59th Diamond: Eleanor & Park

I had to be honest, the cover kinda got my attention. It just looked cute.

But nooo, the real reason why I read this book was because it was on the best selling shelf and to be honest, I am not disappointed. It's a book with lots of drama of course, but a good book nevertheless. I love how the main character is not the typical pretty school girl and the villains are all actually nice, except for Eleanor's step father which I will explain more later on.

It is basically a story on first love, the first experiences, and life dramas. I guess this book is recommended for those who have experienced it so that its like reliving the memories; however, I will not recommend this book to those who are currently trying to move on. NO, DON'T READ THIS BOOK. 

Continuing on with the plot summary

The story is told from a third person point of view, but the view changes from Eleanor's point and Park's. The setting is in Omaha, and both of the characters are 16 years old. Aah, the age of raging hormones.

First things first, our main character Eleanor has a step dad, a beautiful mother, and few siblings. She is fat and has red hair. Flaming curly red hair. Eleanor's dad is very abusive and most of the time drunk, which kinda explains why Eleanor and her siblings are always cowering in fear at home. It was also later revealed that the step dad wanted to violate Eleanor. He already started terrorizing her through writing dirty words in her textbook.

Park, was a half Korean and half caucasian, Irish I think. He's kind of cool and he lives in a well being family, compared with Eleanor's. Park and Eleanor first met in the school bus. The bus was also where they got close. It started with when Park realized Eleanor was reading the comic book he was reading as well as they sat side by side. He then started lending the comic books to Eleanor and she would always return it crisp and clean after she reads it. From then it proceeds to small discussion on music and not long after, they kind of get together. 

c: heyteenbookshey.tumblr

There wasn't really a "Would you be my girlfriend?" moment. They just grew close and even went on several dates. Park's mother kind of questioned Park's taste regarding Eleanor, but in the end, she supported the relationship. Eleanor kept seeing Park without her mother or step father knowing. If they knew about it, her step father would grew furious. So all she did was lie and told them that she went to her friend's house, Tina. While the truth is Tina is a bully in school. 

c: pinterest

Everything went well until one night, Eleanor's stash of gifts is found out by her step dad. At that moment, she ran away. Park helped her ran away with the approval of his father, as well as Tina who can actually relate with her. They then went to Eleanor's uncle's house which was in another place and Eleanor stayed there, without contacting Park until both of them have grown up. During the years Eleanor didn't contact Park, Park kept waiting. And in the end, it was only said that there was a postcard from Eleanor with only 3 words in it.

Fin

What I love about the book is how I can actually imagine the world the characters are living in. Not my favorite world, but a vivid world nevertheless. The book wasn't really that long either. BUT I can't say this is a must read. It's a good book, a good read, but not a must. Maybe because I'm not a fan of characters who have complicated backgrounds. I'll give it a 3.5/5.

c: pandanemar.tumblr

That would be it for my Eleanor and Park review. The next book I'm already reading is John Green's An Abundance of Katherines. I like how John Green thinks. Really, I do. He's a nerd you might say, but he's a cool nerd. Like he is really good in articulating. That's why I've decided to read another book of his. Of course, it is not as good as The Fault in Our Stars, maybe....I don't know haven't finished the book yet. So far 6 chapters and it's been good. Typical John Green but good. Look forward to its review! 

Sincerely yours,

Alicia. V

58th Diamond: Shirokuma

A WHITE BEAR

That is basically what Shirokuma means ;) yes, literally

JUST LOOK AT THAT CUTENESS

*official new obsession: polar bears*

Okay back to the main point, today I will be reviewing the new dessert bar located at Pantai Indah Kapuk called SHIROKUMA. Thus explaining the polar bear intro....

It's a nice quaint cafe and I love the interior. So many wood interiors that makes the place comfy. WOOT. I LOVE MINIMALISTIC WOOD INTERIOR. I am truly sorry that I wasn't able to take photos of the cafe, cause it was really crowded and I had to wait 1 hour to actually get a table. The place was nice and the service was really friendly; however, it's still slow. The typical problem of a newly opened cafe or restaurant: slow service. This might be because it was too crowded and the waitresses are just tired, or they are just not used to it yet. BUT, they were really friendly, which in my opinion is a BIG PLUS. 

