Nayu's News #83 Cute chibi of the day #2

"Yay!"

Since I'm hopefully feeling better today after Friday, I thought you could do with a cute and upbeat chibi picture! Got the cute panda, mixed with hearts, wings, and slightly gothic theme. Taken from an online search for chibis, no less.

Nayu's News #82 Cute chibi of the day #1

Thought I'd leave you with a cute post while I'm not here this weekend. I got this from an extremely fun internet search - I'm pretty glad my cat doesn't have wings - she'd eat my tuna sandwich off the table!

Crash by Nicole Williams (New Adult, both 4/10 and 8/10)

Don't get fooled by the ballet shoe!

6th June 2013, Simon and Schuster, 378 pages, Paperback, Review copy,

Themes: high school life, few mentions of ballet, being a rebel, ignoring good advice, trusting the wrong people, jumping to conclusions, being unsure of yourself, depression, taking risks, playing it safe, not so fun parties, parents putting their foot down but you ignore them, being the centre of gossip, cyber bullying, wanting life to be simple, different forms of grief, saving animals, compassion

Content: frequent moderate to strong adult situations, drinking, bad language, frequent inneuendo, teen motherhood,

Summary from Simon and Schuster

Southpointe High is the last place Lucy wanted to wind up her senior year of school. Right up until she stumbles into Jude Ryder, a guy whose name has become its own verb, and synonymous with trouble. He's got a rap sheet that runs longer than a senior thesis, has had his name sighed, shouted, and cursed by more women than Lucy dares to ask, and lives at the local boys home where disturbed seems to be the status quo for the residents. Lucy had a stable at best, quirky at worst, upbringing. She lives for wearing the satin down on her ballet shoes, has her sights set on Juilliard, and has been careful to keep trouble out of her life. Up until now…

Jude's everything she knows she needs to stay away from if she wants to separate her past from her future. But she's about to find out that staying away is the only thing she's incapable of.

Southpointe High is the last place Lucy wanted to wind up her senior year of school. Right up until she stumbles into Jude Ryder, a guy whose name has become its own verb, and synonymous with trouble. He's got a rap sheet that runs longer than a senior thesis, has had his name sighed, shouted, and cursed by more women than Lucy dares to ask, and lives at the local boys home where disturbed seems to be the status quo for the residents. Lucy had a stable at best, quirky at worst, upbringing. She lives for wearing the satin down on her ballet shoes, has her sights set on Juilliard, and has been careful to keep trouble out of her life. Up until now…
Jude's everything she knows she needs to stay away from if she wants to separate her past from her future. But she's about to find out that staying away is the only thing she's incapable of. - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.co.uk/Crash/Nicole-Williams/9781471117619#sthash.pvmmn7Jt.dpuf

Nayuleska's thoughts 

The reason there are two grades for this book is that I felt a bit betrayed by the front cover and the blurb. I thought Lucy was a dedicated dancer. It takes 200 pages or so before she really lets her love for dancing show -until then the reader is told about it, not shown through Lucy's passion. I'm not really sure why a ballet shoe was used for the cover - when a major dancing event happened it felt like it wasn't as big of a deal as it should have been, and ballet was a fraction of the book.

The reason I give it 8/10 for a second grade is that it was funny. The teen angst and melodrama which makes me laugh in Stephanie Meyer's Twilight (I love both the books and films - they are my light read) is whacked up on high. A book that makes me laugh is always good. I may not like Lucy much, but I could understand her bizarre reasonings for certain actions, and there were clever plot twists which shows a strong skill of writing. A very mixed bag - if ballet hadn't been suggested as Lucy's passion, thus creating certain expectations in my mind, then I'd have given just 1 grade somewhere in the middle of 4 and 8. 

You can find out more on Nicole's website. 

Suggested read

For another New Adult read check out Grounding Quinn by Steph Campbell 

Nayu's News #81 That's how it goes

Pretty!

Well, the busy week which I blogged about on the weekend is coming to a close. I have the go ahead for my ketamine tomorrow - whoohoo! 

I might end up snoozing for a bit of the day....

 I probably am weird for being so excited about spending an entire weekend in bed feeling bleh, but after the leg cramp made my usual high pain worse, I'm looking forward to some more relief. 

I'll feel so awesome afterwards!

Muse is eager to have some fun with me - the feeling's mutual! 

Me & Muse working together

For those of you wondering where my children's reviews are - since all I'm doing is Young Adult - don't panic! 

Huh?

