BEFORE READING

Oh, hello! This post contains spoilers about one of my favorite mystery books, Pretty Little Liars, by Sara Shepard.  I read this book about a month and a half ago with my kindle and loved it!  It is supposedly YA, but I feel it is more for teen since it’s about girls in high school sorting out relationships and how they feel with everything going on in their lives. I love how this book transforms into a mix of drama and mystery and yet again, makes you wonder if you locked the front door of your house. Enjoy the review!

SUMMARY

“Three years ago, Alison disappeared after a slumber party, not to be seen since. Her friends at the elite Pennsylvania school mourned her, but they also breathed secret sighs of relief. Each of them guarded a secret that only Alison had known. Now they have other dirty little secrets, secrets that could sink them in their gossip-hungry world. When each of them begins receiving anonymous emails and text messages, panic sets in. Are they being betrayed by someone in their circle? Worse yet: Is Alison back? A strong launch for a suspenseful series.” – Goodreads.

BOOK REVIEW

At first, I was reluctant of reading this book—mainly because it’s mystery, and I’m accustomed to reading Fantasy/Fiction.  But, I’m really glad I decided to, because I feel like I’m absolutely obsessed.

The chapters just make you feel so absorbed into the story, because it’s so intense and beautifully written at the same time.

The story starts with an introduction—it was the last day of 7th grade, the first day of summer, and Alison DiLaurentis was having a sleepover with her best friends, Hanna, Spencer, Aria, and Emily. However, a tragedy happens.

Ali disappears that night, when she tries to “hypnotize” her best friends. One of them, Spencer Hastings, tries to stop her from closing all the curtains, because Ali wanted it to be dark.

Spencer argued with Ali, and Alison left that night—silence came into the room, and their best friend disappeared.

Alison’s disappearance played a huge part on the girls. Each of them matured and were in High School.  Hanna, who was really chubby back in 7th grade, is now a copy of Regina George. Spencer is still an overachiever, her classes being all AP ones. Aria moved to Iceland and became more confident.  Emily is still a swimmer and now has a boyfriend.

However, someone knows that these girls are hiding—and this someone is called “-A”. -A knows every single secret the four former friends are hiding and isn’t afraid to spill them all.

The liars start receiving emails, messages, and notes coming from their stalker, and the four are afraid that -A is Alison, which disappeared as mentioned.

The notes keep coming, the IMs, the threats—and the girls are certain that Ali is their stalker, since she was the only one that knew the secrets they are hiding.

At the end, we find out that Ali was buried alive back in 7th grade and that -A still is active, and knows all their secrets…
Now, let’s continue!

I felt like I couldn’t stop reading this book! It was just filled with twists and turns (especially plot twists, there were many things I didn’t expect), making the reader want to continue reading and wanting to know what happens next.

The Pretty Little Liars (PLL) book series is mainly for teenagers. I was reading a few reviews on Goodreads, and the vast majority of them were adults, and the rest were teens.

Come on, this book says, “Grades 9 and up”, so it’s obvious it’s for teens! Why do Adults read and don’t like this book? Je ne sais pas (I don’t know).

I give this book an 8/10, because;

(a) It’s incredibly well-written and every mystery reader will like this.
(b) It makes you wonder who in Merlin’s Beard is -A.
(c) It has SO MANY plot twists you want to know what happens next.
(d) Come on!! Just read the book already!!
(e) Even if I feel like this book is good, its plot could be more refined?? I don’t know??
(f)  I’m just a book blogger that has her own opinions, okay?
(g) And yes, the book is great. A masterpiece, and it’s kind of a thriller!

I have heard so much about the series, so when I downloaded this book I, like any fellow bookworm, said, “I guess I’ll read the entire book series in two or three months and then start binge-watching the series even though it ended in 2017.”

Yup. Typical bookworm law. “Never watch the movie or TV series before finishing reading the book series or stand-alone book.”

Anyway, In totally recommend this book. It’s just… a dark, beautiful, soul-stealing masterpiece!

And if you’ve seen the TV series, it’s different from the series. Just… too weird.

Before you ask… yes. I broke the Bookworm Law. I watched a clip of the last season of PLL. And yes, I’m ashamed of what I did.

