Crochet Corner || A New Series

Hey y'all!

It's been awhile since I've posted but I'm still here and ready to start making more posts!

A quick reading update:

I haven't been reading much at all, in fact I only read three books last month: A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, You're Never Weird on the Internet by Felicia Day (a reread), and Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick.

I'm hoping to start on Jay Asher's book What Light in the next few days and also work on finally finishing My True Love Gave to Me since Christmas is upon us and they are both Christmas reads. Other than those I am currently listening to Gemina on audio and loving every moment of it!

Now onto the new things!

I recently posted a video on my channel all about crochet and some of the projects I've been working on recently. You can check it out here. So I thought it would be good to also have a text based companion for those videos where I can give updates on what I'm working on and what I plan to work on.

For now I'm working on some Disney Princess and Rudolph amigurumi. I have made Belle, Rapunzel and Bumble so far, all of which can be seen in the video posted above.

I will be making a 2017 plans post within the next few weeks as I come up with ideas of what I want to work on in the following year and I can't wait to share it with everyone!

That's all I have for now, hope you're having a fantastic day!!

Until next time,

Gina

Jump Into November

Hey y'all!

It's been a while since I've updated with a review so I thought I'd make a post about some things I've been reading, but not reviewing, and some of my November plans!

While I've been wanting to do a review for everything I read (and movies I see in theaters) time has gotten away from me. I've read a few things lately that I haven't reviewed but most of them are things I don't think I could properly review.

I've listened to a few audiobook memoirs, a sequel, and a book that one really can't describe.

The memoirs:

The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo by Amy Schumer (3/5 Stars)
     This book was enjoyable but not the best celebrity memoir I've read. I felt like she was trying too hard in some places and kept bouncing back and forth between emotional moments and her comedy style too often.

Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology by Leah Remini (5/5 Stars)
       This memoir however, I loved! I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of hers but also to anyone interested in learning a little bit more about Scientology. I was very intrigued with Leah's story and found myself not wanting to put the audiobook down. Having her read it was an added bonus for you can hear in her voice some of the annoyance she has/had with certain aspects of the church and her experience with it and the people in it. I even found myself in a black hole of Leah's Dancing with the Stars dances.

Binge by Tyler Oakley (4/5 Stars)
     I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. Not being a huge fan of Tyler's I was only slightly interested in his book. Having access to the audio is what eventually led to me picking it up. Another factor that led to me reading this now was that I did enjoy watching him on The Amazing Race. Most, if not all, of the stories in this book were new information to me and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved this book. Just like with Leah's book, I found myself in a Tyler Oakley black hole on YouTube and I loved every moment of it.

The other two books I've read but haven't reviewed are:

A Torch Against the Night  by Sabaa Tahir (4/5 Stars)
       This is the sequel to An Ember in the Ashes and I loved it just the same! I do think this book fell into a tiny bit of second book syndrome but for the most part I was fully emerged in the story and didn't want it to end.

Multiple Choice By Alejandro Zambra (4/5 Stars)
      The only thing I can say about this book is that it is extremely unique and told in the form of a standardized test (eek!! I know!!). I really loved this and read it within an hour car ride and that's all I can really say about it. It's hard to summarize but it had me laughing out loud and gave me the feels.


The last week or so I've been a bit slumpy with reading. I'm currently working on about three physical reads and two audio books. I'm just not feeling like them at the moment so who knows how that's going to pan out.

I do plan on finishing Water for Elephants by the 17th however, it's my local book store's book of the month for book club. I'm actually looking forward to reading this one so I hope it doesn't disappoint.

I'm also buddy reading More Happy than Not with Brittany over at BrittanysBookNook. So far I'm really enjoying it!!

Aside form those two specific books I have nothing planned. As I've mentioned before I'm a mood reader so I guess stick around and see what I pick up!!

I know the next few weekends I won't be physically reading too much because the St. Louis International Film Festival will be going on!! I haven't talked about movies too much but I really do enjoy them. I even considered changing my major to Film at one point in time. This weekend I'll be seeing three films with my friend Mike (Mike's Screen Thoughts) so I'm hoping to have at least one post wrapping up those three films.

