Here Is Why I Hate Me Before You by JoJo Moyes (even though I gave it a 4 star rating)

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

FAIR WARNING OF SPOILERS BELOW:

How do I feel about this book? It's been over a week since I finished it and I'm still suffering from the events of the end. This isn't even me fangirling; this is me conflicted by the choices of Will. I think what JoJo Moyes did was quite cruel--so cruel I can't even fathom writing a proper review. I basically felt robbed of all hope in life.

The problem is, I couldn't simply give this book two stars (I was so mad that I debated it) but neither could I give it five stars. I'm only giving it four stars because of its literary value of its characters and plot. It was indeed a great book. . .up until the end, of course. The plot moved along steadily, it was captivating, and the characters were quite entertaining. I loved watching Will and Lou interact once they got to know each other. They were interesting people who were able to leave a strong impression of the other. The book had the feel of a love story but it really wasn't quite one. At least, not a traditional one. The romance didn't occur until the end and even then the romantic aspect was ruined by Will's terrible choice.

However, I can talk about the character and plot no more.

I suppose you think I'm fangirling and I'll admit I cried. However, this is me not fangirling. I'm angry because the author allowed him to give up. In reality, there are people out there in much worst condition. He could have been on a ventilator, lost all his limbs, lost his speech, or could've become a vegetable. There were other people out there like him--and this is what Lou had been trying to imply the entire book but with failed success. I know that I have no idea what it would feel like to be in Will's shoes, to have the best parts of life robbed from you in seconds, but I can tell you that he gave up. He was in pain most of the time, yes, and any of the other times he was uncomfortable or depressed but there is always someone worse off than you. There are soldiers that have lost everything mentally and/or physically, people who have lost their entire families, others who are born without limbs, and so much more. I just feel like this story could have gone in another direction instead of portraying the message that it's okay to give up. That's what enraged me the most. For example, in The Fault In Our Stars, I cried like a baby at the death of you-know-who (I won't reveal who it was for anyone who hasn't read it yet). I thought it wasn't fair but deep down, I could accept it because it was the natural order of things. If Will had died of his injuries or even of pneumonia, I would have been able to accept it a whole lot better than what he actually did.

I thought the movie was going to be great until I read the book. Now, I don't know if I want to anymore. It's painful watching someone do that to themselves, especially when I've known people that have struggled with such thoughts themselves. It really defies all hope for mankind. So. . .the question is, did I enjoy the book? Partly. I enjoyed it very much up until it was quite clear the direction it was going to go. That's when things became miserable and I couldn't like it anymore. I can't even say I had the feels because I had no fangirl feelings. I was just upset at the choices. The book should have actually been named The Terrible Choices of Will.







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Book Review: Dance of Daggers - Shards of Esteron series

Dance of Daggers by Connor Webb

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Synopsis: A storm is brewing on the horizon and Prince Lysander Stormfury of Arodell knows that he must stop it. However, when a new threat emerges and his father is stolen away from him in the heat of a battle, Lysander--who consequently is the next heir to become king--realizes that there is a fresh, more evil force at play amongst the Planes. Tension and the outbreak of war is only the beginning. Lysander knows that he must stop the evilness from spreading but just when he thinks he knows who the enemy is, new evidence comes into light and terrible conflicts arise. Devastation burns the Planes like wildfire and nothing is really as it seems between the worlds of the Planeshifters.

"Amongst the countless bleak white specks of sand, one could find the center of the world--all the worlds." (page 1)

I'm normally a selective fantasy reader but Dance of Daggers captivated me right from the first chapter. You're immediately pulled into the POV of Prince Lysander Stormfury of Arodell but the plot starts rolling quickly when a terrible tragedy occurs. The characters of this book were phenomenal and well-developed. They felt very sophisticated and invited you to feel their emotion. I was also very particular about the naming of the characters, which was unique and creative. I honestly thought the entire book was going in to be in the perspective of Lysander (which was fine because I really enjoyed Lysander's journeys and trials) but I was quite surprised when each new part was in the POV of a new character that was vital to the movement of the plot. In fact, each time I was moved to a new POV, something even more shocking would develop. I would like to note that although the POV moved fairly frequently (but not too frequently) it was not confusing to follow in the least. Connor did an excellent job in making sure that the characters were easy to follow each time.

The plot was so well-developed that I had my mind blown on more than one occasion. Some books take forever to give you even faint evidence of what the plot is about but Dance of Daggers emerged you in it right away. This was one of the qualities I loved because it didn't give you any time to be bored. I was fascinated right away by the idea of superpowers in medieval-like times. Yes, fantasy often involves magic and power from the gods and such, but Dance of Daggers had a cutting-edge, unique twist on things. It was interesting reading about each Plane, which was inhabited by Planeshifters with the coolest abilities designated to each location. I also have to say, the plot twists that occur are natural, yet they left me on the edge of my seat, absolutely shocked at the turn of events. Even better, after these special plot twists happened, I realized that they had been subtly hinted throughout the book.

Connor's writing style is very descriptive (but not overbearingly so) and contains the perfect combination of interest and awesomeness. I highly recommend this book to all, especially you fantasy fans out there. Connor has great potential and I can't wait for his sequel, Vigil of Light.

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Top Five Gifts Only Bookish People Will Love

Ever fretted over what your bookish friend would want as a gift? Well, worry no more! Buying for bookish people is actually incredibly easy and inexpensive. Usually, anything that has to do with a book will appeal to your book-loving friend(s). However, I have assembled an article on the top five things usually only a book-lover will love.

