Updates

I have been such a bad blogger lately! Honestly, with the result tension, college applications and what-nots I wanted to take a step back and relax. So I spent a couple of days only reading and watching Kdramas. That is why I haven't been updating. But I just thought I'd let you know what I've been up to...

Reading:

• I read Special A Volume 3-10. The story and characters of Kei & Hikari remind me A LOT of Usui & Misaki from Kaichou wa Maid-sama. The story is pretty interesting and all the side stories are nice to read. As the manga progresses, some chapters are from other character's point of view, besides Hikari's. I didn't have a problem with that, it was nice to see into the other character's personalities, but it would've been better if there would've been a notice of who the chapter's narrator would be. It always took me some time to figure it out. I loved the manga up until the 10th volume. But after Kei & Hikari got together, it became somewhat boring. I just can't bring myself to read any longer. So I'm taking a break from SA right now. I'll definitely complete it since it's only 17 volumes long and 7 volumes are left for me to read.
• I didn't really finish any new books. I'm reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince but honestly I'm not in the mood of reading it since I know what lies ahead... I'm also currently reading Her Secret Whispers and oh my God, it's such a hard read! The protagonist is so annoying! I'm hoping I'll complete it soon and then write up a review. 

Watching:

• I watched Lie To Me (Kdrama). I LOVE Yoon Eun Hye! She's such an amazing actress!! The actor (I forgot his name) is OK. Not that amazing. But YEH really does it for the both of them. The story was really good. It was a little different, but you see no Kdrama is complete without it's cliches which are all there in Lie To Me. I loved the OST! The bubbly pop music was fun to listen to. I loved the title song! I loved loved loved YEH's clothes in this drama! Gosh, I wish I could have her wardrobe! I even loved the clothes she wore at home. I want the Phineas shirt so bad!! There's not much I remember about this drama... The lead guy's brother was one of those bad boys you can't help but fall for. But I hated his transformation! He looked way too young after that. Like a teenage boy... I was going to write a full review of this drama but I couldn't think of much to write about. This drama isn't that memorable. It was fun to watch but I've forgotten most of it now.
• I watched Secret Garden after Lie To Me and ohmyGod Hyun Bin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'll just leave it at that since I plan on reviewing SG.

Challenges:

• Manga Challenge: I challenged myself to read 12 books/volumes and I've completed it since I read 10 volumes of SA and 2 volumes of Kaichou wa Maid-sama this year. Yaay me! :D
• Ebook Challenge: I challenged myself to read 10 ebooks and I've made it upto 5.
• Off The Shelf Reading Challenge: I challenged myself to read 15 books and I've read 8 books. So 7 books are left. :)

And that's pretty much it. I've prepared a couple of discussion posts so look forward to them ;)

Manga Review~Special A (Vol. 2) by Minami Maki

Synopsis: Hikari and Kei are pitted against a pair of professional wresters in a challenge issued by the student council. Hikari may now be on the same team as Kei, but a rival is still a rival!

Genre: Romance, Comedy, Shoujo, Contemporary, School Life, Drama

My Thoughts: So, in this volume we move further into the lives of SA. We are also introduced to a mysterious new character, Yahiro, from Kei's and Akira's past. 

The story is going pretty good till now. It's really interesting and I noticed that in this volume it's moving towards serious 'drama' from 'cute'. 

It's obvious that Kei likes Hikari but Hikari is too clueless to realize it. Hikari also starts developing feelings towards Kei but isn't sure what they mean. 

As I said in the previous review, I love the art. More than I liked the anime's. Kei reminds me a lot of Usui in the way that he's drawn but I guess all hot, rich, teenage manga boys are drawn like that. :P

I can't wait to read the next volume!

My review of Vol. 1

Manga Review~Special A (Vol. 1) by Minami Maki

Synopsis: Her whole life, Hikari Hanazono has been consumed with the desire to win against her school rival, Kei Takishima--at anything. He always comes out on top no matter what he does, and Hikari is determined to do whatever it takes to beat this guy!

At age 6 Hikari lost to Kei in an impromptu wrestling match. Now, at 15, Hikari joins "Special A," a group of the top seven students at a private academy, for the opportunity to trounce the guy who made her suffer her first defeat. This opens doors to the discovery of many new things for both of them....

Genre: Romance, Humor, YA, Contemporary, Shoujo, School Life

My thoughts: I watched the SA anime a couple of months ago and I loved it! I was looking for a completed manga to read because I don't like to wait for months for the next chapter to release and I saw that SA was completed so I decided to read it.

The story is good. In this volume we get introduced to this strong-willed, determined, hard-working girl who is hell bent on being number 1 and defeating a guy who beat her at wrestling when they were 6. Kei, the guy, is good at EVERYTHING. Plus he's good-looking and rich. He stays cool, calm and collected all the time, never caring for anyone else. EXCEPT Hikari. Those moments when he gave up the cool-guy facade and really showed he cared for Hikari were my favorite moments. They were really sweet. 

We also get introduced to the rest of the SA class and Kei's "fiance" but their stories have not been developed yet. Basically in these 4 chapters we get an overview of the characters and a little of the story of the main characters. How Kei cares for Hikari but keeps teasing her because he enjoys seeing her strive to beat him. He also respects how hardworking she is. Hikari, too, cares for Kei, even though she wants to beat him. She does care about his feelings and well-being and doesn't actually hate him even if she says it time and again.

I liked the drawing. It was better than the anime version and it's not that bad to look at. I don't love it, but it's good.

It's hard to say if I'd recommend this or not since I've only read the first volume but I do like the start and look forward to seeing where this goes.

2013 Challenges

I was not able to complete any of my 2012 challenges except the Goodreads one.

Probably because I couldn't keep track of them. I know, I'm ashamed! But I promise I'll try my best this year! I'll keep track of all of them and actually join the ones I know I'll be able to complete.

So next year I'll be doing these challenges:

1. Off The Shelf Reading Challenge hosted by Bookish Ardour

I think I tried this last year too. I'm a failure, I know!

But I'm trying again and this time I'll be able to finish! I'm going for the second level (Trying), that is, I have to  read 15 books off my shelf of books I've gotten prior to 2013. I'll be posting the reviews and updates as I go along. I'm not deciding on a list beforehand because I think it'll be easier this way.

2. Ebook Challenge hosted by Workaday Reads

I've got A LOT of ebooks. I think this challenge is a good way to get myself to read them. I'll be trying the second level, CD, in which I have to read 10 ebooks. Again, I won't be choosing books beforehand. I'll just add them as I go along.

3. Manga/Graphic Novel/Video Gamel Novel Challenge hosted by Mother. Gamer. Writer.

I love manga! This challenge would be great for catching up on all the manga I have lined up in my TBR. I'll be doing Level 1 Arcade Gamer-Casual Player i.e 12 books. Same as previous, I'll list the manga as I read them so no list beforehand.

So these are the reading challenges I'm hoping to complete in 2013. Wish me luck! Other than these, there is obviously the Goodreads challenge in which I'll be aiming for 75 books. This year I did 50 books and I'm happy to say that I exceeded that number :D

So what challenges are you guys participating in next year? Comment below and let me know!