire series again to refresh my memory. 
Well, I'm finally up to Finale and the review should be up shortly.
Another purchase I made recently was The Indigo Spell Richelle Mead. I am so excited to read this book, I can't even begin to explain to you guys.
I'm also thinking of reading and reviewing all of the Vampire Academy series again, I haven't reviewed those yet, but I've read them before. Would you like to see reviews on those books? Let me know via the comments section below, or my email booknerdandcritic@hotmail.com, and I'll see what I can do.
That's all for today guys, enjoy your week and look out for my Top Ten Tuesday and my review on Finale which hopefully should be up either by the end of this week or next. :)

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Favourite Characters in YA Fiction

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week, we'll make a list of our top ten something and this week, it's our Top Ten Favourite Characters in X Genre. Put simply, the X means that we get choose our own genre and create our list based on that. For this list, I've chosen YA Fiction as my genre, since I read a lot of books from this genre. Enjoy!
1. Adrian Ivashkov- Vampire Academy series
Adrian is quite possibly the character I enjoyed the most when reading this series. He's on a few other of my top ten lists too. He's just so funny! I find his character really amusing and attractive, and I just can't get enough of him. Adrian first appears in Frostbite and becomes one of the most loved characters from then on.
2. Patch Cipriano- Hush, Hush series
I'm reading this series again right now, which is why I haven't been posting any reviews lately (my review on Finale should be up within the next few weeks, just FYI) and Patch is great. He has a similar personality to Adrian actually, he's funny, attractive beyond belief and falls for a girl who he knows he could never have a real relationship with. 
3. Harry Potter- Harry Potter series
I'm not sure if these books fall under the category of YA Fiction (I'm pretty sure they do) but I had to include HP in this list. Harry has amazing qualities that have earned him a place on this list. He's courageous, funny, loveable and one of the most iconic characters ever to be written. 
4. Katniss Everdeen- The Hunger Games series
If you haven't heard of Katniss, where have you been the past year? She is one of my favourite literary heroines and I loved reading about her in this series.
5. Chelsea Knot- Speechless
I recently reviewed this book, if you haven't read it I suggest you do. After revealing something that almost gets a person killed, Chelsea promises to keep her mouth shut by taking a religious vow of silence. She challenges herself to never speak and word again and keeps this up for about a month until she finally breaks her vow to stand up for someone. She represents change, courage and dedication, which is why she's listed here.

That's all for this Tuesday! Look out for my post next week!  

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Favourite Romances

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week, we'll make a list of our top ten something and this week, it's our Top Ten Favourite Romances. 
1. Rose Hathaway & Adrian Ivashkov
As soon as Adrian meets Rose in Frostbite, he has his sights set on her. Though he can be quite cocky and suggestive, he has a certain charm that Rose can't help but feel attracted to. She avoids him through the series until Spirit Bound, where she eventually agrees to date him. Adrian acts like he is all carefree and easy, but everybody knows he loves Rose more than anything, which is proven when she breaks his heart to be with Dimitri. 
2. Romeo & Juliet
This one is kind of obvious and is on most TTT lists today, I'm sure. Romeo and Juliet is one of the most well-known and iconic love stories ever to be written. Their love for each other is absolute and the two even end up dying for each other.
3. Bella Swan & Jacob Black
Though they're not the main love story of the series, Jacob really does love Bella and tries to win her over in ways that don't always turn out in his favour. For example, in Eclipse, Jacob forces himself on Bella in a kiss that she doesn't want and this doesn't earn him any points with her or Edward, for that matter.
4. Patch & Nora
From the Hush, Hush series, this is an incredible love story that spans over 4 books, and hopefully there will be movies soon. Patch is a fallen angel whose first intention is to sacrifice Nora so that he can become human and experience human feelings and sensations. Instead, he falls in love with her and makes a different call, giving up his only opportunity to become human.
5. Grace & Sam
Of the Shiver trilogy, Grace and Sam are an epic story of love and sacrifice. Sam is a werewolf that can only be human during the summer months and Grace is a human that was attacked by wolves when she was a little girl. Sam will give anything to be human and be with Grace all the time, even if it means risking his life.
6. Ron Weasley & Hermione Granger
This is a great one, I think. Ron and Hermione start out hating each other at the start of the series, but eventually begin to develop feelings for each other and act on them.
7. Lucinda Price & Daniel Grigori
In the Fallen series, Luce and Daniel have a love story that trumps all others. Their love spans over centuries, with Luce being reincarnated as a different person every lifetime. You'll have to read the books to understand it fully, but their love transcends all boundaries. Literally.
8. Katniss Everdeen & Peeta Mellark
Does this even require an explanation?
9. Lucas & Bianca
Of the Evernight series, Lucas is a vampire hunter and Bianca is a vampire. They fall in love, despite their differences and Lucas vows to love her forever despite everything he has grown up believing. This causes a lot of confusion for him, but his love for Bianca is inevitable and he would do anything for her, even when they fight, even with the presence of a love triangle, he loves her through it all, and vice versa.
10. John & Sarah
The main love story in I Am Number Four, John is from another planet on the run from a different alien species that plans to hunt and destroy him and all the others left of his kind. He has to move from town to town, never staying in one place too long and he cannot have connections with humans. When he falls for Sarah in Paradise, Ohio, he risks everything to be with her. What's even more romantic is that with his species, they only fall for one person in their entire life, and John knows Sarah is that girl.      

Monday, February 11, 2013

Third Nomination for the Liebster Award!

