My Top Books of 2016 (December Book Wrap-Up)

Well, here we are...the last day of 2016. I swear the years go by faster and faster as I get older. So much has happened to me this year to help me mature and grow as a person, but that's for another post. For now let's talk about books!

Writing
After the disaster that was NaNo2016, I swore to give myself a serious break from writing / recovery period and that's exactly what I did. I didn't even do any writing for Wattpad, although I did announce my next story there on Christmas Day. My readers seem excited! I'm excited, too.

Reading
As stated in last month's post, I dedicated most of my free time this month to reading, and in so doing completed six books! Here's what I read:

• A Whole New World by Liz Braswell
• Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher
• Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon
• Lock and Mori: Mind Games by Heather W. Petty
• Narnia #1: The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis
• Narnia #2: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

A Whole New World is the first Liz Braswell book I've ever read, and also Book One in a series called Twisted Tales, in which the stories of various Disney Princesses are tweaked in some way and retold accordingly. The twist in this first book was that Jafar got away with the lamp from the Cave of Wonders, leaving Aladdin trapped with no genie to get him out. All things considered this book was very well done in terms of political correctness and thankfully appealed to older readers (aka rated PG). It was a good mix of romantic and dark, though the romance was way too forced and fluffy for my taste. I didn't particularly like the ending; it was rather depressing, even for fans of tragedy like myself. (Also I was totally right about Iago being important.) I do intend to continue this series.

Carrier of the Mark and I have a history that goes way back. Once upon a time there was an online writer's community called Inkpop, of which I was a member. Inkpop's primary sponsor was HarperCollins Publishing, and on very rare occasions the editors/agents of the company would browse through stories on Inkpop and (on even rarer occasions) offer authors they liked a publishing deal on the spot. This is what happened to Carrier of the Mark. Ever since then I've wanted to read it. And you know, I can totally see why this story would have stood out among others on Inkpop (which doesn't exist anymore, by the way). The story is really unique and the romance is so passionate it actually carries with it a level of legitimate danger, which I appreciate, as it adds another layer to the already dangerous plot. However while I understand why their relationship blossomed so quickly, I do believe certain things within said relationship came on too fast (aka Adam calling Megan "his gorgeous girlfriend" basically the first time they ever actually spoke to each other), and one could argue that the ending was way rushed. *SPOILERS* Like, instead of having Megan captured, rescued, hospitalized, and recovered all within the last 40 pages of the book, why not end it with her being captured, and then have the rescue and etc. be the start of Book Two? It would have been a great cliffhanger. I mean, I definitely intend to read the sequel anyway, but having an ending like that after all the buildup to the actual kidnapping? I would have been rushing to the nearest bookstore to get my hands on Shadow of the Mark to see what happened. Just a thought. *END SPOILERS* Overall, I thought the book was very well done, and I totally get why the HarperCollins people approached Leigh Fallon about its publication way back when. Congrats to her again!

Lock and Mori: Mind Games! GUYS. You may remember that I read the first book in this series (which I recently found out will end up being a trilogy) way back in February of this year. I wrote a full review of it here. I really enjoyed the book, though my biggest complaint was that Sherlock was not really in character. Well, as soon as I got a solid release date for the second book, I requested that my library purchase it. They did, and the DAY AFTER its release it was in my hands. I stopped all other reading I was in the middle of at the time to plow through Mind Games, and HOLY CRAP it was ten times better than the first book! Sherlock was much more in character this time around (and so was Mori, for that matter), and I really appreciated that the author finally started referring to him as just Lock. I mean, it's called Lock and Mori for a reason. I was hooked from page one and had a really hard time ever putting it down. The plot was intense and fast-paced, the romance was really tense but also really...well, romantic - and the ENDING! I had no clue at all who was behind everything, but I was totally blown away when it was revealed in the last ten pages. And then the last line utterly broke my heart! I wanted to scream in rage and bawl my eyes out at the same time! This author knows what she's doing, man. And I don't care what my TBR looks like when the final book is released. I WILL pre-order that sucker. I was really close to pre-ordering this one. Lock and Mori was my greatest book discovery of 2016, without a doubt.

I'll do a full review of the entire Chronicles of Narnia once I've gotten through all seven books.

I also feel I should mention that due to the unexpected amount of bookish gifts I received for Christmas (10 physical books and $65 towards book gift cards) my original TBR Takedown plan has been completely eradicated. I'll do some planning and get back to you with a TBR Takedown 2.0 soon.

And now...*drumroll*

My Top Books of 2016

The following are the books that managed to earn a 5/5 star rating from me in the year 2016:

• The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
• The Forgetting by Nicole Maggi
• Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
• Winterspell by Claire Legrand
• Of Metal and Wishes by Sarah Fine
• The Amazing Book is Not on Fire by Dan Howell and Phil Lester

Of these six books, the ONE that I believe was the best book I read this year is The Forgetting by Nicole Maggi. It was a book that I picked up at Barnes and Noble during one of our few trips to Montana every year, and it's a genre I don't normally read. But the premise intrigued me so I decided to give it a go. This book is an amazing thriller. Project Cain has NOTHING on this. It unashamedly delves into the world of sex trafficking that occurs right underneath our noses every day all while delivering a story that is both terrifying and beautiful at the same time. The romance aspect is perfectly balanced and never overshadows the primary plot. It stirred all the right kinds of emotions in me as I read it. I highly recommend this book.

My Goodreads Reading Challenge goal for this year was 50 books. I read 47 total, which is the same amount I read last year. I had hoped to at least one-up myself this time around, but the beginning of the year started off really wonky with my three lit classes, and I also have a tendency to choose rather long books. If it hadn't been for the fact that I received the entire Chronicles of Narnia for Christmas I would not have even gotten 47 read. My goal for 2017 will be 50 again. One of these years I'll make it happen!

Be sure to check back here in 2017 for more nerdy and bookish blog posts! Happy New Year! :D

That Was Easy (NaNoWriMo 2016 + My Grand TBR Takedown Plan)

Writing
I did it. I won NaNoWriMo for the third year in a row, beating out my previous final word counts by 200 - AND I won a day early. My final word count was 50,317. Not bad!

I know I don't sound very excited about it, but I am very happy to have won again this year. However, I feel like this year was just a bad experience all-around, for reasons I'll get to in a moment. But if there's one thing I have to say for sure about NaNo 2016, it's that it was too easy for me.

I think my not being in school this year was the biggest factor of this. It helps when you don't have fifteen million other words to write for three literature classes at once every single day. It probably also helps that my job - while amazing! - is only part-time. I had a lot of time to spend focusing solely on my novel this year, and I think losing the challenge factor took some of the fun away from it.

Another issue I had with this year's NaNo was the story itself. At the very end of October I was trying to decide between this and another idea. I am immensely glad I chose this one, because strictly based off of how it went, I wouldn't have made it past 10k words with the other idea I had. Both were contemporary New Adult books. The difference being that one was a "detective story" and one was a messed-up love pentagon. I struggled to get to 10k words because I decided to be a plantser rather than a full-out planner this year (my mistake), but once I hit that I breezed right through the next 20k words. Then I hit 30k, and it was a constant battle to find motivation to get words on the page. By the time I got to 45k, I was DONE. I wrote the last 5k words, passed that finish line, and felt nothing but immense relief that it was finally over.

Don't get me wrong - there were definitely scenes I enjoyed writing, and you can tell where those scenes fell within my novel due to the massive jumps in my chart. But as a whole, I'd say that while I liked the premise of the novel in the beginning, my enthusiasm quickly died out and I struggled with and practically hated the last 15k words I wrote. Everything about Jenkins and Smith 2 was just...awful. Ugh. I am so not proud of this one, guys. So not proud.

And you might be thinking, "But I thought you said it was too easy this year?" It was. The premise I went with was something I was totally on board with at first, so the first half of this novel came easily to me. I consistently kept on target with the ideal daily word counts. But then I hit the climax way earlier than I anticipated I would, and so the last 15k words were essentially filler space. It was awful - but it was so awful that I figured, "Hey. Can't ruin it any more than it already is." So I just wrote whatever came to mind to fill the space and called it done. It was too easy, and I hated that.

I wanted more of a challenge than I had this year. Initially I was trying to get the 30-Days badge for the first time, since I've yet to win it. I was doing so well keeping up with it, even when I was sick. But then there was one fateful day that I forgot to update my word count and I lost it. So then I decided my new personal challenges would be to A) win before November 30 for the first time and B) write more than I had in previous years. Both of which I accomplished, easily.

Long story short, guys - this year's NaNoWriMo was not fun for me, mostly because there was no challenge factor and the story idea I went with, in retrospect, was the worst I have ever conceived. So while I'm happy I have won three years in a row, I am not proud of this last one. But I intend to learn from my mistakes this year and come back stronger in November 2017. Also, I think that (for now, at least) I am going to lay Bryan Jenkins and Wren Smith to rest. I have utterly ruined them at this point.

All right. I'm done talking about this. Moving on!

