SYNOPSIS: The story of Umaru Doma who outside her house is a perfect highschool girl but once inside becomes a lazy otaku.
RATING: 8.5/10
NUMBER OF EPISODES: 12 (Season 1) + 10 (Season 2)
STATUS: Ongoing Season 2.
REVIEW:
I found this anime very cute. There's not much about the story because it's just the events on the life of Taihei and Umaru but I like that there is character development for them. It was absurd to see how normal, fabulous, and popular Umaru is outside herhouse and lazy she is inside. You can see why there are others who doesn't like her especially since she kind of abuses her brother a lot but she's a fun character. She likes to tease her brother a lot but when a situation is serious or if he needs her - she gets serious. I also like the other characters. They're fun to watch. I like seeing Umaru develop a life outside her home and gain more friends.
I love Taihei. He was a very amazing brother and I admire him for staying strong even though Umaru abuses him a lot but he sure does spoil her a lot. I wonder what happened to their parents though?
I love that even though there are points where Umaru's tantrum got annoying, she's still very adorable. She likes teasing her brother but when he needs her (like when he got sick) she becomes someone reliable. She's also beginning to appreciate the things and people around her more because of her friends.
I love Taihei and Umaru's relationship. Umaru annoys her brother a lot and Taihei gets mad at her a lot but you can still feel how much they love one another.
I like Ebina. Her character is cute and she's very kind. I wonder why Taihei hasn't told her yet about the guy who could be her brother?
Kirie is a fun character. I like seeing how much she cares for Umaru. It's just sad that she keeps on beating up Bomba.
I love Bomba. He's very fun and warm towards Kirie even if she does beat him a lot.
I wonder when Umaru will tell everyone the truth about her? I hope she does because it sure looks like everyone will accept her for who she is.
I love Umaru and Sylphin. At first, I got annoyed at Sylphin but the more we find out about her, the more you realize why she acts the way she does. She's lovable once everyone got to know her.
It's fun seeing everyone not realize that Kumaru/Chibi Umaru is the same as Umaru. Especially Bomba.
I was shocked that Sylphin and Alex are siblings. I thought they were lovers at first *shudders* and they're rich???
Umaru is so admirable outside her house. How the hell does she do that? How does she maintain very high grades even though she plays around at home?
I wonder what's up with Hikari? How come she and Taihei also has a bond? I like how Umaru didn't like her at first but when she realized that Hikari's just lonely, she allowed Hikari to spend time with them.
"It was impossible, of course. But when did that ever stop any dreamer from dreaming?"
PAGES: 448 (Ebook)
SYNOPSIS: Lazlo, an orphan and a junior library who is obsessed with the mythical city of Weep was given the chance to visit it.
RATING: 5/5! NON-SPOILERY REVIEW
Honestly, I had a hard time reading this at first. It took me three times before I could fully absorb what was happening. It wasn't because the book was boring or anything like that, it was because the words used by Laini Taylor are so deep and beautiful that it took my brain three times before it could appreciate and process it properly. This book had a slow pacing. It took me several days before I was able to finish it. There was so much world building about this new world that Laini created. The way she writes is very beautiful to read.
Like the Daughter of Smoke and Bone, the world was very unique and interesting to read about. The world of gods and humans. The troubles and adventures the characters had were very painful and lovely to read about. The story itself was deep and heartbreaking to think read about. It kind of relates to what is really happening in the world such as the racism because of different colors. The characters were all lovely and some of them you would really get attached to. There were also some characters who you'll have love-hate relationships with because of their actions and thoughts. Lazlo was a really interesting lead character because he wasn't you're typical golden boy. He was just a simple orphan who loves reading about the lost city of Weep. He was very adorable and sincere in everything he does. I love his reactions every time he experiences something new in life. Meanwhile, Sarai was also very interesting. Her personality and line of thought was really deep and rich to read about. She understood why the humans had to do what they did and for that I found her amazing. Overall, this is an amazing start to a new series and I can't wait for the next book because it kind of ended in a cliffhanger-y way.
I love how simple Lazlo's desires were. He just wanted to visit Weep and know more about it. I love that he got his dream. He was courageous enough to fight for what he wanted. I love how everyone interacted with him and got along with him. It broke my heart to see their reaction when they found out he was godspawn. I still couldn't understand how someone as gentle as him could be the son of the ruthless killer (Skathis) and a brother of a sinister character (Minya). Omg. What if he's a child of Azareen? Who could be his mother??
I love Master Hyrrokkin. He was so fond of Lazlo and I love to see that someone cared about Lazlo even before he joined Eril's crew.
I wonder what happened to the other children of the gods? If Lazlo escaped in the human world, are there others like him?
