Lucky No.14 Reading Challenge

Frankly when my friends said they're joining this Reading Challenges, I've checked Indah's master post for this RC and I was like "so complicated, eh?", but then someone on the group [we have a BBI Jabo group for chatting over WhatsApp] said that if you want to visit Tunisia or French, you can read Fatima's Good Fortune as one of the categories on The Lucky No.14 Reading Challenge… and here again I was intrigued by this RC and decided that I want to join too… :D

Let's get starting… by the way, I need to warn you that many of my books are from my 2014 TBRR RC list, because my only reason for joining the RC is to read all of my books especially my old ones...

Here are the 14 categories:

1. Visit The Country: Read a book that has setting in a country that you really want to visit in real life. Make sure the setting has a big role in the book and it can make you know a little bit more about your dream destination. ==> I choose Fatima's Good Fortune by Joanne Dryansky as suggested, I was buying the book based on Indah's suggestion… and I need more reasons to read it :D
Not that I want to go to Tunisia... but I'm dying to go to France... ^^

2. Cover Lust: Pick a book from your shelf that you bought because you fell in love with the cover. Is the content as good as the cover? ==> Actually I have and ARC that I choose because of the cover, but I'm currently reading it…

so I better choose something else, so I choose The Dark Heroine: Dinner With a Vampire (The Dark Heroine #1) by Abigail Gibbs, when I first saw it at a bookstore, I read the excerpt on the back cover and said… "aahh… another vampire books, i don't want to read… " then my friend listed as one of a giveaway books… and posted them on twitter, I saw the cover of the book and I asked her, what's the tittle… after I looked for it on GR, I really wanted to read it… and I have red it, the first 20 chapters on Wattpad, then the author, without warning, said it was just a sample… damned sample! Now I want to know the rest of the story...

The translated book's cover is more tempting than the original one, right? ;-)

Or can be this one too...

I guess we can consider me as the one who's most get hook up by the cover... :d

[Update] : I have red The Echoes of Love by Hannah Fielding ;-)

3. Blame it on Bloggers: Read a book because you’ve read the sparkling reviews from other bloggers. Don’t forget to mention the blogger’s names too! ==> I haven't had the priviledge… :D I want to say that they're The Hobbit & The Lord of The Rings… but I want to read them as The Movies vs Books category, that I don't even have them yet and I was planning on just borrowing them… can we read on borrowing books? do we have to own the books?
But, wait... can I just read These Broken Stars (Starbound #1) by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner?The review by Tirta Pangestu is very good! :D I don't have it either, but I can always buy the ebook, right?

[Update] : The book I red for this category was The Invention of Hugo Cabret and I blame my BBI fellow blogger for it... :D

4. Bargain All The Way: Ever buying a book because it’s so cheap you don’t really care about the content? Now it’s time to open the book and find out whether it’s really worth your cents. ==> We'll have a lot of books on this category… but I have chosen one, I just bought it last night, so cheap for an English book, though the condition is not fit anymore, and why I choose the book? Because sometimes ago a friend [my following friends on twitter actually] said the series are good, I have looked for them but I couldn't find one… so when I saw it last night, I just had to buy it… and read it of course :D
It's Blue Blood (Blue Blood #1) by Melissa de la Cruz and it's vampires again [forget what I said earlier about vampire's book :d ]

5. (Not So) Fresh From the Oven: Do you remember you bought/got a new released book last year but never had a chance to read it? Dig it from your pile and bring back the 2013. ==> Definitely 1Q84 Book 1 & Book 2 by Haruki Murakami, when they got translated to Indonesian, I bought them right away… but after months, I haven't read any of them yet...

6. First Letter’s Rule: Read a book which title begins with the same letter as your name (for me, Astrid means A, and I can read anything that started with the letter A). Remember: Articles like “a”, “an” or “the” doesn’t count.  ==> Quite rare to find a book which title begins with an "R" but there's Raging Star (Dust Lands Trilogy #3) by Moira Young. It's going to be published on May 13th, 2014 and I will definitely read it... ;-)

7. Once Upon a Time: Choose a book that’s been published for the first time before you were born (not necessarily has to be a classic book, just something a little bit older than you is okay. You can read the most recent edition if you want to). ==> I want to read Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov for this category...

8. Chunky Brick: Take a deep breath, and read a book that has more than 500 pages. Yep, the one that you’ve always been afraid of! ==> You must to be kidding me… I have lots of them… maybe after I finish any, I just pick any…

9.  Favorite Author: You like their books, but there are too many titles. This is your chance, choose a book that’s been written by your fave author but you haven’t got time to read it before. ==> I want to choose Gabriel's Redemption by Sylvain Reynard for this… but I already read the ARC, and it's not that there are too many of them or something… I guess I want to read One Hundred Names by Cecelia Ahern instead...

10. It’s Been There Forever: Pick up a book that has been there on your shelf for more than a year, clean up the dust and start to read it now.  ==> Wow! I have a lot too for this category… Let's just pick one later… :D

11. Movies vs Books: You’ve seen the movie adaptation (or planned to see it soon) but never had time to read the book. It’s time to read it now, so you can compare the book vs the movie. ==> Just like I said previously, I want to choose The Hobbit & The Lord of The Rings (Middle-Earth Universe) by J.R.R. Tolkien… but there are many books into movies nowadays, maybe I find something later...

12. Freebies Time: What’s the LAST free book you’ve got? Whether it’s from giveaway, a birthday gift or a surprise from someone special, don’t hold back any longer. Open the book and start reading it now.  ==> This must be The Cuckoo's Calling - Dekut Burung Kukuk (Cormoran Strike #1) by Robert Galbraith, I got it from my gracious Santa…

13. Not My Cup of Tea: Reach out to a genre that you’ve never tried (or probably just disliked) before. Whether it’s a romance, horror or non fiction, maybe you will find a hidden gem! ==> I can't pick this one yet… I've always considered my self with a broad book genres reader… but still I cannot picture my self to read a religious background novel such as Ayat-ayat Cinta by Habiburrahman El Shirazy… but again, can we just borrow one? XD [kesannya gak rela banget yak? :d ]

14. Walking Down The Memory Lane: Ever had a book that you loved so much as a kid? Or a book that you wish you could read when you were just a child? Grab it now and prepare for a wonderful journey to the past  Comic books or graphic novels are allowed! ==> I guess I'll just read one of my Roald Dahl's book since I just bough a box set of his… actually I want to read Cewek Paling Badung di Sekolah (The Naughtiest Girl #1) by Enid Blyton, since I love her so much… but I can't remember if I still have the book at my mom's house or not… maybe if I have the chance to visit Malang, I'll look for it… :D or maybe let's read Candy Candy by Yumiko Igarashi & Kyoko Mizuki :D

so that's it… we'll see again during the 2014… I really look forward to have an exciting year of reading… since I've already got so many to read, yet so many other planning, yet so little time as always… yay!

