Reflection 2020

 

A basic simple light for a basic simple year

The year 2020 will go down in history as an extremely unusual year.  It's a year where almost everything stop..not just locally but globally...all due to something we cannot see with our naked eyes.

2020 will be remembered as year of Covid 19.  I will remember it as a year where I am not able to travel at all.  Who would have thought that the last day trip I made in December last year to Kuala Lumpur would be the last trip I would have for the year.  Who would have thought that the last family trip to Shanghai would be the last trip we took as a family in quite a while.  We were supposed to attend a wedding towards end March 2020, a graduation ceremony in Sept 2020 and I have a couple of places I intend to travel to either solo trip or with friends and family this year.  All 'tak jadi' as the local would say it...not successful.

Anyway, it's still a year where I would count my blessings...from good health to good job to good relationships and time spent with family and supportive and positive friends and circle of contact.  In all things I give thanks, so thank you for a good year.

This year I read a total of 40 books. Out of these, 13 books are electronic and 27 books are actual physical books.  That means I average about slightly more than 3 books per month. 1 book takes about slightly more than 1 week which is not too bad for someone whom I think is watching far much K-drama than reading.  Imagine if I don't watch any k-drama, I think I would have read more titles this year due to the control order (MCO) imposed in my city/country due to the pandemic which created some time bubbles here and there over a period of time..

What are my favourite read?  The top titles would be the three titles by Khaled Hosseini (The Kite Runner, A Thousand Splendid Suns and And The Mountains Echoed)

The Shape of Snakes was a rather unexpectedly nice read.  However, the other title The Chameleon's Shadow also by the same author was nice but wasn't that good.

Purple Queen Fairy bought 8 books this year (all pre-loved) and will end the year with 55 posts for the year.  It's 5 posts less than year 2019 but it's still quite a consistent number of posting.

With that I shall end my reflection for this year.  It is an extremely unusual year. One that the world has not encounter before but pray-fully the whole experience will make each of us stronger....physically, mentally and also spiritually..whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger says Kate Perry. It is quite true.

While I have friends who can't wait for 2020 to be over, I on the other hand would like to hold on to 2020 as much as I can as I felt that it went by too fast.  And much as others dislike 2020 for what it represents generally to the world, I would like to say thank you for 2020 and be grateful to it.

I pray for a better year in 2021 for myself, my family, friends and for everyone as well.

Stay safe. Much love from my books and I.

Merry Christmas 2020

Taking this time to wish everyone 

Merry Christmas 2020

While a lot of folks say that they don't feel the vibes of Christmas, 

I hope that you embrace the spirit of Christmas. 

May your Christmas be filled with love, peace and joy 

that only comes from the Son of Christmas and that is 

Christ Himself.

May you be blessed this CHRISTmas.

Christmas corner in my office room

Stay Safe

and much love from me

The Common Lawyer by Mark Gimenez

 

Synopsis :

A mother in New York sneaks her young daughter out of a research hospital. A billionaire philanthropist in Texas fights to save his dying son at all costs. A young traffic-ticket lawyer in Austin named Andy Prescott runs his legal empire out of a tiny office above a tattoo parlor and dreams of being a rich lawyer. Five lives on separate paths—until Andy defends the billionaire's secretary against a speeding ticket. Their lives become fatefully intertwined, destined to intersect—in death. And Andy Prescott learns that a client can be too rich for his lawyer’s own good.

This is what I say :

Right after reading The Con Law, I quickly picked up The Common Lawyer.  It was the smart thing to do as The Common Lawyer reminds me of why I first like reading titles by Mark Gimenez.  This book reminds me a bit of the old Scott Fenney's title (also by the same author) and it was an exciting read from the first page to the last page.  When a book captivated my attention, it doesn't take me two months to read this..for this title, I read it in probably about 5 days.

I like the main character, Andy Prescott.  I like the people in his circle of contact, his landlord, the tattoo artist, his homeless friend, the war hero, his buddies and even his dad and mum are strong supportive characters that really added interesting titbits to the book.

