March seems to be turning into the month for book tags, so here is another one,
The Harry Potter Spells Book Tag! It is another tag that I have never heard of before but thought would be interesting to include on my blog. So without further ado, lets get started.
Flagrate (Writing Charm)
A book that you found interesting but would like to rewrite
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
The world and politics in this story was something that really interested me when reading this book, and it had a set of fantastic characters and a twist that I was not expecting. However, I felt like it was poorly written, and that there would have been a better way of writing this story. It sort of felt like I was reading a draft and not a finalized version of a book. It really is a shame, because I did enjoy elements of the story, but the writing really put me off reading the rest of the books in the series. Or maybe it was just meant for a younger audience than me. Either way, if given the chance there are certainly things I would change about the writing in this story.
Alohamora (Unlocking Charm)
A first book in a series that got you hooked
Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas
I did not realise that I would be hooked on a series of eight books when I first picked up Throne of Glass, but there we go. I was truly hooked on the series, finishing the first two books in the space of a week. I first began the series when Empire of Storms came out, so I had to wait for Tower of Dawn and Kingdom of Ash, and wow it was painful to wait and see what happened after the end of Empire of Storms. I binged through all the books in the series when I first read the series, and I binged the last two when they came out. It is a series I wish I could go back and read again without knowing anything, because there are just so many twists that you do not expect. Although it is great to reread and realise what characters are going to become.
Accio (Summoning Charm)
A book that you wish you could have right now
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
I am a lover of a good murder mystery; this book was a delightful read. I loved the formatting of the story, and that between chapters we got to read through Pippa's work for her EPQ Project only adding to the world and making it truly feel like we were watching an 18 year old solve a mystery, not an experienced "child genius" flawless character that can be seen sometimes in stories like this.
Avada Kerdava (Killing Curse)
A Killer Book
The Surface Breaks by Louise O'Neill
Ever wanted a new version of the Little Mermaid that was closer to being like the original Hans Christian Anderson Tale and not sugar coated like the Disney Movie? This is the book for you! The Surface Breaks was a hard book to read, and not because of it being overly complicated, but because of what we watch our main character go through. I really enjoyed this book, and there were moments where I thought "Surely not, surely it can't go wrong now". It was such a good read and I highly recommend it to anyone who isn't necessarily looking for a cheery read.
Confundus (Confusion Charm)
A book that you found confusing
The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter
Technically this is a play and not a book, but I read it so I am including it! I am not really one to get confused by stories, but the ending of this play really confused me. I don't really want to go into it as spoilers (and it is quite a good read if you get the chance to read it), but I was told to read it at the beginning of the academic year for university and when I went to class the next week I was not the only one who didn't really understand what had happened. One of the (slightly) annoying things about it is that the ending is open, so you ultimately decide what happens and there's no right or wrong answer, but it's just how we got there. It is such a good read, and if you are not studying a performance subject you should definitley check it out!
Expecto Partonum (Guarding Spell)
A Childhood book connected to good memories
Hetty Feather by Jacqueline Wilson
The only answer to go here would have been a Jacqueline Wilson Book, I feel like they shaped the childhoods of many British Children. The challenge was trying to think which one in particular do I have the fondest memories of, and then I remembered when I got Hetty Feather. I was going on a school trip, it was going to be for a week and I would not have any contact with my family. Sounds like and easy thing to do now, but I was eleven when I went on this trip, and there was no texting of Facebook to keep in touch with them so it was hard. It was one of the worst weeks of my life, going with no friends and pretty much being at my teacher's side the entire time, but my mum bought me this book to read while I was there and I was hooked. I finished it within the week - which was an achievement then since I did not read a lot. I fully blame this book for my obsession with history now. Although that trip was not the nicest thing to remember, I found a lot of happiness in reading this book, and the original trilogy remains to be one of my favourite book series of all time (I have not read any of the other books in the series so I can't say what they are like).
Sectumsempra (Dark Curse)
A Dark Twisted Book
I am not one for reading dark stories, but I will say one of the most messed up concepts I have read is the first book in the Uglies series. Waiting until your 16th birthday, then you are given a makeover which involves a lot of plastic surgery to make you beautiful. The thought of this happening is absolutely terrifying, and although I am yet to finish the series the thought of this happening in real life is messed up!
Expelliarmus (Disarming Spell)
A book that took you by surpise
I read the Hunger Games Trilogy as part of a reading project my school was doing in 2011 (wow before the first movie came out!) and as a whole the trilogy surprised me and encouraged me to read more books in the YA category. I was very unprepared for the ending of the second book however, and it still remains to be my favourite book in the series to this day. The first book was brilliant, don't get me wrong, but the second book builds so much on the world and characters that we have already met. Mockingjay was a disappointing follow up, but that does not take away from Catching Fire being one of my all time favourite books.
Prior Incantato (Reverse Spell)
The Last Book you Read
By the time this is posted on my blog, it is probably a different book, but as of writing this the last book that I read was A Girl Called Shameless by Laura Steven (sequel to The Exact Opposite of Okay). This is a series that I love very much, and I have written a review of both books in the series. You can catch my review for A Girl Called Shameless here.
Sonorus (Amplifying Charm)
A book you think everybody should know about
A Book that I always bring up that I think is truly underrated - Of Fire and Stars. A fantasy story where two princesses fall in love. I absolutely love the world and the characters in this story, not to mention the fact that there is a Lesbian Romance! Some representation for us Lesbian Princesses out there! I have not yet read the sequel, but this was one of my favourite reads of 2018!
Obliviate (Memory Charm)
A book or spoiler you would like to forget having read
The Wicked Deep was a book that I really enjoyed, and I really did not see the twist in the third act of the story coming. When I read it I wondered why I didn't think of it sooner (it is hard to talk about without saying what it is so apologies in advance!) and I imagine reading it a second time with that thought in mind would make the story very interesting. But I would like to experience reading it again for the first time!
Imperio (Controlling Curse)
A book you had to read for school
I almost put Of Mice and Men here, but since nearly every person who has done a GCSE in English has looked at that book, I decided to pick To Kill A Mockingbird instead. Our school decided to give our class this book to look at rather than Of Mice and Men since we had been studying that book since year 8 and by the time we got to Year 11 we wanted to read something different. Hence To Kill A Mockingbird made its way onto my bookshelf. It was a truly refreshing read, and we even got to go and see the show on tour in a local theatre before our exam which was amazing! Most people never want tto thin about their GCSE exams again after completing them, but my English Literature exam was a paper that I was fond of, and I am still proud of my A* to this day!
Crucio (Torture Curse)
A book that was painful to read
The Divergent Series is a bit of a bad book series anyway, but a book that I absolutely despise is the second book in the series - Insurgent. I actually wish this book didn't exist. I really did not like it and it made me want to discontinue the series. It took a while for me to pick up Allegiant after finishing Insurgent.
And that is is for The Harry Potter Spells Book Tag! Thank you so much for reading, and check back next week for another blog post!
