I Am A Bad Blogger

As you may have noticed -- if anyone is actually reading this blog anymore -- I haven't blogged in a very long time. Between the frustrations that both university and work have harboured, when I come home each night all I want to do is snuggle underneath a blanket and read. Blogging has, unfortunately, been the last thing on my mind.

But I am returning!

I have graduated from my first university degree this year, and during the summer I am only at work. So, I finally have time to sit down and post on this little blog of mine. I will have a new book review up tomorrow, and I will be posting more regularly (this also includes more posts relating to writing).

I look forward to interacting with the writing community again!

Top 5 Wednesday: Books You'd Want To See As TV Shows

I am finally back with a Top 5 Wednesday -- a weekly meme that I have (unfortunately) failed to keep up on. It actually didn't take me very long to pick five books that I would love to see turned into television shows, so here they are:

1. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas: I am currently reading Throne of Glass and I would absolutely love to see this turned into a television series. I know that a lot of readers would love to see this turned into a movie, but I would much prefer it to be turned into a television series so that Celaena had a longer period to develop. She is such a complex character and I would love to watch her on the screen for years!

2. The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare: Now, I already know that The Mortal Instruments is being turned into a television series (if you didn't know this it is going to be called Shadowhunters and they are currently casting characters!) but I just cannot suppress my excitement! This book will forever hold a special place in my heart, so I cannot wait to see it be reincarnated for a television series. 

3. The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare: If The Mortal Instruments can be adapted for television, than why can't The Infernal Devices? I can imagine that it would make a wonderful spin-off series, and I would just love to see who they would cast as Jem!

4. The Pact by Jodi Picoult: I can imagine Jodi Picoult's The Pact would make a wonderful television miniseries. The novel is heartbreaking, realistic and emotive, and also expresses a powerful message that I think would impact a lot of people's lives. 

5. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead: Now, I'm a sucker for vampire television shows (I've watched The Vampire Diaries and True Blood countless of times!), and whilst Vampire Academy has already received a movie, I can imagine a television series capturing a much darker vibe. 

What novels would you love to be seen turned into television shows?

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BOOK REVIEW: The Scorch Trials by James Dashner

This review is on the second book of "The Maze Runner". I have provided no spoilers to the actual plot, but have provided an honest review.

Title: The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner, #2)
Author: James Dashner
Publication: August 1st 2011, by Chicken House
Genre: Young Adult, Post-Apocalyptic, Survival
Pages: 359

Goodreads and Amazon

Rating: ★ ★ ★

The Scorch Trials picked up where The Maze Runner left off. The Gladers have escaped the Maze, but now they face an even more treacherous challenge on the open roads of a devastated planet. 

And WICKED has made sure to adjust the variables and stack the odds against them. 

Can Thomas survive in such a violent world?

I almost feel bad about rating The Scorch Trials only three stars, but I just cannot force myself to rate it anything higher. I had enjoyed The Maze Runner profusely -- Thomas really became an excellent protagonist, with the secondary characters slowly becoming well-rounded characters themselves. However, whilst The Scorch Trials was still a good book, I personally felt as though it had lost a little of what had made The Maze Runner great.

The Scorch Trials picks up immediately where The Maze Runner ended. This was definitely one of the novel's greatest strengths. Thomas and the group of Gladers, now only a small group, discover that whilst they may have escaped the maze, they have not escaped WICKED's clutches. Instead, they are still part of an elaborate experiment. Thomas and the Gladers are forced to navigate themselves through the Scorch -- a large expanse of sand and heat, occasionally touched by harsh storms. The Scorch is littered with infected humans, two of which become secondary characters. Their task? Fight through the obstacles placed out before them and get to the safe haven in two weeks.

I was very disappointed that there were large portions of this novel that Thomas left the Gladers for long periods of time. This meant that there was very little time to focus on Minho, Newt and Teresa -- three characters that I have grown incredibly fond of. Instead, a lot of this novel focused on Thomas building a new friendship with a new character: Brenda. At times I found her frustrating, almost infuriating, mainly because her personality was constantly changing and was unpredictable. Furthermore, Thomas constantly feels guilty for his growing feelings towards Brenda, and this is repeated continuously throughout the novel. It felt as though what made Thomas a good main character was overlooked because of his focus on her.

Overall, despite these faults, I did enjoy The Scorch Trials. It was a good sequel, flowing well from the previous novel. However, I do think it could have been a lot better if the novel had focused on Thomas and the Gladers, instead of having Thomas running around by himself or with a newly introduced character. There were a number of twists and turns along the way, some of which surprised me, keeping me reading because they were intriguing. But sadly, I still have to give this book three out of five stars.

What are your opinions of The Scorch Trials?

TBR: May 2015

Pinch, punch, it's the first day of the month! Hello May! As enter a new month, I have a new pile of books to get through! I have only chosen three definite books that I want to read, but we'll see how many that I actually get through. This month I have definitely decided to read the following: The Death Cure by James Dashner, Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas (which I actually started the other day) and Divergent by Veronica Roth.

