Hush Hush Sequence

Crescendo and Silence. The second and third books in the HUSH HUSH sequence by
Becca Flitzpatrick

I have finally finished reading the second and third books in the hush hush trilogy- crescendo and silence. I think I am going through a whirlwind of emotions right now but...

Plot Summary:

The fight between the Fallen Angels and the Nephilim take a different turn. It becomes more mysterious and dark. Obviously you know more about the Nephilim/ Fallen Angel world. Learn more secrets. You would know more about the Fallen angels and Nephilim. Since these are the second and third books in the series, talking about the plot would certainly be a SPOILER!

My thoughts:
 I think the second book offers the reader a roller coaster ride of emotions! You will be thrilled with so many emotions, twists and turns!
All I have to say is, I liked this book more than the first! I have grown to like Nora a whole lot more and though she does annoy me sometimes.
Obviously Patch becomes more mysterious than ever! The plot becomes darker and more eerie!

Having said that, I found myself reading these books, to know more about what happens in the end. I was not really drawn to any of the characters per se. Patch was mysteriously and charming but in the third book, became annoyingly Cheesy. I don't do cheesy sadly.

After sometime, i was emotionally detached from the book, i could not understand what the characters were trying to do, and there were times I just wanted to freaking YELL at NORA. Yes i did.

*Face-Palms*

Don't you just love this quote?

"Hang on did you just call me Angel"

"If I did?"

"I don't like it."

"It stays, Angel"

Don't judge the book by its cover:

I loved the cover for the second book.
Nora Grey look at the imminent storm, waiting for impending gloom.

Cover for third book really reminded me of Steven Strait from the covenant. Why oh why?


I imagined him/her as:
Caitlin Cassey as Nora Grey - From the sleepover's club

Steven Strait as Patch - Wasn't he all black in The Covenant?

I recommend this to:

Err.... 


Rating:
5/10

Divergent/Insurgent

Now I understand why everyone was raving about this trilogy. Cause its amazing, duh?
Finished reading both the books and I am left waiting for the last instalment and I hate waiting!

Plot Summary:
Divergent opens a whole new post apocalyptic world. There are five factions in this society

Abnegation- The Selfless
Candor- The Honest
Amity- The Peaceful
Dauntless- The Brave
Erudite- The Knowledgeable

Beatrice Prior, 16, has to choose the faction that she will belong to for the rest of her life. She is a born Abnegation, but now, she has the choice to live her life differently. There's one catch. If she does not choose Abnegation, she has to leave her family behind. She has to live with the consequences and she has to get through initiation, if not, she will be one of the Factionless, in current terms, she will be begging on the streets, without identity.  This book follows Beatrice's journey as she chooses THE faction.

My thoughts:  

I loved this book to bits and pieces, not only because of the intricate world that Veronica Roth creates for the readers, but all because of the characters! I love Beatrice. She inspires me in so many ways.  Her journey throughout the novel somehow reflects my journey as I moved from Singapore to the UK for Uni. Okay, enough said. I do NOT WANT to be spammed as a SPOILER.

I also loved loved Four. Yes, that's his name. But read the novel and you will know why he got the name Four. He is so hard headed and arrogant, but yet he is soft and vulnerable. I liked how he is portrayed as the invincible but yet there is a dark history of his, which makes him ever so vulnerable.

The world that Beatrice lives in, was very well thought and crafted by Veronica Roth. It leaves me in awe but gets me thinking, if this is the best way to avoid war. Surely, if everyone lives by the factions, one will never feel the need to wage a war, or will it not?

It ties in with the world one lives in today. The world where the rich gets richer, the poor gets poorer. No one cares. But what would happen, when there is a FACTION(abnegation)  just for caring. Will it help? A perfect Utopia,  don't you think?

Don't you just love this Quote? 

“A brave man acknowledges the strength of others.”
―Divergent 

How true, if only all of us understood this. 

I imagined him/her as....

Beatrice Prior : Saoirse Ronan- loved her in Lovely Bones and Atonement
Four: Logan Lerman- after Percy and the Lightning Thief, I think he is quite the Dauntless fellow!

I recommend this to 
I have a feeling the whole entire universe has already read this book.
If you haven't read it, then...
GO READ IT
NOW.

