Top Ten Tuesday: Characters I would crush on if I were also a fictional character

Posted by Sandra on Tuesday, April 2, 2013. Filed under: , ,
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Hosted by The Broke and The Bookish

Top Ten  Characters I Would Crush On If I Were Also A Fictional Character

I love this topic, I have thousands of characters I've fell in love with so it was very hard to pick my top 10 but it was also very fun and sad, why do these guys only exists in books? Sigh

Book Club

Posted by Sandra on Monday, April 1, 2013. Filed under: , , ,
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This a new addition to Book O' Clock. I came up with the idea to have a Book Club with my cousins and my sister, so I have someone to discuss books and to make them read more. We will pick one book per month, and we'll all read it and then discuss it.

The book will be voted, and I will post it here, feel free to join us, grab the image above and put it on your blog and let me know in the comments. We will start with City of Bones by Cassandra Clare for April, because my cousins want to read the book I've been obsessing over 4 years.


We'll have a different book next month, and so on. I really hope you join our little book club!!



Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Recommend The Most

Posted by Sandra on Tuesday, March 26, 2013. Filed under: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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I just found out about "Top Ten Tuesday" hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. This consists on posting your top ten books about a weekly topic. It is super fun, because you get to share many books with your readers and connect with new people. So I'll start this time with the following topic:

Top Ten  Books I Recommend The Most

It's always hard to pick books to recommend, at least for me, because I always try to recommend them based on the things that people like, but I will try my best with my list. 

Ps. They're not in particularly order.

1. The Fault In Our Stars by John Green: I'm sure this is a highly recommended book, but I had to put it in this list because it made me feel so many different things at the same time, and it moved me. I'm a big fan of John Green's book, and this one wasn't the exception. Smart, funny, entertaining, sweet and heartbreaking. This book is a must read.

2. Pride and Prejudiceby Jane Austen: It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a person who enjoys reading, must be in want to read this book. This is my favorite book ever. Jane Austen was a fantastic writer, so inspiring and so clever. There's not much I can say about this, just read it. It's fascinating and the characters are amazingly real. Plus, you'll fall in love with Mr. Darcy.

3. Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins: This book falls into the paranormal category, it was written by the lovely Wendy Higgins. The plot is very original and creative, I'm sure that all paranormal/romance fans out there will love this one. Sexy, clever, heart-stopping and with swoon worthy characters, I really recommend this book. The sequel is coming out in April, so it's a good time to get your hands on it if you haven't already.

4. Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling: Duh. It amazes me the amount of people who still haven't read Harry Potter. This books are my all time favorites. J.K. Rowling gave us readers a magical world, full of mystery, sacrifice, love, friendship, darkness and fantasy that will always be remembered. This books changed my life and if you haven't read it, I'm sure they'll change yours too.

5. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee: This is another amazing book. It also shocks me how many people haven't even heard of it. This read about human behavior will move you like no other story. It deals with so many social issues and it makes you think. Plus, Atticus Finch is one of the best characters I've read about, so I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

6. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky:  I read this almost 8 years ago and it was life changing. I highly recommend this to everyone, it's probably one of the books I recommend the most. This one is definitely a must read, and it saddens me to hear people saying "I watched the movie... No need to read the book" Seriously, if you have watched the movie you have to read the book, it will blow your mind.

7. Starters by Lissa Price: This is one of my favorite dystopian books. This book is smart. Fun, romantic without being cheesy, and with an amazing female lead character. Price took us readers to a horrifying future, and actually one of the most probable I've read. It gave me goosebumps just to read about it. If you're into good YA dystopia, this one's for you.

8. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath: This is one hell of a book. It's very simple yet so complex, and it's highly entertaining. Plath's writing is poetic, fun and ironic. Some people say that this is not a book for everybody, but I'm telling you otherwise, this book will make you question yourself and the way you see things. I adore this book, I hope that if you read, you will too.

9. The William S Club by Riley Banks: I won this book on a Goodreads giveaway and I'm really happy I did. This is a thrilling story, with mysterious, sexy and great characters that will keep you on the edge of your couch/bed/place where you usually read. It contains explicit sexual situations, but it never ceases to amuse you. Addicting, sexy, romantic and fun. 

10. Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella: This is pure chick lit and I love it. This is an easy, fast read that will make you laugh and sigh. It's hilarity will make your stomach hurt. Romantic and also enlightening, this one is perfect for a rainy day, laying in bed with a cup of tea. I always recommend this book to people who are not into classics nor supernatural stuff.