This will probably be the last book that I will be reviewing this year and I am glad it's a title by an author that I like and it's a title that I enjoyed readying.  Will continue to have faith in Mark Gimenez and will certainly keep an eye for his other titles that I have not read.

I read this title as an ebook.

Con Law by Mark Gimenez

Synopsis :

John Bookman—Book to his friends—is a tenured professor at the University of Texas School of Law in Austin. He rides a Harley and wears jeans and cowboy boots and his hair too long to suit the conservative dean. He’s thirty-five, handsome and unmarried but seldom without a female companion. He teaches karate and Con Law, law school vernacular for Constitutional Law. He is a recognized constitutional law expert, debates senators on political talk shows and reduces them to blithering fools, writes scathing op-eds, and is often mentioned as a possible Supreme Court nominee. He is famous for taking on lost causes and winning. Consequently, when he arrives at the law school each Monday morning, hundreds of letters await him, letters from lost causes around the country seeking his help. Some letters are funny, others are sad, most are hopeless. But every now and then, one letter captures his attention. Then, with only his latest law school intern in tow, Professor Bookman takes off on yet another adventure—not in search of ancient artifacts like Indiana Jones, but in search of truth and justice—"or as close thereto as the law allows." In this first installment of a new series, Book investigates a murder in the world of art and fracking in Marfa, Texas.

Daily Mail (UK): "There cannot be any dispute. Gimenez has taken over John Grisham's mantle. This is his seventh legal thriller, and his work is now faster and fresher than Grisham, his characters are stronger, and his plot lines reek of tomorrow's headlines. This one centres on 'fracking'; the removal of gas from shale oil deposits, which is now the subject of fierce political debate in Britain as well as America. . . . It takes a positive delight in the intricacies of the law, but with a good helping of action thrown in, and it underlines just how much Gimenez has taken over Grisham's territory."

This is what I say :

Con Law is yet another legal thriller by Mark Gimenez.  I personally enjoyed his other titles previously with The Colour of Law being the first book that I read that I loved that started my interest in reading Mark Gimenez's titles.

However, I feel myself not liking Con Law that much.  Maybe because it's a bit over detailed in describing all that's happening especially on what 'fracking' is and it's impact or non impact on the environment which I know have something to do with drilling for oil but honestly he lost me at the first sentence.

The book is very descriptive.  And has a lot of conversations.  Not much action.  I kinda lost interest here and there.  It actually took me 2 months to read this while reading other titles in between.

I dont seems to have good luck with the last two titles by Mark Gimenez.  The Governor's Wife which was the other recent book by this author at the start of lockdown this year wasn't that nice too.

I am currently reading The Common Lawyer. Hope it fares better.  I will let you know once I am done with it.

Mr Mercedes (Bill Hodges Trilogy) Book #1 by Stephen King

Synopsis :

In the predawn hours, in a distressed American city, hundreds of unemployed men and women line up for the opening of a job fair. They are tired and cold and desperate. Emerging from the fog, invisible until it is too late, a lone driver plows through the crowd in a stolen Mercedes, running over the innocent, backing up, and charging again. Eight people are killed; fifteen are wounded. The killer escapes.

Months later, an ex-cop named bill Hodges, still haunted by the unsolved crime, contemplates suicide. When he gets a crazed letter from "the perk," claiming credit for the murders, Hodges wakes up from his depressed and vacant retirement, fearing another even more diabolical attack and hell-bent on preventing it.

Brady Hartfield lives with his alcoholic mother in the house where he was born. He loved the feel of death under the wheels of the Mercedes, and he wants that rush again. Only Bill Hodges, with a couple of eccentric and mismatched allies, can apprehend the killer before he strikes again. And they have no time to lose, because Brady's next mission, if it succeeds, will kill or maim thousands.

This is what I say :

For a title from Stephen King, this book is totally void of anything paranormal or horror or anything that goes bump in the night.  It is actually a detective genre which is the first I read from Stephen King.

So, let's cut to the chase and let me  share with you what I think.  Strange is the feeling I get after reading this book because it is very unexpected and very different from what you would expect from Stephen King

For a detective book, Mr Mercedes wasn't that bad. It wasn't very good either and I have read better content but I guess for a first time foray into a different genre by the author, it was quite good.

