Book Talk

OMG, THIS BOOK! My mouth hurts from all the smiling! I’d probably look like a loony if I was reading this in public. I couldn’t help it any more if I wanted to because Eleanor & Park was so flipping adorable! Just thinking about it gives me sugar rush; it’s that sickeningly sweet. Thank god all the gushing, squealing and swooning were contained inside the safe zone of my room. I don’t think anybody who is not reading the book can understand any of it. They’d probably think it wasn’t possible to get so much out of a book but this is one of my finest bookgasm experiences ever.

The gist of the book promises the recount of falling in love the way you do the first time, when you’re young, and you feel as if you have nothing and everything to lose. The best thing is this book delivered exactly just that. Bringing that knowledge with me when I started the book, Eleanor & Park still took me by surprise. All the awkwardness, the anxiety of not knowing what to do or how to react, the eagerness to impress and the burst of happiness Eleanor and Park experienced when things started to bloom – you can’t mistake that for anything but first love. I swear this book just gave me diabetes. Too, too sweet!

I’m just going over some of my favourite parts in the book so I'll get to spare you from all the gushing.

That night, Park made a tape with the Joy Division song on it, over and over again. He emptied all his handheld video games and Josh’s remote-control cars and called his grandma to tell her that all he wanted for his birthday in November was double-A batteries.

Jesus. Was it possible to rape somebody’s hand?

Can Park be anymore adorable? I mean look at him! It’s a sin he should remain as a fictional character. Now, who would like to be my Park? Anybody? No?

Saturdays were the worst. On Sundays, Eleanor could think all day about how close it was to Monday. But Saturdays were ten years long.

Eleanor, I so get you. Like so, so, so get you. I know how that feels. Or at least used to.

“I know your number by heart,” she said.
“I’m just afraid you’re going to forget it,” he said quietly. He pushed her hair out of her eyes with his pen.
“I’m not going to forget it,” she said. Ever. She’d probably scream out Park’s number on her deathbed. Or have it tattooed over heart when he finally got sick of her. “I’m good with number.”

This is one of my favourite parts in Eleanor & Park – the phone conversation, and everything else that’s taking place prior and subsequent of it.

“She’s not – ” Park caught himself shouting and clenched his fists. “If I ever hear you call her that again, I’ll kill you. I’ll literally kill you. I’ll go to jail for the rest of my life, and it’ll break Mom’s heart, but I will. Kill. You.”

Park's being cute, again. And not for the last. Just stop. You’re breaking my heart, Park.

“And you look like a protagonist.” She was talking as fast as she could think. “You look like the person who wins in the end. You’re pretty, and so good. You have magic eyes,” she whispered. ‘And you make me feel like a cannibal.”

The last line practically had me doubled over because that’s exactly how I feel whenever I’m drooling over someone (celebrities, most of the time). I feel like ripping their faces off them because they are so downright pretty, it freaking hurts! I mean, look at Ben Barnes. Don’t tell me you don’t go all predatory on him because honey, we are all. I know I am. And don't get me started on other male celebrities. You won't be hearing the end of it, lol.

Ok, I think I'm gonna stop now. It's probably the best.

If I have to choose one word to conclude my entire feeling about Through the Ever Night, it will have to be "Phewh!" It had been a wild ride; I'm surprised my heart didn't give up on me at all. If anything, this book warrants at least a few major heart-stopping moments. I've never been so much in danger before.

The twists and turns in TtEN had turned me into a ball of nerves; it couldn't have been meaner! Every page brought a new sense of dread and I couldn't say I look forward to it because I didn't. But I couldn't deny I was eagerly anticipating it too. I was simply too curious to give up on reading. Curiosity kills the cat they say. But I say curiosity kills the cat and the human. And that human is meeeeeee!

Overall, I think Through the Ever Night had grown into something unforgettable after its predecessor, Under the Never Sky. I was mildly interested in UtNS but this was definitely something. Whatever's lacking in UtNS was greatly reimbursed in this book. I'd say that was a smart move from Rossi, to build the world slowly from book 1 and let it continues in book 2. My only consolation is that I wish I know more about the realms. I feel the world where Aria came from was way underdeveloped.

What else can I say about TtEN? The writing was easily captivating. The characters faced conflicts and trials under dire situations which is partly the reason it was such an intense reading! I'm glad that after Perry had become the Blood Lord, he wasn't given the easy way to cruise through his leadership. Instead, we were shown how each day was a struggle to him. Each struggle brought Perry closer and closer to the kind of leader he had to be to his tribes. The same goes to Aria. At some point in the book, I almost forgot that she used to be a Dweller; she was an Outsider through and through!

