princessjasminefliesaway's reviews
88 reviews

I am a twenty one year old who has never seen a Lord of the Rings film and only one Hobbit film (the second one). This year I wanted to read all four books and then afterwards watch all six films. This are my notes throughout. 


What I Already Knew:
- There are 12 dwarves, a hobbit, a dragon, a Bard and a grand wizard in this story (though I wouldn’t be able to name all the dwarves).
- They are heading to a mountain with a ton of treasure underneath it.
- Gollum is in this, the one ring to rule them all is in this and Bilbo lives through all of this.
- Tauriel is not in this. I thought Legolas was (but he isn’t).
- There is a battle of five armies (which result in 3 deaths in the films but I believe only 2 in the book).
- Dwarves don’t keep promises?

My Notes:
- I understand the criticism of it being “long winded storytelling” but it reminds me of a bed time story told by your grandfather, adding his own commentary in-between (it’s similar to C.S. Lewis’ style - I know they knew each other but that’s about it.)
- Using this style, as a reader you feel you’re apart of the adventure. The slug, the action and the friendship.
- Bilbo is a fifty year old man, going on his first adventure and is a BADASS! I’m very impressed. A book on an adult instead of a child going on an adventure and learning along the way.
- However, I am annoyed by the idea that it’s Bilbo’s “DNA” that leads him to do this. Thankfully Sam, Merryweather and Pippin prove that wrong later on.
- From what I can remember of the film, they’ve seemed to stick quite close to it.
- I was expecting mole people for some reason, not Goblins.
- I cannot believe a Hobbit can’t swim.
- I always believed that Gollum called the ring ‘his precious’ but is he actually referring to himself?
- Is Gollum a goblin?
- The Forest Elf King being Legolas Dad in the films is an awesome idea (I don’t know if Jackson thought it up or Tolkien planned it but I like it). Is this conflict going to lead to the beef between Gimli and Legolas later on though?
- Why doesn’t the ring whisper to Bilbo when he wears it? Did that just come from the films?
- I was expecting the Eagles to believe themselves higher than anyone else due to the memes. I also now understand why everyone is annoyed at them for not helping Frodo but helping the dwarves in this.
- The introduction of the Bard is more sudden in the books and I enjoyed it more in the films (where it lead to proper description on Smaug’s weak point and how to kill him).
- I knew there was something off with Thorin but I didn’t expect full greed/madness.
- I swear Tolkien thinks ‘I don’t want to write all this action. I’ll just BUMP HIM ON THE HEAD. Then the action will be over! Done.’
- Is Thorin dead? They had a conversation and then they buried him? Egyptian style? I am confused.
- Personally, I don’t believe you get to know the dwarves properly in the book. They seem more of a collective than individuals and in the film, I could differentiate them more.
- Overall, Bilbo had an adventure and became a better man from it.

I am a twenty-two-year-old who has never seen a Lord of the Rings film and only one Hobbit film (the second one). This year I wanted to read all four books and then afterwards watch all six films. These are my notes throughout.

What I Already Knew:
- There is a human (Aragorn), an elf (Legolas) a dwarf (Gimli) and four hobbits (Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin).
- There are also three women, known to me as Cate Blanchett, Aragorn’s lover and I AM NO MAN!
- Gandalf the Grey, Gollum and the one ring to rule them all return in this book.
- Sarum is a massive eye thing that can see a lot.
- Christopher Lee plays a white wizard who is actually evil and betrays them all.
- Sean Bean’s character gets killed by a million arrows and also says at one point - you don’t simply walk into Mordor.
- We are introduced to Ents, which are big speaking trees, and Ring-wraiths which I believe are Dementor looking things.
- The Eagles don’t help.
- They take the Hobbits to Isengard-gard-gard-gard-gard.