Riddle Secret Santa BBI 2013

[credit to ms. Peni]

ihiy… setelah berharap2 cemas selama beberapa minggu ini… akhirnya yang ditunggu2 datang juga… dan sesuai harapan [I feel so blessed, thank you my Santa]… aku dapet…

hihi… sebenernya entah kenapa, sejak awal, aku ngerasa dengan yakin kalo aku bakalan dapet buku ini… secara buku ini kan happening banget… kebetulan waktu ada yang nawarin ebook-nya, aku kelewatan dan waktu aku cari gratisannya, semua link sudah di-banned… eh, anyway…

I love Harry Potter, and I want to read JK Rowling's other books… tapi ehem… mahal ya buku2 sekarang… dan The Casual Vacancy kenapa koq diterbitinnya cuma hard cover, gak ada yang paperback ya? walau didiskon 50% aja mikir2 belinya… ribet ah baca HC, berat… :d

jadi waktu ada Cuckoo's Calling terjemahan, I really want to read, but… pengen gratisan aja… jiiiaahhh… dan ternyata the universe granted me with one… [thanks again ya Santa… :3 ]

dan kenapa khusus untuk buku ini aku prefer terjemahan? karena hihi… terus terang sepertinya my English proficiency not enough for reading JK Rowling's book… I gave up my HP and The Order of The Phoenix… dan beli terjemahannya (lagi), though, I still read other 2 HPs in English… anyhow, I guess I want to enjoy Cuckoo's Calling… so better read the translated book…

aku baru ikutan BBI tahun ini, jadi baru tau yang namanya event Secret Santa juga tahun ini… dan aku bahagia… :D

walaupun masih harus nebak riddle-nya Santa, again… my Santa is wonderful, dia sangat ngertiin aku… tau banget kalo aku pengen Cuckoo's Calling, aku dipilihin Cuckoo's Calling… trus dikasih riddle sederhana banget, mungkin pertimbangan dia karena aku anggota baru, belum banyak kenal anggota BBI… I might even feel a little bit dissapointed, yah mbak… koq gampang banget yaaaa…

Dear Riri… 

Semoga kado buku ini memberimu secercah 

kebahagiaan di penghujung tahun, karena salah

satu keinginanmu tahun ini boleh terkabul. 

Selamat baca bukunya deh, ini salah satu 

favoritku juga, lho. 

~ Dari blogger buku yang selalu bangga 

   mengabadikan namanya nan secantik anggrek

   untuk blog-blognya ~

my mom's love orchids very much and your name is mom's favorite orchid… [I feel we're so destined together… ;-)  #lebay], so I guess I could say that I know my Santa already… and I will always remember that I thank her for this gift… the nicest gift for me this year… 

thank you, thank you, thank you… :D


ps. oh iya, aku gak bakalan baca bukunya mulai sekarang... mau dipajang dulu, mau diliat2 riddlenya sambil senyum2 bahagia... dan disimpen untuk dibaca awal tahun, jadi buku pembuka di awal tahun 2014... buku pertama dari puluhan buku yang akan aku baca... aadduuhh senangnya... :D
pss. and i'm forgetting to thanks Maria - yes! she's been busy sending my books and my santa's book for me... thank you so much yaaa... :3

Wrap Up - New Authors Reading Challenge 2013

uhuyy… gaya yah… ikutan challenge mulu, secara challenge di Goodreads.com aja udah keteteran… >.<

anyway, gak ada salahnya ah meng-challenge diri sendiri! semangat!

so, ini adalah challenge ketiga yang aku ikutin… syarat2 gimana challenge-nya baca di blog host-nya aja yaaa… klik banner-nya yang ada di sebelah kanan deh… :D

yang jelas sih emang aku telat banget ikutannya… yaaa gak pa2 juga sih… karena kan masih ada waktu setengah tahun lagi, dan sepertinya sudah ada beberapa buku yang aku baca tahun ini yang bisa dimasukkin ke list buku yang bisa ikut dinilai di akhir tahun, kan cuma gak bisa ikutan yang monthly update aja ;-)

alright?

see you guys at the end of this year, and let's see which challenge I can achieve… :D


[UPDATE] as at 21 December 2013

Looks like that I failed this challenge... hihi... males bikin review-nya bo' :d
Kalo review 1 paragraf di GR bisa masuk kategori review... hihi itu mah bukan review kali... tapi kesan & pesan... XD

Anyway... berikut pencapaian sayah...

My New Authors Book List:

1. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, ebook, 313 pages - Read from February 02 to 09, 2013
2. In Flight (Up In the Air #1) by R.K. Lilley, ebook, 263 pages - Read from March 24 to 31, March
3. The Proposition (The Proposition #1) by Katie Ashley, ebook, 232 pages - Read from April 05 to 08, 2013
4. Gabriel's Inferno (Gabriel's Inferno #1) by Sylvain Reynard, Paperback, 550 pages - Read from May 20 to June 09, 2013
5. The Perfect Game (The Perfect Game #1) by J. Sterling, ebook, 386 pages - Read from May 09 to June 19, 2013
6. Me Before You (Sebelum Mengenalmu) by Jojo Moyes, Paperback, 656 pages - Read from September 30 to October 02, 2013
7. My Boyfriend's Wedding Dress by Kim Eun Jeong, Paperback, 444 pages - Read from October 04 to 05, 2013

nasib penimbun & personal readathon

dilema seneng buku, gak tahan pengen baca buku, padahal kecepatan baca buku gak sebanding sama kecepatan beli buku… hasilnya... timbunan sodara2…

jadi anggota BBI, mungkin gak sah kalo gak punya timbunan segambreng… coba deh tanyain sama anggota BBI lain, tapi aku, entah kenapa, gak nyaman sama timbunanku sendiri… soalnya merasa bersalah aja gitu… beli buku terus tapi gak jelas kapan bacanya…

apalagi setelah kemaren sempet beli beberapa buku second, hhhmmm… koq kaya'nya aku impulsive buyer banget sih… emang yakin mau baca semua buku ini?

hiks! padahal jatoh2nya jadi lumayan mahal juga… karena beli online, dikirim… yang jualan bukan di Jakarta, ongkirnya ya lumayan juga…

tadinya bertekad mau gak beli2 buku sebelum timbunan berkurang, lebih bagus kalo bisa abis, tapi ternyata…

setelah kemaren ngumpulin buku2 yang belum dibaca dan bongkar2 sebagian kontainer, masih ada 3 yang belum dibongkar… hasilnya…

sebelum jadi anggota BBI, stok timbunan paling cuma sekitar 30an buku (kemungkinan udah termasuk yang di kontainer yang belum disortir)… entah hasil menimbun dalam berapa tahun…
setelah jadi anggota BBI, stok timbunan ada 40an buku… cuma dalam waktu setahun…

pphhiiieewwwhhh… tapi belum termasuk non fiksi… XD

i used to love reading non fictions, non fictions were my between reading books…
now my between reading books are fantasy (YA fictions) between romance… :d

jadi kepikiran itu stok timbunan buku lama mau diapain, ya karena udah lama juga gak dibaca, apa mungkin mau dipaksain dimasukin TBRR RC… hhhmmm… kaya'nya gak deehhh…

pilihannya adalah tetep disimpen dalam kontainer (rencana awal), atau dijual/swap… atau… disumbangin...

kemaren coba swap, eeehh… ternyata lumayan complicated juga… yang diajakin swap bingung, buku apa yang mau dituker… aku sendiri jadi limited juga kan pilihannya… iya kalo aku suka sama buku tukerannya, kalo gak… laaahh… timbul masalah baru timbunan buku yang aku gak suka dong…

at least masalahku sekarang cuma timbunan buku (yang dulunya aku tertarik baca tapi belum sempat dibaca dan sekarang jadi gak pengen baca), bukan buku yang… aku gak tau sebenernya aku pengen baca apa gak…

jadi option pilihan yang tersisa adalah jual atau sumbang…

sebenernya sayang juga ngejual buku yang "belum dibaca atau belum selesai dibaca"… what if those books are actually good ones… >.<

lah secara kemaren ngejualin buku yang sudah dibaca aja masih berasa sayang sebenernya… but i have decided that i won't keep my Indonesian novel…

kalo buku2 impor second yang kondisinya kurang OK sih aku udah mutusin mau aku bawa ke DBNC (Drive Books Not Cars) event, jadi mau diprioritasin dibaca mulai awal tahun depan… jadi pas ada event DBNC mau aku masukin kesana dan tentu aku bakalan mengadopsi buku2 second dari sana lagi… kemaren rasanya kurang optimal… hihi… tenang… semoga sih gak kalap dan terbatas untuk buku2 John Connolly & Cecelia Ahern aja…

hihi… entah kenapa aku jadi sedikit terobsesi sama kedua pengarang ini… hhhmm… i guess i kind of having crush with Charlie Parker (from John Connolly) and i love Irish background of Cecelia Ahern's… ;-)

anyway, sepertinya aku harus mencoba berpisah sama2 buku ini… buku2 yang sebagian pernah aku baca dan gak selesai, atau buku2 yang sama sekali belum tersentuh dan masih segelan… atau buku2 yang aku lupa, sebenernya sudah aku baca atau belum yaaa… [llhhaahh… :d ]

