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remarkably bright creatures by shelby van pelt

***contains spoilers***

so this book was chosen this month for book club because of its rave reviews, plus this book was read by multiple book club member's mom's book clubs, and they loved it as well

i can definitely say that i see why this piece would resonate with that crowd. the beginning was especially slow for me, and i almost didn't want to finish it. plus, introducing cameron so early into the story without any link to the main story (yet) was a little confusing, since this book is told in different povs. speaking of - getting a pov of the giant pacific octopus was definitely a little strange at first, but as the book progressed, i actually found myself excited to read his witty chapters

overall, i felt the book was very slow, but i did like the characters - marcellus being my fave. i liked cameron's growth throughout the novel (even though he's 30 years old and acts like a teenager for most of the book), and the author's depiction of grief through tova. and the ending - though cliche and tied up a little too nicely in my opinion, was sweet

rating: 3.7/5 ⭐️

recommend: yes

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a few cute snippets from the ren faire last month, my bf went as twilight princess link <33

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may wrap-up!

ok let's address the elephant in the room here - i did not finish reading any books in june. i started 3 of them and haven't finished any, so i definitely bit off more than i could chew

BUT i had a pretty good watch month! i finished the castlevania series w/ nocturne, i binged you (not in love with the series finale), and i finished season 2 of tlou (season 1 was so much better than s2, but i will watch any subsequent series regardless)

for movies, i have started up my quest to watch all the marvel movies in chronological order. i've only made it to iron man 2, and am now contemplating skipping the sony hulk movie. i guess we'll found out in next month's wrap-up

and i have been sinking hours into guardian tales lately - this is a mobile game i've been playing off and on for years now, and it is so on right now. current team comp is oghma, kamael, fp, and miya. honorable mention, i have been watching a lot of joshseki live streams while i work, love his valo content but also been loving his horror streams as well!!

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april wrap-up!!

finished a few things this month, hoping for a little more free time in may to get through some more items on my watchlist

i will say that i looooved playing split fiction. it fun and challenging and the story was amazing!! (zoe's story made cry) i love that we're getting a movie adaptation of it - i can't wait!

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funny story by emily henry

***contains spoilers***

as i’ve mention in a previous post, i really am not the biggest fan of romance novels. however!!! wow, funny story by emily henry had me HOOKED! i know emily henry has quite the cult following, and i think i see why. more of her books have been added to my read list.

quick synopsis

the story first began with how our protag daphne and her soon-to-be-husband peter met- how a gust of wind blew her hat away and landed at his feet… pretty typical cheesy romance novel stuff

but things turn upside down quickly once we find out peter broke things off with daphne after his bachelor party so that he could be with his childhood girl best friend (!!!)

by this point, i was already hooked. to add fuel to the fire, peter’s childhood best friend (petra) was also in a long term relationship with a man named miles (i love how these two were first described, like how they both smoked weed but that made her a free-spirited vagabond but made him a degenerate- what a great juxtaposition!). daphne and miles move in together because daphne needed a place and miles needed a roommate so why not? what could happen?

oh. much. much could happen. the two end up entering a fake relationship and rsvping to peter and petra’s upcoming wedding, and the story progresses from there as they sort out real feelings vs. fake. and i will say, i think i liked this piece soooo much because i love the fake dating trope. a lot.

review

when reading novels like this, i like to picture what actors would play these characters in a movie. i casted a scruffy john krasinski as miles, dakota johnson as daphne and austin butler as peter. i felt krasinski can play characters like this well - kind, big hearted - and not to mention, he pulls off the beard nicely imo. i think johnson can play a scorned woman role well, and butler? after what he did to vanessa hudgens? he could definitely be a peter

anyway, this novel was an interesting read, easy to follow, and it wasn't as cringe as most romance novels make me feel. i thoroughly enjoyed it! and i see many reviews saying this isn't emily henry's best work, so more reviews of her work coming soon!

rating: 4.8/5 ⭐️

recommend: yes!

