Review: RANDOM

Who's the real victim here? This tense and gripping exploration of cyberbullying and teen suicide is perfect for fans of Before I Fall and Thirteen Reasons Why.

Late at night Tori receives a random phone call. It's a wrong number. But the caller seems to want to talk, so she stays on the line.

He asks for a single thing—one reason not to kill himself.

The request plunges her into confusion. Because if this random caller actually does what he plans, he'll be the second person connected to Tori to take his own life. And the first just might land her in jail. After her Facebook page became Exhibit A in a tragic national news story about cyberbullying. Tori can't help but suspect the caller is a fraud. But what if he’s not? Her words alone may hold the power of life or death.

With the clock ticking, Tori has little time to save a stranger—and maybe redeem herself—leading to a startling conclusion that changes everything.

“Don’t let your mouth write checks your heart can’t cash,” 

The short description of what the story is all about is not as intense as the story itself. The fact that it is recommended to fans of Before I Fall and Thirteen Reasons Why is enough to tickle my curious cat. I adore both books so it isn't a surprise that I have a soft spot for this one too.

What made it even more intense and gripping would probably be the fact that the whole thing happened in a span of 24hours.  I became invested to it from the very beginning and it escalated even more at the end.

I could only imagine the thoughts going on in the mind of a sixteen-year-old girl when she received some strange call from a person thinking of doing suicide. It's already bad that she had to go to a trial because of a felony act and now, she was  given such huge responsibility for another person or life.

I simply love the smooth twists and turns. It was beautifully sewn together. It wasn't cluttered or confusing. It all made sense.

I have also a strong objection against bullying in any form or type so clearly I am not happy with Tori's character. I just can't accept the fact that she wasn't aware that she was practically goading someone to bully another person or the fact that she was actually bullying someone. So the whole dropping of another suicide situation on her lap made me thought that she kinda deserves it at some point. It served as a lesson to her actually, in my opinion though. I mean, she's obviously too selfish, inconsiderate and plain insensitive. I just hate people like her that doesn't think twice about the consequences of their actions as long as other people thinks that they're cool.

This book is amazing in its own ways. The protagonist may not have killed the bullied person but that doesn't make her an innocent at all. And that's what this book is all about and what it teaches. It teaches us how a simple act could become something big and could ruin someone else's life. It may be a joke to you or your friends, you may not see the person you commented with something bad but it doesn't mean that that person isn't hurt or not taking it seriously. We have no idea what each person is going through in their lives so we gotta be careful with how we talk to them or how we deliver those unnecessary jokes.

The ending is priceless, its something I did not see coming. I was left speechless and my eyes widened. It made perfect sense and I loved it.

It may sound boring to some because it is consisted mostly of phone conversations but I do believe that it is what made the whole story intense and thrilling, like you're on a thread with Tori too. And as I've mentioned, Tori is selfish and it made the readers jittery because there could be a possibility that she might not help him and would more likely not be involved with it.

I highly recommend this to all. It's a must-read. A different treatment about cyberbullying because we get to see the other side of the story. It's in the perspective of one of the bullies. It would teach all the readers the value of being responsible with their actions and words. Kudos to Leveen!

Review: THE GEOGRAPHY OF YOU AND ME

Lucy and Owen meet somewhere between the tenth and eleventh floors of a New York City apartment building, on an elevator rendered useless by a citywide blackout. After they're rescued, they spend a single night together, wandering the darkened streets and marveling at the rare appearance of stars above Manhattan. But once the power is restored, so is reality. Lucy soon moves to Edinburgh with her parents, while Owen heads out west with his father.

Lucy and Owen's relationship plays out across the globe as they stay in touch through postcards, occasional e-mails, and -- finally -- a reunion in the city where they first met.

A carefully charted map of a long-distance relationship, Jennifer E. Smith's new novel shows that the center of the world isn't necessarily a place. It can be a person, too.  

I have been in a long distance relationship for like a year and a half now so maybe that's why at some point I was able to appreciate this story and its sentiments. I have voiced out my opinion towards This is what happy looks like and it turned out to be This is what boring looks like to me. It was pretty much harsh but it spoke truth on my part. Jennifer E. Smith's books have made quite a buzz which made the cat curious.  

