Twenty Questions Booktag


I know lots, and lots of people have done the Twenty Questions Booktag, but the first place I (Sarah) saw it was over on Paper Fury. My apologizes for not know knowing who first created it, but I was going around in circles trying to figure it out - please let me know in the comments if you know where it originated.

1. How many books is too many books in a book series?
Kelly - Depends. I prefer a duology or trilogy but five books is my limit.
Tash -  5 is definitely the limit. I'm looking at you Harlequin
Sarah - These days I prefer a good duology, but I will say that I feel five is my max for a series.
Star -  I think as many books is needed is pretty good. Then again, I grew up reading the Sweet Valley High (and others) series, so there were never too many books for me.

2. How do you feel about cliffhangers?
Kelly - They're frustrating but I secretly love them.
Tash -  Love and hate them. I can't live with out them
Sarah - Love them if they're part of a series, that isn't the last book. Hate them in a stand alone.
Star -  It depends on whether or not I have the next book in the series. If I have to wait a year or more, I absolutely hate it, but if I have the next book right there, waiting to be read, then I am okay with them.

3. Hardcover or paperback?
Kelly - Paperback. Preferably with a matte cover.
Tash -  Paperback. Though Hardcover is easier to keep pristine.
Sarah - Hardbacks are more attractive, but Paperbacks are easier to read - Paperback for me.
Star -  Hardback, definitely. I am a perfectionist reader, and I can't stand creases, etc, in my book, and it's easier to keep books in better condition when they're in hardback. Also, they look prettier in my photos lol.

4. Favourite book?
Kelly - Favourite classic is Alice in Wonderland and modern, And I Darken.
Tash -  When Dimple Met Rishi.
Sarah - Favourite classic, Annie of Green Gables. Modern, Heartstopper series.
Star -  Amelia Westlake by Erin Gough. It's a book I will forever sing its praises.

5. Least favourite book?
Kelly - Hush Hush. God that shit was horrible.
Tash -  Earthbound. I got rid of it soon as possible.
Sarah - Monstress. I read the first four volumes, really trying to get into the hyped series and I just couldn't.
Star -  Shauna's Great Expectations by Kathleen Loughnan.

6. Love triangles, yes or no?
Kelly - Not usually unless it's well written.
Tash - YES why choose and it's all the drama.
Sarah - Yes, but only when it's a female POV - they are my guilty pleasure.
Star - Absolutely not. I have read books that have that trope, and I have enjoyed the book, but on the whole, no thank you.

7. The most recent book you just couldn’t finish?
Kelly - The Girl King.
Tash - Gosh I usually stick it out but I couldn't finish AIM.
Sarah - Glow Book I, Potency.
Star - I haven't had one, I am someone who tends to push through regardless of how I feel. I need to let myself DNF a book.

8. A book you’re currently reading?
Kelly - Invisible Boys by Holden Sheppard.
Tash - Withering- By - Sea by Judith Rossell.
Sarah - Rocky to the Rescue (Rocky Lobstar #1) by Rove McManus - I'll have finished by the time you are reading this lol.
Star - This will probably change by the time this post goes up, but Yes No Maybe So by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed.

9. Last book you recommended to someone?
Kelly - Rules for Vanishing by Kate Alice Marshall.
Tash -  Once and Future by Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy.
Sarah - My Father's Shadow by Jannali Jones
Star - The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid. You're welcome, Brooklynne. 

10. Oldest book you’ve read?
Kelly - Pride and Prejudice, published in 1813.
Tash -  Sense and Sensibility published in 1811.
Sarah - Pride and Prejudice, published in 1813.
Star - I have no idea? I don't read classics. Probably Little Women.

11. Newest book you’ve read?
Kelly - Starting Euphoria Kids by Alison Evans.
Tash -  Oasis by Katya de Becerra.
Sarah - Saga by Nikki McWatters.
Star - Yes No Maybe So by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed.

