Mind Blowing Books

One of my favourite type of books are the ones that you walk away from with your mind blown because of the plot or the ending and I thought I would share them with you today. Feel free to leave a comment saying what books blew your mind and if you’ve read the ones on my list.

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1. Scythe – Neal Shusterman – Boy oh boy did this book keep me hooked and through twists and turns in as it went on. Whenever I thought I had it sussed, there was a curve ball thrown straight at my face and the second instalment is the exact same (or maybe even better). Scythe centres around two apprentice Scythes as they learn the trade of killing in a society where people can no longer die. Scythes are meant to be good and unbiased people who put a lot of thought and effort into who should be next to die as they fill their quotas for the year, but it turns out there are bad Scythes too who enjoy killing their quotas and who do it in violent ways. Honestly this series is awesome and I cannot wait for the next book to arrive in September.
2. A Court of Thorns and Roses – Sarah J Maas – we all know how much I love Sarah J Maas, I could not speak highly enough of Throne of Glass and then she wrote this book and the whole series and honestly, it is so much better. I was hooked from the first chapter of book one and the pages kept on turning. I was mind blown towards the end and even now years later, I still cannot get over the first book. AMAZING! Read it if you haven’t already.
3. The Storyteller – Jodi Picoult – Jodi Picoult is an author who’s endings you never see coming and The Storyteller is the best of all. I was gobsmacked in the best possible way. Even after rereads, this book still blows my mind. I am not even going to tell you the plot outline. Just read it and let your mind be blown alongside mine.
4. Behind Closed Doors – B.A Paris – This book from start to finish is superb. The ending blew my mind but there were moments throughout that were the exact same. I read it begrudgingly after my mum and sister kept telling me to read it and I am glad to this day that they did. I need to reread this book again soon – and I’m not going to tell you the plot of this book, go into it without knowing anything about the plot because it is so much better.
   

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Book Unhaul – August 2018

Hello all,

Once again it’s been too long since I’ve updated you all on anything. So welcome back! Thought I would treat you all to a book unhaul because it’s been a minute since I’ve done one. As you all know, we moved house just over three months ago and when I was redoing my bookshelves, I took the opportunity to purge my shelves and get rid of books that I know I won’t ever read again. This round of books is mostly YA books, so I’ll be donating them to my local library for them to use as they’re in good condition.

1. Lord of the Rings – J.R.R Tolkien – I’ve had this book on my TBR list for years, and I’ve never ever once had the urge to pick it up. I’m holding on to it for no reason. I’ve read The Hobbit and I didn’t particularly enjoy it and I can’t bear the thought of reading the Lord of the Rings books because I’m not a huge fan of the films either. It’s going.
2. Allegiant – Veronica Roth – I hated these books. I gave them to my sister who also didn’t enjoy them and she gave them back to me. I’ve already donated the other two in the series but I couldn’t find this one at the time so it’s going now that I’ve found it again.
3. I am Number Four – Pittacus Lore – I read this book ages ago and I remember it being alright but not loving it. I’ve kept it on my shelves all these years because I am a book hoarder. I hate getting rid of books but since buying the new house, I can’t stand clutter and I want everything to look tidy and clean. So out it goes cause I have no interest in ever re-reading. Plus is there not a whole lot of controversy surrounding this book.
4. Does My Head Look Big in This – Randa Abdel-Fattah – I loved this book as a young teen. I found it fascinating because it taught me about Islamic culture and I hadn’t read anything like it before. I would happily keep this book but I am choosing to give it to the library because I would like other young teens to read it and learn about Islam. It’s particularly important in today’s Islamophobic society. Hoping that for the children of the Scottish Borders will benefit from this amazing YA read.
5. To Be or Not To Be – Liz Evers – Not going to  lie here, I solely bought this book because it has a gorgeous cover and spine but I don’t actually have any interest in the book itself. I’ll even admit to the fact that I’ve only read one Shakespeare play and that was enough for me.
6. Pride Over Pity – Kailyn Lowry – I purchased this book when I was in my full swing love of Teen Mom and Teen Mom 2 in my mid teens. It’s actually an alright book but I no longer love Teen Mom or Kailyn Lowry so I shall donate it with the hopes that maybe there are a few Teen Mom lovers in my home town

That’s my little book unhaul for the month. I will probably be getting rid of more books in the upcoming months, I just need to wait for the days when I am feeling ruthless as that’s when I feel less sentimental about my books.

1. RLoLLLorL0#6ywrixsd2. I IIIIIIIII

Weekend Wanders – Southern Upland Way

On Sunday just passed, Boyfriend and I headed out to walk part of the Southern Upland Way. Quite a large section of the walking trail comes through the Scottish Borders and we love to go out walking so we laced up our boots and headed out.

We parked the car in Melrose and headed off through the square and up onto the old railway line. It’s a popular path for walkers, cyclists, runners, mothers pushing buggies and I can now see why. It’s beautiful, lined with trees on both sides and most importantly, flat!

We turned onto the road beside the Borders General Hospital, a wrong turning chosen by boyfriend and headed in the wrong direction for about a mile until coming to Upper Faldonside and realising that something wasn’t quite right. But hey, isn’t that what adventuring is all about? Getting lost and discovering new places because of it?

Anyway, we turned back and headed along the right path towards Darnick and then onto Tweedbank. Had a quick stop at the railway station in Tweedbank because Boyfriend hadn’t seen in before and then headed back along towards Melrose. We were meant to be going on a nine mile walk, but the weather turned whilst we were only about a quarter of the way through the walk, so we made the smart move of turning back and going a slightly different, but equally scenic route back along part of the Southern Upland Way.

This part of the trail takes you along the river to Melrose, along a particularly beautiful stretch of the Scottish Borders countryside. You get a great view of the Tweed river and all it’s fisherman, canoeists and kayakers as they make their way down the river and over the Cauld. 

We left the trail shortly before arriving at the chain bridge, but next time (hopefully in better weather) we’re going to walk the route abit further and see more of the beauty that the trail holds…although it will be a while until I attempt the full 212 miles of the Southern Upland Way!