Activities – Mike Mamaril – Freelance Web Developer

War for the Rose Throne by Peter McLean

TLDR: Peaky Blinders in an alternate world with a dash of fantasy elements. I liked the pacing of the story and character development; The ending was satisfying for the primary cast.[Goodread link]

Converting Audible AAX files to M4B/MP3

I like owning physical or actual copies of the things I buy, where I can enjoy them at any time, place, and mode of consumption I choose. With that in mind, I tried converting my Audible AAX files into M4B files so I can listen to them on any app or device I want. To […]

The Expanse by James SA Corey

Books 1-5 were great, then started to go downhill for me from there. I got a sense that the conclusion will leave me unsatisfied to say the least.. almost remorseful that I got invested in the story and characters passed book 5. [Goodreads link]

Ender’s Game Orson Scott

Way better than the movie. The subsequent books don’t appeal to me though.

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Overall a good read, like a crossover between The Martian and Artemis, though I’d rank this the least among the three.

Chaos Walking by Patrick Ness

Chaos Walking Series by Patrick Ness The story could’ve been told in 1 book instead of 3 and felt dragging the longer I read the book. I personally didn’t like the pace of the story and how it ended but it wasn’t bad enough for me to stop reading.

The Daevabad Trilogy by S.A. Chakraborty

The Daevabad Trilogy by S.A. Chakraborty The protagonists were way too naive and idealistic until the end for my taste. But the lore and and plots points kept me reading until the end.

Aluminum laptop stand

I saw this identical stand on one of Dave 2D’s videos which he got on Amazon. I found a similar one on Lazada for 16USD or 800PHP incluaive of tax and shipping, and it was Cash On Delivery as well. It’s adjustable on either side and can fit thick devices and the alen screws tighten […]

The War of Art

From Joe Rogan to me, then to you. Steven Pressfield – The War of Art

Pillars of Reality – Jack Campbell

Started interesting enough though got a bit dragged out past the 3rd book. A good read for those looking for a Young Adult light fantasy series. Hoping the series continues though. https://www.goodreads.com/series/147091-the-pillars-of-reality

All the Gifts Bestowed

One of a few single book Sci-Fi books I’ve enjoyed in recent memory. It has an apt, eerie depiction of the current state of computing. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/46146065-all-gifts-bestowed

The First Law Trilogy

A great series but with a few plot holes here and there. One of my favorites books to date, but some of the protagonists could’ve concluded better. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11706669-the-first-law-trilogy?from_search=true

The Fault in Our Stars

A welcomed deviation from my usual Fantasy and Scifi fair. One of the very few romance books I actually enjoyed. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11870085-the-fault-in-our-stars

Arisen Series by Michael Stephen Fuchs and Glynn James

Not stop action from book 1 to 14! One of the most epic and engaging zombie series I’ve read so far. https://www.goodreads.com/series/84669-arisen

Themis Files : Sleeping Giants

A story within stories; a dialog/interview style driven narrative. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25733990-sleeping-giants?from_search=true

Vatta’s War

Second time reading this, one of my favorite space opera’s from one of my favorite authors. https://www.goodreads.com/series/41099-vatta-s-war

Legends of the First Empire 1-3 of 6

https://www.goodreads.com/series/135626-the-legends-of-the-first-empire A prequel (of sorts) to one of my all time favorite series: The Riyria Revelations by Michael J Sullivan. There’s no direct relation to the former series, it gives more context and back story to the Riyria Revelations story. Still waiting for the 3 remaining, but the first 3 books has a satisfying conclusion […]

Category: Activities

Things and Topics I am passionate about