BOOK REVIEW | THIS IS WHERE IT ENDS BY MARIEKE NIJKAMP

Title: This Is Where It Ends
Author: Marieke Nijkamp
Published: 2016
Pages: 285
Rating: 4/5

10:00 a.m. The principal of Opportunity High School finishes her speech, welcoming the entire student body to a new semester and encouraging them to excel and achieve.
10:02 a.m. The students get up to leave the auditorium for their next class.
10:03 a.m. The auditorium doors won't open.
10:05 a.m. Someone starts shooting.

Told from four different perspectives over the span of fifty-four harrowing minutes, terror reigns as one student’s calculated revenge turns into the ultimate game of survival.


Ever since this book first got attention I was really curious to read this. This book is about a school shooting, something that nowadays happens a lot in America. Something that is very sad but in my opinion also is something that needs to be educated about. I was curious about the message this book was going to bring.

The way the story is told is quite cool. It's told from multiple perspectives, over a time spend of a couple of minutes each time. I personally found that this kept me really curious about what was going to happen.

I really liked the fact that this book had a very diverse set of characters. What I did find unfortunate is the fact that we didn't read in the perspective of the shooter. I think this could've made the book a whole lot more interesting. 

Although this was a really good read, I think that I would have liked this book a whole lot more as a 14-year old. I think this is definitely aimed for the younger audience of the young adult genre. 

BOOK REVIEW | THE VEGETARIAN BY HAN KANG

Title: The Vegetarian
Author: Han Kang
Published: 2016
Language: Korean
Pages: 192
Rating: 4/5
Translator: Deborah Smith


Before the nightmare, Yeong-hye and her husband lived an ordinary life. But when splintering, blood-soaked images start haunting her thoughts, Yeong-hye decides to purge her mind and renounce eating meat. In a country where societal mores are strictly obeyed, Yeong-hye's decision to embrace a more “plant-like” existence is a shocking act of subversion. 



I was really excited to finally pick up 'The Vegetarian' since it has been on my wishlist for so long. I am really curious to read more translated fiction and had never read a book from South-Korea. I think that the book starting with someone becoming a vegetarian is a really interesting start for a book about mental health. 

This book had plots and twists of which I never could imagine them happening when I imagined what this book would be about. What I really liked about this story is that you can see the mental illness 'being born' you see how it develops and grows within our main character.

This book is separated in 3 parts, and in the second part we also experience sexual desire, but again not as we are used to. We experience it not about lust objects and sexual desire from human to human but about the power of an individual. 

This was a book like no others.

DECEMBER 2016

December has been an incredibly busy month and made it almost impossible for me to read. In the beginning of the month I finished 'Naamloos' a Dutch fiction book which I really enjoyed. The other two books I finished this month were 'Reached' by Ally Condie, and 'My True Love Gave to Me' edited by Stephanie Perkins. Unfortunately I didn't like either of these books. Reviews will be up soon!

I am really looking forward to a new year full of reading. I am really excited to start reading in 2017, with all my reading goals being set. 

December has been a fun month full of festivities and happy things! 2016 overall has been a year I utterly enjoyed and I can't wait to find out what 2017 has to offer. I wish you all a very happy new year! Thanks for your support!

2016 CONCLUSION | BOOK DISCUSSION

With just a few days away from 2017 I would like to talk about my 2016 - reading wise.

First of all my mid-year reading goals. The only reading goal I (sur)passed was reading 2 Dutch fictions (I read 3). I only read one translated fiction, one classic and one poetry. I read 3 historical fictions where my goal was to read 5. Although I didn't reach all of these goals I am really happy with the books I did read. Click here for the specific post on my mid-year reading goals.

This year I read - books. I read - pages. The shortest book I read had 37 pages and is called: 'Teaching My Mother How To Give Birth'. The longest book I read had 600 pages and is called: 'Illuminae'. The average length of the books I read was 314. My average rating this year was 3.6 stars. The most popular book (on Goodreads) I read this year was: 'The Lovely Bones'. The least popular book (on Goodreads) I read this year was: 'Indiase Sprookjes'. For my exact Goodreads statistics click here!

I am really happy with this reading year and I cannot wait to read even more next year! Talk to you soon, lots of love!

