My Blogging Journey is Changing ( Update)

Hello everyone!

So its been a crazy year and few months, and along the way I somehow decided to take a break from blogging. I made this decision because I found that I was not enjoying reading like I used to. It felt too much like a task, with deadlines and always giving the most awesome review. Its no ones fault but mine, I just needed to take a step back and re-ignite my love for it.

I started posting intermittently but I just could not get my rhythm back.  And now I think I want to start reading properly again but I think this is the end of my journey for this blog.

I want to focus more on the book community on Goodreads and Bookstagram (Instagram)

The blog will still be live and I might use it now and again but all my reviews will not be hosted on Goodreads.

If you still would like me to review your book (This is for authors) I am still happy to although the review will be primarily on Goodreads and other 3rd party sites you may want it to be posted to.

Its been a pleasure although this is not a goodbye just a slight change to my journey.

Follow me on Goodreads  , Instagram and Twitter

               

 

 

The Plus One by Sophie Money-Coutts

Publication date : 9th Aug 2018
Genre: Womens Fiction
Rating:★★★.5

About the book

Three little words all single ladies dread…
Polly Spencer is fine. She’s single, turning thirty and only managed to have sex twice last year (both times with a Swedish banker called Fred), but seriously, she’s fine. Even if she’s still stuck at Posh! magazine writing about royal babies and the chances of finding a plus one to her best friend’s summer wedding are looking worryingly slim.

But it’s a New Year, a new leaf and all that. Polly’s determined that over the next 365 days she’ll remember to shave her legs, drink less wine and generally get her s**t together. Her latest piece is on the infamous Jasper, Marquess of Milton, undoubtedly neither a plus one nor ‘the one’. She’s heard the stories, there’s no way she’ll succumb to his charms…

The Review

I was very curious about this book… why? Its summer and this time of year calls for a fun light-hearted read to lift your mood.
Also, I am a huge Bridget Jones fan and thought this was right up my street.
So Polly is 30, single and apart from writing great articles about celebrity babies and pets for her job at Posh! magazine, she can’t seem to hold down a decent relationship. Her best friend is engaged and while she doesn’t have a plus one for the wedding she is determined to get her life on track and accomplish everything she has been dreaming of.

What did I think? So…. this book…. It was actually an enjoyable read. The story although quite predictable didn’t quite get executed in a way that I loved, but all the same it was fun from start to finish. Let’s talk about the characters first.
Polly, while I liked her I found her quite frustrating but then again that’s what makes her quite personable. The conversations she has with herself are so relatable (not about the sex though) and watch out for lots and lots of wine… Bill, he was not my favourite character, hugely annoying and very whiney. I actually ignored him throughout the story. I think I wanted a bit more depth from him that made me want to get to know him. But he is that best friend who is the voice of reason that you just don’t want to listen to at the best of times. Lex, that loud annoying friend that tells you the truth no matter what. I really enjoyed their friendship and the realness that they share. Their bonding moments made me miss my besties. Friends like that are rare to come by.
Lala, I really did not like her…. need I say more. Read it and you will understand why. Susan (Polly’ mum) I really loved her, she was such a warm character. Finally Jasper – playboy, Marquess, millionaire….. I actually liked him. He sounded so dreamy and perfect (but we all know that’s too good to be true). There really wasn’t much more about him.
There were parts of the story that were seriously cringey in that ‘how the hell could that happen’ kind of way. To quote someone else ‘This book doesn’t take itself seriously’ it was an emotional rollercoaster. From crazy cringe moments to sad moments and silly funny moments. Overall it is really a fun read and I would recommend it to fans who just want to have a good laugh.

Midnight (The Romany Outcasts #3) by Christi J Whitney

Midnight by Christi J Whitney
(The Romany Outcasts #3)
Publication date: May 25th 2017
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Rating:★★★★★

About the book

Sebastian Grey’s sole purpose is to be a guardian for secretive gypsy clans and to protect the girl he loves, Josephine Romany. But what happens when your guardian is the one in trouble?
When Kari Corsi is found dead in his trailer, all evidence points to him being killed by a shadow creature. This is a threat to the entire clan: frightened, rumours begin to spread among them, and Sebastian becomes the main suspect.
Josephine must risk everything to find the inner strength to save Sebastian and uncover the true killer. Then, and only then, can they be together? Can they prove that love is stronger than stone?

