Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Parts One and Two By John Tiffany and Jack Thorne

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Harry Potter #8
John Tiffany and Jack Thorne
Fantasy
Hardback, 343 pages
31 July 2016 by Little, Brown UK

Goodreads Ratings : 3.87/5
My Rating: 3.5/5




Based on an original new story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, a new play by Jack Thorne, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is the eighth story in the Harry Potter series and the first official Harry Potter story to be presented on stage. The play will receive its world premiere in London’s West End on July 30, 2016.

It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children.

While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places. 


“It’s tough to live with people stuck in the past, isn’t it?” 


19 years later. Apparently 19 years changed everyone a lot. Let me go through this bit by bit.

STYLE
i dont think i have any problem with the script-writing style. It's the way it is. So that's that. This doesn't have the JK Rowling vibe at all, bcs obviously this book isn't even written by her. And I hate that. This somehow feels like an insult to the wizarding world. #Sorrynotsorry

CHARACTERS
okay. this is possible my biggest problem with this book. I know 19 years will surely change someone. I know the horrific Battle of the Hogwarts will surely change/mark/affect our beloved characters in some ways. But i'll be lying if i said i like who they happen to be now. I don't see Hermione in Hermione anymore, I don't see Harry in Harry anymore and that breaks my heart. Professor McGonagall is somehow downgraded. it's like she's not respected enough by the trio when we all know how truly wonderful she is. The Hermione I know wouldn't let Mcgonagall to call her 'Minister', and the Harry I know wouldn't simply call her Minerva. Its like Mcgonagall was never their professor and writing this, i realized how disappointed i am and its making me want to cry.


Hogwarts isn't actually that pleasant a place when you don't fit in.” 

I love Scorpius. Not to sure what i feel about Albus. Adult Draco is amazing I love him. I'm so thankful there's at least something going on with Scorpius and Rose. Dramione isnt canon but at least their kids have a chance and for now, i am okay with that.

MY UTTERMOST LETDOWN IS RON. RON IS ONLY THERE AS A COMIC RELIEF CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT? HE DESERVES SO MUCH MORE YET WHAT HE ONLY DID WAS EAT AND MAKE STUPID LAME JOKES I WILL NOT GET OVER THIS

PLOT
The general idea of bring time-turner back and these alternate universes are amazing. It's refreshing and interesting to see what would've happened if things didn't end up the way it should. It's great to see Cedric again (i cant imagine how happy Rob must feel to see himself again heh) but when this book is centered around "saving Cedric", i cant help but feel bored.......

and at one point it gets ridiculous i face-palmed myself. Voldermort had a child, seriously? Do the writers even know Voldermort at all?????? I can't comprehend the thought of Voldermort having sex, with Bellatrix some more. This has got to be a joke.

oh and tell me I'm not the only one who cringed so hard when Albus/Ron kissed Hermione and said "Lets make a baby." WHAT THE FUCK EW

I appreciate Albus-Harry family drama though. We all know Harry Potter won't always have it easy, and I'm thankful we at least get to see this again.

I'd really like to see this play on stage though :(((




"I didn't choose, you know that? I didn't

choose to be his son."


Monday, September 19, 2016

It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover

It Ends With Us
Colleen Hoover
Romance
Paperback, 373 pages
2nd August 2016 by Atria Books

Goodreads Ratings: 4.62/5
My Rating: 5/5



Sometimes it is the one who loves you who hurts you the most.

Lily hasn’t always had it easy, but that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. She’s come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up—she graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her own business. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid, everything in Lily’s life suddenly seems almost too good to be true.

Ryle is assertive, stubborn, maybe even a little arrogant. He’s also sensitive, brilliant, and has a total soft spot for Lily. And the way he looks in scrubs certainly doesn’t hurt. Lily can’t get him out of her head. But Ryle’s complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. Even as Lily finds herself becoming the exception to his “no dating” rule, she can’t help but wonder what made him that way in the first place.

As questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan—her first love and a link to the past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened. 

With this bold and deeply personal novel, Colleen Hoover delivers a heart-wrenching story that breaks exciting new ground for her as a writer. Combining a captivating romance with a cast of all-too-human characters, It Ends With Us is an unforgettable tale of love that comes at the ultimate price. 

"Fifteen seconds. That’s all it takes to completely change everything about a person. Fifteen seconds that we’ll never get back."


Let me tell you a story. I have a distant cousin who is abused by her husband, yet she can’t make herself divorce him. You know what I have in my mind when my parents were discussing this over breakfast? It’s this: “Why cant she just leave him? Why cant she stand up for herself? If I were to be her, I’d leave him right there and then. I know I can do it.”

I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO WRONG. AND THIS BOOK WAS RESPONSIBLE TO SHOW IT TO ME. I’m so ashamed at myself.

It Ends With Us is by far the best Colleen Hoover yet. Forget November 9, forget Confess, forget everything. This is IT. It Ends With Us is raw, bold, real, honest and its everything I never knew I needed. I promised myself that I won't give this a 5 stars because I have issues and dissatisfaction with it, but the last 3 or so chapters and the author’s note breaks me. YOU NEED TO UNDERSTAND, I HAVE NEVER BOTHERED TO READ AUTHOR’S NOTE. BUT THIS ONE. THIS ONE MAKES ME SOBBED. It would be an insult not to give this book a 5 star and so I did. Here you go Colleen, a 5 stars handed to you in a gold platter. You did great with this one.

“All humans make mistakes. What determines a person's character aren't the mistakes we make. It's how we take those mistakes and turn them into lessons rather than excuses.” 

I just can’t stress enough how important this book is. How everyone should read this because it carries a message so important that it needs to be delivered throughout the entire world. It Ends With Us helps you understand that you can never put a black and white on emotions. It is so easy to judge people when you weren’t wearing their shoes. About half of this book, I feel like I hate Colleen Hoover for turning everything over. I hate her for drafting her book this way. I was so mad and so frustrated. But when I reached the end, sobbing and crying and was practically in a complete mess, I understand her. I understand her for writing this book that way, in her own will and direction. I understand why she feels that it’s important for her to create such characters so she can successfully lead us to where she wants us to go, what she wants us to feel and understand what she’s trying to deliver. I can never thank Colleen enough for this beautiful book.

I don’t know how to review this book without giving anything away. Just know that this isn’t like CoHo’s typical book. If you think you’re so over CoHo or that you couldn’t understand what the hype is all about, PLEASE GIVE THIS A CHANCE. You can ignore the rest of CoHo’s books but not this one.

“And as hard as this choice is, we break the pattern before the pattern breaks us.”


I love Lily. I love how strong she is, how strict she is with her decisions, in which I wonder: “Can I even be half as strong as she is?” and by God, I LOVE ALLYSA. CoHo brings out the empowerment of female friendships in this book and I appreciate it so freaking much.

I’m tired from all the tears I let out while reading this. I’m hungry.  I’m emotionally drained. My review doesn’t even make sense. I just want to rest. Good day.

Shoutout to Naj and Mimie for being there throughout my emotional mess.


 “It stops here. With me and you. It ends with us.”