Happy Summer Everyone! School's out now so I have more free time to blog. I am so excited for this summer because I'm going to be busy—but the good kind of busy! Anyways, I have a few favourites this week that I would love to share with you. So if you are interested in finding out, then keep reading! 

#1

Oh...my...goodness. This book. THIS. BOOK. I died after reading this. Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare is the second instalment in The Dark Artifices series. The first book in this series is Lady Midnight which I read last year. I thought Lady Midnight was absolutely incredible and her best book to date. That is until I read Lord of Shadows. It blew Lady Midnight right out of the water. If you have read and enjoyed The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices series then you need to read this. It is an urban fantasy series that takes place in Los Angeles five years after the events that took place in The Mortal Instruments. The main characters were actually minor characters who made an appearance in City of Heavenly Fire. The characters are Shadowhunters, which are humans born with angel blood who slay demons and protect mundanes (humans). Every book Cassandra Clare writes is better than the previous one and Lord of Shadows is no exception. I was so emotional after reading it because THAT ENDING. I have so many theories for the next book, The Queen of Air and Darkness. Unfortunately, I have to wait TWO YEARS until its release. If you haven't read ANY of the Shadowhunter Chronicles then that's definitely something you should do this summer. I promise you will not regret it. 

#2

Speaking of the Shadowhunter Chronicles...I bought The Official Mortal Instruments Colouring Book!! I saw Cassandra Clare talking about it on her social media and was immediately obsessed. The drawings in here are gorgeously detailed and made by Cassandra Jean, who is a freelance illustartpr and comic artist. She works alongside Cassandra Clare and draws the characters from her books. I love how there are quotes on the left side which correspond with the drawing of the scene on the right side. I honestly can't wait to colour this book. I've been watching some colouring book tutorials by Sendaria13 and it has made me so inspired. I need to get Prismacolor Premier® Soft Core Coloured Pencil Set 72 pack because they are very blendable and will work great for this colouring book. I highly recommend getting a colouring book as a fun activity this summer. 

#3

My mom recently bought me The Body Shop Early-Harvest Raspberry Body Butter and Shower Gel because they were on sale. Last year I fell in love with the scent when I bought the Eau de Toilette. This range is perfect for summer and smells like you've been picking berries all day. I highly recommend you check out this scent and The Body Shop in general. It's one of the best body care stores ever. 

#4

I love this show so much. It is such a great comedy about girl power and doing what you love. Girlboss is a Netflix original about Sophia, who discovers a passion for fashion and becomes an unlikely businesswoman in the process. As her business grows, she learns to navigate being her own boss and owning her own company. This show is very loosely based on the true story of Nasty Gal Founder, Sophia Amoruso who wrote #girlboss back in 2015. Britt Robertson plays the character of Sophia and this role suits her so well. I have been watching Britt Robertson since she was in Life Unexpected (which is a great show by the way) and since then she's been in so many great movies. I'm so glad she landed this roll because she is rocking it. I highly recommend if you need a little laugh and a little inspriation. 

#5

Lorde's album, Melodrama just recently came out on June 16, 2017 and I love it. I talked about Green Light in another post and since then she has had two more singles: Sober and Perfect Places. I am soooo obsessed with both of them, especially Sober. The whole album is just so amazing. I have so many favourites it's hard to decide. I can't even describe her new style but I absolutely love Lorde and I am so happy for her comeback. 

#6

I have been obsessed with Dua Lipa's music since last year after hearing Be The One, Last Dance, New Love and then months later Hotter than Hell. Since then she has released many more singles from her self titled album as well as collaborations with Martin Garrix and Sean Paul. After pushing back her debut album, IT'S FINALLY HERE! AND. I. AM. OBSESSED. I feel like I've said that word in this post so much but I really am. The whole album is so good but the ones I recommend the most including the ones I mentioned earlier are Garden, New Rules (which is going to be her next single!!), and Genesis (the acoustic version is also so beautiful). I highly recommend you check out her music. She's incredibly talented and deserves even more fans. 

