tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33892763688840158012024-03-13T09:37:05.612-07:00Lou & BooksBook reviews & more.Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-14455813816028844692016-05-02T14:00:00.000-07:002016-05-02T14:00:04.169-07:00One Thousand and One Nights - Hanan Al-Shaykh<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28228974-one-thousand-and-one-nights"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ZJ_jPVQrEbQA7UUe_Xmpck-YkrgTQRb_yIkFA00ifQqnSONZmrEfg2wrDWs_SUCmh1Yli-ckD81hQJMNqh-EP4k3lsKkCsOWoi4JaIvZBxRAvDAmmW0xe5AVcXXFwKxVfrBrqNE_k15I/s320/28228974.jpg" width="209" /></a></div>
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Goodreads Synopsis:</h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">One Thousand and One Nights are never-ending stories told by Shahrazad under sentence of death to King Shahrayar. Maddened by the discovery of his wife’s orgies, King Shahrayar vows to marry a virgin every night and kill her in the morning. To survive, his newest wife Shahrazad spins a wave of tales each night, prolonging her life another day. These mesmerizing stories are gathered from India, Persia and across the great Arab empire. Retold by Hanan Al-Shaykh, One Thousand and One Nights are revealed in an intoxicating new voice.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Review:</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;">Retold by Hanan Al-Shaykh</i>. It is clearly written for an adult audience with its very vulgar and descriptive play of words. It was a very fun read and as you go further the more interesting the stories became. And I also got a deeper look at some traditions and culture of other countries, my favorite subject when it comes to books. This is a very descriptive book and I just hope it was translated from Arabic.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Has anybody read this? What do you think happened to Shahrazad when her stories ran out? It doesn’t really say in the book. It just looped back to their story but never really ended. Hey, maybe that was the point. What do you guys think?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Rating: 4/5</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28228974-one-thousand-and-one-nights"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv9xq6MnnZdUDImKCF6IrwbnOshVyJ-xcB_-HmJhUTK9_g86ZJ4iKYaGMvZksWi4TqDbBIhgPPAsz2j1BIUt3qMB0HIIkPl4Jzd9xgFOqxoRrJFwEkM2KswWzQArpSm_l9yMSSvRdc37t6/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></span></div>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-16564632751001812442016-05-02T13:56:00.000-07:002016-05-02T13:56:09.345-07:00Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore - Robin Sloan<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13538873-mr-penumbra-s-24-hour-bookstore"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_uCD3oZ88DLYSrAxsLsNA84DWZ0CaYyHJNgdIvAjUfDfWS_glVIkVCo0nZOAhzSA9xuZy9c2K4BWfUXQau73eZUr-AmAAj6L0WO4CHnhOh4aeQQ1lo_VZ1ddMtN3jY0sx63nPCXXjbiuN/s320/13538873.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Goodreads Synopsis:</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The great recession has shuffled Clay Jannon away from life as a San Francisco web-design drone and into the aisles of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. But Clay soon discovers that the stories more curious than either its name or its gnomic owner might suggest. The customers are few, and they never seem to buy anything – instead, they “check out” large, obscure volumes from strange corners of the store. Suspicious, Clay engineers an analysis of the clientele’s behavior, seeking help from his variously talented friends. But when the bring their findings to Mr. Penumbra, they discover the bookstore’s secrets extend far beyond its walls.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Rendered with irresistible brio and dazzling intelligence, Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore is exactly what it sounds like: an establishment you have to enter and will never want to leave.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">REVIEW:</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I find this book really hard to finish – it took me at least 2 months to finally pick it back up again (I read a few other books during that slump.) Don’t get me wrong, though, it’s a great book/story. I just got truly bored with the nerdy stuff, like computer programming, Google engineering, coding, gaming, and rendering. Even the part about fonts and typefaces got me bored stiff.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I’d say the title of the book has got me fooled. Who knew that a title like Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore would be about dragon-slaying-nerds and genius Google programmers? Only thing in my expectation that was justified by the title is the secret society of book loving- nerds.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">There was a great variety of characters in the book which made it a little bit confusing, especially in the case of the unbound. I did not really focus any attention on most of their names.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">RATING: 3/4</span></h3>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13538873-mr-penumbra-s-24-hour-bookstore"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv9xq6MnnZdUDImKCF6IrwbnOshVyJ-xcB_-HmJhUTK9_g86ZJ4iKYaGMvZksWi4TqDbBIhgPPAsz2j1BIUt3qMB0HIIkPl4Jzd9xgFOqxoRrJFwEkM2KswWzQArpSm_l9yMSSvRdc37t6/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-88625121917605046372016-05-02T13:50:00.000-07:002016-05-02T13:50:35.690-07:00THE KITE RUNNER - Khaled Hosseini<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12532265-the-kite-runner"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkNbsLWKrO09W792WjNe4Dae6kxW0e2G0HSUXYAhQo03aUuxR5WvxyADX-aTL0vDqB3P66I04f9y1-NVBVasfn5eGVfyJp6F82xXwipzA2NKD-yllvFbFgXG9bKUEL60IMX0ij-3a4W2ZY/s320/12532265.jpg" width="209" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #181818; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Goodreads Synopsis:</span></span></h4>
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<span id="freeText3107621102397177869" style="color: #181818; line-height: 21px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">1970s Afghanistan: Twelve-year-old Amir is desperate to win the local kite-fighting tournament and his loyal friend Hassan promises to help him. But neither of the boys can foresee what will happen to Hassan that afternoon, an event that is to shatter their lives...</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #181818; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span><span style="color: #181818; line-height: 21px;">Since its publication in 2003, The Kite Runner has sold eight million copies worldwide. Through Khaled Hosseini's brilliant writing, a previously unknown part of the world was brought to life.</span><span style="color: #181818; line-height: 21px;"> </span></span><br />
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Review:</h3>
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<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I can’t even make myself begin to review this book as it took me to a roller coaster of emotions while reading it. Well, let me start by saying that I don’t even know why I put it on-hold for the longest time. It’s been in my shelf for quite some time and started reading it last week. Yes, I know, one week is not an acceptable pace but you have to forgive me. There has been a lot of destructions (let’s call it work.)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">First of all, the characters in this book are all unique and relatable in their own ways. Amir’s childhood, for example, is a significant part of each or ours.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Jealousy</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Sometime during our childhood, we did something that we know was wrong but still did anyway. That brings us to one of the 3 major emotional breakthroughs in Amir’s life, jealousy. We can’t call it sibling rivalry just yet, but that’s how it felt. If you have a brother/sister, you’ll know what I mean. Everything, up to the smallest detail is favoritism: the last piece of chocolate in the fridge, the new toy your brother got, the new pair of shoes for your sister.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Guilt</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Second is guilt. Guilt is a big word and I think Amir handled guilt fittingly, in his own little way. He convinced himself that it was better to be guilty and feel bad about what you did than know you were wrong and feel absolutely fine with it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Atonement</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Lastly, atonement. Amir’s version of atonement came a little far behind schedule. It still mattered, nonetheless. Although not initially his idea, at least he pushed through with it. I felt really proud of him as the story was coming to an end, how he became as good as his father.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">RATING: 5/5</span></h3>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/77203.The_Kite_Runner"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv9xq6MnnZdUDImKCF6IrwbnOshVyJ-xcB_-HmJhUTK9_g86ZJ4iKYaGMvZksWi4TqDbBIhgPPAsz2j1BIUt3qMB0HIIkPl4Jzd9xgFOqxoRrJFwEkM2KswWzQArpSm_l9yMSSvRdc37t6/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-24082570859794791902016-03-30T11:28:00.000-07:002016-03-30T11:28:31.874-07:00One Day - David Nicholls<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6280118-one-day" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTk4dMPtWr4tHjW4pXOXSFg4GhN-ipuxjqLpMfl2-i741TVwbeA72Ao8GBlUD0ojNH4cRAU4asDYfL_bo2Js3ewrKeyI7Khopa7qLrxgd9jGXkRGbvvBER49RIte-pxEHFv5s231fA8Ycy/s320/6280118.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Goodreads Synopsis:</span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">It’s 1988 and Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley have only just met on the night of their graduation. Tomorrow they must go their separate ways. But after only one day together, they can’t stop thinking about one another. Over twenty years, snapshots of that relationship are revealed on the same day – July 15<sup>th</sup> – of each year. Dex and Em face squabbles and fights, hopes and missed opportunities, laughter and tears. And as the true meaning of this one crucial day is revealed, they must come to grips with the nature of love and life itself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Twenty years, two people, one day.