Thursday 31 December 2015

The Blogger's note: Subscribe!

Hi there!

Happy New Year 2016!!!!!!
Congratulations on surviving 2015, that was one tough year.

So along with the new year comes new resolutions, new starts and new things. And I am happy to announce that I have a brand new "Subscribe" bar on the top of my blog! You can just enter your e-mail address there to get subscribed to my posts! Note: If you are reading this in the mobile, switch the view into web version. You'll get it. Plus, how's the new template? I liked the web version more than the mobile one. Check it out! Fitting, right?

Anyway, this year, I am going to post lots of creative things on my blog (or that's the plan) and maybe I will get to interact with some of you too! I am going to make my blog more 'Books and Creativity' centered so that I will have a theme to stick to. Plus this year, I am starting my 12th grade so I might not be able to post more frequently in my blog. But I'll make sure that whatever the things I post on are worth the wait.

For me, 2015 was a great year. I scored good marks in my 10th grade finals, I joined a new college, made new friends, discovered new T.V shows, books and fandoms *sigh*. I created this blog in April 2015. I had a great time.

I want 2016 to be a...well, basically a good year. I don't think I will have much fun this year because 12th grade finals are EXTREMELY important in India and I will be drowned in a massive, relentless ocean of books, an avalanche of perplexing formulae and a vast syllabus of boredom. So, yeah, wish me luck.

What I am interested most, though, is this: How did 2015 go for you? And what do you expect to happen in 2016? Tell me in your comments below!

Do subscribe to my blog! I promise I'll make time to post good stuff in my blog! Maybe, that will be my new year resolution.

Random fact: I am currently reading 'Cinder' by Marissa Meyer right now.

E-mail - manasa2510@gmail.com
Instagram:  @manasa2510
Twitter: @manasa2510

I hope you'll have a great year ahead!
Adios!

Saturday 19 December 2015

4 SIMPLE steps to make your own DIY Character bookmarks!

Hello there!

Hope you are having a great festive time!
So as I said in my previous posts, I wanted to give a Pre - Christmas gift to all the book readers and so here it is: DIY Character bookmarks!

         
     I was making a few drawings on Microsoft Paint a few months earlier when I thought, Hey! Why not draw some characters from books! And when I did that, another thought came to my mind, Hey! Why not turn them into bookmarks! Thus it began.

               So here are the self-made bookmarks that I wanted to share with you!

Step 1: Download this picture.









Step 2: Take a colour print-out.
Step 3: Cut it out.
Step 4: Fold the red strip on the top backwards to make a bookmark.

  And Done! Viola! You have got your own Character bookmarks, ready to accessorize your books!




Freshly prepared bookmarks.


The awesome foursome.


I really hope you'll like this! You can DM me pictures of your bookmarks in Instagram and follow me for more creative posts! My Instagram account is @manasa2510 .You can email me on manasa2510@gmail.com  or you can just leave a comment below! I would love to hear from you!
Twitter: @manasa2510

If you liked this, please click the 'G+1' button down there or you can even follow my blog by entering your e-mail address on the bar on the top of the blog. I might even make another set of bookmarks with the characters you want. 

I hope you enjoy this holiday season and here are some virtual hugs and chocolate chip cookies from me! Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year!

Adios!

P.S. - I have an AWESOME DIY idea for Easter! Stay tuned (what?) till then!

Friday 11 December 2015

The Blogger's note: School Days

Hello everyone! Hope you are having a great day!

So I was going through my Instagram feed and saw that many people were complaining about school.  I saw loads of posts that were captioned "I hate school", "School sucks" ,etc.

And being the person who will gladly spend any amount of time by just thinking about random things in order to postpond the overwhelming mountain of work in front of me, I wondered what was the reason why so many people simply hate school.

Then the little voice on the back of my head said, Duh! Who are you kidding? You hated school too.

True. Actually, I did not hate my school.My school was the best school in the whole city! I had absolutely no problem getting up early. My school itself was big and beautiful, with spacious classrooms and airy corridors. I loved the faculty (maybe except a few) and the other staff members. It was just that I couldn't fit in with my classmates.

Now don't get me wrong. I had such fun time with few people who I really cared about. But the thing was, I couldn't really understand the character of my classmates. So yeah, I was basically a loner.

