Stuff I’ve Been Reading Lately #23

Posted on 06/30/2022 by Lenn

BOOKS READ:

The Lost Symbol (Robert Langdon, #3) by Dan Brown
Dawwang: Mga Kababaihang Tagapagtanggol ng Kordilyera by Gantala Press
It’s Not Summer Without You (Summer, #2) by Jenny Han

ONGOING:

The Secret Lives of Introverts: Our Hidden Worlds by Jenn Granneman (50% progress)
The Philippines Is Not A Small Country by Gideon Lasco

BOOKS BOUGHT:

Conjugal Dictatorship by Primitivo Mijares
Dawwang by Gantala Press (Illustrated by Nina Martinez)
The Only Child by Mi-ae Seo
Genesis by Karin Slaughter
I See You by Clare Mackintosh
Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
The Public Has the Right to Know by Bienvenido A. Tan Jr.
Five Hundred Years Without Love by Alex Lacson
The Philippines Is Not A Small Country by Gideon Lasco
Twice Blessed by Ninotchka Rosca
Presidential Plunder: The Quest for the Marcos Ill-Gotten Wealth by Jovito R. Salonga

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Book Review: It’s Not Summer Without You (Summer, #2) by Jenny Han

Posted on 06/29/2022 by Lenn

Title: It’s Not Summer Without You (Summer, #2)

Author: Jenny Han

Format: Paperback

Publication Date: April 27, 2010

Number of Pages: 277

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Genre: YA Contemporary, Romance

Synopsis:

Belly finds out what comes after falling in love in this follow-up to The Summer I Turned Pretty from the New York Times bestselling author of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before (soon to be a major motion picture!), Jenny Han.

Can summer be truly summer without Cousins Beach?

It used to be that Belly counted the days until summer, until she was back at Cousins Beach with Conrad and Jeremiah. But not this year. Not after Susannah got sick again and Conrad stopped caring. Everything that was right and good has fallen apart, leaving Belly wishing summer would never come.

But when Jeremiah calls saying Conrad has disappeared, Belly knows what she must do to make things right again. And it can only happen back at the beach house, the three of them together, the way things used to be. If this summer really and truly is the last summer, it should end the way it started—at Cousins Beach.

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Book Review: The Lost Symbol (Robert Langdon, #3) by Dan Brown

Posted on 06/22/2022 by Lenn

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Title: The Lost Symbol (Robert Langdon, #3)

Author: Dan Brown

Format: Mass Market Paperback

Publication Date: September 15, 2009

Number of Pages: 639

Publisher: Anchor Books

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Adult Fiction, Crime

Synopsis:

In this stunning follow-up to the global phenomenon “The Da Vinci Code,” Dan Brown demonstrates once again why he is the world’s most popular thriller writer. The Lost Symbol is a masterstroke of storytelling–a deadly race through a real-world labyrinth of codes, secrets, and unseen truths . . . all under the watchful eye of Brown’s most terrifying villain to date. Set within the hidden chambers, tunnels, and temples of Washington, D.C., The Lost Symbol accelerates through a startling landscape toward an unthinkable finale.

As the story opens, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is summoned unexpectedly to deliver an evening lecture in the U.S. Capitol Building. Within minutes of his arrival, however, the night takes a bizarre turn. A disturbing object–artfully encoded with five symbols–is discovered in the Capitol Building. Langdon recognizes the object as an ancient invitation . . . one meant to usher its recipient into a long-lost world of esoteric wisdom.

When Langdon’s beloved mentor, Peter Solomon–a prominent Mason and philanthropist–is brutally kidnapped, Langdon realizes his only hope of saving Peter is to accept this mystical invitation and follow wherever it leads him. Langdon is instantly plunged into a clandestine world of Masonic secrets, hidden history, and never-before-seen locations–all of which seem to be dragging him toward a single, inconceivable truth.

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Book Review: The Summer I Turned Pretty (Summer, #1) by Jenny Han

Posted on 06/18/2022 by Lenn

Title: The Summer I Turned Pretty (Summer, #1)

Author: Jenny Han

Format: Paperback

Publication Date: May 5, 2009

Number of Pages: 276

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Genre: YA Contemporary, Romance,

Synopsis:

Some summers are just destined to be pretty.

When each summer begins, Belly leaves her school life behind and escapes to Cousins Beach, the place she has spent every summer of her life. Not only does the beach house mean home away from home, but her favorite people are there: Susannah, her mother’s best friend, and her sons, Conrad and Jeremiah.

Belly has been chasing Conrad for as long as she can remember, and more than anything, she hopes this summer will be different. Despite distractions from a new guy named Cam and lingering looks from Conrad’s brother, Jeremiah, Belly’s heart belongs to Conrad.

Will he offer his to her?

Will this be the summer that changes everything?

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Book Reivew: Dawwang by Gantala Press

Posted on 06/14/2022 by Lenn

Title: Dawwang

Author: Gantala Press, Illustrated by Nina Martinez

Format: Paperback

Publication Date: 2021

Number of Pages: 48

Publisher: Gantala Press

Genre: Comics, Non-fiction, Philippine Literature, Historical

Synopsis:

Si Leticia ‘Tining’ Bula-at ay mula sa grupong Naneng sa probinsiya ng Kalinga. Noong dekada ‘70, may bantang lunurin ng proyektong Chico River Dam ni Presidente Ferdinand Marcos at ng World Bank ang ili ng mga Naneng at iba pang ili sa Kordilyera. Dalawampu’t walong anyos si ‘Nay Tining nang dumating ang National Power Corporation at Philippine Constabulary sa kanilang bayan para simulan ang pagtatayo ng dam. Linabanan ito ng mga umili: nagtayo sila ng mga barikada, binaklas nila ang mga kampo, at direkta nilang hinarap ang mga sundalo. Sa kabila ng pisikal at sikolohikal na karahasan, nagpatuloy ang kilos-protesta ng pamayanan, at nakansela ang dam ni Marcos. Sa kasalukuyan, patuloy ang pakikibaka nina ‘Nay Tining at iba pang kababaihang tagapagtanggol ng Kordilyera laban sa mga korporasyon at mapanirang mga proyekto ng gobyerno sa Ilog Chico at mga karatig-lugar.

