Weekly Feature V - Custom Feyre Funko

A few weeks ago, I decided to have a go at customising a Funko POP figure. Naturally, I wanted to try and paint one so that it looked like Feyre from A Court of Mist and Fury. For this weeks Weekly Feature, I'm going to give a quick overview of how I did it!

To start off with, I bought a Margaery Tyrell Funko POP as I thought she would be the most appropriate base for Feyre (sorry Margaery, I do love you, but Feyre's just more important). I chose Margaery because of her hair colour being similar to Feyre's, because her arms were bare (and I wanted to make sure Feyre had her arm tattoo on show) and because the shape and cut of her dress could be easily made into my interpretation of a Night Court dress.

Here's the stages of the transformation from Margaery to Feyre (excuse the photo quality - I was in such a rush to get started that I almost forgot to take some before photos!):

To start off, I painted all of her hair a slightly redder shade - Margaery has light brown hair, and Feyre's has a red tint to it. I then painted the black swirls up her arm for the tattoo that represented her and Rhys's bond in A Court of Thorns and Roses, and pained the whole dress a dark blue. Once the dress was dry, I went over parts of it with gold paint and a very thin brush to add a bit of detail to the dress and make it just a bit more magical looking. Sharpies work surprisingly well on Funkos, so once all the paint was dry, I went over the tattoo a bit with a black sharpie to neaten it up, and did the same with a blue sharpie around the neckline of the dress. 

Here's a few more shots of the finished Feyre (the print behind her in the photos is by Charlie Bowater):

Hope you enjoyed this weeks feature - I absolutely love my little Feyre figure! I'm planning on making Rhysand to go with her, as soon as I can find the right Funkos for him.

Is there anything you would have done differently? Let us know what you think!

love,

Top Ten Favourite 2016 Releases So Far

Today's topic is Top Ten Releases of 2016 so far. These are some that have been highly anticipated and although they have been met with mixed reviews, still prove that we all come together when a book is released to celebrate.

This Savage Song by V.E. Schwab

This tells the story of a world in which violence breeds monsters. Literally. Nobody writes monsters like Victioria Schwab and she does not disappoint with the start of her new series. We follow Kate and August, two very different people who have to come together against a threat and a beautiful friendship is forged along the way. 

Our full review is here.

The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

Summer is not complete without a new Matson release. Her newest story follows the story of Andie, a politician's daughter who despite practically raising herself, finds everything in her life mapped out for her. Suddenly a scandal rocks her entire world but is this necessarily a bad thing? Andie finds herself having to live with her dad, walk an awful lot of dogs and reevaluating her entire life. Sit down on a hot summer's day and indulge in this epic story.

Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys

Fans of Ruta's previous book 'Between Shades of Grey' will love her newest release. Capable of both making us realise the depth of love humans are capable of and the tragedy that has been our past, she tells the story of the people aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff during the Winter of 1945. Switching between different perspectives, we follow the heartbreaking story of the people fighting for their lives and a chance of escape. 

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas

The sequel of ACOTAR was probably one of the most highly anticipated books this year and it did not disappoint. It follows the story of Feyre, a former huntress and newly turned fae as she realises her life and love for Tamlin may not be all that it seems. Teaming up with Rhysand, the High Lord of the Night Court and his inner circle, she realises she may not have found her home yet. A story of a beautiful romance, incredible world-building and interesting new characters, this is a series you just have to read. 

Full review here!

Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton 

Set in the Middle East, this fantasy follows the story of Amani, an ambitious girl whose future only entails getting married and keeping a house. Refusing to meet this fate, Amani disguises herself as a male sharpshooter in order to get out of her town. However, she meets Jin, a foreigner who offers her the perfect escape. As they team up to travel across the dangerous desert on a mythical horse against a murderous army, they soon realise their feelings could be even more lethal.

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

The final instalment in The Raven Cycle, a story of a group of boys and Blue who attempt to track down a sleeping, Welsh King. It is the story of their friendship, love and a whole lot of psychic, mystical elements. Although we were not a fan of the final book, it was still a highly anticipated book that is mostly loved. Check the rest of the series out!

Full review here!

