The Silent Sea Trailer

This new Korean TV show looks promising. It may be a good option for those like me who found the Squid Game too violent. 

 

Be the Santa with Mi

 

 

Newcomer by Keigo Igashino

In this novel, Keigo Igashino depicts life in a traditional Tokyo neighborhood where a woman is found strangled. All the characters are apparently normal but one of them is bound to be a murderer and detective Kaga is going to find out who with his remarkable investigative skills. Kaga's attention to detail and inquisitive mind make him an outstanding detective. He's a newcomer to this part of Tokyo but soon becomes acquainted with it.

What I liked most about the book is that in each chapter we learn about the residents of Ningyocho. A little bit about their problems and desires and the part they unwittingly played in the murder. At the beginning of the book, there's a list of characters that really comes in handy.

I love novels that take place in the beautiful city of Tokyo and I must admit I devoured many rice crackers and drank lots of green tea while reading this one. It won't disappoint you if you prefer character-driven stories to action-packed ones and if you like Igashino's unique writing style. I strongly recommend it to fans of Japanese literature and mystery readers.

Lost in Space Season Three

 I've finally finished watching the third season of these space misadventures and I must say it had quite a satisfying ending although I'm not going to spoil it for anybody. I think I enjoyed this season much more than the second one, it had lots of revelations and cliffhangers but since I binge-watched it I didn't suffer much. I strongly recommend it to fans of the show.

La Comunidad de Helene Flood.

Es difícil conocer bien a nuestros vecinos hoy en día. Todos tenemos muchas cosas que hacer y poco tiempo libre. Desde luego yo no los conozco apenas y Rikke la protagonista de La Comunidad tampoco los conoce tan bien como pensaba . Sobre todo teniendo en cuenta que uno de ellos puede ser un asesino.

La trama se desarrolla en una aparentemente tranquila zona de la ciudad de Tåsen en la que viven familias en bonitas casas con jardines. Lo único que ha ensombrecido un poco la paz han sido unos extraños sucesos con gatos. Por lo demás, los vecinos hacen su vida normal sin más preocupaciones que las habituales en la vida cotidiana hasta que uno de ellos aparece muerto. Jørgen , al que Rikke conocía un poco más que a los demás y del que le había atraído su capacidad de hacer parar el tiempo y su diente ligeramente torcido.

Todo cambia a partir de este terrible suceso y la vida de Rikke se vuelve mucho más complicada. No consigue dormir y se dedica a intentar investigar como puede por su cuenta. Sus dos hijos y su cariñoso marido aparentemente desconocen su sufrimiento. La obra está escrita en primera persona, no se ahonda demasiado en ningún personaje mas, lo cual se echa de menos y el lector se mete de lleno en los pensamientos de Rikke. No es una mujer perfecta ni mucho menos, ni madre perfecta ni buena esposa. Más bien tiene amplio margen de mejora en muchos aspectos pero no se hace un personaje desagradable aunque sus acciones sean cuestionables como poco.

La novela es bastante entretenida y creo que la calificaría dentro del género de suspense doméstico. El final me sorprendió en parte pero por otra parte vi venir que hay decisiones que cuando se toman tienen consecuencias tremendas y no hay marcha atrás posible. Desde luego recomiendo este libro para aficionados a este género. Ideal para leer en un día lluvioso con varias tazas de té.

The Orville will be back!

Relaxing music for Autumn.

 

Momoko y la gata de Mariko Koke: opinión.

Las novelas japonesas tienen algo especial para mi. El país me encanta y encuentro su cultura fascinante por lo que puede que no sea muy objetiva al comentar sobre ellas.
En Momoko y la gata no me han sorprendido las acciones de los personajes creo que se veía venir desde el principio que donde las dan, las toman.

El final me ha entristecido, pensaba que Momoko iba a poder seguir con su vida de alguna manera, pero hay cosas que no se pueden olvidar ni deshacer.

 
La decisión de Masayo de permanecer callada la entiendo debido a su juventud. En cierto modo ella también es una niña en muchos aspectos. De alguna forma me recuerda a Otra vuelta de tuerca, por la relación entre Masayo y la Momoko.

En general es un libro que recomiendo a amantes de la cultura japonesa y del misterio.

Amorino Ice Cream

 Some days I have a sweet tooth and Amorino ice cream is not only one of the cutest but one of the best as well!

Check their special Halloween Ice Cream, it looks amazing. 

www.amorino.com

For Your Own Good by Samantha Downing: review.

Set in an elite school where the rich and privileged attend, For Your Own Good will keep you up at night because it's simply undownputable.

At Belmont School, there are entitled teachers and entitled pupils and all of them think they do things for the good of others. Bribing, threatening, cheating, lying, and even killing are on the menu of the canteen.

Samantha Downing has developed the characters extremely well. We get to know them, understand their motives, feel sorry for them, and sometimes we don't want them to get caught, we sincerely want them to get their way with murder, and other times we hate them because what they do is despicable, to say the least.

