I'VE MOVED! Name and Site Change

Hello everyone! I know I haven't been writing and recording anything for a while now. For personal reasons I just didn't have the time or the energy. But now I'm back! Still growing slowly but growing nonetheless.

However, I want to leave behind this negative months so I decided to change the name of my blog. Also because I felt that the name wasn't really expressing what I wanted to communicate. So, that being said, Guild of all Trades has transformed into Book Inklings. The format is as follows: the blog itself is going to be in English but the Youtube Channel is going to be in Spanish. For now at least. I might just post in both languages on both sites. It'll be a surprise.

Click here to go to the new blog...

And click on the following for the YouTube Channel:

Ruler of Books Tag

TAG by Ariel Bissett

[Book Review] Starflight - Melissa Landers

Title: Starflight (Goodreads)

Author: Melissa Landers

Year Published: 2016

Genre: Science Fiction, Romance, Series

Personal Review:

Non-Spoilery Summary

Solara Brooks is an orphan convicted of a felony. Her crime is tattooed across her knuckles which makes it very difficult for her to get any kind of job. 

Solara is looking to start a new life in the limits of space where the Enforcers don't have any authority. She craves the freedom that was promised to her, together with a slot of land to call her own and a job. As a mechanic, and a pretty good one at that, her talents would be greatly sought after. Better still, her inked knuckles won't matter. The problem is that she doesn't have any money to buy a ticket. Her only hope seems to accept an indenture, which is actually what she was after. However, she never imagined she would be picked by Doran Spaulding, a classmate of hers who made her life a living hell. He's the kind of rich boy, popular quarterback and media star that has no idea what the world is really like.

On their way to their respective destinations problems arise, such as Doran being framed for a crime and haunted down by the Enforcers. Solara being a criminal already forces them to board a small and battered ship called the Banshee. The crew is a group of eccentric and loud characters. Life aboard the Banshee is both a great deal of fun and confusions. 

Together they run into every type of problem, not all of them due to them and they start learning more and more about their new friends.

I think this quote from the back cover of the book says it all:

"Family. She hadn't realized it until now, but that's what the people on this ship were to her. At some point during this haphazard journey, she'd fallen in love with a bespectacled kleptomaniac, a star-crossed seducer and his displaced princess, and most of all, an infuriating blue blood who used to call her Rattail. She'd learned that home was a fluid thing, and wether on a planet, on a satellite, or on a rusted bucket of a ship, this crew was her home." 

What I liked (SPOILERS INCLUDED)

The book drew my attention for several reasons: space, eccentric crew, new planets and above all... Space. Pirates. What could be better? 

I thought the style of the book was really clever. We don't get some much points of view but we see the characters in a different way, each going through their own problems and just trying to survive. 

I particularly liked the slow build of the romance. I'm tired of boy meeting girl and immediately falling head over heels. It doesn't work that way. Better still, these two hated each other with enough force to pull a moon out of it's orbit. Doran would always treat her like something less than human and Solara would find ways to makes his life as uncomfortable as possible. She managed this by stunning him at one point and making him forget who he was for a few hours, hours in which she convinced him he was indentured to her and using his money to by things. A lot of things. However, Doran's attitude starts to lessen as he sees how life is in space, on a ship where a hot shower is a luxury afforded only once a week, the food you get is what you get and so on. He also comes to experience the hardships of newly terraformed planets and is horrified by it. The good in him starts to crack through and he rethinks every bad thing he did to Solara, which has him feeling guilty. Solara, seeing his inner struggles and receiving news that shocks them all, she is forced to see him in a new light.

The humor was also really entertaining, with the sass level on the ship making it impossible for anyone to have a serious conversation. Exhibit A:

“Scoot over," she whispered.
The mattress shook with his movement.
"A little more," she said.
"If I get any closer to the wall," he hissed, "I'll have to buy it dinner.”

"Doran set it in front of her with a grin that made her want to slap him so hard his grandkids would feel it.”  

I also really enjoyed the explanations of all the mechanical bits of the ship or how terraforming works, etc. I love details and these made the world come more alive.

Things I didn't quite enjoy (MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD)

The main thing that kept throwing me off was the similarity to the TV series Firefly, which is you haven't watched-go, do it now. It's a great series that got cancelled after 13 episodes but it has a huge following because it's simply awesome.

Some comparisons:

The Crew:

Both crews are technically criminals, running from the law each for their own reasons. 

The Banshee is an old rust bucket in space, the same as the Serenity. Both are ships that aren't the best model out there. They're small and the people in them don't really have that much privacy.

