I’m a big fan of Ally Condie’s Matched trilogy, so when her new book Atlantia came out, I was first in line to read it. I was pleasantly surprised by this dystopian novel that breaks many rules, doesn’t have a love triangle, and really made me think. Watch my video above for my full review!

Okay, it’s clearly NaNoWriMo up in here… first a Halloween post and now my October Favorites video? I know, I know. What can I say, I’ve been busy writing a novel! I don’t know what’s come over me, actually. After 3 days I’m already at 10k, double the “recommended” amount – so this is shaping up to be one crazy November.

But! Today’s post isn’t about writing, it’s about favorites. And the video I made to share them. So here it is!

How are everyone’s months going? Busy? Cold? Gearing up for the holidays? I’ve been in an inexplicably good mood so far in November, so I really hope it keeps up. Maybe this year will be my best novel yet! Who knows!

For some reason, I got really into the horror genre this year. So much so that I made it my goal to read and watch as many scary things as possible during the month of October.

I’d never really been very into scary books or movies before this year, but due to a combination of a newer friend introducing me to some of her favorite scary movies and attending a really great panel on females and the horror genre at Geek Girl Con, it just really piqued my interest this season.

This video is a wrap up and review of everything I read and watched, if you’re interested!

Hello lovely blog readers!

Did I just hear a – a chorus of groans? You know it’s coming, don’t you. NaNoWriMo is upon us, and we have just over a week left to prepare. What is NaNoWriMo, you ask? Well, luckily for you, I’ve just posted my annual NaNoWriMo video – explaining the event and giving tips/advice to anyone out there who might be interested in participating.

Also, if you’ve been watching my videos for at least a year, there’s a chance I may call you out by name. Why? Well… you’ll see. *evil laughter* *more evil laughter* *even more evil – wait I have to write a novel too, I don’t have time for three rounds of evil laughter, I’m off to brainstorm whatever the heck I’m writing this year*

If you’re attempting NaNoWriMo this year, good luck! Add me as a writing buddy, and let me know in the comments of this blog post if you do!

 

 

This video is a week or two old, but I wanted to give people a chance to get out and grab this book before posting my review here. I’m talking of course of Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld, a really unique new book that centers around both a girl name Darcy and the character she creates named Lizzie. This book really spoke to me because she wrote her first novel in 30 days, in November, which many will recognize to be NaNoWriMo. I loved reading about someone else’s experience with the project, and I had a lot to say about the book!

Have you read Afterworlds yet? Do you participate in NaNoWriMo? Please leave me comments and let me know your thoughts!

I’ve been trying my hardest to make it up to you guys lately that I took such a long blogging break by making it really easy to find everything I created in the absence. Between my cosplay news, books I’ve read and videos I’ve posted, I’ve been a busy little bee!

Today’s blog post will give you a round up of the most noteworthy videos I’ve made in the last month or so, starting with this GeekGirlCon Candyland video I posted yesterday!

 

I am quite proud of it, and my friends were all such good sports for being involved. I love showcasing the things that make me happy for others, and I think this video did that perfectly.

Next was this hilariously exciting Snack Exchange video I filmed with Joe – we had organized a collab of sorts with a couple living in Korea named Evan and Rachel. They sent us a big box of Korean snacks in exchange for a box of American foods they missed from home.

 

We had a BLAST trying everything. Some of it was weird, some was absolutely disgusting… but a lot of it was really great! Thanks again, Evan and Rachel!

The last video I want to share with you is my FALL BOOK HAUL! I can’t get enough of books and reading lately and this is my newest stack of stuff to read.

I can’t wait to get through many of these, and October has been a big reading month for me. I’m only 2 books away from hitting my 30 book goal for 2014! You can bet I’m gonna raise that goal next year – 30 was easy!

I hope you enjoyed my videos, and I’ll be back soon with some more October/Halloween fun!

I recently read the summer book hit We Were Liars by E. Lockhart and I loved it – enough to record this long, rambly, superfun review of it. Join me for what one commenter lovingly described as “more of a chat about a book with a good friend than an official review”. I’m into that description.

 

What did you think? What were your favorite “hints”? Tell me in the comments – I just can’t stop thinking and talking about this book!

As summer is winding down, all I can feel is the impending knowledge that life is about to get a lot more busy. That can be both a good or bad thing, but either way it makes finding time to read a bit more difficult. That’s why I’ve made this video!

 

Have any other good tips for how to fit in some reading time when your to-do list is stacked against you? Leave a comment!

Raise your hand if you’re a fan of Stephanie Perkins, the author of Anna and the French Kiss and Lola and the Boy Next Door! Now raise your hand if you’ve managed to sink your teeth into Isla and the Happily Ever After!

This book came out on August 14th – which was also the day I posted my video review of it. I decided to wait a little while to post it over here, to give you all a bit of time to catch up and read it, since my video is bursting with spoilers.

 

Please let me know your thoughts about the book down in the comments! Did you love it? Did you like Anna or Lola better? I’m dying to find out.

I’ll hopefully be doing a lot more book reviews in the future, so please let me know if you’re enjoying them.

I read the Selection series a little while ago (made up of The Selection, The Elite and The One) and it was equal parts frustrating and life ruining as well as amazingly fun. I’m not going to say it was the most exquisite piece of literature I’ve ever read, but it was definitely a journey – and a fun one, at that.

In honor of the news that we’ll be getting not only another set of supplemental novellas but also MORE BOOKS, I figured I would make a post sharing the review I did of this series back when I first read it. You have until next summer to get caught up for the new books, but there’s no time like the present when it comes to Prince Maxon, am I right?

 

Have you read The Selection? Did you love it? Did you hate it? Sometimes I can’t decide either, but it’s still one of my favorite series regardless of that fact. I know. I’m a mess.