The Chocolate Tag

- THE CHOCOLATE TAG -

Book recommendations with a sugar coated twist. 

Dark Chocolate: A book that covers a dark topic. (abuse, domestic violence, rape, loneliness, bullying, death etc)

TEASE 

by Amanda Maciel

A gripping, controversial debut about the nature of bullying.

Emma Putnam is dead, and it's all Sara Wharton's fault.

At least, that's what everyone seems to think when Sara, along with her best friend and three other classmates, has been criminally charged for the bullying and harassment that led to Emma's shocking suicide. But Sara is sure she hasn't done anything wrong, because Emma brought it on herself. Sara is adamant that she was the victim - not Emma.

Inspired by a true story, TEASE is a thought-provoking must-read that will haunt you long after the last page.

An interesting take on the consequences of bullying from the bully's point of view. This book takes what you would assume to be a black and white topic and blurs the edges of right and wrong. It's gritty and raw and real. It's mean girls without the redemption and it's a breath-taking debut. 

White Chocolate: Your favourite light-hearted/humorous read.

13 LITTLE BLUE ENVELOPES

by Maureen Johnson

Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket.

In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat.

The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist.

Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke–about–town called Keith go to Scotland together, with somewhat disastrous–though utterly romantic–results. But will she ever see him again?

Everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it's all because of the 13 little blue envelopes.

This book is so sweet it will give you a cavity. Sure there are a couple of issues dealt with in the story, however if there wasn't how boring would it be? It's got an amazing book boyfriend, an epic adventure across the world and an incredible author stirring the plot lines. 

  

Milk Chocolate: A book that has a lot of hype that you’re dying to read.

LANDLINE

by Rainbow Rowell

Georgie McCool knows her marriage is in trouble. That it’s been in trouble for a long time. She still loves her husband, Neal, and Neal still loves her, deeply — but that almost seems besides the point now.

Maybe that was always besides the point.

Two days before they’re supposed to visit Neal’s family in Omaha for Christmas, Georgie tells Neal that she can’t go. She’s a TV writer, and something’s come up on her show; she has to stay in Los Angeles. She knows that Neal will be upset with her — Neal is always a little upset with Georgie — but she doesn’t expect to him to pack up the kids and go home without her.

When her husband and the kids leave for the airport, Georgie wonders if she’s finally done it. If she’s ruined everything.

That night, Georgie discovers a way to communicate with Neal in the past. It’s not time travel, not exactly, but she feels like she’s been given an opportunity to fix her marriage before it starts . . .

Is that what she’s supposed to do?

Or would Georgie and Neal be better off if their marriage never happened?

I ADORED Rainbows YA novel Fangirl and I've been dying to sink my teeth into another one of her books! Everyone I know who has read this one has been raving about it and the hype around this one is palpable. Seriously excited about this one! 

Chocolate with a Caramel Centre: Name a book that made you feel all gooey in the middle while you were reading it.

CRASH INTO YOU

by Katie McGarry

The girl with straight As, designer clothes and the perfect life—that's who people expect Rachel Young to be. So the private-school junior keeps secrets from her wealthy parents and overbearing brothers...and she's just added two more to the list. One involves racing strangers down dark country roads in her Mustang GT. The other? Seventeen-year-old Isaiah Walker-a guy she has no business even talking to. But when the foster kid with the tattoos and intense gray eyes comes to her rescue, she can't get him out of her mind. 

Isaiah has secrets, too. About where he lives, and how he really feels about Rachel. The last thing he needs is to get tangled up with a rich girl who wants to slum it on the south side for kicks-no matter how angelic she might look. 

But when their shared love of street racing puts both their lives in jeopardy, they have six weeks to come up with a way out. Six weeks to discover just how far they'll go to save each other.

Oh these two characters make me feel all gooey inside for sure! They're so cute together, even when things seem to be going tits up they're amazing and adorable and just damn sexy. I loves them and you will to! 