My Notes:
- In the poem, are the nine mortal men doomed to die a reference to the ring-wraiths?
- The prologue for this was very long and slow, I now understand the complaints on his writing style compared to the Hobbit where it seemed to cut to the action more.
- I wasn’t expecting Bilbo to leave Frodo, I thought it would be more Frodo had to go because Bilbo is too old but you’re never too old for adventures/holidays.
- In this book, you also get to see the ring’s influence on the bearer which I felt was heavily missed in the Hobbit.
- Frodo is very similar to Bilbo, especially with the fact that they both start their first adventure at 50 years old, I did expect Frodo to be a lot younger (mostly due to the film adaptation).
- Plot Twist that was wasted (in my opinion): Gollum’s. It should have been saved for later.
- Goldberry is a character who I hope is in the films but has probably been cut as “she doesn’t advance the plot”.
- Is Tom Bombadil mean to represent God or Tolkien himself within the world?
- Will we ever meet Aragorn, Gimli or Legolas?
- I love how Tolkien summed up what happened to the ponies just so we wouldn’t feel bad for them.
- Why didn’t Frodo point out the horse thief if he spotted him?
- Was Beren and Luthien Tinuviel, the mortal man who loved an elf but was killed before they could be together, the inspiration for Tauriel and Kili?
- Tolkien’s descriptions of women are literally describing goddesses and I am here for it.
- On-Page 240, we finally meet Gimli and Legolas. It’s all coming together!
- Bilbo quoting his own poems in the council meeting is the confidence we strive for.
- Plot Twist that was wasted (in my opinion) 2: Saruman’s. I thought it would be bigger than this.
- I WAS NOT READY FOR WHAT HAPPENS IN THE CAVE! I WAS NOT READY FOR THE LEGENDARY QUOTES OR SCENE! LITERALLY IN THE FIRST BOOK OF THE TRILOGY! I WOULD HAVE GUESSED BOOK TWO, AT LEAST!
- Plot Twist that was wasted (in my opinion) 3: Aragorn’s. I thought it would be a bigger deal than it was and I felt like I missed something when it was revealed.
- Finally, I wasn’t expecting the company to split up so soon but at least Frodo has Sam.

For me, this seems to be the month of realistic, simple, lovely love stories and I'm enjoying it thoroughly. This graphic novel sets place in the USA and outlines the reasons why I *need* to visit - the pumpkin patches. Rowell described this particular one as the "Disneyland of all pumpkin patches" but said that its inspiration is still very good and I hope still open when I save up enough to cross the seas.

The graphic novel was another wholesome story about love, waiting, fate and taking initiative in the setting of one single shift and I pretty much read 140 pages in one sitting to get into that state of mind (which I recommend highly). I've always heard good things about Rowell and this will now be the push for me to read her other work but with this collaboration, it's also introduced me to Hicks' wonderful art. I look forward to seeing what they do in the future.

2nd Time Around Addition: The friendship is well written and what was going to happen isn't sudden but the actual ending feels incredibly rushed for Josie's character. Also first time around, wasn't into the goat at all, second time around, that goat got the job done!

A sugar-sweet coming of age story, set at “the dawn of the modern age”, this graphic novel is fresh, stunning and an easy read. I flew through the first 200 pages of it and adore the beauty in both the art and storytelling.

Spoiler Trigger Warnings Below:
Forced Outing, Transphobia, Sexual Harassment, and Parent Illness

I am a twenty-three-year-old who has never seen a Lord of the Rings film and only one Hobbit film (the second one). This year I wanted to read all four books and then afterwards watch all six films. These are my notes throughout.

What I Do Know:
- There are two towers.
- tHeY’rE tAkInG tHe HoBbItS tO iSeNgArD!
- We meet the ‘I am no man!’ woman.
- Originally I thought this was the book/film where Gandalf says “fly you fools” and fights the Balrog.
- There’s a battle in a city of ruins which Frodo and Sam have to escape.
- I believe this is the book/film where Saruman falls from the two towers and gets impaled?
- Pippin picks up a ball and it almost kills him so Gandalf gets mad.

Notes:
- I WANTED BOROMIR TO HAVE A CHANCE TO PROVE HIMSELF! WE’RE NOT EVEN THE FIRST PAGE IN AND HE’S FLIPPING DEAD!
- I cannot wait to see the scene with Pippin doing a Gollum impression. I am CREASING!
- I am here for my tree guardians, the Ents!
- Are we already meeting Gandalf the White?
- I also finally have a name for the ‘I am no man’ woman, Eowyn!
- Why does Eowyn have more chemistry with Aragorn than his actual love interest, Arwen?
- Legolas and Gimli make me incredibly happy.
- It’s funny how I started this book saying that these four hobbits were the only thing getting me through this book, just wait!
- The only thing I have learnt: Rope is USEFUL!
- I get that Gollum is the ‘only one’ who can lead them to where they need to go BUT I don’t understand why they didn’t tie him up and leave him or just rid themselves of him. He is literally the enemy.
- But also you can’t deny Frodo has manners.
- How much longer is Faramir going to question Frodo about Boromir? He doesn’t knoooooow, let it gooooooo!
- Sam letting Frodo sleep and staying awake himself to protect, even with the guards around! I want to hug this man! He is the best, he goes above and beyond and he is the one you would want by your side. He is a wholesome sweetheart who deserves everything he wants in life!
- It has now been proven that Hobbits cannot swim! Sam said it himself but also why? What stops them from swimming?
- Book Four of Six actually might be my least favourite. It has taken so long to say nothing at all but that ending, all of Book Four was leading up to THE moment of Sam being the baddest one of them all!