 "Absence makes the heart grow fonder."

When I learned what this story is all about I was keen to know how  she'd be able to pull it all off. I mean, they're basically strangers, they only met once and apparently that meeting turned out be like sparks flying. And as you may all notice that's the starting point of all J.Smith's story. What I was looking forward to was how they'd be able to develop a relationship with such little and inconsistent communication with each other. Their means of communication was through postcards and emails which isn't exactly an ideal way to use when you're in a long distance relationship so it got me saying, I wanna know more. I feel like this is some sort of a good challenge for the protagonists. How would they work this all out considering Lucy moved out all of a sudden to a new country?

"How long could a single night really be expected to last? How far could you stretch such a small collection of minutes?"

It was all of a sudden. It was like, they suddenly met and then they suddenly just went apart from each other. And those all happened in the first few chapters of the story. It's like we were forced to love and admire a relationship or couple with such little amount of moments between them.  And that was such a challenge for us too because we had to decide whether we wanna move forward with this story or not and I'm proud that a lot have taken the challenge like me. 

"There was no point in waiting for someone who hadn't asked, and there was no point in wishing for something that would never happen."

As much as I doubt the postcards and emails as being effective means of communication I have found it quite more endearing, more intimate and more meaningful than receiving texts. I'm not against texting or calling, I mean, my boyfriend do that a lot but I don't know, postcards and emails just screams effort to me. And you get to have something from that person you love that you can keep. I mean, you'd be able to hold postcards, it's cute and with the emails, not everyone is bold enough to use them nowadays but you know, its cute too and its different. Its like bringing the old times back. You know what I mean? But hey, when you're in a long distance relationship, every means of communication is important and special to you. 

"Maybe they were never meant to have more than just one night. After all, not everything can last. Not everything is supposed to mean something."

What I also love about this book is that, there was no instant love between the characters. The relationship they have are a product of a challenged long distance friendship.

The character aren't very dynamic. There was little development. I love how they were introduced and how I was able to learn so much about them, their relationship with their family and how they dealt with issues surrounding them. The idea of them having different relationship with other people was nice. I felt like it helped a lot for them to actually work on what they felt towards each other and to finally come terms to what they have between them.

"When there was nothing but space between you, everything felt like a leap." 

The story is obviously fluffy, just cute and romantic in a very light way kind of a contemporary. It's not exactly life-changing, it doesn't make you wanna have a Long Distance Relationship with anyone but I can  guarantee you that it's a quick read you'd definitely love and enjoy. It may not be the kind of book that would stick with you but it's definitely worth the shot.

ANNE WNDR READS: JUST ONE DAY (JUST ONE DAY #1)

Goodreads

“Sometimes the best way to find out what you’re supposed to do is by doing the thing you’re not supposed to do.”

Allyson Healey's life is exactly like her suitcase—packed, planned, ordered. Then on the last day of her three-week post-graduation European tour, she meets Willem. A free-spirited, roving actor, Willem is everything she’s not, and when he invites her to abandon her plans and come to Paris with him, Allyson says yes. This uncharacteristic decision leads to a day of risk and romance, liberation and intimacy: 24 hours that will transform Allyson’s life.

A book about love, heartbreak, travel, identity, and the “accidents” of fate, Just One Day shows us how sometimes in order to get found, you first have to get lost. . . and how often the people we are seeking are much closer than we know.

The first in a sweepingly romantic duet of novels. Willem’s story—Just One Year—is coming soon!

"We are born in one day. We die one day. We can change in one day. And we can fall in love in one day. Anything can happen in just one day

Exactly! Gayle Forman just proved to all of us that anything is possible. That it's not about the time, it's about how much you want something to happen. This book is a roller coaster ride of emotions. There may not be some heavy drama scene that have transpired in the pages but I have experienced more than just sadness and happiness. There is so much to this book that not everyone could see and read. Gayle was able to give us such promising story.

"Traveling's not something you're good at. It's something you do. Like breathing."

