Review: Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Glad to say I've read it because it's a classic (1.5million reviews on Goodreads at a 4.12 rating says something).

I'm proud of myself for getting through the entire book because it's gargantuan. I regret reading all the way through though. I did not enjoy this book! I mean... it was okay... I'd give it 1.5 stars. And I'm sorry lol I mean of course in the 1800's I probably would have loved this book but now... it's very dated, very slow, I just can't. I'd be able to bear the movie but for an 18+hr audiobook ded lol.

I enjoyed the beginning the most I think, when Jane was struggling as a child and moved around from place to place. The middle was the worst most boring part and the ending it picked up a bit but it wasn't as good as the beginning.

It's also too religious for my liking, but hey it was the 1800's, what do I expect.

As the classic fictions go this book is a bit worse than Little Women but better than Ann of Green Gables.

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Review: Lying

Lying by Sam Harris
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

More so food for thought instead of learning something.

This is more like an essay or small script about the philosophies of lying, it's not really a book.

Food for thought:
- Whatever our purpose in telling them, lies can be gross or subtle. Some entail elaborate ruses or forged documents. Others consist merely of euphemisms or tactical silences. But it is in believing one thing while intending to communicate another that every lie is born.
-Ethical transgressions are generally divided into two categories: the bad things we do (acts of commission) and the good things we fail to do (acts of omission). We tend to judge the former far more harshly.
- White lies for when we don't want to hurt other ppl
- False encouragement is a kind of theft: it steals time, energy, and motivation a person could put toward some other purpose.
- When we presume to lie for the benefit of others, we have decided that we are the best judges of how much they should understand about their own lives — about how they appear, their reputations, or their prospects in the world.
- What does it mean to have integrity? It means many things, of course, but one criterion is to avoid behavior that readily leads to shame or remorse.

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Review: Warcross

Warcross by Marie Lu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Alright alright alright lol I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would!

It really reminded me of Ready Player One for the virtual net world, playing a tournament game in there, you can customize your avatar, and there's the dark web, etc.

It also reminds me of Wreck it Ralph lol because of how the little girl goes into the game and hacks certain aspects of the game so they can win.

You know what it also reminded me of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire lol because of the Triwizard Tournament! Felt very similar to WarCross because the players have to go through obstacles and beat the other team/players, and they don't know what to expect but this is like the mega tournament of a life time lol

I enjoyed the whole aspect of who can Emika really trust? Who is good, who is evil? What is evil???

The story was more lovey dovey than I anticipated and cared for. It felt like it went a little bit off track there but it's okay.

I enjoyed the whole hacking the system aspect, and how Emika's really good at it. She can see all the code and see the flaws so effortlessly. And the whole back story of how she became that way, how she got to thinking that way because of her dad.

There's some issues I had, but they're spoilers:
(view spoiler)[
- Hideo gave her an unlimited credit card and she never once went out to go shopping?! Come onnnnn!
- How is Emika able to just go purchase these championship game hack items with no issues lol why isn't Hideo caring about these Dark Web items???He created the net world so he has the power.
- I knewwww that Zero was going to be Sasuke, the fact his identity was always hidden and Hideo's brother mysteriously vanished from Hideo's presence in the park. We later find out he was taken and went missing, and that's when I knew for sure Zero = Sasuke.
(hide spoiler)]

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Review: The Magic of Thinking Big

The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It's good but not life changing. At least to me, for others I could see it. It teaches basic principles like smile more, network more, speak loud and clear, stay positive, make eye contact...

The beginning was overcoming common excuses like 'oh I can't do it because of my health', or 'I'm not smart enough', 'I don't have enough time', etc."

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Review: Love★Com, Vol. 1

Love★Com, Vol. 1 by Aya Nakahara
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Story is repetitive and kinda annoying. There's like no funny parts and the drawings are just standard.

Story is about a guy and a girl who constantly bicker with each other yet have all the same interests.
Problem is that she is "gumbo-sized" meaning way too tall (5'7") (my height is 5'8" lol) and he is really short hence why they're not in love. But they get along really well as friends.
They set themselves up on a double date and their double dates end up liking each other instead of them lol how ironic :P So now these two are playing cupid and not getting anything for themselves.
They go to an arcade that has a love machine that tells the other couple that they are 18% compatible while the tall/short couple is 100% compatible.
By the end they're starting to believe that they really are compatible, but still not meant to be together.

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Review: Remote, Volume 1

Remote, Volume 1 by Seimaru Amagi
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Nothing really special I liked about this manga. The whole crime scene investigation story is not my thing and the drawings weren't anything special. Wasn't really funny, only a couple parts.

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Review: A Darker Shade of Magic

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm between a 4 and 5 star! I really really enjoyed this book!!! But ugh it could have been a bit better! If the story was a bit more dense I would have rated it 5/5 stars but it was a bit lacking.

