Audiobook Recommendations!

Hello! I am back after my two day hiatus after the busyness that was the winter Biannual Bibliothon. While it was loads of fun, it was a little draining but over the weekend I recharged and am ready to blog! Lately I have been listening to a lot of audiobooks, I think I listened to about 4 this past week, and have been loving them, so I decided to share a few audiobook recommendations with you guys and some tips if you are just starting out. I hope you enjoy!

Audiobook Tips for Beginners:

  1. Choose An Audiobook That You’ve Read the Physical Book Of – When it comes to your first few audiobooks, I find that it is a lot easier to ease into the world of audiobooks when you listen to a book you have already read. When adjusting to audiobooks, it can be difficult to retain all the info you hear while listening to the story, so my advice is to start of listening to a favourite book of yours!
  2. Free Audiobooks! – If you aren’t sure if you will like audiobooks, try borrowing them from your library. And I don’t mean borrowing the 30+ disk set, but borrowing from their online selection. Lots of libraries have links on their websites to online libraries where if you use your library card, you can electronically borrow books and audiobooks on your phone or computer, and they are free!
  3. Don’t Waste Audiobook Time – There are so many times throughout the day when you could be listening to an audiobook. So instead of watching mindless YouTube videos while getting ready, press play on an audiobook! You can also listen to them while walking around, driving, doing mindless tasks, etc, etc. Don’t waste perfectly good audiobook time!

Now for my audiobook recommendations!

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

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Not only do I recommend this physical book, but the ebook is so much fun! I get the exact same feel as I do when I physically read it, and listening to the book come alive just brings so much more to the story. This is one I am actually currently listening to, and it is nice to discover the world of Fangirl in a different medium.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan

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I don’t have a specific book recommendation for this one, but really any of this series would be amazing on audio. I have only listened to the fourth in full, and snippets of some of the others but listening to the fourth was a blast, and the person who voiced it did a great job of giving each character a different voice and making the journey so much more fun!

The Selection by Kiera Cass 

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Listening to The One on audiobook was really good, I felt the tension between the characters and really felt the emotion I felt while reading the physical book, which is obviously what you want from an audiobook. While it did sound a little robotic, I quickly got over that and became so incredibly invested in the story. I can only imagine that the first book, The Selection, would be just as good!

Peter Pan by James M. Barrie

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Really, I think that any children’s book would be magical in audiobook format. I listened to this book during the Biannual Bibliothon, and it was fun listening to Wendy, John, Michael and Peter’s adventures in Neverland. Again, it brought the story to life in a way like a movie would, and while I was walking around and listening to this book I would get so invested in the story I would wander around for hours. Also, it is really short (about 5 hours or so) so a perfect first audiobook!

Those are a few audiobook tips and recommendations for any of you considering giving audiobooks a try, or for any of you who just were in need of some more recommendations. I hope you enjoyed this, and make sure you check out my last blog posts: 2018 Biannual Bibliothon Day 7: Write a Book Recommendation + my Day 7 Reading Update! 

Thanks 🙂

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2018 Biannual Bibliothon Day 1: The Snowy Day Book Tag! (Original)

Happy day 1 of the 2018 Biannual Bibliothon!

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Before we get into the blog challenge of the day, I just wanted to quickly explain what you will be seeing on my blog for the next week. Every day I will be posting my blog challenge and then later on that day, I will be posting my reading updates where I go over what I read that day and what I got accomplished. So basically two blog posts a day for the entire week! Okay, now that that is out of the way, today’s blog challenge is to create your snowy day reading list and I decided to complete this challenge in the form of my own book tag. There are a lot of tags like this out there, but I just really felt inspired to create my own so I hope you enjoy!

#1: Weather Reports Say It’s Going to Snow Tomorrow! Yay! Pick a Book That Makes You Feel Excited

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Whenever I think about The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan I get excited because it was one of my all time favourite books when I was younger, and is still a book that I absolutely adore. It is fun and action packed and is full of amazing characters that you can’t help but love.

#2: It’s Snowing! Pick a Book Cover That Reminds You of Winter

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I am not really sure why, but the cover for A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas has always reminded me of winter. Maybe it is the blue of the cover? I don’t really know but when I see it I just get some winter vibes! P.S. It is an awesome book so go read it.

#3: Hot Chocolate Time! Pick a Book That Makes You Feel Warm Inside

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Right when I typed this question, I knew what my answer was going to be, and that is To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han. This book is warm and fuzzy and will make you feel all the feels…plus towards the end they go to a ski lodge and on top of all the feels you get some winter feels as well! Another fantastic book.

