Roaring Reviews: Paradigm by Ceri A. Lowe

Title: Paradigm
Publication Date: June 13, 2014 by Bookouture
Author: Ceri A. Lowe
Format: eARC

Plot Synopsis:

What if the end of the world was just the beginning?

Alice Davenport awakens from a fever to find her mother gone and the city she lives in ravaged by storms – with few survivors.

When Alice is finally rescued, she is taken to a huge underground bunker owned by the mysterious Paradigm Industries. As the storms worsen, the hatches close.

87 years later, amidst the ruins of London, the survivors of the Storms have reinvented society. The Model maintains a perfect balance – with inhabitants routinely frozen until they are needed by the Industry.

Fifteen-year-old Carter Warren knows his time has come. Awoken from the catacombs as a contender for the role of Controller General, it is his destiny to succeed – where his parents failed.

But Carter soon discovers that the world has changed, in ways that make him begin to question everything that he believes in. As Carter is forced to fight for those he loves and even for his life, it seems that the key to the future lies in the secrets of the past...

The Actual Review:

An ARC has been procured from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

This is the first time that I am placing a book within my Did-Not-Finish shelf in Goodreads. Now don't get me wrong, I liked the plot to this book it was interesting enough; the characters were okay. However the only thing that bothered me was the writing style.

The main reason why I stopped at page 41 of this book is that first, it's descriptions of things would just leave me more confused than before, and at the end it would've been just better to leave things up to the reader's imaginations. Lastly is the feel. During my bout with the book, there was that unsettling thought, that I have to constantly temper, saying that what I am reading is a short story or a mediocre fanfic of some sorts.

The book throws the reader immediately within the midst of its world, which left me totally confused with what is going on. It's like trying to understand an entire topic by eavesdropping at two people and only hearing snippets of their conversation. And if you're like me who would read and reread the entire scene over and over again just to eke out meaning from the text, you would find it frustrating to do it repetitively.

Another thing that aggravated me was the persistent use of horizontal rules in the formatting even when unnecessary. It diverts the attention of the reader from the story; as it is, I'm already finding it very hard to get into the story, so a horizontal rule would just leave that interest I've managed to muster up into ashes.

To Ceri A. Low and to any staff of Bookouture, I am truly and deeply sorry for writing this. I tried to love it with my entire entity, but with a plethora of books sitting beside my bbed, it's very hard how not to put this down and pick one from them instead. I'm sorry.

Resonant Recaps: Jenny Han Book Signing

A lot of hype has been going around by the readers community about this book signing tour these past few months. And last Saturday, the day that all of us readers have been waiting has finally come. The JENNY HAN BOOK SIGNING!

I was extremely opportune when my mom said yes when I asked her to make a 30 minute drive from Marikina to Makati at 3 AM in the morning. On normal hours, the short drive takes about 2 hours, but since it's the early hours of dawn, that 2 hours was cut into 30 minutes. 

Most readers endeavor to come to book signings early because the first three people to get there on time will receive something great from the author herself. In this case the surprise was the ARC copies of the final installment to the Burn for Burn series, Ashes to Ashes. Sad to say when I arrived there at 3:30 AM there were already people lined up and I got the fifth spot. Two persons away from those ARC's!!! But everything wasn't for naught. Karrel of Karrel May Reads came before me, and then we were chatting up for a solid hour when Alia from Ponderings of Psyche joined the fray.

Left to Right: Alia, Me, Karrel

Registration at the book signing starts up at around 10 AM and we still have a lot of time to spare, good thing some of our friends already came. And whet better to waste time than to talk about books, fandoms, and take pictures.

Did I mention that Anette of Anette the Wicked was invited to the blogger's forum, and although she didn't receive an ARC of Ashes to Ashes because she was late, she was able to get her books personalized by Jenny Han. Also I pleaded her to ask Jenny to sign my shirt, and Jenny did! She also posted a picture of it with Anette in her Instagram!

Of course as soon as Jenny Han came in front, the 500 fans who attended went crazily insane and ballistic! I was pretty sure that the entire Glorietta complex could hear the wild screams of the fangirls and fanboys (mostly fangirls) as they hear Jenny Han talk about the characters of her books. *cough* Peter Kavinsky, Conrad Fisher *cough*

During her interviews, we could see that Jenny Han is ecstatic to be here in the Philippines, and at the rate things are going, she looks like she's having a great time! She mentioned how she met her best friend, Siobhan Vivian, with whom she was classmates with. And guess who their mentor was. It was  DAVID LEVITHAN!!!! Jenny also mentioned her fancast for Belly in the Summer Series, and it was Hailee Steinfeld! For those who doesn't know Hailee, she was Juliet Capulet in the 2013 Romeo and Juliet

When it was my turn to finally go in front of her to get my books and my author notebook signed, not to mention to have my picture taken, I was quite alarmed when she remembered me as the guy who asked one of his blogger friends to ask her to sign his shirt. JENNY HAN KNOWS MY NAME! JENNY HAN KNOWS GODWIN!!!!