And now we wait, and pray that 2014 comes by before we know it. I can't stand the tension, it's too much!

3.5 stars

Truth be told, I wasn’t that intrigued when I started the book. And this wasn’t made better when the first few chapters hardly caught my attention which is to say my barely there interest took a deeper, unavoidable, I-see-it-coming plunge into the realm of nil-interest. Not to forget the ever so confusing jargon implemented in the story. It was like being thrown into a tunnel devoid of light except for a tiny winy dot of light at the far end of it and you desperately needed to get there but there was no other way round it so you were forced to grope your way towards it. So groping it was. You know, I almost put this book down and try my luck again some other time but thanks to my super duper groping technique, I managed to reach the end of the tunnel and BAM, everything was suddenly exciting, yeay!

This is the kind of story I would consider as my cup of tea. After I finally got my bearings, it wasn't that difficult to immerse into the story. I adored Aria and Perry. Both portrayed their two different worlds almost vividly, giving a gripping sense of what they actually had to endure in the name of survival. And seeing how each day brought them closer and closer to each other made me swoon!

As you may have already deduced, the book requires patience as its world building requires some time to get used to it as it is bewildering. This book isn't exactly earth-shattering as I feel there are still a lot of things missing from the equation but it sure feels like a good beginning to a great (I hope) series. It did leave me satisfied by the end of it, and that's saying something.

And oh, Ms Veronica Rossi? In case you haven't noticed, that cliffhanger was mean. You don’t know how many times I thank my lucky star I have my Through the Ever Night ready in hand. I couldn’t imagine what it'd be like if it was the opposite. Probably turn into a Savage myself.

Starting book two pronto!

Wow.

.

..

...


I don’t know what else to say. Oh, bummer. What I mean to say is there are so many things I wish to convey but I’m not quite alright in the mind (and in the heart) to even make sense. But I’ll give it a go.

Clockwork Princess is a beautiful closure to The Infernal Devices series. It’s a far cry from perfect but to quote Tessa, “Perfect is dull.” I agree. My heart is still aching, for what exactly I can’t pinpoint but it seems cruel that it has to end now. Oh, crap. I am about to cry again.

”I have told you before, I do not want you to be perfect. Only to be Will.”

I don’t always love Clare’s writing but it worked for me in The Infernal Devices. While I feel that the writing is a bit chaotic and distracting and weak planning on some parts in The Mortal Instruments, the flow of the story in The Infernal Devices is not flawless but it tugs dearly to your heart. I liked how Shadowhunters were portrayed in TID; despite their regal ancestry, they were not without weaknesses. At the end of the day, they were humans who were capable of infiltration. Until now I couldn't decide whether Consul Waylard was possessed by Mortmain and the likes or he was simply stubborn to acknowledge Charlotte’s distress calls in fear that she appeared to be wiser than him. I know it's more or less the same thing in TMI, but I like what I read in TID better.

In so many ways I think TID is better than TMI; Clare finally had had the time to sit down and plan properly. All the stories in the three books were knitted and spun carefully, giving something quite wonderful to experience at.

In honesty, I can’t say I was shocked to learn the truth about Tessa; it was what something I had expected. But Jem, he totally took me by surprise. It wasn’t exactly cheating per se; it gave a rather fair platform to Jem. So yes, I was happy. It's only fair, anyway.

Though I have to comment at some point, the story wasn’t about Mortmain (aka the Magister) anymore but leaning towards Will-Jem-Tessa. I admit I was quite disappointed the part Mortmain executing his plan was so short-lived. I imagined a total chaos, but it fell short of my expectation. Oh, well. And another thing I have to comment or else I won't find my peace is the nature of Will-Tessa-Jem relationship. No matter how many time I had to remind myself that it was okay, it was a made up story and three of them were deeply entangled in something they couldn't get out easily; I just couldn't. It was okay before Tessa got married with Will. I understood it perfectly. But for Tessa to move on with Jem after she had lived with Will and given birth to Will's children and Will's children's to grandchildren, it bugged me. Maybe it was loneliness, maybe Tessa loved Jem as much as she had loved Will (which she was, according to her) but I don't know. The idea that a woman could love two men equally doesn't quite reach me. Maybe I'll get used to it, maybe I won't but who the hell cares, right? At the very least, I enjoyed the series and that's that.

