Review: Things I Know About Love by Kate le Vann

Title: Things I Know About Love
Author: Kate le Vann
Published: June 22nd 2010
Publisher: EgmontUSA
Read synopsis: Goodreads

Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Can I say that my first read for 2012 left me crying? Ugh. Yeah right, it was New Year and I was freaking crying! Not that I'm saying the book was bad, in fact I really did liked it, it was just that I wasn't really expecting to get really emotional by the end of this book. When I picked this up I was looking for a fun and light read. I was expecting a sweet and happy ending so when the ending came it kind of caught me off guard and bam! I started crying and I had a clogged nose that made it really hard to fall asleep because I have to breathe through my mouth which was really awkward and annoying. But nonetheless I had fun reading this and I really admired the main characters of this story. 

The story primarily focuses in Livia, a seventeen-year old British girl who was a cancer survivor. After a year of illness she went to Princeton, New Jersey to spend her summer there with her brother. She decided to create a private blog and record all her experience she had during the vacation. And things she learned about love. 

The story was written in blog format. Most of it was Livia's but there are some parts narrated through Adam's blog.

Livia was a lovely and adorable character. I instantly loved her from the very start. I like how she was being so positive and adventurous. She's so lively and spontaneous despite the fact that she had been really ill for quite a long time. I admire her relationship with her family, with her mom and brother. And then there's Adam. Adam was her brother's friend back in Manchester and was also studying with him in Princeton. He was nice, cool, and a total sweet heart. I love every moment they had together and how their relationship developed. It was really sweet and cute. I also love the snippets of Adam's blog, it was really really funny but also very swoon-worthy. I just really love the guy. (so much for the fangirling)

The ending however made me a bit disappointed or rather sad and hurt. It was abrupt and left me totally shocked. It was really heart breaking. I won't spoil the ending but I wish the story had been a little longer. Or I wish the ending happened gradually. The last few parts was narrated through Adam's blog and you know how I'm a sucker for male POVs that I started crying when I read the last parts in his perspective. God, this is the second time an Adam made me cry (The first one was Adam Wilde of Where She Went). 

All in all, I think it was still a lovely and heart warming story and there were really great and wonderful things Livia and Adam experienced. I was just really hurt because I so love the couple. But still, this was a wonderful read. I still recommend this to everyone! Don't be deceived by the cover. And keep tissues near by. :)

Top 10 Week: Top 10 Books I'm Looking Forward to in 2012

Top 10 of 2011 is an event that runs from December 26-30, 2011 hosted by Jessica from Confessions of a Bookaholic and Lisa from A Life Bound By Books and co-hosted by Rachel from Fiktshun and Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books. Today's the last day of this event and I'm glad to share the top 10 books I am most looking forward in 2012! :))

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And there they are! Most of them are the succeeding books from some series I so loved this year. But there are also new books/series like The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith, Fated by Sarah Alderson, Cursed by Jennifer L. Armentrout (Her books never left almost all my lists) and of course The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa! Yay! So yeah, 2012! Here I come! :DD

Top 10 Week: Top 10 Characters of 2011

Top 10 of 2011 is an event that runs from December 26-30, 2011 hosted by Jessica from Confessions of a Bookaholic and Lisa from A Life Bound By Books and co-hosted by Rachel from Fiktshun and Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books. Today's top 10 are the my best characters of 2011.

Tris

Divergent

by Veronica Roth

Read My Review

Tris is one of the most admirable character I'd ever met. She's brave and strong. I love how independent she is and how she faced all the obstacles she had. 

Puck

The Iron Fey Series

by Julie Kagawa

Read My Review

Even though I have been on Team Ash from the start I grew to love Puck too throughout the series. He's definitely a very wonderful character. He's so loyal to Meghan and even to Ash. And of course, what I absolutely like about him is his sense of humor. Puck never failed to make me smile! :))

Katy

Obsidian

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Read My Review

Kat is really adorable and wonderful. She runs a book blog and well, with that only she already was able to gain lots of love from readers. I love how she cares for her friends. She does good and brave decisions. And I love her snappy comebacks at Daemon whenever they're having a banter! :))

Clara

Unearthly

by Cynthia Hand

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Clara is a very likable character. She knows what she really is, accepts it and do whatever she has to do. I love how she loves her family, her mom and her brother. And even though I'm on team Christian, I admire how dedicated she is to Tucker.  ^^ (But  still I'm rooting for Christian! XD)

Penryn

Angelfall

by Susan Ee

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Penryn is one hell of a kick-ass character! I could actually line her up to big star heroines like Katniss of Hunger Games and Tris of Divergent. This girl sure knows how to fight. Mentally, emotionally and physically. I admire her determination to save her sister and her loyalty to Raffe even when it can actually cost her life! :))

Sophie 

Hex Hall Series

by Rachel Hawkins

Sophie has this great sense of humor that never really failed to make me laugh so hard. She's hilarious and her sarcasm is perfect! lol. She's loyal to her friends and protects them.

Simon Lewis
The Mortal Instrument Series
by Cassandra Clare

I love how Simon's character developed throughout the series especially in the City of Fallen Angels. It was actually Simon I was looking forward when I read CoFA. I saw a more confident, more sure, and braver Simon on that installment. If you went back to the first book you would really notice how big his character development was! And yeah, baby, yeah! Simon has a sexy vampire mojo! :DDD

Juliette
Shatter Me
by Tahereh Mafi

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Despite living a hard life and being treated by everyone as a monster Juliette was able to remain her dignity, found love and realize her ability could be use for good.

