Hello everyone,
I know that I have not posted in a while and I am sorry.
I fell into a rut about what I wanted to write about on here. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to still post about books or something else. I have realized that I still want to talk about books. My main passion is to write and discuss topics. Those topics right now are books. In the future it might be something else.
If you want to start a discussion or have questions on college, applying to graduate school, etc. just let me know.
(New posts to come..)
I hope you have a good day,
~Mariah
Wednesday, 30 January 2019
Saturday, 18 August 2018
Weekend Reads
Hello everyone!
It has been quite a while since I have posted something on here. I am sorry for my absence but these past few months have been very busy. The fall semester starts on Monday and this semester is probably going to be one of the busiest yet so I am not sure how active I will be on here but I am going to try post every now and then.
It just so happens that I have this weekend off. Usually I work the weekend but somehow I hit the jackpot and do not have to work.
I hope since I have the weekend off that I can finish up some books and start some others that I have been dying to pick up.
My main goal this weekend is to finish Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. I am currently 146 pages into it and I am really enjoying it. If I finish Children of Blood and Bone I have put aside a few books that I would like to get to.
I just bought Heretics Anonymous by Katie Henry. I have been dying to pick this up. I also have Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan set aside. I have started Crazy Rich Asians, I am about fifty pages into it, but I think I will need to re-read what I have read because I do not remember anything. The movie looks great and I am hoping to see it soon.
If I finish all of those I would like to pick up Night Film by Marisha Pessl. I have been in the mood for a thriller/mystery and this one sounds good.
Those are all of the books I would love to get to this weekend. I hope I can at least finish one or two. I am going home this weekend to go through my books. Maybe I can pick one of these as an audiobook for the drive home.
Let me know what books you are planning to read this weekend.
I hope you have a good weekend.
~Mariah
It has been quite a while since I have posted something on here. I am sorry for my absence but these past few months have been very busy. The fall semester starts on Monday and this semester is probably going to be one of the busiest yet so I am not sure how active I will be on here but I am going to try post every now and then.
It just so happens that I have this weekend off. Usually I work the weekend but somehow I hit the jackpot and do not have to work.
I hope since I have the weekend off that I can finish up some books and start some others that I have been dying to pick up.
My main goal this weekend is to finish Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. I am currently 146 pages into it and I am really enjoying it. If I finish Children of Blood and Bone I have put aside a few books that I would like to get to.
I just bought Heretics Anonymous by Katie Henry. I have been dying to pick this up. I also have Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan set aside. I have started Crazy Rich Asians, I am about fifty pages into it, but I think I will need to re-read what I have read because I do not remember anything. The movie looks great and I am hoping to see it soon.
If I finish all of those I would like to pick up Night Film by Marisha Pessl. I have been in the mood for a thriller/mystery and this one sounds good.
Those are all of the books I would love to get to this weekend. I hope I can at least finish one or two. I am going home this weekend to go through my books. Maybe I can pick one of these as an audiobook for the drive home.
Let me know what books you are planning to read this weekend.
I hope you have a good weekend.
~Mariah
Monday, 19 March 2018
February 2018
I read five books, watched four movies, and one TV show this month!
Otherworld by Jason Segel and Kristen Miller: 3.5-4 stars
I enjoyed Otherworld but one thing that drove me crazy the entire time was how impulsive Simon was. He did not think anything through before completely diving into something.
I enjoyed the plot but the book ended very abruptly.
Synopsis:
This is a book about virtual reality. Otherworld is a very popular game that just got rebooted by The Company.
There are some strange accidents happening in the real world causing people have what is called locked in syndrome. The Company is giving those who have locked in syndrome disks to go to the White City, which is like Otherworld but it is a serene place for people to exist. One of the people who gets locked in syndrome is Kat, Simons best friend. Simon does not believe that everything is as it seems and decides to go into the game to save his best friend.
The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory: 4.5-5 stars
This book was just what I needed. The Wedding Date is down right addicting.
Synopsis:
Drew is a pediatric surgeon in Los Angeles and Alexa is the chief of staff for the mayors office in Berkeley. Drew and Alexa get stuck in a hotel elevator. Drew tells Alexa that he is in town for his best friends wedding and his date bailed on him. Not only is the groom his best friend, but the bride is his ex girlfriend.
Drew asks Alexa if she would go to the wedding with him. She says yes and the craziness takes off from there.
Things that I loved:
The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes: 4 stars
I listened to this book in one day. This book completely sucked me in from the first chapter.
Synopsis:
Cassie can read people. One day a man from the FBI comes into the diner where Cassie works and pretty much offers her a place in this program for naturals. Naturals are people with abilities that people at the FBI could use to help solve cases. Cassie and Dean are profilers. Michael can read emotions. Lia can tell if people are lying. Sloane is good with numbers.
This book keeps you on your toes. I cannot wait to read the rest of the series. I just wish my library had them as audiobooks.
The one thing that had my skin crawling were the snippets from the killer. The narrator for the audiobook did this creepy whisper voice.
The Girl in 6E by A.R. Torre No Rating
Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick: 4 Stars
I broke the cardinal rule of not reading the book before watching the movie. I have seen this movie a few times.
What sparked my interest to pick this book up was that I had my mom and some of my siblings sit down and watch the movie with me.
My mom had never seen it and I was raving about how raw the movie is when talking about mental illness. She agreed. She told me that she felt like the movie was an actual portrayal of mental illness.
**I can't speak on how accurate the representation for the mental illnesses present in the book. **
Synopsis:
This is a story about finding yourself and trying to be happy in the worst moments possible. Pat just got released from a mental hospital. He thought that he had only been in the hospital for a couple of months but soon finds out that it has been years.
He is shocked by this news and tries to put his life back together. He wants to show his wife Nikki that he is a changed man so that she will come back to him.
While trying to put his life back together he meets Tiffany and Pat finds out that Tiffany is going through a lot of what he is going through. Tiffany lost her husband and is trying to deal with the lingering grief. While Pat is trying to come to terms with how long it has been since he has seen his wife and what actions he should take to win her back.