The Daeva:

Basically, the Daeva are mercenaries that are hired to kill people, or whatever their employers tell them. They have zero emotions, being the perfect killing machines. They reminded me like a more controlled version of the Reevers in Firefly, which are people that have simply no humanity in them. They attack people to kill them, take them alive, do unspeakable things to them and then eat them. Yup, they're cannibals. So both world was really scary beings that must be avoided at all costs!

Planet X:

The crew find themselves heading for an unknown planet in search of something really important. In the movie of the series, Serenity, the crew must also head to a mysterious planet to uncover something. In both cases they have no idea what they'll find until they get there.

Aside from that the rest was really well done. The space pirates are really awesome and scary. I would love to learn more about them because they have their own set of laws and ranks. I find that really alluring. 

The last thing that bugged me a bit was that we have lovable characters on the ship but we don't really get to interact with them. Something happens near the end of the book that didn't hit me that hard because we simply don't get to know the characters on a level that would affect us if anything happened to them. Except Renny. I love that guy. I imagine that this first book was a sort of introduction to them, since we skim the surface of why they are on the run. We still don't know how most of them met or got on the ship, but we get hints. I do think this is a good strategy though because it makes one anxious to get their hands on the next book to find out more. I hope that the book that follows will give us more time with the rest of the crew. 

To sum up

I enjoyed the book, it's action packed and I didn't feel bored. I recommend it to people that love space travel with a bit of romance. I do hope to see more of the rest of the characters and to learn more about the world they're in. 

Have you read this book? What did you think about it? Leave me a comment. =)

April Wrap Up

After months away I'm finally back and ready to start blogging. I've started a youtube channel and have been posting videos there for a while, just never made it here back again. Hope to change that soon! (videoing is hard... the lines, the pressure, the editing oh my God the editing process, new found respect for the film industry).



Anyway, enjoy =)

[BOOK REC] Angelfall Trilogy

Hello everyone! Wow, sorry for the long hiatus. A few months ago I started doing videos (which I now realize I have failed to post), and oh-my-God the editing process just sucked the life out of me. And I suck so much at speaking in front of a camera that I just spent easily half an hour talking for a five minute video. Still working on that.

Anyway, I come to you today bringing a series that I read in January which I thought was incredible. Honestly, I only picked it up because I saw it on a booktuber's channel (can't remember who at the moment) and they've always recommended good books, so I thought... Why not?

The series I'm talking about is Angelfall by Susan Ee, also known as the 'Penryn and the End of Days' series. I'll stick to Angelfall since I have no idea how to pronounce that name.

The Plot

Basically, Angelfall sees the angels bringing down the apocalypse on the world. They appeared one day and started destroying everything, causing fires, tsunamis, killing people, etc.

The story starts a few months after this event through the point of view of Penryn, a 17 year old survivor who, alongside her paralyzed little sister and schizophrenic mother, scavenges for food and a  safe place to stay. They're in Northern California and since humanity always bands together in times of disaster (note sarcasm), they must also avoid other scavengers and the gangs who've taken over the streets.

However, before they can really leave they're caught in the middle of a fight between angels. Penryn's little sister Paige gets kidnapped by one of the angels for unknown reasons and Penryn has to ally herself with her worst enemy to get her back, an angel called Raffe who has just lost his wings.

Reasons I Loved It

It sounds all over the place and maybe even like it would be a bad story, but it's not. Oh, it is not! I was so surprised with a lot of things in these books. First of all, the main protagonist: Penryn Young. I generally have a tough time with protagonists. For some reason, I just don't like them. Specially the female protagonists. I don't know if it's that the authors are trying too hard to make them more dependent or if they're too emotional or what, but I just don't like them. I loved Penryn.

My big problem with characters are their personalities: if they have zero common sense, if they spend half the book crying, if their priorities are wrong, if they make bad decision, etc. I can't stand these kind of characters. Of course they're this way because they are meant to be flawed, but I think there is a limit and I have not seen it.

Penryn is a kickass female protagonist. She is on top of things, knows what needs to be done and freaking does it. She takes her time to make a decision and doesn't let emotions get in her way. I mean, the main reason she takes action is because of her love for her family and especially her little sister, but she doesn't do it blindly. She analyses, plots, and executes. I loved everything about her. She's sarcastic but knows when to shut up. She's brave but not stupid and backs down when bravery would be suicide. She trusts her instincts but still tries to consider every venue. The few moments she has acted spontaneously she had reasons. And the best thing of all... she has some freaking common sense! Oh look, people running? Perfect, I'm just going to get far away from them, and not go up to them trying to figure out why they're running. 

