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Saturday, June 13, 2015

BOOK REVIEW : SIEGE AND STORM BY LEIGH BARDUGO!

Hello Readers! How are you? I'm definitely feeling great!

I have recently finished Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo and I decided to put up a review of it!

If you don't know this book is the second book in the Grisha Trilogy. So in any way possible, this post will contain SPOILERS for the First Book. Rest assured that I will warn you once spoilers for the Second book is present.

If you haven't seen it yet, I have a SPOILER-FREE Review of Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo, the first book to the trilogy. Click here to redirect you to my review!

Let's begin with the review!




Details:

Title: Seige and Storm (The Grisha #2)

Author: Leigh Bardugo

Number of Pages: 435

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Science Fiction

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.

Published on: June 4, 2013

Format: Hardcover

Price: $21.08 (BD), $17.99 (Amazon), Php 865.00 (NBS) & Php 810 (FB)
*Prices may change due to different sales/offers.

Purchase the book at:
*I am NOT getting any profit for endorsing these sites



Synopsis:

"Darkness never dies. 
Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a life with Mal in an unfamiliar land. She finds starting new is not easy while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. She can’t outrun her past or her destiny for long.
The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling’s game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her--or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm."


About the Author:


Leigh Bardugo is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Grisha Trilogy: Shadow and Bone, Siege and Storm, and Ruin and Rising. She was born in Jerusalem, grew up in Los Angeles, and graduated from Yale University, and has worked in advertising, journalism, and most recently, makeup and special effects. These days, she’s lives and writes in Hollywood where she can occasionally be heard singing with her band. Her new book, Six of Crows, arrives fall 2015. 



Reach the author at:



Saturday, June 6, 2015

BOOK REVIEW : SHADOW AND BONE BY LEIGH BARDUGO!

Hello Readers! Today I'll be talking about Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo!

As I've said on instagram over @readingwithluigi (my bookstagram account) I will talk about it more over my blog, which is what I am doing now!

Let's Begin!




Details:

Title: Shadow and Bone (The Grisha #1)

Author: Leigh Bardugo

Number of Pages: 368

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Science Fiction

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.

Published on: June 5, 2012

Format: Hardcover

Price: $18.99 (TBD & Amazon), Php 865.00 (NBS) & Php 855 (FB)
*Prices may change due to different sales/offers.


Purchase the book at:
*I am NOT getting any profit for endorsing these sites



Synopsis:

"Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee. 
Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.
Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.
Shadow and Bone is the first installment in Leigh Bardugo's Grisha Trilogy."


About the Author:



Leigh Bardugo is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Grisha Trilogy: Shadow and Bone, Siege and Storm, and Ruin and Rising. She was born in Jerusalem, grew up in Los Angeles, and graduated from Yale University, and has worked in advertising, journalism, and most recently, makeup and special effects. These days, she’s lives and writes in Hollywood where she can occasionally be heard singing with her band. Her new book, Six of Crows, arrives fall 2015. 





Reach the author at:


Monday, June 1, 2015

TIPS TO READERS : EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT READING SLUMPS!

Hello Readers! Today I will give you Tips to your reading experience!

Today, we will talk about Reading Slumps.

I know, I know it annoys and every readers out there.




But we need to take Reading Slumps very seriously as they ruin our Reading Challenges and experiences for a short or for a very very long time. 

Believe it or not, I have been in a 4-month reading slump. I seriously managed to read a single freakin' book every month since the year started. I never experienced this before and so I thought to share some things, tips, and books I know that can help you prepare and battle a reader's greatest enemy, Reading Slumps.

Let's Begin!


What is a Reading Slump?

A Reading Slump is a weird and mysterious feeling caused by different things that makes you not want to read. It's a feeling where every book you pick up doesn't seem to catch your interest. 


What causes Reading Slumps?

There are many things/factors that lead into having reading slumps. Some of them are:                                                                                                                                                           
  1. The last book you've read gave you major feels. This literally means that you can't move on from the major cliffhanger or conclusion in a book/series. This means you're still trapped into that world and it would take time for you to get out. The feels just stuck themselves into a readers heart and mind. The last book you've read could have also made you wonder about things and life.                                                                                                                                                 
  2. The last book you've read intimidated/bore you. The last book you've read is probably 800 pages long or you forced yourself to read it which lead into you not liking it. Not liking the last book you've read could make you uncertain on what to read. It could confuse you about what book to read next which can lead into reading slumps.                                                                                                                                               
  3. You've found a new interest/hobby. This is often one of the main reasons why reading slumps invade our life. We find new television shows, new movies, new sport you want to try and you just keep on focusing and spending most of your time in doing that certain interest.                                                                                                                       
  4. You've been distracted by life. Life is life. It cost us a lot of time. Without proper management you can get distracted and forget to do other things. There's school, your work, family vacations, outings, parties, events, etc. that makes you tired to even read. And every day that goes by with you not reading at all, you keep on forgetting/disregarding the fact that you need/want to read, and as months pass by there is a possibility that you'll permanently lack interest in reading.                                                                                                         
                              
  5. You don't find any book interesting. Having a hundred of books to read doesn't guarantee that you'll find something that interests you at the moment. We have different moods and opinions as days pass by and we might reach a point in which we don't find the books we were excited about last month interesting today. The 'hype' in your mind seems to decrease as time flies which can result to you not wanting to read certain genres of books.                                                                                                                                                                                            
  6. You've read too much/too little. You've read too much/little that you became sick of it. This might seem unusual but it happens. Reading is just like eating, what happens when you eat to much or eat to little? Don't you get sick? So as in reading. 



What are the ways in getting rid or breaking a Reading Slump? 