LOVED the characters Kell, Lilah, Rye, Holland, etc. Kell is a very mysterious and interesting main character. And Lilah bring in the wild, open and honest, free thinking attitude that pairs really well with Kell's seriousness and lack of excitement.

The world building is very interesting and immersive. I find myself escaped to another world while reading. There's basically parallel universes that Kell can use his magic and go through. Learning about the worlds is interesting. Learning about magic and the Antari is super interesting. I'm still intrigued about Black London.

Dare I say this book kinda reminded my of my favorite author Patrick Rothfus's book The Name of The Wind. Kell being the main character; mysterious, interesting, smart and also has red hair like Kvothe. And Lilah being like Bast, Lilah is Kells companion, Bast is Kvothes companion; they're both free spirited, wild and rash.

(view spoiler)[
I was hoping the book would end by Kell and Lilah going to Black London but that all got side tracked to the next book. And now the stone is dead. I found Kell fighting the Vitari slightly cheesey, how can you fight "Magic" because Vitari means magic. But maybe I'm misunderstanding and there was some magical demon that was in the stone idk.

The ending was action packed with murders but I felt it was rushed and not fully necessary, Schwab just needed to end this book and create an exciting ending. The whole thing with the twins just felt like inserted into the story, not really belonging in there but more so a side quest of sorts. Kell killing the twins could have been saved until after Kell goes to Black London.

Ever since I learned that Lilah has a glass eye and she didn't explain the back story of it I was almost certain she's an Antari yet isn't aware of it yet. And later on that's why she can jump to other worlds with Kell. Also the healer guy (forget his name and am too scared to google in fear of spoilers) told her that Lilah has untapped magic in her. (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

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Review: Dear Girls: Intimate Tales, Untold Secrets, & Advice for Living Your Best Life

Dear Girls: Intimate Tales, Untold Secrets, & Advice for Living Your Best Life by Ali Wong
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Was decent, and sometimes funny, sometimes TMI lol I learned about what it's like being a female stand up comedian, and what it's like being asian lol I learned how Ali was brought up like her mom didn't really want to have white people talks all "how are you feeling." If Ali said she was sad then her mom didn't want to hear anything about it.

Ali Wong is funny but not intelligent lol. She's is funny, but more of a best friend chatty kathy kind of funny.

Ali is very whoa TMI lol she's very open, honest, and blunt. It took me aback more than once lol She goes straight into sexual stuff. She's so vulgar it oddly made me a little uncomfortable lol It took me a while to get use to her.

I think my fav part was when she talks about what makes great Vietnamese pho, and Chinese restaurants.

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Review: Laya, the Witch of Red Pooh, Volume 1

Laya, the Witch of Red Pooh, Volume 1 by Yo Yo
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My best friend gifted this to me in one of my teenager birthdays <3 because...
Laya ~ Leah
Red Pooh ~ wut? lol (Turns our Red Pooh is actually the village they live near :P)

This volume is basically a collection of a million stories of these characters, each story is like 5 pages long which makes it very short and jumpy. There's not really an overall story to it.

The drawings of stuff in the background and the setting was super detailed and there was so much to look at. I like all the witchy stuff, potions, brooms, pumpkins, decorations, etc

Laya's cat Puss is funny

The bad things:
- some things are lost in translation
- drawings of the human bodies and faces could have been better and sometimes was lazy drawing
- the drawings are too close to the book binding so it's sometimes hard to read

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Review: Your and My Secret, Vol. 1

Your and My Secret, Vol. 1 by Ai Morinaga
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Good but not great. I enjoyed the drawings as well as the humor. The story is about Nanako Momoi, she is gorgeousssssss but her personality is very masculine; anger issues, rude and obnoxious. And Akira Uehara is a guy who has a crush on Nanako and he's kinda plane, cool calm and collected but shy and quiet. He runs in on Nanako and her grandpa while he's trying to minaturize her lol then they decide to minaturize Uehara instead but it goes wrong and Uehara and Momoi end up switching bodies/personalities. It's all humor and playing with that theme after that lol. It's funny and ironic how both their best friends end up falling for them lol.

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Review: Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 6

Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 6 by Yuu Watase
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Awwwww it's overrrr haha Was a great series! Definitely one of my fav manga's!

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Review: Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 5

Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 5 by Yuu Watase
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Aw poor cute lil' Night i stuck in mini form while trying to be Rikko's forever boyfriend. Night is getting all types of wonky bugs in him and really needs to be repaired. Things finally get wrapped up into who wins Rikko's heart

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Review: The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own

The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own by Joshua Becker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I love minimalism. This book is allllll about it haha obvie...

I enjoyed the mindset and strategies to tackle clutter and gave me motivation to get rid of stuff! And also to give.

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Review: Master-Key to Riches

Master-Key to Riches by Napoleon Hill
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Man what an old book haha but definitely a classic.