“When you're small enough to have to look up at everyone around you, there's no such thing as a dirty fight. That's a new motto for me. I think I'll keep it.” 

Another character I loved was her mom, who as I mentioned before is schizophrenic. I won't go into much detail but she took me by surprise. She's both hilarious and pitiful. You can feel Penryn's frustration with her but at the same time recognize their bond. This quote sums her up perfectly:

“We now play a permanent game of I-am-crazier-and-scarier-than-you. And in that game, my mother is our secret weapon.” 

There are two other characters that were just incredible but I can't talk about them without spoiling anything. Just watch out for Dee-Dum. 

Did I mentioned the sass level in this book? Take a look:

“I'm not moping," I whisper back. "Of course you're not. A girl like you, spending time with a warrior demigod like me. What's to mope about? Leaving a wheelchair behind couldn't possibly show up on the radar compared to that." 

"You've got to be kidding me."

"I never kid about my warrior demigod status.” 

"Oh. My. God." I lower my voice, having forgotten to whisper. "You are nothing but a bird with an attitude. Okay, so you have a few muscles, I’ll grant you that. But you know, a bird is nothing but a barely evolved lizard. That’s what you are.” 

Aside from that, I thought that the angels and their hierarchy and even a bit of their culture were very well explained. There was depth there that I wasn't expecting. We learn about the archangels, hell, several other biblical creatures and even a bit of politics thrown in the mix.

We also get to see how humanity is coping. I really enjoyed that level of psychology and the different ways people react to catastrophe. Wether it be to try and fight the enemy, throw your lot in with numbers regardless of the moral compass, go solo and try to survive by any means necessary.

Things I didn't like (SPOILERY - YOU WHERE WARNED!)

There are only a few things to mention here. There were certain characters that were mentioned where I would have liked a bit more presence in the book. One in particular drop heavy hints about his past, and I thought I would have been interesting to dig deeper into that particular background.

Also, I didn't like how fast the romance between the two characters happened. They're supposed to be enemies and yet... I would have liked a nice slow build. Not against romance at all, but come on. That level of hatred does not disappear over night because they guy is hot (might help but not that quickly!).

And the last thing I didn't like was the ending. It wasn't terrible but I felt like it didn't live up to the rest of the books. Though that is for each of you to see.

Things to Look Out For

The book is gory as hell. I like to describe it as a casually gory book because it seriously catches you by surprise. One second you have this sarcastic conversation you can't stop laughing at, and then you come across a couple of people dismembered and blood everywhere. Yeah. Just thought you should know that going in.

Let me know if you read it and what your thoughts are on it =)

[Books] The Hobbit Movie Cover

Hello! Let's start by remembering me saying that I hate books with movie covers. I don't know why. Maybe it's because the authors go through a lot of effort to pick their covers and in some cases these covers take a lot of work. So suddenly slapping the movie poster on the book feels wrong. Also, I feel like buying the book with the movie covers is telling the world you're reading it because of the movie. Hahaha petty things but oh well.

Now every now and then a movie poster will be incredible. When the last movie in the Hobbit trilogy was being announced they released several covers. The one I loved the most was the one with Martin Freeman, playing Bilbo Baggins, who was kneeling with his head down holding Sting in one hand. He looks resigned, sad and solemn, dirty with the grime of the battle field. Knowing everything that happens in the Battle of the Five Armies (the event not the movie title), I feel like this image portrays all the emotions that Bilbo was probably feeling in the wake of the battle. So I love that cover. Seeing it on the book didn't cause that sense of wrongness I sometimes feel, but it just brought all the feels! I couldn't resist buying it, even if I already have two versions: one belonging to my brother and is the original cover with Smaug laying over his hoard, and a beautiful leather bound version with golden edges. And it looks awesome next to my Tolkien Collection (still in process of acquiring titles ^^).

What about you? What's your opinion towards books with movie covers? 

[Wrap Up] October

Okay so October is up and these are the books I read during the month of ghosts and ghouls! Ohoooo *insert scary noise*

Now, for the past months I've been reading whatever I wanted, mostly YA series and so on, but at the same time I had started doing the famous 2015 Reading Challenge, only I didn't notice how many of the books I was reading didn't exactly fit any criteria. So I am way behind.

Yesterday I finished the GoodReads challenge, which was 50 books. I've edited it to 56 for now and I might change it again later. Now I'm going to be focusing on ticking off the boxes I have left, which are around 13. With NaNoWriMo though I might not manage but the glory is in the trying.

