theycallmegas

Title: If Cats Disappeared from the World Author: Genki Kawamura Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Magical Realism Pages: 160 (approx.) Personal judgement: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

Quick intro: A young postman discovers he has only days to live due to a terminal illness. Suddenly, the Devil appears (looking exactly like him, but in a loud Hawaiian shirt) and offers a deal: he can have one extra day of life for every thing he chooses to make disappear from the world forever.

Title: The Night Ends With Fire Author: K. X. SONG Genre: Young Adult Epic Fantasy Pages: 512 (approx.) Personal judgement: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

Quick intro: Hai Meilin is a young woman trapped by a cruel father and a forced marriage. To save herself, she disguises as a man and joins the imperial army. But this isn't just a war story. It’s a journey across the Three Kingdoms where she encounters a mysterious prince, a legendary dragon, and a power that could either save her world or reduce it to ashes.

Ingredients:

3 apples (medium size)

150 g of flour grade 0

37.5 melted butter

110 g of stevia/erythritol sugar

2 medium eggs at room temperature

120 g of soy drink

12 g of baking powder

1 tablespoon of icing sugar (some of it will be used before cooking)

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

Procedure:

Prep the Apples: Remove the core of your 3 medium apples - you can of course peel them if you want to. Slice them thinly or cut them into small cubes. Toss them with a pinch of the cinnamon to let the flavours meld while you prep the rest.

Whisk the Base: In a large bowl, beat the 2 room-temperature eggs with the 110g of stevia/erythritol until the mixture is pale, light, and airy.

Add Liquids: Slowly pour in the 37.5g of melted butter (make sure it's warm, not hot!) and the 120g of soy drink. Whisk gently to combine.

Fold in Dry Ingredients: Sift the 150g of grade 0 flour, the 12g of baking powder, and the remaining cinnamon into the bowl. Fold gently with a spatula to keep the batter airy.

(If diced) Combine: Fold most of the apple cubes into the batter. Save a small handful for the top. Pour the batter into a lined tin and top with the remaining cubes.

(if sliced) Combine: Pour the batter into a lined cake tin. If you sliced the apples, carefully place the slices inside the batter. Otherwise, arrange the remaining apple slices on top and sprinkle with a bit of the icing sugar to create a sweet, golden crust.

The Oven: Bake at 180°C (350°F) for about 35–40 minutes / oven mode: static mode. Use the toothpick test to ensure it's cooked through, but do not open the oven until you reach 30 minutes.

The Finishing Touch: Once cooled, dust with the remaining icing sugar.

Further tips and notes: I love cinnamon, therefore I sprinkled a little bit of cinnamon on top of the cake before baking. Original recipe included icing sugar, that's why you'll see it in the process - but unfortunately I didn't have icing sugar at home, so I tried to replace it with a little of sugar.

Title: 1Q84 Author: MURAKAMI HARUKI Genre: Alternate history, parallel worlds Pages: 928 (approx.), single edition Personal judgement: ⭐⭐⭐ out of 5