</span></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6280118-one-day"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijFEYPM6DRbrTH1aZeMFA5ZfZu7mrl9Tgg_B-0UXXr6c2hCvE5ZUiDumbGrcJKwRlvYlaWI0WffZrAK7YwC8IWa0AFdNj8ECWvP7lWW0D6qv1gHEyu7CnAGgHGH-Ax_zqI7KWnp7ymmxhr/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">REVIEW:</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">One Day is one of those heart-breaking romance novels that I never really wanted to read for the fear of crying my eyeballs out, but it turned up in my shelf and there was no good reason for me to keep it there unopened. And so came that day, I was really nervous because and I’ve seen the movie (yes, I saw it a long time ago before reading. I’m not usually like that, I swear. I read the first before the movie, but this was a different case.) It did not help that I cried buckets-full when Anne Hathaway (SPOILER ALERT!) died.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I love how they are two different people but still in love in a very platonic way. There were times when I want to punch Dex in the face or smack the back of his head but he was like that for the very same reason that this book is very much like people’s lives. One of the things I loved about this book was how their love story happened to each of us one way or another. My brain in humming “We had the right love at the wrong time’s” melody every time Cupid seems to have missed their hearts with his arrows.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The writing style is also a hit with me. A very <i>Love, Rosie</i> type of writing, although I don’t know which came first.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">RATING: 4/5</span></h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-62527271842633790682016-03-30T11:15:00.000-07:002016-03-30T11:29:03.904-07:00To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10257528-to-kill-a-mockingbird" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvHJj7jgwKdpLnpOrsRR6PBbviDdhafJezoJ7cxVvOUmIbbzu7IzhDhfYzCK_T6RthG34hWT-TQrA9GTvj7G84nKBA9wHYNnO19lPAOOOs8Q__5K7AkrWsW687TTXHpr1GjqOdojpJevni/s320/10257528.jpg" width="198" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">GOODREADS SYNOPSIS:</span></h2>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it, <i>To Kill A Mockingbird</i> became both an instant bestseller and a critical success when it was first published in 1960. It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was later made into an Academy Award-winning film, also a classic.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Compassionate, dramatic, and deeply moving, <i>To Kill A Mockingbird</i> takes readers to the roots of human behavior – to innocence and experience, kindness and cruelty, love and hatred, humor and pathos. Now with over 18 million copies in print and translated into forty languages, this regional story by a young Alabama woman claims universal appeal. Harper Lee always considered her book to be a simple love story. Today it is regarded as a masterpiece of American literature.</span></div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2657.To_Kill_a_Mockingbird"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijFEYPM6DRbrTH1aZeMFA5ZfZu7mrl9Tgg_B-0UXXr6c2hCvE5ZUiDumbGrcJKwRlvYlaWI0WffZrAK7YwC8IWa0AFdNj8ECWvP7lWW0D6qv1gHEyu7CnAGgHGH-Ax_zqI7KWnp7ymmxhr/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">REVIEW:</span></h4>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view – until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I have put reading this book on hold for quite some time. I know it’s a classic and a Pulitzer Prize winner and I thought was a bore. I was quickly rebuked once I opened and read the first chapter. Thank goodness for <i><a href="http://www.instagram.com/theguywiththebook">The Guy With The Book</a></i> and his initiation of the <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/184753-never-too-late-to-kill-a-mockingbird">Never Too Late To Kill a Mockingbird</a> challenge that I decided to get a copy and kick myself to start reading it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I must say I enjoyed myself reading from a child’s point of view. In addition, a few lessons from history were gained. A huge part of the book was contributed to a child’s innocence of the surrounding world. It took me a step closer to the place where slavery and racism was still very much alive.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">There was a bunch of characters introduced in the first part of the book which made it a bit confusing but, I think you would agree with me when I say that each and every character became a major part of Jem and Scout’s childhood.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I am definitely reading <i>Go Set A Watchman</i> right after this (heading to the bookstore now to get a copy.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">RATING: 5/5</span></h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-18901094661548025752015-07-16T03:55:00.001-07:002015-07-16T03:55:49.813-07:00If I Stay - Gayle Forman<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6564365-if-i-stay" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicwsh9Gkv8U_plgOf_dNXz-iBaP9nLstx8SZ-cVF45cx2wSDdJ18lMl0gy0icozKuID4YEAS8X9nCqizgAz6Y0lgUcoyA0BnXM7x6v2x82qImjlvWHII9ucnck-V12iupXaEq-6xJP5L-o/s320/6564365.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
A critically acclaimed novel that will change the way you look at life, love, and family.<br />
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In the blink of an eye everything changes. Seventeen year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall what happened afterwards, watching her own damaged body being taken from the wreck. Little by little she struggles to put together pieces - to figure out what she has lost, what she has left, and the very difficult choices she must make. Heartwrenchingly beautiful, Mia's story will stay with you for a long, long time.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6564365-if-i-stay"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzDzSWyemTF9aSiw-_IIpbAJcnLIRteH4RvqJfTKgBNYMa-x26a7E5XYf5j56WdUvcJCkHQ_2Y7jPaeDoo7xjeE4u_R4ENGuQAwyidzRHNd8ZIj_gE3SNMjkA_njL-pdLnKBlDEiCRsTdT/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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REVIEW:<br />
I had a hard time trying not to cry while reading this book. I loved the plot and the characters very much, except maybe for the protagonist. I was really hoping that she see all the love that she'll get when she does decide to come back. I was beginning to think of her as selfish when she weights her options on coming back to life.<br />
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A tragedy like that does not need to happen to a teenage girl (or anybody else) but one thing we must learn is to stay strong through trials. This book has thought me that it can be hard but doable.<br />
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This also thought me to never take anyone for granted. Even though you might think that you have nobody, you'll be surprised by the people who really care for you and love you.<br />
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RATING: 4/5</h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-42845133370997701762015-05-04T05:34:00.000-07:002015-05-04T05:34:09.979-07:00Unravel Me - Tahereh Mafi<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13104080-unravel-me" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYnPks-W-TPjW2UcXB8PsBWX-V2qFY4xyFyrwnvJsU3bhUVwuzA6TB6yJ9Wdw75IUufv_pBqGR9bZ0B36FVahYxaIY4izJ8dHJgOO3qoHQKADH95DUNPxLlUAcls-4jmPq8iCAZQ2-X4cE/s1600/13104080+(1).jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
Tick<br />
tick<br />
tick<br />
tick<br />
tick<br />
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It's almost over,</div>
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time for war.</div>
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Juliette has escaped to Omega Point. It is a place for people like her - people with gifts - and it is also the headquarters of the rebel resistance.</div>
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She's finally free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch.</div>
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Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible.</div>
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In this exhilarating sequel to Shatter Me, juliette has to make life-changing decisions between what she wants and what she thinks is right. Decisions that might involve choosing between her heart - and Adam's life.</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13104080-unravel-me"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzDzSWyemTF9aSiw-_IIpbAJcnLIRteH4RvqJfTKgBNYMa-x26a7E5XYf5j56WdUvcJCkHQ_2Y7jPaeDoo7xjeE4u_R4ENGuQAwyidzRHNd8ZIj_gE3SNMjkA_njL-pdLnKBlDEiCRsTdT/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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Review:</h2>
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The plot of this second book has completely taken a turn. As we've all predicted, a love triangle has bloomed between Adam, Juliette and Warner. We have all created a huge dislike for Warner in the first book, but I think everyone agrees with me when I say that the author did a great job at making all of us swoon over him in this one. I was one of those who were completely rooting for Adam on <a href="http://louandbooks.blogspot.com/2015/02/shatter-me-tahereh-mafi.html">Shatter Me</a>, and then, this book happens. It just blew me off the roof.</div>
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The writing style in this book also took a turn for the better, as Juliette was finally learning to talk to people again. It was really hard reading the first parts of Shatter Me because she hasn't talked to anyone for almost a year. So much of it was a bunch of gibberish to me. She's also starting learn more of her powers and how she is not as weird as she thinks. </div>
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I just don't like the ceaseless lover's quarrel between Juliette and Adam in this book. It just felt like I wanted them to just break-up every moment.</div>
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Rating: 4/5</h3>
