Can You Keep a Secret? A novel by Sophie Kinsella

Emma is sitting on a turbulent plane. She's always been a v. nervous flyer. She really thinks that this could be her last moment. So, naturally enough, she starts telling the man sitting next to her - quite a dishy American, but she's too frightened to notice -all her innermost secrets.

How she scans the backs of intellectual books and pretends she's read them. How she does her hair up like Princess Leia in her bedroom. How she's not sure if she has a G-spot, and whether her boyfriend could find it anyway. How she feels like a fraud at work - everyone uses the word 'operational' all the time but she hasn't a due what it means. How the coffee at work is horrible. How she once threw a troublesome client file in the bin. If ever there was a bare soul, it's hers.

She survives the flight, of course, and the next morning the famous founding boss of the whole mega corporation she works for is coming for a look at the UK branch. As he walks around, Emma looks up and realises... It's the man from the plane. What will he do with her secrets? He knows them all - but she doesn't know a single one of his. Or... does she?

Everybody has secrets. Kinsella caught a good idea and make it as the main theme of the book. Still using first person point of view, Emma is common young woman in common situation. Having average life but suddenly her life is turning upside down because her boss—Jack Harper showed up everywhere she goes.

It’s funny when I read Emma told every secret of her to someone stranger in the same flight. I laughed at her stupidity. But in reality, there are a lot of people like her; broken dustbin. And most of them are women.

I can’t believe if there isn’t other Jemima out there. Emma’s friend that stop seeing a guy if there is no chance of being giving diamond ring. And don’t forget she is a paranoid. If someone hurt you, get revenge to him. Back to him to get on the plan, if needed. It’s because her mom often being hurt by a guy she sees. Jemima has her own tabloid reporter, too. What a revenge-obssesed woman!

I don’t care with Jemima because Jack had forgiven Emma and he wanted to tell Emma his dirty secrets. That means Jack openly make relationship with Emma. That should couples do to build a good and positive relationship (don’t tell him/her too much. If s/he knows too much, our relationship won’t be attractive anymore).

Resep Cinta, a novel by Primadonna Angela

Ask Cinnamon Cherry testing the foods—before you finished your request, she asks another plates. Ask Cherry cooking—before you finished your sentences, she asks a favor.


But everything’s change when Cherry meets Basil.

Handsome and charming Basil, wants cooking expert girlfriend. It’s impossible Cherry refused Basil’s request to make him delicious cuisines.

Cherry who don’t wanna go to kitchen before, now meets the ingredients and foodstuffs. With simple recipes (but delicious) from her parents, Cherry tries to win Basil’s heart.


Her difficult struggles—because there is Maya Renggo who’s have a crush on Basil. Beautiful, the heiress of famous restaurants and culinary genious Maya. Before Cherry able to think this new threat, Maya challenge her to get Basil with cooking competition.



This book is full of delicious recipes—I’m hungry now! At the end of each chapter, she gave her family’s recipes. Her writing style reminds me of Meg Cabot with Princess Diaries series. Resep Cinta is cheerful and funny—teens characteristics, but too many detail of Cherry’s feelings (of course it does, it tells from first person point of view, stupid me!). So the story seems too slow to me. And it used hyperbols technic.

The book is good but too thin. I’m still enjoying the story, then it reach the ending. And I hate Basil. Gorgeous and perfect but he is a recipes thief. It’s true: Don’t judge a book by its cover. But it doesn’t affect to Divo. From the beginning of the book, Cherry knows him well. I have to try the recipes there. It looks like very, very delicious. Yummy!

Book-O-Meter

Why does Hollywood Ruins Novels by Turning Them into Craps?

Hollywood keeps translate page to screen. Many give money and give more when the sequels, remake or spin-off are made. They were glorious in awards (nominee including) and box office charts. Such as The Lord of the Rings trilogy (this is the best ever!), Slumdog Millionaire, Prince Caspian, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

But, not all novels had this achievements. Although they had “Bestseller” title on the cover, they slept in gaining dollars. We can say Eragon and The Golden Compass. Why is this happening? Our satisfaction in reading hundreds of pages from books became big disaster and they collected criticisms, scorns, mocks and etc., etc.

What makes the book so good and the movie so bad? And why is this divergence so unsurprising? The answer is simple, but it has complex implications: Novels are long, but movies are short. It's impossible to encapsulate the tonal shifts of a book like Revolutionary Road in a feature-length film, no matter how long those two hours feel.
This is what the movies do to literature, typically: There's so much plot to get in that there's no time to tell the story. Perhaps it's the insecurity of Hollywood: Inflated by the borrowed prestige of books, producers and directors won't stray too far from the guide-ropes of the story.
William Davidson wrote on Slate.com

But, once again, Hollywood is still making those each year. No matter how the final results are, they do that with their great efforts from many aspects. However, it is often the case that the book is significantly better than the movie.

Faking It, a novel by Jennifer Crusie

She has a history of forgery she's trying to forget. He has a knack for scamming he's trying to resist. But one fateful night, their good intentions go bad, And what they get up to is downright immoral, illegal, and irresistible.

All the characters are pretending. Pretends to be someone else, pretends to be not him/herself. All of them has their own intentions in pretending. Cheating, telling lies or not telling the truth are their works. It’s boring reading this though it started a little bit interesting from the middle of the book. Honestly, I don’t like this book. For reasons above and for this reason: too many exposed vulgar sex scenes (not too significant for the story).

Many artists are told. Monet, van Gogh, Corot. Also old songs like “Come and Get Me” by Jackie DeShannon, “You’re no Good” by Linda Ronstadt, and “I’m the Only One” by Melissa Etherigde as the background of the story. The funny things are those songs is played when exact situations like the songs happened. Few characters played old movie quotes and use film characters as nickname (tends to mock each others, though) like “Dial M for Murder.” And I don’t know these old things at all (I hate this).

The Goodnights divided men into two categories: donut and muffin. Donut isn’t good if you eat it tomorrow since it will be hard to eat and the icing will melt. This means donut typed is one-night-stand guy. You might guess what muffin means.

From this book, I know arts can be misused in order to get more many. Fake paintings, imitation paintings (I think they have the same meaning, but it’s not!). Not only fleamarket sellers, but curators and collectors as well.

Book-O-Meter

Theme: Forbidden Love Story

Love story is common theme in romance book. To give tragic element into the book and make readers love the main characters, just put one word in front of those words: FORBIDDEN.

Many writers like this theme. The differences between people in the world is enough to attract them. Two rivalry families, two people from different caste, two different creatures. Just these cases, they can write incidents to incidents and troubles to troubles to test their love, good guys can be the villains. And don’t forget betrayal to sweeten the story. Happy couples can be ex-husband/wife full of hatred, peace family/country can light fire of war. That’s what readers like. Intense and layered conflicts.

How scary the power of words!

But, those are for classic books. Now, romance books is more light with comedy and action as freshener. The situations are more acceptable. How they feel to each other, how their surrounding react. No cynical staring or isolation from people because the world has changed to modernity.

Number one classic forbidden love story the world know is William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, of course. Also Shakespeare’s Othello that told white master-black slave love story. But, nowadays, the human-vampire love story is written happy ending in Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight saga.

In local book, there is Light-Darkness love story of Sitta Karina’s Aerial. Then, Ilana Tan’s Autumn in Paris which is between step brother and step sister (this is very tragic). Clara Ng’s Gerhana Kembar is told lesbian love story openly. Dee wrote funny forbidden love story; cockroach and little girl in one of Filosofi Kopi’s short story.