“The Power of Creativity: Learning How to Build Lasting Habits, Face Your Fears and Change Your Life” By Bryan Collins Review

This book is for new writers, musicians, filmmakers, artists and anyone who has ever asked questions like “How can I become more creative?” or, “How can I get more ideas?” or “How can I focus on my thoughts and just let them flow?” If you’ve ever struggled with a problem or challenge in your personal or professional life and thought, “I can’t do this, I’m not creative enough”, this book will help you.

I gotta admit here that this self-help book is not the greatest self-help book I have read in my time. But as always I will explain everything in this review. So if you are interested in hearing my thoughts about this book then keep reading this review my dear reader.

This book is a very quick read, because it has barely 100 pages and it explains everything in a nice and simple way which really makes going through this book quick. Which is one of the few things I liked about this book.

This book gives us a lot of quick success stories which makes it in a way more interesting to read this book and understand the points which the author makes in this book. Which made me give this book some extra points for doing.

But the self-help tips and topics this book talks about are very obvious in a way. Which made me think something along “no shit Sherlock, I have thought about this topic myself and came to the same conclusion”.

Which really shows in a way that the points which this book makes aren’t that hard to come up with. But this book doesn’t explain them in a nice and easy way which doesn’t make the points this book makes seem half bad.

But I gotta admit there that the majority of the points this book makes reminded me of other and better self-help books I have read in my time. Which made me think about the better self-help books I have read in my time reviewing books and comic books on this website which have been a while and involved a dozen of books by now.

The writing style in this book is very straightforward and easy going. Which makes this book easy to understand even thou this book is a self-help book which makes a lot of points on how to improve our lives. 

I need to admit here that even thou this book is far from being one of the better self-help books out there in the world it wasn’t so bad as I feared this book would be. 

But if someone wanted me to be honest here and say if I would recommend this book or not. I would say not. Because I would easily recommend better self help books I have read like “12 rules for life” by Jordan B Peterson, “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, “power of habit” by Charles Duhigg and “you are a badass” by Jen Sincero amongst other self-help books which would take too long for me to list them all here.

I Give This Book 2 / 5

“Furthermore” By Tahereh Mafi Review

There are only three things that matter to twelve-year-old Alice Alexis Queensmeadow: Mother, who wouldn’t miss her; magic and color, which seem to elude her; and Father, who always loved her. The day Father disappears from Ferenwood he takes nothing but a ruler with him. But it’s been almost three years since then, and Alice is determined to find him. She loves her father even more than she loves adventure, and she’s about to embark on one to find the other.

I gotta admit here that the only reason why I have read this book is because the bookstore worker I usually buy books at have recommended the book to me and I trusted her and its completely my fault for buying and trying to read this book even thou I didn’t knew anything about this book. And here we are with me about to give this book a very bad review which this book deserves fully. 

I had no expectations for this book because I didn’t knew anything about this book. But still I wasn’t prepared on how bad this book actually is. Because this book is ridiculously bad like very very bad. This book is so bad that it is easily the worst book I’ve read this year even thou we are in October and we still have over 2 months left of 2025.

This book is meant to be a fantasy book for middle schoolers and reading book as an adult wasn’t the best choice I could make. But I only found about this fact after I have bought this book. So if I already spent money on it, I would for sure read it. 

The plot of this book is the worst plot in a book I’ve seen all year and that says something looking at the fact of how many books and comic books I have read this year.

The plot of this book is about a little girl who wants to go on an adventure and her home life isn’t the best. But the way the plot is presented to us gave me the feeling like the plot was indeed created by a little girl who had no idea about how to make a coherent story.

The entire plot of this book is told in such a way like a 6-7 year old girl would tell a story. And by this I mean that the entire book goes something like this “the girl was walking home, she met on some stranger, she got scared and ran home sobbing” and thats pretty much how the entire book is narrated like. This narrative style never works for me personally it might work on middle schoolers or some other readers but every time I came over a narrative style like this one, it makes me immediately DNF the book and have nothing to do it after the review. 

The characters in this book are very very poorly made. From the first page of this book I hated the main character because she had no personality to her. Her entire personality was how different she looked from everyone else in the village. And I completely hate real life people and fictional character who make their entire personality based on their looks.

