Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Characters

Why am I doing a Top Ten Tuesday? I had originally planned on doing a review but it's my BIRTHDAY so I have a pass to be lazy.

TOP TEN FAVORITE CHARACTERS:

(and not just swoony guys, because that list would be a different story.)

1. Katsa from Graceling by Kristin Cashore
Obviously. Katsa is strong on the outside and vulnerable and difficult on the inside and I loved seeing her grow as a person throughout the novel. Plus, so much badassery.

2. Emerson from Hourglass by Myra McEntire
Snarky, funny, stubborn. What more can I ask for?

3. Tris from Divergent by Veronica Roth
Reading the Free Four story on their Facebook page reminded me how much I love Tris as a character. She's brave and strong, despite everything that is thrown at her throughout both the first book and the second. But she's also not a cold rock and she does have her low points, which I appreciated. She's basically my ideal heroine.

4. Sophie from Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins
Honestly the funniest character I've ever had the pleasure of reading about.

5. Saba from Blood Red Road by Moira Young
Saba's got a lot of flaws but deep down in there, she's got a lot of heart and I love that about her so much.

6. Po from Graceling by Kristin Cashore
I know, I'm trying my best not to include guys because that's like swoony love interests type stuff but honestly, he is a stunning character. He's not douchey or a jerk; he's thoughtful and mind and so damn humble and I love him so much.

7. Alina from Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo 
Okay, so this book hasn't come out yet, SORRY. But soon! And I just had to include her in the list. Silent and strong and absolutely lovely.

8. Anna from Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
One of the most realistic heroine I've ever read about if not the most. Yeah, I went there.

9. Widdershins from Thief's Covenant by Ari Marmell
Funny, brave, and she has such heart and she's a THIEF GUYS.

10. Jack from Blood Red Road by Moira Young
Just...just my heart.

BONUS:
11. Warner from Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
A twisted and definitely psychotic character that still manages to tug at my heart strings. He's my literary Klaus (and I know, I know, Vampire Diaries is a book but I heard it's not nearly as good and IT'S NOT THE SAME. Joseph Morgan was born to be Klaus.)

TATA!
Do you agree? Disagree? Anyone to add?
Happy Reading!

Quotes Are Awesome So Share Time!

So a few days ago on twitter, I was like: I want to make a post with some of my favorite quotes. And then I thought: This is my blog, so why not?

As someone who uses quotes as her blog post titles, quotes are something that are very important to me! I think every book has that one line that just expresses the entire novel altogether or just...well, speaks to you.

So I wanted to share some of my favorite quotes with you!

“Cruelty does not make a person honest, the same way bravery does not make a person kind.”

- Insurgent by Veronica Roth

"I found power in accepting the truth of who I am. It may not be a truth that others can accept, but I cannot live any other way."

- Eona: Dragoneye Reborn by Allison Goodman

"Love is a luxury. No, love is an element."

- Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

"When it's right, it's simple." 

- Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

"Should have. Would have. Could have. Didn't."

- All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin

“My thoughts are stars I cannot fathom into constellations.”

- The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

"Some infinities are bigger than other infinites."

- The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

“Some tourists think Amsterdam is a city of sin, but in truth it is a city of freedom. And in freedom, most people find sin.”

- The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves.”

- Julius Ceasar by William Shakespeare

And that's really all I could think of at the moment!
What are some of your favorite quotes?
(And yes, if you were wondering, I wrote this post right after I finished rereading The Fault In Our Stars. Don't judge. Cried like a baby for a SECOND time.)

Happy Reading!

"Anyone who’s had something truly crappy happen to them will tell you: It’s all about Before and After."

Title: The Beginning of After

Author: Jennifer Castle

Release Date: September 6th, 2011

Publisher: HarperTeen

Pages: 432

Edition: Hardcover

Cover Judge: Eh, it's alright, I suppose. 

Quote Choice: First line in the book!
Source: For Review

Goodreads: Link

Sixteen-year-old Laurel’s world changes instantly when her parents and brother are killed in a terrible car accident. Behind the wheel is the father of her bad-boy neighbor, David Kaufman, whose mother is also killed. In the aftermath of the tragedy, Laurel navigates a new reality in which she and her best friend grow apart, boys may or may not be approaching her out of pity, overpowering memories lurk everywhere, and Mr. Kaufman is comatose but still very much alive. Through it all, there is David, who swoops in and out of Laurel’s life and to whom she finds herself attracted against her better judgment. She will forever be connected to him by their mutual loss, a connection that will change them both in unexpected ways.

