Posted on by Catherine

The Gift She Never Thought She’d Get: A Scarred and Scattered Short Story

My intro and official return to this site is on the previous short story post. (The two are unrelated, so you don’t have to read one to understand the other, but it would make me very happy if you read both!) Without further ado, here is Comet’s story!

Comet

December 25th

7:30 am

Charlotte is home in Basil Hills for the Christmas season, and I wish I could have told Scar and Brescia. 

But Charlotte has no real reason or way to contact Jack and his family, and so I’m here in Basil Hills, where the light dusting of snow on the trees looks too magical to be real, and it’s early morning on Christmas day. 

The house is quiet. Everyone must be asleep. It’s been busy with Charlotte’s extended family staying the night too, as well as a new friend she’s met in her university classes who didn’t have any family to come home to, so Charlotte, in her ever generous nature, drove her new friend Clara home with her. 

Clara’s sleeping in Charlotte’s room on the floor in a sleeping bag, so I’m reduced to sleeping in the living room. But there’s Christmas classical music playing in the background from a radio somewhere, and the light on the trees is just light enough to be comforting while not having the disruptive power to keep me awake in its brilliance. 

Underneath the tree are brightly wrapped presents in silver, gold, green, and red. There are bags with tissue paper billowing out the top like smoke from a fire. And on the topic of fire, the fireplace is low and has been going all night, making no noise and just being there to provide ambience. Our windows are closed and frosty, with snowflake-like patterns forming a beautiful crust over them. 

A light goes on in the kitchen and I see Charlotte’s mom is awake and making coffee. I get up, stretch, and walk over to her. She grins when she sees me and gives me a loving pat on the top of my head. 

“Atta good girl, Comet. How’d you sleep? You sleep all right in this big, busy house full of big, busy people?” Charlotte’s mom kneels down and pets me, and I can’t help how my tail wags. I’ve gotten to love that little reaction of mine – when my big tail hits my legs and tickles my back, it brings me a small sense of joy that’s quite unique to family life at Charlotte’s. 

I want to start barking with joy, but I remember that most of the house is asleep, and I settle for panting and lying belly-down on the tile floor. Charlotte’s mom puts food in my bowl and as I eat, the sound of the coffee maker brings a certain home-y energy that I can’t quite put into words. 

Soon, there are more sounds of footsteps and the light creaking of a door. It’s Charlotte’s friend, Clara. She’s in an oversize tee-shirt with small candy cane patterns all over it, and some of the fuzziest red pants I’ve seen in a long time. Her dark, straight hair falls down her back and it’s somewhat tangled, and as she rubs her nose, I notice a little hole in it: she’s taken her nose ring out for the night. 

“Good morning, dear,” says Charlotte’s mom. “Do you drink coffee?”

“Thank you… yes, I do,” says Clara, her voice deeper than I remember. “Sorry, morning voice,” she adds with a clearing of her throat. Charlotte’s mom chuckles.

“Coffee will be ready very soon dear. Do you take milk, sugar, or cream?” 

“Milk would be great, thanks. You’ve been very kind.”

“Oh, it’s no worry at all! Any friend of Charlotte’s is welcome here, and you’ve been an absolute angel since you came!”

Clara flushes slightly, and smiles gratefully. 

“You know, you’re not the only one who Charlotte’s taken in, so to speak,” says Charlotte’s mom, pointing down at me. “Frankly, it’s none of my business what your business is with your folks, but Comet here used to be a stray. Charlotte spent many days getting to know her and getting her accustomed to life surrounded by love and kindness.” 

I was surrounded by love and kindness. But of course, Charlotte’s mom wouldn’t know that. 

Clara sits down cross-legged in front of me and looks at me with solemn, sad eyes. They remind me a little bit of Brescia’s eyes – they’re a darker brown than Brescia’s are, but they have the same depth to them. The same warmth. Clara hesitantly reaches her hand out and I walk up to her, placing my head underneath her outstretched palm. 

“My dad died before I was old enough to remember him. My mom did her best, I suppose, but we still never really had the best of relationships. Technically, I could have gone home with my mom and stepdad, but I felt like it would just dissolve into something uncomfortable,” said Clara in a voice just a little louder than a whisper. “I told myself I’d go if they invited me, because at least it would show they cared.”

I approach Clara and lay my head on her legs. I can feel her breathing more deeply now, and I can feel her visibly relax to the point where she almost slumps forward a little bit. 

“Thank you, again, Ms. Riemann. This has been the first Christmas in a while that’s actually gone well for me.” 

“You’re absolutely welcome, dear. Charlotte speaks highly of you, you know.” 

Clara grins. 

“Yo, Clara!” calls Charlotte from across the hall. “I’m up, where’d you go?”

Clara sighs, gets up, and goes to Charlotte’s room. I follow her, only to pass the many rooms of Charlotte’s siblings. Jeremy has a sports-themed room with trophies and posters on the walls. Quinn seems to be very much into space, with star stickers on her ceiling that seem to glow. Her twin Kyle has a pretty plain room except for two bookshelves against the back wall, neatly organized, but I can’t tell in which order.

“Morning, Comet – no, no, out of the room for now. It’s…” Charlotte looks back over her shoulder. “…there isn’t enough floor space with Clara’s mattress. No – Clara, I swear, don’t even worry about it. Jer and the twins should be already up by now, it’s later in the morning than I thought. No – Clara, if you apologize about being here one more time, I’m…” 

I turn from the friends and shake my head affectionately. This is to be expected from Charlotte. She is affectionate and stubborn, a lot like me and other members of my family. Maybe that’s why we get along so well. 