The Review

My very first review of the year and I am so glad that I started off with this series which I have been wishing to conclude for a while now.
So let’s start from where we left off, if you haven’t read the previous books then please stop right now….. spoiler alert!
Karl Corsi is dead, Augustine has reappeared with a sinister plan, Sebastian is in a cage being transported to goodness knows where and Josephine is caught between saving her guardian and her duty to her clan.

What did I think?
This book has by far one of the best in the series as it was charged with a lot of raw emotion and action. Sebastian’s strength is showcased in such a cool way that even I was willing him to keep going despite the odds.
Favorite characters in this book 3 were Ezzie, she was just a boss with how she was kicking butt and yes you guessed it! Hugo. Big burly tattooed gypsy that is not afraid of anything.
Characters I was irritated with were Katie…. need I say more. At some moments I wanted to scream, I was wishing she would die so I don’t have to deal with her non-stop talking.
The pace of the book was just right and also some unexpected and surprising twists and turns that had me flipping pages even faster to get to the end. I finished this book at 2am because I couldn’t sleep without finding out the end. Josephine was the only character that I kinda loved and hated at the same time. I wanted her to be more ballsy especially when it came to Quentin and the things he said and did.

Anyway such a fantastic series, I hope to read more from this author in the near future, if you love dragons and mythical creature then this is one for you.

Blog Tour Stop: The Chosen Knights by Mary Ting

The Chosen Knights by Mary Ting
(The Angel Knights #1)
Publication date: March 19th 2016
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult

About the book

When teens go missing in Hawaii, a group of demon-hunters—half human and half angel—disguised as high school students, must leave Crossroads, the place where they reside. In a race against time, they uncover the mystery connecting the missing teens, which dates back to the era of the Knights Templar. However, when they discover one of the Templars passed down a book containing all the secrets and codes to finding a particular treasure, they soon realize this forbidden treasure needs to be found before Cyrus, the lord of the possessor demons, acquires it—a treasure which been safeguarded and hidden from him.

There is only one problem: the pages containing the clues leading to the treasure is missing. When the first page is found, Cyrus threatens to kill more descendants of the Knights Templar if it is not given to him by Friday the thirteenth. In the midst of threats and discovery, the demon-hunting angels find they are not alone when supernatural beings begin to reveal themselves. Can they put their differences aside and work together to solve the Knights Templars’ cipher? As they astral travel to the past, they witness a lot more than they have bargained for. And some things are better left unseen.

Buy it here

Amazon

Excerpt

Eli willed his sword away. It disappeared behind his back, just the way I would have done it. “You know nothing. Nothing about me is human. I won’t be a part of something that could kill any one of you.”

“How could it kill us if—?” Then I had a thought, recalling the first time I’d seen him in the cafeteria. I had no evidence but it was worth the shot. “You can astral travel, can’t you? You’ve done it before, when you first saw me in the cafeteria. You can travel in the present too. That’s why you took off.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. Do you even know what that is?” His jaw clenched.

I knew he was lying. “Out-of-body experience.” I followed behind him when he started walking away.

“You have no idea of the consequences when you travel. Astral travel.”

“Then let it be my consequence.”

Eli whipped around. His face was just a breath away from mine. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Then show me.”

Eli pierced his eyes into mine. His heart drummed a mile a minute. “You want to feel pain, Lucia? You want to know what happens to people when they astral travel?”

“I-I—” I didn’t know what to say. I certainly didn’t expect him to say the things he did.

Eli extended his arm to me. “Take my hand.”

“No.”

“Take my hand, Lucia.” His tone was stern.

I shook my head.

“Last warning.”

“Last warning for—ELI.” I screamed. My stomach dropped, along with my body. Eli’s arms embraced me as we plunged through multiple layers of clouds with my back facing down. Hair whipped my face and the force of gravity made me dizzy.

“You didn’t heed my warning, Lucia,” Eli grumbled.

“So you’re trying to kill me?” The normal reaction for someone in this situation would be to fight back, but my instincts told me I wasn’t in danger. “What are you doing?” The clouds got smaller as we plummeted faster by the second. I began to have second thoughts. Wanting to believe so badly I could get through to him, I’d let it possibly cost my life.