I must say I really like this book a lot. For a moment I imagined myself as Allyson and at some point, I feel like we have something in common. I actually wanna be her, you know, take a day off from everything, pretend I'm someone else, be lost in a foreign city and for once, not care where my feet takes me. It's something one would want to experience for once in their life.

"He showed me how to get lost. And I showed myself how to get found."

It's basically a slice of Aly's adventure and we just can't deny that her character developed so much throughout the story and we've seen it (I'm guessing we all did). I actually didn't expect that Willem would be her love interest. I usually don't read synopsis. I go for the "Judge the Book by its cover". It's thrilling and exciting because it's like reading with your heart and not with your eyes.

I appreciated Willem's character so much. He's that kind of a person you want to be free with. I love how reckless and impulsive everything seemed to be. His spontaneity is what made me love him and how peculiar he visions the world and everything around him. Being with him means taking risks and just letting go. It may sound crazy if it were acted in reality but the idea itself is something to look forward to.

"Accidents. It's all about the accidents"

I actually love this quote. Again with all the spontaneity. This book feels so liberating. And for once, I felt as if I could let destiny take over of the whole journey. I know, that sounds so cheesy (and maybe crazy) but hey, it's what books do to us, right?

Ally's character is not very positive. She has a different way of dealing with  herself, people around her and the situation she is in. I would say that she is like most people in the world. She's this lost girl that just needed time to finally find herself. She doesn't help, she's no damsel in distress. She's smart, She just need work things out on her own for her to able to learn.

 

"He showed me how to get lost and then I showed myself how to get found."

I could get annoyed at Ally for expecting something more from someone she just met but I refused to. I cannot exactly blame her for feeling that way. She just shared something special with someone, There was a bond, an intimacy between them. It's like, she finally have found someone who could truly show her how to appreciate life then she got overwhelmed.

"You have to fall in love to be in love, but falling in love isn't the same as being in love."

For a moment I learned how to hate Willem. Why? Obviously, she left girl he just slept with in a foreign place. Aly was lost. She put her trust to him. Again, I don't wanna blame her.

But I'll be a spoiler now. You may wanna read Just One Night to restore your faith and love to Willem. It would finally makes sense now. The ending, I mean.

Anyway, this book certainly deserves a. . .

Review: THE LOVER'S DICTIONARY

A modern love story told through a series of dictionary-style entries is a sequence of intimate windows into the large and small events that shape the course of a romantic relationship.  Anyway, I love this book and I've read this like a couple of times ever since I've bought a copy. It's a very interesting read. For starters, it's not your average story constructed in paragraphs. This one is in a dictionary form. For some that may encounter it for the first time, it may look like an ordinary dictionary that has little story in each words but it actually follows a story of a couple and how their relationship have progress/developed, complications that came along the way and the sweet moments they had. 

“Trying to write about love is ultimately like trying to have a dictionary represent life. No matter how many words there are, there will never be enough.” 

What I love about this is that the protagonist may not be introduced in a way that other books do, it still did not became a hindrance for the story to evolve. It's a different kind of approach, unique and unconventional flavor but still gives you the feels that you are looking for. It's realistic, any person that are and were part of a relationship may relate to. I would go far and say that even those who aren't in any relationship would actually enjoy the entries. This book basically have let us peek into a relationship with real ups and downs.

It's raw, emotional, poignant, funny, infuriating, heartbreaking and just beautiful in any sense. It's like reading poetry or little snippets of a show but the thing is, it's not selfish. The reader can still fully understand the situation. It's romantic nonetheless and I am always left sighing in amazement and contentment when I finished it. I highlighted all the entries because they're just gorgeous and clever.

But here are some of the entries that hit me.

“misgivings, n.

Last night, I got up the courage to ask you if you regretted us.

"There are things I miss," you said. "But if I didn't have you, I'd miss more.” 

“abstraction, n.

Love is one kind of abstraction. And then there are those nights when I sleep alone, when I curl into a pillow that isn't you, when I hear the tiptoe sounds that aren't yours. It's not as if I can conjure you up completely. I must embrace the idea of you instead.”

“breathtaking, adj.

Those mornings when we kiss and surrender for an hour before we say a single word.”

“flux, n.