Being the odd one out in my class, I had to face many problems. As my luck factor was really low, most of my friends were are almost always in different divisions . So I would be stuck alone in my class unable to get any help from anyone during homework submissions, projects, assignments, etc. I was really late in making friends when I was young (now don't blame me! I was a shy but hot tempered kid) and when I was old enough and ready to make new friends, the friend circles were already formed and obviously I was left alone without any group or squad. I felt like an outsider and I always had an I-am-not-supposed-to-be-here feeling. More than anything, I wanted people to talk with me. But people would do that only when they were bored of everything else or if they wanted a favor. So my usual past time was just sitting on the lectures, studying and daydreaming about the time when I would finally meet my real friends, escape my school life and become social person.

And this was the time when I was introduced to the Harry Potter novels which set a chain reaction in motion and I began to discover the world of books, fiction, fantasy and possibilities. I began to derive strength from books and they helped me survive through my lonely days. My books have literally become my best friends during high school years.

Now since I have joined junior college, I am finding new opportunities and making new friends. I have finally learnt how to mingle with people and have fun.But I wouldn't have known the meaning and importance of friendship if it wasn't for my school.

This whole experience taught me that times change. If your having a bad time right now, remember every person has ups and downs in their lives. Like the drowning man who kept clinging on to a plank on a raging sea until he was finally washed ashore, just hold on to your happy memories, hope and determination. Things will definitely change for the better. Then your school will be proud of you since you'd become the successful person you always wanted to be. They might even put up billboards with your picture in it.

Well.

I think that was enough inspirational speech for this year.


Do click on the 'G+1' button and leave a comment below if you had any similar incidents in your life. You can even add my blog in your reading list or simply share it on different social media. If you don't have a blogger account, follow me on Instagram   (@manasa2510) to be notified whenever I post a post. Twitter: @manasa2510 . I'd always like a new friend!

So don't hate school, be happy and have a great day ahead!

P.S : To any of my former schoolmates reading this, I love you all! Please don't take it in the wrong way. And thank you since you have made me stronger.

                                                            ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!!
                 
 Check out my blog at 20 December for an awesome Pre - Christmas surprise!
                           
Adios!
             



Saturday 5 December 2015

Book review: The Heroes of Olympus series

Book review ; The Heroes of Olympus series

Author: Rick Riordan

Books in the series: The Lost Hero
                                 The Son of Neptune
                                 The Mark of Athena
                                 The House of Hades
                                 The Blood of Olympus





Summary:

This is the spin-off series to the Percy Jackson and The Olympians series.

(To see its review, click here. )




A new Great Prophecy, a new generation of demigods – the adventures have just begun! In this five-book series, expect to see your old friends from the Percy Jackson books along with a great new cast of main characters, as the heroes of Camp Half-Blood embark on their most dangerous challenge yet.(Goodreads)


My review: The Heroes of Olympus series was one of the most interesting spin-off series I have read so far. We meet Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase again, but this time, with a host of new, interesting characters and a whole new world. But this time there is a greater danger than the one before.

The series was fun and thrilling but in some places, it was disappointing. Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's see more about this series!




Pros: There are a host of diverse characters in this series that you will definitely love. You can relate the characters with real life people. The series is an epic adventure and the plot is so good and thrilling that it will keep you on the edge of your seat. As it is in Rick Riordan's books, every chapter ends with a cliffhanger. Personally, I loved The Mark of Athena and The House of Hades a lot. They felt so real! All the characters are strong, brave and lovable. The female characters are well written. The plot is just incredible.

Cons: When I started reading this series for the first time, I barely got through the first chapter. The Lost Hero was a boring book. Only a character named Leo kept me going. Once I got through the book, the rest of the series swept me off the feet like a hurricane of amazingness. Another con is that after all the buildup, the ending disappointed me. Not that it was not amazing and awesome and all that, but I felt like it was too rushed. But the last book had the POVs of two misunderstood characters that everyone loved a lot after The Blood Of Olympus, so the book was totally worth it.

Conclusions: I totally recommend this series because it is worth reading and takes you to a fantastic journey. Do not miss it or stop reading it even though the first book is a little boring. Oh, and this spin-off series has an another spin-off series! Yes, The Trials of Apollo series comes out during May 2016!

Stars: 4/5

Recommended age group - 11 to 18

Hope you liked this review! If you did, do click the 'G+1' button and add my blog to your reading list!
        Also, since Christmas is coming soon, I would like to gift you all something....special! Check out my blog at December 20, 2015 and have an awesome pre - Christmas gift from me!

