It's Been Awhile

It's weird being here again. Life has been crazy for me lately. From dealing with family, relationships, work, and mental health; you can say I have a lot on my plate at the moment. On top of that, this whole crisis with the COVID-19 pandemic, the quarantine has been getting to me. I'm not here to complain but to simply get back into the groove of things. 

With all this craziness going on in my life at the moment I do want to take this time to get back into what I love doing, writing. Writing has always been a way for me to communicate my feelings, what I'm thinking, or what I'm feeling. Since I will have all this free time I might as well channel my boredom into something productive. I want to get back to writing poetry, my book reviews, and simply updating my social media platforms. 

Now the only thing for me to do to get a kick start on getting my blog back on track is to stop being lazy. Not that I'm lazy because I voluntarily want to, its due to many factors at this moment. Deep down I want to move past this and be the best version of me that I could be. I just need to keep pushing myself to be who I was meant to be. 

            So, my goal is to keep my blog updated as much as possible and get those reviews up and running. My reading goal is currently 46 books. As of right now I have read 13 books so far. I’m in limbo at the moment on whether I should try to do reviews for the books I’ve read so far, or should I just do it for the next book I complete. I guess I’ll decide as I go at this point.  

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Finding Jake - Bryan Reardon

Genre – Suspence/Mystery

Publishing Date – November 7, 2015

Page count – 261 pages

Source - owned copy

Format – paperback

Standalone/Series – Standalone

Rating - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Finding Jake follows a stay at home dad raising two kids, Jake and Laney while their successful lawyer mother go to work everyday. You learn about each character through the eyes of Simon Connolly; from birth until their teenage years. With them in high school now; They're in high school; the angst-ridden father should feel more relaxed. But now his darkest fear is coming true. There's been a shooting at school. Simon races to the rendezvous point, where his worst nightmare unfolds. Jake is the only child missing. Simon begins to search for answers, for hope. Is it possible he doesn't really know his son?

        I remembered when I picked up this book and wanted to read it. I've always been a horror/mystery fan and this book was right up my alley. I didn't even check Goodread to see what others had to say about this book. Even if sadly it collected dust on my shelf for about a year. I have a million other books on my TBR shelf and this wasn't on the top of my list. So when I looked for another book to read I looked right past Finding Jake, and picked every other book. To be completely honest, I made an assumption about this book and I assumed this book was going to be a quick and boring read. I tend to go through many phases when it comes to certain genres. 

        The thing is before I decided to read Finding Jake I forgot what it was about. I didn't reread the summary ok th back. I just picked It up and started to read it. I was really intrigued by the writing and the view point. I barely read books that are in the male perspective. Normally they're female or they are in third person so it was refreshing and something new to experience. I was really into the characters and when the news dropped I was so into finding out the truth. I could not put the book down. I really enjoyed the feel and emotional experience when I read this book. I would highly recommend this book to everyone. 

      

Book Review - "We Were Liars" - E. Lockhart

Goodreads rating : ⭐️⭐️⭐️/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 

"we are liars. We are beautiful and privileged. We are cracked and broken."

This book was seen a lot on bookstagram. It was given a lot of hype and had a 3.85 rating on Goodreads. Normally I do not give into the hype of certain books but I actually gave in after while and got the book myself. But I didn't pick it up for months after I bought it. I just let it sit on my shelf collecting dust. Honestly, I didn't even know what it was about.

So when I finally decided to give this book ago, I was kind of iffy about it. I thought he would inside and grab my attention, it made me want to see what it was about and all the secrets they held. I read this as I was going to work, most of my reading is done traveling. Since It wasn't a huge book so I was able to finish it pretty fast.

While reading this I actually wrote down a list of the pros and the cons of the book. They were few good things but they were more cons than anything. If you guys have read my previous blog posts then you'll know, I hate writing bad reviews. So I try and make it as positive as possible but remain very truthful to the author, everyone reading, and most importantly stay truthful to myself. I love what I do as a hobby and if I wasn't truthful to myself then I wouldn't be doing this at all. 