12. Favourite author?
Kelly - Tahereh Mafi.
Tash - Jay Kristoff.
Sarah - Steven Herrick, Jenn Bennett, Alice Oseman, Rick Riordan and Will Kostakis - Sorry I was thinking of my fave books and can't narrow is down any further. Please don't make me.
Star - Fleur Ferris and Ashley Herring Blake.

13. Buying books or borrowing books?
Kelly - Both! Although books are lovely to buy and keep.
Tash -- Both though buying is a sickness at the moment.
Sarah - My head says borrowing because of my bank account, ouch, but my asshat of a heart wants those pretty pretties on my shelf at home to stay.
Star - Buying. I am a massive germaphobe, and I have severe anxiety, so going out is not a thing I do, so buying them is easier for me.

14. A book you dislike that everyone else seem to love?
Kelly - Red Rising and The Raven Boys.
Tash - The Hunger Games.
Sarah - The Hunger Games and Divergent series.
Star - Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon. 

15. Bookmarks or dog ears?
Kelly - Bookmarks!
Tash - Bookmarks!
Sarah - Bookmarks, old receipts, other books, my phone - I'm not a monster.
Star - Bookmarks! I can't ever dog ear books!

16. A book you can always reread?
Kelly - Alice in Wonderland.
Tash - Stormbreaker.
Sarah - Albert of Adelaide or Anne of Green Gables.
Star - Amelia Westlake by Erin Gough. Also The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater.

17. Can you read while hearing music?
Kelly - I need absolute silence. I'm easily distracted.
Tash - Give me the Tv blasting. I can read through it
Sarah - Yes, the kids make that much noise I've learnt to block it out. I need silence to be able to write reviews and such but.
Star - Only if it's instrumental. I can't have lyrics, I am too easily distracted otherwise.

18. One point of view or multiple point of views?
Kelly - Either but no more than three. I prefer either singular or dual points of view.
Tash -Either but not too many. It does get confusing when everybody has something to say.
Sarah - If it's evenly spread i'm down for multiple POV's. I think five is about the max before it starts to harder to keep track of what's going on to who.
Star - It doesn't bother me one way or another. If it fits and works with the story, then I am okay with it. What I do dislike is when I am reading a book that is in one point of view for, say, 90% of the book, and then suddenly there's another POV? Then I hate it.

19. Do you read a book in one sitting or over multiple days?
Kelly - Multiple days.
Tash - Depends on the time. If I have ample time, then one sitting.
Sarah - I prefer to be able to do it in one sitting, but life always gets in the way.
Star - I have far too of a busy life to be able to sit and read a book in one sitting. I have literally never done it (not even as a kid, I think), so I tend to read over multiple days.

20. Who do you tag?
Kelly - Everyone!
Tash - Everyone!
Sarah - Ya Mum.
Star - Sarah's Mum. =P

You can find Kelly, Tash, Sarah, Star and Brookynne sharing their love of books here and on their own bookish blogs.

Top 5 Tuesday – Books made into movies and TV Shows



This week Star brings us her Top 5 Books that were made into movies or TV shows

Let’s be real, most of the time, the books are better than the adaptation. But sometimes, the adaptation is pretty darn good. Here are my top 5.


Now, I’ll admit, I haven’t actually read the book. BUT, I’ve seen the movie so many times, and it’s easily one of my most favourite movies ever, but yeah. I just loved this movie a lot, and I’ve heard it’s pretty true to the first book. I didn’t like the TV show, though. =/


2) The Hate U Give – movie
THIS MOVIE. So the book made me cry buckets, and then the movie did the same. I thought Amandla Stenberg did an incredible job, and it’s still one of my favourite adaptations to this day.


3) Pretty Little Liars – TV show
I read the first book and I really did not like it, but the TV show was so good. Like I got my niece hooked on it kind of good. I did buy her all of the books, and she informed me that they’re wildly different, but still, I really enjoyed how bad and good this show was.


4) The Darkest Minds - movie
I really wish that they had continued with these movies. The books were pretty good, not top-tier, for me, at least, but I enjoyed them enough to immediately watch the movie. I just get a bit sad when the movie series doesn’t continue.


