The May read for #BlissfulBookTalk was The Cuckoo's Calling written by J.K. Rowling under her pseudonym Robert Galbraith. I've had this book sitting on my shelf for so long, and my goal for naming it for the May read was to finally dust off the cover and get it read, and I'm so glad I pushed myself to do it.
The Cuckoo's Calling is about a private detective named Cormoran Strike who is hired to take on the case of the alleged suicide of supermodel, Lula Landry. While most of the world is convinced that Lula let her fame get the best of her and decided to jump off of her balcony, her brother, Bristow, is convinced that foul play was involved. With the help of his temporary assistant, Robin, Cormoran is pushed into the world of fame and stardom to figure out whether Lula's death was a suicide or murder.
This book started out rather slow for me, but once it picked up, it really picked up. Because it's a mystery and suspense novel, I really wanted to try to keep up with the clues to see if I could solve the case before I read what happened at the end of the book. Unfortunately, there are so many pieces to the puzzle that it was nearly impossible for me to keep up with all of the details.
For my full review, check out the video below:
I give The Cuckoo's Calling a 4 out of 5. When I got into the nitty gritty of the mystery, it was hard to put this book down. I love a good mystery novel, and this one did not disappoint. I'm really looking forward to reading about more of Cormoran's and Robin's adventures in future books.
Want to read with me this month? The June pick for #BlissfulBookTalk is Paper Towns by John Green. I'm excited to read this book before it hits theaters in July. Share your thoughts on the book by using the hashtag #BlissfulBookTalk on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Happy reading!
The April read for #BlissfulBookTalk was an awesome one - The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks. Have any of y'all read this book? It was amazing, and I definitely wanted to read it before I went to see the movie.
The Longest Ride follows the lives of four people living two love stories several decades apart. The first couple is from the 1960's - Ira and Ruth. You meet Ira after he gets into a fatal car crash after running off the side of the road in a snow storm. While he's fighting for his life, he's also envisioning his late wife, Ruth, sitting next to him. He's reliving their life together one memory at a time.
The second couple is Sophia and Luke, and their love story has a few parallels to that of Ira and Ruth's even though their story forms in the modern times. Sophia is a college senior from New Jersey living in North Carolina. She loves the arts and dreams of working for a big art museum in New York City. She's in a sorority and super smart, but as a senior, she's focused on getting out of college and starting the next chapter of her life. When her roommate, Marcia, convinces her to go to a bull riding event, she meets Luke, a professional bull rider, and their story just escalates from there.
I very much enjoyed both the book and the movie for different reasons. If you haven't read the book, the rest of the review will contain spoilers, but you can watch the first half of my video review (don't worry, I let you know before I start talking about the movie) to hear more of my thoughts on this awesome book.
As for the movie, it follows a similar plot, but the two couples' lives are intertwined a bit more, particularly when it comes to Ira and Sophia. In the book, they meet at the very end when Sophia and Luke discover Ira after a weekend away at a cottage. In the movie, they find Ira's car pretty early on while driving through the rain. When Ira wakes up in the hospital, Sophia is there, and she reads the letters in Ira's box. From there, their lives are intertwined, and I loved it. I think that's my favorite change from the book version.
I have tons more thoughts on the book to movie adaptation, and I spill the beans about all of it in my review, which you can watch above.
Overall, I give this book a 4.5 out of 5. My main complaint is that I wasn't really that interested in Ira's story even though he was a super integral part of the book. I liked Ira as a character, and I thought he was important, but he just wasn't that interesting to me. That being said, I loved Ira's character in the movie.
So if you want to read along with me in May, the book for #BlissfulBookTalk is going to be The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith. I'm super excited to finally read this book! If you read along with me be sure to tag me on social media (@tiffanykhyla) and use the hashtag #BlissfulBookTalk!
Have you read The Longest Ride or seen the movie? What book would you like me to choose for next month's #BlissfulBookTalk book?
The March read for #BlissfulBookTalk was Looking for Alaska by John Green, and this was actually only the second novel that I've read by him. The first was The Fault in Our Stars, which was, of course, incredible, so my expectations were pretty high for this book as well. It didn't help that every single person that I talked to said that I was going to love it and that it was one of their favorite books that they've ever read ever. So I was kind of nervous about my expectations being a little too high, but don't fear. If you're a lover of Looking for Alaska, I'm officially riding that love train with ya. I loved this book. I can't believe it was his first novel, because it was just so good.