As far as non-book/non-movie related things going on this month I really just plan on getting a start on Christmas shopping! I love gifting and Christmas is the perfect time to spoil those you love! I'm also participating in multiple Secret Santa exchanges and those are also so much fun!! So along with shopping and card writing I'll also be making homemade crochet presents as well!! (Follow me on Instagram to see updates in my Instagram story!!)

So that's all I have for now, hope you guys are having a fantastic day!!

Until next time,

Gina

Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland || BOOK REVIEW

Book: Our Chemical Hearts

Author: Krystal Sutherland

Release Date: October 2016

Published: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books

Genres: YA Contemporary 

Format: Hardback

Pages: 313

Goodreads Description

This. Book. Was. AMAZING! 

I breezed through this book in almost one sitting which isn't very common for me. I haven't read a physical book from start to finish since July and this was one I could not put down! 

From debut author, Krystal Sutherland, comes this amazingly realistic love story. Our Chemical Hearts is not your typical YA love story and I think that's one of the reasons I loved it so much! The characters, the plot, the geeky references; they all make this book so amazing. 

On goodreads, the first line of the description is as follows: "John Green meets Rainbow Rowell in this irresistible story of first love, broken hearts, and the golden seams that put them back together again." I was excited for this book because of this quote and it did not let me down. 

Our Chemical Hearts follows Henry Page and his senior year of high school. This year, more specifically the first few months, are filled with first love, being editor of the newpaper, and dealing with life that involves more than playing video games with his friends and grades. One day a new student walks into his drama class late, walking with a cane, and dressed completely like a boy. This student is Grace Page. When Grace and Henry are both chosen as editor of the school newspaper Henry starts falling for this mystery girl. 

We see the ups and downs of a new crush and the beginning stages of a relationship. We also see the anxiety of liking someone and not knowing if they like you back as well as the anxiety and worry about someone you care deeply for. We also get to see heartbreak. Unlike a lot of YA contemporary books this book takes you through a range of real emotions and makes you think. 

Having met Krystal and listening to her talk about this book made me enjoy it that much more! I loved the wide range of characters we got with this book. The overly Aussie Australian, the biracial lesbian best friend, the wacky and loving parents, the once beautiful now strange girl and our leading man, the intelligent boy who loves his friends and family. 

Henry's parents were my favorite in this book! They're so loving and understanding to their son and are also completely weird and embarrassing to him as well. 

Grace Town is very mysterious and suffering internally. I won't go into it much but I really appreciated her character and loved the complete arc that she had. 

Lola, La, is one of Henry's best friends and is completely awesome! She's there for Henry and Murray, Muz, but she also knows when she needs to step in and do something. Murray is the overly dramatic friend who lathers on the fact that he's originally from Australia. I love him and his relationship with Henry. I also love the fact that between these three friends they are all equally open with each others families as well. 

And then we have Henry Page. Oh Henry. How I adore you sweet Henry Page. Henry is very caring and very nerdy. I fell in love with him from the first moment we met him and I feel for him so much. 

There is so much more I could say about this book, but I'm going to leave it here to avoid spoilers. This book very quickly became one of my favorites and I am already looking forward to rereading it at some point in the future! It's emotional, it's heartbreaking, and it's everything I didn't know I wanted!! 

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher || Book Review

Book: Thirteen Reasons Why

Author: Jay Asher

Release Date: October 2007

Published: RazorBill - Penguin Books

Genres: YA Contembory 

Format: Audiobook

Narrator: Debra Wiseman and Joel Johnstone

Length: 6 hr. and 24 min

Pages: 336

Goodreads Description

This book has been on my radar since it first came out when I was in high school. Because of the subject matter I was always put off and unsure of how it would handle the subject. I finally picked this up for a couple of reasons; everyone loves it and Jay Asher is coming to town on tour of his new novel, of which I read the first chapter and adored. 

Thirteen Reasons Why tells the story of why Hannah Baker killed herself. Our main character, Clay Jensen, receives a box full of audio tapes and when he starts listening to them he discovers that they are tapes that had been recorded by his crush Hannah shortly before she died. 

This book is told from Clay's point of view but we get inside of Hannah's mind through being able to listen (or read) to her tapes. I would completely recommend this on audiobook because it is narrated by both a male voice and female voice, meaning the tapes are in a female voice making the connection to Hannah having made the tapes much stronger. 

