DECEMBER FAVORITES ♥

Hello, everyone! 


I hope you all had a beautiful and memorable holiday season.  ^_^  I sure did.  Christmas is my absolute favorite. ♥  So much family, friends, food, giving, and receiving!  I got so many great gifts…I’m incredibly grateful for all of the amazing people in my life!

 

I apologize that I didn’t get my contact lens review up last month, but it’s mostly because I found out that EyeCandy’s is no longer carrying the specific pair that I purchased! :O I wish I would’ve posted the review earlier, but oh well.  I’ll be buying another pair, and I will certainly write a review for it soon after. 

 

I’m starting to see sunshine outside, so hopefully that means better weather for photography is on the way!  I really want to get my ocarina review up for Songbird Ocarinas, too.  That one that I’ve been promising for a while now, too.  I’m so behind.  Ha ha ha…X)

 

 

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Anyway!  Here we go again with another round of Monthly Favorites!

 

 

My movie of the month is a no-brainer.  Why, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, of course! Where do I even begin with this one? D: Alright, I admit that I was a bit skeptical about this film.  I am by no means one of those “Hey, that isn’t in the book!  BURN IT!  BURN IT WITH FIRE!!” kind of people, but I was a bit concerned about the addition of Tauriel to the story, and her implied romantic involvement with Legolas, who isn’t even supposed to be there, either! ಠ_ಠ ...Now that I’ve seen the movie, I still don’t like Legolas being present, no matter how awesome the barrels in the river scene was, but I was pleasantly surprised with the character of Tauriel.  She’s well designed and written, and yeah, pretty darn cool.  You go, elf girl!  That being said, I think that there may have been a little too much focus on her, especially with her adorkable romance with Kili.  Her scenes were entertaining, yes, but were they necessary and worthwhile?  It’s a point for discussion.

 

Smaug.  One word: epic.  Very well done.

 

That’s my two cents, anyway!  All in all: a very entertaining, well-balanced, beautifully made film.  Looking forward to the grand finale! :D

 

 

 

One of the Christmas presents which I received was Super Junior’s Japanese album, Hero (the deluxe 3-disc edition :3).  I’m in love with this album!  There’s just something extra-special about Kyuhyun’s voice when he sings in Japanese, rather than in Korean.  Each track is great, the DVD includes lots of special features, and all of it is attractively packaged along with a 40-page photobook. 

 

Two of the songs on the CD are ones that I had never previously heard, and I’ve really been digging them: Tuxedo (even someone who doesn't like k-pop would like this song) and Way (the vocals are lovely, and the chorus is so catchy!).

 

 

 

 

I had a food discovery in December!  One that honestly made me go “da-da-da-DAAAA!!”  Ciao Bella Gelato (Dulce de Leche)!  Yeah, I know what you all are thinking.  Ashley, why ON EARTH are you eating gelato in the frigid winter?  I really have no idea, honestly.  I just knew that I wanted to eat it, and so I did.  It had been years since I had gelato, and I was reminded of how absolutely amaaaazing it is!

Yum!

 

 

 

 

Before I reveal my book of the month, I’m just going to make a little note:  I’m not biased.  At all.  Mm-hmm.  ;-P

 

Violet Eyes by Katharine Bond (a.k.a. my best friend slash writing partner slash partner in crime ehehe).

 

Hmm, I was going to talk about this AWESOME★ book a little bit, but I think that I’ll go ahead and write a full review for it instead!  Look for that next week.  :)

If you're interested in purchasing this book, check it out on Amazon!

 

^o^

 

 

 

 

 

 

While shopping on Black Friday, I came across these Sand Lacquer nail polishes by Forever 21.  I had never tried F21 polishes before, so I only bought two of them; a purple and a blue/green (pictured).  …I wish I had bought the entire collection while they were on sale, because these polishes are so gorgeous! ;__; Like liquid snow (er--water?  What?  You know what I'm trying to say!).  So sparkly!  GREAT for holidays and special occasions.

 

 

 

 

Finally, a video game to end this post.  Another Christmas gift!  Animal Crossing: New Leaf for the Nintendo 3DS.

 

Yeah.

 

Goodbye social life.

 

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HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE~!! I HOPE THAT 2014 BRINGS YOU ALL MANY BLESSINGS AND MUCH HAPPINESS.

 

 

Love & cheesecake,

Aianarie xoxo

HYRULE HISTORIA

Yesterday, I acquired what very well could be the crowning jewel of my nerdery collection: Dark Horse’s HYRULE HISTORIA, a.k.a. 271 pages of breathtaking The Legend of Zelda goodness.  I received the book as a surprise gift from my amazing boyfriend—thanks, babe! ♥

 

The book is not only flat-out gorgeous, but also HUGE!  My boyfriend only paid roughly $20 (off of Amazon) for it, so I wasn’t expecting it to be so big!  It was certainly a pleasant surprise.  It’s a good-quality book with thick pages and a durable hardcover.