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Other Books in this series:</h4>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10429045-shatter-me"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij2fr0LwOM9dt13_I2mjRGQnHo2kLWKnmrx2eZoRPduNuC2PTNHqD68-s-oDdemsIV9fO7zG631qSa9bwkq35T7Q-HUmE_wbRuisA9YNaAOIAPf3WNipyih8bhy7K7gJG02bzi3mJMv6TO/s200/13455782.jpg" width="132" /></a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13188676-ignite-me"><img border="0" class="nopin" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1375972497l/13188676.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;" width="131" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13623150-destroy-me" style="color: #888888; line-height: 22.1000003814697px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="nopin" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1340398466l/13623150.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;" width="133" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17331518-fracture-me" style="color: #888888; line-height: 22.1000003814697px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="nopin" height="200" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1383413233l/17331518.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 640px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px;" width="133" /></a></div>
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Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-17083144213870589582015-04-26T05:00:00.001-07:002015-04-26T05:00:57.193-07:00Fangirl - Rainbow Rowell<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16068905-fangirl" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6yY7Y_JGKNVqsSIWLNMjUrUB-lMCosf2Ej1jZ11pPTJSPdOcg98QGB5WWCZ0_Z-fkr4syywj13ejx2MBftci6yI_j2cD3VWUF8qZyFNrn0I4uE2sV-IGl1I3lj2Nb-CFK-T3yDRV19Z18/s1600/16068905.jpg" height="320" width="215" /></a></div>
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
A coming-of-age tale of fan fiction, family and first love.<br />
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Cath is a Simon Snow fan.<br />
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Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan...<br />
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But for Cath, being a fan is her life - and she's really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it's what got them through their mother leaving.<br />
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Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.<br />
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Cath's sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can't let go. She doesn't want to.<br />
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Now that they are going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn't want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She's got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words... And she can't stop worrying about her dad, who is loving and fragile and has never really been alone.<br />
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For Cath, the question is : Can she do this?<br />
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Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?<br />
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And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?<br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16068905-fangirl"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzDzSWyemTF9aSiw-_IIpbAJcnLIRteH4RvqJfTKgBNYMa-x26a7E5XYf5j56WdUvcJCkHQ_2Y7jPaeDoo7xjeE4u_R4ENGuQAwyidzRHNd8ZIj_gE3SNMjkA_njL-pdLnKBlDEiCRsTdT/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Review:</h2>
I can't help but think about Harry Potter while I read Simon Snow excerpts from this book. Talk about fan fiction, right? It actually feels like double fan fiction with the Harry Potter-Simon Snow analogy. I've heard of fan fiction but I never had once ever thought about the authors behind these things. So this is quite an eye-opener for me.<br />
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I love Rainbow Rowell and I love her books, but from the three I've read (<a href="http://louandbooks.blogspot.com/2014/11/attachments-rainbow-rowell.html">Attachments</a>, <a href="http://louandbooks.blogspot.com/2015/01/eleanor-park-rainbow-rowell.html">Eleanor & Park</a> and this, <i>Landline still on my TBR</i>), so far this is at the least of my favorites. I do love the characters of this book and her writing style, though.<br />
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<b>Cath </b>- I love that she is not the perfect college girl or the perfect sister. I can also relate to her since I basically took charge of the house since my mom died.<br />
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<b>Levi</b> - I knew there was some twist to his character. He has been depicted as Reagan's boyfriend at the first half of the the book. But all the while, I was thinking that he might be her brother. I guess I was half-wrong.<br />
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<b>Wren</b> - I think we can all say that her character is very strong and effective. I did feel a bit rage at her character at the beginning of the book. And then it all melted into love towards the end.<br />
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<b>Reagan</b> - She's like the Ben (<a href="http://louandbooks.blogspot.com/2015/01/paper-towns-john-green.html">Paper Towns</a>) of this book. She's the one that makes me feel a little lighter every time I pick up this book.<br />
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<b>Art</b> - I'm not really getting his artistic and parenting style. It's funny how Cath turned out so well with him being her parent.<br />
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<b>Nick</b> - This douche, I knew there was something going to go wrong with him. Either he was going to turn out gay or he's gonna sexually harass Cath during their writing sessions. So as he did what he did, I was smiling to myself saying, 'Thank God he did not rape her."<br />
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I love how Rowel terminated Cath and Wren's mother's presence the way she did at the time they needed her most. It's like a metaphor for her not ever showing up again in their lives, which I think might be good for their father.<br />
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I basically enjoyed reading this book, but as I've said it's number 3 in my <i>Favorite Rainbow Rowell books</i>.<br />
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Rating: 4/5</h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-17110060620562608932015-04-21T07:05:00.002-07:002015-04-21T07:06:58.722-07:00Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19288043-gone-girl" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5zgne767DZMMMvPiv8HouYD8-3I57tiVCTrOA_GE8-d0JJ1BHK0wQZa-H0UIVM9dSDSabs_cIXmfmB2jHwFJ0XvCCgpSaPjQdcnNo25ZKeWXXKtKLIO9qNjKjYvXKh_omIwnL1p5idwBg/s1600/8442457.jpg" height="320" width="207" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne's fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick's clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-year Nick isn't doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife's head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. </div>
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Under mounting pressure from the police and the media - as well as Amy's fierce doting parents - the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he's definitely bitter - but is he really a killer?</div>
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As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn't do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?</div>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19288043-gone-girl"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzDzSWyemTF9aSiw-_IIpbAJcnLIRteH4RvqJfTKgBNYMa-x26a7E5XYf5j56WdUvcJCkHQ_2Y7jPaeDoo7xjeE4u_R4ENGuQAwyidzRHNd8ZIj_gE3SNMjkA_njL-pdLnKBlDEiCRsTdT/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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Review:</h2>
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<i>First of all, I want to say that I may not be able to review this book without giving away too much spoilers (you have been warned).</i></div>
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I love how Flynn made every character in the book imperfect; except maybe for Margo, but she also has some glitch of her own - you know, covering up her brother's affair - but I think she was the most trustworthy character here. </div>
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First, let's talk about Nick. He does seem to have a murderous tendency - according to Amy's very convincing diary. No, he is not an angel. He does have an affair with a younger girl - his student. And he was not very happy with his marriage. To have a wife like Amy, I might also be unhappy and wishing I was married to someone else. He might be a adulterer but I was rooting for him since the beginning of the book. It might be because he reminded me of someone who is also inattentive to his wife but still loves her. </div>
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There was I point when I lost my confidence in Nick - when he hired Tanner Bolt as his lawyer. But that turned out to be a good move for him. </div>
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Amy, on the other hand is a genius. She has a manipulative prowess that can make anybody bow down before her. I think even her parents are victims to this. But the world get justice during her hiding-out period when her next door neighbors rob her. There's one thing she forgot about her very carefully-laid out plan, she can't control the thoughts and actions of other people. She was privileged while growing up and that was also her downfall. She never imagined how the mind of the less-privileged works. </div>
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I had mixed feelings for Desi. He was so much a victim here, but I also hated him for harboring Amy when she could not carry on with her plan. This incident proved again just how intelligent Amy is, stirring up another plan after the other did not work. </div>
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I totally flipped while reading this book. The plot twist was one anybody could never imagine. Even the ending was quite difficult to wrap my head around on. I can't believe just how well-written this book is. Every single thing that you might think unnecessary in the beginning or the middle of the book was a puzzle piece to the ending. </div>
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I finished the book early in 2014 and thought right away that it would make a wonderful movie. </div>
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RATING: 5/5</h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-21685826059009641212015-04-18T02:21:00.000-07:002015-04-19T23:15:31.232-07:00Divergent - Veronica Roth<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13335038-divergent" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibBr2lhjrV9UhhlPSXIVmxJCfUIWKVrYFRRlVrtZxY4tES4ijMfrW4UJAIUUZWpb0akxTGOgmwqSEBmC4GmzA3ebrL7BDciiYJV48-JlqY-zXsQGvysmckD8QSyfGibCKHITPMyabESvnK/s1600/13335038.jpg" height="320" width="209" /></a></div>
