Top 5 Wednesday - Books I Wish had Sequels

There are so many standalone books that I have wished there were sequels because the story was just too good to end. Of course those books had good endings but many a times I would really love to read about the characters and their happily ever after. Below are top 5 of my choice without following any order:

The Unbound by Victoria Schwab

I have to say this book ended with a slight cliff hanger because there was still so much more to elaborate on the relationships of the main characters. Many that have read this book like myself are eager to read more about the boy in the story. I have heard rumours that the author might be planning a third book (YAY!).
Review here: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2014/06/the-unbound.html

The Start of You and Me by Emery Lord

This was a really touching book for me. After reading the bonus email correspond between the main characters, it made me want to read more of their stories which includes their senior year and college days.
Review here: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2016/07/the-start-of-me-and-you.html

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

This book had a suspended ending and many fans were quite devastated by it included myself. I really wanted more for those two and a sequel will surely satisfy many readers.
Review here: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2013/07/eleanor-park.html

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

This book featured a really sweet and funny love story. I laughed many times and I wished there was more for the couple. I would look forward to reading more about their life story.
Review here: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2014/01/attachments.html

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

The characters in this series were just so much fun to read about. I wished there was one more book that combined all the characters together featuring their university life.
Review here: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2013/12/anna-and-french-kiss.html

Most books that I've picked are contemporary books because usually fantasy books have proper ending or at least a satisfying one for readers. It's the characters in these books that made me want to read more about them because their story manage to captivate me well. What are your picks of books that you wished had sequels?

Top 5 Wednesday - Favourite Post

Time for some self-promote?? I find this topic fun because I went through all the post titles that I've written, pick ones that are the most memorable to me, read through it and decide whether to put it here. So here are some numbers, I have published a total of 369 times and it seems like a really small number because life gets in the way. Looking back at how long I've started this blog which was since 2006, that amount is too little. So for about 10 years I have to pick my top 5 from 369 posts. Here are my choices without any order, do click on the title as it's a link.

My trip to Singapore - part 1

This was a really fun post to write because I got to share pictures of my trip to Singapore. And now that I'm reading back, it brings wonderful  memories for my visit there.

Dear Diary

Another post that sort of mentions some highlights of my life. After reading this post, I feel motivated to continue in pursuing my dreams. Honestly, I'm not there yet, I'm not even close but I've not given up at all. I still have the same dreams and I'm working on reaching there. 

Just Like Heaven

This book review was my first time reading a book by Julia Quinn in the genre of historical romance. Ever since then I've fallen in love with her writing. This book is one of my favourites from all her books. I like how I used to summarize the book and then gave a bit of opinion on it. I have since then changed my book review style.

10 random facts about me

Go read it because you'll get to know me better. Need I say more why I picked this post??

The Night Circus

Discovering a magical book and sharing it in review is one of my biggest joy. This book is my all time favourite and to know why just read the review. I've recently introduced this book to a friend of mine and I'm waiting for him to start so we can read it together. I hope readers will be able to enjoy this book as much as I did.

I hope you'll take a look at those post that I've shared and do please comment about it here. Share some posts that you really really love with me too. Have a great week!

Top 5 Wednesday - Favorite Character Names

This is one week late because I've been busy but I still thought it was an interesting topic to write about. Characters names certainly play a role in the books as they often represent a little bit of the personality of the character. Other than that, if the name is catchy it will  be easy to remember them and it will definitely trigger hopefully your feelings or memories when reading that book. So here are 5 names that appealed to me because they were great characters and unique names,

Cinder from Cinder

Although it's short from Cinderella but making her an asian character certainly makes her super unique plus the fact that she is a cyborg makes it even cooler.

Marguerite from A Thousand Pieces of You

This name is my first time reading it so it's quite unique to me besides that she is quite a strong character as well. I certainly love her very much in her story.

Celaena from Throne of Glass

A strong character with a strong name. I think it's a strong name because it's one name that people can remember well and also give the other title that she earned, she's not one to mess around with.

Feyre from A Court of Thorns and Roses

I have to say that the author is so creative coming up with wonderful names that is unique and memorable. Besides that, the character that bears that name is an amazing character at the same time.

Rhysand from A Court of Mist and Fury

I love love love this character so much. He is one character that has so much depth and yet there's still some mystery to him. His name certainly suites him and he is one male that I will remember always.

As you can see, there is a strong female presence in the list and only one name made the cut. Honestly I do have some names to mention for male character such as The Darkling, Liam, Kaz Brekker, and Kell. These are also names that I quite love. So what character names is your favourite?

Top 5 Wednesday - Father Figure

In lieu with Father's day coming this weekend, this week's topic is Father figure. Having a father in the family has always been essential for a wholesome family. It is quite hard to get some characters for this topic because many a times I've read books that does not have a father in the family but there are some times that a male character will find themselves in a fatherly role for the main character. So without following order, here is my list:

Arthur Weasley from Harry Potter

How to not love Arthur who is the head of the family for the Weasley. He is at times humorous and also a reliable father when it comes to important stuff. 

Sirius Black from Harry Potter

Godfather of Harry Potter who took care of him even though he was not close to him. I love how Sirius honors his promise to Harry's parents. You can read the love that he has for Harry and it's just beautiful.

Albus Dumbledore from Harry Potter

I always thought Dumbledore took extra care for Harry more than anyone else. He has taught him many life lessons and spoken so wisely many a times to Harry. The sacrifice that Dumbledore made for everyone shows how much of a father he is to everyone in the school and the wizarding world.

King Maxon from The Heir

I love the grown up Maxon very much in the book. He has gone through a lot and it's wonderful when he passes on his wisdom and experiences to Princess Eadlyn.

