Fall tbr Update

Hello all, hope you’re having a great Tuesday! I’ve taken a break from my NaNoWriMo, which is at 926 words, not exactly on target but oh well, to write a Top Ten Tuesday! Also if you’re doing/have done NaNo, how on earth do you keep up?! And writing that much in so short a time, I’m finding it very tricky 😣

This week’s topic is backlist, but I thought I’d revisit an old list, my Fall tbr, and see how well or not well I’m doing!

1. Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas ✔️

I succeeded! Yep, I polished of this one last month I want to say? It was not as amazing as I was hoping, but I still enjoyed it! You can read my review here.

2. The Railway Man by Eric Lomaz ✔️

I’ve read this! It was startling, shocking and amazing. It’s message is so important and I definitely recommend this novel.

3. The Raven King by Maggie Steivfater ❌

This list was going so well. Sadly, Gansey and friends continue to be Welsh kingless in my mind.

4. A Gathering of Shadows by VE Schwab ❌

I still keep putting it off for its brick like tendencies 😬 hopefully I’ll pick this novel up soon.

5. To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo ❌

I am so excited for this novel. It sounds so good and I am just as sad you with my failing to read it.

6. Magnus Chase and The Hammer of Thor by Rick Riordan ✔️

I’m currently reading this! And as I’m over half way through I think I definitely deserve a gold star for this one!

7. Hero at the Fall by Alwyn Hamiliton ✔️

We’re on a role with the ticks! I read it, loved it, and am completely gutted to have finished this incredible series. Definitely one of my favourite series ever.

8. The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon ❌

Ok, yes, I am still failing on this account. I will get round to reading this one it’s just not my most anticipated read.

9. Alex and Eliza by Melissa de la Cruz ❌

A read with a deadline. I intend to read this novel before I go see Hamilton in February. Also Hamilton 😍

10. Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein ❌

It’s sitting on my shelf glaring at me. I’m sure I’ll read this exciting, plane related read soon!

Lets Compare Notes

Have you read any of these? Are they on your tbr? How are you doing with your tbr? Would love to hear from you in the comments, and feel free to drop your list by!

10 Books to Bring you out of a Slump

It’s a universal truth that reading slumps suck. However, yesterday me and my book blogging friend sat at a bus stop and discussed this Top Ten Tuesday topic and came to the conclusion that we have the cure to all your reading slumps. A list of ten books so un-put-downable that you’ll never slump again, only crave more bookey goodness.

1. A Darker Shade of Magic

Despite being long (I find longer books aren’t always great for slumps) this novel is exciting, fun and very pacy. It trapped me in during my exams after a slump of “I’m reading too much for revision and don’t want to read in my free time”.

2. Rebel of the Sands

I know, I know I bang on about this series way too much but it genuinely did pull me out of a slump. The first one is also short, fun with an easy to follow story-line, won’t bog you down at all!

3. The Exact Opposite of Okay

Short, funny and very easy to read. If you’re feeling bogged down this will definitely cheer you up.

4. Maximum Ride

Ok, admittedly I read these when I was quite a bit younger but they are so funny it barely feels like reading. From Max’s witty narration to great descriptions of flying the first three of these kept me thoroughly entertained on a one ill-thought through night during my GCSEs.

5. Caravel

Again, a short novel but very easy to read. It’s got action from the get-go and just recently pulled me out of an albeit small slump!

6. Children of Blood and Bone

This novel is rammed with action, exciting characters and twists and turns galore to always keep you at the edge of your seat. It’s so well written you’ll soon finish all 500 pages.

7. Heroes of Olympus

Because sometimes you need something light-hearted to lift the mood. Any of Rick Riordan’s books will do, Heroes of Olympus just helped me out in several stressful exams seasons where all I needed was a handful of scrapy demigods and some silly jokes.

8. Harry Potter

Because how can you give up on the magic of books while reading about Harry’s adventures in Hogwarts?

9. The Hunger Games

I remember being absolutely gripped by The Hunger Games, I was rarely seen without the book when I first read it. It’s got a quick and exciting plot, isn’t too long and is written in a way that will never let you put it down.

10. City of Bones

Light hearted, funny and full of action. I raced through the first three of these they were so good!

So there we have it! Ten books that will drag you out of that slump and breathe new excitement into your bookish past times. Did you do a Top Ten Tuesday? Read any of these novels? Do you agree? Would love to hear from you in the comments!