So at the end of the event I managed to get A LOT of things signed. Eight books, a shirt, and my author's notebook.

Jenny Han's signature along with Ransom, Tahereh, and Rossi's

I am also having a Giving Giveaway of a SIGNED copy of Burn for Burn. You can via Rafflecopter down below. :D

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Roaring Reviews: We'll Always Have Summer, by Jenny Han

Title: We'll Always Have Summer
Author: Jenny Han
Publication Date: April 26, 2011 by Simon & Schuster
Format: Trade Paperback

Plot Synopsis:

It's been two years since Conrad told Belly to go with Jeremiah. She and Jeremiah have been inseparable ever since, even attending the same college-- only, their relationship hasn't exactly been the happily ever after Belly had hoped it would be. And when Jeremiah makes the worst mistake a boy can make, Belly is forced to question what she thought was true love. Does she really have a future with Jeremiah? Has she ever gotten over Conrad? It's time for Belly to decide, once and for all, who has her heart forever.

The Actual Review:

We’ll Always Have Summer is the third book in Jenny Han’s the Summer Series. I have written a review for the first two books The Summer I Turned Pretty and It’s Not Summer Without You and could be found here and here.

I started reading the first book of the series because of the reason that Jenny Han is coming here to the Philippines – in fact I am writing this as while I am currently falling in line at the actual book signing. And let me tell you, I never expected to actually like the book, let alone to acquire so much FEELS from the last one. I was literally rolling on my bed as soon as I was done with the last page.

We’ll Always Have Summer started off two years after the events of the second book, and from the first chapter, we already see that Jeremiah and Belly are now a solid couple. The two of them are so sweet and that you could really see them really loving each other, but ever since it was revealed that Jeremiah messed up big time, we can see that their relationship went pretty much downhill from there.

I kinda got peeved at Jeremiah during most parts of the book; I know that Jeremiah provides us comic relief for the series, but there are times when his nonchalance really got on my nerves. You could really see Belly going on and about being stressed out because the pressure of the wedding is getting into her, and then when she would go to Jeremiah for some decisions about the wedding, he would just give her some blasé comment.

I love Belly in We’ll Always Have Summer; we really saw her grow and mature as a character. Although there were some parts of the book that I question her judgement on things at hand, I’m really happy that she’s no longer that whiny, immature girl who thinks that being mature means looking mature and not acting like one.

I really enjoyed the POV’s of Conrad throughout the book. We learn how he’s been coping up these past two years Belly has been with Jeremiah. Everything is filled with angst as he goes through this ordeal of falling with his brother’s fiancé. I am really a huge sucker when it comes to angst so it was Conrad’s POV that drove me over the edge in this book which left me giving this book a really high rating.

Plot-wise the book is good, it has a good enough plot, enough to keep me reading; it doesn’t have that forced feel to it that some books have.

Overall, We’ll Always Have Summer is a jarring and engrossing read that will keep readers up until the early hours of down and won’t even notice it. I’m giving the book another Brazen Book Star because of the intense FEELS!!!

My Rating:

Did my Roaring Review made you want to read the book too? What are you waiting for; click the button below and add it to your To-Read Shelf in Goodreads!

Nonsensical Nonsense: The Book Blogger Test

I was tagged by Anette the Wicked in her blog, and for that I thank you. 

What are my book pet hates?

I am self-diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder when it come to book. It really irks me so much when I see books maltreated with such incriminating acts such as using a book as a hard surface to write on to opening the book so wide the you start to beak the book's spine. Listed below are my Top Three Book Pet Peeves.

• The sound of a book hitting the ground. Hard
• Holding a book the wrong way. It looks like you're pulling the book inside out. 
• Dents in the book spine or on the cover. 

Describe my perfect reading spot.

Lying on my comfortable bed, with the AC turned on at full blast facing directly towards me, as I hide under the warmth generated by three thickly stacked blankets. 

Tell us three book confessions.

• I gave up on Veronica Roth's Allegiant
• I am usually on the wrong ship when it comes to love triangles.
• I hated John Green's The Fault in Our Stars

What is your favorite snack while you're reading?