The reason I chose Looking for Alaska was because the novel celebrated it's 10-year anniversary this year, and that's definitely an element that you see in the book. There are certain things that are considered #throwback now, like using pay phones instead of cell phones to call home. Or even calling home in general. A lot of people just text or email or Facebook message their parents and let them know they're still loving/hating school. Also, caller ID. When the main character's mom got caller ID, she was pretty much freaking out. Also, they played games on PS2, which is pretty much ancient history now since PS4 is out. I just liked those little elements of the book, because if you've read my blog before, then you know I can get pretty nostalgic.
I have tons of thoughts on this book, and if you want to hear them, check out my latest YouTube video for a full review.
Overall, I give the book 4.5 out of 5 stars. The lack of half a star is due to a few unanswered questions (a major one that I reveal at the end of my video review) and just a few random things I didn't like, such as Takumi kind of disappearing in the middle of the novel. I know it's kind of explained, but I think it's kind of unnecessary, and I may just be biased because Takumi was one of my favorite characters. Also, everything that happened with Lara in the book. I really liked her, and she was just treated pretty crappy through most of the book by everyone but Takumi, and she just disappears in the After part of the novel. There are also a few things that I can't go into because they are major spoilers, so we'll just leave it at that.
If you want to read along with me next month, the April pick for #BlissfulBookTalk is The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks. I'm a huge fan of Nicholas Sparks, but I don't really go out of my way to read his books. I usually read them before I watch the movies, and that's the reason I picked this book. I saw the trailer, and I decided that I had to see the movie, but I couldn't see the movie without reading the book first. I mean...
If y'all want to read along with me, be sure to use the hashtag #BlissfulBookTalk on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram so we can talk nerdy and bookworm-y stuff.
Have you read Looking for Alaska? What books would you like to see on the roster for #BlissfulBookTalk?
I'm so excited to bring you the first book review for my new series, #BlissfulBookTalk. The book for February was Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris, and I must say, it was a really fun read. As I've said before, I love reading celebrity memoirs, and this was actually the first celebrity memoir that I've read that wasn't by a female. It definitely did not disappoint.
I used to read the Choose Your Own Adventure books when I was younger, and I loved the structure of them because you were basically controlling how the story was going to end. If you've never read the Choose Your Own Adventure books, it's written in a format where you read a few pages or a chapter, and at the end of those few pages, it will give you a few choices of where to go from there. Depending on which path you want to take, you turn to that page, and the story continues. It's so interesting and fun, and it makes you feel like you're really part of the story.
Neil brought that same vibe into his autobiography. The beginning pages were the background of his life and career, and for those pages, I just continued flipping the pages and reading because I was really interested in his early life both before and at the beginning of his career. I didn't know much about Neil before reading this book, so I wanted to really dive into it with some good background information.
Once I got past the meat of it, I started having a little more fun and choosing different paths. Neil lived a fascinating life, and each section led to a part where I questioned whether the story could possibly be true or not. I loved reading about him coming out to the media because it's crazy to think how people think they're entitled to personal information about people's lives. Sharing personal information with the people around you is hard enough, but when you're famous, and the media gets involved, things can get pretty nasty. It's always interesting for me to read about these things from the view of the celebrity, because as fans, we usually just get the gossip that splatters on the front of magazines in the grocery line.
I also loved reading about Neil and David first meeting and falling in love. There was even a section where David penciled in his part of the story, which I thought was so adorable. I loved reading his little notes, and you can tell that they really love each other and just completely vibe off of one another.
I give this book a 4 out of 5. I have so much more to say about it, and you can find some of my thoughts in my latest vlog:
I also share the next book for #BlissfulBookTalk in my vlog as well, so if you want to read with me, be sure to check it out (psssst...it's a book by John Green!) and use the hashtag #BlissfulBookTalk to share your thoughts, quotes, questions, etc. on social media!
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Blogging for Books.
I have a big announcement for all of my fellow book lovers! I decided to start a book club of sorts called #BlissfulBookTalk. At the beginning of each month, I'll share a book that I plan on reading, and I would love for y'all to join in!
Throughout the month, I'll be sharing tidbits of the book on social media, including my favorite quotes, favorite parts, thoughtful questions, etc., using the hashtag #BlissfulBookTalk. You can join in on the conversation by using the hashtag too! Even if you've read the book of the month, you can still share your thoughts on the book as well.
#BlissfulBookTalk is a new book series that will go hand-in-hand with my vlog, so if you want a little more information about it, you can check out my latest vlog:
February's #BlissfulBookTalk book will be Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris. I've been an NPH fan for many years, and I can't wait to dive into his book and pick through his brain. If you're a fan or would like to get to know NPH a little better too, join in with this month's read!
I hope y'all are as excited about this new series as much as I am!
What books would you like to see on #BlissfulBookTalk?
