YA Perfection!

Posted by Sandra on Thursday, January 24, 2013. Filed under: , , , , ,
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Title: Across The Universe
Series: Across The Universe
Author: Beth Revis
Pages: 398
Published: 2011
Read In: January, 2013
Rating: 5/5


This book is pure YA perfection. Woah, I'm still blown away... That ending!!!


Let me start by saying that "Across The Universe" was a surprise for me. I had this book on my possession since early 2012 but I didn't wanted to read it until the second and third book were out, because I heard it was that good. Now, I finally read it, and I never ever expected this.

The story was full of mystery, intrigue, secrets and doubts, it was all about the secrets in Godspeed (the ship). The setting was so original and unique, that I had the time of my life visualizing it in my head. At the beginning I wasn't too thrilled about the whole spaceship thing, but then I fell in love with the whole concept. It's definitely something different from what I've read. Everything was creative and well described. Some things I found a bit predictable and some others REALLY took me by surprise, so it was very interesting to read it. 

The story is narrated from two pov's. Amy's and Elder's. And it worked wonderfully. 

Elder was an incredibly real character, he was very well written, while I read from his pov I could totally ask myself the same questions and think what he was thinking. He was a good person, but sometimes he had his "doubts" like everyone else does, and still he always did the right thing... Well, almost always. There was something poetic about him and the way he saw the world around him, and how he saw Amy. He wasn't conceited like Eldest, and he had dreams and a big heart. I never got bored while reading from his pov. He was lovely, sweet and brave. A true leader. And that shocker at the end (you must read it, I will not spoil it for you) made him more real to me, because he was flawed, of course, but still he was great.

Wish I could say the same thing about Amy... At the very beginning I found her quite annoying and not very smart. This changed through the story, but I wasn't entirely connected to her by the end of the book. She was clever and kinda cute, but not my favorite character. I think she was very mature for her age, which I liked very much, because I didn't hate the way he managed everything that happened to her... And it was a lot. She wasn't as eloquent, romantic and fun as Elder, but she was a strong female character, and you don't find those often in YA. So I did liked her.

Harley was one of my favourite characters of the book. Such complexity expressed through art... My kind of guy. So I really want Harley to know, that he was the star for me.

The romance was cute. It wasn't cheesy nor annoying, but I wish there was more of it. Elder has strong feelings for her, and she's still confused because she misses Jason but I think that we'll read more about their love in the sequel, which I'm starting ASAP!

Some quotes gave me the chills and other just made me sigh.

“Power isn’t control at all — power is strength, and giving that strength to others. A leader isn’t someone who forces others to make him stronger; a leader is someone willing to give his strength to others that they may have the strength to stand on their own.”

“And in her smile I see something more beautiful than the stars.”

Thrilling, interesting, creative and mind-blowing, "Across The Universe" is a MUST read. PLUS: Take a look at that cover and try to resist...

Thoughts about "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" Movie

Posted by Sandra on Monday, January 21, 2013. Filed under: , , ,
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Well, I also got asked to post my thoughts about "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" movie.

The movie came out months ago in the USA, but I couldn't see it until mid-January because it took a while to premiere here in Mexico. I watched it twice and I absolutely LOVED it.

I am fully aware that there were some changes, but that is necessary when it comes to book adaptions and I think that nothing really important was left out of the movie. The fact that Stephen Chbosky wrote the script, directed and produced the movie made it 99.9% loyal to the book. 

One thing that disappointed me a bit, was the fact that the tunnel song was changed. I do love David Bowie but I was expecting "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac. I think "Heroes" was a good choice and I really liked, YES, but I adore Fleetwood Mac, so that was the only let down for me. 

When it comes to acting, WOAH!! I was so surprised with Logan Lerman's performance. He did an outstanding job portraying Charlie. I'm a big fan but I wasn't sure he would be a good Charlie... Turns out I was wrong and he was excellent. He made me feel everything he was feeling, he made me think what he was thinking, just as if I was reading the book.

Another surprise was Ezra Miller... Damn that boy can act. I watched "We Need to Talk about Kevin" and he was terrific in it! He did an excellent Patrick, I wasn't expecting him to be so good. I didn't imagine Patrick to look like Ezra, but he shut my mouth with that acting.

And well, Emma Watson. No words needed. As a Potterhead I love her. I got super-duper excited when she was casted as Sam. She was flawless, her acting is so good and she played Sam amazingly!!! 

Another favourite of mine was Paul Rudd as Mr. Anderson. He is one of my fave characters in the book and I have a crush on Paul Rudd since forever, so this casting was perfect for me.