Master Key to Riches goes hand in hand with Napoleon Hill's book Think and Grow Rich with similar themes.

This book was annoyingly repetitive and not well written and organized. It's a short book that could have been halved in size and added into Think and Grow Rich.

Themes: Definiteness of Purpose, willpower, self-discipline, habits, applied faith, consciousness, imagination, going the extra mile, control your emotions, put away bad negative thoughts, control your ego and don't let it get inflated.

To be a good loving wife to your husband, at the dinner table propose ideas and consult him about his day with interest and the relationship and his success will grow. Pretty sexist but this book can get away with it because it's old lol

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Review: The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment

The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Well this book was enlightening! haha I really enjoyed it and it has now influenced my life forever <3 Everyone needs to read this book so we can all be as one :)

Learning the teachings of this book I took notes because I was living in the future and wanted to remember certain points. Mid way through the book I was so present, so in the "now" that I didn't even think to take notes XD.

This book is almost a mind fuck... I feel like it's on another level so much so that I don't 100% understand it - but I really want to. I think it will take a re-read or two to more understand it. It is repetitive in the teachings but it is because he understands that most people don't understand it so he has to give many examples from different angles and perspectives to try and fully grasp the concept.

The book is formatted in a question/answer format. As you develop questions yourself through reading it is usually in the next question that he answers it for you.

Notes I managed to take:
- "To complain is always non-acceptance of what is. It invariably carries an unconscious negative charge. When you complain, you make yourself into a victim."
- "It is not so much that you use your mind wrongly - you usually don't use it at all. It uses you. This is the disease. You believe that you are your mind. This is the delusion."

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Review: Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 4

Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 4 by Yuu Watase
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The main characters are so attractive XD I love the drawings haha they can be really comical at times, no pun intended :P In this installment Rikko meets her elementary school crush that she was always too shy to approach. Feeling come back and she's tempted to cheat on Night. Now not only does she have to decide between Night and Soshi... now there's this other dude too. But an interesting twist happens nearer to the end of the chapter.

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Review: Little Women

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book is huge! It was originally published into two separate books but now they publish them together as one. The second part is just as good as the first part, if not better :) The second part the sisters are older so it's much more relatable to me. The first part was good but it reminded me a bit too much of Ann of Green Gables because of how young the dialogue and stories are.

I love the little stories and the morals in this book. It's full of real life situations and reactions. You learn to love all the characters for their uniqueness and love. The mother raised her girls really well. It's nice living in this book :) This is the life of living with women.

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Review: Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 3

Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 3 by Yuu Watase
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Soshi or Night Soshi or Night Soshi or Night?! Gahhhhhh lol Hey even I don't know which one is better... At the end of the day though Night is a robot lol so I would pick Soshi. It's not like you can even have kids with Night :P Can't she just have both? XD

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Review: Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Good book but too long and repetitive and with not that much insight.

Some insights:
- They found that there is a 3rd type of drive called intrinsic reward and it trumps all other external motivations. Intrinsic motivation needs the right type of environment to survive. For example: when money is used as an external reward for some activity the subjects lose intrinsic interest for the activity
- If you're going to reward your team with a dinner party don't do it the next time too or else they'll be expecting it and once they expect a reward their intrinsic reward system goes away


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Review: Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 2

Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 2 by Yuu Watase
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Well Mika is a beesh lol And oh hello Soshi! haha finally makin a move and stepping up to the plate I like it! Seems as though Night is going into the background now

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Review: The Hobbit, or There and Back Again

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have been wanting to read this book, and this series FOR EVERRRRRRR. So glad I'm getting to it now because I love it! Love the characters, love the world!

I was quite surprised at how much the movie embellishes and expands on things. Dare I say the movies are better than the book? XD Well it's a average sized book that went into 3 massive movies so I guess that's why.

The beginning was very similar to the movie, the middle was mostly similar and the ending was pretty different. By different I mean the same stuff happened in general but the movie had more characters, more plot points. Literally the last 15% of the book was the whole 3rd movie XD As much as I love this book, The Desolation of Smaug (the movie) did a better job than the book.

Also, we don't even meet Frodo or Sam in The Hobbit! Huge difference there.

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Review: How to Be Heard: Secrets for Powerful Speaking and Listening

How to Be Heard: Secrets for Powerful Speaking and Listening by Julian Treasure
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Good book, some key takeaways but overall not hugey impactful for me.

I felt like the beggining was okay, it talked a lot about sound, noise, and music which is not what I was expecting. All of it also had to do with becoming a better listener and thus will make you better heard.

But the middle was the good part for me. Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), voice tonality, pitch, volume, accenting certain words, posture, body language, lots.

The end was more about being a professional public speaker.

This book is pretty thorough! I don't know why people that reviewed the book say it's repetitive because it's not.

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