BOOK REVIEW | NAAMLOOS BY PEPIJN LANEN

Title: Naamloos
Author: Pepijn Lanen
Published: 2016
Language: Dutch
Pages: 254
Rating: 4/5

In 'Naamloos' we follow a month in the life of a man who can not remember who he is. We read about his confusing time, in a battle against addictions and fear, and a fight against himself. 


Pepijn Lanen is in the Netherlands very famous for his work as artist in the band 'De Jeugd van Tegenwoordig'. When I saw he had a book coming out I was very curious about it. I was excited to see what he had to offer - Dutch literature wise. 

This book surprised me very pleasantly. Pepijn is just as inventive, witty and original in this book as in the songs he writes. The writing style is easy to follow, and the short chapters keep it fast paced, even though the writing sometimes got a little monotone. 

I would really like to see this book gets translated, so that non-Dutch reading countries can see what a Dutch writer like Pepijn has to offer to our modern literature. 

This book is available to listen for free on Spotify (in Dutch). 

NEW ON MY WISHLIST | III

Get the books here:

Tribe by Sebastian Junger

The Red Parts by Maggie Nelson

Nine Island by Jane Alison

All We Shall Know by Donal Ryan

Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup

Maybe a Fox by Kathi Appelt and Alison McGhee

No Virgin by Anne Cassidy

The Goldfish Boy by Lisa Thompson

Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry

BOOK REVIEW | THE ROSE AND THE DAGGER BY RENEE AHDIEH

Title: The Rose and the Dagger
Author: Renee Ahdieh
Published: 2016
Language: English
Pages: 416
Rating: 4/5

This review contains spoilers for 'The Wrath and the Dawn', book 1 in 'The Wrath and the Dawn' duology.

"In 'The Rose and the Dagger' we follow the aftermath of what happened to the city Rey and it's ruler who'm are both vulnerable. We follow the multiple characters we first got to meet in 'The Wrath and the Dawn' such as Shazrad, Khalid and Tariq."

It took me two and a halve month to finally finish this book. This was not because I didn't enjoy the book enough, it was all through the lack of time. I do think the fact that it took me so long to read this book, made me enjoy it a little less. I couldn't invest in the story as much as I wanted to, I think that once I will re-read this duology, in a short period of time, I will like it much better.

Anyhow, I did really enjoy this story. I really liked the setting and I liked where Renee brought this story. I loved the characters in this book and the writing style is great. almost poetical. 

Although I really loved it, it didn't live up to the kick-ass start we had in the first book. Therefor I gave this book 4/5. 

Buy your copy on Book Depository here!

BOOK REVIEW | HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD BY J.K. ROWLING, JACK THORNE AND JOHN TIFANNY

Title: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Author: J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tifanny
Published: 2016
Language: English
Pages: 327
Rating: 4/5

"It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children. While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places."

I went in to this book without any expectations. I didn't want to see this as the eight book in the Harry Potter series, and also not as a book written by J.K. Rowling but a story written by Jack Thorne based on a new story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany. That's what I did, and I really enjoyed the reading experience. 

It was absolutely amazing, to meet the new characters J.K. Rowling had to offer and although it was quite the cliche, and something that probably a lot of fans could have come up with, the story was great. I really liked the elements that came back and I would love to see the play one day!

I can definitely see and understand why people either love it or hate it, but if you are still in doubt whether to read it or not, I would highly recommend to give it a chance.

BOOK REVIEW | SAVE ME, KURT COBAIN BY JENNY MANZER

Title: Save Me, Kurt Cobain
Author: Jenny Manzer
Published: 2016
Language: English
Pages: 272
Rating: 3/5


"On a ferry departing Seattle, Nico encounters a slight blond guy with piercing blue eyes wearing a hooded jacket. Something in her heart tells her that this feeling she has might actually be the truth, so she follows him to a remote cabin in the Pacific Northwest. When she is stranded there by a winter storm, fear and darkness collide, and the only one who can save Nico might just be herself. Nico Cavan has been adrift since her mother vanished when she was four—maternal abandonment isn't exactly something you can just get over. Staying invisible at school is how she copes—that and listening to alt music and summoning spirits on the Ouija board with her best friend and co-conspirator in sarcasm, Obe. But when a chance discovery opens a window onto her mom's wild past, it sparks an idea in her brain that takes hold and won't let go."

