Sunday, June 30, 2013

Reading Challenge: Novel Tanpa Huruf A


Berhubung UAS kurang seminggu dan habis itu libur super panjang, saya jadi tertarik buat ikutan reading challenge : ) Nah, kali ini challenge yang dibuat oleh Maya di Dear Readers menarik minat saya. Challenge ini dibuat karena salah satu temannya bilang bahwa sedikit sekali orang yang tidak memakai huruf A pada namanya. Begitu juga dengan buku kan? Waktu tahu challenge ini, saya langsung ngintip rak buku dan sebagian besar buku saya ada huruf A-nya semua : ( Sedih sih, tapi berhubung tidak ada ketentuan untuk bahasa yang digunakan, sepertinya saya akan menggunakan beberapa e-book yang saya dapat dari NetGalley.

Saya akan membaca satu buku dalam satu minggu dan reviewnya akan saya posting setiap hari sabtu/minggu. Jadi total buku yang saya perlukan untuk challenge ini adalah 8 buku.

JULI
Minggu 1 : The Big Four by Agatha Christie [Read Review]
Minggu 2 : Crooked House by Agatha Christie
Minggu 3 : Heretic by Sarah Singleton
Minggu 4 : Mermother by Elizabeth Wolf

AGUSTUS
Minggu 1 : The Twins by Saskia Sarginson (e-ARC dari NetGalley)
Minggu 2 : The Story Girl by L.M. Montgomery
Minggu 3 : Interworld by Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves
Minggu 4 : Shoe Strings by Christy Hayes (free on iBook)

*merah : bahasa indonesia hijau: bahasa inggris*

Crying 100 Times

Judul: 100 Kai Naku Koto (Crying 100 Times)
Pengarang: Kou NAKAMURA
Penerjemah: Khairun Nisak
Penerbit: Penerbit Haru
Tahun Terbit: 2013
Jumlah Halaman: 250
Harga: Rp 49.000
Rating: ★


Cerita diawali oleh kisah seekor anjing yang mengidap penyakit cukup serius. Saat itu Fujii sedang menerima telepon dari ibunya yang mengabarkan bahwa kondisi si anjing memburuk. Fujii yang tinggal di luar kota berjanji akhir minggu itu akan pulang. Dia pun mengingat-ingat awal mula dia bertemu si anjing di depan perpustakaan. Ceritanya bersama si anjing sangat menyentuh dan membuat saya terharu (maklum saya juga pecinta binatang). Saya pun mengira bahwa kisah ini akan terus berlanjut dengan kisah-kisah lain tentang Fujii dan anjingnya. Namun perkiraan saya salah.

Pacar Fujii memaksanya memperbaiki motor butut yang sudah dia diamkan selama empat tahun itu untuk pulang nanti karena motornya sangat berarti bagi si anjing. Fujii pun meng-iyakan meski dia tak yakin. Cerita pun berlanjut tentang perjuangan Fujii mencari cara untuk mengembalikan motornya. Banyak detail-detail membingungkan dan membosankan yang diceritakan tentang ini. Ibunya menelpon bahwa keadaan si anjing sedikit membaik, maka dari itu Fuji memutuskan untuk pulang minggu depan saat sepedanya benar-benar pulih. Dia tidak menyangka bahwa di saat sepedanya itu terlihat bisa dipakai lagi, begitu juga dengan keadaan si anjing. Saat sedang membersihkan karburator bersama pacarnya, dengan spontan Fujii melayangkan lamaran.

Fujii dan pacarnya memutuskan untuk tinggal bersama terlebih dahulu selama satu tahun, belajar untuk menghadapi pernikahan yang sebenarnya. Namun, baru beberapa bulan, keadaan pacarnya memburuk. Dia terlihat lemas dan terpaksa pulang ke kedua orang tuanya. Fujii merasa rumahnya kembali kosong seperti dulu.

Akankah pacarnya bertahan? Bagaimana dengan nasib si anjing selanjutnya?