It broke my heart to know about the history of the people of Weep with the gods. Knowing more about the point of view of the children that survived made it harder to side with anyone. I was alright with them killing the gods but the babies. They were still innocent. They could have been raised right but the citizens of Weep were to afraid of them. It wasn't right that they were slaughtered.
I love that Lazlo's powers were to control the Mezarthim.
It broke my heart to know about Azareen and Eril's past. I thought it was just a simple unrequited love by Azareen but it turns out to be more hearbreaking than that. I hated that the gods separated them and played with their emotions. It broke my heart to know that Eril escaped Isagol's control when he heart Azareen's screams while she was being raped. I cried for their pain and suffering.
"Love was no match for what burned in Eril-Fane when he heard Azareen's first screams."
I love Sarai's character. She was such a diverse character who knew the whole truth about what happened rather than Minya's one-sided truth. Both sides were at fault and it isn't right to fully blame on side for what happened. She understood the pain of the citizens of Weep and knew that they didn't do what they didn't out of pure vengeance. They did it to save themselves. Her powers were also pretty interesting.
I love Sarai and Lazlo's relationship. They were able to escape reality together and played in the dreamworld. It broke my heart to see Lazlo's reaction when she found Sarai dead. I hated that she had to die. I cried so much and I wished it wasn't really happening. I kept shouting "No" while reading that part. It also broke my heart to see that he'll soon be manipulated by Minya just because she has control of Sarai's spirit.
I really didn't like Nero. Even if his backstory is that he's abused, I don't like how he treats Lazlo. He claims credit for something that he didn't even discover. He even took Lazlo's notes and claimed to know about Weep on his own.
It was interesting to know that Sarai is the daughter of Eril.
I really hate Minya. She manipulated everyone to do her bidding and even tortured Sarai to make her do what she wanted. You can understand her anger at humans but it's not like she knew everything. Still, it's pretty traumatizing for her especially since she witnessed the slaughter. Minya's power is also pretty creepy.
I love Suhelya. She took care of Lazlo a lot and I love how she trained him not to say sorry for everything.
I wonder what city of Weep's true name is?
What happened to Azareen's child by the gods?
It was pretty interesting to know that Sarai wanted to become human while Lazlo wanted to become a godspawn. He got his wish but Sarai died.
FAVORITE QUOTES:
"I'm going to Weep, he thought, and could have laughed at the pun, but kept his composure..." "Dream up something wild and improbable," she pleaded. "Something beautiful and full of monsters." "Beautiful and full of monsters?" "All the best stories are." "And that's how you go on. You lay laughter over the dark parts. The more dark parts, the more you have to laugh. With defiance, with abandon, with hysteria, any way you can." "Some men are born for great things, and others to help great men do great things." Inside a dream. Within a lost city. In the shadow of an angel. At the brink of calamity. "Theirs wasn't the only love story ended by the gods, but it was the only one that ended the gods." "I think you're a fairy tale. I think you're magical, and brave, and exquisite. And ..." His voice grew bashful. Only in a dream could he be so bold and speak such words. "I hope you'll let me be in your story. "It's just a dream, she answered, though of course it was so much more." The world seemed more beautiful, less brutal - and so did the future - because Lazlo was in it. In the wake of the dream, anything seemed possible. Even freedom. Even love. But it was hard to hold on to that feeling as reality reasserted itself. They realized, all of them - in that moment if they hadn't already - how fond of the young outsider they'd grown. And even if they knew death was coming for them, none of them wanted to see him die first. This young man whom they had found at a library in a distant land, whom they had taken into their hearts and into their homes, and whom they valued above any outsider they had ever known, was also, impossibly, godspawn. A girl had fallen from the sky. She was blue. And she was dead. A new story was beginning. You had only to look at Lazlo to know it would be brilliant. And Sarai could not be in it. How could it be that in his triumph he had saved everyone but her?
SYNOPSIS: A group of friends receive a letter from their future self telling them to save one of their friends.
RATING: 8/10
NUMBER OF EPISODES: 13
STATUS: Completed.
NON-SPOILERY REVIEW:
Even though the sending of the letters from future is not realistic, the other events that happened were. Kakeru's depression to the event that happened in his life was realistic and you could understand why he did what he had done. You would be on the edge throughout the anime because you don't know if the event would still occur until the end. Even when everything seemed all right, there will still be something that will make you doubt. Still, I love this anime. Even among the heartbreaking things, it will give you hope and faith towards humanity. It had a lot of intense interactions between the characters. The friendship that developed between the characters was enjoyable to watch and their desire to help and save Kakeru was admirable. There were some slow moments but it's all right because there's only 13 episodes. It's an anime that will really make you feel different emotions. I cried at least 3 times (that I remember).
I love how each of them tried to help Kakeru cope up with his mother's suicide even by just being there. They allowed Kakeru to open up himself and not keep all the things he feels to himself. It was fun seeing them bond and motivate Kakeru throughout the episodes.