I get into Jeremy’s room first – the sports one – and he is fast asleep, his arm and almost half his body hanging over the side of his bed. I climb up onto the bed and lay down next to him, and I can feel the bed dip under me. Jeremy doesn’t move, so I make one low and loud woof. He snorts and stretches. 

“Oh god, Charlotte sent you. Okay, I’m up,” he says. “CHARLOTTE! COME GET COMET, I’M AWAKE!”

“GET HER OUT YOURSELF, I’M WITH CLARA!”

“FINE…”

Jeremy rolls off the bed and onto the floor, bringing the blanket with him. I follow him off the bed, sniff him once or twice, then saunter out of the room successfully. The screaming seems to have woken up the twins, who are standing in the doorway with tired eyes and a yawn or two. 

Clara and Charlotte get out of the room as well, and Clara sticks her phone in a pocket that I didn’t think existed on the fluffy red pants. 

“Merry Christmas, everybody,” says Clara with a grin. “I brought stuff for you, I didn’t know when the best time to give it out was…” she adds sheepishly. 

“In our house, we all sit around the tree and open gifts one at a time: I hope that’s okay!” says Quinn. 

“Oh – of course! Whatever works for your family, of course.”

“Santa could have visited a second time and left in the time it takes you guys to get ready for breakfast,” says Charlotte’s dad with a laugh as he comes down the hall. “Clara, how’d you sleep? These kids give you any trouble?” He ruffles Quinn’s hair, and she protests, waving him away from her head.

“The night was very peaceful, thank you,” says Clara gently. “It’s been a very pleasant stay.”

“Glad to hear it! Come on down, there’s coffee, hot chocolate, and pancakes.” 

🐾

Once everyone sits down around the Christmas tree, filled with pancakes but sipping on whatever hot drink Charlotte’s mom made, they start opening gifts. I watch as everyone opens a gift in turn, then hugs whoever it was that the gift was from. Clara brought the family a couple boxes of chocolates that are apparently some kind of luxury chocolates, by the way that everyone reacted to them. Clara blushed and said she ‘couldn’t come empty-handed’ and that Charlotte had once said they were her family’s favourite, so it was ‘only natural’.

Even I got a gift: a new chew toy and a big bone. 

As the family went to their various morning activities, I followed Charlotte and Clara, holding my chew toy since, according to the adults, the ‘bone stays in the kitchen’. 

Now that I had more time to think, I was brought back to the Christmases I had at the Den. We were stuck in an endless loop of having just enough, then having nothing, and needing to provide basic necessities. It just wasn’t possible to give gifts as extravagant and meaningful to those we loved. We would try, of course: Scar would take over some Alpha duties while Brescia was left to relax and enjoy a day off. Sometimes he would bring Brescia to special places and they’d enjoy a day to themselves, and I’d take over Alpha duties with Trey and M by my side.

We’d always joke, the three of us, about the kinds of gifts we’d give each other. It was more-or-less the same stuff every year, but it got funnier as time went on because they’d always get more elaborate. 

🐾

“Merry Christmas, guys – the most wondrous time of the year. Live, laugh, it’s really damn cold and our Christmas gift from the world this year is that another plank broke off the Den in the wind,” she pointed out with a snort. 

“I’ll push you into a snowbank,” I said. “It’ll be a surprise gift: forget Santa at night, it’s just Comet coming in the middle of the day to push you in a snowbank. Because what are friends for?”

“I think it’s just me being here that is a gift to you guys,” said Trey with her signature snark. “I’d appreciate a little revelling in my presence as a form of gratitude. I also accept a week of night duty instead of me having to do it.”

At that point, I’d push Trey into the snowbank, revelling instead in the peals of laughter from M. 

🐾

We joked about it, yes. But now, with Trey gone, her being here would be the gift of a lifetime. 

The day is slow, and I decide to nap under the (now empty) Christmas tree. But as I start getting closer to waking up, closer to opening my eyes and facing the day, a dream slips into my consciousness. Or is it unconsciousness at this point? Either way, a small conversation plays itself out in my head as my brain enters the final stage of sleep. 

🐾

I’m in the Den again, and it’s winter. It’s cold, or at least, I should feel cold, but it’s a dream. I’m comfortable, and I can enjoy the beauty that the light covering of snow gives my home. 

“Merry Christmas, Comet,” comes a voice from beside me, and I turn to see a black Labrador. One that I thought I would never see in my life. 

“Trey,” I breathe, and barrel into her with excitement. As we roll over, and I find myself on top of her, I jump off and start berating her. “Where do you get the absolute audacity to die six months ago and then wander into my dreams on Christmas like nothing ever happened?” 

Trey laughs, getting to her feet. 

“You said it yourself, it’s a dream. None of this is really my doing. I think, if anything, you brought me here. I’m probably saying exactly what you want me to say, or at least exactly what you want the conjured-up, dream-scape version of me to say.”

I lay back down on the Den floor with a sigh.

“I miss you, Trey. I’ve been missing you for months. I don’t think that will ever stop.”

“I miss you too. But… I also don’t regret what I did.”

“And I wouldn’t want you to. You saved lives. I would have saved yours if I could.”

“Comet, don’t go back to that. Don’t… don’t do this to yourself. What’s done is done. It was six months ago. I’m gone, yes. You can’t change anything anymore. There’s no point in ruminating over what could have been.”

“Right… right.” I sigh, and turn to look at her. She has a slight glow about her in my dreams. “Every dream I’ve had of you since has been a bad one. I wake up crying, or sweating, or heart racing. How is this happening?”

“It’s a dream. I don’t know.”

I stay silent for a bit. I don’t want to wake up, but another part of me knows the conversation is getting closer to ending. I’m bound to wake up soon, whatever happens next.