 

 

 

 

As the title suggests, the book chronicles the History of Hyrule throughout the Zelda series by beginning with Skyward Sword in a section titled “The Legend Begins”, and ending with “Creative Footprints”, a section that documents 25 years of artwork, with beautiful, full-color pages all along the way.  The book also features an intro and a conclusion by Shigeru Miyamoto and Eiji Aonuma, respectively, and a 32-page manga that tells the story of the goddess Hylia, the first Hero of Time, and the origins of Hyrule, and was lovingly drawn by the amazing duo Akira Himekawa.  I would have paid $20 for this manga alone!

 

For those of you who don't have the book (yet?), here are some scans (courtesy of Glitterberri), to give you a little preview:
 

 

 

AND, if you really want to go all out, there is also a Special Edition, of which there are only 4000 copies in existence. You can read about that here.

 

What a treasure.  No Zelda fan should be without this book.  Reading it made my heart ache with joy.  The Legend of Zelda has been such a huge part of my life, and my childhood memories of playing the games with my dad (and the rest of my family, too) are some of my most cherished.  I can’t wait to pass on things like this to my own children.  And I eagerly await what Nintendo has in store for us with this beloved series.

 

One thing is for certain…I will forever be a Zeldarian!  HYRULE HISTORIA now has a special place on my shelf and in my heart.

 

 

(P.S. The Makar plush was lovingly handmade by me. ^-^)



 

Random Randomness 2/18/12

Hey ya'll. Again, my apologies for my long absence of posting. I've become so lazy, it's unbelievable. XD From now on, I'm going to try to post every week. Emphasis on try. You know what they say...you try, you fail; you try, you fail, but the only true failure is when you stop trying!
Alright, let's get this show on the road. As of late, I have been feeding my inner nerd to the point of near gluttony. Hyrule Royal Family crest zip-up jacket? Check. Hours of video games when I get home from work? Check. Watching The Big Bang Theory on Hulu? Check.

OFCOURSEIDOI'MAPRINCESSANDTHISISMYTIARA!!!

Bahahahaaa. One of my favorite scenes from TBBT. Folks, this show may have some serious stupid, but it also has some serious funny as well. I'm not addicted to it by any means, but it has occupied a lot of my time this past week. I'm definitely gunna buy a Bazinga! t-shirt or a button at some point.

And Skyward Sword. I feel like I should write a review or something about it, but right now I just can't think of anything fitting to say. I will say this, however: this game is BEAUTIFUL. If true beauty can be captured in a video game, it is captured in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. I do believe that this game rivals Ocarina of Time. It's pure fun. Every aspect of it is perfect. I hadn't had so much fun playing a video game since I played OoT as a 7 year old, in fact. Skyward Sword brought back many wonderful memories for me. Feeling like a kid again is one of the reasons why video games like this are so loved. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Zelda forever!


Glee. Yup. I don't like Glee, I think there are a lot of moral issues in it, but yesterday I happened to watch Amber Riley (Mercedes)'s cover of Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You, and I was impressed.

Beautiful. Whitney would be proud!

...So let's see, what else do I have for today...AH. I'm very happy to announce that I have been rather productive. Work has been going very well, and I've been drawing and writing regularly. I'll have new art in my deviantART gallery and poems at Writer's Cafe next week. Not only that, but I've been reading too. I just recently finished Maggie Stiefvater's Forever (absolutely shameful, considering I started it last year). Amazing book. Now I'm reading Stiefvater's The Scorpio Races. It's great so far. You can keep up with my reading at my Goodreads (see "Links" at the bottom of the page).

Finally, I joined Pinterest, if anyone's interested in following my boards. I just pin randomness. Quotes, art, stuff. Find me here: Aianarie @Pinterest

And that's all for this week. Hope you enjoyed. :-) Laters!

Aianarie at Writer's Cafe

Just letting ya’ll know that you can now read my poetry and short stories at Writers Café. My username is A.M.Wied, but my display name is fragmented.dreams

Click here to check it out~ Aianarie @WritersCafe

At the moment I only have half of a collection of lyrics (Fragmented Dreams) and Part I of The Crow & The Butterfly (a “short” story) posted, but I’ll be posting stuff there regularly. Check back often! :-)

My theme song...hmm...

So, a certain author by the name of Brenna Yovanoff (author of New York Times Bestseller The Replacement, which happens to be one of my favorite horror[-ish] books) is hosting an interesting contest in which participants blog about their own personal "theme song".

