Weddings and Wasabi

Posted on July 24, 2011 by Tina

Weddings and Wasabi by Camy Tang Weddings and Wasabi by Camy Tang
(Sushi Series # 4)
Wine Press Publishing, 124 pages

After finally graduating with a culinary degree, Jennifer Lim is pressured by her family to work at her control-freak aunty’s restaurant. But after a family dispute, Jenn is determined to no longer be a doormat and instead starts her own catering company. Her search for a wine merchant brings John into her life-a tall, dark, handsome biker in form-fitting black leather, who’s Hispanic to boot. It would be wonderfully wild to snag a man like that!

Shy engineer Edward tentatively tries out his birthday present from his winery-owner uncle-a Harley-Davidson complete with the trimmings. Jennifer seems attracted to the rough, aggressive image, but it isn’t his real self. Is she latching onto him just to spite her horrified family? And if this spark between them is real, will showing her the true guy underneath put it out?

And what’s with the goat in the backyard?

I’ve been a fan of Camy Tang ever since I heard about her and read the first book in her Sushi series, Sushi For One?. I liked that she wrote chick lit with an Asian flavor, and while I’m not Chinese/Japanese like her heroines are, I find that I could relate to the family and growing up woes that the four cousins experienced. And they’re Christian, too, so the stories resonate with my faith.

Unfortunately, Camy’s contract for the Sushi series only covers 3 books, so only Lex’s, Trish’s and Venus’ stories came out in full-length novels. Fortunately, Camy announced a few years back that she would be releasing a novella about Jennifer, the fourth cousin. Imagine my delight when she sent her street team a free copy. :)

Jennifer Lim is the nicest among the cousins, so nice that she knows she can be a doormat sometimes. When she finally graduated from her culinary degree, she finds herself pressured with having to fulfill some family “duties” that her aunts had pressed upon her. After a particularly bad party with an encounter with her ex, Jenn finally stands up for herself and starts a catering company. This starts her adventure that brings Jenn into learning that it takes a lot of courage to follow your dreams and even more to leave those dreams and trust that God will make things happen.

It felt nice reuniting with Camy’s characters again. I love the bond that Lex, Trish, Venus and Jenn had, and how they would always be there for one another no matter what. I also loved and hated their family. I don’t know how Chinese/Japanese families really are, but their Aunty Aikiko really grated my nerves. How can a relative be so manipulating and conniving and just…annoying? Ugh. It almost felt a bit unreal with that aspect, but who knew, right? Maybe people like that do exist.

I like how things came into somewhat of a full circle in this novella. While this could be read as a standalone, like the first three, but I think reading all of them would provide a fuller experience with the story. I always find back stories interesting, so knowing what happened to who in previous books while reading this one helped a lot in appreciating the events in this more. I especially liked how one of their cousins seemed to be friendlier to them now, and how their grandmother played a surprising role too.

The only thing I probably did not like in Weddings and Wasabi was how short it was! I missed the build up in the old novels, especially in the romantic sense, so I was a little detached from the romance here unlike in the others. It did provide for a good, quick and light read, but I was definitely hungry for more. :)

Weddings and Wasabi is available now in print and ebook through WinePress, Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Rating: ★★★★★

2011 Challenge Status:
11 of 20 for TwentyEleven Challenge (Slim Pickings)

My copy: ebook, review copy from the author (Thank you!)

Cover and blurb: Goodreads

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks

Posted on July 20, 2011 by Tina

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
Hyperion, 342 pages

Frankie Landau-Banks at age 14:
Debate Club.
Her father’s “bunny rabbit.”
A mildly geeky girl attending a highly competitive boarding school.

Frankie Landau-Banks at age 15:
A knockout figure.
A sharp tongue.
A chip on her shoulder.
And a gorgeous new senior boyfriend: the supremely goofy, word-obsessed Matthew Livingston.

Frankie Laundau-Banks.
No longer the kind of girl to take “no” for an answer.
Especially when “no” means she’s excluded from her boyfriend’s all-male secret society.
Not when her ex boyfriend shows up in the strangest of places.
Not when she knows she’s smarter than any of them.
When she knows Matthew’s lying to her.
And when there are so many, many pranks to be done.

