Writing an unexpected post has always been exciting, and this one is no exception. I consider myself lucky to be able to get back on track in October, reading-wise, something I didn't know was possible earlier this month. Three is quite a large number of books read nowadays, and with two finished in one sitting, I'd say I've had quite a satisfying reading month.
(Review in Bahasa)
Dallegurt: Toko Penjual Mimpi bercerita tentang seorang karyawan baru bernama Penny di toko penjual mimpi bernama Dallegurt. Dijalani oleh Dallegurt sendiri, toko ini menjual berbagai macam mimpi yang tersebar dalam lima lantai: ada mimpi untuk menjadi orang lain, mimpi bertemu orang yang disukai, mimpi untuk hewan, mimpi tidur siang, dan lain sebagainya. Penny sendiri bertugas untuk menjaga pusat informasi di lantai 1 bersama Bibi Weather.
Secara keseluruhan, saya cukup menikmati Dallegurt: Toko Penjual Mimpi. Karena dikemas dengan latar unik dan ide segar, buku ini jelas mendapat poin plus tersendiri. Bagi para penikmat feel-good book yang lebih menyukai cerita tanpa ada konflik utama, buku ini jelas dapat menjadi pilihan, meski buat saya pribadi, 'greget' dari buku ini kurang terasa.
Following the story of Lily Weiss, a thirty-two single woman who is about to be a bridesmaid in five weddings within six weeks (two of the marriages ironically belong to her little siblings), this book is a series of chaotic events that will keep you entertain on the weekend. The stress of the upcoming weddings even when they are not technically hers is inevitable, and Lily finds the worst part of herself blog almost everything about the pressure.
For the Love of Friends is certainly an entertaining romance-comedy. It is cute, but obviously not Kasie-West's books cute, and it surprisingly is not steamy at all. Getting lost in the story felt effortless when the plot was fast and packed with wits. If you can't tell yet, I really, really enjoyed this book.
The Bride Test follows the story of a random match-making between Khai Diep and Esme Tran. Holding a belief that his heart is made of stone because of his autism, Khai has always been sure that he can't fall in love. That's why his Mom, after hell-bent on trying to introduce him to so many women, flies to Vietnam to secretly look for the perfect girl. In a hotel where she stays to interview potential candidates, his Mom meets a beautiful, mixed-race bathroom cleaner with green eyes whom not long after that goes by the name Esme. Driven by the desire to change her and her daughter's life for the better, Esme agrees to the arrangement and flies to California to live with Khai for the summer then tries seducing him into a marriage.
In conclusion, my feeling towards this book was quite mixed: the story was actually quite enjoyable, but some scenes felt undeniably awkward. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. Esme's hardworking nature sent a powerful message that I have always been a fan of: that hard work eventually pays off. I liked the other characters too: Quan, Vy, and even Khai's mother; genuine people who saw beneath appearances. The writing style made the narrative flowed really well also. But some scenes felt rather unrealistic, and Esme should have given Khai's battle more of her focus.
