QUOTES ; POEM, BY ANONYMOUS

A hundred pages lay scattered, Thousands of dreams dreamed, The Qadar of Allah overrules, What is not right, but so it seemed. Questions! A hundred questions the heart asks, Assumptions! Outraged assumptions, the mind conceives. He knows what lays best in His Master plan, He knows what each soul receives. Man may conquer oceans deep, Through vast skies he may ride up high. His next aim may shoot for stars, Yet, with Allah’s Will, he cannot why. The script may defy all logic sane, The mind may not rightly perceive, The Lord writes masterpieces, Only if the reader believes. His are the scripts of glory, Of men who conquered and ruled well, His are the scripts of fury, Of the blasphemous, who shamefully fell. He writes trials and tribulations, For His servants who deserve a test, A challenging script, heightens faith, Separates the loyal from the rest. His scripts are riddles, His twists unknown, His ways merciful, His graciousness well-known. I may tread on thorny paths, Fight battles I know not why, I know my script is a masterpiece, For it’s by Allah, the Most High. - Anonymous

BOOK REVIEW ; THE THIRD SECRET

Title : The Third Secret

Author : Steve Berry

So the Church story makes a comeback. (I prolly should reflect on this and go back to what I should read, eh?) This book revolves around the apparitions of Marian, specifically in Fatima, LaSalle and Medjugorge. The apparitions and messages that they bring were mostly kept from the public for fear of the truth; total overturn of the foundations of the Catholic Church. It was up to the Pope and his cardinals to save the day or for a better idea, the institution and religion itself. 

People claim Berry is reminiscent of Brown. I agree. But I also think that they don't have to compete, but instead give historical fiction its chance to shine among other genres. (It guess it already is judging on the top 10 bestsellers if the week lists,eh?) For me, at least, it does. 

Rating : 9/10 

BOOK REVIEW ; A ROOM WITH A VIEW

Title : A Room With A View

Author : E.M. Forster

Oh Forster, thank you for a good classic! A quite realistic classic. A love story; choosing between the ideal and the real. It was a refresher on how the people in that times live; going places, learning books by heart, appreciating nature and history. Snippets of society class prejudice thrown in. And love. Yes, my type of love. Plus some nudity (well, its just boys playing in the lake). And the realistic love triumphs! Put in Italy and Greece in, and there, you get Forster's novel. Watch the movie too! It's quite a different portrayal than what I had in mind, but a good one nevertheless.

The best quote from the book: 

"Then they spoke of other things - the desultory talk of those who have been fighting to reach one another, and whose reward is to rest quietly in each other's arms." - A Room With A View, E.M.Forster

Rating : 9/10

BOOK REVIEW ; LOST CITY

Title : Lost City 

Author : Clive Cussler & Paul Kemprecos

HEY PEOPLE! BLOGGER IS FINALLY WORKING!

I was having problems with this book. Yes, it had references to Poe, which I appreciate, and history, which Cussler nicely laces in, but he tried too much. Was it Kemprecos' influence? It's a Kurt Austin adventure, so I was biased too (I miss Dirk Pitt!). But okay. The book was about the Fauchards, a notorious family known for arm dealing for centuries. Turns out they were the people behind the major world wars along with the other Poe's characters (I mean the other big names in the business of the underworld). Realizing there's more to war than only arms, the Fauchards hatched an idea of biological weapons. The experiments went far from right, and NUMA steps in to save the day. Again. Now this Cussler has become repetitive I really need to take a stint from this. Unless I get my Pitt back.

Rating : 7/10

BOOK REVIEW ; ONE HUNDRED NAMES

Another review from my dear friend and ex-schoolmate, Quorinna Korish. Enjoy!

PS : I know, I haven't been updating. Will do ASAP! I've been reading quite a few books :)

 Title : One Hundred Names Author : Cecelia Ahern

You literally can’t put down the book. If you ever want to read this, you better have the whole day off. Sit somewhere quiet, have a whole jug of water, a big bar of chocolates. Be probably best if you’re at home alone or locked the door to your room. Because you don’t want to be disturbed nor you want to be distracted. Seriously! The moment you open the book you’ll be intrigue of what the 100 names is all about. Would it be about how 100 people are connected? 100 random people mind you. And you wouldn’t want to put the book down because you would want to know who are those 100 people. And why there were in a list. I know that some people would just, well go to the last page to find the answer. But I want to know how the character, Kitty, figured it out. How she finally found what it is that connects all of these 100 names, this 100 random people. What is it that in their life that made this exquisite editor of the magazine Etcetera, Constance Dubois, typed this 100 names list? All these questions are the reason why you wouldn’t want to put the book down and you shouldn’t put it down. Kitty is a journalist, and her job is at stake. She had the honoured to do a tribute on her friend and boss, Constance. The only thing that she was given was a list of 100 names by Constance. No other clue on what the list is about or who the people on the list are. She have two weeks before the article is sent to print. With 100 names and a two week deadline, the next question would be ‘How is she going to accomplish that? ‘ No doubt that she figured out what the list is about. And she had the most extraordinary experience as well with extraordinary people. This is really a recommended read. That is why I’m not telling you a summary of the book or what I thought of it. Because you have to read it yourself and figured all the answer on your own.

 Rating : 10/10

BOOK REVIEW ; THE IMPERIAL CRUISE

Title : The Imperial Cruise

Author : James Bradley

Picked up the book in B&N, had sparked my interest. American history (not that I approve them though)!

Teddy Roosevelt's fan addicts, please read this book. Come and meet the dark side of him.

The Aryan's West expansion to civilize the world explains this book. James Bradley painstakingly describe in detail the dilemma of President McKinley and his successor, President Teddy Roosevelt as they champion the fight against the Others in the world. Trying to claim the world as theirs, the masterminds of this time bought together plans to conquer the Pacific and have reign (implicitly) over the Asian continent. Learn about the Japanese and Korean dilemma, and the bloody battles fought with the Red Indians and Philippines. The Anglo-Saxon powers deem themselves superior and had the responsibility to conquer and eliminate the inferiors. Princess Alice Roosevelt became the icon of America, at times banzai-ed, at times hated.

Was it worth the lives?

I stopped many times in this book as the gruesome details came out. RIP, lost souls. RIP.

Rating : 10/10

BOOK REVIEW ; HELL'S CORNER

Title : Hell's Corner

Author : David Baldacci

I DOUBTED IT. BUT HERE IT COMES. THE CAMEL CLUB!

Pardon my excitement. Oliver Stone and his club is my love when reading Baldacci. Same lines with Dirk Pitt when reading Cussler.

So this I guess is the best installment of Camel Club yet. Oliver Stone goes on the government bandwagon after 30 years with the NSC, couples up with a lethal lady from Britain's MI6, has all the govt agencies working with/for/against him, and as always, the help of Camel Club. A bomb exploded in one of Stone's fave haunts, Lafayette Park, which wasn't clear intended to whom, even though at first it was thought the British PM. As the commotion occurs only across the White House, top priority has been given to this case. A lot of top guns and top govt agents were in this, yet they sense moles among them as red herrings were thrown everywhere. Finding the right way out of the mess was critical. The stroke of genius hits Stone just in time to save 2 presidents. The journey ended where Oliver started his career as a Three Six operative and also where he saved the President's life before, Murder Mountain. Did he and the others survived the ordeal?

Oh, throw in some nano technology in! The trick that made all this possible. Ah Baldacci.

The book closes with a memorial scene.

Did he died?

*silence*

Rating : 10/10