“The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quite alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature. As longs as this exists, and it certainly always will, I know that then there will always be comfort for every sorrow, whatever the circumstances may be. And I firmly believe that nature brings solace in all troubles.”

Attention! This book contains: rotten potatoes, politics, new friendships, jam, thieves, rules, goodnight kisses, hunger, fear, courage and a lot of diary entries.

How do you rate a teenage diary? I don’t think you can analyze and rate something that wasn’t meant to be published in the first place. I’m not sure if Anne would want to share her private diary with the world, but I’m glad it was because it helped me understand what it was like to be a jew during the war.

It breaks my heart to know that to this day, people are judged by their religion. The Holocaust was brutal and there was so much cruelty back then… and for what? They were punishing innocent people just because of what they believed in. But I digress. 

Anne was a very smart girl. At first I wasn’t her biggest fan because of how bratty she sounded and the way she talked about other people when she started her diary. But in a short amount of time you see how much she developed as a person and how she always tried to do better. I guess that’s what happens when you are forced to grow up quickly and you start to understand what’s really important and what really matters. At the end of the day she was still a teenage girl who had no choice but to hide with her family to survive all the cruelty that was going on. She lost her home, she starved, she couldn’t make noise, she couldn’t go outside, she had nothing to do and she had to share her new home with another family… for two years! I don’t think I would be strong enough to keep myself sane like she did. She went through very difficult times, and I respect her and her family very much for it.

The outcome was really sad and my heart broke when her diary finished abruptly, but I believe Anne accomplished one of her biggest dreams: becoming a writer. Her book was already read by millions of people and that is somewhat comforting to me.

I think I picked this book for the first time when I was about ten years old, but I’m glad I read it again as an adult because now I fully understand it. There is a lot that you can learn with Anne Frank, and her entries should be shared with the world. If you are thinking about picking it up, I would say to keep in mind that this is not necessarily a book to enjoy, but a book to learn from. Not a should read, but a must read.

xoxo, Neide

“But sometimes remembering isn’t for yourself, sometimes you do it just to make someone else smile. Those lies were allowed.” – 5/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: black coffee, interviews, recordings, printed threats, camping sites, lies, clues, drug dealers, abbreviations, secret cell phones and missing golden retrievers.

This was so entertaining, I was hooked from the beginning until the end! 

In this book, a girl named Pippa decides to make a project about a muder that took place in her town five years ago as her final year project. In that cold case, a girl named Andie went missing and her body never was found. The main suspect for her possible murder was her boyfriend Sal, who was found dead in the woods a few days after she went missing. Nobody knows exactly what happened, but the entire town truly believes Sal murdered Andie and then killed himself because he felt remorse for killing her. Pippa was always intrigued by this case and she is not convinced Sal did it, so she decides to make her own investigation. Of course, she finds a lot of interesting things the police never found out, and she starts to get texts and printed threats warning her to stop. Even though she’s afraid, she teams up with Sal’s brother, Ravi, and she keeps going. She continues investigating and day by day she becomes closer to uncover the truth to what happened to both Andie and Sal.

I had to give this book five stars because I loved it so much. What was so great about this book for me is how I was always guessing what happened and trying to connect all the pieces of the puzzle. You never get bored because at the end of each chapter you learn about a new shocking detail that you need to fit in the story. There are so many suspects and so many motives that you will never know for sure what happened to Andie nor Sal. Not only that, but I was also a big fan of the main character, Pip. If you follow my reviews, you probably know by now that I really like strong, intelligent and motivated female main characters, and she was definitely one of them. Also… I can’t be the only one who thought about Regina George as Andie the entire time! I mean c’mon… beautiful and popular blonde mean girl? It would be impossible not to imagine Rachel McAdams as Andie… or it’s probably just me.

If you like mysteries or murder stories, this book is a great one to pick! I had no idea of who had done it and I was hooked until the end when I finally knew what happened. I highly recommend the audiobook version for this book. There are a lot of interview recordings made by Pip so there are some cool sound effects and a full cast of narrators. Please be aware of the following trigger warnings before reading the book: rape, drug abuse, kidnapping and violence.

xoxo, Neide

“Captain Wasington and Nessie versus the world.” – 3.75/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: spy nicknames, scenes at parties, bicycles, green SUVs, pumpkin mailboxes, hashtags, rumours, nudes, flat tires, videos, online dates, a lot of pranks and double standards.