#7

I have loved Lady Antebellum's music since I heard Need You Now and Just A Kiss. After taking a year break, they are back with their new album, Heart Break, and I love it. My favourite songs on the album are You Look Good, Heart Break, Somebody Else's Heart, Big Love In A Small Town, and Home.

Thank you for reading today's post! I hope you have a great week filled with lots of fun. Have a great day!

love xena

Happy June everyone! So much has happened in the past two months and I've just been so busy that I haven't been posting as much as I'd like to. As you can tell from the title I have combined my favourites from both months and you know what that means...today's post is going to be a long one. So, if you would like to know everything I have enjoyed in the months of April and May then keep reading. 

Movie Favourites:

If you know me then you know I love Nicholas Sparks films. They're always so beautiful and emotional and this movie was no different. The Best of Me is about a pair of former high school sweethearts that reunite after many years when they return to visit their small hometown. It's tear-jerking and swoon-worthy and just one of my favourite movies of all-time. I highly recommend if you love romance!

“Me? I’m scared of everything. 
I’m scared of what I saw, I’m scared of what I did, 
of who I am, and most of all 
I’m scared of walking out of this room and never feeling the rest of my whole life 
the way I feel when I’m with you.” ~Baby

I had the time of my life watching this movie...(get it?). Dirty Dancing is just the ultimate classic. It's about Frances "Baby" Houseman, who spends the summer at a Catskills resort with her family, and ends up falling in love with the camp's dance instructor, Johnny Castle. The steamy, beautiful romance and incredible dance moves were just a sight for sore eyes. This is the kind of movie you can watch a million times over and still need to watch it again. You probably have already watched this but...GO WATCH IT AGAIN! 

Book Favourites:

Alex Approximately by Jenn Bennett

Read: April 22, 2017 - April 25, 2017

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5 stars) 

Summary:

The one guy Bailey Rydell can’t stand is actually the boy of her dreams—she just doesn’t know it yet.

Classic movie fan Bailey “Mink” Rydell has spent months crushing on a witty film geek she only knows online as Alex. Two coasts separate the teens until Bailey moves in with her dad, who lives in the same California surfing town as her online crush.

Faced with doubts (what if he’s a creep in real life—or worse?), Bailey doesn’t tell Alex she’s moved to his hometown. Or that she’s landed a job at the local tourist-trap museum. Or that she’s being heckled daily by the irritatingly hot museum security guard, Porter Roth—a.k.a. her new archnemesis. But life is whole lot messier than the movies, especially when Bailey discovers that tricky fine line between hate, love, and whatever it is she’s starting to feel for Porter.

And as the summer months go by, Bailey must choose whether to cling to a dreamy online fantasy in Alex or take a risk on an imperfect reality with Porter. The choice is both simpler and more complicated than she realizes, because Porter Roth is hiding a secret of his own: Porter is Alex…Approximately.

My Review:

New. Favourite. Book. It touched on the usual YA elements like family, friendships, and relationships―but it went so much deeper. It's definitely a more mature YA book though, as it discussed topics such as drugs, crime, and sex.

I instantly fell in love with everything this book has to offer. The California setting and beach-y town atmosphere was just so easy to visualize and it felt like you were actually there. I really loved the main character, Bailey, because she's so rational and mature, especially in her relationship with Porter (who is a great love interest by the way). Speaking of relationships, I love the hate-to-love relationship in this one. Their chemistry is through the roof and I also liked that they formed a friendship (unknowingly) through a common interest in old films. 

Something else I really like was that Grace, Bailey's best friend, and Porter, brought some diversity into this novel, specifically their culture and the food they eat. It added a really nice feel to the book and I'm glad Jenn incorporated it. 

This book was just so addicting and I couldn't put it down. It's become an all time favourite and I see myself rereading this in the near future. This is a must-read summer contemporary! Highly, highly recommend.

The Sun Is Also A Star by Nicola Yoon
Read: April 28 2017 - May 1, 2017
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 1/2 (4.5 stars)

Summary:
Natasha: I’m a girl who believes in science and facts. Not fate. Not destiny. Or dreams that will never come true. I’m definitely not the kind of girl who meets a cute boy on a crowded New York City street and falls in love with him. Not when my family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. Falling in love with him won’t be my story.