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Stacking MY Shelves #1


Stacking the shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews. It's a weekly meme, but I decided to post it whenever I want because I don't receive too much books. I might change my mind when I'm in holiday. So the purpose of this meme is sharing my excitement for my newest titles on my shelves.

FREE from NetGalley in exchange for honest reviews.
Format: kindle (e-ARC)



FREE on my mailbox from the Author for an honest review
Format paperback


Mermother by Elizabeth Jane Wolfe
Jangan Tinggalkan Kami by Unesa University Press
Ibu Guru, Saya Ingin Membaca by Unesa University Press

Hush

Title: Hush (Lakeview Series)
Author: Stacey R. Campbell
Publisher: Green Darner Press
Year Published: 2012

Price: $11.20
Rating: ★★★

Buy This Book from Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide


Summary:
For small-town girl Blakely Henry, any hope of finding her biological parents died when she stopped believing in fairy tales and Disney princess. That is, until she spots her boarding school's new British exchange student, Max Ryder, staring at her. Why would a boy who looks like he stepped out of the pages of a magazine be looking at her? Because Max knows something Blakely doesn't. 
Following the tragic demise of one of Europe's most beloved royal families, Max has stumbled upon information he thinks may lead to a lost royal heir, and now he is on a quest halfway around the world to see if he's right. 
Sworn to secrecy by his university professor and the headmaster of Lakeview Academu, Max is admitted into an exchange program with the sole purpose of finding out the truth. But will his personal feelings for Blakely get in the way? When a stolen email surfaces, Blakely and her friends' lives are threatened, and Max starts to question what he is really after. From the exclusive rolling lawns of Canada's most prestigious boarding school to the University of Saint Andrews' hallowed grounds, Blakely's quiet, unassuming life is turned upside down. Is she really who she thinks she is? Can she survive long enough to help Max unearth the truth?
This e-ARC of this book was given to me FREE in exchange of honest review.
There might be a minor spoiler. You've been warned!


First of all, I totally like the cover. It's simple, vintage, and elegant. The story is good. It reminds me of Mia Thermapolis, The Princess of Genovia in The Princess Diaries movie. There were two main characters here. Blakely, who was a regular student in a boarding school, was adopted and never knew who her real parents were. She was a pretty popular student. Max Ryder was a colleger in St. Andrew. He did a project which occured him to pretend as an exchange student in Blakely's boarding school. He had to found out whether Blakely was the lost princess or not.

For me, the author describes Blakely and Max as too perfect people. Max was described like Alex Pettyfer (which is so damn cool!!) and well, Blakely just a hotty in school but she was hard to get. It would be nice if one of them wasn't so perfect. There were a lot of chapters in this book. You will be brought at 1993 at the first page and jump few years later where Blakely grew up in a good family. One thing about this book was that it was just too easy. I thought the story was predictable until that annoying jurnalist showed up! I think at that point the story became more interesting. I did hoped that the jurnalist would make more troubles, but he didn't. He was jailed by the bad parties and gone for the rest of the story. But there will be the next book, probably until four. I really hope the story will not only about Blakely and Max.

These are some question of the interview with the author on the few last pages:

Who is Blakely really?
The character of Blakely is loosely based on our oldest daughter. I wish there were a real Max for her, but at this point, she is still looking.

Where did you get the idea for Hush?
Every night, we gather around the table dinner. On one such evening, several years ago, we were discussing the British royal family. "Well, there's both Tudor and Middleton on my side of the family," my husband informed our girls. "Does that mean I could be a princess?" a much younger Blakely asked. "Only if several hundred people died first," I told her. "But what if that happened? What if there was some sort of big family reunion and they all died?" And the idea was born...

What motivated you to write Hush?
I wanted to do something with out oldest daughter. She had just started her first year at boarding school, and the loss of her in our day-to-day life was devastating. So, I thought, I'm going to write a book for her, and if I'm lucky, she will help me. I was lucky.