Ang DAWWANG (salita ng mga Naneng para sa “ilog”) ay bersiyon sa Filipino ng komiks na ito na nilathala bilang LET THE RIVER FLOW FREE (Ingles) at LASST DEN FLUSS FLIESSEN (Aleman) sa ilalim ng proyektong Movements and Moments: Feminist Generations ng Goethe Institut-Indonesien.

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5 Books I Love

Posted on 06/07/2022 by Lenn

I’ve made another recommendations style entry, but in no particular genre — just a list of books I absolutely love and has stuck with me ever since I’ve read them. This list contains a variety of different genre and authors that you might want to add in your TBR as well. Without further ado, let’s dive right into the list:

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Author Feature #1: Rick Riordan

Posted on 06/05/2022 by Lenn

Hi, everyone! I’m thrilled to announce a new feature on my blog called Author Feature where I give my favorite authors the spotlight that they deserve. Today I’m going to feature Rick Riordan because as you all know by now, I cannot stop raving about his books and through the years, he has become my most favorite middle-grade author. The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series not only got me out of a very long reading slump, but also helped me get through one of the darkest days of my life. Aside from that, these books are very special to me and my husband’s relationship as these books were one of the cornerstones of how we started as a couple. Books truly have a way of making my heart melt. So that’s the quick explanation of why his books have a very special place in my heart and in my life. Continue reading →

Stuff I’ve Been Reading Lately #22

Posted on 05/31/2022 by Lenn

BOOKS READ:

The Hidden Oracle (Trials of Apollo, #1) by Rick Riordan
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
Desaparesidos by Lualhati Bautista

ONGOING:

The Secret Lives of Introverts: Our Hidden Worlds by Jenn Granneman (50% progress)
The Lost Symbol (Robert Langdon, #3) by Dan Brown (16% progress)

BOOKS BOUGHT:

Hollowpox (Nevermoor, #3) by Jessica Townsend
The Burning God (The Poppy War, #3) by R.F. Kuang
Contestable Nation-Space: Cinema, Cultural Politics, and Transnationalism in the Marcos-Brocka Philippines by Rolando B. Tolentino
A Time to Rise: Collective Memoirs of the Union of Democratic Filipinos (KDP) by Rene Ciria Cruz, Cindy Domingo, and Bruce Occena
Press Freedom Under Siege: Reportage That Challenged the Marcos Dictatorship by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo

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Book Review: Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

Posted on 05/26/2022 by Lenn

Title: Holding Up the Universe

Author: Jennifer Niven

Format: Paperback

Publication Date: April 4, 2016

Number of Pages: 391

Publisher:Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary Romance

Synopsis:

Everyone thinks they know Libby Strout, the girl once dubbed “America’s Fattest Teen.” But no one’s taken the time to look past her weight to get to know who she really is. Following her mom’s death, she’s been picking up the pieces in the privacy of her home, dealing with her heartbroken father and her own grief. Now, Libby’s ready: for high school, for new friends, for love, and for every possibility life has to offer. In that moment, I know the part I want to play here at MVB High. I want to be the girl who can do anything.

Everyone thinks they know Jack Masselin, too. Yes, he’s got swagger, but he’s also mastered the impossible art of giving people what they want, of fitting in. What no one knows is that Jack has a newly acquired secret: he can’t recognize faces. Even his own brothers are strangers to him. He’s the guy who can re-engineer and rebuild anything, but he can’t understand what’s going on with the inner workings of his brain. So he tells himself to play it cool: Be charming. Be hilarious. Don’t get too close to anyone.

Until he meets Libby. When the two get tangled up in a cruel high school game—which lands them in group counseling and community service—Libby and Jack are both pissed, and then surprised. Because the more time they spend together, the less alone they feel. Because sometimes when you meet someone, it changes the world, theirs and yours.

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Book Review: Rolling in the Deep (Rolling in the Deep, #0.5) by Mira Grant

Posted on 05/23/2022 by Lenn

Title: Rolling in the Deep (Rolling in the Deep, #0.5)

Author: Mira Grant

Format: Audiobook

Publication Date: April 6, 2015

Number of Pages: 123

Publisher: Subterranean Press

Genre: Thriller, Sci-Fi

Synopsis:

When the Imagine Network commissioned a documentary on mermaids, to be filmed from the cruise ship Atargatis, they expected what they had always received before: an assortment of eyewitness reports that proved nothing, some footage that proved even less, and the kind of ratings that only came from peddling imaginary creatures to the masses.

They didn’t expect actual mermaids. They certainly didn’t expect those mermaids to have teeth.

This is the story of the Atargatis, lost at sea with all hands. Some have called it a hoax; others have called it a maritime tragedy. Whatever the truth may be, it will only be found below the bathypelagic zone in the Mariana Trench…and the depths are very good at keeping secrets.

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Lenn of Spades ♠

Tag Archives: books read