Musings Mondays is a weekly meme hosted by Jenn at A Daily Rhythm. In your post you have to answer one of the following prompts as well as the random question of the week:
I am currently reading..."Mandala Road" by Masako Bando and it's taking me forever to read it.
Up next I think I'll read…
I bought the following book(s) in the past week...
I'm super excited to tell you about (book/author/bookish-news)…
I'm really upset by (book/author/bookish-news)…
I can't wait to get a copy of…
I wish I could read ____, but…
I blogged about ____ this past week….
THIS WEEK’S RANDOM QUESTION: Do you read more than one book at once? Why, or why not?
I can't read more than one book at a time. I can't switch between books all the time, because I lack concentration and I will get all confused. I've actually tried it before and it's no good for me. I just neglect one book in favor of the other.
Leave me a comment with your Musing Mondays blog post and I'll be more than happy to read it :)
Music Monday is created by Lauren at Always Me. Every week you choose one or two songs to share, video of the songs and your thoughts on the songs (or any other thoughts you have). More for the rules and how to participate you can find here.
I love everything Japanese. I love the language, I love the culture and I adore the music. So, today I'm going to share just a tiny bit of my favorite songs. All of the songs are from soundtracks of my favorite animes.
Musician is one of my favorite songs, that I can listen on repeat when I'm sad. It's not lifting me up, but it's there when I need to cry.
And the melody is pure heaven.
Unravel is another song I really, really like. Funny fact: I hated the song at first, but I ended up loving it after a couple of times.
And a little bonus: a really peaceful song, that I don't know the name of, but I love it. It's like a lullaby.
I hope you like my picks for this week. Any thoughts are appreciated ;)
Music Monday is created by Lauren at Always Me. Every week you choose one or two songs to share, video of the songs and your thoughts on the songs (or any other thoughts you have). More for the rules and how to participate you can find here.
Since I promised that I will share more Bulgarian music with you guys, today I'm here with me favorite Bulgarian singer - Графа. He has amazing songs - full of meaning, with awesome beat and he looks sexy as hell.
I've been on one of his concerts and he sings amazing live. And from what I've heard he is an amazing person, not only a performer.
A ton of great songs to choose from, so I will share my top three with you. If you like him - check out some of his other songs. He is awesome.
Графа - Седемте езера (The Seven Lakes)
Lyrics (only some of them):
Seasons come and go,
and you are somewhere far away.
Lost thoughts are chasing me,
deep down inside I tried to hide.
Look back at me,
listen how I scream without voice.
Where to go,
if there is no way for us?
Silent Seven Lakes,
invoke warm memories for us.
The Seven Lakes remind
about what we were.
And beyond voice of vanity
what we had...
Far from accuracy
what we had and what we lost!
Графа - Никой (Nobody)
Lyrics:
Nobody can tell you where he's going
Only where he wishes to end up!
You act like wind in the desert
More beautiful than white nights,
You walk quietly towards me to embrace me.
All words are useless
To describe the world between us,
How we complete each other, how we love each other...
I can't live without you,
I am nobody without you.
The life is just a moment,
This moment is yours...
You're my faith,
You're my love...
In children's eyes I see you
Your reflection in which you laugh
I walk quietly to embrace you.
It makes sense in every minute
The love is not a scam
In this moment which is named "life"
Графа - Ако Има Рай (If there is a Heaven)
Lyrics:
Don’t cry for me, don’t be lost in the darkness
I’ll be next to you but not in this world
Steal away for me an hour more to live
So I could be with you again
I’m asking myself “Why did this happen”?
Someone exchanged life with eternity
Only if there is a heaven I will be near there
To retrieve the memories, turned gray from the sorrow
Only if there is a heaven, I will scream loudly
Don’t cry for me, just turn me into a dream
Don’t cry for me, don’t die away in darkness
You have all life, here, in this world
But keep the memory of me, my love,
The time will come when I’ll be with you again
If there is a heaven, I’ll be there next to you
Wow, I really suck at translating lyrics...I hope you liked the songs though :)
What was interesting for me was the number of people who lie about reading a certain book. The bookworm that I am, I find it pretty stupid to lie about such things.