Frankie Landau-Banks, at age 16:
Possibly a criminal mastermind.

This is the story of how she got that way.

A few years ago, I watched a lot of TV shows religiously. I don’t know what got me into it, or how I discovered some of them, but I end up having my hard drive full of shows week after week. One of those shows I liked very much (and was still very sad that it had been cancelled too early) was Pushing Daisies. I wasn’t really much into the characters and I was just mildly intrigued by the story. I think the main reason why I liked that show so much was because of the narrator. If you’re not familiar with the show, think of the movie Matilda. They both have that same, amused sounding narrator that guides you in the story, guiding you with the character’s emotions instead of just letting the actors and actresses show you what they’re feeling. It’s not a sign of bad acting, of course, but a clever way of making the story leave more impact, I suppose.

It was exactly that narrator voice that I remembered while reading E. Lockhart’s The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks. I’ve heard a lot about this book from book blogs, and I was lucky to spot a hardcover copy of this book on the bargain table during one of the Fully Booked sales. This contemporary YA novel tells the story of Frances Rose Landau-Banks, aka Frankie, aka Bunny Rabbit — a 15 year old sophomore in Alabaster Academy. She’s smart, she comes from a rich family and she’s recently grew into her body, earning her a slightly higher physical reputation among the “geeks” that she’s a part of in school.

But Frankie is not just a girl. She’s not just Bunny Rabbit. Frankie doesn’t want to be her boyfriend’s arm candy, even if he is popular and adorable and his kisses could make her weak in the knees. Frankie is determined not to be left out, especially by her boyfriend’s all-male secret society (that is not so secret because her father was a member). Thus starts Frankie’s disreputable history.

Ah, what a fun novel. I liked how smart this book is, with all its grammar geekiness and social terms such as the panopticon and the existence of secret social societies in boarding schools. I loved the entire Alabaster environment, even if it reeked of rich kids whose connections, not necessarily their skills, will make them powerful in the future. I liked how the story progressed, and how everything connected in the end. Because of the style of narration, I felt like I was one step ahead of the story, and I was able to snicker at how some of the characters were so stupid at how Frankie was duping them all.

Frankie and the rest of the characters were fleshed out well, although the way the story was told may hinder the readers from really getting to know the characters. Some people might get turned off with this one, but I liked it. It felt fresh, and despite how the narration kept me at arm’s length with the characters, I still saw them as whole and completely thinking characters. Somehow, the boys in this novel reminded me of the boys in John Green’s Looking for Alaska, sans the massive smoking and more of the geekery. Frankie is such a smart character that I can’t help but wish I was like her when I was younger.

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks is a very, very smart novel, and yeah, a bit feminist, but I don’t think guys would not enjoy this one. I had so much fun reading it that even if I was busy, I always made time to read a few pages of it each that. That, and I was very sad to reach the end of it — it felt like it was too soon, but I think the ending was just right for the story.

I also found this very interesting post about this book at one of the tumblrs I follow, Reasoning with Vampires. This includes some passages from the book, nothing spoilery, and a very good comparison with another popular lead character out there *cough*Bella Swan*cough*. No offense to anyone. :)

From Reasoning with Vampires (reasoningwithvampires.tumblr.com)

I recommend this book for those who like good contemporary YA novels with smart characters, boarding schools, some grammar geekiness and lots of pranks. :) This is my first Lockhart novel, but it definitely won’t be my last. :)

Rating: ★★★★★

2011 Challenge Status:
Required Reading – July

My copy: hardbound, from Fully Booked

Cover and blurb: Goodreads

Other reviews:
The Book Smugglers
Angieville
Persnickety Snark
Presenting Lenore
Forever Young Adult

The Best of This is a Crazy Planets

Posted on July 18, 2011 by Tina

The Best of This is a Crazy Planets by Lourd Ernest H. De Veyra
Summit Books, 116 pages

Lourd Ernest Hanopol de Veyra is many things at once: front man of the band Radioactive Sago Project, TV personality, poet, award-winning writer, blogger, and now, author. His two-year-old blog This is a Crazy Planets has gained a large following on SPOT.ph, and his best works are now compiled in a book of the same title.

