Book Talk: The Ring and The Crown by Melissa De La Cruz

     To be honest, I was a bit skeptical about this book before because I'm not really into the really girly books. Don't get me wrong though, I love stories about royals or something like it but it's hard to find a good book like that so I delayed reading this. I was wrong.

     This book surprised me so much that I squealed or made a sound of some sort, more than I normally do, while reading the book. I haven't heard a lot about it from my friends but I know that it got a lot of hype when it came out and it did not disappoint and lived up to the hype it had received. The blurb on the back was very misleading. I don't know what they wrote in the back of paperbacks but the one on the hardbacks will make you imagine scenes or the story and let me tell you right now that if you think you know what this book is about before you've even read it, you're wrong. It's good to go into this book blind because there are a ton of plot twists.

     It may take time to get used to it though because the point of views changes a lot between a lot of characters and it may take a while to know them. Some parts were dramatic and scandalous (in their world not ours, don't worry) but it made the story even better. The romance part of the book is very confusing not because the writing is unclear but because there's a lot of that going on. The love thing they have are all messy and tangled up so you won't ever be able to guess what will happen next.

     Now, we'll talk about the magic part. I didn't even know there's magic involved in this book. The sorcerers are amazing and they made the book even better than it was. Some parts were a bit draggy but they were building up to something and the author managed to deliver that well. The ending seems a bit rushed to me but my OTP got together in the end and that's all that matters.

Can someone please tell me when The Queen and The Courtesan is coming out?


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Book Talk: The Iron Trial by Cassandra Clare and Holly Black

     Holy sh** you guys. I just finished this recently and my mind has been blown to pieces. I absolutely love Cassandra Clare and Holly Black's separate works so when I found out that they're going to be collaborating on a new series soon, I just had to have it.

     People have been saying that this is just like Harry Potter but let me tell you one thing: IT IS NOT LIKE HARRY POTTER. There are some similar factors like the fact that they are a trio but no important stuff like the story, characters, etc. It didn't really grip me in the first few pages but once you get into the information you had to know, you will stay up late just to finish it. The characters are distinct and (this may get spoilery) I guess this is an example of one of those stories that people like of the antagonists and how or why they became what they are. Of course, we are not sure if Callum would actually embrace his Enemy of Death-ness but it is like one of those things where we can see how every choice he makes is vital on whether he would be a good guy or a bad guy. This is only the first book and yet, a lot has been revealed already. I'm so excited to read the second book because there are still a lot of questions left unanswered and I would really like to know the answers to the questions I have. I would also like to see whether Call would accept that he is the Enemy or if he would stick to being the friend of the Makar. It's so interesting to see what would happen because if he does accept his real identity, he would have to fight with Aaron which is his best friend. I would really like to know the outcome of this and if someone can give me the second book now, I will be really grateful. Just kidding. Not really.

That is all.

I will be making a book talk about The End Game: The Calling by James Frey soon so watch out for that.

 

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Book Talk: Legend by Marie Lu

     One word: AWESOME. As some (or none) of you may know, Marie Lu is going here in the Philippines on November 23 and since I've been planning to read this book for a long time, I decided to do so before the signing.

     I have never regretted not reading a book so much in my whole life. The story is about Day, a very famous criminal and June, the Republic's darling who is the only person who got a perfect score on her Trial. Something happened which infuriated June and which resulted to her hunting down Day. The story is fast paced and boring parts are very rare. It's very thrilling and I stayed up late just to finish this book. I can feel my heart pounding every time I read this and I often find myself pausing so I can calm myself down a little bit. The story itself is very interesting and you'll never be able to guess what will happen next because of the plot twists. The characters themselves are very distinct and have their own sets of personalities that you'll either really love or really hate (there is no in between). This book will keep you on the edge of your seat and you will not be able to sleep because you'll be too curious to know what happens next. At least in my experience. The story flows smoothly and I didn't find any holes in it as I did with some of my other books. I will recommend this to everyone and anyone who likes thrilling stories as much as I do or if you just want to read something good, then this book will definitely satisfy your "book craving", as I call it. 

You can check National Book Store's Facebook page if you're from the Philippines and want to go to the signing.

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Book Talk: Me and Earl and The Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

     This book is literally about three people. Greg, Earl and Rachel (who is the dying girl). The book is nothing special if you think of it but the writing style is so hilarious, I sometimes suddenly just laugh aloud and people in the vicinity will think I'm crazy but that's fine.