I felt bad for Suwa. He sacrificed his future with Naho in order to save Kakeru. He was the most selfless character there. He even sacrificed his confession to Naho when she and Kakeru fought. He never told anyone about what he knew about the future (except I think Takako knew?)
Naho and Suwa's baby in the future is cute.
You could understand why Kakeru still almost died. It was overwhelming for him after he read his mother's text messages. Those text messages will ruin someone vulnerable. It was heartbreaking to read those texts especially knowing what happened after that.
Ueda is such an asshole. I mean, yeah, Kakeru left her for Naho but didn't she notice them before she asked him out? And even after they broke up she kept harassing Naho. What a bitch.
It was devastating that Naho missed the opportunity to tell Kakeru not to date Ueda. That was heartbreaking.
There were many moments that Naho wasted by not talking to Kakeru which is kind of annoying.
I liked Hagita and Asuza together a lot. They were adorable even if they fought a lot. I also love how much the group teased those two together.
I love the bond they have as a group. They didn't forget about Kakeru even ten years in the future. I love that they celebrated each other's birthday and even got gifts.
I love that they won the race even if they didn't care about the results. They just wanted to have fun with Kakeru. It was fun to see them tease Hagita about being a slow runner.
It was funny that Hagita's solution to save Kakeru on the night of the incident is to vandalize Kakeru's bike and that even though everyone didn't agree to do it, he still did which actually stopped Kakeru from using it.
I love how Takako is so badass. Every time she wanted to beat up Ueda was fun.
SYNOPSIS: The fight for the throne between the three sisters - Mirabella, Kat, Arsinoe - continues.
RATING: 4/5
REVIEW: I really thought that this was the last book of this series (because it originally was). My mindset about what to expect about the book was ruined because of it. I got mad. Still, this was a great book. The continuation of the story was still pretty interesting. I like the twists and turns that Kendare Blake put. I love how the story panned out. It still remained dark and mysterious. There were characters that I grew to love here even though I hated them in the first book. Billy is the best! There were devastating events that happened that I really didn't think would be devastating for me. I wonder what will happen in the sequel?
PS: There will now be five books for this series!
I'm still curious as to how low magic works but I'm glad that Arsinoe got the bear to cooperate. I love Braddock. He's very adorable and I hated that Kat took him and hurt him. I hope that Madrigal and Caragh would be able to protect him.
I love that Mira was able to find out that Arsinoe remembers and didn't try to kill her. I like how much Mira cared for her. It just sucks that they weren't able to get Kat.
I was really devastated that Natalia died. She's the only one from truly cared about Kat and then she died. I hate Billy's father so much.
I don't understand what happened in the Brecca Domain but it seems really creepy. Did Kat get possessed? What the hell is in there?
I was very devastated for Kat when she found out what's happening to her. She suffered most and now she's suffering again. I'm glad that she still has Pietyr who will do anything to protect her.
I don't like Kat with Nicolas. He seemed greedy and I don't care at all that he died.
I like that Jules was introduced as also having the war gift. It explains why she's so powerful. I love how she saved Arsinoe and took care of her.
I really love Billy. He's my favorite character. I love how much he cares for Arsinoe and how he helped the sisters resolve their issue.
I love Arsinoe and Billy together. I'm glad that they were able to escape.
I love that Billy kept the chicken that he was preparing to make into a stew. Harriet is very adorable.
I love the friendship that blossomed between Mira and Billy and their dedication to defeat Kat in order to avenge Arsinoe.
I love that Kat tried to poison Arsinoe not knowing that she's the true poisoner and Mira's reaction when she found out.
So is Kat really the naturalist? Why hasn't she utilized it up until now? Unless she got the oracle power? War? Why don't we know yeeet?
I hate that Madrigal stole Matthew from her sister. I wonder what Madrigal saw about her baby though? What will that baby contribute to the seuqels?
Damn it Jules! Why'd you have to sleep with Joseph before the vital moment!
War gifted squad is badass as fuck.
I love Willa. She cares for the sister and she helped raised them.
Queen is still the best mother *sarcasm*. She trolled her own children.
I felt devastated for Elizabeth. Goddamn it Rho! I wish someone would end that woman.
I was devastated for Mira when she was betrayed by Luca.
I love the way Arsinoe, Jules, Joseph, and Mira escaped from their imprisonment. I love how the War Squad helped them.
I really hated Mira from the first book but I got fond of her here. Here dedication to avoid killing her sisters and even avenging Arsinoe when she "died" was admirable.
Is Joseph really dead? Nah, I don't even care. Even though Jules has forgiven him, I still hate him.