I don't. I tried eating while reading at one point in my avid reading career, and in everyone single one of them, I would get distracted by the food, so then I'd be giving my 100% full attention instead to eating of dividing it between the two. 

Name three books you would recommend to everyone:

Only three books?! That's hard! But I'm going to say:

• Legend by Marie Lu
• The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
• Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Show us a picture of your favorite bookshelf on your bookcase:

I am basically cheating off of this one, because instead of just posting a single shelf, I posted a picture of the front view of one of my bookcases. And yes, those are How to Train Your Dragon happy meals you see.

Write how much books mean to you in just three words:

Words are drugs. 

When was the last time you cried while reading a book?

The last time I cried was over a year ago on the 5th of April in 2013. I just received Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare, and while I was reading the Epilogue, I cried at a certain character death. Oh yeah, I cried twice on the same chapter, by the way.

What is your biggest reading secret?

There was this one time when I was still in grade school, I learned from my best friend from the other class that the teacher gave them a pop quiz on a subject I was totally clueless about, so I tore this flyleaf out of the book I was reading and shamelessly asked him the answers to the quiz.


I'm tagging:
Gabe of Within Wayward Thoughts
Raffy of Eccentric Everything
Sean of Stacking Words
Alia of Ponderings of Psyche 

Roaring Reviews: It's Not Summer Without You, by Jenny Han

Title: It's Not Summer Without You
Author: Jenny Han
Publication Date: April 27, 2010 by Simon & Schuster
Format: Trade Paperback

Plot Synopsis:

Can summer be truly summer without Cousins Beach?

It used to be that Belly counted the days until summer, until she was back at Cousins Beach with Conrad and Jeremiah. But not this year. Not after Susannah got sick again and Conrad stopped caring. Everything that was right and good has fallen apart, leaving Belly wishing summer would never come.

But when Jeremiah calls saying Conrad has disappeared, Belly knows what she must do to make things right again. And it can only happen back at the beach house, the three of them together, the way things used to be. If this summer really and truly is the last summer, it should end the way it started--at Cousins Beach.

The Actual Review:

It's Not Summer Without You is the second book to the Summer series, A review of the first book, The Summer I Turned Pretty, could be seen here.

I found myself liking the second book way more than the first one in the series. The pacing was better; the circumstances were more jarring; the main protagonist was more tolerable compared to the first book.  In other words, It’s Not Summer Without You will keep you glued to your seat, not knowing that you’ve gone through already a hundred or so pages.

The book, in contrast to the first one, was told in two perspectives. We had Belly’s traditional PoV, and we have a new one, Jeremiah’s – which I actually found to my liking. The PoV’s of Jeremiah gave me a deeper understanding to his personality, how he feels, and his sibling bond with Conrad, and especially about his father. The characters are also a lot more angstier, the collateral of the reason why they didn’t go to the beach house that summer. 

I also loved the fact that Jenny Han revealed to us the vulnerable side of all characters, especially Jeremiah’s. We saw that while Conrad and Belly had others to rely, Jeremiah had none. But even though all these kind of shit is happening all around him, he still kept that Jeremiah attitude that we all learned to love. 

Belly became a little more mature in this book; though she could still annoy the hell out of me from time to time, it made the entire reading experience more bearable, than to have her whining complaining about being ostracized from the boys’ group. She does whine still; she acts immature but on a completely less extent that the first time we’ve met her.

Conrad is the most angst driven, not to mention the most enigmatic character. It’s already the second book, and I still don’t know what makes him tick! Throughout the book he would be really nice to Belly and show that he still likes her, and then suddenly hide behind the cold hard exterior he’s made.

Another character that I didn’t expect to suddenly love was Belly’s mom, Lauren. We know she has this calm, cool under pressure personality, but we get to see her become a total badass in one part of the book. 

Another thing I liked in the book was the romance. The romance was well timed, got better and even more complex. We see this whole love triangle growing around these three that were planted in the first book. 

Overall, It’s Not Summer Without You is a really good read, and although I lacks that certain je ne sais quoi that constitutes an amazingly perfect book, it’s still a quickly paced, light read that you might enjoy while waiting for the rain to pour itself out while you’re stuck in the house, bored out of one’s mind.

My Rating: 

Did my Roaring Review made you want to read the book too? What are you waiting for; click the button below and add it to your To-Read Shelf in Goodreads!

Roaring Reviews: The Summer I turned Pretty, by Jenny Han

Title: The Summer I Turned Pretty
Author: Jenny Han
Publication Date:May 5, 2009 by Simon & Schuster
Format: Trade Paperback

Plot Synopsis:

Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer--they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer, one terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along.

