Month: August 2018

Book Review · Books

Sleep, Merel, Sleep – Silke Stein [BOOK REVIEW]

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book review blog diary of difference books

★★★★

This is a story about a little girl called Merel. This is also a story about how Merel one day can’t sleep. This story also happens to be one of the most adorable middle grade stories that I have ever read. Silke Stein did an amazing job in portraying a little girl, and creating a magical world that we see through her eyes.

Merel is a little girl and since her sick baby brother was born, her parents stopped paying attention to her.

In a magical world, far, far away, a dream collector plays on a violin and makes children fall asleep. But this one day, the dream collector gives up on Merel’s sleep and leaves his tiny silver violin in her bedroom.

Merel learns that her sleep has abandoned her, and she goes onto an incredible journey to recover the sleep, or to stay awake forever. With many characters helping her along the way, she will learn what the most important things in life are, and she will learn to see things in a different way.

sleep merel sleep silke stein book review books children middle grade blog diary of difference

While meeting a sleepy king, and a man on a train that goes nowhere, and moonfish that cry, and a little baby handed in her hands, we will see this magical world through an eight-year-old girl and how her perception changes chapter by chapter.

This is one of the books that will make you feel relaxed and deeply satisfied within after reading it. I felt lighter and was glowing all day.

Merel is such a cute character, and any parent would wish to have her as a daughter. She is the perfect example of how children react when a new baby sibling comes to the family, and they think that the parents don’t love them anymore, because they devote their attention to this little creature that cries all the time.

I loved her adventures – they were so adorable, and so many questions and discussions were raised. Even though the beginning was a bit slow for me, and it took me a while to catch the story, I am completely certain that this was because I am a grown up – and I am sure that kids will be easily able to dive into the story immediately.

Thank you to Silke Stein, for sending me a paperback copy of Sleep, Merel, Sleep, in exchange for an honest review.

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Book Review · Books

Ignite (Midnight Fire #1) – Kaitlyn Davis [BOOK REVIEW]

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book review blog diary of difference books

★★★★

Kira Dawson has the power to burn vampires to a crisp. The problem is, she doesn’t know it yet. The even bigger problem is, she’s dating one.

When Kira Dawson moves to South Carolina, she meets Luke, a blond goofball who quickly becomes her best friend, and Tristan, a mysterious bad boy who sends shivers down her spine. Kira knows they’re keeping secrets, but when she discovers Tristan’s lust for blood and her own dormant mystical powers, Kira is forced to fight for her life and make the heart-breaking decision between the familiar comfort of friendship and the fiery passion of love.

Ignite was another book from Tea’s Wishlist challenge. I did enjoy this book, even though I found it slow at first. We have a familiar setting of a girl that moves to a new place, makes friends and enemies right away, and discovers secrets. And, it turns out the boy she loves is a vampire.

ignite kaitlyn davis midnight fire series book one book review books blog diaryofdifference

The first though I have in the first chapters, and I believe you did too, was – Twilight much? But, no. Once you get to read further into the book, you realise that Kira is nothing like Bella. And Tristan is nothing like Edward either.

This book is so different, and somewhat refreshing from all vampire books I have read so far. It isn’t even a book about vampires. It’s a book about this girl that can mirror the sun’s light and heat from her hands, and is able to hurt only vampires. With her friend, Luke, Kira will discover that she has this ability, and so much more, she will discover secrets about her past that will change her life forever, and she will have to choose between her best friend or the love of her life.

I thought that this book might have used more action, as I felt a bit bored, especially at the beginning, and sometimes during some parts of the book.

I loved Kira’s character – she is the typical girl that moves and tries her best to fit in.

I loved Tristan – he proves that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, and sometimes people aren’t what everyone thinks they are, and your environment doesn’t define you as a person.

I didn’t like Luke – I know he was there with a mission to tell Kira her secrets and protect her – but what friend would make you feel guilty about every single choice you have to make in your life. He is like, the very attached and overprotective boyfriend, that isn’t her boyfriend.

Overall, it was a great refreshing read, and I look forward to reading the rest of the series. If you love vampire  high-school stories, women that discover they have powers, a lot of forbidden love and paranormal fantasy – you will really enjoy this book. Solid 4 stars from me!