Instagram: @manasa2510
E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com
Twitter: @manasa2510


 Adios!



Tuesday 24 November 2015

The Blogger's Note: Introduction.

The Blogger's Note .

Hello my dear viewers! I am Manasa and you are reading the Blogger's Note!

Bit obvious, wasn't it?

So anyway, this is a new section I am going to add from now. What is the Blogger's note?

I'll tell you.

The Blogger's Note is basically a section in which I get to talk to you all and share my opinions. It is also the section in which I will be announcing future projects, some important things, quotes, titbits and almost random things.

You will come to know about me soon.

One of my favourite hobbies is to make someone's day happier. To leave a smile on someone's lips. To see the brightness in their eyes. I love to compliment people and love it more when they reciprocate it. We derive some sort of pleasure when we know that we made someone happy.

I didn't have a lot of exposure towards the field of writing even though all I want is to become a writer. This is my first blog and I just love the idea of blogging! Whoever invented this must be a genius. It is such fun to watch people from different states in my country as well as people from different countries read my articles and I feel so humbled!

And that is exactly why I love you all. Because you took time to read what I have written and appreciate it. You all literally make my day happier when I see the number of views I have got. It is not much, but it still makes me smile.

So I take this moment to thank you all and stay tuned for more! Do follow my blog, share and leave comments! That will surely make my day!

Oh, and last minute notes: A Very Albanian Story Part 2 will not be published till I get more views. Seriously, I love you guys but thirteen views? That is too less. So if you want the story to be continued, you better share it to as many Percy Jackson - Heroes of Olympus fans or I will just leave it. ( JK I will never leave a story in half. I know how much pain an unfinished story causes. But I will write it very slowly. I might finish it, like, ten years later.)

Announcement: Heroes of Olympus review coming soon...
Instagram: @manasa2510
E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com
Twitter: @manasa2510


That's it for now! Watch out for next The Blogger' Note! Till then, Adios!


Book review: 'Fangirl' by Rainbow Rowell

Book review - Fangirl

Author - Rainbow Rowell



Summary - Cath and Wren identical twins and until recently they did absolutely everything together. Now they're off to University and Wren's decided she doesn't want to be one  half of a pair anymore - she wants to dance, meet boys, go to parties and let loose. It's not so easy for Cath. She would rather bury herself in the fan fiction she writes where there's romance far more intense than anything she's experienced in real life.
        Now Cath has to decide whether she is ready to open her heart to new people and new experiences, and she's realizing that there's more to learn about love than she ever thought possible.

My review - Reading Fangirl was like having a warm cup of milk in winter. It is a very sweet story but sometimes it becomes boring. Let us see the pros and cons of this book.

Pros - Cath is a very sweet character and is like every fangirl in this world. She is in love with Simon and Baz, who are two characters of a book series. She writes fanfiction, which is awesome. Levi is such a sweet, sweet guy! The book almost shines because of Levi! This book is totally warm hearted with no sinister plans or sudden character deaths or any stuff like that. But the best thing in this book is that it completely captures the spirit of a fangirl as well as how it is to be really anxious. Cath is almost like a real person and we forget that she's a character from a book.

Cons -  I felt like there were some noticeable cons in the book. The plot wasn't extremely gripping and there were no twists in the story. Maybe except a few minor ones. Cath literally stayed inside her college dorm the whole time and she never comes out of it due to anxiety (well almost). Which means most of the story occurs in the college dorm or in her home where she sits with her laptop, writing fanfiction the whole time or gets in trouble with her persuassive english teacher. Sometimes she gets anxious for even small things which becomes too tedious to read. And obviously, we don't know who Simon and Baz are so it takes some time to sort out the story. Plus the ending felt sudden.

Conclusion - Despite the hype about this book, it wasn't THAT interesting to me. Maybe it is not exactly my type, but I recommend you to read a free sample before buying it. Or read it from the library. It was a good book though.

Stars - 3/5

Recommended age group- 12 to 17 years.


I hope this review was useful to you! If you'd like to share your opinion you can leave a comment below and do follow my blog. I might blog about loads of interesting things like book reviews, fan fiction, fan art, craft ideas and maybe even simple recipies in the near future! 

Instagram: @manasa2510
E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com

Twitter: @manasa2510

Till then, Adios!