The natural state. Our moods change. Our lives change. Our feelings for each other change. Our bearings change. The song changes. The air changes. The temperature of the shower changes.

Accept this. We must accept this.” 

Review: EVERY DAY

Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every day in love with the same girl.

There’s never any warning about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere. It’s all fine until the morning that A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day. 

“If there's one thing I've learned, it's this: We all want everything to be okay. We don't even wish so much for fantastic or marvelous or outstanding. We will happily settle for okay, because most of the time, okay is enough.”  

I remember coming across this book because it somehow struck me as different from all the other books I've read and not a big fan of SciFi, I wouldn't know if there's a book/story similar to this. Anyway, because of the presence/existence of this book, I came to love David Levithan to the point I bought all his books in paperback and like what I've mentioned before in one of my reviews, I don't just buy paperbacks, I make sure that that book is worthy of my penny/buck and that I am totally in love with it that I just really need a physical copy of it sitting in my shelf.

“It's one thing to fall in love. It's another to feel someone else fall in love with you, and to feel a responsibility toward that love.” 

Twistedly, I love this book despite it's flaws, as people would say. Yes, I am one of those people who just felt something in us move upon reading this. Cheesy? I know. I'm sorry. Reading this book irritated me. Why? Simply because I was imagining myself as A, going through all those situations, lacking sexual identification, lacking a real life, basically lacking the means of being a real person/identity. It's infuriating. 

"The past and future are what's complicated. It's the present that's simple."

I must say, A's character is not unlikable. You could get fond of him/her and I like how we are able to see how he lives the lives of the host and at the same time, create meaningful moments or help the host at some point.  It's like story after a story after a story within a bigger story. I admire how the author made us feel that we could never be lost in those throngs of stories, that we are still intact with the big picture.  The stories varies, there's humourous, downright sad and tragic so it's never dull. There's something new to look forward to.

I got frustrated when it came to the end because I was looking for answers, wanted answers as to why A's is experiencing it/this but as I come realize, the questions left unaswered are what makes this book different and special. I mean, the whole point of the story is not knowing who A is or where A came from, the whole point is philosophical and could vary on how the reader perceives it.

“I wake up thinking of yesterday. The joy is in remembering; the pain is in knowing it was yesterday.”

With A's love interest. I'm just not quite ecstatic about it. I have no idea what makes Rhiannon different from the others, was it her relationship with the self-centered jerk? But who knows, it may not be as understandable to readers like me (A's relationship with her) but I guess A have found some kind of connection with her that he/she never found from anyone all throughout his life situation. I'm totally gonna read Six Days Earlier.

“I love you-I do-but I am afraid of making that love too important. Because you're always going to leave me, A. We can't deny it. You're always going to leave.” 

I kind of pity her because I could only imagine how overwhelming it was to have a bomb dropped into your lap out of  nowhere. It's fantastical and it would be hard to absorb but at some point she did. And I'm glad she did because I know how hard it might be for A to not find someone who would understand his/her situation and be acknowledged as something/someone he/she really wants. I just love the idea that A was not alone anymore and that there was someone he/she could confide into. That is refreshing.

“This is what love does: It makes you want to rewrite the world. It makes you want to choose the characters, build the scenery, guide the plot. The person you love sits across from you, and you want to do everything in your power to make it possible, endlessly possible. And when it’s just the two of you, alone in a room, you can pretend that this is how it is, this is how it will be.” 

I don't know but at the end of reading this, I felt comfort and sadness and I just found myself daydreaming for a few minutes. Some may not understand what I mean but it was what it was. It sure made an impact in me and I'm pretty sure to most of its readers too. It's just bittersweet. I may not be a fan of Rhiannon but A saying goodbye to her was just so heartbreaking for me. The story may sound aggravating or confusing but I'd like you guys to give it a shot, take a moment and learn to know its meaning.

ANOTHER RECOMMENDED OCTOBER BOOK RELEASES

Top (Left to Right)

Carry On - Rainbow Rowell

The House - Christina Lauren

Surviving Ice - K.A. Tucker

Shopaholic to the Rescue - Sophie Kinsella

Bottom 

Memories - Lang Leav

The Marble Collector - Cecilia Ahern

Ghostly - K.A. Tucker

Blood and Sushi - Anthony Bourdain

Goodreads

Published: 6 October 2015

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Author: Rainbow Rowell

Simon Snow is the worst chosen one who’s ever been chosen.