Hannah is very clear in tape one that there are thirteen reasons, or people, that ultimately shaped her mind into wanting to kill herself and that she would address each of them in the tapes. She is also clear that each person is to send the tapes to the next person on the list and if they did not a second set of tapes would be released exposing the secrets of all those mentioned. 

The book takes us through an entire night of Clay listening to the tapes and following what Hannah wants the listeners to do while giving us insight to his feelings and insight to Hannah's mind. 

I completely loved this book! I can see why so many people love it and call it a favorite. It's emotional and makes you think. I appreciate the look into the mind of a person who is severely depressed and that it makes you think. This book does a really great job of showing you not to judge someone by the rumors you hear and to pay attention to the warning signs, you never know what someone could be going through. 

The only downside I had to this book was listening to it at work, it was hard not getting emotional and I had a few people ask me what was wrong. Other than that I really loved it and cannot wait to meet Jay Asher next week! 

Overall I would recommend this to anyone looking for a good emotional read, just know what the subject matter is going into it and be in the right head space. 

   

The Girl from the Sea by Shalini Boland || BOOK REVIEW

Book: The Girl from the Sea

Author: Shalini Boland

Release Date: June 9, 2016

Published: Adrenalin Books

Genres: Mystery Thriller

Format: Audiobook

Narrator: Gemma Dawson

Length: 7 hr and 17 min

Audio Published: Tantor Audio

Pages: 306

Goodreads Description

Overview:

Waking up on the beach not knowing who she is or what happened to her, our main character begins her journey of trying to figure out what use to be her life. 

Mia is a 25 year old woman who has amnesia throughout the majority of this story. It takes a few chapters to learn her name and start learning a few details about who she is. It's her boyfriend that claims her and brings her home feeding her details about who she is and where they are at in their life. 

Very quickly Mia feels unease with her boyfriend and wants to him to leave her alone. After she contacts her mother and sister she starts feeling like everyone is lying to her when things aren't adding up. 

Through wondering around town and finding a friend she can confide in Mia slowly starts having flashbacks and feelings of who she use to be. This story is a gripping thriller of figuring out who you once were and if that person is who you want to be now. 

Characters:

Our main character, Mia, is sweet and innocent essentially experiencing things for the first time. She reaches out to her family and some friends she thinks she can trust all the while wanting to be alone to try and remember who she once was. For the most part Mia is an enjoyable character and I really found my self rooting for her throughout the story.

Her boyfriend, Piers, is a truly unlikable character. From the moment we meet him I didn't trust him and thought he was hiding things from Mia. He came to the hospital claiming to be her boyfriend then keeps letting himself into her home with his set of keys and forcing her into social situations that she is not ready for. I found myself getting uncomfortable and tense anytime he was in the scene. 

We really don't get to see a whole lot of Mia's mom and sister, which is a disappoint because I did enjoy the few scenes we got with them. 

The only other main character worth mentioning is Jack. Jack is a friend of Mia's from the rowing house and really the only person she is comfortable with after her accident. He helps her keep calm when anxiety arises and takes her out rowing to give her some sense of normalcy.

What I liked:

So much! I really enjoyed this psychological thriller. It kept me guessing and I only was able to figure things out moments before they were revealed. I enjoyed Mia as a main character, she wasn't miserable as some psychological thriller characters can be. The author does a good job of giving the reader just enough info to let you in on the secret but also keeps you guessing just as our main character is figuring out who she is. 

What I disliked:

The one thing I had trouble with is believing our main character is 25. Maybe because the narrator sounds older but also because it felt like her life was too well formed for a 25 year old, almost like everything seems too convenient and falls right into place for her.  Sure, it can happen but I kept imagining her being in her late 20s/early 30s, not 25. The ending also was a bit lack luster for me, but still enjoyable and unpredictable.

Conclusion:

Overall I really enjoyed this book! It's been awhile since I've read a decent psychological thriller. I loved the mystery of this and how the author gave mystery in the form of the main character having amnesia. I didn't figure out the end until right before it gets revealed and with books like these I try to figure out the mystery as early as possible. The final chapter was a little lacking for me but it doesn't really take away from the overall story. In the end I would recommend this to anyone looking for a quick mystery/thriller read!  