     I thought this book was going to make me cry but it did the complete opposite. Anyway, the story is told from Greg Gaine's point of view (which is hilarious). Greg has always managed to stay under the radar in high school and he never joined any social circles because he doesn't want to be labeled as one of the people he sits with at lunch or talks to. He decided to infiltrate each and every one of the social circles and has managed to be in everyone's good graces until his mom forced him to befriend his 'exgirlfriend but not really', Rachel. Rachel has leukemia and is dying and Greg doesn't really care because according to him 'he has problems with emotion'. Fast forward to Rachel about a month away or more from dying, someone asked Greg to film something for Rachel and he and Earl started making different kinds of videos for Rachel. Greg and Earl have always done these silly little videos that they show to no one because they think they're not good enough but Earl decided to show them to Rachel with the reason that 'she is dying'. Earl is Greg's 'sort of friend' and co-direct all of his films. They've done a lot of videos about Rachel and they didn't know how to really highlight her because they don't know her that much. In the end, they decided to mush all of the videos together and show it to Rachel and according to Greg, it was the worst film that they had ever made. When Rachel died, Greg thought of the different ways that they could have done for the film and that the film was not about Rachel at all but that they just used her as a subject of a film which is really for them. 

     The book is touching despite of its hilarity and it really highlights high school students'/teenagers' problems that are rarely mentioned in books. How we struggle to cope with our studies, how some of us can never find a social circle or a group of friends that we really fit into and others more like it. The meaning hidden behind the hilarious writing is astounding if you really give thought to it (which I have). This book is extraordinary and I can honestly say that I've never read anything like it. Some of the content are not really suitable for young people (some of the words) so if you're sensitive about those things then this book isn't for you.

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How to Buy Books

     So that 'book buying' time of the year is here. Not really, since I know almost all of us probably buy books every week.

     The things/tips I am going to tell you are the things I do whenever I buy books so they may not be applicable to some of you.


1. Go in the bookstore, look for the book, check the price
   
          If you have enough money to buy the book then that's great but if not, save up for it first and then go back later when you have the sufficient amount.

2. Check for other copies of the same book

          I do this so that when I do my 'checking' of the book, I have other books to compare the quality to.

3. Check each and every side of the book

          I am an absolute perfectionist when it comes to my books so the book I buy has to be in a very good condition. Check every side of the book. The spine, the cover, the pages (or sides if the book is sealed), the bottom part, the top part, the front part, the back part and any other part of the book you can think of.

4, Contemplation process

          If you only found one copy of the book and you checked and found damages, DO NOT settle for this book yet. Go to another bookstore or call another bookstore and ask them about copies of the book you want. If they don't have any then go back to the bookstore with only one copy of the book you really like and then contemplate whether the damage can be ignored or if you need the book that much in order for the damage to be tolerable. I tolerate minor damages but if the damage is, for example, a 'spine crack', do not settle for this book. If you found other copies of the book compare them and then choose the best one.

5. Buying and happiness

          So you bring the book to the counter and you get your money from your bag and then suddenly THE COUNTER WOMAN DECIDED TO BE CLUMSY AND DROPPED YOUR BOOK. There is nothing to be ashamed of. You can ask the counter woman to be careful about handling your book if you feel like they're going to damage it or if they're going to be clumsy about it. Now, you give them your money and then... BOOK ACQUIRED AND HAPPINESS COMMENCE.



These are the things I do whenever I buy books (also the reason why I take too much time when I buy a book). If you do these, you will not regret it I promise you. I hope these helped.


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Book Talk: The Existence trilogy by Abbi Glines

     WOAH. These books are so awesome.

