2016 goals and plans

The start of a new year beckons people towards making goals that they hope to achieve in the next 300 and odd days. I am no exception to this and so I thought I would go ahead and share some of the goals and plans I have for 2016 with you all.

1. To really give my all to my PhD. Things have been rocky over the last year as far as my research is concerned but this year I am ready to knuckle down and knock it out of the park. I want to show everyone what I am capable of!
2. Lose the weight I've gained over the past year. I let my unhappiness at work seep into many parts my life and one of the results was gaining just over a stone in weight. I've been tired and feeling horrible and so this year is going to see me drop that again. I want to become fitter and healthier again.
3. Do more of the things I love. 2015 saw me become a slave to work and not make time for anything I enjoyed. This year I want to reconnect with things that make me happy. I want to read more again, learn to surf, take up gymnastics - anything that makes me happy.
4. To be more open about how I feel. It saddens me to see that there is still a stigma around mental illness and I want to try and shake off the taboo, if not in a wider sense then at least in my own life. I want to be more open about my highs and lows with the people I feel are closest to me in my life and maybe that will help with the rough patches I encounter.
5. To be more grateful. In general I think I can get really caught up with the things I don't have. I really want to be able to appreciate the things that I have in my life and be grateful for small things.

So those are a dew of the things I'm aiming to do this year. What about you? Do you have any goals or plans for 2016?

Panic - Lauren Oliver

Title: Panic - Lauren Oliver
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Series: N/A
Service: Via Bookbridgr
Release Date: 06/03/2014
Pages: 343
Format: Paperback

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What do you fear most?

Would you face that fear for someone you loved?

Or perhaps for a wealth beyond your wildest dreams?

Welcome to Panic…

A legendary game played by graduating seniors in the no-hope town of Carp, where the stakes are high and the payoff even higher. A game in which competitors will face their greatest fears - and hop to live to defeat them.

We all have something to play for.

Give us a few words…

Why do you say that?

I've heard of Lauren Oliver due to her Delirium trilogy however it never appealed to me. So when I read the blurb for Panic a few months ago, I was excited to discover it was by the same author.

Panic is a game played by all graduating seniors in the hopes that they will win a large pot of money to help them get out of the sleepy town of Carp, New York. Judges are selected at random and help set up the tasks where contenders face their fears. But not everyone plays fair and the game itself can become rather sinister but it is a tradition that refuses to die out.

The books chapters alternate between two of the main characters, Heather and Dodge. Both of them come from similar backgrounds and yet they are very different characters. Their reasons for joining Panic and the way they take on the tasks are interesting. The characters of Natalie and Bishop add sparks of friendship and romance. Although the characters were likeable I felt that I couldn't fully feel for any of them. Something just fell a little flat for me, especially with Natalie and Bishop. Things were hinted at but never really cleared up which left me feeling a little unsatisfied.

An aspect I did enjoy was that this was less focused on romance than many other contemporary novels that I have read. Although there was romance, I was glad to see that it took more of a backseat and was balanced with friendship, family and life in general. I thought the balance was struck well adding to my reasons to recommend Panic.

As far as the plot of the book goes, I really enjoyed it. Panic keeps your heart in your throat for the entire book. There are secrets and motives
twisted all over the place and you are kept guessing about who you can trust and whether any of the friendships formed are real. Oliver does a fantastic job of drawing out suspense so that readers feel the heart racing palpitations that the characters go through. I lost count of the times I realised I was holding my breath only to release it after a test was over.

The ending of the book was slightly lacklustre in my opinion but not disappointing. I just felt there needed to be something more climactic to finish off the book.

I would highly recommend Panic to anyone brave enough to take on the challenge because, just like the game, once you are in you won't be able to pull out…

On The Map: New York 14/15 (Part 3)

Another early start, and fuelling ourselves on grilled cheese sandwiches, we made our way to Grand Central Terminal. Now, I had heard a lot about this station and just how gorgeous it was but it didn't really hit me until we got into it. 

After that we took the subway to the north entrance of Central Park and swung by the cathedral of St. John the Divine. We trekked more than half way through the park before deciding to branch off and visit the American Museum of Natural History.

The museum had a mass amount of exhibits ranging from biodiversity to American history. We weaved along with other people taking in the massive whale and all the dinosaur bones, soaking up all the information. It's surprising just how many hours you can while away there!

We stopped at Tiffany's wanting to revel in a shop that is known around the world for the iconic blue colour and high class jewellery. They still had their tree up, decorated in lights and little blue boxes and every member of staff was very helpful and friendly. Sai and I both decided to buy something small knowing we probably weren't going to get another chance to visit. 

We waited until later that night before going up to the Top of the Rock. Surprisingly it was nowhere near as cold as the statue and ESB but the view, in my opinion, was ten times better. New York is often called the city that doesn't sleep and yet we had yet to really see that. Up on the observation deck the was no doubting why it had the nickname. The entire city stays lit up and the movement doesn't stop. If I had it my way, I don't think I would have left the deck. 

The next day we found ourselves back at Central Park and decided to take a short carriage ride around the bottom half. The guy who drove the carriage was lovely and pointed out different places including the ice rink and Lady Gaga's apartment. As we went around it began to snow which was unbelievable. He told us we were lucky and we knew that we were!

Later on that that night we went to watch Les Miserables at the Imperial theatre. It was an absolutely fantastic show with Ramin Karimloo giving an amazing performance!

With our last day in New York we couldn't call ourselves book bloggers without heading out to The Strand, boasting 18 miles of books, we always knew we would visit. I was so excited when I saw the red banner. I have never seen so many books tucked away in a shop. We spent a couple of hours browsing the aisles and heading upstairs to look at the rare books before making a couple of purchases and then heading over to IHOP for lunch. 

The week in New York was probably one of the most amazing weeks I've had in my life. Even though we didn't cross everything off the list we definitely packed a lot in for the week. Plus it give an excuse to go back and visit again!