I was really excited to read this book and actually pre-ordered it way back when it came out in Spring. The reason I was drawn to this book, was as you might guess, Kurt Cobain. When in high school, I also, had a stage where there went no day by, when I wasn't listening to Nirvana - or any other grunge or rock music for that matter.

I always have been interested in him, and have watched some documentaries about him, so when I heard about this book I pre-ordered it. Now that I read it, I can't say that it lived up to my hopes.

I had quite the struggles with our main character Nico(la). In this book she makes a whole bunch of big discussions, and for me as reader, it was very annoying to see that she wasn't thinking about the consequences and feelings of other people. 

What I did like were all the facts about Kurt that were in it. As I mentioned I find him quite interesting and I now know some more facts about him, which I didn't know at first. 

It is not a story I would re-read and I also wouldn't really recommend but you can always give it a go!

BOOK REVIEW | MY LADY JANE BY CYNTHIA HAND, BRODI AHSTON AND JODI MEADOWS

Title: My Lady Jane
Author: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows
Published: 2016
Language: English
Pages: 491
Rating: 4/5


"Edward (long live the king) is the King of England. He’s also dying, which is inconvenient, as he’s only sixteen and he’d much rather be planning for his first kiss than considering who will inherit his crown. Jane (reads too many books) is Edward’s cousin, and far more interested in books than romance. Unfortunately for Jane, Edward has arranged to marry her off to secure the line of succession. And there’s something a little odd about her intended. Gifford (call him G) is a horse. That is, he’s an Eðian (eth-y-un, for the uninitiated). Every day at dawn he becomes a noble chestnut steed—but then he wakes at dusk with a mouthful of hay. It’s all very undignified."

The storyline hooked me instantly, it sounded fascinating and I was very intrigued to see how the writers had rewritten history. 

The characters we meet are all so lovely, especially our main characters Gifford, Edward and Jane. You almost instantly like them reading the first chapters about them, and grow on them even more as you continue the book. Most of the other side-figures were also lovely! 

The sarcasm and humor that was used in this book was on point. It was used at the right timing, and it had the right amount of it throughout the whole book.

For me the downside was the ending, where the whole book took it's time to build up, I felt like the ending was rushed. Way to rushed, I think for that reason the ending was a lot less action packed and exciting as it could have been.

AUGUST 2016

Hello everyone,

First of all, I want to apologize for my inactivity the last week. August has been a busy month, and although I had a lot of my posts scheduled I failed the last week of August to keep this blog updated. Since school and internship is starting again this week, I will get back into the normal rhythm of life, and will be posting a lot more every week!

Books I read:
The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion 4/5
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi 4/5
Lola and the Boy Next Door 4/5
Crossed by Ally Condie 4/5
My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows and Brodi Ashton 4/5

As you might have seen, my blogposts have lacked of photo's. I don't know what is happening, but my camera won't be on for longer than 6 seconds, even though the battery is in the adapter the whole day. I will soon be going to the store, so they can fix it, but I don't know how soon I can use my camera again. Therefore I want to apologize in advantage when there are no picture in a post (yet), because I will upload them, but sometimes later than the post is actually uploaded. Thanks for your understanding. 

BOOK REVIEW | VECTOR BY SIMON DE WAAL

Title: Vector
Author: Simon de Waal
First published: 2016
Language: Dutch
Pages: 96
Rating: 4/5

At the end of the Cold War a deadly virus dissapears in a mysterious way. Twenty-five years later, in Amsterdam, a man called Alex, son of a runaway Russian scientist, get's confronted with the dark past of his dementing father. When his brother al of sudden apears in the picture, a well-kept secret surfaces. His father though, doesn't have any memories left of his past. Does he even have a brother? And what is 'his brother' searching for?

This is a Dutch thriller short-story that I got as a gift while buying an other book during 'De week van het spannende boek', the week of Dutch thrillers. When I read the back I was really interested in this story. It sounded very interesting, because it is very short I decided to read this when I was in the mood for something short and easy.

'Vector' was quite a good story. The prologue was exciting, the characters were cool and I really liked the setting of it, both in Russia and Amsterdam. I read some mixed reviews on Goodreads, most people think this book was too rushed, I disagree. I think these people forget that this is a short story that is meant to be short and sweet, and that is just what this is.