The main character in this book is so frustrating and annoying. Because her entire personality is about how different she is (based on her looks) from the other people in the village. Like she had absolutely no personality to her, she was just this shallow void of a character.

The rest of the characters in this book aren’t much better than the main character in this book. The side characters in this book are just as shallow and have none-existent personalities as the main character of this book.

I had a very hard time with the characters in this book because I couldn’t even hide my hate for them so much that I didn’t give a shit about them or their journeys throughout this book.

The writing style of this book is very clearly made for middle schoolers looking at the fact at how easy and simple the writing style is and how easy to understand the words used in this book are. Which again doesn’t make me be a fan of this book. Because the writing style is way too simple for my liking. 

I Give This Book 1 / 5

“Assassin’s Quest” By Robin Hobb Review

King Shrewd is dead at the hands of his son Regal. As is Fitz–or so his enemies and friends believe. But with the help of his allies and his beast magic, he emerges from the grave, deeply scarred in body and soul. The kingdom also teeters toward ruin: Regal has plundered and abandoned the capital, while the rightful heir, Prince Verity, is lost to his mad quest–perhaps to death. Only Verity’s return–or the heir his princess carries–can save the Six Duchies.

I need to admit here that I was never a big fan of this trilogy and after trying to read this book I needed to DNF it after reading 400 pages or so because I just couldn’t take it anymore. Im fully aware that this review might be very controversial because of how many people love this book and this trilogy and sadly am not one of those people. So if you are ready to get pretty controversial with me in this review then keep reading this review my dear reader.

I gotta admit that this book had the same problem which the previous 2 books had in this series. The problem that Im talking about here is that this book drags on and on without an end. At the same time the main character in this book goes on and on with complaining and whining about anything possible he could complain and whine about. Which really frustrated and annoyed me a lot because at times it seemed that all he could do is whine like a toddler throwing a tantrum. 

The plot itself in this book felt like the biggest melodrama I have every seen. Because the majority of the plot of this book is Fitz whining about everything that happens to him throughout this entire book. And in the end of this book I just couldn’t keep reading because of how bored and frustrated I was over this book.

The majority which happens in this book is Fitz going around and whining to everyone that would listen about how sad, depressing and annoying Fitz’s life is and what fucked up things have happened to him or is happening to him currently.

This book feels like it uses nearly 1000-pages to undo what have happened during the ending of book 2 in this series. Instead of this book moving forward from what have happened in the second book this book keeps going back to what happened in book 2 and trying to undo the entire second book of this series. 

The writing style in this book felt like the author herself wasn’t interested in giving us a good book with this book but instead she was more interested in the paycheck she would get from publishing and selling this book.

The writing style in this book felt a lot like the author telling us “this happened and then that happened and later this happened” which I found to be very boring and uninteresting. Because it was like the author of this book couldn’t bring herself to actually care about this third book at all.

I Give This Book 1 / 5

“How to Fake It in Hollywood” By Ava Wilder Review

Grey Brooks is on a mission to keep her career afloat now that the end of her long-running teen soap has her (unsuccessfully) pounding the pavement again. With a life-changing role on the line, she’s finally desperate enough to agree to her publicist’s scheme… faking a love affair with a disgraced Hollywood heartthrob who needs the publicity, but for very different reasons. Ethan Atkins just wants to be left alone. Between his high-profile divorce, his struggles with drinking, and his grief over the death of his longtime creative partner and best friend, he’s slowly let himself fade into the background. But if he ever wants to produce the last movie he and his partner wrote together, Ethan needs to clean up his reputation and step back into the spotlight. A gossip-inducing affair with a gorgeous actress might be just the ticket, even if it’s the last thing he wants to do.

I gotta admit that I was very skeptical about this book before reading it. But now that I have read it I gotta admit that it had surprised me in a positive way. But let me explain everything in this review so if you are interested in hearing my thoughts about this book then keep reading my dear reader. 

The plot of this book is very drama like because there is a lot of drama happening in this book. And the overall plot of this book is a roller coaster of emotions which the characters in this book go through.

The plot of this book is on the heavier side even though I was expecting the plot of this book to be light and sweet but this book was everything but what I have expected.

