Perfect summer reads- Morgan Matson

Since I've been on holiday from work this past week it's given me some time to read, and what better books to read than ones with a summery theme. No better books fit this more than the ones by Morgan Matson; Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, Since You've Been Gone, Second Chance Summer and The Unexpected Everything. 

 

(I currently don't have Since You've Been Gone as a family friend has borrowed it) 

Since You've Been Gone was the first Morgan Matson book that I ever read- it was given to me as a Christmas present, and at that time I had no idea who this author was. However the minute I started reading the book I was hooked, the characters, plot, and summery feel made this a great read. The book is all about discovering yourself and doing things that take you out of your comfort zone- something that we should all do more often. I love this book, and it's made me want to write my own bucket list of things to achieve this summer! 

After loving that book so much, I immediately had to read the others by Morgan Matson so I brought Second Chance Summer- probably my favourite of the lot. 

 

This book is about taking that second chance with the people you love and that it's never too late to turn things around. One of my favourite things about this book is the fact that it's set on a family holiday- I have so many memories of these myself and it just makes the book that extra bit summery! 

As well as being my favourite Morgan Matson book, this book is probably one of my favourites that I've ever read, definitely worth a read, however make sure you have some tissues near as this is a sad one!

Amy & Roger's Epic Detour is about a road trip across America which involves breaking off of the path set and finding adventure. 

 

One of the things on my bucket list is doing a road trip across America so this one definitely interested me! I love how there were playlists and pictures at the start of the chapters- it really made you feel a part of things and made the book that extra bit special. Yet again, this is another great read! 

The final Morgan Matson book, which I've just finished reading on holiday, is The Unexpected Everything. 

 

This was the only book that at first I couldn't get in to, but perhaps that was because I could only read a few chapters at a time due to work, but I'm so glad that I persevered because it was yet again another good read! 

This one's about how sometimes life is better without a plan and that you may miss some of the moments that you wouldn't otherwise have when life is all mapped out for you. I fear that I may have missed some moments on holiday because I was so busy reading this book! 

The only criticism I have is that I wish one part of the ending was in more depth, but still, I really liked this book! 

I generally love how all of these books are set in the same town, with the character's all at the same school- it really helps you create an image in your head. 

All in all, I would definitely recommend Morgan Matson books as a great summer read, especially if you're also a big fan of romance! 

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I hope to do more reviews like this soon, whether that be books, music or even films, and I promise to be way more active on here now, hopefully I post once a week! 

Thanks for reading, 

Daniella xx 

Summer 2015- Pevensey Bay/Eastbourne

Remember at the start of the year when I said that I was going to post on here every week? Well clearly that didn't happen oops. In fact I haven't actually made a post on here since then 😳

It's summer now though and I've finished 6th form and full-time education FOREVER!

Anyway, this summer I've been on a lot of trips and thought that I'd blog about them, mainly because I can't be bothered to physically write down my memories in a diary, and also so that I can look back on my memories in the future! 😄

Our family friends (my Mum's best friend and her 2 kids) know someone who owns at caravan down at a private holiday park in Pevensey Bay, and lets us stay there for free. So on 1st August me, my sister and my Mum drove down there as for the first night it would just be us 3 due to the fact that my brother and the other 2 kids were camping, and their Mum had to stay home and go to a Christening, so they'd all be joining us the next day/2 days after. When we got there it was about 3pm and we hadn't had lunch yet, so we drove to Asda (which was about 5 minutes away from the site) and brought sandwiches, which we then ate in the car in the Asda car park because we were that hungry we couldn't wait! 

After lunch we returned to the caravan site and just relaxed outside on the decking of the caravan, where we all read our books in the sunshine. Us 3 would happily spend the whole afternoon sitting there reading, however the others would not so we had to make the most of it whilst we could! 

I read one of my sisters library books- Bursting Bubbles, by Dyan Sheldon and I guess it was okay, not the best book but also not the worst either. 