Thoughts:
Just like the movie the book felt raw and real. I will say I do like the movie a little better than the book (for certain spoilerly reasons that I will not give away).
The one draw back for me was the constant talk of football. I don't follow football and since that was a big chunk of the book made it a little boring at times.
Fifty Shades Freed
I watched Fifty Shades on Feb. 10th and I really enjoyed it.
Freed was was my favorite out of the books so I was pretty excited to see the film and I think that this is my favorite of the three movies.
There are times in this movie that I thought that the plot was a little all over the place but I can understand why. They had to cover so much in such a short amount of time.
I liked that the movie was set up like a thriller. This gave me the thriller aspect I wanted from Fifty Shades Darker.
One thing that I was not expecting was for Jamie Dornan to sing!
I love that they kept the epilogue.
I also thought that it was cute that there was a tribute to the first two movies.
Black Panther
This movie is amazing. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. There were some battle scenes where I did not breathe.
I suggest buying a bag of popcorn for this movie. You are going to need something to munch on through all the intense scenes. This was the first time that I have ever made a big dent in popcorn while watching a movie. Normally, when I go to the movies I don't buy popcorn because I am so focused on the film that I don't eat.
Not only were there some intense scenes, this movie also has so many moments that had me laughing.
I loved the special effects and the way it was shot.
The dialogue was good and the plot was great. There were real world issues talked about in this movie too, which was great to see.
I think this was the first time watching a movie in theaters where everyone clapped at the end. There was a roar of applause.
Side Note:
There was a PSA at the beginning of the movie that people should stay till the end because Marvel always puts sneak peaks for the next movies and there were still people who walked out of the theatre!
There was not only one but two end scenes and I am excited to complete immerse myself in the Marvel Universe this year. Marvel is releasing so many movies this year.
I am tempted to watch all of the Marvel Movies over again in preparation for Infinity War.
I need to watch the first and second Guardians of the Galaxy. I've only seen bits and pieces of the first movie.
Go watch this movie and then come back so we can talk. I am so eager to talk to people about this movie its unreal!
The 9th Life of Louis Drax
I needed a movie to help me fall asleep so I went on the HBO website. The first movie that pops up is this one.
I saw that Jamie Dornan was in it and the title sounded intriguing so I went ahead and hit play.
This movie is very strange. The little boy creeped me out the whole movie.
**I just want to give a warning for abuse with this movie. The parents in this movie do not have a healthy relationship.**
Synopsis:
Louis Drax is accident prone. He has died and come back to life for every year he has been alive. On his ninth birthday everything gets complicated. Louis, his mother, and father all go on a picnic that ends in his death. Louis father and mother do not get along. They start arguing at this picnic and Louis runs away. The parents run after Louis. The mother puts her body in front of Louis to protect him from his father. They are very close to the edge of a cliff. The arguing continues and the next thing you know Louis is falling off the cliff.
Louis gets brought to the hospital after his body is found at the bottom of the cliff and the hospital pronounces him dead. His body gets transported to the morgue and the person that is about to do the autopsy almost has a heart attack when he sees that Louis body is moving.
Louis then gets brought back up to the hospital and is in a coma. A doctor specializing in pediatric comas (Jamie Dornan) gets called in to monitor Louis condition.
All the while the man hunt is on for Louis father who is said to be at fault for Louis falling off the cliff.
This movie had everything in it. It has romance, its a thriller, there are psychologists, and magical elements.
Gifted
This movie is heartbreaking and heartwarming.
I wanted to find a movie that would help me relax so that I could fall asleep. I saw that Gifted was added to HBO and I have been dying to see this movie. Chris Evans is one of my favorite actors. Starting this movie at 9:30 at night knowing full well I had to get up at 6 a.m. for my 8 a.m. class was the wrong decision. I stayed up watching this movie.
Synopsis:
Frank Adler is in charge of taking care of his niece, Mary, who is a gifted child. She can solve complex math equations at 7 years old. Frank sends his niece off to school and the teacher realizes that she is gifted. This teacher tells Frank that Mary should be in a school for gifted children and Frank lets her know that he does not want Mary attending a school for gifted children.
The principal of the school soon gets involved and people question if Frank is a suitable guardian for Mary. Frank mother shows up and battles Frank for custody of Mary.
It has been a couple of weeks since I have watched this movie and all I want to do is turn the movie on again. I did not think that I would find a movie that would top Captain America but this does. Gifted is now my favorite movie of his.
Books
I enjoyed Otherworld but one thing that drove me crazy the entire time was how impulsive Simon was. He did not think anything through before completely diving into something.
I enjoyed the plot but the book ended very abruptly.
Synopsis:
This is a book about virtual reality. Otherworld is a very popular game that just got rebooted by The Company.
There are some strange accidents happening in the real world causing people have what is called locked in syndrome. The Company is giving those who have locked in syndrome disks to go to the White City, which is like Otherworld but it is a serene place for people to exist. One of the people who gets locked in syndrome is Kat, Simons best friend. Simon does not believe that everything is as it seems and decides to go into the game to save his best friend.
The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory: 4.5-5 stars
This book was just what I needed. The Wedding Date is down right addicting.
Synopsis:
Drew is a pediatric surgeon in Los Angeles and Alexa is the chief of staff for the mayors office in Berkeley. Drew and Alexa get stuck in a hotel elevator. Drew tells Alexa that he is in town for his best friends wedding and his date bailed on him. Not only is the groom his best friend, but the bride is his ex girlfriend.
Drew asks Alexa if she would go to the wedding with him. She says yes and the craziness takes off from there.
Things that I loved:
- I love the writing.
- The dual point of views
- I love that this felt real. I know that sounds strange but normally going into a romance novel I expect to see either insta-love or some unrealistic, but cute, story.
- With this book I felt like the couples had to deal with real world issues such as
- How they were going to afford plane tickets to visit back and forth.
- How it was going to work with both of their demanding jobs.
- Were they really compatible?
- Was this just a friends-with-benefits or something more?
