Book Review: Swan and The Jackal

 The Swan the Jackal (In the Company of Killers Series Book 3) is superb!

I have enjoyed reading the whole book, even though my emotions went through a roller coaster ride. I can't stress enough how much I love the "In the Company of Killers" series by J.A. Redmerski. I have experienced heartbreak, anger, happiness and shock. I was basically an emotional wreck. If you loved Killing Sarai (my review) and Reviving Izabel (my review), then you better prepare yourselves with this one. I can't believe how time after time the author keeps on creating something unique and amazing.

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Synopsis from Amazon:

"Fredrik Gustavsson never considered the possibility of love, or that anyone could ever understand or accept his dark and bloody lifestyle--until he met Seraphina, a woman as vicious and blood-thirsty as Fredrik himself. They spent two short but unforgettable years together, full of lust and killing and the darkest kind of love that two people can share.

And then Seraphina was gone.

It's been six years since Fredrik's lover and sadistic partner in crime turned his world upside-down. Seraphina went into hiding and has eluded him ever since. Now, he's getting closer to finding her, and an innocent woman named Cassia is the key to drawing Seraphina from the shadows. But Cassia--after sustaining injuries from a fire that Seraphina ignited--suffers from amnesia and can't give Fredrik the information he desperately seeks. Having no other choice, Fredrik has been keeping Cassia locked in his basement as he not only tries to get her to recall her past--because she and Seraphina share it--but also to protect her from Seraphina, who clearly wants her dead.

But Cassia is a light in the darkness that Fredrik never believed existed. After a year subjected to her kindness and compassion, he finds himself struggling with his love for Seraphina, and his growing feelings for Cassia--because he knows that to love one, the other must die.

Will light win out over darkness, or will something more powerful than either further destroy an already tortured soul?"

Fredrik is currently my favorite character from the series. He was like the perfect gentleman in some weird twisted way. Actually, I take that back. He's not the perfect gentleman, but he does have what it takes to be one. I guess you could say he's a gentleman to some women, particularly friends and lovers of his. When I think of Fredrik, I think of Matt Bomer. He has that appeal that draws your attention.

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Cassie is this sweet innocent girl who has an amazing voice. I liked Cassie because of how innocent she is without acting too dependent or weak. Fredrik kidnapped her, but she still falls in love with him. Stockholm Syndrome anyone? Like what Fredrik thinks, Cassia is the light. I believe she is. 

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I wanted to edit a photo of Seraphina and Fredrik. I felt as if the photo clearly shows their relationship. She is dangerous to him, but he loves her nonetheless and vice versa. I am in love with his love. He is willing to do everything to get Seraphina back, but he is also showing a different kind of love to Cassia. He gets so torn up between the two it breaks my heart.

That is what it is... Heart Breaking. I am torn between Cassia and Seraphina. I want to vote for Cassia, but Seraphina also loves Fredrik very much. It definitely is light vs. dark. The book was simply amazing. I love J.A. Redmerski. I love her because she caught me off guard. I did NOT see the twist at all. I have read and reread the book. I still feel the emotions it gives off every time. Hands down my favorite book of the year. I don't want to give out any spoilers. It was a hell of a book. I'd rather you read and find out for yourself. And the ending? Gosh the ending made me cry.

I want to share this line from the book. "Break my body! Break my will, Fredrik! But don’t break my goddamn heart!" Broke my heart...

As a conclusion, Buy the Book, Go Read it and see what I mean. This is my cup of tea. I love it and I want to read more. There is a book that will come out though called "Seeds of Iniquity" it contains the back story of Fredrik and according to the author, possibly some of the other characters as well. No release day yet, but I'm excited.

5 Stars!

Publisher: Unknown - 6:16 PM

Announcement: Back to Posting

Hi Everyone!

I haven't completed everything I want the website to have and feature, but I was worried about not posting. I decided to continue posting while I am doing a few more things to the blog. I hope you like the new layout!

-Jaly Publisher: Unknown - 6:16 PM

World Environment Day

Hi Everyone!

I was not going to publish any more posts till I finish editing the blog, but I wanted to share something I believe in. I wanted to share something that I think people should take more notice of.

Whether we accept it or not climate change is happening and we have the power

I know it may be a little late, but I wanted to write about the World Environment Day. According to UN.org this is celebrated every June 5th. This day is supposed to raise global awareness to take steps, no matter how big or how small, to protect and conserve the environment.