As you read, I found this casting GENIUS! I'm not used to be pleased with the cast of a book adaptation, so another reason to love the movie. It was as touching, overwhelming, deep and fun as the book. I left the movie theater in tears after watching it, and I can't wait to buy the DVD and watch it tons of times. Just perfect!!!

Perks of reading Perks.

Posted by Sandra on Saturday, January 19, 2013. Filed under: , , , ,
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Title: The Perks Of Being A Wallflower
Author: Stephen Chbosky

Pages: 213
Published: 1999
Read In: 2005
Rating: 5/5

I'm really happy because today I got a mail from a Brazilian girl who asked me to post my review of Stephen Chboskys's "The Perks of Being a Wallflower".

The main reason why I got excited is because someone in Brazil reads my blog!!
The second one, because she asked me to post a review about the book that made a difference in my life. 

So, I'm not quite sure this is an objective review since I adore this book, but here are my thoughts about it:
When I first read this book I was 12 years old, and I was going through a lot of similar situations related to school, friends and self discovery. I didn't own the book back then, a friend lent it to me so I used to read it in my recess time at school. This book changed my life, it truly did. It changed the way I used to see the world around me, it made me wonder: Am I a wallflower?

In my opinion, this was such and original and amazing way to narrate a book: Through letters.


Charlie is an amazing character, so complex, unique and real and he talks about his life through letters sent to an unknown character (I thought that by the end of the book I would know who he was writing to, sadly I didn't). Charlie poured his heart on those letters, he wrote about his struggles in life, constant body and mind changes and how he dealt with it. He had to deal with a lot of issues, like the suicide of his best friend, falling in love with someone older than him that only saw him as a friend, discovering sexuality, being introduced to a world of drugs and alcohol at the age of 15, violence, sex abuse and self discovery. I, like Charlie, want to be a writer, and that's another reason why I loved him so much.


In my opinion he is an amazing, complex, well-written character, and I totally connected with him through the whole reading. This is a story of a real person, it’s not fiction, and maybe that’s why I liked it so much, because this book gave something unique to us readers, it is real and it’s honest, maybe a bit raw when it comes to certain situations, but that’s what makes it an amazing and compelling story.


Charlie’s development through the book is amazing, you can see how he starts as a shy, disturbed guy, and how he finds out that there’s more to life than to pity himself, how he discovers the true power of friendship and love, and most important, how he realizes that he is important, that he matters and that he can accomplish everything he wants. How could this book not be amazing? I really wish I had friends like Patrick and Sam, they are incredible. It has a great writing quality, Stephen Chbosky made a great job with his modern prose and with the characters he created, the plot is believable, touching and well, amazing. 


OH and thank you Mr. Chbosky for making me feel infinite and giving me one of the most utterly amazing, real, useful quote of my life: 


"WE ACCEPT THE LOVE WE THINK WE DESERVE" 


I've read this book 13 times in 8 years. Now I have my own copy, and it has an special place in my bookshelf and in my heart. Everything about this book screams classic! One of the best Young Adult books I’ve ever read in my whole life.

Quote Of The Day

Posted by Sandra on Friday, January 18, 2013. Filed under: , ,
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"Life has been some combination of fairy-tale coincidence and joie de vivre and shocks of beauty together with some hurtful self-questioning." - Sylvia Plath, The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath 

WOW... Sweet Evil

Posted by Sandra on Monday, January 14, 2013. Filed under: , , , ,
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Title: Sweet Evil 
Series: The Sweet Trilogy, #1
Author: Wendy Higgins
Pages: 453
Published: 2012
Read In: 2013
Rating: 5/5

WOAHHHH... Feelings out of control!!

Sweet Evil is one of the best YA books I've ever read. So original, well written, with an amazing plot, great characters, and so relatable even though it's paranormal. I read this in less than 24 hours. 

The story was incredible. I never read the synopsis of this book before I read it, I was caught by that beautiful cover, so I never did expect angels. This was a refreshing approach to this heavenly creatures. The fact that there were dukes of sins and bad habits was a surprise, a good one. And the fact that their sons were a group of individuals called nephs with "obligations" and jobs. Their job is to be a bad influence for human beings, to corrupt them, and to never get attached to them. In this story, "conscience" or that little voice in our heads turns out to be angels and devils whispering things into our ears to influence on us. Wow. 

Anna was so amazing, it's been a long time since I could relate this much to a fictional character. She is smart, too innocent for me but really cute and nice, a bit insecure about herself, she is brave, kind and she believes that everyone deserve happiness. Personally, I think she was so brave when it came to decision making... Sometimes I did think "what are you doing", but I guess that's normal, she was such a delight to read about. 