FAVORITE QUOTES
"Queen Katharine is not so devious as to poison these three particular pears from one particular tree in one particular orchard in one of the many parks in Rolanth. And if she is," she says to Mirabella though the side of her mouth, "then she deserves to win." "Don't be daft," he says into her hair. "No matter how far I go, I'm still your person. We stand together now." "How do they seem?" "Rather like buffoons," Jules replies honestly. "But remember that you thought the same of Billy when he first arrived." "Aye, but what are the chances of me being wrong twice?" "Why is there a chicken in your cart?" "Because this was supposed to be chicken stew," he said. "I've been hand-feeding this bird for days to be sure it was not poisoned before the fact. And now..." He pours Mirabella some water and drinks from her cup. The hen clucks, and Billy tosses down a chunk of bread. "Now her name is Harriet," he says quietly. Mirabella laughs. "You spoiled bear." Arsinoe pats Baddock on the shoulder, and he waddles away, his coat as glossy as a great brown's as she has ever seen. Wolf Spring has made him fat and sleek, well-fed on only the best of the catch. 'Why couldn't you be wretched? Don't you have any manners? You should've had the courtesy to be terrible. So I could despise you." "I am sorry. Shall I start now? Spit in your eye and kick you?" "That sounds like something Arsinoe would do, actually. So I would find it endearing. "My room is too quiet," he says. "I miss Harriet and her clucking." "Harriet will be well, with Joseph's family?" she asks. "She'd better be. If I return to find her in a stew pot..." Billy trails off. "I should have told her. I never told her." "I am sure that she knew." "How could she? All I did was tell her that she was unfit. Unsuitable. Infuriating, with none of the makings a man looks for in a wife." He laughs hollowly. "And that was true. But I would have overlooked all that." "Arsinoe, you dolt! Stay in bed!" "Dolt? What a thing to say when I've almost died." It is crushed hopes. The air reeks of their bitterness. Braddock greets him by standing up on his hind legs, and Billy screams. "Natalia," she whispers. "My mother."
Moments don't last. You've got to enjoy each one for what it is.
PAGES: 345 (Ebook) SYNOPSIS: Magnus Chase goes on a journey with his friends to stop Ragnarok. RATING: 4.25/5 REVIEW: I love Rick Riordan. As usual, I enjoyed his book. It was entertaining and interesting to see how Rick Riordan would incorporate the actual Norse Mythology in this book. It was particularly enjoyable since I just finished reading a Norse Mythology book (written by Neil Gaiman) and I could see that Rick Riordan really used parts of it in his story. I enjoyed reading about the journey that Magnus and the others went through to stop Ragnarok. The characters, their relationship, and their dialogues were fun to read about. I hope that there will still be another series about Magnus and the others. They were an enjoyable bunch and I hope to see more of them in the future.
I liked seeing Percy and Annabeth in the first chapters. I love those two and I love how Percy praised Annabeth for her work in the Heroes of Olympus. She really did save the a lot using her intelligence. It was terrible though that they were sad in the end part. Why though? Is it because Grover went missing (based from the Apollo series)?
Percy's baby sister Estelle! What a cutie! I love how one of Magnus' motivation to stop Ragnarok is so that Percy can spend more time with Estelle.
I love Alex and Magnus together. They're adorable. I liked their interactions and the way their relationship developed throughout the journey. I also love that their names are Alex and Magnus (like Malec in Shadowhunters - is it where Rick Riordan took it from?)
It's funny how the color of the boat being yellow banana is one of the issues Magnus had throughout the journey.
It was interesting to see a character fasting in a book. I don't know how Ramadan works but it was interesting to see Sam follow it even though she's in a journey and she needed her strength.
Njord was a weird character but he did help Magnus and the others.
It was sad to know that TJ can't turn down a challenge and that's the main reason that he died. I love how his father challenged him to shake hands.
It was interesting to know more about Alex's past even if it was terrible. I love that her/his skill in pottery was used in a fight. Pottery barn for the win!
Magnus is a pretty interesting character and I love him. He was sarcastic and fun to read about especially when he gets stunned (is this the correct term) by Alex. He was subtle in showing his feelings about Alex and I love that. I also love that he wasn't a violent character. His powers were disarming and healing which is pretty useful.
It was terrible what they had to do to Hearth's father but I was glad that he got his rest from the greed. I love Andiron for helping Hearth and comforting him.
It was cool to know that Mallory is the daughter of Frigg. That's badass being the daughter of the Queen of the Gods.
It was terrible what happened to the slaves of Bauri. You could understand why TJ got mad at Mallory for killing them.
The murder of crows were really stupid goddamn.
It was fun to see that Magnus won the flyting by praising his friends and rubbing it to Loki that he has no one and he's alone. It was badass of Sigyn to leave him during the flyting and rub it that no one cares about him. Also, good of Sam and Alex to resist their father/mother!