Not for all the pros of the book. The first pro would be that this book was able to keep me on the edge. I wasn't necessarily board with the book but it did keep me on my toes so it never did get boring. The next pro is that it was a very easy read. I was in a reading from so I wanted to find something that was easy to read and it wasn't 300 pages plus. I think the most important pro would have to be that the characters and their personality were very dominant and it known to the reader. Each character was well known and they each had their own role and in their own way played a significant role in unraveling the story. For the final pro, I personally like the way the book was written; it was an easy flow of words, so the pages turned very quickly.

Now for the most dreaded part, I just found the plot very weird and sometimes hard to understand. Even after finishing the book I still do not understand the whole reason for the book. I don't know if it's just me or what but In my opinion, I think the plot summary on the flaps of the books were the most exciting thing I read. The story was a bit of a let down. Again, this is all my opinion. I'm not attacking or trying to hurt anyone's feelings. 

Book Review - "Hell is Empty all the Demons are Here" - Mark Rounds

I am a huge fan of free books, I mean who isn't right? So I received this beauty from full of books. If you guys do not know about them, please visit them on Twitter @Full ofBookss. Not only was I excited to be a part of a book blog and community, I also got free books in the process. I mean it's more than just free book that made me happy, I was to do something that I love, blogging and reading. I started book blog over a year ago depending on when this actually post. Blogging has helped me tremendously and it makes me look forward to things and keep positive thoughts in my head.

I was given a list to choose from and this was the only book that sounded a tad bit interesting. So from the start I already knew that this book wouldn't get a good review. There is my negative thinking kicked in. I know I shouldn't judge a book by its cover but, look wise it doesn't look appealing to me. It was very hard not to judge it even though I know I shouldn't have.

I opened up the first page and I made sure to clear my head and keep only positive vibes flowing. I don't know if it was me or if I was getting into another reading slump again. I set the book down for a few hours and then I gave it another chance and I got two chapters in. I don't know how I feel about this book honestly. I hate writing bad reviews but I was determined to finish it and like it but I couldn't. I felt like it was a drag for me.

So I put the book down for quite a long time and I forgot about it actually. I was actually hoping to revisit it and maybe get into it more than I was before. But days turn into weeks and I still haven't picked it back up. I know I have been slacking but it's not on purpose I promise. I was really determined to start over and complete this task. So I started all over again I truly wanted to get lost inside the story. I read a few pages and pages kept turning interning. It was a very easy read and was very fast pace. 

The pros of this book were it's a very beautiful hunk a book. Two, it's a very fast pace book. The third pro was the characters, they develop very quickly and you learn about each character as they come. The final pro was that it started off with a bang and it sparked an interest for me. But with every pro there is a con.

The cons of the book were as followed. The first thing for me was that it was very intimidating, both size and the genre of the book. I'm very picky when it comes to reading. I like reading books in genres I know I will like or love. The next con was that some parts are very dragging and I felt like some of the characters were just pushed onto me. I actually got lost reading it because I was so confused with who was who and what was going on. 

Book Review - "One With You' - Sylvia Day

Book Review - "One With You' - Sylvia Day

                Please excuse me while I fan girl right now! You do not understand how excited I was when I stumbled across the news of the final installment of the Crossfire series. So I was walking to the train to go home from work, I was really into my music and I was staring at every advertisement and how graffiti decorated the walls. Then there it was, plastered on the wall with no artwork painted on it. Sylvia Day’s newest release to the Crossfire series “One with You”. I did a double take, thinking my eyes were deceiving me of this wonderful poster. But in fact it wasn’t, this beauty was real and there would be closure for Eva and Gideon’s relationship.

                I’ve been waiting for this for the longest time now. The last book I read of the series was in July 2015. That’s a very long time for me to wait to see what happens in their crazy lives. I just knew that this book will be the cherry on top of the sundae. I had to wait a few months to get my hands on this beauty. When I did finally get my hands around the perfect spine, I almost died. My heart shattered into a million pieces, I enjoyed it though. The cover, the one, the thickness, everything was simply beautiful. When I started reading I couldn’t stop. I have followed since 2012. That’s a very long time being a fan of Sylvia Day’s work. Being able to watch Eva and Gideon grow and work together was a great pleasure and I couldn’t help but be in complete awe.  