So what did my friends and I ordered? 

1. Twist soft cream

Who the hell would go to a green tea dessert cafe and not order their green tea ice cream? People with diabetes of course. No offence to those who have one really, get well soon. There are 3 types of soft serve ice cream on the menu: vanilla, matcha, or twist (matcha & vanilla). Reminds you of the A&W ice cream you can get in malls doesn't it? Opinion on the matcha ice cream would be IT IS DELICIOUS. It's not too sweet and the taste of the matcha is just perfectly subtle. The vanilla ice cream is just typical vanilla. I'm definitely gonna come here just to buy their soft serve and leave. And I'm not shittin you. The price of a soft serve is Rp. 15.000.

2. Snow affogato

Some of you might be familiar with the term "affogato." "Affogato" is basically vanilla ice cream with fresh espresso poured on it. In Shirokuma, they have snow affogato. Then what is the snow? COTTON CANDY. They actually put a big fluffy cotton candy on top of the ice cream bowl and we pour the espresso on it. Might get a little bit messy but DAMN it was nice. The price of a snow affogato is Rp. 35.000.

3. Taste plate

I honestly forgot what this menu was called...truly sorry. But it sounds something like "taste plate." Don't worry, you'll know it when you see the menu there. It basically contains what they put in the parfait but this time separated. Consists of red bean, mochi, green tea cake, and a soft cream serve of your choice. The red bean was sweet but goes perfect with the ice cream, mochi was average, green tea cake was a little bit dry but the ice cream makes it way better, and the ice cream is just PLAIN DELISH. I am a hardcore ice cream fan aren't I...I forgot the price but pretty sure it was around 30-35k.

They also have other things on the menu such as shaker fries (which I promise I will try the next time I visit Shirokuma again), hot dogs, parfaits, anmitsu, and typical beverages. All of the prices are subjected to 10% tax and 5% service. As for my opinion on the pricing, it's pretty normal for a place in PIK. Considerable-ish.

The location of the Shirokuma cafe is right across Warung Rawit. It's in the Rukan Crown Golf Blok A. If it's kind of hard to find, just walk around Fat Bubble, it's just a few stores from there. 

It's been a while since the last time I did a food review didn't I? HAHAH. As for books, I am currently reading Eleanor & Park. It's allright and will most probably be reviewed. 

That would be it for my review of Shirokuma Cafe in PIK, Jakarta. Thank you for reading and I'll see you in my next post!

Sincerely yours,

Alicia. V

all photo credits go to my friend: Noviana 

Thank you love XOXO

57th Diamond: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Here goes the story of a fangirl

Hello, it has been a while. In this post I'll talk about a book entitle Fangirl  by Rainbow Rowell. You might have heard of Rainbow Rowell from her book called Eleanor & Park, which is my next book. I will be reading that after this, if I didn't get distracted by John Green and his books. Already have Paper Towns, An Abundance of Katherines, and a few others. Let's just see what happens.

Speaking of John Green, I personally feel like HE HAS RUINED A PART OF MY LIFE by writing the book The Fault in Our Stars and actually having a movie made out of it. Reading the book made me cry. Watching the trailer made me teary. Watching the movie was just pure emotional breakdown in the cinema....YES. 

Okay fine I didn't really had an emotional breakdown...(that would be kind of embarrassing) but there were still lots of tears being shed. I recommend the movie to anybody who loves romantic dramas stories, and make sure you bring lot's of tissues!

Back to the main topic. The book fangirl tells the story of...well.....a fangirl. A Simon Snow fangirl. So there is this show or series called Simon Snow and our main character, Cath, is a Simon Snow fangirl who makes fanfictions of the show. I can say that Cath's family background is quite unstable because her mother left her and her twin, Wren, when they were really young and they had to grow up learning by themselves how to take care of everything including their father who likes to overwork. 