The Death Cure by James Dashner:

It's the end of the line. 

WICKED has taken everything from Thomas: his life, his memories, and now his only friends -- the Gladers. But it's finally over. The trials are complete, after one final test. 

Will anyone survive? 

What WICKED doesn't know is that Thomas remembers far more than they think. And it's enough to prove that he can't believe a word of what they say. 

The truth will be terrifying. 

Thomas beat the Maze. He survived the Scorch. He'll risk anything to save his friends. But the truth might be what ends it all. 

The time for lies is over.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas:

Meet Celaena Sardothien. 

Beautiful. Deadly. 

Destined for greatness. 

In the dark, filthy salt mines of Endovier, an eighteen-year-old girl is serving a life sentence. She is a trained assassin, the best of her kind, but she made a fatal mistake: she got caught. 

Young Captain Westfall offers her a deal: her freedom in return for one huge sacrifice. Celaena must represent the prince in a to-the-death tournament -- fighting the most gifted thieves and assassins in the land. Live or die, Celaena will be free. Win or lose, she is about to discover her true destiny. But will her assassin's heart be melted?

Divergent by Veronica Roth:

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue -- Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is -- she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprise everyone, including herself. 

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are -- and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves... or it might destroy her.

What books have you got planned for May? 

April 2015 Wrap-up

Hello fellow readers! After months and months (and months and months, etc. etc.) of not reading, April 2015 is the month that I fell in love with reading all over again. I hadn't read anything for a very long time. Instead, I was letting myself become overwhelmed with the stresses of university and work, and my large pile of books became severely neglected. But I am so happy to announce that I am working through that pile once again!

I began April by re-reading two of my all time favourite novels -- allowing me to fall in love with reading all over again. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare is one of my favourite novels, ever. The characters, the plots and the numerous twists and turns all contribute to the book's absolute awesomeness. I rated it five stars. The second that I read that allowed me to fall in love with reading again was The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, which I rated five stars as well. Who doesn't love The Hunger Games?!

The last two books that I read for April was the first two books of The Maze Runner series. The Maze Runner by James Dashner, which I rated four stars due to a slow beginning, and The Scorch Trials by James Dashner (the review will be posted this upcoming Saturday). I decided to read the books after watching the first movie. I love that the books offer a lot more than the movie, especially regarding the characters: their personalities and their background. 

How was April for you? How much reading did you get done?

BOOK HAUL: April 2015

*waves enthusiastically* Hello my fellow readers! I apologise for being a little quiet this week, especially since I didn't take part in Top Ten Tuesday or Top 5 Wednesday. But I am here today to share with you all my April Book Haul -- and my first ever book haul post! Before I even created Imaginary Worlds I would read and admire other people's book hauls, which gave me new ideas regarding future books to purchase. I am pretty excited to be participating this month!

And, just before we start, I would just like to say that none of these books were given to me. I bought them all myself.

After a couple of intense, hectic weeks at work, I decided (spontaneously) to spoil myself and purchased Veronica Roth's entire Divergent series: Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant and Four. I haven't started reading the series yet, but I have added Divergent to my May To Be Read (TBR). However, I am sure that I am going to love this series as I have watched the first movie and instantly fell in love with it (I have pre-ordered the second movie, and am trying to wait patiently). 

I have been waiting to read these three little beauties fooorrrrevveerrr. I bought them off fishpond.com.au at the beginning of the month and I received them a couple of days ago. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas (which I hear is absolutely incredible), Mila 2.0 by Debra Driza and Across the Universe by Beth Revis are all the first books in three different series. 

And finally... The Bane Chronicles by the fabulous Cassandra Clare. Not only do I love Cassandra Clare, The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices, but Magnus Bane is definitely one of my favourite characters that she has created. I look forward to beginning this one soon.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them?

My Writing Process: Setting and Accomplishing Goals

Last Sunday, I decided to set myself a goal in regards to my current Work in Progress (WIP): write between 10,000 and 15,000 words.

I prefer to set myself some goals -- whether they be long-term or short-term -- when I attempt to do anything; whether that be writing or reading or work or university or something else entirely. Ultimately, I like to feel the satisfaction of accomplishing something that I set my mind to (sometimes feeling proud of one's self is a rarity, so why not relish in it?). And after this previous week, I am definitely feeling that satisfaction.

The current WIP that I am writing is a young adult science fiction story. I am not writing this story with the hope of someday seeing it published; but instead, I am writing it for a mixture of both fun and practice. I managed to write 15,000 or so words this past week (they are completely unedited, I must add). This means that it now stands at 45,000 words. It has been a very long time since I have written that many words for one project. 

I am very proud of myself right now.

This Upcoming Week's Writing Goal: Write between 5,000 and 10,000 words.

What is your writing goal for this week?