It's Clockwork Princess Day!!!!

Posted by Sandra on Tuesday, March 19, 2013. Filed under: , , , ,
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OMG!!! FINALLY!!! Oh I feel like screaming because I've been counting down the days for 3 years. Yeah, I'm dedicated like that... You know that I waited until this March to start reading the books because I didn't want to suffer for the wait, and now I've read CA and CP1 and my week was passing slowly.... But I can't believe that today is the day...


CLOCKWORK PRINCESS IS OUT!!!!!!

Holy crap I really can't wait, there are so many things I need to know ASAP... Now the problem is: My copy arrives in 10 days (or less) AND I am hoping it comes very soon because I can't wait any longer. So now I have to deal with all the people posting pictures of their books while I try to avoid my kindle because I want to read the physical copy...

If you, like me, are still waiting for your copy I suggest you avoiding Tumblr and Twitter... And maybe GoodReads too, because people are MEAN and they post spoilers. 


I hope my book arrives soon. I'll let ya know. Happy reading for those of you who already have it in your hands. 

xoxo.

Cassandra Clare did it again!

Posted by Sandra on Sunday, March 10, 2013. Filed under: , , , ,
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Title: Clockwork Angel
Series: The Infernal Devices
Author: Cassandra Clare
Pages: 476
Published: 2010
Read In: March, 2013
Rating: 5/5

This was certainly worth the wait... I've had this book on my bookshelf since 2011. And I just read it yesterday. I read so many reviews where people were desperate for the sequel, and how it wasn't gonna be out until another year. So I decided to read Clockwork Angel and Clockwork Prince a few days before Clockwork Princess was published. And since CP will be out in 9 days, I thought it was about time. I read this book in 13 hours. That being said....

BY THE ANGEL

Cassie Clare is definitely a master in making me happy. And mad too. I absolutely loved this story. It was incredibly original, and very entertaining. One of the many reasons I've been a fan of Clare's work is because she always manage to describe everything so carefully, yet simply, and I can see it all vividly in my head. She transported me to victorian England, and I really made up a whole movie about the story in my mind.

Another thing I loved about the story, were the characters and their names. Everyone has a really lovely name. Very classy and also very british. Let's start with my favorite.

William Herondale... sigh Doesn't he sound like a prince? Well, for me, he does. He was by far my favorite character in the whole book. Not only because he was described as an extremely attractive guy and the fact that he is british (well maybe) but there was something about him, that really got me. He was very strong but also vulnerable. He has a dark past and some secrets he doesn't share, he feels alone in the world. Of course he is kind of a douche, he's a Herondale... But I believe that there's a good reason why. Also I think that the reason why he treats Tessa like he does has to do with something important. Can't wait to read about it in Clockwork Prince. With complexity, darkness, looks, vulnerability, big heart, bad ass attitude, the way he quoted poetry, his soul and blue eyes, he stole my heart. Team Will

Now, Tessa Gray, our lead character. At the beginning I didn't quite love her, because she didn't like London and she hated chocolate... 

“Will looked horrified. "What kind of monster could possibly hate chocolate?”

I know Will, I know... Like how could I ever relate to someone like that? But hey, I was wrong. She was a sweet heart, so brave, so clever and so, so, so sweet. I liked her power and her incredibly big heart. I look forward to reading more about her, and I hope that she doesn't get her heart broken, because she has already suffered too much. I love Tess.

Jem... James Carstairs... Hmmm. Although I didn't LOVE Jem, I did like him. He was a complete gentleman, so lovely, and he had a very sad past. I think that he holds back so many things, because no one can ever be so nice to everyone, and so calm, but besides that, I really really liked him. He was very sweet to Tessa and he was also wise. I just hope he doesn't dies in the next books, I hope they find a cure.
Jesamine Lovelace was very funny, I felt truly bad for her, because she is miserable. She lives a life she hates and despite her shallowness and cold attitude she was great. Charlotte also had a sad past and that made her a though woman, she really was bad ass... And Henry, well, he reminded me of Arthur Weasley, which means that I totally loved him.

The love triangle wasn't practically clear here, since Tessa only has strong feelings towards Will, so I guess that there's more to come. Both guys are handsome, sweet in their own way, and they both had a tragic past. The difference is how each one chose to handle it, and how to live with it. 