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue-- Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.<br />
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During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves... or it might destroy her.<br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13335038-divergent"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzDzSWyemTF9aSiw-_IIpbAJcnLIRteH4RvqJfTKgBNYMa-x26a7E5XYf5j56WdUvcJCkHQ_2Y7jPaeDoo7xjeE4u_R4ENGuQAwyidzRHNd8ZIj_gE3SNMjkA_njL-pdLnKBlDEiCRsTdT/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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Review:</h2>
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This was the first book that I read after seeing its movie counterpart. To tell you the truth, I wasn't even planning on reading it, even with all the rave about it. If wasn't for the movie that got me quite confused, I wouldn't have read it at all. But honestly, I only started reading after I saw Insurgent, and it's been in my shelf ever since Divergent came out. That's how uninterested I was. With that being said, I can safely say that I loved the book more than the movie (any book with a movie counterpart, for that matter). </div>
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The theme was not that original in terms of dystopian novels go. We saw the whole walled-in thing in <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6186357-the-maze-runner?from_search=true&search_version=service">The Maze Runner</a>. And the division of factions (districts) in <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2767052-the-hunger-games?from_search=true&search_version=service">The Hunger Games</a>. But it was still refreshing to have the factions have their own distinctive characteristic that they don't have control over. My favorite factions were Amity (the peaceful) and Candor (the honest), maybe because they were the least cited factions in the whole book that we did not see their unfavorable characteristic. Maybe I'll find out more about them in the next books.<br />
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The book was very well-written and I loved the characters. Four was my favorite character, very intelligent and strong, he always had an answer for everything and his moves were calculated. He knew not to poke his nose into the irregularities that's going on around him; but he still knew when he needed to move and react. He was smart that way and that's what I liked about him.<br />
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The love story between Tris and Four did not interest me that much. And what was it with women protagonists that did not find themselves beautiful, but have multiple men falling at their knees? It's kind of becoming a cliche in YA books.<br />
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The book is quite fast-paced, I found myself finishing it in 3 nights (a good one for me). I already saw Insurgent movie and I loved it more than the Divergent movie, so I can't wait to read the book.<br />
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RATING: 3/5</h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-72970180371986039722015-03-10T01:13:00.000-07:002015-04-19T23:15:39.022-07:00The Husband's Secret - Liane Moriarty<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17465450-the-husband-s-secret" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc61DzVfvv8gRrcXS_g5ba0g79cS7ICUdcy1N3kHILCCzZVumv7b0OJq0UqVg4OvQFI1Nuyxd9TQndGr4v7ZmH7oRFzM6BtFBeTPBxAk4dNEocrE5mGztISTT8RHvG8rIOQ5rXegpUBfur/s1600/17465450.jpg" height="320" width="210" /></a></div>
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
From the author of the critically acclaimed <i>What Alice Forgot</i> comes a breakout new novel about the secrets husbands and wives keep from each other.<br />
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<i>My Darling Cecilia</i><br />
<i>If you're reading this, then I've died. . . </i><br />
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Imagine your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret - something so terrible it would destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others too. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive. . .<br />
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Cecilia Fitzpatrick achieved it all - she's an incredibly successful business woman, a pillar of her small community and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything, and just for her: Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilai - or each other- but they too are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband's devastating secret. <br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17465450-the-husband-s-secret"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-BG4f70za_2jns0yu8uCoOt5vDeRCWJ0Y-2v5l0-ehB6hyphenhyphenG6jvuwbzJ0nZeNAmpQkps7rvZ45Wju1I_FmIOLL4n0YZCZxjz2glzUQ3OEbAHy_k22WxmrfM1WHOl98zpVEHSCP8ACcIOp/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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Review:</h2>
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First of all, I would like to commend Cecilia for having had to wait a whole day before reading the letter from her husband. If it were me, I would have opened the envelope right there and then. </div>
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I found this book completely realistic; the characters and the situation they're all in. I could actually imagine it happening in real life. Although, there are a few characters that I thought the book could do without, like Trudy (the principal) or Marla (Rachel's best friend). There were already a variety of characters in the book, I found myself making a diagram while I was reading. We could also have gone without Tess' whole story (just my opinion).<br />
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At the middle of the book, we find out what the husband's secret is and it's implications in all their lives. Cecilia, like any wife or mother, can think only of her family and is conflicted whether to tell the truth or to keep the secret to herself. Until things get a little shaken up by a tragic<i> "accident" </i>that would force her to confess her husband's crime to Rachel who is firm on what she knows is the truth.<br />
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We can also see Cecilia struggle on doing the right thing, but right for who? For her family? For the truth? We also later find out that John-Paul's mother might have an idea of her son's crime after commenting that she had the same rosary as the one found in Janie's dead body. We can see the depths of how much a mother (well, maybe just some mothers) is willing to protect her child even if it meant trading your righteousness and faith. </div>
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And by the way, how mediocre are the detectives in the 80's? How does a seventeen-year old boy get away with murder without even trying to? </div>
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This one really got me, while Rachel was waiting for either Cecilia or John-Paul at the hospital after the accident, she said...<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
What can you say or do to make up for a horrible incident? The words "I'm sorry" felt like an insult. You said "I'm sorry" when you bumped against someone's supermarket trolley. There needed to be bigger words. </blockquote>
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Although, I have no idea how Rachel felt after she found out that she didn't need to be sorry after all. Was this accident equal to Janie's life? Have they squared even? It does not seem to sum up, but they are both feeling guilty of the crimes they've secretly committed.<br />
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I felt most sorry for Connor. First of all, his first ever girlfriend gets murdered. Then, Rachel suspects that he is the one who murdered Janie. Lastly, the love of his life (the-one-that-got-away) comes back and they have a rebound relationship with no expectations. I think that he is the unlikely victim here; not Janie, Rachel, Cecilia, Polly or Tess.<br />
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I have mentally categorized this book with <i>What Happens Next </i>and <i>Thirteen Reasons Why</i>, and a little less dark than Gone Girl.<br />
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RATING: 4 / 5</h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-49455433323863175682015-02-21T01:10:00.000-08:002015-04-19T23:15:47.730-07:00Shatter Me - Tahereh Mafi<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13455782-shatter-me" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Y4_kZ_QcTTXh-EF7L8m0t1FkMhVOkXACOhBYqogsn2hxKOdLggCxxVRgIGLaytRfvLhuDzWdHwvStN-QO_smAjq87DgJlyqbSSidYVG6b1MbRZ_KfVt0oqzZSKvdJ_gZIkbgYIWGi7tM/s1600/13455782.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a></div>
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.<br />
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The last time she did, it was an accident, but the Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.<br />
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The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering was - and the Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.<br />
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Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior. <br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13455782-shatter-me"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-BG4f70za_2jns0yu8uCoOt5vDeRCWJ0Y-2v5l0-ehB6hyphenhyphenG6jvuwbzJ0nZeNAmpQkps7rvZ45Wju1I_FmIOLL4n0YZCZxjz2glzUQ3OEbAHy_k22WxmrfM1WHOl98zpVEHSCP8ACcIOp/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Review:</h2>
The first few chapters of this book was just a bunch of gibberish to me, a lot of <strike>strike throughs</strike> and counting. I thought this style was brought about by the fact that the narrator has been locked up for months without talking or seeing anybody. So she basically was just talking to herself in her head. But as the story progressed and she started to interact with other people, the gibberish also started to wear off.<br />
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<b>Juliette Ferrars</b> was locked up during the transition of leadership and I think it was a bright idea from the author, it makes Juliette more oblivious to the world outside her confinement. I just feel that she went a little overboard on naivety, worrying about boys while that world around her was crumbling. But hey, she's 19-years-old after all.<br />
