Movie Review: Divergent

 YEP. I finally watched Divergent!

Yay~

  

When the movie came out last Friday, I heard about the bad reviews. But then, I still wanted to watch it. I mean, I've waiting for this movie to come out since forever. Technically, since they told us that it was gonna become a movie, but who cares.

My Thoughts: 

The Movie Setting/Overall:

Okay. Maybe this wasn't the best movie ever. Since I seriously loved Catching Fire. Like so much. Like it was really good. But I think Divergent went pretty well. 

There were some few added parts and the characters say different things from the book, but I think the movie followed the book pretty well. The setting was really well-created. I didn't expect the buildings to be like that, but I'm just seeing this in Neil Burger's (he's the director btw) POV. 

At the same time, I feel like this movie wasn't as exciting as the book. I wanted more action. I mean, it's so hard to explain, but it really feels different from reading the book. When you get to certain parts in the book, you'll feel the suspense and all those emotions, but I just can't say the same about the movie. But I totally get why. That's why the books are always better than the movies (except maybe Catching Fire) because the in the books, you actually know the characters' thoughts and beliefs. I only got excited in the movie when they kissed. I mean. It was hot. Don't take my 'excitedness' overboard.

The Characters:

Four - Theo James there. I love Theo and everything, but truly, he wasn't how I imagined Four. Theo is buff and hot like Four was supposed to be. And those tats. But maybe it's the personality that got me. Four wasn't supposed to make jokes and joke around. I really wanted that cold, Winter prince personality. Cuz I just fell for Four there. 

Also, Four was like super helpful to Tris in the movie. I found that really obvious. Like really obvious. I mean, he didn't help Tris that much. Four was at like every turn. But Theo James is a really good actor, and I just can't help but gush about him. So I can't despise him. Never. I hope he has a cool personality in real life though. Cuz actors like that are da bomb.

Tris - Shailene Woodley is really pretty. I think she made a pretty good Tris. That part where she was crying for her mother just broke my heart. Well....I have no comment about Tris. What should I say about her? I really don't know. Let's move on....

..And talk about how Shailene Woodley is also in The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. Guys, I am SO watching this movie. THAT BOOK was....*tears. It was good. Those characters. *cries. I just can't. And that ending. Like what the what even. AND, I can't believe Shailene Woodley is gonna be in it. And the main guy character in The Fault in Our Stars plays Caleb in Divergent. LIKE WHAT EVEN. Caleb is Tris' brother btw. He was supposed to be somewhat evil in the book, but he was totally innocent in the movie. It went from BROTHER to LOVE INTEREST. Umm. That would be weird. 

But Ansel Elgort is not that ugly. He's tall too. 

Christina - I just can't help but mention.....WOAH. Blown out of my mind, cuz Christina definitely wasn't like that in the book. Now, I have this whole new perception of her. First of all, she's like really short. And the book kickass girl and the movie kickass girl just felt different. BUT I ALSO CAN'T HELP but mentioning HER LAUGH. Her laugh is so unique. It sounds like a Sims laugh. LOL. Interesting.

Will - Another thing. I really expected Will to be like cute. Like hot. Like perfect. You know, I just wanted Will to be perfectly hot. I don't why. But to me, Will looked like Al and kind of Peter in the movie. Maybe I'm paying too much attention to Four....

Tori - Maggie Q. I don't even know her but like perfect! Tori is so cool. Exactly the way I imagined Tori. 

Eric - I thought Eric was gonna be way younger than that. Eric is supposed to be weenier and shorter, right?

Overall:

Divergent was pretty good. I liked the characters. I loved the setting. And I loved Tori. The plot.....waverish. They left a lot out but they got the most important ones in.  

ONE MORE THING I REALLY WANTED. Definitely more chemistry between  the main characters. They're kind of lacking some chemistry (besides that kissing part). 

The Rating: 3.5/5  

Update: New URL

HELLO guys!

Thanks for coming to visit my new website (NEW URL).

Changing your URL is actually much more work than I anticipated.

Sure it's just switching your URL.

But that means changing all your links.

And everything that's referring to your old URL.

And it's really hard to let people know about your new one.

And less pageviews.  

PROS:

Well, a better URL, I hope.

Also, a great time to change blog design. 

I think that's it. No one really changes their URL.

CONS:

Little to none pageviews (at first at least).

Having to change the links referring to old URL.

Changing some of the links are really hard.

Have to restart reputation-ISH.

No one can find me anymore.

Not that I have much in the first place.

Still not done remembering where to change the links.

Do not know how to change those links.

Does anyone want to offer advice? 