Of Poseidon by Anna Banks || BOOK REVIEW

Book: Of Poseidon

Author: Anna Banks

Series: The Syrena Legacy #1

Release Date: 05/22/12 

Published: MacMillan

Genres: Mythology, YA

Format: Audiobook

Narrator: Rebecca Gibel

Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins 

Pages: 324 (according to Goodreads)

Goodreads Descripton

Book Overview:

Of Poseidon follows two main characters, Emma and Galen, and their interactions with one another. Galen is a Syrena (or mermaid, but that term is very offensive to the Syrena). Emma is believed to be human, but is she? 

The book opens with Emma and her best friend on vacation in Florida when Emma runs into Galen on the beach. This is their first meeting of what will become a budding romance. When trouble hits Emma and her friend while in the ocean, Galen rushes to try and save them when he witnesses Emma using powers she shouldn't posses. These powers prove to Galen that she could be the key to saving his kingdom. 

Told from first point of view (POV) of Emma and third POV of Galen we get to see how a Syrena learns and acts out of water with humans and also how a once thought to be human react to the knowledge she might be a Syrena of Poseidon. 

Overall Thoughts:

So I'm adding in this section because I have a LOT to say about this book and I don't know how much of it I can separate out into each section. I'm going to do my best to avoid spoilers, if I need to go into spoilery details I will post those in my goodreads review and hide them. 

Let me start off by saying this book had potential. I was very excited about a decent mermaid book going into this but I was so wrong! I've heard a lot of wonderful things about this series and it's story that I was very surprised at what I was reading. There was so much going on I had a hard time keeping track of various characters and plot points. I was so baffled by some of the things happening that I ended up giving a play by play to my coworkers, which helped keep things straight in my mind. 

While I really disliked the majority of this book, I couldn't stop listening to it! I was intrigued with the story and where it was heading even though it was making me angry and I found more humor in it than fantastic love story. 

The descriptions the author uses are cringe worthy and often hilarious. Here are some examples that I made sure to jot down:

Sculpted bulk of granite

Tingles (used so often)

Goosebumps farm 

Blob of water 

Goosebumps to my baby toes

Finding an island

Sweet white haired angelfish

These are just the ones I wrote out/remember off the top of my head. If I were to read it again I would keep track of how many times the words 'tingles' and 'blob' were used. The angelfish nickname would be cute if I didn't despise of Galen so much. The term 'Schizo' was also used and I didn't appreciate the way of which it was used, it wasn't needed. 

All of the relationships in this book are very toxic. The Syrena have their own ways of doing things, but they're portrayed so poorly that it makes it even more infuriating the things they say/do. Not only are the male Syrena toxic with their creepy, stalker, controlling aesthetic, but Emma's relationship with her mom is also toxic. The way her mom acts and treats all the situations is unparentlike and makes you question so much! Not to mention Galen is basically stalking Emma cross country and practically kidnapping her on multiple occasions and doesn't anything wrong in his actions. 

I know there is a culture difference between human and the Syrena but I wish it was even more exaggerated. Had Galen, and the other Syrena, been even more ignorant and had better character/culture development I think it could have been well done. 

There is also some definite insta love in this book! As well as, very early on, the dreaded he released a breath he didn't know he was holding. These two tropes were so obvious that it made me frustrated from very early on. 

I also had an issue with continuity throughout the entire book! There were many instances were one thing was said and within a chapter or two something completely different would be contradict the information.   

Now I'm dragging on this book quite a bit, but I do plan on reading the second and probably the third. As mentioned, I'm intrigued by what is going to happen, I'm just not a fan of the writing style. I also feel like there was very poor world and character building. There is so much potential with mermaid stories that I was expecting much more than I was giving. 

(Woo! No spoilers!)

Characters:

The characters are on a whole other spectrum. I can honestly say that I wasn't attached to any of these characters too much. Toraf redeemed himself slightly towards the end of the book but he's still creepy and stalkerish. Granted that is how the Syrena are, so it's clearly cultural but there are so many issues with thinking some of his actions are okay. 

The only character I rooted for was the human, Mark, who we only see a very little bit of throughout the entire book. 