5)  The Hunger Games – movies
I loved these books. I love these movies. Sure, there are things that I would change about the movies (looking at the POC erasure specifically), but on the whole, I really, really loved these books and I thought the movies did an incredible job at interpreting them.


Follow Star at Little Miss Star, Twitter, Instagram, and Goodreads


What's your pick for this week? Share on your blog, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, or in the comments below! Make sure you tag your posts with #AusYABloggers so we can share the love.

Seventy-Seven Saturday (#) Clancy of the Undertow


Every Saturday we will bring you a short snippet from page 77 of a book. It might be a book one of us is reading or perhaps just the book closest to us.

The Rules:


  1. Pick up a Book (your current read, or the closest book to you, or your next read, etc)
  2. Turn to page 77(or 77% if you are on an e-reader)
  3. Find a Snippet, Sentence or Paragraph you like.
  4. Share it on your blog or Twitter or Instagram and link back to us (AusYABloggers) and use #77Saturday


Sarah's Choice

Title: Clancy of the Undertow
Author: Christopher Currie
Released: November 16th 2015
Publisher: Text Publishing
Add it to Goodreads
I wrench open the screen door and it bashes against the cladding and I hear Mum's voice rising in the living room and I burst in ready to free Dad or throw my body in front of a bullet or lift a fridge off a baby or whatever it is you're meant to do in emergencies.


Sarah's Thoughts

Since I claim Clancy of the Undertow as the first book I actually saw myself in, I figured sooner or later I better do a 77 using it :-)

Banjo’s 1889 Drover and Christopher Currie’s 2015 lovable self-loathing newly out teen have nothing in common, other than my eternal love and a semi-unusual name.

Follow Sarah at Sarah Says, Twitter, Instagram, and Goodreads



Seventy-Seven Saturday was inspired by The Friday 56 by Freda's Voice. If you decided to share your Seventy-Seven Saturday on your blog please link back  to us and tag us on Twitter of Instagram @AsuYABloggers and #77Saturday

Top 5 Tuesday: Kelly's Summer Romance Reads

This week Kelly brings us her Top 5 Romance Reads

With summer just around the corner in our part of the world, we're all looking to kick back, relax and spend the summer months immersed in a great book. So set the air conditioner to chill, grab an iced drink and add these heartwarming romance reads to your TBR lists.



Words In Deep Blue is a legacy for lovers of the written word. For readers who find themselves within ink pages breathing in the scent of romance.



Marlowe's single mother is a vegan warrior, opening a small business selling vegan products next to a family owned butcher, igniting a rivalry between 17 year old heart transplant recipient Marlowe and apprentice butcher Leo. Like a modern day Romeo and Juliet set in the suburbs of Melbourne, Tin Heart is a funny and wildly entertaining romance with plenty of heartt. Pun totally intended.



More so a coming of age than a romance, although Jacob Coote and John Barton, amirightladies?

This is the book that will make you fall in love with not only Josie but Melina Marchetta. Looking For Alibrandi is a right of passage for every Australian teen.


Bisexuality, Chinese Australian protagonist, sex positive, same sex female relationships, positive friendships, support networks. Queens Of Geek breaks down the barriers of body shaming, toxic relationships, slut shaming, Austism, mental illness, societal illnesses and the reality of expectations young adults place upon themselves.


What I Like About Me by Jenna Guillaume

Maisie is the heroine. She's me at sixteen, she's probably you at sixteen, she's the girl that lives next door or the girl that sits in front of you in social studies while you draw genitals in your textbook. She's the girl with moxie and doesn't know it, the girl who is constantly evolving and finding herself. She's the girl who'll set the world ablaze, who deserves more than the assholes trying to extinguish her fire. She's the fat, funny and beautiful girl. She's us.

Follow Kelly at Diva Booknerd, Twitter, Instagram, and Goodreads

What's your pick for this week? Share on your blog, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, or in the comments below! Make sure you tag your posts with #AusYABloggers so we can share the love.

Seventy-Seven Saturday: When Michael Met Mina


Every Saturday we will bring you a short snippet from page 77 of a book. It might be a book one of us is reading or perhaps just the book closest to us.