With Lourd’s various entries on everyday life’s absurdities, This is a Crazy Planets mirrors Filipino pop culture in a way that is both humorous and endearing.

I’ve only heard about Lourd De Veyra through friends, because most of my friends are big fans of him. I’ve seen him every now and then on his TV5 segment, Word of the Lourd, and I have read some of his articles in his Spot.ph blog. But I was never really one who followed his stuff regularly. I wasn’t really 100% excited to attend his book launch when I was invited, except that I can’t really say no to a free, local book. Unfortunately, the launch happened on the night that tropical storm Falcon made an ocean of Manila.

I was glad when the publisher still sent me a book for review because despite my being a not-so-much-of-a-fan, I was curious about the book. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw how nice the book looked. Okay, it wasn’t just nice, it was quite beautiful for a local publication. My fellow bloggers and I often complain about the print quality of the local books here, but The Best of This is a Crazy Planets is far superior than the others. The paper quality is nice, the cover design is pretty and illustrations/artwork were there for every article. I am delighted to see that it was affordable for its quality, too – P195 (less than 4 USD) is a pretty good price to pay for a book that looks this pretty.

That price is even more justified once you read what’s inside. Like I said, I’ve only read a few of Lourd’s articles online, so I was pretty new to his writing. Lourd De Veyra offers a funny, oftentimes sarcastic but very real commentaries on Philippine current events, people, culture and even showbiz. I found myself giggling and having to hold it back whenever I’m reading this in a public place. Some of them, I can’t really relate to, some of them, I agree with, some of them, I just find really, really funny. Underneath its wit and sarcasm, Lourd’s articles show a lot of truth in the current state of our country. It’s not always pretty, and sometimes I feel bad when I realize that it is the ugly truth about the Philippines. But even so, Lourd never ever showed a hint of not liking his home country despite this truth (at least, that’s the impression on me). It’s like he writes it all out, shrugs and then says, “This is a crazy planet.” Or planets.

Why buy this book when you can read it online? Well, if you’re not enticed by the beautiful quality of this book and its relatively cheap price, think of it this way: you can read his articles even without Internet, even if you’re in the remotest areas in this crazy planet we live in. And I think that’s pretty much worth it, right?

The Best of This is a Crazy Planets is now available for Php195 in local bookstores nationwide.

Rating: ★★★★★

2011 Challenge Status:
10 of 20 in TwentyEleven Challenge (Hot Off the Presses)
7 of 20 Filipino Books in 2011

My copy: paperback, review copy from Summit Media

Cover and blurb: Spot.ph

Other reviews:
taking a break

Clean

Posted on July 16, 2011 by Tina

Clean by Amy Reed
Simon Pulse, 288 pages

You’re probably wondering how I ended up here. I’m still wondering the same thing.

Olivia, Kelly, Christopher, Jason, and Eva have one thing in common: They’re addicts. Addicts who have hit rock bottom and been stuck together in rehab to face their problems, face sobriety, and face themselves. None of them wants to be there. None of them wants to confront the truths about their pasts. And they certainly don’t want to share their darkest secrets and most desperate fears with a room of strangers. But they’ll all have to deal with themselves and one another if they want to learn how to live. Because when you get that high, there’s nowhere to go but down, down, down.

When I decided to read Clean by Amy Reed, I was fresh from finishing Ultraviolet by R.J. Anderson, so the entire setting felt a little bit familiar. Clean however is far from the mixed genre that Ultraviolet was — this is contemporary YA through and through, something that deals with something I haven’t really quite read about much but means a lot right now: addiction and rehab.

Clean is about five teenagers Olivia, Kelly, Christopher, Jason and Eva, who formed a little group in the rehabilitation center they all landed in after they made very bad choices in their lives. Olivia is the girl who strives to be perfect in every way and ended up being OCD and anorexic. Kelly is the beautiful, popular girl who has an addition to cocaine and alcohol, and in some ways, sex. Christopher is the church kid who somehow got into meth. Jason is an alcoholic who is guilty about something he did to his family. Eva is addicted to painkillers, thinking it would numb the pain of her mother’s death. Away from cutting tools, drugs, alcohol and bad influences, the five form an unusual friendship that would help them through their time inside rehab. The book is told in Kelly and Christopher’s POVs, interspersed with dialogues and essays they had and submitted to their therapist.