Are there plans for more Lakeview novels?
There are plans for at least two more Lakeview novels, one for each of our girls, and I am toying with an idea for a fourth. No, that does not mean we are having another baby.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Autumn

Title: Autumn (Dog Days #1)
Author: Sierra Dean
Publisher: Sierra Dean
Published: June 2013
Purchase: Amazon / Kobo / Nook
Rating: ★★★★



Cooper Reynolds's life is going to the dogs...literally.As if being a high school senior in a small Texas town wasn't hard enough, Cooper has bigger things to worry about than who he'll take to prom and whether or not the Poisonfoot Padres will win homecoming. He has less than a year before his eighteenth birthday, when a curse placed on his family will doom him to live in coyote form forever.The last thing he needs to complicate his already messed-up life is a girl, but fate has other plans in mind for him when it brings Eloise "Lou" Whittaker to Poisonfoot. She's grouchy, sarcastic and has no love for her new Texas home, but she might be exactly the right person to help Cooper break the curse.The clock is ticking, and Cooper will have to decide if he's willing to let Lou in on his dirty little secret before it's too late.

Monday, June 17, 2013

Happy Birthday to Me

Title: Happy Birthday to Me
Author: Brian Rowe
Publisher: CreatSpace
Year Published: 2011
Purchase: Book Depository / Amazon
Rating: ★★★★

Buy This Book from Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

Synopsis:
Seventeen-year-old Cameron Martin has a huge problem: he's aging a whole year of his life with each passing day!

High school is hard enough; imagine rapidly aging from seventeen to seventy in a matter of weeks, with no logical explanation, and with prom, graduation, and the state championship basketball game all on the horizon. That's what happens to Cameron, a popular pretty boy who's never had to face a day looking anything but perfect.

All Cameron wants to do is go back to normal, but no one, not even the best doctors, can diagnose his condition. When he finds love with a mysterious young woman, however, he realizes his only hope for survival might be with the one person who started his condition in the first place...

Review:
Whoa! I read this book for a day. I couldn't put my kindle down since the first time I started.  The plot moved along so quickly. Personally, I think the story is unique. I thought that kind of desease were truly exist (well yes but different symptoms) but then it happened because of other reason, love, if I may mention. Cameron had a perfect face, perfect girlfriend, and he was a basketball star. He started aging since the last time he lied about his birthday and got a free chocolate cake. He kept aging and no one could help. His girlfriend dumped him for the new basketball star. His bestfriend turned out so annoying with his documentary project. The librarian loved him! And there was a red-head girl who he had never seen before, started to steal his attention. Cameron is a great character to read about. He started to realize that he had make a lot mistakes to a lot people and he was sorry. The desease made him realized and brought up the good of him. I was touched by the reaction of his family when he was getting older. I know it's hard to accept when you're lovely son will die before you. I can't wait to read the rest of trilogy!! :)

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Camp Boyfriend Pre-sale Event


Camp Boyfriend by J.K. Rock will be on the store July 2nd! So who's excited? Have you ever heard about this book? Read the synopsis here. There is a spesial pre-sale for everyone (of course who lives in US) at Anderson's Book Shop. You can pre-order a signed-copy by filling this form. Not only a signed-copy, but the author will also ship out a friendship bracelet and ♥ CAMP tattoo to each person as a thank you! Price for each book is $10.68 (with tax included) and a $5.00 flat rate fee shipping. There will be a tracking sent out to everyone who pre-orders, so that you can keep up with your package. All packages will be shipped out release week. For more information and for the PayPal pre-sale button, please go to here. For you who can't attend the event, join on the giveaway (like me!).

Buy This Book from Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

Dive: The Life and Fight of Reba Tutt

Title: Dive: The Life and Fight of Reba Tutt
Author: Hannah Safren
Publisher: Write Bloody Publishing
Date Published: April 12, 2013
Rating: ★★★

Buy This Book from Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

Synopsis:
The empowering story of one female athlete's incredible discovery of what it means to truly feel alive. Based on Reba Tutt's heart-wrenching life and fight, Dive details the painful, yet empowering process of healing. The murder of Reba's older sister, Ari, fuels painful flashbacks and unstitches eight years of Reba's healing. With just two months to go before graduation, Reba is consumed by the past, lost in the present and hesitant for the future. With the support of her boyfriend, Pittsburgh basketball player Ronald Ramon, the guidance of her father, and the need to keep her final promise to her mother, Reba learns what it means to accept and persevere through life's many challenges.