The Syrena culture is one where the men obviously rule and the women just go along with whatever they have to say, at least that's how Galen acts. I really disliked Galen as a person. He's controlling, misogynistic, creepy, rude, stalkerish, and not a good person. Yes he seems to try a slight little bit, but his trying is really just controlling. His relationship with Emma is very toxic and what kills me is that she SEES that it is wrong but still "loves" him.....can we not? I want to give him the benefit of the doubt since it is his culture and he is royal, but the world and character development was so poorly done that his misogynistic ways make absolutely no sense. 

I guess I liked Rachel enough. Didn't really have much of a problem with her, in fact I want to know more about her. But the fact that she helps him essentially kidnap Emma on multiple occasions also makes her toxic. 

The other characters don't really stand out, other than most of them have names I can't remember and don't even want to begin trying to spell them. Galen's sister grew on me a little more as we got further into the book but other than that I didn't care too terribly much for any of the other Syrena. 

What I liked:

I really like the overall idea of this story. I want to know what happens next, even if the characters and writing drive me nuts. 

What I disliked:

I really disliked the world building and character development, it felt like everything was flat and very convenient. The other thing that really irked me was the descriptors and the way this book looks down on women. As I've mentioned there are some very strong sexist themes and very misogynistic attitudes.   

Conclusion:

In conclusion I didn't fully hate this book but I will never read it again. I do want to continue the series, and have already downloaded the last two books. Not sure if I will read the short stories that go along with it or not, but I am excited to see what happens to our cast of characters. I'm also hoping the writing and world building get stronger in the last two books. I was initially going to give this either a 1 or 1.5 star rating but there was just enough mystery and interest that I'm comfortable giving it a 2. 

The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving by Jonathan Evison || BOOK REVIEW

Book: The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving

Author: Jonathan Evison

Format: Audio Book

Goodreads Description

Overview

This book follows Benjamin Benjamin, a moddle aged man who ends up becoming the caregiver of Trevor, a 19 year old boy with MD.

The first half of this book shows the relationship that grows between Ben and Trev, the second half is a road trip that they go on.

Characters

The characters are very well done and have a great dynamic.

First we have Benjamin Benjamin, our leading man. Ben is a middle aged man going through a mid life crisis of sorts, albeit for good reason, who finds a job he ends up enjoying.

Then we have our other main character  Trevor. Trev is disabled but has a great personality. 

Peraonally, I don't have a great background knowledge of md but I felt like the character was written well.

The rest of the characters are primarily filler but they all have their own quirks and provides more depth to the story.

We meet some interesting characters throughout the road trip, but I'm not going to go into them to avoid spoilers. Overall these road trip characters make the second half of the book more interesting.

Things I liked

I really enjoyed the relationship of Ben and Trevor, it was more of a friend relationship than pure caregiver/client relationship. I enjoyed their banter and all of their daily tasks as well. 

Another aspect I enjoyed was the road trip itself. It was a fun ride and it made the book that much better. I'm not sure I would have loved the book as much if it didn't have this aspect. 

Things I disliked

I didn't like the way the flashbacks were handled. It was confusing each time we were back into the past since most of the time it was still in present day POV. I feel like that aspect may have been different and easier to pick up if I were physically reading it instead of listening to it. 

Conclusion

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I don't know if I would read it again but it was a fun and slightly emotional read. I watched the Netflix movie adaptation right after finishing the book and while it was enjoyable as well, I feel like you definitely get more out of it if you read the book first. 

  

Diversity Awareness Tag & #DiverseAThon TBR

**Each person listed is linked to either their tag video or their announcement video for the #DiverseAThon. Each book or author is linked to its goodreads page**

I was tagged by Alyssa over at Pucks and Paperbacks. Decided to do this tag on my blog since I've been sick the past week and a half I haven't been up for filming.

Original Tag by Green Eggs and Sam

1) Why does diversity matter to you?

Diversity matters because we are not all the same person. Everyone is different and diverse in some form or another. Diversity doesn't just have to be about race and religion but about disabilities, mental health, sexuality, and so much more. Diversity is what makes us all individuals with unique tastes and personalities. We need diversity in books because without it, we'd be stuck reading the same book over and over. 

2) Find a diverse author.

Sherman Alexie

I have not yet read anything by Alexie but I have two of his books and I've met him. He is an amazingly sweet person and I want to read his books! He primarily writes things that are taken from his own experiences as a Native American.

3) Find a diverse lead character (preferably not from above author).