These are the books I read:

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins (A Book Published this Year) GoodReads
I was a bit disappointed with this book. The plot sounded awesome and mysterious but I thought it centered too much on the main characters and her not so good life. The ending was great in my opinion cause it wasn't a really feel good ending to the problem. I'll say no more! I gave it 4 stars anyway.

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard (A Book Written by Someone under 30) GoodReads
Now according to my research Aveyard was 24 when she published this book. Not sure if I'm right or not. Excellent story, you can see my complete review here. 5 stars!

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand (A Book Based on a True Story) GoodReads
There are no words to describe my love for this book. I thought it was heartbreaking and a testament to fortitude. The story is about an airman, Loius Zamperini who is lost at sea and rescued by the Japanese and taken to a POW camp. I gave it a well deserved 5 stars!

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (A Book at the Bottom of your TBR List) GoodReads
Not a big fan of this book. I thought the plot had a lot of potential, but I couldn't stand Clare at all. At the end it became another romance story with the typical couple problems and sex thrown in the mix. The time traveling got lost on the way. 1 star.

Holes by Louis Sachar (A Book with a One-Word Title) GoodReads
A short tale about a boy being sent to a camp for 'bad boys', where the Warden makes the kids dig 5 meter holes every day looking for treasure. It was a nice story and brought back many fond memories of when my teacher read it to us in class. 5 stars.

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (A Book with Antonyms in the Title) GoodReads
It took me awhile to get into this book full of women gossiping and rarely doing anything of consequence, but in the end I thought it was funny and was dying to see how it all unraveled. 4 stars.

[Crafts] Origami Bow Tie

Hello! So, as you may know, I love origami. I don't do it as often as I'd like (I blame work lazyness), but every now and then I'll get the itch to do something.

I was always intrigued by these figures made of paper. I had some books but I just could not get them. The instructions for me, even if it was with images and arrows as to which way to fold something, were always beyond me.

And then... YouTube. I realized that the only way I'll ever create an origami figure is by watching a tutorial. This way there is rarely room for error. You see when you have to turn the paper over, which way to fold, how to fold etc.

My last great project was an origami flower bouquet that I did for the daughter of a friend of my mom's who was getting married and is battling cancer.

This weekend I was tagged to an origami bow tie tutorial by my cousin. I couldn't resist the challenge so today I took a piece of wrapping paper, so I had a lovely pattern, and started folding. Let me tell you that folding wrapping paper is not easy. At least the one I had because it was pretty thick. But it turned out alright.

Here is a link to a tutorial. It's not the one I used since that one was on Facebook but the steps are the same. Enjoy!

Any favorite origami figures you'd like to share? 

[Book Review] Red Queen

Title: Red Queen (Goodreads)

Author: Victoria Aveyard (Go to her Blog)

Date Published: February 2015

Genre: YA, Dystopian, Fantasy 

Personal Review:

The Plot

Okay. The plot is pretty straightforward. There are two classes in this world: those with silver blood (Silvers) and those with red blood (Reds). Now the special thing about the Silvers is that they have all kinds of superpowers. You have Strongarms, who as the name suggests have super strength, Nymphs who control water, Whispers who can read your thoughts and control you, Magnetrons who control metal, and so on. 

Our main protagonist, Mare Borrow is a Red. Coming up on her 18th birthday and with no job she's going to get conscripted into the army, where she'll be sent to the front lines of a war between other kingdoms. She's a thief and she absolutely hates the Silvers who lord over them with an iron fist. One night, she tries to pickpocket the wrong person. She knows immediately this guys doesn't belong but for some reason he lets her go. The next day she gets summoned to the Silver's palace (which is their summer house), and is given a job as a servant, to her complete confusion. 

On her first day she'll witness what is known as the Queenstrial. The oldest daughters of the High Houses (basically royalty), will show their powers so the Prince can choose his future Queen. Mare is caught in the middle when the impossible happens.

Now, the King and Queen will have to hide her amongst them, pretending she is a lost Silver Princess and engaged to one of their sons. Hiding the fact she is a Red and trying not to get killed by the angry Princesses, she'll try to help the rising rebellion group known as the Scarlet Army. 

The only problem is, in a world with superpowers and uncertainty, anyone could betray her. 

No pressure girl. 

There is romance (of course there is romance), betrayal, mind games, violence and plain old heartbreak. 

Thing I Liked

It's funny how many different comparisons are being made to explain this book. On several websites, like Amazon, they say it's Graceling meets The Selection. I've read in some other places that it's more of a Hunger Games meets the X-men, although I don't really see any Hunger Games characteristics. Unless you count a people being oppressed by an elite (which most dystopians are so lets not automatically compare it with just one popular trilogy).