Children of Blood and Bone Review

I really thought I couldn’t possibly love another novel where a small group of plucky, determined subjects rebel against their tyrannical ruler in an attempt to save their citizens, and yet here we are. What can I say, I’m weak when magical rebellions are involved.

A little slow at the start (but hey this is YA fantasy and I’m not going to begrudge the author for a little bit of world building, given how complex the characters and situations were) the action in this book was just perfect. We had calmer moments of our three amigos trying to work out magical scrolls, plot dangerous routes and create stiff banter and just as I start to think oh this is nice, what a fun little trip to the jungle they fend off whole armies, collapse bridges and somehow manage to have a sea battle in the dessert. Oh, and the sea battle? One of my favourite parts.

What really made this novel were the characters because their intentions and quirks were so cleverly interwoven throughout the novel. I wasn’t a massive fan of Zelie’s the king killed my mother and I hold every non-diviner personally responsible thing, especially when it meant relentlessly belittling the girl who gave up her noble life to save the diviners. But hey, at least it made for some great character development. Because I was all for Zelie and Amari’s loyalty and friendship by the end of this novel. And since everyone and their dog was hooking up couldn’t Zelie and Amari be a thing? They’re both so cute together!

Then there’s Amari, the sweet and brave princess who gains the confidence she needs to fight her father. My absolute favourite character, watching her become strong enough to fight beside her friends was one of the real highlights this novel presents.

“Perhaps I made a mistake.

Maybe a lionaire lives in me after all.” – Amari

Her brother, Inan, was another kettle of fish altogether. I really understood him in the beginning of the novel. Bent on doing his father’s will, terrified of failing and thinking he’s a monster- his complexities made total sense. But his character development was too quick, he fell from his rage fuelled perch too quickly and I honestly had no idea where his loyalties were by the end, despite having narrated a third of the book. Although unbelievable this wasn’t necessarily bad. His twists and turns, although I didn’t fully understand them, did give the novel the pace it needed

The final protagonist in this novel is Tzain, Zelie’s brother. He’s caring, sweet and horrendously responsible. I don’t really understand how he and Zelie had lived such similar lives and faced similar hardships when she is this rage fuelled ball of unpredictability and he was her opposite, but again this only embellished the plot. His story was about learning to fight the status quo, but of all the characters in this novel he changed the least. I wasn’t too fussed by this lack of progression given he wasn’t a narrator and, honestly, I couldn’t deal with all four of the main characters changing- I’d struggle to keep up.

Lastly, I will doff my hat to the writing style Tomi Adeymi presents us with. Her world of sticky jungle heat, dry, parched desserts and raw, hopeful characters was just enchanting. She included just the lightest touch of description to embellish the novel and each characters narration and personality shone through each section.

“My insides lurch as a cannonball rips through the deck of another boat. Injured cries hit my ears like shattered glass. The stench of blood stains the air, bringing Zelie’s old words to mind. The day we came to Ibeji, she tasted death.”

I mean how is that writing not amazing??? Then there was the complexities she explored that most YA authors gloss over– the hesitation Amari and Zelie have about killing people, even enemy soldiers and sailors, the fact that bad people do exist even on your own side and the way one size most definitely doesn’t fit all. There a clear grey area in this novel when it comes to right and wrong: even the tyrannical king’s motivations were explored- you can’t get much more balanced than that.

This novel presents us with four daring protagonists, a seriously scary ruler and moral complexities that will leave you reeling. My advice? Flick on the footie in the background, grab a cup of tea and settle in for a long read because these five hundred pages will have you from the get go.

My rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

My Favourite YALC 2k18 Moments!

Hellloooo. So to not overload you too much (I’ve posted quite a lot last week) I pushed this post to this week. But only slightly. And it’s still a lot of posting in a row. Ooops.

But anyway, with the excitement of YALC last weekend and everyone settling in to enjoy their new books I though I’d share a few of my favourite memories of the day.

If this post is extremely confusing, I have another friend called Hannah who I went to YALC with, I’m not just talking about myself in third person…

I got to practice my French

Not something I’d really expected at book con, but my friends and I attempted to answer a quiz whereby famous bookish phrases were translated into French and we had to work out which books they were from.

Alwyn Hamilton Recognised Us

Having seen her every year for four years, me and my friend were a little excited when she said she remembered us as she signed my copy of Hero at the Fall, completing my signed collection of the Rebel of the Sands trilogy.