Here goes the short plot review ;) and yes, spoilers are on their way

The story starts with Cath complaining to her twin, Wren, how they are not roommates because Wren doesn't want to anymore. All this time they have always shared the same bedroom, bathroom, toothbrushes maybe, and lots of other things but now in university, Cath has to get out of her comfort zone, not being roommates with her twin or even the same studies. And Cath is kind of not taking it well. She's definitely an introvert and she just don't like human interaction. She considered taking a subject nobody cares about and she didn't even bother asking her roommate, Reagan, about the dinner hall. So she decided she'll live on nutrition bars for the next few months. Little did she know, she's going to be exposed to a whole new world.

c: reblogbookclub.tumblr

Okay her fandom towards Simon and this character named Baz is just over the top. She writes fanfiction about Simon and Baz being a couple, a gay couple. FINE, yes I know lots of fangirls in the internet are just into gay couplings and I fully understand, but Cath, uses her fandom and fanfiction writing as a runaway. It's her way of running away from the world. What's good about it is that her fanfictions are actually garnering fans for itself. WOW.

c: magicath.tumblr

Continuing the plot story. Cath eventually got out of her shell. She met this guy named Nick in her "Fiction Writing" class and Levi, her roommate's ex who still hangs around their room a lot. I'm just gonna skip all the drama. Nick and Cath has been writing together in the library, but Nick is just a douchebag. He's just using Cath and that kind of backfired for him in the end. Of course, Cath being a girl felt hurt but thank goodness she got Levi. Levi, her roommate's ex, fell in love with her and eventually became her boyfriend. And DAMN he's a great boyfriend. He's not perfect, but just decent. And her roommate is perfectly fine with her relationship. What more can you ask? Levi is kind of dyslexic but he loves having Cath read her fanfictions to him. Like seriously, WHAT MORE CAN YOU ASK?

The thing with Cath and her mother. Cath loathes her mother. This is because she thinks that a mother should've not left her children just like that and destroy her husband at the same time. As in Cath's father went through a phase of emotional breakdown after her mother left. This traumatized Cath and she blames her mother for everything she is. Until the end, Cath's didn't really get back with her mother. Wren was the one who tolerates her mother, but her mom still didn't get back with their father. Do keep in mind that parents play a BIG role in a child's upbringing.

The story ends with Cath transformed and the original Simon Snow book series ending, which I personally take as kind of a symbolism for the end of Cath's fandom. And there it goes, the short plot review. I'm just glad that Cath found her true love and he's such a great person. Imagine reading through this book but without the Cath & Levi story in it....I'd toss the book away really 

c: deladylibrary.nl

Out of 5 stars, I'll rate this book at 3.5. It's average, and personally I didn't find the first few chapters that enjoyable, but once the story progressed, I find it really interesting. I love how the characters evolve in the story and how we readers can see their step-by-step transformation. It's a good read and if you have time, read it, ESPECIALLY if you're an introvert. Yes I am talking to you girls who are still struggling with people in general. Don't worry, you're not alone. I used to be an introvert as well ;) 

I hope you enjoyed reading my short review of this book and do expect another review coming up soon :D I'm starting on another book tomorrow. Thank you and I'll see you in my next post!

Sincerely yours,

Alicia. V

56th Diamond: The Mortal Instruments City of Heavenly Fire

The series finally comes to an end

Honestly, I am really happy that it ended. 6 books is more than enough dear Cassandra Clare, and thank you for making the ending so satisfying, although reading the last book itself can prove to be a little dreary sometimes.

Yes you heard me. I am kind of disappointed in this last book of The Mortal Instruments series. The first 3 books were awesome, but after the 4th, the story starts to feel a little bit draggy and there's so many people I can't remember all of them. Maybe I just have a bad memory and all but hey, still survived til the end ;) I'm not gonna give a full plot review though this time because I couldn't remember all the characters' names, but yes I am still going to discuss it and give spoilers. SO BEWARE.

There is a connection between the Infernal Devices series and this book. James Carstairs (or Jem) is actually Brother Zachariah. ALL THIS TIME, THAT HANDSOME LAD IS A SILENT BROTHER. And there is one part of the story where Jace's heavenly fire, the thing that is flowing in his veins and is keeping him alive, burned Brother Zach and changed him back to a normal human being. The handsome James Carstairs we knew and loved in the Infernal Devices series. In the end of this book, Jem is reunited with Tessa and they were seen together; however, it is not mentioned if they dated or married or anything.

