The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald

Synopsis: "The Great Gatsby lives in a luxurious Long Island mansion, playing lavish host to hundreds of people, and yet no-one seems to know him or how he became so rich. He is rumoured to be everything from a German spy to a war hero. Jay Gatsby doesn't need them. He cares for one person alone - Daisy Buchanan, the woman he was waited for all his life. Little does he know how his infatuation will end.."

I think it's safe to say that The Great Gatbsy was a classic that was doomed from the start for me as I was forced to read it as part of my AS English Literature course. Although I'm an avid reader, I'm genuinely not fond of being forced to read. I much prefer to read a book of my own choice, and in my own time as opposed to having one thrust upon me with the expectancy to read it as quickly as possible without much thought or thoroughness.

What particularly bugged me about this novel is the fact that it was narrated by Nick Carraway, who is Daisy's cousin. While it was at times interesting to get an outsider's perspective on life in the 1920s, I found it annoying when trying to connect with the other characters because I felt as if Fitzgerald concentrated on developing Nick over the others, suggesting he is the protagonist of the story when in reality it's actually Gatsby.

Although I understand that it is a short book and therefore there isn't necessarily enough room for detail, I thought so many aspects of this story lacked depth and emotion, such as the relationship between Gatsby and Daisy. There was so much opportunity for Fitzgerald to do something wonderful and loving with it but instead I found myself reading a relationship that appeared nothing more than a page-filler.

Furthermore, I just found the characters of the novel as a whole tiresome and pathetic to read. Never have I loathed a character more than Daisy Buchanan. I found her shallow, dim witted and down right oblivious to the world around her. Daisy initially left Gatsby because he didn't have any money whereas her fiance, Tom Buchanan, did. Then when Gatsby returned with his lavish parties, stunning manor house and expensive clothes she went running back to him, only to then return to Tom again once she lost Gatsby for the final time. I despised her for that and wanted nothing more than for her character to meet a painful ending, that however didn't happen. Also, in some aspects, Gatsby bothered as I perceived him as a somewhat childish character. In the lead up to reuniting with Daisy and trying to get her attention I felt as if I was reading a romance between two 7-year-old's in a school playground where they had to get their friends running back and forth between the two to see how they felt about each other.

Conclusively, I found the overall story lacked empathy and thought and found myself struggling to connect with it. I did however enjoy Fitzgerald's descriptive techniques and ability to make you imagine a scene as clear as a picture.

I give F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Great Gatsby ★★

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J.K. Rowling

Synopsis: When a letter arrives for unhappy but ordinary Harry Potter, a decade-old secret is revealed to him. His parents were wizards, killed by a Dark Lord's curse when Harry was just a baby, and which he somehow survived. Escaping from his unbearable Muggle guardians to Hogwarts, a wizarding school brimming with ghosts and enchantments, Harry stumbles into a sinister adventure when he finds a three-headed dog guarding a room on the third floor. Then he hears of a missing stone with astonishing powers which can be valuable, dangerous, or both."

Although coming across a book you've never read can be a wonderful experience, I think there's nothing more important than rereading some of your favourite books, particularly if they are ones that you have grown up with, such as the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling.

Despite having read The Philosopher's Stone many times already I was still captivated and amazed by the magical world of Hogwarts. Rowling's writing style is so alluring as she uses classic narrative devices with flair and originality. She also displays a great level of descriptiion of everything and everyone, but in a way that doesn't become tiresome to read. The character development in this novel is fantastic and even the smaller characters have a description and a back story to them. This brought a great sense of realism to the story as it allowed me to grow a connection with them as well as the protagonists.

I was particularly fond of how Harry grew as a character throughout this novel. He had a very lonely and unhappy decade with the Dursley's which caused him to be a very secluded character and although it gave me a great sense of sympathy for him, I was happy that that was the upbringing he had as opposed to the one he would have had if he stayed in the wizarding world - being famous before he could walk and talk would have resulted in him growing a lot like Malfoy. Despite his upbringing however he was humble but quickly became used to being hated and alone, but once he arrived at Hogwarts he had a greater sense of home. This allowed him to grow into a stronger character who would do anything to protect the people he loved and stand up for what he believed in, even if some of the choices he made were rather foolish.

One of the best things about this story is the pacing. Although the novel has a somewhat slow start, it was really intriguing to read. Not much in terms of excitement happens until Hagrid turns up in the novel but up until that point it was still an enjoyable read, despite being rather slow paced. I loved how Rowling threw in a bit of adventure and action here and there throughout the novel to add excitement and to build up to the conclusion of Harry, Ron and Hermoine going after the Philosopher's Stone. Everything from the moment they came across Fluffy for the second time is fast paced and keeps you on the edge of your seat and I believe the way in which Voldermort's character was brought into the story at the conclusion was impressive on Rowling's behalf.

Overall this novel takes you on a magical and wonderful journey of self discovery, friendship, courage, the supernatural and binary opposition.

I give J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone ★★★★★

Reliving Harry Potter

It's safe to say that Harry Potter was a massive part of many people's childhood, including mine. Just the excitement of picking up the next book in the series and locking myself in my room for two days to finish it is something I'll never forget and I hope it continues to play a massive part in the live's of generations to come as well.

However, despite being loved worldwide, I feel as if not enough people talk about and celebrate Harry Potter any more (whether it be through the books or the movies) and it's a real shame because if it wasn't for Rowling, Harry and his friends and Hogwarts I probably wouldn't be as invested in reading as I am today.

So, as a result of this, I've decided to set myself the challenge of rereading all seven Harry Potter books over the remainder of the summer holidays and post reviews on them. Although I know enough from my memory to review them without having to read them again, I sort of feel as if I'm obliged to because they've been such a massive part of my life and it's kind of exciting to get back into the series and fall in love with it all over again.