I look at this photo and feel blessed for living somewhere that sustains my needs. I feel blessed because the planet I live in is filled with such beauty. I feel blessed because I get to see the vast array of plant and animal species the Earth has to offer.

Since my post is about World Environment day, I wanted to share photos that capture the beauty of our planet:

I just love how each photo is vibrant and filled with life. The World Environment Day is something that should be celebrated every day, not just one day a year.It's something that people should take notice of. The earth is  still beautiful, but not as beautiful as it was years ago. Just look at the following before and after photos.

 Image: Before and After: Himalayas from "http://communicationleadership.usc.edu/blog/filmmaker_david_breashears_climate_change_evident_even_on_everest.html"

Image: Before and After: Tar Sand Exploration from "http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/08/18/1008331/-Join-me-to-Protest-the-Keystone-XL-Pipeline"

I've read both articles and I am saddened at what is happening. When will we wake up from the illusion that there is nothing drastic happening to our planet? Will people continue to act blind? Every day, we lose time, time that is essential for us to change something, to stop this. I've created a short poem that you may or may not like. I wanted to express my thoughts in a different manner.

 Every day

Every day, we cause more pollution,

will we ever stop?

Every day, we cause further damage,

how far can we go?

Every day, we find no solution,

are we all doomed?

Every day, we all face the challenge,

can we stop climate change?

will you stop climate change?

yes? no? maybe? which one is it?

Every day, we hear people say they will change the world,

do they mean for the better or for the worse?

Every day, we hear people promise that they'll take a stand,

are they actually doing it?

Every day, we see people act like they care,

do they really?

Every day, we see people who do not care,

ignorance is bliss

Every day, it's like we're asking for more natural disasters,

is this what we want?

Every day, we ignore nature's cry for help,

until when can we act deaf?

Every day, we take and take from what's left of nature,

how long will it last?

Every day, we slowly kill mother earth,

do you even care?

I sit here and wonder when will the people wake up? When there are mountains and mountains of trash everywhere?

When there is nothing but drought?

When we no longer have no clean water? 

When the Children are left hungry because we've destroyed the environment? 

Image by Army Amber from Pixabay

Or when Natural Disasters run rampant and destroy our cities and take millions of lives?






What kind of Earth will the next generation see? What kind of Earth will your children live in?

What can we do to help the environment? Stopping climate change and saving the planet is no easy task to do. I know that the usual thing people say is we all should individually do the "little things". I've heard seminar speakers say it, I heard political candidates say it, I heard teachers say it, I heard my mom say it, I heard almost every one say it. The thing is, no matter how little we think of it, if we all do it together, it becomes one big solution to a big problem. The problem lies in us though. Will we do it? Will we all try and save the planet? Or will people treat them like new year resolutions and forget about them after a few days? 

Maybe.... just maybe, we can do something worthwhile if you're up to it. 

I've stumbled upon www.unep.com. They have something called the WED Challenge where you pick a team and pledge to do something to help the environment.

 There are four teams which consist of:

Team Don: "Get on Board and Power Down"

Team Gisele: "Reduce your Food Print"

Team Ian: "Connect to Go Greener"

Team Yaya: "Purge Plastics"

I decided to create small pledges to all the teams... (even forgot I used my main email address in the first one)

After you click the Make your pledge button, you'll see this:

Then... this happened to the last one:

I don't know why it happened. The purpose of the website is to raise awareness. I think it was created so that people would feel inspired to do something themselves, no matter how small their pledge is. If something like this happens to you, then it's okay. The important thing is not creating a pledge on a website. The important thing is you are promising yourself something, no matter how small it is, that will help the environment. 

I plan on following through with my pledges and I will probably make another post about it in the future. It will be something like an update on what I'm doing. I hope you could join me in doing small pledges. We can make a difference if we try. 

I really wasn't sure how I'd make this post. Somehow, I made it this far. I started with feeling appreciative of our planet and ended with a pledge that I will do something to help the environment. I hope you enjoyed reading. 

After all this, will you do something to help? 

PS: A quick thumbs up to Army Amber who has taken a photograph I have above. She posted them on pixabay which have free photos people could use. Her photos enthralled me, which is why I thought I'd give her a special mention. Like what one of the photo's comments said "I enjoy how your pictures captivate the feeling of the children"(From: Curtisana).  I really do. Thanks for uploading beautiful photos Amber ♥

♥ J

Publisher: Unknown - 5:27 AM

Announcement

Hi Everyone!

