If I Can Stop Reading This Book ("If I Stay" Part 1)

Okay so I know you're probably getting sick of me (3 posts so quickly?? who am i??) But I'm halfway through "If I Stay" (and, spoiler alert, loving it) and am itching to gush so LET'S GO! Oh, wait, be careful of spoilers I may or may not include blah blah blah okay now LET'S GO
Alright so I actually wasn't super excited for this book. I guess I didn't want to get excited about something that had a bit of hype surrounding it. I was pleasantly surprised to find its exceeded my expectations.
This story, so far, has reminded me why I love young adult fiction. It's so much more than teen romance. Young adult literature tackles tough issues like death and broken homes and grief (I could go on forever probably) in a unique way and sigh I feel reinvigorated.
I love how Mia's family is depicted. It sounds so idealic to me to have parents like hers. It almost seemed too perfect but the author did include Mia's insecurity with not feeling like she belongs in her family which was a nice balance.
Also omfg ADAM. That little scene where he asks her to play him like a cello was so sweet and I loved it. He also seems a little too perfect but aren't they all?
Now I know the whole point of the book is that she has to decide if she wants to go be with her parents in whatever is after this life or stay and be with Adam and (maybe) her little brother. Since there's a second book I'm guessing she decides to live. But we'll see.
I'm rushing through this book so you'll probably hear from me again shortly.
Also I just realized I only have 100 pages to go. Oops.

"One to save the world, one to destroy it." ("The Enchantress" Part 2)

Welp I just finally ended my journey with Josh and Sophie Newman and sigh I suppose it's time to reminisce and what not. Beware of spoilers that may or may not be included in this post.
Okay so I don't remember a whole lot of the entire series but enough that this series coming to a close kind of makes me sad in a nostalgic way like Harry Potter except not as intense. I started this series when I was 17 and remember becoming so fascinated by all these new things I was learning through storytelling. I honestly believe "The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel" has the potential to be held up against Harry Potter. It is as deeply complex and comes full circle in the same way. Ugh it's so beautiful I want to puke.
Now I absolutely recommend these books but there are some things you should be aware of before delving. There are a lot of characters. Like "Game of Thrones" amount (okay maybe not that many) and if you have a bad memory like me you might get confused sometimes. And, as I said in my last post about this book, the author includes a lot of obscure and not so obscure lore and mythology which you don't necessarily need to know but definitely enhances your reading experience if you do. Ugh and let me just say I thought I was going to be insanely heartbroken by the end of this book. So many people were dying and it looked like the "twins" would be separated. But it's not all doom and gloom thankfully.
What I'm trying to say is this a beautiful series that will probably make you smarter. Just saying.

I know I'm late to the party but "If I Stay" is next from my bookshelf.

The Girliest of All (Make-Up Post)

NOT A BOOK POST (just so you know)!!!!
I get a lot of questions about makeup and what not because if you know me at all you'll know I have two faces. I really enjoy makeup and kind of nerd out (if that's possible when talking about makeup but I've done it so there you go) about makeup. SoOoOo I thought I'd kind of dole out some unsolicited advice about what I've learned and know about doing my own face. So if you're interested in that read on. HERE WE GO
Okay so let's start with the actual face. What kind of foundation (or lack there of) you use will depend on your skin type. I personally don't have super oily or super dry skin, although I do lean on the dry side on occasion like now since it's winter sigh. But because of that I don't use full coverage foundations. I find them to be too thick and heavy so I just like to use a BB cream which is basically just a tinted moisturizer which is perfect for light coverage and a bit more moisture. I like the Amazonian Clay BB cream by the brand Tarte. It is a higher end brand so it is kind of pricey so if you want one that basically does the same job I liked the CoverGirl BB cream too. Also, a good full coverage foundation for people with oily skin (or so I've heard) is the Revlon color stay foundation. I've never used it but so many people highly recommend it so if you've got the kind of skin, that foundation might be a good way to go.
(Side Note: I also like to use a Too Faced's Primed and Poreless primer it makes my face feel so smooth. Also I like this Garnier dark circle eye roller that I use as concealer I forget what it's called but it's really nice.)
Wow this is going to be a long post okay ONTO EYES. Eye makeup can be a bit intimidating so I'll just go through a quick rundown of what I do. I prime my eyes with Urban Decay's eye primer and then I line my upper lashes with a pencil liner. Now the way you do your eyeshadow (or don't) is up to you. I just us a bone color under my brows as highlight then I add usually taupes or browns into my crease for depth and I like to use golds or coppers on my lids. If you find eyeshadow intimidating (like I did omg so scary) I recommend trying Almay's intense eye color shadow trio's in your eye color. On my waterline I wear white eyeliner to make my eyes even bigger looking and one of the shadows I used in my crease to line my lower lash line. Then I add a layer of liquid liner over the pencil liner. As far as mascara goes I like Too Faced's Better Than Sex and when I say like I mean I WILL NEVER USE ANOTHER MASCARA EVER.
And we all know I love red lipstick. That's all you need to know about lips. Just wear red.

Well that's the basics pretty much. I'm not like super knowledgeable about this stuff but I know how to do my own face okay and get asked for advice or questions about the stuff I use so idk  I thought this might be helpful.
If you've read this whole thing omg bless you you're a trooper. Also here's a picture of my first face just so y'all know that I don't wear makeup because I'm insecure or hate my face. I just like it. Okay I'm done. The next post will be back to our regularly scheduled book nerdyness.