                I don’t think I have anything negative to say about this book. Well I know that everything is completely fictional and it is a bummer because their relationship was so cute and hot. Realistically this never happens and a lot of erotica’s’ today tend to follow very similar outlines. This series have been compared to the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy. Let me just say that it is similar in some aspects of it but overall the Crossfire series beats Fifty Shades for creativity, writing styles, character development and growth.

                In my opinion I liked both Eva and Gideon equally. On both cases they have done their own share of dirt in their past and both owned up to it and were able to leave it in the past and grow together. They were so perfect for each other at the end of the day. Their differences were a huge thing but love overcame anything else. They both grew up both alone and as a couple. I literally cannot get over that this was the end of the series. My heart broke but it was a great four years with Eva, Gideon, and Sylvia Day.

                Now for the ratings, on Goodreads and Amazon I gave this beauty a solid 5 out of 5 stars. If you didn’t catch the drift yet, I simply loved this book and I highly recommend this series to everyone who likes sex, love, and books. 

Book Review - "Shattered Rose" - Tammy L. Gray

                      Once I started buying books on kindle I couldn’t stop myself, especially if they’re free. Because they were free I downloaded as many as I could and I am not ashamed. I began reading this book while I was binge reading books on my kindle. During this time I was abandoning my actual books that were on my book shelves. This actually went on for a while and I feel like was a trader to my books I owned. I was reading Kindle quite often and it would be a go to place to read. It was so easy and convenient to have around. I took this everywhere I went especially when I was traveling. I would read on the train to and from work, traveling to Connecticut and on the way back.

                I was going through all the books that I already owned on kindle and deleting all the books I knew I wasn’t going to read. When I was doing that I stumbled upon this book. I just remembered why I downloaded this book in the first place, and it was because it was free. I mean who wouldn’t download a free book? I didn’t remember much of anything else, I didn’t remember what the book was about so I did a little re-reading and It tempted me to make this book my next read.  This book is a standalone but it’s also a part of a series, the Winsor series.

                At first, it started out pretty slow but within a few chapters I was hooked. As I learned about Avery I was able to connect and relate to her fairly easily. I began to really compare myself with her and how she was as a person and not a fictional character. What Avery went through was hard for her and I know what it feels like to have depression, not being just being sad for a few days but having sadness consume you for months at a time. Having depression is a lot for one person to handle. So watching her go through that was hard because it hit close to home.

                When someone attractive comes into view of course you will stop and stare. That’s what Avery did, she basically became star strucked when she first laid eyes on Jake. But Issy, her roommate gave her a warning to stay away from him and she couldn’t help herself. He showed interest in her and things just evolved from there and next thing you know it Avery is hurt and hear broken.

                I was drawn to the story and honestly I don’t think I have any negative comments about this book. I personally enjoyed reading this book and It had me drawn to it and made me not want to stop reading it. Even though I liked the book I don’t know I will be reading the other books. The second books is Shackled Lily, which follow Issy and you get to learn more about her past, and the final book of the series is Splintered Oak, which follows Jakes and you see things from his point of view. Each book is a standalone so you don’t have to read all three books. But as I was writing this I re-read what each book was about and now I kind of want to finish off the series. I don’t know yet but it may be added to my TBR list.

                Now onto the ratings, this book got a rating of 5 out of 5 stars simply because I was able to relate to the main character so closely. I really enjoyed sitting down and binge reading this book. Plus I love books that make me tear up, it made me so happy for her and to watch her slowly learn to cope and realize things made my heart melt.

Should I or should I not?

Lately I have been obsessed with watching YouTube videos on book hauls, book wrap-ups, and things along those lines. Now I wanted to do the same thing since I happen to buy, own, and borrow a lot of books. So with that I might as well make a YouTube dedicated to books since I already have social media sites dedicated to books and book dedicated things. So what is stopping me exactly? Oh, many, many reasons telling me not to.      

Reason #1 is my appearance. I’m very self-conscious of the way I look. I don’t think highly of myself and it makes me depressed knowing/thinking people will be talking negatively about me.

