Gerhana Kembar, a novel by Clara Ng

Lendy, book editor on big publishing house got bit surprise when she found old manuscript and letters in her grandmother’s cupboard. Now, her grandmother’s is dying because of cancer in hospital. Lendy read the story as if she go inside the locked world. The deeper she read, the more concern she felt about the story that it is a true story. Story that her grandmother kept for a long time. Story that involved her grandmother’s past and as the link to her existence in the world. With the story, Lendy learned her life and her relationship with her mother: try to be honest to herself, feel free to forgive and be friend with the past.

The story is the journey of the heart. Story about family: bravery, power and toughness. Love story that will never lose its meaning though it is between two women.

I feel I was being cheated. When I read the synopsis on the back of the book, I thought this story is about fantasy world mixed with real world. In few chapters, I realized and sure this is homosexual story. Wow! Ms. Ng is brave to write novel with sensitive theme. I kept on reading because I wanna know the ending. It flowed smoothly. And my sympathy to them is increasing a lot, especially to Diana and Selena in this story. It’s not they want to become like that. They struggle between themselves and family. And the family win. They sacrifice their life and they don’t insist to get what they really wants.

I have to confess: I thrilled when I read and imagined how Diana and Selena showed their love. They have to play hide and seek. In our society, life and relationship like this is not normal. But I don’t care with what they do (it’s their life and I can’t step forward to play as judge or to be their heroine with joining homosexual organizations). My head is spinning and I have to stop for a while to calm down myself. I said, “This is what they feel, this is what they face everyday for the rest of their life, this is their world.”

The story consist of two sections: (1) Lendy is looking for the truth from manuscript she found and (2) Diana’s writing, told by turns per chapter to the ending of the story. The story is beautiful. Diana’s and Selena’s fighting to be together is hard. Separated in different continent, they can be together again after 47 years (although it only happened in story written by Diana).
NB: I prefer not to read such story anymore. One is enough knowing their feeling.

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Midnight Sun is Postponed?!

Ms. Meyer said in her website that Midnight Sun is postponed. The manuscript of the story was illegally posted on the internet. Oh, no! Who did this? I can’t believe I may not read Twilight from Edward’s perspective.

“So where does this leave Midnight Sun? My first feeling was that there was no way to continue. Writing isn't like math; in math, two plus two always equals four no matter what your mood is like. With writing, the way you feel changes everything. If I tried to write Midnight Sun now, in my current frame of mind, James would probably win and all the Cullens would die, which wouldn't dovetail too well with the original story. In any case, I feel too sad about what has happened to continue working on Midnight Sun, and so it is on hold indefinitely.” – Stephenie Meyer on stepheniemeyer.com, August 28, 2008.

"For all intents and purposes, 'Breaking Dawn' is the last book," she told MTV News. "It might easily happen that I quit here. There'd be a lot of good reasons for doing that, so I don't know if we need to get into all the future possibilities and speculations, 'cause I'll just go crazy, and I'm so close already!"

Is there a chance that Meyer will change her mind after a break from the Cullen universe? We'll wait and see. - Sabrina Rojas Weiss

Midnight Sun is officially postponed. Or is it possibly canceled?

Vampire according to… (1)

We know vampire is fictitious figure. Good looking immortal human-like with canines and love human bloods. But recently, vampire is not like that anymore. Many authors describe new class of vampire of their own.

Dracula (Bram Stoker) – 1897
- Father of vampire clan
- Good looking
- Live in castle in Transylvania
- Sleep in coffin
- She-vampires as his servants
- Drinks and sucks human blood. If drinks til dry, the human will die. If drinks a little, the human will be vampire within few days.
- Afraid of sunlight, cross and garlic
- Immortal, unless stab with wood stake through the heart or cut the head off
- Pale skin
- Sharpened longer canines
- Turn into bats or vanish in the smoke Continued...

Wanderlust, a novel by Chris Dyer

The only novel written in email form I know. I don’t see other novel in this form. It’s very exciting. I’ve read novel in diary form (Princess’ Diaries, of course) and SMS form (I forgot what the title is, wait, I think I remember, soulmate.com by Jessica Huwae, yeah, that’s it).

I followed Kate’s journey around the world (exactly it’s half around the world because it’s US-Europe journey) looking for life and love. The author asked us to join Kate with flashback style. She told her friends and mom what had happened to her via email, so it’s like to be told by her. That’s flashback, right? I enjoyed Kate’s talking and her relationships with two men.

But it made me bored soon. All the characters used email as their dialogs. No ordinary dialogs. No real conflicts. Just the story of their doings, their works, their problems. I really can’t get into Kate’s mind. I don’t know what her intentions are or what she was thinking or what to do to her confusing love. No clues about what happen next at all. It’s like pulling trigger from far away. Nobody knows who he target is unless the bullet had got him/her. There is one other minus thing with this novel. The time setting is jumping around within emails. Sometimes they emailed 3 times a day. Sometimes they emailed once in 3 days. I don’t know what happen in those gaps. And I feel uncomfortable with that.