The Series for Smart People ("The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel: The Enchantress" Part 1)

Welp I'm halfway through "The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel: The Enchantress" so let's have a chat. If you're into that kind of thing. here's the standard warning of spoilers that may or may not be in this post HERE WE GOOOO

Alright just so y'all know this is another series that I started many moons ago and am just now getting around to finishing. I'm a big ole lazy pants so I didn't re-read the previous books as a refresher as I should have done. I had to get reacquainted with the characters and the story which wasn't as easy as it was with the previous book I read. This one has six books in it and I'm on the last one so there was quite a bit I had to remember. 

The story centers around twins (I think they're 15. I'm not sure if that's relevant.) Sophie and Josh who get thrown into a mythical and magical world that's been in existence forever basically. The author of this series, Michael Scott, is like an expert in mythology and folklore and is a super smarty pants and it definitely shows in these books. I remember having to look up a bunch of shit while reading them (stuff I've since forgotten sigh). He used mythical characters already in existence to create a very interesting and complex story. As my title suggests, this is not a light read. Don't get me wrong, it's not "Lord of the Rings" or anything but it's probably as close as you can get with a YA series. 

I would try and explain a bit more of the plot but honestly I don't think I could do it justice. Like it deals with magic in the elements and alchemy(hence the inclusion of Nicholas Flamel as a character) and different worlds (called shadowrealms) and different time lines and powerful old creatures. Idk I think it's super cool.

The Saddest of Sads ("TLOS: The Echantress Reurns" Part 2)

I actually finished "The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns" a couple of days ago I just haven't found time to post about it... UNTIL NOW MUHAHA (idk). Okay so I'm probably most definitely going to spoil stuff in this one so just beware but I have to  I HAVE TO okay let's go.
Ugh okay so all I can think about in regards to this book is how it ended and it kind of broke my heart. Like Alex decides to stay in the Land of Stories and her mom and Conner go back to the Otherworld (our world) without her. It just really made me sad because like they're twins and they're being separated. Idk like my family is very important to me and I can't imagine making a decision that would prevent me from ever being able to see them again. Just thinking about it makes me upset SO I'M MOVING ON
Of course, since this is essentially a fairy tale, all of the bad guys are vanquished which I do like. I thought it was a bit silly that Alex got rid of the Enchantress just by apologizing. Like that took all of her powers away. I thought that was kind of goofy but Alex is only 13 so I guess she is a bit young to be killing people.
Ugh I just hope the lil family is reunited in the next book.

UP NEXT: "The Enchantress" (lol) by Michael Scott
I actually already started this one

The Land of Bad Bitches ("TLOS: The Enchantress Returns" Part 1)

Welp I'm halfway through "The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns" so I guess it's about that time to discuss and stuff. P.S. I spoil stuff sometimes so just be careful okay LET'S GO
I remember really enjoying the first book in this series when I read it a couple years ago. I really enjoyed the new take on fairy tales, which I'm noticing I'm constantly looking for in the books I chose to read.
This time around I'm finding the twins a bit irritating. Alex and Conner are both very stubborn and I guess that's really what gets me about them. It's the kind of thing where you're trying to explain to a kid why they can't do something and it's like talking to a cat. They don't listen. I guess since I'm becoming an old lady I'm just like LISTEN TO YOUR GRANDMOTHER STUPID KIDS UGH but I have to forgive them since they just want to help their mom.
Also wtf is up with all of these women and their revenge???? Like before it was the Evil Queen because of her man in the mirror and now this Enchantress bitch with her wah wah wah I was too good at stuff and people were jealous of me then I couldn't find a man. Like the rest of us have to get over it WHY CAN'T THEY??? Idk man.
I'm also noticing more and more that this is a book written for a much younger audience than myself. Just throwing that out there if you do chose to go on this adventure. Definitely a children's book.
So far: I enjoy very much

also omfg it's like three in the morning so yeah sorry if this post is weird or ugh idek okay I'm gong to bed now 

The Roller Coaster I Didn't Want to Get on ("Hollow City" Part 2)

Sigh so I just finished "Hollow City." Man, does Mr.Riggs know how to end a book. Blabbitty blah blah blah spoilers blah idk just be aware blah. HERE WE GO (p.s. this post might not make a lot of sense because this book did have a few twists in it towards the end that will totally ruin it if I'm too detailed so I'm going to be extremely vague)
I was curious as to how Riggs was going to keep this story going. It did all seem a bit to neat and easy going for the peculiar children. I was a bit suspicious and really I should have seen what happened coming. It was hinted at a bit now that I think about it but so subtly so the twist kind of smacked me in the face.
Now I don't normally appreciate books with twists. I don't find the read quite as fulfilling as anticipation; where you know what's going to happen and you're just waiting to see if you're right. I think anticipation of events makes me read a bit faster. I need to know if what I think is going to happen actually happens. With all of that said, I really enjoy the Peculiar series (there is going to be a third called "Don't Look Away" which sounds horrifying).
What I love about this series is how much it reads like a children's story but is obviously not meant for children. It's hard to explain. It makes me feel like a lil one again.
Overall: Kelsey like.

AND UP NEXT WE HAVE: The second book in "The Land of Stories" series (I don't remember what it's called oops) by Chris Colfer