Reason #2 is popularity. I know this shouldn’t matter but it’s on my mind and I’m scared that my YouTube channel won’t go anywhere. I automatically assume it’s because I’m ugly and that’s why people don’t watch any of my videos. I feel like you have to look a certain way or you must have a skill in order for your YouTube to get any videos. I want to do a YouTube channel dedicated to books because books make me happy. Books create a safe haven for me and I want to share that with you guys all around the world.

Reason #3 is a camera/computer. I have all of those things and a phone but the problem is that I took down my computer and I honestly won’t have the time or the energy to edit videos. I know that sounds bad but having two jobs can be very tiring. Plus for my camera I don’t have the wire to upload to my computer if I had my computer up and running. But I do have my phone to at least upload videos and try to edit some of them. I don’t know how far that would get me in the booktube world.

Reason #4 is entertainment. I am very paranoid that my videos will be boring and no one will even take the time to watch them or subscribe to my channel.

Reason #5 is I’m scared. I do not know what to expect and sometimes I hate not knowing. Well I kind of have an idea where my booktube will go but it won’t be good sadly enough.

So guys I need your honest opinion about whether or not I should go and create a channel dedicated to books or just stick to my blog? So please leave me a comment or even shoot me an email giving your honest opinion about this. My contact information is SashaaMonique@gmail.com

 

 

Book Review # 3 - Delilah S. Dawson - "Servants of the Storm"

Book Review - Delilah S. Dawson - "Servants of the Storm" 

First look at this book made me want to read it. I'm a person who loves dark art, gothic art, or anything along those lines. So when I first came across this book, it simply grabbed my attention. After attempting to read Identity Theft by Anna Davis, I bec
ame very skeptic of it and didn't know whether or not to actually read this. But I'm glad I did. Back to the cover page, I think this is the main reason I even picked up this book in the first place. 

When I first began reading this book, I didn't know what to expect, so I just went for it. I was sitting on the train heading to work, I started to read and I got lost inside. I did not want to stop reading this book. It was pretty hard to stop, I wanted to continue. After work on my train rides back home, I make sure I take my book out and read. I even kept a highlighter handy for quotes that I found perfect for a new instagram photo. There are many pages highlighted and folded up because the book is really good.

If I had to rate it from a 1 to 5, with 1 being really bad and five being the best book ever, it would have to be a solid 4. Even though it is a young adult book, I really did enjoy reading it. I would recommend it to friends, family, and anyone who wants to find a good book to read. 

I think I found it very interesting because I could kind of relate to the main character, Dovey. She got made fun of because she kind of lost her mind when she lost her best friend in a storm. She became known as crazy, in which she was put on medication and that made her memory hazy. I personally would be like that if I lost someone very close to me. But the whole demon thing kind of threw me off. I'm very harsh about books dealing with unrealistic things like demons and humans having babies and creating a baby to use. I'm a person who rather read about true crimes, horror, or mystery over romantic or science fiction. But regardless of that I was able to complete the book and say that I did in fact enjoy this book. 

Welcome

I have never been good at keeping blogs or keeping certain social medias up to date. I wouldn't say it is because I have a very good social life, but its the total opposite. I don't have a social life really, I barely see anyone, I'm too busy working or just being tired. On top of being really tired I have a crappy laptop and I barely use my regular computer, which makes it hard to keep my blogs updated. Even though I'm on my phone basically all day that should making a blog very easy right? Well it doesn't actually. I don't know why I find it hard to keep my blogs up to date with things.


So today I am going to try and keep this blog up to date with things. I don't know whether to keep this blog as a poetry blog, a book blog, or a make up blog. I feel like everyone is into make up now and is trying to become a make up artist. Well in my case I'm not, I just enjoy make up and dressing up. I have no intentions to make that a career, its more of a simple hobby that I enjoy. Writing on the other hand is my love, I would love to make a career out of writing someday. I know I'm not the best writer there is and I can accept that but I am a person with a lot of ideas and there is always room for improvement. I am ready to try and grow with this blog. whether or not people actually take the time to read my blog I will try and keep this more up to date.


This blog might be a mix of different things, nothing in specific but just what I feel like. It may be a book review or it may be new make up buys, or it may be something I bought. Whatever it may be there will be a blog on here about it.