It was refreshing to read in Dutch. 

JULY 2016

Hiiya!

July has gone by so quickly! As of the first of August I finally have a break from school as well from work. The last couple of weeks I worked a lot of hours at my job. I am really looking forward to August. I am going to Crete, will be doing loads of fun things with friends, it's my birthday month and there is a big music festival I will be visiting at the end of the month.

Here's what I have been up to in July reading-wise:

Books I read:
More Than This by Patrick Ness 5/5
The Unmoving Sky by K.L. Hallam 3/5 (e-book)
Being Mortal by Atul Gawande 4/5
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley 3/5
Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff 3/5
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng 5/5
Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oakes 4/5
Life of Pi by Yann Martel 2/5
Er ist wieder da by Timur Vermes 3/5 (lent)
Vector by Simon de Waal 4/5
The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Lelsye Walton 4/5

Favourite book of the month:
My favourite books of the month are 'More Than This' and 'Everything I Never Told You'. I really can't pick a favourite from these two. They were both amazing and unique in their own way. I would definitely recommend them!

Least favourite book of the month:
My least favourite book to read this month is without a doubt 'Life of Pi'. It took me so long to pick this up and when I finally did, it was as disappointing as I thought it would be. It just wasn't put away for me.

What have you been up to this past month? 

BOOK DISCUSSION | MID-YEAR READING STATISTICS

Hello!

Since we are over the half of this year, I decided to see how I'm doing with my reading so far this year.

I have read 49 books so far, this means I am seven books ahead of my goal to read 75 books by the end of this year. Nine of those books I gave a 5-star rating. Fifteen I gave a 4-star rating, nineteen a 3-star rating, four a 2-star rating and two a 1-star rating.

I have read 15,297 pages so far. The longest book I read this year was 'Illuminae' this book is 599 pages. The oldest book I read so far this year was Peter Pan which was published in 1911.

I have read books that are set in America, Mexico, Ireland, England, the Netherlands, France, Sweden, Germany, Italy, India, Singapore and Australia. I still want to branch out a bit more in this.

I have completed 32 challenges from the 'Around The World in 52 Books' challenge including: a book set in the past (more than 100 years ago), a book set in a different continent and a book with a beautiful cover.

Since I hadn't set any personal goals at the beginning of this year, I can't tell you anything about that. Since I have, set mid-year goals I will talk them through at the end of the year. This was it for now, thanks for reading!

I hope you have a lovely day!

BOOK REVIEW | QUEEN OF HEARTS BY COLLEEN OAKES

Title: Queen of Hearts
Author: Colleen Oakes
First published: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 306
Rating: 4/5

"As Princess of Wonderland Palace and the future Queen of Hearts, Dinah’s days are an endless monotony of tea, tarts, and a stream of vicious humiliations at the hands of her father, the King of Hearts. The only highlight of her days is visiting Wardley, her childhood best friend, the future Knave of Hearts — and the love of her life. When an enchanting stranger arrives at the Palace, Dinah watches as everything she’s ever wanted threatens to crumble. As her coronation date approaches, a series of suspicious and bloody events suggests that something sinister stirs in the whimsical halls of Wonderland. It’s up to Dinah to unravel the mysteries that lurk both inside and under the Palace before she loses her own head to a clever and faceless foe."

Although I never read 'Alice in Wonderland' I was really interested in this re-telling and it did not disappoint. I flew through this book, it was such a light and easy read!

First of all, the world building. The world building in this book was absolutely amazing, it was so descriptive, you could imagine every chair, every corner, every detail of dresses and uniforms.  This is something I highly appreciate in a book!

The romance came quite early in this book and I though 'oh no', because it was your standard young adult romance. Luckily it almost didn't come back anywhere else in the book, and when it did it wasn't soppy lovey dovey. 

I really liked most of the characters but the main character Dinah, will have to grow on me in the following books. She is very youngish, but then again she is only sixteen. I think that her character will develop with the series.

I am really curious for the next book 'Blood of Wonderland', which will be published in January 2017.