Be sure to let me know in the comments section what your favourite Harry Potter book is and how many times you've read the series!

Dare You To - Katie McGarry

Synopsis: Beth is the bad girl that no one wanted, not even her parents. Ryan is the high school hero that everyone wants a piece of, even if no one knows the real him. If anyone knew the truth about Beth Risk's mum they'd send her mother to jail, so seventeen year-old Beth protects her at all costs. Ryan Stone is gorgeous, a popular jock and the town golden boy with secrets he can't tell anyone. Not even his friends. Their paths should never have crossed but now they're each other's only life line.

Dare You To is the heart-warming novel by Katie McGarry about two teens, Beth Risk and Ryan Stone, from two very different lives. Beth has spent her life floating from home to home, unwanted and unloved by those she thought she could trust and Ryan has struggled to live up to his parent's expectations and their demands to have him live his life the way they see fit. The two find themselves unexpectedly thrown together by Beth's uncle and soon discover that there's more to each other than they initially thought.

Much like her previous work, Pushing the Limits, this novel is beautiful, mysterious and heartbreaking to read. McGarry has such a compelling and delicate writing style that holds so much emotion and she has a way of making you feel so strongly about each of her characters that there is no in between about them; you either love them or you hate them.

You can't help but sympathise with and admire Beth. Despite everything she's been through with everyone she thought she could trust running out on her and having to deal with an alcoholic mother with an abusive boyfriend, she remains such a determined and strong character. At times you want to hit her for being so judgmental and always seeing the bad in people, but then you just want to comfort her for keeping it together and always fighting for what she believes in regardless of how many times she get hurts.

Ryan on the other hand is a little more difficult to sympathise with because despite a few things he's not sure about in regards to his future and where he stands with his relationship with his family, he more or less has everything together. Fortunately McGarry uses his character to break the boundaries and show what a terrible judge of character we can all be and how easy it is to wrongly stereotype someone because of past experiences or your general thoughts about them without actually knowing anything of the person or what they've faced.

The way in which Beth and Ryan's relationship builds is really tantalising to read despite being a little cliché. When they first meet they got off to a particularly defective start but after Beth's uncle reintroduces them to each other they begin to notice an attraction and connection with each other, both of which initially believe the opposite person doesn't feel, so they avert their feelings for a while. But even when they do begin to express their feelings there's always something that gets in their way, thus causing emotional confusion for both characters and a slightly frustrating relationship.

Despite being dual narrated by Beth and Ryan, a lot of the novel refers back to Beth's past and the strong narrative enigma that flows throughout the story; what happened to Beth's father and what is her mother hiding from everyone in her bedroom? McGarry does an admirable job of building up the tension of the story throughout the novel to the penultimate revealing of both questions and keeps you guessing about what could possibly be going on. Although not as terrifying and astonishing to discover as Echo's story in Pushing the Limits, Beth's life is really interesting to learn more about and highlights the fact that just because you don't have it as bad as another person does not mean you shouldn't be any less dejected by the matter.

Admirably, Dare You To is a novel about love, loss, trust and betrayal between two teenagers and their relationship which began with a dare and became an attraction they can't resist.

I give Katie McGarry and Dare You To ★★★★★

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner - Stephenie Meyer

Synopsis: "Bree Tanner can barely remember life before she had uncannily powerful sense, superhuman reflexes and unstoppable physical strength; life before she had a relentless thirst for blood.. life before she became a vampire. All Bree knows is that living with her fellow newborns has few certainties and even fewer rules: watch your back, don't draw attention to yourself and, above all, make it home by sunrise or die. What she doesn't know is her time is running out."

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer follows the 'short second life' of Bree Tanner as she tries to come to terms with her transition from ordinary girl to a being of the supernatural world as a vampire. Her life as a vampire starts to look up from her old life, which was full of disappointment and despair, until a battle with a coven called The Cullens changes everything.

I'm not going to be one of those people that says the Twilight Saga is awful because at the time of reading it I thoroughly enjoyed it and it empowered me to read more books, but at the same time I don't love it. However when you compare this novella to the remainder of the Saga its clear which comes out on top, and that's this novella.

Like most novellas this one isn't crucial to the story it originates from, the Twilight Saga, and therefore isn't one that has to be read in order to understand the events of any of the books. It is however a story that provides a lot of insight to the supernatural world outside the town of Forks.

I fell in love with Bree's character instantly in this novella. She was just an ordinary girl from a difficult and troubled background who was thrust into a world of the supernatural, lies, heartbreak and eventually death. What was really compelling about her is that she just seemed so natural and real to read and wasn't at all superficial, unlike many of the characters from the remainder of the Saga.

Thankfully Meyer's writing style becomes more mature and pleasurable to read in this story and I think that's because it's more of a survival story as opposed to a love story. Although Bree does find love, Meyer focuses on Bree's struggles in understanding her new world and surviving for as long as she can.

Obviously the relationship between Bree, and her love interest Diego, is going to draw comparisons to that of Bella and Edward and fortunately for this story Bree and Diego come out on top. When Bree loses Diego she's heartbroken, of course, but her world doesn't fall apart around her, unlike Bella's. In fact Bella's world does more than fall apart, she falls apart too. She becomes weak, pathetic even, in the fact that she can't live without the man she loves. Bree however doesn't allow herself to be defined by a man or her relationships and that's why she's such a strong and lovable character - despite everything she's been through she doesn't stop in her attempts to break free of Riley's power and become the independent vampire she knows she can be.

It's a shame really that the novella was so short because the story had so much more potential and I just wish Meyer had allowed her to become a part of the Cullen clan.

I give Stephenie Meyer and The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner ★★★★