The Rules:


  1. Pick up a Book (your current read, or the closest book to you, or your next read, etc)
  2. Turn to page 77(or 77% if you are on an e-reader)
  3. Find a Snippet, Sentence or Paragraph you like.
  4. Share it on your blog or Twitter or Instagram and link back to us (AusYABloggers) and use #77Saturday

Brooklynne's Choice

Title: When Michael Met Mina
Author: Randa Abdel-Fattah
Released: 28 July 2016
Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia
Add it to Goodreads

Michael Growls Terrence to shut up.
'Sorry, sorry,' Terrence says, not maliciously, but insincerely. I'm still trying to figure him out. He's part malevolent douchebag, part class clown.

Brooklynne's Thoughts

I picked this book up originally for last year's buddy read. Unfortunately, it arrived too late for me to participate so it has been sitting on my shelf since then. I am really fascinated by this book especially from the passage above which seems to be from Mina's perspective. Perhaps I will move it up on my TBR now. 

Follow Brooklynne at Blog, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Goodreads



Seventy-Seven Saturday was inspired by The Friday 56 by Freda's Voice. If you decided to share your Seventy-Seven Saturday on your blog please link back  to us and tag us on Twitter of Instagram @AsuYABloggers and #77Saturday

Author Interview: Bonnie Wynne



Debut #LoveOZYA author Bonnie Wynne took the time to answer some questions from @SarahSacaKat earlier in the week.


Firstly, thank you Bonnie for taking the time to answer my questions. Just reading the synopsis for The Ninth Sorceress gets me excited and I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy. 

Q: Where did the inspiration for The Ninth Sorceress come from?
A: It’s tricky to say exactly where the seed came from. I’m a bit of a bowerbird when I’m reading or watching TV or playing games, and when something strikes me as interesting then I always think ‘ooh, how can I use this in my book?’
So I’d say my inspiration for The Ninth Sorceress came from a lot of places over the years. But I definitely credit the authors I loved while I was growing up, like Robert Jordan and Isobelle Carmody and Frank Herbert and Anne McCaffrey. They were big influences on my work, and without them, The Ninth Sorceress probably never would have been written.

Q: Did much change from the first draft to the final copy of this book?
A: I wrote The Ninth Sorceress really, really slowly. There are parts I wrote over 15 years ago! So it’s safe to say a lot has changed between the first draft and the final copy.
My original concept skewed a lot more sci-fi (there was at least one scene set in space!) The characters changed, the world changed, the ending changed… It’s almost unrecognisable.
I also cut about 60,000 words before submitting to Talem, and trimmed another 20,000 words after that. It was tough to cut all that material I’d spent so long writing, but ultimately it was for the best.


Q: If you could go back to when you first started writing The Ninth Sorceress and give yourself any advice, what would it be?
A: I would advise myself to make an outline before I started writing! While I was working on this book, I took a ‘make it up as you go along’ approach, and I ended up wasting a lot of time pursuing plot threads that ultimately went nowhere and ended up getting cut.
These days, I try to leave room to experiment and make changes as I go, but also plan where I want to end up and what plot points I want to hit along the way. It saves a lot of stress.

Q: Did you always want to be a writer?
A: Being a writer is the only thing I can remember ever wanting to be. Even when I was in kindergarten I used to write ‘books’ (on printer paper, folded and stapled together) and try to sell them to my neighbours and friends.

Q: What advice do you have for young people who want to become writers?
A: Critique, critique, critique. Both giving and receiving. It’s really scary at first to have people reading your work and looking for problems, but it’s the only way to improve. You also learn a lot from reading other people and paying attention to what works and what doesn’t.
I think we’re all precious about our work at first, which is normal because writing is such a personal thing and it can be hard to separate a criticism of the work from a criticism of you as a person. But ultimately it’s not personal, and the faster you can get used to it, the better.

