Taking care of our planet matters to me more and more as time passes by. Slowly, I’m becoming more aware of how much we just use and throw away, and consequently, waste is becoming something that bothers me. Even throwing away onion peals or eggs shells is something that doesn’t sit right with me anymore. If it can be transformed, then I want to do it. While a compost bin still has some “questions of logistics” to be considered, I can start re-purpose other things. And the next item on the list of “things that have a short life span” comes water bottles. Yes, they can be recycled, although I’m still using them once and then throwing them away (to recycling). I want to give them a new life before they are shredded into tiny pieces to be reborn again. Then one day, while losing myself in the slow living …

And Then There Were None is not the first Agatha Christie book I read. Although it is the first one I completely fell in love with. It can be tricky to read her books. They were written a very long time ago, and she often uses references to the 30s lifestyle that is foreign to me. While reading it in a different century, some details can go over my head and doom the book as boring. At least, this has been my experience when reading Agatha Christie. But then, I picked up And Then There Were None. One of her standalone mystery novels. A story with multiple adaptations from movies, to mini-series, to a two-part episode of Family Guy. And I know I’ve seen a few more with different characters while maintaining the same plot, although, for the life of me, I can’t remember where. This is one of her …

The title is very self-explanatory. I decided to experiment for a month to track words instead of books. Yes, I’ve managed to complicate something so simple. Although, I have a good reason. I am a slow reader, as in I usually read at a speed of 180 words per minute. And my original idea for this experiment was to keep me motivated to read, possibly to read bigger books. Every time I look at a book with more than 400 pages, my first thought is how many weeks or even months it will take me to finish it. And that discourages me. So I was on the hunt for a way to allow me to fall in love with reading, no matter the size of the book. How the idea came to be One day in February, I found a YouTube video about reading 30 books in 30 days and, …

Some readers don’t care about tracking books and keeping tabs on everything they read. But I am not one of those. And I’m guessing you aren’t either. For that reason, I bring you three mobile apps you can use to track your everyday reading! I’ve been tracking my reading for a few years now. It started with Goodreads and has been getting more and more specific over time. What every reader wants to track can be a lot different. Maybe you just want to know how much time takes you to read each book. Or maybe you want to keep track of the genres you read most often. Or you just want a place where you can store all the quotes, thoughts and highlights while reading. No matter what you want, I’m going over the features, what I liked and didn’t like on each app, so you can see if …

Happy April Fools’ Day!! Despite today being a day you can’t trust anything people say, trust me, I’ll not be pulling any pranks on you. *wink* *wink* Now that I’ve taken all the jokes out of my system – probably not! – time to focus on the book I bring to you today: Edokko by Loren Greene. This is the second full-length novel in the Sakura+Maple series that brings Japan and Canada together. The story is a stand-alone, so don’t worry if you haven’t read anything else. So grab your passport, and let’s go to Japan! Author: Loren Greene Pages: 332 Genre: Contemporary YA Publication: 2021 Synopsis: Lily Jennings is Going. To. Japan. Sixteen and on top of the world, Lily’s BEYOND excited to be setting off for an entire year as an exchange student in Tokyo. Fashion and fun are foremost on her mind as she arrives ready to …

I know I’m late to the party, but… Good Omens… Oh my… Good Omens. Is. Such. A. Good. Show! I know everyone already say this, but I never truly believed it until I saw it for myself. So if this post finds its way to probably the only person that hasn’t seen it yet, then my job here is done! Lately, I’ve been reviewing a lot of books here on the blog because it’s the type of content I consume the most. But, when I’m not reading or re-watching a series for the 1000th time, I’ll watch something new. And sometimes, I struck gold! And Good Omens is better than gold, so diamonds? – I don’t care much for precious stones or metals. So, Good Omens is better than… an Oreo cupcake with raspberry filling. Yes, that’s the one! The story starts with Crowley, a demon, and Aziraphale, an angel, …

The start of a new year means new books. Although I can’t begin reviewing the books I already read in 2022 without closing the chapter of the ones I read last year. And Capsule by Mel Torrefranca is one of the reasons for that. It came out last summer, and I was fortunate to read an eARC of it. So prepare yourself for a deadly phone game! Author: Mel Torrefranca Pages: 255 Genre: YA, Sci-Fi, Mystery Publication: July 2021 Synopsis: Two students from Brookwood High School mysteriously go missing on the same night. The first is Peter Moon, a heartless pescatarian who bashes students from Brookwood on his blog, turning everyone against him. The second is the adored Kat Pike, an audacious girl desperate to boost her adrenaline. Three days pass. No leads. Indifferent to the disappearances, sixteen-year-old Jackie Mendoza remains immersed in her virtual world of video games and …

As the name suggests, this book has everything to be a terrifying read during the time we are living in. Although it’s not. Despite the name, Contagion by Teri Terry has little to no similarities to real life – and I’m glad it doesn’t, or the author can predict the future! This piece of light fantasy is highly addictive and has infected me to read the rest of the series – now I see where the name comes from! Author: Teri Terry Pages: 480 Genre: Fantasy, YA, Mystery, Apocalyptic Publication: 2017 Synopsis: Callie is missing. Her brother Kai is losing hope of ever seeing her again. Then he meets Shay, a girl who saw Callie the day she disappeared, and his hope is reignited. Their search leads them to the heart of a terrifying epidemic that is raging through the country. Can Kai and Shay escape death and find Callie? …

Grab a tissue box because You’ve Reached Sam by Dustin Thao will leave you crying like a baby. This YA contemporary story deals with grieving the loss of a loved one. Completely character-driven, the author takes you through a journey of loss, reconnection, friendship, and letting go. Prepare yourself because there won’t be many times to smile. Author: Dustin Thao Pages: 304 Genre: YA, Contemporary, Fantasy Publication: 9th November 2021 Synopsis: How do you move forward when everything you love is on the line? Seventeen-year-old Julie has her future all planned out—move out of her small town with her boyfriend Sam, attend college in the city, spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies. And everything changes. Desperate to hear his voice one more time, Julie calls Sam’s cellphone just to listen to his voicemail. And Sam picks up the phone. What would you do if you had a …