- One more thing that I liked was that this relationship was between people of two different races. Drew is white and Alexa is African American. I also liked that Drew became more aware of some of the things that Alexa has to deal with being a person of color around a bunch of ignorant white people.
The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes: 4 stars
I listened to this book in one day. This book completely sucked me in from the first chapter.
Synopsis:
Cassie can read people. One day a man from the FBI comes into the diner where Cassie works and pretty much offers her a place in this program for naturals. Naturals are people with abilities that people at the FBI could use to help solve cases. Cassie and Dean are profilers. Michael can read emotions. Lia can tell if people are lying. Sloane is good with numbers.
This book keeps you on your toes. I cannot wait to read the rest of the series. I just wish my library had them as audiobooks.
The one thing that had my skin crawling were the snippets from the killer. The narrator for the audiobook did this creepy whisper voice.
The Girl in 6E by A.R. Torre No Rating
This book is not what I expected. I've never read an erotic thriller before. Not sure I want to continue the series.
I borrowed the first book from the library because I remember Raeleen (PadfootandProngs07 on YouTube) talk about it a while back. I did not remember much of what the book was about before starting it.
Going into this book I thought this was about a girl who didn't leave her house but witnesses a murder. I was wrong.
**This book is very dark and graphic. Just want to warn you in case you decide that you might be interested in this series.**
Synopsis:
Deanna Madden locks herself in her apartment because she longs to kill people. For work she is a cam girl. She is apart of these sex websites and charges people $7 a minute.
One day this guy wants her to pretend to be this little girl named Annie. This guy keeps coming back to be with Deanna and she starts to get nervous. Deanna thinks that Annie may be a real person and enlists the help of this hacker that she met through caming. He finds out everything about this guy. He finds out that there is a real girl named Annie and she is in trouble.
Deanna is forced to leave her apartment to save Annie.
I liked that there were parts where you got Annie's point of view and Deanna's point of view.
Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick: 4 Stars
I broke the cardinal rule of not reading the book before watching the movie. I have seen this movie a few times.
What sparked my interest to pick this book up was that I had my mom and some of my siblings sit down and watch the movie with me.
My mom had never seen it and I was raving about how raw the movie is when talking about mental illness. She agreed. She told me that she felt like the movie was an actual portrayal of mental illness.
**I can't speak on how accurate the representation for the mental illnesses present in the book. **
Synopsis:
This is a story about finding yourself and trying to be happy in the worst moments possible. Pat just got released from a mental hospital. He thought that he had only been in the hospital for a couple of months but soon finds out that it has been years.
He is shocked by this news and tries to put his life back together. He wants to show his wife Nikki that he is a changed man so that she will come back to him.
While trying to put his life back together he meets Tiffany and Pat finds out that Tiffany is going through a lot of what he is going through. Tiffany lost her husband and is trying to deal with the lingering grief. While Pat is trying to come to terms with how long it has been since he has seen his wife and what actions he should take to win her back.
Thoughts:
Just like the movie the book felt raw and real. I will say I do like the movie a little better than the book (for certain spoilerly reasons that I will not give away).
The one draw back for me was the constant talk of football. I don't follow football and since that was a big chunk of the book made it a little boring at times.
Movies
Fifty Shades Freed
I watched Fifty Shades on Feb. 10th and I really enjoyed it.
Freed was was my favorite out of the books so I was pretty excited to see the film and I think that this is my favorite of the three movies.
There are times in this movie that I thought that the plot was a little all over the place but I can understand why. They had to cover so much in such a short amount of time.
I liked that the movie was set up like a thriller. This gave me the thriller aspect I wanted from Fifty Shades Darker.
One thing that I was not expecting was for Jamie Dornan to sing!
I love that they kept the epilogue.
I also thought that it was cute that there was a tribute to the first two movies.
Black Panther
This movie is amazing. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. There were some battle scenes where I did not breathe.
I suggest buying a bag of popcorn for this movie. You are going to need something to munch on through all the intense scenes. This was the first time that I have ever made a big dent in popcorn while watching a movie. Normally, when I go to the movies I don't buy popcorn because I am so focused on the film that I don't eat.
Not only were there some intense scenes, this movie also has so many moments that had me laughing.
I loved the special effects and the way it was shot.
The dialogue was good and the plot was great. There were real world issues talked about in this movie too, which was great to see.
I think this was the first time watching a movie in theaters where everyone clapped at the end. There was a roar of applause.
Side Note:
There was a PSA at the beginning of the movie that people should stay till the end because Marvel always puts sneak peaks for the next movies and there were still people who walked out of the theatre!
There was not only one but two end scenes and I am excited to complete immerse myself in the Marvel Universe this year. Marvel is releasing so many movies this year.
I am tempted to watch all of the Marvel Movies over again in preparation for Infinity War.
I need to watch the first and second Guardians of the Galaxy. I've only seen bits and pieces of the first movie.
Go watch this movie and then come back so we can talk. I am so eager to talk to people about this movie its unreal!
The 9th Life of Louis Drax
I needed a movie to help me fall asleep so I went on the HBO website. The first movie that pops up is this one.
I saw that Jamie Dornan was in it and the title sounded intriguing so I went ahead and hit play.
This movie is very strange. The little boy creeped me out the whole movie.
**I just want to give a warning for abuse with this movie. The parents in this movie do not have a healthy relationship.**
Synopsis:
Louis Drax is accident prone. He has died and come back to life for every year he has been alive. On his ninth birthday everything gets complicated. Louis, his mother, and father all go on a picnic that ends in his death. Louis father and mother do not get along. They start arguing at this picnic and Louis runs away. The parents run after Louis. The mother puts her body in front of Louis to protect him from his father. They are very close to the edge of a cliff. The arguing continues and the next thing you know Louis is falling off the cliff.
Louis gets brought to the hospital after his body is found at the bottom of the cliff and the hospital pronounces him dead. His body gets transported to the morgue and the person that is about to do the autopsy almost has a heart attack when he sees that Louis body is moving.
Louis then gets brought back up to the hospital and is in a coma. A doctor specializing in pediatric comas (Jamie Dornan) gets called in to monitor Louis condition.