Eilis Lacey from Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín. Eilis is an Irish woman who makes the journey to America to start her life post WWII. I love this book and the movie adaptation! Eilis is such a wonderful character and getting to see how she adapts to life in America was very eye opening and wonderfully done. 

4) Find a book with a cast full of diverse characters.

Welcome to Night Vale by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor. This book is filled with diverse characters! As is the podcast! It's cooky and weird and diversity is what they build on. 

5) Find a book where a diverse character is not a stereotype.

For this one I'm using the same book Alyssa used, I've started this book but haven't finished it. The Haters by Jesse Andrews. The main set of characters in this book are at Band Camp but they aren't your stereotypical band geeks (trust me, I know).  

6) Find a character with whom you can identify.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I definitely identify with Cath because she is an introverted book lover. Her anxiety with school was very relatable and she's a book lover, I connected with her from the very beginning.   

7) Find a relationship with different diversities.

Eleanor and Park  also by Rainbow Rowell. I love this book for many reasons! The biggest is that it is not just a love story, it also deals with some pretty intense issues. But for this question the two are of different diversities, Eleanor is an overweight Caucasian girl from a broken and abusive home and Park is an Asian boy who is short, skinny and quiet.  

8) Find a book with a disabled (mental or physical) character.

Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick. This book is filled with characters all of which are at different points in their lives with a good handful of them having various degrees of mental health disorders. 

9) Find a book with an LGBTQiA+ character (bonus if the character gets into a relationship).

I have to go with Simon Vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli. I just recently read this and loved every moment of it! Our main character Simon is not openly gay but is falling for his pen pall when he gets blackmailed by his classmate who saw his emails. 

10) Reflection. How hard was it to find books?

Most of these were easy and I could think of them on the spot, the only one I had trouble with was the stereotype question. Mostly because I don't tend to think about stereotypes while I'm reading. 

That is all for the tag portion of this post! I'm not tagging anyone specific but I want to tag anyone and everyone reading this!! It's a great tag that gets you thinking about different characters and books and also gives an opportunity to get different book recommendations.  

Info and TBR for the DiverseAThon

The Diverseathon is a readathon from Monday September 12 through Monday September 19th. It is being hosted by Whitney, Monica, Christina Marie, and Joce. There is a group book and that book is Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi. 

I'd love to read the group book but there are people ahead of me on Overdrive, so hopefully I'll be able to read it at some point in the future. 

The book I plan on reading is The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving by Jonathan Evison. In this book the main character becomes the caregiver of a young man with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. I saw this on the recommended reads on Overdrive and thought it sounded really good and different, so I downloaded it. I'm reading this for the readathon because I haven't read many books dealing with physical disabilities so I'm looking forward to this one.

I'm not sure if I'll get to anything else specifically for the readathon, but there are other diverse reads I plan on reading before the year is out. For example, the two books by Sherman Alexie that I own as well as rereading One Night at the Call Center. I'm also going to be buddy reading More Happy than Not in November.

I know the book I chose may not be the most diverse but it's what I have available to me during a super busy week where I already had books planned out. Chances are I'll find something else to listen to towards the end of the week but I'm not sure what that will be just yet. When I figure it out I'll be sharing it on Twitter. 

Thanks for reading and I'll see you all in the next post!

Gina 

Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple || BOOK REVIEW

Book: Where'd You Go, Bernadette

Author: Maria Semple

Format: Audio book

Narrator: Kathleen Wilhoite

Goodreads Description

Overview:

Where'd You Go, Bernadette tells the intriguing story of Bernadette Fox. The book is told mostly through a letter format using emails, messages, and hand written notes. When there isn't a letter to go through we get information through Bernadette's daughter, Bee. The book is told through her perspective as if she is the author of the book using the information and documentation she has to piece together the events of the book. 

This book takes place over a few months but gives us detailed information about the past to build up the story. Bernadette and her husband move to Seattle after he gets a job with Microsoft, leaving behind the architect scene of LA that Bernadette was deeply involved with. She gives up being an architect to be a stay home mom to Bee. Bee is an 8th grader getting ready to graduate and wants to go on a trip to Antarctica as her prize for getting great grades all throughout middle school. 

