Wednesday 30 October 2013
Afterlife Academy is free for Halloween and the next five days!
I've never reblogged a post before, but this one is worth a trial run with! Afterlife Academy by Jaimie Admans is FREE to download on kindle now!
Tuesday 29 October 2013
Guest post: KK Hendin
Today I've got a guest post from the very lovely KK Hendin! Enjoy!
Why New Year’s Resolutions Are Not Always A Terrible Thing
God, I am the world’s biggest cliché sometimes.
Once upon a time, it was January first, and I decided that 2013 would be a good year to make a New Year’s Resolution. Mind you, I had never really made one before. But I guess I was feeling optimistic, because I made myself a lovely little list of resolutions for the year of 2013.
One of them was finish at least one manuscript, and self-publish, if that was what I felt was best for the book. There were other ridiculous resolutions on that list that never really happened, like figure out life. But much to my shock, I wrote the words The End many times this year- namely, with Heart Breaths.
I wrote Heart Breaths at a very weird kind of time in my life- I had just parted ways with my job, I had paused school, and ONCE AGAIN, I had no idea what I was doing with my life. (This last bit seems to be a bit of a reoccurrence, truth be told.) I had finished a book and a half, and there was a story tickling my brain.
And so since I suddenly had all this magical free time when I wasn’t looking for a job, I started to write. And I wrote. And wrote. And wrote. And wrote some more.
Writing is a very personal experience- even when you’re not writing an autobiography or something about yourself, pieces of you still end up in what you write. Writing fiction for me is a way to sort through my jumbled thoughts by having others go through similar situations as I have gone through, or I’m going through at the moment. Luckily, I can say that I haven’t gone through the same things that Maddie has gone through, or Gabe, but there are aspects about what they struggle with that were and continue to be intensely personal.
Letting people in, even after being hurt. Learning to trust people. Opening your heart, even with the possibility of getting hurt. Standing up for yourself. Learning to trust yourself.
They’re all things that so many people are struggling with- not just me, and not just Maddie and Gabe. Heart Breaths was a book that helped me explore what it meant to open your heart up after being hurt, and learning that you are so much stronger than you think. And that sometimes, you don’t have to try to do it all yourself- that there are people who love you that are more than willing to help you find your brave.
Heart Breaths is a story of friendship, love and redemption. And beaches J
I mean, just look. How could I not include this?
(picture via: http://www.obxlistings.com/wp-content/uploads//_slide_image/51-e5231325.jpg)
It may not be the typical New Adult release, but at the heart of it, it’s the same. About two people trying to figure out how to navigate the weird world of semi-adulthood, and maybe, if they’re lucky, try to navigate the world of love.
God, I’m such a sap ;)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
KK Hendin's real life ambition is to become a pink fluffy unicorn who dances with rainbows. But the schooling for that is all sorts of complicated, so until that gets sorted out, she'll just write. Preferably things with angst and love. And things that require chocolate.
She spends way too much time on Twitter, and rambles on occasion over atwww.kkhendinwrites.blogspot.com.
LINKS:
BLOG: http://www.kkhendinwrites.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kkhendin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/KK-Hendin/425268687590642?ref=hl
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7231267.K_K_Hendin
Why New Year’s Resolutions Are Not Always A Terrible Thing
God, I am the world’s biggest cliché sometimes.
Once upon a time, it was January first, and I decided that 2013 would be a good year to make a New Year’s Resolution. Mind you, I had never really made one before. But I guess I was feeling optimistic, because I made myself a lovely little list of resolutions for the year of 2013.
One of them was finish at least one manuscript, and self-publish, if that was what I felt was best for the book. There were other ridiculous resolutions on that list that never really happened, like figure out life. But much to my shock, I wrote the words The End many times this year- namely, with Heart Breaths.
I wrote Heart Breaths at a very weird kind of time in my life- I had just parted ways with my job, I had paused school, and ONCE AGAIN, I had no idea what I was doing with my life. (This last bit seems to be a bit of a reoccurrence, truth be told.) I had finished a book and a half, and there was a story tickling my brain.
And so since I suddenly had all this magical free time when I wasn’t looking for a job, I started to write. And I wrote. And wrote. And wrote. And wrote some more.
Writing is a very personal experience- even when you’re not writing an autobiography or something about yourself, pieces of you still end up in what you write. Writing fiction for me is a way to sort through my jumbled thoughts by having others go through similar situations as I have gone through, or I’m going through at the moment. Luckily, I can say that I haven’t gone through the same things that Maddie has gone through, or Gabe, but there are aspects about what they struggle with that were and continue to be intensely personal.
Letting people in, even after being hurt. Learning to trust people. Opening your heart, even with the possibility of getting hurt. Standing up for yourself. Learning to trust yourself.
They’re all things that so many people are struggling with- not just me, and not just Maddie and Gabe. Heart Breaths was a book that helped me explore what it meant to open your heart up after being hurt, and learning that you are so much stronger than you think. And that sometimes, you don’t have to try to do it all yourself- that there are people who love you that are more than willing to help you find your brave.
Heart Breaths is a story of friendship, love and redemption. And beaches J
I mean, just look. How could I not include this?
(picture via: http://www.obxlistings.com/wp-content/uploads//_slide_image/51-e5231325.jpg)
It may not be the typical New Adult release, but at the heart of it, it’s the same. About two people trying to figure out how to navigate the weird world of semi-adulthood, and maybe, if they’re lucky, try to navigate the world of love.
God, I’m such a sap ;)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
KK Hendin's real life ambition is to become a pink fluffy unicorn who dances with rainbows. But the schooling for that is all sorts of complicated, so until that gets sorted out, she'll just write. Preferably things with angst and love. And things that require chocolate.
She spends way too much time on Twitter, and rambles on occasion over atwww.kkhendinwrites.blogspot.com.
LINKS:
BLOG: http://www.kkhendinwrites.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kkhendin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/KK-Hendin/425268687590642?ref=hl
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7231267.K_K_Hendin
Monday 28 October 2013
Paper Towns
Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life—dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge—he follows.
After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues—and they’re for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew.
My opinion: After reading The Fault in Our Stars last year I was intrigued by John Green's writing, even though I have only really just got into young adult books. I liked the premise of this book and am very glad that I gave it a go.
This book is well paced and full of detail. It's like a detective meets and adventurer and goes on a crazy road trip. It is full of moments that kept me on the edge of my seat, and more importantly kept me guessing. It is obviously well researched and I loved the detail about map makers adding in a pretend town as a way to keep ownership of the design of the map.
The characters were well formed and I liked that the main character Q was a bit of an underdog and really seemed to have a lower opinion of himself than other people did. I found that really endearing and in some ways reminded me of myself.
I will definitely be reading more from John Green, and my Amazon wishlist has already got somewhat longer!
My rating: Four stars
I originally reviewed this book at Reading in Progress.
Friday 25 October 2013
Author spotlight: Tara Ford
When Tara Ford contacted me asking if I would review her new book, Calling All Services, I jumped at the chance! I will be reading and reviewing the book in the coming weeks, but wanted to share some of the information about the book with you beforehand as it looks great!
Alex Frey, successful businesswoman, wife and mother to a busy and demanding family, doesn't find it easy to take a break. So when she's hospitalised with a mysterious illness, paralysed and afraid of what the future might bring, frustration meets fear and she can't wait to escape the hospital, get back in control of things and return her family to the normality of salmon paste sandwiches. At home, her husband Grant is determined to manage the kids, Alex's parents, his sister and anything else life can throw at him while his wife is away recuperating. But what else can possibly go wrong while Alex is in hospital? The Frey family is about to find out...
The book is available in paperback and Kindle formats and can be purchased at Amazon.
Tara Ford lives in Hampshire, UK with her husband, children and a naughty husky called Meika. In between writing she enjoys taking care of her numerous Koi fish but occasionally she also has to live with a frustrated heron that frequents the garden fence and peers longingly into the well protected pond.