The Beginning of After is a sweet and sad novel about a girl who loses her parents in a car accident and has to live with the emptiness of losing her entire family, the guilt of not being in the car with them, and the confusion of how in the world is she going to live her life without them?

I'm going to start with the negatives, but I did like this book, for the record. I think I went in expecting something really poignant and heart-wrenching (ala Gayle Forman or Wings of the Wicked) but while Laurel's story was sad and awful, it didn't affect me. I wasn't crying or feeling awful or really, really clinging to her character, so some of the emotion was lost on me. And then there's the fact it sometimes slowed down in parts and I'd feel like skimming a bit (which I totally didn't!) to see what was going to happen next. While contemporary is not my strong suit genre, I don't want that to happen while i'm reading a book!

On the other hand, I thought Laurel was a very realistic teenager. She was grief-stricken and sometimes even unable to function but even if she acknowledged it felt strange, she still cared about things like school and Prom. It was moving seeing her clinging on to things that could make her feel normal and I could definitely relate to that. Her grandmother plays a large role in her life, which I really appreciated. She was a constant and stable rock for Laurel, which the girl really needed.

BONUS FACTOR: The popular girls at Laurel's school play a part in her recovery story and they're not total biotches. Right? I'm so sick of reading books where the popular girls in school are mean and awful to the heroine and while the girls in this book were shallow, they genuinely wanted to help Laurel out and make her feel better.

I didn't really feel the romance between Laurel and David, to be perfectly honest. I enjoyed it and I understood their connection with their dead or dying families and the fact that they grew up together but when they did finally collide, I didn't feel the sparks as much as I wanted to. But the build-up was fantastic! I actually liked Laurel's relationship with Other Guy, to be perfectly honest, even though I understand why she couldn't be with him.

Overall, a good book but not very deep or moving for me personally.
Happy Reading!

“Sometimes, if you want the truth, you have to demand it.”

Title: Insurgent (Divergent #2)

Author: Veronica Roth

Release Date: May 1st, 2012

Publisher: HarperTeen

Pages: 525

Edition: Hardcover

Cover Judge: I really like it! Plus it matches!

Quote Choice: TEAM CANDOR WUUUUT.
Source: For Review

Goodreads: Link

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.
Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

DIVERGENT SPOILERS ALL UP IN THIS REVIEW. 

So this book. Sweet jesus, it definitely doesn't suffer Second-Book Syndrome*.

Veronica Roth had created a crazy world in Divergent, a society that organizes itself by personality traits (Selflessness, Bravery, Honesty, Intelligence, Peaceful) and our main heroine, Tris, has become a Dauntless because she wants to get out of Abnegation. When Divergent finishes, Tris and Tobias along with a few other characters are on the run after Erudite officially broke into Dauntless and divided it completely. And the plot just keeps getting crazy from there, guys. Tris and Tobias are taken all over the city of Chicago, which I loved. In Divergent, we only really got to see how two factions -- Dauntless and Abnegation -- live. In Insurgent, we spend him in Amity and Candor and even a little bit in Erudite! Each faction is explored more indepth and you really learn about the hierchy works in each faction.

Tris, as always, was an amazing heroine. But unlike in Divergent where she's a total badass who takes name and is awesome, in Insurgent you get to see another side of her, a much more vulnerable side. The events in Insurgent really take a toll on her and it's always nice to see the up and downs of a character before they can triumph. Tris is no exception and it just made her that much more real and awesome to me.

Tris and Tobias are lovely to me. They go through a lot of hardships in the books, plenty of arguements as some relationships do, but they grow as a couple as well as individual characters. I like that Roth didn't do the typical Second Book thing and bring in a random love interest but instead, she took the cracks in the foundation and the flaws in their characters and made them work on it and become even more connected as people.

And as always, her writing is brilliant. There were so many quotes I wanted to choose for the title but I choose that one because as a Candor member, I feel it really is so true.

Memorable Quotes:

“The Candor sing the praises of the truth, but they never tell you how much it costs.”

“Before I chose Dauntless...I felt assured of my long lifespan, if nothing else. Now there are no reassurances except that where I go, I go because I choose to.”

“Cruelty does not make a person honest, the same way bravery does not make a person kind.”  

“It reminds me why I chose Dauntless in the first place: not because they are perfect, but because they are alive. Because they are free.”