My Friends can Pitch Impossible Pitches

My friend Hannah read her elevator book pitch at an agents arena talk and got a round of applause and high praise from the agents! Meanwhile I discovered that pitching a book in a sentence was near impossible 😛

On a similar vein, my friend Jo pitched her YA fantasy to an agent and got told it was very marketable! And she promised that if she’s ever signing at YALC I can tag along, defo not going to forget that one in a few years time 😉

We got Tonnes of Cute pics

I refer you to the image below:

Also in the pic with Alwyn Hamilton in I am wearing clothes! I’m wearing a strapless dress 😛

I ate Italian Food

Because all good days end with pizza, so we headed to Pizza Express and then a Pizza shop the next day. I may have an actual addiction.

Laura Stevens is just as Happy to see Us

I got to nearly the front of Laura Stevens, author of The Exact Opposite of Okay, signing line and saw her giddy excitement and enthusiastic crowd photo-ing as the attendant told her how long her signing queue was. It’s so nice how excited she was!

I got Cake, obvs

Feeling a bit bummed about missing out on meeting Tomi Adeyomi since her queue was so long, my friend and I got to fangirl about Children of Blood and Bone in the relaxing area and then got to scoff some very tasty cake. Not quite as good as meeting the author, but the cake was pretty great.

I got Books and Met some Fab Authors

My full list of purchases can be found here.

Despite the tricky signing lines and clashes I met Samantha Shannon, Alwyn Hamilton (twice because she was wondering round the convection and we bumped into her!), Laura Steven, Sally Nicolls, Louise O’Neil and Matt Kileen! And they were all fab!

So those are my YALC highlights! Did you go? Whats a cool Book con memory you have? Would love to hear from you in the comments!

10 Books I’d Mash Together

Did anyone else, in their youth, dip into the world of crossover fanfic? Did you send Percy Jackson to Hogwarts, or read about Clary Fray in Panem? This Top Ten Tuesday, from That Artsy Reader Girl, is all about mixing and matching our favourite fandoms*, so hold onto your laptops as I present to you these mad crossover ideas.

*I’ve taken the topic to mean grabbing some favourite characters of mine and dumping them in other novels.

1. Lila Bard in The Night Circus

Remember Lila? From A Darker Shade of Magic? How much would she, our pirate loving adventure seeker, love to live in a magical circus that travels the world and has slightly sinister undertones?

2. Katniss Everdeen in The Fifth Wave

She survived two Hunger Games, a rebellion that goes slightly mad and some serious make overs, let’s see how she fairs against the end of the world. Because I for one would love to watch Katniss attempt to take down the others with a bow and arrow.

3. Finch in The Raven Boys

This is Finch from The Hazel Wood, btw. You know the one, the sweet guy who loves fairy tales and attempts to help Alice find her mum but only receives hate and ingratitude in response. Yup that guy.

Wouldn’t he and Gansey just make the best of friends. Both from rich families, both wanting magic money can’t buy and both insanely scholarly. Can someone make this happen, please?

4. Tris in The Bone Season

I don’t know why but I peg Paige from The Bone Season and Tris from Divergent as a really great team? With Paige’s supernatural talents and Tris’s special divergent mind they’d be pretty unstoppable in Scion London.

5. Minho in Percy Jackson

Minho from The Maze Runner was in charge of mapping the maze, always being calm and collective. I imagine he’d make a brilliant leader of demigods back at Camp Half Blood.

6. Connor in Harry Potter

Connor is by far my favourite character in Unwind (I couldn’t stomach the dark plot, but loved the characters in this novel). He’s snarky, funny and says ‘Nice shoes’ to any bully he meets. Wouldn’t he just have the best banter with Ron, Hermione and Harry? And can you imagine him squaring off with Malfoy or flying a broom? Would be great!

7. Artemis Fowl in HIVE

Childhood throwback, but evil mastermind in a school for evil masterminds? Seems to work pretty well. Actually I think Eoin Colfer said himself that Artemis would fit right in at HIVE.

8. Zelie in Rebel of the Sands

From one cruel government to another, can you imagine Zelie from Children of Blood and Bone in Amani’s rebellion? She’d be brilliant! As the staff wielding menace she is, between her and Shazad’s swords I can imagine the Sultan standing no chance.