MID-YEAR READING CHALLENGES 2016

When I started picking up reading at the end of last year again, I wasn't as serious and addicted to it as now. I had only one goal; to read 50 books (which I had done before so I knew it wasn't that much of a challenge). Now that we are halfway through 2016 I want to set my self some specific reading challenges for the rest of 2016, starting today.

CLASSICS
I want to read 5 more classics this year. I feel like I am really lacking on my knowledge of classics and I really want to read and appreciate them.

HISTORICAL FICTION
I also want to read 5 historical fictions. I want to find out more about this genre because I really think that this could be a favourite genre of my. I never experienced a lot with genres beside contemporary and light-fantasy but I think that this has real potential to be one of my favourite genres.

DUTCH FICTION
I want to read 2 Dutch books. I only choose two books because for one, Dutch books are twice or triple the price of the English books I read, and second, I only can think of two that I really want to read. For 2017 I might take this challenge to a higher level and set an higher goal, but for now, two books it is.

TRANSLATED FICTION
I want to read 7 translated fictions. I want to get to know a wider variation of authors, stories, settings etcetera.

POETRY
I want to read 5 books of poetry. I used to write my own poetry, but I almost never ever have read poetry. Actually, I only read two books of poetry. Five books of poetry might be a bit to high but I see how far I can come.


Do you have any mid-year reading challenges? 

JUNE 2016

Hello everyone!

First of all, I want to thank you again for reading my blog. It makes writing for it such a bigger joy. June wasn't a really good reading month for me. I had such a busy month because we had our finals week and I had to do a lot for my internship. Those are the reasons that I only read 3 books this month. Luckily I am (almost) done now, and beside work the only thing I will be doing this weekend is reading.

BOOKS I READ

Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton 5/5

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs 5/5

Matched by Ally Condie 3/5

CURRENTLY READING

Progress: 120/480

I really don't know what is happening in this book so far, but I am enjoying it a lot. 

THIS MONTHS PURCHASES

Since I recently booked a holiday with my boyfriend to Crete (yay) I am not allowing myself to buy any books. But three days ago, I failed. I accidentally went on the Book Depository and ordered this paperback version of 'Everything I Never Told You' by Celeste Ng. It has been on my wish list for such a long time so I think it is fair enough that I bought it. 

Thanks for reading, speak to you soon :) -x-

MAY 2016

Hiiya everyone!

I'm really glad to be back on my blog and I am happy to see that my previous posts have been well received. I decided that I want do a post like this monthly, where I will tell whatever is on my mind, and of course talk about the books I read in that particular month.

May has been quite the good month. May for me started with the second week of the 'May vacation' (a Dutch vacation). In the second week I started school again which has been going great as well. I also had a fun slumber party this month with a few friends and my boyfriend, where we watched the Eurovision Song Contest #TeamDouwe. I am currently quite stressing out over school and internship because at the end of June we need to be done with everything. Luckily I can get super relaxed and destressed by reading books and that's exactly what I did in May. I read a grande total of twelve books!

BOOKS I READ

A Most Wanted Man by John Le Carre - 2/5

Under A Silent Moon by Elizabeth Haynes- 2/5

Indiase Sprookjes by Various Authors -  4/5

Day of Tears by Julius Lester - 5/5

Soy Sauce for Beginners - 3/5

Eat My Heart Out by Zoe Pilger- 1/5

Sex Lives of Siamese Twins - Irvine Welsh- 3/5

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion - 5/5

Love Rosie by Cecilia Ahern- 4/5

Lucky Us by Amy Bloom - 2/5

Frog Music by Emma Donoghue 3/5

Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them by Newt Scamander/J.K. Rowling - 4/5

CURRENTLY READING

Progress: 66/352

I am actually buddy reading this book with my online-friend Mirte, which is pretty cool!

FAVOURITE BOOK OF THE MONTH

 

I really can't decide which book I loved more. They are both very different from each other, one is a historical recreation and one is adult contemporary fiction. I loved them both!

LEAST FAVOURITE BOOK OF THE MONTH

I absolutely hated this book. I found the characters annoying and weird and I just didn't like the book. I'm glad I received this for free because I wouldn't want to spend my money on it. 

And that's all for May. I hope you enjoyed May! Please feel free to let me know what you read through May and any recommendations! Talk to you soon :)