That evening, we drove into Eastbourne town (which is about 20 minutes away) where we went to Pizza Express for dinner. We all had a chicken leggera pizza which had the salad in the middle and was delicious! 

Once we'd finished eating we went for a drive in a direction we haven't ever been to before and ended up at Beachy Head. By that time the sun was setting so we stopped to take some photos because everything looked so pretty and I'm in love with sunsets! 

On the drive back we stopped off at Fusciardi ice-cream parlour, (which is on the sea-front and a few minutes drive from the pier) where me and my sister got ice-cream to eat in the car. 

Day 2:

The next day we drove into Eastbourne town centre again so that we could visit the Arndale shopping centre. I brought a black & white stripey top in New Look, 'What If' on DVD from HMV and Marcus Butler's book 'Hello Life' in Waterstones. We got sandwiches to eat on the beach, but we had to keep these hidden from the very tame seagulls, as last time we were there they took my brother's whole chicken burger out his hands! 

It would have been nice to stay on the beach in Eastbourne for longer but by that time my brother and one of our family friends were ready to be dropped off at the caravan site so we had to head back. This didn't really affect us though as back at the caravan I just sat on the decking and read again. 

We cooked a pizza for dinner and watched Divergent, and then me and my sister headed to the beach for a bit which  leads off from the caravan site and we even had a little paddle in the sea! 

Day 3:

Everybody had arrived (all 7 of us) by this point and we spent the day in the caravan and also went swimming in the pool. 😄

We had fajitas for dinner and then headed over to the ClubHouse for pudding- this delicious ice-cream sundae!

We packed up and left as soon as we were ready the next morning, but it was a great trip and I can't wait for the next one! 

My top albums of 2014

I was going to do this blog post a while back, at the start of 2015 but I just haven't had time & kept thinking of other ideas that I preferred.

So today I'm going to share with you 5 of my favourite albums of 2014:

1) X - Ed Sheeran

I was obsessed with this album at the start of last summer, for a while it was literally all that I listened to!

I loved his first album & this follow up album definitely didn't disappoint!

There wasn't (and still isn't) a song that I don't like on X, the lyrics are great and the songs tell a story which I think is what makes his music draw in the listener, and you really feel like you connect with the lyrics. 

Favourite song back then- Afire Love

Favourite song now- Thinking Out Loud

2) In The Lonely Hour - Sam Smith

I'd never really heard that much about Sam Smith before listening to his album- so I just assumed that I wasn't gonna like his stuff. I knew he'd been on some other songs like 'Latch' and 'La La La' and I liked both of these songs but I really had no idea what his own album would sound like. I'd heard great stuff about it though so I decided to give it a listen- and it was amazing!

He has one of those voices that is amazing on it's own- he doesn't need backing singers or even backing music, just his voice. I would definitely recommend 'In The Lonely Hour' as it has great songs and deep lyrics to it. 

Favourite song back then- Latch Acoustic

Favourite song now- Latch Acoustic (it's stayed the same!) 

3- Meet The Vamps - The Vamps

This was the year that I fell in love with The Vamps- and I was lucky enough to see them in concert in October and I'm going again in May this year! :D

I can say that this was probably my 2nd favourite album of the whole year, I dread to think how many times I've listened to each song! 

Favourite song back then- Oh Cecilia

Favourite song now- Somebody To You

4 - TRXYE - Troye Sivan

For anyone who may not know, Troye Sivan is a YouTuber, and I watch his videos all the time. This is his debut EP and I love every song off of it! 

Favourite song back then - Happy Little Pill

Favourite song now - Happy Little Pill (no change)

5 - Midnight Memories - One Direction

I know this album came out at the end of 2013 but I was most obsessed with this in 2014. One Direction are my favourite band and every single album is perfect. All the songs on this album are so catchy and I love all of the lyrics! 