     So the story is about Death falling in love with a girl (which is not supposed to happen because he is Death after all) who can see souls because a voodoo prince has a claim on her. That sentence alone will make me want to read this if I haven't yet. These are the first Abbi Glines books that I've ever read and I am not disappointed at all. Basically, in this story, Death is a hot guy who can appear in human or 'soul' form. When he is human, he is Dank Walker, the rocker. When he is Death, he gets the soul of people whose bodies can no longer function or hold the soul. One day, Pagan saw him and thought she can ignore him like all the other spirits but he suddenly talked to her (which never happens with other spirits) so she got intrigued and the story continues from there. The only downside to this is that Pagan is so clingy and is doesn't think about the consequences of her actions at times though nothing else is wrong other than that. Leif, who became her boyfriend, is apparently, a voodoo prince who has a claim on her soul because Leif's father, who is the voodoo god, saved Pagan from dying when she was a baby. THAT IS A REALLY SURPRISING PLOT TWIST. Dank and Pagan face different problems in each book (except in 'Leif', which is kind of a novela) and each are unique and contains a surprise whenever you find out what that problem is. My favorite book out of the 3 is probably Predestined because we get to explore Vilokan (the voodoo place where Leif's father leads), we get to know a lot about Death and Gee (the transporter) has a lot of parts there. Gee is probably my favorite character because of her sarcastic, over protective and witty personality. The story is very well written and the writing style is not boring at all. I'm sure most of you guys will enjoy the trilogy as well as I did.

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Book Talk: Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by April Genevieve Tucholke

     I have never read a book like this before so I can say that it is pretty unique (for me, at least). The plot is, for a lack of a better word, different and the story is kind of strange at first and it takes a lot of getting used to but after that, you get to really enjoy the story.

     I haven't really read a lot of Gothic horror stories but this one is kind of disappointing because when I heard that this was a "horror story", I expected it to be scarier because that's what horror is but it is creepy though since this is the first time I've read of something like kids holding stakes in the cemetery. It ended up being more of a love story than a horror one. The characters are really interesting and I would've put this down  but I really want to know who or 'what' River West is. The introduction of the main antagonist was very sudden and we only get to have 2 or 3 glimpses of him (and it's not even obvious that he's important until the introduction) before the author suddenly decided to put him in the story. Luke and Sunshine, in my opinion, are horrible people and I think Tucholke only put them there to make Violet look better. The story can be compared to the typical love story where the girl falls in love with the bad boy despite her attempts of stopping herself but with all the devil stuff and supernatural powers thrown in. The ending seems cramped up as well because the author revealed everything all at once (and like I said, the antagonist came up all of a sudden). The writing style is very enjoyable though and I enjoyed the book but there is just that little something that is missing. The cover is ace though and I love the vibe it gives off.

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Book Talk: Lola and The Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

   

Different versions of the book covers

     This book is so sweet and cute and everything and I want to marry it. I don't really like romance novels that much because I'm more of a fantasy/thriller type of girl but I loved this book. Lola is extraordinary and awesome and my imagination of Cricket. He's just so swoon worthy and hot nerdy and you know how we feel about cute, nerdy guys. He's just so perfect. I've never met someone with Lola's character before. She's just so real and quirky. I love that she wears costumes everyday and doesn't give a damn about what other people think. I love the inventor side of Cricket. Of course there's the major fact that he's hot and cute but I've also never met a character like him, with his talent of inventing things. Max, well Max is an asshole to be honest. He's been with this amazing girl and then he tells her that she doesn't matter anymore because of their break-up. What's with that? I am so frustrated with Max. It's also cool that we get to hear from Anna and Etienne (from Anna and the French Kiss if you didn't know). I've really enjoyed this story and I'm sure a lot of you guys will too. The story is extraordinary and it's not like anything I've read before. There are certain parts on the book which tackles people not being able to be themselves but it is so subtle that afterwards you'll be like "Oh. I wanna be like Lola." maybe not in the form of wearing costumes but more of being your own self. I also like how the story progressed and how Stephanie didn't feel the need to rush them all into the break-ups and relationships. I just really like this book so much. I definitely recommend this to everyone. 

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How I and most of the people in the book community feel about spoilers

     NO. I don't know about you guys but I don't like knowing the ending of the book. I rarely get angry but when someone spoils a book to me or tells me something about it, I flip out completely. I mean, why would you do that? Why would you tell me what happened in the book? I'm reading the book so that means I like to find out what will happen myself so why would you spoil me? I especially hate it when they tell me the biggest spoiler you could ever imagine like Tris died. I didn't talk to the person who told me that for a long time. We, readers (especially us crazy ones who treats books like children), want to develop a attachment or a relationship with the characters, the universe and everything about the book but how can we do that if someone told you already what is going to happen and what happens is that I can't concentrate anymore because I'm just waiting for the thing which I know is going to happen. That sucks a lot. If I want spoilers, I'll ask you what happens in the book and not read it but if you see me reading and you spoil me, our friendship is going to be destructed (not really but I will not talk to you for quite sometime). Hopefully, you will think twice whenever you feel the need to spoil someone and if you do and that person decided to get back at you, do not get angry at them because it is you who started it.