He ignored my plea. Looking squarely in my eyes as air rushed against us, he said nonchalantly, “Get ready to die.”

 

About the author

International Bestselling Author Mary Ting/M. Clarke resides in Southern California with her husband and two children. She enjoys oil painting and making jewelry. Writing her first novel, Crossroads Saga, happened by chance. It was a way to grieve the death of her beloved grandmother, and inspired by a dream she once had as a young girl. When she started reading new adult novels, she fell in love with the genre. It was the reason she had to write one-Something Great. Why the pen name, M Clarke? She tours with Magic Johnson Foundation to promote literacy and her children’s chapter book-No Bullies Allowed.

 

Author links

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Blog Tour organised by

Book review: Moonbreeze (The Dragonian series #4) by Adrienne Woods

Moonbreeze (The Dragonian Series #4) by Adrienne Woods

Publication date: 15th October 2015

Rating:★★★☆☆

Synopsis

The life or a star-studded royal has not been kind to eighteen-year-old Elena Watkins. With a Council breathing down her neck and a dragon that refuses to accept her as his rider, she must convince everyone that she is ready to rule Paegeia like her parents before her. But she has made a promise to her father, King Albert, that she will not go looking for him and free the people of Etan. Elena has promised to never truly fulfill her destiny.

However, situations out of her control will soon force her to confront herself and the evil that seeks to destroy her. Elena must look inside of herself to discover if she can defeat the approaching darkness, be accepted by the people of Paegeia, bring her dragon back to light and fulfill the destiny written in their stars.

The Review

First off let me start by saying that this is book 4 and there is still soo much in the story to cover. I honestly thought this would be the last book in the series but boy was I wrong.
So let us get into it! Elena has claimed the Rubicon but where the heck is Blake? no one seems to know exactly. The one time he makes an appearance is because he can’t seem to handle Elena’s feelings through their “connection”.
Elena’s true identity has been discovered and she is slowly learning that being the princess is really hard especially when the decisions you make have terrible consequences. One night when she is ready to give it all up some events happen that will force Elena to decide on what kind of future she wants for the people of Paegeia.

What did I Like? Well, I had mixed feelings for this particular book. I have been hooked on this series from the first book so I was racing through this.
The author included a whole lot of fillers in this book which made it seem pretty long and frustrating at some moments.
The one thing I didn’t really like that the author did was how Elena is treated in part of the book. To me it was highly unnecessary, I mean this is a YA book for crying out loud. I don’t actually see how this made the story even better.

I was so upset after reading it. That being said, the rest of the book was ok. I think Blake was the star in this particular book, I know he was annoying in other books but he was just amazing to Elena, I was swooning every time he had something to say.
I won’t lie, I skim read a lot of the book because Elena started to annoy me that I just wanted to smack her or something.
I enjoyed seeing Blake and Elena’s relationship grow, I don’t even understand why Becky and George featured so much at some point I was ready to give up the story.
This book is setting up for the epic finale which I honestly can’t wait to read. Watch this space for even more action when I finally finish book 6!

#BTT – Am I posting too often?

When you start blogging, there is the urge to just go crazy with all your posts

.

I don’t know about you all but when I started off, a blogger friend of mine said to make sure you have enough content for the first 4 or 5 posts to give yourself more time to write new posts as you go along. This will also allow you to see how your audience is reacting to your initial posts.
I did have enough for my first 10 posts, and I was tempted to post them all in one day…..

But I had to take a step back and view things from a reader’s mindset. What I mean is, you are eager to get your blog moving and also start building your audience and give them something good to read, but there is a danger of posting way too often that can also turn off your readers.

I used to put posts up every 2 days, this I felt gave my readers enough time to read my post/ review digest it and then move onto the next one. I made sure not to do more than one post a day no matter how much I wanted to because let’s be honest with ourselves, your readers probably get over 30 emails a day, chances are that they will only read one of your emails, so why not just make it count with one really good post with great content.

I know I fell off that waggon and went back to posting every other day and almost everyday of the week which I have now concluded is pointless and unachievable for me as I have so many other things to do in a day.
As a blogger, I follow lots of fellow bloggers and I will confess,I delete a ton of emails every other day.