As in The Mortal Instruments, there were several things that reminded me of Harry Potter. Like the rune they used to spy/listen to the enclave, reminded me of the Weasley's extendable ears; when Tessa changes into Lady Belcourt to uncover De Quincey, it kind of felt like when Ron, Harry and Hermione drank polyjuice potion to change into Ministry workers, and Henry, who was very similar to Mr. Weasley. 
This book was better than TMI, I reckon. The setting was stunning, London in the 1880's. A remarkable work of Clare, her plot was original and kept me hanging on with every single word she wrote. I wish I lived there and I wish I had that library, oh my.

Spoiler
I found very obvious who the Magister was, Mortmain had something that made me suspect, plus his name sounded like Valentine's last name... It made sense to me... But that I never ever imagined that plot twist at the last chapters... Tessa's brother was evil :( He was Mortmains servant, and everyone believed in him... Poor Tessa. 

End of Spoiler

Honestly, I was very excited for this book, but I never expected it to hit me like it did. 

My favorite quotes were:

“One must always be careful of books," said Tessa, "and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us.” 

and

“Only the very weak-minded refuse to be influenced by literature and poetry.”

An intriguing and romantic story, with amusing characters that never gets boring. This is now one of my favorites, and I'm starting Clockwork Prince ASAP.

Cover Issues.

Posted by Sandra on Friday, March 1, 2013. Filed under: , , ,
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Hello there, earlier today Stephanie Perkins, author of Anna and the French Kiss and Lola and the Boy Next Door,  tweeted:




So I got very very very very excited, and clicked in. I was dying to see the model they used for Isla... But what I read/saw wasn't what I expected.

Apparently, this series got new covers... For all three books. While Stephanie Perkins was really excited about it (and it totally get it, don't get me wrong) I was disappointed. The third and last book, will have a different cover from the previous ones. Bummer.

There's something about book series' covers that make me so happy, when you finally own them all you can give them an special place in your bookshelf, and I was planning on doing that with these books. I absolutely loved Anna and The French Kiss, and I liked Lola And The Boy Next Door very much. So I was am expecting Isla and The Happily Ever After to rock my world. The first two books have a nice cover, featuring a girl (the lead character: Anna, Lola) and a background that goes along perfectly with the plot, like the images below show:



And now, the *soon* to be published and highly anticipated Isla, will have this cover:


And I know it is a nice, classy, simple cover... I actually like it very much. But I don't like that now, my three books will not match. Maybe I'm over reacting, but this also happened to me with Beth Revis' "Across The Universe" trilogy. She changed the last book's cover, and then released new covers for the previous books. Leaving me with dysfunctional covers :(

Anyway, I totally understand why they did this. Perkins even adressed it on her blog; these new covers will have a wider appeal, because they won't look too girly anymore. And I'm here hoping that more people experience Anna's amazingness, and Stephanie Perkins beautiful writing style. 

Ps. After I rant about the change of covers, I might add, that I, Sandra, will buy the two new covers and of course, Isla, to have all three books looking so perfect from my bookshelf, because let's be honest, I would buy Stephanie's books even if they were cover-less. Check the image below to see the new covers:



They look so cute together, and I'm sure Isla will be amazing. So I can't wait for July, when the first two books (with the new covers) will be released, and then finally, this fall we'll finally read Isla and The Happily Ever After.

Seventh Row: "Beautiful Creatures"

Posted by Sandra on Thursday, February 28, 2013. Filed under: , , , ,
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Hello everyone, I watched "Beautiful Creatures" the movie this weekend. I read the book last year, and I was a bit conflicted about it; I liked it very much, but it wasn't exactly one of my favorite books. Still, I will never miss an opportunity to watch a movie based on a book... And I emphasize based because this movie has almost nothing to do with the book.... 

Warning! This review contain many spoilers. 

Let me start with the characters:

Ethan Wate was portrayed by Alden Ehrenreich, which in my opinion was right for the role. I never expected Ethan to be drop dead gorgeous (which I liked very much) and Alden is handsome, just like Ethan was in my head. I think he did a great job, he made me laugh, shed one or two tears and I loved the way he narrated the story. 

Lena Duchannes... Oh, well... She wasn't my favorite character on the book, but I really expected her to be more. She was portrayed by Alice Englert, whom (in my opinion) is not very much alike to Lena. Lena was meant to be absolutely gorgeous, and Alice was pretty but it ends there. She wasn't as charming as I thought Lena should be, but I ended up enjoying her in the movie. Kind of. 