“Before you wake up, tell me about your life now and in the past six months. How are Scar and Brescia? How is M? The pups? Darrell?” asks Trey, sliding closer to me in the supposed cold.

“We’re alright, actually. You’d be glad to hear that…” I continue talking about the experiences we’ve had over the past six months, and it’s comforting to be talking to my best friend again, even in my dreams. Maybe she really has subconsciously given herself to me for Christmas, in some weird way. Whatever the case, I’m not going to complain, even when I wake up. Even a lucid dream moment with her is a joy and a moment to be cherished.

There is a rustle next to me. A rather large amount of rustles. 

“You’re about to wake up, now, I think,” says Trey lightly.

“Probably, but… oh, when will I see you again?”

“In which way?”

I think about it for a second. I’m now conscious about the fact that I’m manually keeping my eyes closed, and once I open them again, I’ll be awake, and Trey will be gone again. But something tells me I’m not going to have nightmares of her death again. And if I will, they will be fewer and far between. Trey grins at me with a wink. 

“Merry Christmas, Comet. Come here, really quick, before you wake up for good.” 

“Merry Christmas to you too, Trey. Where are you taking me?”

“Just come on!”

I follow Trey, trying desperately not to wake up.

“I love you, you know,” she says.

“I love you too.”

Trey looks at me for a solid ten seconds, then shoves me as hard as she can. I didn’t expect her to be actually corporeal and have any real effect on my body, but then I hit a snowbank with force, and that’s what forces me out of sleep.

🐾

What in the world was that for, Trey? I ask the lingering image of her in my head as I stand up and blink, seeing the family getting into snowsuits and carrying sleds throughout the house that must have come from the downstairs storage closet. 

The image in my head winks and says “Merry Christmas, Comet” before disappearing, and now I know I am fully awake.

Dream Trey told me essentially to move on, and to live my life without hoping that something about that one fateful day six months ago could be changed. I used to never take her advice. But for once, I think I will. I will never forget her, that much is certain. But she’s in a better place now, no matter how cheesy and sentimental that sounds. I’ll always love her and I have reason to believe she’ll always love me. 

🐾

Soon, I am speeding down a hill in a public park on a plastic sled, my tongue hanging wildly out of my mouth and my ears flopping backwards. I come to a gentle stop at the bottom of the hill, and Charlotte’s loving arms around me and her affectionate kisses on the top of my head make life all the more worth living. 

I’m ready for whatever comes next in the new year, and as long as Charlotte is by my side, we can do anything. I can do anything. 

I think the best Christmas gift of all, in the end, is knowing that there’ll be someone who loves you and will be by your side in the new year and in as many of the coming years as they can.

And I think I found all of that, right here in Basil Hills, and in the gloom and urban cityscape of Fog Lake City. 

I wouldn’t exchange it for the world.

OUTRO

I hope you enjoyed this little story and I hope you’d consider checking out my novels and I hope if you haven’t read the first story I’ve posted, that you’d go and do that! And if you’ve read both, let me know what you think!

Posted on by Catherine

My Opinions on Book Tropes – Part 3

Part 3, let’s go!

Soulmates

I’ll be completely honest, I don’t read very many books with this trope, and I guess I can sort of see the appeal? Maybe like, if they’re soulmates but something else is keeping them apart? I’m not the biggest fan of this because it makes me think of star-struck lovers and stuff like that, and while I like romance, that’s not my vibe.

Alternatively, NON-ROMANTIC SOULMATES? Like a found-family type situation, or a best friend situation, or like academic partners, business partners, when you take a soulmate trope and flip it over and take the romance out, that takes the cake. So I’m going to rate this 8/10 for the non-romantic version, the 2 points are docked for cringy romance.

Not that I have anything against romance!!! Just… not like that.

Love Triangle

…look.

Katniss/Peeta/Gale. Jacob/Bella/Edward. All these love triangles that are so loved in our fictional world are just two guys who are fighting over the girl (and often, both options aren’t great).

“What if it’s an LGBTQ+ love triangle of sorts?”

I don’t like love triangles. Easy as that. I get the conflict, I get the appeal of “ooh, who’s he/she/they gonna pick??” but it’s not for me. It’s also often either predictable or disappointing.

I’m not gonna give it a 0/10 because sometimes (albeit rarely) they’re written well. So I’ll say 2/10.

Found Family

YES. YES, YES, YES.

I write found family, I read found family, I LOVE this trope so much. It’s the caring for someone without it being romantic, it’s the making the choice to stay with this person, it’s so sweet and sometimes, platonic relationships are even better than the romantic ones.

Of course there’s drama, of course there’s conflict, but that comes from any relationship. I think there needs to be more platonic relationships in fiction. I said what I said.

(If you love it too, check out my book, Scarred)

10/10. 10000/10. Whatever amazing rating I can give it.

Marriage of Convenience

For me, this one’s 50/50. I don’t like the initial “oh, I have to get married to this person for XYZ reason, and they’re maybe good-looking or maybe not but I don’t like them” but then they reveal their soft side and all of a sudden they’re attractive, and then they actually fall in love, etc. Boring.

But then when you dig deeper, and you find different reasons for this marriage, or if there’s other conflicts involved, that’s when it gets interesting. I think for this, and for a lot of tropes, its most basic form isn’t the most interesting. What makes it good is when someone can figure out unique ways to interpret this trope and make it different and special.

5/10. It’s not my favourite, but it’s not bad.

“I’m Supposed To Kill You”

Mostly in fantasy or sci-fi, it’s when one person is tasked to kill another and they find they can’t do it because they’re in love or some other reason. I think it’s an interesting trope because it comes with pre-packaged conflict (in a manner of speaking). I don’t feel any particular way towards this trope except I know it can get pretty spicy! I don’t really read this trope much, but there you go.