 I'm catching up on Young Adult before Ramadan starts (I'll post more about it next week), which includes my reviews (barring the 1-2 blog tours I'm already doing in July). As soon as all my Young Adult reviews are up, then it's lots of children's books. Believe me when I say I have some totally adorable reads whose mere covers (not that there's anything mere about these cute pictures!) will make you want to melt & go 'Awww!'

Like this one!

Or this adorable kitten one!

Now, all books reviewed this weekend will have extremely short reviews with only the basic details, a summary, and 1 or 2 lines of what I think. 

"I'm watching you..."

"Drat!"

This is because a dear friend is 'eye-ing me' about the fact that I'm noting down my reviews when knowingly ill - in my defence my memory is so dire if I don't write something when I finish a book it takes longer to write something later. So uber short it will be. 

Scene from the anime Yumeiro Patissiere

Tonight I'm going to settle to watching TV & anime, since both will vanish over the weekend as I can't handle watching stuff after ketamine treatment. Yes, this is me saying I will not be watching anime because I can't. It's like when I'm ill and all I can do is read. Which is no bad thing! 

This will be me this weekend

Time for me to go - my cat is in a sulk in her bed (because there were fireworks on the TV and she didn't like them), so I probably won't see her for most of the night. Hope you all have a good one, enjoy the one review I've scheduled for tomorrow and I'll be around on Tuesday.

"Bye!"

Rules of Summer by Joanna Philbin (Young Adult, 9/10E)

May 2013, Atom, 352 pages, Paperback, Review copy,

Themes: summer job, being a live-in member of staff, typical evil housekeeper, rich family who aren't all they seem, a lonely daughter, acting up to cover your true feelings, avoiding acting on impulse and acting impulsive, stepping into an alien culture, superficial friendships and happiness, doing what others want/expect of you, heartache, heartbreak, having regrets, being dishonest, family secrets, living what should be an ideal life, happy ending, true friends

Content: teen romance (occasionally strong),, alcoholism, adultery (inference), tissue needed

Summary from Little, Brown

There are two sides to every summer. Rory McShane's signed on to be a summer errand girl for a wealthy family with an enormous beachfront mansion. She hopes she'll be able to sneak in some sunbathing too. Enter Isabel Rule, who's not only up for sunbathing but set on having a breathless summer romance that her family would never approve of. Isabel has decided that this is the summer for taking chances, and she's dragging Rory along for the ride. But when long-hidden secrets start to surface, their friendship will be put to the test.

Nayuleska's thoughts

I love stories about protagonists who get to live where they work. I was gripped by Rory's persistance in staying where she sometimes wasn't wanted. It was a refreshingly pleasant surprise that the romance side of things wasn't overly strong - it was a part of the plot but it didn't take over the book. I liked the difference in how Isabel came across to others and who she was when the chapter was from her point of view. I made a guess about her at the beginning, as I sensed she seemed a nice person deep down. She has issues but eventually gets through them both with Rory's unexpected help and without it. Rory does a fine job of messing her life up but I promise it all works out well. This is a not too tense read, definitely one to share this summer. 

You can find out more on Joanna's website.

Suggested read

For a spookier but just as good story about a girl who lives where she works check out Kate Cann's Possessed (Young Adult, 10/10 & not as spooky as it sounds - promise! You know how freaked out I can get...) 

Blog Tour: My Sister's Reaper by Dorothy Dreyer (Young Adult, 10/10E)

 18th June 2013, Month9Books, 275 pages, Ebook, Review copy 

Themes: bonds between sisters, focus on family, firm friendships, having to face problems head on, teen issues, death, the paranormal, wanting to fit in, jumping to conclusions, discovering the world isn't as you thought it was, hopes and dreams changing, fighting for yourself and others (not all physical fighting), 

Content: some moderate teen romance, ghostly goings on, seance, a tissue is needed

Summary from press release info 

There’s bragging, there’s trying to impress a boy, and then there’s Sixteen-year-old Zadie. Zadie’s first mistake was telling the boy she’s crushing on that she could bring her dead sister back to life. Her second mistake? Actually doing it! When Zadie accidentally messes with the Reaper’s Rite that should have claimed her sister Mara, things go horribly wrong (you think?). Mara isn’t the same anymore—Zadie isn’t even sure she’s completely human, and to top it off, a Reaper is determined to collect Mara’s soul no matter what. Now Zadie must figure out how to defeat her sister’s Reaper, intent on claiming both girls, or let Mara die … this time for good.