All the while the man hunt is on for Louis father who is said to be at fault for Louis falling off the cliff.
This movie had everything in it. It has romance, its a thriller, there are psychologists, and magical elements.
Gifted
This movie is heartbreaking and heartwarming.
I wanted to find a movie that would help me relax so that I could fall asleep. I saw that Gifted was added to HBO and I have been dying to see this movie. Chris Evans is one of my favorite actors. Starting this movie at 9:30 at night knowing full well I had to get up at 6 a.m. for my 8 a.m. class was the wrong decision. I stayed up watching this movie.
Synopsis:
Frank Adler is in charge of taking care of his niece, Mary, who is a gifted child. She can solve complex math equations at 7 years old. Frank sends his niece off to school and the teacher realizes that she is gifted. This teacher tells Frank that Mary should be in a school for gifted children and Frank lets her know that he does not want Mary attending a school for gifted children.
The principal of the school soon gets involved and people question if Frank is a suitable guardian for Mary. Frank mother shows up and battles Frank for custody of Mary.
It has been a couple of weeks since I have watched this movie and all I want to do is turn the movie on again. I did not think that I would find a movie that would top Captain America but this does. Gifted is now my favorite movie of his.
TV Shows
The Arrangement
I watched The Arrangement this month because I saw that season 2 is coming out soon. (Update: Its currently out) I watched it last year when it came out and while watching it the second time I realized that I remembered nothing about this show. I felt like I was watching it for the first time.
Synopsis:
Hollywood is filled with actors, rumors, and scandals.
Megan Morrison is wanting to make a name for herself in movies. She is currently waitressing and auditioning, hoping for her big break.
Megan has an opportunity to audition for a Kyle West movie. Everyone in Hollywood knows who Kyle West is, not only because he is a big actor but because he is apart of The Institute for the Higher Mind.
Megan jumps at the opportunity to work with Kyle West and Kyle fell for Megan. He liked her acting and asks Megan if she would like to go to lunch with him and she agrees.
Kyle liked meeting and hanging out with Megan so much that he gives her agent a proposal. He offers Megan a contract. If she will be his girlfriend, eventually his wife, he will give her ten million dollars.
Megan was hesitant at first but eventually signs the contract. Soon after signing the contract things spin out of control.
My thoughts
I enjoyed the first season. There is a lot of drama and questionable things happening in this show. Once I got to a certain point in season one I realized why I never finished the season one a year ago. There are tough topics and favors that were asked of these characters.
All of that being taken into account this show is addicting and I cannot wait till the second season.
Let me know what books you read this month. Also let me know if you read or watched any of the same things that I did.
Thank you for reading.
I hope you have a good day!
~Mariah
All of that being taken into account this show is addicting and I cannot wait till the second season.
Let me know what books you read this month. Also let me know if you read or watched any of the same things that I did.
Thank you for reading.
I hope you have a good day!
~Mariah
Saturday, 3 March 2018
Spring Break TBR!
I am on spring break for March 3rd to the 11th. I have to work for some of the break. When I am not working I plan on reading.
I want to try and get to as many books as I can this week. Here are books that I am dying to get to.
1. The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
I am currently reading this and I have been reading this for over a week now. I am liking it so far. I am about 100 pages in.
Synopsis:
Princess Lia is supposed to marry the prince of this neighboring kingdom. Lia does not want to marry this man so she flees on her wedding day. Once people find out that she is gone the prince and an assassin try to track her down.
The one thing that I am enjoying about this book is the mystery of who is who. There are chapters from the assassins point of view and chapters from the princes point of view but the reader does not know who is the assassin and who is the prince.
2. The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas
I bought this book for my younger sister for Christmas and she said that she enjoyed it. I told her that I wanted to read it and she lent this to me over a month ago. I need to read this and give it back to her.
Synopsis:
I believe this book was inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement. This book deals with police brutality. I have heard nothing but great things about this book and it has been on the New York Times Bestseller list for 52 weeks running! I have not read the dust jack to know what this book entails. I want to go into this knowing as little as possible.
3. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
I recently bought the 10th anniversary edition and it is gorgeous! I want to reread the Mortal Instruments Series in preparation for Queen of Air and Darkness coming out this December!
Synopsis:
This book is about how Clary find outs that she can see things that other people can't. She finds out that she is a Shadowhunter. A Shadowhunter is someone who hunts demons and is responsible for keeping the peace between the human world and the demon world.
Those are the top three books on my to be read pile for spring break.
What are you reading? I would love to know.
I hope you have a good day.
~Mariah
I want to try and get to as many books as I can this week. Here are books that I am dying to get to.
1. The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
I am currently reading this and I have been reading this for over a week now. I am liking it so far. I am about 100 pages in.
Synopsis:
Princess Lia is supposed to marry the prince of this neighboring kingdom. Lia does not want to marry this man so she flees on her wedding day. Once people find out that she is gone the prince and an assassin try to track her down.
The one thing that I am enjoying about this book is the mystery of who is who. There are chapters from the assassins point of view and chapters from the princes point of view but the reader does not know who is the assassin and who is the prince.
2. The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas
I bought this book for my younger sister for Christmas and she said that she enjoyed it. I told her that I wanted to read it and she lent this to me over a month ago. I need to read this and give it back to her.
Synopsis:
I believe this book was inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement. This book deals with police brutality. I have heard nothing but great things about this book and it has been on the New York Times Bestseller list for 52 weeks running! I have not read the dust jack to know what this book entails. I want to go into this knowing as little as possible.
3. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
I recently bought the 10th anniversary edition and it is gorgeous! I want to reread the Mortal Instruments Series in preparation for Queen of Air and Darkness coming out this December!
Synopsis:
This book is about how Clary find outs that she can see things that other people can't. She finds out that she is a Shadowhunter. A Shadowhunter is someone who hunts demons and is responsible for keeping the peace between the human world and the demon world.
Those are the top three books on my to be read pile for spring break.
What are you reading? I would love to know.
I hope you have a good day.