My theme song has certainly changed over the years, but as of now, as of this moment, this song definitely fits me.

May I present, Pale by Within Temptation.

I chose this song because not only is it hauntingly beautiful (like me, hehehe...although I'm not pale in complexion...), but there is such a rich complexity to my life that is properly portrayed in the song's lyrics.  Also, despite the somewhat sorrowful tone, the song has undertones of hope and love...

...It's a very lovely song.  I hope you all enjoy it.  And Brenna, thanks for a fun and easy contest. :]

Yes, yes, I know...horrorish is not a word.  Please forgive me.

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P.S.  Oh, I almost forgot. Silly me. Here's the link for the contest: The First Space Between Contest. Anddd, the cover for Brenna Yovanoff's The Space Between, which releases November 15th.

Maggie's new book: THE SCORPIO RACES

Now that Maggie Stiefvater's beautiful Shiver trilogy has reached its end, fans have something new to look forward to...her new book, The Scorpio Races, which hits your local bookstore on October 18th!!  Mark your calendars and spread the word; this book looks mighty interesting.

Check out Maggie's handmade trailer!

Anddddd, here's the lovely cover:

Oh boy, I can't wait. Hurry up, October!

Comments on "The Hunger Games" casting...

So lately I’ve been following the casting process of one of my favorite book series, The Hunger Games, and boy, have I had a few surprises.

I agree with the casting choices for the most part; I think Jennifer Lawrence is a great choice for Katniss Everdeen, I think she will play the part well. I’m a little disappointed with the choice for Peeta Mellark, Josh Hutcherson; I would have preferred this beautiful boy from Beastly and I Am Number Four:

Alex Pettyfer <3

…*sigh*…At first I was really disappointed but now that I’ve thought about it, I think Hutcherson will be able to pull off the role nicely. I wish him luck. I am far less-than-satisfied with the choice for Gale Hawthorne. I don’t think Liam Hemsworth fits the part at all. I would have liked someone more along the lines of:

Drew Roy

…and CINNA?! I was absolutely quite dumbfounded when I heard that Lenny Kravitz was casted as Katniss’ stylist. And a bit…disgusted. He doesn’t seem right for the part at all (even more so than Hemsworth for Gale), and I wondered to myself if the casting director even read the book, let alone took the time to think about who would be right for the role. In my opinion, Kravitz is too big. Too masculine. Cinna needs to have certain feminism to him, but not as much as popular fan choice Adam Lambert. Please, no. I was thinking of Prince Caspian:

Ben Barnes. Can’t you just see him with gold eyeliner? <3

Finally, I’d like to comment on Portia, Peeta’s stylist. Latarsha Rose has been cast for the role. They almost hit it for me, but not exactly. Rose is pretty and has the calm face I was looking for, but my number one choice for Portia was Tamina from Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time:

Gemma Arterton


So those are my thoughts. As for the other leads and the tributes, I think they’re all fairly good choices. I look forward to seeing what else they come up with. Regardless, I can’t wait to see this movie.

FOREVER stop-motion trailer!

It's what...like two months 'til Maggie Stiefvater's Forever releases? Holy cow! That reminds me; gotta go place my pre-order (http://www.fountainbookstore.com/autograph-maggie).

But before that, here is Maggie's own hand-made trailer. Enjoy. :)

Check it! FOREVER by Maggie Stiefvater

Hey people, Maggie's finally got the coverart up for her book Forever, the third and final book of her Shiver trilogy. Here it is:

*clap clap clap* It's gorgeous!

Dang I can't wait for this one! :] Here's the link to the pre-order site: http://www.fountainbookstore.com/autograph-maggie/

THE OTHERKIND teaser :)

Hey everyone, here’s a little something to get you curious about my book. ;) I will post the Prologue and Chapter One in my gallery at deviantART on October 10th, followed by a subsequent chapter every other week. You can read the summary there as well: http://aianarie.deviantart.com/

Enjoy the excerpt, and please send me your comments!

(NOTE: The indentations were lost in the copy-paste journey, but I will fix that problem before I post them at dA. :))

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A dark, dismal abyss. It was like wandering aimlessly in a black box that stretched as wide as infinity. Then, out of nowhere, a huge castle manifested, with a town, a gate. But not a soul in sight. Risten was standing in a field, alone. She looked around. Everything was black and white. Up in the sky, she could barely discern the shape of a dark cloud hovering over the castle. Suddenly the mass lunged, down into a window on the eastern tower.

Risten started running towards Epsilia, as fast as she possibly could. Her mind was racing, her heart thumping loud and heavy in her chest. For what, she didn’t know. She simply had an ominous feeling that pulsed with the fire in her veins. She dashed through the town, knocking over several carts, barrels, and such. Still nobody in sight. She burned down the castle gate with her fire. There weren’t even any soldiers. As she ascended the steps, she began to feel very dizzy.