That’s what his roommate, Baz, says. And Baz might be evil and a vampire and a complete git, but he’s probably right.

Half the time, Simon can’t even make his wand work, and the other half, he sets something on fire. His mentor’s avoiding him, his girlfriend broke up with him, and there’s a magic-eating monster running around wearing Simon’s face. Baz would be having a field day with all this, if he were here—it’s their last year at the Watford School of Magicks, and Simon’s infuriating nemesis didn’t even bother to show up.

Carry On is a ghost story, a love story, a mystery and a melodrama. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell story—but far, far more monsters. 

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Published: 6 October 2015

Author: Christina Lauren

Gavin tells Delilah he’s hers—completely—but whatever lives inside that house with him disagrees.

After seven years tucked away at an East coast boarding school, Delilah Blue returns to her small Kansas hometown to find that not much has changed. Her parents are still uptight and disinterested, her bedroom is exactly the way she left it, and the outcast Gavin Timothy still looks like he’s crawled out of one of her dark, twisted drawings.

Delilah is instantly smitten.

Gavin has always lived in the strange house: an odd building isolated in a stand of trees where the town gives in to mild wilderness. The house is an irresistible lure for Delilah, but the tall fence surrounding it exists for good reason, and Gavin urges Delilah to be careful. Whatever lives with him there isn’t human, and isn’t afraid of hurting her to keep her away. 

Published: 27 October 2015

Publisher: Atria Books

Author: K.A. Tucker

The USA TODAY bestselling author of the Ten Tiny Breaths series and Burying Water—which Kirkus Reviews called “a sexy, romantic, gangster-tinged page-turner”—returns with a new novel packed with romance, plot twists, and psychological suspense.

Ivy, a talented tattoo artist who spent the early part of her twenties on the move, is finally looking for a place to call home. She thinks she might have found it in San Francisco, but all that changes when she witnesses a terrible crime. She’s ready to pack up her things yet again, when a random encounter with a stranger keeps her in the city, giving her reason to stay after all.

That is, until Ivy discovers that their encounter wasn’t random. Not at all…

Published: 27 October 2015

Publisher: The Dial Press

Author: Sophie Kinsella

Becky Bloomwood and a hilarious cast of beloved family and friends (plus one enemy!) set off in a van to find her missing father, last heard from in Las Vegas.

Becky’s father Graham and her best friend’s husband, Tarquin, have disappeared from Los Angeles saying simply they have “something to take care of.”

But Tarquin’s wife Suze who is Becky’s best friend, and Becky’s mother Jane, are convinced the two men are hiding something and are in danger—their imaginations run wild. They must track them down!

Hijinks ensue as husband Luke drives Becky, daughter Minnie, Jane, Suze and other favorite Kinsella characters across country from LA to Las Vegas in search of the missing men.

Becky feels deeply guilty about ignoring her father while he was in LA, in addition Becky feels her enemy Alicia is threatening her friendship with Suze. 

Published: 6 October 2015

Publisher; Andrews McMeel Publishing

Author: Lang Leav

Best-selling poet Lang Leav presents a gorgeous hardcover gift book featuring the best of Lullabies and Love & Misadventure plus thirty-five new poems for fans to discover, along with original color illustrations by the author.

For fans of Lang Leav, this beautiful gift book is a must-have! Beloved pieces from Lullabies and Love & Misadventure are collected together in this illustrated treasury. In addition, 35 new poems that have not been published in any Lang Leav collection offer something new to discover. The author's original art is presented in lovely four-color illustrations. 

Lang Leav's evocative poetry in a gorgeous package with ribbon marker and cloth spine is an irresistible gift for any poetry lover!

Published: 29 October 2015

Publisher: HarperCollins UK

Author: Cecilia Ahern

A forgotten childhood. A discovered life.

What if you only had one day to find out who you really were?