- Ahaaa! The Wonder Spot by Melissa Bank
- Anansi Boys (American Gods #2) by Neil Gaiman
- Balthasar's Odyssey: Nama Tuhan yang Keseratus by Amin Maalouf
- Botchan by Natsume Soseki
- Cecilia & Malaikat Ariel: Kisah Indah Dialog Surga dan Bumi by Jostein Gaarder
- Drachenreiter: Sang Penunggang Naga by Cornelia Funke
- Identity - Identitas by Milan Kundera
- Inkheart (Inkworld #1) by Cornelia Funke
- Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Indonesian) #1) Book 1 by Susanna Clarke
- Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Indonesian) #2) Book 2 by Susanna Clarke
- Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Indonesian) #3) Book 1 by Susanna Clarke
- Kiki's Delivery Service: Titipan Kilat Penyihir (Kiki's Delivery Service #1) by Eiko Kadono
- Kisah-kisah Tengah Malam by Edgar Allan Poe
- Kunci Rahasia George ke Alam Semesta (George #1) by Lucy & Steven Hawking
- Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
- Orang Aneh by Albert Camus (Nobel Price Author)
- Sang Raja Jin: Novel tentang Cinta, Doa dan Impian by Irving Karchmar
- Sejarah Cinta (The History of Love) by Nicole Krauss (Book Award Winners)
- Seratus Tahun Kesunyian by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (Book Award Winners)
- Siddharta by Herman Hesse
- Snow Country: Daerah Salju by Yasunari Kawabata (Nobel Price Author)
- The Celestine Prophecy (Celestine Prophecy #1) by James Redfield
- The Good Earth (House of Earth #1) by Pearl S. Buck (Book Award Winners)
- The Unfortunate Miss Fortunes by Jennifer Crusie, Eileen Dreyer & Anne Stuart
- Vernon God Little by DBC Pierre (Book Award Winners)

eh tapi setelah diliat lagi… kaya'nya yang kurang pengen aku baca itu cuma Anansi Boys, Vernon God Little sama Inkheart aja deh…
Anansi Boys & Inkheart kaya'nya emang agak aneh… tapi mungkin bisa ditawarin di grup BBI, sisa Vernon God Little… hhhmmm…

see… how i cling with my books… >.<

mungkin aku bikin personal reading challenge aja… 2014 Second TBRR - The books more than 2 years in pile.. :D

di pile kemaren sebenernya ada juga yang lebih dari 2 tahun, The Story Girl, The Mysterious of Benedict Society Book 1 & Book 2, A Spot of Bother, Kitchen sama Le Petit Prince…
dan gak harus dipisah juga sih sama pile yang sebelumnya…
yah kita lihat nanti deh… semoga sih list yang ini bisa berkurang juga eventually...

i guess, i just have to live with all of my books and try to get them away just after i have read them…

aanndd… i want to do my personal readathon on these Christmas & New Years holidays, we'll have 2 days vacation for each… my targets are my borrowed books… I have 5 books…

i hope i can finished them before the new years… :D

and maybe… if my husband don't mind, i can have more readathons on next years, since we have several long weekends… if we are not going anywhere, why don't i just read and read and read… or maybe it doesn't have to be a readathon… but i just have to make more time to read and read faster… >.<

and i didn't even mention my ebooks, my ilegal ebooks… or the legal ones… :D

btw, do you notice that my old books more colorful in the genres... and several of them are really good... i mean... at least they are famous! so i guess i just have to read them all, right? ;-)

2014 TBRR PILE - MY READING LIST

2013 is not over yet, but since I kind of amaze of my pile of books, let's just challenge ourself with To-Be-Read-and-Review Pile Challenge… yay!

Here is my pile (not really as a schedule)… my reading really depends on my mood :D

1Q84 Book 1 & Book 2 by Haruki Murakami

5cm by Donny Dhirgantoro 

A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon - restart reading

Abarat (Abarat #1) by Clive Baker

Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War (Abarat #2) by Clive Baker

Bad Men by John Connolly
Be Careful What You Wish For by Alexandra Potter 

Cinderella dan Empat Kesatria Book 1 by Baek Myo

Cinderella dan Empat Kesatria Book 2 by Baek Myo

Fatima's Good Fortune by Joanne & Gerry Dryansky

Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto by Banana Yoshimoto

Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery (Classics)

Let The Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist (Books into Movies)

One Hundred Names by Cecelia Ahern

Pengakuan si Gila Belanja (Shopaholic #1) by Sophie Kinsella (Books into Movies)

Penyergapan Terakhir - The Last Siege by Jonathan Stroud

Ranah 3 Warna (Trilogi Negeri 5 Menara #2) by A. Fuadi

Rispondimi (Jawablah Aku) by Susanna Tamaro

Stardust (Serbuk Bintang) by Neil Gaiman

The Appeal - Naik Banding by John Grisham

The Associate by John Grisham 

The Broker by John Grisham 

The Help by Kathryn Stockett (Book Award Winners)

The Litigators by John Grisham

The Mysterious Benedict Society - Persekutuan Misterius Benedict (The Mysterious Benedict Society #1) by Trenton Lee Stewart

Persekutuan Misterious Benedict dan Perjalanan Maut (The Mysterious Benedict Society #2) by Trenton Lee Stewart

Persekutuan Misterius Benedict dan Dilema sang Tawanan (The Mysterious Benedict Society #3) by Trenton Lee Stewart

The Passage by Justin Cronin (Book Award Winners)

The Reapers by John Connolly

The Story Girl: Gadis Pendongeng (The Story Girl #1) by Lucy M. Montgomery (Classics)

The Yearling: Jody dan Anak Rusa by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (Classics)

Wonderful Radio by Lee Jae-ik

I will update the list with numbers after I read the book… and the list also will be updated after I open and short listed my books in the containers :D

I don't really have books for Historical Fiction, but I don't know if I can find something in my containers… looks like Barbara Cartland is eligible for romance, the tricky part is I guess I have read all books (which are all my sister's) I have with me... I guess I will pass this category... but they don't have to be romance right? right? hhhhmmmm... 

Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery is my personal challenge to read the book in the original language which is French ;-)

I have 30+ books on my pile, so I really determined my self to read all the books before really buy something new… or instead I just have to find the ebook… :D

Still, I have books I want to read which already there in the book store...

ps. this post with so much links is so complicated XD

Blog Tour: Gabriel’s Redemption (Gabriel’s Inferno Series #3)

Gabriel’s Redemption (Gabriel’s Inferno Series #3)
by Sylvain Reynard

ebook, 495 pages
ARC from Penguin Berkley

Summary:
From the author of the New York Times bestsellers Gabriel’s Rapture and Gabriel’s Inferno comes the epic conclusion to the captivating romantic trilogy.