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spring <33

˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

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this blog has quickly just become a place where i write down my thoughts about books before book club to prepare lol. hopefully more content coming soon! i just started monster hunter wilds so i may share a few thoughts on that after playing a bit more

but it's march! one book club's theme is manga march, and we're reading the fragrant flower blooms with dignity. i'm only a couple chapters in but it's very very cute and wholesome so far!! the other book club's theme is mystery/murder march, and we've just picked the day shelley woodhouse woke up by laura pearson. i'm a huge fan of true crime and ik that this isn't nonfiction, but i'm still excited. should be a good reads month!!

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before we were strangers by renee carlino

***contains spoilers***

in the spirit of valentines day last month, the gals in the book club wanted to choose a romance novel - and i love a good theme! but i'd like to preface this review with the fact that i do not ever read romance novels. like ever. i find them far too cheesy and unrealistic. and before we were strangers by renee carlino is really no different.

quick synopsis

bwws follows and switches between the pov of two main characters: matt, who is a photography student, and grace, who is a music major/cello player. matt moves into the dorms at their school in the room next to grace, and they become fast friends. soon, they develop a romantic/sexual relationship, though they don't put any labels on it as matt is taking a photography gig with national geographic over the summer in africa. they lose contact during this time, many miscommunications ensue and they don't meet again until 15 years later.

my thoughts

it's so hard for me to enjoy a book when i don't like any of the characters, and i genuinely didn't like any of them in this book. they were so immature and went through almost no growth in the 15 years where they were apart. also, with a book like this, obviously the plot hinges on the miscommunications between the characters. but this one was so frustratingly easy to solve. and i hated a few bits that the author threw in for what i assume was supposed to be a "shock factor" but honestly just ended up being cliche.

rating: 1/5 ⭐️

recommend: no

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mercury and me by jim hutton

***contains spoilers***

i have a hard time putting words to mercury and me by jim hutton. i originally read this book a couple years ago, and remember it a little differently back then - i remember a touching memoir recounting the relationship between jim hutton and freddie mercury, and how in his final days, hutton became mercury's caretaker and was forced out of their shared home after he died. rereading it now for book club, i have a completely different point of view.

to begin, i'd like to say this book was a palate cleanser for me - after reading bunny by mona awad (post before this), it was nice to read something so straight forward. however, that was also what i disliked about this book. though i know hutton is not an author by any means, this book felt void of any emotion and recounted many uneventful moments in their lives. i would compare it to a diary of some sort, but even that would be untrue; someone in my book club compared this novel to watching raw security footage.

furthermore, i wrestled with the idea of why this memoir was even written. during his life, mercury seemed to be a private person when it came to his personal life - well, as private as we could be. the media followed him around constantly and were such a nuisance, then his lover turns around and publishes a tell-all after he dies? one that details their many lovers spats and even the intimate final details of his last minutes of life? i can't imagine mercury wanting that (though of course i can't know that for sure).

rating: 1/5 ⭐️

recommend: no

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bunny by mona awad

***contains spoilers***

bunny by mona awad was an absolute trip, to say the least. i had no idea the kind of journey i was about to embark on when this book was chosen for book club.

quick synopsis

in the beginning chapters, i was instantly reminded of a heathers/ mean girls type story - outcast, gloomy, loner type protagonist (samantha) with great potential but not-so-great circumstances and the wealthy, beautiful cultish group (the bunnies) that the main character hates but secretly wants to be a part of. the story takes place at warren university (warren? like rabbit hole??) where samantha and the bunnies are part of a prestigious writing program, and even in the same writing cohort. right away, samantha struck me as a biased and unreliable (and insufferable) narrator, and even to the very end of the story, i am still unsure of what actually happened and what was part of her wild imagination.

samantha spends a good part of the beginning of the book detailing her hatred for the bunnies and explaining the objectifying nicknames she gave them - cupcake, creepy dolls, vignette and the duchess. this is only fueled by her best and only friend, ava, who is just as "dark", "angry" and "distant" as her.