3.5 stars.

Clockwork Prince is set at a slower pace than its predecessor. In this case, the story takes a slight detour from the Magister and his automaton obsession and focuses on the occupants of the Institute, or the core of this series. This is to say Charlotte, Henry, Will, Jem, Tessa and Sophie come into view for each and every one of them plays a role in the tale being spun. While this is still about finding and catching the Magister, Clare is determined that her readers must get to know the characters of her tale.

And so you might find Clockwork Prince a bit slow to your liking (as I did) as this isn't about the Magister in entirety but the discoveries Shadowhunters and Downwolders alike have made about themselves and one another as they pave their way to the Magister. So, reading Clockwork Prince had been a whole different experience from Clockwork Angel. It was nice, but wasn't as good as the first book, IMO.

I am not a fan of love triangle and will try my best not to engage into reading one; but this one is inevitable I guess. I can't say I am in favour of Tessa's decision. Her intention may not to hurt, but what she had done will beyond doubt incur a greater pain she must be dumb not to foresee it. Come on, why deny what the heart desires most and why lie about it? Lying is a far greater sin, I think. And much more hurtful. Just saying.

I guess what everybody has been saying this book is true: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running really makes you want to take up running. I was skeptical at first when my friend said so. I was even more skeptical when I read some of the reviews on Goodreads. But yes, you really do want to start running, no kidding. It didn't take much persuasion, really. I was ready to chuck the book about 1/3 of the book and start my running regime immediately. While reading the book, I kept staring at my treadmill; I was restless. I wanted to run, and still is I guess. We shall find out later :p That's how powerful and impactful Murakami's narration of his own experience of running to me, and I bet to everyone else who has read the book too.

This book should be a compulsory read for a runner like me who wants to run but capable of coming with thousand of excuses of not to run. This book is a slap in the face.

I'm going to read this again. And again. And again.

Some of my favourite quotes from the book:

"But when I think about it, having the kind of body that easily puts on weight was perhaps a blessing in disguise. In other words,, if I don't want to gain weight I have to work out very hard every day, watch what I eat, and cut down on indulgences. Life can be tough, but as long as you don't stint on the effort, your metabolism will greatly improve with these habits, and you'll end up much healthier, not to mention stronger. To a certain extent, you can even slow down the effects of aging."

"I'm no great runner, by any means. I'm at an ordinary - or perhaps more like mediocre - level. But that's not the point. The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday. In long-distance running, the only opponent you have to beat is yourself, the way you used to be."

"If I used being busy as an excuse not to run, I'd never run again. I have only a few reasons to keep on running, and a truckload of them to quit. All I can do is keep those few reasons nicely polished."

Recommended to all! :D

Now this is what I'm talking about. The Infernal Devices series is so much better than The Mortal Instruments IMO, though it may be a bit premature to sound that convincing considering I still have another two remaining books to go through. But I have my hope.

Anyways.

I took an instant liking to this book. The Victorian era the story took place gives an exquisite air to the story being told, making the story so much more appealing. Because of the different era, the adventure seems crude-like and appears ancient even. I'm not sure I'm making sense here; my thoughts aren't exactly coherent right now. The point is, the different era is beyond doubt affecting the entire mood of the story and which is why Clockwork Angel was such a satisfying read for me. Maybe my liking for historical fiction played a role too, Idk. The whole Magister and automaton things were interesting. And the mystery about Tessa's identity too. I was definitely hooked.

The characters genuinely piqued on my interest. Will was always angsty and rude which propelled me to read further because hell, I was more than curious to know what had this boy so broken up.

Tessa, well, she was a little too soft for my liking but I guess her character was fitting for someone who just discovered she wasn't quite the ordinary she thought she was.

Jem, I hope I'll be reading more about you in the next book. Whatever that was offered in this book wasn't enough, obviously.

And for the first time when a love triangle is concern, I am not rooting for anybody yet. The 'yet' part is weird-ing me out because I ALWAYS root for somebody by the end of the book. Always. Like I rooted for Ash rather than Puck in Julie Kagawa's The Iron Fey series (though it pained me so to choose because both were hearthrobbingly good!). But this time around, I don't. Will has so much more to prove to me and Jem, he's still a mystery to me and I don't do vague. Which is to say, this is an interesting turn of event for me. We shall find out.

Moving on to book two.

I couldn't comprehend where all the hype about this book came from. I didn't find it as amusing as some people claimed it to be. Am I missing something here?