First off, books are written to be read, but I don't think every single book should be read by everybody. It's impossible and it's not something necessary. Even if a book is really popular or a well know and well loved classic, it does not mean you're stupid for not reading it...
What makes you look stupid is saying the opposite.
What I want to ask you is have you ever lied about reading or not reading a certain book?
Personally I've never lied about this and I don't see the point in doing it. Which reminds me a really awkward situation in high-school and my literature teacher. She asked me if I've read one of the works we had to discuss and I said no, but she continued asking me questions about the story and I was like
Why was she torturing me, I don't have a clue...
And another question!
Which of the top 20 lied about books have you read?
I've read a total of 6, which is kind of embarrassing, but I am planning on reading some of the other books in the list soon. If you are up for a buddy read on any of my unread books, leave a comment.
How many have you read? The top 20 lied about books:
Alice's Adventures In Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
1984 - George Orwell
The Lord Of The Rings trilogy - JRR Tolkien
War And Peace - Leo Tolstoy
Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle
I haven't done book hauls in a while. I did have a lot of bought or received books in December, but I just forgot to haul them.
In the month of January I bought /swapped a total of 15 books. I did not spend a lot of money though since some of the books are second hand buys and others I got for really cheap, since there was some kind of promotion going on. Lucky me!
Without any further ado here is my list of books:
Books #3-#6 in Nikki Heat series by Richard Castle
and
Book #4 in Derrick Storm series by Richard Castle
I don't have the other books in this series, but the deal was for these books only and I couldn't pass it up.
"Birdsong" (French Trilogy #2) by Sebastian Faulks, which I did not know was part of a series...
Top 5 Wednesdays was created by gingerreadsLainey and there is a Goodreads group where you can find a list of participants as well as Top 5 Wednesday topics.
Today it's all about our favorite kick-ass characters. I have a lot of these, so let's see if I can narrow them down to only five.
Teito Klein from 07-Ghost manga series by Yuki Amemiya and Yukino Ichihara
He is pretty badass. Especially when the Eye of Mikhail kicks in. He is also loyal and smart, when he actually tries to think.
Sebastian Michaelis from Black Butler manga series by Yana Toboso
aka my BAE. If I had to choose only one fictional boyfriend, that would be him, because he is perfect.
L Lawliet from Death Note manga series by Tsugumi Ohba
He is quirky, he has brains, loves cake...need I say more?
Thomas Cale from The Left Hand of God trilogy by Paul Hoffman
He is one hell of a fighter, he is smart, he cares about his friends, although sometimes he may not show it for their own good. He is not the perfect human being, but I adore him.
Arlen from The Demon Cycle series by Peter V. Brett
He definitely knows how to survive on his own. He learns from his mistakes, he is kind and loving and he is pretty ambitious, but not lusting for power.
Amani from Rebel of the Sands trilogy by Alwyn Hamilton
One of the few female protagonists that I adore. I can't wait to see what's in store for her in the next books.
Zusa from Shadowdance series by David Dalglish
I love Zusa. She is such a strong female character. She knows how to fight, she is loyal to her "master" (more of a friend than a master) and I really hope that she and Haern would end up being together as couple.
The ratio between male and female characters is ridiculous, but the truth is that I prefer reading books with male protagonists.
Do you like my picks? Have you heard about or read any of the books? Share your thoughts and your Top 5 Wednesday in the comments :)
Today the topic is about historical/futuristic settings. I am going to cheat just a little bit and share with you some of my to be read historical fiction books.
Musings Mondays is a weekly meme hosted by Jenn at A Daily Rhythm. In your post you have to answer one of the following prompts as well as the random question of the week:
I am currently reading...
Up next I think I'll read…
I bought the following book(s) in the past week...
I'm super excited to tell you about (book/author/bookish-news)…
I'm really upset by (book/author/bookish-news)…
I can't wait to get a copy of…
I wish I could read ____, but…
I blogged about ____ this past week….
THIS WEEK’S RANDOM QUESTION: What do you do with your books once you’ve read them?
I blogged about my experience with the book "Rebel of the Sands" by Alwyn Hamilton. I really loved this book so much. Every fantasy fan should read it ASAP.