I am still in the process of editing my blog. I am trying my best to make it look the way I want it to look. I am also trying to add several features onto it which I'm finding a bit hard because I'm also editing the html code. I have several posts on hold because I wanted to finish the layout of the blog first before I start posting again, to make it easier whenever I edit the labels and such. If you noticed, I've put in a section for fashion, lifestyle, games, events and more. I want to expand the topics I write about. I want to share more of my experiences with you guys. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoy making them.

I am doing my best to finish the blog as soon as possible and I hope you can bear with me. I can't work on the site for the whole day because I also have other things to do. I hope you understand.  I am trying to live my life to the fullest by doing the things that make me happy. This is one of the things that do and I am working on it.

I made Book, Movie, Food, and Game Reviews which will all be posted soon. If you haven't already, follow me via email, google+ and/or google itself to be notified when I am done. Thank you for checking this out and I hope you come back soon for more. Toodles xo~

<3 -J Publisher: Unknown - 6:52 AM

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test post 1 Publisher: Unknown - 12:51 AM

Food Review: Yellow Cab's Grilled Lime Chicken Folded Pizza

Hi Lovelies! Have you been to Yellow Cab recently? Well, as you can see, I have. I've decided to have lunch there with my friends and I ordered a Grilled Lime Chicken Folded Pizza. I bought it for 165 pesos and I was not able to track the time it took to be brought to me because I went out to buy myself a nice drink, since I did not like they currently had. That and I wanted to do something because I'm not a big fan of waiting. Anyway, we went to the Insular Life Building Branch in Makati City. If I was not able to inform everyone in my previous posts, I am from the Philippines. 

This is a photo taken from Yellow Cab's Website. It is the advertised photo of the Grilled Lime Chicken Folded Pizza. This is a nice photo that makes me feel hungry. Seriously, I'm a tad hungry at the moment. 

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Now, this is the photo I took after I had my first bite. No editing was done, except adding my blog's address. I do apologize because I was unable to take a photo of the inside of it, but I have to say I was not impressed with how it looked. If you zoom in on the sides, it was burnt and a little hard when eaten. That was the case for all the sides. The inside didn't really have as much "filling" as I expected as well. If you could see, it was pretty flat and the only filling I get near the sides are the greens. I get that food looks very different from its advertised photo, but I expected a little more from Yellow Cab. 

I've been a fan of Yellow Cab for a few Years and my favorite has always been the 18' Manhattan Meatlovers. Their thin crust pizza mixed with the strong flavors of their meat is just amazing. I absolutely love it. Right now though, I feel like I'd have to stick with the normal pizzas that are for sharing if their my size folded pizzas are similar to this one. There are a few things I noticed with my order, which are:

1. I can't stress enough that I did not like the burnt parts. If I told the employees about it though and if they would change it for me, I would not have the time to eat it at all. I have a 1 hour lunch break and if they are to make another one, it'd probably be done by the time my break is up too. Let me remind you that I had to go there, make an order and wait. There is not enough time even if they were to give it to me in 12-15 minutes. 

2. The Greens were a little overpowering. I'd like to think that since I ordered Grilled Lime Chicken Folded Pizza, the "star" of the dish would be the chicken. Unfortunately, the greens were the ones that I always tasted. 

3. The Sauce was Nice. Being the weird person that I am, I always eat the side of a dish first. I eat the middle last because that is the part that contains the most flavor. Once I got to the middle, I was finally able to taste the sauce and I really liked it. If I could taste that throughout the dish, I'd be a very happy girl. 

4. The Ambiance of the Place was calming. Working in a fast paced environment, everything is always busy. To say that it was lunch time and almost every fast food place or restaurant is packed, the ambiance the branch provides is quite peaceful. I really had a break from work and I have to note how the temperature is just right. I don't like eating somewhere too hot or too cold. 

5. They have Good Staff. I have to say that I am a little indecisive. It was my first time to eat the folded pizza and I was unsure what to pick. I was talking to the cashier asking her what the best seller for the folded pizzas were and she said it was either the Grilled Lime or the Shrimp. Since she gave me two answers, I still could not decide. I hate wasting money on food I do not like. I noticed someone behind me so I let them go ahead and I looked at the menu on the side. After I finally decided, I ordered and told her it was to go and I'd be back. I went out for a couple of minutes and went back. When I got back my friends finished ordering at a nearby Chowking and decided we could stay at Yellow Cab to eat. Realizing I did not have anything to drink, I was about to go out to find something when I passed by another one of our friends who will be joining us and she decided to buy something from Yellow Cab as well. While she ordered the same thing, I informed the cashier I'd like my order to be for "dine in" and I left. She obliged and went on to finish my order. Long story short, I was indecisive and the staff complied to everything I liked. Kudos to that cashier.

