I think the imagery of this book, for Nicholas Sparks, is by far perhaps the most 'mature' or adult-themed. Many of Nicholas' characters sometimes fall into the trap of speaking everything that is on their minds when one character falls in love at first sight by another character. Safe Haven is different in that the character's have a little mystery, and their voices come off more mature. With one character, Kevin, the alcoholic abusive husband, I was surprised and disturbed as a reader by the strong descriptive detail of his point of view. It almost felt like I was reading a story by a different author. The power and chaotic mind of Kevin in some ways overpowers the strength of the other characters, Katie and Alex, that we are supposed to be focusing on. There is no way that you really root for Kevin but towards the end of the story, the spotlight seems to be on him rather than the protagonists.

Like many Nicholas Spark's book, the story builds strongly 'til the halfway point, where you're anxious to know what happens and you can't possibly stop. I wish, however, that Nicholas Sparks had paused before writing the last two chapters. I felt that they were unfitting and also fitting compared to the rest of the story. Otherwise, the book is an interesting and fulfilling read for any Nicholas Sparks fan, or those who are interested in the drama/romance genre.

This is another book that I had read in anticipation for the film. I'm not a very big fan of stories that are explored in flashback style, but this was the first that made me reconsider. I thought the story was told simply beautifully. From the first few pages as you're introduced to the Benzini Brothers, you feel you are apart of an adventure. The film does a splendid job adapting the book and making it come to life. Forget Twilight and that Edward sparkles, Robert Pattinson does a wonderful job portraying the character Jacob. I very deeply enjoyed both versions, and recommend them to all.

I'll admit that Nicholas Sparks is my go-to for cheesy yet uplifting romance stories. I won't say that this one is my favorite of his series but it's up there. I very much loved the characters, and I felt that they were somehow more relatable than some of his other characters. The ending through me for a complete loop, as I did not expect it at all. I think this is a lovely story and relationship, for those who just want something light to read; something that will cheer them up and give them hope for future relationships and the commitments we all ache for. :D

In the right hands, Disney villains can be a fascinating source of storytelling for so-called bad guys. Fans can learn more about antagonists on a deeper level that's often lacking in the animated movies. While I wouldn’t consider the Beast / Prince from Beauty and the Beast a villain per say, an intriguing potential backstory can be explored about his value towards superficiality versus true inner beauty.

The Beast Within changes quite a lot about what we know of Disney’s the Prince. For one, he’s great friends with Gaston. Hunting animals and looking down on others, especially women who don't meet their standards, is primarily what they have in common. When the Prince falls in love with a woman who is beautiful, but nothing more than a farm girl, it’s just about the worst thing that could happen. But not in the way he assumes. After a humiliating breakup, she and her sisters reveal themselves to be Enchantresses. Out for revenge, they place a curse on him by turning him into a Beast. He can only break the spell by falling in love, receiving love in return, and the union must be sealed with a kiss before the last petal of an enchanted rose falls.

Something fans don’t quite get in the original movie, and only teased in the recent remake, is what a genuine cad the Prince must’ve been to be turned into a monster. Author Serena Valentino has a competent grasp on what makes him ugly on the inside and outside by focusing on his limited attitude towards women and his material needs. His blatant selfishness and lack of compassion is quite overbearing and exudes off the page. You manage to dislike him but also recognize his fears as he's physically morphing from a human into a beast. At times, he's not necessarily likable, but from the nature of the story and his fate, gives him room to change his ways.

By fleshing out The Prince, the story starts out admirably. But beyond fleshing out The Prince's ego, The Beast Within feels very limited in taking an interesting start and turning into a compelling journey.

Valentino's version ultimately becomes is a little too mixed up in plugging in staple scenes from the original movie while tapping into different backstories that seem cool but aren't well-rounded. Her additions to the story like his friendship with Gaston is a creative place to drawn on as to why the Prince might act the egotistical and conceited, but the story backs from fully committing to the idea. Even romantic relationships with a woman who turns out to be a witch, and another socialite whom Beast prematurely uses to outsmart the curse with, offer interesting twists to female characters other than Belle. But then their unique motivations wear off to reveal the writing and construction is very basic. And, the iconic heroine herself Belle is ultimately used as a bookend and doesn't hold any significant bearing or involvement in Beast recognizing how to be a kind, compassionate human.

Sometimes villains can't be redeemed by their corrupted ways, but for a character who has that room for growth, it's disappointing when re-tellings don't capitalize on exploring the full spectrum. Unfortunately, the story and book are just too small, only a quick 200+ pages with fairly short chapters. If the length and size of the book were bigger, or the author worked with a wider scope, the story had potential to be more detailed. How the Prince acts like a monster is just as important as to the Prince recognizing the error of his ways. The book never aims to accomplish both.