Professor Gabriel Emerson has left his position at the University of Toronto to embark on a new life with his beloved Julianne. Together, he’s confident that they can face any challenge. And he’s eager to become a father.

But Julianne’s graduate program threatens Gabriel’s plans, as the pressures of being a student become all consuming. When she is given the honor of presenting an academic lecture at Oxford, Gabriel is forced to confront Julianne about the subject of her presentation—research that conflicts with his own. And in Oxford, several individuals from their past appear, including an old nemesis intent on humiliating Julia and exposing one of Gabriel’s darkest secrets.

In an effort to confront his remaining demons, Gabriel begins a quest to discover more about his biological parents, beginning a chain of events that has startling repercussions for himself, Julianne, and his hope of having a family.

my review

this is my first ever ARC and i'm joining my first ever blog tour of Gabriel's Redemption book… :D

after Gabriel's Inferno and Gabriel's Rapture, i'm surely fall in love with Mr. Sylvain Reynard, he really is a gifted writer, he writes beautifully and though English is not my first language (surely there are several words i don't know), but i just know how remarkable his works are, for me at least, and for every body else i hope…

before his books, i'm not into poetry, i don't understand them, after his books, i want to understand poetry and i wish i was studying literature… and understand Italian... :D

and i follow him on twitter too… sometimes, i read his twits about his philanthrophique activities, he even replied my twit… :D

after i got to know, that we get bookplate if we pre-order Gabriel's Redemption, i pre-ordered, and after i learned that his publisher's giving away ARC for his blog tour, i jumped on my desk and entered my email, even though, i'm not quite sure what on earth blog tour was about… the only thing, i didn't do was reading extras before i eventually read the book... [ and of course, now that i have read the ARC, i will look for all of the available extras and i will read the book again, once my paperback comes... ;-) ]

when the day finally arrived, Enn, his publisher gave link to the ARC, and i saw the number of pages, i became nervous if i could meet the date line on December 4th for my blog tour, to have finished my reading and write my review…

and here i am… a couple of days later, finished reading the ebook and ready to write my review…

hhhhhhmmmm…

what can i tell?

i love Mr. Reynard's piece of art as much as his previous books… in this last book of the series, we get to know everyone's happy ending or almost happy ending…

we surely know how the Emersons', i'm glad that i can be part of Gabriel & Julia's journey of finding one another, especially our beloved Professor Gabriel, whom finally have his peace… how their prayers got answered… in this book, i'd said that the professor became more intense… sometimes, he even get me pissed for being stubborn, but by that way, i can feel him and understand him more…

i'm glad that Julia can compromise eventually…

but i think Mr. Reynard has put too much worry to Gabriel in this last book… i got carried away and being worried with him in every words, until i read the word "fin"… haha…

though i didn't really catch the snarky narrator in the previous books, in this book, i found him really amusing with his various comments…

my personal comments about the book, i love how Mr. Reynard was building his opinion of the importance of the family… and he took us to witness Gabriel and Julia's transformation in their perspective of the family's meaning to their life…

about the feeling of wanting to have children, but couldn't, wanting to have children but later, have children but there's illness, died children, abandoned children, traumatized children, abused children… eventually, it's not the parent's decision when to have a child or how… but it's the responsibility of the parents to rise him/her with love…
to teach them the importances, to prepare them for having a good life on their own…

i just hope that God will answer our prayer to have a child in our family in his time… and we will be able to teach him/her about the charity, faith and hope as Gabriel and Julia will teach theirs…

i give this book a remarkable tantalizing four stars as my return thank you to Mr. Reynard to have written such a beautiful story for me… yes, i know it's for me… i love you Mr. Reynard… :3

btw, Superman & Lois Lane? Man of Steel's special seeds? nice way to talk about the alternative answer of the unusual, eh? i wish i have my superman... ;-)
and Mr. Reynard, why are you making Gabriel seems old? he's just 35 years old for God's sake...

*****

Sylvain Reynard Bio: I'm interested in the way literature can help us explore aspects of the human condition - particularly suffering, sex, love, faith, and redemption. My favourite stories are those in which a character takes a journey, either a physical journey to a new and exciting place, or a personal journey in which he or she learns something about himself/herself.

I'm also interested in how aesthetic elements such as art, architecture, and music can be used to tell a story or to illuminate the traits of a particular character. In my writing, I combine all of these elements with the themes of redemption, forgiveness, and the transformative power of goodness.

I try to use my platform as an author to raise awareness about the following charities: Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep Foundation, WorldVision, Alex's Lemonade Stand, and Covenant House. For more information, see my Twitter account.

Buy his books:
Amazon Kindle
Amazon Paperback
Barnes & Nobel Nook
Barnes & Nobel Paperback
iTunes iBook
Chapters Indigo Paperback
Chapters Indigo Kobo
Open Trolley - Indonesia [ where I pre-order ;-) ]

Get to know him better:
Website
Facebook

Twitter @sylvainreynard
Goodreads

Special Gift from Mr. Reynard: 
a Rafflecopter giveaway - FYI, the Louboutin winner will be gifted a Neiman Marcus gift card with shipping included. All prizes are international.

The Raven - the new novel of Sylvain Reynard

there is a mysterious man appeared in Gabriel's Redemption, it turns out... it's my guessing of course, will be the character in Sylvain Reynard's new novel... i really can't wait for it... i'm so exciting... and here's the excerpt... this excerpt is more intriguing than the one in at the end of Gabriel's Redemption book... :-)

here you go...


From the New York Times bestselling author of the Gabriel Series comes a dark, sensual tale of romance in a city shrouded in mystery…



Raven Wood spends her days at Florence’s Uffizi Gallery restoring fine works of Renaissance art.  But an innocent walk home after an evening with friends changes her life forever. When she intervenes in the senseless beating of a homeless man, his attackers turn on her, dragging her into an alley.  Raven is only semi-conscious when their assault is interrupted by a cacophony of growls followed by her attacker’s screams.  Mercifully, she blacks out, but not before catching a glimpse of a shadowy figure who whispers to her …


Cassita vulneratus.


When Raven awakes, she is inexplicably changed.  She returns to the Uffizi, but no one recognizes her and more disturbingly, she discovers that she’s been absent an entire week.  With no recollection of the events leading up to her disappearance, Raven also learns that her absence coincides with one of the largest robberies in Uffizi history – the theft of a set of priceless Botticelli illustrations. When the baffled police force identifies her as its prime suspect, Raven is desperate to clear her name. She seeks out one of Florence’s wealthiest and elusive men in an attempt to uncover the truth about her disappearance.   Their encounter leads Raven to a dark underworld whose inhabitants kill to keep their secrets …

Saltwater Kisses: A Billionaire Love Story (The Kisses Series #1) by Krista Lakes

Saltwater Kisses: A Billionaire Love Story (The Kisses Series #1)
by Krista Lakes

ebook, 147 pages

ada kalanya aku pengen nulis review karena cuma pengen ngomel… seperti yang satu ini :d

sebenernya nulisnya udah agak lama, tapi karena sibuk… [ciyee…] gak sempet nerusin, trus keburu baca yang laen dan tapi [bahasa apa inih? XD] daripada gak dipost, mendingan diterusin aja deehhh…

setelah beberapa kali, nulis review setelah baca buku yang laen, ternyata feelingnya udah hilang… gak seru lagi gitu… :D

anyway… here you go…

duuuhh... nyesel juga nih beli ebooks ini, cukup satu bintang aja laaah... :d
dulu kenapa pengen baca yaa... karena sinopsisnya lumayan menarik sih [ternyata menariknya berenti di sinopsis doang...] dan i love the cover... :D

semuanya biasa, temanya biasa, udah sering juga, gak ada konflik sama sekali... gak
ada penyelesaian yang beda juga...