This is because I really don’t have the time to read 5 posts daily from each blog I follow ( I follow over 40 other blogs, I’ll be stuck all day). besides I like to take time to read what other bloggers post because I know they soent time and effort to put that content together, so I want to appreciate it. The easiest way for me to do this is I look at the subject of the post and decide which one I can take my time to digest, read, enjoy and also comment. I always love commenting.

If you find your audience is unsubscribing from your emails/posts then its worth taking a step back and finding out why.  Also here are some things you might want to consider,

– Think about doing a posting schedule to better manage your posts and the timing of them as well.
– Pay attention to your blog stats to find the best time of day & day of the week to put your posts live.
– Test you post frequency by posting once every day vs posting once every 2-3 days and see if your posts perform much better.

Hope this helps and as I mentioned previously drop me a note about any other tips/ questions you might have.

Book review: Awakening (Lost Legacy #1) by C.E Dimond

Awakening (Lost Legacy #1) by C.E Dimond

Publication date: 9th July 2015
Rating: ★★★★☆

Synopsis

Finn Adams thought she knew what her life had in store for her; a mundane existence of day to day life. The arrival of a stranger in town turns her world upside down. When her mother goes missing, Finn soon discovers that she is a witch and she is being hunted for her power. Ripped from the only life she’s ever known, Finn is transported across the country to Broadhaven, Maine to discover the secrets she never knew about herself, her heritage, and the tremendous power that’s been kept from her for so long. Her loyalties are tested when she learns of her true parentage and discovers she is part of a prophecy, destined to awaken an ancient power that has been lost for centuries. As she struggles to learn from her mother’s past, she is faced with the ultimate struggle of good and evil, family or friends, she must learn who she can trust and find the power within herself to stop the prophecy from coming true.

The Review

Apologies to the author regarding the delayed review

Witches, Warlocks, magic and a formidable villain, what more do you need from an awesome fantasy story?
The story centers around Fionnuala or Finn. She has just turned 16 and lives with her mom. Life of a teenager seems pretty mundane for her as it seems she just has 2 friends and is a bit of a social outcast.
Everything is normal until she meets Eamon, the new kid. He doesn’t seem friendly but also for some reason she seems drawn to him. Soon everything seems to be falling apart, her mom is missing and someone is after her plus she just found out she is a witch. In search of answers, she follows Eamon to Maine where her family coven lives and soon Finn makes some shocking discoveries about who she is and if she can truly trust the people around her.

What did I think? I absolutely loved reading this book! No word of a lie, I was pretty sad when it finished and now I need to get my hands on book 2 to find out what happens.
The plot is pretty solid, with bits of new revelations here and there and there was one piece of info I kind of thought of that I would like to confirm in the next book.
I liked the characters although a lot of them came across pretty insensitive towards Finn, which is understandable due to the volume of testosterone in the coven.
I thought Eamon was cute with his macho exterior, but we know he is like a marshmallow on the inside. I am not a fan of keeping information from the rightful owners so I was pretty upset with the way they were drip feeding Finn information about her heritage.
Also, I found Finn a bit frustrating, then again what more do you get from a 16-year-old. I do like that she can stand her ground, though.
Carmac sounds like a villain I would like, all the other characters in the story just seemed like background noise. It might have been better if they weren’t there.
Overall it was a great fun read, I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

 

Manga Monday: Koko Debut by Kazune Kawahara

I know its been a while since I posted anything. So here it goes !!!

 

Koko Debut by Kazune Kawahara

Rating :★★★★★

When Haruna Nagashima was in junior high her life consisted of playing softball and reading comics. But now that she’s going to high school, Haruna decides to put all of her energy towards getting a boyfriend and having the high school romance of a lifetime. To help in her quest, she enlists cute upperclassman Yoh Komiyama to coach her as she eschews her jock tendencies and turns herself into the kind of girl who can catch a guy. Yoh agrees, with one catch: Haruna had better not fall for him!

 

 

The Review

I usually find some of the high school shojo manga annoying but I surprisingly enjoyed this one. I mostly think it was Haruna-san that made it fun.
Haruna in the past played softball and was more of a tomboy but now in high school she is determined to be more girly, have a boyfriend and some romance, you know! the usual. But everything she is trying is just not working out until she stumbles in front of Yoh who she thinks is so cool and then she does the unthinkable and asks him to be her coach. Then starts the fun of this really sweet story.