It’s official. I hate this book with all my guts! It was mediocre; I actually had to force myself to finish this just because I feel bad dumping it into my did-not-finish shelf. But I didn't do it willingly, of course. I whined (coz so many parts in the story required it) all the way to the ending because it just sucked ass. Oh man, it really was.

I didn't love any of the characters. And I didn't regret it one bit, ha! I think the writing was a bit immature. Oh, wait. No, I think the writing was immature through and through. I couldn't stop cringing; all the words, sentence formations and the whole written piece felt child-like to me. It was like reading a verbatim of an a very annoying teenage girl recounting about her annoying little life.Thank god I was done with this!

Goodbye Stephanie Perkins. I don't think I'll be reading any more of your books.

If you disregard the weak plot, facts that seem to contradict one another (a ring fitted snugly on the finger doesn’t fall off that easily, Clare. Unless there’s a very strong gravity I didn’t know exist) and unnecessary conflicts, this is actually a good read. But I still think that Clare should have just stopped at book 3.

And Clare is really asking a lot from me to keep up with whatever’s happening in Jace and Clary’s lives. It looks like our Clare is a little bit allergic to happiness, eh? I just can’t wait for all these (superfluous) dramas to be over and done with. Because really, enough is enough.

3.5 stars

I thought the book just made an okay read eventhough the ideas behind it were actually pretty intriguing. It tells the story of Julia and her family and the rest of the world discovering the slowing of the rotation of the earth on one fateful day which begins to affect the Earth from that day onwards. Days and nights are growing longer and longer each passing day. The day the slowing begins, the day doesn't stop at 24 hours but at 24 hours and 56 minutes. The rotation of the Earth keeps on slowing, thus adding more and more minutes to a day. The gravity, the environment, the magnetic field etc are hugely affected as a consequence. It seems that the Earth is no longer safe for its inhabitants.

This is also a story about Julia dealing not only with the natural disasters, but the disasters of everyday life--her family, her friends and her first love.

While I think the idea about the slowing of the Earth was interesting, the author provided very little scientific explanations for it. The same goes to incidents that happened afterwards. The affected gravity, the tide, the failure of the magnetic field, the Orion that carried the astronauts. They were told but nothing were properly explained. It was very frustrating.

And I found myself couldn't care less of what's happening in Julia's life. Until the end, I don't think Julia grew on me. She was just another forgettable character. Maybe that's the problem I had with the book; everything felt like touch and go to me.

On the bright side, the book was a good book for a quick read. Everything else aside, it was still an enjoyable reading.

I want moreeeeeeee. This isn't enough.

Can't wait for Allegiant!

Ugh, this is like the worst, the stupidest, the most annoying teen love story I've ever read! I was really really REALLY ticked off with the narrator of the story, A, but I persevered hoping that it would get better as the story progressed. It didn't, but I think you would have guessed that even without me spelling it for you.

The reason I wanted to read this because I thought it had an interesting premise. It was about this boy, A, who didn't possess a body of his own, thus was forced to take a different body every day. It wasn't a big deal until he met a girl named Rhiannon. Things got tricky when he started to fall for the girl. So, from that moment on, he tried to find ways to meet up with Rhiannon and convince her that despite all the different bodies, he was still A. His mind was still his. And that he was the same boy who resided in Rhiannon's boyfriend's body, who showed her that things could be different for both of them.

It could been a great love story. Or the saddest, the most heartwrenching love story. But it didn't because what A thought what he had was love, well it wasn't! THAT WASN'T LOVE, IT WAS AN OBSESSION, YOU MORON! YOU DON'T FORCE PEOPLE TO LOVE YOU. YOU LET THINGS FALL ACCORDINGLY. IF IT WORKS, IT WORKS. IF IT DOESN'T, THEN YOU MUST ACCEPT THINGS THE WAY THEY ARE. YOU DON'T ASK PEOPLE TO BREAK UP WITH THEIR BOYFRIENDS NO MATTER HOW BAD OR IGNORANT THEY ARE, YOU LET THE GIRLS DECIDE FOR THEMSELVES. AND EVEN IF YOUR LOVE FOR HER IS SOOOOOOO GREAT, IT DOESN'T MEAN SHE WILL FEEL THE SAME FOR YOU TOO. OH, FOR GOODNESS SAKE, DON'T MAKE EVERYTHING IS ABOUT YOU. GAHHHH, I'M SO PISSED OFF!

