Review: Giovanni Meets a Coven

★★★★☆

Giovanni has had some bad luck, indeed. Losing his job and getting attacked by a floor buffer is just the beginning.

Giovanni Meets a Coven is the second addition to the Med School Series in which an Italian Med School student tries to survive through everyday life. Everything he tries do is ruined, though in an extremely comical way, by a some cosmic power. As a man of science, Giovanni refuses to believe in any kind of magic, even though he has just survived a night with a living-dead voodoo mamba. 

I really enjoyed  this one. Following Giovanni through all the mishaps and accidents made me feel a little bad since I sometimes couldn't stop laughing. With the little twist at the end made me wish it would've continued a bit further!

Rereading reread reads

A couple of days ago I felt like reading, but didn't want read anything new. So I took a stock of what I had read the past year and picked one of them. Which turned out to be the first of a trilogy, and now I've read the entire trilogy, again. It made me think that if it's a good or bad thing to reread books.

A quick search on the Internet brought me to this awesome article by Bustle and the joys of rereading books. Inspired by it I decided to make my own list.



Why rereading (reread) books is great?

1. Visiting places and meeting old acquaintances

Remember the first train ride to Hogwarts? I do too. Remember when Elizabeth met Mr. Darcy the first time? I do too. Those turns in books, or should I say in history, mark something to us. The turning point to something new, the beginning of something, or ending.

2. You have changed, the book hasn't

The book you read when you were 15 doesn't feel the same now. Why is that? Well, maybe you've grown up. Your perspective has changed and reading the same book you read years back may have something more to offer you. You might find an entirely new dimension in it.

3. The anticipation, the details you missed the first time

You know what's going to happen, but still it comes out of the blue. Rereading is not the same as reading for the first time, but one of it's advantages is that you can take your time when reading it since you already know what's going to happen. You can focus on the details it gives you. Oh, it was three streets over from where they first met?

4. Visiting old memories - finding out the clues

That's where they first met/kissed/broke up/solved the mystery! Visiting those old scenes bring up memories from the time originally read it. Where you were then and what happened at the time. And finding the clues that lead up to the main turning point in the book. That is the best thing!

5. Because you can

Why not? Because not always you want to explore the world. Because sometimes reliving the old memories is better than facing the present.

Some say that rereading the same books keep us stuck in the past, but how I see it, it's just walking down the best memory lane one can ever have.

Review: Bully

''Yesterday lasts forever, Tomorrow comes never.''

★★★★★

Not the easiest read this year. The themes are dark and the story teaches a lot. I had to take breaks from reading, before continuing, since this is not a light, happy love story.

After spending an entire year studying in France, Tatum returns home to begin her senior year. She hopes that things have changed, that she wouldn't be bullied again this year. She realises quickly that things have not changed and decides to face the bully. Upping her own game to revenge the past years she balances on the fine line of self-defence and bullying. The thing that makes it all so hurting is that her bully is her childhood friend Jared. The boy she thought she might spend the rest of her life with.

Not a bed-time story. You really get to step into Tate's head and in some parts it's not pretty. The line between bullying and defending herself becomes blurred page by page and it's not something easy to follow close by. I really enjoyed the authenticity of the situations and emotions portrayed.

Though the story-line seems fairly innocent, when you really dive in, it's anything but. Containing the bullying itself and sexual content this is not for young readers. Truly a remarkable book about how bullying can change people's lives.

Review: the Patriots of Mars

''Curiosity really might kill you.''

★★★☆☆

Confused is a word that comes to mind when thinking back to my experience of reading the Patriots of Mars. There were the Patriots, there was politics and scientific gadgets and all those other sci-fi bizarre things. The thing that I can't wrap my mind around is that when did the actual action start? Page 200 or was it 300?

The story is told from multiple point of views and introducing new characters without actually introducing them. That element was what I actually learned to like afterwards, not during reading. You don't get to know much of the characters, but still get enough information to know what's going on. The story spins around politics and artificial intelligence ''MOM''. MOM knows everything and controls it according to her calculations of what is for the best for mankind. She is much more than just a computer, she is a being of sorts that no one can control. 