Saturday 7 November 2015

A Very Albanian Story (Part 1) (Heroes of Olympus Fanfiction)

                                                        A VERY ALBANIAN STORY.
                                                                      PART 1           
(A crossover of Harry Potter and Heroes of Olympus.)
Author’s note and Disclaimer: This crossover is written purely for entertainment purpose. All the characters of Heroes of Olympus and Harry Potter belong to Rick Riordan and J.K.Rowling respectively. I do not own any of the characters.
     This all began when I saw a headcannon in Instagram:
     This story is a fusion between two different years, but everything is possible in fanfics, right? Oh, and BTW, this story contains MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE HEROES OF OLYMPUS SERIES. So if you haven’t read them yet, please refrain from reading this story. You won’t understand them.  Finally, this story takes place between the House of Hades and Blood of Olympus and between Chamber of Secrets and Prisoner of Azkaban (I know they are two different decades). So I hope you will enjoy this fanfic! Do leave comments and suggestions!
                           --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
          Reyna gave Annabeth a hug. “We will succeed,” she promised.  “I know you will,” Annabeth said. Coach Hedge shouldered his baseball bat. “Yeah, don’t worry! I’m going to get to camp and see my baby! Uh, I mean I’m going to get this baby to camp!” he patted the leg of the Athena Parthenos.
          “All right,” said Nico. “Grab the ropes, please. Here we go.” Reyna and Hedge took hold. The air darkened. The Athena Parthenos collapsed into its own shadow and disappeared, along with its escorts.
                                                                            REYNA
            It was the nausea that hit Reyna first.  She’d braced for any sort of impact since she’d never shadow travelled before.  But she never expected this.
           The air darkened and became cold and frigid. Reyna started shivering.  Voices of the ghosts that haunted her old home in her childhood whispered softly in her ears.  They weren’t very clear, but she could make out what they were saying. Traitor. Murderer. Betrayer.  Reyna forced all the feelings of guilt deep, deep inside her.
                When they materialised back again, she felt dizzy and sick. She sat down heavily and focused on her breathing. After a while, when she felt she was steady again, she realised that Nico had brought them in a grassland in the middle of the forest.  Reyna stood up and opened her mouth to ask Nico where they’d arrived when she saw that he was asleep and Coach Hedge had fallen on his face, groaning loudly.  “Coach, are you alright?” Reyna asked. Coach Hedge scrambled up to his feet and grumbled, “Of course, I am fine, Roman. It is the boy who needs to have a rest,” he said pointing to Nico.
                Coach Hedge and Reyna removed the ropes that tied Nico to the Athena Parthenos and gently laid him on the ground, putting the backpack under his head as a pillow. “We have to find something for dinner now,” said Reyna, “unless we want to sleep starving.” “Don’t worry, dinner’s on me. You just find us a place to rest for the night,” said Coach Hedge.  “Sure. But where do you reckon are we?” she asked.  Coach Hedge looked around and sniffed the air. “Oak, Beech, Elm. Maybe we are somewhere to the north of Greece....” He took out three acorns and a pipe from his pocket. He put the acorns on the ground, surrounding them with leaves. Muttering something about how he hated music, he played a strange tune on his pipe.
                The acorns rearranged themselves along with the leaves which made a sort of map. Reyna studied it carefully.”Hey, this looks like a map of Albania!” she exclaimed. “That explains Beech and Oak. But what I don’t understand is the smell of decay...maybe some animal corpse is nearby,” said Coach Hedge.  “We’ll take care of that later, Coach. For now, I’ll go and find a cave or something,” said Reyna “We can’t sleep in the open.”
                Leaving Coach Hedge to take care of the dinner, Reyna set out to explore the forests. Rays of the setting sun streamed through the gaps between the leaves, dust swirling in it. Birds chirped lazily, retiring to their nests for the coming night. The whole forest had a mysterious musky smell to it. As if it were hiding something from the unwary people who entered it.
                About an hour later, Reyna stumbled across an abandoned, ruined house. It was ancient and crumbling, with plants growing from its cracks. It seemed about a century old and had a strange, decaying smell enveloping it.  Frowning, Reyna pushed the rusted main gate, which made a loud, creaking noise, and stepped inside the courtyard.  As she entered, she felt some sort of tingling sensation in her skin, as if she had walked through a thin curtain of electricity. Something felt wrong there. Immediately, the hair on her skin stood up and each and every instinct in her body screamed to her to run. Reyna knew by experience that nothing good would come if she didn’t listen to her sharp instincts. So she turned away immediately and ran back towards the Athena Parthenos.  Maybe they were better off sleeping in the open than in that house.
                                        ------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                                                            NICO