After all, it’s funny writing novel in email form. This is what people are looking for, UNIQUENESS.

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Autumn in Paris, a novel by Ilana Tan

Love doesn’t always as beautiful as our imagination. Sometimes, love is forced to fall when it blooms. How can bitter past life destroy love? Can past life be changed?

Tara Dupont, half France, half Indonesian like autumn in Paris. She has everything in life. She lives with her father and works as radio announcer. Tatsuya Fujisawa, Japanese architect who hates autumn in Paris. He meets Tara and it changes his thought about autumn in Paris. They become closer and spend their times going to beautiful and romantic places in Paris together.

Unfortunately, fate don’t do it right and make them in dilemma. Slowly but sure, their past will destroy their love. Tara and Tatsuya don’t realize the link connecting their past. A secret that break hope, feeling and faith. When the truth is revealed, desperation and powerless are floated too. Reality that push one of them to finish life.

“As long as she is happy, I will. Just as simple as it is”

Ilana Tan’s second book. This time, it’s about Tara Dupont and Tatsuya Fujisawa. Tara is Han Soon-he’s cousin (Summer in Seoul female lead). The beginning is good. Tara met Tatsuya and they became close. The story is sunny and cheerful. But, the Pandora box is opened too fast. In the middle of the book, Tara cried and felt desperate. As if , her life and Tatsuya’s are so cruel to them. Ms. Tan wrote their feelings so blue. They can’t work. They can’t smile anymore. They do anything feelingless. I cried a lot reading their sadness. I felt life is so unfair to them. And all I can say is: there are more tears in the end. I was shocked reading the ending.

Yeah, that’s life. We can’t blame our life. If we stuck at something, find another way to live our life again. If we have to run around the world, if the things are worth it, then go and grab them.

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Shopaholic and Sister, a novel by Sophie Kinsella

What’s a round-the-world honeymoon if you can’t buy the odd souvenir to ship back home? Like the twenty silk dressing gowns Becky found in Hong Kong…the hand-carved dining table (and ten chairs) from Sri Lanka…the, um, huge wooden giraffes from Malawi (that her husband Luke expressly forbade her to buy)… Only now Becky and Luke have returned home to London and Luke is furious. Two truckloads of those souvenirs have cluttered up their loft, and the bills for them are outrageous. Luke insists Becky go on a budget. And worse: her beloved best friend Suze has found a new best friend while Becky was away. Becky’s feeling rather blue—when her parents deliver some incredible news. She has a long-lost sister! Becky is thrilled! She’s convinced her sister will be a true soul mate. They’ll go shopping together, have manicures together.…Until she meets Jessica for the first time and gets the shock of her life. Surely Becky Bloomwood’s sister can’t…hate shopping?


The fourth episode of Becky Brandon (used to Bloomwood) “shopping without thinking” life.

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Summer in Seoul, a novel by Ilana Tan

Ilana Tan is a fan of Korean drama. That’s what I thought first. I don’t know whether she is or not. The story focused on Jung Tae-woo and Han Soon-he (Sandy). I don’t know how Ms. Tan can write 200 pages book and tell their story only. There were other supporting characters, such as Kang Yoon-mi and Mr. Kim. But Ms. Tan kept the line on those two.
Ms. Tan hid the link that connecting Tae-woo and Soon-he from the past as well, so that I can’t guess what happened few years ago. When they became closer to each other, the reality spread in their face. I like Soon-he’s and Tae-woo’s finishing way. They chose the best thing to survive their relationship without hurting others.

Keep up the good work, Ms. Tan.

Jung Tae-woo, Korean singers reappeared after 4 years under the radar. Han Soon-he (Sandy), half Korean, half Indonesian knew him but acted with no admiration at all. He asked her as his fake girlfriend only in media. Sandy agreed if her face is off from camera.
Tae-woo took Soon-he’s help without suspicious and Soon-he convinced herself many times so as not to regret it. Summer days as Tae-woo’s “girlfriend” started. In the mean time, their feelings changes. But, they didn’t realized the truth about what happened 4 years ago, chased them.

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New Moon, a novel by Stephenie Meyer

Legions of readers entranced by the New York Times bestseller Twilight are hungry for the continuing story of star-crossed lovers, Bella and Edward. In New Moon, Stephenie Meyer delivers another irresistible combination of romance and suspense with a supernatural twist. Passionate, riveting, and full of surprising twists and turns, this vampire love saga is well on its way to literary immortality.