I still haven't gotten my hands on Graceling and The Selection is on my TBR list for next month, so I can't really comment on the first comparison. But I do know that in an interview with Aveyard she comments that the X-Men had a big influence on her. 

"I’ve always been a huge fan of the movies. I unfortunately never got into the comic books. I was such a Harry Potter freak so those I was just mainlining those at all times, but I was definitely inspired by the X-Men and it was a kick-starter. I thought, okay, 100 years into a war with people and superheroes, there’s no way they’re going to be running from the government. They’re going to be the government. If you have a mind controller, they’re not going to sit at home and twiddle their thumbs."  

(Complete Interview as Publisher Weekly) 

I think that's one of the things that really drew me in. I love superpowers and it's not usually a theme you see in books. 

Something that surprised me were the characters. I'm always very picky with them. I may love the plot, the complexities behind a world an author created and the writing styles, but if the characters disappoint me, all that goes out the window.

Especially when it comes to the main characters. There's been many YA series that I thought were incredible but were slightly ruined because I couldn't stand the main character. In this case though, I was very happy with Mare Barrow. She's a strong character, smart, resilient, quick witted and best of all, not prone to breaking down when things are tough. I liked most of her choices, her logic and her reactions toward certain events and people. 

The writing style was simple but elegant and very detailed, all traits I love. 

Things I Didn't Like

It's a small thing I suppose, but I thought there was very little detail as to what the deal is with this war young Reds get sent to. They mention battling against other Silvers, but for what? Why? Or maybe they do mention it but in my haste to see what happened next my mind just said 'screw it keep reading'.

The High Houses weren't explained in full. We know the names, their colors and their powers to a degree. But what else? Basically I just want a background check on everyone and a history lesson. 

Do I Recommend this Book?

Hell yes. I thought it was an ambitious book. There's a lot of fantasy in it and many people might not like it. Since I love fantasy, having powers, rebellions and mind games this books was my cup of tea. I finished it in two days!

Have you read the book? What's your take on Mare? 

[Book Wrap Up] September

September is over, we're on October 13th and I just took the time to grab the books read last month. They're just a few books this time, though the fault lies in health issues and binge watching Person of Interest. As you can see, this time the genres were all over the place. Mystery, romance, short stories and a slice of live short of book. I have written reviews for Death on the Nile and The Best of Me, the other two are still in the wind. Not sure if I'll write a review for them though, so no promises. 

A short summary on these books: 

Loved Agatha Christie's Death on the Nile. I'm just discovering her work. I knew about her of course, but never felt the desire to read any of her books. Now I can't stop, though I'm getting my hands on them slowly. This is the fifth book I've read by her. The other four are: At Bertram's Hotel, Murder on the Orient Express, And Then There Were None and The ABC Murders. Can't wait to buy some more!

I was a bit disappointed with Nicholas Spark's The Best of Me. The plot had a lot of potential but I feel like it focused too much on what the two main characters are thinking the whole time. The ending was like a punch to the face though, and made me change my mind, if only because I'm a sucker for books that make you cry at the end. There was one thing I didn't like, but I won't spoil it for you.

Nocturnes by Kazuo Ishiguro is a collection of short stories focusing on the theme of people and how music plays a role in their lives. It can be a mayor role or a small one. I found the stories simple but enjoyable, with a hint of melancholy. 

Last but not least, Matthew Thomas' first novel We Are Not Ourselves is a rollercoaster of emotions. You don't know whether to hate the characters, sympathize with them or just throw the book across the room. The story is centered around a woman and her life, from when she is a littler girl to when she was her own family. You'll find heartbreak, deaths, health issues and everyday problems. Even now I don't know how to feel about it. The style is simple, to the point and leaving you wanting to know more. 

Well, those were my reads for Septembers.

What about you? Have you read these? What did you think about them? 

[Book Haul] September!

I'm so excited! Getting English books is becoming increasingly easier here in Lima, Peru. Before, I had to content myself with ordering on amazon every now and then. Then I found a bookshop called SBS Librería Internacional - Special Book Services and was happy for a while. But during the July book fair, I found another awesome bookshop called CarolyLibros. Nearing the end of September I took a quick trip down to the shop, which is actually a house whose first floor was converted into a shop. Books, everywhere! All of them in English. I was in heaven. I didn't plan on buying so many, but I couldn't resist.

From top to bottom, I bought The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey because I've been hearing it's name everywhere and with the movie coming out I just have to read it before watching it. The plot is really alluring, with each wave of something (and I really wanna see that it is), chances of survival lower. 