I liked that they turned Rudolph's mansion into a homeless shelter. It was a wonderful idea and I'm proud of Magnus for thinking about it.
FAVORITE QUOTES
Thirty minutes later, I woke up as good as new. Now here I was again, ready for more pain. Hooray. You
can stagger around the battlefield in Valhalla, mortally wounded,
gasping your last breath, and calmly think, Oh, so that's what a crushed
rib cage feels like. Interesting. "See, Magnus? I told you it wasn't stupid to carry a sword disguised as a pen!" And you have to flaunt the weird, my friends. "You're a strange person." "I prefer the term fabulously weird." But why, oh,why had my father made the boat the color of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter! "I vote we name it the Big Banana. All in favor?" Words can be more lethal than blades, Magnus. You can't hold on to hate forever. It won't do a thing to the person you hate, but it'll poison you, sure enough. IN CASE you're wondering, Old York looks absolutely nothing like New York. It looks older. Magnus Chase, master of description. You're welcome. "No, you're too scrawny." Hrungnir pointed to T.J. "I challenge him!" "I ACCEPT!" T.J. yelled. Then he blinked, as if thinking Thanks a lot, Dad. "Wh-what's going on?" I asked. "What's with the glasses?" Alex Fierro appeared in the doorway. "A scream that high could only be Magnus." My first task was my favorite one -- getting out of the way. "All we can do is try, Magnus. I choose to believe that our hardships make us stronger. Everything we've been through on this voyage - it matters. It increases our chances of victory." "I know. I think the hardest thing we can ever do is see someone for who they really are. Our parents. Our friends. Ourselves." "And when she kissed me under that blanket yesterday..." I met Alex's two-color eyes. "Well, that was just about the best thing that ever happened to me."
The word that started -- ruined, change -- everything.
PAGES: 308 (Ebook) SYNOPSIS: It's about bestfriends who ended up becoming enemies. RATING: 4.25/5 REVIEW: This is a very interesting book with plenty of twists and turns. I like the characters and their backstories. VE Schwab's is amazing af. Her writing is amazing. I love how the timeline changes from the past to the present. It kept things mysterious and engaging. It also helps that the story is fast paced. I like knowing more about Eli and Victor as the story goes on. Even though they both did terrible things, it was easy to see which side was more reasonable than the other. They are both in a morally gray area but I kind of hated the other side. Too self-righteous for my taste. I wonder what will happen in the sequel?
It was kind of a let down for me that I figured out who Victor murdered that ruined his relationship with Eli and got him put in prison.
I really didn't like Eli. He seemed very self-righteous. He killed innocent people.Sure, they were EOs but they probably didn't chose to be EOs in the first place. They didn't do it on purpose. They just wanted to live and survive. Unlike, he and Victor. I was glad to see the ending he got. It was justice because he can't be killed but he was punished for his way of life.
I liked Victor. He was manipulative and charismatice. It was interesting to see him plan out his revenge against Eli. It sucked that he was put in jail for 10 years for something that he didn't do on purpose. I was glad that he got Mitch, Sydney, and Dominic with him and that Sydney brought him back. Though, I wonder what he'll do now that he got his revenge?
Victor's power is badass. It was cool but it sucked when he's against Eli.
I loved Mitch. He was adorable for a big guy and I liked that he was smart. It broke my heart each time a sentence or chapter ended with him getting killed when he really did survived. I felt bad that Mitch got into prison several times for things that he didn't do.
Serena was a powerful EO. Her power is really dangerous and I'm glad that they burned her. Although I feel bad for Sydney. I wonder what she'd do if she finds out that Victor killed Serena.
I love Sydney. She's an interesting character and I love how powerful she is. She kind of reminds me of Lila from A Darker Shade of Magic.
I want to know more about EOs. I wonder what will happen in the sequel?
I felt bad for Victor about Angie. He liked her first but she picked Eli.
I liked Dominic. He was interesting enough and I'm glad that Victor was able to help him with his pain.
I felt bad for Sydney after Serena abandoned her. She even let Eli murder her sister.
It was nice knowing that Sydney wanted to go to Victor when Serena ordered her to go to a safe place. It was terrible though that Eli almost killed her. I'm glad that Dominic saved her.
Glad that the police didn't believe Eli - justice!
Oh my god they were at the same hotel (or within the vicinity of each other) from the start!