Daniel: I’ve always been the good son, the good student, living up to my parents’ high expectations. Never the poet. Or the dreamer. But when I see her, I forget about all that. Something about Natasha makes me think that fate has something much more extraordinary in store—for both of us.


The Universe: Every moment in our lives has brought us to this single moment. A million futures lie before us. Which one will come true? 

My Review:
Beautiful writing, wonderful characters, heart-warming but also heart-breaking, star-crossed love story. 

I love that this novel discusses culture and identity and I felt that it was done in such a profound way. I also took comfort in the fact that Natasha is Jamaican as I'm also from Jamaica. It was really nice reading about my culture from someone else's perspective. 

Also, Daniel was just the sweetest guy. I love how even though he and Natasha didn't share the same views on everything they learned something from one another. They both realized that life is a combination of both fate and free will, God and science. 

Seeing their relationship develop was the best. Nicola Yoon just wrote in their voices so well that it felt like I was actually reading from a teenager's point of view. Also, the way that she added random characters' perspectives who aren't really seen as important was also a really nice touch as you got to see how little things can affect someone's life so remarkably and with you being none the wiser. She took such heavy topics and made such a powerful story easy for young audiences to understand. 


I really loved reading this book and I can't wait to read Nicola Yoon's future works.

Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han
Read: May 3, 2017 - May 4, 2017
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5 stars) 

Summary: 
(This is a part of a series so this will spoil the previous two books!)

Lara Jean is having the best senior year a girl could ever hope for. She is head over heels in love with her boyfriend, Peter; her dad’s finally getting remarried to their next door neighbor, Ms. Rothschild; and Margot’s coming home for the summer just in time for the wedding.

But change is looming on the horizon. And while Lara Jean is having fun and keeping busy helping plan her father’s wedding, she can’t ignore the big life decisions she has to make. Most pressingly, where she wants to go to college and what that means for her relationship with Peter. She watched her sister Margot go through these growing pains. Now Lara Jean’s the one who’ll be graduating high school and leaving for college and leaving her family—and possibly the boy she loves—behind.


When your heart and your head are saying two different things, which one should you listen to? 

My Review:
I'm going to miss reading about Lara Jean's life so much. This book just made me feel so many emotions, as usual with a Jenny Han book. It made me feel so wistful and nostalgic like I was the one graduating high school and moving on in life. This book was everything I hoped it would be. After I finished the last sentence I just wanted to start the whole series over again. It's a bittersweet feeling that it's the end but I'm so glad to have read this series. It will always and forever be one of my favourites.

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas
Read: May 5, 2017 - May 13, 2017
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5 stars) 

Summary:
(This is a part of a series so this will spoil the previous two books!) 

A nightmare, I’d told Tamlin. I was the nightmare.

Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin’s maneuverings and the invading king threatening to bring Prythian to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit—and one slip may spell doom not only for Feyre, but for her world as well. As war bears down upon them all, Feyre must decide who to trust amongst the dazzling and lethal High Lords—and hunt for allies in unexpected places.

My Review:
Loved it! Not as much as A Court of Mist and Fury but a super close second. Can't wait to read the rest of the series as there are some things left unresolved with side characters. 2018 can't come close enough!

Music Favourites: 

I am so excited to watch this movie as you might have seen in my recent post that I went to the Everything Everything signing. I fell in love with the soundtrack for this movie and they just fit the story so well. Click on the links to have a listen!

How Did We by Skylar Stecker
Human Touch by Betty Who
Runnin' (Lose It All) by Naughty Boy, Beyoncé, and Arrow Benjamin

I just recently heard Cold to the Touch by Ralph as it was advertised on Youtube. I fell in love with the catchy beat and the simplicity of the song. It's such a fun summer song. Check it out! 

Songs I Wrote With Amy by Ed Sheeran is an old favourite of mine. It has just been so relaxing to listen to while I do my homework as it calms me down and helps me focus. I highly recommend if you love Ed Sheeran or singer/songwriter music!

I hope you all had a great weekend and have a wonderful week. I'll see you soon! xx

love xena