I’m a twenty-three-year-old who never finished the Twilight series, books or films, so with the then-upcoming Midnight Sun, I decided to go back and finish them. These are my notes throughout.

What I Knew or Thought I Knew:
- Bella Swan moved from Phoenix to live with her single police officer father, Charlie, because her mother and step-father are travelling for his famous baseball star job.
- Bella has a friend called Jacob there already.
- Anna Kendrick becomes her friend.
- The Cullens, Edward, Jasper, Alice, Rosalie, and Emmett, are vampires.
- When Edward first sees Bella, he looks like he’s going to throw up or has to stop himself from throwing up.
- Bella finds out Edward is a vampire in a forest. “Say it.”
- Edward and Bella date.
- Vampires sparkle in sunlight.
- Edward watches Bella sleep, saves her from getting hit by a truck that skidded on the ice and gives her piggyback rides across forests.
- Edward can read minds, Alice can see the future.
- Rosalie doesn’t like Bella and smashes a salad bowl because Bella ate before coming over.
- In the Cullens’ home, they have a load of graduation caps and Edward calls it a “family joke”.
- The Cullens play baseball in a thunderstorm which attracts Jessica Chastain and Edi Gathegi who now want Bella dead.
- The Cullens take her back to her mum and hide her but Bella has to break Charlie’s heart, telling him he was never a good father, to make it easier.
- Bella gets hurt in a ballet studio by a bad vampire. Carlise, a doctor and the Cullens Father Figure, makes the worse excuse for it that she fell down multiple stairs. The End.