This novel will make you wonder what your teachers are thinking and if you are a teacher, you may think twice before marking the paper of one of your least favourite pupils. It's fun and entertaining and it also gives you food for thought:
-Are teachers truly unbiased when they mark a paper or does the fact that they dislike/like a pupil play an important role in their final decision?
- Do pupils think that what teachers do is for the pupil's own good?
- Has social media made things easier or harder for both pupils and teachers?

All in all, I strongly recommend this novel to Teacher's of the Year, burnout teachers, A-grade students, and school dropouts. There's something in it for everybody.

Sport Bar: a must in San Sebastian.

 This bar, located in Fermín Calbetón street in San Sebastian is small and may not have the biggest variety of pintxos on display, however, the quality and the flavour of the ones they serve is outstanding. I loved it so much, that it was the only one I visited twice during my stay in the city.

Fried tomatoes with mozzarella and basil.

Crabmeat crêpe .

Grilled squid with a delicious sauce.

Their menu in Basque and Spanish.

Beef chop hamburger.

Visit their Facebook page here.

Kuhbonbon: Delicious German Candy!

Buttery, soft, and sweet!

 

Nissin sodas: a must-try for noodle fans.

 If you love cup noodles, you certainly must try Nissin's new and crazy idea: sodas with noodle flavours to celebrate its 50th anniversary.

La Brasserie Marie Galant in Donostia - San Sebastian: opinion.

 I recently visited this fancy restaurant to celebrate a special occasion and to enjoy the fine cuisine of the area. I wasn't disappointed, in fact, I was quite surprised by the quality of the food and by how professional the members of the staff were.

 The dining room was beautiful, the views of La Concha were magnificent and all in all, it was a really memorable experience.

The restaurant is located in La Concha promenade, on the ground floor of a beautiful hotel.

The dining room was quite elegant and comfortable.

First, we got a delicious appetizer of white sauce and serrano ham.

We had their popular fish soup which was incredibly tasty.

We also enjoyed some sautéed fried rice with prawns and an egg.

Then, an assorted fried dish.

And for dessert, some homemade cheesecake.



It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience in a classy Basque restaurant.

That Weekend by Kara Thomas: review.

Three and a half stars for this novel with some twists I certainly didn't see coming. I don't know why I thought it was going to be some kind of teenage story about love with a little bit of drama, I must have misread the blurb.

It turned out to be a lot of drama and not so much love. It turned out to be about what we are ready to do in order to survive both mentally and physically. What the characters go through is very well described so in a way the readers relate to what is happening and (almost) understand why they do what they do.

Even though it is considered a YA mystery I wouldn't recommend it to very young readers because some of the events could be really disturbing. However, I strongly recommend it to more mature readers who will enjoy the twists.

September is for self-care

 

Panchineta: a traditional Basque Cake from Casa Otaegui.

 One of the most popular and traditional cake shops in Donostia - San Sebastian is Otaegui. It was founded in 1886 and they are the creators of this famous Basque dessert. Panchineta cake combines crusty puff pastry, custard, and delicious toasted almonds. If you love cakes, you must try this one!

Flower of Evil: Actual Scenes VS BTS

 I've just started watching this Korean drama and I already love it!The plot is intriguing and the actors are really nice as you can see in this video. If you are a fan of Korean shows, I strongly recommend Flower of Evil.

Pictures of Donostia- San Sebastian.

 These are some of the pictures I took while I spent some days in this beautiful city.

Maria Cristina bridge over Urumea river.

Maria Cristina Hotel where the film stars usually stay during the festival.

The balconies in Constitution Square. People used to watch bullfights from them.

Saint Martin Church

Miramar Palace

The Kursaal Congress Centre and Auditorium where the famous film festival is held.

La Perla: A very fancy Spa, restaurant, and gym.

The city town hall used to be a casino.

This blue tunnel joins the beaches of La Concha and Ondarreta.

This is the church of Santa Maria in the old part of town.
         

This sculpture is called "The Harmony of sound" by Maximilian Pelzmann.

                    

Impostors by Scott Westerfeld: review.

It had been a long time since I read the Uglies series and I needed some fiction with a little bit of romance and Impostors has just what I wanted.
I loved the Uglies novels and I still remember some of the interesting aspects of that world. In Impostors, the story is further in the future but as interesting as the previous books by Scott Westerfeld. I know many people have said this before, but I cannot help saying it again: Scott Westerfeld does not disappoint!
I strongly recommend the Impostors series to fans of Uglies and if you haven't read any of them and are in the mood for some very good world-building, don't wait any longer.
Rumour has it that Netflix is doing an adaptation of Uglies. I just hope it's as good as the novel.

Urgull mountain in Donostia - San Sebastian: the best view of the city.

 Urgull Mountain is located at the end of La Concha bay and it's the best place to take photos of the whole city. There, you will see cannons a fortress, and a free museum. 

There are several ways to go all the way up to the mountain but all of them on foot and during the day since it closes at night. Head for the old part of town and ask a local and remember to wear comfortable shoes. 

You can find more information in English here.