The only problem with a family trip to Antarctica is that Bernadette seems to have something holding her back mentally from fully committing to the idea. She secretly hires an online assistant from India to do all her shopping and make appointments for less than a dollar an hour. While her husband works and gets close to his admin, who happens to be a mom from Bee's school that Bernadette does not like, Bernadette makes plans and sets things in motion for the family trip. 

Characters:

The characterization in this book is phenomenal! We see multiple people through emails, newsletters, and hand written notes so it's a decent cast of characters with varying points of view. There are characters you fall in love with and then there are characters you hate. 

I love Bernadette and her cooky way of thinking and solving problems. There were multiple times I laughed out loud at something she did or said and I definitely felt all the feels as you get more details about Bernadette. 

I had a little bit of a problem with Bee. I kept forgetting she was supposed to be 14 going on 15 and not 10, however, this may have something to do with how she was voiced in the audio book. Other than that I enjoyed her character. She is a strong young woman who loves her mom and would do anything to stand by her side. 

The rest of the characters were true to themselves and all had unique characteristics that made them each come alive. While some of them, like the moms from Bee's school, are annoying and miserable people, they are well written. 

Plot:

The main plot point of this book is that Bernadette goes missing and her daughter and husband set out to discover what happened. I love the title and story line that she's gone missing because it really seems to have more than one meaning. 

She does eventually go physically missing but she also seems to be mentally missing as well. We see into her past, into the Bernadette she use to be and I feel like the question "Where'd you go, Bernadette?" is even more present about who she use to be compared to who she throughout this story. 

What I liked:

I really enjoyed the writing of this book. The letter format worked well and really gave this story the depth that it needed. I also loved the fact that we did get a little bit of psychology in it. While Bernadette never gets diagnosed we still see her have anxiety and find out why she has that anxiety. 

As I mentioned above I loved the characterization, even with the miserable characters. 

I really liked the visualization that this book gives you. I'd love to see the 20 mile house!! It just sounds so amazing. Semple does a great job of describing the scenery and letting her readers picture exactly what it is she envisioned. 

What I disliked:

This book isn't perfect and there are flaws but most of what I disliked were certain miserable characters and choices Bernadette's husband makes. I also would have liked a little more clarity with the psychology and not just a brief mention of various disorders. Other than that I would have to nit pick thing I didn't like.

Conclusion:

Overall I really enjoyed this book. It's a fun, quick read but it's also different and keeps you guessing. Is this my favorite book? No. Will I reread it? Probably not. I have no intention of having this book in my collection but I'm very glad that I read it and would recommend it! 

Fun Tidbits:

The narrator of this book, Kathleen Wilhoite, plays Luke's sister, Liz Danes on Gilmore Girls! Her voice is very noticeable and she did an amazing job with all the various characters! There is also a point where she sings O Holy Night and it is beautiful! I would buy a Christmas album if she had one!! 

Mermaids in Paradise by Lydia Millet || BOOK REVIEW

Book: Mermaids in Paradise

Author: Lydia Millet

Format: Audio book via Overdrive app 

Goodreads Description

This book. This book was something alright. 

Just by looking at the title, cover, and description of this book you would think it was a fun summer contemporary about mermaids. That is not entirely the case. As my coworker, who recommended this to me, and I discussed this book is part romance part mermaids and part murder mystery. 

Part one of the book is all about our main character, Deb, and the moments leading up to her wedding day. This part is mermaid free and could have been shorter. Our narrator goes on random tangents that I could have done without, but she is consistent and goes on tangents throughout the story. Part two is the Honeymoon. In this part we see our newlyweds on their honeymoon adventure where they end up going diving with their island friends and come across some mermaids. This is where the book starts getting a little weird, but still enjoyable. As I mentioned part of this story is murder mystery and mystery it is. This aspect of the book was well done and had me intrigued but I feel it could have been executed better. 

I enjoyed this book but it wasn't amazing. It was a fun read and I was definitely interested in finding out what was going to happen next but there were some flaws. The biggest flaw I had was the ending of the book. I'm not going to spoil anything but basically the ending had me open mouthed staring at my phone in disbelief. I wish we could have seen more of the story arc that the ending mentions but sadly we only get the last few paragraphs. I think this book could have been fantastic had some certain plot points been explored more and maybe had the book gone in a different direction from the very beginning. 