To summarize everything, I’ve just wrote:

This book is great, a thriller, and a good mystery book. It’s perfect for people who just try to read fantasy but then stumble into mystery, or just for people that are accustomed to reading fantasy but want to read a thriller or mystery book.

Phew.

That was a lot.

I forgot something too:

-A IS NOT ALISON DILAURENITS! (spoiler)

Congratulations Pretty Little Liars; you passed the Pink Smoothie-Confirmed Book Process. This means you are Pink Smoothie-Approved! You won a Pink Smoothie Sticker.

©2018
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Pink Smoothie

BEFORE READING

Oh, hello! This post contains spoilers about one of my newest all-time favorites, The Glass Town Game by Catherynne M. Valente.  I bought this book a month ago and was immediately surprised to see that the quantity of the pages the book possesses.  It is supposedly Tween/Teen, but it seemed more Teen than Tween because the metaphors and references plus the description were really intense and children will not, under any circumstances, understand it.  Unless you’re a child that loves to read 500+ page books that contains imaginary worlds and wars, then this book is for you.

SUMMARY

“Charlotte and Emily must enter a fantasy world that they invented in order to rescue their siblings in this adventurous and fiercely intelligent novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making.

Inside a small Yorkshire parsonage, Charlotte, Branwell, Emily, and Anne Brontë have invented a game called Glass Town, where their toy soldiers fight Napoleon, and no one dies. This make-believe land helps the four escape from a harsh reality: Charlotte and Emily are being sent away to a dangerous boarding school, a school they might not return from. But on this Beastliest Day, the day Anne and Branwell walk their sisters to the train station, something incredible happens: the train whisks them all away to a real Glass Town, and the children trade the moors for a wonderland all their own.

This is their Glass Town, exactly like they envisioned it…almost. They certainly never gave Napoleon a fire-breathing porcelain rooster instead of a horse. And their soldiers can die; wars are fought over the potion that raises the dead, a potion Anne would very much like to bring back to England. But when Anne and Branwell are kidnapped, Charlotte and Emily must find a way to save their siblings. Can two English girls stand against Napoleon’s armies, especially now that he has a new weapon from the real world? And if he escapes Glass Town, will England ever be safe again?

Together the Brontë siblings must battle with a world of their own creation if they are to make it back to England alive in this magical celebration of authorship, creativity, and classic literature from award-winning author Catherynne M. Valente.” – Goodreads.

REVIEW

I love how Valente creates magical worlds and draws people in, and for being a first-time reader of her work, this book was absolutely fantastic.

This novel tells the story of four siblings, Charlotte, Emily, Anne, and Branwell Brontë, the authors, poets, and painter whom are well-known in the British literature. 

But instead of being in their early teen years, we see them as their child forms.  They recently lost their two older sisters, Maria and Lizzie, to a horrible illness. 

The only escape they had was playing a game where they created a whimsical place, called Glass Town.  There’s a war going on—with Napoleon Bonaparte and the Duke of Wellington.

But that war already ended back on England and in the normal world. 

The Brontë siblings used their wild imagination to create a wonderful world full of magical people—Duchesses and Ladies with rather unimaginable names. For example, take Lady Zenobia Elrington of Verdopolis, betrothed to one of the wooden soldiers the siblings received for Christmas.

They imagined things that nobody would ever create, imagine, or believe in.  The youngest sister, Anne, created a story—where she and her little doll made of rags who was part of the English Royal Family, were best friends.

However, Anne didn’t share her story with any of her siblings.  She wanted her little Princess Victoria story just for herself—because she didn’t want Branwell to kill Victoria or spoil her game by doing stupid things.

One day, the Brontë siblings get the bad news that Charlotte and Emily have to go to a boarding school—the same school their own sisters died a while ago.

Charlotte and Emily are highly terrified of that school.  Why couldn’t they be homeschooled like Branwell?  Did they do something wrong to cause such a dreadful thing?

On their way to the train station, where the two girls had to take the train and go to that school, the train station transforms into somewhere unbelievable.

There’s suddenly a magical train that whisks them away to their own creation, Glass Town, that contains an entire army full of wooden soldiers.  Their wooden soldiers—the ones they received for Christmas.

There was a battle where they found out Napoleon had strange arms and fire-breathing porcelain rooster.

