Tag: Books

Postscript (PS, I Love You #2) by Cecelia Ahern [BOOK REVIEW] Postscript (PS, I Love You #2) by Cecelia Ahern [BOOK REVIEW]
Book Review · Books

Postscript (PS, I Love You #2) by Cecelia Ahern [BOOK REVIEW]

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Postscript (PS, I Love You #2) by Cecelia Ahern [BOOK REVIEW]

★★★★★

I am so glad I had the chance to read Postscript by Cecelia Ahern as part of the bookstagram readalong. Thank you to Cecelia Ahern, Harper Collins and Tandem Collective UK for the gifted copy and this amazing opportunity. 

Synopsis:

When Holly lost her husband Gerry, he left letters for her to read after his death, all of them signed with PS, I Love You. These letters helped her go through the process of grief, get back on her feet and start to love again. 

Now, years later, a mysterious club wants to meet her. And if Holly can find the courage to discover more, she’ll learn what living fully truly means. 

My Thoughts of Postscript:

First of all, this is an emotional read, so aside from the book and a bookmark, you’ll also need tissues. Postscript will take you on a journey of self-discovery and teach you to love life again. 

Without spoiling too much, I want to say that this book is incredible. It touches on the subject of death, and what people who know they’re dying can do to ease the pain for their families, but to also stay remembered a bit longer. Just like Gerry did for Holly. And through other people that Holly meets, she discovers a part of Gerry she never knew existed before. 

“We don’t often remember how we met, we often remember how we parted.”

Holly is an incredible character that shows amazing character development. Her life is emotional and her choices make you wonder what you would have done if you were in her place. I also really loved Ginika and Jewel, as well as Denise. Cecelia Ahern has this amazing skill – to make you care about all the characters in her book, no matter how little they may be featured. I even found myself adoring Phillip, who only appeared in a few pages in the book. 

Postscript is emotional and raw. But it’s also real and relatable to so many people, unfortunately. And I like to think that Holly gets the closure she needed and now she is able to finally fully move on. A true masterpiece that I wholeheartedly recommend. 

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The Breaking Northern Witch K.S. Marsden fantasy magic book review books blogger blogging diary of difference diaryofdifference The Breaking (Northern Witch #3) by K.S. Marsden [BOOK REVIEW]
Book Review · Books

The Breaking (Northern Witch #3) by K.S. Marsden [BOOK REVIEW]

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★★★

The Breaking by K.S. Marsden is the third book in the Northern Witch series. Thank you to the author, K.S. Marsden, for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Read my review of book one – Winter Trials.
Read my review of book two – Awaken.

Synopsis:

Mark thought being a witch would be easy, but it has ruined everything.

Now, he has to fight for his friends and the guy that he loves.

Which would be challenging enough, without school being a living nightmare; more demons than he can handle; and witches that have strayed from the light.

My Thoughts:

Continuing where the previous book left off, The Breaking followed up nicely with the story of Mark trying to save his lover. It is a very heartwarming story that also contains fantastical elements.

I enjoyed that Mark’s friends Harry and Sarah got more time in the book. Their scenes were very interesting to read, and I was really invested in their plotline as well. I loved the moments when the band was in the spotlight – the scene in London when they appear on the stage is my favorite one!

I loved the travel to London and the adventurous spirit that Mark showed, alongside with the suspense and dangers that arose from that trip. The introduction to new witches was intriguing, and I was curious through the whole book. The demons were my favourite, and I couldn’t help but care for them. I think that at some point, I cared more about them than I did about Mark, and I’m not even sorry to say this. 🙂 

To sum up, I wanted a bit more fantastical elements, aside from the demons. I wished there was more magic involved in The Breaking, and I was a slightly disappointed on the cliffhanger at the end of the book. But then I realised another book was coming out, so hoping the next book will conclude some of my predictions. I am hoping for more character development in the next book as well. But I also really enjoyed this book, and I admired the adventures that Mark went through in this book, compared to the first two. There was a bit more intensity and it felt as if there was more at stake this time, and Mark had more to lose, which I loved reading about.

If you love magic, witches and teenage gay romance, I definitely recommend this series to you. 

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Improvement by Joan Silber Improvement by Joan Silber [BOOK REVIEW]
Book Review · Books

Improvement by Joan Silber [BOOK REVIEW]

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★★★★

I really enjoyed Improvement by Joan Silber, because it was unlike any other book I have read. I fell in love with the characters in this novel. 

Thank you to the teams at ReadersFirst and Allen & Unwin (Atlantic Books), for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:

This is a story about a young single mother living in Harlem and her eccentric aunt. They end up making some decisions that have unexpected implications to the world around them. 

Reyna doesn’t have a perfect relationship with Boyd. She is beside him while he is in prison for three months. Their relationship became even stronger. 

Kiki, Reyna’s aunt settles nearby, after an adventurous journey in Turkey in her youth. She admires her niece, but she is worried about four-year old Olvier. 

Little does Kiki know that Boyd is pulling Reyna into a smuggling scheme, violating his probation. When Reyna refuses to assist and takes a step back, her resistance sets a series of events that affect the lives of loved ones and strangers around them.  

My Thoughts: 

Improvement is a book that intrigued me a lot! And it’s one of those books where you can’t really discuss the plot in fear of spoiling things. I feel like mentioning any other characters apart from Kiki and Reyna is a spoiler. It’s definitely one of those books you just need to go in blind, and enjoy every minute of it.