Nayuleska's thoughts

I can't remember how I ended up chatting with Dorothy on Twitter, it might have been through knowing a joint friend, but I've waited months to read her work. I was ecstatic when she announced the publication date, and am so happy to be on her blog tour. 

I adore stories which has siblings pulled close together and then far apart. The twists hit me hard, I felt for Zadie each time her life seemed against her. I wanted to hug her when all she could do was cry alone. Don't worry, she isn't alone. It takes a long time to happen in some cases, but she has true friends who will hold her hand literally and metaphorically, who tell her the truth even when it hurts. Without them, the end of the awesome story would have been totally different. Zadie's power and humour sweep aside the ouijee board moment (which usually has me shutting a book) and let me give this the highest rating. Dorothy - you've nailed this! 

Yesterday's tour spot was hosted by Gina R of Satisfaction For Insatiable Readers (and also chief Meme writer here on NRC) and the next stop of this tour is tomorrow over on Kayla's Reads and Reviews.

You can find out more on Dorothy's Website, as well as on Goodreads and Barnes And Noble

Suggested read

Other death oriented books with a grim reaper include  My Soul To Take by Rachel Vincent

Competition

There's an awesome tour giveaway - there are 5 copies of the book up for grabs for international entrants, and if you're in the US you can win a signed copy of My Sister's Reaper, nail polish, journal, MSR keychain, and candy! Just enter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What are YOU reading? #172

What are you reading on Monday? is a weekly meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey where you post books completed last week and plans for upcoming books. Jump over to her blog and see who else is participating.


Read

Last Chance Angel by Alex Gutteridge

Young Adult

10/10

(I cried a bit at the end - everyone needs to read Jess's journey...)

Rules of Summer by Joanna Philbin

Young Adult

9/10

(Pleasantly not just about teen romance - the other plots are fascinating!)

Crash by Nicole Williams

New Adult

Both 4/10 and 8/10

(There isn't nearly as much ballet in the story as I expected, but it did make me laugh [for the wrong reasons!] hence the two grades.)

Watched

H20: Just Add Water

REWATCH! - Drama, English version

10/10

(As I realised I'd finished disc 3 of 4 on season 1, I did go 'oh' as it's such a fun, mostly light watch. Still, got 2 more seasons and can keep rewatching it!) 

Winx: Season 4

REWATCH! - Anime, French version

10/10E

(Part of me wishes there were more episodes of the Winx with Lovix & Sophix - I love the transformations for those!) 

Winx: A Magical Adventure

REWATCH! - Anime, film

9/10

(I confess to skipping a few scenes as I find them too scary [What? I scare easily!] All the other scenes are super fun!) 

Winx 4 Special 1

off episodes produced by Nickelodeon as a prelude to season 5

Anime, English version

4/10 & 8/10

(They have two grades - there are an awful lot of changes which I didn't always like [clothes & music to name a few], I understand they are giving readers the key story of season 1 & season 2, but so much character development is left out. The new style animation is appealing but I miss the old one and some characters look meaner. Translation wise meanings are jumbled which give the viewer the wrong impression. But on the other hand it's shorter than watching both seasons all at once, which is why it gets an 8.) 

Winx: Season 5

REWATCH! - Anime, French version

10/10E

(*happy sigh* Season 5 is very wow, like season 4. Winx Harmonix! Winx Sirenix! *hums transformation tunes* )

Holby City

Drama, English version

10/10

(As I summarized in a text to a friend: "Stupid Sacha, Ollie made me cry, Jack made me laugh [in this case Jack is a girl's name] & I cheered Chrissie on" )

Waterloo Road

Drama, English version

9/10

(Melodrama at it's best with an animal rights protest getting out of hand at the school...) 

Craft 
I've wound up yarn into neat balls - the shape they come in can knot, so I always redo them - and I've made another crochet square for the elderly with some funky colours!

Nayu's News #80 A busy week ahead

Now, what am I doing next?

As ever, pictures gathered from online and quotes by me, Nayu. 

This week is hopefully a busy one. Tuesday I've got my 6 monthly check up at the pain clinic! 

A happy Chiyafuru from the anime titled Chiyafuru (or is she called Chiya....?)

The reason I'm so happy is that it's my first 6 monthly check up - before I was going every few months for ketamine treatment. Hopefully I can continue with it at home, which is suiting me very well. 

My cat might come and sit with me. Equally she might just stay in her bed.

Wednesday will be spent recovering from the long trip. 

I like catching up with my friends at work after I've been off for a day or two.