I’m gonna give this a 7.5/10. Pretty solid trope. Probably wouldn’t use it, but I enjoy reading it from time to time.

Part 4 coming soon!

Do you agree with my opinions? Disagree? Let me know in the comments!

Subscribe so you can see future posts as they come out!

Life is a story. How will you write yours?

Until next time,

Catherine Khaperska

Posted on by Catherine · 2 Comments

My Opinions on Book Tropes – Part 2

Alright let’s get right into this!

Grumpy x Sunshine

I think this is a very great trope but I will admit there is a way this is done right and a way it’s done wrong. If it’s used as someone leeching the other’s spirit, or being toxically positive, then that’s when the relationship is unhealthy and I would ‘nope’ out of a book. Also I don’t like seeing the sunshiney character being babied or being patronized, treated like they’re inferior or inadequate because of their optimism.

The way it’s done right is when the grumpy has a tough exterior but a soft and caring and charismatic interior, and the sunshiney one has more value as a character, and is more defined and has more depth than just being a happy-go-lucky character. Of course this is one way it can be done right and I’m sure there are many more, but overall I’d give this trope a 7/10. Maybe an 8.

Enemies to Lovers

There’s a big divide on the internet about Enemies to Lovers versus Friends to Lovers, and I am definitely on the Enemies to Lovers side.

I love the idea of meeting someone new, starting off maybe on the wrong foot, and then figuring out where you stand with each other (pun sort of intended?) and making things up to each other in the end, figuring out everyone’s true selves despite the bad first start, and the drama and tension that comes with Enemies to Lovers is so perfect and intriguing!

This is a 10/10 trope, but there is a problem with it when it condones toxic behaviour, or is controlling, or any other bad behaviour is glorified with the label of “Enemies To Lovers”. Generally, though, awesome trope.

Right Person, Wrong Time

I’ll be completely honest, I haven’t read very many books with this, or really come into contact with this trope much, but I love the idea, but not in the moment, I love when it comes back to haunt the characters later. Say, they bump into their old love when they’re older, in different stages of life, etc.

I recently watched “Almost, Maine”, a play by my local theatre, and it was mostly made of small romantic vignettes, and it was so cute! This one scene that I think featured this trope was when there was this one woman and she was proposed to when she was younger, and then she went out into the world without answering, and then she came back years later to accept the proposal, and then the man she loved was already married to another woman, it was so cute and so sad.

9/10 trope only because of “Almost, Maine”, you guys did amazing and I have a new love for the trope.

Friends to Lovers

As mentioned before, I am on the Enemies to Lovers side of this debate. However, I can appreciate the Friend to Lovers trope, with the pining, and the wondering “where is the line, how do I be careful so as not to ruin the relationship, do they feel the same”, etc.

However since the relationship of friends is already established, it brings it a couple points down. I like when you have to establish the relationship throughout the book.

I’ve read some Friends to Lovers books and they were really good, but it’s not my trope of choice to write or read.

6/10 trope, very good, I get the appeal, but not my vibe.

Slow Burn

Who doesn’t like a slow burn? Gotta be careful that it’s not too slow or it gets boring, there needs to be PROGRESS over the course of the book. I haven’t read a very good slow burn in a long time but I love this trope, and while I don’t write it very much, I think it definitely works to build tension.

8.5/10 trope.

Age Gap

…no. Sorry.

0/10.

Tragic Past

Yes. Very much so yes. Not so much that I love the trauma that these characters endure but I love how it makes me empathise and it’s very effective as a trope. I use it a lot, I read a lot of authors who use this trope, and it’s very much used in fantasy or in sci-fi and it’s beautiful.

9.5/10 trope because I don’t like when people hurt characters. Me as a writer? Sure, I’ll give my characters a tragic past. Me as a reader? Don’t hurt that character or I will come for your bones (this is a joke, for legal reasons).

We’re done! Part 3 to come, I just don’t know when.

Do you agree with my opinions? Disagree? Let me know in the comments!

Subscribe so you can see future posts as they come out!

Life is a story. How will you write yours?

Until next time,

Catherine Khaperska

Posted on by Catherine

My Opinions On Book Tropes – Part 1

If you’ve been on the book-ternet for long enough, you’ll hear ‘tropes’ being discussed a lot. If you don’t know what a trope is, essentially it’s a literary device (such as figure of speech, character dynamic, etc) that’s used so much that it becomes recognizable.

This is a post I’ve been wanting to make for a while because I think it’s going to be both really fun and a tad bit controversial. Let’s begin, shall we?

“I Hate Everyone But You”

Starting off strong! This trope is often featured in fantasy, with the main character’s love interest having a mean disposition and having a hard time getting attached to people, but finally falling for the main character, while at the same time still despising everybody else.

I can see why this is appealing. The main character is now someone even more special, and because this is often tied to moments of vulnerability when the love interest explains why they’re always so mean/rude, the emotional aspect of this is very obvious.

For me, this trope only works if written well. I think there are things that can really bog down this trope and make it not work as much, like for example if the love interest says/does something really bad and the main character forgives way too fast just so that the romance can move forward.

All in all, this trope is a solid 5/10 because it’s exactly half and half. I don’t hate it, but it’s not my favourite, and I’m pretty picky considering this trope.

Academic Rivals

I LOVE this trope. This is the perfect set up for banter, competition, tension (romantic or not), and a story that keeps you on your toes as well as keeping the characters on theirs. Works great with really any genre: sci-fi, fantasy, realistic fiction, dystopia, romance, you name it!