The plot of this book involves a lot of dark sides of fame and being a actor / actress in Hollywood. This involves a lot of addiction, anger issues, imposter syndrome, child actors and what abuse they face and overall what people don’t think about when it comes to the actors / actresses in Hollywood.

But I gotta admit here that the plot was uninteresting at times for me personally. I found it hard to say interested and engaged in the plot of this book. And the closer I got tot the end of this book the more I was thinking about DNF-ing this book. Which in the end I didn’t do because I wanted to read this book to the end to see if reading this entire book was worth it. 

There are times where the book drags for way too long and makes the entire book feel like the author was paid by the word count for this book. 

The characters in this book were okay for the most part. I personally found them to be okay characters. But I couldn’t bring myself to care about them and their journeys in this book. 

I personally feel like the characters in this book didn’t have a lot of depth to them. It could be something about me not being fan of following journeys to actors and actresses which the 2 main characters of this book are.

We don’t learn much about the characters backstories even though we see glimpses of their past. We still remain in the dark about why exactly did Ethan divorce his ex-wife or why Gray’s relationship with her mother is so tense and hostile as it is. 

The writing style of this book was pretty generic to a YA-mixed-with-Romance novel type. Which really didn’t impress me. 

The writing style felt like the narrator of this story didn’t care either about the plot to tell it in a good way. Which in a way affected me because it gave me another thing to dislike about this book.

At times the writing style was confusing to me. Because it times the writing style would say something like “she stood behind him as he turned” and I wouldn’t know who “she” was until the next paragraph where the book decided to explain who “she” was.

Even thou I said plenty of negative things about this book. I still had a lot of fun with this book because it was a easygoing book where we as readers don’t have to use a lot of brain power to get through the book.

I Give This Book 3 / 5

“Legends & Lattes” By Travis Baldree Review

The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success — not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is. If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won’t be able to go it alone.

I gotta admit that the only reason why I have read this book is because this book has been showing a lot on my booktok feed and feel where saying how good and amazing this book is. So I decided to give this book a shot and I gotta admit that I really should stop reading those way overhyped book Tok books because they never work for me personally. 

The only thing which I liked about this book is the fact that it has the DnD-style fantasy vibe to it which I am a huge fan of. But the way the story is presented to us as readers I gotta admit that the author of this book didn’t use the potential which this book had.

The whole plot of this book is it is about Viv an orc which moves to a new city and decided to open a very early version of first ever coffee shop. I personally was very intrigued by this plot which made me read this book and after reading it I gotta admit that it wasn’t as good as I expected it to be.

The overall plot of this book aims to be a cozy and stress-free read. But even thou I tend to like cozy books I gotta admit that I didn’t like this book as much as I wanted to. The reason behind this is that the author of this book was trying almost too hard to make this book be cozy.

The action int this book is almost none-existed. Because this whole book is mostly about Viv opening a coffee shop even thou she has no idea how to run a business and she learned about it as she goes with the coffee shop. 

I personally found myself a lot of times to be very bored of this book or just skimming this book because the plot build the plot in such a way that any minute something might happen. But nothing ever happens in this book so basically I was waiting for something to happen for the entire book and nothing have happened which would make me like this book.

The writing style of this book is very simple and easy going. Which played very well with the cozy ish plot of this book. But other than that I gotta admit that at times I felt like the writing style in this book is too generic in a way. 

I personally feel that this book could have easily be a short story rather than 300 pages of just Viv making coffee and talking to be people about nothing. I feel like this book was entirely too long and that it could have been at maximum 100 pages long and it would only make this book better than it is now with 300 pages in which nothing really happens for the entire book other than making coffee and pastries.

The characters in this book are okay for the most part. I wasn’t a fan of the characters in this book. Because they felt like very generic fantasy characters. We didn’t learn much about the characters other than some glimpse into their backstories here and there throughout this book. 

There were times where the characters started to talk about their backstories but those times were quickly shut down by the character saying “oh well its not important anymore lets move on”. Which made me really annoyed because whats the point of bringing out the character’s backstory if you gonna shut it down after one paragraph or so? 