                Nico woke up at noon the next day. And his first thought was: Burgers. Gods of Olympus, he was ravenous. Nico frowned. He was never this hungry during his brief stay at the Argo-II. Maybe shadow travelling had helped to increase his appetite. He rubbed his eyes and saw the Roman praetor and Coach Hedge eating sandwiches. “So you are awake,” the praetor announced, “Have some sandwiches. We will leave at the evening.” It took all of Nico’s self control not to gobble them all as soon as they were kept before him since Reyna was carefully observing all his actions.
 After he had finished his lunch, aka his skipped dinner plus breakfast plus lunch, he leaned against a tree watching Coach Hedge writing a letter to his wife and checking the traps that he had set all around the Athena Parthenos and the all trees near it. Reyna strolled casually next to Nico and leaned against the tree too. “I went to search for a place to rest for the night yesterday,” she said in a low voice, “I came across a ruined bungalow. It was old and creepy.  But what bothered me the most was that it had some sort of...mist around it. An aura of death...” she studied him carefully as if he might know the cause behind it.  “I could sense lots of deaths around here,” he said slowly, “But there might be a lot of dead animals in this forest, right? What you sensed could be one of them.” “I did think about that first, but it wasn’t just that. I had this strange feeling when I stepped in that house. Like, something was wrong there. I think it is the lair of some kind of a monster.  We need to go and check that place,” insisted Reyna. “Fine then.” Nico sighed. “We’ll go and have a look. But what about Coach Hedge?”  “No, I don’t want to put him at risk,” said Reyna, “We will ask him to guard the Athena Parthenos.” “Okay.” With that, Nico asked Coach Hedge to look after the statue and followed Reyna into the woods.
                         --------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                                      COACH HEDGE.

What Gleeson Hedge wanted more than anything else was a TV. He was almost ready to even sell the statue for it.
Left all alone with only the statue and his baseball bat for company, he took a piece of paper and started writing a letter to Mellie. Pan’s pipes, he missed her so much. Her smile, the way she laughed... Hedge sighed. He had to go back to Mellie and his unborn child. Finishing his letter, he paced around the tree.
He looked up towards the branch and an idea struck him. Why not make a trap that would make the monsters hang upside down? Ah, yes. That would be fun. Then maybe he could even give the monsters a good bangin’ on their head. Humming a tune of a Chuck Norris film to himself, he removed some ropes and sticks from his bag pack and started his work happily.
                     -----------------------------------------------------------------

                                                      REYNA

Reyna silently walked through the forests with Nico along her side. The sound of chirping birds filled the air. But they seemed to quieten as they reached the old house.
Reyna turned to look at Nico. “This is the house I was talking about,” she announced. Nico had a deep frown on his face. “I can sense death nearby,” he murmured, “But it is all...wrong.” He concentrated for some time and then blinked. “Let’s scout the perimeter of this house,” he suggested.
They walked outside the fence. The house felt creepy...it sent bad vibes. Reyna could see a few vultures circling above the house. The front door was broken and wide open, but it only revealed complete darkness inside the house. The rotting smell became stronger. The walls were cracked and the old glass window was so dusty that-
Reyna stopped abruptly and stared at the window. She thought she’d  just seen a face in the window. But it was gone. “Nico?” she whispered “I think I just saw-” she stopped when she realised that Nico wasn’t there. Where had he gone?

Cursing herself, she rushed and turned around the corner of the fence to see an ashen faced Nico. And a decaying corpse of a woman ahead of them.

End of part one.







Instagram: @manasa2510
E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com
Twitter: @manasa2510


Adios!

