#SundaySeven (17/04/16)

I know it's very late this week, but better late than never right?
There have been some really amazing photos this week, which is partially why it took me so long to get this post up. I've also been doing a lot more school work, which is also why it took so long.
But before I go and watch Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. I better get this post up!

1. 

@mylibrary__

First place this week goes to one of my favourite accounts and someone who tags me in loads of photos, which is brilliant because I love book tags! This photo is quite a simple one, but simple can often mean absolutely stunning. I love the page background, which I'm sure I've mentioned before, but I also love the colour of the photo and that book cover is gorgeous!

2. 

@book_lovers_15

This account hasn't been featured since the first week, but has made a comeback with this lovely photo of The One, a review of which can be found on this blog. I love the setting of this one, with the trees reflected beautifully on the lake. Plus the covers of Cass' books are so pretty too!

3. 

@ash.reads

Ever since starting #SundaySeven, I have been waiting for Ashley to make the top seven. Not only is her account one of my absolute favourites, she is one of the nicest people I have met since joining bookstagram! A review of Throne of Glass is also up on this blog and, although the book disappointed me, this photo certainly doesn't! I just love the colours and that necklace is so pretty. 
4. 

@demmi_writist

Unsurprisingly, here we have Demmi's third feature and many of her other photos made it to this week's shortlist too. All of her photos are just so colourful and eye-catching! Two things really made this one for me. One is the bookmark. I love adult colouring, and I love the idea of colouring bookmarks! The colours chosen are so bright and could lighten up even the most fullest of days. The other thing I love are the book covers; I need to buy those books!

5. 

@thehufflepuffle

I clearly cannot get enough of Lindsay's account. Third week in a row, and she featured last week twice! Her photos are always so beautifully cluttered and so stylishly done. Zodiac has totally made its way onto my TBR now just because of this photo. I really wish I could take photos as amazing as this!

6. 

@sobookinggood

This photo is Tracey's fourth feature, wow! That's more than half the posts! Whenever I even try to go outside, I never get gorgeous photos like this. Maybe I'm just unlucky, but Tracey clearly isn't! I love the way the glare of the sun is in the top of the photo, and I just love the tree that the book is nestled in. It's such a lovely photo; it really makes me want it to be Summer!

7. 

@conireads

What's this? A week without Harry Potter? Wow! Instead I have this lovely photo from one of my new found accounts. I'm such a dog person and, although not a really planned out photo like those above, I will stop and always love any photos featuring your reading buddies! Plus the book cover is pretty intriguing too!

Thankyou for reading, and thanks to all the bookstagram accounts (both those featured, and the countless others I poured through in order to decide on my seven). 

None of these photos are mine, and I have credited the account and notified them that I am using their image. Occasionally, it is known for accounts to repost photos without crediting the original owner. I do not support this. All photos are, to my knowledge, original to the accounts credited. If not, I will happily amend and assist in reporting accounts that are stealing photos. (To the accounts featured: I am not suggesting this applies to you, I am merely covering myself. This paragraph shall feature on all #SundaySeven posts in the rare and unfortunate case problems may occur.)

#SundaySeven (13/03/16)

Here we are at the second Sunday of March, this month really is flying by! There was a point last night where I thought I wouldn't be able to do #SundaySeven this week, as I had a horrific headache. This morning though, I'm just left with a lovely sore throat, but with the help of numerous throat sweets, I have powered on to deliver as promised.
This week featured my most anticipated release of the year, Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare! I've been pretty ill, so I haven't yet finished reading it, but I love it so much! I think I could read shadowhunter books forever.
This week has also been a rather Potter week, and quite a few Harry Potter themed photos have made it into the top 7.
But now you can see for yourself, here are my #SundaySeven:


1. 

@geekgirlbookworm

It seemed wrong to not have a Lady Midnight photo feature in this week's bunch, so here is my absolute favourite! I desperately wanted a copy like this, but by the time I had the money, they had all sold out! Ah well, better luck next time. But this cover is absolutely stunning (and I think it's signed too). Cassandra Clare and coffee, two of my favourite things. I hope you're loving the book!

2. 

@demmi_writist

I love Demmi's account! She is always tagging in for book tags, which I love doing (despite the fact I do let them build up, oops..). In fact, I'm even tagged in this wonderful photo. I love how simplistic yet eye-catching the white and black books are, and the hints of red just add a bit of brightness to the photo. And there's more coffee!

3. 

@emzbooksandco

A recent discovery for me, Em has some really lovely photos! As a huge Potterhead, as I've mentioned numerous times, I love seeing photos of everyone else's Potter collections. (I have so much, I can't even display it all). However, this collection is neat and tidy, and I am so in love with those covers!

4. 

@sobookinggood

Another point to Harry Potter, and another feature for Tracey, who was in last week's #SundaySeven too! In fact, having a quick scroll through her account just now, so many of her other photos were in my shortlist for this week too. This photo was a really interesting take on the bookish triangle tag. I love candles, I love Harry Potter, I love Tracey's account. Any surprises there?

5. 

@bookybooklove

I discovered this photo this morning, and had to just sit back for a moment. How come everyone else can get these really awesome sunlight photos and mine always suck?? This photo quite literally took my breath away. The ray of sun, to me, looks like a glass sword, which obviously suits the book perfectly! I'm not sure if the muddy background adds to the photo or not though.

(My headache is starting to return, let's hope I can make it through.)

6. 

@books_and_bobs

Last Potter photo of the week, I promise! This photo is so simple, probably didn't take much thought, but was pulled off so well! I'm a sucker for little crafty things so those stars really make it for me.