FAVORITE QUOTES
Be lost. Give up. give In. in the end It would be better to surrender before you begin. be lost. Be lost And then you will not care if you are ever found. "You must make time for that which matters," he recited, "for that which defines you: your passion, your progress, your pen. Take it up, and write your own story." All Eli had to do was smile. All Victor had to do was lie. Both proved frighteningly effective. "You can't kill him." "That may be." His fingers curled around the shovel. "But half the fun is trying." "How do you feel?" asked Eli. "Like ass, Cardale," snapped Victor. Victor Vale was not a fucking sidekick. "No one is going to hurt you. Do you know why?" She shook her head, and Victor smiled. "Because I'll hurt them first." "He called me unnatural," said Sydney softly. "Said my power went against nature. Against God." "Charming, isn't he?" "Victor named him Dol," she said. "It's a measurement of pain," explained Victor. "Well, that's morbidly appropriate," said Mitch. "I need you to stay here." "Why?" she asked. "Because you don't think I'm a bad person," he said. "And I don't want to prove you wrong." "We're all monsters," she said, taking up her books. "But so are you." "There are no good men in this game," said Mitch. But these words people threw around -- humans, monstes, heroes, villains -- to Victor it was all just a matter of semantics. Someone could call themselves a hero and still walk around killing dozens. Someone else could be labeled a villain for trying to sotp them. Plenty of humans were monstrous, and plenty of monsters knew how to play at being human. He let out a breath and patted Mitch's jaw. The man groaned "Mother...fucker..." "I see you met Eli," said Victor. "He's always been a bit trigger happy." "You don't understand," gasped Eli. "No one understands." "When no one understands, that's usually a good sign that you're wrong."
"Not every mistake deserves a consequence. Sometimes the only thing it deserves is forgiveness."
PAGES: 224 (Ebook) SYNOPSIS: It's all about the lies and secrets involving the dysfunctional Voss family. RATING: 4/5 REVIEW: It was interesting to read about the Voss family. They had a lot of issues and secrets that resulted to their indifference to one another and it was interesting to see things unravel and for them to deal with it. The issues that were mentioned - mental health, suicide, infidelity - were not deeply discussed but played a major role in the development and outcome of things. It was interesting to see how Colleen Hoover integrated those in her story. Focusing on the family aspect rather than the love story was a wonderful change from her usual books. This book had many lesson such as it's important to look at things in different perspective, sometimes there are things that should just be forgiven, be honest, and your feelings matter.
Overall, it was a very enjoyable read. The pacing is fast and it's very intriguing. You will really want to learn what is happening in the Voss household. PS: The first chapter is the reason I read this. It was intriguing, perfect, and heartbreaking.
Dollar Voss inhabitants are messed up but their issue is mainly rooted on miscommunication. They could have resolved things earlier if no secrets were kept.
Merit is annoying at points but understandable at some. For all the secrets she kept, it's easy to see why she got messed up. It's hard keeping things to yourself and pretending that things are all right when you know that it's not.
I liked Sagan but I didn't love him. It was somehow weird that he was so perfect in a story that involved messed up characters. It was terrible that he never found out what happened to his family.
I liked that Merit liked collecting trophies. It was weird and expensive.
I didn't like Barnaby at first especially after Merit saw him sneaking out of the basement but when all the things have been revealed, it was admirable about how he kept things together. Sure, he cheated, but he didn't mean too. It was hard for him to see what happened to his wife and it affected him hard.
I liked Moby. He was very adorable.
I admire Victoria Finney. Sure, she was a mistress but living in a house with your husband's ex is very hard and everyone just assumed she was a bad person. She took a lot of hatred from Barnaby's children but she held it together.
I don't like what Honor is doing because I find it weird but her argument about it to Merit seems reasonable.
I liked Luck at first but it got weird when he tried to sleep with the inhabitant of Dollar Voss. Still, he was a fun character and he was supportive and kind towards Merit.
I liked Merit and Sagan together but I can't get over the fact that Merit made out with him even after she thought that he was Honor's boyfriend.
It was fun to see them, especially Barnaby, try to bury Wolfgang with Pastor Brian.
I like the fact that Wolfgang gave birth to puppies but it's weird that they never noticed that she was pregnant. I love Moby's argument about the puppy's names.
Utah had pretty weird events - kissing Merit and sleeping with Luck. I agree with Barnaby that his relationship with Luck is weird.
I liked that Barnaby punched Utah for kissing Merit.
I love that Sagan saved, stayed, and comforted Merit after her attempted suicide.
It's weird how Sagan kept using his relationship as leverage for her to love herself. I didn't like it.
It was nice seeing Utah and Merit make up and seeing the Voss family resolve their issues.
I liked the tattoo that Sagan put on Merit. I liked the fact that Honor helped Merit cover it up when Barnaby discovered it.
I wonder what's up with Colleen Hoover when she named the characters. Their names are pretty weird. Even their relationship with one another is weird.
FAVORITE QUOTES:
Maybe
if I let all the secrets out, they wouldn't make me feel like drowning anymore.
"So many
people dream of living in a house with a white picket fence. Little do they
know, there’s no such thing as a perfect family, no matter how white the picket
fence is."