~Mariah
Tuesday, 20 February 2018
Movies I am dying to see in 2018
This is the year for movies!!
I feel like most of my paychecks this year will be going to the movie theatre.
I am going to be going the movies almost every month this year. There are so many great movies coming out in 2018
I am starting with the current month and continuing from there. The number in the parenthesis is the release date if you are curious.
I have left some months blank. I do plan on coming back and adding more movies if I find some that look interesting.
I have linked the trailers that are out for these movies.
Book Club (18th)
I feel like most of my paychecks this year will be going to the movie theatre.
I am going to be going the movies almost every month this year. There are so many great movies coming out in 2018
I am starting with the current month and continuing from there. The number in the parenthesis is the release date if you are curious.
I have left some months blank. I do plan on coming back and adding more movies if I find some that look interesting.
I have linked the trailers that are out for these movies.
February
March
April
May
Book Club (18th)
June
July
August
September
October
November
X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2nd)
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (16th)
December
Aquaman (21st)
Let me know if you are excited for any of these movies. Also let me know if there is a movie that you are excited for that I do not have listed. I am always looking for movies to watch.
Thank you for reading.
I hope you have a good day!!
~Mariah
Saturday, 3 February 2018
Books I read and movies I watched in January
January has been a killer reading month for me. I read 10 books this month.
Here are the books I read and my thoughts!
The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan: 2 Stars
This book is about how an American falls in love with the prince of England.
I picked the audiobook up 1. because I heard good things about this book and 2. because my radio is broken in my car. I cannot drive for long periods of time in silence. I picked this up on New Years Day because I had to drive from my mothers house back to my apartment, which is an hour and a half to two hour drive.
I regret reading this. It set me in a bad mood. I thought that this was going to be some fluffy romance that I would fly through but every time I turned this audiobook on I just kept hoping that I would be done quickly.
This book was way to long. I could sum up the entire story for you in a paragraph. I think I would have given it a higher rating had the book been more condensed. I felt like the authors were just dragging the story out for no reason.
Roomies by Christina Lauren: 4-4.5 Stars
Holland loves listening to this musician, Calvin, who plays guitar in the subways of New York. She takes time out of her day just to hear him play. One day when she goes to listen to him she gets up the courage to tell him that she really likes his music. After she tells him that she likes his music this guy in the subway chases after her and she ends up on the subway tracks. Calvin helps Holland but when the ambulance arrives he is no where to be seen. Holland later finds out that Calvin is in the United States illegally and she wants to help him.
I loved the relationships in this book. Holland has an amazing relationship with her gay uncles.
I liked that Holland and Calvin's relationship took time to grow.
I enjoyed that writing process and the personal growth that Holland had in this book. It was great to see a character go through the struggles of finding themselves while also finding what to write.
This was just a good read. I was so invested in this book and in the relationships that I saved the last 30-40 pages until this morning (January 7th) because I did not want to finish it. I could have finished all of it last night but I just did not want to let go of the story.
The Girl in the Spiders Web by David Lagercrantz: 2 Stars
I don't want to give a synopsis of this book because it is book four. Book one is The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Book one is about how a disgraced journalist gets pulled into investing an old murder case and on his journey to find the killer he enlists the help of a female hacker. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a book I enjoyed and would recommend. Be warned though, these books are for mature audiences. They deal with rape, abuse, murder, and much more so just be prepared.
If you want to read my full thoughts I wrote a very lengthly review because I had a lot of thoughts on this book and the series as a whole. Be warned my review is rambly and kind of stream of consciousness. My review: http://plethora-of-nonsense.blogspot.com/2018/01/thoughts-on-girl-in-spiders-web-by.html
Sublime by Christina Lauren: 2-3 stars
I wanted more from Christina Lauren so I borrowed the audiobook Sublime by the writing duo. This one was just not for me. It wasn't bad but was not as enjoyable as Roomies.
This book is about how Lucy can only be seen by Colin. They find out that Lucy died and then came back. They both try to figure out why. Colin and Lucy start developing a relationship. Lucy and Colin cannot touch or be close because Lucy is a ghost. One day they find out that they can be together if Colin has near death experience.
I enjoyed the beginning of this book. I found it interesting to figure out what happened to Lucy but when the book started to be about these near death experiences it just became a hard story to listen to. It was hard because Colin wanted to die or almost die to be with Lucy when she was already dead.
A List of Cages by Robin Roe
This is a survival story. Adam Blake is an aid to the school psychologist for his senior year of high school. One of the duties as the aid is to try and bring in a student who will not show up to the school psychologist's office. This student is Julian and Adam realizes that Julian is the same person that used to live with him. Adam's mother was Julian's foster parent for a time before Julian's uncle Russell came to take Julian away. Julien's uncle is not a good guardian.
**Be aware that this story does deal with abuse.**
I am very conflicted on how I feel about this story and the characters. I loved the main characters Julian, Adam, Emerald (sometimes), Charlie, Jesse, etc. The group of friends in this book is amazing. The characters that I could not stand in this book were the adults. I disliked almost every adult except Adam's mom. Every other adult was a complete asshole. There were many times where I was literally yelling at the book because of something that was said or how an adult handled a situation. It was so infuriating.
I don't think I am going to give this book a star rating. I don't know what I would rate it if I wanted to.
This book is one that will stay with me for a while. I finished this book out in my car while I was waiting for it to warm up and have thought about this book all day.
I have taken this book with me for the past few days. It has bends in the cover and coffee spilled on the spine. This book is easily one of my favorites. I want to go back one day and just take a highlighter to it.
This book teaches a valuable lesson of how people can drastically affect someones life for the better.
I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone.
Dear Martin by Nic Stone: 3 Stars
This was one of my most anticipated releases of last year and I can't believe that I just read it now. I wish I read Dear Martin as soon as it was released.
This book is about Justyce McAllister writing letters to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. about the ongoing racism that is happening in society today. Justyce wants to be more like Dr. King and implement his teachings in his everyday life.
This book does deal with racism, it talks about police brutality, racial profiling, and much more.