Speaking of marriage,

Clary's mother and Luke got married at the end of the book! We all could've seen it coming and honestly, it's kind of obvious because there's this one time when Clary had a dream regarding Jocelyn and Luke's marriage. They even have another daughter in the dream. 

Moving on...

Jace and Clary did end up together. Sebastian died, and at the brink of his death, his kind soul that was not taken by the devil or some sort actually get to talk for a few minutes, creating a touchy feely atmosphere. Raphael also died. Magnus and Alec got back together. Simon and Isabelle got together although along the way there's this story about their circle (Jace, Clary, Isabelle, Alec, Simon, Magnus, Luke, Jocelyn) got stuck in Edom (the demon dimension) because of Sebastian and Simon sacrificed his vampirism immortality and his memories so Magnus' father, the great demon Asmodeus, can take them all back to the human world. That is a lot to take in isn't it? I'm sorry. I couldn't express it in another way. So because of that, Simon lost his memory for sometime, but regained it again later.  And tadaaa, happy ending.

 I don't really remember all the drama and plot twists that happened along the way, cause that book is one hell of a long book. 800 pages my friends. 800!! 

I'm just here to say that although the ending was not as good as I expected it would be, it is still a satisfying ending. It is a proper ending and I kind of feel bad that the series has come to an end. Sure I heard that Cassandra is working on another series, and the next book will be called Midnight Lady or something....but still, saying goodbye to the characters of the book is always kind of hard, especially when you've been with them and you have watched them grow. But then again, saying goodbye is the start of something new.

Good bye Mortal Instruments series

Yes, as you guys might have observed from my goodreads update, I have started reading another book. This time it's a book by Rainbow Rowell and it is called, Fangirl. I think I have an idea of how the story would go but hey, I just love diving into the world in the book sometimes. It's a nice getaway ;)

See you in my next post and thank you for reading!

Sincerely yours,

Alicia. V

55th Diamond: The Maze Runner

Good evening

Another book finished in the middle of a hectic semester 3! I had to be honest, I was about to delete this book from my library because the first few chapters are just frustrating and you feel really lost. I'll explain why later in my plot review. 

The one reason why I'm interested in reading this book is because the movie is coming out. Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaa! And honestly, from the trailer the movie looks interesting and intense. And , after reading the book, I personally think it would make a great movie. It all depends on how the director interpreted the book.

One other movie I'm interested in the Fault in Our Stars. It's already out in America and a few other countries, but unfortunately for me in Indonesia, I have to wait til 22nd August. GADDAMN. Guess who's one of the singers featured in the soundtrack. Ed Sheeran. Yes, THE ED SHEERAN. I'm so hyped right now!

Back to the main topic, 

The book Maze Runner is a fun read, but that's basically it. After finishing the book I didn't want to continue to the next book. That is why I'm doing the review now. I actually checked the synopsis on wikipedia and well...let's just say I became even more uninterested.

NEVERTHELESS, I'm still gonna do a plot review so you guys can judge the book by yourself and decided whether you want to read it or not.

Here goes the plot review!

Our main character is called Thomas. The book started with Thomas, waking up in a dark room, unable to see anything. He also didn't remember anything, although he felt that his memories were deleted on purpose. Then he felt the room he was in moved upwards, which means it's an elevator. The door opened, and he found himself being surrounded by boys. Some the same age as him, some younger. Of course, he woke up with a shock and the people around him are not gonna tell him any informations anyways, because they think it will make the shock first. They only tell him that he is now in a place called the Glade and help him fit in.

The maze walls are covered in ivy and inside the maze lives terrible creatures called the Grievers. The Glade is basically a box, a big box inside the maze which is built with very tall concrete walls. The Glade has 4 doors, one on each side. The doors close at sundown, making a large grinding noise while closing. Thomas didn't know about all this until the next day. Now what makes the book annoying is the period of time when Thomas knows nothing and nobody is willing to tell him anything either. I'm pretty sure it was 1-3 chapters. IMAGINE HOW ANNOYING IS THAT.