9. Izzy in Code Named Verity

Izzy is the humorous and funny protagonist of The Exact Opposite of Okay, loyal to her friends and determined that women be treated right. Wouldn’t she fit right in with Queenie and Maddie? And I’d like to think Maddie would give her a mouthful for insulting women in STEM to her careers teacher 😉

10. Starr in Noughts and Crosses

Similar themed novels, I think Sephie and Starr from The Hate U Give would make a great team and lend each other strength as they both fight a very tough battle.

There we have it! A full list of great fanfics (in my opinion lol) that if you ever write please link me to it! Do you think these crossovers would work? Any crossover ideas you have? What’s you favourite fanfic? Be great to hear from you in the comments!

10 Popular Books that Lived Up to the Hype

It’s still Tuesday, right? With just an hour to spare I’m here tapping out a top ten list that I totally didn’t forget to write today… Yup, that definitely didn’t happen…

Anyway this Top Ten Tuesday (just), from That Artsy Reader Girl, is nothing but topical given I’ve just finished Children of Blood and Bone: a seriously hyped up read that has left me bursting with fangirl feels and eagerly awaiting the sequel. So let’s see what else made lis of Popular Books that Lived up to the Hype.

1. Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan

Because Percy Jackson was seriously hyped. Everyone was raving about it back in primary school and I remember my arrogant younger self insisting I’d never touch the novel. Let’s just say I’m still gripped on Rick’s writing to this day.

2. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseni

I’d heard about this soul crushing novel from almost everyone before I was leant it by my boyfriend and finally made to read it. Sad yet hopefully, this popular novel remains a favourite of mine to this day.

3. Harry Potter by JK Rowling

The ultimate book hype. I mean which other book can you name that had quite so many midnight releases, fan theories, loyal readers, fanfictions, merchandise, theme parks, movies the lot. Harry Potter is not only madly hyped but fully deserving of it’s crown, it’s just so good and perfect for creating new bookworms!

4. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

I did warn you lot in the intro that this novel would be making an appearance. Her PR team were a bit odd at YALC but her book is amazing and she definitely deserves the massive signing line she had at YALC, even if I didn’t manage to get my copy signed.

5. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Who else has drawled over that film trailer about hundred times by now??? This book’s cover was splattered all over my Twitter timeline before the copy I reserved at the library finally became available. It’s entertaining, eye opening and I haven’t stopped gushing about it since- well deserving of it’s hype.

6. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Katniss and her berries became a sensation in both Panem and the UK as we all read the books, watched the films and fangirled to the extreme. I still remember racing through that first book in one weekend and then placing a hold on the second one at the library in very quick succession.

7. The Raven Boys by Maggie Steifvater

The fact I waited in a four hour signing line to meet the author on her first trip to the UK before I’d even read the books tells me these novels are hyped. The fact I’d do it again confirms they lived up to the hype.

8. Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamiliton

I am proud to say I met the author of this little gem at YALC as she was pre-hyping the release of her debut novel. Slightly interested at the time it wasn’t until that I got a very excited text from my bookish friend imploring me to read her novels and a year later we were fan girl giddy in her signing queue. This sad little tale came full circle as we clutched our copies of the last in the series- Hero at the Fall- in the signing queue this weekend.

9. Holes by Louis Sachar

Wasn’t this book just everywhere in junior school? It’s short chapters, funny story, quirky flashbacks and relatable characters made this novel both hyped and amazing.

10. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Weren’t we all once dabbing our eyes and fangirling about the little girl who stole books and wrote words in paint on a basement wall? This novel was definitely everywhere at one point and is still a brilliant yet sad read.

There you have it! Ten Books I still rave about to this day, sharing the already existing hype train! Have you read any of these? Think of any hyped books I might have missed? If you did TTT feel free to share your post and I’ll check it out!

Top 10 Books I read While at Uni

Don’t know if I’ve mentioned this buuut I’ve just finished education!!! I am now to encounter the perils of real employment, paying bills and being forced to wake up during this strange thing known as the morning. Gross.

With my student card expiring at the end of the month, although I’m hoping no-one will notice, here are the 10 books I enjoyed most during the last three years. A slight variations on this weeks Top Ten Tuesday from That Artsy Reader Girl, all about books I’ve enjoyed this half year.

And don’t worry, I’m not going to talk about those really expensive course books I’ve been made to buy, probably written by the lecturer who’s running the course, and definitely not the page turner they would have you believe it is. These are the fun books that I totally didn’t read when I should have been focussing slightly more on my work…

1. A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab

My favourite book I read at university by far! I remember racing through this 500 page, tiny printed novel in my January exam week of second year. Slightly detrimental to my exams, but I definitely have no regrets.

2. Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

Do I bang on about these novels a bit too much? Because I thought they were brilliant. I’m a sucker for that rebellion ok! I will resist putting Traitor on this list as well as Rebel, since I am already struggling for space!

3. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

This novel. I can’t even. It was so important, brilliantly written, great plot. Can I have three books at number one? Is that allowed?

4. The Raven Boys by Maggie Steivfater

Because spoilt rich kids, dead Welsh kings and smooth talking political seventeen year olds was just what my second year at university needed.

5. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Did I actually enjoy a classic??! What is this?? I just really enjoyed how this book portrayed women and relationships, it was a little hard to read but not at all what I was expecting!

6. Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

I was watching Thor (the movie, not the fictional god) on TV last night and all I could think was how Thor enjoys watching TV with his two talking goat friends.

7. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Ok, I think I need to lie down, how are two classics on this list?? I really enjoyed this book and it has a really cracking movie adaption.

8. How to Stop Time by Matt Haig

An interesting premise and action packed book. I’m a big fan

9. The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancy

A bit of a first year throwback but I remember really enjoying this book back in my small, first year halls room. When dystopian novel was all I read and I didn’t quite know how to cook pasta yet… I had so much to learn back then…

10. The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

A bit Marmite but I really enjoyed it. It was the first fairy tale-esque story I’ve ever read and I’m a fan.

So there we go- the books I’ve enjoyed most these last three years. What book did you enjoy most from the last three years? Have a favourite novel you read this year? Would love to read your TTT if wrote one so feel free to drop it in the comments!!

10 Books with Red, White, or Blue Covers

So I hear there’s some big celebration in America happening tomorrow and this weeks Top Ten Tuesday from That Artsy Reader Girl is all about your countries flag. Which is very appropriate given England are playing in the World Cup today!

As an UK/Aussie blogger my flags’ colours are red, white and blue too so here are 10 pretty red, white or blue coloured books!

1. Shades of Magic by VE Schwab

In red inside and out! There’s Red London, where the river is red and it’s all gleaming and the covers and spine are red for this series.

2. Gilded Cage by Vic James

Having read this recently I can confirm that the cover is blindingly white, with dark lettering across it. Also sorry about the grey, white text wasn’t really visible.

3. Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

If you are following me at all on Instagram you’ll know how much I love snapping pictures of this series- the glittery lettering, swirling patterns and that slither of a half moon over an Aladdin backdrop, they’re just so photogenic.

4. The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon

Second in The Bone Season series this dystopian-esque novel boasts a red cover with a flower in the centre.

5. The Fandom by Anna Day

Ok, yes the cover is most definitely not white, but before you feel to cheated the proof I picked up from YALC was white with a red strip on the top and bottom (a lot less pretty than the final cover in my opinion) so I’m counting it!

6. The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

We’ve had The Mime Order so why not it’s predecessor? It’s got a pretty blue spine and a blue cover, also featuring a flower.

7. Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

After the heart wrenching story of Code Name Verity I rushed to grab another book by this author- the red covered Rose Under Fire. Anyone read Code Name Verity?

8. The Raven Boys by Maggie Steifvater

Other than the large, black raven this book is mostly a white covered book.

9. Song of the Current by Sarah Tolcser

This has definitely not been sitting on my shelf for far too long… noooo not at all.

10. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Because who doesn’t like a good throw back? There was a red edition of this and with the name ‘fire’ in the title I think the redness is implied.

How’s that for a colourful top ten! What’s your countries flags colour? If you’ve done this topic feel free to drop a link in the comments!

10 Series I really Should get Back To

Isn’t it so annoying when you pick up a book in a series you loved a year ago and the next one has just come out but you have no idea who anyone is? Who’s this love interest? when did they get together? Why can this girl throw fire all of a sudden and did that guy really die?! Don’t even get me started on those random characters you seemed to have added. Like I thought Jace Wayland was a Demigod at camp half blood throughout most of The Last Olympian.

My point is read the next one in the series asap. This avoids all confusion and muddle. And, because I’m full of great advice and bad decisions, here’s ten series (what’s the plural for that? serieses? serys? seriesss?) that I am currently failing to read and have no idea who anyone is anymore! This is a Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

1. Magnus Chase and the Hammer of Thor by Rick Riordan

Fairly sure this series is now finished and I’m like one book in? Yeah it’s pretty pathetic.