Tara’s writing career began at the tender age of 15 when she wrote a beautiful love story as part of her English literature homework...
Her writing career came to an abrupt end at the tender age of 15 when the teacher tore up her story, exclaiming that the content of the essay was highly unsuitable material for school. Although it had not been in the realms of 50 Shades of Grey, Tara’s first attempt at a short story had been shunned.
Over 3 decades of child-rearing, fish-fostering and dog walking later, Tara has realised her dream of writing. Her first book, Calling All Services, a women's fiction/humour story, was released in July 2013. She has always wanted to write in this genre but until a couple of years ago, she could never quite think of a good storyline. Then a sudden and frightening illness and some time spent in hospital gave her the beginnings of a novel which would eventually turn out to be the first book of four in the Calling All... series.
Tara has completed the second book in the series, Calling All Dentists, which she hopes to publish, early 2014. Her third novel, Calling All Customers is currently an early stage, work in progress and her plans are to release this in 2015. Tara has ideas for a further series, again in the women’s fiction/humour genre, to be written in the future. Her ultimate dream would be to write a new book each and every year.
Tara’s debut novel, Calling All Services is a peep into the lives of one family, over the course of one unusually, eventful week. A rollercoaster of emotions will have you laughing, crying and cringing as the week unfolds to reveal one disaster after another. Will the members of the Frey family ever be the same again?
Contact details:
Website & Blog: http://taraford.weebly.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/Tara.Ford.Author
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rata2e
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7125535.Tara_Ford
Pinterest: https://pinterest.com/rata2e2/
Google+: http://bit.ly/1bg9SdO
Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/edit?trk=tab_pro
Book Links
Calling All Services UK: http://amzn.to/11zjwVi 15 – 5* Reviews
Calling All Services US: http://amzn.to/196dCAp
Thursday 24 October 2013
Take a Look at Me Now
When Nell’s on-off boyfriend Aidan calls her into his office, losing her job is the last thing she expects.
Heartbroken and unemployed to boot, she makes a radical decision to blow her redundancy cheque and escape to the untested waters of San Francisco.
But is the glamour of the city too good to be true? And can Nell leave her past behind?
My opinion: This book was the first I have read by Miranda Dickinson and I will definitely be reading more!
When town planner Nell gets a post it on her desk from her ex boyfriend asking to go into his office she thinks it's so that he can say he wants to get back together. Instead he tells her that she is about to be made redundant.
Nell has always had a plan, but faced with an uncertain future she enters a travel agent on a whim and decides to go and stay with her cousin in San Francisco. Whilst there she not only finds herself, but also her dreams, new friends and a guy that she really likes.
I really loved this book and found it hard to put down. Not only that, but all of the descriptions of food made me very hungry! Nell is a brilliant character and I really liked that she seemed to unfurl and really accept herself as the story went on. I am definitely Team Nell! I also loved some of the locals we met in San Francisco. There were some amazing characters and even though I have never been to San Francisco, it really brought it to life for me.
There were a few moments in the book that I was holding my breath, just hoping that things would go the way I wanted them to. I also shed a few tears and smiled a lot of smiles when reading this book.
I would definitely recommend this book. The only downside of it is that I think my TBR is going to get even bigger!!
My rating: A wonderful five stars
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review
Wednesday 23 October 2013
United Authors of Chick Lit
Fasten your seatbelts and put your tray tables in the upright and locked position. Over the next few days, some of your favourite Chick Lit characters will be jetting across the Atlantic to visit with fictional friends on the other side of the pond.
The event kicks off on Monday, 21 Oct.
On Tuesday, 22 Oct., read about Stella from Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes and Chloe from Lying to Meet You as they travel across the Atlantic to visit each other.
On Wednesday, 23 Oct., it’s time to discover what happens when Emma from The Pollyanna Plan and Kim from Blogger Girl meet.
On Thursday, 24 Oct., Izzy from Izzy’s Cold Feet and Jamie from Finding Lucas will be taking you on a trip alongside their characters.
And on Friday, 25 Oct., Kate from Sealed with a Kiss and Pilar from In Need of Therapy will be chatting about their overseas experiences.
Here’s a little sneak peek at the fun, frothy books and sassy gals featured in our international promo, all of which are priced at £2.99 or less:
Finding Lucas by Samantha Stroh Bailey – Daytime talk show producer Jamie Ross is beyond fed up with her toxic bad boy turned metrosexual boyfriend. Spurred on by her gang of quirky friends, she goes on a hilarious, at-times disastrous, and totally life-changing hunt to track down the ”one who got away.” But are some loves best left behind? Available on Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Finding-Lucas-ebook/dp/B007VIIU6A/ Amazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/Finding-Lucas-Samantha-Stroh-Bailey-ebook/dp/B007VIIU6A and Kobo http://store.kobobooks.com/en-ca/books/Finding-Lucas/-wfpLcDV6keHZR-T80qCUg
In Need of Therapy by Tracie Banister – Handling the problems of hysterical hypochondriacs, lovelorn neurotics, and compulsive man whores is all in a day’s work for super-shrink Pilar Alvarez. But can she deal with her crazy Cuban family, a trio of unsuitable suitors, and a threat to her practice without ending up on the couch herself? Available on Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/In-Need-of-Therapy-ebook/dp/B008N6Z36Y Amazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/In-Need-of-Therapy-ebook/dp/B008N6Z36Y and B&N http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/in-need-of-therapy-tracie-banister/1112265620?ean=2940015006889
Lying to Meet You by Anna Garner – Overworked New York fashion girl Chloe Lane has no time for a real relationship, but when her childhood pal asks her to play the part of his girlfriend in order to test a theory, she decides to go for it. The lies start piling up and things start getting crazy. Will Chloe be able to keep it together? Available on Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Lying-to-Meet-You-ebook/dp/B00EZR5M9I Amazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lying-to-Meet-You-ebook/dp/B00EZR5M9I and B&N http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lying-to-meet-you-anna-garner/1116838753?ean=2940148616924
Sealed with a Kiss by Rachael Lucas – Kate breathes a sigh of relief when she's dumped at her best friend's wedding. When she takes a job on the island of Auchenmor, she's determined to have a year off men, but that's before she rescues Flora the seal pup with the help of Roddy, her mysterious new boss... Available on Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Sealed-with-a-Kiss-ebook/dp/B00BE9EUW0/ and Amazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sealed-with-a-Kiss-ebook/dp/B00BE9EUW0/
The Pollyanna Plan by Talli Roland – Emma Beckett has always looked down on 'the glass is half full' optimists. But when she loses her high-powered job and fiancé, Emma makes a radical decision: from here on in, she'll attempt to see the upside, no matter how dire the situation. Can adopting a positive attitude give Emma the courage to build a new life, or is finding the good in everything a very bad idea? Available on Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/The-Pollyanna-Plan-Talli-Roland-ebook/dp/B00AFAW2GK and Amazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Pollyanna-Plan-Talli-Roland-ebook/dp/B00AFAW2GK
Blogger Girl by Meredith Schorr – Kimberly Long has two passions: her successful chick lit blog and Nicholas, her handsome colleague down the hall. But when her high school nemesis pops onto the chick lit scene with a hot new book and eyes for Nicholas, Kim has to make some quick revisions to her own life story. Available on Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Blogger-Girl-ebook/dp/B00EDTLDSW Amazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blogger-Girl-ebook/dp/B00EDTLDSW B&N http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/blogger-girl-meredith-schorr/1116358028?ean=2940148503125 and Apple iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/blogger-girl/id686654939?mt=11
Izzy’s Cold Feet by Sarah Louise Smith – Izzy is engaged to Greg, who is everything a girl could want. The trouble is – all she can think about is the men she loved before she met him. In the week leading up to her wedding day, Izzy is forced to ask herself who she loves the most. And, given the choice, who would she want to spend her life with? Available on Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Izzys-Cold-Sarah-Louise-Smith/dp/1909841005/
Amazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/Izzys-Cold-Sarah-Louise-Smith/dp/1909841005/ B&N http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/izzys-cold-feet-sarah-louise-smith/1116263752 and UK Nook http://uk.nook.com/ebooks/izzys-cold-feet-by-sarah-louise-smith/2940045154499
Fat Girls and Fairy Cakes by Sue Watson – TV Producer Stella is over worked, over weight and under fire battling to balance family, career and those weighing scales. In the past she’s always found comfort at the bottom of her mixing bowl but now the most delicious lemon sponge with zesty frosting has no effect. However, life is about to get even tougher... and Stella has to face some truths about herself, her life and her future. Available on Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/Fat-Girls-Fairy-Cakes-ebook/dp/B005L92JB8 and Amazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fat-Girls-Fairy-Cakes-Watson-ebook/dp/B005L92JB8
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:
Tuesday, 22 Oct.