Now you're probably wondering 'Hey, what about the Martians?' Uhhuh, they're there. Natural resources have run out on Earth and are mined from Mars. Running the operations are big companies, and doing the actual mining are immigrants from Earth. There also is a boy called Josh, can I say, the protagonist of the story and the first person ever born on Mars. What's his role in the whole book, that's is what you're going to find out way after the middle of the book.

In my first paragraph I wondered when did the action start in the book. I should warn you, you need patience for this book. You need to be able to read about 100 pages before anything even remotely makes sense and then another hundred to start to enjoy the story. For you sci-fi fans out there, I know that you might disagree with me on this, and feel free to do it! 

I really liked the fact that the Patriots of Mars didn't fall into a the usual pattern of Problem-Problem-Arguing-Back Together-Let's Conquer the World - caste. The words flowed and descriptions felt real. I really do recommend this book, even though if you are not a huge science-fiction fan, go, pick it up and try it!

Review: Destiny Binds

'' Did you wake up on the stupid side of the bed this morning?''

★★☆☆☆

This is one of those moments when the words run dry. I don't know how to explain the thoughts running through my mind. Did I like Destiny Binds? Um, yeah. Then what went wrong?

I'd say nothing went wrong, there just were things that to me didn't seem like thoughts thought through. Besides these mishaps, I think the plot was fairly original.

Harper ''Scout'' Donovan's family is nothing but ordinary, though she doesn't know it yet. Overhearing weird things from her brother and the mysterious brothers moving to the area. What she didn't know was that her half brother and half cousin were not exactly what they said they were. As the truth unveils, and the love triangle deepens, it all comes to a abrupt flat wall. And I'm talking about a figurative wall, not an actual one.

The ending was disappointing, though the cliff-hanger made it a bit better. Without the cliff-hanger, I don't know how this book would've make anyone to continue tot he second part of the trilogy.

Scout as a character is the only one who seemed to be fully developed. The others felt a bit like half filled balloons, there but not at their full potential. 

I'm not going to read the rest of the trilogy, since to me this wasn't a great book. I'd recommend this to a bit younger audience, around ages 12-17, I'd say. But there are times when a mindless paranormal romance is the thing you need never mind your age!

Photographing Books Should Be an Olympic Sport

Try to get your pet in the picture! If he/she isn't a fan of cameras,
you might end up with something like this.

Ever wonder how those bookstagrammers and pinners, and the lot, take those wonderful pictures? Are they just naturally talented or do they hire a professional? Or what?

I'm not a professional myself, and my Instagram tends to be a bit messy, but I can tell you a few tips and tricks when it comes to taking fabulous pictures!

STEP 1:

What and where. Pick the book and put it in place. When considering the place, take note of light: is there enough or too much. Too little light can affect the quality of the picture and too much light makes objects shine. Consider also that are you taking it for or against the source of light. Pictures taken against light tend to have the halo and silhouette elements.

I tried to get my cat's front-paws to the left side of the picture,
but Jamie had a different opinion...

STEP 2:

Knick and knack. Want to add little objects, like Autumn leaves or a cup of coffee? Those can be seen almost on every book-photo channel, right? Makes sure that the object you choose compliment the main object, in this case the book, and preferably relate to the book. For example, a wand for Harry Potter books.

STEP 3:

Perspective. High above or close-up? Depending of the other features of the picture. If you have a lot of light and objects then a close-up might get too crowded. Take from several angles, and then decide which one looks the best. The end result will be different in each picture since the light will be coming from a different direction and different sides of everything will be shown.

STEP 4:

Filters and other photoshopping features. Adding filters change the mood of the photo. Changing the balance of light and contrast or increasing the colour saturation will make it more or less dramatic than the original.

STEP 5:

Make it yours. Be a trendsetter. Or just do it your way. Have a blast!