It also more-or-less requires there to be some sort of academia vibes, whether it be in a historical period, a science lab, a library, or anything else of that sort.

I don’t think I can say much more. I love this trope to no end. 10/10.

Forbidden Love

Ah yes, the classic Romeo-and-Juliet situation where they’re in love but there’s something stopping them from being together. This is a beautiful trope. The determination, the tension, the secrecy, the way it makes the reader feel smart because they know something that some of the characters don’t… it’s a beautifully crafted trope that tugs at the heartstrings.

This one also works in almost any genre, which is great!

I love this trope because it brings about slow-burn romance and the burning question throughout that is ‘Will they end up together?’.

This is a beautiful trope, and while it’s not my ultimate favourite, it’s a great one. 8/10.

First Love

I like this trope. It’s the trope where one character is falling in love with someone for the first time, and they have to navigate the feelings and troubles associated with that.

I think the intrigue of it comes with the feelings of getting to experience new feelings that you haven’t before, and explore a new side of yourself, which for a teenager/young adult would be a very interesting topic to read about.

I think it’s a great trope but it doesn’t hold a special place in my heart. I’d give it a 6.5/10.

Miscommunication

I hate this trope with a burning passion.

I know it adds tension. I know it causes conflict. But it seems like the ‘easy way out’, and it can be avoided SO EASILY just by talking about it. Maybe the ‘talking about it’ includes the main character admitting they were eavesdropping, and they don’t want to admit it because it’ll make things worse. But still, at least there won’t be any bottling up of negativity ruining relationships.

Basically the miscommunication trope is just a bunch of easily avoided problems haphazardly thrown in to make conflict that did not need to be there.

0/10.

Love At First Sight

In all honesty, this trope feels unrealistic.

I get having a crush at first sight (‘oh, I just saw this person and I think they’re really cute/hot/beautiful, etc) but I think that true love at first sight doesn’t exist and more often than not does not work out for the long run.

I do love romance, but I prefer a little bit of believability when it comes to relationships, and it doesn’t even matter the genre I’m in.

It’s a good start, but I don’t think it can sustain a whole book.

I’ll give it a 5/10.

Childhood Friends to Lovers

This one is a hit or miss for me. I like reading romance when there’s a stage of ‘getting to know one another’ and if the two characters have been childhood friends, never separated and know everything about each other, then one falls in love with the other, that stage is missing. The feelings and conflict is more about ‘what if they don’t like me and the friendship is ruined’ and for me that doesn’t pack as much of a punch for me.

But for example, if they’ve been friends when they were children, then grew up and went their own way before bumping into each other again… THAT just hits different.

So while this is a 50/50 hit-or-miss trope for me, I’m ranking it pretty high since the V2 of this trope is such a beautiful chef’s-kiss type trope. 7/10.

And there we have it for our Part 1 of my opinions on book tropes! I will have part 2 sometime soon. Thanks for reading, and if you’ve gotten this far, don’t forget to leave a like and comment down below what your opinions are! Do you agree? Disagree?

Do you agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments!

Subscribe so you can see future posts as they come out!

Life is a story. How will you write yours?

Until next time,

Catherine Khaperska

Posted on by Catherine

Rating And Ranking: March 2023

You know the drill by now, let’s get right into my five reads in March 2023! This will bring us to 12 out of 54 total books read this year.

Ballet Shoes – Noel Streatfeild

This book was a re-read. I’ve owned this book since I was quite young, and I decided to come back to it as I waited for my books that I put on hold at my local library to be ready. The book was released in 1936 which makes me think it is set in the 1920s.

This book features three sisters, orphaned separately but adopted by a man called Great-Uncle Matthew who collects fossils. The three sisters, Pauline, Petrova, and Posy are left in the care of Great-Uncle-Matthew’s (G.U.M’s) niece Sylvia, and Sylvia’s nurse Nana. They are given the last name of Brown (Sylvia’s last name) but then since they are ‘of no real relation’ they choose the name of Fossil after GUM refers to them as such in a letter.

GUM left the girls money to live on, enough for five years since he’s on a big adventure to collect fossils with some friends. But once the money starts running out, Sylvia decides to take in boarders — people who will live in the house and pay them.

One of the boarders is a woman named Theo Dane, who works at the Children’s Academy of Dancing And Stage Training. Theo suggests that Sylvia send the three Fossil sisters to train there, because when they are older they can work in the theatre and get money to support their families.

At first, Sylvia is hesitant but once she is properly persuaded, the Fossil sisters work hard and prepare for a marvelous life on the ballet scene…

I love this book. I definitely have a different perspective on it as I did in the past, but the core of the story and the plot is still engaging and fun. The characters are all very intriguing, and the sisters have such different personalities – Pauline, being the oldest, is the more responsible mature one, Petrova is a tomboy, and Posy is the light-hearted determined youngest.

I give this book a five stars. For a book that came out in 1936 its quite easy to read and a great experience overall.

The Inheritance Games (Book 1) – Jennifer Lynn Barnes

The Inheritance Games has been on my TBR for a while, but when I finally got to read it, I found it strangely underwhelming.

TIG follows the story of Avery Grambs, a high school girl who is suddenly left a vast fortune and a mansion (among many other rich-people things) from a guy named Tobias Hawthorne. She’s of no relation to the Hawthorne family, she barely knows they exist, and she’s been living with her older sister for a while.

But when she gets this inheritance, her life is suddenly turned upside down. The entire Hawthorne family (who all expected to get Tobias’ fortune) hates her. She moves into Hawthorne House, where live the four Hawthorne brothers and their family. She now has a lawyer, a security team, media coverage… all the works.