This was not at all what I expected. I had the wrong idea of what the book was about because the title itself defined the book for me before I even read it. If you know nothing about this book, you probably think just by the title that this would be a romance book that features a bad boy named Kai. You’re wrong, just like I was. Kai is in fact featured in the main romance, but he is actually a really nice boy who had to show his “wrong side” in the book – which, to be honest, it wasn’t even that bad.

This book is about a girl named Vanessa who lost her mother a few years ago and her life crumbled after it happened. She knows how much her father suffered with her mother’s loss, so she has trouble committing to relationships. She decided to never have boyfriends, so she just fools around with boys for fun. One day, the boy who she was seeing betrays her and shares a private video of her that he filmed himself. Everyone at school sees the video and of course she’s very embarrassed of what happened. She’s very angry with the boy who exposed her and she decides to get her revenge. Incomes good guy Kai. He also has bad blood with the same guy, so together they turn on their “wrong side” and become partners to get revenge on the bad things they have been through.

This is one of those books that really show the power of double standards. Vanessa was sleeping around with guys often, but when the video was shared with the entire school, she was the only one who became a target of criticism and not the boy who filmed her. And mind you, he was also sleeping around with several girls! I think the book really captured the essence of how quickly girls get judged by what they do and how boys are praised by doing the exact same things. So yeah, I thought that was interesting and the book did a great job showing that difference between genders.

I think what really stood out the most for me in this book was Kai’s personality. His back is probably hurting for carrying the entire book – sorry, this was lame. I know I probably won’t remember this book forever because the story isn’t the most memorable, but I will never forget Kai’s character. He is a very peculiar, fun boy who deals with his problems with humour and jokes. He was a ray of sunshine during the entire book, and a very memorable and special character who basically made the book, in my opinion.

I’ve recently read the DIMILY series from Estelle Maskame and I really liked it as well. I’m really liking her style of writing and I will definitely read more of her books in the future. This is a really cute book! I read it in one sitting and I regret nothing.

xoxo, Neide

“I remind myself that there is no saving of people —people can only save themselves. The best you can do is help when they’re ready.” – 4.25/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: post it notes, cruise ships, measurements, stress baking, wedding proposals, flower bouquets, leukemia, scarfs, prison letters, red lingerie, toxic relationships, beaches, bright clothes and shared beds.

For an adult romance… this was really good. Adult romances are not my favorite books to read so I was skeptical when I picked this one. But in the end, I actually enjoyed it and I thought it was a very fun and different book.

I really liked the concept of a romance blossoming by two people sharing the same space without actually crossing paths. They got to know each other not only by the notes they left, but also by their habits, leftovers and the other one’s trace around the apartment. I’m also a big fan of slow burn romances, and this is a great example of that. Even though Tiffy and Leon share the same flat and bed and they communicate via post it notes, they only physically meet halfway through the book! And I have to say their encounter was one of my favorite parts of the book. Kudos to the author for creating the perfect encounter scene. It was so funny!

I also liked how the characters were described and their personality. Tiffy is like a ball of sunshine, she’s a very caring, energetic and fun person to be around. And I would describe Leon as cool, calm and collected. They balanced each other in a perfect way, and I enjoyed their relationship a lot.

I also thought it was cool how the subject of toxic relationships was added in here. Tiffy was in an abusive relationship before and like so many other people, she didn’t think much of it because it wasn’t necessarily physical abuse. Her ex boyfriend was very manipulative, controlling and abused her mentally. I’m very happy this was brought up because I know it’s a reality for a lot of people who don’t even realise it, and maybe it would enlighten someone who’s going through a similar situation after they read the book.