While I was reading this, I was also watching an episode of If You Really Knew Me (the same show I referenced in my review of Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers). I found that show relevant to this book too, probably because Clean involved teens coming to terms with who they are, only in a bigger scale. The teens in this book are truly messed up because of so many things that anyone can experience. The books shows that no one is exempt to the temptation of addiction, or at least, looking for an escape from life. Sometimes even the most unexpected people will provide the means for addiction — like parents, for instance. I can’t help but feel bad for the characters in this book, especially Jason. His tough exterior is really just brought about by the equal and possibly more terrifying toughness of his military dad. Even if it was only told in Kelly and Christopher’s POVs, the other characters never lost any of their voices. The in-between therapy sessions and essays gave us a pretty good view on what the other characters were thinking, and I think Kelly and Christopher were effective in sharing the spotlight.

This book doesn’t really have a big climax. It’s not necessarily boring — there was a part that got me really worried for one of the characters, but the ending made up for it. The story flows from one event to the next, making readers root for our little group and wishing them strength to overcome their trials, all leading to a hopeful ending. Clean is contemporary at its core, and while it isn’t an easy to novel to read, it’s definitely an important one.

Oh, and I really like the cover on this one. I wonder how it would look like in the wild. :)

Clean by Amy Reed will be available in hardcover from Simon Pulse on July 19, 2011. Thanks to Simon and Schuster’s Galley Grab for the review copy.

Rating: ★★★★★

My copy: e-ARC from Simon and Schuster’s Galley Grab

Cover and Blurb: Goodreads

Other reviews:
All of Everything
Anxirium

Some Girls Are

Posted on July 11, 2011 by Tina

Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers
St. Martin’s Press, 245 pages

Climbing to the top of the social ladder is hard–falling from it is even harder. Regina Afton used to be a member of the Fearsome Fivesome, an all-girl clique both feared and revered by the students at Hallowell High… until vicious rumors about her and her best friend’s boyfriend start going around. Now Regina’s been “frozen out” and her ex-best friends are out for revenge. If Regina was guilty, it would be one thing, but the rumors are far from the terrifying truth and the bullying is getting more intense by the day. She takes solace in the company of Michael Hayden, a misfit with a tragic past who she herself used to bully. Friendship doesn’t come easily for these onetime enemies, and as Regina works hard to make amends for her past, she realizes Michael could be more than just a friend… if threats from the Fearsome Foursome don’t break them both first.

A few weeks ago, I found myself stuck at home without Internet, so I tuned in to the TV. I caught this show, If You Really Knew Me, and ended up crying in the middle of watching the episode. I had a pretty happy high school life, so I was a bit distant with the situations of the kids there, but it did not stop me from shedding some tears for the kids featured in the show.

When I read Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers later, I can’t help but think that the students from Hallowell High could use a Challenge Day for themselves, especially after how the popular group dealt with our heroine Regina. Regina Afton used to be a part of the Fearsome Fivesome, until she got frozen out after rumors about her and her best friend’s boyfriend spread around. What follows is a series of serious bullying, as her ex best friends are out of revenge — the bloodier, the better. Regina finds herself trying to make amends with loner Michael Hayden, a boy he used to bully. She comes into terms with just how bad she really was, and wonders what makes her different from the girls who are making her life a living hell.

When I finished reading Some Girls Are, I was exhausted. I knew this book is about bullying, but I didn’t expect it to be almost bloody. The Fivesome turned Foursome was more than mean — they’re evil. I don’t understand how some people can deliberately hurt other people and influence others to do the same, too. Maybe it’s because I can’t relate that kind of high school life, but…who would want to? The thought of being in that same school is scary, and I don’t blame Michael wanting to be alone after everything that happened to him.