When Sabrina Boggs stumbles upon a mysterious collection of her father’s possessions, she discovers a truth where she never knew there was a lie. The familiar man she grew up with is suddenly a stranger to her.

An unexpected break in her monotonous daily routine leaves her just one day to unlock the secrets of the man she thought she knew. A day that unearths memories, stories and people she never knew existed. A day that changes her and those around her forever.

The Marble Collector is a thought-provoking novel about how the most ordinary decisions we make can have the most extraordinary consequences for how we live our lives. And how sometimes it’s only by shining on a light on someone else, that you can truly understand yourself. 

Published: 6 October 2015

Publisher: Scribner

Author: Audrey Niffenegger

Haunted houses, spectral chills, and of course, the odd cat… This is Audrey Niffenegger’s eclectic collection of the very best and creepiest ghost stories, by writers including M. R. James, Saki, Rudyard Kipling, Neil Gailman, Ray Bradbury, Edith Wharton and many more. Eerie, uncanny, witty and weird, welcome to a world most ghostly.

A spookily beautiful hardback, designed and illustrated by Audrey Niffenegger herself.

Published: 27 October 2015

Publisher: Vertigo

Author: Anthony Bourdain

Acclaimed chef, writer and television personality, Anthony Bourdain and Joel Rose (Kill The Poor) return for the follow-up to their #1 New York Times bestseller GET JIRO from Vertigo.

In GET JIRO: BLOOD AND SUSHI, Bourdain and Rose examine the origins of the mysterious Jiro and what made him into the chef he has become.  Born the heir to a Yakuza crime family, Jiro never longed to travel the crimnal path laid out before him, but instead chose to secretly study the rich culinary history of his homeland, something that would have significant repercussions if discoverd by his ganster father.

As Jiro's interest in the culinary arts deepens, his ability to keep his artistic and criminal worlds seperate becomes too great, triggering a great personal loss that will forever change Jiro's path.

Top (Left to Right)

The Curiosity House - Lauren Oliver

Z Resurrected - Tom Leveen

Bottom

Flawed - Cecilia Ahern

Goodreads

Published: 8 October 2015

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd 

Author: Lauren Oliver

Roll up! Roll up! Fans of Lemony Snicket's SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS brace yourselves for an adventure of a lifetime. Witness the freaks, wonders and oddities at the Dime Museum. Tread the path of the four extraordinary children who live there...

The book is about, among other things: the strongest boy in the world, a talking cockatoo, a faulty mind reader, a beautiful bearded lady and a nervous magician, an old museum, and a shrunken head.

Blessed with extraordinary abilities, orphans Philippa, Sam, and Thomas have grown up happily in Dumfrey's Dime Museum of Freaks, Oddities, and Wonders. Philippa is a powerful mentalist, Sam is the world's strongest boy, and Thomas can squeeze himself into a space no bigger than a bread box. The children live happily with museum owner Mr. Dumfrey, alongside other misfits. But when a fourth child, Max, a knife-thrower, joins the group, it sets off an unforgettable chain of events.

When the museum's Amazonian shrunken head is stolen, the four are determined to get it back. But their search leads them to a series of murders and an explosive secret about their pasts. 

Published: 15 October 2015

Publisher: Half Light Publishing

Author: Tom Leveen

In this anthology, six horror authors revisit some of their most infamous zombie characters, resurrecting the undead. 

Contributing authors to Z Resurrected are some of horror’s best, who have each carved a distinct path in the world of zombies: Dana Fredsti, Tom Leveen, Joe McKinney, Eric A. Shelman, Mark Tufo, and T.M. Williams.

Published: 1 October 2015

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Author: Cecilia Ahern

Celestine North lives a perfect life. She's a model daughter and sister, she's well-liked by her classmates and teachers, and she's dating the impossibly charming Art Crevan.

But then Celestine encounters a situation where she makes an instinctive decision. She breaks a rule. And now faces life-changing repercussions.

She could be imprisoned. She could be branded. She could be found FLAWED.

In her breathtaking young adult debut, bestselling author Cecelia Ahern depicts a society where obedience is paramount and rebellion is punished. And where one young woman decides to take a stand that could cost her-everything.