Stella will be on Anna Garner’s blog http://libby-mercer.blogspot.com/ and Chloe will be on Sue Watson’s blog http://fatgirlsandfairycakes.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, 23 Oct.
Emma will be on Meredith Schorr’s blog http://meredithschorr.com/blog/ and Kim will be on Talli Roland’s blog http://talliroland.blogspot.com/
Thursday, 24 Oct.
Izzy will be on Samantha Stroh Bailey’s blog http://samanthastrohbailey.blogspot.ca/ and Jamie will be on Sarah Louise Smith’s blog http://sarahlouisesmith.com/
Friday, 25 Oct.
Kate will be on Tracie Banister’s blog http://traciebanister.blogspot.com/ and Pilar will be on Rachael Lucas’s blog http://rachaellucas.com/blog/
Tuesday 22 October 2013
The Fault in Our Stars
Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.
My opinion: I was a little bit wary about reading this book as I was worried that it could be upsetting and a bit depressing as it is about a teenage girl with cancer. I need not have worried.
This book was my firsty foray into reading some of John Green's writing, and it definitely won't be my last! I was drawn into the story straight away and really loved the friendly writing style. In fact, I could barely put this down when I was reading it.
We follow the story of Hazel who is a 16 year old terminal cancer patient. She is convinced by her parents to join a support group to meet some fellow sufferers and give her chance to get out of the house. She meets a new friend in Isaac and subsequently meets his best friend Augustus. Hazel gets close with Augustus and they eventually start going out.
The book is very funny in parts and there are also parts that made me cry. It is wonderfully written and I especially liked the parts about Hazel's favourite book and going to meet the writer. A lot of the time you were able to forget that she was any different to other teenagers, until something popped up to remind you.
The book has a bittersweet ending, and I will warn you, don't read it in public, you may not want to be around people when you read it. The book is in no way depressing and leaves the reader wanting more. This book will stay with me for a long time and I would certainly recommend it to others to read.
My rating: A big fat tear inducing five stars!
I originally reviewed this book in 2012 at Reading in Progress.
Monday 21 October 2013
The Life List
Perfect for fans of Cecelia Ahern and Jojo Moyes, a beautifuland moving story about the unbreakable bond between a mother and daughter
Brett's Life List
1. Go to Paris
2. Perform live, on a super big stage
3. Have a baby, maybe two
4. Fall in love
Brett Bohlinger seems to have it all: a plum job, a spacious loft, an irresistibly handsome boyfriend. All in all, a charmed life. That is, until her beloved mother passes away, leaving behind a will with one big stipulation: In order to receive her inheritance, Brett must first complete the life list of goals she'd written when she was a naïve girl of fourteen.
Grief-stricken, Brett can barely make sense of her mother's decision-her childhood dreams don't resemble her ambitions at age thirty-four in the slightest. Some seem impossible. How can she possibly have a relationship with a father who died seven years ago? Other goals (Be an awesome teacher!) would require her to reinvent her entire future.
As Brett reluctantly embarks on a perplexing journey in search of her adolescent dreams, one thing becomes clear. Sometimes life's sweetest gifts can be found in the most unexpected places.
My opinion: I've read so many good reviews of this book and this is about to join them!
Brett's mother dies at the beginning of the book, and after a disastrous event at the wake Brett finds that her mother seems to have plans to change (or possibly ruin) her life from beyond the grave. Brett is the only one of her siblings who doesn't receive her inheritance at the reading of the will. Instead her mother has instructed her lawyer to give Brett a list that she had written when she was 14 setting out her ambitions. She then has a year to achieve those things that she thought were what she wanted for her future when she was a teenager. We follow her over the next year as she goes on a voyage to discover what her mother was up to, and finally find her real self.
I was a bit unsure about this book before starting it as generally I'm not that keen on American chick lit (with a few exceptions). I really had no need to worry though as it didn't feel too 'Americanised' and could have been set anywhere. In fact I would say that Lori's writing is up there with some of the British greats.
I absolutely devoured this book, reading it in only three sittings and staying up late on week nights just to read one more chapter. The characters were brilliant and very believable. The story itself was very well thought through and really well written and seemed to unfurl gradually, but in a way that was fairly fast paced.
I'm afraid that my review just can't do justice to this book as I don't want to spoil the storyline in anyway and just want to urge everyone to read it! I definitely think this book will stay with me for a long time and will make me think about my own life.
I would definitely recommend this book as it was a fantastic read and really made me think. I look forward to reading more from the author in future as I absolutely loved this book!
My rating: A very well deserved five stars!
I received a review copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
Friday 18 October 2013
Me and Mr Carrington
A short story from the author of Cupcakes at Carrington’s – and a prequel to Christmas at Carrington’s!
Georgie Hart can’t believe her luck. It looks like Tom, the hunky boss of Carrington’s Department Store, in the picture-postcard town of Mulberry-on-Sea, is as hot for her as she is for him. After a romantic Italian get-together leaves her on Cloud Nine, Georgie is brought back down to earth with a bump when she has to get back behind the counter of the Luxury Handbags section.
But when Georgie is left open-mouthed by a revelation from one of her well-heeled customers, it seems like Tom hasn’t been entirely honest with her. Has Georgie done her usual trick of adding two and two together to make five?
Ever wondered what happened when Georgie first got together with Mr Carrington himself? This deliciously funny short story is perfect for anyone who loved Cupcakes at Carrington’s, and for those discovering the lovable Georgie Hart for the first time. The story also features an exclusive peek at the next book, Christmas at Carrington’s.
My opinion: I found out about this short story just as I finished reading Cupcakes at Carrington's and just had to preorder it to get my next fix!
I was not disappointed! This is another fantastic read and we get to meet some of our favourite characters again. We also get to meet Georgie's new assistant on the Luxury Handbag section and a few new rich customers.
Tom doesn't make an appearance until quite late in the book and my heart was in my mouth for a good chunk of the story wondering what would happen next!
This book is a lovely little appetiser before Christmas at Carrington's is published, and contains an excerpt of it at the end. The only problem is I want to read it NOW!!
My rating: A fabulous five stars!
Thursday 17 October 2013
Guest post: Zoe @ The Book Lovers
I have a treat in store for you today! Zoe from The Book Lovers has kindly agreed to write a guest post talking about her blog, why she blogs, and her favourite genre, NA. I asked Zoe if she wanted to add any pictures, and for some reason she sent me this one....
Hi everyone *waves*
My names Zoe and my blog is The Books Lovers. I’ve had this blog for a year now and I have met some of the most amazing friends through our love of books. I started The Book Lovers due to the excessive amount of books I go through (it’s slowed down a lot since I’ve got a full time job now). I used to go through two or three a day, and after speaking to my friends about setting up a review blog and they told me to go for it. I was nervous but I already recommend books to my friends and lend my books out so I thought “why the hell not” and so The Book Lovers was born.
My blog mainly focuses on New Adult with a hint of Young Adult and Erotica. My friends always tease me about reading sex books but I shrug it off because I love the books I read and why should I feel weird about sex scenes? You will notice I go off on tangents, so sorry in advance.