Q: Do you have habits/rituals to help you write – be it background music, a fave snack etc?
A: I don’t really have habits or rituals, but I do have a few quirks.
For starters, I need complete silence (I can’t write at all if there’s music playing). Even a ticking clock can annoy me. I admire all the mums and dads who can write in a house full of screaming kids! I could never.
I also prefer to write in really big chunks. I’m not somebody who can sit down and write 1,000 words and then head off to work. I need a six-hour stretch to write non-stop. There’s a cabin on the South Coast that I really love, and I try to get down there a few times a year so I can just get in my ‘zone’ and work without distractions. Although I’m always kind of weird and spaced-out when I come home from a week with no human contact!

Q: What are you reading at the moment (or what was the last book you read)?
A: I just finished Queen of Nothing by Holly Black – a great finish to the series, with some crazy twists and turns! I really want to read Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows duology next. I’ve been avoiding it because I normally hate ‘heist’ stories. But all her other books are amazing, so it might finally be time to take the plunge.

Q: The #AusYABloggers are all about promoting and supporting Aussie and Kiwi Authors. Do you have any favourite #LoveOzYA or #LoveNzYA books (other than your own of course)?
A: I really can’t give enough praise to my fellow Talem Press author Bronwyn Eley’s debut novel Relic. I gobbled it up in about two days when it came out last year, and it was such a fantastic start to the series. Bron has a real gift for dialogue, and I love that she gives all her scenes room to breathe. It never feels like she’s just sprinting from one plot point to the next. She won’t give me any spoilers for future books, so I have to wait to see what happens next!
Once again, thank you so much Bonnie for taking the time to answer my questions.
Keep your eyes on the #AusYABloggers blog on Feb 13, as Jade from @romanceanddragons will be sharing a review of The Ninth Sorceress.

THE NINTH SORCERESS, Bonnie Wynne's debut fantasy 

novel, is slated for release February 13.

48481720. sy475 Title: The Ninth Sorceress
Author: Bonnie Wynne
Release Date: February 13th, 2020

In the blackest dungeon of the Clockwork City, a prisoner lies bound in silver shackles. Who is she? And why are the wizards so afraid of her?

Seventeen-year-old Gwyn has no family and no past. Apprenticed to a half-mad herbalist, she travels the snow-blasted High Country, hawking potions in a peddler’s wagon. Her guardian hides her from the world like a dark secret, and she knows better than to push for answers.

But when she discovers she is hunted by the goddess Beheret, Gwyn is drawn into a deep and ancient tale: of chained gods and lost magic, of truths long buried and the rising of a war she never could have imagined.

Wizards and their magic-sniffing hounds pursue her – as does a stranger in a smiling mask, who calls her by an unfamiliar name…

But what really terrify her are the dangerous gifts she’s spent her life suppressing. Now, Gwyn must step out of the shadows and take charge of her destiny – even if the price is her own soul.

The Ninth Sorceress is the breathtaking first instalment of The Price of Magic, a sweeping fantasy saga full of rich storytelling and tangible magic.

About the author:
Bonnie Wynne studied Writing and Cultural Studies at UTS, and completed her law degree at the University of Sydney. After a brief stint in legal publishing, she now works for the Australian government, deciphering ancient law tomes.
She lives in Sydney with her cocker spaniel, Percival Hector (Canine Inspector). When she's not reading or writing, she can be found playing video games, booking her next holiday, or elbow-deep in flour.
THE NINTH SORCERESS is her debut novel and the first book in her series, THE PRICE OF MAGIC.
Bonnie’s Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

Top 5 Tuesday - Kelly's Most Anticipated #loveozya of 2020



This week Kelly brings us her Top 5 books I wanna read in 2020

I have a list as long as my arm but I've managed to narrow it down to my top five #loveozya or #lovenzya books I'm hanging for in 2020.

The Year the Maps Changed by Danielle Binks


Add to Goodreads

Sorrento, Victoria - 1999

Fred's family is a mess. Fred's mother died when she was six and she's been raised by her Pop and adoptive father, Luca, ever since. But now Pop is at the Rye Rehabilitation Centre recovering from a fall; Luca's girlfriend, Anika, has moved in; and Fred's just found out that Anika and Luca are having a baby of their own. More and more it feels like a land-grab for family and Fred is the one being left off the map.