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- couldn't finish this one but I tried -

Eggers is trying to make is an interesting point, but within the first 40 pages, I felt like his imagination was limited to Steve Jobs ruling the world into the utopia of all utopias. If you get as far as Mae getting a tour around the company's grounds, and don't feel like it's Apple on crack, then maybe it's not as obvious as I thought it was going to be. I pretty much knew where the story was going. I even flipped to the end, and I was like, "Oh, okay, saw that coming."

I gave up on reading The Circle. Only 40 pages in, and 420 pages to end up what where I know the story is going. People are a little bit better off looking into Big Brother type of movements, studies of people who are addicted to technology to know the author's intent, or just trying to get off of the internet for an hour, or a day, and see how far we get from understanding not only how much we personally rely on it, but the government and society does too.

What is it that we look for in celebrity memoirs - the dirt on what it's really like to work in Hollywood? get a better sense of their humor, confidence, their life pre-fame? to learn some gold-plated pieces of wisdom? When I think of a memoir or humorous autobiography, one of the first books to come to mind is Mindy's previous book Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, and I think in the future, this one too.

I've never seen The Mindy Project, and am mostly familiar with her via The Office, but I feel like no matter where her readers come from, you're going to get Mindy. Obviously, I don't know her but she comes across as cheerful, honest, willing to make mistakes and share her typical human embarrassments as well as her accomplishments. She writes about her observations of being single, seeing friends get married, relationships, work, race, and body image in a completely natural tone, where you feel like she doesn't take herself too seriously but she also means business.

Hollywood isn't easy street, and it's refreshing to see how a lot of work goes into her show, looking glamorous on the red carpet, and becoming a role model to young adults. None of us are perfect and found it refreshing that she was willing to offer so many of her experiences and doubts of working her way up through The Office, starting her own show, and what that entails. Her writing style is super breezy, where in the moment she made me laugh and also packs nuggets of wisdom. Why Not Me? is a good combination of light-hearted depth, quirkiness, and candidness, so if you're interested - why not give it a try.

The average amount of thoughts a person has every day is about fifty-thousand. It's a little scary to think of how many of those thoughts - good and bad - are under our control. Too often and so easily our perceptions of what we think about ourselves when we glance at ourselves in the mirror, interact with other people, or see in the media puts our brains on automatic. How much of our daily responses to our environments, past, and relationships come from having a healthy or unhealthy outlook on ourselves? It's hard to tell.

When I was fifteen, my self image was absolutely horrible, but it's gotten better over the years. Yet as I reach 30 in three or four years, or look at myself compared to what I see on social media, I can't help feel what everyone probably does at some time: highly self-criticizing and unkind. It doesn't help that I was literally born a perfectionist, people-pleaser and has loads of anxiety especially social.

When I found The Woman in the Mirror, it was a nice revelation. The first part of the book breaks down the social and personal barriers that creates self-image and body esteem specifically with eating disorders and how critical self-judgement from toddler to adult morphs over the years. The second part of the book gives insight in how to be your own coach and talk to yourself, create fat-free zones, and stop the automatic responses our brains have in falling for rude criticisms or overly-obsessing what we think other people might think of us. Cynthia specifically makes a point to address eating disorders throughout this book, but it's also about body image, how we see ourselves in the mirror, and what to do when things trigger us to think about ourselves or play the comparison game.

Even though I had eating disorders when I was a teenager, and those type of thought patterns aren't ever truly cured, I'm not sure I quite connected with the first half of the book as the author went through the ages and how each stage (typically for women but she does bring up boys and men too) is affected by their social and personal environments in how they think about themselves. I identified much more with the second half of the book dedicated to, honestly, how to be nicer to yourself with your thoughts. Cynthia walks readers through identifying areas in your life that make you feel bad about yourself, how to prepare for moments when you might feel yourself comparing your body to someone else, or dealing with people and environments that criticize you. It was illuminating to see that some of the things I've done in the past but given up on (coaching and motivating yourself through stressful situations) doesn't make me as crazy as I thought was. And, there are tools I want to continue on with in the future.

I still think I have long way to go in terms of how judge myself, but after reading this, I'm more receptive to ideas that "HEY maybe the way you're reacting to seeing photoshopped images doesn't equate to who you are as a person". If I could, I would've given the second half of the book to a younger version of myself. I gave this a three out of five stars because I feel, as some others pointed out, a lot of the book's tone fits for parents needing assistance with identifying how their self-worth might affect their kids negatively and what to look out for, while the angle for individual women changing their body esteem is weaved throughout.