Wafer Free Kit Kat: Name a book that surprised you lately.

DESPERATELY EVER AFTER

by Laura Kenyon

Imagine what might happen if our most beloved fairy tale princesses were the best of friends and had the dreams, dilemmas, and libidos of the modern woman. How would their stories unfold after the wedding bells stopped ringing? Set in a fictional realm based on New York City, DESPERATELY EVER AFTER sprinkles women’s fiction with elements of fantasy, and encourages readers to rethink everything they know about happy endings. 

Years after turning her husband from beast back to man and becoming his queen, Belle finds out she’s finally going to have a child. But before she can announce the wondrous news, she catches him cheating and watches her “happily ever after” go up in flames. Turning to her friends for the strength to land with grace, she realizes she’s not the only one at a crossroads: 

Cinderella, a mother of four drowning in royal duties, is facing her 30th birthday and questioning everything she’s done (or hasn’t) with her life. 

Rapunzel, a sex-crazed socialite and one-woman powerhouse, is on a self-destructive quest to make up for 20 years locked away in a tower. 

Penelopea, an outsider with a mother-in-law from hell, is harboring a secret that could ruin everything at any moment.  

I'm not a massive lover of self-published books. At least I haven't been in the past. However, this year the self-pubs have been just as if not better than some of the books being published by some of the big publishing houses. The authors who are choosing to self-pub have really stepped it up a gear and that couldn't be truer for Desperately Ever After by Laura Kenyon. 

Snickers: A book that you are going nuts about.

FANGIRL

by Rainbow Rowell

Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan...

But for Cath, being a fan is her life—and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.

Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words... And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?

And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind? 

OMG! The title of this book could not be more appropriate!! I have not spoken to a single person who has read this book and hated it. I actually think it might be physically impossible to dislike Cath and Levi! I find myself squealing, clapping my hands and jumping up and down just thinking about it!  FANGIRLING FOR FANGIRL! 

Hot Chocolate with Cream and Marshmallows: What book would you turn to for a comfort read?

ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS

by Stephanie Perkins

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris--until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all...including a serious girlfriend. 

But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French kiss?

St. Clair and Anna are so damn perfect together and the Parisian setting of this book makes it the perfect comfort read. I guess this is another book that makes me a little gooey but I this is a book everyone needs to have on their shelves for a rainy day. Dream of Paris chéris.

Box of Chocolates: What series have you read that you feel has a wide variety and a little something for everyone?

The All Souls Trilogy

A DICOVERY OF WITCHES || SHADOW OF NIGHT || THE BOOK OF LIFE

by Deborah Harkness

    

A Discovery of Witches: 

Deep in the stacks of Oxford's Bodleian Library, young scholar Diana Bishop unwittingly calls up a bewitched alchemical manuscript in the course of her research. Descended from an old and distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with sorcery; so after a furtive glance and a few notes, she banishes the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets a fantastical underworld stirring, and a horde of daemons, witches, and vampires soon descends upon the library. Diana has stumbled upon a coveted treasure lost for centuries-and she is the only creature who can break its spell.

Debut novelist Deborah Harkness has crafted a mesmerizing and addictive read, equal parts history and magic, romance and suspense. Diana is a bold heroine who meets her equal in vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont, and gradually warms up to him as their alliance deepens into an intimacy that violates age-old taboos. This smart, sophisticated story harks back to the novels of Anne Rice, but it is as contemporary and sensual as the Twilight series-with an extra serving of historical realism.

This series is AMAZING. I actually can't get enough of these books! They are intelligent, magical, historical and has a romance to last a life time at it's core. It is full of interesting, well-researched themes that make these books rich and mesmerising. Fall in love with Matthew and Diana's story with The All Souls Trilogy. 

If you haven't taken part in the Chocolate Tag yet then copy over the questions and give it a go! Tell us all your chocolatey book recommendations and let's see who has the sweetest tooth. 

Link you're tags in the comments bellow! I want to see what you pick :)