Review:
I couldn't see the main problem here. Well, yes I know Reba Tutt was trying to move one, but that was just it. I remember couple days ago my lecture said that the main character can't build the story by itself, supporting characters are important. But in this story, the supporting characters had nothing to do with the main topic. So the story is just all about Reba Tutt. In each chapter, Reba brought out a piece of her journals. This is what I like the most, the journal! There are so many inspirating words on them. If you feel like your life is meaningless or you're almost give up of this world, try to read this book :) It might encourage you, somehow. I personally don't really like the story, but I like its mesaages. Here are some of favorite messages:

"Surviving is simple. It's nothing more than breathing, moving, eating, and sleeping. Living, however, requires far more than just being alive; it requires feeling alive. It requires a sense of fearlessnes and an urge to grow- not just because the days pass, but for a reason, for a purpose." (Chapter 13)

"I am certain that failure is not worthy of our fear and for that matter, our fears are not worthy to be the cause of our failures." (Chapter 14)

"We need dreams and we need hope...  to show us where we want to go, to remind us that we can get there." (Chapter 16)

"I believe in God. He only lets things like this happen to people who can handle it." (Chapter 20)

Excerpt:
22, April. We are all tangled in it.
No, we cannot untie ourselves. However, we will spend our entire lives trying, constantly seeking the escape, the loopholes, the ways to unravel this immaculate design. Knowing that it is not possible.
We give our hearts to family, friends, strangers- allowing only a few to tie into our memories, holding on to each of them with calloused grips. and as for the ones that let go.

They fall into someone new, as do we. We blend stories of our travels, weave our hometowns into farmlands, big cities, different countries... always marking up roadmaps, always searching for a better paradise. Most will discover it along the way. Few will ever notice.

We climb high rises, walk tightropes, wear chains that weigh down our already heavy shoulders, all with the brave intent to part ways, to untie ourselves, to cut the cord. But the design is messy, and we are all tangled in it.

Sure, we can loosen our grips, fly a thousand miles in another direction, but we cannot promise that we will never see each other again, nor promise that we will. We cannot tell each other that there are no strings attached. There are always strings attached. We are all strings.

The knots dragging behind each of us carry our baggage. They slow us down. They weaken our posture, but we are strong. We keep moving. We push on. We push on. We push on.

And I may not even know your name, not one thing about you, but you are in all of my history and I am in yours. And one day, maybe our strings will intertwine; one day maybe they won't. But know that it is us tying this whole world together. Know that we are tangled in this together.

Friday, June 14, 2013

#KadoUntukBlogger dari Gagas Media


Seneng rasanya waktu baca tweet Gagas Media yang lagi ngadain #KadoUntukBlogger. Sudah semangat banget mau nge-list apa aja yang aku pengen, sampai aku baca tweet yang berbunyi "GagasMedia ingin berbagi kepada kamu, #GagasAddict yang sering meresensi buku GagasMedia." Oke, saya sudah pupus harapan. Menurut arsip di blog ini, belum ada satupun buku terbitan Gagas Media, dan seingat saya buku terakhir Gagas Media yang saya beli adalah Remember When sebelum UNAS SMA yang sekarang masih bergilir untuk dipinjamkan kepada teman. Saya pun dulu suka pinjam buku teman yang merupakan Gagas Addict, tapi dia sekarang sudah beda universitas. Ah tapi kesempatan menulis seperti ini kan tidak setiap hari, maka dari itu saya tetap ikutan saja. Siapa tahu Gagas Media berubah pikiran dan memberikan saya kesempatan *wink* Harap maklum deh anak kuliahan seperti saya ini belum tentu mampu beli buku-buku baru terbit di TB. Saya lebih mengandalkan e-book dan paperback hasil menang giveaway.

