May 2018 Wrap Up & Book Haul

Hello! Today’s post will be my monthly wrap up for May. As you can see by the title, haha. I also ended up buying quite a few books, so check those out as well!

Knowing that I probably wouldn’t stick to it, I actually came up with a TBR this month!

My TBR for May included: The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson, A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas, Under the Empyrean Sky by Chuck Wendig, The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima, Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson, and finally, A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab.

I ended up reading way more books that I thought I would’ve this month, since May is typically one of the busiest months of the year for me. Yet I ended up reading 08 books, and 10 manga. Not bad if I do say so myself!

Dreamin’ Sun Volume 04, by Ichigo Takano | Manga Review #26

This review will contain spoilers.

Zen’s finally confessed his feelings to Shimana! Unfortunately, while she wants to help him pursue his dreams, she doesn’t feel the same way about him. Shimana’s got her own unreturned feelings to deal with, because she’s crushing on the landlord, who treats her just like a child. Determined to get closer, Shimana gets a hold of his high school yearbook — and makes some surprising discoveries.

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I actually read volume 04 on my way back to the library to return this copy, and another book that I had. I didn’t get to write down my notes, so I’m sorry if this review is a little messy + I’m writing this from memory.

Volume 04 was one heck of a read honestly! There’s a lot that happened, a lot of good things, and a few things that shouldn’t have happened in my opinion.

I like that Ken achieved his dream, and that what’s going to follow will spark Zen’s ambition to follow his own dream.

I liked that Shimana confessed her feelings towards her new crush, so hopefully she’ll get over that crush sooner and be with Zen. I ship Shimana x Zen okay!!! Hahaha.

Seeing Taiga-san as a high schooler was interesting to see. I just wonder how that will play out in the volumes following this one.

There are some secrets that some of the character have that haven’t been completely revealed yet. All of which makes me want to read the next volumes as soon as I can. I’m so wrapped up in this series now, ha.

I give this fourth volume 3 stars.

Happy Reading!
— Adele

April 2018 Wrap Up & MINI Book Haul

I didn’t know what April would bring, reading wise. For the first week of April I only read one book, and that’s kind of out of character for me, since I typically bing-read for the first week of the month. I was reading though. Just not books, nor manga. I discovered Webtoons! I’ve been really enjoying it, and getting to know more art styles, stories and characters. I’ve had a blast so far, using that app.

Hello! Welcome to my monthly, end of the month Wrap-Up & -sometimes- Book Haul where I talk about my readings, posts, as well as talk a little about what has happened in my life in the spans of the month.

Books Read: 16

Dreamin’ Sun Volume 03, by Ichigo Takano | Manga Review #24

When Shimana runs off into a rainstorm, the last person she expects comes to her rescue: Zen! When he gets a fever the next day, Shimana feels responsible and offers to nurse him back to health. While caring for him, she learns that eh’s been hiding something from her—-but that’s not the only surprise he has in store for her. Zen’s got a confession to make and it’s getting harder and harder for him to keep it under wraps. 

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In this 3rd volume, we see Shimana in some very different situations. We see her own up to her mistakes. I’ve figured out that in this manga series, while they still revolve around Shimana, the books show more focus on the character that is on the cover. Which is incredibly interesting, since we still get Shimana’s point of view—-her story, as well as having focus on another character at the same time.

I liked seeing Shimana take care of Zen. And to see Zen sick was pretty adorable! The introduction to Zen’s older brother, Ken, was great as well. Poor Zen!! Gosh, I hope Zen and Shimana go out in one of these volumes..

I REALLY LIKE THIS VOLUME, OK?? Like, there are so many emotions that flow in the story, but I feel like in this volume especially, the feelings are amplified ’cause they’re being talked about.

I’m actually really looking forward to reading the fourth volume, I want to see if Ken follows his dream! It’d be amazing for Ken to win, and it’d be amazing for Zen to see his older brother follow his dream, since Zen wants to so desperately follow his own dreams.

Ahaha, I didn’t know that in this manga there was a little game you could play. Apparently the game is to find this dog named Poko, and in this volume he was hidden 6 different times. I found him 4 times, so I wonder where the other two Poko’s are.

I give this volume 4.5 stars!

What was the last manga that you read? 

