I think everyone should be cowering in fear at this point. I
did say the word feels. Or of course you can be standing boldly to protect yourself
from the beast that threatens it AKA feels. But we all know that will not end
well… for feels are unstoppable. Or so you thought. I‘ve got things you can do to
stop the feels… well at lest you can try…
So I didn't have any reviews to post or anything, because I didn't read anything I WANTED to review. So I didn't thats some smart thinking right there I once again, was dying. Like always, I didn't know what to post. Then BAMBAMPOWWW Idea. I decided to talk about fear. Ummmmmm what? Yes fear. What is it that is holding everyone back? FEAR! It is the most annoying thing ever. So lets talk about it.
I AM CONSTANTLY TERRIFIED. Literally. All of the time. In the real word *shudders* and in the bookish world. I always feel like people are just creeping on me, judging my every move. Commenting on peoples blogs. SCARY. Making posts on my own blog. SCARY. Starting an Instagram. SCARY. Starting a Twitter. SCARY.
WHYYY?
You probably feel the same way. If you don't TEACH ME YOUR WAYS!!! I don't want to be a shy turtle. I just am! There is no stopping me from feeling and acting like a shy turtle. Do feel like one too?? Why can I not just stop?! Tell me. There is only one thing I tried, that actually helped!
I decided to confront my fears! Since I heard that it could help. I decided that the reason I was so scared was because I wanted to be accepted. I felt like a shy turtle surrounded by a bunch of... regular turtles. I was terrified that everyone would dislike me, that I wouldn't get views, I was in constant fear of messing up! THAT IS STUPID! I kept. No, I KEEP forgetting that EVERYONE IS WELCOME HERE! The bookish community is the most welcoming place EVER!
Every single one of us needs to remember
NOBODY IS MEAN HERE!
I swear by this.
Each and every time I post, or comment, I am scared. But you know what? I think that it's okay to be scared . Even if I am terrified, once it is done I always feel better about myself, I feel happy! Every time I do one of these things, I feel like maybe I can be a normal turtle too! Yes my fear probably will never go away, talking to other people is scary! But when they reply back, or comment on my own blog. ITS WORTH IT! It makes me feel like the best turtle in the world!
Fear is okay. As long as you don't let it grow. It's like an evil monster. If you don't attack it, it will kill you. NOBODY WANTS TO DIE!! Facing your fears is the most important thing to do, ever. If you don't, all of your fears will come true. Your blog won't grow, you won't make friends. You will be a shy turtle forever! So viciously attack your fear, even if it is with your bare hands!
Are you a shy turtle too? How do you face your fears?
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Series: The Grisha #2
Pages: 435
Series: The Grisha #2
Pages: 435
Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a life with Mal in an unfamiliar land. She finds starting new is not easy while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. She can’t outrun her past or her destiny for long.
The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling’s game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her--or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm.
The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling’s game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her--or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm.
The beginning was great! The book started quickly, beckoning me into its pages... I was really happy with this, because any book with a quick start, that isn't confusing, deserves an A+ from me! Not to mention there was a plot twist, and it happend quite quickly in my opinion! Despite the quick start, I felt as though things were starting to ease back down, but then... BAM! I will say no more, for the very few of you have not read this book.
As things progressed, they began to slow down Although the true action parts were no longer there, conflict was still around. Everything that happend was very stressful in my opinion. You could tell that each of the characters was in a state of constant fear. The threat of the Darkling was actually only one of Alina's problems. The middle was focused more on romance. Yes she was also making plans for her army, but thats not important... What was really being focused on was love. Her and Mal's relationship, was well... I don't really know how to feel about it. Let's just say... they aren't my OTP *cowers* Their relationship was a bit, well, rough in this book. Mal was not happy, it was quite clear. Although I am DYING to say more, I won't. Don't fear. In the end, I felt the middle was a bit weak, I could have used some more action.
The characters were very clearly, themselves I think Leigh Bardugo did a very good job of expressing each of the characters personalities! Everyone had their own uniqueness... Each characters was fully developed and everything about them was clearly linked to their past! Which is of course, fabulous, as backstories are my life.
