Hello! I'm excited to participate in a new feature created by Novel Heartbeat today! The feature is called Life of A Blogger and it's a weekly meme. How does it work? Basically, a personal question is asked on every Thursday and we have to answer it! This is my first time joining this feature but the past, current, and future topics seem very creative and I love it already! So without further ado, the topic for today is... |
Languages Well this is fun! Other than English (obvs), I also speak Chinese and Malay. Technically speaking, English serves as a second language while Chinese is my mother tongue. And since I live in Malaysia, we are required to learn Malay too as it is the local language. I've always been comfortable around the English language as my mom always encouraged me to read books in English since I was small. Back then, she borrowed piles of books from the library just for me to read! I'm not kidding. That's just how awesome my mom is (heh), but back to the point. Since then, I started having a greater interest in English novels and immersed myself in the magical world of books over the years of my childhood. I'm not as fluent as a native English speaker but I've been trying hard to improve my use of the language. Would you want to know some Chinese words? Oh, come on. I know you do. Here are some easy ones for you anyway. The most commonplace sentence, "How are you?" 你好吗? The word 'books' 书 'Reading' 读书 Shhh. Don't tell anyone, but Kat isn't my name. This is. 沛锦 Still, you can just call me Kat. :) Malay is a whole other different thing. As I didn't fall in love with the language and it wasn't my mother tongue, I didn't have that connection to it like I had with English and Chinese. However, as I was already learning Malay since the start of my education, I'd still say I feel more comfortable with it than other languages that I have never spoken before. The thought of learning other languages has stuck in my mind for quite a bit now, but I'm still undecided on which language. I started learning French through an app and bailed out a long time ago, so I've been more careful and selective on whether or not I want to learn a new language -and which I want to learn more about when I grow up. Everyone has a certain language they want to learn but I don't know if I have the time and commitment for an entirely new language. The passion is still there! I'm just (very) unsure of my commitment to it. I don't like quitting on things that I'm sure I can handle.
3 Comments
A few days ago, I attended an out-of-state relative's wedding...and what got me excited the most was the FOOD. Because how can you not? Weddings are awesome. They are also great for stuffing your face without anyone badgering you because, well, everyone's pretty much doing the same thing. But that's not the point here. Did I mention that the place I live has crappy bookstores? I didn't? Well now you know. The thing is, the town where the wedding was held had the best bookstores in my country, so I was pretty excited. And the two bookstores I visited were huuuuge compared to the ones at my town. Like, extra huge. :D When I stopped in front of the entrance I was like, COME TO MAMA!! As you can see from the picture below, I didn't get as many books as I would've liked but all of these are books that I have been pining after for a while now. And as you can also see, I'm not that good at taking photos. Books in My Book Haul 1. Silver Shadows by Richelle Mead: I've mentioned before that I don't pre-order books often. Unless it's a book that I really, really want and is very dear to my heart, I usually just wait until my bookstore has it which can take up to months sometimes. Luckily, I found Silver Shadows sitting on a shelf and I felt that it was practically calling out to me: "Kat! Kat! I'm over here!" 2. Love Letters to The Dead by Ava Dellaira: I've seen this book mentioned before a few times and I was intrigued by its cover SO MUCH. It has one of the best covers and if you look at the title, "Love Letters to The Dead", ooooh. Spooky. I'm not one for terrifying stories but since this is a contemporary title...we'll see! 3. The Heir Chronicles by Cinda Williams Chima: To be honest, I don't really know much about this series. I only know that it was recommended quite a few times and Goodreads says it's genre is fantasy, and I'm always happy to indulge myself in the magical world of fantasy. So that was my book haul! Did you buy any books this week? If you did, tell me! (DON'T TRICK ME I KNOW YOU DID.) Also, a small announcement here. Perusing Bookshelves is having a giveaway for the debut novel of L.A. Rose, Adrian Lessons, on September 16th to 23rd. If you'd like to enter the giveaway and stand a chance of winning a free eBook of Adrian Lessons, just click on the cover below. Hello, and welcome to Wishlist Wednesday, wherein sparkly and intriguing books on my wishlist are featured, on every Wednesday! As I'm always on the lookout for more books to read and for even more chances to empty my wallet, barrage me with recommendations in the comments!