Happy Reading!
–Adele

Dreamin’ Sun Volume 02, by Ichigo Takano | Manga Review #22

Home Is Where the Heart Is

When Shimana fails to work up the courage to ask Asashi out on a date, she decides it’s time to get a makeover as part of her self-improvement plan. But when she calls Asashi to come check out her new look, she’s too preoccupied with his own crush to pick up the phone. Is her transformation all for nothing? And what are those weird heart palpitations Zen’s getting every time he looks at Shimana? It’s a full house of unrequited love and self-discovery in volume 2 of this slice-of-life romance!

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Zen is seriously so freakin’ cute. I want to just pinch his cheeks and tell him he’s a good boy! I totally ship Shimana and Zen together!!

One thing that sticked out to me a lot in this second volume, was the fat-shaming towards Shimana. Actually, I see this a lot fat-shaming in both manga and anime. I hate seeing it and that’s the number one thing that I hate seeing in Japanese culture. I don’t like seeing excessive thinness as a good thing in manga’s (nor in anime). I don’t like the fat-shame-ing, either. Frankly, it pisses me off.

Apart from that, for the most part, this second volume is another cute as heck! I laughed a lot and i’m genuinely looking forward to reading the next volume.

I give this second volume 3 stars.

Happy Reading!
— Adele

March 2018 Wrap Up

Hello lovelies! Welcome to another Wrap Up! I guess it’s just that time of the month for this, eh?

Last month was an exceptionally good reading month for me. This month I still managed to read quite a few books. I even wanted to try and read about 5 or 6 ARCs, since last month I read 10(!!). I need want to catch up on them (I have so many *stress-cries*). While I’m glad to say that my feedback ration on Netgalley has gone up, that’s only because the ARC’s that I tried to read just weren’t for me. At all..

Dreamin’ Sun, Vol.01 by Ichigo Takano | Manga Review #18

While loitering in the park, Shimana Kameko, who intended to run away from home and skipped school, meets a suspicious man in a kimono. This man, who had been locked out of his house, offers Shimana a place to stay. However, he requests she fulfill three conditions in exchange for her tenancy?!

(Translater: Amber Tamosaitis)

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While I borrowed the first 4 volumes on a whim, I’m actually glad that I borrowed them! I doubted that I would like Dreamin’ Sun prior to reading it, but I was up for it because the artwork is pretty cute.

Dreamin’ Sun was such a fun read for me. I haven’t laughed that much while reading a manga before. The story is a cute and fun read that I am absolutely continuing on with the rest of the volumes.

Dreamin’ Sun‘s first chapter is actually pretty funny. While the main character Shimana, has problems with her family, she runs away and finds a new home with boys from her school, with a landlord whom is 21. The first chapter is also when we get to know the characters with their introductions and whatnot.

After the first chapter the story revealed something that I didn’t think would happen and had me laughing even more. Shimana’s reaction to what happens.. Oh man. They’re hilarious. And, holy shit ALTER-EGO, MUCH?? Hahahaha.

I’m really looking forward to reading the next volumes. Dreamin’ Sun was a fun ‘n’ cute read that had me laughing a lot. I also liked getting to know the characters and finding out whom likes who.

Dreamin’ Sun has 5 stars from me!

Have you read Dreamin’ Sun before? If you haven’t, I suggest that you do!

Happy Reading!
Adele

February 2018 | Wrap Up & Mini Book Haul

I didn’t have a set ‘To Be Read” pile/list for February, but I did want to try and read at least 10 ARC’s that I have. I’m so freakin’ happy to say that I’ve read 11 ARC’s! I DNF’d 3 of them, but I’m counting them as read, since I read enough to get a handle on the story. 

Library Reads #35

Library Reads: I’m a huge fan of Libraries. I tend to visit the library quite a bit, so these posts are where I document the books I’ve borrowed from the library of my hometown, or one of a few libraries that I go to.
I’ll tell you a little bit about what I expect from the book, or the author’s writings. Whether what I say is a sentence long, or a few sentence’s. From doing these posts, I hope to spread a little bit of my love for libraries, while also informing you of books that you may or may not have known of!

These are the books borrowed within the first 2 weeks of Feburary 2018. 

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Have you read any of these books? Let me know!

I said that I wouldn’t go to the library to myself, since I have quite a bit of books I want to read first. Alas, I went to return a few books I previously had, and came home with quite a bit…