#4: Time to Get Cozy. Pick a Long Book You Could Read for Hours

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It was hard not to use this book for the other questions because I love it so much, and that is Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare. It is a fantastic and entertaining book that is definitely not short, being 698 pages and all. I honestly could re read this book over and over until the end of time it is so good!

#5: Your Friend Comes Over and You Guys Have a Reading Party, But Uh Oh, They Forgot a Book! Pick a Favourite Book of Yours That You Know They Will Love

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Obsidian by Jennifer L Armentrout is a hard book not to like. Of course it has its flaws, and it isn’t the best literature out there, however it is a lot of fun. I have recommended this book to my friends and so far all of them have enjoyed it, so this is a no brainer!

#6: It Stopped Snowing But You Are too Busy Reading to Notice! Pick a Book That Sucks You In

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This is a book I was reading a few days ago, and like always, it just sucks me in and before I know it I have read a hundred pages. And that book is The Selection by Kiera Cass! A lot of people have problems with this series, but personally I adore the first three and think they are so entertaining and enjoyable that I could read them and just forget about the world around me.

And those are my questions and answers to my Snowy Day Book Tag and I had so much fun coming up with them. I hope you enjoyed my post for this day 1 of the Biannual Bibliothon blog challenges, and if you would like to do this tag then do it and tag me because I would love to see your answers! Stay pumped for the next few days of my blog posts coming your way and happy reading 🙂

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Reading/Writing Update!

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It has been quite a few years since I have read The Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare, and I forgot how much I enjoyed it! Everything from the story line to the setting (because London in the 1800s!) to the characters, it is all great. Even though I was originally planning on only rereading the first book, I think I will end up continuing with the rest of the trilogy. I also really would like to reread The Selection by Kiera Cass, because I am in the need of light, fluffy and addictive read and The Selection is the perfect option.

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NaNoWriMo is arriving at a rapid speed and I still haven’t decided on an idea yet! I have a few ideas swirling around in my head, but I need to dedicate a few hours to really think about what I want to write and then plan it out. November is going to be a busy month between school, volunteering and NaNoWriMo, but hopefully I will be able to achieve 50k words! Next week is my writing conference though, so hopefully I will learn a lot of new things and get inspired to write for NaNoWriMo. Last year I took a lot away from this conference so I am excited to see how it goes this year!

That is all for my quick reading and writing update, and I hope you enjoyed. Don’t forget to check out my last blog post: Fantasy Recommendations for Fall/Winter!

Shadowhunter Runes Book Tag (Original)

There are so many Shadowhunter runes out there, so I decided to get a little creative and create my own tag using some of the runes. If you want to do this tag don’t forget to tag me in it so I can see all of your answers to the questions I have chosen!

Anyways, onto the tag!

Trust – Pick a Book/Series Where Trust Was Betrayed

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If you haven’t read Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan than do not keep reading!!!

The book I chose for this question is Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, and the character is yes, you guessed it, Luke Castellan. I really liked Luke and then all of a sudden we realized he wasn’t who we thought he was, and it broke my heart. However, I remember thinking how genius it was to have a character so close to one of the main characters become the villain. It made for a more interesting and tense series that 10-14-year-old me loved. Honestly, I still love it even now.

Acceleration – Pick a Book/Series That You Accelerated Through

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I have flown through many, many books, but the first one that came to my mind was Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare. This is a pretty massive book, being over 660 pages, and I was so sucked into the world and the characters that I finished it in less than 48 hours. Every spare time I had before school, during school and after school was used to read this amazing book and I have absolutely no regrets.

Deflect/Block – Pick a Book/Series That You Have Blocked Out From Your Mind

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A book I try not to think about at all is The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancy, the sequel to The 5th Wave. I really, really enjoyed The 5th Wave. I thought it was fun and action-packed, and so I was super excited to jump into the sequel…only to be utterly disappointed. I did not like this book at all and I try and block it out from my mind. There were multiple POVs in this book that I did enjoy reading from, and overall, the story felt stagnant.

Recall – Pick the First Book/Series You Read

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The first book series I remember the most vividly that I read, would be Junie B Jones by Barbara Park. I borrowed them all from my older cousin and sometimes refused to give them back until I re-read them a couple of times. While I am not sure if I read all of them, I am certain I read a good chunk of the series and absolutely adored them. They lead me to read more little chapter books like Geronimo Stilton and The Magic Treehouse that eventually lead me to read the books I do today.

Friendship – Pick a Book/Series That Has an Awesome Friendship

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I have to go cliche with this one, and say the Golden Trio from Harry Potter by JK Rowling! They are different in many ways, making them unbeatable when they are together. When you think of an ideal friendship, you cannot help but think of Harry, Hermione and Ron.