Perhaps some of you are thinking about how hard I am on my critique, and I do agree. I'm a little harsh, but I am telling you how it is. If it was me and I was planning on trying something out, would I like to read about how perfect something is, when in fact it is not? No. I want to know the facts. I want to know if I should buy it or not. 

Do I recommend this product? If you would not mind the negative things I have told you and would like a taste of the nice middle part I liked, then go right ahead. I'm not sure if those things only happened to me, because my friend who ordered the same thing had a better dish, or at least I think so. I saw her munching on the sides and it didn't really have as much burns and I saw some sauce in it wherein mine was dry. 

Let's say I recommend Yellow Cab's Normal Pizzas. I love them, I have yet to review them, but if I did they would probably be high. I liked this Grilled Lime Chicken Folded Pizza, but not as much as I wanted. The middle part was great, and if I could have another which was better, I'd give this review an update. Maybe it was just the branch? Or it was a little incident that was overlooked? I don't know. 

I want to love the Grilled Lime Chicken Folded Pizza from Yellow Cab, but the one I got was not satisfying enough. Don't let this product give you a bad image of Yellow Cab, because if I said it before, I will say it again. I love their Pizzas and I think you should try them if you have not. Try the Manhattan Meatlovers if you plan on ordering. Check out the site here: Yellow Cab's Website

Metro Manila Delivery Hotline: 789 - 9999

Grilled Lime Chicken Folded Pizza: ★★½ ~~ 2.5 Stars!

Publisher: Unknown - 12:22 AM

Adventures of an Intern: 7 Things you Learn

Hello Lovelies! As promised, I bring you my work post which will be about what I am doing for the summer. An internship is one of our school's requirements in order to graduate. I both loved and hated the fact that I will be working while its summer vacation. This will be the last summer break I'll be experiencing which is why it is important for me to enjoy it. I am ecstatic that I will be leaving school soon and I will be off to earn actual money to sustain myself, but it also terrifies me to leave university and be on the path to adulthood. I am worried about employment right after college. I wouldn't really have the work experience most companies look for, but how exactly will I earn that experience if they don't try to hire me? College is my comfort zone. It's easy to create friends, I can procrastinate if I don't feel like doing anything and I can have a little fun. I have always been confident, at least I think I have and now that I am near the end of this chapter of my life, I am actually scared of not becoming the person I want to be. I am scared of not fulfilling my dreams. There are so many things that both terrify and excite me about going to and leaving university, but that's another topic for another post. For now, let me tell you a little about my internship.

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I will be working for a car company in the Sales Department. I am assigned to work in the Sales Information and Process Management Division. I will mostly be doing admin. work which I pretty much expected. We were told that we aren't to be given the important work because there are people assigned and fully paid to do them. Those types of work would also require extra care because the department handles obviously the sales and the incentives given to the dealers. Basically, we are to photocopy, sort and arrange documents, scan files, encode, etc. I also can't give you much detail since we are to maintain confidentiality of data. Anyway I think you get the gist of the work I'll be doing.

There are several things I've thought of and felt in my stay there, which are:

1. The Fear of the unknown. My first day sort of terrified me because I don't really know the type of work I'll be doing. I've expected a lot of admin. work, even though I did want to help out on some projects and be able to brainstorm with the team. The fear of the unknown had me that first day. Being me, I want to help out and do something great with my life. Before I end my internship I'd like to feel like I actually did something to help the company.

2. Work Overload. I started off not having much to do. I always ask if there is anything they'd like me to do. I have this mind that tells me to keep asking for work when I don't have anything to do. Does it mean I like doing what I do? Am I just trying to keep myself busy not to get bored? Or am I just trying to make the most out of the day? I don't know but I like it. I like keeping myself busy and working in a fast paced environment. After a few days, I've been getting tons of work to do and I no longer know if I should be happy because I can keep myself busy and not feel the time pass by or be a little sad because I'll be tired and I'll probably get more paper cuts. Apparently, I've been getting a lot of paper cuts from handling the documents, and it's not fun at all. I hate getting them, but I can't seem to avoid them. I try to be careful with the papers, but it's like I'm a paper cut magnet.