Kaidan Oh Kaidan, my sweet, sexy Kai. I'm breathless. No words can explain how I loved this character. I know, I know... He's a bit of a jerk sometimes, but if you read the extra stories( Sweet Evil Extra 1 and Sweet Evil Extra 2 ) from his POV you could see why he acts like that, it like his nature. He's described as absolutely breathtaking, drop dead gorgeous, with great hair and body, an smoking hot musician who also happens to be british (that was the cherry this perfect cake). He had a though life. Even when he is rich, super attractive, a sex god and a musician, he feels empty, he has a void that, according to him, no one would ever be able to fill.. Until he met Anna. In his past, so many girls tried to change him, to make him fall in love, but he never did care about those things, until Anna came to the picture. 

The development of the characters was great, I loved reading about Kaidan, about Anna and about their torrid romance. He finally got to know what love was like, and their neph rules intervene, so basically Anna and Kai love each other, but can't be together, unless they want to die. Heartbreaking. The moments they shared were full of magic, mystery, love and lust, this was definitely my cup of tea.

The other characters were so cool, I really liked everyone. Jay was the sweetest guy, so real and understanding, he was amazing, you could see that he cared about Anna and that he had real emotions. Patti was also so sweet; too permissive to be a protective mom, but she was actually nice. Anna's dad was also a surprise, he has a genuinely good heart, and he loves Anna. The nephs were a shocker too, Marna was the best, I would love to be her friend, Ginger and Blake were really cool and Kopano, well he was nice but I didn't like him being in the picture... 

I loved absolutely everything about this book expect this: 

- Not enough Kaiden. Ha! There were some pages where I really missed him. I need more Kaiden in my life. 

- It wasn't long enough. I wish this book was eternal, because I couldn't put it down, it was so addicting, so good, so perfect. I'm seriously looking forward to "Sweet Peril"

So this is me, watching a new obsession blooming. "Sweet Evil" has become one of my favourite books ever. I have read it twice in 4 days, and I'm sure I will read it again soon. Kaiden is now one of my favourite fictional character crush, and Wendy Higgins one of my favourite authors. 

It was a romantic, intriguing, sexy and thrilling reading, full of emotions, feelings and excitement. Stop whatever you're doing and go read this!

Quote Of The Day

Posted by Sandra on Friday, January 11, 2013.
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"Mortality is the most romantic story ever told. Just one chance to do everything you should. Then, magically, you move on" - Lauren Kate, Rapture

100 Quotes to make you... Laugh?

Posted by Sandra on Thursday, January 10, 2013. Filed under: , , , ,
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Title: 100 Quotes To Make You Think
Author: Wolfgang Riebe
Pages: 33 (e-book)
Published: 2010
Read In: 2013
Rating: 3/5

This *free* e-book by Wolfgang Riebe was a fast reading and quite entertaining. I'm not a huge fan of inspirational quotes, but this contained a variety of quotes, some I really liked and some other made me laugh so hard. "100 Quotes To Make You Think" was a nice way to start the year, and as the first book of 2013 I shall say that I will take some of this quotes as advice in order to achieve my dreams and goals.

Some of the quotes that made me LOL: (Not spoilers, but if you are going to read the book, you might as well skip them)

9) Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them and you have their shoes.

11) May your life be like toilet paper... Long and useful.

15) If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving definitely isn't for you. 

58) Borrow money from a pessimist - they don't expect it back. 

80) There are only two things to worry about, either you are healthy or you are sick. If you are healthy, then there is nothing to worry about. But if you are sick there are only two things to worry about, either you will get well or you will die. If you get well, then there is nothing to worry about. But if you die there are only two things to worry about, either you will go to heaven or you will go to hell. If you go to heaven, then there is nothing to worry about. And if you go to hell, you'll be so darn busy shaking hands with your friends you won't have time to worry.

Quote Of The Day

Posted by Sandra on Wednesday, January 9, 2013. Filed under: , ,
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"All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost; the old that is strong does not wither, deep roots are not reached by frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, a light from the shadows shall spring; renewed shall be blade that was broken, the crown less again shall be king." J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring 

New addition to our "to read" shelf

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Just added "City of the Falling Sky" by Joseph Evans to our Goodreads "to read shelf". Get your copy here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005E8YZ2M via @bookoclock 



Movie Trailer: Warm Bodies

Posted by Sandra on Tuesday, January 8, 2013. Filed under: , ,
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If you didn't know, Isaac Marion's novel "Warm Bodies" got the Hollywood treatment, and the movie will come out worldwide in February, this year.