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Book Review · Books

Wonder Woman: Her Greatest Battles – George Perez [BOOK REVIEW]

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book review blog diary of difference books

★★★

 

This is my first graphic novel, and I did enjoy the art in it! This book contains the greatest battles of Wonder Woman. It is a compilation of seven comic book scenes, all sharing a different battle of Wonder Woman, and a different kind of art.. But even though I enjoyed the art, as a first one, this didn’t make me happy.

The stories  are put in this compilation chronologically by when they were made, starting from a scene that was made in 1987, until the last one, which was made in 2013. I will give a brief comment on all of them – in order:

 

‘’Power Play’’ from Wonder Woman #6 (1987)

Plot & Pencils: George Perez, Script: Len Wein, Inks: Bruce Patterson, Colors: Tatjana Wood, Letters: John Costanza, Cover: George Perez

The first story is a scene where Diana is fighting the god of war – Ares. As a first one, it is not the best descriptive piece of information – so for a person that haven’t heard about Wonder Woman before, this one won’t be of any use. I also didn’t quite enjoy the art in this one.

‘’And for the first time in his immortal existence, the war-god weeps… for, without those alive to worship him, Ares’ power swiftly wanes…’’

 

‘’In The Forest Of The Night’’ from Wonder Woman #119 (1997)

Story & Art: John Byrne; Colors: Patricia Mulvihill; Cover: Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez

 

In this scene, Diana is on a mission to save officer Michael P. Schorr of the G.C.P.D. from the cheetah that used to be Barbara Minerva. Diana manages to convince Barbara to win the battle with herself and become human again. Even though I didn’t quite enjoy the art – I did enjoy the story itself. It was a great lesson of fighting for who you are within, and winning battles with yourself and not surrendering to anything that might be in your way. We also get to have a little sneak-peak of how Wonder Woman started existing in the first place.

‘’Yes, Mike, it is not widely known, but I was not born as mortals are, my mother sculpted a baby from the clay of Themyscira and the Gods themselves breathed life into that clay. ‘’

wonder woman her greatest battles comic book graphic novel books book review diary of difference

‘’Stoned: Conclusion’’ from Wonder Woman #210 (2005)

Script: Greg Rucka; Pencils: Drew Johnson; Inks: Ray Snyder; Colors: Richard & Tanya Horie; Letters: Todd Klein; Cover: J.G. Jones

This one is a gladiator battle between Wonder Woman and Medusa. I really enjoyed this one, the art was amazing and we even get a few scenes with Circe-witch on it. I love how Wonder Woman is presented to be smart and the sacrifice that she made was very brave. Such a powerful story! Amazing!

‘’Sacrifice: Part four’’ from Wonder Woman #219 (2005)

Scripts: Greg Rucka; Pencils: Rags Morales, David Lopez, Tom Derenick, Georges Jeanty & Karl Kerschl; Inks: Mark Propst, BIT, Dexter Vines, Bob Petrecca & Nelson; Colors: Richard & Tanya Horie; Letters: Todd Klein; Cover: J.G. Jones

Superman has been brainwashed and wants to kill Diana. Not much happens apart from Wonder Woman and Superman fighting. I didn’t like this one, only because of one quote that says:

‘’You’ll forgive me for saying it, princess, but you look good on your knees…’’

 

‘’A Murder Of Crows: Part Two – Throwdown’’ from Wonder Woman #41 (2010)

Script: Gail Simone; Pencils: Chris Batista & Fernando Dagnino; Inks: Doug Hazlewood & Raul Fernandez; Colors: Brad Anderson; Letters: Travis Lanham; Cover: Aaron Lopresti

 

Even though the beginning features Achilles and Patroclus, after a page or two we don’t see them anymore, and I am standing like… what’s the point in mentioning them in the first place then? This piece of art contains a battle between Power Girl and Wonder Woman, and how Power Girl can never be like Wonder Woman, unless, of course, she has no other choice. I liked this one, maybe the most, even though the art was just average.