"Tuqburni is used to describe the all-encompassing feeling of not being able to live without someone. Which is why the literal translation is, "You bury me."
And I don’t know many people who would stick
their hand down someone’s throat and then sift through their vomit to count the
number of pills they swallowed.
Maybe that’s the root of a lot of family issues.
It isn't actually the issues people are hung up about for so long. It’s that no
one has the courage to take the first step in talking about the issues.
But if I've learned anything this week, it’s
that I don’t know people as well as I think I do.
If someone had told me last week that we’d be
having this moment tonight, I’d have laughed at them and said it would be a
miracle.
Maybe it is.
What
I’m saying is, the same two things could happen to two people, but that doesn't mean they would experience the exact same stress over it. We all have different
levels of stress that we’re accustomed to. You probably felt the same amount of
stress over your family situation as I sometimes do about mine, even though
they’re on completely different levels. But that doesn't make you weaker. It doesn't make you an asshole. We’re just two different people with two different
sets of experiences.
“It
annoys me when people try to convince other people that their anger or stress isn't warranted if someone else in the world is worse off than them. It’s
bullshit. Your emotions and reactions are valid, Merit. Don’t let anyone tell
you any different. You’re the only one who feels them.”
“Okay,” Moby says excitedly. He holds up the one
in his hands and says, “I’m naming this one Dick.” I laugh. “I’m not sure your mom will go for that.”
He frowns. “Why not? She named me Moby. I want to name my puppy Dick so we can be
brothers.”
Do not let what you gained this day be so easily lost.
PAGES: 284 (Ebook) SYNOPSIS: A retelling of the story of Achilles in Patroclus' point of view. RATING: 3.8/5 REVIEW: I liked this book. The pacing was kind of slow but it helped that Madeline Miller's writing is very beautiful. It had an accurate retelling of the story of Achilles and seeing his life in Patroclus' point of view is an interesting take. I already knew how their story would end (because I've read about the Trojan war before) but it was still interesting to see how Madeline Miller would write their story. I love Greek Myth and this had shown me more about Achilles' life before the Trojan War. However, I had a hard time connecting and really falling in love with Achilles and Patroclus' relationship. They had their cute times but I wasn't really invested in their relationship but I did like their friendship in the beginning. Also, I felt that after Patroclus and Achilles died, the writing kind of felt different and abrupt.
I was devastated that Patroclus had a terrible childhood because his father sucked. He was even exiled for something that he didn't do on purpose. I was glad that he and Achilles met and he found someone who liked him for who he is.
I probably had issues with Achilles and Patroclus together because I liked Achilles and Briseis together in the Troy movie. Although here, they were enemies. They didn't like each other.
To be honest, I liked seeing Patroclus and Briseis together. They had their own bond and it was adorable. I wanted them to be together and to survive. But that didn't happen which sucked.
I felt terrible for what happened to Iphigenia. She came there thinking she was going to be married to Achilles only to end up dying.
Agammemnon was such a terrible man. He did many things that antagonized the main characters and he even killed his own daughter. I'm glad that in the Greek Myth, his wife killed him.
I loved the idea of Patroclus and Briseis saving the other girls who were captured during the war. They were able to save some from trauma.
I'm glad that Thetis realized that she was somewhat wrong in the end and even put Patroclus name in the monument and gave him rest. I liked seeing that Achilles and Patroclus ended up together in the afterlife.
I loved Odysseus. I love his stories and his witty remarks. It was also fun seeing him argue a lot with Diomedes.
It was weird knowing that Deidameia also had sex with Patroclus. I don't like and understand why they did that.
It was interesting that Patroclus had the duty to help the injured. Since, he cannot fight, I was glad that he had a purpose during the war.
I was devastated when Patroclus died. Briseis and Achilles were very devastated because of his death and it also caused Achilles to lose his mind and hope.
I loved the scene where Thetis tried to kill Odysseus only to fail. I was glad because someone wasn't terrified of Thetis.
Pyrrhus was such an asshole. He was a heartless bastard. I hated him.
FAVORITE QUOTES:
Useless information is my curse, I'm afraid. "So, in the course of our conversations, when it became clear that the Lady Penelope favored me-" "Not for your looks, certainly," Diomedes commented. "Certainly not," Odysseus agreed. "I'll go." Diomedes stood from where he leaned against the rail. "I've heard this one almost as many times as that sickening bed story." "Your loss," Odysseus called after him. "Don't mind him. His wife's a hellhound bitch, and that would sour anyone's temper. Now, my wife--" "I swear." Diomedes' voice carried back up the length of the ship. "If you finish up that sentence, I will throw you over the side and you can swim to Troy."
