Am I Back Yet?

Good morning/evening/night!

Well, hello there.Yes. It is me. I'm not dead, apparently.

Okay, let me explain. In my defense, I had a lot in my plate at the moment. So, please don't judge me for turning my allegedly "short break" into a complete vacation. It's been a good couple of months in which I dedicated myself to my family, my studies, and, most importantly, myself.

Don't get too excited, though. I'm not back yet. I just wanted to update and let you know I'm fine (no one cares, dude).

I'm not trying to tease you, I swear. But I need some more time to get through all the never-ending exams. So, I promise, and all of you are witnesses, to fully come back by January. Does that sound good? 

I haven't even done anything exciting in the meantime, so don't worry, y'all didn't miss a thing.

Have I been reading anything lately? Of course, tons and tons of books. Okay, that's a lie. I think I read 3-4 books in the last 2 months, which sucks. I have been reading Tower of Dawn for, at least, 3 weeks. What has my life become?

Well, that's all I had to say. I hope some of you are still around... It would be pretty awkward to be telling all this to no one. 

I guess I'll see you next time, bye!

PS: Did you really think I wouldn't use a gif? HA.

Update: Short Break

Hey, guys! I'm posting late, but what else is new? I'm sick and it's mid-term time, hence:

This is kind of a bittersweet post for me. As I've said before, midterms are starting this week and I really need to focus on them. That's why I'm taking a small break from posting to fully dedicate to uni. Cause, you know, my degree comes first. 

I'm sad to be leaving the blog for a while because I feel like I will go back to square one, but I really need the extra time. I've not been feeling great lately, and I'm always tired so I think this is for the best. 

For those authors who are probably thinking "wait, what are you going to do with the books you're supposed to review?" Well, don't worry, I'll still read them and post a review as soon as possible. And I'll respect the deadline for those books that have one. 

Remember it's temporary, okay? So come back at some point! I bet it will only be a couple of weeks, but we'll see.

Anyway, I'll go back to my books and my meds now. See you real soon!

Bye bye 💗

-Martina.

Exciting News About Tahereh Mafi!

Hi, guys! How are you today? I have a party tonight. I really hope it goes better than my last one. Four double shots of tequila may not have been the best decision...I learned my lesson the bad way. 

I'm here today to share some great news. I read about it the other day and I just kept forgetting to post about it.

Okay, are you ready?

☝🏻☝🏻☝🏻 3 more SHATTER ME books! 😍❤ i'm around now to answer some questions if you've got them! 😘🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉 pic.twitter.com/ycvSsEguHB

— Tahereh Mafi (@TaherehMafi) 26 de abril de 2017

The Shatter Me trilogy by Tahereh Mafi is becoming a series! Yep, that's right. Three more books are coming our way.

I have a curse

I have a gift

I am a monster

I'm more than human

My touch is lethal

My touch is power

I am their weapon

I will fight back

Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war – and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

You might be thinking, "is this a big deal?" Well, it is for me. I've previously mentioned how much I adored the books and the characters. So I'm incredibly happy with the news. I guess Tahereh has finally heard our pleas and/or read my post about authors I want to read more.

The fourth book, called Restore Me, is set to be released in 2018, which gives us plenty of time to re-read the first books. Or read them for the first time, what are you waiting for?

According to the author, it will be narrated from the POV's of Warner and Juliette and it will be set two weeks after Ignite Me. My God, this reminds me of how much I miss my precious Warner.

yep: RESTORE ME is told from the dual POVs of Juliette and Warner https://t.co/028simBsiS

— Tahereh Mafi (@TaherehMafi) 26 de abril de 2017

Plus, how exciting is it that Shatter Me is coming to tv?!

thrilled to say that ABC Signature Studios has optioned SHATTER ME for TV, and that i'll be a consulting producer for the show. #SHATTERMETV

— Tahereh Mafi (@TaherehMafi) 18 de junio de 2015

Anyway, this is a short one. But I hope it makes you as excited as I am.

See you next time!

Book Review: Beyond The Lens by Hannah Ellis

Hey guys, how are you today? I don’t know where my lack of energy is coming from but, thank God it’s Friday. 

Beyond the Lens by Hannah Ellis

Release date: November 10th 2016

Publisher: CreateSpace

Pages: 365

Source: The lovely author

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Summary

From Goodreads:

When twenty-six-year-old Lucy Mitchell loses her job, she momentarily loses her mind too and agrees to take part in a reality TV show. Before she knows it she’s jetting off to a piece of paradise on a beautiful Spanish island. 

