TBR - May 2017

Girlhood by Cat Clarke
This was my first ever approved read on NetGalley (woop woop I'm so pleased!!), it's published on the 4th of May and I'm hoping I'll be able to whizz through it and get a review done asap (I'm cheating a bit as I've already started as I write this but I started it in May and I'm late on this post so it counts right?!). Anyway it sounds super duper promising and the first chapter hooked me it so fast so let's see what happens (and look out for a review!).

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Do I even need to say why I want to read this? I've been excited about it for months and I haven't bought it yet but hopefully I'll get my hands on it so soon. I know it won't let me down because everyone says its phenomenal!

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas
As ACOWAR came out yesterday it seems like a good time for me to start catching up! I loved ACOTAR but there were a few bits that left me feeling a bit "?????" but I think they get sorted out so hopefully I'll enjoy it a lot!

A Quiet Kind of Thunder by Sara Barnard
Again, I'm late to this one, but having heard such good things about this, and having loved Beautiful Broken Things I'm sure this won't disappoint. It sounds like a really interesting concept and having started to learn sign language at the beginning of this year reading a book with a deaf MC sounds like good fun!

Countless by Karen Gregory
I'm so intrigued by what this book will be like. It sounds like it may be a difficult read because it's got a lot of intense stuff in it (judging from the synopsis!). If its done well I think it could be really important and I'm hoping that I'll love it. I haven't read many books that look at eating disorders and I think it may be a difficult thing to do well but Countless sounds as though it has a lot of potential.

What are you planning to read this month? Any of these? Happy reading whatever you pick up!

Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard

Rating: 8/10
Published: 25th February 2016
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Pages: 322
Synopsis from Goodreads: 

I was brave

She was reckless

We were trouble 

Best friends Caddy and Rosie are inseparable. Their differences have brought them closer, but as she turns sixteen Caddy begins to wish she could be a bit more like Rosie – confident, funny and interesting. Then Suzanne comes into their lives: beautiful, damaged, exciting and mysterious, and things get a whole lot more complicated. As Suzanne’s past is revealed and her present begins to unravel, Caddy begins to see how much fun a little trouble can be. But the course of both friendship and recovery is rougher than either girl realises, and Caddy is about to learn that downward spirals have a momentum of their own.

Beautiful Broken Things is another one of those books which has been on my TBR for way too long, but I finally got around to it, having heard many good things and I was by no means disappointed!!
It has a beautiful storyline focusing on the importance of strong friendships as well as demonstrating the lengths people will go to for someone who is dear to them.

I'll admit that I found the main character Caddy annoying at times and noticed myself yelling at her "Come on!! What are you doing you plonker!!!???" but honestly I think that it was mostly in a good way. I understood where she was coming from and the reason that she made the choices which she did, even if they did make me cross! It's in this way that I think Sara Barnard really captures such realistic and relatable characters which makes this book so special. I can remember, back when I was 16/17, being in the same position as Rosie at some points, watching someone I care about a lot being swept up and making terrible decisions and saying to them "yes but you get that this is silly right?" but knowing they'll most certainly go and do it anyway!

One of the things I enjoyed the most about Beautiful Broken Things is that it deals with some really serious issues (I shan't disclose for spoiler reasons but ask me if you want to know them for your own safety etc.) in a way that is completely honest and believable. The emotions and reactions that the characters showed to finding out these things were very realistic, from my experience, and it was refreshing to see responses that were so truthful, because let's be honest people rarely understand and are able to say exactly the right things at the right times in real life!

The other thing that I enjoyed about this book is that it isn't all about boys, of course they featured because Caddie is set on getting a boyfriend and losing her virginity - which really frustrated me, I am just so unlike her in this way and there are so many more important things in life!! But the strong friendships between these girls were at the heart of this book and were what made it so enjoyable. There was no real romance, which I know a lot of people appreciate, but for me it was nice to read something where the main character didn't suddenly fall in love and live happily ever after, or spend pages and pages rambling on about how dreamy this boy is (ew no thanks)!

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's focus on strong females and accurate representations of teenagers making stupid choices was honest and I really loved it. I did have issues purely because I clashed in character with Caddy in some ways, but this is by no means a fault of the book I think it just happens sometimes! I can't wait to read A Quiet Kind of Thunder soon and see what more Sara Barnard has for us in the future. If you haven't already, read Beautiful Broken Things - I'm sure you'll really enjoy it.