Thursday 24 September 2015

Book Review: Percy Jackson and the Olympians series

Book Review: Percy Jackson and the Olympians series
Author: Rick Riordan


Summary: Percy Jackson thinks that he is just a troubled kid attending a school for troubled kids. But soon enough, he accidently vaporizes his maths teacher and his life becomes anything but safe and normal. He realises that he is a demigod, a son of a Greek god, and is sent to Camp Half Blood, a camp where demigod kids like him would be safe and receive training to battle monsters.  Percy makes new friends in the camp and together they go on dangerous quests. But Percy soon finds out that there is more to being a powerful demigod than just fighting lousy monsters. The worst enemy of the gods rises and according to the great prophecy, Percy would have to make a choice that would safeguard or destroy the gods and the world forever.
My review: The Percy Jackson series is, hands down, a fantastic series! Narrated in first person by the witty demigod protagonist, Percy, this series would totally grip you! Let’s have a look at its pros and cons.
Pros: Almost everything is a pro here! Percy is a hilarious guy who is sassy and sarcastic even in the gravest of times. His friends Grover and Annabeth are also as awesome as him. The trio goes to quests, defeats monsters, vaporizes evil maths teachers and handles impossible situation with ease. The story brims with imagination, humour and excitement and each chapter ends in a cliff hanger. Percy is portrayed so realistically that you will just forget that he is a fictional guy!

Cons: I seriously don’t know what to write in this section. But I will definitely warn you, please do not read this series when you have exams if you don’t want to fail.

Conclusion: Must Must Must Read!!!!!!
Recommended age group:  11 years to 17 years
Stars:  5/5

There is a spin off series called Heroes of Olympus which takes place after Percy Jackson series. To read its review (mostly spoiler free), click here.
If you own the books, or just brought it, download a cute Percy bookmark here (free).
Instagram: @manasa2510
E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com
Twitter: @manasa2510

Hope you liked this review! Adios and have a happy ‘Persassy’ reading!


Sunday 9 August 2015

Book Review: The Harry Potter series

                                     Book review – Harry Potter series.

Books – Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s/ Sorcerer’s stone,
               Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,
               Harry Potter and the prisoner of Azkaban,
               Harry Potter and the goblet of Fire,
               Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,
                Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,
                Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.


Author – J.K.Rowling

Summary-Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The series chronicles the adventures of a young wizard, Harry Potter, the titular character, and his friends Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The main story arc concerns Harry’s quest to overcome the Dark wizard Lord Voldemort, who aims to become immortal, conquer the wizarding world, subjugate non-magical people, and destroy all those who stand in his way, especially Harry Potter. (Wikipedia)

My review – This series is, as I proudly declare, the best series I have ever read. There isn’t a single dull chapter in the entire series. The quality of writing is simply outstanding and I could find no faults in it. Still I will try my best. So, let us have a look at the pros and ‘un’cons.

Pros – I seriously don’t know where to start! The whole series is a pro! The plot, the characters, their qualities, the mysteries, the twists, the language and the morals are all fantastic! There are lots of jokes, light hearted humour and sarcasm to balance the dark theme, terrifying events and evil powers at work. Harry is someone you can totally relate with (except for the fact that he is a wizard) and J.K.Rowling has portrayed him so well that you feel everything that Harry feels.  So beware of mood swings while reading this series!  There are so many lessons taught in this series by the wise words of headmaster Dumbledore that will help you throughout your life and it definitely has given me another reason to eat chocolates. The story gets darker and darker with each book. This series focuses on the power of love and how it is the greatest magic of all. It teaches you that friends are the greatest treasure in our lives. Most importantly, it also teaches us to not to be afraid in the face of death.

Cons – According to me, this series is perfect and has no cons. But there are some character deaths which will shock you as if you have been in contact with a 50,000 volt live wire will shatter your heart into a million pieces and if you are sensitive, make you wail like a baby.

Conclusion – This series is a MUST read since it is a magical journey to the depths of both fiction and truth that will live inside your heart forever.

 Recommended age group - 10 years and above.

Stars – 5/5

P.S – This series will make you cry loudly, chortle and giggle momentarily, gasp occasionally and laugh hysterically. Thus, it is better not to read it in public.
You can download a cute Harry bookmark for your books along with loads of other cool character bookmarks here.

Instagram: @manasa2510
E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com
Twitter: @manasa2510


Hope you enjoyed this review! Remember, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home! Adios!



Wednesday 22 July 2015

Book Review: The Divergent Series

Book Review-The Divergent trilogy


Books –Divergent, Insurgent and Allegiant

Author – Veronica Roth




Summary – 

The Divergent trilogy is a series of young adult science fiction adventure novels by Veronica Roth set in a post-apocalyptic dystopian Chicago. The trilogy consists of Divergent (2011), Insurgent (2012) and Allegiant (2013).


