Letters To Juliet

The title of the movie captivated my attention from the start. Letters to Juliet seemed to be romantic movie, set to end on a sad note, just as Romeo and Juliet's love story.

Amanda Seyfried is Sophie, a young American girl who aspires to be a writer but is stuck doing a fact-checking job, while Gael Garcia Bernal is Victor, her fiancé, a chef who is about to open his own restaurant.

They are supposed to go on a so-called 'honeymoon' in Italy, but Victor ends up visiting more vineyards and auctions than spending quality time with Sophie. Bored with nothing to entertain herself, Sophie walks alone in the town area and chances upon women putting up letters on a wall.

She discovers that the letters were addressed to Juliet and the secretaries of Juliet will come each evening to take down the letters and answer each and every letter.

Sophie happened to find a letter that dates back 50 years when she offered to help the ladies reply the mail. Her reply was so touching that Claire, now an old woman, was encouraged to find her long lost love, Lorenzo.

Along the way, what could be expected more than failures at locating the right Lorenzo, and also Sophie falling slowly in love with Claire's grandson, Charlie, played by Christopher Egan.

Sophie knew that she shouldn't be in love with Charlie since she's engaged to Victor, but sparks fly whenever their eyes meet. Could they end up together in the end or is their union not meant to be?

Find out by watching Letters to Juliet!

The author loves watching romantic comedies while snuggled in her warm bed instead of in the dark and chilly theatres.

Kara's New Mini Album: Jumping

I'm a huge fan of Kara's music, particularly after listening Lupin, their smash hit which was at the top of the Korean Music Bank for a few weeks.

They recently released a mini album, Jumping, and their new sound is more retro, as their album cover suggests, with a hint of techno sounds.

The mini album consists of 6 songs, Love Is, title track Jumping, Burn, Binks, With, and an instrumental version of Jumping.

My personal favourite off the album Binks, a mellow and soothing number which is perfect after a tired and long day at work.

I truly appreciate the Kara girls' new direction in this album, as more and more Korean girl bands are coming into the market and they all tend to sound the same with bubblegum pop and techno beats.

Definitely a good effort from the girls!

The author is a fan of K-pop, no doubt influenced by watching Korean dramas.

J.D. Robb and her addictive 'In Death' series

Usually I am into chick-lit books, but recently an author named J.D. Robb caught my attention with her action and thriller ‘In Death’ series.

Born In Death was the first book that I read from the series. Eve Dallas the detective and her businessman husband Roarke, captured my attention as they shine as a couple who worked closely together to solve crimes in the city of New York.

What intrigued me was Roarke’s character had a dark past and he was possibly involved in crimes himself, yet Eve still has a strong confidence in sharing her work details with him.

In this book, Eve and Roarke race to save heavily pregnant Mavis, Eve’s best friend, who was kidnapped.

Creation in Death was my second book off the series, and this one definitely had me craving for more! The suspense and race against time kept me turning page after page and I had a hard time putting it down.

I got addicted to the storyline, so much so that I even started playing detective by putting together clues and trying to guess who the culprit is.

My advice to all suspense-loving readers out there is: go get yourselves a J.D. Robb book now!

The author intends to collect all books in the ‘In Death’ series, and will start scouring for them this coming Friday at the Big Bad Wolf Books Sale.

Sungkyunkwan Scandal: My Current K-Drama

Ever the TV-addict, I recently got hooked on Korean dramas on KBS World. The latest drama that I’m currently following is Sungkyunkwan Scandal, set in Sungkyunkwan University in the late Joseon era during the reign of King Jeongjo, revolving around the exploits and love stories of four youths.

Kim Yoon Hee, portrayed by the pretty Park Min Young, leads a double life, she’s a test proxy and writer by day disguised as a man, and by night she’s a girl, helping out her mother at home.

When her brother's illness worsens and their family is in danger of being evicted from their house for lack of money, Yoon Hee enters the school under his name, Kim Yun Sik, still disguised as a man in her desperation to support him.

There, she becomes friends with the intelligent and upright Lee Sun Joon (hottie Micky Yoochun), who is the Prime Minister’s son, the playboy Goo Yong Ha (cutie Soong Joo Ki) and rebellious Moon Jae Shin (a scruffy-looking Yoo Ah In).

But as the drama unfolds, Yoon Hee has to learn how to act and behave like a man, which she learnt slowly and through hardships. Hard times aside, she had many other fun moments in Sungkyunkwan as the lessons were interesting with their eccentric Professor Jeong Yak Yong and tournaments such as archery were held to ease the burden off reading books for the scholars.

Romance and jealousy is also in the air as Yoon Hee’s identity is revealed and each of the boys want to protect her as well as make her theirs.

Do tune in to Sungkyunkwan Scandal airing on KBS WORLD every Monday and Tuesday at 9 p.m. on Astro Channel 391 to catch the latest episodes!

The author first watched the Korean drama The Golden Apple, loved it so much and have been following Korean dramas ever since.