it's about Emma LaRue who met Jack Saunders, Emma didn't know Jack is a billionaire and they decided that we wanted a little adventurous vacation marriage arrangement secret together, that turned out not a secret after all…

sejak awal dua2nya jujur, gak ada yang ditutup2i jadi gak ada surprise juga, jadi sebenernya menurut aku sih... Jack gak perlu juga melindungi Emma dengan manggil dia ke New York setelah little secret mereka bocor ke pers, cuma membesar2kan efek press frenzy aja... klo emang semua bisa diatur, sebenernya dia bisa ngatur Emma untuk gimana caranya nyamar dulu atau apalah... tapi trus gak ada ceritanya dong ya? llaahh… :d

dan… cerita diteruskan dengan datangnya Emma ke New York, belanja2 untuk make over Emma supaya "sesuai" dengan image istri bilioner… for nothing! yup! Jack's so busy even had to sleep in the office almost everyday… no weekend either…
Emma got bored, apalagi yang baca… :-|

sampai akhirnya… udahlah yaa… aku ceritain aja akhirnya… XD

eh belum akhirnya banget ding… karena muncul gossip terus [lagian kenapa sih yang katanya businessman or business family koq perhatiannya ke infotainment tinggi bener… karena image perusahaan katanya… katanya big oil company, koq depending banget sama image dari infotainment… aneh…], eh iya… terusin yaa... orang tuanya Jack trus datengin Emma, minta Emma pergi dengan pilihan, nerusin jadi tokoh si istri bilioner atau menggapai cita2 sebagai dokter hewan… [huss! gak usah heran dulu… karena pilihannya kaya'nya gak sebanding… XD] dan pasti bisa ditebak kan pilihannya Emma???
walaupun sempet ngambek dan kabur… tapi trus dicari lagi sama si Jack… ya balikan lagi deh...

si ibu calon mertua itu bilang: "If you stay with Jack, you can never become a vet. People would line up with their dogs and cats to become your clients and patients because they know if you make even the slightest mistake, they can sue you for millions. You will never be able to practice without the fear that they were using you. If you stay with Jack, you become part of the company - an employee like the rest of us. You will be lost in a world that is not of your making. Dinners and charities will fill you days instead of animals. Your dreams will die."

di bagian akhirnya Emma memilih, aku sebagai perempuan koq merasa agak tersinggung, masih ya jaman sekarang ada perempuan yang give up her dreams just to be... what? only a wife??!!
emang sih gak salah juga... tapi emang klo jadi istri bilioner gak bisa bikin arrangement untuk tetep bisa mencapai mimpinya sendiri? secara mimpinya juga gak muluk2 amat kalo menurutku sih... just being a veterinarian and like being near animals... she even can asked his billionaire husband to buy her a zoo, for God sake...

kaya'nya si ibu calon mertua itu menyesal ya sama hidupnya? dan gak bahagia gitu…
padahal klo Emma mau jadi istri bilioner DAN dokter hewan, dia bisa tuh bikin charities dengan tema hewan… hhhaaa… so much to do with so much money Mam!!

yaaaa gitu deeehh… aku rasa ini pengarang terlalu menghayal… ya iya lah… masa' jadi penulis gak menghayal… tapi kaya'nya hayalannya ini… mimpi yang gak kesampaian, jadi deh lebay ngayal yang gak jelas…

dan satu lagi nih... si Jack itu ceritanya masih muda, belum 30 tahun, seharusnya sih masih beberapa tahun lagi sebelum dia harus take over perusahaan bapaknya, tapi bapaknya sakit... jadi Jack harus take over saat itu juga... waktu orang tua Jack ketemu sama Emma, diceritain Emma dapet kesan bahwa sakitnya si calon bapak mertua lebih serius daripada yang mungkin Jack tau... and you know what... in the end, the Epilogue... without even mentioning how is the father in law, the writer just didn't mentioned him at all... ih! bukannya itu salah satu tema penting di cerita ini yaa? koq bisa dia overwrite gitu aja... gak berperasaan!!... XD

sebel aja gitu perasaannya abis baca ebook ini… need to be wiser to choose what to read deh… especially when i had to buy XD [perhitungan itu sih ceritanya… :d]

berapa aku kasih bintang untuk ebook ini? satu aja kaya'nya kelebihan deh... (-_-')

Thief (Love Me With Lies #3) by Tarryn Fisher

Thief (Love Me With Lies #3)
by Tarryn Fisher

ebooks, 234 pages

finally, all secrets are open... i felt sorry for Caleb, i just wish he and Olivia would try harder... they first separated because of simple misunderstanding and there were ways to be together came around a couple of times, but they were rather choose the right way... until finally they could be together at last...

even though, not all their wishes was granted, i'm glad enough that they can be together at last...

i love how Tarryn Fisher put many details on this last book, that makes everything clearer and deeper...
i guess the author has really done a great job to write this book... she thought about everything, on purpose gave out missing pieces, and filled them up in the end...

she becomes one of my favorite for sure…

i guess… i can't say much to add… i just love the books, and i'm glad that the story finally ends…

read them, i strongly suggest it!

and of course, i gave it 5 out of 5 stars confidently... :3

Dirty Red (Love Me With Lies #2) by Tarryn Fisher

Dirty Red (Love Me With Lies #2)
by Tarryn Fisher

ebook, 265 pages

After I finished The Opportunist, I feel that there are still more to tell about Olivia, but then it ended so well.. With her marry Noah - the nice guy who came out of the blue, too easy, eh? But still I love how it ends..

Then there's Dirty Red, I doubt if I want to read about Leah's POV, I always hate her.. And also, maybe, because there're reviews that said it's no good.. yeah... typical me... :D

Still, I read it anyway, for I want more and more reading about all of them..

It turned out there're so many secrets and lies between Leah and Caleb, too many I guess, that make kind of sick.. How she could live her life like that.. and him too...

The story is still in the same background as The Opportunist with different POV and a little bit stretch time line.. New additional persons, whom only makes everything more complicated..

The story ended with more big fat secrets and lies between those two..
And makes me wonder if I want to read Thief.. Yes, there're more from Caleb's POV.

Most of the time, I wanted to understand my hero and heroin in the story I read.. Although, I wanted to understand Leah a little bit, in the end I still hate her.. There're times when I pity her.. But I guess, she
didn't have the right to complaint why everything end up like that..
She forced everything, without question, without hesitation.. She wanted Caled too much, she obsessed with him.. Just like Caleb obsessed with Olivia..

SPOILERS AHEAD: don't read if you want to read the story yourself!!

Since each one of them giving their own side of the story.. I guess there're holes in this one..

Questions from me?

1. Why the hell Caleb let Olivia go when she confessed to him at Rome, back then it seems that he finally can accept Leah and be happy with her.. That's why Olivia let go, right?
But he did left Leah, right? Or was it before Rome? Was the pregnancy before Rome?

2. When Caleb had the ring anyway? I know, I sense from the first place that it's belong to Olivia.. But Leah only found it before the amnesia..  Before Caleb even try to get back to Olivia, or.. Maybe Caleb already had the plan before the accident.. And he see his way after the accident..

Hhhhhmmmm.. This story is really messed my mind.. No other story had me think so much to figure them out..

At first, I hesitate to let me down under with messing my mind by reading Thief.. Now I eager to read it.. But I guess I'll hold for a couple of days, to have my mind settle down.. Since I think it'd be the last of the series.. I want to keep it a little longer to linger with the thought of them.. :d

The Opportunist (Love Me With Lies, #1) by Tarryn Fisher

The Opportunist (Love Me With Lies, #1)
by Tarryn Fisher

ebook, 188 pages


it was June 2013, and i bought The Perfect Games on Kobo by impulsive drive, because i didn't find my books that i carried back home with me on our holidays were interesting enough…

after i finished reading it, i read the note from the writer...