The society of the trilogy defines its citizens by their social and personality-related affiliation with five different factions, which removes the threat of anyone exercising independent will and threatening the population's safety. Beatrice Prior, who later changed her name to Tris, an Abnegation-born and Dauntless transfer, must figure out her life as a Divergent, while concealing her true nature, and living with the danger of being killed if it is discovered by the Dauntless leaders. (Wikipedia)


My review – The divergent trilogy is definitely a page turner. The plot is engrossing and the suspense is brilliant.  However, it does come with minuscule faults. Let’s see the pros and cons in this fantastic trilogy.

Pros –The plot is very good. The main thing I liked about this story is that the characters are strong.  They are brave and courageous. The protagonist inspires the reader a lot. The twists in the story are so unpredictable. There is one big twist in Insurgent that will definitely shock you. The first two books are totally gripping. There are power packed action scenes with nail biting suspense.

Cons- The third book in the series, Allegiant, was good at the start but became boring and slow paced in the middle due to a slight overload of scientific stuff. Nevertheless, it gave all the answers which were needed. Additionally, it has a lot of character deaths.

Conclusion –This series is definitely worth a try since it is fantastic and totally entertaining. If you are sensitive to character deaths, do stock up on a lot of tissues.

Recommended age group – 13 to 18 years.

Stars- 4/5

If you own the book trilogy, you can download a cute Tris bookmark and other free cool bookmarks here.

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Hope you liked my review!  Adios!

Improving reviews.


                                                   Improving reviews.

Hey everyone! I just thought to improvise my reviews a bit. So I will be adding recommended age group according to me to read the books I review so that you all may get an idea of which book will be suitable and interesting to you. But you are on your own freedom to choose the books and so you can definitely read any of them. I really hope the additional feature would be useful to you. On an additional note, even though character deaths aren’t exactly’ faults’, yet I will put them in the cons section just to warn you since they have broken millions of hearts and have reduced many people to tears. Suggestions are welcome!

Instagram: @manasa2510
E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com
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Adios!

Wednesday 1 April 2015

Book Review: The Krishna Key

 Book Review
Book- The Krishna Key
Author- Ashwin Sanghi



Summary – The Krishna Key centres on Ravi Mohan Saini, the protagonist and a historian who has been accused of the murder of his childhood friend Anil Varshney. In an attempt to clear his name, Saini looks into the past of Indian Mythology's grey areas and uncovers the truth about a serial killer who believes himself to be Kalki, the final avatar of Lord Vishnu. Saini travels from the ancient ruins of the Lost City of Dwaraka to Vrindavan temples in an attempt to discover one of Krishna's treasures and stop the killer from murdering his friends who are also under the threat.


The plot involves four different pieces of the seal which must be brought together to solve the puzzle. Each part of the seal is in the possession of different people who are the descendants of the Yadava tribes namely Saini,Bojaraj, Varshney and Chhedi. The author narrates a detailed version of the post-Mahabharata history through the protagonist, a distinguished professor of history, who himself happens to be a lineal descendant of Krishna being from Saini tribe of Punjab. The Author also portrays the autobiography of Lord Krishna from his birth to death in his own words, in parallel to the main story-line. (Wikipedia)






My review - The Krishna Key is definitely an awesome thriller. It is a thoroughly researched novel and it presents loads of stunning facts which were never known before. The book is very good but there are some drawbacks.






Pros – The Krishna key has a good plot. It gives lots of information that helps us to know more about temples and places in India. It throws light on the legendary Sarasvati river. The plot twists are good and the major twist in the middle of the story is completely unexpected. The storyline is good and each chapter begins with a paragraph of Lord Krishna’s autobiography and this is a welcome change. The story is gripping and it gives a good moral.


Cons- The book becomes somewhat boring in some places when lengthy discussions take place. Some facts are hard to believe. Also, the main character is not as interesting as others and this is a major flaw according to me. The climax is sort of weird for me since it is too much to process and does not make sense.






Conclusion – This book is definitely worth a read since its flaws are small and not much noticeable. It is a gripping and captivating thriller and a good effort by the author.


Stars: 3 ½ / 5


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E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com
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Hope you like my review! Happy Reading! Adios!












Introduction.

Hi everyone!
                I am Manasa and this is my very first blog. I will be posting book reviews, do it yourself craft items and so many other stuff! I mean, that is the plan. Till then, adios!

P.S. - The word 'Bookie' in the title of my blog is simply a combination of the words 'Book' and 'Cookie'. Pictures in the blog may or may not belong to me.

Instagram: @manasa2510
E-mail: manasa2510@gmail.com
Twitter: @manasa2510