 

‘’Justice League: Part Three’’ from Justice League #3 (2011)

Script: Geoff Johns; Pencils: Jim Lee; Inks: Scott Williams; Colors: Alex Sinclair, HI-FI & Gabe Ettaeb; Letters: Pat Brosseau; Cover: Jim Lee, Scott Williams & Alex Sinclair

This piece of art was different than anything else in this book. We see a lot of famous heroes fight, like Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and of course, Wonder Woman. The art is really colourful, which I enjoyed, but the story was confusing. See, it started from the middle of a comic book, and then ended unfinished. It only covered the part where Wonder Woman appears, but it confused me and I didn’t enjoy the story as much. Again, I didn’t like the way how they express themselves to a woman. They see Wonder Woman and they call dibs on her. Really?

 

‘’Goddown’’ from Wonder Woman #23 (2013)

Script: Brian Azzarello; Art: Cliff Chiang; Colors: Matthew Wilson; Letters: Jared K. Fletcher; Cover: Cliff Chiang

 

A very confusing chapter, and I didn’t enjoy it at all. It was about Hera and her children, and Wonder Woman protecting them. Even though this is the newest made, it didn’t seem like it, and the art seemed old-style.

Overall, I didn’t enjoy it as much, and it wouldn’t be something I’d choose in the future. I’d rather go with a proper beginning-to-end story rather than a compilation next time.

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Books · Monthly Tags

Book Wrap Up – July 2018

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Hello Beautiful People! 

July has been a great month for me! I have managed to finish 10 books! With still a lot book to be read, I am excited for August! Some of the books I’ve read this month have disappointed me, but then, some of them might be my 2018 favorites!

Here’s the big list, and you know – if you want to read the full review, just click on the links.

Here is what I have read in  July:

CIRCE - Madeline Miller books book review blog diary of difference bookshelf bookstagram goodreads bestseller

  • Circe by Madeline Miller (paperback) – ★★★★★

Circe is the first book I read this month and it is definitely my favorite read! A lovely story, a greek mythology retelling by Madeline Miller. A powerful woman that made me think about my choices in life. A masterpiece you should definitely read!

 

 

the dead sagas lee conley book review blog

The Dead Sagas: Volume I, Part I by Lee Conley is a dark fantasy novel, a horror saga unlike any other. This is not a book for the weak. This is the book for the bravest, the ones who dare to read it, and the ones who can handle to continue living with what they now know.

 

 

fawkes - nadine brandes - book review blog goodreads

  • Fawkes by Nadine Brandes (ebook – ARC) – ★★★★★

Fawkes came out on 10th July and this is the first book I have read from Nadine Brandes. Amazing story about the time of Guy Fawkes – this time with a little bit of magic added to it. When the masks become real, and colors give you power, with two sides against each other, you have to learn to fight! I loved this book, and it is the second and last 5-star book for this month! Definitely worth a read!

 

 

beast: a tale of love and revenge

This book came out on 10th July as well. A re-telling of the Beauty and the Beast, told from the point of view of the candle. It has all the magic inside of it, but there were some disturbing scenes for me, personally. I didn’t enjoy this book, but if you like retellings, you might like it!

 

 

Book Cover

I got this book from the library only because I loved Circe and I love greek mythology. This book didn’t deliver. It is a story about Achilles and the Trojan War, told by the point of view of Patroclus, who managed to be Achilles’s best friend and lover. I am sure you’ll love it if you love greek mythology.

 

 

beautiful demons shadow demons sarra cannon book review blog diary of difference

I started a challenge called Tea’s Wishlist. Tea is my teen sister, and I will be reading her favorite books and genre for a while. The Shadow Demons was an amazing introduction to what I hope to be is an amazing series.

 

 

inner demons - shadow demons #2 - sarra cannon - book review

I greatly enjoyed Inner Demons – the second book from the Shadow Demons series.  My sister seems to have a good taste in books – I am very glad I started the Tea’s Wishlist challenge on Goodreads. Inner Demons continues right where Beautiful Demons end. Harper has been chosen to join the cheerleading team, which means instant popularity and people noticing here. But that’s not all – when you are a member of the cheerleading squad, you not only learn routines, dances and cheers. You also learn how to do magic!

 

 

the stone of destiny: a sherlock holmes adventure richard t ryan book review blog diary of difference

Fans of Sherlock Holmes, fans of mystery, fans of adventure and suspense – this might be your next favorite book! Now, I have never read a Sherlock Holmes book before, so I can’t compare this book to the original books from Arthur Conan Doyle. But, what I will do for you is tell you all I thought about this book!