And it didn't help my mood either when the writing was so damn stiff. I found myself always skipping when A began to ponder upon something that was meant to be thought-provoking. Well, no. It was annoying, and most of the time I didn't get the point he was trying to make.

Ugh, if I could kill you, A, I would. I'm glad I was done with this because well, good riddance!

3.5 stars.

Well, isn't this something.

Holder had been keeping a lot of things to himself, things we didn't get to uncover from [b:Hopeless|15717943|Hopeless (Hopeless, #1)|Colleen Hoover|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1353489892s/15717943.jpg|21389085]. So yes, I'm glad I read this. Things about Les and Hope and how hard he took their losses, that explained why he was so intense.

Sky. I'll never get over how beautiful that name is.

The cover of this book is soooooo pretty, it takes my breath away. I guess, it's only fitting for a beautiful lady like Fire, eh?

Anyways.

Fire is a different story from Graceling altogether but it doesn't make it any less interesting. While Graceling tells a story of people who are Graced with all sort of abilities, this book deals on monsters both in the form of animals and humans and how they manipulate their looks and beauty to secure a kill. Or many kills, for that matter. By some luck, Fire is the last human monster to exist in the land of Dells. Her beauty is so breathtaking; it robs any human of their ability to think rationally. There are people who would do anything for her, some are plainly filled with hatred and jealousy and others feel she should cease to exist. The fact that she can also read and control minds doesn't win her any more friends than she already is, which is next to none. Being Fire is not easy.

Just like Graceling, it took me no time to get sucked into the story. The book was divided into four parts, excluding prologue and epilogue: Monsters, Spies, A Graceling and The Dells. Each part covered exactly the part of the story needed to be told. It was intriguing to read more about the monsters though I felt that it could have been elaborated more. It didn't differ so much from Graceling in the way that the main character was a female who is (surprise, surprise) opposed to the idea of a marriage. Then, there was this overprotective male friend who couldn't help but being in love with his friend. And the story also dealt on the politics of a kingdom. Sounds similar, right? But the similarities ended there. Both Fire and Katsa were of different personalities. Both were strong-headed definitely, but Katsa was more independent and didn't let her emotions to rule her as much as Fire's emotions did.

This is a story about a kingdom which is at the very brink of a war. This is a story about trust, loyalty, betrayal, greed and sacrifices. Ultimately, this is a story of a human monster who comes to peace with her ability.

A good read.

Fantasy would probably be one of the genres that will forever put me on edge because of its unpredictability. Not that I expect predictability, but you know what I mean. Like the name of the genre suggests, the possibility of what it is to be offered from a book could be endless. My greatest fear (but not irrational) would be my inability to let myself loose in the story. And it could be for many reasons: plot, characters, lingo. More often than not, a fantasy-based story warrants for out-of-the-world plot (and I meant that in a quite literal sense), characterisation and jargons alien to the readers. It could be overwhelming if the author doesn't know what he/she is doing. It’s a fine line, really. You could thrive on it or send your readers to the opposite direction.

Well.

With all that’s been explained, what would Graceling be to me? No doubt my 5 stars would have clued you the obvious. To say Graceling was an enjoyable read is an understatement. To me, this is the book you can never get enough. 471 pages altogether and when it ended, I still wanted more. I was insatiable. Still is, actually. And the fact that I didn't get overwhelmed by the plot, characters and the lingo of the book made it even more an entertaining read.

What I liked about the book

1. It was easy to get into the story and this Grace thing got me hooked.

2. Characters were superb. It almost impossible not to like all of them. And I mean all, even the evil ones. Great characterisation, I would say.

3. Katsa and Po. Katsa's a badass and Po's a charmer. Together, they were hilarious. I nearly died laughing reading their exchange of banters.

4. The story. The plot unfolded rather neatly. Though I wouldn't claim it to be totally unpredictable, it didn't stop me from flipping pages after pages. And the story was set at a nice pace, too. It had been a nice reading experience.

5. Po.

6. Did I mention Katsa was a kickass female lead and I loved everything bout it? I know some people have problem with Katsa and are irritated that she doesn't want to get married and all, but isn't that only reinforced her character even more for what she is? Katsa was truly a badass, that woman was.


This is easily one of my favourite fantasy reads of the year.

2.5 stars.

Nope, this story didn't work out for me. Think this will be the last of Sarah Dessen's work I'd be reading. I'm sick and tired with her same, formulaic stories to be honest.