Will Herondale
The Infernal Devices Trilogy
by Cassandra Clare

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Will had been a total jerk during the first installment of ID but when the Clockwork Prince came out we found out his real story and who he really is. Well, that just left me almost crying. I wanted to jump into the book and hug him and tell him that everything will be okay. Now I have more reason to love him! :))

Adam Wilde
Where She Went
by Gayle Forman

Read My Review

This guy was the first ever to made me cry over a book. He had flaws and made mistakes but I admire how much he loved Mia and even after three year his love for her never fade. :))

Top 10 Week: Top 10 Book Boyfriends of 2011

Top 10 of 2011 is an event that runs from December 26-30, 2011 hosted by Jessica from Confessions of a Bookaholic and Lisa from A Life Bound By Books and co-hosted by Rachel from Fiktshun and Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books. Today, I'll be posting the my top 10 most swoon-worthy book boyfriends this year! Check them out! :))

Prince Ash

Adam Wilde

Daemon Black

Christian Prescott

Ed/Shadow

Will Herondale

Archer Cross

Cassel Sharpe

Aiden St. Delphi

Four/Tobias

Sorry if I didn't bother describing them one by one. I think I'll only be saying the same things again and again. Haha! So there they are! What do you think? Are they your best book boyfriends this year too? If you haven't met any of them, better start reading these books and see what I saw in them! I assure you they are all swoon-worthy, crush-worthy, drool-worthy men! :DD

Review: First Date by Krista McGee

Title: First Date
Author: Krista McGee
Published: January 10th 2012
Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Addy Davidson discovers God's unexpected plans for her life when a reality TV show turns her quiet existence on its head.

The orphaned daughter of missionaries, Addy is quite content to stay in the shadows and never draw attention to herself. But when she's selected for a reality TV show to try to become the President son's prom date-a show she didn't audition for-she's suddenly in America's spotlight.

The lights, the make-up, the competitions, and the blogs discussing every move she makes all make Addy incredibly uncomfortable. But through her time at The Mansion, Addy comes to realize that first impressions aren't always right, that hiding out may not be what God had planned for her life, and that her faith should affect everything she does. It may just be that her selection wasn't random at all and that she's on this show "for such a time as this."

First Date was a fun, refreshing and delightful read. I'm a sucker for a celebrity-guy-ordinary-girl pairing so when I saw the synopsis it instantly caught my interest. I enjoyed it thoroughly especially the concept of reality TV show. This is also a Christian book so there were parts that discusses about it but it wasn't really overly done so it's okay for you to read it even if you're not a Christian. The writing was also good and fast paced so it was really an easy read. 

The story centered about Addy Davidson. Addy was just an ordinary high school girl who was asked by the principal of her school to represent their school for a reality TV show to try to become the president's son's prom date. Addy was reluctant to join the contest but her uncle convinced her to join because it could be a good opportunity for her to develop herself and to know the God's real purpose for her.

Addy's character was really admirable. Though I admit I was a bit annoyed with her during the first parts. But as the story progressed I see how she realized her mistakes and learned things and became more mature. In the end she was able to do what God really wanted her to do - to share God to the people she cares and also to the people who wasn't nice to her.  The entries from her mother's journal was really touching and admire her parents for what they did. Jonathan's character was also really nice. Jonathan's the president son. He's humble and kind despite getting so much attention from everyone. He likes Addy and the moments between the two were really adorable. 

Though I'm a Christian I don't usually read religious novels but this one proved that Christianity and humor can go in one. It was a fun read. Read this! :))

An advance copy has been provided by the publisher via Netgalley

Waiting on Wednesday (#1)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine, that spotlight upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. This is my first Waiting on Wednesday and this week  my pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" is...

Black Heart (Curse Worker #3) 

by Holly Black
Expected Publication: April 3rd 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Cassel Sharpe knows he’s been used as an assassin, but he’s trying to put all that behind him. He’s trying to be good, even though he grew up in a family of con artists and cheating comes as easily as breathing to him. He’s trying to do the right thing, even though the girl he loves is inextricably connected with crime. And he’s trying to convince himself that working for the Feds is smart, even though he’s been raised to believe the government is the enemy. 

But with a mother on the lam, the girl he loves about to take her place in the Mob, and new secrets coming to light, the line between what’s right and what’s wrong becomes increasingly blurred. When the Feds ask Cassel to do the one thing he said he would never do again, he needs to sort out what’s a con and what’s truth. In a dangerous game and with his life on the line, Cassel may have to make his biggest gamble yet—this time on love.

The Curse Workers series has been one of my favorite series. And the ending in the second book, Red Glove, just left me with so much wonder of what's gonna happen next especially the relationship between Cassel and Lila. Yay! Anyway this is also the final book of the series so I really hope this will be a really awesome read! :))

Top 10 Week: Top 10 Book Covers of 2011

Top 10 of 2011 is an event that runs from December 26-30, 2011 hosted by Jessica from Confessions of a Bookaholic and Lisa from A Life Bound By Books and co-hosted by Rachel from Fiktshun and Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books. Today, I'll be posting what I think the coolest, prettiest book cover of 2011. So here they are.

Can I say I love the girls hair in Exiled, Wither and Fury. Haha! So here they are, three of them I haven't read, Exiled, Incarnate and Across the Universe but I'll be reading them soon and I hope they are as good as their cover! :)) 

Top 10 Week: Top 10 Books I've Read in 2011

Top 10 of 2011 is an event that runs from December 26-30, 2011 hosted by Jessica from Confessions of a Bookaholic and Lisa from A Life Bound By Books and co-hosted by Rachel from Fiktshun and Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books. Today is the second day of the event, but I wasn't able to post this yesterday. So yeah, here's my top 10 books I've read this year! I'll post the top 10 book covers later this day! :))

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I actually have a lot on my mind but since they were only asking for 10, I only gave ten. But I can actually pick up to 20. Haha! Check out this books guys! They're ossum and some of them completely blew me away! Happy readings everyone! ^^