I used to spend a fortune on books, and when I got a kindle for Christmas a few years back that is when I discovered a whole array of books; books that I hadn’t seen in the shops and bookstores and books that were so cheap that I could buy about 7 eBooks for the price of one. I had my kindle for about a year before I started up my blog and if I’m being honest, I had no idea about self-publishing and the whole book community. I just downloaded books that looked awesome. My first NA book was actually Beautiful Disaster – Jamie McGuire. I had seen it by chance on Amazon and once downloaded I read it straight away. I adored it.
So when I began my blog, I had no one to show me the ropes, I had to figure out everything alone. From knowing what books tours were, to wondering what on earth Arcs were and how to join in with everything I saw on my TL. I think that’s why I always go that extra mile to help new blogs out because I know how lost I was when I first started and I’d hate for anyone to feel that way when they first begin.
Over the course of the months, I had built up my blog, knew what I was doing and making friends and author friends along the way. I support new blogs, new authors and I love promoting their work and chatting with them. Self-pub authors really are the best. Of course all authors appreciate their readers and fans, but I think without us, self-pub authors wouldn’t get the light of day, and that is why I love them. They are so gracious that you want to read their book, that you leave a glowing review and that you just love their books. I have a great group of author friends and I’m so happy to actually call them friends. I am actually meeting up with a few (and my lovely book blog friends) in November for a book event and I cannot express my excitement. I’ve been chatting to them for moths and now it’s time to meet them!
Sheli asked me to write my top indie authors and dear god, there are just so many, but I’m going to narrow it down to the ones that have supported me and my blog and I have been with from the very start.
1) Karli Perrin – Author of April Showers and April Fools (Out Dec 2013)
2) Emma Hart – Author of The Memories series, Mauve Legacy series, The Game series
3) Kerry Heavens – Author of Just Human and Still Human
4) Rachel Brookes – Author of Just Breathe
5) Laura Beege – Author of These Things About Us
6) Terri Anne Browning – Author of The Rocker series
7) Jade C Jamison – Author of so many bleeding books that I love hahha.
8) L.M Augustine – Author of Click To Subscribe and Two Roads
Okay, so I couldn’t push it down, because I love all of these authors! I have been with most of them since the beginning and I couldn’t ask for better friends. Push aside the fact we talk a lot, I always keep my reviews honest as I would never give them 5 stars just for knowing them. I always give them what I think the book deserves.
But yes, these eight indie authors definably deserve a read. They write amazing books that will suck you right in until the very end where you’ll be like ‘where did the time go?’ You won’t want to put their books down at all.
I was umming and ahhing about adding more to the list, but the majority of the authors I love have been snatched up by publishing houses, which they definitely deserve so fingers crossed these beauties do soon!! (I know Emma has an agent which is amazing news!!)
The reason I love these authors is because they write something different. New Adult fiction tends to focus on issues such as leaving home, developing sexuality, and furthering their education and career choices and in every book you can definitely see some part of the character in yourself, whether it’s the fears, college life, leaving home, finding yourself, having sex – there is something you can relate to in an NA book and I think that’s why I read NA a lot. The one book character I relate to a lot of Camryn from The Edge Of Never – J.A Redmerski. The reason I relate to her is because she’s lost, and she just packs a bag one day, gets a bus ticket and doesn’t know what she’s going to do, she just wants to get away, make the pain go away. During the trip she meets Andrew and he shows her how to live, how to concur her sexuality and let go of her past and learn who she truly is.
And this is what I want to do. Just pack and leave, find myself and find where I belong. Maybe find love along the way too.
I sobbed so much during this book that when I saw my mother, she asked me who had made me cry. She laughed when I told her it was a book. But see, this is why I love the NA genre. You can really connect to the story, the characters, how they are feeling and how they deal with everything. It’s real. Not that other books aren’t, but NA is something I don’t think I could ever stop reading. (can you imagine when I’m forty and still reading about 20 years olds…) but there are so many great authors that you should all just go and read and then come back and let me know how much you love their books ;) big promise I know.
If I haven’t sold you on at least picking up one NA books then I haven’t done my ‘job.’ But I am hoping that if you do decide to take a chance on NA, please let me know what you are reading and if you enjoyed it. Come follow me @TheBook_Lovers and come chat books with me. I don’t bite….too much ;)
A big thank you to Zoe for this fantastic post!! I'm very tempted to try out an NA book now, I hope you are too!!
Hi everyone *waves*
My names Zoe and my blog is The Books Lovers. I’ve had this blog for a year now and I have met some of the most amazing friends through our love of books. I started The Book Lovers due to the excessive amount of books I go through (it’s slowed down a lot since I’ve got a full time job now). I used to go through two or three a day, and after speaking to my friends about setting up a review blog and they told me to go for it. I was nervous but I already recommend books to my friends and lend my books out so I thought “why the hell not” and so The Book Lovers was born.
My blog mainly focuses on New Adult with a hint of Young Adult and Erotica. My friends always tease me about reading sex books but I shrug it off because I love the books I read and why should I feel weird about sex scenes? You will notice I go off on tangents, so sorry in advance.
I used to spend a fortune on books, and when I got a kindle for Christmas a few years back that is when I discovered a whole array of books; books that I hadn’t seen in the shops and bookstores and books that were so cheap that I could buy about 7 eBooks for the price of one. I had my kindle for about a year before I started up my blog and if I’m being honest, I had no idea about self-publishing and the whole book community. I just downloaded books that looked awesome. My first NA book was actually Beautiful Disaster – Jamie McGuire. I had seen it by chance on Amazon and once downloaded I read it straight away. I adored it.
So when I began my blog, I had no one to show me the ropes, I had to figure out everything alone. From knowing what books tours were, to wondering what on earth Arcs were and how to join in with everything I saw on my TL. I think that’s why I always go that extra mile to help new blogs out because I know how lost I was when I first started and I’d hate for anyone to feel that way when they first begin.
Over the course of the months, I had built up my blog, knew what I was doing and making friends and author friends along the way. I support new blogs, new authors and I love promoting their work and chatting with them. Self-pub authors really are the best. Of course all authors appreciate their readers and fans, but I think without us, self-pub authors wouldn’t get the light of day, and that is why I love them. They are so gracious that you want to read their book, that you leave a glowing review and that you just love their books. I have a great group of author friends and I’m so happy to actually call them friends. I am actually meeting up with a few (and my lovely book blog friends) in November for a book event and I cannot express my excitement. I’ve been chatting to them for moths and now it’s time to meet them!
Sheli asked me to write my top indie authors and dear god, there are just so many, but I’m going to narrow it down to the ones that have supported me and my blog and I have been with from the very start.
1) Karli Perrin – Author of April Showers and April Fools (Out Dec 2013)
2) Emma Hart – Author of The Memories series, Mauve Legacy series, The Game series
3) Kerry Heavens – Author of Just Human and Still Human
4) Rachel Brookes – Author of Just Breathe
5) Laura Beege – Author of These Things About Us
6) Terri Anne Browning – Author of The Rocker series
7) Jade C Jamison – Author of so many bleeding books that I love hahha.
8) L.M Augustine – Author of Click To Subscribe and Two Roads
Okay, so I couldn’t push it down, because I love all of these authors! I have been with most of them since the beginning and I couldn’t ask for better friends. Push aside the fact we talk a lot, I always keep my reviews honest as I would never give them 5 stars just for knowing them. I always give them what I think the book deserves.
But yes, these eight indie authors definably deserve a read. They write amazing books that will suck you right in until the very end where you’ll be like ‘where did the time go?’ You won’t want to put their books down at all.
I was umming and ahhing about adding more to the list, but the majority of the authors I love have been snatched up by publishing houses, which they definitely deserve so fingers crossed these beauties do soon!! (I know Emma has an agent which is amazing news!!)