7. 

@inspiredbythepages

Amongst all the lovely bookish photos on bookstagram, sometimes it is really nice to see some work books. Just because you may be studying, and the work may be a little dull, it doesn't mean you can't take some awesome photos with it! I can relate to this photo too, with a work space that is organised, but a little confusing to anyone that isn't you.

Thankyou for reading, and thanks to all the bookstagram accounts (both those featured, and the countless others I poured through in order to decide on my seven). 

None of these photos are mine, and I have credited the account and notified them that I am using their image. Occasionally, it is known for accounts to repost photos without crediting the original owner. I do not support this. All photos are, to my knowledge, original to the accounts credited. If not, I will happily amend and assist in reporting accounts that are stealing photos. (To the accounts featured: I am not suggesting this applies to you, I am merely covering myself. This paragraph shall feature on all #SundaySeven posts in the rare and unfortunate case problems may occur.)

Book Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass – Sarah J. Maas

*Warning – may contain spoilers*

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Publisher: Bloomsbury

First published: 2012

Cover: Paperback

Pages: 404

Blurb:    Meet Celaena Sardothien. Beautiful. Deadly. Destined for greatness.

In the dark, filthy salt mines of Endovier, an eighteen-year-old girl is serving a life sentence. She is a trained assassin, the best of her kind, but she made a fatal mistake. She got caught.

Young Captain Westfall offers her a deal: her freedom in return for one huge sacrifice. Celaena must represent the prince in a to-the-death tournament – fighting the most gifted thieves and assassins in the land. Live or die, Celaena will be free. Win or lose, she is about to discover her true destiny. But will her assassin’s heart be melted?

History of my copy: Recently I have been getting into the book community on Instagram, and I saw that nearly everyone was talking about The Lunar Chronicles and Throne of Glass. When I went into Plymouth to get an interview dress, I had the intention of buying either Cinder or Throne of Glass, the first books in the series. Cinder was out of stock, so my decision was thankfully made for me and I ended up with Throne of Glass.

I had high hopes for this book due to the hype it has with fellow readers. Although slightly disappointed, the book is still good. The majority of it, I really enjoyed, and there were points in which I wasn’t able to put it down. However, there were also points I felt were a bit too far-fetched for the story, especially the final dual between Celaena and Cain.

Plot: The basic plot of the book is quite simple. Celaena is rescued from the salt mines in Endovier where she is serving a life sentence for being Adaralan’s assassin by Captain Westfall and Prince Dorian to be their champion in a secrete competition that the King is hosting. The winner of the competition serves as the King’s Champion for a few years, and then becomes free.

         Whilst in the castle taking part in the competitions, Celaena makes many unusual friends, one of which being the Princess Nehemia, whom she later ends up believing is responsible for the horrific murderers of her fellow competitors.

         After Celaena sneaks into the Yulemas ball where she ends up dancing the night away with the crown prince, she soon realises Nehemia’s innocence as she discovers that Cain, another competitor, is responsible for the murders.

         In a final dual between her and Cain, Celaena nearly loses due to being poisoned by Kaltain, a woman who is jealous of Celaena’s closeness to the Prince but, with some help from Nehemia and the first queen of Adarlan, Elena, ends up coming out on top.

         Throughout the story, we watch as Celaena becomes more and more trusted. We also see a love triangle between Celaena, Prince Dorian and Chaol Westfall form.

Setting: This story has two main settings: the salt mines in Endovier and the castle in Rifthold. I will admit that setting is not one of Maas’ strong points, leaving much to the imagination of the reader. You get the picture that the mines are a horrific place to be, and that the castle is magnificent and extravagant, but only a few places are described in much detail.

Characters: Celaena Sardothien, the eighteen year old assassin, is one of my least favourite main characters I have ever read. Although she is the best assassin, she seems a bit too flawless in my opinion. Yes, she is vain, and often rude, but her bad qualities seem very minor in comparison to the good. I hope that in future books her character is developed more, giving a better insight into her past. As someone who is nearly eighteen myself, I find it very hard to believe that someone could be quite so perfect at everything.

                One of my favourite characters in the story is Captain Chaol Westfall. I loved watching his character develop as he got to know Celaena better. Furthermore, I think it is interesting to watch someone have his morals questioned and learn to think for himself. I would like to see Chaol and Celaena’s relationship, either platonically or romantically, over the rest of the series.

                Another favourite character is Princess Nehemia of Eyllwe. Although introduced as someone who has limited knowledge on Adarlan, and there being the heartbreaking moment where you believe she might kill Celaena, Nehemia turns out to be a brave and intelligent woman, who knows entirely what is going on. She is a good ally for Celaena and I hope to see her fight to get her kingdom and title back.

To read or not to read: Read. Although there are a few negatives to this book, and it hasn’t made it’s way into my favourite books list, it is still certainly worth the read. I think Sarah J. Maas has the potential to be a fantastic author, but this book doesn’t quite showcase that as well as it could. However, I remain hopeful that the rest of the series shall only get better.

Shopping

So last night I popped into Plymouth after school with my mum and brother to do a spot of rushed shopping. I desperately need a dress for my uni interviews at Cardiff and Plymouth, so we raced around various shops until I fell in love with one from H&M.
As a special treat for myself, I also bought Throne Of Glass by Sarah J. Maas as Waterstones didn't have Cinder by Marissa Meyer, so I may have an early night tonight reading it. I hope it lives up to expectations!