Buku terbitan Gagas Media yang ada dalam wishlist saya adalah (nunggu hadiah dari dermawan):





Itulah 10 buku yang saya inginkan. Saya berharap bisa mendapat #KadoUntukBlogger sebagai kado ulang tahun saya yang ke-20 akhir Juni nanti. Alasan saya mengingkan 10 buku tersebut karena covernya bagus banget. Ya, saya sangat menghargai para pembuat cover di balik kesuksesan sebuah buku. Memang don't judge a book by its cover, tapi tidak bisa dipungkiri kita pun terkadang memegang buku karena covernya yang menarik, baru kita baca sinopsis, pengarang, dan penerbit. Saya juga tertarik pada buku Firefly Lane, The Truth About Forever, One More Chance, Pandangan Pertama, Montase, Hujan dan Teduh, dan If You Were Mine karena saya yakin ceritanya akan menyentuh. Buku-buku seperti itu memberi saya banyak inspirasi untuk kemudian dituangkan kedalam sebuah lirik dan melodi (saya kan penulis lagu). Terlalu hanyut dalam cerita dalam buku membuat saya bisa merasakan apa yang dirasakan tokoh dan menulis lagupun mudah dilakukan ;) Kalau menulis lagu dari pengalaman pribadi sih tidak bisa banyak-banyak, kan saya buka selebritis yang bisa gonta-ganti pacar hehe...

Buku Jennifer Johnson Is Sick Of Being Single saya pilih karena ceritanya tentang wanita berumur 30 tahun. Hmm saya jadi penasaran saja bagaimana cerita cinta wanita berumur. Kalau Sweet Nothings saya pilih dengan harapan akan menarik seperti buku bertema kue yang saya baca baru-baru ini, The Cookies of Life. Yang paling saya ingin punyai adalah MELBOURNE karya Winna Efendi. Melbourne itu kota yang paling saya ingin singgahi. Semoga buku ini bisa membawa saya seakan benar-benar ada di sana. Saya juga suka buku-buku karangan Winna Efendi yang sebelumnya.

So, Gagas Media, apa kira-kira saya punya kesempatan untuk memenangkan #KadoUntukBlogger-nya? :D Saya tunggu buat kado ulang tahun lho! Janji deh bakal direview satu-satu. Siapa tahu nantinya saya bakal jadi gagas addict. Ya nggak?

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

The Cookies of Life (Review + Interview)

Judul: The Cookies of Life
Pengarang: JT. Waliyadi
Penerbit: Indie Publishing
Tahun Terbit: 2013
Halaman: 195
Harga: akan segera rilis
Rating: ★★★


Sinopsis:
Kuche Gesaft, sebuah bangunan yang terletak di penghujung Braga 45 adalah sebuah toko kue, dindingnya mengeluarkan beragam aroma adonan dan jika menyentuhnya terasa lembut seperti mentega. Aroma adonan menghantarkan aku pada sebuah kamar besar di lantai atas tepat dalam walk in closet, sebuah buku bersampul kulit bertuliskan Herbst Milch tersimpan. Semua tulisan menunjukkan bahan-bahan untuk membuat kue cokelat, Herbst Milch adalah sebuah buku resep.

Perlahan tapi pasti aku mulai mempelajari resep-resep yang tertulis, mulai dari yang paling simple untuk dijual di sekolah hingga yang paling rumit untuk seorang gadis. Kini semua anak di sekolah mengenal Yuda Hueber, semua anak lelaki ingin menjadi teman dan semua gadis ingin menjadi pacar.