Marie Lu's Legend trilogy (Legend, Prodigy and Champion) sounds awesome. In a dystopian world where the Republic is fighting against everyone else, two people from two extreme social classes will meet when the elite June's brother is killed, and Day, a known criminal is the prime suspect. Questions arise that will make June suspect her own government. 

Kiera Cass' The Selection series (this boxset comes with The Selection, The Elite, The One and The Heir). Basically 35 girls are going to compete for the Prince's hand. America hates that she got selected. She already has her eye on someone and doesn't want anything to do with a stupid crown. You go girl. Of course, things will start to change when she meets the prince. I'm not going to lie, the first thing that went through my head when I heard about this series was that it was going to be a strange mix of Cinderella, the Hunger Games and America's Next Top Model, which prompted the image of girls in dresses cat fighting. I found it hilarious. We shall see how it turns out. 

Vanishing Girls by Lauren Oliver. Two sisters, Dara and Nick, become estranged after an accident leaves Dara's face scarred. But she goes missing alongside another girl, Nick is convinced there is a connection and strives to find her sister. How? No idea, I'll have to read it to find out.

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard. I was really interested in this book since it started appearing on everyone's TBR list. I was a bit skeptical at first, but the summary sounds promising. Two classes of people, the Reds (commoners) and the Silvers (the Elite). Mare Borrow hates them, but there appears to be more than meets the eye with her and she's taken in by the Silvers, declared a lost princess, and engaged to the prince, Mare has to survive and find out the truth. Oh, and help the Red rebellion group that wants to bring down the Silver regime. Who doesn't love a good Revolution?

And last but not least, The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. Rachel takes the same train every day and always sees the same couple, giving them names and a life of their own in her head. It sounds like the perfect unchanging monotonous life. Until she sees something. Something apparently shocking, which makes her go running to the police. However, now her life is linked in the case and she no longer knows if she did the right thing. What is this shocking thing she saw? I must know! 

Anyway, I don't know when I'll start with these beauties, I'm still finishing a book I started in September: Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. 

Will post my September Wrap Up later today or tomorrow. Been busy binge watching Person of Interest. I swear, this series... will write a post on it soon.

Any recommendations on which book to start first? Any new books you guys bought you'd like to recommend for future buys?

Bloggers, Booktubers and Readers

(First of all sorry for the late post, I fell victim to a stomach bug as did most of my family so we were in our own quarantined world)

Anyway, Sunday the 30th was incredible! I met tons of interesting people and many of the famous BookTubers here in Lima, Peru. We had many interesting games like trivia questions, charades, hame books in alphabetical order. It was crazy! We got to talk about our favorite books, characters, editions. The whole thing. Down below I'm leaving a link to the facebook page of Guild of all Trades where you can see the pictures and some videos.

PHOTO ALBUM of the morning

First Blogger, BookTuber Conference / Primera Conferencia de Bloggers - BookTubers

If you're anywhere near Lima, Peru this Sunday 20 of September, there's a first conference of Bloggers, BookTubers and readers being held. It's in Campo de Marte from 10-1 a.m. There'll be many prizes, trivia, books and of course you get to meet another book lovers and bloggers. Don't miss it!

______________________

Si están cerca de Lima, Peru este domingo 20 de setiembre, se esta llevando acabo la primera conferencia de bloggers, BookTuber y lectores. Será en el Campo de Marte de 10-1 a.m. Van a haber muchos premios, trivia, libros y por supuesto, podrás conocer a otros amantes de libros y bloggers. ¡No te lo pierdas!

 

New MockingJay Trailer - "For Prim"

Right. So, the Hunger Games. I have to say I wasn't so impressed by the trilogy. I read the books back in 2013 during my holidays.

I thought the first book was interesting and new (if you don't count Battle Royale). Wasn't all that moved by Katniss and Peeta. I know, probably a first.  I loved the second book. I did, I thought it was better planned, more original and with a deeper look into the psychology of the districts and the characters. Haymitch is my favorite character in the whole trilogy, by the way. The third book left me a bit confused at times and of course... emotionally destroyed by the end.

Anyway, the second trailer of the Mockingjay Part 2 came out and... my eyes got suspiciously watery. I blame onion cutting ninjas.

The trailer is spectacular. It's even titled "For Prim", which is how the whole thing started in the first place. Now I don't mind romance, but in a world where people are dying left and right and forced to kill, it always feels out of place. But this trailer summarized the best parts of the book and of humanity. Katniss volunteered for her sister's sake. Not for love, not for glory, but for family. That is what I wanted to see more of, but during the course of the book it got lost, to be replaced by the Peeta and Gale dilemma. Until the very end where Collins rips your heart out and stomps it.