I'm going to give a real quick shout-out to my Wattpad story before I get to the reading portion of this blog post. At the beginning of November I finished writing "Worlds Collide" entirely, and on November 25 I posted the final chapters and marked the book as being complete. The ending has been well received! I'm very happy that my readers are so happy. Their encouraging comments always make my day. It seems that my stats have mostly come to rest at 4,843 reads; 374 votes; and 165 comments. (Wow - that's a LOT for just one month!)

I will be announcing a new fanfiction story there on Christmas Day. No spoilers here! Sorry, Wattpad readers! ;)

Reading
As expected, my reading was seriously pushed to the sidelines during the month of November to make way for NaNoWriMo. I have not read a single page of anything in over two weeks. I feel like I'm dying. But there is good news to remedy that! First, however, I'd like to say that I finished Warlock Holmes by G.S. Denning this month, and it was SO much fun to read. Guys, if you're looking for Sherlock Holmes meets fantasy, this is the parody for you. I loved every single page and I am beyond hyped for Book 2 in May! I am also currently about 75 pages into A Whole New World (an Aladdin retelling).

All right. I'm super excited about this next part.

So if you've followed my blog for the past year or so, you'll already know this, but I'm going to say it again anyway: I have a problem. I have serious book guilt, and it has only gotten worse as the year has progressed. I started with 11 books on my TBR (To Be Read) in January, which became 21 by July, which has since only whittled down to 19 today. This is while I've been actively working to reduce it, mind you. It's just that bad. I love books, I love new books, I buy new books every time my family makes a trip to Montana (which is really only four or five times a year), and...the list of excuses goes on.

BUT NO MORE!

As of midnight tonight, on December 1, I am going to refocus my energy into crushing my TBR in my very own, personalized TBR Takedown. Originally my goal was to not buy any new books until I'd gotten it down to 10, but that is not good enough! (And clearly not an effective motivator.) My TBR is sitting at 19 books right now, including the one I'm currently reading. Our first trip to Montana is most likely slated for March/April of 2017, and I am determined to have my TBR down to ZERO by then.

Every reader has their own idea of what a TBR List is for them, and thus have their own ideas about how TBR Takedowns work for them. My TBR consists of books I own but have not read yet which, in my mind, should take priority over library books and whatnot. I like to keep my TBR to a minimum, which really means I just like to make sure I'm constantly reading. 2016 has been an epic fail of a year in that respect (and I do blame my three lit classes for that), but the time for sitting back and doing nothing about it is over! I refuse to wait until the New Year to change my ways. I will do it now!

That said, here is what my version of a TBR Takedown looks like:

19 Books on TBR (Including Currently Reading)
December - 6.5 books minimum to beat last year's Goodreads total (12 books left)
January - 5 books, consisting of one library book (I promised a friend I'd read it in January and cannot back out on said promise lest I lose my very soul) (8 books left on TBR)
February - 5 books (3 books left)
March - Finish TBR

The goal within this Takedown is to NOT read any library books or buy any new books whatsoever, with the exception of the promised book in January. The reason I have so many books lined up for December is because I generally take December off from writing because of the insane stress of NaNoWriMo (though this year I think the break will mostly be to convince myself I'm not a total failure as an author). And since I'll be off from writing, that leaves plenty of room for reading. Also, I'm currently at 41/50 books on my 2016 Goodreads goal. Last year I read 47 books total, so I want to at least one-up myself by reading 48 total this year, which means I'd need to finish the book I'm currently reading and six more by midnight on December 31 to accomplish that goal. If I could get to 50 I would, but I honestly doubt that is going to happen at this point. Curse you, incredibly stressful but ultimately helpful literature classes from January-May of this year!

I'm really excited to just leave my trainwreck of a novel in the snow dust and read like crazy next month. I'm also really excited to have created my first personalized TBR Takedown. I'm going to plow through these books at a supersonic rate; y'all will be left amazed at my reading prowess. So check back here next month to make sure I'm keeping up the pace!

Until then, I'm outta here. See you next time!

NaNoWriMo 2016 Update #2

This has been the easiest NaNoWriMo I have done so far. I think it certainly helps that I'm not in school (aka not writing fifteen thousand essays in addition to an entire novel), but most of it I think comes from writing a story I've wanted to write forever and didn't even know it. Now that I've written so many novels and have an array to choose from for publication, I've started to shift my focus on trying new genres and playing around with my style and voice. That's what I'm doing this month. It's my second attempt at New Adult Crime Fiction, but I'm trying so many new things I can't even list them all. The story itself is a mess and way, WAY worse than last year's, but I'm having fun with it and that's what matters to me right now. (Not to say that there isn't a serious plot, because there is; it's just all over the place at the moment.)

As soon as I recovered from being sick my word count shot up rapidly, and for a couple of days I was actually ahead. Then I fell into a more steady pace of being right on track, and now I'm sitting at just a couple of days behind. I intend to use my Thanksgiving break to pull ahead and win this sucker - possibly even a few days early since I'm not going for the 30-days badge anymore. (If you follow me on Twitter you know why.) I'm looking forward to the epic climax and wrapping up this story with a major development in my protagonist. If I end up writing any more Jenkins and Smith adventures in the future, they are certainly going to be a much crazier ride because of the events of this book.

It's all downhill from here, guys! The 30,000's don't even scare me this year.

I am currently at 29,139 words.

NaNoWriMo 2016 Update #1

So far I'd say this year's NaNoWriMo is going along all right, though I definitely didn't get the start I wanted. After writing 6,000 words on Day One last year, starting off with only 2,400 on Day One this year felt like a major step backwards, and having absolutely no excuse for it (homework assignments, class the next morning, etc.) only made it worse. I was pretty discouraged at first, especially since I was being teased about falling behind so quickly. But I picked myself up and kept going because even though I hadn't started well, I knew that once I hit 10k I would be able to plow through the rest of the story much easier, since that's when the plot really gets going.

Just as I suspected, the closer to 10k I got, the easier writing became. I hit 12k without a problem...and then I got sick, and have been sick, and so I've fallen behind again. But like I said on Twitter: last year I was 25k behind during Thanksgiving week and I STILL managed to catch up and win. I'll do so again this year, thank you very much.

So while I had a rough beginning, overall I'd say things will probably be easier for me from here on out. Just as soon as I get over this dumb sickness.

I am currently at 12,151 words.

This is Halloween (October Book Wrap-Up)

I'm 21 years old, drunk on root beer, and have to get this post written before midnight so I can focus on NaNoWriMo! Let's go!

Writing
Holy crap I got so much writing done this month. About halfway through I was worried I would never get the rest of my story over on Wattpad written before NaNo, but midway last week I suddenly got this burst of motivation out of absolutely nowhere, wrote 6500+ words in one sitting, and now only have 1.5 chapters and an epilogue to write before the end of November to finish up "Worlds Collide." It felt so awesome to write so much in one go. That was my version of NaNoPrep! My current stats for this story are 4,169 reads; 307 votes; and 144 comments.

But, as you know, National Novel Writing Month starts at midnight tonight! I have yet to announce my novel here, so I'll go ahead and do so. Last year I wrote my very first attempt at New Adult Crime Fiction, Jenkins and Smith, which you can read about here. It turned out awful as I had no idea what I was doing and majorly changed the plot at least once or twice, but I had so much fun writing it, and I had a fantastic idea for a sequel, so that's what I'm doing! My NaNoWriMo 2016 novel is titled Jenkins and Smith: Last Man Out. Feel free to stalk my progress here. I'm so excited to start writing!

Reading
My reading progress has been lacking recently, and I truly don't have much of an excuse for that. My plan for now is to put reading to the back-burner during November, then come back with a bang in December and read like crazy. So prepare yourselves for the December post! This month I read:

• Of Dreams and Rust by Sarah Fine
• The Amazing Book is Not on Fire by Dan Howell and Phil Lester

*SPOILERS AND RANTING AHEAD* Back in August I read Of Metal and Wishes, which I praised as being an even better version of The Phantom of the Opera. And it truly was amazing! I gave it five stars without a second thought. Then I began my determined quest to obtain its sequel, Of Dreams and Rust. And...ugh. Just thinking about the second book makes me so mad. I ultimately gave it four stars because it was really, really well done and a very worthy sequel, but I cannot get over the fact that A) Wen did not end up with Bo and B) BO DIED!! Are you kidding me? I would have at least felt better if she didn't end up with him and he lived, but not only did she choose Melik over him, he died saving Melik's life! Wen had no idea what an amazing person Bo was and how much better of a choice he was for her, even after he was gone. I am enraged that stupid Melik won her over. He does not deserve her in the slightest! UGH. #WenAndBoForever

Okay. Calming down now.

At the same time I read The Amazing Book is Not on Fire by Dan and Phil. Who knew that the essence of their videos could be compressed into a physical form, through mere words? I loved every single page of this adventure and am now even more proud and happy to be part of the Phandom. This was a much-needed reprieve after the tragedy of the book discussed above (even though I finished this one first).