What did I think? I really loved this story. I enjoyed the pace of the story, although there were bits in the story that I didn’t think was needed. Haruna was just fun to read, her innocence was just so cute but also a bit annoying. I didn’t really like Yoh’s sister she was a bit too self-centered then again a lot of people I know are like that. I didn’t like that she (Yoh’s sister) took advantage of her innocence in some situations, but I also like that Haruna never took any of it to heart. I like watching how Haruna grows through the story and also how the different relationships and romance blossoms throughout the story.
It was a fun and entertaining story and compared to some other Shoujo this one was relatively short and sweet.

 

#BTT: Is my blog mobile responsive?

Hi Everyone, its  been a long hard slog to get back into blogging but I am back with a blogging tip for you this week

Let me start off by saying that when I started blogging I already had a bit of knowledge about websites and emails because of my day job, but I also realised that there are a ton of people out there that when they start blogging they just know the basics of setting up a blog and not all the other bells and whistles that go with it.

Smart phones & tablets are becoming more and more popular and not just that, they have become the extension of your arm and the must have tool for your everyday life.
I don’t like how much I rely on this my smart phone but I do like having the convenience of it. Bearing this in mind, when you are starting your blog or if you have a blog already make sure it is mobile responsive.

What does that mean? This simply means, it’s easy for people on the go to access and read your blog just like they would on their desktop computer.
It might sound like something hard to do but its really easy to do this.
Wordpress is pretty cool that within the settings for your blog you can just select the option to make it happen.
This option can be found ‘Appearance’ option. Just select Mobile and the option to enable your mobile theme can be selected. There are options to also view what it will look like although these are just general views and may not represent all the devices readers are using.
Another way for you to view a mobile version of your blog:
Go to http://quirktools.com/screenfly/

Pop in your blog URL bippity boppity boo!
It allows you to see your blog in a huge range of devices, and the best part is, it’s FREE to use!!!

If you are happy with what you see then all systems are go.

Did this help? Please leave a comment or if you have any blogging questions I can help with.

 

Book review: Editing Emma by Chloe Seager

Editing Emma by Chloe Seager

Publication date: August 10th 2017

Rating:★★★★☆

About the book

When sixteen-year-old Emma Nash is ‘ghosted’ by the love of her life Leon Naylor, she does what any normal teenage girl would do…Emma spends the summer lurking in her bedroom, avoiding all human contact (and the shower), surrounded by the collection of chewit wrappers she saved from packs Leon gave her, back when he actually acknowledged her existence…

The Review

After being in a reading slump for ages, I honestly never imagined a book like this would get me back into reading.

This is not a book I would normally read but after checking the synopsis I thought why not. Trust me I wasn’t disappointed.

The story is about 16 year old  Emma, she has just been dumped by the love of her life and here begins her process of dealing with it. From dating random guys to bad advice from friends, Emma is determined to get over Leon Naylor and move on to a better life. Do you think she can? or will she somehow find her way back in Leon’s life?

What did I like?

Where shall I start? Let me just say that this book is probably not for everyone, for me this book brought back memories of high school and how funny some of the things you did were. This felt like a teenage Bridget Jones to me, and of course that made it even more fun.

The book made me laugh so much and at times I was sad because I really wanted more for Emma, it also made me angry purely because now I’m older I know better and it made me disgusted….. uhm you have to read the book to work that one out.

My favourite characters were her best friend Steph because she was just rebellious and we all had or have a Steph in our lives. I also liked Faith because she kept it real all the time when she had to give her opinion. I had a bit of a love/hate relationship with the lead character- Emma, maybe because I always felt that she should know better or maybe because I saw a little bit of my 16 year old self in her.

I really enjoyed the pace of the book, even though I thought it was a weird way to blog but as a personal blog you can write it any way that suits you. The author openly writes about sex and the sexuality of the characters which made it quite realistic. These are the thoughts and pressures of the average 16year old, it’s not always roses and unicorns. Also the way technology has consumed our lives, I mean i could relate with a lot of what was in this book.

It had a nice realistic ending and also the growth of the main character made me smile while I turned the last page of the book with satisfaction. I really recommend this book to people out there but as I said, you either love it or you don’t! But I 100% loved it.