You have a retired cop running around training to solve the case with two most unlikely side kicks and an extremely psychotic killer.  I understand there's two more titles in the universe of Bill Hodges entitled Finders Keepers and End of Watch.  Will be on a look out for them. 

I read this as an e-book. 

Shopaholic to the Stars by Sophie Kinsella

 Synopsis :

Sophie Kinsella returns to her beloved Shopaholic series with Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood) newly arrived in Hollywood and starry-eyed. She and her two-year-old daughter, Minnie, have relocated to L.A. to join Becky’s husband, Luke, who is there to handle PR for famous actress Sage Seymour. 

Becky can’t wait to start living the A-list lifestyle, complete with celebrity sightings, yoga retreats, and shopping trips to Rodeo Drive. But she really hopes to become a personal stylist—Sage’s personal stylist—if only Luke would set up an introduction. Then, unexpectedly, Becky is offered the chance to dress Sage’s archrival, and though things become a bit more complicated, it’s a dream come true!

Red carpet premieres, velvet ropes, paparazzi clamoring for attention—suddenly Becky has everything she’s ever wanted

This is what I say :

Becky, Becky, Becky...I really quite dislike you in this title.  I think you are way over in your thinking and actions.  You are extremely self centered in this title and reading you trying to justify your action, it's just pathetic.

You can do so much better and I would have think that after 10 years and after 6 books, you might have grown up a bit but unfortunately it doesn't seems to be the case.  If it's anything you seems to be at at your worst in this title.

Shopaholic to the Stars is book number 7 in the Shopaholic series.  The story did not end here but spill over to book number 8 which is Shopaholic to the Rescue which I have already read.  Yes, my sequence of reading is all wrong but it doesn't really matter in the end.

Anyway, it's a good thing that I did not read this title first. If I did, I might just stop right at this book cos this book really doesn't show Becky in a good light. Instead, I find her downright horrible and extremely immature.  But because I have read to the Rescue, somehow I can be more forgiving.  Perhaps America doesn't fit her well as she turns out to be better when she went back to UK for Christmas Shopaholic.

I must say among these 3 recent titles Christmas Shopaholic is my favourite title.

Shopaholic To The Rescue by Sophie Kinsella

 

Synopsis :

Becky Bloomwood and a hilarious cast of beloved family and friends (plus one enemy!) set off in a van to find her missing father, last heard from in Las Vegas.

Becky’s father Graham and her best friend’s husband, Tarquin, have disappeared from Los Angeles saying simply they have “something to take care of.”

But Tarquin’s wife Suze who is Becky’s best friend, and Becky’s mother Jane, are convinced the two men are hiding something and are in danger—their imaginations run wild. They must track them down!

Hijinks ensue as husband Luke drives Becky, daughter Minnie, Jane, Suze and other favorite Kinsella characters across country from LA to Las Vegas in search of the missing men.

Becky feels deeply guilty about ignoring her father while he was in LA, in addition Becky feels her enemy Alicia is threatening her friendship with Suze.

This is what I say :

Shopaholic To The Rescue is book number 8 in the Shopaholic Series and no, it's not the final book although a lot of readers seems to be tired of this series already but hey, not me!

I guess if anyone can lead me back to reading, it would be Becky and after a period of not reading for quite a while, I am glad it's Becky that I am spending my reading time with.  I am actually reading this title and Shopaholic To the Star at the same time but I seems to be reading Shopaholic To the Rescue faster than To the Star which in the sequence of story, I should be reading To the Star first as that's book number 7.  In fact, I got my reading sequence all wrong as I have already Christmas Shopaholic and that's book number 9.

So I am reading book number 9 first followed by 8 and then 7.  Ah well, as long as I am reading right?

Anyway, as expected from Becky's story, it's never borng, it will be pretty dramatic (sometimes for the wrong reason) but Becky always delivers at the end with much adoration from her family and close friends who are pretty short-sighted where Becky's concern. It's all feel at the end and that's whats important

After this title, it's time for Becky to be back to herself and celebrates Christmas in Christmas Shopaholic!