Much to her surprise, Lucy makes new friends and has the time of her life, even indulging in a behind-the-scenes romance with a hunky cameraman.

Convinced the production will never make it to the screen, Lucy returns home on cloud nine, but soon finds that things are not always as they seem. 

Review

I went into this baby without knowing what it was about and I read it in like two sittings. Yes, it was that good.

At the beginning of the week, Lucy is just a regular girl that lacks the sense of adventure. All it took to trigger this journey was a “yes”. This book showcases the path from ordinary to famous. Who would have guessed that she would meet such a great group of people and a cute but shy cameraman in the process?

I found the plot to be extremely original; I’ve never read anything like it. The TV is plagued by reality shows, yet I’ve never read a book about what goes on behind the cameras. 

We’re presented with a very odd yet hilarious group of people, and it was lovely to see how their friendship got stronger as the days passed. We need more of these friends in the real world. Friends who take care of each other (well, mostly. I’m looking at you Ryan,) and don’t succumb to the claws of fame. 

What pleasantly surprised me was how in the span of a short book, we get to see how much Lucy grows as a person and how her confidence increases. We don’t get much of this in contemporary books. And when we do, it seems that the confidence boost is always related to a guy. Thankfully, that’s not the case here.

I loved the mystery regarding Maria’s apartment. And although I saw it coming, it was a great twist. 

The second twist, though. It hit me like a truck. It was great! Congrats, Hannah, you played us all.

My only issue with this book was the distribution of the “problems” to be solved. The first half was too perfect and then it all goes downhill. I thought there were way too many things going on. Or maybe it’s just that I’m not used to it. It’s not that bad, really. I’m just making it sound worse than it is.

This book is a perfect summer read, but it’s not just that. It highlights the importance of how not everything is what it seems. In an era in which we’re surrounded by technology and information at the reach of our fingers, we should be careful with who we trust and what we hear. 

With that being said, let’s end this review with the other important moral from this story: let’s say yes every once in a while. We have to take some risks. If not now, then when?

Rating

4 out of 5 stars

Rating System

I Want to thank Hannah Ellis for providing me with a copy of this amazing book! I can't wait to read the next one.

That's all for today! Check this book out, it's awesome.

Are you a yes or a no person? I'm more of a "waits too long and then the opportunity is gone". What reality tv shows do you like to watch? Let me know!

Reader Habits Tag

Hey, what's up, guys? Only one more day till the weekend. How great is that? Anyway, since I've done 2 Book Traveling Thursdays in a row, I thought I'd do a book tag to mix it up. Hence the Reader Habits Tag. 

Rules:

It's pretty straightforward, all you have to do is talk about 10 of your reader habits. Then you have to select 3 of your habits so the people you tag can discuss if they agree with them. You have to do the same with the 3 habits of the person you were tagged by.

Since I wasn't tagged by anyone (sad face), I'll discuss the 3 habits picked by BlogALaLuzDeLasVelas, which is where I saw the tag.

Many, in fact.

Let's get to the habits!

1) I can't read on cars or buses. I get really sick with that sort of movement. Especially if the drivers tend to slow down abruptly. I can only read on the subway or train.

2) I hate it when people highlight or mark books permanently. If there's a quote I like, I underline it with a pencil or use post-its. Please don't harm books in front of me or I will have to act violently.

3) Although I love having physical copies, I find it easier to read e-books. I usually read them much faster too. 

4) I collect bookmarks even if I always use the same ones. Don't judge me.

5) I only use proper bookmarks in books. No tissues, random papers, or candy wrappers. If I don't have one near me, then I just remember the page.

6) I like to finish the chapter before putting the book down. I can't seem to leave it on random pages. I swear I'm not obsessive.

7) I always have a hard time reading the last book in a series. My brain is subconsciously begging for a series to not be over. This is why there are plenty of trilogies/series I haven't finished yet.

8) I tend to only buy books I have already read. This way I make sure I love it and it won't be taking up space. I have a few exceptions lying around my bookshelf, though.

9) I like to read at night so I can daydream about the story and characters before going to sleep. I may also imagine I'm the main character, especially if there are interesting male characters involved. You didn't hear this from me, okay?

10) I don't like to take my books with me anywhere for fear I might lose or damage them.

Those are my habits.

Now the 3 habits from the other blog:

-She doesn't deem important to have a big collection of books.

