I honestly can't believe it's the end of November already and how close we are to Christmas and New Year! It's gone by so quickly.
I've had a great month, hope you have too.
As usual, here's what I've been loving this month.
'Girl Online On Tour' By Zoe Sugg
On the 25th of November last year, YouTuber 'Zoella' (real name Zoe Sugg) published her first novel, Girl Online. There were many critics after it was revealed that she used a ghost writer (someone who writes the book for the author but the author is the one who comes up with the story, characters ect). She was branded 'lazy' and a 'unfit' role model for young girls. This was really unfair. Last year was probably one of the busiest years for Zoe, not only was she writing a novel but she was still filming videos for her YouTube channel and creating products for her Zoella Beauty line. It must have been incredibly difficult so I'm not surprised she got a ghost writer. Anyway, moving on, I loved the first book. I thought it was amazing how Zoe managed to come up with a really enjoyable story with likable characters such as Penny, the main character. She's a 16 year old girl who likes to write blogposts under the name 'Girl Online' to protect her identity. Just before Christmas, Penny's family decide to go to New York which is where she meets her love interest Noah, who is a famous singer in the USA. Penny continues to blog about her time in NY but when she returns home, rumours are spreading about the two. I'm not going to spoil anything but I'll just say it was an amazing book.
Now, Zoe is back with the sequel, Girl Online On Tour, which she wrote herself. Penny is back blogging but only her closest friends and her favourite teacher can read it after the events of the previous book. Penny and Noah are in a relationship but it is difficult as he spends a lot of time in America. Luckily, he is about to tour Europe and Penny decides to join him. However, her anxieties get the better of her and her parents wonder if it's a good idea for her to to be travelling Europe. I can definitely say that this is better than the first one. There's great character development between Penny, Noah and Penny's friends. They've all matured since the last book. The story is really gripping too. Penny suffers from anxiety attacks and I'm always worried about what's going to happen to her. However, thanks to the protection of Noah, I always know that she's going to turn out fine. A great second novel by Zoe Sugg! I really hope she writes a third.
You can read my full review of the first book, Girl Online, here. I will be doing a review on the sequel on this blog soon.
'Get Weird' by Little Mix
Little Mix spent the whole of 2014 writing their third album and recording it in the studio. However, the girls decided to scrap it as they didn't think it was good enough. They started from scratch and managed to come up with 'Get Weird'. I can definitely say that this is an improvement on the previous two albums, DNA and Salute. Both of the albums were great with unique songs and amazing vocals. I would definitely describe this album as fun because the majority of the songs are pop/dance anthems. The girls have recommended this to people who have ever felt insecure or weird in their own skin and find it hard to accept themselves. In their songs, they sing about how it's okay to be weird and different. In one of their songs, Weird People, they sing 'we're gonna get weird all night' hence the album title. Despite this being their most upbeat album yet, there are still some emotional songs such as Secret Love Song (featuring Jason Derulo), I Love You and Lightning. Definitely my favourite album by Little Mix as there are so many songs I can listen to on repeat. You can read my full review on my prevous blogpost here.
'Never Been Better' by Olly Murs
I remember when Olly Murs was a contestant on series 6 of The X Factor and, to be honest, I wasn't a fan at first because I liked Joe McElderry, who won the series. Olly did come second, though, and landed a record deal with his mentors, Simon Cowell, label, Syco. He is now one of the most successful contestants from the show and has now released four albums, including his latest, Never Been Better. Since he released his first self-titled album, I've become more of a fan of his.
I was lucky enough to meet Olly at his album signing at HMV at the Manchester Arndale and he was really sweet to everyone he met and I got a picture with him(see above). I think this is definitely his best album yet.
