Winter in Tokyo, a novel by Ilana Tan

My new neighbour, Nishimura Kazuto, came to Tokyo to find different surroundings. That’s what he said, but I think the reason is more than that. He is good guy, nice and reliable.
Slowly – maybe since Christmas Eve – I started to look at him in different ways. And since that day it’s difficult to imagine live without him, too.

Keiko on Kazuto

Since the beginning I felt something interesting on Ishida Keiko. Everything is exciting if she is around. Everything is good if she is around. Right now, her heart is waiting for someone. Her first love. I hope she can stop thinking about him and started to see me. Because living without her is not a living.

Kazuto on Keiko

They first met on the beginning of winter in Tokyo. For a month, a new feeling appeared. Then everyhing is changed when one day, one of them woke up and didn’t have memories for the last month, including someone who was the important part of life…

I like this book very much. I like this of three ones from Ilana Tan. The book is thick so the changes of their feelings is clear. From the beginning they first met, became friends, then love slip to their heart. Kazuto and Keiko don’t understand with their feeling because someone from their past came around them.

I can see the changes of Kazuto and Keiko’e feeling. I like Kazuto especially when he protected Keiko with his body. The impact is he was unconscious and had to go back to hospital. He doesn’t slow to show hie feeling, too. Although he feels he’s too late. At last he told Keiko that she didn’t have to do anything. Just see him. That’s all. It’s so sweet.

Ilana Tan wrote three series of the season: Summer in Seoul, Autumn in Paris and Winter in Tokyo. Maybe one more to complete the series?

Book-O-Meter

D’Angel: rose, a novel by Luna Torashyngu

Actually, Fika wants to forget her tore up life and choose to live a new safe life in Malaysia. But Indonesia’s intelligence bureau finds her and asks her to go back to Jakarta to help a mission finding corruptor’s daughter.

As if, Fika goes back to her old life. She goes to high school that corruptor’s daughter goes and uses Ista as her name. fika is soon cradled with her never-have-enough teens life. she gets new bestfriends, join volley ball interclasses competition and school president election.

But her undercover is blow up and Fika has to go back to reality and her mission. She has to face General Rastaji, the man who ruin her life. Besides, Rastaji brings a big surprise to Fika!

Second part of D’Angel trilogy.

More action and undercover part. I think it’s pure action book. Going dark to empty building that is her enemy’s base. Alone to save the hostages with no back-ups. One man show Hollywood movie.

A little love life to colour Fika’s high school days. She can’t continue her relationship she has. It’s just like another action story which tell the life of undercover agents who are afraid of endangering their family. It’s good book. So natural.

Luna thought the outline and wrote it into a book. Maybe. And publisher divided it into three part because it’s too long. Maybe. I think of it because the story is so clear and neat. There always are problems with solutions. She thought all of the possibility that can happen. That admires me alot.

Book-O-Meter

D’Angel, a novel by Luna Torashyngu

Is there a perfect girl? Commonly, if she’s clever in academic, she can’t do sports. If she’s beautiful, there’s no way she’s good in academic. But Fika does. She’s beautiful, clever and excellent in sports. In addition, she’s lucky in love. It’s impossible there is girl as perfect as she is.

But her luck and perfectness don’t stay long. When hanging out at the mall to celebrate her relationship with Reza, someone kidnapped Fika. It’s just not that, there are victims in that abduction incident.

Fika has to run with Andika who’s helping her. Andika said that, Fika can be so perfect so she will be kidnapped is because she is not human. Fika is Genoid, perfect created human. What the hell? Fika will more trust him if he said she has rich grandfather and will give her billions rupiah legacy.

This is the first book of D’ANGEL trilogy.

One word: COOL!

High school life, cell biology, millitary, spionage and science fiction. It’s like I see Hollywood action movie. Chasing car with helicopter, fighting and shooting sequences, superhuman, huge underground laboratory. A new breakthrough Indonesian teens literature.

I thought this is light novel. Perfect girl with popular boy with science fiction sequence in addition. But this is science fiction novel with high school student as main female character. I can’t believe it. DNA, nuclear reactor, many kinds of weapons, CIA, Indonesian police and military, OPM (Organisasi Papua Merdeka/Freedom Papua Organization), spionage and hacker.
Two thumbs up for the research and making this novel so tensing.