The Actual Review:

I never had any plans reading this book, but since it became official that Jenny Han is going to the Philippines this upcoming June 21, I tried to insert all of her books into my Summer Reading List, and one of those happens to be The Summer I Turned Pretty.

Let me start off by saying: I never expected myself to actually like this book! When this was on my mandatory reading pile, I already had 2 meters worth of bandage beside me, ready to apply to my head for those times I wanted to hit my head at the wall. Because seriously, The Summer I Turned Pretty? The title itself makes your eyes want to barf, instead of making of making it go through the book.

I loved the romance parts of the book; everything was so fluffy and cute, I sometimes catch myself grinning while I’m in a public place. And nothing – I mean nothing – is more awkward than to have some stranger look at the sight of you goofily grinning at a book, when the title says The Summer I Turned Pretty!

Character wise, I also enjoyed the book, there are just some characters of this book you can’t help but simply adore. I liked how Jeremiah cracked his jokes; the brooding detachment of Conrad, even though sometimes you can’t help but hate him for being such a total dick; how Susannah was more than a second mother to Belly; Cam Cameron’s adorkable temperament; I even found Steven likable even though I don’t know how he fits in the entire picture.

However, as likable most of the characters of this book are, I really hated the main protagonist. Belly I just found throughout the book to be incredibly whiny. She goes on and on how things doesn’t go the way she likes them to, and how often she was ostracized from the guys. I also found her character very immature. She believes that a person’s maturity is the effect of how that person looks physically. Belly kept pressing the buttons of my patience throughout the totality of The Summer I Turned Pretty, and it’s the side characters that kept me from chucking this book at a wall.

The romance was decent; the characters were likable – albeit some will constantly irk you to death –; the plot was mediocre. Overall, The Summer I Turned Pretty is your average light read, filled with a dash of humor.

My Rating:

Did my Roaring Review made you want to read the book too? What are you waiting for; click the button below and add it to your To-Read Shelf in Goodreads!

Roaring Reviews: The Fault in Our Stars, by John Green

Title: The Fault in Our Stars
Author: John Green
Publication Date: January 10, 2012 by Dutton Books
Format: Trade Paperback

Plot Synopsis:

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.

The Actual Review:

YA Contemporary books had never been one of my strong suits. I find it very inconceivable to imagine myself lounging on some bed that had seen better days, reading some realistic contemporary fiction.

Now, all of you might now be wondering, if I dislike YA Contemporary that much, why did I even bother pick up The Fault in Our Stars? Like many of the neophytes to this fandom, I tried this book because of the upcoming movie produced by 20th Century Fox; another reason I decided to pick this up, is because of that obligatory urge to read TFiOS who was infamous for breaking so many hearts. I wouldn't mind. It would be a privilege to have my heart broken by it.

And break my heart, it did!

I kinda got bored with the entire book that is The Fault in Our Stars. Although true, it did contain a lot of metaphors, both implicit and explicitly stated, it felt that during the entire span of my read, I found myself trying to contemplate more at the metaphors rather than the content per se of the book; and in doing so, I cannot help but think that the entire book is founded upon sophistry. The book would suddenly get deep and highly philosophical that if you’re reading it around the wee hours of 2-3 AM you’d find yourself reading the very same line over and over again, endeavoring to extract meaning from the text. Even when you’re wide awake, you’d still have difficulty in drawing out some sense from the said lines.

The most relatable character in the book would be Isaac. And although Isaac’s main role in the book is to provide some sort of comic relief, he would be the person whom you’d immediately get drawn towards to, because when the other main protagonists would get too pretentious formulating metaphors and philosophies, he would be the first person whom you can rely on to not analyze the content of his words. You’d find them become some sort of reprieve in contrast to Hazel and Gus’s words which leaves you more confused than before at the end of the day.

I didn’t seem to receive even an ounce of FEELS from the romance aspect of this book – or any FEELS whatsoever-, which I found as a humongous surprise because it doesn’t take a lot for me to ship two characters from the moment they set their eyes upon each other. I was waiting for that stupid grin of mine to take form at the corners of my mouth when you catch the two characters do something fluffy, and unfortunately that grin - that I was so hoping for - didn’t come.

Pushing these thoughts aside, The Fault in Our Stars was an okay read. I would recommend it to people would enjoy thought-provoking ideas about the purpose of our existence in our world.

My Rating:

Did my Roaring Review made you want to read the book too? What are you waiting for; click the button below and add it to your To-Read Shelf in Goodreads!

To my awesome friend who made sure that this review made a coherent thought when I wrote it during the hours of 4-6 AM, for that I thank you. :D