I'll be glad to accept them. :)

 

 

Book Review: The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutk:

The Winner's Curse (The Winner's Trilogy#1)
by Marie Rutkoski
Release Date: March 4th, 2014
Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
eBook, 355 pages
Content: YA Fantasy
Get a Copy:
      B&N | Amazon

Goodreads Summary: Winning what you want may cost you everything you love.
As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions.

One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin.

But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined.

Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.

Cindy's Review:
At A Glance/The Cover:  
I first saw this book on the Goodreads new release list. I didn't really give the book a thought, but I decided to check it out. Then I saw all those fabulous fab fab reviews and I thought I gotta read this. I was reluctant at first considering that she falls in love with a slave. I mean, I have nothing against them but I was really wondering how they would have a future together.  
  
Oh they will. Trust me on that. That slave is no ordinary slave. Although he could be more perfect, I'll accept him the way he is.

Btw, magnificent cover. I really like this eye-catching dressy cover with huge words. :)

The Characters/My Opinions:
Arin - That's the slave. He's actually turns out to be pretty cool. Except I was annoyed of him at first. He became hotter....but I really don't know how to describe him. Because I ship him with Kestrel, not with me. So yeah. Krestel definitely finds him hot. 

The Valorians had conquered the Herrani natives and created a whole new system making the Herrani the slaves. Seems like something out of a history book, right? Definitely. And this is what I like about this book. Because it can happen. It might have happened. It could be Historical Fiction. It could be labeled as Fantasy or Medieval. In other words, this book seemed very possible in our history. And it's a super cute story. But at the same time, it's made up. Lovely.

Kestrel - A strong, smart girl. A pretty good protagonist. Able to fight. Able to win. Except she kind of concaved in the end when she started to fall for Arin. I wanted her to stand up for herself and do something but at the same time, their romance is super duper addicting. Kestrel is somewhat the middle person. And she's getting pulled in both ways. 

Instead of a love triangle, this story has two sides. The sides are enemies of each other. And you can see both side of the story. Our main characters lie right in the middle. Of course, they are supposed to be loyal to their own side, but when you fall in love with an enemy, it just isn't possible. 

This book was addicting. I couldn't stop reading it but I had to stop at some points. When school's over, I would literally go straight home and read it. And when I wake up in the mornings, while eating breakfast. And at night, after homework. But since I don't forever reading, I finished the book over the course of two days. It was great romance book. Not too mushy. And some adventure. 

I would love to see even more adventure in the next book. There isn't even a trace of the sequel online. BUT DEFINITELY WAITING FOR IT. Cuz that ending was kind of cliffhangingey. 

Overall Thoughts: 
What are you guys waiting for? If you have a love for: YA, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Romance, Dystopian, Medieval....or whatever else, you've gotta try this. It's just so cute. I simply can't rave enough about it.

I even had a dream about the main character. ISH. WHICH IS KINDA CREEEPY. The guy in my dream was named Aaron. Except I actually do know him. Not like that though. 

The Rating: (1-10): 9.5~

Happy Reading~

Blog Tour: Fae by C.J. Abedi

 Welcome to my stop on the Fae Blog Tour

hosted by InkSlingerPR.
The tour schedule can be found HERE.

Blurb: 

Caroline Ellis' sixteenth birthday sets into motion a series of events that have been fated for centuries. A descendant of Virginia Dare, the first child born in the lost colony of Roanoke, and unaware of her birthright as the heir to the throne of the Light Fae, it isn’t until Caroline begins a tumultuous relationship with Devilyn Reilly that the truth of her heritage is revealed. 

Devilyn is the only Fae who is both of the Light and of the Dark, and struggles to maintain that precarious balance to avoid succumbing to the power of the Dark within him.  He is the only one who can save Caroline from those who would destroy her and destroy all hope for unity among the Fae. He promises Caroline that he will protect her at all costs, even when it means protecting her from himself.

Told from the alternating perspectives of Caroline and Devilyn, FAE draws on mysteries, myths and legends to create a world, and a romance, dangerously poised between Light and Dark.

Cindy's Review:
At a Glance/The Cover:  
The cover has a mysterious feel to it. Twilight's mysterious tree. Although I'm not really into reading about fairies and the Fae, I read this for the romance. Because it sounded so cute. And so sparkly. And I love these romantic YA fantasies. 

The Characters/My Opinions:
This novel does have a new plot twist compared to the other fairy stories. Instead of Caroline being the daughter of the summer king, I forgot his name. Orion? Umm. That's the Greek thing. I'll search it up later, or something, she's the daughter of Virginia Dare. New, right? Well, there are all kinds of stories surrounding the Lost Colony, why not make something magical out of it? 