But… why?

Avery teams up with many various characters – the Hawthorne brothers, her lawyer, etc – and try to figure out why she is suddenly and viciously thrown into this new life?

I give this book a 3 star rating. There were many (almost two many) twists, and too much drama, not enough plot. The romance was not romance-ing, and also there were WAY too many red flags in the love interests. I know there’s a trope about brooding bad boy and how people find that interesting, but I can’t handle romance if the love interest is just going to end up being toxic.

And the ending definitely should’ve been way more interesting and clever than it was. It had a very ‘is that it?’ ending which left me disappointed, I’ll admit.

The writing is good and easy to follow, but these key plot devices brought the experience down for me. I don’t think I’ll finish the series.

Crier’s War (Book 1) – Nina Varela

Crier’s War: I cannot say enough good things about this book.

This book is told in two points of view: Ayla, a regular human girl, and Lady Crier, an Automa (essentially an automaton, a human being, but inorganic). Lady Crier is the daughter of the Sovereign, and Ayla is a servant. They live in the kingdom of Rabu.

Lady Crier is about to be engaged to Scyre Kinok, another Automa who plans to change the way their world and societal system is run (and he’s growing quite a following). Ayla wants nothing more than to kill Lady Crier as revenge, since Automae killed her family, ages ago.

After an unexpected situation in which Ayla ends up as Crier’s handmaiden, the two start realising how much they have in common, and how much they are falling for each other. On Ayla’s side, it’s a bit of an enemies-to-lovers situation. She’s supposed to kill Crier. She’s supposed to hate her and her entire kind… but it’s turning out to be quite the opposite. On Crier’s side, it’s a pining situation. Automa are supposed to be superior to humans, not fall in love with them.

I love this book. Well written, almost poetic in a way, similar to the Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. It’s easy to follow and immersive.

Sometimes I don’t like it when people add timelines and history/backstory of their world (infodumping) in the beginning, but Nina Varela does it so well! She has only the important points, short and understandable, and it actually adds to the story rather than distract from it: and it takes a really good author to do that. It gives a feel like the world has always existed even before this book was written, and the timeline in the beginning of the book isn’t even that long!

Five stars, easy peasy. Emotional and interesting, and fun. I can’t wait to read book 2!

The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald

This was a wild ride!

The Great Gatsby is told from the POV of Nick Carraway, a man who just moved into West Egg – somewhere near New York, USA. His next door neighbour is a mysterious, successful young man named Jay Gatsby who lives in a mansion and has parties every night with a bunch of different people!

Jay is in love with one of Nick’s friends, Daisy Buchanan, but she already has a husband: a man named Tom., as well as a daughter. Jay and Daisy used to be lovers, and apparently he never got over her.

Most of the action following this plot, however, takes place closer to the end of the novel; say, around the second half is where things get really interesting and a bit unhinged. I really liked it and I can see why people in the 1920s as well as today would enjoy this book. It’s one of those books that I would really consider to be a timeless classic. Some books are incredibly outdated and boring, yet revered, and The Great Gatsby is really not the case.

Apart from the Jay x Daisy romance plot, there isn’t much of a clear storyline for the first half or so of the book, however the events are fun and interesting enough that you can forget about plot. The first half of this book is essentially the definition of “no plot, just vibes” and I can really appreciate it!

I gave this book a 4 stars, simply because of the lack of plot. I enjoyed reading it but I was kinda waiting for there to be an actual storyline. A great book nonetheless that I think everyone should read!

Hamlet – William Shakespeare

This was a new style I was not used to reading, but the story was fun and twisted in ways I never expected.

Hamlet is about the Prince of Denmark (Hamlet himself) who’s father was killed. The Prince plans revenge, and after the ghost of his father appears, Hamlet speaks to him and learns that it was Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius, who killed his father.

Hamlet ends up killing a man named Polonius (Claudius’ counsellor) thinking it’s his uncle, so Polonius’ son Laertes ends up plotting revenge against Hamlet. It’s a whole revenge triangle – no, not a triangle, a revenge web. There’s some romance, some family issues, some things that would be considered incredibly problematic in the modern world, and of course, everyone ends up dying in the end.

I gave this book 4 stars. I enjoyed the plot and thought the story was intriguing, but I deducted points because the copy I got from the library had explanations and stuff in the margins and it annoyed me so much! My eyes were jumping from the story to the explanations and it was very distracting. It made my reading very choppy.

But still a fun read! Note to self: find a better copy next time if you want to read more Shakespeare.

Alright now to round up our final ratings:

  1. Ballet Shoes (Noel Streatfeild), Crier’s War (Nina Varela) – 5/5 stars!
  2. The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald), Hamlet (William Shakespeare) – 4/5 stars!
  3. The Inheritance Games (Jennifer Lynn Barnes) – 3/5 stars!

Do you agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments!

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Life is a story. How will you write yours?

Until next time,

Catherine Khaperska

My book Scarred is now out for Pre-Order!

Posted on by Catherine

Rating and Ranking: January and February Reads

Alright here we are, the first Rating and Ranking of 2023! I have 7 books out of 54 of my total year goal, so here we go wrapping up the first two months of reading! This might be a longer one, so hang on for the ride…

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue – V. E. Schwab

I cannot say enough good things about this book!!

Adeline “Addie” LaRue was originally from France, in the 1700s, but she doesn’t want to be tied down to a husband and live in the same village for her whole short miserable life. To be forced to give birth and have kids, to lose her belief in magic in the world around her.

