The Easter Book Tag (Easter Book Bunny)

Real egg painted for Easter. Yes, that's my hand.

Hello-Hello! Doctor Who just premiered last weekend!!! Wait... Wrong post. Then... Is this the post about the Bunny who was forced by freshly resurrected Jesus to lay chocolate eggs - aren't they made of plastic now? - and then to hide them - no reason behind that - for children to find? At least in Romania the Easter Bunny brings real presents like Santa. Hmmm... Don't think so. I am mixing Christianity with Pop Culture.

Oh! Look! I used the "question inside a question" concept, literally.

I should probably look at the title of my post and stop babbling. :D

It's... A Book Tag related to Easter.

I was sort of tagged by Abi from What Makes A Good Book. (<-- link to original post and blog.) Well....... She tagged "anyone who wants to do this tag." And I said, "Why not?"

Let's get started!

1. Rabbits- A book that you wish would multiply- So a book you want a

sequel to (that doesn't have one)!

Let me check my Goodreads... The first book which comes to my mind is:

It is a standalone I read recently. A sci-fi fantasy well done. I need more from that world and those characters. For more information on this book, check out my review -->HERE<--.

2. Egg- A book that surprised you

For this one, I have two books. A recent release (Letters to the Lost) and an older one (An Ember in the Ashes).  Before starting these books, I was skeptic with low expectations and barely remembering their synopsis. Thus, I got gladly surprised. If you want, you can check my review on Letters to the Lost here.

3. Hunt- A book that was hard for you to get your hands on

Basically, almost all the books I put on hold from my libraries on OverDrive. As of right now, I am number 268 on 43 copies for this book (I already read 32% of it):

4. Lambs- A children's book that you still enjoy

I did not like books and reading when I was little. Shocking! I know. I liked the stories to be told to me by my grandmother. Sooo... I searched in my memory, on Google and Goodreads and I decided on this:

5. Spring- A book with a cover that makes you think of spring

Even the book itself has lots of spring and fairytale elements.

6. Rising from the dead- A book with a deceased author

Mostly all Romanian authors I read and other classics... Which are very few. Or I can put one of those ancient Greek works... Well, I am choosing two books:

Camil Petrescu The Last Night of Love, the First Night of War and Three Plays by Aristophanes: Staging Women 

7. Baskets- A book that is in your Amazon cart or on your wish list right now

I wish the Romanian and English speakers (Romania, U.S.A., and/or U.K.) to finish translating this series cause my French is bad. I will have to use Google and a dictionary if I want to finish this series. COME ON! In Romania, they stopped at book seven while in USA only the first two books are translated. Really! Really! Really! You cannot do this to me. Publishing companies from Romania and USA get your act together. I need this series finished. 

8. Candy- A book that is sweet

 Is love considered sweet? Then, I pick this one:

9. Peeps- tag people!

Are you feeling compelled to do this tag? Consider yourself tagged, mate.

People are Brilliantly Crazy

Form hairless monkeys to humans! I am just joking. That is so wrong in so many ways. People do not come from monkeys. We never did and never will... Well... Unless science does some batsh*t crazy experiments... And that will also be wrong in so many ways. Please science don't do that! Don't you ever ever do that!

Today, I feel lucky to be human because... I am human. Lately, I read and saw some interesting articles and videos on the internet about the humans throughout time. (Plus my last semester class about Evolution. And I am telling you, if you ever have a chance in taking a class about evolution, it's worth it. It is crazy, confusing, full of science terms but it's worth it. Do not worry, your religious believes are not going to be shattered because... relativity.) And, I want to say that we are brilliant and crazy because We invented writing, different alphabets, and lots of languages. I mean... It's not like we are the only ones who can communicate but we are doing it in style. Our need to communicate with each other and store information led to so many wonderful things we have today: books, texting, computers, libraries, pens, pencils, ink, music, art etc. And let's not forget - drum-roll please - Blogs.