** During the summer, Cassie is reading The Opportunist by Tarryn Fisher. That mind messing novel really does exist! Please look for it where E-Books are sold! **

off course, i hurried find on line and downloaded it… and just put it on my Aldiko' shelf until just a couple of days a go that i so intrigued to read it and finally started to read it… i put it on hold maybe because the cover or maybe because the excerpt of the story that about someone lying to other...

and… after i just finished it… OH MY GOD! it was very good, very very good… it's not a happy or a sad story… it's just very good in its own way… it's telling you about consequences… and how you must live and deal with it…

i just love how the writer can find a way to have a heroin in her story with such imperfection… that a story doesn't have to have a happy fabulous ending to be good… a happy ending in a right way is so much better…

i love the way writer didn't push her limit just to have that happy fabulous ending, and have a happy right way ending instead...

if you read this, i say to you… that you must read it… it's different and it's very mind messing just just like J. Sterling mentioned above…

the story is about Olivia Kaspen and Caleb Drake… about their love story… Olivia is never true to Caleb about her feeling… until she lost him for good, not for good, actually… she had a chance to get to be with him again, but he's already have a girl friend who didn't want to let him go…

Olivia is a deceitful person, who would do anything to get what she wants… until she finally realized that sometimes we have to let go…

many times i feel pity for Olivia, she's so self obsessed, she didn't care about anything but herself… my heart broke when she did what she did just to get even… the thing that broke them apart…

it's a short story but it's very good, i look forward in every book to have my another mind blowing story just like that anytime… :D

i give it 5 out of 5 shining stars for it ;-)

and i definitely will find another book by Tarryn Fisher… :D

jualan koleksi pribadi ^^

Kenapa dijual? Gak pa2 sih... Kontainer2 udah penuh, lagi mikir2 mau beli kontainer lagi... Tapi kasian sama yang angkut2 pas pindahan... Jadi coba2 dijual aja deh... Kalo minat, silahkan pilih, harga belum termasuk ongkir, khusus untuk Jakarta ongkir flat 8ribu aja... Hubungi by email aja yaa... emailnya de2via at gmail.com - Tapi klo responnya agak lama jangan esmosih yaa... ;-)

 Rp. 15,000.- / novel

 Rp. 20,000.- / novel

 Rp. 25,000.- / novel

SOLD: Rahasia Mede, Negeri Kelima & Travelers' Tale to Luna; Soulmate.com to Orinthia Lee; Marriageable to Widi; Shit Happens, Macarin Anjing, Indonesian Idle & Freya Valkrye sold to Kira.

My Boyfriend's Wedding Dress by Kim Eun Jeong

My Boyfriend's Wedding Dress
by Kim Eun Jeong

Paperback, 444 pages
Published October 2012 by Penerbit Haru (first published 2011)


ini novel terjemahan Korea terakhir dari koleksi Penerbit Haru, yang aku punya, dan aku sepertinya sudah punya semua novel terjemahan Korea dari Penerbit Haru… XD

yup! i'm that addicted :d - it's Haru's syndrome they said…

menurutku judul novel ini kurang menarik, entah kenapa rasanya sedih aja gitu… dan agak mencerminkan bahwa pacarnya akan jadi milik orang lain…

sebenarnya itulah yang terjadi dalam hubungan antara Han Se Kyoung dan Jo Hae Yoon… [eh jangan terlalu mikirin nama2 Korea ya, aku juga jarang inget… kadang2 harus ngebalik2 halaman lagi cuma bwat ngecek ini siapa sih? XD]

Se Kyoung bener2 seorang perempuan pemberani yang sangat spontan… dan menurutku bener2 cuek juga… :d
gimana gak… dia lari dari altar pernikahannya tanpa peduli perasaan calon suami dan keluarganya, bahkan tanpa peduli bahwa baju pengantin yang dia pakai sebenernya sama sekali berbeda dengan baju pegantin yang dia pesan dan tetap aja dia pakai lalu melarikan diri…

lalu ada Ye Rin, anak konglemerat keturunan Korea yang tinggal di New York, yang merasa bahwa jika dia menikah nanti, dia harus memakai baju pengantin yang dia pesan, tanpa peduli siapa yang laki-laki yang berdiri disampingnya… jadi tugas Hae Yoon, tunangannya lah, yang harus terbang ke Korea untuk mengambil baju pengantin yang tertukar itu…

secara kebetulan dan sangat tidak disengaja, Se Kyoung bertemu dengan Hae Yoon, tadinya Se Kyoung ditugaskan untuk menjemput seorang artis popera [genre musik campuran pop dan opera, emang ada ya? :d] yang kebetulan juga bernama persis sama dengan Oh Ye Rin yang kebetulan juga datang dari New York… dan Hae Yoon, menyangka Se Kyoung adalah agen perjalanan yang sudah disiapkan oleh Ye Rin untuk menjemputnya…

sejak pertemuan pertama ini, Se Kyoung dan Hae Yoon, menjalani serangkaian kebetulan2 yang pada akhirnya terasa seperti takdir... :3

romantis ya?

dan bahwa untuk orang yang kita cintai, kita tidak akan pernah ragu untuk memberi kesempatan kedua atau mungkin kesempatan2 berikutnya...

aku suka tokoh2nya… yah walaupun Se Kyoung sedikit kurang bertanggung jawab, tapi Se Kyoung bukan orang yang gampang menyerah dan tetap profesional walau apapun yang terjadi…

Hae Yoon juga sama, dia selalu berusaha untuk menggapai semua keinginannya dengan usahanya sendiri… walaupun memang terkesan dingin, tapi sebenarnya bisa dibilang Hae Yoon adalah orang yang tidak mengerti tentang cinta karena memang tidak pernah merasa dicintai (sebelumnya)…

walaupun awalnya aku kurang suka judulnya, aku jadi suka novel ini pada akhirnya...

ceritanya berjalan apa adanya, diselingi peristiwa2 yang gak akan bisa kita tebak sebelumnya, dan sangat kreatif :D

aku suka ide Se Kyoung untuk mengadakan fashion show di taman dan diakhiri dengan penerbangan lampion… pasti cantik…

sangat menyenangkan untuk mengakhiri koleksi novel Korea ini dengan cerita yang manis… kalau suka dorama Korea, aku rasa pasti suka novel2 terjemahan Korea, aku suka bagaimana novel2 ini menggambarkan kultur di Korea, aku juga suka, terutama untuk novel2 dari Penerbit Haru yang masih menggunakan istilah2 dalam bahasa Korea dan diberi catatan kaki untuk penjelasannya… dan cara mereka menggambarkan bahwa dalam kehidupan ini memang ada orang2 yang kurang baik, kurang jujur atau bahkan jahat, tapi ya sudah biarkan saja… bukan urusan kita untuk menghakimi mereka… itu sih yang aku tangkep yaaa… ;-)

novel My Boyfriend's Wedding Dress ini termasuk novel terjemahan Korea terbitan awal dari Penerbit Haru, gak banyak typo-nya, cuma ada satu kali nama Se Ji (adik Se Kyoung) yang tertukar dengan nama Se Kyoung… ternyata kalau ada typo di novel yang kita baca itu mengganggu banget ya… apalagi kalo typo-nya salah penulisan nama… secara kalo namanya bener aja aku kadang lupa… apalagi kalo namanya salah tulis, aku langsung ngira ada tokoh baru XD

satu hal lain yang agak menyulitkan ketika baca novel terjemahan Korea ini adalah kadang kurang jelas siapa yang mengucapkan suatu kalimat, gak ada pembeda yang jelas antar dialog orang pertama dan orang yang lainnya… tapi yaaa… nikmati ajalah… toh baca novel untuk santai aja bukan untuk persiapan ujian juga… :d

untuk novel My Boyfriend's Wedding Dress ini aku kasih 4 dari 5 bintang… for I really like it…

dan sementara belum ada novel terjemahan Korea yang baru dari Penerbit Haru, beli novelnya berenti dulu… hehe… sebenernya ada sih novel terjemahan Korea dari GPU, tapi mau nyelesein "timbunan" dulu deh… ntar klo udah kangen baru nyari novel terjemahan Korea lainnya… :D

oh iya, sepertinya novel ini memecahkan record kecepatan membacaku, 400 halaman lebih dalam waktu sehari semalam… walaupun catatan di goodreads.com cuma dalam sehari, sebenernya aku sudah mulai sejak semalam sebelumnya… tapi tetep aja lumayan kan? ;-)