Rating:
9/10

Galaxy's Romantics

Is Stephanie Perkins an ultimate love guru or what? Both her books make me yearn for more!
Every Girl's must have book

Plot Summary;
Lola or Dolores, is a quirky teenager, who fancies costumes. She breathes, lives and exudes fashion. All is going well, in a oh so perfect life, until her past comes creeping back. Her neighbours of the past move back in. And with them comes the Bell Twins; (one of them a BOY: CRICKET)
Now, Lola has to face her past, with a boyfriend in hand. Not an easy journey, but its a journey worth taking, a journey where she is forced to be honest with her self; honest about love.

My Thoughts:
Swoon alert! Oh my gosh. In this book, there's not only Cricket to swoon over, but the oh so charming, British Accented, American-French gorgeousness, Etienne St Clair, is back. He charmed his way throughout this novel, making me smile whenever I saw his name on the page (I don't think I am alone in this, am I right?) Cricket- Now if you don't fictionally fall in love with this guy, you are simply heartless. He is so perfect. He is just the ultimate next door boy you would yearn to have.
Should I even comment about the moments, I just gasped and smiled and thought, "if only?". Stephanie Perkins holds power over me, she is one of the rare authors, who has that magic to make me swoon over  FICTIONAL CHARACTERS. Oh the Joy?

This novella is a pleasure and easy read. It does not take too long to read. In fact, I don't think you would want to stop once you've started. Which is why i finished the book in a day. Yes, in A DAY.

I recommend this to:

TO YOU. TO YOU. TO YOU. AND YOU.
All you girls out there. READ THIS.


Don't you just love this Quote?

"I know you aren't perfect. But it's a person's imperfections that make them perfect for someone else" 

- Lola and the Boy Next Door

Say WHAT?

Don't judge the book by its cover:

I love the colors of the cover. Light blue, purple, pink and a lovely turquoise for the hard cover. Lola is so pretty on the cover, with her purple hair. But i did not associate Cricket to the guy on the cover, (don't kill me), for me Cricket was like... ANDREW GARFIELD or am I nuts????

I imagined him as:

Andrew Garfield as the perfect Cricket. 

 P.S: Harry Styles as the Perfect Etienne? Or am I nuts, once again???


Rating:
8/10

Shhhh, it's Hush Hush

After browsing for,what seemed to be a long time, I chose to read “HUSH HUSH” which is part of the hush hush hush trilogy. I could not find all the other books I had in mind. But I have to admit, I was spending quite some time – looking at the Infernal Devices series section. Oh the cover is just so pretty, isn’t it? (okay I should stop blabbering about that, this is ALL ABOUT HUSH HUSH)

Plot summary

This book is about a…. guy who is mysterious, dreamy yet annoying and a girl(surprise surprise) Nora, who is being stalked by someone. Even though Nora hates this guy, Patch(what a name?, now I thought my name sounded weird!), she is somewhat attracted to him. AWKWARD! But Patch also has a mysterious side to him, something that is not quite right and Nora is curious, (you know the typical “oh-it-might-be-dangerous-but-i-shall-do-it-anyway sort of heroine, **coughs Bella **coughs**) The story revolves around how Patch and Nora’s lives are entwined and what the future holds for them.

My thoughts
And guess what? I finished this book in a day. It’s your typical 400 page novel but it is filled with suspense and is truly a page turner. I sat down at 4 and finished reading the book at 8. Pausing in between to go make myself tea! (turns out I hate the tea I make, not as good as mom’s) Psssht!

I know what you are thinking- “there you go again, another twilight sheezbam! ” Ah there you are wrong! This is nothing, I REPEAT, nothing like twilight! I thought the female character was all very Bella-ish, no she is not THAT annoying, not all the time anyway! It’s all very very VAMPIRE DIARIES meets SUPERNATURAL sort of thing. A delightful and exciting read.

I was NOT COMPLETELY crazy about this book. The idea of it was beautiful and unique. There were moments when i just "face-palmed" myself- asking myself "WHY oh WHY". The story however, is quite fast paced and thus it keeps you wanting to find out more at every turn of the page. I would definitely read the next book to find out what's happening and how it all ends.

 I recommend this to

 All those out there who love paranormal stuff. If you like twilight, you probably will "dig" this.

Don't you just love this quote:
No quote stood out for me in this book! Oops.

Rate:
6/10

T'was simply swoon-tastic

Drinking Starbucks and Reading the last bits of Anna and the French Kiss!