I need to start reading again

 Yes

I most

certainly must

I have not been reading

 regularly as I did in years before

For this, today is my confession to you

For the past few months, I have been seduced by k-drama

Yes, I am now very much a certified k-drama fan for almost a year

Ask me about Crash Landing, Goblin, Flower of Evil, Hotel Del Luna

And we can have long conversations on the plot, actors, actresses, and even IU's dresses in HDL.

Ask me simple Korean like anyeong haseayo, sarang heo, bangasupninda and I can answer you

But if you ask me about what I have read recently, I would have no answer for you

Such is the dilemma I face now as I really want to pick up reading again

But the look from Hyun Bin, Lee Joong Gi, Kim Soo Hyun is *sigh*

Dont forget reality show like 2D1N, Salty Tour, Master in in House

I love them too...Lee Seung Gi, Kim Jun Ho, Kim Jong Min

They made me laugh and brought me to places in Korea

That I would not have a chance to go (especially now)

So how do I say good by to k-drama and 

K-reality show to pick up me read?

It's difficult but I must try

Otherwise I would

not have much

to blog 

on

.

The Fireman by Joe Hill

 Synopsis :

The fireman is coming. Stay cool.

No one knows exactly when it began or where it originated. A terrifying new plague is spreading like wildfire across the country, striking cities one by one: Boston, Detroit, Seattle. The doctors call it Draco Incendia Trychophyton. To everyone else it’s Dragonscale, a highly contagious, deadly spore that marks its hosts with beautiful black and gold marks across their bodies—before causing them to burst into flames. Millions are infected; blazes erupt everywhere. There is no antidote. No one is safe.

Harper Grayson, a compassionate, dedicated nurse as pragmatic as Mary Poppins, treated hundreds of infected patients before her hospital burned to the ground. Now she’s discovered the telltale gold-flecked marks on her skin. When the outbreak first began, she and her husband, Jakob, had made a pact: they would take matters into their own hands if they became infected. To Jakob’s dismay, Harper wants to live—at least until the fetus she is carrying comes to term. At the hospital, she witnessed infected mothers give birth to healthy babies and believes hers will be fine too. . . if she can live long enough to deliver the child.

Convinced that his do-gooding wife has made him sick, Jakob becomes unhinged, and eventually abandons her as their placid New England community collapses in terror. The chaos gives rise to ruthless Cremation Squads—armed, self-appointed posses roaming the streets and woods to exterminate those who they believe carry the spore. But Harper isn’t as alone as she fears: a mysterious and compelling stranger she briefly met at the hospital, a man in a dirty yellow fire fighter’s jacket, carrying a hooked iron bar, straddles the abyss between insanity and death. Known as The Fireman, he strolls the ruins of New Hampshire, a madman afflicted with Dragonscale who has learned to control the fire within himself, using it as a shield to protect the hunted . . . and as a weapon to avenge the wronged.

In the desperate season to come, as the world burns out of control, Harper must learn the Fireman’s secrets before her life—and that of her unborn child—goes up in smoke.

This is what I say :

This is the second title written by Joe Hill that I read.  The first was The Heart Shape Box which I didn't like. 

Having said that, I didn't quite like this title either but I certainly like it better than The Heart Shape Box. In fact, this title actually reminded me of Carrie by Stephen King and I think I like it because of that too.

I think if made into a movie, it would be quite terrifying and gruesome with the fire and everything.  Very much having apocalypse as the theme, it seems that the spores (or virus) caused one to ignite up when feeling agitated and will end up burning oneself and all those close by.

The ending....I didn't quite like the ending, I kinda see it coming. Everything seems to point towards a happily ever after ending but it's too good to be true so just a few pages in before the end of the story, things took a turn for the worse (which I was expecting, in a way) so I didn't really like that.

There's a few scene that visually would be extremely difficult to stomach but reading it is still quite acceptable.  I think if they made this into a movie, I will certainly give it a missed because I would find it rather horrifying. 

Book Purchase #4 for 2020

Hello again.

I seems to be doing quite a fair bit of purchase of books recently.  These were bought towards end of September 2020.