“The point was to ask for strength. Improvement wasn’t coming any other way.”

The book starts with a little bit of Kiki’s story, and then Reyna and Boyd’s relationship. Then a plot twist changes everything, and we have other character’s points of views introduced.

Kiki’s stories and adventures in Turkey are so colourful. Her beloved rugs and her courage never seize to amaze me. Her travels and the people she met all taught her something. The choices she made shaped the Kiki we know and love today. The cool eccentric aunt, with many trinkets in her small and crowded place.

Reyna’s innocent, but not so innocent life is beautiful as well, and her character development is beyond amazing and admirable. I love how much she cares about everyone. She is trying to fix the world, even though sometimes, the world may not need her help. 

Very beautiful and inspiring!

All the other characters that we get to know share a personal story, each of them carry a burden, share love and worries, and care about someone. And to each of them, something happened, to make them be at a certain place at a certain time, and become the people they became today. 

The novel is so wonderfully thought out, and it’s amazing how Joan Silber managed to capture this. How one decision of one person can change the life of so many, without them even knowing it’s happening. Get your “what if” questions ready, because you will definitely be wondering after this book, and for each character. 

Improvement is definitely a book you should pick up. It makes you learn so much, even when you’re not ready for it.

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A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik [BOOK REVIEW]
Book Review · Books

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik [BOOK REVIEW]

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A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

★

I was so excited to read A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik.

A Deadly Education is the first book in the Scholomance series. It was supposed to be everything I love – magic, magical school, a bit of romance. And it left me so disappointed and just empty within. I have no words of how sad I am to be writing this review. I am crushed, but I have to be honest to myself and to the people reading my reviews.

Synopsis:

A Deadly Education is indeed a story about a deadly magical school. This school, Scholomance, is a school for students that are magically gifted. There are no teachers and students are left alone to master skills and attend lessons. They are also forbidden to walk the halls at night, because deadly monsters are lurking from every corner. And the ultimate graduation test is a deadly game of survival by fighting these monsters. 

The students’ magic works based on either mana (the good magic) or malia (the bad magic). 

El is our main character in this book, who can use malia to defeat all the monsters, but that would involve killing the other students. Survival also means working on strategies and making allies with other people.

And then we also have Orion Lake. He has many friends and admirers and he keeps saving El’s life. And she’s not impressed and hates him. 

My Thoughts:

I feel like A Deadly Education was a great idea about a magical school that has a “Hunger Games” type of graduation, but somewhere in the middle the plot got lost and we got a weak story. 

First of all, I hated El. I don’t usually hate characters, but God, I really despised her. Not only was she incredibly rude all the time, but she was very entitled, self-centered and very selfish. I hated the fact that she always thought the world revolved about her. Furthermore, she kept pushing people away, especially her so-called friends and Orion. 

Then we have Orion Lake, who is portrayed as the hero, saving so many lives. Which he is. But he also is this person that can’t speak for himself, and seems like he does whatever other people tell him to do. 

And the romance between them was very non-existent. There wasn’t any form of attraction that I felt, only El’s rudeness. I don’t know how it escalated in the end to a romance, because I didn’t see it. El was even then being rude to him. 

This is such a hard review to write, as I know this book is widely popular. But for me, it didn’t hit the mark in any way. I wish there was more to it than just the deadly monsters and strategies for a graduation that was so talked about. And I wish the romance was real. But I’m still keen to read the second book, just to find out whether it will redeem itself, at least a bit. If you’re looking for a magical school, I’d suggest Hogwarts.

This ain’t it.

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The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson [BOOK REVIEW] The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
Book Review · Books

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

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The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson [BOOK REVIEW]

★★★★★

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson is a book I have had on my TBR the longest.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is also the first book in the Millennium series. I wanted to read it since I was in high-school and developed my love for thrillers. Even though I was vaguely familiar with the plot, I went in blind, and I enjoyed every second of it!

Synopsis:

Lisbeth Salander can dig the deepest secrets of her targets. She is often underestimated because of her looks, but loves nothing more than to prove people wrong.

Mikael Bloomkvist is a disgraced journalist and when tasked to investigate him, Lisbeth finds nothing but integrity.

When his investigation of a mystery that happened a long time ago comes to a dead end, he needs help. And who could do that better, than the same person who investigated him. 

My Thoughts:

I loved the pace this book has. It starts very slow, giving you time to adjust to the new setting and the characters that will be your companions for the rest of the book. Then it gradually throws plot twists and new challenges that need to be overcomed. By the end, you are on a rollercoaster and your hunger for clues and resolution comes to a climax. Every character has their own story and personal development that fits perfectly into the story. 

The way the characters have their own personal development is incredibly done, especially in the case of Lisbeth. Even though Mikael’s development is also very noteworthy. 

I had mixed feelings about the ending. I loved the mystery part, and I think that ended very satisfying. However, I wasn’t a fan of how the romance concluded, or rather, continued. But with that being said, and knowing the series continues, I am hoping to read the next book and see whether this might change in the future. 

After finishing the book, I was curious about the author, and I was so sad to find out that he passed away before he knew about his book and the success it has in the world. I also feel for his partner as well – for all the injustice she has gone through. 

To conclude, I loved The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo so much, and I am so glad I finally read it. I will definitely be continuing the series, and I hope you pick this one up as well.

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