Finally got my hands on this fantastic summer 2012 read. The 4 weeks wait was not 4 weeks after all. I went into the bookshop and I was just looking at the book arranged right at the entrance of the bookshop Kinokuniya when something caught my eye. I gasped and screamed for my friend and I picked up the book and started jumping! Yes you may think, I am exaggerating a tad bit, but no, this is the drama queen you are talking about, therefore no exaggeration at all. A school girl beside me smiled and said, “great book”! Wow, another reader who thought this book was great! More the reasons to buy it
I first heard about this book when I stumbled upon a YouTube book vlogger giving it a high rating. But she was not the only one! Most of the youtube book vloggers absolutely loved this book and raved about the fantastic plot! I have been desperately trying to get my hands on this book ever since and it has been amazing to be able to read finally in the summer.

Plot summary
Anna is a American senior in high school and is forced to attend a boarding school in Paris for her last year! Annoyed and Glum that she has to leave her best friend and heart- throb crush behind, Anna reluctantly goes to Paris! Only to find out that perhaps moving to Paris was the best thing that ever happened to her! And yes the best thing comes in the form of a English/French gorgeous looking boy who she happens to have a thing for! But sadly he is in a serious relationship! (cue in music: dam dam dam!) This story follows Anna’s journey in Paris- as she transforms from an outsider into a true blue Parisien who finally realizes that she is living in the City of Romance!


My thoughts:
You know the kind of book that makes you laugh, cry, gasp, yell and curse regardless of where you are reading the book? Well Anna and the French falls in that category! It is the type of book which makes you desperate for more! I was reading this in Starbucks the other day, and I said “oh no!” (a bit too loudly) and a few heads turned in my direction! I could not help it!
I have this habit ( bad?) of taking a long time to finish the book just so that I live in the characters’ world for a while longer! I do not want the book to END!!!I could have finished this book in a night, but I kept prolonging it. I finished it in three days! I wanted it to be longer! And now, I am suffering from withdrawal symptoms. BOOHOO!

I recommend this to:
Again, highly recommended- for those who love a swoon-tastic love story!

Don't you just love this Quote?:

“Will you please tell me you love me? I’m dying here.”
― Stephanie Perkins, Anna and the French Kiss

Gets me laughing all the time! 

Rating:
8/10

The Fault in our **Stares!

Have you ever read books which just make you go speechless? Well I have read a few, and one of them is "The Fault in Our Stars". This is my second John Green Book and after "Looking for Alaska", I was quite excited to read tFiOs, and Omgosh, what sheer brilliance.

My friends sometimes describe me as a Sadist because they always find me reading books with depressing plots, so, when I was reading a book about two Cancer patients, they just raised their eyebrows giving me "THE look". But man, are they wrong!

Plot Summary 
Two Cancer Patients, Augustus Waters and Hazel, meet in a Cancer Support Group. Hazel is terminal (practically waiting for THE death verdict) and is pretty much cynical about everything in life UNTIL she meets Augustus Waters (another Cancer Patient)! Together they embark on a journey so special, moving, heart wrenching and thought provoking-- IT WILL BLOW YOUR MIND!

My thoughts 
I think the gushing and the high spirited rambling would have said it all- I THINK this book is MIND BLOWING, no i think it is MIND BLASTING! I constantly kept going, "wow, i never thought of that at any moment of my existence, EVER!".
**Spoliler alert** (if you have not read the book, I hope you get up and go get the book.. NOW!)

I think the whole idea of existing in this world and what it means to us, is something we never think about much. Most of us, myself included, just take Life as it comes(not that is a bad thing), but what is our purpose here in Life? Why are we here? Will people remember us in time?

I had this really crazy thought after reading this book: "What if I died in sleep tonight, will my family and friends still remember me after say, 20 years? Or will be a just a blurb in their memory?

(**"Oh wasn't there this girl we used to know? Like she used to jump around and spazz out all the time... Oh yea poor thing, died in her sleep. NOW WHAT WAS HER NAME???***)

It sends shivers down your spine doesn't it?

The romance in this book. Ethereal. So beautifully crafted and incorporated in this book, it just gives me goosebumps. Its just so divine and for the lack of a better word, jaw dropping- the way they slowly fall for each other. Just thinking about it- triggers an adrenaline-infused increase in heart rate!

I read this book in three days, reading between classes and during lunch breaks. I still remember walking out of my room, having finished the book, with eyes filled with tears and puffy with water retention. (do you get that when you cry alot?). Looking back, I do not know why I cried?