That being said I did enjoy this. It was quick, light, funny, and interesting. I probably will never reread it but I would recommend it to someone looking for something a bit different. 

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch || BOOK REVIEW

Goodreads Description  

I've been wanting to read this book since I saw it at Book Con back in May. I ended up listening to it on audio book and loved every moment! The audio book was narrated by Jon Lindstrom who did a great job of capturing the creepy feel of this book. 

I started this book pretty much blind since I had forgotten the description I read back in May and this is one I'm not sure I would recommend going in blind with. I dd end up reading the description after about half an hour of listening to the book. 

I love that Crouch dives right into the action! There isn't a whole lot of background information in the beginning of the book and that lets the reader get hooked fairly quickly. I loved that we were seeing everything as our main character, Jason, was seeing it. Crouch does such a good job of giving just enough details to make you think you know what is going to happen but then throws in a curve ball to make you question everything. 

There were multiple occasions where I was left staring at my phone in disbelief of what was happening in the story. Sometimes I couldn't believe I missed something that seemed obvious others I was shocked that the story went in a completely different direction. 

The character development was amazing! Every character was well thought even the side characters were memorable and unique to who they are. Even the relationships between Jason and all the side characters were well done and made you feel for these characters. 

Dark Matter is more than a Science Fiction Thriller; it has heart, mystery, science elements, creepy elements, and so much more. It is easily one of my favorites of the year so far!!

Positivity and Being Addicted to Technology

Hello!!

This weekend I did something I haven't done much since graduating from college: left my phone in another room.

It's amazing how less stress I've felt this weekend and how much I could have potentially gotten done. I say potentially because I spent the weekend watching movies! I haven't watched so many movies in one weekend in so long, it was wonderful!!

I know without a doubt that I am completely addicted to my phone. First thing I do when I wake up is check social media and timehop. On breaks and lunch at work I and almost everyone else have our noses in our phones. When I get home aside from making dinner and getting ready for the next day I'm pretty much stuck checking Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. Sometimes I play games other times I may actually be in a conversation with someone. Most of the time however, I don't need to be checking everything.

I've found I get distracted by checking everything so often I don't find time to read or do any of the other things I'd rather be doing with my time such as crafting, crocheting, editing videos, playing video games, or planning for future videos.

My last year of college I took this Positive Psychology course and we each had to come up with a big semester positivity project. One aspect of my project I decided to spend less time on technology on Sundays. By this I kept my phone in my room and only got on my computer/tablet if I had homework to work on. This helped me get my homework done/started prior to Sunday and left me with the whole day of doing other things. There were some expectations for instance if I had plans on Sunday I took my phone with me.

We had other projects to do in the class and all of which were very simple and helped tremendously in lowering stress and living an overall more positive lifestyle.

I've been wanting to incorporate some of these tricks into my everyday life and by making this post I'm hopefully going to stick with them! I like to think I'm generally a pretty positive person but there are times when my fuse is short and my impatience gets the best of me.

As I sit here watching Brooklyn I knew I wanted to make this post. This movie makes me happy and is easily on of my favorites! The book is also one of my favorites! By cutting out time on my phone I'm hoping to give more time to this blog and my BookTube channel. Having more time to work on things I love and not focusing on the media and checking things that don't need to be checked at every moment of the day I'm hoping to get back to those positive aspects I learned in class.

I leave you with a quote.

“Happiness comes from living as you need to, as you want to. As your inner voice tells you to. Happiness comes from being who you actually are instead of who you think you are supposed to be.”
― Shonda Rhimes from her book Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person

Hope you're all having a great day and I'll see ya in the next post!!

Gina

Hello and Welcome!!

Hello! My name is Gina and welcome to my new blog!!

This blog is an extension of my BookTube channel, Randomly Bookish Gina!

I'm hoping to post more reviews on here than video reviews on my channel. It will be easier for me to find time to open up my laptop when I'm done with a book or right after I see a movie or play than it will be to find time to set up my camera and lights and record. I typically record videos in bulk a few times a month and I've found that waiting to film sometimes I forget key points I would like to bring up in my review.

I do review on Goodreads but I'm planning on having more in depth reviews here.

I'm looking forward to building this blog and having a new way of interacting with everyone!!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hope you're having a fantastic day, and I'll see you in the next post!!

Gina