This isn’t an easy novel to read. It was hard and bloody and sometimes scary — at one point, I wanted to beg it to stop. I wanted to whisk Regina away to another school and forget what happened to her. I also wanted to bonk Regina in the head for her to do something reasonable, like oh, tell someone? Some Girls Are is very hard to put down. I just have to know what happens next, even if it meant reading how Regina’s ex-friends would do something that would hurt her again. This reminds me of those TV shows I watch where I utterly hate the villains. Hate. When someone or some people are as evil as the ones in this book, it’s hard to find the good in them, and it’s easier to just hate them.

The ending is a tiny bit anticlimactic for my taste, but after all the things that happened in the book, I guess that’s a relief. I just wanted it to end, and while I’m not entirely convinced that the bullying has ended there, I think it’s the right end for Regina. Don’t get me wrong, though — this novel is very good. I can’t say how real it was, but it sounded like it is, and I commend Courtney Summers for this.

This book reminds me of Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver and She’s So Dead to Us by Kieran Scott, but grittier. If you were a fan of those two books, you may want to pick this one up. Some Girls Are is one of those books that will make you angry and desperate and relieved. It’s far from a comfort read, but I think it’s a very important one.

Rating: ★★★★★

2011 Challenge Status:
Required Reading – July

My copy: paperback, from Fully Booked

Cover and blurb: Goodreads

Other reviews:
Angieville
Book Harbinger
Attack of the Book
Persnickety Snark

What My Mother Doesn’t Know

Posted on July 10, 2011 by Tina

What My Mother Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones
Simon Pulse, 259 pages

My name is Sophie.
This book is about me.
It tells the heart-stoppingly riveting story
of my first love.
And also of my second.
And, okay, my third love, too.

It’s not that I’m boy crazy.
It’s just that even though I’m almost fifteen
it’s like my mind and my body and my heart
just don’t seem to be able to agree on anything.

I heard about What My Mother Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones from Angie, but since she wrote about it for Retro Friday, I didn’t think it would be easily available here. Imagine my surprise when I spotted this during one of my book hunts. I shouldn’t have bought much then, but I’m easily swayed.

What does Sophie’s mother doesn’t know? A lot, actually, especially the ones about her love life. Sophie is in high school and while she says she’s not boy-crazy, she can’t stop thinking about kissable lips or obsessing about her boyfriend Dylan. She also can’t stop thinking about her online guy friend Chaz. And while we’re at it, she also can’t stop wondering about awkward, unpopular boy Murphy. There’s a lot that Sophie’s mother doesn’t know, and Sonya Sones regales these things to us in this wonderful, easy-to-read novel in verse.

I’m really starting to like reading novels in verse. This is my third verse novel for the year, and they make for excellent in-between book. I read this in less than two hours, and it gave my mind an easy break after all the serious books I’ve been reading. Sophie is a good narrator, and I immediately warmed up to her. She’s popular but she’s nice, and not completely selfish. I liked her relationships with her friends and her family, especially her relationship with her mom, which I could kind of relate with. It wouldn’t be entitled this without the mother aspect, right? While it’s not as strong and dramatic as the mother aspect in A Girl Named Mister, I think it still packs a punch. I especially like this passage:

ELEVEN P.M.

There’s this
real corny thing
that Channel 5 does every night
after the late movie,
just before the news comes on.

They flash this sign on the screen
that says:
“It’s eleven p.m.
Do you know where
your children are?”

And just now,
when it came on,
I heard this little tap tap tap on the wall
coming from my mother’s bedroom
and I tapped right back.

What My Mother Doesn’t Know is sweet and charming. Despite the less words, it was still very eloquent. Don’t be fooled by how the blurb makes the books so simple or shallow. Sonya Sones hit the nail on the head in portraying a teenage girl’s preoccupations and experiences in first (second and third) loves. This is one of comfort reads that’s quick, easy and just right. If Sonya Sones’ work are all as comforting as this, then I’m definitely getting her other books. :)

Rating: ★★★★★

2011 Challenge Status:
Required Reading – July

My copy: paperback from Fully Booked

Cover and blurb: Goodreads

Other reviews:
Angieville
Book Harbinger

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Tag Archives: 4 stars

Weddings and Wasabi

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks

The Best of This is a Crazy Planets

Clean

Some Girls Are

What My Mother Doesn’t Know