1. Was it because the possibility of the world not remembering me after I died, terrified me?
2. Was it because I felt so sorry for the characters? 
3. Was it because  I FINISHED A FREAKING AMAZING BOOK, I WANT TO RE-READ IT AGAIN, WAAAAHH!! 

I recommend this to

If you always run away from "Depressing plots" (*yup, you right there, yup you're the one!), run no more my friend--Read this book. 

If you want to read a book, that will make you feel something, anything, some small bit of emotions, then Read this book. You vill naat be dissapointed!

If you are John Green fan, well you probably would have read this book zillion times. So i shall not "recommend" this to you. Cheers

 Don't you just love this Quote?

I am," he said. He was staring at me, and I could see the corners of his eyes crinkling. "I'm in love with you, and I'm not in the business of denying myself the simple pleasure of saying true things. I'm in love with you, and I know that love is just a shout into the void, and that oblivion is inevitable, and that we're all doomed and that there will come a day when all our labor has been returned to dust, and I know the sun will swallow the only earth we'll ever have, and I am in love with you.”

― John Green, The Fault in Our Stars 

Don't judge a book by its cover?

HardCover!!! (*does the woohoo-- i-got-a-hard-cover-version dance)

The blue, black and white reminds me of heaven- or is just me and my weird imagination?

Rate:
11/10!!!

Sarah's Key

Sarah’s Key. Magnificent. One word would suffice.

If you  love these genre of books, then its a MUST BUY

You will not be Disappointed! 

Plot Summary:

It is set in two time periods. 1942 France and 2002 France. During the Velodrome d’hiver, thousands of jewish families were arrested and sent to Auschwitz. One girl, Sarah locks her four year old brother up, desperate to save him from the brutality. She promises to come back for him. But does she?

My thoughts:

After reading this book, i had nightmares for several days, no kidding. I finished reading this book in 2 days. I just sat down and was determined to finish it. I wanted to know how it all turned out. Although not completely historical, the Velodrome d’hiver (or the Swift of Spring Breeze) did happen in Paris in 1942. The Jewish families were transported to the extermination camp under the orders of the French Police. I did not cry or sob reading this book, I must admit, but there is a sombre feeling in me that i simply cannot get rid off. This is a different type of emotion, one that i have never felt before. One that I am terrified of.

Though this book affected me in ways, I cannot imagine. It has changed me. Ignorance is something that I condone now. Sitting back and saying, "That's not my problem" is not a way to go about in this world. We are a family. Different races, religion, countries, languages, but the color of our blood is one and the same: it is red. And it is not worth shedding. We need to work together hand in hand and let us love, forget hate and live together as one.

Peace begins with a smile. 

How does the blood of thousands of young people and the tears of loved ones solve the problem at hand? Instead it puts fuel to the fire, a vicious cycle between hatred and violence.

I am not asking one to be neutral. I am not asking one to “not care” or “not get involved”. As Elie Wiesel, the Nobel Peace Laureate and the author of “Night” says,

“Neutrality helps the oppressor never the oppressed. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. ”.

Interfere. By speaking up in conferences. Writing in journals. Not killing thousands of innocent people. What do you achieve by that?

Today, I bow my head in silence, in respect to all those who lost their lives and loved ones in these genocides and wars. I may not share the same country, language or culture with them, but we are all part of this beautiful home, Planet Earth.

Let us all keep them in our prayers. Let us pray for world peace. Let us stand up for what we believe in. Let us choose love over hatred. Let us choose. diplomacy over violence. Let us live as one human race.


 I recommend this to:

If you are someone who loves reading historical fiction and plots about war/genocides and would not mind being taunted by heart wrenching stories, I would recommend this to you.

This novel is not for the Faint-hearted.
But a heart moving, awe- inspiring, life changing read, nevertheless



Don't you just love this quote?:

"I had looked at him straight in the eyes.
Sorry for not knowing. Sorry for being forty-five years old and not knowing.”
― Tatiana de Rosnay, Sarah's Key

"Zakhor. Al Tichkah. Remember. Never forget.”
― Tatiana de Rosnay, Sarah's Key 

Don't judge the book by its cover?

When I first saw this cover art, i thought the photography was absolutely stunning. The contrast of the yellow and the girl's red dress was eye catchy. It did have a vintage feel to it. But after reading this book,  my perspective on the cover art changed: it was heart-wrenching. 

Rate:

9/10