(Why is it that the girl on the cover somehow looks like Shailene Woodley? No, never mind.) I have been really late to hop on the bandwagon (just yesterday, actually) and relieve myself of the puzzling mystery on why everyone loves If I Stay. Now I'm close to finishing the book -I can be a really vicious reader at times- and I just know without a doubt, that I have to read Where She Went, because-- ALL THE FEELS. Mia's love for classical music makes me want to love classical music too. (I'm an easily swayed person, but eh, I'd much rather lose myself in a book. No offense there.) Plus, the way Gayle Forman writes Mia as a cellist is amazing. I have an appreciation for instruments and for people who play them beautifully, and I enjoy reading how Mia and her family were all music lovers. And then there's also her boyfriend, Adam, who I've deemed to be a sweetheart. I can't say much as I haven't gotten to the end of If I Stay, but I'm getting very excited for the movie release as it isn't out yet in my country. What about you? Tell me about the books you have on your wishlist! Also, a small announcement here. Perusing Bookshelves is having a giveaway for the debut novel of L.A. Rose, Adrian Lessons, on September 16th to 23rd. If you'd like to enter the giveaway and stand a chance of winning a free eBook of Adrian Lessons, just click on the cover below. Hello, hello! You were promised a blog tour and giveaway on September 16th, and I'm staying true to my word. Today I am excited to welcome L.A. Rose and her debut novel, Adrian Lessons, to Perusing Bookshelves! WARNING: ADRIAN LESSONS IS A NEW ADULT NOVEL CONTAINING SEXUAL SCENES WHICH MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR YOUNGER READERS I'd very much like to say that I've finished reading Adrian Lessons, but I'm not. Good news is, I'm already halfway through with a feeling that you readers may enjoy reading it. But first, here's what Adrian Lessons and the writer behind the book, L.A. Rose, have in store for you... If there’s one thing Cleo Reynolds knows, it’s that she’s not into Adrian King. The son of a model with the looks to prove it, the experienced author of her school newspaper’s sex advice column, the cocky playboy with a hint of darkness. That Adrian King. Nope. Nuh-uh. No way. The problem is, he’s very into her. After accidentally flashing him, and slightly-less-accidentally-but-still-totally-unintentionally making out with him in front of the whole class, she expects to be called crazy. Instead, he asks her out. Cleo’s determined not to end up as another notch on his bedpost. Except she hasn’t done…you know…it in a while. (Read: ever.) And as a girl who pays her tuition by writing all the sex scenes in her roommate’s bestselling romance series, the lack of inspiration has served up a fat slice of writer’s block. Until her roommate proposes that Cleo and Adrian act out all the steamy scenes in her book. It’s just research. No feelings involved. Nope. Nuh-uh. No way. It's common sense to know that hot guy on the cover is portraying the sexy male protagonist, Adrian, in Adrian Lessons. Heck, he might even be Adrian himself-- in real life, that is. Do you feel him winking at you? You do? Great. As I'm still working my way through Adrian Lessons, my opinion might not be sound enough to convince you all to read the book. (I'm sure that shoving it into your mouth while threatening you with a knife is a more effective way, but maybe another day.) That is why I'm letting you see what others had to say. Most of the reviews were emphasizing on how funny the book was for them, but you decide. "I swear it had me laughing so hard I was gasping for breath." -Anne OK (Goodreads) "Cleo is so funny and you just can't help but love her." -Mandy (Goodreads) "It's been a long time since I've been able to visit a story and characters that were real and honest and horribly dorky, like myself." -Jess from A Cup of Tea and A Big Book And that's not all. To get a taste of the story, here is a -steamy hot- excerpt: “Christ,” Adrian finally mutters after a good half minute of staring at my body. He runs his hand through his hair. I’m not saying my grand plan is to make him so worked up he’ll have to satisfy me. And then I can move on with my life. I’m not saying that’s my plan, but if it were, I’d be an evil genius. “You too,” I smirk, trailing my fingers down my bare waist. “That shirt looks expensive. Wouldn’t want to mess it up.” Not taking his eyes from me, he pulls his shirt off, back over front in that casual way boys have. I gasp. Doves zoom overhead, sprinkling golden confetti. A chorus of angels sing. Okay, not all that actually happens, but it’s the first time I’ve seen him shirtless. And that chest deserves some fanfare. His torso is tan, lithe and strong, the hard contours of a six-pack-verging-on-eight-pack begging to be licked. Every ounce of him is sculpted, refined. Just looking at him floods my abdomen with tension. There’s a swirling tattoo on the left side of his ribs, but I’m too busy thinking about how I want to mount his torso on my mantelpiece like a serial killer to dwell on it. My roommate looks between us, her eyes narrowed. “You two seem to be getting along much better today.” If by ‘getting along’ she means ‘staring at each other with enough sexual tension to hoist the Titanic from the bottom of the sea’ then yes. “Remember, guys,” she says. “Last time was more about the romance between the characters. Their first kiss. This is purely sexual.” At the words ‘purely sexual’, a shiver grips my spine. I think Adrian might be similarly affected, because he hardens all over. And I mean all over. “Come on, then,” I muster up the courage to say, fingering the lacy edge of my panties. “Inspire me.” a b o u t t h e a u t h o r In her emails -and her blog- , L.A. Rose sounds like a nice and sweet person. Too nice to write such hot and sexy scenes in Adrian Lessons, but you know what they say: never judge an author by her emails. (Or what is it they say...ah yes: never judge a book by its cover. But in this case, you should. The male protagonist is smoking hot.) L.A Rose recently made it out of college alive and with an English degree. She's a habitual beach bum and a not-exactly-recovered romance addict. She's also plucked up the courage to become an indie author! ADRIAN LESSONS, a New Adult contemporary romance to be released on August 25th, is her first book - if you don't count the ones she wrote before she finally came up with something publishable. (She prefers not to.) It's too sad that I can't connect a face to her emails and her bio. But at least, you can associate L.A. Rose with her book which you can win, in this giveaway below! g i v e a w a y Rules. There has to be rules.
A review copy of The Labyrinth Wall was kindly provided via email to read and review. My review is written in my honest opinion and is uninfluenced by anyone. Araina’s isolated teenage life is forever altered when she witnesses a man emerge through a rippling wall into the dark labyrinth she calls home. As a result of the stranger’s arrival, Araina’s Creators have unleashed a series of magical attacks using the labyrinth against its inhabitants. Now Araina must decide if she will trust potentially deceitful allies in order to reach safety on the other side of the labyrinth wall. Whewwww. It's another one of those books which I'm happy to have finally finished. In other words, this book didn't work out for me as well as I thought it should've based on the predominant amount of 4 to 5-star ratings on Goodreads. What reduced this book to 2.5 stars were, hands down, the cardboard characters in the story.
|
Kat is a voracious reader who enjoys nothing more than losing herself in a good book. Fantasy is definitely her cup of tea. She often complains about never having enough time to read and constantly struggles with keeping her TBR pile a considerably decent size. Read more or keep up with her bookish whims on Goodreads or bloglovin.
Subscribe
Giveaways
none at the moment!
Archives
December 2015
Categories
All
|