Surefooted – Pick a Confident Character from a Book/Series

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Who else can I say but Jace from The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare? Jace is such a cocky, arrogant character, but you can’t help but be head over heels for him because he does mean well. He knows people look at him in awe and drool as he walks by, and honestly, who can blame them?

Insight/Foresight – Pick a Book/Series with a Predictable Ending

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It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing that this ending was predictable, but still, it was pretty obvious. The ending I am talking about is the one for The Selection by Kiera Cass because we all knew what was going to happen. I won’t spoil it for anyone who hasn’t picked up these books, but the cover of the third book also gave it away so…

Waterproof – Pick a Book/Series That Everyone Else but You Cried While Reading

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The Fault and Our Stars by John Green hands down! I liked the story to an extent, but I felt no emotional attachment to the characters so I didn’t cry…at all. As a matter of fact, during the movie, I forced myself to cry just so people wouldn’t think I was a monster with a black hole where my heart should be! Now, I realize not that many people cried during it either.

Power – Pick a Book/Series That Has a Powerful Message

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There is a lot of hype over the TV series at the moment so I thought this would be a suitable choice, and that is Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. I thought that this story holds a very important message that more people should be aware of. People need to watch out for signs from loved ones, or even the people around them, of suicide and realize it is not a joke. While I do believe the idea of suicide in Thirteen Reasons Why is a bit romanticized, I am glad that it is becoming a jumping point for more conversations and awareness around suicide.

That is all for my Shadowhunter Runes Tag, and if you want to do it than I tag you! Don’t forget to check out my last blog post: Spring/Summer 2017 TBR

 

 

Spring Recommendations!

Apparently spring is right around the corner for us so I decided to get you guys excited with some spring recommendations. These books are books that will make you feel pumped and ready for the sunshine!

kissingfrogs-framedKissing Frogs by Alisha Sevigny – Kissing Frogs is about a popular girl named Jessica who’s only chance at saving her less then excellent biology grade is to go on a trip to Panama to save the gold frog. This book is loosely based on the Frog Prince and is filled with new experiences, romance and lots of sun! I really enjoyed this quick read and it will definitely put you in the mood for some sun.

isla-and-the-happily-ever-after-stephanie-perkinsIsla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins – Isla is the third main protagonist we have in the Anna and the French Kiss/Lola and the Boy Next Door kind of trilogy thing. While this is my least favourite of the three, it definitely makes me feel in the spring/summery mood! In Isla and the Happily Every After, we follow Isla, a shy girl who has had a crush on an artist named Josh since the first day of high school and after an odd encounter with him in Manhattan, their relationship begins to blossom once school starts back up. This is a very fun, adventurous and light hearted book that you will zip through.

hidden-2boracle-2bfinal-2bcover-2b-1The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan – I don’t know why but this book gives me spring vibes allll over. Maybe because it follows our main character, Apollo who in Greek Mythology is the sun god. Yeah that is probably it. Anyways, in this book Apollo is turned into a mortal and finds himself completing a series of tasks to regain his immortality. As Rick Riordan’s books always are, it was a humorous journey and as always I really enjoyed it!

selection-cvrThe Selection by Kiera Cass – The romance in this book really, really reminds me of spring for some odd reason, but honestly, all contemporaries seem to fit into the spring/summer category…well except for a few. In The Selection, our main character is America Singer who enters a competition at the castle, trying to win over Prince Maxon’s heart. Things are complicated though when she has feelings for somebody else other than the prince though. This book is a rollercoaster of emotions but leaves a smile on your face by the end.

Those are a few spring recommendations for you and I hope you enjoyed! Don’t forget to check out my last blog post: Beginner’s Guide to: Readathons.

Beginner’s Guide to: Dystopian!

I enjoy doing this post so here is a beginner’s guide to dystopian books!

divergent_hqDivergent by Veronica Roth – This is a no brainer because the Divergent trilogy is one of the most iconic dystopian books ever! I really loved the first book, Divergent, and while the other two weren’t my favourite, I still really recommend this series because it is unique and a great read! Divergent is about sixteen year old, Tris Prior who has to take an aptitude test that will determine where she belongs, but when the results are complicated she finds herself having to hide who she truly is.

The Hunger GamesThe Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins – Again, another famous dystopian series that you have to read if you haven’t already. The Hunger Games takes place in a world where every year, twenty-four kids are picked to fight to the death in payment for a war that happened many years ago. When Katniss Everdeen volunteers to fight in her sister’s place, she becomes the spark of a growing revolution.

