“Near the window, Finnikin stood with both hands against the wall, his head bent over her. As always, the intimacy between them made Froi ache. 'I promise you,' Finnikin said. 'I've already shouted at her and used a very, very reprimanding tone.' 'I was quivering,' the Queen said, stepping out from behind Finnikin.”
—Froi of the Exiles by Melina Marchetta
“'A kiss is the prize?’ he asked sadly. ‘Even more than giving me the rest of you? It should be the other way round, Princess. In the real world, it’s called courting. You let a lad kiss you and then you offer him more.’ ‘Let me tell you something, Olivier,’ she said with tears of sorrow in her eyes, ‘this is my real world.'”
—Froi of the Exiles by Melina Marchetta
Aussie Book Haul from Fishpond
I’ve enjoyed reading some Aussie YA in the past year or so and just couldn’t get enough of them. Unfortunately, most Aussie books aren’t available here or in Book Depository – even the eBooks aren’t available for purchase from here. The only way to get them was by either asking a friend from Australia to buy for me (but I didn’t know if she’d be coming home anytime soon) or to order through Fishpond (they offer free shipping worldwide). I was really hesitant to try Fishpond because I haven’t heard any feedback from customers from the Philippines, but eventually the need for the books won over and I decided to just go for it.
I ordered three books sometime late April. The processing alone took around a week or so, and the books were shipped out separately in the first week of May. Their website said to expect the books within 6-10 working days from the date of shipment. But based on my experience, I’ve never received shipments on time and decided to wait at least 6 weeks for the books. Unfortunately, by mid-June I had not received anything yet and decided to contact customer service. They replied quickly and refunded my order immediately.
I pretty much gave up on getting the books, but I was satisfied that I was at least refunded in full. But last week, I got a notification from the Post Office that I had 3 packages to be claimed. I was worried I would be taxed for the packages, but fortunately I was only charged P60 for each (I don’t know if this is the storage fee, which used to be just P40).
(Fury by Shirley Marr, Preloved by Shirley Marr, Night Beach by Kirsty Eagar)
So I was really happy that my order arrived and I can’t wait to read these books. If you’re planning to buy an Aussie book, I would recommend Fishpond, as long as you’re willing to wait 2 months for your shipment to arrive. Anyway, if you’ve tried Fishpond, I hope you can share your experience. Or if you have any questions, please feel free to ask.:)
Pocket Reviews
aka I’m a lazy reviewer.
Here’s a small round up of what I’ve been reading plus some tiny thoughts.
Quintana of Charyn by Melina Marchetta
5 glorious stars
An amazing end to the trilogy. Lost sleep and sobbed my eyes out. LUCIEN.
Winter’s Bone by Daniel Woodrell
4.5 stars
Bold, breathtaking and devastating.
Cinnamon Rain by Emma Cameron
4 cinnamon stars
This took me by surprise. It’s a verse book and I loved it, loved it.
Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Abandoned
I really wanted to like this but the prose was clunky and didn’t hold my attention. Still love the cover though.