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<b>Adam Kent</b> was a soldier forced to work for the Reestablishment as this was the only job that paid enough to keep his 10-year-old brother comfortable. Same goes with the other soldiers of the Reestablishment. He was tasked to observe and watch over Juliette but he inadvertently falls in love with damsel-in-distress charm.<br />
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<b>Aaron Warner</b> is the young leader of Sector 45, he has been studying Juliette for quite a while and is fascinated by her. He wants her to join himself and the Reestablishment, to be their torture instrument against the talk of rebellion and to instill fear in the people.<br />
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It's the perfect love triangle waiting to happen.<br />
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As I am writing this review, I have finished the Trilogy and will be writing about the other books soon. Right now, I am reading the companion novellas to this series: Unite Me and Fracture Me which are from Warner and Adam's POV respectively.<br />
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RATING: 4/5</h3>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Other Books in this series:</h4>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13104080-unravel-me" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1340287622l/13104080.jpg" height="200" width="131" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13188676-ignite-me" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1375972497l/13188676.jpg" height="200" width="131" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13623150-destroy-me" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1340398466l/13623150.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17331518-fracture-me" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1383413233l/17331518.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a></div>
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Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-66711125107202304232015-02-05T01:01:00.000-08:002015-04-19T23:16:02.940-07:00One Hundred Names - Cecelia Ahern<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16118673-one-hundred-names" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCyF3IfS1a-tJrogeFbajMicSVirMJnP9rAoZbRUgS_fF37YO0rGJnDnjqBC-_IJagHmw5QZVu0ChIlON0LRNm5x-wmkU1w6oDaCg3QViCPLbECzz1UyqbJqeRM-r0OaoMC2IzzsNhZwT0/s1600/16118673.jpg" height="320" width="205" /></a></div>
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
<b>EVERYONE HAS A STORY TO TELL</b><br />
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Journalist Kitty Logan's career has been destroyed by scandal, and she now faces losing the woman who guided her and taught her everything she knew. At her mentor's bedside, Kitty asks her: What is the one story she always wanted to write?<br />
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The answer lies in a file buried in Constance's office: a list of one hundred names. There is no synopsis, nothing to explain what the story is or who these people are. The list is simply a mystery. But before Kitty can talk to her friend, it is too late.<br />
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With everything to prove, Kitty is assigned the most important task of her life - to write the story her mentor never had the opportunity to complete. Kitty has to not only track down and meet people on the list, but find out what connects them. And, in the process of hearing ordinary people's stories, she uncovers Constance's - and starts to understand her own. <br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16118673-one-hundred-names"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6xtj4GWRYXI1BRHTCScF2C2Tcrz04CXTMevRPStKPu9sc9fZU62lZq6Ey6Tybf46NjNy8FmrJ8g2ZquIH3b6rUMPhEwT3DQaFuMyxTu9D1qznOr-HmdKwvGDAKWZuyQUG41KwDgVbiwNC/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Summary:</h2>
Kitty was in a bad place, she made a wrong accusation on live television. She accused a respectable teacher of child molestation and fathering a child with a student. This cost Kitty her job at the network and a suspension at the magazine. While all this was playing out, her friend and mentor, Constance, is at the hospital succumbing to the cancer that took over her body.<br />
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One day, Kitty finds herself visiting Constance for the first time in months. She casually asks Constance if there's one story that she wanted to write but never got the chance to, the one that got away. Constance tells her to pull a file from her office and send it back to the hospital so they could discuss the story. It took Kitty a while to get back to her friend and when she did, it was too late.<br />
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On the magazine's office, Kitty is still fighting to stay in the only job she has left. They are going to publish a tribute issue for Constance and Kitty is assigned to do the piece that Constance never got the chance to write. When they open the file, they find a list of one hundred names; no synopsis, no write-up and no link whatsoever. Just one hundred names. It is Kitty's job to find out what the connection between these people are. The only problem is, she only has two weeks before publication. And her boss won't let her use the office because advertisers are threatening to pull out if they see her name in the magazine.<br />
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She tries to find the people on the list and successfully locates six of them but can't find any link between them at all:<br />
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<b>Name #2: Ambrose Nolan</b> - owner of a butterfly farm and museum; has a huge birthmark on her face that caused her to become the most shy person on the planet.<br />
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<b>Name #3: Eva Wu</b> - personal shopper; the one you hire when you can't think of a gift for a loved one.<br />
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<b>Name #4: Jedrek Vysotski</b> - a polish aircraft mechanic who lost his job during the recession; wants to put his name on the Guiness Book of World Records.<br />
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<b>Name #6: Bridget Murphy</b> - an old lady living in a home; nearing her 85th birthday and on that day wants to return to her home town and collect some winnings from an old bet made more than 50 years ago.<br />
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<b>Name #7: Mary-Rose Godfrey</b> - make-up artist and hairstylist to the sick and dying; gets fake proposed to by her best friend every week.<br />
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<b>Name #67 Archie Hamilton</b> - an ex-convict who flips burgers and can hear people's prayers.<br />
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With only a limited time, she tries to focus on these six people from the list and side-sweeps the other ninety-four. During the interviews she's conducted, she learns that there is no connection at all. She is reminded of Constance's founding vision; that there is a story in every single one of us. Kitty assumes that Constance grabbed hold of a phone book and randomly highlighted names to built this list.<br />
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<h2>
Review:</h2>
First of all, I think this book totally made a fool of me, I was expecting that there would at least twenty to fifty names that she'd get a hold of and that there would at least be a connection, a link between them. It started out as a random list and ended as is.<br />
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Secondly, I didn't like the fact that there were unnecessary characters in the story such as her friend Sally, Steve's housemates, Richie was also someone that the book could do without, Cheryl, the kid who stole her bike (that bit from the story was also unnecessary) and the kid who mimicked her every word. There are enough characters as it is with the list and the people around her so there was no need for these other people to be there at all. It was a very confusing read as the author jumps from one narrator to another without warning.<br />
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I was getting anxious when I was halfway through the book and she still hasn't found anyone on the list. Also when I was almost at the end and she still haven't started on the piece.<br />
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I used to love Cecelia Ahern's books, but this one disappointed me. She veered so far away from the enchanted stories she used to write. I remember reading <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/588369.A_Place_Called_Here" target="_blank">A Place Called Here</a>, <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2410506.Thanks_for_the_Memories" target="_blank">Thanks For The Memories</a> and <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4279056-the-gift" target="_blank">The Gift</a> and loving them. I don't really know if I'm growing up and her stories are becoming less interesting to me or she's losing her touch. I recently read <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10893138-the-time-of-my-life" target="_blank">The Time of My Life</a> and did not enjoy it as well.<br />
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All in all, I did not like this book and it was a drag reading it. Took me two weeks to finish it because I was so uninterested. But I'm giving her A for effort in imagination with the charcters on the list and their stories.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<b>RATING: 2/5</b></h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-16119228820613102242015-01-29T00:55:00.000-08:002015-04-19T23:16:32.186-07:00Paper Towns - John Green<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6442769-paper-towns?from_search=true" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIactSOn00u4ZjcxaING2xU1p15YRLYiE4ZRZf3oJERsupKFB0YsbWt3GzWt5iHsjgkASA1l5vlXijZPL3Ife48WR7ZTFCOxqQFcYvcG6H1PloKX0Jd-khPpSTQAcP1_tR9zj4Y3EPq6-C/s1600/6442769.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a><br />
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
Quentin has always loved Margo Roth Spiegelman, for Margo (and her adventures) is the staff of legend at their high school. So when she one day climbs through his window and summons him on an all-night road trip of revenge, he cannot help but follow.<br />
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But the next day, Margo doesn't come to school and a week later she is still missing. Q soon learns that there are clues in her disappearance, and they are for him. But as he gets deeper into the mystery - culminating in another awesome roadtrip across America - he becomes less sure of who and what he is looking for.<br />