Thursday I'll be at work, just as I am on Monday. 

"Heehee!"

& Friday....

Well, I will be feeling the opposite of happy after a few hours. I hope to be happy because so long as the pain clinic give the OK I can have my ketamine this weekend, to get rid of the extra pain caused by the stupid leg cramps the other week! That will be a very good thing

"Nice drugs, evil drugs, all are one and the same..."

I will be spending from Friday to Sunday in bed - it's easier to feel rubbish there than on the sofa. It's becoming a routine when I have my ketamine treatments, one I sort of look forward to because I feel better afterwards. I usually get a lot read during that time. 

When I'm able to sit up and don't feel worse, that's when I know I'm on the road to recovery.

"Typo, typo, speak to me! Let me find you!"

I'm also happy because a friend finishing her PhD has asked me to read her thesis - this will be finished before Friday, as I'm not responsible for my thoughts on spelling & phrasing while under the influence of a drug which horses are given.

Me, chilled out 

 

 

 

So I am frantically scheduling up posts for the week - please exuse the bizarre text at the top of my blog, I have no idea where it is from and zero ideas of how to remove it. I'm well on my way to finishing my Young Adult reads before Ramadan starts - yay! 

You know how much I love books! Will still be reading them, just ones without romance.

Have a great week, and I'll pop back to report in on things when I can. 

"Bye"

Grounding Quinn by Steph Campbell (New Adult, 9/10)

May 2013, Simon and Schuster, 234 pages, Paperback, Review copy 

Themes: messed up family, strained family relations, being misunderstood, not cared about, hiding emotional pain by shutting people out, spoiled sibling, sensible advice, not thinking straight, low self-esteem, unsure of what to do next, taking the wrong option, being a bit of a delinquent, skipping school, cheating on the one you love, making mistakes and thinking they can't be fixed so don't try to make amends, frosty friendships, true friends, getting advice from an unexpected source, having peope who care about you, letting go of your demons,

Content: substance abuse, some strong language, some moderate adult situations, tissues,

Summary from Simon and Schuster

Eighteen-year-old Quinn MacPherson's biggest fear has always been turning out like her mentally unstable mother or cold-hearted father. That is, until she meets Benjamin Shaw.
Quinn thinks hooking up with Ben over summer vacation will be nothing more than a quick fling, and with his hot body and heart-breaking smile that's all she really wants from him. But she quickly realises that, Ben is not just some guy. He gets her - the real her, flaws and all - and that scares the hell out of her. So when Ben does the unthinkable and tells Quinn he's in love with her, she does what comes naturally: she pushes him away, breaking his heart, before he can break hers.
Ben isn't prepared to let go that easily, he knows that Quinn is something special, and he'll do whatever it takes to make sure they're together. But will he be able to persuade Quinn to open herself up and allow Ben in to her life… and her heart? - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.co.uk/Grounding-Quinn/Steph-Campbell/9781471117565#sthash.gqeHk0xG.dpuf

Eighteen-year-old Quinn MacPherson's biggest fear has always been turning out like her mentally unstable mother or cold-hearted father. That is, until she meets Benjamin Shaw.
Quinn thinks hooking up with Ben over summer vacation will be nothing more than a quick fling, and with his hot body and heart-breaking smile that's all she really wants from him. But she quickly realises that, Ben is not just some guy. He gets her - the real her, flaws and all - and that scares the hell out of her. So when Ben does the unthinkable and tells Quinn he's in love with her, she does what comes naturally: she pushes him away, breaking his heart, before he can break hers.
Ben isn't prepared to let go that easily, he knows that Quinn is something special, and he'll do whatever it takes to make sure they're together. But will he be able to persuade Quinn to open herself up and allow Ben in to her life… and her heart? - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.co.uk/Grounding-Quinn/Steph-Campbell/9781471117565#sthash.gqeHk0xG.dpuf

Eighteen-year-old Quinn MacPherson's biggest fear has always been turning out like her mentally unstable mother or cold-hearted father. That is, until she meets Benjamin Shaw.
Quinn thinks hooking up with Ben over summer vacation will be nothing more than a quick fling, and with his hot body and heart-breaking smile that's all she really wants from him. But she quickly realises that, Ben is not just some guy. He gets her - the real her, flaws and all - and that scares the hell out of her. So when Ben does the unthinkable and tells Quinn he's in love with her, she does what comes naturally: she pushes him away, breaking his heart, before he can break hers.
Ben isn't prepared to let go that easily, he knows that Quinn is something special, and he'll do whatever it takes to make sure they're together. But will he be able to persuade Quinn to open herself up and allow Ben in to her life… and her heart? - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.co.uk/Grounding-Quinn/Steph-Campbell/9781471117565#sthash.gqeHk0xG.dpuf