Thanks so much to Jackie from No Bent Spines for giving me my third nomination for this award. Exciting stuff, guys!
Here are the rules for participating in the Liebster Award:
- Thank the blogger that nominated you for the award.
- List 11 things about yourself, answer the 11 questions from your nominator and then create 11 questions to give to your nominees
- Select 11 nominees whose blogs have less than 200 followers, whom you think deserve attention from other bloggers and get in contact with them to let them know they've received a nomination from you.
In my first Liebster Award post, Nominated for a Liebster Award?!, I listed the 11 things about myself, created my 11 questions and selected my nominees, so in this post, I'll answer Jackie's questions.
Questions from Jackie:
1. If you could live in any book, what would it be?
This is a great question, but a little difficult to answer because there are so many options. I'd go with Harry Potter. No explanation required, it's just awesome.
2. Top 5 cheap book stores.
The Book Depository (website), QBD, Borders, Collins Booksellers and hmmm... I think that's it, I only have four!
3. Idea of a perfect date and with which of your book boyfriends?
This is so hard! Adrian Ivashkov of the Vampire Academy series. He's hot and witty and all around great. Yeah, I'll go with him, we'd have fun.
4. What kind or person would you be in a book?
I think I'd be a best friend. I love helping my friends and giving advice in the real world, so I think I'd make a pretty good best friend character in a book.
5. Dream job?
Pediatrician. A doctor that works with children. That would be so cool. 
6. Book you're really looking forward to that isn't published yet?
The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead. It comes out in a few days and I can't wait! I'm loving the series.
7. How many books have you checked out of the library at one time?
About 4. Yeah, that sounds about right.
8. Top 3 authors and what books put them in your top 3?
J.K Rowling, for her incredible genius mind, Richelle Mead for her amazing Vampire Academy series and Hannah Harrington, I love her works, she's an amazing author who uses her talent to write about real life things and situations.
9. Paper or plastic?
Paper. What does this question mean?
10. Paper or Ereader? 
Paper. I prefer books that I can hold and smell and turn the pages. It's a more real experience for me.
11. #1 book boyfriend and why? Give us a quote! 
Patch of the Hush, Hush series. He's a bit weird and scary in the first book but he grows on you. He's funny, protective (in the best ways), loves Nora to bits and is hot. 
"You're mine Angel." 
Thanks for these great questions Jackie, this was fun!

Tuesday, February 05, 2013

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Bookish Memories

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week, we'll make a list of our top ten something and this week, it's our Top Ten Bookish Memories.
1. Seeing The Hunger Games at a midnight screening when it was released.
The Hunger Games is the best movie out there and I was lucky enough to get to see it at a midnight session, before the rest of the world. It was incredible, and being such a huge fan of the book, I was so excited and I had a blast.
2. Reading The Hunger Games books for the first time.
Getting to read these books was amazing, because they are just excellent. They made me cry, laugh and feel things no books have ever made me feel in such a long time. Since reading The Hunger Games for the first time a few years back, I have not read a book since that has made me feel the way I did when reading that series. 
3. Starting this blog.
Deciding to make Book Nerd & Critic was one of the best decisions of my life and I wouldn't give it up for the world. I had no idea how huge the book blogging community was and getting to write about books for people who love them as much as I do is amazing. I have met so many wonderful people since starting this blog and I love it.
4. Getting my friends and family hooked on to books I love.
It's great when you discover a book or series that you love and you become completely obsessed with it, but it's even better when you get to share it with the people you love. I have managed to get people reading and loving The Hunger Games (which to their surprise, is not a book about hungry people playing games) and Vampire Academy. Getting to talk about series like these with other people is so much fun and I've had a lot of great discussions with them.
5. Reading the Vampire Academy series for the first time.
This was such a fun experience for me. I read these books over summer one year and they rendered me completely comatose. I would sit in my room all day and all night reading and I just could not get enough. I love these books, despite the fact that they turned me into a hermit for a time.
6. Listening to my sister talk to me about the book she is currently reading.
 My sister doesn't read a lot, in fact, she hardly ever reads. Though this confuses me, I am always trying to get her hooked onto a good book or series that I know she will like, but she refuses to read anything even remotely thick. So when she does read a book from time to time, I love chatting with her about it and hearing her thoughts.
7. Reading the Twilight series for the first time.
I know we're all over it now, but these were the books that introduced me to YA Fiction. They got recommended to me before they got huge, and I read and loved them. Sure enough, before long, everyone I knew had read or was reading them. For a while, I became a little obsessed, I'll admit, but eventually got over it when they became too mainstream. I was just tired of hearing about it all the time.
8. Harry Potter, of course.
Watching the movies was awesome, but reading the books was even better. I finished all 7 over the course of a month or two and have loved them since. This series shaped my childhood! Nowadays, we see all these young kids playing X-Box and Nintendo and texting on their iPhones and this is how they will remember being young, but our childhood was Harry Potter.
9. Meeting Christopher Milne as a kid.
Christopher Milne is the author of Naughty Stories for Good Boys and Girls. I grew up reading these books in primary school and everyone loved them. Then one day, my school arranged for him to visit us and chat to us about his books. He was one of the first authors I ever met, so it's something you don't forget. I remember begging my parents to give me $50 so that I could purchase the set of books he was offering and signing for us. They caved, eventually.
10. The anticipation of waiting for a new book in a series you're reading.
You know that nervous, excited feeling you get once you buy a book that's next in the series you love and you just can't wait to go home and read it? This has happened to me so many times, I've lost count, with Vampire Academy, Harry Potter, Hush, Hush, Matched, I Am Number Four, Twilight, Fallen... I could go on. Counting down until the release of a book you really need (note how I say need, instead of want) and then finding out that it's hit the stores, going there as soon as possible and holding it in your hands, grinning like an idiot. 
It's seriously the best feeling ever. 

Well, that's it for this Tuesday, I hope you've enjoyed my list!