Shatter-MeShatter Me by Tahereh Mafi – Shatter Me is a fun and entertaining trilogy that is so poetic and heart wrenching. It follows a girl named Juliette who has been imprisoned for many years because she has strange powers, but when she is broken out she realizes she isn’t the only oddball in her world. There is lots of action and romance in this book trilogy and I totally recommend it!

selection-cvrThe Selection by Kiera Cass – This series is basically a mash up of The Bachelor and The Hunger Games and is honestly so awesome. The main character can get on your nerves but overall it is a thrilling and adorable read! The Selection follows America Singer who enters a competition for the Prince’s heart but things get complicated when she is in love with somebody else.

Legend_Marie_Lu_Book_coverLegend by Marie Lu – The first two books in this series are so flipping fantastic and you NEED to read this trilogy! Legend takes place in a futuristic California and follows our two main characters, June and Day. June is part of the army and Day is a convicted criminal, but when June sets out on a mission to hunt him down she realizes things aren’t the way she was taught they were.

Those are my dystopian recommendations and I hope you enjoyed! Don’t forget to check out my last blog post: Intro to Journal Writing!

Stress Relieving Books

Right now I am going through exams which of course, are extremely stressful, and during my study breaks, I find that reading a light and easy book is a great way to relieve the heavy stress upon my shoulders…since I am sure a lot of you can relate to this feeling, her are a few stress relieving books that I recommend!

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins – In this book you get totally engrossed with the life of the characters, and it erases any stress, anxiety or worry you were feeling before. It is playful, light hearted and a very fun read that I 100% recommend. Lola and the Boy Next Door is about a girl named Lola who is living a great life. She has a great boyfriend, an amazing best friend, and is almost finished high school, but when her first love moves back next door, her life is flipped upside down.

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han – This book is such a fun and entertaining read, and is one of my favourite contemporaries ever!  In this book, we follow Lara Jean, a shy and quiet girl who writes love letters to every boy she has loved before. When her secret letters somehow get out, she finds herself digging herself in a deep hole of lies to prevent her current crush from knowing she truly likes him.

The Selection by Kiera Cass – The Selection is a very quick and easy read that will have you laughing and squealing at various times throughout. The Selection is about a girl named America who has entered herself into a competition for the Prince of Illea’s heart, but things get complicated because she is in love with someone else. I love these books and if you haven’t read them, read them!

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead – Despite this book having supernatural people and fighting, you find yourself diving deep into the world and leaving our world behind easily. Vampire Academy is a great series that makes you feel a lot of great things. In this book, we follow Rose Hathaway, a girl who has been created to protect those higher than her, the Moroi (aka vampires), but when she and her best friend Lissa, return to the Vampire Academy after fleeing the previous year, they must both defend themselves against not only against the evil inside but outside as well.

Those are all my stress relieving book recommendations and I hope you enjoyed!

Easy Reads!

Some books are really hard to read, and require a lot of focus like high fantasy, but then there are other books that are fun, fast paced and just super easy to get into. While high fantasy is amazing, sometimes you just want to let your mind have a break, so here are some easy book recommendations!

Obsidian by Jennifer L Armentrout – This is the first book in the Lux series which is a very fun and entertaining book series. Obsidian follows a girl named Katy who’s mother has decided to try and move on after the death of Katy’s father, and moved them to West Virginia where they end up moving in next to 2 strange twins, Dee and Daemon Black. After meeting them, her world is flipped upside down as she learns the truth about who they really are. I love this series, and am currently re reading it just because it so fun and easy to read.

The Selection by Kiera Cass – While this book and its whole series has some mixed reviews, I adore it. It is light hearted and fast paced and the plot is just a really fun idea. In The Selection, we follow America Singer, a young woman who is picked to compete for the Prince of Illea’s heart but she finds it hard when her heart is elsewhere. Throughout the novel she gets to know the Prince and the other women competing and things get complicated…I really recommend this if you want to read a series where you fly through all the books in no time!

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell – When I read this book I could just not put it down until I finished the entire thing. Rainbow Rowell has a way of making her books complicated, yet extremely easy to read. Eleanor and Park follows 2 characters, Eleanor who is a big, oddball red head and Park, a music loving, moody person. When Eleanor starts going to Park’s school she catches his attention, but not in the way you think. They begin talking and really getting to know each other and soon their strange friendship blossoms into something more. This book is so heart wrenching and heart warming and you all need to read it now!