I was a a charity shop in town to drop off some clothes (as in donated the clothes to the charity shop) and when I was there, I just want to browse around a bit.  I was surprised to see a rather good collection of donated books with titles that I would like.

I kinda zero in on Cecelia Ahern for no other reason than I have not read these two and I won't mind supporting the charity shop by making a purchase (konon-nya...if you understand what I mean! haha).

Anyway, long story short, purchase number four was for 2 copies of Cecellia Ahern titles are Thank you for the Memories and The Year I met You.

This would make my purchase for the year to be 8 books in total...so far....I hope that's all for the year!

  

Book Purchase #3 for 2020

 

Book purchase number three are actually the four copies of Harry Porter titles in order for me to complete the series under my collection.

I have been wanting to collect the whole series for quite a while...and the reason it's been taking me quite a while is because I have certain conditions :

    1. The books must be under bloomsbury publication with the classic cover

    2. They must be pre-loved copies

    3. They must be reasonable priced.

The story of my collection goes like this :

I started with one copy in my collection. Harry Porter and Order of the Pheonix.  I can't remember where I bought it.  It was quite a few years ago.

Subsequently I managed to get hold of Prisoner of Akzeban and the Deathly Hallow and since then, my purchases has been stagnant for a couple of years.

Recently someone from my church wanted to sell her entire collection.  With the exception of one title, the rest are what I have been looking for but that would also means I would have duplication copies in my collection.

No problem! Just purchase first and purchased them I did. I dont want to dwell much on the purchase as it wasn't very pleasant and I didn't realised that the seller (someone I know) would be so unpleasant and I just want to totally forget the horrifying experience.  I was slightly regretful of making the purchase but all's done so let's move on.

I have also managed to sell of the duplicate copies and I have now the complete set of the Harry Porter series with me.  

One of the title is still not the edition I am looking for but I will keep my eye open to see if I can get hold of that particular title and sell of the current copy.

Thus, I will consider just four books purchased as I managed to sell of the extra ones (3 copies) and thus there's four new books added to my collection and thus the number of books purchased for the year is at 6 books.

Christmas Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

 

Synopsis :

Celebrate Christmas with the ultimate Shopaholic!

The brilliant laugh-out-loud festive novel from the Number One bestselling author.

Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood) adores Christmas. It's always the same – Mum and Dad hosting, carols playing, Mum pretending she made the Christmas pudding, and the next-door neighbours coming round for sherry in their terrible festive jumpers.

And now it's even easier with online bargain-shopping sites – if you spend enough you even get free delivery. Sorted!

But this year looks set to be different. Unable to resist the draw of craft beer and smashed avocado, Becky's parents are moving to ultra-trendy Shoreditch and have asked Becky if she'll host Christmas this year. What could possibly go wrong?

With sister Jess demanding a vegan turkey, husband Luke determined that he just wants aftershave again, and little Minnie insisting on a very specific picnic hamper – surely Becky can manage all this, as well as the surprise appearance of an old boyfriend and his pushy new girlfriend, whose motives are far from clear . . .

Will chaos ensue, or will Becky manage to bring comfort and joy to Christmas? 

This is what I say :

I haven't read a Becky Brandon nee Bloomwood title in quite a long time.  I honestly can't remember when was the last time and which was the last book that I read.  I think it was Mini Shopaholic and I actually missed out two of her books which is Shopaholic to the Stars (I have the book somewhere in my shelf) and Shopaholic to the Rescue which I must try to get hold of a copy.

Anyway, it's nice to see that Becky is doing well and that she's still the same old Becky Bloomwood that I remember her to be.  It's been 10 years since her first book Confession of a Shopaholic.

She's been tasked to organise and host Christmas and between going over the top to get the best presents for Luke (involves joining a club she has no interest in, change the club's rule in order to participate in a raffles draw just to win the prize).  And does Minnie really want a specific picnic hamper?  Think of another word that rhymes with hamper and you will get what Minnie really wants! 

But I think the best present is that last word she told her husband during Christmas.  That should be the best Christmat present for Luke and for readers as it certainly was unexpected.  With that word, you can be assured that Becky and family and friends will be back.