Like I said before, it’s not easy for me to find an enjoyable adult romance, but this was very funny and well made. It definitely lives up to the hype!

xoxo, Neide

“Mock me all you like. Whatever I imagined then, now it is I who would beg and grovel for a kind word from your lips.” His eyes are black with desire. “By you, I am forever undone.” – 4.25/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: exiled queens, serpents, dry blood, identical twins, buried feelings, tilted crowns, black eyes, bargains, politics, war, curses and word games.

I can’t believe this series is over, I had such a great time reading this!

One of my favorite things about this series is how words are so important in all instances. Since fairies can’t lie, they have to word what they say very carefully if they want to be deceptive. You can’t just assume what the characters are saying, because they can be misleading and you’ll only find out later, which was something I really loved. It definitely made me think of the power of words and how they can be used to manipulate and/or avoid the truth.

The word games were pretty cool, but there was so much I liked about this series. Jude was an amazing, strong female character, and one of my favorite heroines of all time. I also really liked the darkness of the series and the dark romance. I have to admit I was very shocked with how the last book ended because of the huge betrayal, but when I discovered what really happened, it made me love Cardan even more. The story was always very interesting, it had a great pace and I was always looking forward to what would happen next.

The conclusion for the series was really good in my opinion. I know a novella will be out in November, and I’m here for it! If all of Holly Black’s books have the same quality as this series, I really need to pick all of them up.

xoxo, Neide

“Alice asked the Cheshire Cat, who was sitting in a tree,
“What road do I take?”
The cat asked, “Where do you want to go?”
“I don’t know,” Alice answered.
“Then,” said the cat, “it really doesn’t matter, does it?” – 5/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: lizards with ladders, rabbit holes, flamingos, soldier cards, painted roses, caterpillars smoking, teacups, pigs dressed as babies, mushrooms, poems and songs, smiling cats, mock turtles, croquet, size changes, crazy hats and a lot of nonsense.

Alice in Wonderland is one of those books I’ve always wanted to read. And now that I’m trying to read more classics, I thought this would be the perfect time to pick it up. I was lucky enough to buy a copy that had the original illustrations from John Tenniel – the illustrator that worked with the author – and a small biography of Lewis Carroll. This way I was able to understand a small part of what his life was like and what was his source of inspiration, which was a little girl named Alice Liddell who he liked to tell stories.

But let’s talk about the book itself. How to describe Alice in Wonderland? In a nutshell: this book is the definition of childhood, nonsense and craziness. I can confidently say that I’ve never read a book like this, and I completely understand why it became so popular between people of all ages, and a classic. I thought it would be somewhat difficult to read because it was first published in 1865, but I was wrong. It’s an easy book to read and I finished it quickly, while having fun.

The only Alice in Wonderland story I knew before was the Disney adaptation from 1951, which is one of my favorite Disney movies of all time and it holds a very special place in my heart. So of course, it’s normal I made some comparisons while I was reading this. The stories are very similar, but I think the book is even crazier. I loved to read about all the characters I knew – and some that I had never heard about – and to learn the poems and songs that are dear to so many people. I was only sad that there was no mention of Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum because they are two of my favorite characters, but apparently they are mentioned in the sequel, Through the Looking-Glass.

I highly encourage you to read this book, no matter how old you are. It is a beautiful story that reminds you of what was like to be a child. When you are a kid, nothing really matters and nothing is taken seriously, as it should be. I’m very happy to finally read this, it’s a remarkable piece of art.

xoxo, Neide

“In the end, we made enemies with our heads, but we unmade them with our hearts.” – 3.25/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: forged swords, beautiful jewelry, visitors, flower crowns, golden dresses, fires, bad friendships, deep blue eyes, citrines, miscarriages, traditions and cryptic letters.

I really, really wanted to love this, but I was somewhat disappointed. I’m having trouble writing this review because I have mixed feelings about this book.

On the one side, this is a very typical Kiera Cass book in the sense that you have monarchs and beautiful gowns, and all these feminine elements that I will always love.

But for the other side, the pacing in the book is really weird. Nothing happens in the first half of the book, and then everything – and I mean EVERYTHING – happens in the last third of the book. So fortunately the story becomes more interesting with time, but when it reaches that one point, it all happens very fast.