Poor Bella. I almost cried when Edward left. She was so desperate and down. I feel more pity to her because Ms. Meyer used first point of view. Her suffers seemed so terrible and she had to do extreme things in order to hear Edward’s angelic voice. *blinking eyes to clear the tears and sobbing a little*

I saw the story was so grey and cloudy and windy. Even her friends left her. Why Ms. Meyer wrote story like this? I know that’s good to drag our readers to get “the feel” to the characters, but… I don’t know what to say anymore. I think it’s too cheesy. Ups, sorry Ms. Meyer, sorry everyone. Don’t be mad at me. It’s just my opinion.

This is a good book. Although Edward left, I kept on reading. New Moon didn’t run out of its charm. It HYPNOTIZED me… Bella has Jacob and Bella-Edward-Jacob relationships became more complicated and dangerous. Vampire versus werewolf. Old enemy met again in new era, in teenagers form.
After all, I love New Moon. I’m proud to say I’m a huge fan of Edward Cullen. I must read Eclipse, immediately.

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, a novel by J.K. Rowling

The heart of Book 7 is a hero's mission--not just in Harry's quest for the Horcruxes, but in his journey from boy to man--and Harry faces more danger than that found in all six books combined, from the direct threat of the Death Eaters and you-know-who, to the subtle perils of losing faith in himself. Attentive readers would do well to remember Dumbledore's warning about making the choice between "what is right and what is easy," and know that Rowling applies the same difficult principle to the conclusion of her series. While fans will find the answers to hotly speculated questions about Dumbledore, Snape, and you-know-who, it is a testament to Rowling's skill as a storyteller that even the most astute and careful reader will be taken by surprise.

It's hard to imagine a better ending than the one she's written for her saga after 10 years, more than 4,000 pages and close to 400 million copies in print. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows may be a miracle of marketing, but it's also a miraculous book that earns out, emotionally and artistically. …I cried at the end of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. It's that rare thing, an instant classic that earns its catharsis honestly, not through hype or sentiment but through the author's vision and hard work. - The Washington Post - Elizabeth Hand

Hurray! Lord Voldemort is dead. At last. The best ending I can think of. JK. Rowling heard what I was saying: don’t kill Harry Potter. This book is the most complicated than others. I have to think and rethink, read and reread, open and watch the prequel to get what they meant. Phiuh! It need big efforts to understand all. When I’ve finished it, one word came out from my mind. AWESOME! I can’t say anymore. SUPER DUPER AWESOME! I can’t believe someone has ever written such a superb saga. My eyes won’t blink because of the charm, even once. Up til now, if I imagine Harry Potter and his friends. I really enjoyed the flow of the story. The magical world pulled me and made me look from the inside. As if I was one of the witch (of good side, of course, not Death Eater). I’m waiting another book of JK. Rowling.

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Listening to People

Sometimes, no, many times I thought I had wrong major in college. Yeah, I am thinking about I right now. I like watching people and study their personalities. Maybe I should take Psychology instead of Information Technology *sigh and shake head*When my boyfriend and I went out with his friends, I tended to listen. Their talks, their body language, their thoughts. I interrupted them once or twice with my opinions or jokes. That’s all. What can I do? I’ve graduated and I don’t wanna go to college anymore. Now I’m writing novels. I used this hobby – watching and listening to others – as one of my research to make characters and story. I think if I’m not getting people disturbed with my weirdo, that’s fair enough.

The Saga of Darren Shan, a novel by Darren Shan

This saga follows the story of Darren Shan, a normal human boy who is coerced by the vampire Larten Crepsley into becoming his assistant and a half-vampire.


In the first trilogy, known as Vampire Blood, Darren learns about and comes to accept his vampirism.
1. Cirque du Freak
2. The Vampire’s Assistant
3. Tunnels of Blood


In the second trilogy, known as Vampire Rites, Darren learns about the vampire clan and seeks their acceptance.
4. Vampire Mountain
5. Trials of Death
6. The Vampire Prince


In the third trilogy, known as Vampire War, Darren learns he may have a larger role to play in the fate of the vampires (and of the world) than he had ever thought.
7. Hunters of the Dusk
8. Allies of the Night
9. Killers of the Dawn


In the fourth trilogy, known as Vampire Destiny, Darren is forced to make some difficult decisions, finally taking his destiny into his own hands and dealing with the consequences.
10. The Lake of Souls
11. Lord of Shadows
12. Sons of Destiny



So far, I’ve read 8 of 12 books. The author is the main character. It’s like we read his diary. Inside the story, Darren Shan did write diary. I think 12 books are too much. These series divided into 4 trilogies, 200 pages each. If each trilogies merged into a book, we get 4 books instead. I think it would be better.



I like Darren Shan’s character. He was adult in child’s body because of his vampire blood. He turned from half vampire who didn’t like human blood into vampire prince whom the existence of his clan depends on. Such a long journey, like vampire itself who can live hundreds of years.I think this story is segmented for young adult. Fights, wars and blood everywhere although it’s only in our imaginations. Losing eye, hand or any parts or the body is common theme in vampire world of Darren Shan.

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