Go read it if you haven't. Its very short and will probably take a couple hours to finish. I listened to it on audiobook and the audiobook is 4 hours long.
Rating:
I know that 3 stars is not considered a high rating but don't be fooled. I really enjoyed this book. The only reason that I docked some stars is because it was not long enough. I felt like I was just really getting to know all these characters and then it ended. I want more.
Subject Matter:
Don't fooled by its size this book may be short but it packs a punch. So much happened. I had to listen to some of it twice because I could not believe the things that were happening. This book shocked me so much that there were times that I was listening to this book and I said out loud "There is no way that that came out of that persons mouth". There were many times where my jaw dropped at some of the discussions that were happing.
I listened to this on audiobook and that is how I would recommend people consume this amazing story.
Maybe Someday by Colleen Hover: 3.5 Stars
I thought that this book was okay but the topic is what made me dock it stars.
This book is about people in relationships cheating on each other. Not one character has a good relationship in this book. Every time that Ridge and Sydney would have a cute moment I would just feel so bad for Maggie.
The reason that I rated it as high as 3 stars is because Colleen Hoover's writing is addicting. I finished this book in like two days.
One thing that I like is that there are song lyrics written down. I found the songs on YouTube as well so that added an interesting experience to this book.
Not my favorite Colleen Hoover book but it was okay.
The next few books are the ones that I read for the Biannual Bibliothon.
Maybe Not by Colleen Hoover: 1.5 stars (A book under 200 pages and a sequel)
This is book 2 (or 1.5 according to Goodreads) in the Maybe series by Colleen Hoover. This book focuses on the two other roommates, Bridgette and Warren, that were in the first book Maybe Someday.
This book was not good. I liked that there was more of a backstory for Bridgette but this just isn't Colleen's best work.
Beautiful Bastard by Christina Lauren: 1-1.5 Stars (A back list title)
Synopsis:
Chloe Miller is interning for Mr. Bennett Ryan as a requirement for her MBA. She does not like her boss and calls him Beautiful Bastard around her friends. Well one day Mr. Ryan and Chloe decide to just start sleeping together. She calls him an ass and a bastard a lot. He is also constantly rude to everyone and yet they keep sleeping together.
I did not intend to read Beautiful Bastard for the Biannual Bibliothon but I wanted to read something that would be quick to get through. I started The Light of Paris by Eleanor Brown and I am liking it but it started out slow. I could barely make it through the first chapter because it is about a women who is married to a possessive man and that is not something I want to read about at the moment.
This book is not what I expected at all. I went in only knowing that it was Twilight fan fiction.
But I soon found out that this book is Fifty Shades of Grey.
I had no idea going into this that it was going to be some erotica romance between an intern and her boss.
Just exchange the names Christian Grey and Ana Steele for Bennett Ryan and Chloe Mills then you get the same story.
This book started out with a sex scene which was abrupt. I was 10-20 pages into this book and they are already having sex with each other..
I think I am going to give it a 1.5 stars because it kept my attention but there was absolutely no plot to this. (I guess Chloe getting her MBA could be the plot but other than that there was nothing to this book.)
I looked and saw that this is an anthology series so the other books focus on different characters. I don't think that I am going to continue with this series.
I feel betrayed by the people who rated this book. It has over 4 stars on Goodreads! I don't understand...
I would not recommend this to anyone.
Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson: No Rating (A book about mental illness)
I enjoyed listening to this book and I would recommend that everyone listen to this book.
This is a book about how the author deals with her mental illnesses.
This truly is a book that everyone should read. If you are thinking about reading any of the books that I have read this past month, read this one.
Movies
I hope you have a good day.
~Mariah
Here are the books I read and my thoughts!
Books
The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan: 2 Stars
This book is about how an American falls in love with the prince of England.
I picked the audiobook up 1. because I heard good things about this book and 2. because my radio is broken in my car. I cannot drive for long periods of time in silence. I picked this up on New Years Day because I had to drive from my mothers house back to my apartment, which is an hour and a half to two hour drive.
I regret reading this. It set me in a bad mood. I thought that this was going to be some fluffy romance that I would fly through but every time I turned this audiobook on I just kept hoping that I would be done quickly.
This book was way to long. I could sum up the entire story for you in a paragraph. I think I would have given it a higher rating had the book been more condensed. I felt like the authors were just dragging the story out for no reason.
Roomies by Christina Lauren: 4-4.5 Stars
Holland loves listening to this musician, Calvin, who plays guitar in the subways of New York. She takes time out of her day just to hear him play. One day when she goes to listen to him she gets up the courage to tell him that she really likes his music. After she tells him that she likes his music this guy in the subway chases after her and she ends up on the subway tracks. Calvin helps Holland but when the ambulance arrives he is no where to be seen. Holland later finds out that Calvin is in the United States illegally and she wants to help him.
I loved the relationships in this book. Holland has an amazing relationship with her gay uncles.
I liked that Holland and Calvin's relationship took time to grow.
I enjoyed that writing process and the personal growth that Holland had in this book. It was great to see a character go through the struggles of finding themselves while also finding what to write.
This was just a good read. I was so invested in this book and in the relationships that I saved the last 30-40 pages until this morning (January 7th) because I did not want to finish it. I could have finished all of it last night but I just did not want to let go of the story.
The Girl in the Spiders Web by David Lagercrantz: 2 Stars
I don't want to give a synopsis of this book because it is book four. Book one is The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Book one is about how a disgraced journalist gets pulled into investing an old murder case and on his journey to find the killer he enlists the help of a female hacker. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a book I enjoyed and would recommend. Be warned though, these books are for mature audiences. They deal with rape, abuse, murder, and much more so just be prepared.
If you want to read my full thoughts I wrote a very lengthly review because I had a lot of thoughts on this book and the series as a whole. Be warned my review is rambly and kind of stream of consciousness. My review: http://plethora-of-nonsense.blogspot.com/2018/01/thoughts-on-girl-in-spiders-web-by.html
Sublime by Christina Lauren: 2-3 stars
I wanted more from Christina Lauren so I borrowed the audiobook Sublime by the writing duo. This one was just not for me. It wasn't bad but was not as enjoyable as Roomies.