Get it! Cause I am writing a blog post on my blog about writing... Alright! I will stop now. Ok, I have to add that I should have put libraries before texting and computers but... Just go with it!

We drew on caves and rocks. We wrote on stone, papyrus, animal skin and other things. And now, we settled for paper (plus ink and or electronic devices).

I am not an expert and I might be wrong. This whole post might be full of wrong stuff. Who knows? Ha-ha-ha! Thus, I want you to stop for a second look of these pictures I took off of internet - including our most favorite website Wikipedia (List of writing systems) - and admire the human race, you included.

Be proud!

Be Human!

Be a Homo sapiens! 

(I could not resist using the scientific term. Sue me. Please Don't! >:D)

(Image credits: Power of Writing article)

(Image credits: globa-lingua.org, boredpanda)

 

We are destined for greatness and so much good. We are very adaptable and intelligent. Hello! Have you seen the 21st century technology? We can do this!

Thank you, human race for making the existence of books, of any kind, and paper possible.

Could you please stop letting gender, race, religion, war, corruption and violence get in your way?

We managed to turn languages into "live organisms," letting them change over time. Can we do that with the other things too?

Let beautiful things be beautiful things! No matter what they are (art, music, the human body, religion or no religion, aliens, race, atoms, letters, mistakes, points, crazy inventions etc.), they make us beautiful. They make us HUMAN.

 Writing rocks!

We use it to express ourselves.
We create stories, document memories, and plan our future with it.
Writing is a form of communication, a way to share things with the people.
Writing is an essential proof our existence throughout time. Like the Latin proverb says, "Verba volant, scripta manent."   (rough translation: Spoken words fly away, written words remain.)
I bet most of you take writing for grated. After you learn how to do it, it becomes natural, normal even. Until recently, I did not think of my ability to write words on a paper as being something cool. I knew that it can tell so much about you - by you I mean your personality... I do not know if you understand what I am trying to say. Right now, I am just amazed by how we were able to create languages with different alphabets and writing and pronunciation rules.
Am I wrong to assume that the early humans turned random vocal sounds into written alphabets?
 

Cheater by Rachel Van Dyken With More Depth than the Title and Synopsis Let You Believe

Book Synopsis

Lucas Thorn wasn’t born a cheater. All it took was a single moment—say, a certain disastrous incident on the night before his wedding—and boom. Reputation destroyed forever and always. So now he owns it. He has a lady friend for every night of the week (except Sundays—God’s day and all), and his rules are simple: No commitments. No exceptions.
But a certain smart-mouthed, strawberry blonde vixen is about to blow that all to hell.
Avery Black has never forgiven Lucas for cheating on her sister. And suddenly being forced to work with him is pretty much a nightmare on steroids. Of course, it does afford her the opportunity to make his life as difficult as possible. But no good revenge scheme comes without payback. Because he didn’t become the Lucas Thorn without learning a few things about women.
Now Avery’s lust for vengeance has turned into, well, lust. And if Lucas stops cheating, it’s definitely not because he’s falling in love… Cheater - Goodreads

 

My Opinion

3.65/5 stars

Are you in a mood for a quick romance? Well... This is one of them. And do not be fooled by the synopsis, there is so much depth to the story. Ahhh... I want to use "and" again... I think the synopsis together with the title are kind of misleading . Yes, the guy practices polygyny (= one male having more than one female mate). Yes, he cheated (observe the past tense here). Also, all his "lady friend for every night of the week" gave their consent for this type of relationship and knew from the beginning that there are other women. Oddly enough - in a good way -  Lucas wants companionship and offers companionship to these women, not just sex.

This story is more about two people who, by fate, meet again and reconnect. They receive a second chance to confront the truth about their past and feelings for each other. 

What bothered me the most were the parents. Lucas and Avery were unable to say no to them. And they were so... soooo... or how the naughty side of me wants to actually say it... ANNOYING as f. I say no to my mom even when she is telling me to eat bread even though I am masticating bread in that very moment. :)) I value my mother's opinion very very very much but I will be unable to accept her to control me the same way Lucas and Avery are controlled by their parents.

