Zaheerah

Favourite K-Pop Groups

July 10, 2018July 2, 2018by Zaheerah4 Comments

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday is a freebie week and since I wasn’t feeling searching down the past TTT’S that I decided to do something that I’m into that isn’t book related. So, I decided to do K-Pop. If you follow me on Twitter, I talk about it more there and I’m actually more active on there. So I’ve decided to make a list of my top ten K-Pop groups.

1- ASTRO

No words can describe how much love I have for Astro. I found them during a time in my life where I was very down and upset with my life at the time. And their bright and cute songs really change my mood from a 0 to 100 very quickly. Their first few mini-albums were based on a season’s concepts which are truly brilliant and so fun to listen to. Their sound is slowly maturing but they keep a fresh look and sound which is kind of signature to them. But, honestly, my all-time favourite K-Pop group. I don’t want to get too much into it because I will go for a long time.

Favourite Member: MJ/ Jinjin

Favourite Album: Autumn Story

Favourite Song: Confession/ Because It’s you

2 – KNK

Favourite Member: Youjin

Favourite Album: Gravity

Favourite Song: Angel Heart

3 – THE BOYZ

Favourite Member: Sangyeon

Favourite Album: The First

Favourite Song: Boy

4 – WEKI MEKI

Favourite Member: Suyeon

Favourite Album: LA LA LA

Favourite Song: Stay With Me

5 – BLACKPINK

Favourite Member: Jisoo

Favourite Album: Square Up (…. well they only have one so I guess it’s my favourite for me)

Favourite Song: Stay

6 – GFRIEND

Favourite Member: Sowon

Favourite Album: Parallel

Favourite Song: Ave Maria

7 – BTS

BTS are on a roll right now. I think it’s impossible to go anywhere online and NOT see them. They’re very much the face of K-Pop at the moment so I probably don’t even need to tell you listen to their music, you’ve probably already have. I’m literally counting the days until October, I can’t wait to see them live and in person.

Favourite Member: Jin

Favourite Album: You Never Walk Alone

Favourite Song: Awake/ Spring Day/ Just One Day

8 – KARD

Favourite Member: J.Seph

Favourite Album: You and Me

Favourite Song: Rumor

9 – TWICE

Favourite Member: Nayeon/ Jihyo

Favourite Album: Twicestagram

Favourite Song: TT/Likey

10 – NCT

Favourite Member: Taeil/ Johnny/ Kun/ Jeno (okay there are currently EIGHTEEN members, no way am I picking just one member)

Favourite Album: #NCT 127 – The Second Mini Album

Favourite Song: Firetruck/ Angel/ Baby Don’t Like It

SPECIAL MENTION (Since this list is just groups here are some female soloists/duos I recommend!):

What’s on your TTT this week? Leave me a link or let me know in the comments! 🤗

Books, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Young Adult/ Teen

Review: The Wrath & the Dawn

July 9, 2018June 29, 2018by Zaheerah2 Comments

Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.5/5)

「Some things exist in our lives for but a brief moment. And we must let them go on to light another sky.」

Every night the bride of the Caliph of Khorasan is killed. Until Shazi volunteers to outwit and kill the king in revenge for the death of her best friend. In the vein of the original 1001 nights, she holds off her death by telling a story every night the extends onto another.

I think The Wrath and the Dawn started off really well for me. It’s plot really grabbed from the very beginning, and it did exceed my expectations. Ahdieh has a gorgeous writing style that suits this novel’s intriguing plot. There’s a lot of quote-worthy lines that I really liked, but it was a shame I didn’t really feel the connection between them for it to really hit deep. There’s a magic system that I enjoyed but isn’t really introduced fully yet which I hope gets developed in the sequel.

Shahrzad is a great female lead. Her charismatic behaviour and sharp wit was amusing and her bravery had me rooting for her from the very beginning. But that very much drops very soon once you realise she has no idea what she’s going despite the story setting her up as this character that knows what she’s doing. How she managed to fall in love with him was questionable considering her aims. Khalid wasn’t even that great anyway. His mysterious persona wasn’t that interesting enough to want to care for him, I just wanted to know why he killed those girls, not really caring for his character. The background characters were actually my favourites of the plot I feel like we should’ve gotten a bit more background information and set up at the beginning of the novel before we get pushed straight into the story. I find it strange that enjoyed the plot of this book but didn’t enjoy its characters.

The Wrath and the Dawn have its obvious appeal to romance and retelling lovers. Despite its flaws, I did actually quite enjoy reading this book. It’s vibrant setting, and secondary characters are its most significant highlights. With a cliff-hanger like that, I do intend to read the sequel.