The Big Bang Theory (Series 9) (Contains Spoilers)
The Big Bang Theory has been one of my favourite TV shows ever since I began watching it in 2013. At first, I couldn't get into it but after watching a few episodes, I found myself laughing at the characters' antics. I remember when I first began watching it, series 7 had just started and now we're already onto series 9. I definitely think the characters have developed since series 8, especially Sheldon. I think he's developed the most because whent this series first began, in 2007, Sheldon was asexual. He had no desire to have sex, in fact he was repulsed by the idea and had never had feelings for anyone. This was because, for the majority of his life, he was entirely focused on science. However, this changed when he met Amy at the end of series three. Throughout series 4, he described Amy as 'a friend, who is a girl but not my girlfriend' which I thought was good because this meant that he spent a long time getting to know Amy first. I think this is what most people should do before going straigh into a relationship. By series 7, Sheldon accepts that he does love Amy and even kisses her on Valentine's Day which came as a surprise to all of their friends and me. I felt happy for both Sheldon and Amy because this was their first romantic relationship. Unfortunately, I was devastated when Amy broke up with Sheldon at the end of series 8 and was shocked to discover that he was planning to propose to her! Now the whole of series 9 is Sheldon trying his hardest to win Amy back as he struggles to accept that she's broken up with him. I think this is both sad and funny because it's Sheldon's first relationship and, how Amy describes it, he 'doesn't understand how being broken up works'. Currently, I'm only on episode four at the moment as it's only just been shown in the UK on E4 so I'm hoping that Sheldon and Amy do get back together as they were my favourite relationship.
I also think that Leonard and Penny have matured since the first series because they always had an on/off relationship. Penny always felt confused about her feelings for Leonard as she'd never been with a guy like him before and had always been with tall, handsome, popular guys not short nerds like Leonard. However, in series 7, the two finally get engaged but, unfortunately, at the end of series 8, Leonard confesses to, whilst drunk, kissing another woman whilst he was working in the North Sea and Penny wonders if she can really trust Leonard, much to his dismay. Luckily, the two get married at the beginning of Series 9 but despite Penny forgiving Leonard, she hasn't forgotten. I really hope the two manage to work out their differences because there's been too much of them being on/off and I think they should remain together as I know how much Leonard loves Penny and I know how much she truly loves him, deep down.
So far, I think series 9 is great and still just as funny as the previous series!
'I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!' Series 15
I think this has to be one of the best lineups on this show ever. Last year, there weren't many celebrities that I liked so I didn't watch. However, this year is full of my favourite celebrities such as Vicky Pattison. If you've read my previous blogposts, you'll know that I'm a huge fan of Vicky's and have met her twice. She is one of the funniest and sweetest people ever. Earlier this year, during a #AskVicky session on Closer Magazine's account, I asked her if she would rather go in the Celebrity Big Brother house or the I'm A Celeb jungle and she tweeted back this:
It was one of the most hilarious things she had ever tweeted and I couldn't stop laughing for ages afterwards. Hopefully, now that's she in the jungle, she'll be forced to eat kangaroo balls as it will be so funny to watch.
Also in the jungle is Yvette Fielding who presented Most Haunted. The TV show is about her going into various old houses and discovering ghosts. I remember when she did a series called Ghosthunting With... where she would ghost hunt with various celebrities and one episode she did ghost hunting with my favourite girl band, at the time, Girls Aloud and I remember thinking that it was one of the funniest things I've ever watched because their reactions were hilarious. She's also from where I live in Manchester so hopefully she'll do my city proud and reach the final.
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2
One of my favourite film franchises, The Hunger Games, has reached its inevitable end. When I saw the first film in 2012, I had no idea that I would love it as much as I do now. Jennifer Lawrence, who plays the main protagonist Katniss Everdeen, is now one of my favourite actresses and The Hunger Games is one of my favourite films. Before watching the first film, I wasn't sure if I was going to like it, due to the heavy violence but, after reading the books, I fell in love with Katniss as she strives to put an end to The Hunger Games and starts a rebellion against the Capitol. In Mockingjay: Part 2, Katniss finally joins a group of rebels and soldiers to take down the Capitol once and for all. But it doesn't come without its struggles. The Capitol has built in bombs, known as pods, that threaten anyone that comes their way and Katniss and her fellow soldiers must find a way into the Capitol without running into any of the pods. I was so excited about seeing this film and it didn't disappoint. It's full of action and director, Francis Lawrence, has decribed this as the 'most violent' Hunger Games yet and he's not wrong. There are plenty of emotional moments too which I cried at. If you want to read my full review on my 'Film & TV Shows Reviews' blog, click here.
So those were my November Favourites!
Thank you so much for reading my blogposts, it means a lot.
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