Moving on. On the first day, Thomas was told to rest. And on the second day, he finally got a tour of the place. Thomas, being Thomas, wanted to be a runner. A runner is someone who is in charge of going inside the maze, make maps, and find out an exit out of the maze. In the Glade, everyone have their own jobs so everything is in order. Each department have their own names. The Runners are the ones who run. (Yea no shit).

A few days later, one of the Runner, called Minho, (yes there is an asian character in this book, with a korean name, reminds me of SHINee) found a dead griever in the maze, or so he thought it was dead. So the next day, Minho and the Glade leader Alby went to check out the Griever in the maze. Everybody waited for them to come back before the door closed, but they didn't. Until the door was about to close. Thomas saw Alby and Minho, barely making it to the door and he decided to run and safe them, regardless the fact everyone has been saying, that no one will survive a night alone in the maze outside the Glade. So in the end, Thomas, Minho, and Alby got stuck outside the Glade. Knowing this, they are terrified by the fact that the Grievers will come and kill them. Thomas proved otherwise. Thanks to him Alby and Thomas survived the night.

Then a girl came out of the elevator, which was a first, and al the boys are confused, because she had a note saying that she is the last one ever. She went into a coma, and woke up having telephatic skills with Thomas. She also remembered somethings regarding the maze. Her name is Teresa.

So here's the spoiler. The maze is actually an experiment made by scientists to find the chosen ones who will somehow safe mankind. The maze is a test to kill those who are not determined and yes all of them have their memories removed for the sake of the test. All of them are actually orphaned kids who are adopted by the scientist and are to become experiments. There it goes. The reason behind the maze.

In the end, they found an exit which is actually inside the lair of the Grievers and they went out, only to know that they are experiments and they can't do anything. Then they got saved by some random people who "broke in" to the lab and then the scientists said something about the kids going into phase 2. I'm guessing that's the start of book 2.

Another background fact, the world is actually infected by a disease called the Flare, which came from sun flares and it made mankind insane. The kids in this experiment are those who are immune to the Flare and they are to make a new society.

The End

I'm pretty sure this plot review is nothing compared with reading the book. I skipped a lot of details. but the main point of the plot is like this. I'm definitely not continuing this trilogy. Besides, the movie is coming out soon. Looking forward to that one!

I've started reading the next book, which is the last book in the Mortal Instruments series!! OMG I'm so excited! Look forward to the review in my next post! Pretty sure it'll come out in the next few days ;)

Sincerely yours,

Alicia. V

54th Diamond: Dark Heroine 2: Autumn Rose by Abigail Gibbs Review

Yes I actually finished this book in 3 days..yepp. (insert derp face here)

As you guys might have read before, I have reviewed the first book of The Dark Heroine series entitled Dinner with a Vampire.It was quite a steamy book considering the many scenes involving sex (3 if I'm not mistaken) and also dark because there were lots of blood. One of the reason why I liked it was because the story is about vampires and they act like vampires. Killing people and other sadistic bloody stuff while not sparkling in the sunlight. Let's not compare this with Twilight shall we.

Moving on...(spoiler alert)

The 2nd book's story took place at a different dimension from the 1st book, however, the events that happened in this book is synchronized. How do we know this? Well because our main character, dearest Autumn Rose Al-Summers (nice name isn't it?) is a seer, meaning she can have visions. Guess what kind of visions she's having. YEPP, about the main character of book one, Violet Lee. And yes the one of the visions are regarding Violet and his vampire boyfriend Kaspar having steamy sex. Oh I forgot to tell you, keep in mind that the first book is rated PG-13. Which means it's kind of for adults. The 2nd book however, I think is more to a general audience. It's not that sadistic and Abigail didn't really put any steamy make out scenes/PG-13 worthy scenes. 