I Give This Book 2 / 5

“Lady’s Knight” By Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner Review

Gwen has spent the past several years manning the blacksmith’s in place of her father, an open secret in the village in which she lives. A much more covert secret, however, is that she knows not only how to craft but also how to wield a sword, and an incognito stunt at the local jousting tournament manages to catch the eye of the wily Lady Isobelle. Isobelle has secret dreams too, but she’s been promised in marriage to the winner of the whole stupid tournament, which means an end to any freedom or choices for her. Desperate to avoid this fate, when she connects the newcomer knight to the female smithy she saw earlier that day, she begins to hatch a scheme.

I gotta admit here that I was very skeptical about this book before reading it because I thought it was one of those overhyped books which I personally would hate. But I gotta admit that I really like this book. So if you are interested in hearing my thoughts about this book then keep reading this review.

The characters in this book were amazing. I personally liked a lot both Isobelle and Gwen because they had a lot of personalities to them which makes them stand out from the rest of the characters in this book. 

Both Isobelle and Gwen had something to them that made them feel like real human beings which I wouldn’t have any problems being friends with in real life. Which always makes me give the book extra points for when it happens.

However we don’t learn much about of Isobelle and Gwen’s backstory other than some key aspects which are relevant for the plot of this book. Which in a way didn’t make this book to this very long list of requirements to keep track of who is who in this book.

The romance aspect of this book was very slow but at the same time it was also pretty sweet and cozy which I liked a lot in this book because it really played very well together with the overall plot of this book. 

The plot in this book was very fun, interesting, enjoyable and cozy. This book is overall a typical fantasy book because it was knights, sword fighting and dragons. And the main character in this book is a female character which in a way made this book more relatable for me personally. 

The plot in this book has also some humor in it, which at times makes the anticipation  and tension in this book less tense at times. Which in a way helps this book to make it a relaxing read.

The writing style in this book is very typical to YA books. Which means that the writing style is very easy going and straightforward. The writing style which this book has goes very well with the plot of this book which in my opinion makes this book more enjoyable and easy to have fun with.

I need to admit that this book doesn’t quite feel like fantasy book until the very end of this book. Because this book has the historical fiction ish vibe to it. Which in my opinion is the only bad thing I can say about this book. I am not a huge fan of historical fiction books which means that I didn’t like the historical fiction ish vibe this book had which made me give this book 4 stars instead of 5.

I personally had a lot of fun reading this book because the plot is very cozy in this book and the characters in this book are very well created which makes them feel more likable and more relatable. At the same time the plot in this book doesn’t require a lot of brain power to it which means this is a perfect read when you just want to enjoy yourself without thinking a lot about what is happening.

I Give This Book 4 / 5

“THE LAST TRAIN I MISSED” By Udhaya nidhi Review

In a bustling train station on a sunny morning, a chance encounter between a red-shirted individual and a mysterious stranger sets the stage for an extraordinary journey. As the stranger shares tales of their life’s adventures—ranging from rocket science to crime writing to teaching—the red-shirted figure is drawn into a world of intrigue and possibility. With each revelation, the stranger’s diverse experiences offer a glimpse into the boundless potential of human existence. Yet, as the encounter unfolds, the true significance of their connection remains shrouded in mystery, leaving the red-shirted figure to ponder the profound insights gained from this unexpected meeting.

I gotta admit that this book is a decent read that offers a mix of nostalgia, reflection, and emotional moments. But if you want me to be very honest about this one then I gotta say that this one doesn’t quite stand out as extraordinary, it managed to interest me with its relatable themes and straightforward storytelling.

The story in this book touches on universal feelings of missed opportunities, regrets, and the passage of time.

The horse of this book is accessible and easy to follow, making it an ideal read for those looking for a light, reflective story.

There are a lot of genuine moments in this book of introspection that evoke empathy and thoughtfulness.

The story in this book follows familiar beats and doesn’t introduce many surprises, which have lefty me at times wanting more depth or originality.

The characters in this book are flat and one-dimensional because they have very limited backstory and almost no personalities to them which made it hard for me to like them or care about their journeys

The narrative of this book moves at a steady pace but sometimes feels a bit slow, especially in parts that could benefit from more tension or insight.