But even as the world feels like it's spinning out of control, a crisis from the other side of it comes crashing in. When 400 Kosovar-Albanian refugees arrive in the middle of the night to be housed at one of Australia's 'safe havens' on an isolated headland not far from Sorrento, their fate becomes intertwined with the lives of Fred and her family, as she navigates one extraordinary year that will change them all.

Jane Doe and the Key of All Souls by Jeremy Lachlan


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Jane Doe is in more danger than ever before. Her father is still imprisoned. The Manor – the hallowed world between worlds – is still dying. The villainous Roth is still searching for the mythical, all-powerful Cradle Sea. Worst of all, Jane has learned that she is the key to stopping him and saving the Otherworlds. Problem is, she’s stranded in the dying land of Arakaan – Roth’s home – and its people have some surprising secrets of their own.

With a little help from her pyromaniac pal, Violet, and her doubtful ally, Hickory, Jane must find the courage to accept her destiny and face her darkest fears, even if it means losing everything she holds dear.

From the desolate plains of Arakaan to the shifting halls and devious booby traps of the Manor, Jane’s Cradle quest is about to explode.

There are sandstorms. There are scorpions. There are new friends and foes. And every soul in every world hangs in the balance.

Please Don't Hug Me by Kay Kerr


Add to Goodreads

Erin is looking forward to schoolies, at least she thinks she is. But her plans are going awry. She's lost her job at Surf Shack after an incident that clearly was not her fault, and now she's not on track to have saved enough money. Her licence test went badly, which was also not her fault- she followed the instructor's directions perfectly. And she's missing her brother, Rudy, who left almost a year ago. But now that she's writing letters to him, some things are beginning to make sense.

Kay Kerr's Please Don't Hug Me depicts life on the cusp of adulthood-and on the autism spectrum-and the complexities of finding out and accepting who you are and what's important to you.

Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff


Add to Goodreads

First, the bad news: an ancient evil—you know, your standard consume-all-life-in-the-galaxy deal—is about to be unleashed. The good news? Squad 312 is standing by to save the day. They’ve just got to take care of a few small distractions first.

Like the clan of gremps who’d like to rearrange their favorite faces.

And the cadre of illegit GIA agents with creepy flowers where their eyes used to be, who’ll stop at nothing to get their hands on Auri.

Then there’s Kal’s long-lost sister, who’s not exactly happy to see her baby brother, and has a Syldrathi army at her back. With half the known galaxy on their tails, Squad 312 has never felt so wanted.

When they learn the Hadfield has been found, it’s time to come out of hiding. Two centuries ago, the colony ship vanished, leaving Auri as its sole survivor. Now, its black box might be what saves them. But time is short, and if Auri can’t learn to master her powers as a Trigger, the squad and all their admirers are going to be deader than the Great Ultrasaur of Abraaxis IV.

Shocking revelations, bank heists, mysterious gifts, inappropriately tight bodysuits, and an epic firefight will determine the fate of the Aurora Legion’s most unforgettable heroes—and maybe the rest of the galaxy as well.

Euphoria Kids by Alison Evans


Add to Goodreads

Ever since the witch cursed Babs, she turns invisible sometimes. She has her mum and her dog, but teachers and classmates barely notice her. Then, one day, Iris can see her. And Iris likes what they see. Babs is made of fire.

Iris grew from a seed in the ground. They have friends, but not human ones. Not until they meet Babs. The two of them have a lot in common: they speak to dryads and faeries, and they're connected to the magic that's all around them.

There's a new boy at school, a boy who's like them and who hasn't found his real name. Soon the three of them are hanging out and trying spellwork together. Magic can be dangerous, though. Witches and fae can be cruel. Something is happening in the other realm, and despite being warned to stay away, the three friends have to figure out how to deal with it on their own terms.

Follow Kelly at Diva Booknerd, Twitter, Instagram, and Goodreads


What's your pick for this week? Share on your blog, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, or in the comments below! Make sure you tag your posts with #AusYABloggers so we can share the love.
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