The reason I love these authors is because they write something different. New Adult fiction tends to focus on issues such as leaving home, developing sexuality, and furthering their education and career choices and in every book you can definitely see some part of the character in yourself, whether it’s the fears, college life, leaving home, finding yourself, having sex – there is something you can relate to in an NA book and I think that’s why I read NA a lot. The one book character I relate to a lot of Camryn from The Edge Of Never – J.A Redmerski. The reason I relate to her is because she’s lost, and she just packs a bag one day, gets a bus ticket and doesn’t know what she’s going to do, she just wants to get away, make the pain go away. During the trip she meets Andrew and he shows her how to live, how to concur her sexuality and let go of her past and learn who she truly is.
And this is what I want to do. Just pack and leave, find myself and find where I belong. Maybe find love along the way too.
I sobbed so much during this book that when I saw my mother, she asked me who had made me cry. She laughed when I told her it was a book. But see, this is why I love the NA genre. You can really connect to the story, the characters, how they are feeling and how they deal with everything. It’s real. Not that other books aren’t, but NA is something I don’t think I could ever stop reading. (can you imagine when I’m forty and still reading about 20 years olds…) but there are so many great authors that you should all just go and read and then come back and let me know how much you love their books ;) big promise I know.
If I haven’t sold you on at least picking up one NA books then I haven’t done my ‘job.’ But I am hoping that if you do decide to take a chance on NA, please let me know what you are reading and if you enjoyed it. Come follow me @TheBook_Lovers and come chat books with me. I don’t bite….too much ;)
A big thank you to Zoe for this fantastic post!! I'm very tempted to try out an NA book now, I hope you are too!!
Wednesday 16 October 2013
Cover reveal: North Pole Reform School
I am very pleased to be a part of the cover reveal for Jaimie Admans' latest book, North Pole Reform School!
Mistletoe Bell hates Christmas. So would you if you had a name like hers. Her Christmas-mad parents make the festive season last all year, and with another Christmas looming, Mis doesn’t think she can take any more. After her carelessness causes an accident at school, it seems like things can’t get any worse.
Then she wakes up to find The Ghost of Christmases Ruined in her bedroom.
She is taken to the North Pole, to a reform school run by elves determined to make her love Christmas. Stuck in a misfit group of fellow Christmas-haters with a motley crew of the weird and even weirder, watched over by elves day and night, she doesn’t expect to meet cute and funny Luke, who is hiding a vulnerable side beneath his sarcastic exterior. She doesn’t expect to fall in love with him.
But all is not as it should be at the North Pole. A certain Mr Claus is making the elves’ lives a misery, and pretty soon Mistletoe and Luke are doing more than just learning to like Christmas.
A YA romantic comedy in which Santa is the bad guy, teaching reindeer to fly is on the curriculum, and zombies have a fondness for Christmas music.
-
Suitable for older teens and upwards due to bad language.
I think it looks and sounds fantastic and am really looking forward to reading it! If it's anything like the rest of Jaimie's books we are in for a great read! North Pole Reform School will be published for Kindle on 6th November 2013.
Link to Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18498255-north-pole-reform-school
Tuesday 15 October 2013
Lost and Found
It started with a letter...Carol is married to a man she doesn't love and mother to a daughter she doesn't understand. Crippled with guilt, she can't shake the feeling that she has wasted her life. So she puts pen to paper and writes a Letter to the Universe. Albert is a widowed postman, approaching retirement age, and living with his cat, Gloria, for company. Slowly being pushed out at his place of work, he is forced down to the section of the post office where they sort undeliverable mail. When a series of letters turns up with a smiley face drawn in place of an address, he cannot help reading them.
My opinion: After reading The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry last year, I really liked the look of this book and wanted to see whether it measured up.
I was really pleasantly surprised by this book! It is very easy to read with really vivid characters and definitely lives up to the hype. It follows the soon to be intertwined stories of Albert and Carol as they each face their own crises in their own way. When their paths inadvertently crossed, I was just willing them to come face to face and help them through their problems. I was kept riveted to the end and read huge chunks of the book in each sitting.
I think this book stands out on its own in the way it deals with issues such as illness, aging and love and deserves to be recognised for its own merits rather than merely being compared to a similar novel. This book was touching and heartbreaking in parts, but at no point did it feel depressing or melancholy. An excellent debut.
My rating: Four stars.
I originally reviewed this book at Reading in Progress.
Saturday 12 October 2013
The Rosie Project
An international sensation, this hilarious, feel-good novel is narrated by an oddly charming and socially challenged genetics professor on an unusual quest: to find out if he is capable of true love.
Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance. So when an acquaintance informs him that he would make a “wonderful” husband, his first reaction is shock. Yet he must concede to the statistical probability that there is someone for everyone, and he embarks upon The Wife Project. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things, Don sets out to find the perfect partner. She will be punctual and logical—most definitely not a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker, or a late-arriver.
Yet Rosie Jarman is all these things. She is also beguiling, fiery, intelligent—and on a quest of her own. She is looking for her biological father, a search that a certain DNA expert might be able to help her with. Don's Wife Project takes a back burner to the Father Project and an unlikely relationship blooms, forcing the scientifically minded geneticist to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie—and the realization that love is not always what looks good on paper.
The Rosie Project is a moving and hilarious novel for anyone who has ever tenaciously gone after life or love in the face of overwhelming challenges.
My opinion: Well, what can I say? This book was just great! The characters are brilliant, the story was well paced and engaging and it is a great love story without being cheesy or too soppy.
The story follows Don Tillman on his quest to find his perfect woman and we get to join him on the adventures he has on the journey. He is very set in his ways and finds social situations difficult, but we see him grow both in confidence and as a person throughout this book.
It is both funny and super cute in places. I also liked that this book is set in Australia as I haven't come across many (if any!) books set down under.
The one criticism I have of the book is that I would have liked to know a little bit more about Don and the reasons he behaved the way he did. Some things are alluded to, but no detail is given and are skimmed over slightly. On the other hand, this is the mark of a good character as I really cared about him and wanted to know a lot more.
A great book and highly recommended as a well written feel good story.
My rating: A fabulous four stars.
I originally reviewed this book at Reading in Progress.
Friday 11 October 2013
Author Interview: Jaimie Admans
Today I am joined by the very lovely Jaimie Admans who has very kindle agreed to be subject to a Sheli Reads
1. Hi Jaimie, welcome to Sheli Reads. Tell us a bit about yourself and your latest book, Not Pretty Enough.
Hello! Thank you for having me! I'm Jaimie, I'm 28 and from Wales. Not Pretty Enough is a YA romantic comedy about a girl called Chessie, who is madly in love with a boy in her school, but said boy doesn't know she exists. It's about the increasingly desperate measures she goes to in her quest to get him to notice her!
2. I've read the book and found it hilariously funny. How did you come up with the ideas for Chessie's little mishaps?
A couple of them are, ahem, quite close to home! None of the really bad stuff, but I did a few stupid things while trying to get my crush to notice me when I was a teenager! Mostly I just tried to put myself in Chessie's shoes and think, "what is the absolute worst thing that could happen in this situation?" It was a lot of fun actually, thinking about how things could go from bad to worse for poor Chessie!
3. Do you base your characters or events in your books on real life?
Yes, of course. I don't think you can't, really. Parts of you and your own experiences will always creep into what you write. A few small scenes may be similar to real life, but they are always heavily embellished and changed for fiction purposes! For characters, I occasionally use a trait or a saying of someone I know, but mostly I picture a celebrity in the role of the character, that makes them easier to write!
4. Not Pretty Enough is marketed as a YA book, and as a twenty something year old I found I really brought back memories of my school days! Which character were you most like at school?
Writing it brought back memories of my school days too! I was most like Chessie - terrible at most subjects and more interested in boys than learning anything! I had a massive crush on a boy who never even knew my name and I spent most of my time staring at him and trying to think of ways to get out of PE!
5. This is the fourth book you have published in just under a year, and each has been really different from the last. Where do you get the inspiration for your writing?
