Cheeky Review of Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

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Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

What a long, long book. My thoughts coming into this book were that this Shadowhunter franchise has been so longwinded and I felt really apprehensive about this. However, the reviews stated that this book was the best of the whole Shadowhunter world and had to be read. So, I did just that. Let me just say that this is primarily a romance novel. It's not what I consider fantasy, so I feel like it needed more focus on fantasy because 668 pages of romance is kind of a lot. The downfall of this book in my opinion is its length- it's so descriptive without having to be- this book could be condensed in maybe 400 pages. The story was nice and interesting but not ENGAGING. Any loose ends are wrapped up nicely though. And I do really love how each character is fleshed out completely. The romance is pretty darn good. It's another "forbidden romance" and anything forbidden is automatically more enticing. Although, there are lengthy descriptions of "his collarbone" or other minute details since they are oh so in love... So if you are looking for a romance with a touch of fantasy, this might be the book for you. xx Jennifer

Salt to the Sea Review

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Salt to the Sea

I was so worried that this book would disappoint me because I absolutely loved Between Shades of Grey, but it far exceeded my expectations. I freaking LOVED this book; it's definitely in my collection of favorites. The story itself is so unique in the fact that it's founded on a real, hidden tragedy of World War II- I'm in awe of the time and research she put into this book. Such a tale with truths woven in. The four personalities are so distinct; she really captured their voices so well. I think I speak for everyone in that Alfred's chapters were difficult to read. I enjoyed how the characters' fates started to weave together; I think I enjoyed Emilia's the much. The foreshadowing in this book is so real, man, it's so surreal to look back and see all the hints Ruta dropped. Despite the tragedies in this book, I managed to get through without crying mainly because of the beauty of the characters and the heart and soul of this book. I absolutely loved this & recommend to everyone. What a book. (Also I finished this in one day- a really quick read!) xx Jennifer

#100HappyDays Challenge & TASSP Academic Excellence Team

A quick update: I'm doing the #100HappyDays Challenge on Instagram where you post something that makes you happy that day for 100 days. I find it really fun as it motivates you to do fun things and allows you to really appreciate the blessings of each and every day.

Posting everyday allows you to be photographically creative as well as you try to get the right exposition or the perfect layout. And, you have the challenge of making boring stuff look appealing!

Shameless promo: Follow me on Insta at @popsterjen. I'm only on Day 4 as of today! & I encourage you guys to do this challenge and comment your insta name (if there are any of you out there). You can totally create a separate Instagram account like I did! ^_^


And today, I got to go to Austin to join the TASSP Academic Excellence Team! It felt so good to be recognized and earn something and I definitely conquered a few fears as I had to make a mini speech and my face was projected on a GIANT screen! I am so grateful to my high school principal who nominated me and glad I got to see familiar faces. Definitely a day I will not forget. (I feel like a princess with my flowy skirt!)

xx Jennifer

P.S. I have reviews of Me Before You (film), Orange (film), & Phantom (kdrama) coming up!

RIP Christina Grimmie

I've never made this kind of post before but I just needed to put this out there and GRIEVE.

I am writing this while tears stream down my face, 14 hours after I heard the news of her death. It doesn't seem real. I can imagine her bright and cheery, singing her heart out.

It's hard to deal with this and I'm surprised by how torn and heartbroken I am. I've never lost a family member or close relative (let's pray it stays that way) and I have had a distant acquaintance pass away but I've never felt any grief close to how I feel today. I am learning for the first time how to deal with grief.

I managed to go out and meet friends and have a general good time. But in the back of my mind, I can only think of Christina and her senseless death. She did absolutely nothing to deserve it; she is so talented, pure-hearted, sincere, sweet, passionate, & hardworking. These qualities make it harder for me to process and handle her death. I deeply regret not attending any nearby concerts if she had them nearby; I am grateful I followed her music and her different endeavors like the Voice.

I feel regret that I didn't pay more attention to her stuff over the recent years. I imagine everyone feels this when mourning a loved one: missed time.

What makes this hard is that her YouTube channel is always there, full of videos of her distinct, bright voice and her energetic personality- the videos make her seem full of life.

Although I'm not religious, I know she was & I do hope that she is flourishing in heaven with her God. I know she is one of the few who are strong enough.

Much, much love to one of my all-time idols,
xx Jennifer

P.S. I recommend listening to Sam Tsui's rendition to Just a Dream, his tribute to Christina. It accurately describes how we all feel.

Review of a Classic: Poisonwood Bible

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Poisonwood Bible

WHAT A BOOK! I finished this awhile ago so my memory is blurry but I do remember the whirlwind of emotions this book left me.

The five different point of views in this book are so distinct and detailed; I'm in awe Kingsolver managed to weave a story without muddling the different perspectives. The character development is unreal, each character grows significantly and the experiences they went through visibly change them.

The story revolves around American colonization of the Congo. I find this a really true representation of that; the plot was definitely slow-paced but gradually built. A truly amazing storyline with meaningful biblical allusions. And the mystery of which daughter died really kept the book flowing and the reader on their toes. The book provided so many lifelong lessons as well.

Only considerable drawback besides the initial slowness was that the last fourth of the book was hard to read since the characters were in different locations and there were confusing time jumps; those made me disconnected from the characters.