And Lucas' parents! I am only going to say this: Come! On! He is your son. He is more important than your BFF's.

Also, take in consideration that they, all the parents, appear briefly through the book and are used as a tool to drive the story to an end. 

Other than that, they seemed nice enough. (^_^) :D

Ha-Ha-Ha!

I liked this story a lot. It was sexy, sweet, and bitter due to so much heartache. Cheater came this close - B L A N K  S P A C E  B L A N K  S P A C E - to reach the complexity of Gabriel's Inferno (Goodreads) by Sylvain Reynard.

This was my cuppa tea.

 

This is my sole opinion. ^_^

I would like to say thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Genre: New Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Language: mild to heavy
Sexual content: heavy
Violence: mild
Drugs/Alcohol: moderate
 

Melody Obsession of the Week Brought to You by Me Presents Jessie J Do It Like a Dude (EXPLICIT)

Hello-Hello! It is the end of the week and it is time for my melody obsession. This song is mature-ish with a bunch of curse words... So listen on your own risk. :D

Jessie J has a strong voice and her song sends an even stronger (I am not even sure if it's grammatically correct and I do not care as long as you get what I am saying B] ) message.

I dedicate this song to my oldest friend from Romania who introduced me to it a while ago. Thank you, Nico! Miss you and how we used to hang out every summer and other vacations. :3

 
And I am also making a dedication to all of the people who told me that I act to much as a guy or that I cannot do, be what I want, stay in a place, or wear something because I am a girl. Dear those past, present, and future people, this is my answer to you. FYI, science proved that the only barrier to female leaders is gender bias.

And the same thing can be said about you, guys. Do, wear, say, feel, and be what you want. Do not be afraid to be called "feminine". You are humans too. Plus, the world will be boring without diversity.

PEACE!

LOVE!

And LISTEN to JESSIE J on REPEAT!

JESSIE J DO IT LIKE A DUDE (EXPLICIT)

 

Feel free to check out Last Week's SONG here --> Kaleido Star

 

 

Letters to the Lost by Brigid kemmerer which Turn into E-mails Faster than You Can Say "Letters"

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Book Synopsis

Juliet Young always writes letters to her mother, a world-traveling photojournalist. Even after her mother's death, she leaves letters at her grave. It's the only way Juliet can cope.
Declan Murphy isn't the sort of guy you want to cross. In the midst of his court-ordered community service at the local cemetery, he's trying to escape the demons of his past.
When Declan reads a haunting letter left beside a grave, he can't resist writing back. Soon, he's opening up to a perfect stranger, and their connection is immediate. But neither Declan nor Juliet knows that they're not actually strangers. When life at school interferes with their secret life of letters, sparks will fly as Juliet and Declan discover truths that might tear them apart. Letters to the Lost - Goodreads