When I finish reading a certain book I think about whether I'll read it again or not. If the answer is no, I book swap it or give it to my local library. I don't have enough space for my books in order to keep every single one.
Leave me a comment with your Musing Mondays blog post and I'll be more than happy to read it :)
Music Monday is created by Lauren at Always Me. Every week you choose one or two songs to share, video of the songs and your thoughts on the songs (or any other thoughts you have). More for the rules and how to participate you can find here.
I'm going to share with you some of my favorite songs from my own country - Bulgaria. I hope you'll like them, since they are pretty good in my opinion. Since I have too many favorites, next week I'll share another portion of Bulgarian songs.
Ice Cream - Захир is a really catchy song. It's not that new, but I really like it. It's very summery, good for dancing.
Ice Cream - Захир
Жана Бергендорф - Невъзможни сме сами is another of my favorite songs. It's quite new and the video is really good.
Жана Бергендорф - Невъзможни сме сами
And a huge bonus Стефка Съботинова - Притури се планината. This is one of my favorite Bulgarian folklore songs. I really hope you like it, since it's one of our most loved songs.
Стефка Съботинова - Притури се планината
Do you want more Bulgarian songs? Please, share your opinion!
January is over! Which means that it's time for a monthly wrap up.
This month I read a total of 12 books, which is ok. I'm 4 books ahead of my Goodreads reading schedule. Hopefully this trend will continue throughout the next month.
Not my favorite book in the series, but a nice end to it. I really enjoyed it very much and I found the main character to be very believable and likeable.
I'm not much of a science fiction fan, because of all the terminology, but this book was really easy to read. I enjoyed it and I want to check out the second book.
I can't believe I liked this book as much as I did. There was not a lot action there, but it was a fast read. If you like books about time travelling, you may love this one.
I was on the verge of throwing this book out of the window too many times. I felt like I was reading some kind of a parody of a book. It was annoying the hell out of me.
These are all of the books that I've read this month. Have you read any of them? Share your thoughts in the comments!
☆☆☆☆☆
Rebel of the Sands #1
Genre: High Fantasy
Source: NetGalley
Publication Date: Feb 4, 2016 by Faber and Faber Ltd
""Tell me that and we'll go. Right now. Save ourselves and leave this place to burn. Tell me that's how you want your story to go and we'll write it straight across the sand." Dustwalk is Amani's home. The desert sand is in her bones. But she wants to escape. More than a want. A need. Then a foreigner with no name turns up to save her life, and with him the chance to run. But to where? The desert plains are full of danger. Sand and blood are swirling, and the Sultan's enemies are on the rise." - Goodreads
OMG, this was the best book ever!!!
First off, I want to thank NetGalley and Faber and Faber Ltd for giving me the chance to read this awesome book!
For me it was the perfect mix between The Demon Cycle and The Arabian Nights. The world building was so great and everything was so vividly described that for these past two days I was sent to the Sahara desert. And I loved it! Everything felt so real and it was like a movie inside my head with me playing the lead.
The characters kicked ass! I was in love with their sass and their overall behaviour. Amani is now hands down one of my favorite heroines. She had sass, brains and knows how to stay alive...well, she did try really hard to get herself killed, but she survived. Jin was also a very well developed character. I would love it if the next book is told both from Amani and Jin's POV. It would be fantastic to go inside his head.
I really liked the interaction between the characters. None of them was just there, everyone had a purpose, which was really great. I was fond of the romance in the book - really smooth and subtle.
The mythology used in the book was a really nice touch. I loved all of the creatures and the way they were portrayed - the Djinnis, Buraqis, Nightmares and all tha jazz. Everything fitted the setting so perfectly. Nothing was redundant.
I honestly can't believe this is a debut novel. It was definitely more than I expected, which makes me so happy and appreciative. "Rebel of the Sands" has everything I love in a novel - well developed characters, gripping story, great world building and whole lot of action. The only bad thing I can say about the book is that I need more and I have to wait for the second one. Anticipation is killing me...
So, I went to the library yesterday to return a huge pile of books and of course I returned home with another one. The pile could have been bigger, but we are allowed to take only up to 7 books.
"Of A Boy" by Sonya Hartnett - I know nothing about this book. It sounds like a mystery novel.