Reading about Becky and her family and friends celebrating Christmas certainly reminds me that Christmas is just two plus months away.  This year will be a social distancing Christmas celebration.

 

Top Secret Twenty One (Stephanie Plum #21) by Janet Evanovich

 

Synopsis :

Catch a professional assassin: top priority. Find a failure-to-appear and collect big bucks: top score. How she’ll pull it all off: top secret.

Trenton, New Jersey’s favorite used-car dealer, Jimmy Poletti, was caught selling a lot more than used cars out of his dealerships. Now he’s out on bail and has missed his date in court, and bounty hunter Stephanie Plum is looking to bring him in. Leads are quickly turning into dead ends, and all too frequently into dead bodies. Even Joe Morelli, the city’s hottest cop, is struggling to find a clue to the suspected killer’s whereabouts. These are desperate times, and they call for desperate measures. So Stephanie is going to have to do something she really doesn’t want to do: protect former hospital security guard and general pain in her behind Randy Briggs. Briggs was picking up quick cash as Poletti’s bookkeeper and knows all his boss’s dirty secrets. Now Briggs is next on Poletti’s list of people to put six feet under.

To top things off, Ranger—resident security expert and Stephanie’s greatest temptation—has been the target of an assassination plot. He’s dodged the bullet this time, but if Ranger wants to survive the next attempt on his life, he’ll have to enlist Stephanie’s help and reveal a bit more of his mysterious past.

Death threats, highly trained assassins, highly untrained assassins, and Stark Street being overrun by a pack of feral Chihuahuas are all in a day’s work for Stephanie Plum. The real challenge is dealing with her Grandma Mazur’s wild bucket list. A boob job and getting revenge on Joe Morelli’s Grandma Bella can barely hold a candle to what’s number one on the list—but that’s top secret. 

This is what I say :

I found another of Stephenie's adventure online.  Entitlted Top Secret Twenty One, it's the 21st book in the series.  The last book I read which was in April this year was entitled Hardcore Twenty Four which I wrote about here.

Does it matter that I read book number twenty four before reading book number twenty one? Certainly does not matter at all.

Does it matter that if you are to read Top Secret Twenty One without reading the other books in the series. Also certainly does not matter at all

Nothing much to say about this book. The synopsis says it all.

Book Purchase #2 for 2020

 

Hello....

I bought a book recently.  Actually, I bought more than a book but I shall just be sharing one of my purchases here.

Be Careful What You Wish For is part of a series of novels that I am curating.

If you refer to my post from Feb 2019, I posted about this series and how I am two books short to have a complete set.

With the purchase of Be Careful What You Wish For, I am just missing the last book This Was the Man. I hope I am able to get hold of this title soon.

For record purposes, I shall consider this my second purchase for the year with this being the first.

I will share about my other purchases another time.

Taking Time Off

I will be taking time off from posting for a few weeks due to personal reason.  

Hope to be back here real soon.

In the meantime, stay safe.

The House of Thunder by Dean Koontz

Synopsis :

Susan Thorton awakens in a hospital, after a near-fatal car crash, to see four men lurking outside her door--men who exactly resemble those who killed her boyfriend years before. Can these be the same men?

As she tries to uncover the identities of those stalking her, Susan enters a terrifying nightmare--one from which she may never escape.

Previously published by Pocket under the pseudonym Leigh Nichols (1982).

This is what I say :

I used to dig titles by Dean Koontz...I would say it was more than twenty years ago that I was an avid reader of what he wrote.

I used to be a poor student and unable to afford buying novels so I would rent them from the local rental shop that charges like RM3 per copy for a week or so rental (that's about less than US1).  It was affordable for a student who loved to read.  There were no such things as internet or e-book.  In fact, to get internet, one had to dial it up....

Anyway, along the years I guess my reading interest change as I no longer dig Koontz.  In fact, I would have read this title before. I am sure. and I would have loved it then. I am sure too. 

However, now, more than twenty years later, I am not able to finish reading this title.  I am sure the same goes for his other titles too.

End of an era. Sad.