That is all I have to say for today.

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Borrowing Books from Me

     Now this had been a pressing problem with me and one of my friends for the past 3 years. I have this friend who also likes to read but the problem is, everything she have read has been borrowed from me. I'm not mean or anything but when she borrows books she doesn't take care of them at all. I have a rule that when people borrow my books, they should treat it very very gently and not throw it around like this particular friend does. What I don't understand is why she can't buy her own books since we are not exactly studying in a school with the cheapest tuition fee. I really spend all of my money on books because I love them and I treat my books like my babies. When asked about this particular matter, she told me that it's not worth it because, in her own words, "What would you do with them after you finish reading them?". I don't buy books for the purpose of showing off. I buy books because of the joy it brings me and because I love reading. In my opinion, it's worth it to buy books because they're like tiny worlds that you can bring everywhere and experience everything while reading them. I don't have anything against people borrowing my books or me borrowing books from other people because I sometimes do that too. What bothers me is that some people give them back to me with some kind of deformity that's not there before I gave it to them to borrow. I HATE THAT. What's worse is that when I asked them what happened, they would deny it. DON'T DENY IT. I will not make them pay if they actually were the reason/s why this book has a folded page or something. The problem is, when I lend them books, I'm not fully happy with my decision because I hate it when people borrow my books because I feel like they're borrowing something personal. That's how I really love my books. I'm really possessive of my books so if you're going to borrow one make sure to treat it like a queen.

I'm not mean though don't worry.

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The Fault In Our Stars movie review

     Hello there reader! This is my first blog post and just to be clear, please do not expect my posts to be about books only because I will be posting blogs about book-to-movie adaptations too, events happening in the "book world" and other things but don't worry as they will be related to books one way or another.

     So my best friend (who is also a reader or a bookworm like me) and I decided to see "The Fault In Our Stars" the day before the real release of it at a exclusive block screening. "The Night Before Our Stars" in the Philippines if you will. So the movie started and we thought it's not going to be that good because movies adapted from books are always missing a lot of the thing that had been shown in the books but this one is different. Of course, there are the occasional slip-ups. Nothings perfect after all but I felt everything I was supposed to feel while watching the movie. I laughed at their (Augustus,Hazel and Isaac's) shenanigans, I felt butterflies in my stomach on the romantic parts and then, the worst feeling of all, the sadness and the feeling that you just lost something very precious when Gus died. I've been crying since before they went to Amsterdam. I may have cried. I thought I'm not going to cry in the movie because I've read the book and I feel like I've survived the worst because the book is already pretty harsh with my feelings. NEVER HAVE I BEEN SO WRONG IN MY WHOLE LIFE. The tears started to make its way (more like pouring) out of my eyes since the part before Amsterdam where Hazel got brought to the hospital because her lungs had a problem and they told her that she wasn't allowed to go there anymore and she looked so crestfallen I wanted to take her place just to see her happy again. So they went to Amsterdam, the inappropriate (I like it though) kiss at the Anne Frank museum happened and they did...things. When they went back, the bad things started to happen. The eulogy, the part where he vomited all over himself and the call. That's where it felt like someone (John Green, I'm looking at you) ripped my heart out, shredded it into pieces and then stomped on it until it has been refined into dust. Yes, its that sad. It doesn't help that the actors who portrayed the character are so great mixed with the artists who recorded the soundtracks which also added to the effect of the movie to the watched.

     All in all, I'm going to say that they movie was great, still is, and of course, they can't copy everything in the book but it's a masterpiece and also heartbreaking as it should. If somehow they see this, I would like to thank John Green for this incredible book for which without him there would be no movie at all, for Ansel Elgort for being everything I hoped Gus would be and more, for Shailene Woodley for being such an amazing Hazel, for Nat Wolff who added even more life into the lively Isaac, who despite his blindness, didn't fail to make me laugh with his jokes and the things he does and to everyone who helped make the movie, thank you all very much.

     Watching The Fault In Our Stars has been a very great experience, one that I would never forget.


That's the end of my first blog post! I hope you bookworms, movie people and/or general people liked it.

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