I suffered a serious book hangover for the first time in a while after finishing Of Dreams and Rust. It took me a good few days to get out of the utter depression it left me in, but I've finally been able to move on and pick up a new story. I am now currently reading Warlock Holmes, which is fantastical and mysterious and stupidly fun. I'm loving it so far.

And that sums up October! NaNoWriMo, here I come!

Side note: Do not expect serious blog posts throughout next month, as I will be busy drinking Cherry Cola, eating M&M's, and writing my story at all hours of the day. Instead I will do what I did last year and give you two brief updates as well as a final recap of my ventures when it's all said and done. (AKA I'mma show off my winner's page again!) See you next time! ;)

Ratchet and Clank: Movie Review *Spoilers*

You may or not remember this, but way back in 2013 I created a post here on Endless Possibilities that talked about my (then) recent discovery of and love for a game series called Ratchet and Clank. I also mentioned that I'd read the movie novelization back in May after having seen the film in theaters. Well, now I'm here again to give you my review of the Ratchet and Clank movie, as well as my thoughts on how it compares to the games!

I love this movie. I was so excited when they announced it about three years ago, and was even more excited when the day finally came for me to see it. I abandoned my roommate on a Friday night to go see the premiere showing and walked away with the biggest smile on my face.

I like how the creators took the story of the very first game and revamped it, keeping it the same while also adding new elements to it. I thought that Quark's betrayal, while premature in comparison to the games, was a great route to take with the film, as it helped Ratchet's character development and maturity move along at a believable pace. I like that Grim was introduced as Ratchet's caretaker. It makes much more sense than the first game, when he's a fifteen-year-old who has essentially raised himself from before he could walk, even. I like that Clank's introduction is almost a complete parallel to his introduction in the games, and that the two's meeting went about the same as well. I think that from there the story moved along at a good pace, with a perfect balance of action and non-action scenes. (The references to the many, many types of weapons and tools was fantastic, by the way. I was so glad to see the holo-guise used in this film.)

One thing I'm kind of torn about is Dr. Nefarious. Of course I know him from the games and am familiar with his backstory, but seeing him pre-robot for 99% of this movie was very strange and took some getting used to, even after I'd seen it once already. While it was a look I wasn't used to, I did still very much enjoy his role in the film - those little smirks were the best! And when he finally did have that one glorious scene at the end as his robot self, it was FANTASTIC. That was the greatest end scene I could have ever asked for! (I may or may not have been fangirling in my seat during that final scene.)

Something I didn't particularly like about this movie was the addition of the Galactic Rangers. While Captain Quark has been known to work with other heroes in teams before, there has never been a consistent group that he has led like he did in this movie. I didn't like that Ratchet was so eager to become like Captain Quark when he can't stand the guy in the games. Of the actual rangers introduced, the only character I kind of liked was Elaris, and only because she preferred to think things through rather than bust down the door and start shooting without any preparation. While they were a good fit for the movie, I didn't really like them as characters. I also hated that Ratchet and Clank's induction into the Galactic Rangers had them working separately a lot rather than together. It distracted them from being able to grow a close friendship like we see in the games.

Which leads me into my final point. The ending of this movie (that epic end scene with Nefarious!) left it totally open for a sequel, should the developers decide to make one. I think they should, personally. It would give them a chance to expand on Nefarious' evil like they do in the games, this time without the "backseat" bad guy of Chairman Drek. It would also give them an opportunity to veer away from the Galactic Rangers' story and focus more on the adventures of Ratchet and Clank together, allowing the characters to have a better chance for their friendship to grow. (While I loved that Clank came back to stay with Ratchet in the end, he really had no reason to. He barely knew Ratchet. His mindset was probably something along the lines of, "My mission is completed. Ratchet was the first person I met, and he helped me, so maybe I should stay with him now." But that was it. He didn't really stay because they were good friends.) I also think it would be neat to see the developers expand on the story of the Lombaxes and what happened to them, or go into further detail about why Clank was a defect (though that may not be valid anymore due to his altered backstory). The games have excellent plots for both that would be amazing to see on the big screen!

Overall, despite the movie's much lighter tone and kid-friendly plot, I thought that the movie adaptation of Ratchet and Clank was awesome. I loved every minute of it and am proud to own it now. The subtle references to other characters and plots of the games throughout the movie were great. I especially liked cameo at the very, very end of the credits. (If you follow the games, you know who shows up.) I am very much hoping for a sequel!

My Thoughts on TMNT: Out of the Shadows *Spoilers*

Everything about this movie is leaps and bounds ahead of the first one. I saw it in theaters twice, and when I came home from the first showing on opening night I felt so much better about it than I did coming home after seeing the first movie in the theater on its opening night. The story is better, the characters are better both inside and out, there are tons of great references, and the few "retro" characters that are introduced are spot on (except for Krang...I'll get to that in a moment). Not to say that the first movie was awful, because it wasn't. I thoroughly enjoyed the first movie. But I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel ten times more.

I am beyond glad that the story for this film was actually taken from the Turtles' universe. It made it so much better! (Mind blown, right?) The Turtles finally take center stage and command the screen from beginning to end, with great plot pacing and good character development - especially in Leo. Casey Jones was a good addition to the team; I thought Stephen Amell was a great choice for him...and at first I was like "where's his long hair?" but after having seen the movie a few times I think that shorter hair suits this version of Casey better. We also finally get to see some legit Shredder action, whereas in the first movie he hid in the shadows all the way up until the final battle. Although Shredder did not physically fight like he did in the first film, he was at least more active in and in control of his clan's work this time. It was great to see Baxter Stockman become a more prominent character in this film (casting choice for him was on point, by the way), as well as seeing Bebop and Rocksteady make their first live-action appearance. I thought their characters were portrayed excellently, and the brief battle between them and the Turtles was a ton of fun to watch. As for Krang...it was awesome to see him make his first live-action appearance as well, and despite my personal opinions about his voice he was certainly a force to be reckoned with! I look forward to seeing him return in the next movie.

I really appreciate that this movie is more Turtle-focused than April-focused. I mean...let's be real. In the first movie, we didn't fully see the Turtles for the first time until about fifteen to twenty minutes in. In this movie, they are the FIRST characters we see, and we don't see April until about ten or fifteen minutes in. That is a great turnaround! I also really appreciate that this time, the Foot Clan are actually NINJAS instead of standard NYC criminals with guns. They fight like ninjas and never once pull out a weapon that isn't a sword or shuriken. (Oh, and the credits song? Best credits song ever!)

Truly, the only issue I've had with this movie from the first time I saw it to now that I've seen it a few times is Krang. I'm thrilled that he was introduced into this movie universe, I thought that he played an important part in the story and of course his final battle against the Turtles was fantastic. His android body was an excellent blend of the retro look with a more modern twist (unlike the over-the-top Shredder suit from the first movie). Everything about him as a character was great and enjoyable...except for one thing. His voice actor.

Whoever thought that Brad Garrett was a good voice acting choice for Commander Krang needs assistance in making good decisions. I'm not naive - of course Krang cannot always sound like the 80's Krang (and honestly, I'm glad they didn't try to duplicate that voice), and every version of him is unique (like with the 2003 and 2012 series), but here's the thing. So far as we're aware, Krang is not part of a race of Kraang - he is KRANG. The only Krang. Like, an individual instead of a species. With this being the case, clearly this film's version of him was trying to pull inspiration from the 80's. Again, I didn't expect him to sound like 80's Krang, nor did I want him to. But when trying to portray Krang as an individual, there is a right and wrong way to do so. Perhaps part of this has to do with the fact that Krang's character as a whole was different, but still - Brad Garrett was a terrible choice of voice. His style of voicing Krang portrayed the character as a laidback, chill, backstabbing alien who saw Earth as just another trophy to add to his growing list of "worlds I've destroyed for fun." This is not the Krang that Turtles fans know to be confident, demanding, focused, and power-hungry. I will admit that "Out of the Shadows" nailed his attitude towards Shredder and all other beings in general, but this is only one saving grace in a line of mistakes that could have easily been avoided with a better voice actor. Anyone can sound nonchalant - it takes a great voice to pull off an evil alien warlord hell-bent on expanding his empire. Brad Garrett did not deliver this type of voice at all. I have nothing against him as a person or even as an actor - I've heard him voice other characters in other films and portray them very well. I simply do not agree with Brad Garrett as the voice of Krang.

One thing I noticed that this movie did not address in the slightest is what ever happened to Eric Sacks. He was never mentioned, his face was never seen anywhere, his companies were never mentioned, cleanup of the disaster that took place on top of his business building was never explained. It's like he never existed. While most people who saw the first film probably assume that he was in prison somewhere in the sequel, his being alive but put away doesn't explain why he was never at least mentioned briefly. In light of all of this, I propose a new theory. In the final battle against Eric Sacks, Vern hit him over the head with a microscope - those things are heavy, and head injuries are never minor. This, in addition to no mention of him in "Out of the Shadows," leads me to believe that he died from the injury. I don't know this for certain, but until further notice, it is my personal theory.