Overall, I do think this is one of my favorite books of all time that I highly recommend to everyone. Although a long read, it is so vivid and life-changing. 

xx Jennifer

Movie Reviews: Fargo, Silence of the Lambs, Deadpool, The Martian & Gone Girl

I have not 1, not 2, not 3, not 4, not 6 but FIVE MOVIE REVIEWS FOR YOU! I'll make these as short and informative as I can. AND SPOILER FREE!

Deadpool

Summary: Wade Wilson hunts the man who gave him an accelerated healing factor but also a scarred physical appearance.

There's nothing I exactly dislike about this movie except for its lack of originality. The plot of the film followed a basic superhero movie plot and I had difficulty connecting with any of the characters. I didn't mind the crass comedy or sex; it was expected of Deadpool. I like how he broke the fourth wall- this was pretty unique. I also enjoy that the movie didn't take itself too seriously. The action scenes were good! 

Overall, it really didn't live up to its hype so I am disappointed. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Gone Girl

Summary: Set in Northeast Missouri, the story begins as a mystery that follows the events surrounding Nick Dunne, who becomes the primary suspect in the sudden disappearance of his wife, Amy.

I went into this movie knowing absolutely nothing except this film is popular. Naturally when the plot twist happened, I was absolutely shocked so I think they delivered that well. Rosamund Pike delivered on the acting and I genuinely thought everyone was psychotic in the movie... so good job?

And what an unsatisfying ending! 

I rated it a little low just because the ending (which I hate doing but it really hit me) and Affleck's acting to me left a bit to be desired. And there were a lot of cliches in this story besides the obvious plot twist.

Totally understand why this is popular!

                                                                                                                                                                                                         

The Martian

Summary: Damon stars as Mark, an astronaut who is mistakenly presumed dead and left behind on Mars. The film depicts his struggle to survive and others' efforts to rescue him.

A really great film in my books! I love the attention to detail and the chronicle of Mark's journey to survive on Mars. On the flip side, it did drag sometimes due to the excessive attention to detail- it is a 2 hour movie! Acting was good and I love how Houston was represented! Another thing that kept it from a 5 is how exaggerated everything was- how could a botanist make such engineering feats? And the final rescue seemed so lucky and coincidental. So many potential messups didn't happen- a little too good to be true.

Idealistic film that does ultimately leave you feeling satisfied! 

                                                                                                                                                                                                         

The Silence of the Lambs

Summary: In the film, Clarice Starling, a young U.S. FBI trainee, seeks the advice of the imprisoned Dr. Lecter to apprehend another serial killer, known only as "Buffalo Bill".

 This film deserves to be the classic that it is. Really original movie that is not afraid to break out of its boundaries. Superb acting by all, especially Dr. Lecter and Buffalo Bill. There were so many intense scenes, specifically in the latter half of the movie, that kept me on the edge of my seat despite living in the 21st century. For being made in the '70s, I think this film is excellent and a must watch for everyone!
                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Fargo

Summary: It stars Frances McDormand as a pregnant Minnesota police chief investigating roadside homicides that ensue after a struggling car salesman hires two criminals to kidnap his wife in order to extort a hefty ransom from his wealthy father-in-law.

I had to watch this for an English project since this is in one of the top 100 films of all time. Perhaps it is because I am too young but a lot of the comedy went over my head and the excessive deaths didn't make me laugh or feel remorse- the onslaught of deaths did nothing for me. I really wanted to laugh since the premise of this movie was stupid (in a good way) but I didn't really laugh. This movie was pretty boring for me and the accents just irritated me.

If you enjoy "unique" films and "dark comedy," this might be for you but I can't recommend this.
                                                                                                                                                                                                         

I hope you enjoyed these reviews. I have been waiting for the time to review all of these. This is just as much for the people reading this as for me to chronicle the movies I have watched since my memory is atrocious!

Next movies will probably be the Imitation Game and Me Before You.

xx Jennifer

P.S. Summaries taken from Wikipedia.

Cheeky Review of Wolf Children

Summary: Hana marries a wolf man and raises their two children alone after he dies. They move to the countryside and the children have adventures in the woods and at school.

Wolf Children

It has been months since I watched this so my memory isn't the most vivid but this movie was pretty good, but definitely didn't meet my high expectations. It's a very slow story- you really are just watching the children grow up so if you enjoy slow pacing, this might be for you. For me, it was too slow and didn't have an exact conflict or resolution.

I also thought the art wasn't very good, I wanted more dimension and detail. The way the people were drawn made it a little hard to connect, if that makes any sense.

Poignant to some, not for me though. I do recommend giving it a try if you do enjoy coming-of-age stories.

xx Jennifer

Guess what?

I JUST GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL TODAY! Definitely one of many milestones to come...

Just so happy and excited for opportunities and adventures to come & reminiscent of all of the memories and lessons I formed and learned during high school.

Grateful for my friends and ready to make new ones at Rice!

With my graduation & a blank summer again, I look forward to blogging more about books, films, shows, and dramas as well as personal life events like prom, vacations, perhaps relationships?! ;)

Whoever is reading, thank you!

xx Jennifer