She has a friend, an old woman named Estelle who hasn’t quite yet converted to Christianity and still believes in ‘the old gods’. One thing that Estelle warns of is ‘don’t pray to the gods that answer after dark’. But on the night of Addie’s wedding, in a moment of desperation, she prays to the old gods, waiting for someone to save her, but when nobody answers, she reverts to praying when it’s dark. And someone answers.

Addie wants freedom. That’s what she asks for. And it comes with unforeseen results.

Addie is now going to live forever, but she will end up being forgotten by everyone who meets her the minute they turn their back.

The book goes between the 1700s and the 2010s between chapters and technically has three points of view: Addie in the 1700s, Addie in the quote un-quote ‘modern world’, and a boy named Henry that she meets in a bookstore in New York. What’s special about Henry, you ask? He’s the only one who remembers Addie.

“Three words, large enough to tip the world. I remember you.”

V.E. Schwab, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

This book was ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE! I think, alongside Red, White and Royal Blue, it’s my favourite standalone book ever! The yearning from every character, the heartbreak, the troubles, the romance and the heartwrenching quotes, it’s everything you could ever want in a standalone. At one point, I almost cried because of how absolutely beautiful the writing was. I wish I could write as beautifully as V. E. Schwab.

Sometimes when you read, your favourite characters are the side characters, but Addie is beautifully charming and just such an amazingly developped character that she blows your mind.

I can’t find enough words to explain how beautiful this book is. Go read it, that’s what I’ll leave you with. 10/10, 5 stars, you get the point. Absolutely stunning.

(Also, shoutout to my friend who got me this for Christmas! Thank you so much!)

The Fall of Numenor – J. R. R. Tolkien

If you’ve been around my page for whatever period of time, you know that I am a die-hard Tolkien fan. I’ve read the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings many times, and watched the movies. So when Indigo’s newsletter told me that this book, which would be talking about the island kingdom of Numenor and the second age, I had to read it.

It was incredibly interesting, because while I know the events of the second age from other sources, it was really eye-opening to see it in so much detail. This was made almost exclusively from the late J. R. R. Tolkien’s notes on Middle Earth, and put together by his son and a team of others, and it just goes to show how much work Tolkien put into designing the world that he did, full with religions, hierarchies of all sorts, different fantasy races such as dwarves, elves, humans, and so much more.

There are maps and images and there’s even whole paragraphs describing the flora and fauna of Numenor.

To those of you who aren’t Tolkien fans and might have no idea what I’m talking about, Numenor was a set of islands gifted to humans for their service against the powers of Morgoth (basically the baddest of all bad guys at the time). The Numenorians could live longer, more plentiful lives as well. Numenor was a prosperous kingdom full of mariners and craftsmanship.

Sauron was one of Morgoth’s servants, but when Morgoth fell, he said he wanted to unite the peoples of Middle-Earth under his rule, not destroy them, but it was all a ruse. So when the Numenorians ended up trusting him, it led to their eventual downfall.

It was definitely a different read than what I’m used to. It followed a coherent storyline but at the same time almost felt like a non-fiction read, since it not only chronicled what happened in the second age but told also of various, more informative things. You know how, when writing fiction, people tell not to ‘infodump’ because it adds nothing? This book is the one and only exception where infodumping is a 100% nessecary.

Personally I am not as big of a fan of non-fiction as I am of fiction however this was both masterfully written and it’s about a subject that has always interested me.

It’s a 10/10 and a 5 star read. I was considering giving it 4.9/5 for the textbook-esque vibes but I can’t do that. Not to Tolkien.

Thanks Mom and Dad for this lovely Christmas gift 🙂

Mansfield Park – Jane Austen

Buckle up because this is a heavy Jane Austen filled month…

Mansfield Park follows the story of Fanny Price, brought up with her cousins at their estate of Mansfield Park after her immediate family falls into poverty. She is a very delicate kind of girl whom everyone has to almost tip-toe around (so to speak) and her old friend is her cousin Edmund.

A lot of classics I find have plot in the beginning, no plot in the middle, and plot in the end. Mansfield Park seems to drag for a lot longer than nessecary. If I am to keep the end a secret for those who might want to read it later, this is really all I can say.

I was not as big of a fan of Mansfield Park as I thought I would be. As a general rule I tend not to like ‘delicate female flower who can’t do anything for herself’ characters. I like feminine characters, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t like helplessness. So when everyone’s always doting over Fanny and treating her like a small child, it gets kinda boring to keep reading.

There’s also no real conflict, no reason for me to care about any of these characters. There’s no romance (and if there is, it’s problematic) and Fanny herself, even if she’s the main character, has very little actuall screen time.

I have very little to say on this one. It’s a 2 stars out of 5 for me.

Persuasion – Jane Austen

This one gets better!

Persuasion is about Anne Elliot, who, after a bit of a financial struggle, moves to Bath, England with her family. There she has to get used to the new society and make new friends, but the problem occurs when she meets Captain Wentworth.

Captain Wentworh was an officer in the navy when him and Anne met for the first time, 8 years ago, but not a very well-known or renowned one. He wasn’t rich, either, so he wasn’t the kind of man that the Elliots would approve of Anne marrying. So they broke it off, and thought they’d never see each other again.

But now, eight years later, he’s become a captain, a higher respectable rank, and he has money and more prestige. Anne at first is very awkward around him, and vice versa. She tries to convince herself she doesn’t have feelings for him, but it’s possible that he deserves a second chance?

This probably wouldn’t be a very acceptable relationship dynamic in modern society. The whole arc of ‘oh he was a nobody and I didn’t marry him, now he’s a somebody so I can’ doesn’t bode well nowadays and could even be considered borderline toxic.

But given that this is Victorian England, and marrying for money (especially for a woman) was nessecary and even expected, there’s little to no problem with it.