And then, something fantastic happens.

One of their wooden soldiers died dramatically, but then came back to life by a potion called Grog.

All the fallen wooden soldiers (plus Branwell) come back to life, much to the girls’ relief.

Then, the story develops more and more—the four siblings are separated by a Magazine Man called Brunty, Charlotte and Emily have to go to a ball, Emily has a crush on a young Lord Byron, and Charlotte dances with the young version of the Duke of Wellington.

Now, since I don’t want to spoil the entire book, I’m going to move towards my opinion of it…

This book, as I mentioned before, is totally magnificent.  Younger readers will absolutely not understand that the Brontë siblings were the creators of the greatest works of art the classic English literature holds.

On the ball scene, we can clearly see that Valente uses Currer and Ellis Bell (Charlotte and Emily) as their fake names while passing as aristocracy.  Those are the small references she tries to imply into the book, and older readers can feel highly delighted because of that.

The only flaw I found inside this book, was Branwell Brontë’s portrayal.  I found him selfish and annoying—as he always wanted to be the older sibling and be more “manly”.

I mean, at the end of the book, he betrayed his sisters while they were going to rescue him and Anne, who were currently imprisoned on a cell.

He bloody betrayed them.

Sheesh, I wanted to throw the book across the floor, and ruin it, but I, like many other bookworms, do not want our sacred copies to be ruined by anger and hatred towards only one character.

But other than Branwell, I, like many other readers, felt delighted towards Charlotte, Anne, and Emily.  They were one of the most beautifully written characters I have read in my entire life as a bookworm.

Therefore, my friends, I feel like I’m going to give this book 9.5 stars.
It would be 10 stars, but I just didn’t like Branwell that much.

​Actually, I felt annoyed when I had to read the chapters he was in, when Brunty kidnapped Anne and himself.

But anyways…

This book is magnificently well-written and came to me as a delightful read.  It was surprising, because this was my first time reading Catherynne M. Valente books, and I felt like I was falling in love with each and every one of the characters (even Brunty—not Branwell, though).

Congratulations The Glass Town Game; you passed the Pink Smoothie-Confirmed Book Process. This means you are Pink Smoothie-Approved! You won a Pink Smoothie Sticker.

©2018
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Pink Smoothie  

BEFORE READING

Oh, hi! I didn’t see you there *waves*. Today, we’re going talk about one of my favorite books of all time – A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle This post contains SPOILERS! So, if you haven’t seen the movie or have read the book yet, I recommend that you don’t read this. But, if you LOVE to know things ahead of time (just like me), you can read this!
 
SUMMARY
 
“It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother, Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger.
 
“Wild nights are my glory,” the unearthly stranger told them. “I just got caught in a downdraft and blown off course. Let me sit down for a moment, and then I'll be on my way. Speaking of ways, by the way, there is such a thing as a tesseract.”

Meg's father had been experimenting with this fifth dimension of time travel when he mysteriously disappeared. Now the time has come for Meg, her friend Calvin, and Charles Wallace to rescue him. But can they outwit the forces of evil they will encounter on their heart-stopping journey through space?” – Goodreads.
 
BOOK REVIEW
 
Well, it’s a great book. You just feel comforted by the words, and I really like the old-fashioned way the characters speak. I also enjoy how Mrs. Who talks – with quotes. Her explanation is that she is “way too old” and that’s why Mrs. Whatsit is there. Since she’s young, she can easily talk like humans.
 
But apart from that, I really, really like Meg’s relationship with her brother, Charles Wallace. He is more like a big brother than a little brother – and takes care of Meg. He makes her sandwiches, for example. Hmm, I wonder that if Charles would still be alive (there’s a possibility), could he make me a Pink Smoothie, and also a cheese, tomato, turkey, and lettuce sandwich? I would really like that, thanks!
 
I really liked Meg’s character development throughout the whole story. To me, she grew up, and matured a lot. At first, she was a scaredy-cat and was curious about her father’s disappearance. But then, she grew up. She finally understood what love really was, and when she found her father, she felt immensely happy, and they hugged and hugged.
 