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Opinion

4.5/5 stars

 I requested this book somewhat blindly from NetGalley. It looked and sounded interesting so... I thought I should give it a shot. Oh, boy! I was not disappointed.
It was a light read and easy to follow with a nice flow of events. Letters to the Lost brings into question the society and its views. Perfect families are not perfect. People can be both villains and heroes at the same time. People are people no matter the age. Lack of communication and expression of feelings can get you in deep trouble with those around you. Being misunderstood is a consequence of that. From all these books I am reading lately, including this one, I get this feeling that they are trying to transmit a message: Do not lie or, so called, protect the children from problems because things have their own way at getting back at you and backfire. Secrets are not good in a family. Children do not need to be protected from problems all the time. They need to understand and have someone to guide them through problems  because they need to learn. You can't just dump the problems onto a child's shoulders either. There has to be a balance. In my opinion, this book does a great job at presenting all these ethical issues. Also... Let's just say that in some parts... it does too much and, for me, it was quite far fetched. Oh! That might be the case because I've seen that plot twist so many times in books, movies, and TV shows. I mean, come on! It was obvious. :D
The dynamic  between the main characters is interesting. We are able to see the general two sides of human nature: the societal act and the true self. I can say the anonymous conversations were good therapy sessions for the two of them. Overall their story has a realistic-ish but beautiful resolution - too fast maybe? The romance factor was... yes and no at times. Don't get me wrong, it played nicely for the overall story. Although, it lacked some depth due to the issue I am going to discuss below.
The females in the book felt shallow and underdeveloped as characters. I was more connected with Declan which is not a bad thing... I wanted to see more sides of Juliet through her grief and sorrow. And this is my mature brain speaking, she spent a great deal of the book over idolizing her mother than paying attention to herself and others. And her best friend was just there. By the end of the storyline, I was not able to comprehend her existence in this novel. She had lots of potential from the bits of information I got about her from Juliet. Throughout the whole book, I was expecting her to be a back stabbing traitor but it was not like that - thank goodness! More details about the females characters were needed compared to the male ones. I do not know... You can say it was understandable since it is a light tragic young adult novel.  (I cannot believe that I've jut put "light" and "tragic" in the same sentence and in close proximity.) Or, that is just how I perceive it.

Finally, get some melancholic instrumental music, ask for magical power to make the weather gloomy and - by the end of the book - sunny, and see if this is your cup of tea.

 

This is my sole opinion. ^_^

 

I would like to say thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Language: none to mild
Sexual content: mild
Violence: moderate
Drugs/Alcohol: moderate

Confess by Colleen Hoover Gets a TV Show on April 4th, 2017

 

Hello-Hello, Book Nerds! If you haven't heard yet, Colleen Hoover's book Confess was turned into a TV show. Check out the promo poster below. Isn't it gorgeous? *_*

 

 Ryan Cooper as Owen Gentry and Katie Leclerc as Auburn Reed 

The first two episodes are already out and you can watch them for free on GO90 - Confess.

What are you waiting for? Go watch it! I already watched them twice already. As a side note, Colleen has a cameo appearance in the first at the art gallery event.

All the episodes, seven in total, will be available on April 4th, 2017 - aka this coming Tuesday. 

So far, I am intrigued. The show has potential. Cute. Romantic. And Dramatic. It made me want to read the book.

Yes, I have yet to read the book. Like I said, I am planning to.  There is still time until Tuesday.

To form your own opinion, I post the trailer down below plus the book description.

 

 

Book Synopsis

Auburn Reed has her entire life mapped out. Her goals are in sight and there’s no room for mistakes. But when she walks into a Dallas art studio in search of a job, she doesn’t expect to find a deep attraction to the enigmatic artist who works there, Owen Gentry.
For once, Auburn takes a risk and puts her heart in control, only to discover Owen is keeping major secrets from coming out. The magnitude of his past threatens to destroy everything important to Auburn, and the only way to get her life back on track is to cut Owen out of it.
The last thing Owen wants is to lose Auburn, but he can’t seem to convince her that truth is sometimes as subjective as art. All he would have to do to save their relationship is confess. But in this case, the confession could be much more destructive than the actual sin… Confess-Goodreads

Melody Obsession of the Week Brought to You by Me Presents Kaleido Star

 

Hello-Hello! This week I do not have a song pick. I rather have the entire soundtrack of an anime called Kaleido Star.

Yes, you read me right. I recommend going on YouTube and search Kaleido Star OST.

What can I say? I am really into instrumental music. It creates mood. Happy. Sad. Danger. Triumph. Failure. Rising. Challenge. Fear. Future. Comedy.

 

  

I can proudly say that this is one of my all time favorite anime ever. And if you want to watch it, please watch it in Japanese with a subtitle. Everything is so much better and fun.

I will leave a few songs down below... (^_^)

 

Happy Listening!

I hope you are going to enjoy them as much as I do.

Alright, one song is not completely instrumental but it is in Japanese... So... Yeah!

Be Happy!

Let yourself to be inspired by music and stories.

You can check out my last week pick here -->Waterfall