 

 

bitter demons - shadow demons - sarra cannon - book review blog diary of difference

Bitter Demons is the third book from The Shadow Demons Saga, and the third book of my challenge to read my sister’s books. As a third book of this series, I have to be honest and say that this one didn’t deliver. I expected so much more to happen, and so many more questions to be answered.

 

 

miss peregrine's home for peculiar children books book review blog diary of difference

It doesn’t hurt me to say that I have watched the movie before I read the book. What hurts me to say is that even though I loved the book, I enjoyed the movie way more. But I am not here to compare the book and the movie, because I loved them both in a different way.

 

Book Review · Books

Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children #1) – Ransom Riggs [BOOK REVIEW]

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★★★★

It doesn’t hurt me to say that I have watched the movie before I read the book. What hurts me to say is that even though I loved the book, I enjoyed the movie way more. But I am not here to compare the book and the movie, because I loved them both in a different way.

‘’I had just come to accept that my life would be ordinary when extraordinary things began to happen.’’

Jacob was raised by his grandfather, who told him stories about the amazing house he used to live in, and all the children that lived with him, that had amazing abilities and were different than ordinary people. Grandpa Portman would even show Jacob pictures of the children and their peculiarities – he would tell him stories about the invisible boy, the girl that could float if she didn’t have iron boots, the girl that could breath out fire and the children that could easily lift the heaviest rocks. He would also talk about the danger and the big monsters that the children were so scared of.

And Jacob believed and loved these stories – he shared an amazing bond with his grandpa. Until, of course, he grew up. Suddenly, he was old enough to know this isn’t true, and stopped believing. His grandpa would try to convince him, and warn him that the monsters are coming, but the only conclusion he had is that his grandpa lost his marbles.

But then his grandpa dies, and Jacob sees the monsters himself. Despite everyone believing that he is crazy, just like his grandpa, Jacob now has no choice but to find these strange children – and get answers to all his questions.

miss peregrine's home for peculiar children books book review blog diary of difference

The book moves quite slow, and it is not until half of the book that we actually get to meet the children. As a person that watched the movie, this was extremely frustrating, as I kept waiting and waiting, and nothing special happened for 90 pages.

The author puts photographs in the book, and they are perfectly put in the book to explain how a character looks, and to describe the scene better. This was the strawberry to my cake in this book. I immensely enjoyed the beautiful photographs and how perfectly well they fitted with the book and detailed the characters. The only character that I couldn’t imagine was Miss Peregrine – her picture is not at all what I expected. At first, I thought about sharing some of those pictures here – but then, I assumed you might enjoy them more if you explore them yourself while reading the book, as they come – as I could never be able to do that as well as Ransom Riggs did.

For the ones you watched the movie first – the movie is not at all the same as the book. So lower your expectations, otherwise you will be disappointed. The movie seemed to have put three books into one, and swapped people’s abilities, and made up some scenes and places.

The book, however, had parts that you wouldn’t see in the movie, and its own magic of detailed descriptions to your favorite stories and characters.

I hated Jacob. Not just at the beginning, but all the way through. Mister ‘’I-am-too-good-for-everything’’ , Mister ‘’My-family-is-so-rich-I-will-try-my-best-to-get-fired-from-work-because-my-uncle-owns-the-shop’’. No – Just no. As much as I enjoyed his story, his character is very egocentric and unlikable. I actually liked Grandpa Abe so much more, even though he was only partially and ghostly present in the book.

Miss Peregrine didn’t reveal much of her character as she does in the movie. We don’t get to read a lot about her to be honest, and she was the one person I expected to see more of.

We get to hang around with the children a lot though, and meet Emma, the girl that has fire powers, and that used to be Grandpa Abe’s lover and now Jacob – which is more than weird, but oh well…

‘’She moved to pinch me again but I blocked her hand. I’m no expert on girls, but when one tries to pinch you four times, I’m pretty sure that’s flirting.’’

We get to meet Millard, the invisible boy, Olive, the girl that can float without her iron boots, Fiona, who can make plants and trees grow in seconds and many other lovely children with even lovelier abilities.

This is an amazing story about extraordinary people, children who will amuse you with how cute they can be, a bit of (well, a lot of) time travel and a great valuable lesson that everyone in this world is peculiar and extraordinary in their own way! A must-read to all of you that love some fantasy stories and different worlds.

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