The ending of this film leaves it wide open for several different story options. In the absence of the Shredder, we may see Karai step up as leader of the Foot Clan. We might get to see the briefly mentioned "facility in Tokyo" and learn whether Shredder has established an empire there. We may get some more backstory. There are also questions to be answered. What will happen to Bebop and Rocksteady? Obviously Krang will return, but when he does, will he bring an army? Will there be a full-out war that could possibly involve the Triceratons? (There was one frozen on his ship next to Shredder - just saying!) Will we learn more about the alien commander, his story, where he comes from, why he's on the warpath? Will Shredder return? If he does, what will that be like? Wherever the filmmakers decide to take it, as long as the third movie is done in the way this one was, it will be amazing. I can't wait to see it!

Falling Behind (September Book Wrap-Up)

I'm not super proud of how this month went in terms of reading, but writing is a whole other story. Here we go!

Writing
I actually feel pretty good about how my writing has gone this month, which is good, because that's really my focus now that I'm out of school. Over on Wattpad I released three new chapters, which were all received well. Big things are happening in "Worlds Collide!" My current stats are 3,680 reads; 272 votes; and 130 comments.

But the even bigger news is what's happening in the world of NaNoWriMo. September marked the beginning of prep season, and tomorrow marks the beginning of crunch time! It's that time of year for planners like me - choose a novel, plan it out, map everything, and be ready to go by November 1, which is rapidly approaching! I used September to write out all of the story ideas I've had recently and give a basic synopsis for each, then revisit the list every now and again to see what was speaking to me. Last week I narrowed my choices down to the top four that jumped out at me, and from there I've narrowed it down to two this week. I've done some basic planning for each story (naming characters, developing a basic idea of the plot, etc.), but October will reveal which novel I'll write in November. So stay tuned for that!

Reading
This month was even slower than the last in terms of reading; I only completed two books cover to cover, and they were both under 200 pages. I really don't have an excuse as to why this is...I'm done job hunting, so...yeah. In any case, here's what I read:

• Beware the Harvesters by Marie Gilbert
• TMNT: Out of the Shadows Movie Novelization by David Lewman

I did a full review of Beware the Harvesters here, if you would like to know my thoughts on that. The TMNT book was interesting because it included details that were left out of the movie - some of which would have been good to know! It also ended before the full story of the movie, as a way to encourage people to go watch it, I'd imagine. But it was a fun read!

I am currently reading Of Dreams and Rust by Sarah Fine (sequel to the amazing Of Metal and Wishes). This book is taking the tension from the first book to a whole new level, and only strengthening my desire for Wen to end up with Bo rather than Melik. (For the record, I wanted Christine to end up with the Phantom rather than Raul as well. It's a direct parallel.) I'm only about 70 pages into it, and I'm hoping to have it finished sometime next week.

I am also currently reading The Amazing Book is Not on Fire by Dan Howell and Phil Lester. I love Dan and Phil on YouTube, and being able to learn about their childhoods and how they met and started their YouTube journeys both alone and with each other is really, really cool. I'm very excited to get further along in their story - right now I'm about 50 pages in. I hope to have this finished sometime next week as well, because I really want to be able to read a book I've had my eye on for a while - you'll hear about it in October! ;)

And that's all she wrote for September, folks. Moving into my birthday month now! Crazy. See you next time!

Beware the Harvesters: Book Review

Congratulations to my grandmom on publishing her third book! (I love the cover for this one. You don't even realize how powerful it is until after you've read it.) As always, I'm going to be 100% honest about what I think. Here we go.

Beware the Harvesters is the third in a saga of sci-fi / dystopian novellas that tells the continuing story of twins Michael and Lucy and their friends as they do everything in their power to survive the apocalypse and take down The Leader, whose identity has finally been revealed. Meanwhile on Solanda a struggle for political power threatens to become catastrophic when Princess Bird is sent on a mission to find the goddess Lilth, leaving her home planet at the mercy of the evil Prince Falini.

Some things I liked about this book are as follows: This book was intense, but in a good way. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. What truly amazes me about this particular installment is that there are so many subplots going on, but they are all easy to keep up with and they are all vital components of the main plot. For example, we follow the individual paths of Lucy, Michael, Patty, and Bird, all while learning different things about The Leader and how far his power truly reaches. I'm blown away that it all fit together so well! A nice plus was that the editing was on point. My review of Saving Solanda was kind of negative due to the many grammatical errors strewn throughout, but Beware the Harvesters was much better maintained and flowed more smoothly. Though there were still some errors, they were not nearly as distracting. (Also, my three cousins had roles in this book. Nice!)

Some things I didn't prefer about this book: I still don't like language. I think that's kind of a given at this point, though. Really, I think the only major quarrel I had with this book was the religious elements within. What this book suggests goes completely against my personal religious beliefs and none of it sat well with me. I'll just leave it at that.

Overall, I gave this book a 3/5 for a fantastic storyline, interesting characters, and its good pacing. Despite the elements I disliked, my hope is to be able to move past all that so I can finish off the saga with the final book next summer, which I'm very much looking forward to. Congrats again, grandmom!

Intergalactic Book Tag (August Book Wrap-Up)

It's kind of ironic that I chose this month for the Intergalactic Book Tag because I'm on a serious Ratchet and Clank kick right now.

Writing

I don't have much to report on writing for this month. Going on vacation both helped and hindered my creative spirit. Lots of ideas, few written down. While I never actually posted another chapter on Wattpad in August, I did write one and plan to post it this Friday. However my fanbase has somewhat exploded this month. I've gotten a lot of new readers. My current stats for "Worlds Collide" are 3,350 reads; 247 votes; and 113 comments. (Wattpad has updated their website again, which infuriates me. I don't understand why they feel the need to change everything every few months.)

Also, NaNoWriMo prep season officially starts tomorrow! The theme for this year is SPACE! How cool is that? :D

I have no idea what I'm going to write this November yet, but I have had a couple of ideas. I believe this year will be the hardest I've attempted because I'll be working full-time. But then again, I managed the past two years as a full-time student, and there will be no homework this time around. Hmm...we shall see! Either way, I'm really excited!

Reading

I did not do very much reading at all this month either (most of that is due to my being on vacation and then job-hunting when I got back), but I did a couple of books read.

• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
• Mutant Message Down Under by Marlo Morgan
• Of Metal and Wishes by Sarah Fine

I am also currently rereading Lock and Mori by Heather W. Petty. Book Two comes out in December. (I don't count it as part of my wrap-up because I've already read it once this year, and Goodreads doesn't count the same book twice in one year, either.)

The Kite Runner took me on the biggest emotional roller-coaster a book has offered me in a long time! It was extremely slow at first, but about 80 pages in you get hit with a brick of "holy crap this just got real serious." After that you get to suffer through another 50-70 pages of "I wish the protagonist would die, he's so awful." Eventually, however, you emerge into the downhill fall of sad, depressing, tragic, heartbreaking, and "this book is eating my very soul." I cried. Several times. This is the first time in five years that a book has driven me to tears. Everything about The Kite Runner was so dark and unfair, but the message it offered was outstanding. Make sure you're in decent mental condition before reading this novel. It will tear you APART. (It's a good thing I went on vacation immediately after finishing it. I wouldn't have been able to read another book for days anyway.)

Quick backstory on why I chose to read Mutant Message Down Under. I'm currently participating in a reading challenge my former college put out just before the end of last school year, which consists of twelve books to be read by the end of 2016. You can choose the books you read as long as they follow along a certain prompt or category. For example, "A book about a culture you are unfamiliar with." Well, thanks to my many worldly college classes and own personal studies, I can honestly say I know at least a little bit about a lot of different cultures all over the world. The only place I could think that I absolutely knew nothing about was Australia. Thus the search for a book about Australian culture began, and I ended up with Mutant Message. The book itself did not have almost any dialogue due to the language barrier between the main character and the Aboriginal tribe she was traveling with, but despite this I found the narrative to be very engaging. Once I started I couldn't seem to stop. It was a very interesting and enlightening read. And now I can say I know a little bit about Aboriginal culture!

I'm in the middle of Of Metal and Wishes as of this blog post, but so far I can say that it is really, really unique and interesting. Phantom of the Opera meets Steampunk, and things just got a whole lot darker. I have just over 70 pages left in this one.

The Intergalactic Book Tag

1) Space: Name a book that is out of this world (that takes place in a world different from our own.)

• I read a lot of books that take place in worlds different from ours, since I primarily read fantasy. So for this answer I decided to go with the last book I read that took place somewhere other than Earth, and that was Winterspell by Claire Legrand. Only about 10% of Winterspell takes place on Earth; the rest of it takes place in a world called Cane, which is filled with darkness and magic. (I gave it five stars, by the way - since I had not yet finished it as of my last wrap-up.)

2) Black Hole: Name a book that completely sucked you in.