when samantha receives an invitation to a bunny get-together though, everything changes. and this is when we really start to descend down the rabbit hole...

themes

individualism vs collectivism, loneliness/longing, transformation, mental health/schizophrenia

criticisms

if i had to offer one criticism to this novel, i'd say that almost the entirety of the story revolved around women and their complex friendships and relationships with one another, and at the end of the story, it still feels like the day was saved by a man. yes, this character is supposed to be the embodiment of samantha's courage and desires, but he's the one who ultimately unravels the bunny's tight-knit clique? this was a little disappointing to me.

conclusions

overall, i enjoyed this read. the author's writing style was very entertaining and kept the reader engaged. some parts were a little hard to follow (purposefully), but the twists and turns of this book kept me turning each page.

rating: 3.8/5 ⭐️

recommend: yes

[digitaldonor]

digital diary/ scrapbook

hellooo internet world

while browsing the internet on reviews of a book i recently finished, i came across a personal blog of a woman in the uk and i was instantly inspired (i may tag her down the line if i'm feeling brave). i relished in the idea of a new creative outlet and, embarrassingly, a better way to remember pivotal points my life as i got older as my memory isn’t the greatest. a resolution i made this year was to be more creative (more handmade gifts instead of bought ones, etc etc), so here is a step in the right direction (although another resolution was to spend less time online, but i suppose i will pick and choose my battles with that).

so, what will this blog be all about?

#life

well, of course this blog will be about my life - who i am, things i enjoy. maybe some travel posts (2024 was a big travel year for me! i visited 4 new countries and a handful of new states). posts could be long, could be short. just a catch-all really. i'd like to do life recaps - cadence tbd. maybe a weekly life digest? with my high points (and low points) of the week? that could be cool.

#books

this was a huge motivator for me to start this blog. due to being a people pleaser and my inexplicable inability to tell people "no", i have found myself in two different book clubs. now, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. i have wanted to reignite my love for literature and writing (ap lit nerd in hs). but not having read long-form literature in the past couple years besides manga and the occasional fanfiction, coupled with the rise of tiktok and six second videos, my attention span has truly taken a hit. thus, joining not one but two book clubs seems extreme. nonetheless, i will try my best!! i just finished my first book of 2025 and i feel like i am starting to find my stride.

#games

games games games. in the past couple of years after the pandemic, i truly found a hobby in gaming. i, of course, gamed casually as a child (and still have my original pink ds lite with the matching stylus). but my love for gaming really took off as an adult. a few games i am playing at the moment: genshin impact, baldur's gate 3 (second play-through), valorant, the bed we made. honorable mentions: fnaf: security breach (finished but watching the dlc), poppy playtime (new chapter coming next week), and infinity nikki (started but waiting for more content to be added after beta). i also log in to my acnh island from time to time to pick weeds and check on my islanders.

#tvshows/ #movies

with other hobbies taking precedence, i have not been a very avid movie or tv watcher as of late (which is costing me valuable trivia points). if i had to name my favorite show right this moment, i would have to default to sex and the city. i've rewatched it three times at this point and i love it every time, and would happily rewatch it a fourth time (i'm also living my carrie bradshaw dream with this blog, my very own column (carrie is one of my least fave characters tho just fyi)). tv show currently watching: solo leveling. the last movie i saw in theaters: sonic 3. honorable mention: seeing wicked in the philippines last november was amazing. i love musicals and seeing a show on broadway is a bucket list item of mine. watchlist: endless- it will outlive me.

#healthandwellness

i'm also very passionate about overall health and wellness! i am a competitive powerlifter and try to stay very active with a goal of 10k steps a day, drink lots of water, eat balanced, etc. i also enjoy activities like snowboarding, climbing, tennis and i go to a local run club every wednesday night. will occasionally share a bit about the topic if i so please.

#misc

anything and everything else!

tl;dr

welcome to my digital diary <3