I don't have gigantic bookshelves, I have a pretty small one. And my collection of books is really tiny. As much as I would like to say I don't find this important, I do. I would love to have a room full of books. That's the main reason I want to be successful or marry a rich guy. Whichever happens first. Jk. 

-She asks people to add a dedication to the books she receives as gifts.

I find it lovely when people do this. It adds a special sentimental value to the book. However, I would never ask someone to write something. I think it's much better if the gesture comes from them.

-She likes to picture the type of situations and characters that will appear in the book she's reading.

I'm not a person who really slows down to analyze every single thing that's going on. And I definitely don't stop to think what will come next. I do, however, notice certain things while I'm reading and think about how they will or could come into play later.

Well, that was fun! I even had to narrow down my habits. We're a bunch of weirdos.

See you next time!

How many habits do you have? Do you agree with any of mine? Let me know!

Top 5 Wednesday

Hey guys! We are only two days away from the weekend. God bless.I'm back at it again with the white vans- I mean, with T5W. It's such a great topic the one we've got this week. Books as Event Themes: It's party season, whether that is high school prom, weddings, or summer holiday events. What books would make a good party/event theme?

Well, we don't really have proms or school dances here in Argentina. But we do have two celebrations for when we graduate. What we do, is hire a venue for parents, some teachers and students to go have dinner and dance a bit after the graduation ceremony. That's the formal one. You probably think it's boring, and it kinda is. That's why we also have an informal one. It all requires months of preparation, especially for the informal one. Why? You may ask. Well, for the informal party, we hire a night club, and we advertise our party to everyone in advance. We hand out invitations (only teenagers are allowed.) It's custom to follow a theme for decorations and get costumes accordingly. Mine was Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs. The night of the party, the whole graduating class gets together in a house to have some drinks and then we go to the club to make a great entrance. It can be months before graduation or even after it, it depends of when the club you want to hire is available. 

Since I've never attended a prom, I decided to make today's theme about my ideal one. The theme I'm going with is Casino/Las Vegas. Let's pick some books related to it!

1) Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

We can't forget that nerve-wracking scene at the Lotus Casino.

Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can't seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse—Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him. When Percy's mom finds out, she knows it's time that he knew the truth about where he came from, and that he go to the one place he'll be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon a mystery unfolds and together with his friends—one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter of Athena—Percy sets out on a quest across the United States to reach the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in Hollywood) and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods.

2) The Chapel Wars by Lindsey Leavitt

Let's spice it up with some sexy time.

Sixteen-year-old Holly wants to remember her Grandpa forever, but she’d rather forget what he left her in his will: his wedding chapel on the Las Vegas strip. Whatever happened to gold watches, savings bonds, or some normal inheritance? 

And then there's Grandpa's letter. Not only is Holly running the business with her recently divorced parents, but she needs to make some serious money—fast. Grandpa also insists Holly reach out to Dax, the grandson of her family's mortal enemy and owner of the cheesy chapel next door. No matter how cute Dax is, Holly needs to stay focused: on her group of guy friends, her disjointed family, work, school and... Dax. No wait, not Dax. 

Holly’s chapel represents everything she’s ever loved in her past. Dax might be everything she could ever love in the future. But as for right now, there's a wedding chapel to save.

3) Pretending to Be Erica by Michelle Painchaud

Let's throw some mystery in the mix.

Seventeen-year-old Violet’s entire life has revolved around one thing: becoming Erica Silverman, an heiress kidnapped at age five and never seen again.

Violet’s father, the best con man in Las Vegas, has a plan, chilling in its very specific precision. Violet shares a blood type with Erica; soon, thanks to surgery and blackmail, she has the same face, body, and DNA. She knows every detail of the Silvermans’ lives, as well as the PTSD she will have to fake around them. And then, when the time is right, she “reappears”—Erica Silverman, brought home by some kind of miracle. 

But she is also Violet, and she has a job: Stay long enough to steal the Silverman Painting, an Old Master legendary in the Vegas crime world. Walking a razor’s edge, calculating every decision, not sure sometimes who she is or what she is doing it for, Violet is an unforgettable heroine, and Pretending to be Erica is a killer debut.

4) Amour Amour by Krista Ritchie and Becca Ritchie

I haven't read this one, but it sounds like a great combo!

Love is a circus

"Every day,” he says lowly, “I hold a person’s life in my hands. The circus is based one-hundred percent off trust. I give it all to someone, and they give it all to me.”