Here's a background to help you with the world of The Dark Heroine. There are 9 dimensions/realms in total. 1st is the world of sages/magicians, where Autumn resides in. This dimension is the one where humans are actually aware of sages and the dark creatures. It is also where the royal Athenean family resides in. The second dimension is where the story of book 1 take place, the world of Violet Lee and Kaspar. It is the world where vampires reside in and the humans are not aware any dark creatures or magic whatsoever. Now the rest of the dimensions, I forgot...I do remember one of them is the world with elves and pretty creatures. Among these 9 dimensions, there is a treaty called the Terra treaty that binds them. Of course, there are rebels who is against the system so the story will be Autumn's side against these Exterminos.

Now let's start the plot review of The Dark Heroine 2: Autumn Rose

The main character of this book would be Autumn Rose Al-Summers, and she is a duchess (a title considered as the highest below royalty) and works in a cafe. Yep. She works. She also hide her identity from the people around her, such as her friends in school and work friends. Why? Cause she doesn't like the spotlight. She lives with her human parents, and received the sage gene that skipped her father from her grandmother. So Autumn is only known as a sage who was told to be a guardian of her school. That's it. Then one day, everything changed.

I did mentioned before that in this dimension, there's the Athenean royalty right? Well young prince Fallon decided to transfer to Autumn's school. How lovely. And this is where the drama kind of came in. The prince, not knowing that Autumn hid her identity, kept calling her 'duchess' in public which results with her identity being exposed. Then comes a time where Autumn was mad at Fallon. And they finally managed it all out and became friends. 

Let's just skip the unnecessary events kay.

The real reason why Fallon moved was because he loved Autumn and also want to get out of the spotlight because her town was quiet. Autumn was actually still traumatized by her grandmother's death until she finally found out the reason behind her grandmother's death, which is for her fate being the so called first heroine. And so as the story progress, Autumn and Fallon grew close, Autumn's power of being a seer grew, attacks by Exterminos are dealt with, and they finally visited Violet Lee to tell her she's also a heroine, then the story progressed. 

After the events of book 1, the whole vampire clan decided to move to the royal city of Athenea. By this time, Autumn was also already living in Athenea because she is now considered a heroine of the prophecy AND she is officially dating Fallon. And so the vampire clan moved. There goes another drama of Autumn being connected to Violet and is feeling everything she's feeling, even the intimate moments with Kaspar. It is also then found out that Violet is a necromancer, which means she can connect with the dead or something like that. ooooooo, creepy. 

Then the last scene of the book is about the Exterminos' seer saying he had found the third dark heroine, and she is a human.

The End

 I am honestly kind of disappointed with this book. The fighting scenes were good, but I kind of have a hard time delving into the world in this book. It's confusing in a bit, but okay. At some point I can see the scene clearly, another scene I can't. I still like how Abigail narrates the story. How most of the chapters are told from Autumn's perspective and some are from Fallon's. If this were to be a movie, I'm pretty sure it's going to be a great movie, although a bit confusing due to the 9 dimensions theory.

I am still looking forward to how the story will continue, but no news have been heard regarding the next book. But really, while reading the first few chapters of this book, I was so tempted to delete it. I'm not shittin you, I'm really tempted. But as I kept reading, it was actually okay. And tadaaaa, I finished it. 

The next book I might be reading would be The Maze Runner or Lord of the Flies. Already downloaded the latter, but haven't started reading. There's also Norwegian Wood...a friend recommended it to me. Maybe I'll start reading The Maze Runner tonight. That's it for this post and thank you for reading! 

Sincerely yours,

Alicia. V

53rd Diamond: Face Shop Real Nature Face Mask/Sheet Review - Blueberry

Blueberry

Claim: 

A highly nourishing mask sheet containing blueberry extract to help regain skin softness and youthful impression.

This one is definitely one of my favorites! I love it sooo much. The essence is as expected, a lot, and the effect lasts for 2 days. My skin felt really soft and young after wearing this mask and the fragrance was also relaxing. I recommend this mask and the green tea mask the most out of all the series I tried.

I think these would be it for my first haul. Already bought my second batch and will make a review as soon as I tried them on! So expect more beauty reviews coming up soon ;) Thank you for reading and I hope these reviews helped!

Sincerely yours,

Alicia. V