This trailer... watch this trailer. It's heartbreaking!

What did you think? Heartbreaking or what? Would love to see different views on the whole trilogy. Who was your favorite character and why? (Mine was Haymitch, guy is a badass!)

Consigue Seguidores Con "+1" - Get More Followers With "+1"

Buenas! Hoy vengo con una propuesta para todos esos blogs que necesitan un poco de ayudita para subir su número de seguidores o simplemente que están en busca de nuevos, se llama "+1" y consiste en colocar una entrada con la imagen que les dejaré por aquí abajo, pidiendo a las personas que sigan tú blog y que ellos dejen el link del suyo en los comentarios de tu entrada para que de esta manera tu puedas seguirlo también. 

Esta propuesta viene del blog Pétalos de un Libro. No olvides colocar el banner en un lugar visible del blog y dar créditos. 

____________________________________

Hey there! There's this proposal going around called "+1" for all those blogs that are searching for more followers or just wanting to spread the word. It consists in posting an entry with the image below, asking people to follow you and to leave a link to their blog in the comment section so you can follow them as well. 

The proposal comes from the blog Pétalos de un Libro (Petals from a Book). Don't forget to place the banner in a visible place on you blog and to credit. 

[Reading Challenge] My Books So Far!

I'm sure most of you know about the 2015 Reading Challenge. If not, let me tell you a bit about it.

Basically, it's a list of books to read that fit a certain requirement. For example, you have to read a book with a color in the title, or a book published in the year you were born.

Some requirements are easy: a book by a female author, a trilogy, or easier still, a book that became a movie (because lets face it, almost every movie in the cinemas came from a book). Some, on the other hand, are a bit harder. You have: a book with an author with your same initials, a book with antonyms in the title or even a book you were supposed to read in school but didn't. At least in my case I'm panicking with that last one.

As far as I can see, the list that seems to be the most popular (you can find many reading challenges floating around), was posted on PopSugar. You can download the list on the site or you can look for it on Pinterest, along with some other challenges.

So far, I've managed to complete almost half of the list. I've read 43 books according to Goodreads this year, but not all of them have met the requirements of the Reading Challenge. Let's see if in the last four months of this year I can complete the challenge!

How about you? Any books to recommend with a specific requirement? Are you doing the challenge? Let me know how it goes!  =)

[Monthly Reads] August Book Wrap Up!

Wow August was tough!

In July there was the International Book Fair here in Lima, Peru where I'm currently living.

There, of the books you see here, I bought Sister Noon, Wonder, and the Maze Runner box set. The last two mentioned I adored and Wonder made my cry. Sister Noon, not so much. Although the writing is lovely.

The Husband's Secret and the Matched trilogy I bought when I went to Buenos Aires to visit my grandparents.

I'll post fuller and more detailed reviews in the future (I need them fresh in my mind for that XP), but all I will say at the moment is that I expected more from the Matched trilogy. It's good enough to suggest for a light reading, but I felt like some parts were rushed. The idea behind the trilogy is excellent and very thought provoking. The whole society Cassia (the main character) is living in is complex and interesting, but not explored enough, for my taste.

As for the Husband's Secret, I liked the main plot and the way it was written, linking three women together to a specific town in Australia through their own perspective. Moriarty (and what an epic surname!) uses these POV chapters to her advantage and leaves us with several cliffhangers. However, the secret ended up being too obvious for my taste, and I ended up not liking any of the women. I'll leave the reasons to your curiosity. I do recommend this book though, it's a fun and easy read.

[Book Review] Death on the Nile

You Can Buy Here

Title: Death on the Nile (Goodreads)

Author: Agatha Christie

Year Published: 1937

Edition Read: 2011

Genre: Crime and Mystery

Personal Review:

Crime is afoot on the famous river, the Nile. This book explores all the positive motives. Money, jealousy, love, vengeance, opportunity, vanity. The crime? As the title of the book suggests, murder is the favored evil. 

Christie is a criminal mastermind of her own. One of my favorite things about her is that she presents numerous characters that all have a role to play. No one is there as a simple background character. Whether it be a small comment, an observation, a past relation which might be part of the bigger scheme of things, or the very same culprit, they are all important. And the best part is that it keeps you guessing.

[Book Review] The Best of Me

You Can Buy Here

Title: The Best of Me (Goodreads)

Author: Nicholas Sparks

Year: 2011

Genre: Romance

Personal Rating:

What better way to start this blog with a quick book review?