The main character is very sweet and a good person, but she’s not necessarily a strong heroine in my opinion. I also found her relationship with her best friend very weird. Delia Grace is supposably her best friend, but she only cares about herself and she wants to climb up the social ladder, even if it means she has to step on Hollis to get what she wants. Unfortunately, Hollis is too much of a good person to understand that, but I’m hoping she’ll understand who her true friends are in the sequels.How to describe the romance in this book? Well, the romance was… short. And I knew something would happen because I spotted three possible love interests right away. I didn’t think something would happen in this book to eliminate one of the love interests, but I was wrong. I can’t say too much about this, you should pick it up and see it for yourself! I know a lot of people are comparing this new series to The Selection, but I didn’t think the stories were similar whatsoever… but like I said, you should read it for yourself to take your own conclusions and have your own opinions. I don’t think this is her best work, but it’s not that bad either. At this point I’m interested to know what will happen next and I’ll definitely continue the series.

xoxo, Neide

“He looks up at me with his night-colored eyes, beautiful and terrible all at once. ‘For a moment,’ he says, ‘I wondered if it wasn’t you shooting bolts at me.’
I make a face at him. “And what made you decide it wasn’t?”
He grins up at me. ‘They missed.’” – 4.5/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: betrayals, fake queens, missed arrows, raw fish, arranged weddings, maskerades, hambushes, drop shaped earrings, bargains, poisons and good word choices.

Wow, I’m really loving this series! In the first book, there was a major plot twist at the end and I immediately knew I had to pick the next book ASAP. I wasn’t disappointed when I finished the second book, because it was even better than the first book. I’m really enjoying this series because there is always something happening and is always difficult to put the books down. I’m loving the dark romance, the book’s fae theme, the strong female character, the twists and turns… It’s just amazing.

In this book we discover who “already betrayed” Jude, and I have to say… I was shocked. I didn’t expect the traitor to be who it was, but it definitely made the story more interesting. Still, I think the best part of the book for me was definitely the ending! My jaw dropped when I read those paragraphs, I just couldn’t believe what was happening! I would never see that coming in a million years. I wasn’t even angry… I was just shocked.

I’ve already started the third and last book of this series – because, you know, I had to know what happened after that ending – and I’m loving it. I honestly don’t want this series to be over!

xoxo, Neide

“I’d done the right thing. I always did. It just would have been nice if someone had noticed.” – 4.25/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: lollipops, pizza slices, wheelchairs, newspapers, studio time, altered clocks, thrift stores, carousels, creepy “friends” and saints for every possible situation.

Another great Sarah Dessen book. What took me by surprise though was the fact that this was not as sumery as her other books. Surprisingly there were no beaches, lakes or rivers involved. The setting was in Lakeview, but there were no aquatic activities and the kids were in school, so I guess it wasn’t exactly summer. It didn’t bother me because what I like about her books – and you can see it in this book too – is that she writes stories that make you forget about the real world. Her books are so atmospheric that you get immersed in the story and forget all the rest. In this book in particular, I swear at some points I smelled the pizza they were eating – and yes, I got hungry a few times, but can you blame me?

Not only that, but she is really good at triggering her readers’ emotions. The entire book is an emotional rollercoaster! I laughed, I cried, I got scared, I got frustrated, I got angry, and the list goes on. I felt so bad for the main character Sydney and how her parents kept neglecting her and how they treated her near the end. I swear I could feel her pain and frustration for the way she was being treated, all because of her brother’s past actions.

Sarah also writes really good friendships and interesting friends, which I also appreciate. I loved the family that Sydney got close to, who was like a second family to her and was there for her when her parents weren’t. Speaking of characters, Ames really annoyed me. I felt so scared for Sydney when her parents invited him to stay in their house alone with her TWICE. That’s crazy! I would also be scared if I was in her position… he was a creep!

I liked this book because it felt like a complete story. You get a dose of romance, hard hitting moments, a very real and deep backstory and a great setting/atmosphere. Not my favorite book from her, but it’s still a very solid book in my opinion.

xoxo, Neide