Since the book has so many mixed reviews, the public don't know exactly what to expect from the movie. I think, based on what I saw on the trailer, the director is going to give the movie a more comedic approach than the one in the book. I'm actually very excited for this one, hope it is as entertaining as the book.

Check the trailer below.

Recommendation

Posted by Sandra on Monday, January 7, 2013. Filed under: , ,
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If you are looking for a light, amazing, fun book to start your year with, and you're into cute, very well written romances, you should definitely check Stephanie Perkins' "Anna and the French Kiss".

When I read this book I had no expectations at all... And after I finished, I re-read it like 3 more times. All I can say is that it is one of my favourite books and you should give it a chance to make you as happy as it made me. 

My review of this book is soon to come, but I completely recommend it to you!

Picture Sunday

Posted by Sandra on Sunday, January 6, 2013.
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A pleasant surprise...

Posted by Sandra on Saturday, January 5, 2013. Filed under: , , , ,
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Title: Warm Bodies
Series: Warm Bodies, #1

Author: Isaac Marion
Pages: 240
Published: 2010

Read In: 2011
Rating: 4.5/5



Hi guys, I'm pretty sure you've all read some mix reviews about Warm Bodies and, if you are looking forward to the movie you're probably asking yourself: Is this worth reading?

Let me tell you it is. I can't believe how much I liked Warm Bodies 


Most of the times I don't really care about bad reviews given to books I wanna read because I believe that we all have different judgement when it comes to literature. And so many people said this book was terrible, that the idea of zombie romance was stupid and that it would be a waste of time; so I wasn't sure if I should give it a go... But a little voice in my head said "Come on, sometimes you like books other people hate, or viceversa, so why not?"


Thank you little voice in my head. Thank you

Warm Bodies was a provoking, interesting, very entertaining, romantic and meaningful story for me. WOW, I never saw this coming. I was a bit skeptical too about this zombie romance thing, I thought it would be a bit Twilight-esque, so color me surprised when I was proven wrong.

This is "R's" story. R is a zombie and he can't remember anything about his human life nor how he was converted. He lives in an airport with hundreds of zombies and his zombie friend M. But he's different from all his other undead fellows... He thinks a lot, actually he over-thinks. One day, he's hungry and he goes to the city to find some food and he kills Perry Kelvin, so for an instant, while he is eating his brain, R watches vividly fragments of Perry's life, and he recognizes the girl in front of them as Julie, Perry's girlfriend, and he felt human, and developed some interesting feelings for Julie. So he takes her with him to the airport and start a weird (not as upsetting as i expected), amazing friendship, that later becomes pure love. 

There's not too much action (which I was expecting), but there's a great story line... The ending wasn't strictly "the end", it was more of "to be continued", which I liked very much. I do not know if there's going to be a second book, or if this was it, but it was a great read.

R was an amazing character, you can't help but loving him. He has so many life philosophies, he likes Frank Sinatra, he wants to be "more", reading from his POV was very interesting and refreshing. Julie was great too, I think she was very well written, she felt real. Her "dark past" made her who she is right now, she's complex, fun and a dreamer. I really liked both of them. As for their romance, I can only say:Awwwwww So sweet. Actually it was one of the sweetest I've ever read. So heartwarming, and romantic, without being to cheesy and annoying... 

"Her eyes were classic novels and poetry" 
Trés romantique.

This wasn't a love story, actually it was a story about love. It teaches how to love yourself, how to love the ones around you and the world you live in. This book has a powerful message. What is humanity? What makes us human? Are we "living" just because we are "alive"? There were many life metaphors that I liked, and it made me think a lot about how we expect the world to be a nice place instead of doing something to achieve it. 

A new insight to a zombie's mind, hilarity, romanticism, impotence for not being able to express yourself, hopeful and it makes you think, it really makes you think. Unexpectedly fun, romantic and overwhelming, with a message for all of us to understand and accept, Warm Bodies definitely became one of my favourite books. 

I also found this movie fact, which I think it's pretty cool: The film is based loosely on "Romeo and Juliet". "R" = "Romeo"; "Julie" = "Juliet; "Perry" = "Paris"; "M/Marcus" = "Mercutio"; "Nora" = Juliet's "Nurse" (the character of Nora is also a nurse).