Happy Reading!
*Second-Book Syndrome: Plot slows down, general sucky-ness, possible introduction of random love interest that makes no sense.

A Psychological Analysis on why Vampire Diaries is a BAMF show

* WILL contain season two spoilers and possibly season three spoilers. You have been warned.

Yeah, i'm going there today.

Mostly everyone in the universe has heard of the show Vampire Diaries considering it's the CW's golden child. When you summarize the story, it seems pretty standard teenage junk because it's about a girl who lives in a small town when two boys barrel into her life who happen to be vampires and basically everything goes wrong.

Season one is pretty good, but it's the moment you hit season two when shit gets real.

One of my favorite things about this show is the character development that happens in the span of season two going into season three. Every character has their own motives and struggles and no one is completely good or completely evil (except maybe Elena, but we'll get to that.) And I want to start showing you this with some of my favorite characters:


Caroline

Caroline is possibly my favorite character on the show because she is just the most relatable girl on there. She's bubbly and sarcastic but she's also quite deep and understanding and a well-rounded character overall. But the best thing, I think, is her transformation in personality after she is turned into a vampire. She starts the show off in season one as one of Elena's best friends (really, the odd one out because Elena and Bonnie are closer to each other and Elena kind of a REALLY bad friend) and completely shallow and rude. She gets her foot in her mouth all the time and says bitchy stuff and only really cares about winning Prom queen and having a white-picket fence when she's older.

And then Katherine turns her into a Vampire and she turns into such a thoughtful person while still keeping her upbeat personality. Unlike nearly everyone else, Caroline isn't one to brood and I like that she's a bright spot of positive energy when everyone else is moping. But then there's this dark, confused side of Caroline that clings to her humanity and wants to stay in Mystic Falls forever even though she will have to see her friends die. Her realizing that there is so much out there that she didn't even realize leads me to my second favorite character....


Klaus

Klaus might be my favorite villian, guys. Or right up there with Warner from Shatter Me BECAUSE they're the same type of villain. Klaus is a straight up sociopath, not even kidding. He can go from being charming one second to ripping your throat out and he doesn't play games. But as the series progresses, you really see that while Klaus does kill people and he staked his family and stuck them in coffins, he really has a noble (if not completely twisted) reason for everything he does.

He staked his family and stuck them in coffins, but he did that because he didn't want their father to find and kill them. He was waiting until he could kill his father to revive them so they could all be a happy family. And, yes, he went about it the wrong way, but the more you see Klaus, the more you realize he's really just an incredibly lonely person whose been denied love all his life.

What Klaus wants, above all else, is to be loved, and that's why he is so relatable to people regardless of the fact he's a crazy killer. Everything he does: compelling Stefan to travel with him, creating a hybrid army, trying to court Caroline? Everything is to make sure he doesn't end up alone but he simply goes about it the wrong way.


Stefan

I think Stefan's descent into madness is so interesting and I loved seeing him turn into Ripper Stefan in the blink of an eye. Something Damon says in Season Three really rings true for me and it's something he says to Elena after she sees Stefan feeding on a human: Stefan has been on both extremes of vampirism (feeding off animals, killing people) and he is most out-of-control person he's ever met.

Elena believes that Stefan has always been under control but really, the boy was a dynamite a little bit delayed in exploding. Stefan does not know moderation and this is evident by the fact that throughout the series he is either "Bunny-eating Stefan" or "I rip up bodies Stefan". His fight for control after he escapes Klaus' compulsion is so interesting and seeing him be the bad guy for once was refreshing considering he was always the "knight-in-shining armor."

And then of course, you all know how amazing Damon's character development is considering he kind of works backwards to Stefan (when Stefan is all good, Damon is crazy; Stefan is crazy, Damon is good) and then there's characters like Rebecca with her pathological fear of being left behind; Elijah who lives by a high  moral code while still being a vampire; Tyler who turns from an arrogant douchebag into a sensitive, sweet werewolf; and Katherine, who is so manipulative and deceitful because she wants more than anything to survive.

I think the only exception in great character development would have to be Elena and that's simply because I don't really like her all that much. I liked her in the beginning when she was spunky and with Stefan but now she's just become such a bland character to me.

And woot! If you watch Vampire Diaries, let me know down below what your thoughts are!
Happy Reading!

ETA:

Jen alerted me something was missing:

TADA!