"Broken" by Shy Keenan - I really like reading sad books and I have a thing for non-fiction books about child abuse or hard childhood in general. I'm sure I will like this one.
If you've read any of these books, please share you thoughts in the comments! Also, do you like the format of this post? Because I can may be include pictures from my local library while browsing through the books, if that is going to be interesting for you! Any opinions will be very much appreciated.
The Book Traveling Thursdays meme is created by Danielle at Danielle’s Book Blog and Catia at TheGirlWhoReadTooMuch. Every week you choose a book for your blog post that fits the weekly theme (which you can find in the Goodreads group), you share why you chose that book and finally post picture of the original cover, the covers from your country, your favorite cover, and your least favorite cover.
"Because some books stay with us forever!! Choose a book you want to re-read in 2016."
I haven't re-read any of my books last year, but this year I have some books, that I really have to re-read. I am going to choose "The Left Hand of God" by Paul Hoffman since I really want to finish the series this year and I love re-reading the books. This is one of my favorite YA Fantasy/Dystopia series, so if you haven't read it yet, give it a try.
Original Cover:
I really, really like the original cover. It's what drawn me into this book.
Bulgarian Cover:
Almost the same as the original.
Favorite Covers:
1) UK 2) Italian
I absolutely adore the UK cover. Especially the frame with the snakes and the swords. As for the Italian cover - doesn't it look a little bit like Assassin's Creed? I love it!
Least Favorite Cover:
The only edition I do not like is this Chinese edition. I don't hate it, but it is really my least favorite.
Have you read this book? What do you think about it?
If you have a Book Traveling Thursdays blog post, share it in the comments. I would love to check it out :)
Top 5 Wednesdays was created by gingerreadsLainey and there is a Goodreads group where you can find a list of participants as well as Top 5 Wednesday topics.
Today it's all about those gorgeous covers that lured us into reading a certain book and then slapped us across the face with its awfulness.
I really like the cover, but the book was not my favorite. After reading "The Fault in Our Stars" every other book by John Green seems to fall flat for me...
I'm expecting some really negative comments, but it's true - I did not like this book. I really tried but it was not something spectacular. But the cover is gorgeous.
Today is a freebie and I decided to go for my top ten books I'm looking forward to read in 2016, which were published before 2016 or late 2015. I have a ton of those.
1. "P.S. I Still Love You" by Jenny Han - I really want to read this book, but I think I won't like the ending, so I'm postponing it as much as possible...
2. "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak - No excuse here. I seriously don't know what's wrong with me.
3. "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr - I'm sure I will love this one.
4. "The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" by Douglas Adams - This book is humongous and I'm scared to pick it up, but I really want to read it this year.
5. "Rogues"- Another huge book, but I will love it.
6. "The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August" by Claire North - I've heard some really good things about this book and I would love to give it a try.
7. "Eleanor & Park" by Rainbow Rowell - I'm a bad person...
8. "Let It Snow"by John Green, Maureen Johnson, Lauren Myracle- It's not a high priority book, but I really want to give it a chance.
9. "Birdsong"by Sebastian Faulks - I really want to watch the movie...hopefully this year.
10. "1Q84" by Haruki Murakami- I love Murakami, but this book is so huge...that's the only reason it's still on my TBR pile.
These are just some of my unread books, which I would like to read in 2016! I would love to find out if you have some of those, so share in the comments! A link to your TTT will be also appreciated :)
Music Monday is created by Lauren at Always Me. Every week you choose one or two songs to share, video of the songs and your thoughts on the songs (or any other thoughts you have). More for the rules and how to participate you can find here.
We all have those days when we don't feel quite alright. I had one of those weeks last week. I was feeling sad and what helps me cry my sadness away is music. Not happy and cheesy this time. I'm going for songs that I can sing my heart out with.
Broken Iris - Where Butterflies Never Die is one of the songs in my dark and depressing song list. The lyrics are meaningful and music is just perfect.
Broken Iris - Where Butterflies Never Die
A Skylit Drive - The past, the love, the memory is another of my go to sad songs. It's quite depressing song for everybody. 3 minutes of heartbreak.
A Skylit Drive - The past, the love, the memory
And just a little bonus, since I skipped last week's post.