The best aerial technique won’t land 21-year-old Thora James her dream role in Amour—a sexy new acrobatic show on the Vegas strip. Thora knows she’s out of her element the second she meets Amour’s leading performer. Confident, charming and devilishly captivating, 26-year-old Nikolai Kotova lives up to his nickname as the “God of Russia.”

When Thora unknowingly walks into the crosshairs of Nikolai’s after-show, her audition process begins way too soon. Unprofessional. That’s what Nik calls their “non-existent” relationship. It’s not like Thora can avoid him. For one, they may be partners in the future—acrobatic partners, that is. But getting closer to Nik means diving deeper into sin city and into his dizzying world. 

Thora wants to perform with him, but when someone like Nikolai attracts the spotlight wherever he goes—Thora fears that she’s destined to be just background to his spellbinding show.

5) All In (The Naturals #3) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

How about a bit of murder?

Three casinos. Three bodies. Three days.

After a string of brutal murders in Las Vegas, Cassie Hobbes and the Naturals are called in to investigate. But even with the team's unique profiling talents, these murders seem baffling: unlike many serial killers, this one uses different methods every time. All of the victims were killed in public, yet the killer does not show up on any tape. And each victim has a string of numbers tattooed on their wrist. Hidden in the numbers is a code—and the closer the Naturals come to unraveling the mystery, the more perilous the case becomes.

Meanwhile, Cassie is dealing with an equally dangerous and much more painful mystery. For the first time in years, there's been a break in her mother's case. As personal issues and tensions between the team mount, Cassie and the Naturals will be faced with impossible odds—and impossible choices.

There you go! I love books set in vegas. I don't really know why. Maybe I was a gambler in a past life.

Where's your fave setting for a book? Tell me all about your prom! I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Book Review: A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3)

Release date: May 2nd 2017

Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books

Pages: 699

Source: No one sent it to me. I just love SJM.

Rating: 5 out 5 beautiful silver stars

Summary

From Goodreads:

*Spoilers*

Looming war threatens all Feyre holds dear in the third volume of the #1 New York Times bestselling A Court of Thorns and Roses series.

Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin's maneuverings and the invading king threatening to bring Prythian to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit-and one slip may spell doom not only for Feyre, but for her world as well.

As war bears down upon them all, Feyre must decide who to trust amongst the dazzling and lethal High Lords-and hunt for allies in unexpected places. 

In this thrilling third book in the #1 New York Times bestselling series from Sarah J. Maas, the earth will be painted red as mighty armies grapple for power over the one thing that could destroy them all.

Review

Holy moly. I'm dead. And I have been for the past two days and a half. 

I can't believe I'm going to say it, and I might deny it in the future but, I think I love this trilogy more than the ToG series. 

Okay, that's the end of the review.

JK.

Where do I even start? I guess with the non-spoilery part?

This book was such a journey and it was so different from the previous 2 books. We get to see our fave characters mature, we get to see some old faces and some new ones, and most importantly, we finally get a diverse group of characters!

Sarah definitely lived up to the expectation and delivered a fantastic conclusion to Feyre and Rhys's journey. 

Not everything was perfect, but it was quite close. 

Spoilers ahead!

Can we take a minute to talk about how badass Feyre was at the Spring Court? A small trick here, another one there, man, the Lucien one killed me. And then the twins were the cherry on top. 

I think the most nerve-wracking moment for me in the whole book was the chase between Feyre-Lucien and the Autumn Court. That was until, of course, our angel Cassian came in to save the day.

Plot wise, I think this was, as usual, fantastically planned. So much happened and so much was solved. I still can't believe how it all worked out. I honestly thought someone from the gang would have to die. 

Since we brought death up, let's talk about how great the death of lil' King of Hybern was. Elain, gurrl, I didn't know you had it in you.

I thoroughly enjoyed the fact that this was entirely war-driven. It was filled with tactics and plans and yet the sarcastic banter we all love was still there. I hope we get something like this in the ToG books.

I want to highlight two very important points from the novel:

Diverse characters. I love, LOVE, the diversification of characters. We finally have people of different ethnicity and sexuality. The only thing I'm sad about is how long it took for her to include them. It was great to meet all these new characters with different backgrounds and stories. It gave the novel so much depth. It was also fantastic to know a bit about a certain character's dilemma (you know who I'm talking about.)