• The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex. I was so excited to read this book after I discovered it thanks to the release of the movie HOME. Once I started, I simply could not put it down. The characters were charming and the plot was complex. I couldn't wait to see how it ended, so I read it as quickly as I could (considering I was going through a tragedy with a friend at the time). I hadn't even finished the library copy I was reading when I decided to buy it from Barnes and Noble. I loved it! Then I read the sequel, Smek for President, and finished it in just a couple of days. Both of these books sucked me in from the first word on the first page. They were so much fun to read.

3) Lightspeed: Name a book you are anticipating so much that you wish you could travel at lightspeed to get to it.

• Lock and Mori: Mind Games by Heather W. Petty. Back in February I came upon Lock and Mori and fell in love with the concept even before I started reading. I plowed through it, loving the characters and story despite the fact that it really wasn't a Sherlock story as it was advertised. (You can read my thoughts on that here.) As soon as I finished I looked to see if there would be more books, and there will be! Book Two is set to release on December 6th, and I can't wait to read it! The last line of the first book was the greatest last line ever. I was hooked from the word go, and I wish I could travel at lightspeed to get to Mind Games!

4) Nebula: Name a book with a beautiful cover.

• Originally I was going to say A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray for this one, but then I remembered I showed this one off last month for Instagram in the Social Media Book Tag, so I have since changed my answer to show off another gorgeous book cover: A Canticle for Lebowitz by Walter M. Miller, Jr. Look at it! It's so awesome! (The book was a masterpiece, by the way. Absolutely astounding.)

5) Multiverse: Name a companion or spinoff series you love.

• When I was in early high school, I loved Julie Kagawa's The Iron Fey saga. I can't believe it didn't get more recognition than it did. So when she released a companion trilogy titled Call of the Forgotten, of course I went to read it. I loved it just as much as the original saga - it was different, but still kept the essence of the first four books, and I loved that. (I have yet to read the last book in the trilogy, but I fully intend to!)

6) Gravity: Name your favorite romantic pairing that seems to have a gravitational pull to each other.

• I'm using the same books for two answers in a row, but I don't care. My favorite romantic pairing is Meghan and Ash from Julie Kagawa's The Iron Fey saga. Oh my goodness, I fell in love with these two so hard, so fast. To this day they are my OTP in the book world.

7) The Big Bang: Name the book that got you started on reading.

• I can't pinpoint just one book that got me started - I've been reading since before I knew words.

8) Asteroid: Name a short story or novella that you love.

• I literally cannot think of anything for this answer. I don't read short stories or novellas, really. I read novels. Lots of them.

9) Galaxy: Name a book with multiple POV's.

• A Daring Sacrifice by Jody Hedlund is told from the alternating perspectives of Lady Juliana and Lord Collin. Now, I have to admit something here: I strongly dislike multiple-POV books unless they are done really, really well. I much prefer to form a strong attachment with just one character and root for him or her, rather than having to split my attention and loyalties between more than one protagonist. One example of a multiple-POV book that was done well is Carry On by Rainbow Rowell. It was told mostly from the alternating perspectives of Simon and Baz, who had the same goal while having their different opinions about how to reach said goal. They worked together throughout the book, so when they split up to do different tasks it was nice to be able to keep up with it all without pages of filling each other in. Carry On also included the POVs of a select few other characters, which I didn't really like, but overall it was put together really well. So basically, I won't absolutely refuse to read a multiple-POV book; I just don't prefer them.

10) Spaceship: Name a book title that would be a great name for a spaceship.

• Oh my goodness, how I've struggled with this one. Since I can't decide, I'll just say that it would probably come down to one of these three: The Tempest by William Shakespeare, Carry On by Rainbow Rowell, or Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman.

And that finishes off my summer of book tags! Starting next month I'll be going back to regular book wrap-ups. Hope you enjoyed learning a little more about my favorite reads and bookish opinions! See you next time!

Defending Myself

There are some things I need to say.

A couple of weeks ago I told my family and friends that I am taking a year off of school. I was met with some negative feedback, as was expected, but what astounds me is the amount of negativity I've been and am still receiving. I've heard various comments, such as "if you take a year off you'll never go back" or "it's your own fault for not getting a job this summer" or "you're going to forget everything you've learned."

I prepared myself to hear such comments when I first announced it. I knew my family and friends would not be overly excited at first, and I accepted that it was not what we all thought was going to happen, so it would be difficult to adjust. It was difficult for me to adjust, at first. But more on that in a minute.

The reason I'm writing this blog post is to put in writing my thoughts on the matter. Why I made the decision, and my response to the incredible amount of negativity I've been experiencing over the past couple of weeks.

When I graduated from Sheridan College this past May, the thought of not immediately going to a university was not on my mind at all. I had every intention of going to MSUB this fall and start working towards my Bachelor's degree, which was - and still is - my end goal in terms of education. I was on the university's site all the time, looking at courses and planning and daydreaming about going to a new school and all that kind of stuff. In June I visited the campus for the first time, met my advisor, and got my schedule set up. I was all good to go.

I did try to find a job for the summer. It's not like I was purposely wasting time every day. I applied to several places in town, was interviewed a couple of times. But ultimately, everyone I went to rejected me. I still don't know why, as I was perfectly qualified and capable to do the jobs I was applying for. Some turned me away even though they were desperate for help. The reasoning behind all of that doesn't matter, though. What matters is that I did NOT just sit here without a job all summer on purpose. I TRIED to find something. Nothing worked out, except for one place that hired me on the spot.

My trouble there was that I worked for two days, and then my car broke down in their parking lot. My mom had to come pick me up, and when my dad went to try and get the car just a few hours later, we discovered that my boss had had it towed away because it was "in the way" of some storage containers they had outside, when in fact my car was on the opposite end of the parking lot from them. I called my boss the next morning to tell him I now had no way to get to work (because I could not borrow my parents' van every day), and he let me go because I was now unreliable. They never paid me for the two days I worked, and frankly, I don't care.

I won't go into the details of what happened next, but basically, this was the first time I started having doubts about going to school this fall. Not because of what happened at my job - that was all just annoying. What happened was I thought about just going ahead on up to Billings to try and find work there (we have family friends who were willing to give me a room), but every time I seriously started planning to do so, I got this sick feeling and would abandon the idea completely. This happened off and on from that point until about mid-July, getting steadily worse and worse as the summer went on. Meanwhile my old roommate and I talked about the possibility of us finding an apartment together in Billings so she could work and I could go to school without having to pay an extra $7,000 a year for room and board at the university. I was all gung-ho at first, but again, every time I seriously looked into it I got really uneasy and would abandon the idea completely.

Finally - and this is important, so listen up - I asked God what He wanted me to do. I asked Him for guidance and told Him I was ready to follow whatever path He had for me, even if it meant staying in this town I've been trying to get out of for eight years. I prayed and prayed for a week solid, spending a lot of time alone with Him. Eventually I heard the message loud and clear: I need to take a year off of school. And you know what? As soon as I heard Him say that, I instantly felt so much better about everything. All the stress I'd been feeling went away. I knew it was the right decision then, and I know it's the right decision now.

I knew at the beginning of July that I would be taking a year off of school, but I didn't say anything right away because I knew I needed to wait a little bit longer and pray for courage. I knew I would be met with some negativity at first, which is exactly what happened. What I wasn't expecting was the continuing negativity, and the denial that everyone seems to be in. So now that you know why I made the decision I did, I'm going to put an end to whatever you think is going on in my life right now.

First, I am not taking a year off of school because of the car trouble I've had this summer, or the fact that I couldn't find a job, or because I'm afraid of going to Billings. I am taking a year off because I need to do so for my own mental health, and because God does not want me to go anywhere yet. At the end of the day, that is the ONLY reason that matters.

Second, whether it takes me a year or two or ten, I do fully intend to get my Bachelor's degree in English. It will happen at some point in my life, so don't worry! I'm not giving up on my education, and I certainly don't mean to be completely finished with it yet. Taking a year off is not the end of the world.

Third, regardless of what you think I've been doing all summer, I've not just been sitting around and doing nothing. I'm aware that most people don't understand this, but writing is my job. One day, it will be my full-time, paid job. It doesn't matter that I'm not published yet. Writing takes work. It's not just something that happens one day. In the absence of a 9 to 5 job this summer, I have been writing. I have been working, just behind closed doors. I'm sorry if you don't understand. And as far as all that goes, I will find some sort of paid work for the year. But you don't need to worry about what jobs will be available to me either now or later in the year. God told me to stay here; He will help me find work here, too. I'm putting the matter into His hands. Why stress about something that's already taken care of? He will provide.

Finally, I am an adult. I am a 20-year-old woman. I don't know everything, but I do know how to be responsible for my own life, and I'm learning about those things I don't know how to do. From one adult to another, please stop telling me I'm making the wrong choice. Please stop telling me how to live my life. I do value your opinions and feedback, but I don't need consistent negativity. I've got this, guys! I know what I'm doing. Don't worry.