This book is about how Lucy can only be seen by Colin. They find out that Lucy died and then came back. They both try to figure out why. Colin and Lucy start developing a relationship. Lucy and Colin cannot touch or be close because Lucy is a ghost. One day they find out that they can be together if Colin has near death experience.
I enjoyed the beginning of this book. I found it interesting to figure out what happened to Lucy but when the book started to be about these near death experiences it just became a hard story to listen to. It was hard because Colin wanted to die or almost die to be with Lucy when she was already dead.
A List of Cages by Robin Roe
This is a survival story. Adam Blake is an aid to the school psychologist for his senior year of high school. One of the duties as the aid is to try and bring in a student who will not show up to the school psychologist's office. This student is Julian and Adam realizes that Julian is the same person that used to live with him. Adam's mother was Julian's foster parent for a time before Julian's uncle Russell came to take Julian away. Julien's uncle is not a good guardian.
**Be aware that this story does deal with abuse.**
I am very conflicted on how I feel about this story and the characters. I loved the main characters Julian, Adam, Emerald (sometimes), Charlie, Jesse, etc. The group of friends in this book is amazing. The characters that I could not stand in this book were the adults. I disliked almost every adult except Adam's mom. Every other adult was a complete asshole. There were many times where I was literally yelling at the book because of something that was said or how an adult handled a situation. It was so infuriating.
I don't think I am going to give this book a star rating. I don't know what I would rate it if I wanted to.
This book is one that will stay with me for a while. I finished this book out in my car while I was waiting for it to warm up and have thought about this book all day.
I have taken this book with me for the past few days. It has bends in the cover and coffee spilled on the spine. This book is easily one of my favorites. I want to go back one day and just take a highlighter to it.
This book teaches a valuable lesson of how people can drastically affect someones life for the better.
I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone.
Dear Martin by Nic Stone: 3 Stars
This was one of my most anticipated releases of last year and I can't believe that I just read it now. I wish I read Dear Martin as soon as it was released.
This book is about Justyce McAllister writing letters to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. about the ongoing racism that is happening in society today. Justyce wants to be more like Dr. King and implement his teachings in his everyday life.
This book does deal with racism, it talks about police brutality, racial profiling, and much more.
Go read it if you haven't. Its very short and will probably take a couple hours to finish. I listened to it on audiobook and the audiobook is 4 hours long.
Rating:
I know that 3 stars is not considered a high rating but don't be fooled. I really enjoyed this book. The only reason that I docked some stars is because it was not long enough. I felt like I was just really getting to know all these characters and then it ended. I want more.
Subject Matter:
Don't fooled by its size this book may be short but it packs a punch. So much happened. I had to listen to some of it twice because I could not believe the things that were happening. This book shocked me so much that there were times that I was listening to this book and I said out loud "There is no way that that came out of that persons mouth". There were many times where my jaw dropped at some of the discussions that were happing.
I listened to this on audiobook and that is how I would recommend people consume this amazing story.
Maybe Someday by Colleen Hover: 3.5 Stars
I thought that this book was okay but the topic is what made me dock it stars.
This book is about people in relationships cheating on each other. Not one character has a good relationship in this book. Every time that Ridge and Sydney would have a cute moment I would just feel so bad for Maggie.
The reason that I rated it as high as 3 stars is because Colleen Hoover's writing is addicting. I finished this book in like two days.
One thing that I like is that there are song lyrics written down. I found the songs on YouTube as well so that added an interesting experience to this book.
Not my favorite Colleen Hoover book but it was okay.
The next few books are the ones that I read for the Biannual Bibliothon.
Maybe Not by Colleen Hoover: 1.5 stars (A book under 200 pages and a sequel)
This is book 2 (or 1.5 according to Goodreads) in the Maybe series by Colleen Hoover. This book focuses on the two other roommates, Bridgette and Warren, that were in the first book Maybe Someday.
This book was not good. I liked that there was more of a backstory for Bridgette but this just isn't Colleen's best work.
Beautiful Bastard by Christina Lauren: 1-1.5 Stars (A back list title)
Chloe Miller is interning for Mr. Bennett Ryan as a requirement for her MBA. She does not like her boss and calls him Beautiful Bastard around her friends. Well one day Mr. Ryan and Chloe decide to just start sleeping together. She calls him an ass and a bastard a lot. He is also constantly rude to everyone and yet they keep sleeping together.
I did not intend to read Beautiful Bastard for the Biannual Bibliothon but I wanted to read something that would be quick to get through. I started The Light of Paris by Eleanor Brown and I am liking it but it started out slow. I could barely make it through the first chapter because it is about a women who is married to a possessive man and that is not something I want to read about at the moment.
But I soon found out that this book is Fifty Shades of Grey.
I had no idea going into this that it was going to be some erotica romance between an intern and her boss.
Just exchange the names Christian Grey and Ana Steele for Bennett Ryan and Chloe Mills then you get the same story.
This book started out with a sex scene which was abrupt. I was 10-20 pages into this book and they are already having sex with each other..
I think I am going to give it a 1.5 stars because it kept my attention but there was absolutely no plot to this. (I guess Chloe getting her MBA could be the plot but other than that there was nothing to this book.)
I looked and saw that this is an anthology series so the other books focus on different characters. I don't think that I am going to continue with this series.
I feel betrayed by the people who rated this book. It has over 4 stars on Goodreads! I don't understand...
I would not recommend this to anyone.
Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson: No Rating (A book about mental illness)
I enjoyed listening to this book and I would recommend that everyone listen to this book.
This is a book about how the author deals with her mental illnesses.
This truly is a book that everyone should read. If you are thinking about reading any of the books that I have read this past month, read this one.
Big Eyes
I was scrolling through Netflix trying to find something to watch and I found the movie Big Eyes. I remember hearing about this movie when it came out a few years ago.
This movie is about this women who paints these children with big eyes. That is all I want to tell you.
For ninety-nine percent of the movie I was angry I just wanted it to be over. I sat through the torture just to find out if she was going to do what I kept hoping she would do.
