Hogwarts-A-Thon TBR!

September 1, 2019September 1, 2019 by Nicole Sweeney ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I had such fun doing the N.E.W.T.S readathon last month I thought I might join in with this Harry Potter themed readathon too. Starting today, September 1st it is hosted by Georgi from @niffler_reads and @laureads on Twitter. It runs for the whole month and features 8 prompts, so let’s dive into my TBR!

Platform 9 3/4: Read a sequel
For this I’m reading Darkdawn by Jay Kristoff, as I imagine a whole load of other people are. It’s number one on my priority list so I figured I’m best reading it first!

Welcome to Hogwarts: A book over 384 pages
For this I’m going with Bloodchild by Anna Stephens. This is my other majorly anticipated book and it comes out right at the start of September so I should definitely get to it. According to Goodreads it has 503 pages, so it fits in nicely.

Sorting Hat: A book with your house colour on the cover
I had hoped to get to We Hunt the Flame during the N.E.W.T.S. but I didn’t manage to read it so I’m adding it on for this month. It has a blue cover and I’m a Ravenclaw so I should definitely get to it for this readathon.

Ghosts of Hogwarts: Read a contemporary
The New Boy by Paula Rawsthorne has been on my TBR for a while so I thought it would be perfect for this prompt!

Mr Ollivander: A book over two years old
Six of Crows is on my list of books to read by the end of the year and I still haven’t gotten to it so I’m adding it to this readathon for sure.

Diagon Alley: A book with lots of hype
I recently read and loved The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang and totally loved it so I would really loved to get to the sequel, The Dragon Republic, this month.

Flourish & Blotts: A random book from your TBR
I need to read A Shadow on the Lens by Sam Hurcom for a blog tour later in month. I’m really looking forward to reading this one, it sounds brilliant.

BONUS – Forbidden Forest: A book with dark themes
This is a bonus prompt if you read the other books, and for this I’m going with Crowfall by Ed McDonald because I honestly can’t believe I haven’t read this yet. I’ve loved the first two books and they’re dark and creepy so I’m sure Crowfall will be too.

So those are the books I’m hoping to read during Hogwarts-A-Thon! If you’re participating I’d love to know what you’re planning to read!

Six for Sunday: Books From My Childhood

April 14, 2019 by Nicole Sweeney ♥ 4 Comments

Today’s Six for Sunday prompt is books from my childhood. I loved so many series growing up that it was tough to choose just six! Six for Sunday is a weekly post created by Steph over at A Little But A Lot, you can find out more about it here!

1. Harry Potter – J. K. Rowling

I think this is probably on everyone’s list. I grew up reading Harry Potter over and over and I’m still obsessed with it today. I remember getting the first two books and just being completely absorbed and then it was midnight openings to get the next instalment.

2. A Series of Unfortunate Events – Lemony Snicket

I really adored A Series of Unfortunate Events. I got the first three from my parents as a birthday gift and I spent the rest of the afternoon making my way through them. I still have my beautiful hardback collection and they’ll always be on my favourites shelf.

3. Sweep Series/Balefire Series – Cate Tiernan

I was obsessed with the Sweep and Balefire series by Cate Tiernan. I loved the mixture of magic and romance and I completely fell in love with the characters. I named my first pets (two guinea pigs) Skye and Morgan after my favourite characters.

4. Abhorsen Series/ Shade’s Children – Garth Nix

I picked the Abhorsen series but honestly I pretty much flew through every book Garth Nix put out (and I still buy all his new ones though quite a few are in my TBR pile), I loved the magic and adventure of it all. I met him recently as an adult and he signed all my battered and beat up copies and it made me so happy.

5. The Lord of the Rings – J. R. R. Tolkien

After racing through so many fantasy books I bought Lord of the Rings with my pocket money. I remember being a bit intimidated by the size of the book but I completely fell in love and it definitely made me become a huge fan of chunky fantasy books.

6. Inheritance Cycle – Christopher Paolini

When I was young I really adored Eragon and the Inheritance Cycle. I didn’t notice the obvious similarities with Lord of the Rings and I just loved returning to the world. It was probably the first big fantasy book that I was eagerly awaiting the next instalment for. It’s something I’m hoping to reread in the future because I wonder if my feelings for this series will have changed.

So those are my six books I loved from my childhood! What are some of your childhood favourites?

Book Review: Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince – J. K. Rowling

November 5, 2018 by Nicole Sweeney ♥ 2 Comments

Series: Harry Potter #6
Release Date: July 16th 2005
Publisher: Bloomsbury Books
Pages: 607
Find it on: Goodreads. BookDepository. Waterstones.
Source: I reread my falling apart hardback for the millionth time.

Synopsis

It is the middle of the summer, but there is an unseasonal mist pressing against the windowpanes. Harry Potter is waiting nervously in his bedroom at the Dursleys’ house in Privet Drive for a visit from Professor Dumbledore himself. One of the last times he saw the Headmaster was in a fierce one-to-one duel with Lord Voldemort, and Harry can’t quite believe that Professor Dumbledore will actually appear at the Dursleys’ of all places. Why is the Professor coming to visit him now? What is it that cannot wait until Harry returns to Hogwarts in a few weeks’ time? Harry’s sixth year at Hogwarts has already got off to an unusual start, as the worlds of Muggle and magic start to intertwine…

Review

Harry Potter is one of those series that I find incredibly hard to review. It’s so loved and means so much to so many people that I’m never quite sure how to do it justice. Rereading the Harry Potter books as an adult has been a really fascinating experience. I am a child of Harry Potter, I read the books when I was in school, went to the midnight releases and basically lived and breathed the HP universe most of my childhood life so to read them again grown up is quite nerve wracking. I was scared I wouldn’t enjoy them or they wouldn’t live up to the expectations of my childhood self. In all honesty it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made, rereading them as an adult has really made me notice so many things I doubt I would have picked up on as a child.

Rereading the series has definitely made me re-evaluate which books are my favourite. I have always been a stalwart Prisoner of Azkaban fan, but the later books where things get darker and more complex are definitely more of my preference as an adult. I loved returning to Hogwarts and seeing the immense character depth and the complexity of the plot. It was at times familiar and completely new as I read parts of the story that I completely did not remember – there’s so much missed out from the movies so perhaps that’s why there were so many parts that felt almost new to me.

Harry Potter is still without a doubt one of my all time favourite series. The world building is brilliant and it’s so easy just to become completely absorbed in these beautiful books. There are some truly lovely moments of friendship and family and some truly heartbreaking moments too. I honestly can’t wait to continue on and read book seven immediately!

The Bibliophile Chronicles

Tag: harry potter