That being said, I hope that now that you know the full story we can all just accept the change and move on. I'm excited about taking a year off of school! I wasn't expecting to be in town this fall, so I'm curious to see what kinds of things will happen while I stay put for a while. I want to know what God has in store for me here. I'm excited to see where He plans to take me now and in the future. It's going to be an adventure!

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Social Media Book Tag (July Book Wrap-Up)

This month has been a roller-coaster. Here we go.

Writing
I originally planned on participating in Camp NaNo July this year, but then I got sick at the beginning of the month and never found the motivation to do any work on "Follow the Raven." I think this is a story I need to approach at a slower pace anyway. There is a lot of editing and revision to be done.

However, I was able to write a couple more chapters for "Worlds Collide" over on Wattpad, and I'm excited to say that for the first time ever, I was able to create a rough outline of the entire rest of the story. I'm super psyched to share it with my readers. They will either love me or hate me for the ending, but either way, I can't wait! It's happening! My current stats for said story are 3,045 reads; 227 votes; and 110 comments.

Reading
I did a decent amount of reading this month. Not as much as I'd like, but not bad. I also participated in BookTube-A-Thon for the first time (the NaNoWriMo of reading, essentially) and had a total blast. I read 694 pages in seven days. It was awesome! Here's what I read in July:

• Princess Academy by Shannon Hale
• Princess Academy: Palace of Stone by Shannon Hale
• A Frozen Heart by Elizabeth Rudnick
• Winterspell by Claire Legrand

Princess Academy is a book that I first read in elementary school. Earlier this year I picked up the sequel (which I never knew existed until I found it), so I decided I should probably re-read the first book before diving into the second since it had been so long. I'm really glad I did, too. It's amazing how much you pick up on as an adult reading a book that you first read in grade school. I understood so much more of what was going on and I feel like I had a better appreciation for the story that way. It is definitely a unique and intriguing read, even all these years later. Its sequel, Palace of Stone, was interesting, too, but it definitely paled in comparison to the original novel. (Goodreads says there's a third book. Maybe one day I'll read that one as well.)

A Frozen Heart. I did it, guys! I finally read it! I'm not sure why I waited so long. It was such a good read, and it goes way beyond a YA novelization of the movie. This book takes a much deeper look into the world of Frozen and explores the emotional histories of both Hans and Anna, making their love story much more logical than it appeared in the movie. It also adds a more political layer to the tale we all know so well. I will never watch the movie the same way again, and I appreciate and applaud the author for making the story new once more.

Finally, Winterspell. As I'm writing this blog post I still have about fifty pages left in the book, so I can't say anything about the ending yet. But I can say that from the very first page I was hooked. It was so dark and so dense so quickly. At first I had to read the book in short spurts because there was so much going on at once that it was hard to keep up with it all, but now that I'm further along and understand the world of Cane a little better I can read more of it in one sitting. Going into it, all I knew was that it was "definitely not your grandmother's Nutcracker tale" (Marissa Meyer), but MAN is that an understatement. As it stands right now I would definitely recommend this to anyone who is looking for a good, dark fantasy or even just a retelling of a classic story. You will not be disappointed.

The Social Media Book Tag

1) Twitter: My favorite shortest book.

• When I was on vacation to the other side of the mountain a few years ago, I randomly decided that I wanted to bring The Cricket in Times Square with me in case I had time to read anything. As it turned out, I got so wrapped up in it once I started that I read the whole thing in just a couple of days (considering I was on vacation and didn't have much time to read). It was something different from the genre of books I'd been reading at the time, plus it was a classic. I wouldn't mind re-reading it for fun in the future.

2) Facebook: A book everyone pressured me into reading.

• Cinder. Freaking Cinder. I had heard a lot of good things about this book when it first came out. I believe Kristina Horner has made her way through the entire Lunar Chronicles, and she liked them okay. That was the first I heard of it. Then suddenly it was Lunar Chronicles everywhere, and my friend Kailey read it, and she demanded that I did to (as she does with every book she ever reads). Then, this past spring, it happened to be one of the two "blind date with a book" reads that I got, so I finally buckled down and read the thing. The only redeeming quality about it was that it was the most unique version of Cinderella I've ever read. Other than that, it was not worth it.

3) Tumblr: A book I read before it was cool.

• I'm not that cool.

4) MySpace: A book that I cannot remember if I liked it or not.

• Cornelia and the Audacious Escapades of the Somerset Sisters. All I remember about this book is that it is green with a weird little black dog on the front. Other than that, I have no recollection about the story whatsoever, so I have no idea if I liked it or not.

5) Instagram: A book that was so beautiful I had to Instagram it.

• First, I'd like to state for the record that I don't have Instagram, so I'm approaching this one with the mindset of "if I had Instagram." That being said, my original answer for this was going to be Lucid, because I couldn't think of any books that had overwhelmingly beautiful covers that I'd want to share with the world. Lucid has a beautiful story, which is why I chose it. But then I recently picked up A Thousand Pieces of You, and it has a gorgeous cover that I would absolutely Instagram. Therefore, I officially have two answers for this form of social media. (Seriously, though, look at this cover. It's beautiful! The picture really doesn't do it justice.)

6) YouTube: A book I wish would become a movie.

• In high school, I always thought it would be so great to see Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series become a set of movies. I love the story and the characters and the uniqueness of it all. Now, though, after seriously contemplating how a movie version would turn out, I think perhaps it's just as well that they remain in book format. The movies would screw up royally.

7) Goodreads: A book I recommend to everyone.

• Skulduggery Pleasant. YEAH BUDDY. I don't care who you are or what genre you normally read. Everyone should read Skulduggery Pleasant. EVERYONE.

And that's all for July! (My little brother turned sixteen a couple of days ago, which blows my mind. What happened??) See you next month!

My Thoughts on the #Sonic25th Announcements

Oh, man, where do I begin?!

OK. Last night there was this huge party going on for Sonic's 25th Anniversary. A month late, but so worth it! At this party, all of the important people who make Sonic's existence possible came together and announced a lot of really exciting things for the blue hedgehog's future. There was a LOT to keep up with, but there were two huge announcements that stood out to me, both concerning brand new games coming our way in 2017 (non-Boom related!).

The first game announced was Sonic's official 25th Anniversary game, Sonic Mania. This game will be taking Mobians young and old on a trip back in time to Sonic's roots as a gaming icon, which means the gameplay will be entirely 2D side-scrolling, complete with 90s-style graphics! What! In addition to the game being a throwback to the good old days, Sonic will be exploring some new Zones and trying out some new moves as well. Two other playable characters were announced, too. You guessed it - Tails and Knuckles. I'm super excited to see Sonic return to his origins entirely with this game and am looking forward to riding the wave of nostalgia that comes along with it. I was super psyched to hear about this game, set to release in the spring of 2017. You can watch the trailer for it here.

AND THEN.

While this next game does not currently have a name other than Project Sonic 2017, the reveal trailer is - as I described on Twitter yesterday - the COOLEST reveal trailer for a game I've seen in a while, and one that DEFINITELY has me hyped! I'll have you watch the trailer for this one first, pause a moment so you can fangirl, and then explain all the reasons it is going to be awesome.

Guys. You cannot possibly imagine the amount of fangirling that went on when I watched this for the first time. After having only Boom Sonic for the past two years to tide me over, it was SO great to see Modern Sonic return for his own game again. The graphics are awesome, the storyline that the trailer suggests is EPIC, and the potential for Sonic to return to the gaming world with a boom is incredible! (I may or may not have screamed like a Directioner and then cried a little when I saw Modern Sonic's reveal in this trailer. Just saying.)

The thing that really boggles my mind about the whole reveal, though, is this: the people who announced this game explicitly stated that it is NOT a sequel to Sonic Generations, yet clearly Classic and Modern Sonic are seen working together yet again to defeat a common enemy. My first thought was, how can this not be a sequel? What else can it be?

And then a genius Mobian in the comments section of the trailer suggested something brilliant. He proposed that perhaps the story of the game is that Eggman succeeds in taking over the world, creating a dystopian future from which Silver escapes, traveling back in time to collect both Classic and Modern Sonic to help him defeat the doctor once and for all.

MIND. BLOWN.

That story would be so cool on so many levels, and like the commenter said, it would explain how it is not a sequel to Generations and is its own unique game with its own story. But beyond that, I personally think that would be a fantastic move on SEGA's part. I have always felt really bad for Silver. He gets such a bad reputation because of his premiere game, and he has never played a really crucial role in any Sonic game since. It's been ten years! The poor guy deserves a second chance, and this game would be a perfect opportunity for that. I've been dying to see Silver play a main part in a game again for years. (Plus, it would give Silver's new voice actor a chance to, you know, actually SAY something...)

So, to sum it up as calmly as possible, I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS GAME!!