Eighteen-year-old Quinn MacPherson's biggest fear has always been turning out like her mentally unstable mother or cold-hearted father. That is, until she meets Benjamin Shaw.
Quinn thinks hooking up with Ben over summer vacation will be nothing more than a quick fling, and with his hot body and heart-breaking smile that's all she really wants from him. But she quickly realises that, Ben is not just some guy. He gets her - the real her, flaws and all - and that scares the hell out of her. So when Ben does the unthinkable and tells Quinn he's in love with her, she does what comes naturally: she pushes him away, breaking his heart, before he can break hers.
Ben isn't prepared to let go that easily, he knows that Quinn is something special, and he'll do whatever it takes to make sure they're together. But will he be able to persuade Quinn to open herself up and allow Ben in to her life… and her heart? - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.co.uk/Grounding-Quinn/Steph-Campbell/9781471117565#sthash.gqeHk0xG.dpuf

Eighteen-year-old Quinn MacPherson's biggest fear has always been turning out like her mentally unstable mother or cold-hearted father. That is, until she meets Benjamin Shaw.
 

Quinn thinks hooking up with Ben over summer vacation will be nothing more than a quick fling, and with his hot body and heart-breaking smile that's all she really wants from him. But she quickly realises that, Ben is not just some guy. He gets her - the real her, flaws and all - and that scares the hell out of her. So when Ben does the unthinkable and tells Quinn he's in love with her, she does what comes naturally: she pushes him away, breaking his heart, before he can break hers.
 

Ben isn't prepared to let go that easily, he knows that Quinn is something special, and he'll do whatever it takes to make sure they're together. But will he be able to persuade Quinn to open herself up and allow Ben in to her life… and her heart?

Eighteen-year-old Quinn MacPherson's biggest fear has always been turning out like her mentally unstable mother or cold-hearted father. That is, until she meets Benjamin Shaw.
Quinn thinks hooking up with Ben over summer vacation will be nothing more than a quick fling, and with his hot body and heart-breaking smile that's all she really wants from him. But she quickly realises that, Ben is not just some guy. He gets her - the real her, flaws and all - and that scares the hell out of her. So when Ben does the unthinkable and tells Quinn he's in love with her, she does what comes naturally: she pushes him away, breaking his heart, before he can break hers.
Ben isn't prepared to let go that easily, he knows that Quinn is something special, and he'll do whatever it takes to make sure they're together. But will he be able to persuade Quinn to open herself up and allow Ben in to her life… and her heart? - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.co.uk/Grounding-Quinn/Steph-Campbell/9781471117565#sthash.gqeHk0xG.dpuf

Eighteen-year-old Quinn MacPherson's biggest fear has always been turning out like her mentally unstable mother or cold-hearted father. That is, until she meets Benjamin Shaw.
Quinn thinks hooking up with Ben over summer vacation will be nothing more than a quick fling, and with his hot body and heart-breaking smile that's all she really wants from him. But she quickly realises that, Ben is not just some guy. He gets her - the real her, flaws and all - and that scares the hell out of her. So when Ben does the unthinkable and tells Quinn he's in love with her, she does what comes naturally: she pushes him away, breaking his heart, before he can break hers.
Ben isn't prepared to let go that easily, he knows that Quinn is something special, and he'll do whatever it takes to make sure they're together. But will he be able to persuade Quinn to open herself up and allow Ben in to her life… and her heart? - See more at: http://books.simonandschuster.co.uk/Grounding-Quinn/Steph-Campbell/9781471117565#sthash.gqeHk0xG.dpuf

Nayuleska's thoughts

I wanted to read this because Quinn's life sounded messed up and I wanted to see how she coped with it. As I expected she coped by not coping, which pushed the very people who cared away from her. It takes stuffing her life up for her to realise what is important to her. I hated how she disrespected herself, but loved when she finally realised she was worth loving and life was worth living. I'm over the moon the next book, Delicate, explores what happened to Quinn's friend Sydney who has fad a simply horrid past.

Only the language and adult content decreased the grade, but I expect that with this genre.

You can find out more on Steph's website.

Suggested read

Another teen with family and self-esteem issues can be found in Forget You by Jennifer Echols (Young Adult, 9/10)