Favourite song back then- Strong

Favourite song now - Don't Forget Where You Belong

These albums are in no particular order btw, I love them all and they all remind me of a certain time in 2014. That's what I love about music, when you listen to it all the memories come flooding back :) 

Okay I'm gonna go now, see you soon! :)

Girl Online Review

So for Christmas I got the book 'Girl Online' by Zoe Sugg (Zoella). I was excited to read it because I'm a big fan of Zoe and she had kind of described the book in her videos and the storyline really appealed to me. As well as liking the overview of the book that she'd described, I also really liked the cover design. I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover but the cover of this really stood out to me, I think especially because it had real pictures on and looked very teenagery (if that's even a word).

Now the actual book itself was so good! 

It had a great storyline that really appealed to someone my age who has an interest in social media, but also other aspects of it as well- there were lots of things that I (and many other teenagers) could relate to. The fact that it was set in Brighton also made it more appealing because that's where Zoe lives, and it's also one of my favourite places!

It mentions many real places in Brighton that I've actually been to, which helped me to picture where it was taking place when I read it, and it really helped me feel like I was there. 

It's so clear that these are Zoe's ideas because the themes in the book can relate to her (anxiety, blogging, etc.) and I can really picture her being the main character in the book.

Overall I loved it and would definitely recommend! I would definitely read it again because it's such a good storyline and there's so much detail focusing on the scenes that you feel like you are a part of it!

I've heard rumours that Girl Online is going to be made into a film and I really hope this is the case because it would make an amazing movie!

There's also apparently going to be a Girl Online 2 which I'm so excited for!!

I think that's it for now, make sure you read it if you haven't!

Byeeeeeeee :)  

P.S- I started reading it on Boxing Day and finished it in 4 days it was that good!

2014 Reflection & New Year's resolutions

2014 was a pretty good year for me. After having the worst year of my life in 2013 for many reasons, 2014 helped me move forward with my life and start to feel a lot happier.

I've gotten to go to Summer In the City & also to see The Vamps in concert- both of these being things that have increased my happiness last year. For a long time watching the same familiar YouTubers every week would provide me with the highest amount of happiness, so I was so happy when I got to meet them at Summer in the City. I also went to Jim Chapman's Hyde Park meet-up & although I only got to take a quick photo with him, it still made my day and he was so lovely :) 

I think the open-mindedness of these online personalities and their subscribers has helped me to also become a more open-minded person & I realised that you don't need to be out every night going to parties, to be happy, and you should just be yourself. 

This year I've also learnt the importance of family and good friends, as in the friends that are family friends and I've known them since they were born- even though she is 12 I still feel that I am completely myself around her and that she really does bring out the best side of me and who I truly am. In a previous year full of changes I realised that in 2014 I've become so much closer to my Mum, and I hope that continues even more into the new year. There's nothing better than unconditional love from family & close friends who just accept you for you. 

Social media sites such as YouTube & Twitter have been a big part of my year so far, and although I spend a large majority of my days online, the content on there really does inspire me. I've recently discovered that I really enjoying taking pictures and so in 2015 I hope to do a lot of this, and capture special moments in time forever.

Overall I feel like I've grown as a person in 2014 and I can't wait to gain more inspiration & with this, my love of life will also grow. I'm excited to start the new year as a more 'me' version of myself and am looking forward to seeing what I've achieved by the end of 2015. 

Here's to the new year!!

I've made some New Year's resolutions for this year:

-Take more photos

-Eat a more healthy diet

-Drink more water 

-Take steps this year which will benefit my future

I hope that by doing this, my life will become even better & I become the best version of me possible.

Happy New Year!!

Shopping in Brighton

So today I went to Brighton so that me & my family plus our family friends could go shopping. Tbh I really needed to buy clothes as I didn't get any for Christmas because I'm so fussy that whatever my Mum brought me I'd be likely to take back!

On the drive there we listened to Four by One Direction- I love that album :)

When we got to Brighton we headed straight for the shops- we didn't really have a chance to goto the beach & take photos so I had to take one out the window of the car.