The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han – This is a summer romance book so obviously it is going to be a fun read but for some reason, this book sticks out above a lot of contemporary I have read! In The Summer I Turned Pretty, our main character Belly is going to the summer house she has been going to since she was a young along with her mom’s best friend and her 2 sons. But now Belly is older and the 2 boys, Jeremiah and Conrad had seem to notice too. There is lots of romance, friendship and tears throughout this novel and it is great.

Those are a few easy reads recommendations and I hope you enjoyed! Don’t forget to check out my last blog post: My 2017 Writing Routine!

Top 5 Cozy Reads

It’s basically fall now and for some reason I love reading in fall even more than in general. Maybe its something about how its usually grey and chilly outside so snuggling up with a book seems more appealing…anyways, these are my top 5 favourite cozy books!

Harry Potter the Philosopher’s Stone by JK Rowling – I love to read this book anytime of the year but during fall or winter it is just one of the best books to read. The book itself gives off a darker atmosphere that makes you want to get all cozied up with a cup of tea. It’s also just an amazing book in general that is highly entertaining. If for some reason you didn’t know, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone follows Harry Potter, a boy who discovers he is a wizard and is sent of to a magical boarding school at Hogwarts. That may sound like its all fun and games and it is, until he realizes he is being hunted down by an evil dark lord named, Voldemort.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell – This is such a feel good book that makes you feel warm and fuzzy. It’s also such an easy read that despite the fact it is a 400 plus page book, I could easily read this in one sitting. If you didn’t know, Fangirl is about a girl named Cath and her twin sister, Wren who are attending their first year of college. Cath is very shy and closed off and has trouble fitting in until she meets her roommate and her roommate’s friend, Levi.

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier – I recently just finished this series and it is AMAZING! If you haven’t read this trilogy please go check it out because you will not be disappointed. There is quite a bit of action in this trilogy but it is also really fun and light hearted. Ruby Red is about Gwen who was born into a family of time travelers but her family believes that her cousin, Charlotte has inherited the gene. That is until they realize Gwen has instead. Now she is thrust into a crazy world of time traveling, a world she is unprepared for, but at least she has a partner in all this who happens to be quite attractive and obviously she ends falling for him. But it is all more complicated than it seems.

The Selection by Kiera Cass – The Selection series is a very fun, easy going series that I have read multiple times. It makes you happy, and angry at times, but overall is just a good series to cozy up and read. The Selection follows a young girl named America who is now competing for the hand of Prince Maxon, but the only thing is that her heart is elsewhere.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins – I looooove this book and I don’t know, something about it gives me such a fall vibe. Anna and the French Kiss follows Anna, a girl who by her parents, has been sent away to a boarding school all the way in Paris, France. There, she meets a new group of friends along with a very attractive boy named Etienne. If you haven’t read this book read it right now!

Those are some of the books that make me feel cozy and remind me of the fall time! I hope some of these books interested you and look out for my next blog post!

Dystopian Recommendations!!!

I love the dystopian genre so here are a few recommendations for any of you looking for more dystopian books or if you are new to the genre!

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi – This is a dystopian trilogy that is full of action and romance and is just amazing. Shatter Me is about a girl named Juliette who has been locked up for years because she has a curse that allows her to kill by touch. One day, a boy named Adam is thrown into the same cell as her and together they break out only to run into the arms of the government that locked her up. Highly recommend this book because it will make you love the dystopian genre even more.

Divergent by Veronica Roth – I am sure most of you have read these books but if you haven’t you should! I loved the first book but that last two kind of let me down…you still have to read them though because of that ending. Divergent is about this world where people are separated into 5 factions: Dauntless, Erudite, Abnegation, Amity and Candor and it follows 16 year old, Beatrice Prior as she takes the test that determines what faction she is. If you haven’t read this trilogy I don’t know where you’ve been honestly.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins – I couldn’t make a dystopian recommendations post and not add this trilogy in because it is like the Queen of Dystopian. I really enjoyed the first two books of this trilogy and while the last book is kind of meh, I overall really like the story line and characters! The Hunger Games is about a girl named Katniss who lives in a world where 24 kids from the poorer districts are sent to the Capitol to compete in a match to the death. The books have a pretty gruesome idea but its very entertaining honestly.

The Selection by Kiera Cass – I am not 100% sure this is a dystopian but I think it is so I am going to add it in here. The Selection is about America Singer, a girl who is picked for the Selection which is a competition to win Prince Maxon’s hand in marriage. The only thing is, she doesn’t want to run in this competition because her heart is elsewhere. I absolutely adore this series because it is so dramatic and amazing. The first 3 books are my favourite but the last 2 books switch characters and it kind of looses its interest for me…but still read them!

And those are few dystopian recommendations for all of you and I hope you liked them!