Notes:
- Watch me feel like the smartest English Literature student examining the use of the opening bible quote, the apple on the cover, and what it represents with Bella’s story!
- Knowing what happens to Bella, it’s interesting to see how her love for the sun changes over time.
- Charlie is the cutest father and I know there is probably a reason why Bella is distanced from him but please just be nicer to Charlie!
- Enjoying the subtle lines like “no one is going to bite me”.
- The surname Hale definitely left my mind. I don’t why I remembered that they all had the same last name and everyone didn’t question why the four of them were dating but also doesn’t that make them cousins in a sense? It’s not by blood but s t i l l .
- I now remember why I put all of Bella’s human friends, except for Jacob, out of mind. They suck.
- What is with clumsy teenagers in YA novels?
- I THOUGHT IT WAS A JOKE THAT SHE SNIFFED HERSELF BUT IT’S R E A L (and horribly relatable!)
- I get that Edward is meant to come off as mysterious and douchey but he just comes off as R E A L douchey and bad at subtly.
- I want to know what Alice’s vision of Bella was when they first met! Does she see Bella with Edward?
- Is YA novels really asking me to read Wuthering Heights, Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, or Mansfield Park or listen to Debussy to get into the mindset of these stereotypical young women?
- Who says ‘Ew’ to snow?
- Not my school letting teenagers have snowball fights between class.
- I did NOT remember Edward being all polite, charming, playful, and sarcastic, even borderline flirty, at all!
- It’s sad that this awkward Mike, Eric, and Tyler storyline is heavily relatable. Take a hint!
- I agree with the decision of punching Edward after him being all ’stay away but also come with me to Seattle.’
- Stephenie Meyer predicting the future by comparing Edward to Bruce Wayne.
- If the Cullens and Hales never eat, why do they even bother to go to the cafeteria? Why not try some lunchtime clubs or read a book or do something? Why spend your eternal life sitting in the cafeteria every day? Also, why doesn’t anyone question the fact that they don’t eat and dump their full meals? I know I would!
- Edward carrying Bella to the nurse’s office is just peak YA fantasy.
- Did Edward ever go through a whole ‘IS SHE A HALF VAMPIRE OR WHAT?!’ during this blood smelling, doesn’t really eat and can’t read her mind scenario.
- I had completely forgotten that Jacob is fifteen. Why did anyone think Bella and him were good together? Especially when Bella seriously thought leading a boy (not man, boy) on to get information was a good idea.
- Jacob has long hair but ties it up with an elastic band? Surely he knows about good hair care.
- I hate men, this book is proving how much. Who would the audacity to announce that they’re going to prom with someone without asking? How did you think that was going to work?
- Never, E V E R, let your friend walk alone at night! Are you an I D I O T?! And they ATE WITHOUT HER?! Weren’t they concerned she never showed up?!
- I swooned, I swooned over Edward which means Meyer has won.
- Edward is shocked that Bella feels safe with him even though he has saved her twice. Seriously?
- Bella associating the weather she used to hate to Edward and that it now makes her happy. D’aw!
- Excited to see in Midnight Sun how the Cullens and Hales react to Edward “breaking the rules”.
- That foreshadowing of Bella thinking of willingly putting herself in danger to see Edward.
- Bella really thought that leading on the son of her dad’s friend wasn’t going to blow up in her face. Huh.
- I was going to comment on how obsessed they all seem about prom until I remembered my own. Carry on.
- If Edward really wanted Bella gone, he would have scared her like that on day one. So he liiiiiiiiikessss her.
- It is somewhat romantic and cute and I think younger me would be wooed but current me is thinking ‘you really kissed after he said he wanted to kill you a bunch of times?’
- I like how this book could turn into so many different genres with his stalker reveal but it’s a vampire, teen romance! Incredible. How is that romantic?!
- Bella’s mum bought Bella VS Silk PJs which she hasn’t worn and you’re telling me they were never returned, forced upon her, or given away. We grew up differently Bella.
- How did Bella faint after they kissed? Explain this to me.
- I have to admit I do enjoy Bella and Edward’s dynamic. It’s realistic and sweet in parts.
- Rosalie may be a fandom favourite but every time she’s mentioned, I can only remember that she spends most of this series with a HUGE chip on her shoulder and little character development.
- Why did Edward think that not b r e a t h i n g was going to make her run? Not any of the awful stuff before that? Explain.
- EDWARD BROUGHT A MONSTER JEEP TO THEIR DATE?! WHERE WAS THIS IN THE FILMS?!
- I still don’t understand why Alice never spoke up when she saw the trio and decided playing baseball was a good idea and why they all couldn’t start packing up and leave to avoid this mysterious trio but okay?
- Why not get rid of James as soon as he was warned to not attack humans and then tried to anyway? Explain.
- Charlie constantly deserving better than his daughter using the lowest blow in the book to get away and never apologising for it.
- James’s commitment to hurt Bella could use some work. How about he saw Alice, made a decision that since Alice couldn’t be his that he would have Bella instead? Why is it rubbing it in Edward’s face?
- The fact that the Cullens and Hales show that they don’t really know Bella at all and just force her to prom because “it’s mandatory teenager stuff” does not sit right with me.
- And finally, the school and prom committee really let in a boy who doesn’t go there without a date? Explain!

After devouring Lovelace's and Kaur's work two years ago, I was looking for similar poetry style writers as I knew it was something I enjoyed reading. Tumblr is how I found Lang Leav, who came highly recommended. I bought three of her books at once; Lullabies, Sea of Strangers, and The Universe of Us.

And I have come to the conclusion that the books that her fans adore most, I find are the worst. Sea of Strangers is still the poetry book out of the three that I hold highest as it flowed and was easy to step into. Lullabies was stilted. The Universe of Us was whiny.

I had to put down this book three times and leave months between picking it back up again before I even finished it. The themes of Love and Loss were relatable in Sea of Strangers but was what was dragging me by the arms through Universe of Us.

Her points of view weren’t interesting, her language no longer beautiful as she kept droning on about what seems to be the exact same boy and you finish the book with the one opinion of, thank you that this book is over.

This is the third book I have read by Carrie Fisher and I think is my favourite of them all. It’s funny, quick wit, and quotable. A smile was always on my face reading it and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Incredibly short poetry collection that features some impactful poems, making you rethink your relationships and some poems you’ll recite to your friends when they tell you about theirs.