Trading Yesterday - For you only
If you've done Music Monday this week, share it with me!!!
Welcome to my very first book to movie adaptation comparison!
Instead of going for some really popular book or movie, I've decided to start off with oldie, but goodie. The book I've chosen for today is "Blindness" by Jose Saramago.
The book is a really, really good old scince-fiction/dystopia novel, which reminded me a little bit of "The Day of the Triffids" by John Wyndham (which I really love). Let's start with the synopsis of the book:
"A city is hit by an epidemic of "white blindness" that spares no one. Authorities confine the blind to an empty mental hospital, but there the criminal element holds everyone captive, stealing food rations and assaulting women. There is one eyewitness to this nightmare who guides her charges - among them a boy with no mother, a girl with dark glasses, a dog of tears - through the barren streets, and their procession becomes as uncanny as the surroundings are harrowing. As Blindness reclaims the age-old story of a plague, it evokes the vivid and trembling horrors of the twentieth century, leaving readers with a powerful vision of the human spirit that's bound both by weakness and exhilarating strength." - Goodreads
If it does not sound intriguing to you, believe me - it is! The book was really interesting and captivating - I finished it for a day. It was a little bit strange to get used to the writing style and I don't know if it's just my edition of the book or not, but there was no direct speech...I mean, there were dialogs, but they were not separated from the other parts of the text...I probably don't make any sense here, so moving on...
The story was easy to follow, very believable and really well-written. There was not much of a character development, but there was a lot going on in the book, so that didn't bother me at all. Everything was fast-paced, at the same time thought-provoking and really philosophical.
In the end I gave this book a 4 star rating on Goodreads, which is really surprising, since I did not have high expectations about this novel.
Now, about the movie. It came out in 2008, so it's relatively new. It stars two really talanted actors - Julianne Moore and Mark Ruffalo, and I expected a lot from them. Sadly, the movie fell absolutely flat for me. Everything felt really rushed and none of the feelings I got from reading the book were there. I guess the actors did the best they could with the plot they were given, but it was not enough.
Nothing else can be said about this movie. Don't bother to watch it. It doesn't worth 2 hours of your free time.
DEFINITE WINNER!
If you've read the book or watched the movie, don't hesitate to leave a comment with your thoughts! Any suggestions for future book to movie adaptation comparisons are also appreciated!
Stay tuned for my next Book VS. Movie blog post, which will be up next week, where I will compare "Let the Right One In" by John Ajvide Lindqvist with its two movie adaptations!
Greed - What is your most inexpensive book? What is your most expensive book?
My most expensive book has to be "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" - the illustrated edition. I just could not resist it - it's so beautiful!!!
As for my most inexpensive book - I really can't say which one it is...
Wrath - What author do you have a love/hate relationship with?
Cassandra Clare. I kept on reading the books in The Mortal Instruments series, hoping that every book will be better than the previous. I am going to read The Infernal Devices series in a distant future, but my expectations are definitely not high.
Gluttony - What book have you devoured over and over again with no shame?
"Last Chance Saloon" by Marian Keyes is definitely my guilty pleasure. I have such fun time reading it. My Goodreads says I've read it 7 times already, but I really want to reread it again in the near future.
Sloth - What book have you neglected reading due to laziness?
"The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy" by Douglas Adam. I really think I will like this book, but it's humongous, so I'm a little bit scared to start it...May be this year...May be not...
Pride - What book do you talk about most in order to sound like an intellectual reader?
I don't tend to talk about books for the sake of sounding really smart and well-read. I just talk about books, when I have something to say about them. It doesn't matter if I hate or love a certain book, sometimes I just need to pour out my feelings and thoughts about it.
Lust - What attributes do you find attractive in male characters?
I like my male characters to be a little bit broken. I don't like perfect people in books, because they don't exist in real life. I would also love my male characters to be loyal and protective (but not in the obsessive way).
Envy - What book would you most like to receive as a gift?
All of them!!! I love receiving books. Even if it's something I would not normally pick up myself, I appreciate every unread book that is given to me. If you want something specific, you can check out my TTT: Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Leaving Under My Tree This Year.
There you have it! That was The Seven Deadly Sins Tag! Thank you for tagging me, Erin! It was really fun!