Risten… It was Derek’s voice. It sounded broken, afraid, pleading. Risten…please…I…it was a misunderstanding… He was saying. Risten tried to communicate back to him, but she couldn’t. Why was he shielding his mind from her? She continued to ascend the steps. Shoving the large entry doors open, she looked around for any sign of movement. Nothing. She couldn’t sense a thing. Adrenaline electrified her every movement, flames emitting from her hands impulsively. She headed for the eastern tower, rushing up the spiraling staircase. She couldn’t see anything but the continuous steps before her. The walls of the tower were nothing, simply leading back down into the empty abyss. Again she tried to communicate with Derek, but still to no avail. She heard loud bangs and thuds and indiscernible voices from the room above her.

She reached the top of the tower, and found that the door was bolted. She snorted loudly. You think you can keep me out?! Torches of flames shot out of her palms, engulfing the door. When the smoke cleared the door had barely been burned, despite being made of wood. Risten fell back as a terrible scream came from behind the door. It was Derek. Furious and terrified, her eyes stinging with tears, Risten ran into the door with her full strength, causing a small dent in the grain of the wood. A weak spot. She slammed her fist into the dent, and the wood splintered and formed a large hole. Reaching inside the hole, she unlocked the door.

It looked as if an intense fight had occurred shortly before she got there. Furniture was knocked around, scattered about the room with torn pieces of the tall window’s drapery everywhere. Three of the four posts of the curtained bed where broken in half. And standing in front of the window was a black-and-white version of Risten. This Risten looked as terrified as she was, and tears streamed down her blood-smeared face.

“DEREK!!!” Risten screamed, rushing to the bed. She lifted one of the posts and threw it across the room with curious strength. The fake Risten just watched, sobbing her heart out. Risten had never heard herself cry so hard. Pushing the curtain aside, she found Derek lying there, limp and lifeless, with Risten’s own blade pierced through his chest. His blood, the only trace of color in this world, drenched the white sheets on the bed.

Risten turned around when she heard an echoing, unnatural wail from behind her; her clone was wasting away in towering mass of monochrome flames.


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© 2010, Aianarie
Please do not use without my permission.

Aianarie's Book of the Month: July

This month I had the very difficult task of choosing between two books that I absolutely loved, both of which deserve complete recognition. These two books were Stolen by Lucy Christopher and Linger by Maggie Stiefvater. These books blew my mind in storyline, substance, style, characters, and both had memorable endings. For my July Book of the Month, however, Linger slipped ahead.

First off I’ll mention that I picked up the recommendation of Stolen from Maggie Stiefvater, so yeah. I owe her that. It was a fantastic story. You can read my review of Stolen at my Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3683656

Although it definitely helps, I don’t think you have to have read Shiver to enjoy Linger, but I recommend reading Shiver if you haven’t. One of the best books I’ve ever read, way up there with Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings on my list of favorites.

If you have read Shiver, you will find that Linger is an excellent sequel. Like the first book, it is lyrical, subtle; with metaphors of beauty only capable by Stiefvater. Characteristically, the humor is delightful, and of course, the romance is near flawless. Sam and Grace are definitely my favorite book couple.

An interesting aspect of this book is the addition of Isabel and Cole as first-person characters. That makes four speakers, which adds interesting depth to the story. It may sound confusing to some, but Maggie has done an excellent job of writing from the perspectives of four very different teenagers, and I didn’t find it difficult to follow along (like some people complained about in Shiver).

The ending leaves you breathless, heartbroken, and anxious about the third book, Forever (coming next summer!). That book is going to blow my mind. I can feel it.

Linger is pure and beautiful; full of hope and promise, like a flower growing out of melting snow.

Five stars.

Hmm, boredom. (Oh, and OTHERKIND coverart...)

I usually like to post every week, but I haven't found anything interesting to blog about as of recent. Or maybe I'm just too lazy to put something together. That's a complete possibility too.

I've been reading a lot, writing a lot. Driving myself insane trying to finish writing my first book. Oh, that reminds me, I put this together last week:

Ta-da! It's some random coverart for my book. Made it myself, using Photoshop CS3. I gotta admit, it looks pretty spiffy. Thank you to JELLYKA NEREVAN for the awesome fonts. :) I have every single "Jellyka" font and I love 'em. You can visit her at http://www.cuttyfruty.com/ She has some pretty cool stuff.

I think I'll post about music later this week, I'm itchin to babble about some recent pop singers that I've fallen in love with (more with the singer and not the music though, har har). AND, I'll have the review for my Book of the Month: July next week.

Ciao!