Now I'm going to briefly switch gears away from the Anniversary party and talk about Sonic Boom for just a moment. I was disappointed that we didn't get an official release date for Season 2 of the show within all of the other announcements going on at the party last night, so I decided to take matters into my own hands and do some snooping. During said snooping, I came across some posts that reminded me that Sonic Boom - annoyingly - airs in Europe weeks before it ever airs here in the U.S. Also in said snooping I came across a screenshot from an episode in (presumably) early Season 2 that totally put me in my place and reminded me that the wait will be worth it.

Are you ready for this?

IT'S SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG!!! IN SONIC'S HOUSE!!! WHAAAAAT!!!! :D

Ahem.

There it is! I KNEW Shadow had to come back at least once in Season 2, and there's my proof right there! I don't know what episode this is from, but we can assume that it is from one of the first few episodes in Season 2 due to the fact that this screenshot is already floating around out there and that if the new season is set to release in the U.S. this fall, it must have just recently started over in Europe. (Lucky!) I'm hoping that maybe since he returns so early he will be more of a recurring antagonist in this season. Eggman can get kind of old and predictable after a while. (Plus, you know me - I just REALLY want more Shadow!)

I am SUPER excited and probably even more impatient for the next season to air, but I can rest a little bit easier knowing that my favorite character will be returning sooner rather than later! EEEK!!

OK. I'm going to get out of here before I explode with happiness and die before I get a chance to experience all of the awesome Sonic things. Just wanted to give you all an update on what's happening in the Mobian universe right now! Until next time, I'm up, over, and GONE!! :D

I Still Have Book Guilt

Remember my very first post of this year, way back in January, when I told you I had book guilt? At the time I had 11 books on my TBR. Well, here we are six months later, and...I now have 21 books on my TBR.

I have a problem.

I do blame school for being the reason why many of said books are the same as those listed in my first Book Guilt post, but I've also been out of school for two months now, so...

Of the original 11 books I listed in January, I have read four. Which means that fourteen of the ones I'm about to list are ones I've added since then. I'm going to do what I did before and list the books currently on my TBR (books I own but haven't read yet) as well as give a brief explanation as to why I'm excited to read some of them. This is mostly to help me out, but I figured maybe you'd like to have an early look at what books are going to be showing up in my future wrap-ups.

• A Frozen Heart by Elizabeth Rudnick (still!)
• Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher
• Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon
• Of Metal and Wishes by Sarah Fine
• Steampunk meets Phantom of the Opera. Seriously.
• The Search for WondLa by Tony DeTerlizzi
• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
• A Whole New World by Liz Braswell
• Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
• Down the Mysterly River by Bill Willingham
• What Happened to Goodbye? by Sarah Dessen
• When I was in junior high and high school this book caught my eye because the premise sounds very similar to what I experienced as a military brat growing up. I actually checked it out from the library a couple of times but never ended up reading it.
• Princess Academy: Palace of Stone by Shannon Hale (currently reading)
• Made for You by Melissa Marr
• The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor
• The tagline literally says, "Fantasy just declared war on reality." How could I NOT?
• Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
• My old roommate loves the movie, but I had no clue it was actually based on a book. Because I'm a bookworm I want to read the book and then watch the movie to see how faithful the adaptation is.
• Winterspell by Clair Legrand
• A darker retelling of The Nutcracker. 
• Exquisite Captive by Heather Demetrios
• Both of Me by Jonathan Friesen
• Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
• Gunslinger geines. Come on now.
• The Amazing Book is Not on Fire by Dan Howell and Phil Lester
• I think the reason for my picking this one up is obvious. Who WOULDN'T want to own a book written by Dan and Phil??
• The Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows
• A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray
• The cover of this book is gorgeous, and the premise sounds really great, too.

Well, now that you're aware of the issue I have with buying new books, I'm going to let you in on my solution for this problem. I've told myself I cannot buy any more new books until I've narrowed my TBR down from 21 to 10. Once I have 10 on my TBR, THEN I can buy another one or maybe two. But ultimately, I want to get through this stack of books I've managed to collect over the past year or so. All of the books listed above will be enough to help me reach my goal of 50 books for the year on Goodreads, and then some. 

Now the question is...where do I start? I should probably just read A Frozen Heart, already...

All right, I'll quit stalling and start reading now. Hopefully you'll see at least a couple of books from this list on my July wrap-up! See you next time!

Seven Deadly Sins Book Tag (June Book Wrap-Up)

I feel like I would have gotten a lot more reading done this month if I wasn't constantly being hounded about finding a job (people don't seem to understand that writing IS my job), but I feel like I got a lot done in terms of writing, so I suppose this month was one of give-and-take.

Writing
As I said, I actually got a lot done in the world of writing this past month. Just like I predicted in my last wrap-up, I was able to pick up the pace with updates on my fanfic over on Wattpad. I released five chapters in June, all of which were received well by my audience. I'm excited that the story is really getting under way now. My hope is to have the rest of it posted by late July / early August. My current stats for "Worlds Collide" are 2,523 reads; 205 votes; and 97 comments.

I'm also happy to announce that on June 20 I officially hit 1,000 votes for the story that started it all - "Everything." :D

As for legit writing, that's going to start in July, during Camp NaNo. I'm planning to use camp as a springboard to start editing/revising "Follow the Raven," a story I first wrote in high school and have posted about a couple of times here on this blog. Camp NaNoWriMo works differently from November's event; during camp one can write, edit, or work on other, non-novel projects such as graphic novels or scripts. Since I'm editing, one hour of active work on a project equals 1,000 words, so my goal for July is 30k. That's one hour of editing a day, with one day off. Something easily manageable for my first time utilizing the non-writing aspect of camp. I'm excited to start tomorrow. As I said before, this is the first year of the rest of my career!

Reading
This was such an up-and-down month of reading for me. Besides the fact that I didn't read as much as I wanted or as often as I wanted due to everyone on the planet constantly trying to push me into the standard workforce rather than leaving me the heck alone to do my REAL work, I found a book that I actually hate, which is about as rare as finding a book I will devour over and over without getting tired of it. Here's what I read during the month of June:

• A Daring Sacrifice by Jody Hedlund
• Carry On by Rainbow Rowell
• Macbeth by William Shakespeare
• The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander

I was such a huge fan of Rowell's Fangirl that when I found out Carry On (the fanfic that Cath was writing in Fangirl) was going to become its own novel, I was instantly excited and determined to own it as soon as possible. Then during our town's annual Christmas Stroll (Black Friday) I found it on the shelf at our local bookstore and bought it without a second thought. Now, seven months later, I have finally finished it. Carry On was everything I dreamed it would be and much, much more. Oh my gosh, I loved it so much. 5/5 stars.

And then...there was The Black Cauldron. I have never seen the movie, never really known anything about this story until I read it. WHY I thought it was a good idea to buy it, I don't know. The characters were dull and annoying, without any real character growth. The author used far too much passive voice. The story dragged at a snail's pace until the last fifty pages or so, and then it built up and was over in the blink of an eye. Very unsatisfying. I do not wish to see the movie after having read the terrible book it was based on. I have not loathed a book this much since Divergent two years ago.

In addition to the real books I read, I also read Sonic Archives #17 and Sonic Select #4 in honor of Sonic the Hedgehog's 25th anniversary. I was glad to finally read the Zone Wars Saga, as I'd briefly encountered the Zone Cops before (in Sonic Universe when Scourge escaped from prison pre-SGWs) but never really known their significance until now. Reading this saga and learning about the workings of the Perpendicular Zone may have also opened some doors for possible future Sonic stories on Wattpad...

The Seven Deadly Sins Book Tag

1) Greed: What is your most/least expensive book?

• The most most expensive book I own is probably my textbook for the Creative Writing class I took during the Fall 2015 semester. It fell somewhere around $80-$100. My least expensive book is The Black Cauldron, as I got it at my church's garage sale along with a small printer and a dress and paid about $25 for the whole bundle. (So there really wasn't a price attached to the book - it was pay what you believe is fair.)

2) Wrath: What author do you have a love/hate relationship with?

• Julie Kagawa. I loved her Iron Fey series and now love her Talon series, but I am not a fan of her vampire novels. Also, it took her all eternity to get the last book of the Iron Fey series to us, but meanwhile she was cranking out such books as Talon and other vampire books. I was like, "Prioritize, woman! Don't start a new series when you haven't even finished the one you started!"

3) Gluttony: What book have you deliciously devoured over and over with no shame whatsoever?

• Skulduggery Pleasant. I LOVE Skulduggery Pleasant. I have read it once every year since I first read it back in 2011. I just love the story and, of course, Mr. Pleasant himself!

4) Sloth: What book have you neglected to read due to laziness?

• A Frozen Heart. And when my roommate finds out she is going to either laugh of facepalm, because this is the first book I bought when she and I started rooming together ten months ago. I was going insane over it and was obsessed with Frozen for a week solid after buying it. I had every intention to read it immediately...and I have not yet. But THIS is the summer, I swear! I will have it read before I go back to school this fall!

5) Pride: What book do you talk about to make you sound like a very intellectual reader?