Devilyn, the son of the Dark king and the Light princess. I've seen this concept in stories before, but not too much of it, so it's still fresh to read about this. Although Caroline's the main character, I would still prefer everything to be in Devilyn's POV. Although different POVs gives you both sides of the story, I still prefer books to only have one POV. Unless each character are really different. Like their personality and attitude is unique and all. For this novel, it's so so. If I had just paid attention to the person talking and not their surroundings, then I probably couldn't tell which POV it is. I don't really like those because the characters are too similar and it will get confusing if it is not labeled. 

Back to Devilyn. If it was a POV I'll choose, it'll probably be Devilyn, because he has all the information. There are a lot of concepts on the girl knowing nothing. And then this guy comes knowing everything. It's always the girl's POV, so maybe it'll be nice to switch things up. 

Overall Thoughts:
Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Caroline and Devilyn's romance was magnificent. I also thought the twister ending was a really great idea. It spiced things up quite a bit. :)

The Rating: (1-10): 7.5~

Author Bio: 

Colet Abedi ran development for ITV Studios and is currently Executive Producer on three shows that run in syndication called Unsealed: Conspiracy Files, Unsealed: Alien Files and Now Eat This with Rocco DiSpirito. She was also an Executive Producer on Posh Tots on HGTV. Prior to that, she was a Head Writer for 20th Television, a division of Fox, for two telenovelas, American Heiress starring Annalyn McCord and Robert Buckley and Fashion House, starring Bo Derek and Taylor Kinney.

Jasmine Abedi is an entertainment attorney, and has worked with entertainment powerhouses such as Fox, NBCUniversal, ABC, MTV and E! for the past 14 years. She has also worn many different hats in the entertainment industry, with Executive Producer credits for the television programs Posh Tots and the pilots Club Bounce (TruTV), Divas (VH-1), and Life With The Clarks (CMT). In addition to writing, she has also partnered with a law school friend to create the natural cosmetic company Generation Klean, Inc. Their products can be found online at www.generationklean.com and at major retailers (Whole Foods, Fred Segal etc.) nationwide.

Links: 

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Twitter

Facebook

Author Goodreads

FAEGoodreads

Giveaway: 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Magnificent March Releases~

A new month once again.

The time goes by sooo fast. Omg.

K. Let's see what new awesome books are coming out this month! 

Sadly, there isn't much.

At least for me. 

I found like only one book I would end up really reading.

Panic 

by Lauren Oliver

Release Date: March 4th, 2014

Thoughts: Considering how much I loved Lauren Oliver's Delirium series and Before I Fall, of course I'm going to read her next book. Definitely. Her dystopian books. 

Panic though. Don't know what to think about it yet. That means I have to read it, right? Omg. I'm talking in circles. Anyways, :) Hope ya'll try it too. 

Tagline: Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of 12,000 people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.

Ruins (Partial Sequence #3)

by Dan Wells

Release Date: March 11th, 2014

Thoughts: Because I actually read Partials. The first book. It was actually really good in general. But I kind of forgot what it was about since I read it like more than a year ago. Despite his good writing and all, I think the plot was really similar a lot of the dystopian books I read. Like Breathe by Sarah Crossan maybe. I don't even remember what this was about. I don't know. Maybe because it's so similar, I don't even remember things. BUT. I might read this. If only I read the second book first.

Tagline: Earth's last hour. Her last stand. 

 

The Winner's Curse (The Winner's Trilogy #1)

by Marie Rutkowski

Release Date: March 4th, 2014

Thoughts: I wasn't going to put this book up. Because I read that synopsis. And the guy's a slave! A slave! Why? Can he be like a secret prince of another country or something? BUT THEN. Jessica Khoury read it and gave it five stars! Not only that, she ranted that she needed the sequel NOW. A lot of people I know on Goodreads also wants to read it. AND, I read this wonderfully magnificent review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/555120145?book_show_action=true&page=1. So YEP. AND THAT GORGEOUS COVER. Now that I can see it. I'M DEFINITELY READING THIS.

Tagline: Winning what you want may cost you everything you love.

Unfortunately, that is truly all that had caught my eye for this month. 

At least for the ones I'm being notified for.
I said I only want to read like one book out of this three? 

Well, lemme correct that.

I truly meant two. THE WINNER'S CURSE sounds so good right now.

I think I really need to read that. 

Everyone's fangurling.
I can't. I'm getting sucked into all of this.

Anyways, happy reading~

Stay tuned for more. Each and every month. :)