Wattpad Must-Read Stories by Filipino Authors

10. The Time Capsule by greenwriter

Author's Own Blurb:

Ride through rough roads. Mount a carabao. Spend a night in a prison cell. Hitch a ride on a sugarcane truck. Get trapped on a tree. Bratty, city chic Stephanie Sy never expected she'd go through all of these (and more) when she went to an unfamiliar place to attend her grandmother's funeral. So what happens if she is thrown in an adventure she never planned for in the first place? And what happens if she is joined by a man with the heart of a child but with a few secrets of his own? Join Steph as she takes on the journey to find her grandmother's first love and their precious time capsule. Entangled in a series of unfortunate events, Steph will have her own journey of self-discovery and love.

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I hate Stephanie Sy!

Whew!  You don't know how great I feel right now for getting that out of my system.  I'll probably get back to this later, but for now, let's proceed.

Confession #2:  Patience is really not one of my virtues.  Nang magsabog ng ganoon and Diyos, sobrang himbing ng tulog ko, hindi man lang ako naambunan.  Sa sobrang kawalan ko nito, natatapos ko ang isang 2 hour-movie in 15 minutes.  Yup.  I skip a lot of it.  I just watch the first 5 minutes, another 5 minutes ng gitna, and the last 5 minutes.  Okay lang naman.  Gets ko naman ang buong kuwento.  I could retell it enough for most people to believe (wrongly, of course) that I watched it fully. Ang mga pelikulang natatapos ko at napapanood ko ng kumpleto ay hindi lalampas sa bilang ng mga daliri ko sa kamay at paa .

With books, I'm more respectful. I only skip a few pages.  Minsan chapters.  Pero, I seldom do it.  Sa mga oras lang na talagang hindi ko na kaya ang pagkainip ko.  Itong "The Time Capsule", na may 38 chapters, natapos ko  in just 3 hours. And I read every word or every line.  Promise.  Cross my heart.  Hope my mom's pure black cat dies.  Hindi talaga ako nag-skip.  Kahit may mga times na gustong-gusto ko na.  Not because it is boring.  It definitely isn't.  Gusto ko na kasing malaman kung sino ang letseng Antonio na makapal ang mukhang may gana pang magpakita sa lola ni Steph after niyang magpakasal sa ibang babae.  Hindi lang basta magpakita ha, mag-offer pa na they write each other letters they will read after 60 years.  WTH??!  Sadista lang ang peg  mo kuya?  

So, inspite of my impatience to know who the SOB is, ipinagpatuloy ko ang pagbabasa nang hindi nandadaya.  I don't want to insult  Greenwriter (kahit hindi niya naman actually malalaman) and this work by skipping any part of it.  This masterpiece was really, really, really well-written.  I read in one of the comments that the delivery and execution of the story is flawless.  I wholeheartedly AGREE!!!  Kung hindi siguro sa Negros ang setting ng kuwento, hindi mo maiisip na Filipino ang author nito.  In English kasi ang buong kuwento. At sa tono nang pagsusulat, parang mother tongue ni Greenwriter ang English. Pero, mga readers na hindi mahilig magbasa ng English, huwag atrasan ang librong ito dahil lang doon.  Swear, hindi kailangan ng dictionary para lang maintindihan ang kuwentong ito.

So, the following are the specific things na nagustuhan ko dito (not in any order):

*Ang style ng pag-u-unfold ng love story

Romance ang genre nito pero more of romcom siya na may halong slight na mystery to spice things up.  Naalala ko ang  pelikulang "Letters To Juliet"  (isa sa mga pelikulang napanood ko ng buo) dito.  Marami kasing aspeto ng kuwento na very similar sa pelikulang iyon.  Ang sulat.  Ang paghahanap kay Antonio.  At ang pelikula at ang librong ito has the same feel.  Magaan sa puso pero may lalim.  Nagustuhan ko na habang unti-unting nabubunyag ang past love ni Wawa, nadedevelop din si Stephanie as a person at ang love story niya.  I love it. Parang hindi pilit.  Parang nagkataon lang.