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Masterfully written by John Green, this a thoughtful, insightful and hilarious coming-of-age story. <br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6442769-paper-towns?from_search=true"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-BG4f70za_2jns0yu8uCoOt5vDeRCWJ0Y-2v5l0-ehB6hyphenhyphenG6jvuwbzJ0nZeNAmpQkps7rvZ45Wju1I_FmIOLL4n0YZCZxjz2glzUQ3OEbAHy_k22WxmrfM1WHOl98zpVEHSCP8ACcIOp/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Review:</h2>
This is one of those teenage novels that goes very deep with so much going on in the head of the protagonist. Very much like <i>The Perks of Being a Wallflower</i> and <i>The Fault In Our Stars</i>. It is very profound with complex teenage issues.<br />
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<b>QUENTIN</b>,<b> </b>or Q, is our main character. He is a very-well adjusted senior who is at the bottom of the hierarchy of the student body in their high school.<br />
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<b>MARGO ROTH SPIEGELMAN</b> on the other hand is queen bee.<br />
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They are childhood friends who grew apart along the way, but Q developed a little crush on Margo. I love that Q calls her by her full name, it gives you the sensation that she is in fact higher up the pecking order. While they were children, they found a dead body in the park while they were playing. That's when Q's crush on Margo Roth Spiegelman initiated.<br />
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One night, Q is awakened by Margo and asks him to accompany her for a night around town to do some personal tasks she wants done that very night.<br />
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The next morning, Q doesn't know what to expect in school, will they talk to each other? Sit with each other at lunch? Greet each other on the hallways? What happens next was not in the list of scenarios running through Q's mind, Margo doesn't show up for school. Not just for a day but for <i>forever</i>. He has no idea where she went and she never gave any hint during the night they spent together.<br />
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He finds a clue weeks after her disappearance, she might have left for him to figure out where she might be. He runs around town and the outskirts holding on to only a poem he <i>thinks</i> is the clue to her whereabouts. At this point, I found the book a little bit redundant when he was looking for her at different pseudo-visions and him going back and forth to the real estate office where he found little clues that Margo might have stayed there before she took off to nowhere.<br />
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Until he finds a break and an exact location. So he sets out on a journey to find her and he drags his friends along, Ben and Radar, and one of Margo's friends, Lacey. When they find her living in a dilapidated barn, she gets mad at them for even trying to looking for her when she doesn't want to be found. As it turns out, she hadn't left any clue for Q whatsoever. And sensing her hostility, Ben, Radar and Lacey leaves to spend the night at a motel.<br />
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Ultimately, Q comes to accept that she has decided to set out to New York and leave her family and home for good. It is implied that Q will return home with his friends in the end, but it left ambiguous. Even the possibility of them meeting again in the near future is left vague.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<b>RATING: 3/5</b></h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-91876604713750525162015-01-25T00:47:00.000-08:002015-04-19T23:16:40.895-07:00Hollow City - Ransom Riggs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23164983-hollow-city?from_search=true" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrCn6WvN7LLItsHSruFHp3t4FRKr9ZW6usnfIs3XrGKZxO0f8nSLJrT1rh58Qfcq52_RLnX2tWPAZomtfd4Aw-L0U18jNWRvgpwct40OX1lyugpr7A1vddbsmYUrKIm3-IM7__N6o6IBsr/s1600/23164983.jpg" height="320" width="210" /></a><br />
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children was the surprise best seller of 2011 - an unprecedented mix of YA fantasy and vintage photography that enthralled readers and critics alike.<br />
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This second novel begins in 1940, immediately after the first book ended. Having escaped Miss Peregrine's island by the skin of their teeth, Jacob and his new friends must journey to London, the peculiar capital of the world. Along the way, they encounter new allies, a menagerie of peculiar animals and othe unexpected surprises.<br />
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Complete with dozens of newly discovered (and thoroughly mesmerizing) vintage photographs, this new adventure will delight readers of all ages. <br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12396528-hollow-city"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8-BG4f70za_2jns0yu8uCoOt5vDeRCWJ0Y-2v5l0-ehB6hyphenhyphenG6jvuwbzJ0nZeNAmpQkps7rvZ45Wju1I_FmIOLL4n0YZCZxjz2glzUQ3OEbAHy_k22WxmrfM1WHOl98zpVEHSCP8ACcIOp/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Review:</h2>
Right after I read <a href="http://louandbooks.blogspot.com/2015/01/miss-peregrines-home-for-peculiar.html">Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children</a>, I read the second book right away. I didn't even skip a bit, I wanted to follow them wherever they were going and I had to do it right away.<br />
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Similarly to the first book, the author still managed to dig up several vintage photographs to go with his story and I am thoroughly amused.<br />
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The story starts exactly where the end of the first book left off. The children travelling outside their loop and into the war. They have nothing except for a bunch of books and the clothes on their backs. Everyone is optimistic (except for Enoch, of course) about their journey and their attempt to save Miss Peregrine. All they have to do is find another loop with an ymbryne to change Miss Peregrine back.<br />
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Except, every loop they go into, there seem to no sign of an ymbryne, but hollows are ever present. Luckily for them, Jacob chose to stay with them so they now have eyes to see the hollows. They discover abandoned loops and dead peculiars along the way.<br />
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A few new characters are introduced in this book, some stayed and some wandered off. And new enemies, too, who are more powerful that in the previous book. They also have the mystery of the hollows inside the loops, which they knew to be impossible all their lives. This is so much more action-packed than the first book.<br />
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I wasn't expecting the twist at the end of the story, which is a big plus for the author. Of all the scenarios running through my head while reading the book, I never would have thought of that twist at all. I know you're dying to find out what happens. You had better grab your copy now. Now, I'm waiting for the third installment on the series which is due sometime September this year (this is why I love to read a series one right after the other, I hate waiting.)<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
RATING: 4/5</h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-76788255001240623952015-01-14T00:44:00.000-08:002015-04-19T23:16:52.134-07:00Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children - Ransom Riggs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9460487-miss-peregrine-s-home-for-peculiar-children" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJFRPBO8caqGG2celu6oI1nBe282IXYzJcBWyImHa0JyT_6dhF3eymehm4Ke6RyzNh8EYFK_O-eUfa-xUdwm05DzIbEmD81dg2T3PnHRSCYCIa30zUO0aUYmatfU1Hs3YmmeJThy-8eFiP/s1600/9460487.jpg" height="320" width="197" /></a></div>
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of curious photographs.<br />
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A horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow - impossible though it seems - they may still be alive.<br />
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A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with ahunting vintage photography. <br />
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<h2>
Review:</h2>
The death of his grandfather brings Jacob Portman to an island in Wales, to learn more about his grandfather and the place where he grew up. His grandfather told him stories when he was a kid about the home and his peculiar friends. As Jacob grows up, he starts to doubt his grandfather's stories about children who could fly and invisible boys and children with bees in their mouths.<br />
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At first, he has no clue what his grandfather wants for him to do but as week pass, he discovers a letter from the headmistress of the home where his grandfather grew up in, addressed to his grandfather from 15 years ago.<br />
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He decides to embark on a journey to discover the place he only hears about from his grandfather's stories. He came to see if the stories were real or just made up by his grandfather's creative mind.<br />
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On the last few chapters, he is faced with the decision whether to stay on the island he has come to love or return to his family which he has known his entire life.<br />
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This book has been written with coordination with haunting vintage photographs that the author has acquired through collectors and hobbyists. Photos appeared throughout the whole novel and very carefully incorporated within the story. That fact made me admire the author, it is hard to write a novel in itself, what more with photos that he only came upon from flea markets and albums of collectors.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Rating: 4/5</h3>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">
HOLLOW CITY<br />sequel to Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children Series</h4>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12396528-hollow-city" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwdtg3xNCNuidLHPvgPnHjQX6E6sEdH5hZCwyskcQA2IEnMOMQ_M2Fw6kEwYr1uHwEeJa26LDm_HRXcU8GwivzM23qE06xIDFkOUUXepjd_QBMIEosTyTu5xi4YEo5Fc4mbTK-Nbq1-Moy/s1600/12396528.jpg" height="200" width="131" /></a></div>