Link was absolutely perfect. For me, one of the only two characters that were truly how I imagined. He was cute, fun, and charming. I would've liked to see him perform with his band, but still, Thomas Mann did a great job. He was my favorite character from the movie, but I found incredibly stupid that he shoot Ethan, I mean, why? It was predictable and lame.

Macon Ravenwood is the other character which I think it was portrayed perfectly by the incredible Jeremy Irons. Oh, Irons is one of my favorite actors and I was thrilled to see him as Macon. I reckon he did a great job, but I blame whoever wrote the script for some in-congruencies. 

Amma... I was terribly affected by the decision of kind of mixing Amma's and Marian's character into one, excluding Marian from the movie. I think Viola Davis was amazing, but I wanted to see Marian on screen.

I know that sometimes producers and script writers have to cut off some characters in order to have a fast paced and entertaining movie, without overwhelming the audience with tons of characters, but what the hell happened to Marian, Sarafine (after she leaves Mrs. Lincoln's body) and my beloved Boo Radley????? Also, some scenes were excluded, such as the Winter Ball (bummer). And most importantly, they excluded one of my favorite things from the book... The mental connection between Ethan and Lena. 

They changed a lot of things from the books, and left out some very important stuff, that people who've never read the book should've known. Some friends thought the movie was full of non-sense and bad. I think that with the right script, it would've been awesome. 

And what to say about that ending? GOD, how the hell are they planning to start the second movie with that horrible ending? Unless they're not making a second movie, and this was a stand-alone... And if this is the case, they could've done better, to give it a closure. 

I really hope that there's a second movie (Beautiful Darkness) in the works, and I hope that its better than this failed attempt to make a good adaptation. 

That being said, I have to say, that I thought the movie was entertaining. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it... too much. I thought that for a person who has read the book, it was bad.

If you haven't seen it yet and you've read the book, you won't be pleased. But hey, let me know what did you think about it. 

Movie Trailer: Beautiful Creatures

Posted by Sandra on Tuesday, February 19, 2013. Filed under: , , , ,
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Guys I know Beautiful Creatures is a BIG franchise now, and it's everywhere you go, but if you haven't watched the trailer for the movie, which was released in the USA last week, and will be released worldwide this friday, I leave you here two movie trailers, so you know what to expect and decide if it's worth watching. I personally think it is, although I think I'll leave the movie theater disappointed. We'll see. Post your thoughts about the movie if you already watched it or if you plan to.



and


Authorgraph

Posted by Sandra on Monday, February 4, 2013. Filed under: , ,
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I'm also very happy because Tom Barry sent me a personalized e-copy of his book "When The Siren Calls" which I'm starting tonight!!!

The book was published in November, 2012 and I'm really excited to read it, here's the synopsis:

Restless and neglected, Isobel is suffocating in a stagnant marriage. Suave and charismatic Jay is fighting for survival. An invitation to visit Jay's resort in the hills of Tuscany sparks Isobel to imagine a life of freedom and excitement.

Dismissing her husband’s objections, Isobel pursues Jay to Tuscany on the pretext of searching for a holiday home. After fighting anguished guilt, she abandons herself in a passionate affair, with her controlling lover encouraging Isobel to push beyond her sexual boundaries.

But all is not as it seems in the idyllic Tuscan retreat, and Isobel finds herself trapped in a web of intrigue, deception, and betrayal. She is one player in a dangerous love triangle, unsure whether Jay is her saviour, or her nemesis. As her world falls apart, she must choose between the woman she thought she was, and the woman she has become.


My personalized e-copy :) 


Thoughts about the book to come. 

Message From Me

Posted by Sandra Filed under: , ,
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Hey there, I don't know if you noticed but I was M.I.A. I haven't blogged in a couple of weeks and I just wanted to say that I tried to enjoy the holiday time with my family because I hardly ever see some of them and it meant the world to me to catch up with them. This time also helped me to see some of my friends who are living abroad, it was amazing. 

Of course I didn't stop reading. I just didn't read as quite as much as I expected, but I think it's understandable. I'll be posting SOON which makes me really happy. :)

I also want to tell you that I was approved to read "Weather Witch" by Shannon Delany BEFORE the publish date (June 25th, 2013) and I'm so thrilled about it, because she's not only an amazing author but she's also a very very nice person. I'm going to read is as soon as I can, and I'll be posting my review so you know how I liked it and maybe you'll want to read it too!!

That being said, I'm back and in time to blog.

Sandra. x

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