The ending made up for the anger I felt throughout this movie.
I will tell you that this is not the best movie that I have seen and I'm not entirely sure I would recommend it to someone unless they enjoyed movies that turned out good in the end.
It was just an okay movie for me.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
I saw this in IMAX and it was amazing.
I was worried at first because I enjoyed the first one as a kid and I was afraid is was going to be a bad remake.
The guy with the gun in the first movie was down right terrifying to me as a child. So I went into this movie expecting a thriller/action type movie. Nope. This movie was more of a comedy then anything. I laughed so much while watching this. Kevin Hart made the movie. His character is great.
I would 100% recommend this movie.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
I saw this in IMAX and it was amazing.
I was worried at first because I enjoyed the first one as a kid and I was afraid is was going to be a bad remake.
The guy with the gun in the first movie was down right terrifying to me as a child. So I went into this movie expecting a thriller/action type movie. Nope. This movie was more of a comedy then anything. I laughed so much while watching this. Kevin Hart made the movie. His character is great.
I would 100% recommend this movie.
On The Blog
Normally I would not do an "On The Blog" wrap up of the month but I have posted quite a lot this month and would like to show you what I have posted if you haven't already seen it.
What Happened in December
I talk about the movies, books, and TV shows that I consumed in December.
Pop Sugar Reading Challenge 2017
I wrap up what I read for the challenges.
6 Books That I Would Like To Read in 2018
I talk about the movies, books, and TV shows that I consumed in December.
Pop Sugar Reading Challenge 2017
I wrap up what I read for the challenges.
6 Books That I Would Like To Read in 2018
I feel like the title is self explanatory.
Thoughts on Book 4 in The Millennium Series
I rambled through my feelings on The Girl in the Spiders Web.
Winter Biannual Bibliothon 2018
I made a TBR (to be read) pile for the Winter Biannual Bibliothon.
If you have made it this far thank you for reading. Let me know what books and movies you read and watched this month.Thoughts on Book 4 in The Millennium Series
I rambled through my feelings on The Girl in the Spiders Web.
Winter Biannual Bibliothon 2018
I made a TBR (to be read) pile for the Winter Biannual Bibliothon.
I hope you have a good day.
~Mariah
Thursday, 18 January 2018
Winter Biannual Bibliothon 2018
One of my favorite read-a-thons to participate in is the Biannual Bibliothon. The winter one is happening January 20-26. There are seven challenges for this round and I have doubled up on a few.
Seven Challenges, maybe 7 books:
1. Read the group book: The group picked is Otherworld by Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller. I am in the middle of reading Otherworld. I put it down because I started the Diviners by Libba Bray.
I am super excited to get back into this book because I was really enjoying it.
2. Read a sequel: Maybe Not by Colleen Hoover.
I have not read Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover and I need to. Maybe Not will work for one other challenge and that is why I selected it. So I may have to read Maybe Someday during the read-a-thon as well.
3. Read a book you have never heard of before: The Light of Paris by Eleanor Brown
I picked this book up from a used book sale a while back because I remembered Bree Hill talk about it on her YouTube Channel but I have since forgotten what it is about.
4. A book about mental illness: A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis Or The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime
I am not sure if A Madness So Discreet deals with mental illness. On the back of the book it says that the main character is locked away in an insane asylum so I'm not sure if she is struggling with a mental illness or if she was just forced into an insane asylum by her family.
Another book I have was actually on a mental illness book list on Goodreads and that is The Curious Case of the Dog in the Night-Time. I have no idea what this is about but I have heard great things about it.
I might read one or both. Not sure at the moment. (If you have read A Madness So Discreet please let me know in the comments if the main character has a mental illness.)
5. Read a book mentioned in another book: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling
Harry Potter was mentioned in A List of Cages by Robin Roe. (Order of the Phoenix was mentioned but I have not read any of the Harry Potter books so I am going to read the first book.)
6. Read a book under 200 pages: Maybe Not by Colleen Hover
This is the only book that I own that is under 200 pages.
7. Read a book that was published before 2017: The Light of Paris by Eleanor Brown
That is my stack of books for the winter Biannual Bibliothon.
If you are participating in the Biannual Bibliothon let me know what you plan on reading.
I hope you have a good day.
~Mariah
Seven Challenges, maybe 7 books:
1. Read the group book: The group picked is Otherworld by Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller. I am in the middle of reading Otherworld. I put it down because I started the Diviners by Libba Bray.
I am super excited to get back into this book because I was really enjoying it.
2. Read a sequel: Maybe Not by Colleen Hoover.
I have not read Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover and I need to. Maybe Not will work for one other challenge and that is why I selected it. So I may have to read Maybe Someday during the read-a-thon as well.
3. Read a book you have never heard of before: The Light of Paris by Eleanor Brown
I picked this book up from a used book sale a while back because I remembered Bree Hill talk about it on her YouTube Channel but I have since forgotten what it is about.
4. A book about mental illness: A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis Or The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime
I am not sure if A Madness So Discreet deals with mental illness. On the back of the book it says that the main character is locked away in an insane asylum so I'm not sure if she is struggling with a mental illness or if she was just forced into an insane asylum by her family.
Another book I have was actually on a mental illness book list on Goodreads and that is The Curious Case of the Dog in the Night-Time. I have no idea what this is about but I have heard great things about it.
I might read one or both. Not sure at the moment. (If you have read A Madness So Discreet please let me know in the comments if the main character has a mental illness.)
5. Read a book mentioned in another book: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling
Harry Potter was mentioned in A List of Cages by Robin Roe. (Order of the Phoenix was mentioned but I have not read any of the Harry Potter books so I am going to read the first book.)
6. Read a book under 200 pages: Maybe Not by Colleen Hover
This is the only book that I own that is under 200 pages.
7. Read a book that was published before 2017: The Light of Paris by Eleanor Brown
That is my stack of books for the winter Biannual Bibliothon.
If you are participating in the Biannual Bibliothon let me know what you plan on reading.
I hope you have a good day.
~Mariah
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