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As of writing, I am currently reading this book</div>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-13299430291966881452015-01-07T00:41:00.000-08:002015-04-19T23:17:06.295-07:00Eleanor & Park - Rainbow Rowell<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17322949-eleanor-park" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3mXRXDbzdxlg4rU4fjd_HUzx-k6WYIHmu3hQzkVgTIxwvkmW5DLeyAPPun42xudHCE__AXx-WR6ZDc4pxwOWtfWPtddG3VXEy08ugJpnSoD26IA1he4uWsitd7i-KgdfkPzrG6IDmn3_E/s1600/17322949.jpg" height="320" width="206" /></a></div>
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
<i>Two misfits.</i><br />
<i>One extra-ordinary love.</i><br />
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<i>Eleanor...</i> Red hair, wrong clothes. Satnding behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough.... Eleanor.<br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Park...</i> He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she even gets to the punchline. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises... Park.<br />
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Set over a course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds - smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enought to try.<br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15795357-eleanor-and-park?from_search=true"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEZySL2Mgt8wcg8MifmBiBaDPPyVOhyphenhyphenPwoecNisVRlxl1kYP2DhmYYHjr69mbWveute1H34Nc1Ev-WoxVEqbPR6yHc5VWWB3I4aqKRvxgJkFPRzENkvXPnU3VnU_6648HoRajjV5tS_gUG/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Review:</h2>
Park wants nothing more but to get through the school year without being noticed by bullies. How can he do that now when the new girl sits beside him on the bus everyday? She has big, red, curly (unruly) hair and dresses in huge man clothes. He tries his best not to talk to her until one day when she reads his comic book with him thru the bus ride. And as they say, the rest is history.<br />
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They start to talk, he lends her comic books and cassette tapes (this was set in the 80's so yes, they still have cassettes and walkmans), she starts going to his house, eat dinner with his family. The only problem is that Eleanor's family cannot know, or else her stapfather would kill her, or throw her out of the house, if she's lucky. Why won't he? He did it before, and Eleanor wasn't allowed to get back until after a year.<br />
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Everything goes well until she finds messages in her books, rude and indecent. After a while, they find out that it was from her stepdad. Park had to drive her to her uncle's, a seven-hour drive away.<br />
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This part is where I start to cry...<br />
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Park writes her letters, she doesn't write back. Eleanor receives his letters, she doesn't open them. He waits and waits until one day he receives a postcard from her, with three word written on them.<br />
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That is the whole mystery, the author decides not to share what those three words are. She says that we've been reading about their whole love story in 300 pages, and now, we should let them have some privacy. I mean, seriously?<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
RATING: 5/5</h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-26318412877287604122014-11-22T00:35:00.000-08:002015-04-19T23:17:17.841-07:00Attachments - Rainbow Rowell<br />
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<img border="0" class="nopin" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiNHzEbUiRGbxP9orBiJpkN5EW2YgAu3u783fk8d7exgGmY8BPnwDZiOl0wU0FgOWfLIenADVKTO1XgQXreRD1NWFyg7umkdx3O1DtWXSW-je9mvYOvvpD6LCQzleZjkwX3NFSScelK7o/s1600/10600010.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></div>
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<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">"Hi, I'm the guy who reads your e-mail, and also, I love you..."</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Beth Fremontand Jennifer Scribner-Snyder know that somebody is monitoring their work email. (Everyone in the newsroom knows. It's company policy.) But they can't quite bring themselves to take it seriously. They go on sending each other endless and endlessly hilarious e-mails, discussing every aspect of their personal lives.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Meanwhile, Lincoln O'Neill can't beleive this is his job now - reading other people's e-mail. When he applied to be "internet security officer," he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers - not writing-up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">When Lincoln comes across Beth's and Jennifer's messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can't help being entertained (and captivated) by their stories. By the time Lincoln realizes he's falling for Beth, it's way too late to introduce himself. What would he say....?</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8909152-attachments?from_search=true"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEZySL2Mgt8wcg8MifmBiBaDPPyVOhyphenhyphenPwoecNisVRlxl1kYP2DhmYYHjr69mbWveute1H34Nc1Ev-WoxVEqbPR6yHc5VWWB3I4aqKRvxgJkFPRzENkvXPnU3VnU_6648HoRajjV5tS_gUG/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Review:</span></h2>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">So</span>, I've been reading a lot of YA dystospian and thrillers lately, I wanted a change of atmosphere. This book was a good break from all those wars and murders. It's a very funny and light read. And, what can I say, it is such a relief knowing that nobody in our office snoops around our emails.<br />
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This is a story about love before first sight. It's actually quite romantic knowing that somebody might love someone without even seeing how they look, and quoting Beth "men fall in love with their eyes." It's really true, what she said, so this is definitely a very unique story.<br />
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It all starts when Lincoln is hired as a "Systems Security" guy for an office. At first, he does not realize what his job will be, all the while thinking he'd be building firewalls and stuff. Little did he know that he was supposed to snoop around and catch those using their work emails for personal stuff, such as gossiping.<br />
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Now, Beth and Jennifer knows that somebody is snooping around but they don't care who reads what on their exchanges. Lincoln was supposed to give them warnings but he never did until it's too late and he's fallen in love with Beth.<br />
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It's a romantic comedy with a little bit heartache moments and a whole lot of laugh. I'm really excited to read more oF Rainbow Rowell's books.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
RATING: 3/5</h3>
Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-72408194225456208302014-11-19T00:34:00.000-08:002015-04-19T23:17:27.569-07:00Desires of The Dead - Kimberly Derting<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7827221-desires-of-the-dead" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXz58K4b9YC_lsxiczHVyMNES_wJ7b2gpg-poxYFrEGsrdoDr-B7MMX6WuE3gx4zqjbyY0yN1ON4yCxOcua5sW6o51gRUH9nT-gENzYC1eYmhbFd8iUzLJr0FXr7YzLYjpnVfu7KhU5EEe/s1600/7827221.jpg" height="320" width="210" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"></span><br />
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The missing dead call to Violet. They want to be found. Violet can sense the echoes of those who've been murdered and the matching imprint that clings to their killers. Only those closest to her know what she is capable of, but when she discovers the body of a young boy she also draws the attention of the FBI, threatening her entire way of life.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">As Violet works to keep her morbid ability a secret, she unwittingly becomes the object of a dangerous obsession. Normally, she'd turn to her best friend, Jay, except now that they are officially a couple, the rules of their relationship seem to have changed. And with Jay spending more and more time with his new friend Mike, Violet is left with too much time on her hands as she wonders where things went wrong. But when she fills the void by digging into Mike's tragic family history, she stumbles upon a dark truth that could put everyone in danger.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7827221-desires-of-the-dead"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzDzSWyemTF9aSiw-_IIpbAJcnLIRteH4RvqJfTKgBNYMa-x26a7E5XYf5j56WdUvcJCkHQ_2Y7jPaeDoo7xjeE4u_R4ENGuQAwyidzRHNd8ZIj_gE3SNMjkA_njL-pdLnKBlDEiCRsTdT/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Review:</span></h2>
The second book in the Body Finder series, Desires of the Dead is a little bit different than the first book (you can see my review for <a href="http://dohadinnerdate.blogspot.com/2014/09/book-review-body-finder.html" target="_blank">The Body Finder here).</a> Instead of a serial killer hunting Violet, it is about a murder left unsolved.<br />
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Murder and romance is like chocolate and peanut butter, they go surprisingly good with each other. This novel is all about that and so much more. It takes us on a journey through Violet and Jay's building romance. Of course, all the years they spent together as best friends is different from all this new feelings they have for each other.<br />
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The murders are little more complicated than the first book and her ability gains so much more strength as some echoes are no longer felt through her senses. some comes to her in her sleep.<br />
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An FBI consultant is trying to gain Violet's attention to join her team. This brings her to discover more about the history on Mike's family, history that might break the family apart.<br />
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An outing in Mike's cabin in the mountains takes an unexpected turn as Violet realizes who the real killer is.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
RATING: 3/4</h3>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