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3. It's important to love what you do. I saw this little note which was attached to the CPU of the computer I've been using. I thought the quote was very fitting for me because I always try to love what I do, no matter what it is I learn to enjoy doing it. If I did not I would be dreading doing it for the whole day. I'd probably even think of it at night asking myself "Why am I not doing what I love?". I have this issue where I'd like to do what I enjoy doing and if I don't I'd instantly feel like I am wasting my life. I don't want to waste my time doing something that does not interest me at all.

At work, I am not fond of photocopying documents. Back when my friend and I were still looking for companies to apply to, there were a few companies we didn't want to apply to because we were told the interns were only asked to photocopy documents, and now I am asked to do just that. I can't do anything about it, but to endure doing it. I always tell myself that we can't always get what we want. There are some tasks that must be done and I am still just an intern, so if I am told to do it, I would have to do it. My grades rely on the work I do, which is why I have to do great work even if its just photocopying. If I photocopy documents the whole day, the following day I'd feel like the meme below that just doesn't want to go to work. I somehow always get that out of my mind though when I think of what I want to accomplish in my life. I can't let simple tasks get me down. No matter how much I don't like it, I have other things I'll be doing which I will actually like and the it won't make me feel like it was a waste of time.

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I would like to stress out the important things these little things do. If you did not have a photocopy of a document you were to send out, let's say a Certificate of some sort for registration, you would not have your receiving copy for proof that it has been sent and it wasn't your fault if ever it gets lost. If you didn't have people to arrange your documents, it would be a disaster if you are trying to look for an important file. You get what I mean?

4. It's important to have a lot of patience. Let's say you do not love the work you do, or you do, but there's too much work to be done, I can't explain enough the importance of patience. We all have to suck it in sometimes and just do what we have to. There will be tasks you would not like, even hate, but you would have to do it. Just do what you have to and be like

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when you get out of work. Tomorrow shouldn't be so bad, always think positive. If it is,and you hate what you do, maybe it is about time you think twice about your work. 

5. Work Smart. The meme says it all. Sometimes its better to find the easy or smart way of doing something instead of just doubling your efforts. Think of how much time and effort you'll not be exerting if you think before you act.

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6. Salary, or in my case, allowance money. Is this not the reason you've been working? you don't really work just because you love your work, and you just want to do what you love, but because the company is giving you something in return for the work you've done. May it be money, benefits or experience for your resume, you get something back. We all have to sustain ourselves and we do it with money. If you are a fresh graduate, you may endure bad work for experience to get better work, or if you are like me and you need experience to be able to graduate and get grades [because internship is graded]. Honestly, will you work for free? Spend 8 hours doing things your boss tells you to do just because?

Another thing, I've heard there are companies that say this meme a lot:

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Oh I really hope it does not happen to me. We were told that if we do good work, the company usually offers the graduates work right before you graduate which will be convenient. We were not told that we are to get a good salary, but I already expected it. If you just graduated I don't really think you could expect much. I feel sorry for people who are told this meme to though.

7. Not Enough Time for Me. At the end of the day, I always notice that it's usually too late to do some "me time". I get off at around 5, sometimes past five because I still have work to finish and I'll probably be home after 30 minutes. The gym I go to will be closed by the time I get there and I'll be too tired to care. I told myself I'll be working out more often, but I can't seem to do it when I have work the next day. I'd like to work out and live healthy, but it is too hard when lunch consists of eating at fast food places which are the only stores near the office and I can't work out after work because the gym would be closed and it will be too dark or late to jog in the park. I also find it hard to blog at night because I'd be exhausted and the only thing I'd like to do is watch a few Youtube videos and go to bed.

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There are so many things I'd like to do before I graduate and start to work, and I'm scared I'll spend my life inside an office I don't like and I'll be doing work I don't want, which is why I'll be doing Project Me.This project will consist of me trying my dreams and living out my life. I realized how important creativity is for me and I wish to try out several things like writing a book, creating Youtube videos, continuing my blog posts and designing clothes. I refuse to live my life not doing what I want. I want to travel the world! I want to see what every country has to offer. I am not entirely sure what my plan will be, but I do know it will make me happy. If you are like me and you aren't sure what you'll be doing yet, don't fret and take things one step at a time. It's scary to leave your comfort zone, but you'll find something that will help you see the brighter side of the day and help you get through the hard times to be able to fulfill all of your dreams. Dream Big, Fly High. [I don't know if someone already said that but I like it, if someone has, kudos to the creator]


Note: I'll probably make this a series. I think it has a nice ring to it "Adventures of an Intern". If you liked my post, please subscribe or follow me with your google account. That's all for now, thank you for reading and I'll see you soon. Publisher: Unknown - 6:59 PM