Writer gives us detail and very clear explanations. I can’t put it before I finished read this. After that, I’m still astonished.Up til now.

It’s very very Hollywood style.

Book-O-Meter

Love Trainer, a novel by Julia Llewellyn

Katie Wallace had her heart broken once - never again. So she decides to become a Love Trainer, a unique service provider who can answer the following questions: should I call him even though he hasn't called me? When he turns up in the middle of the night drunk and wanting a shag, should I say yes? Why is it so hard when I'm not even sure he's the man I want to marry? Is Katie right? Can you train men to be better boyfriends? Or is she playing the game of love with the wrong set of rules - a game which can only lead to her and those she helps getting hurt?

Half book is bad. The main role is bias. I’m confused because all the characters are being told, include their problems. The book tell Rebecca and gangs with their boyfriend, Katie’s cousin and their roomate. Also Katie’s ex boyfriend. Then I know, the problems are solved in the other half book along with Katie’s story. The ways Katie train her clients are the main focus. All the problems has to be told before Katie acts like professional love trainer.

It’snot like other same genre book. The main female isn’t pretty, tall, thin, blonde and has big boobs. Katie has black hair and average but she has good personality: care with others. She is more mature facing her bad experience with men: having affair and being dumped; being loved and thinks they’re meant to each other but it’s actually a love diversion; being used by her jerk ex-boyfriend. At last, Katie finds her Mr. Right. All of them are coloring Katie’s life as love trainer.

Book-O-Meter

Valentine’s Day Habits

Most couples go out in Valentine’s Day. Having fine dinner in restaurants,exchanging present (or giving present to the girl), attending love game. Few of them having dinner at home. The girl prepares and cooks herself, and then watching DVD together.
Those activities can be done whole year. But, because it is Valentine’s Day, activities we’re doing this day become very special.
Thanks to St. Valentinus. His brave action giving marriage in Rome (married is forbidden at that time) makes us feel one special day to express our love.
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, EV’RYONE
May Your Love Spread to the Whole World

Nocturnal, a novel by Poppy D. Chusfani

Adel knows she is special. She is Nocturnal, half cat human and have nine lives. Her life in Jakarta is cozy and secure, and then she was called to Adlerland, her father’s homecountry. Adel whom have been hidden by her father for seventeen years in Indonesia have to go back there in order to obey the order of her grandmother, the Baroness. Being trained and prepared to be successor of her grandmother and the chief of family clan.

Adel’s dream being a professional ballerina is over since her duty to her family don’t allow her to have freedom. Adel’s life changes upside down because the heavy burden she has: being a backbone protecting her big clan and preventing country from big threats they can’t control themselves.

I imagined live in ancient Europe, with castles and knights. Far far away kingdom between Germany and Romania, having dinner with King and Queen, fighting with vampires from Transylvania. Wow! My imagination are flying to King Arthur and Count Dracula’s castle but with modern lifestyle. Planes and airport. Fashion and blackberry. Cool!

No Adel’s love life in this book. She crushes on Roland but he breaks her heart before Adel can realize her feeling. There is Felix, the new King. But no explicit paragraph of it. Adel is Baroness. She can’t have love life with the King. Make me unsatisfied.

Book-O-Meter

Circa, a novel by Sitta Karina

Being tired from playing tennis and finishing board magazine for next week dealine, Almashira Raiz came to Circa, cosmetic factory with high determination: one day she will become an awesome dermatolog.

That afternoon, Genta Ramya sasmitro arrived, with high confidence that he’ll pass Marketing Research in order to not being sign "stupid" – especially his bookworm enemy named Aldebaran Raiz, Alma’s older brother.

In Circa, Alma knitted her wants and imagined one day Sailendra, her partner-in-crime at scholl will stop treated her as best friend.

In Circa, suddenly Genta was attracted by an exciting and challenging but "danger" new play: having friend with Alma. Though he knew he broke promise he made with Alde.

In Circa, one new act of friendship, hostility and love is started…

Fiction based on something that really can happen to us. It is written as real as it is possible. But

I read it as smoothen soap opera. Too weird to happen, yet too real to be just story. But it is a sweet story. Alma, indeed is a tough girl. Strong thought and doesn’t give up easily.