I Give This Book 3 / 5

“Notebooks” By Leonardo da Vinci Review

Most of what we know about Leonardo da Vinci, we know because of his notebooks. Some 6,000 sheets of notes and drawings survive, perhaps one-fifth of what he actually produced. With an artist’s eye and a scientist’s curiosity, he recorded in these pages his observations on the movement of water and the formation of rocks, the nature of flight and optics, anatomy, architecture, sculpture, and painting. He jotted down fables, epigrams, and letters and developed his belief in the sublime unity of nature and man. Through his notebooks we can get an insight into Leonardo’s thoughts, and his approach to work and life. This selection, organized in seven themed sections, offers a fascinating and informative sample of his writings. Fully updated, this new edition includes some 70 line drawings and a Preface by Martin Kemp, one of the world’s leading authorities on Leonardo, who explores the artist’s genius and the contents and legacy of his manuscripts. The book also features new notes and a chronology of Leonardo’s life.

I need to admit that this book have taken me a very long time to finish reading. But also this book had been laying on my shelf waiting to be read even longer than it took me to finish this book. But without making this into longer than it already is lets jump into the review of this book. 

First of all I gotta admit that the topics which this books talks about comes straight from Leonardo Da Vinci’s notebooks which he himself have written a very long time ago. I was very surprised to read about the topics which Leonardo Da Vinci has written about back in the Renaissance era.

This book have taken me a very long time to read as I’ve said above, because this book talks about a lot of advanced topics which I needed a lot of time to process and understand because I’m not that smart as Leonardo Da Vinci clearly was.

But I need to admit here that a lot of parts of this book doesn’t seem to have been meant to be read by other people than by Leonardo Da Vinci himself. They seemed like a lot of parts of this book where meant for Leonardo Da Vinci himself as notes to himself if he wanted to look back at some of his notes. Which is the main issue that I had about this book. Because there are a lot of moments of this book where I would get bored because a lot of parts of this book seemed like I was reading school textbook. 

This book involves a lot of drawings that Leonardo Da Vinci himself have made during his time, which made me give this book some extra points for doing. Because the drawings really helped me to understand what Leonardo Da Vinci was talking about in the notes which this book has.

The writing style of this book is very flat and almost school textbook like. But once again this book wasn’t exactly meant for readers as it was meant more like Leonardo Da Vinci making notes for himself for later use if needed.

I Give This Book 3 / 5

“Bird Box” By Josh Malerman Review

Something is out there, something terrifying that must not be seen. One glimpse of it, and a person is driven to deadly violence. No one knows what it is or where it came from. Five years after it began, a handful of scattered survivors remains, including Malorie and her two young children. Living in an abandoned house near the river, she has dreamed of fleeing to a place where they might be safe. Now that the boy and girl are four, it’s time to go, but the journey ahead will be terrifying: twenty miles downriver in a rowboat—blindfolded—with nothing to rely on but her wits and the children’s trained ears. One wrong choice and they will die. Something is following them all the while, but is it man, animal, or monster?

This review might be a very unpopular opinion about this book because of my rating of this book and my opinions about this book. So if you are interested in reading my controversial opinions about this book then keep reading. 

The plot of this book, is very overrated. Because a lot of people on the internet call this book “very terrifying” but in reality this book is everything but “terrifying”. After reading this book or trying to read this book I need to say that this book is very overhyped and it gets way too much credit for being scary even thou the scariest part of this book is that the author was able to write such a long book on a story that would easily be a good short story. 

The plot of this book drags for way too long than it needed to. Because easily if this book was cut in half we would still get the same story out of it. Which in my opinion says a lot about how much irrelevant things the plot in this book had.

The plot of this book moves very very slowly. And because of this there is almost no action in this book. At the same time I feel like the plot is very repetitive. Because 60% of this book is about the mother telling her kids to “don’t speak, listen” which made me wonder if thats the mother whole dialogue with her kids.

When it comes to the dialogues in this book they are very uninteresting and unrealistic. Because the dialogues are very stilted and they feel like the characters are written by a toddler who didn’t have any idea how grown ups talk to each other.