And as any other person, I didn’t like the villain. Well, instead of being a person, the villain, is a brain. A damaged, disembodied, oversized brain, who, according to Meg was a terrifying sight. And it had a name, it was called IT. I didn’t like this character because it controlled the aspect of everyone’s lives in Camazotz, made them do things without them even noticing what they were doing.  He also made Meg’s father stay in Camazotz for a year, imprisoning him in a dark cell without him noticing it. Overall, IT is horrible. I mean, how could a brain change people’s lives? Control them? Make them do things that they didn’t like?
 
Overall, I’m rating this book a 9/10. I enjoyed it, and I don’t understand why people say it’s a bit old-fashioned, and when you’re adult you find it boring. I found A Wrinkle in Time quite entertaining, and I enjoy Madeleine L’Engle and her way of writing. Now I understand why so many kids my age enjoy A Wrinkle in Time – it’s just marvelous, you feel transported to another world, where imagination and the impossible happen.
 
FAVORITE QUOTES

“Life, with its rules, its obligations, and its freedoms, is like a sonnet: You’re given the form, but you have to write the sonnet yourself.”

“We can’t take any credit for our talents. It’s how we use them that counts.”

“Like and equal are not the same thing at all.”

“Experiment is the mother of knowledge.”

“To love is to be vulnerable; and it is only in vulnerability and risk—not safety and security—that we overcome darkness.”
 
I hope that you enjoy this book as much as I did! So, don’t be like IT, and want to ruin the fun! Join and follow me through this amazing journey!
​
Congratulations A Wrinkle in Time; you passed the Pink Smoothie-Confirmed Book Process. This means you are Pink Smoothie-Approved! You won a Pink Smoothie sticker.

©2018
Pink Smoothie!

BEFORE READING

Hello, everyone! Today, y’all are blessed by new book review post about Pippa Morgan’s Diary: Love and Chicken Nuggets. So, for those that love the UK, and admire Queen Elizabeth II greatly, this book is part of the series that was written by Annie Kelsey. Pippa has two parents whom are divorced, and let’s say that she spends the weekends with her father and the weeks with her mother.

SUMMARY

“Meet Pippa Morgan, a small girl with a BIG imagination, and read her hilarious diary, packed with doodle illustrations. It's nearly Valentine's Day and Pippa's class have been given a project about 'lurve' - blargh! Then Pippa decides to start another project - Project Find Mum Love. Will she be able to find Mum a husband by 14th February?” – Goodreads.

BOOK REVIEW

When I first read this book (some years ago), I thought that ‘mum’ was the wrong way of saying ‘mom’. But of course, back then, I didn’t understand that the way Americans spoke. Mum is the way British people say mom, as well as ‘colour’ and ‘favourite’.

But enough rambling, let’s get judging!

My favorite chapter was Monday, February 10th. Pippa is very funny – and, her way of speaking captured my attention.

Pippa tries to get her mom to date her teacher, Mr. Bacon. I know. Weird Name. The reason why Pippa is trying that hard is because her mom and dad are divorced (as I said before), and she doesn’t want her Mom to spend Valentine’s Day alone, since her father is already dating.

The story continues – and crazy things happen! Pippa just got told that her best friend, Catie, didn’t taste a nugget! In her ENTIRE LIFE.

I mean, all of us remember that moment when our parents took us to McDonald’s to eat chicken nuggets and fries with ketchup. Or maybe your parents didn’t, if they’re vegan (no offence to those vegan readers out there). 

And then she brings Catie chicken nuggets, and that’s how the rest of the story unfolds.

Pippa tries to make her mom look presentable enough for Mr. Bacon.

​But, the day Pippa tried to gain detention (long story), and she didn’t, her mom came to school pretty. But the day Pippa actually got the detention – her mother came with horrible clothes and wasn’t wearing any makeup, at all.

So, after that catastrophe, Pippa decided to give up and stopped trying to make Mr. Bacon and her mom get together and decided to pay attention to class and do her chores at home.

Therefore, I give this book 7/10. I think it’s a good book if you’re a girl that’s beginning to read. But, if you’re a more developed reader that has read a lot of other books, then you’ll consider that this book is good for passing the time.​

Congratulations Pippa Morgan’s Diary: Love and Chicken Nuggets; you passed the Pink Smoothie-Confirmed Book Process. This means you are Pink Smoothie-Approved! You won a Pink Smoothie sticker.

©2018
Pink Smoothie!