There are tips in the beginning of each chapters. Simple but very useful, especially to girls that don’t too fond or have less knowledge with makeup.

I wonder, are high school student can have part time job like that? Or is it school project? I can’t imagine it cos I graduated from high school seven years ago and there are no such things. By the way, "Genta" seems too funny for me.

Book-O-Meter

The Pity Life of Young Woman

One time, I ever hate myself. I can play piano but just a bit. I know Mandarin but just a bit. English but just a bit. I have no job a.k.a jobless. I have no special talent that make me expert at one thing. I applied jobs, being interviewed, but no result. Everything I’ve done is wrong. I feel depressed and frustrated.

Of course. These few days I can’t continue my book. I only add my teens story book for two or three pages per day. I turn one story to other, hoping I can write something down. Fixing this and that. But I can’t keep up the track. My whole head mixed up. My three stories or four, my dream job.

DO MY LIFE HAS MEANING AT ALL, EVEN ONE?

I’m afraid doing something. I prefer do nothing so I do nothing wrong. But I know kids think like that. I still can think. I’m not stupid to finish myself. I’m a mature woman although my mind is not mature enough to solve my problems. I have to do something. I can’t pity myself all my life. I can’t give up. Yet.

At this time, I play piano. Some easy songs. If I play difficult ones, my tensemeter will go up fast again. I can see movie or read book (while listen to music) or hang out at the mall. But when I stop for a while (taking a rest, nature calling, writing something, even eating and drinking), those bad feelings are back. I’m grateful I can play simple piano songs.

One thing on my mind. I want to publish my books. Is it wrong? Just simple dream. I want to be a novelist. So I keep on writing. And reading too. Everything that can give me some ideas. Novels, blogs, papers, forums. Maybe I can write this chapter of my life into a book.

I’m waiting for the time to see that become reality. Maybe the time for my "embryo of success" to break isn’t right. And I’ll take all my patience to see my it "born".

Btw, after I’ve thought many times, the title of this blog is too mellow. I know what you think. But I like it. It’s like the title of a good book, that have "New York Times Best Seller of the Year" or "Winner of Edgar Award" on its cover. Ha ha ha.

The Ex-Files, a novel by Jane Moore

After five years spent maneuvering for Mr. Right, beautiful, feisty Faye Parker has finally snared a sensitive cutie named Mark. So when he pops the question, Faye is fully prepared to step out of the dating rat-race, call the caterer, and don the veil. Just as soon as she has one last teensy-weensy little fling.

Then comes the dicey issue of the guest list. First there’s Nat, Faye’s ex—a narcissistic fashion model hell-bent on flaunting his substantial charms in Faye’s face, his latest Playboy bunny in tow. Next there’s Kate, Mark’s ex—a woman so indignant she’s not the bride that she’s liable to slit Faye’s zipper. And, of course, there’s Adam, Faye’s flamboyant sidekick, milking the chaos for all it’s worth while shamelessly ogling Nat’s abs. As the rehearsal dinner lurches toward the brink of a spin-the-bottle-fueled imbroglio, Faye must face the fact that marriage means more than a flawlessly executed reception. She’s got a serious decision to make—about Mark, about love, and about her own deepest desires.

This is story about ex-girl/boyfriend with details how they met with Faye/Mark and how they broke up. Little confusing at the beginning because there are no signs which was the present time, which was the flashback. But enjoy this, we can get it.

Their characteristics is commonly see in real world.

Faye: has no father, she has to be tough so she tends to “hold the ball” in every relationship.
Mark: feeling intimidated by his older brother, Tony, he tends to feel comfortable having relation with tough woman.
It’s common story with guessable ending, but it’s wrapped in the one and only packaging: back and fro plots.

I like Tony. He has all good personalities in him. But I’m not satisfied with his minimum appearance. I can’t feel the real him. He looked like a bad guy. He seduced Fay at the bar, forced her to cancel her marriage, chased her to be her girlfriend. His fight getting Fay is too easy. Seems like opportunist though he’s a cute guy. Annoying, aren’t he?
I wish his role is bigger than this *sigh* And see him a little bit more *sigh again*

Book-O-Meter