MORE BOOKS IN THIS SERIES</h2>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6261522-the-body-finder" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYFt3WvysBekIus-cdi4CixE4uhD6379HCY6xtJHmm6TlkykLmD1QaacKNe2sQhXZN2i9DP0ylbOZE5oDM2PGtf5gBV9rt-liP-HmNoy2jyBoE71d-aMKvs9OjVKlXm5SaS0PgECxeg3ky/s1600/6261522.jpg" height="200" width="129" /></a> <span id="goog_209847898"></span><span id="goog_209847899"></span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11838803-the-last-echo" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIc4-oSR7ILUoyI2yEVrMZMV6IE-ZfjLo4vK4j-FffJDodNecew77rntGoZWg5Psak-nAboiZH05Rj5xHw76NHa_82kpuZrxLt6qVoNxHGBw4W-h4zslzY2lQKEkKDLmFb__goSOJdxc4A/s1600/11838803.jpg" height="200" width="132" /></a> <a href="https://www.blogger.com/"><span id="goog_1879950435"></span><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiEy5Q9G8rqjeW5pfJoNSDULhd9Wqs9GDdpnNpu4jHeRc76tjed5d0GD7u5Cq5WpgPd4o2BTj-cx-KwnyfD1qYxbOWGX-xlJ8w1e6bAO8qD7_VjA3zyX68-i6nr-n67t7Q8N7MFI05hsTF/s1600/10468701.jpg" height="200" width="132" /><span id="goog_1879950436"></span></a></div>
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Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-33677791244185029282014-11-04T00:30:00.000-08:002015-04-19T23:17:34.349-07:00The Body Finder - Kimberly Derting<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6261522-the-body-finder" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL_VP8fqWfqnmApBmb5Bi83lK80hUDTP_b9x9ehNbHoNuxmMXxWIZcPEJ1_015YBsgdF7663TqKnjkpoATGrFFvc_2lrMcS37AXR4SbGtEFrRm8nU-fDX33yDtJmU9JxzK5-QDPfa8wEo7/s1600/6261522.jpg" height="320" width="206" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Violet Ambrose is grappling with two major issues: Jay Heaton and her morbid secret ability. While the sixteen-year-old is confused by her new feelings for her best friend since childhood, she is more disturbed by her "power" to sense dead bodies—or at least those that have been murdered. Since she was a little girl, she has felt the echoes that the dead leave behind in the world... and the imprints that attach to their killers.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Violet has never considered her strange talent to be a gift; it mostly just led her to find the dead birds her cat had tired of playing with. But now that a serial killer has begun terrorizing her small town, and the echoes of the local girls he's claimed haunt her daily, she realizes she might be the only person who can stop him.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Despite his fierce protectiveness over her, Jay reluctantly agrees to help Violet on her quest to find the murderer—and Violet is unnerved to find herself hoping that Jay's intentions are much more than friendly. But even as she's falling intensely in love, Violet is getting closer and closer to discovering a killer... and becoming his prey herself.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6261522-the-body-finder"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzDzSWyemTF9aSiw-_IIpbAJcnLIRteH4RvqJfTKgBNYMa-x26a7E5XYf5j56WdUvcJCkHQ_2Y7jPaeDoo7xjeE4u_R4ENGuQAwyidzRHNd8ZIj_gE3SNMjkA_njL-pdLnKBlDEiCRsTdT/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2 style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Review:</h2>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I have been wanting to read this book for the longest time (I admit it’s because of the beautiful cover). I’m so glad I finally yielded. It’s a really an interesting read, a great mixture of thriller and light romance.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The story revolves around Violet Ambrose, a girl who can sense echoes of the dead, most significantly the murdered, and the imprints they leave behind on their killer. A typical girl with regular teenage girl problems (boy crush and school cliques) plus her special hunting ability makes high school a little bit more difficult for her.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Only her family and childhood friend, Jay (who eventually becomes her boyfriend) know about her special skill. They try to hide it to protect her from being the target of a serial killer. At first, she </span>doesn't<span style="font-family: inherit;"> give it much thought, but when the victims are getting bigger in numbers and start becoming people she knew, she </span>couldn't<span style="font-family: inherit;"> help but do anything. It troubles her that she is the only one who could help catch this killer (and find the abducted/dead girls) so she tries to investigate by herself, which threatens her life more than once.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">While reading some crucial parts of the story, I noticed that it would make for a good movie (maybe deliberately). There were a few twists to the story which I </span>wouldn't<span style="font-family: inherit;"> have thought of myself, made it a lot more interesting. I will definitely be reading more of Kimberly Derting’s books in the future; but first I’d have to finish this series. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">RATING: 4/5</span></h3>
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</div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">MORE BOOKS IN THIS SERIES</span></h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7827221-desires-of-the-dead" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzmfBG3AvSHgIwj1jotRs4oUa-RewprzuzkCSME7K4aJxQJQ465w6JFWDrW69psteavJg_PgnWZ4xAtSk-1sXsudslq2-n9EIP4skC7jBx-ogieqGftBvhY18a6Hsx6vLhdrT1ugwebJmK/s1600/7827221.jpg" height="200" width="131" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11838803-the-last-echo" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK4p5VLd5zAh7hPGwfzvitSXy3MVwvyVWiywpb7qHyLXrNKOsI0TCMsW2XvXa4xBOtAm6lqltSpGiGbFh_4K3Ho3Uc0qXYiCANclvOJEY8AghVg4FOMTzRjp30mqvPJ-E_-JvJyWmCOVEz/s1600/11838803.jpg" height="200" width="132" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10468701-dead-silence" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkah5_N_Q1lOOEtPFjEn3nVCWp8ARE4sFhdARoor-cQqP0UsmMjfI-cpMh3ywm0h26JDZQtY34iXcMY0PiblqDWkX3wlopy16XFetlXiFJ1sNQUQixl2fOJF5Mu-6h4cKD9rsqrpkrvAFA/s1600/10468701.jpg" height="200" width="132" /></a></div>
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Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3389276368884015801.post-35718992984527290412014-10-07T00:21:00.000-07:002015-04-19T23:17:41.529-07:00The Maze Runner - James Dashner<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6186357-the-maze-runner?from_search=true" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" class="nopin" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjimPFpCN37-4yS3S5OYtIS34-oQaKqhcAsbL4fdG0VLaNMjwu3lRg8edgBqXaw_kAUbk5sgnLoaUwyreuJ7MAIPw6nEVwpAjFaHpm7WeNGyjYqPYVRFkrfXOV-RBDYgG20KmwwvzA7XUm_/s1600/6186357.jpg" height="320" width="210" /></a></div>
<h2>
Goodreads Synopsis:</h2>
<em style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">If you ain’t scared, you ain’t human.</em><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers—boys whose memories are also gone.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><em style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></em></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><em style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Nice to meet ya, shank. Welcome to the Glade.</em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Outside the towering stone walls that surround the Glade is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out—and no one’s ever made it through alive.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><em style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></em></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><em style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Everything is going to change.</em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying.</span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">Remember. Survive. Run.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6186357-the-maze-runner?from_search=true"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzDzSWyemTF9aSiw-_IIpbAJcnLIRteH4RvqJfTKgBNYMa-x26a7E5XYf5j56WdUvcJCkHQ_2Y7jPaeDoo7xjeE4u_R4ENGuQAwyidzRHNd8ZIj_gE3SNMjkA_njL-pdLnKBlDEiCRsTdT/s1600/goodreads-badge-add-plus_zpsc94610e9.png" /></a></div>
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<h2>
Review:</h2>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'v</span>e read this book a few years back, but let's do a review anyway since the movie just came out.<br />
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This book is about a bunch of boys trying to escape a maze that closes during night time and changes the walls of the labyrinth every night. Grievers are also released during night time and nobody who was caught locked-out in the maze has ever returned and told what a griever might look like.<br />
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There are groups inside the Glade in-charge of their owns tasks while living inside. One of the groups are called the Runners, who are tasked to map out the Maze. The last boy, Thomas, who came in the Glade through the Box starts out learning the ways on the Glade up until he went out to the Maze before it closed one night. After that, everything started to change, which led some of the Gladers to dislike Thomas.<br />
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It's a very interesting read. Although the ending was a little unexpected, it seemed to have left me hanging, took me no time at all to jump right into the next book.<br />
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Would recommend this book to post-apocalyptic genre fans. If you like The Hungers Games, you might want to lower your expectations a little bit. Also, the dialogue used by the Gladers are not recommended for children.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
RATING: 4/5</h3>
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
MORE BOOKS IN THIS SERIES</h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7631105-the-scorch-trials" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxjfp25mMPUWigdm5TeZ-i4kwjZv6Pmy3n18iv6r81dOUsk0BUVrx0wOJv_tFO-VyzeY9v_uIO_YjhdDNPM6PJy2VJgT0RUgg2u-lZGSCmXsN35entWekJYO4SGj40x6g2hhZVjAWVAgqi/s1600/7631105.jpg" height="200" width="131" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7864437-the-death-cure" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJNXc8E4l4ZRgyJLkVxm5TfpjSsM4cRIHuL2hbj2C31CBfSRM7F-7FoY442SPxO0E2kdFtHuKZQ5nZDi2Z1SXld8fT9BCHPZCtxWodIbImHJGBdHR7OQMgAGl6-t3uvHXTqVhwur-tHEzR/s1600/7864437.jpg" height="200" width="131" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13089710-the-kill-order" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWoHr48RxUVTEnhUJmPHkDVfieVWj04x9cLyGWNNI2cFWTCU3w0QSVq6jW2zp5lrxKpKs1CpUAzluoMNpugMQrDpd08o5fLdJJYJ2NlTX2J7kV8MlyAq4hG-xd-5trbjpyP2-6-bD_im1Y/s1600/13089710.jpg" height="200" width="131" /></a></div>
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Lou-Ann Sabinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12310973743112228427noreply@blogger.com0