Quote Of The Day

Posted by Sandra on Friday, January 4, 2013. Filed under: , ,
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“You can't force love, I realized. It's there or it isn't. If it's not there, you've got to be able to admit it. If it is there, you've got to do whatever it takes to protect the ones you love.”― Richelle MeadFrostbite

Beautiful Disappointment

Posted by Sandra on Thursday, January 3, 2013. Filed under: , , , , ,
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Title: Beautiful Creatures
Series: Caster Chronicles, #1
Author(s): Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Pages: 563
Published: 2009
Read In: 2012
Rating: 3/5

I really craved a story with a male POV and I wasn't sure enough if I would like this one.

Turns out, I was wrong. Sort of.

This was thrilling, romantic and incredibly interesting.

Color me surprised when I was reading this book and I immediately started to do some research about U.S.A wars (I'm not from the USA), I had never been interested in that topic before... Until I started reading Beautiful Creatures. It was very exciting, sometimes tad confusing, because of the constant change of scenarios and too much information, but it was so refreshening to read from Ethan's point of view.

May I say Ethan Wate is one of my "I'd like to marry with" characters? Well, no entirely because sometimes I felt like I was reading from a girl's POV, maybe that's why I related so much... But still, he is not described as a super smoking drop dead gorgeous guy, he's just attractive, and he has an amazing personality... Personally, I think we would get along, because sometimes it felt like I was reading about myself, we're too alike. He had this sad past, and ambitions and dreams of leaving that sad little town, he didn't have an easy life, he was kind of lost... At least, until he met Lena.

Lena Duchannes , what a lovely name. I didn't LOVE her, but she was very agreeable and kind of cute in a weird way. Sometimes I felt the character was just meh, and other times she thrilled me.

Lena & Ethan, such a beautiful romance, in my personal opinion this is one of the corniest yet cutest romances I've read, because it had love, acceptance, sacrifice, willingness to do everything for each other, chemistry and yet it wasn't overwhelming and annoying. I loved them together.

The other characters were just okay. Amma was a strong character, but nothing new to me. No one is memorable for me so far, well maybe Link and Macon... I have a weakness for Mick Jagger wannabe's and antisocial-dream-sucker-uncles.

I hope to learn more about Ethan's mom, she seems a great character.

I loved the literary references: "To Kill a Mockingbird", "The Catcher in the Rye", Hemingway, Frost, Luther King, Bradbury.

There were some really memorable quotes, at least for me, two of my favourites being:

"There’s something about sitting alone in the dark that reminds you how big the world really is, and how far apart we all are. The stars look like they’re so close, you could reach out and touch them. But you can’t. Sometimes things look a lot closer than they are.

and

“I never loved you any more than I do, right this second. And I'll never love you any less than I do, right this second.” 

It was fun, exciting and magical! A great story about love, lies, magic and sacrifice. It was very original and really entertaining (at least after 100 pages). It was a lot to digest, but I liked it.

I gave it 3 stars because sometimes it was hard for me to keep up with the story, all the information being processed and understood, but that didn't make it less enjoyable.



Quote Of The Day

Posted by Sandra on Wednesday, January 2, 2013. Filed under: , ,
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“I think we ought to read only the kind of books that wound or stab us. If the book we're reading doesn't wake us up with a blow to the head, what are we reading for? So that it will make us happy, as you write? Good Lord, we would be happy precisely if we had no books, and the kind of books that make us happy are the kind we could write ourselves if we had to. But we need books that affect us like a disaster, that grieve us deeply, like the death of someone we loved more than ourselves, like being banished into forests far from everyone, like a suicide. A book must be the axe for the frozen sea within us. That is my belief.”― Franz Kafka

January Books

Posted by Sandra on Tuesday, January 1, 2013. Filed under: , , , , , , , , , ,
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So it's a new year, and the first month has arrived. This is the month when we all begin to work on our new year resolutions, and my mom has always told me that "You end the year just how you start it", so I think it's a good way to start it with new reads.

These are the books I plan to read in January. Hopefully I'll be able to read them all (:
(Links below the picture)

         
The Sea of Tranquility

Graceling
The William S Club

Shatter Me
Beautiful Darkness
Warm Bodies
        
Sweet Evil
Across The Universe

Happy New Year!

Posted by Sandra Filed under: , , ,
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Hi friends, I'm very thankful for being alive one more year. I'd like to wish you an amazing start of 2013, and may this year be the best one yet.

I hope this one is full of love, work, health, peace and new books for you all.

I wish you the best and I hope you find a way to accomplish your new year resolutions; whether it is to lose some weight, read more books, eat healthier, work out, or whatever you have in mind, do it with dedication and love and you will see how everything you wanted will come true.

Happy New Year readers!!! Thanks for visiting this blog.
Love, Sandra. xx

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