1. CLOTHES Have you ever heard of Out of Print Clothing? They sell all the coolest bookish apparel perfect for all those book lovers in your life. I have personally purchased the Poe socks and I love them, despite the fact that I'm deeply judged by my family. However, Out of Print sells more than just socks; they sell t-shirts, bags, sweatshirts, coffee mugs, etc. Nothing would make me happier than if someone bought clothes for me from them. I really like The Great Gatsby sweatshirt. *hint, hint*

 <------- My Poe socks ;) 

2. SUBSCRIPTION BOXES 

If I had extra money, I would definitely spend it on a bookish subscription box. Some popular subscription services include Owl Crate, Uppercase, The Book Drop.

I haven't personally tried any of these services but I wish to one day. 

Instagram @Tiffany_A_Smith

3. Bookmarks 

You may not think bookmarks are much of a gift, but for someone who loves and breathes books, these are one of the loveliest things you can give. I literally hoard my bookmarks, especially if they look cool or have some literary value to them. 

You literally don't understand how excited I was to receive a bookmark from Jennifer Bardsley because I preordered her new book Genesis Girl. 

  

Instagram @Tiffany_A_Smith_

4. Books (or a gift card for books)

This one seems obvious to me. If someone likes books, it would make the most sense to buy them more books or at least give them a gift card to do so.  

5. Bookish Jewelry

I unfortunately, don't own any bookish jewelry but I wish I did!  

I Buy Book for Free and Here's How. . .

I don't think there's one person on earth who doesn't enjoy free things. I know I LOVE free things. In fact, you could sum my personality up with synonyms such as a cheap scape, penny hoarder, frugal, or even overly intense money-saver. I'm always looking for deals and steals, especially with books. Being eighteen and all, I'm not exactly rich and I have an unfortunate habit of buying books and music all too often. However, I have discovered a new method of affordability for myself: it's called Swagbucks.

What is Swagbucks, you might ask? 

Swagbucks is a search engine that earns you points every time you search the web, watch videos,

answer polls, play games, Et Cetera. These points are called Swagbucks. Once you accumulate enough Swagbucks, you can redeem them for gift cards. My favorite gift cards are the ones for Amazon, Ebay, and PayPal. However, you can purchase gift cards to use at several popular retailers such as Nike, Longhorn Steakhouse, iTunes, and more!

How Do I Sign Up? 

Signing up is free and easy and you can do so HERE. Once you do this, you can quickly earn points by completing your profile and making Swagbucks your default search engine. You also earn more points by adding the "SwagButton" browser extension to your web browser.

How Do I Earn Points? 

Browsing the Web

This is my main method of earning Swagbucks because I'm already surfing the web anyway. You won't receive points every time you search but once you get going, you'll likely make between 15-50 Swagbucks a day. The thing about this is that you're already doing it anyway, so you mine as well be compensated for it.

Shopping Online 

Next to searching the web, this is my second favorite way to earn Swagbucks. In fact, you can make a lot of Swagbucks quickly doing this. This is very similar to cash back from Ebates where you earn rewards by shopping through their links. There are hundreds of stores affiliated with Swagbucks, including Amazon, Ebay, and Walmart.

If you install the SwagButton, it will alert you every time you go to a site that you can earn Swagbucks with.

Surveys

I can't give you a voucher for these because I don't like taking surveys but Swagbucks has several from which you can choose from if you qualify. From what I've seen you can make anyway from 3 SB to 300 SB, depending on which one you choose. However, the more Swagbucks offered, the longer the survey.

Videos

Sort of like YouTube, Swagbucks has its own collection of videos to watch and even more awesome is you get paid to watch them! I don't really take the time to watch them but I've heard of people making tons of Swagbucks using this method.

Coupons

What? Swagbucks offers coupons too?! Yup. It's true. For example, if you use a Swagbuck's coupon for $0.15 off of a product at the store, you'll get 15 SB. Seems like a sweet deal to me! Just make sure you actually use the coupon or else you won't receive any Swagbucks.

Referrals 

Another excellent way to earn Swagbucks quickly is through referrals. Swagbucks will provide you with a special link that is connected to your account and you can share it via Facebook, Twitter, email, on your blog, or wherever. Every time somebody signs up through your link, you earn 10% of the Swagbucks your referral earns. . .for life!

Finally. . .

How to Get the Cha-Chings (cashing out)

As I mentioned above, Swagbucks pays in card retailers to tons of different places. My personal favorite would be PayPal because that's essentially free money that I can spend anywhere.

1 SB equals about $0.01, so 100 SB=$1.00, 500=$5.00 and so on. I've personally earned over $200 with Swagbucks which I have spent on a multitude of things, particularly books. Unlike other point redeeming websites, it's actually really easy to earn points. About every two to three week, I earn $5.00. I'll admit, it can sometimes be frustrating--especially when you just start--to make Swagbucks. However, once you get into the swing of things and hopefully get some referrals, you'll find yourself making Swagbucks much faster.

Swagbucks is one of the best money-maker websites I've ever found and it has helped me afford the things I couldn't binge on before like books and music. Now I get them for 100% free for something I was already doing anyway. I'm not saying you're going to get rich using Swagbucks but it's nice to have an extra $5-$10 each month that you can spend on whatever you want.

In fact, between Swagbucks and a few other free point redeeming programs I actively use, I was able to buy $85 worth of Christmas gifts last year with only $5 out of my pocket. I think The Krazy Koupon Lady and The Penny Hoarder blogs would be proud of me.

Now, I'm very excited to share this opportunity with you. I promise that Swagbucks is not a scam and is very much free. I've been using it for over two years and I've never had any issues.

Finally convinced? You can sign up here.