My Favourite Manson Girl by Alison Umminger

This book follows Anna, who after deciding she's had enough of mundane life, steals a credit card and books herself a ticket to Los Angeles. During her summer in Hollywood, she moves in with her actress sister and soon gets offered the role of researching the Manson girls for money. What follows is the similarities Anna notices between herself and the Manson girls, who before meeting Charles, were just normal teenagers.

A full review will be up on the blog soon.

A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab

The sequel to a trilogy, A Gathering of Shadows continues our story with Kell, a boy capable of travelling through different Londons along with his sidekick, Delilah Bard. This book focuses a lot more on character development as we find out more about Holland, the Dane twins and Prince Rhy. We delve more into the different Londons, each the same and yet entirely different. The third book, A Conjuring of Light is set to be released February 2017.

The Rose and the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh

The Rose and the Dagger, the highly anticipated sequel to The Wrath and the Dawn and final book in the series, opens with Kohrasan on the brink of war, and Shahrzad separated from Khalid and taken to the desert. Now, Shahrzad must uncover her powers, protect her family, save her country from its imminent war and find her way back to Khalid despite being held amongst people who want him dead - all whilst trying to discover a way to destroy his curse. 

Full review here!

The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner 

The Serpent King is about three teenagers living in a small town in Tennessee, Dill, Lydia and Travis. It is the story of them, their relationship and the events that happen before Lydia goes to college. The characters are different and unique: Dill is a musician, Lydia is internet famous and Travis who escapes into fantasy worlds, anything to get away from his abusive father. It is a book filled with excitement, adventure, friendship, family and love. It is a lot more than what the blurb offers.

What have been your favourite releases so far this year? Let us know in the comments below.

Giveaway - A Court of Mist and Fury

Today we've got a very exciting post for you all - our first giveaway!

We've decided to give away a copy of Sarah J. Maas's new book, A Court of Mist and Fury. This giveaway is open internationally.

HOW TO ENTER:

- comment on this blog post letting us know what you're currently reading

- follow us on instagram (@two_bookthieves) and comment on our giveaway post there 
(If you don't have Instagram, feel free to just comment on this post!)

for two extra entries, follow us on both of our individual instagram accounts: @becbentliff and @angharadredden 

and it's as simple as that! 

The final day to enter is Friday 13th May, and the winner will be announced on Saturday 14th May. 

Good luck!

A Court of Mist and Fury - Sarah J Maas

• this review will be spoiler-free •

from the blurb:

Feyre is immortal. After rescuing her lover Tamlin from a wicked Faerie Queen, she returns to the Spring Court possessing the powers of the High Fae. But Feyre cannot forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin's people - nor the bargain she made with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. 

As Feyre is drawn ever deeper into Rhysand's dark web of politics and passion, war is looming and an evil far greater than any queen threatens to destroy everything Feyre has fought for. She must confront her past, embrace her girls and decide her fate. 

"I wonder if some part of me knew what was waiting for me. That I would never be a gentle grower of things, or someone who burned like fire - but that I would be quiet and enduring and as faceted as the night. That I would have beauty, for those who knew where to look, and if people didn't bother to look, but only to fear it... Then I didn't particularly care for them, anyway. I wonder if, even in my despair and hopelessness, I was never truly alone. I wonder if I was looking for this place - looking for you all."

I've been looking forward to reading this book ever since I finished A Court of Thorns and Roses. In fact, I was so desperate for it that when the copy I'd ordered didn't arrive on time, I went straight to town and bought a new copy (which happened to be a signed copy, so for once, I won't begrudge my impatience!) 

This book as a whole was a strong, addictive piece of writing - something that I've come to expect from Sarah J Maas. When it was announced that this would be a reselling of the story of Hades and Persephone, I think a lot of fans worked out what (or who) that meant that this book would feature a lot of. ACOMAF explores some new areas of Prythian as well as expanding on old characters and introducing new ones - almost all of whom I loved, especially Mor. As with ACOTAR, the majority of the action was definitely in the last third of the book, and once again this irritated me slightly but has also left me anticipating the final book in the series. Looking back, this middle section definitely had a lot of important character and relationship building parts, and I'm so glad that they were included. 

ACOMAF also deals with a lot of important issues, mostly related to what is right and wrong within a relationship, and the importance of equality. 

I was blown away by this book, and had no choice but to give it 5/5 stars! 

Is anyone else reading A Court of Mist and Fury at the moment? What did you think? Let us know in the comments! 

- Becky x