Alina was... transforming Throughout the book she was having what I like to think of as a battle against herself. The power of.... I'm not sure if I can say it... I guess I won't... The power of this thing she got at the beginning of the book was really affecting her. It was controlling her. I think it actually helped her find her priorities, and understand herself better. It also had a strong affect on her and Mal's relationship.
How about the end? As you know, I wasn't the biggest fan of the middle, but I did enjoy the end. I liked the slight twist in the story, it made everything all the more exciting, without it, the book would have been quite boring. The twist was perfectly planned out, when I was starting get a little frustrated with all the romance and general boringness, it was there to save me! You know when your super hot and then you walk into an air conditioned room? Its like the best feeling ever, its just so nice. Thats what the ending felt like to me, perfect! Also it definitely makes a great transition into the next book!
Final Rating:
Today I was confused. I had no idea what kind of post I was going to write. I just new that I was in the mood to right one. For some reason I felt like I was neglecting my blog for the past few days, I had a spike in the amount of views I got one day *flails* and then I got a VERY small amount the next couple days, that is not okay. One of my resolutions was to try and balance out my views. So I decided today I was going to write a new post. Then I realized that I had no idea what to write about. My tiny brain went into overdrive. I just NEEDED a something to post. Plus I wanted to join the January Discussion Challenge (which you should check out!)Then my slightly singed brain came up with the wonderful idea to write about books. Wow, how original. But no. What my brain thought up of was to literally talk about books. Books themselves. Well specifically eBooks vs. regular books.
So today marks the day of a great battle, the battle between eBooks and plain old regular books. What are the benefits to each? What are the cons?
Let us first talk about benefits. So I know present to you, the benefits of books:
They are beautiful there is no denying that books are beautiful. Bookstagram, and book photography proves this. So do the covers of the most shiny books on your bookshelf. Does it not please your soul, to simply look at books, to admire their covers, their textures, and the exquisite artwork that lays upon them. Even the most ugly stories can have beautiful covers.
Simply touching a book is pleasing. Tracing its cover, flipping through the pages, feeling its unique texture. Its all so perfect. Its a feeling you cant describe, I hope I am not the only one who experiences it. Do you ever go to your bookshelf and slide your fingers along the spines of your books, and just take them in? Just take a moment to appreciate them?
Bookshelves are only perfect when they are full one thing that I think every-single book blogger desires, is a full bookshelf. Do you not feel the joys of adding a new book to your collection? Do you not feel happiness from the depths of your heart gazing upon a full shelf of your favorite books? If you don't, are you sure?Are you mentally sound?
Now we shall wander over to the benefits of eBooks:
More portable this is an obvious one. You can take hundreds of eBooks and only carry the weight of your eReader. Whereas if you took a hundred books, you would probably die or is it just me? eBooks can go everywhere.
Cheaper Money is something I don't have, and 2 out of 3 of you don't have either obviously this is real, would I ever just make this up, whaaaaat no. This number is 100000% real. Or is it... Despite this however, we still demand books that we cant afford. Solution? Well you can embark on the treacherous journey to the library, or stay at home and buy eBooks.
More comfortable...? I find when I am using my eReader to read it is easier to find a comfortable position in which I can lay down. When I am reading a normal book, I am always fidgeting for one of these reasons a) I can't flip the pages the way I am laying, b) the book is heavy and is hurting me, or c) I am trying to hold it above me and it keeps falling on my face. You might be thinking, Maya why don't you just sit not lay down? Never.
Okay so now that we have listed the benefits for each, here is a quick list of cons, starting with books:
- Expensive
- Not so portable
- eBooks are just easier to hold, tell me you understand what I mean??
Here my people, is a list of cons for eBooks:
- Not as prettythis is a real con, I swear
- You don't experience the same joy of looking at themalso 100% logical, tell me you get it!!
- They aren't as fun to collect
- Reading a book is more fun
As you can hopefully see, there is clear benefits to each of them. Although I am your Queen I can't decide which one you prefersadly You can choose to read whatever you like! Maybe eBooks are more in your budget! Or maybe you prefer books because they simply look betterif so, you are my twin Whatever you choose to read doesn't matter, whether it's paper or digital, it is still the same story!
So, What do you prefer? Books? Or eBooks? Or are you stuck in the middle?
Tell me below!