 2. A Gathering of Shadows by VE Schwab

In my defence this book is really large and has really small print and will take dedication and a half decent attention span to finish. The fact that I just went and toasted some crumpets in the middle of that sentence does not bode well.

3. Hero at the Fall by Alwyn Hamilton

This ones not my fault, I don’t own the book yet. I mean that is largely my fault since I haven’t gone to the book shop to actually buy the book, but still. Not my fault.

4. Gilded Cage by Vic James

In my defence I only just read the first one of these! But that does not mean I won’t put of reading the second one for eternity.

5. Fractured by Teri Terry

I don’t even have any excuses for this one. It’s literally sitting on my shelf, I feel judged.

6. Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

Not technically in the same series (I don’t think so anyway??) but I loved Code Named Verity and would love to dive into her amazing writing again. Just another book on the this never ending stack known, fearfully, as my tbr.

7. Allegiant by Veronica Roth

I wouldn’t say so much that I haven’t got back to this one more that I’m avoiding it. It’s just I’ve heard things! I don’t know if I can take reading it! Not that I remember who the characters were anymore… was some called three?

8. The Raven Boys by Maggie Steivfater

Ok, big fail, I only got up to book three. This summer I’m going to grovel at my lovely friend Jo and beg for the fourth one so I can see if they actually found that king feller before they all get more OP. Seriously, was it just me who thought everyone seemed to level up each book?!

9. The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

I somewhat recently read the first one (and you should be impressed by that- the thing was brick!) but I haven’t started it’s equally brick-shaped sequal yet.

10. The Burning Maze by Rick Riordan

Not rushing to pick this up after the last one, tbh, but in the theme of ongoing series, here’s one I should try and finish. I do kind of like Apollo.

Wow that list was far too easy to write. Have you read any of these series? Am I in for a treat? If you’ve done this Top Ten Tuesday feel free to link your list and I’ll check it out! And for the love of anything if you know the plural for series please do say.

10 Books that Awaken the Travel Bug in Me

If there’s one thing I love more as much as books it’s travelling. I’m the girl that envied James Bond, not for all his crazy spy skills, knack for survival or nice cars, but for his fully stamped fake passport, exotic spying locations and freshly tanned skin. Since becoming a poor, broke student I have long since had the travel bug.

This Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, is the perfect opportunity for me to drawl over the crisp pages of my favourite novels (sorry the local library) and plan that definitely-not-too-broke-to-ever-happen trip around the world.

1. Anything Rick Riordan

I definitely didn’t wonder around the Acropolis Museum in Athens, built on the foundations of the ancient city with a glass floor that revealed it’s ruins, and look at a disfigured statue of Zeus that was thousands of years old and think “He was a real pain about that whole lightning bolt incident”. Yep,  totally didn’t happen.

Reading Rick Riordan’s Greek myth inspired novels gave me a total longing to visit the mountains and seas that inspired the ancient myths, see the temples and olive trees that convinced a whole nation to believe men’s appendages were lucky. It helped that pita is the best thing since sliced bread, or was it made before then?

2. Seeking Crystal by Joss Stirling

If nationalities were decided by the food you eat then I would be 300% Italian. Pizza, gelato and pasta are basically the only food groups I eat.

3. Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy

Because Ireland is cool and the accent is so nice and why oh why is the ferry from England so expensive??

4. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

This circus travels all over the world, so how can I not want to travel reading it?!?!

5. The Mortal Instruments by Casandra Clare

It’s undisputed truth that if someone writes a really catchy pop ballad about a city I MUST VISIT IT. If nothing else, just so I can irritatibly sing the song to whoever I am travelling with.

6. Black Heart of Jamaica by Julia Golding

Although this book is set in a period of history when you probably don’t want to be visiting Jamaica, I really want to visit for tropical climate and pretty views!

7. A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab

Is it possible to want to visit somewhere you live??? I’ll probably be sick of London by next year, given I’ve got a job there starting in September, but for now I sort of like it’s majestic charm and clutter of buildings from different parts of history.

8. Harry Potter by JK Rowling

Because who would not want to visit the beautiful peaks and locks of Scotland? And if I could be riding a hippogriff while there then that’s all the better.

Sadly I’m going to have to fail this week and leave it at just 8- I just got back from a road trip (how topical for a post about travel) and am a little bit tired from driving!

Anyway, if you could visit anywhere in the world where would you go? Have you read any of the books on this list? 

If you’ve done TTT feel free to drop your link off and I’ll check it out!