Thank you! They weren't all written in a year, most of my books have been sitting on my harddrive and gathering virtual dust for ages, this year I have just been editing and re-writing them ready for publication! I'm not that fast a writer! Inspiration comes from the weirdest places, it can be a picture you've seen, a sentence someone has said to you, a news report, anything really. The smallest thing can spark off a shedload of ideas that somehow turn into a book plot. With Afterlife Academy, a friend and I were talking about our school days and complaining about the amount of homework we used to get, and I said that even being dead wouldn't have been an acceptable excuse to get out of doing it, and boom: Afterlife Academy was born. The whole idea spiralled from that one thing! Plot ideas really do come from anything, no matter how small - the hardest part is turning an idea into a coherent book plot!
6. What can we expect from you next?
I have a Christmas YA romantic comedy coming out on November 6th. It's called North Pole Reform School and is about a girl who hates Christmas and is taken to a reform school in the North Pole where a bunch of elves are determined to make her and a misfit group of other Christmas-haters learn to love the season!
7. Which authors do you admire the most?
So many! I love the writers and the books I grew up reading, like Judy Blume, Enid Blyton and Virginia Andrews. These days, I love authors like Meg Cabot and Sophie Kinsella, their new releases are always insta-buys for me, but there are so many amazing books out there. One-offs or debut releases that I find absolutely brilliant and wonder how the writer managed to do it so well!
8. You obviously love writing and have a real talent for it. Have you always wanted to be a writer?
Thank you! You're making me blush here! Yes, I think so - I was always writing and telling stories when I was younger, and I was absolutely rubbish in school, but I think I was 15 when I realised that writing was what I wanted to do with my life. It took a few more years to find chick-lit and realise that was what I wanted to write, but it was definitely at 15 that I knew I wanted to be a writer. Looking back now, it was pretty obvious even before that though!
9. We spend quite a lot of time on Twitter talking about food. What is your favourite snack to help your creative thoughts flow?
Ha ha, we do, don't we?! Honestly, whatever's in the cupboard - I'm not fussy! I do like crisps though, and Not Pretty Enough was edited with a bag of Mini Cheddars open on the desk beside me every time I sat down! Also, tea - I couldn't live without a cup of tea next to me!
10. Do you have any tips for aspiring writers out there?
Unplug the internet - seriously! It might sound like a joke, but it's not. The hardest part of writing, for me at least, is making myself sit down to actually write, not check Twitter twenty times and read loads of Buzzfeed articles and catch up on celebrity news! Switch the router off or pull out the plug or something, and don't allow yourself to put it back on until you've hit a certain word count or particular goal! I love the internet, it's the best thing in the world, but it doesn't write a book for you - unfortunately!
The other bit of advice would be - don't give up! There will always be people who don't like your books, bad reviews, people who tell you you'll never be a 'proper writer', but there will also be people who love your books, who offer encouragement and support, who will commiserate when you have bad days and celebrate when you have good days!
11. Last question for you, if you were an animal, what would you be?
Ooh, a hard one! I quite fancy being a cat - lazing around in the sunshine all day, being spoilt and fed treats, getting away with anything just because you're a cat - we used to have cats and they would swipe people they didn't like round the face and no one would mind because they were cats - I'd like to be able to do that!
I'd like to say a huge thank you to Jaimie for being part of such a fun interview! If you would like to find out more about Jaimie and her books or follow our conversations about crisps, then these are the links you need!
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/be_the_spark
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/jaimieadmansbooks
- Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/notprettyenough
- GoodReads: http://www.goodreads.com/jaimieadmans
You can also read my reviews of Jaimie's books by clicking on her name at the bottom of this page.
Wednesday 9 October 2013
Cold Fusion 2000
Alex Kavanagh is the best!
Problem is, he's the best at being a pedantic physics-obsessed geek. He's a teacher who hates teaching; a lover who's just been dumped (again); a writer whose articles all get rejected; an adult who still lives at home and gets bullied at the bus stop by teenagers; and he's just had the worst day of his life. So far, so bad. Things can only get better, right?
While drowning his sorrows he sees an ex from six years ago, Lucy Spiers. The point when Lucy dumped him for his best friend was the point when his life started to go nuclear. He can't help himself: he tells her exactly what he thinks of her.
So it comes as a surprise when they go on a date. He didn't expect a spark to be reignited. Couldn't foresee the power of magnetism. He hadn't realised that he still loved her.
Holy protons, he hopes she's changed.
And – oh boy! – she's changed all right. For a start, she's actually Lucy's twin sister, Jane – someone prone to misguided acts of kindness, strange visions, and keeping secrets. Someone who knows she'll leave Alex's life forever in three days. As lies pile up Jane wonders if she can avoid breaking Alex's heart like her sister did.
Cold Fusion is a story wrapped around an enigma. It's a novel about making peace with the past and moving on, set in Manchester in the year 2000. It's time for change.
My opinion: I was sent a copy of this book by the author for review as he had noticed that I had read The Rosie Project. I was keen to give this book a try as I had really enjoyed The Rosie Project earlier this year.
When I read the line "1992. The Shamen yelled "Eezer Goode, Eezer Goode". Alex listened; decided that MSc's 're good and started his postgrad in physics." I was hooked. As a 90s dance music loving geek, I knew that this was going to work out well!
The story is about a man called Alex who is trying to get on with his life following a break up that pulled his life apart. Only to have his ex return to his life and make things a whole lot more confusing for him. The book follows his journey through this and his way to resolution. I don't want to say too much about the book as I don't want to spoil it, but there are clues in the book leading up to a twist at the end. I didn't see the twist coming and only realised what the clues were after I'd read it and started thinking about how we had got there.
A great book which I think every reader will interpret slightly differently and get something different from.
My rating: 4 stars
I received a copy of the book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Tuesday 8 October 2013
The Last Runaway
Honor Bright, a modest English Quaker moves to Ohio in 1850, only to find herself alienated and alone in a strange land. Sick from the moment she leaves England, and fleeing personal disappointment, she is forced by family tragedy to rely on strangers in a harsh, unfamiliar landscape. Nineteenth-century America is practical, precarious, and unsentimental, and scarred by the continuing injustice of slavery. In her new home Honor discovers that principles count for little, even within a religious community meant to be committed to human equality. However, drawn into the clandestine activities of the Underground Railroad, a network helping runaway slaves escape to freedom, Honor befriends two surprising women who embody the remarkable power of defiance. Eventually she must decide if she too can act on what she believes in, whatever the personal costs.
My opinion: This is my third Tracy Chevalier book of the year and it's another cracker! Chevalier's latest release is another historical fiction offering featuring quilts, quakers and a British girl called Honor who emigrates with her sister to America to start a new life.
The writing is once again wonderful in this book and the imagery very vivid. We meet lots of different characters in this book, and Honor faces tragedy and meets some new friends on her journey. The central story to this book is about slavery and the things that people did to help black people pass through Ohio and onto a better life whilst most people just looked the other way. To me, the relationships that were formed in the story were just as important, both good and bad, and also the realisation from Honor that life isn't all black and white.
Another great book and I look forward to discovering more of Chevalier's work.
My rating: Four stars
I received an advance copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Originally reviewed at Reading in Progress.
Saturday 5 October 2013
Guest post: Red and White
And now for something completely different! I'd like to welcome Karen D'Or to Sheli Reads for her guest post about the recent trend for Tudor fiction.
In California’s wine country, the grape harvest starts well before fall — the fruit ripens fast during the sweltering midsummer days when our vineyards seem like magnets for the summer sun, trapping the heat between the hills and valleys that define our terroir. Those heat wave days can quickly turn into sudden thundershowers, threatening the crops with mildew and ruination.
It is turncoat weather. If grapes aren’t harvested in time a precious vintage may be lost.
As long summer days come to a close, and the erratic harvest weather sends me home earlier on Saturdays, I open a bottle of local Pinot Noir and settle in to watch BBC’s The White Queen, the poorly-reviewed ten episode production based on Philippa Gregory’s three books: The White Queen, The Red Queen and The Kingmaker's Daughter.