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Me Before You - Sebelum Mengenalmu
by Jojo Moyes

Paperback, 656 pages
Published May 2013 by Gramedia Pustaka Utama (first published 2012)

ini salah satu cerita sedih banget yang aku baca sepanjang hidup… yang perasaannya membekas, dan kalau inget bikin perasaanku sendiri jadi ikut sedih gak karuan…

dari awal baca, novel ini bikin aku inget film Dying Young… tema ceritanya sama persis…
berawal dari seorang perempuan yang mencari pekerjaan dan ternyata dia harus menjadi pendamping seorang pria muda yang… bisa dibilang tidak punya harapan hidup…

begitu juga dengan Louisa Clark, yang tiba2 harus berenti bekerja karena cafe tempat dia bekerja harus tutup, setelah mencari2 pekerjaan dan kurang berhasil, akhirnya dia mencoba melamar sebagai pendamping orang sakit dan berhasil diterima…

pekerjaannya tidak sulit, karena dia hanya harus membantu si orang sakit ini ketika makan, minum atau kebutuhan lainnya sementara perawatnya sedang tidak bertugas, tetapi yang sulit dihadapi adalah pasiennya…

karena Will Traynor, benar2 tidak ramah dan sinis…

awalnya Lou merasa tidak sanggup, namun karena keadaan keuangan keluarganya yang sangat memprihatinkan, dan karena keluarga Will menjanjikan bayaran yang cukup tinggi, tidak ada pilihan lain, akhirnya Lou mau menerima pekerjaan itu…

sampai ketika Lou mengetahui secara tidak sengaja tentang rahasia rencana Will untuk mengakhiri hidupnya di suatu tempat di Swiss… dalam waktu 6 bulan sejak sekitar Lou diterima bekerja dan dia jadi tau alasan sebenarnya kenapa dia dipekerjakan sebagai pendamping Will

Lou merasa dukungan keluarga Will untuk rencana itu sangat tidak masuk akal dan tidak ingin dianggap mendukung rencana itu jika dia tetap bekerja sebagai pendamping Will…
tapi ibu Will dan adiknya Treena berhasil membujuk Lou, dan Lou kembali bekerja dengan suatu tekad ingin mengubah tekad Will untuk mengakhiri hidupnya…

Lou kemudian mencari informasi mengenai kondisi fisik Will dan kegiatan apa yang sekiranya dapat dilakukan oleh Will, dengan dukungan dari keluarga Will, Lou dengan semangat mengusahakan kegiatan keluar rumah untuk Will…

walaupun awalnya Will kurang bersemangat, akhirnya Will mau melakukan kegiatan2 yang diusulkan oleh Lou, bahkan Will juga mau pergi keluar negeri untuk berlibur… walaupun beberapa hari sebelum keberangkatan Will jatuh sakit dan perjalanan dibatalkan…

implikasi kedekatan Will dengan Lou, menyebabkan Lou harus putus dengan pacarnya… dan Lou mau tidak mau mengakui pada dirinya sendiri kalau dia sudah jatuh cinta dengan Will…

bagaimana dengan Will sendiri? we'll talk about it a little later…

setelah Will membaik, Lou merencanakan liburan lain yang lebih santai, Lou bertekad sebelum waktu 6 bulan habis, dia harus bisa mengajak Will berlibur keluar negeri, dengan alasan jika Will dapat menikmati kegiatan liburan itu, Will dapat melihat bahwa dia masih bisa menikmati hidup ini dan tidak harus mengakhirinya…

akhirnya Lou dan Will, beserta perawat Will, Nathan, pergi berlibur 10 hari ke kepulauan Mauritius…

Lou mengakui perasaannya kepada Will, namun Will menolaknya dan mengatakan bahwa tekadnya sudah tidak dapat berubah…

kenapa?

karena… menjadi cacat bukan pilihan hidup yang dipilih oleh Will, dulu sebelum kecelakaan, Will adalah seorang pengusaha muda yang sukses, yang menikmati hidupnya dengan berpetualang hampir di seluruh tempat di dunia, Will adalah orang bebas yang sangat menikmati hidupnya…
menjadi lumpuh dari bagian dada ke bawah dan tanpa bisa menggerakkan tangan, sama sekali bukan sesuatu yang Will rencanakan untuk hidupnya…
belum lagi penderitaan yang dia derita, karena implikasi kecacatannya, keringkihan fisiknya dan semua keterbatasan lainnya…

karena untuk Will, cinta Lou tidak cukup untuk dijadikan alasan untuk tetap hidup, karena tidak ada yang menjamin apa yang terjadi 6 bulan sejak sekarang, apakah perasaan Lou tidak berubah, namun yang jelas Will tidak ingin membatasi kehidupan Lou untuk tetap terikat kepada laki2 cacat…


…

mungkin cerita diatas sudah jadi spoiler untuk bukunya… hehe… walaupun sebenernya bukan berniat untuk membeberkan semuanya juga…
sampai sekarang, aku masih belum bisa terima keputusan Will, kalau aku jadi Lou, pasti perasaanku akan hancur karena harus berpisah dengan orang yang sangat kita cintai…
tapi kalau mempertimbangkan perasaan Will, aku rasa kita yang sehat dan tidak kekurangan apapun, tidak akan bisa ikut merasakan penderitaan dan keputusasaan yang dia rasakan, mungkin sudah wajar kalau dia mengambil keputusan lebih baik mati daripada terus2an merasakan penderitaan itu…

menurut aku cerita novel ini adalah tentang pilihan hidup… dan tentang mengisi hidup ini…

Will sangat mendorong Lou untuk melakukan sesuatu yang berbeda dalam hidupnya, karena Will merasa Lou berbeda dari kebanyakan orang dan memiliki potensi untuk menjadi lebih baik… dan Will membantu Lou untuk memiliki pilihan dalam hidupnya…

aku suka banget sama tokoh Lou, dia cerdas, pantang menyerah dan ceria... dan aku sedih untuk Lou, aku juga sedih untuk Will... T_T

aku suka ceritanya, walaupun sebenernya ada beberapa hal yang menimbulkan pertanyaan di benakku… misalnya ketika sudut pandang diceritakan dari sisi ibu Will… rasanya sangat menggantung… rasanya tidak menjawab kenapa hubungan antara Will dan ibunya tidak baik, dan tentang Will sendiri… walaupun Will disini tokoh utamanya, tapi aku merasa tidak "connect"… aku merasa Will sangat tertutup, dan pengarangnya pun tidak membantu… aku merasa Will penuh dengan rahasia… ada beberapa sudut pandang yang ditampilkan, tapi kenapa tidak ada dari sisi Will - atau aku kelewatan? XD

aku kasih 4 dari 5 bintang… for i like it but it sadden me...