I liked it. I can’t say it’s the best book I’ve ever read, but it’s not the worst either. Anne is likeable and there is conflict and suspense (moderately so). I give this book a nice, comfortable 3.5/5 stars. (On Goodreads you can’t do half-stars so it’s rated a four over there, but oh well. 3.5/5 is the final rating).

Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen

This one is even better!

This book follows two sisters: Elinor and Marianne Dashwood. They move out of their home in Norland after it is given to their brother and his wife, and move to the country with their mother and younger sister, Margaret, who isn’t featured much, but still.

The two girls are very different. Elinor is reasonable and level-headed, while Marianne is more of a romantic, emotional and arts-oriented. The two find men that they admire in their new town. Elinor meets Edward Ferrars, and Marianne meets John Willoughby.

Edward and Elinor’s relationship seems steady, and it seems that they will be on track to marry. Marianne and John, who is mostly referred to as Willoughby in the book, seem also to be on track to marry, however Willoughby isn’t a very suitable guy for her.

However, both girls end up losing their relationships because both are engaged to somebody else!

Edward is engaged to a woman named Lucy Steele, one of Elinor’s friends. Willoughby runs off with another, richer woman.

While Elinor is doing her best to conceal her disappointment, Marianne falls into what can really only described as a heartbroken depression. Everything that reminds her of her old beau can make her cry. Nobody can say his name around her. And so on and so forth.

I won’t spoil the ending but needless to say it does end with everyone getting what they deserve and everything getting tied up nicely.

I will rate this 4 stars out of 5.

She Gets The Girl – Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick

This book is about two girls: Alex Blackwood and Molly Parker. Alex is headstrong, a flirt, not really good with commitment, and struggling with an alcoholic mother. Molly is shy, socially awkward, and hopelessly in love with a girl from her high school named Cora Myers.

Alex is going to university for pre-med, to be a doctor, and for a bit of an escape from the responsibilities and trauma at home. It brings a pretty sizeable paycheck in and job security, but other than that, Alex isn’t that fond of pre-med. Molly wants a new start from the shy, awkward introvert from high school whose only friend is her mom.

Alex also recently broke up with her most steady girlfriend: a girl named Natalie. Alex’s uncertainty with commitment, and inability to respond with ‘I love you too’ ruins a special moment, and the two leave on less-than-ideal terms.

Both of them are going to the University of Pittsburgh, and after they meet unexpectedly at a party, Alex finds out about Molly’s crush.

Natalie is in a band called the Cereal Killers, and she’s going on tour. Alex suddenly gets an amazing idea: If she can help Molly get with Cora, then she can prove to Natalie that she’s changed and that she deserves a second chance. That she actually has friends, not just random hookups saved to her phone.

But of course, things don’t go as expected when Alex finds herself falling for Molly…

I really liked this book. It was fairly fast paced and the characters were great, but something about it didn’t hook me in as fast as I thought it would. I only really got invested closer to the end, and read it twice within the span of about a week to see if that would have helped me like it more. It didn’t, and all the surprises that come with reading a new book weren’t there the second time around.

I definitely recommend it. It does swear so I would say it’s a read more for people in high school and above, but also contains sensitive topics (e.g. alcoholism) so it’s a ‘read at your own discretion’ kind of book.

Another thing cool about this book is that the authors are married in real life, and from what I was told by the cashier when I bought this book is that the story is based on their own love story!

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars!

Afterlove – Tanya Byrne

Afterlove is such a cute book. I don’t see why it isn’t talked about more on the internet. I was given this by my friend before her exchange program was over and I’m so thankful for it and for her!

It follows the story of Ashana Persaud and Poppy Morgan, who meet on a boat ride when their two separate schools — Whitehawk and Roedean — go on a field trip. The two end up falling for each other quite fast.

They go on a lot of cute dates, but have a bit of a secret relationship because Poppy isn’t out to her parents, and Ash’s parent’s aren’t the most accepting. Finally on New Year’s Eve, Ash stays out a little later than she thought and gets herself in trouble with her parents, who really want her home. Unfortunately, Ash gets hit by a car before she can make it home.

Since Ash is the last person to die that year, she becomes a grim reaper, in charge of teenage sudden deaths. She meets Deborah (kind of like the head grim reaper), Dev, and Esen (two other grim reapers around her age… sort of).

As a grim reaper, she gets sticky notes from Deborah when someone’s going to die, and then she has to go and reap them, bring them to the beach where Charon takes them to whatever afterlife they believe in.

After visiting her grave site with Esen, Ash finds Poppy, who recognizes her. She’s not supposed to be recognized, because if she is, then that means that Poppy will die within the span of the next few days.

So they spend the next few days together as Poppy says goodbye in her own ways to her life before she eventually dies (I’m not going to spoil how that happens).

This was such a cute book! I read it in three-ish days, and it was weirdly comforting and cozy even with all the death and stuff involved. I loved reading about Ash and Poppy’s relationship unfold as well as how they come to terms with their own death.

I give this book 5 stars, which I didn’t think I’d do when I first opened the book up!

So my final ranking of all the books I’ve read in these two months:

  1. Afterlove by Tanya Byrne, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab, and The Fall of Numenor by J. R. R. Tolkien (5/5 stars!)
  2. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen, and She Gets The Girl by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick (4/5 stars!)
  3. Persuasion by Jane Austen (3.5/5 stars!)
  4. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen (2/5 stars!)

This was a long one, so if you’ve stuck around for this long, great! Thank you so much!

Subscribe so you can see future posts as they come out, and leave a comment and tell me how your 2023 is going thus far!

Life is a story. How will you write yours?

Until next time,

Catherine Khaperska