Shalom Singer from The Selection
America's father is truly different from the family. The connection between father and daughter means so much to the both of them. He often gives good advice to America and trying to help support her emotionally too.

As you can see my selection is quite limited as there are many books that I've read who are young adults that needed to struggle on their own without any father to pass them wisdom. Harry Potter series have the most parents around. So what are your picks?

Top 5 Wednesday: Characters You Are Most Like

Often when we read we can connect to characters and usually we love their personality. This is because we probably see ourselves in them or maybe we aspire to be like them. This is definitely one hard topic to think about because there are so many characters that I've read about and many that I felt connected to. Firstly these characters are not necessary totally a copy of me, we're just similar. So without being in any order my list is as follows:

Isla

Isla is a very shy and cute girl. The way that she fell in love was just too cute. I see a little bit of myself in her as I do have crushes on boys during my high school years. Acting all sweet and cute, trying to sneak glances at the boy. What a long time ago it was and when I think back I often laugh at my silliness.

Princess Mia

I am no princess that's for sure but the thing that's similar with Mia and I are writing in a diary.  I used to have a habit of writing about everything into my diary and that was in my high school years. Eventually I got lazy. Also we have this thing where overthinking about things/situations, making too many assumptions in common. This always ends up in a disaster but I've long changed that part of me because I always end up making an ass out of myself.

Top 5 Wednesday - Books I'm Intimidated By

When books intimidate me I would just put it aside in my TBR pile, thinking that I'll get to it one day, probably. So these are books that are typically in a subject that I'm not the most interested in but still a little bit curious about it. Another reason would be that the English is too deep so it would be hard for me to understand and thus reading it will take a long time too. Sometimes books that are too thick also intimidates me because my attention span is quite short. Not to forget that books that won any prizes also intimidates me because I'm afraid I would not love it and would not understand why it was awarded.

Without further delay, here is my list not in any particular order:

The Book Thief

I've had this book sitting on my bookshelf for more than a year and I've still not read it. I roughly know what's the book about as there was a movie based on the book. I'm quite afraid to read it because it's quite a thick book and also it's historical fiction. This genre often scares me because I do not know my history well. History was not my favourite subject in school and we did not have much topics on world history in the syllables. Hopefully I'll pick it up soon.

All the Light We Cannot See

This is another book that is in the historical fiction genre. Other than that, it won an award THE PULITZER PRIZE. With the award, it has already scared me because it gives me the impression that it's a deep book. It really intimidates me because I'm afraid I would not feel the same as those who have read it. I feel pressured when it comes to books with so much attention and high ratings.

Top 5 Wednesday - Books with "Hard" Topics

Very often we read for entertainment and enjoyment, thus romance books will lift up your mood, fantasy and science fiction for an adventure. When it comes to contemporary books, sometimes it touches topics that hard such as mental illness, sexual assault, incurable sickness and etc. Those are topics that are brooding and often puts people in deep thoughts. I quite like books like these, not because I like tragic things but it's how the author convey their message. How realistic they can make a story be that's important and of course it builds compassion. Often than not, these books touches a person's heart and that is the ultimate goal of a good author (IMO). So here is my list not in any particular order:

A Step Towards Falling

Now this book is the first hard topic book that I picked up this year and I went in without any expectations. I really really liked it because it talks about autism, about standing by and not doing anything. It is a hard topic because when a person is helpless and you did nothing, what are the consequences, what should have been done and of course the impact on the victim. This author gave the perspectives of the victim (who has autism) and the teenager who did nothing to help. What this book invoked in me is more understanding towards people with disability. Review here: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2016/02/a-step-toward-falling.html

The Sky is Everywhere

This book talks about grief which is quite a difficult topic to approach because everyone deals with it differently. When I was reading this book, the incident where my love passed away has yet to happen. I can say at the moment when I finish the book I felt that life is hard especially when a tragedy happens in your life so suddenly. When dealing with grief in the family, everyone has a different relationship with the person but it's healthy to grief together. So fast forward to now and thinking about this book I sort of felt that the timing is just too coincidental. Why did I pick up that book that time and it feels like God was already sending me messages or preparing me for the battle ahead. Review here: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2015/09/the-sky-is-everywhere.html

Top 5 Wednesday - Rainy Day Reads

Rainy days are my favorite because living in a tropical country it's always hot and humid. When it pours heavily it's the best time to sleep because it's cooling and windy. So since I like to sleep on a rainy day instead of reading this was quite hard to choose. Hence I imagine myself not sleeping on a rainy day and reading so what book would I read? Below would be the list of picks but not in any particular order:

FanGirl

One of the cutest book written by Rainbow Rowell and it would be a joy to read on a rainy day to lift up the mood. It totally gives giddy feelings to those who love cute characters. This book is my all time favourite contemporary book because it's light hearted and easy to read through. I have a review here: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2013/10/fangirl.html

Anna and the French Kiss

All three books of this series are super cute and adorable. The stories are so sweet and heart warming that it's a book that's hard to put down. Just imagine yourself curled up on bed with a hot cup of tea/coffee/cocoa next to you. With your blanket covering your feet, giggling because of a book. I've already read all three so here the reviews if you wanna check it out: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2013/12/anna-and-french-kiss.html
http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2013/12/lola-and-boy-next-door.html
http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2014/10/isla-and-happily-ever-after.html

Attachments

This is my favorite Rainbow Rowell book. It made me laugh, it was exciting and of course I love the format of the writing so so so much. It's an easy book to read so it doesn't take too long, probably one sitting and you're done. So to lighten your mood on a rainy day a book that makes me laugh is a good choice. Review is here: http://www.anythingbuteverything.com/2014/01/attachments.html