Follow Friday #9

Q. Have you ever wanted a villain to win at the end of a story?  If so, which one??

A. I am very sure that I have wanted a villain to win before many times, but not many come to mind. The only villain I can really think of is Stolen: A letter to my captor. I liked Ty, and I wish that what happened in the end didn't happen at all (no spoilers!!!).

WWW Wednesdays #7

What are you currently reading?                             I'm reading Beauty Queens by Libba Bray at the moment. Feeling excited!

What did you recently finish reading?                        I finished reading The Truth About Forever last week, and Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac today.
For my review of The Truth About Forever, click here.
For my review of Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac, click here.

What do you think you'll read next?                        
I will have to pick between Size 12 Is Not Fat by Meg Cabot or Prom by Laurie Halse Anderson. I'll decide on the day :)

Memoirs of A Teenage Amnesiac - my book review

Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A witty, cheerful glance at a teen amnesiac's life. I enjoyed this book in every respect, not only for its storyline, but mainly for its characters. But more to that later.

Naomi wakes up in a hospital bed, not knowing anything from the last three and a half years. She doesn't know what year it is. She doesn't know her parents are divorced. She doesn't even know who her best friend is. But is this amnesia a way to start life afresh?

I'd like to praise Gabrielle Zevin for the warmth and depth she has put into this book. It's one of those books that save you from a rainy day, to a bad hair day. It'll liven you up no matter the circumstances. What is strange though, is that this is not a chick-lit fiction. It is actually quite meaningful, and has given me an insight of forgiving and forgetting.

Now to the characters. I am so glad that this story was told in first-person perspective. Naomi's point of view was fun, and just from reading a chapter that "she's" written, I can tell that she'd be one of the persons in the world who would make a good friend (although she doesn't think that herself). My other favourite character, whether you can believe it or not, is Ace. I loved him. He was popular, sweet and bashful. So adorable.

Oh, and of course, I'd like to give a special mention to Will Landsman. To me, he is the star of the story, really. Pretty much the whole book revolves around Naomi and his relationship, once you think about it. He plays an important part, and the friendship between the two carries on throughout the story. Not very much, but it does.

To finish off, I'd like to share my favourite quote from Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac:

"You forget all of it anyway. . . You forget who was cool and who was not, who was pretty, smart, athletic, and not. . . You forget all of them. Even the ones you said you loved, and even the ones you actually did. They’re the last to go. And then once you’ve forgotten enough, you love someone else."

View all my reviews

Top Ten Tuesday #8

Top Ten Three Sequels I'm Dying To Read:

Before I begin, I'd like to point out that I mainly read stand-alone books. This is because I can't usually stand series that go on and on and on... So anyway, this list will be rather short. To be specific, three as mentioned above. :( 

1. Insurgent (Divergent #2) - OMG, can't wait until this one! I loved the first book in the series, and am hoping that I'll love the rest too!
2. Pandemonium (Delirium #2) - okay, so I didn't like Delirium, but I'd like to give the series a second chance. What if it only gets better?
3. Fear (Gone #5) - to be frank, I have no idea why I'm looking forward to this one. Why? Because I haven't even got to Hunger yet. But even so, it's... reassuring to know that the series continues, and probably will do so for a long, long time.

The Truth About Forever - my book review

The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the first book that I've ever read by Sarah Dessen, and I'm very pleased to say that I will continue reading her novels.

Macy Queen is the daughter of a widowed workaholic and the girlfriend of a perfectionist gentleman. She herself strives to be perfect. She, as her sister says, does not have a proper 'social life', but risks that for being perfect.

...That is, until she meets the Wish Gang.

I am not one for soppy love stories. I'm just not that type. Same goes with most chick-flick movies and melodramatic romantic songs. But nonetheless, I enjoyed this book. It was good.

There are so many books in which you read about brave, adventurous heroines, but this is not the case. You get to see the other side of the story, from a girl who eventually grows into something bigger, something different. Something bolder.

The words that illustrate this book describe everything fittingly. I like the use of truth about forever at the end.

Another thing is that I loved the relationship between Macy and Wes. From the start, we suspect that they'll be heads over heels in love with each other (sa-woon!), but is this true? No... well, not really. At one point, we have all read a young-adult book with one week romances, but I love how everything in this book is held to the end. The loose ends are tied up where they should be. It's satisfying to know, that through thick and thin, high and low, that things have turned out perfect in the end.

You might be wondering: why only four stars? I'll answer that now. In fact, I sort of answered that above. I don't really favour realistic romance fiction. Although, The Truth about Forever proved to me that there are some good ones around. Realistically, if I was the girlier type, then yes, I would definitely give this book a fiver. But sadly, I'm not. But luckily, Dessen's words and the storyline and the characters and everything else that came within the front and back covers saved me from giving this book much less.

So read it.




View all my reviews

Cover Crazy #7

This is the cover of Saving June, by Hannah Harrington.

• I'm a real nut for vintage-type things. Not really clothing, but more like photo-effects. Not only does it imply the past, but it can also show dreaming. Just looking at this front cover makes me feel a bit absentminded.
• Nature is a good way of making us want to feel free. That girl lying in the wild grass looks relaxed, and free...
• This final point is rather basic, but quotes can be useful for front covers. Especially ones with praise for the book. Sure, they could possibly be made up, but how can you resist a book that's been given dozens of medals and praises from God and J.K Rowling-like authors? I certainly can't.

In My Mailbox #7

I am pleased to say that I have finally managed to borrow a book that I have wanted for a long time...

The fifty contestants in the Miss Teen Dream pageant thought this was going to be a fun trip to the beach, where they could parade in their state-appropriate costumes and compete in front of the cameras. But sadly, their airplane had another idea crashing on a desert island and leaving the survivors stranded with little food, little water, and practically no eyeliner. 

What's a beauty queen to do? Continue to practice for the talent portion of the program--or wrestle snakes to the ground? Get a perfect tan--or learn to run wild? And what should happen when the sexy pirates show up? 

 Source: Goodreads

And now I gotta start stacking up books for the holidays too...

Follow Friday #8

Q. If you could change the ending of any book (or series), which book would you choose? Why and to what?

A. I would change the ending of Before I Fall, by Lauren Oliver. For those who have read it, were you really satisfied by the conclusion? I sure wasn't (but not enough to give it less than 5 stars, hehe). 

*SPOILER ALERT!!! SPOILER ALERT!!!*

I just didn't like how Sam died. was it necessary for that? I think that if she learnt her lesson, she could get of that damn time loop. That's cheesy, I know, but I don't think it's fair that she sacrifices herself for Juliet. Besides, what has Juliet ever done for her in exchange?