    

    The Old Pier

We looked around a few shops but there was nothing there which I really liked so after an hour or two we headed into the lanes & went to Donatello for lunch. Donatello is an Italian restaurant which my Mum has been to twice before & loved it- so she recommended that we go there again!

The food was delicious- I couldn't actually finish the pizza as the portion was so big, but I didn't want to waste any so I brought it home to eat later. I had the four cheese pizza and it was so good!

The restaurant is on three levels and the atmosphere in there is so nice- I would definitely go there again!

After lunch we hit the shops ago, this time to New Look & then Primark. I really wanted some new black leggings as most of my pairs have holes in and I only have one nice pair. Leggings are basically the only thing which I wear so they're pretty essential! However New Look didn't seem to have any so I came away with none :(

I'd planned to save up my money so wasn't expecting to buy anything in Primark, but there was a sale on and I saw a really nice top that was only £2! And I've been wanting short tops like this for ages so I was very happy!

I also picked up two more tops like this which were £5 and £6- which is still so cheap :) 

I was in need of some basic black strappy tops so I also brought 2 of those. All together all these things were so cheap- I LOVE Primark!!

It was about 4pm by this time & unfortunately we had to leave :( 

I managed to take some more pictures out of the car window again though-

   Brighton Pavilion

Brighton promenade (I especially love     this picture!) 

It was a good day shopping, I absolutely love Brighton and want to live there one day. I'd definitely recommend going- it has something for everyone!

Anyway that's it for this post, hope you enjoyed,

See you soon! :) 

What I Got For Christmas 2014 :)

I hope everyone had a brilliant Christmas!!

I wanted to blog about what I got for Christmas this year, mainly so I can look back on it & remember, but also I want to start using this blog lots. As usual, I'm not trying to brag or show off about what I got, I just find it interesting to see so I thought I'd post mine :) 

My main present this year was a camera. I've wanted one for so long- ever since my last one broke (so about 3 years!!) but I never got around to asking for one. But this year I finally did!!

A camera is especially useful for me because my iPhone has barely any storage so I'm always having to delete my photos :( and recently my laptop and the family laptop have broken so there's been nowhere to store pictures, but now with a camera that problem is solved!! 

One of my favourite presents I got was a whole lot of bath products- I got so many this year. Previously I haven't really used them and they've just sat on my shelf because I forgot I had them and I'd just use the ones in the bathroom, but this year I'm gonna try especially hard to make sure I use mine, which shouldn't be hard because they smell so nice!! 

(These are either from New Look (picture 2), The Body Shop (picture 3), Jack Wills-  these are from the Jack Wills section of Boots (picture 4) and Boots (picture 5) )

Now I really enjoy watching YouTube and had asked for Zoe Sugg (Zoella)'s book- Girl Online, and her body mist 'Blissful Mistful' (from her beauty range) for Christmas. But I also got the turquoise make-up bag and the 'Soak Opera' bath soak as well :) 

I've already finished reading Girl Online- it was so good that I finished it in 4 days!! (I'm not gonna post too much about it as I may do a separate post talking about it & her beauty products which I have :) )

I would definitely recommend it though!!

I also love the body mist & the bath soak- they smell so nice and fruity!! 

The next thing I'm going to post about is my Converse. I absolutely love these, they basically sum up my style because I love anything glittery!! 

I asked for Four- One Direction and The Fault in Our Stars as I love both of these so I wanted a physical copy of them both :) 

The last thing I'm going to post about it my bracelets. These are so pretty, I love them!! I'm a bit scared to wear them incase I break them though- guess I'll just have to be extra careful!!

They were from brands which I'd never heard of- the black one is from Fiorelli and the silver one from Mikey. 

I also got tickets to go and see the X-Factor Tour and tickets to Harry Potter World, I'm so excited I can't wait!! :D

I'm gonna say this again, I'm not bragging or trying to show off, I'm just so grateful and happy with everything that I've got, and I'm so thankful that my family have brought me some beautiful gifts.

I hope you got everything you wanted this Christmas :) xx 

See you soon!! :)