• Pretty much anything Shakespeare, as a general rule of thumb. But now that I've graduated with my AA I think I will find myself using Maus and A Canticle for Lebowitz to help me sound more well-read and intelligent. They are both fantastic reads.

6) Lust: What attributes do you find most attractive in male or female characters?

• I would love to say that I find nerdy male characters attractive - and I do, to a point - but really, all of the literary crushes I've had have all been dark, mysterious types. Prince Ash from the Iron Fey series. Baz from Carry On. Raven from the Halflings trilogy. Etc.

7) Envy: What books would you most like to receive as a gift?

• The rest of the Skulduggery Pleasant series. There are currently nine books total, and I own the first one. I've read the first three but none beyond those, which is THE WORST because the third book leaves us on the biggest cliffhanger ever and it's been almost five years and I still don't know what happens next because none of our libraries have book four!! AGH!! So, yes, if anyone ever wanted to buy an actual book for me rather than a Barnes and Noble gift card or something, helping me complete my Skulduggery Pleasant experience would be fantastic.

And that's all I've got for June. Are you proud of me? I actually posted three times this month! Whaaaat? Anyway, you can plan on seeing at least three posts from me in July as well - including (finally) my final thoughts on my time at Sheridan College. See you next month!

Sonic's 25th Anniversary: Sonic Boom Season 1 Review + Hopes for Season 2

Today is Sonic the Hedgehog's 25th Anniversary!! What! It's so crazy to think how far he's come over the years, and just how different my life would have been were he not in it. For eight years now he has been the one constant in my ever-changing world, and I will always love him for being there for me when no one else was. Even recently he has gotten me through some very tough times as I prepare to leave home for the first time...but more about that later. Today is about SONIC. Specifically, Sonic Boom.

This post is SO overdue; like, I really should have written it in November or December kind of overdue. But I figured hey, it's Sonic's birthday, Sonic Boom is what's happening now, why not use this opportunity to finally bring you all my official review of the Sonic Boom TV series?

Today I'll cover my favorite episodes of Season 1 and also give a list of my favorite-favorite episodes, as well as give a general overview of my thoughts on the series as a whole. Then I'll go into my hopes for Season 2. Its air date approaches! :D

My favorite episodes from Sonic Boom, Season 1:

• 3: Translate This
• 9: Guilt Tripping
• 11: Cow Bot
• 12: Circus of Plunder
• 13: Unlucky Knuckles
• 14: The Meteor
• 19: Sole Power
• 22: Curse of the Buddy Buddy Temple
• 24: Late Fees
• 25: Into the Wilderness
• 26: Eggman Unplugged
• 28: Blue With Envy
• 37: Next Top Villain
• 39: Battle of the Boy Bands
• 42: Late Night Wars
• 44: It Wasn't Me, It Was the One-Armed Hedgehog
• 48: Designated Heroes
• 50: Cabin Fever
• 51: Counter Productive
• 52: It Takes a Village to Defeat a Hedgehog

...wow. I actually had more favorites than I thought I did! Keep in mind I mark them as favorite immediately after watching them 90% of the time, and it's been a while since I've seen some of these. But most of them I remember especially liking.

Translate This was an episode I enjoyed I think mostly for the SonAmy moments. (I've written a blog post about why I finally chose to ship SonAmy...you can read it here.) It was just the beginning of a long string of moments that proved Sonic likes Amy just as much as she likes him for the first time in Sonic cartoon history. I especially loved this moment:

Unlucky Knuckles can arguably be one of my favorite-favorite episodes, too, though I haven't yet marked it as such. I LOVE this episode!! It makes me laugh every single time. Poor Knuckles...I hate what they've done to his IQ in this series, but you have to admit it does provide for some funny moments, like this one:

I went into much more detail about why The Meteor was one of my favorite episodes here, but to summarize I thought it was a great body-swap episode as well as a very informative one. My official theory - and I still hold to this - was that the Meteor was actually a shard of the Shattered Crystal. Whether that is true remains to be seen, since Lyric never did show up in Season 1 like I thought he might. 

Blue With Envy was awesome for two reasons. One: Swifty the Shrew. Two: Sonic's reaction to Switfty. I had an extra layer of fangirling going on while I was watching this episode because Swifty's voice actor was Robbie Rist, who played Michelangelo in the 1990 live action TMNT movie (and who currently voices Mondo Gecko in TMNT 2012). I loved that Sonic had a challenger that is brand-new to the Boom franchise, and I loved that Sonic didn't even freak out or become angry or defensive when Swifty claimed to be faster than him. Instead Sonic just looked at him and said matter-of-factly, "You're not faster than me." (Insert fangirl squeal here.) :D

My favorite-favorite episodes from Season 1:

• 24: Late Fees
• 39: Battle of the Boy Bands
• 44: It Wasn't Me, It Was the One-Armed Hedgehog
• 52: It Takes a Village to Defeat a Hedgehog

I also went into more detail as to why Late Fees was one of my faves here. To this day I adore this episode. It teaches us so much about Sonic's character and world - and we haven't seen another like it since!

Battle of the Boy Bands!! Oh my gosh, I needed this episode in my life and didn't even know it. Forget Justin Bieber (or Justin Beaver) or One Direction or 5SOS...Dreamboat Express is the only boy band I will ever be a die-hard fan of! The best part was...Sonic and co. actually SANG!! I loved this episode.

It Wasn't Me, It Was the One-Armed Hedgehog. Let me set the scene for you: it's a standard weekend. A new Sonic Boom episode is going to air. Because I do everything I can to avoid spoilers, I don't know what it is called or what it will entail. I just know it's coming. The title gives nothing away. And then it happens: first, Hipster Sonic becomes canon, complete with nerdy glasses. Then, METAL SONIC shows up in a TV SHOW!!! WHAT!!! I don't think I screamed so much in my life. I literally shrieked and threw my laptop when I jumped up because I was so excited. (Nothing was broken, thankfully.) Then I went back and relived that glorious moment over and over and over before I finally allowed myself to continue on with the episode.

AND THEN. The moment I'd been waiting for all season...SHADOW. THE. HEDGEHOG. I must have talked about dying for his arrival every week! I know I posted at least three times here on Endless Possibilities about wanting him to show up. Then, in Sonic Boom's first season finale, he arrived. And it was everything I hoped for and more!! I ADORE this version of Shadow. He has reverted back to his original dark, edgy, villainous character, and I love that he straight-up dissed Eggman for being so awful (because really, Boom's Eggman is not anywhere near the quality of previous Eggmans). The fight scene between him and Sonic, while brief, was the greatest 30 seconds of my life. That eleven-minute episode was worth the year-long wait. I can't wait to see more of Shadow now that he's finally arrived! Even if I have to wait for the Season 2 finale to see him again, IT WILL BE WORTH IT.

And that leads me into my next segment: my hopes for Sonic Boom Season 2.

I think it's safe to assume that Season 2 will probably be very similar to Season 1 in the kid-oriented, simple storyline sense. However I really, really hope that the producers decide to take Sonic and co. beyond Bygone Island and explore more of Mobius. In the games we've seen several unique locations that would be cool to see in more depth in the TV show. (I especially want to see more of Boom's version of the Chemical Waste Zone.) 

It would be awesome if they could expand on the characters' back-stories a little more. We've heard mention that Knuckles is not native to Bygone Island, which opens the door for at least one episode to be about his homeland and how he got to be where he is. I would love to know more about Sticks. We know she's a jungle badger who lived in isolation for years, but how long? What was it like for her when she met Sonic and co. for the first time? How old is she? It would be neat to have Lyric show up as a villain, though I'm not sure what the chances are of that happening. It would be fantastic to have Metal Sonic show up again as an even bigger threat than before. But above all (you guys know), I WANT MORE SHADOW. 

I am dying to know Shadow's backstory in the Boom universe. I've talked about my theories concerning his age and powers here, but at least one of those was proven wrong a few episodes after its original posting when it was confirmed that Eggman is actually still middle-aged instead of in his mid-twenties like I thought. But that's beside the point. Who the heck is Shadow the Hedgehog? For non-Mobians, this character just randomly showed up at the VERY last moment and kicked more butt in 30 seconds than all of the other villains over the course of the entire series combined, and then he was gone. Why did Eggman make such a big deal out of his arrival in the show? What is his relation to Eggman? Shadow obviously dislikes him, but he stuck around and "suffered his presence" despite not liking him. Why? How does he already know Sonic? Is Maria involved in this universe at all? SO MANY QUESTIONS!!

Long story short, I am excited for Season 2 no matter what it brings, but I really hope that they decide to expand on the world and characters a little bit more this time around. And gosh dang it, Shadow had better be in at least ONE episode this season. You know he's the reason people are going to come back for more this fall.

All that being said...

Sonic the Hedgehog has given me so much and taught me so many things, and he continues to do so to this day. I am very grateful that he is a part of my life. That will never change. Happy birthday, Sonic - here's to 25 more years. <3 <3