This book has 2 timelines which it follows, and I gotta admit that if the author was so set to have 2 timelines of the plot of this book. It would have worked better in my opinion to have 2 separate books. One book for each timeline. 

I personally found the second timeline to be very boring and uninteresting. Because the second timeline talks about everything that took place as the fear and apocalyptic events were first starting.  While the first timeline was way more interesting than the second. Because the first timeline takes place 5 years into the apocalypse of this book. Which I personally enjoyed way more than the second timeline of this book.

The plot build towards this big action taking place, but the action never comes in this book which really made me very annoyed at this book and at the author of this book.

The characters in this book in my opinion feel very underdeveloped and unexplored. Because this book doesn’t use a lot of time for us to get to known the characters. instead this book jumps straight into the action, and we have to figure out everything about the characters as the plot moves forward. 

I personally found the characters to be boring and uninteresting. Because of we don’t get to know them. At the same time the characters feel very unrealistic in a way. And the mom in this book instead of giving her 2 kids names she only calls them “boy” and “girl” which is their gender because she as one girl and one boy. Which really made me question what parent would not name their kids and only call them by their gender.

The writing style in this book is very stiff. For the most partite felt like the author wasn’t that interested in writing a good book instead he was more interested in the paycheck he would get for publishing this book. Which really speaks for itself here because I don’t am that harsh about the writing style in books.

I Give This Book 1 / 5

“The Strawberry Patch Pancake House” By Laurie Gilmore Review

As a renowned chef, single-dad Archer never planned on moving to a small town, let alone running a pancake restaurant. But Dream Harbor needs a new chef, and Archer needs a community to help raise his daughter, Olive. Iris has never managed to hold down a job for more than a few months. So when Mayor Kelly suggests Archer is looking for a nanny, and Iris might be available, she shudders at the thought. But in need of money she reluctantly agrees.

This book is the 4th book in the “Dream Harbor” book series. And I need to admit here that this book is in my opinion the weakest book in this series so far. But as always I will explain everything in this review so if you are interested then keep reading.

The plot is kinda of decent in this book. But it isn’t as cozy as in the other books in this series. There was something about the plot in this book that didn’t made me interested enough in it. 

The main reason why I didn’t like the plot in this book as much as in the other books in this series is because I’m not a big fan of the single-dad and the nanny hooking up and falling in love with each other. I personally am okay with a lot of things but the single-dad and the nanny has something to it which makes me uncomfortable. This is something which I don’t like in books I’m reading which is the main reason why I say that this book is the worst book in this series so far.

The majority of the book is just the single dad saying “I don’t want to live here” and “I don’t know how to be a parent”. While the nanny says “I cant believe I find my boss attractive”  and “I don’t like kids so why am I a nanny?”.  Those 4 lines are pretty much a dozen of times in this book. Which really made me bored and uninterested in this book because of how much those 4 lines are used in this book. Which made me feel like I’m reading the same thing over and over again for this entire book.

The characters here aren’t that good as they were in the 3 previous books in this book. It might have something to do that Archer is a completely new character in this series and we didn’t get him introduced to us in the previous books in this series. And when it comes to Iris, we only got her introduced to us in book 3 in this series. And even thou she was in book 3, we didn’t get to spend a lot of time with her or get to know her. 

In this book we don’t get to know Archer and Iris on a deeper level beside them freaking out about not knowing how to take care of a 5-year-old. All we get to know about Iris and Archer is that Iris had many jobs in her life and Archer worked in some fancy restaurants in Europe and wanted to be a famous cook. And thats pretty much all we get to know about those characters. 

The characters from previous books are pretty much none existing because we only get like 2 or 3 scenes where we get to see Kira (the main character from book 3) and we get one scene with Logan (the main character from book 1) and thats pretty much it. Which in a way annoyed me because I really loved the characters from the previous books in this series. And this book not having those characters feels in a way like a stand alone book rather than a book in a series. Because the previous books in this series had characters from the previous books in this series. 

The writing style was easily my favorite part of this book, because it was the same as in the other books in this series. The writing style in this book is easy and straightforward. The writing style is pretty much a YA writing style because of how easy and simple it is and it makes the book fast to read. At the same time the writing style really goes well with the easy going plot of this book.

I Give This Book 2 / 5