There are many ways into getting out of a reading slump. Some of these work for me, some of these are helpful for some of my book lion friends. Here it goes:                                                                                                                     

  1. Don't force yourself to read. Forcing yourself to read is not enjoyable. Making reading as a chore will make you unhappy to read. Forcing yourself to read might also make your reading slump worse.                                                                                                                                        
  2. Once you find a book interesting, try to read it. Finding a book interesting sometimes doesn't make you want to read it because of your reading slump. It might be hard to do it at first but as you read each page you get dragged and dragged into the world and may be the reason to bring back your reading routine.                                                                                                                                                                   
  3. If you are just distracted by your life/hobby but you still want to read, try to make a regular reading schedule. Having a regular schedule is hard (from personal experience) but doing so will greatly improve your reading routine. Do it everyday. Don't make excuses. At least make time to read a couple of pages or even a chapter. I'm very sure that you have 5-15 minutes a day to spare, right? Trust me, you'll never notice that you got rid of your reading slump.                                                                                                                                                                                    
  4. If you still have those feels from the last book you've read, or the feeling of boredom, surround yourself, rant, and look at bookish accounts on any social medias. Your book lion friends can help you! You can ask for their support, encouragements, and just to guide you as you ride on the roller coaster of bookish feels! We at Pinoy Book Freaks United and Book Geeks PH will gladly welcome you! You can scroll through bookstagrammers' (book-centered instagram users) feed to enlighten your mood! You can visit @alybooksandcoffee@bookfreakrevelations, & @reading_rexy and a lot more (You can visit my bookstagram @readingwithluigi to know which bookstagrams I follow) because trust me, they all have a gorgeous feed! You can read and visit book blogs! Here are my top 10 book bloggers if you're interested on which blogs I liked most! You can watch booktubers (book-centered youtube users) and I'm pretty sure you can get some inspiration with doing so! Katytastic's and Abookutopia's wonderful book collection will make you crave for more books! Jessethereader, LovingDemBooks and PolandbananasBOOKS will constantly make you laugh about their attitude towards books! How many books can MaureenKeavy read in a month? You'll be shocked and surprised! These booktubers (and many more! Some of my other favorites are ReadbyZoe, Ariel Bissett, & Little Book Owl ) are doing such great job to make you feel the need to read! Reading and watching them will definitely help out! (*Click their account usernames to direct you to their accounts.)                                                                                                                                                                                           
  5. Visit a bookstore! You don't need to buy anything. Feeling the good old ambiance of a really nice and quiet bookstore is a thing every suffering reader should feel. It can bring out the trapped reader in you as you might cross by a book you find interesting that will hopefully, ruin the reading slump you have.                                                                                                                                                                                                 
  6. If you have tried all the steps above and that didn't help even a little bit, I think you need to have a break; try other things! Everyone needs to have a break in something they always do! When you're in a buffet and you're already full, don't you take a break? When you've been making your work/school papers for about a day, don't you take a break? When you've ran too far or played sports too long, don't you take a break? We all need to take a break and never feel guilty for taking a break in reading! Don't read for a while, try to watch t.v. shows/movies, or go out with your friends! Try a lot of things! But never ever tend to break too long! You might enjoy that new thing too much that you never want to stop doing it, and the only purpose you took a break is to leave reading for a short period of time to be able to break that reading slump.                                                                                                                                                    


What books should I read to break my reading slump? Any book recommendations?


Me and a couple of friends have some book recommendations (types of books and certain books) to share with you guys!                                                       

  1. Personally, I would recommend short contemporary books. Don't read a book that's too long, has a risky average rating, and kind-of slow paced books, it might worsen your reading slump. You can also read that second short sci-fi book in a trilogy/series that you enjoyed the first book, this worked for me the best. Prodigy (Legend Trilogy #2) broke my reading slump. I would not recommend reading a book you have no idea on what it is, it might be good if you're finding something to read, but it's too risky when you're in a reading slump. I recommend Fly on the Wall by E. Lockhart and Percy Jackson & The Olympians Series by Rick Riordan for both books/set of books are short and fun to read! (*Click on the books to redirect you to my review/s)                                                                                                                                                                                  
  2. JM Cabral (owner of Book Freak Revelations) recommends books written by Colleen Hover and states that "they (her books) work like a charm!."                                                                                                                  
  3. Justine Dy and Jannjann Abadier recommends short novels and great series!                                                                                                                                                                                                           
  4. Raffy Perez (owner of Eccentric Everything) and Steven Odasco recommend Simon VS. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli.                                                                                                                   
  5. Jocelyn Page recommends Percy Jackson's Greek Gods by Rick Riordan.                                                                                                              
  6. Dorothy Lobo Florentino recommends Confess and Ugly Love both by Colleen Hover, This is a Love Story by Jessica Thompson, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Dash & Lily's Book of Dares Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist and Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List all three by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn, and Let it Snow by John Green, Laureen Myracle, and Maureen Johnson.                                                                                                                                                                                         
---

And so that's it! This post seriously has the most links in it. (and it's very tiring)

Just to clear things out, I am not a 50 year old man who's been reading since childhood, in short I am not an expert. i may or may not be wrong with some of these things but all of these are my opinion.

For your convenience just by clicking the name of the book, username, or previous blog post in today's post will redirect you to the certain book (via goodreads), username, post, etc that you wanted to view.

Thank you very much for visiting my blog and if you have spare time, please do follow my blog via Google Friend Connect that can be found under the "Followers" sidebar. It would mean a lot!


*This post is NOT sponsored by anyone. All of the thoughts above are based on my (and friends') opinion.

Again, thank you very much! And if you're facing a Reading Slump, I hope I helped even a bit! Good Luck and I hope you can conquer it!



I hope you enjoy your day and again thank you very much!