"I'm sick to death of this tale about your marriage bed." "Then perhaps you shouldn't have suggested I tell it." "And perhaps you should get some new stories, so I don't fucking kill myself of boredom." "A thousand ships have sailed for her." A thousand was the number Agammemnon's bards had started using; one thousand, one hundred and eight-six didn't fit well in a line of verse.
PAGES: 226 (Ebook) SYNOPSIS: The story of Molly Peskin, a girl who had 26 unrequited love. RATING: 3.8/5 REVIEW: After reading this, I enjoyed it. The writing was beautiful. There were many lines that I liked. However after thinking about it, there was an issue of how much nothing really happened all throughout the book. I mean, sure, it's a contemporary book and the plot of most contemporary book isn't all that complicated, but this one spent so many parts where Molly whined about her life. On the other hand, I still liked seeing how things unfolded. I was curious as to what would happen with Molly's life. Molly was kind of relatable with her unrequited crushes. There's also the fact that I love how close she is with her family. Pat and Nadine are wonderful mothers. I also loved Reid. He was cute and adorable. Abby was also a wonderful character and friend. Plus, I love the fact that there is a diverse set of characters in this book.
I haven't read Simon VS the Homo Sapiens Agenda (I've tried) so I wasn't able to connect why Simon, Abby's new best friend, made some minor appearances. Although, he was pretty adorable on the scenes that he appeared in.
I love the family relationship. Pat and Nadine were very involved in their children's life and it was fun seeing parents interact with their children in a book. They were supportive of their children's happiness and they managed to be a proper parent for them. They were open but they also got angry when their child disobeyed them.
I absolutely adored Pat and Nadine together. They were pretty adorable. I love that their marriage is the main event for the ending.
I love how everyone that knows about Olivia and Evan seemed pretty annoyed at Evan. Even Nadine. Evan is such an asshole though for saying and doing what he did to Olivia.
"Hey," pipes Nadine, "don't let her bring that Schulmeister kid. They're still broken up, right? Because I do not need my doorstep darkened by that little shitwiper on my wedding day. Nope to the nope."
I love the sibling relationship between Cassie and Molly. They had their issues but they managed to understand what each other was going through at the end and forgive each other for the wrong things that they have said and done. I love how much support they have given each other at some parts.
I really wanted the book to end with Reid and Molly dancing. I wanted to see them dance.
I really did not feel that Will liked Molly. I just thought he flirted a lot. I agree with what happened on their side but I did not see it coming when Will admitted that he was in love with Mina.
I really loved Reid and Molly together. I love how open they are with each other. They were able to talk to each other with ease. They had fun together and it was pretty adorable.
I disliked the part when Molly was thinking bad of Olivia when she thought that Olivia and Reid liked each other. Sure it was heartbreaking for her but I really felt bad because she was kind of backstabbing Olivia (even if it's just in her mind). I was glad that Molly regretted her thoughts towards Olivia near the end.
I love how Cassie and their parents defended Molly when their grandmother was insulting Molly for being fat. I felt that it was unfair because I really did not think that Molly was fat. Humans shouldn't be judged by their body sizes.
I liked that even though Abby was far away from her Molly, she was the one who was able to make Molly admit that she liked Reid. Abby was a pretty wonderful best friend even though they weren't together.
FAVORITE QUOTES:
I've never told anyone this-not my moms, not even Cassie-but that's the thing I'm most afraid of. Not mattering. Existing in a world that doesn't care who I am. It's this whole other level of aloneness. I know this doesn't exactly make me unique, but I love the internet. I love it. I think the way I feel about the internet is the way some people feel about the ocean. It's so huge and unknowable, but also totally predictable. You type a line of symbols and click enter, and everything you want to happen, happens. "Your bastard children are very happy for you." "Oh my God! We won't be bastards anymore," I say. "Aww, you guys will always be our bastards." "So, maybe I should let my heart break, just to prove that my heart can take it. Or at the very least, I need to stop being so fucking careful." "But there's this awfulness that comes when a guy thinks you like him. It's as if he's fully clothed and you're naked in front of him. It's like your heart suddenly lives outside your body, and whenever he wants, he can reach out and squeeze it. Unless he happens to like you back." "I'm telling you: life is too short for this bullshit." "And sometimes that's just what happens. People grow apart." "There's just something terrifying about admitting you like someone. In a way, it's actually easier when there's no chance of anything happening. But there's this threshold where things suddenly become possible. And then your cards are on the table. And there you are, wanting, right out in the open." "Yeah, the waiting sucks. Especially when you start feeling like it's never going to happen." "But you know, there's an upside here. Because when you spend so much time just intensely wanting something, and then you actually get the thing? It's magic." I can't quite articulate the sweetness of that feeling. It's finding out the door you were banging on is finally unlocked. Maybe it was unlocked the whole time.