GOODREADS | THE BOOK DEPOSITORY | AUTHOR SITE

Books, Contemporary, Young Adult/ Teen

Review: Something in Between

July 6, 2018June 29, 2018by ZaheerahLeave a Comment

Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3.5/5)

Jasmine de los Santos is the perfect student. Working hard to please her parents, hoping to get a full college scholarship to her dream college. But the dream is shattered when she is rewarded an award she can’t accept. Her entire family is residing in the U.S. illegally after their visas expired years ago. Now Jasmine’s breaking out and falling in love with the charming son of a Republican congressman. Time is running out, and Jasmine needs to find a way to stay.

I think Something in Between is a fantastic book about identity and one of the many experiences of undocumented immigrants. A significant theme of Something in Between is how children of immigrants are stuck between two worlds, two cultures, and figuring out how to identify when they clash with each other. Jasmine struggles, and her story shows the exploration of cultural conflict and how she learns that neither have to conflict with the other and you can be proud of both.

I enjoyed the dynamics and interactions between Jasmine and her family mainly. There’s a lot of diversity in this book that was really relatable. I wasn’t a huge fan of the drama that occurred within Jasmine and her friends, but I appreciated how in the end they worked it all out and rather than separating, all of them work out their issues and it’s realistically resolved.

The romance between Jasmine and Royce was initially quite sweet and adorable. It starts off with mutual respect between both of them and they slowly learn more about each other. It was later sort of ruined by miscommunication issues. Most of their problems could’ve been solved in seconds if they had just spoken more clearly. The whole ‘Are we still dating? We’re still dating.’ Thing got pretty old really quick. I didn’t hate Jasmine as a lead, but her personality tended to be very dramatic, and I wished the story focused a bit more on her actual family rather than the typical YA drama. She’s quite headstrong, and I liked that. But her family were the stronger aspects of the book, and I wished it was showed more.

There were some aspects that I didn’t enjoy, and one of them was how the Republicans were portrayed a bit too nice. Royce’s father does some terrible things, but they do help Jasmine’s family at one point, but I feel like they were a bit too nice to them when in the book they’re seen dismissing and alienating immigrants in the book.

Overall, it’s quite a good read. This is a very personal story about immigrants and finding out where we belong in a country that doesn’t want you and how the world can be terrible to them. I would definitely recommend it.

GOODREADS | THE BOOK DEPOSITORY | AUTHOR SITE

Books, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Young Adult/ Teen

Review: Want

July 3, 2018June 29, 2018by ZaheerahLeave a Comment

Rating: ★★★★★ (5/5)

In a world divided by the rich you and the poor mei, advanced tech is needed to survive the polluted air that covers the city of Taipei. Angry at his city’s corruption which allows the rich to survive while the poorest are left at nature’s mercy, Jason Zhou along with his friends infiltrate the lives of the wealthy yous in order to destroy Jin Corp which manufactures the suits to survive.

Within the very first chapter, I was hooked. Pon has created a story that is fantastic. We’re introduced to the overcrowded smoggy city of Taipei and you’re in with Pon’s vivid imagery and writing. The wealth disparity isn’t so different from real life and this story tackles so many important topics. It is such a compelling read that will satisfy anyone looking for a thrilling and fast-paced read. And it’s cast of characters are so memorable and amazing. I don’t know how many times I can say how spectacular this was to read and experience.

I was so drawn to Zhou as the novel’s lead and his band of friends as they attempt to complete this ambitious mission. Each and every character is vital and the chemistry between them all is so good. They are such a diverse bunch of people and can’t wait to read more about them. The scenes of them just living their lives were really sweet and some of the best scenes in the book.

I did have an issue with the pacing, there were moments where it goes way too fast and then suddenly goes at a snail pace, especially in the middle of the book. And the romance between Jason and Daiyu deserved more time to develop. They’re very quickly pushed together that just needed more time to work better.

Overall, Want reads like a movie we all deserve to see on the big screen. And I loved it. A story about a group of friends infiltrating a corporation with hidden identities, spy actions and damn amazing group dynamics. A futuristic heist story that everyone needs to read.

GOODREADS | THE BOOK DEPOSITORY | AUTHOR SITE

Books, Lifestyle, Monthly Rewind

Monthly Rewind: May & June 2018

July 1, 2018July 1, 2018by Zaheerah4 Comments

I missed out on doing a May rewind because I was very mentally exhausted from finishing my first year of university that I didn’t even do much blog wise but I feel like I’ve jumped back from that dull feeling and I feel like I’m doing much better now! So I’ve quickly tacked on my May reads and music just so its documented.

B O O K S