Setiap resep membawa cerita tersendiri, mulai dari roti sebuah gulung yang membuat anak-anak satu sekolah kehilangan kendali, sampai Honey Chocolate Mouse yang membuat Bandung terbakar gairah. Sedikit demi sedikit resep-resep itu menguak dari mana Mami berasal dan siapa aku sesungguhnya, ketika kenyataan telah tiba semuanya sudah terlambat. Hueber Kuche telah menyelimuti SMA 3 Bandung dengan aura kegelapan, membuat Bandung menjadi lautan asmara terlarang, membutakan sahabatku Radine Putera hingga akhirnya membuat diriku mati dalam rasa penyesalan. Ini adalah bagaimana aku Yuda Hueber tewas dalam menemukan jati diri melalui warisan delapan resep kue, hingga membuat aku menjadi The Last Hueber Schokolandenhersteller.

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

The Best Book Ever Giveaway Hop (INT)


The Best Book Ever Giveaway Hop

June 4th - 10th (EST)
June 5th - 11th (Indonesia Time)

Hello, this is my first giveaway hop. I do like the idea of best book ever. I'm so sorry that I can not give you the most expensive one, but I'm currently reading Harlequin Kiss and so far it's good. So the first winner will get one paperback of one of the books below:

 












         
The 2nd winner will get the e-book version of two titles of The Blue Eyes trilogy by B. Kristin McMichael :) She's a great author from Wisconsin, US. The first book, The Legend of the Blue Eyes, has a high rating on goodreads. You can check it by yourself. And the second book, Becoming A Legend, will be published soon *hopefully this month*

 


This giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY and you just have to fill the rafflecopter :) You must be older than 13 years old. Easy right? Attention, I will check every entries so I won't hesitate to delete any 'fake' entry. I will contact the winner trough e-mail/twitter. The winner must response not more than 48 hours or I will choose another winner. Make sure The Book Depository ships to your country (check here)

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Don't forget to HOP to another blog:

Saturday, June 1, 2013

The Last Boyfriend

Title: The Last Boyfriend
Author: J.S. Cooper
Publisher: J.S. Cooper
Year Published: 2013
Pages: 223
Price: $2.99 (iBook)
Rating: ★★★

I was hypnotized by the cover at the first place. Who doesn't think that the man is so hot! Many people on Goodreads agree with me :) So I finally had someone bought this for me. Thank you! This book is written by an indie british author who live in US. This is actually an adult book, but I will skip telling you about the "adult" scene.

This story is about Lucky, a college student who had a part time job at a diner. She had been single for a year. She had gone from boyfriend to boyfriend when she was a freshmen. After the last break up, she decided that she wasn't going to date just to date anymore. She wanted to make sure that any guy that she dated had the possibility of being her last boyfriend that had to fit these criteria:
  1. He had to be honest.
  2. He had to be good-looking, but not too hot, or he would've too many women after him, something she knew from experience.
  3. He had to be looking for a serious relationship, but not be too old or too desperate to settle down.
  4. He had to be financially secure, but not too rich, or too many women would be after him.
  5. He had to be funny, loyal, faithful, and modest.
  6. He had to agree to wait for sex until they were married or engaged.
Her decision was ruined by a guy named Zane. He was came to diner every Friday with a different girl each week. Lucky couldn't deny that he was so cute, sexy, and of course very nice because he left a big tip for her. One day, Lucky went to a movie release party where she saw Zane outside the diner. She had a little conversation with him. She couldn't get him out of her mind! When Lucky met a hollywood star, Braydon Eagle, seemed to have interest in her, Zane turned out over protective.

The story continued with Lucky worked as Zane assistant. He took her to LA for a documentary project. They lived together and had 'fun'. Lucky knew she would never be together with Zane because Zane told her that he didn't do love. He didn't want commitment. As they lived together, Lucky discovered a bigger problems on Zane. He kept telling her to stay away from Braydon but all she could know was a jealousy. On the other hand, Braydon kept telling her that Zane was insane. Zane must had been crazy because of his brother, Noah. Lucky felt like she was trapped between the story of Zane's and Braydon's version.

What happened to Noah? Where is he now? Why Zane and Braydon hate each other? And why Zane is so care about Anglique while he told her there's nothing to do about her?