Character development. I was so surprised to see how far Feyre had changed, how much confidence she had gained. The whole scene with the high-lords was fantastic! If Feyre's change was a surprise, then Tamlin came in like a wrecking ball. I was so glad, that Sarah gave him a little room for redemption. Does it wipe all the shitty stuff he did? Definitely not, but it was a small step. So many people shocked me in this book! Elain, Nesta, Lucien, Mor, Jurien.

Now let's talk about everybody's favorite topics: SHIPS

I was so glad that the Feyre-Rhys relationship remained untouched. I was seriously concerned that the book could get ruined by adding some tension into the relationship. But fortunately, that didn't happen. If only, it grew stronger with each passing second.

You might think I'm crazy, but I'm happy that the Elain-Lucien ship is not really working out. Well, at least I think it's not. Plus, do you think it's a coincidence that we learned about how a bond can be rejected? I think not. My bet is on the Elain-Az ship. And I will sink with it. I don't really like Lucien. I hate that he just ignored everything that happened at the Spring Court. And I can't forgive him for it. No matter what he does.

Nesta and Cassian? Yep. Definitely mates. Can't deny it. 

A mating bond is suppossed to be very rare. Acomaf felt like the Oprah show. You get a mate, you get a mate. So I'm quite content with how everything is going.

I want to address a more serious and controversial topic. When the first 8 chapters were released, there was a big commotion over a phrase in which, allegedly, Sarah J. Maas was implying that asexual people were soulless. You have to be quite dumb if that's what you took out of it. “perhaps any sort of physical passion had long ago been drained away, alongside their souls.” I hate it when people just go ahead and jump to conclusions. After having read the book, I can say that it was nothing like that. She was definitely not implying that you had to be soulless to be asexual. In context, it's really easy to realize that she was referring to how war had left them soulless and maybe all the horrors they'd faced had made it impossible to feel attracted to someone ever again. So please, just wait to get the full picture before opening your mouths.

As I said before, it was a monumental (literally and figuratively) conclusion and I can't wait till the novellas are released. So Sarah, can you hurry up, please? Thanks.

The big question is: is it better than A Court of Mist and Fury? In my opinion, I don't think it is. But it's almost there.

Rating

5 out of 5 stars

Rating System

I have no more words or energy left. I need a year to recover from this roller coaster.

Sorry about the amount of gifs. Actually, no, I'm not sorry. I know you love them.

I'll see you on the next one!

How on Earth are we supposed to live after that? Any suggestions? What were your thoughts on all the controversy surrounding the book? Let me know!

Miscellaneous Monday

Hey guys! How are you today? The weather's horrible today in Argentina. Several areas are flooded, yet again.

I thought I'd do more of an update on what's going on in my life and how the book fair went. Would you like that? If not, well... you can stop reading.

I went on Thursday to the Argentine Book Fair, which is held once a year. It usually has some good deals so it's great for shopping. I needed some books for uni, but I would have gone anyway. 

I had a lot of fun. I had lunch with my friends, then we met with my mom, who is the reason I started going to the book fair when I was little, and off we went. 

I bought Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass for $100 pesos. That would be a bit over US$6. Quite cheap, right? 

After that, we met with my mom again, who had been sitting in a lounge area, and she surprised me with a book. Ever since I was little, she has always insisted I study Chinese. She hasn't succeeded so far. But in yet another attempt, she bought me "The Last Chieftain", which is about a love triangle between a mute girl, a chieftain and an outsider set in, you guessed it, China. A clever thing, my mother. 

I particularly wanted to go on Thursday because at 6pm there was a US College Fair. 65 US Colleges came an talked about their programs, etc. It is, of course, a very interesting opportunity and I try to go to as many fairs as possible on the subject.

You may know that I'm currently on my third year of Public Translation Studies and I was thinking of getting a master's degree abroad on the subject. Unfortunately, I haven't been that successful at finding one. Only a couple of universities offer it. I began thinking if a master's in translation would really help me in any way. How much could I learn from one? So now, I'm starting to look for master's in International Relations/Global Affairs or Journalism. I'm really interested in both of them, and they're much easier to find. 

Money is the main issue for me here. I can't afford tuition, so I'm definitely going to have to get financial aid. From what I've heard, many colleges have assistantships and stipends. So I'm crossing my fingers to find something that works for me.

Do you recommend any college in particular for those areas? I'd love to know. 

Okay, that's all I've got. I like these type of rants. Do you enjoy them?

See you on the next one!

I'd love to hear about your week! And please tell me your thoughts!