Each Saturday night I turn on satellite TV to watch the small screen rendition the War of the Roses (WOTR). It is an time that historian Allison Weir calls an “unfolding pageant of treason and conflict.” I’m vigilantly watching the show because this year, surprisingly, the fictional tales of the historic conflict between the (red) Lancastrians and the (white) Yorkist roses/houses are my favorite bedtime reading: escapist, romantic, devious, epic, and always volatile.
Sure, I’ve grabbed Ms. Gregory’s popular WOTR novels, but even before The White Queen TV show landed in the U.S, I’d found other fiction authors who have tackled the pivotal century with careful plot development, thoughtful character interpretations, and insights into the mercurial relationships within, and between, the two houses. Since Sheli Reads loves good historical fiction, I’m delighted the saucy Welsh blogger invited me to guest post this week so I can share my thoughts on a few key re-tellings of this era.
Tudor Rose: the Story of the Queen Who United a Kingdom and Birthed a Dynasty
Margaret Campbell Barnes wrote Tudor Rose: the Story of the Queen Who United a Kingdom and Birthed a Dynasty sixty years ago. Tudor Rose brightly weaves the history of Elizabeth of York, the White Queen’s eldest daughter, and the most recent common ancestor of all English monarchs. Elizabeth shines through as a naturally cheerful girl who develops into a wise and warm queen. The book moves quickly, is carefully researched, and is well worth reading. However, towards the end Barnes tosses in a few strange fictional twists that seem both implausible and rushed.
Rose of York Trilogy
Written more recently, and with a stronger Ricardian slant, is Sandra Worth's Rose of York trilogy, three books framed by the decades long love story of Richard III and Anne Neville. The author won several awards for the series including Francis Ford Coppola/Ray Bradbury/Moxie Films-sponsored 2003 New Century Writers Award. The trilogy kept my attention, and Worth writes with compassion and clarity. Although Worth’s presumption of a “love at first sight” tormented romance between Richard and Anne is rather charming, I don’t agree with the journal of the Richard III society’s reviewer that the trilogy is a “masterpiece.” Entertaining, yes, but the author may have gone a bit too far in de-vilifying Richard.
The War of the Roses
In spite of the entertainment value of the novels, for me the most compelling read is the 1995 non-fiction classic from Alison Weir. Weir is the highest-selling female historian in the United Kingdom. This is a long (496 pages) and riveting book. It is a great introduction to the WOTR era; for a historian Weir is imminently readable with a strong narrative compass. Because of her uncanny ability to make historical facts evocative and moving, Weir’s insight is often more worthwhile, and compelling, than some of the fictional accounts which often unfairly collapse years and decades into just a few words.
As the days grow shorter, I recommend that you grab some juicy WOTR reading. You might even consider breaking out of the historical novel groove to explore a renowned nonfiction guide to this unstable period by turning to Alison Weir’s War of the Roses nonfiction classic. Weir brilliantly tells the “astonishing and often grim story of power struggles that involved some of the most charismatic figures in English History.”
By all means, time travel back to the fifteenth century: get lost in and around vivid landscapes like Pembroke Castle in West Wales, or Ludlow Castle in Shropshire where Edward IV sent his son the Prince of Wales before…. well, if you don’t already know, you’ll find out!
And as you delve into these devious WOTR times, I suggest you cozy up with a glass of ruby-red wine, perhaps a 2008 Dry Creek Valley Meritage. If you aren’t yet loyal to the reds, and if your leanings are more toward a chilly, seductive, wheat-hued dry white, consider the award-winning 2010 Alexander Valley Vineyards Chardonnay.
Unlike in the volatile choices during the War of the Roses, there are no losers in this decision between Red and White.
Karen D’Or
28 September 2013
Background:
Karen D’Or (B.A. in English Literature and M.A. in Business Administration) has a 30-year career writing for corporations and non-profits. Karen is a successful grant writer and researcher in Sonoma County, California, where her practice raises millions of dollars for local social service agencies. Her college boyfriend recalls her writing as “remarkably fresh, witty, sharp, expressive and clever.” Www.musingly.me is Karen’s first blog venture launched to fulfill those lofty expectations of three decades ago. Twitter @musinglyme
Red and White
In California’s wine country, the grape harvest starts well before fall — the fruit ripens fast during the sweltering midsummer days when our vineyards seem like magnets for the summer sun, trapping the heat between the hills and valleys that define our terroir. Those heat wave days can quickly turn into sudden thundershowers, threatening the crops with mildew and ruination.
It is turncoat weather. If grapes aren’t harvested in time a precious vintage may be lost.
As long summer days come to a close, and the erratic harvest weather sends me home earlier on Saturdays, I open a bottle of local Pinot Noir and settle in to watch BBC’s The White Queen, the poorly-reviewed ten episode production based on Philippa Gregory’s three books: The White Queen, The Red Queen and The Kingmaker's Daughter.
Each Saturday night I turn on satellite TV to watch the small screen rendition the War of the Roses (WOTR). It is an time that historian Allison Weir calls an “unfolding pageant of treason and conflict.” I’m vigilantly watching the show because this year, surprisingly, the fictional tales of the historic conflict between the (red) Lancastrians and the (white) Yorkist roses/houses are my favorite bedtime reading: escapist, romantic, devious, epic, and always volatile.
Sure, I’ve grabbed Ms. Gregory’s popular WOTR novels, but even before The White Queen TV show landed in the U.S, I’d found other fiction authors who have tackled the pivotal century with careful plot development, thoughtful character interpretations, and insights into the mercurial relationships within, and between, the two houses. Since Sheli Reads loves good historical fiction, I’m delighted the saucy Welsh blogger invited me to guest post this week so I can share my thoughts on a few key re-tellings of this era.
Tudor Rose: the Story of the Queen Who United a Kingdom and Birthed a Dynasty
Margaret Campbell Barnes wrote Tudor Rose: the Story of the Queen Who United a Kingdom and Birthed a Dynasty sixty years ago. Tudor Rose brightly weaves the history of Elizabeth of York, the White Queen’s eldest daughter, and the most recent common ancestor of all English monarchs. Elizabeth shines through as a naturally cheerful girl who develops into a wise and warm queen. The book moves quickly, is carefully researched, and is well worth reading. However, towards the end Barnes tosses in a few strange fictional twists that seem both implausible and rushed.
Rose of York Trilogy
Written more recently, and with a stronger Ricardian slant, is Sandra Worth's Rose of York trilogy, three books framed by the decades long love story of Richard III and Anne Neville. The author won several awards for the series including Francis Ford Coppola/Ray Bradbury/Moxie Films-sponsored 2003 New Century Writers Award. The trilogy kept my attention, and Worth writes with compassion and clarity. Although Worth’s presumption of a “love at first sight” tormented romance between Richard and Anne is rather charming, I don’t agree with the journal of the Richard III society’s reviewer that the trilogy is a “masterpiece.” Entertaining, yes, but the author may have gone a bit too far in de-vilifying Richard.
The War of the Roses
In spite of the entertainment value of the novels, for me the most compelling read is the 1995 non-fiction classic from Alison Weir. Weir is the highest-selling female historian in the United Kingdom. This is a long (496 pages) and riveting book. It is a great introduction to the WOTR era; for a historian Weir is imminently readable with a strong narrative compass. Because of her uncanny ability to make historical facts evocative and moving, Weir’s insight is often more worthwhile, and compelling, than some of the fictional accounts which often unfairly collapse years and decades into just a few words.
As the days grow shorter, I recommend that you grab some juicy WOTR reading. You might even consider breaking out of the historical novel groove to explore a renowned nonfiction guide to this unstable period by turning to Alison Weir’s War of the Roses nonfiction classic. Weir brilliantly tells the “astonishing and often grim story of power struggles that involved some of the most charismatic figures in English History.”
By all means, time travel back to the fifteenth century: get lost in and around vivid landscapes like Pembroke Castle in West Wales, or Ludlow Castle in Shropshire where Edward IV sent his son the Prince of Wales before…. well, if you don’t already know, you’ll find out!