bukunya tebel, 600 halaman lebih, selesai dalam waktu lebih kurang 3 hari, karena super penasaran sama endingnya… dan takut kelamaan juga minjemnya
dan karena bukunya udah diteruskan kepada yang ngantri pinjem selanjutnya :D jadi kalau ada yang agak2 meleset dalam review ini, aku minta maaf yaa…

thanks a lot to @dinoynovita untuk pinjeman bukunya :3


PS: this review is listed on Read Big Reading Challenge and New Authors Reading Challenge 2013

Sejenak Hening oleh Adjie Silarus

Sejenak Hening
Oleh: Adjie Silarus

Menjalani setiap hari dalam hidup dengan sadar, sederhana dan bahagia.

notes from me about the review process:
- this is only a teaser - a part of the book not the whole book…
as we can not judge the book by its cover, I guess that will apply to teasers too… that we can not judge the book by its teaser… :d
- boleh dibilang klo dapet "teaser" buku ini karena iseng
hehe… soalnya kemaren dapet tawaran di Group FB BBI - so why not!!
- this is my first official review…
official because… the review is meant for something…
hopefully, the review will meet every body's expectation anyway…

let's start then…

dari sub-judulnya kita semua pasti setuju bahwa itulah bagaimana cara yang kita inginkan untuk menjalani hidup sehari-hari…
lalu apakah kita bisa mengetahui caranya dari buku ini?
kita akan cari tau…

seperti yang dikatakan oleh Bapak Priyanto Budi Nugroho, salah satu pemberi kata pengantar, buku ini adalah kumpulan kontempelasi seorang Adjie Silarus, konsepnya adalah bukan menulis buku, tetapi hanya menulis kata-kata terangkai menjadi kalimat hingga paragraf tentang pengalaman di dalam perjalanan hidup Adjie…

"Tulisan-tulisan saya di buku ini tidak dibikin dengan pembagian bab. Dibiarkan begitu saja, acak, hanya saja sederhana saya berharap kita dapat sejenak untuk hening dari keramaian yang ada setiap kali membaca buku ini yang tulis dengan menggunakan huruf yang mudah dibaca dan gampang dimengerti. Tapi tidadk perlu dihafal karena tidak akan keluar ujian. Sungguh." Demikian jika mengutip pengantar penulis (Hal. 11).

btw, tau kan ya "teaser" itu apa? arti gampangnya sih iming2… jadi hanya berupa sebagian dari buku ini yang ada… dan dari sebagian itu, buku ini banyak membahas hal2 seperti tentang:
- ketidaktenangan batin karena banyak pikiran
- kemarahan
- pentingnya senyum
- pengendalian diri
- harapan & doa

mungkin beberapa hal sudah sering kita temui di buku2 atau referensi lain, tapi tidak menutup kemungkinan juga ada hal baru yang bisa kita dapat dari buku ini…

berikut adalah judul-judul tulisan yang ada di dalam teaser buku ini dan sedikit catatan yang menurutku penting ;-)

- Menutup Jendela
- Menikmati Momen Sekarang
- Menunda Bahagia
procastination is the thief of time - Edward Young (Hal. 21).

- Celana Pendek Kolor
- Sebuah Kehadiran
- Melatih Senyum

- Sepatu Baja
a friend is one who strengthens you with prayers, blesses you with love and encourages you with hope (Hal. 30).

- Pelukan Untuk Kemarahan
jika kamu marah, lakukanlah:
Bernapas masuk: "Aku sadar bahwa aku sedang marah."
Bernapas keluar: "Aku sadar kemarahan masih ada di dalam diriku" (Hal. 32).

- Hanya Dalam Sekejap
Hidup dapat berubah dalam sekejap (Hal. 33).

- Tidak Perlu Segera Action
- Mengistirahatkan Pikiran
- Stres Digital
- Lidah Kucing
- Membuka Hati

- Bermesraan Dengan Tuhan
new perspective about a prayer..
doa kita belum terkabul? tenang… sepertinya Tuhan ingin sering bertemu dengan kita…

Mari saling mengingatkan supaya kita percaya di setiap keraguan dan di setiap ketergesa-gesaan ada kesabaran di dalam doa (Hal. 42).

though for me, the real and the most important question would be "have you really say your prayer properly with your heart and in a good manner?"

- Sarapan Dengan Kebahagiaan
- LOL

- Selo
Kita tahu bahwa banyak hal penting yang dilakukan pikiran. Tapi kita sering tidak punya waktu untuk menyapa pikiran kita sendiri (Hal. 47).

- Tubuh Tak Seperti Mesin
"Tak perlu mati-matian mencari hal yang tak dibawa mati," begitu kata Emha Ainun Najib (Hal. 50).

- Menikmati Dengan Utuh

Adjie Silarus, lulusan cumlaude Fakultas Psikologi Universitas Gadjah Mada, praktisi hypnotism, NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) dan meditasi.

kesanku…

setelah mendaftarkan diri untuk jadi si penerima "buntelan" (istilah anak BBI untuk buku gratisan), aku langsung cek website mas Adjie (hehe… pake mas aja, supaya terkesan lebih sopan :D) dan follow twitternya…
jujur, belum baca apa2 dari web-nya, dan hanya baca twit2-nya yang kadang melintas di time line-ku…

berbekal sedikit tau tentang latar belakang mas Adjie, aku agak excited karena berharap banyak dapat ilmu meditasi dari buku ini… aku sangat tertarik dengan meditasi, sayangnya malas untuk praktek… dan karena di dalam teaser ini ternyata gak ada yang namanya ajaran meditasi itu… tau2 aku jadi sadar sendiri… woy! yang kamu perlu itu bukan teori tapi praktek… jadi ya sudahlah… :d

buku ini mengingatkan kita untuk berhening… untuk berada di momen ini… untuk fokus pada apa yang kita sedang kita lakukan saat ini… apakah bisa? yaa… susah sih… ketika membaca dan diingatkan aja masih mikirin hal2 lain… apalagi setelahnya… hehe… makanya praktek… make time and practice!!

tapi bagus juga sekali-kali membaca buku seperti ini, untuk menyegarkan ingatan, atau untuk menambah pengetahuan dan wawasan bagi yang belum tau…

sedikit saran… karena yang aku dapat adalah "teaser", jadi wajarlah yaa ketika ada beberapa typo; dan karena tulisan2 ini diangkat dari blog, mungkin juga bahasanya menjadi bahasa yang sedikit tidak formal (di beberapa bagian)… tapi mungkin ada baiknya juga untuk mereview ulang setiap tulisan agar terhindar dari salah paham atau bahkan salah kaprah… misalnya ada frasa "dimaksimalisasi indahnya" (Hal. 8), jujur aku gak tau bahwa frasa seperti itu ada… dan ada baiknya untuk menambahkan sumber untuk setiap kutipan2, mungkin ada yang kelupaan... karena kita gak mau dicap plagiat kan... ;-)

lalu seperti yang sudah disampaikan di catatan awal, don't judge the book by its cover… so i won't judge a book by its teaser too… menurutku secara garis besar, buku ini pasti akan menarik bagi orang2 yang tertarik mengenai keheningan batin, meditasi dan bagi yang mencari kedamaian dalam hidup… apalagi seperti yang Mas Adjie bilang buku Sejenak Hening ini khusus saya persembahkan kepada semua orang yang tidak akan pernah membacanya. Karena tidak mau padahal Mampu… well… hope your hope is granted Mas!! ;-)