Now, mind you, there will be spoilers ahead. But first a general review for those that are thinking about reading it.

The book is about two teens who fall in love in a Romeo and Juliet style. She's from a respectable and wealthy family while he's the complete opposite. His surname, Cole, brings fear into the hearts of all who hear it. His family is like this giant small town mafia that nobody pisses off. But here we have young Dawson, who hates his family, is nothing like them, and has fallen in love with one Amanda Collier, a girl way out of his league, status and general lifestyle.

Needless to say her family did not approve. Not in the slightest. As is mentioned in the summary, their paths go different ways. Twenty years later they reunite. Does love bloom again? Have their hearts' desire changed?

The answer is no. At least on Dawson's side. Let's give the guy some point though, he never dated anyone since he was sent to prison for accidentally killing a famous (and only doctor) in small town Oriental.

Amanda, though madly in love with Dawson, moved on. Now, if she had gone to visit young Dawson in prison and said youngster had told her "move on", great. But she didn't, and so he didn't. Don't let the movie fool you. She never went.

She went to college like she wanted, she met a future dentist and got married. Had three kids (a fourth who she lost to cancer), and lived happily ever after. Or she would have, if Frank, her husband, didn't start drinking to the point of being a certified alcoholic.

Now, while all this was happening, Dawson was off in prison. After he got out he stayed a year back home on probation. He had left his family long ago, went to live with a widower named Tuck, who aside from letting his stay in his garage didn't really talk to the kid.

After the year on probation Dawson left for Lousiana. Why there, no idea. He worked on a rig, and one day for some reason it exploded, sending his crashing into the water below. This is when he starts hallucinating. Yup, you heard right. But don't be mistaken, this isn't a negative point toward the book. It was brillinatly handeled. The hallucination very important. Read to find out why.

Tuck's death is what brings them back together. They get a call from a lawyer saying he asked them to take care of something. Now here's the thing, they don't know that their first love is going to be there. Tuck, apparently, shipped them hard. I think he was counting down the days till he died so he could get both of them together. It was rather funny.

Funnier still, is that while both of them are falling in love again, but it being difficult for Amanda who is married, Dawson's cousins know he's back and want him dead. Yet be it fate or Tuck having a laugh, they miss each other almost until the end of the book.

Things happen and Amanda decides that she can't break up her family. Which, is actually being a decent and responsible human being. Yes her husband is a drunk, but he's not violent, works, loves his kids and loves her. Just also loves his booze.

Dawson, being all noble dies. Won't go into detail about how or why. But it turns out that while he was dying, Jared, Amanda`s oldest was in a car accident and in desperate need of a heart transplant. Guess who's heart he got?

Now the first half of the book was boring for me. But the second half was much better. When the accident happened I almost cried. And when it is mentioned that Jared was going to need a heart transplant I did shed a lonely tear, knowing where this was going.

I wasn't a fan of Amanda not telling her son where the heart came from, specially after he had asked her to find out about who's heart was beating in his chest. One, he has a right to know. Two, it feels like she's compeltly killing Dawson off, instead of sharing his story with her son. The truth of who Dawson is, the good person he was, never tainted by his Cole blood, dies with her. It just left me with a bad taste.

In conclusion, it's not my favorite Sparks book. That slot still belongs to Safe Haven.

So, any opinions? Thoughts? Do you disagree, agree? Remember though, keep it civil.

Welcome!

Image: Gladstone Library 

Hi there! Welcome to the Guild of All Trades. I hope to meet new people and interact with them, share ideas and generally have a great time. A small note first. 

In 2009 I started a blog on Livejournal.  Although, it was rather more of a place to post stories than an actual blog. I won't say it crashed and burned because it's still around... floating in the ocean that is the internet and it has some success. 

I had moments where I would post every week and then months of inactivity. I still love writing but I like to think I matured in that regard, which is why I decided to start from scratch. 

I might post a ficlet or two, original stories (I've been saying that for years so don't hold your breath), book reviews, book vs movie reviews (I can just tell it'll involve a lot of venting and cursing), talk about teaching and dancing and all kinds of artistic topics. Basically, I'd like to write about things that interest me that I can share with all of you, although books will probably be the main theme. 

I chose the name for this blog for two reasons. One, because I want to write about more than one thing. The second, because thousands of people, worlds, cultures and stories hide inside of books. I love the idea that you can find them all in one place -a library, a bookshop, the internet or your own room-a sort of guild, and each contains something unique.

This journal is my guild, and the trades are many.

(On a side note, I'm crossposting to my Livejournal, s-ren, if anyone is interested.)