And as you delve into these devious WOTR times, I suggest you cozy up with a glass of ruby-red wine, perhaps a 2008 Dry Creek Valley Meritage. If you aren’t yet loyal to the reds, and if your leanings are more toward a chilly, seductive, wheat-hued dry white, consider the award-winning 2010 Alexander Valley Vineyards Chardonnay.
Unlike in the volatile choices during the War of the Roses, there are no losers in this decision between Red and White.
Karen D’Or
28 September 2013
Background:
Karen D’Or (B.A. in English Literature and M.A. in Business Administration) has a 30-year career writing for corporations and non-profits. Karen is a successful grant writer and researcher in Sonoma County, California, where her practice raises millions of dollars for local social service agencies. Her college boyfriend recalls her writing as “remarkably fresh, witty, sharp, expressive and clever.” Www.musingly.me is Karen’s first blog venture launched to fulfill those lofty expectations of three decades ago. Twitter @musinglyme
Friday 4 October 2013
Afterlife Academy
Even being dead isn’t enough to get you out of maths class.
Dying wasn't on sixteen-year-old Riley Richardson's to-do list. And now, not only is she dead, but she's stuck in a perpetual high school nightmare. Worse still, she's stuck there with the geekiest, most annoying boy in the history of the world, ever.
In a school where the geeks are popular and just about everything is wrong, Riley has become an outcast. She begins a desperate quest to get back home, but her once-perfect life starts to unravel into something not nearly as great as she thought it was. And maybe death isn’t really that bad after all...
Welcome to Afterlife Academy, where horns are the norm, the microwave is more intelligent than the teachers, and the pumpkins have a taste for blood.
My opinion: This book is the third book that up and coming indie author Jaimie Admans has published in the last 6 months, and boy is it a cracker.
To be honest I was expecting your average young adult slightly paranormal romance. But I was pleasantly surprised!! The storyline of this book is so original and every detail is well thought through and the imagery is brilliant.
I found it hard to put the book down and read it everwhere when I was reading it, in my favourite coffee shop, in bed, whilst eating my tea and even on the break of a training course! I would definitely recommend this book for a fun read that has a bit of the paranormal, some romance and is still well written.
I would like to see this book made into a series as I liked the characters and think a lot more could be made of them, particularly Riley and Narcissa.
All in all, another excellent book from a very talented indie author!
My rating: Five stars!
I originally reviewed this book over at Reading in Progress
Thursday 3 October 2013
How to Fall in Love
She has just two weeks. Two weeks to teach him how to fall in love – with his own life.
Adam Basil and Christine Rose are thrown together late one night, when Christine is crossing the Halfpenny Bridge in Dublin. Adam is there, poised, threatening to jump. Adam is desperate – but Christine makes a crazy deal with him. His 35th birthday is looming and she bets him she can show him that life is worth living before then.
Despite her determination, Christine knows what a dangerous promise she’s made. Against the ticking of the clock, the two of them embark on wild escapades, grand romantic gestures and some unlikely late-night outings. Slowly, Christine thinks Adam is starting to fall back in love with his life.
But has she done enough to change his mind for good? And is that all that’s starting to happen?
My opinion: I absolutely loved this book from the very first page.
We meet Christine after she has tried to save the life of a man who she finds trying to commit suicide, only for him to pull the trigger anyway. When she gets home following the incident she leaves her husband and tries to get on with her life.
Whilst walking along the Ha'penny Bridge she comes across another man, Adam, who is threatening to jump. She manages to persuade him otherwise, but at a cost. She has to convince him that life is worth living in only two weeks, otherwise he will go ahead and end his life on his 35th birthday.
It sounds like quite a morbid premise for a book, but I was intrigued by the blurb and am so glad that I was sent a review copy. The book was absolutely fantastic and didn't feel depressing in any way. I couldn't wait to pick it up in every free moment I had and then didn't want to put it down! Just one more chapter...
When I finished the book I was both smiling and crying. Partially because such a wonderful book had come to an end. This was the first Cecilia Ahern book I have read and will not be the last. It is published in November and I urge you to read this book! It is definitely worth it.
My rating: A HUGE five stars!! If I could give more than five stars I would!
I received this book for review from http://www.lovereading.co.uk in exchange for an honest review.
Wednesday 2 October 2013
Model Misfit
“My name is Harriet Manners, and I am still a geek.”
Harriet knows that modelling won’t transform you. She knows that being as uniquely odd as a polar bear isn’t necessarily a bad thing (even in a rainforest). And that the average person eats a ton of food a year, though her pregnant stepmother is doing her best to beat this.
What Harriet doesn’t know is where she’s going to fit in once the new baby arrives.
With summer plans ruined, modelling in Japan seems the perfect chance to get as far away from home as possible. But nothing can prepare Harriet for the craziness of Tokyo, her competitive model flatmates and her errant grandmother’s ‘chaperoning’. Or seeing gorgeous Nick everywhere she goes.
Because, this time, Harriet knows what a broken heart feels like.
Can geek girl find her place on the other side of the world or is Harriet lost for good?
My opinion: I first became acquainted with the Geek Girl series and Harriet Manners a few months ago when I read the first book. Harriet became my hero at this point, and I couldn't wait to read more about her adventures!
The second book in the series, Model Misfit, does not disappoint. It's six months later and Harriet is still modelling, her stepmother is heavily pregnant and even more importantly, she is still a geek! Not much seems to have changed in Harriet's life, apart from the graffiti on her bag becoming more creative. We join Harriet on the day of her last exam. Which she manages to turn up to painted gold and wearing a shredded sweatshirt following a modelling shoot. See, totally normal!
I love that Harriet hasn't become any more refined or less clumsy despite her new status as a teen model. She is still as accident prone as ever, and when reading her adventures you are guaranteed that hilarity will ensue! And this time, Harriet's adventures take us across the world to Japan for a shoot with Yuka. She shares an apartment out there with two other models, including Japanese girl Rin, who is one of the funniest characters I have come across for a while! Rin is obsessed with all things Australian and is trying to learn English. That's when she's not dressing up her cat, Kylie Minogue, in clothes to match her own Harajuku fashions!
And we can't forget Lion Boy. He is very much a feature in this book even if it's not in the fairytale fashion I think we would all like yo read about. You will have to read the book to find out how it turns out though! Harriet's eccentric grandmother Bunty also makes an appearance in this book and I hope we see more of her in the next book in the series.
As I'm sure you can tell from all of my gushing, I really enjoyed this book. I read it in 3 sittings as I just couldn't get enough of it. It would have been fewer if I hadn't had to get up for work the next day! I believe that the Geek Girl series is due to be a trilogy, but I really hope that Holly a Smale can write us more Geek Girl stories than that. I really don't want to think that the next book might be the last!
A fantastic series from a British YA writer. And Harriet is definitely a better role model for girls than many others I can think of (*coughs*...Miley Cyrus...) and you should all go and buy it and stay up all night to read it!!
My rating: A fabulous five stars!
I received an advance copy of Model Misfit from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This copy kept me going until the paperback I had preordered arrived :-)
Tuesday 1 October 2013
Falling Angels
An elegant, daring, original, and compelling novel, set against a gaslit backdrop of social and political turbulence in early twentieth-century London, Falling Angels draws a picture of family life that exposes the prejudices and flaws of a changing time.
My opinion: This was my second foray into reading Chevalier's work and it was just as good as the first!
This book is set just post-Victorian era following the death of Queen Victoria and we follow it right through to the rallies held in London by the Suffragettes. The story is told from a number of characters' points of views and we meet a number of people along the way.
The detail of this book is brilliant, and I liked the fact that it was based around the subject of death, something that the Victorians treated very differently to how we do today. However, it is not morbid or dark in any way. It just shows a different view of life and how people dealt with it back then.
The descriptions were really evocative without being overly wordy and the characters were all really well developed, even if some were a little infuriating!
Chevalier is fast becoming one of my favourite authors and I would definitely recommend her to fans of Sarah Waters.
My rating: Five stars
Originally reviewed at Reading in Progress
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